Chapter 117: Valley of the Abyss part 1

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Translator: Soafp

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After the plan was decided, the first thing I did was to head to Halva and Lush-san’s place with Ashera.

Halva would probably be ordered to head to Blue Ring by the military, but Ashera’s situation was different.

No one has the authority to order Ashera to go to Blue Ring. While I could possibly pressure her into agreeing, I didn’t want to resort to such measures.

My intention was to explain my feelings to Halva and Lush-san and ask for permission for Ashera to accompany us. The two of them were in the guest room prepared at the mansion.

Knocking gently, I opened the door…

Upon seeing my expression, it seemed like they understood something. They gestured for me to sit down.

Honestly, this plan had no safety margin like before. Both Ashera and I could potentially die… Sitting down and having a conversation seemed impossible.

I remained standing as I conveyed the situation to them. Finally, I expressed my desire for permission for Ashera to accompany us to Blue Ring.

Halva sat down, clasping his hands and bowing his head.

Lush-san stood up and addressed Ashera.

“Ashera, how do you feel about this?”

“I’ll go. Not for Aldo’s sake, but because Blue Ring holds many precious things for me.”

“Even though you might die?”

“Yeah.”

Ashera’s eyes held a strong determination.

“That’s not happening.”

Halva, who had been silent with his head down, now lifted his gaze and stared at Ashera.

“Even if Father says so, I’ll go.”

Halva sighed, then turned to me.

“Aldo-sama. You have a straightforward nature and are intelligent. Your personal combat skills are impeccable. Frankly, having you as Ashera’s betrothed is an unexpected joy.”

“It’s nothing… I’m not really…”

“And you’re modest and have self-control without being intoxicated by power…”

“…”

“I want to ask you, someone like you, do you intend to take your beloved companion into danger?”

Hearing Halva’s words again made me wonder if it was wrong to bring Ashera along. After crossing the valley, I could let Ashera return alone.

As I hesitated, Halva and Ashera started arguing.

“Father, please stay quiet. Whether I go or not has nothing to do with Aldo.”

“Aldo-sama is your fiancé. Of course, it has everything to do with him.”

As the two argued, Lush-san spoke up.

“Both of you, be quiet.”

Though her voice wasn’t loud, it strangely resonated, and Lush-san continued.

“Aldo-kun, will you protect Ashera?”

I answered her question honestly.

“I can’t guarantee his safety this time… However, I promise to protect Ashera with all my might. Even if I were to die, I won’t let him die before me.”

“Understood.”

Lush-santurned to Ashera.

“Ashera, you are loved.”

“Yeah.”

Then, she turned to Halva.

“Halva, that’s enough, isn’t it?”

“Why? Lush, at this rate, Ashera will…”

“This conversation is about the entirety of Blue Ring. It’s already decided that Ashera will go. The rest is just our feelings…”

“Then, tell Aldo-sama to ensure that Ashera doesn’t have to go to the battlefield!”

“And then, are Ashera and I supposed to live while thinking about you and Aldo-kun forever?”

“That’s not what I meant!”

“If I have the strength to fight, I want to go together… I envy Ashera a little bit.”

“Lush…”

Seeing Lush-san’s surprise for a moment.

“I understand. I can’t promise anything, but I’ll do my best… M-Mother.”

Lush-san seemed momentarily surprised, then smiled brightly.

“Take care. Halva, Ashera, Aldo-kun.”

Despite his bitter expression, Halva seemed to have somehow given his consent. Time was running out. After a final equipment check, we headed to the carriage.

The carriage was waiting with Mother, El, and Marl.

“You’re late, Al, Ashera, Halva.”

We apologized for the delay.

“Sorry, Mother.”

“My apologies, Master.”

“I’m sorry.”

“Well then, please get in.”

With Mother’s words, everyone boarded the carriage. Only El and Marl remained silent, gazing at each other.

“El. I might not really be able to go home this time. I feel bad for Marl, but please make sure you don’t have any regrets.”

With that, I boarded the carriage without looking back. Just before getting on, I caught a glimpse of El embracing and kissing Marl.

The coachman of the carriage I boarded was the butler. Knights were running four horses around the carriage, ready to discard it at any moment.

The knights were armed and guarding the carriage.

“Now, we have some time. Al, explain with the map.”

“Is it okay to bring this?!”

“Don’t be so stiff. It’ll be meaningless after Blue Ring is gone anyway.”

Impressive “Ice Witch.” She hits the nail on the head, as expected.

“Then let me explain. This is where we are now. And here is Blue Ring. This is the Demon Forest…”

I then explained a rough plan, or rather a suggestion.

After crossing the “Abyssal Valley,” regardless of what happens, we’ll take a day to rest.

Assuming that goblins overflowing from the Demon Forest are heading towards Blue Ring, where is the most likely place for us to encounter them?

The basic plan is to shoot the Condense Ray and retreat. Hit and run.

The first shot won’t knock them out, but the second shot will.

Ashera, Halva, and Mother will mainly act as guards.

In the unlikely event of a cleanup operation, I, Ashera, and Halva will be the attackers, while El will guard Mother.

