“At this point, does it even matter whether we like it or not?” Aren said, looking solemnly at Alnea. “No matter what the method is, as long as we can complete our exploration on time, I do not think anyone will mind.”

  “Are you sure?” Alnea said, glancing at all his teammates. “This will be a very dangerous plan. I will give you some time to think it over.”

  “No need,” Norren said. “We are not afraid of any danger.”

  “…I would not go so far as to say that we are not afraid, but after all that we have been through in the past few months, I think we can handle anything.”

  “That’s right. Let those bastards come. We will show them that we are not afraid of anyone.”

  “…That’s not what I said.”

  “It’s all the same,” Norren said, waving his hands to dismiss Ralph’s concern, before turning back towards Alnea. “So, tell us Captain. What is this way you are talking about?”

  “…I understand your where your confidence is coming from,” Alnea said, not in the least affected by the enthusiasm of his teammates. “But this is different. This time—

  “Oh, just get to the point already,” Cecilia said, waving her hand impatiently. “How bad could it be anyway?”

  “…Enough to risk everyone’s lives,” Alnea said, infecting everyone with his solemn voice, while struggling with his helplessness. “But I cannot think of any other method to cope up with our situation.”

  “…It is alright, Alnea,” Vestia said in a soft voice, almost as if she was trying to comfort him. “At least you can think of something. That is enough. And how would you know that we would not like the plan if you do not even tell it to us?”

  “…Because I do not like it,” Alnea said, letting out a sigh, before glancing into the depths of the restless forest. “I do not like the feeling of being forced into making a helpless choice. But there is nothing else we can do. The way this forest is changing… I am sure that even if we use Arcanas and Martial Styles to speed up our progress, the Lotus clan will have other measures in place to hinder our progress.

  “Such impeccable plan… It is almost as if our every move in their calculation. Nothing we do can escape their grasp. Unless we do something that they would never expect us to do. Only then, will we be able to catch them off guard, and complete our Trial before they can come up with different countermeasures.”

  “So, the question is, what is it that the Lotus clan will never expect us to do…”

  “Split up,” Karl said as soon as Vestia finished her words, almost as if he had been ready with the answer all along. “They would never expect us to split up.”

  “…Split up?”

  “…Indeed, they would never expect us to split up…”

  “And it would speed up our exploration by several times…”

  “…But it would also leave us completely exposed.”

  “By then, our main concern would not be how to complete our Trial on time, but how to survive.”

  “…Unless the Lotus clan decides to not attack us head on…”

  “…I admit that those bastards can be idiots, but they are not dumb. Who in their right mind would miss such an opportunity to take down their enemies?”

  “…They gave up last time…”

  “That was different. Back then, except for Captain, the rest of us were all together. And we had also prepared many traps around us.”

  “…Do you think those traps and our number would have made a difference against hundreds of Wanderers?”

  “Still…”

  “…What if they have already left the Final World?” Ralph said, prompting all the Star Seekers to turn towards him. “I mean, we have yet to see any Wanderers of either the Lotus clan or their allies. What if they left the Final World after making all their preparations?”

  “With how the Lotus clan has acted up until now, and how much effort they have spent on hindering us, do you think they will leave before ensuring that their plan has succeeded?”

  “…Maybe they are sure that we will never succeed?”

  “…Just how dumb do you take them to be?”

  “I am just saying…”

  “…And it is not as impossible a guess as everyone thinks,” Vestia added, bringing everyone’s attention to herself. “I have always been wondering why they would miss such a perfect opportunity to take us down when we were separated. Not to mention that we have indeed yet to see any of their Wanderers. Or even their shadows, for that matter.”

  If you stumble upon this narrative on Amazon, be aware that it has been stolen from Royal Road. Please report it.

  “But that is still not enough to prove that they have left the Final World.”

  “I know, and that is why I am calling it just a guess.”

  “…Then how are you going to explain the question that Karl raised?”

  “The same way as Ralph did,” Vestia said, glancing at the rolling ground under their feet. “What if the Lotus clan is sure that no matter what we do, we will never be able to succeed?”

  “…Then they must have prepared means that they have absolute confidence in.”

  “Like creating a Space Blockade… But that is not something that False Wanderers could touch, even with the help of Rituals.”

  “They would not have just planned to blow us up along with the forest, right?”

  “No, it must be something much simpler…”

  “You think blowing up the forest is complicated?”

  “If they were going to blow up the forest, they would not have spent so much effort on slowing us down.”

  “…Maybe that is their last resort, to be used only when their other means cannot stop us.”

