Chapter 37: Carl and Franz

A father and son were walking on an untrodden path in the middle of a forest.

The first person was an elderly man named Carl. With sharp eyes and a rugged face, he had a masculine appearance that exuded the aura of a seasoned warrior. He wore black leather clothes and carried a large sword on his back.

The other person was a boy in his early teens named Franz. He had a gentle face, and his blue eyes reflected an intelligent aura.

He was dressed in a sky-blue linen robe and held a staff of the same height as himself.

Carl was married to a woman named Nina, and they had three children. Franz was their youngest son.

The entire family, including Carl, were adventurers who had accepted a quest to subdue a monstrous beast that dropped valuable materials. However, when they arrived at the entrance of the Forbidden Forest where the beast had been sighted, Nina suddenly fell ill and they decided to let her rest at the inn.

The remote village, located far from the city, had no doctors, so they had to rely on letting Nina rest at the inn while she suffered. During this time, the village mayor asked Carl to deliver a letter to the Witch of the Abyss who lived in the forest.

Since Carl had a connection with the Witch of the Abyss, he believed that she, with her medical knowledge, could cure Nina’s illness. Thus, he willingly accepted the village mayor’s request.

However, since they also had to take care of Nina, Carl decided to leave behind his eldest son, who had excellent combat skills, and his second son, who could use healing magic. He set off with Franz alone to the forest where the Witch of the Abyss resided.

“Franz, are we going in the right direction?”

When Carl, who was leading the way, turned around and asked, Franz lifted his head.

“Yes. According to the map we received, the direction seems correct.”

“Just the direction, huh?”

“We can’t help it. After all, there’s no path.”

“Well, I guess you’re right.”

Carl turned forward again and let out a sigh as they continued walking on the pathless road blocked by overgrown vegetation.

This season, just before summer, was a time when plants grew rapidly, and the once-visible path was now obscured by thick weeds.

“But father, is it true that the Witch of the Abyss lives in a place like this?”

Franz had his reasons for questioning this choice of location.

This forest had long been feared as the habitat of powerful beasts. The most notable examples were the Spotted Beast that was inside the spaceship Bianca Flare and the dragon that attacked when Rudy landed on this planet.

Recently, the Witch of the Abyss, who had killed many people seeking revenge, had also become a target of fear.

“I don’t know. But since there’s a client, we have no choice but to go.”

“Father and mother fought alongside the Witch of the Abyss, right?”

“Only for a short time, in the past.”

“What was she like?”

“To the best of my knowledge, she’s the strongest as a sorceress, but as her nickname suggests, she has fallen into the abyss.”

“Is it true that if the person is from Roland, she would kill even women and children?”

“That’s just a rumor, and I don’t know the truth. But as far as I know, I’ve never seen her kill defenseless humans.”

“There are rumors that she’s the princess of Floatria, which was destroyed by Roland. There’s even a bounty from Roland… Oh!”

While they continued their conversation while moving forward, Franz suddenly felt the presence of a powerful barrier.

“What’s wrong?”

When Carl looked back, he saw Franz wearing a troubled expression as he cast a spell. But once he finished, Franz shook his head with a somewhat resigned look.

“I tried to investigate the powerful barrier, but I could only gather a little information. If we continue like this, we might unknowingly change direction and get lost.”

“I see. So, we’ve arrived safely?”

“Yes. The Witch of the Abyss probably resides ahead.”

“Well then, it’s time for this.”

Carl said as he took out a key from his pocket, which he had received from the village mayor.

“Now, let’s see if it really creates a path.”

As Carl followed the instructions he received from the village mayor, he inserted the key into the ground, but nothing happened, and he tilted his head in confusion.

“Hmm? Did I use it incorrectly?”

However, after a while, the spot where the key was inserted began to glow.

The light moved forward, and soon a glowing path appeared.

“This is amazing. What kind of magic is this?”

As Carl, who was not skilled in magic, marveled at the path of light, Franz was even more amazed behind him.

“Father, this is truly incredible magic.”

“Is that so?”

“The condition that it only activates when inserted into a specified area of the ground, and the fact that it creates a path with light without dispelling the barrier… It’s not something ordinary to condense such complex magic into a small key.”

“Well, it’s because it’s the Abyss.”

Franz widened his eyes in response to Carl’s answer.

“Does it all just end with that?”

“She can kill over a thousand people with a single spell.”

“…The magic is amazing, but the mentality to be able to kill a thousand people at once is even scarier.”

“That’s why she fell into the abyss. Well then, we don’t know how long this light will last. Let’s keep moving.”

“Understood.”

After finishing their conversation, Carl and Franz began walking along the illuminated ground.

“…Visitors?”

Noemi, who was concocting magic potions while listening to music on her smartphone, raised her head upon realizing that the key she had given to the acquaintance village mayor had been activated.

“They must have come to check if I’m still alive since it’s been a while.”

Until she met Rudy, Noemi would go to the unnamed village near the forest to procure food when her stored supplies ran out. She used to go secretly to the village late at night, given her burnt face and being a wanted criminal. However, this year, she hadn’t gone to the village at all due to Rudy’s arrival and had even completely forgotten about it.

Interrupting her work, Noemi walked to the living room where Rudy and Solaris were playing chess facing each other.

Rudy seemed to dislike Solaris, but they trained together in the morning, researched mana restoration potions in the afternoon, and cooked together in the evening. They spent a lot of time together, and Noemi suspected that they actually got along well.

“Placing the knight there…”

“In a minimum of nineteen moves, checkmate.”

“Wait…”

“It’s a waste of time. Good game.”

Solaris began cleaning up, ignoring Rudy’s plea to wait.

“She’s ruthless. Is she really a childcare android?”

“The exterior is ‘Leave-Everything-to-Haruko-san,’ so she can be considered a childcare android. However, the interior is a military AI, so if I answer with a yes or no, it would be a no. But I haven’t uninstalled the childcare program, so I can still pretend to be affectionate with children. Shall I smile if you’d like?”

“It’s creepy to have a fake smile.”

“Then I’ll leave it as it is. I have cleaning to do, so excuse me.”

“Sorry. Maybe they’re not as close as I thought…” Observing their interaction, Noemi abandoned her previous thoughts.

As Solaris stood up and looked towards the entrance of the living room, Noemi noticed and spoke.

“Noemi, are you done with your work?”

“Not yet. But someone is coming towards the house.”

“A visitor?”

Since moving into the new house a month ago, they hadn’t had any visitors, so Rudy was surprised to hear that someone was coming.

“Well, you know. Since there’s an alien and an android, be careful not to give away too much.”

Noemi said, and both Rudy and Solaris nodded in agreement.