I hid my wives behind and unfolded a mana shield.
One sturdy enough to completely block the cave entrance. Unless it was sothing on the level of a heavy cannon, there was no way this multi-layered, reinforced shield would be penetrated.
“......”
Even so, it was impossible to suppress the tension. The noblewon all looked visibly dazed and overwheld by the situation.
But I—raised in the 21st century—knew very well just how tense and dangerous the sound of gunfire could be.
BANG—━!!!
Another shot rang out. At the sa ti, Nare let out a small cry.
“One of my Snow Nares disappeared again...!”
With that, I was sure.
Soone outside the cave was shooting. And as far as I knew, guns were weapons that could take a human life with a projectile no bigger than a fingernail.
Could I really handle that?
I didn’t think even a bullet could break through my mana shield, which was now approaching tier 8. But even so, I couldn’t help but worry.
Rustle, rustle.
At last, I began to hear multiple footsteps moving around the cave entrance. I pointed my hand toward the entrance, fully prepared to respond at any mont.
Bael.
Get ready to unleash full power from the start—prepare the spell.
━ Hioooong...!
With Bael’s help, I could cast high-level magic without chanting. Mana swelled within , surging through my body.
That was when—sothing peeked its head in front of the cave.
Shk.
At that shadow, I fired off the tier-6 grand spell Zzzap-Zzzap. Lightning burst from my fingers, firing at light-speed and striking the silhouette.
Crackle—!
A surge of electricity crackled through the cave, sharp enough to make hair stand on end.
“Uwoaaaaah—!”
A strange scream rang out. At the sa ti, I heard multiple people yelling in alarm:
━ Sothing just shot Roan!
━ There’s sothing inside the cave!
━ Everyone, be careful!
Taking advantage of the confusion, I raised my voice.
“I don’t know who you are, but if you co into this cave, you better be ready for the consequences!”
I wanted to growl fiercely, but coming from a half-fairy, my voice might’ve sounded a little silly. I worried whether the threat was convincing enough—but then...
━ Didn’t you hear a person’s voice just now?
━ I heard it too.
━ Sounded like a boy’s voice. Probably a kid.
━ Idiot, like a kid would be out here alone in the Freefolk Lands? It’s a mimic—so monster mimicking a human voice. They’re everywhere in this forest. Like a Jangsankat or sothing.
━ It’s a trick! That weird snowman monster and whoever’s with it are all on the sa side!
The murmuring spread. Wondering if communication was possible, I called out to them:
“Who are you? If you don’t intend to harm us, then show yourselves! If this can be resolved through dialogue, there’s no need for bloodshed!”
I’d already gotten a general read on their capabilities. Even if they really were ard with guns, they likely couldn’t hurt . I could just walk out there and neutralize them right now if I wanted.
But you never know what unpredictable variables may arise.
Besides, I didn’t want to make a big deal out of this. With the Church possibly sending pursuers after us, leaving behind noisy, obvious traces would just be plain stupid.
That’s when—
━ Is there really a person inside that cave?
“Yes, there is.”
━ Huh. That’s weird. Definitely sounds like a human voice... but there’s no way a little kid would be out here alone in the Freefolk Lands...
I could feel the wariness in their voices soften. My youthful half-fairy voice must have thrown them off. It wasn’t strange they mistook for a child. Then a man with a concerned tone asked:
━ Multiply 6 by 6.
“Thirty-six?”
━ Ah, so you are human. Monsters can’t do multiplication. Alright, I’ll show myself for a mont, so don’t shoot any more of that weird lightning.
Shk.
At last, soone stepped into view with both hands raised. His outfit was odd, but unmistakably human.
He was wearing a puffer jacket.
His face was covered with fur and a scarf, so I couldn’t make out any details.
He pointed sothing toward and clicked it—emitting a beam of light. A lantern? Flashlight? Whatever it was, my head began to spin a little.
The man spoke.
“One young boy and a bunch of won, huh. I’m dying of curiosity, so I gotta ask—who the hell are you people?”
I was just as curious.
“Who are you?”
***
There were about eight of them in total. A mix of n and won. What they all had in common was that they looked sturdy and nimble.
“We’re a scouting party. Never thought we’d et people in a place like this. You folks co from the south?”
“That’s right.”
I nodded and observed their equipnt. They carried swords and knives, but what really drew my eye were the weapons in a few of their hands.
I asked,
“Where did you get those?”
“Oh, this? Figures folks from the south haven’t seen these. It’s a weapon. Shoots little tal balls. I can’t really explain how it works... You’ll see it yourself eventually.”
As I spoke with them, I gathered quite a bit of information.
They were people who lived about 60 kiloters beyond the barrier. And they carried items like lighters and flashlights—things straight out of the 21st century.
