Chapter 70
When I came out of the water, I noticed bluish bruises all over my body.
I must have bumped into this and that without realizing it while fighting against the fast current.
“Yikes, that must hurt. Here— a towel.”
Phaerdia looked at me with a sympathetic expression and handed me a dry beach towel.
“Thank you. Really, thank you for helping me again today. How should I repay you?”
“Hmm, nothing huge. Just buy me dinner. At my favorite spot.”
As I wiped myself with the fluffy towel and asked, she wrinkled her nose playfully as she answered.
I asked her several times if that would really be enough, but Phaerdia insisted it was more than enough and refused any other form of thanks.
After we finished dinner at her usual restaurant, the sun had already set and the sky was almost completely dark.
“Ahh, that was good. Well, I’ll head back to Mid-isle now.”
“Take care, Hero. See you again.”
Phaerdia waved at me with a bright smile until the very end.
I walked toward the Hackberry Plaza.
Maybe because it was late, the shops in Silvagrove were closing one by one.
‘Come to think of it… I think the Cash Shop appeared somewhere around here last time.’
I scratched my cheek as I looked around.
There was a faint hope that maybe a store would suddenly pop into existence in an empty spot again.
I’d been diligently gathering and crafting lately, and with all the achievements and quests, I had collected a decent amount of Rainbow Stones. I figured it wouldn’t be a bad idea to buy a pet that could pick up loot for me.
But…
No matter how much I wandered around, the strange phenomenon from last time—when time stopped—didn’t happen again.
‘Seriously… Last time it showed up without warning and freaked me out, and now that I need it, it won’t appear?’
What kind of Cash Shop behaves like this?
Shouldn’t a Cash Shop be available anytime—24 hours a day—whenever the user wants it?
Just in case, I whispered “Cash…” softly so no one else would hear.
‘…Nothing.’
I wanted to buy something, yet no seller appeared. There was nothing I could do about it.
Feeling grumpy, I stomped my feet unnecessarily hard as I returned to Mid-isle.
And then—
WEEEOOOO—!
The moment I stepped foot onto the island, that ominous siren I had heard before suddenly blared across the entire Mid-isle.
“Uwah—! That scared me.”
I jumped in surprise at the sudden noise, but quickly regained my composure.
‘…So it’s finally happening.’
I calmly checked my current condition.
This was unmistakably that: the opening of the next region—the Aether Desert.
So how prepared was I to enter and face the enemies there?
The recommended level for the Aether Desert was 30.
I had just barely made it.
The magic consumption problem, which had been the biggest issue, was halfway resolved.
And I would soon obtain Kattercy’s fruit.
They said it took about eight hours to brew the medicine with it.
Assuming they gave us three days to prepare—just like the Silvagrove Forest expedition—I would have enough time.
‘Yeah. Three days will be more than enough.’
I judged that I was more or less prepared.
Just then—
“What thoughts have you so deep in focus?”
I turned around to see Adrian approaching, looking like he had just come out of the library.
“Oh— Adrian… The alarm startled me. I wonder what’s going on this late at night.”
I spoke awkwardly, almost making excuses.
It was true—the siren echoing in the dark night sounded downright creepy.
“They’ve likely called for an emergency meeting in the Captain’s office again. Let’s go.”
Adrian extended his palm gracefully, motioning me to go ahead.
I reluctantly forced my feet toward the Captain’s room.
When we entered, Clemence and Belinda were whispering with serious expressions.
“Oh, welcome, Adrian, Elaine.”
Clemence smiled kindly, forming wrinkles around her eyes, but I could still see the tension hidden behind that smile.
“Are the others not here yet?”
I asked, glancing at the empty seats.
If things followed the game’s flow, we would normally all have moved together here.
Back in the game, the incident had erupted the moment we teleported back from Silvagrove Forest, giving us no time to unpack.
I wasn’t sure how long we had been seated under Clemence’s guidance when the door suddenly burst open and the other members began arriving.
“What’s going on, Grandma? This late at night?”
Darren was wearing pajamas—as if he had already been preparing to sleep.
“Sorry to call you all this late. It appears the Demon King’s forces are moving. We’ve received reports of darkness appearing on the continent again.”
