size :
Ｇ’ｚOpen
Butcher Demon Chapter 333 Meteor Lake
After constant, move. Camp. Move. Camp. Move――.
Our journey was finally coming to an end.
At one point, as the forest cleared, a hilly expanse spread out before us.
Big, gentle slopes covered in thick greenery greeted us. The wind swept through the grassy field.
Crossing the meadow, there were paths leading to the top of the hill. Some buildings were scattered around where the slope met. A settlement.
"It's here~~!"
Kyo stretched and excitedly looked back at me.
It might be unrelated, but watching girls stretch is nice. They expose their chests, armpits, and stomachs without any defense, making delightful sounds. It's interesting how they don't seem to realize how guys might see them right now.
"That's Meteor Lake, Gevaudan-san!"
Meteor Lake, supposedly the biggest city in Hyperborea. Our destination.
...But not as fancy as it sounds.
At first glance, it looked like a basic settlement on top of the hill. There weren't many buildings, and the weird sound from the hill bothered me.
"Lame."
Expressing my honest opinion, Kyo chuckled, "Nufufufu."
"Everyone, don't tell him yet. Gevaudan-san doesn't know."
Immediately after, surrounded by a chuckle that seemed to carry hidden meaning. Everyone was watching over me with warm eyes.
"?"
Feeling a bit awkward, I let Kyo lead me up the hill.
As the path gradually widened, I started encountering other Mifosis people. With Butcher and a pickup truck at the forefront. They all looked at me with curiosity.
Feeling the presence of more people, I felt a burden lifting from my shoulders.
Survival time was over. Finally, I felt free. Despite all the challenges, bringing this many people here safely was pretty moving. Each mission's success made me feel good. My steps were lighter.
Finally, we reached the top of the hill.
The sight that greeted me there left me speechless.
On the other side of the hill spread a massive crater.
A ridiculously huge crater, like a god had scooped out the earth with a giant spoon to create this thing.
Overlooking the heart of the crater, water stretched as far as the eye could see. The expansive lake reflected countless sunbeams, making my eyes hurt a bit. At the center of the crater, a small, lush island stands out.
Against the background of the clear blue lake, you could see groups of white birds flying, showing how big the crater was. The mysterious pull radiating from the view almost sucked me in.
The origin of the strange sound turned out to be a waterfall. Although it is unclear what the geology of the crater is, several big waterfalls poured down from the side of the crater into the central lake.
The city itself was sprawled over the slope of the crater, kind of like moss covering a stone. Full of negative ions. The whole atmosphere felt like being near a waterfall, giving off a lively and fresh vibe.
And what stood out the most from this fantastic view was the huge statues.
Four statues were carved out from top to bottom on each side of the walls.
One was of a guy with long hair. Flames covered his left hand, and he held an egg in his right. Waterfalls poured down from his shoulders like a cape. There is something elegant about his appearance.
One was a man with a horse's head. Flames covered his right hand, and a snake twisted around his left. Almost naked, with a strong and masculine body. The two statues were positioned facing each other.
One was a faceless figure. Covered completely with a robe, no visible face, not even a mouth. Couldn't tell the gender. Overall, it had a slender shape, holding both ears with hands. It somehow reminded me of Edvard Munch's "The Scream."
The last one was broken. Wearing armor, probably a warrior's statue, but the upper chest was gone. Debris scattered around its feet, and the right hand holding a sword had fallen and stuck into the ground. The other arm was missing.
In general, Meteor Lake was a town that thrived in the middle of a massive crater lake.
The hill we climbed acted like an outer ring mountain. To get into the city, we had to follow the road circling it, climb the hill, and go down into the city through the fortress at the end. The current fortress probably worked as a checkpoint. The slope of the crater, especially the upper part, was steep, almost like a cliff. Other than the road and fortress, it seemed tough to enter and exit from other places.
"It's also called the belly button of Mifosis. Surprised?"
"Surprised."
Nihhihi... Kyo smiled, looking pleased with successfully surprising me.
"So much, water. not overflow. Why?"
The waterfall was so loud. With this much water flowing in from all directions, how come the city didn't sink? The water level in the central lake looked like it was only a fraction of the height of the crater, but with this number of waterfalls and their force, it would probably fill up the crater in a year. At least, that's what it seemed like to me.
"Well, you see... Do you want to know?"
Teasingly, Kyo grinned and peered into my face.
"Want."
Then, as if waiting for me, her face casts a shadow and her voice becomes a grim tone.
"Well, you see... down at the bottom of that lake, there's, like, a~... super scary giant with its mouth wide open~... and it's chugging all the water~!"
What kind of torture is that?
"Giant, not up?"
"Hihihi. If you do something bad~ the giant gets mad and stretches out its arms, you know~ and takes away the naughty kids to the bottom of the spring! There's this story that the island in the lake is the giant's head, you know~! Scary, right~! So, playing or swimming in the spring, or doing anything bad is totally not allowed, okay~!"
"Scary."
Kyo was good at making spooky stories.
"Hihihihihihi!"
Even though I could keep pretending to be scared and go along with it, I wanted her to seriously explain how the city worked.
I nudged Tiriel's shoulder, who was dealing with the procedure to enter the city, and asked her the same thing.
"Oh, that. There's a water outlet at the bottom of the lake, and it flows as an underground stream. I read it in a book somewhere. There's a constant circulation of water, so even with this large population, the water quality is very clean. The story about the giant is just a common trick to scare children. But about this crater—"
"Aaaaah!? Tiriel-san! Why did you say that! I was just about to use an old tale to teach Gevaudan-san a lesson about his bad behavior! I almost got him!"
