By the time we know it, we have spent two days traveling. Except for some Wild Beasts, we still have nothing obstructing our way.
My journey to home is so smooth sailing, I don't know how to feel about it. On one hand, I am glad that we will arrive at Verniculos Kingdom faster; but on the other hand, I am rather down due to the lack of adrenaline coloring the travel.
Still, I don't think the status quo will remain unchanged.
"Do you know what is the most terrifying sound in the most dangerous place?" I ask to no one in particular.
"The footstep of the owner of the territory," Arieda answers surely.
"That certainly is terrifying; but no, it is not the most terrifying."
"The desperate scream of help?" Haletha takes a guess.
"Not that either."
"The travel is a little bland, I know, but why do we have to talk about—"
"Silence," I interrupt Arieda. "You remain silent when you don't want to be found out. When a dangerous place is silent, you will fins yourself asking if you have already been in the presence of the very thing that makes the place dangerous."
"..."
That was just me telling my worry in a very implicit way. Our smooth sailing travel might turn chaotic in any time, and I can think of many possibilities of how it will happen.
According to Murphy's law, the several possibilities will make our travel go wrong. I don't know about when and how, but we have to be ready for the upcoming shitstorm, which is why I warned Haletha earlier.
I have prepared myself in advance, so when things go wrong I will be able to react quickly. I don't want to die, but I am also a little bit expectant toward how much chaos will be added to our travel.
Whizz!
Murphy's law didn't disappoint; when I hear that sound, I immediately lean my body sideways. An arrow that splits the air as fast as a Shinkansen passes by in the next second, hits the ground, and blows it up.
"Enemy is approaching!"
Taking out Rexorem as soon as I hear Haletha's exclamation, I use [Senbonzakura], and scatter the petals in the air. I do it as carefully as I can, so they don't accidentally cut Haletha's Guardians.
Like before, the Dark Elves chasing after us can't see my [Senbonzakura] coming; they keep advancing toward us without a care. Naturally, when they see the people in front of them shredded to pieces, all of them are in disbelief.
They can't explain or tell what happened, so they look around trying to figure out if there is any booby trap. They can't find any, of course, so they can only slow down and dodge all of the arrows Haletha's Guardians send them.
"Bows and arrows? More like firearms," I mutter funnily as I look at the explosive arrows the Guardians send at the rebel army. "The Elven Race might be the most sophisticated Race in this world; at least, by Earth's standard."
When I heard from Valeria that, even in this world, The Elven Race relied on bows and arrows, I couldn't help thinking about what they can do with it considering the absurd power level of this world is.
I couldn't help thinking that way because of the fancy things we can do with Magic. I mean, what can bows and arrows do against an ethereal orb that explodes like a nuclear bomb?
Valeria assured me at that time that I would be surprised by what they could do. I treated it as her merely messing with me, so now that I am faced with the truth, I can't help finding it absurd.
"Well, that's a Magic world for you."
I shrug, then send the Dark Elves a massive Mana Sword. I hit six of them, but only four died since the remaining two were lucky enough to have their Varadomes take the hit.
"[Senbonzakura]!"
Of course, the outcome of my previous attack has nothing to do with how things will end in my next attack. [Senbonzakura] shreds the two surviving Dark Elves and those nearby in a second.
I have been relying too much on ranged attacks for the past two days, so my hands can't help feeling itchy the moment I notice the Dark Elves are barely stronger than me. I really want to engage in a close combat with them, but I can't just do that.
Our main goal is to run away from them, so stopping or even coming at them is highly counterproductive. On top of that, there is no guarantee that they don't have a countermeasure for that kind of situation.
If they have already prepared it, just getting out of the situation alive will already be something that needs to be rejoiced.
Boom!
"Tsk. They have finally decided to resort to ranged attacks, huh?" I click my tongue as I see the rebel army backing away. "They are not that powerful, but getting hit by their arrows must sting."
When Haletha said Teanosvera was helping us by handicapping the rebel army, I thought she meant it as Teanosvera limiting the amount of Mana they could utilize. Because of this, I have been anticipating how strong they will be outside the forest.
Now that I am facing them, I hardly find them challenging. This, however, doesn't mean that Teanosvera didn't help us when we were in Teanosvera; there is something better about the rebel army, and that is their accuracy.
What Teanosvera impaired must have been their eyes, because their accuracy is noticeably higher than when they were still in the forest. That said, it doesn't change the game much, except for the fact it is harder to dodge their attack.
Rumble!
When the ground rises and sweeps the rebel army like a wave, thanks to Haletha, the battle ends. I think she has completely obliterated the rebel army chasing after our ass with that Spell, because we see no more of them ever since.
...
The journey has been going without a hitch after our previous encounter with the rebel army. A day has passed since that encounter, and now we are just 800 Absitan or 1600 miles away from Scentillion City.
That measurement is, of course, just my rough calculation. This world is so big, it slightly messes my perception of distance up; so, regardless, I still find that close enough.
Given our current speed, we will arrive at Scentillion City in 4 hours. It is noon now, so we will arrive there around late afternoon or early evening.
[Please, notify me when you arrive.]
"What about General Velucan? Now that I think about it, I have only talked to you for the past three days."
[I am the only one remaining in Scentillion. The others have returned—General Velucan included—so notifying him of your arrival won't give you any merit or whatsoever.]
"I see..."
[Very well, see you then.]
My conversation with Eliseus through our Rank Necklace ends that way. It is revealed that she will take over my role as Haletha's guide the moment we reach Scentillion City.
All of my troop mates—even Vibiane, much to my surprise—have returned to the Kingdom for reasons Eliseus didn't tell me. I am guessing, though, they have been summoned because another battle has just occurred.
That battle must be not that important, because Velucan is willing to leave behind someone as powerful as Eliseus. I wonder, still, if Ilschevar will send me to the battlefield if it is indeed the case.
Shaking my head to clear my thoughts, I focus on the way while remaining vigilant. The travel still goes without a hitch, fortunately, so we can reach Scentillion in less than four hours.
The moment we arrive there, Eliseus can be seen standing in front of the gate with Paulina in her hand, and Auria standing beside her.
"You have done a good job, Layland. Our King said he would give you a reward, so you should expect getting something that won't disappoint you," Eliseus says as I walk toward her.
"Oh, I wish he can give me an infinite Spatial Storage. Mine is already full with luxuries."
"... Such useless things."
"Don't call them useless. I can hire a high-end group of assassins with them."
Shrugging, Eliseus turns to Paulina and pats her head. "I am going to accomplish my mission, so be a good girl and listen to Auria."
"Don't worry, mom! I am going to be a good kid," answers said daughter.
Eliseus turns to Auria and nods her head. "Please, take care of her well." Said Cyclops bows politely at Eliseus and says yes timidly.
Turning around in the next moment, together with me, Eliseus walks toward the Dark Elves. She greets Haletha simply, and says nothing afterwards.
Being professional, they know they will have time to talk about many things after.
Taking the lead, like me, Eliseus decided to run. In a few minutes, we reach the field that is filled with many Taurones; none of them, however, are showing any hostility toward Eliseus and me due to the Dark Elves' presence.
Ten more minutes passed—just as we arrive at the part of the field that is most populated by the Taurones, we finally see the Portal that will take us to Verniculos Kingdom.
The Portal's appearance marks the end of my not so exhilarating but fun regardless journey.
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