"Hmm~ So delicious! I remember this is the dish from Ayesha's restaurant, right?"

"Yes, there were a lot of adventurers there last time we went, right? That restaurant specializes in dishes that cater to adventurers' tastes."

"I see~ Last time's lunch was delicious too~ Ah, I see! You went to that shop just to get this canned food, and then Ayesha found out about your trip, so you made her cry!"

"……yes."

Perhaps unwilling to discuss the matter, Oscar ate his meat silently. However, Oscar's attitude only ignited Meredith's curiosity, or rather, it made Meredith return to her original self.

"Oh, tell me~ What did Aisha say to you? How did you convince Aisha? Tell me what you said to her back then~"

Mireddy nudged Oscar lightly with her elbow, a smile on her face that looked like she was waiting for a good show.

Oscar pushed his glasses up.

"Milletti, you're incredibly annoying right now, to an indescribable degree. I'm truly relieved now. Please continue to be an annoying girl who deserves a beating."

"Huh? Weird? Ao's reaction wasn't what I expected... No, what did Ao mean? He was calling me worthless, yet his expression was full of love. I don't know how to react..."

Meredith was confused, but Oscar's face still had a gentle expression that was not usually there.

"Ah~uh~right! Let's talk about the town we're heading to next!"

Meredith changed the subject somewhat forcefully.

Oscar continued eating as if nothing had happened and responded:

"The name of the town is Cardea, right? I remember it was the main town in the Borborah Territory of the Chardo United Nations."

Meredi nodded in affirmation as she ate the meat.

This area of ​​the Great Red Desert is the territory of the Shardor United Nations. The Shardor United Nations, commonly known as the "Union," is a composite nation formed by the joining of multiple autonomous territories. These so-called autonomous territories are equivalent to tribal groups living in the desert. They have their own unique cultural customs and laws, and are largely independent of other territories or their leader, the Shardor, and thus enjoy strong autonomy.

These autonomous territories united into one country in order to gain an equal or advantageous position as much as possible against the countries outside the desert.

[Polbolar Territory] is located on the southernmost side of the east and is the autonomous territory closest to [Beruka Kingdom]. Its central city [Caldea] is famous for its textile production.

"Let's start by gathering information. It's rare to come to town, so why not gather information while we look at the clothes?"

"Is this information about the 'Desert Fairy'?"

"Yes, it's the 'Desert Fairy'. I was on my way to the Alliance after receiving this information, but I stopped by Berunega on the way, looking for someone with talent."

"A lot has happened in this trip."

"It's the best detour ever."

Oscar cleared his throat when he heard Meredith speak so naturally.

"According to what you said, ever since joining the Liberator, you've been searching for users of Age of Gods magic, right? You've been scattered across the land, collecting possible rumors as you travel."

"Most of these are just false rumors."

Meredith once said this when she was harassing Oscar in the civilian area.

There weren't many people who could wield Age of Gods magic like himself, but if there were, their immense power would surely attract attention, and with attention came rumors. Perhaps many people, like Oscar, kept it a secret, and there were few direct reports of people using Age of Gods magic. Therefore, the method used by Meredith and the others was to pursue rumors that seemed unbelievable.

Although most of them are just rumors, occasionally one can find talented people who are not at the level of magic of the Age of Gods but are very capable, so this method is still quite useful.

One of the rumors is...

There is a fairy in the Red Desert who will protect those who are lost and send them to a safe place.

It was indeed an unbelievable rumor. Oscar tilted his head and said:

"Besides, why 'fairy'?"

"Maybe a cute little girl?"

Meredith also tilted her head in confusion.

Anyway, because this was a rumor whose truth was unknown, they wanted to go to larger towns to gather intelligence.

"...If only it were a user of Age of Gods magic..."

"I hope it's a healing magic from the Age of Gods, right?"

Oscar muttered to himself, while Meredy added.

