《The Strongest Wizard Becomes a Countryside Guardsman After Taking an Arrow to the Knee》 Chapter 01 - An Oldie Like Me with an Arrow to the Knee

Chapter 01 C An Oldie Like Me with an Arrow to the Knee

Trantor: Ranzan I came at the Demon Lord with some really shy magic, because I wanted the guy to pay attention to me. The amount of magic you throw at someone is sometimes more important than raw strength. No real damage. ButI was purposely faking it, so that was fine. As I was tossing the magic at him, I looked at our hero Cruz, who was being healed. The hero had jumped at the Demon Lord too quickly and now he was caught in a trap and was injured. I had no time to stop. Cruz was a strong kid, though. Way stronger than 15 years C Its obvious now, but way stronger than I was at 15. Still, you have to say the kid is still really naive when ites to battle. Because of that, in order to help him out, they needed a veteran like me as support. Hey, hero! Are you still stuck?! I asked the kid, pouring more magical force into my attack so the Demon Lord wouldnte after him. Just a little more! Our partys healer Yureena shouted, and Cruz finally responded, Thank you! Im okay. It was admirable seeing that kid standing up again. Youre pretty tough! I shoutedYureenas healing spells work wonders. However, even with all of that healing magic, the heros recovery speed too was phenomenal. I sped up my magic attacks even more. I had attacked the Demon Lord previously just to distract him C now it was time to do some real damage. The Demon Lord was now being woundedover and over. Youuuuu bastttaaarddsss! The Demon Lord shouted at us, as I blew his right arm off. Then the force knocked him to the ground. Our little party was humming. Without even saying a word, the hero ran in with perfect timing. The Demon Lord was totally focused on me. The hero made a hole right through the enemys heart with a holy sword. Gaggghhhhhggguughh! The Demon Lord growled with a final gurgle; his scream reverberated through the room. Basssttaaarddd His breath was fading in gasps, but our enemy red not at the hero that stabbed himhe fixed his eyes on me. If only youuuu neverrr Nah, if youre pissed at someone, you have to be pissed at the hero. The hero stabbed you, right? I said with a smirk at the hero. No matter how strong the warriors and magicians were previously that faced him, no one could kill this Demon Lord. I just needed a hero to stab this guy for me, as he was a Demon Lord C no one could kill him with normal means. Even after blowing the guys arm off, it would regenerate in less than five minutes. The only person that could cut through this Demon Lords cursed protection was a hero that had divine protection of holiness. Since this hero could beat the Demon Lord, well, Cruz is worthy of being called one. But the enemy still kept ring at me. Neverforgiveyouonlllyyyyouuuu. The Demon Lords disconnected right arm suddenly awakened with a light and shot a dozen magic arrows at me. ALFRED! I heard the hero scream at me, so I reacted. I was toote. We had eased up too muchafter thinking that we had crushed this difficult enemy at the end of a long journey. I quickly cast a magic barrier and knocked down all the arrows flung at me. But one arrowI couldnt dodge. My left knee! The magic arrow plunged deep into my kneecap. I looked at the Demon Lord after enduring this freshly new yet severe pain. Heh. I saw the Demon Lord make something like an awkward smile at me. In the same instant, the hero chopped his head off, and said, Alfred, Im sorry! If I had just killed him faster! The hero was almost ready to cry. No, Im the fool here, I eased up too much. The hero made a distressed face, even more so than when in the Demon Lords trap, being injured. A nice kid. That must be why God chose the kid as a hero. One of the warriors in the party, Luka, jumped back when she saw my knee. Whoa! Look at all that blood, did it break your kneecap in half?! Dont say stuff like that! Cant you see hes in pain?! Sorry! The warriorsughed in their own sarcastic way. No bad intentions. She was just trying to make sceneless tense. Alfred, Ill use some healing magic on it. The healer ran up as fast as she could next to me. She was what you could call a holy woman. A super-restorer. Yeah, sorry for letting myself get messed up. Please. Sure! The healer used the strongest healing magic she had on my knee. Normally the blood would instantly stop and the pain with it. Butit was still painful. And the blood kept pouring. What? Thats strange. The healer looked lost. When a healer says something like thats strange, it scares the hell out of youso better not to say it at all. As a result, the hero started freaking out. What the hell happened?! My magic spell didnt work! Whaaaaa? The hero turned pale. No way. All the warriors looked at my injury silently. I looked at the most veteran of the warriors and asked. What do you think? Well, that Demon Lord looked like he had quite some power left. What does that mean? Well, its got to be an arrow around as strong as an immortal-killer arrow. I mean, you do see people shoot stuff like this when theyre about to die. Since it was shot just as he was dying, it has a curse almost like one of those immortal-killer arrows. Immortal-killer? But Im not immortal. I mean its so strong it could kill an immortal. Sounds scary. It will never heal. It cant be healed with magic. Thats what the immortal-killer curse does. Well, that sucks. It cut the artery on the back side of my knee. If I cant stop the blood, Ill die quickly. Wahaaa, Alfred, noooo! The hero looked as me with tears and was shaking. Ow, oww, now Ill die quicker than I thought I would. I smiled and said sarcastically. Best to put grin and bear it. Well, it was right before tax time, so better to die now. Also, its nice to die right after you beat that damn Demon Lord. But, at the same time, I didnt want to die. As soon as I was getting ready to ept it, IIm going to try something! The healer whispered with a resolved look. I and all the others looked at her. Butshe just said healing magicwouldnt work. Even if normal healing magic doesnt work, Ive got to try something. We healers arent pushovers! She said with a smile. I had no idea what she would do, but if I did nothing, Id die. Best to try. Okay, please. The healer nodded strongly. She held her staff aloft, a magic sphere grew into a ball, and suddenly shone. The blood stopped. The pain became bearable. phew, that went okay. The healer almost toppled over at the huge amount of magic she expended and was caught as she fell by the hero. It was close to immortal-killer strength, but luckily it wasnt that strong. I used my strongest healing magic and mixed it with purifying magicand used it all on you. Even though the healer waspletely spent, she still smiled proudly. The other warriors all looked at her with eyes of respect. I had to respect the woman too. Thanks, you saved me. But, because of the injury, you still will take time to heal. Be careful, okay? The exhausted healer again smiled. As we returned, Are you okay? The warrior whispered to me. Why are you asking if Im okay? Your knee, right? It hurt like crazy, but you cant just say that in front of a healer that just healed you. Thanks to her, the blood stopped. I chose words that wouldnt be seem like a lie. thats not what Im asking about. What does that mean? She healed the blood and almost all the broken kneecap, but theres still the immortal-killer effectits not gone. Hm? So it hurts, right? yeah. Like crazy. Lukas warrior pokerface seemed to be a bit troubled by my response. If its so bad and you cant go on, just tell us, okay? Yeah, thanks. So like that, the killing of the Demon Lord was finished with no one hurt. Wellone thing hurtmy knee. ahguys, a little help, my knee is killing me Chapter 02 - Success! Celebration! …and FLEEING!

Chapter 02 C Sess! Celebration! and FLEEING!

Trantor: Ranzan Our sess against the Demon Lord spread around the kingdomand there was much rejoicing. The hero and everyone in the party were dragged to celebrations over sessive nights and days. Of course, there was an award ceremony from the king as well. Those one step down from the hero, in other words, everyone in the party BUT the hero C got loads of royal names and medals. The hero became our Excellency, the Grand Baron. The warriors, the healer, and I all became viscounts. Viscounts that received a yearly pension, but with no royalnds. However, the royalty and titled nobility all treated us viscounts importantly. That alone made everything we went through seem like a great sess. Even more than bing viscounts was the fact that the royals were paying us for our workit was pleasing. All of the adventurer guilds immediately gave us an S Rank. It was a rank that the guild hadnt used in 200 years and was just given for our party. Normally, the ranks just go from F to A. The S Rank is the highest award given by the guild. And with pain coursing through my knee I tried to smile through countless ceremonies and events. I finally made my way home a week after my triumphant entry to the pce. - Three dayster, the warrior Luka came to visit. Al, you still rolling around in bed? Recovery is important. It had been three days since I got home and no way I was going to leave. It was a long and difficult journey to face this Demon Lord. Then all these damn parties after we got back. Im almost 40 years oldit was really rough. Of course, I had the right to lie on my ass all I wantedI mean, recover. Luka just looked at me, exasperated. You know that Cruz and Yureena left this morning to fight some magic beasts, right? Im not a kid like you all are. Hah hah, what the? Just like an old man to say that. You just found out? I am old. The heros party was all youngsters. Everyone teenagers. Cruz and Yureena were 15. Luka was 17. Instead of worrying about me, why dont you go do something? I said, and Yukaughed back at me. Yesterday I started working at the Academy. Thats right. Even though Luka is a warrior, shes also a superb student. Because of that, she must be going there for special instruction as well. I remembered that shes studying ancient writings and monster research. At 17shes an excellent student. I see. Sorry for sounding like that. Luka then walked right up to my leg. Hmmm. So how is it? She touched my knee and peered at it. It hurts, but its not something I cant take. Liar. At all those parties I could see you were in pain. She is sharp. Just like an academic. Im not lying. Its just, those damn ceremonies, you have to kneel, stand, all that. I was really tired. Just sitting down was pretty painful. I said to her, but because of the bad weather today, it really hurt. It wasnt too much to take, but I couldnt exercise at all. Hmph. Well, dont push yourself too hard, okay?! She stayed a little longer, left some medicine, and went home. She must havee just because she was worried about me. She was a kind girl. After she returned home, a new guest came. Some guy with an important office in the kingdom, a real noble. I think he was a military chief. Sir Lint. I have something to ask of you. He jumped right in after greeting me. Just like a busy military guy would. Also, myst name happens to be Lint. ah. Yes, what is it? I hadnt been called Lint for quite a while, so I was lost for a second. Only those in the middle ss and above have the name Lint, but its a normal name. Not a lot of adventurers with thest name Lint. My father was a knight, so it was strange for a guy like me with the name Lint to join some adventurers. When they were giving us adventurers our new titles, they couldnt think of myst name and someone had to remind them. The military minister stared straight at me, seriously. Sir Lint, we would like you to lead a new group of magical knights. The Demon Lord was gone, but there were still evil monsters and demons about in the kingdom. This new magical knight force would destroy all the remaining evil scattered about the kingdom, it seemed. It was quite the honor. If my mom and dad heard this they would have cried with joy. However, it was hard to think of going from battle to battle with this damn knee. Also, making my mom and dad happy was pointless C they died long ago. Thanks so much for the offer, but I thought for a bit, and refused. The military minister looked disappointed and looked at me with a persistent stare. Too bad. Im sorry, but I will have to decline. I see. Sir Lint. Perhaps you could instruct the pce magicians, then? Wha? If they see your preeminent skill, we know those foolish magicians will finally snap out of their foolishness! I thought about refusing. But, I cant refuse when someone asks urgently saying things like Just for today, orJust try it once, okay? I did refuse to be the head of the magical knights, so this new offer isnt as badpared to the first one. Thats what the military minister was trying to say. I will. Thank you very much! *** I put up with the pain in my knee and trained the pce magicians for about three hours. Then, as soon as I was on my way home, Sir Lint! The grand manager for all the guilds came up to me. He was the man that managed all the guilds, the Guild Grand Master. I had no idea what he was doing here. However, since the fellow was the top rank in the guilds as the Grand Master, he had to put in a lot of work. The adventurer guilds were separate from the kingdom as an organization. Such good fortune to see Sir Lint here while I visit the pce. I was just thinking of visiting your house, actually. The Grand Master said in a jolly tone. What is it? Yes, well, soon, we were thinking of creating a new guild in the area where thete-Demon Lord resided, and wed love for you to be chief of the guild, if that were the case. If hes building a guild in the area of the now-dead Demon Lord, that means Id have to crush magical beasts all day. Its a huge responsibilityreiming thends. If theres a shortage ofbor, the guild leader himself would have to go to the front line to fight. It would be a great promotion, but My damn knee hurts. I think the load would be a bit too much for me. Please choose someone with a bit more experience. The Grand Master giggled. Hah hah hah, youre all too humble. Humility is virtue, but too much of it can seem like sarcasm. Nothing humble about it. I had to refuse the man seriously once more and the Grand Masters face now looked very disappointed. Then he said, Ah, yes! But it must be destiny that weve met here! Ive heard that some undead have appeared near the pce! Yeah He had changed the subjectpletely, and I didnt want to follow where he was leading me. I was thinking of making a party to destroy them, Sir Lint. Could you lead them? What? Near here there are several very strong adventurers butthe area around the pce is so peaceful. If they see the magic you used for victory in that battle, they could learn much. The veterans teaching the new blood, yes, its our duty to do so. But my knee still hurtsbadly. I thought I should refuse. The kingdoms adventurers could take care of something like the undead. But, just before I couldpletely refuse the Grand Master, I found it hard to do so, since all of the sudden, PLEASE! PLEASE! PLEASE HELP ME! The Grand Master bowed deeply, and I couldnt refuse. YeahSure. I rounded up and killed all the undead, and got back before the sun went down. *** This sucks. When I arrived home, I whispered this to myself. Reeeeally sucks. My knee hurt way worse than in the morning. I had trained a dozen pce magicians, and then cleared some undead off a mountain path. And the undead werent just ghouls, they were strong liches. And there were a lot more than the Master said. I did all I could to keep those adventurers from running away. It wasnt so much as vanquishing as almost getting vanquished. If this keeps up, I and all the others with S Rank are going to be called into military service to lead the military. Dammit, this S Ranks a trap When this S rank crap was thought up by the guild and awarded to me, I remember someone telling me about the duty that came with it. It came up and I didnt really think about it. And it wasnt just the guild that was rattling this knee of mine. Of course, all the other royals outside the military guy had problems they were going to push on me. Thats why Im suddenly a viscount. When I received that rank, for the kingdom and the king, I remember I was told I had a duty to uphold. Damn, no way my knees going to hold up. Theres no way my knee is going to heal if I couldnt lie around in bed, even though I thought thats all Id do. For a long time, I thought that a loooooooooong rest would be the exact thing I needed after all the work I did as an adventurer. I get a yearly pension no matter what I do as a viscount. Its almost like an eternal paid vacation from work. From 15, when I became an adventurer, until around 40, I worked without resting, ceaselessly. And now my frigging knee hurts. A way to rest, to restto get away, get away from all this. I spent a sleepless night pondering it. The next day. I woke up early and got to the guild the same time it opened. Alfred! What is it? I gave a half-assed answer to the reception girl and looked for a quest on the wall. There were three things I needed for a good quest. - A fun sounding quest. - The quest had to be in a ce not easily essible from the pce. - It had to be a long quest. I thought all night about it, a way to get away. If I were to just screw around here, theyde at me with that duty as a S rank adventurercrap. If that was going to happen, then I should go ahead and take a job at the guild first. And I found it! Need a guard in Mulg Vige. Wolves and boars attacking the vige. Payment is food, clothing, and board. *Vige has a hot spring. The hot spring was an obvious choice. Its perfect for a recovering knee. The reward was little, but theres no problem with my yearly pension. THATS THE ONE! I took the quest request off the board and to the receptionist. Wait, youre going to take THIS, Alfred? The new girl at the guild desk looked confused. Of course, she was. An S Rank adventurer was taking an F Rank job. Yeah, please, HURRY! If it was anyter, the head of the guild would start work and he would turn me down. Why is an S Rank taking on a job like this? After all you went through, there are so many better quests to choose from, give it up, buddy I know thats what hed say. Having to deal with that crap is the worst. But the new girl filled the order without further question as she was the only one here now. Thats why I hurried toe here early in the morning. Here Still confused, she handed the approved job back to me with a look of confusion. (Yaaasssss!) I struggled as hard as I could to maintainposure, but my heart was leaping for joy. Chapter 03 - Elf Girl

Chapter 03 C Elf Girl

Trantor: Ranzan, the Mediocre With the quest requestplete, I was on my way out of the capital. It was also to get out of there before the Guild Master and the military minister noticed. Everyone suddenly knew who I was, so I put a hood over my head and jumped in a stagecoach. I rode from coach to coach, two nights, three days. Since the coach didnt go all the way, I had to walk the rest of the way to Mulg. It wasnt good for my knee, but if I walked slowly, it wouldnt be so bad. Actually, it was a great day for walking. The weather was excellent and the breeze invigorating. Damn, this feels great!! Without thinking I shouted at the top of my lungs. I took break after break while walking and after three hoursI heard amotion away from the path. It was deep inside the woods, far from the trail. Hm? It was a sound I was ustomed to. The sound of magic beasts and humans fighting. It wasnt something small either. I wrapped my knee with a cloth and hurried. You cant! Beat me! So easily! I ran to the voice and saw a magical wolf and a young elven girl facing off. The girl had a big stick and was threatening the wolf with it. Even though she was yelling loudly, she was shaking with fear. I could tell by the way she was holding the stick that she had no military training. As I got closer, the wolf turned to attack me. It was an emaciated wolf. Maybe it was thinking Id make a better meal than the girl. Youre okay?! I shouted at the girl. There wasnt even any reason to use magic with a beast like this. I dove in, dropped, grabbed its left pawunder its chin, flipped it, and beat its upturned body once into the ground. Whiinnnee The wolf quickly ran away. Thanks, sir. The elf girl politely thanked me. Sure, no worries. Are you okay? Dont call me YOU C my name is Millet. Said the girl, I mean Millet, as I looked her over. She was a cute elf girl from 14 to 15 years old. A bit small in stature with pointy, cute elf ears. Yeah, sorry. Millet. Im Alfred. Millet smiled in response to my introduction. Mister Al, thanks. She said gratefully again. As a middle-aged adventurer, I had been thanked many times. But being thanked one more time is nice. d to see youre okay, Millet. But you know you shouldnt be in a ce like this alone, right? Millets face suddenly turned sombre. My sister has a fever. Since theres no medicine left in the vige, I came here to find the ingredients for a cure. I see. Everyone in the vige told me not toe out here because of the wolves. But, my little sister looked so sick, and since shes got a disease that can be fatal So Millet was a big sister looking out for her little one. As I listened, I found out that Millet was also the viges apothecary. Two big jobs for an elf girl. So, did you get the materials? Millet shook her head. Her soft elvish ears sagged a bit. Medicinal herbs are very tasty to animals and magic beasts. I should havee out earlier in the season to pick them, but with the wolves out this time of year, I never got a chance to. So the animals eat them up and theres none left? Yes. I think theres a bit still left on the mountain though. Are you going up the mountain? Yes. Seeing Millet so sad made me want to help her. It was only one hour away from Mulg Vige. If we go now to pick medicinal herbs out there, we wouldnt make it back by sundown. Its normal for viges to shut their gates after sundown. That would mean us having to camp. But, I wasnt needed immediately in Mulg. And I was used to camping. If I were to leave Millet, she would go on looking for herbs on the mountain, and probably end up as wolfs food. That would suck to wake up to the next morning, knowing I couldve helped her stay alive. Oh well, I guess Ill help you look for the herbs. Wha? Millet looked over at me, confused. Im not in any hurry. And if I let you die, its going to suck finding that out when I wake up in the morning. Ahthanks Just show me where the herbs are growing. Sure! Millet replied happily as her elven ears shot straight up. Chapter 04 - Looking for Herbs in all the Wrong Places

Chapter 04 C Looking for Herbs in all the Wrong ces

Trantor: Ranɽ We walked through the forest with Millet guiding the way. She led us straight to a field of medicinal herbs. We had slowly made our way through the forest for over an hour from where I first met Millet. This area is known for having a mass of herbs, but I dont smell any It seems that Millet has a nose for smelling out herbs. Wherever theyre growing, their smells seems to float around. Even with her disappointment, Millet continued scouring the area, searching for a glimmer of hope. After asking her what the herb looked like, I started searching too. After a while, Millets shoulders dropped in despair. I knew it. This ce has been all eaten up too Arent there others? Theres a ce about 30 minutes walk, a cavern where a whole bunch is growing. Well, then lets go. But Is there a problem? Yes. Theres supposed to be a basilisk that started living in the cavern. The basilisk is a fearsome magical beast. Suppression Level B. With a party at B Rank, you could somehow defeat a beast like that. Of course, going solo made the task far more difficult. If you locked eyes with it, you turned to stone, and it had a poisoned tail, so going solo was almost suicide. Moreover, its blood was poison. If you split it open with a sword, you could get bathed in a spray of poisoned blood. And if you were petrified or poisoned and had no healer to back you upyou were pretty much a dead man. A basilisk? Thats scary. Yes, it is. But itll be okay. WHA? This old man is an expert at killing basilisks. I exined why to the objecting Millet and she showed me to the cavern. Do you smell the herb? I do Okay, then wait here. No, its too dangerous. Its okaaaay, okaaay. If something happens, just yell. Ill run back here. I entered the cavern. Oh, so this is the herb. The wolves must have been so afraid of the basilisk that they never entered the cavern. There was a bunch of untouched herbs just growing there. As soon as I began quickly scooping up the herbs Shhhhhhllllll I began hearing an eerie noisee from deeper inside the cavern. The basilisk wasing. I kept picking herbs, paying it no mind. The basilisk approached cautiously after not hearing me run or react in fear at it drawing near. It didnt rush at me quickly, but slowly closing in. I didnt look in its direction. That way it couldnt petrify me. But it still had that needle of poison on its tail. It judged when it hade close enough to me. I could hear the basilisk quickly whip its poisoned tail around at me. That might hurt someone! I shouted without looking its way, and quickly cast a magical barrier. The loud sound of a crash as its tail smashed against the magic wall. Guggggiiiii The basilisk seemed to gurgle with anger. Then it swung its poison tail at me again. What a nuisance. Enough with the tail! I shot the wall out and into the side of the basilisk. Guweeehhh! The basilisk flew across the cavern and into a wall. Giigigiiii But the thing still didnt give up. It again unleashed its poison tail at me. Again I knocked it away. I guess I have all I need. Since I had enough herbs, it was time to face the basilisk. But, of course, not look at it. There was no telling when this basilisk would leave the cavern. And the poison in its tail could be used for medicine. Just rememberyou forced me into doing this. As I said this, I knew the basilisks eyes were shing, relishing the idea of stabbing me with its poison tail. The basilisk struck. I ducked under the tail, picked up a small rock, and shot it with magical eleration at the basilisks unguarded head. The rock plunged between its eyes and into its brain. There was little blood. The basilisk quickly twitched and stopped moving. Its been a while since Ive had to kill a basilisk C d to know I havent lost my touch. I rxed. I knew I could beat it easily, but if I got its blood all over the cavern, then a lot of these valuable herbs would be destroyed. Even though I had enough with me now, the herbs should continue to grow here from year to year. Heeeey, Milletttttt! I called Millet, and she approached on tip-toes with a look a fear. Mr. Alare you okay? Fine. Im going to dissect this thing outside, so help me carry it. Wha? No wayyou beat it? Yup. Wwow! Millet was ecstatic. How did you beat this thing? I guess you really are good at beating basilisks, Mr. Al! A-maaazing! She was really impressed. Almost enough to make me blush. I told her how to how to defeat a basilisk while slicing the thing apart. Tails and fangs, and the eyeballsall fetched a high price. The blood also made medicine. The skin was useful. No part you could just throw away. Even though she was just an apothecary, she did an excellent job helping me dissect it. When we had finished, the sun had fallen. Time to camp out in the cavern. Yyoure right. Millet said with a bit of hesitation. Hm, oh, I know you want to hurry and get this herb back to your sister, but running through the forest at night is no fun, you know? I know that, but thats not the problem. Hm? Whats the problem then? N N? Night camps are scary! Jjust a little though! Millet suddenly looked very dainty and innocent. We both started eating one of my packed meals. Millet curled up in the nket I gave her and leaned up against the cavern wall. Sorry for borrowing your nket, are you going to be okay? Yeah, its warm. Ill be fine. Looking out, the forest was covered in shadow. I made a fire in the mouth of the cavern so that Millet wouldnt be scared and sat next to her. After a moment, I felt Millet staring in my direction. Youre not sleepy? I cant sleep yet. If you werent used to camping nights, it was almost impossible to sleep right away. Hey, Mr. Al. Why are you in a ce like this? A ce like this? Yeah, a ce like where I was, getting attacked by a wolf. Far from the path. I was walking towards a vige where someone had requested help, but I heard you getting attacked and went to look. Is that what happened? Thanks. Dont mention it. She thought a bit, and then her face filled with worry. Will the requestor be okay? Arent you going to arrivete? Im fine. There was no time period on it. So, where are you going? If its somewhere I know, I can show you. Its called Mulg Vige, I was responding to a request for a guard there. You know it? Mulg is where I live!! Millet almost shouted. Really. Well, that was good. That should make my time there even easier. I was very happy I had met her, and she said, Well, then youll be living in Mulg for a while! Thats what I expect. Really?! And after a bit more, Heh heh heh. I heard her giggle to herself. Chapter 05 - Welcome to Mulg Village!

Chapter 05 C Wee to Mulg Vige!

Trantor: zan The next morning. We started moving with the rising of the sun. Since Millet was a viger, we arrived without getting lost once. And as we arrived at the vige gate, Wee to Mulg Vige! Millet said happily. Everyone was worried when Millet didnt return home that night. And now some old guy they didnt know came home with her. Millet came back! A viger shouted after seeing us approach. One by one the vigers swirled towards us, until we were surrounded by them, Whooose the old guy? Some kid asked innocently. Millet told them about what happened while she went looking for medicine. She went on about me saving her, how strong I was,plimenting me over and over. It was embarrassing. All of the vigers said their thanks as well. Even more embarrassing. Too embarrassing, You have to make some medicine. I said, to get them focused off of me. Okay! See you Mr. Al, in a bit! She said her goodbyes and ran off. After she left, I mentioned to the vige chief that I had applied for the quest of protecting the vige of Mulg. The vigers reactions were odd. Oh! Ohyeah (Huh?) Their reaction seemed a bit different from their initial one. Is there a problem with that? Well, no problemwe just thought wed get someoneyounger. The vige chief said haltingly. Oh, I, uh, see Need a guard in Mulg Vige. Wolves and boars attacking vige. Payment is clothing, food, and board. *Vige has a hot spring. It was true that they didnt think that a veteran woulde. That meant that they were expecting a young adventurer. I guess that young men were in short number here. If things went well, they could get a husband for a girl here, and thus they were thinking they would get the person to stay here for good. However, you couldnt say that it was a good n. Young adventurers wouldnt take a mission like this. It was a dead-end. At the beginning, the chief seemed a bit lost, but then again weed me. He quickly showed me to the ce where I would be staying. It was a bungalow that was built right next to the vige gate. Sorry that this ce is so old Yeah, it was old. But it was big. No! No problem at all! With someone always camping out in the woods like me, a roof over my head was always wee. The inside of the house was dpidated, but it had a bed. I was thankful. Half of the ce was dirt floor. It had to have been a stable of some sort previously. The chief exined the job as we stood in the house. The job was mainly keeping enemies froming into the vige through the one gate open during the day. However, that was just the official work. Because no enemies were quickly making their way to attack the vige, the chief said you could pretty much just lounge around in the sun all day. In fact, I didnt even need to stand guard that the gate. Even better would be for me to help those that were farming in the vige. Hearing him exin it all, I finally had to ask. Uh, chief What is it? Do you even need a guard? It was an obvious question, and the chief shook his head. Well, the wolves outside the vige have been increasing Thats why, when someone left the vige, they needed a guard. If, by chance, a pack of wolves attacked, or perhaps a group of bandits, he wanted me to beat them back, he said with a bow. If thats all, then I can do it with no problem. Wolves and bandits were my special field. Continuing, the chief took me for a tour around the vige. About 200 people. About 60 houses and arge field surrounded by walls. Three wells. In order to get wood, we have to go to the other side of the mountain. Even with the wells, we still have to use the river. Saying that, the chief took me outside the walls to show me the mountain and river. In other words, when the vigers have to go to ces like this, Id like you to guard them. Then I will. I understood the job that Mulg Vige had for me. If thats the case, then youll be great help! As the proud vige chief said this, he had a look of great relief. It seems like youre a veteran, Alfred, so I thought that maybe you wouldnt agree to a job like this. When the old man knew that I hade to fulfill the guarding question, his hesitation probably was because he was worried Id leave. Nonono, theres nothing wrong with this job at all. Its true I am a veteran, but my knee was injured. So Im perfectly FINE with being a guard. Is that so? Well, then you can take some time at our hot springs. Soaking in them is especially good for old wounds. The chief prepared a weing party for me. After that, I joined them in going to the hot springs and my first day at Mulg Vige wasplete. Millet was busy nursing her sister back to health and didnte to my weing party. I slept deciding that I would go visit Millet and her sister tomorrow as a get well visit. Then, just as the town descended into a sleepy silence I heard the distant howls of wolves in the forest. Chapter 06 - This Old Man Goes up Against The Wolf King

Chapter 06 C This Old Man Goes up Against The Wolf King

Trantor: Ranzan Late night. The distant howling of the wolves continued and grew. You could tell that the group of wolves was getting closer. Since they were going toe this close, might as well kick their asses, I thought. If they told me they were going hunting in the mountain tomorrow, it would suck. If they did, Id have to walk a long way just to fight this pack of wolves. I could hear them howling again, and this time, even closer. If the wolves ate a vige cow or something, or hurt a viger, that would be horrible. I would be seen as useless on my first day of employment. I didnt want that to happen. Time to go. I crept out of my little bungalow and towards the howls of the wolves. After walking a while, I saw a conspicuouslyrge wolf walk out towards me. The wolf was the size of a horse. However, I could see the outlines of its bones and could tell it was starving. The most terrifying type of wolf. Thats a big one. Im a veteran. Ive killed countless amounts of magic beasts. But Ive never seen a wolf this big. A wolf, and a magical beast. Not just any beast. Magical beasts have magic imbued in them, that strengthen their bodys abilities. Some of the older magical beasts can even use the magic. When the giant wolf saw me, it let out a fearsome howl. A terrifying howl that echoed in my gut. The howl of a beast filled with magic. One type of magic. A magic that could paralyze a regr adventurer in fear. Almost as if prompted by the howl, another wolf jumped at me from my nk. Whoa! I quickly grabbed the beast and tossed it. As I did, another wolf came at me from the other side. I kicked it away. I quickly grabbed the wolf I kicked and tossed it at the wolf behind me. Kweeen! The two wolves collided and rolled. I defended myself from the group of wolves while analyzing the pack around me. It seemed that the group consisted of 20 wolves. They all seemed to be magical beasts, but only the biggest one, the boss, could use magic. I used magic to drop a huge ball of air onto the ground to blow back a ring of space between me and my attackers. The huge wolf howled again. As I made space between me and the wolves, I chose my next magical attack. A fire congration. Or lightning. Waters a little hard unless you have ake or river nearby. Or maybe this A magical wall. Its simple, but its a convenient magic that serves as either offense or defense. I elerated the wall at my enemy. And though I thought it was invisible, the great wolf dodged it right before it hit. Whoa! Good dodge! I said in admiration, without thinking. Even some old hands in magic and war wouldnt have dodged that wall. This was starting to get interesting. I started thinking about using all my force to end this fight in an instant. Because of the magic wall, there were severalrge logs and branches that had fallen onto the ground after the wall cut through them. I used magic to toss these logs and some exposed rocks at the great wolf. The great beast carefully dodged this. As it did, it gathered its strength and flew at me in attack. I covered my right arm in magical defense, and grabbed its fang. As the same time, using my left hand I shot magical missiles at the beast. Gyaaww! The beast cried out and rolled away. I then spoke to the beast. Its easy for me to kill all of you. But since I wont allow you to threaten Mulg Vige, Ill let this one time slide. A magical beast. A magical beast that can use magic. If thats the case, it can also understand humannguage. Grrrrrr. The great wolf responded with a threatening growl. I am a wizard. You also can use magic, but you know that none of the other smaller wolves can, right? If I had came at you all with full force, all of your little wolves would be dead. I could have destroyed all of them. But then the wild boars increase and the fields all get torn up. Thats why Ill overlook this fight. Grrr. But after killing all of you, then I would have to kill all the boarsand that just takes too much time. Killing the boss and scaring the hell out of the little wolves was my first strategy. However, it was much stronger than I expected, so I didnt want to just kill it. Understood C strong human child. Whoa! I heard its words in my mind and it startled me. So you can SPEAK magically as well! It was spirit speech C a type of magic. It wasnt a very difficult magic. It was a magic used for missions that required a lot of sneaking around. But it was very rare for a beast to use it. You didnt give your all in your fight with me. It found out. It sucks when someone flies into a rage because of hurt pride. I had prepared for this beast to do that. But the beast silently epted the fact. I concede defeat. Its also annoying for someone to want another fight. This beast saw what happened to the group that attacked me, so theres no doubt I would win. Still, tomorrows chores as a guardsman would still suck because of this damn knee. My name is Alfred. Alfred Lint. I have no name. Give me one. Okay, how about Gell-Gell. The wolfs snout wrinkled. Okay, not that, then how about Puffy? Grrrr In addition to the wrinkles, now it was growling. Best not to piss it off any more. It was making that clear. This time I thought seriously. Okaythen how about Femm? Its tail waggedseems to like that one. My name will be Femm. As I am the chief of my pack, I hereby promise not to attack Mulg Vige. That helps. Femm put out its front right paw. I grabbed it. It was something like shaking hands. Looking at the situation, it was impossible to not see it like a hand. Oh, yeah, I think your howling is also scaring the vigers. Could you give me something so they can rx? Give you what for why? Well, give me a secondum Being asked that by the wolf made me think. I had expected to bring back a bunch of wolf heads and skins, but now I couldnt. And asking for a wolfs paw or tail to be cut off was also kind of sad. I was lost in thought, and, You must have been thinking about taking home the heads of some of my pack. Yeah, but thats kind of cruel. Heh heh. Why did youugh? Why? Because I dont care. Well, then, you may have this. Femm handed over arge fang. It was as long as my forearm. Whats this? Theyll know if they see it. Hm? Well, then Ill thankfully receive it. Yes. It seems that Ill be in Mulg Vige for a while. If you have any problems, let me know. Ill do what I can to help you. Yes. Femm wagged its tail back and forth. Then Femm turned with its pack back into the deep forest and left. Chapter 07 - Millet’s Sister

Chapter 07 C Millets Sister

Trantor: Ranzan I leisurely walked back to the vige. The sun rose as I was returning. Damn, thats bright! When I got back to Mulg, Millet was waiting for me at the gate. Ah, Mr. Al! Youre pretty lively waking up this early, Millet. I was tired from fighting a magical wolfte at night. I used to be able to stay up three days while fighting when I was a youngster. I thought again that I didnt want to get any older, when Millet said, I was going to invite you to breakfast, but you werent in your house. I was worried. Yeah, sorry about that. Millet grabbed hold of my shirt and pulled me to her house harder than I expected. As I entered the house Millet brought me to, I saw a little elf girlying in a bed. This is my sister Collette. She still has a little fever, but shell be fine since I got the medicine back to her in time. The sickness that Collette was afflicted with was dangerously fatal. However, if treated in time with the right medicine it wasnt such a fearsome disease. Because of the type of sickness, Millet was willing to risk danger to find the magical herbs that cured her sister. That was more important than anything. At times like those, Im d I chose to be an adventurer. It was pleasant seeing yourself able to help others with the quests you undertake. Thank you very much, Mr. Al. Millet bowed deeply to me. Collette was lying down, but also said, Thanksth, sthoooo much. The little girl lisped her appreciation. It was cute. Get well quickly, okay? I patted Collette on the head. She still had the soft hair of a young child. Neh heh heh. Her ears, quiterge for her head, moved cutely. We ate the breakfast that Millet had prepared, and as I went home the vige chief was waiting for me. Something wrong? Oh, Alfred. Did you hear those wolves howlingst night? Yes, it was something! It was a miracle that our vige wasnt attackedst nightcould you join us in some wolf hunting in the mountains? The chief didnt know about the magic wolves or howrge and powerful Femm was. Anyway, I didnt want to have to go on a pointless hunting trip. Chief, to be honest, I went to take a look around the forestst night What? ALONE?! No matter how veteran of a fighter you are, thats too dangerous! The chief got a little too angry. I had only been a guard one day. This chief was thinking I was some idiot without any idea about consequencesit wasnt a good feeling. I hurried to make an excuse. No! Its okay. Im very good at handling wolves. No matter how good you are, thats reckless! To be honest, I encountered a group of wolves, and after battle, they decided to withdraw. The also promised never to touch Mulg Vige The chief looked at me with an obviously suspicious nce. There arent any wolves here that can talk to humans. Theres no wolf king that could speak to you around here either. This guy totally thought I was lying. No, no! Really! I remembered that Femm had given me that huge fang. Here! They gave me this. I asked it if there was any way that I could put the vige at easeand they gave me this. Whaaa?! The chief almost copsed from surprise. Eeeeeeeeeek! He then screamed out and all the vigers quickly gathered around. What? What is it?! Here, this fang! Whaaa? The vigers looked at the fang with shocked, wide-open eyes. Then they all turned to me, wanting an exnation. I cant believe it! Millet came bouncing along happily and appeared out of nowhere among the vigers. All the vigers inquired where I had gotten it, and I exined what happenedst night from beginning to end. Then, Thats No, but this is Is it fake? No, its real. The vigers all talked among themselves. Millet turned me from the still gabbing vigers and said gleefully, Mr. Al, thats really something! But, not unexpected from someone like you! After a bit, the chief turned to me with a bowed head. Alfred, sorry for doubting you. I know by the smell. Thats from a wolf king, and it was just freshly removed. He knows by the smell? That fact surprised me. The chief must be part beast. A beast-human can distinguish a lot by smell. No, dont worry about it. The wolf king saw you as master and gave you its fang. Hm? Master? I never heard it call me that. 300 years ago, there was retired adventurer that came here. At that time, the adventurer fought the wolf king and won, and the wolf king gave over its fang. Hmreally Now the story was different. And it was starting to bug me. Sso, what happened to the wolf king? After the death of the adventurer, I heard that it went off somewhere. Oh, wait one second. And just after, the chief took from his house a fang that looked just like Femms. This is our viges treasurefrom 300 years ago. Then, Right? He said and noddedthen all the other vigers nodded. Ohokay. I still didnt get what this meant. Millet bounced up to me and took my hand. It means that the wolves wont attack Mulg Vige again! You did it again, Mr. Al! The vigers were all smiles. AlfredBANZAI! While the adults were all cheering, the kids were running around me grabbing my clothes. Wow, good job ol-man! Yeah! Hez tuff! Anyway, I was pleased. That day, we all had a party at the chiefs house. For an old man, staying up all night and THEN having to go to a party is rough. But since it was a celebration, I went along with it. Going along with things is important. Especially when youre in the country C you cant just say youre tired and avoid things like this. I got back to my house after the sun went down. Drinking after ate night put me at my limit. As soon as I got home, I copsed in bed. And slept. Andin the middle of the night I woke up after feeling a strange sensation. Chapter 08 - A Request from the (Magic Wolf) King

Chapter 08 C A Request from the (Magic Wolf) King

Trantor: Ranzan The middle of slumber. I could feel something warm in my bed with me. Something shaggy on my chest and the ears of a beast poking me. Pllllep. Something tenderly licked my chest. Then it crawled up my bodyand to my face, and licked my lips. What the hell So I slowly opened my eyes. Whoa! What the hell are you?! There was a wolf the size of a big dog inside of my futon. Its rude to ask who. Dammit. There was only one wolf I knew that could spirit speak to me. Is it you, Femm? Its bad that you mistook meI only changed shape. The smells the same. Well, humans depend mostly on sight. Hmph. Femm wagged its tail. I petted Femms body. Youre really thin. When I first met Femm, I thought it was starving. Now that I touched Femm, it just felt bonier than usual. Not a lot of fat. Femm was too thin. Kuween Femm whined like a dog and didnt use spirit speech. I got out of bed and drank some water I brought to the house yesterday. Even so, I was surprised you didnt notice when I entered. Alyou have the perception of a housent. I dont have any excuse. It was because I didnt feel hostility. Im confident that if someone try to assault me Ill react in order to survive. I did have excuses in my mind, but I guess it was just myziness. Youre quite honest. Well, I was drinking the night after I stayed up all night with you. I getzy if I dont sense hostility. Now thats an excuse. Yep. I didnt invite Femm, but it was still my guest. I put out some water and dried meat. Femm ate it happily. So, you changed into a smaller formand why are you here? And why on a night like this? I have something to ask. I did tell Femm If you have any problems, let me know. Ill do what I can to help you. SighAnd a promise is a promise. What? Tell me. Yes. Its a touchy subject Femm slowly began to exin. This area was once the turf of the magic wolves. However, the previous king of the wolves died, the wild boars became stronger and began to put pressure on the pack of wolves. Femm, the child of the previous king, was called back home to be the new king of the magic wolves. Yeah, but I told you, youre too skinny. Kweeen. Seems like the term skinnyis a forbidden one. Femm quickly tried to fake this by whining like a dog again. So what did you do before you were called back as king? I traveled the world. Really? Even with how powerful Femm and the group of wolves Femm led were, then the boars must be much stronger than I thought. If we cant hunt down those boars, then we havent enough food. When we went to attack the vige, you attacked us. That was some good luck. Very lucky for me, and very lucky for Mulg Vige. But there was something really weighing on my nerves. UmI have a question. That previous king of the wolves, did he fight some hero 300 years ago? No. After the heros death, the king went somewhere that I dont know. The previous king was the child of that king. So that makes you the grandchild. Yes. I see. Sorry if I joke about this, but youre the king of a group of magical wolves, so being that thin is kind offunny. Its a race against time for us. Femm suddenly became very serious. Enough to visit me again the same day we met. They must really be in trouble. Even so What? For a magical wolf king to be losing to a bunch of boars Fwoo! Femms ears and tail stood straight out. They are very strong! Yeah, yeah. I know, I know. Femm blew air through its snout, disaffected. Well, its alreadyte now, so tomorrow. Show me where these boars are. thank you. Quite direct for a wolf. Okay, well for now, Im going back to bed. Fwoo. Femm made a small whine, and crawled into bed with me. It seemed that it wanted to sleep in my bed. damn. Oh well. I got back in bed. Femms fur fluffed against my skin. I asked Femm while I was in bed with it. Hey, so why are those boars so strong? no idea. Okay. Fwoo. That fang you gave me really startled the vigers. Im sure it did. I heard you must have pulled that out recentlyis that true? Magic wolves have their fangs grow out continually. I just made it happen faster. really? Its not such a surprise. Im the king of magical wolves. I have a long life. If I dont change my fangs they get worn down. I guess that makes sensedoesnt it hurt? Not that much. So, a little. Fuwah. Femm, that reminds me, youve gotten a lot smaller. this is enough for me to do what I came to do. Doesnt this use too much magic? Hurt your ability to fight? I dont get tired. However, fighting at this size does weaken my ability to attack. I see. You dont get tired. You really sound like a wolf king. Fwah fwah. I could feel Femm wagging its tail. the vigers told me something after I showed them this fang. What? Did youept me as your master? Kweeen. Femm rubbed its nose against me as to avoid answering. It was kind of bad to ask such a direct question, so I didnt follow up. Chapter 09 - Magical Bore

Chapter 09 C Magical Bore

Trantor: RANZAN Ruff Ruff Femm barked twice and licked my face strongly to wake me up. Okay, okay! Im up! Fem had just woken me up, and, Al, are you up?! Millet barged into my house. IM AWAKE! d to hear. I brought you some breakfast. Thanks! That helps a lot. Millet suddenly jumped at Femm. Whoa, its so cuuuuute! Its name is Femm. Really?! Were you abandoned? I would love to show you to Collette, shed be so happy! Millet stuck her face in Femms fur. Even though Femm looks like that, its a magical wolf king. what? Femm grew to its normal shape and sat majestically. I am the Wolf King Femm. W, what! It can talk! Millets eyes sparkled. Wow! She was ecstatic. I thought she would run out of the house in terror, but it seems that was a pointless worry. After eating up all the breakfast, I went to the vige chief and told him about Femms request to scare away the magical boars. Alfred, bring back some boar meat! I cant wait to have some. The vigers cheered and I left the vige. Which way? Over here. After a little ways from the vige, Femm returned to its formerly huge form. You really are huge. Femm proudly wagged its tail. And after a bit more walking, Your leg. Doesnt it hurt? Yeah, some Magic Lord I was fighting messed it up. I see. Would you like to ride me? What? well, I meaneven though its not that easy to ride on my back. And I didnt really want to be the one to ask For some reason, Femm was reluctantly fidgeting Sure, that would help a lot! Thanks! I jumped on the Femms back. Eeek Femm squeaked both verbally and in spirit speech. What is it? Nothing. Femm was very fast. Even so, it wasnt much of a distance. Were here. That was quick. We were there before I knew it. There was a small swamp on a hill before us. There were no boars. Around the swamp, there was destend with no trees or shrubs around it. There must have been trees here once. I could see old cut logs scattered here and there. Is this it? Yes. Theres no boars. Are you ready? Yeah, I guess. Femm breathed in a a huge breath, and, GRaaaaaaaaaooooooooow] Its huge roar echoed over the swamp. Shut up! Just wait! The body of one wild boar king suddenly emerged from the swamp. No, more like the swamp itself simply raised out of the ground. The swamp itself was very small, but the boar that emerged was massive. It rose up like a small hill. If you were topare sizes, the boar was twenty times bigger than Femm. thats way too big. I told you! Femm seemed a bit happy saying that. Dont you think its no mystery why theyre beating us? Femm said with anxious breath. Yeah. Ruff! Femm was in good spirits as, in contrast, the magical boar rose up and looked extremely angry. BWOOOOOOOOO!!! We had woken it all while it had been sleeping. I knew how it felt. I usually have a policy about not killing unnecessarily, but this beast was too big. Theck of real vegetation around was because of these monsters. If we left this king alone, they would destroy the whole forest. BWOOOOOOOOO!!! Damn! Whats that smell!? This boar has beenpletely corrupted by magicits breath alone is poison. Tell me that ahead of time! Im being poisoned just by this thing breathing! It stiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiinks! It wasnt just the smell. If I breathed this long enough, it would kill me. See?! I told you! See?! Why the hell are you so happy all the sudden?! No way I could let this thing live. Okay, time to clean up. The area was already deste, so I could unleash my full force if necessary. I initialized all of my magical force. TAKE THAT! BWOOO!? Explosion magic. There was a massive explosion. The body parts of the boar flew here and there. WWwoooow! Femm said happily behind me. The pieces of the boar king fell to the ground. Is it over? Knock on wood. Oh wait, there is none around here. Hm? I had knocked it dead in one shot. I calmed down after sensing there was no reason to remain alert. The vigers were expecting boar meat, but we cant eat this, right? It was a boar with poison. It was possible the meat was filled with it. Yes. We can eat it. Really? maybe. Even a poisonous snakes meat can be eaten. Now that you mention it I suddenly looked behind me and heard Femms pack of wolves pantingthey silently had surrounded us. They were ready to eat. Femm was skinny as well, as were all of the pack of wolves. Huge boar meat probably wasnt all that tasty. But it was still essential nutrition. I picked up a piece the size of a normal sized boar and got ready to bring it back as a souvenir for the vige. You can eat all the rest, Femm. Really?! Are you sure?! Yeah. Ruff! Femm excitedly wagged its tail. Then, following the rules of the wolves, the pack began dividing up the meat. The amount of meat there was so much that there was no way the whole pack could eat it at once. Chapter 10 - Wild Pork…in Other Words, Boar Meat

Chapter 10 C Wild Porkin Other Words, Boar Meat

Trantor: r4nz4n I got help from Femm and the pack in bringing meat and tusks back to the vige. The chief almost fell over after seeing the massive boar tusks. The vigers were enthralled by all the meat that arrivedeven Millet said her usual Woover and over. Femm nonchntly shrunk to its unimposing size and walked with me into the vige. Furry doggy!! Femm was very popr with the vige children. After distributing meat to all the homes there, Millet asked me to visit her home. How is Collette? Shes fine, now. But she shouldnt be sleeping this long Well, no need to wake her now. You dont want her to get ill again, right? No Femm walked in and ced its snout on Colletts bed. Collette woke up. Femm did it almost as if to say, Go ahead and pet me, okay?. Its so CUTE! Collett was suddenly awake and rubbing Femms fur C Femm looked pleased. While she petted Femm, she said, Sthanksth, old man. No, I mean, dont worry about it. She was a bit bashful in thanking me. Old man? What is it? Collette got up a bit and kissed my cheek. Sthere. Thank you. Femm stared at me with a bit of a jealous grudge, but I didnt care. Old man, what do you sthink about my sthister? You mean Millet?I looked around to make sure Millet was somewhere else. Yeah. Well, I dont really know what to say There was no way to respond honestly. My sthister can cook, and sthes very kind. After our father died, sthe became an apothecary and helped to cure me. Yep. Sthes very sthkillful with her handsth and stho on. There are a lot of guysth that want to make her their wife. She sounds very popr. Old man, do you like her? Well I didnt dislike her, but I wasnt really thinking of her in that way. However, the girl was certainly at the age. I know that my sthister likesth you. Thatsth why you sthould make her your wife. Whwha? You dont have to do it now, but just sthink about it! Yeah, sure. And, you gotta keep thisth conversthation a sthecret! Theres no way I was going to tell Millet. Yeah, you got it. What are you two talking about? Millet came back out of the kitchen with some handmade sweets. Nosthing! What? Now Im really curious. The two sisters smiled at each other. We stayed and ate at Millets all the way until dinner. The boar meat was hard but still delicious. At the dinner table, Collette asked, Old man, wasth sthe boar a big one? Yeah, extremely big. How big, like a cowbig? No, waaaay bigger. Maybe half the size of this house. Whaaa? Woww! Collette had a happy and surprised face. With a boar that big, youd sthink stheyd get an army toe here. Millet shook her head. Around here theres always been a lot of boars and wolves That reminds me, the quest form said that both would be around here. Yes, but I never heard there was a boar THAT big. I see. But you did say that the boars had grown so much that they were eating up all the magical herbs, right? Well,pared to normal years here, there were a lot, and their bodies were much bigger than usual. Hmmm No worries now. Since Al killed the biggest one, the rest of the smaller ones left over will be hunted so much that theyll be no more bother to humans! Femm wagged his tail with pride. Wo, Femm Collette scratched the top of Femms head. Currently, however, there were no more magic wolves or boars threatening the vige. I nned on hitting the hot springs and start rxing tomorrow. But even while I thought about tomorrow, the fact that one boar could get so big was unsettling to me. Chapter 11 - A Normal Devil Who Thinks She’s a Sub-Boss of the Demon Lord

Chapter 11 C A Normal Devil Who Thinks Shes a Sub-Boss of the Demon Lord

Trantor: Ranzan The next day, I returned to my usual job as guard. I just sat on a chair at the door of the gate. The warm wind was pleasant. Femm Ruff? Arent you going back home? All of my pack are grown enough. Without that massive boar they can do what they want. Is that so? Bark! Then I suddenly realized something and asked, When did that huge boar settle around here? Sometime around spring. My father died in winter, so right after that. I heard that the magic boar king was a normal size until then. So youre the newbie magical wolf king? Ruff! As I said that, I thought of something else. That this massive magical boar had gorged itself secretly in this countryside without anyone knowing. But that seems incorrect. It is now summer. If that giant magical boar was like this in spring but wasnt in the winterthat meant it didnt grow naturally. If it had just arrived here from somewhere else, it was still an unbelievably massive boar. Theres no way there wouldnt be rumors about it. Maybe there was a magical growth spell or curse that made it huge? Ruff? Femm cocked its head at me talking to myself. That night. I was trying to sleep and Femm jumped in and started licking my face all over. Femm! Cut it out! No time to sleep! Something is approaching!! What?! I jumped up. I couldnt sense anyone approaching. NoI noticed that my perception was slowly sensing it now. Femms perception must be far superior to mine. Who or what could it be? I couldnt feel hostility. But in that deep night, there was a strange perception of something approaching nearby. I left my bungalow and checked outside from the gate. Then, soon, I began to see a short girl with horns walking with a dignified gait in the shadows. Femm was frightened and whined with a Woo woooo! It is you, you old bastard!? Alfred! Wwho are you?! The girl seemed to know me, but I had no idea who she was. I shall never forgive a man who forgets me! A Sub-Boss of the Demon Lord! Vi-Vi! Yeahsounds tough, but I still have no idea who she is. The Four Sub-BossesI thought I already killed all four WellThere were actually FIVE of us! HAH! Hah-Haaaah! really? Its true that she was a devil girl of some sort.. and probably just a regr devil that wants me to think shes one of the Sub-Bosses of the Demon Lord. No point in blowing off an annoying type like her. If I did, shed get all pissed off that I didnt believe her. So why is one of the Sub-Bosses here in a small vige like Mulg? Whyyy!? You bastard, are you trying to act innocent after all the mess you made?! Wow, sounds like she IS angry. I guess now I should find out why shes so angry first. What, did I do something? Do something! Its not SOMETHING! You killed the boar that I had fed with my own hand! you, you dirty swine! So YOURE the culprit that GREW IT! I shouted without thinking. The mystery about the giant boar had suddenly been solved. Hey! Im the one that should be angry here! Shut up, you stupiddevil! Because of that massive boar of yours, these vigers have had a lot of problems! Time to reap what you sow! Who gives a flip about human trouble! Alfred! Im going to kill you now! Vi-Vi said, and began chanting a curse. Just like any devil would. I could feel a massive magical force being created. However, she was stupid to begin a curse that took so long to chant. Im going to feed you your teeth! Whaag?! I reared forward on my unhurt knee, and before she could finish the chant, shoved Vi-Vi in the face. Wwhy, you bastard! I thought you were a magician Vi-Vi groaned, hands covering her face. Shut up! Of course Im going to stop you from chanting! You dont even care about all these people around here, so now Im going to punch some sense into you! I reared back to punch her, and Eeep! Vi-Vi suddenly looked frightened. I stopped as I kind of felt sorry for her. And in that instant I hesitated too long. Whooaaahh! Out of fear, Vi-Vi let loose a fire attack without a chant. As it was chant-less, it was small. It also had no aim so it just flew off randomly. Ah! The small fireball flew into my bungalow as if it was sucked in. The house began to burn. WHAT THE HELL ARE YOU DOING?! I hastily struggled with water magic to put out the fire. GraGraaaaw Femm bit into Vi-Vis leg.. O, OWWWW!!! Femm didnt let go even with Vi-Vi crying out. Femm pulled Vi-Vi down to the ground. Just like any magic beast would. YouOww, o, lemme goooo! Let me GOOOO! Do you apologize? I do, I DOOOO! Femm, let her go. Ruff! Femm quickly released her. Since she was sorry, I bound Vi-Vi from using magic and we all entered my bungalow. All of the vigers were awoken and rushed out, but I told them that I would exin everything tomorrow. Chapter 12 - Vi-Vi…the Devil?

Chapter 12 C Vi-Vithe Devil?

Trantor: u?zu?? What are you trying to do to me? Dont think that you can take my body without having my heart first! I had no idea what the hell Vi-Vi was saying. She was iling about as I yanked her in my house. I just ignored her and looked at the hole in one corner of my ceiling. DamnI can see right through Wwhere are you looking?! Were you looking at a ce on my body that you shouldnt!? Stop it! Oh, shut up! Eek! For a lowly human to mock a Sub-Boss like me! ButI wont lose to a pervert like you! Vi-Vi sounded like she was making a desperate decision. Shes insane. Yeah. It took a while for us to calm her down and work out the misunderstanding. anyway, tomorrow, youre going to fix this hole in my roof! Any other punishment will be decided on by the vigers. okay Finally, NOW I can get to the issue at hand. I breathed in and, So, why did you feed that wild boar? Heh heh, you should shake in fear after hearing my n. After training and raising that boar, I was going to train with it so I could make a dragon gigantic like that as well. And while I was doing that I could use the boar as feed for the dragon. Two birds, one stone. Vi-Vi was bbing on about her n without concern. I was thinking I would have to threaten and cross-examine her, but her big mouth made that seem anti-climactic. S, so why are you raising a dragon? Building a magical army? HHow did you know?! She seemed very surprisedand I had no idea why. Whats the spell for making something gigantic? That boar was massive! You cant use a normal spell to make it that big, can you? Heh heh. You seem to have a good eye for a lowly human. That was just And as I thought, if youplement Vi-Vi she spews info like a faucet. I heard EVERYTHING. I see, so you drew a magic circle below the swamp so it would grow. I didnt notice. RIGHT?! Vi-Vi looked at me proudly. Honestly, since she ced it in the swamp, it was some excellent concealed magic that even I didnt notice. She may be a much better magician than I had imagined. Well, tomorrow well go and destroy that magic circle. Then you can fix my roof. Why must I do meaningless work like that? Vi-Vi said unhappily. However, Wooo woooo! Femm howled at her. Ookay then. Vi-Vi now understood why. After that, I finally slept in my bed. Vi-Vi got a nket and slept under the open part of the roof. Femm, who usually slept in my bed, spent all night near Vi-Vi watching over her. The next morning. I exined everything that had happened and asked the vigers how I should deal with Vi-Vi. So there was a reason for the violent nature and huge size of that magic boar. It makes a chill run up your spine to hear how far she was going to go with that n. The vigers were clearly scared of her. Even so, to capture such a strong devil such as her Were so d that you came to help, Alfred. Yeah, yeah, if you hadnte, theres no doubt that sooner orter Mulg would have been destroyed. We all owe our lives to you. They all thanked me over and overagain, embarrassing. No, no, its not a big deal. IT IS A BIG DEAL! Millet said with shimmering eyes. In the middle of all this, Vi-Vi was showing off in front of Collette and all the other kids. I AM ONE OF THE SUB BOSSES OF THE DEMON LORDS ARMY, VI-VI!! Wow, youre such a strong girl! So cool! Awesome! And when Millet heard this, even she said, Wow, she really is a strong devil. Seems that a low-life has acknowledged my great status. Only Mister Al could catch a strong magician like her, he really is the strongest! She ignored the proud Vi-Vi and grabbed me by her the arm. Somehow I could tell that her eyes were shining with respect for me. What is it? Did you get injured fighting this little devil? Are you okay? Im fine. Vi-Vis the one calling herself a Sub-Boss, after all. I see. But still, its really something! Thanks for protecting the vige! Its no big deal. The tips of Millets elf ears turned red. I guess I was happy for all the thanks from her. When we left the vige, the chief said, smiling, Millet! You can go and observe what happens. Yes sir! Then Millet approached us with a smile, I may be a little ignorant about magic, but Ill be apanying you! If the chief had picked her to report to him, then I couldnt turn him down. Ssure. It may be a little dangerous, but if something happens, dont worryIll protect you. Millets cheeks turned red. Collette shouted after us, Do your best, sthisterrr! Millet! Come back soon! The vigers were cheering her on as well. I thought it was a bit too much of a send off for a job as simple as this. Anyhow, we made our way to the swamp of the magic boar. Chapter 13 - Back at Magic Boar Swamp

Chapter 13 C Back at Magic Boar Swamp

Trantor:Ranzan I made the magically-bound Vi-Vi walk in front of me as we headed towards the poison swamp. My knee hurt again so I rode on top of the now regr-sized Femm. Millet rode behind me. Femm is so cute. It seems that Millet really took a liking to Femm. Every chance she got she rubbed her face or hands into Femms soft fur. Woof. It seemed that Femm was proud of it as well. Vi-Vi, on the other hand, was frightened of Femm. Seems that she still had trauma from being bitten. Its looking at me with such fearsome eyesevil. If it had the chance, it would eat me We walked a little more and arrived at the swamp where therge boar had lived. Since the boar was no morethe swamp was much shallower. However, you could sense there was still a lot of poison left in the swamp. A disgusting smell lingered. Millet and I got down from Femm and covered our noses. Wow, it stinks. Yeah, it smells horrible. You killed a boar that breathed out poison that smelled this disgusting? Yep. You really are great, Mr. Al. She was stillplimenting meand it was still embarrassing. Awoooo. Femm looked at me with sorrowful eyes as its smelling sense was so keen and yet it couldnt suppress the smell. Femm pushed its snout into my belly trying to avoid the smell. I thought it was kind of cheap acting like a dog instead of using spirit speech. Oh well. Ruff! Ruff! I covered Femms nose with my other hand. Femm seemed happy. As Vi-Vi watched all this, she proudly said, Pretty stinky, huh!? Most magic boars dont even have poison. I searched all over though, and I found one boar that had poison! Then I just put it in the magic circle and Yeah, you dont have to exin Grrrr! Vi-Vi screeched strangely at me after I stopped her pointless story. I already knew from questioning her the day before that once she starts talking about magic, she doesnt shut up. It was fun at first, but now it was getting very annoying. Especially with all this stink around. Millet happily shouted, Hey, Mister Al! Theres a big shrimp over there! I think thats a crawfish! Its really big! The crawfish was the size of a small dog. Its pincers were the size of a human hand. As I looked around, I saw a sparrow the size of a medium-sized dog as well. Is this because of the magic circle? Heh heh heh. You noticed! The magic that I poured into the boar also affected the animals around it. And the way this happened was If this is the effect of the magic circle, then we cant just leave it. Hurry up and destroy it. After having her exnation of how she made the magic circle interrupted, Vi-Vi put on a sour face. Hmph! The circles under all that mud. Theres no way I can destroy it. Then scoop out all the mud! thats impossible! Well, you cant destroy the circle without it, right? Youre the one that created it, so take responsibility and get rid of it! Are you saying that a Sub-Boss of the Demon Lord has to scoop out mud? What a disrespectful GRrrrrr, Ruff! Ah, okayIll do it. She wasining, but a growl from Femm put her to work. She began taking small scoop out of the mud with a bucket. Why must I have to do Heyisnt this kind of sad making her do this? Millet said after seeing Vi-Vi tear up a bit at her difficult task. Youre too kind, Millet. Wha? Millet blushed. I know Vi-Vi was paying for her mistake. However, I wasnt going to make Vi-Vi do all this work. It smelled like hell and I didnt want to stick around. Vi-Vi. You dont have to scoop it all up with a bucket. Then how will I A magician uses magic. I swept up all the mud in a wind-magic vortex, and using gravity magic, kept it suspended. Whoaaaaa Millet said with an astounded voice. While the muds in the air, kill the circle! I understand! Vi-Vi said in an obedient response. If you do anything weird, Im going to dump all this mud on your head, Vi-Vi! Okay, already! I watched Vi-Vi very closely. I made sure she wasnt strengthening or trying to hide the magic circle. Vi-Vi simply erased it obediently. Itsits finished. Vi-Vi scurried back from under the floating mud to where I was. Seeing her return, I slowly lowered the mud back to where it was. You dont have to hurry back like thatIm not going to just drop it. But among magic creaturesonly the Demon Lord can use gravity magic. Now that you mention ithe did use that against me. He used it when the hero jumped forward and was caught in a trap. The Demon Lord used gravity magic against the hero. The hero floated in the air and was hit over and over, unable to move. Also, even if you werent going to dump that mud on me, since you were using two different magics at onceif you didnt control it right it could explode. If that happened, you wouldnt even need to dump it on meI was scared! I can handle two magics at once. I can go up to four if I have to. What?! No way! Im not lying. Vi-Vi seemed to swallow slowly in amazement. Even if that were so! Using two magics at once, and one of them gravity! A devil can only use one time for a minute or so and then it disappears! Mine doesnt disappear so easy. I can use my magic for over an hour. Again, Vi-Vis eyes opened wide. Then she whispered to herself, These low-lifes are scaaaary We were on the way home. Millet was mumbling to herself about the big crawfish she was lugging back home. Femm had the giant sparrow in its mouth after I shot it down with magic. Magic really is something. Well, it depends on the amount. You can do a lot with it. This huge crawfish looks delicious. I wonder if it is. Since it was in a poison swamp, you couldnt eat it without carefully washing all the mud off it. And even if you did, you may not be able to eat it as it was steeped in poison. Ah! What? Yeah, if we use that magic circle on the cows in our town, we could get a lot of meat out of it, right?! YeahI wonder, though. Cows are just cows. Magical boars arent just boarstheyre magical beasts. I wondered if it would work of you put a normal cow in a magic circle. But the crawfish isnt magic, its just a crawfish, right? And the sparrow too. Now that you mention it, youre right. So I looked at Vi-Vi. Of course that would be easy for me. I mean, from the beginning that magic circle was Vi-Vi proudly began to b on again. This time I just listened quietly. I am a wizard. I had interest in unknown magic. AndwellI was bored. Chapter 14 - Devil-Style Livestock Production

Chapter 14 C Devil-Style Livestock Production

Trantor: 󥶥 When we got back to the vige, all the vigers ran excitedly up to us. All we had done was destroy a magic circle. There was no reason for them to be so excited. Yeah? The magic circle is erased. Oh, is that so. Good work. But instead of thathow was Millet? The chief said to me with a grin on his face. Millet? Uhyeahshe did fine. There was nothing really special that she did. I mean, she acted like the chief as if he had gone, watching, right? I guess she did fine if all she was doing was observing. I see. The chief nodded with a satisfied look. Millets younger sister Collette ran up to her sister. Sthister! Wasth the old man niceth to you?! Yeah. Mister Al is always very kind. I sthee. Old man, geeeeet it? Collette said while looking at me. Collette had told me before that Millet liked me. She was trying to say something about it again. What about it, Collette? Collette noisily scruffed her hair and shouted Wee hee hee. Vi-Vi was watching all of this unhappily and shouted, Why does no one praise me?! Im the one that erased the thing! The Sub-Boss girrrrl Magc cirrcle, wow! The vige kids surrounded her and began shouting again. Collette joined the loudmotion. Popr with the kids, just like usual. Seeing all this, I asked, Chief. Have you decided what to do with Vi-Vi yet? We all talked about it, butcouldnt decide. The chief was acting evasive about the answer. The reason being, there wasnt that much damage caused, so it was hard for the vigers tomit to a real punishment. The magic boars had eaten all the magical herbsthat was trouble. But even then it wasnt that big of a deal. In fact, the real reason for trouble was because the vigers were scared of all the wolves near the vige. At least, thats what they all thought. I looked at the offender in the case, I mean the wolffender Femm silently. Kweeen. Femm sat down and turned its eyes away. Even so, I just kept staring at Femm. Femm fell on the ground and turned over. It showed its belly to me. I guess the only thing I could do is forgive it. No choice, huh? I scratched Femms belly as a sign of forgiveness. Seeing all this go one made the chief spring to the next topic. So, Al Yes? Sorry to say, but, could you can keep Vi-Vi in your guardhouse with you? Even a normal devil was still a devil. And the only one in the vige keeping her in check would be me. The reason why, is that if no one was watching her, she would most likely grow some other magical creature and cause trouble. What if we just handed her over to the local authorities? We thought about that as well, but the local lord is famous for cruelty with devilsand we wouldnt want her to be executed. I see. Then I guess you can depend on me. Thank you so much! The chief bowed deeply to me. We vigers will help too! Thank you! Millet. The chief called Millet over to him. What is it, chief? Im very sorry, but Alfred will be watching over Vi-Vi from now on. Sure! Id like you to make sure that Vi-Vi is adequately taken care of as well. So that means Ill be hanging around Alfreds house more? You got it! Millet responded happily. I finally got to go home and then told Vi-Vi to fix the roof of my house. Why do I have to BARK! GROWL! Okay, okay, Ill do it! Just like usual, Femm threatened Vi-Vi into obedience. Why does this happen to meeee As sheined, she hammered wood to the roof. There was already boards of appropriate size around the house, so all she had to do is hammer them in. Actually, while I was at the swamp, the vigers had ced them there for her. Vi-Vi quickly finished the job, and she had done so clumsily as expected, but it was still a well-done job. Good job. Of course! Vi-Vi was proud of herself, as usual. The next day. I took Vi-Vi over to the livestock stable. Millet was waiting for both of us. Mr. Al, this one should be perfect. Thanks. Millet backed off with the cow and prepared it. Vi-Vi, make a magic circle and grow this cow. Why do I have to do boring crap like this for a bunch of low-life creatures, hm? You caused trouble for all of them. This is so you wont have any further punishment. I have no idea what you low-lives want out of me sometimes. I would have had Femm bark at her again, but that would be boring. I thought that with your skill, Vi-Vi, that making a cow big with a magic circle would be EASY. WHAT?! Of course its easy. No. It seems like its a job thats just too hard for someone like you. HAH! I dont even have to try! Nah, its okaydont push yourself. An immature magician such as yourself shouldnt use too much magic C you could get hurt! Stop mocking me! Ill show you! Vi-Vi took to the challenge with interest. She exined what she was doing as she etched the magic circle in the ground. She was used to doing the process so it only took an hour toplete the circle. See? There! You did well. Wo! Vi-Vi put on a proud face after Millet and Iplimented her. She stuck out her chest with pride. We met the chief again after taking Millet home. Alfred! Thanks for the hard work. So, how is your knee doing? Thanks to the vige, its feeling a bit better. I see. Thats fine! Oh, yes! If youre done for the day, why not enjoy the hot springs? May I? Certainly! The chief had given me a wonderful invitation, which I, of course, epted. Chapter 15 - The Mulg Village Hot Springs

Chapter 15 C The Mulg Vige Hot Springs

Trantor: Ranzan Mulg Vigehas a hot springs. The one that most of the vigers use daily is arge hot springs in the middle of the vige. As I was on my way to it, the vige chief called me over. Alyou can of course use this central springs, but theres a far better one over here. Oh? The vige led me away from the vige. There are several springs near the vige. There are those, also, that arent usually used by the vigers. Why is that? well, the upkeep is a bother. I see. The previous chief got interested in making hot springs and made several. Except for the time when theyre cleaned twice a year, theyre pretty much all closed. Okay The chief stopped and smiled at me. So since we actually have too many hot springs. The vigers can actually reserve them for a small fee if they promise to take care of them. Oh? And so, this here is my homes private hot springs. There was a small, beautiful cabin, well-built and cared for, by the looks of it. Al, feel free to use it whenever youd like. May I? Certainly. It was nice to reserve this, but I tend to always end up going to the central one. Since Im the chief, its always good to be seen mingling with the other vigers. Being a chief seems like a difficult job. He probably has to bathe with a lot of people that tell him everything they want and has to stop fights from breaking out among the vigers. If you take a liking to it, you can pretty much reserve it for yourself. And, its no problem if Femm joins you. Then the chief left. Because of the chiefs final words, Femms eyes started sparkling brightly in anticipation. Well, Im going to get in. You wait here Femm. Kween! It was begging like a dog without using spirit speech, AGAIN. Okay, you can get in. But dont go nuts and mess the springs up! Of course not! Wha! Femm used the spirit speech so suddenly it jolted me. I looked at him and eyeing him up and down. Femm and I were going in the hot springs. Though it was one reason I came to Mulg, I hadnt really used the hot springs. I just took a damp cloth and washed myself until now. Its just something that bes a habit when youre an adventurer for a long time. You get in the bath AFTER you wash off, okay? ! I, I know already! Femm was about to dive right in when my yelling stopped it. I washed off my body, and then Femms. I thought Femm would run all over the ce, but Femm just sat quietly. After we were done, we got in the awaiting bath. Phe Fwaaoooh. The hot water felt great. Femm looked pleased as well. Wait, dont dogs hate baths? Im not a dog. Thendont wolves hate baths? Im not a normal wolf. I see. Ruff. It seems that the heats seeping into my knee. No idea what that means. It felt good, even though it was summer. Winter must be even better. I heard that Mulg Vige gets quite cold, too. I wonder if theres a hot springs near my bungalow. After soaking a while, I started to get overheated. Okay, time to go. A little more. Just then, I heard voices from the changing room. But a devil like me doesnt need a bath! Dont say that! Youll get dirty. Hmph! Im different than you low-lifes! Wow, Sthub-Boss A devil has metabolism tooso if you dont get in the bath youll smell like sweat and get grimy too, right? I dont smell! They were all making a lot of noise, two young girls and a magical one. There must be some mistake. Why are you hiding? Wellum I motioned over with my head and Femm and I hid. Wow, Vi-Vi, you have such beautiful hair, you have to wash it, you know? Its beautiful even if I dont wash it! I can washth my own hair! I could hear the girls happily chatting among themselves. You! for an elf, those sure are big! What do you mean? Vi-Vi? Shut up! I mean THOSE! HYaaaah! Sthub-Boss, dont grab my sthisthers boobies! What the hell are they doing? I had no idea. I could only hear them. I wasnt lookingI am a gentleman. Your face is red. Whaa? ThenI guess I zoned outit was probably the hot water. I was thinking of cooling my head off with some ice magic when all the sudden, Old man! Femm too! Collette had found me. Kyaaa! Mr. Al?! He came to assault our bodies, that pervert wizard! Vi-Vi appeared with a bath bucket, which she flung and hit me, straight in the head. I have no memory of what happened after that. Again, it was probably the hot water. However, when Millet ran up to me, I remember seeing her two hugesoftthings and how her arm was pressing them against her body. When I finally awoke, my head was on Millets knees in the changing room. For some reason, all my clothes were already on. Ah, hes awake! What a disgrace! The lowest of the low-lifes. Millet still seemed happy. Vi-Vi, on the other hand, wasnt. Still both of them were pping fans over my face. Sorrythanks. Didnt mean to cause trouble. Old man, did you get too hot? Femm came from behind Collette and looked at me. Yeah, I think I did. It really sucks to be an S Rank adventurer who happens to be defeated by a hot springs. Since this hot springs has the power of magic stones in a magic mine nearby, it might be that you simply got tipsy from all the magical power. Hm? I guess I didnt get overheated, but overmagicked. It made a bit more sense. Even so, getting this tipsy on magic doesnt seem likely. When I got up, Millet offered me some water. Old man! What is it? Millet put your underwear on you! After saying it, Collette bashfullyughed. you owe her a big one. Ruff? Femms face looked exasperated. I left the hot springs, and the sun began to set. A wind, cooler than the afternoons, began to blow. I closed my eyes while feeling the cool air and Femm licked the palm of my hand. Chapter 16 - A Happening During a Guard’s Dinner

Chapter 16 C A Happening During a Guards Dinner

Trantor: RaNzAn After enjoying my fill in the hot springs, I happened upon the chief on the way home. Al, how was the hot springs? Did you enjoooooy it? Yes, it was a very good hot springs, but I was going to ask him why Millet and the others got in. I thought the ce was reserved. However, instead of being able to ask, Millet came from behind and shouted at the chief. Chief! Why didnt you tell me that Mister Al was going to be in the hot springs? What? I thought that I said you could get in after Al used it. The chief looked a bit confused, while Millet looked at Collette. I would have gotten in after Mr. Al, but Ah, Collette, did you forget to tell your sister?! Collette shook her head. It seems that Collette forgot to ry all of the words that the chief had told her. You could say that only telling the little girl was a bit thoughtless. Still, even if he just told herFeel free if youd like to get in it wasnt that important of a message. Nothing to say other than to let the whole issue of what the chief said to Collette go. Collette! You should have told me! whatwhatsth wrong?! I had a fun time getting into the thspringsth with the old man. But you have to say something! Of course it was wrong, Collette, as I was stuck having this PERVERT of a magician looking at my precious body! Collette seemed to slump as the two girls shouted at her. Thsub Bossthsthisther, you didnt want to get in with him? You dont like him? Thats not what Im saying I havent said that Collette now smiled in relief. Then you should sthare the basth with him! You knowmaybe youre right Millet nodded to herself, convinced. Collette looked at her and smiled. Wwait a second! Thats not right! Even low-lifes like you dont bathe together like that! Yeah, if you do, things getplicated. Despite ourselves, Vi-Vi and I agreed on that point. I mean, there was no avoiding itmixed bathing was badespecially for your bottom half. Pff! Yyoure right. Collette giggled while the tips of Millets ears turned red, and both finally nodded. The chief just watched us silently and then called me over. He whispered into my ear when I got close. AlIm not going to force anyonebut if you agree then I have no problem with you bathing together, okay? Chiefwhat are you saying?! What? Its just basic rules of the bath. I see I dont know why I said, I see, but I left it at that. C As I walk with Femm and Vi-Vi home, the sun finally set. Im hungry! Low-lifes! Yeah? Prepare my dinner! Okay. I was hungry as well. However, I couldnt let Vi-Vi cook anything. She looked like shed be a horrible cook. since Im tired, I think Ill just eat some dried meat. What? Ruff? Vi-Vi and Femm both responded with objections. Wwhats wrong? Are you trying to feed me DRIED MEAT? You must be insane! I cant believe it. Vi-Vi and Femm both looked at me like I was a fool. I wont feed anyone thatins! WwellI guess dried meat is okay. Whooon. Vi-Vi nodded while Femm scratched itself. Just then, Are you there Mister Al? Millet had arrived with Collette. What is it? I brought you dinner. Oh! Excellent, Millet! Youre one exceptional low-life! Ruff, ruff! Vi-Vi ran up excitedly to Millet. Femm wagged its tail intensely while spinning around in front of millet. You can eat your dried meat, bastard. Okay? Ruff! Ruff! No, Im going to eat Millets dinner too. As I said that, a smile beamed from Millets face. I have enough for you too, Mister Al. Thanks, Millet. Everyone ate the food that Millet had brought. It was delicious. You really are a good cook, Millet! Heh heh, thanks. This idiot was going to feed us dried meat! What a fool! Vi-Vi and Femmined, but dried meat is convenient. The taste is okay, but you can save it forever. No need to cook either. Its the basic food of all adventurers. Since I had spent more than half of my life as one, it was a food that I loved dearly. Collette quietly crept up and whispered into my ear. Old man. I think you sthould marry my sthisther. Sthesth a great cook. Even so You dont like her? I didnt say that. There was no way that Millet was going to say something to me first. Millet probably wouldnt like an old guy like me, anyway. And foodwell, as the conditions of this quest, it just covers the food part of shelter C clothes C food. If I get too into her, Im just going to get hurt. C I started to get sleepy after Millet and Collette left that night. Femm, like usual, jumped right into bed with me. I know my bed was going to get covered with hair, but, Oh well. How long am I going to be left sleeping on the floor! Vi-Vi protested loudly. One more nightuntil you can make a bed? Oh. Suddenly youve already begun to prepare a bed for me?! Quite kind of a low-life as yourself. No, I havent started anything. WHAT?! Do you dare mock me!? You should be sleeping on the floor! Why me? Vi-Vi got up and started trying to push me out of the bed. Of course, I resisted. However, since it wasnt a battle, it was hard to put my hands on a young devil girls body. She might use magic or something worse against me. The pushing over the bed continued for a while. Pant, huff, huffOkay. Ill be a gentleman, you can use this side, Vi-Vi. Wheeze, huff, no use. Listen! Dont you think obscene thoughts about me, okay!? As if I would! I wonder. A low life like you is an uncivilized andscivious being! If you cant trust me, sleep on the floor. I refuse! So Vi-Vi and I settled on agreeing to split the bed. Femm simply saw the whole thing as tedious andid between us, yawning. Chapter 17 - Being the Guard of Mulg Village.

Chapter 17 C Being the Guard of Mulg Vige.

Trantor: Ranzan Morning, as I awoke, I felt something hard on my cheek. There was also something soft on my forehead. When my eyes opened, it was Vi-Vis horn and Femms tail. Yawwnnn Waaaooohhn So much for cooperation. Vi-Vi was clinging onto my chest, breathing onto me. Femm was balled up on top of my pillow. Excuuuuuse me This was too much. Femms tail flopped into my face, back and forth. And the tail wasnt the only thing hitting my face, but Vi-Vis face and horns. Hmmmph. A wolfff isminngg Vi-Vi said in her sleep while clutching onto my shoulder. It was either her boobs or ribs that were being pushed into my chest. It felt that there was something soft there, but it still hurt. Chop! Grab! I lightly chopped the top of Vi-Vis head. Then I grabbed Femm, sitting right above my head. Uweh Fwaah Vi-Vi made a strange sound, but didnt wake up. Femm stretched out long. Then it licked my face. Thenit licked Vi-Vis face. Hm? N? Wolfwolfeeek! Vi-Vi started screaming from her nightmare. It probably started because she could smell Femm. I just left the two to go wash my face. As I was washing, I heard behind me, Hyaaaaaaaah! Vi-Vi was screaming again. THATS TOO LOUD for the morning! This DOG was going to eat me! Femm, leave her alone. Femm stopped licking Vi-Vis face. Ruff, ruff! Femm seemed pretty happy about it. You cant rest or give it an inchfearsome beast! She was muttering to herself as she went to wash her face as well. You need to treat Femm nicely too. Ruff. From then, we ate the food that Millet provided and I started work. Vi-Vi, go take care of the cow. Wha? Why me? Because you said youd help Millet. Millets true job was being an apothecary. However, shed do anything if she was free. Mulg Vige was a ce with little sickness or injury. Maybe it was because of all the hot springs. So Millet was given one more order by the chief in addition to feeding the vige guard. That was to take care of the cow today. My sthister is a hard worker. Sthell make a great wife. Millets sister Collette said over and over. I am one of the Sub Bosses of the Demon Lord. I am royalty that should be waited on instead! Though Millet worked hard, Vi-Vi hardly worked. If you dont want to work, you dont have to Then I will not! If thats the case, youll eat dried meat tonight. wellI guess I will then. Vi-Vi made her way to the stable obediently. Hm! Dont follow me! Ruff, ruff! Eeep! Femm followed behind Vi-Vi. Femm was going to watch her carefully. As I watched them walk off, I went to the gate. I then sat next to the gate in my chair. Yan The breeze was wonderful. The sunlight felt great as well. The birds were flying around. I wasnt ditching work either. Being a guard IS my work. This is me, doing my job. Al, good day! Ah, good day. Please be careful out there. If something happens, Ill shout. I exchanged words with the vigers going out of the vige. I also counted all the people who left the gate as I talked to them. If one of them wasnt back by sundown, I would have to go look for them. Butit was a pretty eventless job. For a long time I worked as an adventurer without any break. Thats why I started to get antsy with all this free time. However, I chose to guard Mulg simply so I could have free time. This is fine. Its good for the knee too. Definitely. I said to myself as I sat. DDDDDDDD That peaceful life continued for three days without interruption. I guarded all day, went to the hot springs at night, and then ate Millets delicious food. Those were wonderful days. Today I was sitting in my chair beside the gate again. I was pretty much free except when the asional traveling salesman came in the town and I had to show him around. All of the outside workers always returned by sundown. There was no threat from magic wolves or boars. This ce really doesnt need a guy like me, I guess. In the afternoon, I saw the chiefe running towards me. He looked really shaken. Alfred! What is it? The cow! The cow?! I thought that Millet and Vi-Vi were in charge of caring for the cow today. No, no, no, thats no the problem. Just then, from the other side of the vige where the stable was, MOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO! The earth shook and a huge sound reverberated over the ground. So, is it too big? ITS WAY TOO BIG! Juste and help! I headed to the stable and saw a giant shape of a cow. It was almost like a new hill had sprung up. Chapter 18 - The Result of Devil-Style Livestock Production

Chapter 18 C The Result of Devil-Style Livestock Production

Trantor: RANzan Femm was barking and growling at the cow near the stable so the cow wouldnt stomp through the middle of town. Looking at it closely, I could finally judge how big it was. Its weight must have been about 100 times of a normal cow. Millet hurded away the other cows to safety while shouting, Mister Al! The cow got huge all of the sudden! There should be a limit to how huge it can get I looked in shock over at Vi-Vi. She wasnt just being mischievous in plumping the cow up this hugeshe was proud of it! Heh heh, three whole days. Every day I came out here to care for the cow, I improved this magic circle a little more. And, this is the result!? I saw when Vi-Vi put out the magic circle the first time. From what I saw, that one was about half power or so of this one, judging by size. I guess if you add onto a magic circle, it bes like this. Vi-Vi thought that would help, but now shes put everyone in danger. What do we do? Well, I dont really know Femm asked as I looked over at the vige chief. The vige chief looked at me while calmly saying, We have to make meat of it. May I? We were nning to kill it and pack it next month anyway. Mulg Viges main agricultural product is livestock. ughtering and packing cow meat for delivery is an everyday thing. The chief was a bit sad about it. However, if we take the meat to the vige raw, its going to rot. And if we try to dry the meat, well, theres so much of it that the workload is impossible. If thats so, leave it to me. I am a wizard, after all. Can you really do something? The chiefs face brightened up. Yes. If I can conjure up some storage magic, then it is possible. That would really help. Since I had permission from the man who decided what to do with the cow, the chief, I got ready to dispatch the cow. MOOOOOOOOoooooooOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO! Maybe the cow knew what I was nning, so it let out a frightful cry. I pitied it, but there was nothing I could do. Stop right there! Vi-Vi suddenly ran and stood in front of me. Moofy didnt do anything bad TO YOU! Seems like she named the cowMoofy. Then Millet screamed, The cows name is HACHI! It seems that Vi-Vi just gave the cow her own name without asking. The cows done nothing wrong, but Look at how cute Moofys eyes are, you BASTARD! Are you going to kill it?! Yep. You BRUTE! Well, you had some beef stew yesterday, right? True Vi-Vi thought about it for a second. BUT MOOFY IS TOO CUTE TO KILL! She looked up at the cow now with the eyes of a pets owner. The trap that any kid on the farm falls into. I know how you feel, but BUT?! But, at this size, the cows going to eat the whole forest in a few days. Ughh Vi-Vi had no response. If the cow tips over, half the vige will be destroyed. I guess youre right, but Millet had finished moving all the other cows away and now approached Vi-Vi with understanding words. Vi-ViI know its sad, but theres nothing we can do. UhokayI understand. Vi-Vi walked up and stroked the hoof of the giant cow. Sorry, Moofythis is all my fault. Its not your fault, Vi-Vi. This cows meat was designated for delivery. It was about to get packed a bit early, but I still tried to calm Vi-Vi by saying that. Dont let it feel any pain. Please. I know. I created a magical spear and shot it straight through its brain. The cow slumped straight downwards with a thud. Then I bound the cows body with a magic and used a magic knife to drain its blood and begin slicing it apart. Chief, is there arge area I can use for this? Ah! Right over here. In the ce the chief indicated I used a magical explosion to form arge hole. I etched a magic circle around the whole, making the insidesrger with storage magic. I had improvised a magically-erged bag in the ground. This bag looked limited if you looked at it from outside the hole, but the inside could expand asrge as needed. It would be VERY expensive if you were to buy something like this. Putting no-status-change magic on the hole, and the price gets even higher. This hole had storage magic, size expansion, and the insides didnt change status. I put all the meat inside. Then I solidified all the dirt I had exploded off the hole into a magical lid. This meat wont go bad for a year. It can hold for that long?! Yes, itll be fine. The vigers that had been watching suddenly ran up, ecstatic. Wow, great job Al! We need to finally grant you permanent residency! With Millet They were all chattering away. Old man! Collette jumped out of the crowd. Oh, what is it? Old man! I think you sthould marry my sthisthter! Ohyeah. Femm was running around my legs. Ruff, ruff! It was drooling profusely and whipping its tail back and forth. Give me some meat! Its face said without speaking. Ok, I get it. Then I asked the chief, Chief. Sorry to ask but Sure, you can give it some. I asked if I could take some meat for Femm and the others, and the chief cheerfully agreed. Femm jumped up and down gleefully. In the midst of all the happymotion, Rest in peace, Moofy. Vi-Vi alone was bereft. Chapter 19 - Something Necessary for Hauling ALL THAT MEAT

Chapter 19 C Something Necessary for Hauling ALL THAT MEAT

Trantor: ranzan That night, all the vigers had a barbeque party. Everyone was carrying on happily. In the midst of this, only Vi-Vi looked depressed. OhMoofy I gave over the most delicious part to Vi-Vi. Here, this tastes good. Im not going to eat it. I seewell no reason to let it go to waste. gggllll Vi-Vis stomach growled loudly. I felt sorry for her. Theres vegetables you can eat too, right? Why dont you have some of those. Im not hungry. I see. Vi-Vi still had a ce in her heart for that cow. Sthub Bossththis meat tastesth goodokay? Millets sister Collette came and tried to urge Vi-Vi to eat. After Collette pushed her a bit fine, Ill eat, then! And Vi-Vi began eating the vegetables. Sthub Bossth, arent you going to eat meat? Collette pushed her again, and Vi-Vi thought silently. My sthisthter sthaid that you have to eat living thingsth to grow. Yeahokay Vi-Vi moped as Millet said to her, HachiI mean, Moofy was grown to provide food for us. You dont have to be sad for her. Yeah Since Moofys food for usits best we dont waste the chance to grow from her, right? Vi-Vi thought a bit more. I guess Then she started to eat the meat. Damn! This is really good! Vi-Vi cried a little bit as she ate. However, after she was done, she seemed to look a bit happier. DDDDDDDD That night. In the same way asst night, I got into my bed while Femm and Vi-Vi got in different parts of my bed. Femm must have known to stay away from Vi-Vi. The middle of the night. I woke up with Vi-Vi clinging to my body. OhhhMooooofyyyy I watched Vi-Vi talk in her sleep while whining and shedding tears. I patted her head kindly. After a while, Vi-Vi finally stopped talking and started snoring. DDDDDDDD The next morning. Al! Wake up! Hm? Vi-Vi was hitting me and trying to get me up. We have work to do today! I knowbut Vi-Vi was a bit too sprightly. Vi-Vi. Are you okay? Im fine! Okay. I was happy she wasnt down any more. All it took was one night, I guess. That was the most important thing. I brought you all breakfast! Millet and sister Collette came in my house. Oh, thanks. I was really hungry! Ruff! After breakfast, the chief walked in. Alfred, I have a request. Yes, what is it? The meat you stored yesterday, Id like to sell in town if possible. However, theres the rumor that there are bandits in the mountain path. I seethat is bad. Yes, thats why wed like you to be our guard if possible Thats no problem, but its usually bought by travelling merchants thate here, right? Yes. The issue is that the next time theye will be a month or so from now. Also, theres no way they can carry all that meat, and they probably wont even have the money to purchase it. I guess youre right. The chief bowed again with a regretful face. I know that youre tired from using all that magic yesterday Nonono, you dont have to worry about that. Just leave it to me. The chief bowed over and over, and then went back home. Old man, are you okay? Doesthnt your knee hurt? You can refuse if its impossible, right? We have plenty of time now because of the magic you used, Mr. Al. Collette and Millet looked worried. It wasnt a big deal for me though. Itll be fine, but thanks for all the concern. I understand why the chief wanted to turn a lot of that meat into money. Its summer. Tax collection season is in fall and not far off. Also, when it bes harvest season, there wont be much help anymore. Then it will be much more difficult to get this meat to market. Vi-Vi, get ready. Why do I have to help? I think we should make some carryable magical bags like the one I made in the ground. Youre good a magic circles, right Vi-Vi? Of course I am! So please help. I guess I have to then! She seemed happy to do so as she posed proudly. First, we would have to break off skin from the giant cow. Then we would have to sew the hide up with a magic needle into a bag. The size would be about half of a horse cart. About the magic circle. The necessary effect needs to be expanded storage, right? And since this is raw meat we also need no-status change so it wont rot. Definitely. And since were going to transport it on a cart, we need no-mass change as well. That makes three attributesquite difficult. After Vi-Vi and I we finished speaking, Millet, Collette, and Femm stood back and watched us with interest. Okay, Ill draw the magic circle, so if you notice something, tell me. I nned the magic circle inside my mind, and etched it into the hide with my finger. Because the end of my finger was issuing magical power, it was almost like a magical brush. When I was finished etching the symbols, Vi-Vi admiringly nodded. Whoahoo. A very simple but beautiful magic circle. Also, very fast. Thanks. When I was an adventuring wizard, I had to draw magic circles quickly over and over. Whether having to draw them during battle or while adventuring, speed meant victory in all cases. The magic circles created by professors of magical academies have more effect than mine. Theyre solid,plex, and wonderfully made, but they take a lot longer to create than mine. That has no use in a battle. Your magic circles are wonderful, Al, but theyck a certain gorgeousness. Gorgeousness?! Thats something my circles dont need. Right hereif you were to add this Vi-Vi carefully added to something in my magic circle. Wow, good job, Vi-Vi. Now the effect will be 20% stronger. Yeah, of course! Vi-Vi was proud of herself. She really was a superior sorcerer. I had never seen someone increase an effect like that so quickly. Yay, Sthub Bossth! Vi-Vi, you really have a knack for magic! Collette and Millet cheered Vi-Vi as Vi-Vis pride grew even more. Of course! Well, Als magic circle is so simple and well made, it was easy to add to. With Vi-Vis help, tomorrows preparations continued quickly. As we were inspecting all the other equipment, I could hear Millet whispering behind me. SoooVi-Vi What? Why did you call Mister Al just Al, today? What? Before, you always called him bastard, right? Waitdid I? I cant remember. Fwoo fooo. She was trying to y it off, as she tried to whistle to herself, but no sound came out. Chapter 20 - Haulin’ Meat

Chapter 20 C Haulin Meat

Trantor: Ranzan The next day, I got onto the horse cart and headed toward therge town. It would take about eight hours by horse and cart. Mister Alare youfortable in your seat? Im perfect. Millet, who was the driver, asked me. Femm and I were sitting behind her as guards. Millet was also acting as the seller of all this meat. Also, Vi-Vi and Collette were with us, as we couldnt leave them alone. The chief stayed behind as there was a lot of work for him to do. When we left Mulg, Millet! Do your best! The chief yelled at her loudly. He was hoping that she would get an excellent deal on the sale. Youre thso thsoft, Femm. Collette happily brushed away at Femms fur with her fingers. Half of the insides of the canopy over the cart was a magic bag stuffed with cow meat. The other half was space for those riding. Enough for three people and one wolf. Millet. Would you like me to drive? Im fine. Thanks. If you get tired, let me know. I have enough experience as a driver. Sure. When I get tired Ill let you know. Millet smiled. Sthister alwaysth worksth hard. Collette said with a look of pride. Vi-Vi rolled over and put her head on my right knee. The left was the one the hurt, so it was no big deal, but I had to at leastin. Vi-Vithats heavy. Im not heavy! My legs falling asleep. When Collette heard this, shemanded to Femm, Femm, go get her. Ruff! Femm got up and started licking Vi-Vis face. S, stop that! Ruff, ruff! Seeing all this go on from the drivers seat, Millet said to herself, Looks fun. We were two hours out of Mulg. Femm was lying down, but suddenly stood right up. Hey. What is it? Femms ears and tail stood straight up. Complete caution. Femm had much better perception of danger than I did. Femm. Watch behind us. I agree. I jumped up on the drivers seat and rode next to Millet. Just then. Fyooon! I formed a magic barrier in front of us. Then suddenly an arrow came flying at Millet. It was just like bandits to shoot first at the driver. After the driver was dead, they would drive away with the horses and cargo. Eeep! Millet ducked after seeing the arrow shot at her deflect off the shield. Millet, get under the canopy. Sure! There were about 10 bandits waiting for us. They had toppled arge log so that the wagon couldnt get past. A pretty good n. Give us the horses and cargo AND WE MAY LET YOU LIVE! Its important cargo. Sorry! Whoever says that to us DIES! You kill those that obey you too, right? Nowe dont! Humans are easy to sell too! They make nice ves! Saying that, the banditsughed together. Either way, I cant let you bandits stay here. Ill have to wipe all of you out. Now YOURE REALLY PISSING ME OFF! KILL THEM ALL! The bandits began their attack. Too slow. Just like normal bandits. This fight wouldnt be any fun for me. Time to calm you all down! Using a magical, I bound all ten of the banditsing at me. Guwaah! The bandits all fell to the ground. Idiots. But, usual for bandits. The boss of these bandits screamed at me while rolling on the ground, Dont think youre so TOUGH! Right now, another bandit is inside your canopy It was good for bandits when they found a cart with no bodyguard. Even if there was one, you could still beat him up with a lot of men. Even if you couldnt beat him, you could sneak a guy in the back to take hostages, and that worked to That was their strategy. They were used to it. However, GWAAAAWWWWW! GAAWWW! Whaaa!?! The bandits that had snuck in the back were getting chomped on and flung around by Femm. An arrow! Shoot an arrow! At the bosses cry, an arrow shot from the forest. As expected, your arrow wont reach its mark. I shot wind magic at the arrow and changed its direction. At the same time, I saw the direction of the arrow and knew where the shooter was. Found you! I threw another magic over him. As soon as the was over him, I pulled the out into the open. I tried to perceive any other enemy, but it felt like there were no more. Just in case, I yelled back to Femm. Femm! Any more around?! No, thats all. I rxed after hearing Femms reply. Femm, lets put them all in one ce. Bring the bandit you caught out here. Ruff! There were actually three bandits Femm had defeated. I bound them all just in case. Then I looked back into the canopy. Millet and Collette, you okay? Were okay. Thanks. Im fine, old man! They looked untouched. Wwhatyoure notining, are you? Vi-Vi had quickly etched a magic circle on the floor of the wagon. Nonoints. Vi-Vi had prepared a magic circle for arrow defense. She was trying to protect Millet and Collette. But it wasntplete yet. It wasnt as good as those made by professors of magical academies, but Vi-Vi still had etched it out as correctly as possible. Vi-Vi. Instead of writing magic circles in battle, why not just attack with magic instead? Al, youre the one that said chanting takes too long! When I first met her, I have to admitI did kick her ass while she was chanting. You dont have to chant though. But if I dontthe effect weakens. Its not a dragon youre fighting. Just a weak chantless magic is fine. Ohyeah. Vi-Vi nodded with respectful acknowledgement. And even if youre going to make a magic circle, while youre in battle, you dont have to make it pretty, okay? But what then it doesnt work? It doesnt have to work! It doesnt?! Listen. Youre in battle. Getting 70% of them right is enough to be effective. If it doesnt work, just etch it all over again! OhI get it. Vi-Vi now considered the matter seriously. But, if youre a magician, you should just let loose some chantless magic without doing that anyway. All here. While I was lecturing Vi-Vi, Femm came behind me and poked my butt with its nose. Hey, just dont sniff down there okay? Its embarrassing. Ruff? Femm turned his head in confusion. Chapter 21 - Sellin’ Meat

Chapter 21 C Sellin Meat

Trantor: Raaaaanzaaaaan! I stacked all the magicallyted bandits next to the magic purse in the wagon and struck off for the town. Femm watched them all closely while Millet and I sat at the drivers seat. I can drive by myself, though? Nonono, that was dangerous. I have to guard. If thats so, then I guess Ill be guarded by you, Mr. Al. For some reason, Millet was blushing. Leave it to me. I mean, I can drive the wagon, do you want me to do it for you? What? No, lets do it together! Umokay. Millet scooched beside me while we were riding. Then we heard Collette from behind. Goodgood I had no idea what she was talking aboutbut, whatever. After that, we got into town with no problems. As we drove in, I handed over the bandits to the outside guards. It seems they were wanted, so I got a decent reward for the exchange. Well! With this cash we can eat some good food! Great job, Mr. Al. Yahooo! Sthuper job, old man! I want something sweet! Bark, bark! Beef, Beef! When they heard the words good food, all of the party happily replied. The reward for the bandits was treated the same as bounty received after any monster defeated during a quest. In other words, it was split among the party. As we drove the wagon through the town, Vi-Vi shoved her head between Millet and I to look. She seemed very interested in what was going on in the town. All of these low-lifes in one ce Vi-Vi, if they find out youre a devil, its going to be a nuisance, so put this on. I put a hat on her head I had prepared for her on her outstretched head. Normally, a devil could mingle among humans without any problems. However, it wasnt rare that here and there, depending on the local lord, just being a devil could cause trouble. Oh well Vi-Vi probably understood her status quite well. She obediently put the hat on. I dont think the local lord hates demons that much though. Just in case. Millet looked a bit confused. If this was a town where the local lord didnt mind devils, there would be no reason to hide Vi-Vi. However, you could never be too safe. Make sure you act like a dog, Femm. Bark bark! Femm wagged its tail while sniffing Collette, roughly like a dog would. No matter how you looked at Femm, it was clearly canine. After all that, we arrived at the butcher the town usually sold meat to. Millet was in charge of the transaction. As she exined the situation and started the transaction, the owner looked at her with a troubled face. I understand what youre sayingbut it this meat really okay? Okay? I meanwith preservationif its gone bad Its fine. We used magic! No, theres no one around here that can use magic like that! If it was the big city, then someone could create a storage space using preservation magic. But not in the country. There were no normal magicians living in Mulg Vige either. And even if there were, it would probably be a half-assed job. I cast the magicso it will be okay. I said, and offered the owner my Adventurer Card. The doubting owner of the ce looked over my card. It had items showing I was a wizard and an S Rank adventurer to boot. Wha?! Ah, you, youre Please, keep the fact Im here a secret, okay? Oh, sure. Right. Sorry for doubting you! He had seen my name and realized I was one of the heros party that defeated the Demon Lord. I didnt want any fuss, so I stopped the owner before he blurted everything out. It was impossible to forge an Adventurer Card. Because of that, the cards were well trusted. From there, the transaction went smoothly. Even so, the beef weighed a lot, so it took time to offload. As the transaction ended, the sun had begun to set. Afterwards, the owner came up to me again before I left. I can tell my son proudly that I met the great Viscount Alfred! Well, thank you very much for saying so. However, Id like to keep it a secret I see. It must be quite hard for you to keep your identity secret, being so famous and all. The owner bowed over and over. Ah, I know that this is an improper time for his, but could I have your autograph? My son is a huge fan Thats no problem at all. If its his son, then I couldnt refuse. However, if Millet or the others saw me give my signature, theyd begin to suspect something. So, hiding what I was doing, I signed a paper for him. Collette saw it. She turned her head in confusion but kept quiet. Even if Collette saw it, there should be no problem, I thought. Sorry if my writing isnt the clearest. My family will treasure this! If you ever need anything, please be sure to call! The owner said, thanking me, as my party then left for the inn. Mr. Al, thank you. Hm? For helping with the transaction. No need for thanks. Its normal for a wizard like me to provide proof of his work. Vi-Vi looked a bit unhappy. I thought I was the most helpful one that made the magic circle for that cow meat! Yeah, Im sorry, but if I said that a devil cast the magicit would getplicated. I KNOW THAT ALREADY! Well, anyway, lets get to the inn and eat! After saying that, everyone was happy. All right! Ruff! As we drove through town, Millet pointed at one seller. Mr. Al! Look! That looks delicious! Yeah, youre right! Old man! I want sthome! Millet and the others were now all looking at the sweets. It was bread cooked from flour, eggs, milk, and so on, surrounded by cream. Then, fruits that were in season were cut up and ced as a topping. It looks so good. They dont sell anything like that in Mulg. I bought some for the excited group. You want one, Femm? YES. I was a little worried about feeding one to a dog. However, after asking Femm, I realized it was a wolf and not a dog, and not some ordinary wolf either. It was a magical wolf. Totally fine. So Femm got its own sweet as well. ! Ruff! Here. Chomp chomp Femm gobbled it down happily. I decided to eat one myself. Sweet food has a way of restoring a tired body. Millet was tired from negotiating that sale as well, but now she was giddily happy. Then, as we made our way to the inn, Femm bit and pulled at my sleeve. Hm? Give me. Femm was drooling looking at a barbeque stand by the road. Femmheywhen you get hungry, do you lose the ability to talk correctly? Nodont. Well, whatever. I bought a gave Femm a lot of meat since it couldnt speak well out of hunger. Then I bought Millet, Collette, and Vi-Vi some too. After sweets, something savoury is good too! Old man, sthanksth! Low-life meat is the best! Everyone ate and seemed satisfied. I was wondering if theyd all be able to eat dinner that the inn will provide as well. Actually, I was a bit worried. Chapter 22 - Staying Inn

Chapter 22 C Staying Inn

Trantor: Ranzan I bought a room at a slightly expensive ce. It cost a bit more to get a room where Femm was allowed inside. Heres our room. Um, Millet? What is it? The room had two big beds, both of them doubles, but a the room was a little small. I let Millet take care of all the payment in getting a room, and this was the result. Theres only two beds here. Yeswhats wrong? Well, I mean It was a little bit of a problem to mix a guy in with two beds full of girls. On top of that, there werent enough beds for everyone else. Its too expensive to put one person in one room. Well, Im an old guy. With youngdies. You need a separate room for me. Noyou sleep with Vi-Vi in the same room, right? Yeah, I guess so. No objection there. And as we were conversing, Femm jumped on the bed as if nothing was happening. I always sleep with Al, you know? What? Vi-Vi said pridefully, as Millet red at her and me. Mr. Al! Is that true? Pretty much. Theres only one bed. But for two people to sleep on one bed Femm sleeps there too. But Femms a DOG. WOLF. While Femm said that, Vi-Vi sat down on the bed that Femm wasntying on. Then maybe like usual I should just sleep in the bed that Al is in, right? Femm can sleep with you and Collette. Ruff. Femm jumped over on the bed that Vi-Vi was on. Sstay away from me! BARK! EEK! Femm licked Vi-Vis face. Millet reached out and grabbed Vi-Vis arm. Vi-Vi, you sleep over here! Youre sleeping with me! But its going to be cramped with Collette too. The two started bickering. Um, what if I just sleep on the floor? I was an adventurer for a long time. Its not like I never had to sleep on hard surface before. Rocks sucked to sleep on. Especially really bumpy ones. The ground was cold. It took your body heat away. Thinking about that made sleeping on a wooden floor seem perfectly fine. Mr. Al, youre the only one that SHOULDNT sleep on the floor. Even so Just then, Collette raised her innocent voice. Ill sthleep with the old man. Yeah, I guess thats the easiest Vi-Vi and Millet seemed like they still had something to say. However, it was decided that Femm, Collette, and I would sleep in the same bed. DDDDDDDDDDDD That night. Femm and Collette were holding each other. Seems like Collette liked the feel of fur. Femms so soft. Fwooon. Femm just let itself be held. Femm didnt seem too unhappy about it, either. Get over there some more! Vi-Vi! Youre taking up more than half the bed! Its ridiculous that I have to give up half to a LOW-LIFE LIKE YOU! They were fighting over in the other bed again. I just ignored them and slept. It waste and everyone was sleeping soundly. -thud. One more person got into bed. It was Millet. Um Yaaaawn. Millet was already asleep. She had gone to the bathroom and maybe gotten in with Collette out of habit. Millets cute ears twitched. Femm opened its eyes, peered at Millet for a second, and then slept. Mr. Al She put her arms around me and pulled me close. I could feel herrge breasts squish against me. Trouble. Millet? Millet. I shook her but she didnt wake up. Tttttrouble I was thinking I should get up and shake her off, but she was holding me so tightly, that was impossible. Oh well. I quit thinking about it and just went back to sleep. HEY! WHAT THE HELL ARE YOU TWO DOING?! Morningand Vi-Vi was screaming. I thought my bed had a little TOO much space! Youre some perverted elf to be creeping into bed with HIM! Wha! I didnt know Liar! Im not lying! Somehow, Millets excuse seemed a little fake. Vi-Vi probably thought so too. I know whats going on!! Mr. Al, youre still sleepy, right? Millet said, and squeezed me a bit tighter. GRRRRRRRR! Vi-Vi was so angry she grabbed Millet and threw her off the bed. I was still sleepy I cant EVER LET MY GUARD DOWN! The two were so loud Old manIm sthleeeeepy. Now Collette moved over and held me. Geezgo back to sleep, Collette. Yawmpph. Seeing all this ur, Femm yawned. DDDDDDDD After eating breakfast and leaving, we went to get supplies. With the money from the meat, we purchased the necessary things for the vige. Just leave all the buying to me! Okay, Millet. Millet ran in and out getting things. She had a list of everything that the chief needed. There were some prettyrge things, and they all fit inside the magic purse. It was an especiallyrge one, so it held almost everything. As I bought and nibbled on things here and there, Millet ran around buying this and that. Even though she had haggled down everything she bought, it still added up to a lot. Thats why Millet did her best in the buying of everything. Since I had fed the whole group a lot of sweets, they were all in a good mood. When Millet was finished with buying, she ate quite a bit too. With thatplete, we made our way back to Mulg in high spirits. Chapter 23 - Everyday Mulg

Chapter 23 C Everyday Mulg

Trantor: Ranzan The return wasplete peace. It took about half a day to get back to Mulg. Nothing happened, just a smooth trip. It feels so good now that were home again. Just seeing the vige puts me at ease. Youre right. I answered Millets statement, and was a bit surprised at my own words. I was at ease seeing it too. I had been living on the road as an adventurer for a long time. I recalled that towns were a ce of safety and where you could get supplies. But there was no ce I went back to that made me feel at ease. Honestly, I really dont remember a ce that I felt I hade home to for a long time. Even though I had been there only a little bit of time, I had grown attached to Mulg. DDDDDDDDDDDD After returning home, I spend some days leisurely. Just sitting there, next to the gate, zoning out. Femm, dont go too far away. Woof ruff! Femm happily ran out from the vige. Its canine instincts must be showing. Femms nothing more than a house dogin a way. Al, Look at this. Thisyou made another big one. Vi-Vi asked me to look at another magic circle she had drawn with a stick on the ground. Though it was a thick stick, I thought that the areas that had to be drawn thin were still done pretty well. Very nicely done. Heh heh. Vi-Vi looked at me proudly. I looked around every part of the magic circle. It was quite a good one. Attack magic, it looked like one that was used to create fire. Yeahcouldnt you shorten this part though? But if I do that, then its easier to figure out. Figure out what? The enemy can figure out what magic Im using. I had never thought about that before. Its not a trap in a dungeon, so you dont need to worry about that right? Dont you? Maybe you should take into consideration the judgement of someone like me who is skillful in magic. Youre calling yourself a great magician, Al? Vi-Vi said as she snickered to herself. But I didnt budge. Yes, I am great. And since Im so great, its obvious that you would have to deal with your enemy after you invoked the circle. Hmph. Instead of worrying whether or not they find out which magic youre using, just draw it quickly, because the one that gets hit by magic first is the one in trouble. Is that so? When you get hit, youll realize it. Were you ever hit by one, Al? Vi-Vi smiled at her own question. While we were talking, the chief and Collette approached. It was strange seeing her with him and not Millet. Femm?! Ruff? Collette called and after a moment Femm drew near. Heresth a treat. Ruff ruff! It was a chicken bone. It was left over from yesterdays soup. Can a dog eat a chicken bone? Graff ruff Are they mocking me? It said through spirit speech as it gobbled the bone down. After thinking about it, I realized that Femm wasnt a dog or a wolf. It was a magical beasta magic wolf. A bone wasnt going to hurt it. Youre right I patted Femms head as it ate. It backed away from me, a little angry. If you touched a dog while it ate, it would usually pull away. I wondered why. Femm! Ruff! I held back from touching Femm, but Collette never did. She grabbed on to Femms back while it was eating. Rurf?! Femm looked at me with eyes begging for me to do something. I looked at Femm with eyes saying to just give it up. While this was going on, the chief struck up a conversation with Vi-Vi. Ah, I have a request for you Vi-Vi Yes? It was odd for the chief to make a request to Vi-Vi and not me. I picked up Collette and listened to their conversation. Well, its a difficult request The chief wanted her to cast another ergement circle like she did with the previous cow. Of course, not the type she cast on Moofy. The one that she created first, about half as strong as the on cast on Moofy. Um, chiefthats just I see, well, sorry. I refused for Vi-Vi politely and the chief understandingly withdrew the request. I know what the chief was thinking. If you could grow giant cows, the vige economy would boom. However, Vi-Vi was still affected by the experience with Moofy. It was harsh to ask for a magic circle again after all that she went through. Why did you refuse, Al?! Vi-Vi red at me with slight displeasure. ButI thought. If someones going to refuse, Its going to be ME! Okaysorry. Hmph! Vi-Vi nodded proudly, and turned to the chief. An easy order. Are you sure? The chief suddenly looked ecstatic. However, I was still worried. You dont have to if you dont want to I can use my own magic circle if necessary. I had seen hers once. As I was a skilled wizard, I could copy it. Copying was difficult and boring, but with some time nothing was impossible. Who do you think I am?! Im the SUB-BOSS OF THE DEMON LORD! VI-VI!! Wow, sthub-bossth!! Seeing Collette so excited made Vi-Vi feel proud. If you need help, just ask, okay? No need! Im a genius, remember? Are you really going to be okay? After a short hesitation by Vi-Vi, she blushed a bit and said. But, you dont need to help me with anything. If youd like, you may learn by observingif you wish? Then I would love to. Okay then. And Vi-Vi was happy to say so. We walked to the stable, where Millet was waiting. Are you okay, Vi-Vi? Theres nothing a sub-boss of the demon lord cant do, lowly human! Vi-Vi channeled magic into her finger and began writing a magic circle. Hows that?! Wonderful. You did even better than before. Heh heh. Vi-Vi smiled at thepliment. It seemed that Vi-Vi came to an understanding with what happened during the Moofy Incident. Seeing Vi-Vi smile again while drawing the circle rxed me quite a bit. Chapter 24 - After Work, Hot Springs Are Great (Summer Edition)

Chapter 24 C After Work, Hot Springs Are Great (Summer Edition)

Trantor: Ranzan After that was donehot springs. I wanted to get in one every day to heal my knee faster. You should try all the hot springs we have. If you like a certain one, you may rent it. The vige chief told me, so I went to a different hot springs thanst time. I would like to go to one closer to my own guard bungalow. Ruff? Not now, but I need something close for winter. If its far from my house then Ill freeze while walking home from the springs. Ruff Woff Femm nodded over and over, understanding the matterpletely. As for we devils, we dont care how far it is. You dont catch cold in the winter? Were not like you lowly humans. We dont ever catch colds! Oh. Oh. Without thinking, Millet and I responded simultaneously. But we were both suspicious of Vi-Vis statement. Wwhat? No, nothing Yes, were not thinkinganything. Humans have the saying Idiots dont catch colds. Of course, if we mentioned thatVi-Vi would be furious. Idiotsth dont catch coldsth, you know!? The young Collette said tly. Hearing that, Vi-Vi red at us. Alare you thinking that Im an idiotso I dont catch a cold!? Oh nonot at all. Ruffeh heh. Femm wasughing, or making some strange voice. As this was going on, we finally arrived at the hot springs. Girls, you can get in first. No, you go ahead, Mr. Al. No, no, what are you talking about? Im getting in FIRST! Femm simply walked in ahead of everyone trying to give each other first shot at the hot springs. Since Femm was getting in, I followed and stopped Vi-Vi from going in. It was my job to wash Femm. I had to go in first. Well, then Im going in first. Go ahead, take your time. Millet smiled. Vi-Vi looked a bit perturbed. After going into the shack outside the springs, I looked inside. The chief told me that I could reserve it if I liked it. Well, after taking a look, I did. This is a pretty nice ce! Woff! This hot springs was an all-outside bath. Even though it was outside, it was constructed so none of the vigers could see who was in it. You could see the river down belowand the forest. Perfect for a day with good weather. Its notpletely peep-proof, but with some invisibility magic it should be fine. As I said this I saw Femm put its front paws into the water, and I pulled Femm back. What are you doing?! Rrf? Femm looked at me, confused. Todaywe have to start by washing off Femm. Rawf Woof Hey, I was thinking Femm was happily being washed, as it looked at me. Femmare you losing your intelligence? Dont say such rude things. Well, butwhen you were ying with the water just nowyou looked totally like a dog. Regrettable Lately, most of the time, you only bark like a dog. Since you humans only have frail words to convey meaning, you dont understand. Meaning other than words, do you mean like tail wagging? Fool. There are far more different ways of conveying meaning than that. Femm suddenly became impertinent with me and looked at me with cold eyes. Hm Such foolish questions to ask, and how rude they are. This happened the same time that I finished washing Femm. When I began washing off my arms cka ck Mr. Al, I came to wash your back! It was Millet. She had a bath towel around her. Even so, the towel pushed her breasts together, emphasizing her cleavage. And the towel was hiked up dangerously high on her thighs. NoMilletthanks for being so considerate, but Dont worry about it. Millet smiled and came closer, kneeling down right beside me. I looked at Femm for help. Femm ignored me, probably in revenge for what I had said, and pretended not to notice. It simply sat in the bath. Okay, just sit still and rx, okay? As she said so, she touched my shoulders from behind. Her hands were a bit cool and moved gracefully. I stopped trying to resist and obediently sat there and enjoyed it. Mr. Alyour back has a lot of scars on it. Well, I was an adventurer. That sounds so cool. Even though she hadnt used the bath, Millets ears were red. Just then, Vi-Vi and Collette came in the room. Vi-Vi had a bath towel on too. Collette happily pranced around us. Hmph, a scarred back is a knights shame. Im not a knightyoure getting in too, Vi-Vi? Are you saying I shouldnt GET IN? Noyou shouldnthave somemon sense. As in, it was againstmon sense for opposite sexes to get in the bath with each other. I am a devil, and a high ss one. Im not beholden to the samemon sense as low-life humans. Yeah, but Vi-Vi, you said previously that mixed bathing was strange. Hmph. But thats strange to humans right? Thats all I was saying. Hmm? As we conversed, Vi-Vi washed off Collette. And after that, Collette said, Femm! And she ran into the bath with Femm. Femm go! Ruff Ruff! She fell on Femm again and they ran around the bath. They were having a lot of fun. After watching Collette and Femm for a while, Millet finished and moved in front of me. Im done washing your back. ThanksMillet. Time for the front. What?! Millet walked her fingers up my chest. No, no, Im going to wash that myself. Dont hold back. Im not, Im just fine on my own. I refused as strongly as I could. Hmph. Millet looked a bit disappointed as Vi-Vi walked over. Hey, Al! Wash my back! Wha, why me? Itll be an honor for you. Millet then grabbed Vi-Vi. Okay, Ill wash your back for you. Hm? You can wash your own back, Millet! I want Al to wash mine. Yeah, yeah, maybe next time. Hmpph! Millet started to wash off Vi-Vi. I used this time to get in the bath. Old man, Femms good at sthwimming! ReallyI see. I said as I watched the magic wolf king swim. Femm swam by and *whap whap* hit my face with its tail. Old man. Does your knee hurt? It does, but I can take it. Stho it hurtsth. Well, I can rub it for you. Collette rubbed my knee. Thanks. I think the pain went away. Heh heh. Colletteughed happily. After getting in the bath, my knee seemed to be soothed by the water. I could feel the pain lessening. It normally hurt, but it wasnt so painful I couldnt take it. I remember an old innkeeper with a back that hurt like this. Maybe his pain was just about the same level as mine. I wouldnt know as my back didnt hurt, though. No, another old tavern-keeper said his joints hurt on days with bad weather. Maybe thats closer to this pain. Either way, I could still live my daily life. But it would be hard to be an adventurer. An adventurer has to walk long distances every day, and he has to carry heavy things all the way. If a battle begins, an enemy might pick out your weak point. If he saw that my knee was weak, Im sure hed target it as much as possible. Also, there wasnt much time that an adventurer could rest. I really love this hot spring. I love it too.Collette said. The hot springs echoed with pleasantughter. Chapter 25 - A Wolf King’s Work

Chapter 25 C A Wolf Kings Work

Trantor: ranzan After leaving the hot springs, I went back to my house and ate dinner. Not with just Vi-Vi and Femm, but with Collette and Millet also. Today is beef stew, everyone! Wuff wuff! Thanks to Moofy, the price of beef in Mulg was hyperdeted. And the beef was still goodso everyone was happy. You could enjoy a nice bath and sleep soundly. Even though I wasnt so sure how well the hot spring was working. *** Late night. Femm suddenly sprung up. Femm, what is it? Do you have to use the bathroom? If you do, you can go ahead outside. No. Femms spirit speech sounded a bit worried. Well, what is it? Hmp Femms ears twitched. It was focusing on the sounds it heard. While Femm and I were talking, Vi-Vi woke up. Im SLEEPY! Then sleep. Yawwnn. And Vi-Vi just went back to bed. On the other side, Femm jumped off the bed. Its tail stood up straight. Im being called. By whom? You cant hear? By a brotherhowling far away. I cant hear anything I tried focusing my ears, but I still couldnt hear anything. However, Femms keen hearing probably heard something. Seems like something bad happened. Hm? I have to gookay? Suredo you need help? Just your good intentions will sufficeits my duty as Femm the king. I see, well go do your best. I watched Femm prepare to leave the house. When it did, it assumed itsrger, horse-like size. Its been a while since I saw you that size. Thats not true. When I first met Femm, it had a far slimmer, hungry wolf look. Now Femm looked far more virile and tough. Ill be back. If you have any trouble, let me know. I rubbed Femms head onest time. I see. Ill be back here for tomorrows dinner. It said while sniffing away at me around my chest. Then it stuck its nose into my hair. After doing that for a moment, Femm took off running. See youwell, back to sleep. I got back in bed and closed my eyes. But it was hard to get back to sleep. I was worried about what happened to Femm. All of the magical wolves were mature magic wolves. Thats why theyd be okay even without Femm there. Even so, if Femm was called by another, that meant that there was a big problem afoot. And if it was a problem among the big king wolves, then Femm would be the one to take care of it. But it was still a huge worry. It wasnt until dawn was close that I finally got some sleep. I had a dream. Femm was fighting a magic boar. Femm was having a hard time and was injured. Al! Al, wake up! Ah, Vi-Vi, good morning. What is it? You were having a nightmare! I had a really bad dream. Only a low-life would have a nightmare where they were talking in their sleep! Vi-Vi said, restlessly looking around. Hey, so where did the doggie go?! Vi-Vi only woke up oncest night. She then slept soundly and didnt know what happenedst night. There was a problem in its pack, so Femm went back to the forest. Hmmm? Vi-Vi said nothing after that. I thought she would be happy as she was scared of Femm, but she wasnt. After eating breakfast with Millet and Collette, I went back to my work as guard. It was strange not seeing Femm running around like it usually did. After Vi-Vi went to see the cow, she came back to me. She started scribbling away at a magic circle like usual. Sigh Are you worried about the doggie? Femm said it wouldnte back until dinner. If Femm said it would return, then theres no worry. She started scribbling again. Allook here. Hm? What is this? Heh heh. No reallywhat is this? It was a magic circle I didnt understand. Its a magic circle that, if you draw it on your forehead, your bad dreams disappear. Vi-Vi said with a proud face. Theres a magic circle like that? I had no idea. Of course! I made it myself just now! Wowthats something. I said, and I analyzed the magic circle. It was well made. The base was a sleep effect with curse dispel. Putting the two together would probably bar you from seeing bad dreams. However, Isnt this part connected to this other part? Hm? But if you connect it, then the nightmare erasing effect is gone. But, if you dont connect it, then the flow of magic is interrupted. You might be right If the flow of magic was stopped, then the magic circle wouldnt work. Well, failure leads to sess. Heh heh. I gave Vi-Vi a little praise anyway. It was time for dinner. I waited for Femm in my house, but it didnt return. Millet and Collette came to the outside of my house. Mr. Al. I brought dinner. Millet. Thanks again. Old man. Did Femme back? Femm must be really busy. I hope that nothing bad happened to Femm. Millet looked worried as she squeeze Collette close. Femms a magic wolf kingitll be fine. Youre right. Millet and Collette still looked worried. I was worried too, of course. And Vi-Vi was too, although she didnt say anything. As we all ate dinner without Femm, suddenly Wuff Ruff! Femm jumped into the house. It was the same huge size asst night. Femm was out of breathits beautiful silver hair had mud all over it. Collette ran up and held it. Wee back. Femm licked Collettes face. Femmyou werete. I need your help. Leave it to me. I had answered, and Femm wagged its tail. Chapter 26 - Dragon Zombie Versus Wizard

Chapter 26 C Dragon Zombie Versus Wizard

Trantor: RaNzAn Femm looked worn out. Femm, rest a little. I dont have the time! I see, let me get ready and while I do, drink some water. Ruff Millet gave Femm some water and dinner. Femm then ate as quickly as it could. I took my time getting ready so that Femm had a moment to rest. Okay, lets go. Ill tell you whats happening on the way. I jumped onto Femm and got ready to go. Im going with you! Vi-Vi shouted at us. Vi-Vi was an excellent sorcerer, so I thought she mighte in handy. Well,e on then, Vi-Vi. Sure! Vi-Vi tried to hop on Femm behind me. Femm shook her off. Im getting on! Rawuf! Eeep! Femm clearly didnt want Vi-Vi to ride. Femm, I know you dont like her, but let her ride. She mighte in handy. Raf. Just this time. Femm let Vi-Vi ride this time. Millet and Collette saw us off as Femm then ran through the gate and out of the vige. So, Femm, what do we need to do? Theres an enemy that I cant defeat. What? Vi-Vi started babbling loudly. What a loser! If a dog like you cant RAWWWR! Eeek! She was so scared that she grabbed on tighter to Femms back. If Femm was scared of this enemy, then it was best not to mock it. Dont make fun of Femm, Vi-Viand Femm, dont scare her! Rawf So, what is it? It cant be a normal beast if its something that youre having trouble with, Femm. Its a dragon. I could hear Vi-Vi swallow in anxiety. A dragon was one of the strongest foes. If its a dragon, then of course its going to be a hard foe, even for a magic wolf king. Dont mock me. I wouldnt have a hard time fighting any dragon. Oh? Its a great undead dragon. Yeah, an enemy like that is going to take a lot of work. Eek! Vi-Vi squealed in fear. A Great Dragon was a size much bigger than normal dragons. And, of course, it was very strong. Also, it was undeadso it couldnt die. Or, you could say that it moved even though it was already dead. Even what was considered a fatal blow with something living wouldnt work against the undead. Breaking its neck, crushing its head, shing its heart. The arms and legs could still move to their own possible limits. You had to cut off all its limbs, burn it up, and so on. Of course, it was a REAL pain to deal with. Femm and the other wolves used their fangs and ws as their main weapons. An undead dragon, therefore, was a very troublesome enemy. I shouted to Vi-Vi, who was shaking behind my back. Vi-Vi. You dont have toe. Wwhat are you saying? A great undead dragonsno match for me! I seeyou sound tough. While this was all urring, Femm quickly stopped. We were near the top of a steep cliff. Its here? Yes. Other magic wolves ran up around us. They all barked as if reporting to Femm. EEP! Vi-Vi screeched again and clutched on to me. I wondered why the hell I brought her with me. Whats happening? Ill exin. Femm exined the situation clearly. Last night, a great undead dragon suddenly attacked. The wolves tried to repulse it, but failed. Then they must have asked Femm for help. The next time, Femm tried to repulse the undead dragon, but this time lesser undead dragons appeared with it and Femm failed. Then Femm called me. While I listened to Femms story, I looked around. There were three lesser undead dragon skeletons crumbled on the ground. Since they were lessers, you were able to handle three of them, sounds very hard for magic wolves, but you did it. Ruff. Femm was pleased at beingplimented. The other wolves wagged their tails happily as well. Femm looked back at me as it said. If it was just me, I could fight it. However, I am a magic wolf king. I have to protect my pack. Femm wasnt saying it could win. Just that it could fight. Femm correctly understood the difference in its own and its enemys strength. Thats why I need your strength. Femm bowed its head to me. If only the magic wolves had fought the Dragon Undead, there would have been quite a few casualties. Femm was bowing so that I would help protect the life of its pack, as king. And some king Femm was. Leave it to me. Me too. I think Im well taken care of around you two. Thanks. The dragon undead were in the shadow of the cliff. Just between torge cliffs, inside of a crevasse. For some reason, the dragon undead were about to move from the cliffs into the forest where the magic wolves lived. And somehow the wolves were about to stop it in time. If they got over my forest, next would be Mulg Vige. So now it bes my problem. I said, as I rubbed Femms head. Leave the great undead dragon to me. The wolves should keep the lesser dragons away by fighting them far from me. RuffBark bark Femm and his pack barked their responses. What about me? Do whatever you want, Vi-Vi. Ill let you take care of it. Got it. After looking them over a final time, I began to chant a curse over the chasm that was the nest of these undead dragons. Oh Goddess of Fire, Reigning in Summer Skies. Demon Duke of Burning Hell With a Holy Key, Break Open the Gate of Hades. That Sun. That King of Earth. Take the Fire of Evesting Darkness, and Cleanse the Worlds Corruption. For my Name is Alfred Lint! A massive fireball appeared and flew down into the crevassethen exploded. This was the quickest way I knew how to mow down an enemy with the greatest amount of fire. However, after the explosion, some of the forest closest to it turned to ash. Thats why I had to hold the explosion of the fireball until the veryst second, so the forest wouldnt burn. Even so, a huge wave of hot air hit us. My face was hot. Wwhat terrible power Vi-Vi saidher voice shaking. Yeah, well if this ends it, then that will make it easy. DDǣң Crying out, the Great Dragon Zombie emerged from the crevasse. Just like a Great Dragonbig, like a mountain. And it wasnt just undead, it was a zombie. Even if a Great Dragon changed to a zombie, it still had a strong magical barrier. There was no way I could burn it up because the barrier prevented the ability for the dragon to be ignited with fire. The lessers came out as well, as they probably hid behind the great dragons body. There were five of them, each about three times asrge as a cow. One of them was enough to destroy a small town. Get ready to fight. Rouf Wuff! The magic wolves all focused around Femm and attacked the lesser dragons. Femm led them around all in unison. I faced the Great Dragon, and shot multiple chant-less magical spears at it. Speed was more important than power. Anything faster will winas a basic strategy. The first spear was knocked away by the dragons barrier, but the second one broke it. The third hit the Great Dragons body. I saw that I had damaged the Great Dragons body. DDǣңңңңңң The dragon screamed out in pain. Even though it was already dead, it still could feel pain, I guessed. And if it felt itit was kind of sad. I wanted to bepassionate and put it out of its misery quickly. The Great Dragon thrashed about in pain. At the same time, the dragons that were led away by the wolves began to flee in the air. Youre going nowhere! Vi-Vi had cast a whirlwind from a magic circle she made. It was a magical whirlwind with des in the sides of the spiral. The dragons wings were cut off. The dragons had also climbed quite high in the sky. With their wings gone they crashed into the ground. They took a lot of damage from the fall. Finisher! Because they had lost a lot of physical strength and magic resistance from the fall damage, it was simple work to finish them off. Femm went to finish off the lessers as well. Theyre still moving. Right. Time to burn them. With the finisher, even though they had lost all their fighting strength, their arms and legs were still moving. I burned all of their bodies with fire magic. Wo, wo, woooooooooooooaaaan!! Femm howled after making sure that all the dragon undead were burned up. The wolves soon followed in Femms howling. Those howls must have been their deration of victory. Chapter 27 - Making Storage

Chapter 27 C Making Storage

Trantor: Ranzan With the dragon undead destroyed, we collected the remains from the victory. Since I have been an adventurer for so long, I never forget to gather my battle rewards. Ill help you too, Al! Vi-Vi sprung out to help me collect all the goods. Femm would be no help in stripping away all of the treasure. Even so, I was grateful all the dragons died in one ce. The three dragons that Femm and the others killed and one destroyed by the first fireball were all nearby as well. All of them together made one Great Dragon and 20 lessers. A victory treasure doesnt change because of zombie status; however, because of the dposition the scales are hard to remove. Even so, we were lucky, as the zombie status really hadnt taken effect. We were able to get quite a bit. This is a LOT. Sure is! My hero party, including me, could do a lot with an amount like this. And without all of the rest of hero party there, it would be almost enough to buy off the capital. Its sad to see something so strong as a dragon get zombie status. Yeah, and among undead statuses, zombie is the worst. Zombie magic was said to have been created for humans to be transformed intopletely obedient ves by ancient dark magicians. It was a huge taboo to use. A zombie magical beast was a dead body animated that had its freedom taken from it. Whatever magic beast hit by zombie magic moved like an animatron with all its dignity taken from it. The most fearsome thing of it all was that the zombie still had the consciousness inside that it had while it was still living. It was able to think, but its body moved on its own, without will. It couldnt move a muscle on its own. There was no other magic as terrifying as that. A dragonvery fearsome, but this was a Great Dragon with tactical strategy and magic resistance as well It was an outright shame that a beast like this was made into a zombie. I said a brief prayer for these dragons. While we were taking the spoils of our victory, I asked Vi-Vi So, Vi-Vi, why did you want to help? Um..I just Vi-Vi had problems responding. Oh, oh yeah! I was thinking that the dogs would owe me a favor. Now I dont think Femm will try to eat me. I see. Vi-Vi tried to fake an answer. It seemed, however, that Vi-Vi was more worried about Femm than anything. DDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDD We had finished pulling the dragons apart, and were returning to Mulg Vige. Millet was waiting for us on the way. Wee back. Are you injured? Were fine. Collette had just woken up. She was rubbing her sleepy eyes. Old man, Femm wee back. Sthub bossthh too. She said, as she ran up and put her arms around Femm. We ate dinner, and then slept. Two beings and one beastone bed. Just like usual, Femm somehow was able to invade my space. It dropped its heavy snout onto my stomach, and I just put up with the weight. Vi-Vi was closer to Femm than usual as well. She gripped onto Femms tail and slept. The next day, we all had breakfast, and I went to guard as usual. Femm ran around nearby, and Vi-Vi drew magic circles in the ground. Ruff Woof Femm barked. I looked over, and Femms underlings had brought something from the previous day. ws, fangs, bones, dragon scales, and magic stones. Oh, thanks! The fangs were as long as a person. The bones were even bigger. The scales were as big as shields. All of the wolves had given their all to drag everything down to us. We were about to give some beef to the wolves when Femm stopped us. I dont want the wolves to get used to people giving them food. But this is thanks for dragging all that loot down to us. They dragged it down as thanks for you destroying those dragons. Theres no reason to thank them for anything. Is that how it is. Yes. Maybe as a substitute, or something, I petted as many of the wolves as I could in thanks. Hey, but youre getting fed, Femm. Is that okay? Rurf? Femm slowly rolled over on the ground and panted. There was nothing I could do, so I rubbed its belly. While I was doing that, the chief came over. Millet had called for him. Al, did you need something? Yeah, chief, thanks foring. Look at that! The chief looked at everything the dragons had dropped. Yesterday, Femm and Vi-Vi helped me get rid of those things. What? Dragons? Yes, theres a lot left overdo you have a ce to put it? Ill pay rent for thend and so on, of course. There was no way to put them in my bungalow. There was no way to carry them, and they didnt fit in the magic bag. Youkilledthis manydragons?! The chiefs face was still locked in a shocked expression. There are humans that think that dragons are some kind of holy beingthe chief must be one of these. Thats why I prayed for them once. Sorry, but theyre undead, so I have to kill them. Nothats not the problem. The problem isif you fight dragonsyoure going to KILL YOURSELF! The chief worried about me. How kind. Ill be careful. I really wish you would. Yes, wellthanks. After that, the chief gave me somend. I said I wanted a wide, t area, that was near the vige. Okay! Lets make a ce to store this! Okay then! Rawf! We began to construct a shack to store everything in. We bought some logs from the woodcutter, and had the town carpenter help us. Magic helped us a lot with the construction as well. It made lifting the logs, striking the nails, and clearing thend easy. We made the roof on the ground and then I used gravity to lift itter onto the building. Maybe being a wizard is really the perfect job for a carpenter? You might be right. The carpenter asked and thenughed at my response. Vigers that were free also helped us where they could. While we were taking a break, one viger looked at me and said, Since youre such a great wizard, Al, youre a guy thats easy to take a liking to. Really? Well thanks a lot. Yeah, but theres somethingcking ingravitasabout you. The vigers around me looked at each other and nodded. Gravitas? Yes, gravitasyou knowyoure not scary. The vigers again agreed among themselves. I dont need to have something like thatI guess. No, you do! If you had that, you could push people around! Yeah! Here, Al, wait here for a second! The viger looked as if he realized something, ran to Millets house, and came back quickly. Millet came back with him with a fake beard. We used this beard inst years festival. If you want it, well give it to you. Oh, that would look good on you, Al! I put the fake beard on, and I could feel the fluffiness on my chin and under my nose. It was just enough to hang off my chinnot the kind that reaches to your stomach. Once the vigers saw me wear that, they jumped up and down gleefully. OkayI guess I could try wearing it Now you look like a REAL wizard.It suits you well. After putting in on, everyone nodded in approval. Maybe I could wear this as a disguise someday. Since I might need it, I took it and thanked them. Using magic, the storage shack was finished in three days. And with Vi-Vis expansion magic, the inside of the storage was made even bigger. Because of this building, Im going to make the most beautiful magic circle to match it! Not something cheap that you use during battle, but a gorgeous, superior magic circle! Vi-Vi was super excited to do it. Because of Vi-Vis exquisite magic circle drawing, the internal storage of the ce expanded 10 times the outside size. It was also a very tough circle. Attacks and fire couldnt harm it. Maybe being a magic circle magician is really the perfect job for a carpenter? Good job, Vi-Vi. Right?! Right?! Vi-Vi said proudly. There was a crawl space under the floorboards of the storage shack. The wolves took a liking to it. Several of them had already crept in and were sleeping. I wonder if they can warn us if anyonees. Youre right. Femm said proudly. Hmph! Those dirty wolves are going to just sit there and chew on the bones! They wont do that! I was just joking. Al, I have an idea! Femm didnt get angry, and Vi-Vi just blew it offthey both had grown. An idea? Lets make Moofy the boss of this ce! Vi-Vi said as she proudly stuck her chestout. Chapter 28 - Preparing Moofy the Guard Cow. And Collecting Herbs.

Chapter 28 C Preparing Moofy the Guard Cow. And Collecting Herbs.

Trantor: Ranzan Vi-Vi insisted upon it. She wanted to make Moofys bones into a skeleton soldier that would patrol the storehouse. I wonderif thats a good idea. Even though they were both undead, skeletons were different from zombies. Zombies still had consciousness, but their movements werepletely controlled. Thats why they were feared and avoided. Skeletons had will, just as they did before they died, but they were able to act on it. Im never going to let myself be a zombie. However, a skeleton wouldnt be too bad, I guessconsidering. The problem is where the soul is. Huh? Femm said suddenly in spirit speechit surprised me. However, it was just as Femm said. After death, what happens to the soul? Even with all the magic developed in this world, no one knows. There are religions that believe the soul reincarnates, and there are some that say it simply disappears. Most say that it changes without reincarnation, and some say that they all unify together. It takes a soul hundreds of years to disintegrate and disappear. A skeleton is just there while the process happens. What religion is that, Vi-Vi? Vi-Vi seemed sure of herself. Its not a religion. Its what the devils believe. um, thats a religion. Anyway, I had no idea what the devils believed, so I had no response. What do you think, Al? Well, I AM a wizard. I just think I dont understand what I dont understand. I had no idea what became of a soul. Every young wizard thinks about what a soul is. I did when I was younger. And because of that, I came to the conclusion that I had no idea. Though I knew that I had no idea, Vi-Vi strongly believed in her own theory, so there was no reason for me to openly reject what she was saying. So youre agnostic? What does that mean? think about it on your own. Sorry if I dont know. Tell me your belief, then, Femm. honestly, I have no idea either. I see. Since Femm didnt want to have anyck of thought pointed out, Femm agreed so it would seem smart. The whole argument fell apart. Vi-Vi, if thats what you want, then you can do it. Just get permission from the chief. You got it! Vi-Vi ran off happily into the vige. *** The next day. I went like usual to my guardpost. The new storage shack was right outside of town, near to the gate. I could see the magic wolves ying around outside of it. It seems that Femm took a liking to the crawlway under the storage floor as well. I bet its cool there in the shadows. With Femm smallit looks like the smallest of all the magic wolves. I whispered to myself. Of course, Femm just used magic to make itself smaller. The wolf children were ying around with Femm as well. Seeing Femm y so gleefully makes it look cute. Al, look at this. What? Vi-Vi had drawn a magic circle out like usual. This was arge circle. It seemed to be the one to turn Moofy into a skeleton. I think its well made, but dont you think that this part makes the circle less safe? Youre right. With that, Vi-Vi fixed the magic circle. She went over it again and again, and by evening, finally stood up, satisfied. There! Done! Congrats. Heh, heh. Now Moofy will moo once more. Theres no need for it, if my wolves are guarding. Femm ran over. It looked quite hungry. A group of baby wolves came over, following Femm. Kyuu kyuuu They whined cutely, and surrounded Vi-Vi. Sstop that! Vi-Vi got behind me as I sat and grabbed me. Dont cling to me like that, Vi-Vi! No, theyre going to EAT ME! Theyre not going to do that, right Femm? Rawf Femm barked once, and the parents of the babies ran up. Then they barked at the baby wolves and they all went away. Those things are likedemon dogs! Vi-Vi was still scared of dogs, it seems. DDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDD The next day at morning, Millet said, Mr. AlI want you to help me collect herbs. Sounds easy. With summer quickly ending, now was the best time to pick the herbs. The ce was a little far from the vige. Femm, let me ride. Rawf Femm let us on. Do you want toe too, Vi-Vi? II have to get Moofys magic circle ready! Vi-Vi said as she looked at Femm. While we were fighting the dragons, Vi-Vi had ridden on Femms back. I thought something like that was impossible. She wanted to help Femm, so she made herself ride Femms back. Okay, thanks. I rubbed Vi-Vis hair for a second. It was because Vi-Vi had worked so hard to help Femm, who was in quite a predicament with those dragons. Wwhat was that for?! Vi-Vi said, blushing. It took us half an hour to ride to the ce where the magical herbs were growing. Mr. Al, these herbs we have to pick smell really bad. Cover your nose with this cloth. Sure. They did stink. After I jumped off of Femm, Millets face was already half covered with cloth. Femm, are you okay? It does have a strong smell. But it doesnt stink. It smells pleasant. Whaat? It seems that Femm had its own sensation of smell. Canines do like to smell their own asses, after all. I seeso thats why. Wauf Femm stuck its snout between my legs. Stop that! Rowlf? While Femm and I were ying around, Millet was finishing up with picking the herb. That was fast! Yes. I only need a little of this. Well, lets go back then. And as we got ready to return, Um, hello there? I heard a voice behind me, closer than I expected. I didnt sense the persons approach. It wasnt normal for someone to get that close without me sensing it. Femm also nervously had its tail straight up. We felt the sensation of whomever it was near us, and frightened, we stood without turning around. Yes, what is it? Perhaps because she had no ability to fight, or that she wasnt cautious, Millet smiled and answered. I got lost on the road. Do you know where Mulg Vige is? It seemed to be a traveler from the citynot from around here. I quickly turned around to face whomever it was. Chapter 29 - Young Hero Cruz and Old Man Wizard

Chapter 29 C Young Hero Cruz and Old Man Wizard

Trantor: Ranzaaaaan! Why is there someone here in a ce like this? That was my first thought. Dammit What is it? I quickly changed my voice with magic and turned back around. I had my back turned to the hero C I finally answered. Nonothing. have Imet you before? No, this is the first time, I think. The hero suspected somethingI still had my back turned. Im sure that Ive met you somewhere The hero then walked around and faced me. I tried to turn away as the hero circled around to face memust be doubting who I ampletely. What is it? Millet looked at me with a troubled and confused look. A hero had a lot of fighting power but is VERY easy to fool. The hero still didnt know who I was. Since my face was covered by cloth, I thought I could still keep my identity a secret. I was thankful that Millet gave me that cloth to cover my face with. Thank you CLOTH! And thank you, stinky herbs! Seeing my chance, I took off the cloth and put on the beard that I got from Millet. Then I looked at the hero. If you have something you need at Mulg VigeI can show you there. Yes, well thank you. The hero tilted his head after seeing me with my beard. It seemed I had fooled the herophew! Well, Mr. Al, lets go home! Mr. Al? No, my name is Rall, okay? Is that so? The hero waspletely fooled. Millet thought it over a bit, and then aftering to some realization, gave me a thumbs up. She knew that I was trying to hide who I really was. Im d she had a little sense. The hero walked with Millet, while I rode on top of Femm. Sorry for riding on this dog here. My legs are bad. Nono need to worry. Since my voice and tone had changed, the hero simply thought I was an old man named Rall. It hurt a bit to fool a personbut oh well. Millet innocently introduced us both. I am Millet, and this is I am Rall. Thank you for your courtesy. I am Cruz Conradine. What an excellent name. Thank you very much. The adventurer was a baron. Of course, the hero had a great family name now after fighting the Demon Lord with me. So what business do you have with Mulg? Well, I came to fight off an undead Great Dragon Oh, well Millet seemed to notice. We had just happened to kill a dragon just like that. So I had to cover for her. Mythat sounds like a terrifying thing! Yes. Its said that a necromancer from the Demon Kings remaining army created the zombie dragon. A necromancer? Yes! But no fear! The necromancer was dealt with! He had created aboratory for himself in the western mountains. But I STILL was able to sniff him out. The hero proudly said. That is a magnificent story. However, it seemed that the zombie dragon was intent oning to the capital to attack it. Therefore, I was asked to dispatch it, post haste. Hearing this from the hero, I finally understood. If the dragon was flying towards the capital from the western mountains, then it would pass right over Femms forest and Mulg Vige. I see. And since the dragon was flying that way, I thought that I woulde to protect Mulg Vige. Were quite thankful that you did. No, no, I was also thinking of getting some supplies here as well. The hero smiled. Theres nothing much in Mulg Vigewill you be able to get the supplies you need? Of course I will! I had no idea what Cruz wanted to get, but the hero seemed pretty sure about it. Even soto fight off a dragon, you must be quite strong, Cruz. Because of training! And because of my other party members. Still, for you to be a girl the same age as meits really something.Millet said. No need topliment me, youngdy. Cruz was embarrassed. I would have to exin sometime soon why the threat of the dragon was gone. I thought about an excuse as fast as I could. DDDDDDDDD We walked a little while longer and arrived at the vige. I shouted in my own voice after seeing the disaster in front of me, WHAT THE HELL IS GOING ON?!?!? My guard house was burning. There was a river near the vige. I quickly chanted a water spell and put out the fire. Looks like a lot of trouble, huh? The hero saw me use magic but really didnt think much of it. Just like a hero. Raised up around a lot of high-powered magicians. She never was affected much by magic. She just thought it was a normal thing. What happened?! I entered the vige and asked. And ouw attacked us! Vi-Vi tried to protect usbut The chief yelled to me. Vi-Vi probably shot a magic fireball from a circleand it ended up hitting my house. There was someone facing off against Vi-Vi, I saw. It was Lukaa warrior in our former party. Dammit. I ran and jumped in between Luka and Vi-Vi. Because Luka was a member of the heros party, she was VERY strong. So strong that if I faced her, even I would have a tough battle. It wouldnt be strange if I lost 3 times out of 10 to her. Sorry about thatthis ouw came in here and I had to stop herbutVi-Vi said. From what I saw, Vi-Vi had drawn circles while shooting magic at Luka. Butshe messed up. I was the one that taught her to draw circles as fast as you could in battle and not think too much about resultsso I couldnt get angry at her. I rubbed Vi-Vis head. Sorry, traveling warrior. She may be a devil, but shes a good one. What do you mean by GOOD DEVIL? This idiot!? Was there something wrong with what she did? SHE WAS TRYING TO MAKE A HUGE UNDEAD COW! She must have seen her trying to turn Moofy into a skeleton soldier. Even though it is undead, theres a difference between skeleton and zombieyou know. I said to Luka in an attempt to talk her down. With my voice changed and beard on, I was really feeling like an old man, now. Whatever! The things just too big! You can call it just a skeleton, but the thing is clearly a MONSTER! You may say so, but from what Ive heard, there are cities that use skeletons and skeleton dragons to guard the city, right? No different than a cow skeleton, I suppose? Well, its just Luka started to mumble. Yeah! Theres nothing wrong with what Vi-Vi did! These youngsters, when they get angry, are crazy! She must be a thug from the city. The city sure is scary! The vigers were now all talking. Grrr. Luka was now getting badmouthed, even though she was one of the heros party. This might be the first time this happened to her. Are you going to keep fighting? Youre in a lot of trouble, Luka. The hero Cruz said sarcastically to Luka. Usually it was always Cruz that freaked out and attacked. Is seemed that Cruz lost all of her self-awareness when she was talking to Luka. Cruz! Vi-Vi, one of the Sub Bosses of the Demon Lord is here! We have to get rid of her! What? I waspletely surprised, that I shouted out what in my normal voice. Vi-Vi was actually one of the sub bosses? No, I just thought she was trying to act tough. But I thought we got rid of all four of the sub bosses of the demon lord? What?! There are FIVE of them! Everyone knows that! Luka said. I was embarrassed that I had no idea that there were five. Since I was always fighting in the front lines during those battles, I didnt think really that Vi-Vi amounted to that much. It was possible that the Four Sub Bosses was just a name. Of course this girl is plotting to resurrect the Demon Lord as the remaining Sub Boss! Shes going to use this massive cow skeleton to attack us and bring the Demon Lord back! Luka was the one in the party that had the most academic sense. Pretty strange to find a smart warrior. But there was some truth to what she was saying. Its true that Vi-Vi was trying to raise a massive boar and use it to invade and probably resurrect the Demon Lord. She was stopped in the middle of it. If thats the case, then we have to vanquish her. The hero Cruz put her hand on the handle of her sword. Wwait a second! If I had to fight both Cruz and LukaI was going to lose. Of course, Vi-Vi wouldnt win either. Her ass would get kicked quickly. And it was hard to buy more time. But I had to. I thought I would have to reveal myself and exin, so I grabbed my beard and said The SUB BOSS ISNT BADD! DONT BULLY OUR SUB BOSS! Collette and the other children surrounded Vi-Vi and looked at the two angrily. You kids Vi-Vi suddenly became emotionalI saw tears in her eyes. If the kids are that attached to heroh well. Cruz took the hand off her sword and backed off. Cruz was like that. She was weak to human affection. Especially if it involved children. Thats why she was so easily fooled by evil enemies. However, Luka wouldnt be moved that easily. I thought thered be trouble, then, Well, dammitI guess theres no use. And Luka too stood down from her fighting pose. I very much appreciate it. I said with a calm, and now bowed, head. Just make sure you take care of that huge skeleton cow, okay?! Certainly. Cruz said with a smile, which Vi-Vi replied to with a look of relief. With Cruz still smiling, she went and patted the heads of the children around Vi-Vi. One thing about Cruzshes always loved children. Hey wizard! Come over here a bit. Oh, yes? Luka called me over with a pissed look on her face. Chapter 30 - Warrior Luka and Old Man Wizard

Chapter 30 C Warrior Luka and Old Man Wizard

Trantor: Ranzan Luka called me and led me behind the newly built storage shack. Because it was newly built, it still had the fragrance of pine and cedar, freshly cut. Um, what words would you have with me, fair warriordy? Cut the goofy tone, Al. What do you mean by Al? My name happens to be Rall, miss. I dont like being made a fool of, so just cut that shit out, okay? Ah, okay. Sorry. Luka took a long sigh and stared at me. Luka, when did you notice? When Cruz got ready to dispatch your little friend, your beard almost fell off. Then I knew it was you. Whoa! I almost got away with it! It seems I had almost fooled her. What do you expect?! Your voice was different and you had a beard! I see. Sohow is your knee holding up? Its pretty good actually. Theres a lot of hot springs here in Mulg Vige. Theyre healing me. Well, Im d to hear that. You were worried about me, huh? Thanks. What?! Why would I worry about YOU?! Lukas face was red. She tried to sound angry, but I knew she was relieved. I know I fled without saying anythingso how is the capital holding up? Hey, buddy. Do you know how much TROUBLE youve caused me?! Luka really was pissed. So I apologized. Yeah, sorry. Well, whatever. Luka sighed a long sigh again. Any time a party member messed up, she flipped her lid. But if you apologized, she quickly epted it. Then, she would b about this and that while she cleaned up the mess you made. I covered up the quest order for Mulg that you made at the guild. Whoa, thank you! Even though I signed the order at the guild, no one had said anything since then. Luka had followed up and made sure my tracks were covered. You really went out of your way. Well, with you and that damn knee of yours, youd only hinder a party, right? I dont think that would be the case. I could fight as well as anyone. However, it would be tough roughing it with a bunch of adventurers. I dont think thats the case, but thanks for your concern. Well, since I became the guild manager of the capital district, Ive had to make a lot of considerations. I was a bit taken aback. The capital district guild manager was a position responsible to oversee the capital and about ten cities in the surrounding areas. Youve really made it in the world! Well, I AM an S rank adventurer. Of course, right? Hey, the Guild Master came to me with a bunch of jobs nearby too. In your case, he was paying for the experience and strategy, right? The capital guild manager is more of an honorary title, I guess. Is that so? Yeah, all the local guild masters do the work. Thats why I can skip off into the country like this. Luka was very strong and still young. Using her as office decoration with no ability to climb ranks was a waste of talent. If they did, then theyd quickly have to put her in an important office that matched her ability. Because of that, I understood the decision of the upper ranks of the guild in giving her an honorary title as guild manager. Even though its just an honorary title, Im still very high up. It was easy for me to hide all information about where you ran off to. Well, of course, Luka, you knew that I hade here, right? Yup. She still took a while to figure out it was me. I didnt say anything about it though. She had taken care of me. So considerate of her. Ill say this though, I didnte to Mulg Vige just to meet you, you know. I knowthe dragon, right? Yeah. Theres no way I can let a zombified Great Dragon just run around the countryside. I heard the Great Dragon was created by some necromancer left behind by the Demon Lord, right? Yeah, who told you? Cruz That idiot Just like usual, Luka had a sharp tongue. Cruz still didnt know that I was Alfred. She thought that I was just another viger. who she talked about a zombie Great Dragon with and a necromancer of the Demon Lord. that was supposed to be secret information. Either way, Cruz was exceptionally strong and a kind girl. But when it came to keeping secrets she had no brains. Unsafe at any speed. I HAVE to give her a piece of my mind about thatter. Not too much, though, okay? A dragon zombieand a GREAT DRAGON. With a bunch of lessers too. What a nuisance. Ill have to ask your help, Alfred. Well, about those dragons I showed Luka the inside of the storage shack. And all of the things the defeated dragons left behind. I already killed all of them. WHAT?! SorryI know you came a long way. I DID! She looked over all the bones and fangs of the dragon zombies. There were about 20 lesser dragons or so? Youve got quite an eye. Even with how strong you are, Alfredit was a tough battle, right? Nah, Vi-Vi and Femma magic wolf king helped me. A sub boss of the Demon Lord doing clean up She said, and then seemed to be thinking about something. Luka?! Where are you? Just then, Cruz peeked into the storage shack. Well, Cruz, it seems our work is done. As she said this, Luka showed Cruz the bones. Whoaaaa! Holy crap! Cruz mouth dropped in surprise. Since Luka knew who I was, there was no reason to hide myself any longer. Cruzits been a while. And saying that, I took off my beard. Wait, is that you Al? It seems that Cruz really didnt know it was me. She was genuinely shocked. It made you worry about how easily she was fooled. The world isnt filled with good people. Sorry for hiding myself. Dont worry about it. But more important, why are you all the way out here? I thought you were fighting battles all over the country! Um, Cruz Luka had to exin the situation. And it seemed that Luka had to exin to Cruz all the lies shed been telling her. Like that I was running around the country and fighting a bunch of battles. Luka, why did you lie to her? I asked, and Luka red at me. If you knew that Alfred was in Mulg Vige taking a break and recovering, then youde here to see him, right? Of course! If Als there, then Ill follow! Cruz agreed quickly with what Luka said. Why would a hero like Cruz want to be around me all the time? I wanted her to act a little more like a hero, on her own volition. Because thered be a lot of people that would have problems if youd abandon your work toe live in the country! Thats not true Luka shouted and Cruz refused happily. I guess she just didnt realize how important she is. Well, I have to heel this knee of mineYou dont have to follow me Cruz. I really dont have any big jobs to do, anyway. What?! Cruz tilted her head in confusion, as she looked over the zombie dragon bones again. UmwellI guess I had some big worktelyjust not usually. Is that so? Well, Im pretty impressed that you took care of that dragon, though. Cruz thought it over, and, Maybe I can move to Mulg too? What the hell? I mean, I can get instruction from you and be even stronger. I dont think thats a good idea. Why not?! Luka suddenly chided Cruz. Stop all this! Cruz! You have work to be done! Whaaaa? But I It seemed that Cruz doesnt want to give up moving to Mulg. With the hero away from the capital, everyone will go nuts! People will worry! You cane anytime you want and visit, okay? if Al asks me to, I will. I understand. It seems Cruz finally agreed. Well, Cruz and Luka, you can stay over tonight.Millet said. Yeah, and tell me everything thats going on in the capital too. As we talked, we walked to the gate, and, Ah! My flipping house was burned down! The charred, fallen remains of my house stood there before me. Chapter 31 - A Happy Home with Heroes

Chapter 31 C A Happy Home with Heroes

Trantor: R4NZ4N My house hadpletely burned down. I really liked the ce too. Oh well. It was because of Luka and Vi-Vis battle. But, I dont me either one of them. Damn it all. I guess youve got to finally camp after a long while. No thanks. For some reason Cruz wanted to camp and Luka didnt. And Ipletely agreed with Luka. Just then, I noticed that the chief and all the vigers behind him were standing around, worried. It was because Luka showed up, fought with Vi-Vi, and now they were obviously scared. And this was the first time theyd seen Cruz. Chief! Everyone! These two were old friends of mine and Were still your friends! Cruz interrupted with a smile. Cruz, I know youre happy to be here, but I have to untangle a lot of loose ends here, so shut up for a second! Sure I introduced Cruz and Luka to the vigers. I didnt say that we all defeated the Demon Lord. If they knew she was the hero, then the whole vige would throw a celebration and crown them guests of honor. And if that happened, then the vigers would get all nervous around the two. In addition to that, Cruz and Luka didnt like special treatment. Um sorry for thesurprise. We thought this sub boss of the Demon Lord was going to make a magical monster. Luka bowed deeply. The vigers allughed. No, no, there was no need to apologize. Yeah, right! We were the ones that made the mistake about you being an attacking ouw. Luka smiled after being easily forgiven. Cruz also split off to y with the children. Collette joined along. Al, what do you n to do tonight? Well, my house is burned down, so I was thinking about staying in the storage shack. Well, theres no way we can allow your guests to stay in such a ce. Millet piped up suddenly, Until we rebuild the house, you all can stay in my house. Oh, good idea! Millets house isrge enough. Fine. The chief agreed. Since I had lost my house, we all ended up staying over at Millets ce. Thank you so much for having us. Please, make yourself at home. Millet weed us in. Collette ecstatically embraced Femm around the neck. Femm! Letsth y! Cruz and Luka both bowed deeply. Sorry to trouble you. Thanks for having us. Millet just smiled back at them. So, Cruz and Luka, youre both friends of Mr. Al. YesAl changed his appearance when I first saw him so I had no idea Cruz smiled innocently. I asked about something I was wondering about. Hey, so how is Yureena doing? There was a healer in the heros party called Yureena as well. Usually two person parties are heroes and healers, or warriors and healers. A warrior and a hero is a bit unbnced as a party. Yureena has the mumps. The mumps? Too bad. Its spreading around the capital quite a bit. She was so busy healing people that she caught the bug herself. Thats quite a worry. Shes fine. Shes being treated well at a local hospital. When we left the capital we checked on her and her fever had fallen. That was a relief. Even with her fever down, she couldnt go outside. It would be bad to infect others. And if she was careless, the fever woulde back. Well, tell her I said hi. Sure. Shell be happy to hear youre doing well. We were smiling at each other after seeing each other again, but I noticed Vi-Vi was sitting in the shadows, hiding. She was probably being very cautious. Vi-Vi! What happened to Moofy? That warrior got in the way. I seewell, maybe tomorrow. I could see that Luka was ufortable hearing that. Im sorry for getting in the waybut if anyone were to see a sub boss of the Demon Lord making a magic circletheyd get in the way. I guess youre right. I think Luka was perfectly correct in that supposition. And Im sorry for burning down your house, Al. Dont worry about it. I was the one that told you not to worry about mistakes. Youre right Vi-Vi looked apologetic all the same. As did Luka. Im sorry for making that mistake! I knew you were casting undead, but I couldnt tell the if the magic circle was for zombie or skeleton magic. Youre a warrioryou dont know soits okay. From a wizard like me, they lookpletely different. But a warrior couldnt tell the difference. Actually, its rare to meet a warrior that knows the differences in magic circles. Wait, there are differences in circles?! Cruz said, airheaded, like she usually did. I really wonder how she looked at my magic up until now. Of course theres different types. I probably showed you around 20 different types during our adventures. I thought those were all the same circles. Its really something Al, for you to get so many effects from the same circle. d to be of service. No, no, you really are awesome. Cruz doesnt get sarcasm. I gave up talking to her and turned back to Vi-Vi. SoVi-Vi, you really are one of the Demon Lords sub bosses? Hm? I thought you knew that already! Yeah, well I decided not to tell her that I never really believed that she was one. Why dont you remember? You fought her before the Demon Lord, right? Luka replied, confused. Did I? I dont remember though. And Idont really remember anything either. We only remembered that we couldnt remember fighting her. It was a bit regrettable, now that it was mentioned, but since we couldnt remember at all we just shrugged. You two need to sharpen up! Luka angrily said, and then exined. When we had just entered the Demon Lords region, we crushed a small fort. Vi-Vi was there, it seems. Why were you all the way out there? I had to improve the soil and livestock for the Demon Lord. Oh The Demon Lords region had barrennd. Thats why the Demon Lords army always had problems with provisions. Maybe if we had never beaten Vi-Vis fort first, then the battleter would have been much worse. Is that how it went? Cruz was impressed now that we remembered that small battle, as was I. It seemed that Vi-Vi actually yed a role in the Demon Lords army. Good luck! Chance! Beating me! You all had the greatest luck, you bastards! Whoaa, sthub bossth! Collette giggled happily. Right?! Right?! You all should have some respect for me! Sthuper Bossth! If Vi-Vi had been able to improve the food for the Demon Lords army, it would have been a harder battle for sure. However, one of the main reason the Demon Lords army was attacking was because of their need for food. If you had improved the food sources for the Demon Lord, even if the attacking didnt stop, at least it would have made them rx a bit, right?! Of course! Vi-Vi puffed out proudly. I dont think it would work that well. If the logistics improved then their attacks on humans would have gotten even faster. I see. Luka might be speaking the truth. And there were a lot ofmanders in the Demon Lords army that ate humans. Even for the sub bosses other than Vi-Vithere were some crazy bosses that had a taste for eating humans. Because of them, we had forgotten about Vi-Vi due to herck of presence. Hmmmph. Since both Luka and Vi-Vi were at a conversational stalemate, they both groaned. It would have been safer to secure farmingnds instead of improving livestock, right? Looking at Vi-Vi, I thought about it. Maybe I could teach her how to grow crops the next chance I get. I have some snaaacks! Millet brought out pancakes that smelled delicious. Thank you, Millet. What an excellent idea! Yesssss. Warf Ruff. Everyone was happy. Luka and Cruz must have been hungry. We said our thanks and began eating. Millet asked Cruz, Miss Cruz, why were you there all alone? I was on the trail of a magic beast and I got separated from Luka. I lost my way. Cruz didnt look sorry about it at all, though. Even if she lost her way, she knew shed get out somehow. She had that much luck and strategic thinking. So at least she didnt think that she had made a mistake. You should have at least noticed. Yes! That was the only reply she needed for me. Cruz, so, did you drive the magic beast away? No, I couldntheh heh. Luka asked to a slightly embarrassed Cruz. What kind of beast could Cruz not drive out? I was a bit worried. Luka followed up with an exnation thatpleted my question. Cruz suddenly found the trail of a hydra, and she almost instantly disappeared soon after. Cruz. I keep on telling you, you have to go WITH THE PARTY! Yes sir! Thought Cruz responded promptly, Vi-Vi looked at her, worried. A hydra is nothing to fool around with. Yeah, dangerous. It had multiple heads, and was a very strong monster that could spit poison. It was as strong as a dragon. I think it was just Cruz mistake. After she broke off from me, I looked around and couldnt find any trace of a hydra. No, it had to be a hydra! Cruz seemed convinced. Even so, Cruz was a hero. She was a bit goofy, but her intuition wouldnt miss in a case like this. Well, if I find it, Ill hunt it down. Yeah, sorry to be a burden to you, Luka. Lately a lot was happening in this vige of nowhere, I thought. Chapter 32 - A Happy Home with Heroes 2

Chapter 32 C A Happy Home with Heroes 2

Trantor: Ranzan Everyone, would you like to go to the hot springs? What? Sure! Id like to go too. Well, let me show you. Vi-Vi and the others cane too. Millet started leading all the girls towards the hot springs. As she did, Cruz grabbed my hand. Al, its been a while since I got in a bath with you. Wha? Am I supposed to get in too? Wont you? Arent you sweaty? Cruz looked at me, confused. Millet heard what Cruz had said and looked at us with a little re. Mr. Al? You took A BATH with Cruz before? WellI guess I cant say I didnt. Were all adventurers. An adventurer does whats necessary instead of being embarrassed by specifics. You get in a bath to remove body odor. If you smell too much, the enemy can find you easier. Also, you frequently have to remove all the blood and filth on you. You also cant let your wounds get infected. Theres no such thing as being TOO cleanly. However, when you bathe, youre defenseless. Usually one person bathes at a time, while the other members watch for enemies. When time doesnt permit, instead of one at a time, two bathe at a time. When that happens, no one cares about if its sex-separated. The only thing necessary is whoever is defending needs to be bnced against any enemy. Since were adventurers, we do whats necessary. Adventurers sure are low-life disgraces. I cant believe it. Vi-Vi and Millet responded to myment. I wish these dumb girls would realize that they JUST BARGED IN on my bath a few days ago. Yeah, after all, were not on an adventure, so maybe a mixed bath isnt the best thing.I said. Wha? Isnt it more fun for us to all get in? You need to be a bit more self-aware! Luka chided Cruz again. Ill get intereveryone else, go ahead. Too bad. I wanted to get in with you, old man. Cruz and Collette were disappointed. Next Collette looked down at Femm on the ground, who had its head down as if the whole conversation had no rtion to it. Hey, Femm, get in with me. Rawf? Femm was quite surprised. It looked back at me. It didnt want to be treated like some toy for a little girl. It wanted to use the bath to rx. Femm, what isth it? Femm wants to get in the bath with me. Whaa? Femm and the old man? Geez Collette turned to the bath with a jealous look. Only Femm and I were left behind. I didnt have to get in with you, Al. Yeah, yeah. I blew Femmsment off and rubbed its head. When everyone came back from the bath, I got in with Femm. The hot springs were awesome. I got out and returned to Millets home. I really can feel that the hot springs here in Mulg is good for my knee. Hmph. Let me see it. Here. I let Luka look over my knee. Maybe its getting better? Really? It might have to do with the high magical content in the water. Who knows. Cruz was listening and came to look. No, I think the Demon Lords power is still there. Really? Yeah. Luke looked at her with a question mark on her face. Cruz. So youre saying the Demon Lords magic is still there? Noooo. Magic is magic. Not magic, just a power that seems to puff out. Dont you feel it? I couldnt feel anything. However, since a hero has that strange power that no one else does, she can sense power that no one else can. I might have an effect on my knee that only the hero can sense. If you figure out anything else, tell me. Roger that! Cruz said happily. I let it go with no real expectation that it would be solved, though. Night. After everyone ate, they all went to bed. Millets house wasrge. But there were only a few beds. Millet and Collette slept on one bed together. There was also the bed that their dead parents used to use. Total: two beds. Collette and I are fine on the floor, so you guests can sleep on the beds. I want to sthleep with Femm. Thus, she let all the guests sleep on the beds. I, of course, refused. I dont want to be a freeloader that just takes the bed from the owner. No, no, please. Youre not a freeloader C youre a guest. No, no, what are you saying With all that back and forth, Cruz cheerfully asked me, Im okay with the floor, right, Al? Why are you asking me? Was I wrong to? Not really. See? Then Al, lets sleep here. She said, and Cruz took my hand and led me to the corner of the house. Its been a while since I slept with you, Al. When youre an adventurer, you have to sleep next to each other while the others guard So sleeping on the floor was no big deal. We adventurers have to sleep in some really rough ces. Thats why a wooden floor is actually not that bad a ce. Well, then I will too Luka lied down close to us. And then Vi-Vi approached too. Well, hey, it seems fun. Rawf And Femm, as well, naturally plopped down near me too. Femm, you can sleep with Collette insteadVi-Vi said. Ruff Warf I told you, go away! Vi-Vi was iling around, trying to get Femm to sleep far away from her. Lately, Femm was doing all it could to mess with Vi-Vi. We have open beds here too. Millet said with a troubled face while thinking. Well, then let me be the one who decides who sleeps where. One bed was Collette, Femm, and I. The other was everyone else. Isnt that bed cramped? Its fine, and we girls like to talk. With that said, it was hard to refuse. You say that Millet, but I know youre going to creep in bed with him again! Nno I wont! She said, as the girls turned towards the other bedroom. Yaaay! I get to sthleep with Femm and the old man! Collette was giggling as she grabbed hold of Femm. Chapter 33 - Moofy Lives!

Chapter 33 C Moofy Lives!

Trantor: Ranzan The morning of the next day. Collette went to y with the other children, while Millet went out to the townsfolk to provide medicine. Vi-Vi pulled at my sleeve. Al, could youe with me a second? What is it? I finished the magic circle that I couldnt finish yesterday. Ok, sure. Im sure Luka heard as well, because she also came close. Wait a second! Youre not doing this without me. Go away, Luka! Youre just going to mess this up! I wont. I can see that you dont trust me. I dont like this. Dont worry. I just have to be there if it gets out of control. NOTHINGS GOING TO GET OUT OF CONTROL! If anything, Luka wanted to be cautious about all of this. I could understand why, seeing as Vi-Vi was originally one of the sub bosses of the Demon Lord. Sounds fun! I want so see too! Said Cruz with a smile. Unlike Luka, she innocently just wanted to see what was going on. And no ulterior motive she was just curious what it looked like when a skeleton was brought to life. Okay, okay, Vi-Vi. Just let the other folks watch. I will if you say so, Al. Thanks. But NO ONE MESS WITH ME WHILE I DO THIS! We all know. You wont try to stop her, right? Luka? Cruz? I promiiiise. Dammit. I told you I wont. I looked for Femm, but Femm wasnt around. I knew that Femm would want to see this so I was surprised. And just as I thought that, Femm came out of Millets house. Rawf Eeeep! Femm stepped out and waited by the entrance to Millets home. Vi-Vi jumped a bit in surprise at the sight of Femm. Dont SURPRISE ME YOU MUTT! Warf? Femm turned its head in confusion. It seemed a bit taken aback at all the yelling, but still shuffed its tail back and forth. Just take it easy, okay? Ruff ruff. Femm walked towards us slowly with a happily waving tail. Femm wanted to see what was going on as well. Vi-Vis pouting face seemed to say no closer, dog, but she never said a thing. We all walked a little more and arrived at where Moofys bones were located. It was right next to the hole where the meat was stored. It would stink to high heavens if we had left Moofy with any meat on its bones, so all of the bones had been cleaned. I had cleaned all the meat and blood of the bones with magic to prevent that, so all the bones sparkled white. How far do you get with the circle yesterday? Well, about 80% of the magic circle was finished until this warrior low-life ran up to me! I see. And it took me about two hours to draw it. She messed up everything. And with that, Vi-Vi looked over at Luka. Luka had her arms crossed and said blunty, Im not apologizing for it! You dont need to! Vi-Vi said with a bit of a mellow tone. I was going to wait until Al was there to see it anyway. I see. I was happy that Vi-Vi had the sense to wait for me before she tried this. If she messed up, it would be better that I was there. I could contain any damage that happened to the vige. Thanks. For what? Vi-Vi looked confused. I just scruffed her hair. She gave me an embarrassed look of, Stop it! Im not a kid!and it was cute. From that, we watched her resurrect the bones with her magic circle. Just as Vi-Vi said, Luka had messed up a lot. The effectiveness of the circle was pretty much wrecked. Just like Lukaa superior warrior. You should probably retrace the whole thingitll be faster. Im going to! Vi-Vi started re-scrawling the circle with magic emanating from her finger. Just watch me! I am. Vi-Vi started etching the magic circle in the earth. Her finger flowed over the ground C quite beautifully, actually. It was an exquisite magic circle that had minute flourishes of the hand all throughout it. Quite superb. I found myself saying, unprompted. You like it? She asked Luka. Yeah, its good. I wouldnt lose to Vi-Vi when ites to writing magic circles in battle C in power and speed. But when it came to writing them slowly and deliberately, Vi-Vi was clearly better, I thought. Youre right, Luka. Luka was watching the whole process intently. It wasnt a big deal for an ordinary warrior to learn this, but she was watching the process closely. Luka was a very intellectually inquisitive warrior. On the other hand. Come onFETCH! Rawf Ruff! Cruz was bored, and was ying with Femm a bit away. Cruz and Femm were going to be help if Vi-Vi messed up, so that was fine. I guess it was better than Cruz getting interested and asking a billion questions. After about two hours, the magic circle was done. Al! Please check it for me. Roger. There was still a chance that she had missed something. So Vi-Vi was very careful. I analyzed the whole circle carefully. It was almost perfect. She had asked for advice here and there throughout the creation of the circle. Thats why I knew how the circle was constructed, and it only took a little extra look at it until I was finished. Yeah, its one hell of a magic circle. I thought the same thing! You did some great work here and over there. I actually learned something. Heh heh heh. Vi-Vi blushed. So is the thing done? Ruff? Cruz and Femm noticed and ran over from ying around. Just the invocation is left. This is going to be FUN! Cruz looked really excited. Acting just like a kid again. Here it goes! Vi-Vi pressed her eyes almost shut, and began chanting magic into the circle. Moofys skeleton began to shimmer with magic. And after a moment, MOOOoooooOOOOOOOOOOOO! Moofy mooedeven though I thought skeletons had no ability to make sounds. It must have been the magic she imbued it with. The massive skeleton rose. The magic circle was perfect. Moofy was reborn as a skeleton. Vi-Vi stood before the rerisen Moofy. Moofy! If you harbor a grudge against me, take revenge NOW! Vi-Vi pressed her eyes shut and waited for Moofys response. No matter what Vi-Vi was prepared for, there was no way Moofy was going to kill Vi-Vi. Even so, I was ready to let fly with some magic in case something went wrong. However, MoooO? Moofy bent its skullbone down and caressed Vi-Vi with its skeletal nose. Youve forgiven me, Moofy? Moooom. Vi-Vi touched Moofys nose. The giant Moofy responded with a long, intive moo. I was happy that Moofy was pretty peaceful. Skeleton retain the will and memory it had in previous life. They can move on their own and an in no way bound to the caster. Because of this, even if the skeleton spell goes off without a hitch, they still can wreak havoc. Thats also why Luka flipped out and erased most of the circle the first time. Moooofy? I calleda bit cautiously. It had forgiven Vi-Vibut I was the one that finished it off in itsfirst life. Mooo Chomp. Moofy cried out and bit lightly over my head, but there was no damage. Something like a teething bite. No hostility. Waaaaah! Cruz started to freak out. It was still biting over my head, and I petted the bottom of its jaw. After a bit of this, Moofy was satisfied and let my head free. Mister Al, are you okay?! Sure. It seemed that Moofy wasnt upset at me either. Thank you, Moofy. With all forgiven, we all led Moofy out to the storage house outside the vige. Inside of the vige walls was a bit too constrained. We can let Moofy run around out here. Not too far though. Mooo. Moofy happilyid down next to the storage shack. The children of the magic wolves came up without fear and sniffed Moofy. Usually all of the adult wolves were there as well, but for some reason, only the children were there today. What does a skeleton like this eat? It has no organs of any kind, so basically, it just absorbs residual magic. Cruz asked and I answered. It pulls the magic from the circle I made. I see. But, doesnt that make you tired, Vi-Vi? Why would it? Well, Moofy is HUGE! Doesnt it eat up a lot of magic? It doesnt pull any magic off of me, really. In fact, the magic circle extracts most of it energy from the magic that flows through the hot springs that get their magic from the stones inside the mountains. Whoooaa Cruz was genuinely impressed. I was surprised that Vi-Vi had engineered this when she exined it to me while drawing the circle as well. Just then, Femms tail and ears straightened out like pins. Femm was visibly anxious. Femm! What is it? I think my pack has found the hydra. I see. Well, then another thing need taking care of. Chapter 34 - A Hydra vs the Old Man Wizard Party

Chapter 34 C A Hydra vs the Old Man Wizard Party

Trantor: Ranzan It seems that the magic wolf pack had found the hydra. Its no wonder there were no magic wolves near the storehouse when we got back. I couldnt hear them, but I was sure that they were howling to each other far away in the distance. Even the little wolves were opening their little, cute mouths and cutely howling in return. I turned to Cruz and the others and said, The wolves have found that hydra. Ill be right back. Help me, Femm. Protecting the forest is my duty. Femm said with a flick of the tail, and grew huge again. Now I can see why you said there was a wolf king here. Femm was so cute, I forgot. Rawf Femm turned its head at Lukas words. I know whybecause Femm was embarrassed. It got away from me the other day. This time Im going to kill it! Cruz was suddenly ready to go. I wish shed rx as this was just making me nervous. Ill leave you behind, Vi-Vi, in case the vige gets attacked. Got it. Moofy and I will stay here just in case. After leaving Vi-Vi here to protect the vige, the rest of us ran off to defeat the hydra. I rode on Femms back. Cruz and Luka ran beside me. Femm was quite a fast runner, but Cruz and Luka had no problem keeping up. This was the normal pace for an adventurer party. I was this fast back when my knee was okay. It really is hard being an adventurer. I said to myself, finally. I knew that my knee was now hurt, but I wasnt paying attention to that. Femm paused now and again and howled. Femm was listening to reports from his pack. Its over here. And Femm finally ran into the ce and we found it. It was a like a snake with nine heads. Its body was so big that five men joining arms couldnt reach around it. I see. This thing has grown quiterge. Luka suddenly red at us seriously. Dont ck off. I know that!! You know what a hydra has You had to be careful as it was famous for its virulent poison. and before I could say that to the others, Cruz jumped at the hydra. TAKE THIISSSSS! Even if youre a herotheres a limit to your bravery. You cant be brash. It seems thats why I always had to cover for her. Luka said nothing C she just ran after Cruz to follow her. I used my magic to fire two shes of light, so the eyes of the hydra were blinded. The hydra flinched momentarily. That was enough for Cruz. She quickly shed off three heads. Before she could get to the fourth one, she was bathed in a poison mist from another head. Waahhh! She was totally poisoned. I told you NOT TO SLACK OFF!! The warrior Luka screamed as she grabbed Cruz cor and quickly dragged her away. She jumped forward to sh off the fourth head, and jumped back to Cruz. Luka dodged and bounded around in perfect timing,pletely distracting the hydra. Ahhit stinkss. Cruz said, half crying. The hydras poison was deadly. Lore stated that just walking past a sleeping hydra was enough to kill you. That there was no cure. That you would ALWAYS die. That death was horrifically painful. And so on. Most of this was exaggeration. However, it was a very strong poison. Are you okay? Yeahit stinksbut Im okay. Cruz seemed fine. Cruz had one thing going for her as a hero. She had very high resistance to status abnormalities. And she also had very high willpower against other effects. Listen. The hydras famous for its poison. So BE CAREFUL! Okay I will! Cruz faced the hydra again. You were TOO SLOW! Sorry Luka took a step back and let Cruz take another shot at the hydra. With a clean slice, she dropped another hydra head. I threw out some magic to protect Cruz back. Now that I know the poisonsing, its not scary! Cruz easily dodged the poison. I wish she would have done that in the first ce. Al! The necks are growing back! I heard Luka shout. Even though Cruz and Luka had cut off seven heads, five new ones had grown back. The hydra had a very strong life force. Even so, I thought that it took three days for a head to grow back. But for them to grow back in the middle of battlewow, that is some strong life force. This thing doesnt STOP! I wonder how many you have to cut off until they dont grow back. A fun experiment. Luka looked troubled, but Cruz was ready to go. Normal for a herotoo much boldness. Just keep fighting itIll think of something. Well leave it to you then. Luka got the hydras attention while Cruz went about chopping heads off again. Then I used fire to burn the ends of the cut necks. ǣңϣ!!!!! Even when the girls were chopping heads off, the hydra never made a sound, but now it was screeching as I scorched it. I continued to turn the ends of the cut necks into ash. If this thing grows them back LIKE THAT, then it really is something! Lets see what happens! Cruz said while prancing and dodging the hydras attacks. Lets see? Youre going to get hurt being as loose as that! Okay! Luka warned Cruz, while Cruz just nodded and answered. While Luka said it, she took a step back from the hydra and watched. After a while, it was clear that the burned ends didnt sprout new necks. Yeah, burning the ends seems to work! If I could keep it from regenerating by burning it, then killing the beast would be easy. The only hard thing was avoiding burning down the forest. ǣңңңңңңҡ I noticed that the hydra had focused on killing meas I was the one killing it. It screeched again and came straight at me. It blew a poison cloud at me while rearing its fangs. But Femm jumped in and wed away at the fanged face of the heading at me. I used wing magic to simply blow the cloud into the sky. As long at it was focused on me, then it wasnt going after Cruz or Luka. They continued to knock off the heads nearest to them. And then I burned what was left of them. And not just a little bit either. I would have to cauterize the endspletely. With the girls and my actions coordinated, all of the heads were quickly cut and prevented from regrowing. Cruz then quickly set to cutting up the trunk of the beast. The battle is ended with us victorious. This thing is strong! Isnt it too dangerous for you Cruz? What? You think? Cruz looked at me confused. This hydra was a type of beast that Cruz did have trouble with. She couldnt deal with it easily. But even in a difficult battle like this, Cruz was good enough to cut it down. I could have killed the thing quicker than Cruz, but that would mean damage to everything around it. Only Luka would have lost to a beast like this. Gulp I saw Cruz gulp and say, I want to eat some of this meat, barbequed. How can you imagine eating this stuff with those stinky burned necks in front of you? What do you mean? Luka looked exasperated, but Cruz was blushing in a way. She thought she was beingplimented. Luka looked lost, and didnt say any more to Cruz. Luka began looking around for the battle treasure. It was an adventurers role to do so. Cruz just looked at the beast with glimmering eyes. Al, what did you think of how I did? An excellent disy of swashbuckling, as usual. Heh heh. But you need to stop jumping in so fast. Sure! She just gave her usual response. Femm approached and stood by me. Worf Thanks Femm. You helped. Rawf Ruff Femm seemed happy. I looked around and the wolf pack was now surrounding us. They always gathered when I was done fighting. They didnt want to interfere and cause problems for me. Thanks, wolf pack. And thank you for finding this thing. They all stood there, wagging their tails. Could you help me find some treasure, HUH? Luka said, a bit agitated. Oh, yeah, just a second. I hurried and started to slice the beast up. Chapter 35 - Hydra Meat

Chapter 35 C Hydra Meat

Trantor: RANZAN The most fun thing about beating a strong enemy is the battle treasure. Everyone quietly collects whats left behind. Its an important role of an adventurer to find useful and important parts you might needter. In a way, all adventurers are also appraisers as well. The value of each battle treasure fluctuates on how good your eyes are. Usually one person is charged with being on guard. You never know if youve defeated everything or could be ambushed while focusing on collecting treasure. However, since Femm and the pack were here, we could all focus on collecting. With all these heads collection should be pretty profitable. Yeah. Cruz looked happy. Luka looked up from slicing up the body. Al, could you help me over here? What is it? The hydras gall dderI think I might break it. Sure. The hydras gall dder is the treasured nd that creates all that poison. If you have a high quality one, it brings in a lot of money. Its a very expensive magical item. Where? Be careful, okay? I know you probably know alreadybut its poisonous. Roger. If you took it out bare-handed, youd die. However, if you used a knife or other tool, you could easily break it. I covered both my hands in magical barrier. I took it out carefully, and put it undamaged into a magic bag. Thanks. This is definitely a role for a magician. I said to Luka, and, Wowyou did that with no problems. Cruz hade up behind me to watch without me noticing and nowplimented me. Luka spun and quickly chided Cruz. YOU need to hurry up with gathering those heads! Not just the fangs! Get the scales and all! Okay, already! There were many precious parts to a hydra. With all the collection pretty muchplete, the wolf pack roamed around the remains with tails wagging. There were wolves with dripping drool from hunger as well. Wait, do you want to eat this hydra meat? RAWF RAWF! It seems that they did. Its not good though. WHAT? Cruz and Luka said to me at the same time. Rawf? Femm looked confused as well. Al, dont tell me youve eaten hydra Yeah, when I was younger. Whaaa? You had some guts to eat something like this. Luka pulled back a bit from me. It was a long journey where there was little food left. I had to eat a fallen hydra. It was absolutely disgusting. it tasted like fish gutsleft in vinegar for over a week. I told Luka about the experience. From that I learned how important logistics were. You have to buy all the food that you need ahead of a long quest. Wow. Luka said with very little interest. But Cruz looked confused. I think it tasted good. What? Now Luka and I jumped back, surprised. Cruz was just surprised at myment that it tasted bad. Wait, Cruzyou ate hydra? Yeah. Cruz was a hero. She always had sponsorship money behind her adventures since she was younger. From her first adventure, another superior adventurer had be a patron for her, I thought. It was obvious that an older adventurer would do that because you didnt want a young hero to die fromck of fundsthat only hurts everyone else in the city that depends on her to take care of monsters. So there was no way that shed hit such hard times that shed need to eat hydra meat. Why? Why did you have to eat hydra? Welldont you think it tastes a little like eel? Thats an insult to eels. I just thought that hydra would taste good like an eel, so since I was already wonderingI tried some. Whaaa? Luka jumped back, disgusted. Its a little gamey and hard, but it was good. What kind of person thinks hydra is good? Maybe a hero isnt really a person. I heard Cruz gulp in anticipation. waitdo you want to eat some, NOW? What? Can I? Yaaayyyy Cruz eyes shimmered. I dont remember telling her she couldbut she was already ready to go. Raouf? Femm looked perplexed. Arent you giving the meat to me? Femms face seemed to say. In fact, Femm looked like it was begging me. Since I dont like the taste, you and Femm can split it. Right, Luka? Uh.yeahRightI dont want any either. None of it. Thank you! Rawf! Femm still looked a bit confused. It thought it was going to get ALL the meat. Ok, Femm, lets split it up. roff. Cruz looked super happy about it, but Femm was down in the dumps. The other wolves were seated, somber, tails drooping. They were wagging them away just a while ago. It was kind of a sad scene. UmCruz? What is it, Al? I said you can split it with Femm, but, Femm needs a lot more. Try to give Femm as much as you can. sure. Cruz now seemed a bit down too. How much of this hydra was she nning to eat?! What a weird girl. As soon as Cruz got back to the vige, Millets delicious food would be there for her. If you eat a lot now, you wont have appetite for dinner. Okay. Femm started wagging its tail again. Okay, Ill take this much then Cruz?! Okaythen just this much. She was going to take a big chunk of meat for herself until Luka yelled at her. So Cruz only cut herself a small bit, and left the rest for Femm. Waoww Ruff! Femm happily started giving meat to the pack. The pack started eating the meat happily. Cruz looked at them eatingwith jealousy. Cruz, do you want me to cook this with some magic? Ohyes, please. After cooking the meat a bit for Cruz, Rawf Ruff Waow Wuff Roaf All the pack surrounded us. Wait, you want me to cook it for you wolves too? Rauf I guess the wolves liked cooked meat more that raw meat too. Maybe these magic wolves really are quite different from normal ones. Okay, then I can cook it for you. And so I used some fire magic to cook their meat as well. Thanks. Dont mention it. After cooking the meat, the foul smell of hydra emerged. I cooked the meat until it was about half cooked, and the magic wolves started wolfing it down. Cruz started eating it happily as well. You want some, Al? NoIm fine. I see. Cruz looked to be really enjoying the meat, even though I was sure it was disgusting. Thats why there was no way I was going to touch it. Uwaggghhh Luka also backed offgagging down her urge to vomit. Chapter 36 - Our Hero Almost Hurls

Chapter 36 C Our Hero Almost Hurls

Trantor: ranzan After Cruz and the wolves enjoyed their fill of the hydra meat, it was time to go home. I got on Femm, and Cruz and Luka walked beside. Unlike our trip to the hydra, there was no hurry, and we took our time. Ugh In the middle of the journey back, Cruz groanedpretty rare for her. I asked her out of concern, What is it? UmMy stomach hurts. Luka suddenly scowled at her. Its because of that damn hydra you ate! Nowell, maybe. Cruz wasnt denying that it was the hydra. That being said, Cruz was very strong against any effect on her. She could eat poisonous mushrooms and not really feel it. I didnt think a hydra could make her feel ill. Also, when I had to eat hydra long ago, my stomach was fine. Even though it tasted like raw garbage. We can wait if you have to do your business. Thats not the problem. I see. It didnt seem it was that kind of pain. Is Femm okay? Rawf? Femm looked fine. Just like a magic wolf king. No hydra was going to hurt Femm. Cruz, do you want to ride Femm? Im okayI can walk. Dont push yourself too hard. She said she was fine, but she was quickly turning pale. This was the first time I had seen Cruz sick like this. Hey, no need to push yourself, okay? Yeahthanks. Luka was suddenly worried too. Cruz said she was okay, and lumbered along. Even so, her face had broken out in a cold sweat, and she was very pale. Okay. I jumped down, grabbed Cruz, and put her on Femm. II said Im fine. You dont look fine. Just a little more. Cruz tried to struggle against me, but soon she just sat quietly on Femm. Luka, Femm, lets run a bit. Roger. Rouf We hurried as fast we could to Mulg. When we arrived, we quickly took her to Millets. Millet, take a look at her. What is it? Cruz stomach is messed up. Millet grabbed Cruz and put her in the bed. Heh heh, sorry for causing trouble. Isth Cruzth going to be okay? Collette was worried after looking at Cruz face. Yeah, Ill be okay. Cruz tried to smile, but still looked like she was in pain. Millet asked Cruz in a serious tone. Did you eat something strange? Um Any idea? Something out of the ordinary? Wellno I guess not. Cruz tried to avoid the topic. Why are you trying to blow this off? She ate hydra meat! Why would you eat something like that?! Heh heh heh That wasnt apliment! Millet scolded her, but Cruz didnt look affected by it. ButFemm ate it. Femms a magic wolf! Oh yeahheh heh. Femm and the others werent just wolves. They were very strong magic ones. Is Femm okay? Collette asked, nervously hanging on to Femm. Wuff. Femm shook its tail with pride. Almost like Femm was proud to have a steel stomach. While this was happening, Millet was preparing medicine for Cruz. This is stomach medicine, and just in case, poison antidote as well. Hearing Millets words, Cruz shook her head. I dont think the hydras meat had poison. You know that a hydra gives off massive amounts of poison in a battle, right? Yeah If thats sothen the meat might have been poisoned when you were cutting it apart. Ohyeah. Cruz nodded as if she finally understood. You have to be very careful with dissecting it if youre using it for food. But when I dissected itI didnt think anyone would eat it. Thats why I cant deny that I cut the beast up without really considering the poison. From now onwe have to be more careful. Cruz said. SoCruz still nned to eat hydra? I was taken aback. Listen, Cruz. There are other things you can eat. You dont have to eat hydra. Why do you say that? Because your stomach might end up like this again. Ohyeah. Cruz nodded in bed, but Luka wasnt convinced she understood. Cruz, learn from something like this. If youre starving, you cant help but eat whats there, but if you have food, then eat something SAFE, okay? Ill be more careful. While they were having this conversation, Millet finished her concoction. Millets speed in making the medicine was quite fast. Youre quick! Im a pro. Millet happily smiled. Those herbs that we collected together came in handy pretty fast, actually. Im d we got them. The medicine that Millet made shone green. It was about a half a cup of medicine. Cruz took one smell of the medicine and teared up. This stinks! Its medicine. I chided Cruz. Listen Cruz, you need to be more thankful. She made this for you, after all. Sure. Millet, thank you very much. Yes, its my job. Okay, drink it up. Okay. Before she drank it she stuck her tongue into the concoction. Its bitter! Its medicine. Millet smiled. Good medicine is always bitter. You have to drink it all. Okay. Cruz response this time wasnt with a smile. She still little by little stuck her tongue into the medicine. That way of drinking it is just going to make it even worse! But I thought that hydra meat was way worse. Cruz has no taste in food. Come on already! Luka pinched Cruz nose shut and poured the medicine down Cruz throat. Cruz gulped it down, forced by Luka, and then gasped. Its bittterrrrrr! Learn from it! Next time dont EAT HYDRA MEAT! Cruz thenid on her side. After five minutes, she tried to get up. I think its working. Theres no way it works that quickly. Lie down! Okay After I growled at her, Cruz lied down again. I did see that her face color was returning. One minuteter. I think its working. Would you lie DOWN?! She tried to get up again, and this time Luka knocked her back down. But, Im okay. Listen, just LIE DOWN. It did look like she was healthy again. I asked Millet, Millet, does the medicine work this quickly? NoI dont expect it would. Right. 10 minutester. I looked away from her for a bit and now Cruz is up and walking around. Feeeemmmm! Wait! Ruff? She was chasing Femm around with Collette already. Luka snapped at Cruz. WOULD YOU LIE DOWN FOR THE DEVILS SAKE?! Im okay. My tummy doesnt hurt. You say that over and over. I think the medicine kicked in. I was tickedLuka and I yelled at her again. CRUZ! Lie downtheres no way the medicine works that fast. But Cruz looked a bit sad again. It was strange to think she would recover in only a few minutes. However, it was true that you couldnt think of a hero like her like you would a normal person. Okay then, if you feel sick again, say something, okay? Suuuure! Dont try to hide it! Okay! Cruz responded happily, and started chasing Femm again. Chapter 37 - Moofy and Cruz the Hero

Chapter 37 C Moofy and Cruz the Hero

Trantor: Ranzan I watched Cruz astounding recovering ability ur, because I was still worried. No matter how highly resistant a hero is supposed to be, theres no way she could recover that quickly. Femm, wait! Waaait! Waauf! Cruz was outside Millets house, chasing Femm around with Collette. She really recovers fast. Thats what a hero does But even a hero has her limits. yep. I think the stomach pain had to be because of the hydra meat. But why did it manifest in stomach pain? And then why did she recover so quickly? I didnt know what the cause of that stomach pain was. While I was thinking about it, Luka yanked on my sleeve. What? Wheres that sub boss devil girl? Hm? Now that Luka mentioned it, I noticed that Vi-Vi was nowhere around. I hadnt paid attention because I was so busy caring for Cruz and her stomach problems. Collette! What, old man? Collette ran up to me from chasing Femm. Do you know where Vi-Vi went? Taking care of Moofy. I see. Thanks for telling me. Heh heh. Hearing that made Luka fidget. You want to check on her? Are you worried, Luka? not worried, but I was wondering whats be of Moofy. It was strange for Luka to be concerned about a thing like Moofy. Do you like cows or something, Luka? No! I was just thinking it would be bad if the THING went crazy. Okay. We headed to the storage shack outside the vige since Moofy was there. Hey! I want to go too! Me too, guysth! And with that, Collette and Cruz quickly followed. Collette yanked her way up Femms fur and rode along happily. When we arrived, we could see that Moofy was lying down. Vi-Vi was rubbing the bone that used to be Moofys nose. Hey, Vi-Vi! Oh, you all are back. Vi-Vi looked over at us and smiled. Vi-Vi, how are you doing? Yeah, not bad. And Moofy? Moooo. Moofy just mooed quietly while lying down. I thought that cows always stood upis it okay? Its fine. Its just doing this so I can pet it easily. Thats nice, then. Al, why dont youe and pet Moofy too? Okay. I went over to Moofy and rubbed its nose bone. It was very slick. Of coursethats normal for bone. Moooo. Moofy quietly mooed. Even as a skeleton, it still wanted to be close to people. Let me rub it too! Me too guysth! Now Collette and Cruz walked up. Go ahead. Yayyy Yesth Collette got beside me and began to rub Moofy, while giggling. Moofy breathed out its nose softly with a fwoon. Moofy was a skeleton. You would think it couldnt breath or make a sound. But it really sounded like it was breathing. It sounds like its breathing. How does it do that? Its the magic. Vi-Vi said, proudly. Good Moofy Cruz said while rubbing Moofys skull. Where Cruz was petting began shimmering with light. Hm? Cruzwhat happened? I asked, and Cruz was surprised. She had just been rubbing Moofy. I was just rubbing Moofy!? What did you do? Vi-Vi asked, confused. Well, where Cruz was petting Moofythere was a shimmer of light. Wha? Youre right! Vi-Vi was surprised at seeing Moofy shimmer like that. Wwhat is this? Have you done something wrong to my Moofy?! Oh, yeah, its shimmering. Cruz wasughing. Wow, beautiful Collette was jumping around happily. Stop that! Somethings happening to my Moofy! Vi-Vi was going to jump at Cruz, but Luka stopped her. Calm down! Shes not doing anything wrong. I cant trust her! Its okay, look! MoooOOoooo Moofy was pleasantly mooing. As Cruz continued to pet her, the light got stronger and enveloped all of Moofy.. Moofy?! Are you hurt? Moo. Vi-Vi was worried, though Moofy seemed quite happy. Seeing that, Vi-Vi finally began to calm down. Wellokay then. I was a bit puzzled by this phenomenon. Whats happening? If you dont know what this phenomenon is, Al, then it must not be something magical. I think so too. Both of us had no idea what was going on. It may be a phenomena unexined by modern magic. Soit might be something rted to Cruz being a hero? You think? Luka thought about it a bit. Then, she seemed to realize something. In ancient lore, it says that heroes are consecrated. Luka was an academic. Her specialties were magic beasts and ancient lore. She obviously had read a lot about the topic. Consecrated? Yeah, consecrated. Simply put, she can make normal objects holyor something like that. I knew about consecration. It was the method to make weapons and items holy by a member of the clergy. It was normal to get this consecration when you as an adventurer were going on a quest to clear out ghosts and things like that. It was a blessing of God, a miracle that worked totally different from magic. Consecrationlike what the clergy do? Yes, but, the clergys consecration is no big deal, right? Yep. Weapons that were consecrated by clergy had no effect except on the weakest of ghosts. It was far weaker than even the weakest magic. Thats why wizards and magicians were used for ghost clearing quests instead. I heard that most of the clergy really dont have much in rtion to God anyway. There really arent many that speak to God. They simply keep the ceremonies from old. Really? As long as you have the knowledge, thats enough to qualify you. So you could do it too, Luka? Sure! I see And, the hero is said to be some of the holy force left here by God on earth. Cruzs consecration is some of the divine protection that was given to her. I looked at Cruz, and she smiled and said, Heh heh heh, And blushed. The only thing that could kill the Demon Lord was the holy sword of the hero. Maybe this effect was something like that. The only person that could manifest the holy power of God on earth was the hero. Soif the skeleton is consecrated by that powerwhat happens? It just bes a consecrated skeleton, right? Consecrated cow bones? Saint Skeleton Moofy? II see Cruz kept patting Moofy as the skeleton cow now began to light up. The skele-cow began to light up as white as the sun. Youre a good girl, Moofy. Moooo What the hell is HAPPENING?! Vi-Vi was screaming in confusion. Now a holy-white giant cowflesh and furwas rubbing its nose into Cruz. Its not just bones anymore! What is it? UmI guesswhen an undead bes holyuh Luka was confused. Moofy was still the same size, but was now a giant, white cow. With long hair and big horns. You could feel the divine nature of it. So, what do I feed this thing? Luka returned from confusion back to a look of understanding C what a dependable warrior. Oh, I remembered. When undead be holyI read about that. Moofy became a sacred beast. Which means? It still feeds off of magic. I see. That makes things easier. It paid off that Luka was both an expert in ancient lore and magic beasts. Moofy was still very friendly to us humans around it. Cute, even. Seeing Moofy like this, an all-white, in the flesh, sacred cow, made Vi-Vi very happy again. Chapter 38 - Magic Wolves Get Sick

Chapter 38 C Magic Wolves Get Sick

Trantor: Ranzan After fooling around with Moofy for a while, the small wolves looked up in the air suddenly. There, looking up, they suddenly started to howl. Ooooooowow. Their howls were so cute. I guess the also howl when others in the pack are away. They must be lonely. Whats wrong with you guys? I petted the little wolf pups again. Now that I look around, Femms not here either. They must also be lonely without Femm. I do remember that Femm had just ridden Collette here and left her. Collette. Do you know where Femm went off to? Dont know. But after Femm dropped me here, Femm left pretty quick. Okay. Since Femm was a wild magic wolf, it was good at disappearing. Lately, I could tell that Femm was lesswild. So thats maybe why I didnt notice. Femm disappeared without a trace. Where did Femm go? I stood with the little wolves and tried calling to Femm. After a while, I saw Femms face pop out of the woods. It was its huge size again. I need your help. Femm was holding a drooping wolf by the nape of the neck. Sure. What is it? All of the wolves are very sick. OkayCollette. Could you go get Millet? Okay! Collette ran back into the vige. Cruz and Luka, I need your help. Sure. No problem. Cruz and Luka nodded quickly. What about me?Vi-Vi said. YeahI might need you to help treat them here. Got it. I guess Ill start tracing out a magic circle. Please. Vi-Vi also was ready to help. From then, Femm guided us to where the magical wolves were. They were all lying on the ground. Are you all okay?! I rubbed one wolf on the head, and it whined with aWheeen. No strength, headaches, stomachaches. They all seem like they feel like vomiting. Okay. Could you help carry them back to the storage shack so Millet can find them? Thank you. Femm bowed to us. Im good at this. Yeah, I can handle it too. Cruz hefted two wolves under her arms. Each wolf was quite big. She had quite some strength to carry two of them together. Luka carried one wolf under her arms. Femm carried a different wolf by its nape. Femm, you dont have to carry it. You just let me ride you and run as fast as you can. But there are 16 of them left. 16 left. That amount I can carry with magic. You can just run. Rawf. I made the wolves float with some gravity magic. R, ruffKween. The wolves were making some desperate sounding cries. Just rx. Ill get you back safely. Rawf So the wolves didnt try to resist, but justid there, carried by magic. Most of the wolves had their tails between their legsthey must be scared. Of courseyoure sick as a dogAND youre floating for no reason. I just ignored they were frightened though and focused on getting them back. Okay, Femm, run! Wawp! I kept the vector of the magic spell following us so the wolves were always suspended behind. Great job, Al. Ive never seen a human use a grav spell that well. Cruz kept up with us, smiling with the two wolves under arms. Huff, pant, you two are sure having fun Luka looked pretty tired. She was only holding one wolf, but was still keeping up. When we arrived where Moofy was, Millet was waiting for us. Vi-Vi seemed like she was finished with her magic circle too. What happened to all these wolves? No strength, headaches, stomachaches, nausea, it seems. Okay then. Millet quickly walked among the wolves, checking their condition. Al, I drew this magic circle to lessen pain. The effects not that greatbut Thanks, its enough. Since we didnt know the reason for it, it was dangerous to just throw down a restoration magic. If the cause was a parasite, then the parasite would be healed along with the host. If you added a body-strengthening magic to it, then the parasite would be much stronger. With that in mind, pain reduction was what was needed. Health starts with the mind, after all. If you dont feel very pained, then your bodily condition improves. And just now I could see the wolves scattered around the circle begin to recover, if only slightly. Kweeen. The little wolves were licking the parents faces, worried. It was sad seeing them all like this. Millet whispered to me after looking at all of them. This kind of looks like the sickness that Cruz had. Did they eat something strange? They all ate hydra meat like Cruz did. Then thats probably it. But, if thats so, then why is Femm okay? Millet and I looked over at Femm. I didnt eat it. What? I gave you the meat, though, Femm Well, the pack all did such a good job with the hydra, and Cruz took too much of the meat. I kind of felt bad that the were going to get less. So I just gave up my portion. I see. Femm had given over its amount to the others so that no one noticed. I bet the other wolves didnt even notice it. What a good wolf. I looked over at Cruz. She seemed a bit unhappy at hearing this. Soooory. Ive done something horribly wrong Femm was more worried than anything. Because all the other wolves got more of the meat, they probably got more of whatever was making them sick. Its not your fault, Femm Yeah! Cruz agreed with me strongly. While this was going on, Millet had gone back to making medicine. I know this is is bitter, but please make sure to drink it all. Kweeennn. The magic wolves sounded very weak. You have to drink all of it! Even though I yelled at them, none of them were drinking the medicine. Femm was watching this and suddenly began to growl and bark loudly. GRAW GROWL RAWWF! Kweeeen. With sad voices, the wolves began to drink down the medicine. I guess a kings orders always must be followed. They drank it down faster than Cruzgood wolves. Thats not true!? As Lukaplimented the wolves after having to watch Cruz reluctance, Cruz puffed her cheeks out and sulked. After drinking the medicine, they all seemed a bit relieved. A few of them started sleeping. Vi-Vis magic circle seemed to have an effect on them as well. Kweeeennn They cried out sometimes as they slept. Femm walked around and licked one, then another. I also rubbed one near to me. Moooo. The huge Moofy also looked down on the wolves with a look of sympathy. Moofy thenid down and nuzzled one of them. Even so, the size difference was immense. Some of the wolves shuffled over andid next to Moofys belly and feet. Because of Cruz consecration of Moofy, the now sacred beast Moofys hair was long and soft. The wolves liked lying down inside of Moofys soft fur. Well, lets just see what happens. Thanks, Millet. No problem. Thank you very much. Femm bowed its head so low that its nose touched the ground. After seeing all that had happened, Lukas face now seemed to be in deep thought. Cruz saw this, and asked, Whats wrong, Luka? Dont you think its strange? What? The fact that Alfred said that he had eaten a hydra, but that it hadnt hurt him at all. Yeah, it is strange. Its true that the hydra was disgusting. However, I didnt try to interrupt and just listened. Well, it cant be that the poison had affected them meat. Huh? Why not? Cruz didnt understand why. A hydras poison is very strong. If they were affected by it, then those wolves would have been sick immediately after eating it. I seeyoure right Al. Not meLukas the one that noticed it. WowLuka Also, if it was poisoned, then the wolves could smell it out, right? Luka looked at Femm. Of course we could. Femm suddenly shrunk down to its domestic size. Hearing that, Cruz thought like Cruz usually did. Well, then maybe the amount of poison was less than they could smell? Nah, that wouldnt happen. Nah, no chance. Luka and I both knew that was wrong. Cruz. Did you forget you were bathed in that poison but nothing happened to you? I did. Heh heh. Well, whatever. But you were totally covered by it, so just a little bit of it going in your mouth isnt going to make you sick, right? I get it Cruz now figured it out. Or maybe she didntwe couldnt tell. If you get bathed in poison, of course a lot is going to go in your mouth and nose. Theres no way that Cruz AND the wolves would be made sick with an unnoticable amount of poison. Either way, that hydra was a weird one. It could regenerate in the middle of battle right? Yeah, Ive never heard of that before. Luka was an academic too. She studied ancient lore and magic monsters. If Luka said it was strange, than it definitely was. Al, could you let me see that gall dder from the hydra? Oh, yeah. I raised the gall dder out of the mag with magic. Luka hadnt looked over the thing enough. As I handled the hydras gall dder outside the magic bag like before, Luka looked over it with a piercing gaze. It just looks like arge, but normal hydras gall dder. Right. We dont have the magic tools to check the abilities of the poison either. Yeah. I think someone needs to look over it when I get back to the capital. Okay, then. Ill put it in your magic bag, Luka. Thanks. Hearing all this, Cruz inched closer. Hm? I didnt feel this before, but that thing gives me a bad feeling. Bad feeling? Could you put that more concretely? Umits something that concretely makes me have a bad feeling. Nothing concrete about that. However, it would be wrong to have Cruz try to provide aplex exnation. But if a hero has a bad feeling about somethingtheres something bad about it. You should check out the ce you fought that thing again. Yeah. That night, I slept beside the storage house. I was worried about the wolves. Femm and Moofy were too. Cruz, Luka, Vi-Vi and Millet wanted to sleep outside too, but I had them sleep in Millets house. We dont need everyone sleeping out tonight. Before I slept, I looked over at the wolves, who were sleeping softly. I was about to slip into slumber when the small wolves came over to me. They all looked worried. - In the morning, I felt something licking my face. Mpph Ruff Wauf A few of the little wolves were sleeping on top of me. One of them was licking my face. Oh! Good morning! I rubbed the little wolf. I was panting cutely. I looked around at the wolvesFemm was gone. I wondered where it had gone. A few of the bigger wolves were walking around. The ones that werent were at least seated and panting softly. They look like they had recovered. Seems like theyre healthy again. But no need to deal with them now. Ruff. There were a few walking near and some sitting against Moofy. After a while, Femm, in itsrge size, came back from the forest. It had arge boar in its mouth. You went hunting! Good job. Yeah. Breakfast. I think theyre all back to normal. I think well enough to eat that. Yes, thanks. They look much better. I have to thank Millet as well. Femm split up the boar, shrunk, and we walked into town together. Chapter 39 - The Wizard Checks the Hydra Battleground

Chapter 39 C The Wizard Checks the Hydra Battleground

Trantor:Ranzan After eating breakfast, I went back to check where we had fought the hydra. Cruz, Luka, Vi-Vi, and Femm were with me. After we arrived, I checked for any traces of magic. There really werent any left. Can you feel anything, Vi-Vi? Nothing at all. Right I guess since neither Vi-Vi nor I could sense anything, that meant there was nothing left. Either that, or there was a far better magician here than we could sense. Luka was searching around and whispered, Theres no traces of any magic beasts around here either. Since she was a student of magic beasts, she was an expert in finding any trace of them. Maybe because of the poison? Theres not that much poison left. The smell certainly is strong though. I see. Can you feel something, Cruz? Just a bad feeling. Nothing concrete, but an important sign. Femm, who was smelling the scents around the battleground, said, It seems like something was here afterwards. Oh, you can smell it? Yes. A magic wolfs nose is excellent. It can sense scents that no human could understand. So, do you know what it was doing here? It was here, then here, then here, then it went back. Femm jumped around while exining. I had no idea where or what the smell was, but it was important information. Thanks, Femm. Ruff These three ces were one, the ce the hydra was dissected, two, the ce it fell, and where was three? The ce where Cruz was eating the hell out of the nasty thing. I see. So it just checked where there were remains, then. Then I asked Femm, Femm, do you know where whatever came here went? Yes, Ill show you. Thanks. Femm walked slowly. It was sniffing out the scent, so it took its time. Cruz, Luka, and Vi-Vi followed behind so that they werent in the way. After about an hour, we came to an opening. Someone had cut down the trees. There were about 10 hydras and basilisks. They were all huge. The hydras and the basilisks were the samerge ones that I had encountered before. Each was from three to five times bigger than a normal one. This must be some kind of massive monster farm or something. Yeah, they opened up this area for itsome ce. Why dont they run away? They seem to be quite tame. It wasnt against thew to have magic monsters as pets. However, you had to notify the local guild within a month of beginning to keep one. However, its hard to keep quiet the fact that youre keeping this big of hydras and basilisks out her. Well, even though theyre big, a simple notice to the guild and theyre still legal. Just in case, you should send a notice that youre keeping Femm too, right? Luka said to me as she IS a manager of a guild. Sure, Ill do itter. Good. Ruff? Femm had a confused face as it had no idea what was happening. Cruz was looking out, thinking, and said again. YeahI have a baaaaaaaaaaad feeling about this. A bad feeling? Yes. When I saw the hydra the first time, the same feeling. Thats why I chased it. No way to talk trash about a heros intuition. I didnt know what it all meant, but I knew this was going to take a turn for the worse. Vi-Vi ran up to me after looking around while we were talking. Al, look here. What is it? A magic circle. It was concealed very well, this magic circle. It was quite arge one, sorge that it surrounded this monster corral. So this is why none of the monsters are getting away! You dont know that until you read it all!Vi-Vi said. Even so, since its so huge, its hard to find as magic circles go. And really hard to analyze too! There was no way to analyze it without walking and analyzing the whole thing. You couldnt find its purpose by just looking at one part. This sucksbut we have to look at it. Right, Al! We began looking over the whole circle together. As we walked slowly, we checked each part of it. It was hard to analyze as it was concealedVERY hard to analyze. Al. This is the part that makes the animals bigger. Youre right. Since Vi-Vi had written a lot of ergement circles recently, she was quick to notice. She was able to find that out just by looking at a fourth of the circle. However, I cant figure out what some of this islook here. Yeah, its not clear. And Vi-Vi, did you find anything that contains the monsters? No It seems that the person that created this beast corral was no expert in magic circles. The magic circle had no part that kept the magic monsters inside the circle. As we kept looking, Luka came up to us. We cant let these things get bigger, right? Just one of these huge basilisks could kill off a whole town. If all of these things have the same regenerative force as that hydra, the whole country is in jeopardy. This is one hell of a situation. Yesterdays hydra had unbelievable regeneration. It also had meat that hurt the bodies of the wolves and Cruz. Someone had raised these beasts with more status irregrities than justrge size. Luka, for now, lets erase this magic circle. Youre good at that, right? Not really, but I can try. She quickly destroyed the circleshe was very good at that, at least. I guess you are good at it. No, not really. Instead of that, we need to kill all of these beasts here, and quick. Yeah. I was a little sad to kill them all, but each one of them could ravage a whole town. Too dangerous. Ill take care of this. Cruz grabbed her sword. Dont let down your guard. Ill back you up. Sure. Thanks. Cruz ran out to the basilisk right in front of her. Just in that instant, lighting fell right at Cruz. Cruz quick agility helped her to easily dodge it. You did well to avoid that. One demon stood up from behind all the beasts. His age was close to mine. He had a ck robe. I was wondering how I would get all of you herebut since youvee on your own, youve saved me the trouble AH, NOW IVE GOT A REALLY BAD FEELING! Cruz shouted as she interrupted the demons speech. Chapter 40 - The Old Man’s Party Versus the Necromancer

Chapter 40 C The Old Mans Party Versus the Necromancer

Trantor: Ranzan Thats the one behind all this! Al, we got to get him! Get him! Cruz, calm down. Ookay. I stopped Cruz from jumping at the guy. He wanted to say something, so let him talk. If we know the reason why, it makes things easierter. So, who were you going to lure out to fight you again? The sub boss of the Demon LordVi-Vi, of course. I looked at Vi-Vi. You know him, Vi-Vi? NoooI dont know this old guy. Vi-Vi looked surprised, but shook her head. Bitch! Are you mocking ME?! He seems kind of pissed. Are you sure you dont know him? Nonever met him before. If Vi-Vi says so, then I get she never had. However, this had made the magician quite angry. You crushed our dreams of attacking with a zombie dragon! You shameless devil! And I wont forgive you for killing my beautiful hydra either! Oh, now I get it. I finally understood what was going on. Cruz said that they captured a necromancer that created the zombie dragon. However, it seems that the necromancer wasnt the only one involved. For a sub boss of the Demon Lord like you to crush the recreation of the Demon Armyyou TRAITOR! I, one of the 12 demon disciples of the Demon Army, Curtis, will purge you from this world! 12demon disciples? I dont remember anything about those fellows. Never remember fighting them. We may have just bulldozed them and never noticed. Well, even though theres supposed to be 12theres really only 10. Whoever is the ountant for the Demon Army needs to get their payroll in order. Oh, I remember! You were those idiots that were always trying to take over the sub-bosses positions! I thought you looked like those guysI guess I do know yousomehow. Vi-Vi said with a questioning look. Or maybe that was a different guy. IM THE SAME GUY! The disciple shouted loudly. You weakling, shrimpy sub-bossesmocking a great man like me! You lost to the sub-bosses though I replied, and Curtis flipped his lid. Dont you mock me, buster! Damn Wizard! My strength is far above those sub-bosses! I dont remember you ever getting strong enough to match our power. Even though Vi-Vi was kind of weak herself, she didnt seem to notice. Are you two done? Are you finished? Lets kill the guy. Cruz was itching to fight. We all knew it was time too, so, We probably need to take this disciple guy hostage too. Got it! Cruz shouted while rushing in at him. Eeeek! Curtis squealed when he saw how unnaturally fast Cruz was barrelling towards him. Hhey, monsters, KILL THEM! Curtis screamed while about 20 basilisks and hydras silently turned towards us. The basilisks eyes shone in petrifying res. Wah! Too bright! Cruz said while she cut off the basilisks head. So resistant it was almost cheating. No sign of her being petrified. She tore off the beasts poison tail with her left hand. I cant fight like Cruz can. Luka avoided looking at a different basilisk while she cut off its poison tail. She dodged a spurt of poison. I just let some fire magic fly. I had to make sure that Luka and Cruz backs were covered. It was hard trying to judge where Cruz and Luka would attack and then clear the ground behind them. In order to dodge the attacks they zigzagged randomly. And they were fast. It was very hard to follow them. Even so, I cant lose this battle. Analyze the whole battlefield, and let the girls do what they wanted while defending their behinds. That was a wizards job. I also had to keep the hydras from regenerating like yesterday. While I defended the girls rears, I burned away whatever heads they chopped off. But, These things are still regenerating! Cruz screamed as she lopped another head of a hydra off. A head sprung through the burned neck that I had used fire on. These hydras are a special variety! Theyre my immortal soldiers! Curtis screamed whileughing. I seezombies Zombies were living dead bodies. Though they had their own will, they couldnt move freely. Thats why there was no need to keep them from fleeing from this monster farm. So yesterdays hydra wasnt zombified. Thats why its regeneration was a little less. Also it was able to run away as it wasnt controlled. What do we do now?! Cruz asked as she cut off head after head of hydra. As soon as she did, within seconds a new one would grow back. She was getting tired from attacking. Just do all you can to cut their heads off! Got it! Al, dont ask the impossible! While saying this, Luka cut a basilisks tail and head off. I know what impossible is. But I still had to trust that Cruz could do it. Femm, let me ride you! Rawf! Run through the hydras, straight to Curtis. Bark! As I rode on Femm, we blew right through the hydras. I threw multiple fireballs here and there, supporting Cruz and Luka while beginning to chat. Ice Queen reigning on the stairs to heaven. Commander of the vast abyss. Holder of the key to Hades, Open the door to the void. The void. The darkness. With divine retribution, cleanse the evil with ice. For my name is Alfred Lint! In an instant all the hydras around me were frozen. Unlike fire magic, ice magic wouldnt start a forest fire. WHOA! HEY! Cruz and Luka jumped to dodge the flood of ice. Either way, I had adjusted the chant so that Cruz and Luka were untouched. However, power is power. And that includes ice spells. You couldnt be sure that they could avoid everything. Sorry. Take care of the rest for me. After that apology, I raced towards Curtis. Eeeep! Curtis was inplete panic mode. His feet were frozen. I hadnt even attacked himit was just an after-effect. Sad for him to get caught up in all this. 12 disciple Curtis or whomever. Zombies are forbidden. The king will see to it that you are punished. I thought there was something weird about all this. There was no way that a sub-boss like Vi-Vi could beat out zombie dragon! Then Curtis looked at me. You were the one that did it! It wasnt JUST me. I had nothing to hide, so I spoke truthfully. Using two magics at once, and ice magic with that powerare you even human? Instead of asking me that, you should ask HER. I pointed at Cruz, who was now cutting blocks off the frozen hydras behind me. Even though I bound Curtis, he didnt resist. He knew that he was beaten, so there was no reason to fight on. My loss. However, I still must avenge myself against the traitor. I suddenly felt hostility radiate from Curtis. Then I yelled, Vi-Vi!! One hydra suddenly rose up behind Vi-Vi, who was drawing a magic circle. It must have been concealed, hiding. Dont think you can beat me! Vi-Vi touched the magic circle without turning around. Ivy sprung from the magic circle and grabbed onto the hydra. The ivypletely surrounded the hydra, that nowy on the ground, twitching. Cruz suddenly sprung in front of Vi-Vi. She approached the hydra and shed it to bits. Luka was fine chopping all the other frozen hydra up. I felt relieved. 12th disciple. Anything else you want to try? Curtis sighed and then slumped. I wrapped Curtis up in a magic. I gagged him and tied his wrists and ankles. It was a basic magic bond. Vi-Vi. You did a good job with that ivy of yours. I thought shed only use basic magics like fire, water, and thunder. If you were going into battle, those were your basic options. Its something that I use just in case I have to fight. And even if I do, it will stop anything from moving, so you all can finish it off for me. Vi-Vi said with a smile. Thats why I always prepare a magic to stop one thing at least from fighting. Good job. I scruffed Vi-Vis hair up in thanks. STOP IT! She said, while blushing. Chapter 41 - Hero’s Return

Chapter 41 C Heros Return

Trantor: Ranzan After I captured the necromancer Curtis, we looked around for battle treasure. There were 20 giant hydras and basilisks we defeated. Since the heads regenerate, we need to dissect them. Not because were going to EAT THEM. I know already! Cruz said happily as she cut the beasts up. I left Vi-Vi and Femm to look over Curtis while I helped in getting treasure. Maybe the reason you had the stomachache was because you ate almost zombie meat. Almost-zombie meat? What kind of condition is that? Cruz looked confused. Luka, the expert on these things, exined. In order to be a zombie, you have to have all of your free will controlled, right? In order to do that, it takes a lot of magic. Hm These zombies had both extreme size and regeneration cast as well. These things were filled with a bunch of different spells. Spells Theyre so full, its almost like a curse. Whoascary. Even though Cruz had nothing to be scared of. She was also very strong against curses as well. In order to change something to a zombie, you have to use maggots. They invade the brain and take over the actions of the zombie. Parasites are well-known for making the host move in certain ways to die. Well known? Yes, like making grasshoppers and praying mantises jump in water so that birds will eat them. Really? Yeah, which leads us to the real problem. The reason your stomach hurt was because of those bugs EEEEEEK! The usually happy Cruz was now freaking out. Even Cruz was no fan of bugs. Especially bugs that would attack you and take over your brain and make you move without control. Thats probably what this necromancer was using. The magic involved super-charged magical parasites that would turn living creatures into zombies. Cruz, when we get back, you need to take some deworming medicine. Okay Cruz looked pretty shaken up. Millets medicine was stomach medicine and poison removal medicine. Poisons also were different with adventurers, nobles, and vigers. An adventurers poison was usually the poison from some magical monster. A noble usually had to deal with arsenic or some other assassination poison. And a vigers poison was usually food poisoningthey all had to be dealt with differently. It wasnt rare that worms caused food poisoning as well. Thats why Millets poison cure probably had some kind of deworming medicine in it. However, there was no reason to tell the vigers about what had happened. Just let Cruz learn from her mistakes. Listen, Cruz, you need to learn from this and eat more proper foods, okay? kay Rawf! Femm barked in a way that sounded like a cry. What is it, Femm? I cant believe I let my pack eat that! Its not your fault, Femm. Either way, Femm was a bit depressed. As a king, it felt responsible. After we were done collecting the treasure, we headed back. Femm bit onto Curtis and dragged him back. No need to be nice. When we got back, we checked on the wolf pack. Are you all okay? Rawf! Rawf! They all looked healthy again. I petted as many of them as I could. Luka did the same. Cruz ran up and tugged on Millets dress. Millet! Make me some deworming MEDICINE! Cruz, whats wrong? Calm down! Millet was confused as to why Cruz was flipping out. Millet, did the antidote you gave Cruz have a dewormer as well? Yes, its in every poison antidote. See? Arent you happy? Cruz plopped onto the ground dejected. I was so scared that I would turn into a ZOMBIE! Were d you didnt, Cruz. Strongly resistant Cruz. If the dewormer just weakened the worms, its obvious that her body would take care of the rest. Perhaps the parasites were just one way of many to turn something into a zombie. Even so, she didnt be one. Also, you had to adjust it to each type of being. Because they set up a nest inside of you, there was very little chance that Cruz could be a zombie. But for a brief time, they made Cruz feel a lot of pain. It must have been because the parasites had very strong regeneration. Let me check you magically, just in case. The parasites in zombification werent normal. They were magical. They all gave off a little bit of magic. It was hard to find them, but if you knew there was a possibility that they had infected someone, you could kind of find them out. Okay, please do, Al. Cruz quickly stripped off her shirtshe was almost topleswhen HEY, WAIT A SECOND! Luka freaked out. Because of her I only got to see a mild amount of underboob. Cruz, you DONT need to take off your clothes! Ohokay. I used magic to scan over Cruz body carefully. After 10 minutes. Yeah, I cant find any parasites. Phew! She was very happy. Just in case, we need to check the wolves too. Please. Since doing it once on Cruz helped me know what to look for, each of the wolves only took three minutes. One hour altogether. Fine. There arent any in the wolves either. Thanks. Ruff Wawf! The wolves seemed very happy about that. After looking at all of them, Luka said, Im sure Millets medicine had a big effect, but it might also be because of Moofy too. Moofy? Moofy can cure any curse on any animal. Since those zombie bugs are like a curse, Moofy probably made recovery faster. Vi-Vi said happily as she petted Moofy. Good job, Moofy! Mooo Since everyone was confirmed okay, it was now time to interrogate Curtis. He wasnt scared, since he saw me there with Cruz and Luka. Even though his hands and feet were bound. You made a dragon zombie in the west mountains. You messed up and ran off alone and made hydras and basilisks here. So, were you actually thinking of bringing the Demon Lords army back? The Demon Lord must return. You should enjoy the little peace youve been given to live in. I see. So whats the proof helle back? Silent as the night on the important part. Listen, you said you were strong with offensive magic. Yeah, I was a very effective member of the Demon Army. But you suck at magic circles. And at making zombies. One of your hydras obviously ran away. It also seems you cant make very powerful parasites. Where did you learn this? It seems he wasnt going to provide us with answers. Vi-Vi was the only one among us that knew how to b on forever, so Vi-Vi Yeah? How many people in the Demon Army are good at making zombies. None, really. First of all, the Demon Lord actually banned them from making zombies. I red at Curtis. Curtis, you broke the Demon Lords ordersdont you feel embarrassed now trying to bring him back? Hmph. The Demon Lord gave us the ability to make zombies. Its just the sub-bosses didnt KNOW about that. It might be that Curtis words werent lies. In the Demon Lords battle, there were dozens of times that the Lord used zombies. Thats why we all knew that he was using zombies in his army. As I exined that to Vi-Vi, she looked back at me, confused. You knowyou may be right. As soon as I lost to you guys, I ran as far away as I could. You sub-bosses are the WEAKEST! Youre a disgrace to sub-bosses! Curtis said with a smile at Vi-Vi. GAWG! Femm bit down over Curtis hair and started shaking him like a ragdoll. Eeeek Eep! Stoppppp! OWw! Okay, thats enough. Ruff. After a short while, and a few shakes more, Femm stopped. Curtis front hair was either pulled out or messed all over his face. We didnt learn really anything important from interrogating Curtis. That night. Millet, Collette, Femm and the other wolves took turns guarding and eating dinner. It wasnt hydra meat either, but chicken meat. Right now, beef was the cheapest meat in Mulg. Mooo. However, you cant just eat Moofys meat right in front of Moofy. Thats why everyone ate chicken. And during eating. Vi-Vi, hey, over here. What? Cruz and Vi-Vi whispered secretly. I guess female fighters do have things to discuss. The next morning. I was still worried about the wolves, but now they werepletely recovered. They went out to hunt, or slept under the storage house. Also, it was time for Luka and Cruz to leave the town. Thanks for everything. Stay safe. Im going to be lonely again Millet was ready to cry. Dont crye on. Luka tried tofort Millet. No, no, no, no, no, no! No, no, no, no, no! Cruz threw something like a tantrum and Collette imitated her. Bad upbringings. Why are you throwing a tantrum? You have a lot of work to do for the king. But You have to take in Curtis to be judged! You can let Luka do that! Stop messing around! Ugh Cruz looked ready to cry. You cane back anytime. Really? Yeah. Heh heh heh. Cruz looked a little happier. But Cruz was a hero. A busy person. She wouldnt be back for a while. And dont tell ANYONE that Im living here in Mulg, okay?! We know We waved over and over and said our goodbyes, and Luka and Cruz went home. Chapter 42 - An Old Guard and a Devil Girl…as Beginning Farmers?!

