Chapter 57 – Scars.

Rogi opened his closed eyes, feeling a vague sense of rising consciousness, then jumped up in surprise. She remembered that she had fallen asleep exhausted from lusting after the girl. Jumping up from his seat, he could see that this was not the last place he slept.

“Woke up!”

The blanket he didn’t even cover was pushed over his body. Seeing that even the voices of the friends they often hang out with could be heard, it was clear that this carriage had fallen asleep with them before waking up from a dream. Somehow the playful children’s voices were annoying, but Rogi didn’t have time to pay attention to it because he thought he’d been caught doing something like that to the girl.

“Me, who brought you here?”
“Have you not woken up yet? Didn’t you sleep here yesterday?”
“You’ve been sleeping here all along?”

Could it be that yesterday was all a dream? If someone hadn’t brought her here or been caught, she couldn’t help but think that it was all a dream. But to say that, the pleasure he felt while mixing his body with the cold night air and the soft and pliable girl’s touch was too vivid. Rogi got up from his seat, washed his face dry, and tried to dismiss it as just an overly vivid dream. If it hadn’t been for the dark stains on his hands, he might have been lost in the thought.

“I hope this.”
“Hey, I got caught! Jump out!”

The children shouted as if they had been waiting, opened the carriage door, and ran away. Seeing that, Rogi realized why the children’s voices were playful. The children scribbled on his face as he woke up last. Yes, children used to play this kind of prank sometimes on a child who woke up late.

“These are real.”

Even though he said it like he was pissed off, a smile hung on Rogi’s lips. Originally, he would have chased after him in anger, but Rogi was relieved by the appearance of the children as usual. As if last night’s events were just a nightmare. He wiped the ink off his face with non-potable water. Still, why does this empty heart not go away? It was when he tried to change out of his dirty clothes, as if he had been sweating.

The reflection of himself as he was changing clothes in the full-length mirror made of flat iron placed in the corner of the carriage. The panties were different. He wasn’t wearing the panties he was wearing before he fell asleep here. It was the panties he had changed into when he woke up after a brief dream. The moment he realized that, the blood drained from his face. You said it wasn’t a dream?

“Upset.”

The voice of the girl who was talking like that and the golden color full of pain came to mind. She looked for the panties she was wearing, but she was nowhere to be found. Rogi hurriedly changed his clothes and jumped out of the wagon with a sense of urgency. When he didn’t come out to chase them, the children who were trying to look at him laughed and ran away when Rogi came out, but the important thing for Rogi right now was not to chase the children. The first thing he found was Shalby.

If those things really happened, Shalby, who was sleeping in the carriage because of Truth, would have been the first to find Rogi, who fell asleep after doing that to the girl. Not long after, he spotted Shalby and ran towards him.

“Rogi? What’s going on?”

Shalby, who saw her running well and stopped in front of her, asked as if it were strange. She heard the children laughing, so she thought she was playing again, but she did.

“The one who took me to the carriage. Is that Shalby?”
“What are you talking about again? To take you. Did that ever happen? Didn’t you go to bed with the kids?”

I don’t think there’s anything I can do to take you there. The strongest guy. Saying that, Shalbi couldn’t even guess why he came to see her. Seeing that, Rogi thought that maybe someone else had discovered and brought him to him first.

“Has anything happened to her, Belka?”

If so, he should have known that Belka had suffered the same thing again. According to his memory, he fell asleep without being able to clean up after he paid for his work. Then Shalby put on a sad expression, and he thought he must have left a mark. But what came out of his mouth was a completely different story.

“Did you have a nightmare?”
“Yes?”
“You told me that Pan was the culprit. No matter how great a wizard he is, it’s nothing to do with his fingers tied together like that. I know you’re anxious. Nothing happened. Don’t worry.”
“Did nothing happen?”

Logi couldn’t believe his words. Did nothing really happen? If so, it means that the events of yesterday were all dreams. But why are his panties the same as they were in his dream? His head hurt

“You don’t look well.”

When he asked if he was okay, Rogi couldn’t answer.

“Where is he now?”
“He would have gone to breakfast with Usher first.”

As soon as he heard that, he ran to where breakfast was being served.

“He looks sick. Should I ask Truth to look after him?”

Shalvi was waiting for Truth to see all the patients, so she was going to eat late. Rogi’s appearance and pale complexion, which only made strange noises, were enough to make him worry. He brushed aside Rogi’s words, thinking he’d have to say them later.

“Heh, heh, heh, heh.”

Rogi breathes heavily as he arrives at the breakfast area. He found the color red. Even now, those things that seem real to dismiss as nightmares, hoping that he would tell them that his changed underwear was just an illusion and that it was all a dream. And he finally found the girl’s red color among the diners.

“Hey! Wait a minute.”

The red girl looked back at him, as if he knew that he was calling her. Usher looked at him from the side and gave him an annoyed look, but now Rogi had to listen to the girl’s answer. Expecting him to tell me it was all a dream.

“Do you remember what happened yesterday?”

Belka tilted her head at his question and opened her mouth.

“Your question is too broad.”

