Vol 5: Chapter 74

Matvey-san said that he will send us to the Saint Knight Kingdom as is.
He had a dark expression on his face, however. Matvey-san must also be
fighting his own battles.
「I probably shouldn’t say this, but…」
I told Matvey-san about what Yuri-san said, that she told me to take care of
him.
「Take care of me? What does that mean?」
「This is just my guess, but after Yuri-san becomes the next queen, perhaps
she is intending to increase interaction with the outside world?」I said.
「With the outside world?」
「The elves have always lived a closed off life in the “Third Forest”, but
she is thinking about changing it. To start a new era for the elves. Perhaps
she wishes for Matvey-san to negotiate and communicate with the outside
world.」
「Huh? W-Why me?」
「You were the only royalty who was kind to me without being bound by
stereotypes. I think Yuri-san is counting on that kind of personality.」
「Yuri…」

Matvey-san whispered, unable to believe it.

「Yuri onee-sama always looks at Matvey onii-sama with a stern look, but
those eyes always carry kindness too. I was able to notice it because…
Reiji-san said she was kind.」Asha said.
「Hmm, is that so?」I asked.
「I am sure it is. It is the same as how Matvey onii-sama respects Yuri
onee-sama even if they bicker all the time.」
「!」
As if Asha’s words had hit the nail on the head, Matvey-san became
flustered.
「I-It’s not like I respect her or anything… Well, I do acknowledge that her
mana is amazing… Hey, I-I’ll go check the flight status for a moment!」
Matvey-san left us, as if escaping to hide his embarrassment.
「Is what you said really true, Reiji-san? About what will happen after Yuri
onee-sama is crowned Queen…」
「It’s just a guess for now. But it feels more like Yuri-san’s, no, rather the
current King Sylvis’ intention.」

「His Majesty’s?」
「Look at this “Owl Wings”. It uses plenty of wood, but all the engine parts
are made of steel. And naturally, sorcery of the kind of【Fire Magic】is
also used. It will contribute to the national interest. But from the perspective
of the elves, this magic airship is unacceptable, isn’t it?」
「It was in exchange for me, who uses【Fire Magic】, after all.」
I shook my head as Asha dejectedly cast her eyes down.
「No, Asha. His Majesty cares for this country, the elves, more than
himself. I am sure it must have been a painful choice for him to let go of
you. If that is the case, why would he accept something that doesn’t benefit
the country, a magic airship that the elves would not accept? There must be
a meaning to it.」
「…To usher in the new era of the Sylvis Kingdom.」
I nodded.

「…I want to think a little.」Asha said.

「I think you should. And what I said is only a guess so far.」
I left Asha sitting on the sofa in the lounge and headed to the top of the
airship.
Owl Wings flew over the Keith Gran Federation. We had already passed
through the large forest and were flying over the grasslands. The wind was
so strong that I could not go out to the deck, but I could still see the large
forest behind from the observation room.
A vast forest illuminated by the morning sun—the World Tree was faintly
visible far away, covered by haze.
(The elves claim themselves to be the “Sylvis Kingdom”, but on the other
hand they accept that they are part of the Keith Grand Federation and are
treated as a territory under the direct control of King Geffert… Airships are
probably the reason why they had no choice but to accept these conditions.)
Even if the elves are accustomed to fighting in the forest, it is impossible to
protect the High Elves if enemies come from the sky with a magic airship.
The same goes for the World Tree.
Magic airships have the power to change the face of war, so every country
tried to get their hands on it. Although the Lev Magic Empire was a small
country, it had a strong presence because it was the technological leader.
Apparently there are anti-airship weapons installed in places like the capital
of the country, though I am not too familiar with it.

In any case, His Majesty Sylvis, who knew that the number of magic
airships had increased, would have realized that he could not continue the
closed off life of the elves as it is. He obtained a magic airship before the
Keith Gran Federation demanded the opening up of the Third Forest.
(Perhaps… His Majesty already knows about this.)
I did not tell His Majesty about the truth of the World Tree.
(That heart-like substance… the modified skill orb was not connected to the
Life Dragon Kurtus Vita.)
It was simply absorbing mana and used it to grow the World Tree.
It was even more clear when I saw the flow of mana.
In short–
(The High Elf “duty” has no meaning.)

If the Life Dragon Kurtus Vita is buried in the ground, it will have already
died and returned to the earth.
The High Elf’s “duty” that has been continued generation after generation
was just an act which served to enlarge the World Tree.
I couldn’t say that to His Majesty.
I couldn’t say that — Your life, and the actions of all the past kings who
remodeled the skill orb, were useless.
However, seeing that His Majesty is trying to lead the elves to a new era…
perhaps he already knows that it was useless.
(I don’t know for sure.)
I understand that it would be meaningless to say anything about it now.
So I will talk about it to Yuri-san instead. When she becomes the Queen.
It took way less time to return to Zackerhafen by flying through the
sky. Well, even in Japan, where railroads and highways are
widespread, air flights are overwhelmingly faster. It is a tremendous
technological innovation in this world if you think about it…
「I have to return home now.」
We arrived at dawn. The madder red sunshine dyed the grassland red like
fire.
The magic airship temporarily landed at the suburbs of the port town. With
the engine still running, Asha, Matvey-san, and I quickly got down from the
airship.
Matvey-san, however, is planning to return to the Sylvis Kingdom right
away, it seems. He had borrowed the airship on unreasonable terms and the
fuel was barely enough.
「Matvey onii-sama, thank you very, very much for everything. Please
forgive me for leaving so soon again.」
「It’s alright, Asha. Take care of yourself.」
「Yes……」
The high elf brother and sister hugging each other was very picturesque.
The elves, part of the crew of the magic airship, seemed to be impressed by
the sight.
I think Matvey-san was truly worried about Asha when she was sent to the
Lev Magic Empire. That is why he was happy when she returned, but he
still wanted her to be freed, so he is seeing her off thus.
If there are people like Matvey-san who are so kind and warm, I am sure
that the Sylvis Kingdom will turn out fine.
On a side note, the elf crew of the airship seem to be supporters of Matvey-
san. A High elf is still a High elf even if he is called the “failure” Matvey.
「Reiji, here.」
「?」
Matvey-san separated from Asha reluctantly and presented me with a small
wooden box.
「It looks like Yuri hid this in my bag… Good grief, I can’t beat her at
all.」Matvey-san said.
I wonder if Matvey-san’s reserved feelings towards Yuri-san have
disappeared? He pushed the box into my hands. Before I could check the
content–
「Alright, then… I’m going now.」
Matvey-san climbed up the magic airship.
「Both of you can come to the Sylvis Kingdom at any time. This is not our
final farewell– but Reiji, you’re a human. You have a much shorter lifespan
than us. So you should come visit me soon. You… are my friend, after
all.」Matvey-san said shyly.
「Yes, I will definitely come again!」
I answered clearly.
I am sure Matvey-san will be okay now. He can work together with Yuri-
san to take the Elven Forest in the right direction.
When the magic airship that Matvey-san boarded hovered up, a strong wind
blew up–I created a wind wall with【Wind Magic】to block it.
——Old Forest, Floating Oil, Burning Life, Like Flames
God descends, lives in the forest, gives eight-colored leaf, to man
——First the Tree God, then the Grass God, and finally the Flower God
Celebrate the forest, relieve the wind, pour down the rain, and invite the sun
Asha was singing the Chant. Originally, she should not be singing in a place
like this, but she probably wanted to sing.
Golden dust of sparks circled around me and Asha.
Looking up at the sky, Owl Wings was bathed in the morning sun.

Matvey-san jumped out onto the deck–which he definitely should not be

doing.
「Asha! Our Princess Anastasia of the Sylvis Kingdom!」
The elf crew held Matvey-san from both sides and tried to pull him back in,
but Matvey-san grabbed the railing on the deck and planted himself firmly.
「You are always a princess! No matter who says what, you have always
been a noble and proud princess!」
The mana that Asha kneaded further increased, and the whole area became
like a golden lake.
The magic airship started to fly further up.
「I wish you all the luck in your future endeavors–」
Finally, Matvey-san was pulled off the railings and taken back into the ship.
Eventually, the magic airship started to fade into the distance. When Asha’s
song was over, the surroundings suddenly became dark even though the sun
was rising.
「Fufu, Matvey onii-sama, that was such a dangerous thing to do…」
「I think he wanted to listen to Asha’s Chant.」
「Is that so?」
「Of course.」
「…I am happy.」
Asha smiled sweetly.
Asha is cute whether she has a troubled look, or working hard, or crying…
but my favorite is definitely when she is smiling.
「By the way, what about that small box?」Asha asked.
「Oh… this?」
Even without opening the small wooden box, I could guess what was
inside. But I still opened the box in front of Asha.
「T-This is!」
Surprised, Asha picked up the bottle inside the box.
「It seems like we are deeply indebted to Yuri-san now.」I said.
It was the elf’s secret elixir.
「Yes… We should definitely return Yuri onee-sama’s favor someday.」
「I’m sure we will get the opportunity someday.」
I could see the knights of Zackerhafen galloping towards us on their horses.
It is only natural if a magic airship landed nearby their town.
It is time to head to the town. I wonder what Lark and everyone from Silver
Balance are upto.

Chapter 80 Sword of Vengeance

"Ah, damn! I knew it!"

I unintentionally shouted at Nagisa as she ran out toward Shinya.

It is obvious that this would happen if Nagisa saw her family murderer,
Shinya.
I want to curse the heavens for this man who is the fourth heavenly king
of the demon king army to appear in the beginning of the game.

"I really shouldn't have come here!"

I run after Nagisa without caring, even though the spell to hide my
appearance is lifted.
Although he is an enemy that I do not want to fight at this moment, now
that Nagisa recognizes him, a battle is inevitable.
And as I run alongside Nagisa, I draw my sword from my waist.

"Hmm, a newcomer, huh?"

While Nagisa runs toward him with a murderous intent, Shinya, who has
been fighting Leon, turns his eyes toward her.
 The sharp, cold look in his eyes made Nagisa think of her own death, but
she pointed the tip of her sword at her enemy.

"Nagisa! Match me!"

"...!"

Nagisa's eyes show a drop of reason as I shout out the command.

She reflexively matches her attack based on our experience of training
together in the morning.

"Magic sword — 'Black Wolf Slash'!"

"Seikai Itto-Ryu — 'Namikiri Fuudo'!"

"...!"

A black slash from the right. A blue slash from the left.
The simultaneous strikes are a true kill. The timing of the two attacks
was so exquisite that it would be impossible to reproduce them even if
asked to do the same thing again.

However...

"Seikai Itto-ryu — 'Zekkai'!"

Shinya make a slash with his sword and it collides with our slash.
Two slashes and one slash. They balanced each other for about half of a
second.
But Nagisa and I are the ones who are blown backward by the force of
the blow.

"...!"

"Damn... it's no use!"

Nagisa and I rolled on the ground and quickly got up.

 Shinya was standing in front of us, not blown away.
The attack was not so bad, but... there was too much difference in our
stats at this point. Our skill level is too low.

"What kind of unreasonable game is it to take on the Four Heavenly

Kings in the first half of the story... it's just too much!"

"...I'm surprised. You're a lot better than those nominal heroes. Who are
you?"

A closer look reveals that Shinya's chest is slightly ripped open, with a
red line trailing under his dark blue outfit. He may not have been
completely unharmed, but he is far from damaged.

"But... it's sad. It's really sad to see a surprise attack by two people like
this. It's sad that I thought you went in to save the hero there... but you were
reckless enough to jump in without running away."

"Seikai-san and Baskerville...!? Why are you here...!"

On the other side of Shinya, Leon is kneeling with his shoulder moving
up and down violently. His breathing is erratic, and he is clearly at the end
of his physical strength.
He also has small wounds all over his body. Each wound is not large, but
together they probably cause a lot of blood loss.
By the looks of things, Leon will not be able to fight any longer. It is
unlikely that he could be counted as an asset.

"Seikai...? What a surprise! Isn't it Ojou-sama?"

Shinya shouted in response to Leon's words.

It was not a derisive taunt, but a voice of pure joy.

"Don't tell me you have followed me this far west! What a surprise! I'm
glad to hear that you are so attached to me!"

"Shut up... you are a disgrace! You're a traitor of our school!"

 "This is harsh. The strong slaughter the weak and survive by eating them.
That was the truth of the sword your father taught us!"

"Do not mock my father's teachings! The law of the jungle is no excuse
for oppressing the weak! My father taught us to have the strength to stand
up to the strong. I will not allow evil people like you to oppress others!"

"Nagisa!?"

Nagisa, who was enraged, cut at Shinya by herself.

I rush to follow her, but the fierce swordfight between the two
swordsmen with Japanese swords is too fierce for me to intervene.
Her eyes are bloodshot with intense hatred, and she looks only at Shinya.
If I carelessly joined the fight, we might have ended up in a comrade's duel.

"Damn... I knew this was going to happen!"

I growled through my clenched teeth.

Shinya Kushinagi, one of the Four Heavenly Kings of the Demon King's
Army and the man who killed Nagisa's father and destroyed the school. In
fact, this man is a fellow student of the Seikai Itto-ryu style, just like
Nagisa.
In the past, Shinya was a talented swordsman who outshone other
students and was well known in the Far East as an excellent and ambitious
swordsman.
His talent was so great that even Nagisa's father, the master, was so
impressed that he was thinking of having him take over the dojo as his son-
in-law.

But... Shinya's too high aspirations lead him astray.

A sword is a weapon. Swordsmanship is the art of killing.

This is a truth that has been told in a famous manga about swordsman,
and Shinya has also been possessed by such subject matter.
And to perfect his sword, he must slay and kill.
 So, he became a swordsman who only seeks for strength, and has begun
to commit dojo-storming against swordsmen of other schools, and even to
engage in a kind of "Tsuji-giri" (The killing of a passerby on the road at
night, in order to test the sharpness of a sword, or to improve one's skill).

