Chapter 7
THE HOLY KINGDOM ALISFARIUS was a major country. It worshipped the Goddess of Benevolence, one of the three major dieties of the Schmegoffe Region, which encompassed both continents of Ark Earth Online.
Last night, she had arrived at the station city Holy Gate and spent a night at a station-side inn. In the light of the morning sun, she now looked around the plaza, all decked out in dazzling white.
The station city here was brand new compared to the capital in terms of history, but it was packed full of people. And because this was a holy country, the shops and homes were all decorated with the cradle, a symbol of their goddess. Mira spotted several churches on her short walk from the station.
Their bell towers soared overhead; not even the station was as tall as them. Mira gazed at one and thought about Tact, who would no doubt visit this country someday in hopes of learning holy magic from one of these new churches. Alisfarius was the hub of holy magic, after all.
Wondering if she could ask the representative of the Tower of the Holy about this some time, Mira found a secluded place and summoned Pegasus.
When the winged horse appeared from the magic circle, it glanced around and rushed to nuzzle Mira’s bosom. It rubbed its face against her even more than usual, and she wondered if perhaps it had been worried over her absence. She chuckled at how spoiled it was and brushed its mane with her fingers.
Pegasus ascended from the alley with Mira on its back, and they flew from the city. Grasslands spread out below, wind blowing the long stalks like waves on the sea. Far ahead, misty mountains trailed off into the horizon. Mira’s destination was the Celestial Ruins, a basin beyond that mountain range.
Pegasus flew north, clearly in high spirits. Normally, it would fly aggressively, as if to ward off any approaching birds who would intrude on its time in the sky with Mira. But today, it allowed them to fly freely. Their chirps filled the air around Mira with music.
“We’ve built up quite the following today. Perhaps this will be a fun journey,” Mira said, prompting an answering whinny from Pegasus.
Groups of many different species opened their wings wide. They flew up in a loop, then returned to glide alongside. Their flight formation was like an airshow.
“Magnificent!” Mira applauded the birds as they frolicked in the sky.
Taking this as its cue, Pegasus let its wings shine. The overflowing light shimmered off its feathers like gold dust, swelling outward with a sound akin to a bell’s chime before dissolving into the air and falling upon the birds. This was a blessing of light that could be given by a holy beast, conferred upon the birds for bringing joy to its master.
“What beautiful light. You’re not bad, either!”
Having never witnessed a holy beast’s blessing before, Mira thought it was simply Pegasus’s way of frolicking with the birds. Its mood improved further, Pegasus continued to spread its blessing, strengthening the fortune of the birds to give them peace for generations to come.
Mira would never know.
***
As they approached the mountains and grassland turned to forest, Mira spotted monsters soaring in the sky. Pegasus bid the birds to disperse, knowing the danger ahead. Soon they were alone over the towering mountaintops.
Their ascent over the peaks was steep. Though this wasn’t the proper route to the Celestial Ruins, Mira had figured that it would be no problem for Pegasus to overcome these mountains.
We can make it…right?
The air grew thin as the forest at the base of the mountain blurred in the distance. The higher they went, the more the cold pierced through Mira’s fur coat.
The peaks obstructing their path were one of the Earth continent’s four biggest mountain ranges, higher than Mira had ever flown. The mountaintop was obscured by clouds, threatening to block all passage.
The extreme cold, a growing headache, and her misty vision caused Mira to cling tightly to Pegasus.
“Pegasus…can we descend?” Mira requested as panic began to set in. Recognizing her pain, Pegasus’s eyes were filled with agony. It rapidly descended into the forest.
***
Once they had landed in a small clearing in the forest, Pegasus wrapped its wings around the girl clinging to it. A dazzling rainbow veil emanated from its feathers, illuminating the dim woods with Pegasus’s strongest healing magic. The motes of light healed the wounds and ailments of surrounding wildlife as well.
There were no dramatic changes to Mira’s condition, but she seemed to relax under the rainbow light.
“I’m a little better now. Sorry for worrying you, friend.”
This was likely another consequence of the game becoming reality. Mira calmed herself and closed her eyes, pondering what to do next. It seemed she couldn’t reach the Celestial Ruins by air. She would have to take the proper route: going through a land-based dungeon.
While Mira mentally prepared for the trip, Pegasus began jostling her with its muzzle.
“What? What’s gotten into you?!” Mira glanced around, worried that there was an emergency, but only saw a dreamy forest enveloped in the lingering magical aurora. As she sat up, Pegasus looked relieved, burying its face in her chest. “Hrmm. Quite the spoiled little baby now, aren’t you?”
She relaxed against Pegasus while she waited for her headache to subside.
***
I wonder if I’ll need a permit?
To travel to the Celestial Ruins, Mira would have to pass through a dungeon known as the Stairway to the Sky. The dungeon was managed by the Adventurers’ Guild Union, so she might need to return to a city where they operated.
Pegasus’s light settled, and the forest went back to its usual gloomy state. Now recovered, Mira opened her map and searched for a nearby town.
As she did, the rippling sounds of insects in the trees formed a steady tempo. Mira used her Biometric Scan and found two beings, both the size of humans.