As Clemence spoke with a grave tone, the atmosphere in the room sank instantly.
No one looked surprised—they must have anticipated this—but everyone’s expressions grew heavy.
“…I see. Where is it this time?”
Adrian spoke first.
Clemence nodded and gave a signal, and Belinda pointed to a part of the map on the wall.
“It’s the desert region in inland Se-Edaphosia. The Kingdom of Aether lies there.”
At her words, I quietly exhaled.
I already knew this would happen, but a tiny bit of worry must have remained—wondering if anything might go off-script.
“As you know, the Aether Kingdom thrives on trade routes that cross the desert. But now, with darkness appearing in the center of the desert, trade has become difficult.”
“Hmm… If the trade routes are blocked, what about their food supply? I’ve heard the Aether Desert isn’t suitable for farming, so they rely on trade with other regions.”
“Yes, exactly. Which means the issue needs to be resolved quickly. I heard they’re fine for now thanks to stored food, but if this drags on, they may face a food crisis.”
Serious opinions went back and forth.
Then Darren—unable to tolerate the heavy atmosphere—slammed the table and shouted loudly.
“What’s the problem? Let’s just go and fix it!”
Then he rolled his round eyes toward his grandmother, clearly checking for backlash.
He had acted first and worried after.
But contrary to his fear, Clemence just smiled warmly.
“Yes. You’ve all already defeated the darkness once before. I trust you’ll do well.”
“Uh, y-yeah. We’re… good at it. Yeah.”
The unexpected encouragement made Darren malfunction like a broken machine, and despite the serious mood, everyone let out small chuckles.
With the atmosphere slightly lighter, the meeting ended quickly.
The expedition lineup remained the same:
Me, Darren, the twins, and Adrian.
Departure time: three days later, at 9 a.m.
‘This is going to be crazy busy.’
There was a lot to prepare in the next three days.
I did wish we had a bit more time.
Still, compared to the panic of the Silvagrove Forest unlocking unexpectedly, this was much better.
‘Alright. Let’s do this.’
I clenched my fist slightly, encouraging myself where no one could see.
I wasn’t sure how the three days passed.
Before I knew it, it was the morning of our departure for the Aether Desert.
I stood absentmindedly in the Fountain Plaza, the gathering point, staring at my companions.
“You know, this is my first time going to a desert. I’m seriously excited.”
Darren’s face was flushed with excitement, as if he were going on a picnic.
Of all things, he was wearing the [Forest Warrior Outfit] I had forced onto him, making him look like an oversized kindergartener.
A frilly shirt, a brown ribbon, and shorts above the knee.
It was the epitome of unbalanced fashion.
“…We’re not going there to have fun, you know.”
Rena scolded him with a deeply annoyed expression.
“Ohh, you’re quite calm, miss? Have you been to a desert?”
But Darren ignored her tone and asked, eyes sparkling.
“No, I haven’t. But unlike you, I’m not going to act like a child.”
Rena replied coldly.
Darren made a disappointed gesture as if he’d lost interest.
“What, so none of us have ever been to a desert?”
Then he glanced at me.
I hadn’t been to one either, so I lightly shook my head.
Going to Mongolia had been on my bucket list, but before I could fulfill that, I ended up in this world.
‘…Well, it’s not Mongolia, but I guess I’m going somewhere similar.’
I shook off the fleeting melancholy.
“It’s my first time too, but I prepared a lot.”
I said that, then took out white robes from my inventory and handed one to each of them.
“I heard the desert sun is brutal, so wear these over your clothes. I made them with thin, breathable fabric. And we need to cover our mouths and noses well because the sandstorms can be rough…”
There was no sunscreen in this world, and getting sunburned under the desert sun would be miserable.
Once all five of us put on identical robes, we looked like a tour group wearing matching uniforms—absurdly silly.
“When did you even prepare this, Captain? You don’t look like it, but you’re surprisingly meticulous.”
“Wow, this is amazing, Elaine!”
Don’t look like it? What was that supposed to mean?
Darren had a knack for adding unnecessary comments that left people feeling vaguely insulted.
While I grumbled internally and looked around—
I saw Adrian standing there, looking much paler than usual.
