Log Horizon

Chapter 5: Contract

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Chapter 5: Contract
Part 1
"...Please help us, we need your strength Shiroe-san!"
Suppressing the pain in her heart, the clear sorrow in her voice told Shiroe something was amiss.
Minori was not a girl who would joke in this kind of voice.
She was a serious, gentle, and strong girl.
Shiroe noticed that Minori saw him as her role model.
Minori tried to learn everything he did on the battlefield and unconsciously remembered everything even
mimicking the way he walked. Because she was such a girl, Shiroe wanted to teach her all that he knew.
Minori always responded to his lessons with more than 100% effort.
Shiroe didn"t know what sort of life she lived in the old world and he never asked. Shiroe could not hope
to understand the feelings of a pair of middle-school siblings who were trapped away from home and
could only hang on to each other.
But her willingness to take up responsibility did not diminish in this alternate world.
This was a virtue Shiroe didn"t have, he knew he had been running away, refusing to build his own abode.
A girl who was not afraid of socializing with others and committed wholeheartedly.
Minori seemed to admire Shiroe, but Shiroe thought that he had been saved by her practical character.
Minori had never asked so desperately for help before. She trusted him, she was on intimate terms with
him, she asked him for tutelage, but she had never asked for his help so defenselessly before.
It should be the pride in her heart holding her back. Shiroe liked this part of her as well and held her in
high regards.
But Minori who was like this was fighting back tears as she talked. She was not asking just anyone, but
Shiroe himself, which surprised him.
From the entrance of the tent he could see the sky was turning purple in the evening.
"Someone fell, Rundelhous-san, he..."
From the background of Minori he could hear shouts and sounds of gasping breaths.
Telepathy seemed to work like low-performance cell phones.
The sound emitted near the ear drum, so others would not overhear your message, but you needed to talk
out loud to relay your message and the background noise would be picked up too.
Minori should be still near the battlefield, he could hear the sounds of other girls and the noisy
background.
"He is..."
"Rudy is... a People of the Land."
Another voice interrupted.
Shiroe deduced the voice belonged to the bard Isuzu that Minori mentioned. To be able to hear the words
so clearly meant she was almost touching Minori"s lips.
Shiroe understood everything from this.
He stood up almost knocking the table away, grabbed his backpack, and rushed out of the tent. After
blowing his whistle twice, he didn"t waste time for the griffon to come and ran to the central plaza of the
equestrian garden.
"Minori, status report."
After taking 3 steps into the plaza, he found a communication operator nearby and told him to get Charasin
over now.
"A fierce battle broke out while defending Choushi, we won but Rundelhous-san was mortally wounded
in the process. Resurrection magic failed, but he still has a pulse and body warmth... But remains
unconscious."
...Resurrection magic failed.
The giant wings that spread across the skies landed, Shiroe jumped on subconsciously and almost didn"t
notice Akatsuki following behind and squeezing into his arms. He then gave a signal to the magical beast.
The well-trained flying mount flew off on cue into the sky that was turning dark.
"The pulse... should be gradually weakening."
"Use a resurrection spell again."
"We"ve already cast it twice, but he didn"t regain consciousness..."
Resurrection magic could revive companions who died.
The magic seemed miraculous in nature, but was not difficult. Healer cla.s.ses could learn it by level 20.
Resurrection spells also had levels, low-level spells could revive players but at the expense of the target
losing some EXP.
This was the reason why Minori contacted Shiroe after trying it twice.
(No, there should be a more important reason...)
The People of the Land were not Adventurers, they could not revive once they die, and they would not
resp.a.w.n at the cathedral. The background at the other end of the telepathy line was the sound of sobbing
with suppressed emotion and mourning.
"Your whereabouts and party members."
"Me, Tohya, Isuzu-san, Serara-san and Rundelhous-san who has not been revived, location is the main
junction in the central district of Choushi."
"Is it safe?"
"No enemies around, but they are probably still fighting at the coastal area, I don"t know when the goblins
will strike again."
...It was ending.
When the People of the Land took too much damage in battle and were losing their lives, the term for this
was ending. According to ReGan"s spirit theory, resurrection spells might work in the short moment
before the soul separated from the body. Since the resurrection failed, it meant he had moved into the
stage of "Failing Essence".
"Shiroe-nii, please save Rudy!"
He could hear a strong voice in his ears.
"Rudy-nii is stupid and a fool, but he is also strong and cool, he sacrificed himself to save me!"
"I am the one who brought him to the battlefield, no, I did not do that directly but I didn"t stop Rudy from
coming, Shiroe-san... I am willing to do anything!"
This sobbing voice came from the other end of the telepathy.
"...I need."
He heard Minori"s words.
These words made Shiroe cool down.
He visualized an asphalt road that was going to be covered by snow in the winter night, and he was lying
on this road and losing his temperature. It was foreboding but clear, a way for Shiroe to release his
imagination.
His unrestricted thoughts went out of control, searching for a route through the matrix of possibilities he
could imagine, going through the feasibility of all possible combinations.
(Since this is Minori"s request, I have to help her.)
This was not his will, but his prerequisite.
To fulfill the prerequisite, Shiroe increased his speed of thinking.
"Instruct Serara to use resurrection magic."
"Yes."
Minori replied immediately.
She didn"t question why and didn"t object that it would not work. Minori trusted Shiroe totally, she
believed that Shiroe must have a way, that"s why she contacted him.
But that was just her one-sided wishful thinking.
There were things Shiroe could not do. Wrong, Shiroe could not do most things, in this strange and
unreasonable alternate world, he could even say that he couldn"t do anything at all.
But this was just a small issue, could not be done meant could not be done, he would think about it when
he needed to tackle it. The important thing was that Minori believed Shiroe could do it, so there was only
one answer for Shiroe.
He believed he could do it.
The heart that believed reconstructed all kinds of combinations in his mind, seeing things from other
angles and reviewing the concepts that were thought to be impossible.
"The pulse seems to be strengthened... But he is still unconscious."
"Wait 150 seconds, Tohya guard the area, Isuzu-san use MP recovery songs, 150 seconds later Minori use
resurrection magic."
"Yes."
Shiroe recollected ReGan"s words.
Rundelhous was dead.
For People of the Land or Adventurers, dead meant dead.
Death started when the body stopped moving in this alternate world. The body would not be able to move,
the consciousness was disconnected from the body and trapped in darkness.
