━━━The next morning.

After managing to escape the swarm of rabbits, Lanpeach divided the items with Mira and returned shortly after.

Lanpeach felt fully recovered after having rested well in bed.

“In the end, I only bought the mask, manju, and the spirit armor. Oh, and an all-purpose potion for 80 points, just in case.” (Lanpeach)

Even though he didn’t buy much, he got the spirit armor he had planned for, so it was a fruitful trip. Next time he visits, he plans to try spacewalking since it was his first time at a space colony.

[I personally would’ve liked a wooden sword too, you know?] (Libra)

Lanpeach stuck out his tongue at the sulking Libra as he stretched. Considering the precious experience points it cost, he wasn’t in the mood to buy something like a wooden sword.

“We don’t have the luxury to waste money like that.” (Lanpeach)

[And yet, you caved in and bought manju because of the rabbits’ teary eyes~.] (Libra)

The rabbits, squeaking and rubbing their noses against him, were simply too adorable. Lanpeach thought no one could resist them.

“I couldn’t possibly say no to such lovable rabbits. In the end, I decided who to buy from with a game of rock-paper-scissors though.” (Lanpeach)

Lanpeach got out of bed after exchanging some banter with Libra. 

A lively voice came from beyond the wall while he straightened his messy hair with his fingers and yawned. Mimi, who was clinging to his head and sleeping soundly, felt a bit heavy.

“Wake up~. It’s breakfast time~.” 

“Good morning. You’re full of energy as always.” (Lanpeach)

When he stepped out of the bedroom, breakfast was already laid out on the table. As usual, it wasn’t synthetic food but natural ingredients, making for a delicious meal.

“Hey, hey, old man, breakfast is ready~. I managed to get some good pork today. It seems to have come from the Southern Sector, which is pretty rare. There’s been a lot of natural pork and eggs circulating lately, you know?” (Touka)

Touka grinned as she served up a pork steak set meal, quite a heavy breakfast. But Lanpeach was young, so it was no problem for him. Before, he would’ve skipped breakfast altogether.

“Oh, that’s rare indeed. Maybe some rabbits are hunting, and giant spiders are doing the butchering.” (Lanpeach)

Even though he knew the source, he had no intention of sharing it. He carefully placed the still-sleeping Mimi on a nearby chair and sat down, feeling drowsy.

“So, what’s the plan for today? Tomorrow’s Saturday, so you can take it easy until then.” (Touka)

“This girl is so casually selfish I can’t underestimate her. Ah, here, a souvenir. Just one manju.” (Lanpeach)

He pulled out a manju and tossed it to Touka, who was serving rice. The rest he planned to give to Chihiro and the others.

“A manju? Where did you buy this?” (Touka)

Touka caught it, handed him a rice bowl, and then took a bite of the manju. As soon as she tasted it…she collapsed with a thud.

“Eh?? Why did she collapse? Could it be that this is poisonous to humans?!” (Lanpeach)

Lanpeach panicked, but then Touka suddenly sat up like a hopping zombie, her face twisting into an expression no girl should ever make.

“It’s not poison! This is just…too delicious! What is this? The sweetness of the red bean paste fills my mouth, and the fluffy texture of the dough melts my body. This is the most delicious manju I’ve ever had! Where did you get this?”

“I bought it from a traveling merchant I occasionally see on the roadside. I see, so it was that good.” (Lanpeach)

Realizing just how incredibly tasty it was, Lanpeach broke out in a cold sweat, relieved he hadn’t given her the whole box. The box itself would have been especially bad. He noticed just now, but the box was labeled ‘Manufactured at the Sweet Pancake Space Colony’.

If Touka saw that, it wouldn’t be hard to imagine that she’d be over the moon and cling to him like a leech.

“I’m going to search the city for more! See you later~.” (Touka)

“Okay, see yo—” (Lanpeach)

He gave a half-hearted farewell to the hostess, who dashed out of the room with incredible speed. He smirked at how free-spirited she was while taking out the gold and silver keys.

He happily pulled Touka’s portion of the side dishes toward himself, and gave them to Libra, who had sneakily served herself some rice.

“Libra, you probably already know, but I didn’t raise the Extraterrestrial skill level for nothing. Get ready for some Item Analysis.” (Lanpeach)

“Nom nom okay nom nom.” (Libra)

Libra tapped the keys with her chopsticks and a mouthful of breakfast, causing a window to pop up.

[Gold Key: Opens the Graveyard of Swords Portal. When combined with the Silver Key, it can open the Twin Spirit Graveyard Portal.]

[Silver Key: Opens the Graveyard of Bows Portal. When combined with the Gold Key, it can open the Twin Spirit Graveyard Portal.]

“Bingo. That’s some interesting text.” (Lanpeach)

Lanpeach grinned while eating his pork steak, pleased that the fatty meat didn’t give him heartburn due to his youth.

“So, what were these keys originally for?” (Lanpeach)

“The Silver Key only transported you to a vast stone chamber. It probably once contained rare bows, but they have all been taken. As for the Sword Graveyard, people said you could find legendary swords there, right? I think it’s the same deal.” (Libra)

“The same? But legendary swords… Oh, I see. If a thousand years have passed, the treasures must have been emptied. So these keys were just items to pull in customers then.” (Lanpeach)

“Exactly. There probably were legendary swords in the past, but they’re gone now. Otherwise, the Tsurugi family wouldn’t have entrusted the key to an unknown guest. Claiming they don’t know how to activate the portal? That’s a lie. If there really were legendary swords to be had, they would’ve researched it thoroughly. And they had over a thousand years to do so.” (Libra)

Lanpeach smiled wryly as he munched on the tasty rice, realizing that even at a billion Ele per night, the Ultra Suite Room would be a steal if it guaranteed a legendary sword.