  “And how do you think they will know when to blow up the forest?”

  “…Glyph Arrays?”

  “Show me False Ranked Glyph Arrays that can monitor people across worlds first before making such ridiculous guesses.”

  “At least I made a guess. You are only raising doubts.”

  “That is because I am still thinking.”

  “Then you keep thinking while—

  “Enough,” Alnea said, demanding silence, and silence he received. “What do you think you people are doing?”

  “…We are just trying to guess what the Lotus clan is planning…”

  “By fighting like children?”

  “No, we—

  “I understand that things are not going as we hoped for them to. That our situation is slowly getting out of control… In short, I do not like being forced to make choices that I would not even have considered normally either. But that is not an excuse for you to let your restlessness overwhelm your Heart.”

  “We—

  “Did you not hear what your Captain just said?” Yuri said, sending shivers down the spine of the Star Seekers with her cold glares. Especially that of Zain, Norren, and Ralph, the three who had been arguing most passionately.

  “Reign in your restless emotions, calm your Heart, think, and then speak. Do you understand?”

  The three men nodded in unison, as did the rest of the Star Seekers.

  “That was not so hard, was it?”

  The Star Seekers shook their heads.

  “Now, does anyone have anything they wish to share?”

  The Star Seekers shook their heads once again. Though, Alnea had already expected as such. With Yuri still glaring at them, it would have been a surprise if anyone dared to say anything. Then again, he could not blame her either. His teammates did let their emotions get the better of their Hearts. Maybe they deserved a scolding. Still, he could not let Yuri continue.

  “It’s alright, Yuri. I think everyone got your message,” Alnea said, glancing at his teammates, who nodded in unison once again, pleading him with their eyes to save them from their predicament. “There is no need to scare them anymore.”

  That may be so, but Yuri did not seem to agree with his words.

  “It is because of your indulgence that they do not know when to hold back, and always cause trouble for you,” Yuri said, rolling her eyes at Alnea, before glancing at the rest of the Star Seekers. “And you… I think you people have too much free time at your hands. Worrying about what kind of traps the Lotus clan has prepared… Are you not getting too ahead of yourselves?”

  The Star Seekers blinked, glanced at each other, before turning back to Yuri, and nodding along with her, whether they agreed with her or not. It did not matter what she said. She was right anyway. She—

  “They are too stunned to think right now,” Alnea said, when he noticed a slight hint of red on the cheeks of his teammates. “Just tell them where they are wrong, or we will never be able to come to a decision.”

  Yuri rolled her eyes at Alnea once again, but followed his order anyway.

  “Rather than wasting our time thinking about what could or could not be, and scaring ourselves with dangers that do not exist, it would be better if we focus on how to deal with our current situation. Do not forget that we have already lost more than twelve hours today, and still have more than a couple thousand square kilometres left to cover. If we do not find a solution to counter our decreasing rate of progress soon, then we will not have to worry about what more surprises the Lotus clan has prepared for us.”

  “…Then what do we do?”

  “Do you have any ideas other than what Alnea has said?”

  The Star Seekers shook their heads.

  “Then just follow what he says. Or come up with a better idea before we split up. Whatever you do, just stop wasting time.”

  “…But—

  “Are you worried that we would become easy targets if we split up?” Alnea said, stepping in to ease the embarrassment of his teammates. And as he expected, they began nodding their heads vigorously the moment the head his words. They still remembered Yuri’s warnings though, so they did not speak up rashly. Instead, they waited for their Captain’s explanation. And they were not disappointed in their decision.

  “Your worries are certainly not groundless. It is the reason why we did not split up in the first place, after all. But trust me. Since I have brought up the matter, I naturally have my ways to ensure your life. Especially since I have given you my word that I will bring everyone back alive. At worst, you would just be suffering some injuries. Nothing that the potions we have prepared cannot heal. Or at least, keep you stable until we bring you back to the Lost City to get treated.”

  “…Your words would have been much more reassuring if you had not said that last part,” Karl mumbled, but Alnea did not care about his grumbles. Nothing he said would be enough to reassure his grey robed teammate. Instead, it would only make the man more flustered. When it came to implementation of their plans though, Karl never faltered. So, he just ignored Karl and turned towards the girls. They were, after all, the keys to his plan.

  “It is time we use the surprise I prepared for you…”

  “Is it the same Arcana you were going to use earlier?” Zain said, before the girls could answer Alnea. “What is so special about it?”

  “…You will see in a while,” Alnea said, before turning bac to the girls. “Are you ready?”

  “Whenever you are.”

  “Then let’s begin…”