Okay, now that the terms of our alliance have been set, lets teleport .

Shin waited for Lina to stop crying, then made preparations for the teleportation . She seemed a bit embarrassed to have lost control, so her face was still red .

Teleport?

Yeah, its a secret technique that allows you to go to a faraway place instantly . Its attached to this crystal . With this, we can go to Lanapacea in a second . Wed stand out if we used it in an open space, so we waited till we reached a more secluded place, like here .

So thats why we went to a forest . I was wondering what was going on . er, sir .

Lina awkwardly turned up the politeness of her tone . She seemed to have suddenly noticed that she was speaking casually .

I am sorry, I was a bit out of it .

Thats all right . Im just a no-name adventurer, so feel free to speak as you like . You only need to worry about that when there are other people around .

Shin made up the fact that it would be bad if a World Tree priestess addressed him too politely and told Lina to adopt a more casual tone . They would be fighting together to heal the World Tree and bring down the Luderia clan head, so he honestly didnt want her to treat him with such restraint .

Shin also personally disliked being treated with respect and admiration because of his strength .

Ok, so, er, thanks .

Lina awkwardly lowered her head to Shin, who nodded .

Ok, ready to go .

Shin infused the crystal with magic power . The attached spell properly activated and the next instant Shins group was in the Lanapacea residence .

Wow, we really are in Lanapacea

Lina seemed to know about the residence: she looked around the room and realized they were back in Lanapacea . From how she looked around, however, she seemed a bit confused all the same .

Oh, theyre back .

Schnee and Tiera were in the residence too: they probably detected their return . The door opened and they entered the room .

Youre back . A bit too quick, no?

Its almost time for the next purification . I havent got much information, but I wanted to tell master at least .

Tiera managed to acquire new information, albeit only a little .

So this is the girl Lilishila wrote about . I am Tiera Lucent . How do you feel?

M-my name is Lina Lulac . Im honestly surprised, but I feel really good!

Tiera knew what Lina had gone through, so she talked to her with a warm smile . Lina had noticed Tiera even before the latter introduced herself, so she replied with a rather excited tone .

Is the miasma not affecting her anymore?

It surely doesnt look like that . She probably recovered because we made her drink an elixir . She also said that the World Tree used its powers for her .

Shin replied to Schnees whispered question with what he heard from Lina .

Past priestesses told her about you? Well, I suppose a priestess could do something like thatI wonder who she was, though .

A priestess?

Yes . Its not too rare for priestesses to be able to speak with the dead . The current situation is pretty unique, though . I cant help but think that there must be a reason why she was chosen .

thats right . If a random priestess had been chosen, like in a game, it wouldnt sit right at all .

Shin and the others didnt know who the elf that Lina saw was, though . Lina had told them about the elfs facial features, but as expected she was very beautiful, which did not help to narrow down the options . She had silver hair and green eyes, a combination that was not unusual among elves .

It doesnt help that she doesnt seem to have unique featuressince she contacted Lina from her side, its difficult to call her from this side too .

I cant pinpoint exactly which spirit to channel either, it just cant be helped .

Tiera said that even if she could speak with the dead, she couldnt do it with just anyone unconditionally .

If a disaster is approaching, someone with the ability to counter it appears; to communicate with the remaining family, someone from the same family is necessary . Calling the perfect person to do such things isnt something I can do, but I heard that past priestesses had this ability .

As far as Tiera knew, only one of the World Tree priestesses ever had such an ability . She was a very powerful priestess, like Tiera .

I seewell, if its not possible, then thats that . If she ever comes in contact again, please ask for her name . We cant do anything special even if we know, but its always better than not knowing .

Okay, got it .

Lina nodded to Shin . Like before, she was unusually close to him .

. by the way, Shin . Linas back safe and sound, so shouldnt we bring her to the Lulac? Their authority and clout would be restored if she returned to them .

Schnee noticed Linas attitude, her eyes narrowed and she voiced this doubt . She added that Lina would be given proper items to defend her from demons, of course .

About that, well, before we came here I promised that she could stay with us .

If the Luderia clan head, who was connected with the demons, knew that Lina was back, she would surely be attacked again .

A demon that made deals with people was definitely high-ranked . In that case, the Lulac clans fighting power was likely insufficient .

Im sorry, Im afraid things might get a bit complicated .

A bit? Theyre going to get *very* complicated .

