Episode 9: Super Regeneration (1)

Taking Asher as an escort was not as difficult as expected.

When I told Caren about it, as always, she just said that she knew and didn't ask for any more details.

I didn't know if this could be called personnel transfer, but anyway. Caren would take care of it with no problems.

After that, without delay, we prepared to leave for Enrock—the Seventh Lord's territory.

There was a hidden piece I could get on the way there.

It was a rough terrain with many monsters, so I was worried about whether I should skip it, but now that Asher was my escort, I now had a solution.

Why did so many people gather?

I looked at the colorful four-wheeled carriage parked at the entrance of the castle.

It's the one I would ride to Enrock.

Many people around it, including knights, were already on horseback and waiting. It was the manpower of the Overlord.

They asked me how should they prepare, so I told them to prepare however they wanted, and this was a procession that went beyond what I had imagined.

"Then, take care, Seventh Lord."

Chief of staff Dayphon said goodbye.

The Overlord was away at the moment, so he came out to see me off instead.

Good timing.

I glanced at Asher, who was standing next to me.

I thought it was rather fortunate that Asher had been secretly concerned about being noticed by the Overlord.

If it was her, there would be nothing strange if she recognized Asher's level at once.

In any case, it did not differ from stealing the castle's talent.

Considering the Overlord's personality, she probably wouldn't care much, but still…

Anyway, even if she heard about it later, it's best to just take Asher from here now.

"As for the coronation ceremony, if your change your mind, please let me know. If nothing special happens, then I'll see you at the next Lords' meeting."

Coronation.

I had already expressed my intention not to hold an official coronation ceremony.

It was needlessly cumbersome, and I didn't want to be caught in the middle of the Lords again.

I probably wouldn't see the Overlord or the other Lords again until the next council meeting. I was even thinking of avoiding it. Although that would probably be impossible.

Until then, I have to raise my specs enough.

At the next meeting, there was a high probability that they would assign me a task that would be difficult to avoid.

The time was one year.

At least until then, I had to do my best to raise my specs as much as possible.

"We will set off."

After getting on the carriage, the procession moved noisily.

It was the beginning of a serious struggle.

***

From the capital of Dragore to the capital of Enrock—it's like moving from the center of one country to another.

Of course, it was a very long distance, so it would take a considerable amount of time to arrive while passing by many cities in the middle.

It would be convenient and nice to just teleport there just like what Dayphon did in the convoy ship, but teleport in this world was not a convenient magic that one could use anytime, anywhere.

Riding the wagon felt unfamiliar at first. But since humans were creatures of adaptation, I could adapt enough to the situation.

Since the roads were not paved, the ride was uncomfortable. But not to the extent that it was unbearable.

Other than that, the servants were prepared for meals and sleeping, so it was not too inconvenient.

I quickly got used to it and killed boredom in my limited space—reading books I brought with me or organizing and checking information on my notebook while idly looking at the scenery outside.

It would have been much less boring if I had someone to talk to, but unfortunately, there wasn't one.

Although there were many people around me, they were almost the same as being non-existent.

Tup.

I closed the book I was reading and looked at the seat opposite.

Asher sat in an undisturbed posture with one hand close to the hilt of her sword.

Unlike me, who was doing this and that, Asher spent the whole day in the carriage doing nothing, in that same state.

I asked her, "Aren't you bored?"

As if it was surprising that I asked such a question, Asher replied with a strange expression.

"It's not boring."

"I'll lend you a book to read."

"No need, milord."

A resolute refusal as if saying she would be faithful to her escort mission.

And the conversation was over.

I sighed inwardly and looked outside the carriage again.

I'd rather look at the wall and talk.

I had the idea of having a conversation with Asher as we rode in the carriage together. As one could see, the result was something like this.

No matter what I asked, what came back was a simple response, so it was difficult to continue the conversation.

I was grateful that she was doing her duty diligently as an escort. But this was almost the same as having a stone statue riding with me.

I knew she had this personality, but as expected, building closeness and trust with her in the future would be difficult.

"…"

The flow of my thoughts suddenly led to one place.

About the hidden piece I needed to take care of before arriving at our destination.

Except for the holy sword, there were three main types of power in this world.

