A Maiden’s Unwanted Heroic Epic

Chapter 281: Once Upon a Time, on the Throne of God

***Chapter 281 Once Upon a Time, on the Throne of God***

The hollow was filled with the roots of the World Tree spreading out, and its branches and leaves covered the sky.

The abundant magic power made the atmosphere glow, and the endlessly dancing petals shone with a rainbow sparkle in the sunlight.

They rained down, dispersing into blue particles before hitting the ground.

Spring is the season when the flowers of the World Tree dance in the air.

The world was filled with an fantastical color, and wind spirits played joyfully among the petals. Even on the ground where the World Tree's roots spread, earth spirits busily ran around tending to the small flowers in the gaps.

To gather the enormous amount of water the World Tree required, the water spirits created waterfalls in the hollow――despite the absence of lakes or rivers, a mysterious amount of water poured into the hollow from above, and the World Tree trembled its branches and leaves as if drinking it all in.

Fire spirits gathered and danced, trying to bring the efforts of the water spirits to naught, and steam danced in the air from the basin of the waterfall.

The air seemed to be shrouded in a mist, making its fantastical hues even more illusory and complex.

And beside the trunk of the tree, there were four blue-gray mounds.

Beasts revered by all as gods――Dragon curled their massive bodies, and before them stood a single girl.

With her long black hair tied up loosely and wearing only a wrap and loincloth, she also sat on the roots as if to blend in with the others.

She gave a wry smile at the silent dancing spirits and gazed at the hundreds of magic spheres floating above her head.

Though they appeared irregularly arranged, they were in fact systematically placed.

Judging by the angle of the sun, it was about time. She turned around and looked at the mysterious door, which existed in the corner of the hollow without any building.

――After a little while, the door opened, and a beautiful red-haired servant peeked in.

As she entered, a mischievous wind spirit flew towards her, and in response, the girl, with her somewhat youthful beauty, smiled maturely and wagged her finger.

The surrounding moisture gathered, and a large water cat formed in the air.

Two, four, eight, sixteen――with each hop, the water cat split, and in an instant, over a hundred small water cats were running around the hollow and then into the sky.

The winged wind spirits chased the water cats, chirping joyously.

The servant also lightly hopped and, as if pushed by the wind, gracefully landed in front of the four of them――next to the Holy Spirit Priestess Lira, and gave a gentle bow.

Then she pointed her finger at one of the floating magic spheres, moved it just a little, and that's the end of her work.

She turned her attention to Lira and took a step closer.

A sweet scent of temptation wafted from the servant, and Lila's eyes flickered slightly.

"Lira-sama, at Elvena-sama's request, I made a tart using various fruits today."

"I-is that so..."

"Yes. I tried tasting it and I must say it turned out very well."

Her soft pink lips smiled gently.

Their color and thickness were light, not assertive in presence.

Yet, they were undeniably alluring lips.

The glossy lips were probably due to the sweet tart――perhaps with a generous amount of honey on it――that she had just eaten.

――This is a garden of temptation.

There were no limits to life in this seemingly decadent mansion.

If one wished, they could fall into depravity to the very depths of the earth.

Without self-control, it was a paradise where one could fall endlessly――a prison of desire.

Maintaining one's sanity as the Priestess of Kreisharana within this place was no ordinary feat.

She had decided to live in a hut, not the mansion, and to consume only the forest's fruits, a lifestyle she had maintained for the past five years, but that was broken a few days ago.

――I tried to put in a little extra effort, but.

The reason was that she had heard of such an invitation.

Food made only from ingredients from the forest. Not extravagant. With a little extra effort, it was very delicious.

Tempted by those words, she took a bite――and before she knew it, she had even taken up the meat, lured by Krische saying that it was from the forest.

The meat, which she hadn't eaten in five years, was so delicious that she could have drooled unashamedly.

If she continued like this, there was no doubt that before she knew it, words like abstinence and self-restraint would disappear from her mind.

And again, she would fall into days of depravity, a cycle she had repeated countless times.

――She had to stop as soon as possible.

Lira had made up her mind, but before she could take a bite, the servant stroked her own cheek.

