"Mmm. ......!　We're finally outside.

But we're surrounded by mountains. ...... Is this the bottom of the valley?

　I'm not sure what to make of this.

　We left the cave.
　The place seemed to be at the bottom of a valley, sandwiched between sheer rocky mountains.

　In front of us, behind us, and to our right, there were steep rocky mountains that we had to look up at.

　So the only way to proceed properly was on the left side...

　But there's one more thing.
　On the rocky mountain in front of us, there was a cave just like the one we had come out of, with a gaping hole in it.

　When Rio saw this, he came to me.

Brother, which way do you think we should go?　The cave?　Or should I just walk over there?

　I kind of put my hand on Rio's head and lightly stroke it.
　I put my hand on Rio's head and patted it lightly.

　Incidentally, the valley on the left hand side continued all the way to the end, and the valley curved sharply in the middle, so I could not see what was going on from there.

To be honest, I'm not sure which is the right way to go... Marina, what do we do?

I'm going to walk down this valley floor. I vote for walking along the bottom of this valley.

　Marina replied in a casual manner.
　It's a lazy way of deciding, but I understand how you feel, and I had no objection.

"Okay, well, we can't just stay in the cave all the time, let's go for a walk outside.

"Yes!

　There was no objection from the children, so we decided to leave the cave and follow the path on the left side, at the bottom of the valley.

　Six brave men, including myself, walked along the path to the bottom of the valley.

　Looking up at the sky, I saw an orange sunset sky.
　It seemed that the sun would soon set.

　In the sky above the valley, several large black birds were flying around, buzzing and chirping.

　I suddenly remembered and asked Anya.

Anya, when you came in here, you said you had something on your mind, can I ask what it was?

"Hmmm, ......?　"What's bothering you?　Did I say something like that?

You know, when we first got to the island, in front of the big stone door. When I asked Anya if she wanted to wait for me on the boat, she said, "I'm a little concerned about some things.

"Uh, .......

　Anya mumbled, tapping her fingertips against her brow as if trying to remember something.

　Then she showed me her hand, the one with the ring on it.

"In our village, there is a saying that goes with this ring. "The key is not always in the form of a key. Blessed are the kind-hearted who save the lives of the unfortunate. The words "key" and "kind-hearted" were in the same sentence, so I was curious.

"Oh, I see.

　I see.
　That's certainly curious.

　Well, I guess that's almost the connection.
　I still haven't found anything like it, so I can't say for sure.

　And while we were talking about this, as we were walking along the bottom of the valley...

"It's a fork. Right or left?

　Marina, who was in the lead, stood in front of the spot.

　It was a place where the valley split into a Y-shaped fork.
　A sheer cliff also appeared in front of them, splitting the wide valley floor path into left and right.

What do we do, Mr. Brett?　My hunch is that ...... this is to the right.

　The pirate girl, as usual, seemed to be in control.
　However, there is no way to determine which way to go, so you have to decide.

"Is there anyone who really wants to go left?

"'No, sir.

"Okay, let's go right.

"Okay, let's go right." "Okay.

　"Okay, let's go to the right!" "Okay!
　My leading teacher mode is getting more and more chaotic.

　Well, since there are six of us, it's not unreasonable to have a policy of splitting into two groups.

　But my guess is that if Marina and Anya aren't on the "winning" side, there's no point.

　So we took the right path for a while.

　Finally, we came upon a scene that demanded a sense of urgency.

　We were on the gently curving road at the bottom of the valley, when Marina, who was leading the way, sharply but whispered a warning.

Wait!　...... There's something up ahead.

　Marina ran to the shade of a rock to hide, then leaned out slightly to see what was ahead.
　I and the kids followed suit.

...... There's another great door. But before that, there are a lot of ...... things lying around. Is that Sahagin's corpse?　There are huge rocks lying around. What's that all about?

　Marina whispered to me.

　The path we had been following on the valley floor curved around and came to a dead end, blocked by a sheer cliff.

　On the dead-end cliff, there was a large stone door.
　If we could open it, we would be able to go on.



　But in front of the large door, there were several bodies that looked like Sahagin's lying on the ground.

　In the vicinity of the fallen Sahagin were a number of large rocks, large enough to hold him.
　The bodies appeared to be crushed and flattened by the rocks.

　There was no sign of Sahagin standing or moving.
　It was a scene that could only have been the aftermath of something.

Let's get closer. Let's get close, but keep a sharp lookout.

　The five heroic girls nodded their heads at my words.

　We move to the front of the great door with the utmost caution.
　There was no sign of an attack or anyone moving.

　As they approached, they saw that the fallen Sahagin had indeed been cut to pieces.

...... These sahagins are being crushed by rocks. ...... Rocks are falling from above. ......?

　Maifa, who was examining the body, said and looked up.
　I followed her and looked up, but again, there was no sign of anyone moving.

"Brother, there's a stone plaque next to the door. There's something written on it. I'll read it.

　I'll read it." Rio, who was checking the area around the big door, told me this.

　I had a bad feeling, so I nailed Rio before he could read it.

"Rio, you don't have to be so blunt.

"Ouch. ...... Oh no, bro. You're not Maifa or Iris, you're not going to do that.

　...... He was going to do it.

　I'm not sure if this is a good idea or not, but I think it's a good idea.

I'll read it properly. Let's see... "If you are not qualified, leave. Otherwise, great misfortune will befall you.

"......, I see. I see.

　With this much information, I think I can understand the situation.

　I guess that's what it means.

　First of all, Sahagin's explorers arrived at this door before we did.

　And they tried to force the door open in some way.
Without qualification.

　As a result, "great evil" befell the sahagin.
　It was probably a trap with a huge rock falling from above their heads.

　So...

What I'm wondering is where the rest of the Sahagin are now.

　I muttered to no one in particular.

　Sahagin's body doesn't look like it's been dead for very long.

　Also, there are a total of six Sahagins lying here, if I count them properly.
　I'm sure that's not all the Sahagin that came here.

"Ah, ......!　So, doctor, when we went out of the cave, we found another cave!　Could that be ......?

　I nodded at Iris' words.

"Yeah, it probably means that Sahagin and the others came to this place through the other cave. If that's the case, then the only path left is...

The left side of the fork you just mentioned.

　Marina nodded again, and I nodded again.

　But there's one more thing that's bothering me.
　If I'm right...

If I'm right... "Hey Rio, do you see a hole or something in or near the door where the ring could fit?

　I ask, and Rio looks surprised.

"What? ......?　Well, yeah, there is, but... I was just about to tell you that I found it, but how did you know, brother?

Well, you see, a key needs a keyhole.

"......?

　Rio nodded his head.
　Well, I'll explain it to you later.

　And just to make sure, here's something else.

Rio, are you sure there are two holes that the ring can fit through?

　"Rio, are you sure there are two holes for the ring? "Two?

"Two?　No, I think there's only one hole.

"Huh? ......?

　Now it was my turn to make a stupid noise.

　There's only one hole ......?

　I myself went in front of the door and searched the door itself and the surrounding area.

　But Rio was right, except for a single hole in the middle of the door where a ring might fit, there was nothing else of the sort.

　What does that mean, ......?
　If this hole is a "keyhole," there should be two of them.

　But no matter how many times I looked, I couldn't find anything.

　I had no choice but to move on, leaving the question unanswered.