Chapter 234 – Escape (1)

“Could you… grant me a request?”

It was immediately after he had realized that this place was 700 years in the past.

While Alon was accepting that fact with a dizzy head, Liang’a’s voice reached him.

Alon replied for now.

“Try speaking.”

“……By any chance, can you take me to Dalma?”

“Dalma?”

“Yes… because, because my family is there…”

Liang’a, who was stealing a glance at him secretly.

However, Alon’s mind was still bound to the fact that ‘this place is the past’.

‘Is there… no probability of it being a misunderstanding.’

He looked at Rine.

She was still lost in thought with a serious expression.

He felt the judgment that her reasoning could not be a misunderstanding.

Except for the information in the forbidden area that could not be accessed, most of the information was in Rine’s head.

‘Is this really the past, and is this girl really the White Ghost of the past.’

Liang’a was still fiddling with the front of her dress as if she were anxious.

Watching that appearance, a question arose anew.

‘In here, she has white hair and purple eyes.’

As far as he knew, the White Ghost was originally white-haired.

Currently, that was, the White Ghost he saw before he came to the past was black-haired.

The changed hair color.

‘Of course, the appearance was the same. What happened?’

His head became a bit more complicated.

“I’ll, I’ll give you my soul!”

However, the chain of thoughts was broken by the shout heard before his thoughts could deepen.

“……What do you mean by that?”

“It’s because of the price, right? If you take me to Dalma, I’ll give you my soul!”

For a moment, he wondered what it meant to give a soul, and then felt curious.

Alon quickly rolled his head and replied.

“A price is not needed.”

“Ah…”

Did she think it was a refusal.

A lament flowed out of Liang’a’s mouth.

Soon.

Tears began to bead in her purple eyes, which had been showing a stout appearance even if forced.

At that appearance, Alon hastily continued his words.

“I’ll just help you, so don’t worry too much.”

“Uh… re, really?”

“Yes.”

Facing a sudden situation now, helping someone was actually an act that did not fit his station.

However, if this place really were the past.

It was clear that making a positive connection with the White Ghost would be of considerable help later.

‘Maybe because of this connection, she helped me at that time.’

It was not certain, but there was a possibility.

Alon lightly patted the girl’s shoulder as if to encourage her.

“So don’t be too anxious.”

Then Liang’a’s lips parted as if she could not believe it.

“Why…?”

“……?”

“Why are you helping without receiving a price?”

An expression mixed with joy and questioning.

Alon worried about what he should say.

Because in the future, you will become the incredibly strong leader of the Four Great Powers, so I’m trying to build up some favor by making you owe me a bit in advance.

-Because he could not just say it like that.

Alon, who worried for a moment, soon made a decision.

“It’s a favor.”

“……A favor?”

“Yes.”

He felt a bit guilty, but for now, it was the best answer.

He worried if he should leave it as a debt.

It was an answer that was a completed shallow calculation of whether a favor would work more positively for a child.

“I, I see-!”

Fortunately, it seemed to have worked well, as the girl nodded her head with a much brighter expression than before and then disappeared.

“Thi, this place is the past?”

Penia, who had been waiting, trembled with shock.

“Yes, probably.”

“Uh, uhhh? There’s no way it could be? According to the calculations, we can never be thrown out into the past?”

“It is clearly the past. Because what Langban is talking about now are things from 700 years ago.”

“Hieeeeeek-!”

Penia, who clamored with only her expression saying ‘It’s really ruined!!!!’

“……Hmm?”

Soon she made a sound like “Hrrrng-?” as if she had thought of something, and then she called Rine.

“Excuse me, Rine-ssi. If this place is really about 700 years ago, isn’t it the time when there are still magi?”

“No, they would already be gone. However… if it’s their assets, there would be a bit remaining.”

At Rine’s words, Penia’s eyes stopped at one place for a moment.

Beep beep beep beep!

Penia, who was calculating passionately as if a machine sound could be heard.

“Time travel and even the products of magi…? Moreover, if it’s 700 years ago, it’s exactly the end of the Age of the Forgotten Gods where most of the history is lost, so what if I take a bit of information about magic from here?”

Ding!

Penia’s blue eyes, whose calculation was finished, were dyed golden.

“Heuhhh-”

Penia, whose corners of her mouth melted loosely while looking at the empty air where clearly nothing was.

Alon asked while seeing the reaction of falling into ecstasy.

“Is it that good?”

“Is it, is it that good? It’s a feeling of being reminded that it’s a situation with very many possibilities? Like that kind of feeling… hmhmm… like time travel or being able to research and announce the legacy of magic, right?”

“……Well, a positive attitude is not bad. But, can we return?”

Actually, Alon also calculated that he should make a positive connection with Liang’a while assuming they would return.

At that time.

“Ah.”

A low lament burst out of Penia’s mouth, and then,

“Yes.”

Immediately, an answer came out as if it were too natural.

“……? Really?”

“Is it true?”

Toward Alon and Rine, who asked back as if they were truly surprised, Penia shrugged her shoulders.

“Yes, it’s possible! Of course, we have to find an aberrant gate and it’s on the assumption that the Marquis can properly control time and space as I intended…?”

“Exactly how can we return to the future?”

“Hmhmm… first, to explain simply. I told you last time that an aberrant gate is ultimately a space created amidst the instability of time and space, right?”