Chapter 42 C An Old Guard and a Devil Girlas Beginning Farmers?!

Trantor: Ranzan After Luka and Cruz went back to the capital, I went back to my daily life. Just sitting at the vige gateguarding. Algood morning. Good morning! Be careful out there. The vigers going out to farm smiled at me as they left. They hadnt said anything to me even though I was away recently. It seemed that Femm was only involved with watching the baby wolves under the storage shack. Theres a good chance no one needs a guard any more Just staying here makes me a weight on themunity. Im the only one not working, and Im a guardjust sitting here. And with that sacred beast Moofyits even safer here. This might start to suck What sucks about this? Vi-Vi said, scribbling a magic circle in the ground as usual. Nowhat? I mean Im not doing any work. A guard is almost always as rest, Al. Begin at rest is way better. I guess so Imagine what would happen to this vige if you were busy! A vige with a busy guard. Magic beasts and bandits attacking daily. Vigers going missing every day. Just thinking about it made me shiver. Yeah, better to be bored. Right?! Even soI think I might try to find a way to be useful. If youre worried about that, try to find jobs while youre guarding. I tried to think about what Vi-Vi was suggesting, but absolutely nothing came to mind. Ive always been an adventurer. Theres nothing Ive done other than that. Its a tough problem. Right?! As we were talking about it, Millet bounced up to us. With the chief. It seemed that Millet was a candidate for next vige chief. She was an apothecary and knew a lot of things for someone in the vige. She had taken on the role of secretary in helping the chief get things done in themunity. Youre doing fine, Mister Al. You guard during when I get herbs and when we sell meat to the town and so on. Thanks for saying so. Thats why you need to stay here. You help. Millet took hold of my hand. Ahokaythanks. It seems that Millet really looked up to me. It was a good feeling. The chief looked on with a bright smile. Alfred, about theformerguard house. Im very sorry about the ce getting burned down, as it was part of the vige. When I have time, I was thinking about rebuilding although I wasnt the one that burned down my house. The reason for it burning down was Vi-Vi and Luka fighting. But it really wasnt their fault either. However, since I knew both of them, I figured that I should be the one to fix up the house again. No, no, we cant allow you to do that. Even so, I have to We were thinking of rebuilding it ourselves. For a while, just stay at Millets house, okay? But wont that be a bother to her? Oh, Im perfectly fine with it. Millet said strongly. Again, it was good to hear. However, I couldnt take advantage of the town. I decided I had to rebuild the house soon. Chief, we we rebuild it, can I build it out here? Id like to. I pointed to an area next to the storage shack outside of the vige. I didnt want to impose on the vigers, so it was better outside the vige. It was practical if I had to dissect any more hydras. Those things STINK. Yeah, but, even though its close, its a bit lonely living outside the vige. If a wolf gets hurt, Id like to be able to give it somewhere to stay Next, when a wolf gets sick, Id like to be able to give it a ce to stay. Its summer now, so any sick wolf can justy up against Moofy and sleep. However, what happens if the wolf gets sick in winter? It pained my heart to think of the wolf having to lie out in the drifting snow. If Im going to let the wolves in during the winter, Im going to need a bit of space. Yes, I can see that. The chief seemed a bit flummoxed by that. It would be sad for those wolves. Millet seemed to agree. I noticed that Vi-Vi was pulling on my sleeve. Make a ce for Moofy too. Well I would like to help Vi-Vi, but that thing is waaaaay too big. Youd need a dug-out hill to house Moofy. My house would be a hill. Moofy is a sacred animal. It can be small if it wants to. I wonder. If Femm can do it, why cant Moofy? Huh? Rawf? Femm jumped at its name being called and came closer. Donte any CLOSER TO ME!! Vi-Vi sprung behind me and grabbed onto my back. I walked up beside Moofy with her still clutching onto me. Moofy, can you get smaller? Moo. At least it responded. But I cant speak cow. Hes telling you to GET SMALLER! Wait, can you speak cow? Both Moofy and Vi-Vi had horns growing from their heads. I guess that made them understand each other. Hmp! Vi-Vi looked proudly at the cow. It wants you to rub its head, its saying. It cant understand humannguage. It seems that Femm does understand Moofy. I looked at Vi-Vi, who was turned away from me. Fweet Fweeeeet! I pretended to whistle silently, to fool her. Can you ask Moofy to get smaller?I whispered to Femm. I can try. Wuff rawf. Moooo. Waff Rawr Moo. They were talking. Good job, King. Vi-Vi was now getting frustrated. Whoa, good job Femm. Moofy doesnt understand wolf. It just looked like they were talking to each other. Femm could understand cow. But the wolf couldnt speak to the cow. In other words, it was just two animals going BarkandMoo. Oh, I get it. Youre just a dumb dog, after all! Vi-Vi said proudly, as Femm jumped on her and pushed her to the ground, licking her cheek. Sstop that! I rubbed Moofy. Its only been a day for Moofy as a sacred animal. It might start to understandnguage sooner orter. Then we can think about putting Moofy inside. Moo. Moofy mooed happily. I would have to think about how to build the new guardhouseter. After Millet and the chief finally left, I sat at the gate while watching the viges farnd. While I was sitting there on my ass, the vigers were working their asses off. And the farming area wasnt that big. Those are some small fields. Not reallyits just the right size. Vi-Vi stood beside me and said, as we looked out on the fields. Its more that thend is dried out than the fields are too small. Dried out? Yeah, it might be because the hot springs are sucking up all the magical rocks in the mountains. If the hot springs have those stones all mixed in them, then it wouldnt be strange if the fields were the same. After looking closely, it seemed there was a lot of nts to cultivate and feed the animals. But because thend was dried out, Mulg depended more on livestock than crops, it seemed. Is it bad for the magical stones to get mixed in with thend? Yeah! They said that the reason the Demon regionsnd was so bad was because of the content of magical stones there. That reminded me that since Vi-Vi was a sub boss, she was in charge of improving thends for farming. Vi-Vi said this as she remembered those daysand possibly thought of an idea. Okay, Al, time to cultivate some newnd! Why are you saying that all the sudden? You said you were bored as a guard, right? YeahI guess. If I could do something for the vige, Id be happy to do it. And I would be very happy to have some delicious vegetables to eat. Improving thend is my specialty! Vi-Vi was ready to go. It was actually the first time I saw her this enthusiastic. I didnt want her to hold back, either. Ok. Letscultivate. Sure. Butyou said your knee hurtsits impossible for you, right? Not at all! Vi-Vi was worried about me. In this case, haste makes no waste. Vi-Vi and I went to the vige chief. We needed permission to cut away one part of the forest. Then, there was something that we couldnt forget. Femm. Ruff? Were going to chop some trees. Can you help? Surely. We got permission to chop down some of the kings trees as well. We were ready to cultivate all we needed. Time to make some fields! Doesnt your knee hurt? Femm looked at me, worried. Chapter 43 - Old Wizard, Cuttin’ Trees

Chapter 43 C Old Wizard, Cuttin Trees

Trantor: Ranzan The next day. We had decided to cultivate some newnd. Of course, I have never done that before. Ive only been an adventurer. My father didnt farm either C he was a knight. In order to get the cultivation done, Vi-Vi, Femm, Millet, and Collette joined me. Um, first we need to cut down the trees, right? Al, you really know nothing about this. Yeah, Sorry. Whatever! Just leave it to me! Even so, Vi-Vi looked happy. Al. Cut down the trees, and take all the trees off the field. I took Vi-Vis advice. She knew what she was doing. I guess Ill listen to you, Vi-Vi. Heh heh, you should do so more often! Vi-Vis cheeks turned red in a blush. Okay, then, herees the cuttin! I used a magical de to cut the tree in front of me. It immediately began falling towards me. Whoa, Millet! Watch out! Rawf! I grabbed Millet and jumped, identally putting my weight on my bad knee. It hurt. Vi-Vi was already a ways away from where it fell. Femm had Collette on its back, and jumped away. Millet, are you okay? Yeah, thanks Millets cheeks were blushing. AL! Youve GOT to think about where the tree is going to fall BEFORE YOU CUT! Okaysorry Rawf! Vi-Vi shouted at me. Femms barking sounded angry too. Sorry, Femm. After that, I was careful with how I cut the trees. I cut around 30 of them in the area I nned to cultivate. All of them were massive trees. I gave directions about the trees to Millet. All of these trees should be used for winter wood. Be careful with them, okay? You got it! Leave all the cutting of the branches to me! Vi-Vi used magic to slice all the branches off of the fallen trees. In under an hour we have 30 trees and countless branches from them as lumber. Maybe being a wizard-lumberjack is my calling. You may be right Both Vi-Vi and I were both surprised at how effectively we had cut up this wood. Please carry all the lumber to themons. Commons? Yeah, well Millet exined about the vigemons. It was a location that was managed by all in the vige. Everyone would ce any lumber or wood that had fallen there. And the newly cultivatednd was the viges. We had gotten permission for the cultivation, but all of the wood from the area should be the viges too, it seems. If we brought the wood there, then everyone would get to take whatever they need. Okay, I see. Didnt seem a strange process to me. Were going to need some oxen to carry this wood. Let me go borrow some. Wait a second, Millet. Vi-Vi stopped Millet before she ran off. We have my Moofy. Moofys too big! It cant just carry the lumber there. I guess youre right Vi-Vi slumped from her formerly proud disposition. If Moofy wasnt so huge, we might have been able to use it for this work. Ill just use magic to move it. That gravity magic again? Yeah, good in battle, good for chores. You using high level magic that most of us devils cant even useyoure one scary guy. Have to use what you can. I carried the 30 trees in three trips. That way I didnt have to push myself carrying them all at once. I was a little nervous about controlling all of the wood together, so I simply carried 10 at a time. Every time you do that, its amazing. Milletplimented me. I could feel myself blush a bit. There may be a day when a woodsman needs gravity magic to work. No way! Then thered only need to be five of them in the world. Femm and his back bit down on and carried many of the branches. Thanks. Wuff! I rubbed their heads when I had a chance. They all wagged their tails cutely. Okay Now, time for the hard work. Millet and I nodded at each other. It was time to get rid of the stumps. We had to get all the roots out too, somehow. How do they usually get these things out? Um after they dig around the stump, they break the stump up with a saw or axes. Then they have an ox pull out the stump. I see. I thought about it for a second. Vi-Vi smiled at me and peered at my face. Al, youre not thinking about shortening this by using magic, are you? You bet I am. Heh heh. Just leave it to me instead. Vi-Vi started scrawling a magic circle on top of a cut stump. What magic is that? Heh heh, watch and find out. Since she said that, now I wanted to find out. I analyzed the magic circle. Fire magic? Geez, why are you analyzing my circle!? Vi-Vi puffed her cheeks out. Millet heard that and looked troubled. ButI know that if you turn a tree to ash it helps fertilize the soilbut a tree cant burn underground, right? Heh heh heh. Vi-Vi puffed out her chest. This is what makes this magic circle awesome! Vi-Vi put the magic circle in motion. The stump instantly lit up in fire. Listen. This magic circle of fire is intermingled with a strong wind magic. So with the wind, it blows the fire down so it burns up all the roots? Yup! It made sense to me. Even though you have to see what happens to know the result, if the roots werent burned all the way it was still fun to see the stump be burned. So I guess you should draw this on all 30 of the stumps here. You can help me, Al! Roger. It was difficult for me to copy the magic circle she had drawn though. It was easier to write your own new circle with the magical logic and nning that you created yourself. Thats what I did. And I worked hard not to make an embarrassingly weak onepared to Vi-Vis Okay, here mine goes. Lets see whose burns the strongest. Sure. Vi-Vi was quickly ready to make apetition out of this. We set both of our rings on fire, and they both burned strongly. Yours is burning quite well, Al! Yours too, Vi-Vi. Heh heh heh. The battle was already on. It was pretty impressive that Vi-Vi knew how to make a circle that would specifically burn into a tree stump. I just copied the idea she had. Her fire was muchrger than mine as well. Yay! I won! Yeah, you beat me. Vi-Viughed happily at being recognized the winner. After the stumps burned all the way, Femm started talking to us. You need to check how much of the roots burned. Right. Ill dig a hole and check the roots. Okay? Please. Ruff Wuff Femm started digging into the ground. It did it like a dogor a wolfenjoying it the whole time. The other wolves saw this, and started digging nearby as well. Wuff Wuff All the wolves looked like they were having a st. They all were concentratingpletely on their digging. After a while, Femm said to us Almost all of the roots are burned up in the fire. Femm said with a serious look, its face and body covered in dirt. Just like a puppy. Thanks, good work. Wurf I rubbed Femms head and the other wolves around me. After finishing all the stumps, the day was finished. The first day of creating the field was over. Chapter 44 - Field Cleared, and Hero Returned

Chapter 44 C Field Cleared, and Hero Returned

Trantor: Ranzaaaaaaan! The next day. As I made my way to the field, Vi-Vi asked me, Al! Shouldnt you guard? Yeah, I should. Right?! It was ass-backward to dig up a field first and guardter. I was a bit flummoxed, so I asked Millet. I think if you work the field from afternoon to twilight there should be no problem. You think? Yes. As long as you know which vigers go out, theres no issue. Now that I think about it, being a guard is a pointless job without that. But thats why I chose it. In the case that monsters or bandits DOe, even if youre not at the gate, youre nearby, so its okay. Just like Millet suggested, I sat at the gate all morning long. From afternoon, after eating lunch, I started with the field. You got rid of the trees and burned up all the roots? Just as expected. This field clearing was so fast, it should be a record. Millet looked very happy. So, next is plowing, right? Yes, with an ox. Maybe we can ask Moofy? No, Moofy is too big. I tried thinking of a more effective way to plow the field. Maybe I can do it with magic? How would you do that? Well, maybe I could explode the grounda small one? No way! Vi-Vi refused my idea loudly. Why? Because there are important things like worms and so on that provide nutrition! If you explode the field, theyre all going to die! I seedidnt burning all the roots hurt them yesterday? Theyre fine. I mean, the bugs and stuff that were near the roots wereits sad to saybut its a big field. I guess quite a few died then. I guess if you plowed the field by cow quite a few would die too. Either way, I think we should kill the fewest worms and so on possible. Some bugs are going when youre nting a field though. So we chose to use an ox instead to just hand-plow the field. By the time we were a third done, the night was upon us. I went back to the guardpost, made sure all the vigers had returned, and finished my work. I went to the hot springs before turning in. The hot springs is the best when you finally get all that grime off of you. As soon as I get in, my knee stops aching as well. Ruff Wuff Waof! Femm seemed pretty excited as well. It was always a habit for us to get in together. I started going to the hot springs near Millets house. This hot springs is great, Femm. Rawf Femm loved it too. It was beautiful, and the bath was wide. It wasnt inside either C the whole bath was outside. Femm, youre covered in mud. Wuffuff While we were plowing the field with the ox, Femm and the other wolves were digging holes. They were having a st. Even the baby wolves were digging, imitating the others. I bet they thought they were helping the plowing. First, I made sure that Femm was cleaned off. Femm, do moles taste good? WuffNot really Femm barked while dismissing my question in spirit speech. Femm and the other wolves had caught several moles and ate them. Millet told me that if you leave the moles untouched, that theyll damage all the crops, so eat all you can. Understood. Moles dont eat up the crops in the field, but their holes damage the roots of all the crops. Then the mice end up using the moles holes and eat up all the cropster. Okay, youre all clean. After washing all the soap off, I put my nose on its back and smelled it. Ruff? Good, you smell fine. Femm wagged its tail happily as it went into the bath. Then I washed off, and got in too. Femm quickly moved over to me. Is your knee okay? Yeah, its fine. I thought it would hurt after all the plowing, but it turned out okay. It just throbbed like it always did. This hot springs really heals it though. I have no idea what that means We both were enjoying the bath, when the front door to the hot springs opened. Ah, youre in here Al. Cruz hade through the door,pletely naked. Hey! Waitwhy are YOU here, Cruz?! Eheh heh heh She covered her naked body, embarrassed. I wish she knew a little more about being modest. Cruz, wait a second! Behind Cruz, apletely naked Yureena appeared. Yureena was my old partys healer. Kya, Kyaaaaaaa! She screamed. Thanks for the appropriate reaction. I said without thinking. Yureena scrambled, grabbing Cruz arm and pulling her back. Cruz, get yourself back here! What? Why? You need to have some modesty! Huh? Yureena yanked Cruz back to the changing room and they both disappeared. Cruz is so cute, but the fact that she still acts like a child sometimes is scary. Who was the other girl? Yureena, a friend. Why is she here? Who knows. I was filled with questions. Even so, I hung around and enjoyed the bath until I was done. As I exited the changing room, Cruz was waiting with Yureena. Yureena approached my with her cheeks red from blushing. Forget EVERYTHING YOU SAW BACK THERE! Sure. Then I asked Cruz. Cruz, why are you here? Did you leave something behind? I just came back from the capital. That wasnt answer. It was only two days since Cruz went back to the capital. It took me three days and two nights to get here from the capital. Cruz was so fast, she could have done the same and made it in only one day. Theres no way you could have gone there and got back. Well, to be honest Cruz beckoned me toe with her. As I did, we left the vige. Then Cruz entered the storage shack. Here in the storage shack. I drew a transport magic circle! Cruz said proudly. It was a magic circle that was linked to another by magic that allowed for immediate transportation. A normal person could use it, but it cost so much, almost no one did. It was such a hard process to make a new one that it was nearly impossible. So you asked Vi-Vi to do this? Yeah. Vi-Vi did it for me the day before I went home. I remembered that just before she went home, Cruz and Vi-Vi whispered to each other. That must have been what they were talking about. I was also able to make a transport circle in my house with no problems. You two did a good job All I had to do was carry back an item that draw it for me. So what scrawled the circle into the ground? Um, a moderate amount of dragon scales that I had in my bag. How do you count a moderate amount of that? I was thinking of taking Yureena to the hot springs since she feels better. I see. Im d youre better Yureena. Take your time in the hot springs. It was because Yureena had just recovered from the mumps. I was d she had recovered. Her cheeks were still red. Hm? Your cheeks are still red. Are you okay? Im fine! Yureenas cheeks got even redder. What a turn of events. To see a holy maiden naked before shes married Weve seen you naked over and over before while adventuring. Were not adventuring now! Yeahsorry. Yurenna grabbed Cruz hand and dragged her into the hot springs. Shes a holy maiden? Well, thats what they call her. Ruff. I was d that she seemed so lively. I went to tell Millet that there would be two more people eating with us tonight. Chapter 45 - The Special Talents of a Hero

Chapter 45 C The Special Talents of a Hero

Trantor: R4nZ4n When I got to Millets house, Vi-Vi was waiting. Vi-Vi. You drew a transport circle in the storage shack? Yeah! Were you surprised? I was. Make sure you tell me before you do something like that. No way! She refused tly. Well, whatever. If she ever did something really dangerous, I would work hard to clear it up. Millet was very happy to hear other people would be eating with her. Cruz and Yureena arrived after taking a while in the hot springs. Cruz, is Lukaing? Shes busy with something, so no Millet asked and Cruz eyes suddenly teared up. Cruz? Wwhat is it? Wait, did youe here without telling Luka? No waytheres no way Id wed do that Yureena sighed and then said, we didnt tell Luka. Yureena, dont tell them! We cant hide it! Seems that Cruz came without telling Luka. She knew that if she came to where I was without telling Luka that Luka would flip her lid and chew her out. If you told Luka that youre going to visit, she wont get angry at you, you know? You dont think so? No, she wont. Luka would chew out Cruz after she came back from visiting. No need to do it ahead of time. Good! Since Luka said that I cant visit until we get all of our work done, I came here and hid it from her. Well, that was good. EEEEK! Luka was suddenly standing behind Cruz. I knew youd try to fool me the first chance you got. I was shocked that youd try to pull something like this on me! How did you try to fool her, Cruz? I put up a paper saying that I was taking a nap, and just puffed up the covers with a pillow so it looked like I was sleeping inside. Thats it? Thats it. Cruz must have thought it was easy to fool others as it was for others to fool her. AndCruz really got chewed out by Luka. Cruz abandoned work they had to do, which Luka had to take care of quickly and then scrambled to get here. What a superior warrior. It was actually a waste for her to stay a warrior. She should be a leading politician someday. After Cruz repeated sorry over and over and over, Luka handed a form over to me to fill out. Here, Al. Fill this out. What is it? A monster permission form for Moofy and Femmfor the guild. Oh, yeah. I forgot. Thanks. Luka remembered. What a help. Vi-Vi just puffed out her cheeks out, upset. Moofys not a monsterits a sacred beast! Well a sacred beast is rare and way stronger so of course its going to need a permission form. Is that so? Vi-Vi was about to fill out the form for Moofy when Luka stopped her. The guild cant approve of anyone except for an adventurer with a higher suppression rank than the beast. To be exact, that matched the adventurers rank. A knight was C Rank, a Knight Chief was B Rank. Famous soldiers, knights, and swordsmen were given A Ranks. The ranks given matched each persons attack strength. Moofy is a sacred animal though! And sacred beasts are almost ALL stronger than magic beasts, right? An adventurers rank has to be AT LEAST a B Rank to have permission for one of those. OhI didnt know. You wouldnt be allowed to keep a beast like that without the appropriate rank even if you werent going to use it in battle. Oh, Al. Please? Leave it to me. I filled in both permission forms as the keeper of Femm and Moofy. Thats fine. Im the one in charge of this so dont worry. Sorry about that. As this all finished up, it was time for dinner. It was the first time that Yureena had eaten Millets food, and all she could do ispliment Millets cooking. Then it was time for bed. They were all ready for sleep. Well, I brought this just in case. Cruz opened her magic bag and took out some folding beds. There were three, in fact. Thats some magic bag, Cruz. Heh heh, the beds super too. Theyre very expensive beds made by skilled craftsmen. If you fold them up, they get this small. Very small. The size of an eighth of a normal bed. And even after folding them up, the thickness was only the width of a swords de. That really is something. And if theyre folded, you can use them as shields. Cruz showed us how you could use the beds as a shield. The beds backing was made of mithril. Thats had a lot of thought put into it. Eheh heh They opened the three beds up, and Cruz, Luka, and Yureena all got ready for bed. I slept with Femm. Vi-Vi slept with Collette and Millet. We all settled in silently for bed. Cruz silently crept over to where I was sleeping. Let me in hey! Come on! She said, and got under my covers. You couldnt stop her. Rrf? Good Femm Ruff Cruz rubbed Femm as Femm happily drifted off to sleep. If you rub Femm too much it might end up a sacred animal like Moofy, so not too much, okay? Sure. Cruz rolled around in my bed a bit. Its been a while since I slept in the same bed as you, Al. Yeah. Cruz Zzzzz Cruz was already asleep. She was always a fast sleeper. It was a unique skill in itself. Mnnpph Cruz started talking in indecipherable wordsin her sleep. And she had a vice-like grip around my body. She was strong. I could feel her soft breasts pushing against my chest, but her arms grip was so strong it hurt. I unwrapped her arms from me, pushed her over, and made her grab onto Femm. Rrawf?! Mhpph Femm was surprised, but Cruz simply continued talking unhappily in her sleep-speech. I could finally sleep, and I did. The next morning. All the girls woke up early. They made me wake up with them. You all wake up too early! Weve got so much work in the capital, we dont have time to hang around. Even though wed like to avoid it. They said theyd like to hang around, but I could see from Luka and Yureena that they were both proud to be doing work. They were all headed backand they seemed like they needed to hustle back. On the other hand. I just want to hang out Cruz said, and she honestly was in no rush to go anywhere. Oh, yeah, lets see Moofy and then go home. Hmph. Moofy probably wants to see you too, Cruz! Vi-Vi led Cruz off to see Moofy. I followed them. Good girl, gooood girl. Moooo. Cruz rubbed Moofys fur. Moofy seemed pretty happy to see her. If Moofy could get small like Femm does, then we could put her in a house somewhere. Yeah, you cant leave her outside forever. I agreed with Vi-Vi. After Cruz heard this, she said to Moofy, Moofy, can you get smaller? Moo. Yeah, well, then do it, Moo moo! Moofy suddenly shrunk. She became a little smaller than a regr cow. Wha?Huh? Vi-Vi and I both jumped and said in surprise. Wwhat? You guys said you wanted Moofy to get smaller. Yeah, buthuh? Cruz? You know how cows speak? I have no idea. Right But, spirit speech? I guess anyone can talk like that to them. WELL WE CANT! Speaking in spirit speech was not that difficult. Vi-Vi, Femm, and I all used it. So we all tried it. However, we couldnt break through and speak to Moofy with it. Is that so Cruz was surprised we couldnt. Heros really are amazing. Common sense doesnt apply to them. Good job, Moofy. Moo Moo! Vi-Vi grabbed on to and hugged Moofy, and Moofy mooed happily. Chapter 46 - Moofy Plows

Chapter 46 C Moofy Plows

Trantor: r__z__ Cruz and the others ate the food that Millet made for breakfast and then went back to the capital. They were a busy bunch. And I went back to my guardpost. Afternoon was for plowing. We have to continue the plowing today. Only one third of the field was finished. Al, wait a second. Why? Vi-Vi grabbed the smaller Moofy and brought her along. Moo. Moofys going to plow? Yeah. I thought that Moofy was too big to plow the field. Now that she was smaller, Vi-Vi definitely wanted to use her to plow the field. However, even so, I was wondering if we should use a sacred animal to do that. Are you okay with that, Moofy? Moo! Moofy mooed happily. I really wonder if she understood what we were saying. Moofys ready to go. Moo. Vi-Vi was sure that Moofy was able to plow the fields. But I couldnt forget that Vi-Vi couldnt understand what Moofy was saying. well, I guess we can get Moofy to help. Lets see how she does, and if she feels like giving up quickly, she can stop. I know that already! We threw the plow harness on the back of Moofy. After Moofy had gotten smaller, she was actually smaller than a regr cow. It might mean that shes weaker than a normal cow. Mooo Ruff! Even with the plow harness on, Moofy looked as cheerful as usual. Femm just watched Moofy with a look of slight concern. Moofy, you dont have to push yourself too hard. Moooooo! Moofy mooed really loudly and started pulling the plow like crazy. The plow started splitting the soil so quickly I was surprised. Wait! Thaaaaats Moofy! Vi-Vi said proudly, as I worried that Moofy was pushing herself too hard. Mooo, mooo, mOOOOOOO! The cow mooed happily while tugging the plow all over. Moofy was three times faster than yesterdays ox. I was the one following with the plow and I was more tired than the cow was. I needed a rest first from all the work Moofy was doing. My knee hurt. Moofy really is strong! Millet was surprised at the cows speed too. Because Moofy was so big, she couldnt move around freely. So it must be fun for her right now. Vi-Vi nodded as she said. Let me take care of the rest. Vi-Vi said, and got behind Moofy, holding the plow. Lets mooooooo! Vi-Vi and Moofy sped through plowing the rest of the field quickly. Two days work was finished in one. Moofy, good work. Moo! She petted Moofy, and Moofy mooed back happily. She then nuzzled me face happily. Moofys such a good cow. Moomoo! Ruff! As Iplimented and pet Moofy, Femm approached with a mole in its mouth. What is it? Wuff Femm had the mole in its mouth, staring at me with longing eyes. Femm wanted some love too. Youre a great wolf, Femm. Wuff wuff wuff I rubbed Femms head, and it rolled over on its back happily. Then I rubbed its belly. As I did, I asked Vi-Vi. So, what do we do next? We have to harrow thend. Vi-Vi told me how. We attached a different tool then the plow on the back of the cow. That tool, a harrow, breaks up the earth even finer. Can you help us again tomorrow, Moofy? Mooo! Ruff ruff! Moofy looked excited. Femm also barked and rubbed its body against me. Femm wanted to help too, I guessed. I didnt know what Femm could do, but I guess it could help somehow. Okay! Time to get in the hot springs! Wuff! Moo! Ruff? I went to the hot springs with Femm and Moofy followed. You want to get in too, Moofy? Moo. She mooed happily. It may be that she really did want to get in. It was hard to say no when Femm was already getting in. We should let Moofy get in too. Vi-Vi said, getting closer to me. Vi-Vi was just like a child. She had already bathed with me, after all. DammitI guess I have no choice. What do you mean, NO CHOICE?! Millet grabbed on to Vi-Vi. Let go of me! Nooo! I wont! You cant take a bath with him! I left Vi-Vi with Millet and went off to the hot springs myself. Ruff! Femm looked a bit ufortable. We went inside the hot spring, and I washed up Moofy first. Moo! Moooo! She mooed happily. Come over here Femm. Ruff. Femm looked a bit jealous. Femm might have been envious of the treatment that Moofy got. Thats why I washed Femm off well, too. Moooo. We got into the hot springs, and Moofy moved closer to me. Moofy was smaller than a cow, butrger than a calf. The water spilled out of the hot springs as the cow moved around. If youre going to get in, Moofy, maybe we need a deeper bath. Moo She licked my face happily. Moofy seemed like it liked people. Ruff Ruff. Femm licked my face too. I wish they would stoppeting like this. Just then, Cruz came intotally naked. IM BACK! Dammit, Cruz! Dont worry. Im going to wash off before I get in. Im not worried about THAT! Heh heh She washed herself off without a care in the world. Then she got in the tub. She came over and petted Moofy and Femm. This is a nice bath. Moofy and Femm look very happy. Moo?Ruff? You should be a bit more modest, Cruz. I am modest! Cruz, do youe at the sons of the nobles like that? What do you mean? Thepletely naked Cruz tilted her head in confusion. Because youre a beautiful girl, Cruz. Theyre going to fall for you and things are going to get out of control. Her face was quite beautiful. If she came at you overly familiar like she always does, youd quickly fall for her. However, now she was an extremely famous hero for everything she did, and as a result, became a baron. Dont call me beautifulits embarrassing Cruz face turned red. Its funny THAT makes you embarrassed. I wish she was more embarrassed about being naked. But, I know who I can trustso dont worry about me. The only guy I can get in a bath with is you, Al What a privilege. Heh heh heh I was pretty sure that Cruz wasnt thinking about me as a romantic interest. Something more like a favorite uncle or a father. When we got out of the hot springs, Vi-Vi and Luka were waiting. Why do you DO THINGS LIKE THAT, CRUZ? Its no big deal, right? You have to cut that out! Luka whapped Cruz over the head. Then she lectured Cruz about getting into a bath with a man. Cruz teared up. Waitwhy are you and Cruz here now? Well, Yureena and I got all the work we had finished with! Cruz proudly said. So Yureena was here too. She had gone to Millets house first. Im d you came here after getting your work finished. Heh heh heh. Dont be proud just because you did what you needed to. Well, youre here too because your work is done, Luka. Good girl! Its obvious that I would, CRUZ! Even so, Luka blushed a bitshe was embarrassed. So do you all n to spend the night here in Mulg? We were nning to? Cruz said as if it were an obvious conclusion. Well, I guess Ill never have a chance to be lonely. I was worried about how well the capital was being cared for, but I guess its okay. Finally, everyone headed to Millets for dinner. Chapter 47 - Moofy and Femm Face Off

Chapter 47 C Moofy and Femm Face Off

Trantor: ranzan The next day, once again Cruz and the others headed off for the capital early. I wondered if Cruz and the others were nning on spending every night in Mulg. It made my life a bit more busy, but I was sorry that Millet was going to have to house and feed all of those girls. This isnt going to go well. I thought about it while I sat at my guard post. I was here at the town guarding and food and a ce to sleep was my payment. Vi-Vi was approved of to be taken care of by Millet by the vige as well. But Cruz and the others were different. I have to at least pay for their food. Just as usual, Vi-Vi looked up from scrawling magic circles in the ground and asked, Al, do you have money? Sure do. I have merit pay as a viscount for getting rid of the Demon Lord. I didnt get any property, but I get a yearly pension. It wasnt enough to live like a noble, but it was definitely enough to live on as a normal citizen. Thats in addition to all the money I saved as an adventurer. And in addition to THAT, I was one hell of an adventurer, too. Were talking BIG rewards. Just then Millets sister Collette rode up on Femm. For some reason, she had a mole in her hand. Collette, what is it? Old man, I caught a mole! Ruff Ruff! Collette and Femm both had a proud look to them. They probably caught those moles from the field we just cultivated. Good job guys. Yaaay! Waaawf! I knew they were waiting to beplimented, so I did. It was noon. I ate lunch with Millet and the others. I also brought up the amount of money I wanted to pay for Cruz and the others meals. No! No! No way I could take that money! No, pleasedont refuse. Really, I cant!But you have to! After arguing back and forth like that for a while, I was able to make her take the money. I was happy enough that she was cooking. It was just too sad to have her spend all that money on food for us. So it was a relief that she took it. With lunch finished, I went back to clearing the field. As we walked to the field, Moofy drew near. Femm was also waiting, in its big size, near the field. Ruff! Femm had the harrower attached and was waiting, even though it was meant for a cow. Femm? Ruff! Femm looked proud. Its tail was standing up straight. Femm wanted me to put it to use. That harrowers for Moofy. Rar Moo? Vi-Vi was against it, but Femm waspletely ignoring her. Moofy looked lost, and was rubbing her nose into my stomach. I have another harrower, hold on. Millet went and returned with another harrower. Okay, lets see you do your best, Moofy and Femm! Ruff Ruff!Mooo Mooo! Femm and Moofy lined up as if they were ready to race. It was their firstpetition. However, Femm started slow. The difference was in Moofys hooves and muscles. Or maybe it was something else. I had no idea. Pant pant pant Moooo Femm was panting like crazy and looked tired. Moofy, on the other hand, looked fine. Femm, no need to work so hard! Pant pant, RUFF! They took a little rest and then ran off again. Femm still worked until we were finished with the field that evening. When it came to harrowing the field, Moofy was a clear winner. Moofy had done about 80 percent of the field, Femm 20. Good job Femm and Moofyyou were both a big help. I rubbed both animals. Femm looked pretty disappointed. That was pitiful. Not true at all. You did your best Femm. You helped. Femm, good job. Moofy suddenly spoke in spirit speech. It was short, but it was in human speech. Ruff? Ruff? Femm was so surprised, it barked in spirit speech. Since Moofy was a sacred animal, it wasnt strange that it had learned to speak in spirit speech. It was just a matter of time. However, I didnt think it would learn the speech so quickly. Good job, Moofy. You learned to speak quickly! Vi-Vi was so happy, she threw her arms around Moofy. Moofy went over and licked Femm. Thanks Ruff Femm licked Moofy as well. It seems that friendship sprung up between Moofy and Femm. After theirpetition, they had be friends after seeing each other exert so much strength. After Vi-Vi saw this, she nodded as I asked, Vi-Vi, what next? At this point, I guess we could start nting crops. Were done with cultivating the field? Not done, but you said the fields here are pretty low on nutrients, right? Yeah, should we fertilize them? Well, its because of all the magical stones in the mountains around up. We have to do something about the magicthe fertilizers not that important. I see. Vi-Vi bounced over to the field. Here! Let me make a magic ring that bars the effect of those magic stones. Can you make one? Wow, thats awesome, Vi-Vi! Millet was surprised and thankful. Its the magic circle I developed. Because of stuff like this, I was selected to be one of the sub-bosses of the Demon Lord. Wow, sthub bossth! Collette was impressed as well. With a convenient magic circle like that, she could have just drawn it around the old fields. And thinking about that, Millet asked Vi-Vi, Could you draw that around the other fields? Thats impossible now. You cant draw it around a field that already has something growing. You need a new field to draw it on. I see. Too bad. But after harvest this year I can draw it. Really? Sure. And Vi-Vi said that it would take quite a while to draw it for it to have a full effect. Then lets do it tomorrow! Yeah! Cruz and the others came just like usual in the evening. Even Moofy came into Millets house. At night, Moofy slept beside my bed with her snout on my stomach. Since Vi-Vi wanted to sleep near Moofy, she got in my bed as well. Since I knew how she felt about it, I didnt say anything, but just went back to sleep. Chapter 48 - Field Improvement Magic Circle

Chapter 48 C Field Improvement Magic Circle

Trantor: Ranzan When I woke up in the morning, not only was Moofys nose on my bed, her whole upper half was. It was getting way too cramped. Her back legs on the floor were pretty much meaningless. Ruff! Femm barked as it was sliding off the bed. Fuheh heh heh Vi-Vi was on top of Moofy,ughing in her sleep. Moo. When Moofy saw I was awake, she rubbed her face into mine. I rubbed her and Femms heads. I think I had better build myself a new house, SOON. This is too small. Femms wagging tail was dusting off my face. Femm must be unhappy as well. Its going to be cold in the winter too. We better hurry. Moo. Moofy gently licked Femms body. Today we finished cultivating the field in the afternoon. It was finally Vi-Vis turn to surround the field in a magic circle. Okay, watch me draw it out! Sure. Do your best! Cool, Missesth sthub bossth! Millet and Collette cheered Vi-Vi on as she draw the magic circle. It covered the whole field C it was huge! It was a little bigger than the one drawn by that 12 disciples of the Magic Lord Curtis at his monster ranch. And, of course, it took a lot of time. SoooI was bored, but Vi-Vi told me to watch her. So I had to do what she asked. Ruff ruff! The magic wolves also drew near. Maybe they wanted to dig some holes. Today, however, was magic circle drawing day. No holes. You cant dig any holes today, wolves. Ruff? They all left with their tails sagging. Moofy started smelling the plow and harrows next to the field. She probably wanted to get back to pulling them again. Moofy, well take you on a walkter, okay? Femm, you too. RuffMooo Moofy and Femm rubbed up against me. I patted their fur and waited for the magic circle to beplete. Collette got bored and yed around with Femm and Moofy. Vi-Vi came over from the circle. Im finished! Good work. It was big, but you went pretty fast. Of courseit wasnt the first time I did it. Then let me see. Heh heh, youll be surprised! I analyzed the magic circle. It was a big one, so it took me a lot of concentration to analyze it. Good job, sthub bossth! Right?! Right?! While I was analyzing it, Collette was riding on Moofy and patting Vi-Vis head. The magic circle was big, but also very detailed and finely drawn. Hm. I nodded without thinking. I couldnt gauge how effective it was without seeing how deep the magic circle reached, but I assumed it must be quite deep. It seemed that it affected the soil around a depth of five times the height of a normal man. This is the important part that deals with extracting the magical force from the magical stones. It was constructed with 10 to 20yers. It definitely seemed able to extract the magical power from the stones around. After continuing to analyze it a bit, I finally noticed something. Hm? Wait a second. What is it? This is to refine magic jewels. I thought I should add this too? Magical jewels are different from magical stones. Magical stones are natural ores that have magical power in them. You cant use them for anything. Magical jewels are crystals that manifest magical power. When you use a very strong magic, you grip the jewel, and it helps you manifest the magic you need. Theyre quite expensive. I cant believe it I was taken aback. I never thought of using a magic circle in order to take magical stones and manifest their power into jewels. In this area there are magical stones everywhere, so the soil is bad. Thats why we needed to use a magical circle to limit that. Thats what I thought she was doing. What I had expected was a method to disperse the magical power. Using the magical power of the magical stones, if the magic was dispersed in effectless magic, then there would be no damage to the soil. That alone was pretty difficult. And continuing the process was even MORE difficult. However, for a magic circle to concentrate that force into magic jewels was unreal. It was a magical technique that humans hadnt even learned eyt. Those sub-bosses were pretty talented. I thought it would be a waste to disperse all that magical power. Yeahbut I was full aware that it was a waste. I just never thought anyone had enough magical skill to do something about it. A normal magical jewel takes a very long time to refine from extracting the magical power of magical stones. Its the primary thing an alchemist gets paid for. So, how long does it take for the ground to be cleared and the magical jewels to be generated? Hmabout three months, I guess. Thats pretty fast. If it takes three months, fall is over, and winter is beginning. Then we start nting crops from next spring. You can start growing them now. However, you just cant expect arge increase in crops yet. Millet looked confused. Since you just drew this circle, its a shame wed destroy it just to nt crops. Because its etched into the earth, using a rake or a hoe on it wont erase it. As long as someone like that dumb warrior doesnte along and try to erase it with magic. Luka didnt have much magic, but she could sure erase magic well. So, results woulde in three months. We could just practice nting some vegetables here and there to get a harvest before winter. Even so, getting magic jewels in three monthsthats really something. Hm? You should see magic jewels emerge in a few days. It just takes three months to get all the magical stone power out of the ground. The jewels continue to be produced during the process. Its that fast Yeah, I also made a transport spell so the jewels sprout up in the storage shack. Vi-Viughed to herself. Magic jewels made in a few daysthats almost frightening speed. If you keep this up, all the alchemists will go out of business. You think so? Vi-Viughed innocently. Even if everyone knew about Vi-Vis magic, there would only be a few magicians that could do what she did, so there was no worry. The circle was just that difficult to make. Jewels? I dont know what youre talking about, but I can nt now, right? Yup. What should we nt? Millet was focused on vegetables since she didnt know how valuable these magic jewels are. Als a novice at nting, so maybe something easy like potatoes. I seehmm. Let me see what kinds of potatoes we need around here from the chief. Millet, thanks again. No problem! Its always good to help the new viger start a field. A new vigers! Millet was really emphasizing that I was a new viger. This ce must be starving for new blood. From then, I got on Femm and went on a walk. Vi-Vi and Moofy joined us. Moofy and Femm ran along happily. Chapter 49 - Pullin’ Potatoes

Chapter 49 C Pullin Potatoes

Trantor: ranzan The next morning. I saw Cruz off like usual and went to my guard post. Just sitting by myself, such an easy job. Vi-Vi wrote magic circles in the ground like usual. Al, I was thinking of writing something that would speed up the magic jewel refinement, like this. Where? If I add this here Well then, here Hmmm. Its hard to add more effects to an already difficult magic jewel extracting circle. It seems like we need a lot more time to figure something like that. As we were discussing it, the chief approached. Good morning, chief! Good morning! Al, about those potatoes Ah, did you hear about that from Millet? Yes. About those potatoes you want to cut up and use to grow new potatoeswe really dont have any to spare. Is that so? Oh well Im very sorry. The chief bowed deeply and apologetically. I was the one that suddenly asked for them, though. I kind of regretted it. Okaywell maybe theres something other than potatoes? Well The chief mumbled in response to Vi-Vis question. Sorry to say, but we really have nothing to spare I see. Well if thats the case, then I think up something. He apologized again and left. Hmph! I really wanted to grow potatoes, Al! They do taste good. Good. Femm and Moofy looked disappointed. Any cow might like them, but for a wolf to like them? Or maybe its only magical beasts that like potatoes. I wondered what I could nt if there were no potatoes avable. I looked around. What are they growing in the other fields? Hm? Those are beans. They can be used for cow food and humans can eat them, too. How long do they take? Theyre already about a monthte to be nted. I see. Seasons really are important. And summer is mostly over. We need something that we can nt now, I guess. Youre right, but, I guess the vige has other problems to deal with. Hmph. We thought about it until noon. We were thankful when Millet brought us lunch. Sorry I thought we had enough potatoes to nt with. No, dont worry about it. Vi-Vi looked a little sad. We should have thought about this when we got the okay to clear the field. That was my fault. The chief probably thought there was no way we could clear a field that fast. I see. Youre right. The chief probably though the earliest we could get it done was by next year. I should have told the chief how quickly you two would clear that field. Its not your fault, Millet. I think the chief probably saw how the field clearing was going. However, he didnt know wed use a magic circle or a sacred beast like we did, so we cleared and prepared the field very quickly. Thats why it was difficult for him to prepare to nt it. That evening, we removed therge stones and weeds from the field. Vi-Vi, Collette, and Millet all helped in picking weeds. Moofy just ate themthough a sacred beast doesnt need food. She just wanted to help anyway she could. Al. Be careful you dont damage that magic circle. I know already. You would need magic to disrupt a magic circle. They werent that easy to break. Even if you broke some of it, it was a bit tedious but easy to fix. I was picking uprge stones and tossing them out of the field when I asked Vi-Vi, Can you speed up the nts growth with the magic circle? Thats easy! Vi-Vi had used that to make Moofy huge. Doing something like speeding up nt growth should be simple for her. If she did, maybe, wed be able to grow crops regardless of the season. Can we grow something and be ready for renting next spring? The only thing working now is the magic stone refinement circle. Its hard to add another ring onto something like that. I see. It would take three months to clear the magic from the field. Until then, it would just be a bad field to grow in. Ruff Ruff Femm bit a mole and brought it to me. The other wolves were digging holes for them as well. Good job. Wuff. I thanked Femm and rubbed its head. Id be happy if you could take any big rocks you find out of the field. Ruff! Femm helped with the rock removal as well. The other wolves noticed and started doing the same thing. It was a big help. They also found moles and mice and brought them to me, and each time they did, I pet them. It was evening before I knew it. Cruz and the others came like usual to Mulg. Huh? Arent you all going to nt something? I guess I had told themst night that today was the day Tomorrow well start nting. Cruz frankly looked disappointed. They cant afford to use any potatoes to nt new ones. Is that so? Then cant you nt something other than potatoes? They cant afford to lose any of that either. Well, do you want me to buy some in the capital? Ah! That was right! She could just transport to the capital and back. Cruz looked at me, confused. Huh? It was embarrassing that I hadnt noticed that earlier. I pretended that I already had it figured out. No, um, I was nning to ask you alreadyCould you help us? Leave it to me! Cruz said proudly. Okay, then go get me some. No, wait. Yes? Cruz was already sprinting away when I realized I didnt tell her how much or what type to buy. Vi-Vi, what type should we buy? Um, for this type of soil Vi-Vi thought it over seriously. Millet spoke up with a suggestion. Here in Mulg, we usually grow baron cobbler potatoes. Cobblers are good, but we could also get dragon eye potatoes. Wow, that sounds cool! Lets get those. Cruz was fascinated by all the potato names that Vi-Vi was talking about. They definitely had names that Cruz liked. But since Cruz was a baron, I thought the baron one would be most appropriate. Should we just buy both of them? Yeah, lets do that. I think thats a good idea. Ruff! Seems that everyone liked my n. Femm barked in approval while wagging its tail. Understood! Ill go buy them! Hey, wait a second. Yes? I stopped Cruz from running off again. The stores must be closed by now. It would also be better if we took the time to write the names and amounts down on a piece of paper. Lets do it tomorrow. Okay! I thought about going to the capital to sell meat, as Cruz shouted her okay to me gleefully. Chapter 50 - Our Hero Gets Caught in a Spud Scam

Chapter 50 C Our Hero Gets Caught in a Spud Scam

Trantor: Ranzan The next day. Cruz returned to the capital early in the morning. Luka and the others watched her leave with surprise. Today is our day offyou really push yourself hard. I wish youd push yourself that hard on days were not off. Luka and Yureena said. It seems all the girls didnt have work today. Even though theyre young, no, because theyre young, they should take a take a day off every now and then so they dont get exhausted. You dont need to go back to the capital too, Luka? Yureena? I told you, its our day off. Yeah, why do we have to go to the capital on our day off? It seems they both wanted to spend their time here in Mulg Vige. I know why. Theres no doubt that someone would run up to them with some urgent request in the capital. In Mulg, you could kick back and rx as much as you wanted. After hearing that, Milletughed. Oh yeah! Why dont you two join me in the hot springs? What? But its still morning! And we just took a bath in them yesterday. Millet looked at Yureena enthusiastically, even though she had refused.. Lets take one BECAUSE its morning. Because its morning? Yeah, because its morning. Ohok. Millet was putting the pressure on Luka as well. You must experience how great a hot springs is in the morning! You can only do so when you have a day off. YeahI guess youre right. I am! Millet was practically lecturing Yureena on it. What about you Vi-Vi? Do you want to get in? I have things to do. The cows? Yeah. Vi-Vi did her best to care for the cows if she had any time off. They would soon be the towns meat. She had also learned from her experience from Moofy NOT to give any of the cows names. I see. I guess I have my guard post to go to. Ill join you afterwards. Even though Yureena and Luka had days off, Vi-Vi and I never did. Thats why I had to make that request to Cruz for potatoes. I was sorry as it was her day off. I guess Ill apologize afterwards. Then Ill make amends for it by helping her out sometime. I guess were all off to the hot springs then. Ill be over at the stables. Vi-Vi went off to the stables while Millet and the other girls went to the hot springs. I just plopped myself down at the entrance to the vige. I could see the storage shack well from where I was at the gate. The crawlspace below the shack floor was literally filled with magic wolves. Moofy took a liking to it as well, and was sleeping down there with Femm. The small wolf cubs were ying around on top of Moofy. Plop. As I turned to see where the sound came from, I saw a mouse on the floor. A magic wolf was wagging its tail happily after having caught another mouse. It had learned to bring me them in order to get petted. Good job. I rubbed its head over and over. Mice were a problem, because they could eat up the crops we wanted to raise. I was happy to have less to take care of. After rubbing its head over and over, the wolf then took the dead mouse over to Femm. The small wolves would eat it up. As I watched the baby wolves tear up the little mouse, the doors of the shack opened. Cruz jumped out and ran up to me. Allllllll! That was fast! Cruz was all smiles. I got your potatoes right here! Thanks. And on a day off too. No problem! Dont worry about it. So, where are the potatoes? Here! Cruz took out a bag with some burdock in it It was basically some old, nasty burdock cut up in round slices. UhCruz? Yes?! Where did you buy thesepotatoes? There was no way that any grocer worth their salt would mistake potatoes with burdock. And since I didnt ask for burdock, there was no reason for her to buy it. Well, I went to the agricultural seller that Luka had told me to go toin the capital. Yeah, Luka did tell you to go to a ce yesterday. And Luka knew the capital inside and out. I was outside the ce, and some kind old man asked me if I wanted to buy something A kind old man? Yes. I told him that I was looking for some potatoes to nt, and he told me that the store Luka told me about rips people off. The store Luka told you about rips people off? Yeah, so I was happy that I didnt get fooled by a ce like thatthat Luka rmended! I was very d that Luka wasnt here. Even so, it was amazing that Cruz couldnt see through a scam like that. So the kind old man took me to his famous potato store to sell them to me. Where is this famous potato store, Cruz? It was in the eighth sector of the capitalbehind an alley. The eight sector was all slums. No one came close to a ce like that if they knew the city. One of the reasons why was that the ce was known for basically beingwless. Even in a tightly regted ce like the capital, the ce just wasnt safe. You know that they usually dont sell vegetables in a ce like that, right? He said it was a store everyone kept secret. So you bought this there? Yes. And the price? Well, when I first took out the amount that you had given me, Al, he said it wasnt enough. I was about to leave, and he told me that he would give me a special sale. If she was about to walk off at that price, that meant the old man knew she could be fooled, but she was smart enough not to fall for too expensive a price. Thats why he got whatever he could from her. She waspletely duped. He lowered the price a lot! It was cheap. I bet it was. She had quite a bit of gold with her too. It was enough to buy sacks of potatoes that we could cut up and nt the whole field with. The field we cleared was very big. So we needed a lot of potatoes. I also added more just in case we messed up the nting so that we had enough for the vige to have extra. Eheh heh. Cruz eyes shimmeredshe wanted me to praise her. It was hard to tell the girl that she had brought me rotten burdock root and not potatoes. I cant forgive anyone that would fool an innocent girl like her. Since shes so innocent, she was so easy to fool. Just then, Vi-Vi came over from taking care of the cows. Cruz, that was fast! Yeah, I bought the potatoes. Hm? These arent potatoes. These are burdock roots. And theyre rotten. (Cruz: Al, I got the potatoes, and at a CHEAP PRICE! Al: Iuhsee? Vi-Vi: Um Cruz, those arent potatoes, theyre ROTTEN BURDOCK ROOT) WHAAAAT?! Cruz was surprised and after looking at Vi-Vi, she looked at me. I guess I had to tell her the truth. Cruz, sorry, but this IS burdock. Nno waythe old man said it was potatoes He fooled you. Cruz apologized with tear-filled eyes. Im so sorrybecause of me Youre not the one who did wrong. The one fooled being bad? No, the one that fools others is bad. Al. What are you going to do? Of course Im going to take revenge for whomever did this to Cruz. Yeah! I took Cruz and Vi-Vi with me, and decided to make my way to the capital. Chapter 51 - The Wizard Goes to the Capital

Chapter 51 C The Wizard Goes to the Capital

Trantor: RANZAN Even though I decided to go to the capital, I couldnt go right away. We had to prepare. Ah, you snuck away from the capital to here, right? Yeah, Vi-Vi. I have to put on a disguise. I put on the beard that I got from Millet. Cruz looked at me and nodded. No one will figure out who you are, Al. I wonder Cruz was fooled by my disguise. To be honest, Luka was fooled too. Even so, there were a lot people that could probably see through my disguise. I should probably do something since Im a devil and all. You dont need to though, right, Vi-Vi? I guess. There were a few devils in the capital, so it wasnt too strange. There were quite a few, especially in the slums of the eighth sector. Just put this on Vi-Vi. How am I supposed to wear THIS? Cruz gave Vi-Vi a cow-head mask. It was very realistic and almost looked stuffed. Why the hell did Cruz have something like that in her magic bag? What is this, Cruz? I got it from a special goods store. I thought it was cool, so I bought it for you. I see I asked what it was, not where Cruz had bought it. And there was nothing cool about it either. Is that thing stuffed? Its structure is made from hard wood, and the hair is woven from some fruit from some tree in the south. It sounded much more expensive than it looked. Way too expensive to buy. I thought that it was a bad idea for Cruz to have so much money. As a baron, hero, and an S ss adventurer, Cruz had quite a bit of money. Its pretty nice. What do you think, Al? it looks good on you. RIGHT?! Vi-Vi proudly stood, wearing the cow head. I was wondering what would happen with Vi-Vis own horns, but the head seemed to fit them quite well. Moo. Hee hee hee, Look at us! Vi-Vi ran up next to Moofy and posed. Then Femm ran up to Cruz and started to circle her. Femm was wagging its tail and looking up at Cruz. Ruffruff What is it, Femm? Femm wants to be petted. Ruff! Cruz rubbed Femms head. It might have been that Femm expected Cruz to put on a wolf head like Vi-Vi did. Cruz was rubbing Femm all over as it looked at me. Femm looked like it wanted help. Cruz, do you have a wolf mask? I do! Do you want to wear it, Al? Rufff! Femm wagged its tail happily. It looked at me with eyes full of expectation. Okay, I guess Ill put it on. Here you go, Al. It was quite well made. So well made, it was almost scary. When I wore it, I could tell that the maker had done an excellent job in constructing it. I could see very well. The mask didnt have any blind spot. Ruff! Calm down! Femm jumped up on me happily. Even Cruz joined in, trying to jump on me. Yay! Stop that! SorryI just lost it. What does she mean bylost it? Anyway, it would be a lot harder to figure out who I was than with that beard. With this on my head, theres no way anyone could figure out who I was. Okay, time to give that rip-off artist the scare of his life! YEAH! Ruff!Moo! Wait, do you want to go too, Femm and Moofy? Ruff?Moo? They both looked confused. Both of them were registered by the guild. I could take them into the capital with no problems. But they were too noticeable. Okay, lets go. Yeah! Vi-Vi and Cruz rode Moofy. We were all ready to go together. Femm grew to its bigger size and looked over at me. It wanted me to ride it. Oh wellOkay, lets go together. Ruff! That rip off artist would scare quickly after seeing Femm and Moofy. I decided to bring them along. I told the chief that I was leaving the vige entrance, and we headed to the capital. We went into the magic circle in the back of the storage shack, and transported to Cruz mansion. This ce is huge! Do you think so? Even for a baronit was a massive mansion. The maids going toin if she sees us, so we have to sneak through here. Sure. Of course there was a maid in a barons mansion. It would be a pain if she saw us. She would probably fall over in fright. Cruz showed us through the mansion, and we were able to get outside. Eeeek! Whoa!! Passersby yelled in surprise. Moofy was scary and Femm was scarier. Femm was a huge wolf. Cruz called out to the passersby with a smile. Its okay, guys Oh, that must be Cruz friends. Dont surprise me like that! Sorry It seems that they were Cruz neighbors. They must have been used to seeing surprising things happen around Cruz. Lets go to the eighth sector slums. Okay! So THIS is the capital. Vi-Vi looked around like a tourist. She had a very realistic cow head on and it was a bit scary. I must be pretty frightening with this wolf head on as well. Lets hurry so we dont stand out! Its over here. Cruz jumped off Moofy and started running, but not full speed. Well, if you thought about it generally, it was fast, but not too fast for Cruz. Cruz, you know these back alleys well. Lately, Ive had to escape a lot. Cruz conversation turned to another topic. If she tried to take a day off, people would chase her down with requests. Because of that, she knew the back streets so she could get away from all the requests. This must be where she did so. Since it was a ce where people didnt want to be seen, there werent a lot of people around. We quickly made it to sector eight. Lets take a rest now that were here. okay. Even though it was a safe capital, this district was quite dangerous. You usually were worried as you walked about. You knew that none of the thugs here could bully someone like Cruz around. Thats why she got fooled here. Okay, lets go! Grawf!Mooo! Vi-Vi, Femm, and Moofy were all ready to go. Chapter 52 - Wizard Versus Spud Scammer

Chapter 52 C Wizard Versus Spud Scammer

Trantor: ranzan We came to the front of the store where Cruz was scammed. It was in a back alley of the eighth sector. Here it is. This is the ce that scammed you? Yes. We have to roast this guy alive so that he doesnt do this to other farmers. Cruz was starting to huff through her nose in anger. No matter how you looked at the ce, it wasnt one where any agricultural stuff was soldin fact, it didnt look like a store. It was just a house. I dont think any farmer would be fooled by a ce like this. However, theres no doubt that whoever lives here makes their money off of fooling others. Even if by chance this time it was just with fake potatoes. Cruz, go on in and ask for your money back first. Sure. Wait a second. Cruz cant do that ALONE! Maybe not, but she can handle herself if something bad happens. If she was just fooled on a whim, she might be able to get her money back. But if the fellow was trying to fool her from the beginning, there was no way he was going to return it. If he gives it back, well just report him and tell him off. If he doesnt, well send him to jail. Hmph. I see. Hm? So I guess either way were going to make him give it back. Vi-Vi seemed to understand, but Cruz still looked a little lost. Yeah, go get him Cruz. Sure. Cruz knocked politely at the door. She went to open the door, but it wouldnt. It seemed the door was locked. Excuse me. Excuuuuuse me. Cruz called out again and again with no response. Huh? Thats weird. Cruz pulled the doorknob strongly. CCRACK Ah, it opened. She looked at me, smiling. It didnt just open. It was opened. No, it was forced openand broken. Helloooo. Eeek!She came in!Stop that! Donte in here! As soon as Cruz went in, I heard people inside screaming. Seems that there were people inside. Quite a few men, actually. As far as I could hear, they had locked the door after seeing a wolf, cow, and a couple of weirdos dressed in some masks. However, since they saw that the kid they fooled showed up with them, they were a little relieved. What? Do you want more of those potatoes to nt. I heard this isnt potato but burdock. The guys were suddenly silent. Gah hah hah hah! Theres no way thats burdock! Burdock is a long and thin vegetable. Someone fooled you. These guys were still trying to fool Cruz. They knew that Cruz was an easy one to fool. Whatever! You cant fool me any more! Hey, if you say that, then how can you prove this AINT potatoes, huh?! Proof? Were the specialists and WERE sayin that theyre POTATOES! What basis do you have for callin it BURDOCK!? Um, well Al here said it was burdock. So, whos this Al guy? Some doctor? Huh? Some specialist on potatoes and burdock!? not really. Cruz said, and the menughed at her. If thats so, then trust us and nt it. See what happens! Itll grow quickly! No, Al said that its burdock! Give me my money back! Are you asshats trying to pick a fight?! No, not really Then get the hell outta here before we hafta stop bein nice! Seems like they werent going to give us out money back. Vi-Vi, lets go. Sure. We muscled our way through the door. Even though Cruz sounded tough, she was about to cry. She was holding the bag of burdock with tears welling up in her eyes. Donte in here!Are you guys with her?! There were three men. When we walked in, the three guys looked totally shocked. It seemed that they thought we werepletely separate from Cruz. Now they were scared out of their minds. It would be okay if you actually sold some crappy potatoes, low lifes, but I cant let you sell off some rotten, cut up burdock! So YOURE goin to try to punish US?! Shut up! Youve got some nervein into OUR HOUSE! No pets allowed! Get out! There was no way to ignore that we had barged in with pets. But we ignored them. The only thing important now was that Cruz got the money she was fooled out of back. Hey, just shut up and return the money. Whos gonna do that?Show us the proof that we sold you burdock! It was quite hard to prove that it was burdock. If someone told me to prove that its burdock, the only thing I could do is just show it to them. You can figure it out by looking at it! And were sayin were not givin you money until you can prove its burdock! For a bunch of scared guys, they had a lot of nerve. They were sticking to their stupid argument. They had a real attachment to their money. It would be easy to beat the hell out of them and take the money, but I wanted to save that forst. As I was thinking about what to do, Vi-Vi shouted, SHUT UP! GET THEM, MOOFY! Mooomoooo! Moofy bit onto on of them and started swinging them around. S, stop it! Eeek! Get that cow away from us! The men were freaking out. Ruff! Moomooo! Maybe touched off by Moofy, Femm also started running around and biting the men! Damn you! Then Cruz started beating one guy over the head. No way to stop itwellI let it go a little longer, and then stopped it. Okay, everyone STOP! MooRuffSure. The guys were practically spinning from all the attacks. I waited until everyone was calm again. So, do we get our money back? No way! Moofy, Femm, Cruz, give them what they deserve. MoomooRuff RuffDamn you! All three of them jumped on the men again. Seeing them get beaten like this was starting to be fun. It was getting faster and faster. After a while I stopped them again. Thats enough. MooRuffSure. The guys were spinning so badly that they started throwing up. After they were finished, I silently faced them. So, are you paying up? Sure! We got the message. If you got it then pay up now! They stumbled around and gathered up the money. Then I faced them again. Dont think this is the end of it either, okay? What? Fraud is a crime. You will be punished. We gave you your money Giving it back doesnt make you innocent. I put them each in a magic. I then had Cruz, Moofy, and Femm carry one each. Where should we take them? To the capital barracks. Okay. There were a lot of guards in the capital. Their main purpose was to stop crime. Quite the opposite of my eventless post in the vige of Mulg. I warned Cruz, just in case. Were your helpers, okay? Youre not my helpers! Just say that we are. Because I need to be in this city secretly. Oh, yeaaaaah, thats right. Cruz finally understood. I was d I warned her. If we were just her helpers, then no one would ask any questions. Because she alone was a baron for her adventures. After getting to the barracks, several soldiers came out. They were obviously cautious after seeing a wolf and cow holding a magic bag with a guy each in their mouths. But when they noticed that we were with Cruz, they calmed down. Baron Conradine. Is something wrong? I found these fraudsters, my friends here helped carry them here. The soldiers took the criminals over without asking one questions about the two beasts and two others with beast-like masks. Cruz really had some reputation. While I was filling out her documents, Cruz exined how she came across these grifters. Since she exined that they had given back the money, I guessed their sentences would be light. Cruzthe hero Cruz One of the fraudsters said to himself. I seemed he didnt realize who she was. Even though she was really famous, no one in the sector eight slum knew about her. Lets get some real potatoes now. Leaving the rest to the soldiers, we went off to buy the real potatoes. Of course, this time we went to the ce Luka told us about. Chapter 53 - Buying Spuds Worth the Cash

Chapter 53 C Buying Spuds Worth the Cash

Trantor: ranzan The agricultural goods store that Luka rmended was in a shopping za. As we entered the za, there were quite a few agricultural stores there. Wow, its huge! Since youre good with crops, Vi-Vi, youre used to ces like this, right? No, the crops and so on in the Demon Lords region arent anything like these. It seems that the capital has much better goods then the Demon King did. But on the other hand, the Demon King might have much better growing magic than anything here in the capital. What is this? Hm. I seeso thats how this works. So many things Vi-Vi was deeply interested in all the tools, as she walked around and looked. Cruz followed along behind Vi-Vi, and watched as Vi-Vi examined everything. Um, miss? Would you like help with something? A worker timidly approached us and asked. I had forgotten that I was with arge wolf and a cow. Of course he was cautious. Sorry. I must have surprised you. This is my guard dog and cow. Yes. No, its more about what youre wearingoh, never mind He was more concerned with the masks we were wearing than our animals. Even so, now, we couldnt remove them. I just smiled at him and continued as if nothing was wrong. Well, it was too bad he couldnt see my smile. We need potatoes to nt a field with. Do you have any in stock? What type would you desire? Um, barons cobbler and dragons eye. Yes, we have those. How much do you need? Just like a ce that Luka would rmend. Kind and courteous, even to a masked old man. After telling him how much we needed, he quickly brought us the amount. So this is seeding potatoesno different from regr potatoes. Yeah, so dont mix these up with burdock, okay? Okay This must be the first time Cruz has seen seeding potatoes like this. I guess it makes since she mixed them up with burdock. She probably thought the seeding potatoes arepletely different from those you eat. The outside looks the same, but theyre chosen because theyre different from those you eat, miss. Hmm The worker exined happily. Even though you could use these for eating as well, there are some with diseases the might make them difficult to grow. These were chosen and had magic ced on them so there were no diseases they had during nting. This store has several wizards working to insure the quality of our produce. The worker proudly said. It seems that he was quite sure about the quality of his products. Cruz looked interested at the worker, while a younger worker there sidled up to her. The young workers face was red. Um, youre the hero Cruz, right?! Yes, I am. Could you give me your signature? Dont be a nuisance to the customer! The veteran worker immediately chided the young one. The veteran probably knew that this was Cruz. However, he had acted like there was nothing out of the ordinary. Its fineI can give signatures anytime. Thank you! The young employee was very happy. She would probably get yelled at afterwards. Because of this, I decided to follow up. I started talking with the veteran worker. Cruz loves to mingle with the citizens here. Theres no need to take offense. Is that so? Well, Im happy to hear it Please dont chide your worker for it. Certainly. If you have no problem with her asking. With thatplete, there was no doubt she wouldnt be yelled at. Because it was confirmed that what she did wasnt rude to Cruz. Then 10 other workers lined up in front of Cruz. Ill sign all of yours as well Cruz smiled as she signed everyones paper. I noticed that veteran was lined up as well. He wanted a signature as well. Youre popr. Well, she IS the hero. Moo. Moofy was lined up with the workers too, for some reason. Maybe she was jealous after seeing all the workers get a signature and shake Cruz hand. After all the signatures were given, Moofy nuzzled Cruz face, as it was Moofys turn. Do you want a signature, Moofy? Moo. Moofy seemed happy with just Cruz rubbing her head. After all the signatures, we also got a good discount on the potatoes. We went to Cruz house, and then back to Mulg. After getting to Mulg, it was already afternoon. Eeeek! Wow, sthats cool! Millet and Collette were outside as we exited the storage shack. Millet jumped after seeing our masks. But Collettes eyes shimmered in awe. Heh heh heh, Fighter for Justice, Cow-men Rider! But the real identity is me! Wow, sthub bossth! Vi-Vi posed and then took off her cow mask. It was embarrassing for me, so I took it off and gave it to Cruz. Cruz. Thanks for the mask. Ill let you borrow it, Al. You never know when you may need it. I guess shes right, now that she said it. A beard might be enough to only fool Cruz. Its probably convenient to have a wolf mask just in case I need to keep my identity secret. Can I? Sure. I wont use it. I guess not. She doesnt need to use something like this. Okay, then its a deal. Cruz, can I keep this cow mask? Sure. Vi-Vi smiled at Cruz letting her have the cow mask. And after that, Cruz seemed deep in thought. I guess I should buy one more mask then. Arent these a bit expensive? Not really. Al, what do you think would look good on me? Um I wondered what kind of mask would suit her. However, if I didnt answer quickly, she might start to sulk about it. maybe a cat, or a lion! She quickly distorted myment into a lion. However, they are both cats. We got back together Luka and the others after their bath, and we all ate lunch. I thought it would be better if we admitted everything that Cruz got mixed up in. Lukasorry to bother you about this, but They finally have a day off and I have to bother them with this troublesome stuff, but, oh well. It would be more trouble not to. Luka listened to the whole story silently. Cruz just say to the side with a sorry face. well, I DO have a lot Id like to say I apologize Ill take care of cleaning some of it up. Sorry, and thanks. Cruz and I bowed out head. Luka sighed. Cruz, you realize youre a lot of trouble to deal with, right? Yeah. Cruz was sad after being scolded so. Luka kept on lecturing her. Cruz almost looked like she was ready to cry. Seeing Cruz like that made me feel really bad for her. But it was to help Cruz. What happened to day with the fraudsters in the slum ended up pretty good. I guess you could say we were lucky. When Cruz finally started crying, Yureena interrupted. Ill talk to Cruz after this, okay? Youre just saying that so that you can save her from what she needs to hear, Yureena. Lunch was getting to be depressing. Vi-Vi tried to change the mood by turning the conversation to Luka. Id like to try taking a bath in the morning sometime. Its nice. I dont want to lift a finger after doing it. Then well just take today easy. Luka and Yureena looked ready to rx. With lunch over, Vi-Vi got the potatoes prepared for nting. Ill get the magic circle for quick sprouting ready. Do you need help? No. You can take Moofy for a walk though. She said, even though when she got the ground-improvement-magical-jewel-refinement magic circle done, she wanted me to watch. I felt a bit forlorn. Though theres no doubt that the quick sprout magic circle is going to be far easier to write than the one on the field. I looked over to Cruz, and Yureena was stroking her hair. Seeing all this, I said to Luka in a soft voice, Sorry about all of this Dont worry about it. I guess I should have chewed her out If you dont get used to it now, youll never be a good father, right? Ill do my best. After that, Luka smiled happily. Just then, Moofy bit my sleeve, pulling me. Moofy, you want to go on a walk? Moo. Yeah. Moofy, Femm, lets go. Ruff.Moo. After hearing that, Cruz ran up to us. Cruz had stopped crying. Yureena had settled her down. Ill go too, Al. I took Cruz with me on my walk with Moofy and Femm. Chapter 54 - An Old Wizard Walking a Wolf and Cow

Chapter 54 C An Old Wizard Walking a Wolf and Cow

Trantor: Ranzan I left Vi-Vi in Millets house and went outside. Cruz, Moofy, and Femm came with me. Moo Ruff Ruff! Moofy and Femm suddenly perked up when they heard the word walk. Femm bounced around me like a ball. Moofy pushed her snout into my chest. Cruz rubbed both of the animals. Everyone really loves going on a walk. Femm really acts like a dog. Moo Moo Thats not true. Moofy was mooing to herself. On the other hand, Femm quickly sat and talked in spirit speech. But its tail was still wagging. Okay, Femm. If were going on a walk, let me ride you. I guess I have to. Femm wagged its tail quickly while growing to its original size. Moofy nuzzled Cruz after seeing me ride Femm. Maybe Moofy wanted Cruz to ride her. Cruz, do you want to ride Moofy? Nono need to. I can run. Moooo Cruz liked to run. She really liked to exercise. Moofy mooed sadly after hearing it. I think Moofy wants you to ride her. What? Really? Do you Moofy? Ride. Moofy used spirit speech againand hadnt for a long time. We were a bit surprised. Okay, I will then. Moo Mooooo! Cruz rode, and Moofy mooed happily. Cruz smiled and rubbed Moofys head. Moofy might want to have Cruz ride her because shes always rubbing Moofys head. It would be better if she held back a bit. Okay, lets go for a walk! Go wherever you want, Femm. Rawf? Femm looked back at me with a look like Can I really do that? Sure. Just make sure you go at a speed where Moofy can keep up. Rawf. Femm ran happily. Cruz rode Moofy behind, Cruzughing away. Moo Moo Mooo! Weehee hee, so fun! Moofy was pretty fast. Faster than a normal cow. Cruz was just hanging on. While I was watching them, I thought, This seemed a lot like walking a dog. Femm. If you want to do THAT, you can, okay? Ruff? You know, marking your territory. Rawf! Femm barked in a strange voice. Since Femm was pretty much a dog, it probably wanted to mark its territory on a tree or something. It wasnt an extreme statement to say that dogs loved walking just so they could pee on each others territory. You really dont have to hold back. Femm suddenly stopped. No way. What? I wouldnt do something like that. Come on, you know youre doing it secretly. I am NOT. Femm refused tly. It seems that a magic wolf king has some amount of pride attached to it. Okay. Sorry for bringing up a weird topic. You noticed? Femm panted heavily through the nose. Cruz rode Moofy and said, The woods are so peaaaaceful. Yeah. Mulg used to be gued by wolves and boars. Thats why I was hired as a guard. There was a huge boar that I had to kill. And the magic wolves became my friends. I see. Because of them being here, no other magical beastse close. Wuff. Femm barked pridefully. I guess they really had marked their territory, in a way. But I wondered how much territory was actually theirs. Where does your territory go to? Ruff? I asked, and Femm thought a bit. Its quite a far way. I see. That sounded rather ambiguous. I guess it wasnt like human rtions innd management where we stake an exact im. Take me to the edge of your territory! You cant make them Al, theyre going to get really tired! Its no problem for me. No problem. Cruz was against it, but Femm and Moofy overruled her. Moofy had no idea what the territory was but still was ready to go. If Moofy got tired and couldnt move, though, wed have to camp all night before going back to town. Well, we may have to camp tonight. Camp! Yassss! Cruz eyes glimmered. I was used to camping, but I didnt want to if I didnt have to. I had no idea why Cruz was so into it. Femm and Moofy started running happily along. Ruff RuffMooo mooo! While they were making noise and running, I talked to Cruz. Cruz, sorry about what happened today. It was my fault, I apologize. I bought burdock. You shouldnt let people fool you C its dangerous. You better be more careful. Yeah, I made Luka worry about me too. I should have told you something like that might happen, sorry. Ive already learned so much from you, Al. She smiled. Still 15. She still has so much to learn. Sorry for asking for you to run an errand on your day off. Dont worry about that at all. It was wrong. If you want a favor in return, just ask. Huh? Anything? I didnt say anything No need for her to turn my words against me. But if I could help her, I definitely would. Hm Just say it then. I cant think of one nowgive me a while. Okay. That sounded a bit scary, but oh well. While we were talking we had run quite a long ways. Right around here. Wow, your turf is huge! And after saying that, Femm wagged its tail with pride. It was quite arge territory for 20 magic wolves. So who owns the territory over there? Several things. But the strongest is a bear. Almost like something from a chess game. Just a bear alone is quite a powerful force. And if it was magical, even stronger. Killing a bear doesnt leave anything good behind, so I dont like fighting them. Yeah, doesnt taste good. Cruz thought I was talking about meat, but she waspletely misreading. The best spoil from a bear was its pelt. But even so, it wasnt expensive. Lets take a rest. Yeah. RuffMoo I got off of Femm and sat down. Cruz sat beside me. Femm and Moofy ran off and yed. I just zoned out looking at the forestso did Cruz. -pwisssssssh Moofy peed in front of us. She was a sacred beast, so I thought she didnt need to eat or drink. But she did eat and drank. I guess if she does, then eventually ites out. Just then, the sounds of the insects around us became quiet. ǣ!! A massive bear came hurtling at Moofy, and our cow was still peeing. Mooo! Moofy reacted quickly. Just like a herbivore, it could sense danger quickly. It rammed the bear, and the bear staggered. Garrrfffff!! Then Femm jumped on it, seized it by the neck and wrestled it down. Cruz and I didnt even move while this happened. It attacked quickly. I was reacting to Moofy peeing there. Hmm Femm told us, but we didnt know. I guess that the bear felt its territory was being invaded. ǣң!ǣ! ǣ٣!ǣǣϣϣ! We could hear the cries of several magical beasts around us rise up. Femm got ready. Moofy, on the other hand, looked around confused. Are they alling at us at once? Looks like it. I hope theyre not bears either. Theres no way its because she wanted to eat something else, right? I dont have time for all that again. What appeared was were wyverns, three basilisks, and one earth dragon. The wyverns were medium size, about the size of three horses. The basilisks were normal, about a horses size. The earth dragon wasrge, about five horses. And they were alling at us at once. These guys are a bit stronger than that bear, huh? Yes, but we can kill them off, right? Sure. Okay then. Cruz charged at the earth dragon closest to her. The wyverns came after her in attempt to attack her from behind. A flying beast is a wizards target. I shot several magic arrows at them. It broke through their dragon-ss magical barrier, pierced, and destroyed their wings. They fell and hit the ground. Just then, Cruz shed off the dragons neck. She then went after the basilisks behind the dragon and killed them. Femm, sense any more? I dont think there are any. If Femm said so, then I could rx. Cruz. NO EATING. What? okay She was totally going to eat them. I knew she would. I told her once more not to do it, and started slicing up the beasts for treasure. Chapter 55 - Wizard Beast Mount

Chapter 55 C Wizard Beast Mount

Trantor: ranzan After the beasts were defeated, it was time to dissect and get the battle spoils. You couldnt miss that. It was something an adventurer did every time. While we were doing it, Femm watched the area around us for more monsters. Hey, Femm. Was the bear the strongest one? Ruff? Femm looked confused. Almost like it was being fooled. It seemed like Femm had no idea why those wyverns and other monsters appeared all the sudden. Well, whatever. If you have anymore feelings of danger let us know, okay? I know that already. Cruz then said while she was ripping a monster apart, What was that fellows name again? The five guys? Or something like that? not the five guysthe 12 disciples of the Demon Lord. Oh yeahI guess I was a little off. I was wondering who the hell the five guys were. The one guy from the 12 disciples used magic to grow and zombify magical monsters. These magical monsters didnt have any traces of that though. They were just natural monsters. Mooo. Wait a second, Moofy. Maybe because she was bored, she nuzzled my back with her snout. I waved her away and went back to cutting up a monster. Muff She started nibbling on my hair. It doesnt taste good, Moofy. Munch munch Moofy just kept munching on my hair. I pulled away from Moofy. Femm was staring at what was going on. ruff Femmyoure not thinking about eating my hair too? of course Im not. Femm seemed to be a bit shifty eyed though. I wish Femm would cut that out. After we finished slicing up the monsters, someone touched my hair. Moofy, dont eatCruz? Im not going to eat it, geez. Cruz was touching my hair. Maybe because she was finished with slicing up the monsters before me. She looked at me seriously, and ran her hand through my hair. Is something there? Yeah, Moofys spit. I guessed that ALREADY. Yup. Cruz stroked it again. Um, Cruz? Yes? What are you doing with my hair? I guess I just wanted to touch it. okay? Sometimes I had no idea what Cruz was thinking. After touching my hair a bit, and I guess giving up, she went over and petted Femm. After that we were done dissecting the bodies. We stuffed everything valuable into a magical bag. Im going to burn the rest. Sure. Go ahead. Wait. Femm wanted me to wait. It was normal for adventurers to burn away anything left behind. The rotten meat stunk, and it could be a vector for disease. What is it, Femm? We want to eat them. I see. Then go ahead. Femm nodded, and then howled loudly into the sky. Waooooooooooooooooooooooooooh! MooooooooOOOOOoooooo! For some reason, Moofy mooed along. We left the bodies to the magical wolves and went back to the vige. Moo Moo What is it? Moofy came nearer to me. Ride Ruff? Moofy wanted me to ride her. Femm looked a bit put out. Femm, can I? Hmph, suit yourself. Okay, then please, Moofy. Ruff? Now Femm was upset. Whats wrong Femm? Whatever Femm ran on ahead. It might have been jealous. Id pet Femm a lotter as an apology. Wahahah! Wait! Cruz had fun chasing after Femm, running away from her. Once I got on Moofy, Moofy ran along happily as well. Moofy was pretty fast. As fast as a normal horse. Moo moo moo! Moofy, you look like youre having a st! Mooo! Moofy was really enjoying it. I was d she was having fun. Vi-Vi came up to us when we got back to the vige. Vi-Vi had all the potatoes cut up in a shallow wooden box, ready to nt. It was set near the storage shack. There was a magic circle inscribed at the bottom of the box. Good job, Vi-Vi. Yeah. With this and a lot of sun, they all should sprout within a two or three days. Usually a potato nt took two or three weeks to sprout something, but this way meant far less time. Can it rain while were waiting for it to sprout? Its not good for it. Well, thats not good. Lately it was always sunny. I think it wouldst another two to three days. But, there was no way to say it wasnt going to rain. While Vi-Vi and I were worrying over it, Millet pulled on my sleeve. You can just put a lid on the box, right? Oh yeah, we can Millet brought out a lid that just fit it. Yes, so when the rain falls, but put a lid over this. No problem then. Thanks, Millet. Vi-Vi said as she checked out the lid. However, if it starts raining when were not paying attention, were in trouble. Just tell the magic wolvesFemm! Femm sat in front of the tray of potatoes. Femm wouldnt face me or answer. Vi-Vi whispered in Femms ear. Whats wrong with Femm? I think Femms upset because I rode Moofy. I see. I went over to Femm. Femm, are you angry? Not at all. But you dont say anything to me. Theres no reason for me to be angry. But after I rode Moofy Youre being too sensitive. It was nice having you off my back for once. Whaaa? You always help me by letting me ride. You can ask Moofy from now on. I guess you really did want me to ride you. Femm turned away from me, but its tail still wagged. So no more riding? I guess Ill let you. Thanks. Femm was friends with me again. Femm told the other wolves to put the lid on the box if the rain fell. Now there was nothing to worry about. After all this, Moofy got close to Femm. Moo. Ruff. Angry? Im not angry. Was it fun letting Al ride you? Was happy. Then you can now and then. Thanks. It seems that Femm and Moofy talked the whole issue out. Now they would both let me ride without a fight. Youre pretty popr with the animals. And the same amount of popr with humans too. Yureena and Luka said andughed about me together. Chapter 56 - Wizard, Think about the Magic Beasts

Chapter 56 C Wizard, Think about the Magic Beasts

Trantor: raaanzaaaan After the walk, Femm and Moofy seem to be better friends. I think it was good we had the walk. Cruz saw Luka and Yureena and showed them the battle treasure she had put in the bag. Look at the battle loot I got inside. Youre some hard worker to kill off some magic beasts on a day off. I had toI was just killing them after they ambushed us. Yeah, either way, good job. Yureena smiled and rubbed Cruz head. Cruz and Yureena were the same age, but Yureena treated Cruz like a little sister. Cruz seemed more like a kid, even at her age, so Yureena was worried sometimes. Luka looked very interested at the treasure that Cruz took out. Luka was an expert at magical monsters and so she knew the treasure that magic beasts left behind. Hm? Isnt this a lot for what you killed? You think? Al has some in his bag leftover too. Theres more? How many of them did you kill? Umsix. I took mine out so that Luka could get a better look. Luka looked very closely at it all. Three basilisks, gargoylno, maybe a wyvern? Two of those. Andis this an earth dragon? Exactlygood job, Luka. Wow, Luka Luka had distinguished the beasts we defeated just from the spoils. Excellent job. Its no big deal. Even so, I was wondering what you fought. Right? I agreed with Luka. Cruz was still confused. What were you wondering about? Cruz, look, theres no wyverns or earth dragons around this area normally. Really? Yureena kindly told Cruz. Cruz couldnt remember the living areas of beasts that was a necessary part of an adventurers knowledge base. The reason why is because she had the ability to beat any beast, no matter where we encountered it. If humans dont feel danger, then they really dont have to remember much about where ites from. Around here are basilisks, hydras, wolves, and bears? I dont think that hydras are normal around here either. Cruz just named off the things she encountered here. Even though she didnt remember the areas where monsters are normally encountered, she remembered everything that she had seen and fought. Magic boars and wolves are main around here. You might see a basilisk here and there. You also see magic bears sometimes. Femm added. The magic wolves and bears were also fighting for territory. It seems the reason you dont see bears around much is because the wolves were winning the fight. Tell me about exactly how you encountered those beasts. Welllll Cruz exined exactly what happened. After hearing that, Luka looked a bit sour. They all came at you at once Yeah. Makes you wonder, right? Yureena and Luka both nodded at myment. And for three basilisks to be living in a ce like this Three is a lot at once. Is that so? Cruz asked. Again, Cruz didnt really know where creatures usually lived. Also, basilisks never hang together in groups. They always fight if theres more than one in an area. Hm After Luka exined all of this, Cruz nodded intently. It seems someone might be messing around near here again. Yeah, we need to be careful. Femm. If you notice something, tell me as soon as you can, okay?\ Sure. I could tell that Femm was serious in its answer. You could tell by the way Femm held its tail. moo. On the other hand, Moofy was still rubbing up against me. She had been doing so after we were done looking at the battle spoils. I spoke while I rubbed her head. She licked the hand I was rubbing her with. Shes really taken to you She likes people. Its cute. Luka and Yureena rubbed Moofy. Moo. Moofy seemed quite happy. While we were rubbing her, Luka suddenly jerked in the realization of something. Moofys pee What is it? Well, I was thinking the reason all the beasts came at you at once was because of Moofy peeing. Maybe they were angry that their territory was being invaded? Not that Luka thought it over carefully again. Theres the possibility that Moofys pee is highly concentrated with magic, since shes a sacred beast. It lures the monsters out? Yeah. Does that happen? Thetest research has found that magical beasts use magical power as nourishment. I had no idea about that. Luka really was an expert in these things. A sacred beast is a magical creature. It wouldnt be strange that magic was concentrated in her urine. Huh? So do you think that Femm has pee like Moofy does? I dont drink. I see. So you eat or take in magical force? I dont eat. After that, Moofy began licking Femm. Femm wagged his tail. Then Luka petted Femms head. I think Femm absorbs magic when theres no food or when it was starving. Now that you mention it, I did when the magic boar cleared out all the food. And I drank the water over at the hot springs. The vige one? No. Over there is a hot springs bubbling out of the earth. A natural hot springs. There was a lot of magical stones imbuing magic into the hot springs. That must have helped when there was little food. It also must have been why Femm was so eager to get in the hot springs before. Luka took out a bottle from her bag. She walked up to Moofy. Can you pee in this bottle for me? moo. Moofy was scared and hid behind me. Just then Vi-Vi came out and said, Dont force Moofy to do bad things! Were not forcing Moofy to do anything. Moofy just peed a while ago. Maybe she cant again for a while? You think? It is a sacred beast. Yeah, youre right She didnt need food or drink because she was a sacred beast. Thats why she really didnt drink that much. So she didnt pee that much either. Moofy. Whenever you have to is fine, but could you give us some urine? Moo. Luka said she wants to examine your urine. Can she? Ok. Moofy seemed to agree with the idea. So I took the bottle for the urine sample from Luka. Chapter 57 - The Wizard Bathes from Noon

Chapter 57 C The Wizard Bathes from Noon

Trantor: ranzan After that, I put all the battle spoils into the storage shack, and noticed that Femms ears were standing straight up. The magical wolves were bringing the pieces of the earth dragon and others back to the shack as well. They had pieces of meat bigger than me. The little pups tried their hardest to help. Do you need help? These wolves didnt kill the dragon on their own. If they dont do the work, theyll get soft. I see. If the king says so, then so be it. I sat and watched as the earth dragon and wyverns meat was stacked up. We would like a ce to store it. Sure. What are you going to eat today? This. It seems that the earth dragon was for dinner today. There was still space in the storage shack, so they put the rest in. Since there were several magical circles in the shack, the meat wouldnt go bad quickly. Ruff ruff! The wolves all paced around the meat of the earth dragon. It was pretty amazing that not one wolf tried to eat the meat until it was time. As I was thinking about that, I noticed a few of the wolves were now surrounding me. Ruff The wolves were looking at me in expectation. Wait, do you want me to roast it? Bark! Ruff! They all wagged their tails. I remember having done something like this for them before. I guess they started liking the taste of cooked meat. Femm, can I roast it for them? Please. Since Femm gave me permission, I used fire magic to cook it. Femm then gave out the cooked meat. I guess this was what a king did when the meat was done. Cruz was watching this go on, almost like she was hiding. Do you want some, Cruz? No. Eat something more like a human does, Cruz! I told you, I dont want to eat that! Cruz puffed out her cheeks in a pout. Come over here! Hmm? Moo? Cruz pulled me away. What did she want? Moofy came along with me. Cruz, what is it? Yureena and Luka took a bath this morning. Seems they did. Millet had invited Yureena and Luka to the hot spring in the morning. Cruz must have been a little jealous that the other girls had a chance to dio that. I want to get in too! Then go ahead! You still have a lot of time on this day off. I want to take on WITH YOU! Wha?Moo? Cruz probably wanted to get in the hot springs with everyone. Since Luka and the others were done, she wanted to take one with us. But that would be a mixed bathtoo many problems. Lukas going to get angry at you again! Its fine. Yureena told me to invite you to take one. What the?! Vi-Vi had crept up behind us to listen and now shouted out. I also had noticed that Vi-Vi was following us. Cruz probably had too. Vi-Vi broke into our conversation. Im getting in too! What? Okay, Vi-Vi, you cane too. Vi-Vi and Cruz were ready to get in with me. This was getting to be too much. Im telling you, getting in with a guy causes too many problems. Al, you said youd do me a favor, right?! I didbut I had said it since I had asked her to do me a favor on a day that she had off. Pleaaaaaaaase. Lets go to the hot springs. dammitokay. Yeaaah! Mooo! Cruz and Moofy were ecstatic. Lately Moofys been taking baths with you all the time. Vi-Vi said while rubbing Moofy. Maybe Vi-Vi wanted to get in the hot springs with Moofy. When we got to the hot springs, for some reason Femm was waiting for us. Femm was seated but wagging its tail quickly. Femm? Ruff. You dont want to eat with the other wolves? I already ate. I see. Femm looked at me with expectant eyes. It may be that Femm heard Yureena and Cruz talking. So Femm knew that we were about to go to the hot springs. Femm, you want to get in? Im getting in! Femm was really wagging its tail now. It was the most embarrassing to change your clothes. Because of that, I used the room before the girls. I got in fist to watch Moofy, and then afterwards Vi-Vi and Cruz came in. Moo Moo Ruff Ruff I washed Femm and Moofy, and they got in the hot springs quickly. Moofy and Femm were happy. Femm just rxed in the hot water. I washed my own body, and asked Femm. Do you drink the water, Femm? Its good. Luka said that magical beasts can eat magical power. This water, filled with magical power, must taste very good to them. Humans tend to think thats dirty, but it must be fine for a wolf. Moofy opened her mouth and rxed with a sigh. Is that water good Moofy? Good. I see. I guess the water was good for her too. Just then, Cruz and Vi-Vi came in. Both had a big towel around them. Before, since Cruz came in naked and all, it was nice to know she got somemon sense. Al, let me clean your back. No, Ill do yours. HERE! I didnt want her trying to do everything for me on her day off. It was better if I washed my. Its embarrassing. Now all the sudden? You can wash off my back! Okay then. I washed off Vi-Vis back. Yeah, feels good. HeyI want to try that. Even though she acted embarrassed, she also seemed a bit envious of Vi-Vi. Well, then let me wash your back. Eheh heh. Why was Cruz blushing all the sudden? After I washed off Vi-Vi, I washed off Cruz. Eheh heh, thank you. Cruz seemed pretty happy. After that, she got into the bath. Moo. Moofy seems to like this bath. Momoooo. Shes a cow with culture. Vi-Vi happily scratched Moofy. Moofy licked Vi-Vis face back. Femm and Cruz were swimming around the waterwith their mouths open. The water must be all getting in their mouths. Youre so cute, Femm. Ruff ruff! Cruz rubbed Femms head. I could see that Femm was drinking the water. Femm, are you drinking the water around Cruz. I guess I am. Maybe the water around Cruz had some special quality to it. Cruz came closer to me while she was rubbing Femm. And of course Femm came closer as well. Al, show me your knee. Ah, okay. I put my knees up so that she could see it. I made sure not to show her anything of mine that was private. Hmmmdoes it hurt? It does. But not so much I cant take it. I can still feel the Demon Lords power. Yeah, nothings changed. I had thought the power of the Demon Lord would get weaker with time, too. She rubbed my left kneethe one that was hurting. Just that made it hurt less. Thanks. Why does it hurt less when you touch it? Does it? Yeah. Eheh heh heh. Well, then Ill rub it more. Cruz gently rubbed my knee. Just then, Moofy started moving. And it spoke in spirit speech. Pee. Wwait a second. Hold on to it until I can get you outside. I wait. Smart cow. I hurried and took Moofy outside. Chapter 58 - Wizard, Think about What Happens Next

Chapter 58 C Wizard, Think about What Happens Next

Trantor: ranzan I hurried to take Moofy out of the bath house. I couldnt do sopletely naked, so I wiped my body off and put on my underwear. I took Moofy over to a bunch of grass. Mooo. Oh, let me get a sample. Pwusssssh, Moofy peed with a lot of power. But I had to get the sample Luka wanted. I used the bottle to get some urine. Moo. Hmph. I got the bottle, and looked at the sample. It looked like normal urine. I smelled it too. Smelled like normal urine. Seems really normal. Maybe it tasted different. But there was no way in hell I was going to taste it. If I gave to Luka, shed take it to the capital and check it out. Luka was a warrior and an academic. She had her ownb with testing materials as well. Moo Moo. After Moofy was done peeing, she pushed me again with her head towards the hot springs. You want to get in again? Moo Moofy hade outside without drying off. Even though it was summer, you couldnt let her get sick. Okay, I guess well warm you up again. Moo moo Moofy mooed happily. Huh? Mr. Al? Kyaaa! Oh, sorry. Millet mped her eyes shut after seeing me in my underwear. Since I was in my underwear, I really wondered why she was saying Kyaa! I was in the hot springs, and Moofy had to pee outside. Okay, so you came out here. Mooo! Millet rubbed Moofy. Oh, reallybut Moofys still all wet. I was going to take her back in so she doesnt get cold. Oh, well have fun. Millet, smiling, saw me back to the hot springs. Inside the bath, Vi-Vi, Cruz, and Femm were waiting. As soon as Moofy got back in, Vi-Vi weed her with some scratching. Did she do it? Moo. A lot? Moo. Vi-Vi and Cruz asked, and I guess Moofy answered both of them. Tell me if you have to pee, Femm? Ruff? You cant pee in a bath, you know. I know that ALREADY! Femm said while barking, and y-biting at my hand. After Moofy saw that, it mooed while licking my face. Hey, stop doing that! Ruff ruffMoo moo They both continued doing that to me for a while. After all thatmotion, I was ready to get out of the bath. Im getting outIm done taking a bath. Okay then. Ill get out too. Femm and Moofy got out of the bath with me. Once they got off, they both shook the water off them with full force. Femm bit a towel and wiped off the floor, and the lied down on the towel and rolled over the towel. Smart wolf. Moofy then watched and did the same thing. Moofy didnt do as well though. Ill dry you off, soe here. Ruff ruffMooo. I made sure to dry them well so they didnt catch a cold. C It was night, and Vi-Vi said to me, I cant wait to see the potatoes sprout. It takes about three days right? Yeah, about three days and we can be sure. I guess we can rest from farming for a while. We had spent every day up until now clearing a field, so now we suddenly could rest. But my main job was as a guard. Just guarding though made me feel lonely. Millet, while this is going on, do you have any other thing for me to do other than guarding? Well, let me think. Maybe go and sell some more meat? Were still okay with that. There was no more work in the vige. It wasnt time for harvesting crops or shipping meat anywhere. If you have nothing to do, you can spend the time constructing a house for yourself again. You know, youre right. Vi-Vi and Luka had burned my previous house down. I had decided to talk about telling the chief of my n to build a new er. Maybe I should talk to the chief. Old man, are you moving from our housth? Well be lonely. Collette, Millets sister said. I rubbed Collettes hair. Its fineeven after I move to the house, Ill stille by to see you. Come see me everyday! Sure, and you cane to my house.even live there. Yaaayy Let mee to see you too, Mr. Al. You cane any time, Millet. Yaaay. Millet said happily. Femm stuck its nose into the conversation. Make the new house big. Sure, you can put any hurt or sick wolves in it. You can make a wolf house too. Hm. The winters cold. Youre right about that. The horses and cows have their own house. Maybe the wolves should too. Can you make a room for Moofy? Yeah. Together. Moofy licked my hand. I guess I would have to live with them all. You dont want your own room, Moofy? Sleep together. I see. Can I be in the same room too? Moofy and Femm wanted to be in the same room as me. I wouldnt have a problem living with those two. It would make the winters warmer. For my room in your house, I dont need one as big as the one I have now. Huh? What? Al, what is it? I was surprised that Cruz thought she was getting a room in my house too. Well, you doe here often, Cruz. I can have the same room as her. And for me, I dont care how big it isI just need a desk. Yureena and Luka also wanted in on the room. I guess I should just make the house as big as I can. And with that, the conversation was over. Chapter 59 - Conference about the New House

Chapter 59 C Conference about the New House

Trantor: ranzan It was time to sleep. Femm and Moofy both came to my bed. grrr Vi-Vi was watching me from the shadows of the next room. She was probably angry that Moofy was sleeping with me. Do you want to sleep with Moody, Vi-Vi? Not reallyMoofy can do whatever she likes. Moo? Moofy walked over to Vi-Vi. Then Moofy bit Vi-Vis sleeve. Together. Okay then. I guess because Moofy and I are friends Vi-Vi said happily, and smiled. She excitedly jumped in my bed and quickly made it VERY cramped. I thought that she should just take Moofy to her own bed. Moofy put her upper half on top of the deb. Her back half was half standing on the floor. Maybe I should make this bed bigger. Moo. Im okay with it being this big. Femm said, curled up by my pillow. When I finally got in, Moofy put her head on top of my chest. What? Rub me. Moofy said inly. Or, bluntly. So I rubbed Moofy on the head. Moo mooo. Moofy really likes humans. Like. She pressed her head even harder toward my body. Then Moofy moved over to Vi-Vi. Moo. I guess I cant avoid you Moofy. Like. Even though Moofy could stay that little, Vi-Vi was still very happy. She smiled while rubbing Moofy. While I watched that going on, Femms tail started hitting me in the face. Femm probably wanted some attention too. I rubbed Femms fur too. The next day. When I woke up, Cruz was in bed too. She was sleeping while holding on to Moofy. On the other hand, Moofy had one of my fingers in her mouth. Chewing on it softly. And, Vi-Vi had Femms tail in her mouth too Mumff. Afff ruff Also, Femm had its stomach over my head, resting on my forehead. This sleeping arrangement sucks Moofy stopped chewing on my finger. Vi-Vi swatted Femms tail away from her mouth. Even though youre getting in the bath with Femm, thats going to make you sick I threw the nket over all of them and got out of bed. C After breakfast, Cruz and the others went back to the capital like usual. And I went back to guarding like usual. After a while, the chief and Millet came over to me. Thanks foring by even though youre busy, chief. Well, its about rebuilding that house. Yes, I wanted to talk to you about that. We needed to talk about its location. Of course, I wanted it to be outside the vige, next to the storage shack. The chief pointed to the lumber that was ced in themons. We do have a lot of extra lumber, thanks to you. You can take all you need to build it. There was a lot left over from clearing the field. Vi-Vi brought over a sheet of paper with a proud face. She shoved it at the chief so that hed look at it. I made you a blueprint so you can start building right away. Oh, I guess were ready then. The chief took a smiling look at the blueprint and then froze. What is it, chief? um, Vi-Vi, well, its more of a mansion than a housea little TOO big. You think so? I dont. I looked at the blueprint. The blueprint had a building that took up more space than a castle. This is big. I dont think it is. No, even one-tenth of this is too big. I bet Vi-Vi was raised in some huge castle somewhere. She had weird standards. Just like the fifth sub-boss of the Demon Lords Four Sub Bosses. Then Millet looked at this massive blueprint, which I had said was 10 times bigger than we needed. Vi-Vi, theres no kitchen. Ohyeah, I forgot it. Put a kitchen here, then we can get hot water from the hot springs through here. I SEE! They started bbing on about the ns, and the additions started getting really diverse. I didnt have time to interrupt. Then they started talking about the sleeping arrangements. We should put Moofy and Femm and Mr. Al in the same room. Then he can go in the room next to mine. Since Moofys my friend too. While Moofy heard this, she began rubbing up against me. Together. Yeah, we need to make the bed bigger too. Moo. After seeing us talk, Millet smiled. Well, Mr. Al needs a bed for everyone to be able to sleep on, then. Thanks, Millet. All the while, Femm ran around the area while wagging its tail like crazy. Well build a doggie house for Femm. Then Femm can live outside where it belongs! GRawWW! Eeep! Vi-Vi said angrily, while Femm growled angrily back at her. As a result, Id let Moofy and Femm live in my room, and each of the others would get a room of their own. It was pretty big. Definitely bigger than the bungalow. After seeing that, the chief had a troubled face. Um, Al Is there a problem? Yes, its a bit TOO big. Is there not enough space? No, not enough materials. From now, autumn wasing, then winter. There wasnt enough wood to burn. And there wasnt enough wood to make a big house. Vi-Vi puffed out her cheeks in discontent. You said Al could build it as he wanted. And Im very sorry to go against that, but No, theres no problem. Still, the chief bowed deeply. The bungalow we were thinking of building was not the one he had expected. It was way more than the one he had thought of. It was bad for us to expect more than what was seen as amon sense bungalow for one guy. Then you can buy wood in the capital. Thats one way, but Vi-Vi What else then? Oh yeah, you can just cut more trees down! Its not good to cut down many trees. Femm now was rejecting the idea, and this was as the king of arge territory of woods. Not good to ignore. Thats why I didnt expect to cut down any more trees. I wont buy or cut down any more. Hm? We dont really need to use a lot of trees, right? Well, I guess now. Trees might actually be valuable. Vi-Vi and Femm had both forgotten something important. Vi-Vi, do you remember who I am? A guard. You are a guard. Vi-Vi looked at me as if I was asking a stupid question. Millet looked a bit confused. Nowell. Yeah, but Im also a wizard. Yeah, I KNOW THAT. I can build something easily just by using magic! Hm? Vi-Vi, even though she was a magician too, didnt get it. Shes a bit dumb sometimes. Ok, well, let me give you an example! Oh, yes, please! Moo!Ruff! Do your best, Mr. Al! So I decided to build a house from that afternoon. Chapter 60 - Building a Bungalow

Chapter 60 C Building a Bungalow

Trantor: ranzan It was afternoon. After lunch, I started building my house. All of the vigers came to see, I guess because I mentioned I was building the house with magic. They all stood with expecting eyes. Can he build a house with magic? If you think about it, it shouldnt be hard. I mean, it IS Al doing it. Yeah, Als pretty good at magic. The vigers were all conversing in soft voices. It was embarrassing. It wasnt that big of a deal, after all, so I guess I didnt want to let them down with a boring show. I saw Millet and Collette turn to the crowd, proudly. YEAH! Mr. Al is really good! Go do it, old man! I wish theyd not make my embarrassment worse. I decided to tell them all the truth before they got their hopes up. Uh, everyone. I dont want you to all be disappointed, but Im not going to use magic and BANG, the house is built or anything. Oh, is that so? Im just going to get the dirt, solidify it, and build the ce like stacking bricks. Oh! Wow! You really are strong with magic, Mister Al! Woooow, old man! Now the chief and all the vigers were even MORE interested. Millet and Collettes eyes shimmered in anticipation. So I told them again, Its really just boring work. Come on, dont be humble. Making bricks with magic is pretty cool, right? Yeah, I guess.I wish my dead father were around to see this. So I just gave up trying to dispel their expectations. Femm showed me where there was y, which I would pick up and transport. Compress the y into blocks and bake it. And do it all with magic. Vi-Vi was in charge of firing the bricks. While I was getting the y together and making it into bricks, she created a magic circle to fire the bricks. Time to show them all that a magician can also be one of the best brickmakers around! Vi-Vi was fired upliterally. As soon as shepleted the magic circle, a red column of me surged from it. Then the column raged from a flickering red to a zing red-white. You could see by the color that it was quite hot. However, I couldnt feel any heat from where I was standing. Thats so much fire, but no heat? Yeah, amazing.I wish my dead grandmother could see this. Great job, sthub-bossth! MOo mooo! The vigers were very happy after seeing the magic circle Vi-Vi made. Collette and Millet were too. They reacted a lot more after seeing Vi-Vis work then my whole process of lifting and forming the bricks. Fire does have a beauty all its own. RIGHT?! Vi-Vi looked at me proudly. And in a day, we had finished making enough bricks. The second day I had to stack all the bricks into a house. You cant just stack them on top of each other, either. You have to stick them together with mortar. Since there wasnt enough for me in the town, I asked Luka to go and buy it for me. Before noon, Cruz came up to me with her usual radiant smile. She pulled the mortar out of her magic bag. I bought you some mortar! Thanks, Cruz. Cruz was scammed when I asked her to buy me some potatoes to nt. Thats why I had to check the mortar, just in case. It was pretty good mortar. What do you think, Al? Seems to be good stuff. You bought the right type. Yeah, and in front of the store Luka told me to go to was an old man that talked to me. What?! He told me the store that Luka had rmended was going to rip me off. The same pattern again? Now I was worried. Maybe that full-bodied scent of a rich baron that Cruz put out attracted scammers like flies. But this time I told him NO! Okay, well thats a relief. Cruz had grown up a bit. It was a small change, but a big step for her. I patted her on the head. Heh heh heh MooRuff Now Moofy and Femm wanted to be petted too. While I was petting Moofy, Vi-Vi came and asked Cruz, Cruz, do you have work to do? Well, since I defeated that earth dragon on my day off, I figure I can have the afternoon to myself. I see. The vigers had also returned to watch over the construction process. There were more than yesterday, so I guess the farmers were off as well. I put the mortar on, then stacked the bricks. Then more mortar, more bricks. Over and over. It was a simple process, but you had to be precise. It was quite difficult to do the whole thing exactly while using magic. It was almost like a stunt for someone like me that could use gravity magic. I guess its a skill I can be proud of. Whoaaa. Hes so fast. I could hear the vigers happily remarking about my magic. I was quite fast and exact with my magic, so it looked simple yet elegant. On the other hand, Femm and Moofy were bored, and started walking around. Cruz walked with them. Near the house that we would live in, I also make a little ce for the wolves. It was just big enough for a dozen or so wolves to live in. After building that, Vi-Vi walked up to me. Okay, now time for my magic circle. Please. Sure. Leave it to me. I didnt need her to hurry a magic circle for a building. I just needed something donepletely. Since she was already so good at making them, it was a perfect job for her. She skipped over and started etching the magic circle. However, this was a bit more boring than the magic I had done. Half the vigers disappearedmaybe out of boredom. I started helping a carpenter that I had asked for help with inside shelves and so on in the house. I finished drawing it! Vi-Vi proudly proimed after a few hours. Good work, Vi-Vi. So, what does this one do? Well, the floor, walls, and ceiling are protected against heat and fire. Also impact and shaking. Wow, nice. Then Vi-Vi looked down at Femm. I also drew a little one so that the puppies of the wolves wouldnt get sickin the dog house. Thanks. Hm. Femm thanked her directly. Vi-Vi blushed a little. Ruff ruff ruff!! The wolves all lined up and barked their thanks. Then they all swarmed her and licked her. SSTOP IT! IM GOING TO SMELL LIKE DOG! Even so, Vi-Vi looked a little happy. Great job, sthub bossth! Wow, thats really something.I wish someone would draw one at my house. The vigers were quite surprised to hear about the magical effects that she had added. Just then, Luka and Yureena arrived from the capital. They were taken aback by how quickly we had pieced the house together. Quite arge brick house! Yeah, hurry up and show us the room Cruz and us will stay in. Moo Moo! Moffy bit and pulled on my sleeve. Everyone was ready to live in the house. We havent done any of the furniture! Oh, I guess not. I decided to handle that tomorrow, so we all stayed at Millets that night. Chapter 61 - A Completed House

Chapter 61 C A Completed House

Trantor: ranzan After dinner with Millet, Luka looked at me worriedly. Al, are you okay? Arent you tired? A little bit. I did use a lot of magic. I had used a lot in putting stone and wood up in the house, as well as stacking the bricks. The real problem was the bricks. You had to ther on mortar, then stack on the bricks. It was something you had to do smoothly and correctly. Also, you had to do it over and over. It was just a meticulous process that used a lot of intensive gravity magic. It was obvious that Id be tired. Shouldnt you get to bed early tonight? Luka said with a tone of worry. I was still okay. It was a level of tired that as an adventurer didnt limit my ability to keep working. Before, it wasnt rare to use up all my magic and then struggle to stitch spells together while my nose bled. However, now I was quite at peace. There was no reason to push myself. I seemaybe I will take a nap. RuffMoo I went to the bedroom, with Moofy and Femm following me. I fell asleep as soon as I slipped into bed. It waste night. There was someone in bed with me. Hm? I thought it was Cruz, but it was Millet. Millet, what is it? Did I wake you up? Im sorry. Its no big deal but I guess I just sleepwalked in here. Wha?Ruff?Moo? Femm was more surprised than I was. Moofy also looked a bit confused. But Moofy still happily rubbed her face against Millets. Millet suddenly turned serious and said, Mister Al, youre going to live on your own tomorrow. So? I want you to take m Moo mooo! Moofy then rubbed up against Millet. Um, Moofy! I have something important to say Moo? Moofy was just happy that Millet was there too. It seemed that Millet wasnt going to stop this sleepwalking either. Mister Al.I really lo Mooo Mooo! Millet was now being licked by Moofy like crazy. Still, Millet kept a serious face. Millet, calm downMOO! But IMOOO! I know how you feel butMOOO! Moofy just kept on innocently trying to be petted, and Millet couldnt be serious anymore. Finally, I looked at Millet and weughed together. Heh heh heh Hah hah hah Moo? Moofy was clearly confused. Anyway, lets just go to sleep. Okay, I guess so I thought that Millet would go back to her room, so I said that I guess we should sleep But Millet stayed in my bed. Ill be lonely with you going to live on your own. You cane over any time. Really? Yeah, even live there if you want. For a second, Millets eyes glimmered. I was very tired, so I simply went back to sleep. C The next morning, the carpenter again came to my house to help. I had asked the vige carpenter for help with the internal structures. Lets get the walls and other furniture put together. We might be able to get it all up by afternoon. Thanks! We had finished most of this process already. I had helped him with magic to do this whenever I was free yesterday. Were done with almost all the furniture. We just have to put it inside. Do you need help with that? Yeah, could you use your gravity magic? Sure. I moved all the materials around as the carpenter showed me. It was easy for him to hammer up everything that I put in ce with gravity magic. Well, magic sure is convenient, hm? Thank you. Theres no wizard like you that Ive met that can just throw anything around like this. You really are top-notchwould you be interested in marrying my daughter? Just then, I heard Millet shout from outside the house. NO! NO WAY! Iit was a joke. Geez The carpenter was taken aback. We had finished all the interior just about then. Okay. Now for the furniture to be put in. I can lift and bring it in for you. The furnitures pretty big though. I have magic, so I can use it for that too. Really convenient I had a magic bag that looked much smaller than the amount it could hold. And it wasnt heavy. So I used it to lug in all the furniture that we had made. It was much easier work than yesterday. After we were done, all the vigers surrounded us with apuse. Good job with building that! Another house in the vige! They were happy having another house, even though they didnt get any new residents. They looked around the insides. Millet happily showed them around. The wolves also swarmed into the little wolf house outside. RuffBark I could hear their happy barking. I was d they enjoyed it. Cruz and the others joined us from the capitalter, and we showed them around the insides. Cruz grabbed my arm. Show me everything, starting with the bathroom! Why from the bathroom? Wellits important! It was a pretty big toilet. It was made so that Moofy could use it too. Moofy, you can use this toilet from now on. Mooo! Moofy seemed to like it. Now lets see the kitchen! Okay. Millet pulled me along with the rest of the group to the kitchen. This icebox has a magic circle so that food wont rot. Wow! Its very cold. And here you can freeze things. Vi-Vi said with a proud look. It seemed that Vi-Vi did a lot of magical work to prepare this kitchen. Not just an icebox. She had made magic circles to heat things too. Even the castles of the nobles werent set up as well as this. After looking at the kitchen, Yureena said, And the hot springs? Did you make that too? It wasnt left out. I want to see it! Luka and the others went to the room with the bath. Its HUGE! And its quite deep too. Moofy can get in! Mooo. The toilet and bath were both made for Moofy too. So they were big. It looked like you could really rx there. It was quite nice. After getting bored with looking at the bath, Cruz said, I want to see your bedroom, Al! Okay, lets see it. Sure!Ruff!Moo! I wanted them to see my bedroom too. Femm and Moofy ran quickly to see it. My rooms quiterge, now that I look at it. A big bed, too. Again, for Moofy. Moo moo! Moofy happily climbed on the bed. She could fit her whole body. Usually Moody had only put her front half on the bed and kept her back half on the floor. She seemed very happy. Femm rolled onto the bed happily as well, tumbling on its back. Maybe because Femm wanted to put its smell on the bed. Yaaay! Cruz then jumped on top of Moofy and Femm. Luka and the others looked at the other rooms. Yeah, I can use this desk. And this is Cruz and my bed. Everyone seemed satisfied. Then, Millet came into the room. Lets have a housewarming party! Sure. Good idea. She had invited the other vigers to the party as well. We spent the night untilte having a great time with the vigers in my new house. Chapter 62 - Magic Mouse

Chapter 62 - Magic Mouse

Trantor: ranzan The next day. I went back to my work as guard again. Vi-Vi took care of the cows once more. And, I found a pile of dead mice and moles in front of the vige entrance. Are these Ruff! The wolves looked at me with eyes of expectation Thanks again, all of you. And hearing that, all the wolves wagged their tails. Femm was in front of all of them, standing proudly. Femm was usually always with me, so I was wondering when it had time for hunting rodents. You helped them hunt too, Femm? This one, here. In the middle of the pile, there was one veryrge mouse. I caught it this morning. I see. Good job. Ruff. I went and petted all the wolves, starting from Femm. After they showed me their prey, they started eating what they had caught. They had held off from eating them just so they could show me. It was quite the honor. After a bit, Vi-Vi came over to where I was. She was done caring for the cows. Al, did you forget something? What? THE POTATOES! Ah, youre right I had built my house because I was free from having to watch them sprout for a few days. Theyre already sprouted! Can we put them in the ground? Of course, AL! So we spend the afternoon nting all the potato sprouts. Millet, Collette, Moofy, and Femm came along. Ill use magic to open up the earth for the sprouts, and Vi-Vi and the rest of you can just drop them in. You got it, Al. Okay, old man. Vi-Vi and Collette replied happily. Millet, Femm, and Moofy can cover the sprouts with dirt after theyre nted. Sure! Ruff!Moo! We got the work done bit by bit. We were finished by sundown. Good work, you low-lives! Now we just have to cull the weeds and keep the sprouts covered , and were good! Good work! Mooo!Ruff! Moofy and Femm responded gleefully. - The next day. Again, the wolves left a pile of dead moles for me. Thanks againwait, huh? Ruff? In the midst of the mole/mouse-cide , I spotted something. There was a mouse the size of a small dog. Isnt that one a bit big? I got it myself. Proud again. Femm wagged its tail proudly wanting to be praised. I guess I had to pet Femm first. So I petted Femm and all the other wolves. After that, I asked Femm, Hey, Femmthats not a normal mouse, right? Ruff? Is this a magical mouse, or a ma-mouse? A magic mouse is no match for Femm. Femm proudly snorted. Youre right. Femm proudly said, but that wasnt what I was worried about. Do you see magic mice around here much? Theyre quite rare. Femm looked at me proudly again. Proud that they controlled the forest so much that a magic mouse would never rear its head to face Femm. Good job Femm, and if you ever saw one, you can take care of it right away. Leave it to me. And let me know if you see one. No need to tell me. Can I check these magic mouse bones too? I guess, if you want. Femm seemed proud about it, as did the other wolves. But I still felt a bit upset about this. I meanmice would carry disease and destroy crops. But magical micethey werent normal ones. They were much older, and had more diseases. And since they were older, they could destroy much more in the fields. Just three of them could destroy a total field together. That night, I asked Luka about it. Someone like Luka could tell me all I needed about magical beasts. Magic mice? Yeah, like this. I showed Luka the mouse the wolves had given me. Its small, but it is magical. Small? Small for a magical one. Ive seen them twice as big. Hm A strange story. I dont like this at all. Yeah, even though Femm killed many of them, something like this could kill off the field quickly. We have to be careful. I know. If you find one mouse, that means there are 30 you didntits how an adventurer thinks. And with a big one like that, you have to be careful. Mice growrapidly. Hey, so did you understand something from Moofys urine, Luka? Yeah, its concentrated magic. Anything else? Other than that, its just urine. Hm. Well, I wonder if the earth dragon attack was just a coincidence then. If so, then I wondered why the earth dragon and the others attacked us. I thought it was definitely because of Moofys urine. Was the earth dragon injured somehow? No, it seemed normal to me. Was it starving? I wonderit did seem thin. I didnt look at it close enough to determine whether or not it was thin. Well, I guess a dragon scares you so much, you dont really look closely to see how thin it is, right? A dragons flesh is very tough, and it had thick scales all over. Thats why you cant see. I guess I should check again. I was outside of the magic wolf territory, right? Yeah. And it was strange to see one there. I want to see where it came from. NoI know youre too busy, Luka. Youre too busy, Al. Yeah, I know. I guess I decided to check it out again as soon as I had the chance. Chapter 63 - And a Goblin!

Chapter 63 C And a Goblin!

Trantor: ranzan The next morning. The wolves had stacked up dead moles and mice all over again. Thanks again! Ruff Ruff! The wolves all started wagging their tails at once. I rubbed as many heads as I could, and then looked at the mountain of rodents. Due to yesterday, and just to check. Moofy watched my the whole time. And because I was careful, I found a magic mouse in the bodies of mice again. A magic mouse. We killed this one today too. Good job, Femm. Wuff! I petted Femm and asked, Have you found anything strangetely like this magic mouse? We saw a goblin in our territory. A goblin?! A goblin was a magic beast the size of a human child. It wasnt that intelligent. But we couldnt let our guard down. It was weak individually, but since they moved in groups, they were dangerous. There WERE viges destroyed by goblins, after all. There have been goblins here before. Many? Yes, thats why we all hunt them down. So dont worry. Perhaps the ecosystem of magic beasts here was changing. Before, the top predators in this area were magic wolves and bears. The magic wolves took over, but I am sure that the magic bears still had a strong presence. Do the magic bears move around? There are bears that want to move into our territory. Really? Yes, but we chase them off! Femm was very proud of the fact. Its tail was swishing back and forth. Good job, Femm. I thought about what Femm said while petting it. There were changes happening in this ecosystem. Because of the wolves strength, there were changes being made. However, it wouldnt be strange if it hit a limit. I think I need to check this out. Ruff? Femm looked puzzled. I heard Moofys voice just then. Mooo. Moofy had been standing beside me quietly until recently, but had wandered off somewhere. She came running from behind the storage shack. Moofy? Mooo MOO!ǣ٣ǣ٣ǣǣ Moofy had a goblin in her mouth. The goblin was iling about, punching and kicking at Moofys face. Is she okay? Rouf? Femm and I ran quickly to Moofy. Moofy dropped the goblin to the ground, and I dispatched it with magic. Moofy, are you hurt? Say thanks Moofy spoke in spirit speech, as I rubbed her head. She might have gone at that goblin just to get some appreciation. Good jobbut it was dangerous, you know? I OK. As I rubbed her, I made sure she wasnt injured. She was punched and kicked over and over, but there was no swelling or bruises. She used to be a giant cow. I guess thats something that gave her super endurance. A magic beast lost some of their abilities when they shrunk themselves. Even so, she was a sacred beast. There was little if any ability that she had lost. Well, just be carefulthat frightened me. Mooo! After checking that Moofy was okay, there was something else I had to check. Where did this gobline from? Moo. Moofy started walking. She wanted me to follow her. I quietly followed her, with Femm. We walked three minutes from the back side of the storage shack when Moofy stopped. Moo moo! You caught it here? Caught. Good job finding it. Mooo! Moofy was happy to beplimented. And almost as a response to her mooing, some goblins jumped out of the bushes. ǣ٣ǣ٣ǣ٣ǣ٣ There were three of them. They didnt have the perception to tell how strong their enemies were. They just jumped at us and attacked. I immediately dispatched them with magic. Still some more. Help me search around. ruffMoo. We began looking around. Femm was either uninterested or tired. After looking a bit, we found a hole. I remembered that I had made it. This is the hole that you got all that y from for the house. Yeah. When I built my house, I came out to the forest to find y that I could form into bricks. This was the hole left over from picking all the y up with magic. You think that the goblins were using this as a nest? Its possible. Femm said as it sniffed out the scent. Im d that Moofy sensed it. I rubbed her head again. They invaded our territory and were able toe this close. Its an embarrassment. Femm looked deep in thought. Its tail was sagging limply. Moo. Moofy went over and licked Femm, perhaps to cheer it up. Cows can smell very well, I guess. But wolves smell much sharper. How did you sense them, Moofy? Moo? Moofy looked puzzled at me. Did you smell them. I feel bad thing. Hm. Perhaps a sacred animal like her has special senses. She was also made a sacred creature by a hero like Cruz. Moofy, tell me if you have that feeling again. OK. I didnt search the three goblins for treasure. The things you get from goblins are so useless they have no value. When a goblin has a weapon, then you take it as treasure, but those are usually trash as well. Thats why goblins are hated by adventurers. If there werent requests to get rid of them no adventurer would purposefully go after them. Femm, do you eat goblins? No. They taste horrible. I see. Not only hated by adventurers, but magic wolves as well. I just burned their remains with magical me. We should search for more this afternoon. Goblins had tried to make a nest near to the vige. I cant just rx and take this fact with ease. So I decided to search for more after lunch. Chapter 64 The Magic Monster Ecosystem Research Project

Chapter 64 The Magic Monster Ecosystem Research Project

Trantor: rannnnzaaaannn When I returned to the vige, Vi-Vi was waiting for me at the entrance. She hade over here after finishing caring for the cows. Whered you go, Al? Moofy found a goblin. I exined what happened, and Vi-Vi looked unhappy. Femm left me and gathered the wolves wound him. Graw! Kween GRrAWWW! Kweeeeen Femm was chiding the wolves there. The other wolves all looked crestfallen. It must be that Femm wasnt happy about those goblins getting so close to the vige. Or they were so busy hunting mice and moles that they just didnt notice. After a bit, Femm approached me. It is my fault. Please dont get angry at the other wolves. Im not angry. I told them to strengthen the patrols of our territory. Thanks, that helps. I rubbed Femms head. Then I went over and rubbed the other wolves. Vi-Vi. I think we should go check around. Good idea. Ill go out and look too. Thanks. After telling the chief, we made our way out quickly. I rode Femm, while Vi-Vi rode Moofy. First well take a look around the wolves territory. Especially any holes in the ground or cliffs. Sure. There were other holes where goblins were inside. We dispatched four goblins, and 12 magic mice. Just as Luka had said, the magic mice that Femm had captured before were of a smaller ss. There were somerge ones we found too. Just thinking about a mouse tearing through our field like that was scary. There were more than I expected, and bigger. Embarrassing. Dont worry about it. The reason theyre not closer to the vige is thanks to you, Femm. As I burned all the goblin bodies, Vi-Vi came closer. Hey, Al. Why are you burning up all the goblins bodies? Well, they have no treasure, and they taste bad to the wolves, apparently. But thats not the problem If I leave them to rot, that causes sickness. There arent anyone that would make them undeadthey are just weak goblins Thats NOT THE PROBLEM! You want someone to check them out, right? Like Lukashe can tell you more about them. She was right about that. When I did check them, there was nothing special. Seeing them and how they fought, they werejust goblins. There was nothing they used or any special attributes that made me feel anything peculiar. But it was important to make absolutely sure that there was nothing behind their appearance and movement here. Even though I couldnt see anything strange didnt mean that Luka couldnt find a clue among the bodies. Youre absolutely right, Vi-Vi. Lets take a few that remain back. I put some goblin bodies in my magic bag. I know that it was dirty business, but the magic bag wouldnt interfere with any clue they might have had on them. After packing them in, Vi-Vi said. Lets take them to the ce that you fought the earth dragon. That ce was strange. Yup! Femm ran along with me and Moofy had no trouble keeping up. As we came to the end of the territory, we encountered several other magical creatures. By the time we reached the limit of the territory, we had killed eight goblins and 16 magic mice. Theres quite a few. Kweeen. Femm was clearly disheartened. It wasnt that Femm had done wrong, but Femm was still responsible for its territory. As we made our way along, we came to the ce we fought the earth dragon. Is this it? Yeah, Femm, do you sense anything? I do. There are many magic beasts around. But there was no sense of anying to attack. It was normal for them to be cautious. You said that a group came at you when Moofy peed? Yeah, Moofys urine has concentrated magic, but other than that, its just urine. Hmmm. Moo? Vi-Vi looked lost in thought. Moofy was confused. Moofy, can you pee? Pee. Could you, for us? Yes. Moofy stood still for a bit. She looked ready to do her business. Moofy, you want us to give you some privacy? Vi-Vi was about to back off and give Moofy some space, when, -PWWWWWIISSSSSHHHHH Moofy peed. At the same time, all sound around us silenced. All the bugs and birds sounds stopped. I could feel somethinging. Femm was looking around wildly too. That was a lot of pee! Good job! Moo! Vi-Vi wasplimenting Moofy, and Moofy looked happy. Even thought Vi-Vi and Moofy were rxed, I could feel hostility growing around us. There was a huge perception of violenceing at us. ǣϣϣϣϣϣ! Some magic beasts were approaching. Three magic bears. Quite big, but emaciated. GRaawWW! In an instant, Femm attacked and tore at ones neck. Femm didnt care that I was riding it either. I was almost thrown off. Whoaa! I grabbed onto Femms fur with my left hand and show magic arrows at the other two. The arrows passed easily through the bears heads. Much softer than a dragons armor. Just then, the bear that Femm had wrestled down stopped moving as well. It was just like a magical wolf leader like Femm to push magical bears this far off its territory. Even one of them was no opponent for Femm. I got off of Femm and checked the bears bodies. They were quite thin, but nothing really out of the ordinary. Ill put one of them in my magic bag. I ced one of the bears inside my magic bag. It was the one that was pretty much intact except where Femm had torn its throat out. The other two had nothing left above the necks. Theyre werent useful for Luka to check. As I looked the headless ones over, Vi-Vi said, Just bears? I dont think finding another earth dragon would be usual. Youre right, I guess. Then I asked Femm, Femm, do you sense anything else around? I do. Hmm. It was probably being very cautious, whatever it was. Here I had killed a earth dragon. It was probably very cautious just for that reason. If thats so, then whatever it is, is quite intelligent. Why do you think so, Al? Well, the only thing that havee into this territory and near the vige are magic mice and goblins, right? Yeah. Its probably because of their low intelligence that they enter the territory. Hm. And beast with high intelligence would stay outside of Femms territory after sensing Femm. I think you may be right. I patted Femms head. We might owe a lot to Femm and the other wolves. Ruff? Because of the territory you keep, we only get weak creatures like goblins near the town. Thats just a possibility. Femm said, but still wagged its tail happily. Well, if whatever it is, is this cautious, it will enter when it feels there is an opening. Thats not good, Al! Right? Thats why we should attack it. Leave that to me! Moo! We were about to attack whatever beasts were hanging around and waiting. Chapter 65 - And A DRAGON?!

Chapter 65 C And A DRAGON?!

Trantor: ranzan I looked at Vi-Vi, Femm, and Moofy. They were ready to fight, not tired at all. There was still no sign that whatever was out there was going toe at us either. I gave Femm the order. Lets go at the strongest one you sense. Okay. Femm turned a bit and took off running while I was riding. Moofy followed with Vi-Vi on top. Vi-Vi, I n on protecting you from whateversing, but be careful. I know that already. If you think its dangerous, just run. Moofy, take care of Vi-Vi. Moo! Moofy responded, loudly. Because Moofys a cow, youd think she would be weak, but shes not. The smell is getting stronger. Like a dragons Got it. Stop here. Ruff. A distance away, I could see an earth dragon. This was a size bigger than the one I fought previously. Is this thing thinned out? It is. Vi-Vi said with a determined voice. The dragon had thick scales on top of thick skin. It was hard to tell if it was thin or not. You can see that really well, Vi-Vi. I can kind of tell if I look. I see. While we were talking, the dragon roared. ǣ٣ϣϣϣϣϣϣϡ It was trying to intimidate us. But there was little forcefulness in its voice. There was little magical force in it. When I first met Femm, it howled at me in a threatening way. Femm had far more magical force in its howl than this dragon. Its best if we can just chase it away. Its not going to move that easily, Al. Youre right. We watched the earth dragon carefully. This wasnt a ce that the earth dragon came fromit had to have moved here. I wish the damn thing would just go back to where it came from. ǣ٣ It roared again. Femms ears pricked up. Its calling the others. Really? Thats how the magic its using feels. Huh. It seems that Femms words were correct. More magical beasts gathered. I could see wyverns flying through the sky. I could also hear the sound of earth lesser dragons crashing through the woods. I got down from Femm. Femm, go ahead and fight, dont worry about me. But, Al, your knee is hurt. I wont have to move much with enemies like these. Are you sure? Yup. Okay then. Next I looked at Vi-Vi, riding on Moofy. Vi-Vi, can you fight on top of Moofy? Or would you like to fight behind me? Ill fight behind you. Moofy is much stronger with me not on her. I see. Vi-Vi dismounted and Moofy looked at her sadly. Moo? If Im going to fight, Id rather do it here. moo. If you get scared, just run, okay? No run. Moofy said with a strong tone. Moofy, Femm, and Vi-Vifight however you want. Ill follow you. Okay!Ruff!Moo! And dont get separated from me, Vi-Vi. Its hard for me to project a shield far away. I know that ALREADY! While we were talking, the other beasts surrounded the earth dragon. One earth dragon, five wyverns, and seven lesser earth dragons. A lot of enemies. You trying to run away, Al? Yeah, sure. The earth dragon roared again. ǣ٣ Eeep! This time it growled with a lot of magic. The dragon was attempting to scare away our fighting spirit. Vi-Vis body froze up, and I could see her shake. But she was usually like that. Thats why getting rid of dragons was hard, even for an army. You would freeze up if you couldnt resist its voice. Youd shake with fear. Then, if you were overrun, you could lose hundreds of soldiers. ǣ٣ǣϣϣϣϣϣϡǣգ In response to the earth dragon, all the other monsters cried out. They all put magic into their shrieks. They were beginning their attack. They came at us, all at once. GRar!MoooOOO! Femm attacked. Moofy grew to her massive size. Almost the size of a small hill. Whoooa! I hadnt seen Moofy huge for a while, and I was surprised. Was she this big before? I had seen her huge before, and even so I thought that. The monsters were even more surprised. ǣᡭǣϣ As the monsters reared back in surprise, Femm attacked. Femm grabbed a lesser dragons neck and pulled it to the ground. I shot the wyverns with magic as they plunged to attack Femm. These dragon types had high magical resistance. I shot three magical arrows at each. MOooooooooooOOO! yᡭ Moofy charged right at the earth dragon. The earth dragon attacked by spitting fire but it had no effect. Moofy mmed head-first into the dragon. The dragon was blown backwards. The slowly rising dragon got up and bit Moofy, but the teeth and then ws couldnt hurt Moofy. Moofy really IS strong Femm was chewing on another lesser dragon, and ripped up what was left of the wyverns. Femm was quite strong too. However, Moofy was even stronger. She blew away a dragon by ramming it, then stomped it fatallyeven though it was a dragon. I guess I have no part in this. But that wasnt a bad thing. I was expecting to beat all these things myself. However, Moofy and Femm were way stronger than expected. I was done after just lightly attacking a few beasts. After they were all dead, Femm and Moofy returned. Moofy shrunk back to her small size. Good job, Femm and Moofy. Ruff Moofy ran over to Vi-Vi. Moofy licked her, looking a bit worried. Okay? Yeah, Im okay. Vi-Vi shook off her fear and said, acting tough. But Moofy still got closer as she was worried about Vi-Vi. Vi-Vi clung to Moofy for a while. As I watched, I petted Femm. Ruff! I looked at Femm and we nodded to each other. Vi-Vis lower half was wet. After she heard the roars of the monstersshe seemed to have wet herself. Femm and I just acted like nothing had happened. Chapter 66 - Checking Outside the Wolves’ Forest

Chapter 66 C Checking Outside the Wolves Forest

Trantor: ranzan I stuck some of the monsters in the magic bag as well. I didnt pull them apart like usual. It would be easier for Luka to check them out. I needed to take this slowly. Vi-Vi seemed to have rxed after holding on to Moofy for a while. With the work done, I asked Vi-Vi, Vi-Vi, are you okay? Im perfectly FINE! Vi-Vi said proudly in an attempt to look brave. But her bottom half was still drenched. Um, lets take you back to the vige. WHY?! We still havent figured this all out! If you say so, Vi-Vi, but If Vi-Vi was going to pretend like she hadnt peed herself, I would respect that, I guess. Femm, do you feel any more presence around us? Yes. Okay. Lets hunt them down, then. Ruff. We searched around. We found and killed dragons, bears, basilisks, hydras, and a lot of other monsters as well. There are too many out here. Yeah. Femm, how many monsters usually inhabit this area? Too manythis is three times the usual. Three times wasnt normal. And the monsters you encountered werent typical around here either. Femm suddenly stopped in its tracks. Femms ears stood up and its nose sniffed away at the air. What is it? Rotten fleshno, blood, bonesthe airs full of it. Hm. Lets look around here. Femm took me to where the smells came from, and there was a huge mass of bones. Dragon bones. Earth dragons, wyverns too. There were also bear and basilisk bones. There was blood, but no meat left. What the hell happened? Lets look around. There were bite marks in the bones. The meat had been torn off the bones by something. Hm. Looks like some starving beast ate this up. You think that this was eaten by that earth dragon? From the smell and the bite marks, it was probably an earth dragon. Femm said while sniffing it over. If so, then a bunch of starving earth dragons ate this up. It might have been that all the goblins and magic mice were already eaten up by the beasts. Because of this, any goblins and other small creatures left fled to the wolves territory. With all the weak magic beasts gone, the stronger ones ate each other up. Its pretty crazy to think the stronger beasts ate each other up. I dont think they ate each other. Perhaps they just ate some dead bodies. Hm? Dragons usually dont eat each other. There was no way that a proud race like dragons would resort to eating each other. This is too clean as well. If they had fought to the death, the bones would be broken too. I see. After hearing Femm exin it and looking again, it was true that it was just too clean. There were bite marks, but they only seemed to be made in order to gobble down the meat. They werent bites made in battle. Hm. So why did they die? We cant know unless we check. Lets take the bones home. I put some of the bones in my magic bag. Thats some deep bag you have there, Al. It cost me a pretty penny. There was still quite a bit of room inside too. Femm was checking the bones and then said, I think they starved to death. Why do you think so? The magic in their blood isnt very good. It was something you could sense in magic creatures that could absorb magic. A wizard like me could detect traces of magic around, but couldnt tell the taste of it in the blood. Not good? The magic in it was low? I think so. When Femm said that, Vi-Vi whispered, If they were going to starve, they should have just looked for food. Well, if they starved, there had to be a reason, right? So whats the reason, Al? They had run here, to the wolves territory, but wouldnt dare go farther. It might have been that. Are you saying that earth dragons would run from something? Vi-Vi frowned. If the earth dragons ran, that meant they were running from something far stronger. This wasnt bing a good conversation. If thats the case, they they should have just entered the wolves territory. Vi-Vi said, but this pack of magic wolves was quite strong. Even with dragons, they couldnt beat the wolves. And even if they had carrion to eat, they werent going to fight the wolves. The wolves are quite strong. And they knew it was only a matter of time until we attacked them. If thats so, they should have just run away to somewhere else. Femm said strongly. It would have been a decent fight against the wolves. But there would have been a lot of sacrifices. Even so, its weird for earth dragons to run away. Yeah, we have to find why they ran. Understood. Ill search for a stronger presence. Femm looked around, and we searched until evening. However, there was no enemy that Femm could find. Want to camp? No, lets go home. Why, Al? We have to stop whatever the reason is, right? If we couldnt find it in the day, its going to be even harder in the night. If Moofy and Femms noses couldnt sense it, then theres no way human eyes could. Also, Vi-Vis legswellmaybe she should change. So we all decided to return to Mulg. Chapter 67 - Where Did the Damn Things Come From?

Chapter 67 C Where Did the Damn Things Come From?

Trantor: ranzan We got back to Mulg right before the sun went down. When we got to my new house, Vi-Vi hurried into the bathroom, hopefully to get washed and changed quickly. Femm and I just acted like nothing had happened. We just watched her run in without saying anything. Moofy joined Vi-Vi. That cow really loved hot baths. Later, Cruz and the other in the party as well as the chief came in. They knew we went out on a search, so they had waited for us. Good work. How was the search you did? Chief, thanks foring. Sorry to say, but the search still isnt over. I see. I heard you found magic mice, so the vigers are a bit upset. Magic mice are a farmers greatest enemy. I know why the vigers would be upset. I guess most of the quests beginning adventurers take are getting rid of them. Commoners see them all the time, and the magic mice are rightly feared. Whatre magic mice again? Cruz said with a questioning face. An adventurer always starts off with killing at least one magic mouse. But a hero like Cruz? She never started on that low of a rung. Heroes dont get any requests to kill off mice. I guess there was no reason to expect her to know what they were. The chief opened his eyes wide in surprise. But, youre an adventurer, so you know, right? Cruz? Yes, Al and I went on a lot of adventures together! An adventurer that doesnt know what a magic mouse is?! Huh? All the other adventurers know? Cruz looked around at the rest of us. Yeah, we all knew exactly what they weresorry, Cruz. Cruz looked confused, so Luka exined. Lets just say that Cruz iscking somemon sense, here and there. Yeah, shes still learning a lot. Yureena said while scruffing Cruz short hair. Then Cruz looked over at me. Als taught me a lot about adventuring. I see, so shes still learning. The chief said, maybe misinterpreting that Cruz was a novice. Since it was better he didnt know who Cruz really was, I left it at that. Since that conversation was over, I had something that I had to ask Luka. Luka. I brought you some of the corpses that I dealt with. Could you look at them? Sure, I guess. Thanks. Theres a lot, so lets go outside. We left my house and I took the bodies out of my bag. The chief jumped back when he saw the magic mice and goblins. There were this many mice and goblins?! This is a part of them. oh, my! Dont worry. The goblins and mice arent worth sweating. Femm and the other wolves will tear them to shreds. Ruff! Femm stuck his tail out proudly. The chief turned to Femm and bowed deeply. Femm, thank you for defending us. Wuff wuff! On the other hand, Luka was carefully checking through the dead bodies. Theyre thin. But they look like normal magic mice and goblins. I see. Well, let me check them out. She quickly stowed away the mice and goblins into her own magic bag. Well, its not only goblins. Then just dump them all out without making a big deal about it! Okay. I took out the wyverns, earth dragons, basilisks, hydrae, and magic bears. The chief fell on the floor, literally blown off his feet in shock. EEEP! Its fine. Thats why you hired me as guard. Althank you. The chief now bowed over and over deeply to me. While he did, Luka silently looked over everything. And just like the academic she was, This is quite a haul. Way too much for this ecosystem to handle. We found the remains of some kind of dragon feeding ground too. As I said that, I took out some of the bones I had found. They were the ones with dragon bit marks all over them. Luka peered at them closely. Yeah, something did eat these bodies up. Its not rare for bears, monkeys, mice and other magic animals to do thisbut its rare for dragons. Right? I could write an essay on this. Luka said, again, like an academic. Well, you can write whatever you want. I know that already. But I will check all this for you. You want to know where they ran from, or what they were running from, right? Exactly. Then Ill try to find that out. Thanks. She then put everything I had dumped into her own magic bag. We all returned to the house. I have tomorrow off, so Ill be looking at these in my roomdont BUG ME, okay? What? You have someb there or something? I thought she would look them over at some capital research facility. All she had in her room in my house was a bed and a desk. I brought my materials. Enough to figure this out. She said tly. I had no idea she brought her stuff. Now that I think of it, since she brought her magic bad, it wouldnt be hard to lug all that stuff with her. Maybe she was thinking of turning Mulg into a research site or something. It was strange for her to do all this, but still helpful. Well, thats about it! Do you need my help, Luka? No, Cruz. Luka refused, and Cruz looked a bit crestfallen. Even though it was dinnertime, Luka didnt leave her room. Millet was about to bring Luka some dinner, but we stopped her. Is Luka okay? Does she really not want dinner? Shes fine. She doesnt want anyone to bug her. But shes going to get hungry. Shes an adventurer. Shes got dried meat or something in her bag C shell be fine. Millet, Lukas the type that really focuses on what shes doing. Even the best food means nothing to her now. If we call her and she doesnt answer, its best to just leave her until shees out of the room. Thats the way the partys always treated her. Luka was a genius of a different type than Cruz. When shes in that hyper-focused mode, she can get anything done that she needs to. I see. Millet still seemed worried even after our exnation. The next morning. Luka came to my doorway. She had dark circles under her eyes from staying up all night. Here. Whats this? Luka gave me several pages of paper. I wrote it in simple terms that even someone like Cruz could understand. Be happy I was here to write it for you. Thanks. Theump. And like that Luka flopped onto my bed. Hey, LUKA! ZZZZZZzzzz Ruff?Moo? She was already asleep. Femm and Moofy were a bit surprised, as they both sniffed at her. Chapter 68 - A Magic Monster Field Study

Chapter 68 C A Magic Monster Field Study

Trantor: ranzan Luka had written a study about where the monsters were all running from. There were detailed facts about the species, their inhabitation, and distribution maps. Yureena read it with me and said, She knew this much in detail about the dragons you fought. I had no idea! Me neither. Me too! Just like you guys. For some reason Cruz eyes were shimmering. She looked really happy about all of this. An adventurer knew the way and difficulty of subduing many types of monsters. However, since Luka was an academic, she knew what their tail shapes looked like and the color of the beasts and all that additional information. It was also the specialty of an academic to know where those beasts had moved here from. I was really happy she had chosen that path. After breakfast, I told everyone I was going to check the ce again. Cruz stood out proudly and said, Im going too! Cruz, you cant go with him. Wha? You and I have to kill off a demon, this time. Demons were strong. They looked like humans, but werent. They were also different from magical creatures. There were academics that said they were humans that changed into something magical, and others that said they were closer to something sacred than just magical. Yureenas going to have a hard time fighting that demon without you, Cruz! If you donte with me Cruz, even if I fight one with a squad of knights, some will end up dead. Yureena kindly admonished Cruz. Even with a top rank healer like Yureena, some would die. Thats how strong demons were. If I were to go against a demon, I wouldnt lose in a one to one battle. But it would be tough if there were several. I might even end up losing. Okay. I guess Ill go with you, Yureena. Thank you. Cruz decided on going with Yureena on the demon-clearing expedition. She had a strong sense of responsibility. Al, take care of yourself, okay? Sure. Thanks. You twoe back safe too. We knowjust leave it to us. Cruz and Yureena worked well together. They killed off a lot of powerful enemies as a pair. I could leave them to the work with no worries. When Cruz went back to the capital, I got on Femm and rode. Vi-Vi got on Moofy as well. Are you going to be okay, Vi-Vi. With the distance were going, we have to camp. I have no problem doing that. Vi-Vi replied cheerfully. It was a far distance away, so Femm sped through the woods. Several times faster than a horse, and Moofy stuck with us the whole way. Both Femm and Moofy were serious about this. From Lukas research it seems that the monsters were fleeing from the western mountain range, right? Seems so. You think thats the ce where Cruz and the others crushed that necromancersboratory? Yeah, but I think thats even farther away. The western mountain range was very, very wide. The ce the monsters seemed to be running from was two to three days from that necromancersb. And it was one to two days distance from Mulg by horse. Were in the middle of the mountains now. Yeah. And there are some very strong monsters in the middle of these western mountains. Hm, well, Al. The mountains can be a dangerous ce. That was the habitat where the monsters came from. That ce must have experienced some kind of extreme change. Luka had determined that. And those were mountains with very jagged peaks. Can you two handle mountains? I can, easily. Easy. Dont push yourself too hard. Ruff.Moo. Femm and Moofy replied strongly. They were a dependable pair. Because Femm and Moofy had ran so quickly, we arrived at the base of the mountains by evening. Well, time to start climbing. No, Vi-Vi, we camp. Tomorrow we climb. Because its dangerous here at night? Yup. Pretty much. There was no doubt that it was dangerous at night. However, there was something that had chased away all the monsters in this location. It was best to be cautious of that. And, the two animals were tired. Femm and Moofy had run here quite quickly. They had to be exhausted. It would be rough to make them run up a mountain like this. Femm, do you feel anything near? Nothing. There are insects, but no animals or magical beasts. That makes it even scarier. Yes. Femm shook its body. Maybe out of excitement for what lie ahead. Moofy, do you feel something? No. Moofy said tly. We quickly set up camp. Summer was over. And because it was the mountains, it was quite cool. It was cold to be cold in the night. So I took a tent out of my magic bag and set it up. So you got a tent there, Al? Of course I do. I thought adventurers dont use tents. It is true that you make yourself open to ambush inside a tent. But, inside a tent you dont get blown around by wind. The amount you recover ispletely different. Well, adventurers do use them in winter. I see! Moo moo! Vi-Vi nodded in assent. Moofy stuck the front of her body into the tent. I could only see her rump. I know she wanted in, but the size of them were a big problem. Its going to be hard to stick both of you in the tent. Ruff.Mooo. They both looked sad and I felt bad for them. I quickly made dinner which we ate and Vi-Vi rested in the tent. Moofy had her front half in the tent again. Femmid beside the tent. I stretched out between Moofys back half and Femm. Ruff? I need to be on guard tonight. And saying that, I rubbed both Moofy and Femm. Good job you two. RuffMoo Both of them wagged their tails. The night air was cool enough to almost be chilly. However, surrounded by the two animals, I was warm. It was a nice ce to sleep. Late that night. DDң٣ I awoke to the echoes of a loud cry. Chapter 69 Going to Meet the Master of the Voice

Chapter 69 Going to Meet the Master of the Voice

Trantor: ranzan I awoke after hearing the cry, and Femm stood with me. Femm was nervous, and its tail stuck out straight. Wha!? Wha, what was that?! Moo MOO! Vi-Vi was scrambling in the tent. Moofy was as well. It took her a little while to find her way outside. What do you think that was? I have no idea. Femm seemed not to know either. While we were discussing this, Vi-Vi crept out of the tent. What was that sound, Al? No idea. But whatever it was, it seems we found our culprit. Hm. While I was talking about it, Vi-Vi nodded in assent. I was d she hadnt peed herself yet either. There was magic in its voice too. Yes, I could feel it as well. You mix magic in your growls too, Femm. What does it feel likepared to yours? It was so far I only heard the echoes, but, it seemed like there was a lot mixed in. Hm Its not hard to project your voice to echo far away, but it is hard to project magic far away. I guess the magic disperses from a howl or cry much quicker that the sound does. sorry to say, but its way stronger than I am. I see. Femm looked quite sad about it. Femm had pride as a wolf king. All of those magic monsters fled from here right up to Femms territory, and then stopped. They must have not been that scared of Femmpared to whatever this is. Calling a cry imbued in magic a kind of magic itself wasnt an exaggeration. If it hit you it could make you fearful and run away. There was no doubt that the animals and magic beasts had fled after hearing whatever that monster is cry out. Vi-Vi, do you want to wait here? Why?! Because that cry is going to be far worse when we get closer. With as close we would have to get to it, its cry would be far worse to bear. It would be much stronger than the earth dragon. If the earth dragon made her pee herself, then Vi-Vi wouldnt hold up against whatever this is at all. Dont mock me, AL! I can take care of myself! Okay Vi-Vi was saying that out of pride though. I knew she would pee all over herself this time. I whispered over to Moofy. Hey Moofy, you take care of Vi-Vi, okay? Moo! Moofy nodded and mooed back at me strongly. We slept a little more until the sun came up. Until the sun rose, we heard the thing cry out three more times. It woke us up. I cant get any sleep because of that damn thing! Well, dont push yourself too hard, Vi-Vi. I was a veteran adventurer. One thing about people like us is that we dont sleep like a rock, so I was okay with it. Beasts like Femm and Moofy were cautious so they slept light as well. They were fine with it. But Vi-Vi looked worn out already byck of sound sleep. We ate breakfast and set out. Before we did, I said to Femm and Moofy, Since these are mountain roads, you dont have to hurry. Ruff? It would also be bad if youre tired and we have to fight. Understood. Moo. We climbed the mountain pace by pace. We could feel that this was a ce where strong beasts resided. Ordinarily, wed have to battle them as we moved along, but now Its nice we have nothing to fight, but All the enemies have run away from whatever we heard, Al Yeah, just thinking about it is scary. As we climbed higher, I could feel Femms anxiety. Femm could feel a very strong enemying. Femm, do you feel a strong enemy. Danger. Femms speech became short like Moofys. Femm was probably quite scared. Moofy, are you okay? Okay. Moofy still seemed quite calm. I wonder what the difference was. Maybe between magical and sacred animals. Or maybe carnivore and herbivore. It was past noon. ң᡹ You hear that? Yeah, I heard it, Al. There was no magic in the cry. It was much smaller thanst nights. Even so, Femm looked rattled. Lets proceed carefully, and quietly. Okay! Ruff.Moo! As we continued, we saw a massive creature in the distance. It was two timesrger than Moofysrgest sizeand a dragon. Is that a ancient dragon? Thats the first time I saw one, Al? They were the strongest of dragons, these ancient dragons from the sacred times. All of these ancient dragons were also called Dragon Lords. It had magic in amounts that were totally in a different ss than normal dragons. Vi-Vi and I dismounted and talked it over. What is an ancient dragonsaid to be a strong as a goddoing in a ce like this? I dont know. Normally, there would never be an ancient dragon in a ce like this. The usually were in ces where humans rarely go, like the coldest extremes, high up where the air is thin, or in the deepest oceans. The ces they lived were the ces hardest for humans to get to. These ancient dragons are thousands of years old, right, Al? Well, I wouldnt go that far. Hm? I told her about some knowledge that Luka had shared with me. People think that ancient dragons have the name because of their old age, but its just their species. Even newly born ancient dragons were stillancient dragons. So, youre saying this thing might only be like five years old? No, an ancient dragon thats nearly born is just smaller. It would take a while for that thing to grow that big, right? I guess so. The academics really didnt know much about the ancient dragons. It was hard to research them, simply because it was hard to reach them. It was actually only recently that they were identified as the ss ancient dragons. It would have been better if we had brought Luka. Yeah, its kind of sad we left her behind. It was extremely rare to encounter a beast like this. ᡹ Just then, the ancient dragon cried out in a soft voice. Almost rhythmical, and quietly. You think that things sleeping, Al? Theres no magic in its cry, so it may be. Femm shook its body as it heard me speak. So what now? Do we attack it directly? We dont have to. Femm really wanted to attack. It might be because it was fearful inside, and I knew how Femm felt. An ancient dragon is very intelligent. And its fighting power wasnt normal. We need to avoid fighting however possible. Do you think we can speak to it? No idea. But we need to do something other than fight it. Even if we have to fight it, theres no reason to do it now. So, Al, if we fight it, will we win? I can. But I think all you others need to go away. Why?! I dont think I can protect you while Im fighting. Honestly, I wasnt sure that I would win. If I said that I couldnt win, then Vi-Vi and the others would urge all of us to fight together. With Cruz, Luka, and Yureena, Im sure we could win. However, I dont know about doing it alone. It was fifty-fifty. Or maybe more of a chance Id lose. You need to get out of here too, Femm. No way. Im your ride, Al. Thanks. I guess Femm had really warmed up to me. I was thankful Femm looked at me this way. Im going too, Al! Moo. I tried to stop them, but Vi-Vi and Moofy were not going back. I whispered to Moofy again. If we do get in a fight, take care of Vi-Vi. Run whenever you have to. Okay. Moofy could at least get Vi-Vi out of there if necessary. Femm too. If you think its dangerous, run, okay? I dont want to. If something happens to me, then tell Cruz, Yureena, and Luka, okay? Ruff Please. I know already. We both got back on our rides. Then we quietly neared to the ancient dragon. I knew that this was a stupid thing to do, but it had been a while since I faced a strong enemy, and I was excited. Cruz was always talking about what tough enemies she had defeated, but I wasnt that type of brash warrior. Im getting to old for all this. I whispered to myself. Chapter 70 The Wizard and the Ancient Dragon

Chapter 70 The Wizard and the Ancient Dragon

Trantor: ranzan I rode Femm as I got closer to the ancient dragon. Slowly, and without rushing it. I told Moofy and Vi-Vi to follow me from behind. Of course Moofy was back to her smaller size. While I was riding Femm, I stepped up close to the dragon. From up close, its size really made it look fearsome. I wonder how many horses long it would be. It was so huge, I had no idea. ᡹ Even though it was a huge ancient dragon, it was sleeping so quietly. We humans and wolves were like a bug to something this size. So it didnt wake up. Youre going to wake it up? no, wait a second. Any beast gets angry when its awoken. And I didnt want to fight a pissed off ancient dragon. But if I had to fight it, I would. However, if I could avoid fighting something like this, I would. ᡭ Are we still waiting? Yeah, not yet. We spoke to each other softly. Our opponent would be an ancient dragon. I dont think normal speech would wake it, but I was careful. Femm was nervous. Even though I was riding it, I could feel it shake. At least Femm didnt have its tail between its legs, but I could still tell it was scared. Seeing this dragon from up closeit was so beautiful that it made you hold your breath. Its whole body was white as freshly fallen snow. Looking behind me, I could see Moofy a ways away with a small Vi-Vi riding on her. Moofy was sniffing the air. She was a cow that had no knowledge of fear. ᡭ The ancient dragon was still asleep. Its breathing was almost enough to blow you over. I stood and waited there for almost 10 minutes. ᡭ! It opened its eyes. It looked at Femm and I in front of it and jumped a bit. Youve awoken, great dragon. I spoke respectfully to the beast. The dragon simply watched me as I continued to speak. I am a man from the nearby vige of Mulg. I was curious as why a beast as powerful as a god, an ancient dragon, would be in a ce such as this? Weve had creatures that had fled in fear of your voice approach our town, and this had made things difficult. I would like to request that you refrain from crying out with magic power so as to prevent this from happening. It was a respectful request, but the ancient dragon didnt respond. Perhaps it didnt have words for a lowly beast, such as a human. Im sure that a creature like an ancient beast thought of humans as lowly beasts. Even so, I wasnt going to retreat. Oh, great dragon. Could you hear the request of a creature far lower than yourself. ᡹ The dragon breathed out a soft response. Just as I was about to lean in to hear what it was saying, ң٣!! I was blown away by its cry, filled with magical power. !! Kween! I gulped and Femm squealed a strange sound. My heartbeat started pounding faster. It felt like my stomach dropped to the bottom of my chest. I struggled to keep myself from vomiting. Bloooooeehhh But, Femm DID throw up. Femms tail was between its legs. And it was only because of the cry of the ancient dragon. Even a magical wolf king couldnt stop an ancient dragon from affecting it so. Even though Femm was scared, it stood its ground, and didnt move. It was a matter of Femms pride. Moo Moooo I heard Moofy mooing behind me. When I looked back, Moofy was holding Vi-Vi in her mouth. Vi-Vi waspletely unconscious. She had fallen off, and Moofy was now holding her. A very good cow. I guess I could entrust Vi-Vi to Moofy. I rubbed Femmwho had finished vomiting. Femm, are you okay? Imfine. Tell me if you need help. As all this was happening, the ancient dragon slowly rose. It slowly turned its neck. ң٣!! As it cried again, it blew freezing breath at me. I put up a magic barrier instantly. Even though it was instant, it was a very strong barrier. Not something you could just break. -CREEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEAK The barrier creaked with a inauspicious sound. The magical force of the cry, and not so much the freezing force, was too much. I put up another barrier and got behind it. Moofy had somehow dodged the breath with Vi-Vi in her mouth. Even though it was mid-summer, we were suddenly surrounded in white. Almost like being in a blizzard. -CRAAAAACK This barrier began to crack. I put up another barrier inside. Just after that, the first barrier broke. Just in time. The dragon swung at us with its w. Femm dodged it easily. As we jumped in the air, the dragon swung its tail. The force of the wind it made would be enough to knock us into the sky. Instead, I made five barriers. It broke through three. Terrifyingly strong. I couldnt just stand there in awe. I had to fight back. I struck it with magic spears over and over. The magic defense of an ancient dragon was exceptionally strong. Not easy to break through. I broke through its magic defense and shattered it. Some of it dropped and smash on the ground below the dragon. As soon as the dragon reared back to breathe on us again, I hit it with some gravity magic. Not to make it lighter, but to make it heavier. The rock below the dragon gave away and it fell into the gorge. Its breath spewed out in a scattered direction. Since this was a dragon with ice breath, fire would hurt it. I repeatedly shot it with magical fire. 10 shots. 20. 30. The heat of the shots rose, from red, to yellow, to white. The color of the fire changed as well. With the magical barrier gone, I was directly hitting the dragon. ң٣ It cried out with no magical force. A cry of terror. I used gravity magic to press it to the ground. The dragon struggled to run, but I couldnt let it. After struggling for a little bit, it finally stopped and became calm. Looking at the silent dragon, I felt relieved. Femm breathed out a gasp, and, Al, are you always so overpowering? simple is better, right? I guess we can talk about thatter. Femm looked at me a bit distrustingly. Good looking magic is only useful for games. Simple and strong magic is good for deathmatches. Thats why all-purpose magic is best. You only say that because you dont know much about magical battles, Femm. Ruff? Then, Moofy came to us, in her big size. MMoo. Were okay! Moofy was still biting onto Vi-Vis cor. Vi-Vi was embarrassingly iling around. Her lower half was wet again. I pretended not to notice. Moofy, thanks for caring for Vi-Vi. Moo! Moofy let Vi-Vi down, and happily nuzzled me with her giant nose. I patted the end of it. And after a big sigh, I descended into the gorge and faced the dragon again. Well, about that sudden attack. What was that all about? ᡭ The dragon cried out softly. It seemed very scared. But for some reason, this dragon looked quite odd. Chapter 71 - Ancient Dragon Drama

Chapter 71 C Ancient Dragon Drama

Trantor: ranzan I kept the ancient dragon forced onto the ground with magic. I used gravity magic and a magical barrier. The barrier used a bit of energy, but the gravity was sapping up a lot. DD᡹ The ancient dragon cried quietly. As it did, it tried desperately to il away from my entrapment. I could hold the thing for two more hours like this, at the limit. I wasnt under any pressure, but I didnt want to take this easy. I needed to speak to the ancient dragon again. I had to be calm and act like I was inmand. I had to act like I had a limitless amount of magic at my disposal. My opponent was a dragon that had been alive for thousands or even more years. I had to be polite, even if just on the surface. Oh great dragon, would you listen to my request? To imaging that a lowly human could hold me down like this The ancient dragon began speaking in human speech. It wasnt spirit speech. I could feel the magic in its speech reverberate through the air. It was a much stronger magic than spirit speech that it was using. If you promise me that you will not attack, I will release you. Then I promise. The dragon also nodded as much as it could in consent. As soon as I was about to release it, Vi-Vi grabbed onto my arm. Its DANGEROUS AL! Its fine. An ancient dragon had a lot of pride. It will not break its vow. And even if it did attempt to attack, I could just m it back down into the gorge again. I slowly released my magic. Strong child of men. I was a bother to you. I apologize. Saying that, the ancient dragon bowed its head. It said so in a praising way that I knew wouldnt result in it attacking me. As I said before, I want to speak to you. Please do so. Youve scared away all the beasts in this area with your magic voice. Is that so? I did not notice. They fled to where I currently live. Its caused quite a lot of problems. I apologize for that. The dragon bowed again. This was a much more respectful dragon than one would expect from an ancient dragon. Perhaps the only reason that it attacked me is that it was upset at being awaken by me. Why has an ancient dragon like youe near a ce where humans live? Hm. This will be a long storywill you hear it? Its no problem to me. The dragon began its tale. This ancient dragon was a dragon lord for the farthest reaches north. As one of the top lords of all dragons, it was one of the seven highest. I had no idea that there was no royalty system in the ancient dragon society. Of course, there is difference between dragon and human societies. But for the most part, simply so we are easier to understand, the position archduke is close to my position in the humannguage and mean quite the same thing. Even so, the fact that ancient dragons had a system of royalty still was new information. Luka would be happy to hear all of this. However, I still dont understand. Why is an archduke of dragon royalty here? The archduke began its story again. A bit ago, there was an egg stolen from the throne of the dragons at the north pole. This archduke had pursued the the thief all the way here in search for the egg. The archduke seemed like he could not contain his anger at the whole incident. As a human it seemed like someone stole his own child. Of course he was angry. Did you get the egg back? Of course. And I was protecting it so that it would not be re-stolen. I see. And thats why you thought that we hade to ambush you, right? It would be an excuse for me to say, but yes, its been hundreds of years since I had encountered a human. Its obvious that at first the dragon had thought we were the culprit as the egg thief. It must be hard for dragons to differentiate between different types of humans. Add to this the fact that this sleeping dragon was suddenly hearing human speech in front of it again after hundreds of years. It must have immediately thought that the egg stealers were us. The archduke dragon bowed once more. I am very sorry. Well, in these instances its understandable. Will you forgive me? I understand your anger. Anyone would get angry if their child were stolen. Then I am very grateful. It bowed once again. I understand what happened now Did you, human child? Since youve gotten it back with no problems, youll be returning home, correct? I know that Ive told you already, but you being here has disrupted the whole ecosystem of all the monsters. Honestly, its really bing a problem. I am very sorry. I would love to do so, but it is impossible. Not with these wings. The ancient dragon lifted its wings. It winced softly as it did. It must be in pain. The membrane in its wings was horribly tattered and torn. The bones in its wings were broken here and there as well. And in the battle I had with the dragon, I didnt attack its wings. Also, fire magic doesnt have an effect like that. Where did you get those wounds from? From my fight with the egg stealer. Whoever stole the egg had gone to the most extreme ce in the world, and stolen the egg off the dragons throne. No way it was weak. But even so, to leave wounds like this on an ancient dragon Its unthinkable to see wounds like this on an ancient dragon. Well, you did defeat mehuman. The dragon said, with something that sounded like a painedugh as it snorted. You were injured, right? I guess if you had all your power, then who knows who would have won this battle. Youre being humble, human. No, its the truth. Upon hearing this, the dragon archduke fell silently into thought. the egg was taken hostage. It was very hard to get it back. I see. If that was so, then I understand how this ancient dragon became so injured. I have a friend who is a very talented healer. Ill bring her here. The ancient dragon was a massive monster. You couldnt entrust something like this to a normal healer. It would be impossible to understand its wounds and condition, and there wouldnt be enough magic to heal it. However, with one of the greatest healers, like Yureena, it could be done. The dragon shook its head sorrowfully. Again, how grateful. However, there is no need. Why? I am already dead. There is no healing that can fix me. Do you mean that youre undead? Yes. Almost like a skeleton held together with muscle by magic. If this monster was undead and still had muscle and skin, whatever did this took a lot of magic. Because if it had turned skeleton, everything would have fallen off but the bones. Perhaps the dragon prevented itself from rotting because ancient dragons have unbelievable amounts of magic. Did you change yourself to undead so that you could stay here and protect the egg? Yes. Until the baby dragon finally leaves its nest, I must remain here and protect it. I understood how the dragon felt. I wanted to help. But there was a bigger problem. For the dragon egg to hatch and then leave the nesthow long would that take? It would have to take more than a few months. No, probably more than 10 yearseven 100 wouldnt be unthinkable. Sohow many years does it take for the egg to hatch and leave the nest? 10 or possibly 20 years. I see. Shorter than I imagined. Even so, it didnt help my position. How could I do something about this? While I was thinking, the dragon again spoke. I will speak, as I now trust you. Im sorry to say, but I am nearly at my limit. Your limit? When I fought the egg thiefI was cursed. With what kind of curse? A zombie curse. Now things looked very bleak. Having to deal with a zombified dragon was a disaster. The whole country would be destroyed. Also, I was hit by an immortal killing arrow. Immortal-killer An immortal-killer arrow was what cursed and injured my knee. Even now its very painful. But an immortal-killer with a zombie curse? There was no way yet to cure something like that. Its very dangerous. In order to stop the zombification process, I cast skeleton on myself. But the zombie curse didnt end there. Neither will the immortal-killer. Even now I am rotting away. Ive been hit by an immortal-killer arrow as well. Is that so? Strange to have a chance meeting with an adventurer that has also been struck by one. A very odd destiny. The ancient dragonughed. As itughed, I could hear it struggle to breathe. After the briefugh, it quietly began speaking again. There is no doubt I will be a zombie soon. I am trying my hardest to resist it, but I can not stop this curse that rots my body. It progresses especially quickly at night. The pain hurts so that I am unable to sleep well. So that was the sound we heard yesterday. You heard me? How embarrassing. The pain is such that I long for death. However, I fight on to preserve this egg. But I am at my limit. It would not be strange if I became a zombie today or tommorow. If it was just a skeleton, then Cruz might have been able to change it to a sacred animal. However, its got to be far more difficult than than because of the immortal-killer and zombie curse. The dragon gazed directly at me. Its ck pupils were like round obsidian stones. My name is the Archduke of the North, Jilnidra, strong human. Please let me know your name. My name is Viscount Alfred Lint. Since the dragon introduced itself with its title, I did the same in response. So you are a viscount. And this is your region? No. I am a vige guard. and why is a viscount a lowly vige guard? Its a long story. I see. Everyone was silent for a moment. Finally, Jilnidra spoke, Alfred Lint, I have a request. What is it? That you would kill me. No one would want to be a zombie. Especially someone with pride like an ancient dragon. And what should I do with the egg? Alfred Lint, shall I request that you care for it? It was a very unexpected request. Ive never cared for a dragon before. There is no need to care for a dragon egg. There is no need to warm it or move it around. Just leave it and it will hatch. Also, I am not sure, but I think it will hatch soon. It sounds easy. It is strong against fire and ice. It also is not easily damaged. So, youre saying you want me to protect it from thieves? Yes. Alfred Lint, you are strong. Strong enough to defeat me. And I think you are someone I can trust. Hm. I know this is a difficult request. However, I must ask. As the final request of the one caring for this egg. Ill admit, Im weak whenever someone starts talking about familial loveeven though I have none myself. I wanted to help if I could. So I asked Vi-Vi. Vi-Vi, could you burn away everything but the bone, and cast skeleton on it again? That way, like Moofy, we might be able to get Cruz to turn the dragon into a sacred beast. Vi-Vi looked quite flummoxed. its difficult. Because the zombie curse? That toobut even more, the body of the dragon has already been hit with a skeleton spell. Its impossible to cast skeleton on something thats already had it cast. It was as Vi-Vi said. I tried thinking about it a different way. if we could just cure the zombification. Alfred Lint, I thank you, but there is no way to reverse a zombie spell. but Being zombified is not an easily thing either. My wings were broken and I was very injured, but I still could fight. I guess I just rushed. The thief used the egg as a hostage. I had to do as the thief said. I allowed the curse to take effect, and stepped in the thiefs magic circle. I had to ept it or see the egg be destroyed. An ancient dragon bing a zombie. Almost impossible. But because the egg was taken hostage, the dragon had not other choice. You really did anything to get that egg back. Yes, but when I was zombified, the thief made a mistake. I repulsed the magic, stopped its progress, attacked, and even with broken wings grabbed the egg and flew off in escape. Wow. If the zombie curse had totally taken hold, then the dragon would have just be a puppet of the thief. Also its wings were broken. Thats why the thief let his guard down. As the curse was just about to take hold, that moment. In that instant, the dragon had fought back. Just like a protective parent. You said you attacked, so what happened to the thief? Probably very badly injured. But I didnt stop it. It was hard enough just getting away with the egg. So what was the thief? I dont know the name, but a demon. Demons were very strong magic beasts in the shape of men. A normal adventurer or dragon wouldnt stand a chance. I see. Then I will take the egg. Thank you. The dragon prostrated itself before me. Then the dragon took out the all-important egg. The egg was the same glimmering white as the dragon, the size of a medium dog. I took the eggit was quite warm. I will care for the egg, so please dont worry. How grateful. The dragon reached out and touched the egg with its finger. It said, kindly, Please forgive me for not caring for you until you left the next. I hopesomeday you will find happiness. It said sorrowfully as it continued to touch the egg. Then, while touching it, the dragon looked at me. Alfred Lint, please care for my child. I will, sont worry. My childs name is Sighisoara. I am sad to say that a useless parent like me can only give it one thing, a name. Sighisoara, understood. Thank you. The dragon took out a small bag hidden in the scales of its neck. This is the only treasure I have left. With it, those of my race will help you. Use it however you wish. I will take good care of it. The dragon then closed its eyes peacefully. I am already dead. But I need you to burn away my body before the zombificationpletely takes hold. Understood. The dragon let down its magic barrier. After that, I used the strongest fire magic I could, and burned away its body in an instant. Chapter 72 - Return to Mulg

Chapter 72 C Return to Mulg

Trantor: ranzan I burned the body of the ancient dragon away and said a prayer. I think you have to respect a dragon that would venture to a faraway ce to die in order to protect an egg. Vi-Vi, Femm, and Moofy all stood silently. At the end of that moment of silence, Vi-Vi and the others came to look at the egg. Hm. So this is an ancient dragons egg. Its very smallpared to the size of an ancient dragon. Moo Moo I had made my promise to the dragon. I had to return with the egg and protect it. Except for the size, its no different than a chicken egg. You cant break it easily? Thats what the dragon said. But there was no reason to be rough with it. It was the child of an ancient dragon. You should put it in your magic bag. I would if I could. Cant you? I think you put eggs in there before! When we bought several things in the town, I had put eggs into the bag. Maybe Femm was talking about that. You cant put living things in a magic bag. Rarf? Those eggs I put in were infertile, right? Wuff? Femm didnt know the difference between fertile and infertile eggs. Eggs were just food for wolves. I guess they never needed to learn that difference. I exined the difference to Femm. I see! Moo Moo Both Femm and Moofy looked at me, fascinated. Well have to take it home in hand. Femm, could you take it easy on the way back? Okay. Ill be careful not to shake it too much. Thanks. We all headed home. We progressed pretty easily as there were no magic beasts on the way. It was tiring having to hold it for so long, so I wrapped it against my chest with some fabric. We camped once on the way and the next day we arrived at the wolves territory after noon. I was caring for the egg, or Sighisoara, the whole way. Since the others were careful too, they would look at it when we took a break in returning. At the edge of the wolves territory, several wolves were waiting for us. I didnt want to get in the way of any conversation the wolves had, so I got off of Femm. Femm and the other wolves sniffed each other. Ruff Wuff Ruff!Waof! Femm barked and the other wolves barked back. They had to be talking about something. Femm proudly turned to me. My pack has protected the territory well. Good, thank you all. Ruff Ruff!Wuff! I petted all of their heads. The Femm turned to me and said. Theres still magic beasts around here thought. I bet. But with the ancient dragon gone, I bet theyll go back soon. Maybe we should scare them back so they return faster. Is that okay? Sure. Femm breathed in deeply and said, WaWait, Vi-Vi, you need to cover your ears. WHY?! Because Im about to howl loudly. Vi-Vi had peed herself at the sound of the earth dragons cry. If she hears the cry of a stronger beast like Femm, theres no reason she wouldnt again. Of course, unlike the dragon, she wouldnt be hit by it directly. It might be perfectly fine, but she should cover her ears just in case. I guess I have no choice. Vi-Vi said frankly. Even though it looked like she was thinking,WHY THE HELL DO I HAVE TO DO THIS?! Either way she didnt want to pee all over herself again. Femm breathed in again, deeply. GAAAOOOOOOOOOOOOOHHHHHHHHHH!!! MOOOOOOOOOOOOooooOOOOOOOO! The wolf king Femm howled out with magical force. It wasnt as much as the ancient dragon, but it was much stronger than the earth dragon. For some reason, Moofy also mooed along. Moofy had no magical force in her voice. Just a loud moo. Eeep! Vi-Vi squealed a bit. Maybe because she was holding her ears. But she didnt have an ident. This should get all the weaker beasts to run away. Good. It was quite a howl. RuffMoo Femm rubbed up against me, wanting to be petted. Moofy also looked like she had finished an important task. I rubbed them both. When we arrived at Mulg, the sun was going down. Cruz was sitting in front of my house. She was petting the other wolves. ALLLLL! She ran up to us as fast as she could when she saw us. Then she jumped up on me. I covered the egg on my stomach. I know that it was a tough egg, but just in case. I was worried about youyou didnte home! Yeah, sorry about that. Two nights, three days. Something like a small trip. We all waited for you every night untilte at your house! Well, sorry for making you wait. Heh heh. Cruz was embarrassed. I hadntplimented her or anything though. Luka came out from my house. She probably knew I was home from Cruz shouting. Luka, thanks. We figured it all out thanks to your analysis. Really? Good to hear. While I was talking to Luka, Cruz was clutching onto me from behind. Tell me what happened!! I wonder where I should start After thinking a second, Millet and Collette came out of the house too. Wee back, old man! Nice to be back. Were you a good girl? Yeah! Millet wasth REALLY LONELY WITHOUT YOU! Collette was as happy as usual. Millet grabbed my right hand with both of hers. I wasvery lonely. Ohyeah, sorry. Mister Al, wee home. Thanks. And after that, Millet smiled at me, warmly. My heart seemed to jump a beatshe was so cute. Cruz was still clutching onto me and was now looking at the egg I was holding. Maybe she thought it was a souvenir. Al! Tell me! Tell me what happened! Oh, yeah Millet somehow was able to pull Cruz off of me. I know you have a lot to tell Cruz, but since dinners ready for you I am hungry for some lowly human food! Moo Moo! Vi-Vi and Moofy were ready to eat. Well, you can tell us as we eat dinner. Yeah, thats the best. Yureena and Luka said, agreeing, as we all settled down for dinner. Chapter 73 - For the Egg’s Future

