To Distant Lands (11)
"High Priestess, what has happened?"
Ekuya, chieftain of the Serhang, had sensed the subtle shift in the village's air that settled in before and after the conversation.
The chieftain of the Bigabol seemed not to have noticed, but as a native of the village, Ekuya was different. Something had occurred.
"I shall tell you now."
He seized the moment while the Bigabol chieftain conversed with his own companions and asked the High Priestess.
The woman who had served as High Priestess since long before he ever became chieftain leaned in slightly and whispered the news. He knew he must not show it, yet the words nearly made him leap to his feet unbidden.
"W-what did you say?"
"Compose yourself. You must not let it show."
"Y-yes, of course."
Ekuya managed to straighten his posture, yet the wild pounding in his chest would not settle so easily.
Naturally not—a warrior who had cloaked himself in black mana like a second skin and overturned the forest like a whirlwind!
When he first heard the man had slain Chivanung, he had thought the outsider a remarkable warrior indeed. But now that he had heard this as well, the outsider was no mere "remarkable warrior."
That warrior would have been called a "hero" had he been a resident of the Great Forest.
"I… I wish to speak with the guest. Of course the Bigabol chieftain is curious about him as well, so we ought to invite him before everyone… but, ah, might we have permission?"
Ekuya had become chieftain at a young age after the previous chieftain's early passing. He conducted himself in a manner befitting his station, yet he could not erase his yearning for heroes.
For the first time in a long while, the chieftain showed a small boy's greed. Had the Bigabol chieftain not been visiting, he would have been clinging to the High Priestess's waist and pleading by now.
In truth, even now the fact that he would have to meet the man together with the Bigabol chieftain left him thoroughly disappointed.
"About that…"
"I-is it difficult?"
"…He has expressed a wish to depart early."
"Is that so…"
Whether the Bigabol chieftain wished to converse with the stranger no longer mattered.
Having shouldered so great a debt of gratitude, it was their responsibility to persuade the Bigabol chieftain. Extracting any further consideration from their guest would be shameless.
And yet, and yet…
Ekuya could not suppress his regret. He had so wanted to speak with that great warrior! He had so wanted to witness the majestic figure that had driven off the warriors of the Jatav…!
"Is something the matter, Chieftain of the Serhang?"
"Ah, no. Come, let us go. I am told preparations are complete at the sparring grounds as well."
Yet a boy could not remain a boy. Ekuya swiftly donned the face of a chieftain once more and attended to the Bigabol chieftain.
"High Priestess, until our benefactor departs, attend him with every care so that he lacks for nothing. I place my trust in you."
"Do not worry."
It was time to move to the grounds of the goodwill sparring match.
"It really does eat mana…"
Archmage and I closely examined the Jahukaya we had captured.
More precisely, Archmage alone observed the snakes while I simply stood behind him in indifferent watchfulness.
For reference, three of the four snakes had each been locked in cages woven from living wood. The remaining one had been released into a fully enclosed room and was currently under ongoing observation.
Even if they ate mana, they could not eat leather, earth, or wood, so there was no fear of escape. I was here as well in case any of them attacked Archmage.
—What on earth is this?
"Ah, so you finally checked."
—What happened?
"Something did happen, though I cannot decide whether to call it good news or bad."
—What is it?
Archmage began conversing with White Wind through something that resembled a crystal sphere.
Perhaps because of the mana radiating from it, the snake that had been greedily gobbling the mana orbs Archmage had prepared—like a pigeon snatching bread crumbs—slithered toward him.
Crunch.
"Was it a suicide seeker?"
No, you old man. When you see a snake coming, move. Do not just stand there.
I nearly jumped out of my skin and stomped the thing underfoot.
"I knew you would save me, so what of it?"
This human??
—What is that snake?
"A snake that eats mana."
—…What?
"I do not know whether it was created by the same method as the one we killed. But I confirmed with my own two eyes that it eats mana. Ah, and for reference, we captured four this time, so there is no fear of losing them—"
—Bring them here at once! You said you confirmed they eat mana, correct?! Can you show me that again—
I let White Wind's near-screaming torrent wash over me and checked the snake under my boot.
I had stepped hard in my haste—its head was not crushed, right? Ah, no. Still alive.
I carefully picked up the snake flicking its tongue and placed it into its dedicated container. It hissed and kept trying to push its face outward.
Looking at it this long, it was almost cute.
—They are mass-producing mana-eating snakes?! Are they insane are they insane?!
"You failed your spacing there."
—What are you talking about!
If it eats mana, does it eat mine as well?
I gathered mana above my fingertip in the same manner I would form a mana spear. Black mana coalesced into a round mass.
If I stretched it long and launched it, it would become a mana spear. I had not formed it with that intention, though.
Chomp.
The snake bit my finger and the mana at the same time. Hey.
"What are you doing?"
If he catches me playing with an animal, the concept is done for.
I calmly extracted my finger from the snake's mouth—since it had bitten the gauntlet, it neither hurt nor proved difficult to free—and closed the lid.
I had been facing away from Archmage, so he could not have seen the finger-biting.
—I will send people as well, so hurry and return!
"Understood."
Closing the lid alone still left me uneasy, so I bound it with cord the same way the others had been secured. The gift bundle for the Magic Tower was complete.
"Well then, now that we have made contact, let us be off."
Huh, are we just leaving without saying goodbye? To the chieftain or the High Priestess or the Bigabol chieftain? Weren't we unable to leave because departing without conversation would be rude?
"After you have done this much for them, they will not demand more. Whatever becomes of the alliance, the Serhang will not be able to blame us."
Hmm, I felt as though I understood and yet did not.