The country where Nagisa lived in the Far East was in a peaceful period
of about 100 years after the end of a long war. It was the Edo period in
Japanese history.
But in this peaceful time, Shinya, who was a manslayer, was akin to a
demon. It is impossible to leave him alone.
So, Nagisa's father, though regretting Shinya's talent with the sword, cut
off his dominant arm and banished him from the school.

"And... in retaliation, I made a pact with the demon and attacked and
destroyed the dojo. You stupid, recalcitrant bastard...!"

"Haaaaaaaaaaaaah!"

"Hahahahahahahahahahahaha!"

Nagisa and Shinya are fighting each other with techniques of the same
school, and are engaged in a fierce battle.
At first glance, the two seemed to be fighting evenly, but while Nagisa
was looking desperate, Shinya was smiling with a relaxed smile on his face.

He is obviously cutting corners... but for now, I have to make the most of
this time Nagisa has made for me.

"Aeris, come here! Treat Brave and his friends!"

"Ah...yes!"

I call for Aeris, who has been standing a short distance away, fascinated
by the battle.
Now, let's heal Leon's party while we can. So, I take out my own healing
potion and run over to Leon's party.
"Hey! Are you guys all right?!"
 I shouted at Leon's party, who looked like they had wounds all over their
bodies.

Ciel is bleeding from the chest. Melia is tending to her.

And - a little further away from them, Leon is kneeling down with a
wound.
They are cornered, as if they were about to be annihilated.

"I-Isn't it Baskerville-san? Do you come to help us?"

Melia, who is holding a cloth to Ciel's chest to stop the bleeding, looks
up.
Her tone of voice was slow and tense, but her forehead covered with
beads of sweat.
At her feet, there are exhausted bottles of recovery medicine and
remnants of rescue fireworks. It seems that it was Melia who launched the
fireworks.

"Is it because of my good behavior that the help comes so conveniently?

And Baskerville-san, you're getting a lot of points from Melia. Shall I give
you a kiss on the cheek?"

"No need. I'm glad to see you're doing well, but I guess you're not.
Please, Aeris."

"Okay. I'll take care of it!"

Aeris begins to heal the unconscious Ciel.

Ciel, whose face is as white as paper, is obviously out of combat, but
Aeris will be able to heal her without any problem.
Well, it's good. In the meantime, I'll go to Leon.

"Here, here's a potion. Drink it quickly or you'll die."

"Baskerville... why are you here...?"

 Leon looks up at me while kneeling on the ground, breathing on his
shoulders with wounds all over his body.
But I shrug my shoulders and ask Leon back.

"That's my line. How did you end up fighting such a crazy enemy?"

"...I don't know. He challenged me to a fight because I'm the descendant

of a hero."

"Hmm...?"

Leon's explanation pulls the game scenario from my memory.

As a descendant of a hero, Leon was often targeted by the minions of the
Demon Lord's army, including the gargoyle that he fought in the first
dungeon.
But...of course, Shinya, the fourth heavenly king, does not appear in the
early stages of the game.
There must be some event that triggers it....

"Ah..."

I suddenly realized one fact.

The next assassin of the Demon King's army that the hero Leon fights
after defeating the first assassin, a gargoyle, is a monster named 'Gargoyle
Powered'.
This is a gargoyle that was defeated by Leon once, but has been specially
modified and greatly strengthened by the Demon Lord's army.
For Leon, the gargoyle is the mortal enemy who killed his classmate.
There is supposed to be an event battle where those who have a history
with each other clash again....

"...That Gargoyle, I had killed it..."

I whisper to myself, so Leon can't hear me.

Come to think of it, I had already killed the gargoyle. And there is no
way the gargoyle and Leon will have a rematch.
 Perhaps the defeat of the gargoyle is the reason for Shinya Kushinagi's
appearance.
Is it possible that this incident might have alerted the demon king's army
to Leon's power, and they suddenly sent one of the Four Heavenly Kings
into the fray?
Well, the common sense says that the weaker enemies are sent in turn to
help the protagonist to raise his level up... but now that the game has
become a reality, the sudden appearance of the stronger enemies is an
unreasonable development.

"...I was the cause again, wasn't I? Sorry about that..."

I mean, who would have thought that saving the lives of Jean and Arisa
would have changed the scenario too much?

"Aaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaa!"

"Nagisa!?"

In the meantime, Nagisa is blown away and flies into the air.
She rolls on the ground, spraying red blood, until she comes to my feet.

"Hold on! Are you all right!?"

"Ugh...!"

Nagisa is barely conscious with a deep cut in her abdomen.

Immediately I take out a healing potion and sprinkle it on the wound.

"Mas...ter..."

"Don't talk. You'll bleed your guts out."

"I have lost... without avenging my father... without avenging

everyone..."
 "...!"

Nagisa's eyes are filled with tears.

But such tears from the stout-hearted Nagisa had never happened even in
the game.

"It's sad. It's so sad. Nagisa ojou-san... it's sad that you're so weak that
you can't even avenge your father's death."

"...!"

I look up at the theatrical voice and see Shinya covering his face with his
palms in sorrow against the cliff of the ravine.
He doesn't even attack Nagisa, who has been blown away. Instead, he is
treating Nagisa as if she is his subordinate.

"How do you feel? You chased me all the way from the east to avenge
your familty death, and when you finally found me, you were defeated
because you couldn't even draw out you true power and was beaten by me.
It must have been a humiliating experience. At that time I let you off the
hook, but it seems that was all for nothing!"

"You...!"

"But I respect your seriousness. You may not be good enough to kill me,
but you may still be worth using."

Ignoring my glare, Shinya smiles with amusement. The edge of his palm
reveals his ugly crescent-shaped lips.

"Ojou-san... no, Nagisa. You will conceive my child! If it's you and me,
I'm sure our child will grow up to be a mighty swordsman! You will give
birth our child who will inherit my talent, and you will raise our child... and
when our child is fully grown, I will slay him/her! Hahahahahahaha! If it's a
child with my blood in it, it will be a good fertilizer!"

It was a loud laugh that was too loud to be heard.

 And for the note, in accordance with his contract with the demon, Shinya
has the ability to gain strength by killing the strong and taking their lives as
his strength.
Both Nagisa's father and his students were killed by this man and became
his food and strength.

"Hahahahahahahahahahahahaha! It must be humiliating to give birth to a

child whom you hate as an enemy! But don't worry. If I had not expelled
from the school, you would have become my wife! It's just a matter of
getting back together. Don't be discouraged!
Hahahahahahahahahahahahahaha!"

"...You're a much uglier man than you sound. Don't spew any more words
that stink more than shit."

"Huh?"

I spat out, and Shinya turned his eyes to me as if he had just noticed.

"Hmph...!"

I ignore his eyes, which are twisted into a grim expression.

Then, I carry the fallen Nagisa to Aeris.

"When you're done with the first aid, please take care of Nagisa. And...
please give me a buff."

"U-Understand... Strength Up... Guard Up... Stamina Charge... Rapid

Foot..."

Aeris puts her hands together as if in prayer and casts a support spell on
me.
A blue effect envelops my body, and I feel my strength welling up from
within.

"Zenon-sama, I wish you good luck...!"

 "Master, I'm sorry. I'm so sorry...!"

Aeris and Nagisa send me off together.

In their eyes, I could clearly see their concern for me and their wishes for
my safety.

"I can't lose, can I? To that scumbag who is no better than a scoundrel?"

After all, the heroine is watching over me. Defeat is unacceptable.

So, I'll kill any insolent man who tries to touch her.

"And... Nagisa, I'm a man who keeps his promises."

"...?"

"I'll avenge your family, just as I promised. So, 'please watch my back
carefully'."

I leave with these words and walks toward Shinya.

Right now, my heart is boiling with anger, but my thoughts are strangely
clear and cool.

"...Maybe human beings become calm when their anger reaches an

extreme level. I'm going to kill that son of a bitch."

"B-Baskerville..."

Leon stands up and calls out to me as I head toward the enemy.

"I'll help you... we'll fight together...!"

"Take it easy. Your wounds are not fully healed. Your leg's shaking."

"But...!"

Leon tries to argue with me, but I put a smile on my face and look at him.
 "Ugh...!"

"I'm not going to fight a fight I can't win. I'll show you the power of the
man who beat you."

"I... understand. But, be careful..."

I tried to reassure him with a smile, but Leon's face became obviously
frightened.
Did I look that scared?

"Thanks for waiting. I'm sorry I left you hanging."

"...It's sad. It's so sad that you think you can beat me all by yourself."

Shinya looked at me reproachfully and hurled a snide remark at me.

"Are you Nagisa's man? Or are you just another companion? You look
rather weak for a comrade who has gathered here to defeat me."

"Is that all you have to say? If you have more to say, go on. You'll never
speak again. Get all the shit out of your mouth."

"...You're really an unpleasant man. Be glad that a sad little fish is my

food."

Shinya slash sideways with his sword in a smooth movement.

The slash is so natural that it is hard to be alert, as silent as the calm of
the sea.

"Ha!"

"...!"

But I caught it with the sword I had taken out of my magic bag.
 "Huh...!?"

Shinya's face changes color in surprise. Then, he leaps backward and

moves away from me.
Perhaps the reason for his astonishment is not that he was able to catch
the special slash but other reason.

"What's with that sword...! Where did you get that!?"

The composure he had shown earlier disappeared from his face.

Instead, his gaze, filled with strong hostility and caution, is fixed on the
sword in my right hand, the 'Amanohazamaru'.
Magic Sword - Amanohazamaru.
It is not a weapon that can be obtained in the game, but an original item
created by taking material items to a blacksmith.
The performance of the weapon, which has been strengthened through
more than ten rounds of gameplay, surpasses even the strongest equipment
in the game, the 'Holy Sword Ex-Brave'.
Although it looks like a single-edged odachi, it is classified as a "sword"
rather than a "katana".
Its black blade is slightly damp as if it were covered with moisture, and
reflects the light, giving off an icy emerald-blue glow.

The overwhelming sense of intimidation that the sword carries, even to

the untrained eye, suggests that it is an extraordinary work of art.
In fact, Shinya Kushinagi's facial muscles tightened and he looked
impatient as he saw me holding the Amanohazamaru in my hands.

"Where did you get that sword...!? Answer me, you brat!"

"What's the matter? Where's the composure you had before?"

"...!"

Shinya's face is distorted as I laugh it off as a taunt, because he has been

mocked by someone whom he had underestimated as an inferior opponent.
 "...It's so sad. An insignificant brat seems to be getting carried away. It's
sad that you are so foolish that you don't know the terrible fate that awaits
you!"

Shinya kicked the ground and slashed at me with his sword. His slash is
fast and sharp.
It's clearly different from when he was fighting Leon and Nagisa. It's a
slash without restraint.
But... I caught the full force of the blow with a minimal movement, only
tilting the Amanohazamaru slightly.

"You fool...!"

"Huuf, it's too slow. Does it look like it's stopping?"

"Damn...!"

I flick off Shinya's sword and slashes his left shoulder in return.
Shinya quickly took evasive action, but he barely made it in time and
blood splattered on the ground.

"Are you hiding your ability!? How can a simple human being be this
swift?!"

"I don't have to answer you! You can die, you piece of trash!"

"Kuha!?"

I pretend to slash at him with the Amanohazamaru, but instead I kick him
with my left leg. Shinya is sent flying backward, unable to react to the
unexpected move.
Of course, this is not the end of the story.
I take a big step forward and release a follow-up attack.

"Ooooooooooooo!"

"Guuuuuuuuuuuuh!"
 A slash as fierce as a storm — it is not Shinya, who is supposed to be
superior, who is unleashing it, but me.
I swung my Amanohazamaru down from above, slashed up, swung to the
side, swung back, thrust, and swung down again.
Shinya is not unresisting, but he is clearly forced into a defensive
position. With only his one arm and his sword, he is doing his best to
defend against my continuous attacks... but the slashes he couldn't catch
kept hitting him one after another, inflicting more and more fresh wounds.

Now, the game had turned.

A one-sided attack. My turn goes on and on, and I'm pushing Shinya
back.

Of course, it is not that I suddenly became stronger after taking out

Amanohazamaru.
The factor that brought about my overwhelming strength — it was a
small bottle, clutched in my left hand.

Paid Item - Doping Bottle.

The item, which I had once used to defeat Gigant Mithril, had the effect
of temporarily increasing my proficiency in a skill to its maximum level.
I have used this item to max out two skills, [Swordsmanship] and [Body
Enhancement].
In order to equip Amanohazamaru, I have to reach 90 or more in
[Swordsmanship] skill. If I hadn't used the doping bottle, I would not have
been able to wear it in the first place.

Unfortunately, I could only bring three doping bottles into this world.
I used one bottle to defeat Gigant Mithril, and used two more bottles
here.
These paid items cannot be purchased at stores, and they do not drop
from defeating enemies. This means that I have used up my trump card
item.

"But... it's not too bad! If I can kill the bastard who hurt Nagisa!"
 "You bastardddddd! You brattttttt!"

The furious attack by the maximum value of [Swordsmanship] and

[Physical Reinforcement] had finally pushed Shinya to the brink. Probably,
Shinya's strength had already been reduced to less than 30%.
However...I don't have much time to spare either.
The doping bottle has three minutes until it expires. Now, I have less than
a minute left.
If I'm Ultraman, the timer on my chest would be blinking. So, I can't take
my time.

"This is the end!"

"...!"

I try to make my final attack from the right side, which is Shinya's blind
spot.
Because Shinya's right arm, which is his dominant arm, has been cut off
by Nagisa's father.

"Noooooooooooooooo!"

Shinya screamed.
His handsome face is twisted into a desperate cry.
After killing innocent people, killing his mentor, killing his peers... the
time of the end was coming for the evil swordsman who had sacrificed
everything in order to become stronger.

