Chapter 627: New York and Machu Picchu

The statue commonly referred to as the “Statue of Liberty” is located on Liberty Island in New York Harbor, United States. Its official name is said to be “Liberty Enlightening the World.” It is apparently modeled after Libertas, the Roman goddess of liberty.

It is a symbol of freedom and democracy, presented by France to commemorate the centennial of the United States‘ independence. I remember that there’s also a Statue of Liberty in France. It’s supposedly much smaller than this one, though.

For some reason, I always had an image of it being white, but it’s actually green. No, wait, that green color is due to the copper oxidizing; its original color would have been that of copper.

The crown part is apparently an observation deck, but since reservations are required, we are only looking at it from the outside. Just seeing this makes me feel like I’ve truly come to New York.

Well, the very first Statue of Liberty I ever saw was in a movie my grandpa showed me, the one about a planet ruled by apes.

“Daddy, why doesn’t that one move?”

“It doesn’t move.”

“Boring.”

Steph seems to have lost interest in the Statue of Liberty. Well, for a child, that’s probably how it is.

…I wonder if it would become a tourist attraction if I put a Frame Gear on a huge pedestal in some kind of pose…?

“Father, Father! Since we took the trouble to come to New York, let’s go eat an authentic hot dog!”

Arcia eagerly tugs on my arm. She’s also lost interest. We’re at the foot of the Statue of Liberty, but she’s being too free-spirited…

It’s true that we skipped breakfast to eat something here, so I am hungry. Maybe we should grab a quick bite. Pulled along by Arcia, we left Liberty Island.

“Delicious!”

Linne munches on her hot dog with a look of pure enjoyment.

I also took a bite of an authentic hot dog that I had just bought from a kitchen car—or rather, a food truck, as they call it here. As I bite through the sausage, hot meat juice overflows, and that, combined with the ketchup and mustard, doubles the deliciousness.

It’s just a simple hot dog with a sausage and chopped onions, but it’s so good…

I had imagined something huge, given the image of America, but it was surprisingly a smaller, easy-to-eat hot dog. Perhaps the convenient size is more popular with busy New Yorkers. Well, it might just be this particular shop.

“It is quite a large city, is it not, Touya-sama?”

“I thought Tokyo was amazing, but this is even more incredible.”

Yae and Hildegard were talking about this as they ate their hot dogs. Well, Manhattan is considered the heart of New York. It has famous places like Fifth Avenue, Times Square, and Wall Street, as well as numerous skyscrapers, including the Empire State Building. The name “City of Skyscrapers” is certainly appropriate.

“I wonder if the cities from the Ancient Magic Era, which are said to have existed in our world long ago, looked something like this,” Leen murmured, looking up at the towering cityscape.

“The Ancient Magic Era? That’s the time that was destroyed by the Phraze… the time when Doc Babylon was alive. Didn’t you have any records in the [Library]?”

“We did, but no images were saved. Apparently, back then, everything was recorded on terminals, like what you call tablets today, and only quite eccentric people bothered to preserve things in the form of physical books or paper.”

Ah… our doctor is an extremely eccentric person, after all…

If you don’t print things out externally, it’s scary because if the data gets wiped out by some chance, it’s all gone. Of course, data backup is necessary.

The Great Phraze Invasion likely thinned out the mana on the surface, and the subsequent indiscriminate use of Great Magic to repel them resulted in a worldwide mana shortage, rendering magical artifacts unusable. Once technology is interrupted, it becomes incredibly difficult to revive it. That’s what you call lost technology. Damascus Steel is one example, I think. Also, the Stradivarius violin is said to be impossible to reproduce because its creator, Antonio Stradivari, left no blueprints or instructions on how to make it. I also hear that the techniques of old Japanese craftsmen are disappearing now because there are no successors. Passing things down to future generations is really important…

“Alright, where’s next?”

