Storm Clouds Over Baidu (3)

The highest rank I had seen among any Master or Fairy until now was 4-Star.

The Blood Axe King, who had ruled Chinnimoni. Haggis, ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠the Fairy from Palos's Bird who had come to kill him. Prince Pazniri. Chae Gillard. The list went on. I myself was only one level away from becoming a 4-Star.

But every powerhouse I had ever met — myself included — was nothing in front of this 7-Star Fairy. Plasma.

Oscal Goldenheire.

That was the name of this 7-Star Fairy's Master. The instant I saw it, I understood exactly who owned this monster — and exactly why he was this strong.

Because the name Oscal Goldenheire was famous. Especially here in Baidu, there was not a soul who did not know it.

The Witch Queen.

Anyone who lived in Baidu knew the name of the queen who ruled it. No — not just Baidu. Was there anyone anywhere who didn't know that name?

And I was certain of one more thing.

That Witch Queen bitch... she's 8-Star.

In Fairy Masters, the Witch Queen had appeared as a 7-Star. In this world — the real one — she was an 8-Star Master.

"Hah..."

A hollow laugh slipped out of me on its own.

What was it I had told myself? That she might become an enemy someday, so I should memorize every scrap of information about her, no matter how trivial?

If I could meet yesterday's me, I would slap him across the face. Forget that idiotic plan. I should have been figuring out how to get a line to her — any line at all. If the Witch Queen told me to lick her feet, borrowing a page from Oralisa, I ought to drop to my knees and do it gratefully. That was where I stood right now.

In this city, the day you got on the Witch Queen's bad side was the day you boarded a one-way trip to hell.

Aquaril and Oralisa — my Fairies — would die. Kanisia, Abraham, the rest of my party — they would die. And I would die too.

Even if I could burn gems to come back to life, I would still end up dead. Because even if I emptied every last gem I had, I would never so much as graze a single hair on the Witch Queen's head.

That was when Plasma, walking alongside Prince Pazniri, seemed to feel my gaze. He turned his head and looked straight at me.

A sharp, electric jolt shot through my body.

The instant our eyes met, every hair on my skin stood on end, as if I had been struck by lightning. Plasma was about my height — I was sure of that — and yet he felt impossibly enormous, towering over me like a giant.

That giant came walking toward me. A sword cleared the sheath at his hip. He swung it at my neck.

I-I'm going to die...!

I could not move. I was an animal frozen before its natural predator. There was no way to dodge the blade drifting slowly, inevitably, toward my throat.

Death.

Was this how I died?

...Bullshit!

I forced my jaw to work and bit down hard on the tip of my tongue. The lock on my body shattered. I threw myself sideways and rolled.

Then the voices hit me.

"Hey, what's wrong with you all of a sudden?"

"Master, are you all right?"

"Lord Alan?"

"...Huh?"

My party's voices yanked me back. I looked around.

The giant who had been swinging a sword at my head was gone. Plasma himself was standing a good distance away.

"W-what the hell just happened? I swear there was a sword just now..."

"A sword? What sword? More importantly — did you two rehearse that?"

"What? Rehearse what with who?"

"You and that guy over there. You both hit the dirt at the exact same time."

"What?"

Kanisia pointed to the other side.

"Hey. What are you doing?"

I followed her finger. A man was sitting on the ground the same way I was.

The 4-Star mage who had been the first to notice the magic woven through the Witch Queen's palace. Chae Gillard.

He blinked around in a daze, then his eyes found mine.

I knew it on instinct. That man had seen the same illusion I had.

He had reached the same conclusion. The two of us turned our heads toward Plasma at the exact same moment.

"Two of them... not bad."

Plasma was looking at both of us. And he was smiling, as if something had pleased him.

Two of them sensed my aura. Not bad at all.

Plasma looked down at the two men sitting dazed on the ground, staring up at him — Alan and Chae — and a satisfied smile spread across his face.

The Witch Queen, ruler of Baidu and one of the most powerful mages in all of Gaiarium, had given her Fairy a secret order before sending him out with the subjugation force.

"Useful people, you mean?"

"That's right, Plasma. They say heroes are born in chaotic times, don't they? I ought to use this opportunity to recruit some worthwhile talent."

"I'll follow my Master's command, of course... but will there even be anyone who meets your standards? If I'm being honest, Master, your eye is a little on the high side, isn't it?"

"Ahem. Plasma. That is disrespectful."

Kid, the Fairy standing behind the Witch Queen, cleared his throat and called out the remark.

Plasma only smiled. The look he gave Kid was the look of ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠an older brother regarding a cute younger sibling.

"Hey, little bro. Our Master actually loves it when you talk to her all casual and familiar. Says it makes her heart race, or something like that. You should try it on her sometime. She'd dote on you."

"W-what on earth are you saying?"

"I'm telling you, Master loves that casual talk. Come on, Master — tell him. You don't like it?"

"....."

"See? She loves it."

"...Master?"

Kid froze. A flush had crept into the Witch Queen's cheeks. Should I start talking to her that way too? He considered it in complete seriousness.

"But didn't you say you were going to raise Prince Pazniri this time? Why the sudden order to go find more useful people?"