Youre right

Shin had promised, partly, on the spur of the moment . Even if Lina was equipped with anti-demon items, as Schnee suggested, it wouldnt mean anything if others were attacked in her place .

In the orphanage, Millie had been given such items, but the demons took hostages, forcing her to remove the items herself . Lina had friends and family in Lanapacea: Shins party couldnt protect them all . The items they provided could also potentially be handed to others or used in other ways .

I guess it cant be helped, then . Fortunately, among the Lulac there are those who lament the current situation . If we contact them and explain the circumstances, further interference from the Lulac clan should be reduced .

The same goes for the Luderia . If we talk to Orlean, their movements should change a bit . Considering what Shin heard, they will probably get in contact with me when I head for the next purification .

Shins party would not mention the clan heads connection with the demons yet . If Orlean and Herald came to know, they -along with their allies- might resort to violent means .

Ill go to the holy area now . What should we do with Lina?

Purifying the World Tree is our top priority, but Im thinking of trying the items first and bringing Lina next time too . They wont just let her in anyway, we would just start a ruckus .

The return of the kidnapped priestess would definitely be huge news for the village . If she showed her purification powers no one would doubt she was the real Lina, but the Luderia clan head was on the side of the perpetrators . In the worst case scenario, Shins party could be accused of the kidnapping .

Herald is my older brother . If I talk to him, Im sure he will understand .

Shin mentioned what he heard from Herald and Orlean; Lina was slightly surprised, then said this .

I guess we might go talk to them while Tiera goes to the purification . We need to sneak into their residence, but are there any traps we should watch out for?

Lina didnt know the extent of Shins stealth abilities, which could make it hard for her to reply, so he erased his presence and turned invisible to show her an example . Linas eyes widened .

I think that they probably reinforced the security since I was kidnapped . I do not think that they would ever find you as you are now, sir Shin .

I guess we need to go actually go there to find out . Why the sir, though? You dont need to address me with titles .

That wont do .

Linas tone had become a bit more casual, thanks to Shins attitude and atmosphere, but she clearly stated she couldnt address him without a title . Apparently, it was something she wouldnt budge on .

She addressed not only Shin, but all party members in such a way . Shin had no strong preferences about that, so he let her do as she wanted .

Okay, lets move then . Ill go to the Lulac with Lina .

I will accompany you .

Kuu!

Schnee and Yuzuha said that they would follow Shin .

It would be suspicious if we all disappeared except Tiera . I shall remain here .

I will go the purification, as scheduled .

After deciding what they would do, Tiera left for the World Tree and Shins group for the Lulac residence . Since Lina was with them, they wouldnt risk getting lost .

Shin concealed their presence with skills and proceeded via the villages rooftops . Lina couldnt jump like them, so Yuzuha let her ride on her back . Proceeding without care for the streets, they could reach the residence in little to no time .

Doesnt look like well find any nasty traps . Can you feel anything, Schnee?

No, I do not detect any dangerous traps either . I believe well be fine as long as we are wary of peoples eyes .

If the kunoichi Schnee said she didnt feel anything, they concluded there werent any traps to worry about and jumped on the residences roof . If they found a trap they couldnt detect, it couldnt be helped .

Hm?

Right before entering the residence, Shin felt something pass through his body . He thought he might have triggered an alarm, told Schnee and the others not to move and carefully scrutinized the surroundings, but no one inside the residence seemed to react .

Was there a trap?

No, but I felt something pass through my body

Lina said that she had no recollection of such traps . Thinking it might have been his imagination, Shin kept his guard up as they descended into the residences garden .

Guided by Lina, the group headed to Heralds private quarters, where they detected someone was present . Through Sight revealed that Herald was reading something in the room . He hadnt gone to see Tiera, evidently .

They planned to leave a message if he wasnt there, but it was much more convenient for him to be present . Shins group entered without a sound, closing the door behind them . Herald did not notice and continued looking at the letter he was holding .

Brother .

!? Whos there!?

Surprised by the sudden voice, Herald assumed a fighting pose and turned around . His pose showed that he was likely versed in martial arts .

Wait! Its me, Lina!

Shin deactivated the skill and they became visible . Herald recognized her and his eyes opened wide .

what exactly is going on here?

You know that I was kidnapped by demons, right? These people saved me . But since Lanapacea is in an abnormal situation now, we decided to let you know that I was safe first .

