——A few days later. Based on your course, the 「Caledonia」 will soon leave the Caribbean Sea and enter South American waters. Glad to hear that! We had to make quite the detour due to the spiraling Gulf Stream. Newly Hired Sailor: This submarine is awesome... in only half a day it covered enough distance to go around the 「Federation」. Hehe, it's all thanks to the high speed currents—— ——At its normal speed it would even lose to a bicycle moving on the ground. Ketuya, was it? So, you said the 「Federation」 had an exchange with a 「Southern country」 50 years ago? Yes, that's what I heard from my grandma when I was little. There is a big country far South, and when my grandma was little, people from there used to come to the Federation to do business. But that didn't last long. Perhaps due to our cultural differences, some of them violated the Federation's laws and had to be expelled. Since then, merchants from the South stopped coming to the Federation. My grandma said it's possible that Southern country is no longer there. However... there is still a chance that 「Southern country」 still exists, right? Indeed. But what matters the most is that its location is similar to the one where one of the gems is located. Do you all remember? A space center near the edge of a desert—— The gem we found in Egypt. A limestone cave glowing like a jewel in a rainforest—— The gem we found in Yucatan. The others were 「a flower blooming amid a blizzard」, 「an idol dazzling on the stage」, 「a desolated island with statues pointing towards the shore」... ...And 「a mysterious city surrounded by volcanoes and snowy ridges」. Could it be... you figured out the location of that city? Yes. We were able to narrow down the location thanks to the records from the Great Library. There is only one city that fits that description. The city of 「Quito」, located at the Equator in South America. According to Professor Schrodinger, in another world that city serves as the capital of the 「Republic of Ecuador」. It's possible there might not be an 「Ecuador」 in this world, but going there should give us a hint about that 「mysterious Southern country」...