Chapter 73 C For the Eggs Future

Trantor: ranzan Cruz kept trying to cling to me the whole time, even before ate dinner. She wouldnt let go of my arm. Al, that egg! Is it a souvenir?! It would make a good omelette! No, its not a souvenir. I put the egg far away from Cruz. There was no way I could let this child of a dragon archduke, Sighisoara, be eaten by her. Really? Look, Ill tell you about this egg during dinner too. Okay! Cruz put her hand out and touched the egg. Its warm. Dont EAT IT. I know! Luka watched us talking over the egg. She was a monster specialist. She knew that I had brought home something that wasnt an ordinary egg. As we ate dinner, I exined what had happened. The reason for the change in the ecology of the monsters was because of an ancient dragon. It was the archduke of thend of ancient dragons, in the very north, and hade to take back a dragon egg. Upon the dragons death, the dragon had entrusted me with the care of this dragon child, Sighisoara. Al, could I take a look at this egg? Sure, just be careful with it, Luka. I know already. Who do you think I am, after all? Yeah, I didnt mean to be rude. Luka already knew that this was the egg of an ancient dragon. Im sure she understood much more about it than I could. I gave it over to Luka, and she looked at it carefully. This is an ancient dragon egg The first time youve seen one? Of course! Theres no one thats ever seen an ancient dragons egg on this! I guess thats true. The ancient dragon lived in a ce inessible to humans. They also protected their eggs vigntly. They were careful. I bet her academic curiosity about it was driving her nuts. Her eyes were glimmering. Yureena then said, with a serious face, Why would a demon steal an ancient dragons egg? To eat it?! Cruz said, without thinking. No matter how much of a gourmand a demon was, there was no way it would steal an ancient dragons egg for that. I thought about it a bit, and offered an answer. Maybe in order to tame it and use it for its own purposes? Noeven an ancient dragon hatchling isnt that strong. I wonder. And they say that growth to adult size takes hundreds of years. Hm? I heard they leave the nest after only 10 to 20 years. Really? Luka looked quite surprised. Even so, the academia didnt really know much about ancient dragon life. Thats new news to me. Ah, yeah, but they may leave the nest before they be an adult. Well, ancient dragons are strong, so they may live on their own even before fully grown. Yeah. Luka pondered it seriously. Well, I guess we dont know until we hatch it. And observe it every day. I have no problem with that. While we were talking this over, Collette, Millet, Cruz, and Yureena gazed at the egg. They touched the egg gently. Everyone seemed quite interested in it. As long as they treated it kindly, there was no problem with them touching it. Mister Al, what are you going to do with Sighisoara while youre working? Just bring it with me, I guess. I dont think some demon is going to steal it away, but you cant be too careful. So youre going to hold it like when you brought it here? Now that I think of it, it was a bit cumbersome. While you carry the egg, your arms get tired. It would be easy while I was sitting and guarding, but a pain while I was gardening. But, I cant put it in my magic bag or leave it in the house. I see, oh yeah! Cruz seemed to think of something, and started rustling around in her magic bag. She took out a wide strap of leather. Ill give you this, Al! What is it? Its a baby carrier made from hydra skin. Cruz looked at me proudly. I had no idea why she would have something like that on her. Why do you have this? I made it in case I ever had to carry a baby while adventuring. Ohuhokay. She really was prepared for some weird stuff. Hydra skin was tough and was hard to work, so it was expensive. Since she was nice enough to give it to me, I tried strapping the egg to myself. I put it over both shoulders, and tightened the belt about my waist. It was perfect for holding the dragon egg with around my belly. This is actually pretty good. Right? Since Im not using it, Im d you could. Of course shes not using it. Who the hell carries a baby on an adventure? Im d she had no opportunity to use it. Luka was adjusting the straps on it and said, That reminds me, you said you got a treasure from the dragon too? Yeah. What is it? I havent looked. I put the little bag I got from the dragon on my table. Inside was a ring. What effect does this have? No idea. If an ancient dragon gave it to you, it must be some effect! Cruz said as she looked looked in the bag. Theres cloth in here. Where?! Cruz took out the cloth. It was silk. There was magic applied to it, and you could tell it was hard to damage. Somethings written there. There were symbols on the cloth. They were burned in with magic. The dragon might have burned the words in before it died. This ring is sealed by the Archduke of the Ancient Dragons and is also the key to a treasure box. As long as you wear this ring, the ancient dragons will give you power. Alfred Lint, I give the contents of the treasure box to you. Use it however you like. Please care for Sighisoara. Since my name was written there, it must have been burned in just before the dragon perished. I was thankful that it left me the contents of a treasure chest, but Im sure it was located in some extreme location. After reading it over, Luka said, You got one hell of a thing to have an ancient dragons seal I promised to use it to help raise the dragon. Once the dragon is adult, Ill give it over. Yeah, thats probably the best. I put the ring on my finger so that it would never be stolen. Chapter 74 - Everyone Loves the Egg

Chapter 74 C Everyone Loves the Egg

Trantor: ranzan After dinner, I went to the hot springs. I took the Sighisoara egg with me. In the changing room, Cruz looked at me with a worried face as I carried it in. Wont it boil the egg? The ancient dragon said it was very resistant against fire. I see. Wait, why are you even in here with me, Cruz?! Huh? I want to get in the bath! Cruz was about to take her clothes off, and now puffed out her cheeks in frustration. That wasnt the problem. Welldont you care about getting in a bath with a man? I dont care AT ALL! I see. I wasnt going to waste time and lecture her, so I just got in the bath. Moofy, Femm, and the egg got into the hot springs with me. Cruz had gotten into the bath before us and now came near the egg. Sighisoaradoes it feel good? Cruz rubbed the egg. Of course, Sighisoara had no reaction. She continued touching the egg while talking to it. You should care for it like a mother. Ruff?Moo?? Femm and Moofy were confused by Cruz weird statement. Maybe Cruz wanted to be Sighisoaras mother. If she would take good care of it, I wouldnt mind. Cruz, do you want to be this dragons mother? If youre the father, then I can be the mother! What? I was a little awkward in replying to that statement. Cruz eyes glimmered as she rubbed the egg. Well, forget about the mother part and just take good care of it, okay? Heh heh heh. I got out of the bath and went to my room, when Luka and Yureena approached me. Could I see the egg? Sure, look at it all you want. I gave the egg to Luka, and she gazed at it and touched it all over. I wonder when it will hatch. I didnt hear about that. Okay. Then Yureena held the egg and said, I wish it would hatch soon. Its not the first time youve seen an ancient dragon, right? When we were fighting the Demon Lord, we encountered an ancient dragon. It helped us to destroy one of the Demon Lords forts. Ive never seen a baby one, though. Me either. Maybe Cruz and I can raise it as our own. Yureena said. No, you cant. The egg was entrusted to me. Oh well, then. Yureena gave up. Luka rubbed the egg kindly too. We have to raise it to be a good dragon. If theres anything you need just let me know, okay? Sure, I can depend on you. It was reassuring to hear an expert on monsters ready to help. I then remembered something and asked Yureena. That reminds me, before I left, you said you were going to get rid of a demon, right? So, what about it? How did the battle turn out? Well, because of me and Cruz working together, we were able to get rid of it with no deaths. A demon was strong, but Cruz and Yureena could handle it easily. I wonder if this is somehow rted to the demon that stole the egg from the ancient dragon. No, I dont think it has anything to do with it. All the demons work on their own right? Theres no way theyd work together on that Luka was right. Demons didnt get along with each other. I was just thinking, youd have to have one heck of a n to steal an ancient dragon egg. I think that the demon might have worked with others though. Yeah, it might just be so. Even so, the demon that had stolen the egg from the dragon throne was still alive. It had used an immortal-killer arrow, and cursed the dragon with zombie status. Not a very easy enemy to face. And, if it knew we had the magic egg, it was likely it would attack us. Well, I will ask for help if I need it. Leave it to me! Luka nodded strongly. The next day I finally got to guard again after a few days. Millet came by and touched the egg I was holding. Sighisoara, get bigger okay? Ah, I think it moved! I didnt think I felt anything. It was probably just my stomach. With the carrier that Cruz had given me, the egg sat right on my stomach. And she was petting the egg. Its almost like Im pregnant or something. Hee hee, Momma Mister Al. While we were talking about that, I saw Femm running up to me. Femm had several wolves running alongside. Ruff! What is it? We checked the whole wolf territory. And? There used to be strong monsters that had approached the territory of the wolved. Femm had howled loudly to scare them away yesterday, and since the ancient dragon was gone, it would be best that they went back to where they came from. Not all, but most have fled this area. Well, that helps. We also hunted down several goblins. RuffWuff Ruff Femm said proudly, as the other wolves happily wagged their tails. I rubbed Femm appreciatively. On the other hand, Vi-Vi was over by the wolf house, talking to the wolves. It was a strange sight for someone like Vi-Vi, who usually didnt like dogs. Vi-Vi was riding on Moofy. I guess if she was with Moofy, she was okay with it. Okay all you dogs! These are good mice to get rid of! Ruff? And these are the types you dont touch! Ruff Most of those mice wont even eat the crops. You should leave the ones that eat bugs alone! Ruff. Vi-Vi was teaching them about mice types. I had no idea they were different. I thought they were all bad. Ruff Ruff STOP LICKING ME! IM GOING TO SMELL LIKE DOG! The wolves were jumping up on Moofy and licking Vi-Vi all over. Moofy was enjoying it, and licking the wolves back. And just then, I felt the egg move. Chapter 75 - Ancient Dragon Hatching

Chapter 75 C Ancient Dragon Hatching

Trantor: ranzan I felt the egg that held Sighisoara jump and then fall silent. Then it moved again. I could feel it shaking somewhat inside. I held the egg with both hands and said. Sighisoara moved. Heh, hehMister Al, it does look like youre pregnant. Millet probably thought it was a joke, as she said it with augh. Femm looked at it with distrusting eyes. Are you saying it kicked inside your belly? No, I really felt it! Sighisoara moved. Im sure it didWaooof Millet smiled at me, while Femm scratched away at its ear with its hind leg. Both of them didnt seem to believe me. As I looked, I rubbed the egg gently. I really did Femm might have not believed me, but I really felt it move. Maybe it was close to hatching. If it was only a day or two, then the dragon would have told you. Yeah, I also bet that the dragon that held on to the egg for so long would have wanted to see it, too. They were both right about that. I remembered what the dragon had said. No, but the dragon did say it would hatch soon. But thats soon for an ancient dragon. That could mean months. I guess youre right. And the dragon was almost a goner because of the zombie curse. I see. Millet again touched the egg softly. Femm put its paw on my knee and sniffed the egg. Sighisoaras not moving. I dont feel anything. And for a while longer the egg didnt move anymore. That evening. Just like yesterday, we all got in the hot springs. We all ate dinner with the egg as well. After dinner, Cruz was sitting next to me, rubbing the egg. I was hoping that Cruz rubbing the egg wasnt going to cause something crazy like Moofy to happen. SighisoaraI hope you be a strong dragon. Seems like Cruz has taken a liking to the egg. Its white and round and somehow, cute. I see. I guess even I could understand how an egg could be cute. Eggs are cute in a way. Luka looked over with eyes of rejection. No, theres nothing cute about just AN EGG. I guess youre right too. Even though she said that, Luka spent the night touching the egg too. Yureena, Moofy, Femm, and Vi-Vi all spent time touching it if they had the chance. Collette and Millet too. I guess you DO think Sighisoara is cute, Luka. In an academically curious waymaybe. Okay. I guess everyone did like the egg. As I went to bed, I carefully got in carrying Sighisoara. Femm and Moofy came to my bed too, and Femm sniffed the egg a bit. That night. I woke up after feeling the egg shake. The first thing I saw waking up though was that Cruz had gotten into bed with me. Yawn Im sleepingand youre heavy Cruz was saying things to herself, and then went back to snoring. I found that I was holding the egg on my stomach. And Cruz was lying on top of the egg. It was really heavy. I felt the egg with both hands. It was shaking. I wondered if it was okay and worried a bit. Well, if it was shaking, that meant whatever was inside wasnt dead. I was just hoping it wasnt shaking because of sickness or pain. Hang in there Sighisoara. I said in a soft voice, and gave the egg a little squeeze. Crack There was a sound, and crack formed on the top part of the egg. Crack Crick Crack One part of the top of the egg cracked some more and a piece flew off. From there the small white face of a dragon popped out. rya Oh, Sighisoara, good morning. I was so surprised I found myself greeting the dragon normally. The little dragon began forcing itself out of the egg, and put its face up against my stomach. It was a white, beautiful dragon, just like its parent. It was the type with arms, legs, and wings. Emfoodgot to get food. Yan, what is it, Al? I started to move around and Cruz woke up. Then she smiled when she looked down at the dragon. Wow, Sighisoara, youre so cute! Ryaryaaa. Cruz petted the dragon, and Sighisoara squinted its eyes. I guess it liked people. Femm and Moofy woke up, and they both sniffed at Sighisoara. We have to feed it What do you feed a baby dragon? II wonder. Lets ask Luka. I grabbed the half-hatched dragon and took it to Lukas room. Cruz, Moofy, and Femm followed. LUKA! Are you awake? Luka! Are you awake? DO YOU KNOW WHAT TIME IT IS?! Of course I wasnt awake! After a while, Luka got out of bed. We had awoken her. so she was really pissed off. Sighisoara hatched, so were wondering what to feed it. Whoa! The child of an ancient dragon. ryaa Lukas attitude suddenly flipped to being interested. She rubbed the dragons head. With all the shouting, Yureena, Millet, and Vi-Vi woke up. Little Collette kept sleeping. Sorry for waking you up. Dont worry about it. You cant decide when something is born. Yeah, yeah. I apologized, and Millet and Yureena smiled and replied. It wasnt born. However, it was probably something like that for Sighisoara. Vi-Vi also happily petted the dragon and said, Little one, your parent entrusted you to Al. I was there when you were given over, so you can think of me as mom, okay? ryaa I couldnt understand Vi-Vis logic. Seeing this, Luka said, Food for a baby ancient dragon I didnt mean foodjust that the mothers not around so no one can nurse it Al, rx. A dragon isnt a mammal so it cant give milk. Oh yeah. I was losing my mind after the birth of this thing. It was a bit embarrassing. Maybe meat is good, just like other dragons. Meat? Like beef or chicken? I think so. And since a dragon is a magic beast, the hot springs is probably good for it too. A magical beast is able to eat magic as well. Something like the viges hot springs should be very good for it too. Hearing all this, Cruz made a face like she realized something. Ah! Maybe we should feed it Moofys pee! Cruz, stop. Mooo? I tly refused Cruz idea. Moofy looked confused. Moofys pee is highly concentrated with magical power, but theres no way Im going to make the dragon drink pee. But maybe we could if it wouldnt eat anything else. As I with thinking this over, I thought of the meat in storage. Femm, could I get some of the earth dragon meat from the storage shack? Sure. Wait, but thats cannibalism. Yureena tried to stop it. But Luka looked at the dragon and said calmly, No, as species of dragon theyrepletely different. But I know how you feel, but as humans, we eat mammals like cows and pigs, right? Yeah, but Well the difference in the dragon is the same difference as us in mammals. If Luka said it was okay, then it probably was. Well, then Ill get some dragon meat from the storage. I ran with the half-hatched Sighisoara down to the storage shack. Chapter 76 - Baby Dragon Behavior

Chapter 76 C Baby Dragon Behavior

Trantor: ranzan I didnt know if a newly born dragon had an empty stomach. But it probably was hungry. And if it was hungry, then I should hurry and feed it as fast as I could. As I left the house, Sighisoara clutched to my chest and made a small cry. Femm and Moofy apanied me. rya Are you cold? I asked, and squeezed Sighisoara to me. Twenty or so wolves saw me spring out of my house and came out of the wolf house. Ruff?Wuff ruff? Hey, sorry for waking you. Ill introduce you properly tomorrow. ryaaaWuff I stooped and showed Sighisoara to the wolves. Sighisoara wasnt scared, but fluffed its wings in the air. They sniffed the air like their usual greeting as I ran and got in the storage shack. Do you have meat to eat? Ruff. This is pretty good. Sighisoara looked around silently. Femm wagged its tail and pointed to some of the earth dragon meat. Oh, this? Yes. I cut off a little for the dragon, and put it near its beak. It smelled it a bit, and then chomped it down. Is it good? rya The little dragon seemed pretty happy about it. I fed it until it was satisfied. I got an armful of dragon meat and took it out of the shack. I was going to ce it inside my storage at home. And with that done, we went back to sleep. Morning. I awoke to the dragon calling with a ryaa ryaa. Are you hungry again? ryaaa It couldnt use words, but I guessed that it was hungry. I was bleary from sleep and walked over to the meat in the kitchen. I moved the dragon to the dining room and fed it. I made your breakfast as well, Mister Al. Thanks. Millet put out the food, now that she was basically living in my house. I was thankful. Collette petted Sighisoara and looked at the dragon attentively. Luka was a bit slow to get up, but looked at Sighisoara with squinting eyes. Sighisoara is so cute. Right? I was proud, in a way. While I was giving Sighisoara meat, Collette petted it and said, Shiggy, eat a lot, okay? ryaa Shiggy is a cure name for it. Sighisthoara isth too long stho itsth a nickname! Shiggy is probably a good name to call it. Just as Collette said, Sighisoara is a bit too long. Yeah, it might be better to call it Shiggy. Right? Right? I think stho old man! Yeah, what do you all think? Good idea.Fine by me.Its a good name! Vi-Vi, Yureena, and Cruz said together. I asked Sighisoara, who was still eating the meat. Can we call you Shiggy? ryaaa. Shiggy pped its wings happily. Okay, then your nickname is Shiggy. rya ryaaa As if pped its wings, it finally emerged from the shell. Until now it had been half inside the egg. Except for the opened top half, most of the egg was well preserved. Shiggy, are you done with your egg? ryaaa I see. Seemed like it was done. It didnt want toe out of the egg for more than half a day. Could I borrow your eggshell, Shiggy? ryaaaa Shiggy happily responded to Lukas request. She could look at the egg too. Sounds like its fine. Thanks. Luka was ecstatic. Being able to check over an ancient dragon egg is very exciting. Especially for a monster researcher. As soon as Shiggy stopped eating, it went to sleep. That made sense C it was a baby. It would be a shame if I woke it up by walking it around. I put Shiggy on my bed, asked Millet to take care of it, and walked out to my guard post. It was one hour after I arrived at my guardpost. Ryaaaaaaa I was surprised by a cry from my house. Femm jumped up in shock after lying beside me. I ran to my house. Well, it wasnt exactly running because of my knee, but it was as fast as I could muster. When I entered my room, Millet was holding Shiggy and had a frown. I couldnt stop Shiggys crying. ryaaryaaryaaaaa Shiggy was crying loudly. Is it hungry? It wont eat any meat. I had left thinly cut earth dragon meat for it to eat. Millet handed Shiggy over to me. ryyaaarya Shiggys cries got quieter as it buried its face in my chest. What is it? Is it hungry? ryaa Maybe it woke up and cried because it couldnt find its parent. Femm said. After I held it, the dragon began rxing and crying softly. I have no idea about a dragons behavior. Shiggy, are you hungry? ryaa I think that it sounded hungry. I held up meat to its beak and it gobbled it down. Millet turned to me with a sad face. I wanted to feed it but it wouldnt eat Shiggy, no need to be rude to Millet. rya! I could tell that it was disagreeing with me. Somehow, I could tell it wouldnt eat but from me. So that day I carried Shiggy out to my guardpost. That evening, I exined to Luka what had happened after she returned. She seemed very interested, and said, Maybe since it has identified you as its parent, it wont eat but from you. No idea, but I was thinking it also might be my ring? The ancient dragon ring? Its possible. I followed Lukas advice and we experimented. First, we tested whether the dragon would eat from anyone else. It turned out that the dragon didnt. Second I gave the ring over to Cruz and Luka. Still it wouldnt eat from them. Then, I tried to feed it without the ring and Shiggy gobbled it down. Seems to have nothing to do with the ring. Yup. I guess we should think of it as the dragon not eating from anyone else because it sees you as the parent. This was going to make things tough. I would have to feed it throughout the day. And, if I wasnt there, it would start crying. Butin a way, I guess I was happy. Then Luka said while putting the ring on and off, The color looks a bit different when I wear it and you wear it, Al. Huh? What do you mean? Here, put it on. I put on the seal ring. The color did change a bit. It used to be a white color with a little bit of blue, but it became a bit bluer. Like the color of pr ciers. Are ciers blue? Cruz asked in a confused tone. I only went that far north once, but it was a very beautiful blue. It was before our party had banded together. Once, she had gone to the far north to collect rare nts that grow there for a guild request. It took months to get there. It made her a lot of money, but it was a rough journey. Then Vi-Vi said while looking at my seal ring. Hm. If we examine the magic now that weve noticed the color change, we might be able to sense the change in magical flow that only Al can create. Now that you mention it, youre right. There might be a very small change in magic that I didnt notice. The sealed ring had magic in it from the beginning. And it wasnt weak magic. But I didnt notice the minuscule change in it when I wore it. It might be useless unless you wear it. Its a very rare thing to find magical items that are only for specific individuals. Luka and Yureena said. Curz and Collette were petting the dragon. And I really wanted to feed this dragon. Me too guysth. Lucky old man. Femm and Moofy nuzzled Cruz and Collette instead. They knew that they could get food instead of the dragon. Well give you treats instead, Moofy and Femm! Ruff!Moo! They got their treats from Cruz and Collette and wagged their tails happily. That night I slept with Moofy, Cruz, and Shiigy. After about two hours, Shiggy would start crying, so I would feed it then. Because I was an adventurer, I was used to waking up at any time. It was way better than being woken up by some magical beast attack. The second time I fed it that night, I noticed that Vi-Vi was in bed with me. She was holding onto Moofy. I thought it was really something that Shiggys cries didnt wake up Vi-Vi. The sun came up. The eastern sky began to get lighter as the morning began. Then, suddenly, the wall of my house exploded. Chapter 77 - Wizard Versus Demon

Chapter 77 C Wizard Versus Demon

Trantor: ranzan Just before the wall exploded, I knew that some hostile magic wasing my way. It was an unconscious feeling, but while still lying down, I threw up a magic barrier in reaction. Just after that, my wall exploded with a loud sound. The explosions wind and the pieces of the wall bounced off the magic barrier. If I hadnt put up the barrier, someone would definitely have been injured. Moofy and Femm jumped up quickly. Eeek! What the?! The hell?! Vi-Vi was still groggy, but running around. I held fast to Shiggy, and jumped up. ryaa, ryaaa! Shiggy was scared, but held on to me. One man now stepped through the destroyed wall. Gooood moooooorning! I shot a magic bolt at the man without responding. He put up a magic barrier and the bolts strength blew him out of the room. Listen He was still trying to talk. What a load of crap. If you want to talk, show up at my door after the sun rises. I quickly shot another magic bolt. He tried to put up another barrier to stop it. Gaaaaaahhh! He screamed. My bolt broke through his barrier. It had knocked him to the ground. I stopped attacking for just a second. Want something? if you hand over the dragon, I may spare your life. Youve got some balls to say that after Ive knocked you to the ground already. There was no way I was going to hand Sighisoara over. No thanks. Then I wont hold back against you. I heard a cracking sound, as two horns sprung from the top of his head. Sharp fingernails grew out like ws. Not only that, but all of his injuries from the my attacks healed. A demon Youre toote to stop me now. The demon said as if he was about to win. Even after taking my magic bolts, he thought he was absolutely going to win. You can regret it after youre burned to a crisp!! The demon shot a fireball at me. It was a dangerous magic since the vige surrounded us. If I simply put up a magic barrier, it could burn down the vige. Thats why I shot it down with water magic. ryaa, ryaaaaaa, rya Shiggy clung to my chest, and seemed to be watching my attacks happily. It may have looked at it like a fireworks show. It was quite beautiful. I shot magic bolts with water magic at him over and over. His magical barrier was broken after a few of them. The demon looked a bit scared. Even if you are a demon, you have some guts taking me on in a magic battle. Damn you!!! The demon must have figured out that he wasnt going to win. He pulled a sword out and charged at me. He had a simple, yet very trained style. A very quick approach in the blink of an eye. You could tell his attack was aided by magic. He seemed very skilled, far more than a normal demon. A sharp sh at me. One that would even be hard for a top swordsman to parry. And he was about to attack me over and over. I moved my magic barrier around, and dodged his shes. I saw a break in his attack and shot him with a magic bolt. After he was blown back, he came at me again with his sword. As soon as he sprung at me, I used gravity magic. Not to make him heavier, but to make him lighter. I used the spring in his step to catapult him into the air. Whoaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaa! See if you can dodge this in the sky, demon! I shot several fireballs at him with one arm, and then switching the dragon over, made a special magical bolt to shoot at him with the other. Fire magic worked well against enemies, as even a high temperature fireball could damage you by ncing by. And if I made them explode near my target, it would damage him even more. And since I was shooting it in the sky, there was no chance of the fire damaging the vige. Gaaarhrhhhhhh! The demon screamed, surrounded by fire. He tried making magical barriers over and over, as he tried to prevent the fire attacks from all direction. Now try this. I shot the magic bolt that I had condensed and pressurized over and over. His magic barrier was blow away. At the same time, around him, the fireballs began to burn away at him. Simultaneously I changed the gravity magic. This time to make him heavier. The burning demon now quickly crashed into the earth. Even so, he was still breathing. No way I was going to let my guard down. I wrapped him up in a magic. As I was finishing that up, Cruz and Luka ran out to me. Is it over already? Its over. It would be NICE to get some help though. No way. You never like being bothered by us, right? Cruz said, while chuckling to herself. ryaa ryaaa Shiggy was excitedly beating its wings. Luka petted Shiggy while saying, You should be thankful that he was so cautious during the fight! Thanks, Al! Luka and the rest all thanked me. The demon had thought I was easy enough to defeat. Also, it seemed that the demon was using me as a diversion. I had a lot of girls I could have depended on. Old man, you okay? Are you injured? Collette and Millet ran up to me. They both looked worried. Im okay, no injuries. Is that so? I beat the bad guy, dont worry. Okay! Millet and Collette looked relieved. Luka was checking out the demon. This is the egg thief? I think so. I extinguished the fire still burning him. He was burned ck, but still breathing. Why were you trying to steal the egg? it has nothing to do with you. Just so you could force the ancient dragon to be zombified so you could control it? if you know the reason, why ask? The ckened demon had lost all his bodily and mental strength. He didnt try to break the silence again. It was almost impossible to make an ancient dragon change to a zombie. So he had used its own egg to do it. The archduke dragon is dead. Do you still need the egg? I could change that to zombie easily. ryaaa Shiggy seemed to angrily say as it still clung to my chest. What would you do after it was changed to a zombie? I would take over the humans! Human flesh is delicious. Not a very strange reason for a demon. But I thought it was too simple. I interrogate the demon afterwards. However, other than finding out that no other demon was after Shiggy, no other useful questions were answered. After hearing that, Luka said with a questioning look. Al, could you leave the rest to me? I want to see if it has any rtion to the demon we captured. No problem. You think hes rted? We dont know until we ask. It seems that the one Cruz captured was looking to gather magical monsters. Hmmm. Demons usually worked alone. There was no reason that theyd start working together. But there was a chance that someone or something was controlling these demons together. It was still a stretch though. Ill leave him to you, Luka. Thanks. He killed Shiggys parent and destroyed your wall, and also might have burned down the vige. Hes going to need a lot of punishing. Saying that, Luka took the captured demon back to the capital. After that, we saw the worried vigerse out to us, told them it was all okay, and that wed exin everything in a few hours after a little rest. Chapter 78 - Rebuilding my Wall

Chapter 78 C Rebuilding my Wall

Trantor: ranzan Because I was attacked before dawn, I was totally awake. I wanted to go back to sleep, However, if I did, then it would be hard to wake up for guard duty. Even so, there was no reason to go back to bed with my wall blown out. So I ate breakfast, hurried to the guardpost, and sat. Shiggy was with me. It was going ryaa ryaa like usual, cute. As I zoned out just sitting next to the gate, Femm came up to me. The other wolves were following him. I was thinking of introducing Sighisoara to the pack. Thanks Femm, please, go ahead. Ruff. All of the wolves came over one by one to smell Shiggy. Shiggy happily pped its wings. I wonder if sniffing someones scent is that important of a thing for the wolves. I would be really happy if the pack epted Shiggy as one of their own. After a while, the chief came over. Al, what happened this morning? Thanks foring out this way to see me. Lately, the chief has alwayse out to see me. I should have been the one to go and tell him what happened. I need to be more careful. Dont worry about it, Almy what a cute thing you have there. ryaa The chief squinted at Shiggy. This one is the reason for all the noise this morning I exined that Shiggy was an ancient dragog who had lost its parent. An-chent? Dragon? Whats that? I guess you could say its just a really rare dragon. I see. The chief seemed to understand my story. The ancient dragons are extremely rare. Thats why normal people have never heard of them. I told him the reason for all the noise was that someone hade to steal this very important dragon. I see. That is a problem. I bet the little thing was scared. ryaaa The chief rubbed Shiggys head. Luka took the culprit to the capital, so everythings okay. I seewell, no worries if Luka did it. I guess the chief thought that if someone from the guilds was taking care of it, it would be okay. Well, the chief knew that Luka was connected to the guild. He didnt know that she was one of the leaders. It seems your wall is broken. Do you need someone to fix it? No, I think Ill be fine. I want to fix it this afternoon, so if I could take off from guarding Absolutely no problem! Since I had the chiefs okay, I was ready to take the whole afternoon to fix it. After the chief left, almost as if by prompt, Vi-Vi and Moofy came to visit. She had finished caring for the cows. Al. I have something I want to ask. What? About magic circles. Vi-Vi scratched a magic circle in the ground. It was one that strengthened buildings. This was the magic circle used to strengthen your house, right? Yeah, its nice. But, the wall was totally broken. She must be upset that the wall was broken by the demon. However, that demon was very strong. It was a demon. Nothing you could do to stop it. I just dont want to lose to something like a demon! Vi-Vi was really upset. I wanted to help her. I racked my brain about all the magic circle knowledge I had. Then Vi-Vi and I tried making a stronger circle. While we were thinking the whole thing over, the morning passed. While this was going on, I also asionally fed Shiggy. Its done Al! Yeah, this magic circle is better. I think this one would stop that demon! Thispleted magic circle was quite stronger than the previous one. I think this one might not have been brokenst night. After noon, I started repairing my house. We still have a lot of bricks left over. I think we dropped them all in the townmons, Al. I had created way more bricks than necessary to build the house. I also had quite a bit of mortar left over. Lets fix that house! Yeah! Moo!Ruff!ryaaa I fixed the wall up quickly with magic. 30 minutester. That was finished quickly. Well, its because we were really into it. One reason was because we were just fixing up the house. Its not too much work to rece just one wall of a house. Okay, now Im going to rece the magic circle. Sure. Vi-Vi focused and started writing the magic circle on the ground. I did too. Since we had already figured out the circle together, I was able to help. This circle is done! Im kind of tired. The magic circle had taken three house. More work than fixing the wall. But it was good work we did. It was going to strengthen the wall. I think it could probably handle an attack from a demon. Vi-Vi and I looked at it with the feeling ofpleting something important, and Collette ran up to us. Old man! Old man! What is it, Collette? The potatoesth sthprouted! Oh did they? I mounted Femm with Shiggy in hand and we ran out to the field. Vi-Vi and Collette did too, riding on Moofy. Thats pretty fast. Its because its warm. It will take more time in spring. Is that so? We arrived at the field, where there were small sprouts. Oh I was quite pleased. Cultivation that was unfamiliar to me. Hard work together plowing. Cruz getting scammed for potatoes. It seems that all the hard work paid off. ryaaa Maybe feeling my happiness, Shiggy pped its wing gleefully. Why are you two so happy! You cant ck off until harvest, Al! Really? Yeah! But I know how you feel Vi-Vi looked at me tenderly. Moo Moo Moofy chewed away at some of the weeds in the field. Leave the mice to me. Thanks Femm. A wolf like me can catch the crows thate too. Wow. Femm looked at me proudly. That would be some feat to catch birds thatnded on the field. After looking at the field, I happily went back to my house. Luka was waiting for me. It was strange as it was still early. Luka, whats up? Its early for you. I have something I have to tell you. What? That demon may not have been the egg thief. Luka said with serious worry on her face. Chapter 79 - The Mystery of the Demon

Chapter 79 C The Mystery of the Demon

Trantor: ranzan Luka looked worried as we walked into my house and to the dining room. ryaa Shiggy looked at Luka and happily pped its wings. She petted Shiggy gently. Her serious countenance softened a bit. So this guy wasnt the thiefwell, not a guy since he was a devil, but what happened? The guild and ministry of justice both investigated him You could believe an investigation by the ministry. They had magical tools that could tell if you were lying about something. Not only that, it would shock you with pain if you did. There were also specialists that could use those tools to the greatest effect. They could get to the bottom of anything by making you answer yes or no to questions. The immortal-killer arrow and zombie curse. He knew nothing about them. Thats weird. Shiggys parent, the ancient dragon Jilnidra, was hit by that arrow and cursed with zombie status. So it was strange that the demon knew nothing about it. That would mean that the demon fromst night had nothing to do with the stealing of the egg. But the demon said himself that he wanted to steal the dragon. They put the truth telling tools on him right? Of course. And the tools said that the demon wasnt lying. That is strangethose tools dont lie. So why did he say he wanted to steal the dragon? Same as yesterday. To dominate humans and eat them. I thought it over and then said, I seeso possibly someone rewrote his memories. Yes. He obviously wasnt lying, but he knew nothing about the arrow or curse. If thats so, then it might be that his memory was rewritten. If his memory was rewritten, then the new memory would be truth to him. Then the truth telling tools couldnt sense a lie. Rewriting a memory isnt just hiding it. Hiding or trying to fake a memory is something that the tools would detect. In order to fool them, you would have topletely change the memory with magic. Doing that is a very high level magic. The demon could only really remember things that happened in the past week. I think the magic was done to him. Well, the problem is which one is fake. Luka nodded. Was he made to forget about the magic or was he told to steal the dragon? It might be that stealing the dragon was imnted. Why? I cant think of why he would be made to forget. If the memory of stealing the dragon was imnted then I could understand. Someone had set him up as a false culprit. Maybe the counterattack from the dragon caused his memory to change? that too is possible. Luka pondered it all with a serious face. Maybe we just dont know enough about the ancient dragons abilitieskind of like their ecology? I cant refute that. There may be a magic that clears memories. That would be an easy exnation. It wouldnt be useless for a dragon to have magic that could clear memories. In that case, the demonst night had to be the egg thief. That would make things easier. But it seemed too easy an exnationso it might be that the demon was set up. I rubbed Shiggys head. I think we need to expect the worse. That way well be cautious. Right. ryaaaa Shiggy said, happily. Just then, Cruz and Yureena arrived. Cruz took some meat of of her bag and tried to feed it to Shiggy. Shiggy! I got you some meat! Ryaaa! Shiggy turned its face away. It just wouldnt eat from anyone but me. Ugh Dont worry about it. Cruz looked ready to cry as Yureenaforted her. I grabbed Cruz hand. Here. We might be able to feed Shiggy together. Oh, youre right. Cruz happily smiled. We both held the meat, and put it up to Shiggys beak. Shiggy, Cruz bought this meat for you. ryaa It started pecking away at the meat. It must have been good. Then it pped its wings. Oh, its happy! What kind of meat is this? Unicorn. WHAT?! The unicorn was a powerful, harmful beast. It was said that it only would be friendly with virgins. On the other hand, if you werent a virgin girl, it would kill you mercilessly. If it was seen in the streets, all traffic stopped. If you werent a virgin girl, it would attack both men and women without hesitation. Young and old. Horse or Cow. Very strong and very dangerous. I had to go and get rid of a group of them that had wandered to close to the capital. Whoa, sounds like a tough job. There was no more dangerous thing then encountering a group of them. It might be their rutting season. I got a lot of unicorn meat for you, Shiggy! Cruz proudly said while Femm stood, staring at the meat. Cruz, maybe you should give some to Femm. Of course, I got some for you too, Femm! Ruff! Femms tail wagged like crazy. Im going to give your pack the meat from a whole unicorn. Wuff! Femm and Cruz ran out of my house. They were off to feed the wolves, I guess. Shiggy watched all this while pping its wings. Moofy walked over and sniffed Shiggy. ryaaaMoo MOoo They made sounds almost as if they were talking. I put Shiggy on Moofys back. Ryaa Ryaa! It jumped back on me, and looked scared. I guess it will take a little more time until it ys on its own. No need to rush it. It will happen sooner orter. Dont try too hard. I wonder? I dont know much about ancient dragons, but maybe thats the way it is. Luka said, and she her monsters. A lot of other magical beasts must be like that. Moo Moofy licked the dragon that was still clutching on to me. Shiggy called back with a happy ryaaaa. It seemed that Shiggy was getting used to its surroundings. But it still was afraid and clung to me. It seemed like it would be running around on its own soon. I was hoping for that day toe soon, but I also would feel a bit lonesome. Chapter 80 - Summer’s End

Chapter 80 C Summers End

Trantor: ranzan It was several days after the demon attacked. Mulg was at peace. No new demon came to attack us. All of the magic monsters that were scared into our area had returned. That day, as I woke and went outside, the wind had a bit of chill in it. My knee hurt from the cold air. Shiggy stayed on my chest as usual inside the carrier. Summers over. ryaa Siggy made a happy sound and happily pped its wings. It may be that the child of the archduke of the dragons that lived at the northern pole liked winter. I rubbed my aching knee. Shiggy watched me with interest. Femm and Moofy approached as well. They sniffed away at the cold air. Winter will make it difficult to hunt! Moo Moo! Femm and Moofy didnt seem happy about the approaching winter. Moofy was a sacred animal so it wouldnt die if it didnt eat. Even so, since it was an animal, it remembered when it had to eat. Moofy and you have plenty of food to eat. Yeah, but still There was still tons of earth dragon meat in storage. The wolves could eat that without having to hunt the whole winter. Even so, Femm looked worried. Quite a few monsters didnt make it through the winter. Magic beasts must feel the same way. You also have that wolf house that Vi-Vi protected with magic circles. You wont get cold there. Ruff. And if you need anything, just ask. Thanks. While we were talking, Vi-Vi and Collette approached us. They had woken up earlier and went to tend to the field. Vi-Vi had three wolves with her. Vi-Vi and Collette, good morning! Good morning, old man! Al, youre upte! Vi-Vi had a straw hat on with overalls that farmers wear as well. She was ready to farm. Old man! Wow! Youre active this morning, Collette! Collette jumped up on me and grabbed tight. Collette wasughing loudly and smiling. rya ryaaa Shiggy is happy today! Shiggy pped its wings, and rubbed its head into Collette. Collette patted Shiggys head. Vi-Vi, did you go with the wolves to look around the field? NO! These doggies just followed me there! Vi-Vi tried to chase away the wolves. The wolves jumped around and on Vi-Vi. They probably thought she was ying a game with them. Stop it! Ruff WuffBark! The wolves were bigger than Vi-Vi. One of them put its front paws on Vi-Vis shoulder and licked her. The other two rubbed up against her. She grabbed its paws and dropped it to the ground. Fine! Ill pet you then, but could you stop licking me!? Ruff? Vi-Vi petted them all in turn. They looked a bit surprised. They might have been surprised that Vi-Vi petted them. But they still wagged their tails. Vi-Vi, youre not scared of the wolves? No way! I never was scared of them! Really? YEAH! Lately, Femm and Vi-Vi slept near each other a lot. She would go hunting with them quite a bit too. Maybe she was used to them now. It was a great thing that she finally was. I sat down outside my front door. The ground was cool. Vi-Vi and Collette sat nearby. After a bit, Cruz came out. Cruz was always quick at waking up. Good Morning! Morning, Cruz. After she greeted me, sheid down and put her head on my thigh. She was using my knees as her pillow. Are you going to sleep after just waking up? Heh he Maybe she was still sleepy. I patted her head. The wolves quickly came over and started sniffing Cruz. ryaaa Just then, Shiggy jumped out of my carrier and onto the ground. It bounced around, touching my legs. Until now, Shiggy had never jumped down from me on its own. Shiggy. Ill watch you, so walk around wherever you want near here. ryaaa Shiggy carefully walked around, and after a few steps, came back to me. The little wolf children walked around and checked out Shiggy. They sniffed it. I had never seen Shiggy willingly jump off of me and walk around before. Shiggy, Ill watch you from here, so stay in this area. ryaa Shiggy fearfully walked around a bit, and after a few steps, returned. All of the wolf pups cam close to Shiggy. They sniffed it. Then Femm came and stood behind all of them. Wuff! ryaaa Shiggy pped its wings, and then sniffed the pups back. This is Shiggy, take good care of it. WuffRuff bark I then rubbed the pups heads. Femm and the pups and Shiggy all spend a while smelling each other. Looks like theyre getting along. Thanks for taking to Shiggy, Femm. Wuff! As the pups approached Shiggy closer, Femm came up close behind them. Maybe to stop them if they went too far. As she was lying on my knees, she suddenly grabbed Shiggy. Shiggy! You can walk on your own! ryaa! She lifted Shiggy onto her chest and petted it. Shiggy didnt struggle. Shiggy usually freaks out until I hold it. Heh heh, you jealous? No, just happy its growing up. Really? This baby grew quickly. Even though I knew it would, it was emotional seeing it happen. Hey, let me hold it!Vi-Vi said. Me too!Collette said. I think I should be the one to hold it.Luka said. Along with Vi-Vi and Collette, Luka suddenly joined us and said. Looks like they were seeing who Shiggy would go to first. I was thinking maybe they should draw lots for it or something. Okay, everyone! Breakfast is ready! Millet came and said, scooping Shiggy up. HEY! ryaaa Shiggy didnt look troubled by it though. It pped its wings, and stuck its head right into Millets cleavage. Geez! Its not like I have milk for you or something! ryaaa! Shiggy was making noises while its head was stuck in her cleavage. I bet it like being squished by soft things. Millet didnt look too put out by it either. You really like to be babied, Shiggy. You cane to Mama Yureena if you want Shiggy! Yureena approached and said, with arms extended. But Shiggy didnt budge from Millets cleavage. Seems like it likes Mama Millet better, right, Mister Al? Iguess? We needed to get off this topic. It was a bit ufortable. After that, all of them held Shiggy for a time. Autumn wasing, and Shiggy would grow. And I would be the one to help it grow instead of the ancient dragon that unfortunately left it behind. I looked back at the seal ring that was on my right ring finger. Chapter 81 - Demon Warning

Chapter 81 C Demon Warning

Trantor: ranzan The end of summer, the beginning of fall. This happened the next day after Shiggy let someone else hold it. I went to my guard post as usual. I turned and looked back at Mulg Vige and thought, This vige isnt ready for a demon attack. Yeah.ryaa. Vi-Vi agreed with me. Shiggy also seemed to agreethough it probably didnt understand my words. There was a very strong magical defence ring around my house. Even with a strong shock, the house was prepared so that Id have time to fight back. The problem is the rest of the vige. Yup. Mulg vige was a difficult-to-attack ce. It was surrounded by a river and mountains. If you tried to attack from the ground level, then whoever is attacking would have to go by my door. So its not hard to n something. RuffMooo Oh, so youll help me, Femm and Moofy? Moofy and Femm responded strongly. They wanted to help defend the vige. Moofys strong, after all! Mooo!rya ryaaa! Moofy was very strong. And so was Femm and the pack. I had a lot of ground power to repel whoever came. Shiggy also cried out confidently from atop Moofy. If Shiggy got bigger, then it would only add to our power. Socan a demon fly? I dont know. But, it wouldnt surprise me, Al. Yeah You couldnt say that the demon would be on the ground. If the demon shot fire at us from the sky, that would suck. The demon that came before flew. It did? Yeah, if it came on the ground, I would have sensed it. Femm did have a good nose. It could sense things easily. Thats why I trusted what Femm said. Do you think so too, Moofy? Yes. Moofy agreed. Moofy had a good nose, and was also very good with perception. She was a herbivore before, so she had more caution than Femm, perhaps. I see. So the demon flew in. You didnt fight demons very much, Al? I cant say I fought a lot. How many have you fought, would you say? Hmmaybe 10, fighting solo. About the same with the party. thats actually a lot. Vi-Vi looked at me, quite surprised. However, I had killed hundreds of magical monsters like the earth dragon. I think 20 demons solo and as a party was actually a low number. I think its more than a usual adventurer. well, its not about how many, Al. Did you see any of them fly? Nope. I wonder if the one that attacked was a special demon that was able to. While I was thinking about that, Shiggy jumped on my shoulder. ryaa? Shiggy jumped up on by shoulder and started chewing on my hair. I ignored Shiggy and asked Femm. Have you ever fought one, Femm? Never. I see. There werent many demons. I bet a lot of creatures had never encountered one. But I think Id beat one if I did. Probably. Wuff. Femm looked at me proudly. It was a powerful magical wolf king. However, even as one, it was an opponent that you couldnt fight without giving 100 percent. You could lose or anything could happen. Al, even if the demon couldnt fly in, it could tame a wyvern to carry him. Youre right. The demon was trying to put the archduke dragon under hismand. It would be easy for him to control and use a wyvern. Maybe the demon used a beast to fly it into the vige silently. I need to consider that any attack coulde from the sky as well. It would be horrible if one came from the sky shooting down fireballs. Yeah. It would burn up the fields. I was just an adventure. I was a bit new to thinking about preparation tactics and strategy. Even so, I knew it would be horrible for the vige to take an attack from the sky. If one attacked from the sky, then it would be hard for Femm to sense it too. WuffMooryaa ryaa Femm and Moofy both seemed to respond a bit unconfidently. On the other hand, Shiggy pped its wings confidently on my shoulders. You think you could, Shiggy? RYA It jumped down from my shoulder and onto my chest. Even with all Shiggys confidence, theres know way I could just put my trust in it. It WAS just a baby. As I pondered it, Vi-Vi spoke. Al, Ill draw a magic circle. What kind? No matter what type you draw, its hard to defend the vige. Just as magic couldnt solve everything, neither could magic circles. And if you made a big one, its power dispersed to almost nothing. If you put a magic circle around the whole vige, it wouldnt be strong enough to defend against a demon. You dont need a magic circle for defense. If you just knew that something wasing, that would be enough for you to attack back. yeah, but, how? You could make one that made a sound if something the size of a man or bigger came from the sky. But if something other than a demon flew in, and bigger, it would sound. Anything bigger than a demon flying in is dangerous, I think. Something heavier than a human, flying. The most popr choice would be a wyvern. True. Either way we should have a warning if one does. True.Mooryaa Yup. Everyone agreed, so Vi-Vi was happy. Its really tedious to draw out a magic circle that has effect in the air as well. But for it just to make a noise isnt a big deal. Really? I was thinking it would be a super difficult circle to draw. Vi-Vi stuck out her t chest with pride. Listen, first we split it into 16 directions, then I make a magic circle for each direction. Vi-Vi described the magic circle she was imagining. It was a quiteplex one. But it sounded possible. I should make the sound go off in your house, right? But there are times that Im not there. Well, then, if I prepare a ring for you to wear, then I could connect it to the magic circle and make the sound connected to it. I see. Vi-Vi decided on doing that. We both prepared the magic circle together. The next day, we both rode Femm and Moofy and drew the circles around the town. We both cooperated on drawing the circles. After drawing them, Vi-Vi took out a ring. It was a wide ring that was made of mithril. Ill give this ring to you, Al. Really? Sure. Its not expensive. It sure looks expensive. Mithril was more expensive than white or yellow gold. No, its cheap. Thats why you can have it. I see She said it was cheap, but Its made so that if someonees close from the sky, it will make a sound. Okay. So make sure it stays on you. Even if youre in the bath. Mithril never rusted, so you could take it anywhere, even in the bath. Vi-Vi took out a simr ring and put it on. My ring is made the same. It will make a sound if something happens. I see. Al, put out your hand. I put out my left hand, and Vi-Vi put it on my index finger. There, its done! Really? It just looks kind of expensive. Its fine! Just take it. Vi-Vis face was red. I have to give her something in return. At least, thats what I thought. Chapter 82 - Collette and Millet’s Decision

Chapter 82 C Collette and Millets Decision

Trantor: ranzan The next day after Vi-Vi drew all the magic circles. I was at my guard post, and Collette came up to me. Old man! What is it, Collette? Collette approached with a serious look on her face. Femm was sleeping next to me, but its ears suddenly pricked up. On the other hand, Moofy and Shiggy happily looked on. Moo mooryaa Moofy dipped her head and rubbed it into Collette. Shiggy was bouncing around on top of Moofy, but jumped down onto Collettes shoulder. Moofy and Sthiggy, sthop bothering me! Moo?ryaaa Moofy looked confused. Shiggy didnt move. It just pped its wings and burrowed its head into Collettes hair. Sthiggy, sthop it! ryaa ryaaa I picked up Shiggy from her shoulders, as Shiggy cried out, a bit confused. I petted Shiggys wings in order to calm it down. There there. ryaa Shiggy calmed down. It closed its eyes and looked pleased. Okay, Collette. What is it? Old man! Teach me magic! It was an unexpected question, so I was a bit lost. Also, I had never taught magic to anyone before. Why do you want to learn magic? Cause itsth stho cool! I see. And it makesth thingsth stho easy! Well, magic is cool and it does make things easy. Simple to see why a kid would like it. I started learning magic when I was five. An old wizard in town taught me. The old man used to be one hell of an adventurer too, and he taught me all the basic magic I needed to know. He died just before I became old enough to strike out as an adventurer. HmI wonder you wont?! Collette looked taken aback. Well, I was taught by an old wizard, I guess it was my turn to teach someone else. However, I couldnt just teach her without permission. If Millet says its okay, then I will. I had to get permission from her guardian. Collettes face lit up with glee. Okay! Ill asthk her! Collette turned and ran off. I watched her run, while Femm said, Are you going to teach her? Well, I guess I coulda little. Wuff After a bit, Collette came back. She was with Millet and Vi-Vi. Millet walked up to me quickly. Was she angry at me? She might be rushing to tell me not to teach Collette such things. Ever since I learned magic and became an adventurer, my life was enveloped in danger. Thats why many parents forbid their children from learning magic. Mister Al! Hhey. I guess you dont want me to teach her, right? ryaa ryaaMoo Mooo Shiggy and Moofy also happily reacted to Millet arriving. Moofy stuck her head between Millets thighs. Then Shiggy flew straight into Millets chest and nestled its beak between her breasts. Moofy! StopShiggy! Mooo!ryaaa Now Femm got up and started to prowl a bit. If I let Femm be, Femm would probably jump on Millet too. Shiggy! Stop bothering her. Moofy too. Stop messing with Millet! ryaa?Moo? I plucked Shiggy out of Millets cleavage. Vi-Vi led Moofy away from Millet. Okay, again, Millet, you dont want me to teach Collette? No, thats fine. But I want you to teach me too. Whaa More unexpected words. Wont you? NoI mean, I canhow old are you again? Im 15. I was told that you had to start teaching a disciple magic from a very early age. I think that 15 is a prettyte age to start teaching someone magic. But its not so old that you could just refuse someone. I thought about it, but then Vi-Vi said bluntly, 15 is too old for magic. Vi-Vi, why do you say that? Vi-Vi said it so bluntly that Millet was a bit shocked. Vi-Vi meant that 15 was too old of an age for someone to start learning magic. I exined as politely as I could. If you teach someone magic, it goes best if the child is very young. Why so? Well, its just said that children can feel the glow of magic better and so they learn it easily. I see There are those that have learned it after the age of 30, though Even without talent, you could still teach a young child magic. But after a child hits puberty, it has to have some kind of special talent for it to understand magic. After I said that, Millet looked a little happier. Why do you want to learn magic, Millet? Umwell I can be useful to the vige. And if something happens, then I want to be able to protect Collette. I see. Sounds like an exceptional reason to me. Wanting to protect someone gives you strength. And after that demon attack, Millet might have seen how dangerous the world can be. also, its kind of cool. Just like her sister. Magic equals cool. But, its true. Okay, then Ill teach you. Yeaaaay! Thank you very much. But, in the midst of their happy reaction, I had to warn them. However, magic takes more talent than fencing. If you have no ability in magic, I will tell you. If I tell you to give up, you need to just listen and give up. They both looked at me silently. It hurts when your teacher tells you that you have no ability to use magic, so if you dont like that, you might want to not even start. No, Ill learn!Me too, old man! If I dont think you can learn, Ill tell you as soon as possible. I think thats the kindest thing you can do. I can do it, old man! I hope so. I rubbed Collettes head. I had talent. I only needed five years until I no longer needed my master any more. Someone without talent for magic would take 10 years to just get the very beginning magic down. Its better to just give up before you spend decades trying to learn something that required pointless hard work. I know I keep saying the same thing over and over, so let me just say that Ill begin instruction tomorrow, so take it easy today. OKAY! Thanks, Mister Al. After they left, Vi-Vi said, Have you ever taught magic before? Nope. Are you going to be okay? Maybe. Cant trust a statement like that. I wondered where Vi-Vi learned the magic she used Devils like her probably learned by apletely different process. How did you learn magic, Vi-Vi? Me? I learned from my older sister. You have a sister? My older sister was a VERY good magician. Vi-Vi said, with a distant look in her eyes. Something must have happened to her. Thats why I didnt ask where her older sister is now Chapter 83 - Magic Lessons

Chapter 83 C Magic Lessons

Trantor: ranzan The next day. I went out to my guard post and Millet and Collette soon joined me. They wanted their first lesson, I guessed. Moofy ran up to Millet and was about to run into her. Moo moo! Moofy, leave me alone for a second! Sthtay away, cow! Moo? Moofy dropped her head after being scolded by Millet and Collette. Moofy,e here. Moo Moo! Moofy seemed to happily jump after I called her. I rubbed her head. After seeing that, Femm also came close, wanting to be petted. Femm licked my open hand. What is it, Femm? Wuff. So I just rubbed Femm as well. While this was going on, Millet and Collette stood in front of me. Old man, teach us. Please, Mister Al. Okay, do your best. Sure.I will.ryaaa They both looked like enthusiastic students. For some reason Shiggy stood next to Collette and Millet in line, ruffling its wings. Lately, Shiggy normally would leave me and walk around on its own. I guess this ancient dragon grows quickly. Even so, if it lost sight of me it would start crying. Still is was quickly progressing. It made me think back to just a few days ago when it never left me. Vi-Vi, on the other hand, was scrawling magic rings in the earth. She did look over to see what we were doing from time to time. Vi-Vi, you want to join us? Im already a great magician! No reason for me to take a beginners course! No, I mean as a teacher. Ooh. Well, maybe. If I feel like it, I will. Vi-Vi said proudly, as she snorted with pride once. I turned to begin instructing. First you have to feel the magic that resides inside of you. Okay teacher!Ill try my best.ryaaa Have you ever felt magic inside you before? No, old man.No.ryaa ryaa I guess Shiggy was joining our instruction, after all. All humans had magic inside of them, generally. However, just as you cant feel the blood moving inside you, most people dont feel the magic either. The first step in learning to control magic is learning to feel it. Okay then, so first I took each of Millets hands in my own. She blushed. Mmister Al Im going to let some of my magic flow into you. Ahokay.ryaaa Millet took on a serious look. Shiggy now started to climb up my leg. I guess it was already bored by the lesson. I left Shiggy alone and made just a slight amount of my magic flow into Millet. From my right hand into Millets left, to her right, and back into my left hand, the magic circted. Could you feel something? Ah, yes! She still looked quite nervous. It was normal for it to take time for even people with talent to feel that cirction of magic. If your master did this with you every day, it might take a week to feel it if you had some serious talent. If you didnt, you could go a year without feeling it. In my case, I felt the magic flowing inside me without my master having to show me. Well, you might not feel it again for a while, but if we do this daily Well, I felt it flow from your right hand into my left, to my right, and back into your left handlike something warm was there rya ryaaaa I was lost for words. Millet was an elf. There were many elves that were good at magic, but none like this. While this was going on, Shiggy had climbed my back and was now on my shoulders, squawking proudly. I calmed myself, and began speaking again, Yyeah. Thats magic! Good! Dont forget how that feels. Sure. Ill do my best. Now Collette was jumping around us. Meee toooo, meee tooo! Oh, do you want to try, Collette? Yaaaayyy! I did the same as with Millet, and held Collettes hands. Maybe Collette might have the same ability as Millet. If you feel something moving, let me know. Okay. I waited a bit before I used magic. Collette and I stared at each other. Old man, this isth like a sthtaring contesth. Pay attention. Okay.Moo. Collette was puffing out her cheeks. Moofy was behind me, pushing her snout into my rear. She must be bored. I was trying to be very serious, and Moofy was making me lose my concentration. Moofy, cut it out! Moo? Heh heh hehryaaa Colletteughed a bit after our staring contest was interrupted. Shiggy now bounced over to Collettes shoulder. Just then, I let a little magic flow into Collette. Ah, I feel sthomething! Old man, what isth that?! I was lost for words again. She had felt it even in the midst of all this distraction. These sisters were at least very good at sensing magic. Collette, thats what magic feels like. Magic Yes. By using the flow you can make things changeand thats magic. Okay. I tested them over and over after that. Both Millet and Collette were exceptional at sensing magic. I think it will take a little more time to teach you how to sense magic, though. Old man, am I good? Do I have talent? Seems so for now. Yaaaay! But, Im not sure yet. There are some that can sense magic but are useless in other ways. There are various abilities, channeling magic, feeling amounts of magic, and changing magic as well. I know that I made magic flow within you, but you need to do the same within yourself first. What does that mean?Hm? ryaaaMooooWuff Millet and Collette both looked confused. Shiggy, Moofy, and Femm looked at me the same way the girls did. So I sped my hands together. In this way, you can make magic circte. If you can do this, youve passed the first step. Ill do my best.Okay!ryaaa If youre able to do that, you can control the magic that resides within you. Collette and Millet both sped their hands together like I did. Shiggy imitated me as well. It had wings, arms, and feet, so it was able to copy my motions well. Moofy and Femm couldnt and walked around my legs. Ah, I can feel it!Me tooo!ryaa you all are lying! Vi-Vi stood up from her magic circle. I really can though. If youre lying, Im going to find out! Vi-Vi looked at them, perhaps sensing the magic. I did as well. They were actually doing it. you really are making the magic move. Right?Vi-Vi, you always doubt everyone. And with that, the two sistersughed. Seems they really are talented. Maybe one in ten thousand. ryaaa Shiggy stood there looking a bit disappointed, with hands sped. It wanted to see if it was doing it right as well. You did it too, Shiggy? ryaaa! Shiggy looked at me proudly. Maybe it does understand my words now. It would be a surprise. Even with the quick maturity and high ability of an ancient dragon, I couldnt sense anything. I see, good job Shiggy. ryaaa Might as wellpliment it, and Shiggy responded proudly. I figured that was enough of a lesson for today. You shouldnt just spring from one thing to another so quickly. After they left, Vi-Vi said, They both are very good. Seems so. But, not as good as me. You think? I mean it!! I dont doubt you. Well, GOOD, then. Seems like this teaching thing will be fun. Shiggy was now running around with the small wolves. ryaaawuffRuff woff Its good they get along. It will be fun to see Shiggy grow, too. Chapter 84 - Junior Adventurer

Chapter 84 C Junior Adventurer

Trantor: ranzan It was already a week after I began teaching magic. Millet and Collette were progressing well. They had already started with beginning magic. Shiggy was happy, and the potatoes were growing. And on that day. I was sitting at my guard post, and Femm twitched, and then stood. Someonesing. A demon? Humans. Maybe a peddler? Peddlers would pass by Mulg on a set schedule. However, there were rarely anyone that came by, other than them. Noits someone I dont know. I see. Thanks. Femm really is reliable. It must have felt cautious when it knew unknown people were approaching. The wolves were already herding their young into the wolf house. Its nice to have such a smart friend of a wolf. You dont even have to say anything. I think it would be best to hide Shiggy too. I picked up Shiggy from its ying and put it in my chest pocket. ryaa? Just stay quiet in here. ryaa Shiggy didnt know what was happening. It was nervous. Then I told Femm, Femm. You can stay here, but the other wolvescould you tell them to hide? Ruff? Theyre going to be scared seeing a pack of magic wolves. I guess with how strong we are, they have reason to be scared. Even when Femm was in his small form, it was still the size of a dog. However, the magic wolves were all twice as big as normal wolves. The group was one scary force to reckon withit was amazing to see them all together. Ruff ruff WuffWoaf Femm went to the wolves and barked quietly. They answered and then all went into the wolf house. Moo mooo! Oh, Moofy, you too. Moofy looked at me with glimmering eyes. She might have wanted to hide too. Moofy stuck its head inside a box that was lying nearby. .She may not have known that her butt was hanging out, but she still thought she was hiding. Moo Moo You dont have to hide, Moofy. Moo? Moofy just looked like a normal cow. The only thing different was her beautiful fur, and the cute look she had. Mulg Vige was based mostly on cattle industry. Moofys presence there would be no big surprise. What is Moofy doing? Moo moo Vi-Vi hade back from tending to the field. Just like usual, she was wearing overalls and a straw hat. Moofy, with the box over her head, rubbed up against Vi-Vi. There are some unknown people approaching. Hm? Really. Is that why Moofy has a box over her head? Moo MOO! I took the box off of Moofy. Then I rubbed her head. Do you think we should hide? No, I dont think theres any need. Theres no problem with a devil like you being here. Okay, then. Just then I remembered. I had heard from the chief that this region Mulg was in had people famous for hunting down devils. Wait, maybe it IS better that you hide. I dont want to deal with troops from around here. I see. Then Ill be hiding in your house, Al. Ah, Vi-Vi. Please take Shiggy with you. Lately, Shiggy let others hold it without struggling against them. It was also okay when I wasnt around. It was growing quickly. It was better that Vi-Vi hid the dragon in my house, then me trying to carry it around my clothes. Leave it to me, Al! Shiggy, you listen to what Vi-Vi tells you to do, okay? Ryaaa. Vi-Vi held the dragon, and ran off to my house. After a bit, Femms tail stuck straight up. Theyre here. Okay, thanks. It took a little while for them to arrive from when Femm notified me that they were close. This was because Femms perception was very sharp. Femm was a wolf you could depend on. Three adventurers arrived at the vige. From the look of them it was a heavy-armor and light-armor warrior, one each, and an archer. All of them were still quite young. Only the heavy-armor warrior was male. The heavy-armor warrior was covered in metal armor, had a wide, straight sword, and a metal shield. The light-armor warrior had leather armor and a leather shield, had a thin, straight sword, and the archer had leather armor and a very high-quality bow. They looked like a bunch of well-equipped adventurers. They all walked up to the vige entrance and I osted them. What business do you have in Mulg? Wed like to buy provisions, so we decided to visit. The leader seemed to be the heavy-armor warrior. They nced now and then at Femm, standing beside me. For those that didnt know Femm, Femm just looked like a dog. Femm was a beautiful one though, so no doubt they noticed. I see, youre all adventurers, right? Correct. Could I see your adventurer cards? It was the duty of a guard like me to check the identification of anyoneing into the vige. They might be thieves simply dressed up like adventurers, for all I knew. Here you are. Oh. Youre all B-ss adventurers. Quite good for a group so young. Nowe just do the best we can. They all looked bashful about it. The cards indicated that they were all around 20 years old. Very strong bunch to have a B-ss ranking. The heavy-armor warrior was Anton, the light-armor warrior was Emmy, and the archer was Liza. Why are B-ss adventurers out in the country in a ce like this? Were looking for a rare medicinal herb. A B-rank group looking for herbs? Thats strange. Usually those type of medicine gathering jobs were done by beginners. B-rank usually fought strong magic beasts. Well, this area has a lot of strong beasts, so gathering herbs is quite dangerous. I see, thats why youve been entrusted with this. Its true that Mulg Vige had basilisks roaming around it, so it was dangerous. There were also very strong magical boars. If one attacked you, it could stomp all your bones into a pile. It could also kill you with a quick stab from its tusks. Also, its upper hide was so thick that normal arrows and swords had a hard time piercing it. The light-armor warrior Emmy asked, And you, sir, are you confident enough to be guarding a vige in a ce like this? Hey, dont be rude, Emmy. Anton chided Emmy for talking smack in a vige she didnt call home. Anton certainly was the leader of the party, then. Ssorry. I mean the beasts around here are strongI didnt mean anything bad by it. No, dont worry yourself. Emmy flustered and bowed to me over and over. I just smiled back at her. It seemed they were quite an upright bunch of adventurers. I used to be an adventurer like you. Then I took an arrow in the knee. Did you? Im sorry to hear that. The archer, Liza, spoke words of sympathy to me. She seemed like a caring person. Since this vige is in the country, I dont know if you can get all the supplies you need, but please, enjoy yourselves here. Ah, thank you very much. The adventurers then ventured into the vige. Femm watched them and said, Medicine I wonder if its the ones that Millet always uses? Maybe. But they bloom in a different season. It might be a different one. Hm. Was there no magician with them either? A magician is a precious find, though. There are lots of parties without one. Ruff. We watched the adventurers walk into the vige center, where the chief went out to greet them. It was a big thing to greet a bunch of young adventurers for him. And as we watched, I prayed that they would be able toplete their quest without any problems. Chapter 85 - The Junior Adventurer’s Suffering

Chapter 85 C The Junior Adventurers Suffering

Trantor: ranzan The next day, as I went to do my guarding duties, the adventurers came to me. They greeted me enthusiastically. Good morning! Morning. Will you drop by again on your way home? I rubbed Shiggys head as it sat inside my chest pocket. It was quietmaybe asleep. Anton answered my question. It seems werepleting our quest, so I see. While we were conversing, Femm walked beside me and dutifully sat. Just like a very intelligent dog. One of the adventurers, the archer Liza, then said, The hot springs were marvelous. And the chiefs very kind. Its a nice vige. I am honored for you to say such things. Then the adventurers looked over at Moofy. Moofy was now sitting right next to Femm. Its natural for a dog to sit and watch you, but weirder than anything for a cow to do the same. I think Moofy did it so she wouldnt stand out, though. The light-armored warrior, Emmy now asked me, That reminds me, this cow was here yesterday. Oh, you mean this cow? Moo? Moofy looked confused. Also cute, it her confused state. This isnt a stabled cow, but something like a pet. Wow, thats rare! And cute. Moo Mooo I rubbed Moofys head and it happily mooed away. The adventurers seemed to just ept it. Moofy was cute, so it wasnt strange to have her as a pet. After talking a bit, the adventurers began their journey away. Be careful. I pray you meet no danger. Thank you very much. They walked away from the vige, all of them smiling. Im d this worked out well. Me too. Ryaa ryaa Shiggy started crying from my chest. Then it rubbed its head into me. What is it, Shiggy? Ryaa ryaa!! I took Shiggy out and it seemed to protest it. It might have been nice and warm. Just rx, youre okay. Ryyaaa Iplimented it and Shiggy proudly pped its wings. I had no worries about that band of adventurers. They were all a superior B-rank. And, there were no strong monsters in the wolves woods. Femm had also chased the really hostile ones away as well. For now, the area around here was safe. That night. I was sleeping soundly, and Femm woke me up. What is it? Someones approaching. A demon? Those adventurers from the morning. At this time of night? I got up. Moofy was already awake. Shiggy was sleeping and protesting the noise with a ryaaa. Sorry, Shiggy. You can sleep here. ryaaa The dragon jumped and sped onto my chest. I stuffed it into my chest pocket. As I left the house, the night air chilled me. Femm and Moofy came along. Perhaps because she was cold, Moofy shivered a bit outside There are two. Not three? Yes. And the adventurers that arrived were all covered with wounds. The archer was limping, and the light-armor Emmy was holding her up on her shoulder. The light-armored warrior wasnt untouched either. Her head was wrapped up. You could see that the bandage hadnt stopped the blood flowing down her head. And their leader, the heavy-armored warrior, was nowhere to be seen. Femm! Wuff I called for Femm, and Femm ran into my house. Femm dragged one of the greatest healers in the kingdom, Yureena, from my house to treat them. Whats happened to you? We were attacked by magic beasts Emmy answered. The archer looked the most injured. Almost unconscious. If she was left alone, she would die. Femm brought Yureena up to them. Cruz was there too. They had been sleeping in the same room, I bet. Yureena really loved Cruz. She would always want to sleep in the same bed as her. whats the problem? Injured. Take care of them. Sure, leave it to me. Yureena said in a still sleepy voice. Living creatures normally change. One had to correctly assess the change in ones physiognomy and then adjust the magic to fit the condition. Thats why healing magic is so difficult. Its impossible for me to assess people like that. Even though Im a wizard, my magic is apletely different type from those of the healers. Pleaseheal my little sister Liza first! I knowbut I can heal you both at once. Yureenas ability with healing magic is miraculous. In an instant, shes able to heal both of their wounds. It seems that the light-armored Emmy and the archer Liza were sisters. The healed Emmy now bowed over and over to Yureena. Liza had snapped from the mental strainshe waspletely unconscious. I cant believe that theres a healer in this vige. You helped us so much. Thank you. I cant restore the blood youve lost, so please, lie down. Please help my little sister. I must go back. Dont be foolish. But my brother It seems that all of them were siblings. A party of an older brother and two younger sisters. Emmy stood up quickly and prepared herself to run back to the fray. However, even if she went, shed just end up dead. Just then, I heard Lukas voice. So, what kind of beast attacked you? Um Shes a researched of magical beasts. If you exin, we might be able to think of a method of attack. Emmy seemed lost, but once we exined it to her, she assented. Then she exined. We had found the ce where the herbs were, and we were attacked by five basilisks. A basilisk is a B-rank magical beast. Usually a B-rank parky can take out a single basilisk quite easily. But five of them was impossible. Even hard for an A-rank adventurer. Before they were about to be ughtered, the leader stood up to the beasts and allowed the other two to flee. And theyre In the forest of the magical wolves. Right. I thought the basilisks had been chased out of the forest. Perhaps the wolves let these ones get away. I have to help my brother! If you go alone, youll die! But! I didnt want to say so, but if her brother was there alone, its possible hes already dead. However, I know how he felt not wanting to let his other party members be killed. Especially as a bigger brother. I turned to Cruz and said, Ill be right back. Okay, leave the vige to me. Do you want me to go with you? Luka, thank for the help, but Ill be okay. You can take care of Shiggy Ryaaa! Shiggy cried out from the pocket in my shirt. It seemed it really wanted to go with me. It might be a good education to see a wizard fight a battle. Okay then, Shiggy. Just stay quiet. ryaaa Femm, please, let me on. No problem. Femm grew back to his regr sizea horse. Emmy stumbled back with her mouth open in shock after seeing all this happen. Without blinking, I asked her, Can you ride a horse? Ah, yeah. I guess. Well, its no real difference from riding a cow. Get on Moofy and show me where he is! Moo mooo! Ahokay then Luka had already brought over a saddle for Moofy. She knew exactly what was needed without me having to say a thing. Thats why shes one of the best. Well, I guess I should go too. Sure, get on. Yureena got behind me on Femm. I dont think that a healers going to matter with the state that the brother is probably in right now. If hes dead, then a healer wont do anything. The strongest possibility is that well be collecting remains. If hes lucky enough to almost be dead, then Yureena might have a chance at helping. Emmy anxiously got on top of Moofy, and then Femm ran off. Chapter 86 - Help the Junior Adventurers

Chapter 86 C Help the Junior Adventurers

Trantor: ranzan Femm quickly barrelled through the night woods. Which way, Emmy? Ahum..over there! Emmy tried to point the way while keeping her head down due to the speed of Moofy. Femm and Moofy both sped towards the target. Ryaaa! Shiggy stuck its head out and cried out. It was probably excited as this was the first time it had gone this fast. Yureena clung onto my body from behind. Its faster than I thought. Its a magic wolf. Usually Femm would howl proudly, but it said nothing. It probably was embarrassed that basilisks were allowed to intrude in its territory. The magic wolves forest was massive. Even though they periodically chased magic beasts away, it was impossible to get all of them. Five basilisks at once was strange and there was no way these adventurers could stop them. Over there! Okay. Seems that Emmy was getting used to Moofys speed. I could see where she was pointing and hear her voice. I thought shed be tired after losing some blood, but she looked healthy. I can smell it. Basilisks? The smell of blood and rotten flesh is very strong. Perhaps it was the smell of Anton, who had faced the beasts in order for his sisters to flee. A bit further, and we emerged behind Anton. His head and arms werepletely petrified. His armor was unchanged. In other words, the basilisks had petrified his body. Around him were the five basilisks. They were bigger than most. It seemed that it was the best condition we could hope for. If you were petrified, all you had to do is dispel the curse and you were revived. BROTHER! Emmy screamed. She jumped from Moofy and ran to attack the basilisks. Moofy! Moo. Moofy bit onto Emmys cor and stopped her in her tracks. If she ran in there alone, she was going to die. Femm, Yureena, please take care of Anton. Okay. Ruff. Emmy, go and guard Yureena with Moofy. OokayShes helpless while healing, right? Honestly, Yureena had no need to be defended by Emmy. At least with enemies like basilisks. Yureena could take them on herself. And, both Moofy and Femm were there too. However, you couldnt just tell a girl like Emmy to shut up and watch. Her brother was petrified and in the middle of a bunch of basilisks. You couldnt let her charge them. Im going to draw all the basilisks away, so go and help carry Anton out when they are away. but, youre going to kill them all, right? Yureena figured it out. She and Emmy had to get Anton out of there just in case I couldnt kill all of them in time. Just dont let your guard down. I got off of Femm, and walked to the meandering basilisks. My knee hurt, but not too much; it just hurt to run. I couldnt use any strong magic. I might identally hurt Anton too. Even though he was petrified, he wasntpletely stone. He was something like a magically afflicted body that resembled stone. After dozens of years, he would slowly transform into one. But he wasnt as hard as stone yet. A human body was far weaker, but a newly petrified body was also weaker to fire than stone. It would also break easily as well. If he was broken, it didnt mean you couldnt remove the curse, but then it became much harder. And that would make it really hard for Yureena. Okay, what now? Even though I got closer, the basilisks didnt move away from Anton. It was almost like they were guarding him, and waiting for me to get closer. If you dont move, Ill make this easy. I shot five magical arrows, one for each of them, and when they hit, CRACK, Their magical barriers broke. Oh? Natural basilisks have no magical barriers. In other words, these werent wild. After being attacked, all five of them turned and came to attack me. Basilisks have a strong poisoned tail and petrifying eyes. And sharp ws and teeth. They had long and fat legs like a lizard and ultra-strong scales. It gave them good defense. The closest basilisk took a swipe at me with its leg. And from the side, its poisoned tail flew at me. They were a pretty good group of basilisks. Watch out! Emmy screamed. I grabbed its arm with one of my arms and its tail with my other. As I lifted it up, its poison tail and ws came at me. Clunk And bounced off my magic barrier. If you can use a magic barrier, then Im definitely going to have one, right? As I held onto its arm and tail, I shot a magical de into its body. It didnt cry out. Soa zombie. The basilisk continued to attack without fear. No screams, no fear, it waspletely zombified. It attempted to bite me and I shot a fireball down its throatit stopped moving. The other four started toe at me as well, but I ended them with magic arrows and des. So I guess you were going to kill them all on your own. Awesome Yureena said in a bored voice, while Emmy soundedpletely astounded. While I was fighting the group of basilisks, the girls grabbed Anton and moved him away. Can you lift the curse? For a basilisk to have done this, its quite a strong petrification spell. A normal healer cant handle this. no way Emmy was about to cry. Yureena smiled at her. But, hell be okay. Pleaseyou have to Leave it to me. Ah, Al. Cut up the basilisks, okay? I know already. While Yureena was using the curse dispel magic, I cut up the basilisks. Doing so was an adventurers job. No use trying to avoid it. I would have to have Luka analyze theseter. Id have to be careful to cut these up correctly so that she could examine them well. As I did, I said to myself, Zombification is suddenly in style around here I had a bad feeling about all of this. As I cut the basilisks up and put them into my magic bag, Shiggys head emerged from my pouch. Ryaa! This isnt food. Ryaa? Shiggy already had some meat in its beak. It was about to eat it when I stopped it. This is zombified basilisk meat. If you eat it youre screwed. ryaaa If you eat zombie meat, your bellys going to hurt! Remember that! Rya rya! It seemed to understand, and responded to me. It might have been just me thinking that, but I was happy. As this was going on, Anton opened his eyes. Big brooooother! Emmywhat happened? Emmy embraced Anton with a hug. He had just been released from petrification, so his memories were scrambled. However, it seemed toe back quickly. He was worried about his little sister Liza too, but I told him not to worry. Saving my sisterand then mewhat can I do to repay you? We were about to diethank you thank you thank you thank you thank you!! The two said their thanks to us with tear in their eyes. Yureenas face blushed red. This was mostly Yureenas work Als the one that killed the basilisks. Yeah, but Luka or Cruz or you could have done that. But only you can restore someone. Well, I guess youre right. So, you should thank Yureena. They both shook their heads. I know that we owe Yureena our lives. But we also owe you, Alfred. Thank you for saving me, Liza, and my brother! I was embarrassed at being thanked so many times. So I tried my best to interrupt them and their thanking me. Dont worry! We adventurers help each other. But.. A holy girl like Yureena was used to being thanked. Even so, she was a blushing over it. Shiggy watched everything going on and seemed to be very interested. We returned to their objective, which was to collect the medicinal herbs. Yureena and I rode Femm while Anton and Emmy rode Moofy. Femm, you can take the walk home slowly. Wuff We can also mark your territory as we go home too. Wuff? You know, you can stick your left leg up and pee I dont DO THAT. If Femm didnt though, then these magical beasts would return. Femm was clear that it didnt mark its territory thought. Maybe we could get Moofy to do it instead. And when we were almost home. RIRIRIRIRIRIRIRIRI The ring on my pointer finger on my left hand began to ring. Chapter 87 - Raid

Chapter 87 C Raid

Trantor: ranzan The ring on my finger was emanating a clear and beautiful tone. Thats why it didnt make the others worried. What is that sound? It is beautiful. Yureena looked shaken up. Anton and the rest all made confused-looking faces. Lets hurry! Moo MoooRyaa ryaa! On the other hand, Femm and Moofy were running at full speed. Shiggy seemed to be very anxious about something. Maybe Moofy and the other animals knew something about the ring. This ring, however, was connected to that air attack warning in Mulg Vige that Vi-Vi had made. In other words, someone or something was trying to invade Mulg. Somethings happening in Mulg. Hurry. I dont know what it isbut lets go. Sure. Yureena agreed to this without much exnation. I knew that Id have to exin to herter. Anton and the others nodded with serious looks. Anton, Emmy. Dont push yourself. Moofy, make sure to keep them safe. Im fine.Me too! Moo Moo! Anton and Emmy didnt look fine. They actually looked quite desperate. Moofy was fast, but because of that, she moved quite violently. It looked like a harder ride than on a horse. Even though they had both been healed, they both had lost a lot of blood. I couldnt let them do too much. Ill say it again, dont fight. Just take it easy. Ookay. Moo MOoo! Moofy slowed down so the two wouldnt be plunged into battle. Femm got a bit ahead of Moofy. As we were running, I told Yureena. When this ring goes off, it means someones trying to attack Mulg. Maybe the demon? High possibility. We have to hurry. Lets go! Femm sped up even more. Very fast. Femm must have ran slower before because it was considering Anton and Emmys wounds. Because of Femm, we were almost instantly in Mulg. Ah, Al! That was fast. Cruz and Luka came out to meet us. There was no out outside other than them. The vigers must be hiding in their houses. There were five wyverns fallen around the two girls. There were another 10 flying still flying in the sky. Its hard to fight these flying enemieeeees! Al, the sky is your domain. Please! Cruz and Luka both said to me. Luka and Cruz were swordswomen. They had a hard time fighting flying enemies, but there was nothing they could do about it. Just then, one wyvern came down, attacking Luka with its sharp ws. Luka shed through it and it fell. This really sucks. They wont fly down all at once! Yeah Cruz picked up a bunch of rocks near her and, Haaaah! She starting chucking rocks up at the group of wyverns. The wyverns just dodged away quickly. Not an easy target to hit. However, the final throw hit one wyvern in the head. It fell and crashed into the earth. Althese rocks just dont hit! Seems so. Knocking a wyvern out of the sky with a rock was a rare sight. Even so, it was no big surprise with Cruz. I prepared my magic spear. You guys did wellnow leave it to me. Sure! Go ahead. I shot the spear up at them while still riding Femm. Because there were many of them, I shot it with extreme force. It broke through the wyverns barriers and one by one knocked them down. They fell to the ground one at a time, pierced by the spear. Good job, Al. That was fast! Best to just leave any fliers to him. ryaa ryaa Cruz and Luka happily jumped up and down. Shiggy happily cried out from my chest pocket. Yureena got off of Femm and walked over to the other girls. No injuries? Nope. Thanks, nothing really. Thats quite amazing. After catching our breaths, we looked around. There were 15 dead wyverns strewn around the ground. Theres no way 15 wyverns just attack a ce naturally. Are these zombified as well? Ill check. Thanks. Luka looked over the wyverns and we began cutting them apart. It was out job as adventurers, so no way out of it. Luka finished looking at them quickly. Yup, theyre zombies. Zombies again? The basilisks we fought were zombies too. Must be in style. One hell of a crappy style. Vi-Vi crept out of my house towards us. She wasnt the fighting type. Because she stayed in my house, it was easier for Cruz to fight the wyverns. Wheres my Moofy?! Shes bringing Anton and Emmy back. Ohokay. I showed Vi-Vi the ring she had given me on my left hand. Vi-Vi, thanks for this. This thing became useful quickly. Doesnt seem like it was a demon though. However, you cant say this wasnt something done by a demon. Yeah Maybe the demon was prodding to see how powerful we were. The demon might have put those basilisks out there to attack Anton and the sisters. Its eerie that we havent seen the demon though. Yeah, thats why I expect we might be attacked again. We should expect that from now. Vi-Vi said to herself, looking downwards. We also need to think about how to attack air beasts, Al. Well, that magic circle you made helped, so we dont really need to think of another strategy. But we still need to think of a way!! Rya ryaa!! Vi-Vi was being stubborn about it. Shiggy was getting excited too, pping its wings away. It was still a baby so it probably didnt understand words, but it was responding like it did understand. Maybe I was just imagining things. Vi-Vi petted Shiggy and said, So you knew toe back from the ring? Yeah, the only problem is if were on a stealth mission and this thing goes off. Hm, youre right. Vi-Vi thought it over seriously. However, the noise the ring made wasnt huge deal. We dont get raided often, and stealth missions are even rarer. I dont think the two will happen at once. No, I cant allow something like that to happen. Let me have the ring back. I gave the ring over to Vi-Vi. She started fooling around with the ring. Its not that hard to fix. Really? Yeah. Compared to putting all those magic circles into ce, this is childs y. Vi-Vi looked proud about all the work she did. She had put all those circles into ce and it was quite difficult work. I think this will do it. What did you change? I took the ring from her and put it on. It didnt look different at all. Now it doesnt make a noise, but vibrates. Oh, wow! Heh heh, RIGHT?! Vi-Vi the professional. Now theres no way anyone but me will know the vige is raided, even when we need to be silent. I just engineered it to shake instead of make noise. Perfect. eheh. Vi-Viughed with a slight blush. Chapter 88 - Cleaning up the Battlefield and the Adventure-Siblings

Chapter 88 C Cleaning up the Battlefield and the Adventure-Siblings

Trantor: ranzan We cleaned up all the wyverns and Vi-Vi fixed my ring. Moofy returned with Anton and Emmy on her back too. Moo MOoo! Huff huffWheeze wheeze Moofy looked fine. The other two, however, were covered in sweat. Good work you two. Now take a rest. Did something happen? Anton looked at the ground around him and asked. We had taken all the valuable materials left behind, but the meat was left cut up around us. Yeah, some magical beasts raided us. Eep! Emmy jolted at the sight of all the wyvern meat and bones. The wyverns might be weak, but theyre still dragons. And dragons are the strongest of all magical beasts. Of course she would be surprised. Wyverns seem scary because theyrerge and dragons, but its not a big deal. A-rank beasts not being a big deal?! And look at how many there were!! Anton and Emmy were genuinely shocked. I guess a wyvern was an A-rank beast. Since it flies, that makes it very hard to suppress. You sometimes see them flying around here. is that so? Anton was still taken aback. Emmy pulled at her brothers gauntlet. Anton, this still was a really reckless mission But, B-rank adventurers should be able to at least gather herbs. But look at all these WYVERNS! The two siblings started discussing everything so seriously. Just then, Millet approached us. Its still night. Please sleep. Ah, but Cruz looked over the dead wyverns. She was probably thinking it would be best to get rid of all the wyverns before people got up. Or maybe she just wanted to eat them. Ill take care of all this. All of you, go to bed. Okay, good night, Al. Thanks. Im ready to hit the bed! Cruz and the others went back into my house. Millet said to Anton and Emmy, You can stay in my little house tonight. Ill show you the room your little sister is in. little house? Ah, yes, pleasee with me. Anton looked quite confused. He looked up at the little house that looked more like a mansion. Emmy quickly opened the door to go inside and rest. Lizas consciousness returned, but now shes sleeping. Thank you so much We dont know how to thank you. Anton and Emmy both bowed deeply to Millet. And after seeing them walk inside, I went to burn the wyverns up. Two of the wolves came out to watch. Ryaaa! WuffRuff As they watched, Shiggy happily pped its wings. Seems that they were all getting along. These are all zombies so NO EATING! Wuff They looked a bit sad. Just in case, I took a piece of the meat and held it up to Shiggys nose and said, Ryaa? Look, Shiggy, this is zombie meat. If you eat it, it will hurt your stomach. ryaa I held it out and let Shiggy sniff it. It didnt try to eat it. Maybe this little guy (?) was learning something. Gawuff Ruff ruff Femm barked at the wolves, and they all started smelling the meat too. Femm probably wanted them to remember the smell of zombie meat. These wolves ate the zombie meat before too. Best to learn. No, that hydra was just on the verge of zombification. Or something like it. It was totally different. The smell waspletely different!! Femm angrily denied it for some reason. Maybe it was because wolves have such good smell. Should I leave a bit behind so you have a sample to smell? Please do. When I looked, Moofy was sniffing away heavily at the zombie meat too. Moofy didnt need to eat anyway, so I didnt worry about her. After burning up all the wyvern meat, Vi-Vi yawned. Im going to bed, Al. You should have already been in bed. Hm? I guess so. Well, lets go. rya Vi-Vi then started pulling at my arm. Femm and Moofy followed. Shiggy happily pped its wings. I arrived at my bedroom. Good night. Good night, Al. Vi-Vi said, and then went into my room. She was trying to sleep in my bed again. My bed was wide enough I guess. Wide enough for Femm and Moofy to sleep there. Well, I guess Im d its so big. What is?! Vi-Vi jumped straight into my bed. WuffMooo Then Femm and Moofy jumped into my bed. rya, ryaaa Shiggy got out of my pocket, and flew to the bed. Shiggy then rubbed up happily against Moofy and Femm. Femm and Moofy licked Shiggy gently. Youre cute, Shiggy. ryaaa Vi-Vi petted Shiggy, and Shiggy seemed quite happy. I was very tired so I just fell into bed. Shiggy came over to me and I petted it. Then Shiggy opened its mouth wide. Are you hungry? ryaa! After this thing was born, every two hours it would get hungry for something to eat. Shiggy always was hungry during the night and would make noise. Let me get you something. ryaa I took some feed out of my bag. I still had earth dragon and unicorn meat in the magic bag left. Of course, at first I had always left the bag in the kitchen, but after Shiggy made all this noise for food, I decided to leave it in my room. Here, eat all you want. ryam ryam. Rya ryaaa Shiggy ate and said. I gave it some more, and kept talking to it as it ate. You didnt make a lot of noise todaygood job. ryaa Did you think it was rough we had to bring those hurt people back? ryaa ryaff Shiggy ate while pping its wings. It watched what was going around and didnt make any noise. It must be pretty healthy. I almost teared up about how much this dragon had grown. Youve grown so fast, Shiggy. Really, Al? I dont think it grew at all. Well, not the size, but it can walk around on its own. Yeah, I guess so. Today it kept quiet when it was hungry, and I think it can understand what we say. We were both petting Shiggy when her hand stopped. Shiggys still a baby But it knows what we say, I can tell by the reaction. I think youre just hoping that. Maybe I am. Youre just acting like a dumb parent. Vi-Vi giggled. Femm and Vi-Vi were thinking the same thing. What do you think, Moofy? Moo mooryaaa Moofy pushed her snout into Shiggy. Shiggy reached out its little arm and petted Moofys snout. Maybe it knew how to from the way we all petted Moofy. Shiggy is really cute. MoooWuff It is cute, Al. Everyone agreed about that. As we all watched what Shiggy was doing, it seemed that we quickly fell asleep. Chapter 89 - Millet Gets Miffed!

Chapter 89 C Millet Gets Miffed!

Trantor: ranzan The next morning. I woke up to Shiggys usual cries. ryaa ryaa What is it? Hungry again? Almost as a reaction to what Id said, Shiggy put out one arm. It reached out and gripped my arm. ryaa Hm? Toilet then? rya ryaa I held Shiggy and took it to the toilet. Even though I didnt show it how, Shiggy remembered how to use the toilet. Maybe it learned from Femm or Moofy. After Shiggy used the toilet, we went to the kitchen. In the kitchen, everyone including the siblings were lined up. GOOD MORNING! Ohuh, morning. The Anton siblings all stood stock-straight and greeted me loudly. I jumped a bit. Shiggy reared its wings back in surprise as well. Are you okay, being out of bed and all? Yes, thanks to you. Our wounds have covered over. My sisters can move around too. Anton looked pretty healthy. The sisters nodded along as well. You were all pretty injured. No need to get up. Especially you, Liza. Because of Yureenas healing, Im fine. Thank you. She was the most injured yesterday. The archer Liza bowed her head to Yureena. Yureena looked a bit embarrassed. Even if your wounds are covered over, you havent gotten your strength back. While youre healing you can stay in the guard house here. No! We couldnt trouble you with Dont worry about that. Were thankful, but we have our quest toplete. Anton shook his head. I guess the mission of gathering the herbs came with a deadline. Deadlines were very important to adventurers. Yureena then spoke to the three gently, Even so, you MUST rest until tomorrow. Youve lost a lot of blood so you cant exert yourself too much. If you say so, Miss Yureena After being told that by the healer that healed their wounds, the siblings didnt refuse her suggestion. While we were eating our breakfast, Liza asked me, Um, the guard house Yes, its this building. The houseits not a mansion, but a house, right? Yeah. It seems that Liza didnt really understand, but she didnt ask anymore questions. Maybe because she didnt want to bug me. Millet turned to Liza and said, It used to be a smaller house, but after it burned down one day, Al rebuilt it to this size. I see, with magic? Even with Millets exnation, Liza didnt seem toprehend. Most houses arent built with magic. So I can see why she didnt understand. So I followed up with an exnation. Because its the country, theres a lot ofnd. Its easy to build a house like this with magic. And, I kind of made it bigger than the old one. You really are an awesome wizard, Alfred. Anton said with a tinge of amazement. That reminded me, Emmy actually was the one that saw me fight. And Emmy followed up by saying, Alfreds magic was out of this world! He killed five basilisks at once, ALONE! Alone? Liza was shocked, even thought she was unconscious at the house the whole time. Hearing Emmy, Cruz followed up, even more enthusiastically, Al really is great! He can kill dragons and demons, whatever! He could probably kill 100 basilisks with no problem! Wowthat really is something Right?! Cruz seemed proud of me for some reason. I dont think that it would be easy to kill 100 basilisks, though. I could beat them, but it would be meticulous. Cruz kept on happily bbing about my stories. The three siblings listened to her with serious looks. How embarrassing. Cruz, maybe its time you gave it a rest. But No need to tell them everything. If you say so, Al Cruz finally toned down a bit. However, Anton suddenly jumped and said, Cruzyou mean the holy hero THE CRUZ CONRADINE!? Yeahyou know who I am? Cruz had many other epithetsholy hero was one of them. After Cruz confirmed who she was, the three lept from their seats. For us to meet the great hero!! Please, let me shake your hand!! Ohokay Cruz said nonchntly. I guess she was used to mingling with fans. Emmy shook Cruz hand and asked her, But I thought you lived in the capital Well, during the day Im there, but at night, Im here. ? I see? Emmy had no idea what Cruz was saying. Vi-Vi suddenly was standing near us, having just woken up, and said, Heh heh heh, because of the magic ring I made, they can transport here from the capital. Wowthatsconvenient. A transport circle, wow! Right?! Vi-Vi was very proud. The siblings looked Vi-Vi over but didnt seem surprised. It wasnt illegal for devils like her to got to town or live among humans. However, there was quite a bit of bias against them. There were also a lot of devils that worked as adventurers in human territory. And as an adventurer, if you were good, it didnt matter what your race or species was. Thats why I guessed the three were used to seeing her. All of you are from the capital, right? Do you want to return together? No, were not from the capitalbut another town. We asked for more details, and it turns out they were from the town that we just went to sell meat in. If someone here in Mulg asked for arge town that was closethat was it. So that means your friends, Cruz, are Alfred, Yureena, and Lukaand you killed off the Demon Lord, right? Yeah, thats right. Oh my Godwhen you killed off those basilisks, I knew I wasnt talking to just any adventurer The three siblings seemed very moved. Since they knew about us, I had to tell them something just in case. Honestly, me being here is kind of a secret. Is that so? Yes, so lets keep it a secret. I understand. Alfred, you saved our lives! We make an oath never to tell! They all looked very serious about it too. After breakfast, the three siblings went to the hot springs. Probably for healing of their wounds. Then, Cruz went back to the capital. I went back to my work as a guard, but Millet stopped me on the way. She seemed a little angry at me. Mister Al. What is it? Mister Al, why didnt you TELL ME?! Huh? About what? I had no idea what Millet was talking about. So when I asked her what she meant, Millet suddenly got even angrier. That Cruz is the HERO, and that YOURE one of the people THAT KILLED THE DEMON LORD! What, I didnt tell you? NO, YOU DIDNT!! I thought she knew already. Millet looked up at me with tears forming in her eyes. You couldnt TRUST ME?! Nothats not the problem Then what is it?! Millet stared at me, seriously. She was closeenough to feel her breath. SorryI just forgot to tell you. HMPH! No, I really am sorry I thought it would make things hard for the chief so I didnt say anything. I just thought that I had told you already. I apologized a bit. Shiggy and Moofy and Femm looked back and forth at the two of us. It was a bit embarrassing, but there was nothing I could do. Millet forgave me, but it was a while before she visited me while I was guarding again. Chapter 90 - Teaching Sighisoara

Chapter 90 C Teaching Sighisoara

Trantor: ranzan The next day. Anton and his sisters began returning home. I think Ill be okay as I asked them to tell no one that I was in this vige. They and all of my party members had promised to keep my existence here a secret. So I went back to my guarding job, as usual. Nearby, Millet and Collette were practicing their magic. Spirit of Fire. re into action from my magical power! For I am Millet! Spirit of Wind. Blow into action from my magical power! For I am Collette! ryaa rrrryaa ryaWuff Chantless spells were just for the experts, after all. Millet and Collette were doing their best chanting their spells. They were beginning magicians, so their chanted spells were short. Standing next to Millet and Collette was Sighisoara, chanting too. Maybe it thought it was chanting too. There was no magic flowing though. Femm was next to Shiggy, howling too. Youre improving quickly. Do you think so? It has to be because youre teaching us, Al. Old man, am I doing good? I think so! Yeaaayy ryaa Millet and Collette looked happy. On the other hand, Shiggy looked sad. Maybe because it couldnt produce magic. Femm went over and started licking Shiggy kindly. I picked Shiggy up. Youre still a babyits no big deal. Shiggy wasnt really able to chant anyway. Even though chanting wasnt necessary, it was very hard for a novice make magic without chanting. From old, ancient dragons had their own systems of magic. Its a shame that I cant teach it, though. If you want to learn magic, you need to learn how make the magic flow through you first. ryaa Hearing me, Millet looked at me confused. Does Shiggy understand words? Nobut it seems that it definitely could be.Rya? But, its still a baby, right? Yeah, I guess it doesnt need to.ryaryaaa Is that so? Seems to be. Shiggy shook it wings and I petted it. Before noon, Luka and Vi-Vi came back riding on Moofy. From the morning they had gone out to check on the ce where I killed the basilisks. Luka and Vi-Vi, thanks. Especially since today is off for you, Luka. No problem. I was just wondering about those basilisks. I was wondering too, so I didnt mind. I wanted to go as well, but I stayed back just in case I had to defend Mulg. I was the guard, so that was my job. Theres no doubt that someone or something turned them into zombies and had them gather and stay there. I seeso a demon? I dont know that. Someone with a LOT of guts though. Why? Because, the only thing left there were the traces, no bodies. That pissed me off. Almost as if they were mocking me. But, it was a good thing too. Well, if those are the traces remaining, then no one to chase. Luka shook her head sombrely. They only left traces behind at the ce of battle. Where the basilisks came from or where they went has been erased very well. Its the same with the magical power too. Almost as if the basilisks appeared there from the sky to attack someone. this is going to suck. Totally. With no bodies remaining meant that someone had used high level gravity magic. It had to be a demon. Was there anything special about the zombification or magical traces? The zombification seemed much more refined than the magic that Curtis, the 12th disciple of the Demon Lord, used. The process was the same though. Of course, that was concluded from inspecting what little meat was left behind. What do you mean it was by the same process. Hmm, I guess if I had to say it, something like they were both advanced students of the same master? You think maybe some demon taught the disciples the same zombification magic? We cant discount the possibility, but its not the only one. Maybe we should question Curtis about it again. Yes, but hes still in prison. Its going to take some time to get ess. The prison was quite a ways from capital. It was on the other side of the capital from Mulg. If it was someone strong enough to teach Curtis, that meant is was quite a master and very dangerous. No more taking it easy. We had no idea where this thing woulde from. It would very hard to attack it. While we were talking this over, Moofy, Femm, and Shiggy all turned and looked in the distance. They must have felt something, and now were looking together. Wuff!ryaaMo mOo Ruff wuff?ryaa GRAWWWWWWWOOOOOOOOH MOOOOooooOOOOOOOOOoooo RyaaaAAAAAAaaaaAAAAAAaaaaaa Femm howled with a little bit of magical force in it. Moofy and Shiggy did the same, but with no magic. Just a howl. The magic wolves came out of the bushes to see what was going on. And Vi-Vi jolted so hard she fell down. Dont SCARE ME LIKE THAT! Whats the problem, all the sudden? Y, yeah! Dont scare me like that, DOG! Both Luka and Vi-Viined. I was thinking of teaching Shiggy how to make a threatening cry. Oh, thanks Ruff. Femm wagged its tail after I thanked it. But Vi-Vi was still angry. You cant do that near the vige! Youll SCARE THE COWS! Moo. Moofy looked sorry. Vi-Vi, on the other hand, meant the normal cows, not Moofy. Moofy hadnt done anything wrong, so she petted it. Then the chief came running up to us. Looks like everyone was getting angry at Femm. Wwhat was that? Chief, sorry to surprise you. UmFemm was just thinking of scaring away all the rats in the fields AhI seeokay, then. With the howl Femm made, I bet the mice across the mountain were sent scurrying. The chief bowed to Femm. Thanks as usual, Femm. Wuff. Femm was embarrassed as it didnt expect to beplimented. Femm, please do so periodically from now on. Im sure the crops will grow much better if we can keep the mice out of the fields. Wuff wuff Ill exin this to the other vigers. Harvest time is almost here, so every year we need to do our best to keep the crops going. The chief said, and then left. I rubbed Femms head. Femm listened to me with a look of relief. Even though you were trying to teach Shiggy, its true the mice are probably all gone by now. Wuff. Can you do that every day? Vi-Vi made a sour face. Even so, she was getting used to the magic wolves. Even so, she really hated a magic howl. Just tell me before you howl, and make SURE to tell Vi-Vi. Okay.rya ryaMooo Thatll be fine with me then, Al. Femm and the others seemed to agree. Even Vi-Vi understood. It was evening. While I was sitting there guarding like usual, the storage shed flung open with a bang! Cruz came outand it was earlier than usual. What is it, Cruz? Youre here early. Al! Trouble! Please help! Seems like there was some trouble afoot. Chapter 91 - Dungeon Rescue

Chapter 91 C Dungeon Rescue

Trantor: ranzan Cruz was flustered and flummoxed. I tried to calm her down, and I asked her what was wrong. The dungeon near the capital copsed! Copsed?! Um Cruz exined it all to me. Two hours walk away from the capital was a dungeon. It was a rtively easy dungeon for amateur adventurers. Knights also would use it for practice. The entrance of that dungeon copsed. New dragon knights were doing exercises inside and were left there. And Yureena was there healing those that were injured. Wow, thats quite a problem. Yeah, pleasee and help, Al! I had been to that dungeon before too. A long time ago. It was a very strong dungeon, constructed out of pure rock. What copsed into the entrance was arge crag that had jutted above it. Time for some gravity magic. Yes. It would take several days for men to move it, maybe even weeks! Upon hearing that, Cruz decided toe to Mulg to ask for help. After days or weeks, Im sure the people inside would be dead. Okay, just give me a second. Thank you! Youre great Al! Cruz was very happy. Just then Vi-Vi came up behind me. Al. Dont forget your face cover. Oh yeah, the masks that Cruz gave us. If I was going to the capital, I had to hide myself. I took out the excellently crafted wolf mask from my magic bag. Vi-Vi already had her realistic cow mask on. Youreing too, Vi-Vi? Of course! After you remove the rock, youll need help getting all those guys out of there. The dungeon is expected to be used after this. If theres another copse, it would be a tragedy. It would be a relief if Vi-Vi was there to make a magic circle to stop things from copsing again. Sure, Vi-Vi,e along. Sure, just leave it to me, Al. Mooo. Vi-Vi stuck her chest out in pride with the cow mask still on. Moofy huffed loudly beside her. What a funny situation. You can ride me. Femm gotrge again. It took two hours to walk from the capital to the mouth of the dungeon. It was a distance pretty hard to walk with a knee like mine. No, get bigger once were out of town. Youre going to stand out. ruff Moo Mooo! Femm seemed sad about the whole affair, and shrunk back again. On the other hand, Moofy huffed away, asking us to ride her. I guess since there are other cows in the capital as well, she wouldnt stand out. Okay, I guess well ride Moofy until were out of the capital. MOo MOoo!ryaa ryaa Moofy mooed happily. Sighisoara flew onto the back of Moofy. I need to go back to the capital too. Yeah, I think you should go back too, Luka. Luka was the guild master of the capital area. Though it was basically an honorary position, it would still be good for her to go back. But if we all did, then Mulg would be left defenseless. We were all thinking the same thing. Vi-Vi folded her arms on top of Moofy. That means Mulg is left defenseless! Yeah, Im not happy about it, but Ill stay here. Cruz said. She did look disappointed. Seeing this, Luka asked, Are you sure? Im unhappy that I dont get to see Als work, but youd be more useful going, Luka. Shes right. The purpose of us going would be to remove the debris and to strengthen the mouth of the dungeon. If we didnt have to beat any enemies, then Cruz really served no purpose. We could leave Cruz to defend the town, but I wondered what to do with Shiggy. If Cruz was staying here, then I could leave Shiggy in the town without having to worry. ryaa ryaaa Shiggy was riding on top of Moofy while pping its wings, cutely. I guess Shiggy was intent on going with us. Maybe it would help it if I showed it some gravity magic. I put it inside my chest pocket. Shiggy, behave yourself. Ryaa! Take care of everyone! Cruz saw us off, and I left for the capital. We left Cruz mansion in the city and headed towards the capital gates. Vi-Vi and I were wearing our masks, just another noticeable masked couple with a big dog and cow in towoh, and Luka was with us too. While the passers-by jumped, stopped, and stared at us, Luka spoke. These are servants of Cruz the hero. Oh, that makes sense.Ah, got it. Makes sense if youre talking about Cruz. If Luka only mentioned Cruz, it seems everyone epted that with little other exnation needed. I wondered what the hell Cruz did in the capital to gain that status. We left the capital and after a while Femm grew and we rode it. Lets go! WuffMoo mooo! Femm took off runningquickly. Vi-Vi rode Moofy and followed. Hey! You two are too fast! If you cant follow us, well slow down a bit. Its not that we cant follow you, but Sheined, but it seemed that Luka could keep up by running. She had some fast legs. We were able to get most of the two hours walk done in about 10 minutes. Wheeeeeze, wheeeezeFemmm and Moofeeee are really fast The speed of your legs are even more surprising, Luka The entrance to the dungeon was covered by several massive stones. The stones were about three times the size of an adult human. The width was about the same. If I wasnt there with my magic, theyd have to break them up and haul them away. Hey, STOP RIGHT THERE, YOU WEIRDOS!! There was a group of dragon knights and guild workers gathered around the entrance who suddenly ran up to us. Vi-Vi and I were wearing a wolf and cow mask, riding a massive wolf and a cowanyone would be shocked at the sight of us. Huff, pantits okaytheyre not enemies. Aare they with youViscount Rheingau? Rheingau was Lukas family name. I never used it with her normally, so I had forgotten it. She was bent over panting for air, then she said, Baron Conradine sent them, theyre followers of hers. Ahthe hero? Makes sense then. Conradine was Cruz family name. Just mentioning Cruz name to the dragon knights and guild workers was enough to get them to back off. It made you realize how famous Cruz was. Wheres Yureena? I heard she was here with you. UmAhViscount Linmia? Shes helping heal all the people over there. Linmia was Yureenas family name. With a huge copse like this, it would be strange if no one was hurt. If she hadntpleted the healing yet, that meant that there were some very bad injuries. I said a short prayer that there was no one crushed under these rocks. Okay, well let us move these stones. Um, Viscount Rheingau, how shall we do that? The followers of Baron Conradine is skilled at construction with magic. AhI see. It seems that the guild workers had no idea what Luka was talking about. Luka paid that no mind and turned to me. I nodded, and began preparing my magic silently. As I amassed the magic in my body, I felt Shiggy stir in my pocket. It peeked out at the scene. I quietly whispered to Femm, You smell any people under the rocks? Youre fine. No one was crushed. I seethanks. Femm told me what it smelled. It was a miracle no one was killed. I looked at the way the stones had fallen. When you move heavy rocks like this, you have to be certain youll cause no furtherndslide. I ced gravity magic onto the rocks, and rock by rock, lightened and lifted them away. Whoaaaa! What in zes?! The knights and workers all shouted in surprise. After about 10 minutes, the rocks were all removed. Inside there were about 20 knights and adventurers. They all emerged rtively unscathed. Approaching, they all started stammering their thanks to me. Some probably thought they would die. Some were emotionally tearing up. Well, we need to strengthen the mouth of this dungeon. What do you mean? We brought a magician with the talent to do that. And upon saying that, Luka nced over at Vi-Vi. Vi-Vi quickly began to draw a magic circle. It was the same type of circle as the protective circle around my house. Vi-Vi quickly draw it out without any confusion. 10 minutes passed and she hadpleted it. After she was done, she whispered to me. With this, even an earthquake couldnt copse the entrance. Thanksgreat job. After I thanked Vi-Vi, Luka turned to the guild workers and said, Okay, were done here. I dont think there will be any more copse unless something severe happens. You take care of the rest. UmViscount Rheingau. Theres someone we need you to rescue Luka was stopped from returning by a guild worker. Whats wrong? Deep in the dungeon, theres a mysterious beast and an adventurer trapped by it Luka looked over at us. I nodded. Got it. Well take a look inside. We then ventured into the dungeon. Chapter 92 - Deep into the Dungeon

Chapter 92 C Deep into the Dungeon

Trantor: ranzan There was something that one had to check before exploring what was deep in a dungeon. Watching Luka, we saw her approach a guild worker and ask, So, you said mysterious monsterwhat kind do you mean? Yes, its whole body was blood-red and it was big as a mountain, fast as lightning, and it could spew fire, poison, and acid. wow, thats quite terrifying. Luka sounded quite troubled by the information. Theres no such monster. Even if there was, theres no record of one like that. The guild worker knew that too. Well, this is from the description of a terrified new adventurer. You might want to ignore halfor maybe 90 percent of what they say. And that adventurer is? Currently being calmed down with some tranquilizing magic. Ah, I see. Sounds like we couldnt get any valuable information from the adventurer. What we did know is that whatever it was, it was something scary. The newbie adventurer freaked out for a reason. Well go and see. You all wait here. Sure. The guild members obediently nodded to Lukasmand. They knew that any additional adventurers would probably end up interfering with Luka and us. Ok, lets go. Luka said, and I silently nodded. After we entered the dungeon, Luka said, We should probably us that, I mean, why not, right? What? Spirit speech. Ah, youre right. During stealth missions, parties would use spirit speech to coordinate a n. Spirit speech wasnt too difficult of a magic. Were not doing this secret though, just talk like usual unless we need it. Yeah, and isnt spirit speech tedious to do? I guess well do it if we need it. Sure. We talked about it as we walked along. As we talked we paid very close attention to everything around us, looking carefully for evidence of traps. There was no way we would take it easy. But you couldnt worry like crazy either. On the other hand, Vi-Vi was riding Moofy, scared stiff from being worried. She was still wearing that cow mask tooit was funny. Hey, Al and Luka, arent you two a bit TOO rxed? You think? You need to be prepared for any attack! Sure. We know. They said it was as big as a mountain and fast as lightning! And it spit fire and acid! That was a newbie adventurer though, probably too scared to tell. However, I guessed itd be better that I ask the monster expert Luka. Do you have any idea about a beast like that. Theres a lot of beasts that are huge and fast. Not around here though. Well, if you dont count that, what then? Well Luka thought about it a bit. I could tell that Vi-Vi was staring at us. She was way too anxious. Maybe a dragon? That would be quite a conclusion, Luka. Dragons are famous but we dont have a lot of research on them. Really? Theyre strong, but there arent many. The only real research is on earth dragons and wyverns. Outside of that was the sizes of lesser and greater dragons. Adventurers did the job of figuring that out as they had to estimate each beasts suppression score. It might be possible that monster researchers of old just stuck any strong beast into the dragon category. Outside of dragons? Maybe Chimeras? Chimeras? A chimera had two heads, one was a lions and one was a goats. The tail was a poison snakes, it had hooves, and it was a strong beast that breathed fire. Chimeras arent red though, right? Maybe it was covered in blood? Or a subspecies? Covered in blood WOULD be scary. Moo? Vi-Vi looked even more scared, and Moofy mooed in concern. Vi-Vi patted Moofy. Its okay, Moofy. Well protect you. Moo Moo Moofy was probably stronger than Vi-Vi though. However, Vi-Vi wanted to protect Moofy. Moofy was breathing heavily. Maybe the feeling of protecting Moofy made Vi-Vi rx a bit. Sighisoara just peered out from my chest pocket and looked around. There was no monsters on our way down, just an easy path. Femm, do you smell a really strong monster? I dont know. I smell way too many monsters and adventurers, though. Femm sniffed around and said. Even though the most of them were beginners, they were alwaysing in and out of this dungeon. They smells would mix and were hard to discern, I bet. There was no way to really determine what it was unless you got close. We continued further, and suddenly Moofy stopped with a jolt. Femm also stopped suddenly. Somethings there. Something? I dont know, but it smells like something bad. I could feel Femms apprehensiveness. An enemy that would scare the king of magic wolves. We had to be careful. Be careful, everyone. You dont have to tell me. Luka said, already creeping quietly. We saw the ending of the dungeon. It seemed the ending of this dungeon was bigger than I remember. And in the middle of it was a massive monster. Eeep! Vi-Vi cried out in fear. What is that?! a stone Naga. So thats what one looks like. I only knew the name and had never seen one before. It was a basically a massive snake. All of its scales were stone. And not just stone. It would eat stone, condense it, and then coat it with its own bodys magic. A stone nagas scales were harder than steel. It was hard to defeat so it had a suppression score of A-rank. Its that beast famous for eating rocks. I see, thats why this room is bigger now. The stone naga must have eaten out the whole inside of the room. Around the naga was countless dead monsters, all bitten to death. I see, so it was covered in blood. It doesnt eat flesh so all the bodies are left here. It probably ate out the stones near the opening, so thats why the whole ce copsed, I guess. Yeah, Im going to attack it, so back me up. Sure. Whether I said no or not, Luka ran at the beast with full speed. At the same time, the naga rattled its tail. Luka shed at the beast and her sword bounced of its scales. Ah, its too hard! It looked hard! It continued striking over and over like lightning. Luka knocked its attacks away with her sword. Piece of SHIT! Luka stabbed at it hard and its tail showed a huge wound. Even with scales stronger than steel, Lukas sword would prevail. I cant cut it off like this though! You need help? Give me some defense! Luka shouted at me loudly. I guess I was supposed to leave the offense to her. She was fired up and in warrior mode. The naga and she exchanged blows over and over. While this was happening, the naga opened its mouth and spewed fire. I already had magic barrier around her, protecting her. After that, Luka ran away and out of the range of the fire breath. Luka, you dont have to dodge it. I have you covered Okthanks. Luka smirked at me. A stone naga could spit fire and poison, so I made sure she was totally defended. She went back to shing at its tail and head. Okay, I think I know now. Luka shouted in the middle of the fierce fight. What she knew I had no idea. It must have been something she sensed as a fighter. The next moment, she had finally cut through the body of the naga. The tail segment iled around, bouncing around her. The head part flew up and bit onto the wall near us. Ah, dammit! The naga ate stones. It also dug tunnels through the earth. It was trying to run away. Luka chased the head segement. I got ready to attack it with magic. Youre not getting away! Vi-Vi screamed. The naga bit into the wall again, but bounced off the wall and fell still. Heh heh, I knew something like this would happen, so I wrote a strengthening circle for the whole wall over here. Wow! Good job, Vi-Vi!Mooo! You shouldpliment me some more! Vi-Vi could tell ahead of time what needed to be done. I was honestly thankful. Vi-Vi, you really are a skilled magician. heh heh. She blushed. Femm, are there any more beasts nearby? Nothing strong. Just some magic mice and all. I see, thanks. Magic mice always infested ces like this. It was something newbie adventurers could kill off without having to go on a hunt. Well, I guess we can go back now that we finished it off. Sure, I have things I need to check though. Luka said with a serious face. Chapter 93 - Examine the Stone Naga

Chapter 93 C Examine the Stone Naga

Trantor: ranzan After beating the stone naga, we had to collect the treasures from the battle. Its something that an adventurer always did. The rocks that a stone naga ate and then made into its scales were tempered by the insides of the beast and made extremely strong. Because of this, they were VERY expensive. I used a special knife to remove them from its body, starting first from its tail portion. The knife wont go in! Is it that hard?Moo? Vi-Vi and Moofy watched what I was doing with deep interest. A knife alone couldnt get under the scales. The whole thing is hard. And its strong against me. What a nuisance. If you were going against it solo, how would you beat it? Let me think So I thought a bit. Vi-Vi was a magician as well. She probably wanted a hint as to how one could beat a beast like this. If it were me, I would use magic to shock the beast. Shock? Yeah, like blow it across the room and into a wall or something. That way it takes damage inside of the scales. Sounds difficult. If I were outside, I could use gravity magic to lift the thing up and then drop it hard into the ground, or something Only you can do that, Al. Vi-Vi looked a little sad. She probably couldnt think of a way to beat it on her own. How about a magic knife? Huh? Watch this. Vi-Vi looked closely at what I was about to do with my hands. Moofy and Femm also were watching closely. I showed them a knife that I created with magical force. With this, I could cut open the stone naga. A magical knife is not an easy magic. However, someone experienced like Vi-Vi should be able to imitate it. Hows this? I can make a knife like thatbut not as sharp I guess. I see. I guess magic circles are the best for you, Vi-Vi? I tried thinking of a way that a magic circle could be used to pull apart a stone naga. It took a while to think about it. Like heating it up quickly and then freezing it. Hm? Maybe Ill try it. Vi-Vi started drawing a magic circle. She was done almost instantly. She really was talented with drawing magic circles. It was a doubleyer circle with two rings. I ced a hardened piece of naga in the middle of the ring. Lets do it, Al. Go ahead. The circle instantly burst into me. After burning for a while, it quickly froze. Her skill at magic circles is really something. However, not one crack showed in the nagas scales. So this was impossible too. Yeah I cut open a part of the naga inside the magic circle. Inside of the scales, the meat had been cooked by the fire. Even though it was tough against fire, it was only strong against quickly disappearing fire like a fireball. There was no doubt that even though it was inefficient, one could beat it with sessive fireballs. The important thing was to keep the fire burning. The scales werent damaged at all, but the fire made it through to the meat. I wonder if you could kill it like that. You think, Al? Youd have to make a really good magic circle. And while you were making it, it would probably run away. Youre probably right. I guess it is really hard to kill. Luka was watching the whole experiment and said, Cant you make magic knivese from the circle? Hm? A circle of magic knives? Is that too hard? Hard? No, dont think it would be. Just strengthen the knife part of the wind knife and Vi-Vi wrote a magic circle on the ground. Quickly, like usual. Let me try this. Sure. A violent wind with knives emerged from the ring. It sliced right through the nagas scales. Hows THAT?! Wow, you did it. Moo Mooo!ryaa ryaa Vi-Vi looked proud of herself. Moofy and Shiggy both voiced their approval. That circles very strong and you can draw it quicklylooks like a very easy to use circle. Right? RIGHT?! Vi-Vi looked satisfied. I rubbed her cute head. Moofy nuzzled Vi-Vi with her nose. Stop it, STOP TOUCHING ME! Even as she said it, Vi-Vi was blushing. Just then, Luka was prodding the piece and said, If you look closely, this has been zombified. What? Look at this piece of meat She exined it to us inly. This zombie crap is getting TEDIOUS. Yeah, its strange. I thought it was strange that a stone naga would show up in a ce like this. You think? This is the first time Ive seen one. Luka nodded. As she cut it up more, she exined. Stone nagas are usually quite reserved. They usually are deep inside the earth or inside of mountains so humans rarely see them. In other words, theres someone that zombified and sent this naga into the dungeon. After zombification, you could force any beast to do your will. Simply put, this naga was here at themand of another magician. Yeah, I have no idea what the purpose of doing so is. Maybe to attack the dragon knights while theyre practicing? Nothats just like messing with a bunch of newbies These new recruits werent the main force of the dragon knights. If you think long term, though, attacking these new forces would be an effective strategy. However, it would take over a decade to see a result. I cant be sure if this is the same as the other zombie monsters unless I check very carefully So it may be the same? Maybe. Like over here. Luka continued exining. We both listened carefully to Luka. Its quite a lesson. In other words, theres a good chance that this is the same work as whoever zombified the other monsters. Seems so. Why would they do such a thing though? Vi-Vi said with a confused look. I thought that was the prefect question right now. I had no idea what the purpose would be. Youre right. Theres no reason to zombify a bunch of creatures here and there if their intent is to resurrect the Demon Lord or to attack the capital. It would be better to work in one ce and create a huge group of them. You cant do that if youre making little groups here and there like weve been seeing. Yeah As we pondered over it, Moofy and Shiggy both looked at us, confused. On the other hand, Femm was patrolling for any more monsters. What about as practice? Practice? Practicing making zombies? Practice Or maybe someones experimenting with it? Vi-Vis opinion seemed quite usible. However, Luka refuted it. I dont think thats it. Why then? This is probably the same person that changed the ancient dragon, right? Theres no way theyd need to practice or experiment if they could do that. If they could zombify an ancient dragon, making any other monster a zombie would be childs y. I rubbed Shiggys head gently while I thought about it. Thats true. Right? At least we can be sure that whatever theyre doing, theyre up to no good. Yeah, we have to get some clue of what theyre doing. Luka said, and Vi-Vi nodded. Shiggy and Moofy seemed to nod too. Just then, Femm was prowling in patrol and said, This tunnel is looking really dangerous. Youre right. The stone naga dug a tunnel right out of the dungeon. If a person crawled in it, they could get through. Left like this, it would be easy for other monsters to use it and attack the adventurers. It would also be a nest for the magical mice. Ill tell the guild workers. Please do. As we left the dungeon, the adventurer guild workers were waiting for us. Luka exined the whole situation to them quickly and told them that they had better cover the hole. We cant let this zombification thing go. Ill send you a list of possible drugs and items that might have been used in the zombification. That way by elimination we can find the buyer and the way they got the items? Yes. Please help me take care of this. Understood. The guild can take good care of this so leave it to us. With that said, we used the heros home in the capital to get back to Mulg unscathed. Chapter 94 - Reports from Mulg

Chapter 94 C Reports from Mulg

Trantor: ranzan With the day done, we returned back to Mulg. Shiggy pped its wings happily when it saw Cruz. ryaa! Wee back! Thanks. I appreciate you taking care of MulgHuh?! No problems here! How was the dungeon? Cruz asked with a smile. However, there were 10 hydras lying dead around her. You say theres no problem, but Well, it wouldnt be hard for you to kill these either What the hell happened here, Al? Luka, Vi-Vi, and I were surprised, while Cruz seemed confused. Then, it seemed that she noticed why we were surprised and said, Oh, sorry. I forgot to collect battle spoils from them. The battle spoils isnt the problem. Wellfor you being the only guard here, Al, there sure are a lot of monsters! yeah, its be one hell of a dangerous vige! Cruz seemed to make the mistake of thinking that 10 hydras attack the vige every day. I thought that Vi-Vi would correct Cruz, but she ended up agreeing. When did the hydras attack? Umright around sunset. It seems they attacked after all the vigers were back in the vige. I still had to ask, Are all the vigers okay? Umthey all came back from the fields. Millet helped check on everyone, so I think its okay. Cruz said proudly. It was good that Millet did her best to help. Cruz really didnt understand guarding duties, and she didnt know what all the vigers looked like. Wow, good job, Cruz. Heh heh Iplimented her and Cruz was clearly happy. While this was happening, Luka was checking all the bodies of the hydra. Cruz and I started to help her. As we started to cut open the hydra for spoils, Femms tail stuck straight up, and looked around cautiously. Even without saying anything, Femm knew to look around and be ready for an attack. Femm was a good guard. Shiggy stood on my shoulder and looked around as well. Moo MOooo Moofy wants to be scratched. On the other hand, Moofy wanted Cruz to rub her head. As we cut up the bodies, I asked Luka, Zombies again? seems so. Ahnot again. A zombified stone naga had copsed the dungeon. At the same time, zombie hydras attacked the town. There was no way this was a coincidence. We had to think it was connected. There has to be some connection here. Yeah. If you didnt know that Mulg was connected with the capital by a magic transport circle, then there was no meaning to this attack. Maybe they were cautious because they knew there was a warning for air attacks, so they usednd-walking hydras instead. At least we should consider that whatever it is knew about both the transport circle and the air attack warning. You think we should be worried about a spy? No, I dont think so. I refuted Vi-Vis question. No, we needed to be cautious, but we needed to do so on our own. If everyones trying to figure out who the spy is and searching for a scapegoat, then its going to make matters far worse. No need to jump at shadows. Even if there is no spy, we need to watch carefully whats going on and make judgments from that. Yeah, youre right, Al. Cruz and the others, who are in the capital during day, were here at night. If you knew that, then a magic transport circle is obvious. The wyvern attack proved that there was some kind of warning against air attacks as well. But, it is really annoying. yeah. It didnt seem that this was done to threaten the vige. With the dissection done, I went over to the vige chief. Alfredwhat is it? To be honest It seems that someone was trying to steal Shiggy. The monster attacks would continue to that purpose. I seethat is terrifying. Yes. If that meant that I would be fired as guardwell, I was prepared. However, the chief smiled at me. As long as you can beat them back, its no worry. They will attack again, Im afraid. Well, weve been attacked before. Yes, but these creatures are quite strong. I exined the monsters that we had fought recently. Even so, he smiled again. Dont worry about it. You beat them back, right? Youll do so again, right? Yes, thats what Im expecting Then, no worry. Its scarier to be attacked by them without you here. He had a point. It was possible that the attacks would end if Shiggy was gone. But there was also a chance they would continue. Yes, well, I think we need to talk. Pleasee inside. The chief led me into his house. He poured some tea as I sat down. Smelling the tea, Shiggy jumped from my pocket. ryaa? Maybe Shiggy would like something as well? No, dont bother. Shiggys still young, so I dont think we should feed it the same thing humans eat. I understand. ryaaa Shiggy sounded unhappy. However, I wasnt sure it could eat snacks. I should ask Lukater. The chief drank the tea and then looked at me seriously. Im sure the question has probably urred to you, Al. Why, in forsaken ce like this, threatened by beasts and with little good soil, do people still cling to a vige such as this. Well, I guess I was wondering. This is thest ce that people with no other ce to live have. Which means? The chief pointed his finger to his beastlike ears. As you can see, I am a manbeast. My parents were escaped ves. Millet and Collette are elves, but their grandfather was one leader in the Demon Lords army. I had no idea. Millets story begins 300 years ago with her grandfather, because elven lives are so much longer. She doesnt know of him. There are probably many other things you dont know about this ce as well. I see. She never did anything bad. Her mother, grandmother and grandfather most certainly did. She was a ve. She was the final remainder of a fallen family. This town is the final safe ce of people such as these. Thats why this town was created, actually. The chief scratched Shiggys head. Hearing all this, I had a question for the chief. Um, can I ask you something, chief? What is it? You said that when I made friends with Femm, that there was a hero that retired in this vige 300 years ago, right? Correct. Because you showed us the magic wolf kings tooth that was the treasure of this town. And what rtion does that have with the hero 300 years ago? After the hero defeated the magic wolf king 300 years ago, there was no ce for him to live in peace, so he created this town. I see. Compared to the hero 300 years ago, Cruz seems to be a much better hero. She was well rewarded for her achievements as well. The chief smiled kindly. You and Shiggy can remain here as long as youd like. thank you so much. I will say one thingthat quest request I sent out. The one to guard the town? Yes. I was thinking someone that was strong, yet couldnt live in the capital any longer would ept. Then heughed. Need a guard in Mulg Vige. Wolves and boars attacking vige. Payment is food, clothing, and board. *Vige has a hot spring. True that a true adventurer wouldnt ept a quest like that. Even as a joke, it was an adventure guild quest. I guess any criminal interested would avoid the guild. I see. It was kind for the chief to tell me everything. I guess I shouldnt hide anything any longer as well. Chief, I guess I have something I didnt tell you. I told the chief the real reason I came to the vige. I seethats why youre so strong. You were a member of the legendary heros party. And Cruz, it seems, is the hero. Sorry to hide it from you, but I have a request. I knowtell no others. Yes, thank you. No problem, and since we have a group of very strong adventurers, its a bonus. The chiefughed at himself. Well, I hope to work here a long time. And I hope you do as well. I bowed deeply to the chief. Chapter 95 - Bath-lovin’ Beasts

Chapter 95 C Bath-lovin Beasts

Trantor: ranzan While I was returning home from the chiefs house, Cruz and the others were eating. As they joined us, Shiggy beat its wings happily. ryaaa Wee back! What did the chief say? That I should stay here. Is that so? Well, and I have something to tell you. I told them that the chief knew about us being the great heros party. And also what he told me about the town. Upon hearing this, Luka said, Well, thats fine. But next time, dont tell anyone until its tantly obvious. Okay, sorry about that. If Als okay with it, then Im okay with it. Then Cruz leaned forward to ask, But, how was the dungeon? No one told me anything. You didnt ask Luka? Yeah, I was thinking of asking you directly, Al. I see. I exined what happened. Cruz seemed more interested in the rubble removal and entrance repair than the stone naga. Great job, Al! You did great too, ViVi! Right?! Cruz could have beaten the naga herself. She couldnt have repaired the rubble or the wall though. Maybe thats why she was so interested in the process. Just then, Millet came out of the kitchen. Itll be a little bit longer until dinner, so feel free to get into the bath ahead of time. Oh yeah, might as well take one. Lately the days have been quite cool. The warm bath would be the perfect thing right now. I got into the bath with Femm, Moofy, and Shiggy. Shiggy pped its wings once it got in. ryaa ryaaa You must really like the bath. ryaaa Shiggy dove and swum around the bath. Maybe Shiggy learned it from seeing the other animals swimming. I held Shiggy briefly. Shiggy was so warm. Actually, it was warm regardless of whether it was in the bath or not. Shiggy, even though you seemed like a reptile since you were born, but youre quite warm. ryaaa? Maybe its closer to a bird than a reptile? I dont know, but it definitely seems warm-blooded. RuffMooo Femm and Moofy approached and began sniffing Shiggy. After getting out, Cruz came in and was preparing to get in the bath. Yureena was with her and holding her hand. Ah! Youre getting out? Yeah, I am. I wanted to take a bath with you! What are you saying, Cruz? You havent even married! Whaa? Cruz puffed out her cheeks, but Yureena was correct. Cruz then put her hand out to pet Shiggy. If I cant get in with you, then let me get in with Shiggy. ryaa? Shiggy just took a bath, though. What? ryaa! Shiggy jumped onto Cruz chest in one bound. Cruz eyes shimmered. You want to get in with me? ryaaa Shiggy, you want to get in again? ryaaa Shiggy must really love baths. Cruz and Yureena took Shiggy in with them. Femm and Moofy both got back in too. I seriously think that those monsters like the bath too much. I was a bit lost in thought, and looking at them go in, Luka said, You feel lonely without them? Nonot really. Shiggy was growing, even thought at first it never would leave me. I guess I was happier more than lonely. It was now okay at being alone without me. I guess it really did trust Cruz. That was something to be happy about. Well, then thats good to hear. And upon saying that, Luka also went into the bath. It was after dinner. We were all rxing in the kitchen when Cruz said, Femm and the other beasts really love that bath. Because the hot springs have magic power in them. They did drink the water quite a bit when they got in with me. Since the magic beasts could absorb the magic power, Mulgs hot spring were really good for them. Femm, Shiggy, and Moofy all drank a lot of the water. Hmm? Well, usually they never drank that much around me. I looked over at them. mooryaa Femm looked away. Moofy looked confused. Shiggy innocently pped its wings. I guess the beasts like taking baths with a bunch of cute girls than with an old man. Bunch of perverts. It seems the water around Cruz is really good or something. Really? It is.ryaa ryaa ryaaa It had been a while since I heard Moofy speak in spirit speech. I guess it was good water. Shiggy seemed to agree. And you Femm? .I dont know. I guess for Femm, the fact that the water around Cruz was good was a bit embarrassing. I have no idea what Femms standards are for being embarrassed. Luka was holding Shiggy, who I usually held. Shiggy dug its head into Lukas cleavage. ryaaa Shiggy really is cute. Any of us can hold it now. It really is growing quickly. I asked Luka about something I was wondering about, So, Luka, do you think Shiggy is warm-blooded? It definitely seems so. Its new information about the ancient dragons. But as to whether it is as only a chick or during adulthood too, who knows Hmmm I was thinking of presenting a paper on it, but with someoneing after Shiggy, it may not be a good idea. Well, Im sure we can trust youll do it someday. Thanks Luka said to Yureena while rubbing Shiggy. We cant ignore what happened today thoughstuffs happening near the capital now too. Yeah. We need you to help find out whats happening too, Yureena. Got it, I will. Thanks. No problem. I wont be the only one. Yureena was a holy maiden. She had quite some power over the church. The churches had their ownwork of information. Since there were many believers and its reach stretched over many countries and cities, the info she could find out wasparable to the guilds. With both the guild and the churchs info helping us, wed probably discover something soon. Wed just have to wait until the information finally showed up. That night. I slept very well. Shiggy, Femm, and Moofy were with me. For some reason, Cruz was in bed with me too. If Yureena knew, shed be angry. Late that night. Cruz was clinging onto Femm when Femm suddenly began to twitch. Femm? TwitchTwitchTwitchTwitchTwitchTwitchTwitch Femm was twitching all over. But it seemed that Femm was still asleep. NoFemm might be unconscious. I was worried. Since Femm was moving so much, the rest of us woke up. Femm, are you okay? Mooo?ryaaa Cruz, Moofy, and Shiggy all looked worried now. Moofy tried to likc Femm awake. I was worried as a rubbed Femms head. Cruz and Shiggy joined in, trying to wake Femm up. Moofy. Go get Yureena and Luka! Mooo. Moofy ran out of the room. Are you okay? Femm! Wake up! Femm didnt wake. It justid there, twitching. Cruz and I both petted Femm, lost at what to do but trying to help. Then, Femm began to shimmer, full of light. Chapter 96 - Femm’s Sudden Change

Chapter 96 C Femms Sudden Change

Trantor: ranzan While Cruz and I petted Femm, Femms body increased in shimmering. In addition to this increased shimmering, Femms twitching also increased. ryaa ryaa Shiggy also petted Femmit must be worried. What happened?! What is it? Moo mooo! Moofy brought Luka and Yureena running. Somethings wrong with Femm! Femms shaking and shining with light! ryaaaa After hearing our works, Luka and Yureena began examining Femm. As they did, the shimmering began to fade and the twitching stopped. Then, the light fadedpletely and Femm lie still. Femmm! Femm, dont die! ryaaaaa! We all tried shaking Femm. Shiggy was doing its best to wake Femm too. Luka then reached out to stop us. Calm down, everyone. Femms breathing. Huh? I checked if Femm really was breathing. Kuooooh I could hear a pleasant, soft breath pass from Femms snout. Just in case, I checked Femms heartbeat as well. It was beating. Is Femm okay? Theres no disease or injury, and it seems healthy. Yureena said after examining Femm magically. A healer like Yureena was also a specialist at examination magic. Healing and examination magic are almost inseparable. But if someone specialized like Yureena said Femm was healthy, Im not worried. I see. d to hear that. But what happened to Femm all the sudden. Kwoonmynah mynah. Femm suddenly yawned and murmured happily, unaware of all of us worrying around it. It probably was dreaming about something it ate, since its mouth was moving. Shiggy jumped on and held Femms body, and began petting it again. It must have been worried. Luka checked over Femm again. She opened its eyes, mouth, pulled on its ears, and lifted its legs. Even with all of this, Femm didnt wake up. I wonder if it lost its wildness. After checking over it again, Luka folded her arms and looked at Femm seriously. Hmmm Did something happen to Femm? Hey, just in case, turn on a light. Ssure. I realized this all happened in the dark. I lit a magic candle. The room in my house was suddenly lit in a dim light. With the light shining, Luka made a satisfied face and nodded. I knew it. I, on the other hand, was surprised. WHOA! FEMM CHANGED COLORS! Femm did! Femms fur was now a silverish color. It was a deep silver that was closer to ck than white. Now it was more of a silverish-white. Or a white-silver. Femms fur turned all white It must have seen a scary dreamFemm! Femm! Cruz tried to gently wake up Femm and get it up from the bed. Femm wouldnt wake up easily though. After a little more, Femms eyes finally opened. wuff? Youre up. Are you okay? Wuffoooh. Though we were worried, Femm just yawned a huge yawn. It looked tired. Moofy sniffed away at Femm like crazy. Moofy must have been very worried. Did you see a scary dream? Wuff? Youre okay now! Just rx! Youve still got me! ryaaa I held FemmI was just trying to help. Cruz hugged onto Femm toothen Shiggy. Wuff? Femm looked around at us, wondering what was happening. Luka looked at Femm, and made a sour face. No, no, notheres no way that a bad dream would turn someones hair white! White hair?! Femm seemed to utter in a still sleepy voice. Cruz squeezed Femm harder and then said, Yeah, not whitemore like silver. It looks cool though. Femm, you must have been so scared of that dream that you lit up in light! You were all in white! Femm hear what she said, looked at its fur, and then made a surprised face. Out of nowhere, Vi-Vi came in the room and said, It wasnt a scary dream. Think about it. If you see a scary dream, you pee the bed! Did Femm pee the bed?! Yeah, I guess Femm didnt. So that means that Femm didnt see a scary dream! I see. After hearing Vi-Vis exnation, Femm jumped up and dropped its tail with a thud. A bad dreams not going to make me pee THE BED! Well, did you see one, then? no,. Well, I guess Im wrong then. Vi-Vi said a bit proudly. Femm snorted a bit unhappily. So, Luka, what happened? Femm started twitching and shining all the sudden! I didnt know. I was just sleeping peacefully. Femm said sleepily. Femm didnt sound like it was in pain, so I was relieved. I dont know why Femm was twitching, but dont you remember shimmering from before? Umyou mean when Moofy turned into a sacred animal? Yeah. Moo mooo! Moofy started licking Femm. I checked Femm, as did Vi-Vi and Cruz. Noit doesnt feel like a sacred animal Doesnt seem like one to me. I dont think it changed to one either. They all looked at Femm with doubtful eyes. I didnt say Femm changed to a sacred beast. Listen until Im FINISHED! Sorry. Just listen. So, what I was saying is that I think it might be a magical heavenly wolf now. Heavenly wolf? The top race of the wolf species. Wuff? Femm looked confused. Even looking at Femm now, I could tell that is was quite stronger. Almost as if the magic inside it had increased. Did its species change? Just its magic status. Why do these magic beasts change like this? Because Cruz touches them? I asked, and Luke looked confused, but continued to ponder. That maybe be itI wonder if thats all it takes. Well, Moofy became a sacred animal after Cruz petted her. Well, thats true. Though it seems that Luka was unable to exin it. Well, yesterday, Femm also drank up all that water around Cruz, so maybe that. I think youre right, Yureena. Luka quickly agreed with Yureenas diagnosis. A disciple of God like Cruz and the special water that existed around her in the hot springs might have been all Femm needed. Add to that all the dragon meat that Femms been eatingtely. That too. I see. All the food the wolves have been eatingtely were earth dragon and wyverns. Dragons were very strong. And their meat has magic in it, much more than normal monsters. Maybe the cause is all of those things together. Hm ryaa Luka was talking through her hypothesis, and Shiggy yawned. It must be tiredits still a baby and theres nothing you can do. Millet almost sleepwalked into the room. Whyyy are you still up?! Youre partying toote. I guess youre right. Im sleepy. Yeah, well deal with this tomorrow. With that, Cruz climbed back into my bed. Yureena grabbed her arm. This way, CRUZ. But, I No buts! Yureena dragged Cruz out of the room. Luka also went back, looking tired. Vi-Vi crawled in my bed, almost as in constion. Gotta wake up early tomorrow, Al. Geez. ryaaaMoo moo Vi-Vi looked happy to see the other animals lie down too. I was tired as well, and fell right asleep. Chapter 97 - Wolf Life

Chapter 97 C Wolf Life

Trantor: ranzan We were all very tired, so we all just piled into bed. Shiggy was already asleep. It had to sleep as it was still a baby. Vi-Vi, Moofy, and Femm fell asleep quickly after that. Kfwaaahhwaaahhh, Kuuhh However, suddenly Femm started talking in some strange sleep-talk. Femm didnt look ufortable, so I was relieved. For some reason, I decided to scratch Femms head. Are you having some strange dream? kwooon. After a while, Femm fell quiet again. I slept, relieved. The next day, I awoke and for some reason, Cruz was in bed too. Nnohmmm And Cruz was mumbling. Wuffwuff Moouunnn Mooo Femm was lightly barking in its sleep on Cruz right side, and Moofy was mooing softly on the left. And Shiggy was on top of Cruz head. Shiggys tail was actually in her mouth. Fu heheh On top of that, Vi-Vi wasying over Cruz stomach, face down. Vi-Vi wasughing in her sleep. Must be a good dream. and just like usual, Cruz is talking in her sleep too. Hnnmmmmuuhh. Before, while I was awake, Moofy chewed on my hand. It might be that she was biting Cruz hand as well. I also wondered what led to Femm bing a heavenly wolf. Hmmuhnhunn Werff wuff Moofy was just like a baby cow, sucking on Cruz hand in her sleep. Maybe she was just a big baby after all. On the other hand, Femm seemed to be y biting. I simply took Shiggys tail out of Cruz mouth. Then I picked up Shiggy and pulled it off of her. Cruz sleeptalking stoppedshe looked relieved. uheh heh heh. Cruz is alreadyughing. Just as Femm and Moofy were chewing on both arms of her, Cruz was smiling in her sleep. Vi-Vi then rolled over. Her hand flipped over and pped Cruz right in the face. Eheh Lowlyhman.. Cruz didnt seem to feel a thing. Vi-Vi also seemed to be happily sleeping. I was thinking this before, that these girls and beasts sleep too soundly. I took Cruz hands out of Moofys mouth. Then I took Vi-Vis hand off of Cruz face. Finally, I put Shiggy between Vi-Vi and Cruz. Okay, done. Satisfied, I got up and went to the kitchen. Luka, Yureena, and Millet were already there. They had finished breakfast, and Collette was there too. Hm? Wheresth the bossth and Cruzth? Sleeping. Theyve slept too long. Wake them up. Collette ran into the room. ITS MORNINGGGG! FEMM! CRUZTH! BOSSTH! MOOOFFFFYY! I heard her jump on the bed and fall on them with a st. Moo moo!Wuff! ryaa ryaa All the beasts were making noises. After a bit Cruz woke up. Collette proudly returned to the kitchen. I rubbed her head. Vi-Vi came in, holding Shiggy. You forgot your little baby. ryaaa Shiggy pped its wings. It seemed happy. Looks like Shiggy had a good sleep. Ryaa? I rubbed Shiggys head. I was d that Shiggy didnt start crying once it woke up and didnt see me there. It was growing quickly, and I was very happy about it. wuff Femm had slept so well, it was still drowsy. I bet the species evolution that had urred had taken a lot out of it. It might be painfula lot like puberty. Are you okay Femm? Are you hurt? Are you tired? Im okay. You can sleep all you want today, okay? Wuff. Femm seemed to think about it a bit. Luka approached Femm. Let me take a look at you. Ruff? Luka took out a memo and started her observations. She opened Femms eyes wide, opened its mouth, took its temperature, and several other things. She was checking on the biology of this new heavenly wolf. Femm just stood quietly. Im just checking, so get ready. Kyaooouun! Luka suddenly stabbed Femm in the back with a syringe. Probably to take blood. Femm howled at the sudden surprise. Sorry, sorrysee, it doesnt hurt. Fwoooowuff Femm looked at Luka with some spite it its eyes. I just petted Femms head. Lukas just checking you because shes worried, okay? Dont get angry at her. I know already. Even so, Femm was obedient. Luka put Femms collected blood in a bag, and rubbed Femms head. Sorry if it hurt. I looked at Femm again, and it definitely is a heavenly wolf. How is that different from a magical wolf though? Wuff? The exnation is difficult. It is a type of magical wolf. I guess its a magical wolf with holy power as well? Hmm?Wuff? No idea what she meant, but I guess a stronger type of wolf. So after a more detailed exnation, apparently different from a holy beast, but a beast with holinessso a holy beast. Hm? Didnt you say it was still a magic beast yesterday? Al, I meant it was a magical beast with magic powersbut a holy beast is also one type of magical beast. Hm? Moofy is a sacred beast as a holy beast. Femm is a magical beast as a holy beast. What? A sacred animal is not flesh, but a sacred body. Thats why it wont die if it doesnt eat. Femm is a magical animal that is made of flesh, and would die if it didnt eat. Thats the big difference, it seems. Moofy didnt need food. Femm did. I guess thats all you need to understand the difference. Now that I understood that, Luka continued exining. Thest sighted heavenly wolf urred 300 years ago, it seems. 300 year ago was when that founding hero came here and befriended the magic wolf king, right? Yeah, and the term heavenly wolf is less of a species name than a word exining a condition, and the magic wolf 300 years ago was the same status. Theres no real research published by the academy about it. Femm was a grandchild of the magic wolf king of 300 years ago. In addition to that, Femm also has met a hero, in much the same way as his ancestor 300 years ago. It seems like thats the key to all this. That was my theory, and Luka nodded deeply. It seems that way. The best exnation is that the hero somehow consecrated the magic wolf into heavenly status. I guess that exins it then. As soon as Luka issues a report on this to the academy, the established theory should change. While we were discussing this phenomenon, Femm yawned loudly. It seems Femm is bored. Fwaaaa. I guess we should just think that Femm got stronger. Let me research what change has gone on in Femm, Al. Well, tell me if you find anything interesting, Luka. Sure. After eating breakfast, Cruz and the others returned to the capital. I went out to guard like usual. As I sat at the entrance of the vige, Femmid down and slept beside me. Wuff?Bark? I wonder if Femm felt anything different. The other wolves gathered around Femm. wuff Femm barked back at them sleepily. They all surrounded Femm and sniffed away. Just as the wolves were finishing up sniffing, Vi-Vi approached, riding on Moofy. I just finished upgrading the magic circles so they could detect anynd monsters as well, Al! Oh, wow. Right?!Moo moooo Vi-Vi stuck out her chest proudly. Moofy looked happy too. Any air or ground attack will result in two different vibrations of the ring. That way we can be safe. Thanks for the help. It seems that Mulg Vige was bing more and more secure. Femm became stronger as well, and the sensitivity of the magic defense circles also increased. Should I put some attack circles in ce around as well, Al? Like a trap circle that you find in the dungeon? Well, it would be scary if the wrong person set it off Then maybe we can make them so theyre activated manually? Oh? So someone other than the creator could use them? Yeah. But then, wont the enemy be able to use them as well? I guess soIf so, then maybe so only I can use them? So, magic circles that attack, but controlled only by you, Vi-Vi, from a distance? Hm! Its difficult, but possible. It seems that it would take more time to set up these offensive magic circles. We would have to take it step by step as well. It had been several days since the demon had attacked us. In that time, I had taught Collette and Millet magic, and Vi-Vi and I had experimented with these circles. Then, one night Luka and Yureena hade back to the vige. As soon as Yureena saw my face, she suddenly said, seriously, Al, we found out some information about all those zombies From the church? Sounds trustworthy. Not only the church, the guild also has information about it. Luka said, with a serious look on her face. It was excellent to get both pieces of information at the same time like that. Well, I just finished my round of guarding for today, so lets hear what youve learned in the house. So I went back to the house with Yureena and Luka. Chapter 98 - The Devil in the Zombification Details

Chapter 98 C The Devil in the Zombification Details

Trantor: ranzan When I walked with Luka and Yureena into the kitchen, Moofy and Femm joined us. Soon after, Collette and Vi-Vi, ying with her, joined us as well. Yureena, youre here early. Well, we only had a little work, so we decided toe early, Vi-Vi. Usually Yureena, Cruz, and Luka came over quitete. A healer was always needed, so it was expected. On the other hand, if Yureena was here early, that meant that there were only a few people ill in the capital. It was something you liked to hear. Luka and Yureena are here with information about all that zombification going on. As I said that, Vi-Vi jumped forward at me. A report about the zombies!? We get to find out who the big bad guy is?! I dont think its that big a deal. Ah, too bad. Shiggy started moving around in my chest pocket. It jumped out and onto the table. Yureena, started petting Shiggy, almost out of habit. So, what now? Wait until Cruz shows up? Im fine with either way. We should wait for Cruz. Its bad to exclude her. Yureena said, so we decided to wait. Just then, Collette grabbed Shiggy from the table. ryaa Sthiggy, letsth y! ryaaa Shiggy pped its wings happily. Femm walked round behind Collette softly. It might be that Femm was going to protect Collette in the change that Shiggy got angrya very good, protective wolf. Collette held Shiggy in her arms, rocking it. Shiggy, the baby, and Collette, the mama. And I guess Femm was the father? Ah, Shiggy you dirtied your diapers, time to change them! ryaa ryaa Papa Femm, you need to help! Rruff Femm awkwardly yed along with Collette version of house. Shiggy had no idea what was going on, but seemed to be having fun. She wrapped a towel around Shiggys lower half while Shiggy rustled its wings happily. On the other hand, Moofy rubbed her head into my hand for a scratch. My hand doesnt taste as good as Cruz, huh? Moo mooo Just like a little calf. Maybe Moofy just liked to be babied too. I rubbed her head. I made tea for Vi-Vi, Luka, and Yureena as we waited for Cruz to return. After a while, she finally walked in the door. Al, IM HOME!! Wee back. Luka and Yureena both have reports about all that zombification going on. Luka, Yureena, great job! Cruzplimented them, and Yureena blushed. Luka just looked at all of us seriously. We talked about this beforehand, and we both were able to obtain information received from the church and the adventurers guild. Thats why were quite use that the information weve received is highly probably. Thats great. WOW! Cruz looked really interested. Yureena began exining the information. As we were looking for parties responsible for the creation and use of these zombies, one specific devil seemed to be buying materials and information about zombification. A devilnot a demon? Yes, well, it may be an underling of a demon. If it was a demon doing this, it would stand out too much. Since demons specifically targeted humans, they were treated as the strongest of magical beasts. If a report came in about one of them in the city, they would instantly be chased down. On the other hand, even though there was bias against devils, they were pretty much left alone in the city. Depending on the region, there were chances that they would be persecuted. Is that devil you speak of a former leader in the Demon Lords army? No, its someone different. Have you heard of this beforethe forest hermit? Ive heard the name before. Who is that? Cruz said with a confused look. Seems Cruz never heard the name. However, Cruz never really knew a lot of the strange lore that existed in this country. It had to be a very talented magician. But, I never heard anything especially good or bad about them. Definitely a hermit though. The hermit wasnt fighting with the Demon Lords army, nor was it attacking human habitations. The hermit wasnt helping anyone either. I guess there was nothing to say other than the hermit was a talented magician. Umwhen we fought the Demon Lords army, do you remember that massive forest we went through? Yeah, the forest on the eastern side of the Demon Lords region, right? There. It was a wastnd only a decade ago. Wha? Are you sure? Cruz was surprised, but it wasnt something impossible. When we all passed through as Cruz party, the forest was verdant with every type of tree and shrub. So the forest hermit changed that wastnd into a huge forest? wow. Yeah, but, it only happened in the ce just outside the Demon Lords region. Its a ce not well known by humans. Yureena then patted Cruz kindly on the head. Thats why Cruz didnt know much about it. So, youre saying that this forest hermit is hoarding all the materials for zombification that it can find? Not hoardingbut definitely gathering. Hm. This made no sense, though. Why would a forest hermit suddenly contact humans about zombification? And why was the hermit suddenly gathering zombification materials? So youre sure this is the forest hermit? No doubt. Why can you be sure? The adventure guild has little contact with the hermit, but they trade sometimes. Because of this, the hermit had an adventurers guild card created. Really? Yes. Its true that in order to trade with the guild, you had to have a card, and if you had one it was convenient. Especially if the hermit was using the materials found in the forest to trade with the guild for other materials. If you just had that card, you could make any financial transaction at the guild. So, this hermit was using the adventurer card to make purchases, and thats why we found who it was. Still made absolutely no sense. Its true that using the card is very convenient. But if you did, you instantly left traces. It was extremely thoughtless. Definitely not the type of thing a great magician like the forest hermit would do. I wonder if the zombification is over. You cant deny the possibility. Suppose the forest hermit was done with the zombification, then a demon could use the hermit as a very important piece in his attack. I dont think the hermit would gather materials like that then. Lukas hypothesis was probably right. Either way, we needed to track down this forest hermit, just in case. So, whats the name of this forest hermit? Vallimie Lindobal. CRASH! The cup of tea that Vi-Vi was holding fell to the table with a crash. The tea spread over the table. Luka quickly cleaned up all the tea Vi-Vi had spilled with a washcloth. Everyone started in surprise at Vi-Vi, even Collette, who was still ying house. Vi-Viwhats wrong? Did you burn yourself? Moo? Luka and I asked her, but Vi-Vi just stared ahead without a sound. The cup hadnt hurt Vi-Vi though, at least. Moofy stared at Vi-Vi with a worried face. VallimieLindobal? Vi-Vi asked in a quiet voice. Someone you know? shes my older sister. Vi-Vis face was pallid. If thats your older sister, that means she taught you magic, right? right. Was she good at making zombies? Of course she wasnt!! Hmm It may be that she was wrapped up in something bad. Maybe someone was making her zombify beings. Anyway, we need to go pay Vi-Vis sister a little visit. I said, and Luka nodded at me with a serious look. Chapter 99 - Vi-Vi’s Past

Chapter 99 C Vi-Vis Past

Trantor: ranzan Cruz suddenly stood from her seat after hearing the whole story. Okay! Lets go and find Vi-Vis sister! Sit. Down. Cruz was about to run out of the room when Luka grabbed her shoulder and sat her back in her seat. Luka looked at Cruz and then spoke kindly. Cruz. Finding someone out there is NOT an easy job. Just leave the information gathering to me. But Cruz, lets do this like we usually do. Hmph! Yureena also gently reprimanded her and Cruz puffed her cheeks out in anger. However, its true you couldnt leave something like this up to Cruz. Id like to help search too, I can provide defense. Al, you stay here and defend Mulg. YeahI guess Ill let you find her. Dont worry yourself, the jobs not that hard. It seems like shes still looking around for zombification materials, after all. Since the forest hermits base was somewhere within a vast forest, it would have been hard to search for it. However, as Luka said, since the hermit was still collecting materials, it shouldnt be too hard to find where she resided. Plus, the guild had a lot of talented scouts that could find her. All you had to do is get the suppliers and the guilds to cooperate in finding her. I think we should be able to find her in less than one week. Ill let you know as soon as we do. Sure. While we were talking, Vi-Vi just stood, staring at the ground. Moo? Moofy was nuzzling Vi-Vi, clearly worried about her. Vi-Vi rubbed Moofys head while talking, almost to herself. My sister isnt the type of magician to use zombies Youre probably right. My sister is strong. Theres no way shed need to make zombies. Yeah, we know, Vi-Vi. I tried agreeing with Vi-Vi. Her sister might not be responsible, but it didnt look that way. Id like for her sister to be innocentI prayed it would be so. That night. I was about to go to bed, but Vi-Vi was already there, silently awake. With all this urring, she must be quite lonely. Thats why she said nothing to anyone. Mooo. Moofy sidled up to Vi-Vi. Moofy was trying her best to encourage Vi-Vi however she could. I just silently rubbed her hair. Vi-Vi didnt tell meCut it out!like she usually did. I never knew that my sister was called the forest hermit. Really? I guess siblings dont know whats going on in each others livessometimes. I had no siblings, so I didnt know. Even soI kind of knew it was true. Yeah. Vi-Vi looked up with distant eyes. We were in my room, but she was staring far past the ceiling. In fact, through the ceiling itself, far past it into the starry sky. She probably was thinking of her sister, after all. Were you raised in the forest, Vi-Vi? Yeah, but up until recently, where it was a wastnd. Ive been through that forest, you know. Is that so? Did you meet my sister? No, we only went through one side of it. We didnt go deep into it. She continued looking far away, and said, Theres a castle in the middle of the forest. A castle? My sisters. A big castle. I see Until now, it seems that Vi-Vi thought that being raised in a castle was normal. Thats where she was raised, and I guess that was the reason. Didnt the Demon Lorde and attack your castle. No, we were fine. My sister has a lot of magic she uses. She made a lot of golems too. Golems? Golems were quite strong. They were strong against traditional weapons. Some golems are a match for 100 knights. I guess the Demon Lords army thought that there was little benefit in raiding the forest and taking the castle. It would cause more damage than benefit them. On top of that, the forest itself is bewitched. You cant enter it that easily. I guess youd get lost easily. Add a bewitching spell on it, and the bes even easier. Vi-Vi looked at me. Well, a great magician like you could probably get through the bewitching spell quite easily, Al. Maybe If it was me or Yureena, it would be easy to beat the bewitching spell. Cruz probably wouldnt even notice it, shed just bust right into the forest without thinking. Luka, on the other hand, would spend three days walking in circles and then waking up. I asked her something that I had been wondering about, So why did you be a sub-boss of the Demon Lord? my sister was the one invited to join the army, but she refused as it was too much trouble. So, you went instead, Vi-Vi? Yeah, I was interested in forestation and agriculture. And your sister didnt say no? She told me to do what I wanted to Vi-Vi reached over and hugged Moofy. From then, I havent seen my sister. So youve been lonely? not with Moofy around, I guess. Mooo moo Vi-Vi still sounded quite sad and lonely when she said that. Moofy licked Vi-Vis face. It took a week until the location of Vi-Vis sister was finally reported. Chapter 100 - Chasing the Forest Hermit

Chapter 100 C Chasing the Forest Hermit

Trantor: ranzan It had been about a week since we identified that Vi-Vis sister was involved in the zombification problem. After the sun went down, all of the rest of the party gathered at my house. Vi-Vi was ying with Moofy, and Cruz was ying with Shiggy. Femm was on the floor sleeping. Yureena and Luka were drinking tea. Just then, a sound came from Lukas chest. Ringringringring A magical contacting item. It was a very expensive item, but it wasnt strange for Luka to have one as a higher-up in the guild. Luka jumped up. Al. I think the forest hermits hideout has been found. Really? Lets go to the capital then. Lukas magical item was used to transmit important information. However, it can only do it through a ringing sound. In order to give correct orders to the army, several of these magical items are used. When a foreign kingdom invades, or when monsters attack, its used as well. This device was probably given to her to tell when the location of the forest hermit was found. Im going too! Moo mooo Vi-Vi and Moofy stood up. When I stood up, Shiggy flew over to me. I put it in my chest pocket. Femm got up without making a sound. Cruz got up enthusiastically and said, Its finally time, Al! No, Cruz, you stay here. Whaaa? Yureena grabbed Cruz from behind. Cruz, defending the town is more important. I know, but Cruz, PLEEEEASE. If Al says so, then Ill do it! Cruz finally agreed. Yureena also would stay. Whenever we split the party, it was usually Luka and I, and Cruz and Yureena. Thosebos provided the best party bnces. When we split three and one, I was the one usually left out of the party. So Luka, Vi-Vi, Femm, Moofy, Shiggy, and I all went to the capital. We emerged from Cruz mansion, and some adventurers were waiting. Luka probably arranged that. The adventurers all bowed to Luka. Miss Luka, the forest hermit is in a tavern. Thanks. We all ran. I and Vi-Vi were both riding on Moofy, wearing our masks. If Femm gotrger, then it was certain wed stand out. This forest hermit isnt much of a hermit. Seems to be the case. If shes not hiding anything, perhaps that means shes not doing anything bad, Al? You might be right, Vi-Vi. Vi-Vis thoughts were mixed with optimism that her sister wasnt up to anything nefarious. But,I couldnt deny that she might be right. She didnt hide who she was when she bought the zombification materials and she was staying at a public tavern. You wouldnt even think she was doing something criminal like making zombies. There was an adventure party that had staked out the outside of the tavern. They were B-rank. Since the capital was quite peaceful, a B-rank party was the mostmon. Miss Luka, shes still inside. Thanks. No problemit was an easy task. Leave the rest to us. Luka went into the tavern. I spoke to the two animals with spirit speech. Femm, Moofy, keep a lookout. Understood.Moo. Then Vi-Vi and I went inside. The customers and owner suddenly freaked out. Eeeek! Monsters?! One of the customers reached for his sword. They were being way to cautious. ButVi-Vi and I did have the masks on. I guess it was our fault. Rx, everyone. Theyre with ME. And saying this, Luka presented to everyone her adventurer card. The whole ce seemed to breathe a sigh of relief. Whoever was with Luka was someone to be trusted, regardless of how weird they looked. Thats the warrior Luka! Shes beautiful. Those that were seeing her for the first time were happy that were able to meet her. Do you have a guest staying here called Vallimie? Go up to the second floor and its the door right in front of you. Thanks Luka ran straight up the stairs. Vi-Vi and I stayed downstairs. Knock knock knock Ms. Vallimie! I have something to talk to you about! There was no response to Lukas voice. Haah! CRACK Luka quickly got impatient and broke through the door. It sounded like a strong door, but one punch from Luka knocked it off its hinges. Eeeek! The owner turned pale, so I silently stacked some gold in front of him. It was enough to pay for 10 new doors. It was a months rent in coin. Definitely enough to fix the door and pay for a closed day for repairs. We heard Lukas surprised voice, NO ONES HERE! What the HECK! Vi-Vi stepped up to the owner in anger. Huh? When did she The owner seemed surprised too, as he ran up to the forest hermits room. Vi-Vi and I followed him. Wow, no one at all You didnt see her leave? NoI didnt. It was apletely open room. There wasnt even any packages. However, there was some gold on the desk. Maybe her rent. Luka handed the money over to the owner. The owner looked a bit relieved. Thats the exact amount Miss Vallimie owed me. Well, good Luka said, and the owner nodded. Even though she had fled, she paid what she owed. Vallimie seemed more honorable, somehow. We went outside and called Femm and Moofy. The owner looked loathe to allow pets into his tavern, but I gave him another gold coin and he let us all in. She fled. Can you sniff her out? Ill try.Moo After a bit, Femm took off running. Over here.Moo mooo Vi-Vi and I got on Moofys back. Luka took of running too, and said, I didnt think shed run because she noticed some B-rank adventurers following her. But if we can follow her by smell Shes one fast runner. Yeah. She probably used some invisibility magic. If she didnt, theres no way the adventurers wouldnt see her. And B-rank wasnt some newbie rank eitherthey were experienced adventurers. Well, I guess she really is a forest hermit. She changed the wastnd to forest too. She must be quite the magician. She taught ME! Yeah, thats why your magic circles are so good. While we were talking Femm was running ahead. Femm wasnt going full speed because it had to keep on the scent. But it was quite a fast speed. Moofy also was sniffing after Femm. A cows nose is sensitive too. We quickly arrived at the capitals gates. The guard stopped us. You may not pass this gate. Its night, so its been sealed. I know. Do you let a magician named Vallimie through? No, I did not. While Luka was talking with the guard, I spoke to the animals in spirit speech. I also sent it to Luka and Vi-Vi to hear. Do you know which way Vallimie went? She went out of the gate.Moo mooo Moofy and Femm both agreed that she went this wayout the gate. The guard must have been fooled by her. Luka quickly pulled out her card and showed it to the guard for permission. An A-rank or above meant that you could leave without problem. The guard knew Luka, too. He also knew she was the top S-Rank. However, since the card trumped the guards own authority, it was possible that the guard was a bit peeved. The capital guard, whether good or bad, was also a bureaucratin a way. After we made our way through the gate, Femm asked, Can I grow to my big size again? Sure. Ruff.Mooo Femm suddenly grew. I moved from Moofy to Femm. Moofy looked a bit disappointed. How is Vallimies smell? Were getting closer. The smell must be getting stronger. Femm sped up even more. Even without having to carefully judge the smell, Femm could tell that it was getting closer. ryaa ryaa! Shiggy popped its head from my pocket. It cried out, enjoying the wind going by its face. I could feel it pping its wings in my pocket. Ancient dragons were very fast. Maybe it was feeling its instinct kicking in. From now I should start wearing looser clothing. Then Shiggy could p its wings all it wants. On the other hand, I could feel Vi-Vis anxiousness as she was about to meet her sister again. Vi-Vi, you okay? Why?! Of course I am!! I see We ran a bit more, and suddenly a unicorn jumped out at us from the side of the road. Chapter 101 - Troubles Near the Capital

Chapter 101 C Troubles Near the Capital

Trantor: ranzan Unicorn. A magical beast like a horse with onerge horn on its head. It may look cute, and it is a magnificent beast, but it has the temperament of mass murderer. Anything thats not a virgin maidenyoung or old, male or female, it tries to kill. WHOA! The unicorn was obviouslying at me as I rode on top of Femm. Femm usually would dodge it easily, but this time Femms reaction was slow. Perhaps Femm was too focused on the smell to notice. ryaaaaaaaaa! Shiggy popped out of my pocket. It cried out very loudly. Maybe it was trying to threaten the unicorn. Because of that, for an instant, the unicorn stopped before it hit us. I couldnt dodge it, so I grabbed its horn with my right hand. I flung myself of Femm and onto the back of the unicorn. I saw that there wasnt one unicorn, but 10. If it stabs you, you die! Are you okay? Forget about me! Get out of here! Al, take them! The unicorn was a very strong magical beast. If we fought them here, the forest hermit would escape. Maybe this was its n. Luka didnt slow down at all. Moofy! Take care of Vi-Vi! Moo Mooo! Be careful, Allll! Moofy slowed a bit with Vi-Vi riding her, but then took off after Luka again. However, Femm went on a bit, stopped, and then starteding back. I jumped to the unicorn so that Femm would keep running. There was no reason for Femm to stop. Femm, dont worry about me, GO! With me, youre not going to be able to follow. Without me, you can still follow the scent! Moofy can do it for me! Moofys sense of smell was sharp. But without Femm, they might lose track of the forest hermit. I seethen help. Wuff! ryaa ryaa While we were talking the other unicorns turned and began their attack on me. The didnt just attack with their horns either. They could bite you or stop you or kick you, so they had a variety of attacks. However, maybe because Shiggy screeched at the unicorn, the unicorn stopped their attack on my body. If you knew where they were attacking, they were easy to fight. I dodged the attack with a magical barrier, and then used a magic spear to attack the unicorn. The unicorns didnt try to flee. They simply kept charging in attempts to kill me. The unicorn I was riding was iling around in efforts to throw me off. GIVE IT UP, UNICORN! No way to get me off that easily. I squeezed my knees around the unicorn and held on to the unicorn Whoa! Ahhggg! Another unicorn reared and stomped on my leg. My left knee, that was hit by the magic arrow, was filled with pain. I had to weaken my hold. That second, the unicorn I was riding jumped wildly again. I was thrown through the air. Whoaaaaaa! ryaaaaaaaa! I tried to rebnce myself in the air, and Inded on my feet. Thending pulsated painfully through my legsespecially my knee. Extreme pain. I was d I softened the fall a bit with some gravity magic. It was toote though, as the pain was unrelenting. My body was stiffened with the pain in my knee. The unicorns saw their advantage, and all barreled at me, attacking. GAOOOOOONNN! ryaaaaaaaaaaa! Femm cried out in a howl filled with magic power. The unicorns all froze. Shiggy cried out at them too, but it probably had no effect. The unicorns momentary jolt stopped them, then they began to attack again. The shock was only for a second. However, it was all I needed to get my strength back. Hope you like these magic spears! As they leapt to attack, I struck them with magic spears. Femm also lept and bit the necks of the unicorns near himit seemed to relish it. Since they were all focused on attack me, Femm simply jumped at them and chomped at their necks. Femm and I quickly dispatched all 10 unicorns. It took about five minutes to get rid of them all. ryaaaa Even Shiggy was making a proud pace after the fight. Those dangerous unicorns didnt scare you at all, you really are a brave dragon. ryaa But since it was dangerous, from now on just let me take care of it. rya ryaaa Shiggy had kept pretty quiet in the town up until now. But even in the face of a dangerous foe like the unicorns, it didnt scare. Very brave and smartmaybe even genius. I rode on Femm again. Femm, lets go. Arent you going to go through the spoils? That was an adventurers jobafter all. But, the real quest was finding the forest hermit. No, not now. Ruff I repressed my instincts to search for treasure and went ahead, leaving the unicorns behind. It was still painful to leave all of that behind. Well catch up quickly. Thanks. I rode on Femms back at full speed while thinking about the unicorns. I heard that unicorns were spotted near the capitaltely. Cruz had taken care of all of them. There shouldnt be types of monsters like unicorns around here in this big of numbers. Ruff? Femm, were those unicorns zombies? Femm had bitten them, so I guess it would know what the zombie tastes like. No. I see. Thanks. Femm had determined they werent. Then they must not be zombies. But if thats the case, then that means theyre unrted. I guess them not being rted is even more trouble Wuff? As we ran along, I saw more dead beasts by the side of the road. They were freshly cut and killed. The bodies werent unicornsjust smaller, weaker creatures. Lukas work. Wuff And it wasnt just one beast eitherthere were quite a few. This wasnt deep in a forest either. It was the high road. And near the capital. Too many monsters. Quite dangerous. Then we started getting attacked by monstersbut they were weak. We killed them as we ran along. If theres weak beasts by the road, then something must be here. Maybe something scarier than weve seen so far. Normally, the smaller beasts dont approach roads or human settlements. Humans are too on guard. However, when theres a much stronger beast nearby, its not strange that theylle close to the road. Just like the way Shiggys parent scared all the monsters into the wolves forest. We need to get off the road. Femm said to itself, as it went from the road into the forest. This must be where the forest hermit Vallimie lived. We continued a bit more, and we finally saw Luka, Vi-Vi, and Moofy again. They were all facing a great dragon, on the other side of a river. There was one already dead, but one was still flying in the air. And behind Luka were three other adventurers, heavily injured. I see. Thats why they stopped. Luka and the others stopped to defend and help the adventurers before they were destroyed. It would have been easy to Luka to just blow past the great dragon. Howeverthen the adventurers would have been killed. Even so, for a great dragon to be this close to the capital Someone at the guild would be responsible for not getting rid of this dragon. As I thought it over, Luka shouted, Hurry up and kill it! I cant attack something in the sky! Sure. Another magic spearing up! The positions from the river was the river, which the injured adventurers were next to, which Luka was defending, who the dragon was attacking, and then us. We were standing behind the great dragon. I began conjuring up the magic. The dragon felt the magic behind it and turned. It then spiraled down in an attack. I used two magic spears C one to break through its magic barrier, and another to break through its head. The great dragon then fell dead to the ground. Are you okay? We arebut they Luka said, turning to the injured adventurers. They had really taken a beating. Deep wounds and burns. The dragon had spewed me all over them, I bet. We were still trying to chase the forest hermit. However, if we left these adventurers here, theyd die. No time to think it over. Back to the capital. Right. Luka nodded. We quickly put the adventurers on Femm and Moofy. Luka carried one of them on her back. ugh Rx, youll be safe soon. She tried to cheer up the groaning adventurer, and we raced back to the capital. As we ran, Femm said, that great dragon was a zombie I see. Maybe the unicorns were just fleeing from the great dragons. I nced over at Vi-Vi. It was clear that Vi-Vi was pondering deeply over something as her cow mask stayed fixed, staring into the distance. Chapter 102 - Vi-Vi’s Vexation

Chapter 102 C Vi-Vis Vexation

Trantor: RANZAN We were able to get safely back to the gate with the injured adventurers in tow. As we were on the way back, we asked the adventurers what had happened. Even though I had a wolf mask on, they didnt seemed scared. Or maybe they were so injured they didnt care. Orthey had already seen Vi-Vis cow mask and were used to it. Are you okay? Yeahthanks to youI think The adventurers wounds were covered with salve and wrapped. Vi-Vi probably tended to them while Luka was fighting. She probably had given them potions too. We couldnt go back slowly, but I think none of them would die. How did youe to encounter those two dragons? Our quest took too long to finish, and we were out campingwhen I see. Thats some dangerous enemy. While we conversed, we approached the capital gates. The soldiers came out when they saw us. Then they called out to Luka in a shout. Viscount Langow! Stop there! We have injured! Help us inside! I seeyou over there! The guard took one look at the injured and directed lower ranked soldiers to help. He must have seen how badly they were hurt. As the soldiers picked up the injured, they groaned, Thank you so muchwere in your debt Dont worry about it. Adventurers help each other. Thank youagain They thanked us over and over. The soldiers grabbed the heavy injured adventurers and took them inside of the gates. They probably would take them to a church where a healer would attend to them. And what shall you do Viscount Langow? You may enter if you wish. I dont need to now. We havent taken care of an issue out here. Understood. Well, please take care. Thanks. And so Luka and the rest of us returned to the high road. Luka followed, saying,. We need to get back after the forest hermit. I think shes already gotten away. Even sowe need to. Luka said as she ran with us. We arrived at the dead unicorns and smaller beasts, and passed them by. As we ran, Vi-Vi said, I want to pick up the battle spoils Are we going back for them, Luka? No, we need to keep chasing the forest hermit. Understood. It was disappointing that we still couldnt get the spoils leftover from the battle. WE had to hurry. We quickly arrived back at where the great dragons were located. Femm, Moofy, can you pick up a scent? WuffMooo. Femm and Moofy went back to sniffing out a trail. Shiggy stuck its head out and looked around. Too many scents and theres a river here tooI cant follow it. Moo. I see. Oh well. The smells of all the adventurers, the zombie dragons, and all of our party were mixed together. In addition, the river cleaned away the scent. The forest hermit probably crossed the river too. If so, there was no way to pick up the scent again. I guess we have to look around once it gets light outside again. Yeah. Luka looked sad. I, on the other hand, got off of Femm and started taking the spoils from the two dragons. As I did, I said to Luka, Right along this path behind the forest hermit, dragons just happen to emergea bit strange. Yeah. Luka began to cut the dragon up. On the other hand, Vi-Vi silently sat there, looking up at the sky. Vi-Vi, are you okay? sure I am! It was quite obvious something was not okay. She was probably wondering why her sister was involved with all these zombie monsters. I understood what she must be thinking though. ryaaa Shiggy flew from my pocket and right next to Vi-Vi. What is it? ryaa ryaaa Shiggy rubbed its head up on Vi-Vis cheek, maybe to encourage her. Seeing this, Vi-Vi smiled a bit. Heh heh, thanks. ryaa After we finished with the spoils, we returned to the capital. We also burned the bodies up. There was nothing good about leaving dead bodies behind. Other monsters would gather to consume the dead and the rotten flesh would spread disease. Thats why it was important manners to burn up anything you had killed. We arrived at the capital and the soldier came out again. Luka showed her card once more. Sorry about showing up again and again tonight. No need to be, its my job. The soldier then gave us permission to go into the city. Femm got smaller and entered with us. Straight ahead was Cruz mansion, and we entered the magic circle back to Mulg. After getting back to Mulg, we saw Cruz waiting for us outside of my house. She jumped on me in an embrace. ALLLLLLLLL! Thanks for watching the vige. Were you okay? Sure I was! I looked aroundI couldnt just ignore a slew of dead monsters like she had leftst time. But there were none left behind. Sono attack. Yup! Well, that was a relief. Al! Did you see the forest hermit?! She got away from us. OhI see Well talk about what happenedter. Okay! We all headed to the kitchen. I wanted to talk about what happened to Yureena and Cruz. However, Vi-Vi began speaking as she was thinking something over. Ima little tired. Let me take a nap. Vi-Vi, were not totally sure its your sister yet. Stop being so anxious. I know already. But she still had the same expression on her face. She quietly meandered into the bedroom. Mooo mooo Moofy was worried and followed behind her. I knew she was kind of feeling down. She must be worried. Yureena watched Vi-Vi walk into my room and asked, Something wrong with her? Well Luka and I exined everything that happened. Yeah, well now I understand why Vi-Vis feeling that way. Im sure shes really worrying over it. Yup. As we were chasing the forest hermit, great dragons just seemed to emerge at the right time to block our pursuit. It was natural to think that she had zombified the dragons so she couldmand them against us. For Vi-Vi, her sister was her teacher andwell, her sister. She obviously respected her sister quite a bit. Since she now knows that her sisters mixed up in evil magic, she must be shocked. Well, look for her again tomorrow. Yeah, Ill help. I said, and Luka agreed to go with me. Yureena then said with a sad face, I want to go, but I have a church business to do tomorrow. No choice in that. You have people to heal. Then Cruz stuck out her small chest proudly and said, Ive got tomorrow off, so Ill watch the town with Vi-Vi! Thankssorry for asking you to do so on your day off. Dont worry about it! So Luka and I would head out tomorrow to look around. Chapter 103 - Great Dragon Zombie Corpse

Chapter 103 C Great Dragon Zombie Corpse

Trantor: ranzan The next morning we headed to the capital. Vi-Vi didnte out of my room. Moofy came out of Vi-Vis room with the food Vi-Vi ate alonest night. Vi-Vi, Cruz, and Moofy would stay in the town. Only I would need to wear a mask. It would be a bit embarrassing as Vi-Vi usually was always masked alongside of me. When we arrived at Cruz mansion, Luka looked at my knee with a worried look and said, You want to ride Femm? No, that would be a bit too noticeable in the city. Ill walk to the gate. Okay. Whenever we were in town, Femm was its smaller size. This way it only looked like arge dog. However, if it went back to its horse size, people would know that it was a powerful magical beast. And believe meeveryone would be scared. Should we talk to the injured adventurers from yesterday? Good idea. We didnt get a chance to ask much as they were very injured. We might get to know something if we ask them again. Okay, lets go! Hey, wait a sec! Luka picked me up in one arm and started running. I could feel her boob against my backbut I guess she wasnt embarrassed by that. She sped away from Yureena, running. Femm ran alongside us, happily. In an instant, we were at the church. Were all going to the same ceso why didnt you wait for Yureena? You knowyoure right. But Yureena caught us after a moment. As a member of the party, Yureena had pretty fast legs as well. Wheeze wheezewhy did you leave me behind like that!? You should get some exercise sometimesyouve gotten plump. I AM NOT PLUMP! AND I DO EXERCISE! Yureena was pretty pissed at thatment. And all this talk why Luka was still holding me. Hey, Lukawhy not let me down? Oh, sorryI forgot. She dropped me and said, Pretty fast, right? Yeah, but I gave up trying toin. My leg did hurt enough to keep me from running. Since Luka knew that, she probably thought it would be fast to just carry me. I then turned and spoke to Yureena. We want to talk to the adventurers from yesterday, so we may need you. No problem, follow me. Yureena was already a holy maiden of the church. With her around, we basically had full ess to the church. We were quickly taken to the adventurers from yesterday. Luka, and wolfthanks for yesterday. As I said, we adventurers are supposed to look after each other. I guess they meant me when they said wolf. It was funny to see Femm jump a bit as it thought they were talking to it at first. I couldnt allow my presence to be known by my voice, so I just stood beside Luka. I let her take care of all the conversation. I wanted to ask some more about how you encountered that great dragon Yes, well just as The adventurer looked at me with a serious face, and began to recall the story. They werete inpleting their quest, and since the gates of the capital had closed, they decided to camp out next to the river. After a while, a great dragon appeared. Did you see anyone else? No one at all. Not even a devil? No, nothing. Okay, thanks. We finished asking the questions we needed and left the church. Luka had a ponderous face while she said, No one saw a devil. If the devil was using concealment magic, it wouldnt be strange if they saw nothing. Well, lets start by checking out the riverside now. After we left the church, we went to the ce where we had fought the great dragons by the riverside. Luka carried me right up to the city gateshow embarrassing. She let me down as we walked outside the city. Femm. I guess I have to Femm gotrger. It wagged its tail back and forth. Wuff wuff ryaa ryaa Femm ran along happily, while Shiggy stuck its head out into the breeze. I guess it really did like to feel it. We quickly made it to where the dragons were defeated. We checked around here yesterdaybut we need to look again. Yeah, we might find something now that we have light. Butthere was no new discovery. After looking around some more, we crossed the river and looked around. Femm sniffed the heck out of the ground looking for clues. After about 30 minutes of Femm sniffing the earth, its tail stuck straight up. Ive found the smell of the forest hermit. Oh! Good job, Femm! Wow! Wuff wuff Femm happily wagged its tail at all thepliments. I got back on Femm, and Femm took off running. After about 20 minutes running, Femm said, A smell. What kind? Something rotten. Like zombies? More rotten than zombies. Its hurting my ability to sniff out the forest hermits smell. Something that smelled worse than zombies? Quite a stench After running a bit more, the smell became so strong even I could smell it. Oh crapit reeks! It does stink! ryaa Lukas face looked sour. Shiggy didnt look happy at the smell either. After a little more, we found the source of the stench. Is this, another group of great dragons? Yeah, and how many? It looks to be about 20, as far as I can see. what the hell happened here? Luka and I searched around the many corpses of great dragons. Shiggys head was out for a bit, but then plunged back into my pocket. It must have smelled all it could take. Femm was trying to cover its nose too. It smelled that badly. 20 great dragon corpses, and this close to the capital. This is going to be trouble for the guild, thats for sure. I dont like the feel of this. Luka said with a face of pure dissatisfaction. The corpses of the great dragon had all been killed quite a while ago. These all have been dead for quite some time. The newest dead of all of them was killed at least a week ago. It was zombified? Its to rotted, I cant tell. Id have to take it back for research. A lot of zombies would rot as well. However, they would rot in a slightly different way than a normal dead corpse. And with them being this rottenyou cant really tell the difference. Femm covered its nose and said, Its a zombie. You can tell? Yes, their stench has a special scummy smell. scum? I wondered what Femm meant by scum. I had no idea. It probably was just an expression thates with having strong smelling ability like Femms. If Femm says its a zombie, than it probably is one. Yeah, Femms right. Luka took a sample of the dragons flesh with her to be studied. Either way, we could trust the nose of a heavenly wolf king. After seeing the magical wolves eat that almost-zombied hydra, I bet Femm wanted to forget how much the wolves were in agony afterwards. Luka, tell me when youre done with your sample. Well burn these things. Surethey stink. Yes, they do. Foul creatures. ryaa ryaaa The bodies of the great dragons were hugeand there were 20 of them. With this much dead fleshtheres no doubt it would be a hotbed of disease. There was also the threat of magic mice eating the flesh and reproducing like crazy. This might have also been the reason why so many small beasts attacked us as we chased the forest hermit. We dont need to take battle spoils right? We can just burn it? Well, all thisreally stinks. I dont want anything. All the stuff we could use like scales and the liver are all rotted. And they STINK! Right. Femm agreed with us. And it still had its paw over its nose. ryaaa! Shiggy cried from inside the pocket. It was an unnatural sound. It was probably trying to hide from the smell. I began summoning my magic power in order to burn away the bodies with fire. I wanted to burn it all away with the hottest fire, but I instead used a lighter fire so it wouldnt spread out of control. I guess I should also surround the fire in a magic barrier I said to myself as I did so, then, Fools! Ive finally found you! Now you shall pay!! Arge lion appeared before us. Chapter 104 - The Forest Hermit

Chapter 104 C The Forest Hermit

Trantor: ranzan The lion spoke to us in the old, affected style. It was looking down at us now for an answer. When did this thing show up? I didnt sense it. Luka and Femm were both surprised. It was a strange that Luka didnt sense it, but a real shock that Femm didnt. Apparently the sight and smell covered the lions presence. Grrrrrrr And its so huge. The lion growled at us. It had arge bodyand so arge growl. Its fangs sprung out from its mouth. The lion was about half the size of Moofy at her full size. I jumped off of Femms back. After I did, I turned to address the lion directly. It was a lion that could speak in human words fluently. I was hoping that we could avoid a fight by talking things over. Great lion, what matter would you speak to us about? How shamefulIll make you regret what youve done! The lion then opened its mouth. It roared with a magical shot of some kind. Since Femm and Luka were far from it, they dodged it. Hey, WATCH IT! Lets talk this over NO NEED FOR TALKING! I guess this lion wasnt going to talk with us. The lion again opened its mouth and spewed multiple magical roarsthey had the strength of charges of magical force. It blew down trees and exploded into the earth. If one of them hit usit wouldnt end without us being injured. Al! What now? Get some distance and Ill do something, Luka! Okay! If this lion was going to fight with magic, then I should take it on. I generated some magic while calling to Femm, Femm! Wuff! Femm understood what I wanted to do. We were going to run right up to the lion and challenge it. I deflected its magic attack with a magical barrier. Then, I shot my own magical charges of force at it. Two, three, four, five, six shots. After that, the magical barrier the lion erected was shattered. As I was about to attack the lions exposed torso with more magic, it quickly moved and dodged me. Wow, its fast! It cant beat me! Femm saw this lion as its rival. It dodged another shot from the lion by the skin of its teeth. Just like a heavenly wolf would. Femm was even faster now. Femm, youre fast too. Ruff! Femm looked at me happy after Iplimented him. Seems like Femm still had the upper hand in this fight. The magical shoot and dodge fight continued for a while. Finally, one of my magical shots struck the lion in the gut. Gyaawwnnnnn Bastard! Youll pay for that! The lion screamed. I shouted back just as angrily, Im not going to lose a magical fight, friend! Are you sure you dont want to talk this over?! I was going to shout back that it was already speaking to a mon brutebut no time for sarcasm. You will pay!! Even if you apologize, you will suffer! I will not allow you to flee! The lion red at me, and then over at the distant Luka. Prepare yourselves! Wha?! In that instant, a magical circle activated among the charred remains of the great dragons. A massive magical cage surrounded us. It had prepared this ahead of time as a trap. Al, this isnt good, right? Yeah, this is going to suck. The magical cage wasnt going to just keep us humans inside. It was also going to entrap heat. Just like the circles Vi-Vi used, the inside could be heated up all at once. If that was the case, the heat from the dragons corpses would eventually burn us up. Al! Al, you have to do something! Youve never seen a magic circle like this! No one has ever escaped one of my magic circles before! Everything inside of it is affected by a paralyzing effectyou cant move! Luka was really worried. However, this lions magic circle wasnt the end of anything. If it was just a paralyzation effect, Luka could break it. But the magic cage itself had a paralyzation effect inside of it. You would have to break the cage to break the effect. Rx, there is a way. If I can break the cage then the effect will be gone. Sure, I trust you. Luka seemed to rx at my words. The lion looked enraged as it growled, Grrrrrrr A way?! Even if you were a skilled necromancer, theres no way you could break my magic circle!! Normally, the lion would be right. However, this isnt the first time Ive seen a magical cage. Its pointless to resist!! The lion tried to strengthen the paralyzing effect on me, as I allowed my magic to flow into the the magical cage. I could sense out now how the magic circle was constructed. It was made much like the magic circle that Vi-Vi would make. -crkkkkKKIIIINNNNNKK! There was a high-pitched sound, as the magical cage cracked and broke. In that instant, Lukas paralysis effect was gone. If I only had protected Luka from that effect, then the magical circle would have been broken much quicker. Ive never seen anyone break this during a first encounterwho are you? The lion said with surprise in its voice. Its not the first time Ive encountered a magic circle like thisbut even if I hadI could still break it. Theres no way The lion looked lost. However, I remembered several ways to destroy a magical cage like that. Ways to break it with force and ways to overload the flow of magic. It was difficult without the strongest magic and the greatest skill, but I could do it. Bastard I bet this magic circle was the lions weapon ofst resort. Now that it was easily broken, the lion seemed to back off. Then I said to the lion, Im not going to let you run, so how about talking? Grr. The lion seemed quite flustered. With nowhere to flee, you could tell it was desperately trying to find a way to escape. And just before the lion was slowly about to retreat. GAAAAOOOOOOOOHHHHHNNNNNNNN! Ryaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaa! The heavenly wolf Femm howled out. It was mixed with magical power. It had much more power than before. Shiggy imitated Femms cry, but there was probably no effect from Shiggy. The lions massive body seemed to copse. Eeep. thud. At the same time it made a small squeal, a girl fell from the mane of the lion to the earth. It was probably hiding inside the soft mane of the lion. The lion hurried in order to bite down on the girl, but I used gravity magic on the lion. I pressed it down with a gravity spell so it wouldnt move. Grrrrrr The lion red over at me and growled. Femms howl must have worked. The girl couldnt stand either. She seemed to crawl backwards, away from us. Youyou human low livesHow could you do that to me It was a devil girlher breasts wererge and she seemed tall, but she looked just like Vi-Vi. So it was you speaking in humannguage and not the lionI see. Something seemed strange about that. Luka saidas it seemed that this girl spoke hidden in the lions mane. Luka understood everything now and nodded. Even if you try to shame me, human, I Were not trying to shame you. I remembered back to the first time I met Vi-Vi. After all this conversation, I established that this girl wasnt the one that had caused all the zombification. So I spoke respectfully to her. You are the forest hermitVallimie Lindobal. You even know my name? Vallimies voice was lost in confusion. She took a small knife from her pocket. Since itse to this WAIT! She was probably going to harm herself with the knife, so I shouted for her to stop. Dont be hasty. I wont kill you, and Im not trying to harm you either. Youre involved with the zombies?! Is that what you think? It seems there was some misunderstanding. Vallimie thought we were pursuing her because she thought WE were the ones creating the zombies. Were actually trying to find the one creating the zombies I dont believe all of you! I removed my wolf mask, and showed her my adventurer card. Im one member of an adventurer party. Could you help us find the one thats making the zombies? I guessI could. Vallimie finally seemed to understand. A follower of a hero that was imbued with sacred strength in no way would be involved with zombiesyou could trust in that. So I finally was able to speak to her calmly. Chapter 105 - The Sisters Meet Again

Chapter 105 C The Sisters Meet Again

Trantor: ranzan I introduced the now-settled-down forest hermit Vallimie to Luka. I introduced her to both Shiggy and Femm. Vallimie nodded in acknowledgment of all of them. Then I asked Vallimie myself, Why are you out here? Well, uhfirst, I want you to let my honey Rai free, okay? grrr. And with that, she looked over at the lion. It seems the giant lions name was Rai. I released the lion from my gravity magic. Sorry about that. With the gravity magic gone, the lion slowly stood again. Then Vallimie walked over and stroked Rais fur. Rai, honey, are you okay? Youre not hurt, right? Garr The giant lion nuzzled its nose into Vallimie. I guess they were very close. Seeing this, Luka said, I dont mind us talking and all, but could we do so somewhere else? It STINKS. Vallimie heard Femms voice and jumped. She then looked down at her groin. I pretended not to notice. My great zombie corpses! They do stink up the ce. Anyway, maybe we should burn the corpsespletely before we move on. She spoke about the smell too, and seemed a little bit more rxed than before. But then she seemed to speak again in a rattled voice, Wait a second. This was the trap I was trying to use to catch the zombie-maker, honey. Trap? Yeah! Great dragons a precious! You think someone who loves making zombies is just going to give up on some dead zombies?! Vallimie said proudly. It was a pretty good n. Luka and I looked at each otherit was hard to tell Vallimie this, but we had to. if you kill off a zombieyou cant re-zombie them What? I see Vallimie looked shocked. She was a great magician, but even she didnt know much about zombies. Zombies and other necromancy were forbidden. I had to know about them because I had to fight them as an adventurer. It wasnt surprising that a magician that wasnt an adventurer wouldnt know though. Did you defeat these great dragons, Vallimie? No, not just me. I had Rais help. Wow. Right?! Rais really tough. Vallimie said proudly. Rai was a lion that could shoot magical charges from its mouth. Combined with Vallimies magic circles, they could kill even dragon zombies. If you wanted to catch the zombie maker, you could have just spoken to us and not have to fight. You all are too strange for something like that Too strange? Yeah! Some guy in a wolf mask riding a wolfI thought you all were a new race or something. I had no response. She was pretty much right. I bowed to Vallimie. Sorryabout all that. NoI should apologize. Im sorry for fighting you two and not talking rufffgrawwl Luka and I apologized, and Vallimie apologized right back. Femm even bowed to her beside us. Soum ryaa ryaaaaaa I still had a lot to asked, and though I tried, Shiggy started crying out loudly. Shiggy was clearly resisting something. I think it wanted out of here quickly because of the smell. Want to go? Yeah, it stinks. Hurry and burn the bodies. ryaa ryaa Shiggy now pped its wings. I asked Vallimie, Vallimie, could you help me burn this? Sure. Let me rearrange this magic circle. I had broken the magical cage, while Luka had broken through the paralysis magic. I just wanted her help in using fire magic, but Vallimie felt like arranging a magic circle to do it. Can you rewrite a magic circle that quickly? Usually its difficult. Its something I can do though. I can easily clean up a circle a warriors destroyed. And its quite easy to change a paralysis circle over into a fire effect as well. She said proudly, and approached the circle. Then she screamed, WHAT THE HELL?! What? How did you break it like this? You broke the whole circle precisely from the center! Heh heh Hearing that, Luka blushed. With Lukas power, even though she had no magic, she could still break a circle like an expert. Why are you blushing!? Now its easier to just start over! Then just let me use fire to burn it up. You help with the fire, Vallimie. Hmmmokay, I guess I will. Then I burned all the corpses of the dragonspletely with a fire. Vallimie seemed unused to battle magic like mine. She was more of a research magic typelike Vi-Vi. As the bodies burned, Vallimie said to herself, And I thought I was good She had worked really hard on that trap, I bet. So she was very disappointed. I kind of felt sorry for her. Luka kindly exined everything to Vallimie, Um, you know you have to burn these dead bodies up right away, right? Are you sure? Yes, they cause disease. If you leave them, the magic mice eat them and they reproduce like crazy. AhIm sorry grrr Vallimie seemed sorry for leaving them out here. Rai seemed a bit down about it too. After Ipleted burning the bodies up, I asked Vi-Vi, Can Rai make itself smaller? Of course it can! Well, then we can go to the Capital, and back to Mulg. Yeah, good idea. Vi-Vis probably worried. Vallimie heard Lukas words and it was almost as if a shock went through her. VI-VI?! YOU KNOW VI-VI?! Yeah, we do. She lives in Mulg. Does she She was worried about you being the source for the zombies, so we need to make sure she knows it isnt true. Wow, thats really bad of me Vallimie seemed quite sorry for all this trouble. We took Vallimie and Rai with us, and hurried back to Mulg. Rai had be smaller, and now was just the size of the smaller Femm. Rai, as a small lion, seemed much scarier than Femm, who just looked like a dog. I was hoping the citizens wouldnt scare easily. I looked worried, Im sure, so Luka asked me, You think its okay to take Rai into the capital? Probably Why do you say that?! Well, because Rai might scare people. Rais registered with the guild so there shouldnt be a problem right?! It was necessary to register any owned magic animal with the guild. And you couldnt do so if your rank was lower than the beasts suppression level. I think that Rai was around a B-rank. Of course, when it was bigger, it would be closer to an A-rank. My adventurer rank is F-rank. But people treat me as an A-rank as the forest hermit. I seeso if they recognize your strength as that much, they let you register it. YeahGrr Vallimie seemed quite proud about it. Rai also looked to be boasting. And we got back to the capital safely. When we entered, everyone was watching us. A wolf with a lion. A guy with a wolf mask. But no one said a thing to us. Maybe because everyone knew that Luka was in the top ranks of the guild. As I thought this over, I said, All this because of Luka. No, more because of Cruz. Luka said with a smile. Yeah, she probably right. We entered Cruz mansion and then went back to Mulg. Cruz was waiting for us outside the storage shock. That was fast! Wee home! Were back. Wheres Vi-Vi? In your house. Then Cruz noticed Vallimie. You look just like Vi-Viyoure her older sister? Im d youre not a zombie! Thanks for caring for Vi-Vi so much Vallimie said politely. Its no problem, Al takes care of me as well! Whats the name of this kitty? Its so cute! Cruz stroke Rais fur. G gr Cruz was a little too quick to pet Rai, so Rai looked a bit lost. Usually Rai would scare everyone. We finished all introductions, including Rai, and went to the kitchen of my house. It was the biggest ce in the house, so it was the best to take people. Moo MOO! What?! Vi-Vi came in, with Moofy pulling her in my the sleeve. She looked a bit tired as she gazed up at Vallimie. Vi-Viits been a long timehave you been well? Vi-Viwhats wrong? Ssisster? Yeah, its me? Your sister. Vi-Vi froze. She then ran and clenched on to Vallimie. Stuuuupid! Sorry. Stupid sister! I was worried! Yeah, Im very sorry, honey. Vallimie tenderly held on to Vi-Vi. While Vi-Vi cried loudly, like a small child. Chapter 106 - The Forest Hermit Speaks

