Chapter 60: Mountain Climbing
The next day, Jin and the others managed to reach Popin Village before the sun fully set.
After washing off the grime of travel with their first proper bath in a while, and getting real sleep in proper beds, they were refreshed.
Naturally, the following day, they set out again at dawn, just like always.
Though they encountered monsters along the way, the bandit attacks they had feared still didn’t happen.
This was related to what Jin had discussed with Greg the day before. From the start, the number of bandits in this world was quite low.
In this world, where the presence of gods feels close, life is generally prosperous.
It’s unclear whether it’s because of mana, but blessings overflow not only from the land, but also from the sea and rivers.
Monsters are indeed a threat, and because of them, many regions remain undeveloped.
However, the magic stones and materials acquired from them greatly benefit the advancement of human society, so it isn’t purely negative.
In addition, people can raise their abilities through leveling up.
If you raise your level, you can handle work equivalent to that of several ordinary people on your own.
Of course, leveling up isn’t easy for those who aren’t adventurers, and the amount of growth varies by individual.
But the fact remains: effort produces results. That is undeniably true.
And for those whose abilities increase, especially in primary industries like agriculture and fishing, finding work is never an issue.
Even when switching to other professions, the increased ability becomes an advantage.
In other words, in this world, as long as you raise your level, you won’t struggle to find work or starve.
So then, what kind of people become bandits?
Normally, you’d assume it’s made up of desperate, violent types. People with no job, no food, who try to steal from others through force.
But using force requires strength—yet as mentioned earlier, if someone has strength (that is, a high level), there are countless honest ways to earn money.
And since there’s always the risk of being killed in retaliation, choosing the job of a bandit offers very little benefit.
On top of that, because strength is a prerequisite, most bandits tend to be former adventurers or former soldiers with extensive combat experience against monsters.
However, anyone who drops out of adventuring and becomes a bandit will immediately have a bounty placed on their head by the Adventurers’ Guild.
This bounty is high.
This is to protect the guild’s reputation and to prevent the guild from becoming a breeding ground for criminals. The same applies to soldiers or members of any other organization.
So, what kind of person still chooses the bandit path under such harsh conditions?
Those who become drunk on their own strength and seek blood.
Those who feel pleasure in taking from others.
In other words, people who have broken somewhere along the way—dangerous individuals twisted by their own power.
That is what bandits are.
Therefore, if you encounter one, your only choices are to run or kill.
Your opponent is a dangerous madman with real ability.
If you can’t win, you run and bring back your life—and information.
If you choose to fight, you must go in with full intent to kill, or you’ll be the one to die.
And even if you capture them alive, the end waiting for them is execution anyway.
In this world, “bandit” refers to broken, dangerous individuals with real power—and the people drawn to such power.
Their numbers are small, but each is exceptionally deadly.
That Jin and the others hadn’t encountered any yet was natural considering their low numbers—but also undeniably fortunate.
And so, without any major trouble, Jin’s group made better time than expected.
A journey originally planned to take six days was shortened to five, and they safely reached their intended destination: Apos Village.
“So, the villagers never enter the mountain?” Jin asked the owner of the inn in Apos.
They were sitting in the inn’s dining hall.
Having arrived in the early evening, the four of them were eating dinner while gathering information from her.
“That’s right. In our village, we call it ‘the Mountain,’ but climbing it has been forbidden for a long time.”
The mountain referred to was one of those forming the Dazul Mountain Range, which stood near Apos Village.
It was of average height among them.
According to Jin’s MAP, the Madoren Flower they sought grew near its summit.
“Is there some reason for that?” Aria asked.
“Well, no one knows the exact reason. But probably because strong monsters appear there, I’d guess. Plenty of adventurers enter and never come back,” the innkeeper said, her voice tinged with sadness at the end.
The reason for the prohibition had been passed down orally through generations of village chiefs.
But that knowledge had been lost somewhere along the way, and now no one knew the true reason.
“Then, I guess that means there’s no one familiar with the mountain either?”
“That’s right. I’ve heard plenty of stories from adventurers bringing back souvenirs, so honestly, I might be the one who knows the most about it.”
Answering Rachel’s question, the innkeeper laughed brightly, as if blowing away the dark mood from a moment earlier.
Then she shared with Jin and the others everything she knew.
Adventurers apparently only ever made it halfway up the mountain, so the information was limited. Still, it was unquestionably valuable to Jin’s group.
After hearing everything—from the monsters that appeared up to that point, to possible routes—Jin and the others thanked her sincerely.
“Well then, make sure you come back safe. I don’t want to see youngsters like you dying, you hear?”
After expressing their gratitude once more, Jin and the others promised her they’d return safely.
Dawn came, and the next day Jin’s group departed early once again.
Never rushing recklessly, but acting as quickly as possible—that policy hadn’t changed since the start of their journey.
The monsters on this mountain could be strong, but they weren’t numerous.
Using MAP to check their positions, Jin continued forward while avoiding battles whenever possible.
“Alright, there are no monsters around this area now. Let’s take a break.”
With the beast he had just finished harvesting behind him, Jin called out to Aria and the others.
It had already been two days since they entered the mountain, and if things went well, they could reach their destination by this evening.
Jin took premade sandwiches from Infinite Storage, handing them out along with vegetable juice.
He bit into his own sandwich while staring at a particular point on the unfolded MAP.
A red blinking dot appeared there—representing a monster. Ever since the first day they entered the mountain, that dot had never moved.
“Jin, is something wrong?”
Erza noticed Jin’s serious expression and called out to him.
Up to this point, they had fought the monsters several times, but each battle ended without danger. All the enemies had been C-class beasts, and considering their climbing progress, everything had gone smoothly so far.
