Chapter 193 – Advance Steadily, Journey Through the Sky

Сhina is vast!!

I keер having to stоp intermittеntlу tо аvоid hitting mоuntains, and I might nеed to dо it оver tеn timеs mоrе оften thаn in Jaрan.

Mауbе I’m bеing a bit toо cаutious…?

No, no.

Whеn уour life is on the linе, I dоn’t see the point in bеing bоld.

And so, after stoррing dozens оf times, I finаllу mаnаged to cross Сhina.

Wow.

Тhе еntire cоuntrу hаs undergonе Dungeonizаtion!!

Isn’t it insane that suсh а huge natiоn hаs cоmpletеly fallen intо a Dungеоn?

I’ve already sеnt a соnsidеrablе number of rероrts to the Lаbyrinth Мinistrу.

Тhеу’ve еvеn bеen соntacting me with messages like, “Wh-what is this?!”

And just as I was about to leave China…

Someone came flying through the sky.

What’s this, what’s this!

People can fly while wearing something like a kimono?!

“You there!”

“Yeees!”

“You appear to be either a celestial being like myself or a Magic user. That electronic device… might you be a Streamer?”

“Indeed I am! So you’re a Hermit Sage?”

“Ah, that is correct.”

He looks like an old man, but his skin is glossy and his voice is full of vigor.

So Hermit Sages really do exist.

Fugen Shinjin, a Hermit Sage from Mount Kunlun.

He explained that as China began to place less importance on such spiritual beliefs, the mystical power there waned.

As a result, Mount Kunlun apparently shifted to what you might call a fantasy world, where they lived peacefully… but when he came to take a look, the entire country was gone.

“To think such an invasion could occur… in just about thirty years.”

“The Dungeonization started around thirty years ago, you see.”

“Wh-what a tragedy… The world’s level of mystery is now equal to when we roamed these lands. To lose mystery in such a world… this country has become the very embodiment of that…”

Fugen Shinjin seemed sorrowful.

“I’ve already contacted the relevant department in my country, so I think help will arrive before long.”

“Oh? The land of Yamato. So that country still exists without abandoning mystery… I beg of you. The demonic presence covering this country has now reached a level where even we Hermit Sages find it difficult to intervene…”

“That serious?!”

I ended up hearing some valuable information.

He said they would share this story with various celestial realms and work on a plan to dispatch younger Hermit Sages to collaborate with humans and reclaim China.

I hope they succeed!

And with that, I parted ways with Fugen Shinjin.

He gave me some sort of Talisman.

“I sense a powerful demonic presence along your path. Use this Talisman to avoid it.”

“Thank you!”

Now, combined with the Ancient Witch’s Talisman, I have two protective items.

That’s reassuring~!

‘He was a person with considerable power, wasn’t he? A human who transcends humanity—to think such people exist in this world too! It’s a different approach from Witches, I suppose.’

Flota also seemed intrigued.

I made an acquaintance with a Hermit Sage.

By the way, I heard that in Japan, this person is sometimes called Fugen Bosatsu.

He must be quite an important figure.

Spice has heard of him too.

And so, from China to the skies above Mongolia.

No need to worry about mountains anymore!

I flew straight across from the steppes to the desert!

It seems Mongolia has become an ordinary city too, not quite the nomadic image I had.

After passing through Mongolia, it’s finally Central Asia.

So many mountains!!

I move while stopping frequently.

“Somehow, we’ve already been flying for three hours! Let’s have lunch…”

I stop in mid-air and eat the onigiri and other things I brought.

The tea is delicious~.

‘The fact that we could come this far in three hours is thanks to the power of Flight! If it were an airplane, it would take a day with detours and riding air currents.’

“That’s really true! Oh, someone climbing the mountain spotted us. Hellooo!”

When Spice waved, they waved back.

They probably thought it was a mountain mirage or something.

“Spice can travel like this, but I wonder if Windy is okay? Well, since she’s in America, it’s probably much better than here.”

‘When it comes to flying, Snow White is a specialist on par with me! Her personality is one thing, but her skills are solid!’

‘If it were an aerial battle, even Flota would lose, you know.’

‘I would not lose, grrr!!’

Don’t thrash around in mid-air!

It seems Windy is nothing to worry about, which is a relief.

After finishing lunch, Spice resumed traveling.

After all, it’s halfway around the Earth!

Of course it’ll take time!

I keep moving in a zigzag pattern.

Avoiding mountain ranges and flying over towns as much as possible.

I’m probably being detected on flight radars here and there, but since I disappear the moment I start flying, I haven’t been intercepted at all.

“Come to think of it, even though we’ve been flying for about four and a half hours, it’s still morning.”

‘We’re moving in a similar direction to the sun! Not only is the local time not changing, it’s actually rewinding!’

“Oh, right! Now that you mention it, the sun is lower than when we started!”

It’s about to shift from morning to dawn.

My sense of time is getting messed up~.

‘Master, we’ve passed through Central Asia, you know~’

“Eh, really!? That was faster than I thought!”

Mentaris, who was checking the map with Floppy.

I’m grateful he handles tasks like this.

‘From here, it’s Eastern Europe, you know.’

‘We’re getting close to the Witch of Colors’ base. Be careful~’

‘Whoa! From here on, it’s battle time!!’

‘Mmm~! My arms are tingling!!’

The Grimoires suddenly burst into commotion.