Fortunately, the girl who answered as if she didn’t know what to answer seemed to say that everything she remembered from last night was a dream.

“That’s right?”
“…But if it was last night, I remember it.”

But that’s for a while. His heart froze at the girl’s next words. The sun had risen and despite the warm weather, a chill seemed to run down my back. Looking at her blankly at her words, Logi could discover the sad resentment of her girlish gold. He was just a gaze. A gaze that an insensitive person might pass off as a whim. But that gaze was like a sharp dagger piercing the heart to Rogi.

He felt like he was about to collapse as his legs gave out, but it shouldn’t have ended here. He had to say something to the girl some more. It was too painful and painful to end like this, so I wished she had looked at herself for a little while longer.

“Then…Then why doesn’t everyone know about it?”

I thought I should say something more to take the time, so I said it hastily, but the only thing that came out of his mouth was something like wishing last night was all a dream. No, it was no different than begging to be told that it must be a dream. Could it be because of that? There was nothing left in the golden light of the girl looking at him. Even a handful of resentment.

“The price for the sacrifice has all been paid. Whether it was your intention or not, the contract was made and it is over.”

Logi couldn’t understand what the girl was saying. What is the sacrifice, and the price and the contract, such a story that I have never heard of. But only one thing was certain. The relationship with the girl is already irreversible.

“Belka, did something happen with him yesterday?”

After Rogi heard Belka’s words, he staggered back to his precarious steps as if he had lost his soul. Usher asked, examining the woman who didn’t seem happy. I wasn’t particularly fond of Roger. Rather, she was even annoyed. But no matter how much it was, seeing her dyeing her face dark like a person who would die at any moment gave me a sense of sympathy. I could understand how sad she would be if she was rejected by the person she liked.

But after hearing Belka and Rogi’s conversation, I couldn’t help but wonder what the hell happened yesterday. The girl who had been staring at Usher finally opened her mouth.

“Later, I’ll tell you later. There are too many people here.”
“Uh, yes.”

Putting aside his doubts for a while, Usher picked up the bowl he had put down. Breakfast was porridge made from rabbit meat caught yesterday. As the girl watched him eat, she had others join them where they sat. It was Donnar and Sif.

“So what are you and your sister doing?”

Originally, they came to eat with Donnar, but Donar was called by Sif in the middle, and now they are back together.

“Oh, nothing. It was just the two of us.”
“Yes, yes! I have something to ask of Donnar.”

I don’t know what I’ve been doing, but was it so embarrassing to ask what had happened? Usher was suspicious of the two of them. Then he noticed Belka staring at Sif. If you ask me if I noticed anything.

“What’s the matter?”
“The two are mixed.”

The girl’s voice was low, but at least it was audible to everyone present. At her words, Sif turned his face red, and Donnar lowered his head in shame. Only Usher didn’t know what she was talking about.

After breakfast, Donard and other coachmen gathered. The end of the long and far journey was soon in sight, so he was a little excited, but because the biggest obstacle still remained, it was to open the meeting calmly.

“Are there any missing screws or problems with the wheels?”
“The wheels are fine. There’s a small hole in the wall of the wagon. I need something welded.”
“I don’t know if it’s a blacksmith, but how do you do that here? I’ll just bring you an iron plate, so put it on.”

In order to pass through the cloud zone, more thorough preparation was required. Even if someone dies or disappears from this place right now, it’s something you don’t know. After receiving a report on the condition of the wagon and the condition of Hildisbini pulling the wagon, he carefully checked to see if there was anything wrong with it.

“We decided to signal with a whistle instead of a flag. How was the condition of the cloud zone?”
“I went inside and looked around, but there wasn’t much to see.”

Donar pondered as he listened to the story of the coachman, who had just been scouting on Hildis Beanie. He couldn’t directly look at the center of the important cloud zone, so scouting was a mana, but it was better than not doing it, so there was no choice. Even so, if the reconnaissance was sent to the depths of the cloud zone, the safety of the coachman and Hildisbini could not be guaranteed. If you cannot return, you will lose precious manpower and livestock, and even if you return, it will take too long considering the distance from the center. The weather is very likely to change on the way back.

“In the end, I have no choice but to leave it to chance.”
“Yes.”

When I couldn’t get an answer, I just sighed. The defenses are flawless, but no matter how well prepared they are, there could be casualties or annihilation. It’s the worst. That was what it was like to pass through the cloud region. Each cloud region is different in size and scale, but with some exceptions, the atmosphere is very unstable, so passing under it was bound to be a dangerous adventure. There were even quite a few dangerous creatures living there. They prepared their own countermeasures or preparations, but now all they can do is to resolve themselves and pass through the cloud zone.

“Hmm, can we talk for a minute?”
“Old man.”

Then the old man’s voice broke through the coachmen. As the coachman politely backed away at the old man’s voice, he entered.

“Do you have any problem.”
“Nothing like that. I just have something I want to tell you.”

When Donard asked as a representative, the old man laughed and denied it.

“Without you guys, this guild wouldn’t have come this far. It’s all thanks to you.”

