About a hundred meters from the textile shop, on a hill overlooking the sea, Shiomi was releasing a bird with emerald-green feathers.
Morgan recognized it at a glance. It was his familiar raven.
During the investigation of the Kumano Hot Springs Singularity, Shiomi had refurbished the familiar's construction formula so it could be put to use during investigations like this, in different Lostbelts.
"How many ravens have you released?" Morgan asked from behind.
"Twelve so far," Shiomi replied, lowering his hand. "This village isn't very large, so aside from the three I've left here, I've deployed the rest across other locations on Hestia Island."
"To prevent new pursuers from tracing their way here?" Olga Marie asked.
"Even if they're not much of a threat, having them show up one after another is still annoying," Shiomi said. "It's like walking home and finding ants blocking the path… no, that's not quite it. How should I put it…"
"There's no need to explain it in that much detail, my husband," Morgan said, patting him on the shoulder. "We understand what you mean."
Enemies that could be easily dealt with, yet still had to be dealt with, appearing one after another would only grind down one's patience.
That was hardly a good thing.
Olga Marie let out a quiet sigh. She understood exactly what Shiomi was worried about.
Then she followed his line of sight. From the hill where the village stood, the island's open plains were clearly visible.
Scattered across that lush, green expanse were enormous metal remnants, their surfaces thickly covered in moss and creeping vines, as though they had been abandoned there for countless years.
Shiomi was staring at those remains.
"What are those?" Morgan asked, noticing where he was looking.
"According to the villagers, they're leftovers from a war between gods that happened tens of thousands of years ago," Shiomi said, recounting what he had learned. "The younger people here call them 'Divine Remnants.'"
"Oh? 'Divine Remnants.'" Morgan's expression turned thoughtful. "That reminds me. The Director and I passed by the textile shop earlier and went inside out of curiosity."
Olga Marie immediately added, "The villagers said the fabric is made from birch bark, but they also mix in Theos Klironomia."
"Theos?" Shiomi raised an eyebrow.
"'The inheritance of the gods,'" Morgan said with a smile. "It seems this island… no, this Atlantis Lostbelt is anything but simple. On one hand, it truly lies under the rule of gods. On the other, it's littered with all kinds of relics."
Shiomi lifted his hand and pointed toward a spot some distance from the village. When he looked up, a massive structure built in an ancient Greek style stood there, towering over the landscape like a temple.
"So what you're saying, my husband," Morgan asked, "is that you're planning to investigate that temple next? There might be something to discover inside."
"Not today," Shiomi replied. He turned and sat down on a nearby rock. "We'll wait here for the rest of Chaldea to arrive first. Once we regroup, we can see if it's possible to resupply here."
As he spoke, he spread out the sea chart he had obtained from Bartholomew.
Morgan and Olga Marie sat down on either side of him, looking over the map together.
"All the islands in the Atlantis Sea form a roughly circular ring," Shiomi explained. "At the center is the 'Void Hollow' where the Fantasy Tree stands. It's said to be an extremely powerful vortex, one that even distorts the surrounding gravity. That's most likely something set up by the Olympian gods. Until we find the proper entrance, approaching it rashly would only cause trouble."
As he spoke, his finger traced the map clockwise toward the southwest.
"Starting from Hestia Island, the two closest islands are Heracles Island to the northeast, and Nemesis Island to the southwest."
"Are we splitting up again?" Olga Marie asked instinctively.
"Better not," Shiomi said, shaking his head. "Back during the Human Order incidents, we used Chaldea as a base and relied on Rayshifting, which gave us a relatively stable rear line. This time, we're personally deep inside the Singularity. Storm Border is our only mobile base and source of support. Splitting up recklessly would be a bad idea. And—"
"And?" Morgan prompted.
"The skies to the southwest are constantly covered in dark clouds. According to the locals, the sea around Nemesis Island is extremely hostile. They say there's very little contact between the islands in general, but Nemesis Island is completely inaccessible," Shiomi said.
"To put it bluntly, I'm convinced there are Magical Beasts in those waters that are extremely well adapted to that environment."
"In other words," Morgan said, understanding dawning on her, "your plan is for us to sail northwest from here, investigate each island counterclockwise, gather information, and search for an entrance to the Fantasy Tree."
It was a remarkably steady and cautious strategy.
Even after annihilating Odysseus's fleet, they had no intention of letting their guard down.
After all, they had yet to destroy the true core strength of this Lostbelt. To Kirschtaria, and even to the king of the Lostbelt, their actions so far were likely no more than losing a finger.
Painful, yes.
But far from fatal.
"Also, about Bartholomew Roberts," Shiomi said. "As a Servant, his combat strength would only be an extra bonus for us. Rather than having him join our group, it's better for him to stay on Hestia Island."
"Why?" Olga Marie asked. "Does the Professor still not trust other Servants?"
"No. I plan to restore the island's Leylines," Shiomi replied, explaining his reasoning. "Once the Leylines are restored and new Servants can manifest, I want him to act as their guide. If more Servants arrive later, I intend to make similar arrangements."
"Once the Leylines are restored to the point where Servants can manifest, it'll be noticed," Morgan said, pointing up at the sky.
"Which is why we need to find a good position to snipe Artemis first and deal with that Machine God above us," Shiomi said with a nod. His tone was casual, yet carried an unhesitating decisiveness.
Olga Marie felt a sudden surge of resolve well up inside her. It was only then that she realized she had unconsciously moved closer to Shiomi while listening to him share his plans, now standing almost as close to him as Morgan was.
The warmth of his body came through even through her combat suit, and Olga Marie immediately sensed that this was not good.
Yet Shiomi and Morgan were still discussing battle plans, while her attention had already drifted elsewhere.
Just then, voices from Ritsuka Fujimaru and Mash Kyrielight came from the road leading from the coast to the village. Olga Marie sprang up as if she'd just stubbed her toe.
"E-everyone's here! I'll go meet them! Professor, Ms. Morgan, please rest here for a bit!"
"She's in quite a good mood," Shiomi said, blinking in surprise.
"A young woman in her early twenties being lively is good for both body and mind," Morgan said as she tucked a strand of hair behind her ear.
"That's true."
Shiomi couldn't help but wholeheartedly agree.