TERNLF Vol. 2 Chapter 1 Part 3

Full title: The Exiled Reincarnated Noble Lives Freely

Note: If you found any typos/mistakes, pls write them in the comment. Thanks.

Translator: Canon

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“Looks like Cheki is no longer in the city.”

“What do you mean?”

With Nikka tilting her head beside me, I walked over to where Grassa was arguing.

“Please, let me through!”

“No can do. I can’t allow a young girl to leave the city alone at this hour.”

Grassa was clearly trying to get past the gate guards, but of course they refused.

It seemed the last wagon inspection had already finished, and both inner and outer gates were shut. Even if she wasn’t alone, ordinary adventurers couldn’t get a permit to pass at this time of night.

I stepped up beside her and called out gently.

“Grassa, calm down for a moment.”

“I can’t! We have to hurry or Cheki—!”

“I know. But going outside the city at this hour is suicide. …Sorry about this, sir,” I said, offering a quick apology to the guard.

Then I pulled Grassa firmly by the arm, leading her away from the gate and into a quiet alley.

After checking to make sure no one was nearby, I cast 【Silence】 to create a soundproof barrier.

Only then did I start questioning her properly.

“Grassa, tell us exactly what happened.”

Nikka spoke before I could.

Grassa hesitated, then replied in a shaky voice.

“Suddenly... suddenly I saw where Cheki was—in my head.”

“What do you mean?”

“I don’t know. But somehow I could tell he was in Kudu Village, crying and asking for help.”

Kudu Village.

If I remembered right, it was northwest of Loch; nearly a hundred kilometers away, about three days by carriage.

Yet Grassa claimed that Cheki was there now.

“Kudu Village? But he was still in this city until past noon.”

“I know it doesn’t make sense! But I saw it, okay?”

Even counting from the time Cheki was likely abducted, barely five hours had passed.

There was no way he could be that far already.

The kidnappers were a group of three, Cheki included made four; they would’ve needed a carriage.

And horses in this world were bred for endurance, not speed. Even a fast mount couldn’t cover that distance in mere hours without collapsing.

Could they have used teleportation magic? Some kind of artifact that moved you instantly across great distances?

...No. I remembered asking my mentors at the frontier fortress out of curiosity once, and they’d told me such things didn’t exist in this world.

If they did, I’d have used one long ago to get from the fortress back to the capital.

“When we were in that alley, I wished I could know where Cheki was... and then all of a sudden, an image popped into my mind. A place I’d seen before.”

According to Grassa, a vivid image of Kudu Village had flashed through her head, along with the desperate emotion of Cheki crying for help.

Apparently, she’d visited the village once while traveling with her father as a merchant, so she recognized it instantly.

After hearing that, I became certain: the hunch I’d had earlier was correct.

“That’s probably the power of that bracelet.”

“The bracelet?”

“Now that you mention it, that bracelet was glowing red earlier, wasn’t it? Does it have something to do with what Grassa saw?”

While Grassa looked confused, Nikka glanced at the bracelet wrapped around her friend’s wrist.

“Huh? It was glowing?”

“Yes. We followed that light all the way here, it’s how we didn’t lose you.”

Grassa raised her arm, peering at it curiously, though the glow had already vanished.

“Earlier, the magic circuits engraved in it must have activated, that’s why it was shining red.”

“So... it’s a magic tool?”

At that, Grassa’s face darkened. She immediately tried to take it off, but I stopped her.

“Don’t worry. It’s a magic tool, but not a cursed tool.”

Given what they’d gone through recently—with that pendant that dispersed mana and nearly killed them—it was no wonder she reacted that way.

I took the bracelet from her and examined the inner surface.

As I suspected, it was covered with intricate runic patterns forming a complex magic circuit.

“When the bracelet activated, the material, Hihiirokane, reacted and emitted red light. This thing’s a Ring of Oath... or rather, in this case, a Bracelet of Oath.”

“What kind of magic tool is that?”

“It’s not dangerous, right? It’s safe, isn’t it?”

Their concern was understandable.

After all, an Oath Ring was something almost never seen on the market. Normally, only the Dwarves ever made or possessed them.

“It is a magic tool, but not like the ones you’re thinking of.”

The Oath Ring was, in essence, a wedding ring.

Though in this world, that concept existed only among the Dwarves; humans didn’t have such a custom, so it was probably hard for them to grasp.

“When two Dwarves marry, they craft matching rings to exchange, a ritual that symbolizes their vow of love and devotion.”

“That’s beautiful,” Nikka murmured.

“I didn’t know there was such a custom,” Grassa added softly.

I’d only learned about it by chance.

Among my mentors at the frontier fortress, there had been a Dwarf named Rish, and I once asked him about the ring he wore on his finger.

Rish had an unbreakable body and fought on the front lines as a shield-bearer.

The way he wielded his shield and controlled the flow of battle had saved my life countless times.

And on that thick, calloused hand, gleamed a delicately crafted ring, set with a small red gem that sparkled like fire. It looked like something made for a woman, which was why I’d been curious.

