Chapter 49
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Translator: 8uhl
Chapter: 49
Chapter Title: A Spark of Inspiration
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The darkness receded, and light returned to my vision.
Humid, warm air enveloped me. Sunlight pierced through the canopy, warming my skin. I could faintly hear the sizzle of damp twigs and pollen zapped by stray sparks of lightning.
Before me, Trian was catching his breath, perched on a rocky outcrop.
He hadn't shown it in the dungeon, but it seemed the expedition had been quite taxing on him as well.
“……Where's Rex?”
“He should be out shortly.”
As soon as the words were spoken, the wounded arm of an orc began to emerge from the pitch-black mouth of the cave.
Rex pulled his massive frame out, arm first, and finally stepped outside onto the decaying branches.
In his hands, he held the artifact I had gifted him.
‘The Horn that Calls Them.’
A top-tier artifact, one that vied for the top spot on any barbarian's must-have list.
Unlike the ‘Crimson Crystal,’ which had a rather bland effect for an artifact, this was a top-class item capable of turning the tide of battle with a single use.
The community joke was that raising a barbarian was divided into two eras: before and after acquiring the horn. That's how infamous this game-breaking barbarian accessory was.
Clink.
…Rex appeared, having filled the top-tier artifact—capable of changing the course of a battle with a single blow—to the brim with gold.
The first use of an artifact in Rex's life was as a coin purse!
“You wanted to grab the treasure even in that situation? Rex, you're more materialistic than I thought.”
Trian sighed, looking at Rex, who had held the giant horn upright to fill it with gold coins.
“……No, the General ordered me to.”
Rex's creaking prosthetic hand was blocking the horn's narrow opening to keep the gold coins from spilling out.
With both hands occupied, Rex attempted to make an excuse. But cradling the gold so preciously made him look like nothing more than ‘an orc so crazy for treasure he forgot he was dying.’
Rex looked at me with an expression of pure injustice.
“Hmm……”
I just made that up on the spot so he'd take the horn, but he's clueless in the strangest ways.
Well, aren't good-natured people often a bit dense?
“Rex. Everyone loves gold. So there's no need to be ashamed. The courage you showed in the dungeon certainly deserves to be rewarded with gold…… You should be more proud.”
Besides, teasing the good ones is always the most fun.
“What?! No, General!”
Rex's eyes filled with panic. It was quite refreshing to see the guy who hadn't lost his cool even when facing demons or a giant spider get flustered by a little teasing.
“When are we heading back?”
As I was smiling, enjoying teasing Rex, Rireu grabbed my robe and cut in.
Her eyes were staring into space like someone who'd lost their mind, a sight that I found quite unsettling.
“Let's head back quickly.”
What's with her? Why are her eyes like that?
“Well…… all right. We need to treat Rex's wounds quickly anyway……”
“Quickly. I need a pen and paper.”
I thought Rireu was worried about Rex's wounds and the poison. But her sudden demand for a pen and paper left me speechless.
…Did she actually get struck by lightning?
Beeeep—
I was staring blankly at Rireu, not knowing what to say, when a ringing began to echo in my head.
I couldn't bear the headache and went to raise a hand to my head, but in that moment, my vision went black, and my legs began to buckle.
Ah, right. Five minutes.
My last memory was of my body giving in to gravity and collapsing to the ground.
* * *
“……Ah.”
The sun had already set. Before me was the ceiling of a military wagon, a sight so familiar it was almost boring. The sounds of dwarven soldiers at work drifted to my ears.
“Hey! We're short on lumber over here! When are you gonna send it!”
“Agh, damn it, Blue Anvil! Can't you hold that rebar straight? If the finishing is off, are you gonna take responsibility, tear it down, and rebuild it yourself?!”
The dwarves were busy putting the finishing touches on the roofs and walls of the nearly completed armory and barracks. As I listened to the clamor, I shifted my gaze and saw Squad Leader Bellua of the Black Hammers sitting at the entrance of the wagon.
“You're awake?”
With her characteristic hearty smile, Bellua looked down at me, backlit by the moonlight.
Usually, Rireu is the one greeting me whenever I lose consciousness and wake up. This is a novel experience.
“……How's the work progressing? Have there been any issues?”
“Well…… the Mazoku sent a scout mutant or two. But they were only scouting, so there were no major incidents. They probably saw a high-ranking mage like Lord Alter and decided not to pick a fight.”
“Where is Rex?”
“His wounds were quite deep. We gave him some basic first aid, but for proper treatment, he'll need to see a skilled cleric in the capital, so we sent him back ahead of schedule.”
It's a shame we had to part like this without a proper goodbye... but well, I'm sure we'll meet again when the time is right.
If nothing else, I can always invite him to the castle myself when I return to the capital. It'd be nice to have tea with him.
