Guickcure rose to a yellow relationship status.
【Blow Strengthening】 A skill that makes the whole body bounce like a spring and jumps over, giving damage to multiple enemies. Give medium damage to one enemy line. Required work points: 5
Same as the old one, but more damage.
Strangely enough, Lorimleara levelled up too. I thought you needed a nightly visit for that, but guess not.
【Rotating Payment】 A technique of damaging multiple enemies by pounding enemies with powerful armor of Lorimulea. For all enemies of avant garde, medium damage. Required work points: 7
She can now attack all enemies in the front row in a single turn.
This leaves only Suu in our party green...
I decided to go for Sandrake since the dialogue there felt mildly interesting.
Sandrake, are you there?
Oh! Jamrock, is it? Come in!
A merry-sounding voice greeted me from inside the room.
Heya! Don't leave me idle so much! My body's going to weaken.
...Sorry.
...I wasn't expecting a serious answer to that.
...Really?
...You need to do something about that overly serious attitude of yours.
By the way, Jamrock. If you're not busy, how about killing time with me?
Mm... Right...
- Stay to talk.
- Leave for today.
Right... I guess I could stay for a bit.
Yeah.
................
Mm? What's up?
Ah, nothing much. I was just thinking that, if I had a big brother, it'd be something like this.
Hahhahhah! That's a good thought!
But wouldn't having a big brother like me be a big bother?
:whistles:
You think so? You seem of the type who'd take care of others.
Well... Nah... Actually, I have a little sister at home...
Oh? That's new to me.
She's ten years younger than me. When she was finally starting to understand her surroundings, I was already busy with my job.
A nubile little sister? Why haven't you introduced us already?
Every time I go back home, she says "You're making me worry all the time" or the like to me. Well, with this line of work, that's not surprising...
Yet, I still can't stop doing this job of mine. I can't say I'm a good big brother to her.
...If she's worrying about you... That means you are a good big brother.
...Heheh, aren't you just trying to butter me up?
~~~
If you weren't one, she wouldn't worry about you, right?
Well, that's nice if true...
By the way, don't you have any siblings yourself, Jamrock?
Sandrake added hastily, as if to hide his embarrassment.
...No, I don't.
...But, well, I did have someone who was like a big sister to me...
Ah, right... Tim Timaya, was it?
...Yeah.
A tinge of pain hit my heart.
It seems I've lost everything already...
...What do you mean? Tim Timaya's still...
No, I meant that -- I was thinking that those days would go on forever back then.
...Alrighty then, Jamrock. If you could go back to those times, what are you going to do then?
..................
Hmm...
If I could go back to that day...
I'd return to Zaurusride in any way possible, I'm sure, and protect Dad, and Mum, and Tim Timaya...
...The enemy there was pretty formidable, no? Would you go back, even if it meant that you'd die?
...Yes. Even if I'd die.
...Then, I'm of the opinion that it was a good thing that you weren't in the village that day.
Don't make fun of this! I'm not telling you this as a joke...
I suddenly raised my voice.
Er, 'don't make fun of this' is a really poor translation, but I can't find an equivalent with the correct tone, which should be roughly one step away from swearing.
................
Sandrake stood looking there at me for a while, and then finally opened his mouth.
Listen, Jamrock.
Sandrake started to speak, strangely in a tone that said that he really wanted me to understand what he was about to say.
If you wanted to protect them so much that you yourself would die for it, do you mean that they were that important to you?
...Yeah.
Your father and mother, the ones you think so highly of, I'm sure would prefer not to have been saved.
.......................
They wouldn't even hope that their kid would save them. They'd rather save you any time possible.
...That's what being a parent is like.
.....................
Well, there are some deadbeat parents around too, but I guess yours weren't like that?
Mm... Yeah, they weren't...
But...
...Hm?
...I'm still thinking that you're indeed a good big brother...
...Well...
...Hey, Jamrock.
Mm?
Let's handle this Order thing.
Yeah... Of course.
Just don't slip up somehow and die on the way. I don't want that.
...That's an interesting way of putting it.
GT: Do not tell me a lot about the noise.
Heheh, if someone like you ends up dead, my life won't have the same ring to it.
...I'll take that as a compliment.
Hahah! See you later!
Priest says:
I think that you actually acted in a positive light.
Also, in my assessment, you handled the situations calmly.
Sleep.
...Phew...
I breathed a deep sigh as I laid down on the bed.
Two more days, eh...
It irritated me that we still did not know the location for the ceremony.
Tim Timaya... Minvi... Where on earth are you?
Come to think of it...
Today... When Saraii was about to kill me...
Suddenly, out of nowhere, the roar of gunshots. And then, Saraii dead on the ground.
................
The scene I saw in Old Comet crossed my mind.
..................
That was the only time I've seen guns recently.
I wonder, did that have some sort of meaning?
Or... was it just a coincidence?
I can't imagine guns to be easy to acquire, in the first place...
Who... on earth would...?
Tim Timaya...?
I felt that it was a bit of a leap to make, but if we assume that she needs to conceal herself to help, then it would make sense that she or her messenger would...
..................
After reflecting on it for a bit, I eventually laid the thought to rest.
There's just not enough information to work on. If the best conjectures I can come up with are no better than mere guesses, it is best to abandon the thought.
Anyway... We need to find the location for the ceremony by tomorrow, or our whole journey will come to nothing.
GT: Anyway ... If it is one day tomorrow, if you do not know the location of the ceremonial venue, everything will be attributed to the foam ...
I decided to try sleeping, for tomorrow's sake...
All right, let's head to the chapel to prepare for the departure.
Good morning, Jamrock-san.
...Yeah.
One more day left... We need to find a lead today...
About that. I think we can ask a contact of me and Tim Timaya. She's called Elimiran.
Elimiran?
Yes. She is an old claw lady living in the hamlet of Shielmunai, not far from here... She should be keeping contact with Tim Timaya.
That's very reassuring if true...
We arranged a meeting for today beforehand for a situation like this.
You came surprisingly well prepared.
We must not fail, that's why...
...That's right.
All right, that's our last hope then. Let's head there then.
So, what is this hamlet of Shielmunai like?
Yes. It is a fairly large hamlet of claw people, surrounded by a forest.
In the hamlet, there is a large bottomless marsh, and on its bank, there is a stone mansion.
The stone mansion is free to access, and the arrangement is to meet Elimiran, our contact, there.
All right... We need to get some information on the ceremony's location, no matter what it takes!
Not sure how you can have marshland halfway up a mountain, but whatever.