Spiritfolk.
They were a race that resembled humans, yet were fundamentally different.
They possessed high magical aptitude and intelligence, outlived humans, and most of them had features considered beautiful by human standards. In ancient times, they were even worshipped as gods. If not for their lower Mana Material absorption rate and reduced fertility compared to humans, they would surely be dominating this world by now.
I didn't know all the details, but the relationship between Spiritfolk and human society was complex, shifting with the times.
There had been eras when they were revered, and eras when they were despised and wars were fought. Currently, their relationship with humans was reasonably good—no town would openly discriminate against Spiritfolk—but opportunities to encounter one in a human city were still rare. Even in the Imperial Capital Zebuldia, a major metropolis, you'd hardly ever see one. Many people had probably never laid eyes on a living Spiritfolk.
The Beginning Footprint counted among its members a Party composed entirely of Spiritfolk—Star's Holy Thunder. That was an exceedingly rare case. They were proud, and even living among humans, they refused to bend to human ways. They were the polar opposite of me, someone who'd prostrate himself before anyone.
And the homeland of those Spiritfolk remained, to this day, a mysterious nation.
The origin of all Spiritfolk—Yggdra.
A country whose name everyone knew, yet no one had ever visited, yet which certainly existed.
It was a regular feature in *Monthly Lost Inn*, an occult magazine that compiled urban legends and such. I'd looked into it a few times out of interest myself. Of course, I never thought the day would come when I could actually go there— I asked Citry and the others to retrieve Luke's stone statue, then returned to the Clan Master's room.
When I told Eva what had happened, her eyes went wide and she spoke in a small voice.
"Yggdra, you say… If that's true, then… it would be an extraordinary feat."
It might have looked like a muted reaction, but after knowing Eva for several years, I could tell she was thoroughly stunned.
And with good reason. Lucia had told me as much: humans could not enter Yggdra, the nation of the Spiritfolk. No—it went even further. Once a Spiritfolk left the country, re-entry was said to be extremely difficult.
As far as I knew, no human Hunter had ever reached Yggdra. High-level Hunters were the type who, the moment you told them they couldn't go somewhere, became desperate to get in. The fact that this place still remained unvisited spoke volumes about the country's security measures.
And incidentally—it went without saying, but Yggdra lay deep within a primeval forest, a realm of phantom beasts and magical creatures that would give even high-level Hunters a hard time.
For a Treasure Hunter, being the first to set foot in uncharted territory was a lifelong aspiration.
Eva looked so adorably flabbergasted that I couldn't help but play the hard-boiled card.
"Imagine that—the day I challenge a nation not even the highest-level Hunters could reach…"
Well, "challenge" was putting it strong. According to Elisa, they were supposed to *invite* me. And if they didn't? I simply wouldn't go.
I was curious about the legendary Spiritfolk nation, but I wasn't about to challenge forbidden territory that even high-level Hunters couldn't reach. Spiritfolk weren't exactly known for their sense of humor, and they were absurdly powerful. On top of that, their specialty—magic—excelled most of all in the field of defense.
"If you need anything, I'll prepare it."
"Ah, thanks. But I'll probably be fine. I've got this, after all."
"…Hmph. I don't doubt that part, but…"
I tapped my own fingertip against my head with a cocky grin, and Eva pressed her fingers to her temples with a long sigh.
Joking aside, Citry was handling the preparations. The only thing I needed to think about was what souvenirs to bring.
Apparently, the powerful curse laid on Luke could only be broken by someone exceptional among the Spiritfolk. And when it came to making important people angry, I was second to none.
I'd have to prepare a suitable gift. Even if it turned out to be unnecessary caution, it was better to err on the side of politeness. Fortunately, our Clan had a Spiritfolk Party—Star's Holy Thunder—so I was confident in my ability to pick the right gift.
Then Eva offered a cautious suggestion.
"Information on Yggdra is something everyone wants. The Spiritfolk are famously tight-lipped, so if we could provide some, it would count as a merit toward reaching Level 9."
"Merit? …I'm not interested. Not interested at all."
"Right…"
Why should I have to do something that dangerous? There was nothing to gain from earning the Spiritfolk's enmity. I'd only just gotten on good terms with Lapis and the others…
Even if they pardoned it, I had no intention of bringing back information. If I racked up merit, Gaark would try to promote me to Level 9. Apparently, as branch chief of the Explorer's Guild, having a Level 9 come from your branch was a great honor.
