Chapter 220 – Pilgrimage.
Shoot alas, the rippling water slapped on the horse’s back, splashing water droplets and soaking his shoes. Is it because the water here is salt water? The feeling of water soaking between the toes, which previously felt cool, feels stuffy and uncomfortable as the bandages are soaked in the shoes. Even when the sky had already regained its blue color and the sun had fully risen, they were moving along listening only to the sound of the waves, so Usher asked Krikaliev to suppress his nervousness.
“Why is there so much water here?”
Parz was a strange place to Usher, who had been told that it was uninhabitable because it consisted mostly of barren wasteland unless it was near the cloud region. I’d seen the lake where I washed myself with Belka in the forest, or the small puddles in Lantua where I played with Mediah, but there was no place where the water overflowed enough to fill the horizon as the water deepened and started to break.
“It’s because the land is low compared to other places. There are water sources everywhere, so the water can accumulate widely without drying up.”
Thanks to this, people can live without having a cloud zone nearby, but not all questions have been resolved.
“But it’s salty.”
I couldn’t just drink this water. Especially when I fell into the water while trying to tame Hildisbini, I even felt the pain as if my mouth shrank just by entering it.
“The water from Suwon is not salty.”
“Then why is the water salty here?”
“How did you get salt where you lived?”
“That.”
Usually, it was known that it was made by mixing water with desert sand and then removing only the sand and boiling the water to use salt exposed or by breaking some rocks.
“What if water hits the ground like that?”
“Ah.”
It was time to find out why the water here is salty. Krikaliev raised his hand and stopped him.
“We’ll have to end our small talk here. You’d better be nervous from here on out.”
“Yes? Why suddenly?”
“Where do you think the monsters live the most?”
“Couldn’t it be here?”
“If you pretend, you pretend.”
Usher wanted to hear no, but the answer from him was the exact opposite. They look around, but all they see is the surface of the wavy water. Above the vast water where even the cluster of mangrove trees was not visible, the wind blowing in the waves was carrying the salty smell.
“There are several characteristics of places where the most monsters live.
Considering that they use humans as hosts, it was a natural habit. Anyway, since they have to make humans their host, they gather in private houses rather than in wilderness or remote places, and since humans don’t have the means to hunt them, they keep some distance.
“The most obvious of these is that it is a place where it is difficult for humans to move.”
Usher was startled and checked Krikaliev’s condition again. The water was now deeper than ever, reaching near his chest. Usher on his horse lifted his foot as his foot was touching the water. For some reason, the Pasitillas were actively targeting him. He had already meticulously applied the camouflage cream he had given him, but he couldn’t let go of the thought.
“That’s why mounts like Hildisviny and Sbadil Ferry are essential.”
“So this guy.”
Usher licked his lips as he looked down at the horse he was carrying.
“Open the bag around the horse’s neck.”
“This one?”
Come to think of it, there was a small bag attached to the horse’s neck. Others were carried on the flanks of horses or on small rafts for the horses to pull. Usher was at a loss for words when he took out what Krikaliev had said he had left in the small bag. Because that’s
“…Isn’t this the uniform I was wearing?”
Even though it looked like it was tied up with heavy stones or something, the buttons and decorations at first glance were the same as the uniform he was wearing.
“That’s right. I don’t think I’ll be able to use it anyway, so I told Nausicaa to order a new one and brought it.”
“Ugh, are you saying I’m dirty?”
“You mean that? Take a good look.”
Krikaliev took the uniform from Usher as it was, checked its condition, held it in his hand, and began to wield it so that it would not touch the water. Usher wondered what the hell he was doing, but I could see Donard wielding a sling, and as he watched, the clothes flew diagonally with a hissing sound.
“Now. Let’s go quickly.”
“Yes? Now?”
“Follow me. If you miss an opportunity, things will become a hassle.”
As he began to stir the water, the horse began to follow Usher without a moment’s time to rush, so he didn’t have to exert any effort. However, when I looked at the place where the uniform that Krikaliev had thrown away was concerned, the heavy stone-laden uniform soared high into the sky and flew away from them. As I was watching the scene while riding a horse, it fell to the surface only when it was faintly out of sight. I wondered what that meant, but it was only for a moment.
“What, what is it. That.”
At first, the water surface suddenly began to swell where the uniform fell, and soon the things that shook off the water revealed the reality. It was like a pure white lump that was clumped together and wriggling.
“What is it? Pasitillaji.”
What seemed to swell for a moment was the water rising as the pacitillas quickly gathered in one place.
“I wondered, but it’s true. Little boy. You seem to have been in touch with their aphrodisiac for a long time without even knowing it.”
Otherwise, there was no way I would have run so violently.
“Then if I hadn’t come on horseback…”
“It’s obvious, it must have been us who were there right now.”
Usher hurriedly pulled his trembling legs up further, pinned them to the horse’s waist, and gripped the saddle tightly. Although he carefully applied the camouflage cream that Krikaliev had given him, he could not apply it all over his body. It was a problem considering that even that could not be used for a long time as it was washed away by water over time. The pacitillas had already gathered enough to pop out of the water, but the water around them was still squirming. Even though that alone couldn’t compare to the number of guys they saw when they tried to tame Hildisbini.