This is a whirlwind tour, after all. We have to keep up the pace so we don’t miss dinner with my mother and the others. Not that we would miss it, since we can use Transfer Magic.

By the way, we regretfully skipped the mouse’s dream kingdom this time. We couldn’t possibly cover it in one day… I’ll leave taking them there to my future self.

“Next is Machu Picchu, as requested by Leen.”

“It’s a time jump from a modern city to an ancient city.”

The next destination Linze mentioned, Machu Picchu, is located in the Andes Mountains of South America at an elevation of 2,400 meters. The altitude is going to suddenly skyrocket, but well, with this group, we won’t get altitude sickness. If my parents or Fuyuka were here, I would have had to consider some countermeasures.

Well then, let’s move from North America to South America.

“[Gate]“

I opened a path to the ancient Inca Empire.

“Wow, seeing it in person is breathtaking…”

Spread out before our eyes is Machu Picchu, the ancient Inca Empire‘s capital, or “Sky City,” which you see so often in pictures.

It is an ancient Inca city discovered by the American historian Hiram Bingham III, who was searching for Vilcabamba, the legendary capital where a vast fortune was supposedly taken when the Inca Empire was invaded by Spain. Bingham thought this was Vilcabamba, but that has since been refuted.

Machu Picchu originally means “Old Peak.” When Bingham asked a local person, “What is that?” they replied with the mountain’s name, “Old Peak,” and the name stuck. Machu Picchu was apparently a summer retreat for Inca royalty and nobility. The Karuizawa of the Incas, perhaps? Indeed, there were palaces, temples, and residential areas for the nobility, and it is estimated that not many people lived there permanently.

Since the Andean civilization had no written language, there are no records from that time, and the true purpose remains unknown.

“Let’s go closer!”

Urged by Leen, we used [Teleport] to move inside the ruins. We are nonchalantly blending in with the tourists, but in reality, various procedures like admission limits and reservations are probably necessary. Since I’m using recognition-blocking magic, people won’t notice us unless they talk directly to us, but let’s at least try not to bother the other tourists.

“The ‘Temple of the Sun,’ the ‘Temple of the Condor,’ and the Intihuatana sundial are apparently closed due to erosion and deterioration, so let’s keep our distance from them,” Leen said, having looked it up on her smartphone.

Erosion and deterioration, huh? They don’t have preservation magic here like we do in the other world. There might not be anything they can do about it.

For now, we step into the area called the “urban sector,” where a maze-like network of streets spreads out.

“It’s all built by stacking stones,” said Yumina. “The Inca civilization excelled in stonemasonry, and all their structures were built using stacked stones. The technique of assembling stones, even ones weighing tens of tons, without any gaps, is astonishing,” Leen said wistfully, touching the stacked stone wall next to Linze.

However, her daughter, Kuon, tilted her head, clearly confused.

“Really? I think the Kingdom of Mismede and the Regulus Empire have stone stacking of this level…”

“Kuon, this world doesn’t have magic, you know?”

“Oh… What? Then how did they stack this?”

Kuon gasped and started staring intently at the stone wall in front of her. These stone structures were built almost entirely without the use of mortar. The stones, cut with almost calculated precision, were stacked seamlessly and are said to be able to withstand earthquakes.

“The Inca civilization didn’t even have iron tools. How they managed to cut these stones without magic or iron… is unknown today,” Leen explained. “Whoa…”

Kuon gazed at the stone wall, impressed. They didn’t even have iron tools… No wonder they couldn’t win.

Francisco Pizarro invaded after seeing the Inca‘s gold and silver treasures, believing that this must be El Dorado, the city of gold. Given their architectural skills, it wouldn’t be strange if they had built a city or two made of gold.

For a second, I considered using [Search] to scan the whole area, but then I decided against it. I felt like it would ruin the romance… El Dorado is better off remaining a mystery.