It hadn't even been that many years since I was made Level 8… I never cared about the glory of being a Hunter in the first place, but reaching Level 9 would mean getting into a feud with that old hag who'd burn my stuff.
Something suddenly occurred to me, and I looked up to confirm with Eva.
"Oh, Eva, are you coming too?"
"!?" ……N-no, I'm not going."
I see… That was a shame. Having sensible Eva along would have put my mind at ease…
If Elisa was telling the truth, we'd be the ones being invited this time. Even if it existed in a magical realm, it shouldn't be that dangerous. Even ordinary people could go—or rather, I didn't *want* to go somewhere that ordinary people couldn't reach…
"I wish Lapis and the others would come along too… With just Elisa, she'd do her own thing and I'd be a little on edge."
"Star's Holy Thunder is still out of the capital because of the 'Marine Lament' incident, you know. We haven't heard when they'll be back…"
"Ugh, what a shame…"
Franz's operation to summon the Spiritfolk sorcerer had been massive, requiring traffic regulations throughout the capital.
They should have been informed, but it wouldn't be easy for them to return so quickly. They were never around when you needed them.
While lost in these thoughts, I let out a huge yawn—when suddenly, the door to the Clan Master's room burst open with force. A shrill voice pierced my brain.
"Hah, hah… H-hey! Weak human! You—cut it out, already!"
"Ohh…? Perfect timing…"
The one who stormed in was Klyus Argen, a member of Star's Holy Thunder—the very group I'd just been talking about.
She wore her usual robe, but carried a large bag on her back. Had she been running? Her hair was disheveled and she was out of breath.
Her feet were caked in mud and her robe was spattered with droplets, yet even in this state she looked like something out of a painting. Being a Spiritfolk really was unfair.
Klyus staggered up to me and slammed both hands down on the desk in front of my wide eyes.
"P-perfect timing, my foot!! Hah, hah…"
"Weren't you supposed to be helping Franz and heading back into the city?"
"I… I was on my way back, but I got the most outrageous message and made a beeline right back here! Weak human—you! You found a cursed spirit stone, didn't you! What's the meaning of this!"
Tears welled in her eyes as Klyus screamed at me from point-blank range. But having been yelled at by countless people over the years, I had to say—the intimidation factor just wasn't there.
Well, saying I "found" it was generous—I'd been chased by the thing, but… Come to think of it, hadn't Klyus mentioned something about a cursed spirit stone at the church? It seemed that among the Spiritfolk, that gem was something special.
Unfortunately, I'd already given the gem to Elisa, so I couldn't hand it over to Klyus. But I had something even better to offer.
I clapped my hands once and, with a beaming smile, addressed Klyus, who flinched.
"Oh, that thing. Heh heh… I don't have the spirit stone anymore, but I've got something even better. Let me show you."
"S-something better? What do you mean?"
Of course it was something better. And unlike that cursed spirit stone, this something wasn't trying to kill me.
I stood up and gestured with a come-hither wave, leading the blinking Klyus over to the corner of the room, where I'd left Mimik-kun. Upon seeing Mimik-kun—a perfect treasure chest, exactly as I'd imagined—Klyus furrowed her brow.
"A treasure chest… I mean, it *might* be something good, but what does that have to do with anything right now?!"
"Ah, I'd love to put Klyus inside, but she's too heavy to fit. Won't someone help me out?"
"!?" Weak human, what are you suddenly—I'm not heavy, I—"
Before Klyus could finish, arms sprouted from Mimik-kun and in one swift motion, *chomp*—Klyus was dragged inside. The whole thing took only a few seconds.
Eva, who had been watching the exchange in silence, went rigid and rushed over in a panic.
"Wh-what are you doing!? "
"Turns out Mimik-kun has an automatic storage function. Isn't that thoughtful?"
It would have been perfect if the opening were large enough to fit something bigger, but I shouldn't be greedy. The current function alone already overturned several common sense principles.
You must've been shocked, Klyus. As of now, Mimik-kun's ambush success rate was one hundred percent.
Honestly, terrifying. If only she could also freely exit from the inside, it'd be perfect…
"I-should probably let her out soon…"
"Ah, right, I was—oh!!"
"!? Wh-what is it? Is something wrong?"
I'd realized I'd forgotten something—I'd been meaning to ask Tino how to use Kaa-kun, and it slipped my mind entirely.