This was a sign the communication between the "Soul" and "Essence" had ceased.
The "Essence" would then start to dissipate.
"Essence" was the source of energy for the "Ki" in the body, the diffusion process was known as "Failing
Essence". For powerful or high-level bodies, they had stronger "Ki" and the "Failing Essence" process
lasted longer.
Rundelhous was a physically weak mage cla.s.s, and he was at the beginner-level, the speed of his "Failing
Essence" should be very fast.
Probably... the resurrection magic probably came too late.
A resurrection spell cast by the healer would inject "Essence" into the body in the state of "Failing Essence"
in order to magically repair the connection between the "Soul" and the "Essence".
It gathered the dissipated "Essence" and used the healer"s "Ki" to replenish any lost "Ki" of the target,
stimulating the body to recover.
Since there was still body warmth and pulse, it could be deduced that the spell had stimulated recovery,
but the connection between "Soul" and "Essence" was not repaired, so he did not regain consciousness.
If that was the situation, it made sense.
The "Soul" was starting to diffuse... reaching a state of "Losing Soul". "Soul" was the energy that drived the
psyche, the human psyche was based on "Soul", as its connection to the body was severed, it would
become a lost "Soul" and lose its ident.i.ty.
The low-level Rundelhous must have gone into the state of "Losing Soul" right after he reached the stage of
"Failing Essence".
Adventurers could be sent to the cathedral to resp.a.w.n where a new body was made, the "Soul" was then
linked to this new body. As their body could resp.a.w.n, they would not go through the state of "Losing
Soul", so even if their body died, their "Soul" would resp.a.w.n in a new body... They would not die for real.
"It has been 150 seconds, casting resurrection now."
"After another 150 seconds, Serara will cast resurrection again, I am on my way there so take turns
casting magic for 8 minutes."
He heard Minori"s acknowledgement. The resurrection spells around level 20 were still primitive, it had
a long casting time and they would be defenseless, not practical for use on the battlefield and had a cool
down of 300 seconds.
But Rundelhous had both Serara and Minori by his side, they might be new but they were still healers.
By taking turns to cast resurrection spell, they could halve the 300 seconds cool down to 150 seconds.
Resurrection magic needed a lot of MP, Shiroe didn"t know how long they could last, but he could only
leave it to them.
"Losing Soul" was triggered by "Failing Essence", when the host body disappeared, the "Soul" would also
be lost. How much they could stop the "Losing Soul" process was dependent on their resurrection spells.
The next would be...
"Akatsuki, hold me."
This made the silent Akatsuki turn around slowly despite the terrifying conditions on the back of the flying
griffon. In the strong wind that threatened to tear through her skin, she hugged Shiroe tightly.
Shiroe closed his eyes and thought of what items he had in his Bag and reached in. He didn"t know what
items he needed to use, or even if it would work.
But to prepare for the "spell" he would be casting, he searched for the suitable items.
The bottle of ink Shiroe took a long time to formulate. The only bottle of soul fragments in the whole
world.
Part 2
Raynesia arrived on the battlefield accompanied by the female knight in the evening.
According to reports, the vicinity of the valley had been secured by Krusty"s forces.
"Woo..."
"Are you okay?"
The female knight did not show much concern in her expressions, but she still asked kindly.
There were very few people who experienced the air of the battlefield in this world. Because the People
of the Land and demihumans died very fast, their bodies would disappear within half a day. No matter
what kind of battle it was, the place would just be a deserted land when the bodies were gone.
But this battlefield was formed very recently.
The stench of blood was too stimulating for Raynesia, fortunately the summer breeze could be felt through
the greenery making the smell more bearable, but she was unable to look down around her feet.
The female knight took a step forward to confirm the details of the battle.
The female knight who introduced herself as Takayama Misa belongs to the "Field Monitor" group.
In the heat of battle, especially on a large-scale like this, your field of vision would be obscured and
limited, it would be hard to grasp the whole situation from the front-lines.
So D.D.D would detail a group with the size between a party and a "Full Raid" to survey the battlefield
and support the "Legion Raid" group fighting on the ground. Their main duty was to use optical items and
reconnaissance spells to gather intelligence and report to the front-line commander.
Raynesia thought Takayama Misa was a high ranking officer within D.D.D because of the att.i.tudes of the
people around her.
Because they scouted a trail without the need to bash through the vegetation, they reached the bottom of
the valley earlier than expected. Raynesia along with her escorts came to the wide rocky river bank near
the stream.
This was upstream of the battlefield they could see from the platform above, there were no signs of any
goblin corpses, only the cool flow of the stream warding off the summer heat.
The Adventurers around were resting in their preferred way, some of them were showering topless,
others were doing weapon maintenance.
This was the center of the battlefield, but with no enemy formation around, so everyone was resting
except the sentries working on shift.
Raynesia had reviewed the parade procession of knights as a princess before.
But she did so from a balcony and gave a prepared speech. She would occasionally head into the parade
square and greet the knights as she walked past their formation, but the knights of Maihama would always
be in perfect alignment and holding their spears at the perfect angle for her review.
So she had never been up close and personal, walking among knights who were considered rowdy by
n.o.bles" standards.
Raynesia was a People of the Land, the daughter of the family ruling Maihama. Even if Akiba joined the
"League of Freedom Towns", as long as they didn"t have a direct lord-subordinate relationship, the knights
had no obligation to respect Raynesia. Raynesia didn"t wish to upset them too much since she was
gradually accepting the Adventurers had a different culture from her.
Raynesia already knew they did not like to stand on ceremony, so she was not offended although she was
a bit surprised.
What astonished her more was that the group did not ignore her.
Whenever Raynesia pa.s.sed by them, the Adventurers would greet her with a loud voice.
"Don"t worry princess, we will settle this war in no time."
"Heavens, Caucasian-types look like angels."
"The blitz group will be enough to take out all the goblins."
"A real princess is here, where is the camera!"
"Is it okay to wander here princess? Ah, so Miss Takayama is here, G.o.d bless."
"Ha ha ha! Our commander is just ahead princess."
"Wah, wah!"
"Be careful of stray arrows!"
They were crude in their words, giving Raynesia the impression of the rumored mercenaries, but she did
not feel any distaste about them. Maybe she knew the Adventurers were not being rude and looking down
on her when they said these words, that was the usual way they acted, and they were friendly enough to
joke with her.
