The river forked somewhere further upstream and flowed to the west, so if we went upstream and then went back down again at the point where the river forked, we could invade from the other side of the mountain range.
“While the demons are all on guard around the front entrance, we’ll break in by kicking down the back door.”
That was why I’d asked Marcus and the others to be decoys. They would throw off the eyes of the demons for us, toying with them by disembarking, all breaking up and going separate ways, then coming back, going out with the boat again, and doing that over and over again all the way down to Whitesails. Now that’s living up to the reputation of bluffers.
Incidentally, Bee supervised their disguises. She really got into it, giving advice like, “Act knighty, you know, kinda like you’re used to fighting! Oh, the handsome look is good, but don’t hit on anyone! Oh, and definitely don’t be wishy-washy, that’s even worse!” Thanks to her, their group took on the perfect image of the Paladin and his party that had been spread through song and poetry.
We paid them a more than satisfactory reward, and their morale was high as well after Bee declared that if we succeeded, she would tell the story of the Shadow Knights along with the story of my slaying of the dragon. And if some low-ranked demons attacked them, they had the people to deal with it, so I was confident they’d do a good job.
The only question remaining was whether we could make our way to the back side of the mountain range through the other route unnoticed while the demons’ eyes were on our diversion. Or so I thought; Al seemed to have something else on his mind.
Menel gently slapped his shoulder a couple times. “You’ll get used to it. He makes moves like this from time to time. It’s like it’s nothing to him.”
“I, I’d heard that he was a man of wisdom and courage, but to think he had military talent as well…”
“I don’t think it’s that much of a big deal,” I said, a little confused.
Al shook his head. “If we go even farther south than Torch Port, we’ll be heading straight into the danger area that even includes that lakeside city where the High King fell! I heard it’s shrouded in a swirling magic fog that even seasoned adventurers can’t do anything about! If you’re suggesting that we deliberately choose that place to pass through — what an amazing, courageous idea!”
After hearing those words, I scratched my cheek, kind of lost for a reaction, and then said, “Uh… actually… that’s where I grew up.”
Every one of them gawked at me.
Final Chapter
Under the morning sun, the invisible boat moved without sound and yet at remarkable speed. To get this result, I had cast the Word of Invisibility on the boat, and Menel had called to the fairies of wind to cast the spells Tailwind and Mute.
There was a chance that the demons plotting the resurrection of the High King were also keeping watch for people going upstream. It would be stupid if they detected us out of the blue and our attempt to outwit them was ruined, so I’d decided to take all possible measures to prevent it. We were also using a host of other techniques to hide the existence of the boat going upstream. Unless they were keeping multiple opposing factors active including the Word “See Invisibility,” they wouldn’t be able to perceive us.
Additionally, thinking about things from the demons’ point of view, keeping watch over the upstream areas of the river was probably not worth spending that many resources on. And even when we actually traveled upstream, I couldn’t sense any unusual presences or eyes upon us. It was probably safe to assume that we hadn’t been found by the demons. If we actually had been discovered and a circle of demons was already waiting to close in on us somewhere up ahead, we were just going to have to say, “Well played,” and cut our way through them.
Anticipating the enemy’s moves in a situation like this is like moving around in thick fog. It’s not like a game like chess or shogi where you can perceive all your opponent’s moves. All you can do is consider as many possibilities as you can, choose the path that leaves you with the broadest set of options, and have faith in your own decisions as you move through the haze.
“Tricky,” I muttered into the fog. The boat was currently surrounded by it.
After taking out the boat, I had given everyone a brief explanation of my birth. They were surprised, but they didn’t doubt my story. We had that much trust in each other, and the fact that everyone treated me like a hero probably made it easier to accept the unique circumstances of my background. Menel in particular listened to me talk without batting so much as an eye. Conversely, the one who showed the biggest reaction was probably Al. Though Reystov and Ghelreis had looked at me in horror at first, they listened to me calmly as I explained things in the proper order.
When I got to talking about the god of undeath, however, everything flipped.
Al knew that Stagnate had his eye on me, so he listened calmly and even chipped in extra information; the other three who didn’t know reacted with considerable surprise, and when I explained to them that I was a marked man and that Stagnate might interfere with this journey of ours as well, they grimaced.
Demons and a dragon — that would be more than enough for anyone. I felt the same way they did.
Well, as far as the god of undeath Stagnate was concerned, I did think that he probably wouldn’t proactively attack us. As much as I might have wished otherwise (and I greatly wished otherwise), he seemed to have taken to me.
Though, again, I greatly wished he hadn’t!
Just thinking about it was starting to give me the feeling that that red-eyed raven was about to fly in from somewhere. I shook my head to chase the unwanted thoughts from my mind and focused my gaze on the fog in front of me.
“Is this Maze Fog, by any chance?” Ghelreis asked.
“Yes.” I nodded.
“A magic higher than Maze Alley that protects the sorcerers’ Academy. I’d heard rumors, but never seen it before.” This encounter with the unknown was making Reystov a little more talkative than normal.
Al was even more entranced. His eyes were sparkling and he let out a gasp of wonder.
“That’s top-level magic,” Menel said. “I know there was something like that in the deepest parts of my old home, the Great Forest, and I think the Eldest of Elders could use it, but a human? Not an elder of the elves who’s lived a thousand years, but a human whose lifespan is only a few decades learned this and put it to practical use? You serious?”
I nodded. You bet I’m serious, I thought. If you think this is something, justwait until you find out he lets rip with stuff like the Word of Entity Obliterationduring actual battles.
“I’ll open up a way through. Give me a moment.” I focused my concentration. I read the Words within the mana of the flowing mist, analyzed their structure, and deciphered the context.
I only realized this after entering society, but Gus’s way of writing was incredibly idiosyncratic. While he was teaching me, I just assumed that that was the way it was, but after setting out and meeting a few orthodox sorcerers, I had been astonished by the difference in their style, which was neat and emphasized readability.
How could I describe Gus’s writing? It wasn’t quite like dirty code in programming. In fact, it was more like the opposite: terrifically efficient and concise, but taken too far. It was compressed to the extreme for the sake of Gus the genius’s convenience, and that was exactly what made it difficult to read.