"...did you think I would say such a thing!? You sad and foolish brat!"

—Or so it seemed.
A moment later I swung my sword and tried to reap Shinya's torso.
A bright red arm sprouts from Shinya's empty right shoulder.

That is Shinya Kushinagi's trump card — 'Demon's Right Arm (Demon

Light)'.
 The new right arm that Shinya has acquired by making a contract with a
demon.
"I hope you die! You cheeky little brat!"

Shinya's bright red right arm swings down. The sharp clawed arm is so
powerful that it could easily gouge rocks and cut through a human body like
butter.

This 'Devil's Right Arm' - it is Shinya's last trump card. It is a concealed

weapon for deceit.
Its power is immense. It is a special attack from his hidden right arm that
kills the opponent the first time he sees it.

"Ah, that's right. You're that kind of guy"

I murmur to myself as I look at his approaching right arm emotionlessly.

Shinya Kushinagi is a peerless swordsman.

He is the second strongest opponent after the demon king of the Four
Heavenly Kings, and his brilliant swordsmanship surpasses Leon's and
Nagisa's.

But then again...

Although Shinya is a powerful swordsman, he is by no means a samurai.

The reason why Shinya was able to defeat Nagisa's father, the master of
the Seikai Itto-ryu style, was not because of his superior swordsmanship.
He won by a surprise attack with his 'demon's right arm' just as he does
now.

Anyhow, Shinya was not a fair and square warrior.

He is a despicable murderer who is willing to cheat and take hostages if
necessary to win the battle.

"Yeah... I know you, I know you well."

 "What...?"

Shinya's right arm slices through the air.

It was indeed the demon's right arm that caught me, but just before it hit
me, my body vanished like a mirage.

"Dark magic — Illusion Ghost."

It is a magic that creates illusions to avoid enemy attacks.

And what Shinya sliced through was just an illusion. As for me, I stayed
behind him, a few feet away from my shadow.

"Too bad, you're out of luck."

"No way! Did you read my attack?"

"I didn't read it. But I knew it... because I've been sick and tired of your
ugly right arm."

To win, he'll go to any length, even the most despicable means. It may be
a shameful thing for a samurai to do, but it is a way that I can relate to.
What is important is the result of 'victory'. To get it, I also don't hesitate
to dope myself with items or to cheat with magic.
In a sense, Shinya and I may have been the same kind of people.

"Damn...!"

Shinya's missed a big blow, which he had intended to kill me with

certainty, has created a clear opening.
I have no right to let him get away with that. So, I stepped into Shinya's
pocket this time and delivered a counter slash.

"If you can avoid it, avoid it. If you can't... you can die."

"...You brattttttttt!"
 Shinya lets out a desperate cry. Of course, no amount of shouting will
stop the attack.
The slash from the bottom up is still swung straight into Shinya's body.

"Damn it... Nooooooooooooo!"

But... after all, Shinya is also a first-rate warrior. He did not take the
attack in silence.
From the posture in which he swung his "demon's right arm" down, he
twisted his waist forcibly and twisted his body as if he used the right half of
his body as a shield.
As a result, my slash hit the 'demon's right arm' and slashed diagonally
from the forearm to the middle of the elbow, and stopped.

"Heh... you're good!"

"I stopped it, you sad brat!"

"It's you who's sad! Hellfire Dragon Blast (獄炎龍破)!"

My attack is not over yet.

With my sword still embedded in Shinya's right arm, I activate the Dark
Magic Sword.
Jet-black flames pour out from Amanohazamaru, burning Shinya's right
arm from the inside.

"Gugaaaaaaaaaaaaaaah!"

"Hmph!"

With the sword covered in hellfire, I rotate my hips and swing the sword.

The demon's right arm is finally severed by a heated slash and flies
through the air. It spins around and flies away, but as soon as it hits the
ground, it turns to white ashes and vanishes.
 "Gggrrrrrrhh! How dare you, how dare you take my armmmmm!"

Shinya leaps backward to get away from me after losing his right arm,
his trump card.
Shinya's right arm has been burned off, and he is now a one-armed man
again, but the wariness in his eyes has not disappeared yet.
His handsome face is contorted into a vicious, yasha-like expression, and
he glares at me with searing hatred.

"How dare you, how dare you...! I will cut off your limbs from end to
end, turn you into daruma, and then give you all kinds of pain!"

"You can't do it, you know."

"Yeah, it's impossible."

My coldly assured words are overlaid by a voice as clear as the sound of

wind chimes.
The sentence of despair, like a bottomless sea, was released from right
behind Shinya.

"What!?"

Shinya's expression changes to one of surprise.

He turns to look back at the voice coming from such a close distance that
he is horrified, but a silent slash cuts his neck before he can turn around.

"Seikai Itto-ryu hidden technique — 'Watatsumi no Tachi'."

"...!"

It was a silent yet powerful slash.

Nagisa, who had somehow gotten behind Shinya, released a slash that
left no sound behind and sliced Shinya's neck with a speed that left no
sound behind.
A little later, the sound of 'Plop' severed the neck bone is heard, and
Shinya's head flies away from his body.
 Slowly, in a slow motion, the headless body falls to the ground.
The head, which is flying in the air, looks at both eyes wide open in
shock, as if it still does not understand what has happened to it.

"’I've been watching your back’ just like you told me, Master."

Nagisa said with a smile and sheathed her sword in a beautiful, flowing
motion.
The white blade disappears into the scabbard, leaving a blue afterglow
like the sea on a clear day.

"The enemy is defeated!"

The blade and scabbard clink, and Shinya's head crashes to the ground at
the same time.
The fallen head does not turn to ashes like the 'Demon's Right Arm', but
instead bleeds and forms a black puddle on the ground.
"..."

Looking down at the corpse of the man who was her family murderer,
Nagisa is silent with an indescribable expression on her face.
The dignified face of the girl is not only filled with a sense of
accomplishment at having achieved her goal, but also with a somewhat lost
feeling.

"Can I say congratulations...?"

"Master..."

When I called out to Nagisa who was standing still, she looked at me
with weak eyes as if she was clinging to me. This is a rare look for Nagisa,
who is always so resolute.

"...I thank you from the bottom of my heart for your help. Thanks to you
I was able to avenge my enemy."
 "I'm glad to hear that. You did well."

"..."

Nagisa becomes silent again with a somewhat delicate expression on her

face.
I waited for Nagisa to start speaking without saying a word.

"What... should I do now?"

After a while, Nagisa mumbled something like that.

Nagisa is at a loss. I wonder if this is what is called 'burnout syndrome'.
The kind of burnout where you have achieved a great goal, and you are
so discouraged that you don't know what to do with yourself.
After all, she was supposed to devote her life to revenge, but she
happened to meet her target and avenge him easily, and she seems to be
confused by the fact.

"Master... please give me one more instruction. What should I do now?"

"Hey, hey... don't ask me. It's your life."

I reply in a quiet tone.

I understand Nagisa's feeling of having lost her purpose, but it's not up to
me to decide what happens next. It is for her to decide for herself.

"It is okay to revive a school. Or pursue the way of the sword. You can
go home and mourn for your father and your friends... your life is yours to
decide."

"..."

"I can understand why you might feel a little discouraged when you've
achieved your goal but life is longer after your dreams and aspirations have
come true. Your life is far from over."

"I see... I can make my own decision."

 Nagisa thought for a moment, and then nodded clearly.
Then... she walked up to me and looked up at me with straight eyes.

"Master...no, my Lord. Please allow me to serve you again as your

servant."

"..."

"I owe you a great debt of gratitude for all that you have done for the
restoration of my school and for the mourning of my people. Please allow
me to serve you as your vassal and to devote myself to you."

"...I see."

To tell the truth, Nagisa's reaction was as expected.

In the game, Nagisa had pledged her allegiance to Leon, the main
character, after defeating Shinya Kushinagi, the target of her revenge.
Then comes the reward scene, which is a torture for me, as I am celibate
until the day I defeat my father.

"...I'm going to make love to you, remember? I'm going to do something

so great you'll be surprised."

"Hmm... is something wrong, my Lord?"

"Nothing... Nagisa, I've received your loyalty. I'll be counting on you.

"Yes, use it to your heart's content. As a sword and as a woman."

"..."

Nagisa smiled brightly and held out her hand.

I reach out to grab her hand, my face indescribable at the words that
could be taken as a temptation.
But... just before I take Nagisa's hand, a fierce feeling of fear runs up my
spine.
 "Nagisa!"

"Whoa!"

I take Nagisa's hand and leaps forward.

The next moment... a sword is swung down on the spot where we had
just been.

"Look out! Baskerville!"

"Too late! If you're going to warn me, warn me sooner!"

I glared at the assailant, yelling at Leon for issuing a warning too late.

"Haha, hahahaha...! It's sad, it's sad that you're so stupid that you think
you've won...!"

"You b*stard! Why are you still alive?"

Nagisa looked at the attackers and shouted with wide eyes.

The one who had just swung down his sword was Shinya Kushinagi, the
man who had just had his head chopped off.
His whole body was stained by the flowing blood, and he had wounds all
over his body. He looked like nothing more than a mortal, but his head,
which was supposed to have been cut off by Nagisa's sword, was still firmly
connected to the rest of his body.

"...That's impossible. How did you come back from hell?"

It was an impossible sight.

In the game, Shinya's head was chopped off by Nagisa at the end. Of
course, he was never resurrected.
I had no idea how the fallen swordsman in front of me had come back to
life.
 "You ignorant... you ignorant people make me sad...!"

Shinya took out a small sphere from his pocket with his crazy eyes
shining brightly.
What emerged between his two fingers is a flaming crimson-colored
jewel.
The oval-shaped jewel looked like an egg with a deep crack in the center.

"A phoenix egg!? How did you have that...?"

"Hmm...? You knew it well. As I thought, you're not just a small fry. It
seems that it's not the hero or Nagisa Ojou-sama that I should be wary of,
but you...!"

Shinya smirks at me and confirms my words.

'Phoenix egg' is an equipment item that can be obtained in the latter half
of the scenario, and it is an accessory with an 'automatic resurrection' effect.

If you equip this item, you can revive yourself with 20% of your health
when you are killed by an enemy.
Although it can be used only once, and it will shatter if used... it's a very
effective accessory against enemies who would unleash a one-hit-kill
attack.

Since it is not a unique item, it can be obtained any number of times by

visiting the dungeon called 'Flame Mountain'... but it was completely
unexpected that Shinya had it.

"Really, he's a foul enemy. It's too much to be expected for a boss
character to be equipped with a resurrection item...!"

It is annoying that boss characters use recovery spells such as 'Be*ma (べ

○マ?)' or 'Kea*ga (ケア○ガ?)', but if they use resurrection items, the
balance of the game will be broken.
 It's not even funny to see the bosses that have been defeated with hard
work and damage resurrected.

However... if I think about it, this may not be so surprising.

Now that the game has become a reality, I am free from various fetters.
I have been able to do many things that would have been impossible in
the game, such as winning the heroine of the hero, saving people who were
supposed to die, defeating enemies who could not be defeated in the
beginning of the game.

Then... it is natural that the enemy could do the same thing.

They have items that they are not supposed to have, they have foul
revival items... I guess the enemy side is also benefiting from the game's
fetters being removed.

"It's a depressing thing... it would have been a nice ending if Nagisa

had killed you... You really can't read the air, can you, you
troublemaker!"

"Hahaha, you brat, I'm not going to follow your lead. But..."

Shinya looks at me, Nagisa, and Leon, Aeris, Melia, and Ciel, who are a
little further away, in turn.
Nagisa and I are mostly unharmed. Leon and Melia are wounded, but
their wounds had already been healed by Aeris.
Except for Ciel, who is unconscious, we still have enough strength to
fight.
On the other hand... although Shinya was able to revive himself, the
effect of the phoenix egg had restored only 20% of his strength. His torn
'demon's right arm' does not seem to have recovered either.

In this situation, Shinya had only one choice.

"Dark Bullet!"

I fire a spell at Shinya... but it is too late, and Shinya's body leaps up into
the air.
 He leaps to the top of a small rocky hill and looks down on us from
above.

"I'll let your life be in your hands for now. But the next time we meet I'm
going to eat you up without a shred of your soul!"

"Are you kidding me! Get down here!"

Nagisa shouts in desperation, but Shinya cries out with an ugly smile
plastered on his face.

"It's sad. You think you have killed me, don't you? To think that you
almost missed the murderer, who killed your father... you really are a sad
person."

"Shinya...! Don't you have the pride of a swordsman? Come down and
fight me!"

"I have no right to obey a command to come down. Even if I were

wounded and I would not be defeated by you but your man is a bit of a
nuisance. I'm going to have to step back now."

Shinya puts his sword over his shoulder and turns his hate-filled, fiery
eyes on me.

"You brat... no, they call you Zenon. I will let the other demons (魔
族/Mazoku) know about you. From now on, all demons will be your
enemies. You may sleep with a shiver!"

"...You're really a sore loser. Does this sound like a real loser? You reek
of a small fry who's getting off on the wrong foot and will be easily beaten."

"...!"

I provoked him, but Shinya only twisted his face in hatred and didn't
come down.
 "Tsk...!"

I click my tongue and clench my fists so hard that my nails dig into my
palms.
I let the man who killed Nagisa's family go. I miss the enemy I was so
close to killing.
It was more humiliating than a simple defeat, and it was heartbreaking.

"I should have killed him here. I could have killed him...!"

But... Shinya had already escaped out of my reach. I grit my teeth and
look up at Shinya standing on the rocky hill.
Shinya, too, looked down at me with hatred, and was about to leave.

"I'll never forget your face... the next time I see you will be your last.
Remember that!"

"..."

"Farewell!"

Shinya turns around and is leaving.

And all I could do is to watch him go, helplessly.

"...Ah?"

"...Huh?"

But then... something unexpected happened, for us and for Shinya.

