Bai Ling decided to shelve the bizarre "because she's gravely ill, she gains resistance to Originium" setting for later.
Right now, the bigger issue was that after using the Command Spell, his body felt… oddly unsteady. Like he'd overdrawn himself—like he'd been drained.
Even the energy fluctuations in the air—normally crystal-clear to him—had dimmed noticeably.
But this was absolutely not a place to rest.
After confirming there was no further danger nearby, Eldera pulled up a route map leading toward the power station, where most personnel were currently concentrated. She took point to guide them.
Behind her, Bai Ling naturally held Eyjafjalla by the wrist as they walked.
Maybe because her mental state was still slightly dazed, Eyjafjalla didn't resist his grip at all.
Once they recovered a bit, though, both girls had the presence of mind to observe their surroundings.
They called it a "valley," but a normal valley—even if it wasn't lush and green—shouldn't look like this: the world tinted yellow, the land dull and lifeless.
The wasteland-industrial aesthetic of the highlands was unmistakable. Rusting sheet-metal rooms everywhere, brown steel plates laid along the roadside, and an ever-present burnt smell that never seemed to dissipate.
Not gasoline. Not engine oil.
Just… the smell of something that had congealed.
Occasionally a vehicle passed along the road, but not many. The permanent population here was still relatively small.
They walked for who knew how long before Bai Ling could no longer suppress the urge to complain.
"…Not being issued a vehicle is a truly awful thing… haah…"
They'd been walking forever.
His legs were starting to give out.
It was hard to believe a place that looked so small in the game could be so punishing to traverse in real life.
The two girls looked soft and delicate—but don't forget: they were sheep at the core.
Traveling like this was basically normal for them.
"Senior Bai Ling… are you tired?"
Even Eldera, leading from the front, noticed something off. She stopped.
"…A little," Bai Ling admitted. "I'm not combat personnel, after all."
Just a regular person with slightly strange Originium Arts—and ever since he'd used the Command Spell, the weakness hadn't stopped clinging to him.
Eldera glanced at the map with her peripheral vision and spoke gently.
"…We're almost there. Hang in a bit longer, Senior Bai Ling…"
The moment Bai Ling loosened his hold on her wrist, Eyjafjalla added, following right after:
"Just a little longer, Senior…"
Two gentle voices—one after another.
Bai Ling felt almost lightheaded from the kindness, his steps going strangely airy—
"Thud."
Something hit the ground.
"Senior Bai Ling!"
"Senior!"
The last thing Bai Ling heard was—
"He's here!"
When Bai Ling opened his eyes, two small, curved white horns were wobbling right in front of his face.
The instant they saw him awake, all the anxiety in their eyes scattered like wind.
From that detail alone, the two of them were almost identical.
"Senior Bai Ling."
"Senior."
Their calls came one after the other, but there was a third set of footsteps in the room—enough to snap Bai Ling fully awake. He lifted his head and saw the newcomer.
Eyjafjalla and Eldera… and a—
He genuinely didn't know how to categorize the fluffy ears on top of the man's head.
A middle-aged man wearing a pair of furry ears like that—somehow it softened what would otherwise have been a stern presence.
Though the black sunglasses and black cap still looked… questionable.
As soon as Bai Ling woke, the man dropped everything else and came straight to the bedside.
"Hello. I'm Klaue—more or less the administrator of the Power-Supply Highlands in this region."
"This appearance must be a bit ridiculous," Bai Ling said politely. "My apologies, Mr. Klaue."
"…Not at all." Klaue shook his head. "Your symptoms look exactly like the kind of exhaustion we see in the power plant—severe overexertion. You should rest properly."
Since the man was giving him face, Bai Ling kept his tone equally mild.
"…Mm. Mr. Klaue, we're operators sent here as support—this was arranged between Endfield Industries and the hub base."
After the quick exchange of introductions, Klaue's expression sharpened and he went straight to business—without asking even once why Eyjafjalla and Eldera looked so similar.
"The hub center just detected a strong Originium fluctuation nearby… did something happen?"
"A Riftbreaker squad got close to this area. After we dealt with them, we followed the planned route and came here."
"A Riftbreaker squad? Those monsters have already reached this far?"
Klaue's face tightened further. He immediately opened his comms and relayed the information.
Once that was done, he turned back and spoke seriously:
"…You've worked hard. But there's honestly nothing decent to host you with around the plant—everything's an active factory, smoke and grime everywhere."
"Because of some issues, we've decided to newly designate an area here at the Power-Supply Highlands and begin construction."
"But we lack geological surveying, and that parcel isn't far from the Transdomain Laboratory. That's why we requested Endfield Industries' assistance."
"…New land?" Bai Ling turned his head and looked out the window—toward the grand structure perched on the highest distant peak.
Compared to the power station, that massive building looked majestic, like a gate at the top of the world. Especially since above it hung something like a torn, multicolored ring, as if the sky itself had been pierced through.
Klaue continued:
"Mm… overdevelopment of the mining zone has pushed everything around the power station into irreversible resource desertification. If people keep living in that environment, it'll do lasting, unrecoverable damage to their bodies."
After the explanation, his pace slowed.
"This gentleman should recuperate more. If you're all good to go, I'll arrange manpower as soon as possible to assist you while you conduct the survey."
"I have other matters to attend to, so I'll take my leave."
Then Klaue strode out quickly—perfectly matching his busy, work-worn vibe.
The room fell quiet again.
Only the three of them remained.
A bit too quiet.
"…Sorry, Senior Bai Ling," Eldera said softly. "I should've noticed your condition sooner…"
"Me too…" Eyjafjalla murmured.
When two lambs stand in front of you and apologize together, somehow… every ache feels less unpleasant.
"It's fine," Bai Ling said. "I'm not dead yet, am I?"
Hearing their apologies stirred a particular kind of feeling in him—one he didn't fully like acknowledging.
If he dared to make unreasonable demands right now… he might actually get them fulfilled.
But Bai Ling didn't run his mouth.
He was a pro.
A little repressed, sure—but absolutely not some damp, creepy gremlin.
And honestly, up to this point, just having two identical lambs standing together was already a huge visual shock.
He hauled himself upright from the bed, feeling like his entire body had been hollowed out.
Then information surfaced quietly in his mind:
[Command Spell Uses: 2/3]
[Recovery Time: /]
There was a "recovery" display… but the asterisks made it pretty clear these Command Spells were not going to regenerate.
One stroke spent was one stroke gone.
And if he used them all up…
Bai Ling's eyes drifted, almost involuntarily, to Eyjafjalla.
He remembered something from certain series:
When a summoned being uses "mana," it also consumes the summoner's mana.
On this land, there was no "mana." That would mean Originium Arts—energy.
That "Volcano" just now… aside from Eyjafjalla's own output, it had probably siphoned a portion from him as well.
Otherwise, there was no way a simple walk would have ended with him collapsed in bed.
Still—joking aside—
Bai Ling braced himself and slowly stood, exhaling long and hard.
Eldera was here for actual work. He couldn't let himself become a drag on the mission.
"Senior… won't you rest a bit longer?" Eldera asked.
"No." Bai Ling waved his hand. "I suddenly remembered something a little donkey once said."
Eyjafjalla's lips curved into a smile at that.
"You still have many things to handle, you know~"
-------
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