Chapter 97
Translator: Vine
Chapter: 97
Chapter Title: Rainbow and Flash☆ (3)
In Alvitt's memory, her mother was always spinning thread in their shabby hut.
Her mother's intellect and abilities were far beyond that of a simple country woman, but there was a reason they had to live here.
Words she would blurt out each morning, as if by accident.
“Did the woodcutter's house catch fire?”
“…No?”
“I see. It's a good thing he didn't forget to put out the embers before he left.”
Most of the time, she was wrong, but there were moments when her predictions were chillingly accurate. Things that were impossible to foresee, like sudden accidents or unexpected strokes of luck.
Because of this, she was feared by the villagers. The only way for the mother and daughter, living on the outskirts of town, to survive was to make and sell balls of thread.
*Whir, whir—*
Behind her, the sound of a scratch-covered spinning wheel turning.
Young Alvitt listened to the sound as she gazed out the window.
Outside, a hawk could be seen soaring through the blue sky. Its powerful wingbeats were a fine sight.
The fledgling hawk that had been chirping in the nearby tree just a short while ago had already grown enough to fly like that.
“Hee… I want to fly like that, too.”
Young Alvitt spent her time blankly watching it.
She was the only child in the village with a strong aptitude for ether, so she could have been the leader of the pack if she'd wanted... but she had no real desire to force her way into their games.
*Hurting people with strength... is a bad thing.*
Behind Alvitt, a brochure for a "special school" for girls with ether aptitude lay on the table.
It was filled with difficult words like "Valkyrie" and "Valhalla," but her mother seemed to understand it all. Even to young Alvitt's eyes, her mother was different from the other country women.
Her wise mother told Alvitt to prepare to go to "school." And when she was mature enough to accept her [Destiny], she told her of the final place she would go.
The center of all destinies.
The center closest to the World Tree.
One day, you must go there.
“Alvitt. You are destined to save this world. You were born with a very important destiny.”
A child blessed by the rainbow and gold.
You must go where your destiny leads you.
There, you will meet your companions and see your destiny.
“…Yes.”
The brown-haired girl gave a small nod.
*I don't really understand what she's saying.*
Alvitt was just a child who listened well to adults.
“…”
Seeing this, her mother pulled Alvitt into a tight hug.
“I'm so sorry. For passing on a burden that we adults couldn't handle. The fate of this world... to little girls like you...”
“A burden? I'm not carrying anything right now.”
“…You will, little by little.”
“…?”
“And friends who will recognize you for who you are.”
“…”
“For forcing this responsibility on you... I'm sorry.”
“…”
Alvitt still couldn't understand. And when she looked past her mother's embrace and out the window again, the hawk was still flying there.
Freely.
Unbound by anything.
For a bird to fly, there comes a moment when it must leave the nest.
To enjoy freedom, there comes a moment when you must forsake the ground.
Now... what is my nest?
And what are the wings I wish to emulate?
“…Like the hawk.”
Alvitt reached her hand toward the distant sky. The sunlight tickled her eyes, illuminating the hawk's form clearly.
*Screeeech—!*
The hawk slowly circled the sky far away, spiraling upward.
And…
-Hero! Wake up—!!
She woke from her dream.
***
“Hero!! Wake up!!”
“Ugh, huh…?”
A giant chick was shouting at her with an urgent expression.
*He said he wouldn't come here so he wouldn't be a bother, but look how fat he's gotten.*
Perhaps from being fed quality feed by the elf students, he was noticeably plumper than when she had seen him a few weeks ago. His fluffy feathers couldn't hide his portly figure.
[The Nameless Hawk] nudged Alvitt, who was sleeping curled up in front of the rusted sword. His fluffy wings stirred up a gentle breeze.
“Cheep! I know you're tired, but you must get up!! It seems a vile dragon is attacking this place—!! The 'Goddess of the Past' and the holy priestess have delivered dire news! Cheeeep—!”
“…Clara?”
“Cheep! I hear that a swarm of vile insects, enough to cover the endless plains in darkness, is on its way!”
“…What?”
“Cheep! The priestess gave me a letter to deliver to you! Read it quickly! Cheeeep—!”
A letter was tied to his chubby wing.
Alvitt quickly untied it and began to read.
“!”
Her drowsiness vanished in an instant.
Her body ached from sleeping on the damp ground by the water,
but she drew up her ether so she could spring into action at any moment.
But the contents of the letter…
[We will hold them off here. Focus on drawing the sword.]
Clara's characteristically stiff writing style.
Reading it, Alvitt's eyes began to tremble.
“…I.”
“Cheep! What does it say?”
“…”
What in the world am I trying to become a [Hero] for?
For what... exactly.
My mother?
Clara?
My friends?
*What does 'saving the world' even... mean?*
Trying to understand everything through a sense of duty etched somewhere in her heart... lacked urgency. To be honest, it didn't really resonate with her.
I'm sorry to say it, but.
I still don't know.
I only took on the challenge because it was a task placed before me.
“…”
Alvitt gripped the sword with a look of despair. She squeezed so hard her knuckles cracked.
*Come on, come out.*
*I need to go save people.*
*I don't know what's going on, but I have to stop the world from ending.*
*Anyway, I have to help everyone in the Academy City.*
Amidst her desperation, doubt began to rear its head.
*With The Five Colors and Clara here, will it even make a difference if I do something?*
[The Pink Spiral]
[The Azure-White Lightning Spear]
[The Crimson Trajectory]
[The Violet Spindle]
[The Verdant Greatbow]
Such amazing people are already there…
No.
Just look at people like Lotha, Kara, Vel, Sigrun, Fiona, and Greta.
They were all playing their parts in their own positions. In a situation like this, what kind of [Hero] could she possibly be…
…
As her frustration mounted, a strange thought occurred to her.
