Chapter 430

[Translator - Night]

[Proofreader - Gun]

Chapter 430: Atlanta (5)

A festival after the end of the war... was not held.

After all, those they had fought against were not wicked enemies, but those who had once been the kingdom's heroes.

Rather, an atmosphere of mourning continued for those who had met their eternal rest.

[I would like to express my gratitude once again.]

King Sano bowed her head deeply to the party.

[If it weren't for all of you, Atlanta would... I don't even want to imagine it.]

[Isn't it just what we naturally had to do?]

As Tesila replied with an easygoing smile, King Sano smiled faintly.

[I don't know if you're aware, but mermaids are thorough when it comes to repaying favors and grudges. In that sense, there are things I'd like to give you.]

As she subsequently gestured, mermaids entered the audience chamber carrying bundles of something.

[W-what is... all this?]

[We prepared our specialty products: pearls, jewels, and deep-sea fibers.]

Every single one of them was something that traded at a high price on land.

In terms of monetary value, they were items that would easily exceed 500 million bels.

[The kingdom's circumstances aren't great, so we've prepared this meagerly, but please do not refuse.]

[Meager! Not at all!]

The party gaped, their mouths hanging open at the piles of items.

Snapping back to reality belatedly, Tesila turned her head.

[Ah, come to think of it, what do you plan to do from now on?]

[From now on? Hmm... The ocean's pollution has ended, so we should probably resume outside activities.]

The mermaids of Atlanta would roam the Blue Sea and expand the kingdom's territory.

Furthermore, since the oxygen and magic power shortages, as well as the food problems, would soon be resolved, new mermaids would also be born.

[It will take a little time, but we plan to take it slowly.]

[Um... Would you like me to arrange a meeting for you?]

[A meeting?]

[I have some acquaintances among the mermaids living in the South Sea, and I thought it might be nice to have some exchanges between you.]

Was this... her offering to play matchmaker?

Surprisingly, King Sano showed interest in Tesila's suggestion.

[R-really? If you could do that, I would be endlessly grateful. There aren't that many young people in the kingdom as it is, so we've had a lot of worries about how to birth new children...]

[Then I'll try to push it forward!]

An exchange between the Blue Sea mermaids and the South Sea mermaids.

Perhaps the mermaid faction itself might flourish even more.

[Phew, thanks to you, a weight has been lifted off my mind.]

King Sano made an expression of genuine relief.

[I don't know if you are aware, but Atlanta is a deeply historic nation with a history spanning tens of thousands of years alone. Thinking that its lineage might end with my generation caused me no small amount of worry...]

[Tens of thousands of years?]

[Yes, are you surprised?]

[After all, humans are not a long-lived species like mermaids... our history is only about 1,000 years long.]

Of course, during those thousand years, humanity had developed dazzlingly.

Because they were enjoying the most prosperous civilization compared to any other race.

King Sano continually let out exclamations of awe as they conversed.

[It's amazing. A ship that flies in the sky...]

[That was made by Oscar right here. He's a total genius.]

[T-that's incredible.]

It was right after the conversation had grown long, they shared a meal, and engaged in light small talk.

King Sano quietly clapped her hands as if she remembered something.

[Ah, there is something you all might like to see.]

[What is it?]

[Normally it isn't something we show to guests, but... since you all aren't ordinary guests, it should be fine.]

Following that, the place King Sano guided them to was the depths of the royal palace.

Upon entering through the doors, the interior, illuminated by the faint light of luminescent coral, had an incredibly high ceiling.

Furthermore, all sorts of murals were drawn everywhere.

[This place is...?]

[As I mentioned, Atlanta is a place with tens of thousands of years of history. Among them, this place is famous for the murals that record its history. But there is just one. There is a mural called the 'Wall of Prophecy'.]

[The Wall of Prophecy?]

[Yes, it's this way.]

At the place King Sano guided them to, a large mural was carved.

As she raised a magic torch high, the contents of the mural came into view at a glance.

[Isn't this... a human?]

[That's right. I don't know why there is a mural about humans in Atlanta, but this is one of the oldest murals in the kingdom.]

[Does that mean this mural is tens of thousands of years old?]

At Tristan's question, King Sano nodded.

[Yes, that's why many historians in the kingdom named this the Wall of Prophecy. Saying it's something that will happen to humanity someday.]

At those words, the party's gazes turned to the mural.

The mural was divided into several scenes.

[In what order should we read this?]

[Everyone's opinions differ on that as well. However, the opinion that is currently considered the orthodox theory is...]

Sano pointed to a mural on one side.

There, a person who had been drawn alone suddenly multiplied to nearly ten.

[That this mural is highly likely to be the starting point.]

[Could this signify the prosperity of humanity?]

[Yes, it is being interpreted that our ancestors in the past knew humanity would prosper someday.]

[But how in the world did they...]

[We haven't been able to figure out that part either. To begin with, the records left in the kingdom are often incomplete. However, since there are records stating there was an occupation called mermaid shamans who divined the species' future in the past, I suspect they might have done something.]

Peeking into the future through shamanism?

It didn't seem like an impossible feat.

After all, we live in a world where magic that manipulates space even exists.

King Sano pointed to the next mural.

[As you can see, after humanity's prosperity, a certain threat thoroughly threatens their civilization. And its source is presumed to be beyond a massive mountain range.]

[……!]

Without anyone taking the lead, the party members looked at each other.

Because no matter who looked at this, it was reminiscent of the 'Demons' beyond the 'Red Mountain Range'.

[To stand against this, the humans cross the mountains themselves.]

The mural concluded with a human raising something high with both hands and laughing at the end of that battle.

