The King and the Qu...een (2)
The King and the Qu...een (2)
The giant fangs caught in his hand shuddered. He'd grabbed them in a panic as an attack flew at his face the moment Spatial Leap ended.
He'd barely managed to follow the mysterious distress signal to its source, only to nearly get smacked square in the face the instant he arrived.
- Grrrk...!
A chilling sound leaked from his clenched hand.
Eventually, the friction between his prosthetic and the fangs even threw off sparks.
The force against his hand was considerable.
Lee Ha-yul furrowed his brow slightly.
'What Rank is this thing? Top of the 5th Rank... No, factoring in dungeon correction, it's barely scraping 4th Rank...?'
The body was lizardlike.
A long tail and an elongated snout.
Scales thick as armor, and spines sprouting from their surface like tacks.
'Its Unique Ability is a Detection-type. It's rare for a monster to have an innate Detection-type.'
Still, it wasn't an ability that directly impacted combat.
Ultimately, it was just a specimen with an exceptional body.
- G-graaaah!
But a monster with just that much can still be threatening.
That's why the standard approach is to avoid tests of strength against monsters whenever possible... but because of what's behind me right now, I can't follow the standard approach.
- Vwoom!
I grabbed the lower jaw tighter with my other hand as it tried to wrench free, and drew up my mana.
The mana that had been held in standby coursed a full circuit through my channels.
The precisely executed Body Reinforcement Technique activated my physique.
- Crrrunch...!
I crushed the resistance with brute force and tightened my grip.
The monster shrieked as my fingers dug into its teeth and jaw.
My hair whipped in the rough wind.
Alongside the monster's cry, thick with pain, the gathering of mana surged right before my eyes.
Mana flared from the throat inside its gaping maw.
A crude mana emission, characteristic of monsters.
In response, Lee Ha-yul flared his own wings. The elemental rays fired from his five-colored wings...
"How dare you point that at...!"
...were preempted by Lee Ji-yeon, her eyes blazing as she charged in.
I was still dizzy, my head and stomach churning as if turned inside out from the aftereffects of Spatial Leap, but my body, once thrust into combat, moved well.
Lee Ji-yeon launched herself forward in a short leap, drawing one arm back.
Body enhancement wielding both Taesan and Body Reinforcement Technique. A rupturing sound echoed inside her clenched fist.
Immediately, rock formed around her fist into a thick gauntlet, wrapped further in a brown-hued aura.
Then, as if they'd coordinated beforehand, Lee Ha-yul released both hands and pulled his body back.
At the same moment, Lee Ji-yeon drove her drawn-back fist downward.
- Crash!
The descending fist tore through the air and struck the bridge of the snout.
The jaws, gaping wide, slammed shut. The head, unable even to scream, was smashed into the ground.
- Boom!
The head buried in the floor heaved.
The mana it had emitted inside its mouth had detonated.
Black smoke seeped out between the closed jaws.
Lee Ji-yeon landed lightly and, without stopping, kicked off the ground.
She lowered her stance and swept her hand across the floor as if brushing it.
In the hand that skimmed the earth was already a hammer, woven from rock.
The large head, suited to its long handle, dragged across the ground as she surged forward.
- Crash!
The hammer viciously slammed into the head it had barely managed to raise.
Packed with aura just the same, the hammer blow sent the monster tumbling across the floor, unable even to scream.
This was a chance to press the attack.
Striking the head repeatedly had dealt damage; it had to be dazed.
Push the momentum and finish it now.
"Huff...!"
The thought flickered briefly, but Lee Ji-yeon quickly shook it off and kicked off the ground.
Not forward, but back.
She stood in front of Lee Ha-yul and adjusted her stance.
[?]
Lee Ha-yul, who had been preparing support, assuming Lee Ji-yeon would press the attack immediately, tilted his head.
[Senior, just now, pressing the attack would've...]
"No, we still lack information, so I think pulling back first is correct. And first of all, I have to protect you, my junior."
[...That's, not something I dislike hearing, but, um... er... thank you.]
"It's nothing."
With Lee Ji-yeon's return, the standoff continued.
The lizardlike monster was also regrouping from its wounds and staying on guard.
The monsters swarming the area were being driven back by the spirits and undead that Lee Ji-yeon and I had deployed.
"More importantly, is the reason you kidnapped me again at this late hour because of those children?"
[...Yes, I'm sorry for doing it without a word.]
"So you're aware... We'll talk about that when we get back to base."