I listened to Archmage while lifting the bundle. Normally I would have made my companion carry everything, but since the one traveling with me happened to be Archmage, I simply took it all myself.
Our mage must not work himself into a ruinous illness.
"Y-you are leaving already?"
It turned out there was no need.
Once the Serhang learned we were departing, they assigned people to serve as porters. It was the hunter I had saved from Chibinung.
"I must repay the favor at least in this way. Ah, entrust the road to the border to me as well! I will guide you by the shortest and safest path!"
"These hunters are the finest pathfinders in the tribe. Please do not refuse them."
The way they looked at me felt oddly burdensome, yet after every exploit it was always like this no matter where I went, so I grew used to it quickly.
I watched the two hunters take the luggage and savored the silence.
No one approached, and with the language barrier there was no need to answer, so it was perfect for chewing on stillness.
It was the sort of silence that invited every stray thought. There was nothing to focus on, no one to interrupt, and the tasks ahead were simple.
In other words, there was no need to read the room with mere atmosphere and guesswork.
Thus I indulged in it to my heart's content.
A dazed sense of whether the quest in this place had truly ended with this. A premonition that if this region possessed a main quest, it would surely intertwine with these power struggles. A light suspicion that the Jatav had raised mana-eating snakes and that those might be linked to demons—I nurtured such musings lightly.
If only there had been a quest window.
Then, for a moment, my thoughts veered sideways. The quest window. The worry I had postponed finally forced its way through a crack in my mind.
In that instant every sound around me grew muffled. A high-pitched ringing cut through the dullness with crystalline clarity.
My hand rose of its own accord and pressed palm-first against my ear, my temple. I could not press both sides, so I could only dig hard into the right.
"Are you all right?"
Two seconds, three.
Archmage looked at me. Though I had pressed my head with my palm, I had not been acting like someone with a headache, so I could not understand why he would say such a thing.
Had I let something show in my expression?
"What."
That must not happen. I hurriedly sealed my thoughts away.
At least until I was alone. Until I reached a place where I need not fear for my life no matter what emotion I poured out, I had to keep them locked.
"No, your expression…"
Oh my god. I must truly have failed to manage my face.
Tsk. Getting smacked in the back of the head with a character collapse… that cannot be it, right? It really cannot be??
After I had desperately performed the courtship dance—no, the little act of pretending to be the Demon Knight—so hard.
Archmage, whatever you noticed, just let it slide this once. Just this once. I will keep diligently playing the Demon Knight concept from now on.
"You."
I lowered my hand and focused on Archmage. I could not afford to miss even a single word.
"If there is any problem, please tell me."
If I missed even one… more than that, this again?
I scrunched my face at the thought that the "are you all right physically" and "blab about the seal" rush was starting once more. The gesture mixed more sincerity than acting.
"None of your business."
"Demon Knight."
Yes, yes. As if I do not know what you are fretting over. Of course I know. I know.
I am of an age where I can accept someone else's nagging as concern, but hearing this much still makes my temper rise.
As for the concept—since I carry a demon, I will allow a certain degree of restraint, which is why I have endured until now—but even that has its limits, does it not? One needs an ordinary temper at least.
"I—"
"It seems you have begun to take me lightly."
Ah, damn. Now that I think of it, I forgot to mention the seal again. Ah. Disgusting.
But bringing it up here feels a bit off, right? Right. Let us postpone it a little longer. If needed I can simply skip telling Archmage and get extra reserves only from White Wind.
"I have allowed you a great deal. Truly a great deal."
Instead I took one step closer to him.
The high-pitched ringing still had not faded. That irritated me a little. Not anger—just a faint irritation. The subtle annoyance that came with it.
"Do not cross any further."
…So this is not taking it out on him. It will not be.
It must not be.
Someone who cannot control their own emotions and dumps them on another is far too unsightly.
Therefore this, this is simply concept work. The concept was about due to get angry soon enough.
The one who is most wary of the demon is myself; the one who suffers the most stress because of it is also myself—so how angry would I be if someone else poked at it?
"…I."
As if he had not expected me to come out this way, Archmage stammered.
"…I am sorry."
Still, he did apologize in the end. I did not want to hear it. It had not been his fault.
"It is a bit awkward to say when everything is already prepared, but how about resting a little before we go?"
"Unnecessary."
The demon is not going to burst out. Really. We can just go, so why are you like this. Archmage seems to be developing more and more of an obsession with safety. I would probably do the same in his place, but still.
"It is because I am tired."
Ah, it seems the obsession has developed not in Archmage but in me. Awkward.
I thought I was the one who had been delaying things because of myself.
"…How weak."
I deliberately covered the visible truth. In any case I needed time as well. Time to separate my emotions from the concept.
…Once they mix, there is no more fun after that.
"…Is there some problem?"
"No, there is not. More importantly, might we delay departure a little? He is proud and does not like to show weakness, yet somehow it seems the aftereffects of the poison remain."
"Of course. We shall prepare a place again. Then, a healer as well…"
"A healer is unnecessary. He will certainly refuse in anger. Instead… the medicinal tea the High Priestess gave us earlier. Might we receive a little more?"
"We shall certainly provide it."
"My thanks."
Ah, but how long does he plan to rest? If it will be a while, can I close my eyes for a bit? My fatigue gauge is a little ambiguous.
BOOM!
"…?!"
"Th-the training ground!"
Ah, right. I cannot.
"That is where the chieftain is…!"
"Send people at once! Run!"
I squeezed my eyes shut as I looked toward the side of the village where the explosion had sounded.
I clearly have no quest window, yet I cannot understand why the quests feel so vividly present.
I am slowly reaching my limit.