Raynesia was a shut-in.
She did not converse well with others.
She had been relying on her perfect lady education to handle all the situations she faced, but she realized
this was not effective on the Adventurers.
The Adventurers were not familiar with the culture of the n.o.bles, they wouldn"t misinterpret her slight
change in expression and overreact.
After Raynesia"s rare session of thinking, she invented an original method to interact with the Adventurers
with simple etiquette to avoid shaming her Corwen heritage.
The method was to smile and wave her hand at chest level.
If someone gave her advice or spoke with her, she would think about the meaning for a while and reply
"Thank you". Adventurers were the same breed as the mind-reading monster, she would be seen through if
she only worked on her appearance. Even if she showed her side unbecoming of a lady, they were not
n.o.bles and wouldn"t mind... This was the conclusion made by Raynesia.
According to the strict standards of the social world, Raynesia"s att.i.tude was on the borderline of being
rude. But they were Adventurers and this was the battlefield, Raynesia explained to her grandfather in her
heart.
But Raynesia did not realize her sincere smile and cute actions after gingerly crossing the line of etiquette
in her heart had made a good impression on the Adventurers in the blitz group who welcomed her readily.
The hybrid task force was led by Krusty, he based the structure of the group around D.D.D members to
ensure the integrity of the command structure. But if he only used D.D.D members, Krusty would be
showing too much strength in the Round Table Council, so he had to show the unity of the Round Table
Council when he arranged the raid group. So half of this hybrid army was formed by veteran players not
affiliated with D.D.D.
They included guild members from Black Sword Knights and Honesty, there was a variety in cape colors
and coat of arms, which Raynesia interpreted as aristocratic clans, so this band of knights looked strange
to her.
The relationships among the n.o.bles" clans were complicated, with blood relationship and alliances
making it more sophisticated. It may not be the same for all the n.o.bles, but there were generally some
hostilities between the clans. This was the reason why the "League of Freedom Towns Eastal" was not
united.
But such conflicts were not apparent in this battlefield.
From the colors of their capes and their coat of arms, they seemed to have divided themselves into
smaller parties. But some of them were eating, some were helping with weapon inspections, others were
running around distributing resupplies.
Raynesia noticed the source of her discomfort.
With so many knights around, there were no squires or attendants around. Takayama Misa explained that
they were a select group of elite forces so weaklings would only get in the way, but how could there be so
many knights without any squires?
(The Adventurers seem to be free from cla.s.s systems...)
Even though she knew they were very free, but to see it in action with her eyes, every little detail
surprised her.
"Yes, I can hear you, please continue."
Krusty was at the front edge of the bank where the stream bent and formed a pool, wiping his sweat off his
topless body.
He was communicating with long range magic even when he was wiping his sweat, but he turned to face
them when he saw Takayama Misa and Raynesia"s group.
Krusty calmly wiped his body with a cloth he wrung dry. Takayama Misa seemed used to his bold and
calm actions, as she approached him to report with doc.u.ments in hand.
Krusty listened attentively with his back to her.
(What an amazing body...)
Krusty with his elegant clothes in the courts didn"t give such a feeling of impact. She could feel his
overwhelming strength just looking at his bare back. His muscular back had the beauty of a wild beast as
Raynesia lost herself looking at it.
(...Eh! What am I looking at!)
Raynesia shook her head and sulked.
She always lost her pace when Krusty was around.
She missed the peaceful bedroom in Maihama. She really liked living as a shut-in, she just wanted to
sleep after eating and live lazily like plants. Her biggest hobby was sun-bathing, she was looking forward
to becoming an old lady and enjoying her life like a hermit.
According to Raynesia"s ideals, it was not wrong to say she had changed or become depraved.
"Understood, I will increase the amount of survey groups at the next location."
When Takayama Misa finished her report, Krusty had already dressed himself. He was wearing the same
armor but he seemed to have changed his shirt. His calm expression was the same as his time in the
"Ancient Palace of Eternal Ice", he was so calm that it made Raynesia mad.
"How was the battlefield?"
Krusty asked as he walked towards her.
Because of their height difference, Raynesia had to tilt her head up, which made her feel unpleasant. She
could neither feel the joy Krusty had when he fought nor the feeling that he might disappear like a flimsy
illusion.
The mind-reading monster was standing prim and proper in front of her, that feeling she had seemed to be
like a dream.
"Did you feel scared?"
Raynesia was trapped in her own thoughts and slow in responding, so Krusty asked her again teasingly.
"No such thing, I believe Krusty-sama will protect me."
Since Krusty put on his mask of courtly manners, she had to reply in kind. She wanted to show him she
had much more experience in the rhetoric and culture of the aristocrats.
"... The princess sure is popular."
Raynesia turned around and saw a group of Adventurers observing Krusty and Raynesia from afar without
moving. This made Raynesia feel uneasy, so she waved her hands gently and smiled, and the Adventurers
went about their business with smiles on their faces.
"Such a thing does not matter Krusty-sama."
Raynesia faced Krusty again bearing the frustration of going off-topic. Krusty was always showing this
type of att.i.tude, making Raynesia unsure of whether to put on her courtly manners or to adjust to the
Adventurer"s way.
"Also..."
Just as Raynesia stepped forward to speak, the howl of wolves echoed through the entire valley. It came
from the eastern ridge, it was obviously from a distance away, but it still drove a chill into Raynesia"s
heart.
"That was..."
"Dire wolves, should be large in size judging by the sound."
"From the goblin king"s escort?"
"The goblin king is not here, he will not leave "Seven Falls", this is the goblin general"s royal guards."
"Royal guards..."
Raynesia clasped her hands in front of her chest, she saw the rampage of Krusty"s army and believed in
their strength. But Raynesia did not know anything about battles so she was afraid, and Krusty seemed so
dangerous when he threw himself into battle.
She was not sure if she should ask him to take care of himself or motivate him for the upcoming fight.
As Raynesia hesitated, the wolves howled again. Krusty grinned at the sound and did not notice how
Raynesia felt and he said with a cruel smile:
"We will wipe out their nest later, let"s take out the trash in Sand Leaf for now."
Part 3
The long central road in Choushi was an excellent landing runway for the griffon. The magic beast did not
flap its wings as it glided down. Shiroe patted Akatsuki"s head, looked down and whispered: "Please
clear the area, don"t let any players or monsters come near."