Chapter 106 C The Forest Hermit Speaks

Trantor: ranzan Vi-Vi continued crying for a while. She must have been relieved. We just waited until Vi-Vi finallyposed herself. Moo moo Gaa gaaaoryaaa While this was going on, Moofy introduced herself to Rai. Shiggy also thought the whole thing interesting. It flew over to Rais back and pped its wings. It seemed that Shiggy also took to Rais huge mane. It poked its head in and out of Rais fur. After a while, Vi-Vi finally stopped crying. Im sorryI just kind of lost it. Dont worry about it. Vi-Vi looked so sorry, I instinctively patted her head. She suddenly blushed red. Sstop that! Hah hah. I hadnt heard Vi-Vi say that in quite a while. I was d she was feeling better. While this was going on, Millet and Collette came in. Millet and Collette were very excited to see Vi-Vis sister. You look like Sthub Bossthhh! You do look alike. You low-lifes are making me blush! Vi-Vi and Vallimie said at the same time. Just like close sisters. Collette and Millet also took to Rai. Thso thsoooft! It is a very cute kitty. Gawmeow? After being called a catit suddenly changed to a cats voice. thsooo thsooft! Yes, it does have a big mane! Millet and Collette also really liked Raisrge mane. They were touching it all over. Cruz joined in with them as well. Seems like Rais mane was the most popr thing in town. Even I wanted to touch it, but I held back. While this was going on, Yureena came in. Yureena quickly joined the others in touching the mane. Before dinner was served, Vallimie changed into more casual clothing. After eating dinner, I decided to ask more about Vallimie. Vallimie began telling me her story with a serious face. A lot of things are happening in Lindobal Forest that are affecting the magical monsters there. Whereis Lindobal Forest? Cruz said with a questioning nce. Honestly, I had no idea that forest had a name. Its the name of the forest we live in. So thats why they call it Lindobal I said to myself without thinking. Vallimie lived in thatrge forest just outside the Demon Lords domain. The humans really didnt have a name for the forest. I see, so my forests name was Lindobal Forest Huh? Vi-Vi, you were raised there, right? You didnt know its name? Yeah, I didnt. We just called it the forest. Vallimie smiled proudly. Lately it took that name. Because my name is Vallimie Lindobal, its called Lindobal Forest. They named it recently? It seemed that Vallimie had named it that recently. I had no idea, butoh well. I searched for these monsters that were affected in my forest. It was very hard to trace them down. When I thought I had found them, I discovered that they were all zombified. She looked very regretful about it. I bet she had to kill off all those zombified monsters herself. So, you started looking for the cause of all this zombification? Yeah. I asked the guild as well, if there were more ounts of zombification happening. The other ones that urred must have been the ones rted to the events around Mulg. Vallimie and we probably had started investigating the reason for this zombification right about the same time. So I asked, Vallimie, Sothere are a lot of monsters in Lindobal Forest? Yeah! Hearing this Vi-Vi looked puzzled and looked quite strange. I didnt think there were so many, sis. I thought Mulg had way more than home. Theres more than before. The forest raised some of them, and some of them came because of the downfall of the Demon Lords domain, and there are some that are running from others. I had no idea Vi-Vi said, while nodding. When humans arrive, roads and towns are built. Because of that, monsters flee. Of course they would run to a verdant forest where no man would enter. Vallimie continued with her serious expression, As a result of my investigations, I found what was sweeping away my monsters and zombifying thema demon. Wow, good job. It was by luck. You could call it an unlucky coincidence, actually. Graww Vallimie seemed to sink into a darker mood. Rai also seemed to remember. It made a lonely sound. It took away the great dragons that I had fed myself. That great dragon had a magical ring that I had ced on it to track it. So you found its position by magical item! It seems that she put a magical ring on the dragons to track them. It might have been because dragons have the tendency to roam and get lost. I found where the rings had gone, so I sped out to help my dragons. I encountered a demon there. That demon was stronger than hellfire. and you fought the demon? Its a shame to say, but the only thing we could do is run. Gawgaww Vallimie seemed quite ashamed by this. Rai also howled sadly. Vallimie and Vi-Vi both seemed the type of magicians that love research. It must have been very hard to fight a demon that had stolen the ancient dragons egg. The great dragons chased us as we ran away. But we were able to attack them. And that lead to the mountain of dead dragons? After that, we used the dead bodies to form a trap for the demon. Butit turns out it was a meaningless trap. It was impossible to re-zombie a fallen zombie. Thats why the demon would never try to use those dragons over again. Yureena, who had been listening silently, now asked, So why was it reported that you were collecting materials for zombification? Materials for zombification? What do you mean? Well, you were gathering them, right? Yureena listed one by one the materials purchased to zombify a creature. As Vallimie listened carefully to the list, she suddenly said, AH! Those arent for a zombie. Thats to create a golem. Materials for a golemare they the same as zombies? I asked, and Vallimie looked confused. I dont know what zombie materials are Well, I dont know what materials for golems are. Yureena and Vallimie had no idea what the other persons materials were. That must have been the misunderstanding. So I asked Vallimie. So why were you collecting materials for golems? Well, I thought that if I got a lot of golems, they could protect the forests monsters. It must have been quite rough for Vallimie to see the monsters her forest swept away and turned to zombies. Vallimie looked seriously at me again, while gently rubbing Rais mane. The only thing Rai and I havent been able to beat is that demon. However, with golems prepared, maybe we can beat him, right? So did you get all the golem materials? Not enough yet. There are items you cant just buy at a store. Tell me what you still need. Maybe we can help if its possible. Are you serious? That would be a bit help. Vallimie smiled happily. Then Luka asked to Vallimie, Why did you run from the tavern? I could feel that I was being watched. Maybe the people watching me were agents of the demon. Or at least I thought. Vallimie had no idea that we were the ones tracking her. Also, we had no idea that we were the ones she thought were the actual zombifiers. She saw us and thought there was something strange for sure. She must have thought we were the demons agents. We chased after you, were attacked by unicorns, and then helped some adventurers that beset upon by a great dragondid you notice? Lots of unicornstely. They dont attack me, but they do attack Rai because hes male. Also, those zombie great dragons also attack periodically. Too dangerous. I said to myself, and Vallimie nodded. When I wasnt searching for golem materials, I was watching that trap closely. I thought maybe the demon was also sending zombie dragons in at me. That demon must be quite alert to your activities, Vallimie. I was just thinking that the demon would want to reim those dead dragon zombie bodies Since the demon had no use for already dead zombie dragons, he must have wanted to kill Vallimie. So why was the demon so intent on killing Vallimie? So why do you think this demon is after you like this? No idea. If you had to say, theres a reason though, right? Nobecause I had found the position of the great dragons that were zombified by that ring I put on them, I found where the demons castle was. I think thats. Vallimie said, and fell silent. Then Yureena and Luka jumped up. Vallimie, you know where the castle is, right?! Thats it! Vallimie seemed to shrink at the two girls jumping up like that. Oh, huh? Dont you two know? Didnt the guild and church try to find out, you said? Even so, we couldnt find it! We dont know! Not at all! OhI see. Everyone seemed to be interested in her information about the castle. Chapter 107 - Conversations about the Demon Castle

Chapter 107 C Conversations about the Demon Castle

Trantor: ranzan Vi-Vi was the most excited about the new information. Moofy and Rai also seemed interested. Great job, older sister!Moo Mooo No need topliment, at all!Gaww graaww No, you really are awesome, sister! Even the guild and church couldnt find out where the demon lives!Moo Moo! You all are too much, Im getting embarrassedGraww Gaww Her sisterplimented her so much that Vallimie began to blush. Moofy then nuzzled up to Vallimie. Rai did the same to Vi-Vi. While all this was happening, I thought the matter over seriously. Maybe after this demon attacked us here at Mulg for a while, it then got caught up with attacking Vallimie Its possible. Luka said definitively. She seemed a bit sad about it. Perhaps she was disappointed that the guild couldnt find the information that Vallimie had found out so easily. Then Yureenaplimented her. Hey, theres no way anyone in the guild could know Maybe, but still The demon had sent all the dragons he had captured back to his abode. That was a painful mistake. Dragons are strong and have a lot of magic, so it must have been hard for the demon to think that theyd be fitted with magic rings. Even so, demons arent known for missing details like that. Cruz must have thought so tooshe looked confused as she asked, But a demon is an excellent magician, right? It would feel those rings easily Well, the demon was busy scraping together all those dragons. Because the demon needed so many, he failed to check each one closely and missed the rings. Maybe. I see. Cruz seemed to understand. But after hearing that, Yureena asked, Maybe this is all a trap? Ah, youre rightIt might be one. Vallimie said with a worried look, and, YeahMoooGaw Vi-Vi, Moofy, and Rai all seemed to lose hope and agree. Seeing this, I said, No, I think thats a very low possibility. You think? If this was all fake info, then he would have no reason to attack Vallimie. Youre right! Good job, sis!Moo Moo!Gaww Grawl ryaa ryaa Everyone seemed to spring to life again. Even Shiggy pped its wings in glee. All these beasts seemed to enjoy being with one another. We need to hurry and crush this guy where he lives. Yeah. I agreed with Lukas n. Yureena also nodded in assent. We need to do it quickly. Maybe even starting tomorrow. Yeah! Cruz said with a nod. However, I didnt agree with them. No, lets do it now. But my sisters tiredlets rest. Vi-Vi said, but I told her the reason I said so, We dont know how much information this demon has. You think the demon will run if it finds out that Vallimies linked up with us? Exactly. Luka understood exactly what I was thinking. But Vi-Vi said with a worried look, gazing at Vallimie. She probably was anxious about what would happen. Vallimie spentst night in the tavern, then ran. Then she spent the whole night watching over the pile of dead dragons. She spent a whole night in that noxiously disgusting area. On top of that, she fought with usshe must be tired. Vallimie, are you tired? We can do it tomorrow. Im fine! How about you, Rai? Gaaaaooh! Vallimie looked ready to goas did Rai. You can absolutely rest if you need it. We can also just hear where the ce is, and leave you here, Vallimie Dont worry about it! sister Vallimie pulled her worrying sister close and rubbed her hair. Thanks for worrying about mebut Ill be okay. sister. After thinking a bit, Vi-Vi said strongly, Im going too! But lets go! Vallimie looked a bit upset about Vi-Vi going, but Vi-Vi was adamant. Vi-Vi had worried about her sister. I think she had a reason to see the result of all this demon business. Okay, then lets go, Vi-Vi. Sure. Vi-Vi nodded, satisfied. Then Cruz said, Im going too! No, wait It was a tough call. There was a low chance Mulg would be attacked. However, I still felt that Cruz should protect the ce. Wwhat? Cant I go? We need to protect Mulg though Stay here for us, Cruz. Luka said, and Cruz seemed to push backher eyes tearing up. But I want to gooooooooooo! ryaa ryaaa ryaaaaa! Just like a temper tantrum. Shiggy seemed to act the exact same. I wish shed stopit makes her look like a spoiled brat. Vi-Vi smiled at the whole scene. Heh heh, I knew shed act like this. Are you ready to go, Vi-Vi? What? Did you think I was just lying around depressed today? Yeah, pretty much. Moofy and I went around the town and installed more to the defense circles around Mulg. Huh? What more did you do? We made the scale evenrgernow we know if an enemy is at least 10 minutes away. What beasts would it detect? Things like wyverns And a wyvern is a pretty fast beast. If it could detect a wyvern from 10 minutes away, that was quite a big deal. Still, even with 10 minutes Im still worriedits too short a time to run all the way back here. Well, then Ill stay. Luka, are you sure? Yeah, I dont think there needs to be a connection with the guild this time. This information hadnte from the guild after all. Thats why it could be resolved without Luka having to go. Okay, Lukathen please. Leave the vige to me. Luka, thanks! Cruz thanked her with a now-happy face. Leaving Luka behind, we now all went to the capital. Chapter 108 - The Demon’s Base

Chapter 108 C The Demons Base

Trantor: ranzan After we arrived at the capital, we made our way outside the city. We left Mulg after dinner. Of course, the sun was down. Even so, Cruz and the rest of the party easily got out of the city. As we left the city, I again asked Vallimie, You said the ce was close to the capitalwhich way? Of course, I had only asked a few things about it before. I never asked exactly where the ce was. The time for directions was at hand. Its this wayfollow me. Vallimie rode Raiwe left the high road and ventured into the forest. Also, Vi-Vi and Yureena rode Moofy, while I rode Femm. Cruz ran alongside, and said, Hey, I was here before! Why? Killing those unicorns! There was a group of them. Maybe the reason for the unicorning so close to the city was that the demon and his base was chasing them away. It kind of made me feel sad for the unicorns. Waitno I didnt. Those unicorns were a little TOO lost. Theres nothing we can do but kill them if theyre close to the city. As we went along, the forest became denser and denser. Only Femm really could run without problems. This isnt just densetheres more tree than air! Its not natural for there to be THIS many trees. Vi-Vi said with a worried look. Really? Well, the sun cant reach down to the ground, right? Then, any new sapling couldnt grow. Even so, this forest has grown out of control without that effect. You really are smart to notice that Vi-Vi. It is unnatural. Good job. Eheh. Vallimieplimented Vi-Vi, and Vi-Vi blushed. Then Vallimie said to all of us, Just as Vi-Vi said, this ce is not a natural forest. Its been overgrown like this to hide the ce the demon lives. Just like Lindobal Forest? Cruz said, innocently. Lindobal Forest was grown out out of a wastnd. Vallimie reacted a bit angrily. Not the same at all! I made the forest so that it would thrive naturally for eternity. Is that so? Sorry Nno need to worry Cruz apologized directly, and Vallimie also did a bit. It might have surprised her that such a famous hero would apologize so quickly. As we went farther, I could clearly feel magical power. It might have been magic to identify intruders. I told everyone just in case, I think we might have been detected. Lets hurry. Okay! I didnt feel anything. Me either Cruz quickly sped up. Vi-Vi and Vallimie didnt notice, and were a bit worried. As we sped up, we saw arge buildingno, a cliff, no a castle! It was a huge rectangr building. No features in the building, no windows. Just a massive gate made of mithril. Even if a whole army were to attack, it would be a difficult battle just to get in. Vallimie shouted, This is the castle I was talking about! Theres defensive magic on the stone and the gate. This is going to be rough! Vi-Vi looked it over and said. Cruz looked at the castle, ready for anything. Al, what do we do? Well figure something out. Well, there might only be one way We had already set off something that detected us. No time to take this easyso, I started chanting, King of gods controlling the heavens. Goddess over the underworld, Holder of ancient scepter, opener of space and time. With this life with these words. King of the sacred, break open the solid of this world. For my name is Alfred Lint! With that spell being chanted, the space-time around the building itself began to warp. And thenthe stone surface of the building burst open as if a screw had plunged straight through it. It exploded into a mountain of rubble. what the hell What magic is that? ryaa ryaa Vallimie and Vi-Vi both looked astounded at the broken structure. Shiggys face emerged from the pocket, and I could feel it p its wings. Shiggy seemed quite happy. It probably loves strong magic like that. Good job, Al! WOW! A little too much magic, you think? Cruz was bouncing up and down with glee, while Yureena looked a bit miffed. Frightening.Moo moooGaahhh The beasts looked a bit scared too. Well, youve seen the gravity magic I usually use right? This is like one step above. Gravity Magic? Vi-Vi said with a confused look. Vallimie also was lost. Maybe, on its faceit didnt look like gravity magic. Gravity magic is one type of space-time magic. You know, just like a magic bag. Amagic bag? Listen, a magic bag can hold a lot more than what you see, and it doesnt get heavy, right? yeah? Well, you apply that magic and you can use it the same way to break things. Uhokwell, wow Vi-Vi shrunk away from me a bit. What did I do? Maybe it was a bit too powerful. I guess it looked a little more impressive than fire magic. She might have just been surprised that I could use that very strong gravity magic so easily. I tried to exin it to her again. It took a lot of magical powerso Im a bit tired. um, yeah Vallimie looked a bit frightened, took a few steps back, and sounded different than usual. Anyway, the building was destroyed, and now we just had to get the demon left inside. Come on! Lets find the demon! uh, would it still be alive? Cruz askedyeah, there was always the possibility. The demons castle was basically a mountain of stone now. The demon could be pinned under the debris, or even torn apart by the destruction of the ce. It was too bad I didnt have an answer about that yet. Ah, damnmaybe I did go to far. Now you tell us. You always do this. Yureena and Cruz said,ughing. Vi-Vi and Vallimie were still taken aback. So I asked Femm, Femm, do you smell anything strange? Theres the smell of recently avnched rock. Anything else? The smell of a quickly crushed metal gate as well. That has a smell? Never knewbut if you looked, well, I could see it was crushed. NoI mean the smell of demonlike, blood. There is the smell of demon. No smell of blood. I seethat means the demons not dead. I quickly ran around, looking for any trace of the demon. The defense of the castle waspletely destroyed. Thats why I could search for him with magic. Huh? Theres an underground area. The demon must be there. Lets gooooooo! Cruz said naturally as we headed to the rubble. you really messed up my castle. Just then, a demon emerging from the rubble said. Chapter 109 - Driving out a Demon

Chapter 109 C Driving out a Demon

Trantor: ranzan The demon was all ready to fight. He looked very much like a humanwell except he was two times bigger. I dont know what means you used, but to see that a HUMAN had destroyed my castle made from magic What means? Just a little magic. You lie. As if you could destroy it. No matteryour actions are quite a grievous sin, and the rewards will be death. He said in a low, rolling voice, and walked towards us. Many people mistake demons for humans. However, when theyre fightingtheres no doubt as to what they are. Al, the demonlets get him. No, wait. Okay. Cruz was ready to slice this guy up. She had her holy sword out, unsheathed. Vi-Vi then whispered to me, calmly. Hes bigger than thest one. The bigger the demon, the stronger. I see. The previous demon at my house in Mulg was a littlerger than human size. This fellow was two times the size of a human, probably the strongest Ive seen for a demon. So, are you the demon that took the egg from the arch-duke of the ancient dragons? Hmph. The demon then looked down at Shiggy, who was in a pocket on my chest. So theres the dragon child that was hidden from me. If you dont give it over, you wont live. Hah, you dont know who youre dealing with. It seems this was the guy. He didnt have the strength to tell me what to do. Would just be better to kick his ass now. I said to Cruz, Cruz, we have to question him, so dont kill him, okay? Roger! It was all in an instant. Cruz leapt at him like a bolt of lightning. She shed out with her holy de and the demons right arm flew. If I had told her to kill him, his head would have flown instead. Guwaaaaahhh! His right arm gone, and with something like blood spurting out, the demon screamed. So I asked him with augh, Still want to fight? You bastardsIll kill you! And if you dontwhat then? GOOOO! A huge crowd of zombie great dragons emerged from under the castle. They numbered about 50. A lot! Whatll we do now? Vi-Vi and Vallimie both sounded scared. Hearing this, the demonughed at us. I was going to destroy the capital with these, but now Ill destroy YOU! Then stone nagas, basilisks, hydrasthey all emerged. Another 50 in all. Around 100 of the top ranked monsters surrounded us. Moo moo!Garrrrl! ryaaa Moofy and Rai both said loudly. They probably thought this was ourst stand. At the same time Moofy and Rai grew to their hill-sized masses. Shiggy shouted from my pocket out at the monsters, bravely. Are these all the zombies he has? Yesseems like all by the smell. I seewhat a nuisance. Zombies had high resistance, never got scared, and never felt pain. They were the perfect fighting beasts. Just then, Yureena jumped from Moofy and shouted at me. What? You say theyre a nuisance as if you actually believe it. NoI do. Well, Ill heal you if you get hurt. Just do this however youd like. Thanks. So I said to all of them, Cruz, take the demon, Vallimie, Vi-Vi, Moofy, and Rai, take the other weaklings. Roger!Leave it to me.Got it! Moo!Gal!ryaaaaa! For some reason, the loudest of them all was Shiggy. Then Moofy and the rest ran towards the monsters. Moofy stomped and gored the zombies left and right. Rai shot down the flying enemies with his magic charges. Chuz cut through everything else to get at the demon. Cover your ears! Femm said in spirit speech. Vi-Vi and Vallimie quickly covered their ears. Seeing this, Femm let out a deafening roar. GRAAWWWWWWWWWWOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOHHHHHHHH! ryaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaa! The heavenly wolf howled with a voice full of magic fear. Shiggy then howled along. The dragons flying nearby all fell to the earth. I saw the basilisks and hydra near me spew blood from their mouths. wow, what an effect. Wuff? FemmAWESOME! ryaa ryaa I was surprisedFemm was shocked a bit as well. Femm made the sound of a surprised dog in spirit speech. Cruz stabbed through the zombies whileplimenting Femm. Shiggy cried happily as well. Hey! Vi-Vi, wake up! Gaww! Yureena was trying to wake up Vi-Vi, who had fallen from Moofy. Vallimie had fallen from Rai as well. However, Rai had grabbed her by the mouth before she hit the ground. Good lion. Excellent reaction time. The demon was stepping back in surprise, as half of his zombie army was vanquished. No waywhat is happening?! Nowhere to run! You can beg if you want! Absurd! You will all die! Even with a demons arm cut off of his body, its almost impossible to break his fury. I could feel his hostility again rage against us. I think weve already won, but I said, and the instant I hit him with a magical pulse, The demon made a crackling sound while changing shape. His skin began to shimmer with gold, or almost the color of mithril. His shape got twice asrge than he already was. In other words, four times a mans size. He sprung wings, changing to a shape almost unhuman. And of course, I was surprised. no way. You said the bigger they are, the stronger they are, right? Cruz asked, excitedly. Nothing you could do about the girl, she just loved to fight. Hey, just kill him however you want. Thank you, AL! Cruz smiled and leapt at him. I love to fight as wellbut at this age, you have to hold back sometimes. Moo moo MOOOOO!Gawlll graa GRAWWWWLLLL! Moofy and Rai set to the remaining zombies. Vi-Vi and Vallimie had awakened and were both shooting magic too. The battlefield was filled with raining fire. Cruz ignored the zombies and shot straight at the demon. Like a lightning bolt. CLANK Whoa! This guy knocked back my holy sword! That sucks! You want me to take care of him? Im okay! Even though she said so, she still was smiling. The demon was fast. He knocked away all her attacks at first. I killed off all the zombies near her with fire. That way Cruz could focuspletely on the demon. This guy is FAST! And hardI bet Id break a fang on him! Yeah, at least he knocked away the holy de once. I said to Femm, as I continued killing off the demons underlings. Cruz kept shing away at the demonlucky girl. Whoa! Cruz dodged one of his attacks. Where she had just stood was covered in a pir of fire. The demon wasnt just fast. He could also cast quickly. And he was powerful. ryaaaa Shiggy cried as it looked at the demon. I bet it knew that this demon had stolen it as an egg and killed its parent. Theres no way he was weak. Al, which of you is stronger? One against one? I would win a battle of magic. Yeah, so what about a physical battle. I think Id win that too. Id win ifpletely health, but my damn leg hurtand that would affect things. But riding Femm, I would win. Hes as fast as Cruz, and has as much magical power as me, though. Cruz was getting flustered that she couldnt cut him down. The demon started shooting magic around. Vi-Vi and her sister were shooting magic too. And he dodged all of it. He flew at Cruz and exchanged blows with her. He was stronger than I had imagined. If I left them alone, Cruz would eventually win. However, she would get tired soon, so I didnt want to waste time. Cruz, no more games. Im going to join. Whaaa? She was a bit disappointed, but I ignored her. Vi-Vi and the others had been hurt a bit, so now it was time. I shot several magical spears at the demon. The first one was the strongest ones I had. The demon put up a magic field instantly, but it was easily broken, and they shed through his torso. However, he showed no sign of pain. I wondered how tough he was. Cruz was ecstatic. My holy sword doesnt pierce him, but you do, wow, Al!! Cruz, give it your all! Im going to kill him first if you dont. No, I will! I cant hit him without really pushing myself, but he doesnt give me much opportunity. Shes fighting while talking, but cant cut him? No way. However, if she says theres little opportunity, then I guess its the magicians job to make the opportunity. I lowered the gravity under the feet of the demon as he attacked Cruz. I could see he was losing his bnce. That was enough for Cruz. In the next instant, the demon was cut straight in halfdown the middle. Seeing that, Yureena screamed, AHHHH! I told you not to kill him so we can question him!! Oopsheh Cruz looked a bit embarrassedshe forgot her strength again. I know how Cruz felt, so theres no way I could me her. Thats why I said softly to her, Hey, no worrieshappens all the time. Umokay And after that, we took care of the remaining zombies. Yureena then dismounted from Moofy and came over to me. Cruz, you do this all the time! Heh heh heh Well, maybe we can learn something from his dead body, so searchwhat the?! The corpsewell, what we thought was the corpse suddenly moved with a jerk. Then, the split body got up, rebonded, and started running away at unreal speed. No escape for you! I used gravity to crush the body to the ground and then cast a magic. No surprises and no escapes. How much vitality does this demon have?! Yureena looked quite shaken by this demons life force. Vi-Vi said to us from atop Moofy, in a cautious voice, Uhits over, right? Yeah, for now. This long battle with the demon was finally over. Chapter 110 - Searching the Ruined Castle

Chapter 110 C Searching the Ruined Castle

Trantor: ranzan The still split body of the demon twitched. Howeverit seemed impossible for it to speak or summon any kind of magic. Wed have to let the ministry of justice question himter. He has way too much vitality. Yeah, this guys harder to kill then the Demon Lord was. Yureena and Cruz said with a tinge of respect. Shiggy popped its head from my pocket again. Shiggy, youve been avenged. ryaaa Shiggy said, satisfied. Shiggys parent had died because of this demon. I rubbed the ring that Shiggys parent had given me. As I thought back to that time, I felt Vi-Vi pull on my sleeve. Al, we need to dig through his castle. There might still be enemies. Yeah, lets do that, Vi-Vi. I left Cruz and Yureena to watch over the demon, and I checked the castle. It was a mountain of rubble, but there was several things I could do. Vi-Vi, Vallimie, look for any remains of anything magical in here, okay? Sure!Leave it to us. Femm, Moofyoh, and Rai, be careful to sniff out anything strange. RuffMooGawwryaaa And for some reason, Shiggy responded loudest. I patted its head. Then I too searched for anything magical. Vi-Vi then said, with a serious look, This defensive magic circle that he drew is amazing You can read it, even though its broken? Of courseIm good at magic circles. Then she said, regretfully, This is far better than the ring I put around your house. Really? Well, it is by a demon. Of course its going to be advanced. Vallimie rubbed Vi-Vis head and then said in a sad voice, I attacked him with Rai, but we couldnt get anywhere Even you couldnt break this circle? Yeah, his castle was made for defense and not for liveability or convenience. Its weird that Alfred was able to knock this ce down in one shot. Yeah. Youve got a lot of stuff going on at that house of Alfreds right? Of course this guys defense is going to be better. Youre right! Vi-Vi smiled again. While the two were talking, I was cing magic items and materials I found in my magic bag. It was gettingte. I left the analysis forter as the materials just needed to taken somewhere safe. I was going to give all of this stuff to Lukater. I guess I should have brought Luka too. Yeah, Al Even without a warrior like Luka, we were okay. But when it came to cleaning up the left-behind goods, she was a big help. I was worried about Mulg, though. It was a hard choice. Anyway, Id bring her tomorrow and wed have one more look around. Just then, Vallimie, who was still looking around, said, Ah! What is it? Heres the ring I gave my great dragon friend! The ring slightly resembled the one that Vi-Vi gave me for the towns defenses. Vallimie squeezed the ring in her handit must be quite precious. It probably was because that great dragon was killedwell, better dead than a zombie. Vallimie looked sad. Just then Vi-Vi shouted from a pace away, HEY! I found the opening to the underground! We should check it out too. Lets do it! With the overground search pretty much finished, we moved to the underground. Cruz and Yureena were bored, but there was nothing I could do. They also wanted to collect spoils but watching a demon was more important. Id just have to make Cruz and Yureena do just that. There was no damage to the underground. It was actually quite clean. Vallimie said as she was checking the walls, This istheres a magical circle hereI need to write this down. Does a magician like the forest hermit still need to research things? Yes. This demon is one hell of a magician. He was wicked and detestable demon, but he was strong. You had to acknowledge that. The underground corridor was vast and had a high ceiling. Vi-Vi looked at it and asked, Is this made with the same principle as the magic bag too? The same space-time magic that you used? Sure is. What do you think about this underground? Does it look poorly done? No. This guys quite the magician. But its not perfect. Well, if you say that, then it still means that this demon was quite strong. Vi-Vi nodded with a look of respectfulness. There was still some things he could have done better. I would have created this area more efficiently. However, sometimes Id find myself saying,huh, he did this pretty well. Hmm, I guess I should write this down too. Heh heh heh, saying the same thing as my sister didMoo moo Vi-Viughed happily. Moofyughedif you could call it that. We progressed deeper into the underground. There were many magical weapons and zombification tools stored there. With all this stuff stored here, theres no way hed need to go out to buy more. Yeah, when did you think he gathered all this stuff, Al? It would stand out too much if he did it after the demon lord was defeated, so probably before that. Hm. We need to have the guild check it out. The adventurers guild couldnt find the demons castle. However, that didnt mean they were poor at doing so. They would just have to do better. Femm was sniffing around like crazy. Then it said in a loud spirit voice, I can smell something living! A zombie? No. A magical beast. I tried my best to run after Femm, but Femm slowed when it saw my knee was painful. After walking a bit we came to a big door. I looked the door over carefully. What the hell is this? A corral of some kind? Inside the room there were around 100 strong magical beasts. They hadnt been changed to zombies yet. The demon was very careful to keep them from fighting him or running away. They were all bound very strongly. This guy was nning to destroy this kingdom. yeah. Vi-Vi said with a tone of awe. There was a tinge of fear as she imagined it. Including the beasts we defeated, this made about 200. And in addition to the magical weapons stored awaywhat a fearsome show of military might. Shiggys parent, or Shiggy himself when it was grownwould lead to this demon ruling the kingdom or the world. What do you n to do, Al? What do I n to dowell These beasts would be destroyed if they ever strayed near human eyes. Any adventurer woulde after them to destroy them if they could. However, they were also victims of this demon. It was hard to just kill them off. If they were zombified I would kill them off instantlybut Hmm I guess Ill leave them and let the guild handle this. Leave this to Luka? Leave it all to her? Not to Lukato the guild. Its the same thing, right, Al? I guess it was as Vi-Vi said, and it would mean more work for Luka. However, the study of these beasts was necessary. We also needed to research these beast to see where this demon had been. The guild would do this the quickest. Just then, I heard Vallimie and Rai, who hade into the room just now, shout, Doby!!Gaw! gyaa gyaaa They both ran up to a bound great dragon in the room. The great dragon seemed to happily respond to them. Wait, is this your friend? Yeah! This dragon was taken from my forest! Vallimie, Rai, and Doby all seemed ecstatic. I thought it was dead or at least turned into a zombie. They seemed very happy to meet again. So I released Doby from its bonds. gyaa gyaaa! Were so happy to see you again! Once the dragon was released, it ran up and pressed up against Vallimie. It made youugh to see a dragon be so cordial. Its not an enemy? Yureena was still cautious, but it was okay. Cruz even ran up and petted Doby. Nice to meet you Doby just calmly enjoyed the attention. I looked around me again. There were a lot of dead zombies on the floor as well. We need to take spoils from these as well. Just as a rule? Yeah It seems that Vallimie also understood the importance of both battle spoils and corpse disposal. We went back to the demon and watched over him while Cruz and Yureena did the rest of the clean up. Roger that! Leave the clean up to us! The other two went to clean up everything happily. Cruz and Yureena always loved picking apart battle spoils. They took various materials and samples and stuck them in their bags. As I watched over the demon, I petted Femm. This battle went pretty easily because of that howl of yours. I didnt think it would be so effective. That heavenly roar of Femm had some effect on those zombies. Well, it probably was the holy nature of it, now that Femm was somewhat sacred. After we finished gathering the spoils, we all returned to the capital. Chapter 111 - Final Measures

Chapter 111 C Final Measures

Trantor: ranzan We ran back to the capital as quickly as we could. gyaa gyaaryaa ryaa Doby cried out happily to the others. Shiggy pped its wings happily while it sat on my shoulder. Its wings pped against my face, but I didnt care.. Wwait a second. Hm? What is it? What is it, nothingwe cant just bring a great dragon into the capital with us!! She was certainly right. Femm, Moofy, and Rai were all small and could go into the capital. A great dragon, on the other hand, would cause absolute chaos. gyaaa? The great dragon looked confused. Cute in a way. But no matter how cute you think something isimpossible is impossible. Then, Vallimie said, after thinking a bit, Doby, youre just going to have to wait here! Doby looked quite shocked (for a dragon). And a bit sad. Vallimie spoke kindly to body, saying, Dont worry. Ill be back soon. Or we can have you fly back to Lindobal forest. Yeah, that makes sense. Lindobal forest was far from here. It would take a human a while to walk, but flying would make it quick. And Doby was a great dragon. I noticed something and touched Doby. Doby needs magic detection done. Magic detection? Yeah. Theres a chance it was given parasites or forced to drink something to make the zombification process easier. Oh nogyaaauu Doby looked worried. I searched through Dobys body with magical detection. Vi-Vi helped me. Ah, it had parasites. Inside of it. Gya? Gyaau? If it had been in that demons ce, its certain something was imnted inside of it. So of course it had parasites still in it. Doby now looked terrified. I bet it was. Vallimie looked upset too. Sso what happens to Doby?! Well get some poison antidote quickly. That will probably heal it. Really? Then Doby, you definitely need to stay here! Any normal poison cure in the city would have a deworming effect included. We left Doby and went to the city. Vi-Vi and I reced our masks on again. Seeing this, Vallimie asked in a worried voice, Should I be wearing one too? A littlete for that now. Yeah Yureena responded to Vallimie, and Vallimie actually looked a bit relieved. She probably would be embarrassed wearing that mask. And since we had the great Baron Cruz with us, we were allowed right through the gate. We quickly followed Cruz into the nearest adventurers guild. Since the operating hours had closed a while ago, the only person there was the night guard. Ah, Miss Cruz, what are you doing here in this hour? We crushed the castle of some really strong demon. We need some guildmen to help clean up. The castle? Yeah, it was build close to the capital, and the guy was holding a few hundred monsters and was zombifying them. The guild night guard was lost for words. If it was a normal adventurer talking to this guard, hed have some random response, but this was the great Cruz. Also, she had a magic bag with a still squirming yet split in half demon inside. You had to believe her. Just wait a second, Ill call the guild master! Please do. We have to hand these two halves of a demon over to the ministry of justice. Oh, sure. We headed over to the ministry. It was always open. Cruz exined the situation and was quickly admitted in. The section chief of the ministry received her himselfit was Cruz after all. This demon here was nning to raise a huge army of zombies and overthrow the capital. what happened?! I cut him in two with my holy sword, but hes still alive. I could hear the section chief gulp the spit down his throat. He was lost in amazement for an instant. But he quickly returned to normal again. It was because he was an important man with an important job. He quickly spewed off a list of variousmands to an underling that was apanying him. The ministry had very good security. If you simply passed a criminal over to them, you could be sure that he would be held without escaping. They were also good at getting information. Theyd find out everything quickly. From that, we went to call Luka from Mulg. We left defense of the town to Yureena and Moofy. Show me to the ce. Luka said, with several guildsmen around her. There were soldiers from the ministry as well, all headed to the destroyed castle. As we arrived there, Lukas jaw dropped. You blew another building away, huh? Well, it looked strong, so I had to. Luka was used to me doing things like this and soon began searching around. However, the guildsmen and soldiers just looked around wide-eyed and in awe. Did magic blow this apart? Nah, no way! Yeah, but I ignored all of them and went to give Doby the poison cure we bought in the city. When the men saw Dobye out of the forest, they about peed themselves, but I ignored them. Doby, time to drink this poison antidote and youll probably be fine.. Gyaauu Even though the cure probably tasted horrible, Doby quickly drank it down. Shiggy was watching everything. I thought it was good to see another tough dragon like Doby. I was hoping that Femm and Cruz, who hated medicine, would learn too. Now just rest a while. Gyaa Doby thenid down. Vallimie walked over and petted Doby a bit. From that, I exined to Luka the results of my search and handed her the samples I had stored away. While I exined all this to the guildsmen and soldiers as well, the sun began to rise. Well, your exnation is pretty much done. Why dont you and the others go back home, Cruz. Got it! You wontin if I take tomorrow off? Nope. See you! Luka said to Cruz obviously tired tone of voice. She was about to drop fromck of sleep. It took all night, but we saved the capital from certain danger. We could all take a rest. I searched Doby magically again before returning home. Vi-Vi and Vallimie helped as well. Yeah, seems fine now. I think it expelled the parasites from its body. I can try anothertype of magic, right? Vallimie made a magic circle and checked Doby again. Doby was lucky, as he hadnt been imnted with parasites that would turn him zombie. Zombies were dead. Their meat would rot. It was good to get all those things out of him now before the process became too hard. Vallimie treated Doby kindly. Rai also went up and licked the dragon. Seeing this, Luka said, Youre only taking ONE dragon back with you? Well, I cant take a great dragon into the capital. Yeah, but why not take it back to Mulg and feed it? Its quite skinny. Yeah, you should, Vallimie. Can I? After hearing Luka and my suggestion, Luka seemed relieved. She was worried about this dragon. So we told Doby which direction to fly. With a great dragons wings, it would get there in two days. Even so, Vallimie petted Doby with a worried look. Just be careful, okay? Take it slow. If you get tired, be sure to rest. Gahh gyaau Doby flew around us and then into the sky. Vi-Vi watched with worried eyes. Get back to Mulg, okay? Its a great dragon. Ive seen a lot of themtely so I dont think much of it now, but most people think its the strongest type of monster. Itll be okay. Yeah And so we returned to the capital and then back to Mulg. Chapter 112 - The Conclusion of the Demon Affair

Chapter 112 C The Conclusion of the Demon Affair

Trantor: ranzan Chapter 112 C The Conclusion of the Demon Affair When we all arrived back at Mulg, Yureena and Moofy were patrolling the town. Yureena was the same as usno sleep. Even so, she kept guard. Not only just watching for enemies but actively patrollingit made me quite happy. You really are cute, Moofy! Moo moo! Yureena petted Moofy back. Moofy bent down into Yureena happily. She chewed on Yureenas sleeve. Yureena and Moofy seemed quite friendly now. When the two saw we hade back, they ran out to us. Wee!Mooo Were home! Yureena went over to Cruz and patted her on the head. Vi-Vi did the same with Moofy. I summed up what we did, and told everyone to sleep. My sister and Rai can sleep in my room, Al. Vi-Vi said, pulling her sister with her. I hope they have a good time together. I guess I could take a break from guarding too. After getting the okay for that from Millet, I headed to sleep. I ended up waking up around noon. Now that I was awake, I figured I could end the day guarding anyway. Luka and Yureena had woken up already and went back to the capital. Cruz and ViVi were still asleep. It was bing evening when my ring began to vibrate. CRiririririririri I heard a bell ring in my house. Femm was sleeping beside me and sudden;y jumped up. Shiggy might have been scared, because I felt it clutch me in my pocket. Wuff?ryaa ryaa An intruder. It was Vi-Vi intruder detection magic circles that she had put in ce. I got myself ready to fight. 10 minutester, Doby flew in. That was fast, Doby! gyaaa gyaaa Appropriate for the forest hermit to have a cute petthats a great dragon. It had arrived in Mulg without a day going by. Much faster than I thought. I dont think most great dragons could fly that fast either. Maybe this dragons a separate species than the real great dragons. While I was thinking this over, Doby stuck its nose out at meI rubbed its snout. Grrrrr ruff RUFF!WUFF! The magic wolves around all barked and growled at Doby. Warf! However, after a bark from Femm, they all fell quiet. He probably said the dragon was a friend. Then they all went up and sniffed Doby. Doby licked them back, I guess as some sort of greeting. Doby! Youre here safe!Gaw! Gaw! I thought Vallimie was asleep, but there she was, running out of my house. It was an emotional reunion. Vi-Vi, however, didnte out even though I thought she was sleeping with Vallimie. Wheres Vi-Vi? Still sleeping. The ringinging from my house was quite loud. I surprisedthat loud ringing didnt wake her up. My little sis is one heck of a sleeper. Vallimie seemed proud of the fact, somehow. Meanwhile, Rai was greeting the wolves as well. I remembered something that I had to do while Doby, Rai, Femm, and the rest were all together. Vallimie,e here a second. Hm? To the transportation magical circle? Actually, this a storage shack. I never noticed The inside of the shack was expanded by an expansion circle and was huge. There were a lot of things store inside as well, but it was still huge. It almost felt empty. It also had a transport circle near the entrance that led to the capital. Vallimie had been through several times. However, since it was so fast and at night, she may have never noticed. We keep all the battle spoils from the monsters we kill in here. I showed Vallimie around the shack. She looked surprised as she looked over everything. Theres so much! Yeah, lot of monsterstely. Mulg seems like a horrific ce to live. She said to herself in a worried tone. She was lost, looking at all the things stored here. You can take whatever you want with you. Wha? Vallimies eyes shimmered. Can Ireally? Sure. Im not using it. And I had gotten permission from the chief and Cruz. Well, thenthis and this, and this too. Sure. Really? Vallimie seemed very excited. I wanted her to make one hell of a golem. Her happy expression quickly took on a serious look. Youve already done so much for me, Al. Thats not true. You showed me where the demon is. Well, youve cared for Vi-Vi, too. I was wondering how I should repay you Dont worry about it. I cant just let it go. She looked like she was seriously thinking it over. However, I didnt need money, and there were no goods I needed either. I thought it over, and then remembered. Okay, then teach me how to make a golem. A golem? And youre a wizard, Al! You can make a golem, right?! HonestlyIve never had the chance. Making golems has no purpose for an adventurer thats always moving around. It cant keep up with a swiftly moving party. At the least, the product isnt worth the cost either. But a golem is great at defense. Well, Ill teach you then! That would help a lot. As she and I left the storage shack, we saw all the creatures ying around happily. One week after the demon was taken care of, and there were no more attacks, just peace. I learned how to make a golem from Vallimie, and the rest of the day was spent basking in the sun. During dinner, Luka reported to me. My research of the demon is almost over. What did you find? It seems that this demon was a mithril demon king that began working secretly from 200 years ago. He wasmanding several dozen demons to do his bidding. Demons usually work alone, so for someone tomand them? Quite the operator. Totally. And a scary demon too. So he was a demon kingI thought he was very strong. Vi-Vi and Cruz nodded along to Lukas information. Then I asked about the monsters found in the underground, We sent them all back to their habitats. Good job, I bet it was meticulous though. Killing them all would have cost nothing and taken no time. It proved as good training. The top generals said it was punishment on the soldiers and adventurers to let a castle like this stay hidden so close to the capital. It wasnt a big deal, but it was still good the monsters got returned. We interrogated the demon, inspected everything, and discovered hisplete plot. Luka told the whole story. He was going to attack the capital with a zombie army. Using stone nagas, hed burrow into the underground passages of the capitals castle. It was the same thing he had done at the dungeon. As we were listening to Luka, I petted Shiggy. ryaa Shiggy bit onto one of my fingers. Seeing that, Lukaughed. He was plotting to use Shiggys parent as the final weapon. Then the kingdom would be no more. Yeah, but since he messed up, he was plotting to use Shiggy here instead. Thats why he seemed so unfocused. He had attacked Mulg once at first. Then he had sent several zombies to attack. I guess he didnt know the fighting force here in Mlug. He never thought thered be a hero here. There was a transport circle. Also, Cruz, the others, and I were here. Because of this, he attacked now and then, and not well. It also took a lot of time for him to attack Mulg from his distant location. Because of that timeg, he never made an effective attack. Also, we were able to find the castle location from Vallimie while he was waiting for his monsters to attack. Vallimie then asked, worried, So what about the other demons? Several of them were caught near to the capital. But others escaped. thats not good. If those other demons continue themands of the demon king, theres going to be trouble. Its worrisome, but I dont think it will be something that will happen. Why do you say that? Demons work on their own. They were just following this mithril demon king because he forced them too. Theyve got no loyalty to him now. I guess youre right. Thats why everyones so happy you caught this guy. I think they other demons will all go their own way now. But that in itself is a problem. They have their own evil ns. However, from now everyone just has to be on their guard with them like usual. The kingdoms in an uproar. It was quite a grand-scale n. Just a bit more and wed see a disaster take ce. Youre right. I bet all the generals were freaking out. Yeah, but this is the important partVallimie has been given a noble rank. Wow! Congrattions!Good job, Vallimie!Congrats, big sis! We all said our congrattions, but Vallimie looked lost. Wait a second, why do I You were very helpful in getting this demon taken out. Youve been made a viscountthe same rank as us. I dont care about that stuff. Im not trying to support the kingdom or anything Even though Vallimie seemed lost, Yureena tried to reason with her. Well, your forest of Lindobal is inside the kingdom. Convenient in a way, right? Um Some people might want to try to cultivate you forest. With your rank in order you can protect it from them. HmmI guess it is good in a way. Take what you can get. ButI dont want any rewards Vallimie still looked troubled, and Cruz said to her, I got my rewards too! What did you get? Um, somend somewhere. I told them to give it to Al, though. That sucks. I was TRYING TO AVOID PEOPLE KNOWING WHERE I WAS. I thought Al would get angry though, so I told them I didnt know where he was. YEAH! Good job Cruz! Eheh heh heh Cruz blushed. Even so, it was like Cruz to not know where thend she was given was located. It was probably given to some retiring higher-up instead in her ce. Even if she was dumb but strong, it was better to give it to someone to watch over it for her. Seems like Cruz and Vallimies lives were going to be busy for a while. However, it seemed that things would be peaceful. ryaa ryaa And Shiggy pped its happy wings away. Chapter 113 - The Forest Hermit Returns Home

Chapter 113 C The Forest Hermit Returns Home

Trantor: ranzan It was two weeks since the demon thrashing. As I sat at the entrance of the gate, I watched Shiggy p around happily. Femm was lying on the ground, watching the dragon. rya rya gya gyaa Shiggy was clinging and ying on to the great dragon Doby. Shiggy was as big as one of Dobys fingers. Because they were both dragons, Shiggy seemed to have a lot of interest in Doby. Vi-Vi, Moofy, good work. Sure.Moo mooo How was the field? Almost ready for harvest.Moo moo I see. I cant wait. Then Vi-Vi looked at Shiggy and Doby. Doby looks like it got better. Its a great dragonhas a lot of vitality. And Doby did look rather healthy. It ate a lot of meat, and drank a lot of run-off from the hot springs. gyaa gyaa ryaa? Doby cried out in a loud voice, and Shiggy seemed surprised. Whenever Doby cried out, that meant Vallimie wasing home. Im baaack!Gaau! Wee back. Youre early! Vallimie went to the capital just about every day. She always came back at night. She was now a noble. There were a lot of parties involved. Cruz and the others werete too. She was busy with all the paperwork in the transfer of her newnd. Luka and Yureena were busy cleaning up the remains of the demon affair. I finally finished all the processes and ceremonies today. I see, good work!Good job, sis! Vallimie looked away into the distance. She seemed lonely in a way. It was fun living in Mulg, but I need to go back to my forest. Wha? Sis, you can stay in Mulg as long as you want! I dont think so. I have to protect the creatures of my forest. But She wanted to say something else. Instead, Vallimie just embraced Vi-Vi. Its a job that only I can do. I know Vi-Vi, do you want to go home with me? I have my own work to do too Vi-Vi also looked lonely. Moofy and Rai quietly sniffed one another. Vallimie, when will you leave? Hm. Maybe tomorrow morning. Tomorrow?! Sis, thats just too fast! Ive been away from my forest for too long. Andalso if I wait longer itll get worse. She definitely had decided to leave. So that night we had a going-away party for Vallimie, Rai, and Doby. The vigers gathered, and we had a st. Vallimie cut the party short and went back to my house with Vi-Vi. They probably had their own parting to talk about. The next morning. Everyone saw Vallimie off. Vallimie was going to return, riding Rai. Ill miss you! Cruz said, almost crying. Luka and the others looked on sadly as well. You can alwayse and visit. If you have any problems, please call. Sure. Well arrange a time to visitter. Sister, Rai, Doby, be careful. Sure, you too, Vi-Vi. Both Vi-Vi and Vallimie seemed okay with the parting though. They must have done their goodbyesst night. Millet gave her a lunch box, and Vallimie set off. gyaa gyaa Doby leapt into the air. It flew along with Rai as Rai ran through the forest. ryaa ryaa gyaa gyaa Shiggy and Doby called back to each other. Doby spun round and round in their air as it called to Shiggy. Okay, bye!gaaw Take care! And Vallimie rode off into the forest with Rai. They kept running without looking back. ryaaaaa Shiggy pped its wings while chasing after them for a few steps. Shiggy is a baby but still recognizes someone is parting. Then, Shiggy returned to be, looking lonely. It grabbed onto my leg, somewhat sadly. Theyre gone, right? To Lindobal Forest. A long way. ryaaa Luka and Cruz said to themselves, silently. Shiggy cried out while springing up and rubbing its beak into my cheek. Its been a while since it neededforting like this. I rubbed Shiggy while thinking about the road to Lindobal. It would take a week on horse to get thereand I wondered how long on foot. With the speed of Rais running, probably only three days. Its so far. Cruz said, looking far off while rubbing Femm. Maybe she was remembering how Rai felt. Femm stood there and said, I would take two days. Me, one. Femm and Moofy said to each other. But there wasnt much difference in their speeds and Rais. Two days probably, but one day was definitely impossible. Moofy walked over and had her head rubbed by Vi-Vi. Moofy was probably thinking it would make Vi-Vi feel better. Good girl, Moofy As Vi-Vi looked out into the distance while rubbing Moofys back. Chapter 114 - Autumn…Tax Time

Chapter 114 C AutumnTax Time

Trantor: ranzan Its the day after the forest hermit, Vallimie, returned home. I woke in the morning and as I left my house, I felt the cool air. It was already autumn. I had wanted cooler days when it was hot, but now I kind of felt sad that the air was cool. I breathed in the cool air deeply, and saw the chief approaching me. Al, good morning! Youre up early. Good morning, Chiefanything wrong? Did you take care of that demon? Yes, sorry about the trouble. I think its all fine now. rya rya Shiggy was happily crying out while clinging on to me. Seeing that, the chief smiled. Shiggy was just too cute. I had to exin what was going on periodically to the chief. He wasnting this early to ask about what happened to the demon. Maybe this was just in case. No, there must be something else he wanted to say. I continued with small talk as I awaited the real topic at hand. Thanks to the vige, Shiggy has grown! d to hear that. Keep growing Shiggy. ryaa The chief then patted Shiggy on the head. Shiggy reacted happily. After a bit, the chiefs face turned serious. Well, Al Heres what he wants to say. Tax season is at hand. Finally here, huh? Yes. The chief nodded seriously. I really dont know much about tax season. As an adventurer, its all deducted from my pay in advance. Theres no way to take a yearly lump sum from an adventurer that could easily die. Even more, since an adventurers life sometimes is short, he tends to blow all his cash. Thats why its just deduced from your payment. Since Im an adventurer, I really dont know how payments done. Is that so? The chief exined it. The basic tax is one-third of the harvest. That includes livestock and crops. Also, theres a citizens tax. Each citizen pays a set amount. The payments made by each vige. Each region designates the amount for each vige. Then one person is charged with paying the amount. Thats decided by the vige. So how much did you payst year? Um, about this much. The chief took out his ount book. It was arge amount. Taxes were different by region. Seems like Mulgs region set quite a high tax. Even though this was a poor vige, they were paying a lot. Isnt this high? Yes. The citizens tax is as high as the one in the capital. That sucks. Even more, weve got to pay one-third of our harvest. Well, one-third is just one-third, right? Nonot at all. The chief looked sullen as he exined more. You couldnt just pay one-third in real good. You had to pay in cash. Also, there was a problem in assessing that amount. In ordance to the size of arablend, crop sizes were estimate on their own. And the crop amount was estimated as a full harvest. As a result, regardless if you had a failing crop harvest, you would still have to pay the highest amount even if it was the food off your table. The amount of meat for one cow was decided as well. Of course, that too was the amount of meat from a superior cow. In addition, this was regardless of whether the cow was sold or put on the vigers own te. Even the cows that wasted away or died were counted as sold. So you cant exin to them which cows were sold and have them tax that? No. They wont ept it. The chief said, with an upset look. You could probably hide some harvest. You could also probably lie and say a sold cow died. Thats probably why the tax office epted no excuses. So, the tax office basically takes about sixty percent of what the vigers produce. Wowthats rough. When I was an adventurer, they just 20 percent off my rewards. Compared to that, the vigers were really getting shaken down. Al, youre counted as one of the vigers, so youll be okay Vi-Vi, yes, and the other girls are treated as just visitors. I see. Seem that Vi-Vi and the others arent on the taxation list. The chief did say that some regions arent fond of devils. It was a high risk if Vi-Vi was listed and shown to be a devil. Also, Cruz and the other girls all had residences in the capital. They paid capital tax. By kingdomw, there was no reason that they should pay double even if they stay in Mulg. Even so, it was hard to exin that fact away. Thats why wed like you to hide Vi-Vi and the others when the regions taxmene by. Understood. They might suffer a tax increase since theres more arablend now. I may have caused trouble there. I asked the chief, as I was a bit worried. He smiled and shook his head. No, its fine. Theres very low tax on potatoes. And a newly cultivated field taxes a tax the seeding year. Good. That puts me at ease. I looked at the storage shack and my house. Well, more of a mansion than a house. Are those buildings going to be okay? Its fine. Buildings dont take a tax. Good to hear. The chief exined again that a vige only takes a harvest and citizen tax. Towns and cities take a property and citizen tax. Since Mulg was a vige, there was no tax on buildings. We dont know when theyreing either, so please remember this when they do. The chief said, and left. Taxation really is theft. For them to tax cropnd, especially in a ce like Mulg with sparse crops is a cruel system. In addition, they automatically set all crops to the best condition. But there was a positive. Crops could always be improved by magical circles. No matter how much we grew, or the quality, the tax wouldnt change. Al, youre up early! Vi-Vi! I jumped in surprise, and seeing this Vi-Vi jumped right back. AAL! Dont SCARE ME LIKE THAT! Gotta make the cows and crops better! Lets go! Hhuh? Vi-Vi nodded, looking a bit confused. Chapter 115 - Harvest Season Begins

Chapter 115 C Harvest Season Begins

Trantor: ranzan It was three days since Vallimie went back to her forest. The regional taxmen had yet to arrive. I went back to guarding Mulg as usual. Femm and Moofy slept beside me. ryaa ryaaruff ruff Shiggy and the wolf pups were running around and ying. Shiggy was growing quickly. I didnt feel bad about itactually, I was happy. Just then, Vi-Vi came up from the field. Shiggy saw hering toward us, and the whole group surrounded her as she walked. Dont jump up on me! Ill stomp you! ryaa ryaawuff wuff wuff Vi-Vi had a hard time walking, but they werent afraid of her. I thought it was great they loved her so much. As she walked carefully, she approached me. Now that Shiggy noticed Femm on the ground, it turned its attention to Femm. ruffryaa ryaa RUFF As Femm red at Shiggy, I asked Vi-Vi, Vi-Vi, hows the field? Good. We can harvest tomorrow. Then lets do that and ask Millet to help. Sounds good. While I was guarding, Vi-Vi would be pulling weeds or moving soil or adding fertilizer. Thats why I was thankful that everyday she was working hard. Vi-Vi, thanks so much. Eheh, dont mention it. She blushed. She would care for the cows and also the crops. A lot of work. It almost seemed that she did far more work than I did by just guarding. Now we were able to harvest the potatoes. There were probably other crops to be harvested too. As a viger, I had to help as well. Ill go and check out the field. Then Ill go with you, Al. I walked away from my post with Vi-Vi, Moofy, and Femm following. Since one role of a guard was to patrol, it wasnt a big deal. ryaaruff ruff Shiggy and the pups scampered along. They both walked along slowly. There were more people than usual in the fields. They must be getting ready for harvest. As Vi-Vi said, harvest time was approaching. Then Femm asked, This is farming? I guess. Hey, are they farming? I really never saw them at it before so I guess I couldnt say. Vi-Vi smiled at me and said, It sure is. It looks like theyve done pretty well for the poor soil. Well, then good. I noticed the chief walking up to me. Al, Vi-Vi, thanks for keeping an eye out. Thanks, chief. How are the fields. Better than most years. Good! Probably because of Femm and the wolves hunting down the mice. wuffRuff! Femm and the pups barked happily and wagged their tails. When harvest is over, well have Vi-Vi create growth circles around the fields. Then you can have even more harvest. I cant wait to see that! The chief said as he looked at Vi-Vi in expectation. But Vi-Vi returned a look of consternation. Butit might take a year or so for there to be an effect Will it be worse than this year? You dont have to worry about that. After three years, the effect will beplete. But no effect for a yearI dont want you to expect too much. The chief looked at her seriously. If thats the case, then lets keep it secret from the vigers. I think thats best. We dont want them disappointed. Vi-Vis growth circle included a magical stone extraction into magic crystal effect as well. There were other effects, but that was the main one. Chief, shes already built a circle that also turns magical stones into crystals. Oh, what type are they? I exined what it all meant, and the chief looked very interested. Hmmmeven though those magic stones cause nothing but trouble for the farmers, they be very profitable suddenly when changed to crystals. Strange Theres already some crystals created from the ring around the potato field. Theyre magical crystals from the vigend. We can use them as a vige asset. Well, Id be very happy to consider that, but The chief looked at us seriously, and said, No, the one that produced them is Vi-Viit shall be yours. Well, we got them from the vigend so we cant just take them. Plus, tax time ising. Als right! So, after a bit of conversation, we came to the solution. How about half goes to you, Vi-Vi and Al, and the other half goes into the viges assets? No problem with us. Is it really okay? It certainly would help the vige. Its fine, just add it to your tax payment. I actually feel like Im getting too much with half, Al. Vi-Vi said, but we settled it at half. With thatplete, the chief looked quite relieved. I told you already, but its a big help. Were always right on edge with our tax payment. Then the chief looked over at Moofy. With Moofys meat, the crops, and the magic crystals together, it looks like well make it to the winter with an actual profit. Superb. He thanked us over and over and then left. While we were talking this over, Shiggy and the pups were running around the fields. They looked very happy. ryaaa!wufff! Suddenly, Shiggy and the pups cried out in a loud voice. Surprised, I looked over at them. ryaa ryaa!wuffrufwuff Shiggy had a mouse in its beak. The mouse was alive, and it was iling. Shiggy proudly brought the mouse over to me. It was Shiggys first prey. Shiggy pped its wings proudly. Oh, wow! Shiggy and pups, good job! Wuff Wuff! Femm alsoplimented them all. I patted Shiggys head, with the mouse still in its mouth. But now I wondered what to do. Femm, what am I supposed to do now? It brought it to you, so its asking for permission to eat it. Is that so? I said to both Shiggy and the pups. Good job. Go ahead and eat it. ryaaawuff wuff Shiggy went to eat the thing, but it scurried off. ryaa ryaa!wuff wuff! They chased it down as fast as they could. Happens all the time to the young ones. They learn to finish they prey off first this way. I see. After a while, they caught it again. This time, with the pups, they killed it first, then went to eat it. Can the pups eat that thing? What do you mean? I mean, dont you get a cut of it? You told them to eat it, so they did. I see. Seems like since I was the master of their king and had given the okaythey ate it. The customs of these wolves were a bitplex but straightforward. A top-down society. Vi-Vi watched Shiggy eat while whispering, Shiggys first preyI guess this is a day for celebration. Sure, maybe we should get Millet to fix something. It was this autumn day when Shiggy took another big step. And then, my knee started hurting like usual. Chapter 116 - My Knee…Hurts

Chapter 116 C My KneeHurts

Trantor: ranzan It was the night of when Shiggy killed its first prey. I woke from the pain of my left knee throbbing. Uggghhhhh It was a lot of pain. Femm, Moofy, and Shiggy were in the same bed. I keep from yelling from the pain so they wouldnt wake up. with my knee hurting like this, it means I said it quietly to cover up the pain, but there was no covering pain like this. It was the immortal-killer arrow the Demon Lord shot at my knee in his final attack. I thought that because of the hot springs effect that the pain was pretty much gone, but I was wrong. I grabbed my left knee with both hands. I could feel it throbbing hotly. dammit, what is this? Its scary. I never had a symptom like this before. Maybe I ate something bad. Thats what I thought. I guess the pain had altered my way of thinking. rya? Shiggy woke up. It looked at me with what I guessed was worry. It looked very cute as it did. I rubbed its head. Im fine! ryaa No reason to make a baby like Shiggy worry over me. I just had to grin and bear it. Thats part of being an adult. ryaa ryaa? Shiggy still looked worried. I took some meat from the bag beside my bed, and fed Shiggy with it. ryaahmmhmmm, ryaa It looked worried, but ate it all the same. It ate cute too. As I watched it, my pain seemed to disappate. Now that it was full, it looked sleepy again. I began to rub its head gently. Shiggy fell back asleep. My knee still hurt quite a bit. Just then, my door opened quietly. Cruz crept in, though I thought she was asleep with Yureena. Al, are you okay? Yeah, what is it, Cruz? Cruz crept up to me, worried. For some reason, I felt unsettled about you. You felt unsettled? YES! Cruz was serious. As a hero, she had a mysterious power. Since Cruz came in the room, now Femm and Moofy awoke. They looked around confused, and then at me. Im fine. Go to bed. I said this, but now Femm and Moofy sniffed at me, worried. Since I was covered in sweat from the pain, it was a bit embarrassing to sniff me like this. Femm and Moofy had excellent smell, too. Shiggy had decent smell, but since I was sweating heavily, the other animal knew something was wrong. Cruz rubbed my left knee, worriedly Hmso it does hurt? Yeah, the most Ive felt so far. Even more than when you were shot? Well, that was the middle of battle. It didnt hurt so much then. I see. Cruz nodded to herself. I guess she remembered it as well. In the middle or just after a battle, you dont feel the pain from your injuries. Youre so geared up from the fight. This hurt as much as the day after the fight. Cruz then said, while continuing to rub my knee, You want me to call Yureena? No, its not an injury. I dont think she can restore it. Well, then how about Millet? Pain killer? Nah Pain killer was a powerful medicine. You could get addicted and lose yourself to the powerful effects of it. After many countriesplete a war, there are problems where the war-injured be addicts from the stuff. You should only use it to alleviate the pain of those slipping off into death or to help those that are seriously injured. For example, someone who just pulled out an arrow. It will take the pain from that wound. My pain was chronic. I couldnt just use pain-killer over and over again. Well, what am I supposed to do? Sorry for making you worry. She kept rubbing my knee and looking worried. WuffMoo Femm and Moofy both licked my face in worry. My face was getting covered in sweat mixed with slobber. I knew that they were worried, and was thankful. However, getting sticky all over my face sucked. When you rub it, Cruz, it feels a bit better. Really? Okay, then It wasnt just me saying that. It clearly did feel less painful. Strange. There was no logical exnation. It waswell, she was a hero. ryaa fwwuuu fwwuuu On the other hand, Shiggy was sleeping soundly. Cruz kept rubbing my knee and the pain seemed to go away. As I listened to Shiggy sleeping, I suddenly fell back to sleep again. I awoke in the morning. My knee hurt about twice as much as it did before. However, it was nowhere as bad as it wasst night. Yaawnnnn Cruz had fallen asleep clinging to my left knee. I had probably fallen asleep with her still rubbing it. What a good girl. Just then, Yureena came into the room. Ah, Cruz, there you are. Can help this girl at ALL. She must havee searching for Cruz when she woke up and couldnt find her. Yureena really liked Cruz a bit too much. I rubbed Cruz head while I said to Yureena, My knee started to really achest night. Wha, are you okay? Yureena shoved Cruz hand aside and looked at my knee. Honestly, I couldnt take it. It hurt like crazy, but Cruz came, rubbed it, and the pain kind of left. Hm Yureena examined my knee magically. There doesnt seem to be a wound or any illness Thats goodI guess? It seems you have a loose body inside your joint. You need to refrain from any sudden movements. Loose body? Yeah, something broke off from your joint and is trapped inside. It prevents the smooth motion of the joint. Once it finally separates from your joint, we can cut it open and take it out. sounds painful. Of course it hurts to cut it open. Unless you take it out, its going to keep grinding against the joint and hurt like the dickens. Each way sounded painful. Not a good thing to hear. Since I was an adventurer with a long history, I thought I was used to pain. But pain is still pain. Pain sucksthats obvious. At least I would have to keep the thing from moving. I was a bit scared, so Yureena said to me, Well, it hasnt separated yet. I dont think this pain is rted either. Just rx. Really? Well, Ill just keep it from moving. Yureena nodded, and then continued. This is most probably from the immortal-killer arrow. I knew it. We both knew that was it. I researched the immortal-killer arrow for you too. Really? Thank you Yureena was very kind. She loved Cruz, but she also was kind of Luka and I as well. A good girl. I only did it when I had free time, okay? Now Yureena seemed a bit embarrassed. She was kind of a tsundere. Since she was always so busy, that meant she probably had little free time. Thanks. Dont worry about it. Yureena now patted Cruz soft hair as well. Sometimes, Yureena really babied Cruz. Even though they were the same age, Yureena treated Cruz like a little sister. Even if you survive the immortal-killer arrow, there are many books that say the pain is so severe, that youll wish to be dead. There were many warriors struck with it that chose death instead of pain. Damn, thats scary. Well, thats why I think theyre wrongand didnt tell you. I was d she didnt tell me for a while. If I would have heard of that, I would have been too afraid to live a normal life until now. There are a few examples of people struck with that arrow surviving, so I cant say anything. I think it is good that we can keep the pain down like youve been able totely. That reminded me that the dragon parent of Shiggy spent pained night after night when it was shot with the same arrow. I thought that was the pain of being zombified, but it might have been the arrows effect as well. How much pain do the books say? More pain then passing a kidney stone. Whoa You wouldnt think it was that bad if someone just said that to you. After all, I didnt know what a kidney stone was. No one ever told me. So, you dont think that sounds that bad, right? Yeah, I dont. Some people say that passing one is worse than having a child. No way Thats scary. Maybe that pain fromst night was just the beginning. ryaaa? I rubbed Shiggys head, now that it was awake, and looked at my knee in worry. Chapter 117 - Me Knee Hurts…So I Made a Golem

Chapter 117 C Me Knee HurtsSo I Made a Golem

Trantor: ranzan Even with my knee hurting, I still walked out to my guard post. The pain of my knee was manageable once I sat down. Cruz sat down beside me. I was happy that she had made the pain go away by rubbing it when it hurt so badly. Hm, I worried about your knee, Al. Shouldnt you be in bed? I have to go harvest the potatoes from this afternoon. No time to worry about pain. But, Al What about you Cruzarent you busy? I dont mind you hanging around though Cruz as a hero was super busy. Even so, shes been beside me this whole morning. ryaaa You look happy, Shiggy. Shiggy was happy to be around Cruz. It jumped on top of Cruz head. Shiggy dug its beak into Cruz poofy hair. Cruz then reached up and patted Shiggys head. Im off today. We got rid of that demon, after all! The change for encountering a monster outside the capital has got to be falling. So why not rest? At least Luka was saying that. Is that so? The reason for all of the monster encounters around the capital had to be that demons work. If you think about it, Mulg suffered an increase of monster attacks as well. That was the demons influence as well. Maybe now it would be peaceful. That would make me VERY happy. Vi-Vi had her overalls on as she walked over with Moofy. Doesnt your knee hurt? Dont push yourself too hard. You can say that, but Harvest time was a big even here in Mulg. There was no way I could miss it. Moo Moo Moofy was chewing lightly on my left hand. Almost like a calf trying to drink milk. Moofy must have been worried about me as well. Mmphh Moohh Yeah, the cow must be worried. Youre just going to be a drag on us, Al! Just take a break. Vi-Vi said in her attempt to be kind. I rubbed Vi-Vis head. Thanks. STOP!ryaa Vi-Vi tried to swat my hand away. Then Shiggy started pping like crazy. And with Moofy munching lightly on my hand, I thought it over. There had to be a way to help even with this damn knee. Hmusing gravity magic Going to extremes again? Vi-Vi said with a frown as she responded to me talking to myself. It would be super easy if I could just float the potatoes out of the soil. However, it was hard to actually get the potatoes away from the soil. Just too sketchy of a method to work. Then you had the problem of leaving potatoes in the soil that you thought the magic lifted. Using gravity magic would be a bit too hard this time. Youre right, Al! Then, a thought came to me. Hey, I can make a golem! Are you going to use the magic my sister taught you?! Yeahthe golem can harvest. If we do this right, it could help the other fields too. Hm. My sister used golems to manage the amount of trees in the forest. I think you might be able to use it well. Okay, lets try it. Best to do it as quickly as possible. I took the materials I had been holding a while from my magic bag. Vi-Vis sister had given me a lot of those materials a while ago. There was still a lot of crap in the storage shack too. But I kept the parts I needed for it just in case in my magic bag. With all the other stuff I had gathered in my life, the contents in my bag was almost full. Lets seewhat to use My sister mostly made stone golems. She said thats the cheapest. Hmmm Golems have different abilities using different materials. Usually they were made from stones or metals. Stones could be anything from unbreakable gems to brittle sandstone. Metal ones could be tin, zin, steel, mithril, even orichalcum. It was quite a detailed art as they could be imbued with differing hardnesses, sharpnesses, and magical strengths. Im going to make one too, Al. Sure, lets make one together. Lets see who can make the better one! So we both started constructing a golem in the way Vallimie taught us. That meant that Vi-Vi and both had the same experience in making them, so it would be a fair fight. I guessmithril Hm? Youre using mithril, Al? Thats going to give it a high magical strength! Im going to try that too! It was the first golem that I would make, so I didnt want to be cheap. However, making one with something precious like orichalcum would be a wasteso mithril it is. Vi-Vi looked to be having a lot of fun as we began ourpetition. Shiggy pped away as it watched us with interest. It knew something strange was about to happen. Just then, Collette and Millet showed up. They had quite a sharp eye to know something was happening. Ah, old man, what are you doing? Were going to try making golems. Go lems? Likebig dolls that move by magical power. WOWee Wow! Collettes eyes shimmered. Millet was very serious though. Teacher! May I observe? Certainly. I guess, in a way, I was their magical teacher, after all. But, I am still a beginner at making them. I dont know if I can teach you that well. I guess theres some magic you dont know, Mister Al. Of course. Thats why I might mess up. You can watch, but dont try it on your own. Okay. Millet nodded, but Collette shook her head. Cant I try?! No. Even if I make this golem well, it might just be by luck. You should learn from someone experienced. You have to learn from a veteran. I guessth youre right. Collette seemed to understand. She nodded. I looked beside me and Vi-Vi was already silently making her Golem. You really cant let your guard down. So I started making mine quickly. We had made golems several times as Vallimie had instructed. But we were still beginners and it was a bit worrisome. First I dumped out a lot of mithril, and formed it to look like a human. Regardless of the material, the ces where the golems joints were had to be made well. It had to be able to move the appendages widely and wellso the shape had to be perfect. Then you made a magic circle. The circle for golem creation wasplex. Vallimie was an expert at making golems and magic circles. After a few hours. Done! I was done first, Al. But the battle was over the better golem, Vi-Vi. I know already! Finally, Vi-Vi and my golems were ready to go. I felt that I got a lot done today. Wooow, good job, Mister Al! Good job, old man! ryaa ryaa Seemed like everyone was happy. Now lets take them to the field and see how they work! Yeah, thisll be fun, Al! But first, lunch! Millet said, almost like amand. But then I suddenly noticed I was hungry. And it was just after noon. I had forgotten what time it was after focusing on this golem. So before we took the golems out, we ate lunch. Chapter 118 - Harvest Golem

Chapter 118 C Harvest Golem

Trantor: ranzan After eating a light lunch, we took the golems out to harvest. Potatoesth, potatoesth!ryaa ryaa Collette was singing as she sipped along. Shiggy was hopping happily behind her. The huge golems were following us. THWOOMP THWOOMP The sound of their footsteps echoed. might have made these suckers a little too big. not a little, Al. Vi-Vi frankly looked a bit scared. Our golems were about the same size. They were about twice as big as a human and about twice as wide. So they probably had four times the mass of a person. No, they were thick too. So maybe eight times. Actually, since their arms and legs were thicker than a human, even more. AND it was made from mithril, so more like ten times. Its a golem built for harvesting. guess so. Maybe we should have made them small? so these are more like for town defense, Al? Well, they would work pretty well in that regard. Their heaviness made them strong. However, their heaviness would be a bit too much for harvesting. The field would be stomped like crazy. Not so good for detailed work. Even if its weak, maybe small and thin golems would work better. yeah. I guess we messed up thinking that a harvesting golem needed to be strong. Youre absolutely right, Al. I was a bit regretful. However, there was no reason to feel down. Even so, Vi-Vi looked a little blue. Moo moo Moofy rubbed her head into Vi-Vi. She must have sensed that Vi-Vi felt down. Shes a smart and kind cow. I guess I noticed myself. If we cant use them for harvest, we can make new ones. Chin up. Even though you say that Something else wrong? Vi-Vi looked at me seriously. Mithrils expensive. Its not like orichalcum though. Dont worry. Its weird that you even mention something that expensive, Al. Mithril IS expensive. However, it wasnt that big of a hit in my funds. It would have been wasteful to use orichalcum, but I still have loads of mithril stored up. Still, Vi-Vi was frowning. AL. You need to think about this seriously. Even if we sold ALL the potatoes, it wouldnt pay for one arm off that golem. Yeah, youre right She waspletely right. If you thought about the expenses, it made no sense to spend more money than just hiring people to do it for you. But, Vi-Vi Yeah? Since were talking about expenses, isnt it weird to make harvest golems from mithril in the first ce? Yyeah! We kind ofughed about it, and now she wasnt thinking so much about the cost. Well, it was the first ones we made, so I guess we should learn from it. As we were talking this over, we arrived at the field. We made them, so lets see how they work. Yeah. The golems started working as wemanded them. I dont think theyd have too many problems. They moved pretty smoothly for a first time product. And even though they were massive, they could work quite meticulously. -THOOMP THOOMP But they were way too heavy. They were crushing the field rows. They are too heavy, Al. Well, I can lighten them with gravity magic. But mithrils too HEAVY! You wont have enough magic! Gravity magic does sap up magic quickly if youre lifting something heavy. And with the weight of these golems, it would take a LOT of magic. YeahIll be okay. So I threw gravity magic on the two golems and made them lighter. Its a little hard though. OF COURSE IT IS! Vi-Vi sounded exasperated. They werent something you could easily make lighter. It was difficult to keep them from damaging the field while not lifting them off of it so they couldnt get their work done. It was a fine bnce. If you made them too light, they couldnt pull any potatoes. But if you didnt make them light enough, there was no point in using the magic. Still, a veteran magician has his pride! So I kept the exact amount of gravity magic cast on them as they worked. ryaa ryaa! Seeing this, Shiggy again pped its wings. I was d the dragon could see me so focused. I felt like a dad teaching his kid. And plus since Shiggy was magical, it could probably learn a lot. So I just watched the golems work while casting. Theyre doing pretty well. My golem and yours work pretty well, Al. Theyre pretty even. They both can do detailed work. Yeah. Well, lets just harvest as much as we can. Dont push yourself too hard. I know. I could work up to my limit. Either way, the golems finished pretty quickly. It only took them two hours. Even with a wide field like this, two hours was very fast. Phew. Even though it was autumn, I was sweating. Its been a while since I used this much magic. There was only a bit left. I might have used too much. However, I was done now, so I could rest. I cant believe you, Al. What? That you could keep those golems cast on for two hours. Well, I am tired. And two of them at once. And MITHRIL! They are quite heavy. Vi-Vi said to herself in awe, cant believe it. Millet brought both of us some cold water. Millet, thanks. Good job, Mister Al. Yeah, old man. I rubbed Collettes head and looked at the field. It was a good and clean harvest. There were other fields out there as well. I dont have the strength to use these golems for the other fields though. Of course YOU DONT! You want to make smaller ones? Yeah, light and with cheap metal. But light metal isnt cheapits not light, but steel is cheap. Steel was heavier than mithril. But since wed make them small it should be okay. And steel was way cheaper than mithril. Costwise, stones were the cheapest, but Vi-Vi never said anything about making those. I never thought about making them with stone wither. The problem is that magic didnt flow well through stone, which made making a stone golem harder. I guess I was nervous about making a stone golem. I was a little nervous about steel too, but it was easier than stone. I bet that Vi-Vi felt the same way. She whispered to herself, I guess steel might be a little hard I know how you feel. But the hard to cast ones arent expensive like mithril and orichalcum. Yeahthen lets make steel ones, Al. Well, the problem is that I didnt have a lot of steel in my bag or in my storage shack. I guess Id have to buy some. Chapter 119 - Daily Life of Beasts

Chapter 119 C Daily Life of Beasts

Trantor: ranzan Going to the capital was the best ce to buy steel. Okay, to the capital! rya? As I turned to go to the capital, pain shot through my knee. Shiggy looked worried as it saw me freeze from the pain. I was so into using the magic, I forgot that my knee hurt. And now all the pain rushed back in. Does your knee hurt? You should rest. Not as bad this time. I can at least go get some supplies. I thought I was going to diest nightbut now its not too bad. A long time ago, I had the fingernail off my pinky finger pulled offit was the same pain 10 minutes after that. It hurt much more when it just pulled off, unbearable. Al, are you okay? It does hurt. How much does it hurt?Mmmph? Cruz asked, worried. Moofy chomped down on my left hand lightly. Moofy was worried again. I guess if she had a chance, shed munch on people like this. But all the saliva was disgusting. I told her the truth. It hurt as much as when you lose a fingernaillike 10 minutes after. Eek!wuff? I see. Vi-Vi and Femm both cringed. I guess they imagined the pain. Cruz, on the other hand, since shed been through countless battles where shed been injured, looked a little relieved. Cruz had lost a fingernail or two on a few asions. The pain shot through you when you lost a nail, but after a bit it didnt hurt so much. Anyway, just stay here and rx, Al! Yeah, stay in your BED!Moo! Cruz and Vi-Vi headed out and left me here in town. Moofy was about to leave with them, when I said, No, Moofy, you stay here. Moo? I stopped Moofy, who looked at me confused. If there wasnt a battle or far travel expected, she should stay here with me. People notice if you lug animals around the capital. You two would attract too much attention. You dont need to go along if you dont have to. I know that already.Moo. Moofy and Femm still looked a bit disappointed. After Cruz and the others left, I went back to the entrance to the vige. My knee hurt, but I could take it if I was sitting. I mean, even if Iid down the pain wouldnt go away. So I decided to sit instead. The remaining beasts were a pace away from me. WuffMooryaa Femm, Moofy, and Shiggy were talking. Femm wanted to clear out the harmful animals. Moofy was eating grass standing next to Femm. The vigers were perfectly happy with Moofy eating the grass instead of feed. ryaa ryaa Shiggy was helping Femm with these harmful animals. It was learning to hunt from Femm. Wuff wuff Femm was showing Shiggy how to hunt by example. Just recently, Shiggy had been sessful with hunting alongside the pups. That probably was due to Femm. The beasts all circled the field. After that, they entered the vige and patrolled it. There were mice in the vige as well, and they would eat up the grass. Femm, Moofy, good job! Thanks again. Wuff!Moo moo Cute as usual today, Shiggy! ryaa All the vigers called out to the beasts as they made their way around. After patrolling, the beasts came back to the entrance. Gaoooooooooh! Mooooooooooo! Ryaaaaaaaaaa! They all cried out at once. That was their recent routine. This way they got rid of all the mice. At first we used to notify the vigers, but now that was basically pointless, so they just patrolled naturally. And the vigers were used to all of this. We warned Vi-Vi too, of course, but today she was at the capital, so it was fine. Wuff?Moo?ryaa? The three all looked at me with proud looks. Good job all of you. Excellent. Iplimented them all. I pet them and their tails wagged happily. Shiggy pped its wings as well. Seems like only Femm has magic in its howl though. Hard.ryaa Both Moofy and Shiggy looked a bit down. Even without them putting magic in the howl, the sounds of both Shiggy and Moofy would probably have an effect on the mice. Be patient, okay? Moo moo.ryaa As I was trying to encourage them, Collette and Millet approached. Mister Al? Old man! They heard the howl and knew the beasts patrol was over. Teacher! Please teach us today! Teach me magic, old man! Yeah, sure. So I proceeded to teach them magic. Even with this painful knee, I could still do that. Millet and Collette were already at the level of practicing basic magic. They were pretty quick at picking it up. Maybe even geniuses at it. Just then, the beasts gathered for some reason. They were talking to each other. As I was teaching the girls, I looked over at Shiggy. It seemed it was practicing making a magic ball. Maybe this was because of the magic of Rai. Rai, Vallimies pet, shot them, after all. It was a pretty cool magical skill too. Gaoo GaooMoo moooryaarryaa They all opened their mouths, and it looked like something mighte out, but it was only their voices. Even so, they attempted it over and over. After dozens of times, wagaoooh mooo ryaaryaaaa A ball of magical power finally emerged from Femm. At the same time, two came from Moofys horns. Moofy opened her mouth, and the magical charges went wooooshh straight up in the air from her horns. Even though she had tried to shoot it from her mouth, they came from her horns. It was kind of scary to see thatck of control. Femm was a heavenly beast, Moofy was a sacred beast. It wasnt strange that they could generate magical power. After that, Moofy and Femm looked at me with prideful looks. WuffMoo Great job. Just like usual. Both Femm and Moofy were wagging their tails happily. After watching both of them, Shiggy was pping its wings like crazy trying to shoot something. Shiggy, youre still a baby so it takes time. Even so, Shiggy wasnt giving up. ryaaryaaaRYAAA After a while of this a magical charge emerged from Shiggy as well. It was so weak that even if it hit a mouse, it wouldnt kill it, but it was still impressive. Whoa. I was quite surprised at Shiggys ability, and I unconsciously reacted in awe. Wuff?Moooo? ryaaa? Femm and Moofy were quite surprised too. Shiggy looked shocked. I picked up Shiggy and petted it. Great job, Shiggy! ryaa! Shiggy was the royal child of an archduke of the ancient dragons. This showed that it was going to be one hell of a magic user when it grew up. However, for a baby to be able to use magic like that was unthinkable. What a dragon! It probably was smarter than the rest of us. Millet and Collette came over from magic practice and petted Shiggy too. Wow, thats some magic, Shiggy! Im gonna be asth sthrong asth you, Sthiggy! I guess seeing that made Millet and Collette even more interested in magic. It was a good thing. As I was thinking about this, my knee started to ache again. It was a strong pain likest night. The pain level of a kidney stone. agghhhh. Mister Al, are you okay?! Old man, youre turning pale! ryaa Millet and Collette looked worried, as did Shiggy. IIm okaybutIm going to warm up my knee. Because of all the pain, I got in the bath back at my house. Chapter 120 - My Knee Hurts so…into the Bath!

Chapter 120 C My Knee Hurts sointo the Bath!

Trantor: ranzan I cut short my guarding and went back to my house. I really wasnt doing anything, so I think it was fine as long as I told Millet. Are you okay? I can go with you. No, Im fine. Thanks. I refused Millets request, and headed to the bath in my house. Since the bath was straight from the hot springs, I could get in anytime. I was very thankful for it. Femm and Moofy apanied me. Shiggy also, of course. When I got in the bath, I went right to soaking my knee. Phewmuch better. Moo?ryaa? Moofy and Shiggy looked worried. As I put my knee in the bath, the pain decreased, but only a little bit. Maybe it was just my mind ying tricks on me. Are you okay? Maybe. What changed your knee from yesterday? Femm asked me. I couldnt think of anything though. I didnt stress my knee anymore that usual, I think. Maybe something happened. It might be that something happened during that fight with the demon. Hmm. The demon didnt curse me or attack my knee in the end, though. I dont think its the demon, though. Maybe the seasons changing? It hurts when its colder? That may be it. I didnt know, but that was the best exnation. I rubbed my left knee. It was throbbing with heat. Almost like my knee was a separate living thing. Gross. I dont like seeing that much pain. I feel the same as you. I tried to distract myself from the pain by talking to Femm, but Femm just made it worse. And I thought the pain was going as I got in the bath, but now it seemed to increase. Even though it was hot, I broke out in a cold sweat. Maybe this bath doesnt even affect this pain. Moo!ryaa Then you should get out. Yup. I tried getting out of the bath, but the pain was so great I fainted. I woke back up, and I was lying in the changing room. Mooryaa Moofy was licking my knee, worried. Shiggy was on my chest looking down at me. Sorry. Dont worry about that. Did you all bring me in here? Yes. Well, they were dependable beasts. I petted them for a second. Thanks. How is your knee? A little better now. It still hurt. But not enough to pass out from the pain. When I fainted, it was because I hit a peak amount of pain. Femm and Moofy helped me up and into the kitchen. Ah, Al! Are you okay?! You PUSH YOURSELF TOO HARD! Cruz and Vi-Vi were home already. They were sitting at the kitchen table. It hurts, but not so bad that I cant take it. Is that sohmm. Cruz sat me in a seat and looked at my knee. There is something weird about this. Weird? Yes. What do you mean by weird? I wonder if I should tell you What did she mean by weird? I really wanted to know, but Cruz didnt have the words to tell me. It was that special sense a hero had. I remembered what they had done and asked Vi-Vi, Did you get the steel? You can worry about Cruz, but with me along, of course we did. Why should he worry about me?! Cruz looked a bit angry, but there was that incident with the potatoes. Of course it had lowered some trust of her buying ability. With Cruz, you might ask for steel and her turn up with tin. It was still kind of funny. It would be kind of fun to try a tin golem. Well, now we can make a golem! Maybe even make two of them before dinner! What are you talking about, Cruz? Hm? His knee hurts because he used a lot of magical energy! He should rx for today! Well, Vi-Vi, I didnt use a lot yesterday and my knee still hurt. I dont think its rted to that. What happens if you pass out again?! Yeah, Al! Vi-Vi and Cruz looked worried. As I was about to calm them by saying it was okay, the monsters said, He just passed out in the bath. Fainted.ryaa ryaa Vi-Vi red at me and Cruz saidWhoaaaa. What DID YOU SAY?! JUST GO TO BED AL! Even so NO EXCUSES! Vi-Vi grabbed me and dragged me too my bed. ryaaa. Shiggy looked very worried, and clung to me. Sorry for making you worry. rya Femm, Moofy, and Cruz followed. They all looked worried. I lied down and Vi-Vi said, As much pain as a kidney stone, right? What if you die from the pain? Vi-Vi, you know what a kidney stone is? Never had one before, but a forest orc I saw had one. It dropped to its knees, couldnt move, and was groaning in pain. Really? An orc was arge, two-legged magical beast. They were known for being strong to pain. It must have really hurt for it to not be able to move. Even so, not enough to kill someone. It was shocking that Vallimie and Vi-Vi were friendly with orcs. Vallimie was friends with a great dragon, so I guess it made sense. Millet came into the room with a worried look too. Mister Al, I have some sleeping potion. Thanks. I drank it and slept quickly. Until I slept, Cruz stayed there rubbing my knee. Chapter 121 - Knee Healing

Chapter 121 C Knee Healing

Trantor: ranzan When I awoke, the sun was down. I guess I had slept for two hours. I noticed that Cruz was next to me. I was thankful. My knee hurt, but it wasnt enough to knock me out. Oh, are you awake? Cruz, thanks. The reason the pain decreased was probably because Cruz was lying next to me. Yureena was there too. Of course, she WASNT going to lie next too me. She was next to the bed, examining my knee. Thanks to you too, Yureena. Ive been examining your knee as you slept, Al. Thanks. So how is it? Theres still something like arge rock inside of it. A rock? Yureena nodded slowly. I put my hand down on my painful left knee. I told you this morning it was like a part of your knee had broken off, right? Well, now its suddenly grownrger. Can something like that grow fast? Normally, no. So it wasnt just a loose body in your knee joint. I misdiagnosed it. now its a mysterious growing rock? Scary. Something strange is happening inside my knee. Cruz looked confused. Whats a loose body? Well, thats its proper name. The bone in your joint breaks off, and it hurts like crazy. But whats going on in Als knee is even more dangerous. What do you mean? Im scared. ryaa ryaaamooowuff All three of the beasts looked quite frightened. Maybe they imagined the pain. Shiggys tail was between its legs and it covered its head with its hands. I guess thats what an ancient dragon does when scared. A new discovery. I guess I should tell Luka. After thinking it over, Yureena said something startling, I think we should operate and open it up. Whaaaa? Open it up?! Yeah. I was scared, but Yureena was taking this all calmly. Eep!Wuff?ryaaMoo? Cruz and the beasts were terrified. Now not just Shiggy but Femm also had its tail between its legs. That stone in your knee isnt going to just disappear. And since its growing, so will the pain. II see. Then please. Is Al going to be okay? Cruz looked very worried. I guess Id just have to bear the treatment. Just like drinking a harsh medicine. If Shiggy and Cruz had to bear drinking some nasty-tasting potions, then I could take this treatment. Okay, Im begin immediately. Wha? What about anesthesia? Dont have any. Sorry. no way Yureena with the startling statements again. Anesthesia is bad for the body. Yurenna said you should refrain from using it if possible. So I was scared. I wonder if anyones discovered anesthesia that doesnt hurt the body yet Or maybe it could be done by magic It was just as Cruz said. Maybe something with illusory magic. Al, just count all the cracks you see in the ceiling sure. It will be over quickly, so rx. Yureena was prepared quickly. She first put a roll of cloth in my mouth, I guess to keep me from biting my tongue. I was getting scared. Before I could get mentally ready, Yureena took a sharp de and began cutting into my knee. WAIPHHH! WAIIPPH!!! I was trying to tell her to wait, but the words were muffled. She deftly sliced the knee open. Of course it hurt like hell. I guess I should be thankful that the girl didnt take her time. Its better that she didnt wait to tell me,Okay, you ready?over and over. She was able to slice into a body with magic too. But since she didnt know what would happen without using a sharp de, she used that instead. She also probably needed magic reserved for suturing and healing the knee after the operation. Hang in there, AL! Cruz said beside me. I was thankful for her support, but it didnt change the pain. I looked down at my knee. Her surgery was amazing. She took the minimal cuts necessary. The pain was hard but there was little blood. Wu, wuff Femm was looking away from the whole process. Shiggy was shaking, perched on Femms head. And the both had tails between their legs. Shiggy was covering its face, and its fingers were shaking. It looked really scared. Muffm Muffm On the other hand, Moofy was chewing on my right hand. She was worried, and this is how she coped. Wait, maybe not. Maybe she just wanted to do it. While I was thinking about this, Yureena said, Just a bit more! Yureena pulled the rock from my knee. -CLUNK With the stone ced on a dish, she now began sewing the wound up. She sewed using magical thread. The wound was closed almost instantly. Now I just need to cast healing on it. The healing magic hit me and the former pain was gone like an illusion. Al, its over. Are you okay? Thanks. Actually, I feel like I could sprint a mile. I know youre joking, but Ill tell you anyway. DONT RUN ANYWHERE. Cruz and the others looked at the stone on the te. What a painful looking shape. ryaaamooo What a repulsive stone. Cruz and the others shrunk back from the stone. Then I looked at it. Whoa, what the hell I shrunk back too. Damn. The stone was the size of an index finger. It had a strange shape. It was like a star, but geometrically shaped. Is this a great steted dodecahedron? Does this shape have a name? Maybe I didnt know geometric shapes well, but it seemed like the correct name. It was an extremely spiked shape. There were exactly 20 spikes. It creeped me out that something like that grew inside of me. Yureena looked it over and said, Something wasing out of each of these points. What is it? Something that interacts with your nerves. That was the reason for the pain. Its not the shape. It probably hurts way worse than a kidney stone. You really took the pain well. I see. So this really painful looking shape wasnt the reason for the pain. I wondered what it was made of. I think its better to say its just the shape. Does it hurt now? No, its almost all gone. Good to hear. Yureena looked relieved. On the other hand, Cruz looked seriously down at my knee. It still has a weird, bad feel to it. Really? I was scared again. This pain would probably continue. Cruz, what do you sense about this stone? Its really ominous. Ive never felt this bad about something before. It has even a more negative feeling to me than Als knee. Cruz frowned at the stone. But there was no doubt that there was a really bad vibe from this stone. Im going to check this stone out carefully. Yureena, thanks for all youve done. Dont worry about it. Just take care of the knee and eat well. The healing magic didnt heal your body strength. There wasnt a lot of blood, but there was some. Eating was the best way to recover. But I was thankful the pain was gone. I helped her finish up the clean up. Let me prepare this bed for recovery. Yureena said and prepared everything. She prepared sheets to contain the bleeding and cleaned up the area. Even though I let Yureena get everything prepared, I wasnt just going to sit there. After we were done, I made my way to the kitchen. Good morning, Al! Oh, youre up, Al. Is your knee okay? Vi-Vi and Vallimie were waiting there for me. Chapter 122 - The Forest Hermit Returns

Chapter 122 C The Forest Hermit Returns

Trantor: ranzan Vi-Vi approached me, a bit worried. Is your knee okay? Thanks to Yureena, it is. Thats great to hear. Vi-Vi was all smiles. Moofy nuzzled up to Vi-Vi. Wait a second. What? Why is Vallimie here? Vallimie looked shocked. You told me I could visit anytime Thats not what I mean Is this a bad time?! No! Its just that you just went back to your forest. How did you Cruzughed. Ah, well you probably didnt notice because you havent been to the capitaltely What? Next to that magical circle to the capital in the storage shack is one that leads to Lindobal forest as well. Oh, I see If the magicless Cruz had Vi-Vi make a circle and then recreated it in her mansion. Of course, someone talented like Vallimie could easily connect a new one to one that Vi-Vi had drawn. Its because you havent gone to the capitaltely, Al. You didnt use the transport circles so its no wonder you didnt notice. Moo Moo Vi-Vi pped my shoulder in encouragement. Moofy munched on my hand in encouragement. Wait, is this encouragement? Inside the storage shack, there was a little room where the transport circles were inside. Even if I went inside, you wouldnt notice unless you entered the room. I guess Cruz knew this already as she had used it constantly. Well, if you think about it, since its so easy, theres no way they wouldnt make one RIGHT! Vi-Vi and Vallimie said as they puffed their chests out in pride. Wuff?ryaa ryaa? Femm and Shiggy suddenly started looking around. They were sniffing the air like crazy. Probably seeing if Rai hade. Wheres Rai? At home. WuffryaMoo The beasts now looked disappointed. Vallimie was happy the beast were anticipating her pet, and petted them herself. Thanks for making friends with Rai. Rai has some responsibilities in the forest though. Ill bring Rai next time. And Doby? Fine. But Dobys too big for the circle. Youre right. It might have been able to pass through, but not the small storage shack door. Hearing this made the other beasts even sadder. ryaa Shiggy was really disappointed. Since Shiggy and Doby were both dragons, it had taken a liking to Doby. This morning, I kept the fact that Shiggy ate great dragon meat from it. Maybe we should open the storage shack door so that Shiggy cane through. Yeah. Vi-Vi said with a nod of her head. Just then, Luka came inside. Im homeoh, Vallimie, youre here! She didnt seem shocked at all. I guess she knew about the new transport circle too. Vallimie talked a bit with us, then Luka asked, Whats that great steted dodecahedron? She was talking about the stone pulled from my knee. It was in a dish, ced on the kitchen table. Its some quickly growing stone that was in my knee. Yureena took it out. Gross. Looks painful. It hurt a lot when it was in my knee, but even worse when she pulled it out. Hearing this, Vallimie looked confused. Hm? She could just have used anesthesia. Then theres no pain. Painkillers are addictive. Very. Then you could do something with a magic circle. Vallimie responded. That was the first time Ive heard of that. I wish she would have been there. I was going to say something, when Vi-Vi looked at me. But Vi-Vi was more surprised than ever, NO WAY! Yup, you can make painkiller circles. Vallimie was surprised that Vi-Vi didnt know this. Then Vallimie started to describe how to make one to the surprised Vi-Vi. And Vi-Vi listened intently. After thinking it over, Vi-Vi whispered, I could make something like that. Really? Well, you are good, Vi-Vi. You had the magic circle from when you helped the wolves after they ate the hydra meat, right? Just improve that. Yeah, youre right! The wolves after they ate the hydra meat were very sick. Back then, Vi-Vi had made a magic circle to rx them. It might have been something like anesthesia. If my knee started hurting again, I could ask her. While this conversation was going on, Luka was looking at the stone with a serious expression. Luka, what do you think? Ive seen something like this before. Really?! Now I was interested. I think everyone was. Luka looked at us all with a serious face as she continued, Theres a special parasitic magical beast that imnts these. Parasitic? It excretes a magical serum from all the tips of its shape. What? Scary It might be that this is simr. Luka said as Cruz and Yureena nodded, seriously. It takes you overits possible. Yes, I mean, theres no other possibility. I wish they would stop talking in scary tones like this. Maybe this means that somewhere, the Demon Lord has re-risen? Luka saidand that was more frightening that the rest of it. Chapter 123 - Examining the Knee

Chapter 123 C Examining the Knee

Trantor: ranzan I wonder if my knee hurting was the sign that the Demon Lord was resurrected. That was mortifyingly scary. And the stone taken from my knee was identical to a parasitic being that would take you over. If this was an underling of the Demon Lord, that I think it was made in attempts to turn me into one of his puppets. Cruz said in a serious tone, If you get taken over, were all in trouble. The world might be destroyed. She was right. If my life was taken over, they would all be in trouble. However, I dont think the world was going to be destroyed. If you were taken over, I would put you out of your misery. Th, thanks? Id be sad, but Id have to do it. So please dont worry. Femm might have thought this a good thing to say, but now Im really worried. But if something as bad as being possessed happened, then Id rather be killed. HoweverId like for them to find a way to restore me first. ryaaa Shiggy held on tight to me. It probably knew what was being said. Its fine. I wont be taken over that easily. I held Shiggy with my right hand and said. Moo Moo! Now Moofy was munching on my left hand again. They all were worried and the stress made them act like children. Its true. But I wish the cow wouldnt chomp on my hand. Then I asked Yureena and Luka, If I ever were about to be taken over, would there be a way to avoid it? Yureena looked at me seriously. When the stone gets big, we should cut it out. So, how often are you going to have to cut it out? Considering the pace of yesterday and today, once every or every other day. II see. It would suck if they have to cut open my knee every day. Even if Vi-Vi made a circle to calm my pain, still, everyday was too much. I would bleed and my body would lose all its strength. Every day? Thatd be rough on Yureenano way I want that to happen. Dont worry about it, Al! Ill cut you open every day! Ohthanks Yureena actually looked pretty prepared to do it. I was thankfulI guess. However, it was a little weird to have someone so prepared to do surgery on me daily. Just then, Luka had been thinking and said, Al, when Cruz rubbed your knee, the pain went away, right? Yeah, thats definitely true. What else took the pain away? Nothing, I guess. The hot spring water didnt work. I see Luka considered the matter again. Well, it is the effect of the Demon Lords immortal-killer arrow. I think Cruz holy power can counteract it. Cruz eyes shimmered. Really? Then Im really going to rub him down! Well, we dont know if itll work yet. I remembered back to when it didnt hurt. That reminds me, when it suddenly began to hurt badly was when Cruz wasnt near me. Well, I guess Im going to be all over you then from now! Cruz is a busy girl, so we cant do that, I think. Im fine! Today Im free! Right? Luka? Cruz looked happily at Luka for a response. But Luka responded with an icy tone. No, we cant just leave you here. Even if you did have breaks before, youre still a busy girl! But, if Al gets possessed, then the world is in danger. You have to let me! No waywellmaybe Luka pondered it all seriously. You might be right. We cant let it get to level where Al is taken over by the Demon Lord. Yeah! Its dangerous! Yureena said, and Vi-Vi agreed. It seems that Im a highly respected guy all the sudden. As a result of the discussion, we decided that Cruz should be around me as much as possible. Cruz was going to be allowed to take off as much as she could from work, and when she was free, would be around me. I guess Ill have to help too. Moo Moo Femm and Moofy were ready to help. With Cruz having to stick by me, she would have to move quickly. So maybe Femm would carry her around. Allow Yureena and I to do all the research on this stone. Please do. Im going to do all I can to see if my the Demon Lord was resurrected! Vallimie was ready to find out everything. Vallimie had some clout with the magic beasts as she lived near the Demon Lords area. Thanks, everyone. Im happy you care this much. I said to everyone with a bow. Now that the tension had been relieved, Cruz smiled. Vi-Vi, what will you do if the Demon Lord hase back? There was a moment of silence C not a good sign. Vi-Vi was one of the four Sub-bosses. I dont have to tell you that means she was in a high position in the Demon Lords army. Luka nudged Cruz and said, You shouldnt have asked that What? Its an IMPORTANT QUESTION! Cruz said quite innocently. Vi-Vi said coldly, I never thought the Demon Lord was going to be resurrected Vi-Vi, what do you think about him now? Sister Vi-Vi thought a bit, and then spoke, The Demon Lord I knew was good. He was a kind lord. I thought he wanted to make a kingdom where all devils and monsters could live in peace. However, the Demon Lord we fought was one hell of a bastard. He used a zombie army, burned down viges, and made the devils and monsters run wild. I was just in charge of improving livestock and crops. I didnt think it was good the Demon Lord attacked people. Well, he was worse than that. Cruz said and Vi-Vi nodded. When we lost and left the battle, I think I changed. Honestly, Vi-Vi had done some bad things before leaving the army. She probably didnt realize it. There were a lot of bosses in the sub-bosses of the army that were trying to eat humans. I heard that the Demon Lord had used a zombie army. Even though the Demon Lord swore he wouldnt use one But this was after Vi-Vi left the army. Vallimie said after pondering it, The only reason I let Vi-Vi join the Demon Lords army, it was only because the Demon Lord was a skilled politician. Oh? But I thought he seemed quite strange. When was that? About a half year before you finally attacked them? It was when he started attacking human settlements. When he started attacking, Cruz was tasked with eliminating him. I see. I guess she knew a lot about the Demon Lord back them. At least now I dont want to be an ally of the Demon Lord. I see, thanks. Vi-Vi said clearly, and I was happy. Yeah, Al, were going to find out about the Demon Lord! Cruz said cheerfully. Chapter 124 - The Hero Goes to the Old Demon Lord Region

Chapter 124 C The Hero Goes to the Old Demon Lord Region

Trantor: ranzan Why are you going to go to the Demon Lords areaI mean thete-Demon Lords area? I asked Cruz a bit innocently. We have to find if hes alive! So a search? If the Demon Lord is back, its best to warn the former area he lived in. And if there needed to be preparations to attack him again, it should be there. I havent gone on a trip with you for a while, Al. I look forward to it. Cruz was ready to go with me to the old Demon Lords region. Then Luka said to Cruz, a bit coldly. Wait a second. What? Cruz, youre not that good at getting information. Luka was right. Cruz was bad at that kind of thing. Yeah, youre quite bad at it. Yureena said, but I didnt think Cruz was horrible at it, justfair at it. But even I expected that Cruz kind of knew that she was poor at it. If there was a survey at it, shed get a three out of ten at trying to get info. Tthats not true! She said with a red face. I was the one that found that hidden Cerberus! And I found that nest of scorpions too! Cruz was counting on her fingers, and trying to remember everything she had found. Its true that she found all of those. And the monster expert, Luka, didnt find those either. If you think about it that way, maybe Cruz did have the ability to find information. Cruz definitely thought that she was good at it. Cruz, that was just luck! Thats not true! I thought that Cruz was correct here. She couldnt have found that hiding Cerberus or that scorpions nest by ident. Then you just start talking about how luck she is. However, the hero Cruz wasnt just a normal hero. She was very lucky. It might have been because she was a follower of God. And, in the case of Cruz, she was able to find things out more than normal heroes. She trusted her hero senses, she then blew away the enemy. Over and over. And usually one mistake would end in death. But since she escaped death again and again, it seemed like she had incredible luck. Also, she never seemed to make a big mistake like stepping in a trap. As a result, just thinking about her record, she really could be considered a true hero. Al, Luka keeps saying mean things about me! Ah, oh, yeah. Al, you have to defend me! Whaaa? I was in a fix. Cruz wanted me to be her defender. It was true that we all knew that Cruz was bad at getting info. The problem was now whether to be honest or not about it. I mean, its never been a problem until now, but she wanted me to tell them she was good at finding info. I guess I should be honest about everything Ive seen up until now. I looked over at Yureena. Yureena looked away. I guess I couldnt count on her. I had nothing else I could do, so I said, Cruz, Ill be honest. Sure! She looked at me with glimmering eyes and it was hard to follow myself up. However, I was the oldest one of the party with the most experience. Cruz, do you know whats important when gathering info? Umintuition! No. Observation, analysis, and knowledge. Hm? Cruz looked confused. Looks like she really didnt know. So I exined it to her. If you couldnt analyze your target, you didnt know what situation you were in. If you didnt watch your target closely, you dont know what to analyze. And knowledge is essential for both observation and analysis. Without knowledge, you dont know how your target is changing, and you cant recognize the results of your analysis. I see I can analyze the remnants of magic, but Im bad at everything else. Is that so? Yeah, so in the same way, you have a weakness in intelligence gathering. I see! She quickly recognized her weakness. It was so quick. There was some virtue to it. She might be maturing. So I praised her. You really are quick to recognize it, good job. Eheh heh Yureena then followed up with a smile. I also saw Lukas concern. Since she epted all exnations so quickly, she was suckered by the potato fraudster. Cruz, you have to be cautious! Sure! I rubbed her head and she looked at me happily. So, Al, do you want to forget about the Demon Lord and just go and check out his old domain? Forget about him? Yes, we can leave that to a specialist! But I do wonder whats going on out there. I want to go and see too! Vi-Vi said, with a tone of infatuation. I was quite interested too. Luka looked at us seriously. Its not his domain, its his OLD domain. Either way NOT either way. Theres a big difference. Really? Cruz asked, and Luka responded, Wait, so youre saying the ce was unsafe just like before? So what if it isnt? Are you aware what it means to be a hero? Luka started to lecture Cruz on this point. If the hero Cruz went to the old Demon Lords domain, it would have political implications. The humans would be afraid if someone like Cruz would actually be forced to venture back into the Demon Lords domain again. They might mistake the heros going back as having to return just to re-suppress the power of a powerful demon like the Demon Lord again. Cruz was a bit down, but I patted her shoulder. Maybe you shouldnt go back. Darn. I wanted to see the ce again. Are you that disappointed? Of course! I could take you with me! She really loved adventures. She was an adventurer at heart. As I tried to cheer her up, Yureena pulled my sleeve. Al. Huh? Today I heard you used a lot of magical power. Yureena had a serious look. She might have heard that from Millet, Vi-Vi, or even Collette. Yeah, I made a mithril golem, and then I had to use gravity magic on it. I was really tired. I bet you were. Yureena put her hand on my knee. It might have been that this stone grew just because of the fact you used too much magic. why do you think so. It might have been your magical force was suppressing this stones growth, just like your body strength suppressed the chance for catching a cold. I see. So if I use too much, then my resistance ability decreases and it grows fast suddenly? Well, there may be a chance it does. You may need to reduce the magic that you consume in that case. Got it. Ill be careful. There really was no time that I was going to use a lot again after this. Maybe if I just stopped using it again it would go back to normal. Are we done talking this over? Are we all ready for dinner? Just after Millet said that, RINGRINGRINGRINGRINGRINGRING The warning bell set in my house started ringing. The ring on my hand Vi-Vi gave me started to shake. Maybe Doby? Dobys in the Lindobal Forest! Vallimie looked a bit shaken as she said that. What the hell now?! I ran out of my house. Chapter 125 - An Ancient Dragon Arrives

Chapter 125 C An Ancient Dragon Arrives

Trantor: ranzan As I ran out of my house I could see a flying beast approaching in the moon light. I cast nightvision so I could see it better. Its a big one! Cruz jumped out of the house behind me. She had a sling in her right hand and arge stone that she was holding in the sling on the left hand. She had probably grabbed this from her own room just in case. The ringing hade from the air-attack danger magical rings that were located around the vige, so she was ready for an air battle. An enemy! Leave it to me! She saw how big the thing was and tossed the sling away happily. Im going to need this for that big of a job! She took out her holy sword. I guess she knew that a sling wasnt going to hurt it. Ill put nightvision on you. Thanks, Al! She had pretty good vision at night, but she still couldnt see as well as day. Now she looked at the huge beast with nightvision. Ahwhat is THAT! She resheathed her sword. I guess the beast didnt look dangerous. Wow, its huge! What is that?! Wowwee! Millet and Collette said as they came out with an astounded look. They had quickly cast nightvision on both of themselves as well. It was a result of their magical training. Nightvision was a basic magic. One of the first harder ones you learn. Even so, they cast it easily. It was nice seeing them do so well. What is thatthing! Its sthuper big! She they looked into the night sky, they were both taken aback. Then Luka and Yureena joined us. They both had put their armor on, so they were slow to arrive. Is that an ancient dragon?! Its so dark, but you have excellent eyes. You really are a monster expert, Luka! She really had excellent skill. She knew exactly what it was from one nce. I then cast nightvision on them quickly. ryaaa? Shiggy suddenly reacted to hearing the word, ancient dragon. Shiggy, it might be rted to your parent. ryaaa And it could be a rtive, or, it could be an enemy. No reason to let down ones defense. I had no idea what ancient dragon society consisted of, but this might be the result of me taking the child of an ancient dragon archduke. It might be nothing, but I need to probably get myself separated from this vige quickly, just in case. If I had to fight, this ce would be destroyed. Theres no way Mulg could get involved. I looked at Femm, and Femm instantly grew to its normal size. Thanks Femm. Wuff! I got on Femm and Femm took off. Luka and Cruz ran behind me. Im going too! And me! Okay! With Cruz and Luka, I felt safer. I felt like I had used nightvision too muchmaybe because I would have to fight. However, if I did have to fight an ancient dragon, I would have to use massive amounts of magic. I bet another stone would grow in my kneemaybe. Yureena and Vallimie didnt follow. They knew they had to defend the vige. Wait for MEEEEE! I could see Vi-Vi riding Moofy, chasing after us. Femm slowed a bit. Why are you following, Vi-Vi? Iming too, you idiot! Moo moo! Moofy seemed pretty happy about all this. Maybe she liked to chase after something at full speed. And Vi-Vi was happy to following riding on her. I see. Well, thanks. I said, while feeling a bit guilty. Moofy was tough. She had a lot of strength that she could add to the fight against the ancient dragon if necessary. I felt even safer. But I wondered if Vi-Vi was the same. She was good as a magician, but if that ancient dragon cried out Vi-Vi would probably be knocked out, I was sure of it. I learned how to use battle magic, okay, Al?! She said proudly, but I didnt say anything. Whatever. As long as she was on Moofy, she probably wouldnt die. Okay, just not too much, okay? I KNOW THAT ALREADY!! We all ran up directly to the ancient dragon. The dragon wasnting to us. It waited at a distance, anticipating us. It might have wanted to draw us from the vige. If so, then it wasnt hostile. I know youre aware of this Cruz, but it wants to talk. I know! Its a rtive of Shiggy! It may not be though! It saw using and slowly alighted on the ground. Itnded very elegantlyI could feel a sense of nobleness from it. It moved just as elegantly as Shiggys parent, Jilnidora. Jilnidora was rotted away from a zombification spell and an immortal-killer arrow. Because of that, it wasnt able to move well. It hurt me to think of Shiggys parent being treated that foully. ryaa? Shiggy cried out from its carrier. I grabbed it while jumping from Femm. Then I spoke directly to the majestic beast. Oh great and magnificent dragon. Why have youe here?! You had better be polite with a dragon like this the first time. A dragon like this had lived much longer than any of us havebined. The dragon obviously lived longer than I did. And there was no point in being rude. My name is Timisoara. A ruler of the northern hignds and an ancient dragon viscount. Timisoara responded respectfully as well. Holy crap Luka whispered. It was the first time she had seen one and she was awestruck. It was rare to see in a usually unemotional girl like her. She was all about her research too. I am a human viscount, Alfred Lint! Im Cruz! I am a human viscount, Luka Langau! Im Vi-Vi Lindobal! All the girls blurted their names out excitedly. Vi-Vi was nervous. Cruz needed to follow up with her title, but we could do thatter. I see that you have my niece, Sighisoara, with you. Yes, thathername! I see. Character Recap

Character Recap

Trantor: ranzan _______________________________________________________________ Since This Webnovel Is Now a Real Novel C A Character Intro Sheet Readable in 10 Minutes! BecauseThe Strongest Wizard Bes a Countryside Guardsman After Taking an Arrow to the Kneehas be so long, I rewrote a character intro sheet for you all! Protagonist Alfred Lint Male. Late 30s. Magician. Viscount. Heros party member. Can do support, defense, close/far fire, strategywell, everything. So strong you pretty much can win with just himlevel. Very strong even with the magic arrow in his knee. But he lives in Mulg as his knee hurts. People of Mulg Millet Elf-girl. 15. Mature, but yes, still 15. All came to help her when she was attacked while gathering magical herbs. Has a cute little sister. Very good apothecary. Very good at cooking and chores. Second in charge in the vige. Talent in magic discovered by Al. Al is helping her develop this. Collette Elf girl. 4. Millets sister. Obedient, cute, and happy girl. Almost so happy, you forget she almost died at the beginning. Also has talent in magic like her sister. Chief Mulg viges chief. You might forget but hes a beast-man. Human but the beasts respect him too. Vi-Vi Devil girl. 13. The fifth of the four sub-bosses of the demon lord. Genius of the magic circle. Al stopped her from resurrecting the demon lord by killing her giant magic boar. She appeared because she wanted revenge for Al doing that. She lost to Al and decided to live in Mulg. At first she was standoffish, but now friendly. Something was discovered about her when they found herst name was Lindobal. Hero Party Cruz Conradine Count. Lately got a piece ofnd. Girl. 15. Heavenly power. Uses a sword. Kind of dumb. But f***ing strong. Has excellent instinct. I didnt portray her as a girl at first, so all the readers were tricked. A cute thats very boyish. She uses her magic sword to cut the Demon Lords head off. Because of her, you dont think Als strong enough by himself. She flippin loves Al. Her special skill is holiness. Luka Rangow Warrior. 17 and female. Viscount Good at swords, but since Cruz is just as good, thought not as good. However, with the monster research skill, she supports them with knowledge. The smartest one in the party. A very high up in the adventurer guild. Even though she has a sharp tongue, shes kind. Verypassionate. Yureena Linmia Healer. 15. Viscount. A holy maiden. High up in the church. Excellent at healing magic. Loves Cruz. Quick to baby her. But really pampered herself. At first it was hard for me to think of herst name when she became viscount at the beginning of the first chapter, but her and Al had a family name from the beginning. Beasts Femm King of the magical wolves. Lately, a heavenly beast. Probably because it was petted and drank the hot spring water around Cruz. Can use spirit speech. At first Femm was using a pack to attack Mulg, but Al beat Femm. Now Femms always around Al. Moofy Cow. Used to be called Hachi. Vi-Vi made her huge, and then she was sold as meat. Then she was made a massive skeleton, and Cruz changed her to a sacred beast with her holy magic. Now its a beast enjoying her life. She sleeps in Als bed. Youd think shed be a butt-kicker, but she acts like a baby a lot. She might not have lived long. She always walks up to Al and Cruz and chomps on their hands. Maybe she remembers the time she made milk. Rubs on people like a cat. Very affectionate. Sighisoara A baby ancient dragon. Her mother was the duchess Jilnidora. Sprung from an egg. Still a baby. Other people Vallimie Lindobal Vi-Vis older sister. Viscount. Genius magician with the name Forest Hermit. She teaches Al how to make golems. Rai Vallimies lion pet. Strong as Femm. Can shoot magic from its mouth. Because of Rai, the other beasts learn to do the same. Doby (Vallimies name for it) Great Dragon that Vallimie likes. A dragon named with the Lindobal girls naming sense. Example: Moofy (Vi-Vis name) B-rank Adventurer Siblings Anton, Emmy, Liza. Saved by Al. They might show up again. Chapter 126 - Shiggy’s Custody Battle

Chapter 126 C Shiggys Custody Battle

Trantor: ranzan Timisoara didnt seem to be hostile when it asked for Shiggy. I think it just wanted the best for its niece. However, I didnt want to just hand Shiggy over. Thank you for your offer, but I must refuse. Oh? Timisoara snorted at my response. Viscount Alfred, why do you refuse? Dont you know that another ancient dragon would be the best upbringing for Sighisoara? Well, Shiggys my child. Hmph! I am the younger sister of Jilnidora, the mother of Sighisoara. In other words, her aunt. After her demise, its the most appropriate for me to raise her, correct? Its true that Timisoara was probably the best one to raise Shiggy. Even so, Jilnidora had entrusted her child to me. I was the one that kept it warm as an egg, and raised it as a child. I recognize that you are the rightful aunt of Shiggy. But it was Jilnidoras direct order that I was to care for the child. But that was in an extreme circumstance. There was no other to entrust the child to. Doesnt that settle the matter? Jilnidora was on the cusp of death. It is true that her only choice was to entrust the egg to me. If I were the one present, my sister would certainly have entrusted the child to me. Even if that were the case Hm? I could tell from Timisoaras voice that she was bing irksome. She didnt show it, but somehow, I could tell. Just then, Vi-Vi shouted out with a shaking voice, Timisoara or whatever! What NOW? The massive dragon red at her, and I heard Vi-Vi squeak out a little eep! She was terrified. But even so, Vi-Vi still shouted at the dragon. You werent there when Shiggy needed you the MOST! Why are you here now!? And why are you trying to take her from us now!? DDǣңңңң Timisoara growled and the earth shook. Eeep! Vi-Vi squealed again, and toppled down on top of Moofy. She might have fainted. Femm walked over and pulled her down to the ground with its mouth. Then Moofy licked Vi-Vis face. Devil Vi-Viyou are correctpainfully so. It seems that Timisoara wasnt that angry. And so Timisoara continued, quite calmly, Thats why, for Sighisoara, I want to do all that I can to help her. Again, it seems there was no hostility in that statement. I didnt think she was plotting anything bad, or that there was any treachery. Just the good will of a rtive. Even so, I wasnt handing the dragon over. While I was thinking it over, Cruz said innocently, Timisoara, so whats going on with you? Was something holding you up? CCruz! Of course I was a bit shaken by her brazenness. It was some question to ask a formidable creature like Timisoara. Waaaaay too frank. I should lecture her about this when this is over. Timisoara didnt seem to mind the question and looked at Cruz. Human girl Cruz. A demon was plotting to attack the ancient dragons. But since youre so strong, you can beat them, right? A mature ancient dragon, yes. But there were eggs. Children. They had to be protected. In addition, after the loss of Jilnidora, our world was turned upside down. It sounds horrible. Yes. Cruz walked over and petted the dragon, as if tofort it. Cruz also gets too attached to others too quickly. She should hold back a bit. But for a holy hero like Cruz, I guess an ancient dragon really doesnt mean much. Even so, she should start being a bit more reserved. Luka looked a bit restless and said, Great viscount Timisoara, may I inquire about one thing? What is it? Human girl Luka. How did youe to find Sighisoara in a ce like this? I flew to where the dragon seal was. Dragon seal? Yes. If my sister was defeated, then Sighisoara would receive the seal by session. Due to this, my sister gave me a magical tool to find this seal wherever it went. If Shiggy was living, then the dragon could find whoever was caring for it. If Shiggy was dead, then whoever had it would feel her revenge. Timisoara might have been preparing to destroy me as well. Lukas eyes shimmered as she continued, So theres a tool like that? It sounds very interesting. Yes. I was expecting toe directly, but I was dyed. Timisoara took a deep breath. She then exhaled loudly. After realizing what she had done, she said sorryand bowed once. My sister entrusted me with the tool, after all. Since she did, she must have expected me to care for Sighisoara as well, correct? That certainly may be so. However I noticed that Cruz was pulling on my sleeve. What is it, Cruz? Whats a dragon seal? I told you already. Look. I showed her the ring on my right hand. I had got it from Jilnidora. The ring shimmered forth with a white-blue like first fallen snow. Oh, yeah! Now I remember! DDң٣! After seeing the ring, Timisoara seemed to shout out in surprised. Vi-Vi fell down again. Why do you have the seal, Alfred?! That meansno What is it? Even though I asked, it seemed that Timisoara wasnt going to answer. She was mulling something over in silent, unknown words. Possibly ancient dragon speech, so I didnt understand it. After a while, Timisoara spoke again. I thought that Sighisoara would be the one holding the ring. I see. I was thinking of passing it on to Shiggy when she grew upshould I do that now? Timisoara shook her head. My sister was famous for her magic. She should have passed the ring onto Sighisoara before she died. But Shiggy was inside of an egg. Its still possible. The shell of an ancient dragon egg is magically made. Almost like a magical barrier. My sister could easily pass something through it. Timisoara breathed in softly again. This time, she breathed out softly, being more careful. I see. I guess my sister HAS chosen you. She raised her head in a sweeping nod. While she was talking with us, her head was almost on the groundlying down, as it were. It was difficult to lower her head so she must have raised it too show it was a nod. Viscount Alfred Lint. I recognize you as the one chosen to care for Sighisoara. Im honored. The seal is shining blue. That is the proof that Jilnidora chose you as the one to possess Sighisoara until maturity. I did notice that when the ring wasnt on, it didnt shine with that blue-white. However, I didnt know what that meant. With this witnessed, my sister had chosen you to raise Sighisoara. Anyone objecting to this is the same as going against an ancient dragon decree. So you have no objection to me raising her? Of course not. Timisoara brought her nose close to the little dragon. ryaa ryaa Timisoara then nudged the dragon with her beak. Maybe thats something dragons like to do? Alfred, Sighisoara is still my beloved niece. I will aid you in any way if you need help. That would be wonderful. Would you allow me to visit her sometimes? Anytime is fine. Wed love to have you. Thank you. From that, Timisoara slowly rose into the air. Beloved niece, Sighisoara. Take care. ryaa ryaa And with that said, Timisoara was gone in an instant. Chapter 127 - Morning Visitor

Chapter 127 C Morning Visitor

Trantor: ranzan After Timisoara left and I returned to my house, Millet and the others were waiting. As was the chief. Alfred, what the heck was that? Chief, thanks for waiting for me. Ill tell you everything that happened. Since it was night, probably only a few people saw the dragon. But as the dragon was so massive, someone had to have seen something. So I just exined everything in simple terms. I see. So a rtive of Shiggy came. ryaaa Shiggy went over to the chief and cried out happily. The chief petted Shiggy and she looked happy. Well, thats a relief. Sorry about the bother. So the chief went home. Even at night, if something was wrong he woulde running. Must be a hard job. What happened? Youdont look hurt. Yureena was worried. Just finished a conversation. The chief said that it was a rtive of Shiggys? What did it want? Simply putcustody rights. Sounds rough. I exined what happened a little more precisely to Yureena. I told the chief that a rtive simply came to see Shiggy. No need to get him hot and bothered about anything. I told her about the viscount Timisoara and the dragon seal as well. Im d she epted you as the one to care for Shiggy. ryaaa Yureena patted Shiggys head. Everyone loved to pet the dragonit was cute, after all. Great to hear, Shiggy! Your aunt came to sthee you! ryaaa! Collette and Millet both pet her as well. Shiggy looked very happy. Then Cruz suddenly said, Al, Im hungry. I have dinner ready for you. Millet said with a smile. Ohthanks! Im hungry too!Vi-Vi said. Al, after youve had that surgery, youve got to eat to get better. The food Millet made for dinner was delicious. After we ate, I hurried off to bed. I was tired from making those harvesting golems and having my knee opened up to get that stone removed. Ill be right beside you, so you can sleep well! Cruz followed me into the bedroom. She puffed out her chest with pride. Thanks, Cruz. No problem, dont worry! And I fell asleep. That night, my knee started to hurt again and I woke up. But it didnt hurt so badly. Maybe because Cruz was there. I petted Shiggy, who was lying on me, and fell back asleep. When I woke up that morning, Moofy was chewing on my left hand again. Mmmph mmmph I dont think my hand tastes that good. mmph mppphh I pulled my hand out of Moofys mouth. Moo? And with that, Moofy woke up. She then put her nose on top of me. Kind of heavy. Youre heavy. Moo? Still, I rubbed her snout. While this was going on, Yureena came in. Everytime Ie in here, the ce is filled with creatures. morning, Yureena. Good morning. Yureena then rubbed the head of Cruz, who was lying next to me. Cruz still slept happily. Yannn Heh, cute as usual. After rubbing Cruz head for a bit, Yureena looked at my knee. Hmseems another stone is growing. And you just took the other one out If it grows at yesterdays pace, Ill probably have to remove it again tonight. Sorry about all this. Its fine. Just hold back on the magic. Scary. Everyday I might need surgery. This sucks. But I will try not to use magic. And with that, we all went to the breakfast table. There was an unknown girl there talking to Luka. Oh, Al, good morning. Alfred Lint, youve finally awoken. It seemed that Luka really didnt know this girl either. But it seems she knew me. Ahgood morningummm. ryaaa I was going to ask who she was, but Shiggy jumped and opened her eyes widely. Wwhat is it, Shiggy? Shiggy then pped her wings wildly. Cruz looked at the girl, and said with a slightly surprised smile, Oh, Timi! Youvee to see Shiggy? Yes, Cruz. Ivee to see Sighisoara again. Wait, Timi? You mean Timisoara? Yes, thats right? Timisoara said with a confused look on her face. She looked at me as if it was obvious. Theres no way this is the dragon fromst night. Now shes just a normal, cute girl. After seeing my shock, Luka said with a smile, See, I knew Al would be surprised. Yes. Its strange that humans dont know we can change appearance. Of course. Well, most humans get their information from vision. Cruz knew, and your perception was also exceptional, Luka. Cruz is a special case. Is that so? Well, still exceptional. Heh heh heh Cruz was a bit bashful at beingplimented. You never knew what she was good at. And somehow it seems that Luka had befriended this new visitor as well. Its strange that they became close so quickly. So when did you two be so close? Hm? Thats how it is, I guess. We dont need to be polite, just call me Timi. Okay, Timi. Timi then nodded happily. She then reached out and petted Shiggy. Shiggy looked very happy. Since you told me I could visit anytime, I decided to return this morning. I wanted to see cute Sighisoara again. Well, when she says morning she means as soon as the sun came up. Morning is morning. But Sighisoara was still asleep, so I started talking to Luka. It was fun hearing everything about the ancient dragons. And it was interesting to hear your stories. It was all new to me. It seems the exchange of monster stories and ancient dragon stories was quite a happy one. Im sure Luka learned a lot from what the ancient dragon had to say. They probably felt like kindred spirits to one another. A real happy encounter. And Timi really seemed like a human, too. When I saw the two talking, she looked like nothing but a human. So are you used to human shape, Timi? Of course. Im an ancient dragon. Its easy to take a human shape for a few hours. She said proudly as she puffed her chest out. I guess ancient dragons can easily take human shape. Never knew that. You came to see what shape Shiggy was in? Thanks. Sure. Timi petted Shiggy again. After a while, Timi looked at me and saidAh! I remember, I had something to tell you! Hm? I must give you an honored dragon name with Ra. Ra? YesJilnidora, Sighisoara, and my name is Timisoara. We all have ra, right? I see All ancient dragons that have a honored title are given name with the syble ra. Is that how that works First time Ive heard of it. First time for Luka too. Her eyes shimmered as she wrote it all down in her notes. You were given the child of a duchess to look over and given a dragon seal. Thats enough for you to deserve one. Ra Yes, I think the name Alfredora is an excellent name. Alfredora? It was a bit weirdI didnt like to be called it. Hm? Oh, yes. The full name is important for humans, so Viscount Alfredora Lint shall be your dragon name. Ohokay? I wanted to refuse butI couldnt. I guess having a name with ra in it was very honored among the dragons. Thats why there was no real way I could refuse her. Alno, Alfredora! Cool! Wish I was called that. Cruz said innocently. Yyeah Right? Right? ryaaa Shiggy pped her wings happily. Alfredora, you like your name? I think it suits you. Luka and Yureena said, not backing me up at all. Geez. I was trying to think of how to refuse the offer when Timi looked at me, troubled. Hm? You dont like the name? I cant believe it Timi looked like she would cry. I cant face a weeping girlso I tried to make an excuse. Its not that I dont like it Really? Youre not just saying that? NoIm not Good! Then youre happy with me changing your name? its an honor Yes. I knew it. Im d you like it, Alfredora. yeah And thats kind of how I became Alfredora Chapter 128 - What Has to Be Done to Shiggy

Chapter 128 C What Has to Be Done to Shiggy

Trantor: ranzan Alfredora. I didnt think the name was that cool. But, wellwhatever. It might be super cool in the dragon world. In the human world, Ive just been Alfred. Maybe I should just make it like a middle name C Alfred Ora Lint. raa raa raa raa Shiggy cried out happily. If it made Shiggy happy, then I guess I could take the name. Yeah, thats Alfredora! raa raa! And since Shiggy seemed so happy, I petted her. Well, it seems she likes your name. Timisoara said, happily. So I asked Timi, So, how long are you going to stay with us, Timi? If she was going to stay a long time, she could teach some things to Shiggy. Ancient dragon magic, things I had no idea about. Maybe when Im done mourning my sister. After that I can resume my office of viscount again. How long does it take until youre done mourning? For a normal human, this takes about 10 days. You cant just take off from work for too long. However, royalty does take more time to mourn than normal humans. Usually a year or so. The death of a royal certainly is important to honor. Maybe about 20 years or so? Wha? Hm? Something wrong? Thats reaaaaally long. Maybe so Timisoara thought about it. With the almost limitless lifespan of an ancient dragon, 20 years might seem quite short. I see, so youll be with us a while. Yes! Then you can teach Shiggy a variety of things. Sure, no problem! Timi stuck her ratherrge chest out in pride. Then, she saidAh! What is it? I forgot something important. Sighisoara must ascend to the throne. Ascend? Yes. And as she is ascending the throne of my deceased sister, it is one of mourning. But Sighisoara must ascend into my sisters former position. But, thats after the mourning period, right? Well, you know shell be enthroned after the mourning, right? Timi looked at me as if I had no idea what the difference was. Ah, Al-ra. Dont the royalty of humanity treat ascension and enthronement differently? Yeah, Al-ra, everyone knows that. Luka and Yureena were now picking on me about it. I wish theyd stop with that stupid -ra crap too. And they were grinning at me when they called me it too. Laugh it up then, girls. Theyre different? I had no idea! Im just like you, Al-ra! Cruz said happily, for some reason. She also seemed to think my Al-ra name was cool for some reason. Since Im not a royal, of course Im not going to know the difference between the two. WaitI guess I am a royal, since I have a title. Damn. I asked Millet, who hade in to prepare breakfast. Millet, do you know the difference between ascension and enthronement? Ascension? Enthrone? What are those? Magic words? No, its something that happens when you be royalty. Wow, you sure know a lot, Mister Al! Millet was carrying bread. She was probably making soup in the kitchen. We tried to help her make meals before, but she refused us. I guess she didnt want us to make her life harder by messing things up. Cruz was famous for messing stuff up too. Thats why,tely, we helped her with cleaning things up. Still, Millet did all the cooking, and then Cruz, Luka, Yureena, Vi-Vi and I cleaned everything upso there was a big difference in the effort between Millet and us. Thats why we were always consciously trying to help her. Millet, do you need help with anything? Im fine, just leave it to me! She said with a smilejust like usual. Just then, Collette plopped right down on Timisp. Timi patted Collettes head, while she said to Millet, Millet, that bread looks good. I hope that you will like it, Timi. Oh, I think that it will. It smells delicious. It seems that Timi had warmed right up to Collette and Millet. I guess its since they had been talking since before I got up. While Timi was patting her head, Collette asked, Hey, Miss Timi, what is asthensthion? Does Shiggy have to go far away? Yes, she does. Whaa? But I dont want her to go! Theres nothing I can do about that. Timi said, but it certainly would be hard to take Shiggy to the extreme north. It was far, and it was cold. And my knee was hurting, too. Cant you wait until Shiggy gets a little bigger? No, weve already waited too long. Timi said with a serious expression. Until Shiggy ascends the throne there will be ack of rulers in our kingdom. If that happens, something untoward may ur in our kingdom. Untoward? Possibly something unthought of by us ancient dragons. 20 years is short. However, there are magical beasts that may plot to attack us. Hm And there are those among the humans that might as well. When she goes back, there might be a grand wizard sitting on her empty throne. And that would be unforgivable, right? I know what Timi was talking about. A missing ruler could create conflict. Timi continued, quietly. Ascention means that Shiggy bes a duchess. It means shell be as ruler of the duchess throne. If she bes a duchess, will she have to stay at the pole? No, as soon as the process is over, she can go wherever she wants. There will be a strong magic barrier defending the ce. But a demon was able to steal her egg. Yes, and only a demon or demon lord has the power to do that. I see. The duchess pce itself is a huge magic device. The barrier is there presently so no one can just take the ce over. However, without a ruler over the ce, its easy for breaks to happen in the barrier. So I guess Shiggy had to ascend the throne. But getting there would be tough. Timi smiled at me and said, Ill let her ride on me. We should be there in a few days. Thats great, but Maybe we should set up a transport circle for Timi instead? Lukas eyes shimmered. Luka was probably ready to do some fieldwork at the dragons throne. However, with her schedule, it would be hard to venture all the way there. If so, then a transport circle had to be made. Anyway, Lukas idea was a great one. Its true that with a transport circle, it would make things easier. We could bring Shiggy to the throne easily, too. Yes, but I dont know how to make one. I can make one for you to take. Can you do that? Timi was told how to ce the circle. Timi wanted to let Shiggy ride her back to the pole. Everything was understood. After a bit, Ah! What is it, Timi? My legs fell asleep. I guess I should be going. Legs? Yes, when I change to a human, my cirction gets bad. My legs fall asleep. Never knew that. Luka didnt know either and was fervently taking notes. Which way is home? Well, its way far away. Timi exined it to us. Timisoara also had a nest that was where Shiggys parent Jilnidora had died. Probably for mourning the death of that dragon. When will the circle beplete on this side? Tomorrow, Timi. Wow! That quickly! Well, I mighte back tomorrow then. As she left the room, Millet stopped her. Timi, wait. What is it? Heres your breakfast! Thanks. As a human it was enough, but as an ancient dragon, it seemed far too little. Still, Timi was happy. And, smiling, Timi left the vige. After a while, we saw the dragons form rise into the sky. Chapter 129 – Setting the Transport Circle

Chapter 129 C Setting the Transport Circle

Trantor: ranzan Seeing Timisoara rise into the sky made Shiggy excitedly p her wings. Since she was on my shoulder, her wings hit my face with a fwap. Shiggy was probably so excited she wanted to fly away to. Youll fly too soon, Shiggy. ryaa? Shiggy looked confused, and stuck her beak into my hair. After watching Timi disappear, Luka said, Isnt she fast? She is. Timisoara started flying outside of the range of the warning circle that Vi-Vi created. She probably sensed it. It was quiterge too. The range could sense a wyvern 10 minutes fly away. Not even 5 minutes. Yeah. Shes faster than a wyvern in her human form. I know. Cruz eyes sparkled. She probably wanted to race her. No one would be harmed, so it kind of sounded fun. But to be two times faster than a wyvern in human form made you wonder how many times faster it was as a dragon. Luka. How fast do you think those ancient dragons are? No idea. Only that theyre faster than wyverns and great dragonsnext time Ill ask. Maybe you should ride one. You think theyll let me? If you ask, probably. Now Lukas eyes were shimmering. That monster-researching blood of hers was probably on fire. I think Im faster. Really? I wondered about that. It was kind of vague. But Femm had said so pridefully. It might just be its pride though. You could see Femm liked to exaggerate. One reason is Femm didnt take a step into the kitchen while Timi was there. Femm, are you scared of Timi? Why the hell would I be scared?! As Femm said this, its tail went between its legs a bit. Femm was still a bit scared. Even a strong heavenly wolf like him was probably scared of an ancient dragon. I see, well, youll get used to her. I patted Femms head and grabbed its tail and pulled it softly back straight. It would be humiliating if the other wolves saw Femm like this. What about the wolves? Theyre in the wolf house, right? Luka said, and went to take a look. They were there, in the back of the house. Clearly scared. Even in human form she scared them all. Of course, Al. She probably exudes power from her. Maybe so. Cruz was breathing hard. I wonder where she learned the word exude. But still, Timi was pretty imposing. Moo moo. We could hear Moofy mooing far away. She had gone to see Timi off, and now was returning. Youre so tough, Moofy! Moo Moo! Moofy ran up with both Vi-Vi and Vallimie on her back. She had probably picked them up when she smelled Vi-Vi. Oh, Al, you woke up? Good morning Vi-Vi and Vallimie! Early risers today! Yeah, we have to go back to Lindobal forest after breakfast. But weve got some work to do before that. Work? I asked, as Vallimie looked at me proudly. And Vi-Vi had the same face beside her. And Moofy too. Vi-Vis going to help me mess with your warning circle a little. How are you going to mess with it? We thought itd be better if it didnt go off with friendlies. Yeah, so it wont go off when Timi flies in here, right? Or you can have Dobye and have fun with him without trouble too. Yup. Youd get used to the rm if friendlies keep setting it off. Vallimie and Vi-Vi both nodded at each other. We put the core in the storage shack and stored the identities of our friends. Wow! Howd you do that? Just listen! Vi-Vi and Vallimie did their best in trying to exin. It was aplex system, but I kind of understood. You two really are something. Right!? Right?! They both looked happy at thement. Vallimie got off of Moofy and brought a golem from the shadows of the shack. And I made a golems here too. You can use them as models for other ones. Wow, made from steel? Yeah, steel, wood, and rock. Three different types. They were all half the size of a man. They could harvest without messing up a field. Like I said, you sisters are amazing! ttery will get you nowhere. No, I mean it! Stop, youre embarrassing us. Vallimies face blushed red. Next time I make a golem, Ill have to look them over. After that, we ate dinner, and Vallimie went home. I know Id see her again soon, though. After Yuka and Yureena went back to the city, I went out to my guardpost. Cruz would be with me today. I was thankful. Next to me Vi-Vi was drawing a magical circle. It was the transport circle that she would give Timi to take back. Its easy to draw it in orichalcum because it conducts magic so easily. Its that different? Totally different. She was drawing it into arge circr shield of orichalcum. It was a shield that Cruz had taken from her bag. Im d I had a spare shield of orichalcum with me! Cruz, is it really okay that I do this? Its really expensive. Its fine. I have plenty. You have more? That reminds me that I drew your transportation circle pattern on the back of a dragon scale you had. Yeah, plenty of those too. She always had junk extra. And everyone was interested in what Cruz was carrying in her magic bag. Vi-Vi continued engraving the shield. It was very precise work. She was quite graceful as she did it. Wow! You really are skilled, Vi-Vi. Collette and Millet bothplimented her and she blushed. All of the beasts were running around the fields. What the heck are they doing? Looking at them, I remembered. We need to make the circle for Vallimie big enough for Doby. That is important. Is your knee okay? As long as Im sitting here. Dont push yourself too hard! Im here with Al, so its okay! Cruz said as she escorted me to the storage shack. In the storage shack, she erged the circle to Vallimies ce. Now we had to make a bigger shack entrance. Thats pretty hard work. Are you going to be okay, Al? Looks fine. I wont use too much magic. Well, okay I began erging the entrance to the shack. The beasts began to gather around. Im not taking any meat out of this shack Wuff?ryaa ryaa Femm looked confused and went into the shack. Shiggy was riding Femm. They looked like they were ready to eat. Moo Mooo ryaaa I grabbed Shiggy. Shiggy pped away unhappily. I didnt care. Femm, no taking Shiggy in here! Femm hungrily panted with its tongue out. Just like a dog. I finished the entrance to the ce regardless of the beasts. I guess magic really is great for building. Now Doby can join us! ryyaaa!Wuff!Moo Moo They all wagged their tails and said happily. They probably wanted to see Doby again. But you cant go back to the Demon Lords old kingdom, Cruz. But its where Vallimie lives, right? Its fine by now! Well, well go look first. It might be okay. Wuff!ryaa!Moo moo! The beasts were happy. So we all went through the magic portal and to Lindobal forest. Chapter 130 – Hanging out in Lindobal Forest

Chapter 130 C Hanging out in Lindobal Forest

Trantor: ranzan Since we were going to Lindobal forest, we thought Vi-Vi shoulde too. I went out of the shack, and called Vi-Vi over from the vige entrance. Vi-Vi. I finished making the entrance big enough for Doby. I see. Good job. I still need time here. Cruz and the others were thinking of going to Lindobal, do you want toe? Nah, Im fine. I have to finish this magic circle. What, you dont want to go? Seemed strange. I thought shed want to see her home again. Im okay. I already visited this morning. Oh, really? Yeah, its easy to go right through the circle so I go now and then. I see. I never knew. She could have invited me However, it might just be sisters hanging out. Okay, lets go to Lindobal! Tell my sister I said hi. I went with Cruz and the beasts, and we made our way to Lindobal. As we stepped through, we saw a stone building. It was veryrge with no decoration. But we did hear a beautiful bell-like sound ring. Wow, this is a nice building! The entrance is huge, as is the building. Doby could pass through with no problem. I wonder how hes doing? Cruz said happily. The beasts were sniffing around. They were probably trying to sniff him out. Just then, Vallimie approached. Hm? Al and Cruz? Sorry for the surprise. No problem. I show up at Mulg without warning too. Behind Vallimie was Rai. We were all happy to see Rai again. Femm, Moofy, Shiggy, and Rai all sniffed each other happily. Wee, Al and Cruz. Beasts. So why are you here? I mean, you dont need a reason. We changed the shack so that Doby can fit through. We wanted to tell you. Thanks for that. Im d you did it so quickly. Andwell we wanted to see the forest. Look around all you want. I looked around and Doby wasnt near. Wheres Doby? Dobys patrolling the forest. Great dragons can fly pretty fast. Yeah, Dobys strong and can move swiftly. He does a great job patrolling. Sounds busy. He tells me right away if he senses anything. Then Rai and I go and hunt whatever it is down. I guess the forest was very well protected. Its almost how Mulg is well protected by all the magical wolves. How long until Doby returns? Yeah, well, I think hell be back after an hour or so. Vallimie said while thinking it over. Cruz pulled on my sleeve. Al! Lets go for a walk in the forest! Is that okay, Vallimie? No problem here. Yeay! Cruz was ecstatic. rya rya Sighisoara said in a happy cry. Then Vallimie looked at us seriously. Cruz and Al, Ive promised to protect all the monsters around here. Promised? Could you not attack them for me? Cruz looked a bit confused. Some of them mighte at you, I mean, theyre monstersyou know? Youre right. So if you can, just run. Theyre wild, after all. Rai stood proudly at attention next to Vallimie. Then she rubbed Rais head. Unless you absolutely have to, promise not to kill them, okay? Roger. You have my word. Thanks. Leave it to us! Cruz said proudly. I have work to do, so I have to go, but Rai can go with you. Thats reassuring. MooWuff The beasts were happy too. So we headed off into the Lindobal forest. There were a lot of beasts and monsters. Theres a lot here! Magic wolves too! Since Femm was a wolf of a different pack, the magic wolves here were really on edge. They watched us from afar. We could hear their distant howls too. Theyre really on alert. They know how strong I am. Femm said proudly. However, Femm didnt run to or away from them. We just stood there together, and acted calm. Moo Moo. On the other hand, Moofy was running everywhere. She was freaking out because she was a herbivore at heart. Al! Theres a golem! Where? Over there! Cruz pointed over at a golem. It was very far away. So far I couldnt see it well. You have good eyes. Eheh heh. I used my magic farsight. There was a stone golem harvesting lumber. It would knock down branches and nt seedlings. A stone golem like that but made so small and yet performing such detailed work Vallimie really had quite the skill with constructing them. Stone really has low magic permeability. Its easy to do simple magical jobs with stone, but detailed ones are quite difficult. We walked a little more and we could hear the magic wolves howling loudly around us. Theyre preparing to attack. They probably werent going to overlook Femm intruding in their territory. Maybe we should back off. That would be wisest. No way we were going to face off in a territory battle in Lindobal forest. We went back to the castle, and Vallimie greeted us. Oh, youre back! How was the forest? A lot of beasts! True, true. Its quite hard to manage them all, in various ways. Vallimie alsoughed at Cruz loud reaction. The golem is really something. Hard to make stone operate that finely. No surprise a pro like you, Al, would notice. It took me quite a while. Vallimie said proudly. Oh yes, if youd like, you can see some of the golems here at the castle. Really? Sure! Vallimie showed us around. There were golems all throughout the castle. It was a big castle, but there was no staff or butler. Seems like the golems did all the work. This is really something. Heh heh heh. Making them move like this take magic crystals. You could make a golem work through magic. However, it took a lot to make and make move as well, so the magic would soon not be enough. Because of that, you needed another magical source. Where are the magic crystals from? From soil improvement magic circles. You know about them, right? Vi-Vi developed them. I see. So theres magic power in the forests soil? Yeah! Its filled with magic stones that were part of the Demon Lords old magic mine. That reminded me that Vi-Vi did say something about that before. Mulg had a lot of magical stones as well. Since Lindobal forest was s big, Im sure she had no problem finding enough. While we were talking about that, we approached a quite striking golem. Wow! Look that his one! Cruz was impressed and Vallimie happy at her reaction. This is a defense golem. Its made from orichalcum and mithril? Yes, and theres 100 of them. Holy crap! Hard to imagine 100 of these things guarding her castle. I wonder how many soldiers she had. Even 10 or 20 thousand troops wouldnt be able to take this ce. As she showed us around, Rai growled. GRAWWWL! Oh, that time already? What? Dobyse back. In order for us to see Doby we went to the building with the transfer circle. gyaa gyaa Doby noticed us and happily approached. Huge. But he looked a lot smaller that Timisoara. We made my building bigger so you could pass through Doby. Try it. gyaa We all went with Doby back to Mulg. Now that my work is over, I can go back to Mulg. Gaauuww Seemed like Vallimie and Rais work was over, so theyde with us. It was a lot of people, but we made it through fine. Doby, can you get through the shack door? gyaa gyaa Doby squeezed right through. He then cried out happily. Good, now you all cane whenever you want. gyaaa Just then, the storage door opened. Vi-Vi came running. What is it, Vi-Vi? The inspectors are here! The inspectors were the officials in charge of levying taxes. An official from the region had arrived in Mulg. Finally here, then. Why are you taking it easy?! Your orichalcum shields been confiscated! Whaaa? Something bad had happened, it seems. Chapter 131 – The Ruler’s Tyranny

Chapter 131 C The Rulers Tyranny

Trantor: ranzan We quickly sent Doby back to the forest and left the storage shack. Outside was Millet and the chief. Mister Alfred? Wheres the rulers agent? Hes gone home already. He took the shield that Vi-Vi had enscribed? yes. The chief looked very regretful. Millet looked pissed. What was his reasoning for taking it? Since it was made magical by a devil, it was dangerous. Vallimie looked ready to blow her top. WHAT?! What kind of logic is that?! Al! Is this kingdom THAT unreasonable? No, usually they have a bit more sense. Even if this is from the ruler, there has to be a better reason than that. What bullcrap! Did you resist him, Vi-Vi? Vallimie asked, and Vi-Vi responded regretfully. I was thinking about fighting himwith my strength, Im sure it would be easy Thats true. But Vi-Vi wasnt a battle-type magician. Even so, a weak servant of the ruler isnt that scary. I tried to cheer her up even though she looked so down. Moofy rubbed up against Vi-Vi as well. Moo moo Vi-Vi rubbed Moofy back in return. I thought Id cause trouble for the vige if I fought him. And since it was Cruz I told them that it wasnt mineor, I mean, it wasnt a devils I see. Good decision. Before she had got into a firefight with Luka and she probably regretted that. I think your decision was right, Vi-Vi. Yes, if the ruler gets angry at this town, it could be big trouble. Vallimie and the chief both reassured Vi-Vi she had made the right choice. Cruz puffed out her cheeks, unhappy. That freaking shield was MINE, though. Sorry, Cruz. Vi-Vi apologized and Cruz waved her hand as a refusal to ept it. Its not YOUR fault, Vi-Vi! Its the rulers fault! I have to teach him something! Hey, get your temper under control, Cruz. Vi-Vi was able to. Sure. Cruz now looked pretty calm. Millet looked at me seriously. Mister Al? Is there anyway to get it back? The official who came is the deputy of a deputy an advisor to the ruler, right? We might be able to im that the deputy took it because of his own avarice. A high level royal like the local ruler spent more than half the year in the capital. Basically his advisor was in control. He was an assistant that was the arms and legs of the ruler. We have to make a im against the advisor, and then his chief, and then the ruler if necessary. The rulerIve never done anything like that. The chief had a dark look to him. The ruler was like a god in the sky to a viger. You had to go through one of his advisors to get anything done. Well, the ruler has jurisdiction over everything. It all depends on him. Well, if the ruler doesnt recognize that his agent robbed me, then what do I do? You might be able to appeal straight to the king through the ministry of justice through the bureau of Peerage, thought that might not be realistic The bureau of peerage was a way that the royals could be punished. However, a ruler had rule over his own domain. What taxes and rules were implemented. Most rulers had free reign. Even if you argued against one part of the taxation, it was hard to win. So Millet asked, seriously, So theres no real way? There is a way to make a im, but it has to be something the royal family rejects, like the murder of several vigers, or the sales of ves, or some kind of im like that. So they wont do something just from a theft? Its true that something was stolen, but the theft is handled under the rulers jurisdiction. And if the ruler just says that it was taken up as tax collection activities, there might be no way to get it back. Really? Millet looked sad. Vigers really had no power. Even though I was technically royalty, I had no power topel another ruler. That was just how powerful a regional ruler was. I mean, these regional rulers are the big guys among all the royals. Well, if hes a big guy then isnt the ministry of justice a big guy too? Cant you say something to him? Well, the minister would probably refrain from speaking to the ministry of peers, I guess. The royals that ruled overrge swaths ofnd were pretty special. Luka, Yureena, and I were viscounts, so we didnt have our ownnd. Normally, to havend meant you had to be above a viscount. Even someone that became an earl like Cruz recently just got some of her ownnd. Cruz had received hernd after she defeated the Demon Lord, right at the time she beat the Great Demon. And Cruz had be very popr with the people. It was a period too short to make her a marquis. But she couldnt just remain an earl either. Even so, she was to receivend as an earl. It was like the special case in which a viscount like Vallimie received the Lindobal forest on her own. Even though Vallimie already controlled the forest. It was huge. In addition to that, she already had a huge army, and the number and quality of her military was already tremendous. The vige chief looked with an even darker countenance. The ruler over Mulg vige is quite famous for not liking devils like Vi-ViHe might be happy to hear he got a shield that someone like Vi-Vi was messing with. GrrrI cant forgive that Vi-Vi! Sister! Youre right! That guys aplete disgrace! The devils Vallimie and Vi-Vi were not happy and it was quite natural to see why. I asked the vige chief, By the way, how was the tax assessment? Higher than usual. Enough to be considered impossible by normal standards. because of the good harvest? I have no idea why it was that high. Its going to be a tough winter. Well this sucks. yes. The chief looked down with a serious expression. Food was necessary to survive the winter. And you needed money for food. This years assessor is way worse than the normal one. Millet also looked down. A taxation rate can be a matter of life and death for a vige like this. Chief, I bet this high tax was way worse of a blow then that shield being stolen. Yesif they only could have given us the usual amount Even so, you might be able to make it by selling some fat cows and magical stones. I said, and the chief and Millet nodded. Hes a horrible ruler. Yes. I cant forgive a shithead like that. It was strange to hear Cruz so upset about this. So we talked it over and decided to go straight to the ruler. Even if it was the rulers ce, a representative would be there. Wheres the rulers ce? About half a days journey by horse? The branch office where the assistant resides is about 2 hours away. The chief seemed to know the distance because he had to go there when he assumed office in Mulg. Even though Mulg vige was at the edge of the rulers region, it was far. Will the assistant admit the fault of his assessor? Millet asked uneasily. I wonder. If the assistant wont admit fault of his assessor, we can only appeal directly to the ruler. Then Vi-Vi said seriously, So I guess the rulers in the capital? Probably so. He has a second home there. Since summer was over, it was very possible that the ruler was already there. As we talked the matter over, evening fell. Luka and Yureena returned. So whats with the long faces? Did something happen? We exined everything to the two. Thats why were going straight to the rulers pce tomorrow. I said, and Luka and Yureena looked at me, confused. Whats wrong? Huh? Ah, I see What, Luka? That reminds me, we never told you. Yeah, we should have told you. What?! Luka looked at us all seriously. I never told you, but Cruz rules over this ce. WHAT?! Millet and the Chief almost fell over in surprise. I was shocked too. ryaa! Ruff! Mrrfph? Shiggy freaked out at Millet freaking out. Femm was shocked. So shocked, it barked in spirit speech. Moofy just kept chewing on my hand nervously. Cruz fell out of chair and got back up. What?! I had no idea! damn, youre the most surprised of all of them, Cruz. Heh heh. I said, and Cruz blushed. Chapter 132 – The Ruler of Mulg

Chapter 132 C The Ruler of Mulg

Trantor: ranzan Cruz looked at us all with a serious face. Wait, so am I the baddie? Youre the bad one Cruzth?! Collette asked, and the started punching Cruz lightly. ryaa ryaa Shiggy started mimicking Collette, pping away at Cruz shin. Moo Moo Moofy also went to chomp at Cruz hand. No real malice in it. But if Moofy had a chance, she would bite at your hand. Cruz suddenly looked as if she would cry. Im sorry for being a bad ruler! Its not a joke. I know! Luka scolded her and Cruz crumbled to the floor. I know that you had to leave it to a deputy, but I think youve been far too irresponsible. Yes maam! Did you choose a good one? It was some former bureaucrat from the ministry of the interior I was introduced to. I wasnt paying attention. You met and chose him? Yeah, I did! Now Yureena began questioning Cruz gentily. And what did you think when you met him? Um he looked like a smart old guy. You didnt feel anything evil from him? No. He seemed nice. I see. Thats strange. Yureena looked confused. Cruz had said that he wasnt a bad guy simple because she never thought he was a bag guy. Vi-Vi was listening to the whole exchange and said, I dont think you should trust by LOOKS, Cruz. II didnt! Well, you messed up that schemer with someone who legitimately sells potatoes. Yyeah I guess I agreed more with Vi-Vi than Yureena. It was easy to see that Cruz was easily fooled by bad guys. Cruz got some bad eyes when ites to judging others. Thats NOT TRUE! Cruz shouted out at Femm. Luka, who was thinking seriously, now asked the chief. Was the assistants assessor the same guy asst year? Yes, the same. The same for thest few years. Well then! Luka nodded, convinced. I didnt know what she was convinced of. Yureena asked before I could. Luka, what is it? Well, thats why the ruler of Mulgs assessor changed. Cruz was given the territory of Mulg right after the defeat of the Great Demon. Only a bit of time before taxes. The ruler and her assistant changed, but the assessor didnt. Thatmon? Not unusual. ording to Luka, even if the central power such as the ruler and assistant change, all the others dont. So when the ruler changed, everyone on the outside still keep their job. I seewell thats good news. I said, but Cruz was surprised as usual. Is it good news? The rtionship between Cruz assistant and the assessor is new, so it might mean that there is little chance that theyve begun conspiring together. I see. Luka then said with a nod of the head. So, while the new assistant is in ce, he might be trying to fatten himself up while everyones scrambling under the new leadership. So, looks like someones still going to get their butt kicked. Yup. Millet was angry. I then asked Yureena and Luka. Sowhy did the ruler change? The reason why Cruz got the region was because of her killing the Demon Lord and kicking the crap out of the Great Demon. Butif thats the case, then why did the former ruler lose his territory? Well, its a long story, but you know the former ruler hated devils, right? Yeah. It was why no one handed Vi-Vi, who was trying to create a massive boar to resurrect the Demon Lords army with over to the ruler. If she was handed over, shed get the death penalty. The former ruler was a powerful aristocrat and he was the central one in trying to drive out all the devils. So he was a big deal?Cruz said. But the central government, the royal family and the ministry are actually for peace with the devils. So the royalty is actually different. They werent going to allow her to be killed. Even if you went against the wishes of the royal family, it wasnt enough to lead to you being crushed by them. He was a big ruler. There must have been a decisive incident that led to his territory being taken away. He almost killed a devil child that passed in front of his procession in the capital. OH NO! Almostbut he definitely would have. An adventurer plead with the guards to stop him. It was refreshing to hear that someone was willing to stick their neck out for a devil even in front of the orders of a big ruler. Whoever did it had some guts. And the child? She was brought to the church, and since I was there healing, I healed the child, who is fine now. I thank you myselfas a devil. Vallimie said as she and Vi-Vi both bowed to Yureena. Dont worry. Id do it for any race. Again, thank you. Yureena turned red. Thank her for anything and shed blush. Luka continued her exnation. The local devils and a group of adventurers moved to censure the ruler. It almost turned into a rebellion. I had no idea. Ive been to the capital over and over and never noticed. They never came to blows. It was a petition, but the petition itself was put in such angry words that both sides began to stock up arms. Wow, some deal! Yes, and the Bureau of Peers started an internal investigation. It seems the ruler had amassed quite a bit of wealth illegally. The Bureau of Peers is an organization in the ministry of Justice that censures, punishes, or reward the nobility. Its job is also to investigate the nobility from time to time. Illegal wealth? Yes, even as a ruler, also with a key part of thepany, he used his role to enrich himself. Amazing. Even though he doesnt have to pay taxes to the royalty, with this peace he doesnt have to pay to raise troops. Just as Vi-Vi said. If he just sat put hed make enough on his own. Any noble can livefortably. Well, he made excuses, but his title was reduced from marquis to earl, and his territory confiscated. I see. So, some of the confiscated territory returned to the royalty, and some went to Cruz. Cruz greatest achievement was killing the Demon Lord. But it was actually the defense of the Devils that had gotten Cruz her turf. By giving thend to Cruz, the royals had shown the anti-devil nobles who they were siding with. At the same time, a devil like Vallimie was given a title and hernd recognized. By doing so, the royals were showing the lengths they were going to for peace with the devil race. One reason for them to recognize Vallimiesnd was the fact that she had her own military might and did not need protection from the crown. Well! Im d that youre my ruler now! Eheh! Cruzughed happily at the chiefs words. Leave it to me Chief! Ill get that assistant in line right away! d to hear it! Lets go see this assistant of mine again! There was a mischievous glimmer in Cruz eye. She grabbed her Holy Sword in haste. A little to quickly. Wait a second. Huh? Why? Luka grabbed Cruz and Cruz looked up, confused. I said kindly to Cruz, Cruz, think of a better way. Yes, sir, Al! Even as a ruler, she was obedient. Then Vi-Vi asked Cruz, Is there any way to contact him? Hm? Like a magic tool? To call your office with? You know, I think there was! Something like Luka had before. A very expensive tool, but something a ruler would have. If there was war, the assistant would need to contact the capital to request soldiers. You can call him with it. Oh yeah! She rummaged through her magical bag. The assistant would be at the local branch. Just one call, thats all. The local branch would be closer than her actual ce to live. Here! Nothats not it. Not this either She began pulling a bunch of crap from her bag. A lions head piece, a model of a basilisk made in mithril. Very beautiful though. Very realistic tails and ears. What the hell was she using those for? Cruz! Stop pulling crap out of your bag! I KNOW! I KNOW! Thats all she could say. Youve got such a huge house, put all this damn stuff in there! But I dont know when Im going to use it!! When is she going to need a mithril basilisk? ryaaa! Shiggy seemed to like it though. She was riding on top of the model, pping away. Wuff!Moo mooo! Femm smelled the ears. Moofy was trying to put on the lions head, but the thing ended up hanging from Moofys horns. Seems like Cruz was even more popr with Cruz now. THERE! Cruz finally found the magic tool. She looked proudly at us and picked the thing up. This is thetest model, it can transmit information by different types of vibrations. Wow, even more advanced than something Luka had. Lukas adventurer guild transmitter only had one type of vibration. The adventurer guild has thistest model too! I just have to pick it up next time Im in town! For some reason, Luka was iling to make an excuse. She didnt need one thoguht. The guilds a big organization. It wasnt that big of a deal. Its not that hard to make something low-life like that. Vi-Vi said with a tilt of her head. Why are they all trying to boast? Its just a freaking vibrating rod. Maybe Vi-Vi should set up shop selling these girls different types of vibrating sticksgeez. Okay, for now just call your closest branch office. But there are only two kinds of calls. Come to the capital and deploy soldiers. Well, YOU CAN TELL US THAT AHEAD OF TIME!Luka screamed. Sorry I patted Cruz head as if to say sorry. Lets go directly to your pce. Then you can call your advisor yourself. Sure!! So we all decided to go to Cruz pce directly to see her assistant. Chapter 133 – Cruz’ New Manor

Chapter 133 C Cruz New Manor

Trantor: ranzan That night. After the evening, my knee began to hurt again. But it wasnt that bad of pain. Yureena said she might have to cut the thing out again tonight, but with this pain, it seemed to have slowed. Yureena checked me and said, Theres almost no stone growth today. Phewd to hear. I think the growth rate might be affected by magical power consumption. Or maybe because Cruz was around me and stopped the growth through her healing. Eheh heh. Cruz blushed again. Thanks for your help as usual, Cruz and Yureena. No problem! Well, I AM the party healer. Such kind girls. I was thankful. That night I slept without waking up once. Maybe because Cruz was sleeping beside me the whole time. Very thankful. The next morning Timisoara was at breakfast. Millet and her seemed very happy together. Sighisoara! You look cute as usual! Ryaa ryaa! Hey! Sighisoara! Dont hit! It hurts! Timi picked Shiggy up and rubbed cheeks with her. Shiggy patted Timis nose. At first Shiggy seemed to dislike it, but that changed quickly. Shiggy, dont hit. ryaaa I grabbed Shiggys hand and stopped her. She got quiet. It was also important to teach peopleor dragonsnot to hit. Nice to see that Shiggy would listen to me too. Thanks for listening to me Shiggy. ryaa ryaa Shiggy cried out happily. So what happened to the magic transfer circle? Well We exined how the richalcum shield that was engraved with the magic circle was taken away. While we ate breakfast. Wow! Thats horrible. Timi seemed to like Millets breakfast. She gobbled it down quickly. As I continued exining, I fed Shiggy while eating myself. So we were thinking of going to the rulers manor. Good. Ill let you ride me. Right Shiggy? ryaaa Timi wanted Shiggy to fly on her. It was the perfect opportunity. When I finished breakfast, I registered Timi as a friendly on the danger detection circle. It wouldnt sound the rm even if Timi came flying. Then Cruz, Shiggy, Vi-Vi and I all got on top of Timi and took off. Moofy wanted toe, but we left her. Vige defense is important as well. Femm was still scared of Timi as well, so we left it behind so it wouldnt get close. I put my wolf mask on just in case. It would suck if someone saw me. Hang on Shiggy! You can ride on me any time! ryaaa Timi was proud of herself and Shiggy was also in a good mood. I had to hold Shiggy down as she was trying to fly out of my pouch. Then I stuck my head into the wolf mask. Flying quickly is probably irresistible fun for most dragons. Vi-Vi was behind me clinging on for dear life. Too fasttttt! If I fall off, Im DEAD! Wow, look at her go! Cruz was standing on top of Timis head. Timi flew pretty stably but Cruz standing like that took some guts. Timi traveled a days ride on a horse in less than an hour. Is that the rulers manor? Its the first time Ive seen it. The manor, was of course, Cruz manor now. It was normal for rulers to not live in their manor, but they have toe to see it sometime. Its good toe once in a while, Cruz. Yes sir! A Cruz-like reply every time. Cruz, where should Ind? Somewhere with a wide area. She had tond in a ce where no fields or buildings were damages. Timi was so huge it was hard to do that. If you have to, use the nearby forest! Thats a defensive forest against invasion. Better not to damage it. Is that so? Thanks for telling me. Cruz was impressed with my words, but we could see people in the manor going crazy. Timis a huge dragon. Its a natural reaction. Look! Theyre getting siege weapons ready! Is that a barista? Timi says andughs. ryaa ryaa Shiggyughed as well. What should I do? If they aim a weapon at their ruler, dont they get punished? If I leave it to you Timi, youll blow away the whole manor. If they shoot, leave the defense to me. I see. Their weapons cant hurt me though. I then looked at Cruz, standing empty-headed on top of Timi. Why dont you scream that youve arrived!? Okay! So Cruz screams, Cruz is HERE! Thats not really what I meant. She needed to say that she was the new ruler Marquis Cruz Coradine, and to toss their weapons aside ande out to meet her. No one knows what Cruz is HEREmeans. And since Timis flying in the sky, hardly anyone can see Cruz anyway. Fwiss Fwiss and huge arrows flew at us from the baristas. I knocked them away easily with magic. Timi, they dont get it. Shout at them a bit. Hiiiiiiie! Vi-Vi covered her ears, and I put my hand over her ears too. Then I called out to Timi, Timi! Not too loud! Youre going to cause a disaster! Mainly to Vi-Vis lower half. Maybe to Cruz officials down there too. Clean up would take some time. Leave it to me. The hero that is the ruler of the region, yourdy, Marquis Cruz Conradine has arrived! Show some respect and wee her! They finally seemed to figure it out. The officials move out quickly to meet us. Cruz skipped up the dragons neck to me and whispered, Arent you making me look a little TOO good? You are good, Cruz. WellI;m not that big of a deal. Cruz, youre the ruler. You can tell any of these people to do whatever you need for you. Okay. I just dont want them to find out who you are, Al. That might cause some trouble. This isnt the first time Ive acted as an underling of Cruz. Cruz is used to it too. An old man came out as wended. Thats the assistant. Cruz told me. Sorry abouting so quickly, but the marquis wanted toe quickly, and because of this, this dragon wasmanded to carry her. Thank you foring. I whispered in Cruz ear. Well get off first, you get offst. Okay. Land anywhere you want, Timi. Sure. Timi was royalty so she knew well, she was a royal dragon. I can leave it to her tond regally. I used gravity magic on Vi-Vi and I, and we slowly lowered to the ground. With that, the assistant seemed to lurch backbut that might have been the effect of the wolf mask. No, it was probably the gravity magic. Then Cruz sprung off of the dragon. It was quite a way up, but she did it with little expression. Marquis, Im sorry for the rude greeting. Yeah, no worries. What is it that you need? Exin, Alra. By the way, Alra is my right hand man. She knew if she called me Al the guy would know. Cruz was being considerate. Timi looked at me proudly as my dragon name was used. So I said to the fellow, Please call the tax assessor for Mulg Vige immediately. Why would you need Well tell youter. I will call for him right away, but it will take him two hours. Then, hurry. The assistant used his magic tool in a hurry. It had to be to calls the assessor. Then the assistant guided us through to the manor. I bowed to Timi. Timi began hovering over the manors house. Timi, what are you doing? The buildings too small for me. The assistants all looked scared at a dragon that knew human speak. Even if it used spirit speech, it would still be hard. Still it would be proof that the dragon was of high ss if she spoke with it. But she didnt use spirit speech, just normal human speech. Its much harder for a creature to do that. I couldnt imagine how high up the chain of royalty this dragon is. It was astounding. Timi, why dont youe and talk inside? If Alra says so, I shall. Timi suddenly sunk and shrunk to human form. She was dressed already. Or maybe her clothes were of magic. Ce inside. The frightened assistant guided us in, and we entered Cruz manor. Chapter 134 – The Ruler’s Judgment

Chapter 134 C The Rulers Judgment

Trantor: ranzan This manor of Cruz was previously used by the former marquis. Its arge building used to administer therge territory that Cruz now has. Its naturally big. The interior isnt luxurious, but its not too simple either C a nice bnce. Smaller than your house, though. Yup. After Cruz and Timisoara said that, the assistant looked dumbfounded. Vi-Vi pulled my sleeve. I heard the former marquis loved luxury. Well, he lived in the capital. The assistant lives here, so its not that luxurious. The ruler before Cruz was a marquis, that was now demoted to a count. It was a bit confusing because Cruz and the oldcounthad changed ces. I see. Its quite a nice ce. Yeah, a ce you could settle down in. Cruz agreed with Vi-Vis opinion. Listening to this, the assistant bowed. Thank you. Nice ce you got here. The assistant seemed relieved. Maybe he was afraid Cruz was going toe in and tell him to renovate it. And because Cruz said the ce was smaller than my house. I was d the assistant looked relieved, though. He seemed like a decent guy that was afraid of his rulers propensity for waste. The assistant brought us into the waiting room. Cruz asked him, What room does the ruler use for petitions from his people? Use this waiting room. Later you may use the visitors room, but unfortunately its not prepared yet. Im guessing no noble is going toe all the way out to this manor, anyway. Theyre probably using the visitors room as storage, which is fine. But if were in here, then who will those waiting to petition us stay? Oh, dont worry about that. No one ising to petition you today. What, no petitions today? How many people usuallye? Its a lot if we get one petitioner a week. Well, the taxation process has just started. It wouldnt be strange if more petitioners started pouring in. Or it may be that the assistant is blowing them all off at his own office. I came because Ive heard a lot of things today. And those are? Alra, tell him. Cruz nodded to me. She wanted me to exin the difficult things to him. She knew that Id keep all the information in line. Taxes seem to be rising in some viges, have you heard about it? Well, that cant beI thought that the rates were actually falling as directed by the previous count. Theres a vige we know of that has had its rates raised quite a bit. I see. The assistant gave directions to his subordinates. After that, the assistant exined to us how the tax assessment was performed. We looked through the materials his workers brought as he exined to us. It seemed that there was no real problem with the assistant at all. Possibly the real issue resided with the assessor himself and the matter of him being supervised. 2 hours passed quickly. It seems the assessor has arrived. Please, bring him in. Cruz said this and Vi-Vi instantly pulled out her cow mask and put it on. This was because the assessor already had met Vi-Vi. Timisoara held Shiggy and fed her some snacks that were served on the assistants desk. ryaa? Just stay quiet, ok, Shiggy? The assessor entered the room. He was quite thin and a bit older than me. He wore clothes that seemed a bit too expensive for his position. He looked a little nervous, but after seeing the young girls Cruz and Timisoara, he smiled a bit. But you could tell it was a bit out of resentment. It seemed he also didnt mind that Vi-Vi and I were wearing cow and wolf masks. Marquis. I am honored to meet you. Cruz was about to open her mouth, but I jumped in before her with spirit speech Dont talk, Cruz. Okay, but why? Because you dont open your mouth to the lower ss. But, isnt that rude?. Judging from this guys attitude, he already is mocking you. Time to show him whos on top, first. I see, kind of like training a dog! It might be a little different from dog training, but the basics are the same. So I spoke to the assessor instead of Cruz. Mr. Assessor, the Marquis is very upset. What is wrongsir? The assessor seemed stunned. Probably the first time a man with a wolf mask spoke to him. Oh, well. The marquis will use her jurisdiction as ruler of this area to punish you, so prepare yourself to answer her questions. What am I being charged with? Because of the illegality of the raised taxes on Mulg vige, the marquis is upset. Do you have anything to say for yourself? I am doing my job properly. Vigers alwaysin that taxes are high. The assessor acted cooly. Again, he was probably mocking Cruz to himself. The fields of Mulg vige, which are quite poor, were taxed as if they were the highest yield and quality. Or am I incorrect? The fields of Mulg ARE NOT POOR. I looked at them myself and made this judgment. The assessor had a nasty smile. I mean, Cruz is a young girl. He was probably trying to fool her. You will understand, if you actually go there, great marquis. Theres no way a marquis would vige a back-country vige like Mulg, and of course, the assessor knew that. If we go there, well see what you mean, you say. Correct sir. Well, then, I guess well have to check out the ceter. Upon me saying this, the assessors brow furrowed. He may have been concerned with me saying wedcheck it out. But even so, theres no way a busy hero like Cruz would ever go to such a ce. Then the assessor exhaled and rxed. Next, the theft of a shield from Mulg. Quite an offense for an officer of your position. This also has angered the marquis. But, wait! That is part of my job! And what job is that? The assessor vehemently defended himself. Cruz, as ruler, nodded as he attempted to exin himself. I only confiscated it because it was affected by magic from a devil. The former marquis, the duke, gave the order that all objects cursed by devils were to be confiscated. Your current marquis is Miss Conradine. She does not want such actions to take ce. Is that so? Then it is my mistake. I will send money to rece the shield back to Mulg. Why not return the object itself? The devils curse is dangerous! I dont think the vigers willin if I simply furnish them money for their steel shield. This guy was now iming that the orichalcum shield was actually made from steel. I was anxious that he might have sold it for a lot of money. Noits so expensive that you cant sell it that easily. Its probably fine. It was not steel. It was made of orichalcum. Impossible! You said there were only poor fields, right?! There was no way they also had an orichalcum shield there! Then Timi twirled her hair, bored, and said, This guys got a glib tongue. Can I cut it off? Marquis! Please, wait! Since this is a trial, I must be able to defend myself! Then Timi red at the guy and said, Assessor. Dont tell me you SOLD the shield?! No, I didnt. Good. Because if you did, Id be selling your head at a butchers! The assessor jumped back a bit with a small squeal. Mr. Assessor, since this shield was a gift from the marquis to royalty from the ancient dragons, she asked for a magician in Mulg to ce a magic circle on it. Wwell, I It is property of the marquis. Youve taken away her gift to an ancient dragon. We cant just leave it at it was a mistake. IIm very sorry! My apologiesI didnt know! Then Vi-Vi took off her mask and tossed it aside. Seeing Vi-Vis face, the assessor looked almost ready to faint. Youve got some nerve, low life! I told you that the shield was Cruz!! Ah! I had no idea that you meant the marquis! Perhaps the assessor thought that there was no way a marquis would be associated with devils. It was an orichalcum shield, though. If there was someone Vi-Vi was engraving it for, that person had to be a big deal. Or maybe the assessor looked down on Vi-Vi a bit too much. You took a possession knowing that it was owned by the marquis. It was also a gift to dragon royalty. This is CLEAR REBELLION against the wishes of your ruler! As I said this, the assessors face finally seemed to wilter. Then, Timi said in a bored voice, So, did you get his confession? We know hes guilty of theft, but you wanted to question him about the assessment, right? Right, Cruz? Cruz nced at me, and I nodded. After I nodded, she finally opened her mouth, Yes, lets do it. The assistant will go with me as well. Go where? You know where. We, including a lost assistant and a terrified assessor, left the manor. Timisoara returned to her original, massively-dragon form. Maybe because her legs fell asleep, she quickly pped up in the air and stretched. A huge wind then blew past us all. AhAh! The assessor, who say Timis true for for the first time, fell t on his ass. His words were stuck in his throat. Assistant, since you are old, Ill allow you to ride on my back. Ahah, thank you! Cruz grabbed the assistants back and jumped with one huge leap onto the dragons back. I used gravity magic to life Vi-Vi and I up onto the dragons back. Assessor. I wont allow a guy like you to ride on me. Timi then grabbed the assessor by the tips of her fingernails and lifted him up. She then immediately soared into the sky. Eeep! If youre going to tell the truth, nows the time! Timi said, and then sped through the sky at unreal speed. Even I was scared, and I wasfortable on her back. Wwait! AHHH!!! The assessor was screaming, but Timi didnt seem to care. I could see him shaking even though he was being carried on the tips on Timis fingernails. Ahhh! Gyaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaa! The assessor suddenly came loose and began to fall through the sky. Timi quickly descended and grabbed him. Ooops. Timi said, as if she had dropped a pencil. Her quick reaction was amazing. Everyone on her back suddenly was suspended in the air. Whoaaa! ryaa ryaa! Cruz and Shiggy enjoyed it, but Vi-Vi was clutching to me desperately. IIm going to DIE, AL! She was so terrified it was funny. If she fell she would die. I would die toowithout magic. The assistants fingers were clutched under the dragons scales. Cruz went over and put her hand on his shoulder. She wanted to assure him he wouldnt fall. It would take 10 minutes to get to the branch office, where the assessor was based. It took the assessor 2 hours to get to the manorcovered in 10 minutes. Well, not 2 hours total, he had to prepare as well. Even so, Timi is still fast. The assessor was lower to the ground and slumped over as if his soul had left him. Something else had left his body, but Im not going to mention that now. Bring the shield and the tax assessment as well.I told the branch office employees. All of those at the branch office were confused. Must be the wolf mask again. After that, the assistant addressed the men with loud instructions and they finally began to move. The assessor just sat there with a ghastly face. He had nothing to say. He must still be horrified by that 10 minute thrill ride Timi gave him. I took the shield and the tax logbook with me. It was quite heavy, but it still fit nicely in my magic bag. Ok, next. Eeeep! Forgive me! Pleeeeeease! Timi picked the assessor up, and he immediately began crying and begging. I told him with a smile. Im going to go to the viges you taxed and check all of them, to see if theyre done properly. Nno! At leastlet me ride on the dragons back The assessor pleaded, but then Timi said coldly, I dont want to let this guy onI hate guys like this. I didnt like him as well. Femm and Moofy would probably hate the guy too. He stunk toobecause of hisloss ofposure earlier. Well, too bad! The assessor began crying. Im SORRY! I raised taxes unjustly! I promise to make it good! How do you n to do that? Ill pay back the difference! So why did you raise the tax rate this year? I thought the assistant wouldnt notice, so I could fool him And the shield? It looked expensive, so if I sold itit would be a lot of money. And since its devils magic its even more a treasure Cruz and Vi-Vi sighed. Damn, this guy really is dirt. Low-life vermin. We talked the whole thing over among ourselves in spirit speech. The whole conversations not necessary to repeat, but when I was talking to Cruz, we said, What should we do, Cruz? I was thinking of going around to each vige and checking, but the guy confessed No, we need to have the correct tax rate, so we need to redo the whole thing, Al. But what should we do with this guy, first? We have to punish him. If it were an ancient dragon like me deciding, it would be the death penalty. ryaa ryaa So you agree on the death penalty, Shiggy? ryaaa! Even Shiggy was talking in spirit speech when talking to Timi. I had never heard her do that before. Maybe we should just imprison him? We also need confiscation to repay the viges. Yeah, Cruz. That may be enough. Prison sentences are difficult. They work in difficult environments like mines. Its got to be very difficult for a guy with rich tastes like this, who has dandy fingers. After that, Cruz gave her judgment. 10 years in prison. Property confiscated. The assessor turned pale and then fainted. Chapter 135 – Cruz the Ruler

Chapter 135 C Cruz the Ruler

Trantor: ranzan Then we all returned with Timi back to the manor. The assessor, of course, was pinched in Timis fingernails all the way. The assessor was crying, but he was the ones that made the citizens of the region cry first. As Cruz grabbed and tossed the guy into a cell, she called over to the assistant, Call ALL the assessors, please. Ill do so right now. Bring me the tax assessment books. Yes, maam. It took 2 to 3 hours for them all to arrive. As this went on, Cruz looked through the regionsws and documents. I have never seen her be so serious before. On the other hand, Shiggy was clinging onto the human Timi, with her beak buried into Timis cleavage. ryaa ryaa Shiggy, what is it? ryaaa Shiggy seems to have missed Timi very much. And Timi seemed to be very happy to be held by Shiggy. It might be because Shiggy got to see you fly. Really? Then Ill always fly for you, Shiggy! ryaa ryaa Timi fed Shiggy a tea cake. It was rare to see Shiggy eat anything from anyone other than me. Well, I guess its because she technically is an aunt. Three hourster, the other three assessors arrived. In Cruz territory, there were four assessors, including the one in jail. They all looked quite nervous. The assistant stood beside the assessors with a serious face. The reason we called you here is As he was talking, Cruz stood. I am Cruz Conradine, your ruler. It was a serious and severe tone that I had never heard a goofball like her use before. Almost something like hostility, you could feel the pressure. It felt like the pressure she exuded when she had her sword out and was chopping off heads. The three assessors mumbled to themselves and bowed over and over. Ive already dismissed one assessor. Whaa?You did?! The assessors all looked stunned and gazed at one another. I knew they wanted to ask why, but none of them did. They simply whispered to themselves. They seemed lost in the pressure that Cruz was giving off. The assessor was sentenced to 10 years in prison and his property was confiscated. marquisMissmay I ask you one thing? One of the assessors opened his mouth, probably having to gather a lot of courage to do so. His hands and voice were shaking. He was a serious man, about as old as me. Go ahead. What was the charge? Unauthorized tax rates. Incorrect tax survey assessment. Unjustly deprived residents of their property. Cruz looked over the assessors. Then, she told them clearly. I will not forgive one infraction. I will not ept improper treatment of my citizens wewould never do such a thing. We perform our duties properly. I hope so. Let me see your tax survey books. The assessors started to mumble to each other. They finally began to understand why Cruz wanted their survey books. I think this is yourst opportunity to confess your crimes, if you have them. If I review your books and find something illegal, it wont end with you just being removed. Youll go to jail. We An assessor was going to say something, but Cruz waved him off. Then the assessor really started to be frustrated. If necessary, I can get this dragon to take me to all yournds directly. And since my little niece here likes to fly, I can go from one tip of the territory to the other in 30 minutes. ryaa ryaa Shiggy sang happily without realizing the serious nature of the conversation. The assessors seemed confused about the dragon part, looking around. But, upon seeing Timi holding a small dragon, they noticed Timi wasnt an ordinary person. Then the assessors began to confess their crimes. I really began to see Cruz in a new light C as a serious ruler of a small kingdom. Many of the charges that they confessed to could be dismissed. Grading fields too highly. Estimating too much of a harvest. Exactly what I thought theyd say. You better be sure that next time, this wont be forgiven. Cruz said, and all three apologized. It seemed that Cruz wasnt going to fire them, though. Assistant. Yes, maam. Prepare auditors and make them someone you can trustpletely from the capital. Yes, maam. These assessors were chosen from local leaders. There was a risk that hiring auditors here would result in a bad audit. Again, Cruz was right, and I didnt expect her intelligent decision. And, assistant? Yes, what is it, maam? I said make it so that the tax rate isnt a burden on the people, but I didnt issue an edict, right? Yes, I have instructed them to lower the tax rate. However, the edict wasnt followed. In fact, these assessors had made a mockery of the tax system under the assistant and Cruz. 30% is the upper limit. Yes maam. And do not all the field surveys to go too high for harvest. Yes maam. After she had given her order, we then returned back to Mulg. Timi returned to her form and flew over us slowly. Then Vi-Vi said to Cruz, Cruz. You really are a dependable girl. Heh heh. Cruz took a paper out of her pocket. Something was written in small letters. Luka wrote down what I should do. Thats why I remembered. What? So Luka thought this up? Yeah! Its too hard for me to think this stuff up! I read what Luka wrote, then the stuff the assistant showed me, and the tax survey books, and then figured out what to say. Cruz spoke humbly, but I thought her response was perfect. Maybe she isnt that dumb. Luka had just given Cruz several big policies to employ. High tax rates and assessments must be normalized. If they apologize for it, forgive them. Prepare auditors from the capital. Exactly the things that Cruz had said. That seemed to have been the policy. Even so, great job, Cruz! You looked like an aristocrat! Yeah, I just tried to imitate how Luka and you act, Al. I get Luka, but how is that like me? It is! Because Im usually nervous so I wanted to act cool like you! Seems like shes learning and growing bit by bit. I reflected on it. If a ruler isnt good, the kingdom is no good. Yup. From now on we need to survey the kingdom ourselves. Sounds good. Come with me, Al! If Im free Yeah! I was happy to see that Cruz would be a good ruler, after all Chapter 136 – Returning to Mulg

Chapter 136 C Returning to Mulg

Trantor: ranzan Timisoara was flying us around in a great mood. We didnt go straight back to Mulg, because she flew around in the air showing off her high speed. Shiggy! Look over there! ryaa ryaa Its the ocean! ryaa ryaa Shiggy was delighted to see it. So Timi seemed even happier. Vi-Vi, on the other hand, was scrambling and clinging to me. Ce on! Lets go home! Wha? I still want to show Shiggy around! ryaa? It seemed the two dragons still wanted to fly, though. But Vi-Vi was at her limit. I might need to start bringing changes of clothes for her just in case. Um, its starting to get cold. Lets take the tourter. Okaylets go home. When Timi started flying back home, the western sky was covered in the red sunset. Cruz was on Timis head but now ran over to us. Wow! Al! Its such a beautiful sight. ryaa ryaa Yeah, it is. Uh, yeahI guess youre right?! Vi-Vi looked around, slightly amazed, but still scared. Shiggy jumped from my pouch and onto my shoulder. And she cried out at the sunset. ryaa! ryaa Yeah, youre right, Sighisoara, Ill look! Ryaa! Shiggy seemed astounded by the sight as well. When Shiggy cried out into the sunset, I could feel a little magic entwined in her voice. I thought I would ask Timi about thatter. After a while we could see Mulg in the distance. I can see Mulg! Will there be an rm? No! I made it so it wont! Vi-Vi said proudly, while still clinging on to me. Shiggy was now on Vi-Vis head, even though she didnt notice. Or maybe Shiggy was trying to protect her. Good job, Shiggy. ryaa? Shiggy looked confused as I patted his head. Humble, maybe. Timi quickly flew down to the ground next to my house. It WAS bigger than the rulers manor, and there was morend to drop down onto. Millet and Collette ran out to greet us. Wee back! Hey, everyone! Sthiggy, wee back! Collette seemed like she missed Shiggy quite a bit. She ran up and pulled Shiggy off of Vi-Vis head. ryaa? Youre stho cute, Sthiggy! Femm then slowly emerged from his wolf house. Femm looked timidly at Timi, but then silently walked over. Or maybe it was my imagination. I didnt know what they were all looking at. I guess the wolves didnt want to look scared because there was no dignity in it. You cant show that youre scared. You brought the shield back safely. Yeah, somehow Mooo moo! While Femm was trying to talk to us, Moofy rushed in. She rubbed her head into me. She was probably lonely. Thanks for watching over Mulg! Moo moo! On the other hand, Femm was hanging back cautiously. Femm never stopped looking at Timi. So I waved Femm over. Thanks, Femm. Wuff. Femm finally came over, so I rubbed both of them. Funny to see these beasts get so lonely after only half a day. Then I went up to the vige chief to exin what happened. He was happy to hear about the audited taxation and the punishment of the assessor. After that, everyone ate dinner together. Luka, Yureena, Vallimie as well. We exined what happened to Luka and the others again. Hm, you did a good job Cruz. Great job, Cruz! Yureena and Luka were happy to hear how well Cruz did. Especially Yureena. Yeah, I think she did a great job! Eheh. Timi praised Cruz and Cruz looked embarrassed. Then Luka said, The adventurers guild will hire some vigers to go around the viges to redo the taxation. Thanks, Luka. No need for thanks. Youre paying for it. Sure! Ill pay for it! Cruz was flipping rich. Hiring a few parties would cost nothing for her. Even though its the adventurers guild, itll be nice to have some safe work now once in a while. You should disguise yourself if you go with them. Pretend like youre collecting herbs or something. When I suggested that, Luka nodded deeply. Yes, Ill think about that. Thanks for everything you do, Luka. Cruz smiled at her. On the other hand, Timi hugged and squeezed Shiggy. I wont be able to see you for a while after tomorrow. Ryaa? I have to take the shield back to the ancient dragon throne. ryaa ryaa Be a good girl even without your aunt. ryaa Shiggy pped her wings happily, fluttering Timis hair. I had something to ask her. Timi, when Shiggy saw the sunset back then, she cried out with magic in her voice. Hm? Oh, yes. It was mixed with magic. So I guess shes finally found her magical cry? I rubbed Shiggys head and was happy with her growth. It used to be that we were born with magic power in our cry. To the point you have to hold it back. Really? Yeah, over time Ill have to teach Shiggy how to suppress her cries. Unless youre quite a strong magical beast, youre not able to mix magic with your cry. Last time, Shigi shot out magic force from his mouth too, right? Is that normal? Wow, thats amazing! It usually takes up to one year. The magic bullet seems ever more impressive. You really are a genius, Sighisoara. I knew she would be. You really think so, Alra? ryaa Shigi shouted along while Timi rubbed her belly and I patted her head. I was tired from the day of work, so I got to bed early. Timi flew back to her roost after dinner. Her legs were probably numb. Today, my knee pain wasnt severe so the stone must be growing slowly. Still, Cruz stuck by me. Sorry again, Cruz. No, Al, no need to apologize. We sounded like an old couple. Cruz was asleep in 10 seconds. She must have been tired. Moo moo Moofy was chewing my hand already. She must have been lonely for that half of the day and now was making up for it. Moofy, you really like to chew on peoples fingers. Mpph mphh Moofy mooed while chewing on my finger as I rubbed Femms head. Femm, arent you scared of Timi? Wuff! Femm was surprised. Femms always surprised when it barks in spirit speech. I must have beenpletely right. Not at allwhere did you get that stupid thought? Because thats obviously how you act. Im not scared. Well, those ancient dragons are very strong. Theres nothing wrong with being scared. I told you, Im not scared. Femm was trying to act tough. So you think Timis stronger? wuff Femm looked confused and then dismissed it with spirit speech. Then Femm said softly, I guess. Right? I guess Im not afraid to think so. Femm buried its nose in the covers. I guess it was a bit scared of the dragon. I fell asleep, surrounded by beasts and a hero. Chapter 137 – The Hero Studies

Chapter 137 C The Hero Studies

Trantor: ranzan When I woke up, Cruz was already gone. I guess she woke up early. Other than that, it was a usual morning. My knee hurt, but I could stand it. Moofy was still chewing my hand, and Femms tail was on my face. Huh? Shiggy? ryaa? I heard a little voice from above. As I looked up, I could see Shiggy flying above me. Yyoure flying! ryaa ryaa! Shiggy came down towards my face and covered it. I couldnt see a thing. I pulled Shiggy from my face and petted her. So you can fly now? ryaa? She looked at me confused and cocked her neck. She looked like she was saying, did I do something wrong? I guess its a natural thing for dragons to fly. Youre a baby but you can fly, Shiggy. ryaa ryaa As I petted her, she looked at me happily. Femm and Moofy also woke up and headed into the kitchen. Cruz was there. Good morning, Al! Oh, morning. What is it, Al? Why are you so surprised? Cruz was wearing sses and reading a book. What the hell was going on? I meannot so much surprisebut Somethings wrong with this picture. It was just as Femm said. If Cruz reading a book was strange, then wearing sses was even weirder. I mean, this girl picked out the magic people were using from far away, without sses. ryaa ryaa Moo moo I guess Shiggy and Moofy thought it was normal. Moofy rubbed her head up on Cruz. She tried to lift Cruz hand up to pet her. Moofy, Im READING. Moo? Shiggy then flew to on top of the book. Shiggy, STOP! I cant read like this! ryaa? Cruz totally missed the fact that Shiggy flew. She just continued to read while smiling. Cruz, what are you reading? Im reading this book about some great king, the names Ken-Oh-Den. Oh, did you borrow it from Luka? Thats right. Why are you reading a book like that? Femm asked a natural question. On the other hand, Moofy and Shiggy were still trying to cling to Cruz. Shiggy, Moofy,e here. Moo? ryaa It was bad to mess with her, so I called them away. Cruz spoke to me as I petted the beasts. I reflected on who I am now that Im a ruler. Took you long enC I grabbed Femm and Femm jumped, looking surprised and a bit frightened. Warf?! So, Cruz, what did you reflect on? I think this was the right time for her to do so, not strange at all. Anyway, its always a good thing. I guess I thought its no good not to know my ownnd Thats true. Youre right. She was right about that. It wasnt good to be a ruler and not know anything about where you ruled. Honestly, it could have been a disaster. Yeah, I know. One of the tax assessors tried to destroy Mulg. If we hadnt stopped him, he would have gotten away with it. He probably did the same thing outside of Mulg Vige as well. Its almost a sin to not know where and who you rule. Yes, Al, I realize that now. I think its good you realized that. Femm said, proudly. If you think about it, Femm has responsibility as the leader of magic wolves. Femm has to reign over quite arge area. So I looked over the map again. Hm? And even as I looked over it, I had no idea what a ruler should do. I guess youre right. If you look over a map, all you can see is topography and locations. Thats all you need to know as a ruler. Even so, the map doesnt tell you what to do about it. When I asked Luka what to do, she told me to read this for the time being. Oh, you mean the Ken-Oh-Den? Yeah, study what an old king did. Luka probably chose it for her as a beginner. I guess shes reading it somewhat like a biography. d to hear, Femm. Heh heh. And the sses? Femm pointed out. There was no reason for her to wear them even with her previous exnation. I guess so I look smarter. You look like an idiot. No, I DONT! Cruz denied. But I think it did seem pretty stupid. Cruz, if you have good eyes but wear sses, your eyes are only going to get worse. Its ok, theres no lens. Thats even stupider. NO IT ISNT! While Cruz and Femm were talking about that, Luka and Yureena came in. They walked up to the table and took books out of their magic bags. Not just one or two, about ten in total. I brought this from my study on the second floorLuka said. I also brought some you could study. Thanks! She took up the books and shoved them in her magic bag. Then she looked out the window, far away. I guess I should take a look around my domain. Not many rulers take the time to do so. But in Ken-Oh-Den the rulers always moving around and looking around his territory. Yes. Its important to do so. When I said so, Cruz smiled. She looked motivated. I think shell do fine. If you imitate a wise king, then your actions will be at least somewhat wise. Then youll want to do so more and more. After that, Timisoara came to breakfast as well. Shiggy! You look so cute today! ryaa! Timi happily embraced Shiggy. Shiggy happily pecked at Timis hair. Dont eat my hair! Youre going to get it wet with spit! ryaam ryaammm Timi still seemed happy regardless. Timi had scolded Shiggy once before, and after a while she took it to heart. I think thats fine. So I told Timi. Shiggy was flying this morning. Wha? ryaa Shiggy fluttered in the air like before, as if to show Shiggy. A bit awkwardly, but still floating. Shiggy, thats amazing for a baby! You think so, Al? Yeah, I guess first flight for a dragon is kind of like first steps for a human. Oh Humans take about one year to walk. Do dragons take the same amount? Shiggy was less than a year old. Maybe about a month. Its not growing any faster than usualit might be because of magic power. Magic power? Ancient dragons dont fly with wings. They fly with magic. I looked over and Luka was furiously taking notes with her eyes shimmering. She was in beast research mode. She just loves to study things like that. Surely you know that an ancient dragons wings are too small to support its frame. Yeah, I guess its different from other dragons. So maybe one reason why Shiggy was early is because shes royalty? Of course, my sister was a very powerful ancient dragon. But even so, Shiggys is even stronger. Shell be stronger than her. You really are a genius! ryaa ryaaa! Shiggy sang out happily. After that, we all ate breakfast. Then, we all saw Timi offshe had to prepare the magic circle in the pr regions. Timi held Shiggy briefly. I have to leave you for a few days and it makes me sad. Its just a few days. Once the circle was installed, she could return thought it, so Timi only leaves briefly. She held Shiggy almost as if shed never see Shiggy again. Several days will feel so long. Its the first time for me as an ancient dragon. Is that so? Alfredora. Take care of Sighisoara. Sure! I will. I mean it though! Then Timisoara changed form and lifted up and off into the sky. Chapter 138 – The Hot Springs outside the Village

Chapter 138 C The Hot Springs outside the Vige

Trantor: ranzan Timisoara quickly disappeared. Seeing her leave, Luka said. So fast, like usual. She really is fast. ryaa ryaa! Shiggy pped her wings with excitement. I looked behind me and Doby was there, the dragon that Vallimie liked so much. It probably came through the transport circle from Lindobal forest. I was happy that I made the shack entrance bigger so that dragon could fit though. What are you here for, Doby? gyaa Gaoo! Doby looked over at me. Behind the dragon was Rai. Seeing both her animals, Vallimie looked confused. What is it, you two? You look scared. Gyaa Doby, whats wrong? Doby looked the most scared. I looked over at the dragon, standing next to the storage shack. Dobys tail was shaking and it seemed that there was a puddle of yellow below its legs. No doubt it had peed itself. Rai looked scared too, but nowhere near as badly as Doby. W, whats wrong?! gyaa gyaa Doby dipped its head down before a surprised Vallimie. Vallimie went over and held Doby, and petted its head. Seeing this, Femm said, I know why. Why? Doby chased after Vallimie, but then ended like that when it saw Timisoara. Hm Perfectly normal reaction Femm said as it looked at me proudly. It wagged its tail back and forth as well. Because it saw an ancient dragon? Of course. It leaves a big impression. Anyone thats not a heavenly beast like me would end up like that. Even though Femm was scared out of its mind by Timi for a good while. The only one not scared was Moofy, basically. Ah, I see. I just decided to leave Femm alone for once. I dont know magic wolves would look at that dragon. Also I didnt want to hurt Femms reputation as a leader. Moo moo! Moofy went over and licked Dobys belly. I think she was trying to encourage Doby. Maybe it would. gya No need to be scared, okay? Gyaa? Als stronger than her. gyaa gyaa Femm said this as it looked at Doby proudly. Shiggy flew over to Doby and rubbed her beak into Dobys head. Cruz also said in encouragement, Doby, you dont need to be scared. Shes not an evil dragon! Well, shes still a dragon. Gyaa It would be bad for Mulg to be a scary ce for Doby. Doby should enjoying here. Doby. You want to do something? Gyaa? The hot springs here is nice. Its impossible for Doby to fit in my houses one though. Theres some outside the town. Femm had already started walking. I followed, as did Doby. gyaaa Doby followed with both its arms sped to Vallimies arm. Doby wasnt as big as Timi, but it still was big. It looked like Doby was holding Vallimie just by the tips of its ws. Rai and Vallimie followed along. Kind of cute in a way. After walking a bit, Femm stopped. Were here. When was this here? When you dug the stones and y for the house, we used this pit. Its pretty big! The other wolves dug it bigger. I wondered when they had time to make this. I had no idea it existed. But it was a hot springs that Doby could get into. Theres hot water springing up over there, so I just channeled it in. Good job, Femm! Wuff! Cruzplemented Femm, and it looked at me proudly. It wagged its tail while looking at us. Femm probably wanted apliment from me too. Yeah, great job, Femm. Wuff! Wuff! Moo mooo! Moofy was already in the hot springs. She was happily enjoying it. Go and get in, Doby, itll feel good. gyaa gyaa Doby timidly tiptoed over and got in. Then it stretched out after a while, happily. Gao gaao! Rai also started swimming in it. I thought a cat like Rai wouldnt like water. gyaaa What is it? Doby stretched its neck out of the hot springs and nudged Vallimie. I guess Doby wants you to get in too, Vallimie. I cant do that! gyaa gyaa! But its embarrassing! Sorry, I should have noticed, Vallimie, Ill see youter. I turned from them. Sorry about that, Al! No, really! I have a hot springs in my house, so I can bathe all I want. I started walking back to my house, just then, Moo Mooo! Uph! Moofy suddenly ran around me and then rammed me. I flew in the sky until I sshed in the hot springs. Whoa!Hey! Moofy did the same to Vallimie, Cruz, Luka, Vi-Vi, and Yureena. After we had all been knocked into the hot springs, Moofy looked at us proudly. Then Moofy got in as well. Moo moo! Moofy! Whyd you do that?! I guess she just wanted us all in the bath together. Vi-Vi said, floating in the hot springs. This is probably the first time I had been in one clothed. It feels pretty good with your clothes on, too. Well, now we have to change. Its not too bad, though, I guess. Whatever. Cruz seemed to enjoy it. I justid back in the water. gyaa gyaa Do you like it, Doby? Gyaa! Doby seemed very happy to get in the hot springs with Vallimie. Chapter 139 – A Wizard’s Afternoon

Chapter 139 C A Wizards Afternoon

Trantor: ranzan It was the afternoon after we all were knocked into a hot springs with our clothes on. I got back to my house to find Cruz lying down, reading. Then she said, Oh, yeah! Lets put a transport circle in my manor and branch offices. That sounds like a good n. Right?! I wonder if Vi-Vi could do it. Vi-Vi, the girl that always drew such circles, stood. She stretched her body a bit. As soon as Vi-Vi stood, Moofy went and pressed her with his nose. Yeah! Not a big job, I can do it! Thanks! Vi-Vi then pet Moofy. Moofy enjoyed the attention. If I put them in the manor and branch offices, Ill be able to go any time. Itll make them nervous. Yup, Al, thats what I want. Itll make surprise inspections easy. Cruz seemed to be thinking about her role quite a lot. It must have shocked her to see her assessors going wild like that. I mean, shes a goofball, but shes still serious at heart. Then Vi-Vi said, while petting Moofy, Is there a good item that I can write them on? Ummm Cruz started rummaging through her magic bag again. And just like usual, it takes her forever to find something. Shiggy flew at Cruz from my shoulder. rryyaa! Shiggy, what is it? Shiggy was on Cruz head. Maybe Shiggy thought Cruz had a toy or something in that magic bag of hers. I mean, she already knew I had food in my magic bag. When either of us got hungry, Id start rummaging in my magic bag the same way. How about this? No, impossible. ryaa ryaa! Cruz took out a te. Kind of strange as it was made of mithril. Why would you need a te of mithril? Its a waste of material. So, a te is impossible. Well, its not that. It has to be big enough. Its hard to write a small transport circle. ryaa ryaa Shiggy grabbed the te and was hovering next to Cruz. Maybe it thought it was a toy. It might be a good toy because its almost impossible to break. But a te is no fun. Shiggy, dont y with a PLATE. ryaa? Stop. ryaa Shiggy seemed a little sad, so she put it back in the bag. Thank you! ryaa ryaa! Shiggy cried happily when she was praised. Cruz was still rummaging in the bag. I used a dragon scale before. You can just use the one you did before.Vi-Vi said. Wha? But, that doesnt excite you at all, right? Well, making magic circles doesnt excite me in the first ce. Huh?ryaa? Cruz looked at Vi-Vi with a look of disbelief. Wwhy are you looking at me like that? I thought getting excited was your first priority! Im different from Al! Im more about money that excitement. Oh, really?! Well, I rarely see excitement myselfI said. I dont think Ive had any since I made that golem. I mean, Im an established magician. Cruz took out shields and scales from her bag. Is that shield mithril? Yup. This ones mithril, and the other is a mithril and orichalcum alloy. But Cruz, Ive never seen you USE a shield in battle. Yeah, I guess I dont have much use for them. So why do you have so many if you dont use them. Well, sometimes I do. Ive hardly seen her use it though. Once I did she her throw one to knock an enemy down. But I never saw her actually use one as a shield. Vi-Vi, can you use these to draw them? The material and size is good enough. Ok, then please! Leave it to me. So Vi-Vi starts writing the circles. The transfer circle is a very difficult one to draw. Itsplicated and uses a lot of lines. Vi-Vi has a serious expression as she writes into the shield. ryaa? Moo moo I stopped Shiggy and Moofy from going over and bugging Vi-Vi. She required concentration. You cant have someone bug you. Shiggy, Moofy, dont bug her. ryaa?Mooo? Shiggy and Moofy looked at me confused. Femm walked up to the two. Wuff ryaa?Moo Femm spoke to the two and led them off somewhere. Nice for Femm to know what to do at a time like that. And gentle about it. Well, Ill make a golem then. A golem? Yeah, for defense. Can you use that much magic? Just for making one. As long as I dont have to use gravity magic. I see. I made the golem remembering how Vallimie had taught me. First, I had made one for farming. So lightness and intricate movement was important. Next is a defense golem. Just a stronger version of the previous, made with mithril. I thought of just making the previous one, but stronger. So I made three of these defense golems. Wow! That was fast! Ive made them before, and I have an example one too. Al, just show me your knee, okay? Cruz checked my knee. She thinks I used to much magical power. I think its okay! Thanks. I guess Im relieved if Cruz says that. She can feel that thing grow in my knee, if it does. I can count on that. Then Vi-Vi stood up. Im done too. No way! No big deal! Vi-Vi looked at us confidently. Transfer magic IS difficult. It takes some magicians months. You cant draw it that fast. So I looked at the circle she drew. you really did do it. Thats what I said! Thank you Vi-Vi! I only made one! Seems like Vi-Vis skill was growing rapidly. I needed to practice transfer magic so I wouldnt lose to her. I could hear the other beasts hunting mice outside, shooting magic at them. Chapter 140 – Off to the Manor