Then, with a coquettish smile,

"...We're planning a banquet in the near future. Krische-sama would like to come and celebrate Lira-sama's training being completed..."

"C-celebration..."

"Fufu, Lira-sama eats the food so deliciously that it makes me happy as the cook. …Of course, I feel a little bad for Lira-sama, who values self-restraint but."

Her smile mixed playfulness, gentleness, and perhaps a hint of trouble, making it all the more captivating.

It was different from Kreschenta’s or Selene’s brilliance,

"...If you don't mind, could you stay with us a little longer? Krische-sama is very excited about it."

When asked with such a smile, she couldn’t think of any words to refuse.

In fact, even if she tries to refuse, she usually ends up going along with it without realizing it.

Lira groaned quietly and nodded.

"Uh... just, just a little longer..."

She was a kind person who was always considerate to Lira, but she was a servant among servants who always followed her master's wishes.

Whether Lira wished for it or not ―― the moment her master said she wanted to invite her, there was no escape.

"Fufu. Yes. …Just a little longer."

Her shoulders shook with a mischievous smile, then she looked at Lira's body.

She looked at the wrap and loincloth――simple and minimal fabric, and traced her lips with her fingertips, deep in thought.

"...Um, is there something?”

"No, I was just thinking it might be a bit cold."

"Cold... where are we having the banquet?"

Her red hair swayed as she narrowed her eyes.

Then, Bery Argan smiled.

"This time――"

―― A huge snowy field as far as the eye could see.

Stepping forward, their knees compressed the snow that buried them to the waist.

The blizzard had stopped, but the snow continued to fall ceaselessly.

Everything around was wrapped in white and indigo.

On this sacred virgin land, they alone left their footprints.

Untrodden land that no one had ever touched.

This was a place more sacred than any other in the world.

Greiviarbe――the highest mountain in the world.

The realm of the gods, where no one has ever set foot.

And they were the first person to leave their footprints there.

"...The snow is firming up."

South of Greiviarbe.

Relieved that he was finally on firm footing, Borok Androzea stroked his frozen beard and sighed.

Covered from head to toe in fur and cloth winter gear, he wore thick gloves and steel claws on his boots.

Ten magical crystal rings adorned his fingers, and his boots also had magical crystals.

The magic crystals he wore all over his body――the magic formulas engraved on them kept him warm, but that wasn't the only thing blocking his path to the top of this mountain.

A gentle snowy plain stretched out over 10,000 shaku.

With each twenty steps, he became out of breath, and he had to take deep breaths repeatedly, trying to steady himself as he moved forward.

The air was thin, but this was still the beginning.

He had climbed mountains over 20,000 shaku high before.

And this was the realm of the gods, over 30,000 shaku high.

This mountain pierced the heights that would not allow any living thing to survive.

It was easy for Borok to understand that unprecedented hardships awaited him ahead.

It took half a month one way from the town at the foot of the mountain to cross the northeastern most mountains of the continent.

He had made numerous trips back and forth, transporting supplies, and had spent years preparing.

Financially, too, if this failed, there would be no second chance.

He didn't even consider descending halfway.

Will he reach the peak and come back, or will he never come back?

This was such a challenge.

He simply moved forward into the great snowy field.

Throwing snow into his heated canteen, warming it, and drinking it.

The snow around him was full of moisture, but in the mountains you lose a surprising amount of moisture.

Perhaps it's because even the moisture in the air freezes.

Even when his throat was moist, he drank water.

Again, and again――no matter how much he drank, the deep thirst was unquenchable.

After a whole day of walking, he arrived at the great ice wall.

Up close, the enormous wall was overwhelming.

A wall of rock and ice, its upper part forming a large overhang, acting like a roof.

This was the first resting point.

The roof of the large ice wall sloped backwards, preventing ice from falling from the top and avalanches.

There was no problem pitching a large tent here, and he could even sleep sprawled out if he wanted to.

Most of the food was stored here, and all the equipment was kept here. It's even possible to wait a season until the weather turns favorable, but this was the last place where one was allowed to rest.

