Chapter 30 "Erosion"

　Well, let's go with the last experiment.

　Fatima was still squealing.

　And, to make matters worse, she was preparing her magic while screaming. What a woman!

　I interrupted her by kicking her in the head for the time being.

To interrupt the magic, you have to shake the head.

　I think it would be effective if I hit the temples or something.

　Let's get back to work.

　First of all, I spit out a lot of roots from my hand.

When the roots have been expelled to a certain amount, they are densely packed together and hardened.

　When it's done, I detach it from my hand.

　There was a clump of roots in my palm that looked just like my main body.

　It was bouncing around on my hand.

Now, is it far from the mouth?

　"Oh...g...you fake...you did this to me..."

　I grab her by the hair and lift her up, ignoring Fatima, who is moaning in pain and saying something.

　"Igi...don't..."

　It's the ears or the nose. Which one do I choose?

　"I'm talking about..."

　I'll go with ear. I was the ear.

"What have you been doing!?"

I shoved a lump in her ear.

　The lump wiggled its way into Fatima's ear.

　After a while, Fatima started thrashing around on the floor, making strange noises.

　It was so noisy that I shoved a cloth in her mouth.

　Fatima jumped around like a washed-up fish for a few minutes, dripping fluid from all over the place, until she stopped moving.

　...What happened?

　Fatima slowly raised herself up.

　I took the cloth from her mouth.

"............. feeling better?"

"It's going to take some getting used to, but generally speaking, I'm fine."

"Is that your interpretation of success?"

　"Yes. Fatima's ego was consumed by me. You understand that, don't you?"

　What?

　I do indeed feel a spiritual connection from the woman in front of me when I am told.

　Let's give it a try...something...hmmm.

　Try saying "I love you" to me.

　"I love you."

　.................. Wow. That's soooo baritone.

　"I see. Seems like we don't need to have a conversation."

"Yes, it seems so. I am just a part of you. I am just a thought in this woman's brain, and there is nothing that can be called an ego."

　I see. Is that a good interpretation of a thinking limb?

　...I couldn't imagine how it would turn out, but if it acts autonomously, it's a success enough.

Worst case scenario, I was hoping she'd become a cripple, but that's not a bad outcome.　

There is no need to restrain her anymore, so I untie the rope and remove the blindfold.

　Fatima, now free of her restraints, moves her body as if to check herself.

　I thought about talking to her about the future...

　"Bath first, I guess."

　"I understand. I'll go clean myself up first."

　Fatima walked to the bath in her underwear.

　I thought...

　"I'm going to clean up."

　I let out a small sigh when I saw the floor stained with Fatima's drippings.

　"Uh...what?"

　After cleaning and changing Fatima's clothes, I decided to discuss the future with Heidi.

　Heidi was puzzled by the fact that Fatima was sitting next to me without a care in the world.

"What is the meaning of all this?"

　"I apologize for my rudeness. I apologize for my many insults to you, Ms. Heidi."

　Fatima bows deeply.

"Oh, no, please raise your head...no, please."

　Heidi waved her hand hurriedly.

　"I was moved by the words of Mr. Rothfeldt and realized my own foolishness. Even then, Master Rothfeldt embraced me warmly."

Fatima's cheeks are flushed.

What is this girl talking about?　No, is it normal?

　"I have awakened to true love!　From now on, I will do everything in my power to restore this territory for Master Rothfeldt!"

　"I-i see."

　Oh, come on, what is true love?

That's too much, isn't it?

　"You saved Mr. Rothfeldt, and you are a benefactor to me as well. And that high fighting ability. I'd like to repay you, and if you don't mind, I'd like you to stay in this territory and lend me your strength."

　Oh, that's a good idea.

　It's a very forceful move, but it's the way to get Heidi to stay.

"I...I...uh...oh, right!　What are you going to do now?"

Heidi turns the question back to me.

　"I'm going to check something here, and when I'm done, I'm going on the road again."

　I need to check on Zubel's stash and the "something" I found in the territory.

　I discussed it with Fatima, and we decided to check it just in case.

　"Then I'll do the same..."

　"No, no need. You are free to stay here. Don't worry about Fatima."

　Fatima, next to her, smiles and nods.

　"But..."

"It's a great opportunity. Why don't you try again?

　"I...I...I..."

　Heidi turned her head and fell silent, but said, "I'll think about it," and left the room.

　'Are you sure?"

　"What?"

　Fatima called out to me when Heidi's attention was completely away from me.

I don't have to say it out loud, but I tend to have normal conversations with her.

　"He...no, is it her now? She looked like she wanted to follow you?"

"I can't say she's a hindrance, but I'd feel better if she wasn't around."

