Ball of Nothing

The more Zero looked at the maps and pieced them together using his system, the more sure Zero was about his hypothesis. Everything was slowly coming together and he was just lacking one crucial evidence to make his case solid enough to fight for. The plague at Magnus Hilda could turn out to be only the tip of an iceberg to a rather severe underlying problem. The story of the nine continents passed down through the word of mouth only held half-truths and not all of it was reliable.

"Zero, I'm here."

"Mm, you're here, big brother... I'm just looking through the maps. Can you help me get that pile and return this stack? The merchants are leaving tomorrow morning so I have to look through everything by tonight."

The fact that Zero called him big brother so naturally took Truen by surprise. Still, it made him feel warm and fuzzy on the inside that the wood elf couldn't stop the derpy smile from forming on his face. There was a slight bounce in Truen's step almost undetectable in the eyes of even experts but it caught Zero's attention. Still, the doctor was too busy to think about it for now and focused on the task at hand. The lives in Magnus Hilda depended on him.

Until the early hours of dawn, Truen and Zero worked hard. The doctor committed all the maps to memory at an astonishing pace that even the merchants could not believe while Truen assisted his sister and did the muscle work for her. Some of the maps were old copies and were made from leather with faded drawings that made it difficult for Zero to decipher. The merchants were more than happy to fill in the missing information gaps when Zero asked them about it and Truen couldn't help but be impressed by Zero's new social skills.

The wood elf knew that Zero was charismatic but that was when Zero was younger. He was cute and adorable who easily pulled people in with his kindness and innocent child-like charms. Apart from the blessing that Freya gave him, Truen didn't think that Zero would be able to 'tame' non-powerful people without his Charmer passive skill. Now that he saw Zero in action, Truen wondered where Zero learned how to act like a believable lady who could control men with just her words and a killer smile.

They worked for hours and the merchants took turns serving Zero and adhering to his requests. The leader even ordered some midnight snacks and drinks for Zero without needing to be told. They didn't look like they were under any sort of hypnosis or mind-control spells when they offered help. The wood elf also didn't sense any ill-intentions coming from these people. What was it about Zero that drew them in?

His questions were soon answered nearing dawn when Zero finally finished looking at the last map. Wii and Mii worked hard so Zero ordered them to rest for the day, taking over the rest of the job, piecing everything together that he now had. Although some parts of the world map were missing and lacking details, the new map that Zero had was good enough to allow him to start studying the movements of the nine continents over the last hundred years. Some territory borders have changed and Zero was curious to know about the hidden history that wasn't told in stories.

The merchants were more than happy to finally be able to rest when Zero announced that he was done looking at the maps and thanked them sincerely. As a token of gratitude for the trouble he caused them, the doctor gave them some hangover pills they could use and even left them Schaf's contact with a letter of recommendation from him so that they could get a discount if they liked his pills. Truen watched everything transpire before his eyes silently like a shadow. No wonder Zero was able to get along with the merchants so quickly... The doctor was actually also a very good businessman. Birds of the same feather flock together and Truen doesn't know if he should be afraid about Zero's latent talent at buying people over.

"Zero, it's late. Get some sleep before we check out of the inn. We have to buy some supplies and restock or travels because it would take about another week on foot to cross the mountain range and enter the borders of Magnus Hilda."

The doctor yawned. He was tired after working an entire night but unlike his mindscape assistants, there was no time for rest. There were some things that Zero wanted to confirm before they headed to Magnus Hilda.

"Can we take a slight detour? I would like to take the other route to Magnus Hilda that passes by the Mystic Meadow borders. That means we will circle around the edge of Endow Hill's forest while we do so. I know it's slightly longer but I want to enter Magnus Hilda from Mystic Meadow's edge just to confirm something."

Truen blinked. "Confirm something?"

Zero smiled without an answer. He couldn't tell Truen about his theory just yet. In fact, Zero didn't want his theory to be correct. It would be incredibly sad to know that the cause of the plague was caused by something so miserable. Freya would also be very sad to know that the Norse people in the new Earth didn't know about their god's passing. He didn't want to be the one telling them the message if his theory was proven right. He also couldn't be the one to resolve the cause of the plague because Zero couldn't perform the duties of a god.

The wood elf didn't question Zero further. If his friend remained silent, it must be of great importance. Zero wasn't the same boy he was before who didn't know anything about the world. Right now, Zero was a very powerful individual with knowledge far beyond his years. As Zero's loyal friend and attendant, Truen respected the doctor's decision and agreed.

"I will inform Camie about the change in plans. We might need to prepare more provisions to last us the trip. It could take up to three weeks before we reach Magnus Hilda if we travelled on foot."

Zero made a face. "Can't we get horses or something to travel better? We're in a town now, surely they have transportation of some kind..."

Truen thought about it. Zero made sense but the archer didn't know if there were horses or carriages suitable for carrying Camie along with them. The giantess may only be a quarter giant but she was still rather huge and twice the size of regular humans. He hesitated a little and thought of how it was best to phrase his words without offending Camie when he referred to her size but ultimately decided to just go for it because Truen wasn't as eloquent.