Entering the tent set up beforehand——with thick snow piled and compacted outside the fabric, he confirmed the ventilation holes and lit a fire.

The light from the campfire illuminates the room, bringing warmth.

No matter how much he insulated the tent, the cold remained unchanged.

The best he could do was to prevent his body heat from escaping.

Still, Borok smiled.

He brought in the stored food from outside and filled a pot with snow to melt over the fire.

After eating breakfast, he had survived on rations.

Dried nutritious Nirkana berries――they give you energy, but they don't quench hunger.

However, here, he could at least fill his stomach with food.

Meat and vegetables were thrown into the pot, rock salt.

He broke a loaf of frozen bread and threw it in as well.

Borok waited for the pot to boil and went outside.

He sprawled out on the snow and looked up at the sky.

A dark indigo sea, a pale blue river created by the stars.

And the shining blue――he could clearly see the writhing currents of magic power drifting through the sky.

It seemed to be the result of the Grand Magic performed by the Great Queen in the past.

It was said that the world was filled with magic power as a result of the Great Law of Heavenly Change, and that this was the reason why the sky was still enveloped by enormous magic power.

If one climbs a high mountain and looks up at the night sky, they would be able to see it clearly with the naked eye.

The first time he felt its presence was when he was eighteen.

It was when he climbed the World Tree.

The night sky he looked up at then――the great flow of magic power that was flowing there.

Borok was simply overwhelmed, and he realized how small he had been when he had boasted that he had conquered the World Tree.

The great queen who cast magic on the world itself 1,500 years ago.

On the other hand, he was one who boasted of a single small peak.

――Since then, Borok has traveled the world.

He stepped on mountain peaks and visited the World Tree in various places.

In some areas, it became a problem and he gave up, but in many places he was praised as an adventurer who challenged something great.

But in the end, fame was only a tool and a foothold to reach the next height.

He wrote a book about his journey, sold his name, raised funds, and conquered many mountains.

All in order to leave his footprints on the top of this mountain.

This is the culmination of Borok, and it could be said that all of the footprints he has carved so far have been on the way to this mountain.

Greiviarbe was the corner of the earth.

A separate, independent peak that rose up from the surrounding mountain range.

He had only climbed a gentle, vast snowy field, but even from here at the entrance, he was still high enough to look down on the surrounding mountains.

From here, Greiviarbe grew even larger, with a wall of ice jutting into the sky like a horn.

Many adventurers and ascetic practitioners have tried to climb this wall and have never returned.

Avalanches and storm-like winds, the ice and atmosphere that do not allow humans to survive.

No matter how powerful one's magic was, it was not something that could be easily climbed.

If the wind blows at the moment when the body is separated from the cliff, the human body would be knocked far downwards.

The clear imagination that came from past experiences imprinted the difficulty of this mountain on one's body in the form of trembling and fear.

And only those who could face that fear head-on and swallow it would be allowed to set foot on the mountain's summit.

Borok looked up to the sky and reached out his hand to the floating moon.

He gripped it tightly, closed his eyes, shook the snow off, and went inside the tent.

The boiling pot gave off a rich aroma of melted meat oil and vegetables.

The cloudy soup was infused with nutrients and flavor.

The meat and vegetables alone made the soup delicious.

Sipping the hot soup from the bowl, the delicious flavor burned from his throat to his stomach.

It was a good idea to throw in some garlic.

He felt his cold body heat up from the inside.

As he savored it, he began to lay out the gear he would take with him.

The magic thread rope was flexible and heavy, but if it wasn't put under a lot of strain, it could stretch a thousand shaku.

The axe was artificial Cuiris steel with a high affinity for magic. The same was true of the crampons.

Both were engraved with formulas that could manipulate heat, and if they were thrust into an ice wall and magic was passed through it, it would melt it and instantly solidify, making it easy to secure a foothold.

There were no better tools to conquer the ice and rock walls ahead.

The tools he had spent decades improving were the essence of Borok's life.

In words, what he had to do was simple.

He would keep his toes and axe dug into the wall at all times, crawling to avoid being torn off by the storm, and pull up his belongings with a rope after ensuring they were safe.