Kaa-kun had potential on par with Mimik-kun, though maybe that was overselling it.
I reached for Mimik-kun's lid to let Klyus out. That was when a cold voice cut in.
"I heard from Franz. Thousand Transformations—you obtained the spirit stone in question and handed it over to Nomad, it seems."
Through the door Klyus had left ajar strode Lapis and the other members of Star's Holy Thunder. Each of them possessed outstanding beauty, and their leader Lapis—who usually gave off a cool impression—now radiated a coldness beyond anything I'd seen.
Lapis and the others must have turned back just like Klyus, yet neither their clothing nor their hair was out of place.
Maybe Klyus was just… a little bit hopeless.
But now wasn't the time for that. It wasn't just Lapis—every member's gaze was frozen solid.
Star's Holy Thunder had helped me out numerous times. I couldn't afford to antagonize them over a misunderstanding.
I wrung my hands as I approached Lapis.
"W-well, it was just a coincidence that Lapis and the others weren't around, so…"
"Hmph… I won't ask where you obtained it. What you do with the spirit stone is your business. But deliberately driving us out of the capital to carry out your scheme—scheming and cunning. You've done something quite amusing."
"……You left on your own, you know?"
Besides, I hadn't even obtained the spirit stone myself. And the fact that Lapis and the others had been absent was a blow to me too.
If Star's Holy Thunder had stayed in the capital, the whole mess might have been contained early on, and Luke might never have turned to stone…
Hearing my perfectly logical rebuttal, Lapis glared daggers at me. It seemed this ran deeper than I'd thought.
I brushed my hands together and flashed Lapis a hard-boiled grin, looking up at her.
Oh well. Guess it was time to bring out my signature prostration for the first time in a while.
§ § § The gemstone, carefully nestled inside the box, was lifted out and inspected.
Its color was a translucent red. Gazing into it gave the sensation of being pulled inside—a possible sign of the gem's malevolent power.
After a thorough examination, Riz blinked.
"Hmm, a Shero curse stone, huh… It just looks like a regular gemstone."
"Right now, the curse is only inactive. The sorcery of His Majesty Shero is on another level entirely from ordinary curses."
"When they say 'cursed spirit stone,' it really is famous, you know. We'd heard it went missing, but to think it was in the capital…"
At Elisa's words, Citry spoke with a serious expression.
The recent string of curse-related incidents had been nothing but surprises.
A demon sword that ensnared the hearts of Sword Saint disciples, a black World Tree that nullified all magic, a forbidden potion that had destroyed nation after nation, and the most vicious curse weapon ever created—one that the Holy Light Church had once given up purging. Any one of these, singled out, would have thrown the entire capital into turmoil.
Yet all of those cursed artifacts paled in comparison to the cursed spirit stone. Both the scale of devastation and the level of infamy were incomparably greater.
This gemstone contained the will to curse and kill every last human alive. It had once been a disaster unto itself. Though the casualties had stopped at some point for reasons unknown, some experts maintained that if it had continued unchecked, humanity would have been wiped out.
"The curse was active. It's hard to believe it was in the capital the entire time."
"But they managed to suppress a top-tier curse remarkably well… Even our attacks barely scratched it."
"Mm…"
Lucia's observation drew a nod from Anthem.
Normally, conventional attacks were ineffective against curses, but this one had been exceptionally powerful. It had completely ignored the strikes of the capital's most renowned Hunters. With enough time, a weakness might have been found—but by then, there would certainly have been many dead and wounded.
Elisa spoke with her usual drowsy expression.
"I improvised. Everything… was thanks to Ku."
"Hmm. Glad it worked out. The real problem is Luke, isn't it?"
"Potions didn't work, and like Elisa said, this doesn't seem like ordinary petrification."
Petrification came in several varieties. If it were purely physical, a potion could reverse it. But this was far beyond that scope.
It was the most vicious curse—one that repelled the purification of Anthem Smart, who possessed among the strongest healing power in the Imperial Capital's Church. Luke was the only one affected, but even if it had been Riz or Lucia, petrification would likely have been unavoidable.
At Citry's words, Elisa gave a small nod and spoke with an expression more serious than anything she'd ever shown before.
"An immense amount of will was poured into this curse. The only ones who can break it are sorcerers on par with His Majesty Shero. We'll likely need to meet the ruler of Yggdra—the Spiritfolk royalty. If we can't, he will remain stone forever."