I can only imagine they’re adventurers, Chimera, or Isuzu. Or perhaps hunters?
Wary of the newcomers, Pegasus stepped forward to protect Mira, lightning cracking faintly across its wings. Listening carefully, Mira could hear the clear sound of footsteps in the woods. They were coming directly toward her. As she listened, the footsteps’ pace quickened until the source of the disturbance was breaking through the trees just ahead.
“What have we here?” the stranger muttered to himself, coming face-to-face with Pegasus.
The man wore a full suit of samurai-style armor in black, with a blade in a blood-red scabbard hanging from his hip. A step away from being middle-aged, his face looked rough and chiseled, like a boulder with mature eyes. Oddly, Mira thought, he didn’t look evil. But Pegasus wasn’t taking any chances.
“Hey, don’t just run up on people!” another man yelled, peeking out from behind the samurai. “Look what you’ve done; it thinks we’re hostile.” His gear seemed to emphasize lightness and mobility, with green leather armor protecting only his vitals. The feathers of arrow fletchings were visible in his hip quiver, but the arrows appeared too thick and long to be shot from an ordinary bow. He looked to be a hunter, with fierce features contrasting against wise eyes.
“My apologies.”
“It still looks ready to attack. What did you do?”
“Once again, apologies. I am simply frozen in admiration of this divine beast.”
“I’ve always heard Pegasi have mild temperaments.”
Pegasus glowered threateningly, and the two men backed off slightly as they tried to size up the situation together.
Finally, Mira asked, “Can I help you?”
“Hark! Might that be the Pegasus’s voice?” The samurai man bowed reverently.
“No. It came from behind it.”
The other hunter caught sight of Mira. She’d been covered by one of Pegasus’s wings and was now peeking out from behind. The samurai bent slightly in search of the voice. When he noticed the small girl, his eyes widened with surprise.
“A heavenly maiden?!”
Even in the dim forest, Mira’s gleaming silver hair, fair skin, and staggeringly gorgeous face worked a special kind of magic.
“No, I’m Mira. An adventurer. Who are you two?” Mira demanded. Placing a reassuring hand on Pegasus’s back, she stepped forward. This seemed to bring the samurai back to reality.
“I am known as Heinrich. An adventurer like yourself.”
“The name’s Gilbert. I, uh…guess you could call me a scholar.”
Introductions complete, the three faced each other anew.
Pegasus relaxed its guard slightly, but kept its wings wrapped around Mira. Gilbert muttered to himself in understanding: the usually gentle Pegasus was protecting its charge.
“Sorry for startling you,” Gilbert said, raising both of his hands to show he had no ill intent. “We noticed light in the forest while we were traveling to our destination and came to investigate.”
Mira realized the light they saw must have been the healing magic cast by Pegasus.
“On that note, I assume it came from this creature?” Gilbert asked.
“Indeed, it did. It was trying to heal me.” Mira wrapped her arms around Pegasus’s neck in a grateful hug. The beast neighed happily.
“That sounds more like the great Pegasus of legend,” Heinrich mumbled in understanding.
“It tried to heal you? Given the amount of light, you must’ve been badly injured. Are you okay? I don’t mind sharing some of the medicine we brought.”
She looked down rather guiltily. “Ah, I am unhurt. I simply attempted to cross the mountains on Pegasus and got a little sick along the way. We rushed back down so I could rest. Pegasus was just being considerate.”
“You tried to fly over the mountains?” Gilbert gasped. “Ridiculous! I bet you got altitude sickness. This mountain is over five thousand meters above sea level. It’s silly to try to fly over that.”
“Altitude sickness? Hrmm… A poor plan after all.”
Riding Pegasus meant ascending at a far faster rate than a climber, which meant going into thinner air without acclimating. Anyone was bound to feel ill doing that.
Mira had visited the Celestial Ruins many times. Usually via Floating Island. This was a new experience entirely.
There were so many factors that made previously easy things now impossible. Even Mira couldn’t defy nature—especially not when she hadn’t prepared for things missing from the game.
Heinrich typically left the talking to Gilbert, but seeing a solution, he proposed, “If you wish to cross the mountains, might I suggest using the tunnel connected to the holy road? The toll should be pocket change for any adventurer.”
“My destination is not the other side; it is the Celestial Ruins,” Mira explained. “Flying would have been faster…but looks like I’ll have to take the usual route. Would you two happen to know from which city I can procure a permit to the Stairway to the Sky?” Mira asked.
“The closest Adventurers’ Guild Union branch would be the one at Lorwyn, off to the east. But it requires a rank of B. Will you be able to satisfy that?”
“R-really…?” Mira was dumbfounded. Her current rank was C. She had only gotten the certification for the sake of dungeon access, so she hadn’t done any of the work necessary to raise her rank again. Even Solomon’s authority was limited to getting her to C. Just as ascending from D-Rank to C-Rank was difficult, ascending from C-Rank to B-Rank required its own set of trials. It was no easy feat.
She drooped slightly, like a wilted flower.
Gilbert, presuming that her rank was too low, noticed the User’s Bangle on her arm. “Are you C-rank, Mira?” he probed.
