*
What are the means of transportation in a fantasy world?
Paragliders? Hot air balloons? Or maybe brooms?
There’s also the option of using teleportation crystals, but those are just too pricey.
“..This feels kinda weird.”
The shiny black steel color.
Thick black smoke is spewing out, and the cylinder moves repeatedly, showcasing a jarring ride.
“Wow!! Kai, this is my first time on a train!!”
“Ariel, sit still. You don’t need to flaunt your country roots.”
Even with Dennis’s 3D magic circle, Emperor Rock suggested that the academy students use the train.
Is there a specific reason for that?
“Hehe, but it’s still fascinating!”
The red-haired mage shouts while looking out the window at the scenery.
Ariel and Kainel are seated in the front.
Inside the train speeding along the tracks, Pina and I sat next to each other.
It’s almost as if someone set this up.
Maybe my father-in-law is trying to push my romantic endeavors forward.
“Licht… have you ever been on a train before?”
“Hmm…? I guess not?”
Saying yes would only raise suspicions.
I’ve ridden trains on school trips and retreats back in reality.
“With who…? A girl?”
It seems like the surrounding noise would drown it out, but.
Ugh, it’s Pina with those golden wolf eyes, digging for answers. Her gaze is terrifying.
“It was a group trip, just like now.”
I answered with cold sweat, knowing she’d prefer the truth over a lie.
“Where did you go…?”
The distance between us seems to close suddenly.
A knight with a helmet is staring at me, almost violating my personal space.
“By the sea. Not in a valley.”
“…Was it nice?”
Don’t do that, Pina. Others might realize you’re a girl!
“When I looked at it, my heart felt calm, and the gem-like water was beautiful.”
Should I call it ‘water-mung’? You know, when you stare at rivers or seas to clear your mind of worries?
“…Looks like I don’t really know Licht that well still.”
Pina’s head droops, making her glass helmet rattle noisily.
“Don’t be too down. You can visit the north again later.”
You’ll definitely have to meet with that pillar husband of yours, after all.
I just hope no one starts nagging about NTR, after resolving Sophia’s worries.
I had my job to do, too.
[Schartines♡Nex 100% ‘Ending Collection Complete.’]
A sigh escaped as I looked at the status window that popped up again.
So much left. Those pink letters full of childish emojis.
[Lee Soo-hyun♡Pina Grancia 35%.]
[May Player Lee Soo-hyun have a great time in Calisium Valley..!]
That status window doesn’t show up when I want it to. Can I really trust this?
But then again, there’s nothing else serving as a signpost.
It’s okay even if I can’t go back home due to the penalty.
Just keep that promise of giving Pina a happy ending once I achieve the Grand Route.
“Mardol, want an egg?”
“Egg…?”
I pulled out boiled eggs I had under my seat. I soaked them briefly in cold water for easy eating.
“They taste amazing like this.”
I playfully bumped one against Pina’s glass helmet. I only tapped it lightly to avoid hurting her.
“..That’s a lie.”
Pina can sense these things with the precision of a ghost. What’s the principle behind that?
Her instincts, like a lie detector, are truly amazing sometimes.
She took a snack I pulled out and kept one for herself.
“I’ll get you back for this.”
She returned the same trick, cracking the shell on my forehead.
Soon, like a hamster, she used both hands to peel the egg while munching away.
She lifted her helmet just enough to eat without showing her face, and it was adorable.
She seems to be feeling better. It really does help to eat when you’re sulking.
“Here. Drink this while eating.”
I handed her an item I got from the night market yesterday.
“Be careful; it’s fizzy.”
It’s soda. Maybe I had it because of the collaboration from [Night Heart].
I had obtained the keychain of Pina in her saintess outfit from here, and it’s still hanging on my house keys.
I opened it beforehand just in case she couldn’t.
Hearing that fizzed sound, I wondered if she’d get startled.
“It’s sweet… and refreshing… bubbly…”
Seems it suits her taste, thankfully. I thought she’d be surprised by the carbonation.
This combo is a cheat on a train trip.
But wait, bubbly? What does that even mean?
“..Uh oh.”
Just as Pina was inhaling the soda and egg, the train seemed to enter a tunnel, plunging the surroundings into darkness.
