(Part 2) Swimsuits, Lizards, and Dark Elves

(Part 2) Swimsuits, Lizards, and Dark Elves (【後編】水着と蜥蜴と闇妖精) is a game event in Mass for the Dead that was released on August 1, 2022 to August 15, 2022. This event continues (Part 1) Swimsuits, Lizards, and Dark Elves.

Background
After training in the village of the lizardmen, Aura and Mare, along with Zaryusu, begin exploring the isolated island beyond the [Gate]. Will it be possible to secure a bridgehead for the Sorcerer Kingdom? The true value of the final battle weapon "swimsuit" is now being tested――

Incident
At the village of the lizardmen, Slimeko calls to Zaryusu Shasha that they will be leaving soon. Zaryusu in his hut with Crusch Lulu then bids farewell to his wife who asks him to be careful on his trip.

To reiterate the past events, due to Shalltear Bloodfallen's prompting to restart the experiments on [Gate]s. Out of the experiment Nazarick was reconnected to the isolated beach. Now having obtained a reliable way to reach the uninhabited island once more, there are plans to use the new piece of unclaimed territory as an emergency shelter or perhaps a bridgehead for conquering the open seas.

By nightfall the protagonist, Slimeko and Zaryusu have returned to the Great Tomb of Nazarick to participate in the latest experiment. There in front of the Central Mausoleum is none other than Shalltear who greets the returning party. The homunculus diplomat then introduces Zaryusu to Shalltear, a Floor Guardian who is in charge of first three floors of Nazarick. The traveler greets her, having remembered seeing her at the "Sorcerer Kingdom's National Foundation Day Ceremony".

The Floor Guardian then proceeds to take the group to the 2nd Floor where the [Gate] experiment is taking place. Zaryusu walking through the corridor muses that he hasn't been back to the dungeon since the ceremony. Having a moment to observe the atmosphere he can't help but feel its a place of immense dignity and terror. Shalltear as a courteous advises the lizardmen to not get lost otherwise he could be caught in a trap. When the finally arriving at the chamber, Momonga, Albedo, Demiurge, Entoma Vasilissa Zeta, Aura Bella Fiora and Mare Bello Fiore are seen waiting for them. The sight of some many important members of the Sorcerer Kingdom for this experiment awes the lizardmen who respectfully greets the Sorcerer King. In turn Momonga acknowledges the traveler for not just his current aid in the endeavor but also for loaning him Frost Pain, which he used to create Frost Pain Modified.

Momonga thinking that the lizardman must be weary from his journey to Nazarick, suggests that they allow the demi-human to rest, but Zaryusu is ready to proceed with the experiment. Momonga's offer though affirms the magnanimity of the sovereign and the respect he garners over the various races that make up the kingdom as well as Cocytus's loyalty. In truth Momonga wanted to avoid Zaryusu from experiencing fatigue while on the mission and is considering giving the demi-human ally an item that nullifies fatigue when Demiurge reminds him that everyone is now present which makes Momonga to resume the experiment.

Demiurge starts the experiment, first by asking those in the room if they understand the purpose of their mission. Mare states that it is to first confirm whether the teleportation coordinates of the [Gate] are stable. Aura adds that secondly they are to confirm whether or not the island destination can be safely secured. For both purposes the team is to confirm if the island is truly the same one Nazarick discovered in the past. To help them in making that evaluation, three members of the original team that were sent to investigate the island, the protagonist, Slimeko and Entoma, will be joining them. Zaryusu seeing that he will be working with Pleiades greets her as a friend remembering how she and her sisters saved his village. For Zaryusu's addition to the team, he provides knowledge on his experience as a traveler as well as being a race adapted to waterfront combat and perhaps can act as negotiator for any intelligent races living on the island.

For his cooperation in their mission, Albedo adds that the traveler can use the opportunity to find any edible seafood for his kind which Demiurge states would stabilize his village's food situation and encourages the lizardmen to take samples from the island. There are still dangers that he may be stranded on the island if the [Gate] fails, and Shalltear tells the lizardman that its not too late to back away, but the lizardman having a motivation to be part of the survey team is aware of the risks, as does his family. Even if he were to die in an unknown land, he would be find with that believing it would be seen honorable by his people. Assured of Zaryusu's peace of mind on the mission to the island, they can now proceed.

Zaryusu though does have one question related to the mission which he begs Momonga to allow him to ask. When given permission by the Sorcerer King, the traveler notices that Entoma, Mare and Aura are equipped with swimsuit for the mission. Though oddly why are Slimeko and the protagonist not wearing any? Unknown to him, in the previous mission to the island, neither Slimeko or the protagonist had requested any swimsuit gear so Momonga never provided them with any and assumed this time would be the same.