Chapter 140 C Off to the Manor

Trantor: ranzan We spent the rest of the evening making the remaining magic circles together. There were five in total. Four for the branch offices and one for the manor. We finished all five. You really are fast, Vi-Vi! Well, because you helped, Al. Even with my help, it was amazing we got it done before dinner. Proof that Vi-Vis skill is extraordinary. Vallimie, while eating dinner with us, was also impressed, You really are a great magician, Vi-Vi. Thats not true. No, it is. You might be better than me by now. No way I can beat you, sister. Vi-Vi said, with a blush. Vallimie gently patted Vi-Vis head. They had a good friendship. ryaa ryaa Shiggy flew over, noticing the two sisters talking. Shiggynded on Vi-Vis shoulder and patted her head too. It was cute. Then I asked Vallimie, Im taking the transfer circles out tomorrow. Can I have Doby help me? Doby? Why dont you ask Doby? I thought Doby was busy patrolling the Lindobal forest? It was a reasonable question by Cruz. Dobys job is to patrol the forest. It would be bad to disturb it. Vallimie answered with a smile. The patrol doesnt have to be done everyday. Well, Doby DOES take it seriously, so it gets done daily. Really? When I was about to ask more, Moofy cried out, Moo moo! Whats up with Moofy? Ride me. While using spirit speech, Moofy pushed me with her nose. She rarely talks with spirit speech. And just a word or two. I guess if she uses spirit speech, she really wants you to know something. Can Moofy help carry us? Moo MOO! Moofy wants someone to ride her. I guess Femm wanted us all to know how Moofy felt. Speaking of which, its been a while since someone rode Moofy. You do, Moofy? Mooooooooo Moofy pressed her snout against me again. But, it would be faster with Doby. If Doby is busy, and Moofy really wants to do it, though It might be better to ride Moofy. Well, then I guess well let someone ride you Moofy. Moo Moo! Well, sorry, Vallimie, I guess well go with Moofy. No problem. Doby doesnt dislike people riding, but isnt really into it like Moofy either. Moofy seemed to like it almost too much. So, the next day would be the one where we spread these shields around the region. Yureena came into my room before I slept. She examined my knee. Ohit grew a bit. Really? Did you use magic? Just a few golems and helped Vi-Vi with magic circles. Yureena tilted her head a bit and rubbed my knee. Hmthats a lot of magic for a normal magician, but not that much of a deal for you. Well, I wouldnt call it not a big deal, but yeah, its not hard to use that much. It may be growing without the amount of magic you use. Damn Cruz was listening and rubbed my knee too. I guess me being around didnt help No, I think it actually slowed down because of you. Really?! Then Ill do it more! Thanks Cruz and Yureena. I was happy to hear Cruz say that. Shes dependable. On the other hand, Moofy was there chewing on my good knee. The next day, Cruz, Vi-Vi and I prepared to leave with Moofy and Femm. The first destination was the manor. The nearest branch office was closer, but since the new assessor wasnt appointed, I decided to postpone that. We need to consult with the assistant about who the new assessor should be. Yeah, we have to hurry too so this tax re-assessment gets finished. Moofy was already jumping in circles, excited to be going. She wanted us to get on. Millet and Collette came out to see us off. Heres lunch! Thanks, Millet! Come back sthoon, old man! Well, well all juste back through the magic circle, it wont take long. I rubbed Collettes head. Shiggy came out of my pocket. ryaa ryaa Be careful, Shiggy! ryaa Collette happily petted Shiggy. Even though she could fly, she still liked to stay in my pouch. After that, I got on Femm, and Vi-Vi rode Moofy. Cruz ran alongside of us. Are you okay, Cruz? Yup! Cruz looked confident. Both Femm and Moofy were fast, but Cruz could keep up. You really are something, Cruz. Heh heh Did your legs get faster since you killed off that Demon Lord? You think? I usually could keep up with the party back then. Even without this knee, I dont think I could follow her now. And the thing inside it is growing every dayominous. Moo mooo Youre doing great, Moofy! Wuff! Moofy is running hard, but enjoying it. Femm looks happy too, I guess since its essentially a dog and dogs love walks. Al! Were here! That was quite fast. We had rested several times in the woods, and arrived at the manor in the afternoon. Chapter 141 – The Business of Assistants and Assessors

Chapter 141 C The Business of Assistants and Assessors

Trantor: ranzan As we approached the manor, one of the officials there noticed. He went to go call the assistant in a hurry. Almost immediately the assistant ran out and up to us, visibly worried. Marquis! What is it today Wellhuffpanttoday Cruz was short of breath, as youd expect. When she ran with Femm and Moofy, she was faster than a horse. huffpant pant Femm and Moofy were also out of breath. Their running seemed like apetition. They used all their power to do it, too. Of course theyd end up like this. These two ran like crazy. Thats true. Vi-Vi and I got off so the beasts could get their strength back. I started exining things to the assistant so Cruz could get her breath back too. Weve brought you a magic transfer circle. A transfer circle? Like those that you can use between cities? Yes, we thought it would be helpful for the Marquis. He looked at us in disbelief. Usually, magic circles are in the big cities and run by the kingdom. It would be hard for even a local ruler to install one. Theres no problem with installing one legallythe problem is money. Its a very expensive magic that only experts can do. By the wayyou are? He was here before. Hes Alra. Cruz introduced me. Seems like she already got her breath back. Femm and Moofy were recovering quickly too. She really is a hero. Sorry, I had the mask on the other day. No problem, Master Alra. Thank you foring. We all bowed to the agent. I hadnt put my mask on this time, so it was the first time he had seen my face. After that, he took us to the waiting room. Moofy and Femm followed us in like normal. Excuse me, but What is it? Ahnothing. The assistant looked at the two beasts and was about to say something. Cows and wolves are usually not allowed in a manor, so I know hes confused. However, since Cruz owned the ce and didnt care, he shut up about it. The workers inside excused themselves, and the assistant and we exchanged introductions again. Alra isnt really my name. I actually normally go by Viscount Alfred Lint. Oh! For a grand person like you toe to this manor! Youre the grand magician that apanied the Marquis! Why the false name? Wellit isnt exactly a false name We told the assistant it was a name that was used by the ancient dragon, and that I was in hiding. The assistant nodded with a serious face. So thats the case. Understood. I will keep this a secret. Thank you very much. ryaa ryaa! Shiggy came out of my pouch. She saw the assistant and pped her wings. It wasnt the first time she saw the assistant, but introductions were still in order. This is Sighisoara. Shes the duchess of the ancient dragons. Shell soon ascend to her throne. Ahcongrattions! ryaa! Shiggy nodded happily. Then Vi-Vi puffed her chest out, By the way! My name is Vi-Vi Lindobal. Ah, wee Miss Lindobal. This cute cow is Moofy and that kind of mean looking wolf is Femm. MMoofy and Femm, wee. Thank you. Thnx. Oh! The assistant almost fell over from surprise at the spirit speech. After the introductions were over, Cruz started guzzling down tea. She ran all the way from Mulg, so she was thirsty. Glug glug Momph mph Water was poured out to Femm and Moofy, who were also drinking like crazy. After drinking about a gallon, Cruz took a breath and said, Hey, isnt there like an office in this ce? There is one. Its a small room that hasnt gotten much use If its not used much, thats perfect! Ill put the circle in there! The assistant guided us around and we went to the office. It was a small room with a desk. Even though it wasnt used, there was not dust. Seems that it was cleaned regrly. Its big enough to ce the circle! Yeah, lets put it right here. Cruz took out the engraved shield from her bag. Then she activated the circle. It seems that was something even Cruz could do. Okay, done! Now Ill draw a defensive circle around this room. Thanks, Vi-Vi. No problem. She began to engrave a defensive circle on the walls, floor, and ceiling. This reduces the risk of the room being destroyed. It also prevented someone like the assistant disabling the transport circle, just in case. Oh, since Im here, I guess Ill make a defensive circle for the manor as well. Can you? Sure. Im not that prepared, so it might be weaker than Als ce. Still, it would help! Vi-Vi then went back to her circle around the manor. It made the ce resistant to disaster and magic attacks. Moo mooo! Moofy followed Vi-Vi. Leaving Vi-Vi and Moofy to their work, Cruz now began conversing with the assistant. I thought I should discuss with you about the assessor that was reced Its just as you say, Marquis. We have to rush to reassess the tax. Its normal to choose someone local. Do you have a candidate? There are several candidates but it is a difficult decision. So I will be taking over his duties for the reassessment. There certainly was no time to appoint a new one. Even so, it might be difficult for this guy to do two jobs at once. I asked him, a bit worried. Are you going to be okay? Its an emergency, and it will only happen this yearIll use my officials to do the work for me. I see. That does sound efficient. Cruz was listening with a serious look. She was thinking about something, as she continued to rub Femms head. Wuff? Hmm Femm was confused, while Cruz was thinking,pletely focused. Then she opened her mouth, If thats the case, then Ill do the work instead! Cruz? What? I said, Ill do the work MYSELF! Usually the ruler has an assistant do everything for them. But shes talking about doing that work herself. So I was worried. Cruz, are you okay? Yeah! Ill do my best! I kind of felt that doing the assessors work would be impossible for Cruz. She had no idea how to assess a field or crops. And theres no way she could do the assistants work either. Cruz, are you okay with doing this guys work for him? Yeah! Ill do my best! Cruz seemed really motivated. Its a good thing. But even with motivation, that doesnt make the impossible possible. Sometimes just working hard isnt enough. This assistant job is a profession. Just hire a former bureaucrat from the capital. Marquis, I also think thats a good idea. Okayif you two say so Cruz was convinced. Since we were in a hurry, we sent off to hire a bureaucrat from the city. Chapter 142 – Appeal of the Beasts

Chapter 142 C Appeal of the Beasts

Trantor: ranzan After deciding to hire someone from the capital, we left the manor. We saw Vi-Vi and Moofy outside. Cruz, on the other hand, was looking through documents with a frown on her face. How much longer, Vi-Vi? Almost done! Vi-Vi had written a magic circle on the outer wall. On the other hand, Moofy had left Vi-Vi and was ying near the forest surrounding the building. Because Moofy was still in sight of Vi-Vi, she was still acting as a guard, I guess. Moo moo! What are you doing, Moofy? Moooooo! splish, spliiiish Moofy sniffed around, and then peed. Maybe she was asserting the fact that this was her territory. Femm. Moofys really pushing herself. What do you mean? She marking territory for us. She just drank a lot of water. Moo moo! Seemed like Moofy was relieved, so she came over. She took huge, proud steps, maybe happy that she now has her own territory in this world. Look at how proud she is. She knows its not just that she drank too much water. I dont think so. Moofys trying to increase defense by making a territory around this manor. Remember that Moofys pee has a lot of magic, so monsters areing. That reminded me that monsters dide then, but that was an exception. Sighidoras mother Jilnidora had driven all the beasts toward us. As a result, they all gathered when Moofy had peed. Nah, holy beasts are strong, so the other monsters should be scared. But since Moofy is a nt eater, theyre not scared. I guess that seems sensible. Even in Lindobal forest, most monsters were afraid of Femm. But they didnt seem to notice Moofy. well, then you mark the territory, Femm. Wuff? Since youre carnivorous and a heavenly beast, then the monsters would be scared, right? Of course. Im very strong. Then go pee. Dont want to. Femms such a weirdo. All Femm needs to do is take a wiz here and there. Moo Moo! Good job, Moofy. Moo? Moofy was thinking about the safety of the manor, after all. So Iplimented her quite a bit. She nuzzled into me. But, it would be bad if monsters came. It would be better if you peed too, Femm. I looked at Femm. Femm snorted. Dont WANT TO. If we get attacked by beasts, dont get mad! There are none around. Why? Timi was here and her smell is still around. Just that will scare even magic beasts away. Femm was scared by her so it did make sense. Doby and Femm were both powerful beasts. Even Doby was terrified by Timi. A normal monster would stay the hell away. ryaa ryaa Do you want to pee? Ryaa!! Shiggy jumped from my pouch and flew. But it just fluttered around without peeing. Then I heard Vi-Vi, Im done! Thanks! Yeah, its best to have a ce that wont break even in a disaster. Vi-Vi was very thoughtful and I was thankful for it. Hearing Vi-Vi, Cruz then came out of the manor, Oh, youre done? Yeah, its not as strong as the guardhouse though. Still, it helps. Thanks Vi-Vi. Heh heh Vi-Vi blushed a bit. Someone called out from behind me, an old man. I didnt see him approaching. As he approached, I realized that he probably noticed us way before we noticed him. He didnt seem like someone with military trainingjust a viger. Umis this the manor of the rulers assistant? Yes, it is. Whats the problem? Cruz replied with a smile. It wasnt really the assistants manor though. ButI could kind of see how someone could think that way. Even if its the rulers manor, the rulers never there. The only one there is the assistant. The vigers looked relieved as Cruz smiled at him. UmI have a request for the assistant. Oh, a petition? Yes, correct. Sorry for the sudden nature of it No problem, pleasee here. Cruz takes the viger into the manor. I go in with Vi-Vi, Femm, and Moofy. Um What is it? Since the beasts walked right in with us, the viger kind of pulled back a bit. Cruz just smiled. The viger had the same reaction as the assistant did. Anyone would react like that to beastsing inside. Before going into the waiting room, Cruz said to a passing official, Um, sorry to ask, but can you bring some tea? Certainly. The official spun and walked off with a sharp pace. As we entered the room, Cruz asked, Now then, what is the petition. Well, Id like to see the assistant The assistant is very busy and not here. ah, I see The viger seemed very disappointed. He must be thinking about why hes talking to a cute girl and not an agent of a ruler. I whispered over to Cruz, Where did the assistant go? To the capital to find someone to do the reassessment. You got him moving fast. Well, its got to get done quickly. Cruz was right on the money. The assistant would be much better at choosing an assessor that Cruz. Its a much faster job when someone with connections does it too. It would take a lot of time for Cruz and I to go looking for one. Its okay. I will tell the assistant for you. okay. The viger began to speak slowly. Apparently its about the assessor taxing them higher thanst year. The vige was in an area where the assessor that was changed was in charge. Dont worry, the ruler is perfectly aware of the problem. Really? Yes, and the assessor has been changed. We will dispatch a new one directly and reassess the taxes, so please be patient. REALLY? Yes, Im sorry for the inconvenience. Wow, that would be a big help. If you have problems other than the assessor, please let me know. Its very kind of you to say that. The viger said, but didnt look happy about it yet. Of course, thats because he hadnt heard it from the assistants mouth. Then the official came in with tea. Marquis, I am sorry for the wait. Thank you. It is my honor. The official served the tea and then left. Also bowls were served with tea for Femm and Moofy. Um Whats wrong? Heres your tea. It doesnt taste bad or anything. That fellow said Marquis? Ah, I forgot to introduce myself. I am the Marquis Cruz Conradine. Eeep! The viger shouted with a jolt. He then jumped down from his chair and onto his hands and knees in apology. I am very very very sorry! Wha? Cruz looked surprised. She had only wanted to help the guy. So I lifted the guy of the floor and to his seat. Elder, please rx. Youve done nothing wrong. I was very rude. Dont worry about it. Just then, Cruz bowed. Im the one who should apologize, for troubling the residents of my domain. No! I! Its no problem! Um! He was twitching like crazy. For vigers, its a rare chance to meet your ruler. Even meeting the assistant makes one nervous. A rulers literally like a person in a cloud way above everyone else. I said to the viger, gently, The Marquis is aware of the problem and the assessor punished. The tax will be reassessed appropriately. Thank you! Thank you! The viger fell to the floor again. Cruz and I picked the guy back up again. Please be assured it will be done. Yes And if there is any problem, pleasee to the manor. And if the assistant does not help, pleasee to Mulg Vige. Mulg Vige? Yes, AlraI mean, my right hand man here lives there. Thank you again so very much! The viger thanked us over and over and then returned home. Chapter 143 – The Security of the Magic Room

Chapter 143 C The Security of the Magic Room

Trantor: ranzan When the visiting viger left, Cruzughed with a huff. Then she looked over at me, proudly. How was that, Al? You did great. Heh heh Cruz blushed. Vi-Vi, while petting Moofy, said, Youre good at dealing with people like this. You think? Heh heh Cruz was raised specially, but she is born from normal citizens. It might make her better at helping them deal with their problems. The way she dealt with those assessors also showed her ability. Maybe Cruz had the talent for being a ruler after all. Mooo Moo Moofy sounded like she agreed with Vi-Vi. Since she was happy about that, she petted Moofy too. Thanks, Moofy. Mphh mphh Moofy munched down on Cruz hand. With one hand in Moofys mouth, she petted the cow with the other. You really need to stop chomping on peoples hands, Moofy. Mommph ryaa ryaa Shiggy thought this was all in fun, and flew over to Cruz shoulder. She pecked into Cruz hair as she perched there. Shiggy then grabbed Cruz mouth and then stuck her w inside. Fffhfh fhhf hfhfh! I had no idea what she was saying. Shiggy had stuck her w in Cruz mouth, so it was hard to interpret anything. She was probably saying Cut it outthough. Youre popr today, Cruz. fhffhfh! Cruz blushed a bit. It was getting to be too much so I picked up Shiggy and put her on a desk. ryaa? Dont mess with peoples mouths, Shiggy! ryaa It was an important rule. Who would let a kid go and grab some unknown persons tongue? On the other hand, Femm was poking at my hand with its nose. I then petted Femm. Wuff Femm pleasantly wagged its tail. The assistant then came back. Cruz greeted him with a smile. Wee back! That was fast! Yes, its so convenient! If you go through those two magic circles, it takes only a second to get to the capital. You can always use it, but keep it secret. Yes, I know. The capital citys circle is in Cruz pce. It might be good to draw a defensive circle around that room too. While I was thinking about that, Cruz asked the assistant in a worried voice, Did you find someone that can act as assessor? Somehow I did. Good. Cruz seemed relieved. But I was still worried. Who is it? Yes, Marquis. It was the just retired chief of the ministry of the interior, a respectable man. I guess there was no reason to worry. I thought it would take a while to get Cruz administration in order. But it seems that its being done quite quickly. Cruz looked seriously at the assistant as she began to talk about other personnel and assistants she employed. Vi-Vi and I just petted the beasts and watched. The conversation was finally over when the sun set. Then, I leave it to you. Yes, it will be done. We saw the assistant off and returned to Mulg. We arrived back to the transfer magic room in Mulg. So I told Cruz, Cruz, Vi-Vi, we might need to make a security circle. Security? Hm? What do you mean? What if someone unwanted uses the transfer circle? It might be good to strengthen the magic or ce a golem to guard it. Youre right. Yup. Vi-Vi and Cruz nodded. We headed right to Cruz pce in the capital. Vi-Vi looked at the walls in the room, and said, Theres already a defensive circle here? Yeah, thats right. But its pretty weak. Really? It was expensive. Leave it to me. Vi-Vi quickly began carving a new circle. Cruz servants didnt panic seeing Vi-Vi do this. They were used to her. As we returned to Mulg we saw Luka, Oh, its you Al. Whats wrong? Why are you here? I wanted to make sure that Cruz circle was properly secured. Yeah, that is important. Vi-Vi was used to doing this, so she was drawing a defensive circle. But I had to one-up her. Ill make a golem. Yeah, but not too big, okay? I know. Its indoors. I took orichalcum out of the bag and molded it. I made a small one, a bit shorter than Vi-Vi. Then Luka said, Small and cute. Yeah, I have to engrave it to the magic circle so itll move. I had to have one that was quick, strong, with attack power. And it seems I crafted a pretty good one. Done. What will trigger it to attack? I didnt think about that. Well, thats no good. Yeah Luka pointed that fact out. The simplest method is for it to attack all moving objects, but then it would attack Luka. There would be a problem if it couldnt tell friend from foe. Thats prettyplicated. It would be pretty hard to make a circle that would distinguish that. Then I heard Shiggys voice outside the magic circle room. ryaa ryaa Hey, Shiggy keeps on pulling on my skirt! I looked out the room, and Shiggy was pulling up Yureenas skirt. Shiggy! Stop ying with my skirt! ryaa If you pull it up, youll see my underwear! ryaa? Shiggy still didnt know why this was bad. Its hard to teach nakedness to an already naked ancient dragon. Then Cruz walked in with Vallimie. Hey, Shiggytheres something you shouldnt see under that skirt. ryaaa? Hidden weapons. ryaa! Shiggy seemed to understand. I think she learned not to mess with skirts anymore. Then Vallimie said, Cruz called me hereyoure securing the ce? Yeah, Vi-Vis drawing a magic circle. You have one drawn in Mulg right? Yeah, what about Lindobal? Its taken care of. Vallimie said, but then thought a bit, and said, Yeah, I think its taken care of. Well, if you say so Hm. I can secure it the day after tomorrow. Youll be shocked at how well I do it. Vallimie said confidently. Chapter 144 – Setting Magic Circles in Cruz’ Region

Chapter 144 C Setting Magic Circles in Cruz Region

Trantor: ranzan After drawing the defensive circle at Cruz pce, we went back to Mulg vige. I decided to leave the security at Lindobal to Vallimie, as she was pondering it over. I could tell it was going to be one hell of a system. That night. When I went to my room, Cruz was sleeping. She was still reading with those sses on. Al, are you going to sleep? I was going towhat are you reading today? Books about ruling people and logic. Whoa. Last time she was reading a biography. This stuff seems a lot more difficult. I wonder if she understood it. Youre working hard. Eheh heh. Does she even understaWUFF?! Femm was about to say too much, so I grabbed Femm first. There was no reason to discourage Cruz. Femm hind was lifted off the ground by me so that only its front feet were touching the floor. Good wolf, Femmthere there. W, Wuff! Good wolf Wuff. Moo moo.. I rubbed Femms belly, then Cruz came over and petted it too. Then Moofy started licking Femm. Femm was just standing there, confused. Then I threw Femm on the bed. Good Femm. Mff mff Moo moo moo ryaa ryaa So I started petting Femm again. I did that so Femm would forget I basically grabbed the wolf to shut it up before it said something that would dishearten Cruz. Moofy was also licking Femms hair. Shiggy was stroking Femm with its small w. Probably imitating me. Wuff. It was the first everyone was petting Femm like this, then we all fell asleep. The next day, we got ready to deliver the other portals to the branch offices. As I was getting ready, I asked Cruz, Is there an office room in the branch offices? I wonder. There probably is. I dont think so, Al. Even if there is, its probably being used. Vi-Vi pointed out. When the ruler made his rulings as a judge, he did so at the branch offices. I bet no one examined the building in detail though. However, it was smaller than the manor, so there were probably no unused rooms. Well, maybe we need a small shack for the circle then. Yeahanyway Vi-Viughed a bit. It seems she thought something up herself. Why dont we make a magic circle AND an invisibility effect? So that the assessors wouldnt know about them? Yeah, like a little, invisible hut a while a way. After that Vi-Vi looked at Cruz. The most important thing is that Cruz would agree. What do you think, Cruz? Sounds interesting, but if they find it we have to destroy it, right? We can just carve your name in it. I see. Well, lets do that then. After Cruz gave the okay, we prepared for covering up the huts. We had to secretly and quickly build a hut and then hide it. So that means I had to pack materials for the huts. Well, since we need wood for the winter, lets use stones, okay? Yeah. Ill pour some in my magic bag. You needed more materials than necessary when building these ces. So we put them in our magic bag. With Cruz and my bagsbined, we had more than enough for four shacks. When we were ready, we left. Just like yesterday, I rode Femm, Vi-Vi rode Moofy, and Cruz ran along. In an hour, we arrived at the branch office. The nearest one, that was in charge of Mulg. The assessor was gone so it was empty, we thought. Theyll find it if we get any closer. Al, cast some concealing magic. Got it. I cast concealment magic over them. Its mainly used when traveling through areas with enemies. It kind of dumbs down others ability to perceive you. Its not perfect, but it does hide you from those that arent skilled. After that, we built the hut. Hurry up! Yeah. We leveled a foundation and assembled the stones. Then we made an open cube about twice as tall as a human. Done in 10 minutes. Now Ill leave it to you. Please. Vi-Vi carved a defensive circle and an invisibility circle. After that, we put down the shield with the transfer circle and activated it. Oh, now you have to write your name. Go for it, Al. I carved the name of Cruz into the front of the hut. I carved it with magic, taking care not to disrupt the circles. I think Im done. What did you write? Well, it says. This is the property of Marquis Cruz Conradine. DO NOT TOUCH. Okay, well the new assessor wont touch it then. Okay, on to the next branch. And we were quickly on our way. We went back to Mulg through the transfer circle and out to the manor. The branch office are about two hours away from the manor. Its faster than heading there from Mulg. We can get to the branches from the manor in about an hour. So we can hit three ces in three hours. Even with rests we can get this done in a day. Great!! So the rest of the transference magic went smoothly. Mooo moo Wuff Moofy looked happy to be running again. Femm looked refreshed at running as well. Its good for stress relief. Femm, have you been running or digging muchtely? Wuff? Does it bug you not to be exercising? Im fine. Im just doing what I have to. Then good. Femm made the hot springs that Doby got in. Femm might also dig for stress relief. Femm might just dig holes here and there. Before sunset we had installed magic circles and huts at all four branches. When we returned to Mulg, Vallimie was waiting. Oh, youre done? Yup, got it all installed safely. Did you surround it with a magic circle? Leave it to me, older sister. I did it right. Great! Vallimie then patted Vi-Vis head. Vallimie, about your security Yeah, dont worry. Its not hard to surround it with a magic circle. Really? Can it recognize an enemy? Thats okay too. Vi-Vi? What is it, sister? Can we connect the air defense field that Vi-Vi made to the transfer circles as well? No problem, theres plenty of room to do that. So the sisters started talking about theplex matters involving defense. II couldnt follow some parts of it though. What did that mean? Oh, well let me exin it. So Vallimie exined it. Vallimie secured the doors shut against anyone that wasnt an ally. It used the enemy detection system that Vi-Vi made in her detection circles. Can you show me how to connect it? You sure are interested. I dont mind showing you. Vallimie made magical connections between the core detector, magical circles, and transfer magic. There was a lot of techniques I didnt know. The magic system was developed by devil magic. You have to register yourself before I set the security. Ah, then call the assistant. By the time Cruz brought her assistant back, Luka and the rest were also home. We registered Rai and Doby as well. After that, all allies had been registered with the security magic. Now, unregistered people and monsters cant open the magic rooms door. Thanks Vallimie and Vi-Vi. Dont worry about it. Eheh heh They both blushed a bit. The transfer circles are much less likely to be misused. I felt safer. I was relievedand then a shooting pain went through my knee. Chapter 145 – Treating my Knee 2

Chapter 145 C Treating my Knee 2

Trantor: ranzan I tried to endure it because I didnt want the others to worry. But I still fell over because of the pain. Ah, are you hurt? Al, are you okay? Cruz and Luka look worried. But I tried to smile. Its okay. Just a little painful. Show me. Yureena looked over my left knee calmly. In the meantime, Sighisoara, Femm, and Moofy came close. They all sniffed each other and then me. ryaa ryaawuffMoo moo Thanks I petted Femm and Moofys head. In the meantime, it seems that Yureena was done examining me. The stone is bigger. I have to operate. okay. Surgery is the obvious answer but painful. I didnt want to go through it. However, it was going to hurt worse if I just left it. I grabbed Cruz by the shoulder and walked back to my house. Vallmie and Vi-Vi followed. Al, rx, my sister and I will make a pain-killer circle so it wont hurt. Yeah, leave it to us sisters. Please. I felt better. While Yureena was preparing the surgery, Vi-Vi prepared the magic circle. On the other hand, Cruz rubbed my knee. It feels better when you touch it, Cruz. Really? Its strange how it makes me feel better. In the meantime, Vi-Vi and Vallimie were done. Im ready. Prepare yourself. Do it quickly. The magic circle is ready. Yureena started. The pain was less thanst time, but pain was still there. Wah! It looks painful. ryaa Although the pain was less, it was the same procedure as the previous surgery. Cruz and Vi-Vi looked away when Yureena cut my knee open. Shiggy covered her face with her wing but still peeked. Mmmfph! Mmmph! Wuff Moofy was chomping on Cruz finger, same as thest time. I could see all of them watching me probably because the pain wasnt as bad. There. Done! Thank you. The anesthesia was much better. Great to hear! Another great steted dodecahedron fell out with a thud. As usual, I could feel a great hostility emanating from it. Then Cruz said, looking at it, Thest one felt much worse than this one. Really? Yeah. Even though the size and shape are the same. Yureena said while thinking, Well, whatever that mystery stuff thates out of the points is, hasnt reallye out that much yet. Good. We need to watch this one too. After thest treatment, the stone excreted a mysterious substance that took over your nervous system. This time she removed it early, so it had yet to really excrete anything. I thanked Yureena and Vi-Vi again and went to the kitchen. You okay, old man? Yeah, Im okay. I stroked Collettes head and she gave me a worried look. Luka looked at the stone carefully. How is your study of the other stone going? No real progress. Its embarrassing, actually. Yureena said, but the churchs research is quite good. If they cant understand it, on one else could. Then I asked Cruz, What do you think, Cruz? All I know is that this one doesnt feel as bad. Hm, well I have no idea how theyre different. I dont know either,dies. If you shuffled the two, I couldnt tell which one is which. Neither Luka or Yureena know, and I didnt either. It was amazing Cruz could feel something. Collette was poking it with her finger. I think itsth pretty! Shiggy, Femm, and Moofy also sniffed it. What do you think? It smells. Yuck. I guess animals dont like it. I dont know why Moofy said that. As if she was going to eat it. Shiggy smelled it once and flew to me. She looked scared. So our research into it is stuck. Yeah, this sucks. Then the door opened. Shiggy! Im back! ryaa Timi hade back. Earlier than nned. Shiggy flew to Timis feet. Youre so cute, Shiggy! ryaa ryaa Timi picked the little dragon up and smiled. Youre back quick, Timi. Of course, Alfredora. I hurried to see Shiggy. Timi rubbed Shiggy. At the same time, she started to yawn. Are you sleepy? Yeah, I havent slept since I left. Are you okay. Yeah, Im just zzzzz She fell asleep in the middle of the conversation. Luka walked up to Timi, worried. Is she okay sleeping in human form? Her feet might fall asleep. I wonder if her body will work when she wakes up. And if she falls asleep and transforms back, this house will be gone! Yup. We looked at each other, worried. Should I take her outside? The house is surrounded by defensive magic. Even so, the house would explode if she went back to dragon form. Cruz shook Timis shoulders to try to wake her up. Timi! Timi! Can you sleep like a human? Ah! Yeahsure I can. She then handed over Shiggy to me. Then she walked out of the house. Then Timi turned back into a dragon outside the house. Speaking ofityou had twoon top of your desk. What? ryaaa! ryaa? Timi was already asleep. Shiggy gently stroked Timi. Wow, Im curious now. ryaaaa I was very curious. But Timi is too tired. I didnt feel like waking her up. Chapter 146 – The Stone in my Knee’s Secret.

Chapter 146 C The Stone in my Knees Secret.

Trantor: ranzan Sighisoara gently stroked Timi in her sleep. I wonder if Shiggy knew how hard his aunt worked for her. Youre kind Shiggy. ryaaa While Shiggy stroked Timi and looked at me, questioning. It was cute seeing such a small dragon trying to pet a huge dragon. I was happy to be the one that raised this kind-hearted child. Then Luka looked over the sleeping Timi, and said, You said you were curious about something? Yeah, Ill find out tomorrow. Okay. It seems that Timi might have been mentioning those stones that were removed from my knee. The knowledge of ancient dragons is quite different from mankinds. And since they live so long, they have deep knowledge, one would expect. I returned to my room while holding Shiggy. Then I fell asleep. The next morning, when I went to the cafeteria, Timi was there in human form. Luka, Cruz, Yureena, Vi-Vi, and Vallimie were there too. Timi, are you okay? Yeah, I slept like a rock. ryaa Shiggy flew over to Timi. Shiggy, my little cutie! ryaa ryaa Yeah! Im okay! Timi was squeezing Shiggys cheeks. Shiggy was pping away. While watching this, I asked Timi, So sleepings important for dragons too. If I get tired, I really need to sleep. So you flew there and back without sleeping? Yeah. Sounds rough. Timi nodded. Luka was listening and taking notes. She probably wanted to get more recorded about these dragons. Timiid Shiggy on the table and started tickling her. I dont need to sleep for a week or even a month, but I flew with all my strength. I see. So your flight used magical power. Yes, normal flight wouldnt bother me, but high speeds can be very tiring. It seems she was rushing to see Shiggy again soon. Then I asked Timi as she yed with Shiggy, Hey, so you said something before you went to bed yesterday. Yesterday? What did I say? About these. I put the two star shaped stones on the desk. They still looked really painful. Oh, THIS! You said You have those or something before you went to sleep. Yes. Thats the curseof the reaper. The curse of the reaperthe first time I heard that. Hearing that, Yureena looked confused. The reaper? Yes, the god that controls death. I knew what that meant. The reaper is feared and hated. Its a god of evil. Of course no one wants to die. The creation of zombies is also part of the reapers system. Its basically ssified as the reapers magic. Timi fidgeted with the stone as she said, This doesnt feel like a strong curse though. Did a priest of the reaper put this on you? No, the Demon Lord did. Well, thats a strange tale. Timi looked confused. There was an immortal-killer arrow the Demon Lord shot at me when he died. Whats strange about it? Isnt the Demon Lord a follower of the Magic God though? The Death God and the Magic God are two different entities. Yeah. Its strange for a disciple of God like Cruz to be able to affect the curse of the reaper. She might be right. Its like she can sanctify the Demons magic. I just got hit by the immortal-killer arrow that he shot. Immortal killer. Sounds right. The name sounds like something from the reaper. Sure does. Luka said while nodding. One who keeps escaping the reaper is practically immortal. The immortal killer was used to kill immortals so that the reaper could keep bnce in the world. The Great Demon used the immortal-killer against Jilnidra; do you think he was a servant of the reaper? I dont think so. Why not? If he used a reapers arrow, my sister would have died immediately. Is it that strong? If he was a disciple of the reaper, it would be. If I thought how strong a disciple of God like Cruz was, it made sense. Timi continued with a serious look, Well, zombification is also part of the reapers domain. It would be difficult for anyone to resist the zombification by a follower of the reaper as well. I see. Shiggy was taken hostage from Jilnidora. Then she was made to stay in a magic circle and drink a potion. That was all it took. If the Great Demon was an apostle of the reaper, it would be impossible to resist zombification, no matter how big of a dragon she was. ryaa Shiggy probably noticed her mothers name. She looked around, confused. I stroked her head. Shiggy ran to me and jumped back in my pouch. She probably was a little lonely. I then rubbed Shiggy inside the pouch. The Great Demon might have been an underling of the reaper, or something. Then why did the Demon Lord use that immortal-killer? No idea. Its a mystery. I dont know either!Cruz said. Everyone waspletely confused. Vi-Vi, who was listening quietly, said, Maybe he was one of the reapers army? But he was a follower of demon magic, right? Is it possible for him to learn reaper magic? Normally not, but I also dont think its possible for a Demon Lord to be using an immortal-killer arrow.Vallimie said. YeahI think so too Timi said with a serious face. Maybe he lost his allegiance to the magic god, or the god removed his blessing? Can a disciple lose a blessing like that? Sometimes, if you go against the Gods will. Cruz heard this andughed. I wonder if Ill lose my blessing if I stop using my holy sword! Why do you say that so happily? I had no idea what Cruz was talking about. I think youll be okay, Cruz. Yeah, youll be fine. As Luka and Yurina said this, Cruz leaned forward and said. Why?! Because you do stuff that God would like! Yup. You think? Cruz with no self-awarenessagain. She helped the weak, was merciful, and never held back. Regardless of the species, if it was zombified, she killed it. Just as an apostle of God would. Yureena hugged Cruz. Youll be fine, Cruz. Heh heh Mmmph mpph Moofy was chewing on her hand again. Moofy was consecrated by Cruz and became a holy beast, after all. In a sense, Moofy too was like an apostle of God. Luka, who was listening, said, So how can we cure Alras knee? An apostle of the reaper might be able to fix it. I see. Where the hell do you find a person like that though? And since its an apostle of the reaper, it must be a very strong person. They probably wouldnt cooperate. I guess we have to catch a follower of the reaper then! Its not going to be that easy. Timi then said, thinking, Yeah, it sounds tough, but I think I know a ce to find one. What?! You do?! I think Seems that Timi knew something at least. And thats a huge step to fixing this damn knee. Chapter 147 – The Disciple of God and King

Chapter 147 C The Disciple of God and King

Trantor: ranzan A follower of the reaper could probably release the curse on my knee. And Timi seems to know where to find one of those followers. Yureena says, uneasily, But the reaper is an evil god. I dont think any followers going to cooperate with us. We certainly cant just go and ask. Luka agreed with Yureena. Maybe if we ask him, hell understand! Cruz was positive as usual. Shes way too optimistic. Theres no way someone like thats going to help me. We probably wont be able to avoid fighting, and if we do fight, it will be as hard as fighting the Demon Lord. Timi then said with a serious face, Even though its an evil godin a way, thats just what people call it. But its a god that controls death, and makes zombies. Gods literally operate on a different dimension than humans. Dont you think humans might mistake the wrong for the right? Timi is an ancient dragon and the closest of all of us to a god. Timis got a persuasive argument. Even so, youre talking about a ck magician that could summon zombies as an apostle of the reaper. It was good to be wary. Timi gently rubbed Shiggy while saying this, and, ryaammm ryammm! Shiggy was lightly biting at Timis fingers. Its strange to think that Shiggy was as close to god as Timi was. All living things die. Theres no good or bad in it. Right? True, but Luka was ufortable at Timis words. However, living things dying is natural and there really isnt evil in it. That was true. Its exactly as Timi says. Just as I expected for you Alrayou understand quickly. Well, even so, since he has zombification, thats what makes the reaper evil.Luka said. Zombies are supposed to teach us the horror of immortality. Its a lesson from god. What does that mean? The reaper does not allow immortality. So he punishes those that try to transcend it. And that is through zombification. But you dont be a zombie because of your own feelings right? Its because someone forces it on you There are many that exploit the gods magic. The god of magics skill is used for ughter, for agriculture, used for anything. Yeah, but If you can think of how to use it for evil, you can use it that way, right? I think youve made a huge misunderstanding. Basically, these Gods dont care what goes on among those in this world. If the number of immortals began multiplying, maybe That may be true. Even though we killed the Demon Lord, his god of magic didnt face us. On the contrary, I used magic against him and nothing stopped me. And I had no interest in bing the magic gods disciple as well. At least thats how I remember it. It might be that the Demon Lord lost his gods blessing. And the reason might be that he started worshiping the reaper. Mpph mphhh As I was thinking seriously, Moofy began munching on my fingers. I rubbed her head as I thought it over. Moofy wasnt a zombie, but it was a skeleton once. Did the reaper allow that to happen? Or maybe since she was a sacred animal, it had something to do with god? While I was thinking it over, Luka asked Timi, So how do we know where the Death Lord is? Theres a magical tool back at the dragon throne that will find him. I think that Alfredora can use it freely since he has the dragon seal that will open the treasury. Thats convenient. It was used once to search for the Dragon Lord. It can find other gods as well. Dragon Lord? Yes, divinely protected by the Dragon God, and its closest follower. Higher than a duchess? Yeah, and stronger too. If the Dragon Lordes to the throne, any royalty would quicklye and swear loyalty to him. Then, he makes whatever promation he wants to the ancient dragons. Quite a lot of power. Of course, because hes the one with power over all ancient dragonstely, his position has been empty though, about a thousand years. New information about the beast kingdoms. Lukas eyes glimmered as she jotted the information down. Its amazing that the ancient dragons see a thousand years as tely. And that the king of them was chosen by a god. A king chosen by god is really something. I thought it was normal. The Divine Right of Kings, right? You mean that god assigns those who be king? Yes, I thought that was normal among you humans as well, isnt it? Upon hearing Timis words, Luka nodded. Luka also knew about the ancient lore. Its true that from the ancient times people believed that god chose the king. Yes, a sacred god choosing a sacred king, a magic god choosing a magic king, a death god choosing a death king, a dragon god choosing a dragon king, and so on. So, is Cruz a sacred king? Theres no way this human world would allow her to be called a king. Thats probably why they refer to her as a hero. Eheh heh heh. Cruz blushed. Then I asked Vi-Vi and Vallimie, How is a Demon Lord chosen? Pretty much whoevers the strongest. Vallimie answered. Does it have to be a follower of the magic god? Yeah. And there are a lot that just call themselves one. There are a lot of guys calling themselves demon or magic lords. But if the magic god chooses one, that guy bes the one. But he has to being a follower? Well, not so much that as the fact he has to be very strong in the type of magic of the god. Like, if you go against him, he crushes you with it. So it seems that being strong is the most important. Femm huffed in a snort, The same with magic wolves. The strongest is king. I guess understanding that was easy enough. Do you think a follower of the magic god thats lost his support from the god could change to the death god to keep his position? Cant say its impossible. Then Timi spoke with a quiet tone, It could happen. You think it could, Timi? Yes, because if he got weakened then those below him would overthrow him. And once overthrown, hed be dead. He must have needed a n. Even if he didnt stop being a follower of the magic god, he had to have a reason, right? I dont know. Its impossible to know what a gods will or thoughts are. I guess youre right. Can an ant know what a human thinks? Its the same as a gods will. As I thought it might seem usible, the story was still a crazy one. Strange, unknown forces in the background of this world changing things. No one can know the thoughts of god. It would be a surprise if Cruz suddenly stopped being blessed by god, though! Yeah! Cruz said. I bet she was under a lot of pressure being a hero though. I should probably talk to her about it, though. Luka then said to Cruz, Its really strange that youre the chosen one of god. Well, having the one who killed off the Demon Lord simply be called a hero is stranger.Timi said. But it was easy to see why a gods king could defeat a Demon Lord. Just then, Cruz snapped her fingers as she remembered something, Ah! We heard a rumor that the Demon Lord is returning! Yeah, youre right. We did talk it over that he might havee back when my knee really started to hurt. If we can find where the followers are, then we can know if the Demon Lord wille back, right? Of course. That tool of the dragons sounds awesome. Of course it is! Timi said, proudly. Ok, lets go to the pole so Shiggy can ascend the throne. ryaa ryaa! We stepped in the transportation circle, and transported to the pole. Chapter 148 – The Throne of Dragons

Chapter 148 C The Throne of Dragons

Trantor: ranzan We were headed to the pole through the transport circle. Luka and Yureena had rested from work and came too. The pce of the ancient dragons! I cant wait! Yyeah. Me either. Luka seemed really excited to make the journey. Cruz was a bit withdrawn as she seemed a bit nervous. Vi-Vi and Vallimie also decided toe along. We have to make some kind of security for this transfer circle as well. Sis! Ill help you as well. Vallimie and Vi-Vi were really interested in the ce as well. Mooo mooo! Wuff! Wuff! ryaa ryaa The beasts were ready to go as well. The pr north. A hard ce for even a group of humans to reach. It was a ce that no human could live. Since everyone was so anxious, Collette felt the same. I want to go too! Collette, dont be hard-headed! Millet stopped her, because she hadmon sense. There was no way for a 5 year old to go to somewhere dangerous like the pole. But you made usth all lunch! Wwell Heres everyones lunch. I know you made one for yoursthelf because you wanted to go with them! II was going to eat itmyself. I guess Millet was intent on going as well. There was no doubt about it. I wanna go wanna go wanna go! Dont be stubborn! ryaa ryaa ryaa Shiggy started imitating Collettes temper tantrum. pping her wings while rolling around on the desk. Cute in a way. If you say so, Shiggy. Do you want to go, Collette? Say so? What did Shiggy say? Now Im really curious. Can I go too, Timi? Both of you can. Is that okay, Millet? We wont be a bother? You dont need to worry about that. If so, then please. Yeaaayyy! ryaa ryaa Collette and Shiggy both looked very happy. After that, we headed to the transfer circle. Lets go. ryaa All of us transported to the pole. Cruz then shouted, Its too cold! Way too cold! Its way too cold here. Its been a while since anyone was here, so its be very cold. Timi said, with a sad expression. The pole is the coldest ce because the sun is so low. Luka exined. She was a science lover. Cruz looked confused. The sun is low? The sun doesnt rise high in the sky. Because of that, the amount of heat from sunlight is low. Luka drew it out on her memo and exined. It was easy to understand if you looked at it. Also its day for many days in a row, and the same with night. Wow! Luka chatted on about it, but her lips were turning blue from the cold and she was shivering. Well, everyone was. Its cold. Femm even said so. Moo moo ryaa ryaa On the other hand, Moofy and Shiggy didnt really mind. Maybe I should do something to protect from the cold Wait a second. I was about to use magic, but Yureena stopped me. Your knee might start hurting again. No, its fine. It wont use that much magic. Not that again. You said thatst time and the stone still grew inside you! Well, youre right, but Yureena was right, after all. I guess I should stop from using too much magic. Lets go back and get some clothes that will help us. Yeah. Cold! Luka suggested so and Millet and Collette agreed. We left Timi there and returned to the town to prepare. I never knew it would be that cold. Of course its cold, Yureena! I thought you werent dressed for it. Even though Luka said so, she wasnt dressed the part either. We hurried and put on some more clothing to keep the cold away. Perfect weather for you though, Femm. Wuff? What did you think, Moofy? Moo moo Perfect for you though, right Shiggy? ryaaa Cruz took out some fabric for the beasts to wear. And the fact it perfectly fit these four-legged creatures was strange. Femm and Moofys coverings were those made for horses. They both were smaller than horses though, so it was a bit hard to put on. Shiggys outfit was something that could go on a stuffed animal. Cute. They all will work fine, but the outfit Shiggy has fits perfectly! Eheh heh. Guess I was prepared this time. Why the heck did she have these things prepared? No idea what Cruz is thinking. So with these clothes on, we went back. Hot! Its so hot! Cruz and Yureena shoouted. It was super hot. Moo moo! Wuff ryaa Moofy and Femm looked like they were in pain. On the other hand, Shiggy was happy. She pped around as if nothing was wrong. Timi then approached us. You all looked cold, so I turned on the heater. She said, proudly. Ah, thanks. But, I thought you said this ce wont work unless Shiggy ascends the throne. Of course Shiggy has to be here for the ce to work, but I can turn on a heater at least. I see With that said, we all took our winter clothes off. Femm, Moofy, and Shiggy, you want these off? Take it off. Off. ryaaa? Seems like the two wanted them offbut not Shiggy. I quickly took the wear off the two beasts. You really dont want me to take this off? ryaa! Seems like Shiggy liked what she wore. Seeing this, Timi said, You look cute in anything, Shiggy. ryaa Arent you hot, though? Sighisoara is tough against anything! Timi said proudly. But it would be better to be cool then tough. Lets take this off, Shiggy. ryaa Shiggy was obedient as I took the clothes off her. With the clothes off, it was a little hot, but not too hot to bear. With that being said, Timi adjusted the heater. We all were finally okay, so we looked around the room with the transporter. Its so huge! And the ceiling is so high! Theres not building this big made by humans. Cruz said with an impressed tone. I guess it was a ce that ancient dragons could live in though. It was a room big enough to fit the vige in. If one room is this big, then the pce must be huge. What a ce! Huuuuuge! Millet and Collette were impressed too. The walls and ceilings were made with some unknown materials. Then, after looking around, Vi-Vi said, Impossible to draw a defensive circle Its too big. To defend this room the circle would need to be huge! Impossible. Vi-Vi and Vallimie both said, giving up. Dont worry about defense. Once Shiggy ascends the throne, this pce has its own magical defense system. I see. We just need to protect the circle in Mulg, then. Please do, Vi-Vi and Vallimie. Timi said, and they both nodded. Then Timi grabbed and hugged Shiggy. Okay. Time to take you to the room with your throne. She showed us around, and entered the room where the ceremony would be held. Chapter 149 – Shiggy’s Ascension

Chapter 149 C Shiggys Ascension

Trantor: ranzan We left the transport room and walked into the hall. It was a hall, but also a ce that an ancient dragon could pass easily. Very wide. Luka again looked around with sparkling eyes. The ceiling is so high and the walls are so big! I wonder what this ce is made of. A strange material. Almost like a metallic pottery. I touched and examined the wall. The first time I had seen something like this. Vi-Vi touched it too. Theres magical power in these walls. It looks very strong. Timi was walking ahead of us and looked back after hearing our conversation. Its true. Theyre very strong. They have to withstand our very long lives. I see. Its true that getting hit by a dragon tail every once in a while would break a normal building. Dragon life would take a toll on a normal building. Mooo mooo MMoofy, stop it! Just then, we heard Moofy sigh with relief and Femm quickly yell at Moofy to stop. What is it? Moofy! Stop! Mooo? Vi-Vi ran over as quickly as she could. Moofy had her legs spread. She was about to pee on the floor. The walls were so wide and the ceiling so high, Moofy might not have thought she was indoors. Moofy, you dont have to mark your territory everywhere! Moo mooo The toilets over here. Mooo Timi dragged Moofy over to the toilet. That Moofy is dangerous sometimes. Yeah, she tries too hard to mark territory now. And theres no way she should do it in the pce of ancient dragons. No, I think she just had to go. Cruz then said, while watching Moofy and Timi walk off into the distance. You think the toilets ancient dragon sized? Its possible. Moofys original form wasnt as big as an ancient dragons, but it was still big. Thats why Moofy was probably able to use their toilet. However, theres no way any of us probably could. While I was thinking about that, Moofy and Timi returned. Moo moo If you need to use the bathroom, please feel free to tell me. Timi then scratched Moofys head. Not something that she usually did with the other beasts. So it was special for Moofy. Luka then asked excitedly, What does an ancient dragon toilet look like? Hm? You want to see? Yes! I sure do! Well, Ill show you then. Luka researched monsters and beasts. Her curiosity was getting the better of her. Timi then took Luka to the bathroom. Luka was looking around anxiously at everything around her. We might need to go sometime too. I guess its important to see what the facilities look like. I should take a look too. Yup, me too. So we all followed after them. Seeing this, Timi looked a bit confused. You guys must really like toilets. Well, its not that we like them. It must be huge! I wanted to just make sure we could use them. I see. I dont think you need to be worried. After walking a bit, we arrived. It was a huge room. And it took a lot longer to get to. If you really had to go, you had to get going right away. If you didnt, youd probably have an ident on the way. Here. Whoaaaa ryaa ryaa Cruz was super impressed. Shiggy was too. It was huge. After youre done, just push that level and the water will flow. A toilet of an ancient dragons pce! With flowing water! Luka was impressed. She pushed the lever down with all she had. It was weird to see a toilet that had flowing water. The only ones I saw were those in pcesand the one in my house. Its not that rare. Theres one in Als house. Well, his house is different. I see. Well, the toilet for smaller people is over here. Timi pointed to a small building next to the toilet. It was a bit strange to see a building inside a building. There was a normal toilet located inside. For humans? No, for when were shaped like humans. I see. Then Luka asked Timi, Do you walk around here in human shape? When were big we have to eat a lot, so this shape is better sometimes. I see. It was a very practical reason. If they stayed as hungry dragon forms for a long time, the living creatures around them would bepletely destroyed. But I was still a bit doubtful. But if you eat as a small human, and then return torger dragon form, dont you get hungry? Yeah, I wanted to know too! Were fine. The change is magical, so its not just a physical change of mass. Wow Luka scribbled down notes like crazy. Are you done? We have to get to the reason were here in the first ce. Oh yeah, Shiggy has to ascend the throne. ryaa! We proceeded to the room that Timi had said Shiggy would ascend the throne. The room had a throne that was a far ways deep into the room. As we were walking towards it, Luka whispered, I know its obvious, but its a huge throne. The materials too, orichalcum? The base is orichalcum, but the throne is a mixture of alloys and magical stones. It was made so that nothing else was like it. Expensive as hell. And deep in the throne room, we arrived a the room where Shiggy would ascend the throne. It was smaller than the other rooms of the pce. But it was still huge. In the middle of the room was something like arge pearl. Is that a magical crystal? No, maybe something different. It is a special crystal kept here from ancient times. That sounded quite impressive. It seems that Timi didnt know the details about it either. Then Luka asked as she stared at it, This stone was refined to the highest purity. Why? Yes, whyno one knows how it was made, or what use it has. We dont know even what power it has. So you know nothing about it? But, we do know know that its something really awesome! Luka was very excited. Timi called Shiggy past all of us to the stone. Put your right hand here, Shiggy. ryaa ryaa! Shiggy happily put her w out to touch the stone. Therell be a small shock, but keep your w on. ryaa. Shiggy pulled away momentarily. When someone tells you it will hurt, youre going to pull back. But even so, Shiggy was a baby. Dont be afraid, Shiggy. Hang in there, Shiggy! ryaa. Shiggy was reluctant, but put her w on the stone. Quite a brave baby. Sighisoara, the magic will prate you. If it does not, then we must cut your palm and ce the blood of the wound on ryaa! Shiggy firmly had her w on the stone. She didnt want to cut her w. The pearl-like stone began to shine. ryaa!! Shiggy cried out a bit. Even so, she didnt remove her palm from the stone. The stone began to glow brighter with light. Light began to fill the room. Its over. This pce had now been activated by your presence. Shiggy! Great job. Shiggy was at a loss for words. It looked a bit sulkish as it gazed at us. Shiggy? ryaa It was probably angry that it had been hurt. I know how she feels. I looked at her right w. There was a bit of blood. It hurt, right? You did really well. .ryaa Great job, Sighisoara! Timi held and tried to squeeze Shiggy, but Shiggy batted her arm away. Then Shiggy flew over and grabbed onto me and slipped into the pouch on my chest. SShiggy, what is it? ryaaa I think shes a little angry, but shell be okay. I guess thats okay, but Timi looked worried, but Shiggy would be back to normal soon. Luka looked around the room and said, That ascension seemed pretty easy. Yes, its the actual enthronement that needs a huge ceremony. So the ascension is just like a registration? Kind of like that. On the other hand, Collette reached up to pet Shiggy. You did great, Shiggy. ryaaa Millet also petted Shiggy through my clothes. Good job, Shiggy. Do you want lunch? ryaa Shiggy poked her head out of the pouch. She must have been hungry. And she seemed happier. Its a great trait of hers that she doesnt remain angry for long. I bet she has all the qualities necessary to be a ruler. She meekly allowed Timi to pet her again. Moo moo! Wuff! The other beasts who smelled the food approached. Femm and Moofy lined up next to Cruz. Okay, so lunch then? Yay! The kitchen is over here! Everyone followed Timi with a happy gait. Chapter 150 – The Servants of the Duchess

Chapter 150 C The Servants of the Duchess

Trantor: ranzan The dragons pce was immense. It took us quite a while to walk to the kitchen. The kitchen was huge too. However, there were human-sized tables there. Im d theres furniture here that we can use easily. I said this before, but we usually dont eat in dragon form. The same as the toilet, they seem to eat in human form. If thats the case, then its obvious theyd need human-sized furniture. I again saw Luka scribbling away on her memo pad. We all ate the lunches that Millet had made for us. ryaa ryaa Shiggy, take your time and eat slowly. ryaamm Shiggy ate only meat from the day she cracked out of her egg. Buttely she ate things other than meat. Seeing this, I decided to ask Timi. Timi, whats the right food to feed Shiggy? An ancient dragon can eat meat or vegetable. We can eat magic stones too. I see. What type of meat did you give her after she hatched? ggreat dragon and so on. I wondered if shed get angry about me feeding her that. I was a little worried, but I still told her straight. Maybe it might be a reason for Shiggy to not grow well. So it was best not to hide anything from her. Oh, great dragon? Thats good food! What? It tastes good? Yeah, it has a lot of magic power in the meatin human terms, its seen as quite nutritious. It wasnt very good meat for humans though. But it seems that the ancient dragons really like them. It is quite good. You like it too, Femm? Wuff. When Femm and the other wolves were starving, they lived off drinking the hot springs water. Maybe beasts like that like eating things with magical meat in them. Alra, its true that great dragon meat is good. Y, yeah. But this lunch Millet made is great too. Then say that to Millet. Oh, yeah, Millet. This meal is great! Thanks again, as always. ryaa ryaa! Ah, my pleasure. Timi thanked Millet so directly that Millet blushed. Shiggy pped her wings and drew next to Millet. No doubt she was showing her thanks as well. Youre wee too, Shiggy. ryaa Millet reached down to pet Shiggy. It seemed she really wanted to thank her. With the lunch over, I said to Timi, You said you had some tool that could find the followers of the reaper or the magic god? Yes. I know I did. We still have time, or would you like to go directly to the treasury? Time? Is there something happening after this? Well She said, picking Shiggy up off the floor. Just then, a bell chimed. It was a clean sound that you wanted to hear over and over. Cruz looked around her. Timi breathed out a sigh. Hm. Earlier than I thought. Lets put off the treasury. What sound was that? A visitor. A visitor? Cruz seemed to understand, but this was the pole. So I asked Timi, You have visitors? Not many, but the servants of Shiggy knew she was going to ascend the throne. Oh Ill change back to my dragon form to greet them. Saying that, she handed Shiggy over to me. ryaa Shiggy scrambled back into the pouch. Then, Timi grew and left to greet the visitors. Ive seen her do this over and over, but shes still so huge! Timi is HUGE! Millet and Collette said in loud voices. The elven sisters werent scared by itsome guts. Femm could learn something about being brave from those girls. Wuff. You okay? Wuff? Femm was just standing there with its tail spiked up in fear. It seems that shes greeting them in the throne room. Lets go and see. We walked back to the throne room. There were several levels to the room. And it was massive. Big enough for you to build a mansion out of the throne. I climbed with Shiggy up to the seat. Once up at the top, I ced Shiggy on the throne. Well, it was more cing than seating. Shiggy looked confused. ryaa? Look royal, okay? ryaa Alfredora, please stand behind and to the left of Sighisoara. Can I sand here on the throne? Go ahead. Youre the one looking after Sighisoara, Alfredora. I see. Do I need to take off my shoes? Dont worry about that. By the way, this is where I sit. As I am a viscount, my position isnt so high, but I am the aunt of a duchess. Timis seat was to left and a bit ahead. I wondered what thews of royalty were for ancient dragons. It seemed quite different from human ones. Even so, I had no idea what manners were in human royalty either. Timi now informed Cruz and the others where to stand. Since you are not the servants of Sighisoara, but guests, you may stand over there. Okay Cruz and the others stood before the throne, near the right wall. Since they were far lower than us, they looked like servants. However, as Timi said, the ces where attendants and guests stand are different. The right is for guests, the left is for servants. This also was different from human society. That ce is close to where the other dukes and duchesses stand when they visit. But they have a special area as well. Oh? Wow, thats something. Where do they usually stand? Cruz didnt sound so interested, but Luka asked more with great interest. She was sketching everything down in her memo pad, with all the ces carefully noted. Over here. Timi indicated a ce near the throne, about half way up. It looks like one step down from the duchess. Well, Sighisoara is the ruler of this throne. Wow! We all made sure of where to stand, as Timi moved the operation panel on the side of the throne. We could hear a portal open far away. Then another, and another, and another, closer and closer to the throne room. We soon could see the shapes of other ancient dragons. RyaaaaaaRyaaaaRyaaaa They cried out in low voices, and bowed to the ground. Baron. We are happy you came as soon as you could once you knew the duchess ascended the throne. We are pleased to see you! RyaaaaI am happy to be here. Timi and the baron spoke to each other in humannguage. The baron saw that humans were in the ce for guests and so also spoke in human speech. ryaa! Ah! Im so grateful to hear your gracious greeting! Shiggy cried out, and the baron responded. Then the baron fell to his knees. He rolled over and showed his belly and lifted his neck. Almost like how a dog rolls over in surrender. does this mean your ryaa you said to him had meaning? ryaa Shiggy looked over at me proudly. All Shiggy ever did was say ryaa. However, I guess whatever she said had some meaning. Some baby! More like a genius. ryaa! Shiggy cried out again, and the baron rose. The rolling on the floor must have been some kind of ceremony. In human terms, it might be like when a knight has a sword put on his shoulder by a king. Then different ancient dragons filled the room. About 20 in all. They all were servants of Sighisoara. They all fell to the floor and rolled when Shiggy spoke to them and then rose when he spoke again. Is everyone here? Timi said, and the closest to the thrones stood forward. All 20 servants of the majestic duchess Sighisoara are in attendance. ryaa! Yes Maam! All 20 dragons bowed when Shiggy spoke. But all she was saying was Ryaa!. I guess they all understood it. Maybe I should get Timi to teach me some dragon speak next time. Just then, the first servant dragon looked at me. He was the one that was called baron when he was greeted. It seems he is the highest rank among the dragons. Who is this human? Why is a human standing with the duchess? And why does he stand on the throne? Isnt this quite a disy of insolence? The baron, then the other dragons, began questioning who I was and what I was doing there. For a human to be standing on a dragon throne. It wasnt appropriate for me to be here. They were quite polite all the same because Timi and Shiggy were there. Timi nodded and then spoke to me. Sir Alfredora, the seal Understood. I raised my right hand to show them all the seal. And just as usual, the seal shone with a blue light like freshly fallen snow. How could The dragons were all shocked. Sir Alfredora was given the seal by the previous duchess and is the one entrusted to care for Sighisoara. Oh! Hes been given the honorary -ra! Ttheres no way! All of the dragons were even more perplexed. They looked at each other with surprised faces. ryaaa! Yyes maam! Were very sorry for questioning! Excuse our rudeness! Shiggy shouted at them loudly and they all bowed again. Then the lead dragon rolled over on the floor again. All the other dragons followed him. Timi watched them all and said. Alfredora. They are apologizing and pledging their allegiance to you. Do you ept their apologies? SsureIm not angry. I was kind of lost with what to do. For the ancient dragons, maybe rolling on the floor was like falling to ones feet. It is of no bother to him. Timi bowed a bit, and then turned to the dragons. Alfredora has been gracious enough to ept your apology. Yes maam! The dragons again stood, and bowed again. What is going on I said to myself without thinking. I thought it would take a while to get used to this new dragon culture. Chapter 151 – The Dragon’s Treasury

Chapter 151 C The Dragons Treasury

Trantor: ranzan After that, all the ancient dragons returned home. I thought there would be a banquet, but it seemed that there was none. I was very nervous. All those dragons together were quite scary. I could beat one of them, maybe even two. But there was no way I could go against 20 of them at once. I was surprised that Femm didnt wet himself. Youre doing great, Femm. Femm? .ruff Femm was frozen up. But Femm tried to act like it was tough all the same. It was better when Femm was rxed so I petted it to make it rx. Moo moo! ryaa Moofy and Shiggy both drew closer to Femm. Moofy licked Femm. Shiggy hovered in the air, and tried to pet Femm. Anyway, Moofy didnt seem scared about anything. Wuff After a while petting Femm, it seemed toe back. It rxed a bit and then I turned to Timi and said, A duchess has 20 servants? I thought there werent many ancient dragons. Theres enough to take care of all of the royals. Theres even more that are ordinary citizens. Really? They live in ces unseen by men. Its not our fault you cant see us. Then Luka, very interested in the conversation, said, What kind of ces are those that men cant see? Well, ces like the deep ocean that would crush humans. And ces where the air is so light that humans cant breathe. Any others? This pole. And the moon in the sky. What, the moon? Yes. Pretty much in any ce where humans cant exist. Its pretty rare to find a ce where humans dont exist. Also, Timi, it seems that the ancient dragons also understand what Shiggy is saying. They do. What does that mean in dragonnguage? Shes still a baby so she doesnt understand humannguage. But she knows what the conversation feels like, which is enough. Hmmm. Just then, Shiggy pped her wings. ryaa ryaa What did she say? Rub my head. It was a very simple meaning. So I went over and rubbed Shiggys head. I want to learn the words of dragon speech, but Even if you did, its impossible for a human. Timi said tly. I was hoping to do my best in learning it, so I was a bit shocked. Why is it impossible? The audible range of humans and ancient dragons are different. There are sounds that the dragons speak that humans cant hear. Is that so? There are also sounds that humans cant speak. I guess it was impossible. I was disappointed. Cruz then said with a smile, We were on our way to see that magic-god sensing thing, right?! Lets make our way to the treasury. Luka breathed out heavily. She sounded really interesting in seeing the ce. Yeah, lets go to the treasury. Woohooo! Come on! Come on! Luka and Cruz were jumping around. Timi led us to the treasury. ryaa ryaa Moo mooo Lets go Moofy! Shiggy jumped in my pouch and cried out happily. Collette happily rode Moofy. Moofy was happy to have a person on her again. We walked a while and then arrived at the treasury. The treasury portal was much more borate than the other doors. You could tell there wereyers of magic defense all over the door. Looks tough. Just how youd think an ancient treasury would look. Cruz and Yureena were obviously impressed. Cruz touched the door and turned to us and said, Alyou could break this right? It would be really hard. Sure you could. Who the heck did Cruz think I was? It was impossible for me. Theres such a thing as too hard. No, noits really hard. The door looks really strong and there areyers of magic defense all over it. Is that so? If you cant break it, it must be really tough. Then Timi said to Cruz, Lets not talk about dangerous things like that. Heh heh, sorry. Then, with a touch of the finger, Timi touched a ce on the door. Alra, touch your seal to here. While your fingers are on it. Okay. ryaa ryaa I rubbed the happy Shiggys head while touching the seal to the door. Without a sound, the door slowly opened. Whoaaaa So beautiful! This is unbelievable! What the Collette and Millet were surprised by the gold and silver. Yureena and Luka were surprised at all the magic devices. In the very middle of the room, there was a huge mountain of them. This is way bigger than the treasure of the Demon Lord. Even all the royalty in the world doesnt have this much! Vi-Vi and Vallimie were impressed as well. What do you thing, Alra? Well, I guessits kind of scary. Scary? If you used these for magic tools for evil or in the wrong way. Timi nodded, satisfied. Just what Id expect from you Alra. No real emotion, but a cool and calcted analysis of the ce. I see why my sister trusted you. Really? Yes. ryaaa Shiggy jumped from my pouch and flew around. Shiggy, dont mess with anything. ryaa? Ryaa Shiggy looked disappointed but flew back to me. She probably wanted to mess with the magic tools. All of the treasures here were Shiggys, but there were probably dangerous ones. When Shiggy grows up, she could then find out which ones to use, but not now. On the other hand, Cruz gleefully reached out to grab the magical devices. Cruz! Dont touch that! Ah! Ohokay She was definitely going to touch them. You couldnt let your guard down with her. Luka wouldnt touch them, but you could tell she was definitely interested. Timi! Timi! What does that one do? This onewell, first, lets find the one youre looking for. Ahokaysorry. Timi started rummaging around for the right tool after exining to Luka. I know its around here. After looking around a bit, Timi came back. I found it, Alra. It was a rectangr map to times longer than it was wide. And it was big. The height alone was as tall as a grown man. This is a map of the world? Yup. And this map contains all the inds on it in picture form. Wow, thats something! There was no map like this in human society. It looked like an ancient dragon had flown very high and drew the picture from above. Luka, and then all the others gathered around the map. This is small for an ancient dragon to use, though. We have a bigger one though. This is the smaller version. I see. I thought it would be easier for you humans to use this one. Timi began exining the use of the map. The size of this map is pretty much correct, but distances between ces arent so be careful. I seeso how do we use it? Well, if you let magic flow through it, you can see where the followers of the different gods locations light up. Whoa. Then, Timi let her magic flow into the map and three ces lit up. Wow, three ces lit up! Hm? Cruz sounded really happy to hear that, but Timi then looked puzzled at the map. What is it? Hm, by color, you should be able to tell the gods followerbut Oh First, the ck one is the follower of the reaper, and the death lord is Luka then whispered, Isnt this locationin our kingdom? Close to Mulg? It isthis is different than the map I usually use, but its definitely around there. Its just as Luka and Alra said. Its not that far from Mulg. Whoa It was actually quite close. A good mistake for me. I didnt want to make a long trip in order to meet whoever it is. It made me happy the guy would be close. Timi, Timi, whats this light yellow one? The light of the Destruction Lord. Hes not moving much, but something may happen soon. Destruction Lord? The follower of the god of chaos and destruction. This god was quite well known. In order to encourage development, he used his powers to destroy already existing civilizations. Also known as the god of chaos. Its light because its not doing muchthen whats this bright purple one, Cruz? There was a bright purple light near the pole. This had to be where Cruz is. Just like Cruz. Brighter than the reapers follower too. But, Cruz then said in a low voice. the holy light is blue, though. So, why is it purple? Maybe the dragon king? The dragon kings not purple. Its gold. So then who is the follower thats colored purple? the holy follower is blue. And the lord of magic, formerly the Demon Lordis red. Timi said, looking me in the eyes. Chapter 152 – The New Magic Lord

Chapter 152 C The New Magic Lord

llimie. Why are you looking at me? Im not the Magic Lord! Its not me, either! Vi-Vi and Vallimie both looked troubled as they denied it. Yureena was still unmoved. You may have be it without knowing. I dont think its me or my sister. The magic lord is very, very strong. Well,tely Vi-Vi, youve be very good at drawing magic circles! Thats just because of practice! Luka and Yureena werent trying to scare the sisters with interrogation. They were just searching for the truth. The two sisters continually denied it, though. Of course they did. There was a long history between the magical lord and the hero. Mooo mooo! Moofy, thanks for believing me. Moofy rubbed up against Vi-Vi. Vi-Vi held the cow happily. Mommf mooommff Heh heh heh, stop already. Mooofy started munching on Vi-Vis hand. Vi-Vi petted Moofy again. Why would a cow thats been resurrected by the follower of God chew on Vi-Vis hand then? Vallimie said, pointing at the two. I told you, Im not the magic lord! Maybe theres another reason? Yeah But Luka and Yureena werent convinced. Moofy basically chewed on everyones hand anyway. Cruz shook her head andughed. No, its not Vi-Vi. Why do you think so? Cruz, do you have proof? The two asked her, and Cruz thought for a second. Because, its clearly NOT her. So whats your proof? This is so like you Cruz. Yureena and Luka both looked at her, lost. Vi-Vi grabbed Cruz hand in thanks. And Moofy kept chewing on the other one. Cruz, thank you! You believed in me! Stop chewing on her hand! Moofys drool covered her hand. But Vi-Vi was so grateful, she was almost to the point of crying. Well, you do have that intuition. If you say so, then I believe you. I said, and Luka nodded. Youre right. It might be that some demons are hiding around here or something. Timi, is it possible some demons have infiltrated this ce? I mean, you said that the ces defenses were iplete without Shiggy ascending the throne. Well, someone as strong as a Demon Lord would be able to get into the pce even after the ascension. The Great Demon that killed Shiggys mother did. I see. Then we definitely need to take a look around. Cruz was interested in the conversation as she petted Moofy. Then, she said, unprompted, No, you dont need to searchbecause the new magic lord is Alright? Cruz said, looking right at me. The room fell into silence. Waittheres no way As I whispered this to myself, WUFF! Femm jumped in between me and Cruz. Femms tail was standing straight up. Femm suddenly seemed to threaten Cruz. Femm was probably worried that Cruz was going to attack me. Wait, Cruz. Theres no way Als the new magic lordright? Yeah. Theres no way hed take up after the Demon Lord. Yeah, we were his allies, after all! Everyone was there to defend me. I was thankful. On the other hand, Cruz quickly hugged onto Femm. It was so fast that Femm had no time to react. Wuff? Whoon Femm, its okay Woooon Cruz petted Femm and Femm seemed to calm down. Cruz smiled and said, I think theres no doubt that you are the new lord of magic. Vi-Vi grabbed onto Cruz arm and said, Even if he is, youre not going to kill him like that Demon Lord! Whwhat? Why would I have to kill Al? Wait, so you wouldnt kill him? Vi-Vi, youre letting your mind run away Cruz looked genuinely puzzled. I knew why Vi-Vi was worried, though. There was a history between those fighting for God and those fighting for the magic god. Old man, youre the magic lord! Wow! Funny to hear you be referred to as a lord Both Millet and Collette were impressed. But they werent scared. It made me rx a bit. However, it was a bit embarrassing for an old man to be called magic lord. Moo moo! Moofy chomped down on my hand. Mooph mooff Moofy was nervous about the situation. ryaa ryaa Shiggy licked my face. She probably was worried. Wow! Its kind of cool though. Id rather be a magic lord than a hero! Cruz, what are you talking about? I meanits cool, right? Maybe Cruz was just trying to lessen the tension. Or maybe Cruz was rightit is pretty cool to be the lord of magic. But I didnt know what she really meant. Its not only strange that youre not the magic lord, Alra, but with your strength, you really have to be the magic lord. Yeah, and if Cruz says soits very possible. But, hes not a demonso being a demon lord? Als got more magic than those demons. Timi, Yureena, Luka, and Vi-Vi all talked it over seriously. Then Vallimie said, after thinking it over, There were only a few lords of magic that werent demons. Really? Yeah, but this map is so big, we cant be sure. Well, its the whole globe. Its not detailed enough. We continued to talk it over. I dont feel like I ever became a lord. Well, I never felt like I became a hero! Really? Yep! Cruz said smiling, while taking my hand. I could feel Moofys slobber still on it. So you and I, Al, are both the chosen of our gods! Well, the gods are different, and I dont know if Im really the magic No, youre the one. Seems like Cruz intuition was the only think that made her determine I was the magic lord. But you cant make fun of her intuition. Maybe I am the new lord? I found myself saying. Wow, were both the same! Yyeah. I was a bit troubled by it, but Cruz was fine with it. She was very happy. I kind of blew it off for that reason. As our conversation about it stopped, Vi-Vi interjected, Well, lets send Al back to the vige through the magic transport. If the symbol moves, we know its him. Youre right! Lets try it. While we held the map, I went to the transport room. Okay, here goes nothing. I took the map with me as I stepped into the circle. What happened? Wheres the mark? ryaa Femm, Vi-Vi, and Shiggy all peered at the map after following me through the circle to Mulg. The red mark had moved to Mulg. Cruz blue mark was still at the pole. Holy crap It might be that Im the magic lord, Al. Let me go back to the pole first. Vi-Vi disappeared through the circle, but the mark of the magic lord didnt move. It might be me. Ill go back. Yeah, sure. Femm went through, but no change. So, maybe it really is me ryaa After that, we tried several different ways of this, and I even sent Shiggy through. But, it turned out that I was definitely the new (Demon) Magic Lord. Chapter 153 – A (Demon) Magic Lord?

Chapter 153 C A (Demon) Magic Lord?

After finding out that I was the new magic lord, I went back to the dragon pce. Cruz smiled at me. Al! Congrattions! Huh? Well, I knew you werent just some ordinary old dude. Cruz said as she nodded to herself. Even though she was the hero, she wasnt hostile to the new magic lord at all. Cruz, seems Im the new magic lord...you dont have to fight me? Why would I? Cruz said, genuinely confused. Why? I mean...the hero always goes after the Demon Lord. No! We only attacked the Demon Lord after he invaded, right? Youre right...now that you mention it. Then Cruz thought to herself. She put her hand to her forehead and nodded. What is it, Cruz? I was just thinking about what I should do if you invaded, Al. Youd have to attack me? Well... Cruz was seriously thinking it over. Thinking it over so much, in fact, that Moofy came over to the motionless Cruz. Moffy chewed at and licked her clothes, all over. She was about to bite her hand, but then Cruz grabbed Moofys head with both hands. First, we need to destroy the old Demon Lords castle! What the hell was she talking about now? What? Cruz, what are you saying? Luka and I asked her. What do you mean? The way to invade! Its easier to invade if you have a base like the Demon Lord. But arent you worried that since now Al is the new magic lord that youll have to attack him? Why would I have to attack Al!? Cruz said with an unshaken face. But if you ever do invade somewhere, tell me! Ill help! Oh...thanks, Cruz. But... But you cant kill people! Its bad if you do that! Instead you can wreck some castles and take over kingdoms! Cruz was having too much fun thinking about war. You cant take over a kingdom just by wrecking a castle. What are you two talking about?! Luka was lost, but Yureena nodded inplete understanding. Cruz really is your partner. Its what makes her special. Partner? I wonder if you could call her that! Vi-Vi said, taking my hand. The Moofy quickly approached me. Moofys been focused on me a lottely. Maybe no ones been giving this cow the affection it needs. But the Demon Lord always bes the king of the devils, right? You can do whatever you want, Al! Oh, thanks, Vi-Vi. So be the king of the devils then. I wasnt intending on that, Vi-Vi. I think it would be a great idea! Vi-Vi seemed pleased about it for some reason. I think for now, Al needs to keep this a secret. Yeah, too much trouble otherwise. If people knew I was the new Demon Lord, then the royalty in the capital wouldnt just sit there. Same with the church and the guild. Also, many in the devilmunity would get all riled up. It might cause an unnecessary war. Im not going to do anything special even though Im the new lord. Just everyone keep it secret. I liked my job as a country guard. I could do whatever I wanted at Mulg. All I had to do was stand guard everyday. A capital guard couldnt imagine how easy I had it. Okay, Al. I wont alert the guild. Or the church. They all promised to keep it secret. Old man! Itsth stho cool your the new demon lord! Keep that secret from the vige, Collette! Collette pped her hand over her mouth in understanding...such a cute kid. So that makes me the disciple of the magic lord. Better than just having a good teacher! Millet was trying to joke about it. Or trying to make the situation less serious. Im d she wasnt scared. Thanks, Millet and Collette. Hm? Youre wee, I guess. Dont worry bout it, old man! Then Luka said, with a sober face, Even so, I wonder why youve be the new lord. Because hes so strong! I dont think strength had everything to do with it. Luka said in denial, then Timisoara said, No, the god of magic loves those that are proficient in magical ability. Maybe he was chosen because he was so much better than the Demon Lord? Very possible. Its the gods will, though. Theres no way we can know what the gods thinking. No way to know... Yes, the lords up until now were all chosen for their exceptional magical ability. Thats probably the reason you were. No way to understand the gods or their intentions. But seeing how they acted in the past, you could probably guess. When did Al be the new lord? Luka asked Timi. Probably as soon as he defeated the Demon Lord. At least its pretty certain that the Demon Lord lost his protection from the god when he was defeated. After Alra showed up with more skill than the Demon Lord, the god may have pulled his protection. So you think thats when he became the new lord? That would mean the new lord and hero defeated the old one. Even with the magic gods protection taken from the Demon Lord, that doesnt mean that a new lord is quickly chosen...at least from past examples. I see. Someone stronger like Alra shows up, and the lords position bes open. I think the greatest possibility is that Alra is just filling the position after the Demon Lord was defeated. Filling the position? Like stepping in for a bit? I guess there were several examples of that in the past. Timi looked down at my left knee. The immortal-killer arrow is of the god of death, the reaper. The reason it was a weak attack is because of your protection from the magic god. It really hurt, though... It hurt like crazy when that stone formed. I wonder if thats supposed to be weak. Timi rubbed Shiggys head. I heard about my sisters condition. She screamed in pain night after night. ...yeah. Her nerves were very strong, she was strong against pain. She was noble, proud, and simple pain would not have caused her to cry out. Jilnidora probably felt far more pain that I had experienced. ryaa? Yeah, your mother was a very strong dragon. ryaa Shiggy then drew herself close to Timi. I guess by growing in magic, you fall under the protection of the magic god. Maybe so. Yeah. Yureena looked at my knee and said, He was protected after killing the Demon Lord, but..tely the stones in his knees have been growing quicker. True. He used to use magic and the stone never grew. Now he uses it a little and the stone grows. Timi rubbed Shiggy and said, Hm. If thats so, then I think its connected to the power of the death lord. Thats not a good sign. I think the best thing is to talk to the death lord first. Upon deciding that, we all returned to Mulg. Alra. You need to take this treasure. Can I? It was the map that showed all the different lords. Yes. You are the Alra that my sister bequeathed her seal to. Without this, it will be hard to find the death lord. Well, then Ill dly borrow it. I carefully put the map in my magic bag. Then we all walked to the transport circle. As I watched them enter, I looked over at Femm, Thanks, Femm. Wuff? Back then, getting between me and Cruz. You were trying to defend me. When Cruz identified me as the magic lord, Femm quickly got between us. Femm threatened Cruz, and was ready to fight. Cruz was the hero. There was no way Femm could win even as the king of the magic wolves. Even so, Femm still stood up for me. Wuff! Youre wrong...I... What then? Um...umm... Thanks anyway. It made me really happy. I grabbed ahold of and hugged Femm. Wuff. Femm barked softly and wagged its tail. Chapter 154 – Thinking Back to the Demon Lord…

Chapter 154 C Thinking Back to the Demon Lord...

When we returned to Mulg, it was evening. It was quite chilly after being in a heated pce. The season hadpletely changed to autumn. Seeing the setting sun from Mulg made me squint. I kind of feel lonely now that summers over. ryaaa I wondered what Shiggy was thinking as she said that. This is the first autumn Shiggy saw. I dont remember my first autumn. Normal humans dont. Shiggy, its autumn from now on. ryaa? Its going to get colder. ryaa After autumnes winter. Thats even colder than now. rya, ryaa Shiggy looked a bit disturbed. So I patted her head again. But after winter it gets warm again, so dont worry. ryaa Shiggy now looked relieved. Because shes still a baby, this is the first time shell experience a change in seasons. I wonder how she felt. An ancient dragon like Shiggy probably goes through thousands of autumns. But you only get a first autumn once. Maybe we should take a walk to see the autumn sights. ryaaa Because winter ising, the bears are active. Its going to be harder to defend my territory. ryaa ryaa! Want to hunt with me, Shiggy? ryaa! It seems that Shiggy wanted to hunt. Shiggy hadnt yed with the little wolf pups for days either. Maybe I should let her y with them again soon. While I was thinking it over, Millet said, Al, why dont you get in the bath before dinner? Maybe I should... ryaaa Moo mooo Wuff wuff The beasts were really happy about that. Everyone headed to the bath. It was very convenient having a hot springs in my house. Nothing beats an evening bath! Yeah! And oblivious as usual, Cruz and Vi-Vi got ready to head in after me. They werent opposed to mixed bathing at all. Give it up, you too. Yeah, let him bathe alone. Vi-Vi, I dont remember raising you to do things like that. Cruz and Vi-Vi were surrounded by a bunch of proper girls. I bet they were about to be lectured. I used the chance to slip into the hot springs with the beasts. I washed them like usual and we all got in. ryaa ryaa You like the bath too, Shiggy? Does it feel good? ryaa! Shiggy swum around pretty well. Quite quickly too. Moofy and Femm just soaked in the bath. As I rxed in the bath, Femm came over, How is your knee? Pretty good. The baths good for it, right? I think its a lot better than the way it would hurt before. The bath really didnt have effect when it hurt. But before it really hurt I felt that it did lower the pain a bit. Since the demon lord was protected by magic, maybe a magic bath is better for you? Maybe thats true... Even without a real reason, it did have some effect. After enjoying the bath, I got out. From that, I ate dinner, and then went to bed. I decided to hit the sack early. On the other hand, Cruz and the others headed to the bath after dinner. After I got into bed, Shiggy got on top of my stomach and balled up. Moofy drew close as well. She put her snout on my chest. A little heavy. Femmid down above my head like usual. I petted them a while and thought. Why was I chosen to be the magic lord? What does it mean to be one anyway? While I was thinking about that, Cruz came in after finishing her bath. She probably came to bless my cursed knee. Al, how does your knee feel? Pretty good, thanks to you. Thats great to hear! Lets go see the death lord tomorrow, okay? Cruz said, while she fell asleep aside Moofy. It was me, Moofy, and Cruz. Moo moo! What is it, Moofy? Moofy now drew close to Cruz. She nudged Cruz with her snout. Cruz and Moofy seemed to be good friends now. As I watched them, I petted Shiggy and thought about being the magic lord. Al, whats wrong? Cruz looked over at me, noticing that I was lost in thought. I was confused. What do you mean? You just look like youre lost in thought. Yeah... I guess I just started talking about what I was thinking over. Magic Lord...well, the old Demon Lord... Yes? From what Vi-Vi and Vallimie were saying, he was pretty serious about ruling. Yeah, they did say that, now that you mention it. The Demon Lord was a serious ruler. He was trying to improve the devils domain. Thats why he recruited Vi-Vi as the fifth of the Four Sub bosses to improve thend they were growing stuff from. He even allowed Vallimie to stay peacefully in her forest. If he was a general bad guy, he would have burned the forest to ashes. But then he suddenly invaded. Yeah...thats why we were order to destroy him, Al. He started using zombies in his army right around the same time he started invading. That is true! That means, he lost the magic gods blessing and became a follower of the death god when he invaded. Cruz looked at me with a grave look. Youre probably right. Do you remember thest thing the Demon Lord said? What was it? Never...forgive...you...only...you., I think. Is that what he said? Cruz looked at me, confused. Hisst words were directed towards me. Not to the hero, but he said them to me. After that, he hit me with the arrow, so I remember what he said. I bet the Demon Lord knew why he lost his gods blessing. Yeah, youre right. But Cruz didnt really look like she understood. He probably didnt notice while he was fighting us, though. Yeah, thats possible. Right? Because youre much stronger. He would understand it if he knew you were a much stronger magician than he was. I dont know when the Demon Lord really sensed my presence. But he probably knew he lost his blessing from the god of magic to someone. Then, he probably realized that there was a much stronger magical presence than him somewhere. He sensed that the tables were about to turn, and he quickly turned into a disciple of the death god. Timi said that once a Lord is defeated, a new one is usually born. A Demon Lord without a blessing and an unblessed Magic Lord candidate. The one that survives received the blessing of the Magic God and bes his new lord. That means that the invasion was probably with the purpose of the Demon Lord killing off the new Magic Lord candidate. With a new candidate for Magic Lord, in other words, me, the Demon Lord might have remained a good Lord...rtively. Yeah, you might be right. With that said, it might be my fault the whole war against the Demon Lords army happened. Thats not true. Cruz answered with augh. The evil of that army was the LORDS fault, Al. Its not yours! Even so... If he thought he was going to be reced, there are still other methods he could have used. Cruz spoke confidently. While this was going on, Moofy was lightly chomping on my hand. I was going to stop her, but she looked so sleepy I just let her continue. I think there are other ways then be a disciple of the death god. Yeah. Yes! Its the path HE chose. Cruz said, and it made sense to me. So its not your fault. I see. Im kind of relieved. Thanks. Eheh heh Cruz blushed. Mommph mommff Moofy drowsily chewed on my hand. Cruz and I both looked at each other and smiled. After that, I fell asleep. It was a very pleasant sleep. But I woke up in the middle of the night. I felt a strange sensation. Moofy had my hand in her mouth, but was shaking. Chapter 155 – A Change in Moofy

Chapter 155 C A Change in Moofy

Even though Moofy was shaking, I wasnt too scared. It looked like the same thing when Femm became a heavenly wolf. Hey! Are you okay?! Moofy! Moofy!! But Cruz was scared. I took my hand out of Moofys mouth, and checked her pulse and breathing. Nothing strange. Theres nothing really wrong with her. No, it strange with her shaking like that. Cruz made some sense. Wuff? ryaa? Femm and Shiggy both woke up. They both went over to Moofy and sniffed at her. Some change happened to her, just like when Femm changed before. Ah...I see. Can you sense anything, Cruz? Cruz had very strong senses as the follower of God. It seems Im a Magic Lord myself, but I dont have a good senses. Im guessing that being the follower of God gives you those special senses. She checked over Moofy just in case. I petted Moofy as well. While that was happening, Moofys shaking stopped. Mfff mfff Moffy started to sleep again. Sleeping after that? I though. Femm also fell back asleep. I was relieved. Moofy. Mooooofy. Mfff? Moofys eyes opened, but they jumped back and forth. She looked around the room and then looked confused. Moo? Moofy, you were shaking. Are you okay? Moo. Moofy didnt seem to remember. Cruz crossed her arms after looking Moofy over. ...magic cow? Moo? Cruz, what do you mean? Magic cow. A magical cow beast was called one. Just like you call a magical boar a magical beast. Cruz was thinking that the cow became a magical beast. Um, well Moofy used to be a holy beast. Yeah. You changed it over from being a skeleton. Yup. But now I feel magical power from Moofy. And, though there are exceptions, usually magical beasts are weaker than holy ones. If Moofy became a magical beast, that means it got weaker. Too bad. Really? So it stopped being a holy beast? Moo? Moofy had no idea what had happened. I thought it was sad, so I hugged Moofy a bit. Moo moo Moofy was happy with that and licked my face. She might have changed because she was chewing on the hand of a guy that was up to be Magic Lord. If you hadnt chewed on my fingers... Moo? She didnt sense my regret, and kept chewing on my hand. Mmmpf Mffff ...toote. Now you can chew all you want. I guess there was a reason for me stopping Moofy from chewing on me before. However, now she was a magical beast. There was no reason to stop her. She could chew all she wanted now. Moofy became a magical beast after chewing on me like this... Al, what are you saying? What do you mean? Shes a magical beast now, right? Mff mfff Moofy looked at Cruz and I and just kept chewing. Femm looked worried and was licking Moofys back. Maybe to clean her hair. Shiggy petted Moofys head with her tiny w. Al...A holy beast just cant be a magic beast.... Cruz looked confused. It was just as she said. However, most beasts didnt have protection from either god. Moofys not a magical beast? Shes still holy! I see. If thats so, then it might be better that she chewed on me. I lightly pulled my hand out of her mouth. Moo! Moofy looked upset. I took Cruz hand and put it on Moofys nose. My hand might be worse for her. Let her chew on your hand instead. ...mooo. Moofy looked a little disappointed. Cruz appeared resigned and let Moofy chew her hand. Your hand isnt bad for her, Al. But Im the magic lord now. It would be bad for her to be a magical beast. She wont be one just by chewing on your hand, Al. You think? But you said you could feel magicing from her, right? Yeah, so she is a magic cow. I didnt know what she meant. A magic cow is a magical animal thats a cow. A holy beast, so a holy cow? In addition, magic, so a magic cow too? ...magic. The first time I heard of that. Maybe she has some kind of magic knowledge. I thought it up now. Magic and a magic cow. I see. So no real magic knowledge after all. Moofys just a cow that has both magical and holy powers. I see? Under the protection of God and the Magic God! Wow! Moo? Moofy just kept chewing on Cruz hand. Look, Moofys horns got a little bigger too. Now that you mention it... I wouldnt have noticed the change unless she mentioned it. It wasnt as big a change as when Femm turned white. Then Cruz whispered, while petting Moofy, A mix of magic and holy sounds very strong... Moo moo Moofy, the strongest cow in the world. Moo? Then Cruz looked at me, Thats why Im saying your hands not bad! She said, almost lunging towards me. I...I see. Well, thats good. Yeah! Thats why I can do this! She grabbed my hand, and stuck my finger in her mouth. I jumped back. Cruz, thats dirty! No, its not! Cruz said as I took my finger from her mouth. A strong-looking Moofy with a mix of magic and holy... Cruz gazed at me. Moofys kind of like our child, right? Child?! Yeah, we raised her together...like a manifestation of our love! No, I think its somewhat different. Im sure that Cruz didnt really understand what a manifestation of our love really meant. Just then I could hear a voice outside the door. What are you two TALKING ABOUT?! Ah, Yureena. I heard amotion and came to the room...whats this a manifestation of our love business?! Al and our child... WHAT?! Cruz said what she said with a smile too. She really wanted to say that Moofy was like our child. Yureena was VERY upset. Al and I have raised a manifestation of our love! She said, and bit down on my finger again. Yureena moved like a sh, way faster than youd imagine a healer would. No! Whoa! She yanked my finger out of Cruz mouth. Al! What have you done to her!! I havent done anything... GRRRRR! I tried to calm down Yureena, but she was livid. While this was going on, Vi-Vi, Luka, and Millet showed up. As they all stared at Cruz belly, I began exining the change that happened to Moofy, but it took some time. Chapter 156 – Tough Looking Moofy, a Mix of Magic and Holiness

Chapter 156 C Tough Looking Moofy, a Mix of Magic and Holiness

After simply exining what change Moofy had gone through, we all went back to bed. It waste at night. I could exin moreter. It was the next morning. I took everyone in my bed to breakfast. Vallimie and Timisoara were there as well. Yureena, looking worried, ran up to Moofy. Moofy, are you okay?! Moo moo Moofy was healthy looking as usual. She nudged Yureena with her snout. Vi-Vi rubbed Moofy, looking worried. Hasnt changed that much though. Yeah, doesnt look much different in the morning sun either. Luka also looked over Moofy seriously. The change in the beast probably got her very interested. Cruz looked at everyone proudly. Moofy was magicized! Magicized? Luka looked confused. Luka didnt know what magicized meant, but, oh well. Cruz had made it upst night. Cruz puffed out her chest. Yeah, magicized! Al did it to Moofy! Did it? Cruz was hard to follow, like usual. So I exined. I think Cruz is trying to say that the Holy follower can holicize things, just like the Magic follower can magicize things. I see... She thinks that while she was a holy cow, she also got some kind of magical protection as well. Hes right! Her looks have changed much, but I can feel magical power off of her! Cruz was really excited. But Luka wasntpletely satisfied with this. Timi went over and petted Moofy. I see. It is true that her magical power changed since yesterday. You can tell, Timi? Yes. Holiness. Magic. I can feel both powers. Magicized. I dont know what than means. But I dont know if its wrong. Timi said, and Cruz huffed, Shes tough looking Moofy, a mix of magic and holiness!! You said thatst night too, Cruz. Yeah! The strongest cow, Moofy! Moo moo! Moofy huffed too. You could see she was really fired up. ryaa! Moo! Moofy jumped on top of Shiggy. Shiggy puffed out her chest too. Cute...you really are cute, Shiggy. Timi said. Youre sthuper, Moofy! Collette said, and hugged Moofy. Then Collette jumped up on Moofys back. Collette and Shiggy then danced around. Wait, Moofy, did your horns get bigger? Moo moo? Yeah, it seems her horns got a bitrger. Moo moo! Moofy reared up to show off her longer horns. Millet came over to pet her. Moofy, it doesnt look like you changed much, though... Sister, look! She got a bit darker colored too. Maybe because of the light? Hm? Maybe...Moofy, did you get darker? Moo! Collette was saying that Moofy got darker. However, Millet didnt seem to agree. A holy AND magic cow, wow! A magic cow is a magic beast thought. Dont get the two mixed up. Okay. Luka chided an excited Cruz about it. Vi-Vi then also petted Moofy. Moofy, can you use magic now? Moo! Moofy looked confident. Maybe we should see. And so thats what we did. We went outside before we ate breakfast. Wuff wuff kyaaafu! Moo! The pack of magic wolves came over after noticing that Moofy had changed. The little pups walked up and started sniffing Moofy excitedly. I guess the wolves noticed that Moofy had changed as well. Femm, does Moofy smell different? Yes, more like you, Al. Huh? Kind of weird being told something like that. We walked a bit to an open area. Moofy, use some magic. Okay. Moofy stomped a bit. Muuuumoooooo! Dont push yourself too hard. Mooooooo! GAAAAAAAa...TOOOOoooom Magic balls began to be generated between Moofys horns. She shot them over and over and they mmed into the ground and exploded. Whoaa! Unreal! Mooo moo! Moofy looked at us proudly. She was able to do this before. But then, she could only shoot one and it wasnt that strong. The strongest cow, Moofy! Mooo moo! Magically Holy Moofy! Moo Mooo! The manifestation of Al and my love, Moofy! Moo! Saying that Cruz went up and hugged Moofy. You can call me mama from now on... Moo? Vi-Vi got between Cruz and Moofy. Dont get everything mixed up, Cruz! Huh? But its like Als her father and Im the mother, right? GRRRR! Vi-Vi hugged onto Moofy. If Moofys got a mom than its clearly ME! Wha? Moo moo Seems like Moofy is getting popr. She was happy to be so beloved by the others. I was d. Chapter 157 – Picking a Gift Fit for a Death Lord

Chapter 157 C Picking a Gift Fit for a Death Lord

After seeing how Moofy had grown, we went to eat dinner. Vi-Vi was all over Moofy because she thought Cruz would take Moofy away from her. Moofy, want some of this to eat? Moo! I see, well, eat all you want! Moo moo! Vi-Vi treated Moofy like a child while ncing over at Cruz from time to time. Cruz really didnt seem to care, though. Al, lets hurry up and see this Death Lord, okay? Yeah... Hes nearby, right? Yeah, but farther than you think. Really? At least, the Death Lord was closer than Id imagine him to be. Thats because I thought hed be in the devils territory, or maybe on the edge of the continent. Or maybe that he was on some small ind far across the ocean. Compared to that, however, he was quite close. Even though I said close, itll take several hours on Femms back. Is that so? Then Timi, while petting Shiggy, said, I want to go with you. However, I think I should go to the dragon pce today. Why? Are you expecting someone? Not particrly...but theres a chance that some dragon royalty mighte. Should Shiggy go too? ryaa? Shiggy looked confused by what was going on. Timi shook her head. If it was another in high royalty than Shiggy would have to be there. But theres no appointment with them, so shes fine. I see. ryaa! I would like to be with her, but... Timi said, ncing over at Shiggy. Then Shiggy said something, ryaaaa I see. Oh well. What did she say? That she wanted to be with you, Alra. Ah. She petted Shiggys head. What about you Luka and Yureena? No, I cant take two days off. And I have things to do at the capital. Wow, you two are always so busy! Cruz said, as if she knew nothing about it. The girls had taken the day off to see the dragon pce and Shiggy ascend the throne. I was happy they did, even though they were busy. Vi-Vi was petting Moofy when she asked, I understand why Yureenas busy, but I thought you said your Guild job was honorary so you didnt have to work much, Luka. Yeah, but theres still ceremonies and public rtions work. Sounds like a lot. It is. And Id much rather be doing research than anything else. Luka breathed a long sigh. Hard being a hero. Well, if thats so, then only Al and Cruz and I are going to see the Death Lord. I guess Vi-Vi was nning on going too, and I was thankful. Vi-Vi then said in a worried tone, You think you can beat the Death Lord without Luka and Yureena? Oh yeah, I think he can. He probably can. Luka and Yureena both answered. Cruz then thought a bit and said, He sure can! She said loudly. What do you think, Al? This Death Lord, or follower of the reaper or whatever he is, I think I can take. Hm. But Im not trying to kill him. I just want to make a request. Huh, I guess that sounds better. Vi-Vi said while petting the cow. After breakfast, Luka, Yureena, Timi, and Vallimie all went to their respective ces. I got ready for the trip with the others. We should bring gold. Yeah, that Death Lords probably in need of cash. Or maybe something valuable? Yeah, something we can bargain with. We went to the storage shack to look for something to trade. Rummaging through everything the dead monsters had dropped, Cruz and I carefully looked for something valuable. Al, what about this? What is it? A cool looking rock ...uh, okay. She then started telling its story. On the east side of the continent she had found it had fallen near the tallest peak on the coast, and it was...a cool looking rock. I checked it over, but there was nothing magical or special about it. It was... ...a rock. Or maybe this? What do you think, Al? What is it? An awesome stick. Huh? It was a stick she had found that had fallen in the deepest part of an ancient dungeon. But...that was it. Both those ces she talked about, I was with her and had fought there. I had no idea when she had picked them up. We need something a bit more valuable, something thats so rare anyone would want it. Really? After I said that, Cruz rummaged through her bag looking for something good. Watching this, Vi-Vi said, Cruz, when did you bring all that junk to Mulg? Its not junk! Theyre precious items! Really? So when did you bring those precious items here? Um, I bring a bit every day. I could leave them at my ce in the capital, but the ones I like I want to have with me here! Saying this, Cruz looked at me proudly. I bet shes stuffed crap around my bedroom too. Next chance I get, Ill have to look and see what I can find. I know she was looking her hardest, but she simply didnt have anything worthwhile. So I continued looking around. And I finally found what I was looking for two hours after we had started, after breakfast. Chapter 158 – Going to Meet the Death Lord

Chapter 158 C Going to Meet the Death Lord

I got onto Femm, Vi-Vi got onto Moofy, and Cruz ran along with us. Just like usual. With Shiggy inside of the pouch over my chest. We ran about an hour before we rested. It was important to take short rests. Especially the first one. We had to check Cruz shoes, Moofys hooves, and Femms paws. Youre so fast Moofy and Femm! Moo moo! Wuff! They seemed happy about it and I was happy to be on this journey with them. Al, how much longer? Um... I took the map out of my magic bag. It was the magical map I had received from the dragon pce. I had to treat it carefully. That thing it huge! Yeah, its the smaller version, but its still a precious item from the dragons. It was about one human tall and two humans long. It was hard to yank the thing out of the bag. And it was way too big for out here in the woods. Vi-Vi said, Cant you fold that thing? It would take up less space if you could. You cant. What a bother. Vi-Vi said, disappointed. It was like fabric or like paper, made from a strange material. It had some special magical matrix used that you couldnt fold up. You could roll it up, and if you tried, it immediate rolled itself up into a cylinder. When you unrolled it, it unrolled instantly. There was no in-between. It was convenient rolled up, but a bother to look at if you were traveling and looking at it. This thing wasnt made for humans to carry and walk around with. Yeah, but for an ancient dragon, the map fits nicely into their hands. It probably is convenient enough for them. Cruz said, looking the map over. I really dont understand how to read world maps in the first ce. Its pretty rare to find one. So this is Mulg, right? Where is the capital? None of the viges and cities were written on this dragon map, so it was hard to know. Im sure this map was made way before many of the cities and viges existed. Um, I think its here. And this is your manor, around here, next to this western mountain range. Hmm. And wheres Lindobal Forest? Way over here. Pretty far. So this is where the Demon Lords castle is? Yeah. Im d I had Timi and Luka exin to me where everything was on the map beforehand. That was I could exin where ces were with confidence. Cruz and Vi-Vi were looking the map over with a look of respect. I see, so that means that this Death God is in my domain? Really, Cruz? Yeah, here. Wait a second. Cruz then took a map from her magic bag. It was a human-made map of her region. The Death Lords location probably here! You may be right... The distances in the human and dragon maps were quite different. The way they were made was different. It was hard to find where different features matched each other. Even so, Cruz had pretty much done so. Good job, Cruz! Heh heh, I memorized where everything is in my region. Cruz said proudly. That reminded me that after Cruz had shuffled up her assessors, I did see her reading a map. Maybe thats why she knew. You did great, Cruz. Strange for her. Moo moo! ryaa ryaa Eheh heh Everyoneplimented her and she seemed very happy. Cruz, whats around this area? Nothing. No viges...just the edge of my region. I guess nothings better than something. Yeah! Cruz answered happily. It would be bad if there was a vige nearby during a fight. And if there was a road, you never knew when a person would walk by and get wrapped up in it. If we had to fight, we could do so without any interference. Moo moo! Moofy mooed, bit my sleeve, and pulled. She wanted us to get going. Did you all get enough rest? Moo moo! Im fine. I can go anytime. So we stopped our break and continued. ryaa ryaa Shiggy was happy as well. She liked our quick speed. After resting twice more, we came close to where the Death Lord was. Theres a building over there. Strange. Let me check the map once more. I checked the map and there was one strong gray light shining. Even though it was a huge map, it was of the world. Once you got close to something, you couldnt tell the direction. The Magic Lord red, the Hero blue, and the Death Lord ck. Combine them and you get a gray light. I think hes inside there. Al, what do we do? Attack first? Blow up the building? Cruz was going too far again. No, when we fought the great demon, I did blow away his castle first. She probably was impressed. No, we just came to talk, make a request. I see. Then lets go to the entrance. All right. So we walked to the entrance as friendly as we could look. Chapter 159 – The Mansion of the Death Lord

Chapter 159 C The Mansion of the Death Lord

If we were going to visit, we might as well do it through the front door. I looked over this building that probably housed the Death Lord. It was a grand building of stone. The entrance had two people standing next to it. ...its big. Yeah, I had no idea that there was a building like this in my region. Well, its on the edge, so its no wonder. Cruz shook her head. No, its strange this big buildings here and no one noticed. It probably took a while to build and required a lot of materials. Youre right, Vi-Vi. I thought I knew pretty much everything going on in my region... Cruz looked regretful. I patted her head. Well, its the Death Lords building. It was probably built with magic. Yeah, if so, then it could have been built right away. No need to worry over not noticing. And its the edge of your region. The materials were probably brought from somewhere else. After looking here and there, Cruz turned to me. Okay, lets go! Yeah. Since we werent going to fight for now, Femm shrunk to smaller size. From there, as we got closer to the entrance the guards stood at attention. Halt! I stopped and smiled at them. Wed like to speak to the owner of this ce. Why? The Death Lord is living here, right? How did you know?! The guards looked shaken. They probably thought we didnt know and were a bit shocked they couldnt fool us. There was no doubt now that the Death Lord was here. An almost god-like entity informed us that the Death Lord is here. I kind of exaggerated, but it was Timi I was talking about. It was no joke though, Timi was a big deal. Are you thinking of bing a disciple as well? ...well... I didnt know how to answer that question. Cruz whispered to me in a low voice, What does that guy mean? Um, like convert to their god... I had to exin what they meant by bing a disciple. It also meant that we had to worship the reaper. Both of these guards were probably disciples as well. Yes! Wevee to be disciples! Cruz said, happily. I guess she thought this would help. We came here to find a way to cure my cursed knee. There was no way would be a disciple of the death god. But we still had to act the part. Is that so? Wait here please. The two guards said and then nodded to each other. They talked a bit, and then one entered into the building. Vi-Vi leaned over and asked. A disciple of the death god...does that mean they have a religion? Certainly seems like it. Maybe you should make your own, Al? No, no thanks. Really? Too bad. Theres nothing to be disappointed about. It would be really hard to manage a religion. After a while, the guard returned. You have been given permission. You may enter. Thank you very much. I gave my thanks and we started to enter the building. As we came closer, both men said, Wait a second! What is it? The guards looked at us and said, Do you think you can bring in the dog and cow too? Moo? Wuff? They both stared at Moofy and Femm, who were walking in as if it were obvious. These guards were pretty normal for followers of the reaper. They want to be converts as well. I said, and the guard stared at Moofy. The cow does? Yes. Moo moo! Moofy answered him happily. The guard then looked at Femm. And the dog too? Of course. Wuff! The guards looked confused. They then said.. But...its a COW. But its for your great master. Dont you think animals can be followers too? Maybe, but theres a dog too! Its just a proof of how great your master is that... After talking it over more, we came to the decision, You may pass. Moo moo! Wuff! So Moofy and Femm came in with us. We entered and I lightly touched the walls and door opening. Theres no magic in these. I guess a follower of the death god doesnt use the power of magic. But, there is something strange here, even without the magic. Really? If Cruz said so, then there must be something. Maybe theres some unknown power of the death god used though. The inside was quite dark. The opening hall wasrge and there was hardly any decoration. There were three men standing inside. The middle man, who seemed to be running the ce, spoke, Youvee to be disciples? Yes. Wed also like to make a request from your lord... Please let us meet him! Cruz bowed quickly and said this. He ignored her and looked over at Femm and Moofy. And these animals are your offering? Thats quite considerate. Wuff! Moo! Both Femm and Moofy were surprised. I quickly stood in front of the two beasts. No, they also came to be disciples... Hm? Not offerings? Yes. I took out a bag of gold for him to see. But we have prepared alms in a separate way. Oh... The guy took the bag of gold and bowed deeply. Audable offering. The master will be pleased. Would you let us meet him? The fellow slowly shook his head. Dont think that you can meet the master so easily. Wha? Why not? The fellow paid no attention to Cruz question. If you really want to meet the master, there is a trial you must endure. A...trial? This is going to get tedious... Chapter 160 – The Quest…or Trial

Chapter 160 C The Quest...or Trial

Then the fellow turned to me and said, So you are adventurers? I guess you could say that. I see. And youre quite strong. Well, yes. The fellow nodded to himself. Its because this offering is quite a bit of money. An amount only a very good adventurer would give. You have a good eye. You saw that well. The two fellows next to this middle one praised him, but the fellow wasnt that sharp. I could have made it from other business. Some people do adventuring for a hobby too. Sometimes you meet such people by chance. However, not all rich adventurers are good ones. Very good! You discovered that we are very strong adventurers. It was not that big of a deal. I was kind of pissed at how proudly this guy was acting though. But I smiled and asked him, And if we are so strong, what task would you ask of us? No, what I would call it is a trial. So basically he meant we wouldnt get paid. Well, that cant be avoided. Were the ones with the request. Understood. What is the trial? Yes. There is arge mountain behind this building. There is a zombified dragon living there. I need you to destroy it. Whaa? I knew this would be too hard. Of course, it would be easy for Cruz and I. But it would be hard for a normal experienced adventurer. The fellow was a bit taken aback by my slight surprise. Are you unable to do it? No, I dont think its impossible. I, I see. Then please do it. Understood. After saying that, the fellow seemed to breathe a sigh of relief. He probably wanted to get rid of the zombie dragon but couldnt figure out how to. I wanted to say one thing to him though, Normal adventurers arent able to deal with zombie dragons, right? You...maybe be right. If we said we couldnt, then what would you have done? My master wouldnt give you a task you couldntplete. Thats all I can say. I see. I guess there might be another task waiting for us. But the fellows underlings looked up at him with respectful eyes. Wow! Its excellent that you know exactly what task to give by estimating their power! Thats quite some power, sir! Its not my power. Its the power of my master. I see! We ignored their conversation and left the building. Outside, the two guards looked unsettled and said, Did they tell you to do something difficult? Just get rid of the zombie dragon a ways behind this building. Whoa! They looked at each other in surprise. We wont say anything about it, but maybe you should apologize, go back, and ask for another task. What tasks does he normally give out? Mostly goblin killing if theyre adventurers. If its farmers, some grown crops. Merchants are just told to go and sell this and that. I see. The guards still looked quite worried. I bet the priest was quite angry, though. Because you let them in. But we didnt let... I guess that fellow was the priest there. I guess the level of priests are different in this cult. There were very high positions of priests, and not so high ones as well. I had no idea what services they performed for the death lord. Thats not true. The priest seemed very warm to us. Nothing for us to apologize for... Then the guards looked at Moofy and Femm. Moo? Wuff Ah, so youre saying that us entering with these animals is what made him angry? If thats so, then maybe you need to apologize with us then. Yes, as you two did let these beasts in with us. Seems the guards were quite nice fellows. If we got in a fight with this cult, wed let them go, alive. Thank you very much. However, you neednt worry about us. Dont take too hard a task. No, no, were specialists at taking out dragons. How stupid are you two? Its a zombie dragon, no way it will lose to a human. The guards seemed to be worried about us and so started to lecture us. As we walked away, they followed us with their worried looks. Dont get yourselves killed! Sure, dont worry about us. And so we made our way behind therge building of the death lord. The road led up into a mountain. I guess we should climb this path? Were not that prepared, Al. Well, if the zombie dragon attacks us, we wont have time to get prepared. Thats a possibility! Cruz ran along happily. I was riding Femm, while Vi-Vi was riding Moofy. And the quiet Shiggy finally looked out from the pouch. ryaa! You did good staying quiet. ryaa Shiggy was smart, so she knew when not toe out and scare someone else. You think this dragon zombie is a great dragon? It might be a lesser. Maybe some kind of earth dragon. Hm. Which do you like Al? I dont like ANY zombie dragon. But a lesser is easier to kill. Compared to any other dragon, a lesser dragon was smaller and weaker. It had hardly any magical barrier. I like earth dragons. The flying ones are annoying. Makes sense. And as we were talking, we could smell rotting flesh. That must be the smell of the zombie dragon. So we ran quickly towards the smell. Chapter 161 – Long Time, No Dragon Zombie

Chapter 161 C Long Time, No Dragon Zombie

The stench of the zombie was getting worse and worse. It must have been rotting for quite some time. Wuuuhf Moo Femm made a small sound like he was about to barf. Both beasts smells were very good. They probably were much weaker to smells than humans. Are you okay? Hanging in there. Moo. Moofy and Femm seemed to be doing their best. I was happy, but I didnt want them to push themselves too hard. Moofy. Do this. Moo moo. Vi-Vi put a handkerchief over Moofys nose. I dont think it had much of an effect, but Moofy still looked quite happy. Femm, here. Wuff. I didnt think it would have much an effect with Femm, but I put a cloth over Femms nose as well. Femm wagged its tail. It must be having some effect. ryaa Shiggy cried out from her pouch. I wondered how clear Shiggy could smell it. I was sorry for it if her smell was more sensitive than a humans. I rubbed Shiggy over the pouch. Shiggy, hang in there, okay? ryaa Do you want to wait here instead? ryaaa! Shiggy screamed once at me. I had the feeling she was saying no. Then I said to Femm and Moofy. You can wait here if you want. Yeah, Al and I will clear the dragon out quickly! No need to worry about us. MOO! Very strong answers. Just like a heavenly wolf and holy magic cow would make. We found arge dragon after progressing a while through the horrible stench. It was twice as big as Doby. And its meat was falling off, and you could see bones here and there. This is...bigger than a great dragon. Maybe a High Great. A High Great Zombie? She didnt seem rattled; Cruz just prepared her own sling. It was a sling that tossed rocks using centrifugal force. A High Great dragon was a great dragon that had much more age and experience. Many creatures lose their power as they age, as do humans. But dragons dont have this type of aging, so their power doesnt decrease with age. Instead, they got stronger with age. I wonder if this high great dragon was changed to a zombie by the death lord? I guess its obvious that it probably was. Even that great demon had changed great dragons into zombies. It was hard to think that anyone less strong than that great demon could turn a high great dragon into a zombie. Even so, it was true that the great demon had even turned Shiggys mother into a zombie. And an ancient dragon is far stronger than a high great. With careful preparations and correct procedure, someone other than the death lord could have done it. So you couldnt say ONLY the death lord could have done this. If the death lord made this zombie, then why did it send us with the task of killing it? No idea. But someone other than the death lord may have made it. But this is right behind his ce. I dont think hed just let it happen. Vi-Vi said, while thinking over the problem in her mind. On the other hand, Cruz got her slingshot set. She was probably getting ready for this dragon to fly at her. Lets think this over AFTER weve killed it. Yeah. Al, watch me kill it. Your knees going to hurt if you use magic, right? Thanks, but if its dangerous, I can blow it away quick with my magic. Youre fine, just watch me rock! And as she said that, she started swinging the sling around faster and faster. Then she let fly with the rock, which was hard to follow as it was so fast. CLUNK Ah! The rock she threw bounced off of the dragons magic barrier. Seems the dragon had that on it too. If it was a high great dragon, it had a strong magical barrier. The high great dragon slouched towards us. Guess I got to use my holy sword. Cruz yanked her holy sword from her scabbard. At the same time, she dashed towards the dragons neck and swung her sword. CLANG! Mpph The high great dragon stopped the holy sword with its fangs. A few fangs exploded and fell to the ground, but Cruz sword didnt reach the dragons neck. And as Cruz was floating back away from the attack ǣң!!!! The dragon cried out while spewing fire at Cruz. It was fire breath that filled the air with a sea of zing fire. But Cruz cut through it with her holy sword. The fire then suddenly vanished. It was the power of Gods holy sword. Hey! Wait! Maybe so that Cruz wouldnt beat it this time, the high great dragon flew in the sky. Cruz could only use her sling now to attack it. Maybe I should do something.... Moo moo As I was preparing my magical attack, Moofy mooed loudly. And at the same time, she shot numerous magical charges at the dragon. The first one broke the dragons barrier, and the second and the ones afterwards pierced the dragons body. The dragon fell to the ground, but still was moving a little. It had no ability to fight, but because it was a zombie, it wasnt dead. Vi-Vi. Can you burn it with fire? ... I turned around and saw Vi-Vi on top of Moofy, frozen there. She waspletely lost, no, she might be unconscious. Ah! Cruz, Femm, and I all noticed at the same time that Vi-Vi had wet herself on top of Moofy. I guess it would be hard for her to cast that spell right now. Uh, Cruz, could you finish it off? Leave it to me! Cruz delivered the finishing blow to the high great dragon. I bet the soul of this great dragon ascended to finally find peace in the heavens. Chapter 162 – After the Zombie’s Death

Chapter 162 C After the Zombies Death

While Cruz was finishing off the zombie with her holy sword, I got my emergency set ready. I knew this would happen, so I opened my magic bag. The emergency set was really just a change of clothes for Vi-Vi. Al, I think Ive sent the soul of this dragon away. Thanks. Now help me take care of this. Is this...oh, ok. I gave her the clothes, which she went to help Vi-Vi with. Moofy. Could youe over here? Moo! Moofy took Vi-Vi, still riding her, over to a hidden are. Best to leave thedies to this. Phew. That dragon screamed the hell out of her. Couldnt avoid it. Guess youre right. The high great dragon screamed out magic with the fire breath. Cruz cut it away, but there was no stopping the dragons magic cry. Vi-Vi took it all. Im d she was on Moofys back. Moofy will keep her safe if she passes out. But I think Moofys in a worse situation now with Vi-Vi on her back. I would have to wash Moofys back when this is finished. Femm, keep a look out. Leave it to me. I asked Femm to watch for enemies, while I took the battle treasure. Its something an adventurer always has to do. Ugh...this rotten flesh is horrible. Not much to be found. Are the scales rotten too? Well, if the scalese off the body soon before it begins to rot, they wont... Its mysterious. Sure is. The meat rots, then the scales do, or rather, they start to fall apart. Is it a magical effect? Maybe rted to the curse of zombification. As I said that, I continued to gather what I could. The only thing worth selling were the fangs and the bones. As I finished, Cruz, Vi-Vi, and Moofy returned. Moofy happily nudged my back from behind. Moo moo! Ah, Moofy. Thanks for watching over her. Moofy really is awesome! Vi-Vi said, as she patted Moofys head. She had already changed. Moofys back was clean too. Cruz must have taken care of that. Seems Im done with all the battle spoils collection... Thanks. Should we burn the body? Go ahead, Vi-Vi. Vi-Vi talked bubbly as if the whole ident had never happened. If so, Im not going to mention it, just forget it even happened. Vi-Vi started drawing a magic circle to burn away the body. Even though the souls gone, if we leave the rotting body, it will have a bad influence on everything around here. And if you eat it, your stomach will hurt. A LOT! Both Cruz and Femm had eaten zombie meat before and remembered the meat making their stomachs churn. It would be sad if other beasts around ate it and had the same effect. Im done, Al! Thanks, Vi-Vi! That was fast. Im d I can rely on you. Vi-Vi activated the magic circle, and the body of the dragon was surrounded by fire. The fire was quite strong. After only a moment the body was ash. Thanks, Vi-Vi. An easy task. It would be sad to leave it like that. We buried the ashes into the earth, and then made our way back. We returned to the building of the death lord. Now we finally get to meet the death lord! It would be nice to...at least. What? I think well see him, Al. Thats why we were given that task! Cruz turned back to me as she said this, but her legs didnt stop. She smiled at me as she kept walking. Al! What kind of person do you think this death lord is? What kind? Probably an old man. Wha? A girl would be better! Or maybe a devil! Well, since youre a magic lord, Al, maybe a devil can be a death lord! I hope its not a demon. Really! Demons and devils were totally different. A devil was just a kind of human, in a way. But a demon was more like a magic beast in human form. The difference between humans and devils was like the difference in a white wolf and a brown wolf. The difference between humans and demons were the difference of a wild wolf and a magical one. If its a human it doesnt matter what it looks like. Yep. Cruz walked along happily, sometimes swinging around a branch in front of her. If she liked the stick she was winging around, theres no doubt it would end up in her magic bag. Thats why all of her junk keeps increasing. As I was thinking about that,Vi-Vi whispered from on top of Moofy, ...Al? What? Um, after you beat that dragon zombie... She was probably worried I noticed that she had wet herself. I just acted ignorant. Did something weird happen? No, I guess nothing did...nevermind... Vi-Vi studdered while she tried to blow it off. Al, do you bring changes of clothes around for other people? Changes? If you ask Cruz, I bet she has some. Hm? Shes got so much crap in that bag, I bet she has one for all of us. I see. Vi-Vi looked at me with a relieved smile. She probably thought I didnt see the whole incident. I thought that was fine. And as she smiled at me relieved, I saw the building of the death lord off in the distance. Chapter 163 – The Followers of the Death God

Chapter 163 C The Followers of the Death God

As we approached the building, the guards at the door approached us. Ah, you guys are okay. We were worried you guys had run into real danger and wouldnte back. I guess that zombie dragon was scary. They probably thought that we had seen the dragon and turned away ande back. It made me happy that they were at least a little worried about us. Thank you for your worries. We thought that the priest should have changed his task for you, after all. Yeah, he shouldnt be asking you to do impossible tasks. The guardsmen said, then Cruz puffed out her chest, Its okay! We killed the thing! Hm? What? The dragon zombie! The guardsmen looked at us and each other with squinted eyes. Girl, no need to lie. Yeah, you cant lie to that priest. Just be an adult about it and admit to him that you couldnt fullfil the quest. Im telling you, ITS DEAD! They didnt believe her, and she puffed her cheeks out in anger. The guards were now mocking her. Sister, I wont say anything if you just... Look, HERE! Cruz took a high great dragon fang from her bag. It was huge, as long as Cruz leg. Whats that?! Its huge! Right? Its the huge fang of the dragon we just killed. Is it real? The guards stepped forward to touch the fang. I think they finally realized the thing was real. Then they looked regretful. I have other fangs and ws too. The scales were already rotten so we couldnt get those. After she pulled out those to show them, it was clear the guards believed her. They both bowed. Were sorry for not believing you! Dont worry about it. We just though no one could just beat a dragon zombie. Well, were thankful you were so concerned. The priest will be very happy to see you. The guards saw us in as we entered. They didnt say anything about the beasts this time, either. As we entered, the priest came to see us. That was quick! We defeated it, so please take us to the death lord! Cruz said as she showed him the dragon fang. He looked it over seriously, and then his underlings did. Yes, this is the dragons fang... But the fact that you took care of it so quickly means... The priest and his underlings were both shocked. But they both nodded in eptance. I guess you really are quite the adventurers! You really did a good job telling these were the real thing, boss. It was not my power, but the power of my god. The priest said with a proud face. Then he looked at us and nodded again. Excellent job. My master will be pleased. Please take us to him. Hm, okay then. Come with me. He said, turning, and walking away. It was a bit anti-climactic for him to agree that quickly, however. Wonder what hell look like. I wonder too! Moo moo! Cruz, Moofy, and Vi-Vi were quite interested. Femm and Shiggy were just quiet. They probably didnt care. After walking a while, we arrived in the deepest room. My master is in there. Please take care not to offend. Leave it to us! Moo! Cruz replied happily. Moofy stretched out and looked confident. The priest looked at the two a bit worried. Are you two really okay? Theyre fine! Well make sure they dont offend anyone. Please do not. Can I have your word? The worried priest then brought us all into the final room. The room was quiterge but dim. There was only one window. And in the back on top of a small tform, there was a bamboo blind. Master. We have some new followers. ... No answer. Whoever the master is, was behind that blind. These fellows are very strong adventurers. Theypleted the task of eliminating the dragon zombie. ... Still no word. The priest now looked a bit confused. Um, but... ... . ... ...I see. Somehow the two were having a conversation. However, it was one that we couldnt hear. It must have been some kind of spirit speech. You will now see the form of my master. However, you may not speak of it outside this ce. I understand, but... I had no idea why the priest was saying this. It must be because the followers were kept away from meeting whomever this person was. That way, theyd be jealous of one another, making pointless friction between the followers. W...what?! Whoa! That surprised me! What the? Vi-Vi and Cruz screamed, surprised. I was quite shocked myself. The death lord was a light-blue translucent blob. It was big enough to put both arms around. We watched the blob bounce forth towards us. Its a SLIME! And a pretty rare slime too. Ive never seen one like this. I bet Luka would want to know more. You all are...rather carefree about all this. Vi-Vi said, looking quite lost. Chapter 164 – The Slime-Lord

Chapter 164 C The Slime-Lord

Slimes have a blubbery look to them, but theyre a strong magic beast. They have no set shape, so theyre strong against physical attacks. On top of that, theyre strong against magic. Depending on the type they can use acid, poison, and so on as a weapon. Its not easy to kill them off. A C-Rank adventurer will basically run if they see one. A B-Rank party, if not prepared, shouldnt attack one either. A death god-ish slime jumped out and in front of us. PiGGi! It said loudly. I bowed deeply to it. Even if it was a slime, it was a death lord. You had to pay respect. Death Lord, the first time weve met. I am Alfred Lint... ryaaa! ...I mean, Alfredora Lint. Its a pleasure to make you acquaintance. Shiggy was ticked off that I didnt use Ra. The Death Lord said, PIggI! ...the master states his happiness to allow you to meet him. The priest was interpreting. The slime used a terse and unfriendly tone that looked unlike its appearance. And the priests seemed to be able to understand the slime too. Wow. Are you using spirit speech, death lord? PiGGi PiGgi! ...no, well, theres no need to, the master states. So I faced the priest and asked, Wait, are you sure youre not using spirit speech with the slime? Its not spirit speech. I am the lords follower. After bing a follower, you may speak using something like spirit speech. I thought it was strange that Cruz and I as Holy and Magic lords couldnt speak to our followers like this death lord could. No, maybe we could, we just never tried. Thinking that over, I looked over at Moofy. Moo? I had no idea what Moofy just said. But since Moofy was under Cruz influence as well, it might be somewhat different. I looked at Cruz. Can you use it, Cruz? I mean, Moofy and Femm are both under your influence. No. I have no idea what theyre saying. Is that so? Yes! Maybe its something we have to practice. That reminded me that the one that told Moofy to shrink from her giant size was Cruz. She was able to transmit what she was thinking to Moofy without having to use spirit speech. There may be a way to speak to ones followers after all... I thought about it, and tried to corrted it to the present situation. It was important for the death lord tomunicate to its followers. I will create a separate magical way ofmunication like spirit speech. PigggGI! So I spread a spell of spirit speech over all of those there, including the priests. Spirit speech wasnt very difficult and didnt use much magic either. Then I used the opportunity to introduce myself again. I am Magic Lord, Viscount Alfred..ora Lint. And this is... And I am the Holy Hero Marquis Cruz Conradine! And Im a lord-less Vi-Vi Lindobal! The priest unconsciously said,huh?Probably thought we werent that big a deal. His face began to turn pale, and he started to shake. If it upset him that much, I was sad that I kept it a secret from him. The death lord gathered itself up into a blubbering stance. A holy hero! The slime said happily. I couldnt guess its age, but it had a very young voice. Even so, it spoke nowhere as proudly as when the priest tranted for us. Maybe the priest mistranted to make the lord seem much stricter and severe than it really was. The slime turned to Moofy and Femm, Youre fluffy! I am the heavenly wolf, the king of the magic wolves, Femm! Moofy. ryaa Shiggy emerged from my pouch and said. This is Sighisoara. A duchess of the ancient dragons. Do-Ra-Go-n! ryaa ryaa! The Death Lord blubbered again. It was either scared or excited. No way to tell from looking. Chelnobok! The masters name... The priest exined to us. The slimes name was Chelnobok. I bowed once again to Chelnobok. Great Chelnobok, Ivee to ask if you know how to remove this curse ced on my knee. Immortalkiller? This really was the death lord. It knew by one look. Guess this wasnt your ordinary slime. Yeah, the former magic...I mean...Demon Lord shot me with it when he died... PIGgi! It was shouting PigGi even through spirit speech. It wasnt surprising as Femm and Moofy sometimes did it too. Chelnobok bounced over and touched my left knee. It felt cool. Feel better? I...really dont know. PiGi Chelnobok blubbered again. The priest again exined, The master only recently became death lord. The previous death lord happens to be the previous Demon Lord as well. So are you saying it cant heal it because it was the previous death lords curse? Yes... I could feel that Chelnobok was sincerely sorry by the way it said that. Just then, the priest turned and bowed deeply to Cruz and I. Im very sorry about earlier! Hey, no problem. If I knew that you were the Magic and Holy lords, I would have never forced you to do that task. Well, we were the ones that kept our identities secret. ...I know this is a bit much, but I have a request. He bowed deeply again and again, and then got on his knees. Hey, you dont have to... No! If I dont, you wont know how I really am feeling! The priest had no intention of raising his head. Even though Cruz was trying to pick his head up, he remained stuck to the floor. Could you get rid of the previous Death Lord for us? Please... Chelnobok squirmed next to the still prone priest. Getting rid of the previous lord must also be Chelnoboks will. Let us hear the details. I said to both Chelnobok and the priest. Chapter 165 – Chelnobok’s Request

Chapter 165 C Chelnoboks Request

The priest of the death lords cult began to speak, The previous lord was a schrly magician type...even so, he was willing to sacrifice anything for his research. I see. A magician like a mad scientist. There are magicians like that though, sometimes. So what kind of research? Immortality. ...how ironic. I have no idea why a death god would make someone like that a follower. The death god does not allow anyone to be immortal. Its impossible to know what a god is thinking... Timisoara had said that before. The gods traverse thend, and maybe theyre just ying with us. No, maybe, maybe they see the effects of everything thousands, maybe millions of years into the future. They might have intentions that transcend this continent, maybe even this. Either way, a human can;t understand their thoughts or intentions. So I asked, I thought that the reaper didnt allow anyone to pursue immortality, so after you became lord, did he give up on the previous lords research? He hasnt changed his intentions at all. In fact, his desire for it has only multiplied. The priest said slowly, shaking his head. This religion has always been about the simple worship of the death god. The previous lord changed this far too much. Vi-Vi looked at him, confused, The death god it also called the evil god. I cant believe the worship is simple. I understand your thoughts, as all humans must die. So death always seems terrifying. Thats true. Thats why we try to live without regret so that we can die at any time. We believe that that is the teaching of the reaper. Hmmm. Vi-Vi folded her arms and thought it over. It was quite simpler than I had imagined. A statement that summed up a philosophy quite simply. Because the death god worship was so old, this must have made it quite stable in doctrine. In order to achieve immortality, the previous lord was willing to do anything. He ran out of money, and so took the previous Demon Lord under his wing, and when he ran out of materials, he taught secrets to the Great Demon. No honor at all. Not just that, he spread zombification, and began creating his own zombie army. Thats why itspletely evil...we have to put an end to it. Cruz scowled. She was the ruler of this domain. If there was someone churning out zombies here, she had the duty to stop it. But since I dont think hes doing this any longer... You had that zombie dragon behind your building. That was his doing. It was so strong that we were unable to destroy it. A dragon zombie, not just that, a zombified high great dragon. It is hard to kill. Thank you, Alfredora. Cruz. Vi-Vi. Fuzzies. Youve helped us much. Chelnobok and his underling both said their thanks. The priest bowed again. Chelnoboks upper half ttened, which I assume is a bow in the slime world. Cruz walked over and petted Chelnobok. Chelnobok seemed to shake, pleased. Then the fuzzies Femm and Moofy went over and sniffed Chelnobok. PIGIGI So, Chelnobok, when did you be the lord? Just a bit ago. The master became a lordst month. Before, he was a research experiment, in other words, a research animal. I was the one in charge of caring for him. Yuuuuup. The priest continued. Then one day, the old lord disappeared. After that, the lord status moved to Chelnobok. From then, the slime decided that everyone should go back to simply worshiping the reaper. Did you quickly notice that you had be the lord? Al and I didnt notice at all. There was a message. From the death lord? Yes. To the master, and to all of the followers as well. Wow, so what did it say? The priest looked over at Chelnobok. He was probably worried that one cant just say what a god proims to outsiders that easily. Chelnobok bounced a bit. Go ahead. Sire. The priest stood straight and closed his eyes. These were the gods words, after all. No need to becking in respect. My new lord and follower Chelnobok, take the old teachings of death among my followers. He then breathed deeply, and opened his eyes. Those were the words of our God. That was quite the directmand. My God says absolutely nothing to me. Nothing from mine either. Right? The reaper is much more...aggressive with his followers than the magic or holy gods...even so.. It would have been better that Chelnobok was the lord in the first ce. Not some immortality seeking mad scientist. You could understand that easily. What did take the old teachingsmean, though. I thought about it. But you couldnt just say something like that in front of a pious priest like him. But, why not first... So you mean, since you got that message, it also meant someone had to defeat the previous guy as well. Cruz was about to say something rude, so I covered her with my own loud voice. As I looked over, Moofy and Femm were both poking the slim with their front paws and hooves. Shiggy might have wanted to y as well, as she was trying to get out of my pouch. Shiggy definitely wanted to feel what that death lord felt like. She was a baby, after all. Yes, that is true. Please! The previous lord has transformed himself into a powerful immortal. It is not easy for adventurers to defeat him. Cruz patted Chelnobok as she said, Cant you beat him yourself? Its tough. The master can take weak undead and quickly send their souls to paradise. The master can also do so with strong undead by touching them. That is his right as death lord. So you cant beat him? The priest shook his head. The previous lord is not only undead, but has his own undead army. We cant get close. Even if we do send the souls of his undead to the skies, hell attack us while we do it. And hes strong. The fighting power of the master is not so strong. He tried many times to kill that zombie dragon, but failed and was driven away. Scary breath. Chelnobok did something like a shiver. You could at least see it blubber. The dragon zombie WAS very strong. If you had low attack ability, it would be hard to touch it. The priest bowed again. As did Chelnobok. Please aid us. All you need to do is bring the master to him. Please. I decided to help as they were in such a fix. Having a zombie army meant a lot of trouble. Lets do it. And the arrow is of the previo...what? Youll do it? The priest looked up at us in surprise. Sure. Right, Cruz and Vi-Vi? Leave it to us. No problem. And you Femm and Moofy? Wuff! Moo moo! Ryaa! Ryaa! Shiggy loudly agreed with the rest of us. Chapter 166 – Headed to the Old Death Lord’s Hideout

Chapter 166 C Headed to the Old Death Lords Hideout

We heard that the ce of the previous death lord was several hours walk from where we were. He had made a hideout and surrounded himself with a zombie army. Hearing this, Cruz took out her map. On this map, youre saying its here? ...let me see. The priest looked a bit lost. It seems that he really couldnt read the thing. Outside of traders, adventurers, and warriors, other trades really never had the need to read them. This is the capital. And this is Mulg. Huh? Mulg? Cruz pointed and exined, but the priest still looked a little lost. He didnt know the capital, and of course, didnt know Mulg. In the middle of Cruz exination, Chelnobok bounced, and got on the map. Its here. One part of its body became slender and pointed to one ce on the map. Chel, you can read a map? I can read it. And Cruz didnt even have to exin where the capital or Mulg was. She didnt even show where we all are now. Even so, Chelnobok knew it. Must have been able to read one already, quite some slime. Wow! Mo moo! Excellent, master! Cruz patted Chelnobok again, and Moofy poked it with her nose as well. The slime shook...I guess it was embarrassed. Then Cruz asked me, excitedly, Is this my region? I guess so. All of this is the border region. I said, as Cruz ran her finger across the map. Lot of weird stuff in your territory. Eheh heh. As we discussed this, the priest then spoke with a worried countenance, Um...that means, youre the ruler of this area? Yes, I am! Im very sorry about never contacting you ahead of time. Dont worry about it. Cruz kept on smiling. So Ille to levy taxester. Please be kind about it... The priest seemed taken aback. After that, we made our way to the ex-death lords ce. The priest said, while seeing us off, I said that I might be able to cure the curse of the previous Demon Lord if I beat this guy, so I was thinking of apanying you as well. Oh, is that so? That is true that the old Demon Lord was under the old death lord. Thats why Chelnobok said that curing the curse would be difficult. Its so kind of you to take this up without being promised a cure, magic lord. Thank you. The priest bowed deeply again. Weird being called the magic lord. Kind of embarrassing. If someone helps me, then I can help others. How honorable. And please stop calling me magic king. Someone wille for me. The priest grinned. Understood. Its a secret. Of course. We headed out without the priest. Chelnobok jumped into a pouch on Cruz chest and rode with us. As we left the building, the guards called out to us. Hey, are you going home already? We have a task to do. They looked at Cruz, confused. What? Maam... What is it? Your boob...ah, nothing... Because Chelnobok was riding inside, her breasts looked like they were massive. It did look really strange, but the guards just let her go. Were on our way! Be careful. The guards watched us go, and we were off. After we walked a while, Femm went back to itsrger size and we all took off. As we sped up, Shiggy stuck her head out of my pouch. ryaa ryaa! She really likes fast speeds. Then Ill run even faster! ryaa! Shiggy pped her wings. She was very happy. Femm looked proud and sped up even more. Chelnobok stuck its slime-head a little from her pouch. I had no idea where its head was in the first ce. Even though you have no eyes, you can see, Chelnobok? I can. Hmmm. Seems that it could see. I wondered what kind of sight it had without eyes. What does your sight look like? All of me is an eye. I see. So your whole body is an eye? That means you have no blind spot. PIggi! I wondered what it was like to be all one eye. Its convenient to have no blind spot, but then youd never be able to rx. As we talked about it, after running a big longer, we smelled a foul scent. On a path that should take hours walking, Femms speed made it seem quite short. It stinks! This is smell pollution! I have to do something as this regions ruler! Its unfortunate, but fortunate theres no town or roads here. If there were people here, thered be a petition to deal with the problem. Youre right. PiGGi Chelnobok was now on Cruz shoulder blubbering. Maybe it was scared, or maybe excited. Or maybe it was just...shaking. You cant tell much about a slime. After we ran farther, the smell got even worse. We saw a tall wall and a zombie great dragon. The wall must be surrounding the hideout, with the dragon as lookout. I guess the lord actually thought of some defense. Al! What now? I nced at Femm and Moofy. They were running well, but it would soon be hard to run in this stench. All the way to the lord! Kill all the zombies as we break through! Got it! Cruz answered and we sped up even more. Chapter 167 – Fighting the Old Death Lord

Chapter 167 C Fighting the Old Death Lord

There was one zombified great dragon in front of us. It was a strong enemy, but no match for Cruz. As soon as it noticed Cruz it opened its mouth. But just then, Cruz sped up. I wont let you shout! G........ Before it could cry out with its breath, Cruz cut its head off with her holy sword. No need to finish it off! Roger! Even with a holy sword, one slice wouldnt kill a zombie. Its head was off, but it was still pping around. You had to cut open its face. Then the arms and legs would just keep pping. Even it if was threatening to adventurers, it wasnt scary to me. Well finish the thing offter. Its sad. As Femm kept running at top speed, we kept talking about the dragon. It was very sad to be turned into a zombie. PIGGiii Just then, Chelnobok cried out while on Cruz shoulder. At the same time, it shimmered with light. It was a beautiful, blue light that lit up all around us. grr The dragon zombie let out a little cry and stopped moving. At the same time, its body stopped moving too. What the? Moo?! Its the right of the death lord. It can send the souls of weak zombies to the afterlife. Vi-Vi and Moofy looked lost as I exined it. It was pretty much a Turn Undead spell. The dragon wasnt weak, but it weakened after being cut by the holy sword. Turn Undead is a spell that the holy followers use as well. Yes, but this was a very strong ones. The Turn Undead the leaders at church used only worked on the weakest zombies. It would be easier to just use offense magic. But the Turn Undead that Chelnobok used was extremely strong. It might be like the difference between the church holies and the holiness of Cruz. Awesome, Chelnobok! PIGGI!! Cruzplemented the slime, and it shook in embarrassment. Chelnobok was on Cruz shoulder as we plunged into the hideout. Chelnobok shimmered again as we entered the hideout. All of the zombies shined on by the light suddenly stopped moving. These weak zombies all sunk to the ground and stopped. They were all soulless now. This makes it easy to run! PIGGI!!! With all the zombies down, Cruz had a wide swath to run in. We just broke through all the zombies without missing a step. Femm and I, Vi-Vi, and Moofy followed behind. The priest said the slime had low fighting ability, but with Cruz theyre unmatchable against zombies. That dragon zombie fell over like a goblin. In an instant, we were deep inside. There was a human undead standing. Thats him. I see. His face was green, and his flesh was rotting. It stood looking at us with an empty look. Be careful Cruz! Roger! When Cruz got within 10 paces, the semnce of the former death lord changed. Cruz quickly jumped backwards. Then the former death lord let arrows fly. And not just one or two, 10, no 100 at the same time. Immortal killer arrows! Dont let them hit! Okay! The former death lord had shot those arrows without any indication it would do so. They were very fast and countless. There were those that flew straight and those that curved through the air. Because they werent physical arrows, you couldnt stop them. If they hit the ground or were knocked away by the hold sword, they disappeared. Of course, Cruz couldnt get closer. Vi-Vi, Moofy, get back! Got it! Moo moo! As they backed away from the former death lord, zombies came to attack behind them. Mooooo! Take this! I could hear the sound of magic charges being shot behind me. I could also hear Vi-Vi spewing magic at them as well. There was no reason to hold back my magic. It would be impossible for Cruz to keep defending herself from thousands of arrows. I put up a magic defense and sent it to knock down the immortal killer arrows. Leave the dodging to me. Thanks. Femm quickly dodged the arrows shot at us. Femms true ability was astounding. It was an astounding magic wolf, but now a heavenly wolf, so even more impressive. PIGGIiiii Chelnobok shimmered once again. But the former death lord didnt stop moving. In order for the Turn Undead to work, the slime would have to touch him. I used the barriers to knock down the arrows, and when I had a change, shot him with magical bullets. But the guy would just attack with arrows again. This sucks. No chance for attack! I cant get close! PIGGGIIII! This must be the former death lord, then. He would urately shoot arge amount of arrows at you quickly, over and over. Ill knock them down! Thanks! We got fired up again. Id just have to knock hundreds of arrows down over and over. So I shot out hundreds of magic barriers. Each of them were small and intercepted the ends of the arrows, destroying them. GAAAAAAAAHHHHH I could hear the sound of hundreds of arrows hitting hundreds of barriers. Cruz believed in me and plunged in. But she still couldnt get close. The former death lord focused on her with his arrows. The amount increase at her. I stopped them by sending more and more barriers her way. As the former death lord was getting mixed up in the action, Chelnobok jumped from Cruz shoulder. PIGGGGGGIIIIIIIIiiiiiii A blinding blue light shone...a full-powered Turn Undead spell from the true death lord. Even so, no effect on the former death lord. For a moment, though, the former death lord stopped and looked at Chelnobok in the air. In that moment, Cruz charged. Haaaaaaaaaaah! Cruz swung her holy sword with all her might. The former death lord was split into two. PIGGGIIIiiii Then Chelnobok jumped over and onto the former death lord. It plopped down on his face, and shone a piercing blue light. Ugghiii.... One word, and the former lord stopped moving. Piggiiii Chelnobok breathed a lonely sigh of relief. Are you okay? Okay. Cruz hugged and picked up Chelnobok. If you two are done,e help us over here! Moo mooo! We heard Moofy and Vi-Vi screaming at us. Wereing! Piggi! Chelnobok jumped back onto Cruz shoulder. Chelnobok shone that beautiful blue light again. I should go too. Is your knee okay? Im not pushing myself that hard. Femm ran, and while I was on Femm, I attacked with magic. Chelnobok was effective and the remaining enemies were quickly gone. Chapter 168 – Healing the Knee

Chapter 168 C Healing the Knee

After defeating the former death lord and zombies, Chelnobok went over to touch the undead. Since it was the new death lord, it could send away the souls trapped in the zombies. And after that I looked around once more at my surroundings. We were surrounded by walls, and it seems that we were inside a building much like aboratory. We just kind of stood there and stared at the former death lords corpse. Cruz looked at his corpse and said, How did he be an undead like this...just like a... Like a zombie? Yes, but I dont think a guy who was the death lord would just be a zombie. Cruz looked really worried. Theres no way a death lord, if he wanted to be undead, would choose to be a zombie. But he looks like a zombie. His looks and his motions fit exactly. Yeah... He stunk like a zombie too. Moo. Femm and Moofy also thought he was a zombie. So I asked Chelnobok. Chel. That former death lord... ...was a zombie. He was going to make himself undead with powerful magic, though. Maybe, made a mistake. Does that kind of stuff happen? Even a death lord? Cant help it. I thought a bit. In other words, it might be that when he used that powerful magic to turn himself undead, he lost his status as death lord. Maybe. I see. The lord lost his following of the death god in the middle of his casting, and thus made an error in his magic. It might have been that. It was the perfect timing for a death god that hated immortality. If thats so, then it might be quite easy for a human to guess a gods intentions. Thats disgusting... Moo... Vi-Vi and Moofy both looked at the dead body in derision. We looked for any battle spoils among the zombies and burned the bodies. Then we did the same with the former death lord. We searched the building. It was quite arge one. There was research tools in the middle and a mountain of materials. This was our temples So he stole all of this stuff from you as well? Why would he do all of that? Cruz said, confused. From what the priest said, the guy just disappeared. Then the lordship went to Chelnobok. Since he wanted to make a zombie army, the temple would be a bad ce. Hm? The religion wanted to use it for a different purpose. If you had zombies infesting the ce, all the humans would leave. However, it would be hard to maintain something like that with with educated members in the religion fighting against you. And zombies were hard to keep in groups. Thats why he probably went off somewhere else. Well, no idea why now. Hmm...so this guy was researching zombies here? Not so much zombies as all undead. We should burn this whole ce down! Moo moo!! Vi-Vi and Moofy wanted the ce burned to the ground. I think we need to study this ce and our enemies. Rya ryaaa! And Femm and Shiggy wanted to know more about the ce first. No, Shiggy might have just been making noise. Hm, Al...what do you think we should do? Cruz looked at me seriously. This was Cruz domain. I think Cruz needed to make the judgement. There was the thought we should probably burn the undead and the materials up. And also that we should leave some to study. A difficult problem. So I asked Chelnobok, Does the death gods religion want to keep all this? We do not. I see. Its scary if someone uses to attack us. I guess they really didnt have much attack power. I understood how Chelnobok felt. I guess we should probably burn all the materials and the building. Maybe we should at least keep the most important materials though, Al. In the Mulg storage shack? Or maybe Shiggys treasure room, at least. Then there was no way someone bad could steal it. And if we needed to research something about it, it would still be there. Oh, I see! Then I leave that to you, Al. Then we run the building. Got it. I put the important materials into my magic bag. Just leave the burning of the building to my magic circle, Al! Vi-Vi then draw a magic circle all around the building. It was quite big. And she was finished in a sh. Vi-Vi, I didnt know you had gotten that fast. Heh heh, of course. Vi-Vi puffed her chest out with pride. The power of the magic circle was strong. The building was quickly consumed in me. Since it was contained in a barrier, the heat didnt escape. It was like arge chimney. After the building burned to the ground, Chelnobok bounced around and then touched my left knee. Alra...your knee okay? It feels like it always does. But, itll probably hurt tonight after using all that magic. If I used a lot of magic, it would grow. Worrisome. Do best. Then Chelnobok began to shimmer. It was probably trying to heal me. I was very thankful. Seeing Chelnobok light up, Cruz nodded, The previous death lord went to the other word, so now the curse might be healed! Do best. The light grew and the pain seemed to lessen. The strange feeling in my knee began to disappear. After a while, Chelnoboks glowing seemed to lesson. How you feel? Somehow...quite a bit better. Good. Chelnobok blubbered and quivered. Cruz then touched my knee lightly. Yeah, the horrible feeling from the old death lord has disappeared! Oh! Als recovered? If so I was happy. Chel, thanks. I thanked it, and it seemed to bow. Not full recovery. Sorry. But I feel a lot better. Your knee. Soul is damaged. Hmm. Soul not easy to heal. I see. I guess not. If you could heal a soul, then a zombie could be resurrected. But. No more stone after this. That makes me really happy. Thanks, Chel. Sure. Chelnobok shook and quivered again. Chapter 169 – Priest and Slime

Chapter 169 C Priest and Slime

After taking care of the old death lords hideout, we went back to Chelnoboks temple. Chelnobok was riding in Cruz chest pocket again. This time the guards didnt say anything about how huge Cruz chest looked. The priest was waiting for us inside of the building. W...why...Ah, first... The priest first asked, and then remembered that there were other believers around him. He hurried to bring us into a room away from their ears. What happened? We killed him. Beat him. Chelnobok jumped out of Cruz chest pocket. It then jumped around on the floor. Moofy then ran up to the slime. She started ying, pushing it around with her nose. Femm poked at the slime with its front paw as well. PIggI PIGGI! Moo mooo! Wuff! Chel, Moofy, and Femm were having a lot of fun. Shiggy wanted to join as well, so she jumped out of my pocket. ryaa ryaa! PiggGi! Shiggy hovered in the air and thennded on Chel. Chel jiggled happily. The priest watched them with a smile. I see. Its good to hear that the previous lord has been sent to the foot of god. Cruz cut him up with her holy sword, and then Chelnobok sent his soul to the heavens. Thank you very much. Such a load off my shoulders. For this religion, it was the gods oracle that said the previous lord had to be destroyed. It had to be done even if it cost lives. He must have felt the pressure of spending days not able to fulfill the gods will. The previous lord became a zombie. Oh my... The priest was taken aback. Even if he was the previous lord, it was unthinkable for him to be a zombie. He probably expected the lord had be a lytch, spectre, or dragul. I had thought so too. A punishment from god...I guess. I dont know. No one can know what the true intentions of god are. If the magic lord says such, then it must be so. Well, I never felt I was an agent of god or anything... Me either, Al... Did the previous death lord ept the oracles of the death god? It seems he did not... Vi-Vi looked at us while petting Chelnobok, Youre a favorite of the death god, Chel. PIIGi? Youre probably right. After that, we ate with the rest of the temple. They were very appreciative of us. The sun was setting when they brought us dinner. PiGGi So, Chel, you eat the same thing as normal humans? Sure. Then the priest said, The master is able to eat anything. Anything? From flowers to bugs...anything in between. But food is good. It could eat anything, but it liked eating human food. Edible and desirable were different ideas. Kind of like how humans could eat hydra meat, but no one wanted to. After dinner, the priest came in and bowed. I have a request for you lords. What is it? Could you protect the master? Protect? The priest looked at Chelnobok, then bowed deeply. Yes. I dont think the death lord should remain here. Why? Shouldnt Chel be here? Chels the chief after all. Of course Chel is. However, we dont have power to defend him. We couldnt beat that zombie dragon, after all. That was normal. But they werent super weak. However, they were in a lot less stronger position than Mulg. If another Great Demon appears, he may used the Master for his crimes. Thats true. Even if Chel has low attack power, we can definitely use that talent of his with the undead. Scared. Chelnobok jiggled, probably out of fear. Al, what should we do? I think it would be fun to live with ChelCruz said. What do you think, Chel? Are you okay leaving the priest? Hmm. Chel thought it over. Its surface jiggled. The priest used to be the fellow in charge of caring for Chel. I wondered what kind of rtionship they had, and didnt really know. Then the priest turned to Chel and said, Youre not too far from your believers in the vige, you can see them anytime. Hm, then okay. I see. Welle with us to Mulg vige then. I go. Vi-Vi then asked the priest, Are you going to be okay? Isnt the lord the highest rank here? Its fine. The master doesnt have to be here. The temple wont split or something though? I think its fine. The master wont be so far away. If the temple was safe and Chelnobok wanted toe with us, I guess its okay. So we decided to take him back with us. Cruz was happy and so patted Chel. Well take care of you Chel! PiGGI While she was petting Chel, she remembered something. Oh, I forgot about taxes! Ah. The priest looked down. Because this is a religious body the taxes are quite difficult. Yes... Well, an assessor. Ill send an assessor your way, so treat him right! The assistant was busy assessing taxes around Mulg and the assessors probably were too. One reason it because the weight of the assessors luggage was heavy. An assessor was usually from a farming town as well. It was hard for them to assess a temple as they spent time mostly assessing fields. But still they would have toe. I see... Rx, Ill tell them that youre not bad! Thank you... The priest bowed deeply again. Chapter 170 – Staying in the Temple

Chapter 170 C Staying in the Temple

The priest drew us back before we left to return home. The sun has already fallen, so please feel free to stay here tonight. The trip back to Mulg was three hours with Femm and the others at full speed. We werent in a hurry, and we didnt want to travel at night. Also, it seemed the priest and Chel wanted to spend time together before they parted. With that in mind, we decided to stay. This is your room, Alfredora. Thank you. And your room, Miss Vi-Vi, is... They had an individual room prepared for each of us. It was normal, of course, but in a way if felt high-ss. Youre here, Moofy. Moo! Dont need one. It seems that Chel had prepared one room for all the beasts. But both beasts refused it. They wanted to sleep in my room. Wont the bed be cramped? We dont care. Moo moo! However, Vi-Vi grabbed on to Moofys neck. Moofys staying with me! Moo? Thats fine too? Moofys face seemed to say as she went to Vi-Vis room. After Vi-Vi and Moofy had disappeared into the room, Cruz came up to me. We really exercised a lot today. Yeah. Lets go to sleep and wake up early, and go back to Mulg! Sure, but, Cruz... Yes? Why are you getting in my bed? Cruz was already getting into my bed as if that was natural. I couldnt let my guard down. Femm, on the other hand, didnt seem to notice at all. Its hard for me to sleep alone in an unknown ce. Liar. Im not lying, Al! I really didnt care, but this wasnt my bed back at the house. This bed was a lot smaller. Dont you think this beds too small for two people? Youre going to end up on the floor, Al. Why do I have to end up on the floor? Femm made arge yawn. Come on Femm, move over a bit. I guess I cant stop her. Femm said, while moving out of the wat. It was still a tight fit, but I didnt mind. Its normal that youre stuck in tight sleeping spaces like this as an adventurer. I got in the bed with Femm, and Cruz touched my knee. How is your knee, Femm? You used a lot of magic. Feels fine. Only hurts a bit. Its probably because of the death of the former death lord and Chels dispelling of the curse. I think so too. She rubbed my knee again. Shiggy did so as well. Shiggy wasnt just cute, but kind as well. If your knee heals, will you finallye back to the capital? No, I was thinking of staying hidden after killing the Demon Lord off. I had been on deaths edge for 20 years as an adventurer, after all. It wouldnt hurt anyone for me to rest. I had been thinking that for a while. Also, it would be public that Im the new magic lord. I see. Cruz had stuck by me because she had a healing effect on my knee. I thought it was really helpful. Thanks, Cruz. Why? Because you keep this damn stone in my knee from growing, thats why youre always around me, right? No, I mean, its fun to be around you! But now the stone had stopped growing. I think now she didnt need to stick by me anymore. Maybe it was time for her to go back to her work as hero. ...hey, Cruz, about your work... zzzzzzzz Cruz was already sleeping. She was holding on to Femm. Shiggy was rubbing her hair. ...wuff Femm looked at me, with a bit of a troubled face. I gave Femm a look of hang in there and then went to sleep. The next day, we had breakfast and then went home. After breakfast, the followers of the death god called me over to Vi-Vis room. Look at this! PiGGi? What did she do? The followers and Chelnobok were confused at what she had made. But I knew what she made right away...a magical transfer circle. This happens to be... Vi-Vi exined it so they understood. I hoped they didnt get angry with her for making it without asking. Vi-Vi, you just cant make that without asking... No, were happy she did! Yes, yes, I put a magic defense circle here as well. Cruz puffed out her chest in pride. Chelnobok jiggled a bit. Maybe it wanted to say something. It spoke in spirit speech. Thank you. Were all very thankful. Yeah, and we have security too. So please donte through the circle without telling us first. Its still very helpful. The priest and others would have to register with the town security before the came through. Because of that, it would take a bit of time. We exined that they had to keep it a secret, and about our security. The priest listened very carefully. Then we prepared to return. After finishing with that, the priest handed Chelnobok over to us. Cruz took the slime in her arms. Ive got you, Chel. Piggi! Please take care of the master. Sure. Leave it to me. The priest looked a bit loathe to part with the slime. Vi-Vithen turned to him and said, When we get back to the vige, and set the circle, welle right away. I see, then we wont be apart for too long. PiipiGGY! We left the priest and headed home. The priest bowed over and over. We could leave this temple in his hands. Femm ran quickly back to Femm. Femm had run a lot since yesterday. We went home from the temple. It was through the way we had gone to defeat the zombie dragon. And past the way we had gone to the former death lords hideout. It was quite a tougher path back then. All that running you did yesterday...are you tired? I had a night of sleepy, so Im fine. Moo moo! Seems like Femm and Moofy were okay. Way stronger than horses would be. Thanks, but dont push yourselves too hard. Were not in any rush. Moo! I know already! Then I looked at Cruz. Chelnobok was riding on her shoulder as she ran. Are you okay, Cruz? Im fine. I havent exercised muchtely, so it feels good. Dont push yourself too much either. I know. ryaa ryaa Shiggy looked happy as well. She always liked it when we were going fast. As we ran along, I looked over at Chel on Cruz shoulder. I had no idea how a slime was feeling. So I decided to talk to the slime and see. Chel. What it? Lets practice spirit speech. Let me see if you can do it. I wonder if can do it. Ill show you how. Maybe I can do it to, its not that difficult of magic.Cruz said. Ill do best.said the slime. So we practiced our spirit speech as we returned to Mulg. Chapter 171 – Away for a Day

Chapter 171 C Away for a Day

It was past noon when we saw Mulg vige again. I continued teaching Chelnobok spirit speech as we ran along, and it didnt take long. We also took a long rest. Chel, thats Mulg vige. Its beautiful... And that building is my house. Wow... Chel said in an excited spirit speech. I wasnt using spirit speech though. It seems that Chelnobok was mastering the spirit speech though. Even though its a simple magic, you mastered it quite quickly. Yaaay. Chelnobok jiggled in glee. It didmunicate with your followers in some kind of spirit speech... I guess Chel can master spirit speech easily because of that, right? Maybe. Its the same type of magic, after all. I see. Cruz looked pretty impressed, and patted Chelnobok, on her shoulder. Also, spirit speech is an easy magic. It shouldnt be hard for Chels follower either. So I guess I can use it? If you practice, probably. Then I will. Ill teach you, so do your best! Moo Moo! All the beasts tried to encourage Cruz. Ill practice too! Do your best! ryaa ryaa Chelnobok encouraged her too. Shiggy also jumped from my pouch and shouted encouragement as well. Just then, I could see the door of my house wing open. It was Timisoaras human-form face peek out. Was that Sighisoaras voice?! Theres no way you could hear that. Timi, thats the fifth time sthince this morning Millet and Collette were both trying to calm Timi down. Timi looked around and then spotted Shiggy. Ah! Sighisoara! ryaa ryaa Timi ran out to us at an unreal speed. Her face was so serious, it was a bit scary. Ah, hey. Timisoara...were back. W...wee back. Sighisoara, are you okay? We said our hellos quickly. Timi patted Shiggys head. She probably wanted to hug her, but she was inside my pouch. She may have wanted to yank the dragon out of my pouch. Sighisoara. So cute today as usual! ryaa She rubbed cheeks with Shiggy. Then Shiggy patted Timis head. Funny to see. We all walked back to the house with Timi. Old man. Wee back, Al. Collette and Millet ran out to us. I patted Collettes head. Were home. Who is this? Its a slime! Hello. It seems the two girls already we taking to the slime. They actedpletely different from Timi, who didnt really notice it. Lets not stand out here; lets head inside. Okay! Are you ready for lunch? Not yet... Im ready, though. Millet said, and Vi-Vis eyes sparkled. Thank youuuu! Im sooooo hungry! Im hungry too! Cruz said. Moo mooo! Femm was the only silent one. Femm probably didnt want toin in front of the other magical wolves. However, Femm was wagging its tail. We exined what happened about Chelnobok to Timi, Millet, and Collette. While I was doing this, Vi-Vi went out to make a new transport circle, and soon came back. So this Chel is the new death lord? Nice to meet you. Its a secret though. If someone heard about it, Chel might get abducted. Okay! Understood! Millet and Collette both nodded with serious faces. Timi patted Shiggy again. She stuck by her ever since she returned to the vige. So the death lord is a slime... Yes... Did something happen to you, Timi? We had some guests to the dragon pce. Ancient dragon viscounts and marquises. They brought some gifts. ryaa? You dont have to worry, Shiggy. I took care of all the tedious greeting and so on for you. ryaa Yes. I know. Im your aunt, after all. Timi really was close to Shiggy. As this was going on, Luka and Yureena returned home. Youre home early,dies. We thought we should hurry back, so we left early. She and I ran back just in case something bad had happened. They were worried about whether we had to face the death lord in battle. I was thankful, and I exined to them everything that had happened. So the death lord is this slime? Thats weird. Nice to meet you. The same reaction as Timi. I guess no one expects a slime to be a death lord. Then, Yureena touched my left knee. Your knee? Its fine now, thanks to you all. You used magic yesterday, right? Yureena said, and then magically checked my knee. Yeah, no stone this time. Hows the pain? Luka looked over the knee and asked with a worried expression. Hurts a little. But not so much that I cant take. I see. Chelnobok said that the immortal killer arrow hurt my soul, so Ill never recover from the pain. Thats horrible... Millet said, after hearing that. She continued, ...but, you probably wont have to deal with that stone again! Thatsth great, old man! Yeha, thanks. I dont want you to worry. Lets have a big dinner in celebration of the healing of your knee, as well as Chel joining us! Weeheeee! Chelnobok jiggled happily after hearing that. Chapter 172 – God’s Will…and a Slime

Chapter 172 C Gods Will...and a Slime

Night came, and Vallimie came to the house as well. I exined everything to her over dinner. After we cleaned the tes up, I asked Timi, Why did the death god choose some magician that was researching zombie magic? No idea. One can never predict the thoughts of the gods. I guess Timi thought that there was no human that could understand the thoughts of gods. Hearing this, Luka asked, But, the reaper wont forgive those that seek immortality, right? Thats why zombies are made to scare humanity from pursuing immortality, right? Its a lesson that the reaper teaches to all. Vi-Vi said, and Vallimie nodded. Its true we were told to kill this old follower of the death god that went against its teachings right? Yureena mouthed themand that she had heard from me. Its true that we were told toget rid of the this man that had gone against the reaper. In other words, Al, simply studying the magic of undead isnt going against the teachings of the reaper, right? I think you could say that. But, once he turned himself undead seeking immortality, then he lost all protection. I guess thats the most sensible way to think of it? I think Yureena had it figured out. So I asked Chelnobok directly. Chel, what do you think? Hmmm, no idea... I see. You dont know? No... Chelnobok sounded a bit sleepy. During dinner, Chelnobok had happily absorbed the dinner that Millet had made. Now it was probably full, and wanted to sleep. Just like a human basically. Kind of strange to think about. Timi poked Shiggy with her finger, and whispered to herself, Ill say it again...dont think you can know the will of a god... I guess so. Thinking you can know what theyre thinking is disrespectful...in a way. Hm... Its rude to even think you know. Its haughty for a human...no, even an ancient dragon to know what theyre thinking. Then, she looked at me. And she looked at me seriously. Alra...You are strong. But arrogance leads to destruction. You must remember that. Ill take it to heart. Then, Timi smiled at me. Because, if you die, then who will raise Shiggy?! ryaa ryaa See? Even Shiggy says she doesnt want you to die. Is she really saying that? I guess that Timi really could trante what Shiggy was saying. Well...uh...yeah, at least thats what it sounded like. So you were just saying it? ryaa ryaa Shiggy flew from Timi over to the table in front of me. Then, Shiggy rubbed my hand with her ws. I rubbed her head and tummy in return. ryaa! Shiggy said, happily. As I was ying with Shiggy, Cruz asked Luka, Luka, what type of slime is Chel? Uh, hmm. Blue, so a blue slime? Chel, do you have some special powers? Dont know. Chel jiggled a bit and said, so I told Luka myself, Chels very strong against undead. And I thought it how to use spirit speech today. I see... Luka thought to herself, then she squeezed Chel with both of her hands. PiggIII piGGI! Chel said...I guess it was pleased. Maybe something like a massage. There are different sses to slimes that you can tell by looking at them. Oh? You can tell the ss by seeing the color, like blue or green slime. Seems like the only differences were in the colors they had. It was kind of funny that a slime itself had no idea though. What kind of abilities do the different slimes have? Acid slimes, poison slimes, me slimes, freeze slimes...and so on. After hearing this, Cruz said, A lot! I didnt know that. Other than acid and poison slimes, you dont see many others. Chel, can you use acid or poison? Cant use. Can you use fire or ice? Cant use. So...its just a blue slime. JUST a blue slime? Seems so. Luka said, and seemed to droop her shoulders. Maybe the previous death lord just had this blue slime as a pet or something? Thats kind of weird...what do you think, Chel? Mmm...he said I have high vitality... I see... Luka said, satisfied, while nodding. So a blue LIFE slime! What kind of slime is that? Its a blue slime with very strong recovery. Monster rank B. A B rank? Chels pretty strong. PigGi! Chel said, somewhat happily Chapter 173 – Deep into Autumn

Chapter 173 C Deep into Autumn

Cruz went on her own way to take care of business. Then I returned to my business of working as a guard again. Nice to be back guarding again. Been through a lot,tely, Al! Vi-Vi said while scratching on the ground again. Vi-Vi had gone to the death lords temple and back again this morning to test the magic transfer. Then she set security in ce to make sure the circles werent abused. She looked like she was just ying around, but she was seriously practicing her art. Youre right, Vi-Vi. The weather was nice, but the suns glow wasnt strong. There was a pleasant autumn breeze. I looked over at the fields. Since the crops had been hauled in, there were few vigers going out to the fields. Maybe they were doing something to finish off the harvesting process. I know that we harvested the potatoes from the fields...but we didnt help the others. Yeah...but we were busy. Shiggy and the other beasts were running around the cleaned fields. They were all having quite a time. Femm joined with them, looking like the one in charge of it all. Femm was quite a close observer. It was kind of sad that we didnt get to help any of the vigers work in the harvest. Well, we pulled in a lot of potatoes. I dont think we need to worry! Youre right!! I suddenly noticed that Millet had approached. Collette was following her. Al and Vi-Vi, youve done a lot for the vige! Well...I guess so. Plus, you put those golems to work that Vallimie taught you to make. That it true. I guess we did serve a good purpose. Old man! I worked the golem mysthelf too! Good job, Collette. I patted her head. Collette and Millet continued to practice their magic. Even though making a golem was hard, operating them wasnt. Moo moo! Moofy came up behind Collette. Moofy had helped the vigers. She was good at carrying around loads of crops for them. She was quite popr with the vigers because she could carry so much. Moofy, are you done working? Mooo! Vi-Vi asked, and Moofy answered happily. Chelnobok was riding on Moofys back. There was nothing for Chel to do, though. They were just walking through the vige together. Almost like Chel was Moofys pet or something...or the other way around. Good job, Moofy. Mooo! I patted Moofys head and she rubbed up against me. Then Collette did the same. Moommph mmooomphh Moofy started to much on my hand again. You really like doing that, dont you Moofy? Mppph She was already made magic, so she could chew away all she wanted now. Why dont you chew on me, Moofy? Mpph? Vi-Vi asked, a bit jealously. Moofy had chewed on Cruz and my hand before. Maybe a holy or magic hand tastes better. Vi-Vi put out her hand to Moofy. ...moo A bit taken aback, Moofy sullenly went over to chew on Vi-Vis hand. Eheh heh Mmpph mphh Vi-Vi seemed really happy about it. As this was going on, the vige chief walked up to us. Chief, were sorry we didnt get to help with hauling in the crops. No, the golems were a tremendous help. Thank you. Then the chief looked over at Moofy and Vi-Vi. Thanks for helping to move so much around, Moofy. Mooph! Moofy replied, with a mouth full of Vi-Vi. So...I have a request for you, Al. What is it? The chief looked over at Moofy a bit. We need to sell some more meat. An easy task. There was still a LOT of meat left over from Moofy, after all. We need money to pay off those taxes. Yes. But there will be a re-evaluation, although I think we should sell the meat in preparation for that. Sure. And we also need money to buy goods for the vige. Just as before, we would need to go to the town, or maybe to the capital. We could just instantly go to the capital and back through the magic circle though. Wuff! Wuff! Just then, Femm barked at us from the field. A few magical wolves came out, some carrying the little pups. Femm had bit down on Shiggys wing, and was running straight at us. ryaaa Shiggy was happy about it for some reason. When Femm made it to me, it spit out Shiggy at me. I grabbed onto Shiggy and asked, What is it? Someonesing! Mpph?! Who is it? Someone with no dangerous smell. But still, the wolves had moved the pups away from the entrance, just in case. A very smart magical wolf king. I guess I should put Shiggy in my pouch. ryaa ryaa! So Shiggy crawled in. She stuck her head out to watch. After a bit, I saw a group of about 10 people walking to the vige. Chapter 174 – Survey

Chapter 174 C Survey

As the group came nearer, I remembered I had seen the guy who looked like the leader before. It was Cruz assistant. He was riding a horse. In exchange for the assessor that was imprisoned, this assistant was doing the reassessment himself. Thanks foring. Ah, Mr. Al. I guess you really are guarding this vige. The assistant came closer, and quickly dismounted. Moofy quickly spit Vi-Vis hand from her mouth as the assistant approached. Femm, on the other hand, stood at attention. Moo moo! Moofy. Nice to see you again. The assistant rubbed Moofy, and Moofy was happy about it. I then introduced the assistant to the unhappy-looking chief, who had just came near. Chief, this is Cruz assistant. Why have youe to Mulg yourself? Because the previous assessor was fired, right? We have to reassess this vige for taxes, and we had no time to entrust the process to a new assessor. I exined politely to the chief for the assessor. Since the old assessor had done some untoward work, he was now doing hardbor in a mine somewhere. With the introductionspleted, the assistant went to the fields to assess them. Millet went along with them as the vice chief of the vige. Since I was just the guard, I stayed at the vige gates. Collette was behind me, watching everything going on. My sthisthter is really busthy. Yup. Wuff! Femm! Collette grabbed Femm, perhaps lonely with her sister away from her. Femm licked Collette all over her face. Moo!ryaa!Piggi! Moofy, Shiggy, and Chel all started to y around her. Kyaa! Kyaa! Now Collette was running around too. You all want to y?! Wuff!Moo moo!ryaa ryaaPiggi! So what game do you want to y?! So Collette and the beasts all started ying together. Seeing this, Vi-Vi said, Must be tough begin that assistant. He has to take his employees around too, so he cant use the secret magical transports. The circles were to be kept secret. On top of that, they were heavily secured. The assistant knew about them and could use them, but with employees, he couldnt. So he had to ride a horse with them all in tow. Timi...might be hard to ask, but maybe we could ask Doby to carry them around. No. I dont think theyd like the feeling of flying. Hm...I guess it is a tough job. Vallimie could ride her favorite dragon Doby way faster than a horse. However, a normal person isnt going to want to fly in the sky. No one wants to fall and die., As we were talking about that, Collette and the other beasts started to y tag. Wait! Wait! ryaa ryaa! Collette and Shiggy were it, I guessed. Moofy, Femm, and Chel were running away. If Moofy and Femm were running at full speed, they couldnt be caught. So they were holding back quite a bit. They knew how to y with a little kid. I wonder how fast Chel could go if it went full speed. Probably not that fast. I guess not. Just then, Collette caught Chel. PigGGi! Youre it, Chel! PiGGi! I guess she caught Chel and Chel was added to those that were it. Now Chel was bouncing around towards Moofy. Whoa, pretty fast. Yeah, Al. Probably faster than a person. Chel was way faster than I thought. As the three its were running around, it seemed the survey ended. The chief and the assistants crew all filed back together. Thanks. You were done quickly. Yes, we knew where to look, after all. I was a bit taken aback at having to introduce Chel to the assistant. Have you heard anything about a new religion in Cruz region? No, we havent seen the ruler for two days now. She hasnt been by the manor. The manor was where the assistant conducted all the business. I guess we could tax the death temple the next time around. I guess Cruz was already considering one or the other. Is that so. Well, please be careful on your return. Thank you. Please give our regards to the marquise. He then left in a hurry. Still probably very busy. After he disappeared on the horizon, I asked the chief, How was the taxation this year? Yes, quite lower thanst years. Great to hear that. Its quite a big help. After hearing about the taxes, Vi-Vi said, Hm. Not that high, huh? Probably the true tax price. Well, the old assessor had been squeezing these people dry. The old assessor was putting a high price on projected crop growth and sales as his normal amount. Seems that value had fallen back to normal. So, Al, about the meat sales... Well go to sell it tomorrow. Thank you very much. In order to pay off the tax, I would sell some meat tomorrow. Chapter 175 – Selling Meat Meet and Greet

Chapter 175 C Selling Meat Meet and Greet

During dinner, everyone ate together as usual. Then afterwards, we all cleaned up, when Luka asked, Whats the wholesale price for that meat in the capital anyway? Hm...Dont know, really. Strange that you dont know either, Luka. I know how much beast meat is, but just normal cow? No idea. I guess it was normal for Luka not to know. Anyone but a meat seller wouldnt know. Hearing this, Yureena said, I dont know the wholesale price, but I know how much it is if you buy it from stores. Does the church buy meat? We prepare it for the poor, and the priests and nuns eat quite a bit of it too. So I asked what the price was to buy meat on the market from Yureena. Of course, this would be higher than the wholesale price. Maybe the church should buy directly from us? Its a good idea, but I dont think they should. Luka refused Vi-Vis idea tly. Why? You need a license to buy and sell meat. Howme. Then Luka exined. Big buyers and sellers in the city had to jump through hoops, unlike selling in the country. Then Luka said, seriously, Al, if youre asking the wholesale price, that means youre going to go sell it, right? Yeah, after the survey, the town has to pay taxes somehow. Well, you could sell it in Cruz region, where there are less rules, or the capital where the rules are strict. Youve thought of that, right? Millet nodded after hearing Luka say that. Shes right... You can sell some to me, Al. Vallimie said. Sure, no problem, but...do you need meat in Lindobal forest? Yes. For Rai and Dobys food? Rai was her tiger, and Doby was her great dragon. Both of them were her favorite beasts. Yeah, thats one reason...but thats just a bit of what I need. Actually, I can sell it to local viges. Hm, what do you think, Millet? After we find out the price, sure... After hearing that, Vallimie said with a smile, I think I can give you a good price for it. The area around Lindobal forest was the Demon Lords old area. I guess good meat is in need, huh? Because the Demon Lord didnt have much livestock. The humans that moved in there afterwards probably really want some meat to eat. Vallimie said that because the devils in the region usually could feast on the meat of magical beasts. However, all the humans that now moved into the area didnt like the taste of magical beast meat. Even if they wanted to eat the meat, dont they live far from you? It would take a lot to carry it around. Youd need a magical bag to carry around all that meat without it rotting. And that would require her buying a very expensive bag. So, that would make the meat expensive. But it would be a good chance for Vallimie to do business. Well, Vallimie, how much do you want? Hm...well... Now Millet was negotiating with Vallimie. It was her job, after all. They eventually came to a conclusion. Vallimie would by 20% of the remaining meat of Moofy. Deducting the amount that the vige would need, that would leave 50% of the meat left to sell. Yeah, now lets see what the price is in the capital. Thats a good idea. As we talked it over, Millet was doing calctions. Well, with the amount that Vallimie bought, we can do something about the taxes levied on the vige. So, I guess we dont have to hurry with the rest, right? Well, we have to get all the consumables for the winter before it hits. It seems that wed sell to the same person that the vige sold all of its crops to. This salesman usually came to buy directly from the vige. He had been doing it for quite a long time. After we were done talking about selling in the capital, Cruz asked. Al, how was my assistant doing? She had gone to the manor while he was here. After she had dismissed the assessor, Cruz region was left in a difficult position. The assistant had to do the old assessors job, and someone was asked to cover the assistants job. The assistant had to do a job that an assessor usually had to do. He looked fine. Maybe a bit tired. I see...I hope hes okay. He wont go back to the manor for two day. Hes traveling through the woods. Okay...I guess I should do my job too. I thought about asking him about Chelnoboks religion, but he looked so busy, I didnt. Theyre all busy now. I think I should do the temples taxes myself. Cruz said with a serious face. Can you do that, Cruz? If I do well, I think I can... Then Yureena said, strongly, while grabbing onto both of Cruz hands with her own, Ill help you, Cruz! Thanks! Please do! Can you do it, Yureena? Yureena looked at me, a bit shocked, Im the head of a church, right?! I have a lot of things asked of me. Dont pressure them, okay? I wont! How rude! Thanks...Yureeeena. Dont worry about it, Chel. Yureena said, proudly. Chapter 176 – Getting Ready to Sell Meat

Chapter 176 C Getting Ready to Sell Meat

The next day, Cruz and Yureena and Luka all went to the capital. They all had to learn about how to tax a religion. Leave it to me. Ill learn how to do it. Thanks, Yureena. You can ask me anything! Yureena said, happily. She grabbed on to Cruz arm, and smiled. Luka looked at the two and smiled with a cringe. Piggi! You want toe, Chel? I go. Chelnobok jumped onto Cruz shoulder. After all, Chel was the top of the religion. It wanted to learn too. After Cruz and the others left for the capital, Timi said, while Shiggy was sitting on her arm, Alra, do you want to go and sell some meat with Sighisoara? Sure, I do. So, to the capital? Because its a lot of beef. And they can handle it easier. And with a magic circle connected, its easier to go there. As Vi-Vi and I exined, Timi nodded and said, Okay, then, I shall go as well. Fine, but do you have work back at the pce? Not today. Lets go to the capital, Shiggy! Timi said with a puffed out chest. She just wanted to be there with Shiggy. There was no reason to refuse. So I asked her toe along. Before we went, Vi-Vi and I put on a disguise. It was the masks that Cruz had given both of us. Old man and sthub-bossth, wow! Are we that big a deal? Yeah, youre so cool! Moo moo! ryaa! Collette and Moofy and Shiggy all yelled happily. Timi looked at me, impatient. I want a mask too! Have any left over? I dont have one, but Im sure Cruz has some. Hm...I see. So, do they sell them at the capital? Timi asked, leaning forward. We might not be able to buy one in the capital. At least, not in a normal store there. I wonder. We might have to ask Cruz. I see...too bad. She looked quite depressed. I felt a little sorry for her. So I took off my wolf mask and gave it Timi. You want to put mine on? Hey, can I? Sure. Ill put the fake beard Millet gave me. Really? Then, thank you? Then she put the wolf mask on. What do you think, Shiggy? Im a WOLF! ryaa ryaa! Yeah! Yeah! Shiggy and Timi both looked at each other happily. While watching, I put my fake beard on. If you think about it, I was the only one that could cast preservation magic onto the meat to keep it from rotting. It wasnt realistic for me to do that while I was wearing a mask. Id have to take the thing off if any store would buy the meat I was selling. So having the fake beard was a way better method of getting the meat sold. So I stuffed the beef into my magic bag, and we were off. It was Millet, Vi-Vi, Timi, Shiggy, and I. Collette was a kid, so she was left home. Before, Collette hade with us, so it was hard to leave her alone. This time wed get home before dinner because of the transfer circle. Do your besth old man! Watch over the vige for us. Yesth sthir! We saw Collette off as we went to the magic circle in the storage shack. Like usual, Moofy tried to join us. Moo moo! Youre going to help watch the town right? Moo? Moofy seemed shocked. But she would stand out too much. There was no reason to bring her unless there was a fight. Moofy tried as hard as she could to bite my sleeve and drag me back. She really wanted to go. Then Femm spoke to Moofy, saying, Of course, Moofy, youll stand out too much. Yeah. Moo... Just stay here and watch the vige. Moofy, lets y! Moo. Moofy still looked depressed, but Collette was stroking her fur. Im going with them, so youre going to have to watch the town, Moofy! Femm said to Moofy. No, youre staying here too, Moofy! Wuff! Femm looked at me like he couldnt believe it. But...a wolf will stick out too much in the city. I look like a dog. You always say youre not one! Thats not true... Femm was saying it looked like a dog, but that was too much. It would stick out even more than a grass-grazing cow. Way more. Collette petted Femm, and said, y with me too, Femm. Wuff... Collette went off with Moofy and Femm. The looked back from time to time, lonely, as they walked away. Sad to leave them here. Well buy them some souvenirs. I guess so... Ill buy Femm some delicious meat for it to eat. Moofy would be happy with anything, but Id have to think a bit. So we were off to the capital. Chapter 177 – Sellin’ Meat!

Chapter 177 C Sellin Meat!

