Chapter 4
Chapter 4
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Translator: crow
Chapter Title: The Heavenly Killing Star Grows
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Enoch glanced around at the serene forest landscape.
The place he'd wandered before meeting Lione had been a forest too, but somehow, this one felt different from that one.
"Today, I'll teach you about the forest."
Lione looked especially cheerful today.
Maybe because she loved the woods so much—her long ears were even twitching perkily.
[Do I really need to learn even this? It's not like I'll be coming back here much once I return to the human world anyway.]
"That's not something you can know for sure, Undine. You need to prepare for any situation."
Truth be told, Lione was just teaching Enoch like she would a young elf, but she made an excuse anyway.
Come to think of it, it didn't sound wrong.
"I like forest too."
[Whoa, was that the first time she's spoken a full sentence? I thought I'd die from frustration waiting, but hey, her speech is improving.]
Zap!
[Gyaaah!? What the hell are you doing, you little brat!]
With a grumpy expression, Enoch fired a thin bolt of lightning and quickly hid behind Lione.
"Undine, I told you to speak nicely."
[Whoa, whoa...! Seriously! I'm going insane!]
Undine clutched the back of her neck and collapsed at the sight of her ungrateful friend.
The fallen spirit was automatically unsummoned, but Lione paid it no mind.
She'd be resummoned on her own in about five minutes and start splashing around again anyway.
Lione shot a glare at the spot where her useless friend had been, straightened her posture, and looked at Enoch.
"The forest is a kind friend that gives us so much. Oh, right, Enoch. Do you remember how to write the character for 'forest'?"
Enoch nodded and traced it on the dirt floor with his finger.
Lione nodded in satisfaction at the correct spelling.
"Our Enoch is so smart. Good job."
Lione ruffled the beaming Enoch's hair wildly and continued.
"Anyway, just because the forest is a kind friend doesn't mean we can treat it roughly, right?"
"Yeah."
"In the forest, we only take what we absolutely need, and we have to know how to protect it if someone tries to harm it. It'd be trouble if the forest got upset, wouldn't it?"
Nod, nod. Enoch nodded with a blank expression.
Knowing he always listened well, Lione led the child through the woods.
"This is a deer-truffle mushroom. It's delicious when grilled. Oh, should we take some? Let's have it for lunch today."
Round, black mushrooms like a deer's nose went into the basket.
"This is bristle-thorn weed. If you have digestion issues, boil it after washing well in water, and it'll get better right away."
Enoch examined the bristle-thorn weed closely.
With its rough, prickly hairs, it looked like it'd taste awful if eaten raw.
"Oh, there's a rabbit over there. This forest has lots of animals. Deer, wolves, wild boars, bears too."
The forest Lione had tended with such care was abundant.
It was probably one of the best forests to live in on the continent.
That was when it happened.
- Prrrk!
Enoch's ears perked up at the faint sound.
Lione smiled faintly and explained.
"Perfect timing. It's a wild boar. Want to follow quietly?"
"Yeah."
Lione moved lightly on her feet.
She walked as if it were nothing, yet there was no sound, not even a hint of presence.
Enoch watched her in fascination and tried his best to imitate her.
"Hee hee."
Lione smiled warmly at how Enoch's presence diminished bit by bit, second by second.
And soon,
"Shh."
The two, hidden in the brush, peeked out.
There, a wild boar was munching on fruit.
"It's huge, isn't it?"
Nod, nod.
"If we catch it, we could eat for a whole month and still have some left... Hmm... Maybe not?"
Thinking about it, Enoch ate a tremendous amount.
If it were back when Lione lived alone, she might not have bothered hunting it, but now, with him, they could probably finish it without issue.
"So, Enoch, want to try catching it?"
At Lione's words, Enoch nodded.
And right away,
Zap!
He scattered currents of electricity and leaped up into a tree.
The oblivious wild boar grazed leisurely.
Enoch's eyes narrowed as he watched it.
Lione was expecting great things, so failure wasn't an option.
As quickly and stealthily as possible.
Cut off its breath in an instant.
"Suuu...."
Enoch held his breath, waiting for the right moment.
Then,
Whoosh—
A gust of wind blew.
A single leaf brushed past the boar's side, and its gaze shifted.
An opening.
Zap!
With a crackle of electricity, Enoch's form shot forward swiftly.
"Squeeeek!?"
The boar noticed and widened its eyes, but it was too late.
As Enoch closed in, he leaned back, clenched his fist.
Rumble—!
With a thunderclap, the punch slammed into the boar.
"Kyeeeek!"
But the boar was no pushover.
Living in this bountiful forest and absorbing trace mana, it was no ordinary beast.
The boar staggered, its eyes fierce.
Insolent human.
