Chapter 97: Regained Vitality Part-2

“This is…”

“The wind has gotten cooler…”

As the party members said, the wind blowing across the desolate plains was unusually cool, unlike before.

Originally, the wind in this land was always dusty and heavy.

It was a wind that never felt refreshing, but now it was filled with life.

There were no immediately noticeable changes.

However, everyone could sense it. That life would begin to grow again in this land.

“For now… let’s go back.”

We had emerged far from the mine. It seemed we had wandered around inside the dungeon in a daze and ended up here.

We dragged our tired bodies towards the large castle walls.

The entrance to the castle was bustling.

Soldiers in armor were running around frantically, carefully checking the faces and luggage of people trying to enter the castle.

At that moment, one of the soldiers looked this way and shouted with a surprised expression.

“We, we found him! We found him!”

That was the signal. The soldier’s voice drew everyone’s attention.

Soldiers who had been scattered around searching for something began to rush over in a frenzy.

“This is…”

Alfonso, seeing the soldiers, was greatly flustered. He hurriedly pressed down on the helmet he was holding under his arm.

But there was no way he could hide his identity like that. The soldiers quickly surrounded our party, including Alfonso.

“It’s the prince! It’s definitely the Third Prince!”

Then, a young man pushed his way through the soldiers. He was panting heavily, as if he had run here in a hurry.

“Alfredo… is it definitely Alfredo…?”

“Brother Alex…”

The two brothers’ gazes met in the air. Alfonso, or rather Alfredo, who had been silently enduring the gaze, took off the helmet he was wearing.

His golden hair, which had flowed down coolly, was now messy, soaked with blood and sweat.

“Where have you been…”

Alex’s gaze slowly scanned Alfredo’s body. Carefully, as if looking at something precious.

Alfredo, who had been silently enduring the gaze, quietly opened his mouth.

“I went on an adventure… a real adventure.”

Alfredo, having returned to the castle, had to run around frantically.

Because of his reckless actions, a considerable number of people had lost their lives.

He deeply regretted the deaths of his party members.

Alfredo realized.

That the stories of adventurers that appeared in his storybooks were all fabricated.

During the dungeon exploration, his party had been reduced by half.

There was no guarantee that the death that loomed before him would not be directed at him.

He was afraid, but he forced himself to act as if he was fine.

Death was something unfamiliar and strange to Alfredo.

But the other adventurers lightly brushed off the deaths of their comrades, as if they were used to it.

As if it wasn’t the first or second time it had happened.

It was as if his soft mental state was being hammered repeatedly.

“Hoo…”

Alfredo took a deep breath and stopped in front of the audience chamber door.

He signaled to the soldiers standing on either side, and the door naturally began to open.

Alfredo walked in confidently. He had always felt intimidated when he went to see his father, the King of Raoum, but today he couldn’t be.

“Alfredo.”

“Father…”

“I heard the whole story from the party members who went with you. So, you dealt with a black magician in the dungeon?”

It was a question to confirm the facts.

If he answered no, the stay of his comrades, who had fought alongside him at the risk of their lives, would certainly be extended.

“That’s correct.”

“Traces of magic were found inside the mine. It seems that’s what moved you… coincidentally, a magician who didn’t reveal their identity participated in your party.”

Alfredo frowned at the words.

In the process of escaping the dungeon, the dungeon itself collapsed completely.

The resulting ground collapse had a negative impact on the largest mine in the country.

Alfredo could sense the intention of his father, the King of Raoum.

He was clearly planning to hold the Magic Tower responsible for the collapsed mine and this incident.

“It was just a coincidence.”

Alfredo’s slightly bent back straightened along with his chest.

He remembered that he was standing here not as the Third Prince Alfredo, but as the adventurer Alfonso.

“I know that my reckless actions created an artificial dungeon inside the mine.

Father, rather than passing the responsibility on to my companions, wouldn’t it be better to catch the person who chose that place and question them…?”

The King of Raoum, Santos, silently looked down at his youngest son.

His son, who had always shown a disappointing appearance, intimidated and subdued whenever he stood before him, was now confidently expressing his will.

In fact, all investigations into the incident had been completed.

Everything was an accident caused by coincidence, and he knew that those who had been with his son had no responsibility.

And he also knew how this would change the country. Santos just wanted to test Alfredo.

The soft blade had changed. The adventure there, the accumulated experience, had tempered the blade that was Alfredo.

Santos smiled with satisfaction.

“Alfredo.”

“Yes, that is… huh?”

“That magician, was her name Seris?”

“Ah, yes. She certainly used that name…”

“What is your relationship with her?”

“… She is a precious comrade.”

Santos tapped the armrest of the throne with his fingers, calculating.

Even if the weak-hearted Alfredo had changed, he was still the Third Prince.

As long as his two older brothers were alive, it would not be easy for him to inherit the throne.

Of course, things would be different if life returned to this land and it regained its appearance from hundreds of years ago.

