Magan to Dangan o Tsukatte Isekai o Buchinuku!

“Well, then we’ll have to decide which way to head. Which do you think is better, the forest or the mountains……?”

Ataru, who had let go of her hand, asked Milan the question. He asked her because he thought she would be able to make a better decision than Ataru and Caro, who were not familiar with the geography of the area.

“Well, I think the danger level is lower in the forest. Because the monsters in the forest are not that strong and the giant wolf-like monster in question did not attack, it would be safer to go this way.”

With her hand on her chin and looking a little troubled, Miran expressed her thoughts based on the information she had gathered so far.

“I see. Then we’ll head for the forest. Caro is okay with that, too, right?”

“Yes, I understand. I’m looking forward to seeing what kind of monster it is!”

Caro, who had no particular objection to Ataru’s decision, was now looking forward to seeing the monster.

“It’s that easy,…… No, I’m sure the two of you would be fine no matter which one you went with……. Both of them are very credible, in case you were wondering. The people who brought in the eyewitness information are reasonably trustworthy.”

Ataru was okay with the information being wrong, but he was glad to hear that it was credible.

“We’ll go to the forest and come back here once we’ve finished our investigation. How should I contact Miran then?”

Since she hid her true identity within the guild, Ataru confirmed the flow of information upon his return.

“Umm, that is a problem. I’m just a lowly staff member in the guild, Miran, so it’s not like adventurers can ask for me by name……. Well, I’ll give you a map to my house, and you can come there. If it’s night, I’m there every day.”

Milan smiled bitterly, and then, after a moment of thinking, she drew a map on a blank piece of paper that she had retrieved from somewhere.

“Oh, it’s good.”

Milan’s map was so easy to understand that Ataru, who was watching her, couldn’t help but praise her for it.

“I used to enjoy drawing a little in the past…….”

With a touch of embarrassment, Miran finished the map while revealing a surprising side of herself.

“It’s done! Now please take this one. This is the route from the guild to my house. Is it good?”

With a satisfied nod, Ataru and Caro accepted the map that Milan presented to them.

“Wow! With this, we should be able to get there without getting lost.”

The map they had received before was rough and they had gotten lost on their way to Franphilia’s house, so they felt the difference in quality between the two maps had an impact.

“Well, we should be on our way. The sooner we leave, the fewer people will be able to witness the monsters.”

(Please read the original translation on bit.ly/ShadowGarden1)

Considering that the more time that passes, the higher the chances that people will see the monsters went up, so they decided to leave early.

“Yes, but please do not overdo it. Many adventurers tend to do reckless and idiotic things. Nonetheless, an adventurer’s livelihood depends on it.”

Milan knew that she was the one who had made the request, but she still hoped that the two would return safely.

“Of course, I’ve never recklessly fought a battle in my life.”

This was true in a way. Ataru had experienced several battles with powerful demons and large numbers of them, but in all of them, he had never thought for a second that he would lose.

“Well, yes. There have certainly been powerful enemies, but Ataru-sama has managed them all…….”

Next to him, Caro was asking, “What about that one? What about this?”[1] That’s what she thought of until now, but in the end, Ataru was active in all of them and left behind results, so she couldn’t help but agree with a wry smile.

“That’s great. But we don’t know if it will be the same this time, so please be careful.”

Ataru was full of confidence, and Caro affirmed it.

Milan was sure that these two would be fine, but still, she added a word of caution.

“I appreciate your warning. Please do wait for our report, Milan.”

With that, Ataru quickly got up and left the restaurant, followed by Caro and Milan.

“I want to reiterate, please come back safely, both of you.”

“Yes, thank you for your concern! Then, Ataru-sama, let’s go!”

But Caro’s attention had already turned to the forest monster, and she was pushing Ataru to go quickly.

“Hey, Caro, I get it, I get it, so don’t push me!”

Ataru was pushed by the surprisingly strong Caro and headed for the forest without being able to give a good answer to Milan.

“Ataru-sama, I’m looking forward to it!”

After walking for a while, Caro released Ataru and was truly delighted to meet such a rare monster so soon.

“I hope this monster is a holy beast or similar. Even if it isn’t, if it’s an interesting monster, it might not be a bad idea to make a contract with it.”

The two then boarded a carriage and set off for the forest.

The forest is not far from the city and will soon be reached in a few hours.

“Is it this forest? ……”

The two stared intently at the entrance to the forest and looked ahead. There was no sign of anything unusual in the forest, it was just like any other forest.

“Is that monster here? The atmosphere is the same as any other forest. It doesn’t seem to have changed at all.”

Ataru was disappointed that he could not sense any strange presence in the forest. He had expected a special atmosphere in a forest where there may be a holy or spiritual beast.

“Anyway, let’s go to the place where the sighting was reported.”

The destination was the deepest part of the forest, according to the documents that Milan gave them.

“I think we should leave the carriage here in case something happens inside. We’ll go on foot.”

“Yes, sir!”

The two tied the carriage to a tree at the end of the road, gave the horse a pat, and stepped into the forest.

Footnotes:

[1] My brain has been failing me lately… please help me out with this one: 隣でキャロはあれは？　これは？