We then transferred to the terraced fields in Machu Picchu. These terraces, called Andenes, were primarily used to cultivate potatoes and corn. They are also said to have made chicha, an alcoholic beverage brewed from corn.

“The gradient is incredible…”

“It’s buried by the jungle now, but it’s said to continue far down below. The difference in elevation is supposedly 400 meters.”

Yumina and Leen had this conversation while peering down at the steep terraced fields. This is indeed an amazing drop. It must have required tremendous effort to obtain food in a mountainous region.

The terraces face east, so during the day, the stones absorb the sun’s heat, and at night, that heat turns the fields into a greenhouse-like state. Ahh, I’m truly impressed by that ingenuity.

“These terraces also served to filter rainwater. The layers of soil, sand, and small stones are set up so that the water gradually soaks into the ground. The stones act as a filter to prevent the rainwater from overflowing. Otherwise, a landslide would occur.”

“They thought of all that…”

I have to take my hat off to human ingenuity and drive. To be able to accomplish all of this using only human effort, without magic, heavy machinery, or iron tools. I feel like I’ve been taught that “where there’s a will, there’s a way.”

After observing Machu Picchu for a while, a wall with three window-like openings, built on top of the stacked terraces, caught my eye.

“That’s the ‘Temple of the Three Windows.’ It’s said to indicate the position of the sunrise on the summer solstice,” Leen explained.

The openings are cut out so cleanly… No, they weren’t hollowed out; stones cut into that shape were stacked. How did they manage to cut them so perfectly straight?

Admiring the skill of the Inca people, we continued our tour of Machu Picchu. While we weren’t bored, some of the children seemed to be losing interest. Well, visiting ruins isn’t exactly tailored for children, so it can’t be helped. Even Yae is yawning. Is she sleepy from eating the hot dog earlier?

For some reason, the children are playing with the llamas wandering around. Why are there so many llamas here?

I thought llamas were related to donkeys or horses, but they are actually related to camels. They are also called American Camels. In the Inca Empire, they were reportedly sacrificed during important rituals. White and black llamas were especially valuable as sacrificial offerings. I should probably keep that quiet from the children…

The Inca and Aztec civilizations had a culture of sacrifice. Most of it was said to be offerings to the gods… Now that I am part of the God Race, I feel a little conflicted. An offering to a god can be as simple as one manju…

Leen also seems satisfied, having seen what she wanted to see. I suppose it’s time to leave Machu Picchu.

“Um, where are we going next?”

“Waikiki Beach… I believe.”

“Waikiki… Huh? Why?”

I paused for a moment at Yumina’s words. Why Waikiki? She means Waikiki in Hawaii, right?

“The children wanted to swim in the ocean here as well. Father-in-law said Waikiki Beach in Hawaii would be the best place if that’s the case…”

My father… he suggested Waikiki without much thought… I had left the destination planning to my wives yesterday, so I didn’t know this was decided. Well, it’s fine, I guess.

Actually, we went to Hawaii before to see the famous tree… Are we going again? Well, Linze, Lucia, and Arcia weren’t there that time.

“But do we have swimsuits?”

“They are in the luggage you are holding for us, Touya-san. Yours are in there too, of course.”

Wait, you brought them along just in case? Aren’t you a little too prepared?

“We did it so we could play wherever we wanted. We leave nothing to chance!” Elze declared with a smug look, but I don’t think that’s something to brag about…

I glanced at the children, who were already shouting, “To the beach!” They must have been truly bored at Machu Picchu. Given how happy the children are, not going is not an option. From an elevation of 2,400 meters in the Andes Mountains to Oahu Island in Hawaii next. Oh, Hawaii is also America. It’s an America-filled day.

“To the beach!”

“Ah, hey, wait up…!”

Several children dashed into the Waikiki ocean immediately after transferring. I’ve seen this sight before…

They have swum in the Kingdom of Egret‘s ocean and the water park we built in Brunhild, but I guess a change of scenery makes a difference.