“Don't worry too much. He's a tough one. The wounds are deep, but he'll be fine.”
“I know Rex is tough. By the way, where are Trian and Rireu? Tomorrow we need to see Dajin……”
BOOM!
A sudden flash of light shot up, piercing the starlight embroidered on the pitch-black sky. A deafening roar tore through the air, shaking the wagon. Dwarves, startled by the shock, dropped the screws they were holding and muttered curses.
“……”
“……”
Bellua and I stared at each other in silence for a moment.
“……Could that be?”
“Yes, well. Ever since you returned, she suddenly grabbed a pen and paper, ran off somewhere, and has been experimenting with something ever since.”
…If she's going to train, she could at least do it farther away. Isn't it a nuisance to the workers, with thunder crashing every time she uses magic?
Is this what it feels like when your clumsy daughter makes a scene in public?
I sighed in embarrassment and offered Bellua a small apology.
“……She's not usually like this. I'm sorry.”
“Haha! It's not like this is the first or second time a mage has done something eccentric! If anything, this is more mage-like and good to see!”
Bellua laughed heartily and hopped down from the wagon.
“Still, it's about time to turn in! Training is all well and good, but perhaps you should go get her……?”
“……Me?”
I asked Bellua back, my expression one of genuine annoyance. Asking a patient who just woke up from a coma to go fetch a problem child… isn't that a bit much?
“Lady Rireu would be expecting you.”
For a moment, Bellua gave me a look as if I were pathetic, then lowered her voice slightly and said as much.
Ah.
Right. Given Rireu's personality, she might be uncomfortable if a stranger came to get her.
“You have a surprisingly delicate side, don't you?”
“I'm a married woman, you know. If you... have any troubles in your relationship with Lady Rireu, feel free to confide in me. I'll do my utmost to help.”
That's a new one.
And I had no idea what Bellua being married had to do with Rireu's personality anyway.
And what kind of trouble could possibly arise in my relationship with Rireu?
…Has this dwarf been drinking? More than half of what she's saying sounds like nonsense.
“Yes…… well.”
Still, I couldn't just rebuke someone offering to help, so I gave an awkward smile, pushed the blanket aside, and stood up.
The moment my feet touched the floor, my calves screamed in protest, and my body swayed.
I took a deep breath against the pain that resonated in every joint before looking at Bellua again.
“……What is Lord Alter doing?”
“He just went to bed. He stood watch for about fifty hours without sleep until you returned, Lord Bin, so don't even think about passing this off to him.”
“No, but I really can't walk……”
“This kind of work is always accompanied by pain. Did you think winning a person's heart was easy!”
Seriously, what has this dwarf been talking about this whole time?
“Haaah…… Yes, well…… I understand.”
Pushed along by Bellua's persistence, I set off on a perilous journey, my legs trembling like a newborn fawn's.
BOOM!
BOOM!
From less than a hundred meters away, a tremendous amount of lightning rained down, painting the black sky in successive shades of blue, white, and purple.
“……Aaaargh, come on!”
Rireu's pained scream cut through the sound of thunder.
I dragged my leaden body slowly toward the source of the scream.
Soon, I spotted Rireu among the fallen trees.
The surrounding trees had been struck by lightning so many times they'd turned to fine ash that scattered in the wind. Rireu's pale face was smudged with ash and sweat.
The skin between the fingers gripping her staff was raw and bleeding, but she didn't seem to notice.
“……”
In a patch of moonlight lay a scattered pile of parchment and a pen that had clearly been re-inked several times.
“Flawed. Flawed? No, that's not it, it's more like……”
Rireu would snatch up a sheet of parchment, scribble something frantically, then, as if displeased, strike it out with her pen and write something else below it, repeating the process.
She seemed so utterly engrossed in what she was doing that she didn't even notice my approach.
Watching Rireu pick up the parchment only to put it back down again, I felt an unidentifiable sense of kinship.
‘……I used to be just like that when I was on the verge of writing something.’
It was like watching myself back when inspiration was teasing my mind, coming and going.
I used to get warnings from my landlord all the time for screaming and throwing tissues around my studio apartment while messing with my MIDI controller…….
I know that feeling better than anyone. That tantalizing sense that you're just one step away from something incredible. The frustration of an itch you just can't locate to scratch.
After all, in my past life, I was an artist who wrote music.
…Though, strictly speaking, I was just an aspiring one.
In any case, that kind of frustration isn't something someone else can solve for you.
I quietly watched Rireu under the moonlight, lost in her own world, in the throes of creation.
I felt bad for Bellua, who had told me to bring Rireu back for bed, but I couldn't bring myself to interrupt this moment of tormented inspiration.
Because no one knew what a valuable asset this moment would become in Rireu's life.
…And besides, it was quite amusing to see another side of the usually so placid Rireu.