Chapter 78

"Okay, I'm going to make them attack now!" I call out from atop of a sand dune.

Currently, we are in the middle of the desert outside of the city for some training. Below me, I send ten golems towards my friends, who stand ready to meet them.

"They won't get past me, I declare,"

Nana is at the front of the group. Activating her 'Flexible Shield' skill, she quickly halts the golem's advance as multiple semi-transparent shields appear around her.

"They aren't a problem for me,"

Pearl swiftly leaps over Nana, her long rabbit ears flicking in the wind. With her sword infused with spellblade, she quickly removes three golem heads before jumping back behind Nana's protective shield.

"Be careful they are flanking,"

"Mm. Problem,"

Sara and Mia warn the others as I command the golems to bypass the floating shield wall. Those two have recently gotten a lot faster when casting spells. Sara quickly uses a recent spell she learned, 'Laser', to shoot a hole through one of the flanking golems. At the same time, Mia stops another two in their tracks by casting the 'Water Hold' spell. Pearl guickly takes care of those two as Nana takes out another golem at their front.

Now that there are only three golems… no two, Nana just claimed another one, I should unleash my surprise. Heading my command, a human-sized golem emerges from the sand behind them. It looks just like a human, only with a drill-like contraption on its head. I made it as part of an experiment. It wasn't designed for combat, leading to Sara swiftly taking it out, but it taught my friends to never let their guards down in a fight.

The fight ends with Mia and Nana taking out the last two golems. Maybe it's time I moved on to something tougher. When we first started using these golems for practice, only Pearl could take them down in a one-on-one fight, but now they could all easily manage that. I'll tinker with them tonight and make them tougher to beat for our next training session. It sounds wrong to say this, but it was hard to assess the performance of their new equipment now that they are easily winning.

Nana's armour has had a 'Fortress function' for withstanding attacks from extra-large monsters like areamasters installed. It used components from Space Magic spells like 'Dimension Pile' and 'Deracinator' to create a thirty-foot-tall, fifty-foot-wide transparent defence wall capable of stopping large-scale attacks regardless of the user's physical strength. However, because it couldn't be moved once it was placed, one had to choose carefully the timing and location to use it.

Mia has been wanting to practice her 'Spirit Summoning', so if I were to make new golems, they should be at least level fifty. The level forty golems we currently use are always swiftly destroyed whenever Mia summons a spirit.

It may be wrong to say this, but I haven't seen how effective Sara's new gear is. She is still wearing her persistent outfit, modified to make it more resistant to attacks. But now, on top of it, she has a chest plate with a magic circuit carefully carved into it. It may only work once, but the shield it creates should be able to withstand any attack. Mia also wears a similar vest, but I saw hers works fine after a mistake she made while practising her 'Spirit Summoning'.

On the other hand, Pearl has had plenty of chances to see her new equipment in action. Pearl's boots now create small footholds beneath them, allowing her to pull off unexpected moves in battle. They work similarly to the 'Cube' spell. She's also been given a ring I found in a treasure chest during a trip into the labyrinth that helps the wear recover their stamina faster. Everyone was upset when I put it on her finger for some reason.

"Good work, everyone," I say as I take out a table from storage and set out some light snacks and water for everyone.

We have been training hard in the desert and labyrinth for a while now. Fighting strong monsters and practising against golems nearly every day. All that hard work has paid off, though. Pearl is now at level sixty-four and can use her new boots like an expert. Nana is now at level fifty-one and got the timing nailed for using her 'Fortress function'. Sara is level fifty-three and has grown in confidence while engaged in battle. I don't think I have seen her flinch in fear or hesitate for a moment in a while.

"Kura," Mia came running up to me, nearly tripping over herself. "Fifty."

"Congratulations, Mia,"

And now Mia is at level fifty and can easily control her 'Spirit Summoning'. As for me, I'm happy to say that even I have gained a level. Just a single one, but I am now at level eighty-five. It really takes a lot of grinding for me to level up now.

Pulling out chairs and a tarp that Nana and Pearl quickly set up to protect us from the sun we all settle in to eat an early lunch. Before I came to this world, if someone had told me I would one day have a small buffet in the middle of the desert, I would have thought them crazy. But here I am. Laughing and picking out what I want to eat in the middle of a desert.

"Nana, you should try an eat some fruit, too,"

"But the tiny meat pieces are cute, I report,"

I shake my head and quickly cut up a pear for her. If I didn't, Nana would have only eaten the small cuts of meat.

"Mmm,"

On the other hand, Mia has the opposite problem, filling her plate with only nuts and fruits. It was only with encouragement from me that she tried some of the meat. It will be a long way into the future when Mia finally stops being a picky eater.

"I think I see something…"

It was a peaceful meal until Pearl spotted the first signs of trouble. Once she pointed it out to me, spotting it didn't take me long. In the distance, the sand was rippling as something was rushing towards us.