After finishing the detailed discussion, Ashera and Halva moved to the other empty carriage and slept.

During that time, they also took the Knights’ sleeping potion to efficiently use the short time.

We’ll probably arrive at the “Abyssal Valley” by dawn. We’ll discard the carriage from there. We’ll probably only be able to take a real break after everything is over.

After finishing all the preparations, we took the sleeping potion. El and Mother seemed more relaxed than I expected.

“El, we’ll come back alive.”

“Yes. Definitely!”

They smiled at each other, then the drowsiness took over.

“The drowsiness is coming. When we wake up, we’ll move by horse and then cross the valley.”

“Me too… I hope everyone… comes back safely…”

“Yeah… Tha…t’s right…”

Before losing consciousness, the last thing I saw was Mother’s smiling face.

After some time passed, I woke up to the rocking of the carriage.

Looking around, El and Mother were already awake.

“How far have we gone?”

Despite still being half asleep, I sat up and tried to assess the situation.

“Both El and I just woke up, so we don’t know where we are.”

It seemed that not much time had passed. I opened a small window and asked Seirie about our current location.

“Seirie, where are we?”

“The Abyssal Valley is just beyond that hill. We should reach our destination in about 4 to 5 hours.”

“Beyond that hill…”

“Yes, we’re currently moving parallel to the Abyssal Valley, aiming for a narrower section to shorten the distance.”

“I see. Thank you.”

Seirie replied with a nod.

“As you heard, Mother.”

“Got it. Our turn will come later. Let’s have breakfast in the meantime.”

Following Mother’s words, we made sandwiches using bread brought from the mansion and some ingredients we had.

Mother, observing my actions, seemed curious.

“Al, are those sandwiches tasty?”

Since my mouth was full, I couldn’t speak. Instead, I silently held out a sandwich to Mother.

After inspecting it closely, Mother, with an unexpected lack of nobility, took a big bite out of it.

Oi, oi! She ate more than half of it!! A silent scream echoed in the carriage.

The Ice Witch was certainly ruthless when it came to food!

El seemed to be eyeing the sandwich in a similar manner.

I shrugged and brought the sandwich to El’s face.

El squinted his eyes, seemingly enjoying the taste as he took a bite.

I quickly finished the remaining sandwich fragments and began making another one for myself.

Mother and El watched silently as I made mine.

It seemed they thought the ones I made tasted better and didn’t attempt to make their own…

I sighed and made sandwiches for Mother and El.

Once I finished theirs, I thought about making one for myself when Ashera and Halva arrived with a “Space Kick.”

Ashera and Halva looked eager for the sandwiches, as if drooling.

“Who made those?”

Ashera asked Mother and El, and both of them pointed at me.

With a deep sigh, I started making sandwiches for Ashera and Halva.

I felt a bit embarrassed, but I didn’t refuse.

After handing Ashera her portion, she took a bite and then passed the rest to me.

I took a bite of the sandwich in front of me, and Ashera took another bite…

As we alternated eating, Halva’s eyes started to look dangerous.

He stared at me with bloodshot eyes, as if seeing his enemy…

If there were curses in this world, I was sure I would be cursed to death by him.

Ashera noticed Halva’s gaze and lightly tapped his side, causing him to become paralyzed and unable to move properly.

I handed Ashera the second sandwich, and we continued to alternate eating.

After finishing breakfast, it was unanimously decided that sandwiches would suffice for lunch as well.

I reluctantly made sandwiches for everyone for lunch.

With sleep and meals taken care of, there was no need for further delay in the slow carriage travel.

“Al, do you know our destination?”

“I asked Seirie, so I think we’re okay.”

After Mother nodded, she addressed everyone.

“Everyone, do you have enough food for five days?”

“””Yes.”””

“Alright, is everyone ready?”

“””Yes.”””

From here on out, we’ll switch to traveling by horse from the carriage. The horses would be put through quite a bit, but I promised myself to give them a life of leisure if we could “return to the capital safely.”

The horses were arranged so that Ashera and I shared one, while El, Mother, and Halva each had one, totaling four horses.

When it was time to switch to horses, Halva told Ashera to ride his horse, but she ignored him. Since Ashera naturally rode on my horse, we just continued our journey…

Once again, Halva glared at me. Was it my fault?

After about three hours of riding, the landmark boulder came into view.

“That boulder is our destination.”

As I spoke, everyone tightened their resolve while looking at the boulder.

“Once we reach the boulder, we’ll release the horses.”

This journey was a one-way trip. The horses would be abandoned here. Hopefully, they would either reach some town by chance or become food for monsters… I couldn’t help but wish for their survival.

Upon reaching the boulder, it was time for our final rest. We packed the essentials from what was loaded on the horses into our backpacks.

“Now, is everyone ready?”

When Mother asked, Ashera seemed to be trying to carry Mother on her back for some reason.

“Ashera, you should carry Halva…”

“No.”

“Eh? But…”

“I’ll carry Master. Aldo and Elphus will carry my father.”

Looking to the side, I saw Halva, who appeared to have aged about ten years, standing there forlornly.

Poor Halva. All parents of teenage daughters should be rooting for you!