"Eh!? No way, what have I done... Hey, Gevaudan. Can you, like, forget about what I just said...?" Shocked Tiriel pleaded, clasping her hands together. Kinda unreasonable.
Did they seriously think they could fool me with that story? Even in another world, the idea of giants drinking it all up is just too poorly thought out.
"Yeah, yeah. By the way, Kyo, can you help with something for a moment?"
Taking the babbling Kyo with her, Tiriel returned to the procedures at the fort.
It seems they are having trouble negotiating our entry. But I, with my hopelessly limited vocabulary, had no part to play. Leaving the formalities to the girls, I continue my sightseeing tour of Meteor Lake with Yakumo on my shoulders.
The unique layout of the city densely arranged over the peculiar terrain and the dynamics of the water flow created a splendid scenery. However, the most impactful sight was undoubtedly the four statues standing calmly on each side of the crater, as if they were watching over the lake in the center.
While waiting for the procedures, I brewed coffee on the wood stove.
Enjoying the scent of coffee to relax while taking in the view of Meteor Lake, I was approached by Faye.
"The four statues represent that Meteor Lake has a long history, dating back to the dawn of Mifosis, they say. The artist is unknown."
"Coffee, take?"
"Oh, thank you."
I baited her with coffee and encouraged her to continue the story. A tourist guide is always appreciated. Wojtek, understanding the situation, willingly became a makeshift chair, and Faye leaned on his back.
Faye took a sip from the mug I offered, exhaled a white breath, and squinted her eyes. Her fine silver hair, scattered by the wind, shimmered beautifully in the sunlight.
"The statues here are symbols of 'Primordials,' which were really important in old Mifosis beliefs."
"Primordials."
"Primordial — or <the ancient ones>. They're fundamentally different beings from us, born from stars and going back to them when perish. They're like signs of the cosmic flame, showing up when a star is born and going back to the universe when it dies. The same goes for Quetzal, that one I talked about earlier."
"Quetzal, who? That one?"
Pointing kinda vaguely at the statue with long hair, she replied, "It is believed that the statue is a representation of Oberon."
Out of nowhere, Oberon joins the story.
"The long-haired one is <King of harmony Oberon>. The one with the horse head is <Paragon of Chaos>. The broken one is the <Oni of the lost Aides>, and the one without a face is the <Formless God>. Sadly, we don't know the names of Paragon of Chaos and the Formless God."
Oberon I know, of course. He's Titania's dad. I've heard of Aides too. If I remember right, Kyo mentioned that name. But the other two, no idea.
"Oberon commands order and organization, on the flip side, Paragon of Chaos commands chaos and dissipation. Aides are memory and names. As for the mysterious god on the opposite side of him, nobody knows what he commands, his real name, and even what he looks like. Whether it got forgotten or never existed in the first place, the Formless God is an especially mysterious Primordial."
"Oberon, superior?"
"The idea that life is precious, and death is something to steer clear of, is how humans see it. Both are necessary for the enduring development of a star. Paragon of Chaos is like horses pulling the chariot of time by burning the stars. And with Oberon as their driver, the two gods, even though they fought, are watching over Mifosis's long journey——that's the essence of the Old Faith. I guess Aides and the Formless God might have had similar conflict and cooperation."
"Old faith. Now?"
"The idea of praying for the balance maintained by those four gods and adhering to one of them as a virtue has long been forgotten. Now, only ancient ruins and word of mouth keep a bit of that time alive. These days, in most places, each clan just respects and worships the ancestor who started their bloodline as the <Ancestor God>."
"Ancestor?"
"For example, for Tiriel-sama, Falshidar serves as her ancestral god. Hence, each race has its own god for prayers."
"Kyo, parentless."
"So Kyo talks about that too, huh..." Faye lowered her eyes.
"Yes, she doesn't fit well into modern beliefs, so she worships the ancient Aides. Oni, as a race, is also considered fragments of Aides, making it a natural match."
Saying that, Faye added, "Ah, also."
"We subhumans are also parentless, so we cling to the Aides and live day by day."
"Kyo, parentless?"
"Yes. We subhumans get cut off from their clan, so we can't pray to our god anymore. The people without a god to pray to are called the <Parentless>. Aides is said to help connect with these lost ones without any bias."
When Ferris was in heat, she mentioned something about marriage involving bloodline integration, but is that what's going on? Mifosis seems open to interactions between different species, but there still seem to be some complicated aspects to it.
~~~...♪
"〽Long, long ago, the Beast King sat upon his throne,
Feasting on the fallen, from death, new seeds sown.
A timeless dance, unbroken, revolution untold,
Long, long ago, conflict cast shadow wide,
The king bore seeds of doom, the ancient ones hide.
The endless slumber, where they abide.
In the sealed cell, the goddess subdues,
When the blood of king renews,
Ancient beast, once again, bloom full.
As destined arrives, the black phantom glows.
The goddess shall awaken, a tale of old retold—"
I saw a guy sitting on the ground a bit away, singing.
Holding a worn-out small string instrument, he's doing the typical street performance. Accompanied by the peculiar rhythm of percussion, he played the strings, showcasing his song to those like us who were detained near the fortress.
The violin-like instrument, played by pressing strings with the left hand and bowing with the right, sounded a lot like a morin khuur. Even though I only see one person, where's the percussionist?
Interested, I found myself standing in front of him.
Hidden under a ten-gallon hat (cowboy hat), his face hidden.
There's a box for collecting tips. Unfortunately, I don't have any money. Instead, I pull out a butter candy from my apron and toss it into the box.
Rolling and clattering, The candy rolled around.
The music stopped.
If you like the translation, please consider sending me some ko-if.
I truly appreciate any support you can give.
Tags:
Butcher Demon