Shk.
That’s when Stella grabbed my side and whispered quietly.
“Teo, these people... all these strange tools...”
“They seem like scavengers. I’ve heard rumors about people living past the barrier, surviving by collecting items that fall from the cracked sky. I didn’t think we’d actually et them.”
What’s more, they invited us to their village.
To them, we were outsiders—but a party consisting of a powerful mage and five young, beautiful won was a good combination for lowering their guard.
Still, weren’t they being too friendly? Was this a trap? As I stayed alert, the man in the purple puffer jacket said,
“Nothing to worry about. No bad person ever travels with nymphs. We’ve even got a nymph in our village. That ans we’re good people too.”
I had no idea what kind of logic that was, but I could tell—they didn’t an us harm. We crossed through more forest, until finally a mountain of rock ca into view.
Bathed in the dim moonlight, it was impressively tall—enough to be called a rock mountain.
The scavengers slipped expertly between the cracks in the rocks and vanished.
We followed them in, sidestepping through narrow gaps in the stone, until we saw lights glowing from within.
Ayra murmured with quiet awe.
“A village surrounded by a rocky mountain... I had no idea there was a place like this in my kingdom.”
So of the n chuckled. The man in the puffer jacket said,
“Kingdom? Oh no, we’ve got nothing to do with any kingdom. This is a democratic village—no laws, no kings. Might be hard ❀ ❀ (Don’t copy, read here) for folks from the south to understand.”
Naturally, Ayra replied simply,
“All of this is my kingdom’s land.”
The man looked at her and muttered, “Real pretty, but real strange,” before continuing onward.
Soon, we reached what seed like the village entrance. Several people holding swords and spears approached us.
“Yak, who are these people?”
The man in the puffer answered casually.
“Beats . But I figured we could ask ‘em so stuff, so I brought ‘em along.”
“And the monsters?”
“Didn’t see any. Seems like this area’s totally cleared out now. Anyway, these folks might know more. Let’s bring them in.”
Following their lead, we entered what looked to be one of the larger wooden buildings in the village.
As we sat down around a reception table, a kind-looking older woman asked, “You must be cold,” and turned on a space heater for us.
That’s right.
A heater.
An electric heating device. Seeing that familiar, nostalgic appliance, I found myself lost in thought for a mont—until Nare stood up and inspected the heater closely.
“Never seen anything like this before. It’s not like a magic brazier at all. This really is a scavenger village! So many weird things!”
“Nare, calm down.”
Mirna tried to settle her younger sister down—but even she was staring curiously at the strange objects around the room. Electric fans. Piles of junk. All sorts of odd items.
It’s said that remnants of 21st-century civilization sotis turn up beyond the barrier.
Of course, such items are considered rare and expensive. Even for noble daughters, these unfamiliar devices must have seed fascinating.
Stella picked up a nearby firearm.
“This one’s just like the kind I saw at the elf research facility. It uses gunpowder to launch bullets. So it was a weapon from beyond the barrier. Any bullets around?”
Watching her handle the unfamiliar gun, she looked surprisingly experienced.
Stella’s family was known for its wealth and love of rare artifacts, so it wasn’t strange she’d collected items from beyond the barrier.
Shk.
Elga lifted what looked like a motor component.
“Don’t know what half of this stuff is. We’re probably the first people to co on their honeymoon to a place like this. So, Teo, is this your hotown?”
It seed Elga thought I was born in this scavenger village. Probably not just her—everyone likely assud the sa.
I shook my head.
“No.”
“Then it must be another scavenger village?”
How should I even explain this?
As I was thinking it over, the door opened and soone entered. A child?
No—wait, I’d mistaken it at first. The short, pointed ears were unmistakable. A nymph.
With reddish-orange hair similar to Marmar’s, though slightly shorter—almost like a handso young boy.
“I am the President of this village! Leadernoi, at your service...!”
So he was the village president. Like a village chief, I suppose? Then, looking at , he suddenly exclaid:
“Aaah—!”
With a strange little gasp, typical of the fairy folk.
“I thought you were a nymph—but you’re a half-nymph...! Only half-nymphs can be male!”
He had instantly recognized what I was.
The surrounding villagers, overhearing this, nodded in amazent.
“So he’s a half-fairy...”
Leadernoi said,
“Co to think of it, I feel like a half-fairy visited this village once before...! A smaller, younger one...!”
A young half-fairy?
At that, I had to ask.
“What was their na? Who were they with? Do you rember anything else?”
To my question, Leadernoi went “Hmm—” and stared out the window.
“It’s getting late, so let’s talk more in the morning...! Everyone, prepare lodging for our guests...!”
What a strange village this was.
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