Chapter 85 The Spooky, Uncomfortable Forest Adventure The Fairy Hideout Map Discovery
Edited by: Kanaa-senpai
(The Fairy Hideout)
After we finished our meal downstairs, we checked into the inn room above the tavern. I made sure to get us the same room, of course. Right now, it’s our free time. I’m pulling out a map of the Regain Kingdom area from my storage charm and doing a lot of thinking.
”That vendor—no, the stray fairy. Her entire existence is obviously suspicious, isn’t it? She just vanished suddenly after explaining everything to us, saying she’d pick us up tomorrow morning!” Karentisia-chan sounded angry for some reason. If she lets a mere vendor get her this worked up, she’s going to build up so much stress. Maybe I should try to soothe her.
”Even if she’s suspicious, we promised we’d do it, didn’t we? If that vendor turns out to be a Stray Fairy, just as you suspect, Karentisia-chan, then we absolutely must keep our word. Otherwise, we’ll get hit with a Jukai Fairy curse, right?”
”…Yes, that’s true. Contracts with Jukai Fairies must be honored, no matter what. But all of this is only happening because that idiot dog ¹ (Shin) made a pact with that shady vendor without my permission!” she snapped.
(Hehe! If you accept this, I’ll present you with some kind of Sacred Artifact! Yes! Hehehe!)
(Really?! Then I’ll do it! Leave it to me!)
(Wait! Wait! What are you deciding all by yourself, you idiot dog!)
”Ouch, ouch! Karentisia-chan, please stop pinching my cheek! It hurts! I only accepted because she offered a Sacred Artifact as a reward!”
My left cheek is throbbing. Karentisia-chan is pulling on it with all her strength!
”You should be at least a little suspicious! …First of all, we don’t even know where exactly here is! We are completely lacking in information!” she demanded.
”…I know that. That’s why I’m trying out a few things right now,” I winced.
”Trying things? Like what?” she questioned.
”I’m going to use the orientation method with the compass and a pendulum,” I explained.
”A pendulum? …I’ve never heard of it,” she responded, sounding confused.
”Not the summoning kind, though. That one would cause a massive summons, you see,” I pointed out.
”…That makes me even less sure of where we are now,” she realized.
”Exactly! I’m pretty weak when my special summons are sealed off. It’s a real pain, isn’t it?” I mused.
”I’m truly defeated by how little sense your statements make,” she sighed.
Of course, she is. The technique of using a pendulum isn’t something that exists in this world of Alysphia. What I’m about to do is, simply put, a geographical survey. It requires a map, a compass, a pendulum, and a few other things to keep us from being looked in on from the outside.
”Dark Magic: Dark Prison! …And I’ll stick up some wards, too. Dark Cards! And just for good measure, I’ll sprinkle some of the Holy Maiden’s ² Holy Water everywhere.”I took the Holy Water I’d extracted from Holy Maiden (Lala) out of my tool pouch and splashed it into all the corners of the room.
”…Wait a minute. That smells exactly like Lala’s sweat. Lala must have a very pleasant scent,” Karentisia observed, taking advantage of the fact that the person in question wasn’t here to say something so shocking.
But it looks like there are many different races of people outside. Maybe they’re all very curious about us, the ones they let in?
”Karentisia-chan. Do you remember where we landed after we escaped from the Alys Magic Academy?” I asked her.
”Huh? South, right? We flew south, landed near the Lax Empire, and now we’ve come to a village near the border of the Regain Kingdom and the Lax Empire… No, this is the village we stumbled into after getting lost,” she confirmed.
I see. So that’s how Karentisia-chan understands the situation.
”You’re right. That’s what one would normally think. But what if the reality is different? What if that perception is slightly off?” I challenged.
”My perception is slightly off? …What exactly do you mean by that, Shin Seyfried?” Karentisia-chan calls me by my full name when she’s really thinking about something seriously. I guess she’s finally starting to notice the weirdness of this village.
”…I’m about to confirm that now. Using this map, compass, and pendulum. Existence Proof!” This is a type of sensory magic. The map tells me the ‘place’—the geographical features of this world accurately. The compass gives me the ‘position’—the true direction, without deception. And the pendulum acts as the ‘needle,’ pointing to our true ‘location’ in the world.
”…No way! We’re in the Southwest? We’re currently between the Shurihelged Grasslands and the Anclear Forest?”
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Summary:
Following their dubious pact with a strange Fairy vendor, Shin and Karentisia retreat to their rented room in the suspicious Fairy Hideout inn. Karentisia’s mounting frustration over their lack of information and Shin’s rash decision-making explodes, but Shin remains focused on uncovering the truth. Using a combination of Dark Magic, Holy Water, and a peculiar sensory spell, Existence Proof, alongside real-world navigational tools like a compass and pendulum, Shin executes a secret geographical survey, leading to a shocking discovery about their true, unexpected location near the dangerous Anclear Forest.
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Character Insight:
Shin Seyfried demonstrates his unique value, blending high-level magical knowledge with his meta-knowledge of real-world surveying techniques (like the pendulum method). His slightly submissive-yet-teasing dynamic with Karentisia highlights their complex relationship, where her irritation is balanced by his strategic actions. Despite his pain, he is ultimately determined to solve the immediate problem, proving his capabilities outside of direct combat and showcasing his resourcefulness as the villainous heir.
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Behind the Scene:
The scene sets the stage for the next adventure by establishing that the characters have not landed where Karentisia thought they had. This realization, achieved through Shin’s unique sensory magic and surveying method, increases the danger and mystery surrounding their escape from the Alys Magic Academy. The Sacred Artifact reward is the primary motivator for Shin and the source of Karentisia’s immediate anger, a classic RPG quest hook.
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T/L:
1 Idiot dog: Karentisia often refers to Shin with this or similar affectionate, yet insulting, terms, as a form of verbal abuse that reinforces their established dynamic. ↩
2 Holy Maiden: Referring to the character Lala. It’s an honorific, not her actual name, used to denote her status and power within the narrative. ↩
Notes:
• Right – An upperclassman frustrated with ten-year-old Alexia’s presidency who initially supported Lilith (‘Lili-tan’) for the role. He represents the ‘cute girl fetish’ faction, rips up the magic paper in anger, and engages in heated debates with Left about the academy’s bizarre political landscape and student obsessions.
• Fim – The Pope Cera’s chief aide and the de facto second-most powerful man in the Lax Empire. Yellowish hair. He is a self-important, theatrical man with a perverted obsession with the young hero, Shin. He wears expensive suits, which are quickly destroyed when he transforms. His loyalty is twisted and ultimately self-serving, seeing the Empire as his personal playground.
• Lin – Alt’s mentor, described as the ‘Great Hero who sealed the ancient dragon, Albion, who resides in the Dragon Country.’ He is suggested as someone who might possess knowledge of a cure for the dragon race’s strange disease.
• Lala – Delusional saint candidate from the Lax Empire who becomes fanatically devoted to Shin, founding a religion in his name and often speaking with the quirky suffix ‘~desuwa’
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Edited by Kanaa-senpai.
Thanks for reading.
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