Volume 3, Chapter 36 – The Abandoned Village in the Mountains

After purifying three poisonous marshes near Shiltsa Village, we departed from the village that had taken care of us for over ten days.

As a token of our gratitude, we left behind several seeds created by Riche.

I planted one myself within the village, and the rest were to be planted there should another poisonous marsh appear.

I heard that the seeds Riche produces have the power to grow while gradually purifying miasma and poison even without me providing Mana, so I believe they are the perfect tool for this region, which has been plagued by poisonous marshes.

The people of this village, this forest, and the beautiful scenery of the Shiltsa Lake region will all be passed down into the future.

Entrusting them with that hope, we left the village that had been so kind to us.

◇ ◇ ◇

Next, we arrived near the location indicated on the map to perform the final purification at a distant spot to the southeast. It took two full days of walking to get there from Shiltsa Village.

Moreover, this was despite the fact that thanks to Lu-chan’s abilities as a member of the Forest Folk, we were able to advance without spending effort on cutting through half-withered thickets and branches or avoiding fallen trees.

I honestly think Lu-chan is incredibly reliable when we’re in the forest.

“Onee-sama! I think it’s just ahead!”

It seems we’ve arrived. Lu-chan announces this energetically.

By the way, regarding Mashiro-chan’s meals—which I had been worried about—it seems it doesn’t need to eat the same food as we do; it had been helping itself to green grass and tree bark growing around us.

However, I feel its appetite is a bit too vigorous.

It was at a level where I worried that if we left Mashiro-chan alone, a bald mountain would be created in no time. Therefore, it might be better if we prepare meals for it from now on.

I feel like I remember seeing news in my previous world about deer causing crop damage and such.

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With those thoughts in mind, we pushed through the final withered thicket, and what jumped into our sight were the crumbling ruins of a derelict settlement.

Eh? People lived in a place like this? Even though there isn’t even a place here that looks suitable for a field?

“To think there was a village in a place like this…”

“It must have been difficult to make a living here,” I replied to Chris-san’s murmur.

Entering the ruins, we found that most of the buildings were gone, leaving only the foundation parts reinforced with stone.

Only one large stone building, located in the deepest part of the village, remained in a semi-collapsed state.

Maybe it was something like the village chief’s house or something. Thinking this, we walked toward the stone ruin.

As expected, was it abandoned because a poisonous marsh appeared?

Walking through the ruined village built on a tiny, narrow plain nestled in the mountains, I found myself thinking about the lives of the people who had lived here back then, now buried by the passage of time.

As we walked, I discovered a wide pond on the other side of the stone ruin.

“I assume that’s the source of the contamination?”

“Fiene-sama, let us go see.”

We slipped past the side of the ruin and arrived at the edge of the pond.

The area behind the ruin was a fairly wide stretch of flat land, which at first glance looked like a plaza.

But perhaps this was the village’s field.

Something at the edge of that plaza caught my eye.

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“A grave, isn’t it…”

Yes, a stone monument that looked like someone’s grave had been erected. And since there were clear signs of it being well-maintained, it seemed someone still came to visit.

The name “Elsa” was carved into the gravestone.

“For someone to come all the way to these mountains to visit… this Elsa-san must have been very well-loved.”

“Indeed. I wonder if they come from Jinsha? If so, there might be a path.”

True. If that’s the case, it would be helpful.

“The pond does indeed seem to be contaminated with poison.”

“Then, it’s possible the village was abandoned because of that poison.”

I heard Shizuku-san’s voice from the direction of the pond, so I answered as I headed that way.

After all, if poison accumulates this close to a village, life would be unsustainable. If this area had been a field, the crops would have been wiped out, and they would have fallen into poverty immediately.

“There don’t seem to be any monsters, so let’s begin the Purification.”

Standing by the pond, I took the Flower Maiden’s Staff out of Storage to call Riche. Just as I was about to summon Riche with the staff—

“Wait!”

At Shizuku-san’s sharp shout, I stopped the summoning.

“There is a giant snake over there. Given that size, it is likely a monster.”

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Where Shizuku-san pointed, the dark water of the pond was rippling slightly. Looking closely, it was indeed a snake. A black body, nearly the same color as the murky pond water, was quietly gliding toward us.

“First, we have to get away from the grave!”

At my words, we began to move away slowly. Accordingly, the black snake also shifted its movement toward us.

Apparently, it had completely recognized us as prey.

Once we had moved a fair distance from the grave, we braced ourselves to intercept the snake monster.

…

…

…

A standoff continued between the snake monster, which wanted to pull us into the water, and us, who wanted to fight on land.

The one to break the equilibrium was the snake monster.

As it emerged from the pond into the plaza, it charged at us all at once.

“Defense Wall!”

I deployed the Defense Wall to stop the charge. The snake monster slammed into the wall with a tremendous roar and came to a halt.

It stopped, but… wait a minute. What is with that size? Isn’t it way too big?

The snake’s head was facing forward, and the height of its head was nearly the same as my own height.

And by “height of the head,” I don’t mean the height when it lifts its head up—I mean the actual thickness of the head itself.

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Furthermore, the thickest part of its body was far thicker than my own height.

I wonder how many meters its total length is? It easily looks to be 20 meters. No, 30, maybe even 40 meters.

“Mashiro!”

Lu-chan called out Mashiro and sent blades of wind flying at the snake.

Clang!

With a dry sound, the wind blades were deflected by the snake’s scales.

“Eh! No way!?”

Lu-chan let out a cry of surprise.

“Shizuku-san, can you cut that thing?”

“Leave it to me.”

“Chris-dono, I need you to draw that snake’s attention.”

“Yeah, leave it to me.”

At this point, we have no choice but to rely on the coordination between the two of them.

My job is to help whoever gets into danger.

I moved to shield Lu-chan behind me and turned to face the snake once more.