Heroes and Machine Girls Looking at Profiles

15 – A Girl of the Marshes

Holding back a burst of desperate laughter, I erased Ciera from my mind and turned my attention back to my book. After all, our encounter was nothing more than a coincidence.

My mission was to gather information.

Thankfully, I found one piece of information I needed relatively quickly.

Oortrinde and her sisters – a total of 9 individuals. And their story seemed somehow familiar.

Of course, it was bound to feel familiar.

After all, it came from one of the fable books I read in order to grasp the writing of this world when I first fell into it.

The goddess Erdiya and her nine disciples.

It’s a rather major legend about a goddess in this world, on this continent.

The era of gods, when the goddess Erdiya and the demon god Joanoak vied for supremacy.

If the demon god Joanoak had seven demon kings under his control, the goddess Erdiya had nine warriors under hers.

Those were the disciples of the goddess.

While there were quite a few ancients tales about them, described differently in each, it was hard to find a credible one.

Some depict them as valiant male warriors, others as enchanting female warriors.

Nonetheless, if there is a common point among these varying descriptions, it was their shining armors and grand wings.

…Did Oortrinde have something like wings?

In any case, while this only seemed like a children’s tale, it was difficult to find any other keywords that could be related to these nine warriors.

However, in the process of searching for lore relating to the goddess, even a fable might serve as a useful clue.

The identity of the maker Erdiya, as Oortrinde mentioned, could not be found anywhere.

After all, it would have been strange if records of someone who lived a thousand years ago still existed.

However, if these disciples of the goddess are indeed Oortrinde and her sisters, then it’s possible that the maker called Erdiya could refer to the goddess Erdiya.

They do have similar names and the possibility seems quite high.

As for the information about the relics of the goddess, I couldn’t find a single piece of information.

Well, given that the church keeps the location of the relics a secret, it’s likely that control over this information extends to the written records.

However, unexpectedly, I found a seemingly valid piece of information.

The nine disciples, scattered all over this continent, had spectacular performances fighting against the seven demon kings, who were the offsprings of the demon god.

Among them, there was one disciple whose activities were clearly recorded.

One of the nine, a disciple of magic, who decimated her enemies and bolstered her allies with powerful and majestic magic.

The area where she was active and the battles that took place there were clearly recorded.

…In a children’s fairy tale book.

But even though it is a fairy tale, the area is clearly designated, even featuring a small map illustration to clearly mark the location.

Upon investigating the place, it was confirmed to actually exist.

And moreover, it existed within the borders of the Halphas Empire.

As I lifted my gaze from the book, I found that the sun was about to rise.

In a few dozen minutes, the academy’s students would start to gather, and I rise from my seat, intending to leave.

As I looked back, Cira was still immersed in her prayer.

Even with someone in the same space rising from their seat with a noise, she couldn’t notice anything, being so absorbed in her prayer.

Perhaps, she was desperate because of the situation we found ourselves in.

…Well, it wasn’t my business.

While I was observing her for a brief moment, I made eye contact with one of the four bodyguards that had returned.

With a slightly awkward heart, I nodded my head, and he managed to carve out a smile too.

Well, let him suffer moderately and tremble at the despair that will find him in a few months.

After wishing him a future like that, I left the place and exited the library.

“I don’t know much about ‘Marshine Joenook,’ but it’s true that our sisters scattered around various places to set up their majors.”

The first thing I did when I returned to the inn was to validate what I had learned in the library by querying Ortrinde.

Of course, about half of the information Ortrinde also had was lost due to the long duration of time, but basic verification was possible.

And, regarding the place speculated to be a candidate site for the goddess’s relics that were the most important information…

“Yes, surely, that vicinity was the land where the Demon Tribe had their base back then.”

Bingo!

Like the saying ‘strike while the iron is hot,’ we made our preparations and left the inn.

“Welcome.”

Before leaving the Royal Road, we came to the biggest blacksmith’s shop on the Royal Road.

Of course, it was to pick weapons for Ortrinde to use.

Ortrinde seemed to be somewhat stubborn when it came to fighting gear, she didn’t even glance at the ones sold in the small blacksmith shops in Jortan.

The continents biggest country’s most famous blacksmith shop.

We came here with the hope, that they might have weapons that would suit Ortrinde’s taste.

“What are you looking for?”

“We’re looking for a sword, preferably the toughest one.”

“Hmm…the toughest one…”

The blacksmith’s shop owner who seemed difficult, fell into deep thought upon hearing Ortrinde’s requirements.

And after a short while, he went inside the shop and brought out a sword.

“If you’re looking for a sturdy one, how about this one?”

The owner asked, while showing off the sword.

Its handle, guard, everything was so ordinary without any brilliant decorations.