[What is that human holding?]

[The kingdom's historians interpreted it as a future where, at the end of a massive battle, they lift up a token of victory.]

At that explanation, Tesila's party was already putting their heads together and diving into a discussion.

However, Oscar's mind couldn't be more complicated.

'I raised a token of victory at the end of the battle in the Demon Realm?'

Of course, he had killed the Great Emperor there.

But he swore he had never obtained anything that could be called a token of victory there.

'That means it's one of two things. Either the mural's prophecy is wrong, or...'

It hasn't been realized yet.

If it were the latter, someday humanity would cross the Red Mountain Range once again.

And they would obtain a token of victory there.

Oscar carefully examined the final part of the mural.

The object the human lifted with both hands looked like a box, but also looked like an angular jewel.

It was difficult to recognize its exact shape due to the mural being damaged as a long time had passed.

[By any chance, is there anything else passed down regarding that object?]

[Translator - Night]

[Proofreader - Gun]

[There are a few interpretations.]

King Sano stepped closer to the mural.

[As I mentioned earlier, the interpretation that it is a token of victory is the most widely accepted.]

[If it's a token of victory... Is it something like the Great Emperor's heart?]

[Great Emperor? Who is that?]

As Tesila told the story of humanity and the demons, King Sano revealed her interest.

[So such things happened in the outside world. If so, it would be correct to view this mural's prophecy as having been realized as well.]

[Hmm, to say that, I don't know what that thing being held up so high is.]

[There's no need to get buried in this drawing. It could simply be a picture to express that humanity has won.]

True, this was a mural, not a document.

It meant meaning couldn't be conveyed through a sentence like "Humanity has won."

Therefore, victory could have been expressed by smiling so brightly and lifting something up like that.

Just then, Tristan pointed to the lower part of the mural.

[Hmm? Are these ancient mermaid characters in the corner here?]

Everyone's gazes gathered in one place.

Below the mural, characters they were seeing for the first time were carved at regular intervals.

[We thought so at first too, but they didn't match the characters of any ancient documents left in Atlanta. No one has ever deciphered this sentence to this day.]

[Hmm...]

Tesila frowned.

[I can speak the languages of most races, and I know quite a few characters of kingdoms that have now disappeared... but this is truly a form I'm seeing for the first time.]

[I see.]

When the party, who had tried to decipher the characters for a moment, shook their heads, Oscar stepped closer to the characters.

If he memorized them for now, he could cross-reference them with the countless languages recorded in his subspace.

'It's definitely not a character I know.'

It was different from both Dwarven characters and Elven characters.

However, similar-looking symbols were repeating according to a certain rule.

That meant, in other words, that its own language system did exist.

Oscar engraved those symbols into his mind.

The itinerary in Atlanta concluded just like that.

King Sano and a multitude of citizens followed them to the main gate to see the party off personally.

[I'll be sure to contact the South Sea mermaids.]

[Please do.]

King Sano, who shook hands with Tesila, looked at the party members one by one.

[Heroes from the land, please come visit us again anytime. Our Atlanta will treat you not as guests, but as comrades-in-arms.]

At this, the brightly smiling party waved their hands.

They rode the giant turtle prepared by King Sano and arrived at Pilap's beach.

"Pah! How long has it been since we had fresh air?"

"It should have been steadily pumped in the whole time."

"Oscar. This and that have a different feel, a different feel."

Having finished a grand adventure after a long while, the party vied with each other to return to the inn where they were staying.

Seeing this, Tesila poked and nudged the side of Oscar, who was following behind, with her elbow.

"It was you, wasn't it, Oscar?"

"What do you mean?"

"I'm talking about the divine power that appeared on the battlefield."

"……!"

It was something the Church had asked him to keep a secret if at all possible.

"I have no idea what you're talking about."

"Hehe, Oscar. My intuition is also first-class, so you can't fool my eyes."

Smiling slyly, Tesila opened her mouth.

"Don't worry too much. It's not like I plan on going anywhere and blabbing about it."

"……Aren't you curious?"

"Not really? You probably have personal circumstances. And it's not like you're using demonic energy, it's divine power, so who cares?"

True, it wasn't like he had been caught doing something bad.

As Oscar nodded his head, Tesila said.

"Thanks for helping out on this journey. If it weren't for you, Oscar, we wouldn't have been able to resolve it like this."

"Don't mention it."

"Eii! I'm feeling generous. I'll give you one more Special-Class Adventurer Use Ticket!"

"Were you just handing those out so casually like that?"

"Oscar! What are you talking about? There are barely a few people in the entire continent who have one of these!"

"In that case... I will gratefully accept it."

Through this adventure, he had confirmed just how much firepower Tesila possessed.

Having that ridiculous coupon wouldn't be a bad thing.

"What are you going to do now, Oscar?"

"Me, I have to return to the White Tower."

"That's a shame. I was hoping you might travel with us again. The kids seem to be looking forward to it, too."

Oscar smiled soundlessly.

If the war with the demons ended, and a leisurely daily life like now continued.

Going on adventures together wouldn't be so bad then.

"I will consider it favorably."

"Really? Oscar! No going back on your word!"

When the two returned to the inn.

The party members who had arrived first were gathered together, looking at something with an unusual atmosphere.

"Why, did something happen?"

Eddie Barton, turning his head at Tesila's question, gulped.

"Tesila, please look at this."

Without another word, he handed over the newspaper he was holding.

[Exclusive: Demon Confirmed Inside the Violet Brigade.]

Reading the article's headline, Oscar's brow furrowed.

[Translator - Night]

[Proofreader - Gun]