Meredith's goal is to search for and recruit those with the power to defy God's will. Oscar's goal, of course, is the same as Meredith's, but he also wants to restore his lost brother and sister to their former selves. No, that's his biggest goal right now.

Oscar felt a little embarrassed that Miledy could understand his thoughts, and adjusted the position of his glasses.

In addition, the orphanage's families and the non-combatants of the "Liberator" organization live in a secret base, which is located in the "Lesin Grand Canyon", a large cave that Milady accidentally discovered when she was the Earl's Daughter.

Although there are still several secret locations, from a security perspective, they moved a base with lower defense capabilities to the [Lesin Grand Canyon].

Because Oscar entrusted the artifact to the family of the orphanage and the members of the "Liberator" organization who occasionally came to report on the latest situation, the attack and defense capabilities of the secret base have been greatly improved.

If Oscar can find a way to cure Dylan and Katie one day, he plans to go to the secret base. In addition to reuniting with his family, he will also create a large number of extremely vicious physical traps.

Any lunatic who dares to attack my family will be punished by physical traps in places where magic cannot be used!

"Um, Oh? Your smile is so scary, it seems like some kind of black aura is spreading."

"oh."

Meredith seemed to have just finished her meal and was looking at Oscar trembling.

Oscar also hurriedly finished the remaining food.

"Well, we've been here a bit too long. It would be hard to find accommodation if we arrived too late."

"This time, we're going to go all out from the start and enjoy this cool desert trip."

The two stood up and resumed their desert journey in the cool air space formed by the parasol and floating ice cubes.

Walking silently in the endless desert.

The tiny grains of sand are blown by the wind, and the expression of the earth is constantly changing, like a "sea of ​​sand".

"Hmm? Meredith, five of them are coming from the right."

"Since I didn't see it, it must have come from underground."

Oscar was looking at the report on the silver tray, while Meredith was looking to the right.

After a while, the Oscar countdown began.

When the countdown reached one, five red scorpions jumped out from the ground.

at the same time.

"—[Calamity]."

The scorpions were knocked to the ground by the gravity magic's overwhelming weight, letting out strange, "chi chi chi" cries. However, there was fine sand underneath, so even if they were pressed down, the sand would act as a buffer, or they would simply sink into the ground.

"Hmm~ Gravity magic really isn't suitable for use in the desert."

Meredi used the combined magic of earth and wind to form a sand blade, and with a wave of his hand, he cut everything in half. The five red scorpions died with faint screams.

"You've been using a lot of gravity magic since a while ago. What's your intention?"

"This is practice, practice. Gravity magic is difficult to control and consumes an astonishing amount of mana, so in order to strengthen and adjust the power, effect, and mana consumption as much as possible, Xiao Mi must practice hard."

Meredith puffed out her chest proudly.

Although she seems to be proficient in her gravity magic, in fact, Miledi is still unable to combine gravity magic with attribute magic. Even if some magic can be activated, she cannot fully control it.

For example, "Black Sky Poverty" can be regarded as the secret of Miledi, but once "Black Sky Poverty" is activated, Miledi cannot stop this magic until the magic power is exhausted unless there are external factors to force the spell to stop.

Black Sky Poverty could devour everything and destroy it. Unable to fully control such a vicious magic, even Meredith herself couldn't help but laugh. If she wasn't careful, she could be devoured and killed.

"I see. That's indeed a very difficult magic to control. It's not so easy to completely control..."

"Speaking of which, Oh, I've been the only one fighting since a while ago. Is it right for a boy to let a girl fight?"

Meredith looked at Oscar coldly.

There are monsters in the Great Red Desert as well. No, it should be said that compared to other areas, there are many monsters here that are both troublesome and powerful.

The red scorpion just now was called the "Desert Assassin" and was originally a powerful monster with both stealth and extremely poisonous properties.

After setting out from the oasis rest area, they were frequently attacked by monsters, but Oscar usually discovered them early and Miledy defeated them immediately like playing whack-a-mole.

