Chapter 380 (Self Edited) – Arriving at the Holy City
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Soma and his companions headed toward the Holy City but were surprised to find that they were able to make progress along the way with ease. Finding the first village was somewhat challenging, but that was the extent of their difficulties. Once they located the first village, finding the next ones became much easier. No matter how remote the location, people knew about nearby villages and towns. From there, they just needed to head towards the places in the direction of the Holy City. Repeating this process allowed them to steadily approach their destination.
Of course, it wasn’t the shortest route, but rushing for the shortest path could result in more time spent in the end. What was important now was certainty. Moreover, the journey was smooth because there were no incidents. Unlike the chaos in Veritas, there wasn’t even a single conflict. Everywhere was peaceful, and even monsters hardly appeared. Soma and his companions’ journey was remarkably smooth.
Naturally, they gathered information about the Holy City along the way. Based on what they heard, there seemed to be no abnormalities in the Holy City. This didn’t change as they got closer to the Holy City. Everyone they spoke to said that the Holy City was as usual, with no changes.
“Hmm… well, this is as expected, but it’s still strange.” (Soma)
However, the situation itself was abnormal. Both Aina and Sheila nodded in agreement.
“Yeah. At first, I felt relieved, but… it seems like it’s going to continue like this.” (Aina)
“…Right, everyone says there’s nothing wrong… but no one mentioned hearing from people returning from the Holy City.” (Sheila)
Just as Sheila said, while they heard stories of people heading to the Holy City, they never heard about anyone returning from it. Yet, everyone insisted there was nothing wrong with the Holy City.
‘How could they be so sure there was nothing wrong when there was no way to know the current state of the Holy City?’
Well, if they were far from the Holy City, then, it wasn’t that surprising. It probably didn’t have much to do with the Holy City, so it was only natural to think that as long as they didn’t hear any reports of anything unusual happening, it won’t be any different. However, villages and towns closer to the Holy City were different. The people living there had some degree of interaction with the Holy City.
Travelers heading to the Holy City would stop by and spend money there. Both the journey to and from the Holy City are important, as they are valuable sources of income. Naturally, people would be concerned about the movements of those traveling to and from the Holy City. Despite this, even though there were no people returning from the Holy City, n.o.body seemed to be worried. Instead, they all claimed that there was nothing unusual. No matter how one thought about it, this was certainly abnormal.
“Moreover, even the town closest to the Holy City said the same thing,” Soma remarked, looking back at the town they had just left with a sigh.
Although only about ten days had pa.s.sed since then, under normal circ.u.mstances, someone should have returned by now. Yet, in that fairly large town, everyone insisted there was nothing unusual. This abnormality reminded them of something else.
“In a way, it’s similar to what happened in Veritas.” (Aina)
“…Yes, it’s like they don’t notice the abnormality. Could it be Devils again?” (Sheila)
“Well, who knows?” (Soma)
“Is that not the case? I thought it was the same.” (Aina)
“It does seem similar, but I don’t understand what they would gain from doing this. The abnormality is simply that no one is concerned about the Holy City.” (Soma)
“…Maybe they’re trying to prevent people from noticing the abnormality about the Holy City?” (Sheila)
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“Trying to keep people from realizing something is happening in the Holy City seems a bit off. After all, we’ve already noticed that something is happening.” (Aina)
“…Well, thinking about it won’t solve anything. Let’s move on. It will be quicker to see for ourselves.” (Soma)
“Yes, that’s true.” (Sheila)
As mentioned earlier, the town they had just left was one of the nearest to the Holy City. This meant that the Holy City was not far away. Soma and his companions braced themselves and continued on, eager to discover what was happening. Soon enough, they were forced to stop.
They finally caught sight of the Holy City, or rather, what they saw in its place. No… In fact, was it even fair to say that he was able to see the Holy City? A pure white, spherical object occupied the s.p.a.ce where the Holy City should have been, making it impossible to see anything within.
“What is that?” (Aina)
“Hmm… did the Holy City disappear and that thing appeared in its place, or did that appear and cause the Holy City to disappear? Neither explanation seems quite right.” (Soma)
“…Is the Holy City even gone in the first place?” (Sheila)
“Regardless, it’s clear that the Holy City isn’t there.” (Aina)
“I wouldn’t be so sure about that. For now, it’s just that we can’t see it with our own eyes. Well, let’s approach and verify it for ourselves.” (Soma)
“Approach and verify… that thing? Are you sure about this?” (Aina)
“Well, we won’t know if it’s safe or not until we get closer.” (Soma)
While there was no sign of it attacking them, caution was still warranted. They carefully advanced, observing their surroundings. Surprisingly, nothing seemed to happen as they neared it easily.
“Hmm… it’s almost disappointing how uneventful this is,” Soma commented.
“Hmm… I’m actually a bit surprised.” (Soma)
“Well, if nothing happens, that’s actually better. But still… if there’s nothing at all, that’s a problem too.” (Aina)
“Yeah… I still don’t understand what this is.” (Sheila)
“This… somehow, it doesn’t seem like it crushed or attacked the Holy City. It looks more like it’s covering it with some sort of barrier.” (Soma)
“Yeah… now that you mention it, it does look like a barrier. If we were to cover the holy city with a barrier and visualize it as a pure white wall, it might turn out something like this.” (Aina)
“Hmm… so is this a barrier? Or is it being attacked by covering it with something?” (Sheila)
“It doesn’t seem like an attack. It doesn’t feel hostile. If anything, it seems protective. However, it seems to be quite powerful to be called a barrier, so although it’s the same type, it may be of a higher level.” (Soma)
As they discussed these possibilities, suddenly, without any irregularities, a part of the smooth surface rippled slightly, and a voice was heard.
“Indeed, as expected.” (??)
It was a familiar voice, and shortly after, a familiar figure emerged from beyond the rippling spot.
It was Eleonora.
“Hmm, Eleonora appears… which means this must be the work of either you or Satya or someone similar, right?” (Soma)
“Yes, precisely, but… aren’t you surprised to see me here?” (Eleanora)
“Once I realized this was for protection, I antic.i.p.ated your presence.” (Soma)
“As always, you never cease to impress. Well then… although I’d like to exchange greetings with our new visitor, unfortunately, I’m afraid we don’t have the luxury of time. There’s quite a bit to discuss including acc.u.mulated matters.” (Eleanora)
“Hmm… that’s fine.” (Soma)
“Not having the luxury of time… well, it’s clear something has happened, but what exactly? Or rather, is something happening?” (Aina)
“Yes, indeed… I’ll certainly explain everything. After all, I came out here specifically to provide that explanation. It’s not as if something overly complicated has occurred.” (Eleanora)
As Eleonora said this, she tilted her head slightly as if to say that nothing really big had happened. Then–…
“–It’s just that the Holy City was on the verge of being destroyed.” (Eleonora)
She spoke those words with the same expression and tone.
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