His intents of why he neglected them are covered by the members of Nazarick who believe that there is another reason for the oversight. Before they explain, Momonga fetched some swimsuits for the slime and homunculus from the Treasury. Once the item is received, the protagonist gives a misconstrued explanation for why Momonga did not provide him and Slimeko swimsuits initially. Though swimsuits are used at the waterfront and more suited equipment, they will be going into unknown territory and possibly inhabited by hostiles. Momonga assuming every possible situation hence why he wanted to add those not wearing swimsuits on the team to give them more flexibility. That and also knowing Zaryusu would ask such a query and allowed it such to give value to his opinion. Their explanations surprise Zaryusu who accepts them, in effect covering Momonga's blunder and also heightening his worthiness as a ruler and genius.

The [Gate] is then opened by Shalltear. Momonga uses [Remote Viewing] to see the other side of the portal and sees that the skeletons he sent out to mark the location are present, confirming it is the same island. Momonga bids them good luck and to contact him to report their progress, advising them to prioritize their safety when they encounter hostile entities. The party of six then go through the [Gate]. On the other side, Zaryusu is left shocked by the new change in scenery of the sunshine and warm sandy beach.

On the beach, the survey team observes their surroundings. Aura comments the beach to be a pretty place, though to Mare it reminds him of the illusion that was casted for the Swimsuit Sports Festival and briefly wonders if the island was the inspiration. The protagonist, Entoma and Slimeko taking in their surroundings confirm without a doubt that they have been on the island before judging by the beach and forest. The lizardman still enthralled by the sensation of traveling in a blink of an eyes, takes notice of the skeletons on the beach, almost readies for battle, until his is stopped by Slimeko and Aura reminding him that they are summons of the Supreme Being. Realizing his mistake Zaryusu apologizes as he should have remembered that since there are skeletons working at the mine near the Great Lake. The protagonist feels that there is nothing wrong as the lizardman was just being vigilant and asks him to tell him if his instincts warn him of anything.

Aura taking command of the team telling them that they need to seek out any new traces that the island is inhabited, like footprints and garbage. Mare asks the protagonist, Slimeko and Entoma how should they conduct their search, since they had visited the island before. Slimeko states that had split into two groups to first explore the beach, one group heading clockwise and the other head counterclockwise. They go over the various landmarks that were reported on the island, such as the pirate base, the well in the forest and the wreckage of the pirate ship. Entoma also suggests that they go by the reef to see if any new debris is there. Their itinerary of the search of the island is to explore the beaches, then head into the forest to check the well before finally heading towards the cave in the reef area containing the pirate stronghold. Aura agrees and asks the Pleiades maid too send out her insect summons to comb the surroundings, while she and Mare act as her bodyguards to handle any potential monsters in the forest. Along the way samples of the island will be taken for Demiurge to study. And Zaryusu is put in charge to monitor the waterfront for any aquatic monsters.

Along their trek on the beach Aura and Mare comment on how easy it is to move in a swimsuit. The protagonist and Slimeko despite being newbies in their equipment are doing just fine since they observed the dark elves in their previously. On their trek the protagonist asks their demi-human ally if he has any input about their surroundings? Zaryusu for that matter does, though it is concerning the smell of the water. Curious the homunculus asks Zaryusu if he ever heard the term "sea water is salt water". Sadly the traveler never heard of such a notion. This causes the protagonist to wonder about his previous research in Ashurbanipal and knowledge of the sea that borders the Re-Estize Kingdom as there are conflicts of information.

According to the information from the library the "sea" described in the literature matches what appears on he beach, but from his time working with Blue Roses on a mission the seas of the region were said not to be salty. Zaryusu's testimony further strengthens that concept. Slimeko pointed out that the protagonist believed that the current location may not be an "island in the distant sea", but a "island floating in an inland lake". Thus it could be a salt lake, but still there are problems with that theory as according to the pirates' logbook they stopped by a port town in the Re-Estize Kingdom. If that is so, why is a ship meant for ocean voyages in a lake?

Since the previous mission only had them survey the island and not the sea around it, Entoma notes that they had not paid much attention to that aspect. From what she sees there is nothing but ocean on all directions. Mare asks the maid to uses her insects to confirm that there is any land surrounding the island. Entoma complies and reports that no matter which direction her summons went from the island over the sea, all they saw was a thick fog and not shore of any kind. Though Zaryusu points out that even though visibility is poor due to the fog, the place they were standing could still be an inland island, but one of considerable distance from the opposite shore. Still if that is the case, then the protagonist is less concerned about being detected by outsiders as it would mean the island is mostly isolated, meaning they can focus on studying the island.

Despite the discrepancies in his information, the protagonist is nevertheless intrigued on the corrections he discovered. But it seems more likely that the island they are on is in an inland lake, meaning that if they were to claim it for Nazarick, they would have to fully secure the new territory with their forces. They group hope that they can confirm this and resume combing the beach for any traces.