Lee Ji-yeon, who'd been loosening up her body by the joint, glanced past Lee Ha-yul's shoulder.
Lee Ha-yul also turned his head in the direction of her gaze.
'...Fairies, huh.'
At the sight, Lee Ha-yul's expression grew more peculiar.
Fairies, clustered together in a huddle behind him.
Their hair wasn't white but varied by individual, and their size was only about a hand's width larger than Lee Ha-yul's palm at most.
The five-colored wings spread from their backs made their species unmistakable.
When we'd first arrived, they'd been caught in the chaos, mixed in among the monsters and being chased.
So I'd cast a defensive spell to secure their safety first, then pulled them all together in one place with telekinesis and was checking on them.
[Eek.]
[Eek.]
[Eek.]
The fairies, who had been staring blankly at Lee Ha-yul without grasping the situation, flinched when his attention suddenly turned toward them.
[Wings...]
[Six of them?]
[So sparkly...]
...More precisely, they flinched hard when they saw Lee Ha-yul's face.
As the fairies gasped and reacted with exaggerated fuss, Lee Ha-yul's expression turned odd.
They had many small wounds on their bodies.
They looked like injuries just sustained while being chased by monsters.
Plus, they were wearing nothing but leaves that looked ready to return to the earth's nutrients as clothing...
Their appearance was thoroughly pitiful.
- Poke.
[Bwuh?]
I prodded the cheek of the yellow-haired fairy at the front with my index finger.
A small cluster of light seeped from my fingertip into the fairy's body.
A simple healing spell. Minor wounds and the like began to gradually fade away.
At that, the fairy's baffled eyes went round as saucers.
The rather adorable reaction made the corners of Lee Ha-yul's lips twitch.
[Wait here a little while.]
[...! Yes!]
The fairy beamed and nodded its head vigorously.
"...? You just spoke... No, shall we sort out the situation first?"
[Yes.]
I nodded at Lee Ji-yeon's words.
The lizard monster was still glaring this way, maintaining its guard.
Had it judged that it still had a chance, since it hadn't run? Or had it failed to find an opening to flee?
Either way, there was no particular need to let it go.
It was a creature barely scraping the pseudo-4th Rank, after all.
I should kill it, raise it as an undead, and grind some proficiency.
So, just as I was raising Jeonghwa to prepare a spell, Lee Ji-yeon, who had been glaring at the lizard monster with a somewhat displeased expression, tilted her head and spoke.
"Would it be all right if I take that one?"
"I'd like to do a direct subjugation myself, for training. Would you mind just providing support?"
[Yeah, of course.]
[As much as you need.]
[Just leave the support to me.]
"Thank you."
Lee Ha-yul, who had obediently nodded at Lee Ji-yeon's request, lowered Jeonghwa.
- Vwoom...
Deprived of another chance to shine, Jeonghwa let out a gloomy hum.
.
.
.
Lee Ji-yeon literally ground the lizard monster into paste.
Using the dual defense of rock armor and aura to block all damage, she closed in with brute force.
The moment she got within range, she poured on all manner of attacks: smashing, striking, tearing, and crushing.
Its body was pulverized in the blink of an eye; the monster panicked and tried to open the distance, but once Lee Ji-yeon had closed it, she didn't let it go easily.
The most show-stealing moment was when she snatched it by the tail and hurled it around in every direction.
Her instantaneous output might fall short of Calamity Flame, but in brute power, it was a display that seemed to show Taesan surpassing Calamity Flame.
In the end, the monster was butchered to death, to the point where using its corpse for necromancy would have been questionable.
Even though it was barely scraping the 4th Rank, I couldn't help but admire how overwhelmingly she subjugated it.
It was so brutal and terrifying, in fact, that the fairies watching the fight clung to each other and shivered.
Anyway, the other miscellaneous monsters were handled adequately with spirits and undead.
But clearing all of them out was impossible.
We didn't have the leeway to wipe out monsters that kept swarming in as if we'd kicked a hornet's nest.
So we cleaned up moderately and, when we saw an opening, slipped out with Spatial Movement.
- Squiiish...
"You dropped me with Spatial Movement without a word. Again. My heart plummeted, and the soup I just ate nearly came back up in its place."
- Bleeeh.
[I'm sorry...]
Once we returned to base, Lee Ji-yeon immediately plopped me onto her thigh, then used both hands to squish and stretch my cheeks.