We went to the capital through the transfer circle. We arrived at Cruz pce, just as usual. Cruz maid approached us as we left the room. Ah, good morning! Good morning. The maid was used to seeing us. She didnt say anything special. Figures that would be Cruz maid. Not surprised by anything. Timi, with that wolf mask on, was pretty impressed at how calm the maid was. There was no reason for her to wear it, either. But she wore it because it made Shiggy so happy. Yeah, youre going to be busy with negotiations, right, Alra? You want me to hold Sighisoara? Ok, here. ryaa Timi held on to Shiggy after I handed her over. Sighisoara, youve be so mature! ryaa ryaa! Timi took my pouch and put it on, with Shiggy inside. I couldnt tell what she looked like from the mask, but I think she was probably happy. As we left Cruz pce, we went to the meat seller. I had asked Luka again where a reliable meat seller was. The meat sellers building was in the capital market. It was a little ways walk from Cruz pce. Alra! Theyre selling something! Its a stall. They have prepared food they sell. I see. What is it? Sighisoara? You want some? ryaa I heard Shiggys voice from her pouch. Alra! I think Shiggy wants some. After were done with this transaction. Hmph... ryaa Listen to me. Were here to sell meat! I told this to both the wolf-faced Timi and the cow-faced Vi-Vi. It was a strange sight. People were staring at us. Millet looked around and whispered to me, We stand out too much...are we okay, Mister Al? I have no idea... Now that I thought about it, Luka and Cruz were usually always with us in the city. And Luka and Cruz were depended on to take care of trouble. Thats why no one said anything when they were with us. But today, they werent here. If there was a problem with soldiers or people, than I would have to speak to someone. And I wanted to avoid that. Lets go. Ah, okay. After feeling in danger a bit, we rushed into the meat sellers ce. The store was called Tolfs Store. It seemed that it wasnt just a ce for selling meat. There were a lot of things he sold. As soon as we were in Tolfs Store, we ran to the counter. The worker there screamed. EeeeeeEEEEK! Calm down! Were not anyone strange! You ARE SOMEONE STRANGE! I guess I couldntin. A wolf and cow mask....and me. Were working with Marquise Cruz Conradine... Ah...well that makes sense. Take your time. For some reason it was all okay now. I guess Cruz was always doing things like this. The worker whispered to a clerk next to her. She probably wanted to see if we were really with Cruz. It seemed they all epted us now, but they were still suspicious. They looked at Vi-Vi and Timi with some fear. Vi-Vi, Timi, take off your masks. Huh? Why? Why do I have to do that?! Timi and Vi-Vi looked upset. But, they still had to take those damn masks off. The only one that had to hide an identity was me. Vi-Vi just always had a thing for wearing masks. These workers are getting scared. But these masks are so cool! Okay... The girls took the masks off. Two cute girls faces emerged from them. The store clerks seemed relieved. What can I get for you today? Wevee to sell some meat. Millet started to negotiate with them. First she checked how much volume she could sell. There was no reason to pull out all the meat here. And once you do, the meat starts to lose quality. The reason is that the meat is being preserved inside the bag with a preservation spell. After the clerk heard how much we had, her appearance changed. She then whispered something to the other clerk. She probably was preparing storage of the meat. However, what...is the quality of the meat? What do you mean? I mean, it must have been hard for your to put that volume of meat under a preservation spell... The clerk was quite concerned. It was a lot of meat. It would be hard to preserve that much meat, unless you were an expert magician. It came time for me to show my adventurer card. It was my job, as I had to prove the quality of my magic. Um, well, this is who I am... I took out my card, and a voice sounded out from inside the store. Is that you, Alfred?! Ah, uh...its been a while. The fellow there was the one that I had sold to in the town previously. It wasnt in the city back then, just a town near Mulg. I couldnt tell by the beard at first! Well, you know I have a lot of things going right now... I understand. The store owner exined that I was an S-Rank magician in a top-ranked party. And he told them all to hide who I was. Why are you in the capital? I guess you could say this is my real ce of business? Is that so? The other ce was a Tolf Store branch. Sometimes I make deliveries there from this main store. Since he was here now, I guess that meant that business was doing well. I didnt remember the name of the branch store, but it had to be the Tolf business. The boss told the clerks what to do. Since I was with the marquise, there was no problem with the meat. Is this the same asst time? I think so. The bring it over here. Since the boss was going to do the transaction, the clerks were scrambling a bit. Since this is the friends of the marquise, it would be rude not to buy the meat myself. He exined. After a while, and a bit of walking, we came to the main storage. It was well covered with preservation magic. When we arrived, he introduced himself again. That reminds me, I never introduced myself. I am the owner of these stores, Toril Torf. Im Millet...from Mulg. After they introduced themselves, I took the meat from my magic bag. Hm. Very good quality, as usual. Thank you very much. And so the negotiations began. And they were over quite quickly. Seemed that Millet had gotten quite a good price. I just hope to be good friends with the marquise...and you, Alfred. I introduced Tolf to Timi as well. Timi was a viscount of the ancient dragons. The aunt of a duchess. The owner was quite proud. Then Timi said, If you need anything, just ask! Hah hah, well, I may take you up on that. It seemed like a good transaction for both parties. Chapter 178 – Buying Bundles

Chapter 178 C Buying Bundles

Afterpleting those purchases with no problem, we went to buy what was needed. Millet asked Tolf, Is there a store that we can buy daily things needed for the vige around here? When you say daily things what do you mean? Oh...well... Millet exined the necessary good and amounts. Tolf listened to her seriously. Well, I can have all those things prepared for you, if you wish... Oh...thank you very much! Now, Millet and Tolf negotiated the price. Vi-Vi, Timi, and I just sat there and watched. He can sell a lot of stuff, huh? Its the capital. And a big store! This store could sell small amounts, wholesale, and deliver. Thats he came over to us from selling small things when he saw us. Timi then said with a depressed tone, ...no dragon mask here though. Well, probably no demand for one. If they dont have a dragon, they could at least have another wolf one. As we were talking, a clerk came over. Everyone here with viscount Timisoara, if you would like tea, I can definitely... Yeah! Wed love some! Alra and Vi-Vi too! Timi pulled us both along into the back room. There was a table with tea and candies. What a great boss. The candies looked great too. And Millet was already sitting there with Tolf. Millet, are you done already? Yes. It turned out really well. Millet looked very happy. Tolf smiled as well. Just want all my customers to be happy. And we want to get along with you. Yes, that would make me happy. I dont think that Tolf was saying this out of simple benevolence either. We were friends of the legendary hero Cruz, the head of the guild, Luka, and the great healer, Yureena. Furthermore, the great dragon viscount, Timisoara. Of course a businessman would want good terms with us. Nothing wrong with that. Timi sat down and started nibbling on the candy. I guess since she was so highly born, there was no reason to hold back. Hm, this tastes great. Im d you like it. Do you want some, Sighisoara? ryaa! Shiggy emerged from her pouch, and flew onto the table. I watched while eating and drinking tea. And the candies were quite good. There was also a simple cake, of which were made by the strictest ingredients. Is it good, Shiggy? ryaa ryaa! I see. Shiggy was chomping down what she could, while Timi happily watched. Tolf was a bit surprised upon seeing Shiggy. He didnt think that Timi was hiding a dragon in her clothes. So who is this? Yes, this is my niece, Sighisoara. Your niece, Sighisoara? Nice to meet you. ryaa! Shiggy said as she crammed more in her mouth. Sighisoara is thanking you for the delicious treats. Im d shes happy. Timi was tranting from what she just thought Shiggy said, again. Shiggy is a duchess. So Im representing her for now. Wow... ryaa! Tolf was surprised, and Shiggy bowed once to make sure he understood. I mean, she may not have known what we were saying, but she was thankful for the treats. After a while, the workers prepared all the goods while we were being entertained. I stuffed them in my magic bag and paid Tolf while thanking him. Then we left. And Shiggy got back in my pouch, so Timi was a bit sad. Im d all this was done so quickly. Good job, Millet. We should bring back souvenirs. We had promised to bring back some for Moofy and Femm. We couldnt forget them. Femms going to want meat. Yeah. Maybe we should by enough for all the magic wolves. Millet was looking around. She was probably looking for something good to buy. No, Femm said we should be feeding the wolves without good reason. Youre right...I guess its hard then. Vi-Vi said, with crossed arms. Kind weird to sell and then buy meat too. Maybe chicken? That reminds me, what meat does Femm like, anyway? Maybe great dragon meat? Timi was right. Femm did say great dragon was good meat. But there was still great dragon meat in the storage shack. How about goat meat? Yeah! We didnt need to buy a whole goat...just a lump of meat. Buy some sweets for Collette too. And something sweet for Moofy! Really? Yeah. I didnt know why, but it Vi-Vi said so, then so be it. So we bought several different types of cookies. And with souvenirs in hand, we headed back to the vige. Ah, its you Al. We met Cruz and Yureena near Cruz pce. They were walking with several people that I guess were following her. Chapter 179 – Yureena and Gang in the Capital

Chapter 179 C Yureena and Gang in the Capital

Cruz saw me and ran to me, waving. Her chest was enormous, but it was because Chelnobok was riding inside her outfit. Al, what a coincidence! Not really. That reminded me, you said you were selling meat? Cruz asked of me, smiling. Then she saw the sweets that Millet was carrying. Ah, those look so good! Theyre souvenirs... Oh...thats nice... Cruz was totally ready to gobble them down. But the sweets were for Collette and Moofy. I mean, they were sweets from the capital. Cruz had no reason to get them as she lived in the capital. If Cruz wanted to have some, she could buy them herself. As we were talking, Yureena approached us. Did you sell all the meat? Thanks to all their help. It was a good sale. Well, great! There were several behind Yureena. They might have been Cruz bureaucrats. Cruz didnt just have bureaucrats around her region, but had some in the capital as well. There were a lot of organizations and things to do in the capital, so she had bureaucrats for those as well. One of them was looking at us sharply. He looked smart and from good birth. Madam, who are they? Um... Hold it! Cruz was about to exin everything. However, Yureena turned and shouted at the bureaucrat. Im very sorry. The bureaucrat backed up obediently. Yureena continued to re at him. Seeing Yureena that serious made her look a bit scary. I whispered to Cruz, Hey, whats up with Yureena? No idea. Shes kind of pissed... You dont know? Yureena was pissed for some reason that Cruz didnt understand. So, did you figure out the way to tax that temple? Yeah, no problem! Good to hear. When are you going to visit? There was a transfer circle from Mulg, after all. She could go there today without waiting if she wanted. Hm...maybe tomorrow. Chel wants to go too. piggi A small voice issued from Cruz chest. Vi-Vi looked at all the bureaucrats and asked, Are these your folks, Cruz? Theres a lot of them here in the capital! Half are from Yureena, though. Yureenas that rich?! Yup. Yureenas family were always rich. She became a member of the heros party not because of her family. Even with a name for herself, I was the only one with a father that was a knight. Thats why you could consider Yureena and Luka both came from very great academic families. Yureenas family name, Linmia was the trade name of arge business owned by her family. The Linmia group has a very rich history. They have more money than most titled royals. Yureena is a very richdy. Wow...you cant tell by looking. I thought she looks like one. Vi-Vi and Millet seemed to have differing opinions. Just then, and older gentleman came to Yureena and started talking. Madam, we should... CLAM IT! Yes maam. The old man stood and closed his mouth. Yureena did seemed pissed. I said so that only Cruz could hear me, Shes really rough on her followers... You think? She was mean to the young guy too. But that guys under me, Al. Really? This was weird. The young kid didnt even follow her, and it was strange she scolded him. Yeah, shes just in a bad mood. Even so... It was strange. Cruz, lets go. Ah. Okay. See youter all. After that, Vi-Vi and Millet exchanged words with them and Cruz was on her way. As they left, Yureena whispered to me. Ill tell youter. ...okay. There was a reason for her acting like that, I guess. After that, we bought treats for Cruz, Yureena, and Luka too. Then we headed home. After leaving the storage shack, Moofy galloped up to us. She was hurrying at full speed. Moo moo! Okay okayokayokayokay Moofy was grinding her nose into my belly. I rubbed her head. You can do that to me, okay, Moofy? Moo mooo! Maybe because Moofy sensed Vi-Vis jealousy, she then turned and did the same to Vi-Vi. Vi-Vi grinned and pet her too. Gee Moofy. Then Collette came running. Old man! Were you a good girl? Im alwaysth a good girl! I patted her head. Then Femm came up to us, wagging its tail slowly. It had to look tough in front of the pack, and it was tough being a king, after all. Come here, Femm. Wuff! Then Femm ran up, barking. I rubbed Femms head, finally. We have souvenirs! Wuff wuff! Yayyy! Moo moo! ryaaa! For some reason, Shiggy was happy too. Millet looked at her sister and the beasts and said, Souvenirs AFTER dinner, okay? wuffmooo ryaaa I can wait, sthisth!! The beasts were all sad, but Collet was proud that she had patience. Chapter 180 – Yureena’s Worry

Chapter 180 C Yureenas Worry

It was evening, and Cruz and the others came from town. Vallimie came too. After dinner, we passed out the souvenirs. Yaay! This looks delicious! Yeah, you have good sense. These treats look great! PiggGIi! Collette and Cruz all looked happily at the treats we bought. Yureena looked a bit confused, though. We were all in the capital though, its weird to get us souvenirs. Dont think too much about it! ryaa ryaa! Cruz started scarfing the treats down. Shiggy also started to eat away at them. It was strange because youd think Shiggy would realize that she was there when you bought them in the capital, and to save them for others. Well, no reason to care that much about it. Yureena started to eat them too. Ah, these are good. Right? For some reason, Cruz was acting proudly about it. Moo moo! Moofy happily took some treats as well. From what Vi-Vi said, cows like sweet treats. But this wasnt just a cow, this was a holy-magic cow. No matter how many treats this cow ate, it wouldnt get sick. Even so, Moofy slowly ate the most basic ones. Are those good, Moofy? Moo! I see. Vi-Vi started happily feeding Moofy more treats. I know you usually eat meat, but can you eat sweet stuff? You know it! Ah, I see. I guess canines like sweets too. They like to be fed sweets after all. I was wondering...so I gave Femm some of the simpler sweets as well. Wuff wuff! Femm ate them and looked at me happily. You want some meat? You bet! I took out themb meat. Femm wolfed it down quickly. Even though we had just eaten dinner, Femm was able to eat the whole thing. ryaa! Wuff... Shiggy then tore at the meat from the side. I knew Shiggy wanted to eat some, but Femm was looking at me like it wanted to eat it all itself. Shiggy was trying topete for the meat with a wild, magical wolf. Hey! Stop, Shiggy! ryaaa? I picked up Shiggy and let Femm go at the meat. Listen, Shiggy. You cant just eat someone elses food. ryaa? But I knew what Shiggy did something strange like that. When I gave food to the little pups, I put it in one bowl, and they all ate it together. But grown wolves ate their own food with the consciousness that that was their own food. So they arent the same as kids. Thats why she made the mistake. So I told Shiggy how to be polite. Tell Femm youre sorry. ryaa... Shiggy said with a bow. Wuff Shiggy said in return, and licked Shiggys face. Seems like Shiggy was forgiven. What a nice wolf. ryaaa wuff wuff Seeing Shiggy go through that, Timi said, Its good she learned about that. Maybe you should teach her the manners of ancient dragons too... Leave it to me. Timi puffed out her chest. Only Timi could teach her after all. I hope she does. After that, I got in the bath and went back to my room to sleep, and Yureena came in. She sat down on my bed. Moofy and Femm both followed her to the bed andid down. Hey, you said you were going to tell me something. Yeah, listen, okay? ryaa Shiggy flew into Yureenas chest. She petted Shiggy, while continuing. Ivee into a little trouble. Oh? In the afternoon in the capital, you saw all those people I was with? Yeah. Cruz had her followers, as did Yureena. The old guy was the head of them all. The kid with Cruz was just a bureaucrat. Okay... Cruz just got that new assessor, right? That kid is the old guys son. It is true that she was looking for a new assessor after the old one was dismissed. So, did something happen? Well, my parents are telling me I should marry that guy. I guess it was something I should congratte her about. But she looked really upset about it. Because Yureena really liked Cruz...and after I thought about that... Oho....h! What does that mean? Hey, rx. Okay. She suddenly quieted down. More than usual. So you got in a situation thats hard to refuse? Thats right. Yureenas family was a very rich trading family. But it wasnt always that way. When Yureena became a viscount, that meant she had joined the royals. The young fellow wasnt well off, but he still came from a old family of politicians and bureaucrats. He was just a baron, but he would continue in his fathers line. I see. So your family has the money, but you need to have the connections too. Well, I guess, if you put it that simply. So, why are you resisting by saying no? Well, my familys had a lot of things done for them by that kids family. So if you refuse, your family takes it hard? And since the father was friends with that assessor for a long time, he was happy that his son would take his ce and marry me. So your familys stuck...that sucks. But still, I said no. Oh, wow. But he wont take no for an answer!! Yureena said, leaning forwards. Almost like she was shot. She had a strange attractive power...unlike Luka or Cruz. Hey! Hey! Too close! So, I want you to act like my lover! Al, please! Whaaaaa? Man, this is going to suck. Chapter 181 – Yureena’s Worry 2, Electric Boogaloo

Chapter 181 C Yureenas Worry 2, Electric Boogaloo

Yureena was about to jump on me...her face was so close. Yureena! Too close! ryaa ryaa! I had pulled back, but Shiggy was looking at me with sparkling eyes. She had probably thought this was really fun. Yureena, what are you saying? I dont understand... Why not?! It makes sense, right? Why not ask Cruz? I would...but shes a girl. For a royal to have a descendant meant that you had to have a man and a woman. I knew that, but this was really going to be an annoying experience. I could feel it. And theres one other thing! What? I already told him that I had a lover. What? Without telling me? Im SORRY! It was so spur of the moment, I had no other choice! I guess I had to apologize to her if she begged like that. Okay, I get it... Thank you. She smiled again in that cute way of hers. So what kind of guy is he? I dont really know. After I was introduced, I told him I had a lover and refused. Really. But he kept bothering me. He told me he wanted to meet whoever it was. It seems that she didnt really hate him as much as rush to get married. I know how she felt. She was still young. You keep calling him the son of the assessor, but whats...whats his name? Um...I...forgot...I was introduced, though. You cant remember? This really sucks... But, but...they set me up so fast with him I CANT REMEMBER! So fast? She nodded. Yes. I was going to show Cruz something at my house, so I had Cruze with me. Okay... So as I was showing her around my library, the old man called me...and told me to leave Cruz behind. Okay... So then the old guy introduces the son. And then he says you should definitely marry this young man now. That IS fast. You cant believe it, right? And so I quickly said that I have a lover already. Yeah, well, Id refuse in a position like that too. RIGHT?! So then the guy said Let me meet him... Holy crap.Moo Moofy was watching us as Yureena exined everything. Moofy probably felt the stress of the situation too. So, I was thinking of getting back to Cruz, and the running away, but the guy was already chosen to help Cruz... So the assistant of your familys son was now helping Cruz. So Cruz was like, can I help? Thanks and all. She had no idea whats going on.Wuff. Yureena was petting Femm with her left hand. Petting a beast really reduced stress. I knew how she was feeling. What did Cruz say about the engagement? She was outside of the library when they told me, so she has no idea about it. I see. I thought Cruz at least knew why Yureena was in such a bad mood. So since the guy was following me around, and the father was saying he woulde with me too...I said I have a date to go to... What a disaster. Thats why, so they wouldnt like me, I started acting like a total bitch. Well, you did act really tough. Yureena did shout HOLD ITat both the father and the son. I was thinking it was weird that she was mean to someone in Cruz crew, but now I understood. But, I thought if she really wanted to be hated, she acted a little too proper. I thought, while petting Shiggy. ...ryaa You sleepy? ...ryaaaa Shiggy was about to sleep. Seeing this, Yureena stood up. Sorry for telling you this, thiste at night. Dont worry about it. I know its a bother, but please help me. And saying that, Yureena got ready to leave the room. Ah, Yureena. Maybe sure you get your stories straight first. I said to Yureena before she left. If that guy shows up again, and everyone else doesnt know this is an act, its going to be figured out. She had to set the story straight with everyone else...and that was going to be tedious. Leave it to me, Al! Yureena stuck her bulging chest out in pride. After she left, Femm said, Tough being a human. Yeah. Being an adventurers not that hard, but being a royal is. Youre not going to tell her to marry? Im not her parents. I guess not. And I was also way out in the country. If I wasnt, Im sure some fathers would be approaching me about marrying their daughters. Especially those rich guys without titles. Theyd do anything to get themselves into the royal circle. Is Cruz going to take this hard? Moo? Cruz is cute, has her ownnd, and is a marquise. There are plenty that wouldnt mind being rted to her. And Luka? Shes popr too... ...r...ya... As I said that, Shiggy had fallen asleep. She was so cute. So I slept right next to her. Ok, sleep. Me too. Mo. Femm balled up next to the pillow. Moofy put her snout on my stomach...still heavy. And I rubbed Shiggys head as I fell asleep. Chapter 182 – Levying the Death Temple’s Taxes

Chapter 182 C Levying the Death Temples Taxes

So this was the day after Yureena asked me to act like her lover. I went to the kitchen and everyone was there. Millet grabbed tight onto my arm. Good morning, Millet? Nothing good about it! I heard from YUREENA! Ah, about that? What do you mean, THAT?! I never thought youd have a rtionship like that with YUREENA! Millet was tearing up for some reason. What are you doing, OLD MAN! Collette yelled at me, and then punched me in the stomach. Then she started punching me in the butt, but it didnt hurt. What do you mean? You told them, right, Yureena? I told them. Yeah, well thats pretty much how it is. When I said How it is Cruz looked at me in shock. But Luka was looking at me with a smirk. To think that our Al was going to be Yureenas lover... Hm, Im not though! What? Thats what Yureena was saying... I thought I was just ACTING like your lover! Cruz looked at me, confused. Millet looked a bit relieved. Hm? Is that true? Old man! What do you mean!? Collette was still punching my stomach. Luka snickered to herself and nodded. I knew it. Yureena, exin yourself! Um, I was about to be married off, so I asked Al to be my lover. That way of saying it causes more problems. Hm? Yureena looked confused now. Now she looked worried. She could hide it to someone dumb like Cruz, but now Yureena might be getting carried away. So I exined all that had happened. I see...wow, thats tough. d to hear that. Isth that the truth, old man?! Cruz and the rest now seemed to understand. Thats why I told her to get her story straight before seeing that guy again. So make sure youre on the same page too! I said, and they all nodded. Especially you, Cruz. The one that would destroy the whole thing would be Cruz. Leave it to me! Cruz said, as she puffed out her chest. After breakfast, Cruz said, Al! Come and help me take care of assessing the temple! Sure, but, do you really need me? Yes!PiggiiI! Cruz and Chel responded to be in chorus. Chel jumped onto Cruz shoulder. They really were inseparable. Seeing this, Yureena said, Then Ill go along too. If youe Ill feel much better! Cruz said, taking Yureenas hand. Eheh heh. Yureenas cheeks turned red. They were really close too. After telling Millet that we were leaving, we headed to the death temple. Moo mooWuff! We went to the storage shack where Moofy and Femm were waiting. Moofy and Femm were sitting. Uh, you want to go with us? Moo moo! I guess I cant say no, Moofykins. Lets go together, okay?! Moo! Vi-Vi said to Moofy, and Moofy in kind replied. Vi-Vi was acting like Moofy didnt want toe, but I knew different. Sure, its not the capital, after all. Moo mooWuff. Moofy and Femm came with us to the temple. It was those two and Vi-Vi, Shiggy, Cruz, Yureena, and of course, Chelnobok. We were arger group that I had expected. We went through the magical transport and out of the room room. No one there. But within a few moments, he joined us. Pant, huff, just in time. He was out of breath. He must have run here. When someone uses the magic circle, a bell rings in the priests room. Vi-Vi said proudly. It was a good idea of hers. Good morning! Wevee for the tax assessment! PigGGi! Cruz said with a smile. Chel jumped off of Cruz shoulder and into the hands of the priest. Master! Its been a while. PiggGi! Chel looked happy too. After Yureena introduced herself, the assessment started. I had no idea what kind of standards theyd use for the assessment. So I just stood back and watched. How much did you receive in offerings. Um.... How much do you pay the gate guards? After Cruz began asking questions, the priest went for his ount book. Yureena took it and began calcting. ryaaaPiGggi! Because they were bored, Chel and Shiggy started ying around. Shiggy climbed on top of Chel and shook as Chel jiggled away. Shiggy was having fun...but I wondered how Chel felt. Chel, you okay? Funnn. Okay, then. ryaa ryaa On the other hand, Moofy and Femm were circling around and sniffing away. After doing their usual sniff-around, with the priests permission, they left the room. After an hour, Femm and Moofy came back. We found it. Moo mooo The priest looked a bit scared. What did you find? I asked Moofy and Femm to sniff around for any money or precious metals. Cruz said with a smile. Nothing getting by her. Is that so? Well, its no matter as we have nothing to hide. Everythings recorded in this ount book. As the priest said that, he pointed at the page that Yurenna was calcting from. Its true that he had everything written down. After that, we looked at the treasure Femm had found, and finished the tax assessment. Seems that it wasnt arge amount of money. And the priest finally breathed a sigh of relief. Chapter 183 – A New Village and Road

Chapter 183 C A New Vige and Road

Now that the tax amount was set, we went to see the ces treasury. The tax didnt turn out to be that much though. Quite some treasury. Thank you. Most of it is the previous death lord and the Demon Lords. Shiggy seemed excited as she was pping her wings away. Behind her Chel was bouncing around. Shiggy, dont touch it. ryaa I think Shiggy knew not to, though. As this was happening, Yureena said, Theres no town or vige around here, so how do you all live like this? Our followers have to travel to buy and sell for us. Quite some trouble. Yes, yes it is. Then, the priest turned to Cruz, I have a request for you. What is it? We were thinking of building a vige here...may we have permission? ...please tell me the details. And so the priest did. The death temple was really a quiet religion, but many others might see it as evil. And, depending on the region, some mighte to fight them. While listening, Yureena nodded. I see, so thats how it is. Yes, so wed like to have a ce where our followers can flee too. Ok, I see now... Cruz said with a serious look. Then, she looked at me. What do you think, Al? Sounds okay, I guess. Is that so... What do you think? Its fine, but Im not sure how much money its going to cost me. It took money for things like roads and viges. She was probably worried about whether her domain had enough money to fund it. She looked quite pensivepared to usual. Marquis, dont worry about that. W....why do you say that? Were nning to pay with our treasury. And the believers themselves will provide thebor. Hm... Cruz again thought it through. PigGi! Chel jumped onto Cruz shoulder. The little blob had pretty good jumping power. Please. You want them to built it too? Yes. We can help people in trouble. I see. What about you, Yureena. I think its fine. I see. Cruz then though it over some more. Why dont you ask my opinion! Moo moo! Now Vi-Vi and Cruz wereining to Cruz. Femm was still just sniffing at the treasure. Shiggy was on Femms back, pping away. Well, then what do you two thinK? Okay, well I think its perfectly FINE! Seems that Vi-Vi really didnt have an opinion that differed from anyone. So, there was no reason for her to speak out in the first ce. Even so, Vi-Vi looked at Cruz proudly. I see. It good. Okay. Cruz still seemed to dismiss their opinions. While she was doing this, she patted Moofys head. Moo moo Moofy nuzzled Cruz. Finally, Cruz looked at the priest. You have permission. Thank you so very much. However, dont expect much money in support from my domain...okay? I understand that. Im sorry I cant offer much in the way of that. Cruz bowed her head, and the priest seemed to scramble a bit. No! Just the permission is far more than enough! Well, I really DO want to help you. Thank you again. Thanks. Cruz rubbed Chel, on her shoulder. The little blobbed jiggled as she patted it. Yeah, I think after this tax collection I can send someone to help you with nning this vige. Aside from the construction of the vige. There were many troublesome things, such as where toy the road. Such procedures fell under bureaucratic territory. And the road itself was under her possession. Thank you Thanks Chernobok jiggled. Then Vivi asked. What kind of vige do you want to make? Farming? Thats right. Thats the n. Hm. If that is the case, I may be able to help. Vivi looked at the priest, proudly. The priest didnt seem to understand, so I said. Vivi is a soil improvement specialist. Is that so? That helps a lot. Yeah. It s better to leave it to me. I can also help. I can lend out my extra golems. Thats encouraging. Thanks, Wii-wii! It seems that Vivi was difficult to pronounce for Chel. It was kind of cute that the blob couldnt pronounce things in spirit speech. Ill help you. Im good at catching mice Momoo! ryaa The beasts were also enthusiastic. Thank you. Pigii Once again, the priest bowed deeply. Chapter 184 – Field Magic Circles

Chapter 184 C Field Magic Circles

After the tax assessment and consultation about the vige and roads, we returned to Mulg. It waste in the afternoon. When we left the storage shack, two strange people in dragon masks were standing there. And there were two people. One big, one small. ...... ... ryaa ryaa! The two dragon masks were silent. Once Shiggy noticed them, she jumped from my pouch and cried out at them. Timi...what are you doing? And the other is Collette, right? You really ARE something, Alra. You knew right away. Great job, old man. The only person that would do something like that other that Cruz would be Timi. And since Cruz was in the temple with me, it had to be Timi. Also Collettes the only one that small. I went to the capital this morning and bought the mask Shiggy wanted. Hm...good job. Cruz approached and touched its head...she looked impressed. Nice...nice... ryaa Shiggy got on Timis shoulder and she stroked Shiggys head. Pretty good to find something that rare. Yeah, Tolf found one as soon as I asked. Timi seems to have used my connections right out of the gate. It was kind of annoying, and I was a bit worried. How much was it? Well...Im pretty sure it was... Timi told me the price. It was a decent amount. Enough to buy a mithril shield. It cost THAT MUCH? But its very well made, and we haggled for it. Is that what happened? While Collette was wearing a mask, she jumped onto Moofy. Moo moo! Yaaay! PiGGi! Chel was also happily bouncing on Moofy. Then Timi said, watching. Im d that I bought two. Heh, heh, thanksth missth... It would be better not to buy them at all, but I wasnt going to say that. Theyre nice...wish I had one. Cruz was jealous. After ying a bit, Cruz then headed to the manor. She had to inform the assistant about the tax collection order of the temple and the creation of a road and vige. As Cruz left, Vi-Vi said, Im going to work my hardest to What are you going to do, Vi-Vi? Draw a magic circle on the field! I said I would after harvest. I remembered her saying that now. She told me that she couldnt draw them when crops were going on the field. I remember you saying that now. Yeah, help me, Al. Sure, I reported it to the chief and then started drawing the magic circles. I have seen her do it many times, so I could do it as well. Its really amazing. Good job old man. My followers Millet and Collette were quite impressed. I guess them knowing that it was impressive magic meant they had grown in magic themselves. It was a very varied andplex magic circle. Are you going to study magic circles to? I think its to hard for us, Vi-Vi. Yeah, itsth hard. It might be too early to teach magic circles like this, but I could teach you an easy one. Vi-Vi said, and Millets eyes lit up. Please, teach me! Sthub-bossth! Sthub-bossth! Sure... She nodded happily. Moo moo Moofy was also huffing away next to Vi-Vi. What? You want to learn too? Moo! Okay, I guess Ill TRY to teach you too. Moo moo! Could a cw like Moofy really draw it though? I really wanted to see a cow draw a magic circle. ryaaa Shiggy said in a soft voice. She was staring at the magic circle from my shoulder. Are you interested too, Shiggy? ryaa ryaa She cried out as if she was interested. I guess Id have to teach her too. By evening, we were done drawing the magic circles. It had taken Vi-Vi and I quite some time to draw them. Also, Collette took off her mask because her head was getting hot. Femme also showed up, expecting we had finished with the drawing. Time for me to howl. Sure. Wuff. Everyday Femm would howl to keep monsters and beasts away from the vige. Moofy, Shiggy, and then Chel gathered around Femm. Hwuffff... Femm opened its mouth and breathed in. Beside Femm, Moofy was doing the same. I couldnt tell if Chel was breathing in. But it was jiggling. Wait a sec! Ga....huh? Moo?Wuff?Pi! Vi-Vi stood right in front of Femm. Femm looked a bit surprised. Ok, Femm, hit me with your howl! Wuff? Femm was surprised, she was daring Femm to howl at her. Femm looked at me, confused. What are you doing, Vi-Vi? Hmph! Ive been hit with a lot of howls recently during fights. Yeah... A normal monster cant put magic into its howl. But magic beasts can, sometimes very strongly. Dragons and magic wolves, especially. And for some reason, we encountered a lot of magical beasts. The magic howls we were hit with happened often. I thought I should get used to it. Whaaa? I know she was right, but she probably will only end up wetting herself. Okay,e on! HOWL! Wuff... Femm seemed to look at me, asking if it was okay. I just nodded to Femm. Gaww. Femm clearly held back, not howling too strongly. Vi-Vi was quite surprised. Come on! Thats not how you howl! Not enough! She said, taunting Femm. GAWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWL RYAAAAAAAAAA MOOOOOOOOOOOOO PIGGGGGGGGGGIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIII And the whole group howled at her. And...she fainted. Chapter 185 – Vi-Vi’s Special Ability

Chapter 185 C Vi-Vis Special Ability

I ran over to Vi-Vi as she passed out. I was d to see she didnt wet herself. Wu...wuff. Femm was obviously worried after doing what Femm did to Vi-Vi. Then Chel, Shiggy, and Moofy also surrounded her. Are you okay, Vi-Vi? ... VI-VI! Ah! ...Im fine! Vi-Vi reawoke, and folded her arms as she sat up. I guess its hard to take a howl like that. Well, it is a magic wolf kings. Its not easy to take. Even most strong adventurers couldnt take it. ...wuff Femm looked a little embarrassed, and barked softly. Well, IM THE FIFTH OF THE FOUR SUB-BOSSES. I cant just be useless any time something howls! I wouldnt worry about it. It seems shes pissed at passing out every time something howled at her. Its not that I didnt understand how she felt, but I was sorry that all the enemies we facedtely were so strong. Well, you dont see dragons very much. Just dont worry... What are you saying? How many times do you think Ive fought one, Al? I had no way to respond to that question. Just then, Timi ran up to me. I noticed that she had disappeared pretty quickly just a moment ago. I bet she took off as a dragon, but then quickly returned when she heard the howl. ryaa ryaa! Oh, Shiggy! Happy to see auntie back so soon?! ryaa I see. Timi said, picking Shiggy up. She rubbed her softly, and said, Hm, are you trying to strengthen against magical howls? ....yeah. Its a psychological strength. It might be hard to develop. I guess so... But Vi-Vi looked a little sad. Seeing this, Timi put her hand on Vi-Vis shoulder. Yeah, its normal, but you have me. Dont worry. Wha? But if I train you, itll be hard! You want to train? I will! Vi-Vi looked pretty satisfied with Timis offer. Then she looked around her. Yeah, but here is a bad ce. Lets go to the pole, Vi-Vi. Sure!! Timi started walking to the magic circle shack. You going now? Its already dinnertime! The sun was going down. When it does, usually Cruz and the others, including Vallimie would arrive. Then it was dinnertime. Well, at least the gist of things. Ok... Timi and Vi-Vi kept walking to the transport circles. Alra, you wait here. Huh? Why? Because you dont need this training. You could resist one of my roars if you needed. Yeah, but Im still curious. I know how you feel, but you should wait. Timi said abruptly. Okay, be careful. Hm, well dont do something dangerous. Saying this, Timi held on to Shiggy, and went with Moofy and Vi-Vi to the pole. After they left, Femm said, Timis being very careful. Why? If Timi roars at Vi-Vi, shes totally going to drain her dder. Youre probably right... Thats why she said not to follow her. I guess so. Femm was right about that. Femm had thought it out. She even was a little shocked when you looked like youd follow her. Femm looked at me a bit disappointed. So I said to Femm, You dont want to go? Im a magic wolf, so an ancient dragons cry means nothing to me. Is that so? I remember Femm being quite afraid. Especially when Shiggys mom Jilndora cried out, Femm freaked out. Its tail was between its legs, and it threw up. Why are you looking at me like that? You have something to say? Nah, not really. G It was true that Femm looked really scared of the ancient dragons. But, Femm didnt pass out...Just fought while shaking a lot. I think youre really strong, Femm. What does that mean? Is that sarcasm? No...not at all. Even though Femm looked full of resentment, I still petted it. It took two hours until Vi-Vi and the others returned. By then Cruz, the others, and Vallimie had returned. Moo moo ryaaa They were riding on Moofy, and Vi-Vi looked pretty worn out. She was holding Shiggy in one hand, patting it with the other. Vallimie ran out quickly to her sister. V...Vi-Vi! Are you okay? Im fine... Vi-Vi said, trying to put on a smile. She looked very tired. It must have been hard training. I asked Timi, What did you do? Secret. Then I wont ask. Is she okay? Yeah. Are you going to keep training her? For a little longer. Hearing this, Vallimie said, Youre pushing Vi-Vi too hard! Shes not pushing me too hard, sis. No one should stop Vi-Vi if she wants to go through with it. Dont push yourself too hard! I know, sis! Then, Vi-Vi smiled. Chapter 186 – Long Time, No See, B-Class Party

Chapter 186 C Long Time, No See, B-ss Party

It was the next morning. Timisoara went again with Vi-Vi to the pole. Moffy and Shiggy went with them. Kind of lonely without Shiggy. Wuff. Femm put its mouth on the top of my knee. Femm probably wanted me to cheer up. Cruz was away on business in her region. Luka and Yureena had business in the city, while Vallimie had gone back to Lindobal forest. Everyone had work, and I wished them the best. Well, I have nothing to do. You have this work to do, Al. I guess so. I sat there and looked over the fields. The magic circles were in ce, already drawn. The magical stones would be refined, and the crops would be better next year. Rauf! Rauf!Kyawf! The little puppies were ying in the fields, digging holes, catching moles. The other wolves were looking over them like caretakers. The little ones are learning how to hunt. Right. But, these little wolves arent growing big very quickly. Because theyre magic wolves. Is that how it is? They have longer lives, so they grow slower. Thats normal. I guess that made sense. Mice were faster than wolves, and wolves grew faster than humans. Wuff KyaffWayff One wolf scooped up a pup by the scruff and carried it to the wolf-house. Then the other wolves got the other ones to scurry away to the same ce. Hm? Visitors. Femm sat up from lying down. I bet it was thinking like a guard dog again. After a while, our visitors appeared. They began waving at us from far off. Alfreeeeeed! ...Nice to see you again! It was that B-rank party that came to Mulg a while ago. The brother and two sisters that ame to pick herbs, and almost got destroyed by a group of basilisks. But we were there to help them. And if Yureena and her healing magic wasnt there, theyd all be dead. There was the heavy warrior Anton, his light warrior Emmy, and the archer Liza. When they arrived at the gate, Anton said with a smile, Nice seeing you again, Alfred. Yeah, you look like youre in good shape. Thanks to you. They lived in the town where we went at first to sell Moofys meat. The ce where Tolfs shop was...and it isnt in Cruz realm. A quest from the guild today? Exactly. Last time you were picking herbs...this time? More of an errand, really. Anton was obviously being vague about it. Many of these quests came with confidentiality. It wasnt rare. And as a veteran, I wasnt going to push him about it. You have to have manners. We needed supplies, so I thought we might stop by on the way and see you. Well, youre wee any time. As I was talking to Anton, Emmy and Liza petted Femm. Wuff Youre so soft, Femm. Femm just sat there happily with its ears pricked high. I guess it was showing off the grandeur of being a wolf king. Is Moofy here too? Shes out for a bit. Too bad. Emmy looked quite disappointed. Moofy was cute and Im sure she was sad to miss that cow. After talking a little more, we all entered the town. Anton got the attention of the chief and talked to him too...probably about what he wanted to buy. While we were watching, Femm said, Why have theye? No idea. Makes you wonder. Femm was curious and snorted a few times. But there was no way I was going to press them about their mission. So I exined why I wasnt asking to Femm. Is that why... Pretty much. While I was exining adventurers code to Femm, Antons party was still conversing with the chief. Then they went over to the cattle. Then they came back to us. I asked the chief. What is it? No, well, Anton said he just wanted to see the fields. So the group now went over to the fields together. Femm was now very curious. Its tail was in the air, as were its ears. Strange. I dont think so. You dont? Nope. I tried to imagine what Anton was doing this though. After seeing the fields, they made their way back to the gate. Im sad we couldnt see Vi-Vi, Cruz, and the rest. Tell Yureena we said hi, too. Anton and the girls were saved by Yureena. Thats why they felt they had to say something. If you have time on your way home,e by. Sure! They gave Femm a rub on the way out. After they were gone, the chief said, Why did Antons partye by here? Well... Go on. Well, I have something that Id like to ask before I tell you my guess, so first, what did they say to you, chief? Um, basically how much crops we grew, and what our tax was. I knew it. Femm looked at me, confused. You knew what? Whether the new assessor was fraudulent or not, going from vige to vige. Well, Mulg was a bit different because the assistant to Cruz was in charge. Oh? Its because Cruz made a request to the adventurers guild. After changing the assessor, Luka said she would arrange it. This B-ss party was being funded by Cruz to check after the assessor. I felt that Cruz was never going to let anyone get away with squeezing people for taxes ever again. Chapter 187 – A So Called Special Training

Chapter 187 C A So Called Special Training

After Antons party left, Millet approached. With Collette. Old man, were here! Mister Al, please teach us more magic. Oh! Good to see you into learning it! I showed Millet some more basic magic skills. Instead of learning new magic skills, it was better that she got used to handling magical force. That was the way to better skill, I felt. Well start our magical exercises like usual. Yes, sir! Wow, Ive really improved! I thought up these exercises myself, and they turned out to work pretty well. You move your body, learn to circte the magic, and bring life to the magical force inside. Even though she said she was doing well, it is true that Collette had a lot of talent. Im practicing all day and night, Mr. Al Is that so? Seems like she practiced even when I wasnt there to guide her. She was a great student. Wuff, Wuff! Femm were side-by-side with Collette, doing something. Maybe Femm was nning on joining our exercise. There was no way Femm could use the same movements though, Femms a wolf. Maybe I should think up something for Femm too. With the basic exercise over, I thought about some basic magic to teach. How about spirit speech? Spirit speech? Like how Femm speaks a lot? I wanna usthe it, old man! Hm, well the way you do it is... As I exined, Millet and the others listened to my exnation. Femm started to snort. I can do this too, you can ask me anything. Thanks. If I cant remember something, Ill ask you. Femm said to Millet and wagged its tail. But it wasnt Femms turn. Rufff? Femm looked confused. It must be thinking. After a while, Femm said. I want to use fire magic. Ah, so you can cook meat? All the magic wolves loved cooked meat. I guess theyd all be happy if Femm learned fire magic. By the way, Millet and Collette had already learned the basic fire spells. As I taught this to Femm, the two girls reviewed. And after a while of studying, Fwaggooo! Femm learned to spit fire. Then Femm looked at me with a proud face. ...just like a heavenly wolf. Wuff Never thought youd learn THAT quickly. Great job, Femm! Collette hugged Femm, and Femm looked proud. Femm used to just be able to shoot a magic bolt, but this time it was the same, but with fire. Seems Femm had learned how to change the magic. However, if you didnt have the sense for it, that would take time. You have a lot of sense for magic, Femm. Wuff! Next is water. Until you learn water, you cant use fire without me around. Wuff! A good answer. You have to learn water magic with fire, or else you set things aze. So I taught Femm water magic until the sun went down. Vi-Vi arrived back from the pole with the others, and so I finished my magical training. Shiggy came flying from the storage shack with the transfer circle as well. She flew over, happily trying to get back into my chest pouch. ryaa ryaa! Were you a good girl, Shiggy? ryaa! Shiggy rubbed her head into my chest. If you think about it, this is the first time shes spent a day away from me. When she hatched from her egg, she would always cry if I was separated from her. Now she was older. I was happy, but a little lonely. Good job, Shiggy. I petted her head. ryaa ryaa What is it? ryaa Shiggy buried herself in the pouch, probably enjoying the attention. I patted her body from outside of the pouch. Then Timi approached, I asked, How was Shiggy? Was she good? Yes. Shes always so cute and well behaved. I see, good to hear. Its important for Shiggy to spend time with another ancient dragon to learn about their ways. I knew that Timi would be taking Shiggy to the pole more and more from now on. As we were talking to Shiggy, Vi-Vi, riding on Moofy, approached. Vi-Vi looked TIRED. Moo moo! Moofy ran up to me, and nuzzled me. Good job, Moofy. Moo! Then I asked Vi-Vi, How was the special training? Well, I think I can take a lot more now. I see. I reached up and patted Vi-Vis head. She looked tired, but she didnt look like she just gave up. Dont push too hard. Im FINE. Vi-Vi flexed her small arm. As I patted her, Timi said, She really has grown. She probably can take the cry of arge magical beast now. Arge one? Like a great dragon? I think she could. Quite an improvement. If she can take that, then shes going to be okay. You think theres a beast she couldnt take? Like an ancient dragon? I guess theres not stopping that, right? Only humans in my party could probably take that and walk away from it. Some improvement. I said, as I patted her head once more. Chapter 188 – The Way of Build Psychological Defense

Chapter 188 C The Way of Build Psychological Defense

After that, Cruz came back too, and it was dinner time. Vallimie was probably worried about Vi-Vi. She asked her right away. Vi-Vi, are you okay? Im fine! You worked too hard! Not at all! Vi-Vi forced a smile, but it was clear she was tired. Vallimie looked at Timi and said, First, let me thank you. Im grateful for how youve trained my little sister. Dont worry about it. However, what did you do to her to make her look so tired? Special training, right? Normal process, I guess. Well tell me about how normal it is then. I just normally shouted magic at her. Vallimie seemed to rear back in surprise. A...an ancient dragon roaring at my sister? Of course it wasnt full power. I HOPE NOT! Then, Vallimie grabbed Vi-Vis shoulder. Are you really okay? Getting shouted at by an ancient dragon would kill some people. I was fine. Yeah, I didnt shout at her full power. Just right up to the amount she could take. ryaa ryaa Timi said proudly. Shiggy also shouted from my pouch. Seems she was saying it was okay as well. Shiggy stayed in my pouch while we ate. She usually would eat from my te, but this time she wanted to eat from my hand. She must have wanted to be coddled. It was only a day away, but it must have made her feel lonely. Vallimie then said, a bit strongly, Exercising her by shouting at her over and over...it sounds QUITE dangerous. I was fine, though. Well, I dont like it. I was the one that asked Timi to do it. Mmmm... Then Timi said, to the worrying Vallimie, Well, shes done with it for now. Really? Vallimie looked quite relieved. Yes. In order to be able to resist the roar of an ancient dragon, it takes way more than a whole day. I understand that, but... Also, you basically have to train yourself psychologically. At least in order to resist a roar. Cruz nodded to what Timi said, Its hard to train yourself psychologically. As if she had done some training herself. I was very curious. One reason why is that Cruz personality was the pr opposite of the word training. So did you train too, Cruz? Of course I did. I love training myself! So how did you go about it? I could tell everyone else wanted to hear her answer to my question. Everyone was gazing at her. Its some ruthless training. First you make your bath way hotter than usual. ...wha? Then you endure the heat, and count to 100. You want to get out after that point. But you dont! You count to 100 again! Cruz said, proudly. Cruz did have very high endurance to fire. Maybe that bath did it for her. Right? No one was replying to her story, so she asked for others to agree. Um, Cruz. Whats ruthless about that? Because you want to get out of a really hot bath RIGHT AWAY. But it takes psychological training to stop yourself. Heh...heh... It was training that no one knew how to respond to. Luka looked a bit bbergasted and said, So...the result of that training, or whatever, is what? Um...after that, no dragons roar could work against me. Did it work against you before that? I got goosebumps...but after, I didnt. I guess it didnt really affect her before the training either. Seems like the bath training had no rtion, and she was used to being roared at. Vi-Vi, you should try the hot bath too! N...no...I think... Dont hold yourself back! Vi-Vi looked flustered. Um, Cruz. Very hot baths arent for your body. You should stop. Understood! She responded happily to my advice, but then turned to Vi-Vi, Sorry, Al told me to stop...I guess you cant train that way after all. S...sure. No problem. None at all. But there has to be some training thats also good for you... Then Luka said to Cruz, Something that easys not going to train you anyway. Maybe... I mean just having a hot bath really isnt training, after all. Hmph. Well, how did you train, Al? Cruz asked me, and I thought it over. I really never trained myself psychologically. However, its true my psychological resistance is much stronger than before. I think I naturally became trained by being an adventurer. Is that so? Yeah. Getting stronger in magic is something different, but kind of the same. So, Al doesnt know either. Vi-Vi said with augh. Yeah, it is hard to define. However, I think adventurers have stronger psychological resistance than most people. Maybe because adventurers actually have to fight beasts...and thats training? Probably. You get nervous fighting enemies. You always fear death. And when you win, its because you had to face that nervousness and fear and bear it every time. Maybe thats what makes you stronger psychologically. So that night, we all talked about our theories of what psychological training meant. But in the end, no one had the answer. Chapter 189 – Conversations about Village Creations

Chapter 189 C Conversations about Vige Creations

After dinner, we were cleaning, when I said to Cruz, Oh yeah, Cruz. Anton and his sisters came by today. Anton...you mean the siblings that came to find herbs, and almost died from five basilisks, Anton? Yeah, that Anton. So, were they search for herbs again? No, I think they were searching around your domain to make sure taxes and so on were going down correctly. Ah, you mean that?! The quest my realm put out to the adventures guild. Upon hearing this, Luka nodded happily, Im d the right people got the quest. Now I can rx. Quite a bit of work for a B-Rank party. Did you ask multiple parties to do it? Of course. This is the first time Ive done something like that, so its important to get it right. You cant just entrust sucky adventurers with it. Luka was right, because as you went up in party ranks you got better and better people. F-rank parties were usually half-filled withmon hoodlums. They never put themselves to work right, and a lot of times they get kicked out of the party or dealt with one way or another. With a bunch of hoodlums, no quest is done sessfully, and the party never goes up in rank. Because of that, they get filtered out, so you onlye to trust the higher ranks. You can trust a B-rank party, Al! Cruz said with a smile. If we asked a F-rank, theyd probably be fishing for bribes and thered be some criminal activity, and the whole operation would go down the crapper. Theres a reason theyre higher party rank. Vi-Vi whispered, with a healthier look than she had after returning from that trial. It seems that Millets delicious dinner had brought her back. Yeah, Al. It also seems the death temple has started working too. Oh, making roads and a town? Yeah, yeah. When I wasing back here, I stopped there to find out. After she was done at her manor, she had visited the temple. I bet she was wondering. Good job, Cruz Eheh heh. Cruz was happy to beplimented. Al, if you want, you can help them. No skin off my back. PIGGIiii! Chelnobok shouted. T...thank you. Then it responded in spirit speech. Dont worry about it. ryaa! Shiggy was riding on top of the jiggling Chel. Shiggy was beside me all throughout lunch, but now she was rxing on Chel. I had fed her and petted her, so I guess her lonely feeling had left her. Timi gazed at Shiggy and said, You can ask them if they need help from me! Thanks, Timi. No problem. Seems that Chel and Shiggy are friends, after all. ryaa ryaa PiGGi! Shiggy pped her wings while riding Chel. And Chel was bouncing as well, happily. I guess the slime felt that Shiggy riding it didnt hurt at all. I can help if they need good fields. Yeah, we can make some! Moo mooo! Moofy answered the sisters proudly. Vi-Vi and Moofy had cleared the potato fields and done a great job of it. You can help too, Moofy. MOO! Moofy was now stronger than several cows. Smart, strong, and tough as well. I noticed that Femm was sitting by itself, a little withdrawn. Femm had a look like, what about me? On its face as it sat. I know that Femm would help too. It was very good at getting rid of pests. I dont have to make a forest or anything, so if I were to help... Vallimie said as she thought something over. Then she said with a smile, Oh yeah! I can lend them some golems. Theres no doubt they can take over some of the work to make roads. Pigggi! Thanks, Vallimie. So I asked Cruz, since I was wondering, That reminds me, Cruz, you said youd dispatch a bureaucrat of yours over there, right? Yeah, I said someone representing me would arrive, and theyre probably on their way. The magic circlework had to stay secret, so it would take some time. Can we do some work before the fellow gets there? Sure...Im the ruler, after all. You sure are. But I was worried that whoever she chose wouldnt butt heads with her. And I talked with my assistant when I was at the manor too. About how to make a vige? Well, not so much that, but what could cause me trouble. Like anyws that I had to watch out for. Cruz was really bing a serious girl. Growing, and it was impressive. Also, I told him to get all the paperwork and so on ready. And the work thats to be done is all decided by you, right? Me, Chel, and the priest. And saying that she put Chel, with Shiggy still on top, on her shoulder. PiggGi! ryaa ryaa! The two beasts cried out happily. Yureena had been listening to all this, and finally said, Cruz, youve really grown... She was getting emotional, almost to the point of tears. It was hard to imagine that all that potato-field clearing was only a few months ago. She really had matured. I guess duties make people grow into the role, as they say. Vi-Vi said, and then continued, When I became the fifth of the Four Sub-bosses, I had to grow too. A lot! Is that so? YEAH! Well, it seems that even Vi-Vi acknowledged Cruz change in maturity. And Cruz was now definitely less of an airhead. Chapter 190 – Making a Village

Chapter 190 C Making a Vige

After the next days breakfast, we all headed to the death temple together. And by we I mean, Cruz, Chel, Vi-Vi, Moofy, and Yureena. Of course, Shiggy too...inside my pouch. Okay, lets go! Moo! Seems that Vi-Vi and Moofy were the most into the journey. Vi-Vi had her overalls and straw hat on, ready to farm. And there were a bunch of farming tools over Moofys back. Moofy, do you want me to put those tools in my magic bag? Moo? Mooo! She was probably asking Could you?by the sound of her moos. Sure, I have plenty of room. Moo! I pulled the mountain of tools off of Moofys back and into my magic bag. Timi was waiting for us as we were about to enter the storage shack with the transport circles. Huh? Youre not going back to the pole, Timi? No, Im taking a day off today! Right, Shiggy? ryaa ryaa! I didnt know why Shiggy responded to her right, because everydays a day off for Shiggy. But she still cried out happily. You want toe too Femm? Wuff! Of course Femm did. You could see it in its eyes. Thanks, youll be a big help. Wuff. Femm wagged its tail. We went through the magic circle, arrived at the temple, where the priest was waiting for us. Good morning, everyone. Sorry to keep you waiting. No, we didnt wait at all. So Cruz and the priest exchanged pleasantries. Yesterday, Cruz and the priest had talked, so both sides knew wed be here today. Thats why Cruz said she had kept him waiting...because of her politeness. PiGGi! Wee back, master. ppiGGi! Chel jumped over to the priests shoulder. Then we left the building. Before we left the room, Chel jumped back into Cruz pouch. I guess Chels base was at the base of Cruz chest. If so, then Chel would be safe, and no one had to worry about it. After we left the building, Vi-Vi asked the priest, Where are you going to make the vige? We were thinking of building it with the temple as the center of themunity. I see. Vi-Vi looked around her with a serious look. She was probably trying to plot out where the fields would go. Then I asked him, How many people are you nning to support here? Around 300. ...quite a bit. Mulg had about 60 houses and 200 people. But this would be bigger. That would mean even biggernd for fields than Mulg. Thinking about this, the priest added, And it might get even bigger. You may be right. There were ces that oppressed this death cult. If that increased, more followers would gather here. Are you going to put the fields inside, or outside the vige. We will have to decide on that. Yeah. Honestly, Im new at this...Im very sorry. The priest apologize, but most people have no idea how to make a vige. No reason to take it to heart. Then Cruz made a serious face and said, The fields are on the outside of Mulg, right? Yes. So, maybe its more convenient to build them outside? It would make the vige easier to grow. Yes. And since theres a chance our followers might seek refuge here, growth is important. Vi-Vi bent over and looked over the soil. However, then wild beasts can get to the crops. Hm... And then theres the question of water use. Water use? Water supports human life, but it also is important for the fields. I think you should n this vige with water use in mind. Understood. Then Vi-Vi said to Cruz and the priest, still thinking this over, Is there a river nearby? Ah, now that you mention it, over there... How about a well? Theres one thats built into the temple. Hm, so if we dig, we can find more. She said, and we headed over to the river. Vi-Vi, what do you think? Well, its not a bad ce to grow. d to hear. However... She now put on a frown. What is it? Its not better ground than Mulg. Because of magic stones? Yeah, its close to the Demon Lordsnd. I guess theres no helping it, but... Hearing this, Cruz said, But we could do livestock... Yeah. Vi-Vi, what about the magic stone refinement circles? We could use those, of course. But their presence is very dense, so it might take years to get an effect. As we talked it over, we got an idea of where and what would go where and how. We decided to surround the vige with fields and livestock. After the discussion, Femm reappeared after being away for quite a while. Wmmmuff! And it was its huge size, dragging a bear. Well, not just a bear, a magic bear. Whoa... Even the priest was surprised. Lot of magic bears around here? Seems so. And there are normal ones too. So it seems that Femm had discovered there were quite a few in this area. Chapter 191 – Making Roads

Chapter 191 C Making Roads

Of course, when youre making a vige, roads are important. You have to think about whatmunities you want to connect to. So Cruz took out a map and spread it out. Okay, lets see. Where should we make a road to? Yeah, maybe thats a good idea. Cruz traced her finger from the temples location all the way to her manor. It was in the center of her realm, after all. And there was also arge town in the vicinity as well. About 10,000 people. And maybe here to? I see. I have no idea about these things, so Ill leave it to you. If you connected to another realm, there were a lot of regtions and it was just a mess. Thats why she wanted to make the roads inside her own realm first. I looked at her road ns while asking, Theres a mountain around here. Do you need a tunnel? Or a way around? You can make a mountain road too. A mountain roads fine. I know you could just blow a hole through the mountain, but the upkeep is too much. I guess youre right. Then Vi-Vi said, while looking at the map, We probably should make a bridge over the river too. Yeah, but we probably need someone skilled in that toe and help us first. I thought I could just cut some trees, strengthen them with a magic circle, and somehow make a bridge. But if it ever broke or was swept away, it would be trouble. Best to leave it to an expert. Moo mooo! As we were talking, Moofy approached and nudged me in the side. She probably wanted to get straight to farming. MOOO! She was huffing away. She REALLY wanted to start. Have you decided where the fields go? I asked Cruz and the priest. Um, I was thinking of building the houses first, and then cing the fields. The priest said with an apologetic expression. Cruz had the same opinion as the priest. Its already autumn. And ntings not until spring. Save it forter, then.... Mooo.... Moofy looked quite sad. Then Vi-Vi, while rubbing her, said, No! Springs toote! We need to ce magic circles to improve thend now! Youre right...so then where do you rmend? Cruz asked, and Vi-Vi began with her advice. Moo! Moofy was listening intently. So I called Moofy. Moofy! Moo? Come here. Moo. I then patted Moofy and said, They have to decide where the buildings will go, and then after deciding the fields, well start on making them. Tomorrow at the earliest. Moo So lets start making a road! Moo! Moofy seemed to understand. I called Cruz and the priest over, In order to start the road, can I start cutting down trees? Please! Al, Im making a road in that direction, so could you thwomp through it please? I couldnt understand what sound word she was trying to say, but she pointed in the direction she wanted it done. Roger! Moo mooo! I took Moofy and headed to the location. Femm came along. And Shiggy was sleeping inside the pouch. Shiggy was still a baby so she still had to have her nap. Moofy. Get big again. We need to start cutting trees. MOO! She replied, and became huge as a small hill. MOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO! She mooed and it seemed like the skies shook. Eeeeep! I could hear a scream arise from somewhere. It seemed that Cruz would take care of you-know-who for us. Moofy, over here. Moo! Moofy dug her horns into the bases of trees and plucked them from the earth. Just then, Moooo! She lifted them away and into the sky. After that, she looked over at me, with a look of, Is this okay? Moo? Wow! Moofy, dont push yourself too hard! Mooo! Leave the pulled trees to me. I can move them to the side. Then you can pull them all back. Mo! So Moofy went along, pulling trees out like dandelions. I rode Femm, and used magic to stack the trees while covering over the root holes. Moofy and Ibined power to pull the especially big trees out. Gaarrrrr! Just then, a magic bear emerged, but seeing how huge Moofy was, it ran. Its bad theres so many around here. Well, theyll just run if they see you two. Wuff. Femm was happy to hear it scared bears away, and wagged its tail. Moo moo! Moofy was very happy. She was happy to be big again. And maybe she hadnt exercised recently. Moofy, if you want to be big, you can anytime. Moo? Of course, not in the house or in the vige, though. Moo. She continued on through the forest, and we came to a river. We had nned to make a bridge here. Momfhmomfh wughuwghwugh Both beasts drank away at the water. They were thirsty from all the work. I jumped off of Femm. Lets take a rest! Moo! Wuff! The huge Moofyid down with a THWOMP. She then looked over and ate off the tree branches near her. Even if sheid all the way down, her huge mouth could still reach them. After that, she seemed to go to sleep while still chewing the leaves. After this rest, back to work! Mo mooo! Wuff! After I said that, they both replied happily. Chapter 192 – Fooling with Lumber

Chapter 192 C Fooling with Lumber

After floating the lumber along with magic, I put it all on Moofys back. If its heavy, let me know, Moofy! Moo! Seems like she is okay. What a magically holy beast. She looked like a small mountain of meat carrying a mountain of lumber. They were huge trees that we had pulled, after all. For a bit, it was hard for her to carry them. So I floated them with gravity magic, and we made headway without much problem. It was important to work as a team. So without much time wasted, we made it back to the temple. Waaaahhhh! Seeing the monstrous Moofy, the priest jolted and shouted, pointing. PiiGGi PigGGi! Chel looked happy about the event, bouncing up and down. Moofy lowered her massive head, and Chel bounced all the way up her nose, up the neck, and to her back. Where would you like this wood? Oh, yes! Come over here. The shocked priest suddenly came to and showed us where to go with a shaking finger. The ce we finally dumped all the wood became a huge mound. It was like a mountain of trees,id on their side. Cruz smiled at the amount and nodded happily, With just this we can build houses. Maybe 20 or so, right? Not enough for that... Really? Yeah. Cruz looked a little confused, so Vi-Vi continued, You have to dry the wood out first. You cant just use them now. Really? How long does that take? Well, if done naturally, it takes half a year. Thats no good! People are going to show up wanting a ce! It seems that there were quite a lot of people wanting to have their own ce here. The vige would get bigger and bigger, so they were nning on opening the vige around spring. But still, we needed to have houses for the first inhabitants soon. If thats the case, we can have them stay at the temple, but... The temple was quite arge building, after all. Even so, with that many people, it wasnt made to house everyone. There was a limit. Well, I guess at this point, we can buy some lumber.... But theres a limit to what we can spend, and if possible, we need to use this wood. Cruz said with a worried look. Vallimie could maybe sell wood to us for this, but it would cost... And as I thought this, Vi-Vi piped up with a smile, saying, Ive already thought this through, so I can make a quick-drying circle! Moo moo! Whoa! After taking the wood off of Moofy, Moofy shrunk and looked interested at what was about to happen. Vi-Vi began drawing a magic circle in the air. With this easy circle the wood should be dry in about three days. Thats really something. Usually drying warps the wood, but this process doesnt. Vi-Vi said with a proud face. This circle doesnt allow the wood to be weakened. Thats why you can dry it without negative effects. Thats convenient. RIGHT? RIGHT?! Its easy just to put on a stack of wood like this. After hearing that wed start the vigest night, she must have thought this magic circle necessary. She really was an expert in magic circles. After this, I cut the trees into strips of lumber. I took the bark off, and formed them into square posts. Then Vi-Vi applied the circle to them. While this was going on, I noticed, Where is Timi and Yureena? Yeah, theyre not here. They should be around somewhere. With Timi just walking around, all the magic beasts should stay far away. She was perfect for keeping them far from the temple. And after Vi-Vi had finished with the lumber, Alra, what are you doing? Hey! Timi suddenly returned. I didnt sense her returning. It surprised me a bit. Where did you go? Well, my legs were falling asleep, so Yureena and I flew around a bit. It seemed that Timis legs hurt after being human form for too long. Thats why she flew around as a dragon whenever she could. And Yureena wanted to talk to Vi-Vi about channeling the river. They could see a ce where the river could be diverted easily from the sky. It was a great n. So, when I fly, people down here freaked out, right? Well, you are an ancient dragon. So I guessed I should fly when no one can see. Timi seemed to want to be reserved about her flying. And it seems that Timi was able to hide her presence so that no one was able to see and then fall into abject fear after seeing her. Thats why she was able to fly around without people around seeing her. Its a magic that curves the light around you. Its pretty hard to do while flying though right? Its hard to see me unless youre close. Up in the sky practically no one can see me. I see. While I was impressed by her ability, she took out a map to show me. So, heres good, Alra. Look here. Here? A map I drew. It was very detailed. I could understand they of thend easily. And it was way more detailed than Cruz map. Did you draw this yourself? Yeah! While I was flying! Wow! So I called Cruz over. What is it, Al? Look at this. Timi drew it for us. Whoa! Thanks Timi! After this thanks, Timi seemed to be embarrassed. Her face turned a little red. It was quite simple for me. With this, we can totally n out the town! Right! Timi said, after a bit. Alra. Hm? I watched from above...you and Moofy did well. Mooo mooo! Moofy ran over after hearing her name. Timi rubbed her head. Then she said, I can do that too, you know. You mean, grow huge and pull the trees? Yeah, because Moofy really wants to plow the fields, right? Moo! It seems that Moofy was more interested in creating fields than roads. And from tomorrow, she might be put back to that use. Thanks, but...is that okay? Sure. I want to show Shiggy how cool I am. Timi said with her chest out in pride. But Shiggy was still sleeping in my pouch. Chapter 193 – Getting Ready to Make the Fields and Roads

Chapter 193 C Getting Ready to Make the Fields and Roads

We talked it over until night, got ready for work, and then went back to Mulg. The priest made sure to watch the lumber being dried. Master! And others! Thank you so much! No problem. See you tomorrow! PiGGi! Chelnobok said in spirit speech, Thanks And just that. We went back to Mulg and after eating, Vallimie said, I have the golems ready. Oh, thanks! Great job, sister! Vi-Viplimented her sister, and Vallimie was a bit bashful. Chel started to jiggle and said, Vawimmie, thanks Dont worry at all, Chel. And with that, Vallimie went over to pet Chel. Chel, of course, jiggled around happily. PiGiii, PigGi Seems the blob really liked to be petted by a busty devil. Then I asked her, What kind of golems are you bringing here? Well, I thought I could lend 5 mithril golems. Mithril? Thanks for sending the high ss stuff. Id do anything to help! A normal golem could cover small things like lifting lumber and small stones, but it would lose power. A mithril golem, though, could put a lot more power into it. Millet was listening, and said, We can help operate the golems if you need help! We can help too! Its not hard for a normal person to learn how to operate golems. Of course, golems werent made with that in mind. Even so, since both Collette and Millet had learned magic, I think they could help. Thats why I was happy to hear about the extra aid Millet could offer. That would help, but will Mulg be okay? Sure, just leave that to the chief. Collette was hugging onto Moofy and said, Right? We can go together, Moofy. Moooo Moofy seemed happy about that. I asked Cruz, Are there any carpenters or bridge-makersing to that vige anytime soon? Well, I did ask the assistant to send them as quickly as possible. So, a few days? Probably. Some might show up tomorrow. There was no road connecting the temple to anywhere, too. So it would take more than just a few hours. And the government nner guy? Will probably show up with the carpenters and others. I see. I guess we just had to do what we could until the help showed. So making fields and roads then! Yeah. Leave the fields to ME! Moo Moo! Vi-Vi said proudly. Moofy also stretched when she mooed. It was breakfast of the next day. Before we went to the temple, Vi-Vi said, Al. Ive been wondering for a while... Hm? Whats with the get-up? What do you mean? I always was dressed like a magician. It was convenient, easy, and you didnt care if your robes got dirty. If youre going to farm, you need THIS! Vi-Vi handed me some overalls and a straw hat. Well, it is very farm-ish. I made it for you, Al. Oh, well, thanks. I guess it was good for the task ahead. She had made it just for me, so I felt I had to wear it. After i put the overalls and hat on, Vi-Vi looked at me,pletely satisfied. Yeah, fits you well. Hey, I want one too. If I have to... And as soon as Cruz asked, Vi-Vi took out another pair of overalls and a straw hat. A little over-prepared. YAY! W...WAIT! Cruz was about to strip right there, but Vi-Vi grabbed her and took her back to a room. She was changed in a sh, and then returned. What do you think, Al? Looks good on you. Heh heh. She looked very happy. So we made our way to the temple. Then we made our way out to the fields. The priest was waiting for us, and bowed, The living areas are going to be around there, so ce all the fields over there. Understood! Today, Vallimie came with her golems. And Millet came with mine. Moofy, Millet, and Collette! Lets plow! Sure! Lets start. I will too, old man! Moo moo Vi-Vi pointed out what to do, and we began clearing the fields. It was good to have help. The giant Moofy took care of uprooting the biggest trees. Seeing this, Femm whispered, A lot more help than when we were at Mulg. Back when we were making the fields, Moofy couldnt talk. Is that so? Yeah. As we cleared everything back then, Moofy wasnt able to get small. When we started plowing, Cruz was finally able to trante and Moofy became small. And Moofy couldnt use spirit speech back then at all. Since we couldnt ask Moofy to pull the trees up, I had to use magic. Wuff Moofy was busy now plucking trees out of the earth with her massive horns. Tremendous power. And in the case when it was very deeply buried, she used a magic bolt from her horns. Then it would blow the roots away, and it was easy to remove. I guess we can then leave the fields to Millet and the others. Then Timi approached with a map in her hand and said, Where do you want the road? Um, it would help if you could construct a road in that direction. Got it! Because of this map you made, I think the road will be made well, Timi. Heh heh She blushed a bit, and then Timi said to me, Okay, Alra, Femm, Shiggy,e with me! Okay. Wuff! ryaa ryaa Shiggy poked her head out of my pouch and cried out. Then Timi approached me and put her arms around Shiggy. ryaa Shiggy, you can ride on your aunties shoulders. ryaa ryaa! She put Shiggy on her shoulders, and started running. She was still human form, but far faster than a normal human. I jumped on Femm and chased after her. She really is fast. Not even a dragon. But I wont lose to her human form! Femm ran at full speed and we got closer and closer. Youre fast, Femm! Wuff! And in a sh, we were at the river. Huff huff huff Wuffuffuff ryaaryaaryaa Timi and Femm were out of breath. They both had run as fast as possible. It was quite an evenpetition. Shiggy was happy, and pped on Timis shoulders. The wings hit Timi in the face, too. Youre really healthy, Shiggy! ryaa Timi still was happy about it. And as they stood there breathless, we rested and drank from the river. Chapter 194 – Construction with Timi

Chapter 194 C Construction with Timi

Femm and Timi got their breath back at about the same time. Wuff Youre good. Femm and Timi eyed each other. They hadpeted to the most, and they acknowledged each others ability. ryaa ryaa Shiggy cried out too, while riding Timis shoulder. Shiggy just like high speeds, after all. Okay, then, Alra. After we cross the river, we start knocking down trees? Yeah, let me see the map first. Look all you want. Timi handed over the map she was holding. Cruz had scribbled in the direction of the road. Hm, so that means that were right here. Yes. If we keep going, then well hit this other river. This meant that the ce we were making a road was between the two rivers. The river that we were at wasnt so wide. The next one, however, would be. It was a wide river and it would be hard to make a bridge. Its not so close that we could say its close, but it is a big river. With this distance, it will take a day to clear all the trees between the rivers. Dont push yourself too hard. I know already! ryaa ryaa As I said this to Timi, Shiggy start crying out and pping her wings again. Timi, on the other hand, looked shocked. S...Sighisoara... ryaa ryaa? I have to get big now, okay? ryaaa? You can ride on my head. ryaa? Timi tried to appeal to Shiggy that it would be fun. But Shiggy just looked confused. If you get bigger, do you think Shiggy feels different about you? You think she does? Because dragons are so much cooler than humans. Yeah! We are! You have a good head, Alra. Timi stroked Shiggys head and said, Youre aunties going to get bigger. Just watch. ryaa. Timi then suddenly grew to her massive ancient dragon body. You could feel the air whoosh past you as she disced the air. An immense power. All the sounds around us hushed. The animals, birds, and insects all fell silent. Femm looked up at Timi and whispered, No matter how many times I see it, its an amazing power. Yup. I saw that Femm had quietly acknowledged her power. No tail between the legs, not shaking, though. Femm had grown too. ңң᡹ ryaa ryaa Timi and Shiggy cried back and forth to each other. Then Shiggy flew over from my arm. Shiggynded on Timis head. Sighisoara. You were ready to ride on your aunt. ryaa And Timi looked happy...as the face of an ancient dragon can look. Shiggy was impressed by Timis size too, as Shiggy patted Timis head with its w. Alra. Femm. Lets cross. Sure. Wrrruff Timis huge w grabbed on to us. And like usual, Femms voice cracked a bit. Timis huge body then floated and rose. She quietly flew across to the other side. Okay, time to start work. Just pluck them out. Ill stack them to the side. Thanks Al. Shiggy, are you okay on my head? ryaa I see. Tell me if you want to change ces. Saying that, Timi grabbed and plucked tree after tree. Moofy had used her horns to clear the trees like this. But Timi was using her strength. Hng! ryaa ryaa! Timi grabbed on a tree, and ripped it from the ground. Seeing this Shiggy cried happily. Timis ws were huge too, of course. She could pluck a human up like it was a de of grass. And so she could pluck more than one tree up at once. W...wait. What is it, Alra? With the way youre grabbing the wood, arent you damaging it? Hm? Timi looked down at the trees she had pulled. She had grabbed them so forcefully that they were cracked and warped. What crappy wood. No, its normal wood. Hmph. We were going to use the wood for construction. You cant just crush it. A...Alra, what should I do? Yeah... I thought for a second. How about your ancient dragon magic...can you do something? Yeah...I can burn it... We need to use the wood, so we cant do that... Yeah... It would be the fastest if Timi just burned a path, And I could use my magic to stop the me once it was done. However, none of the wood could be used as lumber. You need charcoal too, though. Of course. But in order to get that, you have to put the wood under special burning conditions. Ah, I didnt know that. You cant just burn wood to make it into charcoal. I heard it actually takes a lot of time and effort to make charcoal. I see. So maybe magic to soften the earth? Hm...earth softening magic... Timi thought it over and said, Maybe if we mix a shock force with gravity magic, it would work? Oh, that sounds good. If we use that, then the roots should be easy to pull. Yeah, lets do that. Timis magic was amazing. With her right front w she cast a gravity spell that lightened the earth around the roots, and with the left she shocked the ground. The shock rippled through the ground quickly. The amount and size of the shock was huge but limited. Because of that you could see how far the shock extended to. Okay, ready. Timi said quietly, and plucked a tree between two fingers of her w gently, like a dandelion. Chapter 195 – Ancient Dragon Road Construction, Co. ?

Chapter 195 C Ancient Dragon Road Construction, Co. ?

Now Timi was easily plucking the trees from the ground. Some of them she didnt need to pluck out, just dig her finger into the ground and scoop it out. ryaa ryaa Okay, I got it. Shiggy cried out loudly, and Timi responded happily. Maybe Shiggy wasplimenting her in dragon speech. I was riding Femm and arranging the pulled trees into a stack. This was so we could take them all back quickly. Then Femm said, You should go ahead and cut them here. That would be easy, but it would be harder to use them if we cut the bark off here. Hm? If you cut the wood apart here, you cant use all of the pieces. I took the wood that Timi had messed up and put them in the magic bag. It was no problem doing that, as I just had to stuff the pieces in the bag. You can use those pieces for making a fire. Yup. And youre right that cutting up the wood here would be too much work. I asked Timi, who was busy magicking and plucking up trees, Timi, is your magic use okay? No problem. Dont push yourself too hard. I know. But using my human form actually takes up more magic than this. I guess it is hard to squeeze that huge dragon into a tiny womans body. And Timi was doing that every day. Those dragons must have almost limitless powerpared to me. Thats really something. Heh heh. Im d you like it. ryaa ryaa! Shiggy mounted up between Timis horns and cried out happily. Shiggy, make sure you learn from Timis magic, okay? ryaa Shiggy said back, happily. I couldnt teach Shiggy dragon magic, after all. She had to learn that from Timi. In the afternoon, we finally made it to the other river. That was fast. Heh heh heh. ryaa ryaa Timi was proud of herself. Shiggy was crying out happily too. Okay, time to pick all this wood up. Yeah, you can just put it on my back. Its true the most effective way would just be to put it on her back. However, Timi had wings there. If I do, wont it fall off when you p your wings? Its okay. I use gravity magic to fly. I can cast it on the wood, too. Timi said, as if it was that easy. Thats really something. Alra, youre making me blush. Anyway, Femm, the wood, and I all rode on Timis back on the way back. Whenever the wood looked like it would fall, I would use magic to lift it back. There was quite a bit of wood, so I thought it best to leave some for a second trip. Okay, lets go. Sure. Timi lifted into the air. There was no shaking. When she pped her wings, it only shook a bit. Timi said that her wings generated gravity magic that she manipted to fly. That must be why she can fly so effortlessly. Ancient dragons are really impressive. Heh heh ryaa! Timi giggled happily. Shiggy tried to do the same as her, and hovered above her aunt. Then she flew over to me. She wasnt shaken up by the flight either. ryaa! She flew up and grabbed onto me. So youre okay with her flying on top of you? Yeah, just a second. Timi hovered a bit while Shiggy was flying over to me. We approached the temple by air, and saw the people scrambling below us. We came down quietly, and I stacked up the wood. Its okay! Everyone calm down! Cruz and the priest were running around trying to quiet the followers. Timi really didnt notice. Okay, another stack! Roger! ryaa ryaa Wuff! Femm was riding on Timis back, after all. Femm wasnt scared anymore. Femm was a huge wolf, after all. We lifted back into the sky and I looked over at where the fields would be. Moofy was happily yanking out trees. And Vi-Vi, Millet, Collette, and the golems were working together to carry the trees away. Looks like theyre stacking the trees up too. Yeah, and after building the houses, therell be enough to sell. Great that we have a lot left over. After that, without any more problems, we finished lugging all the wood around. Now I have to prepare the trees for lumber. Yup. We all worked together to cut up the trees, even the ones that Moofy had done. After seeing how I did it, Timi imitated me. But she did it still as a dragon. She was huge, but she could manipte the tiny trees very well. This is really hard! You can see the small trees really well, though. Really? Heh heh. She blushed again. Shiggy was on top of Timi, watching everything she did very carefully. Shiggy was probably learning from watching Timis magic. Shiggy, do your best! ryaa? Shiggy looked confused. After the tree cutting was done, next was making a road. The road was now covered with root holes from the trees. It would be hard on and a horse cart would take damage. We have to cover those holes. Roger. We rode Timi out to the new road. After passing over the first river, we went hole to hole covering each one over. I used my magic, and Timi used her ws. Youre pretty good at making a road, Timi. Really? She seemed a little embarrassed by myment. Timi would do that any time youplimented her. Maybe because she wasnt used to it. After covering all the holes, Timi said, Should I burn up the rest with my me breath? Sounds great. If Timi used her me breath, all of the small nts on the road would be burned. So we tried that first. Timis fire breath was so strong it made me nervous. I had to stop the fire from spreading, after all. I would have to use magic barriers and ice magic well to stop it. So we took some time, and after a bit, we reached the second river. We used a lot of power getting here! It was quite a work out! Timi did, but you just used magic, Al. Magic doesnt jut take magical power away. It takes physical power too. Wuff Femm replied happily. After that Timi and Femm both got smaller. Timi wasnt wearing her usual clothes. She was wearing overalls and a straw hat like Vi-Vi and I. Youre wearing the overalls too, Timi? Yes. Timi looked at me proudly. She was using the most magic to have a human form with clothes. And I wondered how she would change her clothes like that as well. I thought Id put in some work like this. I know how you feel. rya ryaa Do you want to wear this too, Shiggy? ryaa I see. Then Timi said, Alra, wheres Shiggys overalls? Dont have any. Whaa? ryaa.... They both seemed sad after hearing that. I guess you should ask Vi-Vi then. Yeah! rya ryaaa! After that, Timi and Femm drank from the river. Wont you get sick drinking directly from the river? She had drunk as a dragon. But she wasnt worried then either. I was a bit worried about her doing it in human form though. Im fine. ryaa ryaa Shiggy and Timi now drank together. After resting a bit by the river, on the other side of it, we saw a group of men approaching. Chapter 196 – Visitors

Chapter 196 C Visitors

They were on the other side, but a bit upstream from where we were. They seemed to notice us, and walked downstream in our direction. Humans. Yeah, who are they? Timi got up from drinking and put Shiggy in my pouch. She made sure that no one would see her. Strange to see humans this far out. Strange... There was no road here. We were in the process of making one. No human would normally pass through here. It might be the bureaucrat and technicians that Cruz called out here. Seems a bit fast for that. I looked over at the group. There were about 10 of them. As we looked at each other, Timi said, Well, with the way their dressed, they seem like the group Cruz called, right? But...the guy in the front looks like that guy that tried to marry Yureena. The son of Cruzs official assistant? Yeah. I had only met the fellow once. I dont know if her remembered me, but we were going to see. Anyway, he was a young man that looked like he was raised in a rich family. However, today I got a bad feeling about seeing him out here. The party had now walked to the direct opposite side of the river. An older man next to the kid yelled out at us in a loud voice, DO YOU ALL LIVE AROUND HERE?! The river was wide and quite loud. It was hard to hear. But I had increased my hearing and speaking with magic, so I answered loudly, I GUESS YOU COULD SAY THAT! Not the truth, but not really a lie either. It was a statement you couldnt refute. ARE YOU RELATED TO THE DEATH TEMPLE NEAR HERE?! I GUESS YOU COULD SAY THAT TOO! That was true, we were definitely rted. And we were also friends with Chelnobok. WHAT ARE YOU DOING HERE?! WE MADE A ROAD, AND NOW WERE TRYING TO REST! Just then, I could hear the bureaucrats kid say to the rest, quite strangely, Theyre loafing around. You have to watch those types, because they loaf around if you give them a chance. The kid said it like he was speaking to himself, but he had said it loudly. Almost as if he wanted me to hear it. Ak? Timi said back to the kid. She was an ancient dragon, so she could hear far better than humans could. She also would be a fierce terror of a tempest if you pissed her off. I really hoped this kid didnt piss her off any more. Hey, Timi, he didnt mean anything... I was saying that, and then I noticed. Maybe he really did mean something by it? Theres no reason for a kid like that to mouth off if he doesnt know what work we did. Anyway, just calm down, okay? I couldnt exin the kid off, so I just tried to calm her. Femms tail stood straight up. Maybe we should scare them a little. Hey, Femm, dont...okay? You want me to howl at them? Dont! They were quite far. However, this heavenly wolfs howl is VERY strong. Probably all of them would be knocked unconscious. Its true the older fellow just pretended like the kid didnt say anything. The river was wide and loud, so he probably thought we didnt hear. He just continued the conversation with a smile. WE NEED TO GET ACROSS. DO YOU HAVE A BOAT?! NO, WE DONT! Tch, damn those fools. The kid clicked his tongue at us. I had a much better impression of him in the capital, and that was copsing quickly. I bet Yureena knew this guy inside and out. Akkggah?! rgyaah?! I could hear the hostility in Timis voice. There was something about this strange sound that came from both Timi and Shiggy...hostility. It was the first time I heard it. Shiggy was really angry too. Im guessing this guy doesnt really want to be Yureenas husband at all. Now I was really feeling depressed about this guy. I didnt want to y her lover, but now I had no choice. DO YOU KNOW HOW DEEP THE RIVER IS? The old man ignored the kids rudeness again. At least he was doing his job well. Timi, you know how deep this is? It hasnt rainedtely, so the deepest ce is about up to your chest, Alra. Even though its wide, its not deep. After hearing her answer, I yelled out to the older guy, ABOUT UP TO HERE! And I pointed down from my chest. Now the older guy turned around and started talking in a voice not loud enough for me to hear. But thanks to the magic, it was quite clear to me. The flow is quite slow, and below the chest, so we can cross, possibly. Are you telling me I have to get wet?! Well, theres no bridge! You can at least pick a guy for me to ride on his shoulders! Oh lord, this kid. The water would be cold since its autumn, and I know he doesnt want to get in. But this guys reaaaaally selfish. The older guy picked a fellow for the kid to mount on his shoulders. Hey, Ill do it if its an order, but if I lose my strength as we cross, I might fall over, you know? I definitely would in my position. The fellow was threatening the kid. Me too. Since I cant swim, Id like someone to let ME ride on their shoulders. And Im a bridge carpenter. Shoulder rides arent in my contract. All the other fellows were refusing. Then all the other carpenters started joining in. I dont want to get wet, so what if we justplete the bridge and THEN go over. If we just wait here, it should be done quite quickly, right? But building a bridge isnt a quick task. It takes time. These guys were pretty pissed, too. After hearing this, Timi said, These guys are funny, dont you think? Yeah, because theyve had to put up with that kid. It was enough to make you quit a job you were given. They were proud craftsmen after all. No wonder they had probably turned on this kid after spending a journey with him. After being denied his exalted shoulder ride, the kid then turned to the older man and the rest. Gentlemen, I happen to be the son of the rulers assistant. Oh? He was expecting them to be impressed by his position. Probably he was given the role after the assistant needed someone to make the vige. You, over there! Give this man a ride over. Its cold...so, no. He refused so quickly that the older man was taken aback. And even from the opposite side of the river, we could see the kids face turn red in rage. Chapter 197 – Crossing the River

Chapter 197 C Crossing the River

Timi was watching this kids face get tight in anger, and yelled to him, ILL WATCH YOU FROM HERE! SWIM IT! How dare she talk to him like that! The older man with him was shocked by Timis words. I had heard the father of this kid, Cruz assistant, was a wonderful guy. But he may have not been good at raising his kids. They say the kids of aplished men are often fools. And they also dont understand the difference between foolishness and aplishment. It happens to kids that are babied by their parents until adulthood. Femm looked at me with an exasperated look, I guess this kid thinks hes really something, huh? If youre a royal, you have to understand what makes you one, first. ryaa! Timi was really angry as she said that to Shiggy. Shiggy looked upset as well. Timi rubbed the dragon that was still in my pouch. Youre a royal too, little Shiggy. You know you shouldnt act like people like that, right? ryaa Right! Youre a good girl, Shiggy. The two ancient dragons were talking about it to each other. As we were talking, a fellow on the other side had stripped and was crossing the river. He had a package on his head, and was walking through. It was one of the bridge carpenters thatined to the kid about riding him across. The kid and the older man watched him walk through the current with their arms crossed. We all watched him too, and Femm said, Its pretty deep. Yup. Timi said it was up to my chest, but it was now up to his neck. She made an excuse for it. Well, this guys a lot shorter than you Al, so... Yeah, even so, he might get swept away, and hes having a hard time of it. If he does get swept away, well help him. Please. Femm got ready. She watched him cross and whispered, No, I guess it is a lot deeper...I guess it looked really shallow from above. I think its a bit hard to judge a river from above, Timi... Yeah... Seems the Timi was doubting her own ability. She was a bit sad. As we were talking about it, the first guy crossed all the way. Good job. No, it would be nice in the summer, but now its quite cold! I retrieved a towel from my magic bag. You can take this if you want it. Ah, thank you very much! Dry off your clothes. I have a change of clothes if you need it. Thank you very much, but I have another change with me. This fellow was quite polite. I could tell why he couldnt hold back his anger at that kid. The next person came across. Timi said to him as he approached, How was the current? Was it fast? It was quite fast. I was about to fall, and I was frightened. Is that so? Shiggy stayed in my pouch, hiding from the men. She was probably cautious, so thats why she hid. Then, when the third man was about to make it over. Whoaaa! In the middle of the river, we saw a man fall. He was a short, thin man, and in the middle of the 10. His lightness might have been to much to keep him on the ground. Gwafff! When he fell over, Femm sprung up and into the river. The short man was sshing as he was carried down the river. He was being carried away quickly. But Femm was faster. Femm was a heavenly wolf king, even without having to grow back to its real size. Way faster than even a magic wolf. Femm caught up to the man almost immediately, and bit onto the mans hair. Then Femm started pulling the men back to us. The man who was drowning was iling. He seemed to be unconsciously whipping his arms and feet all around. He was also hitting Femm, who was trying to help him. Even so, Femm didnt react, but just kept swimming. They quickly reached the shore. Cough hack cogh! The man quickly began to heave and spit out the water he had inhaled. He looked quite close to death. Another man patted his back and said, Thank you so much for saving him! Wuff! Femm barked and stood proudly. Femm, great job. Excellent! Wuff! We bothplimented Femm, and it wagged its tail. After a moment of spitting the water, he got his breath back. Then the man bowed to me. Thank you for saving me. Its all thanks to Femms help. Femm, thank you. Ill bring you some food as a reward. Wuff! He bowed to Femm again, who just looked like a big dog. Then he want to pat Fem on the head. But Femm pulled back. Then I exined why Femm didnt let the man pat it. Hes a very proud...Femm. Sorry. Not at all, Femm. Thank you again for saving me. And instead of trying to pet Femm, he bowed once more. Just then, the others, except the kid and the old man with him had crossed. I gave them all towels. The first bridge maker turned and noticed the road behind us. You made THIS?! Yes. Wow, thats some work! Well, we werent going to cover it with stone... Just cutting the trees is enough! Timi then said, Were very good at it! Is that so? The way Timi said it made her sound like a woodcutter. If you continue down that road, youlle to the temple. Thank you. And theres another river on the way, but much narrower, and not hard to cross. Oh, thanks for the information. Then the bridgemakers looked over to the other side and shouted, WERE HEADED TO THE TEMPLE! TAKE ALL THE TIME YOU NEED TO CATCH UP! YOU...YOU BASTARDS!! The older man screamed back. The kids face was even redder now. But the men ignored the other two and turned back to me with a smile. Chapter 198 – Timi…Pissed Off!

Chapter 198 C Timi...Pissed Off!

Seeing the two on the other side so angry, I was a bit worried. Then I asked the men, Those two are angry...are you going to be okay? Yeah, fine, fine. Were experts, you know? They only hired us for this for now. Its not weve been ordered to do something. Looks like these fellows werent under orders by Cruz in the first ce. They were just employed to make the bridge. But, wont you be fired? In that case, well just build a bridge somewhere else. Weve got loads of bridges to build in the old Demon Lords territory, so weve got jobs all over. Is that so? I guess its great to have a needed job. Yup. Its made us really proud to have chosen this job. The bridgemaker said, smiling. Five of the men that crossed were bridgebuilders. Three were underlings of that kid. So then I asked the other three. Are you okay? Yeah, were fine. Out of all of them, the oldest guy smiled at us and said, We havent done anything bad, its just listening to that kid bitch is not part of our contract. Even so, he might hold a grudge, or hate you afterward. If he hates us, well just report him to a higher up. Another fellow said, I mean, as soon as we get back Im reporting how egocentric the temporary ass is anyway. Seems that instead of the correct title temporary assistant chief they were just calling him temporary ass. Kind of an easy title to remember. Well, you must really trust the fellow in charge of this temporary ass. The assistant and the marquis, theyre both great people. Yes, so, please, dont worry. If he starts bitching about things, well stop him. It seems that these people thought that we were members of the temples vige. Thats why they probably worried after seeing us see how the temporary ass was conducting himself. They told us all this with smiles. After that, Timi asked, Is his father, the assistant, nice to all his workers? Not all the time. Sometimes a bit rough, but if you dont do something wrong or make mistakes, he can be nice. I see. Timi seemed relieved by that. I asked about something I was wondering about, So, that great boss of yours...why did he give this temporary ass a job? Apparently the our boss thought this kid could only crap gold, but I think that marquis would think he made a mistake! Yeah, and our boss told the temp ass that he had better be polite to others as well. Seems that the father wanted the best for this kid, but didnt pay attention to how nasty the kid was. I guess you cant avoid it. It happens. What urs after the fact is more important. I would have to tell Cruz about it. After that, the assistants underlings and the bridgebuilders walked off into the forest. Lets head to the vige. Sure. Wuff! ryaa Everyone agreed, so we went back. As we started walking, the two on the other side shouted, HEY! ARENT YOU GOING TO BRING US OVER? Uhg. How tedious. GO OVER YOURSELF! BUT THIS YOUNG MAN IS OF ROYAL BLOOD! SO WHAT?! It was a joke to hear these two gab on about how royal the kid was. On the other hand, I had something that could help. We can help you if you fall in now. Go ahead and cross. Do your best to cross now! Timi and Femm agreed. Not a safety dog...but a safety wolf. And Femm was wagging his tail waiting for them to cross. Commoners! Are you going to mock royalty? The approval for your vige rests in me! Hearing this, Timis appearance suddenly changed. At first she was looking at this kid like he was stupid, but now I could see her rage rising like a fire from a bellows. This guys acting like anyone cares where hees from. How did kid ever end in the royalty? rgyaa! Shiggy was angry. But Timi then shouted at the two. OH WELL! I GUESS I HAVE TO CARRY YOU OVER. I GUESS ILL CONSIDER IT AN HONOR! GOOD TO HEAR YOU HAVE SENSE! IT IS AN HONOR! The old man shouted happily. The kid still stood tapping his foot and nodding. Timi took Shiggy out of my pouch and put her on Timis head. She then suddenly changed, instantly. Into an ancient dragon like a mountain. When she became humongous, the air rushed out all around us. You could see a wave of air over the river. Eeeep! .... The old man and kid both screamed and fell down on their rears. ryaa ryaa Shiggy was still on Timis head, crying out. Then Timi reared back and roared, ң٣! It was filled with magic, and quite a roar. My spine went straight up and I got goosebumps. Femm jumped too. I smiled at Femm and patted its head. I felt the roar echo through my stomach. Strong, like usual. Femm still was quiet about it after Timis roar. Looking over the river, the two men had passed out on the ground. And like usual...they had wet themselves too. After that, Timi whispered, Dont want to carry them now... rgyaah Shiggy was upset too. She was squeezing both sides of her beak shut. Well, I guess thats what happens... It would happen to anyone. I bet all the creatures for miles around were fleeing too. Oh well... She took her ws and grabbed the two men, and dunked them in the river. They woke up, saw her, and fainted again immediately. Chapter 199 – The Smell of Timisoara

Chapter 199 C The Smell of Timisoara

Seeing the passed out men again, Timi made a little sound. Then she put them on the back of her neck and flew over to us. They passed out. If an ancient dragon shouts, anyone would pass out. They woke up for a second, but... Well, because ancient dragons are huge, and scary. Hmph. What a couple of losers. She thought it over, then said, Oh well, I guess I should take them to the vige. In the sky? Yeah. If they wake up, theyll pass out again. No problem there, right? I dont mind. Femm said. Timi and Femm were both pissed at these fellows. This temporary ass should learn to treat others better. Well, whatever. Flying would be faster. Yeah. After saying that, when Timi lifted up to fly, rgyahh Shiggy made that strange sound again, and flew from Timis head to me. Sighisoara, whats wrong? rgyaah Shiggy tried to get into my pouch, and came back out holding her nose. Something stunk. It seems that the temporary ass and his advisor had let loose some stuff that stunk. Shiggy, does something smell? ryaa So bad you dont want to be near me? ryaa ryaa I see. Im sorry I have to carry these fellows. But I still have to. ...... Timi sounded a bit shocked when she talked to Shiggy. Her face looked obviously affected by the smell. I guess its hard to figure out what dragons are thinking. Then Timi said, ...then I guess Ill leave these two here. Youre not going to carry them? ..., no, they stink. I see. Timiid the two men down in the middle of the road. Then she stepped back. I thought it over a bit. Would the temporary ass and the other guy be okay? They WERE finally over the river. But now the were unconscious and not because of the shout, but because they both had seen the monstrous Timi. If we let them be, though, they would wake back up. I wonder if theyll be okay. You think any magic beasts with attack them? No beast is going toe here for a few weeks, if not months. Because of Timis shout? And her smell. After hearing that, Timi looked flustered. I....I DONT SMELL! I know. I DONT! I said I know! Femm just means the presence of an ancient dragon. No, I mean she smells. I tried to follow up so she wouldnt be mad, but Femm stopped that from happening. Because of that Timi was shocked. Hey, Femm, dont say stuff like that. Wuff? Femm didnt mean anything by it. It was confused. Femm had a very precise sense of smell, and it could smell out the presence of stronger beasts. Everyone is a lump of smells, in a way. Thats why I knew Femm didnt mean anything by hisment. Alra! Smell me! W...wait a second! Timi picked me up and brought me to her. Not so much brought me to her as brought me up to her neck and squished me into it. Timis scales had a strange feel to them. Slippery, and a bit warm. Here, Alra! Smell all you want! O...ok... Do I smell? Yeah, it smells...pleasent. Oh...ok. She looked a bit embarrassed, and put me back down. Then she called Shiggy out from my pouch. See Shiggy, your auntie doesnt stink! ryaa Shiggy flew out to where Timi was standing. Timi was happy to see Shiggy do that. So I said to the happy Timi, Hey, dont you think its time to be a human again? Why? Because youre going to scare everyone. Hmph. We also dont have to cut trees for a while. So no need to fly. Would that make you happy, Shiggy? ryaa? Shiggy was happier with Timi in her dragon shape. However, she was so huge that shed scare the vigers. Well, I just think youd fit better in human shape. Ok, I guess I have to. Timi quickly changed back to human form. She had her overalls and straw hat again. Maybe she liked them. Ok, do you want to run back to the vige? Wuff. Femm grew to its bigger size. Then Femm looked at me with a look like get on. Timi, Femm wait a second. Why? Wuff? Timi and Femm looked at me, confused. If we take this road at full speed, were going to pass those bridgebuilders, right? Yeah...so? Of course I will. Theyre going to be surprised by your speed. Hmp. Wuff. They thought about the matter seriously. Okay then. Okay. So you agree? I was d they listened to reason. Al, get on my back. Oh, thanks. Time to go. Shiggy, hang on to auntie, okay? Timi and Femm turned off the road. Then they both tore through the woods. Hey, WAIT! They wont see us in the forest! Thats right! ryaa ryaa! So the two zed through the forest and unreal speed. So quickly it looked like theyd hit the trees that went by. And Shiggy cried in happiness all the way back. Chapter 200 – Marquis Cruz

Chapter 200 C Marquis Cruz

Femm and Timi had a fun run back. We were back at the vige in a sh. Al, wee back. You must be tired. Please rest. Ill have some tea prepared. Cruz and the priest weed us back. He had tables and chairs for us to rest in. There were brand new chairs and arge desk. They werent there this morning, so someone must have made it. These are made quite well. Correct. Our followers who have crafting skills made them. Its nice to have it when you need a rest, or when we show everyone the ns for the vige! Cruz said with a smile. It was something that would increase the productivity of everyone. We all sat down, and one of the followers brought us tea. Femm sat on top of one of the chairs, and Shiggy stood on the desk. Thank you. Yeah, thanks! Wuff.ryaaa! The tea wasnt just for me and Timi, but for Shiggy and Femm as well. They brought us snacks as well. ryaa! Shiggy sniffed at the snacks. Then she reached out and grabbed a few and started eating. Shes really grown Yeah. My niece is a faster grower than anyone. A genius! Just a while ago I was feeding her by hand. Because shes a genius! Timi really didnt understand what I meant. I guess because shes rted to Shiggy. Timi just patted Shiggys head as she ate. Cruz sat next to me and drank some tea. Al, Timi. How far did you build the road? Um, up to here. That was fast. Today it was Timi, yesterday it was Moofy doing the work. Just leave the tree-cutting to me. As we were talking about the road, I remembered something important. Ah, Cruz, the bridge-builders and your staff, theyre almost here. They came way faster than I thought. Cruz smiled, but then Timi frowned. Theyre all good fellows, but that temporary assistant? That guys no good. The temporary assistant? The son of your assistant... Why is he no good? Then Timi and I exined what had happened to him. He sounds like a loser! Did you give him any authority, Cruz? Yes. The assistant said hed send his son, and I approved. I guess in Cruz position, she had to say okay. Then Timi looked at Cruz and said, If you give him authority, none of these guys are going to enjoy their work. Ill make sure he doesnt do anything bad. Please. And while this conversation was going on, Vi-Vi approached. Collette, Millet, Moofy, and Chel as well. Moofy was back to her smaller size. Vi-Vi how were the fields? Yeah, going well. Everyone is working really hard. Moo moo! Moofy pushed she snout into me. Chel was riding on her back. Moofy, good work! Moo moo! I rubbed Moofys head. Piggi! PIGGI! ryaa ryaa Now Shiggy was on top of Chel. She gave Chel some of the snacks she was eating. ryaa PIGGI! Chel seemed happy to get some of Shiggys candy. Watching this Vi-Vi and Cruz said. So how much longer does the road have to go? Its going to be long. Sounds tough. Then I asked Vi-Vi, How much longer will you work on the fields? Moofy was a big help. It wont take much longer. Good. It seems that the field would beplete before the road. After our break, the bridgebuilders arrived. There were the five, with the three workers from Cruz manor. Cruz and the priest went over to greet them. I went with them as well. Thank you foring. Weve been waiting for you. Thanks foring out to greet us. Its nice to meet you. The bridgebuilders bowed their head. Then I greeted them as well. Thanks for your work. Oh, you got here first? They were all surprised I was here already. One of the bridge builders said, Oh yeah, something really crazy happened. Crazy? Yeah, we heard a very scary cry from behind us... Ah, that... It had to be Timis. Theres no doubt it was a huge beast. We couldnt see what it was and some of us almost passed out. Hmmm... Cruz looked at them with a serious look. She was probably nning to kill whatever it was. But Timis shout was directional. Thats why the bridge-builders werent affected that much. Even so, it was almost enough to incapacitate them. It really showed how strong the ancient dragons cry is. Then I whispered to Cruz, That was Timi. Oh, was that it? She smiled again and looked at the bridgebuilders. Its fine. Dont worry about it. Are you sure about that? Yes, theres no problem. Im d to hear that, but... As we were talking, the manor workers recognized Cruz. Oh, a pleasure to see you, marquis. You know who I am? Certainly! You have good memory since Ive only been to the manor once. Yes, Im very d you remembered us as well. I met youst month andst week. Yes, thats right. Thank you very much. I think that you were in the assessors office. I was there until you told me to join the expedition. Is that so? Well thank you! I cant thank you enough! As Cruz talked to them, they workers all shook her hand. They remembered her, even though they only met her once. I thought it was something. The workers were so happy to see her, they were almost in tears. Just take it easy today. Youll work tomorrow! Ah, thank you! There isnt much lodging right now, so youll have to stay in the temple for a few nights. Sorry. No, dont worry about it at all! After they all heard Cruz conversation with them, they finally all knew who she was. Madam! Were all honored to meet you! To be able to meet a great warrior like you...my son will be so impressed! They were all quite nervous as well. But all these engineers shook her hand as well. Thank you foring from so far. Its our honor! Were going to do our best to build those bridges! Thank you! Yes Maam! It seemed that all of these men were in excellent spirits. Chapter 201 – Not Enough Wood!

Chapter 201 C Not Enough Wood!

The priest showed the bridge-builders and the manor workers around the building and the site. It seems that theyd be staying in the temple for two to three days. I asked Vi-Vi, Will it take longer to dry the wood? I think itll be fine the day after tomorrow... The day after tomorrow... We cant rush something like this. You cant rush a building if you want it tost long. Vi-Vi was right. We shouldnt rush the buildings. Cruz was listening and said, Can we borrow some wood from Vallimie? Hm? You want to borrow some? We can exchange it for the wood we dryter. Cruz didnt have a bad idea. But, we havent gotten permission from her yet. Yeah.... If you ask my sister, I think shell let you! Yeah, but she allowed us to use her golems, its a bit too much to ask more. We shouldnt ask too much. Cruz said, but Vi-Vi folded her arms and replied, Let my sister decide that! I guess so... Just wait here! Moo moo! Vi-Vi took off, and Moofy took off following her. She noticed Moofy behind her and with one jump mounted her. They went through the magic transport to Lindobal forest. And there she goes. Yep. Cruz looked over at where the fields would be. Chel and Shiggy were ying out there. With Timi. Shiggys having fun. Yep. Shiggy was digging a small hole in the ce the fields were nned. ryaa ryaa piggi pigGi! Chel was trying to imitate her. But there was no way a blob like Chel could dig a hole. Then I asked Cruz, Shouldnt Chel be with hidden in your pouch? Maybe so the believers couldnt see it? Yeah, I dont know much about religious systems, but it might be disrespectful for the blob to be out there digging at dirt. The followers had definitely taken notice of Chel. They were watching the blob y around with the other beasts. I think they really dont know that its the death lord. I see. I guess if Chels hanging out with the beasts, no one would notice. Maybe the followers just thought the blob was a follower of Cruz. Wuff wuff! ryaa PigGi! Femm started digging as well. Maybe it wanted to show the others how it really looked. Femm was way faster at digging. Wuff! ryaa ryaa PIGgi! Since Femm was digging so quickly, the other two beasts stood and watched respectfully. Watching Femm, Timi said, Watch closely, Shiggy! ryaa Timi then started digging herself. She was in human form. She started digging with both hands like Femm. Wha...what are you doing, Timi? I said, without thinking, I know she really wanted Shiggys respect, but this was too much. Or maybe she wanted topete with Femm. If youre going to dig...then use a tool. Digging holes is fun! Really? Let me in on that! Maybe because she thought it fun too, Cruz ran over to where the others were digging. Wha? Not you too, Cruz... Cruz and Timi were digging right next to each other. Neither were using any tools. They were just using their hands, digging in the mud. ryaa ryaa! PiGGi! Shiggy and Chel looked very happy. They all werepletely immersed in digging in the earth where the trees once were. Youre fast Cruz! You too, Timi! Wuff! I think the best was Femm though. Timi and Cruz were covered in mud. After watching them a while, I heard, Gaww! You called for me? And Vallimie had arrived, with a proud look on her face. Next to Vallimie was the lion Rai. Rai, long time no see! Gaww! I patted Rais head. Then, Moofy and Vi-Vi appeared as well. Ask my sister, go ahead! He doesnt have to ask, I have enough wood as it is! Thanks...but it wont cost you too much? Dont worry. If I ever need help, Ill ask. Vallimie said with augh. Cruz will be very happy to hear it. Ill help with bringing the wood. Its taken care of. The golems are already bringing it. And from the temple, a line of golems carrying lumber arrived. They hade through the transport circles, all the way from the forest. Thats a lot! Heh heh heh Yes yes yes Moo mooo! Vallimie and Vi-Vi both looked at me proudly. Then Moofy stepped up and tried to make the same proud face as them. Chapter 202 – The “Temporary Ass”

Chapter 202 C The Temporary Ass

While all this was going on, Cruz noticed the line of golems with the lumber. She stopped digging and ran over to us. Wow, you brought all that for us, Vallimie? Yes. I was thinking of exchanging this seasoned lumber for some of your raw lumber. That would help a lot! From that, she looked seriously at Vallimie, and said, Vallimie, I can pay you? No need. Really? Yeah. I wasnt nning to sell this wood for a while anyway. But... Cruz. Youd help me if I needed help, right? Sure I would. So when I need something, you can help me. Ok, thanks. After that, the priest came out. He had finished showing the working men around. He then proceeded to that Vallimie over and over. Dont mention it. But he kept on thanking her until she was blushing. Moo moo! Gawwgah! Moofy walked up and rubbed her snout into Vallimie. Then Rai did the same. Come on, you two. Then Vallimie rubbed their heads. After Cruz came over, the beasts and Timi also walked over to us. ryaa ryaa! Shiggy, youre covered in mud! ryaa? If Shiggy was going to try to rub me, I was going to get mud all over. She flew onto my shoulder and rubbed her beak on me. My face got covered with mud. Wuff wuff! The Femm started rubbing on me as well. I was getting covered in mud. PigGGi! Then Chel jumped on my head. I was d I had the straw hat on. Heh heh heh. Al, arent you d I got you those clothes? Actually, I am. Vi-Vi looked at me with a proud smile. Oh well. I guess I need to clean off and take a bath. ryaaa You too, Chel! PiggGGi! Can I get in the bath with you?Timi said. ryaa! Hey, you dont need to tell me no like that! I guess Shiggy had refused. Timi looked sad. You really want to take a bath with Alra that much? ryaa... I see... She looked over at me with a sad eyes. I pretended not to notice. While we were taking a break, Cruz and the priest were discussing the wood. So tomorrow we begin construction, right? Yes. I hope we can get some very strong houses built quickly. Its important the help gets a ce to sleep. After the discussion was over, Cruz came over to me. Al, can you help with bridge building? Leave it to me. Thank you! You dont need me to help with the houses? We need your magic to help with bridge-making first. Youre right. I think the golems can help enough with the buildings. After hearing that, Vallimie said, You need me to loan you the golems? It would help...can you? Sure. Ill just reduce my defensive golems to the minimum. Thank you! The sun was going down, and wed talk it over tomorrow. Well, time to go home. Moo mooo ryaa Cruz took Moofy and Shiggy and prepared to go home. I also got ready to return back to Mulg. Just then, HEY! WHOS RESPONSIBLE HERE?! I heard an angry scream. The voice came from the temporary assistant and his older aide. I told Cruz, That kid is the temporary ass I was talking about. Thats him? Hes got a bad attitude. The priest, who was responsible, walked out to the assistant. Whats the matter? WHATS THE MATTER?! What are you talking about?! Your workers are EXTRORDINARILY RUDE! I must PUNISH THEM! BRING THEM HERE! The older man was now yelling at the priest. They were both filled with rage, but their pants were also filled with something else, so they stunk like crazy. It wasnt their fault as Timi had shouted at them, but the followers had no idea what was going on. Who were these fellows and why were their pants all wet and smelly? They simply stared at the assistant and his aide. Now the assistant was yelling at the priest. Whoa, this sucks. Ill be right back. Cruz ran over to the assistant. Mooo moo Then Moofy followed her. ryaa You dont have to go, Shiggy. ryaa? Shiggy was about to go over too, but I grabbed her. Then I put her in my pouch. ryaaa She then fell silent. Cruz went over with a smile, and stood between the two and the priest. Moofy joined her. Hey guys, calm down a bit. Moo moo! Dont interrupt us, you lowly cow tender! The assistant jumped at Cruz and attempted to punch her. It went smack into Cruz open hand. You couldnt just punch Cruz. Violence is never the answer, right? o...ow. OWWWWW! Cruz was now gripping hard onto the kids fist. He fell to his knees with a face cringed in pain. Why not get a change of clothes? You stink, you know? You...!? Now the older man tried to kick Cruz. You could see he actually knew what he was doing. He probably had military experience. He was probably the kids body guard, too. Moo! Moofy chomped down on the mans leg. Then she swung the man through the air. Whoaaaaaaa! He was flung on his butt, and then Moofy stomped him. Even though she was a smallish cow, she was still a cow. And very heavy. There was no way the older guy was going to get out of that. Then Cruz said back to the priest. Well, these fellows are now violent criminals. Put them in a jail cell. But...we dont have jail cells. You DONT have jail cells? No... Cruz now looked confused. What should we do, Al? I guess we just throw them in a hole. Okay, then how about here? The priest pointed over at the area near the nned fields. Okay, lets dig a hole and make a cell. Please! I need a bit of wood. I dug a hole with gravity magic, first lifting the ground away and then pressuring the inside walls. With that, I made a wooden grid of bars. The hole was about two times as deep as a man was tall. No way anyone could jump out. This thing of bars isnt that well made, but, oh well. Maybe a real thief could escape, but not these guys. Okay, Cruz, Moofy, over here. Sure! Moo moo! They tossed the two men into the pit. I used gravity magic to make sure they wouldnt hit the bottom too hard. Then Cruz continued, You can reflect on your actions tonight. You bitch! Im the assistant to the assistant to the ruler! Youre not going to get away with this! Yeah, sure. Cruz blew him off and asked for the priest to find someone to watch them. As we were on our way back to Mulg, Cruz said, I guess this guy didnt realize who I was. Even though you saw him before. He didnt remember me either. Maybe he has bad eyesight. Maybe. And with that, we went back home. Chapter 203 – A Bath after Work

Chapter 203 C A Bath after Work

Everyone went back to Mulg. As we went inside, Millet took one look at us and said, Please take a bath while Im cooking dinner! Ruff! ryaa Moo moo PigGgi Femm and Shiggy had been digging and were covered with dirt. Moofy had been doing work as well, and was covered too. If we just walked around the house, the cleaning would be trouble. Okay, Shiggy, Femm, Moofy! And Chel, into the bath! And we all went in together. ryaa ryaa Shiggy you like taking a bath, right? ryaa Yeah, its nice you like to get clean. As I walked into the changing room, Timi followed as if nothing was strange about it. Timi? What? I have to wash Shiggy. ryaa! No, no, Timi, men and women cant bathe together. Im a dragon though, right? Its just the same as getting in with those beasts over there. She was right in a way. But...youre human. Should I change back to a dragon? Im not asking that, but... So then what? She looked at me, confused. Then she took her clothes off. She wasnt ashamed or anything. Ok, Shiggy. Lets go! ryaaa! Shiggy pulled at my arm. She wanted to go in with me. Okay then... I guess I had to if Shiggy wanted it. So I took off my clothes and went in. Shiggy, aunties going to wash you! ryaa It seemed Shiggy didnt mind Timi washing her off. Moofy, Femm, Chel, over here. Moo moo Wuff PiiGi And so I washed the three beasts off. And myself as well. Moo mooWuff!PiGGI They all looked very happy getting washed off. You all worked so hard today. I said as I washed them. Thank everyon. Chel said in spirit speech as I washed it. And after that, Shiggy flew up in the air. ryaa Shended on my head. She reached down and started stroking my head. Shiggy, are you trying to wash me? ryaa She wasnt using the soap, but she was still trying to wash me. Such a nice dragon. Oh well, Ill help too, Alra. Timi came up behind me and started to wash my back. Thanks... Dont worry about it. ryaa ryaa She washed off my back, and my head. After that, everyone got in the bath. Phew. Bathing as a human is greaaat. ryaa Ancient dragons dont bathe? Well, were too big. We go in the ocean and inkes, but hardly ever in baths. Just turn to human form and get in. Well, we do have a bath at the pole, but I hardly ever use it. Timi stretch out happily in the bath. I guess dragons really dont care about mixed bathing. Sure. We dragons really dont have sexes. ...you dont? Nope. Were born from eggs, and I guess you could say were all female. That was new info. I immediately thought of Luka. No, she probably knows about it already. Just then, Cruz came into the bath. Ah, youre here with Timi? Hey Cruz, it feels great. Cruz and Timi talked as if was nothing. They may have never been told that girls are supposed to be bashful when a guys in a bath with them. And Cruz was very fast. She washed up right away. Then she got into the bath. It does feel very good. Nothing feels better than a bath after hard work. So I guess ancient dragons feel that way too? No, but I do now. I see. Moofy and Femm gathered around Cruz. Are you going to drink the water again? Wuff? Moo? They acted ignorant, but I knew they were. Somehow the water that Cruz bathed in was beautiful to them. On the other hand, Chel was bouncing on top of the water around near me. Can slimes float? PiGGI? It felt heavier than the water when I held it though. Mysterious. I decided not to pursue it and instead turned to Cruz, Cruz...you should be at least a little shy in the bath... Whaa? Theres no whaaa to it. Hmph. Cruz puffed out her cheeks in displeasure. The beasts kept swimming around her. Shiggy was swimming around the pool too. She had gotten pretty good at it. Shiggy, youre great at swimming too! Timi said to Shiggy. Then the door opened again. This time it was Collette. Hey, old man! Collette, can you wash yourself? Yesth. And so she did, but she was young and not good at it. I figured I should help. Here. Let me wash your hair. Yayyy. ryaa ryaa Shiggy helped me. We washed off her hair. Then Shiggy got on her head and scrubbed away. Thanks Sthiggy. ryaa! And then everyone got in the bath again. Chapter 204 – Yureena’s Strategy

Chapter 204 C Yureenas Strategy

When we left the bath, Yureena and Luka had returned from the capital. Just like usual, we all ate dinner together. During dinner, Timi said to Yureena, Yureena. You need to stay away from that guy. rgyaa Who are you talking about? The temporary ass. rgyaa rgyaa Temporary ass? I dont know who that is? Timi really didnt exin well, so Yureena didnt understand. She had no idea that the temporary assistant was also the man her parents were trying to marry her to. Timi was talking while Shiggy was crying out in a strange sound that was very different than usual. Shiggy, eat your dinner. ryaa I rubbed Shiggys head as he ate. Shiggy went back to happily eating its food. Cruz exined everything to Yureena, who looked lost. The son of my advisor, he came here as a temporary assistant to me. Hmm? You know, the guy whos going to marry you. Hes NOT going to marry me. I refused. Yureena looked quite put out. So then Cruz continued, telling her about the things he had done. That guys really bad. Yeah... If hes going to swing at you, you should make him do hardbor in the mines. That was quite a bit much for a holy girl like Yureena to hear. Timi nodded, agreeingpletely. I dont know if thats appropriate... Nononono, its COMPLETELY appropriate. Huh? Hm? ryaa? I tried to sympathize with the guy, but the others, even Shiggy looked at me confused. We can just punish him and make him do his work correctly. Its going to take time to get a new guy to rece him anyway. Hmmph Cruz thought about it seriously. Yeah, but taking a swing at Cruz? Thats unbelievable. Well, she was dressed as a worker. If he cant sense the nobility of a girl like Cruz, even if shes disguised, hes way too dumb for the job. I didnt think Cruz really exuded nobility, but whatever. After thinking about it a bit, Yureena came to a decision. Okay, tomorrow, Ill go with you all. Is your work going to be okay? Sure. If Yureena said it would be okay, it would. I was sure about that. Unlike Cruz, she didnt take off work just to fool around with me. Luka also said, I want to go too. You dont have to, Luka... But Id like to help as well. Thanks Luka. PiGi Cruz and Chel thanked Luka. Yreeena Ruka. Thanks. Chel also said, in spirit speech. Dont worry about it. Youre so cute, Chel. Yureena and Luka both patted Chel. PiggGI PIGGI Chel looked very happy. Vi-Vi was watching us all and said, What are you going to do to him, Yureena? Do to him? Are you going to chew him out? No...Im going to wear a disguise. Hm? And then what? Well... Yureena began exining. The kid didnt recognized Cruz with farmer clothes on. If Yureena did the same, he probably wouldnt recognize her. Its true thats a possibility. Right? And if he doesnt, then what? Cruz asked with a suspicious look. Yureena pulled Cruz close and patted her head. She was always trying to get close to Cruz if she had a chance. Well, if he did something like trying to punch Cruz, to me, then that would mean there was no way my parents would push me to marry. I see! Youre smart, Yureena. Yureena was one of the heros party, so of course she was smart. She was also so strong she could punch out an orc, and she could do it with a bare fist. Having that temporary ass punch her wouldnt even feel like an itch. Even if she dodged or defended, she could act like he really tried to hit her. If it just looks like he tried to be violent with me, right? Theres no Right? about it. I said, and she simply smiled at me. Her smile was so cute. However, it was still a bit of a scary n. Everyone and Al, make sure to y your parts, okay? What? What do you mean, what? Youre my lover, right? I guess I dont mind. She then turned to everyone else. Remember that, okay? Al is my lover. You know, right? We know... Cruz looked a bit disappointed as she puffed out her cheeks. Maybe she was a little jealous of Yureena. Cruz, dont get jealous or anything. Im not jealous! Remember I still love you the most, Cruz. Huh? Oh, yeah. Cruz said back to Yureena with little interest. Seeing all this, Luka sighed. Vi-Vi then went to Luka and said, You can be a farming couple. Ill have some overalls ready for you tomorrow. Vi-Vi, thanks. After that, Vi-Vi look Yureenas measurements. Hmm... I see. Oh yeah, Vi-Vi. Can you make one for Shiggy too? One for Shiggy? Um, I can try... ryaa ryaa Hearing this, Shiggy cried happily. And Vi-Vi took Shiggys measurements as well. ryaa! Shiggy stood there obediently as she measured him. Chapter 205 – The Bridge Plan

Chapter 205 C The Bridge n

The next day, we all went to the death temple. After breakfast, Vi-Vi took out the overalls. Heres yours, Yureena. And heres your straw hat. Thanks. Ill get changed. Sure. Yureena scampered back to her room. Vi-Vi had made the overalls for her the night before. I thought there was no time she could go out and buy it. Did you buy that at the capital? I didnt think you left to there. Of course not. I made it. Wow. I have a lot of cloth left over. Vi-Vi said proudly. It seems that shes quite a seamstress. Shes the best at sewing! Saying that, Vallimie patted Vi-Vis head. Youre making me blush. Shiggy then pulled at Vi-Vis sleeve. ...ryaa? She probably wanted the one that Vi-Vi promised. She was worried that she wouldnt get one. Shiggy, rx. I have that right here! ryaa ryaa!! Shiggy cried out happily. Seems that Shiggy totally understands human words now. Of course, shes a genius, right? Timi said proudly. Shiggy. Stand there on top of the desk. ryaa Vi-Vi stood her up properly on the desk. Then she put the little overalls on top. Yup. Fits perfectly. ryaa ryaa It had openings for her wing, and for the tail as well. Shiggy then made a little bow to Vi-Vi. It was great she learned how to thank humans. Shiggy. Dont mention it. With that, Vi-Vi patted Shiggy on the head. Thanks, Vi-Vi. My pleasure. It was small so it was fun to make. Even so, did you get any sleepst night? Yeah, when you get as good as me, it doesnt take that long to sew. Really. Well, thanks. Eheh heh. With that conversation finished, Yureena walked back into the room. It fits perfectly, Vi-Vi! Thank you. Im d to hear I measured you well! After that, we headed to the death temples vige. Yureena had on her overalls and hat and was walking behind me. You dont have to hide behind me. Well, yesterday Cruz was covered in mud, and thats why he didnt find out. You might be right. I dont have any mud on me, so hes probably going to figure it out. Thats what she said. We passed through the transport circle, and the priest came out to greet us. He greeted us, and then told us, This morning we release the temporary assistant. Why? Yureena looked ufortable. Well, those bureaucrats are in charge of us, after all. Its not good to allow the ones under him to see them publicly published. Cruz nodded. Yes, youre right. She thought the priests judgement is right. If you injure someones pride, they start holding a grudge. No reason to form a grudge. And we might need the fellow to work for us in the creation of this vige. As we left the building, we saw an unhappy temporary assistant sitting in a chair. He had changed his pants, and the priest probably arranged that. He was a kind man. And maybe it was because of the kindness that the temporary assistant continued to sit quietly. Religion can do that to you. Its good at changing hearts. As I appreciated that, Cruz gave directions to everyone. Just as we nned yesterday, Al, Timi, Femm, join the bridge builders. Roger.Sure.Ruffrya Vi-Vi and Moofy to the fields, and everyone else to building the houses. SureMoo moo! Well do our best!Leave it to us! Millet was in charge of the golems, and Collette joined in as well. The bridge makers and we made our way to the river. They walked along with us as I rode Femm. My knee still hurt, after all. Femm was itsrger size. It was small when we encountered them before, so the bridge builders were surprised. Its huge. Its a magic wolf. I have permission to keep it from the guild, so dont worry. Thats really something. Shiggy was riding in my pocket. She was quiet today, maybe sleeping. When we arrived, the builders and material talked over the materials theyd use. With a river this wide, we need to have some solid wood for construction. Or maybe stone for more strength? They debated the matter seriously. They would have to measure the width and depth, and you could tell they were busily thinking it over. I just stayed quiet because I wasnt an expert. After they finished measuring, we moved on to the second river. This river was much wider and deeper. Then I said to the bridge builders. If you want me to put you on the other side, just ask. I can carry you. Thank you very much. After the conversed about this river, two of them wanted to go to the other side. It seems the two bigger guys of the group were going over. It probably was because the smaller guy had almost drown thest time. The two wanting to go overughed at Femm and said, Take us over then, Femm. Wuff. Let me use magic. Magic? Just leave it to me. So I used gravity magic, and the two men floated. WHAAAAAA?! Rx, I wont drop you. I carefully put them on the other side. I didnt have to raise them high off the ground either. They were scared enough as it was. And I did it slowly, for the same reason. ryaa When I started the magic, Shiggy flew out of my pouch. It was cute seeing her fly out to see the bridge builders float. Chapter 206 – Building is Fun!

Chapter 206 C Building is Fun!

The two men were carried over the river to the other side without problem. I yelled over to them. LET ME KNOW WHEN YOU WANT TO COME BACK! THANK YOU!!! The two men just kind of looked at me in a daze. That gravity magic must have been a shock for them. Then the bridge builders on our side said to me, Maybe...Al...youre actually Viscount Alfred Lint?! Why do you think that? I asked them, and they nodded to each other and said, Is there anyone else but the viscount that can use gravity magic that easily? Yeah, I cant think of anyone. I was found out. Oh well. Even so, I was going to use gravity magic for the bridge building anyway. It was just a matter of time. Yes, its true...but I was trying to keep it secret. Is that so? Well, we understand. We wont tell a soul. Then the fellows looked at Femm. We thought this was just a great wolf, but now its clear why Femm is your mount, Viscount. Femm stood there with a prideful look. To be able to tell this story to my kids...well, its a pleasure. A bridge builder said with augh. After that, the builders finished the necessary measurements. They worked very quickly and efficiently, just as I had expected. After the fellows on the other side finished, I floated them back over. Id like to see upstream. Yeah. The bridge builders were talking it over, Timi said, You want me to carry you? Can you? Yes, but it might be scaaaary... Scary? Yeah, dont worry about it. I wont try to hurt you. The men had no idea what Timi was talking about. She giggled once, and then changed back to a dragon. HYAAAA! AAHHHHH! They all fell on their rumps. They were very scared. I tried to rx them by saying, Its okay. No matter her shape, shes still the ancient dragon Timisoara. If you say so, Viscount. Well, at least they trusted me. You can get on my back. Th, thank you. I floated the men with gravity magic onto her back. ryaa ryaa Shiggy got on her head happily. I jumped on Femm and Timi flew. She was considerate to the men and flew slowly. After they checked upstream, we returned back to the vige. Timi didnt want to scare the vigers, so she changed back before we returned. As we got back the men started discussing the bridge with the priest and Cruz. They were talking over the materials and size of the bridge. I had no idea what they were talking about, so I would only use magic when I was asked. I can easily carry big stones, steel, and the like with magic, so feel free to ask, ok? I can carry it too. Timi said with a smile. Timi had a lot of power, as the bridge builders could tell now. She could be extremely helpful. That would help a lot. Now that we dont have to worry about transportation, we can focus more on the bridges strength and convenience! They were pretty happy about it. As we talked, Yureena came over. She was with the house builders. She stepped right behind me. What is it? N...nothing. Nothing at all. Did you talk to the temporary assistant? He hasnt noticed who I am. I see. You need help with something? We need someone to carry the wood around. I left Cruz and went over with the house builders. Femm, Shiggy, and Timi joined me. Shiggy was in my pouch. I listened to the directions of the leader of the builders and carried the wood around where needed. I can cut the wood too. Just let me know and it will all be cut. Sure. Then can you cut along this line? Sure. I can also nail the wood easily as well. Wow. I guess being a magician makes you perfect for building. I think so too, sometimes. We said to each other, as the work continued. Timi stayed in human form and helped. She could carry heavy things in human form as well and could cut the wood too. And she could apparently punch nails in with her bare hands. Wow, pretty good, miss. Heh heh. Yup. ryaa ryaa Timi was happy to beplimented. Shiggy cried out happily too. After a while, Millet said to me after working, We should take a break. Oh, good idea! The leader agreed. Millet called out to the field group as well. Everyone was ready to rest. Millet and some of the followers prepared tea. It was deep into autumn, but everyone was still sweating. Yaaay ryaa ryaa Wow! This tastes great! Collette and Shiggy were happy. Timi had worked very hard and was happy to rest as well. Drink a lot Moofy. Mooo mooo Moofy had her own dish of tea. She was working the plow. Vi-Vi, how are the fields going? Perfect as usual. Vi-Vi looked at the houses being constructed. Hmm, the houses are going pretty well too. After we make them I can put in a magic circle. What magic circle? The leader asked Vi-Vi, and Vi-Vi exined. Whoa! Thats something! Magic really is amazing. RIGHT?! After finishing off the tea, we also ate snacks. WHAT ARE YOU ALL DOING HANGING AROUND!?! The temporary ass was at it again. Chapter 207 – The Temporary Ass’ Violence

Chapter 207 C The Temporary Ass Violence

Resting is important. And it sucked when someone yelled at you that didnt understand it. I was thinking of a good response, when Timi replied while eating a hotbun, This bread is goooood. Eheh heh. Thank you. Millet blushed at thepliment. Everyone waspletely ignoring the temporary assistant. I could understand how everyone felt. ryaa ryaa See? Shiggy likes it too! ryaaa Shiggy was eating out of Timis hand now. Seeing that he was being ignored, the temp asss anger was ready to explode, You low-life-pieces-of filth! Stop loafing around, AND GET TO WORK! ...shut up. Timi said, uninterested. SHUT UP?! You...bitch! How dare you mock me! He definitely heard her. His face turned beet red and he red at Timi. It seems that he had forgotten that she had turned into an ancient dragon and roared at him. No...maybe since he was on the other side of the river...he didnt really get a good look at her. He really may have bad eyesight. Even so, I decided to calm the situation down. Okay, everyone, just calm down. I said, while at the same time, Here, open your mouth... Yureena said, trying to feed me some snacks, Hold on a second. Open your mouth... But Yureena wouldnt get up. I guess I have to. I ate the snack. Is it good? She said with a huge smile. It was kind of scary, because Yureena never acts like this. She had a little mud on her face...probably on purpose. She was trying to make is so that there was no way the temporary ass would recognize her. Yes...yeah, its good. Wonderful. She was also trying to act like we were lovers. However, it seems that the temporary ass didnt even notice who she was. So this whole love-dovey crap really had no meaning. She knew what I was thinking, inched closer, and whispered in my ear, Its all part of the n. The n? When he finds out its me, hell realize youre my lover. Hm. It was true that if we didnt do this act ahead of time, he wouldnt think that it was an act in the first ce. However, I wondered if this was all really necessary. If anything, she would just piss him off more than he already was. How dare you take advantage of my KINDNESS! I dont remember any kindness from this guy. But since he was pissed off, I just decided to be quiet and watched what happened. As I was thinking this, Yureena said, I dont remember any kindness. She said it just loud enough so that he could hear her. She was really good at fanning the mes of his anger. Did you SAY SOMETHING?! Nah, I didnt say anything... I remembered that she was going to trick him to do something violent against her so that she could easily break off any request for marriage he might have. And this was all part of her strategy. You two loving it up without working AT ALL! GET TO WORK! No need to talk to us like that when were on BREAK! You bitch! He was literally shaking with rage, when Collette said, That guysth really a jerk. ryaa Right?! Collette said to Shiggy while they both ate a snack. The kid ran around yelling at everyone, but they all ignored him. After we had rested, I went back to work. Get TO WORK! The temp ass was screaming at people, but no one paid him mind. I went back to building houses, just like I had done before taking a rest. As I joined the builders, Yureena said, What do you think? Youre trying too hard to piss him off. I think I did pretty well. Right? ryaa Shiggy seemed to agree. Just then, the temp ass put his hand on Yureenas shoulder. Hey, you. Come with me. Why? Because youve got no need to work if youe with me. What?! Youve got quite a good body for being just a viger. You want to have some fun? With a frank request like that, I was afraid how Yureena would respond. It was so much, even Yureena looked like she didnt know how to reply. She wasnt sticking to her own n. Um, excuse me. Could you leave my lover alone, please? What are you saying to me, low-life?! The temp ass red at me. Instead of fooling around with a low-life like you, shed be happier with someone with royal blood, like me! Whaaa? I was lost as what to say, when Yureena said, Are you an idiot? What did you SAY!? Are you a freaking IDIOT?! rgyaaah! Yureena was really pissed. Of course she would be. Shiggy looked pissed too. Shut up ande with me! He said, and grabbed her by the arm. Leave me alone! She said back, with an icy re. He was pissed she wouldnt listen to him. He turned to his older bodyguard and said, Hey! Sir?! Come and take her! Yes, sir! The bodyguard didnt even have an objection, it seemed. Man...these guys really are pieces of filth. Let go of her HAND! I grabbed the kids arm and started to squeeze it. OwWwWWW! I forced him to knee on the ground. Bastard!! The bodyguard tried to kick me, but I grabbed his leg with my other hand. I used magic to help squeeze his leg, and I could feel the bone strain. Ow! Let me go! Then I heard behind the two, You two STILL HAVENT LEARNED! Cruz was approaching us, and she looked pissed. Chapter 208 – Cruz is Pissed!

Chapter 208 C Cruz is Pissed!

Hearing Cruz voice, the temp ass and the older man twitched with a jolt. It seems they didnt know she was ruler yet, but they knew she was tough. Since Cruz was here, I let go of the temp ass and the older man. I could leave this to Cruz. What right do you think you have to put us in that pit like you did yesterday!? Have you no idea HOW RUDE YOU ARE?! Because we still havent forgiven you for YOUR rudeness yesterday! They still didnt know she was ruler and were lecturing her. They thought she was some kind of thug that was protecting the death cult. She didnt answer them, but just stood looking at them with an icy stare, and said, You two...you dont seriously act like this everywhere you go, do you? What?! Its of no matter to you! You dont act like this, do you? What do you mean? Try to get women by saying youre high ss... Oh, that? What do you care? I could see Cruz begin to seethe in anger. Even Femm was surprised at this. Femm was tough, but seeing Cruz, Femm could feel the strength of her rage. However, the temp ass didnt feel that at all. He was oblivious. Listen. We are high ss. You low-lifes cant just push us around. Hearing this, Timis face scowled at them. Timi was born a royal as well. Thats why she was angry now. I want your parents to see you. How did they raise you, anyway?! rgyaaaa It wasnt just Timi, but Shiggy too. This has nothing to do with my PARENTS! I think it does. You get your status from your father, after all. Wha?! Timis logic was unassable by the kid, so he just gulped angrily. Does your father think like you? My fathers just a fool that tries to treat the low-lifes fairly. Hes part of the old way of thinking. You cant be kind to loafers like the undersses! If thats the new way of thinking, then I cant allow it. Cruz was quieting her anger down, but you could still feel it in her words. The temp ass was stillpletely ignorant of it. He looked at her as if it were no matter. However, Femm started to tremble. I patted Femm to calm it down. Then Timi said, with a kinder tone, The higher sses have their duties as well. You should understand that. You know that youre an embarrassment to them? rgyahh Dont you dare lecture me! Hearing Timi talk in that kind tone made her even scarier. I think it was good that she was lecturing him though. Then Timi looked to Cruz, I think you should relieve this temporary assistant of his duties. Hes clearly unable to fulfill them, anyway. Wha?! How dare you! You still havent noticed? Then Timi let out a long sigh. ryaaa. And Shiggy did as well. Just then, one of Cruz aides from the manor, the oldest, ran over to us. He probably could sense the vtile rage that was emanating from Cruz. He had remained a distance away, watching what was going on. Very attentive. But because of his age, he wasnt quick to react. It took him a while to make his way over. Pant, huff. Your highness, what is the matter? Have they done something wrong? It was obvious he was talking to Cruz. If you spelled out the full meaning of his words, we was saying, Madam Marquis Conradine, what is the matter? Has this idiot of a temporary assistant done something wrong? Even so, the temp ass still didnt get it. The temp ass then replied, angrily, This foolish person deserves to be WHIPPED! The temp ass was probably thinking that the term Your highness was directed to him. The kid hadnt inherited any title yet. So there was no your highness to him. And there were several people there that qualified for the term. The Baroness Shiggy. The Marquis Cruz. The Viscounts Yureena, Timi, and I. The only two that didnt realize who he was addressing as your highness was the kid and his bodyguard. Even so, they were mistaken thinking the aide was referring to them. And it was embarrassing. Whaa?! The aide then turned to the temp ass and red at him. You basta... The kid was about to open his mouth again, but the aide cut him off. Marquis Cruz, did this assistant do something untoward? This time there was no abbreviation in his polite question. Cruz smiled at the aide. I guess we cant be tolerant of this fool this time. Understood. What shall we do? Huh? Whats going on? The temp ass was suddenly flustered, but Cruz ignored him. Timi smiled and said, We should relieve him of his duties, and then take some time to think about what we shall do with him. rgyaah If we give him any real duties, hell just be a nuisance. Timi was angry, and yet smiling the whole time. Shiggy was just angry. Youre right. But I wont relieve him. Cruz said with a smile. The temporary asss face seemed to take on a slight look of relief. Chapter 209 – How to Kick a Temporary Ass

Chapter 209 C How to Kick a Temporary Ass

Timi looked unhappy at the words Cruz had said, but said nothing. She respected Cruz, as she was also a ruler. However, the aide said, quietly, Marquis...if I could have a word. Go ahead. Say whatever youd like. Cruz said with a smile. This temporary assistant has been exceptionally rude to your highness. Yesterday, he attacked you violently. Thats why I think simply imprisonment is not enough. Aggg... The aide lightly conversed with her, while the angry temp ass growled. And the aide continued, That punishment would be too light, and cause problems. It would result in a disruption of social order. Thanks for the suggestion. Cruz said, genuinely thanking the aide. Well, then... She turned to the temp ass. Just then, the kids bodyguard stood forward. He probably thought Cruz was going to punish him and the kid. I apologize for the rudeness weve shown. We had no idea you were the marquis. It was still rude, regardless if you knew, correct? The kid had tried to punch Cruz. It was wrong regardless of who Cruz was. Yes...I understand that. I dont think you do! rgyaah Timi said, and Shiggy echoed her. The ancient dragons were both quite angry. Youre not just guilty of trying to hit Cruz, you know. Seeing Timi say that, Yureena followed. She saw Timi was looking at her. Then the bodyguard said in a low voice, Is it wrong for the boy to want to y around before he gets married? Very wrong. I decided to leave this all to Cruz. However, I had said the previous words without thinking. The bodyguard looked at me. However, youre a man. You know how it is...right? Dont group me with you guys. It kind of pisses me off. And they ying around this kid was going to do wasnt just ying around. Then the kid started making excuses, It...it was just a passing impulse of mine! I admit it was wrong! We cant just ept it as a passing impulse. But, if she were to be pregnant, I promise that Id pay for the childs upbringing! Thats the type of man I am! Ive done it before! He said with a somewhat proud look. YOUVE GOT SOME NERVE SAYING THAT IN FRONT OF ME! Yureena screamed, with a horrified look. Then she grabbed onto my arm and held it. After hearing Yureena open her mouth, the bodyguard looked puzzled. The kid froze for a second...he had finally noticed it was Yureena. You....youre... I didnt think you were this much of aplete FOOL! No, I mean...its not like that. He reached out to take her hand and she quickly swatted it away. Never think about marrying me AGAIN! But I only... He was still trying to reason with Yureena. I guess marrying Yureena was really important to this guy. In order for him to be baron, he had to also marry Yureena. Yureena looked at him icily. Do you understand? Yes... Then Yureena said to Cruz, Cruz, hes not a candidate to marry me or anything, anymore, so do whatever you want with him now! I wasnt considering it like that at all. Huh? Yureena was quite surprised. She had thought that the reason Cruz didnt remove the kid from the job was because he was trying to marry Yureena. Then Cruz turned to the temp ass. I have my reasons. Im not relieving your from your duties, okay? Why not? Timi said, trying to hide her unhappiness. Th...thank you! Ill do my best to show you Im a changed man! Well work our hardest to repay your endlesspassion, Ms. marquis! The kid and the bodyguard both got on their hands and knees and thanked her. That helps. I have something I have for you to do. Its in exchange for me sending you to prison. Well do anything! Any punishment wouldnt be enough! Well do whatever you ask! Yes, you will. If you dont, then you will be relieved and punished. Yes! Well work as hard as we can! If youre relieved, it will be a big deal, okay? Cruz said with augh. Cruz was hinting that if that happened, shed go to the Council of the Royals. This was the organization that punished illegal actions among anyone with a title. If she brought this matter to the Council of Royals, it would be possible the kid would never be a baron. He had been violent with a higher ranking marquis. If that was the case, hed be sent to the mines to break rocks for years. Yes! I am aware! After nodding to his response, Cruz called the priest over, Yes, madam? The temporary assistant and his follower want to make up for what theyve done, so put them to work with whatever it needed. I see. Understood. We can use them to carry stones to the bridges. Yes, thats fine for now. And dont think of him as any type of assistant, but as a ve. Then she turned to the two and said, Well, itll be hard on your bodies, but hang in there! O...okay... Ill do my best! Then the priest called the nner over. He was quite tall and very strong. Okay, newbies! You better get ready to LIFT! He said and took the two with him. I hope he doesnt mess with the other workers. Not with a body like that. Cruz watched the temp ass begin his work. All the others were muscrpared to this thin kid. Even so, he was able to carry some veryrge stones. If he worked like that, hed get a good night of sleep tonight. Chapter 210 – Cruz’ Thinking

Chapter 210 C Cruz Thinking

I could tell that Timi was not pleased at how lightly Cruz treated the temp asss punishment. I understood how she felt. He was just put tobor. Then Timi asked, Why didnt you remove him from duty? Because now hes under my authority. I let his dad appoint him. But...you could refer him to the Council of Royals...right? I could. I think we shouldnt waste time in doing that! Timi really was unhappy about it. Even so, I said to Timi, That would result in real imprisonment. Its not a light punishment. Hm? If we went to the Council of Royals, then, after a long trial, he would be imprisoned. Theres a very strong chance his familys title would be crushed, and the kid himself would do hard time. Is that true? If so, why not just use this guy and punish him while he helps build the town? Hearing that, Yureenaplimented Cruz. This was while she was still clinging to my arm. Wow, youve really thought this out, Cruz! Well, I guess so... Cruz sounded a bit evasive. Maybe she really hadnt thought it out that much. So I asked, What was your aim in not relieving this kid of his job? Um, if the baron and the Council of Royals get into a fight...my assistant that chose him might get crushed as well. Thats true. If so, then then it would be really hard to find a new assistant. It seems that Cruz actually had very good decision making skills. Her assistant, the father of the kid, was at a high level in the capitals internal affairs. In order to hire the assistant, she had to use that ce to recruit. If he had to go to war again the Council of Royals, then the whole internal affairs office might turn against her. Then it would be hard to recruit anyone else to work with her realm. You have to consider where this kid ising from. Cruz said with a smile. Youve thought this over Cruz! Eheh heh! Great job, Cruz! Timi seemed to understand now too, as she nodded. I see now, its quiteplex. ryaa ryaa Shiggy nodded as well. It seemed like both had learned from Cruz. But Cruz, I have something Im still wondering about. What? I can see why you didnt contact the Council. But why didnt you just relieve him of his duty? If I did, hes no longer under my control. So then I cant order her around. I see... Even if hes in my realm, hes not directly under my control. He was a kid from apletely different realm. And that bodyguard was his fathers retainer. Even if she far outranked him, she couldnt order him around. If she relieved him from duty, he would just go home. I added, so Timi would understand, Because she didnt release the kid, shell have someone indebted to her. The baron...and internal affairs? Yeah. She needs to keep them on her side, since the owe her. Shes in quite a position. ryaa Even Shiggy nodded at that. It was clear that relieving him of his position was clearly a dishonor. Now he was carrying stones, and even as the temporary assistant, no one would know of his dishonor. I think Cruz assistant would quickly notice that Cruz had protected that kid. She had done quite a bit to protect the barons name. And of course, the baron himself could also punish his own child as well. He could disinherit his son, making him amoner, and could even do more on top of that. It was important that a father should be able to punish his son. And with that in mind, Im sure that a baron would punish his son severely for this. Even if his son was found out to be worthless, the baron himself wouldnt be hurt by that. And in addition, I think that he wouldnt talk down to lower sses from now on. He did do that. Thats why it might be nice to have him experience how they feel? So you thought of that? Youre really smart, Cruz! Yureena said to Cruz. Cruz seemed embarrassed, He had no idea that everyone around him thought he was an idiot, anyway, She said,ughing. Thats because they were all members in Cruz manor. They also knew that this boys father was their resident bosss son. Theyd tell the boss sooner orter. Yeah, yeah. They would tell him. Yeah, me as well. I need to tell him why Ive refused to marry him. Seems like shed go with them. And with her timing would be perfect for the refusal. Really? Well do your best. I want you toe with me, Al. She said to me, still holding onto my arm. Why? Youll act as my lover, right? But you dont me for that now, right? Yureena said, strongly. I had no idea why, but if Yureena wanted it, I would help. Ok, Ill help. Thanks. Yureena smiled that cute smile of hers again. ryaa Shiggy then flew up and onto my shoulder. You want to go too, Shiggy? ryaaa I see. It was cute to see Shiggy in those farmer overalls. We walked into the temple to get to the magic transport. Then Cruz jumped as if she remembered something, Oh, yeah! What is it, marquis? Can I ask you to create the documents for the temporary assistant? This temporary assistant is going to be too busy carrying rocks and digging holes. Yes, maam. Thanks. Then we made our way to Cruz manor. Chapter 211 – Cruz’ Assistant

Chapter 211 C Cruz Assistant

We made our way through the magic circles and finally arrived at the manor. As we stepped out, one worker there noticed. Hello, marquis...whats the problem? I have to talk to my assistant. May I? Ah, certainly. Ill show you in. The worker there took us into the assistants office. Nobody said anything as Yureena, Shiggy, and I followed her. Compared to a cow and wolf...we really didnt stand out. We arrived at his office, and the worker knocked. Mr. Assistant, the marquis is here. What? From inside the room, we could hear his voice, and he sounded surprised. He quickly beckoned to open the door. Madam, Im sorry I couldnt attend to you. No problem, I was the one that came to you. Then he showed us in the room. He quickly noticed that Yureena was with us. Miss Linmia, Im d to see you so...healthy. Its been quite a while...sir. Yureenas family and the assistants knew each other for quite a while. Thats why the conversation about marriage arose. It was the first time I had seen the assistant, though. He nced over at Cruz and then at me. He probably wanted to be introduced. Um.... Cruz noticed this and looked at me. She wanted to know if she could introduce me. I nodded, silently. It was best to introduce me if the conversation was going to progress, anyway. Assistant...this is Viscount Alfred Lint. What a famous...its my pleasure to meet you. After the assistant introduced himself, tea was brought in. Cruz had a sip and then the assistant spoke. Madam. Is there a problem thats arisen? Unfortunately, yes. Really? Well, what is it? Its difficult to say, but... Cruz spoke, seriously, about the temporary assistant, the mans son, and what he had done. The assistants face became more and more pale as the exnation progressed. And so thats why were in a bit of a fix. My humblest and sincerest apologies! The old man hit the floor on his hands and knees. I could see he broke out in a cold sweat. I take responsibility and will punish him severely! I also will resign as your assistant! Theres no need for that. Y...yes. Well, maybe something less then, like a temporary leave of absence...Im extraordinarily sorry. If he was put on leave though, hed have to do catch up afterwards. Word about him would spread as well. It would be hard for him among the other royals. He obviously was prepared to be punished. No, we dont need that. I want you to continue working here. However... Your son is a separate person from you. Regardless of the situation, he is an adult. However, I put him in charge, as my son. And I was the one that approved of it. We both have responsibility for that. Cruz said with augh, It would be trouble if you stopped working. I need you here. Thank you for such kind words. And yet, the man said this very quietly and seriously. Allow me to punish my son. I n to disinherit him and send him to prison... He was talking about this while nning to remove his son from his responsibilities. If he did, the responsibility for punishment would shift. If theres someway youd like him punished, marquis, please tell me. Well... Of course, if you wish I will resign myself to whatever fate the Council of Royals deems appropriate as well. If that were the case, it would be a trail. But that made things tedious for Cruz. Thats why the assistant stated he wouldnt fight any charges. It would be a harsh punishment though. No, I have no n to remove him as temporary assistant. Wha? I mean...really?! Yes. I thought it would be better that he know what toil we were going through by making him work. As aborer? Hauling blocks and stones, and digging ditches. The old man looked quite worried about his sons physical state. But if he continues work as the temporary assistant, he might do something dreadful again? He didnt want his son to do anything worse. Its fine. Ill keep my eye on him. Thank you. Im sorry to force you into extra work. With that, the assistant bowed. After the temporary assistant is done, my family shall decided about how to punish him. He bowed again. I am sorry to bring such trouble to the houses of Lint and Linmia. Yureena nced over at me. I guessed that since the sons shamefulness was discussed, I wouldnt have to act as her lover to break off the marriage. Um, sir. We have another matter. Understood. He again bowed deeply. My sons disinheritance, and his punishment will not allow him time for marriage. Oh, so you already knew... I apologize. Pretend I never mentioned marriage. Sure! I have a lover already, so I had to say no! Yureena said quickly, and grabbed hold of my arm. Wha? I was lost. It was just as she had prepared herself to say, but she really didnt need to add that. I see...well, Master Lint...you look fine together. Then he bowed to me again. Sorry to trouble you Master Lint...sorry to assume such a position to push marriage on her. No, no, dont mention it! He probably thought he had got between two lovers. It felt really weird. So I said to the assistant, It might be that your son has a child already. I...is that so?! He may have had one with amoner. He stated he was prepared to send money to any child he had... Hearing this, the father said, Well, its not that childs fault. I know this is of no matter to you, but if so, would you allow us to take in the child? Of course. Thank you. He bowed again, deeply. After that, Cruz talked about various issues. And with that finished, we returned to the death temple. Chapter 212 – Billows of Building

Chapter 212 C Billows of Building

When we arrived back at the temple, Timi was waiting for us. Did it go okay? Yeah, no problems. The assistant apologized A LOT. Cruz said with a smile, but Timi looked troubled. Too bad his dad sounds like a decent guy. So I said to her, Its not hard for a good man to raise a crappy son. Youre probably right. Then Cruz asked the priest. How about the guy that the temporary assistant was with? Hes working very hard. Theyre carrying heavy stones, so they look like theyre having a very hard time of it. Good to hear theyre taking it seriously, but the kid had just started working. You cant just let the two off. So I went back to work. Timi and I were working the buildings, while Cruz was directing the whole thing. The foreman of all the building smiled at us. Hey, youre back. Because of this temp ass kid our work has slowed down a bit. Lets hurry this up. Roger. Sure. ryaa ryaa I was ready to attack the building seriously. I floated, dropped, and line up pirs. Millet and Collette also operated the golems to help with the building. Al, good work! Come on, old man! Lets do it! Millet and Collette controlled the golems, which carried the wood to construction. Two of them controlled three golems at once. Theyre doing very well... I said to myself. They were controlling them with their own magical ability. Even just controlling two golems at the same time was quite advanced. With three, I could tell that both of the girls had really learned how to take control of magic. Well, I couldnt just sit back either, so I went to work as well. The foreman smiled at me as he watched me work. Wow, thats fast. Make the floor here and well start putting things together. Roger. So they put the floor together as I quickly brought the materials over. Seeing this, Timi worked to things together quickly as well. I used magic, while Timi used her own hands. Actually, the builders seemed almost envious of Timis power. W...whoa... Shes not human! It...almost makes me feel shameful. So I exined to them, Shes actually a dragon. Oh...I see. They seemed to just ept it. And the house was built without an hour passing. The foreman was quite happy. Al, Timi, excellent job. You really helped. No need to thanks, lets go to the next house. I can keep going too! ryaa! Shiggy gleefully cried out while standing on my shoulder. After that, Timi and I continued building houses. Well, it was less building and more just putting together. The foreman was the most important person in the process, directing other where quickly to assemble the wood. So we were just basically there to position it for them. This lumber over here isnt the right stuff! Ok, then let me help. I helped them move the correct lumber around. It was quite easy to arrange the lumber around here and there. There were several different shapes and types of lumber, so I just asked the foreman what he wanted and where. As we were busy working, the sky faded into the red light of a sunset. Oh, already thiste? Its too bad the autumn day is so short. ryaa Timi said with a far away look, and Shiggy made a sound of agreeing. The foreman, however, approached us happily, We got 10 houses built today because of you! d to hear. Still no interior, but if we keep building like this, well have a vige in no time. I guess so. The foreman and builders were all smiles as Chel and the priest approached. Chel was on the priests shoulder, and then sprung to mine. I had Shiggy on one side and Chel on the other. PigGGi PIGI Chel, we build 10 houses today. Chel quivered happily. The priest bowed to the builders, Timi, Millet, Collette, and I. Thank you very much. Its because of Als magical skill, and the golems, and that Timi can lift more than all of usbined. Right?! Timi said proudly. While this was happening, Vi-Vi came back with all the agriculture group. Moofy was with her. Hm, nice houses. When can someone live in here? We have to build the interior, but that will only take a little longer. The foreman said in good spirits. If thats so, then tell me when youre about to be done and Ill ce a magical circle. Magic circle? The foreman said questioningly, so I exined, Its her specialty. She can make the house stronger andst longer. Wow! As we talked about this, Collette grabbed hold of Moofy, You did great too Moofy! Moo moo! She petted Moofy, and Moofy looked happy. So I asked Vi-Vi, Vi-Vi, how are the fields going? Hm, since Moofy worked so hard, Ill be ready to put in magical circles tomorrow. Thats fast! Well, its because Moofys such a natural at this. Vi-Vi said, and Moofy seemed embarrassed. Mooo MOoo mooo Good job Moofy! I said, and petted Moofy as well. Chapter 213 – Making a Road

Chapter 213 C Making a Road

And so the vige continued to be built, even with the temp ass kid and his aide pitching in obediently. They hardly even rested much, lugging rocks and digging holes. They didnt even say anything about the others resting. And I also helped with the bridges being built. I helped with moving around stones and putting them together. Vi-Vi and Moofy continued their work in the fields. Timi worked on continuing the road. Millet and Collette continued using the golems and moving them around. After a month went by, both bridges were finallypleted. Knowing this, Cruz, the priest, Chel, and everyone else gathered there. Including the agricultural team with Vi-Vi and Moofy, and Millet and Collete. What a beautiful bridge! PiiGii! It is nice! The builders were happy at all thepliments. Then they said, I didnt think wed be done this quickly. Its because of Als magic. No, you guys are the ones that built it. Thanks to you too, Femm. Wuff! While they were building, I would use magic while riding on Femms back. Thanks as always, Femm. Ruff wuff! Femm wagged its tail. The bridge was a spectacrly well made stone bridge. Vi-Vi had put a magic circle over it, so it could take almost any flood. As I looked it over, I said, Now for the road. Right. If we dont connect a road to here correctly, no one will use the bridge. Timi and Shiggy had worked together to make the road as good as possible. She had pulled out the trees and ttened thend. It was hard work. Maybe I can help you continue making the road. Sure, Al. The builders are pretty much done with the houses anyway. Even so, the amount of houses were still not enough for everyone expected. They would being after the snows in spring, though, so we still had plenty of time. Then Millet and Collette said, Well, we can help too. Old man, usthe the golemsth. That would help a lot... Then Vi-Vi and Moofy said, I can help too. Moo moo! Moofy was ready to got. Vi-Vi, what about the fields? Done. Now we just have to wait until spring to ce the sprouts. Ok, then. So, from this day we all worked together on the road. We had to build it all the way to Cruz manor. It was quite a nice road as well. Moofy and Timi plucked up the trees as if they were dandelions. Then I carried all the trees back to town together. It was quite a load too, thanks to Timi and Moofys strength and my magic. I put whatever was left in my magic bag and Millet helped in bringing that back to town. The biggest help was Vi-Vis magical circles. She wrote a transport circle on the back of a big shield, and we moved it as we continued with the road building. Then I used invisibility magic on it so that no one would use it wrongly if they stumbled upon it. Because of this, as soon as we were done, I could just transport the wood back to town. Getting there and back was very easy. She was probably the biggest contributor of all. Collettes golems also were a big help. They were useful in covering over all the holes from the fallen trees. You really use golems well, Millet and Collette. Really? Thanks! Heh heh heh You could say it was quiteplex work. Using magic like that was a feat. And Shiggy had grown too. Shiggy ced her ws on the base of a tree. ryaaa Yeah! Like that! ryaa ryaa! Shiggy was also trying to loosen the soil so the tree could be plucked like Timi did. She was probably trying to use the same shock magic as Timi did. And that wasnt easy. And after Shiggy used the magic to shock the tree, Timi plucked it out just like she had done herself. Whoa! I told you! Shiggys a genius. ryaaa ryaaa Timi was quite proud, and Shiggy did really seem intelligent. So Shiggy used shock magic, and Timi used gravity. I knew that Timi would have done it faster if she had done it herself. However, this was an important lesson to Shiggy. Shiggys magic had grown noticeably even though she hadnt. And so now we were a month after the bridges were made. The weather had chilled heavily, and now we were at the beginning of winter. We had gotten the road all the way to the manor. PiggGi! Piggii! We did it! As we arrived at the manor, Cruz was there waiting for us. They had probably used the magic circle to get there quickly. The priest bowed to us again. I can never thank you all enough. No problem. It was fun too! Collette had learned how to control up to 5 golems by now. After all the greetings were over, the priest had a party for us. The houses and the fields were finished. Now we just had to wait for the followers to show up. Im happy to have another vige in my realm. Cruz said happily. We were enjoying the party when Yureena showed up, Hey,e on and join us! Huh? T...thanks? Yureena never drank usually, but she poured herself a ss. What is it? Um...thanks, for ying my lover... It wasnt that big of a deal. I had actually expected that I would have to do some extreme things to fulfill that role. It was a bit anticlimactic. I have a bit of a brazen favor to ask. What? Ill do anything for you. My father...wants to meet you. What? Well... It seems that the temp asss dad apologized to Yureenas. After that, her father found out that I was her lover. Its no big deal! Just meet my father! Even so, it was quite a pain for me to have to y her game again. Chapter 214 – The Linmia Home

Chapter 214 C The Linmia Home

I wasnt too disturbed with having to meet Yureenas father. However, it was hard to do so as her lover. Uh, well... Please! You got to meet him! But you already settled your marriage problem, right? Then she whispered to me, I might get engaged to someone else though. I thought you were done with that! Well, you never know... Seems like there was a lot going on in the Linmia home. Well, okay... Really?! Thanks...I really like you, Al! Hm... She grabbed on to me and squeezed me. She had to be drunk. Youve had too much. I havent drunk anything at all!! She said to me, with her face all red. The next morning. I ate breakfast and then headed to the capital. Yureena and I used the magic circle, and we went through Cruz ce. After that, we met Femm and Moofy, waiting for us. Wuff! Mooo moo! Femm was wagging its tail. Hm? Why are you two here? Moo!Wuff! Lately I had refused them going along with me. So they worked around it by getting there before me. They were both quite clever. Damn...okay then. Can you two behave? Moo!Wufff! Yureena pet them and they two responded happily. Shiggy simply say as usual in my poucy. She was very quiet. She might have gone to sleep after she ate breakfast. Right after we emerged from the magic circle, I noticed. Dang it...I need my disguise. You dont have to wear one... No, if someone recognizes me, my lifes going to be a mess. I put on the wolf mask, and I went with Moofy and Femm to the Limnia home. It was about a 10 minute walk, and then we arrived, This ce is huge! WuffMooo You think? I was a massive mansion. Even the two animals were impressed. Her house was right next to her familys business headquarters. So you know it would be huge. Ok,e on...sorry to cause you trouble, but help me out, okay? Leave it to me. Yureena took my hand. We walked into the mansion. Ah, miss! Who is this? The butler was quite surprised. Probably because of the mask. Ah, Al, you dont need the mask here. I guess not. The butler was probably a man of strict silence. He took us both to the waiting room. Then he brought us tea and crackers. ryaa! Shiggys head popped out as soon as she smelled the crackers. Moo mooo! Moofy nuzzled up to Yureena, asking for a snack. On the other hand, Femm sat quietly and observed. I knew Femm wanted to eat, but probably wanted to look proper even more. Thats why I went ahead and fed Femm. After all that was finished, Yureenas family came to meet us. Her father and mother. After introductions were over, I saw Yureenas father sigh, Well, if shes fallen for you Viscount Lint, I guess I cant refuse... Right?! Mom, dad, you dont have to try to get me engaged any more. Well, I guess hell make a perfect husband to a tomboy like you, Yureena. Yureenas mother seemed quite impressed. Hes not my husband, yet! Yureena said, but the mother seemed not to notice. Then the mother looked at Moofy and said, Master Lint, is this a marriage gift to us? Moo? Moofy seemed a bit confused. But a cow was a very good present. Not just in the city, but in the country it was amon gift. No, shes just...our pet. Oh, too bad...and this doggie? No...just a pet. A very cute dog, though. Yureenas mother happily petted Femm. On the other hand, her father was still very serious. For my daughter to marry Viscount Lint... Well, were not even engaged yet. Well, lets begin with calcting the dowry... Just then, the window swung open, Wait just a second! It was Cruz. Cruz jumped through the wind and into the room. Ah...Marquis Conradine! What is it? Yureenas father asked, after springing backwards. I cant allow this marriage! ryaa ryaa! Shiggy was very happy to see Cruz again. W...why are you against it? Cruz... Yureenas father was confused, but Yureena seemed quite moved. Cruz hade to stop the marriage, and she was impressed by it. She really liked Cruz, after all. But for me...I had no idea what the hell was going on. Chapter 215 – Marriage Matters

Chapter 215 C Marriage Matters

As soon as Cruz saw us, she looked at us proudly. Shiggy flew over onto Cruz head and made the same pose. Um...uh...Im just against it! ryaa ryaa Then Cruz ran over and took my arm. Oh, now I see. It seems that Cruz now was interested as well. Yureenas mother was figuring all this out. Then she nodded, Well, you ARE Viscount Lint after all. Theres no wonder why this is happening. I guess theres no helping it. Then, Yureenas mother looked over at us, Well, with rank in mind, that would make Marquis Conradine the legal wife. Are you all right with that, Yureena? What? What are you saying?! Well, if Conradine is the legal wife, then you be the concubine. If youre fine with that then I wont say anything about it. So then Cruz would have the famil... Yureena looked at Cruz, I have nothing against that! Yureena was saying some wild stuff. Maybe its because Yureena loved Cruz as well. We still havente to the marriage arrangements yet! I tried to calm everyone down. I see... The father seemed to breathe a sigh of relief. He probably was happy that none of us had really talked this over ahead of time. But then the mother turned to the father and said, Dear. If Viscount Lint and Yureena marry... Oh, is that so... And... Oh?? ...you may never find a man as great as Viscount Lint, after all. After the mother whispered to the father, the father said, Viscount Lint! I urge you to marry my daughter! No...I mean... You neednt provide us with any marriage gifts. Being Yureenas lover was fine but marrying her... I looked over to Cruz for some help. Cruz nodded strongly and then really ran her mouth, So then I can be his legal wife! I dont mind at all. Theres nothing we can do. I have nothing against it. The three Linmia family members were all in agreement with Cruz. Cruz nodded to each of their responses. This sucks. Y...Yureena? I looked over at Yureena. Ah! She looked at my troubled face and reacted, B...but! Maybe we should take it slower! Why? Um...because Love moderately. Long love doth so. Too swift arrives as tardy as too slow. Hm...I see. Yureenas father seemed to understand. The mother looked concerned, though, This is strange though. W...what is? Are you two...really lovers? Moo! For some reason Moofy perked up after being silent for a long time. Mother, what are you saying! Of course we are! I wonder... Moo moo! And again, for some reason Moofy was reacting. Moofy looked like she was sweating. She was stressing out that Yureenas little lie would be found out. She didnt need to act like this. Yureena quickly said, Al and I are in love! Everyday, the same bed... Twomp! Yureenas father stomped and stood forward. You havent been married yet! Thats a disgrace! He was ring at us and...it was scary. ...I was going to say I wanted to share with him! I havent gone that far yet! But we are in love! Ah, I see...You shocked me. Its bad for my heart. I always sleep in the same bed with him though!Cruz said. Wha? Cruz was saying stupid things again, and Yureens father was shocked again. Then the mother looked questioning at us again, So, youre not sleeping with Yureena, but you ARE sleeping with Cruz? Yes! Thats correct! Cruz said proudly. Then Yureenas mother said, seemingly to herself, I guess that Viscount Lints lover is Cruz and not Yureena... No, thats not true... Moo moo moo moo Moofy was really fidgety now...she was sweating. But we really are lovers... Even though youve never slept with him? Engaged couples rarely sleep together before marriage. I dont know if I trust this... Moo mooo... Then, Yureenas mother turned to us and said, I want to see you two kiss... W, why?! I was thinking that you probably forced the Viscount into this so that you wont have to marry... Moo moo The mother had figured things out. Yureena had made her decision, though, as she sped my face between both of her hands. H...hey... Sorry, Al. She whispered to me and then kissed me. Her lips were so soft. Moo mooo!ryaaWuff?! The beasts all jumped. Then Yureena pulled her mouth away. Now do you see? Yes, I have. The mother smiled wryly. It was her objective to get Yureena to kiss me. Now that was out of the way. Whaaaaaa... On the other hand, Cruz had seen it and waspletely taken aback. After that, Cruz got onto Moofy and rode back home. As Yureena and I walked home, I said, Your mothers very smart. I think she knows. Sorry about having to kiss you. No...no problem. I think that she trusts were going to get married though. Probably. I wonder if youd really marry me though? She would joke around like that sometimes. So I said back, I...Id be happy to. Then Yureena whispered in my ear, Yeah...you would. Yeah, me too! Cruz came out of nowhere galloping on Moofy, jumped off, andnded in front of me. She grabbed my face in her hands and kissed me. Clunk! She kissed me so hard her teeth hit mine. Ouch. Ow! I wont lose to you, Yureena! Moo moo! Saying that, Cruz looked at Yureena. For some reason, Moofy looked too. Cruz...your first kiss... Yureena was about to tear up. ryaa ryaa ryaa Shiggy was pping away on top of Cruz. Then she jumped down into my pouch. Shiggy, try not to stand out too much in the capital, okay? I said down to her. ryaa Shiggy popped out of the pouch and licked my cheek. Then a cold winter wind blew and my body felt cold. The girls probably felt me shiver, so they grabbed each of my arms and squeezed into me to make me warmer. Chapter 216 – Winter Comes to Mulg Village

Chapter 216 C Winter Comes to Mulg Vige

I took my ce back as the guard of Mulg again. The weather was crisp, but there was an icy wind. Its finally winter. Wuff? Femm looked at me with a question on its face. Maybe it was thinking that it was only going to get even colder. Arent you cold, Femm? Im fine. The fur keeps me warm. I see...but if it gets too cold, then tell me okay? Okay. The little wolf cubs were ying with Shiggy nearby. Those cubs are happy even in the cold. Wuff. Dont they get cold? Theyre still magic wolves. They have very thick fur. I see. Just say if you get too cold. Ill take care of you all. Thanks. I looked over at the little wolf house. Vi-Vi had insted it with a magic circle. It had to be much warmer that the outside. Anyway, I wondered about their food supply. I bet that their prey was getting increasingly hard to find. Femm, what about your food supply? Still fine. Can you hunt enough? Its winter, so its natural that it gets harder. Okay. Let me know if you have trouble. Wuff! Got to keep those cubs growing. Thanks. While we were talking that over, Vi-Vi came while riding Moofy. I guess she was done caring for the cows. She had a lot of clothes on. On top of her usual overalls, she had a hooded coat. She also had some warm looking thick boots and mittens. You look warm, Vi-Vi. Warmer than you Al. I mean, youre not wearing any different clothes than you did in summer. Well, its because these clothes already are quite warm. I usually wore a magicians robe. It was a special garment that would strengthen my magic. It was strong against fire and lightning. If you didnt have clothes that had the quality, all the magic flowing through it would quickly destroy it. You should wear something warmer so you dont catch a cold. Moo moo! Moofy rubbed her nose into my stomach. I petted her. Arent you cold, Moofy? Moo? Moofy looked at me, confused. She wasnt cold at all. She might actually be quite warm. Just say if youre cold, okay? Mooo moo! If Moofy got cold, Cruz could just buy and put a cattle cover over Moofy. As we were talking, Chel came over from the house. PiggGGI! It was bouncing happily. You look happy, Chel. Piiggi! Chel jumped onto my knee. I could feel Chel rub my knee to make it warmer. Chel was different than the other beasts. It was soft. Are you cold, Chel? Not cold. I guess Chel was strong against cold too. I go back to vige. Back to the death temples vige? Yes. Do you need help? I okay. Thanks Chel said, and then jiggled around. Shiggy noticed that Moofy and Chel had approached and came over. The little pups came over as well. ryaa ryaa waff waff piGGii! It seems that Chel and the pups had be friends. Shiggy also liked to ride on Chel. The vige creation was on the right track. The believers had begun to join the vige, and there was enough buildings to support all of them. The road also was constructed well. Even so, Chel went here and there and back to the temple. Chel probably was very curious about the viges progress. Maybe it wanted to make sure that the vige was doing well for its followers. Even with the vige built, it was winter now. There would have to be problems, and someone would have to help. If you have trouble, just ask, okay? Yes thanks. Tell the priest I said hi. okay Chel bounced away, and went to the storage shack with the magic circle. ryaa wuff The beasts seemed a bit lonely as they watched it go. Are you cold, Shiggy? ryaa? Ryaaa Shiggy looked confused. Shiggy was the same as Chel, no hair. I should ask Timi if the little dragon might need something to warm her. As I was thinking that, Vi-Vi looked at me seriously and said, Hm. I guess I should make you a coat, Shiggy. ryaa Shiggy reacted happily. She probably wasnt concerned about the cold, but just wanted a coat. So cute. Vi-Vi, can you do it? Leave it to me! ryaa ryaa Shiggy said, while bowing her head to Vi-Vi. She had learned how to show thanks to others. I was very happy to see that. Just then, Collette and Millet came over. It was time to teach them magic. Al, please teach us. Come on old man! Both the girls had gotten very good at controlling golems. In other words, they were good at magical control. I guess I should teach them advanced magic soon. So I taught them some serious magic. All the beasts and Vi-Vi watched us seriously. Okay! Were done for the day! Thank you again! Thanksth, old man! After that was over, the girls bowed. Just then, I heard a loud voice. Ive finally found you, master! A young girl stood a bit a ways from me, her face hidden deep in a hood. Chapter 217 – The New Disciple

Chapter 217 C The New Disciple

Femm was the most surprised by the girl. It hadnt sensed the girls approach. As a magical wolf, it had very sensitive smell. But Femm hadnt sense the girl...who might be quite skilled. I wondered if Moofy had sensed her, as she had very keen smell too. When I looked over, it seemed that Moofy wasnt that surprised. Uh...who are you? When I asked, Shiggy jumped into my pouch. Femm and the pups got behind me. Millet and Collette also looked confused by the sudden visitor. Vi-Vi prepared herself to fight, if it was necessary to protect everyone. Moo moo! Moo...Moofy! Be careful! Moofy walked over and nuzzled up to the girl. Vi-Vi tried to stop her, but Moofy just went over. Huh? Whats with this cow? Moo moo! The girl seemed quite bothered by this cow nuzzling into her. There was no way she had met Moofy before. Even so, she reached out to rub Moofy. And Moofy happily responded to it. Heh heh heh Moo As she was rubbing Moofy, it seemed she really became enamored to the cow. It seems that she knows you...why are you here? Oh...oh yeah! I finally found you, Master Alfred! Huh? I dont remember another girl being my disciple. Well, Millet and Collette were...and they were surprised too. Huh? Is this girl your disciple? Old man, who isth thisth girl? Well, I dont remember anyone...I mean, this is the first time I met her. But I asked the girl, just in case. Ah, I may be mistaken, but this is our first meeting, right? Well, it is, but in a way, it really ISNT! I had no idea what she was talking about. So...what do you mean by that? Before I exin myself, I need to introduce myself. I am Sterra...the genius magician. Genius? ...I guess that SOUNDS impressive. Having too much confidence invites trouble if you ever have to fight. However, its not a bad thing, outside of battle. If you dont have confidence, you lose heart during times of difficulty. Even so, I thought myself a genius too, when I was a child. It gave me confidence....kind of nostalgic to hear her say such a thing. So, give me the reason you want me as your master. Sure, master! Sterra began her story. She was the daughter of a disciple my magical master. However, her father, who would have been her teacher, passed away before he could be hers. So as a girl in a family of magicians, she thought that I had the duty to be her teacher. Or at least that was her argument. Anyway, as she was telling her story, Sterra continued to pat Moofys head. Moofy was happy and continued to nuzzle Sterra. I see, so your father was also my masters follower. I think of you almost as brothers. Well, were not, so dont call me master. No...I guess I wont. She was hard-headed. But that wasnt a bad thing either. You have to be hard-headed to be a magician. However, there was also the other type like Millet, so you cant make that generalization. Her argument seemed a bit impossible to me, but she had taken steps to learn magic herself. She believed a little too much in who should be her master, though. She was thinking that since her father and I were taught by the same master...we were irrevocably linked. However, since everyone but me that could teach her my masters magic had died, that link was gone. In that case, I guess I understood her logic. Since the master had died, the person that was taught by said master was the next one to continue as master. So thats why she hade to me as her next master. I see. I understand. However, it is our first time meeting. No! I saw you in the parade after you killed the Demon King. ...I wonder if you can call that a meeting... That was just a parade celebrating the death of the Demon Lord. But several hundred thousands were there for the parade. I might have met eyes with her or something, but I had no remembrance. Arent there any others that can be your master? No. Okay... My master was just some magician in my hometown. He was a retired adventurer, but he taught me everything I knew. Because of that, he had a profound influence over my thinking. He died before I became an adventurer. There was no way I could repay him as a magician for all he taught me. Even so... I still really dont want to... Why not, MASTER?! All the magic that I learned took five whole years before I left him. The master let me go off on my own, and then I studied myself. After I became an adventurer, I arranged the magic that I used myself so that I could do battle in the strongest manner. So Im really not sure that I could teach still in the same system of magic that my master taught me. I dont think Id be an appropriate teacher for you, Sterra. Even so, Sterra had searched far and wide for me. It was clear that she wanted me to continue with her in her magical learning. Even so, I wasnt the right one. Fundamentally, I wondered if I could teach her in the same way that my master taught me. However, it was quite impressive that she could approach me and Femm without being noticed. She was probably already experienced and had already learned the basics. I really dont think Im a match for you as teacher, Sterra. I said again, and Sterra looked at me with a bitter frown. Chapter 218 – Sterra’s Request

Chapter 218 C Sterras Request

After she red at me and then put her head down in bitterness, she looked up at me again. Im not just a wizard with little power. Is that what you think of me? No, Im not saying that... Lack of genius. Is that what you think? I said, Im not saying that... Actually the opposite. If Femm had sensed her approach, she would be amonce wizard. I just think that it would be important to teach someone like the daughter of my masters disciple. However, I dont think that I could continue in my masters system of magic after so much time on my own. So I exined that to her. Even so, Sterra didnt seem to understand. I guess you just think Im good enough... No, not at all. I think youve be a great magician already. As I said that, Sterra shook her head. I heard that you could do gravity magic and manipte multiple things with multiple magic as well. I cant even imagine something like that. She was true about that, but I wondered how she knew. It bothered me. Where did you hear that? During the Demon King parade. It was a pretty well-known story. I see. I guess youre right. Its true I didnt hide who I was until I retired to Mulg Vige. And even then, I didnt really hide my abilities. After I killed the Demon Lord, I had a lot of different parties that I attended with the king and all the other royalty. During that time, I might have told some of the stories about how I beat the Demon Lord. I mean, Cruz and the rest of us were so happy, we were practically bbing to anyone about it. All the different strong monsters we fought, and how strong the Demon Lord was. What magic I used, and what skill got us through the fight. Because of that, there might have been some rumors that leaked to the public. In the magicians guild, whenever anyone talks about my father, the conversation quickly shifts to you, Alfred. Sorry for the bother. Its no bother!! Im happy to be in the line of the master that also taught the Demon King killer, Alfred Lint! I havent heard of being in a line, and whats with her calling the Demon Lord, King? However, this girl was probably thinking of me as her uncle by now. So...why did you figure out that I was living here? Well, I heard some royal kid and old guy getting drunk and talking about some great magician they had seen. Damn it. Probably the temp ass and his aide. Where did you hear that? The mines. Seems his father was putting them there to punish them. I was sent to the mines to research some veins of magical rock and just happened to meet them. It probably was a vein of mithril or orichalcum. It had a high magical ability and affinity, so every magician was looking for it. And you couldnt just send a regr magician on a quest like that. It was very difficult, so you needed someone with high magical ability. Because of that, the pay for quests like that was high. You really are quite the wizard already. No, I have genius, but Im still not well trained. She calls herself a genius, but untrained. A strange way of self-assessment. She bowed her head once more. Master Alfred! Please teach me gravity magic! Um... I did think that Sterra was already an established magician. However, you cant just easily use gravity magic. I was the only human I knew that could. Among the devils and demons, only the huge demon I defeated before could use it. Thats what Vi-Vi said. Its just that hard. Instead of wasting my time possibly teaching someone something that she may never learn, I should teach her something else. I should teach her something she can use...thats better. I think that teaching you gravity magic might prove impossible. I knew it, you think Im not trained well enough. I cant say shes wrong. She wasnt trained well enough for gravity magic. I couldnt have her follow me if thats what she wanted to learn. What Im saying is, I think you are a well trained magician. But you should brush up on perfecting your own type of magic. Sterra still gazed at the ground, and I could see she was clenching her fists. She did believe she was a genius, so there was a lot of pride. If I can show that Im a very strong magician, will you teach me gravity? No, what I mean is... Sterra looked over at Millet. If I beat one of your followers, will you teach me? She only started to learn since the end of this summer, so its obvious youd beat her. Then how about that devil girl... She looked over at Vi-Vi as she said that. I can fight you if you like!Vi-Vi said. No, shes a magician, but shes not the type that fights. Shes more of a researcher into magic. Thats true, but... I know you think you want to beat her as a magician, but theres no reason to beat her with your research. Grrrr... I said, and Sterra was very angry. I was thinking that maybe I should fight her and show her. But just as that happened, the storage shack door opened. Ah, I dont know this youngdy. Do you know her, Al? It was Luka. She wasing back from whatever she had done in the capital. Sterra looked at Luka and stepped back, ready to fight. She could probably feel how strong Luka was...she had good intuition. Sterra looked at her and said, Well, if I beat HER will you fight me? No, you cant beat Luka. If my master says that, then of course now I want to fight. What? Fight? Sure, you got it, honey...Im bored anyway. Luka said, smiling at her. Chapter 219 – Luka vs. Sterra

Chapter 219 C Luka vs. Sterra

Luka looked around her and found arge branch that had fallen from a tree. She broke it to half the length of her body and swung it around easily. After that, she smiled at Sterra, So, a match against this girl? My names Sterra. Im going to be Alfreds disciple. Hm? Alfreds disciple? Well, that does sound interesting. She was already calling herself my follower...and it seems Luka believed her. I would have to say something about that. Wait, shes not my follower. Really? She is the kid of my masters disciple. Shes basically the child of another magician I trained with. A kind of...apprentice niece. Ah, I see. After that, Luka turned towards Sterra. Sterra looked a little scared. Whats with the club? If I use my sword, Id kill you, right? But that branch looks easy to break. Its too much work to find a wooden sword...and Id probably end up killing you with that too. If you say so, but dont make excuses when you lose. Now Sterra looked a bit pissed off. She took her cane and swung it at Luka. Luka smiled over at me. Al, should I give her a handicap? Handicap? I wonder... I thought it over, and then saw Sterra re at Luka. Youre already using a branch for a sword. Thats not a handicap, though. Luka wasnt trying to make the girl angrier...she really meant it. Luka thought a second and then said with a smile, Well, how about if I keep my left leg off the ground? And as she said that, she hopped around on her right leg. It was probably her little joke about me having a hurt left knee. But the handicap was quite big if she wasnt using her left leg. Ok, ready? I said, and I could see Sterras fists shaking. Shes the type to get angry easily. You both are MOCKING ME! I dont think we are. Luka said, a bit confused. Just then, Vi-Vi said to Luka, Luka, dont burn down Als house again! How rude! Of course I wont. The first time Luka and Vi-Vi met in Mulg Vige, their fight resulted in my house getting burned down. She must have been talking about that. Of course, now my house is protected by Lukas fire-protection circle. No way to burn it down that easily. In other words, Vi-Vi was just trying to piss Luka off. Since Im here, you dont have to worry about my house or the storage shack, but be careful about the vige. I didnt want fireballs to go flying again. It would scare the hell out of the vigers to see that, so I wanted to avoid it. As we were talking about that, Collette came over, riding Moofys back. This is gonna be fun! Moo moo! Collette, get behind your sister. Whyyy? Then Vi-Vi responded, Shes on Moofy. Shell be okay. Really? Yeah, actually Millet should get on Moofy too. Okay. So Millet went and moved behind Moofy. While this was happening, Femm herded the pups into the wolf-house. Wuff Fwuff wuff All of the magic wolves followed Femm back to the wolf house. They probably knew they needed the protection. And with that, Femm stood in front of the wolf houses entrance. Of course Femm would stand there to protect them. It was Femms job as king. And when Vi-Vi called out Lukas name, Sterra looked shocked and said, Luka?! You mean THE Luka Langow?! Yeah. Ah, I didnt introduce myself...sorry for being rude. Well, if youre my opponent, Viscount Langow, then I wont hold back. Fine by me. So I asked the two, Are you ready? Any time. Sure. Then I looked around. WuffMoo moo Go on then, girls!Vi-Vi said. ryaa ryaa Everyone was ready to watch. Shiggy even stuck her head from my pouch and cried out. Okay, GO! As soon as I said go, Sterra began casting a spell without chanting. It was a forceful, but small fireball. She was careful about her speed and handling of it. I think that it was quite in line with how my master taught offensive magic. Hm! Without taking a step, Luka swatted the fireball down with her club. Even though she couldnt use magic, Luka was very good against it. She could knock a spell away quite easily. And not only that, she was still bouncing around on her right leg. Wow, Luka! Sthuuuuper! I guess the elf sisters had never seen how strong Luka really was in a fight. Maybe after this, they could learn how to deflect magic like Luka does. As she knocked down Sterras spells, Luka began to move. So Sterra now shot a magical ball of water. It flew at Luka, and she swatted this down as well. Ah...I see. Excellent. I whispered to myself. The ground around Luka began to be muddy. This was going to take a while. The terrain would also slow Luka down. On top of that, she was bouncing up and down on her leg. Even so, Luka didnt stop smiling. Are you going to fight, or what? You can do whatever you want...or is that all you got? Luka said, still smiling. Chapter 220 – Sterra Doesn’t Give Up!

Chapter 220 C Sterra Doesnt Give Up!

Sterra was getting frustrated as Luka showed no signs of weakness. Well, maybe not frustration, more like haste. As I was observing her, Sterra shouted, Ill wipe that smile off your face! Magic arrows of fire, water, ice, lightning. It seems she could master multiple simultaneous casting. It was almost like she was searching for any magic that would actually affect Luka. However, Luka easily deflected all of it. Hmmm. What is it, Al? I was thinking to myself and Vi-Vi noticed and asked, and I answered, Nothing really. Just...well, she can use multiple magic, but the way she uses them... Hm? What do you mean? ryaa? Vi-Vi was confused, and Millet asked about it as well. Collette, on the other hand, was watching Sterra closely. I could see the little elf girls ears moving as well. Shiggy just cried out from my pouch. I guess...you just cant think about just using magic. You have to be able to use it effectively. Youre right. Millet responded with a serious face. Collette then said to herself, as she watched Sterra and Luka, Like freeze the water? Yeah, good eye, Collette. Heh heh, thanks. Collette was a bit embarrassed. But, she was smart. If Sterra froze the water below Luka, the surface of the mud would be slippery. On the other hand, if you shot fire after freezing it, then it would get even muddier. If Luka didnt notice, than it could be very effective. And even if she did, Sterra could still restrict Lukas movements. Sterras not thinking strategically about her own magic. It was almost like Vi-Vi a long time ago. I see. Vi-Vi said as she nodded deeply. I noticed that Sterra was getting out of breath. She was tired from using all that magic. Then Luka asked her with a smile, Are you done? Or do you still want to shoot more at me? ...Im waiting for you to attack... Really? Okay then. She was still bouncing on one leg. Then she suddenly bounded in the air. And in a blink, she was right in front of Sterra. With, that Sterra squealed and cowered away from Luka. Eeep! This will finish it! Luka said, and Sterra waited for Luka to strike her with her club. Hmph. But Luka just extended the arm without the club and flicked Sterra in her forehead. Ahh! And Sterra fell back on her butt. You still want to fight? No, I concede defeat. Thats good to hear. Then Luka put her left leg down to the ground again. Thanks Luka. I was bored, right? But Im pretty tired from hopping on one leg like that. She said with a smile. Right? You look tired. Wuff And out of nowhere, Femm was right beside me again. Well, I dont have to run...because I have Femm. Wuff Wuff! I rubbed Femm and its tail wagged. Im taking a bath after today! Luka said, and started walking away. Just then, Sterra called out to her, Miss Luka! Hm? What is it? Im sorry I couldnt be a challenge for you. Thank you for the fight. I should fight you. Youre quite good. No, it didnt amount to anything. Well, you proved you can use magic. Luka said, encouraging her, and then went off to the bath. Sterra then walked over to us. I lost. Yup, but its because Lukas very strong. Sterra looked pretty depressed. So I thought a bit. As far as I could see from the fight, there was something I could teach her. However, she wanted to continue in the teaching of my master. Id be of no use if thats what she wanted. Sterra, Ill be honest. I have no way of continuing the teachings of my master. Youre just being humble. No, no, I mean it. My masters magic and my own are quite different. It seems that she still wasnt getting it. I still want to be a disciple of yours. But you lost to Luka... Give me one more chance. If I cant win, Ill give up, okay? Vi-Vi had said the same thing. The next person thates to town, Ill fight, and if I win, youll let me be your disciple! Um... but thats a little... Excluding those that dont fight, the next person thates here, if I win, you will let me learn! But you might lose that way. Theres a reason I said so. Will you agree to do so? Okay then. Thank you! Sterra stood a little away from the vige gate, and waited, trying to look imposing. Femm asked, a bit concerned, Are you okay with this? Well, she wont shut up until I let her do what she wants. But this is the time Cruzes home. If its Cruz, then theres ABSOLUTELY no way she can win. Then Vi-Vi asked, while riding Moofy, You think a healer like Yureena could beat her? You may think Yureena cant fight because shes a healer, but shes very strong. Really? Shes got one hell of a punch. She hit an orc king so hard with her fist that the damn thing died. Theres no way... Femm said and shook a bit. Maybe Vallimie would be the easiest to beat? Its true my big sis would probably be the easiest to beat...shes not that much of a battler. I still dont think that Sterra could beat her with magic. Just then, I heard Shiggy cry out from my pouch. ryaa ryaa And the storage shack opened. Shiggy! Were you a good girl?! ryaa Timi emerged with a big smile on her face. Shiggy pped her wings happily, and flew to Timi. She got the worse opponent she could get. Vi-Vi said with a frown. Chapter 221 – Timi vs. Sterra

Chapter 221 C Timi vs. Sterra

Timi came from the storage shack and immediately started petting Shiggy. Shiggy happily rubbed into Timi as well. Suddenly Sterra stepped up to her and said, You there! Id like a battle with you! A battle? What kind? I am the magician Sterra, from the same magical school as the great magician Alfred Lint! So I need to battle you! This time, at least she introduced herself correctly. She has said she already was a follower of mine when she introduced herself to Luka, so this time she changed it. However, now she said she was from the same school as me. That was of no doubt. My master, and her fathers master, so the same great master. However, I said nothing, and just stood there. After hearing the introduction, Timi nced over at me. Hm, Sterra you say? Yes, Sterra! Did you have a -ra on the end of your name for a reason? What does that mean? Sterra looked at her, confused. Timi had made a mistake so I quickly rushed to correct her. Sterras -ra isnt because of honor, its because shes just a human given the name Sterra. I see. Is that how it works... She nodded to herself. Even so, shes a magician with the same origin as you? Interesting? Yes, thats why I want you to fight me. Okay. If youre of the same school as Alra, who beat my older sister, and youve already got a -ra at the end of your name, Im interested. Then Timi handed over Shiggy to me. She then turned around, and walked forward. Lets fight somece else. Come with me. Thank you very much! After saying her thanks to Sterra, she followed Timi. I followed them. Vi-Vi, Moofy, and Femm followed me. Ill get dinner ready. Millet said, and took Collette into the house. Vi-Vi yanked on my sleeve, This...this is going to be dangerous. ryaa ryaa She cant win, but I dont think Timi will kill her. You think? Im worried. ryaa Shiggy sounded worried too. Shell hold off on her own power. Hmmm... With someone as strong as Timi, shell gauge how strong Sterra is when they fight. ryaa? Shiggy jumped on my shoulder and pped her wings. Then she stuck her beak in my ear. Shiggy! That tickles! ryaa! Maybe Shiggys trying to get me to stop the fight. Dont worry. If it gets too dangerous, Ill stop it. ryaa I think she finally understood. Timi walked out of the vige a bit and then stopped. Young woman of Alras school of magic C do you think youre strong? I dont think Im as good as Alfred. I see. Timi then nced over at me. I said frankly, Sorry to have youe all the way out here...if you think youre going up against a strong opponent, I think you might be disappointed. I see. Thats fine, though. But next time, Id like to fight someone strong like you. If we get the chance. ryaa ryaa! Shiggy cried out happily. Id also like to show Shiggy what a real fight between me and you looks like, Alra. I can see why. Then,ter. Sure. Then, Sterra faced Timi. What kind of fight are you looking for? Do you want to attack? Do you want me to attack? I want to attack you, and for you to attack me. Hm, if so, then attack all you want. If I attack first, youll never get a chance. I see. Thank you. She seemed quite humble about it, maybe because Luka crushed her. Seeing Sterra like that, Timi happily nodded. I havent formally given you my name. I am Timisoara. After that, she changed into her real form. The air rushed out and blew by us. It was almost a storm gale. After that, she had changed to an ancient dragon form bigger than Moofys. Eeep! Go ahead and attack. Timi said almost kindly to a shuddering Sterra. Whaaaa..aaah.hhhh... Her knees were shaking. She crumbled to her knees. Hm? No attack? Timi looked confused. Kind of cute in a way. Even so, Sterra was shocked and couldnt move. Timi, it seems Sterras afraid. Could you wait until she calms down? I guess I have to. ryaaa Shiggy was happily pping her wings. The Timi peered down at Shiggy. I guess you really do like me more like this! ryaa ryaaa Timi and Shiggy were ying around over the immobilized Sterra. I ran over to Sterra. Are you okay? You can withdraw. ...n, no! This isnt a real battle, just a fight. I...I can do it! Okay, but dont go to far. After five minutes, Sterra stood up. Seems she had some guts after all. Excuse me. Allow me again to fight against you. Sure, any time. Then Sterras knees looked like they were going to give out again, so she hit them. She started to chant. Oh four great spiritsbined...the glorious retainer in the house of fire. With my magic, see my strength With infernal fire, let me crush thews of this world! For my name is Sterra! The magic fire that she shot wasnt much stronger than what she threw over and over at Luka. She had put all her force into it, and shot the most fire that she could muster. Timi didnt even try to dodge it. She let it hit her. She had even dropped the magic shield that most dragons have by default. Hm...that strong? Even so, Sterras magic fire hadnt even scratched Timi. Not even her scales were touched. N...no way... Now its my turn. Timi breathed in a bit. ң٣ ryaaaaaa Shiggy cried out with her almost in what seemed a whisper. Then, Sterra fainted. Chapter 222 – Sterra’s True Form

Chapter 222 C Sterras True Form

Sterra passed out and copsed to the ground. I ran to grab her before she hit her head. The bottom half of her robe was wet. I noticed suddenly that she had ears of a beast. Also, behind her robe was a pretty thick tail. A beast-woman. I could tell by smell. Humans dont have that good of noses. Wuff. As I was talking to Femm, Shiggy was pping away towards us. ryaa? Shiggy few into Sterras chest, and worryingly patted her forehead. Should I bring some water? Yeah, please. Ok, Moofy,e with me. Moo moo! Femm and Moofy tore off. The animals were probably scared after Timis cry as well. Femm probably wanted to go back and check on the pups. After that, Femm would decided what to do. Because of that, Femm had Moofy go with. Timi approached Sterra still in dragon form. Hm, seems she cant take offensive magic. Yup. Did I treat your disciple too harshly, Alra? No, shes the one that asked for it. Youre right. Shed probably say shes thankful for the fight. I said, and Timi huffed. She sounded a little embarrassed. Well, I guess you wanted to see me fight too, right, Shiggy? ryaa? Shiggy looked confused as she petted Sterras head. You didnt get to see much fighting though...so...Alra... I know, next time Ill fight too. Timi shook a bit, and the ground shook with her. Thank you! I cant wait to try you on! ryaa ryaa!! Shiggy seemed happy about it too. She pped her wings. All during this, I was holding Sterra up. As I was on the ground, and it was winter, the ground was cold. I could feel my body heat getting cold. I was worried about Sterra, when Vi-Vi peered at us. Looks like Timi went too hard again. Vi-Vi touched Sterras forehead and then petted Shiggy. Huh? You didnt pass out at all, Vi-Vi. I guess it was after Vi-Vi went through Timis training. It had a good effect on her. Hm, I dont have the guts to try her at full power, but this was more like a deep breath than a cry. I guess youre right. Either way youve learned to endure it, Vi-Vi. Timi said, and nuzzled her snout into Vi-Vi. Vi-Vi patted Timis nose. And the nose was quite bigger than Vi-Vis whole body. It was a weird sight. Timi, you think you should go back to human form soon? Hm? When Sterra wakes up, you dont want her to pass out again. I guess youre right. Timi nodded and suddenly was human again. Moo moo Moofy arrived with Collette on her back. Collette had a leather dder with water. Old man. I could hear Timi from the housthe! Wasth it Timi? Oh, yeah, it was Timis voice. I guess even away in the vige they could hear her. It must have echoed. So Missth Sthterra passthed out? Collette got off of Moofy, and ran up to Sterra. They usually pass out. Really? Timi, youre stho sthtrong! Collette smiled at Timi. However, Timi looked troubled. Is there anyone in the vige that passed out? Theyre fine. I see... It was evening, so most of them were inside. Also, since it was winter, all the windows and doors were shut too. I tried my hardest not to point in the direction of the vige, Ill be more careful next time. Timi looked really regretful about it all. Moofy, wheres Femm? Wolf house I guess Femm is checking to see how the pups are doing. I see. Collettes question was quickly answered by Moofys spirit speech. Old man, isth Sthterras fight over? Seems so. Millet isth making dinner, bring her home. I see, thanks. Ill carry her on my back. Moo! What? You want to carry her, Moofy? Moo! Just like usual, Moofy wanted to give people a ride. I slung Sterra over Moofys back and her eyes opened. ....AH! Oh, youre awake. Are you okay? Yes, master, I apologize for having to see me like this... I could see her face bing red quickly. She touched down between her legs and could feel something wet down there. I pretended not to notice. Vi-Vi was already used to it. Just rx. And with that, I put her on Moofy. Hey, Missth Sthterra. T...thank you very much. Collette had given her water to drink. Moo mooo! And with that Moofy began walking away. Uh, um... She was about to say something. For now, lets talk about being a discipleter. ...sure, sorry to cause problems. My sthisthter made you dinner! Collette, Moofy, and Sterra walked back to town together. Chapter 223 – Disciples

Chapter 223 C Disciples

We made it back to the house, and Vi-Vi took Sterra to the bath. Vi-Vi knew what it was like. Moofy went with them. And that was just because Moofy liked baths. On the other hand, Luka had just finished with hers. Ah, so Sterra went up against Timi? Yup. Sounds like your disciples taking quite a beating. I wasnt hoping for it. So, what now? Is she your disciple? Depends on what she wants. Well, hang in there. After that, Luka went to the kitchen. We all ate dinner. This...is so good! Its delicious! Sterra looked genuinely impressed. And also, she wasnt hiding her ears and tail any longer. I have seconds, if youd like. Thank you! Sterra was a little down before dinner time. After eating the wonderful feast she was given, however, she seemed to liven up. After eating, I asked Sterra. So what now, Sterra? I hope to be a strong magician after following you as a disciple... But my magic and your fathers are quite different...you know that right? I still want to be stronger! I see. I didnt ask WHY she wanted to be stronger, though. However, as a magician it was an obvious goal. So, its not really because you want to learn my masters way of magic? ...Its because, number one, I want to be a strong and useful magician. I see. However, Ill say this, if you refuse because of that...I still tried my best as a magician to impress you. Saying that, Sterra got down on her hands and knees and begged. Her tail was up in the air as well. I apologize for my behavior until now...it was reprehensible. You dont have to beg. Saying this, I picked her up and sat her in a seat. But I must have offended you somehow. And because of my rude actions, youre going to refuse to allow me to be your disciple... No, dont worry about that. If you just want to be stronger, Ill ept you. Wha? Sterra looked shocked. Her beast-ears twitched. Is it really okay? I lied to you... I know a lie is bad, but I do owe my master a lot. If his granddaughter wants to be stronger, Ill help her. T...thank you so much! Sterra bowed deeply. Then Vi-Vi said, You should have just epted her from the first time she asked, Al. The reason I refused was because there was no way I could correctly teach her in the way of my master. Really? Yes, if she really wanted to follow in the way of her grandfather, I couldnt help. Thats what I thought. Then Cruz said, after watching our conversation with interest, Honesty is the best policy! I mean, I want to be stronger too! I see. Thats why I want to be your disciple too! No, you dont have to Cruz. Whaaa? Dont say Whaaa? Cruz was already very strong. There was nothing I could teach her. Except formon sense. Alras new disciple... Timi said, looking at Sterra. She looked at her seriously. Y...yes? If youre his disciple, Ill overlook the fact that the -ra at the end of your name has a special meaning. Okay... Sterra looked confused. She was wondering what Timi meant... You, probably should remove the -ra from the end of your name. Thats my opinion. B...but... Sterra looked a bit troubled, and looked at me. Timi, I know how you feel, but she was born with the name Sterra. Dont worry about the ending. Hmph. Humans actually think like that? Even so, its hard to say her name for me... Timi said very seriously. She really didnt want to say the -ra in her name. It really had a huge meaning in her culture. Stel...Su-chan... Timisoara...if its that difficult for you, then you can call me Steff as my magician name. As your magician name? It was an old custom. When you became a disciple, it was normal to change your name as well. It meant that as a magician, you were separating yourself from themon world. At the same time, when you left your master, you could take your masters name or your old one again. Are you okay with that, Sterra? Yes, its like turning over a new leaf. Then I guess its fine. Timi turned to Steff and said, Hm, Steff, Alras disciple. I ept you then. I am the ancient dragon Timisoara. ryaa ryaa And this is my niece, the duchess Sighisoara. ryaaa S...so youre dragon royalty? Yes. Especially this little one. Timi said while patting Shiggys head. You are Alras disciple. If youd like to be taught something, just ask. Thank you very much! Steff said, visibly moved. I showed Steff her room. The house was pretty, and there were other open rooms left. Just rx for today. Ill start teaching you whenever Im free tomorrow. Thank you very much!! She said, happily. Okay, well, Im getting in the bath and going to bed, so see you tomorrow. Saying this, I called over Femm, and took Shiggy from Timis hands when I left to the bath. Moo moo Moofy followed us. But you just went in the bath, Moofy! Mooo! Youre going in again?! Moo. Oh well. So Moofy, Femm, and Shiggy all got in the bath together. As we went in, I noticed Steff had followed us into the changing room. Chapter 224 – Beasts and Baths

Chapter 224 C Beasts and Baths

I thought Steff had just gotten out of the bath. After she wet herself from Timis cry, Vi-Vi had taken her in there to get washed off. I thought you already took a bath. I did! So why are you here? I thought it was obvious that I had to help my master with whatever was necessary...as his disciple! No, you dont have to worry about that. But... Dont worry about it. Its not good to have mixed bathing. ...I see... I thought this when she took a new name as well, but Steff really follows the old ways of disciples. Nowadays they have very little duties. But I dont really care much with kids like Collette. But with Steff, her father really was a follower of my master. Thats why she felt like the first REAL disciple of mine. And because of that, she was working a bit too hard on trying to please me. I was thinking about that when I got in the bath, Did you already wash off, Moofy? Moo! I sniffed what Moofy smelled like. She smelled clean, so I bet that Vi-Vi had washed her. If so, I didnt need to wash her off again. Femm, over here. Wuff! While I was washing Femm, Moo moo! Moofy sidled up wanting to be washed too. You want me to wash you AGAIN?! Moo! Oh well... I washed Moofy too. Shiggy was already washing herself off. The soap was pretty hugepared to Shiggys small ws. And, she wasnt good at it, so I thought Id help her was afterwards. Good job, Shiggy. ryaa ryaa Shiggy pped her wings happily. It must be hard for her to wash behind her wings, they didnt look washed. After washing Moofy, I washed all of Shiggy too. ryaa ryaa Shiggy said, happily. After cleaning Shiggy off, I washed myself. Femm and Moofy got into the bath. However, Shiggy flew up to my head and tried to wash my hair with her little ws. Thanks, Shiggy. ryaa ryaa She now was massaging my back with her little ws. Cuter. After finishing washing up, I got in the bath with Shiggy. Winter baths are the best! Moo Totally! ryaaa! My knee still hurts in all this cold, but the bath makes it bearable. Good to hear. We all just sat there, happily. After a while, Timi also came in. Shiggy, Ill wash you off! ryaa! Shiggy seemed to refuse, and Timi looked a little put out. Its because shes already been washed off. Mmmmph. Timi sulked and started washing herself off. Very quickly. She always took time washing off Shiggy too. Then Timi quickly got in the bath. Winter baths are the best! You said the same thing as Al. You think so too, Al! I guess were a lot alike! Maybe so... Shiggy,e over here... Timi picked up Shiggy and started petting her. Youre going back to the pole now, right? Arent you going to be cold? She always leaves when she goes to sleep. If she falls asleep and forgets, she might grow back to her dragon shape and destroy my house...or the whole vige. So most nights she goes back to the vige for night. I have a lot of methods to stop from turning back to a dragon. Dont think we dragons are that stupid. Whoa. Okay then. After Timi stretched out in the tub, she looked at me. Is is rare for a beast-human to be a magician? She meant Steff. Its rare, but there are some. I worry about beast-human magicians. Femm said as it swam around. Devils and elves had a lot of magic, humans some, and beasts only a little. Its true that beast-humans have low amounts of magic, but it really does depend on individual ability. Really? Im a human, but have more magic than most elves and devils. That certainly is true. Timi said while petting Shiggy. I guess from my perspective, the difference between a devil and beast-human is so small its not noticeable. Yeah,pared to an ancient dragon, its no big deal. Well, youre special Alra. Its an honor for you to say so. I lounged in the bath while thinking about how I would teach her. It would basically be different from how I taught both Millet and Collette. Steff already understood the basics well. Even if I taught her at her level, gravity magic was way too hard for her. Very hard to prepare for. I should ask Steff about what magic she can use first. As I was thinking about that, Timi said, Alra, your master was Steffs grandfather? Yup. Was he a beast-human too? Nope. Just a normal human. So is he really her grandfather? She looked confused. Her mother might have been a beast-human, but if youve got it in your blood, thats not even necessary. I see... Timi seemed to understand. Chapter 225 – Everyday Winter Guard

Chapter 225 C Everyday Winter Guard

The next day. I woke up and Millet and Steff had woken up before me. Good morning, everyone. Mister Al, good morning. Apparently Steff prepared the breakfast before I could begin. I see. Good work, Steff. She looked a bit embarrassed. Millet and Collette are also your disciples, I thought it was obvious I had to help as well. You dont have to worry about that. Yeah! My sthisth alwaysth makesth it anywaysth! Okay, Collette. Heheh. Colletteughed to herself. Then let me help you with your work! No, my work is actually quite boring. Is that so? Steff seemed a little confused. I guess if she saw my guarding position shed figure it out quickly. All I just do is sit there and watch. Is that all? So just do whatever you want. I always teach magic in the afternoon. In the afternoon, roger that. Even so, I have something to do so today, no lesson. Okay. Whatever youre doing is more important, master. Just then, Moofy, with Vi-Vi and Collette on top, returned. She must have finished with the other cows. Old man, the cowsth are doing great! Good job, you two. I patted Collettes head, and she ran around happily. Are you going out with Al today? He said theres nothing I can really help him with. Always so serious. Saying this, Vi-Vi got off of Moofy, and started drawing a magic circle. She was always studying them by drawing them everyday. Vi-Vi, whats that? I was thinking of making a new magic circle. I...I see, wow... A normal magician never makes magic circles. Most magicians just remember the ones theyve seen. Theres a certain ss that learns to make them, though. Moofy nuzzled Steff to pet her, while Steff said, Your magic circles are way better than mine. Better than my master...wow, that is impressive. So, Steff. Can you understand the effects of the circle Vi-Vi is drawing? Vi-Vis circle was still being drawn. However, you could still see the depth of thought put into its construction, and you could analyze it if you read it well. Someone like me already knew some questions to ask about its creation. Of course, Vi-Vi knew what I was going to ask about already. I just wanted to see what Steff understood about it, so far. Um... no idea. You dont know magic circles? I was good at the ones in the magical guild. I could make all the basic ones easily. I see... You could memorize and reproduce ones you learned even without understanding the logic behind them. I think Steff was at that level. Just a general magician. Steffy, sthee this ce? Its for magic amplification? Right here. I...is that so? And, thisth ce createsth a barrier, see? Look, thisth kind of weird ce. You can read it easthily. Collette was exining the circle to Steff now. She was right about it too. I never thought Collette could read the circles. Youve done well, Collette! Eheh Impressive! However, do you understand where the problems are? I thought that would be too difficult for her though. However, she looked at the circle with a serious face. Ummm, ummm. Then she looked a bit sad. I dont know. You dont have to. Yeah, almost nobody does. But still excellent work, Collette. Eheh After that Vi-Vi showed Collette and Steff how the circle was constructed. They both listened with serious faces. I thought I should show Millet what was going on as well. While this was going on, Cruz and Millet came out from my house. Femm, Shiggy, and Chel as well. I remembered that this was Cruz day off. Were all going hunting, do you want toe too, Al? Hunting? I have to guard. Its fine, right? Everyone in the vige loves wild game. Millet said to me. She wanted us to bring some back for the vigers. Then I guess Ill go. So the guard ce will be okay? If somethinges up, I put the guarding off untilter. I see. She was surprised at how loose responsibilities here in Mulg were. What are you all going to do? Go hunting! I want to go tooCollette said. Moo moo. Well, I have work. And Ill go back into the house...Im cold.Vi-Vi said. So I guess the ones going were Collette, Steff, and Moofy. Okay! Are you ready? Meat. Please bring some back! Millet said to us as we left. So we went off for hunting. Chapter 226 – Winter Hunt

Chapter 226 C Winter Hunt

Shiggy and Chel rode on Femm as we walked along. As we got away from the vige, Femm changed to itsrger size. ryaa ryaa Piggi! Shiggy and Chel seemed happy about it. Whoa! It was the first time Steff had seen Femm full size, and she fell down on her butt. Femms more than a magical wolf, but a heavenly wolf. This is Femms real form. Femms huge! Wuff. Femm wagged its tail happily. Steff and Collette, you should ride on Moofy. Moo moo! Moofy then nuzzled into Steff. After that, they got onto Moofy and then I rode Femm. Cruz ran along with us. As we ran, I called out to Femm and Cruz, You were nning on doing this so Shiggy could see you hunt, right? Thanks. ryaa! Shiggy also said her thanks. Dont worry about it. Shiggy seemed to love hunting. Femm was good at paying attention. Femm had nned to teach Shiggy more about hunting. You wanted to go hunting too, Shiggy? ryaa ryaa Instead of Cruz teaching, it would be more fun if we all went together. It wasnt a game, but it was fun if you did it with friends. Do you like hunting, Chel? I give meat to vige. I see...it IS cold. It was winter at Chels vige too. The building was beginning to slow down. Also they had no livestock, so there wasnt much meat. After running a little, Femm stopped. Femm had probably found some prey. Femm sniffed around. Wuff ryaa Then Shiggy sniffed around too. This was probably Femm teaching Shiggy. Its over there. Then Femm started running again. Whats the prey? Magic boar. Its been a while since Ive seen those. Everyday Ive been avoiding howling so that theyde back. This was because there no crops during the winter. There was no reason to chase away the beasts until summer. So Femm kept from howling, and the beasts came back into the forest again. That way the wolves got their meat again. From summer until autumn, you have to chase them off, thats why theres a lot of prey left. And there isnt a lot of feed for the boars...except in the wolf area. So, even with the threat of the wolves, they still came close to the vige. The boars must be starving. Yes, they are. Femm said, and I was a little worried. Yesterday, Timi cried out...was that okay? It wasnt good. I see. Wow. If she had cried out any louder, there would be no prey to hunt nearby. Since she didnt, if we ran we could catch them. Hearing this, Cruz said, I hope theres not wild dragon or unicorn out here thought... Yeah, that would be trouble. After a bit more, Femm stopped. Its very close. We got down. Moofy did too. We all got off the beasts. Its over there. I looked in the direction Femm pointed, and there was a magic boar. It was a big one. About the size of a cow. It was a distance away, but with Femms ability to hunt, it wasnt that far. Can I use magic to kill it? Magic is good. Since Femm gave me permission, I shot a magic arrow. It flew and was there instantly, the boar was down. Good job, Al. Excellent. Cruz and Femm bothplimented me. After that, we rushed to the boar made the necessary preparations. I used magic to string the boar up and Cruz quickly drained it of blood. Shiggy, this is how you drain blood from it. ryaa! Its also important to skin it and carefully dissect it into parts. ryaa ryaa!Piggi! Shiggy and Chel both watched the process carefully. After we were done with the process, I stuffed it all into my magic bag. Moo moo Moofy, what is it? Over there. As she said that, she bit and pulled on my sleeve. Whats over there? More prey? Yes. And Femm? It has a very strange smell. But I dont know what it is. I know that it ISNT a boar. Femm doesnt know either. Collette then asked Moofy, What do you think it isth, Moofy? No idea. Okayy... Cruz rubbed Moofys head. Lets go see. Are you ready, Al? I am. After a while, Moofy walked ahead of us towards wherever it was. So I called out to Steff, who was riding on Moofy, Are you okay? Cold? Im fine. I could see Steffs tail wagging. I used to hunt on my own at my home. You can leave the next one to me. Sure. Thank you. Sthteff, do your best! Collette cheered for Steff a bit. After running a bit, we saw a huge bird. It was about the side of three horses. Cruz asked me in a whisper, Al, what the hell is that? A roc. Hm, so thats what one looks like. Seems like she knew its name. Can you hunt it, Steff? I can! Okay then, good luck. Sure! Ste said back, looking tough. Chapter 227 – Winter Hunt 2

Chapter 227 C Winter Hunt 2

Steff breathed softly and crept towards the massive roc. When I first met her, she crept up to us without Femm even noticing. She must have been very good at hiding her approach. Whenever Steff was about to be beat, I always got ready to help her back up. But after she had gotten really close, she shot a magic arrow right at the rock. Then three more. One wasnt enough. ˣգˣţţţţţţ! The roc quickly screeched and dodged the first arrow. The second one flew through its feathers, and thest onepletely missed. The roc pped its wings and attempted to fly, but fell back to earth. Then, Steff ran up to it. Finisher! The final magic arrow went straight through the rocs head. It quickly fell still. We all then approached the roc. Beautiful job, Steff. No, still needs work. If I cant kill it in one shot...I put it through more pain than necessary. Steff seemed a bit sorry. I held the roc up in the air magically, and we began to cut it up. After that, Cruz asked Steff, Hey, Steff, why couldnt the roc fly? I shot it through the tendon that holds its wings. I see. So you made it so that it couldnt run away. Yes. I was thinking the second or third shot would finish it, though. Okay. Cruz didnt stop dissecting while talking, she was just that good. Shiggy, Chel, and Collette just sat, watching. After that was done, Femm and Moofy sniff around again. Wuffryaa ryaa Moo mooPigii! Shiggy was on Femms head, and Chel was on Moofys. They definitely were interested in how Femm and Moofy were sniffing the prey out. Over there. Moo moo! This prey is? Another magical boar. The magical boar was the most delicious of all magical beasts and popr with humans. We moved from Femms back to Moofys. Cruz ran along. Now youll see a wolf hunt. ryaa Femm was ready. Shiggy was watching. We moved quite a bit, and Femm finally found the prey. Shiggy, you should get on Femms back. ryaa Femm only had Shiggy on top, sneaking carefully toward the prey without sound. Femm got far away enough, and then suddenly sprung forth. It was toote for the boar now. It was down in an instant. Wow, Femm! Wuff wuff! After seeing a wolf like that attack, it would quickly decide whether to eat it there or carry it away. But since there were humans waiting, it had to be dissected. I hung it up with magic, and Steff began to dissect it. She was pretty good at it. I bet she had hunted quite a bit. So, two magic boars and one roc. Al, what shall we do? Its enough for the vige of Mulg, but do you think enough for the death temple vige too? Yeah, not enough... PiggI PIggi! Chel jiggled. I help. You dont have to work too hard. I HELP. Chel was jiggling more than usual. Chel seemed a bit perturbed at being the only one not doing work. However, I dont think Chel could hunt very well, so it was basically no use. I dont think theres any game near to here, though? Moo moo Femm said after sniffing around. Moofy thought the same. PiGGI Seems that Chel was a bit sad about not being able to help. Chel, dont worry. If theres any undeadter, well need your help. Piggi... We have to get back before the sun gets down. Okay. Chel seemed like such a hard worker. I petted it. Shiggy also did. After that, we started to head back home. ryaa! Ah, snow. As we went back home, snow began to fall. Shiggy pped her wings happily. Shiggy, is this the first time youve seen snow? Didnt she see it at the pole? ryaa ryaa I see... I worried about Collette as well. Collette, are you cold? Im fine, eheh heh. She said she was fine, but she looked cold. I cast an anti-cold spell. It make a membrane of air around our bodies. It had the ability to inste the air around you, so I figured it would work. I cast it over everyone. Ah, old man, I got warm again! Thats called instion magic. Wow, old man! Good job, master! Both of my disciples were impressed. While this was going on, the weather suddenlly got worse. A blizzard had begun. I strengthened the instion around us. I wanted it to keep us from having to close our eyes on the road. I cant see in front of me. And I cant smell out the path well. Moo moo Lets rest until this snow calms down. Good idea! As soon as that happened, Cruz took a tent out of her magic bag. And it was HUGE. Chapter 228 – Snow Camping

Chapter 228 C Snow Camping

I helped Cruz quickly put up the massive tent. It was a strong tent, but easy to put up. Then everyone quickly got inside. Of course, Femm shrunk to its smaller size. You did well to bring this huge tent. I always do, just in case. I see. Well, its a monster. Ordinary adventurers only carried small tents with them. You didnt normally need a tent so huge that could hold both Femm and Moofy. The weather really got bad. And it was just sunny. Your magic was really a help, Al. Without that anti-cold effect, wed really have a hard time. I thought that wed actually be okay without my magic. I had a lot of stuff in my magic bag, and Femm and Moofy were both quite tough. However, little Collette was with us. It would be trouble if the sun went down with this snow still blowing. With the sun going going down...we might as well get prepared for the night. Yeah, thats safer. I wrote a magic circle around the tent. It was the same instion circle that Vi-Vi had drawn around my house. I had watched her make that circle very carefully. After I finished that, Collette came near and I held her. Collette, are you cold? Im okay, old man. Al wrote this magic circle so that wed get warmer. All I did was copy Vi-Vis. Wow, shes a good magician. Steff was impressed. ryaa Shiggy jumped into my chest pocket. Since Shiggy was cold blooded, she wanted to stay next to someone warm. Tell me if you get cold, too, Shiggy. ryaa ryaa I could kind of tell that Shiggy wasnt cold from the way she replied, and I was relieved. Moo moo Moofy came closer as well. Sheid right next to me after seeing that I was warming Collette. She was trying to warm up Collette as well. Then Femmid down on the other side of me. Steff and Cruz soon joined us. If youre cold just tell me, everyone. Okay! As she said that, Cruz grabbed her magic bag and rummaged through it. Not good to be hungry. She got out some snacks from her magic bag. Everyone said thanks and ate them. Sweets taste very good when its cold. Hey, Steff. What, Cruz? What type of beast-human are you? Um...dont know, really. Is that so? I was an abandoned child. My father adopted me. I see... Collette looked a bit confused. Missth Sthteff, why do you want to be sthtronger? Um, Collette, I want to be able to help my hometown. Help them...thatsth nice. Well, theyre very poor. I was thinking of helping them develop. I see. Thats why, once I be powerful, Ill send them things as I work. You really are kind... Well, no, I, I just want to be a great magician, and then do the best that I can. I had a question, so I asked her, What did your father do, the man that also learned from my master? I heard he would go on adventures. But, after he took me in, he would do magic in town and live there. Almost sounds like what I went through. Then Steff said, somewhat sadly, He even wrote me a rmendation letter to the magical academy before he died. He was good enough to do that? Not just anyone could write a rmendation like that. You had to be quite strong. I heard he was once a professor there. ...he sounds strong. But of course, both of us had a master that was very strong as well.. Since he was the masters actual son, he was a direct disciple. Of course he was superb. Cruz then asked, confused, If thats so, why not just enter the academy? Depending on a magicians position, fame, and desire for money, he either became joined the academy or started off as an adventurer. However, as an adventurer, your life was always in danger. So, the academy was safer. You had very little chance of losing your life. And, if you graduated, you could be a magician under one of the royal families. If you were VERY good, then you might even learn enough to be made a magical apprentice at the capital pce. Well, even though it was my fathers rmendation, theyughed me away. Why? ...because Im a beast-human. I was able to take the entry test though... And you failed? No, I was advanced ss...but they still didnt pass me. Thats unbelievable. Its probably because beast-humans usually dont have much magic. But as I said, it varies among individuals. But if she passed and they refused her, its unnatural to do so just because of race. So I had to be an adventurer. But so many parties dont want a beast-human. Even so, you said you were a genius at first. ...yes. If I dont then no one epts me. Sounds rough. No, not that hard! As we continued talking, the wind suddenly blew harshly. Then, we heard a loud voice from outside the tent. I FOUND YOU! I knew who it was. Timi had found us. Chapter 229 – Ancient Dragon Aide