Shinya was about to turn his back and leave, but when he turned around,
there is someone who had somehow come in his direction.

"You are... Gahaa!?"

Shinya was about to say something, but before he could finish, the person
thrust out his/her hand forward.
 The sword thrusts out and pierces Shinya's chest, through his heart, and
down to his back.

"It’s ridiculous, you... you...!"

Shinya's mouth was filled with blood foam and his voice was shaking.
This is not the way he expected to die. He was beaten by us, who were
supposed to be inferior to us, and he survived by using a revival item... and
just when he thought he could escape, someone pierced his heart and killed
him without a second thought.

"Gah..."

Shinya's body collapses to the side and he tumbles off the rock pile.
He can only wear one accessory at a time. Of course, the phoenix eggs
have already been used up.
No matter how hard he tried, there was no way he could revive himself.

"...Hey, hey, are you kidding me?"

Shinya's defeat reveals the person on the other side.

Realizing the identity of this person whom I had seen many times in the
game, I let out a stifled voice.

“Uuu... aaa...”

A woman wearing a black dress stands in the background against the

purple sky, letting out a voice that sounds like a groan.
Her skin is pale and lifeless. Her golden hair flows down her back. Her
eyes are a chillingly cold jade green.

"Queen Margarita..."

She's the boss of this dungeon.

She is the Queen Margarita, the Queen of the Dead, a formidable foe
comparable to the Four Heavenly Kings of the Demon King's Army.
 In her right hand, Queen Margarita, dressed in a dress, held a pale blue
sphere.
That is a soul, which was been attacked by instant-death attack used by
undead monsters — 'Soul Eat'.
And the soul of Shinya Kushinagi, which had been gouged out of her
body, is in the queen's hand.
Shinya's soul now is desperately clawing at the seaweed like a creature
trapped by a predator... but the queen throws it into her mouth without
hesitation.

'GAAAAAAAAA!!!'

A hair-raising scream is emitted from Queen Margarita's mouth.

The scream from the queen's mouth is not her own. It was from the soul-
eaten Shinya.
For the note, those who have been defeated by the [Soul-eat] cannot be
released unless someone defeat the undead who have taken their souls.
So, Shinya could neither go to heaven nor hell, and she was to suffer in
her body forever until the day someone defeated Queen Margarita.

'Ah...'

Queen Margarita licked her lips with her long tongue in satisfaction after
eating Shinya's soul and turned her back without even a glance at us.

"..."

We watched in stunned silence as Queen Margarita disappeared into the

depths of the canyon.
After that, we escaped from 'Margarita Canyon' accompanied by
adventurers, who saw the 'rescue fireworks' and rushed to our place.
After returning to the entrance of the canyon, we reported to Wanko-
sensei about the battle with one of the Four Heavenly Kings of the Demon
King's Army. We also reported to Wanko-sensei about our encounter with
Queen Margarita.
 We were immediately taken to the capital by an earth-dragon carriage,
and were interrogated by the knights of the royal palace.
The knights seemed to be suspicious about the appearance of the Demon
King's army and the fact that the students had defeated one of its officers,
but when I gave them the drop items recovered from Shinya's remains, they
seemed to finally be convinced.

After two hours of interrogation, I was released, but the sun had already
set and it was nighttime.
Aeris and Nagisa, who had finished the interview earlier, were waiting
for me in front of the knight's guardroom, and the carriage of the
Baskerville family was also parked there to pick me up.

"Goshujin-sama! I was worried, desu~no!"

"Ohh, sorry... You came all the way here to pick me up, Urza."

Apparently, she had come with a carriage to pick me up. But then, Urza
jumped in and hugged me.
Urza presses her head pressed against my chest like a small animal
sniffing its favorite spot.
I wonder if I have worried her too much. Still, although I'm sorry to hear
that, I'd like to ask her to stop pressing her horns against my head, because
they are hurting me.

"It took you long enough, my Lord."

"We finished our interrogation quickly... what's wrong?"

"...Don't ask. It's too depressing to explain."

At Nagisa's and Aeris's questioning, I shook my head slowly with a

tightened face.

The reason why my interrogation took so long was because I was being
interrogated under suspicion of something that was not true.
 The knight who asked me about the situation suspected me of being a
collaborator of the Demon King's army without any evidence.
This was because of my evil face and the notoriety of the Baskervilles.

I explained to them that I had defeated Shinya, but it took them a long
time to believe me.
They finally believed me when Aeris and Leon's party told their story,
but the knight who was in charge of the interview looked at me suspiciously
until the very end.

" I don't like having my insides probed endlessly. Really... What have I
done?"

"I see... I'm sorry to hear that."

Aeris sympathetically smiles and claps her hands together, and then, she
said as if remembered something.

"Oh, yes, I just got a call from the teacher that we can return home
without going back to the school. The report can be made later, so why
don't we go back to the house and rest today?"

"...I guess so. I feel like I'm going to collapse."

My body and mind are both complaining of severe fatigue, after all.
This is because I've used two doping bottles, which are very hard on my
body, and fought against overwhelmingly stronger enemy... and after I'm
finally back outside the dungeon, only to be interrogated on the suspicion of
something strange.
My fatigue has reached its peak, and my whole body is begging for rest.

As I climb into the carriage dragging my body, Urza tries to sit next to
me as usual.
But Nagisa slipped first.

"Ah! That is Urza's place, desu~no!"

 "I'm sorry, Urza, but can you give it to me just for today?"

"Uh... just for today."

"I'm sorry."

Urza gives her a reproachful look, and sits down on the opposite side
beside Aeris.
I then ask Nagisa, who has come to sit next to me, suspiciously.

"...What's the matter? What can I do for you?"

"Ah... my Lord, let me thank you first."

"Thank you for... Whoa!?"

"Excuse me."

Nagisa grabbed my head, made me roll over, and forced it onto her
thighs. I felt a soft but slightly corey sensation on the side of my head.
It seems that I have been put on her lap.
It's a very exciting situation for me as a man... but to tell the truth, it's not
so pleasant.

It's that I was dissatisfied with Nagisa's thighs.

It's just that I had to lie down with my legs folded forcibly because of the
narrow space of the carriage.

"...Hey, hey, what's going on all of a sudden?"

"My Lord, thank you so much for your help in this matter. Thanks to you
I was able to avenge my family."

"..."

I look up at her from her lap, and I see that Nagisa has an auspicious look
on her face.
 Looking closely at her face, I see that the bridge of her nose is straight
and her eyelashes are long and well-defined. She looks dignified when she
is wielding a sword as usual, but she would also look good in a kimono and
doing Ikebana.

"...Don't worry about it. After all, the last one took all the good parts."

I had intended to give the final blow to Nagisa, but she failed because of
the 'phoenix's egg.
In the end, Queen Margarita eat Shinya's soul, and the result is still
incomplete.

"Still... I was able to cut off the head of the man who killed my father and
my brothers with my own hands. Thanks to this, I will be able to give a
good report on their graves."

"...Are you sure you don't want to go home? I don't mind if you do."

Well, to tell the truth... I don't want Nagisa to go back to her hometown.
After all, one of the Four Heavenly Kings of the Demon King's Army has
appeared, and if the scenario is correct, even the Demon King will be back
after the summer vacation.
The battle against the Demon King will be in full swing from now on.
Under such a situation, it would be very troublesome to lose a valuable
forces.

However, she has avenged her family murderer whom she has been
chasing for a long time.
I am sure that she would like to take the credit for this victory and to
bring the glory back to her hometown.

With this in mind, I recommend that she return to her hometown, but
Nagisa shakes her head.

"As I have said before, I am not so heartless as to put my personal

feelings ahead of the gratitude I owe to my benefactor. I will not set foot in
my homeland without returning the favor I owe to you, my Lord."
 Nagisa declared clearly.
Her clear, unwavering eyes reveal the honest and diligent character of a
female swordsman.

"My sword belongs to you. This body exists only to serve you. My
beloved Lord. Use me as a sword or as a woman, as you wish."

"I see... well, I don't mind."

I murmur, and take my eyes off Nagisa's face, which is smiling a clear
smile.
The, while resting my head on her reassuring warmth, I close my eyes in
exhaustion.
The Principle of a Philosopher by
Eternal Fool “Asley” – Chapter
290, The Chaos Lizard
Inside the temple, after Melchi had made her leave…
Kaoru drank down about half of her cup of tea.

“…Is she gone yet?”

A voice addressed Kaoru, from the other side of the sliding screen behind
her.

“Yeah, she’s gone. Did you hear what she said? She wanted to meet you.”

Kaoru, without turning around, asked back to the voice behind her.

“Now is not the right time. We’re sure to meet eventually, whenever fate
dictates.”
“There you go, trying to sound cool again.”
“Hmph.”

Heard together with the voice’s annoyance was the sound of a bell-like ring.
Kaoru stole a glance behind her and drank the remaining half of her cup.

“Now then, I wonder what will happen next…”

She muttered and waited for a reply, but the voice on the other side of the
screen never responded.

“Always so busy, huh?”

Kaoru, in the chamber darkened by the sunset, let out a subtle sigh, her
breath warmed by the tea she had just finished.

◇◆◇◆◇◆◇◆◇◆

~~Noon, Second Day of the Sixth Month, Ninety-Sixth Year of the War
Demon Calendar~~

The elites of the Royal Capital Magic Guardians marched on, following
Gaston’s lead.
They had gone west and went past the abandoned ruins of Kugg Village,
after which Gaston felt a fluctuation in the air — a fluctuation of arcane
energy.

“Stop.”

By Gaston’s command, everyone silently came to a halt.

He had kept his voice down, so as to not alert any potential enemies in the
area. The elite soldiers knew, and had responded accordingly.
And then, they started feeling the fluctuation — this time of the ground, so
subtle yet so clear.
It did not take long for them to realize that it was caused by footsteps.

“It’s close. The Lizard…!”

Gaston whispered and proceeded to briefly suck on his index finger.

“That’s something only old-timers would do, Master.”

Konoha, in Gaston’s chestpocket, said sarcastically.

“Silence.”

After using his soaked finger to confirm the wind’s direction, Gaston led the
march downwind, staying stealthy so that the creature — most likely the
Chaos Lizard — would not detect them.
Lina closely observed Gaston’s every movement.

“I must learn from his example…!”

At her side, Hornel chuckled.

“No, you really don’t have to copy that.”

“Y-you think?”
“Come on, focus — back into formation.”
“Oh, right.”

The elite soldiers’ footsteps were quiet, but they had no obstructing effect
as they closed in on their target.
Before long, an opening in the woods came into view… and in the center of
it a gigantic, dark silhouette.
The quadrupedal creature’s body surface looked smooth like a serpent’s,
and the underside of its body was an unsettling ocher color.
Its muddied yellow eyes gleamed under the sunlight.
“There it is… the Chaos Lizard.”

In an instant, everyone readied their staves.

“Attack formation eight, ready…”

Upon hearing Viola’s command, the soldiers began drawing Spell Circles.
Everyone except Gaston concentrated their arcane energy and prepared to
attack.

“…NOW!”
“”ICICLE HELLFIRE!!””

Fifty soldiers unleashed a volley of large-scale spells. The attacks knocked

down all the trees in the way between them and the Chaos Lizard.
By the time the monster saw what coming, it was too late.
The whole section of the woods was engulfed in flames, but the burning did
not spread to the surrounding areas.
The reason for that was none other than Gaston, leading the formation on
horseback.

“…Hmph!”

Gaston had deployed an anti-magic barrier, containing the destruction

within this section of the woods.

“GYAAAAAA!?”
The Chaos Lizard flailed about in the carpet of fire.
In an attempt to put out the fire that had ignited its body, it rolled around,
knocking down the trees in its way. No matter how hard it struggled,
however, its body was still on fire.
Having inflicted such massive damage in one go, the Royal Capital Magic
Guardians elites raised a battle cry.

“”OOOHHHHHH!!””

One soldier’s shout roused another, expelling the sense of fear from all their
bodies.

“Unit 2, take the east flank! Unit 3, west! Unit 4, stay behind and support!”
“”Yes, ma’am!””

By Viola’s command, Jeanne, Hornel, and Lina led each of their units and
moved into position.
Despite being in the woods, they all maneuvered their horses skillfully
around the trees.

“Sir Gaston.”

Fuyu gave a signal.

“Mm-hm… Hit Point Reduction!”

Gaston invoked his HP-subtracting spell, and immediately following, Fuyu

invoked her Craft Circle.
“Rise, A-rise, A-rise! Demonic Acceleration!”

The magic spell and magecraft worked in tandem, rapidly sapping the
Chaos Lizard’s physical strength.
The monster, seemingly desperate to survive, stood its flaming body up and
started running through the woods.

“Defense formation one! Ready!”

Viola shouted out another command.

The Chaos Lizard was charging straight toward Gaston. Either it could tell
from instinct or could actually detect the dense arcane energy in the air, but
the end result remained the same: it knew that Gaston was the most
dangerous one among its enemies.

“NOW!”
“”EARTH WALL!!””

Multiple layers of solid earthen walls appeared directly in front of Gaston.

The Chaos Lizard pressed on, destroying them one after another… But in
the end, it lost momentum, failing to reach Gaston and allowing the latter to
gain some distance.

“Attack formation seven! Ready!”

With the Chaos Lizard rendered immobile, Viola shouted out, causing the
monster to panic again.
It had learned by now that, whenever it heard Viola’s voice, a great deal of
pain would follow in one way or another.
Although the shattered earth ended up extinguishing the flames on its body,
it still felt painful — which meant staying here was still dangerous.
Apparently deciding so, the Chaos Lizard attempted to retreat.

“Think I’d let you?”

Together with Gaston’s words, the monster’s eyes widened in surprise.

“…Inferno Pillars.”

Black flames, sharp blade-like in shape, erupted from the ground and
blocked the Chaos Lizard’s path, causing it to stop. Its face was painted
with fear.

“NOW!”
“”EARTH LANCE!!””