"It's probably a monster, so get ready,"

I gave the order and checked with Satou to see if he was testing something. He and his group were somewhere in the desert, so there was a chance this rippling was some kind of spell or equipment he was testing out. Unfortunately, it wasn't him.

"It's getting closer, I report," Nana said, stepping to the front of the group. "Permission to engage."

"Me," Mia stood before her and began a chant. It was a long one, but she made it in time. "…Create Sand Giant Suna Shouryou Souzou."

When Mia's spell was complete, the sand at her feet rose and formed a gigantic humanoid shape. The sand giant was level forty, but it was highly resistant to physical attacks, especially cutting and piercing attacks. Like Nana's Fortress, it was perfect for defending against giant monsters. As soon as Mia told it to attack, the sand giant rushed forward with surprising speed. Reaching into the desert sand, the giant pulls up a worm-like monster that is common to this desert and brutally tears it to pieces. It wasn't pretty, but it got the job done.

"I think there's a cave there,"

I see Sara squinting at something. A small hole appeared in the side of a dune thanks to Mia dawing the sand into her summon. It is small. When we got closer, and I used some 'Earth Magic' to make sure the sand didn't bury the entrance I found it was just big enough for someone to squeeze into. Despite Nana insisting she should go first, I took the lead and squeezed myself through the tight opening.

Casting the 'Practical Magic' spell 'Mana Light,' I illuminated my surroundings. Sand continued to cascade from the ceiling, pooling at the base of the cave like water. But I felt like I passed through something when I finally forced my way through the gap.

"Don't let your guard down," I call back as Nana follows me. "There's a barrier in here."

There must be an invisible barrier here. When I reached out to it, I felt something like a faint wall of air. It didn't stop me from passing through. Huh… it's so green… everything is so alive. Once I passed through the barrier, I found the hidden sand-filled cave transformed into a field with waist-high grass and even some trees.

I don't think I was teleported. Turning back, I can see my friends struggling to squeeze through the small hole. The barrier could be some kind of illusion. I can't think of any other way to explain what is happening.

"It's so pretty," Sara was the first to speak up.

"I can see flowers, I report," Nana says, bending down to pluck one.

"Lots of spirits," Mia nods.

She's right. When I checked for myself, I could see so many it was almost dazzling.

"What is this place master?" Pearl asks, stepping closer to me.

"I don't know," I shrug. "Let's look around. I think I see a building up ahead, but be careful."

It was a building and a large one at that. Three floors high and covered in ivory on the outside and a thick layer of dust inside. It is even worse than the manor we brought. At least there aren't that many cobwebs this time.

Everything inside has been trashed. No matter what room we enter, it is always the same, with every piece of funiture broken and dust covering everything. I hoped to find something, but there is absolutely nothing here.

We only found a hidden door in the basement because Nana tripped and fell against it. Behind it was a spiral staircase on the other side leading to a lower room. We headed down, and at the bottom of the staircase was a dome-shaped room about one hundred and fifty feet in diameter; a glowing, multifaceted, crystalline white object was floating above a slightly raised area in the centre. It looked just like the City Core I'd seen beneath Muno Castle.

There was a low staircase leading up to the core, surrounded by glowing stone canals, but the water seemed to be frozen. The City Core was flickering faintly, its light terribly weak. I walked up to the top of the stairs leading to the core, but it gave no reaction. In Muno Castle, the City Core had spoken to me…

"Master!"

I jumped back when I heard Pearl call out and ran over to her.

"What is it?"

"Something is happening to that wall,"

Pearl nodded to a wall that started glowing as she drew her sword. Magic circuits carved into the wall fill with magical power as the wall bulges. We all take a step back, expecting some kind of security system as activated to fight us, but instead, a woman who glows with a light green light and flickers as if she wasn't really there emerges. She was dressed like a noble and wasn't armed, but that doesn't mean she was harmless.

"… Up comlete…" It wasn't until I noticed I gained the 'Flue Empire language' skill and put some points into it that I could understand her. "Activation complete… personal systems 100% functional. Error… unable to obtain the data of Twilight systems… intruders you aid is required,"

I didn't think she noticed us until her head turned to face us.

"That depends on what you need," I reply, not ready to let my guard down.

"Twilight's City Core is on the verge of depletion. Manual override is required to solve the issue and I am unable to do so myself. Your aid is required,"

"And what will you do if I comply?"

"I will serve you," The woman answers without hesitation. "Twilight requires someone to operate its controls, and I am forbidden from doing so. No replacement operations have appeared in one thousand and one years. If this persists, Twilight will die. I can't let that happen as someone made to serve Twilight, so please lead your aid."

I peer at my friends, and each of them nods after I translate what the woman is saying to them. I hope this isn't a mistake.

"Okay," I relent, putting my sword away. "Tell me what I need to do."

"Please touch the City Core and feed it some magic to restart the system,"

I do as the woman says, and the City Core glows slightly brighter, and a voice speaks up.

"Welcome, O lord. Do you wish to register this land as yours?"

I take a deep breath.

"Yes,"