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TL: ALT
Chapter 20 – Beyond the Shrine Part 3
Aire looked around cautiously before stepping out of the shrine.
The Great Ice Tiger was a weapon bestowed upon the ancestor of the Golden Tiger Clan by the gods in ancient times for their martial prowess.
In the hands of other clans, it was nothing more than an attractive sword, but when wielded by the Golden Tiger Clan, it became an extremely powerful treasure.
Aire had already used the power of the Great Ice Tiger to create a safe zone around herself.
The influence of magic had been reduced to an ignorable level.
“Ugh…what a horrible sight…”
Aire grimaced and groaned involuntarily.
The sight before her was too repulsive to bear.
Magic promotes growth and recovery.
However, excessive magic, or magic that is too powerful, becomes harmful and leads to destruction.
Plants that had undergone repeated growth and destruction, recovery and destruction, had twisted into bizarre shapes and were repulsive to look at.
Seeing the broken form of what should have been harmony caused mental anguish.
The scene stretched out as far as the eye could see, as if their rationality was being scraped away.
Nearby, caterpillars grew instantly, only to rot and die before they could emerge as butterflies.
In the distance, super-powered creatures that could withstand the dense magic—or perhaps strange, broken things that had transcended the realm of living beings—were racing each other.
“Are they stronger than me?”
Even though they were far away, they appeared enormous.
Up close, they must have been gigantic.
Size isn’t everything, but they gave off a dangerous vibe.
Around the shrine were steps and passageways that had eroded yet still retained their original shape. She could also see the building itself.
Numerous structures gave the impression of a highly advanced civilization.
It might even be possible to collect advanced artifacts.
Some say that many things from ancient and primordial eras cannot be reproduced with modern technology.
What could be inside the dimly lit entrance?
Perhaps it held traces of the lives of ancient people.
Aire had a hunch about the location of the transfer point.
It was a place that had been designated a forbidden zone after a massive magical disaster in the past.
It was one of the few remaining ancient magical cities on the continent.
At the same time, Aire realized why the shrine’s gate was taking so long to activate.
It must be diverting most of its power to prevent external erosion by blocking the high concentration of magic.
Staying in such a creepy place would drive anyone mad, even without the influence of magic.
She wanted to cut short her exploration and investigation and return to the shrine.
She felt an overwhelming urge to see Wataru’s face.
〇〇〇
“That place was awful.”
“Good job. I’m sorry I sent you there alone to such a dangerous place.”
“Well, you couldn’t have asked anyone else.”
With an exhausted expression that belied her usual cheerfulness, Aire began her report.
The area outside the shrine appeared to be the ruins of an ancient city.
There were extremely powerful monsters there.
It was impossible to go out there without precautions.
The more Wataru learned, the harder it seemed to accomplish anything here.
“For now, the gate should be usable soon. We’ll discuss the details there.”
“Yes, that’s right. Oh, it seems to be working.”
“Then, everyone, please come closer.”
“Don’t tell me what to do!”
“That hurts!”
“Haha, let’s go then.”
Wataru wanted to return to a safe place as soon as possible.
Wataru and the others entered the gate.
He noticed that the shrine in the royal capital, which they had visited just an hour ago, was in much better condition.
While the shrine was dirty, the ancient city was in terrible condition.
Being in a dangerous place was stressful.
They quickly left the shrine and went to a place where they could drink tea. They sat down as if throwing their bodies down.
“That was a terrible accident. We have to be more careful next time.”
“I didn’t know how to use it.”
“Personally, I’m very interested in ancient ruins, and I want to keep the shrine clean.”
“Eh, it’s dangerous.”
Aire objected to Wataru’s opinion.
Well, that’s understandable.
After all, Aire experienced the most danger.
Wataru and the others had a different sense of danger because they had been waiting in a safe place in the shrine.
“If we hadn’t gone out, there wouldn’t have been a problem. Besides, this is just my personal feeling, but it feels wrong to leave it in such a dilapidated state. We should use it while we can.”
“I don’t think anyone else cares.”
“That’s true. So, this is just selfish of me. Please forgive me.”
He knew that what he was about to do was dangerous.
Aire, who was guarding him, would be most inconvenienced.
There was a chance she would rush out of the shrine with her beloved sword and join the battle.
That’s why Wataru bowed his head.
“Well… I guess I have no choice.”
“I’m sorry.”
“It’s okay. When I was being selfish with you at first, you helped me without complaining.”
With that, Aire touched her beloved sword.
“I have a question. Is there a material that can block magic power?”
“Yes, there is.”
Mariel answered Wataru’s question.
As expected, Mariel was very knowledgeable.
“Bottles of chronic healing potions are designed to maintain the effects of magic cast by magicians. There are probably several other anti-magic materials as well.”
“There’s no rush, but I’d like to gather some of those materials and set them up around the shrine.”
“To reduce the influence of magic, right? It’s not impossible, but it will be very expensive.”
“Yeah, I guess so. That’s why I’m not in a hurry. Let’s start with what we can do slowly.”
Mariel looked puzzled at Wataru’s determination.
She couldn’t understand why he was so obsessed with the shrine.
Wataru himself wasn’t entirely sure either.
It all started with cleaning the Jizo statue, though.
He met Mariel and Aire, traveled between Earth and the other world, gained technology and wealth, and found happiness.
Cleaning the shrine wasn’t about gaining something in return; it was about giving back and showing gratitude.
It would be wrong to expect something in return for an act of gratitude.
If he was going to do it, he wanted to clean up not just the Southern Ship Town shrine, but also the shrines in the royal capital and the ancient city.
The god of time and space would surely be pleased.
Besides, he wanted to explore the ancient city someday.
Since coming to a fantasy world, he had wanted to enjoy adventures within safe limits.
While minimizing risk as much as possible, Wataru couldn’t suppress his curiosity about this exciting, unknown world.
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