I Was a Small Fish When I Reincarnated, but It Seems That I Can Become a Dragon, so I Will Do My Best - Extra Chapter 216
7-36. Side -Reizen- Information from the Spirits
Reizen opened his eyes, allowing the spirits to come into view. Knowing they were shy and would flee if he looked directly at them, he made sure not to stare. Despite this, the spirits seemed genuinely pleased that their old friend Reizen had reached out to them, floating closer than usual.
His skills, Earth’s Blessing and Land Deity, had enabled him to communicate with the spirits, but in the beginning, it was quite a challenge to manage them. Reizen recalled those early days with a bit of nostalgia as he began to speak with them.
“I’ve got a few things I want to ask, if that’s okay?”
<<Sure!>> they responded cheerfully.
“Can you tell me about the angels? It seems like they’re gathering children.”
At this, the spirits visibly drooped, their sadness apparent even without direct eye contact.
“W-What’s wrong?” Reizen asked, concerned.
<<Since those angels showed up, there are more and more places we can’t go…>> one spirit explained.
“Places you can’t go?”
<<They’ve put up barriers that keep us out…>>
“I see…”
Hearing this, Reizen didn’t feel disappointed. Instead, he saw an opportunity. After sympathizing with the spirits, he allowed a small, strategic smile to form.
The fact that there were barriers preventing the spirits from entering certain areas meant there was likely something important there. While Reizen didn’t fully understand the connection or relationship between the spirits and the angels, the existence of these barriers suggested that something they didn’t want discovered was hidden there.
“When did these places start becoming off-limits?” he asked.
<<Hmm, probably around the time this country’s soldiers headed towards the Oni village.>>
“Karna, when did the soldiers from the Garott Kingdom go to the Oni village?”
“I know that. It was roughly… around the same time Yuuzen left the Oni village. So, fairly recently.”
“So the angels were already preparing by then.”
It seemed the angels’ actions in the Garott Kingdom had been planned well in advance. While pondering this, Reizen decided to gather more information from the spirits.
He asked which areas were now inaccessible. According to the spirits, a region to the west of the castle was completely off-limits. This area housed a church, which was currently being used as a stronghold for angel worshippers. There were also many other places tied to the church that the spirits couldn’t enter, though it was mostly limited to being unable to enter certain buildings.
But the spirits were an essential part of the land, and Reizen wanted to know what happened when they were excluded.
“What happens when you guys can’t enter a place?”
<<The blessings disappear,>> one spirit explained.
“What kind of blessings?”
<<Common ones are fertile land, flowing rivers… If we can’t enter certain homes or locations, our power can’t reach them. The blessings we give to people include luck or protection… They’re small, but losing them entirely would be bad.>>
“Hmm… This is the kind of thing Ouren-aniki is better at…”
Still, Reizen understood that areas where the spirits were barred from entry would suffer negative effects on the people and the land. This meant it was essential to do something about it.
“Looks like it’s the church, then,” Reizen concluded.
“Probably. What should we do?”
“Let’s stick to our usual method.”
“That should work. Shall we? [Quickly].”
“Yeah. [Substitution].”
After casting skills on each other, they swiftly kicked off the ground and began running. Although Karna hadn’t trained for a long time, she had regained her old form through recent practice and moved as nimbly as before. Reizen, despite having only recently awakened, displayed exceptional skill in stealth and agility, matching Karna’s movements without the need for any special abilities.
They quietly leaped from one rooftop to the next, moving toward their destination at an increased speed thanks to Karna’s Quickly skill. Before long, they arrived near their target.
They hid in the shadow of a house, observing the area. At first glance, it seemed empty, but Reizen’s Earth’s Blessing allowed him to sense an invisible barrier.
He held Karna back with one hand and picked up a handful of sand from the ground, sprinkling it into the air.
Even though nothing changed visually, Reizen could sense that this barrier was designed to detect intruders. If they crossed it, the angels would know someone had entered.
“Oh no… What should we do?” Karna asked.
“Let’s go underground.”
“That should be easy for you.”
“I’m really familiar with earth-based skills. Here we go!”
With a light stomp, Reizen created a staircase leading underground. The angels’ barrier likely didn’t extend below ground, so they quickly descended the stairs, infiltrating the area undetected.