And everyone was silent at his next words. It was something he hadn’t even thought of. All the tasks given to them were, of course, things that had to be resolved, and they lived a life in which they should not fail even if they heard harsh criticism even after solving the tasks. So was this top. It was their job, and even those at this top, with a few exceptions, took it for granted that they lead the wagon and deal with dangerous creatures.

“So don’t worry too much if you fail. You guys have done well enough.”

For them, the old man’s words were a comfort and encouragement. When the old man left those words behind, Donar, who was leading the meeting, was the first to speak.

“There’s no point in prolonging these meetings. Let’s go now.”

In fact, they were hesitating. This was because if they did not pass through the cloud zone, their long journey would be in vain. I was afraid of what would happen if I was unlucky and the carriage overturned or someone died. But the old man’s words were enough to dispel their hesitation. In the end, they ended the meaningless meeting that they had been dragging on unconsciously and climbed into their coachman’s seats.

In case of emergency, the coachman who is not on duty also climbs into the driver’s seat together. They were reserve personnel to protect the coachman driving the wagon in case of an unexpected danger or to replace it in case of emergency. Normally, there would be no problem even if the coachman drove the wagon alone, but since the cloud region was particularly dangerous, he needed a manpower to escort and replace the coachman driving the wagon.

“Please, let’s hope that there are no swarms of crayfish.”
“Don’t talk about anxiety. If you run into them, it’s already over.”

Donard, too, hated the coachman’s jokes as he climbed into the carriage with him. The weather wasn’t the only reason why being under the clouds was dangerous. It was because there were many dangerous creatures living in the dark place. The crayfish he was talking about were gigantic creatures that lived under the clouds, and had a hard shell and had a habit of gathering in groups, so they were difficult creatures to deal with, although not as good as dragons.

If you run into them under the dark cloud area, which is like their home, there will be no more answers than the dragon. They are even omnivores and gluttons, so in the case of carriages, it is safe to say that the moment they encounter them, it is over. How could it be called the natural enemy of travelers even among so many dangerous creatures? The only way to avoid them was to pass where they were staying, or to avoid overlapping routes when traveling in large numbers from time to time.

– Beep Beep!!!

Before entering the cloud zone, Donar, who confirmed that all preparations were complete by exchanging signals with flags, blew his final whistle to signal for departure. In the dark, I had to hear this sound and orient myself. So he led the carriage towards the cloud region. The outside is at least sunny, but if you go a little deeper, it is full of darkness without sunlight. As they enter the shadow of the clouds, they cannot now tell whether they are moving towards the darkness or the darkness is moving towards them.

Donard made up his mind to retreat into the darkness that stimulated primal fear by recalling his promise to Sif. He had to pass through here. The cross that the red girl he met on the way up had put on instead of the symbol of his hometown that had fallen from his left chest seemed to give him courage. He didn’t know what he meant, but he seemed to be able to accept it roughly as a sign of cheering.

“It’s really dark.”

As the carriage moved, Usher, who was lying with his head on Belka’s lap, suffering from motion sickness, muttered as he watched the sunlight disappear from the window and black darkness gathered. Covered in thick clouds and not even the moon and stars, the sky was darker than night, reminding me of the day I was attacked by strange insects.

“It’s okay. I’ll protect you no matter what.”

As if he had noticed Usher’s restless heart, he felt Belka’s kind golden light towards him and a hand gently stroking his hair. But even with her words, Usher couldn’t be more pleased. Even when Mac tried to kill him, even when Pan threatened him, it reminded me of how the girl used magic to protect him, suffering just from using it.

“I don’t like that. Belka is thinking of sacrificing herself for me again.”

The way he sacrificed himself for him. Usher wondered if he had been himself, would he have done such an act without any hesitation? He was worried He was so scared and scared. He wasn’t sure Maybe he could have run away, leaving Belka behind. Even so, Usher suffered more because he knew that the girl would forgive him for that.

“I don’t want Belka to get hurt.”

Usher was afraid to leave Belka alone. Wouldn’t he be hurt somewhere without even knowing it? Wouldn’t he be willing to sacrifice himself for her sake and say it’s okay? He thought he’d rather Belka be a little more selfish. Then she would get hurt less and hurt less. The golden light of the girl who listened to him shone with warmth. She reassured him, like a special spell, that she could feel the tenderness he felt just by looking at him.

“Thank you. Usher.”

Her soft lips lightly pressed against his forehead, and her warm, fuzzy sensation filled her heart like a puffy loaf of bread. Outside in the dark, the wind and rain blew and the sound of the carriage hitting hard resonated inside the carriage, but it was not worrisome. Just being together like this seemed to solve everything.

“I envy you.”

As they were riding in the same wagon, Truce, who was watching their affectionate behavior, which could only be nerve-wracking if they weren’t concentrating on something, found himself muttering such a thought inadvertently. However, since he had already looked over all the patients’ conditions, he had no distance to focus, so he kept losing his eyes to them. Even if she tried to ignore it, a girl named Belka had a magical ability to catch people’s attention, so it was more of a problem. Truth, who felt lonely as if he were in a different space even though he was in the same space as them, waited for this moment to pass quickly.