The monster bet everything on its last option: climbing up the earthen walls.
But that did not work either, as sharp blades of earth rained down on it.
Despite managing to dodge them at first, one lance after another ended up
piercing its flesh.
All its four limbs impaled, the Chaos Lizard could no longer move.
And due to the accelerated Hit Point Reduction, it grew weaker and weaker
with every passing second.

“…Remote Control.”

As Gaston commanded, the Inferno Pillars behind the Chaos Lizard began
moving… toward the monster.
Although its body and its limbs were immobile, the creature still was
defiant, moving its savage eyes.
It confronted the reality of its imminent death head-on.
The Inferno Pillars burned everything — its body, the earth lances, the earth
walls. The battle was over.

“”OOOHHHHHH!!””

The soldiers raised a shout of celebration.

Their victory was flawless — no one missing, no one injured.
It was only natural that one would celebrate such a gratifying achievement.

“Congratulations, Sir Gaston.”

Gaston nodded to Viola.

“Mm-hm. It feels like we didn’t even need half our numbers…”

“Not necessarily, sir. I think it is better that more of our ranks experience
the real deal — battling an SS-ranked monster and claiming victory. “
“Hmm… perhaps that’s true.”

Gaston relaxed his expression for a moment…

…But then he heard a scream coming from Unit 2 on the east flank.

“GWAAAHHHHHH!?”
“”!?””

The very first one to react was the commanding officer of Unit 2, Jeanne.
But she was still too late. By the time she turned in that direction, the face
of one of her subordinates had already been chewed off.

“Wah!?”
“W-what the hell is this!?”

Everyone in the unit was visibly and audibly filled with fear.
Jeanne immediately shouted to them,

“Retreat! Retreat now!”

With that order, everyone in Unit 2 pulled back their reins and retreated
toward where Unit 1 and Gaston were.

“What happened!?”

Viola, unaware of the situation due to her distance, shouted out.

At the same time, Lina made her move.

“Sharp Wind Asteriskos!”

Some attention had been put into the operation to minimize the damage to
the woods, but that would do no good if those among their ranks were
injured or killed in action.
Lina, judging that it would be the best course of action, quickly shout out a
large-scale wind attack. The spell cut open the way, freeing up everyone’s
fields of view.
Jeanne noticed that, and proceeded to lead Unit 2 to dash through the
clearing. Shortly following, Gaston leaped high above the trees and stared
hard at whatever was behind Unit 2.
“What in the world…!”

A quadrupedal creature was closing in on Jeanne’s unit.

It was… none other than the specimen that Billy had created.

New weapon 4
The launched magma turned into arrows and fell on us.
“Can you not go and run alone? You little Dog!”
“Who are you talking to!”
Wearing the mana of strengthening on my legs, I jumped to avoid the
arrows of magma.
Landing on a giant rock. Garratt, like me, was covered in mana and jumped
again.
Garratt bounced to the ground and used it as a foothold to jump again. I
could barely follow the movement. Garratt’s speed was comparable to that
of Shura.
“Not bad”
The curse that turns a person into a dog… Since it’s a curse, there should be
blessings, right? I wonder what it is…
Magma Rock hadn’t been able to react.
Garratt now was on the back of Magma Rock. Green and Red Mana started
to manifest from Garratt’s body.
” ” I Myself, Shall become a dragon’s fang and destroy the enemy “!
Transformation Technique, Stage ‘Bud’,《Mighty Water Dragon》!!! “
Swirling water wrapped around Garratt, who disappeared into the stream.
The water turned into jaws, fangs, and wings. Its appearance was exactly
that of a dragon.
――the Water Dragon bit the back of the Magma Rock.
“Too shallow…!”
The fangs of the water dragon only scrape the surface of the rock and didn’t
reach the core.
A sign of mana came from the whole body of Magma Rock.
This is bad, a counterattack is coming――
“[Get away from me…!]”
“What!?”
Magma Rock sprayed magma from the whole body to the dragon that bit
the back of the head.
The water armor easily evaporated, exposing Garratt.
“To think I’ll be killed like this…!”
The right fist of the rock of Magma Rock approached Garratt who was
frightened in the air.
“That stupid dog! ――Ash!!!”
” 《Aqua Shooter》”
Two spears of water were released from both hands of Ash.
The water spear crashed into the back of both knees of the Magma Rock. It
stopped moving for a moment.
In that gap, I accumulated Red Mana, jumped in front of it, hugged Garratt,
and landed on the rocky mountain on the other side.
“I’m saved! As thanks, I’ll give you the right to pet me later!”
“Well, give it to that blonde girl!”
The Magma Rock’s fist crashed into the rocky mountain where we were
standing.
I and Garratt jumped in the same direction and had a conversation in the air.
“What’s your 《Sub-source》color?”
“I’m yellow. Ash is black!”
“This I, is black. There is enough firepower. Hit with maximum firepower
at once and roll that rock on the ground!”
I and Garratt slid on the ground and landed behind Magma Rock.
“This I will make a chance! You do something to finish it!”
“Okay! ――Ash!! Let’s do the collaborative technique we practiced
before!”
“OK”
Garratt released the mana of creation, causing visible green mana to rise
above the ground.
” “O cold air, Create a phantom of myself”!”
The mana that sprung up felt cold. It slowly turned into the shape of a dog.
” “Be A Flower Garden. Multiple, Moisturize, Dry, and Color Yourself!”
Transformation Technique, 《Water Dance》!!!”
Colorful watercolors were created in the cold air in the shape of a dog, and
innumerable alter egos with the same color and shape as Garratt was
created.
“[So annoying! Die!]”
A flock of Garratts surrounding the Magma Rock. The alter ego blocked the
view of the Magma Rock one after another.
“Nice performance!”
I succeeded in joining Ash while hiding in the shadow of Garratt’s alter
ego.
“Ash! Let’s go!”
“Yes”
Picked up two talismans.
“<Lutta>, ‘CLOSE’… <Lion spear>, ‘OPEN’!”
Put the dagger inside the talisman, equipped the spear in my right hand, and
pointed the spear at the Magma Rock.
At the same time, Ash raised the cane on my spear.
” Coloring, ‘Black’ “
A black light was lit on the tip of the <Lion Spear>.
<Lion Spear> + Black Mana… a jet-black spear was completed.
I put Red and Green Mana into a spear.
“Take this!―― 《Roiro Magayari》!!! ” [TN: Roughly it means, Deadly
Black Spear]
Extended the spear and made a flash to the side. A black flash ran at the feet
of the Magma Rock.
“[It, Huuuurrrrttssss!!!!??]”
The rocks on both feet fell to the ground.
Two murderous intentions were directed at Magma Rock.
“Coloring, ‘Black’―― 《Roiro Gousui》” [TN: Roughly mean,
Dangerous Black Water]
“Coloring, ‘Black’! ―― Transformation Technique, Stage ‘Blooming’,
《Mighty Black Dragon》!!”
Ash put Black Mana on the spear of water and shot it.
Garratt turned into a black dragon and headed for the Magma Rock.
“[I won’t let you!!]”
The Magma Rock spewed smoke from the whole body and hid itself. Ash
and Garratt’s attacks were misled by black smoke. It missed the core, but
managed to hit the Magma Rock’s shoulders and turned both shoulders into
charcoal.
As expected of a humanoid monster, it won’t end that easily huh?
However, it has lost both arms and legs and can no longer move.
――Yeah, we got this.
“Scoundrel, now!”
“Seal!”
I went straight and got close to the Magma Rock.
Pointed the spear at the Magma Rock, and…
“Die!”
…stretched the spear toward the face of the Magma Rock.
It couldn’t do anything and had no choice but to welcome the spear. The tip
of the spear pierced the Magma Rock’s face ―― It was supposed to…
“[Always, you all, so annoying, it’s irritating!!]”
Just before the spear reached its face, the whole body of the Magma Rock
shone ―― in black
“Oh, right… this guy has Black Mana ――! “
The tip of the spear collided with the Black Mana covering the Magma
Rock and was flipped.
“We got it wrong! Garratt! Ash! Take a distance!!!”
“[You’ve been, bullying me a lot!!]”
The Magma Rock once again, put out Black Mana all over the body.
Magma was sprayed from the rear as it was, and it moved as if about to
tackle someone.
The Magma Rock focused on ―― the least agile, Ash.
“This, this is bad…”
Sh*t!
She has just done a big move, she won’t be able to do dodge!
” ――! Little girl!!”
“Ash!!”
If I use the <Osiris Orb>… can I make it!??
“What!? This smell is…! Scoundrel, Behind!!!”
Garratt shouted at me.
“Hah?”
I felt a chill on my back and stopped picking up the talisman.
“What, is…”
―― This ridiculous magical pressure…!
The pressure was so strong that you almost forget everything in front of
you.
Helper? A new enemy?
If it was the latter, I would definitely die.
I felt the presence from behind, which told me that I couldn’t win.
I wasn’t the only one who felt it.
“[――!?]”
The Magma Rock looked behind me and stopped rushing.
“Move”
A voice of, a young man.
As I turned around, a shadow ran past me.
I chase after the shadow’s back.
The shadow was a human wearing a sand-colored hooded coat.
“Human…”
…is he an ally?
In his waist, there was a rusty sword that was about to break and a cane
with a green jewel embedded.
The intruder pulled out the rusted sword from his waist with his right hand.
What are you going to do with such a rusty sword? I mean, can’t you see
the Black Mana covering it?!
“Wait! It’s dangerous to get close to it now!”
The intruder moved forward without worrying about my screaming.
The intruder had a silver-white wind on his left hand and released the wind
towards the Magma Rock.
“…”Vattle Srebro” ” [TN: Based on the kanji, it means Silver Whirlwind or
Silver Strom]
A whirlwind mixed with iron fragments.
“Don’t be stupid! It’s not so easy to get rid of the black―― “
When the silver breeze came into contact with the Magma Rock, it
extinguished the Black Mana covering the Magma Rock as if blowing out a
candle flame.
“He blows it with wind (Magic)… “
I, Garratt, and Ash couldn’t keep up with the sudden action of the man.
” “Ganmetsu” ” [TN: Roughly mean, Rock Breaker]]
When the intruder chanted something, the rusty sword in his hand turned
into a big sword.
A sand-colored sword that was the same color as the coat.
Perhaps feeling something dangerous from the big sword, the Magma Rock
seemed to be apparently impatient, this time it covered the head with Black
Mana and rushed to the intruder as if it wanted to head-butt him.
“Move!”
Ignoring my advice, the intruder aligned the index and middle fingers of his
left hand, which had no sword, and pushed forward.
“What!?”
I squinted in a hurry.
I thought that such a grotesque scene where fingers being melted by Black
Mana would soon happen, so I squinted my eyes reflexively.
However, the sight that spread beyond my eyelids was completely different
from my imagination.
“Are you kidding…!?”
――The intruder’s finger didn’t melt and caught Magma Rock’s headbutt
without him being pushed back.
The Magma Rock was vibrating with all its strength.
On the contrary, the intruder seemed to be not putting any effort into it, and
his body wasn’t shaking at all. He calmly caught the giant with two fingers.
“[W-What are you――what are you!?]”
The Magma Rock’s words matched my feelings.
“You… Wrong. Not my target. Oi, have you heard the name, {Mud
Emperor}?”
The intruder asked a question.
The Magma Rock didn’t respond to the intruder’s question, raised his head,
and tried to head-butt again.
I instinctively thought.
That the Magma Rock would die soon.
“No? Then, disappear.”
The man easily slashed the opponent we couldn’t finish with three people
(two real humans, and one human who turned into a dog).
I could hardly see the sword flash, and when I noticed it, the Magma Rock
had fallen apart.
The big sword returned into a rusty sword and was placed on the waist of
the intruder.
Then, the intruder finally turned to me.
Dark red hair, yellow eyes. Drop-shaped earrings were attached to the left
and right ears.
A man who still looked good with the word “young”.
I realized that I had seen his face in a certain place.
“He is …!”
――『”Well, what should I do? Do you want me to break you free? All the
guards here, I’ll deal with them.”』
…a man who started a conversation with the old man.
One of the four visitors who visited my prison cell.
If I’m not mistaken, his name is…
“Adolphos”
I’m sure he said he was indebted to the old man. The old man also felt that
he trusted him.
He may be aware of the person who despised the old man and made him a
criminal. Should I ask…?
“tch, another miss huh?”
Adolphos saw my face, but there was no particular reaction.
Apparently, he didn’t remember me.
When he came to that prison, he probably didn’t even recognize my
presence――my bad, to have such a low presence.
“Oi, you ther――”
“Bastard! Who are you!”
Garratt roared.
With his teeth exposed, Garratt threatened Adolphos.
“Oi, Dog, what happened to you? Why do you… “
“Don’t let your guard down! The man smells like a monster…! “
“Are you stupid? What are you saying? Isn’t he a human by any means? “
“Well, it seems that dog… have a good nose.”
WHOOSH!!
With a rustling sound and the sound of cutting the wind, bright red wings
came out from Adolphos’s back.
It spread big and fiercely, it was exactly what you would call ――
“Dragon wings …!”
“As I’ve guessed!”
Adolphos flapped his wings, moved onto the rocks, and turned his back on
us.
“It’s not just Dragon. Besides that, Sylph, Slime… and another one.”
” ――That dog’s nose… Wait, is it a blessing? A normal dog doesn’t have
such an unusual sense of smell. It’s too sharp. Well, the other one is a
monster called ‘Metal Conductor’, a monster that manipulates metal.”
“Bastard, are you a <MAJIN>?!”
“No. But not far away.”
Once again Adolphos swung the dragon’s wings up and down, floating in
the sky.
I forcibly tried to understand the principle of the dragon’s wings with the
knowledge I had.
…Perhaps it’s something made with the Mana of Creation? I mean, you can
make iron. It wouldn’t be strange if you could make monster wings ――
right?
“I’m sorry, but I have no more time for you.”
“Wait! I have something to ask!”
Adolphos stopped his wings and landed on a rock.
“…what?”
“Do you know Bar――”
When I tried to ask about the old man.
GROWL!!
――A sad sound interrupted my story.
“…..”
It was a belly ringing sound.
From the direction of the sound, the owner of the sound was definitely
Adolphos.
COUGH!!
Adolphos cleared his throat.
“I’ve something urgent to do. I’m going back now.”
“Huh? Wait a minute!!”
Adolphos flew away in no time.
“What’s with the urgent? You’re just hungry…”
“It was a man who gave off a strange smell. I don’t want to get involved
with him too much. “
Garratt turned his paws back and approached The Magma Rock’s corpse.
Black miasma was rising to the sky from the Magma Rock’s corpse.
The head of Magma Rock melted and a black bead appeared from
inside. Garratt walked up to the bead and held it in his mouth.
“Ah! You Dog Bastard!”
I rushed to Garratt, thinking that the dog would take away the Black
Alchemy Stone.
However, Garratt threw the stone in his mouth toward me, which wasn’t
what I expected.
Caught the stone with both hands while taking a step back, “Whoops!”
“You guys played a bigger role than I in this battle. Let’s say I’m quietly
withdrawing.”
“No, I think the MVP was definitely you, except for the intruder.”
“From the beginning, it was one-to-two. If you add up the work of the two
of you, it will exceed the work of me. Besides, I was saved by you. At that
point, I lost the right to get it.”
“Really? Then, thank you. “
“Hmmph, you better cherish it. See you. This I will collect some ore here. I
need to have some souvenirs to bring back.”
Garratt left in the opposite direction of <Mother Punk>.
I flipped my foot toward <Mother Punk> while spinning the Black
Alchemy Stone with my fingertips.
“Fluffy dog…..”
“Alright, time to withdraw. Now I can make a new weapon.”
I put the stone in a bag on my back and walked toward <Mother Punk>.
Boomerang with 3 Alchemy Stones… I’m looking forward to seeing what
kind of performance it has.
——————————-
When I returned to the alchemy shop <Kettle of Galadia>, I saw a girl with
cat ears raising and lowering her head, while wetting the scarf with saliva.
“Fluffy and cute…”
Well, it’s definitely a lovely figure.
But, is it normal to ask someone, and you yourself go to sleep? Sure, I don’t
know her skill as an alchemist, but as a clerk? She’s disqualified…
“Dia, wake up! I brought you the Alchemy Stone.”
“Fuuu-nya?”
For the first time, a way of talking that I expected came out.
I threw the Black Alchemy Stone lightly. Dia caught it and looked at it
“Hoo, hoo…”.
“You really brought it…”
“You’ll exchange a Yellow Alchemy Stone for it, right?”
I took out the Red and Blue Alchemy Stones from the bag and arranged
them on the counter.
“With this, you can make it, right?”
“Yeah. But I want you to wait for a while. My partner isn’t here.”
“Can’t you make it by yourself?”
“Don’t you know? In principle, alchemists work in pairs. “
As I tilted my head, Dia taught me more about alchemy.
“The basics of alchemy are reconstructing. Destroy the material and
regenerate it while mixing. The boomerang we will make this time, will
also destroy the Alchemy Stones and ore and regenerate them while
combining them. To do this, you need both a person who can handle Black
Mana and a person who can handle White Mana.”
Destroy the material with Black Mana, the Mana of Destruction.
The material that has been destroyed and shattered is regenerated while
being mixed with the White Mana, the Mana of Regeneration…
…I see. If you can use both mana well, two objects will become one…
correct?
“You can’t destroy the material too much, after all, you can’t fix the
material perfectly. The Mana of Destruction and the Mana of Regeneration
must be poured in a well-balanced condition. I heard that alchemy is one of
the most difficult Techniques.”
When I looked down to the lower right, Shura stood where Ash
was. Wearing loose clothes as usual.
“Since when…”
“Oi You, I helped you get the Black Alchemy Stone this time, so there is a
chance to get a White Alchemy Stone next time, please help me get it!”
“It was Ash who helped me, not you. But, alright, I can’t use a White Mana
anyway.”
“Well, as I’ve said, I can’t get into work until my partner returns.”
…Alright, should I do something else for a while?
When I thought about killing time somewhere.
CLICK!!
The door of the store was opened.
“Dia, I’m back.”
The voice of a man with a deep low tone.
Looking back, no one was there. But I could hear light footsteps.
When I looked down to the floor, there was a dog there.
Black fur, white mane extending from nape to back ――
“That Dog Bastard…!?? “
“Mmm!? Scoundrel!”

