Chương 58: Shortcut to the Coast [Ygg Latten Bay Arc]

"The hills are haunted," the village elder said.

"You should turn back and take the long way around like everyone else."

"This is the quickest way to Ygg Latten Bay," Amberlin replied.

"Brave adventurers like us aren't afraid of a little haunting." There was a tug at her sleeve. It was Maelle.

"Um, I'd like to hear the elder out before we decide." The road west of Ardark ended at a small village called Westard. From there, only a couple of hills stood between the party and the coast, from which it was an easy journey south to the Ygg Latten Peninsula. Back when this world was a game, those hills had been a special zone. The map had been a thick, mazelike forest with well-hidden secrets. A bit too well-hidden, perhaps, as Amberlin never did uncover what they were.

But this was the real world now, and in the real world you aren't confined to preset paths. With Havlo's compass, they could just push their way through the trees until they came out on the other side. At least, that was Amberlin's plan. She also didn't remember this zone being particularly dangerous. But for Maelle's sake, she turned back to the elder and said, "All right, let's hear more about this haunting." The old man obliged in a foreboding tone.

"All who enter the hills emerge days later muddled and confused. Trained soldiers refuse orders and tremble at the thought of going back in. Even archmages have never made it through to the other side. Some say that passage is only possible with the saint's blessing." He turned to look out the kitchen window, which had been opened earlier to let out the smoke of the cooking fire. Afterward it had been left open to let in the cool night air when the party settled down to dinner with the elder and his wife.

The elder continued, "The hills are also home to powerful monsters. At night their howls can be heard in the distance. I'd be anxious sending a crystal-ranker against them, let alone a couple of kids of silver and bronze." Amberlin followed the elder's gaze outside and listened. Either the howlers were busy tonight or they didn't start up until later.

"These monsters, do you know what they look like?"

"The stuff of nightmares."

"Can you be more specific?" He took a swig of ale and thought carefully before replying.

"No."

"And they've never attacked the village?" Amberlin asked through a mouthful of homemade muffin.

"They never bother anyone who stays out of the hills," the elder confirmed. She nodded sagely.

"That settles it, then. We'll stay here for the night and continue our journey in the morning."

"Continue your journey? Have you not been listening?" There was another tug at her sleeve.

"Um, maybe we should have a think about it first." She turned to the party's most junior member.

"Are you afraid, Maelle?"

"Um..." The girl froze up, struggling with some inner turmoil, and turned to Havlo for help.

"This is the fastest route," he said while giving Maelle an apologetic look.

"I assure you, we'll keep you safe." Amberlin reached for another muffin.

"Ghosts only come out at night. If we retire early tonight, we can leave at daybreak and make it to the coast in time to see the sunset. It'll be fine! You'll see." Maelle looked like she still had some doubts but nodded her head anyway. And so the matter was settled. The village elder's children were all grown up and had moved out to start their own families. This left behind two spare bedrooms that he allowed the party to use. Havlo got one while Amberlin and Maelle shared the other.

Naturally Boots stayed by Amberlin's side. Maelle froze the moment she stepped into the bedroom.

"What's the problem?" Amberlin asked, peering over the girl's shoulder.

"Th-th-there's only one bed."

"That's all right, you can have it. I'll sleep on the floor."

"What? But—""It's fine, it's fine! Their floor's probably softer than the ground we've been camping on. Besides, I don't need much sleep." In fact Amberlin didn't need any sleep at all.

"But—""Who's the party leader?" Maelle sighed.

"Then we'll take it in turns. Next time you get priority, okay?"

"Sure, we can talk about it next time." Amberlin laid out her bedroll and pretended to sleep until Maelle's breathing fell into a deep rhythm. Then she cast Muffle on herself before slipping out from under her covers, doing her best not to disturb Boots, who was curled up next to her. After that, it was a simple matter to sneak out, which she'd had a lot of practice doing lately. If you discover this tale on Amazon, be aware that it has been stolen. Please report the violation.

Outside, she made her way toward the haunted hills and into the forest. The rumors of a haunting had been around back in the game too, so they didn't really bother her. As long as her brother hadn't changed anything in the zone, it should be safe enough to traverse. But she wasn't prepared to risk her friends' lives on that assumption. There was always the chance that something had changed—if not by Tashido, then by the transition into the real world. Which was why she was going to check it out herself first.

It was completely safe to do it this way because she was immortal. And as long as everything went well, she'd be back in the morning before anyone realized she was gone.

"Amberlin's gone!" Havlo woke up to Maelle's cry. He quick-changed into his mage's robes before opening his bedroom door to find her standing there, already changed into her adventuring gear. Her [Light] spell quivered as she sobbed.

"I think she went into the hills alone."

"How do you know?" She held up Boots.

"He found the tracks. The prints look like her boots." Her cry had also woken up the village elder and his wife. They stood at their bedroom door, listening in with a look of concern. Havlo turned to them.

"Has the haunting done something like this before?" The elder shook his head.

