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Volume 4 Chapter 1 Part 10

Theo proposed and started guiding Siluca by changing their course slightly to the right. They tried to head in that changed direction for a while, but even that still did not bring them any closer to the light and it source.

「What is going on here? 」

「Infinite Corridor… 」

Siluca muttered to herself.

「Infinite Corridor? What is that? 」

「Just like its name implies, it is quite literally a corridor that has no end. Or to put it in other words, no matter how far down this corridor you decide to go, you are always going to end up right where you started, at the corridor’s very beginning. 」

「Does that mean that we will never reach the source of the light no matter how long we are going to go forward? 」

「I think so. For example, if that light is coming towards us from infinity, then walking towards it is really going to be useless. 」

「No matter how big this tree is, is there such a thing even possible? 」

「It is possible precisely because the inside of the tree is connected to an entirely different space. 」

「Does that mean you we cannot escape? 」

「In the worst case scenario. 」

Siluca nodded her head solemnly.

「That is going to be troublesome. 」

Theo sighed.

「If walking is useless, then maybe we should rest for a while? 」

Theo said so and sat down on the ground. Siluca was also led by Theo and sat next to him.

「Should I not let go of your hand? 」

「No, no, I think it is going to be fine as long as we will not move any further. 」
「Well, let us do this then… 」

After saying that, Theo leans over and his shoulder touched Siluca’s shoulder, causing her to almost let out a strange voice from her throat, but Siluca managed to suppress her urge to do so in the last possible moment. She is not a teenage student at Magic Academy anymore, so she cannot allow something as simple as a little bit of physical contact to upset her.

She took the sugared fruit out of her cloak and handed it to Theo, and then they both proceeded to bite into them for a while in silence.

「I thought that there would be monsters here, but now I see that I was getting myself worked up for nothing. And, to be honest, that makes me feel kind of useless. 」

「No, it is a huge relief just to have you here. It would be really lonely if I were stranded here alone in a different dimension… 」

After saying that, Siluca thought she made a mistake with the words that she chose. She should have simply agreed with Theo stating that without monsters here, there was nothing for him to do, but instead, she allowed her true feelings to surface.

「Oh, in that case, that is good. 」

Theo smiled in a carefree way when he heard that.

「But it does not change the fact that it is my fault that we have ended up here. It might have been better just to warn the people of the village without getting anywhere near this tree after all. 」

「Well, probably. Protecting the people is an important duty of a Lord after all. 」

Siluca comforted Theo, but she really thought that there was no need for him to be going that far, especially since the residents of the settlements in the Forest of Eternal Darkness treated Theo and Siluca the way they did.
「So Siluca, what do you think after we explored the territory for a few days now? 」

Theo asked as if he just sensed something from the tone of Siluca’s voice.

「I think it is a poor and gloomy place. It is full of dangers just like this one, and its inhabitants are not in the least bit obedient to their Lord even though they should be…. 」

Siluca answers honestly.

「…I realize that well enough. But even so, since this territory has been entrusted to me, then I would like to give it my all to make it as rich and lively as possible. 」

「I thought you would say something along those lines. 」

「Is it different for you, Lord Theo? 」

「I thought so too at first, but now things have changed… 」

Theo paused for a it in order to collect his thoughts.

「When I look at the people who live in this forest, I get the feeling that the thing that they really want is not richness, or vitality or anything like that. 」

「But if they really do not want anything, then would it not be easier to just give up on them? 」

「I think it is actually the other way around. I think they came to this forest precisely because they gave up on that kind of thing themselves. 」

「Even though I think this is the harshest environment for humans to possibly live in? 」

Bizarrely twisted trees, red skies even during the day, projections from other worlds frequently wandering around, and Chaotic accidents and Disasters occurring on a pretty much daily basis. These are the conditions that make the life in The Forest of Eternal Darkness difficult if one is not an Undead.

「For the inhabitants of this forest, there must have been an even harsher place. 」

「For example… like Sistina? 」

Siluca thought Theo was referring to his home island. An island of despair, surrounded by the Sea of Demons, suffering from Demonic Realms and the tyranny of its Lord.

「Among others, yes. 」

Theo nodded his head.

「You mean there are other places like that? 」

「There are many places like that. Elam, for example. 」

「Eh? 」

Siluca was surprised to hear that.

「Elam has a high concentration of Chaos, but the city is beautiful, clean and safe, and the residents are all rich and lively… 」

However, while speaking, Siluca began to feel somewhat uncomfortable.

(Maybe I am thinking about it like that simply because I am a Mage.)

Mages are the absolute ruling class in Elam. Siluca’s adoptive father had always been sending her a large sum of money for child support, so she had no trouble making ends meet. Whenever she was going out to the city, she would always stick to the prime, proper and clean neighborhoods, and the residents of those neighborhoods are happy with their lives.

I knew that Elam also had a darker side to it where those who were at the very bottom of the social ladder dwelled, but just because she heard rumors about these parts of the city does not mean that she herself knew how the live in those darker regions of the city really was.

「There are many in this forest, too, who fled from Elam. 」

「Run away… from Elam? 」
Siluca still had no idea what Theo was trying to say by that. In her opinion, It seemed better to live on the lowest level of Elam than to live in this forest.

「Is it not because they have committed a crime or because they refused to engage in legitimate work? 」

「I am sure that there are people like that in here as well. 」

「In that case, are they not simply reaping what they have sown themselves? 」

「That is right. 」

Theo nodded his head affirmatively.

「However, what I wanted to say is that it does not matter whether it is Elam or Sistina. No matter the place in the world, there will always be people who are will want to run away from these places and start their live anew somewhere else. 」

Siluca made a surprised face and stared at Theo. She wanted to see what kind of face he was making right now, but the complete darkness around them prevented her from seeing anything at all.

「Uhm, have I… have I done something wrong now? 」

Theo asked without realizing what he had said just now.

「No, not at all… What you said just now is not a matter of being right or being wrong, Lord Theo. 」

Siluca gently shook her head.

「The point is, I did not have any idea about any of that, but how could I had? 」

「Is that not ironic then? 」

「B-But of course I do not think like that now! 」

Siluca said hurriedly.

「Good for you then. 」

Theo let out a voice of relief.

「But it is still a troubling thing. In any government, there will inevitably be those who will be dissatisfied with it and those who will want to run away from it. Whether these will be the bad guys or the lazy ones, it is not really a problem of these people personally, but rather the inherent imperfections of the government itself. 」