Are you really Lina? No, if lady Schnee is with you, Im sure you are, but

Herald was confused, but as he talked with Lina he gradually recovered his cool . He couldnt believe his eyes yet, to good reason: after all, his missing sister, who he didnt know whether was alive or dead, had suddenly appeared before him .

Look, this should be proof enough .

Lina held her hands as in prayer and concentrated . Her body then started glowing in a faint light .

The light of purificationyou really areLina .

Herald staggered towards her, as if attracted by the light . When the light of purification, proof of Linas identity, faded away, he hugged her tightly .

Hey, b-brother!?

. Im so glad . Youre alive!

Herald, still hugging the squirming Lina, barely managed to put his feelings into words . He was clearly overjoyed that Lina was still alive . Tears were streaming down his cheeks .

Can we talk now?

I apologize for making you wait . You have my most heartfelt gratitude for saving Lina . I will never forget this debt as long as I live .

Herald bowed deeply and expressed his gratitude . His frank tone when talking to Lina was subdued, his speech extremely polite .

So, what do you wish from me?

Herald raised his head and his expression turned serious . They happened to save Lina, who happened to be a World Tree priestess, so they brought her herehe knew things couldnt be that simple .

Shin explained why Lina had been kidnapped and that she wished to stay together with them for a while .

Considering such circumstances, I cannot possibly oppose you . I know of Lady Schnees martial prowess: if she says so, sir Shin must be equally strong or even more . You are both far superior to me, but I can tell that you are strong . Our Lulac clan has warriors with special powers like Returned Ancestors, but I do not know how they would fare against demons . I am sure my sister would be more than sufficiently safe with you .

Though there were Chosen Ones in Lanapacea, most were chiefs of the warrior corps in charge of protecting the village .

Herald then told Shins party what he knew of the current situation . Since he had saved Lina and Schnee was his ally, Herald found him worthy of trust .

Heralds information included the fact that recent cases of missing persons happened frequently and some warrior chiefs personalities suddenly changed drastically . Thanks to his relatively high rank in the country, he had gathered a fair amount of confidential intel .

Shin was especially concerned by the information stating that lately, the clan head had not shown himself to anyone . Whenever he spoke with someone, he did so through a curtain, so in the last few months, only a select handful of people had actually seen him .

How was it during the audience, Schnee?

It was just like Herald said . The curtain was attached with an enchantment that neutralized all visual skills like Analyze . That by itself is not too unusual, so I did not mention it .

Shin thought that some still existing game settings were probably involved . In the game, it was possible to block magic eye-type skills .

Schnee had connections to Tiera, but she was still an outsider . Even if she was a well-known personage, they would still be wary around her . Among Magic Eye-type skills, there were some that could charm and manipulate the target .

In the game, Lords were often connected to such visual barrier items . One of the Lords characteristics was having Magic Eye skills: in order not to be suspected of abusing such skills for evil deeds, they produced items that could neutralize them . This was true for NPCs in the game era, however, Shin did not know if it applied to this world as well .

Schnee said that royals and nobles other than Lords often conducted audiences in that way . Other than Lords, Elves and some Beasts did, at the very least .

Judging from the information we have, there might be a reason why he doesnt want to be seen .

Shin recalled the woman who had turned into an Invader he had fought in the church . The real clan head could be already dead .

Thats possible . If its a fake, it wouldnt be strange that it stayed hidden to prevent being found out . It would also explain his strange behavior .

This is just a theory, though . He might be under someones control, oras much as I hate saying it, the probability that hes cooperating with them of his own volition is not zero .

Shin hoped for this last probability to be a clear zero .

We need to investigate more to be sure . Fortunately, the son of the Luderia clan head is not pleased with the current situation either . He will let me know if he finds out anything, so I will let you know as soon as I can . Can I talk to Orlean, the son of the head chief, about you, sir Shin?

Lina plans to participate in the next purification, so I would like you to keep it a secret until then . I dont mean to suspect you, but Orlean might be under surveillance . I want to avoid any risk that the clan head discovers us .

Shin said that it was a possibility, but Orlean being under surveillance was a fact . This would probably happen to Shins group too, but as far as their detection field extended, it hadnt occurred yet . They teleported back inside the residence and always concealed their presence when they were outside .

