It was a sea of enravecidas olas.
«Bjorn? Bjorn hasn't arrived yet?»
«No. It should arrive soon...»
Arua Raven kept her eyes somewhere with the coordinate transmitter held tightly in her hand. As was happening to everyone on the ship right now, an unknown concern arose from within him. Bjorn Yandel, their leader, faced only a rank 3 monster to buy time and escape.
«Something must have gone wrong. We have to go save him».
«No! Didn't you hear what he said? He said never to go near that place».
«That guy always says that and does what he wants! Does not matter. I'm also going to do whatever I want from now on».
«But how are you going to get there? Mr. Yandel is fighting under the sea over there!»
«That's right...» Missha interrupted herself.
At that, Raven bit her lip and spoke more patiently instead of raising her voice emotionally. «You just have to wait. Mr. Yandel will surely return in one piece».
«I'm sorry I screamed».
«Nothing happens. I feel the same».
«The same?»
To Missha's question, Raven responded with a moment's pause. «...We are comrades».
«Oh, sure... yes».
There was an awkward silence after that. The entire time, everyone on the ship fixed their eyes on the point from which they had begun the journey. About five minutes later, the ship that was anchored began to sway enormously.
«The water is going down!» High sea levels were falling in real time.
«W-what? But Bjorn isn't here yet. He... failed?»
«I do not believe it! If Storm Gush were alive, there would be another storm!»
«Oh, then...»
«Yes! Mr. Yandel defeated Storm Gush!» raven shouted, unable to hide her joy.
Missha was the same. «Ahh, you barbaric bastard! You said you were just going to hold on, what the hell were you doing down there?!». Contrary to the content of his words, Missha's face only showed brilliant relief.
«Mr. Patzran! Turn the boat quickly!»
«¡Lo haré!»
Raven hurried around the ship and headed to the island.
¡Flash!
As if thunder had exploded under the sea, a white light shone and disappeared over the surface of the water.
«What was that?
«C-Do you think something has gone wrong down there...?».
The priestess and everyone else turned their eyes to Raven, but being a wizard didn't mean knowing everything. «I-I don't know either...»
The labyrinth was like that. There were more things you didn't know than things you did. It was also the first time I had seen a Storm Gush.
As time passed, the water level dropped and the island began to appear from the center and the highest point. However, the person they were looking for was nowhere to be found.
«They have disappeared too! And that's your team?»
All that was left in the center of the island was Bjorn's team and the woman named Amelia.
«Here's a nail. Seeing that the rope is tangled, it seems that the man was here a moment ago...»
«It seems they tried not to be swept away by the current. But where...?»
«But wait, the team...? What is the team? There would be no reason to take it off...»
It was a scene full of contradictions.
«...Let's register the area first. If they were swept away by the water, they can't have gone very far». Raven's head felt just as complicated, but she gave the instructions as calmly as possible. Hadn't Bjorn said before that she had to act as a leader when he was gone?
«Here! There is more equipment! This is the necklace Bjorn is wearing!»
«Your underwear is here too!»
After that, the group split up and started searching. Meanwhile, sea level continued to drop and the island returned to its original state.
«Why... why are they nowhere to be seen?»
Even after searching the entire island, Bjorn could not be found. What the hell happened here?
«Perhaps Yandel...»
They couldn't know anything now, but Raven spoke firmly. «Mr. Urikfried, don't talk nonsense. He's probably alive».
Speak positively even if there was no evidence; Yes, that barbarian said that was what a leader should do.
«First of all, it is clear from the circumstantial evidence that killed Storm Gush. They had the mind to drive a nail into the ground so as not to be dragged. I don't know why they took all their equipment, but it's possible they were dragged to a nearby island. Let's take a look».
After that, Raven boarded Patzran's ship and searched all the nearby islands. In the process, there was much speculation and sometimes even fights, but no one lost hope. Time passed like this and in the end, they reached the closing day of the maze without finding Bjorn.
«...We will meet in the city».
¡Shaaaaa!
The light of the labyrinth announced his return. Upon arriving in the city, Raven looked for some barbarian in the empty Dimension Square. None were immediately visible. Thinking he might have moved somewhere before she found him, Raven even went to the checkpoint, but there he was anyway.
»Bjorn»? Was he in the square? The staff here said no scouts passed by».
«...I couldn't find it in the square.» Raven waited incessantly with her companions who had arrived at the checkpoint before her. Even when all the scouts passed through the checkpoint, leaving the square empty, Bjorn did not appear even though wherever he was in the maze they should have met here... as long as he was alive.
«Um... closing time is approaching».
Even when the staff hinted at them to leave, Bjorn did not show up. That only meant one thing, but no one could put those words in his mouth.
Just as that heavy silence fell, his only warrior comrade Ainar briefly uttered: «So Bjorn is dead».
It was time to face reality.
***
They say that even mountains and rivers change in ten years, but not here, at least. Although it was enough time for the mountains and rivers to change twice, this city had not changed much, as had the street in front of the checkpoint where I was now.
«Dad! Here! Over here!»
«Ramirion, I'm glad you're back safe and sound once again. Let's go home quickly. I have prepared all your favorites.»