Magic, racial traits, and mystery.

In the actual game play, there was no such distinction, and all were unified as a skill system, but once set up, they divided it like this.

Magical power was the most general and wide-ranging power that did not differ from the core of this world.

Basically, it was a power that anyone could handle with effort, but of course there were differences depending on innate talents and races. Except for some races such as demons, humans had the most affinity for magic.

Racial traits, as the name suggested, were a characteristic possessed by a particular race.

For humans, it was the affinity for magical power, for beastmen, physical ability, and for dwarves, dexterity.

In addition, it was not simply being excellent at a particular field, but there were also unique characteristics that only that race possessed, such as the power over spirits handled by the elves, the blood skills of vampires, and the white magic of the White Moon tribe.

Last, mystery.

Mystery was an unidentified power whose source was unknown.

Because it was extremely rare, very few people owned it, and some mysteries were even so powerful that it just made no sense.

On Earth, magical powers and racial traits were all supernatural powers beyond common sense, but in the concept of this world, mysteries were probably the one considered as 'supernatural powers'.

The most important part was this.

It's just these mysteries were very difficult to find, but once you found it and get it, anyone could use it without conditions.

In short, it was the most suitable and almost the only way to improve my abilities in a short period.

The hidden piece I planned to find on my way to my destination was also a mystery.

Super regeneration.

A healing type of mystery that amplified the body's regenerative power.

The mystery of super regeneration was location deep in the Rutus Mountains, where the city of Jenix was, on the border of the Overlord's territory.

We haven't even reached the first city yet, so it's a long way to Jenix.

In fact, going past Jenix was a bit of a detour, but if I could get that mystery, then it wouldn't be a big deal if my arrival was delayed.

There's no need to worry too much.

I glanced at Asher again.

Until I found the place where the super regeneration was hidden, it was her job as an escort to make sure that the monsters on the mountain didn't touch me.

Considering her level, there shouldn't be any problem.

Even in such a situation, she was only focused on her job as an escort, so I didn't have to worry that she wouldn't do her job.

Of course, that didn't mean that perfect safety was guaranteed. But this level of risk would happen more in the future, so I should get used to it.

Still, if I started with super regeneration, I wonder if my life would be easier.

It would have been much better if it was a defense-type of ability, but well, I had to take care of what I could get first.

I looked out the window.

Across the vast plain, I saw a series of mountain ranges like a picture. It was a wonderful natural scenery.

***

More time passed, and the carriage passed through several cities and finally arrived in Jenix City.

Located at the foot of a mountain range, Jenix had a stronger fortress compared to other cities they passed by.

"Having the Seventh Lord visit out humble city is an honor for us."

Jenix's mayor was a middle-aged human male.

He seemed much more calm than the mayor of the previous city, who groaned and spit out many praises.

I walked with him and asked.

"Who in this city is the best in the geography of Rutus Mountains?"

The mayor pondered with a mixed expression of doubt, then answered cautiously,

"Unfortunately, I don't know who is the best… but I think the adventurers of the Adventurer's Guild know the geography of the mountain range."

"I need a guide to go deep into the mountains. Find someone suitable, whether it be an adventurer or someone else."

I remember where the mystery of super regeneration was hidden.

However, I didn't have the confidence to go there with no proper guide.

Inevitably, there would be a big difference between the map seen through the computer monitor and the real world.

This world was a game, but it was now my reality.

The specifications of the field itself were different when playing the game.

The overall map size of most games was unrealistically small compared to reality. So much so that one could move from one area to another on foot.

That was a just a natural setting in the game since it was impossible to make the player take a year to travel.

I always needed to keep this difference in mind.

Just as it took a long time to get from the Overlord's castle to this place, Jenix, the actual size of this continent would be thousands of times much bigger than in the game.

Since it was completely unknown what terrain or objects would fill the gap between them, a guide would be absolutely necessary.

There's no way the location of the hidden piece will be different.

It wasn't just the terrain; it was a problem with the setting of the game.

I added to the mayor.

"If anyone knows of a 'huge hourglass-shaped rock' located deep in the mountains north of the city, be sure to bring them."

Hourglass rock was a sure signpost to find the mystery.