When Zero heard Truen's concern he spat out the tea he was drinking. Of all the things Truen could point out, he had to talk about Camie's size and not being able to fit on a horse or a carriage. Now that Zero thought about it, he had questions too. How did giants normally travel if they're so big? Surely some giants would have travelled out of their country for various reasons.

"I will pretend I didn't hear that," Zero told Truen sternly. "When Camie wakes up I will inform her about our intention to get carriages and ask her what kind of transportation we should get to accommodate for her. You just be silent and don't ever mention anything about her size! It's rude to say that about a lady regardless of their race."

The wood elf wasn't expecting such a harsh scolding and was rendered speechless. Zero really took up the character of a lady well and the archer was deeply impressed by Zero's flawless acting skills. He never expected the doctor to get into character so easily.

They met Camie at the inn in two hours and Zero decided to meditate to rejuvenate himself instead of sleep because he would feel more tired sleeping for two hours and having to wake up again. On the other hand, Zero forced Truen to rest in the lamp after he slowed down the time in that dimension. His friend worked hard and Zero didn't want Truen to overwork.

"Did you have a good night?" Zero asked and Camie smiled. Truen looked refreshed, not having slept so well in a long time and the giantess noticed the difference immediately.

"I slept well, thank you for asking. Shall we have breakfast then start buying the essentials needed for the rest of our journey?"

Zero took the chance to bring up a change in their travel plans, surprising Camie. He explained that there was something he needed to confirm about Magnus Hilda near the Mystic Meadow's border after the information gathering session at the tavern last night.

"I know it's going to be a long detour and we cannot afford to lose time. As such, Truen and I want to know what kind of carriages or transportation giants use to travel long journeys. Can we buy any of those in this town? I don't want to delay any longer because the plague might worsen while we take our time travelling to Magnus Hilda."

Camie blinked. "We travel on normal horses and carriages like humans. You can get three horses or a horse carriage for the three of us but I would recommend getting individual horses as it isn't as easy to travel in a carriage on the rocky mountain road."

Zero blinked and stared at Camie for a long time from head to toe. The giantess got the hint after a while and laughed at the questioning look Zero gave her.

"Oh my, you were concerned about that? You might not be aware of it but all giants have a bloodline ability to shrink down in size to blend in with humans. When we shrink we would still look a little bigger than normal but it's not going to squash the horses or break the carriage. It just consumes mana to do so which is why giants often sleep outdoors in camps because the transformation undoes itself when we sleep. The horses will be fine but I won't be joining you in the inns that don't have giant housing."

Truen was amazed once more by Zero's ability to convey his concern without actually speaking it aloud and offending the giantess. Camie's explanation surprised even Truen who knew nothing about it. Still, it was a huge relief and Truen left to find the merchants before they could leave. If they wanted good horses or to trade any goods for cash, their best option would be the merchants.

Zero troubled Camie to pack their breakfast as he chased after Truen and readied the goods he wanted to trade. He knew that some of the merchants might have used the hangover pills he passed them yesterday and if his calculations were correct, they would be wanting more of those. It was a good time for Zero to push sell his other products and negotiate for a good price.

Camie packed the breakfast and saw Zero haggling with the merchant. The doctor shook hands to seal the deal and passed the merchant a small chestful of various medicine that the merchant requested. The merchant leader happily ordered his helpers to lead Truen to their stables to select three good horses.

"We're getting horses from the merchants?" the giantess asked in amazement as she passed Zero some bread and butter.

Zero accepted the food and munched while he explained that they were not horses that belonged to the merchants.

"They belong to the mercenaries travelling with the merchant group. They discussed it with the mercenaries and the mercenaries accepted the compensation for the horses from the merchants. They would travel with the goods horse carriage instead after they released three of their horses to us. I merely struck a deal with the merchants so that they will sell us some horses. The hangover pills I gave them yesterday are very popular and they want more of the pills. As the producer that doesn't go through the retailer, they're very happy to buy a little more supplies for me. Unfortunately, I told them that was all the supplies I currently carried on me that I could spare them. The rest of the medicine and potions are reserved to treat the plague in Magnus Hilda. They were understanding enough and bought the entire chestful of medicine I could spare so we now have three horses, some travelling essentials and a small pouch of gold coins to spend."

Camie was in awe at how efficient Zero handled the situation. If it was her, the giantess would have gotten by on hunting for food and freezing at night in the wilderness just to get home. She never imagined that travelling could be this comfortable.

Truen returned with three horses and asked if Zero knew how to ride one. The doctor walked up to the horse full of confidence despite not having any experience in horse riding and climbed to the top of its back with a swift jump.

"Let's go," he told them, brimming with haughtiness as he waited for his travelling companions to saddle up. He has been on Crudgel's horseback before, how difficult could riding a less intelligent horse be? As soon as they were ready, Zero kicked the sides of the horse a little too hard and screamed when the beast took off in a mad dash in a direction that he couldn't control.

"Zero!" Truen yelled and quickly chased after the traumatised doctor while Camie followed behind, telling the doctor to loosen his hold on the reins that he held onto with a death grip. Whatever it was, they might be off on a rough start.