Chapter 137 Grimoires and Magic

"Come to think of it, this is actually my first time attending such a formal festival."

Roland took a potato croquette and handed it to Esther beside him.

Orario during the daytime was unusually packed with people. In moments of such celebration, even adventurers did not mind giving themselves a day of rest.

The streets, spreading out from the arena as their center, were already flooded with crowds like colonies of ants. Even ordinary citizens wore smiles on their faces, and everywhere, merchants who had caught wind of the event set up their stalls. A wide variety of races mingled among them, and pleasant aromas drifted through the air everywhere.

In slightly larger open spaces, there were bards recounting legends, and theatrical troupes performing acrobatics that drew wave after wave of applause. These served as the finest crowd magnets. Orario's main street could accommodate several carriages advancing simultaneously, yet at this moment, it was narrowed to the extreme by the dense throng of people.

"If a riot were to break out now, everything would be completely ruined."

Biting into a potato croquette he had been meaning to try for a while, Roland let out an unexpected sigh of exclamation.

"It's actually quite delicious."

Beneath the crispy crust was a texture as smooth and fine as shifting sands, filled with savory stuffing. As one of Orario's cheapest and most common street snacks, it possessed such remarkable flavor that Roland had no idea what to make of the local technological advancement.

"Roland-kun, even a hero like you will receive angry stares if you say such a dampening thing."

Hestia puffed out her chest as she looked at the bustling street before her. "This bustling and interesting scenery is precisely the reason why we deities descended to the lower world."

Early this morning, Hestia had indignantly dragged Roland out, proposing a date. Usually, Roland had to go to the Dungeon, and his rare days off were often filled by Guild commissions, resulting in a significant reduction in the time the two of them could spend together.

The only fortunate thing was that Hestia herself had proper business to attend to as well.

"Who knows what the Guild is up to, giving orders to all front-line adventurers. Even deities like us with powerful Familia are required to hold a separate brief meeting."

Whenever she thought about how her rare alone time with Roland was being disrupted, Hestia would fiercely bite down on the straw in her hand, absentmindedly sipping the fruit juice in her cup.

Although even without this matter, they could hardly be said to be in their own private world. Esther, experiencing such a festival for the first time, was also blinking her clear eyes, staring at the potato croquette in her hand as if it were glowing, and eating it in small, delicate bites.

Compared to her upper deity, the relationship between Esther and Roland was much more deserving of being called inseparable. Though Hestia felt a slight pang of jealousy, she was hardly going to hold a grudge against such a pure elemental spirit. Just being able to roam around freely with Roland on this morning made her very happy.

Roland reached out, wiping away a crumb from the corner of Esther's mouth, and spoke out of the blue.

"After all, this matter is quite serious. It's truly a case of not knowing until you look—so many people in Orario have already shown symptoms of infection. It's no exaggeration to call it a ticking bomb. Trying to implement precautions only now inevitably feels like mending the pen after the sheep have already bolted."

"Is it really that serious?"

Hestia looked at Roland in a daze, failing to grasp his meaning.

"Although this virus seems to have appeared for the first time, preventive measures will surely be found sooner or later. While others might be far inferior to you, the wisdom of the lower world's children and deities should not be underestimated."

"Mm... Let's just assume that's the case."

If it were merely a conventional plague, Roland would not doubt the deities' ability to solve it in this different world. The various skewed technology trees and greatly enhanced productivity here were the best proof of that.

However, the Apocalypse Virus was not something so simple. It targeted changes in life forms and could even be called a shortcut on the path of evolution. Given the gap in innate eras and cognition, this thing was by no means easy to handle. By the time these people figured out the crux of the matter, goodness knows when it would be.

Thinking about it this way, the Guild was still quite reliable. They deeply understood the crucial principle that if you cannot solve the problem, you solve the person who created the problem. Major gods like Loki probably thought of this as well before agreeing to the decision for the Great Expedition.

However, for Hestia—who spent too much time holed up at home and whose intellect had severely declined—understanding this point might require a bit more effort. Fortunately, he decided not to tell her just yet; he would leave it to those deities to explain it to her instead.

A very gentle, spring-breeze-like expression surfaced on Roland's face, yet Hestia felt that Roland's pursed lips carried a somewhat mischievous sentiment.

She cast a suspicious glance at Roland, but did not press further, choosing instead to sip her juice and enjoy this wonderful world.