Although Mireidi is a strong person, she is also a girl. She seems to be quite resentful about her companions leaving her to deal with it all on her own.

However, Oscar, who was protested, seemed very surprised, as if he didn't know what Meredith was talking about.

"Ah, I'm angry, Mi-chan is angry! Oh! I'm a girl too! It's not necessary, but you should at least express your feelings, like, 'I can't let Mi-ready bear this alone,' or 'Leave it to me.'"

"No, you just said it wasn't necessary. This is just the right thing to do, right? And you want me to treat Meredith like an ordinary girl in town... Haha!"

Oscar's smile seemed to say: Are you kidding me?

Meredith stared at Oscar and said:

"Hey, why were you laughing just now? Oh, please explain."

At this moment, Oscar's silver plate reacted. The silver plate detected a large-scale magical reaction, which was coming here at high speed.

"Miledi, coming from behind. So fast, fifteen seconds."

"..."

"Ten, nine, eight, seven, six, five, four, three, two, one, now is the time—"

Dust erupted, and a monster resembling a giant earthworm—commonly known as a "sandworm"—rushed out from beneath Oscar and Meredy's feet.

The two men retreated apart in an instant, and the sandworm soared high into the air, swooping down between them. Its multiple, rounded teeth, like those of a drilling machine, clattered as it bit, seemingly gnashing its teeth as it missed its prey.

"Hmm? Hmm?"

Oscar couldn't help but feel puzzled as he landed.

As expected, Meredi should have crushed the monster with gravity magic.

(Could it be that she wants to practice her ultimate move?)

Oscar thought so and waved his left hand, and a thin chain instantly flew out of his cuffs.

——Artifact Chain

With Meredith's help, it, like the Black Umbrella, was imbued with gravity magic. Previously, it had to be thrown by force, or moved by using a sensing stone to crawl across the ground like a snake, wrapping itself around its target upon contact. However, it can now fly freely through the air.

Control has also become easier, so now you can operate five chains at the same time. In addition, since they are stored in the waist bag through the sleeves, the maximum length can be 100 meters.

The flying chains made clanging sounds as they wrapped around the sandworm, binding it tightly.

In addition, the second chain shot out at the same time touched the ground under the sandworm, and Oscar used the long-distance chain to transform the sand into metal plates to fix it.

"Meridi! Are you still not well?"

Oscar tied up the sandworm and called out to Meredith loudly.

Meredith didn't reply. For a moment, Oscar wondered if she was injured. But Oscar had just seen her dodge, so he immediately realized that she couldn't be injured.

Then, her figure was caught at the edge of the horizon.

"...Meridi? What are you doing over there?"

In front of her, Meredith lay in the air, her head propped up by one hand, sound asleep. Of course, she was high up, out of reach of the sandworms.

Meredith said with a smile:

"Xiao Mi thought that Ao should also be given a chance to train. That sandworm is a heartfelt gift from Xiao Mi. Eh? What did you say? No need to thank me, we're partners."

It seemed that she was still holding a grudge against the previous conversation and was planning to watch the fight from afar.

Oscar's forehead veins bulged, and he couldn't help but increase the strength of the binding, causing the sandworm to cry out in pain.

"Miledi, this is a battle, not something to joke about. Your excuses are completely illogical. Listen carefully, and let's talk—"

At this moment, the silver plate reacted violently, and countless light spots approached rapidly. Judging from the reaction and speed of the magic, Oscar guessed that they were the sandworm's companions.

"M-Miledi, there are about six more sandworms coming. Stop making trouble and take care of them quickly."

Meredith lay in the air, looking down at Oscar.

"don't want."

She refused with a smile on her face like a grumpy child.

Then, six sandworms suddenly appeared and surrounded Oscar.

They glanced at their bound companions, then turned to Oscar.

You could feel they were angry, and their implication was like, "What have you done to my family?"

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