Clearly, Penia had said so.

“First, there is no wrong point in my hypothesis. However, if there is one thing I failed to calculate, it is that I thought the created space would not change when time and space were broken.”

“The created space would not change?”

“Yes, didn’t I tell you? Since we were on the created space, I thought we would not be affected.”

When Alon nodded his head, Penia continued the explanation.

“It was a problem to assume like that. I thought we would not have been affected because the remaining space did not break even if time and space broke.”

“……I understood up to that point, but how can we return?”

At Alon’s question, Penia spread out her fingers.

“It’s simple. After breaking time and space arbitrarily, we just need to adjust the setting values of the aberrant gate arbitrarily.”

“Is that, possible?”

“Normally it would be impossible. But?”

Penia, who let out a laugh like “Hehehe-”, then straightened her shoulders proudly.

“Didn’t I tell you? I had investigated how much the aberrant gate would react to the Marquis’s magic by going to an aberrant gate.”

“……Don’t tell me.”

“Correct! I mean that I have the time and space values created at that point exactly in my head!”

Penia, who tapped her head triumphantly.

“Ooh-”

When Alon let out a low exclamation, Penia made an ‘Ahem’ sound, and the shape of her mouth became the characteristic look of a cat.

“Anyway, if we just find an aberrant gate, returning is all OK!”

However.

“That is really good news… what if there is no aberrant gate by any chance?”

“……Eh?”

Penia, who was frozen in an instant from her majestic state at Rine’s surprise question.

“Tha, that part… I didn’t assume that…”

She spoke while stealing a glance.

“Finding an aberrant gate should be the priority.”

At the same time Alon’s words ended,

“I have returned.”

Langban returned.

####

“Regrettably, I do not know well about aberrant gates, but I know about a similar phenomenon.”

“You know?”

“Yes.”

Alon could hear a bit of an interesting story from Langban.

“Is it similar to the ability Baarma uses?”

“Yes. I don’t know if that’s an aberrant gate, but when you enter a portal, a world that is all purple appears. Also, as far as I know, there is someone in the alliance who can use that ability.”

“……Who is it?”

“It is someone called Yongrin, who was one of the Five Gods of Kalgunias. I know that he also can use a power similar to Baarma.”

Kalgunias.

Alon recalled once more that this place was the past at the familiar name coming out.

“Then, if we head to the alliance, can we meet the god called Yongrin?”

“That is so, but returning to the alliance at the current point is… virtually impossible.”

“Why is that?”

“This place was originally the territory of our races, but now it is a place close to the heart of Baarma. In other words, to get out of here and go to the alliance, we have no choice but to break through the front-line army…”

“The troops are insufficient?”

At Alon’s words, Langban nodded his head.

“I wish there were a side road, but as far as I know, there isn’t. Even if there were, they would all be blocked.”

Moreover, it was too dangerous to move at a point where they did not know how the situation at the front was going.

While Langban let out a sigh, Alon asked.

“Then at the current point, you see that there is no way to cross over to the alliance side?”

Langban, who worried for a moment, cautiously opened his mouth.

“……There is one way.”

“What is it?”

“It is to rescue the non-human races in other altars.”

“Are there other altars?”

Langban nodded his head.

“Yes, there are more than ten places just that I know of. If we can just supplement the manpower to some extent from there, it is not impossible to break through the front and escape to the alliance side.”

‘Moreover, with the strength Alon-nim has shown, breaking through wouldn’t be difficult,’ Langban offered his opinion.

To that, Penia, who had been staying still, cut in this time.

“Are there points to consider in executing that method?”

“It’s time, after all. Right now there are no strong followers in the altars, but if problems occur in the altars continuously, the fanatic knights or apostles dispatched to the front line will probably gather here.”

“Then should we see it as having already started?”

“If we consider realistically, they won’t come down just because one altar was smashed, but if we consider that as well…”

Langban replied after worrying for a moment.

“I think there will be about a month of time.”

Alon, who was worrying, soon nodded his head.

“……There would be no other way than that.”

####

According to Langban’s words, the direction was set toward escaping to the alliance by rescuing people from the altars.

Accordingly, Alon set a total of two goals.

The first was first moving toward the alliance and meeting the god called Yongrin to ask for the use of the ability related to the aberrant gate to get out of the past.

The second was exactly treating the White Ghost, that was, Liang’a, as well as possible and building a good relationship in his own way.

Because there was nothing bad about building a friendship with her, who was the future Four Great Powers.

Other than that, he thought it would be good if he could form relationships with those among the long-lived races who also appeared in Psychedelia, but he did not make that a goal specifically.

Because he thought there would be no one among the characters Alon knew who was caught in an altar at this point.

……It was clearly like that.

“Truly, thank you. For saving me, my sister… truly…!”

Two days after the day the plan was made.

Alon moved immediately and dealt with the followers in the next altar and looked at the rescued boy.

The boy was shedding tears while hugging a girl tightly as if she were truly precious.

Alon had saved the girl, who was about to be raped by them, just before.

Strange tattoos were drawn densely on the boy’s face, which was covered in tears.

And the boy Alon saved…

“……May I ask your name?”

“Nangwon, it’s Nangwon.”

“……”

“Truly, truly, thank you……”

He was a man who would become the leader of Jujeosa and one of the Four Great Powers in the future.

……Why is he here.

Alon thought blankly.