“That ring, called an Oath Ring, is forged by the Dwarven groom himself and given to his bride before their wedding,” I explained.

From a young age, Dwarves were trained in smithing and fine craftsmanship.

When they finally met the one they loved, they would pour every bit of skill they’d ever honed into a single creation, something made only once in their lifetime.

That was the Oath Ring.

“There’s a mechanism built into the Oath Ring.”

“What kind of mechanism?”

“And it’s connected to what Grassa saw in her mind about Cheki, isn’t it?”

The mechanism within the Oath Ring was—

“When someone wearing it thinks of their partner, the ring’s magic circuit conveys that partner’s feelings back to them.”

The primary material of an Oath Ring is the rare metal known as Hihiirokane.

In my previous world, it was considered a legendary material but in this world, it exists as a real mineral.

It possessed magical conductivity far exceeding that of mithril, famous for its own high conductivity, and when used as the core of a magic tool, it could unleash extraordinary power.

However, even among rare metals, Hihiirokane was produced in extremely small quantities.

It was said that even the Dwarves—who control vast mineral resources—couldn’t afford to use it casually.

And while Dwarves were unmatched in craftsmanship, even they find Hihiirokane difficult to refine. In fact, crafting an Oath Ring from it was considered a benchmark for a Dwarf’s skill.

“So this bracelet is really that valuable?”

“Then why was it left unsold for so long?”

Nikka and Grassa both looked puzzled, but I couldn’t give them an answer.

Most likely, no one had realized what it truly was.

Anyone seeing such a piece selling for a pittance would never suspect it was that valuable.

If the merchant had known, things might’ve been different, but judging by its rough design, it would’ve been hard to imagine it was made by a Dwarf at all.

Though Grassa seemed to like it, the bracelet’s design was crude and rugged, far from feminine.

Its only redeeming qualities were its vivid color and the single magic stone embedded where a gem would normally be.

The shape was distorted, the surface uneven, and the workmanship sloppy; hardly worthy of being called Dwarven craftsmanship. Frankly, I was more surprised that the merchant had decided to buy it in the first place.

Even the engraved magic circuits were so erratic that anyone without deep knowledge would have dismissed them as random scratches. The fact that it functioned at all was a mystery.

“Well, whatever the reason, there’s no doubt what Grassa saw was Cheki’s current situation.”

While wearing the bracelet, Grassa had thought of its other bearer—Cheki—with all her heart.

That had activated the bracelet’s magic circuits, transmitting Cheki’s emotions and what he saw directly into her mind.

“So Cheki really is in Kudu Village...”

“But it’s impossible for him to get that far in such a short time.”

“Yeah. Even with horses, it doesn’t add up.”

Flying magic did exist, but even I would struggle to reach that distance while carrying someone; it would consume enormous mana.

“If not by land or air... then...”

My gaze dropped to the ground.

“...Underground.”

“Underground? You mean beneath the ground?”

“You think they dug a tunnel or something? Wouldn’t traveling on the surface be faster?”

Grassa had a point.

But then I remembered something that Rish once told me when he’d explained the Oath Rings: a secret means of travel used by the Dwarves.

He’d said it wasn’t something found just anywhere, but if someone had covered nearly a hundred kilometers in half a day, this had to be it.

“We’ll have to look for it ourselves.”

I crouched down and placed my palm against the ground.

“How are you going to find it?”

“Like this—【Echo Vibration】.”

With the powerful words, I sent a ripple of mana into the ground.

The magical vibrations spread over a wide area, bouncing back when they struck solid objects or hollow spaces.

It was a spell often used to detect subterranean monsters, and this time, it would serve to locate something else.

“...Found it. Over there.”

It was closer than I’d expected.

I pointed the way, then darted out from behind the building, crossing the main street into the opposite alley.

One house, two, three—

“This is it.”

At the fourth house down the alley, I pressed my ear to the door. There was no sign of movement inside.

“What’s in that house?”

“Cheki was probably brought here.”

Without hesitation, I cast 【Unlock】 and pushed the door open.

It was a small, two-story home, ordinary in appearance, yet lifeless.

Dust covered the floors and furniture, and there wasn’t a trace of recent habitation.

“Excuse us,” Nikka murmured.

“Won’t we get in trouble for barging in?” Grassa whispered nervously.

I motioned for them to close the door behind us, then pointed at the floor.

“See all these fresh footprints? This is definitely the place.”

“Those belong to the kidnappers, right?”

“Hard to tell exactly, but it’s not just one person. So yeah, the trio must’ve come here.”

Whether they’d been too hurried to hide their trail or simply didn’t care, it was obvious from the undisturbed layer of dust: several sets of footprints led deeper into the house.

“They lead to that room.”

Following the trail carefully, I stopped in front of one door.

It was locked as well, but another 【Unlock】 took care of that. I grasped the knob.

“What’s in that room?” Grassa asked from behind me.

I didn’t answer. Instead, I turned the knob and slowly opened the door—

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