"Possess someone in the village and take them into the hills? Never." Lady Amberlin must have gone in by her own volition. He'd hoped that knowing this would set his mind at ease. Instead it spun with disastrous possibilities. It was unlike her to make them worry. If she wasn't back yet, something must have happened to her.

"Show me the tracks," he said to Maelle. She led him out to the edge of the village. The footprints were easy to recognize in the brightening dawn. They were Lady Amberlin's, all right. And they led west into the hills.

"You stay in the village," he instructed Maelle.

"I'll go find her."

"But—""Don't worry, I'll be quite safe." Though he offered no explanation for his confidence, she nodded anyway.

"You'll be back before nightfall?"

"Easily," he promised. He followed Lady Amberlin's tracks into the forest, [Hasting] himself along the way. The problem wasn't his foot speed but his ability to discern her trail. Tracking was never among his best skill sets. Back when he'd traveled with the First Apostle, they'd had a dedicated ranger. In fact, between himself as the Amber Mage, the Amber Saint, the Amber Knight, and the Apostle himself as a ranger, their party had every useful skill covered.

Thinking about this made him realize how sorely unbalanced the current party was. They had three mages and a shapeshifting cat. He hoped Lady Amberlin knew what she was doing. His concern wasn't for his master's safety, as this forest held no real dangers. Having been through here with the First Apostle two hundred years ago, he of course knew its deepest secret. No, what worried him was the thought of Lady Amberlin stumbling upon the spirit of the forest. But there was still a chance he could avoid disaster.

So long as these tracks were easy to follow, he need not get himself involved with that troublesome person again.

When Maelle turned back toward the village, Boots protested with a sharp yowl and tapped at her shoulders. It seemed he wanted her to follow Havlo into the hills.

"Don't worry, you'll get your master back before tonight," she reassured the cat. But as she carried him away, he abruptly twisted in her arms, broke free, and ran back toward the hills. She chased after him, frantically hoping to grab him before he disappeared off into the trees. How could something so small be so fast? She soon caught up to him, but as soon as she reached down, he slipped through her fingers. She reached for him again, and he changed direction at the last second.

Every time she felt she had him, and every time he eluded her.

"Come on, Boots, just let me catch you, it isn't safe in here!" she cried. It took a couple of seconds for another part of her brain to process the meaning of her words. When the realization set in, she straightened up to gain her bearings. What she saw was trees. Trees all around.

"Oh no." She couldn't have gone that far in, could she? She just had to follow the slope down to get back off the hill. But she also couldn't just leave Boots. She turned around and— And he wasn't there. She'd lost sight of him during her little panic.

"Boots?" she called.

"Come back, buddy! We've got to go!" No reply. Amberlin often said that Boots always knew how to find his way home. Maelle had no choice but to believe that was true because there was no way she'd be able to find him on her own. What she had to focus on was finding her own way out. She began walking downhill, since that seemed like the surest plan. But the longer she walked, the wronger it felt. She didn't recall climbing that far uphill, so why was this decline still going? Eventually it did bottom out.

But when she looked around, the forest continued in every direction she looked.

"Don't panic," she told herself against her quickening heartrate.

"Think logically." Maybe she'd misjudged how much of a hill she'd climbed while chasing after Boots. But she was pretty sure she hadn't gone up over more than one hill. Which meant that the hill behind her was the first one, and the village was back on the other side. She had just to walk back over the crest. So that was what she did. At the bottom on the other side, she looked around and once again found herself surrounded by trees. She was thoroughly and completely lost.

But she had one advantage that made this all a non-issue. She didn't want to show off her wings because it was dangerous if anyone found out that she was dragonkin. But she only had to pop her head up long enough to get her bearings. Maelle manifested her wings and flew up past the canopy, where she spun in the air and surveyed the landscape around her. Trees. Trees in every direction. Trees as far as the eye could see. She flew higher, but the view never changed.

Every which way she looked, the forested hills stretched out over the horizon.

Boots raced through the forest. Once he was out of the Pet's sight, he changed into a slightly larger form so he could move even faster. Something wasn't right about this place. It set his whiskers on edge. He'd rather not be here, but Kitten was lost and he had to find her. Luckily her scent trail was still strong. He also sensed the Outsider up ahead, but the man had gone off in the wrong direction. Some people just didn't have the nose for this kind of thing.

There were a couple of times when the trail split into multiple paths. He was used to it by now. Kitten liked to backtrack. Sometimes she liked to loop around on herself. The trick was to always follow the freshest scent. The hills weren't much of a problem for him. His form was light and agile, and he had ample energy reserves. The scent grew stronger. Kitten was close now. So close he could pick her up on the wind. Excitedly he bounded forward.

He knew he'd made it when he felt a now all-too-familiar sensation and the ground fell away. He'd shrunk back down to his smallest form. But it was worth it to hear Kitten's voice.

"Boots? What are you doing here?" She went to grab him, but he dodged out of the way and ran off. He understood how her mind worked, and he listened with relief to the crunch of her boots on the foliage as she chased after him. She wouldn't stop until she'd caught him. And he wouldn't let her catch him until she was safely out of this strange place. He didn't know the way out precisely, but he didn't have to. He followed the scent trail. The scent trail never lied.