The house of Marquis Gordon was located in a corner of the noble district
not far from the royal palace.
It had large grounds and a well-kept garden. The three-story house was, as
one would expect from a nobleman of such a high rank.
As Sam, Günther, and the scorching dragon walked straight to Marquis
Gordon’s house, the gatekeepers with spears held up, waiting for them.

「Wait! Who do you think you are!?」

「In and out, you son of a bitch!」

Basically, he had decided to defeat all those involved with the Marquis
Gordon family as enemies, so without hesitation, he struck them with his
physically enhanced fists to silence them.
As it was, they kicked down the gate of the mansion, and the three of them,
with Sam in the lead, entered the premises.

「Bandits! The bandits have shown up! *Dae, dae!*」

「What kind of period drama is this?」

Because of the noise and destruction of the gate, the Marquise’s private
army gathers.
Fully armed.

「Why are you guys so eager to fight? Perhaps you’re being told by your
master to protect something?」
「I have nothing to say to the bandits!」

Soldiers rush into a straight line.

Since they were considered bandits, they swung their swords down without
question.
However, their skill level is so low that there is no need to avoid them.
Sam unleashed his physically strengthened fist, shattering the oncoming
sword and punching the soldier as it was.

「Yes, next.」

Fighting a swordsman, Sam doesn’t feel like losing unless someone better
than Lise shows up.
Before that, the soldiers were also a valuable source of information, so he
couldn’t kill them.

「Wait, Sam. Let me help you.」

「Can you fight?」
「I can fight against people with warding techniques. Look at this.」

Günther snaps his fingers, and wards cover the faces of the soldiers who are
readying their weapons.
Then the soldiers, who had been rolling their eyes to see what was going
on, reached out with their mouths flapping as if they were grasping for
something, followed by a slump to the ground and sprawl.

「What did you do?」

「Heh. It’s simple. I closed off the air with wards. They’re just suffering
from not being able to breathe.」
「Eggh!」

Sam shouted at Günther, who was smiling a brilliant smile and doing
something truly ghastly without a care in the world.
Meanwhile, the soldiers were struggling and stopped moving.

「Oops, we can’t just kill them.」

Günther snapped his fingers again, and the warding was lifted.
Sam finds one soldier still conscious, grabs him by the collar, and lifts him.

「Hey, there’s a dragon cub in this mansion, right? Where is it?」

「I don’t know! I was only told by the Master not to let any outsiders into
the mansion.」
「Are you sure?」
「It’s true!」
「You’d know what happens if you’re lying, wouldn’t you?」
「I-I’m not lying! However, the Master is often in and out of that building.
We are not even allowed to go near it!」

The soldier pointed to a building at the back of the compound.

From a quick glance, it was a one-story building, not very large.

(I wondered if they kept horses there, but hmmm, suspicious.)

「Thanks for the info, go sleep for a while.」

Punch the soldier in the abdomen to knock him out.

「The site is quite large. Besides the residence, there’s another building, as
one would expect from the Marquis.」
「Sam! My house is much bigger! Oops, I forgot to tell you, I got you your
room.」
「No need!」

Sam is dumbfounded by Günther’s nonchalant attitude, even though he has

come to save the dragon child.
Meanwhile, the red dragon, who had no turn, was looking around the
premises with a furrowed brow.

「Hey, that building looks suspicious to me, do you know where the kids
are yet?」
「Over there. The smell is getting closer. I can smell my child and its magic
from over there.」

She pointed to the building where we had gotten the information from the
soldier.
(Well, yes. It would be risky to hide a dragon, even a child, in the mansion
where one lives. Then it would be outside, right?)

It may be hidden somewhere else, but as long as the red dragon could
smell and sense the magic, the children were probably here.

「Let’s go.」
「Mm.」

The dragon nodded and stepped forward to help her child

「Wait there!」

With a high-pitched, angry voice, a woman in a glittering dress appeared.

「Who is it, lady?」

「―――Oh, you…bandit-like people are having their way with me, but
it’s over now. I will make you regret entering my house, this Marquis
Gordon’s house, without permission!」

The heavily made-up woman was in her mid-forties.

She was holding a feathered fan in her hand and glaring at Sam and the
others, with a gaggle of what appeared to be soldiers and wizards behind
her.

(Maybe I spent a little too much time on this. But these people are not the
enemy. Let’s just get the hell out of here and save the child.)
Sam clenched his fist and was about to kick the ground when someone
grabbed his shoulder.
It’s the red dragon.

「Let me fight. I want to take this frustration out.」

「…Don’t kill.」
「I know!」

She gave a short reply and disappeared the next moment.

No, she is moving at blinding speed.
Even Sam could barely follow her with his eyes.
In her true dragon form, she was a complete power-type, but Sam was
amazed at how her fighting style changed when she humanized.

In less than a minute, the soldiers brought by the Marquess were silenced.
They were not dead, just barely dead.
Some were crushed in all four limbs and moaning, while others were even
lying on the ground with their chests caved in, gasping for air.
Not a single person had survived against the dragon.

「What? Huh? Huh?」

The Marquess did not understand what had happened.

When she came to her senses, she could only see the black and white of her
eyes as her allies were annihilated.

「……Beating up people of this caliber is just the opposite, it’s

annoying.」
The dragon, with a look of growing frustration on her face, returned to
stand next to Sam.
No sympathy for the hostile soldiers.
It is bad enough that they serve a nobleman who does evil.
They should be thankful that they fought the dragon and weren’t killed.

「So, you are involved with Albert and Marquis Gordon’s illegal trade in
demons and dragons, is that correct?」

At Sam’s question, the blue-faced marchioness lifted her lips and somehow
smiled triumphantly.
「Yes! Albert! We have Albert with us! Do you think you can live with the
most powerful wizard in the kingdom against you?」

The reason she can be so confident and puffed out of her chest even though
she is the only one standing is probably that she is relying on Albert, the
strongest force in the kingdom.
But that is already in the past.
There is not even a speck of dust left of Albert Frege, once the most
powerful wizard in the kingdom.

「……Well, it’s no wonder you don’t know. You know what, Auntie?
There is no more Albert.」
「What? What are you talking about?」
「I killed him earlier.」

Hearing Sam’s words, the Marquess began to laugh in a high-pitched voice.

「Pfft, pfft, oh-ho-ho-ho-ho! What nonsense! A kid like you killed

Albert? Who would believe such nonsense?」
The Marquess doesn’t seem to have the slightest idea that Sam, who is still
a minor, has won over Albert.
As for Sam, he has no intention of explaining himself politely.
In the meantime, Sam asked her if she was involved in illegal trafficking,
but from her response, she was black.
The rest of the interrogation can be done by the state.

(It’s too much trouble, so let’s shut her up. If we let her make too much noise
as she likes, the irritated red dragon is likely to lose her temper.)

Although the red dragon was not moving selfishly to rescue the child,
Marques’s behavior and high-pitched voice deepened the crease between
her eyebrows.
She probably doesn’t think well of being needlessly stranded when she has
a good grasp of the child’s whereabouts.
Sam doesn’t want her to get any more irritated and burst out.
Sam sighs and tries to silence her with his fist.

「My lady, I think it’s about time you noticed me.」

Then Günther intervened between Sam and Marquess.

「Hey, Günther.」
「Well, I got it.」
「What? Günther? No way.」

The Marquess looked straight at him as if Günther’s name was familiar.

The next moment, Marquess’s complexion turned blue.
「―――A-Are you Günther Ignaz? The troubled son of a duke and a court
wizard? Why that Günther?」
「I’m not happy about being treated like a problem child, but let’s just
leave it at that for now. Well, my dear lady, if you ask me why, there is only
one answer. As a court wizard, I am here by order of His Majesty the King
to crack down on the rascals.」
「His Majesty’s orders? Where’s Albert? What was Albert doing?」
「Don’t you know, lady? He was in a duel today.」

At Günther’s question, Marquess huffed.

「Y-Yes. Albert was in a duel with a child in the care of the Earl and
Countess Walker.」
「The duel was with him, Samuel Scheidt.」
「What? You’re lying? Then, really?」
「Albert Frege is dead. A very unbecoming end for a wizard of the
court.」
「…………」
「Now that you understand that Albert is dead, what are you going to do
about it? Do you think the fallen soldier will wake up and fight me, the
court wizard, and Sam, who has the most powerful seat? Let me tell you, in
that case, I won’t guarantee your life.」

The Marquess kneeled on the spot.

「I-I surrender, don’t kill me! It’s my husband and Albert who are to
blame! I was just pretending not to see it!」
「Then will you testify in the proper place to the misdeeds of Marquis
Gordon?」
「I-I will! So, just spare my life!」
「All right. Now, my lady, look outside the mansion. We are not the only
ones who have received orders from His Majesty the King.」

She looked outside the mansion and saw the magic army and the knights
there.
Needless to say, they had come to detain the Marquess and anyone else
involved in the evil deed.

「Hey, Günther. You bought us some time, didn’t you?」

「I have to give credit to the magic army and the Knights. If we settle
everything on our own, they’ll come after us later.」
「I don’t care about that.」
「I see you are like Ulrike in that way. She lacked that thing called
consideration. Well, that’s what I like about her, and I cringe at the arrogant
Ulrike.」
「I’ve had enough of you… Well, leave these ladies to the magic army,
we’ll rescue the dragon children as soon as we can.」
「―――Finally.」
「Sorry to keep you waiting.」
「It’s a pain in the ass with humans. Why don’t just burn them all down?」

The read dragon frowns disapprovingly.