*This isn't the time for such thoughts.*
-Because Alvitt is our student council president—!
-That's right, that's right—☆
-You're always so reliable.
*Positive thoughts.*
*Happy thoughts, joyful thoughts.*
*Focus.*
*Focus...*
“…”
But the sword did not answer.
-Not enough.
-Not enough.
-Not enough.
-Not enough.
Suddenly, she felt something rise in her throat.
*What is?*
*Just tell me.*
*You worthless piece of scrap metal.*
*I'm sick of hearing that for the past month.*
“…”
“…”
It still wouldn't come out. Unlike its precarious appearance, which suggested it could be pulled out at any moment, it was fixed as solidly as a giant iron stake, not budging an inch.
“Kuh…”
“…”
Still gripping the sword, Alvitt lowered her head. Feeling like tears were about to spill, she stared at the damp ground.
*What kind of foolish thing am I doing here...*
*Should I just give up...?*
*Come back later and—*
Just then, a low voice spoke from beside her.
“Hero.”
“Wait, I'm thinking. Be quiet for a second.”
“…Could you just listen, and think of it as the ramblings of a mere beast?”
“…”
“I, too, am an imperfectly revived being. The memories of my past life have faded, but there is one thing I still remember. The memory of my first flight.”
“…Flight?”
“When birds first begin to fly, they don't think about grand reasons or threats that compel them to leap.”
“…Then what?”
*I want to fly toward the sky before me.*
“They think only of that and begin to move on instinct. Of course, they fail. When they do, they recall the image of their siblings or parents flying ahead and imitate them. And before they know it... they are soaring through the open sky.”
“…”
“Hero.”
“Yes.”
“Is there someone you wish to be like?”
“Yes.”
“Then, close your eyes and picture them.”
“Yes.”
*What is he doing?*
*A spiral.*
*He is drawing a great spiral in the sky.*
*To kill a great evil dragon, he moves in a spiral.*
*What does he want to do?*
*He wants to protect us.*
*Do you want to be like him?*
…
“Yes.”
*Then.*
*That is enough.*
*Hero of the Flash.*
*What you want to protect isn't something as grand as the world...*
***
“And that's where this pink-haired bombshell makes his grand entrance—☆”
I leaped over the fence made by Kara's summoned robots, my revolutionary comrades. Dozens of rectangular robots parted to make way for me.
*Tap-tap—!*
The second location I moved to.
As expected, the place was crawling with a disgusting number of larval and adolescent Chaos Bugs.
They were ruining countless farmlands, defiling the earth with their saliva as they advanced.
*Kieeeek—!*
*Kyaaaak—!*
Honestly, the memory of [Priest of Corrosion] old Grafvölluðr made me feel like I was about to piss my pants. But I had no intention of brewing up some of Central Prism Academy's special Clara-juice in front of my juniors.
*One public pisser in the Academy City is enough, and her name is Freyja!*
What suits me,
is not lemonade, but only honey water.
“Yup♪ What a total mess—☆ Hey! Cute lady over there, can I borrow your weapon?”
The two juniors running frantically beside me.
Lotha, riding on Kara's back, was about to swing her wand when she shouted in alarm.
“Senior! Behind you! Behind!”
“Ooh—☆”
I'd lost track of its presence since they were swarming like a pack of dogs.
An adult Chaos Bug had crept up on us and was opening its mouth.
It was so close I could feel its hot breath.
The sight of the giant insect drooling slime from between its hundreds of fanged teeth was horrifying.
I really didn't want to know that these things had coarse hair growing on their faces.
*Kuwoooar—!*
Truly disgusting.
What a terrifying appearance.
So you guys were nerfed by the brightness settings in the dungeon.
I decided I couldn't forgive these wicked Chaos Bugs for scarring a maiden's heart.
“Ahaha—☆ A mess, a mess—♪”
A time when everything slows down.
Extreme perception, a world in an instant.
My unique ether trait activated.
*Gwoooooo—!*
Even within it, the adult Chaos Bug was approaching with its massive mouth wide open. If anything, being played in slow motion made it look even more disgusting.
What's needed in times like these is a refreshing secret technique.
*I've recovered enough, so I guess it's time to use 'that' for the first time in a while. I'll get the weapon from Lotha later...*
I clenched my buttcheeks tight.
Pull back the shoulders, straighten the back, take a deep breath.
*The Rider's Stance.*
I aimed both fists forward.
I pulled my chest back as far as it would go, tensing it like a bowstring.
*Activate ether.*
A hot energy began to flow explosively from above my tightly clenched crotch.
It spread through the major veins in my body, reaching every corner.
*My world.*
A pink aura began to flow from my body. The ether influenced by 'the world within my heart' escaping from my pores... [Unique Ether].
[Vibration Ether] is resonance.
[Wave Ether] is change.
[Unique Ether] was one's own world.
*The shape of my soul is a spiral...!*
And then I shouted with all my might.
“Pink!! Lemon!! Sherbet—!!”
From my clenched fists, I felt the thrilling waste of ether for the first time in a long while. And then thousands, tens of thousands of hearts materialized, forming a giant storm.
Feeling the flex after so long, I slammed the massive, tens-of-meters-long pillar into the adult Chaos Bug before me. The great spiral of ether broke through its charge and advanced toward the hundreds of Chaos Bugs behind it.
*KWAAANG—!!!*
Annihilation.
Disaster.
Storm.
I shall destroy everything.
The storm of ether passed,
and all that remained was the wreckage of destruction.
“…It'd be nice if it ended here, though.”
I gave a bitter smile.
It felt like I had just wasted a ton of ether.
*Kuwoooar—!*
*Kieeeek—!*
To my surprise, the bastards regenerated from the ground.
*'An infinite wave? For real?'*