Barring any problems with the weather or avalanches, he was confident he would succeed.

He had that much experience and ability.

Looking back at history, it was safe to say that no one could match Borok in mountain climbing.

Yet, it still wasn’t a guarantee.

Nature was not designed for humans to confront.

Having trained himself, Borok was confident he could survive even against a monster, but that did not mean he could defeat an avalanche.

Even if that wasn't the case, a direct hit from an ice block the size of a mansion would kill him instantly.

In the end, it was down to fate whether he could reach the peak.

He would do his best, meticulously eliminate any potential causes of failure, push himself to his limits, and then leave the rest to fate.

That's what it means to challenge a mountain.

He knew it was madness, yet it was in human nature to step forward regardless.

The soup was delicious.

But the food he ate down below was much tastier.

There was neither gold nor silver treasure at the top.

There was no paradise beyond this point.

He pondered why he was trying to climb this mountain.

When asked why he climbed, he had given various answers, but none of them were the truth.

Boroku climbed to end his challenge.

He climbed to make himself understand that there is nothing to be gained by climbing high.

He climbed to free himself from the obsession that had gripped him since that day.

――Someday, I will reach the highest place in the world.

Because he had vaguely thought so at that time.

He ate a pot full of soup, ate some fruit, and brewed some tea.

He mixed in a generous amount of honey and turned it into energy.

The view from the top of the World Tree was both a blessing and a curse.

That's what it's like to be moved so much that it determines the course of your life.

He waited for the weather to stabilize and left the tent five days later.

He clung to the rock wall and climbed higher.

While climbing, he thought only of climbing.

Based on the shape of the wall, which way would be most likely to be hit by falling rocks?

In the event of an avalanche, which position would be safest?

He always thought about risk and reward.

If it was dangerous but he could get out in an instant then, if it was safe but would take too long then――he managed the level of danger and selected the route.

There is no such thing as an absolutely safe place on the mountain.

No matter where you are, there was always a chance that ice or rocks would smash your head in from above.

Ultimately, climbing faster will reduce the overall risk.

He had memorized the route he should take in his head beforehand.

From the nearly vertical wall, he could clearly see where to put his foot and where to step out, step by step.

All that was left was to trace the image.

After three days of conquering another 10,000-shaku wall, he reached the jaw of Greiviarbe.

From there, he was once again on a gently sloping snowfield with numerous rocky peaks rising into the sky.

What lay ahead was unknown territory ―― even from the surrounding mountains, it was impossible to see clearly what lay ahead due to the clouds and rocky mountains.

All he knew was that it was a nest of avalanches.

In front of him――in the distance he could see the shape of a horn-like peak, and just before that was a vast snowy field.

Though covered in snow, he could see the tips of countless rocky mountains jutting out from time to time.

In reality it was probably a very rugged rock surface.

The snow was just making it look like a gently sloping flat surface.

If he takes a step in the wrong place, he will be trapped forever in the crevasse prison.

Folds of snow could be seen here and there.

Graceful like a lady's skirt, they were natural pitfalls formed by the snow that has fallen on the crevasse.

He ponders for a moment whether to rest up ahead.

It was still too early to call it sunset.

The rocks he could see a little further ahead were sturdy and perfect for pitching a tent, and he would be able to reach them before sunset.

He decided he should cover as much distance as possible here.

But found himself unable to take a step.

Wondering why he wasn’t moving, he glanced ahead to the rocks.

"H...!?"

――At that moment, the snow fell.

The place he was about to step onto cracked, and the ground slipped away.

Borok immediately clung to the nearby rock.

What he heard as he closed his eyes was a roar that he would never hear in his everyday life.

It was a tremendous sound of snow sliding down from cloud height, enough to lightly swallow a small town.

His body, which had been burning from climbing the rock wall, felt as if it was freezing to the core.

The sound of the collapse continued for a while, coming from far below.

Feeling the echoes calmed down, he opened his eyes, steadied his shallow breathing.

It was probably just the snow that had piled up above sliding down.

However, the scenery had completely changed.