One can only be thankful that she suppressed her desire to save her child
and showed understanding for the actions of the human side.

「This time, no matter who comes out now, force our way through! Let’s
go!」
「Oh, no argument!」
The three of them head in a straight line to a building at the back of the
compound.
And in the basement of that building, they found the dragon child in chains.
Chapter 155- Another Mock Battle
“You’ll start the descent today.”
“Okay!”

The day before yesterday was the first time I

successfully completed that training and yesterday I
reached level 90. It’s the perfect time to start training
for Spirit Descent in earnest.
“…But before that.”

“Hmm?”

I thought it was going to start right away, but it seems

not.
“I heard you had a mock battle with Judy yesterday.”

“Yes.”

Yesterday, I was forced to understand the difference

in our abilities. But thanks to that, I can be more
diligent. I didn’t get too carried away.
“You’ll do the same with me.”

“What? Why?”

“Just because.”

I couldn’t understand why she was doing it, so I

asked her why. She didn’t tell me why, but I could
tell she was determined to do it. I took out the two
swords from the magic ring that I had been lent. The
capacity of the magic ring is as large as Sophie’s. I’ll
have to make sure I don’t forget to leave it on.
“So, just like Judy, I won’t use spirit magic.”

“Okay, I got it.”

I’ve heard that Tiya-san is not good at physical

attacks and specializes in magic attacks, but will she
be okay? Of course, if it was a mock battle based on
magic only, I won’t be able to do anything and lose.
But this time, I can use anything at my disposal. She
didn’t pretend to take out her weapon.
“Begin.”

“Lightning double enchantment, Raiden armor.”

And I wanted to go at Tiya using my usual three-

piece set …….
“Ga brr …….”

“Fufufu… stuck?”

The moment I took my first step towards Tiya-san,

my body stopped moving. In addition, my whole
body is very cold. I couldn’t even move my face, so I
just looked at myself and saw that I seemed to be
buried in a block of ice. When I looked at the ice
with my magic sense, I saw that it was several dozen
meters long. But politely, only my face was showing
outside.
“Inferno!”

There was no sign that the ice would break, I decided

to melt it with magic.
“It’s not melting?”

“Come on, try harder.”

But my magic didn’t melt it at all. Tiya-san said so

while walking leisurely. I cast lightning magic with
no chanting which I acquired in the battle with the
insect monsters.
“BARE.”

But my lightning magic was cancelled out by Tiya’s

very same lightning magic.
“A slow no-chant that you just don’t say out loud is
worthless.”
“…Yes.

When magic sensing has grown to a certain level,

you can even tell what kind of magic your opponent
is preparing. I’m not skilled enough to know what my
opponent is doing in battle. But if he prepares his
magic slowly, I can at least tell what attribute he is
using.
“… I’m cold… let me out.”
“I’ll let you out.”

Hearing my surrender, Tiya-san walked towards me

happily. In the end, no matter what I tried, I couldn’t
break her ice. I was surprised to find that even spirit
magic couldn’t break it. She snapped her fingers and
the ice that had been blocking my movement
disappeared. The ice was gone, but I was still cold.
“Good, you’re cold.”

Then she patted me on the head and my whole body

warmed up from the head she was patting.
“Are you good at ice magic?”

I asked as she stroked me. That ice magic is

impossible to do with a little practice. I still can’t
believe she did it without chanting.
“I’m good at earth, ice, fire and light magic, not so
good at water and lightning. Not so good with wind.”
“Eh? Really…”.

I had a selfish image that she was good at all kinds of

magic like Sophie. I was surprised to find out that
there’s a magic she was not good at.
“I’m good at magic that can utilize spirit magic.”.

“Huh?”
When I asked her for details, she said she had
practiced the magic that went well with her spirit
magic. Tiya-san seems to be almost useless when
there’s nothing requiring spirit magic and at night.
The attribute of her spirit magic is shadow. It is a
magic that is based on the premise that there are
shadows to begin with, so if there are no shadows,
she can hardly do anything. she can’t use spirit magic
if there’s no such shadow. It seems she tried to make
a shadow all by herself because she didn’t want to
become useless. She uses earth and ice magic to
create projectiles and fire and light magic to create
light sources. That’s how she creates the shadows.
The water and lightning spells were supposed to
replace the earth, ice, fire and light spells when they
couldn’t be used for some reason. And if you can’t
make use of the wind, you almost never practice it.
I know it sounds bad to say this, but I didn’t think
this much about practicing my magic. I’m just trying
to improve everything I can, but I’m worried if it’s
enough.
“Shall we do the descent?”

“Yes!”

For now, let’s do whatever we can. Since Yug can do

anything, then I should be able to do anything and
there’s no loss! If I were to specialize in something,
it’d still be a good idea.
Everyone in the party except for Merle and I successfully changed Talents
for the second time.
They were all reduced to Level 1, but even regular magical beasts that were
not Floor Bosses could raise their level without problems in the 3rd floor.
I decided to go to the 4th floor of the dungeon when my friends reached
Level 50 which would require a month or so of grinding.
As a result of continuously exchanging our medals for Stone Slabswith the
hidden cubes, we did not have that many Iron Medals, but the 3rd floor of
the dungeon had a fair share of Hihiirokane weapons and armor.
Selling the weapons and armor we found would often net us profit that
often exceeded 10,000 Gold coins in a single dungeon attack, so we decided
that it was faster just to buy Medals.
Now that I had more Gold coins to spare, I negotiated with the Adventurer's
Guild to see if I could buy magic stones other than E-ranks.
After negotiations, they agreed to let me buy 1,000 Gold coins worth of
magic stones of other ranks as well.
I wanted to increase the number of D-rank and C-rank magic stones in my
<Inventory> through these purchases.
The Adventurer's Guild took a 10% fee, the same as Academy City's Guild.
I didn't buy any B-rank magic stones as the S-class dungeon was filled with
B-rank magical beasts and I had plenty of them in my <Inventory>.
"Hey, hey, hey. I'm eating now. Please be quiet."
"Auau."
"I'm getting used to it.
"Is that right?"
As everyone was having breakfast, Sophie, sitting in a chair, picked up
something from her feet, laid it on her lap and hugged it.
It was bright red and looked like a Salamander, and the tip of its tail was
burning like a candle.
I wondered why the fire at the tip of its tail didn't burn any furniture as if it
was just for appearance's sake.
"Maybe the Salamander is hungry too?"
Kurena guessed while stabbing a piece of meat with her fork.
"No, no, Spirits don't need to eat. If they are hungry, I simply have to offer
my mana.
(Though the Spirit God eats normally.)
Sophie was hugging a Salamander, an infant Fire Spirit who had crawled up
to her.
"Auer."
The dull-eyed Salamander squealed in delight and flapped his hands in the
air.
The situation was a result of my orders.
I had learned from Spirit Mager Gatoruga in Rosenheim that Spirits had a
will and didn't always do what the Spirit User wanted them to do in battle.
{TLN: Spirit User encomapses any Talent that uses Spirit just like how
Golem User encomposes any who uses a Golem.}
He also said that the longer a Spirit and the Spirit User are in contact with
each other, the higher their affinity gets and the more willing the Spirits are
to obey the Spirit User's instructions.
When I heard that Sophie was slowly and steadily getting to know the
Spirits, I thought that 'slow' was not good enough.
So, I instructed Sophie to keep the Spirit out to the limit at all times.
Thanks to that, the infant Fire Spirit Salamander, which looked like a bright
red Salamander, stayed by Sophie's side during meals and when she slept,
until she emptied her mana.
It probably has low [Intelligence] as it was squealing and repeatedly
wrapping itself around Sophie, rubbing her face, etc.
(The logic is totally different depending on the summons, Golems, and the
Spirits.)
Having lived as a Summoner for about 14 years, I was interested in similar
techniques for many years.
I had both Golem User and Spirit User as friends and had analyzed the
characteristics of each, and noticed that they differed from a Summoner in
many ways.
Summoner required mana and magic stones to summon.
A B-rank Dragon required over 3000 [Mana] and 29 B-rank magic stones.
It took a lot of mana and magic stones just to summon 1 B-rank Dragon, but
no mana was needed to descend an Iron Golem or manifest a Fire Spirit
Salamander.
A Golem User could descend his/her Golem as many times as they wanted
as long as they had the required number of Stone Slabs in the Magic Board.
A Spirit User didn't need mana, magic stones, or anything else to manifest a
Spirit.
That was a major advantage for Golem Users and Spirit Users, but there
was also a disadvantage.
Golems and Spirits consumed the User's mana just by existing.
Both the Golem and the Spirits had mana requirements and continued to
consume the Golem User's and Spirit User's just by being existing.
Looking at the Merle fight, I found out that a Golem User with about 3000
[Mana] wouldn't be able to fight for more than an hour in a skilled fight.
It seemed that Spirit Users were similar and required the same degree of
[Mana] to make the manifested Spirit fight.
(So the Baukis Empire desperately needs [Mana Seed]s.)
I recalled that Foreign Minister Nukakai desperately sought [Mana Seed]s.
It took an enormous amount of [Mana] to move a Golem.
So, if the Bakius Empire had an inexhaustible supply of [Mana], that would
undoubtedly change the war situation
[Mana Seed]s were the best sort of supply the Baukis Empire could have
asked for.
The Baukis Empire must have learned that the effects of the [Mana Seed]s
were superior to any [Mana] restorative they had used before.
(So Mr. Gatoruga had a bow.)
Spirit Mage Gatoruga had a bow.
Gatoruga himself told me that it was so that he could fight even if he ran
out of mana and could no longer manifest Spirits.
In addition, if he had high enough affinity with Spirits then he could instruct
them even while using a bow.
Then, he could use the power of Spirits and make his arrows deal more
damage.
That was why Spirit Mages were taught how to use bows.
As for Sophie's archery, she was steadily improving under Formar's
tutelage.
"There's a reason for everything."
"What? What, out of the blue?"
I suddenly asserted something, and Cecile, sitting next to me, couldn't
understand and asked a question.
Helmios' party also always had breakfast with us, so all eyes were on me.
"No, well, it's this way. I just thought it kind of made sense."
Cecile wondered if my analytical disease had returned with that statement.
"Allen, you are amazing at thinking and analyzing everything."
Helmios complimented me.
He didn't know what I was thinking, but he seemed to have learned over the
past month that I liked to analyze and involve my friends in my
experiments.
"Well, there's a lot I don't know after all."
"Heh!? Is there something you don't understand, Master Allen? Tell me."
"Hmmm. For example, what attribute does the Spirit God Rosen have?"
"What!? That, Master Allen."
When I asked about Spirit God Rosen, Formar who had asked me to tell
him what I didn't know fumbled and tried to avoid answering.
"You know right, Formar? After all, you lived together for decades."
Since Formar was serving Sophie, a Royalty, he probably lived in the
Temple.
The Spirit God Rosen or Spirit King Rosen at that time should have lived
for decades under that Temple as well.
"That's ..."
Formar didn't seem to understand.
I looked at Sophie.
"I am sorry. Such prying eyes..."
"By the way, what kind of Spirit are you, Spirit God Rosen. I can't even
guess what your attribute is."
"Hey! Master Allen!"
Formar exclaimed at how I asked something that Sophie and Formar
weren't allowed to even in their dreams.
"Fugu. I am a Wood Spirit. The Spirit of the World Tree to be exact, I
guess. Haha.
The Spirit God, who was chewing the Baukis Empire's famous Hakuman
answered my question.
"I see. So you could use skills that increase other's status."
To me, it was common knowledge that Wood Spirits could cast buffs.
"Don't pry too much. Well, you're right. Haha."
Sophie and Formar were watching the scene, blanked out.
"Allen, you're really curious."
"Curious? Mr. Helmios. That's not true."
"Huh?"
I denied Helmios' words.
Almost everyone had stopped eating because of my words.
"If you don't think about why, you can't make a plan. That's how the Demon
King's army has been playing us for decades."
"How?"
Doberg wrinkled his brow at the mention of being played.
"If we can figure out why and find the answers, then we can understand
what's going on. Wouldn't that change our countermeasures?"
"I see."
Doberg said just that and closed his eyes.
He was convinced of something.
"What exactly is it that you don't understand, Allen?"
Cecile asked me, who seemed to know everything, if there was anything I
didn't understand.
As everyone looked at me, I said what had been on my mind for the past
few days.
"Why did the Gods decide to start allowing Talent changes that they never
had before?"
"What? Why are you thinking that?"
Cecile wondered why I would question such a thing.
"The more I think about it, the more I don't understand. If all the Talented
people changed Talents, then the Demon King's Army would be scared to
attack. Then they should have done that long ago, from the very beginning."
(It's hard to imagine that the Creator God and other Gods didn't think about
changing Talents until I mentioned it.)
Just going from 1-star to 2-stars was an instant boost in status.
If 10,000 soldiers could change Talents, that alone would greatly increase
the odds of victory against the Demon King's army.
I even felt uncomfortable with the Talent change system that was about to
begin abruptly.
My memory of my previous life whispered that anyone who wanted to
change Talents had to do some kind of strange quest to do so.
"I see, that's strange. Haha."
I looked at the Spirit God who said so and continued to eat hukaman like he
didn't know anything about it.
(The Spirit God definitely knows the answer. Or he really doesn't? Or can't
he tell us? Well, for now, our priority should be to get along with Sophie's
Spirit.)
The attitude of the Spirit God didn't provide a definitive answer.
The contemplation continued in Allen's mind as he looked at the infant Fire
Spirit that clung to Sophie.
My friends and I were going to the 4th floor for the 1st time that day
"..."
The gatekeeper of the temple, which allowed us to go to the 2nd floor, a 10-
minute walk from the base, stared at Sophie in silence.
The gatekeeper's gaze was on Salamander, an infant Fire Spirit that Sophie
was holding like a baby.
"Oh, please be quiet."
"Auau."
(He is just a baby but the gatekeeper is still staring at him.)
Sometimes the Salamander used to flap his hands around in Sophie's arms
and get out of control.
The gatekeeper gazed at the Salamander quietly and without expression.
The first time we tried to enter the temple with Salamander, we were
stopped by the gatekeeper.
He was talking about what we were carrying into the temple, and whether
we were taking a magical beast with us.
The gatekeeper who stopped us seemed to be very selective about who was
allowed in and who wasn't.
"He is a Spirit." Sophie said, standing motionless, looking at him
suspiciously but the gatekeeper still blocked our way.
That's where Formar came in.
"Is it correct to say that the Baukis Empire does not accept Spirits?"
He walked towards the gatekeeper and was so close that it looked like they
were going to kiss each other.
Formar, Sophie, the most promising candidate for the throne of
Rosenheim,'s escort was a very prominent individual in Rosenheim.
However, the gatekeeper was resolute and did not move, so I asked Sophie
to cut off her mana supply and went in. I also asked Rosenheim to take
action.
On the same day, the Queen notified the Baukis Empire from Rosenheim
through official channels.
The content of the notice was a request that the Baukis Empire not treat
Spirits with disrespect.
She also added that the treatment of Spirits within the Baukis Empire would
be discussed at the next Five Continents Alliance Meeting.
We went that far, so the next time Sophie passed by with Salamander a few
days later as a matter of course, the gatekeeper didn't say anything.
The Baukis Empire seemed to have responded immediately.
Considering our value, it was inevitable.
The Spirit Mage Gatoruga said that affinity with Spirits could only be
improved by manifesting them for as long as possible and treating them
wholeheartedly.
I had told Sophie to keep the Spirit manifested with her every waking
moment.
"Is this it? It's like we are on a leaf of some kind, just like they said."
"Yes, it is. It's a little soft when you step on it."
My friends and I moved to the 4th floor for the first time using Medals.
The ground on the 4th floor was green.
It looked somewhat like a leaf, probably because of the vein-like streaks
running through the ground.
Although resilient, it seemed to be quite thick, as it showed no sign of
tearing when I applied pressure on it with my foot.
(Is this area Helmios told me about? Eagle, go out and check the whole
floor.)
Helmios' party was active on the 4th floor, so we already had some
information about the floor.
However, I summoned E-rank Bird to confirm if what we had been told was
true.
From E-rank Bird's point of view, we were indeed on a lotus-like lead
floating on a water surface.
We were on a lotus leaf which had about 1km sq. area.
When I looked through E-rank Bird's awakening skill [Clairvoyance], I
found out that the entire floor was a large water mass with many lotus
leaves dotted throughout it and adventurers operating on those leaves.
(This entire floor is a water-based floor?)
The 4th floor was a vast water terrain.
"This is exactly what Mr. Helmios told us. Well, we're moving on Griffs, so
it doesn't matter to us whether we're on the water or the sand."
"So, will the cube also ask for what Mr. Helmios told us?"
I said the Dungeon Management System was just 'cube', which was
contagious as my friends aso started using just that.
"I guess so, Cecile. Let's check it out just in case."
The floor was just as we had heard.
A cube-shaped object was in our view, and we decided to check the
conditions for going to the next floor.
"Hello Abandoned Gamers. This is S401, Dungeon Management System.
Would you like to go to the next floor? Or to the 1st floor?"
"I want to go to the next floor."
"To go to the 5th floor, please give me 5 types of Bronze Medals, Iron
Medals and Mithril Medals each."
(Not just 5, but 5 different kinds of each class?)
It was just 'number of Medals required' while going from 2nd floor to 3rd
and 3rd to 4th.
"Does that mean we can't each go with 5 medals of the same kind?"
"Yes, that's right. We cannot guide you to the 5th floor unless we receive 5
Medals, each with a different design."
"How many types of Floor Bosses are there on floors 2 through 4?"
"Each of the 5 types."
"I guess that means we have to defeat the S-rank Floor Bosses."
We had to defeat all the different Floor Bosses to get to the next floor.
That would include the S-rank Floor Bosses like Beebe on the 2nd floor and
Scarlett on the 3rd floor.
Helmios had told me that he had abandoned the idea of going to the 5th
floor a long time ago.
If he tried hard enough with his party, Helmios could defeat S-rank Floor
Bosses and make it to the 5th floor.
But that included the risk of him losing his party members.
So, Helmios second-guessed.
"We now know the conditions to go to the next floor. Let's see what the 4th
floor looks like."
We decided to stroll through the 4th floor to determine whether to stay on
the 4th floor or or return to the 3rd floor.
I summoned B-rank Birds and began to move, flying in the sky.
"It seems that Golems are very useful here too. That's amazing."
"Cecile, dwarves fight against the Demon King's army at sea, so of course
they are useful here too."
At sea, a Golem piloted by a dwarf was transformed for maritime use.
It appeared to be the same shape as those that could run on sand.
I wonder if the dwarves pushed the battle against the Demon King's army to
sea to make the battle advantageous for them.
In front of me was a B-rank Bird in which Merle was riding alone.
For a while after Merle joined us, she rode the B-rank Birds with us to
protect us in the rear guard by using a large shield.
However, after Merle got her Iron Golem, she was in the vanguard with
Kurena and Dogora.
Merle, in particular, who operates a huge Golem, had a huge shield in itself
for us who were in the rearguard.
The difference between Kurena and Dogora, who were small and flexible,
brought more diversity to our tactics.
Then, saying "Merle's gone." Cecile started sitting behind me as if it were a
matter of course.
Since Kiel and the two-rider team of Sophie and Formar were the rear
guard, the middle guard position with me seemed to be easier to attack.
"Mm, there's a magical beast over there!"
I shouted loudly because of the distance.
An E-rank Bird discovered three magical beasts that looked halfway
between a newt and a Dragon resting on a leaf.
(I thought there were a lot of aquatic magical beasts on this floor.)
Helmios told me that this floor had many aquatic magical beasts in line with
the water terrain.
And he said that the 4th floor contained mostly A-rank magical beasts.
Kurena, Dogora, and Merle closed the distance to the magical beast.
"Tam-Tam Descend!"
Merle raised hre Magic Board on B-rank Bird with both hands and shouted.
A huge magic circle floated above the leaves, and at once a huge Iron
Golem appeared.
Then, Merle, as she was accustomed to doing, held the Magic Board over
the crystal part on the chest of the Iron Golem while riding B-rank Bird, and
entered the Golem as if she were sucked into it.
The magical beasts were already aware of our presence, so all three of them
rushed towards us ready for battle.
One of the approaching magical beasts was held back by an Iron Golem
piloted by Merle, who had reached 20 meters.
[Name] Tam-Tam
[Pilot] Merle
[Rank] Iron
[Strength] 3000+1800
[Mana] 3000 + 1800
[Attack] 3000 + 4000
[Endurance] 3000 + 3800
[Agility] 3000
[Intelligence] 3000 + 1800
[Luck] 3000
On the 3rd floor, we found a Stone Slab for Giant size.
When the Stone Slab, which was the size of two Stone Slabs, was inserted,
the Iron Golem, which was 10 meters tall, became 20 meters tall and
doubled all of its statuses.
With Merle's Skill Levels and Level having reached the Level cap, the Iron
Golem had gained enough [Endurance] to keep even A-rank magical beasts
at bay.
In terms of [Attack], Kurena and Dogora had the advantage because of their
weapons, but it was still able to fulfill the role of a Tank.
Kurena and Dogora hunted down the magical beast while Merle restrained
it and kept it from moving.
Cecile and Formar also attacked from a distance, reducing their number by
one.
And there was just one left.
"All right, you're the last one!"
Dogora ran towards the magical beast with great vigor.
"Hey, hey, hey. Wait. Hold on..."
I heard an unusual shout from Sophie.
(Hmm? What?!???)
"Hey, duck. Dogora! Behind you!"
I spoke louder as I warned him.
The Salamander at Sophie's chest, which had been out of the battle for a
long time, turned into a bright red, huge mass of flame and plunged towards
the magical beasts.
"So, Lady Sofiarone!"
Sophie momentarily lost her consciousness and hung down, and Formar,
who was behind her, voiced his concern and held Sophie down with both
hands to keep her from falling to the ground.
It seemed that the Salamander had sucked all the mana out of Sophie.
"Hmm? Over there!!"
I struggled to control the B-rank Birds, but couldn't in time.
B-rank Birds disappeared in a glowing bubble under the Salamander's
attack.
Dogora was burning as he jumped up like a cartoon.
The last magical beast was instantly defeated by the Salamander's attack,
the leaves were burned so badly that the surface of the water looked large,
and the water surface was boiling extensively.
"I am sorry, I did it again."
Sophie regains consciousness and apologizes desperately for the
devastation.
The place was a hellscape of extensively burned leaves and steam like a
boiling, seething kiln, which reduced visibility.

