CH 57

“Hooray! I am the first to arrive!!!”

Pierre exclaimed as the boat reached the beach and jumped off. Everyone who witnessed the scene couldn’t help but giggle.

“Pierre, why are you acting like a brat… how old are you even?” Rebecca sighed and said,

“Che!, You don’ get it. Every man is like that! How old am I… Forty two?” 

“Eh… Is that right, Ed?” Tia asked me,

“… no comment.”

Following the excited Pierre, we disembarked from the ship. After bringing the small boat ashore just in case, I looked around again.

“It’s still nice to be surrounded by deep forest, but there is a road, right?” Tia asked,

“Similar to that. It’s quite a grand thing to have a stone pavement.” I replied,

“Che, Since it’s called Treasure Island, it would have been nice if all the sand on the beach had been gold dust but nope, you stingy island.” Pierre said,

“……………………”

“Tia?” I called out to her,

“…, no, it’s nothing. Let’s just move on, shall we?”

“? Yeah.”

I was concerned about Tia, who was the only member with a stern expression on her face, but nothing was going to change if we just stood still. We followed the path for the time being, and soon after, Tia spilled the beans.

“… I knew it, something’s strange.”

“What’s been going on with you, Tia?”

“Don’t you think it’s strange Ed? All these trees and no animal noises at all?”

“!? Now that you mention it, …”

“Isn’t there some kind of amulet that repels Demons? I don’t know anything about animal repellent.” Rebecca asked,

“Yeah. I even had it on the ship, you know? Well, it didn’t work on the Kraken in the slightest.” Pierre said,

To my surprise, Rebecca and Pierre didn’t seem too bothered by it. But that was because they didn’t know Tia’s ability. As a skilled Spirit magician, Tia’s sensing ability was even higher than that of normal elves, who were naturally superior in this respect. To be unable to hear anything with that tier of senses would mean that there was not even a single animal over a considerable area.

(What do you think?) I asked,

(I don’t know. I don’t think there’s any danger, but … maybe this whole island was constructed. The power of spirits felt here is totally different.) She replied,

I gently intertwined my fingers with hers, and Tia responded with [Missing Talk]. I see… Artificial island … This was definitely a strong indication that something divine was involved.

“If there’s nothing out there, it’s better than being surrounded by a bunch of monsters. For now, let’s proceed with caution.” I told her,

Rebecca, of course, and even Pierre, though they repeatedly said inappropriate things and behaved improperly, were no doubt seasoned pirates who fought many battles in the past. She nodded her head in agreement with me and we continued on our way straight down the path. Soon after, we arrived at a stone structure covered with ivy.

“Is this another …. ruin of some kind?” Pierre asked,

“Probably. Just out of curiosity, what do you want to do?” I asked,

“Are ya dumb, new guy!? I wouldn’t come all the way here and leave without lookin’ inside! … I’ll give you the lead.”

“Are you being cautious … Ed?” Tia asked,

“Hehe, leave it to me, ladies. I don’t know about Pierre, though.”

“You, Aren’t ya being awfully cold just to me?”

“I’m not so good-natured as to be nice to an old man who came to kill me. … hmm.”

The cool air caressed my cheeks as I stepped into the open mouth of the ruins. It was completely dark inside, and I didn’t feel like proceeding without proper lighting.

“Tia, please.”

“I understand. Ball of full moon fathering and illuminating the light in praise of the Yellow King, a pair of eyes of the spirit that are imbued with the light! Shine and crush the darkness! In the name of Lunaritia, manifest the [Fairy Light]!”

A ball of light appeared and fluttered out of Tia’s hand as she finished chanting. It passed me and proceeded deeper into the ruins,… but after about five meters, it popped.

“What!?” Pierre exclaimed,

“What’s going on?” I asked Tia,

“I don’t know. … maybe a boundary. From the response, I think it’s an inhibition … barrier type thing, not nullification.” Tia replied,

“Hmmm, they have a strict no peeking policy. Then, Ah, ….” I muttered,

Shoot. There was a lantern in the [Stranger Box] but it was too big to make it look like I took it out of my waist bag. If I take it out with a nonchalant look, they might let it slide, but if they poke into it, it might become troublesome later… What should I do?

“Hmm? What, you wan’ light? Then… Ho!”

Pierre, raising his left hand, shouted, and his claws began to emit a pale light. It was enough light to illuminate the darkness and …… eh, isn’t that amazing.

“Whoa, it glowed!? Look, look, Ed, his hook is glowing!” Tia exclaimed,

“A-Ah. It’s glowing.”

“Pierre, you are still doing the weird tricks as usual.” Rebecca rebuked Pierre,

“Shut up, I’m always ready for anything! And Glowing hooks are cool, don’t you think?!”

“I know…” Rebecca muttered,

“Ed?” Tia called out to me,

“Oh, no, no, no. Nothing.”

I thought it was cool for a moment, but this was what was called a distraction. However, the Glowing hook cut through the darkness… It’s Nothing, Absolutely nothing.

“Hahaha! You finally realized how great I am, eh!? Then I’ll lead the way from here! There don’t seem to be any traps.”

Pierre was in a good mood and led us through the ruins. Pierre’s claws remained glowing even after we crossed the place where Tia’s magic was erased, so it appeared that  not everything could be erased.

“I wonder what are the conditions? I’d like to look into it a bit, however …” I said,

“That can wait. If We have time when we get back, save it for then.” Tia said,

“Oh well.”

“Oi, you guys! There’s some kind of door!”

As Tia and I were walking along talking, Pierre called out to us. I immediately turned my head in that direction and saw a beautifully decorated stone door standing in front of us.

“Amazing.” Tia muttered,

“Hnnnnnghhhh… No good, it won’t even budge.” Pierre said,

“That’s right. Maybe it has some kind of trick?” Tia said,

“I guess, but I don’t see anything that looks like it.”

I wandered around and looked, but there was nothing in the way of a trick that I could see at first glance. Since it was a one-way corridor, there was not much room to investigate, and after searching for about 30 minutes, no new discoveries were made.

(This is getting us nowhere. Then …)

I moved stealthily to a position where I was in everyone’s blind spot and activated the [Akashic Compass]. I set the target to “door opening mechanism” and … hmm?

“…………?”

“What? Is there something on my face?” Rebecca asked,

“No, it’s not that …, Captain. Would you mind opening that door for a moment?”

“What? Do I look that powerful to you?”

“No, now, now, look, it’s just a test.”

“Huh. Well, okay.”

I smiled vaguely and said, Rebecca sighed lightly and then put her hand on the door. As she continued to apply force, the thick stone door opened noisily.

“W-What!? Why all of a sudden!?” Rebecca exclaimed,

“I-Impossible!? Rebecca, not only do you have big tits and a fat arse, but also stupid strength!?”

“Are you kidding me!? No way. … Hey Ed, what the hell is going on!?” 

“I don’t know what you’re talking about. I just thought about giving all of you a chance at opening it.”

Rebecca raised her eyebrows and yelled at me, and I hurriedly waved my hand in front of my face and blurted out my excuses. Actually, it was because the [Akashic Compass] pointed to Rebecca. … Does this mean that this was a door that only A Hero could open? If so, what was behind this… 

“Good grief. So, What’s… inside………………………….”

Everyone in the room was speechless when they caught a glimpse of the thing past the open door. Floating on a stone pedestal in the stiflingly clear air was a trident silver candlestick with a long candle attached.