I still follow the three ss'rak, one from the swamps, two from the mountains. I half-expected them to return to their camp after all, but in the end, they're going around and renewing some marks the swamp ss'rak made a few years ago if I can trust their words.

They're also looking for a good space for the relocation of their camp. Without that non-hero warrior, I would already have engaged them, but that one spells trouble. He's capable of dealing with strong monsters, so whatever the god Muaotef is planning, it's important enough to send capable people. That ss'rak-warrior just crushed another duck, leaving the kill to the hero.

I've heard no further details regarding the intruder in the camp, so it's most likely under control in one way or another. I still suspect it's one of my party members. Their statuses tell me that they're all alive at least. Katarine-san is also well. In terms of numbers, Kenta-kun is also recovering, while Momo looks like she's still in a struggle, but if she could survive it for that long, she will be fine most likely.

The three of them might have done something rash in my situation as humans make decisions based on their emotions. Alfar think things through and aim for the most fun if possible. For me, it doesn't make sense to get out of hiding as long as there is no direct indicator that any of my human friends are in immediate danger.

So far no chance to have fun with the three ss'rak, also no good opportunity to catch the hero to get some information. Of course, I could try to interrogate the swamp-ss'rak, who acts as the guide, but I want to know more than the location of the camp. I want to force that hero to reveal his status to me, I need many more numbers for my research.

We arrive at another open space. I can't just follow them there, so the only choice I have is to stay hidden within the trees and wait until they're entering the next cluster.

This time, the open space is a lake, some posts were placed along the edge of the shore. These are also markers. So this lake is a dangerous spot. It'd be easy to use [Fountain Gun] to push the warrior inside it, though if the monsters come out, it might end up deadly for him.

On the other hand, he's an underling of Muoatef, who put Kenta-kun into danger in the past, and therefore he's something like a second enemy once removed for me. This isn't a prank, after all, this is gathering enemy intelligence, so endangering him for real would be appropriate. Is this the best course of action though?

In times like these, I would like to rely on somebody else, as this seems to be a pain. My personal preference is to make the most out of a situation with the least effort. Using monsters would conform to this, though if things go wrong, I’d end up with even more work.

I use another tactic and set up a mantrap, a necessary skill for the everyday life of an alfr. [Warp Plants] to make a tree bend, some quick knots and everything is ready. Now I step out of my hiding place while the ss'rak are talking about the reptilian monsters that are lurking in that lake, casually approaching them. “This really looks like a dangerous lake.”

“!” The ss'rak hiss while taking battle-stances, then they look at me in wonder, before the first one finally manages to say something: “Huu arr yuu!”

“I'm sorry, but deciphering your words takes too much effort. Hero, could you take over?”

“...you know?”

“I'm the hero sage after all.” Some people might forget it, but that's my title. “So show me your status and I’ll let all of you go.” This is the only way this can go well. “Also, warrior, don't get any closer.” He's shifting his weight bit by bit, relying on my eyes being so bad that I won't notice it. It's only vast distances that are hard for me to see, so noticing minute changes is nothing.

The warrior stares at me with killing intent, ready to unleash everything he has, but unsure if it's a good idea. Some people have their concerns regarding alfar, so I just make use of it.

The hero inquires about something I didn't expect him to do: “Why should I show you my status?” It is a good question indeed, as I have just assumed that he will play along and just do as I said.

I have a counter-question though: “Why shouldn't you?”

“Because it's my stat and you want to see it.”

“Why can't I see it?”

“Then you know my [Attributes] and [Skills].”

“Don't worry about that, it's written in your native language.”

“If that's the case, why do you want to see my status?”

“Because I want to see it.”

“I asked you why.”

“I told you why. Also, [Fountain Gun]!” The warrior just came a bit closer again, so I shoot him without warning, it's not enough to push him into the water though, but his hind-claws aren't good to hold him in that soft ground, so I just shoot two more.

SPLASH! With the sound of him hitting the water, I take some steps back while looking at what kind of monster comes out. Ah, this seems like a reptilian, it has enormous jaws, giant teeth, and a big tongue, which envelops the warrior. “Can I now look at your status?”

Instead of answering me, the hero hurries to the shore, same goes with the guide. Both of them are jumping at the monster while biting and hitting it, though it's too resilient to be damaged that way.

It has a weak spirit though. “If you agree to show me your status, then I might help you with this.” While this monster isn't on the same level as an animal, I'm confident that my [Sleep]-spell will be enough to deal with it despite its flaws.

…they just ignore me. That's why interacting with ss'rak is so difficult, they're incapable of multitasking due to their one-track minds. I have no other choice than to go with the flow.

Step one: Increasing the quantity of monsters. “[Fountain Gun]! [Fountain Gun]!” Some wild shots into the water are enough to draw the attention of more of these water-reptiles. Then I weaken my spirit while relying on my passive spell [Mind Shield] so that the trees around here grow more courageous in their tries to mess up minds while I'm still adequately protected.