注：

“厄瓜多尔”（Ecuador）在西班牙语中就是“赤道”的意思。

...And a way to safely reach 「Quito」? Yeah. We'll learn more about that on our way. In that case, Captain, would you like to resurface? You're almost at the 「ABC Islands」. ...「ABC Islands」? It's just a boring abbreviation. You'll see once we get there. ...? We can see Aruba and Bonaire in the distance, and the one we're standing on is Curaçao. Get it? A, B, C. ..... I told you, it's a boring abbreviation. Well, the only boring thing this place has is its name. The island we're on is worth exploring—— At the very least, it should help us prove the American continent is not a deserted land. ...? You say that because there is a 「road」? Exactly. We're used to live alongside roads... but roads don't appear out of nowhere. I see... You're saying 「mankind」 has been here, and it must not be a small number of people. Correct. Well then, let's see where this road takes us. With any luck we'll find wheel tracks or footprints. These are... Large footprints. They're heading towards... that hill up ahead. Let's go! The footprints are still fresh, they must not be too far away! The footprints... stopped here... Woah! Bianka-sama, look! Not the ground! Up front! ...Up front? T-This... a stone statue? It has a strangely modern feel to it. Upon close inspection it looks like it's been weathered quite a lot! ...You think it has anything to do with the 「gems」? You serious? Of course not. This statue and this island are completely different from the ones you saw back then! Or could it be you get the urge to collect gems whenever whenever stone statues and islands are brought up together? That little mouth of yours... I wonder how should I shut it up? Ahhh!! Someone save me! Murderer! Swords have rights too!!! ...Impressive. ..... (This face... where have I seen it before...?) Considering the style of the statue it doesn't seem like it has anything to do with Dudu's gems—— Could it be a 「Southern relic」 or something like that? Given the weather conditions of this place it must be quite old. It certainly wasn't made in the last couple of decades. Really? Are you sure? You can even see the face very clearly. ...I have to agree with Dudu. There are traces of lacquer on the pedestal. I'm certain this statue was originally painted. Also it's a very high quality one. Stone can't be easily corroded by rain—— It may even be older than Chichen Itza. ..... Anyway, this statue has nothing to do with the footprints we were following—— ——It's only interesting in an archaeologically sense. ...「Archaeology」? Even though the sense of time in this place has been warped by drifters coming from many different eras? Hehe, that's what makes it so interesting. For instance, the model for this statue is wearing an Asian dress—— ——Which could mean a famous sculptor once came to this world. Maybe he failed to communicate with the natives but got a job thanks to his skill set and later made this stone statue out of nostalgia... ...Or perhaps the person the statue is based on came to this world herself. She might had been wise or brave, and somehow ended up being worshiped by the natives, who then made this statue to honor her. ...Both stories are pretty different, aren't they? That's right. But you can't truly deny any of the two, right? ...But there can only be one truth. Haha, does the truth even exist in the first place? What do you mean by that? I thought you would agree with me, considering you call yourself 「Detective」 and all that!? Calm down and listen to me. I agree a detective should believe 「there can only be one truth」—— The incidents a detective is put on are of that nature. But put yourself on the shoes of an archaeologist. Imagine a person who lived a long time ago—— ——For convenience we'll call him 「Adam」. That's what our ancestors used to call their precursor. Now here's a question for you. How many children 「Adam」 had? Did he have any siblings? What was his favorite food? His hobbies? There is no way I could answer, I don't know anything about him at all. That's right. You don't know 「Adam」, and there is no information about him so you can't answer. How many children or siblings he had, the food he liked and his hobbies—— Are all a 「buried truth」 to us. There are no answers for every question in this world. Try imagining it. There have been hundreds of billions of people throughout history, and just like our 「Adam」, we don't know anything about them. Maybe that buried truth existed, or maybe it didn't. But... it obviously existed! We just have no way to know it. You're not wrong about that, but hear me out—— ——「It's inevitable that the truth of the past exists in the past. It's a coincidence that the truth of the past exists in the present.」 We live in the 「present」, not the past. When it comes to the truth of the past we can only make 「deductions」 or 「guesses」 at best. And personally, things that I can't even begin to 「deduct」 might as well 「not exist」. B-But that's too—— If you want the opinion of a playwright—— ——The cruelest thing in the world is not the fact that the truth is 「buried」, but that the 「story」 born from it is incredibly boring. So let's go. Let's see if these footprints lead us to something 「interesting」 or something 「boring」! Listen, fools who tried to sneak up on the 3rd Battalion! You're surrounded! Put your hands up! Stay still and do as we say! We'll perform a body check on you! I'm a Rank A Valkyrie, why do I have to go through a body check? ——You called yourself 「3rd Battalion」, didn't you? From which country? Identify yourself first! D-Don't move! Stay still! Hmph. Who do you think you are, coward hiding himself behind a full body armor. Very well. Dudu, teach them a lesson! Wait! Garcilaso, De La Vega, stand down. U-Ugh. ...Roger that. You called yourself a 「Valkyrie」, didn't you? You're... the 「Valkyrie」 often mentioned in many myths and legends? (Wait... that voice and infrared signal coming from that soldier...) Roland-sama? Is that you, Rowland? Huh? ..... That's right. I'm Rowland Inca, General of the 3rd Battalion of the Inca Republic. What's your name, talking sword? Rowland-sama... you don't remember me? I'm your sword—— 「Durandal」! ...I don't recall anyone by that name. Are you perhaps mistaking me for someone else with the same name? T-That can't be. Even if I were to become a piece of scrap metal you would recognize me... Apologies, it seems one of my crew members is bothering you. Let me apologize in their instead. (I'll be counting on you to translate, Rita.) (Leave it to me, Captain-sama.) I am Marian William Shakespeare, Captain of the 「Caledonia」. These are my sailors. We're in the middle of a journey across the world—— To collect the artifacts needed to take down the tyrant who has taken over the Old World. ——If you speak the language of the 「Old World」 you most likely know about it. 「Old World」... Ah, you mean the 「continent of Europe」 across the sea. I see, you intend to perform a sneak attack from behind? From behind? Isn't the only way to reach Europe by ship? ..... Could it be you guys... don't know about the 「Huaca Tunnel」? ...What's that? Ahaha... you lot really came from far away... ...I'm sorry, I didn't mean to laugh. In simpler terms, it's a path that goes through the center of the Earth and connects both sides of the planet. It's also a fortress that's been protected since the foundation of our republic.