I was sold at the lowest price C429: The Devil of Ludawan

Ms. Belfast’s case was not a simple one in which the military learned of
Nanami’s Ludia value and decided to take advantage of it. In fact, the great
man in the military who made that decision was someone who had a
personal grudge against Ms. Belfast, and he used the reason of securing a
Triple Highlander to deal with him.
The executing unit was told to kill everyone in the Belfast mansion except
the Triple Highlander, and it seems that the forceful visit was for that
purpose.
Mr. Belfast, an aristocrat, was not without political influence in the country,
but his advocacy in the military was drowned out by the reason of securing
the Triple Highlander.
It all seems to have been at the behest of someone with a grudge against
Ms. Belfast, and for that person, securing Nanami may not have been the
primary objective, but Ms. Belfast’s death.
The name of Belfast’s killer is Marquis de Grafful, Ludawan’s Minister of
War, who seems to have harbored a strong hatred for Belfast because he had
been repeatedly lost in his private business dealings thanks to him.
Furthermore, Marquis de Grafful had a history of courting Farma’s mother,
which may have been one of the reasons for his resentment.
Then it occurred to me. Maybe he has something to do with Farma
curse……I remember Jean telling me that a strong curse requires a certain
amount of financial power and enough connections to obtain dark
technology. Marquis de Grafful fits all the criteria and from the information
I have, he had quite a grudge against Mr. Belfast, and it may be quite
possible.
Perhaps Farma has noticed that as well. If she thought that avenging her
father’s might be related to her curse……it’s hard to read how even the
mature Farma would act. I really need to hurry…….
“Feri, I still think we should hurry to Ludawan even if we use the ether
pods.”
“The long flight may cause a temporary loss of ability and the four-element
cannon may not work, which may affect our ability to fight with many
people.”
“I’m afraid something will happen to Farma if we don’t make it in time.”
“I understand. I will modify the movement program.”
According to the revised schedule, we would reach Ludawan in eight hours.
This way, we might be able to catch up with Farma.
I inform Emina and the others of the change in travel schedule. The girls are
going to take about 20 hours no matter how fast they hurry, so it looks like
I’ll get to Ludawan first.
“I think Farma is heading for the residence of the Marquis de Grafful. When
you reach Ludawan, head there.”
“Where is his mansion?”
“I don’t know the exact location, but he said it’s not far from Belfast’s
mansion.”
“Okay. I’ll check when I get there.”
It would be preferable if the four of us, me, Farma, Emina, and Nanami,
joined up before anything happened. The problem is the movement of the
Elysian Empire and the time it takes to get there. I hope there will be no
movement until I arrive.
News came in that the Elysian Empire was targeting Ludawan. The content
of the report stated that Ludawan had no chance of winning and that it was
obvious that it would be destroyed when the full-scale invasion began.
My heart ached as I remembered the moment of my father’s death. Along
with the sadness, the anger that I had been pushing deep down in my heart
overflowed. I hope Ludawan would be destroyed by the Elysian
Empire…….Such bad feelings come to mind.
I had planned to consult with Yuta when he returned and decide what to do,
but time did not permit me to do so.
We received further news that the Elysian Empire had launched a full-scale
invasion, and also received a report on the investigation of Ludawan, which
we had asked Sister Muzie to do for us.
It also contained the truth about my father’s surprising death. I remember
that the Marquis de Grafful……was a nasty person. He did all kinds of
nasty things to my house…….I was so shocked to find out that such a
Marquis de Grafful had intentionally caused my father’s death that my mind
went blank.
I thought my father had died in an accident when the military wanted to
take Nanami so I could not forgive him, but I could suppress my fury. When
I found out that my father was killed by malice I could no longer suppress
the anger that had been smoldering inside me.
The Elysian Empire was moving quickly, and Ludawan was expected to fall
in a few short days but I still did not know when Yuta would return. Since
the Marquis de Grafful holds the position of Minister of War, he would
probably be captured and executed if Ludawan fell.
No. I couldn’t stand the fact that the person who killed my……father would
be judged by others. The next thing I knew I was on board Garuda 2.
Everyone tried to stop me from going out of control. I know they were
worried about me, but all I could think about right now was heading to
Ludawan.
I cut off all communications and selfishly flew Garuda 2. I flew through the
air faster than a high speed ride hover and headed for Ludawan in a straight
line.
During the flight, I thought about the Marquis de Grafful. I recall that I had
met him once in person, before I became like this.
He came to my house with my father and greeted me with a smile.
However, behind his eyes, he was not smiling. If anything, I felt hatred in
his eyes. Even as a child, I knew that he did not like me. He looked at me in
such a strange and unpleasant way that I felt that way.
When I recalled the look in the eyes of the Marquis de Grafful a thought
occurred to me. This curse of mine is something that the Marquis de Grafful
could’ve done.
He caused my father’s death and put a curse on me. I think about that and
imagine something more horrible. If he was also involved in my mother’s
death……──I would never be able to forgive him if that were the
case…….Unknowingly, my hand gripping the control ball tightens. I was
about to go crazy with anger.