Here we are, these opportunistic plants start to use their spirits branches—the part of their spirits that can interact with other spirits—to influence the spirits of the ss'rak. While the swamp ss'rak is capable of deflecting the attack, the mountain-ss'raks aren't. As the plants already know that I'm eight levels above them in terms of [Spirit Magic], they don't even try to mess with me.

Looking at the influenced ss'rak, it's the classic loss of direction. The one inside the monster tongue doesn't even know anymore where the monster is without looking at it directly, while two more of the same kind of monster emerge from the lake.

I observe this a bit, the warrior is about to get eaten, his hard scales are slowly cracking, the other two are way over their small-minded heads, so it's time for me. “[Sleep]!” I use [Empower] to overcome the monster’s mind and overcome its mental resistance. I repeat this process two more times, now all of the monsters are asleep. I also send my own spirit branch to the minds of the mountain-ss'rak, following the plants' spirit branches from there on to the ones holding them hostage. I slightly touch their spiritual centers which makes them realize that they're now under my control as it'd be easy to make them suffer greatly. In the end, they're just plants against an alfr.

I solve the whole mess the ss'raks were in a matter of only a few moments. “Let me ask you again: Would you please show me your status? I also have some other questions.”

Actually, it's a bit sad that I couldn't use the mantrap after all, but seeing these terrified visages is worth it. They know that I ignited and suppressed that battle and that I can do it again if I want to.

Unsurprisingly, the hero silently makes his status-screen visible for others. I still don't know why there is that function in the first place, maybe to compare with your fellow heroes from the same summoning? Otherwise, having different languages without any auto-translator in the text wouldn't make much sense.

Also, this is the first time I've seen this script. “Give me a moment.” I take my portfolio from my backpack and change to the [Bookie]-class to make a copy of it, using [Fast Writing] for speed and [Font Mastery] and [Fine Writing] to make these strange, scratch-like patterns that are most likely words, as clean and standardized as possible. “Now tell me, what it all means.”

After a while, I have everything I want from that hero. He's a hero of Muaotef, who was summoned a year ago, so he's rather new, and from his stats I can conclude that he's weaker than me. This is to be expected, as an initial growth like Kenta-kun's is unusual—it needs a certain recklessness to accomplish—while the growth of Momo was spurted by his.

“So, you were talking about another hero, right?”

“I won't sell him out.”

“So it's a he... Why won't you tell me about it?”

“You've shown your prowess, so I'll tell you about me as honor demands. I won't tell about him, as it would dishonor me.” Honor... he's most likely just trying to hide that he already forgot 98% of the other hero with his small brain.

“This is unfortunate.” Maybe this 'honor'-thing is also the reason, why they didn't even try to resist, which means that it works in my favor in certain situations, and against me with others. “Why are you looking for the center of the swamp?”

“Because the Great One demands it.”

“Why?”

“We're his servants. We don't need to know what he's thinking.” More like, even if he would explain it to them, they would forget it anyway.

“Anything else you can tell me about the center?”

“The natives say that it hosts a big power, a power that seeps into everything here, that attracts the monsters around here, a power changing the land itself into this swamp.” This may be the reason why a god is looking for it, either to use it or to destroy it. Elmli, the goddess who brought me to this world, also used to talk about how the scripts of the God Datien are dangerous for the balance of the world and how Datien uses them for his own means. Therefore she asked the alfar of Aroahenn to summon us and secure them.

This ss'rak-hero was summoned to obtain ten relics, magic items that interact with heroes in any way. He only found the scroll of heroism so far, which is now in Muaotef's possession. It's a relic capable of looking into the status of heroes though it works on every hero just one time. So the power of the swamps may be another relic, seeing how he was sent here even though he's rather weak. Maybe it's more likely for the heroes to prevail if they face the task they're summoned for?

“You have given me something to think about. Where is your camp?”

“I won't tell.” Most likely because of their so-called honor. This is starting to irritate me.

“I really need to know where your camp is, I believe the intruder is a friend of mine.” For some reason, this causes the ss'rak to be even more tight-lipped. “I can see that you're unwilling to speak. As I have taken you prisoner, you will need to follow me. You two stay here, I'll be back for you soon.” All three of them are nodding, their honor is really strange.

The hero follows me into a cluster of trees. Not any group though, as the moment his foot is inside the snare I prepared, I use [Warp Plant] to trigger the plant. He dangles upside down on the tree, while some branches are whipping him the moment all the tension I made them bear while the trap was set is released.

The hero blinks: “What's the meaning of this?”

“We start with the second round. For starters, we use this itching powder, which I will balm into your wounds. Then I'll use some of these.” I show him two of Kenta-kun's stinking bombs. “You don't need to worry, I have a plan. You might not like it though.”

After just some minutes, his cries for mercy and help are echoing inside the swamps in different frequencies. So setting this trap wasn't a waste of time after all.

