Chapter 113
Chapter 113
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Translator: penny
Chapter: 113
Chapter Title: Hunting Kibista
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A week after starting my Divine Grace training, I finally succeeded in retrieving a very small glass bead from underwater without breaking it!
This was thanks to the delicate control I'd honed after smashing who knows how many apples.
"That's incredible, miss!"
"I knew you could do it!"
"Oh my, our little lady has grown up so much already...!"
The people gathered around to watch the training clapped and showered me with praise.
Stop!
Just stop...!
How on earth could Dietrich enjoy this kind of praise?
They all burst into laughter at the sight of me, face beet red, hiding behind Dad.
"It looks like you've gotten the hang of manipulating water however you want now."
Dad patted my head and glanced toward the knights standing nearby.
"Bring it."
"Yes, sir! Should we release it straight into the lake?"
That thing?
Peter groaned as he opened the lid of the black box he'd set on the ground and dumped its contents right into the lake.
Water poured out along with a large, purple blob that splashed onto the surface and spread like ink.
But on closer inspection, it wasn't just one mass.
As soon as they were dumped from the box, the forearm-sized creatures that had been clinging tightly together scattered in all directions.
"Dad, what are those?"
They moved so fast I couldn't even get a proper look.
Despite their size, the only proof of their existence was the ripples they left darting through the water.
"They're called Kibista, a type of magical beast."
"Magical beasts?"
"Yes. They live in water, and the males are especially famous for their speed. I just released ten into the lake."
The artificial lake, built for the Kalenberg family's Divine Grace training, had no life in it whatsoever.
Not even insects or animals, let alone common water plants. With no place to settle, the magical beasts kept twisting and darting around.
Releasing ten of them, visible only as fleeting glints on the water's surface.
'He's not doing this out of boredom.'
Releasing live magical beasts like this, even counting the exact number, had to mean there was a clear purpose.
No way.
No, surely not?
My dad wouldn't possibly suggest something so ridiculous...
"Let's try catching ten of them today, nice and easy."
I gaped at Dad, but his smiling face didn't crack even a little.
"...!"
I wanted to say something, but experience had taught me otherwise.
When Dad had that expression, he wouldn't back down no matter how much he loved me.
'No helping it.'
I trudged over and plopped down by the lake's edge, quickly resigning myself.
For starters, maybe I should grasp a single water current and track their movements?
'They look like water striders.'
Exhausted from all the swimming, one Kibista with a glossy purple body clung to a pebble on the bottom, resting.
About the size of an adult's forearm.
I stared at its overwhelming size—it almost looked like someone had released a carp—then quietly raised a water barrier around it.
First, trap it so it can't escape, then carefully use my Divine Grace...
"Ugh, so close!"
Before I could even finish building the crude wall, the Kibista whipped away and vanished from sight.
It moved so fast that even such a large mass slipped away unnoticed.
If not for the faint afterimage trailing its path, I wouldn't have even caught its direction.
The entire training session went like that—pure misses.
Raise a wall, and it'd find a gap to flee.
Scoop up the water itself, and it'd slip through like sand.
But blocking off currents? It wouldn't even stay in view! So frustrating!
Later, I was peering so intently at the surface that my body tipped forward, and I nearly fell in—Dad caught me just in time.
"That's enough for today, Ella."
"Just a little more, and I think I can catch one."
"You can't push yourself too hard. Overusing your Divine Grace strains the body."
I bit my lip in frustration but couldn't argue with Dad's advice.
But still, a little more and I bet I'd get the knack!
Before bed, I'd read a bestiary on Kibista ecology, tossing and turning so much that I couldn't sleep and finally got up.
At night, their bodies emit a faint glow, it said.
If I could just spot their positions, it'd be way easier than daytime when they blended seamlessly with the water.
I slipped quietly out of bed, threw on a shawl, and headed to the garden.
"They really do sparkle."
Not as bright as a lightbulb, but with the crystal-clear water and surrounding darkness, even that dim light stood out clearly.
"What's sparkling?"
"These magical beasts called Kibista... Eek!"
"Baby!"
I answered absentmindedly and nearly tumbled into the lake in surprise.
Florian, who'd grabbed my arm just in time to save me, stared at me with an even more startled expression.
Unlike me in just pajamas and a shawl, he was dressed for going out.
"What are you doing here?"
"I saw you sneaking out of the annex on my way back. It looked dangerous moving around so late without a maid."
"Where've you been?"
"The Duke of Kalenberg assigned me a task."
"Grandpa did?"
I hadn't heard about that.
I widened my eyes, and after a moment's hesitation, Florian answered honestly.
"Magical beasts appeared in the woods outside Kalena, so I went to exterminate them with the soldiers."
"Exterminating magical beasts? Was today the first time?"
"... "
"Not the first? You're only fifteen!"
Going with regular soldiers—not even knights—meant Florian had led ordinary troops himself.
It seemed like too much responsibility for a fifteen-year-old, and I frowned. Florian softened his eyes into a gentle curve.
A faint moonlight fell on his silver hair.
Behind him stretched the dark navy sky, so the light reflecting off his hair scattered like starlight, ethereal and faint.
His red eyes blended into the darkness, sometimes appearing pitch black, other times a deep crimson.
"I'm grateful to the Duke of Kalenberg."
"Grateful for what? Assigning such a heavy burden to someone still so young."
"If not for him, where else would I gain this experience? It's something an imperial prince ought to learn, baby."
"True, but... I still worry."
"That's what makes it even better."
What was that supposed to mean?
I narrowed my eyes, scrutinizing Florian's face.
He genuinely looked pleased.
No sign of strain from the heavy task.
"Why are you out here?"
"I trained my Divine Grace with Dad today but couldn't catch a single one of those beasts. Thought nighttime might be different."
Florian's gaze drifted to the lake.
The breeze had died down, leaving the surface perfectly still.
The Kibista weren't darting about like before; they clung quietly to the bottom.
He scanned the scattered purple glows in the water, frowning slightly.
"Kibista are fast. Not easy to catch just like that."
"That's the problem. I tried blocking them with water currents and scooping them up, but they kept getting away."
As I pouted and grumbled, Florian just smiled quietly.
"Have you ever caught underwater magical beasts?"
"Yeah."
"How? You use the Divine Grace of fire."
I widened my eyes, and Florian mimed dipping his hand into the lake's surface.
Then he twitched his eyebrow.
"Usually, you do something like this and boil the whole thing."
Boil the whole thing?
Amazed for a moment by Florian's terrifyingly proficient Divine Grace technique, I suddenly thought of a way to catch the Kibista myself.
I wasn't skilled enough to control the entire lake yet.
But I could freeze a portion of the water!
'Dad said mastering Divine Grace requires learning three things.'
This training must be to teach me how to alter water's form.
"Florian, you're a genius!"
He watched me crouch excitedly by the lakeside, then reached out and gently stroked the ends of my hair.