That’s why the stern look on Jin’s face felt excessive—unless there was some unknown reason behind it.
Sensing that, Erza asked.
“Finish eating first. I’ll explain after.”
Saying that, Jin stuffed the rest of the sandwich into his mouth and downed the vegetable juice.
When everyone finished eating, Jin expanded the MAP so that all of them could see it.
It looked as though the four of them were standing around a table with a map projected above it.
The sudden appearance of a floating map right in front of them drew startled cries from the three, but Jin began explaining without reacting to their surprise.
“This is the map of the surrounding area. Here is where we are now, and here is our destination.”
He pointed at two blue lights on the MAP, but on a flat surface, it was still hard to grasp. Once he sensed they’d gotten the general idea, he changed the map again.
From flat… to three-dimensional. A precise miniature model of the mountain appeared.
It was certainly easier to understand, but the three were far too shocked to focus on that. It was beyond anything their skills could produce, and they needed time to calm down.
“P-please wait. Give us a moment.”
Even Aria couldn’t suppress her confusion immediately and hurriedly stopped Jin. Only then did Jin realize his mistake.
“Ah—sorry! I rushed things a bit.”
He had been so focused on how best to explain what he had noticed that he only thought about using the MAP to make it clearer.
He hadn’t considered how extraordinary it would look to them, nor how they would perceive it.
It was proof of how completely Jin trusted the three of them—but that didn’t mean he could ignore their feelings.
(Well… of course they’d be shocked.)
Reflecting on it, Jin waited quietly until they calmed down.
“Sorry to keep you waiting. We’re fine now.”
After a while, Aria spoke on behalf of the three.
Erza and Rachel—who had been with Jin longer and should have been somewhat used to his absurd abilities—still took just as long as Aria to recover this time.
That alone showed how shocking the MAP he had displayed truly was. The three exchanged glances, nodded lightly, and somehow understood each other perfectly.
“““(We’re giving him a full lecture once this is all over.)”””
For the record, this was a decision made because they believed it was something they needed to do for Jin’s sake.
Unlike before, the MAP Jin showed this time was completely beyond the realm of any skill. The three understood that—but they didn’t think Jin himself realized it. Of course, they knew he showed it because he trusted them, and that alone made them very happy.
But lately, Jin seemed to have loosened the restraints on keeping secrets, and they felt they needed to firmly warn him at least once.
That too, in a sense, was for Jin’s sake.
Meanwhile, Jin had no way of knowing what the three were thinking. Feeling he had made a mistake, he decided to prioritize moving the conversation forward. He planned to apologize later, but at this point, it was already too late.
“Sorry about that. Let me continue. As I mentioned earlier, our destination is here. But to get there, we have no choice but to go through this relatively gentle cliff slope.”
Jin always used polite speech when talking to Aria, but when addressing the whole party, his tone became normal.
Yet for some reason, he was unconsciously using polite speech again. He remained unaware of that fact—or of the reason—while he continued explaining.
The destination Jin pointed to was a flat area atop a sheer cliff, but climbing the cliff directly wasn’t an option. On the opposite side, there was something that could barely be called a path—still, it was easier to ascend than the cliff.
But the problem lay at the starting point of that route.
It was the red blinking point on the three-dimensional map Jin had been staring at before beginning the explanation.
That mark signified a monster.
“The monster here hasn’t moved an inch since the first day I detected it when we entered the mountain. I don’t know whether it doesn’t move or simply can’t move, but in any case, unless we break through here, we can’t advance.”
Jin paused for a moment—and only then noticed he’d been speaking politely. He gave a small cough, returned to his usual tone, and spoke the core of the problem.
“The issue is that this one is at least a B-class monster.”
Up to now, they had simply confirmed the positions of B-class monsters on the map and avoided them. But since this one hadn’t moved in two full days, Jin believed there was no way to avoid a fight this time.
“Erza and Rachel should remember the mutated Mad Boar we fought before—that one definitely had B-class strength or higher. We’ve gotten stronger since then, and now Aria-san is with us too. I don’t think this enemy is someone we can’t defeat… But it’s still a foe above our class. That’s why I was hesitating earlier.”
The only reason they managed to defeat the mutated Mad Boar last time was that a trap happened to work perfectly—they were lucky.
Their level and actual strength were still far from B-class. If they fought, it would be a harsh battle. So before choosing combat, Jin had been racking his brain for ways to reach the plateau without fighting at all.
“No point worrying about it. If we can’t move forward without fighting, then we just fight.”
Erza made her decision instantly.
“That’s right. You’re worried about us, aren’t you, Jin-san? We’re grateful for that, but if we’re going to fight, we’ve already accepted we’ll be putting our lives on the line.”
Rachel said this with a gentle smile.
“As the two said. We go in ready to fight. Let’s discuss things under that assumption.”
Aria concluded, and the three waited for Jin’s response.
After a brief silence, Jin suddenly covered his face with one hand and shook his shoulders as he laughed.
“Ku… haha… honestly, you’re all incredible women.”
He let out a short laugh and spoke his true feelings.
At the same time, Jin reflected on how pathetic he had been in comparison. He thought he had already steeled his resolve long ago, but clearly he hadn’t. The women were far braver than he was.
In other words, Jin had fallen for them all over again—not in a romantic sense, but with deep respect.
And once he reflected, the next step was simply to fix his mindset and move forward.
“You’re all right. Let’s prepare under the assumption that we’re fighting.”
Jin lowered the hand covering his face and spoke, sounding refreshed. The expression he showed them was more confident than usual.
And so, with the three still slightly unsettled, Jin sat down with them to discuss their strategy moving forward.
Previous Chapter - TOC - Next Chapter
Comments
Post a Comment