The group reaching the other side of the island come to the forest area. Entoma who had sent her insects ahead reports nothing odd in the forest. Aura inquires to the members of teh previous survey team if there are any monsters that inhabit the forest. She is answered by Slimeko that the forest contain some dens of slimes but that is all. Zaruyusu not paying attention to the report from the forest is seen by Aura studying the beach. When asked why, the traveler replies that he gathered some samples of monsters with hard-shells which seem to have edible meat for his village. However his main interest are the waves of the beach. Compared to the lake near his village, the surface of the water breaks into waves much greater, so it's possible that the island is perhaps in the sea.

Aura questions how a salt water lake could be connected to the sea, until the protagonist realizes that there is something in similar in nature called a "lagoon". Basically a lake separated from the sea by sand, coral etc. on a rough terrain. Slimeko remembering the literature from the library realizes that lagoons are known to be connected to the open sea through narrow waterways. Not only that lagoons are salt lakes as a result of part of the saltwater sea becoming a lake. But since the seas of the New World are freshwater then this lagoon should be freshwater as well. Though there is a discrepancy in the literature the homunculus can't discount the possibility that this can be a lagoon and thanks Zaryusu for his insight.

Furthermore Zaryusu states it could explain why the pirates' ship was in the area given the topography and that the sea route could be connected to the island. Mare worries that if the pirates made this island into their hideout, then they must have gone on land to resupply. While the pirates are long dead, Mare wonders if there is a town on the mainland. For the time being Aura believes that they should focus on exploring the forest. But before doing so, she advises everyone with a swimsuit to change back into their normal clothes as their swim gear is ill-suited for the foliage.

After the members of Nazarick change into their normal attire, tThey are about to head into the forest, when Aura asks if the lizardman is ready to head into the unknown, to which Zaryusu confirms has his curiosity outweighs his fear. They group trudge through the forest until they come to an open clearing where Entoma verifies that they are on the remains of the road. She sends out her insects to locate an artifact that should be in the area which turns out to be leftover scrap remains left by the pirates and are in placed just as the protagonist remembered. His impeccable memory of the various features of the island is lauded his peers. Aura taking in the forest muses its almost like the Great Forest of Tob and would be good if she came back to the island again in the future. Best part about the forest is that it is devoid of Cracks. Just to be sure the Pleiades maid sends out swarms of her summons but finds no evidence that such an anomaly exists in the forest.

This highlights another good advantage of the island as it is virtually free of any dangerous Chaos Beasts. Aura definitely wants to make use of the island, but is disappointed that she was not able to find a new pet to bring back. They have a mission though and so the group continues to venture through remaining on guard for possible adversaries.

Meanwhile back on the 2nd Floor of Nazarick, Momonga is receiving a relayed report from Entoma via [Message]. He is pleased to know that the previous members of the survey team confirm that the island is indeed the same as they had visited in the past. There are no signs of any intruders but sill are checking to see if there are any intelligent creatures that have made a home on the island. After the [Message] ends, Momonga informs his subordinates of the progress of the survey team. Demiurge reviews that the [Gate] as it turns out which was thought to be unstable has so far managed to maintain stability through the whole ordeal and opened in the exact location which a few minor deviations from the coordinates. Hearing the news of success, Shalltear asks if this will allow for more chances to use [Gate].

Albedo cautions Shalltear on overuse, for as long as they they do not know where he [Gate]s will connect then they cannot blindly use the ability. Not unless they make preparations for unforeseen circumstances. This disappoints Shalltear, but Momonga tells her not to be dissuaded as they now have access to a new island somewhere on the continent and can still be valued as a beachhead. Demiurge lists the potential uses of the island, from using it as a base to launch attacks on other nations vis the sea. Albedo is concerned on whether the island is still uninhabited, if nothing has changed then they must take initiative to assert control over the island. Momonga agrees, and declares that once it has been confirmed by the team, the Sorcerer Kingdom will immediately occupy the island and establish an underground base. Besides being the former pirates who have turned into undead, Momonga thinks there will be little problem. The rich resources of the island, causes Demiurge to think of the uses of having an isolated base where he can conduct experiments out in the open. This enthusiasm though is curbed by Momonga reminding the others its still too early to know, stating that they should "not be counting racoon dogs before the hunt" and that they should wait for more news.

Back on the island, Aura informs everyone that Momonga has ordered them to keep investigating. The party discovered a stone den of slimes which Slimeko recognizes from her memory. They decide to destroy it to cull the slimes, Aura then uses an ability to cause the slimes to come out where the party is waiting to kill them. Later Aura climbs a tree to survey the forest from the top. She leaps down to tell her comrades of the position of the sun, stating they still have enough time. Entoma reports that she checked the well in the forest and found nothing out of the ordinary. Aura gives her assessment that the forest doesn't really contain anything dangerous but seems to be a haven for bugs, birds and a few small burrowing animals, but nothing for anything big. Neither could she find anything of demi-human or human traces of habitation.

Aftermath
TBA