Chapter 1 - The Gates of Underworld
With the rest of the clan, we headed northwest again, to the central desert of Toran.
There were some who didn't want to go, so only those who wanted to.
It would be unusual for anyone to prefer to go to the world of death.
I, too, would like to take a peek if there are good treasures there, but it is the underworld after all. It must be a dangerous place. Besides, in the Underworld...
「There's a sandstorm coming!」
My thoughts were interrupted when Serina informed us of the danger.
We have to get through this crisis first.
「Everyone, get away from Letty!」
「「「Roger!」」」
「What kind of instructions are these, Alec? Do you trust me to magically manage this sandstorm?」
「No, you were hated by the sandstorm gods. That's all.」
「What? The other person is god, you know? I don't think he's going to hold on to something like that forever just because I called him out on it! The great God of Destruction and protector of the raging desert, show me the size of your vessel――Bwah!? Aaaaahhh~!!!」
Letty soared up into the sky in a flash.
「Letty!」「Hawawa, sensei!」
It was only a few weeks ago, you know. I'm sure even God remembers that.
「Geez, what the heck is that god? One day I'm going to make him swoon with my magic!」
Letty comes back from the sky covered in sand, gasping, but I'll let her do as she want.
Without difficulty we reached the dinosaur bones and descended it in a single bound.
We fed Cerberus the same pudding as before, and put him to sleep. Easy peasy.
「Now all we have to do is open the gate.」
The solemn, dark-colored door caught everyone's attention.
On the other side of it is the Land of the Dead.
「All right, I'll open the lock.」
Using the "silver key" that we dug out of the ground, Saki opens the padlock while keeping an eye out for traps.
「Okay, loosen the chains.」
「「「Copy」」」
The door is as huge as a building, but it doesn't need to be opened that wide for a human to enter.
The door was tightly closed and heavy, but when the vanguard group worked together to push it open, we managed to make enough space for one person to pass through.
「Let us go!」
Everyone nodded, and I led the way into the door.
On the other side of the door, it was completely dark and I couldn't see anything.
There is only emptiness... no?
「Hee hee hee!」
「Murhh!」
I could hear someone laughing from a distance.
I looked around, but it was still dark.
「Letty, turn on the lights.」
Lily refuses to come here, so the mage is in charge of the lights.
「Okay, but you probably can't light it that well.」
Letty said and cast a spell, but it seemed to do the best it could to illuminate her feet.
The ground was illuminated, but it looked like a wilderness with a single road.
There was a little bit of dead grass growing along the road.
「This is the "Land of the Dead"? ...... It's not what I expected.」
Ione said something like that, but I guess it reminded her of the red lava fields of hell.
「The Land of the Dead is huge, and you shouldn't just look at it and think that it is.」
That's what Letty said.
「But, Letty, this is your first time here, isn't it?」
Serina asked.
「Yes, but I've heard about it from the Book of the Dead, some of the grimoires, and some of Austin's professors.」
「I see」
「But I need to see a map for details. Selma, which way to go next?」
Letty turned around and asked the sky-blue haired dark elf. Selma opened a thick book and flipped through the pages. It's the Book of the Dead she's holding.
「Let's see, please wait. If you keep going straight, you'll find the first town.」
「Hou」「Hee」
So this is where the town is.
But it doesn't look like there's anything to eat either, since it's the Land of the Dead.
I guess you can exist without eating anything.
After walking along the road for a while, I found a village sized settlement.
Apparently, this was the first town.
「I was wondering what kind of horrible place this was, but it's pretty normal.」
Serina murmured.
「Right. These buildings and fences are made of wood. So, plants can grow here. ......? That's a little hard to believe.」
Hannah speculated as she observed her surroundings.
It's definitely something to be concerned about, but it's not too important.
The main problem is――
「Master, it smells like a human.」
Meena says with a sharp nose, but yes, this is the biggest problem.
How will the inhabitants of the Land of the Dead react to us in the living world?
Will they be hostile, or indifferent, or...?
Everyone was tense. A few of them drew their swords.
But I gave the order.
「Wait, don't draw your swords until your opponent attacks.」
「Even if you say that, brother, these people are dead, aren't they?」
「Yes, but, Jouga, just because they're dead doesn't mean they're going to attack us.」
「Well, maybe they are. I get it. But I don't want to get on the wrong side of this, okay?」
「Of course not.」
There must be a clear distinction between life and death.
The world in which we live is different, and if the dead are no different from the living, there will be many inconveniences.
「......」
There is one person who had a disgruntled look on her face at the exchange between me and Jouga.
There is even a Fianna who is trying to visit her dead childhood friend like this.
I'm sure Dill something would love to meet Fianna too.
But ...... that's not going to work.
It's not good for the dead to come out of the ground. I'm sure there are some strict rules and systems in place here because they haven't come out of the ground.
If we don't find that out soon, it will be fatal.
「You understand, don't you, Serina?」
I asked the red-haired swordsman.
「Yes. It's a bad role, but I understand, so I'll be fine.」
When it comes down to it, I'll have her use her【Starlight Attack】without question.
We discussed this beforehand without Fianna.
「Hey, are you guys, by any chance, the party that has been wiped out?」
Coming from the other side of the alley was a warrior-looking man. Illuminated by Letty's light, he looks like a living person, except that his face is a little pale.
「No. But you, you're dead, can you talk normally?」
「Ha, well, as you can see. Listen, rookie, remember this. This world is no different from the world before you were born. The customs of adventurers are still the same. If you don't know what you're doing, you'll end up hanging from a tree. After all, you can't die here. Some people just hang there forever and scream.」
The warrior said with a knowing look.
「I see. Thanks for the tip. Does gold work too? 」
I tossed him a gold coin, and he jumped for joy.
「Ohhhh! You know what you're talking about, brother! Yeah, it works just fine here, huh? It's a hell of a thing to do. Hehe, see ya!」
The warrior runs off before I can stop him.
「He's so impatient. If it were me, I would have sold more useful information and gotten away with three gold coins.」
As Saki said, I was also hoping to get some information out of the gold coins, but silver or copper coins might be enough here.
「All of you, be careful not to get swiped. From the way he just reacted, gold is pretty valuable here too.」
「「「Roger」」」
「So, Alec, what are you going to do now? I'd suggest we get a place to stay.」
Hannah asks.
「An inn? ...... well, let's see if we can find one. Don't sign anything right away, check the inside first」
「Of course. Leave it to me.」
「Hannah, I'm coming with you. There is guard, right?」
「Right. Then let's go, Luka.」
「If anything goes wrong, you call us, or worse, you go back through the gate.」
「Roger. But I think we should be pretty careful coming out of that gate.」
「Right.」
Probably, but it shouldn't be easy to get out. In the meantime, the "gates of the underworld" have been closed, but......
「Alec, there's a bar sign over there.」
Serina seems to have already finished her search of the area and came back to report.
「Okay, then, let's go in. But let's not take too many people at once. The rest of you will stay here. Marilyn, too.」
「Whyyy, I want to drink alcohol!」
I knew you'd say that.
「No, you can't. Not until we know it's safe. It's Leader's orders. Tell the others not to talk about it.」
In Japanese mythology, Izanami ate some food in underworld and became unable to return to her body. Hannah and Luka, who had gone to look for a place to stay, were already gone, but Hannah is a cautious person, so I'm sure she'll be at least a little cautious.
「Moo.」
I left Marilyn in a daze, and took the five of them, Serina, Meena, Saki, and the magician duo of Letty and Nene, into the tavern.
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