However, the blade indeed looked robust.

“Oh my.”

When I took the sword from the owner, a weight more dense than an average sword was transferred through my arms.

“It might be a bit heavy, but it’s equally robust.”

“Ortrinde, what do you think?”

I held out the sword I was holding to Ortrinde.

On seeing this, the shop owner widened his eyes.

“Is that young lady going to use it?”

“Ah, yes. That’s right.”

“Hmm…Isn’t it too heavy for the young lady?”

Looking at Ortrinde, the owner uttered those words.

…Well, considering her thin arms and legs, it’s enough to make one doubt.

But Orthrinde calmly responded to the tavern owner’s words.

“It’s fine, I am not burdened by this weight.”

Orthrinde lightly swung the sword with one hand.

At the sight, the tavern owner blinked in surprise and then nodded.

“Hmm, that should not be an issue, then.”

After saying that, the tavern owner suddenly put his hand on my shoulder and whispered in my ear.

“…You’ll get kidnapped tonight.”

…Don’t say such a thing.

I already had slight trauma from what occurred the previous night.

Seeing that Orthrinde liked the sword, she immediately purchased it and also reinforced her armor slightly.

She was wearing a leather armor, so they only afforded to add a sturdy steel shield.

When they disposed of the original shield that had a clear bloodstain, the blacksmith owner, who took it, had a strange expression, but they deliberately ignored it.

Niverse Wetlands.

If you leave Hwangdo Sheilak to the south, you reach a place deep in the Aden forest. This is the first place I have visited since embarking on a journey to defeat the demon king in this world.

Well, the journey of defeating the demon king was all about attacking cities occupied by the army of the demon king or their fortresses, and none of that existed in this place.

The existence of this place was first learned in the library.

There’s nothing significant, not even a human dwelling, just the deep swamp-filled wetlands in the deep forest.

And after a few days of travel, when we actually arrived at the swamp beyond the forest, we could realize why people didn’t come here.

“…So terribly hot.”

Simply by passing through a forest, an immense heat was felt.

The sheer humidity, combined with the slightly higher temperature than other areas, created a truly lethal discomfort.

Moreover, every step we took had us stepping into shallow, sticky mud.

There’s no way anyone would want to come here.

“If there’s someone who willingly comes to such a dreadful place, I want to see his face.”

「That would be good.」

“What?”

She responded to my sarcastic remark.

I wondered what she was talking about, looking at Reinforce, but the answer came from an unexpected place.

“Master, there is a life signal ahead. Probably a human.”

“…Really, there’s someone here?

Shocked by the news of a person in a place like this, I moved forward.

And what I found there, really had the form of a person.

“… A woman?”

A figure wearing a robe made of leather was leaning on a tree, asleep.

But, from the curves of her body, visible from the inside of her robe, and her slightly visible face, I could guess she was a woman.

“Is she asleep in such a place?”

“Dehydration symptoms confirmed.”

“……”

She was a castaway.

“Um…where am I?”

“Are you conscious now?”

“What?!”

After giving her some water, the girl who woke up shortly after screamed at the sound of my voice.

But that was only for a moment, after regaining her senses and glancing at me and Ortrinde, she said in a trembling voice.

“Who…who are you?”

“I’m Hans, a wandering traveller. This over here is Ortrinde.”

As I introduced myself, Ortrinde bowed her head slightly.

For a moment, the girl seemed relieved and brushed up her red hair, letting out a sigh. But, she did not lose her vigilant look from her eyes.

“A traveller? In such a place…?”

“Well, sometimes you just want to visit such peculiar places. Why on earth did you get stranded here?”

“Well… I…”

“Who are you to begin with?”

At my question, the girl fell silent as if she was at a loss for words, then stuttered.

“I…I am… my name is… Rushe. From a nearby village, I’m a botanist who came here for plant observation…”

The girl who identified herself as Rushe.

With this, the conditions were met.

No, they should have been met.

The profile skill did not trigger.

And her demeanor, hesitating slightly when revealing her name and identity.

‘She is lying.’

She must be using an alias.

Obviously, her identity is also a lie.

Above all, the clothing under her leather robe.

Though simple in design as it prioritises ease of movement, from the material to the finishing, you could tell at once that it was luxury clothing.

It was not something a common village botanist would wear.

Trying to hide her identity was a clumsy act.

I took a closer look at her.

Her green eyes trembled slightly in anxiety.

She twirled her red hair around her fingers, as if she was advertising her anxiety.

However, I still couldn’t trust her.

It might be the case that she used an alias or concealed her identity due to certain circumstances.

But as long as I didn’t know her earnest intentions, it was impossible for me to completely trust her.

Because without verifying her profile, it was impossible for me to trust anyone completely.