Since there’s apparently no changing area at Waikiki (everyone seems to go straight from their hotel in their swimsuits), we returned home briefly to change into our swimsuits.

“It’s quite different from the oceans in Japan.”

There are no beach shacks, and no private showers. This beach feels more like a park, maybe.

There are fewer Japanese people than I expected. Based on the stories my grandpa used to tell me, I thought there would be more. There must be various reasons, like high prices and the weak Yen. However, it is vibrant and has many visitors. I’m starting to get excited by the lively seaside.

Well, I should do some warm-up exercises, just in case.

As I lightly stretched, two foreign women in swimsuits passing by looked at me and giggled. Was something funny…? Do people not warm up overseas?

Also… those women just now had incredibly dynamite bodies… and their swimsuits were quite daring… I found myself staring blankly at their retreating figures.

“What are you looking at, Touya-san…?”

“Hah!?”

I turned around and met the intensely narrowed eyes of Linze, who was wrapped in a black aura. Behind her, her twin sister was also glaring at me.

“Have you already gotten used to our swimsuits?”

“That’s not it at all! You both look very cute, beautiful, and the swimsuits suit you perfectly. I am completely thrilled!”

I’m thrilled in more ways than one! But those words came straight from my heart!

“Well, alright. We’re here to have fun, so I won’t complain unnecessarily.”

“Thank you very much.”

Phew. I’ve been forgiven… I can’t even safely look elsewhere. I guess I’ll just keep my eyes on the children…

“Kuon, hurry, hurry!”

“The sea isn’t going anywhere.”

Alice, who looked impatient, pulled Kuon’s arm and ran toward the ocean. She’s so full of energy…

I spread out the leisure sheet I brought on a suitable spot on the sand and arranged a few beach chairs. I screwed the pole of the large beach umbrella into the sand, secretly solidified the base with Earth Magic so it wouldn’t move, and set it up. That’s done.

Leen, Linze, and Lucia said they wouldn’t swim and would relax here. I put out some sunscreen for them so they wouldn’t get sunburned.

Now then, I guess I’ll go to the sea, too. I splash some water on my body at the edge of the waves. Hmm, it’s not cold. Oh… as expected, the feeling of the sand being washed away from under my feet by the waves is the same in Waikiki… The blue sky and the emerald green sea are beautiful. Is that far-off thing the famous Diamond Head? …Why is it called Diamond?

Thinking that, I swim smoothly. Hmm, it’s difficult to swim with a child’s body… I don’t move forward much even when kicking the water…

“Father, please take out a float for me,” Kuon requested as she swam up beside me, seeing me struggling with the sensation of swimming.

A float… I do have one in [Storage], but taking it out here would be noticeable… Well, I can manage with [Mirage].

I took the float out of [Storage] underwater, right beneath Kuon, and she was placed on it as it bobbed up to the surface. I also took out a few inner tubes and put them on the float. Since the float is large, about two tatami mats in size, that’s fine.

I took one of the inner tubes, settled my waist into it, and bobbed along with the waves. It’s not bad at all.

I happened to look far out and saw Elze swimming towards me. Yae and Hildegard were behind her. What’s going on?

“Get us some surfboards too!”

“…Alright.”

Riding the surfboards I pulled out underwater, the three of them swam out to the open sea. Are they more excited than the children?

Perhaps inspired by the three of them who started surfing, competing with other surfers, Linne, Alice, and Frei also begged for surfboards. Well, I do have children’s surfboards, too…

As I was handing out surfboards to the children, I saw some guys trying to hit on Yumina and Sakura, who were playing at the water’s edge. Naturally, I used [Slip] from my position to make them fall towards the sea, making them get thoroughly soaked by a wave. Don’t try to flirt with my wives. The humiliated men scrambled to escape. Hmph.

Yumina and the others looked at me with wry smiles, but I pretended not to notice. Ah, the sun is dazzling…