Akatsuki nodded without saying anything.
Even though the speed was faster than a horse, the 2 of them jumped off the griffon without any concern
and moved off separately. Akatsuki moved weightlessly forward, her light body disappeared behind the
roof of the stone building.
After seeing her off, Shiroe rushed towards Tohya who was waving his hand.
There were 5 people in Minori"s group, all of them had anxious faces. From the reports he received
through telepathy, the Ocypete had arrived but was unable to dock because of the Sahuagin"s resistance.
Naotsugu"s party was dealing with the goblins in place of Minori"s group.
(That will be more convenient.)
Shiroe did not know if the spell would work. Even though the theory was sound and Shiroe had
experimented repeatedly, it was still a gamble. Considering the impact on the future, it would be better to
have fewer witnesses even if it succeeded.
Was that a tavern or hotel in front?
A young man lay motionless under the roof of an open concept building, the crying girl beside him should
be Isuzu, a charming young girl with freckles.
Familiar faces surrounded Shiroe, Tohya with his painful expression, Serara with her look of worry, and
Minori with her sense of purpose.
Shiroe calmed his heart.
It was hot out here, but his mind was like the winter night sky.
"Minori, add me to your party."
"Yes."
Minori nodded without further questions. Shiroe was thankful that she was not talking in this situation. He
observed Rundelhous" face, he looked like an elegant n.o.bleman. He still had body warmth and a pulse,
but he was still unconscious. The party status screen was flashing the word "death".
"I recall you are Isuzu-san? Continue "Mediation Nocturne", I am going to cast a new spell, please keep
this an absolute secret."
Shiroe told the beginners with a strict tone.
"If you cannot agree then give up or leave."
The group shook their heads in response, no one flinched away at his words.
"Alright, let"s begin."
Shiroe chose the spell from the menu and cast "Mana Channeling", a unique spell of enchanters which had
unknown functions.
The effect was to drain all the MP of his allies and distribute it equally.
(Correct... The psyche lies in the "Soul", and MP is the manifestation of the "Soul", if that is the case...)
As he chanted the spell incantation, the MP of the whole party gathered inside Shiroe.
Shiroe out-leveled all of them, the draining part of his "Mana Channeling" was a heavy burden on Minori"s
party who were less than level 30.
Minori, Tohya, and Serara looked pale. Their MP was gradually drained away, making them feel dizzy
and lost. Isuzu continued to hold Rundelhous" hand and sing her sad ancient ballad despite her face turning
white.
Shiroe felt the effect of the magic with his eyes half-closed.
The MP he gathered from his allies was all under Shiroe"s control. He could feel the lingering scent of
their "Soul" although it was only a faint hint. Tohya"s one-track mind, Minori"s seriousness, all of these
expanded out under Shiroe"s control.
It also included Serara"s, Isuzu"s, Rundelhous", and his own MP.
The MP with different subtle tastes mixed into primitive spiritual energy and was guided along the
magical circuit connected to his allies.
Shiroe divided the MP evenly and distributed it.
(Hnng!)
The rapid loss of MP gave Shiroe a feeling of anemia.
His MP was more than the other members", enchanters belonged to the mage cla.s.s and their maximum MP
was among the highest among the cla.s.ses. And Shiroe was level 90, re-allocating the MP evenly with
level 30 adventurers was the same as refilling all their MP in one shot.
"Minori cast Resurrection, Serara continue to heal."
This was all preparation work, Shiroe continued to give instructions, but the time was short, there might
only be one chance and one sentence.
Rundelhous was a People of the Land.
He was not an Adventurer, so he would not revive after dying.
And Rundelhous was now dead.
That"s why Rundelhous would not revive.
This was an iron-clad rule that could not be overturned.
The mana-channeling spell of the enchanter restored the MP of the group... in other words, revitalized
their psyche and soul.
He did not regain consciousness because his "Soul" and "Essence" were not connected. This was the same
as being comatose, so they needed to find a way to force it to connect.
For the next phase, Shiroe took something out from his backpack.
"It will be a race against time."
Shiroe used "Hades Incense of Soul Recovery" as he finished his sentence.
This was used to wake your allies or creatures for a short time, a medicine mainly used for special
monsters. The effect was not resurrection, just regaining of consciousness for 3 minutes before you died
again, and the Adventurer would be forcibly sent back to the cathedral.
But for Rundelhous whose "Essence" was dissipating continuously, this item held a certain possibility.
No matter what happened, his body would be destroyed, the psyche and soul residing in the host body
would also perish.
"Hades Incense of Soul Recovery" would re-energize his "Soul" and forcibly connect it to his body, but at
the expense of death after 3 minutes. He could only pull Rundelhous back to this world for 3 minutes.
A fake resurrection with a time limit.
The group seemed to understand this as Isuzu tightened her grip on Rundelhous" hand with tears flowing
down her cheeks.
"Ah..."
Rundelhous opened his eyes slowly as if he just woke up from a dream.
Isuzu couldn"t stop crying as she held his hands. It was unclear if he had regained consciousness, even his
eyes opening might be just the reflex of his body.
"Rudy...?"
"Miss Isuzu...ah, everyone, that"s right... seems like... I died."
He had some awareness after death, just that the connection between his "Soul" and "Essence" had been
severed. For Adventurers, this meant the monitor lost its color, you could only watch your comrades
fighting in black and white. It was not clear how it was for the People of the Land, but Rundelhous
seemed able to grasp the situation.
Rundelhous smiled and spoke with a tired voice to the others.
"Don"t be like this everybody... don"t make such a face. If you fight you will risk death, isn"t that natural?"
"Only... natural..."
Tohya"s voice made Shiroe"s heart ache.
It was something they didn"t joke about in the game, the heavy topic of death... was only natural for the
People of the Land.
"I wanted to be an Adventurer despite that, please don"t blame Miss Isuzu okay? I wanted her to help me
keep this a secret."
"No, I already noticed, but I chose to ignore it!"
Minori cried out loud, telling everyone the impact this had on the Minori who always acted calmly.
"Ha ha ha, yeah, thank you Miss Minori... there is no need to feel bothered about this."
"No, there is a need."
Shiroe interrupted.
There was no time.
Shiroe let his mind run free as he thought about the horrifying thing he was about to do. It might be a big
mistake, it might even threaten the laws of the world.