Alfredo needs a foundation. A foundation to stand up to his brothers on equal footing.

He will be a little busy from now on. Santos stood up from his seat and called a servant to prepare a pen and paper.

“Father…?”

“Go see your comrade.”

“Ugh…”

I stretched as I walked out of the large castle.

My stiff body made a cracking sound and felt refreshed.

All the party members, including me, had been dragged straight to the castle and interrogated for two days.

It was a bit embarrassing, but I could understand the Raoum royal family’s reaction.

The Third Prince had suddenly disappeared, so everything would have been suspicious.

Still, there was nothing uncomfortable about staying there.

A soft bed and delicious food were provided. Rather, it was nice to be able to focus on recovering my mana.

After learning all the facts, the Raoum royal family paid more than the promised reward.

I smiled faintly as I looked at the heavy bag.

“Wa, wait a moment…!”

As the adventurers who had received their rewards began to leave one by one, Alfredo, who had come to see us off, called out to me.

He was wearing fancy everyday clothes instead of full plate armor.

“Yes?”

“If… if we meet again next time…”

“Next time?”

“Then, would you be willing to go on an adventure with me again… form a party?”

I looked up at Alfredo with a lukewarm expression at his words. His sparkling gaze was burdensome.

“Um…”

How should I answer? Countless thoughts flashed through my mind in a short time.

“We’ll see then.”

A smile spread across Alfredo’s face.

When I thought about it, he was a pretty good comrade as a party member.

He didn’t dismiss the seemingly young girl and treated her without prejudice, and he wasn’t surprised that I was a Gold-ranked swordsman.

“Then see you next time.”

“Go, go well!”

I waved to Alfredo and left the castle.

As I came down the hill where the castle was located, I could see a pink-haired girl waiting for me on the path.

“Ms. Tera?”

“Hi. Are the greetings over?”

“Ah, yes. Were you waiting for me?”

“Yeah.”

“Why?”

“Just because. You’re not planning to leave right away, are you? Do you have anything to do?”

“Ah, well, I do…”

I looked at the bag behind me. It was incredibly heavy because it was full of gold coins.

“I’m thinking of making full plate armor.”

“One that fits your body?”

“Yes.”

“Oh. That’s perfect. Leave it to me.”

“Yes…?”

“I also run a blacksmith.”

A Gold-ranked swordsman was a blacksmith?

As I looked at her with a questioning expression, Tera grabbed my hand and started dragging me away without a word.

It was a small girl’s hand, but it had undeniable calluses firmly embedded in it.

“Are you sure you’re skilled…?”

“Trust me!”

The place we arrived at was a larger blacksmith than I had expected.

The heat of the fire and the environment full of the smell of iron made Tera look strangely familiar.

“Can you put your hands up for a second?”

“Ah, yes.”

“Good. Just stay still like that.”

Tera brought a tape measure from the corner and began to measure my body size. She was very serious about the production.

“Your body is more solid than I thought? You’ll be able to handle the weight well… since you’re a magician, a mineral with high magic resistance would be good…?”

Tera muttered to herself in a small voice and began to write an order form. Watching her, I hurriedly opened my mouth.

“Ah, please don’t make a helmet. Because of my horns…”

Clang-!

The flames of the furnace flickered as if reacting to each hammer blow.

A faint afterimage began to settle on Tera’s small body.

Tera’s furnace didn’t go out for a week. She hammered away day and night.

The moment the last hammering was over, she looked at me with dark circles under her eyes.

“Is, is it done?”

Tera nodded silently. The completed silver armor sparkled brightly. Tera began to personally put the armor she had made on me.

Each time her small hands wriggled, she tightened the leather straps strongly.

“Done!”

When Tera took her hands off my body, a heavy weight was pressing down on me. But it wasn’t an unpleasant sensation.

The full plate armor had considerable weight, but because the weight was distributed throughout the body, there were no particular restrictions on movement.

I tapped the breastplate lightly and smiled with satisfaction. When the mana barrier is breached, this armor will save my life once.

“How much is it?”

But she couldn’t answer my question. Tera, who had been sitting on a small table watching me, was fast asleep.

“Um…”

How much should I pay…

After a short period of contemplation, I took out all the gold I had received as a reward for this request.

I had obtained the full plate armor I wanted, and all my business here was finished. Meaning there was no reason to stay any longer.

I covered the sleeping Tera with a blanket and left Raoum Castle on Nightmare.

Saaa-

A green wind spread out under Nightmare’s hooves as he trudged along.

Following the wind, I could see a small flower blooming on the desolate land.

“Oh…”

It feels even more special because it’s a flower blooming in a desolate place with nothing else.

As I blankly exclaimed while looking at the small flower swaying in the wind, Nightmare strode forward and quickly ate the flower.

“Ah…!”

Pwee-hing-

Nightmare wagged his tail and moved forward.