I'll snap your waist in two.
But the human was nowhere in sight.
As the boar looked around, thump—something heavy landed on its back.
"Squeeeek!?"
Enoch, mounted on the boar's back, gripped its bristles tightly.
The boar began to buck wildly.
If he held on too long, Enoch would tire.
In an instant, Enoch calculated and acted.
He wrapped lightning around his teeth and bit into the boar's nape.
Crunch───!!
"Kuuueeeek...!!"
The boar shrieked at the top of its lungs.
"No, don't bite it, Enoch...!!"
Even Lione cried out in shock.
Why bite with teeth when you have perfectly good limbs!
Combat was supposed to be brutal, sure, but that was hardly educational.
"Huh?"
Seeing Lione's horrified face, Enoch lifted his head.
Ptoo! He spat out the chunk of flesh, blood dripping from his mouth.
The boar, weakened and unsure what hit it, staggered.
Well... she did say not to bite.
Compliant, Enoch wrapped electricity around his hand.
And then, smash!
He smashed down on the torn flesh like he meant to pulverize it, and the boar shuddered before collapsing.
Enoch hopped down from the fallen boar and stared blankly at Lione.
[...Crazy brat. Barbarian. Heavenly Killing Star.]
He ignored Undine, who had returned unnoticed.
"Enoch, you can't do that."
In a true pinch, there was no choice sometimes.
Survival came first.
But if that became a habit, it could cause problems once Enoch ventured outside.
Even if Lione didn't know much about humans, she doubted they had a culture of suddenly biting someone's nape.
"...Yeah."
At Lione's scolding, Enoch hung his head dejectedly.
"Wha—I'm not really scolding you, Enoch! Don't look so down!"
"Yeah...."
"But you did great! There aren't many humans your age who could take down a boar like that, right?"
[There are plenty, aren't there?]
"Undine!"
[Guh!?]
Lione stuffed her meddlesome friend into her pocket and smiled gently.
"You're not hurt anywhere, are you?"
"No."
"Want to explore the forest a bit more? Or head home and rest?"
"More exploring."
"Shall we?"
Lione tapped Enoch's cheek with her finger.
Water droplets materialized in the air, cleanly washing away the blood splatters on him.
"Alright, let's go!"
*
After a noisy forest expedition, the group returned home.
Lione grabbed the drowsy Enoch—who had bathed and was nodding off—and made him finish his studies before stretching languidly.
"Uuuugh...!"
Her fair skin glowed brightly in the deepening sunlight.
She gathered her golden, silk-like hair over one shoulder and asked the pouting Enoch,
"Naptime feels a bit awkward right now. Want me to teach you some more martial arts?"
Studies were boring, but martial arts training was fun.
Enoch nodded eagerly.
"Alright then... Let me think."
Lione headed to the yard, rummaging through her mental library.
Compiling the knowledge from her long life could fill a library, so she selected a suitable technique and recalled it.
"Yes, this should do nicely."
Furious Eagle Claw Technique.
A claw technique mimicking the movements of an enraged hawk.
Claw techniques involved curling fingers like beast claws to rip enemies apart.
Since Enoch had instinctively fought in a similar way, it seemed like a good match.
"You already learned the basics of fist techniques last time, so this probably won't be too hard either."
Fist and claw techniques were distinct, but they shared similarities.
Plus, the Furious Eagle Claw Technique was fundamentally a basic one.
Not overly difficult, it should be fine for Enoch to learn.
"Here."
Lione crooked her finger, and plant stems burst from the ground, forming a scarecrow.
"Try copying... Huh?"
Lione watched as Enoch waved his hands in the air.
Wondering what he was doing, she saw him squeezing out mana to draw a pattern.
"Huh...!?"
And that pattern resembled the spell Lione had just used.
Enoch had memorized the flow of mana from that fleeting moment and was replicating it.
- Crackle──!
The crudely completed magic circle finally took effect.
Electricity surged from the ground, briefly outlining a scarecrow shape before scattering.
A close look at the soil revealed a tiny scorched sprout.
"Oh my god...!"
Our kid's a genius...!
Undine shoved aside the excited Lione and grumbled.
[Does she have talent for magic too? Doesn't suit her at all.]
Just looking at her, she seemed more the type to barbarically bite everything in sight than learn magic.
That kid can actually speak properly if she wants— is she just playing dumb?
"Grrr...."
Lione hugged the growling Enoch tightly to calm him, then hoisted him up.
"Enoch! Want big sis to teach you magic!?"
Enoch rolled his eyes at the ecstatic Lione.
More things to learn weren't ideal, but...
"Want me to teach you!?"
There was no refusing that.
In the end, Enoch grinned and nodded.
"Yay!"
Lione cheered.