Inside the rattling train, no matter how I looked around, I couldn’t see ahead.
WooOOOOO—!!!
In an instant, the train horn blares, and light floods in. I see thin clouds outside the window.
“This is Calisium Valley, or… is it…?”
Is it the Calisium Waterfall?
The train rides over the water. A beast made of steel racing forward without tracks.
The crashing waves create a rainbow.
“..It’s beautiful.”
Pina stopped eating and gasped at the view outside.
So that’s why Rock wanted us to take the train. He wanted to show his daughter a beautiful sight.
The foamy water looked like milk.
The flowing stream from the cliff, resembling a sheer drop, was nothing short of spectacular.
‘In the game, there was a separate valley below this.’
Between the cliffs, a waterfall cascades down, leading to the valley below.
But how on earth do we get down from here?
Just as that thought crossed my mind.
“Licht. Be careful.”
“What should I be careful of..?”
The train rushed into the air and began to drop vertically. The scenery outside tilted 90 degrees.
I instinctively hugged Pina close to me.
*
Pina Grancia has become more curious about one man lately.
“..Were you surprised?”
“Of course!”
Just moments ago, he was terrified, holding her tightly.
Despite Pina wearing her glass armor, he saw her true self without bias.
Watching Licht in his black knight helmet, who calms his racing heart, raises questions in her mind.
Why does he look like that? Isn’t it normal for an imperial train to fly? Does he not know?
With various curiosities filling her mind, she suddenly remembers.
“..Country puppy.”
Oh right, he’s from the countryside.
Watching Licht’s face turn pale, Pina recalls memories she had forgotten.
The moment she saw him become the Demon King in the Demon Beast Forest, she had searched for his records.
He was found in Sprout Village, adopted by an old couple with no children.
A man who trained swordsmanship under a dragon slayer, who never took a disciple in his lifetime.
‘His real name is.. Lee Soo-hyun.’
It seems such things didn’t exist in the world he came from.
If she were born in the same place as him, could they have created memories together?
Even if his duty as a hero is complete, she surely can’t ask him to stay here.
Thinking about building memories with someone else, someone with an unknown face and clothing, makes the taste of the egg feel rough.
No matter how much she drinks the soda he gave her, her frustration doesn’t dissolve.
What Pina is doing now is floundering. No matter how cherished he is, he still has a home to return to.
She wishes he could stay by her side. No matter the hardships ahead, they could share it together.
Pina, with a bitter heart, unconsciously turns her gaze outside the window.
Outside, waterfalls of emerald color cascade down.
“Mardol, please don’t keep calling me a puppy.”
“Why..? Isn’t it true..?”
The train races downward, taking the fall of the waterfall as its track.
“Wouldn’t it be cooler to be a wolf instead? Don’t you think?”
“Licht is… more cute than cool.”
Pina giggles, looking at Licht. This playful banter is fun.
It’s just like with spirits; he’s much more like a puppy than a wolf, being easily startled and so eager to follow.
“..Then I’ll call you a puppy too.”
“I don’t mind.”
Was it her father’s intention to have them experience this like Soo-hyun?
There’s no telling what was on his mind. She should have known when he loudly told them to have a good trip.
Her bumbling father. Seems he met up with Soo-hyun at the sports festival, but did anything actually happen?
Vivid images of him interrogating the imperial guards come to her mind.
“Eek, heeey!!!”
“Ariel, calm down. The train is enchanted so it won’t shake.”
In the front seat, Ariel screamed in shock. It seems it struck everyone except Pina quite hard.
Speaking of which, Kainel and Ariel seem to like each other.
Even if witnessing their affectionate actions unsettles Pina,
“Hehe.. hug me a little tighter.. Kai.”
“Of course, mage.”
As she gazes at their faces peeping through the gaps between the seats, she feels a pang of jealousy.
The train bumps along toward its destination.
Among the items Pina packed is a secret weapon.
A book borrowed from the Library of Truth, featuring a red cover with a black rose drawn on it.
A black bikini.
The color of the outfit matches Lee Soo-hyun’s hair.
‘This should be worn under the armor, right..?’
Pina felt shy about wearing only underwear under her armor.
*
