His back was leaned to by Tio. She didn't demand anything in particular, just quietly sitting back to back against him. However, he understood Tio was relaxed, and she entrusted her weight to him. It was slightly unexpected, since Hajime's only thought was to throw her into the sea if she makes a perverted demand.
Then, maybe because she felt something from Hajime's aura, Tio's body shuddered and trembled for a moment while her breathing turned rough...
Hajime's party cuddled close to each other above the vast sea. It would take a while until night time came, and the moon will begin to shine. So to kill time, Hajime began to speak a little about his hometown.
Hajime's story fascinated Yue and the other two while Kaori was supplementing him with a radiant smile. Time passed swiftly as they enjoyed the peaceful atmosphere and the sun had completely gone down to the other side of the horizon, and the moon had began to shine in its place.
Thinking it was about the time, Hajime took out the pendant which was the proof of having conquered 【Guryuu-en Great Volcano】 from his breast pocket. The design of the pendant was of a woman hanging a lantern and there was a hole on the lantern, becoming hollow.
Even while staying at Elisen, Hajime had taken out the pendant and held it towards the moon, and also supplied it with magic power, but there was no change in particular.
'Just what should be done to the moon and pendant?', was what he thought while tilting his head. For now, Hajime tried to hold the pendant towards the moon. The moon could be seen from hole of the lantern design.
He waited for a while, but there was no change. Hajime, not understanding what to do, sighed and began to try another method.
But at that time, change appeared in the pendant.
"Waah, the light is gathering in the lantern. It's beautiful~."
"It is... a mysterious sight. Even though the lantern part is actually hollow..."
Shia was admiring the sight and Kaori, with shining eyes, agreed with her.
Just as the two said, the lantern part was absorbing the moonlight and light began to accumulate inside it. In accordance to that, the hollow part was filled by the light. Also becoming interested in it, Yue and Tio watched the pendant Hajime held up.
"Even though I've also tried it last night..."
"Hmm, Master. It might be because it won't do if it isn't here, right?"
It might be just as Tio guessed. Before long, the lantern finished accumulating the light and the pendant was now clad in light. At the same time, a light shot straight from the lantern, pointing to a certain location on the sea's surface.
"... What an exquisite production. Truly different from Miledi's."
"It is. It really is fantasy-like, even I'm rather impressed by it."
"Guided by the moonlight," it was such a romance-like thing which made not only Hajime, but also Yue and the rest raised voices of admiration. The impression gained by Shia, just like Hajime and Yue, was strong as someone who had entered Miledi's 【Miledi Great Dungeon】.
The party didn't know how long the light would be released from the pendant's lantern, so the submarine immediately sailed, lead by the light.
The sea at night was dark. Or maybe it would be better to say that everything was black. And even though the surface of the was still bright because of the moonlight, they were lead into the waters and thus everything instantly turned dark. The light released by the submarine and the pendant was the only thing cutting through the dark sea.
The light, passing through the glass made from front crystal (a type of sturdy and transparent ore) in front of the submarine, was pointing at the bottom of the sea.
The location pointed was the rock wall zone of the bottom of the sea. Numerous distorted rock walls were joined to form a mountain range. It was a place the party had searched during the daytime but it resulted in nothing... but when the submarine approached the rock pointed by the pendant's light, a tremor began to generated along with a strong rumbling sound.
The sound and tremor was caused by the rock wall that began to move. One of the rock's part was split in two, opening to the right and left like a door. The dark road lead inside was as though it was inviting one to the netherworld.
"I see... so that's why we can't find it no matter how much we tried. How foolish of me to think we will be able to find it if we were lucky."
"... There's no helping it, but it was fun."
"Yue is right. Don't you think it was an amazing experience to sightsee the bottom of the sea of this different world?"
Hajime's shoulders drooped as he understood the search they did during daytime was in vain, but it seemed Yue and Kaori quite enjoyed it.