Even though there was still some time before the official start of the Monster Festival, the anticipation and enthusiasm of the citizens could no longer be concealed. Everyone felt immensely proud, believing they lived in the best of eras, free to meet and converse with the deities of the heavenly realm.

In past eras, monsters ravaged the land, and people could not survive once they lost the leadership of a hero. But now, even without receiving a Falna, one could leisurely critique those monsters locked up behind bars. This contrast would generate a tremendous sense of security and fervor, so such high enthusiasm was hardly surprising.

If someone truly intended to stir up trouble, this should be the time. However, even for the Virus Queen, the Apocalypse Virus did not have as long a period of accumulation as in the original work. Judging from the infection data cleared by the Guild over the past few days, wanting to recreate a world-spanning scale like the Lost Christmas from the original work still felt slightly lacking in momentum.

Although the Ganesha Familia was unreliable, with preparations already in place, they surely wouldn't allow a riot that let the monsters break loose again. This time, not even Freya would go out of her way to cause trouble.

"Don't worry, Roland-kun. Even though you're called a hero, you mustn't actually think of yourself as someone who has to shoulder the survival of humanity all by yourself. Children who act so willfully often end up straying down the wrong path."

Just as Roland was lost in thought, Hestia suddenly poked him in the waist, wearing a vibrant and energetic smile.

"If something really does happen, we deities will bear the full weight of it! For now, just go and happily enjoy the festival!"

Looking at Hestia's pure and lovely face—clumsy though she was, and unable to truly comprehend Roland's inner thoughts—this goddess was indeed encouraging Roland in her own unique way.

"Is that so? Then you'd better do your best at the deities' meeting. I'll come pick you up afterward."

Roland helplessly patted Hestia's head. Amidst the reluctant gaze of the goddess, whose energy instantly wilted, he slowly walked away from the Guild's entrance.

Once outside, looking at the bustling and noisy main street, Roland felt as though a lifetime had passed.

The cargo stalls placed in the middle of the road were decorated with colorful ribbons and flowers, making the street look full of festive atmosphere. Above the heads of the passersby, strings of flags were linked together, featuring the silhouettes of the Ganesha Familia and monsters—one an elephant head, the other a lion. Under the bright sunlight, everything appeared exceptionally peaceful.

Though he had been in this city for over ten days, he had never simply appreciated Orario in the identity of a tourist.

"Well then, before all that, let's enjoy the festival first. Esther hasn't wandered around a place like this either, right?"

With that, holding Esther's small and soft hand, Roland stepped into the clamorous crowd.

---

"Damned monster!"

A beast tamer of the Ganesha Familia angrily grabbed the monster before him, threw it to the side of the cell, and locked it down with chains.

"What's wrong?"

Soon, someone heard the commotion and hurried over. In the current cells of the Ganesha Familia, to prevent monsters from escaping and causing a panic, defenses were tightened to the utmost, and the Guild had even specially dispatched a batch of upper-tier adventurers to station themselves outside the Ganesha Familia headquarters.

Though from the perspective of the Ganesha Familia members, this might seem somewhat excessive.

Aside from having beast tamers assigned to every cell, they also had upper-tier adventurers specifically guarding the exits—elite existences who were Level 3 or even Level 4. Dealing with these monsters, which were at most Level 2, was truly using a sledgehammer to crack a nut. Even the beast tamer himself, who was only Level 2, would not be defeated by these creatures.

"It's nothing. This disobedient thing got restless again and just scratched me."

The beast tamer waved his hand casually, showing his companion the claw marks and blood stains on his hand.

"Then I suppose it's unusable. How about putting it in the beast-fighting segment after the taming exhibition?"

"Let me try again. This fellow was very obedient when it first arrived; I don't know what went wrong today."

The beast tamer was still somewhat unwilling to give up. This monster possessed decent strength among Level 2s, and most importantly, it had been unexpectedly easy to tame. When it first arrived, it had looked as though its vitality had been drained, appearing utterly listless, and had quickly grown submissive. He was counting on this monster to shine brilliantly at the festival.

"Then be careful yourself."

Seeing that nothing serious had actually happened, the guard nodded and walked straight away, leaving the space entirely to the beast tamer.

Looking displeased, the beast tamer took out a medicinal bottle from nearby, poured a little onto his wound, and plunged back into the grand cause of taming.

Beneath the numbing sensation of the medicine, however, he failed to notice that clusters of purple crystals were slowly emerging from the wound at an astonishing speed and gradually spreading.

---

"Lord Sword Hero, please give this a try."

