# Ch.37: Steep pass
After putting their clothes in the forward cycle,
the hen-eaters looked for the Bradley.
It was surrounded by corpses.
F4: Ummm...
Z: I tried to make it clear that they should not steal the tracks,
but they kept coming.
J: Honestly, it was pretty funny to see them try,
and a total shame they weren't carrying anything nice.
F3: I think it is better if we leave.
F6: Yeah.
And so, they got into the Bradley and hastily departed.
J: Wait wait wait! I forgot! We have to stop at the entrance!
The vehicle stopped instead of just blasting through,
and the foxes greeted the guard.
663: Glad to know that there are still people who respect the law.
F1: Of course sir. We took the time to buy you a gift.
663: Oh, for me? I think that when I write my report,
I will leave out the whole 'Threatening me with a cannon' part.
You're on my nice list.
The "gift" was a box containing a truckload of hallucinogen gas.
And one of those anime figurines.
663: ...Wow.
F4: Can we have our money back?
663: ...Huh? Yeah, sure. This is like a dream come true.
J: Ok, now we can leave, but make sure to collect the currency...
With interest.
F6: Do I have to look interested?
F1: I think he means monetary interest.
F2: What's that?
663: *Staring at figurine* Whoah, boobies...
Z: Monetary interest represents an extra percentage of the total value of
investment that is returned to the investor to account for transactional risk.
J: ONE HUNDRED PERCENT!
F2: That seems very lopsided...
J: UGHHH! JUST TAKE THE MONEY!
F3: Why though?
G: Well, it's not like we really need it, but it's
better to be safe if they don't accept our other coins.
J: STEAL THE FALSE COIN! THEY NEVER EARNED IT!
Z: He also seems to be aurophilic.
Forms gold complexes.
F6: How come we can take coins, but not souvenirs?
J: *sigh* Because we can't replicate them, and they are somewhat useful things.
F5: Hold on, you can make "weapons no man has ever seen before",
but not some stupid coins?
Z: Correct. They rely on personal systems of magic that we cannot replicate.
J: The king, or whatever,
just uses his magic to create them out of nothing whenever he wants,
putting in his signature in them so no one else can do that.
That's why they're so light,
because they're more like pound notes than dimes.
J: Now, having explained, can we all take the money and get out!?
F1: Yes sir.
And so they bolted out of the city, out of the country,
and were currently leaving the empire.
...
J: ...
...
J: Ugh, Faber you are so boring!
F1: Sorry.
Z: You are supposed to be working.
J: I was doing that, but then I remembered how boring he is!
He barely says anything!
F1: It's just that I don't find anything to comment on.
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J: Even your face is boring!
I have almost never seen you change your expression!
F1: I don't think that I can do anything about that, sir.
J: Why are you even like this!?
F1: I don't know.
J: Just make some comments! The car has been deathly silent for...
How long?
Z: About thirty seconds.
J: Oh, nevermind. I will get back to work.
After a while, they got to the empire border. There were no beasts, instead,
a huge rift one kilometre wide and ten kilometres deep.
F5: Well, how are we supposed to cross that thing?
G: Hold on, I'll get 'B'.
Zack was currently busy doing his SCIENCE AND ENGINEERING™ somewhere else,
so Guy had to bring him in.
Z: Yes, I can build a bridge with a span of one kilometre,
but first I would have to get to the other side.
G: Would it work if I tied together a rocket and some string?
Z: Sure.
G: Guys, could you help me set up a the rocket launcher?
F5: Why not do it yourself?
G: Well, we can't just go spewing slime all around the place,
since I'm pretty sure being so far would raise some alarms.
G: Just help me get the tools out of the car, alright?
The *un*blue chordates set up the rocket launcher and the cord.
Then it launched.
F3: There it goes.
F2: What now?
G: We'll just have to wait until the bridge is done.
How about I continue to tell you my story
of the world while you do some sunbathing?
Ah, who doesn't like basking in the sun? On the rare day that it isn't cloudy.
And so, he talked, and talked, waiting for the bridge to get done.
the furries were given some iced mint so they wouldn't get overly hot.
At least they weren't getting tan lines.
G: ...After such movie-level antics,
most people saw no fault in the official report.
Sure, some asked who funded them, or the ridiculous timing of it all,
but overall, the edicts were passed,
and nobody questioned neither the solution nor the cause.
Z: A tale that bites its tail. You would expect them to learn.
Z: I have finished by the way.
F4: Great! I was starting to become one with the chair...
F1: Actually, it is a sun lounger.
F3: Well, there isn't a lot of sun anymore.
But there it stood, the best bridge ever made, of a refinement beyond our age.
The foxes crossed the new road, suspended by cables no thicker than a hair.
It seemed like the road was suspended in air,
while the towers formed a perfect parabolic shape.
Through the translucent road, the bottom of the abyss could be seen.
F2: Wow! You can see the lava from here!
Indeed. Plate tectonics went out for lunch.
F6: Couldn't we just go around the rift?
G: I took a look, but the it even seems to extend into the ocean.
F2: How does that work?
G: I really don't know.
The water just stands at the edge like it's Moses or something.
The bridge was finally crossed.
They were greeted a place that suspiciously looked like arcadia.
Or Scotland without the Scots.
G: Well, this is it. Let's see where we can get some sleep.
Z: There seems to be a village that way.
F4: I hope the lodging is good in there. I would rather sleep well.
Unfortunately, the magnificent bridge was destroyed.
*boom*
F4: Why did the bridge explode!?
Z: We cannot leave any structures lying around.
G: You're not gonna like what I saw...
F2: Um, what is it?
G: They must really like open floors,
because they don't seem to have invented separator walls.
F5: Yeah, how about we just camp near the Bradley this time?
F6: That sounds alright.
After cooking some generous meat skewers on a campfire, the
E.A.O.O.H.F.C.A.PH.P.B.N.D.C.T.R.A.S.E.S.T.E.
N.T.E.C.P.M.T.P.B.L.S.F.C.F.C.C.C.V.V. vulpes set up some tents and slept.
The next day...
J: Good morning, little fluffy things.
F2: Oh, you are back!
J: Of course, I was just doing business as usual.
F4: That was unusually fast.
J: I speedran it! Though I'll continue here,
so you can ask me if you need anything.
F3: Does that include-
J: NO, YOU FUCKING IDIOT!
F5: He didn't say anything!
J: I read his mind!
F1: May you tell us what you did?
J: Later. I can see that we have another place to visit.
They visited the village.
It was like those generic pantheon buildings spammed all over.
The people wore chitons and chamlys,
or only chamlys if they felt especially randy.
They chose the latter apart from their drysuits.
Our foxes, my comedy.