A large amount of the snow on his left had disappeared, and at the border with the large snowy field on his right, a snow wall about fifty shaku high had been created.

The snowy field that Borok was about to step into no longer existed, and if he had taken a step just now, he would undoubtedly have been caught up in it.

That meant death.

He crouched down on the spot and consciously took slow, repeated breaths.

Thin air――excitement causes serious damage to accumulate in the body.

He decided to pitch his tent there that day.

The sky, which had seemed stable, started to produce ominous wind sounds.

The moment when a seemingly smooth journey change was curiously perceptible.

It was probably something that could be called an instinct that humans have had since they were animals.

That was that moment.

He firmly secured the small tent he had brought with him, drilled holes in the ice and rocks and took out several anchors.

He covered the outside of the tent with hardened snow to protect it from the wind――a complete turnaround from his smooth journey.

In the end, Borok ended up spending two weeks inside.

There was no light inside, except for the dim light of the magic crystal he was using as a heat source.

Outside, the sky had become stormy, and a blizzard began to fall outside.

A storm of snow fell upside down, running up the mountain.

The entrance to the tent was already covered in snow, and the air hole was stretched out like a chimney.

Looking in, the sky was dark, letting Borok know that the blizzard was still continuing.

The food he brought with him was enough for two weeks in total.

Even though he had cut back, there was not enough left to climb and descend from the peak.

――A failure.

Still, would he be able to survive if he went down the mountain the next time there was a clear spell?

Even as he was thinking that, after the storm subsided, Borok headed straight for the top without hesitation.

He crawled up and down the rocky ridge that was only faintly visible thanks to the avalanche, trying not to slip.

This was a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity, the culmination of his entire existence.

It took him a whole day to get out of the maw of the great snowfield――Greiviarbe, and it was at night that he clung to its horns.

He set up a small tent, ate dried meat and dried Nilkana, rested, and the next morning began stabbing his axe into the ice wall.

The wind was always stormy.

If he let his guard down, he would be blown away, so he stuck his body against the rock face in such a storm.

Right, left, right, he lifted his legs regularly, sometimes so high that it seems his thighs would split.

Sometimes, he jumped, using the upward wind for momentum.

Each leap was a gamble with his life.

But without such leaps, his stamina wouldn’t hold out.

Borok already didn’t have enough food to climb leisurely.

At times like this, he was grateful to his parents for being born with magic powers.

Even if it's impossible for an ordinary person, those with magical powers can do it. He was able to forcefully stab his axe into rocks instead of ice, and he was able to gain a lot of height with one jump.

It's because he had magic powers that he could move in this extreme cold.

As he neared death, he felt a strange gratitude for being born.

He thought of his father and mother.

He hadn’t seen them for a long time and never felt the desire to.

They probably don't want to see him too, having run away from home.

As an adventurer, they must have heard of him, but he never received a single letter, and he never sent one.

It was strange.

He was fed up with the strict education and the responsibilities that were expected of him, and he resented them when I was young.

That's why he ran away from home.

And yet, when he stood in such extreme places like this, he always thought of his parents.

Their long-standing, noble family was only in name.

His father was the lord of a small territory, protecting the household.

And his mother supported him.

The two of them continued to uphold the moldy customs.

There was no freedom there, it was claustrophobic, and suffocating――but his parents still spent their days going about their daily lives protecting what had been passed down to them by their ancestors.

When he thought of them, he wondered why he climbed the mountain.

In truth, it wasn't for any lofty reasons or anything.

Maybe he wanted to be recognized by his parents.

They just had different ways of thinking.

But even so, he wanted them to think that he was their son ――that he was a son they could be proud of to their ancestors.

He thought of his parents, who were strict with themselves and others.

They tried to be frugal and did not tolerate waste, like mindless magic dolls.

Their way of life seemed devoid of happiness, but their occasional smiles during mundane moments looked content, and they were deeply loved by their subjects.

In times of famine, they would not hesitate to give away the hoarded personal wealth to protect them, and he would always wonder why they did not show him such love in the past.