―○●○―

Stupid curse, stupid wives, stupid swamp, stupid, stupid, stupid! My leg still hurts from the time I almost fell, and my thoughts return time and time again to Crunch, who was so much of an idiot, that he’d rather die than take my gifts.

While the swamp was cold and damp, my innards are burning with rage. This asshole can die for what I care as long as I don't kill him. I mean, I may be the reason why he's so hurt in the first place, but he challenged me, and he refused my good-will, I certainly did enough!

I mean, he hurt me as well! My body has that familiar feeling of being beaten to a pulp, which it just can't get used to, despite the fight with the red bear, the duel with the patriarch, the fall from the etna, the attack of the fourbirds, the battle with monkey-spider boss, the combat against Hoshibashi and Yoshimura, and the hunt of the Crusaders... Why am I still alive? This may be one of the greatest mysteries to me.

Somehow it irritates me even more! I mean, I should be glad that I'm still alive, but at this point, I should have been dead! I mean, it's not that I'm amazingly lucky. Otherwise, I wouldn't be in these situations in the first place.

It's also not like Rine is always there... actually, she was only there for the monkey-spider boss mob, all the other hard fights happened when she was not around. OK, this means that I'm getting into bad situations whenever she's not around, huh?

No, I'm getting into bad situations because of her. Most of this wouldn't have happened if she had just played along with returning to her home.

Yet why do I keep getting out of these situations? … … …

Is the reason the hero-system? It certainly plays into it, the me before coming here would have died two hundred times over. What else? … Ah, I see. I was childish again. It's so obvious why I survive all of that: I can get shit done.

I was so bummed about how Rine outdoes me in so many ways, that I totally started to forget that I was already beating the odds before I even met her. I was a month on my own, raising my level like a madman, I faced the patriarch without any help... well, technically the help of Kyou-san, but that's only because the patriarch cheated and switched the backpacks.

Tons of situations would have ended badly without the girls, I have to agree and accept that. Maybe, I should even feel more thankful to them at times, but in the end, if it were someone other than me, they wouldn't have survived it.

Maybe some of the stuff Rine says about me is right, perhaps I'm at least half as special as she believes me to be. I can allow myself to feel that little pride, right? I've just faced a ss'rak-warrior who was out to kill me, someone strong. Yes, I face some hard shit, but it's not that I'm weak, I'm just strong enough to realize how little I know about the world and the truly powerful beings.

Somehow I feel... better. I don't know exactly what has changed since a minute ago, but everything is somehow better, I feel calmer. I sense how the rage from before is subsiding, something has changed inside of me.

Am I back? Or am I just through a tunnel and the ride is still going on? Maybe a bit of both, it's not like emotions are that easy to figure out. At least I can say that I feel better than before. Also, that I really need to look for my so-called wives who cause more trouble than they're worth.

Let's check their status. Kyou-san, semi-bad shape and bleeding, and she's with that witch, though I think it was a bad idea. Rine, she's rather OK, I don't know what she's doing right now. Ara-san, still no real answer; it looks like she is just spending some MP, but her HP are fine...

I was following Rine's tracks before butting heads with Crunch, but I lost them due to that interference. I'm also not sure where I am now. I've lost all leads. Can I do something? Did any [Skill] appear in my status-screen? No. Dammit, hero-system, work with me.

Isn't there any way to... There may be. The one thing I don't want to rely on too much, but in this case, this might be the only way. “I don't know if you can hear me, but you observe me, right? Not only me, them as well... Otherwise, you wouldn't have known what they were doing while I was burned by that [Judgment]. So tell me, what can you do to help me find them.” While speaking these words, I look at the ring on my finger. The Lion's Wedding Ring.

In some strange way, it connects me with the three girls, making them my wives, something that should only be possible by [Divine Magic] and has some supernatural effects, like that all children from marriage are born healthy. So I think that this ring may give me a way to find the girls.

...no answer, huh? “Why? Why can't you just talk to me! There is something in there, right!? Answer me!”

No answer is given. After all that time I had to endure it, the one time I really, really want to rely on the curse, it turns out to be in vain.

“You know what? I don't need you and getting rid of you is the best thing that can happen to me!” It may not hear me, but I'm pissed at it nonetheless. Maybe inside this ring there is just a shitty AI, which would explain why it has so many mistakes in perceiving my actions. It's not just overly optimistic, it's simply plain dumb and incapable of reading my needs or the mood.

I'm back where I was. No leads, no time to waste. While the curse won't help me, it will undoubtedly drag me down soon by forcing me to change into [Student] and therefore losing almost everything that keeps me alive in here and the means to find my party members as well, as shitty as my odds are right now.

In the end, fighting Crunch was a waste of time. I'm also tired and would like to sleep, but I'm not safe yet. I need to press on, otherwise, this swamp will get me.

What can I do to turn things around? I don't know. What I know is that if I don't start moving, nothing will change. I can make up a new plan while walking. I may also find Rine's tracks again this way.