Not even the elves working in the residence had seen them, so very few knew of Linas return to Lanapacea . There was a chance the clan head learned about their plans or other parties interfered, so they wanted to keep it a secret until right before the purification . If they were attacked they could just beat the assailants back, but if they used their authority it wouldnt be so simple .

Understood . I will keep this meeting a secret, then .

It would be risky to talk for too long . They completed their objective of informing Herald of Linas safety, so they decided to go back to the residence . Before they did, Shin took out an item card from the box .

It was a simple necklace with glowing clear magic stones about 1 cemel in size . Shin gave it to Lina .

What is this?

Its an accessory enchanted with Hiding and various defensive skills . Even if you are separated from us, with this you can hide your presence and buy enough time to flee . If you take it off the effects will disappear . Ill make sure at least one of us will always be with you, so I think everything will be alright, but take it just in case .

From the description, it looks like a national treasurebut okayits for my safetyfor my safety .

When Shin lent it to Millie, he realized that the necklace had a weakness: if the wearer removed it, its effects were lost . Shin had rearranged it to be active only when the registered person wore it, but in the end, it just served as insurance .

Lina whispered to reassure herself and equipped the necklace . Her detection abilities probably told her that the item she was so casually given could be astoundingly precious in that world .

Hm? Someones coming .

Shin detected a presence and, from the map, noticed that it was heading straight for their room . No one had approached that room before, so he concealed them just in case .

Lord Herald!! Lord Herald!!

Whats wrong?

Herald opened the door and talked with a panicking female elf . Apparently, the path leading to the World Tree had turned into a dungeon: they couldnt contact Tiera, Lymliss and the warriors that were escorting them anymore .

What thewhat happened to the warriors protecting the holy area?

They apparently suffered heavy casualties while fighting monsters when the dungeon appeared . The Luderia clan has contacted all clans, to gather warriors in order to clear the dungeon . The elders have already started doing so, but

The monsters in the dungeon were all over level 300, apparently . With enough numbers, it wasnt impossible to defeat them since, among the warriors, there were some who could even defeat such monsters on their own . However, there were simply too many monsters . There seemed to be even more powerful units too .

Not much time had passed since the dungeon appeared, so information was still scarce, but the surroundings of the holy area had been shut due to the emergency .

We must go as well . Ready the equipment .

Understood .

Herald gave orders to the female elf, who quickly left .

The clan head made his move? Or maybe the demons hes connected with

Or the World Tree is reaching its limits .

Shin hypothesized while taking out a message card, then Schnee added a possibility . In game terms, her theory was more probable .

Shin tried extending his detection field and caught Tiera, Kagerou and Lymliss presences . However, they were so faint and unstable that they were flashing on the map .

I cant read their presences well, since theyre inside the dungeon-turned holy area . If I can detect their presence, however, they should still be safe . Kagerou also with them after all, and Tiera, as she is now, wont go down easily . If a duke demon comes up, theyll be in trouble, thoughtheyre definitely being targeted, so were going to blow through the dungeon without holding back this time .

Tiera and Kagerou could hold their own, but Lymliss fighting ability was low . She could easily become a weak point if attacked . If a high-ranking demon appeared, they would definitely target her . There was no guarantee that there was only one demon attacking either .

There was no time to wait for the elves rescue operation . Shin decided to go help Tieras group, regardless of the consequences .

S-sir Shin!? I understand that lady Schnee is with you, but wont it be dangerous!?

Herald was surprised to hear what Shin said to Schnee . He didnt know how strong Shin was, so he probably thought that Shin was saying something absurd .

I might not look the part, but I have defeated duke demons in the past . I have Schnee Raizars seal of approval too, so please believe me . We need speed above everything now, so Ill have Shibaid watch over Lina . Please wait here for a while .

Shibaid excelled in muscle power and defense, so his speed was inferior to Shin and Schnee . He regretted having to do give him this role, but contacted Shibaid to ask him to guard Lina .

Yuzuha, please stay here until Shibaid arrives . Once hes here, Ill call you with Summon Partner .

Kuu!

Probably happy to be relied on, Yuzuha deftly stood on her hind legs and saluted Shin, then jumped down at Linas feet .

Yuzuha looks like a small fox, but if she goes all out she can turn this whole country into a wasteland . Please rest easy .

Eryes . . ?

Herald was convinced of her power, so -albeit a bit lost- he nodded .

Once Shibaid arrives, please stay with him in the residence .

Okay . Please take care .

Sure, well be back with Tiera and the others .