"...They say you shouldn't put all your eggs in one basket. No ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠one knows whether a phoenix will hatch, or a chick, or nothing at all. So I intend to gather a great many eggs. I've already collected seven dragons. Now it's time to gather phoenixes."

"One of those dragons still hasn't finished growing, you know. Still a young one."

Kid, who had been turning the phrase over, shot Plasma a glare. He knew perfectly well who the young dragon was supposed to be.

"The young dragon can grow alongside the phoenixes. Once those phoenixes become useful enough, the young dragon will make his majesty known to the entire world."

"Make his majesty known to the entire world... So you've finally set your ambition, Master."

Plasma's face lit with a brilliant smile, as if her decision genuinely delighted him. He stepped in close to his Master and whispered against her ear.

A low, smoldering whisper, warm breath against her skin — and that casually intimate tone she liked so much on top of it. Whether from pleasure or from the effort of holding herself together, the Witch Queen's hand trembled. Her face flushed so deep it looked ready to burst.

Kid watched, and made a decision.

Starting tomorrow, he was going to talk to his Master that way too.

Back to the matter at hand. His Master, the Witch Queen, did not want more Fairies like himself. She wanted useful Masters as her subordinates.

He would give his life for her without hesitation. That was as true of Plasma, a 7-Star powerhouse, as it was of anyone.

So the moment he spotted the Masters gathered at the west gate, he had unleashed his aura. Anyone who reacted to it was worth using.

And the ones who had reacted were two men.

One was a black-haired Master with a fighter's solid build. The other was a red-haired Master who looked like a mage. The rest had not even felt his aura. They were out.

If Plasma had genuinely intended to kill, every Master and Fairy assembled here would have died without ever knowing how. The gap between him and the people in this square was that vast.

"Commander. Do you know who those two Masters are?"

"Who... hmm. Ah. The red-haired mage is Chae Gillard, and the black-haired warrior is Alan Han. Why do you ask?"

"It's nothing. Please take command of the expedition, Commander Pazniri."

"...Would you perhaps consider taking command yourself, Lord Plasma? If so, then I..."

Tsk.

Plasma clicked his tongue inwardly at Prince Pazniri's attempt to hand off the commander's seat. His exalted Master had given the man an opportunity more precious than a thousand gold coins, and he was trying to kick it away with his own two feet. Foolish did not begin to cover it.

Not that Plasma couldn't understand the impulse.

Prince Pazniri was not a combat mage who took the field and erased enemies with magic. He was a scholar — the type who shut himself in a study and did nothing but research, day and night. He was a coward besides. Even when they cleared dungeons, he hung back and left everything to his Fairies.

If they had lost even half as many talented people in the battle against Baidu's former ruler, the Mirage Queen, Pazniri would never have been called a prince at all.

Be that as it may, Master gave Pazniri this chance. That will is to be followed.

"Prince Pazniri — or rather, Commander. I will take responsibility for your safety, so please don't worry yourself. No matter what enemy lurks out there in the desert, not a single hair on your head will be harmed. All you need to do is carry out your duties as commander with peace of mind."

"...I understand. Thank you, Lord Plasma."

Prince Pazniri, who failed to notice that the words had been delivered with a lick of the lips, was deeply moved.

"Hina. Go check if everyone has arrived."

"Yes, Master."

Perhaps Plasma's encouragement had given ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠him a sliver of confidence, because Prince Pazniri ordered his Fairy Hina to take attendance. None of the Masters could have afforded the enormous penalty for breaking contract, so every last one of them had already been at the assembly point for some time.

After a modest but brief departure ceremony, the subjugation force — some three hundred strong — filed out through the gates.

Ah, shit. I think I'm completely fucked.

I bit my lip, staring at the back of the 7-Star Fairy walking ahead of us on his own two feet, not even bothering with a carriage.

I had a rough idea of the Snake Bandits' real strength. I had been certain that without the Witch Queen or one of her Fairies showing up, the bandit suppression would end in failure. And I had built my entire operation around betting on the expedition's defeat.

The first subjugation force had to lose. That was the only way the Witch Queen would stop taking the Snake Bandits lightly.

I had joined the first expedition anyway because I couldn't bring myself to walk away from the gains I could skim along the way. I had been confident I could extract myself from the battlefield — no, extract my whole party — whenever I needed to.

Penny-wise, pound-foolish. That's the saying, isn't it? Lose the greater prize by chasing after scraps.

But could you really just walk past a small, delicious piece of bait sitting right there in front of you?

I sure as hell couldn't.

I would eat the small prize and keep the big one too.

What, you think I'm too greedy?

Well, what can I say? That's just the kind of bastard I am.

Anyway. The important thing was that I had bet on the expedition's defeat, and Plasma's appearance had completely wrecked my—

Wait. Not completely. A plan is just a plan. You can revise it depending on the situation, right? I bet on a loss, but the game hasn't even started yet. I can still pull that bet back. Fine. This time I'm betting on a win.

The profits I stood to make would shrink, sure. But coming away with something was better than coming away with nothing.

Not bad. No — actually, this is good.

War clouds were gathering over Baidu. And the fact that I was the one who had brought them made it all the sweeter.