He didn"t know how this would affect the world if he was successful, or how the world would receive
this "proposal".
But the young man who had accepted his fate and was bidding farewell to the rest called himself an
Adventurer.
This was not the term to describe players, but the term for traveling the world and seeing a sunrise that no
one had seen before, the name of Shiroe"s companions.
Since he called himself that, he was also a scion of "hers".
"No, you need to feel bothered. Rundelhous Code, a fellow who gives up so easily calling himself an
Adventurer will only trouble others. This is not enough... Did you spend your whole life training and
learning in order to die in an alley like this? What you have found in the dungeons are not tactics or
strategy, but the will to survive, the grit to do anything to keep living on no matter how hard you have to
work, the spirit to never give up right?"
"Shiroe-nii..."
"Rundelhous, your resolve is not strong enough!"
"Then what do you expect me to do?"
Rundelhous" eyes were full of regret and dismay, even if he said this was only natural, his heart refused to
accept it as his tears started to flow.
Because of this, Shiroe decided to use that "magic".
"Pay attention and listen up!"
Shiroe took out the doc.u.ment he scribbled while he was on the griffon"s back and put it in front of
Rundelhous" face.
"This is..."
"A contract?"
The doc.u.ment Shiroe took from his backpack was indeed a contract, it was written in "Carved Dragon Eye
Ink" on the "Fairy King Paper" made from top-cla.s.s ingredients, the only one in the world.
"Contract... Log Horizon representative Shiroe, and Rundelhous Code agree to the following terms:
1. Effective immediately, Shiroe invites Rundelhous to join the guild Log Horizon.
2. Rundelhous will act appropriately and carry out tasks a.s.signed seriously befitting his position as a
member of Log Horizon.
3. Log Horizon will provide Rundelhous with necessary support to aid him in carrying out his tasks...
including the ident.i.ty of an Adventurer.
4. This contract is based on mutual agreement of both parties, whatever things either party gain will
remain in effect even if the contract lapses.
As above, there are 2 copies of the contract, both parties will keep one copy after signing the agreement
as proof."
Sounds of gasping could be heard.
"Adventurer...?"
"This is... Shiroe-san, this is...!"
This was developing a spell that was not in the game.
Shiroe noticed this possibility a long time ago.
Chefs could cook food manually without using the game menu, making dishes with normal taste.
Nyanta explained to Shiroe on their way back to Susukino.
And this had proven to be correct.
And Shiroe convinced the Round Table Council that this was not limited to chefs.
People with the corresponding skills could use them to create items without using the game menu, making
things that did not exist in this alternate world.
This was the real meaning behind Nyanta"s discovery.
2 months after that, Shiroe had been researching things he had visualized and conducted experiments
repeatedly. He kept this as a hidden ace to be used if the Round Table Council meeting did not go
smoothly, but further research and data kept acc.u.mulating and it evolved.
His conversation with ReGan about Spirit Theory gave Shiroe an inspiration and one of his research
topics was going to bear fruit here.
Rundelhous was a People of the Land.
And he would die in 3 minutes.
People of the Land could not revive.
Rundelhous would disappear.
If that was the case, the answer was obvious...
He needed to make Rundelhous into an Adventurer in these 3 minutes.
His experiments proved that scribes could make simple contracts and all sort of doc.u.ments such as
"Mission Request Forms" or "IOU" that had magical binding powers. A scribe with a high enough level
could create these with magical ingredients.
But among these type of contracts, this one was top cla.s.s.
Allowing a Person of the Land to join a guild and bestowing the ident.i.ty of Adventurer on him, this
contract looked like a fraud to Shiroe. So Shiroe used his level 90 Scribe skills and the top-cla.s.s magical
ingredients and ink he collected during the time when Elder Tales was a game without regret in order to
fulfill this request.
Shiroe moved the contract closer to Rundelhous" face.
"I have already signed this, the rest is up to you."
"...Ven...turer..."
"You can realize your dreams."
The young sorcerer with mud all over him said in a weak voice, as Shiroe explained to him.
"This contract has a risk, you will be altered in some ways after the contract takes effect, becoming a
different being. Adventurers are still new to this world, you might get caught in some other events,
Adventurers might not be as glorious as you imagined."
"I want to become..."
The status screen still showed the flashing word "death", his HP was reducing gradually, Rundelhous
replied without hesitation.
"I want to become an Adventurer, people who help those in need, I won"t mind the small details... I am not
after the glory... I just want to be... an Adventurer."
Rundelhous grabbed the pen with his trembling hand and it fell out of his hand immediately. "Hades
Incense of Soul Recovery" was losing its effect, Rundelhous might be unable to keep his "Soul" and
"Essence" connected.
"Rudy... don"t worry."

Isuzu held his hand.
"I will sign this together with Rudy."
Isuzu embraced Rundelhous from behind, Tohya helped from the side, Minori and Serara cast healing
spells repeatedly, the four of them watched over Rudy as he signed.
His trembling hands gained warmth with his comrades" encouragement, Rundelhous used the magical ink
to write down his name, the signature burned with a golden light. Shiroe"s skills were acknowledged by
this alternate world, becoming a brand new law.
"Rundelhous, you will die... and resp.a.w.n in the cathedral."
Shiroe said as he felt the cogs turning somewhere by this spell. The dissipating "Essence" turned into
dancing light particles and flew towards Akiba, the other players watched this dream-like scene with
stunned expressions.
The act of developing magic was the reason why he earned the nickname "Chronicler of the East" in the
future.
Part 4
The battle continued in the dark.
In the heart of the Sand Leaf central hills.
The venue was a valley like the previous battle, the only difference was the size of the place and the scale
of the battle. When she asked Takayama Misa why they chose to fight in valleys, the answer was: "A large
group needs a lot of s.p.a.ce to gather, we can organize ourselves in the forest or the hills, but it will be
hard to accommodate everyone there."
Raynesia thought about it and agreed.
Goblins might be demihumans, but their intelligence was low. But since they were moving in an army,
they would follow certain rules.
Since they were fighting in the valley, there were several ridges where they could see the whole valley.
Takayama Misa"s observation team was based on one of these ridges but it was different from last time.
They only set up the minimum observation tables. It may be that they might need to move on short notice,
or because Raynesia declined the chair, but from the looks of relief from Takayama Misa, Raynesia
predicted the previous time was a special arrangement just for her. [1]
But these were trivial matters.