　"Is that so?　If you are going to be an adventurer, wouldn't it be more convenient to have a party member with you?"

　Don't hit a sore spot.

　"Because you yourself are aware of it, albeit thinly."

　No deception, huh?

　Fatima's smile deepens.

Does she really have no ego?　I doubt it.

　"Well, enough joking, let's get down to business."

　Fatima gets up from her seat and takes a seat across from me.

　''Well...as long as we're sharing memories, it's just a confirmation. There is something I need you to do before you leave the territory."

　"Oh, that thing Zubel found, right?"

"Yes, it is. The newly discovered ruins. Zubel seemed to think it was a dungeon."

　I know from Zubel's memory that the man had discovered some strange architecture in the territory.

　After a brief investigation, he said it could be an undiscovered dungeon.

　...I've heard it's not confirmed yet, though, because they haven't done an internal investigation.

　In short, it seems that the idea of monopolizing the profits generated by this dungeon was the impetus for this incident.

　It was a more ludicrous motive than I thought.

　Well, if it really was a dungeon, it would certainly be worth a lot of money.

　If we are lucky, there is a possibility that there are weapons and magic tools buried in the dungeon, such as magic swords, holy swords, and other weapons with standard cheating performance.

　You could use that as bait to lure adventurers and charge them an entrance fee.

　If it were me, I'd do a full exploration and lure adventurers.

　If there was anything usable, I could take it, if not, I could sell it off and use it to maintain the territory.

　I'm going to leave the territory to Fatima and Heidi, but I should at least cooperate with them.

Now that things have changed, it's a plus for me that this territory survives.

　I no longer have to worry about people trying to kill me, and I'm more or less willing to work for the territory.

　Besides...I'm interested in undiscovered ruins.

　It's exciting to be able to go into a place that no one has ever been before.

　I'm heading there as soon as possible tomorrow.

　"By the way, what about me?　I can go with you if you need me to."

　Hmm, I thought.

　Fatima is strong. As a rearguard, she is probably one of the best I have ever seen.

　She would be a good asset if I took her with me....

　"No, this time I will go alone. I'll come to you for help if I need it, but for now, that's okay."

　"I understand. I'll go check on Zubel's property."

　"Oh, all right. Is there anything else you want me to do?"

　Fatima looked a little worried.

"Then I have a favor to ask you."

　"Say it."

--Could you please share some roots to me?

　A voice echoes in my head. Fatima sent me an image because she said it is easier to explain this way than to say it with her mouth.

According to Fatima, she claims that she is like an offshoot of my main body and that she cannot multiply.

　Fatima says that she can do the same things as me, but it takes a long time for her to repair her body unless she grows more roots.

　I was not aware of this because I can grow my own roots, but I guess it's a lot of work if you don't have many roots.

...Well, that's not a problem at all, is it? So? How much do you want?

　"This much, please."

　Fatima held out her hands.

　That woman...she took it with her whole heart.

　I complained in my mind while eating my meal at the cafeteria.

　Fatima took a good amount of roots from me.

　Thanks to her, I had to increase the production of roots in my body, and I felt a sense of hunger that was unfamiliar to me.

I am currently on a binge eating to regain the energy I lost.

　At first, I ate 10 meat...oops, I ate 10 bodies, and then I started to calm down.

　I still have some left over, so I'm going to eat as much as I can.

Now that I've finished eating, it's time to clean up with Fatima and the crew outside.

　The barrels are mostly cleaned up, but they're broken here and there, so we'll have to do some emergency repairs with magic.

　Oh, and by the way, the contents of the barrels were survivors of the "soul hunters."

　They had been captured by Fatima and were in the barrel with their hands and feet cut off and a magic stone stuck in their heads.

　Apparently, Fatima was using the magic stone in their heads to manipulate the walls and gates, as well as to generate magic power for creating and using golems.

Even though she was manipulating them, it seems that she was actually making them emit magic power through the magic stone.

In short, the magic itself was performed by Fatima, but the magic power itself seems to have been collected from the people in the barrels.

　If that was the case, it was understandable that she was able to maintain that amount of power.

　However, to my surprise, she seemed to be operating it all by herself.

Was that also the reason why their movements became sluggish after starting the battle with Heidi?

　It was a great skill, but in the end, she couldn't make the most of it.

The contents of the remaining barrels had been forced to twist out the magic power, and the one with breath was completely broken and crippled.

　I knew there were survivors, but I didn't know they were here.

They were lucky I could get rid of them.

　Well, now that all my worries are gone, I'll get to work after I eat the rest of the meat.

　Now all that's left is to explore the ruins tomorrow....

　I'm looking forward to it.

　I proceeded with my meal with an upbeat mood.