Chapter 2:
Path to the Divine Continent
THE DIVINE CONTINENT.
If you were to mark it on a map, it’d be on the northernmost edge, connecting the Central Continent to the Demon Continent. While it is called a continent, its land is adjoined to the Central Continent. You could even walk from it to the Demon Continent during the low tide.
Why would this landmass be treated as separate from both the Central and Demon Continents? Its height. This continent perched atop a steep, vertical precipice about three thousand meters above sea level.
People did not travel through it as a rule. It wasn’t impossible for those determined enough, but there were no roads worth mentioning. Given the winged monsters teeming within the walls of that cliff, any attempts at scaling it would be incredibly difficult. I’d heard stories about wanted fugitives from the Central Continent traveling through the Divine Continent in the hopes of reaching the Demon Continent and escaping their bounty hunters. I hadn’t heard any stories about them surviving the attempt.
You’d think being able to fly would make being a fugitive easy, but in this world, the sky belonged to the dragons. Forget planes; this world’s technology hadn’t even developed hot air balloons. It was the height of recklessness for someone to go into the air unprotected.
And this was the place Perugius wanted me to bring a month-old baby? Absurd.
“I’d appreciate it if you could inform me of where I could find a teleportation circle linked to this Divine Continent.”
We were back at my company’s countryside office. Eris was right behind me. Roxy and Sylphie were with Sieg in a different room. It didn’t seem like we’d be fighting Perugius at the moment, so I had Zanoba return home.
“…”
Orsted’s expression was as fearsome as ever, but behind that fearsome face, he seemed to be considering how to tell me a hard truth. Maybe there wasn’t a teleportation circle connected to the Divine Continent?
“Perugius wouldn’t be satisfied if you used a teleportation circle.”
“Oh, that makes sense.”
Come to think of it, Perugius did call it a “trial.” Perhaps giving Sieg a baptism at Aluce Hill on the Divine Continent wasn’t the only part of the trial; the perilous path toward reaching it might be important. If that meant going from here all the way to the Divine Continent on foot, we’d be wasting a lot of time.
“Does that rule out teleporting to somewhere near the Divine Continent?”
“It shouldn’t be a problem if you’re still outside of it.”
So, bring the baby to the foot of the Divine Continent, do some rock climbing, and get him baptized by the people living at the top. A three-course meal of tribulations. Forget the difficulty of the trek by itself, this was a one-month-old baby we’d be traveling with. He could get sick at any point along the way. At three thousand feet above sea level, altitude sickness could be a real possibility…
Yeah, this would be rough. Guess that’s what made it a trial, though.
“Hmm…”
You know, maybe bringing the floating fortress crashing down wasn’t such a bad idea.
“Orsted, do you think I can complete this trial? With a one-month-old baby with me, that is.”
“Sure.”
“Your reasoning?”
“Sieghart, was it? That baby’s physique shows strong influence from the Laplace Factor. Children like that have a resistance to typical illnesses and environmental stresses.”
“Oh, I see.”
“It’s an effect they wove into the reincarnation magic to make sure that Laplace’s future body would survive the harshest conditions. If a child has a strong Factor, they can survive the trip to the Divine Continent.”
All right. If Orsted was that confident, then I guess Sieg would be fine. You know, as long as I didn’t totally space out and let a roc swipe Sieg off my back and carry him away in its talons. Eris and Roxy should be coming with me, so they’d make up for any lapses in attention I could have.
“I feel a bit guilty about asking so much. Especially right after what happened with Geese…”
“I understand.”
“I appreciate the generosity…”
“I still remember how you wiped a forest off the face of the continent to protect your family. I wouldn’t put it past you to bring Chaos Breaker crashing down before Laplace’s revival. That’s an asset, and I will need it.”
Figures. To Orsted, both Perugius and I were combat assets. He didn’t want his pieces taking one another out.
“I’m relieved to see you being so accommodating. We’ll get into preparations right away.”
“Sure.”
With our goal made clear, I looked behind me. Eris was there, with her arms crossed like usual.
“Is that all right with you, Eris?”
“Makes no difference to me,” said Eris. She then shot me a look that I hadn’t seen much of lately: a piercing glare. “Don’t you think you should discuss it with Sylphie?”
I couldn’t help but smirk, as it wasn’t something I expected to hear from Eris, but the nod I gave her was sincere.
“U…understood.”
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