Raynesia, Takayama Misa, and the others were already concentrating on the battle in the valley.
Takayama Misa explained that the team leading the dire wolves were goblin tamers. The barbaric goblins
didn"t have a complicated society like humans, but they had primitive division of labor and cla.s.ses.
Most goblins were lightly armored warriors or spearmen, but some of the goblins had special cla.s.ses, the
most common one being goblin tamer and goblin shaman. The goblin tamers bred beasts like Owlbears,
Hippogriffs, and dire wolves.
They could see the enemy formation had hundreds of dire wolves, as if the dark ground had gained
sentience and squirmed, a scene from nightmares.
"Seems like a mutant breed."
Takayama Misa explained calmly:
"We fought them in a raid before, it is a wolf with poisonous fangs raised in the miasma of the undead. To
have raised so many means the goblin king has a tribe of goblin tamers... Elder Tales has such an
intriguing detailed secret setting."
"Would... Would they be alright..."
"Worrying is an absurd action."
Takayama Misa maintained her cold att.i.tude and words, but Raynesia was not so optimistic. There were a
few hundred enemies spread out across the valley, the goblin general must be in the center, probably in
the exotic tent with wheels that was essentially a mobile fortress.
Raynesia was not worried about that monster knight, but his subordinates were knights as well. Even
though they wouldn"t die, it would still be painful if they got hurt, which pained her too.
But the two sides engaged suddenly without regard to Raynesia"s worries.
"Square shape... so pretty."
"This is the square formation."
Takayama Misa walked to Raynesia"s side probably to chat.
She pointed to Krusty"s army that was aligned on 4 sides in the shape of a square and continued.
"This is a common formation used in raids, the groups are usually formed in multiples of 4, the same
number of sides as the box. So in terms of command, squares are the easiest formation to adopt. It is
basically a defensive formation, with the tanks and melee fighters in the front supported by the ranged and
magic attacks as the main source of damage dealers. But since this is a tight-knit formation, it will be bad
against enemies with powerful wide-area attacks. But against groups of wild beasts, it can be an iron-clad
defensive wall."
"So that is how..."
Raynesia guessed right.
The strong vanguards deflected the attacks of the wolves easily, with arrows and magic flying out from
behind them. The balm ensured Raynesia had a clear vision in the dark, but great columns of fire all over
the valley made it so bright that she could see without any a.s.sistance.
"They are moving."
Takayama Misa pointed straight at the battlefield.
The whole formation seemed to move with her finger. It turned into the shape of a trapezoid and
advanced, taking out the enemies in its way.
Takayama Misa said this was a defensive formation, but this seemed to be an unreliable evaluation.
This was the first time Raynesia viewed a large-scale battle, she had never seen the defensive battles of
the castle knights, so she had nothing to use as a reference, but what she saw could not be described as
defensive.
She saw it as a square hole.
Krusty"s army seemed to be digging a dark hole into the goblin army. Both the goblins and wolves would
be dealt with when they touched the hole. The way the formation handled the enemy was akin to a neat
freak, giving off a sense of madness.
"Look closely."
At this moment, a bonfire seemed to be lit in the center of the formation and 4 flaming birds flew out from
it and spread orange and crimson flames in all 4 directions, obviously a summoned beast. But Raynesia
had never heard of summoned beings like this. From what she knew, summoned beings ranged from the
size of a fist to that of a puppy, she had never seen such powerful and dignified creatures.
"That is the Phoenix you can form a contract with at level 86, a high-level spirit with fire affinity. The
summoners need to complete a very difficult quest before they are qualified to form a contract with such
graceful and holy beast... what is wrong?"
(She asked me what is wrong?)
(That creature has flame on it?)
(Adventurers can... can summon such creatures, there should be a limit to such foul play correct?)
Raynesia finally understood.
Krusty was not putting on a brave face, this was how he acted naturally.
No wonder Takayama Misa said worrying was absurd.
No one could predict what would happen on the battlefield. But there were people in this world who
were fine in this unpredictable battlefield and used their extraordinary experience no common man could
hope to match to rule the arena.
The army this man was leading were also Adventurers who had acc.u.mulated overwhelming experience
and training. Raynesia recognized from the bottom of her heart that the common sense of knights could not
be applied on them.
Adventurers were an existence beyond Raynesia"s comprehension.
The goblin general"s giant mobile fortress exploded with a bang. The heavily-armored guards and gigantic
ferocious goblins flew out from the shattered fortress. Krusty"s forces continued to advance.
Raynesia heard an impossible voice.
... Well then, let"s enjoy this sumptuous meal.
The calm words with a hint of joy definitely came from Krusty.
Raynesia did not have telepathic abilities, she couldn"t have heard Krusty from so far away, but she did
hear his voice.
Krusty swung his two-handed axe and pointed it at the enemy, his forces charged forward as if elongated
black spears came out of the square formation. A group of warriors dual-wielding blades shredded
through the goblins like thin clothes.
"We have finished the main course... Let"s leave the rest to the nets spread out by our headquarters"
tactician."
Takayama Misa closed her report file with a soft sound, her voice so calm she seemed to be saying
something obvious.
Part 5
In the end they linked up just before dawn.
The resistance of the Sahuagin was stronger than expected, Ocypete took a lot of time to dock. Ocypete
had a lot of functions installed as an experimental prototype, but it was basically a transport ship.
It was not a military amphibious a.s.sault landing craft.
It was hard to suppress enemies that could move freely in the water, so it was hard to execute bold attack
maneuvers.
But at midnight, Naotsugu and Nyanta summoned griffons to ferry several players by air to reinforce the
defenses of Choushi. With summoners on both sides of the coastline, it was only a matter of time before
they repelled the Sahuagins.
"Wah, I didn"t expect you to come Shiro-bou!"
Maryele smiled so happily.
Shiroe who appeared out of nowhere walked out from the town just as the sun was setting. He reorganized
the limited manpower and established another defensive line at the north side of the farm.
Shiroe was the guild master of Log Horizon.
That meant he was one of the 11 guild masters that formed the Round Table Council, but he was not wellknown.
The background behind the formation of the Round Table Council was no secret, so well-informed
Adventurers all knew about Shiroe. But compared to Krusty or Issac who were the guild masters of major
guilds, or Maryele with her wide social network, the number of people who knew his face was much
lower.