Sitting inside the Hostess of Fertility tavern, Syr smiled warmly as she placed a slice of cake before Roland, then leisurely sat down opposite him.

"This is a special cake that won't be put on sale until tonight, you know. This one made with my own hands is the only copy in existence."

"Hmm... Helping you taste-test it is fine, but you guys look like you're heading out to attend the festival yourselves."

Roland looked at Syr before him. Today, she was not wearing the maid-like waitress uniform of the tavern, but rather casual everyday attire.

Faced with Roland's gaze, Syr stretched uninhibitedly, unashamed. Her exquisitely curved figure, outlined by the silk-soft, sailor-uniform-like clothing, displayed a captivating charm far beyond her age, elegant and lazy like a sunbathing cat. Once she finished stretching, she spoke as if nothing were amiss.

"It's fine. Anyway, we always have to finish preparations around the shop before getting time off, and we still have a little while."

On a festive day like today, the tavern, which was usually open year-round, was mostly closed as everyone conserved their energy to open for business and harvest the fat sheep at the festival once night fell. The Hostess of Fertility was no exception; after completing some preparations ahead of opening, the waitresses were free to enjoy their holiday.

Hearing those words, Ryuu walked over and served Roland a cup of black tea.

"Please don't mind it. Syr has also been looking forward to conversing with you again for a long time."

"Ryuu-nee!"

Faced with the young girl's bashful and annoyed smile, Ryuu only gave a faint smile and walked away with steady steps.

Roland casually forked a piece of cake and fed it into Esther's eagerly waiting mouth, casting an amused look at Syr.

"So, is there something you wanted with me?"

Hearing such a direct question, Syr stood up somewhat nervously, then bowed in Roland's direction.

"I am truly sorry about what happened last time. Because of me, you were pestered by that trash, and I've been thinking about how to make it up to you."

What kind of roleplay was Freya playing, getting this deep into character?

Roland was slightly stunned, only remembering what the "last time" referred to after a moment. Before he could speak, Syr had already hurried over holding a book and pushed it across the table toward Roland.

"This is a Grimoire, isn't it?"

Gently stroking the cover and feeling the strange fluctuations emanating from it, Roland spoke.

"Yes. This was something given to me by a customer a long time ago, with instructions to handle it however I pleased. But I knew I didn't have the aptitude to become an adventurer, so I kept it put away—until your appearance made me realize who its true master should be."

Syr said righteously, wearing an expectant expression as if she were completely unaware of the item's value.

Grimoires in the Dungeon world were almost always single-use items. Those who read a Grimoire would naturally acquire a magic spell even if they didn't possess magic previously, but afterward, the Grimoire would lose its original power and turn into blank paper.

Every single Grimoire was an item surpassing top-tier equipment, and ordinary Familia could not obtain a single one, no matter how much wealth they exhausted.

Roland was hardly short of the wealth required to buy this thing; he simply hadn't given it any thought.

After all, there was virtually no magic in the Dungeon world that he couldn't learn, nor did he believe this item would be of any use to him. Although the number of magic slots posed no restriction for Roland whatsoever, why bother pulling out an incantation just to be an eyesore?

However, since someone had proactively delivered it to his doorstep, he recalled one particular matter.

When he officially leveled up a few days ago, Roland had obtained an unexpected Development Ability. That was a gift from the world itself, born when he formed an integration through continuously approaching equilibrium, transcending the Falna.

The native magic system of the Dungeon world could be described as an utter mess, completely incomparable to the magic derived from the Falna. This could also be said to be the direct reason why nobody in the Dungeon seemed to study magic; it was entirely the domain of the gods. The magic of truly powerful individuals was the externalization of their possibilities and potential—come to think of it, quite similar to Noble Phantasms in the Type-Moon universe.

If the world's gift regarding his possibilities was that kind of perspective, then could a magic that developed possibilities help him comprehend this power on a deeper level?

"Is that so? Then I gratefully accept."

Harboring such a question, amidst Syr's surprised gaze, Roland opened the book before him without the slightest hesitation. The next moment, an unprecedented radiance pierced his vision.

In the span of a mere instant, it felt as though he were standing at a higher vantage point, overlooking everything in the world, as well as a much clearer version of himself.

Flames, darkness, malice, chaos—countless paths laid out before Roland, waiting only for him to reach out and transform these possibilities into usable power.

Yet Roland merely looked silently at the furthest path before him. This path did not stem from his own power or his spiritual rank, but from the essence that had been cracked open by the Falna and thus allowed to release. It came from—{The World}.