Everyone knew the key was useless. That’s why there were no guests.

“This room and meal cost a billion Ele. Using the key as a promotional tool is…shady, or like…?” (Lanpeach)

“Or like…?” (Libra)

“They might be searching for another possibility.” (Lanpeach)

A thought crossed his mind as he spoke, and his tone grew slightly more serious.

“Well, we’ll know if we try it. Breakfast is almost over. How about some exercise to burn it off?” (Lanpeach)

“Not until I get another bowl of miso soup! It’s been a while since I had a proper meal, so let me enjoy it slowly, geez~!” (Libra)

Libra, who had been hungrily slurping down her miso soup, demanded another bowl. It seemed she had been craving a good meal. 

Lanpeach considered treating her to a meal at the colony later as he took the two keys and headed outside to the garden.

“Let’s combine the keys… Hmm.” (Lanpeach)

When he combined the two old keys, they fused like puzzle pieces into a single key. The gold and silver contrast was beautiful, making it a valuable item even as a work of art.

[Twin Spirit Key: Use it at a certain altar to open the Twin Spirit Portal.]

“A certain altar, huh… It’s probably here, but I’ve got my doubts.” (Lanpeach)

“Your doubts? Can I get more rice?” (Libra)

“Sorry, I’ll make sure you have enough rice from here on. And you’ve got some rice stuck to your mouth.” (Lanpeach)

Feeling a bit guilty seeing Libra, who was stuffing her face like a starving child, Lanpeach put on the Mask of Chaotic Causality sunglasses from his Dimension Pouch and grinned.

“As long as I’m not seen putting it on or taking it off, no one will know it’s me, right?” (Lanpeach)

“That should be the case. But why put it on now?” (Libra)

“Because I’m the only one here. If no one can recognize me even though there’s only Lanpeach around, it would prove these sunglasses are reliable. If no one can reach the answer that any person could get without being a detective, these sunglasses can be trusted.” (Lanpeach)

Although Libra looked puzzled, Lanpeach wanted to test the sunglasses when it didn’t matter if he was caught. This was the perfect chance.

“Alright, time to use the key. The method is simple. Just focus on ‘using’ the key and… voila.” (Lanpeach)

The Twin Spirit Key emitted light and pointed towards the garden. It was a typical event, but seeing it in reality made it somewhat thrilling. Lanpeach stepped into the garden, where the ground began to tremble, and Stonehenge-like structures emerged, with a mystical magic circle engraved at the center.

“Mystical, or rather, game-like.” (Lanpeach)

Lanpeach smiled wryly, feeling that this was one of the reasons he couldn’t fully immerse himself in the reality of this world despite being impressed. 

[Defeat the Twin Spirits and restore the Elemental Stream to normal.]

A notification appeared before his eyes.

“Oh, a quest has been triggered. I’ve never done this one before, moreover, it seems pretty interesting.” (Lanpeach)

Another quest appeared. It looked like it would be fun judging by the name.

“Then, will you stand in the center of the magic circle and use the key?” (Libra)

“Yeah. Then, open sesame~.” (Lanpeach)

Lanpeach followed Libra’s words and held the key over the center of the magic circle. Could you put the rice bowl down first?

The magic circle began to glow as soon as the key reacted -only to suddenly vanish. 

Lanpeach slumped his shoulders, letting out a sigh at the unexpected outcome. He had a feeling it wouldn’t be that easy.

“…So, you’ve been waiting for this altar to appear. Good grief, how persistent can a person be?” (Lanpeach)

Swords had appeared all around at some point in time, emitting light that covered the magic circle, dispersing the key’s power. Then, Lanpeach sensed a presence behind him that hadn’t been there before.

“I don’t know who you are, but I must offer my thanks. May I have your name, mister?”

Lanpeach turned around to the sound of a cold voice and saw a man in a tuxedo standing there with a smile.

“It’s bad enough that you set an alarm on something you’re lending to a guest. This room costs a billion Ele, right?” (Lanpeach) 

“I’m sorry, but it seems you’re not really a guest… I’ve been waiting for the moment this magic circle would react, believing it would eventually activate.” 

The man was Muramasa. The usually friendly man was nowhere to be found; instead, his expression was chilling, cold enough to send shivers down Lanpeach’s spine. 

Muramasa’s eyes gleamed with joy, having found what he was looking for.

“Now, if you leave that key behind, I’ll let you go, mister. I trust you’ll make the wise decision.” (Muramasa)

Muramasa’s polite yet mocking smile made Lanpeach shrug. It seemed the sunglasses’ ability was truly impressive, as the man didn’t realize he was talking to Lanpeach.

“Sorry, but I’m the one who found this key, and I’ll be taking the treasure beyond it too. You should run with your tail between your legs, manager.” (Lanpeach)

“Fumu… Just as I expected. May I at least have your name before you die?” (Muramasa)

Muramasa glared at Lanpeach, who returned his gaze with a smile.

“My name is Michibiki** <Guide in Japanese>. You can remember me as the one who guides the spirits.” (Lanpeach) <TLN: Long explanation as to why I kept it Japanese. This story actually has a lot of Japanglish names like Dry and Sage. It would be weird to translate Michibiki when it is in proper Japanese.>

Confident that his identity wasn’t compromised, Lanpeach struck a cool pose, slipping into his edgy mode. 

[Boss Battle: Defeat Tsurugi Muramasa, the obsessive mage searching for the legendary land.]

The notification for the boss battle had appeared early.

“I’ll eliminate any enemy that stands in my way, so prepare yourself. Make sure you have no regrets.” (Lanpeach)

“Understood. It’s clear that neither of us will back down, Michibiki-sama.” (Muramasa)

With that, the two faced off, and the curtain rose on a quest with Lanpeach difficulty.

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