If you talked to him, you would know that he was a good young man who valued friendships. But he
seemed scary in the beginning... Maryele thought.
(He is a good kid! But that face! Those eyes! So scary!)
Maryele nodded as she made this conclusion, but Henrietta chided her, "Most Adventurers are good kids
in Maryele"s eyes."
Anyway, Shiroe"s appearance was not well known, but the impact he brought to the battlefield was quite
significant.
Even if he was not well-known, Shiroe was still the tactician for the expedition army. The morale would
increase when headquarters sent reinforcements over.
Shiroe appeared in town the moment Ocypete arrived, making the defensive team think he was the one
who led them here.
Maryele used this effect to the limit.
She raised her voice to motivate the defense team.
The team facing the unrelenting waves of Sahuagins recovered their fighting spirit when they heard news
of reinforcements arriving and Maryele urging them on. With the artillery support by summoners conjuring
creatures to perform super long range attacks, the beginners engaged the Sahuagin with renewed vigor and
pa.s.sion.
The corpses of the Sahuagin either were washed away by the tide or disappeared into thin air after some
time, the fierce battle continued until midnight.
The Adventurers won the grueling fight at midnight.
The Adventurers taking part in the summer training camp were exhausted, relaxing in their own way at the
port between Sand Leaf River and the beach.
The sentry and defensive tasks were handled by the reinforcements who still had energy to help. All those
gathered here were the summer camp partic.i.p.ants who fought the goblins and the Sahuagins.
Maryele was thinking of maintaining a more spirited att.i.tude as a role model, but she ended up spreading
her cape and laying flat on the ground.
(Fu... We somehow made it through...)
Crescent Moon Alliance had no experience with large-scale raids or defensive battles, Maryele had
never commanded such a complicated battle line before.
She was a total amateur at this, the reason they succeeded was because of the pa.s.sion and determination
of the beginners, as well as the support of the veterans led by Naotsugu.
"Are you alright Mary-san?"
This voice was closer than she expected.
And just when she was thinking about him.
"Woo wah?"
Naotsugu sat beside Maryele who sprang up in surprise. He had changed into baggy shorts and summer
shirt.
"Why are you making weird sounds Mary-san?"
"Wah, that was sly of you Naotsugu-yan, when did you change?"
"No, it"s because... The armor is heavy and someone is taking my shift tonight so I can relax."
Maryele"s relentless questions made Naotsugu gaze wander all over.
She looked around and saw their exhausted comrades moving slowly like zombies, hoping to change their
clothes too.
"I-I-I... I need to change too?"
"Are you okay?"
Maryele pressed her temples. She had been using magic nonstop the whole day which made the her head
heavy and numb.
Clerics were the masters of healing, apart from standard healing spells, they could also cast all sorts of
magic. If you focused only on defense and healing, the variety of skills of the cleric was the best among
the healers.
In this group battle, Maryele did not form a party, running all over the battlefield by herself casting
healing spells on all the parties she saw, a heal-and-run tactic.
She didn"t think that was a wrong tactic to use, but it was more tiring than she imagined. Maryele
experienced the feeling of exhausting all of her MP 10 times in a day, making her head hurt.
"Rest a bit more?"
"Woo hoo hoo..."
To be honest, Maryele didn"t want to move at all.
"The bathhouse is still full anyway."
"There is a bathhouse?"
Bathhouses were new facilities in Akiba, Maryele was shocked that Choushi had such advanced
installations.
"Of course there is. The reason why Akiba doesn"t have shower rooms is because the crafting menu for
Adventurers does not include shower facilities. Or rather, we can craft such facilities, but only for
decorative purposes, they do have water storage or heating functions. When Elder Tales was just a game
there was no need for us to bathe, but the People of the Land had to shower from the very beginning so
they have the appropriate facilities to do so."
"Is...Is that so?"
Maryele held her head with her hands and fell.
So there were shower rooms if they visited one of the few homes of the People of the Land in Akiba?
Maryele recalled discovering Henrietta pouring hot water from a kettle to a basin to wipe her body
secretly in the middle of the night. It almost ended in a big commotion. Just remembering Henrietta"s scary
face during that incident made her face glum.
"But we all rushed to the showers at the hotel and mayor"s place, so it is full right now. By the way, the
hotel is for men, the mayor"s house is for ladies."
"Oh, now I know... I will enjoy the breeze here for a while more."
"Yes yes."
Naotsugu sat with his legs crossed.
Maryele spread her cape on the gra.s.s and sat lazily.
The two of them basked in the clear moonlight.
A gentle and soothing breeze made Maryele shift her gaze and look at Naotsugu.
Naotsugu looked at the bright and clear moon as he fanned Maryele using a big leaf from a tropical tree.
(Ah...)
Maryele could feel the remnants of the heat in her blood that boiled during the battle cooling down finally.
It was thanks to this interesting man who accompanied her without a word that her raging emotions were
finally calming down and gaining peace.
"Naotsugu-yan, let me ask you..."
"About what...?"
Naotsugu"s leisurely voice gave Maryele the concrete feeling that the battle was really over, everyone
survived and protected this town. Some of the Adventurers were hurt too badly and went back to the
cathedral in Akiba, but the number was small.
"We did well right?"
"Of course, we protected the town successfully."
Maryele was aware that her smile was more brilliant than normal, it must be a giddy smile that she could
not show in public, but she didn"t mind at all.
Just for this moment, she wanted to immerse in the kind and gentle wind Naotsugu was giving her under
the bright moonlight.
Part 6
There was a sound of a bell coming from the distance.
There was a refreshing fragrance and particles sparkling around him.
Rundelhous sat up on the marble bed with elaborate carvings.
(This is...)
He could see the night sky out the window. It should be nighttime right now.
In this room made of stone, the plants placed all around were spreading out shiny pollen that illuminated
the room.
(I see, so this is... the cathedral.)
Rundelhous was able to comprehend. He had heard about this place, but this was his first time here.
People of the Land were different from Adventurers after all, even if they prayed in church, they would
not seek spiritual guidance in the cathedral.
The cathedral was one of the facilities related to the Adventurers, it was more like a magical architecture
than a religious construction. Rundelhous followed the example of other People of the Land and had never
visited it before.
(Anyway... Good, seems like I can move.)
He sat on the bed and moved his body carefully.