Chapter 229 C Ancient Dragon Aide

I walked out of the tent. There, above me, was the massive shape of Timisoara. Timi saw Shiggys face peak out of my pouch and huffed. So theres where you went, Shiggy! ryaa ryaa Shiggy happily cried back to her. Timi, you came all the way out here. Thanks. Why? I heard my niece didnte back. Its my responsibility to find her, as an aunt. Ah, thanks foring Timi. Cruz popped her head out of the tent. It was no problem. Then, Timi looked at us, a bit confused, and said, Cruz...especially since you have Al and Femm here, why would you allow yourself be stranded in this snow? I guess we could charge through it if we had to, but we dont. I know with Als magic and Femms nose, there would be no problem getting home. Well, Collette is with us, so we didnt want to push too hard. Hm...I understand. Then Timi said, Okay, then just ride on my back. Thanks, Timi. We all left the tent, and the quickly packed it up. It was quite easy to do. Just like most things Cruz had, it was a versatile tent. Timi crouched down. Just enough for Cruz and Femm to jump on. Cruz jumped right up on her back. Femm jumped up Timis knee and on to her back. All the others I lifted with magic onto Timis back. Im going to lift you on her back, Moofy! Moo moo! But Moofy ran up, and jumped up on Timi like Femm did. Then Collette and Cruz petted her. Shes like a mountain goat. Wow, Moofy! Moo moo I got onto Timi, and she said, Are you ready? Wait a second. I put up a magical barrier over our heads so the snow wouldnt get on us. Hold on to Moofy, Collete. Okay!Moo! Moofy mooed loudly, probably saying leave her to me. Its stho dark! If you fall, youll die! Collette said, and set a magic light in front of us. It got bright very quickly. Thanks, Collette. Eheh heh As the scene brightened, I looked around again. Steff looked quite pale. I got closer to her. Are you okay? Y...yes. She didnt look okay, though, as she was shivering. Femm also drew closer and stood next to her. If you fall, I can use my magic, so dont worry. Yes, I trust you master. Even so, she was still shivering. It might have been Timi that was scaring her. I guess she would just have to get used to it. Timi, were ready. Hm, hold on! She floated up into the air. I knew she was being very careful. She moved very softly. And then she began to gain speed. I ced a magical barrier in front of her as well. That gave us two barriers that we were protected by. Even though she was flying very quickly, the barriers kept you from feeling the speed of the wind. Speedily flying through a blizzard. We could see all the snow fly around us thanks to Collettes light. It was a mysterious scene that not many people got to se. And even though she was still shaking, Steff gazed around us as well. This is some crazy snow. Well, Mulg is located in a very snowy area. Steff and Cruz said, and Collette looked at us, confused, I dont think thatsth right. You dont? No, it doesthnt usthually sthnow that much. Collette said, but she was still very young. She only had memories of a few winters. It might have just been a few snowless winters after she was born. After we returned to the vige, I would have to ask Millet. As I was thinking this over, Timi said, Were almost home. Wow, that was fast. Cruz said to Timi, and she responded by a huge wag of her tail. The snow was so fierce, we had no idea of how fast she had flown. Shended and it seemed like we did even move. Different than before, this time shended quite close to my house. Cruz, Femm, and Moofy jumped off. I used my gravity magic for everyone else. And then Timi returned to human form. Hm, quite the blizzard. Are you used to it? You live on the pole. Of course I am. Thats why, in blizzards like this, I had to keep mind of which direction I had flown in. Good job then. Cruz was impressed. Millet came from the house after seeing we had returned. Wee back! Hurry up and get inside! Youll catch a cold. Thanks. So we hurried inside. As we entered the snow fell in patches from our clothes. Even with the magic barriers, there was snow all over us. Ah, smells great! Al! ryaa! There was a very good smelling from the kitchen. I made hot soup tonight! Yaay! So we went into the kitchen. Chapter 230 – Just Before Dinner

Chapter 230 C Just Before Dinner

As we went to the kitchen, we bumped into Vi-Vi. She had just gotten out of the bath and you could see the steam rising from her skin. You all look cold! There was a sudden blizzard. Then get in the bath first before dinner. Hearing this, Millet agreed, Sounds good to me. Okay, Cruz, Collette, Steff, and Timi, go ahead. You too, Al! Cruz implored. Ill take it after dinner. Moofy, Femm, and Chel can join you. Well, then Ill take mine after too.Cruz said. And then Collette grabbed Cruz hand, Come with usth, Missth Cruz! Whaa? Moo moo Collette pulled Cruz towards the bath. After them, Moofy followed slowly. Ill wait. Mee too ryaa ryaa Shiggy jumped onto my head. She wanted to goter as well. You shoulde with me to the bath, Shiggy. Timi grabbed the little dragon and went in the bath. ryaa? Shiggy looked confused, but wasnt really upset. It was a good chance for her to spend time with her aunt. After seeing them off, Femm, Chel, Vi-Vi and I all went to the kitchen. Vallimie, Luka, and Yureena were all there. They were all drinking some very exquisite tea. Ah, Al, wee home. Yeah, Im back. As we were talking this over, Yureena got a towel and wiped the remaining snow from my head. Is my hair wet? The snows been melting on you. I see, thanks. I touched Femms back and it was a bit wet too. I guess there are limits to any magic. So I wiped Femms back with a towel as well. Wuff Femm looked happy about it. Luka grabbed Chel and put it on her knees. Chels not wet at all. PiGGi! I think it just absorbs the moisture. Must be convenient to be a slime. I said, and Chel jiggled. I guess it thought I wasplimenting it. Then Luka said, while patting Chel, I know its no worry with you around, but with Collette, you have to watch the weather. Youre absolutely right. I was kind of regretful about it. Just then, Vallimie took a towel and patted down Vi-Vis head too. It might have been she was still wet from the bath. Then, Millet brought me some tea. You must be cold, mister Al. Heres some hot tea. I have some for you too, Vi-Vi. Oh, thanks. Thank you. I have some hot water for you Femm and Chel. Wuff!Piggi! Millet had already prepared tea and hot water for all of us. Even with all the magic I used to keep the wind at bay, it was still cold. The tea heated you back up. Femm, Chel, is the water good? Its the water from the hot springs. Its great! Thanks. Greaat Femm and Chel happily replied. Magical beasts always like water thats infused with the local magical stones in the water table. I asked Millet, Does all this snow affect the vige negatively? I think theyre going to be fine. As soon as it starts snowing, everyone stops their work and goes home. I know they say they have all the firewood and so on they need, but is there anything else? I think theyre fine. They all have kept way enough firewood. It would be bad if the blowing snow continues for days though. There was a bunch of firewood stacked in the public square for anyone to use. Everyone just took what they needed. How much snow does Mulg usually get in a year. It doesnt really snow much here. How about blizzards like this? Maybe once in several years. After hearing that, Luka looked at me with a serious face. A blizzard like this only falls once in a while even in the arctic. I have a bad feeling about this. Well, sometimes it just happens. With that, Yureena stopped wiping my hair. Then she started massaging my shoulders. Your shoulders are so tense. Ah...thanks, Yureena. Dont worry about it. Im actually worried more about Chels new vige. PigGi? The vige was quite far from Mulg. Even so, since we were in the same region, we were probably getting the same weather. Yeah, Ill check on them tomorrow. Maybe Ill bring some meat from the hunt. Thancs Chel jiggled while sitting on Lukas knees. I asked Vallimie, How is Lindobal forest? No problems. No snow. Thats good to hear. Rai and Doby are both happily running around the forest. Lindobal used to be in the Demon Lords old territory. It was very far from Mulg, so the weather must be different. Femm, how about the wolves? Theyre all in the wolf house. Vi-Vi had already drawn a magic circle there so they wouldnt be cold. You really didnt have to worry. Tell me if they need anything. Thanks. Femm replied with a swish of the tail. Chapter 231 – Neverending Blizzard

Chapter 231 C Neverending Blizzard

Collette and the rest finished their baths, and we all ate. Then I got in. For some reason Moofy, who had already got in, got in again. That cow really loves a bath. After I got out, I went straight to bed. If you hang around in the cold after a bath, you catch a cold, after all. You have to get in the bed too, Shiggy. ryaa ryaa You too, Femm. Wuff Femm usually just lied toy down on top of my pillow. Both of them were going to tonight, but they got in the covers when I asked them. Its really cold tonight. Moo moo Moofy got in the bed her usual way. Even with the air so cold, the beasts around you made the bed warm. And I was able to get a very warm and cozy sleep. The next morning, Millet, Collette, Steff, and Chel were in the kitchen. Millet looked quite troubled. Steff also sat there with a serious look. Whats wrong? Um, mister Al, its... The snow is still falling. Even though Millet looked upset, Collette was quite happy. Every kid loves it when snow falls. Its been falling for a long time. Yes. And the blizzard wont stop...its a bad sign. We have to shovel the snow too... Leave that to me! I did it in my hometown all the time! Steff said, cheerfully. I was d to hear it. On the other hand, Chel was shivering on the table. PiGGi No good Femm looked worried as well. However, Collette, as a child, was happy about all the snow. Moofy! Letsth make a sthnowman! Moo moo You too, Sthiggy! rya! Like I said, kids just love the snow. Ill go check the wolf house. Ill go too. We have to give them some of the meat from yesterday. Thanks. I grabbed my magic sack with the meat. How much do you need? One magic boar is enough. Got it. As we left the house, Collette, Steff, Moofy, and Shiggy followed us. Shiggy jumped in my pouch. Steff and Collette, were going to the wolf house, so stay in the house, okay? Understood, master. Be careful. Sure, thanks. Steff was a little to serious in her way of speaking, and it was kind of funny. The wolf house was right outside of my house. I want to go too, old man. Collette, dont be difficult. Okay... Millet held Collette back and scolded her. Then she made a short bow to me. Sorry, mister Al, but please tour the vige to see if anyone needs help. Sure, leave it to me. As I left the house, the blizzard hit me like a wall. It was worse than yesterday. Everything was nketed in white and you could see little else. The snow almost reached to my chest in ces. I put a magic barrier around me to keep the wind off. I did the same around Moofy and Femm too. If I didnt it would be hard to breathe, and even harder to talk. Maybe the reason Steff told me to be careful is because she had been through storms like this before. Mooo moo! Moofy ran right into the wall of snow. She stomped the snow down, making a path. Thanks, Moofy. Moo. Moofy looked pretty proud about it. Then she started doing so again. After walking a bit, I said to myself, The really is some fierce snow. You cant even feel it from inside the house. Thanks to Vi-Vis magic circles. She had put an instion and anti-heat ring around the house. Even in a storm, you couldnt hear much. The vigers were asking for the same circles for their houses. Do you think she drew them? I have no idea. If she did, I would be relieved. If not, well... I also have to remove this snow with fire. Just use a fire spell. Then the ground gets all muddy, and the mud freezes into ice. Wuff. Moofy stomped a path ahead straight to the wolf house. The door had a spring so it would close after anyone walked in. You had to push against it to open it. But with all the snow against the door, the door didnt move. The doors stuffed shut. This is no good. The wolves sensed we were near. Wuffwuffwuff! We could hear them inside. I used magic to push away all the snow blocking the door. With gravity magic, it was easy. As we went inside, the group of magic wolves were waiting. WuffwuffWuff Moo! They all wagged their tails, very happy. wiff wiff ryaa The pups barked at Shiggy and ran around me feet. They probably wanted to y with her. Shiggy pped her wings as she left my pouch as well. Femm, are they all here? Yeah, no problem with that. Excellent. The wolves all went out to take drink, but in this blizzard, it was hard. I took a pan out from my magic bag. We got some snow, I melted it with fire magic, and made water. It was actually quite warm. After that, I gave over one magic boar to Femm. Thank you. Then Femm went, Graw garr! Wuff Gawr! Femm was telling how the game would be split up. It was obviously important that the wolves were careful to eat everything in this storm. Then the wolves all went to eat the boar. It seems like they were all very hungry. Chapter 232 – Mulg in a Blizzard

Chapter 232 C Mulg in a Blizzard

After the wolves were done eating, I went to check on them. I petted them all, checking if any of them were sick. wiff wiff! ryaa! The pups all looked really healthy. Then they started ying with Shiggy. The pups seemed even more healthy that the adults did. They also got the pick of the boar. Any problem you see Femm? Everything seems fine. Good. It sure is warm in here. Thanks to Vi-Vi. It was good that Femm recognized that. Then we left the wolf house and returned to the house. Millet was waiting. How were they? No problems. However, I worry about the vige. Then Vi-Vi approached us, What, is it still snowing? Yeah, worse than yesterday. Really? Thats pretty bad. After that, Femm said, Thank you Vi-Vi. W...what is it? She was a bit shocked to be thanked by Femm. That wolf house was very warm. It helps us out a lot. Oh, thats what youre talking about? Dont worry about it. Vi-Vi said with a smile. Vi-Vi, did you draw magic circles around the other houses of the vige and the livestock pen? Yeah, I did. I did it right after taking care of them, one day. You really are some magician! Moo moo!ryaa! I patted her head. Moofy licked her hand. Shiggy jumped on her shoulder and petted her too. S...Stop...well...its okay, I guess. She wanted to tell us to stop, but stopped when Shiggy started petting her. Shiggy was so cute, no one could just refuse her. If you drew circles around those houses, then I can rx a bit. Yeah, thanks Vi-Vi! Dont mention it! Then Millet said, I need to take a look around the vige. Shall we go together? No, Im fine. But the snow is drifting really high. Mo! Moofy, are you going to take me? Moo moo! Thanks. Ill go too. Im worried about the cows. Millet and Vi-Vi wanted to see how the vige was doing. I was worried if they were alone, but with Moofy it was fine. Take care of them, Moofy. Moo! After Millet and the rest left, a few minutes passed, and Cruz came in. This snow is making me worry. Millet and Vi-Vi went to check on the rest of the vige. Yesterday, the weather was so nice in the capital, but here its horrible. If you need help, I can take time off from the capital. Shall I? Luka asked and I was happy for it, but I think the vige is okay. While I was thinking it over, Cruz responded, Luka, thanks, but I think well be okay. You dont have to refuse, Cruz. Thanks to you too, Yureena. While we were talking this over, Chel was jiggling near us. It probably was worried over the new vige. Shiggy flew over and onto Chel. ryaa? PiGGi! Seems like they were talking. Ill take you to your vige, Chel,ter. PiGGii! Yeah, I know youre worried. Well take them some meat. Thnkx After that, we split up the meat. Some for Mulg, and some for the death temples vige. With all this meat, even if we distribute it, some will spoil, so we have to put some in storage.. Yeah. Then, Millet, Vi-Vi, and Moofy came back. Were back! How was the vige? They dumped all the snow off their clothes in the entrance. Everyones a bit troubled, but they all seem okay. Moo moo Moofy had a mound of snow on her. She must have plowed through snow drifts. I brushed all the snow off of Moofy. Good job, Moofy. Moo! How were the cows, Vi-Vi? Good. But they looked bored as they couldnt go out for exercise. It was sad to hear that, but they would have to be patient. Just then, Vallimie joined us. She probably came to eat breakfast like usual. All of this SNOW! Doesnt look like it will stop...not a good sign. If you need a golem, just ask. Thanks, if I need one, I will. After that, we headed off for the death temples vige. Cruz, Chel, Femm, and Moofy joined me. Ill go too. Maybe the houses need magic circles. Okay, sure. Master, Ill go too! Vi-Vi and Steff were going along too. The vige might need help, after all. Okay, Steff,e along. Yes sir! I put Shiggy in my pouch and headed towards the death temple. Chapter 233 – The Death Temple Village in a Blizzard

Chapter 233 C The Death Temple Vige in a Blizzard

We left the house and the blizzard was still raging. Moo moo! Even the ce that Moofy drove through is covered with snow again. Moo! Moofy started plowing through the snow again. Moo moo MOOO! Great job, Moofy! Vi-Vi said, happily. We followed Moofy all the way to the storage shack. Its pretty cold! Yeah, I made circles for everywhere that has people living but not here. Yeah, its really cold. As soon as we passed through, the priest ran up to us. There was an rm that sounded whenever anyone passed through the magic transport. Ah, the death lord AND the marquis. All of you together. Thank you foring. PiGGi Chel jumped to the priest, who caught it and petted it. Then we introduced Steff, while Cruz smiled and said, A blizzards been dropping snow like crazy in Mulg, so we wanted to stop by to see how you were doing. Thank you very much. We also have had very bad snow from yesterday... I knew it. Are you okay? Well, weve had our challenges... The priest looked quite troubled. Especially since none of the houses had magic circles, and were cold, and they were quite low on food. After exining that, I asked, What about firewood? There was much left over from building, so we have a lot left over. Good to hear. I was quite scared that wed have nothing to burn, but Im relieved. The priest was still holding Chel, who was jiggling. Piggi PiGGi What is it? We brought meat. Handing it over, Cruz said, Chel and we went hunting, so this is some of it. This is very helpful. Thank you very much! First, we all went to the food storage. We split off one half of the roc meat and a magic boar for the people of the vige. This should hold them for a while. Thank you very much. Thanksthanx Chel and the priest both said their thanks. Chel then jiggled cutely. We looked at the food storage, and Vi-Vi said with a serious face, This food storage is a bit of a problem. We should wait a while before taking the meat out. Um, what seems to be the problem? The priest asked in an unsettled tone. Well, I have to draw a condition-stopping circle here. Then the meat willst a lot longer. C...can you do that? Leave it to me! Vi-Vi checked even the corners of the food storage area. Then she said to Steff, Steff, first, take a look. Even though you might not understand whats going on. Ah, sure. Thank you! ryaa!Moo! Then Steff, Shiggy, Moofy, and Vi-Vi started to check the ce out. I think that Moofys had interest in these magic circles from the beginning. A condition-stopping circle is not an easy one to draw. Itsplex and very difficult. Even so, someone like Vi-Vi was able toplete it quickly. Great job, Vi-Vi. Heh heh, of course! She blushed again after Iplimented her. Then Steff mumbled to herself, Jeez, I guess I dont get anything... Dont worry, its not easy. Youre not expected to understand. Then everyone went to the waiting room. The stove in the waiting room was filled with burning wood, and it was warm. Do you have a map of the vige? Oh...yes. The priest quickly brought the map of the vige that Vi-Vi asked for. Does this have all the houses drawn on it? Yes, as soon as theyre built we draw them in. So theres about 10 houses that dont have magic circles drawn around them? Vi-Vi said while pointing around. Those are the newest houses, so I think there arent any drawn there. Are there people living there already? Yes, there are. After checking, Vi-Vi decided to go out and draw circles there. Al, the circles I always draw are instion, fire-prevention, shock-absorption, and anti-earthquake. But in these circumstances and since it takes so much time, I think instion alone is good enough. Well, all you have to do is show me once and I can reproduce it for others. Really? Thene along. Steff too. Sure! Id be happy to. Moo moo! I stopped Moofy from following us though. No, Moofy, you help Cruz with what she needs to get done. Moo? She probably needs to clear snow, so theyre going to need you toe along. Moo! Moofy understood and stayed behind, while Vi-Vi and Steff and I went off to the other houses. The snow drifts are so high! We have to use magic or something. I shot magic missiles here and there, and we made our way to the houses. The vigers were surprised at the sudden visit, but once we told them about the magic circles, they were ecstatic. Everyone already knew how well Vi-Vis magic circles worked. After seeing what circles she used, I split off to help the other homes. Because of this, we had finished 10 houses in less than two hours. Chapter 234 – Shiggy’s Food, and Timisoara

Chapter 234 C Shiggys Food, and Timisoara

After we were done drawing circles all through the new houses, Cruz and her group, Vi-Vi, Steff and I all joined up again. Cruz and the others had joined the vige people in snow removal. Cruz, need help with anything else? Were fine. See, theyre already almost done. That was fast. Moofys sting through the drifts, but since this snow doesnt stop, were going to have to do it again soon. Well, its got to end sometime. I hope it does. Because of the snow removal, it became easier to move from house to house. Moo moo Thanks Moofy. Moo! Moofy was helpful as usual. Everyone around her patted her head. And as the snow plowing continued, we didnt just clear paths. The snow was dragged out of town by the vigers. And with Moofy helping, it was done much faster than youd expect. What about Femm? Femm and Chel are looking around this area. Because of all the heavy snow, they were checking to see what strange things were going on around here. And they might also be worried about the road. The priest then gave out food and fuel to all the houses, and we listened to whatever problems they had. It was good to see a vige that could work together and get over any problems. Vi-Vi, Steff, and I all worked with the vigers toplete the snow removal. My knee still hurt, so I couldnt scoop any snow. I just used gravity magic to lift the snow. Vi-Vi and Steff then removed the snow. This snow is so light! This is easy. Even though snow looks so light and fluffy, its really heavy. Your arms start hurting quickly. If you dont be careful, you throw out your back. Thats why gravity magic is great for snow removal. As we were finishing all the plowing, Chel came back riding on top of Femm. Femm had a huge, frozen boar in its mouth. Wuff Wow, what happened? We were looking around and found this frozen boar, so I brought it. Wow, thats something. I patted Femm and Chel when they came over. Even so, theres no doubt this is a severe blizzard if it freezes even a magic boar. Thats why we all had to be on our guard. Even so, with the snow everywhere you cant smell beasts and their footprints disappear...arent things like that hard to find? I didnt find it, but Chel discovered where it was hidden. PiGGI! Chel jiggled on top of Femms back. Thest time, Chel didnt really help with the hunt, so Im d it had a chance to this time. I bet it was happy to. Even in all this snow, it was able to find a magic boar in the snow that Femm didnt detect. Maybe Chel has senses other than smell that work. A mysterious slime. I was going to give the whole thing to the vige. Is that okay? Sure it is. I patted them again in thanks for all they did. Wuff wuff PIggI! And the priest was very happy to get the additional meat as well. The vigers were even happier. And Chel was happy to see them happy. After that, we went back to Mulg. It was near afternoon. That reminds me, we didnt eat breakfast!Steff said. Youre right. We were so busy with everything, I totally forgot.said Vi-Vi. Well, Im hungry now!replied Steff. We had all forgotten breakfast. ryaa ryaa! Shiggy also was a bit upset. You cant just deprive a child of its meal. I had give her snacks and so on, but I had totally forgotten about breakfast. I kind of felt sorry. Sorry, Shiggy. Well get you a lot to eat. ryaa We went back home and to my house. Grr....Yourete, Al. Timisoara was waiting with an angry face in the kitchen. What is it, Timi? I heard from Millet that little Shiggy here left without eating her breakfast! Sorry. Dont mess up like that, Alra! After being lectured by Timi, we ate break...I mean lunch. While I watched Shiggy eat, I asked Cruz, What are you doing this afternoon, Cruz? Lets see...maybe go back to the manor and see what the damage there is. If both Mulg and the death temple vige are in a blizzard, then it might be all over your realm. Yeah, it could be serious. Just then, Timi said to herself, Ill fly around for a while. Is that why you werete this morning too? Timi sometimes was a bitte because she flew here. Even though she looked bored most of the time, she still was the regent to Duchess Shiggy. She probably was quite busy. Hm...Shiggy, eat this too. Timi was much more focused on feeding Shiggy than paying attention to the conversation. Even though I was already feeding her, Timi sat next to me, feeding her too. ryaa ryaa! Even so, she was still quite hungry as she gobbled away. I know I shouldnt forget to eat, but I really shouldnt forget to feed Shiggy. I was quite sorry. I dont think this snow is a natural urrence. You dont? No...Shiggy, try this too. ryaa! After Shiggy had finished eating, I would ask Timi to tell me what she meant in detail. Chapter 235 – Baring the Blizzard

Chapter 235 C Baring the Blizzard

After we finished lunch, Timi nestled Shiggy in her bosom and petted her. Then we had some tea to drink. ryaa Hm? You want some tea too? ryaaa Okay, okay. Everyone was watching them. It was Timi and Shiggy, with Steff, Cruz, Vi-Vi, and I were eating. In addition, Millet, Collette, Moofy, Femm, and Chel. Vallimie was in her forests, Luka and Yureena were back at the capital. I asked Timi, who was letting Shiggy drink tea, Hey, you said before that there was something unnatural about this snow...what did you mean? Ah, that. I dont know why, but a Jack Frost was created around here somewhere. Jack Frost had the same strength as an A-ss magical beast. Very hard to destroy. And it wasnt a magical beast, but a nature spirit. Maybe a manifestation of nature is a better way of saying it. Its not something you can just easily defeat. Its a horrible ident when people encounter a Jack Frost in the wild and are frozen to death. Also, Jack Frosts could generate massive amounts of snow around them. A Jack Frost...ugh, that sucks.Steff said to herself. If Jack Frost is the reason, then we have to do something! Cruz said, with a much more positive outlook. I had to exin to her, Jack Frost is a nature spirit. You cant just kill it off. You cant? Yeah, its more of a manifestation of natures power. Hm...sounds hard to beat. Cruz seemed to think it over hard. So I continued, The best way to deal with a Jack Frost is to simply wait it out. Stay in the house and wait for the snow to end. You shouldnt go outside? If you encounter the spirit in the wild, youll get frozen to death. A Jack Frost was fearsome to even experienced adventurers. You cant easily stop the natural magic that a Jack Frost generates. Its main power is being able to change the weather. Thats not enough to just freeze a normal human being. But an adventurer caught by a Jack Frost out in the wild without help almost always dies. Your bodys temperature drops, you lose consciousness, and then you freeze. Femm and Chel had found that frozen boar, after all. That might have been an unlucky boar that might have encountered Jack Frost. If the vige people encountered Jack Frost, there would be no way to stop them from dying. During the winter years, Frost was the greatest danger for traveling peddlers. Its hard to defeat the spirit, but if Jack Frost uses all its magic or spirit power or whatever, it disappears. Then the blizzard ends. How long does that usually take? Depends on range and severity. One night is the usual length. Then its going to end now, right? Again, Cruz was a little too positive. However, since the range of this blizzard is muchrger, this might not be the normal damage a Jack Frost brings... Its true this was a veryrge and powerful blizzard. Generally, the bigger it is, the less fierce it is. And the fiercer it is, the quicker its over. Even with a nature spirit like Jack Frost, there still is a limit to its powers. Timi petted Shiggys head while saying, Very smart, Alra...you really are different from the rest. How is he different?! Vi-Vi said with a serious face, after having listened to us silently. Seeing the scene from above, I dont think theres just one Jack Frost... Timi, how many do think that there are? No idea. But with this force...10, maybe 20 or so. That many? Yes...I wouldnt be surprised if there were hundreds. What the... Vi-Vi was shocked. But with that many, what will happen to us? Steff said with a scared look. If theres that many, we might have to go around and destroy them. What do you think Al? Theres another way, Cruz. Why do you say that? Well, its just strange that so many of them would be generated like this. Maybe its just irregr weather? But theres a limit to that as well. I see... Then Timi said, I also was very curious as to why so many Jack Frosts would be generated. After Lukaes back, we should discuss it with her. Yeah, you might be right. Luka was the one who knew magical beasts after all. Nature spirits were a bit different, but she knew more than any normal academic. Cruz stood slowly from her seat, Well, Im going to visit my manor. You need help? I have a few things I have to check on. Well, I guess Ill go with you. Thanks! We got ready to go out, and I called Femm over. Its so bad that it could freeze that magic boar. Tell the other wolves to avoid going out if they can avoid it. Understood. Jack Frosts usually dont try to enter homes. After that, Cruz and I entered the magical transport and headed to the manor. Chapter 236 – Manor in the Blizzard

Chapter 236 C Manor in the Blizzard

As we headed to the storage shack, Timi came up to us. Id like to go too. Sure, lets go. Timi was probably worried about Shiggy, as she was still in my pouch. And Timi was very strong, AND she could fly...it was a relief. Moo moo Wuff Moofy and Femm joined it as if it were an obvious thing. It was nice to have them along. We left my home, and the cold instantly surrounded us. The blizzard was as bad as it ever was. Even though we plowed this in the morning, its all drifted back in again! Time to clear it again! Moo! I guess we need you the most when it snows like this. Moo Moofy was perfect for blowing through snow. We headed through the magical circle in the storage shack, and made our way to the manor. The assistant of Cruz normally resided in the manor. He was done doing the tax reassessment that the imprisoned assessor had done. While the assistant was out doing this work, his agents returned to the capital. They were all bureaucrats, after all. They took care of all the matters that Cruz had going on in the capital. When we arrived, it was very cold. That reminds me, the circle that Vi-Vi drew was for defense, right? That alone was very helpful. Cruz said as we walked to the office. We stood outside and Cruz called out, Assistant, are you there? He quickly came out. Marquis, Alra, and Timisoara...thank you foring. ryaa! And its nice to see you too, Sighisoara. ryaa Her assistant was polite as he usually was. Then he went over and put wood into a dying stove. He apparently was saving the wood for guests. Thank you for taking such care. No...thank you... He said, and then directed his agents to do certain things. One of them, of course, would bring us tea, Cruz sat down in a chair and began quickly, Assistant...whats the weather been like outside recently. Well, its been a harsh, blowing blizzard. I see. Mulg vige and the new vige around the death temple are under the same conditions. The assistant nodded. I was going to contact the four other branch offices...because of this blizzard. It is quite dangerous. There was a magic tool that would allow contacting the other branch offices. However, those were only used to call the other assessors to the main office. The magic tool only had the ability to signal that to the others. You could make the sound, but not talk through it. If we had to contact the branch offices, wed have to do it directly. Cruz thought about it and said, If we go through the magic circles, we can get there, but were supposed to keep their existence from the assessors. We talked it over, and Timi said, Cruz, I could fly you there. I might have to ask that, but I dont know how well we can see in this blizzard. Thats true. This morning I tried to look around, but the snow was so fierce. As we talked this over, the assistant approached us with a troubled look, Its true this blizzard is a nuisance...it should be over soon. Maybe we should think of a strategy after it ends? The assistant was right. However, this blizzard was created by arge number of Jack Frosts, so the story was different. So Cruz looked at him seriously, and said, Ah, sorry, we forgot to tell you. What is it? This blizzard doesnt seem to be a natural storm. I exined what she meant to the confused assistant, This morning, Timi was flying around the region, and she thinks there are quite a few Jack Frosts in the area. Jack Frost...that is terrible... The Jack Frost was a famous natural spirit. If you left the town or city, it was the scariest thing that you could encounter in the winter. Of course, the well educated assistant knew of it already. Okay, when you say in the area...how much are you talking about? We dont know the numbers, but we should be prepared in case there are a hundred. ... The assistant was at a loss for words. The sheer amount of Frosts seemed unthinkable. Of course, it could be more or less than one hundred. Several hundreds would be the worst amount. I was about to try to calm the assistant down, but then Timi said what she said. Now there was no way to calm the old guy down. So...at least 100 Jack Frosts...what shall we do? Thats a good question. Cruz said with a serious face, then, Timi, do you think you could mow them down from above with your breath? I can try. Okay! Then the assistant looked at Timi with troubled eyes. But if I do, I can kill off the Jack Frosts, but nothing else will remain standing as well. Ah, youre right. Its true that her breath was very strong. Actually, too strong. We realized we couldnt use it after all. Then Cruz looked at me with a look of confoundment, Al, what should we do? We have to stop whatever the source of all these Jack Frosts is. True...I guess thats the solution. Cruz nodded over and over, and I thought that we should ask Luka about it as well. Chapter 237 – Thinking about the Abundance of Nature Spirits

Chapter 237 C Thinking about the Abundance of Nature Spirits

After talking this over with the assistant, we all returned to Mulg. As we left the shack, the path was covered in snow again. Moo moo! Moofy was ready to blow through the snow again. Moofy, I have to go back to the house and say hi before you start making paths. Moo! I went back home, and it was refreshingly warm. After I told the others I was home, I warmed myself up, and then went out to clear paths. Millet, Steff, Vi-Vi, and Timi all helped, but the biggest help was Moofy, of corse. It seemed that evening came quickly and we finished the snow clearing and returned home. Luka, Yureena, and Vallimie hade back early. They were getting worried about the blizzard as well. So we all gathered in the kitchen. Luka, everyone...we have some news about this storm... Timi and I both took turns exining about the Jack Frost. No wonder its a Jack Frost...but with this intensity, there has to be dozens, right? Yes, at least 100. But we need to prepare for hundreds of them. A hundred is bad enough. Even though Timi said there was the possibility of several hundreds, Luka was cool around it, Hundreds! Thats horrible! And like usual, Yureena was quite upset. That was their usual reactions. Luka, do you know the reason for all these Jack Frosts being generated? Hm... Luka thought over my question. It was very rare for arge poption of Jack Frosts to be generated. But someone like Luka might be able to discover why it happened. While Luka was thinking, Yureena said, I think the Timi using her dragon breath would clear them away quickly... Cruz was saying that same thing. I said with a sigh, but Yureena smiled. I thought the same as you Cruz! Yup! The same! The two girls both smiled at each other. Cruz said the same, but if we clear away those Jack Frosts with her breath, nothing will be left standing. Yes. Youre right. I thought it was a good n. Then Yureena looked at me, Hey, Al. I think you can go around and destroy them. Yeah, I probably could. The Jack Frost wasnt a magic beast but a nature spirit. I heard that it looks somewhat like arge snowman. But the body of a Jack Frost is just for decoration. Even if you cut it or burn it with fire and the body melts, it doesnt cause much damage. It was even hard to damage it with Cruz holy sword. Even though it was a natural spirit, holy magic wasnt its weakness. A holy sword wasnt very different in effect from a normal sword. What worked was pure magical energy, like a magic bolt. Timis fire breath wouldnt work as well as her magic breath would. The worst would be me having to blow them away one by one... And they have arge range, there are many, we cant really do that... Vi-Vi said after a long silence. She must have been thinking it over too. Also, using a magic bolt meant you had to get close to the Jack Frost as well. Vallimie said to us, It would be hard to kill them off with an army of golems as well. Even with a bunch of golems, getting rid of a Jack Frost would be difficult. Even with a magic lion like Rai who could use magic bolts easily, a Jack Frost would be a tough opponent. One on one, and Rai might lose. Two on one, and Rai would definitely lose. Thats how strong they were. Even hard for Femm or Doby. While we were talking this over, Luka finally opened her mouth after a long thought. There is something that could generate it. Did you think of something? Normally what generates a Jack Frost is magical power mixing with weather conditions. Hm...I think I might know where the magical power is being stored. I use magic at almost every opportunity. When that happens, my magical power spreads out into the atmosphere. The air around us must be imbued with much thicker magical power than normal areas. There are other possibilities more than that, but its hard to think of any of them actually causing this amount of Jack Frosts. So I guess we might think of my magic use as the cause of them? I think its obvious we should. Luka said, so I think thats probably the case. So I guess this phenomenon is human generated? I think thats a possibility. Hearing that, Vi-Vi replied, W...wait a second! I dont think theres an artificial cause for this amount of spirits begin generated! Right! If that were possible, wed already be using it for war and such, right? Being able to willfully generate this amount of spirits means that youd be able to generate that much of disaster. It would be a power that every nation would seek to use. And it would manifest itself sometime in our history already. I guess its hard for us humans to make this, then. Luka said, seriously. Chapter 238 – Spirit Strategy

Chapter 238 C Spirit Strategy

Hearing what Luka said, Vi-Vi asked, In other words, theres something non-human thats generating all of those Jack Frosts? I think the possibility is high, but we cant say its a definite. So you think someone or something is summoning them? I cant deny it. But, even if not human, there arent many things that can summon nature spirits. Just like an academic, Luka couldnt deny any theory. It was just a matter of possibility or not. I wondered what kind of creature would go around summoning creatures like that. So I asked Timi, Are you able to do something like summon a Jack Frost, Timi? It would be hard, but not impossible. No, honestly...I couldnt. Even something close to a god like Timi couldnt do it. It would be hard even for a demon that had a lot of magic. So then what could summon a lot of Jack Frosts like that? Everyone was looking at Luka, Well, it really sounds impossible. Maybe theres some special conditions. Special conditions? Like a special race thats summoning them? Or more than that, a special magic tool thats doing it? Is there any tool like that? Its possible that there were in ancient times. I asked Timi, Timi, do you have a magic tool like that in your treasury? I wonder... ryaa? Shiggy, the owner of the treasury, cried out quietly, I dont think Shiggy or I really know everything thats in there. But I know that the ones I DO know dont have that ability. I see, is there anyone else in the ancient dragon royalty that have a tool like that? Maybe there is...I just dont know. I see. I guess Timi really doesnt know much about the treasures that other dragons own. Even so, I bet that all the stuff that dragons own arent well known by humans. Luka then cooly said, Maybe theres a magician thats chanting to a spirit lord? Yeah, that might be it. I hardly ever chant, but there are magicians that use chants as their normal method. There were many types, but there were some that involve calling of the nature spirits. Instead of directly summoning a Jack Frost, maybe theyre calling them through a lord of nature instead. A nature lord...I still think thats difficult. I remember there are records of magicians calling on the lords of nature in some literature Ive read. What did the magician use to get the lords attention? The lives of around 100 people. Wow, thats bad. Hearing that, Vi-Vi said, I dont think theres anyone around here thats willing to be sacrificed for something like that to happen. Yeah, you would definitely notice. Then Timi said with a serious look, I have no idea how theyre doing it, but we need to stop it from happening. Yeah. Alra...lets see if we can find the source. Thats our only chance. I dont know how theyre summoning them, but we have to kill whoever is. Cruz nodded. Yeah, or at least grab the guy and ask him how hes doing it. Okay, lets go, Alra. I think youd get a better view this morning than at night...like now. No, we dont know if the summoning is continuing. If it gets worse, we might get a Jack Frosting into the town. Most nature spirits avoided humans. Normally they avoided any habitations. They never went inside a house. The only time they were seen was when people were moving from ce to ce outside. But if there are a lot of Jack Frosts in an area, things change. All the Frosts start to crowd each other and start to push each other away. As a result, they could start entering human settlements. And if one gets in, the whole vige freezes. Everyone could die. Yeah, we need to go, now. Ill go too. Me too. Cruz and Luka also pushed us to go. Well, that means Ill stay here. Sure, stay here Yureena. With her in the town, the people would be safe. Master, please take me with you. Steff, you should stay here too. Lately, I had worried about her fighting. I didnt really know how shed fight at a time like this. Best not to take her. ...I understand. Moofy and Femm, stay here too. Moo Wuff We need you to defend the town. Moo! I understand. I also put Shiggy on the table. Just in case, you need to stay here too. ryaa! She cried, and grabbed on to me. I know she wanted to go. But... Alra. Shiggy is the Duchess of the North. A Jack Frost is nothingpared to her. Even so... I was worried. Shiggy was still a baby. As an ancient dragon, no nature spirit threatens me, and seeing the magic will be good for her education. Okay, then are youing? ryaa! Shiggy jumped right into my pocket. If necessary, I can blow them away with my breath anyway. And again Timi said something that scared me a bit. Chapter 239 – Searching for the Nature Spirits

Chapter 239 C Searching for the Nature Spirits

We left the house, and Timi changed back to her dragon form. Cruz and Luka both jumped back on top of her. Alra, do you need help? No, Im fine. Timi was worried that I had no ability for frontal attack. However, as the only member in a party of female warriors, I could attack from the back. I jumped up on my knee that didnt hurt, and jumped up from Timis knee. From there, I could hop up on her wing. As soon as I got on her back, I slipped a little, but grabbed her scale and stabled my self. Seeing this, Luka looked shocked and said, You dont have to push yourself that hard, just use magic. Well, I have to exercise sometimes. I guess thats the more healthier way... As we were talking it over, I set up a magic barrier to stop the wind. In addition, I made a soft film of air around the girls and I. This way the cold was significantly less. Al, Thanks! Thanks, but since were trying to avoid a fight, we dont need to worry THAT much about heat. I know already. With all the preparation over, we were waiting to go. Timi then said, in a voice we could even hear clearly in all the snow, Are you all ready? We are. Thanks. Sure. Then, Timi rose up into the air. ryaa ryaa! Shiggy popped her head out of the pouch and looked around. Its true that even a baby dragon loved to fly. Timi rose straight up in the air, and then began to turn to her side. She wanted the people in Mulg not to see her. After flying softly for a little bit, she began picking up speed. Even at her fast speeds, you didnt feel her move very much. Since my magic barrier was stopping the wind, it was very quiet riding on her back. Luka was carefully looking around and down on the scenery when she said, Even this far up, with all this snow its impossible to see anything. Yeah, theres no way! Cruz was running around trying to see something, but the snow made the air as ck as a starless night. Even if I put out a magical me, all we would see is the blizzard around us. Al, do you see anything? I cant see a thing either, Al, cant you sense out the nature spirits or something? Actually, the amount of it is so high around us, its even harder to judge than if there was a little. When the weather was a disturbed as this, even without other manifestations of spirits, the natural spirit energy around you is very high You could say that its almost the magical manifestation of nature. . I guess thats how it works, then. Cruz nodded as if she understood. Even so, I probably would be the one to sense any strangeness in the natural spirits out of everyone. It cant be that hard to figure it out. If I really put my heart into it, I might be able to feel it. ...its true that I can sense a lot of manifestations of nature below...the Jack Frosts. Right? So I guess you CAN feel them. Timi said, slightly happier. I guess if you hadnt mentioned it, I wouldnt have tried and then sensed it, Timi. If you would have flown with me this morning, you would have been able to sense it too. She said with a happyugh. ryaa ryaa Shiggy seemed to beugh as well. Even so, you already knew that there were a lot of Jack Frosts down below...you told us before. Yes. The problem is how many there are. I figured that there would be a lot of Jack Frosts near whatever is generating them. Hm...I know there are many, but thats it. Can you feel where there are many? Its hard to tell. Its going to take some time. Can you fly lower? Timi swooped down after Luka asked her. She was quite low, just above the trees. Timis ws brushed against the treetops now and then. Is it harder to sense now? Maybe I should go higher? Saying that, she went higher again. No, maybe it was stronger down close to the ground again. So she went down again. She was trying to find at what height was the best to sense the spirits. ryaa ryaa! She swooped up and down and Shiggy was loving every minute of it. She was pping with joy inside my pouch. I have no idea! There are too many! Yeah, a multitude. Timi said with exasperation, and Cruz responded a bit perplexed. After she tested the heights, she picked the height where she thought it was easiest to sense the spirits. I was silent, trying to sense their powers around me. And once again, as Timi swooped down, Whoa?! Timi made a sound of surprise, and an ice shard went flying by. Jack Frosts magic! Luka quickly shouted. Again, the experience of a magical expert. This sucks because I couldnt sense anything. You want to blow it away? Timi, wait a second. Sure, I will. Leave it to Alra. The shard had bounced off my magical barrier. Of course we were already protected from the attack by the barrier I put around us. And after feeling where the magic emerged from, I shot a magic bolt there. Because the snow was so thick, I couldnt confirm that it was a Jack Frost. Even so, I knew there was a response, I guess one shot wont be enough. So I followed up with 5 shots. ˣ项 I heard a strange screech, as the Jack Frost died. Chapter 240 – Searching for Spirits

Chapter 240 C Searching for Spirits

Hearing the Jack Frost die, Cruz shouted, You did it! Good job, Al! Not a big deal as it was only one. But if you can beat them that easily, then you should be able to get rid of a lot quickly. Cruz said happily, but then Luka followed up, seriously, Its not THAT easy. Really? I really wish it were one, or just a few. Timi nodded as she agreed with Luka. Even so, she didnt change her flight. Excellent technique. Yeah, he did destroy only one Jack Frost. But with one gone, now whatever is making them will put a new one in its ce. Just as Timi said, they might be multiplying faster than we can kill them. So killing them off is basically impossible? Whether thats what were facing or not...either way, its better to find the most efficient way to get rid of them. Cruz seemed a little depressed that it might not go so well. Luka patted her head and said, It would be no problem if there was only one. But theres more. I see... Cruz said with a determined face, Hey, Al? Can you sense which direction theyreing from now? Just a second. I was focusing again. There was just so much spirit power it was hard to determine. Hang in there, Al. Sure...everyone quiet... Okay! Im cheering for you! Cruz then started looking around her. Do it Al...do it al! She said in a loud whisper as she continued looking in the trees below her. I was really happy for her help, but she needed to stop distracting me. ryaa ryaa Maybe because of Cruz soft voice, Shiggy cried out softly as well. I was wondering if she knew to encourage me too...It helped. Cruz. Calm down. Wha? But... Luka walked over and just grabbed Cruz away. Thanks to that I was finally able to focus. Okay, Im not really sure, but it feels stronger on the west. Great job Al! Hearing that, Timi turned to the west. Even so, she didnt fly straight there, but meandered around, feeling the density of spirits. Compared to her normal flying, she was taking it very slow now. A horse could have galloped faster than her. Theres a western mountain ridge from here. Luka said, looking out to the west. It was night, in the middle of a blizzard. You could see nothing. Even so, both girls turned their eyes to the west. rya Shiggy looked out as well, to the west. Even for a baby, she understood directions. I thought that was something. I know about that range as well. I flew around there before I installed the magical transport in the pole. She used toin about her human form making her legs numb. She probably just flew back in dragon form and slept instead. Then, she would just sleep away from the vige. Now she could just transport back. However, before the circle she would have to find a ce to hide and sleep, and that probably was these western mountains. Hearing this Cruz said, Timi, you really went a long way to sleep, huh? Yes, if I slept too near to the vige, the wolves would have trouble. An ancient dragon drives all the magical monsters in the wolves direction, after all. Femms hunting would be hurt by all the new, powerful monsters. Thanks for thinking about Femm. Timi was a little bit embarrassed at me thanking her for Femm. Its no matter. Plus I can rx on the mountains. Rx? Yes. I had no idea how ancient dragons rxed. I went to these mountains over and over in the summer. That ck magician was here too. Is this part of your realm, Cruz? The mountains are under the kingdoms control. No people, fields, crops, so no ruler wants them. I guess not. Also, if you go over them, you get in to the old Demon Lords territory. Its almost like a defense barrier. I see. Cruz, you really studied a lot to reach that conclusion. Eheh heh Cruz blushed. But I really did think she had been giving it all in her studies about being a ruler. As we conversed, Timi said, Hm, its much stronger. I didnt feel this when I passed over it this morning. It is clear that in this area the spirits are very strong. This morning she hadnt felt much, but now she clearly did. That means the Jack Frosts were increasing quickly. There has to be something in these mountains. Timi, slow it down as much as you can. Got it. Then, Cruz shouted, Something BIG!! Cruz pointed, and we could see a huge dragon-shaped snow figure. Chapter 241 – Snow Dragon

Chapter 241 C Snow Dragon

The statue looked like a huge snow statue of an ancient dragon. I looked at it carefully. But the blizzard was blowing, and it was hard to see. Is that, a snow sculpture? Its made so well...it looks like its alive... ryaa Shiggy said as she looked out from my pouch. Theres no way... Timi said quietly to herself. The western mountains. This was right where Shiggys mother, Jilnidora, had fallen. There had to be a rtion. If someone did this to mock my sisters death, they will pay! I agree. ryaa? It didnt seem that Shiggy understood what was happening. I rubbed Shiggys head. Timi flew slowly over the snow dragons head. I can feel a very strong spirit. Yeah, this has to be whats generating it. The problem is, if we destroy this, will it all end? Hm, maybe we should break it first and think about itter. Wait a second. Luka looked over the statue and said. What is it, Luka? Thats not just a snow statue is it? I think youre right. The spirit force is too strong. Give me a second to look it over. Okay, let me go a little higher. Thanks, Timi. Timi spiraled up above the statue. Luka peered at the statue as closely as she could. Cruz as well peered at the statue next to Luka. Its huge. Bigger than Timi? I think its as big as my older sister...so of course its bigger. I see. When I fought with Jilnidora, it was Vi-Vi, Femm, Moofy, and I. Cruz and Luka never got to meet Jilnidora. The surface is snow...but the inside is a spirit stone? I read about this phenomena in old literature. A spirit stone. You know magical crystals, right? Pretty soon theyre going to be Mulgs new special product. Vi-Vi had written a magical circle and that condensed the magical stones into crystals so the crops would grow better. The magical crystals are manifestations of magical power. If you use them during magical operations, it refills the power of magicians. This might be the spirit version of that. I see. I had never seen a spirit stone though. It would be expensive, even though it would be much more rare than the magic crystals you see in the markets. I understand all that, but...why would it be in the shape of my sister? So this is where the former duchess died? Yes, I killed her, and burned the body. She was mostly zombified, and since Jilnidora pleaded with me to kill her, I delivered the final blow. Also, this was before Shiggy was born from her egg. Its said that the ancient dragons are the closest rare to the gods. So this duchess, after she died may have left her spirit behind. I guess its obvious now. I had burned her body so there was no way she could be undead. However, this may be the reason for all this new magical power. There was nothing I could do about it, either way. Natural spirits always surge towards unsettled pockets of magical power. Its said that natural spirits are just unactualized magical power. I think I remember hearing that too. In the ancient texts, after a magical lord dies, it was written that magicians would use the lords remaining magical power to summon natural forces. Did that happen? It was a quite rare event. Its written in some rare, minor texts. And it took my a while to remember it. Luka looked like she was a bit sorry for not remembering quickly. However, its interesting that she had ess to such old texts. Even though it took some time, its superb that she had that information. Luka, that really helps. Thanks. Great job Luka. ryaa! Luka looked a bit embarrassed. ttery will get you nowhere. Even I, an ancient dragon, did not know this. You should be proud. Timi said as well. Then Cruz asked, Luka, these spirit stones, can I punch them? If we do it poorly, the spirit stone will break and spread, and the Jack Frosts will simply grow in massive numbers. Then what should we do? Hit it with dragon breath? Timi said, but Luka shook her head. Magical breath might be able to disintegrate it...but with something this huge... Maybe I canbine powers with Al? It may work...but its a huge spirit stone, right? It might be too hard? Spirit was unactualized magic. Thats why you could destroy most of it by hitting it with a magical bolt. Even a spirit stone, a manifestation of spirit energy, could be neutralized by arge magical bolt. However, it was hard to predict what would happen if we tried to eliminate a stone the size of a great dragon. Luka looked at me, unsettled. Al. Can you do it? Al, Timi, please. If it goes on like this, then many vigers will die. Cruz bowed her head. Lets try it. Leave it to us. Alra and I will destroy it. Timi and I said, and Cruz huffed a sigh of relief. Chapter 242 – Mother’s Statue

Chapter 242 C Mothers Statue

Timisoara flew straight in front of the huge snow-covered statue. ryaa ryaa! Shiggy cried out, interested. She was looking closely at the statue. It only looked like a snow statue. It had no movement or soul. Even so, Shiggy seemed to know it was her mother. Timi, wait. I know. I rubbed Shiggys head. Shiggy never knew her mother. Shiggy had fallen silent, as she probably was looking at the image of this dragon, knowing what it was. However, I couldnt just remain silent. Even if this was just a huge stone, it looked just like her. I should at least say something. Shiggy, this is a statue that looks like your mother. ryaa Shiggys eyes shimmered. Timi, bring us in close. Can I? Please. Timi brought us right up to the statue. As we approached, we were attacked by the Jack Frosts that had amassed around the foot of the statue. I put up a magic barrier with my left hand quickly. The barrier went up directly below Timi. The attacks smashed against the barrier. I dodged the attacks of the Jack Frosts and moved to Timis head. Then I touched the stone with my right hand. It was so cold. It was far colder than the snow. Shiggy reached out and touched the stone as well. This is just a statue. Not your mother. But it looks much like her. ...rya Shiggy touched the statue and cried out a bit. I knew she wanted to touch it longer. So I kept the barrier going longer. After a while, Shiggy removed her w and looked at me. You want to see it from far away? ryaa Timi, please. Yes, Alra. Timi pulled back away from the statue. Then she rotated around the statue to give Shiggy a different look. It is huge. ryaa Your mother was a great ancient dragon. ryaa Shiggy looked for a while at the statue. Then she tapped my face. Are you okay? ryaa I asked her again. Shiggy, I have to destroy this statue. ryaa? It has some of the power of your mother left. It became this statue. ...ryaa And if it stays, the Jack Frosts will grow, and people might be killed. ... Sorry. ryaa ryaa! I apologized, and Shiggy responded angrily. Alra, Shiggy understands. She understands that the statue is of her mother and that you must destroy it. Smart, Shiggy. Thats why she doesnt want you to apologize. Really? ryaa She responded and looked at me with her beautiful eyes. They were eyes of decision...unwavering. I guess I was the one that was lessmitted to destroy the statue. Okay, lets do this Timi. Are you ready? Yeah. Shiggy, are you ready? ryaa Okay. Timi then lifted off in the air to where the Jack Frosts couldnt attack. Alra, ready? Ill wait for your direction. Okay, no need to be intricate with this...just a magic bolt. It wasnt aplex chant or big disy of magic. It was just a bullet of pure magical power. We should get a bit closer though. Magic bolts lose their power quickly. You had to get close. However, if we get too close, then the spirit magic mighte at us from the Jack Frosts. Dont you think its dangerous if you have to defend at the same time. It was just as Timi said. It was easy to put up a barrier and shoot a magic bolt. But this time I would have to shoot a massive bolt. That would mean that I probably couldnt put up a barrier. I can block their shots with my body, you know? Timi said to me. She was a very strong ancient dragon. Even with all the Jack Frosts shooting, she wouldnt be easy to hurt. Even so, it would hurt and she would take damage. I see...could you rush down and shoot a magical bolt with your breath with all your power? Sounds interesting! She said with augh. Thats a great idea! Excellent, Alra! We would plunge into the zone of spirit attacks quickly. By the time they tried to attack us, our attack would already be over. Lets do it! Timi swooped around, and then lifted even higher up. I looked back at told Cruz and Luka, I know you heard, but hand on as were going down! Sure! I hope this works. Cruz looked happy, but Luka was a bit scared. Shiggy, get in the pouch. ryaa! Shiggy got in, but peaked out to look. She probably wanted to see the image of her mother destroyed. Any time youre ready Timi. Okay. After swirling around and around, she said, Lets go! Okay! After lifting up for an instant, she plunged almostpletely vertically downward. As I rode on Timis head, I grabbed hold of her horn and got my footing. Putting power into my left knee hurt, but I didnt say anything about it. The other two girls must have been hanging onto the scales. I knew theyd keep from falling though. ryaaaaaaaa Shiggy cried out loudly. Timi was almost up to a free-fall speed. Gooooooooooo! ң٣! Timi shouted while we pummeled the spirit statue with magic breath and magic bolts. Chapter 243 – Shattered Statue

Chapter 243 C Shattered Statue

I didnt hold back. Timi and I used all of our power. I put all my power into making a pure magic bolt, the most basic of all magics. Timi used her magical breath, and her breath was the most basic of all magics as well. Any dragon could use such magic. She put all of her power into her breath. Since it was such simple magic, there was an immense power we put into it, and you could see it when the magic struck the statue. There was no fooling anyone. ryaaaaaa Shiggy cried out. This was probably the first time she had seen power like this. The immense statue quickly disintegrated in the onrush of magic bolts and breath. It was like a snowke being ttened in someones palm. All of the Jack Frosts in the ground around were blown away as well. As soon as the statue was gone, Timi stopped her breath and cried out. ң٣! We were about to m into the ground, but Timi quickly spun up and we flew over the ground. I could hear her bones, scales, muscles creak under the stress. She had used her full force. I could feel the centrifugal force hit me, and if I wasnt holding on I would have been flung into space. Then I heard Cruz and Luka, Whoaaaaa Ahhhh They were almost screaming. We almost skidded along the ground after nearly crashing into it, and after that, Timi flew back into the sky. As we rose, Timi took a second to stop, ....are you all okay? ...I guess. Wow, Timi! I thought I was dead. Cruz and Luka both looked exhausted as they sat on Timis back. I walked down her neck back to her back again. ryaa ryaa! Ryaa ryaa! Shiggy was absolutely ecstatic. Sighisoara, how was it? That was your aunties full flying power. ryaaa! d you liked it. Timi said, thoroughly satisfied. Good work, Timi. You too, Alra, that was quite a magic bolt. Your breath was impressive too, Timi. And that speed and change of direction! ryaryarya, it feels good to beplimented by you Alra. Timi said, with an apparentugh of ryaryarya. Whoa, that was too much. You didnt just st the statue, but all the Jack Frosts there are gone. The ce they were was blown away. I heard Cruz and Luka say behind me. I looked over to where the statue used to be. The rock was fissured deeply. I was d it was far from where people lived. Then a worried Cruz said, Luka, you said natural spirits like that unactuated magic, right? Is it okay to use all those magic bolts? Sure, since we blew up that huge crystal of unactuated magic, they should all be dead. Well, thats a relief! Cruz sighed. But then Luka said, But it was quite a lot of force, theres no traces left. What do you mean, traces? I said as I finally returned to where Cruz was on the back. Um, the traces of whomever used the power in the remains of the old duchess to make this massive statue. Dont you think the magical forces just naturallybined here to make it? Those slowly disperse over time. Its hard to think this was created only after a few months. Hm. If someone used the remaining forces of my older sister, Ill destroy them. Timi said with a huff. It may be pointless, but we should at least look around. Sure, thats probably the best. Okay. Timi lowered down to the ground again. Just then, Cruz happily shouted, Al, look! The blizzard is stopping! Oh, yeah! I guess all the Jack Frosts are destroyed. She changed back to her human form after we jumped off. Usually a Jack Frost disappears after a night. These didnt disappear though because they were connected to the power of a massive spirit stone. On top of that, the stone was producing more and more Jack Frosts. Because of that, the area of blizzard was quickly expanding. Luka, do you think all the snowing will be over by tomorrow? Sure, I guess it will. Well, thats a relief! Cruz said happily. After that, we searched around. Seeing the ground around us, Timi said to herself, Absolutely nothing. Timi, you left this rock blown smooth. Cruz said as she touched the ground. My bolt and her breath had scraped that cliffside and ground t. Maybe I should have held back a bit. I said to myself, but Luka shook her head. That spirit stone was huge. You had to destroy it with all the force you had. I guess youre right. If you would have held back, the remainder would have been hard to deal with. What would have happened? Cruz asked. The remaining stone, because it was shocked, would split up and that would cause the number of the Jack Frosts to increase...maybe. That would suck. I guess its best we gave it our all. And as I was thinking that, something came out of hiding... Chapter 244 – Mystery Girl

Chapter 244 C Mystery Girl

Cruz was the quickest to react. I saw something moving, while at the same time Cruz turned and prepared to face whatever it was. She had already unsheathed her holy sword. WHO IS IT! EEEP! I saw a small girl shaking at the end of Cruz holy sword. She was as big as Collette, and her ears were tall and thin. She was another small elven girl. She had hair white and clear like freshly fallen snow, andrge round sapphires. Who...are you...? I said to myself...and the girl. I had never seen anyone like her before. The thing that was the most noticeable was the translucent wings on her back. Also...the fact that she had no clothes. All she had on her was something like a crystal tiara, on her head, and a cor around her neck. Because of all the fallen snow, the temperature was very cold. There was not living thing that could exist in a ce like this naked. Who is this? Who could survive being here and Timi AND Al hit this ce with magic? She cant be anyone normal... Even with a...thing that looked so cute, Cruz didnt let her guard down. Her sword still held only inches away, Cruz still face this...girl. Eeeep! The little girl shook, and cried out in a small voice. She might not understand human speech. So I asked Luka, Luka, you know who this is? The first time I saw one, but...a lord of the nature spirits... Lord of the nature spirits... I was a magician. I had called to the lords of nature in many chants I had done. But I had never seen one. They usually resided in the spirit world. The magician only briefly opens the gates to them through chanting and receive their power before the gates are again closed. Timi, do you know something? This does look much like a lord of the natural world. The one that I saw was a bit older, though. Just like an ancient dragon like Timi to have met a nature lord before. Yeah, and the one that I saw was...more red...I think. Perhaps thats of natural fire? Maybe this ones the one for ice? I see...so there are several of them. As Luka and Timi were talking, the little lord shook. I was almost kind of pitying the thing. Eeep eeeek ryaa Wait, Shiggy. Shiggy jumped out and walked over to the little nymph. I couldnt let her get near the small girl. Timi scooped up Shiggy to herself. Sighisoara. Dont get near to her. ryaa? Just then, the spirit lord started to cry out again. I asked Luka, Do you think that huge statue drew this nature lord out into this world? Hard to believe. A spirit or a spirit lords going to remain in the spirit world, usually. Unless it was summoned... Luka looked at me seriously. Even so, with all the power you two shot at the statue, its lucky shes unhurt. The Jack Frosts might have protected her. And the statue absorbed almost all of the power. Just then, looked very carefully at the little nymph while clutching Shiggy. Alra, I noticed something. What? She has a cor around her neck...its out of ce. Hm? I didnt feel anything strange about the cor when I first noticed it. But she had also seen the fire spirit as well, before. The other one I saw had a tiara like hers, but it didnt have a cor. I see, so what do you think, Luka? I read about them in texts, but Ive never seen one. Luka said, and continued, I never read about one with a cor though... Lets take a closer look. I got closer to the little nymph. Eep eeep! She shook in fear and cried out. Just then, right in front of me, five Jack Frosts appeared out of nowhere. Whoa! I instinctually shot five magic blots and blew them away. Eeep eeepppp! She cried with a piercing cry. The scared spirit had called the Jack Frosts to defend her. It would be horrible if she called many more. I wont hurt you, okay? I didnt know if shed understand, but I spoke as kindly as I could. Then I put my hands out to her cor. EppeeepeeepeeeeppEEpppeeepPPP! Her cries became louder and she was visibly shaking in terror. I knew it was very scared and was sympathetic. But we had to destroy that huge statue and all those Jack Frosts because of her, probably. She was afraid, but it was probably observed. Its going to be okay. I tried to speak as softly as possible so she wouldnt be scared. Then I touched the cor. I felt magical power...no spirit power. On the surface of the cor, there was very detailed writings in a magical circle. I had never seen anything like it. I turned and started exining what it was to Luka and the others, So, Al, thats not spirit power, but magic power right? Yeah. That cor gets weirder by the minute. What kind of magical circle is that? Let me analyze it. Since Vi-Vi started to living with me, my knowledge of magic circles had grown exponentially. I could probably analyze even magic circles I had seen for my first time. This is ...kind of like the circles used to control magical beasts. This had to be the key to all this natural spirit energy unleashed into this world. Chapter 245 – Figuring out the Nature Nymph

Chapter 245 C Figuring out the Nature Nymph

So as not to scare her, I spoke to her kindly while looking carefully at the cor. It was a veryplex magical circle, so I couldnt figure it out right away. Eppeeppeppp! The spirit nymph shook like usual and cried out. But this time, she didnt unleash very strong spirit power at me. Sometimes she would summon a Jack Frost around us. I would blow it away with pure magic as soon as it appeared. It seems shes limited in the amount of magic she can use. Because of the cor? Seems so. I couldnt say definitively until I had analyzed the cor. But I think I was right about that point. I was in the middle of looking it over, so I said what I could determine so far, This is like a cor to control magical beasts, but much moreplex. The person that drew this is a master of magic. It may be controlling her magically. To control a powerful spirit like this, Id hate to go up against whoever is strong enough to trap her. How horrible! ryaa! Timi said, angrily, while holding Shiggy in her arms, who also cried out in anger. First Im going to try to break the cor. Go ahead. I had done all I could with analyzing. With force I could break it easily. However, I thought that after I got it off, I should save it so that Vi-Vi could look over the rest. After that, we could determine how it was made and where it was from, and then take care of whomever did this. ck Okay. With a small sound, the cor broke open. It fell to the ground. It was a big clue. I put the cor into my magic bag. I thought she might now let loose with a huge amount of spirit magic, and I prepared myself. But...she put her hands up to her neck and searched for the cor. Thank you. She said with a small bow. Lukas eyes glistened. Wow, she understands us! Well, these spirits can hear the chants of the magicians, so Id imagine so. So why didnt she speak before? Cruz said with a confused look. She finally took her hold sword and put it back in its scabbard. Probably because she was bound by that magical cor. She knows human speech, but her speech and spirit magic was limited by the cor. I see. Then Cruz patted the spirits head. Youre not cold...? Eeep? The spirit said almost with a twitch like she was ticklish, and cried a bit. Luke stepped up to the spirit. I am Luka Rangow. I know. Then she looked at me. Your name. Alfred Lin... Wha?ryaa? Timi and Shiggy looked over at me with eyes that said,thats not right?! Alredora Lint... Yeah.ryaa They then both nodded, satisfied. The others continued introducing themselves, Cruz Conradine! Timisoara and this is Sighisoara. Thank you. She bowed again to us. Then Luka said to her. Oh, great spirit, wed love to hear any information you have to tell us. Sorry. Thank you. She bowed once again. Then she stepped over to me and clutched my arm. She seemed to be able to like humans. And after I took off her cor, she was almost affectionate. As she held onto me and spoke in spirit speech. It seems that she could only speak in nouns and verbs though. Trap. Happen. Revenge. What do you mean, trap? Great spirit stone. Careful, Trap. I know. After we noticed it, we were very careful around it. You called it a trap? Luka kneeled down until she was eye to eye with the nymph. As she did that, she tried to get what the little spirit was saying straight. There were a lot of things we didnt understand. Magician. Summon. So a magician summoned and trapped you to create that huge statue? Correct. The nymph nodded. Normally, it would be almost impossible to summon a lord of nature spirits like that. However, with such a huge spirit stone that was created, I guess nothings impossible. And after you were summoned, what happened? Trap. Bondage. You mean that cor? Correct. So the magician had summoned and then captured her with the cor. It might be that theres some traces of what the trap was around here still. We probably blew it away with our magic bolt and breath though. It would be hard to find anything left behind. So your spirit magic was bound by that cor? Correct. Forced summoning. The magician made you summon Jack Frosts? Correct. So the cor was put on her, and she was forced to summon Jack Frosts. The spirit stone used as a catalyst, she was summoned, and forced here to generate Jack Frosts using its power. Now I understood why there were so many. Luka looked up at me. Al. You have something you want to ask? I was wondering what the person looked like that put the cor on her. Human. What sex? Any certain type of human? Man. Not elf. It seems that this nymph wasnt able to tell certain races of humans apart. I see. How tall was he? Normal. Man. Would you know him if you saw him? Could find. She couldnt exin very well, but she knew what he looked like. Even so, she had to go back to her spirit world soon. I had to know what the guy looked like. Could you draw what he looks like? Cruz said to the little nymph. If the spirit could show us, that would be enough. I guess we should see if she could at least draw him. If she couldnt, then wed have to think of another wasy. I took out some materials from my magic bag and the spirit said, Request. What is it? Spirit. Bondage. Help. Please. So there are other spirits being held just like you were? Correct. Hearing this, Luka said, This is really bad if there are others. There are some that Im sure that could be force to summon worse things than Jack Frosts. Al...we have to help. Yeah. Well, at least the huge spirit stone was gone. Because of that, all the Jack Frosts would be gone in a night, even if they were resummoned. Still, when they were summoned, they created a huge blizzard. No business could get done. Spirit lord. Well help. Thank you. Then, for the first time, we saw the little nymph smile. Chapter 246 – Stronger Spirits

Chapter 246 C Stronger Spirits

From what the nymph said, it seems that there were even stronger spirits being held captive. So I asked the little nymph, Spirit lord. The stronger spirits...are they a different type than you? Incorrect. Wait...a stronger spirit other than a spirit lord? Whats that? Cruz looked really confused as she asked Luka. All strong spirits we thought to be very intelligent and strong. The strongest of all those were the spirit lords. I dont know what theyre called in the natural spirit realm, but there are demi-lords, dukes, and so on. Really? I had no idea. Well, its quite normal you wouldnt, simply because their type very rarelye to this world. The spirit lords were the strong spirits that everyone knew about. Since they were the strongest, every good magician has heard about them. Even so, they didnt have special designations like Jack Frosts or other natural spirits did. They were just called spirit lords. Cruz looked puzzled again. So where are these stronger spirits? If we sense the density of natural spirit around us, we might be able to find whatever shes talking about. We have to search again? Its just going to take more time! Timisoara said with a troubled countenance. She was holding Shiggy in her arms, and Shiggy looked confused. I asked the spirit, who was still clutching onto my arm, Spirit lord. Do you know where this stronger spirit thats been captured is? Know. Three east. One west. Okay, so there are four of them in total? Correct. So I told Cruz, Cruz, do you have a map of this area? Sure do. She took a map from her magic bag. It was the detailed map that Timi had made of Cruz region. We showed the spirit. Spirit lord. Could you tell us where they are? Were right here as of now. Cruz pointed to our present location. Eeep... She said with a tilt of her head. Here. Here. Here. Here. She pointed to each location, one by one. All in your region, Cruz. Cruz looked quite troubled. I see, thank you. Can you go there, Timi? Of course. First lets head to the east where there are more. Its great if we can fly there. Alra, leave it to me. Timi gave Shiggy over to me, and grew back to her dragon size. Seeing this, the nymph simply stood and watched as if nothing happened. I guess it wasnt something surprising for a nature spirit. We got on Timis back, and she flew in the sky. I set up the magical barriers to stop the wind and cold around Timi once again. The spirit lord, who was with us, probably didnt need any, so I didnt worry about her. ryaa ryaaa Shiggy peeked out of my pouch to watch. ryaa She probably knew she was protected by magic. Shiggy jumped from my pouch, and onto the spirit lords head. Eeep?! ryaa Epeepeepp! The spirit lord shrieked over and over, but at the same time petted Shiggy. Then the spirit lord reach over and clutched onto my right arm again. Seeing this, Cruz came over and petted the nymph and Shiggy too. Eeepp ryaa ryaa! Shiggy and the nymph both looked very happy. While petting them Cruz said, If all of those strong spirits are in my area...could it be that someone is plotting to attack me? Theres some kind of plot going on, thats for sure, but it might not just be in your region. Really? Instead of thinking that its directly against you, I think that it might just be that the magical remnants of the former ancient dragon duchess was used to attack arger area. I see. Luka exined, and Cruz seemed to understand. Then Timi said, Thats possible, but, we cant ignore the fact that its Cruz realm thats being attacked. Do you think theres something strange about this? No, I just think we shouldnt be deciding whats happening before hand. Its just as you say. Luka agreed quickly with Timis opinion. As we were talking about this, we arrived at the ce of the first strong spirit. Timi spun in the air above the area. There are a lot of Jack Frosts here too. Spirit lord. Can we destroy them? Cruz looked a little unsettled. It might be that stronger spirits didnt like to see lesser ones be destroyed. She might have been worried. Permission. Youll let me? Correct. The spirit said with a nod. Even so, Luka had to exin to a still unhappy Cruz, Listen, Cruz, the bodies of spirits are just decorations. Yeah... Not just their bodies, but for these spirits, our whole world is temporary and passing. Hmm? Even if we blow them away, they just go back to the spirit world. Youre not destroying them so much as sending them back. Correct. The spirit and Lukas words were both of the same opinion. I guess I can rx, then. Cruz heard the exnation and smiled again. Well, Shiggy, time for you to get in my pouch. ryaaa I had to be safe, so I put Shiggy back in my pouch. Then I looked around and sensed the spirits. And after a while, I could sense the strongest spot of spirit power. Chapter 247 – Releasing the Stronger Spirits

Chapter 247 C Releasing the Stronger Spirits

The spirit strength was very dense. I was wondering whether it was the stronger spirit or another spirit stone. We would have to check it out. Timi, bring us in to check. Leave it to me, Alra. Timi slowly began to circle in. But she continued staying at a height where the Jack Frosts couldnt reach. I stayed focused on thend below me. Then I saw the form of the stronger spirit. It was a giant, about two times the size of a man. It had a huge cor around its massive neck. White skin, blue eyes and hair, the same as the spirit lord. A stronger spirit. Theres no spirit stone, though. Just in case, I asked the spirit lord, still clutching onto me, Spirit lord. Is there a spirit stone around here too? Small. Theres a small spirit stone? Correct. Timi said, You want me to shoot my breath? No, no need, its just going to destroy everything on the ground. Okay. I didnt want to use it unless I had to. If its only a small stone, then we should just release the giant first. You may be right. If we can break open the cor, then we could know more about how and why they were made. If I could just get close, it would be easy to break. We needed to get information. In the battle against the spirit lord, we had to use magic breath and my bolt to clear everything away. Because of that, there were no traces left behind. I wanted to hear the stronger spirits story, and examine the cor. Timi could just drop me down, and I could approach the giant and his cor directly. However, getting close was going to be quite hard. First, my knee hurt. It might have been because of the magic I already used. Even so, Timi weaved through the spirit magic that the Jack Frosts were shooting. It would be a bit of a nuisance to get close. If I had Femm with me, riding past them would be no problem. Just then, Cruz said, You want me to do it? No, its a magic device. Even with a holy sword, you might not be able to break it. I see... She said, and Cruz again looked worried. But, Al, doesnt your knee hurt? A little. I can do something through using my magic. If I used magic, I could move quickly while I was fighting. And since it was harder to run in, it might be better to move myself standing still so I could focus on magic. I thought about it, then Cruz said, smiling, Here, Ill carry you, Al. Wha? I told you, let me carry you. Whaaaaa? I thought about it, though. I never tried that before, but it seems like it would be a worse ride than Femm. Ill run, and you can focus on using your magic. ...ummm. I was a bit worried. Look, Al, look. Cruz turned around and gestured for me to jump on her. ...ah...okay. Kinda fun, actually. ryaa ryaa! Shiggy thought it was fun. Even so, it might be actually easy to fight this way. I guess I would ride her. Sorry about this. Dont worry about it, Al. I got on her back, and she squatted a few times to test the weight. Hmph! Hmph! Hmph! Seems like she had to test out the position first. The spirit was still clutching onto my arm, too. The spirit pulled up as Cruz did the squats. Spirit lord. Wait just a second. Eeep! While youre waiting, Luka will take care of you. Huh? Me? Luka was a bit surprised. Eep! The spirit went over and clutched onto Luka. Luka looked a bit scared, but still patted her hair. Just then, Timi said, Are you ready? Sorry for making you wait. Alra. Where should Ind. Cruz answered for me. Timi, fly close to the stronger spirit. Well jump right off. Hm. Its going to be quite a jump for you, Cruz. Im on Cruz back, so try to make it low. I know. And so, Cruz scrambled up Timis neck to her head and got ready. Thanks, Timi. Leave it to me! She then dove downwards. A lot slower than thest time, so the Jack Frosts started shooting their spirit magic at us. I put up another magical curtain. You dont need to do that for me. Even so, its better that I did, Timi. Timi wouldnt take much damage from them. Even so, she would take a little. Better to not take any. There were many Jack Frosts near the stronger spirit. They were shooting their magic like crazy. Hard to get close. We jumped a bit aways from them. Timis feet almost scraped the ground, thats how much she was considerate of Cruz. The Jack Frosts then immediately turned their attack to us. Timi! Thanks! It helps! Cruz jumped off the dragon with me on her back. Take care of them! Timi said, then flying up in the air quickly. The nearest Jack Frosts began shooting in our direction. Eeeepeepeeeeep! I could hear the spirit lord, and her voice was almost like she was cheering us on. Chapter 248 – Fighting the Stronger Spirit

Chapter 248 C Fighting the Stronger Spirit

While we jumped from Timis head, the Jack Frosts began shooting a huge burst of spirit magic at us. There were about 10 Jack Frosts near us. While on Cruz back, I put up a magical barrier. crakakakakacrakakakak The sound of the spirit magic from the Jack Frosts hitting the barrier made an unsettling sound. As I deflected several dozen shots from them, Cruz finallynded on the ground. The ground was deep snow, so Cruz feet sunk in quite far. There was no way she could run like this. Even walking was difficult. Even so, Cruz went, Hup! And with that one sound, took out her holy sword and swirled it in the air, and with that, spun and blew the snow all around us away. After that, with incredible speed, the stronger spirit ran towards us. It had no regard for the snow it was running in. Or rather, there was magic in its legs so that it wouldnt sink in the snow. So it was getting faster and faster as it ran. Cruz was dodging the magical attacks easily from a good distance. And quickly the stronger spirit had run right up to us. I got ready the magic to quickly yank this cor from the spirit. As soon as Cruz dashed right beside the giant, I reached up, grabbed, and broke the cor. Grasping the cor in my right hand, I shot the Jack Frosts nearby with magic bolts. They were quickly wiped away. I was nning on putting up another magical barrier so I could muster another attack, but Cruz reactions were impable. She had dodged every attack, so there was no need for defense. I crushed the Jack Frosts one by one. I cleared each of them away, but there were many. It would take a little more time. As I was thinking about this, PEEEEEEEEEEEEEEY I could hear it screech while I felt a huge wave of cold air erupting behind me. As the same time, the magical attacks got stronger. But there was no way they could win. Cruz legs got even faster and she dodged with unbelievable speed. There was no way she could dodge everything, so I put up a magic barrier, just in case. As Cruz was running, the barrier in front of us mmed into the small spirit stone, which exploded into a cold C colder than the cold spirit magic attacks. As it exploded, the air around us was surrounded in cold and the temperature sunk like a rock. The stronger spirit seems angry... Even though were trying to help it. From its viewpoint, it was a human that attacked it, so it probably sees us as an enemy. But... I know how it feels. Even so, it was controlled by the cor, up until now. Controlled by magic, it was made to summon Jack Frosts. After I took the cor off, it was probably angry at whomever put it on. But I was the one that took it off. And we were also the two that were destroying its Jack Frosts. Of course it would attack. Can you take much more? Im giving my all trying to dodge! Looks like she was at her limit. Cruz, I have to talk to it. Okay! Cruz way of dodging changes. She used the least amount of effort to dodge the magic. It was a battle, so I couldnt talk long. So I spoke to the stronger spirit so I could get the info I need. Cruz knew this so she did what she could to get me close. I could have just blown it away with one fierce magic bolt, but then I couldnt get the info I needed. So the choice was a longer fight. I shot as many Jack Frosts as I could, and called to the stronger spirit, Stronger spirit! I have set you free! I am not your enemy! PEEEEEEEEEEEEY! In the middle of the magical battle, the spirit now called more Jack Frosts into the fray. Because of this, no matter how many I destroyed, we were still surrounded. PEEEPEEEEEY! Distance! Okay! Cruz leapt far above and away to get distance. Because of this, after a few seconds we were far from the magical fray and their shots were much weaker. I guess its not going to listen. No good. If its going to use up all this magic for a long time, sooner orter its going to run out. Even worse. If the stronger spirit used up all its magic, it would disappear to the spirit world. I wanted to return Cruz realm to its previous state, but I needed info first. As I was thinking this over, Timi came plunging down to right above the stronger spirit. PEEEEEEEEEY The spirit screamed, but, EEeeeeeeEEEEP! The spirit load riding on Timi screeched back. PEEY?! The stronger spirit, in one cry, suddenly fell silent. She probably told it to shut up. Then we could focus on just attacking the Jack Frosts. I called out to the spirit lord, Spirit lord. Can you quiet the Jack Frosts?! Incorrect. They dont listen to what you tell them?! Correct. Compared to the stronger spirit, the Frosts must be considerably less intelligent. They may not be able to understand speech. So they must be destroyed. So, can I destroy them all? Proceed. I dont know how the spirit world works, but these Jack Frosts might be servants of the spirit lord. Thats why she was able to give permission. And since I was, I destroyed all the Jack Frosts around me. Chapter 249 – Questioning the Stronger Spirit

Chapter 249 C Questioning the Stronger Spirit

After jumping from Timi, I had destroyed 50 or so Jack Frosts. Cruz said, happily, The blizzards going away! Because I knocked out all the Jack Frosts. Yeah! You really have some awesome magic! No, its your legs that were pretty impressive. No at all. All I did was run around. But her speed was absolutely breathtaking. No one can run as quickly as you, Cruz. Eheh heh heh. Cruzughed, embarrassed. Seeing that all the Jack Frosts were gone, Timinded. We jumped up and onto her head. Are you ready? Yeah, go ahead. FWUSSSSSSH, Timi breathed out on the ground. The snow on the ground all around melted away. ryaa ryaa! Shiggy was quite impressed by that. It jumped in my pouch and pped away. Then Luka and the nymph quickly jumped off of Timi. It was quite a drop, but the spirit actually floated to the ground. Almost as if she knew nothing of gravity. Luka almost seemed to chase after her as she dropped down. When everyone was off, Timi changed back to human form. Eeep. She took my arm again, and called out. Spirit lord. Thank you for stopping that stronger spirit. No Need Thanks. Thank You. There was no need for that though. I was really thankful for what she did. I passed the cor from the stronger spirit over to Luka. I took a quick look at it, but this is the same type as the spirit lords. Maybe you can get something out of looking at it? Im not experienced in magical tools. Ill leave it to you, Al. Id let Vi-Vi and Vallimie look at it. Just then , the stronger spirit cried out, PEeey! The stronger spirit looked at us a bit confused. It looked like a giant, but this giant looked like it was befuddled by itself. The nymph clutched onto my arm and cried out to the stronger spirit, EeeepEepepeeEEEP! Hearing her voice, the stronger spirit seemed to be more and more fearful. The nymph was probably chiding the stronger spirit. Luka was watching the whole exchange with a serious expression. Luka, do you have any idea what they said? No idea. If Luka didnt understand, no one did. I guess there was no way to interpret what they were saying. So I asked the nymph, Spirit lord, I have something to ask the stronger spirit, can I? Proceed. I asked the stronger spirit through the spirit lord. The first thing I asked was who was the person doing this to the spirits? Its because the spirit lord didnt serve as much help. Eepeepeepppeeee! Peeeyeyeeeyeyyey. Eeeeepeeepepepp. I had no idea what they were saying, but they were talking about something. Also, the spirit lord was very poor with human speech. Thats why it probably was taking so long. After the spirit lord exined it as best she could, Luka summarized, In other words...a beast-human magician is the culprit. Correct. And just like usual, she clung to my arm. I guess she was very fond of me. Luka, can you ask how they were captured? Okay. I gave the task to Luka because she seemed to understand their speech better. Luka asked the stronger spirit through the spirit lord again. The nymph asked the giant, and the giant answered through the nymph. Come help lord Hmmm. Capture. I see. Luka nodded, but I had no idea what was said, Luka, what did they say? So, the spirit lord was captured, and the stronger spirit came to rescue her, and was captured. I see now.. So the spirit lord was a hostage. Cruz nodded as she figured the story out. Okay...thats really bed. Cruz rubbed the head of the stronger spirit as it was now kneeling before the nymph. Because of that, if Cruz stretched, she could reach its head. Peyyyy...Peyyy, yyy I didnt know what it was saying, but it looked lost. With its giant appearance, it had a very imposing appearance. It probably wasnt used to being petted. The lord saw the giant being petted and pulled my arm. We Trouble. Hm? Yeah...I guess so. Both the stronger spirit and the spirit lord were in trouble. Need Calm. Hm? She wants you to pet them? Luka said, No, theres no way... Correct. Saying that, the nymph stuck out her head. I guess thats what she wanted. I went ahead and petted her. She pped her wings after I did. After seeing that, for some reason, I remembered Femm. From there, the stronger spirit returned to the spirit world. I took what was left of the spirit stone that was near the stronger spirit and put in my magic bag. Strong Spirit. More Help. She then pulled my arm as she said this. I guess she wanted me to help the other spirits caught on this earth as well. Without releasing them, the summoning of the Jack Frosts wouldnt stop. So we all went around the realm and released the remaining three stronger spirits in order. Distract the Jack Frosts, pull of the cor, and make them listen to the spirit lord. We used any method we could. There were no real problems, but after that we had released all four of the stronger spirits. Chapter 250 – Return of the Lord

Chapter 250 C Return of the Lord

The three other stronger spirits were asked who did this to them, but there was no new information. With all of the spirits summoned to Cruz realm released, they had all returned to the spirit world. I guess these spirits really cant tell much about different types of humans. You think so? Well, Cruz, you cant tell the differences between goblins, right? ... I guess not. After thest stronger spirit was released, we talked over what had happened. It was Timi, Cruz, Luka, and I. Timi was in human form, and Shiggy was in my pouch with only her face out. The spirit lord was still clinging to my arm. Spirit lord, there arent any more stronger spirits around here, are there? None. I guess the blizzard will stop then? Correct. Hearing this, Cruz breathed a sigh of relief. Gooooood. I guess we can finally clean the snow! Al, how many spirit stones did you get? Four. There was a spirit stone ced close to the spirit lords and stronger spirits. The spirit lord had a huge stone statue of a dragon, that I destroyed. However, I had recovered the remains of the four other stones that were with the stronger spirits. They were small stones the size of your fist. Spirit lord, do you need these stones? The nymph shook her head. No. I see. So what should we do with them, Luka? Give me one for my research. The rest are yours. Got it. If I put it in my magic bag, no one could call a spirit with it. Even if I took it out, they were now so small I dont think anyone could use them to summon. Luka asked the spirit lord, Are you ready to go home? Correct. Do you need any help doing it? None. The nymph shook her right hand. Then the air seemed to warp. Maybe a passage back to the spirit world. Her hand plunged into the warp and then, Eeep eppp? After a bit, I understood she was searching for something. Then she pulled her hand out of the warp. Alfredora. Here. It was the first time she had called me by my name. She had something like a bracelet that she presented to me. This is for me? Thanks. Seal. That you very much. Im delighted to take it. As I said that, she smiled to me. Eep eeep eppp And with that, I put the bracelet on my left arm. It was transparent. It was decorated with something like gold and silver stones. However, it was also carved with beautifully intricate designs. What kind of bracelet is this? Eepeeeep. She looked at me, confused. There might be no effect at all. I couldnt feel any magic. It was made of a strange material. But it did look like the same material her tiara was made of. Return. Are you going back? Thanks for helping us. Thank you. And with that, she left me. I was a bit sad for her to go. See youter, spirit lord. Cruz said while waving to her. Eep eeep She said and waved to me. ryaa ryaa Good bye. Thank you. The rest of us also said our goodbyes. eeep! And after thatst cry, the air warped again and she disappeared into it. With that done, Cruz ran over to me, She smiled, Al, we finished that up quick! What are you saying?! This wont end until we get that beast-human or whatever it is thats doing this! Luka said, a bit loudly, to Cruz. But I knew how Cruz felt. I was d that all these Jack Frosts were gone. And since Cruz was the ruler, the threat to her citizens was also gone. Of course she was relieved. So I said to Cruz, Well catch whoevers behind this soon, but Im happy how this ended. Right?! Cruz smiled broadly. ryaa ryaa ryyaa! Shiggy also happily pped her wings. Then she flew out and towards Cruz. Shiggy perched on Cruz shoulder and patted her head. ryaa ehhe heh Seeing that, Luka breathed out with a hmph. Well, I guess its okay for now. Okay, are we ready to fly away now? It was still night and everything was dark. But the Jack Frosts were gone so the snow had stopped falling. We could see how the viges looked from far above though. Please, Timi! Leave it to me! Timi transformed back into a giant dragon. All the girls got back up on the dragon, and as I was about to get on, Cruz shouted, Al! The sun! Oh! The eastern sky was painted red. ryaaa! Shiggy also cried out at the sun from Cruz shoulder. If we can see the sun, then the snow must bepletely over. Timi said as she looked over at the morning sky. I stretched to see it and walked over to Cruz. It is beautiful. Very beautiful! The suns making me sleepy...a little. Luka said with augh to herself. Chapter 251 – Realm Check

Chapter 251 C Realm Check

In the red morning light, Timi lifted off into the sky. The snow was done falling, but the wind was frigid. Shiggy yawned as she looked out from my pouch. ...ryaaa You can sleep, Shiggy. ...ryaaa Shiggy shook a bit and wiggled back into my pouch. I patted her through the fabric. I soon could hear her wheezing in a light sleep. Did Shiggy fall asleep? Well, she is a baby. Yeah.. Luka said, looking down on Shiggy. Ah, theres a Jack Frost! Theyre still there? I guess so. The summoning had stopped because both the spirit lord and stronger spirits were released. All the Jack Frosts around them were also destroyed and sent back to the spirit world. The Jack Frosts were the most dense around those spirits, after all. Either way, the majority of Jack Frosts had been taken care of. However, not all had returned to the spirit world.. Timi, fly lower. Leave it to me. We could see small whirlwinds of snow revolving around the Jack Frosts. The snow was scattering into the sky andnding on the ground below. Looking at this from above, it doesnt really look like a blizzard. I said, and Cruz nodded. Youre right. On the ground it does though. Theyre out of fuel though. I think youre right. Cruz said and Luka agreed. It snowed enough to cover all the snow in one winter at once. Even though it looks crazy from here, you can see its almost over. Yeah, but we should probably get rid of what we can see anyway. I was thinking of doing that in the first ce. Thank you Al! As Timi flew over the Jack Frosts I struck them down with a magic bolt. Then they Frost disappeared. Its true that they were almost all out of power. Then we continued flying over Cruz realm. There were still some ces with snow clouds, and so we destroyed the Jack Frosts under them. As we looked down at them, Cruz said, Even though the sky cleared...what a lot of snow! Its going to be one hell of a job to shovel the snow out of the roads. Yeah, maybe we can get Vallimies golems to help us out. Good question. Luka thought it over. Every vige is going to have problems removing this snow. With all the snow there, itll take until spring to remove it all. Theres no way they could wait this long. Every region that has heavy snow already is prepared to deal with snow removal...but my realm doesnt have much... Hm...youre right. Timi had thought about it. Cruz, to an extent, I can help move things around. Uh, can you? Yes. Using those magic bags, I can carry a lot. Timi, thank you! Dont worry about it. After that, we spent time cleaning up the remaining Jack Frosts from the realm. We had cleared away all of them we could see, so we returned to Mulg. From the morning the weather got better, so there were people outside everywhere in the vige. They were all working on clearing away the snow. Collette was using a golem to clear the snow when she saw us and shouted, Ah! Timi! Wee home! She ran up waving her hands. Moo moo Moofy was doing the same thing, and also happily ran to us when she saw us. She was blowing through the snow, running and sting the snow to both sides. Iing down, just stay there! Timi said while descending quickly behind the storage shack. Moo moo! Moofy ran up to us like a wild boar through crops. She couldnt even wait for us to get off of Timi. She jumped right up Timis back and towards us. Moofy, calm down! Mummph mumph She was so excited, she snorted and chewed my hand. I patted her head. Around Timi came Vi-Vi, Fem, Millette, and Collette. Steph, Yureena, and Vallimie too. We got down off Timi and Femm rubbed against me immediately. I had been away from the beasts for 10 hours. Even so, they were really lonely. Mister Al, wee home. Good job everyone. Wee home, old man! Millet and Collette said with a smile. I know you all want to hear how we solved the weather problem, but we probably should sleep first. Yeah, Im super tired. I need to sleep too. Me too! I asked Timi, What about you? I can go without sleeping at the pce for several days...but Ill go back and sleep a bit anyway. Okay, see you. Yup. She petted Shiggy through the fabric, but she didnt want to wake her. She didnt even look in the pouch, if she did, the cold would get in the pouch. And then Shiggy would probably wake up. mryaaa She was speaking in her sleep. It was very cute. Timi and I were both suddenly envious of the dragon and wanted to sleep too. Chapter 252 – The Need for Sleep

Chapter 252 C The Need for Sleep

I went to bed without touching the bath. I literally fell into my bed. Getting old like this makes you tired when youre up all night. Since Moofy and Femm usually always slept with me, the bed had a lot of room now. I took Shiggy out of the pouch. ryaa? Shiggy said, quietly. Go back to bed. ryaa And Shiggy did. I put her on my stomach, covered her with the nket, and fell asleep. ryaa! Someone was pping my cheeks, so I woke up. I looked and Shiggy was right in front of me. She was patting my cheeks and holding my nose shut. ryaa! When our eyes met, Shiggy cried out happily. Shiggy, youre awake? ryaa I looked outside. It was still quite bright. Seeing from the direction of the shadows, it was near noon. Are you hungry? ryaa! Since she did sound very hungry, I sat up in bed. From there I reached under my pillow into my magic bag and got some dried meat. Eat up! ryann ryaammm! She ate the meat from my hand happily. But honestly, I still felt very sleepy. I had stayed up all night, and I had used a lot of magic. I destroyed that giant statue. Then a huge amount of Jack Frosts. It was pretty rare recently to use that much magic. Even so, it felt pretty good to shoot a full-powered magic bolt again. It feels good to use all your power. While thinking about that, Moo mooo I heard Moofys voice from my nket. Moofy, whered youe from? When I got into the bed, Moofy was still cleaning the streets of snow. I guess she hade here when she had finished cleaning. Huffhuff She put her snout over my leg and huffed. Good job cleaning the snow, Moofy. Moo moo I rubbed her head. Shiggy ate meat while I rubbed Moofy gently. Moofy, did you sleepst night? Moo I didnt know if that was a yes or no. She sleptst night. okay. I heard Femm tell me from the foot of my bed. Femm, youre awake. I just woke up. Okay. Well good work to you too. After saying that, Femm prance on the bed to me. Moofy just kept her snout over my leg. I rubbed Femms head. Also Shiggy as she ate. Moofy spent all ofst nightying where you are and sniffing your pillow. Is that so? Moo Moofy was probably lonely. It was a little strange that Vi-Vi had left Moofy alone in here. You should have slept where Vi-Vi was sleeping. Vi-Vi slept in here with Moofy. Is that so? My bed is pretty popr when Im away. That almost meant that Femm slept here if Femm saw all this going on. After eating all the meat, Shiggy curled back into a ball. Go back to bed. ...ryaaa Shiggy fell asleep quickly. I wanted to sleep again, so I did. With Moofy and Femm surrounding me, I wasnt cold. When I woke up again, it was still light. Shiggy was already up. She was sitting between Moofys horns and chewing on her ear. Shiggy quickly noticed that I had woken up. ryaa! Morning Shiggy. Moo mooWuff Morning Moofy and Femm. They were both awake too. I went with them all to the kitchen. Mister Al, good...morning. Morning, old man! Collette and Millet greeted me happily. Good morning, you two. Master! Good morning! Morning Steff. They all asked me about why the snow cleared up. The snow stopped, so the vige is saved. The snow cleaning outside the vige still has a lot to be done. Im sure that it does. There was no way to easily clear that. I guess well have to use sleds to carry everything. I said to myself, and Millet said, Well, we can get around by foot inside the town...but I dont think its going to get any worse, right? There was work for people to do outside the vige. Cutting trees and hunting. I thought that not being able to move around outside of the town would paralyze a lot of business. But talking to Millet, it didnt seem too bad. If the blizzard continuing was bad, but the snow drifts alone werent to bad a problem. Good to hear. But, Chels vige...its still notplete do Im worried. Chels vige was still somewhat iplete. It was a worry. And Cruz? Cruz and Timi went off somewhere. They might have left to find out who caused all of this horrible weather. They really were good girls. They probably went to the manor first. I wanted to help them as much as possible. Chapter 253 – The Followers of the Magic Lord

Chapter 253 C The Followers of the Magic Lord

I drank the tea that Millet had given me in the kitchen. Collette, who was sitting next to me said, Old man, did you kill the Jack Frosthtsth? I got rid of them. Were they sthtrong? You could say that. I could sthay that? Collette looked at me seriously. Old man! You think I could beat one? ...yeah, I think thatd still be hard. Okay. Stho how did you kill them, old man? So I told Collette how I got rid of the Jack Frosts. Just magical attack bolts, nothing really detailed. So I went on and told her about all the other stuff. Like how to keep from getting cold. Using a magic barrier to keep heat in, keep from getting hit, and so you can see in a storm. In the case ofst night, it would have been good to use night vision as well. I sthee! Good idea, master! Collette was listening to the whole thing closely. Steff appeared next to Collette all the sudden. Millet said to me, Well, its hard to cast multiple magics at once, right? Yeah, you have to get used to it. Get used to it? Theres no way! Vi-Vi said as she entered the room. She had a thick coat and scarf. With a warm looking hat as well. Millet turned to Vi-Vi and said, with a kind voice, Vi-Vi, good work. Sure, the cows are doing great! She was caring for the cows while working to clear the streets. What a hard worker. She was always sozy when she first came to this town, but had really changed over the months. Thanks, Vi-Vi. Moo moo Moofy happily nuzzled up to Vi-Vi. Such a good cow, Moofy! Vi-Vi said at she patted Moofy. And, then, Listen, Als disciples. Yes! Millet and Collette looked confused, but Steff happily said yes. She was happy to be called a disciple. Normally you cant cast multiple magics at once. Really? Millet, you know that right? Its obvious. You dont know basic magical information! Is that so? Moo moo Collette and Millet looked appreciatively at Vi-Vi. Then Steff said, I knew that already. Hmph. Then you do have basic knowledge, Steff. A normal magician. Vi-Vi said with a satisfied face. Millet took off Vi-Vis coat and scarf and hung them up. Thank you. No problem. Sthub-bossth? Can you do multiple magic? Hm? Collette, I think I can do it. Wow! Collette, Im the sub-boss right? Any sub-boss can do multiple magic. She said proudly. Even though she was only the fifth of the Great Four Sub-Bosses, she was a very top-ss magician in her own right. After she put her coat up, Millet returned to the stove. She was preparing more tea. A very helpful girl. Just then, Steff reluctantly put her hand up. Um, can I ask a question? What is it, disciple number three? Whats a sub-boss? Um...ah...I forgot to say, I was one of the four sub-bosses of the former Demon Lord. ... Steff looked at Vi-Vi as if she had no idea what she was talking about. She must have thought it was a joke. ...hah hah hah, thats funny! I mean it! Well, then WOW! She didnt look like she trusted Vi-Vi at all. Thats why I told Steff, She really was. Wha? No way. Yup. ... Steff was at a loss for words. Mumpphm muhmpph Moof y started chewing on Steffs hand. It had been a long time since Moofy had done that to anyone. I actually had wanted to see her do it after a while. When Moofy was lost at what humans were saying or doing, she tended to chew on someones hand. It helped her calm down. Steff was also at a loss, and beside her Collette lit a magic candle. Old man! Magic practice! Its true that with a magic candle, you can light a room without setting a fire. Eheh heh Just then, Millet returned from the stove. She really had made tea for Vi-Vi. On top of that, she had some candies and pancakes as well. It was left over from breakfast, and a little cold. She had probably saved it for when we woke up. Ah, Ill do it! Please, thee, Collette. She kept the candle going on her right hand and with her left made a fire ball. She held it right above the pancakes and heated them up. Thats very good Collette! Heh heh! Collette was very happy to show off. Then Vi-Vi said to her, No heh heh heh about that! What isth it, sthub-bossth!? What do you mean? You did multiple magic! Huh? Collette was surprised. Noooo. I was practicing magic candlesth. Theyre both easthy magic. Even so, you did two at once, thats multiple magic casting! Oh...I guessth stho... I knew there was such things as magical casting...but... You knew about it, Sthteff? Yeah. Just before, Millet had said,Multiple magic casting is very hard. But now she had seen it done. Practice...and then see if you can do two easy ones at once. Millet said to herself. While I wasnt paying attention, both had advanced as magicians quite a bit. Chapter 254 – Blizzard Resolved

Chapter 254 C Blizzard Resolved

Vi-Vi looked over to me. Al, what did you do with those disciples of yours?! Theyre just very talented, Im proud of them. Eheh heh heh Collette blushed. I patted her on the head. Youve grown a lot too, Millet. Because of your instruction, Mister Al. Millet was happy as well. Mumpph mupmmh And Moofy was still chewing on thest disciples hand. I think its because Vi-Vi revealed that she was the former sub-boss of the former Demon Lord. I think she should have kept it to herself. Then Vi-Vi walked up to me and said, What kind of TRAINING DID YOU GIVE THEM?! Ah, just training with emphasis on the basics. Ohhhh?! Collette then said to an obviously interested Vi-Vi, Magic exercisthesth. Magic exercises?! Like this, and this. Ohhhhh? Collette showed Vi-Vi the kind of exercises she did with a smile. The ones that I taught them, excellent exercises I had thought up myself. Moving your body while consciously circting magic through your body. If you do that, you can activated the magic in your body, and get used to the movement of magic. Collette! Please teach me these magical exercises! Steff said suddenly. I had developed these exercises for beginners though. Steff knew the basics. Thats why I didnt teach her. Sthure! Collette taught her happily. On the other hand, Stuff pulled her hand out of Moofys mouth, and Moofy looked sad. I reached over and patted her. As this when on, I asked Femm, Femm. Are the other wolves okay? Theyre fine. They went out to hunt this morning. If they encountered a Jack Frost, even as magic wolves they could have been frozen to death. Thats why the didnt go out. And if you cant go out, you cant hunt. So they were in a bit of trouble. Now that the Jack Frosts were gone, they probably went out as soon as they found out. After that blizzard, can they go out and hunt? I think its harder than usual. But they do work hard. Theyll find something. Femm said, as it came closer and put its nose on my knee. I petted Femm and it wagged its tail. I see. Well, if you need help, say something. Thanks. Then we heard a voice from the entryway. Im home! Were back. Is Shiggy there? It was Cruz and Timisoara returning. ryaa ryaa! Shiggy pped its wings and flew to the entrance. Hey, Shiggy! Thanks foring to see me...youre so cute. ryaa ryaa All three of them soon came into the kitchen. Timi was holding Shiggy. Cruz. Were you checking the realm? Yes! You guessed right, Al! Where did you go, Cruz? Millet asked Cruz. To the manor, and I got Timis help to go around to all the viges. Sounds tough. Not really. Cruz, was everyone okay? Yes. I checked all the viges and they were okay! All of them? Wow...good job Timi. Yeah, with me its no problem. Timi said, proudly. Cruz then looked serious, Al, I didnt know this, but it seems the viges are okay without using the roads. I guess so...I didnt know that either. Most viges are self-sustaining. They can barter to each other and sell each other what they need to survive. And most viges can make the food to support themselves. I had no idea...Ive lived to long in the capital. I was born in the country, but in a town. But I worry about how Chels vige is doing. Yeah, we might need to bring them a few things. Sure! Cruz said, with a salute. So the problems are Chels vige and one town near the manor. They cant support themselves... A town had a lot of people and little fields. Also, Chels vige was just created. Both werent able to provide for themselves. Yes, we might need Timi to help bring them supplies. Leave it to me! With Timi, problems disappear. And using the magic bags and transport circles, lugging supplies around wasnt a problem. I was d that both locations had transport circles nearby. So how was Chel? Its at the death temple vige. I see. Its probably worried about its vige too. After a bit, Chel came back. Speak of the devil. PiggGgiPiGGi! Chel bounced on over and onto my knee. There it jiggled. Chel, hows the vige? Fine. Do you have fuel and food? Have fuel. I see. Have food fromst time. They still had the meat we brought them a few days ago. It was a lot, so they should be fine for a while. The biggest worry is Chels vige because its still iplete! Piggi! If you have any trouble, tell us. Saying that, Cruz picked Chel off my knee and hugged it. Thanz Cruz Chel said with a happy jiggle. I was still worried that we didnt catch whoever was responsible for the Jack Frost problem though. However, Cruzs realm still got through it alright. I guess we could be happy with that. After that, we all ate dinner together. Chapter 255 – A Clear Winter Day

Chapter 255 C A Clear Winter Day

The next day was a rxing one after the whole Jack Frost incident. In the morning, I awoke, and Moofy, Shiggy, Femm, and I all went to the kitchen, where Vi-Vi was standing with full snow gear on. A thick leather hat, with thick leather mittens on her hands. A warm looking coat on and a scarf around her neck, with water-proof and expensive looking boots on her feet. Vi-Vi, where do you n to go? I was just thinking of going out of a bit. If she was going out, that probably meant snow removal. I should help her then. After breakfast, Ill help too. Really? They hurry up and eat. She said, and Vi-Vi patted Moofy. It must feel good to have those thick mittens on. MOoo moo moo moo Moofy happily stuck her nose into Vi-Vis side. Oh yeah, I made something for Shiggy so she wont get cold. She said, and took out a little dragon coat. Thanks, can I? Go ahead. I make stuff like this when I have free time. She told me she had made it the night when I had gone up against all those Jack Frosts. It was very well made even if it was only over a night. Vi-Vi had a lot of skill in sewing too. Wow, thank you! ryaa! Ryaa! Shiggy cried out happily as well, and bowed to Vi-Vi. Dont worry about it. Saying this, Vi-Vi patted Shiggys head. Then Collette came in. Collette had some heavy snow gear on too...as much as Vi-Vi. Good morning, old man! Are you going out too, Collette? Yeah, how about you, old man? Yeah, as soon as I finish breakfast. Yaaay! Collette looked really happy to hear that. Lets go, sthub-bossth! Sure. Al, hurry up, okay? She said, and the two went out. I then fed Shiggy while eating myself. Femm and Moofy also ate. Eat everything you two. Wuff? Moo moo On the other hand, Moofy and Femm had horse coats on them. If you dont like them, you can take them off? Dont worry about that, its warm. Moo moo Femm and Moofy actually liked the coats. Lets put this on you, Shiggy. ryaa ryaa I put on the coat that Vi-Vi had made for Shiggy. It was a thick coat with a hood. There were holes for the wings and tail as well. It made Shiggy look super cute. I wanted to show Timi. ryaa Shiggy looked at it happy. With the animals all bundled up, we went outside. Collette shouted over to us. Ollllld maaaan,e heeeere! Al, were waiting. The two had made a big snowman. They had rolled up a huge snowball. They were rolling a smaller one over to it. That had to be the head of the snowman. Wait, what about clearing the snow? We did that yesterday! Yeah! y day! y day! ryaa ryaa! Shiggy happily flew up on top of the snow ball. You look good with that coat, Shiggy! It fits you perfectly! Ryaa! Shiggys really happy about it. Thanks. its my pleasure. After that, we finished up making the snowman. Moo moo Moofy pushed the other snowball towards the big one. All the wolves had gathered around Femm. Wuff! Wuff wuffWuff! They all seemed to like Femms coat. Femm looked pretty proud of it. Its tail was straight, standing like a true magic wolf king. wiffwiff wiff wiff! The little pups gathered around. ryaa! From the top of the snow ball, Shiggy flew over to the pups. They were all rolling around, covered in snow. Seeing this, Collette said, Old man, can you put the head on top? Sure. It was very heavy. I made it lighter with gravity magic and put it on the bigger ball. Wow, old man! Collette pped her hands happily. Ah, the sub boss! Its so huge!What a snow man! All the kids in Mulg had gathered together. Lately, they hadnt been able to y outside after days of blizzards. They were happy to finally get out. y with us, sub-boss! I guess I have to. Then Vi-Vi said, Al! Lets have a snowball fight! Sure. Yay! Come on old man! Vi-Vi, Collette, and all the other kids started throwing snowballs. Shiggy and the pups watched the snowballs fly left and right. They all jumped up and down trying to bite the flying snowballs. It was very cute, and I felt myself smiling. ryabbkyab Shiggy and a pup got hit by a snowball. I thought they would cry, but they were fine with it. Shiggy and the pups had grown so much, after all. Maybe because they were hit by snowballs, Shiggy and all the pupsughed about it and bounced around. Chapter 256 – Winter Play

Chapter 256 C Winter y

I havent thrown snowballs since I was a kid. Since it had been so long, it actually turned out to be fun. Even though I had started it just to entertain the other kids, I ended up enjoying it. After enjoying the snowball battle for a while, Steff came by, and the kids asked her, You want to y, Steff? Steff?! Come and join our team! Id be happy to! Steff said loudly, and joined the fight. Even though she was a magician, she ended up being quite fast with her throwing. She could control where she was throwing well too. Because of this, she suddenly was quite popr with the kids. Wow! Steff! Im just having fun... Steff said happily. ryaa ryaawiff wiff Shiggy and the pups were running around Steff as she threw the balls. They probably really liked watching the snowballs getting thrown back and forth. I could also tell she was making the snowballs softly so as not to hurt the kids. Even if you were hit, it didnt hurt. So it was nice to see that she was good with ying with kids. Especially good. On the other hand, Moofy and Femm were digging in the snow a little ways away from us. Mooo moo Wuff! I think they were searching around and digging. It was still very deep. Not only that, but ces where the snow was removed was stacked even higher in other ces. Even though there were very high drifts, they were digging through them for some reason. I guess they just liked to dig. I left them to dig as I turned back to the snowball fight. After a while, the vige kids finally got tired. It was just past noon when we decided to take a break. So I told the kids, If you stay out here after sweating, youre going to catch a cold. At least wipe it off. Okay!Ill be back after lunch! And the kids went back to their homes. Master, youve done very well. Huh? How? Its not normal for kids to tired out before an older guy does. Is that what you mean? Yes! Collette, you need to go in too! Okay, old man! So all of us went back to my house together. I looked over at Femm and Moofy, and they were still plowing away into the snow. Femm! Moofy! Lunch time! Wuff!Moo! They ran over happily after hearing it. What were you two trying to make? Moo? Moofy looked confused. I guess they werent trying to make anything. On the other hand, Femm said proudly, We were trying to make afortable hole. A fortable hole? Yes. Femm said with a proud snort. I knew all the wolves were in the wolf house. Even so, it was a tight ce for all of them. I wondered if Femm was trying to make something like another fun ce for them to hang out. Anyway, we went back to eat lunch. As we were eating, Timi came in. She probably had gone back to the pole for some reason. She came in, saw Shiggy, and her face lit up, Oh, Shiggy! You look so cute! ryaa! Shiggy had her winter coat on. Im sure Timi had really taken to it. It was bad to wear a coat inside, but no one was going to say anything bad about it. Timi picked up Shiggy as we all were eating. What a great coat! Vi-Vi made it for her. I said, and Timi bowed to Vi-Vi, Thank you! You made it so well. Dont worry about it. After eating lunch, we went back outside. We yed with the snowballs again and made some more snowmen. Timi came outside, and watched Shiggy from a bit away. While all this was going on, I looked over to Femm again. Huh? In just a little while, Femm and Moofy had made arge snow hut. Even calling a hut was strange, it was more like a hole dug into a wall of snow. But it was quite big, about 20 people could fit inside. All the kids suddenly noticed it. Whoaaa!Whats that! Moo? Femm and Moofy made that? Wuff!Moo! Collette went over to pet Femm and Moofy. Femm and Moofy looked quite proud. I worry about it falling I said, but I noticed Vi-Vi was already writing a magic circle over it. So the kids yed inside it, and I didnt worry as much about it falling. Its going to be okay. Another fine work by the magic circle specialist. And just the kids ying inside wouldnt knock it down. I was thankful for the two beasts, and I also bowed a bit to Vi-Vi. I remembered that at the beginning that Vi-Vi had been scared of Femm. Now she was totally used to Femm, so that was great. And with the sun going down, all the kids and beasts went home. I was d I finally got a chance to y with all of them. Chapter 257 – A Moment After Dinner

Chapter 257 C A Moment After Dinner

It was the night after all the Jack Frosts had been eliminated. After dinner, after wed had that huge snowball fight. The heros party of Cruz, Luka, Yureena, and I were all there. There was also my disciples, Collette, Millet, and the magician Steff. The fifth of the Four Sub-Bosses Vi-Vi and her sister from Lindobal forest, Vallimie. The heavenly wolf Femm, and the holy-magic cow, Moofy. Little Shiggy, and her aunt Timisoara. After seeing I had returned, Cruz said, I guess I can finally rx about my citizens now...but we still have to catch whoever did it. Yeah, there are hardly any clues, so its going to be difficult. Yes, all we know is that its a beast-human magician. Even if you say magician, he was able to summon nature spirits...and thats a rare thing. Yeah... It wasnt rare as a healer, but someone that could summon spirits was rare. Do you know anything about that, Yureena? She was a holy woman of the church. She also had information about everything happening where her churches extended to. No, I havent heard of anything like that. But I think if there was a beast-human summoning nature spirits, someone would know about it. I see. What about you, Luka? Luka was a manager of the capitals adventurer guild, in other words, a high-up. Of course, she had info from her own sources as well. And on top of that, she was an academic about magical beasts. She even made appearances at the academy. I put in a request for any info this afternoon...but Im probably not going to get much back. There were a lot of magicians registered with the guild. However, not all magicians are registered in it. Instead of that, why not check the magicians guild? You should probably check it out. Luka was right again. The magician guild was actually all the elites. There were specialists of many fields. It was hard to be a royal magicians, or a magician for the nobles. That was because you had to have a distinguished graduation from the magic academy to do so. There was also the route of bing a magician for one of themercial families. Even a medium magician could do things like select the right crops, un-poison certain products, refrigerate things, and do other things to help move products. If you were good at magic circles, you could help in the construction ofrge buildings. It also wasnt as dangerous as being an adventurer. Also, the pay was stable. Thats why it was actually rarer to find a magician willing to do something dangerous like being an adventurer. So most of those that didnt in some way would register with the magicians guild. ...yeah, youre right. I said, and Luka looked at me a bit puzzled. Al? Whats the magicians guild? Wait? Does this mean Als not registered there as a magician? Cruz was surprised as well. Theres no way thats true. Right? Yureena looked at me and asked. She really looked concerned. Well...I can say I am...if you were to ask... What? Then theres no problem. Cruz said, but Luka looked confused. She knew I wasnt telling the whole truth. I just...havent paid my dues for a while... What?! Why not?! Well...it was too much a bother. It wasnt that I didnt have the money. I did all my work for the adventurers guild, so I never even went to the magicians guild. Because of that, I guess I just forgot about it. You should apologize and pay all your dues! Yeah, but... Ah...thats right. Youre trying to keep your location secret. Ill go by and pay it all off for you. Luka could yell at you and then be kind the next sentence. But still... Luka sighed as I still looked reluctant to go and ask. I know youre not happy about paying dues just so you can send a request for information. No...its not that, its just the amount that Ive probably not paid. How much did you not pay? ...about 15 years worth. WHAT?! Thats more than half your time as an adventurer! ...youre right. Hearing that, Yureena nodded. That reminds me, no one from the magicians guild sent you any honors after you killed the Demon Lord. I bet they werent too happy about me over there. Normally when a member does something like that, they do send many honors. But since I hadnt paid in forever, I was a ghost member. It would be hard to honor me before others that had paid dues. I know they didnt send any because I hadnt paid, but... I exined to everyone about the magicians guild. The highest in the magicians guild were the royal magicians. The top magician was always a royal magician, and the managers of the guild were usually the same. Next came the top noble magicians, and then the mid-level nobles magicians. Finally, the lowest level were magicians that were adventurers. Thats why no one really wants to acknowledge what I did as an adventurer. I see now...so why did you choose to be an adventurer instead of a proper one? I wonder that too...with that much talent, you could have chosen any of those ces. I thought about it, and then said the truth, Because I wanted to see the world. Wow, thats a cool reason. Pffff. Cruz said with a sparkle in her eyes, and Vi-Vi pffted my answer. Its true its an answer that sounded really naive. But I was naive back then, so its simply the truth. I remembered how I was back then, and it took me back C I even felt a bit embarrassed. Chapter 258 – The Secret of the Collars

Chapter 258 C The Secret of the Cors

I was a bit embarrassed, so I tried to exin it off quickly, Well...I am a member of the magicians guild, but I really have no special connections. Steff might be a better choice after all. But, Im still a very low ranked magician. Even so, youre paying your dues, right? Ah...yes. I pay them. Well, normal people would. Itsmon sense. Luka said, and looked at me as if to say I had none. Yureena looked at me too, andughed a bit, and then looked at Cruz. Well, perhaps we should make it as a request from the marquis and the hero Cruz. We should? Cruz looked confused, but Yureena was right. It was just as she said. Cruz was a marquis and a regional ruler. She was certainly a higher noble. The magicians guild would be happy to give a favor to a noble like her, that could reciprocate when needed. That would be a far better approach then some ghost member who never paid his dues. Hearing this, Cruz said. Well, I guess that Ill be off to the magicians guild tomorrow. Please...sorry to be a bit of a disappointment as a magician. No, Al! Its no problem. It might be a problem if I tag along... so take Steff along with you. M...me? Steff was surprised. Yeah, we SHOULD probably send someone thats at least recognized by the magicians guild. I see... Yeah, just as Al says. Steff, can youe with me? If you dont mind me going... Thanks. Well, then Ill go tomorrow. And saying that Cruz shook Steffs hand. A little too hard, as Steffs arm iled in the air. Seeing this, I took the magic cor that had been on the higher nature spirits neck. Vi-Vi, take a look at this. Hm, what is it, Al? Vallimie, you too. Sure. You can ask anything. Look at this. I showed the cor to the two girls. This was put on the nature spirit to control it. What are its effects. Controlling the spirit and forcing it to summon Jack Frosts. ...I see. Vi-Vi gazed closely with a serious look. Vallimie did the same. Vallimie was the one that taught Vi-Vi, after all. She was an expert at magic circles. This circle engraved into this cor. It looks like the ones used to control magical beasts. Yeah, very close. They gazed over it again, and Vi-Vi said. Whoever did this is quite good. Really? They have a deep knowledge of devil magical systems. They do? Yes, look here. The way this circles script is shortened...its very much like a devils magical circle. I didnt really know what she was talking about, but since she was quite knowledgeable, I just nodded. What do you think, sis? Hm, I think youre right, Vi-Vi. So you think this guy knows devil magic? Seems so...however... Is there something you noticed, sis? Even though its devil magic...its very old. Old...how old do you mean? I asked, and Vallimie seemed to be lost in thought. ...well...old enough that I cant exactly say. A hundred years or two? No more...more like a thousand or two. I wouldnt be surprised if it was older. After hearing her opinion, I asked Luka, Do you know a spirit magician with knowledge of old scripts? She was an excellent student in magical beasts and ancient texts. She also knew how to research ancient magic. Ive never heard of one...but if we search we may find one. Okay. Let me take a look. Thanks. There was very little evidence of the person that summoned this nature spirit that endangered all of Cruz realm. All we knew is that it was possible a beast-human and a male...at least thats what we were told by the nature spirit. In addition, Vallimie told us that the person was very good in ancient devil magic. That they knew the old systems. At least our search was finally progressing. Steff, do you know anyone like that? Well, its rare to meet beast-humans that use magic. I dont know anyone. Hearing this, Timi said, When Steff went to fight me, she used spirit magic, right? Can you summon nature spirits? That was just a chant though... Hm...Al, is that right? No, that is one form of spirit magic. Hah! I knew it! You put power into a spirit, and it materializes in this world to help you. So I guess it is spirit magic. However, even if it were called spirit magic, were dealing with someone that can interact with those spirits directly. Hm... They can enve a spirit, and force the spirit to use its own magic. So the offender would use the cors to force the spirits to use their magic? Yeah. But the use of cors like this is quite rare. Usually you control things with magic. But that doesnt control the strongest of natural spirits. You can only usually control the weaker ones, and only briefly. The kind of chanting that Steff did to employ a lesser spirit...any magician worth his salt could do that. A simple chanter couldnt achieve whatever this mysterious magician was doing. Tomorrow, Ill take a look around. Please join me, Steff. Id be d to. Ill check around too.Luka said. And I see what I can find.Yureena said. It was great to have a group of girls willing to help like they did. Chapter 259 – The Magician’s Guild

Chapter 259 C The Magicians Guild

After that, I took a bath and slept. Femm and Moofy joined me in both the bath and in bed. Having them both put their snouts on my while I tried to sleep was a bother, though. They must have been very lonely while I was away, so I petted them before I slept. rya ryaa Shiggy cried quietly, while I petted them. The next day, Cruz and Steff left to the magicians guild. Luka to the adventurers guild, and Yureena to the church office. They were going to gather information. On the other hand, I just went to my usual guard post. I wanted to get info as well, but I dont think Id really help, so I just stayed here. And being a guard was an important job too...after all. In order to get it done, I put Shiggy in my pocket and walked over to the seat next to the vige gate. Femm and Moofy justid down in the snow next to me. They werent cold, even lying on the snow. Dont catch a cold, you two. Moo mooo Im fine. I guess their think skins and furs kept them from the cold I was feeling. While I was guarding, I taught Vi-Vi, Millet and, Collette magical exercises. Even Vi-Vi was ready to try magical exercises herself. After doing that a while, Chel approached. It bounced up onto my knee. PiGGi! What is it? I go vige. Ok...you need help? Pigii! Please Then Chef jiggled a bit. Millet came over an petted the slime. Ah, Ill help too. I can bring the golems along. Mee tooo! Thnks thanks Chel seemed quite happy. Shiggy peeked out from my pouch and jumped onto Chel. Moofy stood up, and ran off. She returned with a snow shovel in her mouth. Moo! Moofy snorted. She must be ready to go. After that, we all left to help shovel the snow from the new vige. I guess there werent enough people there yet. Femm went around with Chel, hunting for magical beasts. And since they did, the new vige had enough food for a while as well. Night fell, and as everyone thanked us, we left the vige to Mulg. Cruz and Steff had returned before us, so they came out to greet us. Master...wee back. Steff looked a bit down. Her tail was straight out, but her ears seemed to hang. Im back. What is it Steff? You dont look so happy. No, Im fine... Steff said, with a smile. Wee back. Did you go to Chels vige? Sure did. Pigggi! Thanks. Thankou! Cruz and Chel both thanked me. Chel had thanked me so many times, I couldnt count anymore. Dont worry about it. Just whenever you need some help, ask. Thnks After that, Millet prepared our dinner. Cruz, Vi-Vi, Steff, and I got ready to eat. We were ready to hear the info from the magicians guild. Just then, Moofy put her snout on my knee. Femmid down on the floor, while Chel just jiggled next to Femm. Cruz. Steff. How was the magical guild? Well, we really didnt get much information. ryaa? Shiggy popped out of my pouch and jumped on the table. She rolled around with her belly up. So I tickled her belly. She happily cried outryaaryaayryaa. As I tickled her, I asked the girls. Hm? Did they hold something back? Well...its because Im a beast-human. The magicians there thought themselves to be the elites. They werent going to just give info over to some beast-human that they looked down on. Sorry, Steff, I should have expected theyd act like this. No, its not your fault, master! Im the one that was bad! Cruz said, loudly. You didnt do anything wrong, right, Cruz? Well, um...because of me...I got in a big fight with the guild. That wasnt good news...they were a very powerful organization. This was really going to suck if things got bad. Then, Collette came into the kitchen. Collette must have been interested when she heard the word fight. She looked at us and then reached down and hugged Chel. Chel! Letsth y! PigGGi! Sthiggy too! ryaa? Shiggy got up after rolling around on the table. Collette went over, grabbed Shiggy, and put her on her head. ryaa ryaa Shiggy happily cried from on Collettes head. Then she went over to where Chel was. I watched her go, and asked Cruz quietly, Exin...I dont get it. Okay...but its a bit embarrassing... Cruz said, a bit seriously. Chapter 260 – The Magician Guild and Steff

Chapter 260 C The Magician Guild and Steff

Steff showed me to the magical guild ce. Was it hard for you to find? Yeah, if she wasnt there, Id never find it. It was a very different ce from the adventurers guild. It didnt take normal customers. So it was in a very quiet ce among the nobles. On top of it, it had a very small sign that was hard no notice. We told reception there in the building that we had something we wanted to ask the magicians guild. And they told us they dont do stuff like that. Ummm, do you think this is the adventurers guild? Go away She said, imitating them. Cruz did her best impression. Hearing this, Vi-Vi said, What a bunch of jerks! Steffs a member, right? They didnt say anything to her? Well... Steff said, head down. Cruz must have gotten pissed in the middle of all this. She was starting to breath heavily through her nose. When she showed them her guild card, they said some really RUDE THINGS! Rude things? VERY RUDE! Seems they said something really crude to Steff. Cruz didnt even want to repeat it. But...Steff continued, They said, You can pay your dues and leave, beast. WHA?! ILL KILL THEM! Now Vi-Vi was flipping out. Cruz! When you heard that, you werent going to let them get away with it!? No way, Vi-Vi! I grabbed the reception guy by his cor, and... Good! You should rough em up! Vi-Vi said while nodding. So...this is why you got in a fight, Cruz? No...that wasnt the reason. Because of all themotion, a bunch of people came, and the top guy of the guild noticed it was Cruz. And he really apologized. Cruz was the hero after all. And she was a marquis with her own realm. They couldnt just ignore how the guild had treated her. So, I dont get it, Cruz. Where did the fighte in? Well, Vi-Vi, I tried to get information, but... The top guy of the guild tried to get Cruz to employ one of his magicians... He said that any magician employed in Cruz realm would find it an honor. It was normal for the nobles to have their own magicians. And Cruz rank of marquis was very close to being a noble just below the very-high nobles, who all had one. However, since she had her own realm now, it was clear that she was in the top set. Even so, it would have to be a new person for her to employ. So the top guy in the guild must have been thinking that Cruz hade to see him simply to employ one of his magicians as staff. Even though I said I wasnt there to hire anyone, he said it was better that I had one during times of disaster, so... So...? I told him I had already had a disaster, pretty much, and so he told me I could get a snow-clearer, but I said no...so... Most magicians could help with something easy like snow clearing. However, she didnt want anyone on that level. A horse could clear stuff roads between towns easily without using magic. And a normal magician would take until spring to clear all that snow away. So...I told him if I hire anyone, itll be Steff here, so I dont need to see any of his magicians. I cant clear snow, though, Cruz. Yeah, but Id rather have you, anyway. I know how you feel. I said, and Cruz nodded. Right?! But then the guy keeps talking about how shes a beast! He apologized but didnt mean it at all! What a loser! So I ended up saying that my own magician is way stronger than his! Of course you did! Cruz and Vi-Vi were getting heated up about it. I know how you feel, but... I stopped what I was about to say. Steff looked like she had caused a bit of trouble. So, I kind of said too much, so... I still know how you feel. Thank you. Then, Cruz looked at me and said, So the guild guy said theres no way, so I told him Id bring my guy! And I left. Wha? Sorry! Al, Im sorry! Oh...now I get it. Cruz bowed very deeply to me. So thats what happened. She wanted me to go with her to the guild. I really didnt want to show my face after years of non-payment. Even so, I couldnt let them mock a disciple of mine, so I was a bit pissed. Okay, Ill go. Thank you! Sorry for causing this, master. No, I guess I need to pay my dues, after all. Theres no problem Yeah! If youd paid it in the first ce, this would have never happened! Just as Vi-Vi said. I mean, it should be a natural thing for my position. Since I was an adventuring magician, I had to make sure I conducted business correctly. Even so, I had done great things apart from the magicians guild. Maybe that would help me out in this position. Sorry for being a bit of a disappointing master. No, no problem! Steff said, a bit taken aback. Let me think about what I need to do. You dont need to think that much, do you? Cruz said, unaware of what I was pondering. Chapter 261 – Steff’s Training

Chapter 261 C Steffs Training

It was the night after the guild had talked down to Steff. I called Steff into my room. M...master. Im present. She looked nervous. She was talking awkwardly. Her clothes were a bit strange as well. It was winter, and she was showing too much skin. She must not be that cold. Hey, no need to be nervous. Im not going to bite or anything. Oh, thank you very much! Still that nervous way of speaking. She might have thought I was going tosh out at her. Ive...taken my bath already. Huh? Oh... Maybe she had to take one to prepare herself for getting yelled at. Still, I didnt think shed be so nervous. I never really chewed her out before, anyway. I was thinking of teaching her magic. She had been mocked by the magicians guild for being half beast, after all. It would be easy to teach her something that would shut those idiots up. Guys like that shouldnt be able to continue to mock others just because of their backgrounds. It would be necessary to change their ways of thinking. Getting Steff to beat one of them in battle would be the quickest way to do so. First of all, you need to rx. Ill go get you a drink. But...I can... Dont worry about it. Just rx. O...okay...so thats what you mean... I had no idea what she meant, but I left and went to the kitchen. I got a cup of tea and came back. When I came back in, Steff was inside of my bed. She had the nket pulled up to her lips. She was totally in the bed. Well, I did tell her to make herself at home. But...this was a bit too much. Steff? Yes? I leave the rest to you, master. Um... ...this is my first time, so be gentle. Wha? I had no idea what she meant. Just get out of the bed. I couldnt teach her unless she did. What? She said, looking very surprised. Get out of the bed first. I cant start unless you do. I...is that how it goes? Yes. Then Steffs face turned red. If you say so, master... She said, getting out of the bed. W...what are you doing?! What is it? What is it?? Youre totally naked! In order for me to fulfill your bidding, I have to take off my clothes. Im not bidding! But...you called me to your room...which means youre bidding me to give my body to... No, Im not! I told her to put her clothes back on and left the room. I couldnt believe all this. Shiggy popped her head out and started gleefully crying outryaa ryaa. After a bit I went back in, and Steff had her clothes back on. What a shock. Im sorry my body may have been hard to look at... Your body wasnt hard to look at...its just, I didnt ask for you to sleep with me. Steffs face turned red again. Moofy walked over and started licking her face. I now noticed that both beasts had been there the whole time. I had told them I was going to train her in magic, so they had retreated to the corners of the room. So I got to the point. I WAS going to show you how to outwit those idiots from the magicians guild. What do you mean, master? I want you to beat the top guy they have in the guild. The reason begin, I knew that he had mocked Steff in front of everyone. Also, the magicians in the guild had prejudices against those with beast blood. They probably also didnt believe that a beast man was running around controlling nature spirits to do his bidding. Because of that, I had to change their views on beast-humans magicians. In addition, I had gotten the word back from Luka and Yureena about their information. Seems it would take more time. And while this was happening, it would be just enough time to train up Steff. Steff looked at me, unsettled, Its going to be hard for me to learn... No, you have the ability. And I meant it, but she still looked unhappy. Her ears and tail hung. If I train you, you should be ready quite quickly. You really think I can do it? Look how far I got Millet and Collette, and I started teaching them at the beginning of fall. But they had been learning on their own before that, right? No, they learned it all from me. ... She was a bit aghast. She knew that their magic was already very developed to the point they could multi-cast. She just couldnt believe how fast the pace was. It wasmon that even normal magicians were unable to cast two spells at once. Ill start the real training tomorrow...but I can still show you some things in my bedroom, tonight. ... Steff? Um...okay. Sorry, I was thinking about something else. Ill do my best! So I showed her my magic techniques. You want it like this, master? Yeah! Just like that! I trained Steff as hard as I could. She wanted to be a stronger magician, so I had to give it to my disciple a bit roughly. So it turned out I didnt hate training her, after all. It was good to each. She already knew the basics, so that was perfect. She had a lot of room for growth. Luke and Timi had beat her in magic battles already, after all. I mean, both of those girls would beat a normal magician, no matter what. She was still quite a magician when she asked to be my disciple. If I just trained her a bit more, shed be good enough to defeat the top fellows in the guild. So I trained her intensely over the next week. Millet and Collette wanted to learn the same magic, so I trained them as well. And after a week, Steff showed remarkable improvement in her magic ability. Chapter 262 – Preparing for Battle

Chapter 262 C Preparing for Battle

After a week, I had trained Steff into a formidable magician. With the final day done, I told Steff, Steff, tomorrow is your battle. W...with you, master? Theres no way I can win. You dont have to. Im not going to give it my all, so rx. I just want to see how strong you are. Understood. Hearing this, Collette tugged at my sleeve, HEyyyyy. I wanna battle too! Sure. What about you Millet? Then, I guess Ill try too, Mister Al. Okay, then all three of you should rest today and use no more magic. Okay.ryaaa Got it, old man!Mooo mooo! Understood.Wuff! All of my disciples answered with serious faces. The beasts all copied them too. I guess they knew that I would be battling the girls tomorrow. In the middle of the training, all three beasts had watched. They had also copied to the best of their ability what I had taught the girls. When the girls started their magical exercises, the beasts did so too. When they practiced their magic, the beasts did too with their magic bolts. So maybe the beasts wanted to battle too. Let me just say...you beasts arent in the battle, okay? Wuff?Moo? They both looked at me likewhy? Because... It was too much of a bother. Femm and Moofy were quite strong. If I have to fight them as well, then things change. It was good to hold back, but it wouldnt be good to hold back against someone strong. So seeing those two beasts rearing to fight made it hard to say I didnt want to fight them because it was just too much trouble. Im only doing the battle to see how much these disciples of mine have improved. WufffMooo ryaaa Even Shiggy looked a bit depressed. Youre still a baby, Shiggy. You dont have to battle. ryaa ryaa! She pecked at my face as if to challenge that statement. Just then, I heard Timi say as she approached, What? Youre not fighting, Shiggy. Timi, where did youe from? From right over there. I was watching Shiggy do magic exercises. I cant miss her, shes so cute! I think so too! ryaa? She had copied my disciples with all her ability, and it WAS very cute. Since youre a baby, Shiggy, you cant battle Alra, but why not try it against the other beasts?! Moo! Moofy heard this, and swished her tail around. Femm was silent, but Femms tail moved the same. Theres no ce though. If so,e to the pole. The pole? Since it was made for ancient dragons, its the perfect ce. I see. Moo mooo! Moofy nudged my stomach with her snout. She really wanted to fight with magic. Okay, then are you ready to fight tomorrow, Moofy and Femm? Wuff! Mooo mooo! They looked quite happy. Good to hear. I want to show Shiggy our battle, too, Alra. Wha? Im itching to try you out! Timi said, with as flexed arm. So after I fought Steff, Id have to fight Timi too. Well, I guess, if it helps Shiggy learn. Yeah! Thats the best! ryaa ryaa! Timi and Shiggy were both quite happy about the event. Seeing the disciples go off to rest, Timi said, So what techniques did you teach them this week, Alra? Millet and Collette the usual. But I added a bit more training. Hm? I only worked on strengthening their fundamentals, since theyd only be able to apply those anyway... Is that so? Thats magic. I just made sure that they could use their fundamentals strongly. I see. She said, as she held Shiggy, and rubbed her head. She must have been thinking about what Shiggy had learned as well. What about Steff? Shes already a magician with good ability. Is that so? Timi still didnt believe it. Compared to me or Yureena, she was definitely less of a magician, but she was better than most. Her first master...her father had already taught her well. Thats why Steff already has her fundamentals down pat. But if I cant get her to channel her magic better, then I cant teach her any practical magic either. Really? And, I had to teach her the way to think of magic when youre on the battlefield as well. I see. But that doesnt seem that different from regr magic. Well, if she uses a way I showed her, shell get strong very quickly without losing power. Well, that is important. Its also important that Shiggy does the legwork to be a stronger magician. ryaa? Shiggy looked confused. I hadnt really taught anything to Shiggy, but she had learned to fly and shoot magic bolts. She was very talented. Even without hard work, she became stronger in a sh. Even so, you couldnt allow for pride. Ill show you some real magic tomorrow, Shiggy! ryaa! Shiggy cried happily. Chapter 263 – Steff Against the Magic Lord

Chapter 263 C Steff Against the Magic Lord

After breakfast, the next day, we got ready to head out to Shiggys pce at the pole. We put some cattle covers over Moofy and Femm to keep the from the cold. We had gotten them from Cruz. You dont need those, the heaters on already. Ill take them off if it gets hot. Mooo moo Then I put Shiggys little coat on. Just in case. ryaa It was the coat that Vi-Vi had made, very cute. After we finished with our preparations, we all left with Timi to the pce. As we left the house, Vi-Vi was there with her winter clothes. She was ready to go too. A magic battle! I cant wait to see it! Youreing too, Vi-Vi? Yeah! I cant wait to see it! She said, and came with us. We passed through the magic circle, and ventured to the pr pce. Its been a while since weve seen your pce, Shiggy. Hot, even. Because we knew you wereing. The heater was turned on again. Timi said proudly. ryaa! Shiggys hot too. Here. Let me take this off. ryaa We took all the covers off the beasts. Millet and Collette also took off their coats. Master, Ive awaited you. A mysterious woman was waiting for us as we left the room. She bowed deeply before Shiggy. She looked like a normal, youngdy. You could tell though that her whole body was radiating magic. She was no regr person. She had to be an ancient dragon. I will take all your overcoats. She said, and took all the coats we had taken off. After we handed them over, she smiled and said, Its been a while since Ive seen you, Master Alfredora. .... I had no memory of ever meeting her. I just kind of smiled and faked it. I tried my hardest to remember, and Timiughed. Baroness. Is this the first time Alfredora has seen you in this form? Excuse me...I thought he would remember from the time that Sighisoara took the throne. In other words, the day that Shiggy ascended the throne. She was one of the dragons that hade to see the process. I was in quite a rush. I was asked by quite a few others to observe the process in their ce. I see. Yes. Alfredora, my name is Govas. I am pleased to make your acquaintance. And I yours. ryaaa! Im not worthy of such praise. Shiggy cried one, and Baronness Govas bowed lowly. Shiggy had probablyplemented Govas. I had no idea what was going on, but it must have gone that way. On the other hand, Timi was pacing the floor. Ive readied the ce for the battle. Come with me. The ce was, of course, massive. Made for an ancient dragon. It took us three minutes of walking to get there. Here it is. Timi had prepared just a normal room for us. There were no objects around. It was just a floor and walls covered with a strange material. If we use this room, theres no problem with magic getting loose. Timi said with augh. On the other hand, Vi-Vi carefully checked the floor and walls. I checked it as well. I had no idea how much it could withstand. This is aplex magic circle. Yes, yes. These walls are magical toots descended from the ancient days. That is correct. It would be hard to break, but it still might be broken. Its not easy to break? Heh heh, it would be hard for even you to break, Alra. I see. No need to worry. I told you these walls are magical, right? As long as you dont blow them to pieces and spread them over the sea, theyll repair themselves. Wow, thats strong. Right? Well, if they werent that strong, theres no way theyd survive the ancient years, right? Timi said with a smile. She was right. Things break quite easily in this world. Without the ability to repair itself, it would erode. And its true that we could toss around destructive magic then. Full power. While we were checking the battlefield out, Timi held Shiggy and smiled. She was ready to show Shiggy a good time. Who wants to start. Should you and I go first? No, we should leave that until the end. I didnt want this ce to be scarred up from the beginning. No matter how much restore magic this ce had, the battle was going to take a long time. First, lets have Steff, Collette, and Millet in that order. Understood, master. Okay, old man. Im nervous... All of my disciples responded. Anytime is fine. Then, Im ready! Steff fired a chantless fireball at me. The fireball squiggled randomly through the air. It was very good fireball for battle. It was hard to read where it would go. Thats what I had taught her. She remembered it well. Good job. Excellent. Without taking a step, I blocked the fireball. But blocking it alone wouldnt be enough training. I then attacked her to a suitable degree. Of course, it was just enough that she could defend herself. Aggh! Steff quickly shifted to putting up a defense to stop the attack. After seeing my attack defended, she quickly shot an ice spear at me. I quickly melted it and the water fell to the ground. With that, anyone could freeze the puddle and use it as an offensive strategy. That was quite fast. Iplimented her, as I attacked her next spear as it came very close to me. The reason I did so was to allow Steff time to arrange her next attack. As she got ready, I shot some weak magic at her. She defended and attacked. If she couldnt, she wouldnt be a worthy magician. I tried hitting her blind spot, and other techniques. Steff showed her skill in quickly defending from my attacks. While this was happening, her fallen ice bolts had melted from the heat and there was water all around me. Then Steff cried, Fire arrow! Whoaa! Steff fired a quick fire arrow from her right hand. At the same time she threw a lightning bolt from her left. Multi-casting. She tried to shoot lightning at me while I was focused on the arrow. And she didnt attack me directly. She tried to electrocute me from the water around my legs. A normal magician wouldnt respond to that attack. Excellent. I said, and raised a magic barrier before the lightning touched the water. After that, Steff tried a lot of other sneaky means to attack me. After blocking everything she tried, she ran out of magic and gave up. Chapter 264 – Elf Girls vs the Magic Lord

Chapter 264 C Elf Girls vs the Magic Lord

After recognizing she lost, she bent a knee to me. She had honestly done her best in attempts to beat me. And her hard work in trying to defeat me was truly astounding. Youve gotten much stronger, Steff. I still didnt do very well. Steff looked very disappointed. It was superb that she wanted to improve so hard. Of course there was no way to beat me. She was only a apprentice. Even so, she looked depressed. I wondered what I should say to her. Just then, Timi called to Steff, Steff, do you need water? Ah, thanks! Timi gave her a cup, which Steff quickly gulped down. You get very thirsty after using magic, after all. ryaa ryaa Shiggy said happily, and she jumped from Timis arms to my pouch. I petted her and said, Shiggy, watch carefully. ryaaa It might be best for you to sit in Alras pouch while this goes on, Shiggy. Timi said to the small dragon seriously. Then she handed a cup of water too. Because she can see the magic closer in my pouch? Yes. Shiggy, are you okay with that? ryaa ryaa! Shiggy said happily in my pouch. Steff still looked quite down. Vi-Vi went to her and said, You did the best you could. But... But nothing! Theres no human that can beat Al! But I only... Im telling you, you dont know what his full power looks like. Vi-Vi looked off into the distance. Seeing her, Steff had aplex look on her face. Mooff While Steff was staring off, Moofy came up and munch on her hand.. She would do that any chance she got. Steff, you really did your best at that strength. Did I? Yeah. Youd be a high B or a low A ss adventurer at that ability. Did I really do that well? Yeah. After saying that, she seemed to get some confidence back. It was good to see. Confidence was the one thing a magician needed. Steff then pulled her hand from Moofys mouth. Mooo Moofy now looked a bit sad. Then Femm came over and licked Moofy, probably to make her feel better. Just then, Collette said, Old man! Me next! Okay, anytime youre ready. Yay! Okay! Collette immediately shot a magic bolt at me. It was good to see such decisiveness. Wonderful. And when I shot one at her, she put magic in her legs to quickly avoid it. She jumped forwards, back, up, down, left, right... ryaa ryaa! Shiggy was ecstatic. She liked seeing Collettes bolts break into my many magic barriers. Also, she liked seeing Collette bounce around like that. Collette had mastery of basic magic and could focus it into whatever form she wanted. She had excellentbat sense. A young girl with adult abilities. After a while, in the middle of the fight, she started to mix in ice and fire balls and arrows too. Since I had gotten her used to magic sts, it was time to change, and the effect wasrge. Also, she started to shoot multi-shots of magic as well. Her magic became multi-colored, and Shiggy was even more impressed. After depleting all her magic, Collette finally gave up. Since she had used so much magic to bounce around, she was finished way before Steff. Huff huff huff huff Good job, Collette. She smiled at me, even though she was out of breath. The Moofy approached her as well. Moffy then licked Collette. Collette finally caught her breath after that. Stop, it tickles! Moo mooo! Water? Thanks, Timi! After drinking the water, she said, ...old man, my magic doesthnt work! Im just very good at defending. Really? You did great, Collette. Youre quite strong. Yaaay! She smiled happily. That quick fireball of yours is amazing. You should also work on being able to fight longer. Okay... But it was very good. If she could extend her magical amount and endurance, there would be no problem. Iplimented her while patting her head. Then Vi-Vi said, What a tremendous girl you are. Almost in a whisper. Then I went against Millet. Mister Al, here I go! Anytime. Millet tried to fight me by stopping my movement. She had far stronger fire magic than Collette. She also had a better front defense than Collette. Millet wasnt as unique with her magic though. She was focused on stopping you with fire, primarily. She wanted to knock down defenses, the regr path of a magician in a fight. Well, regr, and basic, but that was important too. I wore down Millet until she had run out as well. And after she was out of magic, she quickly gave up. Chapter 265 – Beasts vs Magic Lord

Chapter 265 C Beasts vs Magic Lord

As her teacher, I had to say something to Millet after she lost, Millet, that was a good battle. Thank you very much. Millet happily smiled. Then Timi handed her a cup of water as well. Thank you. It was a good battle. Timi nodded with a satisfied look. You have talent, Millet. If you continue like that, youll be a great magician. But, I...magic is new to me, I dont think Ill get better until I grow up... No, I mean it. It might be that youve always been good at magic, even before you discovered it. Hearing this, Millet blushed. Well, Mister Al, youre just ttering me. Its not ttery. Just then, Moofy bit onto my sleeve. Moo moo What? Want battle I see. So you want to battle me too? Moo Do you want to fight with Femm? Well take turns against you. I see. So who goes first? I asked, and Femm and Moofy talked it over. WuffMooo mooWuff wuff After a while, Femm came towards me. Ill go first. Okay, anytime. Femm took a pace way. Then Femm grew to its usual size. Gawh! Femm roared at me and then sprang forwards. The roar wasnt filled with magic. It was just for Femm to power up with. Femm shot towards me like an arrow. As Femm ran, it shot magical bolts over and over. They had quite the destructive power. Wow, surprisingly good. WAaah! As I put up magical barriers, Femm knocked them down. Just then, Femm disappeared from my sight. Femm sprung right beside me with amazing speed. As I turned to Femm, it shot another magic bolt. I knocked it down and I could feel my strength give a bit. Femm was probably looking for this as a gap in my defense. It jumped at me, jaws open, ready to bite into my windpipe. Whoa! I grabbed the upper and lower parts of Femms snout with my hands. I tried to shut its mouth, but Femm was quite strong. Even so, I mped it shut. Even so, Femms fangs were pushing into me. It was a bit dangerous. I ducked and shot a bolt up at Femm. Femm jumped back, dodging the shot. Pretty goo... I was about to say to Femm, But as I said, it, Femm and I quickly closed distance. This time I had jumped. Ghi! Femm had bit in the air where I just was. I had jumped and Femm was shooting magical bolts at me. A magical wolf...no, a heavenly wolf king...very strong. I couldnt just let the wolf attack me over and over. It was time for a counterattack. I put magic into my right knee, the one that didnt hurt, and sprung right at Femm, kicking Femm and jumping off. Gaw? For an instant, Femm was surprised. However, Femm soon readied a counter. As Femm shot more magical bolts, it swung at me with its ws. I dodged in the air, and Femm tried to bite at me. I knocked its snout down and jumped over the wolf to behind it. Femm rolled and then attacked me with its snout again. I knew it would. I ducked under its snout and grabbed its neck and tossed the wolf. Femm flew through the air. It was about to get up when I used magic to press it down. I had used the same magic to keep Shiggys mother Jilnidora from attacking me. Femm tried to scramble, but finally gave up, out of power. Then it changed back to its smaller size. You really are strong, Femm. Couldnt do much against you, though. Thats not true. Then I petted Femm. Wuff And Femm happily wagged its tail. Next is Moofy. Moo! Moofy suddenly sprung into motion. It grew to the size of a small hill. Whoa! Too big! Steff said, seeing the cow grow to her true size. Anytime, Moofy. That reminded me that I had never seen Moofy really fight. I remembered that she was quite strong. I got ready to fight her. Moo moo! Moofy started her attack. I took all my magic power and pushed Moofys snout back. Still, she knocked me back. I flew in the air andnded a distance away. Inded on my left knee, and pain rushed through me. Then she shot at me, from the ends of her horns, over and over. It was a strong attack. However, the fight wasnt as intense as Femm. She couldnt fight as well. Her real attack was only rushing you or using the magic bolts. Those were her only attacks. She didnt know how to feint or trick you as you fought. Maybe thats the difference between carnivore and herbivore. Moo moo! She still ran at me with a happy moo. She was strong, because she was so huge. However, it was easy for me to face her. Quite easypared to Femm. After I let Moofy run around all she wanted, I used magic to flip Moofy over. And with that, she gave up. Mooo! And on her back, she shrunk back to her smaller size. Youre strong too, Moofy. Moo moo moo moo! Moofy said, as I rubbed Moofys stomach. Moofy was still pretty happy. She probably was excited to get some exercise. Great job, Moofy! Vi-Vi now ran up and rubbed Moofy as well. ryaa rya! Shiggy got up from my pouch and tried to rub Moofy, so I let her. Moo moo! The cow had a good time. Great job, master. It seems that Steff was quite impressed that her master had defeated the massive Moofy. Its my turn next. Timisoara said with a look of impatience. Chapter 266 – Timi vs. the Magic Lord

Chapter 266 C Timi vs. the Magic Lord

I was now my time to go against Timi. Shiggy. Watch the battle between Timi and I carefully. ryaaryaa! Shiggys eyes glimmered. Then Timi petted the top of Shiggys head. Your aunties going to do her best. ryaa Ah, Yes. Its good for your disciples to see this too. Wait a second. She said, and ran off, and then brought Govas to us. Baronness Gocas. Alfredora and I are about to battle. With Master Alfredora? Yes. Forgive me if I dont understand. Master Alfredora is simply a human... I mean... Govas was a bit taken aback by Timis deration. She had no idea while a noble of the ancient dragons would do battle with a human. Or at least I thought. Hm, Baronness Govas, I know how you feel. Yes, well if something happens to Master Alfredora, it will be very upsetting to Baroness Sighisoara, correct? Then Timi tried to exin herself, I guess you cant understand, so let us show you. But... Just then, five other women came into the room. They all looked like normal women, but you could again tell their bodies radiated magical energy. They also were obviously ancient dragons. The women all came and bowed before Timi. Mistress Timisoara. We know now what you are thinking, but please reconsider... Hm, okay. If there is any danger, I will stop. Even if you say that... There are six ancient dragons here. The battle can be stopped at any time. Timi said, and the dragon women all looked at each other. So, as you have said, would you be willing to protect these others from the force of whatever battle is about to ensue? I...we have no problem with that... Alfredoras disciples are not as strong as he. Then Timi looked to me. I apologized for their rudeness. Theyve never met humans as strong as you. No worries. Yes. I am d you say so. Let us begin. Timi suddenly turned into a dragon, and then said to the other women. You may all return to your dragon form. Understood. Govas and the other six turned into dragons instantly. Eeep! Steff cried out in surprise. Rx. Theyre not going to hurt you. Even so, I could see Vi-Vi shake as she said, What a sight. I bet Luka wishes she was here. Wow! Moo moo! The elf sisters and Moofy were quite excited. Moofy crept from behind Govas leg. On the other hand, Femm sat, watching. I bet Femm was actually a bit scared. But, even so, Femm didnt shake, and its tail wasnt between its legs. Lets go. Okay! At the same time I responded, I was attacked by a torrent of magic. It was her magical breath. I already had a magical barrier up, but the magic was breaking through. My knee hurt, but I was able to speed my movements up with magic. Still, it would be hard to put too much stress on this leg with speed magic. Because of that, I decided to stand my ground and fight in ce. Magic arrows. Magic spears. Gravity magic. Fire magic. Ice magic. I used multiple magical styles, and attacked Timi. She countered with her own multiple attacks of magic. This was partially for Shiggys education. ryaa ryaa! Shiggy peaked from my pouch and pped at the unreal disy. She was probably quite happy. Timi and I traded shots for a while. ......ң᡹ The watching ancient dragons were in awe at what was happening. This is fun, Alra! Yeah! Heh heh. She was happy at my response, andughed gleefully. As sheughed, she tried to hit me with gravity magic, so but I kept vignt. I shot fire magic at her, and said to Shiggy, Shiggy, using various magic types is a great weapon. ryaa If you have many methods, the opponent cant read your next attack. ryaa So, the hardest to deal with is sometimes the simplest attack. ryaa? I then shot a magic bolt with all my magical power. NWooaaaah Timis attacks stopped. If she wasnt careful about defense, she might not have dodge it. Because of her magical barrier, my bolt bounced off and into the air. It flew up and broke through the ceiling and wall. The two crumbled. ......ң᡹ I could hear the ancient dragons whisper among themselves. This pce was meant to withstand the power of ancient dragons. But no one had imagined the force that some human magicians could summon. Whaaat?! Timi was shocked. The ceiling continued to crumble. Large pieces fell to the ground, one by one. I used gravity magic to lower each fragment to the ground. Well, I sped them up, right on top of Timi. She had only prepared for defending against a magical attack. And she was too slow to defend against a physical one. Nwoaaah! The falling fragments struck Timi directly. I had added several hundred times the weight to the fragments using gravity magic. The fragments fell all over her, and pressed her to the ground. Even so, I couldnt let her go. I used a magic barrier on top of her to push her as well. Not YET! Timi now casted her own set of gravity and magic barrier magic. What? The fragments floated momentarily. She had unreal magical power. Her tail had be free. She knocked the fragments away. Whupwup Of the five barriers I had cast on her, four she destroyed with her tail. This would be close. So I just added more gravity and magic barriers on top. GRAAAHHHH But she was unable to run from my gravity magic trap. ...I give up. Good fight, Timi. I said, and released the magic. ryaa ryaa! And Shiggy called out happily. Chapter 267 – After the Battle

Chapter 267 C After the Battle

So I walked over to Timi. Her body was still covered from fragments of the ceiling and wall. Timi, are you okay? Yes. If it wasnt for your gravity magic, these pieces of the ceiling would be swept away like scraps. I didnt like hearing that. But I knew she meant that they would be lightpared to how I had used them to press on her. ryaa? Shiggy called out to the covered Timi, quite worried. Sighisoara! Timi arose after hearing Shiggy cry out. She arose so quickly, the huge fragments scattered into the air. The other ancient dragons spread their wings and protected the others from them falling. Shiggy! Auntie did her best! ryaa ryaa She nuzzled her huge snout into Shiggy. Shiggy petted the end of it. Timi, those fragments are dangerous, so move SLOWLY. ryaa ryaa So Timi turned to Vi-Vi and asked, Sorry about that, are you okay? Im okay. Collette squealed happily. Vi-Vi, Steff, and Femm all just stood there. They were surrounded by six ancient dragons. Of course they were scared. Great job old man! Mooo moo! Collette came charging on Moofys back. She had no sense of fear. Timi, you did great too! Moo moo! Yes, I think so too. Hm... Collette and Moofyplimented her, so Timi looked somewhat happy. She did snort, and the wind blew through the room. kyaa kyaa ryaa ryaa Collette and Shiggy both liked the crazy wind. All the others were scared stiff. I could see that Steff and Femm were actually shaking. Just then, one dragon noble...maybe Govas, came closer. Madam...let us heal you. This is just a scratch. However, you were struck, we must heal you. Then please. Govas hand shone. It was healing magic. Ancient dragon healing magic. Watch this closely, Shiggy. ryaa ryaa! Shiggys eyes shimmered as she watched. And we both watched Govas hand glow as it touched Timi. The healing is over. Thank you. Does anyone else need healing? I checked, but there are no injuries. This is because of Alfredoras unreal power. I wondered when they checked. I guess they could tell by the way my disciples looked. So I turned to Timi and said, Timi, you should probably return to human form. I see, if you say so Alra, then I will. Timi and quickly shrunk to human form. Thank you all for your work. ң٣ They all cried out softly, and bowed. After they returned to human form, all the humans ran over to us. I guess because they were no longer frightening looking like humans. Timi, Im very sorry about the wall and ceiling... But there was a ceiling even farther above the one that I broke. I was happy that the cold didnte flooding in. If we close the room and leave it, it will automatically heal itself. How long will that take? Um, with damage like this, maybe a month or so. Just a month?! Vi-Vi was surprised. So was I. Even with the modern magic of today, and self healing surface usually takes years. Thats unreal, that it would go that fast. What magical technology! It is ancient magic. Timi said, proudly. Wuff! Femm even barked with surprise. Its tail was straight out. Suddenly, all the dragon nobles were now near us. They were massive, but I wish they wouldnt creep up on me like that. Their magic was so strong, you couldnt sense their approach. I then bowed to all of them. Thank you for your help. ң......We are sorry for doubting you... All of them spoke in human speech like Timi. It was magical to do so, and harder than using spirit speech. They were quite an impressive species to use human speech so well. Doubting me? I couldnt remember anything said about that. We didnt understand how strong of a magician you were. Alra is strong. He may not even be human! Timi said with a proud look. We were quite in assuming that you would be much weaker than Timi. We were quite rude... ...and we apologize. They all bowed, low, almost to the floor. They were apologizing to me for asking Timi not to fight me. Dont worry about it. You were worried about me being injured, correct? Youre very generous. Thank you. Shiggy then cried out from my pouch. ryaaa! haa haa haa The dragons all exhaled and fell to the floor. They then rolled over and showed their bellies. ryaa ryaa We thank you for your kind words. The ancient dragons all seemed emotional at whatever Shiggy had said. After that, at Timis request, we all went to a different room. It was a room made for human size. Then the dragons returned to human size and served us tea and snacks. Ah, thank you very much. Since Steff knew they were dragons, she was a bit scared. I asked Steff, What did you think of the battle? I was worried, but I did all that I could. Good, I think you did a fine job. Thank you. It was a good day. After all, I had seen how all my disciples had grown. And satisfied, I ate the ancient dragons snacks. Chapter 268 – Tea with Dragons

Chapter 268 C Tea with Dragons

It felt good to eat something sweet after all that magic use. The food was so good. And the ancient dragons had perfect sense in the food they made. Moo. Moofy rested her snout on the table. Collette and Vi-Vi both fed Moofy some of their snacks. Itsth it good, Moofy? Moo! Eat some more! Collette and Vi-Vi enjoyed feeding the cow. I thought the cow would just kick her feet up on the table and munch away. It would be bad manners, but no one expects a cow to be polite. Femm was doing that, after all. Ah, sorry for not noticing. One dragon girl noticed and quickly put some food in a ce the beasts could eat. If she ced them on the edge of the table, the beasts could just eat it off the side of the table. Thank you. Femm said thanks and ate. Even so, the girls kept on hand-feeding Moofy. They were enjoying it, after all. Then, I fed Shiggy myself. And Timi was happy seeing Shiggy eat. ryaaa Is it good, Shiggy? ryaa ryaa! I see. Thats why I prepared ones that youd like! When Shiggy was happy, Timi was happy. On the other hand, Steff watched everything very seriously. Whats wrong, Steff? Is there something youre worrying about that happened during the battle? N...no... After a bit, Steff looked at Timi and I and said, Um...not MY battle, but the one that you did with Timi. Yeah, I watched that TOO! Vi-Vi said, while feeding Moofy and eating the snacks herself. Moofy seemed to be quite interested in our conversation as well. Moo With her snout on the table, she looked at us. I patted her snout. Moofy had a strange power to make you pet her, I noticed. As I patted her, Steff looked at me seriously, Honestly, I had no idea what was happening.. It was quite simple, actually. We were attacking each other and defending against each other. Timi looked over at us, and said, Well,pared to normal magic, we used a lot more different types, right? Because my opponent was an ancient dragon. I had no ability to ck off. I see! I said, and Timi responded with a smile while she petted Shiggy. Do you think someday I can be a master like you...? I think maybe... The answer was hard to give. Well, it wasnt too hard to predict, but there wasnt an impossibility. No one can put a limit on a human. So, of course I didnt know. I was having difficulty answering, but Vi-Vi stuck her chest out and said, Thats a level far above a normal human being. Really? Of course! Is it impossible for a devil like you Vi-Vi? With that question, I finally realized... Steff was asking because she was a beast-human. She knew she was different, so species-wise, she wanted to know. Of course werepletely different. I am one of the Four Sub-Bosses, the most elite of all devils out there! Its even impossible for me! So it would be impossible for Millet and Collette? Well they are quite talented for a couple of elves. But for now, yeah. Vi-Vi said clearly. So I said to Steff, Steff. I cant say that different races are limited to different magics, but there a big difference in individuals. Okay. Collette was listening to me and jumped up on my knee. I wasth hoping to beat you sthomeday, old man! Oh, well do your best! heh heh I really had no idea if she could. But doing as much work as you could was no waste. As a magician, you needed as much ambition as you could get. Compared to Collette, Steff was missing some confidence. Objectively speaking, your magic ability is high, Steff. I wonder... Im sure you could probably beat a magician guildsman. I dont think I... Youre my disciple. Have confidence. You wont lose to them. Collette looked up at me from my knee. Am I sthrong? Youre pretty tough too. Heh heh What about me, Mister Al? Collette asked from beside me. You as well. I see...that makes me happy. Then Vi-Vi said, Listen, little disciples! Magic isnt just about attacking! Really? Yeah, Collette, Al is a field-clearer, carpenter, and he uses magic to do it! Oh yeah! Then Collette looked at me, Im going to clear fieldsth too! Do your best! Heh heh And I patted her head. Chapter 269 – The Information

Chapter 269 C The Information

I patted Collettes head, and Millet drew near. Ill do my best too. I look forward to it. I said, and Millet stooped down to be level with Collete. She then looked at me with expectant eyes. I guess she wanted me to pat her head as well. So I did. Heh heh She giggled to herself, but she did look happy. Then Timi said to my, while feeding Shiggy, So are you ready to fight the magicians guild? I guess so. The purpose of which was to get Steff to beat one of them. No, the first goal was for us to find out who the hell that beast magician was that can control nature spirits was. The other stuff can wait. I think you can win easily, Steff. Steff approached me with a troubled look. Master, please wait. You said that I could beat a normal magician. Yes, I did. But the person thats going to fight me will be one of their best. True. It will be an elite. I wont be anywhere near as good. No, it will be a normal magician. Youll be way better. ...I dont think so. Steff, you need more confidence. If you say so, master, Ill do my best. I then patted her head. Steffs ear pricked up. Her tail went from side to side. Seeing that, Shiggy walked over from the other side of the table. ryaa! Then I petted her. Shiggy ran from Timi, and Timi looked a bit sad. Maybe youI should bring Millet and Collette as well. True that they could probably could win as well. I want to go! And Millet? I do to. The elf sisters were ready to go. Okay, then Ill talk to Cruz about it. Cruz simply said that shed prove that her magician was better than the guilds. But that could have just been her trying to ask tough. She might also have wanted to show that the beast magician she was talking about was real and powerful. Even if I brought Millet and Collette, they wouldnt be able to fight. However, the two could at least learn from seeing others fight. I really am nervous. If you start to lose, Ill help, so dont worry. Okay then. Timi seemed a bit perplexed, and said, But...thats like having a parent get in a fight between kids... Its fine unless a very strong magicianes forward. I thought that Steff could beat a capital or noble magician. If she fought that level, shed be okay. I want to go to. You too, Timi? What, is there a problem? ...You cant fight. Youll turn the capital to ashes. Of course I wont. But you could do the same, Alra. No...Im used to holding back. I do that every day TOO! Timi said with a look of pride. After we enjoyed drinking the tea and talking, we went back to Mulg, leaving Timi behind. Timis legs were getting numb, so she wanted to return to her dragon form until night, and then join us. When Cruz and Yureena came back, Timi joined us as well. Then everyone ate dinner. After cleaning the dishes, I asked Luka, Did you find out anything about the nature spirit beast-magician? Well, theres a little info from the guild... Is there anything substantial? That may take a little more time. Okay, thanks for your hard work. Dont worry about it. After that, I asked Yureena, What about from the church? Not much different than what Luke said about the guild... Just a little info...then... Yeah, information that someone, somewhere might have seen something like a beast-human magician that might be able to control nature spirits... Hm... The guild got about the same amount of information. Were in the midst of following up on it. The church is the same. I see. Thanks. You got it. If Cruz is willing to get into a fight over it, then whoever it is has got to be tracked down. Thanks, Yureena and Luka... Cruz smiled and said. It was going to take a bit longer to get more info. After the first reports about this mysterious magician, we found that finding more information was going to take quite a bit of work to find out how strong this guy was. And, after finding that out about him, we also needed to find out what he looked like and his recent movements. So I asked Cruz, Cruz, I think were ready to challenge the magicians guild. Pick a good day for it. Oh, so I heard Steff is going to beat the whole guild herself! Im not going to beat them all up! Can you go too, Millet and Collette? Of course. But, we cant join in...is that okay? I want to sthee the capital, old man! I would as well, Mister Al! Both elf girls said, wanting to join us. Okay, lets do this tomorrow! Tomorrow?! The sooner the better! Cruz said with a snort and proud look. Steff, Millet, Collette, is all of your magic restored? Ah, yes. I think Im fine after tonight. Im fine too, old man. I as well, master. It seemed that they restored their magic quite quickly. Okay, tomorrow it is! Yes! Okay. Ill go. And so we had decided. Chapter 270 – Finally, the Capital Again

Chapter 270 C Finally, the Capital Again

The next day, we ate breakfast and went to the capital. Cruz, Steff, Millet, Collette, and Timi apanied me. And, of course I didnt forget Vi-Vi or Shiggy. I also put on my wolf mask, just in case. If youre going to wear one, then I will too, Al. Vi-Vi said, and put the cow mask on. I had a lot on my te, so I had to keep my identity secret, but Vi-Vi wasnt well known. She could walk around without the mask and no one would mind. I was about to say so, but Shiggy pped her wings in my pouch. ryaa ryaa! Shiggy stuck her head out of my pouch and looked at both of our masks. She might have been interested in them. And since she looked quite curious, I didnt say anything to Vi-Vi about her mask. Ill put your coat on, Shiggy. ryaa I took Shiggy out of her pouch, and put the coat Vi-Vi made on Shiggy. It looked cute. You look so cute no matter what you wear! ryaaa Timi said, grabbing Shiggy and hugging her, and then putting her back in my pouch. Timi looked a little lonely as she then petted the small dragon. With all preparations finished and us off to the capital, Steff looked a bit surprised at our masks, Master, what are those masks for? Since I am Alfred... ryaaa! Since Im Alfredora, I dont need to be found out. I see... Especially since this time it was the magicians guild. I had forgotten to pay the guild dues for many years. It was easy to make the payments, but there was no avoiding the truth that I had ignored it. Im sure they had absolutely a bad impression about me. Id make the repaymentter at a suitable time. Okay, lets go! Cruz said, happily taking my arm. Wuff wuff! Moo! Suddenly, Moofy and Femm were with us. Arent you staying home? Not today! Mooo Femm wanted to go. Also, Moofy looked at us sadly. We hadnt brought them to the capital much recently. So they both wanted to go. Cruz must have taken pity on them, because they both looked so sad, Al, do you think we can take them with us? Yeah, but this is the magicians guild this time. You can take animals there too, you know. I didnt think that was a good idea. Wuff! Moo moo! But since Cruz had said so, the beasts happily agreed. They both were wagging their tails happily. Okay then, just stay quiet. You dont have to tell us... Moo! Even though I felt some difort, I still took Moofy and Femm with me to the capital. We entered the shack and went through the transport circle, and arrived in Cruzs pce. We left the room and Cruz maid came to meet us. The maid greeted us, and looked over at Femm and Moofy. Oh! Femm and Moofy! You came with them? Wuff!Moo! Heres something for you! Wuffwuff!Moo mo! The maid handed the beasts some snacks to eat. She was always very kind to them. ryaa! The maids also gathered around Shiggy. What is this? Sighisoara. Shes cute. Can we pet her? Sure. Can we give her a snack? I dont think shell eat unless she knows the person. Shiggy usually wouldnt eat from someones hand unless she knew them. A while after she hatched from the egg, she never ate from any hand but my own. After recalling that, I noticed how much Shiggy had grown. Even so, she still never ate from your hand unless she knew you. Is that so? Too bad. Well, then give her this from us. And so the maid gave me some snacks to give Shiggy. I handed them to her and she chomped them down. ryaa! Shiggy made a bow to the maids and cried out once. We left the pce, and I asked Femm and Moofy, I wonder...are you two sneaking to the capital when no ones looking? W...wuff ...mmmoo Femm and Moofy couldnt meet eyes with me. They had to be sneaking back here. Thats why the maids were so ready to see them. These beasts and their fooling around... The maids werent scared at all, and thered be no problem as long as they stayed in the pce. Okay, you two. As long as Im not with you, you CANT leave Cruz pce, okay? Wuff! Moo! They thought that I had forgiven them, so they went back to wagging their tails again. If you do leave the pce alone, you know itll cause big trouble, right? We know. Moo moo! Femm snorted in a bit of annoyance. Moofy just nodded. So we walked down to the magicians guild. We met Cruz along the way. She wanted to talk about how wed go up against the guild. The magicians guild was different from the adventurers, as it was among all the residences of the nobility. Because of this, it was close to Cruz ce. We arrived there, and Cruz looked it over with a serious countenance. Chapter 271 – Conversing with the Guild

Chapter 271 C Conversing with the Guild

The guild itself was arge, three-story structure. We looked the ce over, and Cruz said, Well, here the battle begins, Al. No, its not a battle yet. Just a fight. Its just a matter of speech Al! A battles just a fight you cant lose! I guess youre right. At least, the purpose was to find out who was summoning all those nature spirits. However, Cruz was upset because the magicians guild had made a fool of Steff. I know how she felt. I told Steff, Millet, and Collette, Take it easy. If a strong magician tries to fight you, Ill step in. Thats a relief. I dont think you need to fight either, Millet and Collette, so just rx. We can fight if you need us! Im justht going to have fun watching Sthteff do her thing! Steff and Millet were both a bit nervous though. I could tell Steff was especially rattled. I understood, because it was before a battle. You had to get used to it. However, Collette wasnt worried at all. She was a strange child. Well, maybe because she was a child, shes never known fear. I looked at Steff, who was the most scared of all, If you dont see me step in, you know the magicians not that strong, so just rx. I understand. And if hes not super strong, you can beat him. Okay. She looked a bit relieved. Then I looked at Millet and Collette. And I just need you two to rx and stay back. Well trust you more than our own strength. Even so, if we fight, Im not scared, Mister Al! Thanks for trusting me. Its...my pleasure... Millet blushed. Ill take it easy too, old man! Collette smiled at me, as she wasnt worried at all. Well, Ill just try to hold back...like a parent whos not going to use force between two kids fighting. Its better if you just kick the guys butt, Al. Thats a bit childish, Vi-Vi. No its NOT! I could fight the guy too! Vi-Vi said. However, Vi-Vis not a fighting type of magician. Id actually think she has less ability than Millet or Collette. But if I ever said so, Im sure that Vi-Vi would get bent out of shape. Id step in before you would, Vi-Vi. Why, Al? Because youre a devil, and one of the four Sub-bosses. If they lost to you, theyd get pissed and want revenge. I guess youre right... Hearing that, Timi said, I can fight too. I told you, Timi, if you fought, the whole capital would be burned to ashes, just leave it to me. I can hold back if I need to...but, Ill let you handle it. Thanks. Next, I looked at Femm and Moofy. Wuff? Moo? I know you know already, but just keep back and stay quiet. I know. Me know. You cant fight, and dont freak out, no matter what. Okaaaaaay. I no fight. Femm and Moofy both huffed. I was worried they might try something. Vi-Vi, Timi, take care of the beasts, okay? Sure. Got it. Cruz was listening quietly, and nodded, Lets go then. Okay. Cruz opened the door to the guild, and we walked in. Two masked weirdos with two beasts...we stuck out like sore thumbs. Every pair of eyes in the guild turned to us. Even the receptionist looked rattled. The strong looking guy behind the receptionist came out to meet us. He must have been the office chief or something like that. Hello, Marquis Conradine! Its been a while. Im sorry for keeping you waiting. Youre the office head, right? You remember well, miss! Im honored. Not the office chief, but the office head. Six or a half dozen of the other. I was thinking ofing earlier, but I was busy. Oh...well, your realm is an important one. You must be very busy. Our little guild could provide someone possibly that could speed whatever process necessary up for you? The guy was trying to sell the guilds services to her. Cruz had a knowing smile, and said, Ivee here today to prove that my magicians are better than ANY magician in the magicians guild. Um...you mean... The office head had lost his head for a bit. They were fighting words, after all, Cruz had left for a bit to make preparations. Or maybe the fellow had thought that Cruz had simply forgotten. I made a promise. That my magician would face yours. But, marquis... The office head looked troubled. He nced at me. It was proceeding as nned. Cruz and I had talked about how we would get the challenge to happen without being refused. So just like we had nned, I turned to the office head and said, I would say that this fellow doesnt have to fight, but if youve promised him, marquis... ...and I always keep my promises! Then, there must be a battle... The office head then thought I might be an ally, or maybe could help him in some way. The marquis said the magicians in this guild are just prideful small-fries after all, and theres no way theyll ept her challenge... W...whats that?! I dont think that anymore, but... Well, its a shame, marquis. You have a keen insight. Any excuse to prevent the guild from defeating your magician... The office head said with a smile on his face as Cruz interrupted him, I was told that the magicians guild could be beaten by anyone in less than five minutes... ...five minutes? What do you mean? And Ive heard that anyone could beat the guild in less than three.I said. ... I was fanning the mes, and the office head was at a loss for words. So, lets make a bet. I say three minutes, the marquis says five. I say two.Timi said. And I say one.Vi-Vi said. Even though Timi and Vi-Vi werent involved, they still followed up with even shorter times. Since we want to see how long youdst in battle, lets fight. Cruz said, with a smile all over her face. Chapter 272 – Steff vs the Guild

Chapter 272 C Steff vs the Guild

The office head was beet-red. It seems our challenge had made him quite upset. The magicians in the guild were all ring at us angrily. I didnt think the n would work this well. Are you trying to make a fool of our great GUILD?! The office head said with polite but stressed speech. It was clear he was holding back his anger. I could see his fist shaking. It was clear that he himself was somewhat of a magician. So I said to him, You were the one that mocked one of the marquis magicians, correct? What do you mean? The office head looked so surprised it was clear he wasnt trying to cover for himself. He seriously looked like he had no idea what was going on. I wont let you talk yourself out of the fact that you mocked my magician because shes a beast-human! Cruz said, and the man then seemed to realize what he had done. He returned her usation with a smile. That was not mocking. That was the truth. And I say you were mocking her! Its a historical FACT that beast-humans are worthless as magicians. You have them as members of your guild though, right? Anyone can join. Even worthless magicians are free to join the guild as they wish. Cruz stepped up and grabbed the office head by the cor. She then lifted him into the air. Ag...le...let me go! Cruz, calm down. Dont pay him any mind. Yes...please...marquis. I said, as I patted Cruz shoulder. She let him go, and he fell t on the ground. I dont know whos the small fry here, but all I hear is excuses from this one. I said, and red at the office head as best I could. Just then, two men came down from the second floor. One had white hair with a white beard, and a very expensive robe. A magicians magician. Whats all this noise!? M...master! Im sorry for the bother! The office head said, with a turn and a bow to the man. This was the grand master of the magicians guild. I knew him by his face. I wondered why he was just called master though. The other fellow I knew as well...a military general. After I helped kill the Demon Lord, he was the one that wanted me to lead the magical knights. This guy was the one I wanted LEAST to know who I was. I was really d I had covered my face. The general noticed Cruz and smiled. Well, mistress hero. Its my pleasure to see you this fine day. Its been a long time since Ive seen you, general! The master then smiled at Cruz. Well, Marquis Conradine! I appreciate youing to this fine guild. Master. I havee for a battle, as I was promised previously. A battle? The grand master had no idea what was going on. So Cruz exined what had happened up until now. The fact that the office head had mocked the magical skill of Steff, and hearing this, the grand masters brow furrowed. Why did you not tell me this, office head? Im very sorry sir. They mocked us as well, and well, I was very angry... Nothing we can do about that now...Marquis, is there any possible way that you could forgive him? If he gets on his hands and knees and apologizes to my magician Steff here. Then he had to promise never to make stupid statements like that again. But its true that beast-humans just arent good... The office head said, with an unhappy look on his face. Maybe because the master was there, he still made his case that Steff was by species a bad magician. I almost could see steaming from Cruz ears. HES SAYING IT AGAIN! B...but... The office head was still trying to make his case. He had no intention to change his view that all beast-bloods were bad magicians. Seeing this, Timi said with a sigh, My, lets just get this decided by a battle. Could you just pick a magician? ...if theyre going to go this far, then lets put the pride of the guild on the line. May we, master? The office head said...but what pride? Some strange pride he had...best to cast it to the side. The master sighed. The master general is here. All of this childish behavior... I dont mind at all...in fact, Id like to see it. ...youd like to see it? All of the capital and academy magicians say the same thing here as this office chief, after all. Hearing that, the office HEAD seemed quite satisfied. Thats correct! Itsmon knowledge among magicians. Theres no room for argument about it. I myself have had my doubts...as to whether beast blood impedes magical ability or not... Hearing this, Cruz said, Youll find out quickly in a battle. Correct. Id like to see it. The general said, and the master sighed again. If the general says so, then there is a ce where we can hold the battle, so let us go there. So we all left with him. The ce we were led to was arge area with an open roof. This area is the ancient treasure of the guild, a magical hall. The grand master said, with pride. And with the same principles as my magic bag, it was a magical area with an open top. Also, it could take any magical damage unleashed by magicians inside of it. Well, this is quite a ce. Timisoara said, impressed. It was a very striking ce. Hearing that there would be a battle, we saw magicians filter in behind us. It would be good to get as many eyes in here as possible. That way they could see who won. And in addition to those magicians that would see it, the general would see it as well. So the stage was set. Chapter 273 – Steff vs the Office Head

Chapter 273 C Steff vs the Office Head

I examined the hall as closely as I could. I noticed Vi-Vi doing the same. We wanted to know what made this magical hall so special. And after the examination, I found the ce immenselyplex. I want to check this ce inch by inch, Al. I know... Id actually pay several times my dues to examine this ce closely. However, no one in the crowd or Cruz really had interest in that. So, who will be our opponent? Cruz asked, and the master red at the office head. ...office head...you need to offer yourself as the opponent. ME, master?! What you sow, you reap... ...understood... The fellow seemed like the challenge was below him, but he also seemed like he had a lot of confidence. Then Timi looked at the guy and said, He doesnt look very strong. Are you sure this is the one we want to fight? I may not look strong, but for many years I had been the head of the dukes cadre of magicians. I think I have some experience... The duke was one of the top nobles in thend. And the fact that this guy was the head of a group of magicians meant that he was in a higher in ce than many of the royal magicians, but now, he was just a manager in the guild. But there was no doubt that he was an elite magician in the guild. Timi looked at the man suspiciously. Grand master or whoever. This guy talks like this, but you still are okay with him being the one to fight? I dont want to hear him whine when he loses. If you think the man is not strong enough, I can change him...what say you, marquis? The master and the office head looked pretty sure he would win. If he were to be refused as Steffs opponent, that would mean a loss without even battling. She had to fight him. Even so, Cruz looked over at me. Did I think that Steff had a chance to beat this guy, her eyes seemed to ask. I thought she would, and nodded. He is fine. Then he shall be the one to fight. And who will fight on your side? Of course, my beast-human magician, Steff. Cruz said, and Steff took a step forward. I walked up and whispered in Steffs ear. Steff, just do what you did yesterday. You have a good chance to win. Okay. This hall can take a lot of damage, so go at him as if you have to kill him! She gulped, then nodded. In the few minutes leading up to the battle, even more magicians filtered in. In total there were about 20 people watching. Youre never going to mock me again, office head...Ill show you! Maybe I should just burn your clothes off, girl! The office head smiled as the other magicians in the guild started to hoot and holler. Even so, the general looked over at them and said, You all. Straighten up! And with that they shrunk back. While the match was being prepared, the office head put on his robe and took in hand his staff. It was definitely a magic robe. I could see that for a worthless beast-human, Steff waspletely prepared and not ignoring any possibility. I heard the general ask the grand master in a voice too low for the office head to hear, Is this guy strong? I noticed what she said about him earlier. She must have meant Timi. He probably noticed that she had thought the magician Steff was facing was quite weak. The master and general continued, No need to worry. He is a skilled magician. However, it does seem he took a step down from his previous job to be here. It is true that three years ago he lost his job as head magician, and became the office head of this guild. So he quit being a magician? No, no...he hasnt lost his touch as a magician at all. Then why did he leave his position with the duke? The duke lives far in the north. Though his magic didnt suffer, the cold certainly weakened him. I see. It is hard for us older men to withstand the cold. You are correct. And theres no doubt that hes one of the more talented magicians in this guild. But at the grand masters words, the general again looked flummoxed. If hes that strong and the girl loses, that would mean that he was right about beast-blood hurting magical skill? It is just as you say, general. And then the grand master smiled at the general. He tried to hide his conversation and tone, but I could tell that he was mocking Steff as well. He probably was thinking that he was going to teach that brash, untoward girl Cruz a lesson. And while this was happening, the match began. The master himself began the battle, Now then, begin! And as the master did so, the office head swished his staff high in the air. He began to chant, Spirits...fire spirits...great spirit of the inferno... WHUUUMPPP! Gwaaah! In the middle of his chant, Steff shot a magic bolt at him without a chant. The mans magical robe tore in half and he was blown in the air, half-naked. The other magiciansughed at hollered at the man, and there was a hugemotion. No chant and that strong... Theres no way... Steff looked at her own hands for a second, surprised. She had probably thought about withhold her power, but she had delivered an almost fatal blow. uggh...oww...die...o. The old man was really hurt. Cruz was surprised, and asked the master, Huh? I thought that maybe youd protect this guy from magical damage... I would do that, but then ID take the pain. Ah, I get it...so does that mean Steff wins? ... The old master unhappily bit his lip. The general next to him then said, Seems that she won quite quickly. I guess it can be said that beast-blood has no affect on magic whatsoever. That was my opinion too! Cruz said with a giggle. And hearing this, the office head crawled up and got to his feet. Ive not lost... The old man said with a groan. Steff! Its not over yet! I know! She was serious. And hearing Cruz words, she let loose mercilessly with a fireball at the old office head. Gyaaaaahhhh! He burned, foamed at the mouth, and then passed out. Chapter 274 – Steff vs the Elite Magician

Chapter 274 C Steff vs the Elite Magician

The old man didnt move. He waspletely unconscious. Steff then looked worriedly at the man. Is...is he okay? Hes fine! Cruz said with a smile. You could see, even from far away, the old man was breathing. He wasnt hurt...too bad. Thats why a battle-axe like Cruz could tell he wasnt severely injured. Cruz turned to the grand master and said again, Master, so I guess Steff really has won? ...it seems so... He was a bit reluctant, but admitted that the man had lost. Congrats Steff! T...thank you very much! Cruz ran out to hug her. I, on the other hand, ran out to the office head. I checked his breathing and pulse. Vi-Vi joined me. How is he?! Just passed out. Okay. The guy screamed like he was going to hell! It sent a shiver down my spine. Yeah, if Steff killed this guy, Id have one hell of a bad conscience. Yeah, youre right. I used some magic to sprinkle cold water on the mans face. Gasp! Aaaahhhh He awoke and made a strange voice at me. Then he looked at Vi-Vis face and made another strange sound. He had awoken to a wolf and cow mask. He might have thought he was in hell. d to see youre okay! I said, a bit ironically and then we joined Cruz. She was talking happily to the grand master. That guy was an easy knock-over. You want to battle again? Well... The grand master didnt look too excited about the idea. Then, someone watching called over to the grand master, That guy WAS a great magician, but its been years since he quit as one. The grand master said that this office head hadnt lost any of his touch, though. Whoever it was was stillining about the loss. I shouted out to him, Yeah, that magician of yours was too weak. I was fanning the mes again. I could see that magician was, well...I saw his face redden. Id like you to not mock my brother in magic, the office head. He mocked one of my friends first, Im afraid. Its true what he said about beast-humans being useless magicians! It wasnt mockery! Then I guess an office head that gets beaten by one is even more a mockery! He just wasnt prepared! She attacked him in the middle of a chant! Hah hah hah. Can you make excuses like that about battle? You must have never been in a real fight. I said, and the magician suddenly ran forwards, ME AGAINST THAT BEAST-GIRL! Steff looked at me with a troubled expression. I nodded to her. Understood. I will face him. Good, beast-girl. I wont let that cowardly surprise attack happen to me! Then the next match began. No way for her to use a surprise attack. I could tell because the magician had already put up a magical barrier. With this, your attacks wont reach me! He looked at her proudly, but the barrier was thin. Any normal attack would break it. And it was small. If you attacked him from above or below, it would hit him easily. Seeing this, Steff looked troubled. She was worried it might be a trap. Vi-Vi looked at me with a frown as well, Al, Al, is that a joke? But the magicians there thought it was a big deal. Yeah! No way she can hit him now!they were saying. The general asked the grand master, Is he a very good magician? One of the best. Hes in the top ss of the young magicians. Top ss? That is something. I was thinking of rmending him soon to the capital magician staff...I hope to have your help as well. You needed very good rmendations to get into that position. You would be the top magicians of royalty. Some of the magicians would be inspectors for the royal family. Those in the capital would be the specialist inspectors for the royal family. After all, the grand and vice masters of the magical guild had all been historically the top staff of the capital magicians. The directors of the guild were always the superiors of those that were capital magicians. Also, it was the ce that many capital magicians looked for employment after retirement. Its our job to defend the country by sending our best to the capital magicians. You should thank us. Well, thanks then. While the general and grand master were talking, Steff asked, May I begin? However you want. -WHUFFFF! GyaaaaHHH!!!! She shot something that turned in the air and behind the mans magical barrier. It was a fireball that spun in the air and attacked the magician. The man was covered fire and screamed for his life. Ah, that looks painful. If the guy hadnt mocked Steff, I would have felt sorry for him. Not hot, but painful? Of course hot, but more pain than hot. Ive been hit by fireballs myself. They hurt a lot. I see... Vi-Vi nodded to herself. While we were discussing this, the elite magician fainted. Seeing this, Cruz said to the grand master, I guess this is a win too? ...youre right. He now had to ept TWO losses. The other magicians were screaming and hollering even more. I thought that guy was our strongest! What a CHEAT! What do you mean strong!? He was the guy that said that beast-girl couldnt do magic! I shouted angrily, and they all shut up. Chapter 275 – Magic Guild vs the Beast Girl

Chapter 275 C Magic Guild vs the Beast Girl

The whole hall fell silent, and the general nodded deeply. It cant be a fluke if she defeated them twice. Right! I thought so too! Cruz said with augh. She was really proud of Steff. I was d I didnt put Millet or Collette in there. These guys were WEAK. It wouldnt even be training for them. Youre so sthtrong, Sthteff! Collette said, but seemed a bit disappointed. But even so... Millet said to herself. It wasnt that Steff was strong, it was that the guild was weak. Thats what she wanted to say. And that was really bad. These magicians might be disillusioned by what it means to be a magician. Also, how great magic is and how important it is to teach it...they might have forgotten that. Cruzughed again and said to the grand master. Seems my magicians are very strong. ... He was speechless. He probably regretted the whole charade. On the other hand, Cruz was all bubbles and smiles. Then she suddenly looked at the man seriously and said, So from now on, can you all stop mocking those beast-humans? I will be sure to. The grand master had a face like he had eaten gravel. Sure to means that you will tell your students to stop picking on beast-humans? We werent exactly picking on them. But you were not rmending them to the academy and were being inhospitable, correct? Well, that was more or less at random... Even at random...make sure it never happens again. ...yes. The master said, albeit reluctantly. Even if he were to say so, ways are hard to change. But this WAS the first step. It was hard to change established prejudices. This was a good ce to start, however. So Cruz then said to the general, It is as you see. The beast magician is stronger than even the elite of the magicians guild. Correct. It is just as you say, marquis. And you will promise not to discriminate against beast blood? Its a promise. We have to do it for our kingdom. Thank you, general! The fact this general said it was quite a feat. He must have really taken notice from what happened in this battle. The general then said to the grand master with a serious face, You said that you were going to rmend him for the capital magicians... He pointed at the fallen magician. Well, uh...he must have been sick. He really was one of our elites... Is that so? The general said with a devilish grin, but his eyes werentughing. Do you think that the guild could rmend HER to the capital magicians? Well... She seems to have more than enough ability. The nation needs magicians like that girl Steff like it needs bars of gold. But... The grand master was now sweating, and holding his answer. The general now looked at him coldly. Is there a problem? You said youd have no problem rmending a beast-human as a magician any longer. Of...of course...however...she hasnt been to the academy... Hearing this, Cruz said, She entered and took the test, but was told that since she was of beast-blood that she was unable to attend. Well, it seems that the world of wizards is quite a cruel one. How rude... Yes, enough to be said damaging to the kingdom. I could tell that the general really loved the kingdom. His decision was only about whether things helped or harmed the kingdom. I think that we may have to rethink the guilds role in the kingdom. The general said, in an icy voice. Then he turned and began to walk away. W...wait a second! What is it? The grand master entreated himself to the general. You could see him ready to make excuses. The general listened to him impatiently. Just then, in a loud voice, the whole hall shook. MASTER GENERAL! Its been a long time! ...ah, yes, yes it has... There was a young man standing there in a robe. He looked to be in histe 20s. It was a much more borate magical robe than even the office heads. And this guy looked like he had good magical defense. The general looked a bit unsettled at the man. What are you doing here? I am also one of the guild. At least I have a membership. And? I thought I heard something interesting was happening her, so I showed up. Its over. Go home. Cold as usual, general. Then the manughed. Then the man noticed Cruz. Ah! The hero! Its been a while! He then knelt before her. He then reached up, took Cruzs hand, and went to kiss it. She pped his hand away and red at him. Who?! How cold! I met you at one of the nobles parties a while ago. I dont remember. Too bad. But the man didnt really look like he minded. The general then furrowed his brow. Youre being very rude to our hero. Then I sincerely apologize. If youre done here, you may leave. I cant just do that. If I did, the general might go away with a bad image of the magicians guild. And perhaps it is your attitude that seems to create that image? How strict of a man you are, general! He said with augh. Then the mans eyes glimmered and fell into a squint. Not all here in the guild are weak. And I will show you that! The grand master was smiling again. Then he said to Cruz, Onest match? Could I ask for that? It seems that the grand master had trusted his guild to this mans strong charisma. Chapter 276 – The Magic Lord vs Baron Barthel

Chapter 276 C The Magic Lord vs Baron Barthel

I had no idea who this proud fellow was. No idea. Then Cruz asked the General, Who is that guy? You met him once before... I know that, sorry for forgetting. No, its no matter. You probably met hundreds of people after the death of the Demon Lord. The general said with a smile. So he continued with an introduction. Hes the new leader of the magical knights, Baron Barthel. Madamoiselle Hero, it is my pleasure to make your acquaintance. Baron Barthel bowed once again to Cruz. Even though he only looked to be in his 20s, if he was in charge of the magical knights, he must be quite the magician. Or maybe his family were just nobles. Nice to meet you. These magical knights...theyre under yourmand, general? Yes they are. They have a bit of an attitude, but they are very strong. Theyre the strongest magical warriors of all my magicians. Hmm...thats interesting. Even though theyre the top graduates of the academy, they decided to enter the army and not the pce magicians. Is that so? And with that, Cruz finally looked at Baron Barthel with a bit of interest. Why did you join the army? I wasnt interested in the pce. I wanted to use my magic for battle, and I wanted to travel. You should have be an adventurer. I wanted to be one, but my family did not allow me. He was the son of a baron, so they rejected his request to be an adventurer. Then he bowed once more to Cruz, I have a request. Since your magician strongly defeated the guilds magician, you were able to defend your honor. I guess... With that in mind, to defend the honor of the guild, could you give me one request? You would like to fight my magician Steff? Im afraid to say so. I see. With that, Cruz looked at me. I shook my head. This Baron Barthel looked far stronger than the others. I thought that there was no way that Steff could win. After seeing me shake my head, Cruz nodded. Steff is tired from already being through two battles. And with that, she refused the match. Anyone else is fine. Oh, really? Yes. Id like to show the guilds ability against any magician under you. Weellllll... Cruz looked at me. I would blow this guy away. Seemed kind of unfair. The leader of the magical knights. In other words, the guy who took the ce I was asked to fill by the general. (back in chapter 2) Since I didnt take the job, this guy was probably working his hardest to do the job. He saw Cruz look over to me, and asked, Is he a magician of yours? ...that is correct. I am sorry to inquire, but Steff or him...who do you think is stronger? Master is FAR stronger than me! Steff shouted at him. Well, thats fascinating. Then I would definitely ask for a battle. Understood. One will be enough. When I answered, calls came out from the guilds crowd. Baron Barthel! Show him whats what! Show our guilds strength! Hearing that, the Baron snorted with pride. He was being cheered on, but didnt look too proud about it. You seem quite popr. Yes, but I was mocked by these fellows when I said I wanted to join the army. And with that, heughed again. Seems like he was seen as a weirdo even in the guild. So, at the grand masters direction, the next match began. No need to take much time. So the Baron guy attacked me first. He possibly didnt understand that if he attacked me that quickly, I could have knocked him out immediately. But if that were so, then the others could say that I cheated, just like they did with Ste. I should take my time and let them clearly see what a real offense looks like. So I defended against his attacks. It was true that he was quite stronger than the fellows Steff faced. He was in the army, so he had to fight against many magic beasts. And that gave him skill. He might have beaten Steff. After blocking the attacks, I waited until the Baron ran out of things to throw at me. I attacked him with magic bolts then. He, of course, tried to block this, but he took it straight and it knocked him out. Then they all saw the difference in magical power. All the magicians were watching closely and shouting, Dont just lose! A disgrace to the guild! I couldnt take hearing it. I turned to them all and said, Listen! Do you have any guts if youre going to mock him for fighting me? They all fell silent. No one said a thing. You can alle at me AT ONCE? .. Again, nothing. You are all just mouth and no action. Arent you embarrassed? Youre the disgraceful ones! ...dont you mock us! All 20 of the magicians attacked me at once. I burned all their faces with fireballs. If I had shot any stronger ones, it might test the limits of this battle hall. So I was very careful with them. Too weak against fireballs, I guess. They were too weak. Because of that, no one passed out. I just grilled their faces a bit, made them scream. Just a normal amount of wrenching pain. I had to make sure I wasnt killing any of them though. So I extinguished the fireballs and checked. Everyone was alive. The hall was intact too. Very strong. You all are too weak against fireballs. They finished you off without even you being able to attack again. They were all heavily injured. I didnt want them to go through too much pain, though. Maybe it was better if they passed out. So I cast magical fire in ayer several feet over all of them again. It was enough that it didnt damage anything, but the fire burned hotter and hotter over them. And after a bit, they were all passed out. Okay then. Then I went back to the others. Moofy looked at me happily and came close. Moo moo You beasts did a great job holding back. Wuff ryaa ryaa I patted them all, and Cruz said, If Moofy or Femm went crazy, this whole building would be thrashed. Moo moo Of course it would. After seeing everything, the grand master whispered, What a horrible...terrible...tragedy... Then the master looked at me with eyes of abject fear. Chapter 277 – Magic Lord and Master

Chapter 277 C Magic Lord and Master

The grand master shook, and began to groan, You beat them all, no mercy, burned them twice... He probably didnt realize that I didnt want them to feel the pain from their injuries. I had to tell him why I did what I did. Its better that way. If they lose consciousness, they dont feel the pain, thats why I used fire twice. I didnt intend for them to suffer for long. Even though they were all trash magicians, there was no reason to let then incinerate them like it while still conscious. Because Im a kind magician. ...are you telling me, that you think that was the correct punishment in that case.... No, I just didnt want them to suffer... ...like that... He looked even more scared. I think he was mistaken...I mean, I try to be a nice magician. When I tried to make an excuse for what I did, Cruzughed and said, Alra, what a hall this is! Yeah, it is quite a magical ce. I was in front of the grand master, so I tried to sound polite. Grand master, how much do you think this hall can take? Well, I havent tried to take it to its limits...so I guess I dont know... He shivered a bit as he answered Cruz, I see...do you know, Alra? What its limits are? If I make a mistake testing it, well all probably die. No...I mean if you can adjust fire like you did, it should be easy, right Alra? Well, its not that I cant do it... It would be really bad to do that though, and Cruz was a bit strange for bringing such a topic up. I looked over, and the grand master was eyeing me as if I were some kind of demon. I knew this old guy was mistaking me for some demon-spawn magician. Maybe if I challenged and fought him, I could show him how kind I was. Would you like to challenge me, grand master? Wha?! He jolted. His shaking became even more severe. He was probably trembling from excitement. He was a warrior magician back in the day. I probably reignited some fighting spirit lingering inside of him.. If you battle against me, I promise to use my power well, grand master. Not all my power, I didnt say that. Thats ...absurd. You remember how to use battle magic though, right? No...even if I fight..pared to you, Alra... The grand master was covered in a cold sweat. Hah hah hah, youre just being humble. Please, just one battle. Aaaabsurd. Compared to you...Alra... You were once a capital magician, right? Youre one of the very best! No! No! Thats absurd. Im just a rubbish magician. Rubbish? Why did he refer to himself as something so low? His voice was trembling and small. I could barely hear it. So I got closer to him in order to hear better. I couldnt hear you grand master. What? Rubbish? Eeep! He swallowed deeply. His face was pale. Are you okay? You look so pale. Iiiiiiiim fine... Why did you say rubbish? MMmmmmmeeee? Bbbbecause Im rubbish. Wha? Even though Immmm rubbish...Im not burnable rubbish, okay? So please...dont burn me. I had no idea what he was talking about. Possibly it was an inside joke. So...youre saying youre unburnable rubbish? Noooo...if I were to go against you...I would be easy to burn...nnnno doubt. Wha? I mean...used metaphorically. A metaphor? He then took a knee and began to beg forgiveness. Almost like a cult follower asking his master for repentance. Kind of scary. A man of rubbish like me allowing one of your disciples to be mocked... If youre apologizing for that...well, I appreciate it. I apologize! From the bottom of my heart! So dont turn a man of rubbish into burnable rubbish...please! I never thought someone could apologize this much. But hearing it this sincerely really makes you understand. I didnt know what he meant by burnable rubbish, but it still connected to me. He had apologized for insulting my beast-human disciple. I was happy with that. However, that was separate from a battle. Even so, master, would you like a battle? He mouth opened and closed unconsciously. Well, I dont feel well today. When you get better, maybe some other day? I...I... It doesnt have to be tomorrow, maybe the next day, or next week? Please, no more. Hepletely refuse me, so I wondered why. Then, I remembered. Maybe this hall is not strong enough? Y...YES! If thats the case, why not another ce then?? Well, thats not the problem... Maybe at your ce of residence? Eeep! He then gulped deeply again. ...f...forgive me! What? I have children and grandchildren! Why was he bringing that up all the sudden? What does that have to do with anything? I...I just... Are you saying that theyd like to see the battle too? N...no! Not at ALL! Just forgive me! He got on his hands and knees and began to beg me. I never thought the apologies would go this far. I walked to him and grabbed his shoulder to lift him up. Master...please look at me. Eeep! The second I grabbed his shoulder, he shrieked, foamed at the mouth and fainted. Chapter 278 – Al’s Dues

Chapter 278 C Als Dues

Even though I didnt use any magic, the guy had foamed at the mouth and fainted...not normal. Maybe he was very ill. He probably wasnt lying about feeling bad. Emergency! Call a healer! I shouted, and a healer came quickly. One had been there for the battle. The healer checked over the grand master, and I asked, What is it? Fainting. A sickness? No, just fear. The healer said with a serious face. Huh? What does that mean? I was troubled by the healers answer, and Cruz said, Youre really good at scaring others, Alra! I learned a lot! I didnt try to scare... You looked at the guy like you were thinking, ILL BURN YOUR FACE TOO! or something! Vi-Vi said...but I wasnt trying to scare the guy. And thatst part, where you were basically saying, Ill burn you in front of your children and grandchildren...WOW! Timi said with her hand on my shoulder. ryaa Shiggy said, and then flew over to me. I looked around me quickly, and the general was gone. Where did the general go? He grabbed Baron Barthels body and left. It was because Baron Barthel was an important man in his army. I didnt think I injured him, but the general might have wanted to make sure hes okay. Timi nodded and said, If the general just silently left, he was probably pretending like none of this happened. It was bad enough you threatened the grand master, but even worse that a supposed great magician like the grand master could be threatened. Cruz said with augh. I waited until he awoke, and wanted to speak to him, but the healer stopped me. As long as youre around...theres no assurance that this man may not die... Thats not true, I thought. But I guess I should listen to the healer. So I went home from the magicians guild. As I was going home, I went by the receptionist, and told Cruz and the others to go ahead without me. Then I asked the receptionist. I wanted to ask about a beast-human magician that can summon nature spirits. Um...a beast-human magician that can summon nature spirits? If theres any report of one, please send a report to marquis Conradines pce, please. Understood. The receptionist said with a bored reply. I really wish I got a better response. I had no idea whether I would get any response, so I decided to make an appeal to the grand master. Please tell the grand master that Alra sends his best regards. I will tell him. And if he knows anything about that a beast-human magician, to send it here. I gave the receptionist a paper with Cruz address on it. Youd like it sent there, then? The receptionist said with a bit of a scowl. Seems like she was getting angry. Its true that I was asking for information to be delivered if I could juste hereter and get it myself. Excuse my rudeness. I simply meant if anything important was found. Ill be sure toe by this guild periodically to check. I think it will take some time, though? No problem. Ill be back to check until something is found. Sure... The receptionist was wondering why did I want such information so badly... Like this, she was just going to put the request aside forter. No, she probably wouldnt even check. There was no way she was going to get information from some person just off the street. If it were the adventurers guild, you would have to offer a reward. Maybe I should give her something. Ah...I needed to pay my fees! Ah, also, I have something from an Alfred Lint...that hes given me to give to you. I said, and put 30 coins of gold on the counter. Whats this for? A payment of 15 years of missed payments to the guild from Alfred Lint. A payment of 15 years of missed fees is quite a bit less, I think. The girl looked a bit troubled by the thought of having to calcte it. I had basically paid 30 years of fees or so. Well, consider the remainder a payment for trouble, Mr. Lint wanted me to tell you. I see...thank you. Then I put five more coins on the counter. And heres payment for 15 more years of fees. Understood. I will process the payment. Thank you. And if the search for the beast-human magician that can summon nature spirits takes money, I am will to pay that as well. Understood. Then I left the guild building. I walked out and Cruz was waiting for me outside. She was talking to the general. Baron Barthel wasnt there. Miss Hero. I have something to ask you... Wha? Im a bit busy... I realize that...I have something important, pleasee with me. He bowed deeply over and over, so it was hard for her to refuse. She nce over at me. It would be the worst if the general had found out who I really was. And since Cruz already knew, he was probably trying to get it out of her. I dont have a lot of time right now... It wont take a second. It was REALLY hard for her to refuse that. Cruz also had considerations as a ruler, so she had to listen to him at least a little. Miss Marquis. If the general would like to speak with you, then at least give him some time. If you say so, Alra... Thank you, Miss... He bowed deeply to Cruz. I was surprised at how short the man was. General, where should we speak. Anywhere where this can be kept secret...but Id like to avoid the ministry of defense. Cruz then looked at me. If they went to the ministry of defense, Baron Barthel would be waiting. And that would make for a bad atmosphere. Okay, well, how about my pce? Fine, fine! So we all headed out towards Cruz pce. Chapter 279 – The General’s Story