“Isn’t there a Giga no Togetus around here?”
I asked, remembering that the big creature eats these guys, but he shook his head.
“This isn’t a fertile place for them to come. If food is really scarce, they’ll come, but they’ll have to come in groups.”
Because of that, there is no way to do this, so it is said that it is difficult to kill all the pacitillas. The case of other monsters would be similar. They hurried along while the Pasitillas were preoccupied with their uniforms. Then, by the time the water had risen up to Krikaliev’s chest and had gone down to the waist again. In the surroundings, mangrove clusters similar to those seen near Parz and small islands made of white land could be found intermittently.
“Huh, we’ve passed the dangerous section, but I think we’ll have to rest on that island for now.”
-Purrule.
Usher was about to say something to him, but when he heard the words below him, he closed his mouth and nodded. As if he was trying to put up with the boy’s tiredness, the sound was quieter, so he couldn’t ignore it all the more. They were obviously chasing the Paladins, but they couldn’t catch up with them. It was natural. The Paladins might have used Hildisbini and the wagon to get through the water, but they were no different than walking directly with the horses. Even though it seemed like nothing had been done, the day was declining.
The island they are staying on is a desolate place made up of only white sand. Except for the reed forest growing around the island, it was a land where there really was nothing.
“Don’t be in a hurry. I’m just glad I crossed that section safely.”
Krikaliev inspected the raft that had been harnessed to his horse and pulled out a small brazier. The brazier used in the kitchen was reduced to a smaller size. Inside, you can see the oil and the rope holding it. When Krikaliev hit the flint he had taken out with the brazier and ignited the embers, it clung to the wick of the brazier and gave off a acrid smell and began to burn vigorously. Then he poured the surrounding water into a distorted pot with the lid tilted to one side and put it on the fire.
“What about that water?”
I couldn’t even drink it because it was salty.
“I know when I see it.”
As he watched as he placed an equally distorted, but deliberately protruding lid on top of a distorted pot, and set another pot aside, the horse came near him with weary breathing.
– Purr.
As I stroked the horse’s neck, I felt it tremble and let out a sigh. If he had been able to tame Hill Disbiny, at least Svadil Perry, he wouldn’t have treated this guy so badly. Krikaliev, who was busily preparing, spoke to him.
“If you have time to be still, run some errands.”
“Yes?”
Now I see that he is carrying his trap with various tools lined up. Krikaliev broke a nearby reed and threw it at Usher, but the shape was slightly different. Unlike other reeds, something soft and fluffy was attached to the top.
“If you look through the reed forest, you’ll often see wild willows that look like that. Pick up some that look just like them and bring them.”
“Yes? Why?”
“I need to prepare a meal.”
“But haven’t you brought anything to eat?”
I doubted if I could eat these plants, but I was curious that they would eat something else with the food they had already brought with them.
“That’s emergency food. There’s nothing better to eat in the wilderness than here, so if you can’t find something to eat at that time, will you starve to death?”
Usher listened to him and had to roam around the small island to pick up as many plants and resemblances he threw. It was fortunate that I had regained some of my stamina and was not too tired. I broke it as it looked and approached the fireside, where I saw Krikaliev examining the pot with a pot full of flounders.
“I’ve broken everything.”
“Let’s see.”
He inspected the plants Usher had picked and pulled out a few to show.
“I can’t eat this.”
“Yes? Why?”
It didn’t look particularly different from the others, so when I asked, he cut a fluffy-looking thing into pieces.
-Rurrrr
“Ugh, what is this?”
I thought it was a similar-looking plant, but when he cut it in half and threw it on the ground, it made a grotesque sound and wriggled like a caterpillar before melting.
“It’s a new type of monster that started appearing about 3 years ago. It’s not seen near Parz, but it seems to have come from there since it’s found near Ragado.”
It is said that they are usually camouflaged like willows. Its power itself is weaker than that of Pacitilla, so it is said that it targets people while they are asleep.
“Where is Lagado?”
I think I’ve heard it before, but I’ve never heard of it anywhere.
“I’d like to tell you not to go near it, but I can’t help it because it’s a bit on the way to the Holy Land.”
-Kick!
Krikaliev immediately stomped on what was left to death, then picked up a stone and began to slam the stems of the plants Usher had picked against other stones. Then he continues his words as he sees the empty stem cracking and breaking and spilling powder.
“Ragado is a place covered with light clouds all year round.”
“If it’s a cloud region, can’t you live below?”
The cloud region provides a fertile environment if you are nearby, but wasn’t it a place where people couldn’t live right below?
“I’m not saying it’s wrong, but the situation there is a bit different. Unlike other places, the cloud layer is thin and wide.
“What do you mean?”
“It’s like a lawless zone.”
He felt uncomfortable when he said that he would find out soon even if he didn’t want to know what kind of place it was.