“Yes, I am.” Mira looked up slightly and nodded.
Gilbert pointed at Heinrich and said, “I’m a C-Rank too, but Hank here is an A-Rank. We were planning to go to the Stairway to the Sky, and we’ve even got a permit already. Would you like to join us?”
What a stroke of luck!
“I certainly would appreciate it, but are you sure?” Mira was ecstatic, but she politely gave him the opportunity to take it back.
“Of course. You can probably tell, but we’re both classed as warriors. Even with an A-Rank on board, I’d felt a little iffy about going to a B-Rank dungeon. But you look like a mage, and C-Rank, at that. You ought to be a huge boon for us.”
“Hrmm, I see.” All this seemed a little too good to be true, but Mira was convinced by Gilbert’s logic. And as she had no other plan, agreeing was certainly an option.
“By the way, what kind of mage?” Gilbert looked to Mira expectantly. “A sorcerer or priest would be fantastic.”
She proudly puffed out her chest and declared, “A summoner!”
A cicada’s cry filled the silence.
“Oh. You must’ve done a lot of work to reach C-Rank, then.…Is that Pegasus a summon?” Gilbert pointed to the beast snuggling up to Mira. Pegasus had power rivaling that of an A-Rank adventurer.
“Indeed, it is.” She ran her fingers through Pegasus’s mane. The creature fluttered its wings joyfully, as if to emphasize her point.
Relief was clear on Gilbert’s face as he looked at the creature. “Hokay, phew. I was worried for a sec, but I don’t think we’ll have any problems at all.”
“Summoning Pegasus is a remarkable feat.” Heinrich locked eyes with Pegasus, straightened up, and bowed to it.
“You can protect yourself, then,” Gilbert confirmed.
“A needless worry. How about I protect the both of you, too?” Mira offered with a confident smirk.
“You go right ahead,” he mumbled, looking at his map and marking a spot to calculate the distance to the dungeon. “Let’s get going, then. The Stairway to the Sky should be around thirty minutes’ walk from here.”
“Hrmm. A trifling distance,” Mira said, holding out her hand toward Pegasus to dismiss it. However, it pushed her hand back in refusal. “Hrmm. What’s gotten into you?”
Each time she held out her hand, Pegasus circled left or right and nuzzled Mira’s face.
“My, you are spoiled,” she grumbled. “The three of us cannot ride you at once.”
Yet Pegasus shook its head, as if to say she was wrong.
“Perhaps Pegasus still doubts the two of us?” Heinrich suggested, meeting Pegasus’s glance with another respectful bow. “It seems the type to worry for its master.”
Pegasus stared into Mira’s eyes, as if confirming his surmise. Its eyes were not those of a spoiled pet; they were filled with profound concern.
“Is that so?” Mira asked. Pegasus nodded gravely.
Gilbert crossed his arms and leaned against a tree. “Well, that is fair. A girl in the woods with two men she doesn’t know? Anyone would think that’s a little fishy. Hell, even I do.”
“Hrmm, is that why? Don’t worry about it. I’m not about to fall victim to these two, now, am I?” Mira insisted, putting a hand on Pegasus’s brow.
“No worries in that regard!” Gilbert chuckled, laughing off the implied insult.
But as a man with the dignity of a samurai, Heinrich could not stay silent. “I cannot let that comment pass. Pegasus does indeed look powerful, but I’m confident in my strength. I believe I can handle a child.”
“Oh, good grief,” Gilbert groaned. “You’d never try in the first place, so does it matter? Also, we’re burning daylight here.”
Heinrich couldn’t stand when someone looked down on his strength, even in jest. Even as Heinrich’s boulder-like face grew yet more stern, however, he continued to bow whenever he and Pegasus made eye contact.
Mira checked Heinrich’s stat values; they were all above average. Now that she knew he was as strong as he said, she jokingly retorted, “Hrmm. Indeed, you seem skilled. But what would you do with me if you could best me?”
“Well, erm, I…” Heinrich began gesticulating wildly.
“She’s pulling your leg, Hank.” Gilbert sighed before his friend could embarrass himself any further.
Those words snapped Heinrich back to reality. He saw Mira smirking devilishly at him, satisfied with her victory. His mouth hung open in disbelief.
Now he seems like a man who’s fun to tease!
As Heinrich fumed in indignation, Gilbert chuckled.
Mira pointed at the two and whispered to Pegasus, “See? They’re not up to anything bad. Be at ease.”
Pegasus sized up the two men, nodded reluctantly, and allowed itself to be dismissed.
“Anyway, don’t worry about it,” Gilbert smiled. “I’m not about to do anything that stupid.”
“And neither am I!” Heinrich piped up in agreement. “Miss Mira, I was simply expressing my dismay at being—”
“I know, I know. You samurai are all uptight, anyway.” Mira interrupted Heinrich as he tried to make excuses for himself.
“I’m glad you understand. I swear on my sword that I will keep you safe!” He declared happily, one hand on his sword’s sheath.
Thus, Mira gained two companions and a ticket to the Celestial Ruins.
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