* * * * *
“If my assumption is right, that red-haired magician’s name is Siva. His magical ability is to create swords, just like me. He calls his ‘The Gladiator.’”
“Siva, huh…”
Fiole then shook her head in dismay, failing to recognize such a name, as well as the information that I had just given.
After running a fair distance from the underground passageway we were just in, I was led by Fiole and rode a flying monster hiding in the thick trees, one that was significantly smaller than Pii-chan.
Abald, who had been appointed as her messenger, was on the back of a different flying monster from Fiole and me.
…And apparently, she had brought quite a lot of monsters.
“Does the name Siva ring a bell to you, Abald—?!”
She shouted loudly so that Abald, who was following behind us on another monster that Fiole had cast her magic upon, could hear her.
But he too could only shake his head.
“…I figured so. But then, I guess it’s still a blessing in disguise. If he’s a swordsman… then there’s a good chance that we can avoid the worst-case scenario.”
“What do you mean?”
“Jabberwock’s outer shell can’t be penetrated by weapons, let alone physical attacks, and that’s why we need Viera-chan here. Unless a rare occurrence happens, a swordsman can’t really inflict damage on it.”
Or so she asserted.
We were riding on the back of a monster, so I couldn’t see her reflection, but I was certain that she wasn’t kidding.
“…It’s just…”
There was hope, as she had just implied.
And yet, she was now trying to string together words as if she was about to give up hope.
“The fact that even three of my men couldn’t stop him means that this red-haired magician is strong in his own right. So we couldn’t really eliminate the worst-case scenario, but prepare for it if anything.”
We were really in deep trouble.
Saying so, Fiole let out a deep sigh.
Soon after, sounds of destruction came from nowhere. Was something going berserk?
The atmosphere started to tremble.
“No way… Looks like we were late…”
Jet-black objects were starting to get visible from afar.
And those were… weapons.
Not only swords, but also spears, battle-axes, and even sickles, all of them with no consistency in shape.
All of them, however, emerged from somewhere and rushed toward a certain spot.
And then, there laid a humongous life form and swatted everything off with its tail-like thing.
“Abald!!!”
“…Yes, Milady?”
“There’s nothing we can do anymore. So just as we planned, we’re going with Plan B. I’ll start buying time, and you all can stay on the underground passage until Viera -chan comes back.”
“…Understood.”
Plan B was to have Fiole Islebark stall for time as much as possible on her own.
Then, the remaining members of the team would set up a perimeter around the underground passageway where we had just been.
Their objective was to somehow keep the Jabberwork from getting outside of Minaura after all.
“We can’t let a monster like that out of this town, so I’m going to hold off as long as I can, but tell everyone not to be sloppy in their preparations.”
“I understand.”
Immediately after, the monster that Abald was riding reversed its course and went back the way they came.
“…Politics really is a pain in the ass. If it weren’t for that, we would have defeated the Jabberwock long ago.”
She said with a sigh.
***
Reaper Scans
***
“…What does that mean?”
“It’s because of their national policy. The upper management wants to squeeze every last penny out of wherever they can get it. That’s why we have to go around villages and recruit people during this time of the year just as monsters are being spawned the most in Minaura. If they agree, we won’t raise their villages’ taxes, but suppose that they refuse and the village does not comply, then we will raise their tax unconditionally. You saw the gatekeepers upon arriving here in Minaura, right? They’re not my subordinates, but knights sent from above, so I can’t even make false reports.”
“…”
The words did not come out well right away, just as well as me not knowing the truth behind them.
Nevertheless. the sound of her voice was tinged with fatigue.
And I’d also known Fiole quite well based on our conversations so far.
So if you took all of this into account, it was hard to believe that she was lying.
“When one of my subordinates was on his way to recruit people a long time ago, he got into a bit of a scuffle and was heavily injured. If it had not been for a little trouble, he might even have died. So after that, Viera-chan insisted that she would be the one to do the job, but just this one time, I wish I stopped her.”
It was too late to say anything now, she said so as she scratched her head.
And so, I chimed in.
“…Why are you telling me this now?”
“Huh? Weren’t you wondering why Viera-chan wasn’t here or something…? It’s completely drawn in your face, though.”
“That’s…”
“The Jabberwock, you see, is really not someone you can defeat while thinking about unnecessary things. So, if you want to ask me questions, I’ll answer anything, just for now.”
If it increases your chances of survival by even a few percent, it’s a small price to pay, she said, as if it were a matter of course.
“—Nevermind that, we’re already almost there.”
We were surprisingly close, she joked.
And finally, we’d reached a distance where we could see everything.
I was convinced after seeing the jet-black weapons from a distance, but even so, I couldn’t be absolutely sure without seeing the magician in person.
And when I did…
“—SIVA!!!”
I shouted the name of the red-haired man, who was selfishly facing the Jabberwock, as loudly as I could.
“…Huh?!”
He probably didn’t expect to see a person riding on the back of a monster flying in the sky above him.
And in fact, I shouted because his ability was about to target the monster that Fiole was riding.
“I’m off now.”
I immediately threw myself into the air after saying so.
“EH- Wait a— EHHHH…?!”
CAN’T YOU SEE WHAT’S HAPPENING DOWN THERE?!
Or so I heard a shout, but it was too late.
Besides, Fiole, whose ability was『Corpse Puppet: Marionette,』would have no difficulty riding her monster, but in my case, unless I wielded a sword, I was just dead weight.
A burden.
I wouldn’t be able to fight while riding a monster.
So whether I wanted to see what was going on for myself or not, my decision was to throw myself into the air.
However…
I acted too early and attracted its attention upon doing so.
It was coming for me— and so was its attack.
It appeared that second to Siva, even I had been identified as a target for elimination by the giant lifeform known as the Jabberwock.
But…
“Ah, jeez!!! You’re such a troublesome boy!!!”
A voice uttering the words in a desperate manner shook my eardrums.
But my incantation was already done before I could even think about creating a foothold using my ability,『 Sword: Creation. 』
“I just wanted to stall for time!!! AHHHH, COME ON!!! Whatever!!! Get up—『 Corpse Puppet: Parade—!!! 』”
And soon the earth rose in all directions with all the monsters that Siva had defeated.
Like sprouts from the ground, one corpse after another was born, filling my field of vision. Soon after, a red torrent was suddenly unleashed from nowhere, neatly deflecting the trajectory of the attack that was supposed to hit me.
“…Heh, I see. I knew someone was going to butt in, but I didn’t expect it to be the ‘Corpse Princess’ of all people.”
Siva, quite pleased with himself, said so with astonishment, while I was trying to make a sense of what he just said.
The word ‘Corpse Princess’ was probably a reference to Fiole.
Despite the casual comment spilled from the ground, Fiole quietly told Siva in a rather serious tone,
“Next time you call me that name, I’ll kill you first.”
Then using my magic to create a sword and utilize it as a foothold to kill my momentum— I landed on my feet smoothly.
“I knew we would meet again somewhere, but we met sooner than expected, Julius.”
“…Isn’t it unfair to keep this all to yourself?”
“Huh? Don’t you know? In this kind of thing, it’s always first come, first served.”
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