My Glasses Will Be Able to Conquer the Whole World, I Suppose

Chapter 238 – Glasses Boy Feels Unease, but No One Listens

“Whoa, seriously?”

After exiting the cave, where the instructors had led us, Chace, who had gotten ahead of us all, suddenly came to a stop with a look of surprise.

We, including myself, wondered what was going on as we looked ahead from beside him, and… oh, I see.

There was no path in front of us.

We were on some kind of cliff.

It was a cave carved into the middle of a sheer cliff, at quite a high altitude.

Below us, a forest spread out, and above was also pretty high.

We were stunned for a few seconds, exposed to the strong, cold wind. When we looked for the instructors we had already lost sight of—there they were.

It seemed the instructors had immediately moved off to the side after exiting the cave.

And now, they were running along a pathless route along the cliff.

There was no path wide enough for a person to pass.

Only wooden stakes and ropes, planted sideways into the sheer cliff, were scattered around.

This was it.

The “path” we ran on during Haidiga.

Just the location and shape were slightly different.

While I was making this association, the instructors were steadily advancing, as if they were running on the ground, not slowed at all.

Well, they were probably moving a bit slower than if they were running on solid ground.

They were likely accommodating us just a bit.

Even in a place like this, they could probably move faster.

“W-Where are we going to go!?”

Florentine raised a voice of concern.

The height was deadly if we fell.

I completely understood why Florentine was hesitating.

But to her, Chace, Harriatan, Belge, and Geodine all responded with their actions, already leaping onto the cliff’s footholds to follow the instructors.

“—Eil, cover the rear. I’ll go ahead.”

Only Geodine, the leader this time, had instructed me, the deputy leader, to take the rear.

But he’s not that fast on his feet, I think.

He’ll probably catch up later.

Ah, I see.

Once he catches up, we can switch roles, or maybe it’s just for now.

—Somehow, he must have anticipated that I would hesitate.

“Nya-ha-ha! I’m totally fine with this!”

Trawllul jumped backward… and nimbly landed on a stake. Wow, that movement is pretty impressive. I can’t do that.

“It’s okay, you can do it!”

I encouraged Florentine with a grin as Trawllul continued on.

…So, somehow, Lisse and I ended up hesitating and lagging behind.

“…………”

Lisse looked at me with a “What are we going to do?” expression.

At this point, it couldn’t be helped.

“Florentine.”

I took out a rope, wrapped it around my torso, and tied it tightly.

“I’m scared too, so if you fall, I’ll pull you up. If I fall, you pull me up.”

With her Anomalous Ogre ability, she should be able to support my weight, and with my glasses, I can support Florentine in the same way. Well, I don’t plan on falling, though.

Actually, if it came to that, I think it’d be faster if I just carried Florentine.

But that would be too presumptuous.

“I’ll take your gear.”

Lisse grabbed the gear from me and Florentine and leaped onto the stakes.

Despite everything, Lisse, with her leadership qualities, takes care of others well.

That’s probably why she’s recognized by everyone.

If I hadn’t suggested a solution, she would have come up with something herself.

And once she knew she wasn’t needed, she did what she could.

I wouldn’t be able to do that.

If Florentine hadn’t stopped, I think I would have just gone on ahead.

“W-Wait… is this okay? Is this allowed?”

That question seems a bit late.

“If it wasn’t allowed, the instructors would have told us. I’m scared too.”

In the past challenges, the candidates have been helping each other out.

When we lost sight of the instructors, we left markers intentionally to guide each other and cooperated to follow them.

At first, I accidentally left arrows as markers by dropping my body, but since no one said anything, I now place them openly. Quite conspicuously.

If it were prohibited, no one would even be able to attempt the challenges.

Chace was even more blatant, going back and forth to check on the progress of those following.

It’s definitely the method of someone who’s incredibly fast.

Well, actually,

“In the subjugation strategy, everyone has a role. If you drop out, it would be a problem. Also, I’m scared, so I need you to tie the rope.”

“…You’re really soft on yourself, aren’t you?”

“It’s not that I’m soft. I’m scared too. Really scared. I can’t even move my legs from fear. It’s scary. It’s really scary. …I just want you to believe me after saying all this.”

“That’s impossible.”

Why?

Even after insisting so much.

…Well, I suppose I’m not really that scared.

—Despite nearly falling a couple of times, Florentine managed to make it through.

It must have been the words I said earlier that helped.

—“With your abilities, I don’t think you’d die if you fell.”

The Anomalous Ogre ability increases muscle strength to an almost exaggerated degree, but it also strengthens the body to maintain and use that strength.

In simple terms, it makes the body more durable.

So, it’s probably safe even if you fall.

You’d likely only get a scratch or two.

After saying that, Florentine’s improved performance and response of “Oh, I see” were remarkable.

Handling dangerous situations is largely a matter of mindset.

If they managed to switch their mindset effectively, that’s what matters.

—By the way, I find heights that are only moderately high quite scary.

The memory of falling from the cliff, struck by my master’s malice, resurfaces.

I think I’ve overcome it, but it’s hard to forget… Heights that are too high or too low are fine, but this in-between height gets to me.

We moved along the cliff, descending gradually, and finally reached the ground using a rope ladder that was set up.

“I was totally fine.”

Yeah, by the end, really.

If you’re okay with falling, there’s no reason to be afraid.

“Sorry about that, Eil.”

“It’s fine. I was scared too. Really scared. I’m afraid of heights.”

“…Sorry for that too. It sounds so fake.”

…………

Well, it’s definitely not the truth.

I untied the rope from Florentine and myself and collected it.

“Hey, Eil, over here.”

In the meantime, Florentine found the message left by the group ahead.

We had taken a bit longer, so the instructors and candidates were already out of sight.

Even trying to sense their presence… I can’t quite tell. They might be quite far ahead.

Since there’s nowhere else to go, they must have headed into the forest…

Our guess was correct. Florentine found arrows with a faint glow drawn on the nearby trees—notes left by Geodine with magic.

“Let’s go.”

The challenge has only just begun.