‘We are the caretakers. We are entrusted with what they have earned through their sweat, and we will return it to them when necessary. Please remember that this mansion, food, and clothes are all given to you by them. ...A lord is a position that requires more self-control than anyone else.’

The children who lived in the towns and villages seemed happier.

From a young age, he was expected to do more than enough, and he cut down on his sleep to train and study.

He was envious when he saw children his age being spoiled by their parents, and he worked hard only to be praised and recognized.

And yet all he was given was a simple sentence, Well done.

His parents were always busy for the people of their domain.

He clung to the rock, steadied his breathing, and swung his right hand.

Unless there was something extraordinary, he always stuck at least three of both his hands and feet into the rock and ice.

If he didn't do this, his body would quickly be blown away by a strong wind.

Right hand, left hand, right foot, left foot.

Right hand, left foot, left hand, right foot.

He left claw marks on the rock and ice. As if to let them know that he was here.

He walked at a turtle's pace, determined to do something that no one had ever accomplished before.

Knowledge and wisdom were given to him by his parents.

They also taught him how to use magic.

The method of making an effort, everything was given to him by his parents.

The reason he was here was because they were there.

No matter how far they were, he was their son.

His breathing was shallow. He stopped and kept breathing.

No matter how much he breathed in the thin air, it didn't feel like he had inhaled enough, so he looked up at the sky.

He wasn't far away from the peak.

He felt my head getting dizzy, but he just kept going up.

Climbing the mountain was an ordeal.

He worked his whole body hard, and at the end of the pain, he reached the peak.

Sometimes the view from the top, viewed with a dizzy head, didn’t even remain in his memory.

What would be there when he reached the peak?

There was nothing there. He had no expectations.

There was only the result of having climbed it.

But still, he thought to himself, he would climb it.

Higher, higher.

To carve his name as someone who has visited a place no one has ever been before.

To make his name resonate and be known.

Just a little more, just a little more.

His head was hazy.

He couldn't think clearly.

But the vast experience engraved in his body led Borok to greater heights.

He slammed his axe, dug his claws, and crawled upwards.

The moment he struck the final blow, he felt a numbness in his body.

――The sensation of reaching the peak.

The realization that he had conquered Greiviarbe.

Summoning his last strength, he let out a spurt of magical power and pulled himself up――

"Um... what are you doing...?"

Before him was a silver-haired girl munching on a skewer of meat.

He was confused by the out-of-place beauty, and the Goddess tilted her head.

Borok slipped off.

He screamed involuntarily and slid down the steep slope, and suddenly his body was enveloped in a floating sensation.

His body rose into the air and was enveloped in a sphere of magical power.

As if ignoring gravity, his body rose to the top again.

His eyes met again with the purple eyes that were staring at him with a skewer in one hand.

He had never been so surprised when he reached the top of the mountain.

The temperature rose in a flash, and the previously frigid air was now warm, with not a trace of wind blowing.

And there were beautiful girls there.

Was it some kind of feast?

They were holding skewers of meat dripping with oil, and not a single one of them wore anything resembling the cold-weather gear Borok had.

Most were in apron dresses, and only a girl with golden hair wore pants.

One girl, dressed in fur, wore only a wrap around her chest and waist, exposing her belly.

A grill was set up over the fire, sizzling with meat, and everyone silently looked at Borok in confusion. The silver-haired goddess, also in an apron dress, watched him curiously.

Freezing and unable to speak, he stared at them in bewilderment.

Next to them was a large tent, but it looked like it would easily fly away if the wind blew.

For some reason, countless small snowmen were lined up all around.

It was the highest point in the world, and it was like a winter street or something.

In a world where storms were supposed to be the norm, this place was distortedly calm, to the point that he wondered if he had died.

However, the sphere that enveloped him must be the result of magic.

He knew that with great magic, one could levitate in the air.

He had a connection with such great magicians, but the being before him was probably far beyond the realm of great magic.

She munched on the skewer in one hand.

The silver-haired girl pointed her fingertips at Borok as he slid down ――it was in an instant.

Without a moment to even realize that magic had been used, the precision and transcendent speed of the magic formula engraved and drawn around Borok was truly that of a god.