Acquaintances and relatives of the explorers filled the checkpoint. Even the surrounding buildings hadn't changed much. The only small differences were the signs hanging on the first floor of the building.
So that was originally a bar, not a general store.
While I was a little fascinated by the difference between the past and the present and looked around for more, a woman approached my side. It was Amelia.
«Ah, you are here».
«I've made you wait. Were there any problems during the inspection?»
«I just handed over my ID and exchanged mana stones like you said».
«Really? What a relief. So let's move.»
«Where do we go first?»
«First, to a clothing store».
After meeting Amelia, we went to a nearby store to buy clothes and found accommodation in District 7, my usual area of residence.
«Come to my room after getting clean. Let's talk for a while».
First I went into the bathroom and washed, then I put on my new clothes and went to Amelia's room. Luckily, he had already finished washing when the door opened quickly.
«What did you want to talk about?». I asked as I sat on the bed.
Amelia shook the water out of her hair and sat at the table in front of me. «First, I have to ask you something».
«Dime.»
«Are you... thinking about coming back?».
I wondered what he was going to ask. Wasn't it obvious? «Of course. I'm coming back, no matter what».
«Hmm, ¿ya veo?»
«Did you really think I'd want to stay?»
«I thought it was possible. You would have realized little by little now that you are in the past».
«And what does that have to do with it?»
«... This is twenty years ago. You may not know it, but using this time difference could lead to a much more comfortable life than before.»
«Ya veo.»
«...Not only ends with 'I see'. Barbarian, you may not realize it but the opportunity you have now-«
I cut Amelia before she went on any longer. «Enough». I understood what he was saying, but I wasn't that interested. Either way, there was no bitcoin here. Staying here only became a punishment in which my team, my hard-earned noble status, and my diligently cultivated comrades were nothing again. For me, there was no reason to stay. «If there's a way back, I'm leaving right now. So don't talk about this anymore. If it weren't for you, I wouldn't have gotten involved in this in the first place».
«...sorry for that part.»
Yes, that apology came too late. «It doesn't matter, so that's why you asked to see me?»
«No, the main question is another. If you were going to stay here, I wasn't going to tell you».
No wonder he kept probing me. «Stop thinking about it and talk openly».
«I want you to help me while you are here in the past.»
Not once did he answer my questions well on the island, but now he wanted my help? Wasn't he thinking of me as a fool? «And what do I gain from that?»
«I'll also help you get back».
«You don't even know how, how are you going to help?»
«...There is a method worth trying.»
«Tell me.» If he had told me I had to make a decision to tell me what it was, I would have left immediately.
But Amelia was quick to tell me what that method was. «Using the Records Stone Fragment once again».
I didn't understand it immediately. »The Record Fragment Stone»? He disappeared when...» I paused mid-interrogation. «Ah...» It had not completely disappeared, since this was twenty years in the past.
«Yes, the one I used disappeared, but there is still one more. At this time, the lord of Noark» would keep it.
Suddenly, the Genesis Treasures came to mind. According to this theory, key objects stolen from the top floor also existed in the current era.
What happens if I take them with me? Is there any way to clarify it?
Curiosity came to mind, but I quickly threw it away. Not only was it enough to worry about going back to my original time, but it wouldn't be possible to bring them back in the first place. Considering that time travel left Amelia and me naked on Farune Island, the opposite was likely to happen. It would be impossible to take an object from here.
Ah, my thoughts were wandering. When I came to, Amelia had stopped talking and started watching me. Wow, doesn't a barbarian have a hard time concentrating?
«Ahem, I hear you. Go on».
«...I'll say the rest after hearing your answer».
Ha, is this how you want to go out?
My first thought was that she was cheap, but I only had one answer to give. Not only was it more plausible to use the Records Stone Fragment to return, if she didn't help me, it would be difficult on my own. To obtain that item, the help of Amelia, who was from Noark, was essential, since she did not know where the lord of the castle kept it.
«Okay, then tell me. How can I help you?»
When I gave my consent, Amelia made a slightly strange expression. She clearly didn't seem happy. Rather, she seemed somewhat upset.
«Is there a problem?»
«...No. There's no way what that bastard said was true.»
«That bastard?» I asked her, but Amelia fell silent.
After calming his emotions, he slowly parted his lips. It was a pretty long story, and when it was over, I finally understood the woman named Amelia Rainwales, and what past she was so desperate to change.
***
The day after the long story, Amelia left the inn.
«You may not be able to come for a while while you are busy. I can't stop you from doing anything, but don't make a scene as much as possible».
Apparently, there was an explorer operating in the shadows who offered his help and tried to recruit him for Noark once he became a criminal. He planned to contact them. That was because for us both to achieve our goals, entering Noark was urgent.
Ugh, I never thought I'd make it to Noark.
Anyway, the period Amelia was talking about was about three weeks. He said he would stop by from time to time to inform me of progress, so then I could find out about any changes to the plan.
What should I do now?
Being left alone in the room, I felt uneasy. It could be a player's curiosity. After all, twenty years had passed.
Should I look around me?
When the idea occurred to me, I put on my clothes and left the bedroom. Even though Amelia repeatedly told me not to make a scene, honestly, how could I put up with this? What could happen?