The same hands that had ripped, torn, and shattered scales far tougher than steel just moments ago were now mercilessly stretching my cheeks out long.
Fortunately, she wasn't putting any real strength into it.
Just lightly kneading them, as if sulking.
Leaving aside the fact that Lee Ji-yeon was tired from the fight just now, it also meant she had no intention of actually tormenting me.
"...Though, of course, the situation was urgent, so I can't exactly complain unconditionally."
As if affirming my guess, Lee Ji-yeon let out a deep sigh.
Then she stared down at me fixedly, and the look in her eyes was so much like she was regarding a mischievous child that I felt thoroughly nonplussed.
[Gwuuuarrghk.]
...But it was also true that I'd used Spatial Movement again without any prior notice.
Ultimately, it was my fault, so without sulking, I meekly offered up my cheeks.
- Baaan...
[ ...Mm.]
As I stayed like that, I could feel their gazes pattering against my body.
A sudden small sense of embarrassment washed over me, and I hopped briskly out of Lee Ji-yeon's arms.
"Ah."
Leaving the regretful sound behind me, I trudged over and stood before the fairies.
The fairies looked different from their shabby appearance earlier.
The leaves had been returned to the earth, and instead they were wearing cloth garments I'd just created.
They were now gathered together, sitting on camping chairs under the warm glow of a heating magic tool.
I smiled slightly at the endearing sight and bent my knees.
I'd matched my eye level to be considerate to the fairies, who were looking up at me.
"Hm, fairies... is it?"
Behind me, where I was crouched, Lee Ji-yeon had already recovered from her disappointment and approached.
I turned my head toward Lee Ji-yeon, who was calmly studying the fairies, and asked.
[They are fairies, right?]
"Yes... now that I'm getting a good look, it's definite. They're exactly like the ordinary fairies I've seen in the restricted zone."
It was already known that a number of fairies resided on the Taesan family estate.
Unlike me, Lee Ji-yeon had seen fairies in the flesh several times, so her word was certain.
Besides, I also sensed intuitively that these children were fairies.
I shrugged and turned my head.
I put on the gentlest expression I could and greeted them.
[Hello?]
[A-ah, hello...!]
My light greeting was met with heavy, stiff ones.
Indeed, the fairies were staring at me, full of tension... yet with their eyes sparkling.
Honestly, it was a weighty sort of attention.
I smiled cheerfully and shrugged.
[There's no need to be so nervous. And you can speak with your voices now.]
"Ah, right."
"Rio, you idiot."
"Tch."
[Mm... So you're Rio? You're the one who asked me for help, right?]
"Eek, y-yes... that's right. I asked for, help. Ah! But I didn't mean to, it just sort of happened..."
[Hey, stop blabbing.]
[Tch, I'm trying, okay.]
The yellow-haired fairy, Rio, stammered on.
Irritated by that, the black-haired fairy... Kali, was it? That one scolded Rio with a Sound Transmission.
But since Sound Transmission through mana is interceptable, that scolding rang in my head too.
[My name is Lee Ha-yul. Nice to meet you.]
"Yes...!"
Rio beamed and answered.
"King Lee Ha-yul!"
[Yeah, that's...]
...Wait a moment.
[What did you just say?]
"...Huh?"
[What did you call me?]
At my question, Rio tilted her head.
"King Lee Ha-yul...?"
At the unchanged answer, my face went blank.
Did fairies speak a different language?
I had that reasonable suspicion, but what the Authority of Harmonization had translated was unmistakably the word meaning "king."
King.
Ruler of a nation.
Me?
"What's wrong?"
At my baffled reaction, Rio tilted her head as if she found my side more puzzling.
Could she really not perceive the issue?
She seemed genuinely confused, which made it even more absurd.
"...You were royalty?"
[Are you joking?]
"...Ah!"
Lee Ji-yeon, standing behind me, was also staring down at me with trembling eyes.
When I gave an incredulous reply, Rio, who had been rolling her eyes around, suddenly let out an exclamation and pointed a finger at Lee Ji-yeon.
"And the Queen!"
[ ...Huh?]
"...Excuse me?"
At a claim even more outlandish than the king remark, not just me but Lee Ji-yeon too froze solid.
* * *
[Mindscape 'Yo?Jeong' is changing.]
...
[Player Correction System: Affection]
Lee Ha-yul → Lee Ji-yeon
●●●●●●●○○○(69▷72/100)
｢Affection｣ ｢Rock｣ ｢Dependability｣ ｢Stability｣