The silver-haired girl clapped her hands while still holding the skewer, and brought a skewer of grilled meat from the grill and offered it to Borok.

At the same time, Borok's floating feet stepped on the snow.

"Um, would you like some?"

"N-no..."

He was in the height of confusion, but he knelt down for the time being.

It was a very abnormal situation ――even with his confused thoughts, he understood what this situation was.

Banquet of the Gods.

He had likely wandered into it at the summit of this mountain.

"…M-my deepest apologies. To have defiled such a...sacred banquet."

"Sacred...?"

The beautiful girl tilted her head and thought deeply.

The more he observed her, the more divine her beauty seemed.

Like a sculpture made to embody beauty itself, the girl was stunning.

Her silver hair shimmered in the moonlight and the firelight.

Her large eyes, surrounded by long eyelashes, were like amethysts, and her appearance was undeniably that of a being created as pure beauty.

Now, he was in the presence of the Gods.

As he thought this, his consciousness faded――

"...?"

――He suddenly woke up, and found himself inside a tent.

He looked at his gloved hands, confirming that he was alive.

As he got up, he felt surprisingly well.

"Why am I inside a tent..."

He wondered if he had unconsciously set up the tent.

In that dazed state, having such a dream.

He furrowed his brow and quickly left the tent and stepped outside, stiffening.

This was the peak of the mountain.

And yet there was no wind, and the air was thick.

He gazed out at the clouds and white mountains below him, and marveled at the windless world.

The small tent, which I had seen from outside, hadn't even been covered in snow to protect it from the wind, yet it had managed to survive the night.

The sun was shining from the eastern sky, illuminating the mountaintop where Borok was.

Just looking at it, tears suddenly spilled down his face.

An emotion I couldn't put into words swelled up inside his heart, to the point of bursting.

"This is the Goddesses’..."

In his hazy memory――he shook my head, trying to recall the beautiful goddesses.

They were simply beautiful.

That was the only thing he could remember, and then he looked around, and there were countless small snowmen left all around.

They hadn't formed naturally.

This was not a dream. There were Goddesses here after all.

And They saved Borok.

He took in the air and closed his eyes.

Then he opened my eyes again, and burned the view into his memory for a while.

It was as if the world had been turned upside down.

The clouds were far below. An engrossing blue filled the sky.

He could see a white mountain range, and in the distance he could vaguely see a world where people live.

The summit of Greiviarbe, when the weather was good, could be seen from a nearby village.

Likewise, the village could be seen from Greiviarbe.

――‘Let's go home’, he thought absentmindedly.

He took out two magic crystals from the backpack.

They were magic crystals for surveying. They were a request from the sponsor of this climb, and they were also proof that he had conquered Greiviarbe.

When he sent magic power into it at the highest point, the magic crystal reacted and destroyed itself.

The shining waves propagated through the atmosphere.

"...This is the land of the Gods."

He looked at the remaining crystal and put it back in his backpack.

The one just used was for sending.

The one he put back was for receiving.

If placed on a pole and stuck at the summit, the magic crystal would act as a receiver semi-permanently.

However, he didn't do that.

This peak was not one that should be disturbed by humans.

The only reason he was now at ease was because the Goddesses had saved him.

The proof that he was here was sufficient with the crystal used earlier.

He folded his hands, offered a prayer, and took down the tent.

Then he put it away in his backpack――and suddenly noticed an unfamiliar small bag inside.

It was packed full of dried Nilkana fruit.

It was different from the ones Borok had brought.

When he took a bite――it was truly a taste of heaven.

The sweet taste melted like snow.

It was the fruit of paradise.

There was no need to wonder who had put it in there.

"Thank you, Goddesses."

He folded his hands again and thanked them, then put the bag in his pocket and started walking.

The once rugged mountain――however, the descent was not harsh.

As soon as he started to descend the mountain, the air thinned, reminding him of the harshness of the mountain, but surprisingly there was no wind and the weather was calm.

The snow was surprisingly firm, and there was not a single avalanche.

Surely the Goddesses were watching over him.

As he descended without letting his guard down, he felt only gratitude in his heart.

