On the way back, we proceeded at the same speed as we did on the way there. Nevertheless, if Regres sensed any monster presence, he would have me hunt them down. He said it was good to do even a little. Jenuin couldn’t keep up full-speed running for a whole day. Regres made sure to give moderate breaks and moved at a speed that wasn’t burdensome, more like a brisk pace.
Above all, Jenuin was quite the eater. It devoured the monsters I took down. At first, the sound of crunching bones was harsh and unbearable, but I’ve finally gotten used to it.
As the day darkened, we made camp in a suitable spot.
Perhaps because Jenuin was around, Regres had no problem starting a fire and skewering and grilling the meat of the monsters we had taken down. If any monsters approached, I would head out to face them.
I bit into the freshly grilled meat by the campfire. Regres would generously slice and grill the monster’s meat, handing over chunks that truly resembled manga meat. Although the thickness made it quite rare, I found myself enjoying gnawing and grilling it.
Since reaching the 11th Ladder Step, Regres began sharing some secrets with me and started telling me various things from then on. Even students might not be able to hear such things at the temple; they could become targets for elimination if so. But I couldn’t help but repeatedly ask questions driven by my inherent intellectual curiosity.
“What’s the cause of the Monster Parade?”
“Well… We came to this world due to dimensional distortion, right?”
“That’s what I’ve heard.”
“There are also stories that Sensei’s spirit came to this world due to such distortions.”
“Yes… Huh? The monsters too?”
“Yeah, we can’t guarantee that distortions won’t occur in a world where creatures like us, not just humans, but monsters exist.”
“B-but isn’t it said that the gods are connecting the dimensional hole here to save their own world’s humans?”
“Yeah. That’s right.”
“… Is it a lie?”
“I’ve been walking around the world wanting to know that for quite some time.”
“And did you find out?”
“I’m pretty confident in my findings.”
“I see.”
“Probably, the gods are in a struggle for supremacy with another similar entity in this world.”
“Huh?”
“Hehehe. It’s just a hypothesis. Whether the monsters win or the humans win.”
A struggle for supremacy… Looking back, I understand that humans and monsters are vying for control of this world. But… is that really happening? And if so…
“… So, are we intentionally called here rather than by accident?”
“No, I think that’s definitely an accident. I don’t think it’s a lie that dimensional distortions occur due to some cause. I didn’t feel any special god-like power when I came to this world either.”
“Come to think of it, you mentioned that you weren’t born in this world.”
“Yeah yeah. I’m actually a transfer from a pretty rare world. I’ve never even met someone from my homeland.”
“Oh.”
Come to think of it, Millet mentioned at the Sky Temple that shrines like these open once every few hundred years. But if Regres didn’t feel any special power, maybe the world he came from already had magic or something like that.
“Did your world also have magic, Regres?”
“Yeah, understand?”
“That’s right. Well, to put it simply, in that world, I continued to fight as a hero. Because of that, I had the skills to fight when I transferred here.”
“A hero?”
“Yeah yeah. It was quite a turbulent world, with constant wars against demons, and I had been fighting since I was young.”
“Is it not much different from this world?”
“Yeah, I mean, it’s not much different, but… there were no weird ranking systems like here.”
“It’s strange that such systems exist as part of a system, even the Ladder Steps.”
“Yeah, actually, we didn’t call it Ladder Steps, but there was a concept of levels. Yeah. Unlike the 10 Ladder Steps of this world’s limit, levels could be raised much higher.”
“Oh. So there were levels.”
“Yeah yeah. Well, let’s sleep now. Sensei, you go ahead and sleep first. I’ll wake you up at the right time.”
“Oh, okay. Please do.”
And so, while continuing conversations with Regres, we continued our journey towards Dudur Valley.
The road proceeded smoothly. Monsters seemed to gather more easily around towns and villages, so Jenuin advanced through the forest slightly off the main road. Despite obstacles like trees and leaves in the forest, Jenuin mowed them down like a bulldozer.
Soon, we began to climb uphill. When we reached a clearing where the forest turned into a grassy field, I recognized the hill we were climbing.
I remembered seeing smoke from the top of this hill and encountering Carton and his group further ahead. That means we’re getting closer to the town.
Without stopping, Jenuin climbed the hill swiftly, then descended.
As we descended, the speed suddenly increased. I desperately clung to Jenuin’s harness. The shaking was much more intense than usual. In fear of being thrown off, I clung desperately until suddenly, the road became flat.
.. Ah, ahead is…
“Reg-san, there were boar-like monsters building a settlement in the town ahead.”
I managed to remember and warned Regres, as it was hard to hear over the headwind and Jenuin’s footsteps.
“Yeah, it’s fine. I think they’re mostly out, so it should be alright.”
“Huh? They’re out?”
“They’re fighting humans.”
“Is that…”
“Yeah. Because your precious students are there too. But… it’ll be fine.”
Fine? Is that what you call serious? No, but if he says “it’ll be fine”…
In a state of confusion, Regres urged Jenuin forward. As we looked to the side, we could see the village wall. We continued through the forest alongside the wall. When we reached the edge of the village, Regres skillfully manipulated the reins.
Za-zah!
Jenuin emerged onto the main road and continued.
“They’re fighting ahead, but Sensei, please refrain from drawing your sword.”
“Can I manage without drawing it?”
“I think we’ll manage somehow. We can’t be reckless; conserving magic power is more important.”
“Magic power?”
“Yeah. The fight is set up so that we can win even without Sensei’s participation.”
Amidst Regres’ explanation, we could hear explosive sounds coming from further ahead. It seemed to be a battle involving magic. Eventually, we could see people fighting in a chaotic scene.
I heard Kimishima calling out, “Sensei!”