Right hand, left hand, both legs, shoulders... there seemed to be no problem, but he felt tired to the bones,
probably an after-effect of resp.a.w.ning.
He heard that resp.a.w.ning in the cathedral deducted EXP, Rundelhous opened his status to check and was
stunned.
The status screen of the Adventurers was much more detailed than he imagined. His stats were adjusted to
reflect stats gained from his equipment, the details of how his equipment affects his stats were also
displayed, his MP and HP were also shown in numerical values with increments of 0.1%.
He looked at his EXP gauge which had dropped significantly. It couldn"t be helped, he not only
resp.a.w.ned here, he had numerous resurrection spells cast on him as well, this was the price he must pay.
He was alive.
Rundelhous" chest was filled with a slew of emotions.
He was not after the ident.i.ty or status of the Adventurers, nor was he after their way of life. Rundelhous
was the 3rd son of a corrupted n.o.ble family, the freedom and sense of justice of the Adventurers who
fought for the people were dazzling and stole his heart.
Rundelhous unconsciously followed his gaze and opened another tab on the status screen. He found the
word Adventurer.
Name: Rundelhous Code
Cla.s.s: Sorcerer
Subcla.s.s: Adventurer
Rundelhous stared blankly at these words for a long while.
(That"s right, I do not have a subcla.s.s, that contract forced me to take on a new subcla.s.s Adventurer...)
Rundelhous checked the abilities of the subcla.s.s in a hurry, a list of unfamiliar abilities he heard about:
"ability to resp.a.w.n in the cathedral", "telepathy ability", "adjustment to EXP gain", "use of bank and
warehouse", "detailed status screen", there were also many more abilities Rundelhous didn"t understand,
and they were all listed together here.
(So many... If I have this power...)
He could not gain back the time he lost or change his past, but he wouldn"t spend his nights feeling
frustrated and helpless at his weakness.
More importantly, he could live in Akiba without hiding his ident.i.ty. He could live together with the
friends he had grown close to during the training camp. Rundelhous might be able to rebuild his old home,
create a place to live life to the fullest.
Rundelhous tried to recollect.
He remembered an Adventurer that wanted to wipe out all these corrupt n.o.bles.
That was what he wanted to be, but was cursed to never achieve. Rundelhous swore that given another
chance, he wanted to become an Adventurer. He then reviewed this miracle he always dreamed of.
This small stony room was his new starting point. The serious young man with gla.s.ses was also an
Adventurer that his two friends Minori and Tohya respected, and was also the guild master of their guild.
(That young man Shiroe should know about places I have never seen before...)
As Rundelhous immersed in the joy of resp.a.w.ning, he heard approaching footsteps.
"Rudy!"
Isuzu barged in, banging the stone doors. She looked both angry and perplexed, staring at Rundelhous
from the entrance.
"Hi Miss Isuzu... Is anything wrong?"
"Is... Is anything wrong... You ask..."
She walked towards him in big strides and bent her upper body backwards.
Her head was in a taller position than the sitting Rundelhous, so he could not see her expression. He could
only hear the sound of sniffing, but Isuzu"s voice was definitely angry.
"Overexerting yourself so much, what if you die stupid Rudy!"
"Miss Isuzu, calling me stupid is too much, there are somethings you have to do even if you have to risk
your life. Just like no one can put a collar on the free spirited Adventurers, no one can stop my battles."
"When I command you to wait, you have to wait properly!"
"You are being unreasonable..."
"You must wait!"
Isuzu"s voice sounded aloof and Rundelhous felt anger rising from his heart.
But he realized something when he wondered why Isuzu was here.
Isuzu was the only companion who knew Rundelhous was a People of the Land. Actually, Minori noticed
too, but the one who pressed Rundelhous for the truth and a.s.sisted him in achieving his dream was only
Isuzu.
She being here right now meant she used "Call of Home" to chase Rundelhous who resp.a.w.ned in the
cathedral in Akiba.
"Sorry... I seem to have worried you."
The moment Rundelhous said these words, a punch so painful that it made him cry fell on his head.
Rundelhous didn"t understand why he was. .h.i.t, but as a n.o.ble who had lived to this age, he understood that
he had to apologize repeatedly in a soothing voice when a woman was in this type of condition.
"Sorry Miss Isuzu, it"s my fault." "I...I apologize, I won"t make this mistake again." "Anyway, can you tell
me why?"
He was. .h.i.t 2-3 times every time he spoke, Rundelhous" head was heating up from the abuse and his
conscious was starting to fade.
"I understand, I will listen to Miss Isuzu"s command properly."
"Really?"
"Really, I swear to G.o.d."
"You must tell me about your childhood Rudy."
"Why must I...! I...I understand, I will talk."
"If you are so reckless, it won"t be enough no matter how many lives you have."
"I am reflecting on my actions."
"Okay, shake." [2]
(Ah...?)
This word made Rundelhous look blankly at Isuzu.
Isuzu"s cute freckled face seemed to be throwing a tantrum and angry at the same time. Only her eyes had a
hint of shyness as she extended her hand gently.
(If you make such a face, I can only surrender right?)
Rundelhous gently placed his hand on hers in response.
This was a strange action that did not exist in this world. To Rundelhous, this was the reverse action of a
knight guiding a lady, so it was somewhat embarra.s.sing.
He heard from Isuzu later this was the action of dogs swearing fealty to their masters, which made him
mad. But right now she had him cornered, he had no way of venting his frustration.
Seemed like Rundelhous was fated to never go against this young girl with freckles.
Part 7
Akiba"s first expedition army returned with victory. This was named the East Expedition Army in the
future as the west also sent out an expedition army to deal with the "Suzaku Gate"s Ghost Festival" incident
at the same time.
The expedition army did not defeat the goblin king, they only trapped the invasion army in Sand Leaf
peninsula and wiped them out. The whole war ended one week after Krusty"s forces defeated the goblin
general.
Shiroe and Krusty were looking out for reinforcements from "Seven Falls" all this while, but there were no
signs of them until the very end.
The fortress "Seven Falls" they were watching closely should still have several thousand monsters inside.
This was about a fifth of the whole goblin invasion army, but the numbers were not a big threat.
To measure military powers by numbers was a concept from the old world. In this alternate world where
the difference in fighting power varied a lot, they could be as strong as a soldier or as mighty as a tank, so
numbers were not an absolute gauge for milita

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