Borok felt that he had been saved by the Goddesses.

No injuries, no illnesses.

And so Borok safely completed the climb, published his book within a year, finished all the closures, and returned to his hometown.

It was not just for himself.

Surely that was the reason he was saved.

"I'm sure people waste time on pointless things in order to find the answer. I must have taken much longer than most people to realize that this is the place for me."

A rural town in the mountains, next to the World Tree.

Borok, now an old man, walked there and stroked his granddaughter's head.

The granddaughter nodded with a look of understanding, but also not understanding, and Borok gave a wry smile as he looked at her.

"I can't answer why I was climbing the mountain, but... I think it was probably necessary for me to come back here."

"Fumm..."

When the townspeople saw Borok, they bowed happily and called him Lord.

He waved and smiled back.

The town was by no means rich――but the people were smiling happily.

There was a legend that a dragon once lived here, and the town had nothing but the World Tree.

But it wasn't an empty town, and there is no town without nothing.

There was much more here than the mountains.

――He bowed his head to his father and begged for forgiveness, and his father patted him on the shoulder without saying a word.

Borok's room had not changed since he had left, and his mother had kept it nice and clean.

Borok poured all his passion for mountain climbing into this, and tried desperately to make up for the time he had lost.

His father never praised him for this, but as he was dying,

‘I'm proud of you, my son.’

He just said that.

Those words made Borok even prouder than when he woke up at the top of Greibiarve that day.

"Sometimes you have to take a detour. But people are――"

"――Ah, Grandpa, Nilkana!"

His granddaughter ran off in the middle of her story, leaving Borok stunned, and he quickly gave a wry smile.

Asked why he had climbed mountains, his recounting of mountain tales had turned into a lecture without him realizing.

Not noticing his granddaughter's growing boredom, he scratched his head and approached the stall she had run to.

He advertised tourism to the World Tree, and began to attract a fair number of travelers and peddlers.

There were several stalls lined up in the market, and this one, displaying fruit, vegetables, and wine, was one of them.

He picked up his granddaughter, who was stretching to look at the goods, and handed the merchant girl three copper coins, saying, ‘some Nilkana.’

"Yes. Kreschenta, three copper coins' worth of Nilkana."

"Why me?"

"Don't complain. They who don't work shall not eat. Work once in a while."

"...That's definitely not my job."

Looking at her face he saw a young golden-haired girl who was the owner of the shop.

Behind her, her younger sister, with her reddish golden hair swaying, puffs out her cheeks and stuffs Nilkana fruits into a bag.

Both of them were surprisingly beautiful, wearing shirts and skirts that were not flashy but elegant.

Perhaps their father has put them in charge of the shop ―― the girl who seems to be the younger sister handed the bag of Nilkana to Borok with a look of dissatisfaction on her face.

He remembered his past self, rebelling against his parents, and accepted it with a wry smile.

He said thank you, and turned away.

"You know, if it were up to me, I wouldn't have to do this job at all――"

"Yes, yes. Here, open your mouth."

"Mugu... this..."

Listening to the girls complaining to each other, he took out a Nilkana and gave it to his granddaughter.

Looking at her smiling face, saying how delicious it was, with a bright smile on her face, he also had one.

It tasted strangely nostalgic.

Looking back at the stall from earlier, he saw the girls in apron dresses standing in front.

A large cart loaded with a large amount of luggage――he rubbed his brow at the sudden sense of discomfort.

Come to think of it, wasn’t the goddess he saw at the top of the mountain was also in an apron dress.

And Nilkana――maybe it was inevitable that he would recall it.

As he gazed upon the girl in the apron dress and silver hair, his granddaughter pulled his beard and asked what was wrong, to which he shook his head and laughed, ‘saying stop it’.

Not noticing the Suiko that he had just seen, not noticing the girls, Borok gave his granddaughter another Nirkana.

Squinting at the everyday scenery that is so different from the mountain top, he left his footprints on the flat cobblestones.

He walked slowly, matching her granddaughter's stride with hers.

A/N: Back Program: The 57th Christand Snowy Mountain Disaster Tour ●REC