Chapter 279 C The Generals Story

We entered her pce and walked to the waiting room. The maids ran up to us in a fluster. The only guests up to now had been Luka and Yureena, neither of which needed much care from the maids. Then were was Femm and Moofy from Mulg. But this time it was the general. A politician. You had to hurry. Please get some tea for the general. Dont bother. Even though the general said so, the maids still got everything prepared. The presented him with tea and snacks to go with it. They did a very good job in putting the food together quickly. I could tell that Steff and Millet were both nervous. The general was such a weighty person, speaking to a ruler like Cruz. We had no idea what the general wanted to talk about. But I noticed that the others were a bit nervous as we knew it was out of the ordinary. Steff and you others can rx in the other room. Cruz said to the others. Oh, okay... Steff and Millet went to the other room. Then the general stopped them. This conversation concerns Steff as well. Really? Yes. If the general says that, then Steff had to stay. She nervously sat in a chair. Cruz sat in the back of the room, with the general across a table. Millet and Steff sat on the left and right of the table. Timi and Vi-Vi sat outside the room, both watching it with interest. I just tried to be unnoticeable, behind Cruz, in the very back of the room. Shiggy was in my pouch, and Femm and Moofy were on each side. Femm was sitting properly, while Moofy was lightly chomping on my hand. Collette was lost as whether to sit next to her sister or Vi-Vi. Cruz said to Collette, Collette,e here. Sthure! Collette then sat on Cruz knees. Then Cruz asked the general, General, what did you want to talk about? By putting Collette on her knees meant that Cruz was showing this was an unofficial conversation. But it was still an important one. It was a hard conversation to refuse if it concerned Cruz realms contribution to the kingdom. Thats why she had prepared tea and some time to hear the conversation out. She was a great ruler, and she had studied her position well. There was nothing she wasnt prepared for. The maids brought more tea, left the room, and the general spoke. Ill be very direct. Id like to find a position in the defense ministry for Steff. Oh, so now youre aiming for my cab members? Thats some request, general. Then Cruzughed to herself. I guess she was making a joke at the generals expense. Just then, Timi opened her mouth. Since this was an informal meeting, Timi interrupted, asking, Are you going to fight the general too? That would be fun. You can ask my help. Timi said with augh herself. She was joking as well, or maybe keeping the situation in check. Dont be absurd. I apologize if I broke the mood. If you refuse, of course I will withdraw the request. He bowed again deeply to her. He didnt want to make an enemy out of her. He was a politician and quite smart in judgment. He then nced at Timi and back at Cruz. Who is that girl, he was probably wondering in the back of his mind. When he looked back at Cruz, it was with a look that requested introduction. No problem. Timi said with augh. General, that is the noble Timisoara. She is an aunt to a baroness of the ancient dragons. My...I apologize for not introducing myself earlier! He stood, turned to Timi, and bowed deeply. Dont worry about it. Im not here as dragon baroness, more as a friend to Cruz. Saying that, sheughed again. Cruz ignored the conversation and looked at Steff. What do you want to do, Steff? I wasnt expecting to work in the capital. I see, well, general, theres your answer. I see...too bad. Then he looked at Millet. I see that this elven girl is also an aplished magician? No, Im just studying magic in the country. How humble. If youd like to join us in the capital, I could pay you this for a months services. And with that, the general was offering arge payment for her to work in the military. It was a payment ten times what a cksmith would make in the capital. Magicians made quite a bit of money. No, I wasnt thinking of joining the military. I see. Too bad. If you change your mind, please let me know. He said, and then turned to me, What about you, Alra? No, Im pretty much retired. I could get you your own squad of magical knights, Alra. The general said with augh. And I smiled back. I had already been offered the position by him after the death of the Demon Lord. I guess he might have known who he was talking to after all. The general turned back to Cruz. I apologize for Baron Barthels actions today. No need to worry. Even so, its surprising that he left the guild for such a position. There are others that want to lead the magical knights, but for the moment, this fellow is the best at leading them. I see... Yes.. I was getting nervous as to when the general would finally say he knew who I was. However, he never did. He also had no intention of endlessly prodding the girls to join him in the capital. His purpose might have simply been to make a good rtionship between him and Cruz. He promised to contribute this and that over and over to her realm, then left. After he left, Cruz said, Why did he evene here? No idea. Even though he probably noticed who I was, he didnt pursue it. I think with that, he was trying to get a favor. That might be a little scarier than him revealing he knew who I was. And with that, I went back to Mulg. As we went to the transport circles, the maids came running, Miss Cruz, a messenger from the magicians guild! Huh? What is it? I waited until I met the messenger before going back to Mulg. Chapter 280 – Messenger from the Guild

Chapter 280 C Messenger from the Guild

The maids brought the messenger into the waiting room. We had all gone back to the room as well. Marquis Conradine. Thank you for allowing me to meet you. The messenger from the magicians guild then bowed deeply. He was a good sized, middle-aged man. He introduced himself politely. He was a secretary to the grand master of the guild. What is it? Yes, there was a request given to us... A request? Cruz looked puzzled. About a beast-human that could summon and use nature spirits... It was my request. I whispered to Cruz, I made that request on the way back here. Ahah! She made a strange sound and put her hand over her ear. She was blushing. That tickled! Sorry... I apologized, and Cruz smiled again, embarrassed, and then looked at the secretary. Ah, a search...was it hard? No, not at all. Well, did it take any expenses? If they came this early, that might mean that they needed funding to follow up some leads. At least thats what Cruz thought. No, not at all. And with that, the secretary took some papers from his bag. What are these? A list of beast-humans in the guild. All...all of them? Yes. We opened the papers, and Cruz said, Wow, that was a quick response. It was an urgent request from my master. The grand master might have done it as part of the apology...at least it felt like it. Okay...thank you. No need for thanks. This helps a lot... The secretary bowed deeply. I am d that you think so. Even from now, the guild promises to aid you in your search, no matter the cost. T...thanks? Thats a lot of passion. Cruz was a bit lost. However, it may take more time. Time? However! However, were not taking this search slowly. Theres the problem of the distance of all our branch offices, and the information involved, so the time... Ah, I understand. We do appreciate that deeply. As do we. I didnt think youd break your backs to find this person for us, it makes me happy. The marquis happiness is the guilds happiness. The secretary was ttering Cruz up and down...and it seemed there might be an ulterior reason...which was a bit scary. Well be providing you an update on our progress daily, marquis, and... Wait, no! Ille to you guys. Cruz said, and the secretary shook his head a bit over-enthusiastically. NO! WE CANNOT ALLOW IT! Wed very much like to provide the information to you daily! But, its a bother. Pleeeease! Allow us! He got on his knees and bowed deeply to her. We understand that you may even request the grand master himself to deliver the information in person, and are prepared to do so! No...no need for that. Its just that the grand masters health is bad... I see. We can visit him and wish him health, if... NO! NO NEED! The secretary repeated himself, Well report to you everyday, and report, so please pardon our transgressions... What are you...okay... Thank you very much! Well, sometimes Im not here, so... Then well simply deliver a report to you daily. That would help. Thank you very much! He bowed over and over and then returned. After he left, I said to Cruz, The guild certainly dug all of this up quickly. They really worked their butts off! ryaa ryaa! Shiggy stood on the list of names and seriously looked down on the list and studied it. I think that grand masters really scared of you, Al. Huh? Why do you think so? The politeness, and the face that they basically told us not toe back to the guild. I guess youre right. So what did you say when you made this request? I thought back and nothing I said seemed very strange. I just made a normal request, and paid myte fees. You didnt tell them youde every day? Not every day, but I said Ide by periodically. And regarding the grand master? That I sent my best regards. I knew it. Vi-Vi nodded to herself. Cruz looked confused. Vi-Vi, what is it? I think the grand master thought that Al would show every day until the guild provided him with the information. I see. That is scary. He fainted because of Al, after all. Cruz nodded to herself too. Vi-Vi exined the whole thing to me. The grand master was so scared of me, he fainted. When he woke up, the receptionist gave him the request from me. And until he answered it, Id return every day to the guild. He was so frightened, he probably passed out again. The grand master DID NOT want to see me ever again. So he made the special request and the guild put all of its power into searching for the beast-human magician. At least, thats my theory! Well, I am happy that theyre on the case... They totally didnt get that Im a GENTLE magician. I mean, it was convenient...but I felt some mixed emotions about being perceived that way. Chapter 281 – Daily Life after the Guild Battle

Chapter 281 C Daily Life after the Guild Battle

After the messenger returned, Cruz said, Well, now that we have time, want to do some sightseeing? I want to sthee! Meee! Collette said while jumping around. Millet and Vi-Vi looked a bit excited too. Id like to see around the capital as well! Timi said. However, Steff was the only one that looked unhappy. Are you tired, Steff? No, Im fine. Ill go. I thought that shed want to go the most. But if she was tired, she should rest. She could see the capital anytime. Im tired from the battle, so Im headed back to Mulg. Well, Ill go with you, master. Whaaa? Youre noting Al? Darn... Cruz looked disappointed. Ill go with youter, Cruz. And I patted her on the head. Then, Timi said to me, Shiggy, why note with auntie? ryaaa Shiggy said, and then buried herself in my pouch. Shes noting... She might be tired too? I see, then well go. Well, if you buy Shiggy a souvenir, shell be happy. Youre right! Timi was back to high spirits again. She petted Shiggy over my pouch. Auntie will get you a souvenir, okay?! ryaa ryaa Yeah, just you wait! Cruz, Millet, Collette, Vi-Vi, and Timi all went sightseeing. Steff, the beasts, and I went home. When we got back to the vige, Steff went to a room. She was almost walking while sleeping. I went with the beasts back to my guardpost. I mean, I just sat at the entrance to the vige. After a while, the storage shack door opened. Chelnobok came bouncing out. PigGGi! Oh, Chel, did youe from the vige? PigGPiggi! Seemed to be the case. Chel was always going theretely. It felt that it had to help. Whenever Chel got near me, it would always go up on my knee. Then it would jiggle. I pet the slime. It was slippery and jiggled, but not unpleasant. Shiggy peaked out of my pouch and then jumped on Chel. How is the vige? Good. No problems? Have food and wood! Well, good to hear. ThnaksThanx! Even with all the huge snowfall, Chels vige was still going strong. It was good to hear. It seems that the blizzard didnt seriously hurt anyone in Cruz realm either. Probably because she reacted so quickly. What Steff? Oh, she battled someone at the magicians guild. Oh. Chel wanted to ask about what happened at the magicians guild. While Chel was on my knees, I told it about what happened. Femm and Moofy just sat next to me and listened. PiggGGiPiggII! Chel excitedly listened and reacted to my story. So, I told the guild to give me any reports they had about the Jack Frost magician. Pigg! And because of Steffs hard work, it all turned out okay. wOWW. It wasnt a huge deal though. As we were talking about it, Cruz came over. Al, Im back! Oh, Cruz, did you have fun? Timi came running too. Sighisoara! I brought your souvenir! ryaa ryaa! It seems that the souvenir she bought was a pack of different candies. They all looked good. I thought this when I went to the dragon pce, but dragons have good sense of snacks and candies. They must have a sweet tooth. We had fun, old man! d to hear. Collette came running up, waiting to be picked up, so I picked her up. It was great they all had such fun in the capital. From then I worked as a guard again, and taught my disciples magic. They were bing very good, so I felt there was benefit in me teaching them. ryaa ryaa ryaa! And as I taught them, Shiggy imitated them, so I began teaching Shiggy as well. She was still a baby though, so I didnt teach anything hard. I did teach the magic exercises. I didnt know what effect it would have though. Chel also jiggled wanting me to teach it magic as well. So I taught Moofy and Femm as well. They all wanted to learn magic. And during that, the reports kepting from the guild. They were quite detailed. It was dinner, a week after the battles. We were all in the middle of my house. It was to organize all the information that we got from the church, adventurers guild, and magicians guild. It was the heros party of Cruz, Luka, and I. The elven sisters, Millet and Collete. Vi-Vi, Vallimie, and Timisoara. Of course, Shiggy, Femm, Moofy, Chelnobok, as well. We began talking, and Luka was the first to do so. We have A LOT of information. This might be the ce with the most information in the world about beast-human magicians. That much? I cant wait! Vi-Vi said, while petting Moofy. But Luka shook her head. The problem is what we dont know, even with all this information. She said, with a dark look on her face. Chapter 282 – Nature-Summoning Search Party

Chapter 282 C Nature-Summoning Search Party

Vi-Vi looked at Luka with a question on her face, What do you mean, what we DONT know? No one knows anything about a beast-human that could summon spirits to create a blizzard. Hm? Vi-Vi again looked quite puzzled. I asked Luka, We cant find a candidate for who did it? No. Theres no candidate at all. Theres no record of any beast-human can call up nature spirits? Not one. Adventurers Guild. Church. Magicians Guild. It was hard to think that all three of those organizations had no record of anything. Cruz was thinking the matter over with a serious face. Maybe someone hiding their powers? I thought that myself, but theres also the logic that they couldnt. Well, for one, theres the fact that only a few beast-humans would be able to summon spirits. After searching through the records, there was only very serious magicians that could. In addition, they only used nature spirits as back-up in their magic. And they all could only summon the weakest spirits as back-up. It seems the chance to find this spirit-summoner were being crushed. If hes hiding from the adventurers guild, magicians guild, and church, then we have to search ourselves. Yeah. Luka agreed with my opinion. The magician guild gave us a report on those that had registered in the guild. However, the adventurers guild and church hadnt done just that. They had witness reports, rumors and the like included in their reports as well. Youd think theyd have some reports included. If there was nothing included in all those reports, that would mean whoever it is can hide their abilities excellently. Timi looked at me seriously, and said, In other words, maybe its NOT a beast-human?! Maybe the nature spirit mistook who it was? Cruz said, but it wasnt just the spirit girl that had said it. The greater nature spirits had said it was a beast human as well, I think. I guess youre right. Good job, Al. Cruzplimented me. But, Luka then said, It wasnt the greater spirits as well. Only the greater spirits said it was a beast human. The spirit girl only told us what the greater spirits said. After Luka said that, I remembered what had happened back then. Its true thats what had happened. Thanks for reminding me, Luka. I think youre right about it. Her reputation as an academic proceeded her. She had excellent memory. I think that was exactly what happened. ryaa ryaa Timi and Shiggy both agree to it as well. The only thing the spirit girl said was that the summoner WASNT human. But since the spirit girls said she couldnt deny anything the greater spirits were saying, it might be a beast-human, right? Cruz argument might be most correct. But then Luka replied, I dont think that the spirit girl could really tell the difference between humans. I see. I should have had her draw a picture. I said, and Timi and Luka both nodded. After all, Cruz asked from that, but she never did. Id like to ask that spirit girl one more time... Then Cruz asked me, Al, can you summon her again? No, its impossible. Completely outside my field. I could only summon the weakest of spirits. I might be able to summon a greater spirit if I studied over a month. However, a spirit lord like that girl? It would take over half a year. Impossible for someone like Al? What about you, Vi-Vi and Vallimie? No way...what about you big sis? No way. How about you, Timi? If youre fine with any spirit lord...I might be able to. Wow, thats amazing. Iplimented Timi and she blushed a bit. It may take time...and I have some things I need! Even so...wow. A magical system that dragons use? Exactly. Shiggy jumped from my pouch and flew to Timi. ryaa ryaa Oh, you want me to teach you, Sighisoara? ryaa There was no way I could teach Shiggy dragon magic, after all. I was d that Timi was there to do it. Timi petted Shiggy and said, If I have time and materials, I can summon one, but I may not be able to call the exact nature lord. Without the one that saw the magician, though, it would be pointless. Wow, it sounds hard now. I remembered the spirit lord, and I touched the cor that was around her neck. Id like to see her again. Right?! We said wed see her again, so maybe nows the time. I hope so. We were talking it over, and the cor that I was holding began to glow. Al, whats that light?! Hm, somethings happening! I felt what energy was radiating from the cor. It was more nature spirit than magic... I have no idea... It became brighter and brighter. Luka looked worried. A...are you okay?! It doesnt feel evil. After a second of it glowing, I was covered in light. EEP! At the same time, the spirit girl appeared. Chapter 283 – Spirit Nymph Reunion

Chapter 283 C Spirit Nymph Reunion

The nymphish spirit girl looked around her. Then she saw me and smiled. She came to hug me. Eep eepp! Nice to see you again, spirit. Nice to see. The nymph was happy to see me, it seems. The others that had met her before were Cruz and Luka. Also, Shiggy and Timi... All the others saw her for the first time. So I introduced all the others to the nymph, Nice to meet you. The spirit lord nodded as it met all of them. All the people meeting her were quite nervous. Sthpiritdy...hello! Eeep Collette didnt really care. She grabbed the spirits right hand and shook it. The spirit nymph was about Collettes height. It seems she really liked her too. Moo moo PiigGGi Eeep Moofy tried to nuzzle the nymph, with Chel riding on top. The spirit lord left my arms and pet the two beasts. ryaa ryaa! Eeep eppp! Shiggy was happy to see the nymph again. She flew onto the nymphs head and pped away. ryaa Eeep! Luka stepped close to me. Then she looked over the cor closely. This cor was made to summon the spirit... Seems so. Cruz ran up to the spirit. She patted her on the head. Im d I got to see you, spirit girl! Eep! After that, she said, So that cor is the catalyst? Kind of like that huge spirit stone? Not a catalyst? It might be more like a key that unlocks our world. I see. I dont understand well, but Im d to see the spirit girl again. Eep! The nymphs wings on her back fluttered. They were transparent and beautiful. I guess this is how she showed she was happy. Kind of like how Femm wags its tail. When I looked over to Femm, it was in the corner shaking and nervously looking at me. Femm had to be the most nervous of all of them. Whenever a very strong entity appeared, Femm would always react like this. Not paying attention to Femm, the spirit looked up at me. What. You figured it had some use quickly, huh? Please...bangle...touch I guess that it was a magic tool used to summon her when you wanted to see her. I didnt know what the bangle was for, but I would check it outter. I have something to ask you. I know. I tell. Thank you. I was happy she was here to help. We were trying to find out who summoned you before. Understood. The greater spirits said that there was a beast-human, but what did you thin. I not know humans. I see. So you wont know what type of human it would be. Agree. The spirit responded, and looked at Femm. When I grabbed the bangle, the spirit suddenly moved to Femm. Wuff! Femm noticed the spirit getting closer and jumped. It stood from its sitting position. Eeep eep The spirit petted Femm. She seemed to like Femm. Seeing this all going on, Luka asked, You said that if you met the person that summoned you before, youd know...can you still do that? Can. In other words, she remembered the persons face. Hearing this, Luka took a pen and paper from her bag. Could you draw the person for us, please? Understand. She took the pen and underhandedly squeezed her four fingers around the pen. It was clear that she wasnt good with holding pens. Eeep eep eep eeep eepp Done. Thank you. The spirit proudly showed her picture to Luka. Luka took it, and looked it over closely. The spirit looked at me, Bad. Not know? Yeah, we dont know who the person is? Beast-human? Its true the greater spirits said it was. However, we could find no beast-human that matches that description. Mystery, mystery. Yes, exactly. As we talked it over, Luka finished looking at the picture and said, I dont think this is a beast-human. What? What did you find out? I think? She said with a smile. Chapter 284 – The Picture She Drew

Chapter 284 C The Picture She Drew

Everyone was looking at Luka. It was a picture that if you said was good wouldnt be simple ttery. What is it? Take a look. Luka showed the picture while pointing to it and exining. I want you to look at this. Hmmm? Everyone looked closely. It was like a childs picture. Then, Yureena said, Its cute. Yeah. Cruz replied. Dont worry about that, look here. Beast ears... Vi-Vi said, after looking closely. It was true that the face had two triangr ears growing for its head. I can see why the greater spirits had said that it was a beast human. Those are important, but here too. Luk then pointed between the beast ears. What is that, bed hair? No, horns. Timi pointed this out after Cruz thought it was bed hair. I see...horns. Cruz nodded as thement. So does that mean a devil? Maybe... Wait a second. But devils dont have beast ears. Vi-Vi said, defiantly. Cruz crossed her arms and thought. A rare devil then? What do you think, Vallimie? Ive never seen one. Neither of you have seen anyone like that... So the best person to ask in this case was Luka. Luka, what do you think? Maybe the child of a devil and beast-human? Hm? That was a very rare breed...but not impossible. Luka, in that case, would they be a devil? Or a beast-human? As in ssification? Or as in their species under thew? Both... I wanted to know the answer to Vi-Vis question myself. Everyone did. Luka looked the picture again. I guess that biologically, it would just be the child of devil and beast-human parents. The characteristics from each parent express themselves differently though. I see. The government species ss depends on region. What about Mulg? Millet answered. I think there would be no registry in Mulg. Really, why not? Cruz looked confused. Well, you know, the ruler before you didnt like devils, right? Yeah. So in the registration, if you report that you are part devil, you get in trouble. I see. Did the old ruler specifically say something? A ruler wants to know poption andborers, right? If you dont the guy, hes not going to know, right? You dont ask either, Cruz. Youre right. Cruz seemed to understand. Since youre the ruler now, if you want to ask, you very much could. No, no need to! Too tedious! Thanks. Mulg was a vige that cast-outs had made for themselves, after all. Because of that, no one wanted to record where they came from. Yureena asked Luka, Hey, does the adventurer guild record species? I wonder... You can identify yourself in the guild. You could call yourself a beast-human or devil. We could record both as well. I see. My life as an adventurer was a long one, but I didnt know about that system. Yureena, what about church? We register both parents. The religion is the main registration, but we do record the species of both parents. Many of the species had different beliefs, after all. That was the reason for their system. Cruz then said, So whats the system for the magicians guild? When you were in there Al, did you note if their recorded species? I tried to remember, but that was 15 years ago. Maybe or maybe not. How about you, Steff? I did. I see. Then thats it. Luka nodded seriously. Theres a possibility that the person registered as devil if they were going to get picked on for being beast-human. Right. Cruz, Id like you to go and get information on any registered devil that had abilities in natural spirits. Leave it to me. Then Vi-Vi said to Cruz, Dont go directly, we should ask the guy that brings reports. Or else people will get scared. Whaa? Als the one that scared others. Vi-Vi and Cruz both said while snickering. Whatever, Im a kind and gentle magician. Ill check with the church. Back to square one. Geez. Cruz said while Yureena patted her head and said, Dont worry, There are less devils than beast-humans. I see. There are quite a few devil adventurers, but less than beast-humans? Yeah! Cruz said, with a little bit of pep returning. Chapter 285 – Spirit’s Mistake

Chapter 285 C Spirits Mistake

So Luka thought that the mystery summoner was a mixture of beast-human and devil. And I thought maybe that she was right. So, I decided to ask the spirit nymph again, Spirit lord... Eeep eep eep ryaa ryaa! The nymph grabbed Femm and jumped on top of Femm. Shiggy was still riding on top of her head. Shiggy was happily riding on top of the spirit nymphs almost blue white hair...white as newly fallen snow. You cant grab on the spirit lords hair like that... ryaa ryaa! Eeep eep eep Shiggy let go of her and patted her head. The spirit lord happily spoke to Shiggy. ...wuff. On the other hand, Femm looked troubled. We were inside, so Femm was in his inside mode. He just looked like a big dog with big eyes. But having the nymph ride on Femm wasnt too heavy. It was like Collette riding. She was still a very powerful spirit. Femm was still shuttering. Even so, Femms tail wasnt between its legs. Femm must have been feeling its pride as a wolf king. Timi was the same with Femm; Femm was just weak against stronger entities. It must bemon among wild beasts. Spirit lord,e over here. Eep? ryaa? I picked her up. I moved her and Shiggy on her head over to Moofy. Eep eeep Mo moo! I thought theyd both be happier on Moofy together. ...wuff Femm seemed to rx. I petted Femm so it would rx even more. Then I asked the spirit lord. Spirit lord, can I ask you something? Agree Did the person that summoned you have beast ears? Correct But it also had horns? Correct Did it have a tail as well? Correct In other words, it had beast ears and a tail, and devils horns. Normally, we humans would never represent a beast-human having horns like a devil. Thats why the spirit lord might have had trouble distinguishing what type of human summoned her. ...maybe we should from square one ask about who summoned her. Okay. I whispered to Luka, and she agreed. While the spirit lord was riding Moofy, she clopped over beside us. Then she grabbed my arm. What is it? Eepp ryaa ryaa! Moo moo! All the beasts except Femm were in good moods. They were all rubbing against me though. On the other hand, I could see that Femm behind me was shrinking back in fear. Then Cruz came behind Femm and hugged it. Also, Chel was on top of Femm. Femm and Chel, you two are so cute. Wuffwuff Here here here. PiGGi! Cruz was trying to rx Femm and Chel. She held them both, and petted them. Chel just jiggled on top of Femm. Maybe it was because Cruz was stronger than even the nature spirit, so Femm rxed a bit. I left Femm to Cruz and asked the spirit. Spirit, I have something else to ask. Agree Why do you think the summoner was a man? ...eeep The spirit seemed to think about it a bit. That reminds me too...how did she distinguish if it was a man? Luka seemed to suddenly get serious. We humans had a hard time sometimes distinguishing the sex of the other races. I mean, certain species like chickens have special characteristics that show which sex they are. Wolves, cats, mice, and so on, you cant tell which at all. The spirit continued to think, then she took my hand and put it on her head. What is it? Want rx She wanted me to rub her head? So I petted her head softly. Eeep eep! Hair, Long short. You determined by how long or short the hair was? Correct. Spirit sex. Hair. Is that so? I had no idea. Luka was surprised too, as she had no idea they did that. The spirits had human shapes, but they knew nothing about the genitals. They didnt know that was how we determined sex in humans. Also, her hair was so long that it almost touched the ground. On the other hand, the male greater spirits were short. Luka leaned in and asked. Spirit lord, how long was the hair of the person who summoned you? Eeep? She cried out, and then pointed to Cruz. Wha? Me? Femm was a bit disturbed, and Cruz was puzzled. So I asked her, Spirit, does this mean you think that Cruz is male? Correct What? Me a boy? Cruz puffed her cheeks out angrily. Eeep Apologize The spirit looked surprised. She cried out and apologized. No problem...I guess its hard to distinguish. Correct The spirit nodded to us. Sometimes humans thought that Cruz was a boy too, though... I guess there was no helping it. Luka then said, seriously, So what we know is that a male or female beast-human/devil magician did this. Pretty much. Yeah. I think that still it was quite a lot of important information. Chapter 286 – Spirit Lord’s Return

Chapter 286 C Spirit Lords Return

While Luka and I got the information straight, the spirit lord was riding around on Moofy. Also, Shiggy was riding on top of her, and she was holding my arm. Yureena looked at the situation and said, I know this had nothing to do with anything, but that spirit looks really cold. She was a naked girl wearing only a tiara, after all. Outside of her wings, she looked like a snow-white elf girl. In a season like this, she must be quite cold. Are you cold, spirit? Incorrect She is an ice spirit, after all. I said, and the spirit nodded, Correct Well, it makes sense that shed be strong to cold. Eep. The spirit looked pretty proud of it. Yureena bowed a bit to the spirit, Spirit lord, I apologize, but could I touch you? Agree Okay...excuse me then... Yureena touched her skin. Her body is cold. Because shes an ICE spirit. Can get warm Wait, you can change your body heat by will? Correct Luka, seeing Yureena touch the spirit, had her curiosity take hold of her, I...would like to touch to...if thats okay? Agree Thanks. Luka touched her skin. Her skin is a little bit cold. Really? Cruz patted the spirits head. The spirit didnt try to stop her, nor did she look annoyed. Yureena continued speaking to the spirit with a bit of a reluctant tone, Spirit...if its okay...could I put some clothes on you? Agree So, with the spirits permission, Yureena took some cute clothes out of her bag. It was obviously a dress that was a bit too tight for Yureena. She put the clothes onto the spirit. Because of the wings on her back, Yureena had to adjust it quite a bit. What do you think, spirit? Is it too tight? Thanks It seems she liked the dress. She then stood up on Moofy and spun around. Yureena, where did you get those clothes? Dont worry about it. Seems like Yureena didnt want to say. Cruz then said, suspiciously, Are those clothes for some doll you have, Yureena? Can you give that to her? I...I dont care. Yureena said with a blush. I see. Cruz smiled at the spirit and then touched her face. I guess it might be that Yureena really loved dolls. And this spirit seemed like a real life, cute one. I was thinking it over, when the spirit reached down again and pulled my arm. Alfuredora What is it? Have clothes She said, stood again, and spun around. Yes, they match you well. Eep! The spirit nymph cried out happily. Then she happily yed around with the beasts, except Femm. Collette saw this and wanted to get involved. Sthpiiiiiriiit! y with me! Eeep! So Moofy, Shiggy, Collette, and the spirit all began ying together. Millet and Vi-Vi seemed to rx a bit after seeing this. Heres some snacks. Millet turned and grabbed something she had made previously, EeepThanks And the spirit then happily gobbled a snack down. After ying a while, the spirit suddenly stood. She turned to me, Go home Youre ready to go home now? Correct You can stay here if you want... Need power Its hard for you to stay a long time without something like that huge spirit stone? Correct If she was running out of spirit power, she should go back. Can we call you again? Agree Thank you very much. Alfredora, call any time Okay, I promise to do so. The spirit girl smiled and then suddenly returned, disappearing. After that, I said to Yureena, She was really cute. Yeah. Yureena might have really liked cute little girls like that as well. Then Luka cleared her throat and said, Okay! Time to reorganize our info around the new information. Ill visit the magicians guild tomorrow. Okay, Cruz. And Ill see what I can get quickly from the church. Thanks, Yureena. After being thanked by Cruz, Yureena happily blushed. Dont worry about it! It seems wed have to check all three locations over again. If you need help with the information, I can help. I think we all have our own fields set already, Al. I guess youre right. I guess I just had to help with guarding the vige. The next day, I went back to guarding while teaching my disciples magic. They were doing well in their magic studies, like usual. The beasts were studying shooting magic bolts as well. Shiggy was working on her magical exercises. Vi-Vi also started teaching the disciples how to write magic circles. In exchange, I showed Vi-Vi how to do attack magic. And it took another week before we got some new information. Chapter 287 – Mystery Spirit Summoner

Chapter 287 C Mystery Spirit Summoner

It was the evening, one week after meeting the spirit lord. Luka gathered us all together. Cruz, Yureena, Millet, Collette, Steff, and I. Vi-Vi, Vallimie, Chel, Shiggy, Timi. Femm and Moofy also showed up, looking serious. In front of all of us, Luka said, Ill announce all the information weve discovered. Oh? This time you have to tell us you know all the things we dont okay? Vi-Vi said, joking. But Luka was serious. Okay, rx. Sure, we want to hear what youve found. ryaa Timi said to Luka, seriously, On the other hand, Shiggy was rolling on top of the table. Timi was scratching Shiggys stomach. And because Shiggy looked so cute, Luka got a bit distracted. Luka? What is it? Ah...nothing. Yureena asked, and Luka came back to her sense. Then she started exining. I started by researching any devil that could use spirit summoning, and there were 10 or so that had no known current location. 10 or so? Vi-Vi sounded doubtful. Being an adventurer was a dangerous trade, and you were basically free to roam. She thought there should have been a lot more. There are a lot of devil magicians, but only a few are just magicians by trade, and there are even fewer that are spirit summoners. I see. Vi-Vi understood, but Cruz then said, If we can get down to 10 people, then we can find the person! Its true, 10 is doable. But theres no need. Why? Because theres a blizzard out there. Well, it is the winter... Cruz said, but Yureena shook her head, No, ording to the churchs information, a Jack Frost has been confirmed. Its normally impossible to summon a Jack Frost, right? They were only able to do itst time because of that huge spirit stone... True, as you say, Cruz, it normally is impossible. Youve studied well. Good job. Yureena said, hugging Cruz and patting her head. Luka ignored this and continued, Theres a possibility someone retrieved a fragment of the stone. A fragment? We did find much smaller ones near the greater spirits... Yes. Until we figure this out, we have to assume that theres a possibility the Jack Frost is around a spirit stone. Yeah. I took out one and put it on the desk. It was the one I picked up near a greater spirit. This is a spirit stone... Vi-Vi took it in hand and looked at it with great interest. The spirit stone was crystallized spirit power, and it was very rare. The power left after the death of Shiggys mother Jilnidora, generated a massive spirit stone. Using this as a catalyst, nature spirits were summoned. This became a magical trap for the spirit lord, who then summoned the greater spirits. After that, all of the greater spirits summoned the lesser Jack Frosts. Because of that, Cruz realm was covered in them, and there was a huge blizzard. If theres a spirit stone, theyll be able to call Jack Frosts. It was necessary for them to have a huge stone like Jilnidoras in order to call a spirit lord. However, a smaller one could call a few Jack Frosts, Im sure. After thinking it over, one question remained, However, why would they still be calling Jack Frosts? In thest massive blizzard, we thought the purpose was to destroy Cruz realm. But why would someone even want to do that? We had to ask that question to the summoner to find the answer. Even so, now, what would happen with the lesser spirits that were summoned now? Maybe, this is happening the opposite ofst time? The opposite? Last time the spirit lord was summoned, and then lesser and lesser spirits from that. Yeah... Well this time the lesser spirits are summoned, in the attempts to summonrger ones? Is that possible? Through the Jack Frosts, you pull power from the spirit realm, and if that crystalizes...its possible. Thats got to be impossible. Yureena tly rejected the theory. But that happens with out magic, right? Theres no way that it wouldnt happen with natural spirit as well. Vi-Vi had drawn a magic circle that focused the magical power of magic stones in the ground into magic crystals with much more focused power. You are very good at that, Vi-Vi/ Al, do you have the cors from the greater spirits? Ah, I do. I took them out and put them on the table. Before, when we checked these things, I said that these were a lot like magical systems of devils. You did, and Vallimie said that theye from more ancient magic. After that, Vallimie nodded. Yes. And Yureena, Vi-Vi is a genius of magic circles. I mean, she made that magical stone refining circle from basically nothing. I wonder if thats something from the devil magic system as well. It is. Because of her genius, speed, and refinement, her ability is excellent. Hearing that from Vallimie, Cruz looked at me seriously and said, Well, we need to find this guy making these Jack Frosts, and quick. To this, everyone nodded. Chapter 288 – A Boring Process

Chapter 288 C A Boring Process

Cruz began to prepare to go out. Millet was surprised and asked, Cruz, are you going out now? Yeah? Why? Its night. Wait until tomorrow. Better now thanter. Cruz hefted on her coat and gloves. Seeing this, Moofy also got ready, and paced around me. On the other hand, Femm just stood next to me. But Femm nced at me now and then, probably wanting to go out too. They were all appealing to me. Luka looked at her and said, Youre always one foot out the door, Cruz. But its better to get this done now. I know, but do you even know where it is? No...tell me Luka. No. If I did, youd tear off to there. Of course I would. Luka and Cruz stared at each other. Luka sighted. Then Yureena hugged Cruz and patted her head. I guess I shouldnt tell you after all. Luka just said,there was a blizzard,but never said where. Cruz knew that somewhere there was a blizzard, but didnt know where. Come on and tell me! Nooooope! Yureena kindly refused to tell her too. Mooo mooo Moofy also got close to Yureena and prodded her with her snout. She wanted Cruz to know so she could go out too. No way, Moofy. Why wont you tell me? Cruz looked up at Yureena with begging eyes. Ummm, well.. Yureena started to falter. A little more and shes leak where they were. Luka then interrupted and said, Cruz, think about it. This isnt in your realm this time. Oh... So you understand, right? If I have permission? Yes, the guilds dealing with it now. Just wait. ...okay. She should wait until theres an actual request for someone to go out and get rid of the Jack Frosts. Once that happens, shed probably be rewarded well. Even if there wasnt a request given, there might be permission for her to do so. And once the guild decides that it might need some help, we can go and deal with the situation. Luka, also, when do you think well get permission? Tomorrow is the earliest. Luka was being a bit evasive. Is there a reason to be uneasy? The ruler doesnt like adventurers. Thats weird. Yeah. For most rulers, adventurers were very useful. If you asked adventurers, you could deal with evil withoutmitting your own forces. And, you didnt have to pay much if the adventurers get killed in the process. You also dont have to muster soldiers or knights. So asking adventurers results in your costs decreasing by quite a bit. And because they are so useful, most rulers give permission for adventurers to operate within their realm. No...if thats the case, then say we encountered the Jack Frosts on a trip. That we discovered them by ident! That happens with adventurers too, you know. Cruz, youre a ruler of a realm. No ones going to believe that. A ruler and a hero. Theres no way shed just be passing by some monsters as a ruler and hero. Yureena, if you could suggest that maybe the church could get involved and remove those Jack Frosts... Its possible... If it was from the church, it might be possible. Just say a local church was in trouble with all the snow. Well! But since this isnt normal, be prepared to wait from the guild first, everyone. The church was a lot more political than the guild. Depending on the region, the church were rivals to the government here and there. If the church cleaned up all the snow, some rulers would look bad. It would probably be faster to approach the ruler as agents of the guild. Yeah, this is going to take some time... Cruz, if you need me, I can fry them from above with some of my breath. Timi said to Cruz, Thanks Timi! Sure, I have nothing to do with human politics, after all! ryaa ryaa! Shiggy stood, looking strong on the table. I thought that if Timi did that, then Id like to be the wolf-masked guy riding her into battle. There would be no human that wouldin about riding an ancient dragon like that. Even if I were a king or something. Cruz, Luka and Yureena are trying to work this out, Wait for now. Okay, Al, if you say so. Cruz finally understood. On the other hand, Moofy kept pushing Yureena to tell Cruz where the Jack Frosts were. Anyway, we decided to wait. And two days passed without any approval. After dinner, Cruz said, Luka, still no permission? Theyre probably thinking the Jack Frosts will disappear soon. If they urred naturally, that would be correct. The blizzard would be gone in less than a week. However, if this were an intentional blizzard, then it would probably continue. But it would be hard now for the ruler to understand our exnation of it. In addition, the guy hated adventurers. Well, what shall we do? Maybe leave it to Timi? Im perfectly fine with it! ryaa! Timi was ready to go. Cruz, just wait. Okay. If this is the way its going to be, leave the thinking to me. Okay, Al, you got it! Cruz said with a glimmer in her eyes. Chapter 289 – Using the Magician’s Guild

Chapter 289 C Using the Magicians Guild

Cruz looked at me with trusting eyes. However, Luka was confused. So, Al, what are you thinking? If this rulers not giving ess to the adventurers guild or the church, maybe we could ask the magicians guild? Hm, not a bad idea. Luka seemed to agree, Yureena did as well. You could say youre researching the spirits and also ask permission to exterminate them. Youre right. The problem is, if that ruler has a rtionship with the guild. I think that from the ruler and the guild, the thoughts of the rulers magicians probably determine a lot of whats going on. I said, and Cruz responded, So Luka, does this guy have magicians? He does. He was a noble withnd. In other words, a high noble. And he hated adventurers. So of course he didnt hire adventurers. So now it depends on the magicians. Cruz said, while looking serious and folding her arms. If the magicians were reasonable, we had no problem. However, it would be annoying if they werent going to allow magicians from other jurisdictions to check it out. Anyway, since were members of the guild, we should go to the guild and ask. Huh? Are you ready to reveal your identity, Al? Cruz said with a surprise. Ah! She was right. It was really embarrassing. Then I have to ask you, Cruz. Leave it to me! Cruz said happily. Steff then quietly said, I...also am a member...I can go... Thats the best. Ill go with her! Please. I feel much stronger with Cruz beside me. I can go too. Even better with you, Al! Cruz said happily. However, Vi-Vi scowled a bit. And she whispered, If Al goes...nevermind, maybe its better if he goes. Yeah, sometimes you have to remind them who theyre afraid of. Timi agreed with a nod. Should I go too? I can scare people as well. ...no, were fine. I see. Just let me know if you need me. I think wed be fine without Timi though. Actually, it might be better without her. If she threatened the magicians, or especially the grand master, it would be trouble. Timi could threaten anyone, so it was dangerous. Shiggy then stuck out her chest, ryaa ryaa! Shiggy, you can go with me. ryaa! Shiggy pped her wings as if her going was obvious. Moo moo Moofy...you can stay here. Moo? Moofy was a bit shocked. But Femm tried to calm Moofy, Just stay here and leave it to me. Moo mooo You stand out too much, Moofy, and you too, Femm. Stay here. Wuff? Femm was shocked too. Why? Because you stand out. You would scare the magicians of the guild. Then you should stay home, Al. No, no, Im a member. They already have Steff. And they dont even know who you are! Thats true, but... I couldntin. So its me and Moofy and Cruz and Steff. Mooff mooff Moofy said with a huff. But... Stay here, Al! Okay, but you stay here with me Femm and Moofy. Wuff! Wuff wuffu wuff! S...stop it Femm! Femm jumped on my back. Then Femm barked and licked my ear. Femm was probably trying to protest. Moo moo! mOo! Then Moofy was pushing her snout into my stomach. Ill take you next time, just give up! Mooo It was my n to use the guild, after all. I was responsible for the n and the interaction. Also, Cruz had be responsible. Shed be fine without me. Its too bad I cant go with you, but, Ill do my best with Steff. We will! Cruz and Steff looked ready to go. The next morning, after we ate breakfast, Cruz and Steff had already left for the capital. I went out to guard like usual. Femm and Moofy were out sleeping next to me like usual. It was hard to keep an eye on them and make sure they didnt scramble away to the capital. Shiggy looked out of my pouch. ryaa? Are you cold, Shiggy? ryaa ryaa Shiggy seemed healthy. I could see Shiggys breath in the cold air. So I pet her head. Cruz and Steff were back by lunch. Cruz, Steff, wee back. How was it? Master, were back! Al, were back! We got permission! ...that was fast! Yes! We should call Timi and fly there! Cruz already looked ready to go. Chapter 291 – Preparing the Beatdown

Chapter 291 C Preparing the Beatdown

After everyone looked over the permission order carefully, Millet and Collette came in. Wee back Cruz and Steff, wee back. Youre came back quickly. Cruzth...Sthteff...wee back... Collette sat down right next to Cruz, who was petting Femm. Collette then started petting Femm as well. On the other hand, Millet stood very near to me. Femm peaked over at her and then inched away from us. Femm then pranced over and set down in front of Femm. Thanks, Femm. Millet was sitting across from Cruz and right next to me. Millet then reached over and petted Femm and said, So how was the meeting with the magicians guild? Went pretty well. Then Cruz exined the whole thing again. While she was exining it, Vi-Vi red away at the permission document. If this is the real thing, then why did the ruler give permission that quickly? Maybe because the Jack Frosts were giving him trouble as well? Millet said, but Cruz shook her head, I dont think thats it... Why do you think so? Because the ruler lives in the capital. I guess I get that if he didnt, theres no way youd get it that fastVi-Vi said. Almost all the rulers lived in the capital, after all. Sometimes theyd venture back to their realms when the summer became too hot, but in the winter, they stayed in the capital. There were many that had to serve the kingdom in various ways; the government was important. You had to stay in the capital. And it also wouldnt be strange that his chief magician was apanying him there. Furthermore, since hes in the capital, I bet the reports of damage from the storm wereing in slowly. I see.Vi-Vi replied. ...So theres no way he knew how much trouble his people were in!said Cruz. I guess thats the reason! So I asked Cruz, In other words, the people of his realm were in trouble, but he wasnt? Correct. I have no idea why he would sit on his hands. But thats why he handed the permission quickly to you? And also because the magicians guild chief pushed him. Oh? He probably told the rulers top magician to hand over permission quickly. So thats why you got it that fast. Yeah, that guild chief has a lot of power. I guess we shouldnt have judged that old man so quicklysaid Vi-Vi, a bit reluctantly. He seemed like quite a loser after the battle, but he was still the top of the guild. As an elite magician, he had put a lot of other magicians into ces of work. Somewhat like a master to all the others, I supposed. Its possible all of those magicians felt responsible to him after they left to other ces, and they ended up doing what he said even though they were somewhere else. I told them to tell Luka and Yureena that we have the permission, so they should be back soon! Youre always on top of things nowadays, Cruz. Eheh heh She blushed a bit as she petted Femm. It was lunchtime, and the other two plus Timi came back. Luka and Yureena looked like they had just rushed back after finishing some work. So, how did you get it so fast? Yeah, how Cruz? Its weird that it didnt take you much time. So then Cruz exined everything AGAIN to the three girls. I see now... Timi said with a nod of her head. Luka and Yureena also seemed satisfied. You even get things done quick with high-ups like that. I guess she could use Als threatening force as well. What the heck? I didnt want to be responsible for all of this just because of a little tussle. It made me feel a bit...uneasy... Timi flexed her biceps and stomped, Okay, lets get to it! Yeah! Whos going to go? I think just Al an I can handle it.Cruz said. Well, if its going to get done, I need to go too.Luka said. Me too.said Yureena. Okay, you girls cane too. Just then, Moofy snorted as well. Moo mooo! You want to go too, Moofy? Moooo! If Mooofy goes, then I follow! Okay, Moofy and Vi-Vi too. And you too, Femm? Sure. Okay. It was bing a big operation. Luka turned to us all and said, Because theres going to be a blizzard, get your snow gear ready. Sure. And so everyone went to their supplies. Just before leaving, Collette said, Do your bestht, old man! Thanks, Collette. I patted her on the head. Be careful. I made you some rations. Thanks, Millet. Ill be waiting for you, master. Yeah, shouldnt take past nightfall. So my disciples saw us off, and we all got onto Timi. Chapter 292 – Against the Jack Frosts

Chapter 292 C Against the Jack Frosts

Timi lifted up into the sky, and sped off. Shiggy! See how fast your aunt can fly! ryaa ryaa! As usual, Timi wanted Shiggy to see how strong she was. And as usual, Shiggy responded gleefully. Hm? Shiggy? Are you cold? ryaa Shiggy was standing on my shoulder, after all. She was pping away and her wings were hitting my face. ryaa! Ryaaa! Luka justughed to herself. Maybe she wants to take in all the wind going by? Maybe so... Shiggy really is growing so quickly. ryaa ryaa! Timi responded, with a bit of a lonesome voice, Yeah... ryaa ryaa! I could tell why she felt that way, but since Shiggy was so happy about thement, Timi flew even quicker. There was no time to be lonesome... Ah, Al, look! Cruz pointed out ahead of us. That must be it. Yeah. It was a sunny day today and it had been since we flew through Cruz realm. But ahead of us, in one direction on the horizon, were light grey clouds of snow. And that grey extended from the ground up into the clouds. Almost like the clouds are alive. A goodparison. Almost like a swarm of summer locusts. ...locusts... I tried to imagine what that would look like. After all, clouds like that rained destruction on the viges of farmers. ...like a nightmare, almost. Yeah. Without some food stored away, it devastates the viges. Scary... Cruz said to herself. Only if the viges have nowhere to store anything. I guess a rulers ce is deciding those kinds of things.Vi-Vi said. Yeah... Cruz said, with a serious look. Then we heard Timi say, Stop thinking about locusts for now. Were about to fly in. Are you ready? Okay. I got all the magic ready for the blizzard. Just a light barrier around everyone would be enough. Ready. Okay. After hearing my response and nodding, Timi sped up and pierced the cloud. Inside was howling snow. THIS IS A LOT OF SNOW!Vi-Vi shouted at me. ITS BECAUSE THE JACK FROSTS ARE FRESH! FRESH?! STOP MAKING THEM SOUND LIKE FISH! Cruz said to Vi-Vi, and Luka chided her a bit about her use of words. We were all there to destroy the Jack Frosts, after all. Vi-Vi looked really worried through the blowing snow. Femm and Moofy were snorting away at the frigid air that was flowing around them. This is going to be fun! Yureena said, looking really happy to fight whatever was ahead. Luka looked down and said, THIS IS REALLY THICK SNOW! ITS NOT AS MUCH AS WHEN THEY WERE IN CRUZ REALM, BUT THEYRE CLOSER TOGETHER! YEAH! LUKA, WHAT DO YOU THINK!? KILL EM OFF! WE DONT NEED TO FIND INFO ABOUT THEM FIRST? WE JUST NEED TIMI TO WATCH OVER US FROM ABOVE! ROGER! Femm looked over at me. Femm, let me get on. Sure. After getting on Femm, Vi-Vi got on Moofy. Timi slowly descended. We could feel the spirit energy flowing up at us, but Timi could handle it easily. I still put a barrier below her to protect her. THANKS, AL! DONT MENTION IT! As soon as she approached the ground, we all leapt off. Then Timi lifted back up. We all were suddenly attacked by the spirit magic as well, but the barriers easily held. Cruz had started to run as soon as she hit the ground. Behind her, Luka shouted, CRUZ! MAKE SURE NOTHINGS GOING ON BEFORE YOU RUSH IN! O...OKAY! Cruz said, and she quickly stopped. Then she lurched away. In front of here were three Jack Frosts. She saw them and dodged as they shot magic at her...very strong natural magic. But it was nothing that could stop Cruz...she sped by them and their magic hit the ground. YOU REALLY ARE FAST WHEN YOURE NOT CARRYING ME, CRUZ! She had carried me on her back during thest battle. And that was still very fast. Cruz then stopped a ways back from the Jack Frosts. THERES NOTHING STRANGE...I GUESS? Cruz said, asking herself. Then they shot magic at her again. Before the magic even hit the ground, she had run around them. AH! I FOUND SOMETHING! I could barely see her, but she had plucked something from them. ˣ! There was a strange squeal like grinding ice and a Jack Frost disappeared. Chapter 293 – The Connection to the Spirits

Chapter 293 C The Connection to the Spirits

After the Jack Frost disappeared, she dodged the other two. I PULLED SOMETHING SHINY FROM ITS BACK! MAYBE THE KEY TO THEIR SUMMONING?! PROBABLY! Luka ran up and shed one of them, but it didnt seem to damage it, other than slicing its body and it crumbling a bit. The Jack Frost stopped for a second, and that was enough. I SEE! THIS! Luka did the same, running around back and grabbing something, and the Jack Frost slowly disappeared. That meant that the Jack Frost had returned to the realm of natural spirits. I GUESS THIS THING LOCKS THEM AWAY FROM THE SPIRIT REALM! JUST PULL THIS SHINY ROCK OUT OF THEM! Yureena charged at the final one, and it shot magic at her, which she deflected with a barrier of her own. Her hair seemed to freeze white...as did her clothes, but she didnt stop. She reached the Jack Frost and screamed, THERE! And hit its middle with a punishing right punch. ˣ!! It screamed in another strange cry of ice. SO THIS IS WHAT YOU MEAN?! And the Jack Frost faded into nothing. She had blown through its back and pulled the stone back from the hole with magic. Just like something Yureena would do. We had sent all three of them back to where they came from. During this, Femm had leapt forward and began sniffing around. Femm run over here.I told Femm, as Femm was close to me. Wuff Femm ran up the field of snow, which was hard, even for a wolf. Are you not going to fight, Al? Ill just leave it to them. I need to find whos summoning these things. Understood. Vi-Vi followed me on Moofy from behind. Moo mooo! Moofy actually was faster on these snowy fields. She pulled up right beside Femm and I. Al, I FEEL OTHER MAGIC THAN SPIRIT MAGIC! YEAH! As we shouted to each other, more spirit magic flew at us. It hit the barrier and bounced off. YOU THINK THEY PULLED OUT SOME MAGIC DEVICE? NO IDEA UNTIL WE GO BACK AND CHECK! OKAY! I searched out for the magic around us. Vi-Vi said, softer, This snow sucks. You think theres a magic circle somewhere? Very possible. Just then another wave of spirit bolts flew at us, and it was blocked by Vi-Vis barrier. Vi-Vi, that was fast. You taught me, Al. Then she smiled at me. Vi-Vi was apetent magician. I had forgotten that she was younger than Steff and Millet as well. She still had lots of time to grow, too. We can melt the snow easily... If we do, the water will carry any trace away. Magical circles would remain, but any magic stone would be carried away. And we cant just blow it all away. Yeah. I used gravity magic where I felt the magical forceing from, then crafting a magical sword, I lifted the snow in the air. Al, great IDEA! Vi-Vi made her own sword, quickly and well-formed. Vi-Vi help me dice up all this snow. Roger! We dont need it all packed on the ground. The ground wasnt perfectly t, but we sliced the snow from the ground and I lifted it and blew it far away. We quickly removed all the drifts from the area. AL, I FEEL THE JACK FROSTS GETTING CLOSER! YEAH, AND... I changed and spoke in spirit speech instead, to everyone I knew that was around me. I could feel Cruz, Luka, and Yureena acknowledge from a distance as well. I also contacted Timi, far above. Spirit speech got harder as your partner got farther away. It was quite hard to reach Timi. What is it Al? You really are strong to speak to me this far away. Timi said, speaking to me. At the same time I tried to connect, she felt the magical force change. She could sense me reaching out...she was very good at magic. ryaa? Hearing her aunt, I felt Shiggy respond in my pouch. First, dont change where you are. Huh? You think someones watching, Al? Cruz had a sharp sense. Just in case. While Vi-Vi and I were driving the snow away, Jack Frosts are being summoned again. Thats how I knew something was watching us. Some type of magical detection is responding to us...theres no way they cant sense you, Al. I sense that too.Vi-Vi said. See if somethings watching you too. Roger! Okay. Its hard to sense anything. Leave it to me, girls. I can watch from up above. Everyone was focused on whatever was out there. Chapter 294 – Spirit Magic Battle

Chapter 294 C Spirit Magic Battle

I mowed down any new Jack Frost while trying to drive more snow away. Vi-Vi did the same on her side as well. Well, we didnt mow them down as much as send them back. Cruz and the others used the time to look around for any clues. CLEAR THE SNOW AWAY! SURE! I shouted, hoping the enemy heard me. It might have been watching, or listening...I didnt know. But just in case. As we continued on, the Jack Frosts appeared and attacked more and more. I started to understand where the entity summoning the Jack Frosts wasing from. It was right where these attacks wereing from. You think this is a trap, Al? If that was so, it wouldnt have attacked us right away. You may be right. The attack hade from another direction as well before, so I knew I was getting close. If it was leading us on, it would have fled when there was no point in continuing. Whatever it was, it was trying to kill us all. The magics getting really strong. It IS this way. It must really not want to be found out. Im excited to find out! Cruz said in a happy tone. She really was too strong for how she looked. Even so, theres a lot of Jack Frosts! Yeah. But that means were getting there! I see. Im d were not missing whatever it was this time. Weve killed off about 30 of those things. All and I have knocked out 20! So 50 in all! Theres so many! It was just as Cruz said...a lot of summoned spirits. We had gotten rid of more than we saw in Cruz realm, but that was when they were spread over a huge territory. Now it was so dense with them, we had to be close. Maybe thats why whoever behind this had probably thought they had made too many over toorge a space. Maybe this bad guy thinks all these Frosts are going to knock us out easily? That may be so... What do you think, Luka? Well, maybe will all of them close together, these spirit stones work more effectively? What do you think, Vi-Vi? Luka knew her beasts, but not magical items. Well, I cant say unless I examine whatevers being used. I think magical forces and spirit forces would work the same. I said to Vi-Vi. You think, Al? I guess the denser the poption, then the higher the effectiveness. If thats so, that might be why so many areing at us. Yeah, there are a LOT. I continued clearing the snow, while the Jack Frosts kepting. I guess we can start melting this stuff. Since all the removed snow was getting piled up, we might need to melt it. But that may cause a flood. I kept clearing it away, while melting it. Then I blew the pools of water away as well. As soon as it hit the air, it would ice over again, anyway. I think there was a magic circle! Can you examine it? Its huge, so itll take time. Leave the work to me, and check the thing out. Okay, Al! I kept clearing the snow and Jack Frosts away, but the numbers kepting. I wondered how many they were. What the?! I heard Vi-Vi whisper. Why?! I was going to ask what she meant, but then! Several molten rocks three timesrger than Femm appeared above me. And they all began to fall. WHOA! I was surprised, and shouted without thinking about it. It was very strong magic...no, spirit magic. And I decided to think about thatter. I put up a magical barrier. I also reached out to put one over Cruz and the others. That way they could escape this if they were attacked. After all, they had a magician as a party member that would defend them. GAA GAAA GAAA! The molten rocks struck the magic barier. 15 at once. They were quite well made...and they were left to fall on me. It took quite a bit of magical power to stop them. Timi then spoke to me, Wow! Thats some attack. Need help? Not necessary, but thanks. I see... I just made sure that nothing fell on Cruz and the others. And also so that it wouldnt destroy whatever magic circle was made. As I looked off into the snow, I could see a figure standing. Its face was hidden by a hood, and it had a thick robe. It looked like a male... As I saw it, I felt something hit me, very quickly. Al, look out! Vi-Vi screamed. Spirit speech, gravity magic, magic barrier...and an anti-cold barrier over all the others. I was already using four different magic casts...and that had slowed me down. So my enemy had used that as a perfect chance to attack me. The fellow had run towards me and show fireballs from his hands. And more wereing at me. GRAWWWWWWWLLLLL! Femm growled and the guy freezed. A fireball left his palm into the sky as he jolted. Then Vi-Vi, riding Moofy mmed into the guys side...and it was a direct bovine bulldoze. The fellow flew in an arc through the sky,nded, and rolled to a stop. Chapter 295 – Greater Spirits and the Mystery Magician

Chapter 295 C Greater Spirits and the Mystery Magician

I wasnt totally sure that this fellow was the person causing all this spirit summoning, but he was definitely some kind of bad guy. He had shot me with a fireball, after all. Youre one hot magician...show me your stuff. I took a molten rock and flung it at him. It floated above him, and I let it drop. The fellow suddenly sprung up to dodge it. He sprung away as it hit the ground. Okay, buddy...time toe along quietly. The guy spun to run away, but Luke was standing right there. She grabbed his arm, flexed it backwards, and smashed him into the ground. She then sat on him. Luka amazingly set herself right behind the guy as he jumped from the molten rock. I cant see your face, friend...lets pull that hood off. She rolled him over and reach over to his hood. Just then, ˣɣɣɣɣɣɣɣɣ! A screamed pierced the air...enough to chill us. A massive greater fire spirit appeared. It was as big as Moofy in her original size. What the!? Vi-Vi shouted. We had only had ice spirits, so this one was a surprise. All the snow around us began melting into water. ˢ项 It screamed again and brought fireballs raining down. I quickly tossed the other 14 molten rocks at the spirit. They all struck him with a massive shock. ˣɣ项 But my opponent was a greater spirit. The heat caused no damage. The force, however, was another story. Even so, it didnt have that much effect. I removed the cold-barriers and spirit speech. Femm! Wuff! Femm sped towards the greater spirit while I shot ice magic at all of its fireballs. The ground around us was still covered in snow, so the greater spirit couldnt use all of its magical force. Even so, I wondered why the guy summoned a fire spirit. If he wanted a powerful spirit, he should have summoned an ice greater spirit. Molten rocks appeared in the sky again, seven, so I was sure that this magician had created them. It was a pain knocking them all away. As I did, I put gravity magic on them and floated them, and then changed their direction, flinging them towards the greater spirit. The rocks struck again, and the greater spirit seemed to crumble. Femm! I called to Femm, and Femm knew what I wanted. Femm ran up close to the spirit and I froze the watery pool under its legs. There was snow everywhere near me, so it was effective. Then I changed the gravity magic to the spirits feet and flipped it over on its head. Neck! Wuff! There was a cor on this spirit as well. All I had to do was release it. Femm ran up close to it. Got you! I pulled the cor off with one yank as I had done with the previous spirits. 项 I thought the thing would fly into a rage after I removed its cor, but it didnt. The spirit softly cried out, nodded, and disappeared in a cloud of steam. I have something I want to ask. Al, did you understand the spirits speech? I didnt. I wish I had the spirit lord to interpret it. I see... Luka called out to me while she was still sitting on the fellow. Hey, guess the fire spirits gone? Yeah. It probably had a hard time fighting in all this snow. Youre right...too bad. Cruz and Yureena were done fighting as well and were now back to our group. The Jack Frosts were all gone. Alra. I cant see anything strange from up here except that weirdo Lukas sitting on. And with that, Luka came down andnded...still in dragon form. So THIS is the evil summoner! Luka, pull his hood off! Okay. And so Luka reached down and pulled his hood off. Hair long as Cruz...and two pointed beast ears...passed out. Luka probably whomped the...fellow...when...the fellow...summoned the fire spirit. Shes a cute girl...it turns out. Almost looks like Steff. Even so, I hurried and bound her with magical force. Yureena. See what you can find out. You got it. Yureena was the best at examining magical forces...so she began and then looked at me. Al, take a look at this. What? Over here. She pointed at something under the beast-girls scarf...a cor just like the ones used on the spirits. Vi-Vi. Yeah? Vi-Vi galloped over on top of Moofy. Look at this. ...its a well made magical circle. Vi-Vi said after a look from on top of Moofy. She got down off Moofy and looked closer. Maybe made to control her? Not exactly the same. See this part? Its different than the spirit cors. True... But they look quite the same. If she hadnt mentioned it, I would have thought they were the same. Even Yureena couldnt tell the difference...it was just that delicate a difference. So Vi-Vi exined, it was hard to control something like this. In the came of a spirit lord or greater spirit, you simply had to order around the spirits you summoned. And that order was to attack anything near it that approached. Its hard to control someone through magic like this. I see. And this cor has a magic stone that causes the wearer to fall into a hypnotized state. Vi-Vi said with a look of concern. Chapter 296 – Looking Around

Chapter 296 C Looking Around

After Vi-Vi exined, Cruz looked confused. You can get them to do different stuff through hypnosis? Seems like a magical hypnosis. Is there non-magical hypnosis? I think so, but I dont know much about that. Huh...wow. It seems that Vi-Vi did know quite a lot about magical hypnosis. After hearing all this, Luka said, Yeah, Ive heard of it too. And non-magical. Something like suggestion, right? Can you control someone without magic? Thats nuts. Enough to change actions. But pretty impressive you can do it without magic. Luka looked at the beast-girl, then at Vi-Vi, Youre saying this girl was under magical hypnosis? Yeah. Look over here...theres a very strong suggestive force here. Suggestive force? What kind? I have no idea. Vi-Vi said with a shrug. Well, lets take this thing off. Al, wait. I need to know more before you take it off. You do? Yes. If she loses the hypnosis, I dont know if shell lose her memory as well. I see. I guess we just had to wait until she woke up. Okay, well lets see those stones from the Jack Frosts first. Yeah, thats important. If we lose those, someone might misuse them. Cruz and Yureena started searching around to find them and pick them up. Okay, now let me look at that magical circle again. Let me help, Vi-Vi. Femm and Moofy, you help the girls find the stones. Wuff. Mooo moo Leave it to us. We need to search the area anyway. So Vi-Vi and I melted the area around the circle. There was a massive circle under the snow. We had to get rid of a lot of snow to see the whole ring. Since all the Jack Frosts were gone, the snow had stopped falling as well. A huge and very borate circle. Yeah, but...if you improved this, you could make it smaller. I see...thanks, Vi-Vi. I think its supposed to refine all the spirit energy into a huge spirit stone. I wonder where it is? Wait a second.... Okay. I could analyze the circle too, but it was faster leaving it to Vi-Vi. She exined as we walked along it. It still took a long time to analyze. Hm, right under here. I guess it wasnt built with a transfer circle to send it somewhere. Vi-Vis circle back in the vige had the power to refine magical stones and send them to the shed. Yeah, this magician didnt have the skill. I see. There was hardly a magician out there that had her skill in that department. Below here? Then there should be an underground entrance. Yeah. Femm, some help us sniff it out. With what? Theres probably an underground entrance around here. You want me to find it? Please. Leave it to me. And so Femm started sniffing around. With all this snow, it has to be hard to smell anything. Yeah, the smells dont stick much, but let me try. Femm was looking around carefully. Mooo mooo! Then, behind us, we heard Moofy. We then heard Luka say to Moofy, Moofy, you can leave this to Timi and me...go over to Al. Moo? Come on. Timi pushed the cow, and Moofy ran over. Can you help us too, Moofy? Moo Moo! Okay, then please. Moo! So the two beasts sniffed all over the ground as they both had good smell. Moo moo Found it. They both had found it quickly too. You both are really talented. Wow, that was fast. Wuff. Moo! So Vi-Vi and I both petted them. Okay, now to search. Yeah, get ready for anything, Al. Wuff Wuff Moo! Ryaa! They were all ready to go. Even Shiggy peeked out and looked around. The entrance was a false cover of soil that hid a handle in the rock. We would have never found this ce without them. Yup. It was a lip that you could flip up and open. But there was a magic lock on it. I opened it with my magic, and there was a stairway down into the ground. The stairway was narrow, just wide enough for one person. Okay, follow me. So I, Vi-Vi, Femm, and Moofy all entered in a line. As we went down, I found another portal. Another magical lock. So I opened this one too. You opened both easily, Al...how hard were they locked. Pretty difficult magic. A good magician could do this. I see. So I guess pretty good for only one person. Magic circle, spirit summoning, magical keys. Better than most average magicians. Ill ask you more about thister. Vi-Vi said to me as I opened the portal. Chapter 297 – Speaking of the Beast-Girl…

Chapter 297 C Speaking of the Beast-Girl...

There was a small room after opening the portal...with a lot of magical tools inside. Magical tools...or more like machines? Yeah, this is really intense, Al. Vi-Vi looked it all over with an impressed look. They were quite advanced. You cant even find machines like this in the capital! Even the Demon Lord didnt have this much. ryaaa? Shiggy peeked out again from my pocket. Shiggy, this might be dangerous so, DONT TOUCH. ryaa Femm, Moofy, dont touch anything, just in case. Wuff. Moo! Still, they both sniffed around at the air. Is the smell of that beast-girl here? Or any other smells around? Her smell is here. Moo Anyone else? ...here. I smell. If both the beasts said so, then it must be true. What kind of smell? Zombies? No...but something with magic, like a demon. A demon. I got in a battle with one after Shiggy was abducted. I was able to defeat that strong demon, but I may have not captured all the demons under him. But I cant be sure... I see, well, we need to be careful. As I was talking to the beasts, Vi-Vi was looking at the machines. Al, look over here. What? This machine aids the stone production by the magical circle...its very advanced. So wheres the spirit stone? I thought it would be around here... I really dont see many... There were three small pieces of spirit stone. Someone probably left with it. They might have used it all up after producing it too... We split up all the machines in front of us and I put them in groups into my magical bag. My sis will probably know what these are. Vallimie does know her stuff. A golem is a magical machine, after all. I guess she was right. After we looked around the inside, we looked outside as well. The weather was sunny again, the snow clouds gone, and the sky blue. Even so, the wind was cold. Cruz had the captured beast-girl. They also had all the stones from the Jack Frosts. What is it, Al? A lot of magical machines. Did she wake up? Yup, shes up. The beast-girl looked at us with the look of terror. She still had the hypnosis cor on. She probably also had some strong suggestionpelling her. I wondered what she was thinking, so I asked, Why did you summon those spirits? I had to help brother. How would summoning help your brother? She exined everything directly. However, it all seemed a lot of gibberish. Her brother had been missing for a while, and whil she searched for him, she heard he was in the spirit realm. Because of this, she tried to open a portal to the realm by summoning spirits. Even so, no spirit would open it to her brother. Where did you learn to summon from? My brother... And who made those machines? I did. I learned how to make them and how to summon from brother. I see...so thats how it is. Luka seemed to understand, so she exined to us. Hypnosis could be amplified by suggesting something the hypnotized wanted. She was searching for her brother, and the dilemma made her suggestible. So someone hypnotized her with that intention. Who told you your brother was in the spirit realm? A friend of brother...Ah...I cant remember the name. The sex? Race? ...I dont know. I cant remember. When did you meet the friend? Ah...where...when... She was confused andpletely lost. It was sad. As if her memory was erased. Someone had messed with it and it was hard to resist under hypnosis. The demon that attacked us after Shiggy was born had the same effect, I remembered. This was definitely the same kind of magic. Luka said to me, gently, Al, take off the cor. Please. Okay. I stretched my hand out, and she looked terrified again. Stop! If you take it off, Ill never see my brother! Why do you say that? This cor is connected to my brother...if I open a portal to the spirit realm, I can connect to him. If I take this off, that power is lost. There was no ability in the cor for that to happen, though. If I didnt take it off, she could be used again. I see. I told her, and she rxed. So I used my magic to snap the cor open. She suddenly fainted and fell to the ground. Chapter 298 – Back to the Village

Chapter 298 C Back to the Vige

Yureena quickly started treating the unconscious girl. Dont worry, shes only passed out. That has to happen after shes released from a strong magical hypnosis like this. d we dont have to worry, then. Al, could you cast some magical cold guard on her, we dont want her getting to cold passed out like this. Sure. And so I cast a cold resistance spell on her. There was much less of a chance of her getting too cold now. Moofy, lets put her on your back. Moo Yureena got permission from Moofy and then slung the girl over Moofys back. Thanks, Moofy. Even with Als spell, we cant just leave this girl on the snow. Now, shed be okay, though. Cruz wiped the girls brow. So I guess the only one in the wrong here is the person that put her under hypnosis? Sees so. Luka, do you know whats going on? Cruz asked, and Luka began to exin. First, I need to exin how magical hypnosis urs. Oh, sure... Even though its magical hypnosis, you cantpletely hypnotize someone thats going to resist its effects. Which means? It would impossible to force a valiant knight to murder a king. But you might be able to suggest something like assassinating a noble that was mocking the king. I see. Because she was searching for her brother, they used suggestion against her because she wanted to help him? Exactly. Im d you understand this so quickly, Cruz. And there are things you can and cant do in this situation. And that is? Like getting her to kill someone to help her brother....shed resist that. But calling nature spirits after opening the gate to the spirit realm... Even though the result is bad, as long as she doesnt do something bad directly, its easy to suggest something to her. Correct. And so Luka had pretty much exined it to Cruz. We actually all wanted to know about it. Then I asked Luka, Theres never any clue the hypnotizer leaves behind though... Right. But whoever it is DID use this girls ability. We didnt even know the girls name, but she was obviously good with magical tools. In other words, they needed someone that made spirit stones. If thats so, then they should have just used the massive statue of Jilnidora. ....yeah...youre right. The mystery seemed farther now from being solved. Well, theres no doubt that this girl was the one summoning those Jack Frosts. But we dont know who induced her to do so. And no idea about the motive. Yeah... Then Vi-Vi asked, Whatll we do with her? She had summoned these Jack Frosts in Cruz realm, and now here too. But the jurisdiction for any punishment of her would be with the ruler of this realm now. I dont think we need to turn her in C there was no deaths or real economic damage C and we took care of it all ourselves. If the summoning was allowed to continue, though, there definitely would have been some heavy damage. I was happy we handled it before anyone got hurt. No time to sit around and discuss it. Lets get back to the vige. Timi told us, and we returned to Mulg. We flew back on Timis back. After getting back, Millet, Collette, and Steff were waiting for us back at my house. Wee back, old man! Master, everyone, d youre all okay. Wee home, I made tea and snacks. After greeting us, I patted Collettes head, Old man! How wasth the sthpirit monsthters?! We took care of them. Good job, old man! Whosth that girl? The one who summoned them. A bad guy? I guess you could say she had bad luck. As we discussed it, we went over to the kitchen table. Millet had everything spread out there, already waiting for us. Wee back, everyone. You were quick. PiGGi Vallimie and Chel were waiting there as well. Weid the girl out on a chair, and Yureena sat next to her. Tea and cakes! Youre all cold, right? Thank you, Millet! We said our thanks, and then drank the tea and ate. Shiggy happily munched away as well. She even licked up some tea. She could handle the hot tea on her tongue. As we ate, I exined what had happened to the others. Hypnosis? That is an unlucky tale. Vallimie said with a nod of the head. Vallimie, look at these magical tools. I took them out of my magical bad to show her. Oh? Well, isnt this interesting... Vallimie rotated them around in her hands, looking closely. Im sure someone like Vallimie, that created an army of golems, probably knew something about these devices. This is a device that purifies magical stones, right? Theres a magical circle connected to it, right? Yeah, exactly, big sis! There was one written right over it! Vi-Vi began writing a magic circle on a big paper with a pen. She quickly and clearly sketched out the circle. Steff, Millet, Collette, you should look at this closely. And so they all carefully watched Vi-Vi sketch out the circle. I have to stop this copy before the circle ispleted. No reason to set it off by ident. Vi-Vi said as she exined the circle. Then Vallimie looked the circle over carefully. She then gazed over at the unconscious girl. Chapter 299 – The Girl’s Memories

Chapter 299 C The Girls Memories

Vallimie went over and brushed her hand over the girls forehead. She looked at her withpassionate eyes. Magical tool creation is a traditional skill passed down through the devils. Its not a rare one, either. Her level is quite superior though, enough for me to learn from. ...so does that mean that the circle is rare too? Yeah. Its magic thats probably fallen into obscurity. Obscurity? Ive only seen writing like this in books about old magic that the writers knew scarcely about. Vallimie had told us about the old devil magic that was no longer used. Maybe this was it. I guess well get the details when she wakes up. So we all ate and passed the time until she awoke. After a while, the girls eyes opened. Her eyes quickly darted around here when she realized she was somewhere unknown. We needed to ask her about how she was hypnotized. But first, we needed to find out more about her. The first person to ask was Luka. She smiled and said, Youre awake. Where am I? A nearby vige. Why am I here? She exined everything in a gentle voice. She didnt hide anything either. She told her girl about the damage the ice spirits had caused. I guess it all WAS real... What was? I mean, I remember being in a dream, where I saw all that happen... Wed like to know more. Where should I start? Well, okay, first, where were you born? From there? Yes, from there. So, her story began. She had lived in the mountains on the border of the dead Demon Lord. Her mother was a beast-human, her father, a devil. This magic circle here is a remnant from a very old devil magical school. What about that? Is it? My brother taught me everything...I dont know anything about old devil magic. Nothing? How about your mother and father? She shook her head slowly. Her father was never there, after she was born. Her mother died soon after she grew into a girl. Then she had lived with her brother, who was quite an advanced magician. When she had grown into a young woman, her brother vanished. Suddenly? Yes, there was a paper too. He wanted to test his powers and make a name for himself. Find sess, huh? I thought he was already an expert in magic? Yes. Well, I guess it would be natural for someone like him. It was normal for advanced magicians to want to go out and make names for themselves. So,ter the girl followed after, looking for him, leaving the mountain for work. And so she became an adventurer. An adventurer is respected for skill, regardless of race, family, or origin. I guess it wasmon sense that a local girl like her, a mix of beast and devil, would be one. You have a membership in the guild, right? Yes. And in the magicians guild as well. And that guilds pretty harsh to beast-humans, right? Yes. So the girl searched for news of her brother as she went on quests. However, there was no trace of him anywhere. Then one day, an unknown man spoke to her. He said that my brother was in the spirit world. And you believed him? Yes, but...I dont know why I did... She seemed lost. She probably was under his power of suggestion, even then. Ah...I cant remember. His face. I should be able to remember... Is that all you cant remember? His face, body, stature, race, voice...nothing... Is there anything you DO remember? I remember what he told me. But, other than that... Someone HAD messed with her memories. And after he had talked to her, she started summoning spirits in Cruz realm. Did you use spirit magic before, normally? No, I never did. Did you know how to use it before that? I dont think so. Thats why, even if we searched for a beast-human that summoned spirits, we couldnt find one. Cruz then spoke to her, My names Cruz. Whats yours? Leah. I see. Miss Leah. Nice to meet you. Nice to meet you as well. Then, Cruz looked over at me. So what now, Al? We dont have enough to catch whoever is behind this. Well, the summoning is over, right? We can take our time. You think so? If he can summon them on his own, he doesnt need Leah anymore. I see, youre right. Leah then looked at the floor and said, What will be of me? Im ready to be punished for all the damage Ive caused... Cruz thought it over, Well, yeah...but since due to thew, you did none of it intentionally, you cant be punished, right? Was that a thing? ...um, what do you mean? Leah, looked confused, and Cruz continued, But, since were on the subject of whos responsible here... ... Theres also the other consideration that since there was little real damage, the punishment will be light. Light? Yeah, we also have to consider the other ruler. Then,bor it is, Chel! PiggGi? You need workers in your vige? Right? PigPiggi! Chel jiggled where it sat. I couldnt tell, but I guessed it was nodding. I was thinking of sending Leah to help you...what do you think? Thankss! Happy! Chel responded gleefully. On the other hand, Leah looked a bit confused. Labor work wasnt a light punishment. But if the other ruler came asking, he probably wouldnt bother anyone after hearing that. And theres no way the vige work would be that hard. It was so light a punishment, it didnt really even seem like it. Leah, you must be tired. You can rest now. Luka took Leah to an empty room. Cruz, you even studiedw? Well, its my responsibility as a ruler. Good work. Eheh heh For now, all this summoning was over. The Jack Frosts were all gone. But...we still had to find who was behind all this. There were also his motives. He would be up to something else, soon. Once he started moving, we would track him down and catch him. At least, thats what I was thinking. Chapter 300 – Breakfast, Leah, and Spirits

Chapter 300 C Breakfast, Leah, and Spirits

It was the next day after the summoning attacks and then us bringing Leah back to the vige. We all ate Millets breakfast together that morning. And when I say all of us, I mean Cruz, Luka, Yureena, and I. Then Millet, Collette, Steff, Femm, and Moofy. Shiggy and Timi. Vi-Vi, Vallimie, and Chel. It was normal that we always ate breakfast and dinner together. And this breakfast had Leah with us as well. Leah ate breakfast with a nervous look on her face. Just then, Vallimie said, Al, do you think we can ask the spirit lord about it? Hm? I think its possible. Could you summon her? I have something I want to ask. ...okay. And I think Leah can take the time to apologize to her as well. Certainly. I would be happy to be given the opportunity. Leah was the reason for the summoning, so she had caused a bit of trouble. Even though shed quickly be forgiven, she still had to apologize. I touched the cor of the spirit lord and said, Great spirit lord, please, return to this world by my summons. The cor shimmered quickly. Eeep! And the little nymph suddenly appeared. She looked around at all the others. Seeing me, she smiled again. Eeep! And she sped onto my arm. Thank you for allowing me to summon you. Call any time, permission. Thank you. She was wearing the clothes from Yureena. It looked cute on her. Thank you for wearing that. Like it. Thanks. The nymph smiled. Moo moo ryaa! Moofy approached the nymph and licked her. Shiggy took a piece of bread with jam in her w and offered it to the nymph. Thanks Shiggy. She then ate it. Good. ryaa ryaa! The nymph reached over and patted Shiggy. Shiggy pped her wings happily. Then Leah stood before the nymph. She bowed deeply to her. Spirit lord, I deeply apologize for what Ive done. Eeep? I was the one that helped summon you, and I am very sorry for the trouble I have caused. Eeep? The nymph said, with a look of confusion. And so Lea exined to the nymph. She also exined that she was fooled into believing her brother was in the spirit world. It was a long exnation, but the nymph quietly listened. While this was going on, Shiggy was bringing more jam and bread to the nymph. She was eating bread with her right hand while petting Shiggy with the left. Thats why Im really very sorry... Eeep. She ate thest part of bread, and then pulled at my arm. What is it? She pointed at Leah, Who? Shes a spirit magician called Leah. Spirit magician? Yes. She apparently can call spirits. Incorrect. The spirit lord said tly. Something was wrong. Incorrect...what is? First time see. Um, so someone else summoned you? Correct. And hearing this, Leah was the most surprised out of all of us. But...I was sure that I summoned... No, it might just be that the spirit lord has a hard time distinguishing faces. Luka said, and the nymph came closer. So, spirit lord, youre saying that theres no doubt youve never seen Leah. Correct. But you said she had beast ears and horns, and a tail. And her hair was about the same length as Cruz. Summoner. Scary. Huge. So the person that summoned you was scary looking and very big? Correct. Then she tugged on my arm again. I hungry. Ah, Im sorry. I gave her an egg to eat. Refuse. She pointed over at the bread and jam. Want. This is what you wanted? I guess that Shiggy knew exactly what the spirit wanted after all. I gave some more jam and bread to the nymph. She must really love sweets. Wonderful. And seeing this, Millet ran to the kitchen. She got some sweets and came back. Here you are! Thanks! Thanks! Then the spirit lord gobbled it down. Shiggy took some as well and ate it. On the other hand, Leah looked dumbfounded. Then Luka said kindly to Leah. She might have had her memory rewritten. She might have only summoned the spirits in the other rulers realm. ...I wonder if thats what happened. Leah then said to the spirit lord, Spirit lord, I still was the one that summoned those Jack Frosts and for that I apologized. Forgiven. And with that, she stopped eating and patted Leah on the head. Chapter 301 – Leah’s Brother

Chapter 301 C Leahs Brother

After Leah was forgiven, the spirit lord went back to eating. Shiggy and Collette sat next to her, doing the same. ryaa ryaa Sthpirit lord, thisth isth great! Great! Seeing this, Luka whispered, Is changing someones memory like that very easy? Well, that demon that came to abduct Shiggy had his memory changed. But the one that did that was a very experienced, famous Great Demon. So maybe the person doing that is as strong as the Great Demon? Luka and Yureena looked at me with a serious gaze. Cruz patted the spirit lords head. A great demon...I guess we could do something if we could find him. If it were that strong, anyone from the guild would be hurt by it. The same thing with anyone from the church. And it would be bad if it attack any vige. We would need our hero party back again to defeat someone that strong. Way too much for a normal adventure party. Well, the problem now is that we dont know where he is. The problem is more that we dont even have a trace of anything. Cruz, Luka, and Yureena looked at each other seriously. Well, theres no actual clue about his power, but there are SOME clues out there. Some clues? Cruz brightened up a bit. First, whoever it was knew that Leah could use spirit magic. Hm? Even though shes a magician, she said she never told anyone that she could use it. Right? I asked Leah. Yes, youre right. I wanted to learn regr magic actually... But you werent hiding that you could use it either, right? Luka looked at Leah and asked. I wasnt trying to hide it, but no one asked about it. To be honest, Ive been a magician forever and never been asked about it, myself. I guess thats the way it is. Well, Luka, have you ever asked a magician whether they use spirit magic before? Now that you mention it... There were a lot of adventurers that knew nothing about spirit magic. No one would ask you unless you were telling others about it. So the bad guy knew from someone that Leah could use spirit magic, then? Just as you said, Luka. Who do you think they found out from, Al? The highest possibility is Leahs brother. Hearing that, Leah stood up. The chair creaked as she jumped up. My brother? Its the most likely. Is he alive?! Leah almost looked like she would cry. The spirit lord patted Leah on the head gently. Then she offered her a sweet to eat. T...thank you... She was trying to calm Leah with something to eat. What kind of people knew your brother? Well, after I started searching for my brother, I told a new adventurer guilds branch about it...and my friends knew about it. So it seemed that she wasnt trying to hide the info about her brother disappearing. If her friends knew about it, then pretty much everyone she knew, knew the brother was gone. If everyone knew about your brother, then they probably all know you can use spirit magic as well. Thats probably true. We need to find the brother first. Youre right. Luka agreed with me. I think she noticed...that the bad guy MIGHT BE the brother. But she said nothing. Well, for now, we need to find out from the adventurers guild any info. Thank you so much. Dont worry about it. And Ill look around the church info.. Thank you too, Yureena. Its fine. And with that said, the spirit lord stood. She petted Collette and Shiggy. Then she looked at me. Alra, still need me? Im fine for now. Thank you very much. Need pet. She stuck her head out to me. I petted her, and she seemed satisfied. Alra, call anytime. Thank you again. And then she disappeared back to her world. Cruz watched, and then put her hand on Leahs shoulder. Leah! Time to start work. Labor...yes, Im ready. PiGGi! Chel happily said and bounced. It bounced right up on Leahs shoulder. Leah Thanks Please to be of service. Okay,e with me. So Cruz, Chel, and Leah all departed to the death temple. I called out to them. Let me know if you need more help. Ille too. Thank you! Thanks. After Cruz and the others left, Timi said, I dont know much about this, but, doesnt Leahs brother seem quite strange? Its a possibility its him. Do you think its a small possibility? I guess. Why do you think so? Because hes the guy that taught her the spirit magic, right? I see, so he didnt really need to use her... And he wouldnt need to use something like a machine that hypnotized her. Youre right. Timi said, with a nod of her head. Chapter 302: Payback 302 Love Words~ Nora casually scrolled down the name list. Since the establishment of the Hacker Alliance, there had only been a dozen or so members. It could be considered the top hacker club in the world. It could even be protected here. As Q, Nora only knew that Y was powerful enough to protect this group of people. ording to the rumors, the Hacker Alliance was created by her, but it was actually created by Y. Although the two of them were in the Hacker Alliance, everything was handled by Y. She was cking off every day and had no interactions with Y. The two of them only had equal reputations, but they had never reallypeted. Usually, such matters were handled casually by Y. Every year, they would choose the best candidate. This year, when she was looking at the name list, Y suddenly sent a message: "Choose this or the other one?" He had sent two names. One of them was Yvonne. Nora had just taken a casual look. Yvonne''s monitoring system was indeed good and difficult to detect. It could be considered high-level programming. Nora never involved personal feelings when handling matters. However, she recalled what Warren had said earlier. Supposedly, there was something wrong with Yvonne''s software that she couldn''t control and it had hacked into theputers of the people nearby. Nora thought about it for a while and crossed out Yvonne''s name. If she could make such a low-level mistake, she would not be epted no matter how good she was. She sent the other person''s name to Y. She was about to type and exin the reason when Y replied readily: "Okay." This straightforward attitude made Nora speechless. She raised her eyebrows and asked, "Aren''t you going to ask why?" Y: "You can choose whoever you want. I''m busy." Nora subconsciously asked, "What are you busy with?" After all, Y had not taken any orders for a long time. She had always thought that Y waszy like her, but he said he was busy? Had he taken on some big order recently that she did not know about? The order must be very challenging to keep Y busy. She was a little interested in it, which was rare. As she was thinking, Y replied: "I''m busy chasing my future wife. Brother, do you have any objections?" Nora: "??" Others thought that Q was a man, but she had never exined it. However, Y was busy chasing a girl. What good advice could she give him?! The corners of her lips twitched. For some reason, when she thought of Justin, she coughed and replied: [You have to be thick-skinned.] [Be narcissistic.] [You have to have a child with her first.] Y: [???] After sending the message, Nora could not be bothered to reply. She logged out of the system and closed her email. Yes, this year, she had really made a rare contribution to the Hacker Alliance! As she was thinking, she received a call from Justin. "What did you eat for lunch?" Nora repliedzily, "I forgot." She had indeed forgotten what she had casually taken out from the kitchen when she went downstairs. It seemed to be buns, but it also seemed to be bread? Anyway, she was no longer hungry after stuffing it into her mouth. Justin was clearly not surprised by her answer. He smiled and said, "Eat slowly. It''s not good for your stomach to eat so quickly." Nora retorted bluntly, "Mr. Hunt, I''m a doctor." "" Justin fell silent. "Yes, Doctor Nora. From a professional point of view, why do people who are in love feel happy all the time?" Nora did not understand why he suddenly said this. She exined in professional terms, "Because falling in love will cause the brain to secrete dopamine. Dopamine is a neurotransmitter, it can control the emotions and feelings in the brain. It makes people feel excited and happy." Justin smiled. "Then why do we feel happy eating candies?" Nora said, "Sugar also makes the human body produce dopamine." Justin smiled. "Oh, I get it. So you''re my candy." Nora: "????" The corners of her lips twitched and she was silent for a moment. "Mr. Hunt, your joke isn''t funny at all." "This isn''t a joke." Justin nagged seriously. "These are words of love." Words of love? Nora was slightly stunned. For some reason, his words rang in her ears again. "You''re my candy." The man''s deep voice seemed to still linger by her ear, making her cheeks heat up. She coughed and was silent for a while before changing the topic to hide her embarrassment and heartbeat. "How''s Cherry?" Justin chuckled but did not expose her. He echoed, "She''s doing quite well. She''s very satisfied with this ce and misses you. So, do you have time to visit her?" Nora was surprised. "Visit her at the Hunts?" Justin said, "You can choose another ce. It''s up to you." Nora thought about it carefully and replied, "Then let''s go to the Hunts to see her!" It was too troublesome to go anywhere else! Moreover, she could also go and see if Cherry was blending well at the Hunts. Although she was not a qualified mother, she still had to show some concern. Nora''s rare motherly love overwhelmed her. She stood up and walked out the door. As soon as she went out, she saw Florence and Yvonne standing outside her door. They seemed to be about to knock. When they saw that she had opened the door, Florence immediately said, "Miss Nora, I''m sorry. As you''ve just arrived here, your bank ount is still being processed, so it seems I can''t send you this month''s money. Is that okay?" Yvonne also had an apologetic look on her face. "Nora, I''m sorry. I''m the one handling this matter at home, but I was too focused on the Hacker Alliance yesterday, so I forgot about your bank card and missed this month. If you don''t have money to spend,e look for me. I''ll give it to you, okay?" Nora: "???" She raised an eyebrow. "No need." She really did not care about the Smiths'' money. Furthermore, she did not take Florence and Yvonne''s disdainful attitude to heart. She did note back to stay because of these two people. She hade back to investigate who her biological father was! Yvonne: "Nora, are you ming me? This is indeed my fault. I''m sorry" Before she could finish, Florence said, "Miss Yvonne, this isn''t your fault alone. After all, a person''s energy is limited. You''re not like some people who have nothing to do all day. By the way, has your application for the Hacker Alliance been approved? If you can join the Hacker Alliance, our Smiths won''t have to worry about this in the future!" Yvonne: "I don''t know yet, but it should be out soon" With this sentence, an email notification sounded. Yvonne''s eyes lit up. "The email is here!" Florence: "Then quickly take a look! It''s a small matter whether you get paid or not. The most important thing is that you can join the Hacker Alliance" Yvonne nodded, but when she opened the email, the smile on her face froze. Chapter 303: Seven Needles

Chapter 303: Seven Needles

Trantor: Reflet Editor: ryunakama Thud! The woman was thrust away. At that same time that she fell back, the woman put the back of her hand over her mouth, ring at Taiyou. Granted, this was a reasonable reaction to curse him for the sudden assault. Taiyou didnt care about that, however, since he was the one who was angry. Hera. Ta-ta-daaa! Hera-chan has arrived! Eh? Huh? What is the meaning of this, Taiyou-chan? Did you increase the number of brides again? No. I want to ask something of you. Yes indeed. If it is for your sake, Taiyou-chan, then I can go through fire, water, and even the physical reaaalm! Id like you to haunt that woman over there for a bit and whisper in her ear that shes disgusting every time she does something. Disgusting, you say? Yeah, disgusting. Rajaaa! Performing a light bow, Hera then began to hang around the woman. Wh-What the heck is this? What is this? ...Hmph. Snorting at her, Taiyou turned around. This was around the time that the two men who had fallen into the sea were crawling their way back up, so he knocked them off once more. He then returned to where the triplets were standing. Lets get outta here. No point staying. ... He motioned to them, but all the three sisters did was stare at him without saying a word. Even once the men had climbed back up from the ocean and the woman had dashed away from Hera in an attempt to escape her, they still said nothing, simply staring at Taiyou. Whats wrong? ... Kotone? Suzune? Kazane, you too? ... You guys feeling alright? Taiyou grew worried at theirck of response. He thought that they might have suddenly felt under the weather, but that wasnt the case. They furrowed their brows, staring at Taiyou with very displeased expressions. They werent under the weather; they were in a bad mood. S-Seriously, whats wrong? He repeated what he had said earlier. This time around, he was overpowered by them, slightly stuttering. Dont do that, Taiyou-san. That kind of thing... Isnt something that you should be doing. That kind of thing...? Taiyou wondered what they meant, but then noticed where they were looking, and he followed their gazes. They were looking at the woman as she ran away. As he observed this, he suddenly remembered something. My bad. What do you mean? The three of them softly asked Taiyou in response to his apology. This was a bit unusual. Normally, they would speak to Taiyou in a chorus, asionally in louder voices when they were excited. But they had hardly ever responded to him so quietly like this. Taiyou felt a quiet, indescribable pressure build up inside him. It was the kind of feeling when you got bad grades on a test and hid the paper but your mother found it. However, despite this pressure, he couldnt just run away. Taiyou lowered his head once more, apologizing to them. My bad. It was dumb of me to kiss that kind of woman. That was the answer that Taiyou had arrived at. Normally, that would be reasonable, right? His brides were probably angry that he kissed another female in front of them. Which was why he apologized for that. However, he was mistaken. That isnt what we mean. You may kiss anyone youd like to, Taiyou-san. But not like that. Eh? Wh-What do you mean? Taiyou-san, your kiss is an amazing thing. Kotone sped her hands together at her chest, as if praying. Suzune and Kazane also nodded, affirming the eldest sisters words. When you kiss us, it is such a blissful feeling. It isnt just because it makes us feel like were loved, but because its a kiss that shows us how serious you are. So using your kiss in such a manner...For payback, isnt suitable for you at all, Taiyou-san. ... Taiyous eyes became dots at their revtion. He had thought that they were angry at him for kissing another female in front of them, but it was only the way he did it that they were reprimanding him for. It was almost like... ...So its okay for me to kiss other people like normal? Yes! The three sisters said all at once. This time, their voices were back to their normal, cheerful selves. You didnt forget, did you Taiyou-san? Kazane grinned impishly as she pointed her index finger. Were girls who want to be part of a harem. In fact, we want you to find some more good candidates. But Taiyou-san, you already decided that you would go up to seven. Well, I didnt exactly decide that... Everything was a result of the reverse revision of idol, but he ended up not mentioning that. They already knew that very well, and he didnt find it worth mentioning. Ruminating over what they had said, he changed his thought process. In that case...he would suggest something. I get what you all are saying, but I couldnt allow that woman to do what she did. Taiyou said, and the three sisters madeplicated faces. Thatdy called you guys disgusting. Disgusting! Not creepy like what the men said, but disgusting. Humans always get hung up over things people say. If she had just said creepy, then I would have overlooked their shallow attitude and done nothing, but calling you all disgusting was uncalled for and I couldnt take it. Get what Im saying? Yes... We do. We also...feel... Thats why I decided to put that woman on the spot for a bit. I asked Hera to stick by her side and repeatedly call her disgusting to her ears. And in the process, the kiss would have given her the ability to see Hera, so everyone else would think shes crazy from now on. He said as he imagined how far from grace that woman would fall. Hera couldnt be seen by other humans. At least, not unless Taiyou had kissed them at some point. Nor could they chase her away. So in her case, she would be ridiculed as disgusting for everything she did by a fairy that was whispering into her ears that only she could see. Taiyou felt satisfied when he imagined that. But I still think that you shouldnt use your kiss for something like that, Taiyou-san... This time, Suzune had spoken. She and the other sisters were all making painful, saddened faces. Unfortunately, he happened to be the cause. Taiyou felt pain course through his chest. He had just wanted to get some revenge, but if this was the oue, then he should have been more thoughtful. Taiyou highly valued his objectives and the methods to reach them. It neednt be said that his ultimate objective was to make them happy, always smiling. He had no choice but to admit that the objective this time around had been wrong. So he bowed his head, this time fullyprehending what the issue was and apologizing to the three sisters. Sorry, I wont do it again. I wont ever use a kiss for such a negative objective again. You really wont? Yeah, I promise. He said, extending his pinky for a pinky promise, but soon realized that one finger alone wouldnt be enough, so he brought out his ring finger and middle finger in addition. As he did this, he stared straight at the girls, full of intent. After they gazed at him for a bit, the three sisters entwined their fingers around his. Everyone had their pinky fingers out from their side. Kotone got his middle finger, Suzune his ring finger, and Kazane his pinky. Finger cut-off, ten thousand fist-punchings, whoever lies has to swallow seven needles. Seven? To him, seven needles were far more fearsome and weighty than one thousand in terms of numbers. Yes. If you break it then you have to swallow seven needles. We can prepare regr needles, but... We dont know which ones everyone else will prepare. Wow, thats scary. I can totally see Kohaku-san bringing something terrifying. Yep, got no choice but to keep that promise of mine. He joked, shrugging his shoulders. Having reconciled with one another, they stood there for a bit, enjoying chatting andughter Chapter 304: Midday Moon

Chapter 304: Midday Moon

Trantor: Reflet Editor: ryunakama Taiyou and the three sisters lined up their shoulders, gazing into the evening sun. They were out in the open cafe terrace overlooking the ocean, enjoying the sea breeze. They were sitting on a white sofa, gazing at the evening sun while munching on sweets. It was a truly peaceful time. The sun is super round, isnt it? Taiyou muttered in deep interest as he gazed at the orange sun. Perhaps because it was emitting a calm light, it appeared smaller than usual, and round as well. I feel the same way. Its normally too bright to look at, but... When we get the chance to look closer like this, its super round, yeah. Yep. Oh, and it actually looks smaller than the moon. He said, directing his eyes to the moon, which wasparatively muchrger. I actually quite like the moon when ites out in the afternoon. Why is that? Well, the afternoon is supposed to be the suns time to shine, right? Oh, and I mean the actual sun, not my name. (**Taiyou means sun in Japanese, so thats always the word they use**) He said jokingly as he pointed at the sun. Sure, there are other stars out there as well, but you cant see them, right? The only thing you can see clearly in the afternoon is the moon. Its not like it stands out all that much, but when its there you can definitely see it. Doesnt stick out, but its there all right. The afternoon moon... True. It is there every so often when you look up, isnt it? The afternoon moon... And I think you girls resemble it. Huh? The three sisters eximed in surprise at once. They looked at Taiyou, questioning what he meant. He continued speaking as he split a cake with a fork and fed the pieces to them. Amongst everyone in our family, you probably stand out the least out of everyone. There were some incidents that urred and there were even those events at the school. But you girls dont really get wrapped up in stuff like that. Thats usually because I help you take refuge or protect the family. Thats true. It happened with Youran-chan as well. And with Aoyama-san as well. We werent able to be of help. The three sisters were in low spirits. He had anticipated this happening, so he gave them all a light kiss. Didnt I say that I was the one who did that? Theres absolutely no reason for any of you to feel down about this. But... So I think that you resemble that midday moon. It doesnt stand out, but once you look at it its definitely there. Honestly, just from looking at you, you all should really stand out the most. With all your mismatched sizes, if you stand next to all of my brides and no one speaks a word, you would definitely stand out the most. But you usually dont, which is why you remind me of that moon. Are you sure? Plus if you guys hadnt been here, theres no way that our family would be the same right now. He said as he gazed at the three of them. If Im the sun, then youre the midday moon. Taiyou-san... The three sisters leaped into Taiyous chest with moist eyes. He caught the sisters who shared one soul in an embrace. Seems like theres a lot of moons in our family. In his arms, Kotone giggled as she said that. You think so? Of course. Kohaku-san loves the moon and is always trying to imitate it with her hairstyle. And Youran-chan is literally New Moon. So if all three of us are the midday moon, then there are a lot of moons to go around. Ahaha, gotcha, you do have a point. Taiyouughed pleasantly. Now that they had mentioned it, he really did have a lot of moons amongst his brides. Well after all, you are the sun. I dont know what you mean by after all, but in the first ce, if Im the sun, then wouldnt it make more sense for you guys to bes? Thats a bit difficult. We can only go up to seven, but... There are a total of eights in the sr system. True. Wed be down by one. Taiyou said, and everyoneughed together. Enjoying an incoherent conversation in the evening sun, he felt a warmth develop in his chest. At length, the sun began to descend, and nighttime approached. The three sisters left their seats for the bathroom, leaving Taiyou gazing up at the moon above his head. May I take your te, sir? A male employee came his way, and Taiyou nodded, furthering his gaze at the moon. Were thosedies with you your family? Hm? Being asked a question so suddenly, Taiyou inclined his head, looking at the employee. As he cleaned up the tes, he smiled and approached him. He didnt seem to have any ill intent, so Taiyou answered him straightforwardly. No, were lovers. Is that so? And may I ask which one of them? All of them. Even though he was a stranger, Taiyou answered without hesitation. It wasnt something that he felt should be hidden. If anything, by this point he would rather boast about them. On the other hand, he still knew that this was something peculiar in todays day and age, which was why he expected the man to make a strange face in response, but... Is that so? Thats amazing. Betraying his expectations, the employee did not make any sort of strange face, instead speaking in an awed tone. Taiyou was surprised by that. Moving his gaze from the moon, he looked at the employee. Is it, now? Yes. Im jealous. Jealous. Taiyou parroted his words. Sure, if someone was looking from the sidelines, they would be envious of someone who has a harem, he thought to himself. As if reading Taiyous thoughts, the employee spoke while wryly smiling. This was quite a while ago, but I once was confessed to by my wifes younger sister. So in other words, your sister-inw confessed to you? Technically. At the time, we werent yet married, so she wasnt my sister-inw yet, but she confessed to me. Of course, I turned her down, but she was upset after that for quite some time. After having cleared up all of the tes, the employee continued as he wryly smiled. Its only recently that weve been able to interact with each other as family. Have you heard the reason why she liked you and confessed to you? Yes. The employee made a further strained expression. Apparently, she started liking me because I was a man who treated my wife with care. And I heard this recently as well. So I rejected her because I already had my wife as a lover, but that seemed to only make my sister-inw further pained. I was not mistaken in what I saw in him and began to like him more and more- -But my feelings will never be reciprocated. Wow, thats pretty tough. Yes. Which is why from time to time, I wonder: Was there perhaps a way to make both of them happy at the same time? Is that right. My apologies for telling you such a strange story. No worries. Then please continue to make yourself at home. The employee said, bowing and returning to the shops interior. As he was staring at him go, the three sisters returned. Were back, Taiyou-san. Wee back. The three sisters sat on the sofa. The sisters were all gathered, the moon was floating in the sky, and the employee was continuing back to the shop. Whats wrong, Taiyou-san? Are you perhaps tired? Want to rest for a bit? No, Im fine. Shaking his head, he grinned. (Guess its about time), thought Taiyou. Firmly gripping the things he had been keeping hidden in his pocket, he took a deep breath. Nothing would change too greatly from what he was about to do. It probably only had symbolic significance. Still, he was nervous. Probably the most nervous he had been since first meeting the girls. Theres something that Id like to give you all. I figured itd be best to start with you. He held out his hands to the three sisters as they puzzled over what he said. Three small boxes containing rings were handed to them. Chapter 305: Number One

Chapter 305: Number One

Trantor: Reflet Editor: ryunakama And what is this? Kotone inquired. Her reaction seemed somewhat indifferent, but that was probably because she wasnt sure as to what was inside of the case. So Taiyou opened the cases, showing them the interior. At that very moment, identical faces were all painted with surprise. They were bewildered enough to cover their mouths with their hands out of how breathless they were. I want you girls to put these on. Taiyou-san...is this...? Could it be...that? That rumored...thing? Yeah, those are rings. One for each of you. Taiyou had brought out the rings he had received from Sakura. He felt a bit of guilt as he looked at the deep emotion on their faces, since they didnt know what events had led to this, but he endured it and then spoke. Id like you to treat these as engagement rings. ... The three mismatched sisters lost all their words. Taiyou didnt think that they were displeased, though, nor did he think they were too conceited or anything like that. Are you willing to ept these? He asked, seeking some sort of answer. After a bit, the three sisters brought down their hands from their mouths simultaneously, nodding. Yes, with great pleasure. And they extended their left hands. That very moment, their surroundings grew pitch ck. Their terrace seats had been illuminated by light bulbs under the night sky, but that lighting had instantly dropped all at once. Taiyou looked toward the shop, wondering what had happened. As he did so, the employee from earlier was looking their way, winking with a thumbs up. The lighting had vanished, reced by the moonlight. Grateful for the fashionable decision of the employee, Taiyou then turned back to the three sisters. He first took one ring out of its case and took Kotones hand. Pushing the ring through the ring finger of her left hand, the ring fit perfectly, as if it had all been nned. Lets just say that these rings have been reserved. Reserved? Kotone asked puzzledly. Taking out the next ring, this time he took Suzunes hand and slipped it through her ring finger. Actually, its more like these are designed to keep men away. Or like some type of marking. Marking, you say? Taking thest ring, he put that as well through Kazanes finger. Id like to use these as reserves until the day that I can get you all rings that I got with my own power. So please treat them as such. Even without these things, well always be yours, Taiyou-san. Kazane quietly and nonchntly dered. Her tone itself wasnt strong, but that only made her feelings seem stronger. Yeah, which is why I said marking. Theres no guarantee that other men wont try and plot to forcibly take you all. Thats what the marking is for. Its my way of asserting myself and saying These women are mine. Youd best know what youre getting into if you so much as think about touching them. Marking... ...That makes me happy. Kazane murmured, and everyone rubbed their cheeks against the rings that they had received from Taiyou affectionately. Thank you very much. Ill treasure this for my whole life. I will always, always, treasure it. Well, you dont have to treasure them that much. Once all seven are present, I will hand you the proper wedding rings. So itll just be until then. Yes! Though they had initially nodded at what Taiyou had said, they still were evidently trying to affectionately pat the rings. For a time, that was all they were doing, but suddenly, as if remembering something, all of them looked up at Taiyou. Taiyou-san, is this just for us? What about everyone else? Are they...prepared? ...Come on, you guys. Taiyou felt teary-eyed. Today, his feelings were at their peak, and he energetically hugged the three sisters. Youre gonna bring up other girls at a time like this? Of course. After all, theyre married to our precious Taiyou-san! We wouldnt feel right about being the only ones to receive...Actually, it wouldnt be good at all. Rx. I have enough for five people. Five people... Theres us, Kohaku-san, and Youran-chan. And Aoba-chan and Aoyama would be the fourth and fifth. Yeah. What about Yami-chan? The three sisters asked all at once again. It was a reasonable question, and Taiyou replied naturally with the answer he had already nned out. I still havent...or should I say, it just isnt the right time to put the ring on her before defeating her. Oh...thats true. She still isnt yours after all. But of course I hope it happens soon. Ill do my best every day to make sure it happens quickly. While hugging them, he fell onto the sofa looking up. He gazed at the moon above his head. The girls whispered into his ears. Were happy to have met you, Taiyou-san. Hm? Because you think of us a whole lot, Taiyou-san, and you make sure to think of everyone else as well. Not just us, but everyone. Well yeah. Taiyou smiled, putting power into his arms. You have yourselves a harem, yeah? Thats the kind of household you wanted. And you believe that to be happiness. Well its the job of men to help their loves desirese to fruition. But other people cant do that. They would normally reject what we want. But youre amazing for acting like it was no big deal and granting our wish. Amazing, huh? All I was doing was making the wish of the girls that I likede true. Yes. The three of them said in unison. It was as if they were saying that that in itself was what made Taiyou amazing. We like you, Taiyou-san. We love you. We adore you more than anyone in the world. And I adore you more than anyone in the world. And when he said that, the three sisters all got in a good mood. He pressed even closer to them. Their mood had clearly gone up when he told them that he adored them more than anyone else in the world. Of course, Taiyou understood the reason. He said that precisely because, in actuality, he loved them the most. Taiyou-san, how much do you love us? I love you more than yesterday. I love you more than anyone else. Heeey Taiyou-san, can I ask you one selfish thing? How about two things? Ah, would three be okay? Well arent you selfish. But go ahead. Taiyouughed, egging them on. Is it alright if we keep these on at school? Of course. Its to keep other males away after all. Is it alright if we brag about getting these from you, Taiyou-san? Sure you can, but if you dilly dally then Imma do it firrrst! Could you put the rings on us in front of everyone? That isnt too difficult. Could Koto-chan, Suzu-chan and I exchange our rings sometimes? If anything, please do. Cause its probably something that only you guys can do. They made lovers talk under the moonlight. Depending on who saw them, they might very well just dismiss them as being lovebirds without a care in the world. That was just how Taiyou and the sisters felt. Today, more than yesterday. Right now, more than a second ago. Taiyou was always seeking to be more and more in love with his partners, and this was still continuing in real time. This very moment when he put the rings on them was the most bliss moment he had ever had with them from the moment he met them. Chapter 306 – Linmia Trading

Chapter 306 C Linmia Trading

Yureena greeted them back with a gracious and tender tone that seemed to put a trance on all of them. Quite some calming technique you have there... Just like a holy woman should have. And as she greeted people one by one, I looked over some of the good scattered around. There were many rare goods, so it was fun to browse. Huh? I actually found someone wearing a mask like the ones that Cruz had given to us. But this was a lions, and had very lifelike fur, soft to the touch. Moo moo Moofy happily nuzzled her snout into the soft fur. S...stop it! Youre going to spill the beans! The person in the lion mask whispered to Moofy. Femms jaw almost dropped to the floor. Cruz! What the hell are you doing here?! N...its not...um, who is this Cruz you speak of? Cruz said, while waving her hands dismissively. I am Lion Mask...of Justice! Oh, Lion Mask of Justice, huh? Y...yeah! Cruz seemed a bit relieved, as if she had really fooled us. Huh? Cruz? Why are you here? Yureena said, returning after greeting all the staff. Maam, I am Lion Mask...not this Cruz you speak of. Hmmm? I had no idea. Well, enjoy looking around. And saying that, Yureena then put her arm around mine. Al, my dad is waiting. I know. Yureena and I walked in, but Lion Mask followed. Um, Lion Mask? W...what is it? This area is off limits. Ah...um... Dang it, Cruz. You dont have to hide who you are. And after thinking it over for a second, the Lion Mask said, Okay, it turns out my real identity is...ME! She said, but still not taking off the mask. Yeah, we all know Cruz. Al, how did you find out!? Before I could answer, Femm and Moofy said, Your smell. Smell. Then Moofy shoved her snout into Cruz again, and Yureena said, I didnt expect you to try something like this, Cruz. I think its perfectly normal. But Cruz, I knew right away. You need to be more careful. Really? Everyone knows its Al, even with his disguise. Cruz said a bit gleefully. So why are you here? W...well... You could have just said something if you wanted toe. Als right. Cruz fidgeted around, even with the mask still on. But...I thought youd say no, Yureena. I wouldnt say no... I just thought you were nning something on your own...so I didnt want to pry... Hm? I had no idea why Cruz was being so cautious. W, w, wh, what are you talking about? Yureena looked astonished. Yureena? I...its nothing. Lets go! O...okay. And so we all walked into her fathers office. Oh! So good to see youvee, future son-inw! Thank you foring. Yureenas mother and father stood to greet us. They still were expecting us to marry. I guess I should expect to be called son-inw. I took off my mask, and Yureena greeted her parents. Cute as always, Moo-chan! Moo moo! Yureenas mother then gave Moofy a hug. Well, well, have a seat, my son. Thank you. Yureena and I sat across from her mother and father. Then Cruz slipped in and sat between us. And this lion is? Cruz! Ah, Marquis Conradine. Why are you...wearing that? Um... There was no reason for her to wear that mask, after all. She finally noticed and quickly took the mask off. I was...cold. I see? The father looked a bit confused, but decided not to pursue asking any more. While the mother petted Moofy, she said, Ill have some refreshments brought in. You dont have to bother. I said, but the tea and snacks were already on their way. The tea smelled exquisite. ryaa Shiggy popped her head out of my pouch. Yureena reached over and popped a cracker into Shiggys mouth. Cruz, who was still between us, then did the same thing. Open wide, Shiggy. ryaa ryaa Shiggy was happy to be fed so much at once. So, youvee to sell some spirit stones, my son? Thats not precisely what I need. Which means? I wasnt there to sell them. I wanted them to be put up for sale, to see who was interested. So I exined it to them. I see. Its possible, but you have them with you? Yes, I do. Good to hear. If we dont have the real items to show, then theres the issue of trust... There was problems with selling and making agreements frequently. However, if the items werent present, then you couldnt ensure that purchasers could trust the seller. I took the stones from my magic bag. So these are spirit stones...this is the first for me.the father said. They are very beautiful. Almost like gems.said the mother. Theyre unsuitable for cutting, like gems, but yes, they are quite impressive. You cant cut them? Too bad. Yureenas mother looked genuinely disappointed. Well, how shall we sell these, then? The father said, with a twinkle of traders greed in his eyes. Chapter 307 – Yureena’s Father and the Stones

Chapter 307 C Yureenas Father and the Stones

After looking over the stones with his tradesmans eyes, Yureena said, ...so, lets talk first about what an appropriate price is. Youre right. Excuse us...son-inw... Yureenas father took a stone in hand, and looked it over seriously. After a bit, he took a magnifying monocle, ced in his eye, and looked it over again. Well, maybe appraised it would be a better statement than looking it over. ...my father can also appraise gems. I see... Yureena said, whispering past Cruz to me. I could see he was focusing on looking every part of the stone over. I remained quiet so nothing would interfere with him. ry.... Shiggy began to cry while pping her wings, but I stopped her. Shhhhh... ... She sped her little ws over her beak. Femm just sat, quietly. Femm always knows when to remain quiet. Very able to know whats going on. On the other hand, Yureenas mother was busy feeding Moofy. Mooo You really are cute, Moo-chan. I wish you were mine. Mooompf mooofph I could shut Moofy up as well, but not if Yureenas mom was making a racket herself. If I had to shut Moofy up, the mom would have to shut up as well. So it was hard for me to say anything, and I looked over at Yureena. She nodded. Mother. What is it, Yureena? Father is appraising the stone. Youre right. I guess Ill have to stay quiet, even though theres no point. Why do you say that? I asked, and the mother responded, Well, you said we cant cut the stone to make it more beautiful, right? Youre right. Well, then seeing if it has defects, its color, its translucence, its all pointless. I guess youre right. Then she smiled at me and went to petting Moofy. Is there something other than appearance that determines the price of a spirit stone? Yes, there is. Then I guess a rank amateur cant determine the worth of a magic or spirit stone just by looking it over...right? I think thats correct. Yureena seemed to understand this, as she answered her mother. Well...then why was her father appraising it? Hmph. After a few minutes, the father took the stone and ced it on a shelf. Did you figure something out about it? Son...this stone you have...is very mysterious. As a magician, I certainly agree. However, youve appraised it as something strange too? Yes. It refracts and reflects light very strongly. Which means... Well, thats a characteristic of gems with very high qualities. However, its not hard like a gem...in fact, its quite brittle. It seems that the father had quite an experienced opinion about the gem as an appraiser. It was a softish stone...or rather brittle. In other words, cutting it would be hard, and it was of no use for rings or nes. Its hard to give it a hard price like most gems... I see. Son...this leads me to the question...whats the use for this thing? ...Well, Im guessing you can use it to summon spirits and as a catalyst for spirit magic. And maybe as a material for alchemy too! Yureena said. Yureena had Shiggy on her knee, and petted her while feeding her a snack. Femm moved over to Yureenas mom as well. Femm probably wanted to be petted and fed as well. Yureenas father looked over at his wife and then said, You said, for alchemy? Well, Im not that sure about it, but I heard its a secret ingredient for some alchemy. I see. I guess as a holy woman, she knew something about alchemy as well. I dont know how its used, but I know that some alchemists would pay a high price for it. So without putting a high price on it, it will be bought up quickly? Yes! I think so! So dad, I also think its important to determine price, as its used to summon spirits. Hm? Yureena exined why to him. If you summoned an army of Jack Frosts, the resulting blizzard would be so intense it could stop an army. Even during the summer? I answered his question. The effect would weaken considerably during the summer. I think it would be hard to use the Jack Frosts then. So just during the winter? There arent many armies moving in the dead of winter. I think it would also be effective in the early spring andte autumn. I see. Also, these stones dont just summon ice spirits. There are sylphs of wind magic that can attack with mighty gales. Gales? Enough to possibly stop an army, and outside of town, it can cause great damage. Yureenas father gave anotherHmmm. I guess we cant just p a price on these then. Even so, I dont think theres many that have the casting power to use these stones correctly. A normal spirit magician might only be able to use these to increase their casting power. Yureenas father then seemed to think the price over after hearing about how terrifyingly they could be used. Chapter 308 – Back to Daily Guarding

Chapter 308 C Back to Daily Guarding

After the father thought a bit, he gave an approximate price. It was the same as a very expensive gem...actually more like three times one. This is far more than a normal tradesman could afford. Which means? From a tradesmans perspective, I assumed a price appropriate for a customer purchasing these stones. And with the powers youve described, I assigned a price so that no customer will want to purchase them. We appreciate it greatly. No, I did this as a request from my future son! And with him saying that, Yureena happilyughed to herself. On the other hand, Cruz looked quite upset. I didnt know why, but I decided not to think about it. I then decided to reiterate my desire to Yureenas father. I am not intent on selling these in any way. However, if someone appears anxious to buy them, please inform me immediately. Understood. Ill act as your intermediary. Father, thank you. Yes, just leave it to me. And with that, I left him a small fragment of a stone to use as bait. I will use this. Thank you again. And after that, we left Linmia Trading. As we were departing, the mother called out to us. Son...please take this with you. What is it? A souvenir. Some snacks for the others to have as well. Thank you very much. Please care for our Yureena. As the parents saw us out, we quickly made our way back to Mulg. And arriving there, I went back to work as a guard. ...just sitting at the gate. The weather is nice, but its still cold. Cruz said as she sat down beside me. Yeah, you taking the day off? I am! She said, and then leaned onto me. With it being this cold, Femm and Moofy,e here! Wuff? Moo! And so Femm and Moofy also sat close. Then they squeezed up against Cruz and me. Thanks, Femm. Femm put its paw up on my leg. My knee still hurt, and it was because of the cold. So Femm was trying to warm it up for me. Mooo Moofy then stuck her head between Cruz legs. Good girl... And Cruz reached down to hug Moofys head. Mooo mooo Youre so warm. Moofy was quite happy, as Cruz petted her. ryaa? Then Shiggy stuck her head out of my pouch. She somehow knew when all the other beasts were near. Youll be warmer inside, Shiggy. ryaa But Shiggy squirmed out instead. She got on top of Femm, and rubbed Femm while lying on Femms fur. If you get cold, get back in, okay? ryaa While all this was going on, I asked Femm, So, are the wolf cubs okay? ryaa? Shiggy heard the words cubs and responded quickly. She looked around for them. She always yed with them, after all. They were her friends. Theyre fine. I havent seen themtely... Its winter. They dont reallye out until it gets warm. I see. Theyre probably ying inside the wolf house as we speak. It was quite arge shack, as Vi-Vi had made a space making circle for the ce. It was also warm, and the cold wind couldnt get in. Perfect ce for them. Well, Im d to hear that. Its such a perfect ce, theres no need to go out unless for hunting. What about walks? I told them not to mess around outside. I guess wolves saw walking as messing around. It was for them to mark and protect their territory, I assumed. I see. Just then, four wolves peeked their heads out of the shack. They saw Femm, and ran over to us. WuffWaff wuff! They then jumped on me and Cruz and licked our faces. Okay...okay... d to see youre all healthy. ryaa ryaa ryaaa We all petted them, even Shiggy. After a bit, they were all satisfied, so they ran off. On patrol now? Its important to protect territory. We have to do it twice a day. How about hunting? Hard during the winter... Well tell me if you need help. We still have meat stored up. Thanks. If they know how much we have, theyll getzy. I see. I guess being in Femms position puts a lot on your mind. It became evening, and the wind began to chill everyone. I was going to leave my guard, when, Old man! Mister Al, thank you. Were back from the forest, master. All three had returned from Lindobal forest. They had ventured there to learn about magic tools from Leah. We...huh? Wheres Vi-Vi and the others? They said theyd be back after caring for Rai and the others. I guess theyd stick around until Vallimies lion Rai and dragon Doby were cared for. We should invite those two over here sometime soon. Yeah... And with that over, I returned home from guarding. Chapter 309 – Spirit Stone Buyer

Chapter 309 C Spirit Stone Buyer

It was about a week after Linmia Trading put the stones on sale for us. Yureena came hometer than usual. It seems she had gotten a notification from thepany when she was finishing up her work at the church. Cruz and Luka came homete that night too. After everyone was together, Yureena said, Al, seems a buyer finally showed up. Someone who said they can match that price. Of course, the person wanted to haggle the price, but they obviously wanted to buy it. She said, and then walked over the the firece, Its quite cold today. Cruz was already standing there, and moved over to let Yureena have some heat, Was the person an alchemist? Nope. A trader. Really? Even if one buys it, they cant make a profit off selling it to anyone. Cruz was right, unless Yureenas father had lowered the price. The fact no one could make money of reselling meant that it was too expensive even for a collector to afford. Then Cruz and Yureena sat down beside each other. Moofy was lying there as well, and put her snout on Yureenas leg. Maybe a way of greeting her as she came back home. This means...that tradesmans found a buyer already. I hope not.... Then just get him to spill the beans about who wants to buy it!! Cruz said with a smile. Luka was sitting beside me at the table and looked at Cruz, a bit miffed, Thats going to be hard. Why? Because if he does, then why wouldnt the buyer just negotiate directly with you? I guess youre right. Cruz turned to pet Femm. All of the beasts were around the firece. But, after negotiation, then maybe? Luka said. After negotiation? If we can offer the same amount of money to the tradesman in lieu of the purchase of the stones... Yureena waved it away, saying, Thats going to be hard too. Moo? Moofy looked confused as well. Trust is important to a tradesman, hes not going to just reveal his client. I see... A tradesman that doesnt keep his trap shut doesnt get clients. So we need something other than just money. Mooff mofff Moofy was chewing on Yureenas extended hand now. Maybe, for now, lets just meet the tradesman in question. Hesing to Linmia Trading tomorrow, so lets go together. Thanks. So there was something I had to say again before we left tomorrow. Femm, Moofy. Wuff? Moo? If you twoe tomorrow, theyre going to know that Cruz is involved. Moo So stay and watch the vige tomorrow. Guess we have to. Moo mo! Seems like Femm understood, but Moofy didnt. Moofy turned toe over to where I was sitting. Sorry, Moofy. Mooo I apologized to her, and it seems that she finally understood. The next day, after breakfast, I left with Yureena to the capital. We discussed what would happen when we arrived at Cruz pce. We wont stand out as much with Femm and Moofy here, but... Youre going to stand out, A LOT, Al. And the wolf mask I wore before would stand out as well. Maybe I could wear that wolf mask again? Well, I think anyone would know youre with Cruz since everyones seen you together with it on. Dang...guess Ill just hide deep inside my hood then. So I put the hood over my head and we went to Linmia Trading. As we entered, Yureenas father called out to us, Wee, my son! It seems he hade to greet us. After speaking to him, I heard about the tradesman looking to buy the stones. Someone I can trust. Hes built many trading firms all around the kingdom at quite a pace. I see. A hard worker? ...let me just say, hes a dependable man. If Yureenas father said so, then I guess there was no need to worry. We sat in the waiting room and another trader came walking in. He was a young man with a calm smile. Not too tacky, but you could tell he was wearing well-made clothes. Please, sit here. Yureenas father sat him directly across from us. Yureenas father and Yureena sat to the side. I guess this is the way negotiations go down in the business world. It was clear that Linmia was taking the ce of intermediary in this exchange. And Yureena sat with her father, as if she was known to be party with the one negotiating, it would be clear that Cruz was involved in the sale as well. Ive heard that you have some spirit stones for sale. Please, Id like to buy them. Theyre very expensive. Are you sure that you can afford them? I didnt have my mask on, but Im sure I looked even stranger with the hood over my face. I was worried that I would be found out, but it was a meaningless fear. The guy didnt recognize me at all. Of course, I can purchase them all. All of them at once? If I couldnt, I wouldnt arrange for this sale. Then the guy smiled. Perhaps he said so simply to drag me here and see what I had. Either way, the negotiation would continue, That may be so. Yes... Well, how much were you expecting to purchase? Whatever you have. Is this a joke? He smiled at me, and said, Theres no joke. Why would you think there is? Because of the high price. I buy whatevers necessary, regardless of price. Excuse me for asking, but how much do you have? Then Yureena cut in and said, I think its obvious that the seller here is a bit concerned that it might be a bit...too high a price for some. She said with a smile, but a bit coldly. Please, be at ease. Let me introduce myself. I am Tokul Tolf. Tolf? I remembered that name instantly. Its because I am the inheritor of the great Tolf Trading empire. Please, be assured I have the assets to make the purchase. The inheritor of the Tolf empire? Exactly. Nothing as prodigious as the Linmia name, of course, but mypany is quiterge. Then he exined a bit about hispany. I already knew quite a bit about it, however. I had visited the trader back in the summer from Mulg vige, after all. Chapter 310 – Negotiations

Chapter 310 C Negotiations

Then I asked Tokul Tolf directly, Ah, thatpany. Yes, I know of it. You do? Oh, yes. Then I can trust you know my word is good? If I was exchanging with them, I could trust the money was there. But for this much money to change hands, I wonder why such a youngster was sent here. Even as education for the kid inheriting thepany...there was still the risk of losing the sale. It might be that the kid took it on his own toe out here. Even so, I didnt make it seem like I was considering this. Well, then I am at ease. Thank you for your trust. He smiled again. I guess then I CAN make the sale. Saying this, I took a grain-sized stone and ced it on the table. He reached out to take it, but I covered the stone with my hand. Until we have an agreement, Id like you to refrain from touching it. Its very precious and small, after all. I see. I understand your concerns. And with this small amount, would you pay this much? I gave the amount near the price of a small mansion. It was three times the price of the amount that the father had quoted. Tokul sat back andughed. Hah hah hah, now whos joking? Even so, I sensed that hisugh was forced. So I said, seriously, No, theres no joking. This much, for that price. Tokul looked over at the Linmias for help...perhaps. But, from what you said, Mister Linmia... The price was quite different, it seems. Its because I have quite a bit of knowledge of magic that Ive set this price... Ah...well... The price had changed so much, that now Tokul looked quite flummoxed. Theres the possibility that many magicians could use such stones as these to cause quite dangerous...circumstances. Really? However... I could see Tokuls eyes were saying,Why would he raise the price this much, now? If I dont know your buyer and how he or she may use it, I can only offer this small amount and at that high price. I understand that, but the price... I can trust yourpany, but I cant trust the one you might sell it to. If Im not able to trust them, then you see why I would raise the price? I said such, but its true the amount was far too high. However, because of how dangerous I said it was, Tokul seemed to understand, ...okay... Tokul was thinking it over. This price was far too high to make a quick decision. Of course he had to mull over the price. If I could just know who was purchasing it, or how it might be used... I said as I lined up more stones on the table. These werent as small as a grain. Some were asrge as a mans fist. How much would you charge for all of these? I returned the price to the amount Yureenas father was using. It wasnt a discount either. It was the high price he originally offered. Even so, it was one-third the price I had used with the very small stone. I let him think it over for a bit. Also, the stones were quite entrancing. They looked like very expensive gems. And there were many. I knew that Tokul was bing anxious to buy these as quickly as he could. However, I have a contract with the buyer to consider... Im very sure there was a non-disclosure use in that contract as well. So another push was necessary, Ive also found a way to create these stones. What? Are you speaking the truth? Tokul leaned in, over the table. Yes. Is it alchemy? Or magic?! Secret. I smiled as Tokul sat back in his chair again. Well, I see. If its a purchaser I can trust, I could work with him, however... But the contract... Trust in this case is important to me as well. I said, and sat looking at Tokuls face. Since this may involve long term negotiations, dont you think its better that I meet the person before we engage in it? Hmmm. Tokul was now deep in thought. After a scratch of the head, he said, Let me return and I will see. Sure. I hope for a good answer. I said with a smile, and then returned the stones to the bag. I made sure that every one was counted correctly, so that I missed none. Tokul was looking very intently at that bag of stones I carried. And after a handshake, he returned home. Yureena and her father both saw him off. And as they returned, Son, Ive made light of your skill. How so? I know that you are an aplished magician and adventurer, but to be such a killer businessman... ...I dont know what to say... No words, no words, it was fine business! I thought that I could help you out in this, but it turns out you need no help at all! He giggled to himself and looked to be in excellent mood. I can leave thispany to you now! He said, jokingly with a p on the back, but still smiling from ear to ear. Chapter 311 – Regarding Tokul Tolf

Chapter 311 C Regarding Tokul Tolf

I couldnt just deny him, even if it was a joke, so Iughed along. Then Yureenas mother came in. She had left during the negotiations. I heard you...so about giving him thepany... No, that was a joke. Oh, is that so? Seems like she had only heard half the story. Well, youre still wee here any time...okay? Hah hah hah She seemed to be really pushing this marriage thing. I looked over to Yureena, hoping shed help me out, but she just stood there with blushed cheeks. Cruz and Moofy werent there either. I guess I just had to change the subject myself, So, about that Tokul Tolf... Was there a problem? No...more like a doubt... I see. In what way do you mean? He said he was to inherit thepany...is he really going to? Toril Tolf has quite a few children. However, Tokuls the only adult for now. If thats the case, then its probably true that he was assigned to take the reigns of thepany. Tokuls father Toril was the owner of Tolf Trading. I had met him during summer in arge town near Mulg. Even though it was close to Mulg, it wasnt in Cruz realm. We had met him in the branch office when we brought meat to be sold at the market. After that, we also met him when buying things in the capital as well. I knew that I could trust Toril, but I didnt know the same about Tokul. I see that he could probably inherit, but whats his role in thepany now? Normally someone would state their role in thepany if they were going to use thepanys name. Thats why I didnt trust that Tokul would inherit thepany. You noticed too? Hes just an employee there. I see. Thats why I was questioning whether he had that much money he could move around. Sounds fishy! I understand why you might think so, Yureena, but his father did send a note to wee him. Then father, why did spend the time introducing him to us? Were busy too. Sorry, Yureena. He apologized to us, but then the mother said, But theres no one else interested...we dont have a choice, right? I think thats a good assessment. But your father wanted to see how he would react as well. Ah... Its important that hed do so as a businessman, right? I guess youre right, mother. I had no idea what she understood from that, but she understood something. With that conversation over, we went back to the business at hand. Would it be too much to ask to negotiate directly with Mr. Toril Tolf? If you say youre concerned about the ability to pay, I suppose I could contact him with that as an excuse... Even so, I know the fellow already, so maybe, if you ask... I see. Then its no problem. After getting the okay from the father, I knew thered be no problem contacting him directly. I guess we had taken a step forward. After that, I chatted with the family for a bit. Shiggy ate some snacks and was very happy. They invited me for lunch as well, but I turned them down as I had to return home. I had left Femm waiting. We bought some souvenirs and returned to the vige. And just like usual, Femm was outside the storage shack, waiting. Thanks for waiting, Femm. And we both petted the waiting wolf. Its so quiet. Well, Vi-Vi, Moofy, the disciples, theyre all at Lindobal Forest. Oh yeah... Femm! Lunch Time! Wuff! Millet was gone, so Id have to make it myself. I went in the house and got food ready. Ah, Millet prepared lunch already. She really is some gal. There were lunch boxes for Yureena and I sitting there. After that, I went back to my post, and Yureena sat next to me. Yureena, I have something to ask...are you off today? Yes. I see...sorry for taking your time on a day off. Dont worry about it. As she said that, she reached over and hugged Femm. We all talked while sitting outside until the evening. Everyone came home, we ate dinner, and I said to Cruz, Have you been to Tolf Trading, Cruz? Sure...theres a branch near my realm. I see. Would you mind going there with me? Sure. Lets go tomorrow. She answered so quickly, it felt a little strange. I thought with her having her own realm, shed be a bit busier. Sure. Im ready to go anytime! Just like you, Cruz. Eheh heh She was a good ruler, though. Since all the hero works been getting light, I have a lot more time to do stuff now. Really? Yup. So Luka exined, With you being a ruler though, its hard to just ask for help, you know. Really? And, we figure that with some of those corrupt assistants of yours, you had to do a lot yourself. Seems like everyone knew that Cruz was running around trying to fix her own realm daily. Chapter 312 – Going to Tolf Trading

Chapter 312 C Going to Tolf Trading

The next day, Cruz and I headed off to Tolf Trading, in the capital. Just like usual, I had my wolf mask on. I should hide my face too. And Cruz put her lion mask on. ryaa ryaa Moo moo! Shiggy and Moofy looked excited to see the masks. No, dont hide who you are, Cruz. Better that you didnt. Better to negotiate with a high-up noble at your side. There was no reason for her to hide her identity. Oh, I guess not. Too bad... ...ryaa ...moo Cruz, Shiggy, and Moofy looked sad. After getting prepared, Cruz and I went to Tolf Trading. This time it was with Femm, Moofy, and Shiggy as well. Moo moo Moofy happily walked beside Cruz. Femm quietly walked beside me. Yureena wasnt with us today. Theyd know that she was the daughter of the Linmia Trader chief. Tokul would sense something was up. After all, when I saw the guy at Linmia Trading, I didnt introduce myself. And I had not mask on, so with it on now, the fellow wouldnt notice me. Yureena should havee with us... Yes, but if she did, our motives might be found out. Well, shes well known to be in my party...so what would be found out? I just think theres a higher chance that Id be doubted. However, theres no proof that the kid might think Cruz was just there because of the spirit stones. If the kid was acting rashly, that means he might have been trying to buy the stones on his own. Theres no doubt that the kid might be covering up that he made a contract with someone using thepany name. But if it was under the directives of thepany, then thered be no problem. Cruz jumped on Moofy as we went down the street. Miss Hero, good morning. Hey... Miss Hero, thats a cute cow... Right? People I didnt know were greeting her left and right as she walked down the street. She was super popr. Of course, no one tried to talk to the guy with the wolf mask. They just thought I was one of her helpers or something. And after a while, we arrived at Tolf Trading. Okay, lets go. Moo moo We all went in, with Cruz still riding Moofy. Ah, Miss Marquis! What brings you to our humble establishment today? A guy that looked like a higher-up ran up to Cruz. Probably the person running the store today. He knew Cruz by her looks, so she was probably a regr customer. She got off Moofy and said, Yeah, sorry for just showing up. No, were happy to have the marquis with us. In fact, all of us are! Thank you. Is Mr. Tolf in today? I apologize, but hes busy right now... I see. Too bad. When will he be back? Soon, I think. Please take a seat inside. May I? Cruz asked, and the man bowed deeply. Certainly! Well, then Ill wait inside. Thank you very much! So he showed us inside. Moo moo! Moofy and Femm followed us. Moofy was quite happy, but Femm was serious as usual. No need for arge carnivore to stand out. We came into the waiting room. The worker brought us tea and snacks in quick. I think the ce was basically ready for someone like us toe in. Do you need to go back to your work? Youve shown us in. No no, I as the one in charge have nothing to do but to wait on you...at least, as long as nothing happens out on the floor. Thats nice, but... Im someone with a lot of free time on their hands, finally... The man joked, and smiled. We spoke a bit, and Shiggy moved inside my pouch. She probably wanted to see what was going on. The fellow pretended not to see, but then said, The marquis has brought a child in too? I promise to keep it a secret... But then Shiggy popped her head out. ryaaa Ah, well thats a bit different, but I still promise not to say anything. Even so, its so cute. She is, isnt she? Cruz said happily, and pet Shiggy while offering it some candy. I gave some to Moofy and Femm too. After a bit, there was a knock on the door. Shiggy. ryaa And Shiggy burrowed back into the pouch. After that, Tokul came in the room. Its my pleasure to meet you for the first time, marquis! I am Tokul Tolf...the son of Toril. The son of Toril...were very grateful for all the help hes given us. Then Cruz smiled. I didnt wear the wolf mask the first time I met the fellow. I made sure, though, not to say anything, in case hed recognize my voice. The two exchange pleasantries until it was obvious we were there for the father, so Tokul quickly left. After a bit, I asked the worker, So what kind of work does that Tokul do? Hes learning his way around, so basically anything he can do. Basically anything...like misceneous things? Yes. Hes only the lowest rung of thedder now. Then Cruz asked, So, will he take over thepany? Very possible. However, since hes just beginning, he still has a lot to learn. I see... And with that being said, finally, Toril Tolf came into the room. Chapter 313 – Speaking to Toril Tolf

Chapter 313 C Speaking to Toril Tolf

He came in with a satisfied smile. Im sorry to keep you waiting, marquis! No problem, were sorry for being the ones to take up your time. Tolf vigorously shook his head. No, it is my pleasure to serve you at any time you desire. Thank you. It helps to hear you say that. Im sorry I couldnt say more! Then he looked over at me. He already knew that I was Viscount Alfred Lint and that I had asked to keep my identity secret. However, I now had the wolf mask on...maybe he didnt know. Thank you. You may go now. He dismissed the worker back to thepany floor. Certainly. Marquis, it was a pleasure to meet you. Thanks! Cruz put her hand out to shake the fellows hand. He shook it, almost seeming to tear up in the process. He bowed again and again, and then left. With the fellow gone, Tolf turned to me. Sorry if Im wrong, but how are YOU, Viscount Lint? I thought you might know. I took off the mask and put it on the table. Then I bowed to him. Thank you for all youve done. What? I just gave you a good sale. He had bought Mulgs...or rather Moofys meat at a good price. We also bought a lot of goods for Mulg at a discount. Thest time I saw him was just before I started to pretend I was Yureenas love. ryaa Shiggy now sprung out of my pouch again. She was very interested in that mask I had. Oh, and youve brought the Duchess Sighisoara as well? ryaa? She had my mask in both hands as she looked at Tolf, confused. Toril had already introduced himself to Shiggy before. Thank you foring! ryaa! Shiggy and Toril bowed to each other. Then he turned back to Cruz and I with a smile, Mistress Timisoara has been back here many times. Really? Shes a very wonderful customer. She always had snacks when we visited Shiggys pce, after all. And the candy and snacks were very good. I assumed that these might have all been Tolfs after all. Then, Toril said to Cruz, Marquis, are you here to talk about the branch office? I do have something about that, but...this time is for different reasons. Mmmffm mff Cruz nced at me. Suddenly, Moofy started chewing on Cruz hand. It was the usual. So I ignored it and began speaking. Were here to continue the process of selling the spirit stones. ...spirit stones? You know of them? Yes...theyre different from magic crystals, right? So I ced them on the table. Please, see what you think. Theres nothing wrong with them. Then...excuse me... So, Toril started looking them over seriously. He looked almost the same as Yureenas father. I guess all traders have that same look when ites to new goods. After a bit, he said, They are extremely beautiful stones, but... They cant ever be cut gems. Yes, I think that too. Gems have their own value. Exactly. I ced another smaller stone on the table. Well, the price we put on this stone... I opened a paper with the price written on it. ... Toril was at a loss for words. Are you surprised? Excuse me but yes, I guess I am. I exined quickly the danger of these stones falling into the wrong hands. I see now why they are so expensive. Also, do you think youd want to buy these from us? And please be honest. Cruz injected, with a smile. ...well, Im sorry to say... I knew it! I thought he wouldnt either! Mgfff Moofy was still chewing on her hand. And Femm...was sitting. Shiggy was still ying in the pouch. Toril looked at Shiggy, and then said, Youre not looking for a buyer for these...are you? Well, were looking for someone whos offering to buy them. So whye to me? Because someone from your firm has said theyd like to buy them. ... He was again at a loss for words. ...are you sure? To be honest, they were buying them for another buyer, but they couldnt tell us who that was. So that makes us the ones that would sell them to your firm... I see...youre right.... And with that in mind, wed like to make sure that your firm REALLY was intending on paying the price to purchase them. And with Cruz saying that, Torils face furrowed, and he asked, Who was it that wanted to buy them? Tokul Tolf. My son... He seemed to jump back a bit as he realized the fact. Chapter 314 – Tolf One and Two

Chapter 314 C Tolf One and Two

I looked carefully at the elder Tolf. He was thoroughly surprised...and pissed. So you didnt know about the transaction after all... ...my apologies. I have no excuse... We know. So that means theres no contract. Thank you. He said, and I could already see his forehead was covered in sweat. I have no idea why my son wouldmit to such illicit behavior. He might have just been trying to impress you. It happens a lot when youre young... Cruz said, even though shes younger than him. Let me scold the boy and find why HES DONE THIS TO ME! No no...wait a second. What is it? I exined my strategy to Tolf. First, we had to find out who the young Tolf was buying for. Thats why we had to wait until we found out more until the old man went after him. At least thats what I exined. Why do you need to know the buyer? Well... Cruz began to exin. About the Jack Frost urrences. And the fact that there was probably a bad guy wanting more stones to do more damage. Thats why were using these as bait to get information about who it is. The old man then looked at us seriously, Marquis. Yes? My son is a fool, but a very important fool. Yes...I guess so. Do you think this strategy of yours will put my son in danger? I dont think...not particrly. The old man stared at me. This bad guy is the buyer, correct? He may not be in a position to injure anyone. I mean, his son was only a low-level worker, as of now. He was chosen just because he was in a good position as son. The son might not be in any danger, as he was just the intermediary. But you do want to know who this fellow is, right? We do. And you told my son youd lower the price if you could get info? For the old man to say that, it seems he could already read my n. I see... Yes. With that said, Im assuming that the buy also knows that the seller is looking for his information as well. Yeah, that does make it more dangerous. Cruz nodded as well. They knew we were looking for him. And the one with the information was the son, Tokul. Best that we keep our mouths shut. There were several other ways. The son wasnt an essential role in the whole thing. Better to keep him out of danger. However, if we were going to keep quiet about it, then the other ways might prove dangerous as well. Im sorry for not taking more. Yeah, were sorry. Cruz and I both bowed to him. Please, no need. It was my son that started all this. Even so, there might be some danger to your son. I know. Al, I think we should stop with this path of inquiry. Yeah. Maybe not a stop, but a change. A change? In other words, perhaps I should act as a guard for your son. With a guard, all danger to his son would disappear. If he made an exchange with the bad guy, I might be able to catch him. I see. At least would you talk to him about it? I think the bad guys already in contact with him. You never knew when the bad guy might try to shut up the son. We had to move quickly. I see. Let me call him. Then, the elder Tolf left the room. He and his son then entered the room. Sorry for making you wait. Ah... The kid squeaked a bit after seeing me with my mask off. Then Cruz smiled at him and said, Tokul...sit down. We have something to tell you. Ah, excuse me...um... What is it? That man... He was going to ask something, but the father told him, This is Viscount Alfred Lint. ...ummm. It seems that the son already knew my name. Nice to see you again, Tokul. And saying this, I began speaking about what really was happening, Tokul, who were you going to sell these to. Tell me how they said they could give you the money? ...but that, affects thepanys trust... You idiot! What trust?! The father was red with rage. Then the son quickly tried to exin everything, But dad, trust is important...you always told me... I never gave you permission to offer thepanys money did I? Answer me! ...no. You were going to pay using MY GOOD NAME, so theres no need to talk about trust. What you did was FRAUD! F...fraud? I didnt mean to... Who cares what you meant to do! The son was about to cry. So I sat back and watched the fireworks for a bit. Chapter 315 – Tolf One and Two: Electric Boogaloo

Chapter 315 C Tolf One and Two: Electric Boogaloo

After the father angrily lectured the son for a while, he came to us and got on elbows and knees, I apologize for my sons endless stupidity... The father definitely looked quite angry at his son. However, there was no doubt that he used this anger to smooth things over with two slightly upset clients. Were the ones who are sorry. Cruz said, as she lifted the man up. However, mffmfffmfffmff Moofy was chewing on Cruz other hand very nervously. She was probably stressed out about how the father had yelled at the son, so she always did this to help calm herself. Cruz didnt mind. She rather wanted the cow to calm herself by doing so. However, now there was danger of getting Moofys slobber on the elder Torils clothes. Please, get up. I said, and Toril arose. Then I bowed a bit to the son. I humbly apologize. We fooled you. What...fooled me? Yes. The stones arent spirit stones? They are. But theyre not real? They are. But thats not the issue. The issue is that youre dealing with a criminal. Wha? And in order to catch him, we used you as bait. So we exined the whole problem to the kid. However, we did so exaggerating the danger of it all a little bit. We need you to understand what were saying, because if you fall into the enemys hands, were going to find out the information youre keeping secret anyway. The...enemys hands? All of the sudden, the kid had a lost look on his face. He probably wasnt understanding what he had gotten himself into. The person looking for the spirit stones. The criminal that caused a huge blizzard in Cruz realm. Someone that could take your life very easily. But...why would they want to kill me? Because you have information about who it is. And if we get that information, we can help. And thats it? Its the only reason were here. I said tly, and Tokuls face turned pale. I guess the threat worked. Then Cruz asked him, What did you expect to happen after you paid? I thought thepany might lend me the money, temporarily, and then after exchanging the stones...Id be paid. You FOOL! The father shouted at him again. I looked at Moofy, thinking she would probably be stressed out by now. Mff mfff She had stopped chewing on Cruz hand and was now licking snacks off the table and eating them. She had a pretty long tongue, but she didnt look stressed out anymore. Maybe chewing on peoples hands had nothing to do with stress after all. ryaa Moo moo Shiggy started cing snacks on top of Moofys tongue. Moofy ate them while Shiggy gleefully pped her wings. Femm just watched the whole scene with slight disgust. Cruz grabbed hold of Moofy and pulled her from the table, saying, I see, so you had to get a loan...its a lot of money. Yes, so much that Id rather be attacked than hand that much over. After threatening him a bit, it seems we had him in a ce to reveal who the buyer was. So I continued, with a smile, Now, Tokul, would you reveal who you were buying for? ...but... He really was reluctant about who the buyer was. I guess he really did think the contract was that important. Then Cruz said, while holding Moofy and Femm in each arm, Hmph, if you cooperate, we both end up in a win-win situation. And if you dont, we both lose. Lose...how would I lose? Well, youll probably be sent to prison. I was charging the kid, which was an exaggeration. The charge that he was an ally to the person that caused the blizzard. In addition, the charge of fraud. And possibly embezzlement from thepany itself. With all these charges being read to him, Tokul finally gave up. ...I see. I will help. Good. This makes things quicker for both of us. I immediately began questioning him, I have a lot I want to ask, but Ill ask the most important first. Who is it? A trader. I heard that he lived in the old Demon Lords region. Race, sex, age? A human, middle-aged male. And where did you discuss this transaction? About half a year ago, at a bar... It seems that he met someone while he was drinking at a nearby tavern. The fellow must have known that he was Tokul, the son of the Tolf Trading firm. Half a year ago? Thats a lot of time to move around. If hes using the son of Tolf Trading to do his business, hes probably got some money. I think so too. He might have chosen the kid because he would be the most likely to find the stones. And if that were so, then there might not be that much need to shut him upter. Also, there was a lot of benefit in using an inexperienced kid to ask around. So where did you negotiate the conditions? Well.... It seems they both met in a house a little way from the capital. There was no reason why they needed to leave the capital to negotiate, but if Tokul thought it over at that time, the reason would be obvious. However, it was either the bad guys skill, Tokul being fooled, or his wanting to make the trade that led him to leave the safety of the capital at the time. It was strange that Tokul didnt think it was weird at the time. Did you tell him about our meeting at Linmias yesterday? Not yet. I was going to meet him this afternoon. I see. So you always negotiated with him alone? Yes. Then Cruz said, We need to grab this guy! Yeah, Tokul, show us the ce. ...okay. He again seemed reluctant to do it, but he showed us the way. Chapter 316 – And Now…the Wait

Chapter 316 C And Now...the Wait

Cruz then smiled and petted the two beasts, saying, So what do we do until the afternoon? We have some time, and I dont want to just sit in the waiting room. Would you like to stop at your pce? That might be better. Toril shook his head. You can stay here as long as youd like. No no no, youre going to use it for other things, right? I have plenty of rooms...in fact, I can prepare another one for you if youd like. Toril wanted his son to be here so he could watch him, after all. I kind of understood how he felt. Well, then, well stay. After hearing what Toril said, we moved from the waiting room to a smaller one. Of course, the two Tolfs came with us. Ah, I forgot something important. As I entered the room, I searched the kid magically. Wha...what are you doing? He looked quite confused and taken aback. He didnt know the magic I was using, nor did I expect him to, but I was surprised that he could sense it. A magical search. I need to know if someone cast something on you. Magical... The elder Tolf looked a bit unsettled, and looked at me. Theres a high possibility that this person is able to use psychological magic. I need to make sure. Okay, then please proceed. He rxed a but, but the kid looked quite nervous. I ignored it and proceeded. It was the same magic as when Femm and Cruz had eaten the zombified meat. It found any bugs inside of you, or any magical tools attached to you. It was sure to work. Even so, I couldnt tell if it could find hypnosis or other light magic. While this was going on, I could see that Moofy was sniffing Tokul. I knew that Moofy could sense bad things as well. I just gave him a quick check, but as of yet it seems that theres no magic on him. Both Tolfs looked relieved. Thank you very much. You need to thank the viscount too! Thank you very much. The son bowed, then Toril said, Im relieved...I was wondering. Really? You look a bit disappointed. Cruz said, with a bit of a sharp look at Toril. No, Im very happy theres no magic on him. Oh, I see. However, that means that my son didnt have any magic forcing him to act like an idiot. Thats true. Mooo moo Cruz seemed to understand and nodded. Moofy was beside her, nodding too. I guess there was a negative to him not having any magic cast on him. Theres hardly any way for a novice to resist a casting by a very experienced magician. However, if there was nothing influencing him to do this, the son might lose trust as the future inheritor. The Tolf brand was growing by leaps and bounds. And the deal with the stones showed he was a rank amateur. The son looked down at his shoes, crestfallen. I thought it might be good to say something in his defense. Even so, this only applied to magic existing on him currently. W...which means? There might have been a spell on him forcing the kid to trust whoever it was a half a year ago. It probably would have disappeared by now. ...I see. Magic really is scary. It depends on the person. But there are hardly any magicians using psychological magic these days. Still...its worrisome. If thats the case, I can make a psycho-magic resistance amulet. Can you? Of course. Everyone knew about the effects of amulets. It could stop a light hypnosis spell. I took the material from my bag and created the amulet. You basically took anything you could carry and bound a magical circle to it. While making it, I said to the Tolfs, Tokuls just starting out as a worker, right? You still have time to learn. Moo moooo Everyone makes mistakes, especially young people that are so eager to get things done. Mooo moo As I spoke to both of them, Moofy followed up with her opinion. Femm just sat there, uninterested. Femm had her snout on Cruzs knee, looking on. I handed an amulet to both the elder and the younger Tolf. The first one was free for both of them. If they needed any more, I could have Vi-Vi make them for a charge. Vi-Vi was better at magic circles, after all. So we spent our time at Tolf Trading until the afternoon. We had an early lunch as we all talked about our strategy. It was a simple one. The son would go to negotiate with the fellow. We would be lookout behind him. When the guy came out, we would grab him. It doesnt seem dangerous, but we cant totally be your bodyguards. I understand. The boy will reap what he sowed. However... Of course, well do all we can. Thank you very much. I knew that the man was really worried about the kid. He had raised him and was quite fond of him. It might be better if he sent him to work in a ce like Linmias. However, it wasnt my ce to say what he should do. And then, it was the afternoon. Well, lets go. Sure. He stood up, resigned to his fate. Then I told the father, Toril, well take care of him. ...um. We know. Well bring him home safely. Thank you. Then, Cruz and I put on our disguises. It wasnt a wolf and lion mask this time. I borrowed a fake beard and a coat with a hood from Toril. I need to use magic as well. I cast a spell canceling others ability to sense Cruz and her party. As long as we made no sudden moves, we wouldnt stand out. And with that, I told the son to be careful about one point. Just act normal. And make sure you have that amulet on you. Okay. Dont fidget or look around. Even though you dont see us, were near. I understand. He was nervous, but he nodded. Chapter 317 – Time to Meet the Man

Chapter 317 C Time to Meet the Man

So we would split as we left the tradingpany. I would use the back exit, and wait. After a bit, Cruz and the beasts would leave out the front. Then woulde Tokul, who would make his way from the front entrance as well. Cruz and the beasts waited until Tokul made his way out of the capital. They would go from stand to stand, pretending to looking around, while getting closer and closer to the exit. It was my role to shadow him the whole way. I told Tokul that I would take care of him. Even if you look for me, be sure that someone else will see me. If you try to find me, the bad guy will too. Sure. Just remember Im beside you, so rx. Als magic is awesome, so dont worry. Cruz said, suddenly beside us. Before we left, I said to Tokul, You should thank your father. Because of what he said, we decided not to use you as bait anymore. ...yeah. Well, just rx. So I left out the back and cast a shadow spell on myself. I didnt have the wolf mask on either. It would be good to hide my identity, but the mask would stand out too much. With this fake beard and hair, I should be okay. Before Cruz left, she changed as well into amon traders clothing. Shiggy, stay quiet, okay? ...ry... So the shadow spell hid us from being detected. To put the spell simply, it made the magic inside of you flow outward and nket the space around you in shadows. Every living thing has a little bit of magic. Also, all living things can subconsciously feel the magic of others. Well...not so much feel, because its not something you can actually sense. Its just that when theres a lot of magic flowing from you, its easier to notice. However, if you use the magic to shroud you, you be less easy to sense. Its quite a mysterious process. And with that said, I waited for the young Tolf to emerge. As I waited, Cruz left with the beasts, then Tolf. See youter! Mooo moo! Thank you foring! Toril and the manager both saw Cruz out the door. Then Cruz got on Moofy. Femm just obediently walked beside the two. Okay, lets go! Moo moo Cruz nced over at me for just a second. Moofy looked over and then quickly looked away, and then looked at me again. She knew the n, and that was to not look at me, but there was no stopping her as she was nervous. Femm nced over once too and then walked along with its tail up. A very smart wolf. Well, Im on my way outside, father. After a while, Tokul left...saying good bye. He looked rather awkward as well, looking all around him. First I had to check if anyone was trailing him. It didnt seem like anyone was. So I slowly followed behind him. My knee still hurt, so it was good I didnt have to run. In the shadows, so that no one would notice, and slowly, with some distance. Tokul showed his papers and left through the capital gate. I either had to do the same or somehow pass over the capital walls. I had an S-rank adventurer ID as well. They would let me out without question. (What should I do?) I didnt want to leave much trace of myself. Even so, I couldnt just gravitate myself over the wall. It would be too noticeable. No reason to look suspicious. I was concealing myself with magic, something Ive rarely done. Before, I did this to get past the gate with Vallimie and Rai. Well, at least this was the time we suspected Vallimie being the one that was causing all the zombie magic. I was already in shadow magic, so I would conceal my identity too. I think I did a good job for not having done it for a while. After casting it, I would have to take my time. If I acted rashly, I would stand out as having cast the magic. So I approached the gate, The Hero was in a hurry to leave the capital. I bet she was on another grand quest. Even so, why was she with a cow and dog? Well...shes the Hero... Yes, she is. I heard the guards talking it over. I simply walked right by them carefully. I was a little nervous. They didnt notice me. And I was watching Tokul the whole time. It would be better if they kept an animal with a keen sense of smell at the gates to prevent high-level magicians like me from just going in and out. I guess Mulg was safer in that way. There were loads of magical beasts in Mulg. You could even say that Mulgs defenses were far stricter. I could see Cruz a bit away from Tokul on the left. Femm and Moofy were with her. (Shes gotten good at hiding too.) All of them were moving slowly and in the shadows. Before, Cruz would run around and everyone would notice her immediately, but now shes gotten much better at not being noticed...shes matured as an adventurer. After a bit, Tokul left the road. He started walking along a thin trail, almost like one an animal would use. Some time passed, and there was a small house ahead. After Tokul hit the trail, Cruz did her best to quietly follow. We all met in front of the house. Strange ce. It is. I spoke to her in spirit speech. It almost looked like an old hunters shack. Well, it was made to look old, but it was quite newly constructed. I could tell it had a variety of magic cast on it. Whos going toe out of that? Tokul walked up to the door and called out, Excuse me. Its Tokul Tolf. And as we were watching, the door opened. Chapter 318 – Negotiations at the Hunter’s Shack

Chapter 318 C Negotiations at the Hunters Shack

The door opened, and a middle-aged male trader-looking fellow was waiting. He didnt look like anyone that could use psychological magic...or even like a magician. Or even like an adventurer. Master Tolf! Thank you foring! Ah...yeah... He hadnt gotten rid of his nervousness. I could see the older trader looked a bit puzzled. Is something wrong, dear boy? N...no...nothing. I see. Lets speak inside. Sure. And so Tokul also entered the house. Cruz, wait by the window. Roger. Femm, you check the back. Leave it to me. If theres a back exit, wait there, if not, wait with Cruz. Sure. Cruz quietly crept near to the window. Femm disappeared around back. Moofy, you say with me out front. Do my best. So we both waited outside the front door. I did my best to magically examine the ce. There was a magic lock on the front door. A normal magician would take an hour to uncast such a well-made lock. It also had a shock-resistant and fire-proofing protection over it. There was no way to get in easily. Was there a back exit? Yes. Tell me when you want me to creep in. Theres probably a magic lock on it. Just stop the guy from fleeing if he runs. You got it. Cruz, the windows protected by magic. Okay... If this turns bad, just bust it open. Sure. Also, get your face covered, just in case. Okay. We put on our masks as I started working on a spell to unlock the door. We couldnt just wait around if Tokul fell into the enemys hands. After all this, I used magic to feel inside the house. There was Tokul, the old trader...and someone else. They were talking, but I couldnt hear what about. So I cast a keen-listening spell. Now I could hear inside somewhat, as no one had cast a prevention spell for this type of magic. Who are you? I heard Tokul ask. I knew he wasnt talking about the old man, but about the other person. Hes just my business partner. ...I see... The other person was silent. I couldnt tell the race or sex. I dont think Tokul was epting the old mans exnation either. But Tokul ignored it and just continued, About the spirit stone contract... Can wee to the end of our contract, finally? Well... Is there a problem? Because the seller doesnt know who hes selling to, hes not going to sell the stones except at a very high price. And just like that, Tokuls nervousness changed to banter, as if it were a dream. I guess he could negotiate, as long as he wasnt fooling any one. Is that the only reason? The old man seemed disappointed. Yes, they said these stones may be used for dangerous reasons, so they cant sell them to someone they cant trust. Hm... Then it seemed like the older man was talking to the other person present. For now, lets just buy a small amount. Understood. If we buy bit by bit, theylle to trust us. And... Is there more? Yes. If you are to buy anything, something this tiny will cost you this much... Tokul was talking about the massive price I gave at Linmias. Theres NO WAY! No, thats what the seller said. Thats some rip off! Even so, the fellow said he wouldnt sell it at a lower price. With an offer like that, you must have sadly turned tail ande home, right? The old man sounded quite frustrated. Of course I negotiated further. And there were new conditions. I see. Sure...so what were they? If he could meet the buyer, the price would drop to this, and he could make much more avable. But that... And unprecedented request, I think. It certainly is... The old man was still a bit angry. ...they are extraordinary, but I guess we cant refuse... I did say that the buyer did not want to reveal himself. Then Tokuls voice went to a low whisper. The seller also said that he was able to produce these stones. Oh? And from now, if you and he wanted toe to a longer-term agreement, you could meet him and make your own terms. Hm. Also, I told him that I couldnt continue the negotiations until I spoke to you directly. That is important. Yes. The old man was thinking now about meeting us, after all. Tokul was quite good at negotiating. He might be a good tradesman with more experience. Just then, a sharp voice emerged, So youve joined the enemy? It was a voice different than the other two. The other person was speaking. W...what...what do you mean? Tokuls voice shook. Seems like I have to kill this traitor. Eeep! Suddenly, the other person was angry. There was no reason to wait until Tokul got killed. So I charged right into the house. Chapter 319 – Something Like Negotiations

Chapter 319 C Something Like Negotiations

I quickly spoke to Cruz in spirit speech, Lets go! Sure! Leave the back to me! Moo mooo! THOOOOOOM! Just then, Moofy mmed headfirst into the door. The door exploded into splinters as she flew in, with me behind. I was inside. Eeep! What the?! The fellow said, as I already had him bound up magically. Cruz had broken through the window and was now holding the other person. She also still had her lion mask on. On the other hand, Tokul was standing there with a nk look on his face. Tokul, are you hurt? ... Tokul! ... Moo Moofy nudged Tokul in the back. Ah, yes...Im fine. He finally came to his senses. d to hear it. So who are these guys? They look to me just like tradesmen. They were so shocked by our entry, they had no time to move. We didnt look like tradesmen, but we didnt look like adventurers either. Who are you two! Well, I guess you dont know I am! The other fellow tried to move, and Cruz squeezed his arm strongly. Oww The fellow screamed in pain. I now noticed that Cruz was holding the old man, which meant that I was holding the mystery fellow. He was the one that shouted that Tokul had betrayed him, and that he was going to kill Tokul. You bastards...why did you get involved? The man I was holding said in a spiteful tone. His face was quite scary. He didnt looked so much like a tradesman as someone that was involved in crime. Its hard to ask you questions like this, so well sit you down in a seat. ...okay... So Cruz and I sat them down and I bound them with magic. Okay, lets hear your names. Were not telling you! Youll never find out! Now that they werent in pain, they were a bit more aggressive. The mystery man red at me and said, Who are you bastards? If you let me go, I wont harm you. Seems like you dont know whos stronger here. Heh, youre the one that doesnt know. I guess this guy thought he was a hot shot. We do know that youre up to no good. Youre the ones in the wrong here. I could tell by that old mans look on his face something was up! Dont mock me! The old man shouted back, but I ignored them both. Why is it that you think WERE doing something bad? This innocent looking shack has multiple castings of magic on it. Youd need some skill and thered have to be a reason to meet here. Well, I guess there is magic on this ce... Mo moo Cruz and Moofy both spoke out, but the guy continued speaking, Well, were a gang, so you can beat some of us this time, but you think you can go against our gang over and over? Eeep. Oh, scaaaary. Tokul looked like he was about to pee himself. On the other hand, Cruz said scary but anyone could tell she didnt mean it. And they understood that too. Dontugh at our gang! Well, I think everything youre saying is bluff. ...bastards... I think the whole thing about Tokul being a traitor and you killing him was a trick too. Tch. The guy who threatened Tokul clicked his tongue. I guess I was right. The other fat guy then suddenly yelled, Were in the Negly family, after all! T...the Negly family? Thanks for the introduction. I knew about that gang. They were arge illegal outfit. Tokul knew them too and was looking even more scared. He had rushed to make a deal with an illegal group. And he was getting a taste of his own medicine. The Negly group extorted, killed, and sold illegal goods. They were known to do a lot of dirty, underground things. There were even rumors that they had forced bribes from the nobles and the like...but only rumors. Cruz then responded, I see...well, we know yourst names are Negly...but what are your first names? No, not that type of family! I dont think she was trying to piss them off, she just really didnt know. So I exined, No, theyre all just in one gang. Oh...okay... It was best that she, since she was a ruler, should know who these people were. Id have to exin a little moreter. You bastards think you can pick a fight with the Neglys and get away with it? And you think youre getting back to their hideout to tell them about it? If we ended them here, theyd never get back. Thats what I meant. The shady guy looked at me and said, You think we two just came here alone? Heh heh, our guys are running back to base to tell the boss right now! The older guy said, getting a little cocky, Eeep! Tokul squealed in fear. Even if you chase them, youre toote! So let us go before you really get in trouble! Well spare your lives if you let us go! The shady fellow said, happilyughing. Cruz looked confused, Do you idiots even know who we are? Femm! Wuff! Femm showed up, breaking through the back entrance, now original size. Femms mouth was around two unconscious fellows, who hung like dolls from the wolfs maw. N...no way! You now have two choices. Tell us the truth, or die here. After saying that, I saw the two mens faces turn pale. Chapter 320 – The Neglys

Chapter 320 C The Neglys

The shady fellow immediately said, Heh, you cant threaten us. Yeah, its pointless. Even though they said so, anyone could tell by the look on their faces that they were terrified. Just one more push... Femm. ǣ! Femm barked at them with just a little magical power mixed in. ... Eep! The fat older man passed out. He clearly pissed himself. The shady guy simply swallowed, but he didnt pass out. And next to us Tokul...passed out. Get up. I said, while giving Tokul a light p to the face. He quickly came back to his senses. Femms bark didnt hit him directly, but it was still enough. S...sorry. Dont sweat it. I put gags on the other two guys that had passed out. Then I put blindfolds on all four of them. Cruz, take these two to the other room. The two that Femm brought in? Yeah. She quickly carried the two fellows away on her shoulders. W...what are you going to do with us? The shady guy asked, and I could tell he was nervous. But I wasnt going to answer him. Instead, I used spirit speech to the others. Threaten him a bit. Sure. What are you going to do? Moo? I took out some meat on a bone that I was saving from the hunt and put it in front of Femm. Make some noise with this, okay? Can I? I was a little hungry. Please. So Femm tore the meat up and made a lot of noise. Go ahead and eat em up, Femm. GAA!! And Femm proceeded to tear the meat up, breaking the bones as well. Femm made a lot more sound than necessary to rip the meat to shreds. I heard that it wasnt good to give a dog a bone, but this was a wolf that could tear anything to shreds. GARR, CRACK, RIPPPP Femm tearing the meat up filled the whole room. T....theres no way...you... If Femm eats you, theres not much evidence left. And Femm can eat a lot. GRRrRRRR And so the fellow thought that Femm was eating the other two fellows...the shady fellow began to shake. GrrrRRRRR Tastes good? You do look hungry. Graa What? Not enough? Graaa Wait a sec, Femm. Femm was a very good actor. Sounded hungry. Maybe you should give Femm some more to eat? Yeah, but, we still need to hear from these two what theyre doing. You dont need to, well figure it out afterwards ourselves. Yeah, maybe youre right... Cruz then kicked the shady guy in the leg lightly, This guys got such a mouth, Id feed him to Femm first. Yeah. After him, weve got two others left. While we were talking this over, Moofy sniffed away at the shady fellow. Sniff sniff sniff The guy didnt know if it was Moofy or Femm sniffing at him. Not yet, Femm. Kween Femm whined a bit, sounding unhappy. Just let Femm eat! Femm looks hungry and its bad to make the wolf wait to eat! Cruz said, saying something quite frightening, but in a tender voice. Then, Ah, wait! Just tear off a leg and maybe this guy will confess from the pain, right? Cruz imagination was entering a dark ce. Even if it was just an act. Tokul jumped back in fear. Ah, wait. We have time to choose. Lets see who Femm wants to eat. And saying this, I went over to the shady guy and spoke in his ear. Do you have something to tell us that would make you less interesting to my wolf? Y...YES! ASK ANYTHING! Please! I know, but Femm could choose anyone. You, someone else. But if you tell us something, Femm might choose someone else. Ah, thank you! So then the shady guy quickly answered our questions. He was one leader of the Negly gang. His name was Bill, and the middle-aged guy was Dag. Another leader in the Negly gang had asked for the stones to be bought, he said. Who are you talking about? A guy thats covering a new town in the old Demon Lords territory. He made the request. And why does he want them? No idea. Other leaders dont ask about each others business. You cant even guess? I asked, and Bill thought a but. Its hard to get the stones...even in a gang. Thats why we were asked to find a seller. So theres a buyer ready to buy from you? Thats all I can estimate. So I asked about the race, sex, and age of the other Negly chief. And Bill filled us in about that too. The Negly Gang had a home base in the capital. Also, the chief of the new town in the old Demon Lords vige had gotten rich quickly. It was a direct request from him. So the boss of the Negly Gang put Bill in charge. So why are you in charge? Because I was the one that finagled the son of Tolf Trading. I see. So it seemed that using Tokul to find the stones was his strategy in the first ce. So I asked in spirit speech, Anything else to ask? Not now. We need to get the other chief though. So were off to the old Demon Lordsnd again. Sounds fun. Al, what do we do with him? Just leave that to me. You got it. So I took off the blindfold. Thanks for the info, you may go. C...can I? Sure. We took the two fellows and the middle-aged man and tossed them in front of Bill. Then I pped Bills shoulder with a smile. You believed us? Were not just going to feed people to a wolf. Uh...well... No one would do that horrible of a thing. Cruz said with a smile. Ah, hah hah hah Bill said with a shocked face. I think you know already, but youre NOT going to bother the Tolfs or us again, right? I know. Really? My word. Then go. I smiled at Bill, and untied him. Chapter 321 – Trailing

Chapter 321 C Trailing

Even though I said Id let him go, all of the thugs looked at me with mistrusting eyes. Thats why I smiled back. But they couldnt see my smile behind my wolf mask. Go home. ... I had set them free and they were set to go, but Bill and the others didnt move. They were waiting for me to react. What? You wont go? Then... I turned around to Femm and the men began to freak out. Ok, well leave! We dont want to be hurt! Then go. ...if you let your guard down, this guy might attack us... Dont worry about that. I could kill all of you with your guard up. They all looked a bit scared, but tried to cover it up with a smile. I dont want to kill you, so go home. W...we will! And so they all left the little hunters shack. When they were gone, Cruz said, Were letting them go home? We still havent figured out the crime. Hmmm. Cruz didnt seem to understand, but I knew exactly what we had to do. Cruz. Tokul, Moofy, and you wait here in this shack. Okay, and what about you Al? Were going to trail them. Arent they just going to go back to base? Cruz looked confused. I wonder. They know where Tolf Trading is, but I dont know where there hideout is. So, then what? Well, give them a little warning. Got it. I petted both Femm and Moofy. Then I gave Moofy onest snack. Mmmfp mfff Moofy, eat those and wait here. Moff mo Moofy happily ate the snack while nodding her head. Seems like she would wait for us. I need you to use that nose and try to find anything strange here in this house. Moo moo! Then I said to Femm, Femm,e with me to the capital gate. Sure. And then you want for me to watch outside? No, I want you toe in, but in the smaller size. You got it! I cast a perception blocking spell again, and we left the shack. Femm, lets track them. My specialty. Much easier than tracking a magical boar. I jumped on Femm and Femm ran at a slow trot. Smelling the ground and checking for scents. I can smell them already. Not too close. I know already...its like hunting. I could hear the thugs ahead cursing themselves while walking. We stayed quite a bit a way, while I used magic to sharpen my hearing, Those bastards mocking the Negly Gang. Theyll get whatsing to them. But sir, they got that huge wolf! Yeah! What, you scared of a big DOG?! That wasnt just a big dog! The one they were calling sir was the shady Bill. The old fat one was Dag. But they also got in the magically defended house right? They had to be some strong magicians! Well, I bet a ce like the Tolfs could afford magicians like that! Bill said. We gotta teach them that money cant buy everything, right? Sire. What do you mean teach? Just pester the Tolfs a little bit. And then Bill told the others what he meant by pester. Just your normal thug stuff. Find a way for the gang to pick fights with people in the Trading firm, toss some junk through their front door. After you scared them that much they still dont have any sense, do they? Thats why theyre still thugs. Femm was right. Tolfs got a bunch of kids other that Tokul, right? Yeah, little ones that we can carry off! Bill and Dag began talking about abducting Tolfs kids. I cant believe these guys are talking about this. I thought they would right away. You want me to jump on them and threaten them again? No, I have something in mind. Ok. Femm and I spoke in spirit speech while the thugs ahead of us kept bbing. We gotta get back that house too. Yeah, we paid a good price to make that ce our hideaway. Maybe get the boss to raid the ce. Seems that the hunting shack did have some value. We arrived at the gates, and Dag, Bill, and the other two walked straight in. Femm, I have perception stopping magic on us. I know. No sudden movements, right? Yup, and get smaller too. Sure. So I waited for the thugs to walk in town, and after a bit, slipped right by the guards, Those guys look like theyd been in a fight. Hey, you shouldnt judge people by their looks. It could have been a monster. Yeah, sorry. We heard the soldiers say as we walked past them. Femm, you have their smell again? Sure do. There were a lot of people in the capital, so I was afraid the smell would get mixed in with everyone else. Even so, Femm was following them. We came to the eighth ward of the capital, to a certain house. It was the slum district, so it was strange the house was sorge. So this is the Negly hideout. You want to raid it? No, first, lets just scare them. I sunk into the shadows and wrote on the casing above the door, The Wolf Watches Always. Using my magical power, and digging the words in so they couldnt just be scrubbed off. Okay then. After a few minutes, a bunch of young thugs ran out the back of the house and towards the gate. They were probably going to try to reim the hunters shack, but with Cruz and Femm, that was impossible. Okay Femm, time to check out Bills house. You ready? And drive the stink out of his house? Sure. Leave it to me. And Femm began to run. Chapter 322 – Preventative Measures

Chapter 322 C Preventative Measures

Femm was a bit confused, but continued ahead. Then stopped. Hes around here. Thanks. This was in a ce that looked like the poorest part of the slums. It was the same eighth ward where Cruz had bought the potatoes. Kind of took me back. And there were a lot of trashed houses in this area. So, hes in these houses... I think so...but... I know, the smells get all mixed up, right? Yeah. No helping that. I leaned over and patted Femm on the head. Even so, youve done great getting us this far. Im not an ordinary wolf, after all! I looked back and saw Femms tail was wagging. Just then, two mud-covered kids came up to us, Hey, kid, which of these houses is Bills? Who are you, old man? Mama, told us never to talk to strangers! But one of the kids looked at me, still wondering. The other one was scared, and was pulling the cor of the other kid. I was on a wolf, with a wolf mask. Of course I looked like a stranger. No, Im just one of Bills buddies. Really? Yeah. I have something to tell him. I see. Seems that they finally trusted me. Its just, if I cant deliver it to his house, hes going to have trouble. Really? Yeah, and Ill be in trouble too. So after hearing that, the kids quickly pointed out the house. Thanks, youve been a big help. I used magic to unlock Bills house and go in. Then I took some meat in my bag, squeezed out some blood, and in big letters, wrote, The Wolf Watches ALWAYS. This might not be enough to scare him, though. I think its enough. No...not yet. Oh yeah. I searched in my bag for something appropriate to leave. This is it. It was the head of a magic bear I finished off before. I put it right on his bed, and covered it with a nket. Lets put some blood on it too. So I put some blood around the heads neck and then covered it again. That should do it. Then we left Bills house. The kids were waiting. The kids asked us again, Thanks for your help. Heres some candy for you. Really? Sure. So then I asked the kids, Are you friends with Bill? NOT AT ALL! Hes always trying to scare us, he hits us! We hate him! Then they remembered that I had told them I was a friend of Bill, Ah! They were about to scramble when I told them, Honestly, I hate Bill too. Really? Yeah! But its a secret, okay? Sure! A secret! If someone asks you if someone came to Bills house, you tell them that it was a couple of WOLVES! Sure! Before I left, I said, And if Bill says he has a message for me, tell him he can meet me at the hunter shack...he knows where. Sure! But does he know your name? If you say wolf, hell know. There arent a lot people that look like me. Youre right about that! And so I returned to the Negly hideout. There was a lot of noise outside. Seems they had found the message I had scrawled in the casing. What the?! What does it mean? All the other thugs were looking at it, but I could see even from afar that Bill and Dag looked pale. They knew what it meant. Femm wagged its tail. Looks like theyre scared. Not enough though. Really? Yeah, we dont know what theyll do in reaction. We had to make sure that they didnt threaten Tolf. We had to be very careful. I could hear one guy say, Well, forget about this, lets do what we came to do. Yeah, okay. So then Bill and about five thugs got together and started walking away, I dont know what theyre up to, but theyre going to hurt someone. Yeah. It would be the worst for them to raid Tolfs ce without me being there. I had to do something. As I trailed them, it seemed they were going to Tolfs. Probably to pick a fight with someone. Keep following them. As we followed, we got closer to Tolfs Trading. We passed over a river, and I formed a water ball from it with my magic. What are you going to do? This. I arched the ball over the heads of the five thugs, put sound suppression magic on it, and dropped it on their heads. They started to drown in the water ball, and I could see them iling inside of it. They tried to run and escape the ball, but I bound their legs with magical chains. The thugs quickly lost consciousness, and I dissolved the waterball. The area around spread with water. Guys! Bill had walked about 10 paces ahead, and then turned and noticed his thugs on the ground. What the? Bill and the fellow he was walking with ran up to the fallen thugs and shook them all awake. What happened to you!? I drowned. What?! All of them had now woken up. All of them were saying they suddenly drown in a ball of water. Theres no way someones gonna drown ON LAND! But, it was a magic ball of water ... and... What the HELL are you TALKING about?! We dont know either! They were all shaking and pale. Their lips were purple. It was still winter, after all. The river in the capital was near freezing, and they were covered in it. They must have lost a lot of heat. I guess you guys dont look fit to scare ANYONE looking like this. Yeah... So all of them returned to the Negly hideout quickly. Chapter 323 – The Negly Hideout

Chapter 323 C The Negly Hideout

And so Femm and I followed the gang back to their hideout. Then the chief said, Weird stuffs been happening ever since those words were scrawled over the door... ...yeah. What is it? Bill, you look sick. No. Im fine. Bill looked quite scared though. This was going quite well. We could knock these guys out with one shot. Once they got to the entrance, the chief said to Bill, Bill, go home. But... You look sick, so youre not going to scare anyone like that. Okay...I see...sorry. All of you. Head home. Okay. All of the fallen thugs walked to their respective homes, as it was obvious that no one wet and cold could scare anyone else. What now? Follow Bill. Sure. Bill walked along, his eyes darting to and fro. He looked very scared. He went straight home. And after a few minutes inside his house, WAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAH He screamed and ran straight out the door. Seems he found the bear head. Seems so. He ran out, found the kids waiting outside, and said, DID SOMEONE GO INSIDE MY HOUSE?! Oww! Stop! ANSWER ME! We saw a wolf go inside! ....WHAT!? He dropped the kids instantly, and backed away. Then he started walking towards the hideout. Is he going back to the hideout? Probably to sleep. His beds dirty. And so he made his way back to the hideout. So what now? You think we should check on Cruz? Yeah, Lets go. As soon as we turned to go, a bunch of thugs came running up the road. There were about 10. Those were the thugs that went to the hunting shack. They ran up and into the hideout, scratched and bruised. Looks like they met up with some problems. Kind of makes you wonder. So I crept in close and listened to the conversation inside with magic, Did you get the house back!? ARE YOU KIDDING?! ITS IMPOSSIBLE! You had 10 guys, and you cant get back a little house?! THERES A MONSTER THERE! A monster? A MONSTER WITH A LIONS FACE! AND a...cow... Theyre really strong! They kept talking about how strong and scary Cruz and Moofy were. The chief definitely thought they were lying. He yelled at them. Everyone but the chief doesnt know how scary we really are. I bet the chief was going to threaten someone else to get his thugs in good spirits agian. We got to warn these thugs. How? Ill show you. I released my perception blocking magic and walked right in the door. Femm came with me. Hey! Who are you! A thug screamed, but I ignored him. I opened another door and walked in. Hey! You bastard! He grabbed me from behind, and I grabbed his arm and twisted it. The thugs all gathered in front of me. I decided to ignore them and keep walking. They came at me, but I easily knocked them back with a magic barrier. Almost as if they were hit by a wrecking ball. A few came from behind, who I threw down. Some came with knives and swords, and again, the magic barrier knocked them away. They kept getting in front of me, and in the very back was a very old thug. He red at Femm and I. Who the hell are you?! Boss! Were sorry, we couldnt stop him! The thugs screamed. Seems like this was THE boss. I blew away thest 10 thugs with magic barriers. Then I sat down near the old man. I kicked the table over to make myself look a little tougher. Then I saw Bill behind him, cowering and pale. Are you ready to stop messing around and listen to me? I wont let you escape... I just ignored him. Femm. Back to normal size. Sure. Femm suddenly grew and all the thugs screamed. Whaa? Who are you!? He was the boss, after all. He was scared, but tried to act tough. I heard that you were going to threaten my friend Toril Tolf. I could see Bill hiding behind the boss. He turned away after seeing us. Its a transaction. No threats. I see. I have transactions with him as well. And I wanted to know about a chief you have in the old Demon Lords area as well. Why would you... The old man said, lurching forward and putting his fist on the edge of the fallen table. So I quickly grabbed a knife from a fallen thug and bbed in through the old mans palm. Gwaaaaahhhh! I couldnt hear you. What was that? But he still acted tough. He red at me, with his hand still stabbed to the table. You bastards are... I grabbed the knife, pulled it out, and at the same time, used gravity to toss the table into the ceiling. The pieces of it fell all around. I couldnt hear you. Could you repeat what you were going to say? You.... The chief tried to grab my shoulder, but instantly Femm bit him and flung him into the wall. I grabbed the old man and flung him into the ground. My ears are bad. Tell me your answer. I said very slowly and deliberately. Then I picked up the knife again. W...wait! The boss said to Bill, Hey, bring it here! Y...you want me to? Dont worry about it. Just bring it! I thought it would be a secret weapon or something. But what Bill brought was a bunch of documents. These are the papers about everything we know. Good to hear at least you understand things, old man. Let me go. Dont pester us any more. I cant promise that. I have to introduce myself to whomever is chief at the old Demon Lords after all. ...then dont pester us in the capital. As long as nothing involves you in this... ...I see. Then fine. And well keep that shack outside of town. Do whatever. We were done. But as I left, I made sure. Listen, if you break your word or bother the Tolfs, were going to be back, again and again. ...okay. The wolf watches always. I said, as Femm and I left the Negly hideout. Chapter 324 – Now What?

Chapter 324 C Now What?

We left the hideout and Femm got small again. Are they going to be okay? I hope they dont try anything. Then I ced perception blocking magic on us again, and we headed out to the hunters shack. No one following us? Seems fine. If Femm said so, I didnt have to worry. We went in the house, and Cruz and Moofy were waiting. Al! Wee back! Mooo moo Were back alright. There was an attack? Yup. We didnt have to do much to send them running. Moofy looked very happy. She probably did a lot. I patted her head and she but her snout in my stomach. What about Shiggy? Moo! Shiggy had slept through the whole thing with the Neglys. Shes been asleep. So dont wake her. Mooo Was there anything here at the house worth investigating? Nothing, really. Nope. Moofy said in spirit speech. And if Moofy said so, then there wasnt anything. As we were talking, I noticed Tokul in the corner, just listening. He looked quite crestfallen. Tokul, are you okay? Ive learned my lesson. Thats good to hear. No need to teach him about thugs anymore. Now his father can teach him how to trade. We then left the house for the capital again. I reced the magical defenses and locked the ce solid, and even made a key that only I could open. Because Cruz was with me this time, I could enter and exit the city easily. We headed over to Tolfs and Toril ran all the way from the back entrance to see his son. Thank you so much for protecting him! What happened? We took care of the problem. So the elder Tolf took me into the waiting room. We had more tea and cakes. I could feel Shiggy was waking up as she squirmed in my pouch. ryaa! Shiggy, you woke up! ryaaa She got out of my pouch, jumped on the table, and ate some cakes. Then we drank tea. I petted Shiggy while telling Toril what happened, What? The Negly Gang? Weve given them a warning, so I dont think theyll pay a visit. Whatever youve done...thank you. If they try anything, however trivial, tell me. Ill scare them again. Please visit my home any time, if you simply tell the maid, Ill be there in a sh. Thank you, Marquis. And after a light conversation, we decided to leave. Toril thanked us over and over again. I dont know how to thank you... Dont worry, you were a help too. I fear that if you werent involved, my son would have fallen into a trap. Well... If you didnt notice him, it might have been toote for him. And Toril bowed again, Thank you very much. Ill be sure this bes a chance for him to learn. Good to hear. Then the son bowed, Thank you very much. Seems that he felt quite sorry. I dont know much about trading myself, so work hard, okay! Cruz said to Tokul to cheer him up. Then, when we got back to Mulg, Old man! Wee back! Collette came running with a bunch of wolf cubs when we got back to the vige. Were back. Were you a good girl, Collette? I wasth! So I picked her up. Wuff! Wahf! Moo moo They all greeted on another. So then, after eating dinner, we all talked, and I exined what had happened. So the Negly Gang are involved...we need to be careful. I thought maybe they would be involved as well. Luka and Yureena also looked like they knew a bit of what was going on. But now we go and see the chief, right? You want me to take you? Timi seemed interested in taking us. That would help. Leave it to me, then! We should probably go to the town through Lindobal Forest...thats the closest, right? Luka said, taking out a map. I cant wait! Its been a while since I went there! You need to stay here, Cruz. Wha? Why? Cruz looked quite shocked. I told you before. If the hero shows up in the old Demon Lords ce, people will freak out. Whaa? Come on... If the hero shows up in the old Demon Lords ce, that means shes going up against demons. And everyone else will think that means that there was going to be a big fight, and everyone scrambles to get away. Its something we needed to prevent. Then Ill leave it to you, Al. Heh, heh, Al, do your best. Yeah. Me, Timi, who else. Ill go too! Vi-Vi said, in high spirits. Chapter 325 – Talking Over Who Will Go

Chapter 325 C Talking Over Who Will Go

Vi-Vi said she would go, and then Moofy as well. Mooo! Are you going too, Moofy? Go. Are you going, Femm? Of course. Anyone else going? The members turned out to be Timi, Femm, Moofy, Vi-Vi, me, and of course, Shiggy. I know Cruz cant go, and Luka and Yureena are busy? Well, its not that I cant go, but someone has to watch those Neglys now. Yeah, I hope they wont try anything with Linmia Trading either... We probably should watch them for a few days. I can help too! Cruz said with a smile. It was bad to trust Cruz alone with this, but with the other two, itd be okay. I said, just in case, to Luka, I can trust you to Cruz then! Yeah, well take care of her. Eheh heh. I had threatened the gang enough. There was a high possibility theyd do nothing. But it was still better to have someone to watch Cruz. Then, I guess you should have this, Cruz. I took the wolf mask out of my bag and gave it to her. What? Can I? You gave it to me, so its a loan in case you need it. Thank you! They were the most scared of that wolf mask. She could use it and it would work well. ryaa ryaa! Eheh heh heh, okay. She put it on right away. Then Shiggy flew right up on her shoulder. It smells like you, Al. ...sorry if it stinks. It doesnt STINK though! Cruz was nice enough to say. She was noticing what she was saying now, and being nice as well. Then I might want Femm to help you too. Wuff? If youre going to watch the Neglys, Femms the best at that. Wuff I could tell Femm was thinking it over. I might worry less if youre here, Femm. Understood. Good. Nice to hang out with you Femm! Cruz happily hugged Femm. Um! Master! What is it, Steff? Steff, the beast-human magic disciple of mine, stood. She was an adventurer before she became a disciple of mine. Even as a master of hers, I saw she had quite the ability. I want you to take me too! Okay. Youre pretty strong, after all. Thank you very much! Hearing that, Collette walked up and pulled on my sleeve. Old man, I wanna go too. No, you need to stay here and watch the town. Collette and her sister, Millet, had too stay here, even though they were bing strong magicians. Millet didnt really want to be an adventurer anyway. And Collette was barely a kid. There was no way I could take them to the Neglys. No, I need you to stay here. Hmph! Ill bring you a souvenir back. Okay! Then I looked over at Leah. What about you? Are you asking to take someone like me along? She was hypnotized by the enemy, and attached us with summoned spirits. Her father was a devil, her mother a beast-human, and she was a strange magician. The brother of hers that had taught her magic we suspected to be the enemy we were seeking. No problem with me. How about you, Cruz? Take her. She was being punished for her crimes currently, after all. And Cruz was the one that picked her punishment Cbor around the death temples vige. However, she was also teaching Vallimie magical devices, and was making them with her in Lindobal Forest. Her students were Vallimie, Vi-Vi, and my disciples. As long as its okay with Vallimie. Im teaching her magical tools, right? Youve pretty much taught her everything though! Yeah, theres nothing really to teach her anymore. Shes already a skilled magician. Vallimie was known as the forest hermit before, a very strong magician. She probably understood very quickly. After all that, she was expected to go back tobor again. Maybe I should also ask Chel, Chelnobok, is it okay? Piggi! I asked, and it jumped on my knee. Then it jiggled and said, Fiiiiine! Thanks. The slime was the chief of the death temple after all. It was a slime, worshiped by the believers of the death temple. Then Vallimie said, Well, I have something that I want to see first. Is there a problem? No...its not that big of a deal, but... Hm? Well, Rais about to have children. Rai was Vallimies pet lion, a male. Wow! ryaa ryaa! Cruz was really impressed, and Shiggy pped like crazy on her shoulder. Well, Rais not having the babies, its his wife. Still, thats something. Rai has a wife? Vallimie nodded. I didnt know about it...but it seems theyve been seeing each other a while... Rais huge, though. Is his wife that big too? Not as big...but still big. It must have been hard for Rai to find a mate his size. And the wife was nearing birth, so Rai rarely came here. Im a little anxious. Vallimie said. Vallimie was brought to see the wife before. Maybe Vallimie thought the wife didnt trust her much. She brought you to see her when she was pregnant, right? I think they trust you quite a bit. ....you think so? I do. Yeah, I guess so... Vallimie said happily. Lee was cute... Her stomach was big, so I brought a lot of food to them. Seems like Rais wifes name was Lee. Its their first, after all. Just in case, I think I should be at the forest for them. I think so too. So Vallimie decided to stay in the forest and not go with us. Chapter 326 – Back to Lindobal Forest after a Long Time

Chapter 326 C Back to Lindobal Forest after a Long Time

I got up to get ready to venture to the old Demon Lordsnd. Just then, Cruz said, Vallimie, you have to be with Rai and Lee now, do you? No, when they need me, they can call me by this ring I made. I see... Vi-Vi was good at making magic tools like that, as was Vallimie. They would cost a lot to buy in a store. And if we run from Mulg, well be there in five minutes. The magic circles are helpful...thanks Vi-Vi. Its no big deal. Vi-Vi blushed. The next day, after breakfast, we all set off for Lindobal Forest. Do your bestht, old man! Mister Al, be careful. Take care Millet and Collette. Leave it to us! Collette was riding on top of Femm. Femm, take care of Cruz. Sure! Femms tail was straight out. Cruz, watch over the Tolfs as well. Sure, Al. After seeing the others off, we made our way into the storage shack, and to Lindobal. As Luka and Yureena entered the room with the magical circles, the others and I stepped through into the deep forest. Its been a while. Yeah, quite some time. I asked Vallimie, Do you need to see Rai? Him and Dobyter. ryaa ryaa Timi and Shiggy both wanted to meet Doby. Doby was a grand dragon after all. I guess dragons just liked to get together. I think we can see Rai, but Lee might take some time... Shes quite nervous, huh? Yeah, and I think most male lions would be the same, but Rais pretty smart. I see. Maybe smart means something like wild animals begin able to suppress their wild natures. Then Vallimie called out, Rai, Doby, Im home! Gauww! Rai came out first. He was a massive lion. But in his smaller size. At his biggest size, he was the size of Moofy at her biggest. Rai, Al and the others havee to visit us. Gaww. Rai came over and pushed his head into me. His mane got all in my face. Rai, are you okay? Congratuations. Moo moo ryaaa! Moofy and Rai both sniffed each other out, kind of like an animal greeting. Shiggy pet Rai happily as well. Luka, Yureena, and Timi also gave their congrats to Rai. Steff and Leah recently came to Lindobal Forest quite a bit. They were used to being here, so they just petted Rai. Heres something for you Rai. Timi grabbed in her bag and pulled out some meat. Please, share this with your wife. Gauuwgau Timi, what kind of meat is that? Earth dragon. I hunted one down this morning. The meat of an earth dragon had a lot of magic in it, it would nourish Lee well. Gaww. Id like to thank you for Lee and Rai. Vallimie said. What should I give? I wondered. So I searched in my bag. I had some magic bear meat left. That doesnt taste very good though...bad as a present. I looked around some more and found some unicorn meat. Rai, this is from me. Gauuu! Al, too? Wow, I really am happy now. Vallimie said in thanks, and then, Gyaaaa We hearde from the forest. It was Doby. Doby, why are you hiding there? Come on out. Doby hid himself in the forest and only peeked his head out. He must have been scared of Timi. After a second, he ran out next to Vallimie and grabbed her hand. It was quite cute. Doby, have you been okay? gyaagyaa ryaa! Shiggy saw him and started pping her wings, and then flew up on his head. They were pretty close. gyaa ryaaa Doby liked Shiggy as well. He pped his wings in reaction. Moo And so Moofy went over and they all smelled each other. I petted Dobys head. I have to give you something too. gyaa? Not much but... gyaagyaa I gave him some magical boar meat. He seemed quite happy about it. I have to give something too. Timi came closer and said, gyaaa! Doby reared back and away from her though. He was terrified. Here, its some earth dragon meat. Doby bowed to Timi but was still clinging fast to Vallimies hand. Even though he was three times bigger than her. It was funny to see a dragon that big try to hide behind Vallimie. You dont have to be that scared, Doby. Timi said, and petted Doby. But Doby continued to shake and shiver regardless. Timi, thanks for giving something to Doby as well. Dont worry about it Vallimie. Hes friends with my Shiggy, after all. ryaa ryaa! So after all that was done, we left the forest behind. Chapter 327 – Sky Ride

Chapter 327 C Sky Ride

We moved over a little ways away from the base of Vallimies castle. Vallimie, Rai, and Doby were going to see us off. Timi looked at Leah and Steff, This isnt the first time youll see my true form, right, Steff? Yes, Ive seen it many times. Im prepared! Even so, Timis dragon form was quite fearsome. But it wasnt so much that you had to mentally prepare yourself after youd seen it. Youve seen my form twice, right, Leah? Yes, but I was hypnotized that time. I dont have much of a memory of it. I see. I was hoping you had seen it clearly. Then she returned to her dragon form and was even bigger than the grand dragon Doby. gyaaa... I could see Doby shaking and trying to cower behind the much smaller Vallimie. Shiggy was still holding on to Dobys hand. uh... Leah was at a loss for words. And seeing Timis true form would make anyone act like that. It was also the first time she had seen her without being hypnotized. Oh well. Okay, get on! Luka grabbed Steff and Yureena grabbed Leah as they both leapt up onto the dragons back. Shiggy, get on! ryaa! Then Shiggy jumped into my pouch and I jumped up as well. Moofy had Vi-Vi riding on her and jumped up as well. Okay, lets go. Be careful! Gaaao! Gyaa! Vallimie, Rai, and Doby said, seeing us lift off. And as we did, Timi said back. Where is the vige in the old Demon Lordsnd anyway? I dont know anything about it. It was a vige that was in the old Demon Lordsnd. Now a bunch of vigers from the kingdom had entered the ce and it was bustling. It sounded like a fun ce. Are you okay Leah and Steff? Were fine! Steff said a bit TOO strongly. However, she was clinging onto Moofy. We were flying far above the surface, so I could understand if they were scared. Y...yes, Im fine. Leah said, holding on to Yureena. Dont do anything dangerous. Okay. Luka then said, Its quite cold though! Even with this nice weather! I had put cold protection spells on all of them, though. However, when you get this high up, the cold still gets to you. And it IS cold. As we were talking about it, Timi said, You want me to go slower? No, were fine. I put magic on them. I see, then Ill leave it to you. In the summer, riding on Timi would be a blissful experience. But it was the winter now. You couldnt say it felt good at all. ryaa ryaa! Well, Shiggy felt good. But she was a duchess at the north pole. She was used to the cold. And Shiggy had the clothes that Vi-Vi had made for her. I had put magic on all of them. There was a barrier around all of them. So it wasnt THAT cold. If you get cold, tell me. But they all seemed okay. They all thanked me. Master, what is this magic? Well, its... I exined the basis of a cold prevention magic. Teaching while you were on Timis back, rushing through the air, was a different experience. ryaa Moo! I see. Not just Shiggy, but Moofy and Timi were both listening. After I taught her, Steff bowed. Thank you very much for teaching me. Can you do it? I think it might still be too difficult. I see, well, make sure to practice. Ill do my best! On the other hand, I think Im finally rxing. But its so high. If you start to fall, Ill grab you,Luka said to Leah. T, thank you! Yeah, no problem. Leah was literally clinging to Luka for dear life. She couldnt hear anything but the howling wind. Because they both looked a bit unsettled, I waited near them. Alra, you can see the vige below. What now? I guess we should drop down a ways away. Sure! It would be nice to dive and drop right in the middle of town though. Wed stand out a bit too much if you did that. As we were talking, I could see the vige far away. It was a vige below the castle of the former Demon Lord, and it was the biggest vige in his territory. Whoa, its a weird looking ce. Steff said, as she looked down at the town. The architecture was very different from the capital. It was also quite old. A lot of devil ces look like this. Its beautiful...in a way. You think? Steffplemented the ce, and Vi-Vi was a bit happy about it. I wonder how long it would take to get here from Mulg bynd? Steff asked, almost as if to herself. Well, by horse, one or two weeks. What do you think, Luka? By horse I think youd have a little less time, but you wouldnt go directly to here from there. Maybe its one week to Lindobal Forest by horse, and then from there... I think one could get therefortably in three weeks. Moofy three day Moofy said with a snort, and biting my sleeve. I think it would be hard for even YOU to get there in three days, Moofy. Moo! Moofy still had a lot of pride. Even if three days wasnt enough, a week was definitely doable for her. Time to get off. Timi said, as she began to descend. Chapter 328 – The Village Elkay

Chapter 328 C The Vige Elkay

We were back onnd, and Leah sat down immediately. She was just too nervous being up in the sky. Then Timi changed back to her human form. You dont like high ces, Leah? I dont think Im any more scared than humans would be, but... Anyone would be scared on Timis back the first time. I said, but Timi looked puzzled, You think so? Youre going high and fast. And in addition, the wind is strong. Its not like your back ispletely motionless. Timi did take care to not move around as much as possible in the air. Even so, she moved, and it was impossible to keep that from scaring people. After Leah and Steff calmed down, we started walking to town. We could see the Demon Lords castle from far away. So whats happened to the castle now? Its the capitals now. I dont know if theres an official living there though. I asked and Luka answered. So the capital had just taken over all the old Demon Lords territory. Cruz, of course, was the most distinguished person that made it all happen. If there was someone that they would hand thend over to, it should be Cruz. You think that they royals were unsettled about giving thend to Cruz? Maybe the devils are against Cruz? That might be it. After all, the ruler of thend that Cruz was given was known for his grudge against devils. Maybe thats it then. Even so, it was quite risky to just hand an unsettled territory to a girl that had just be a noble. Then Vi-Vi said, from on top of Moofy, I wasnt thinking of hiding who I was, but what about you, Al? I wasnt going to, but... Me either. Then I guess were just going in as is. I wont hide myself anymore than I already am. Timi then said, ryaa ryaa Moo moo! Shiggy and Moody didnt n to hide themselves either, I guessed. Nor would Steff or Leah. After walking a bit more, we came to the entrance of the vige. The vige was named Elkay. Theres no guard at the gate. That was strange, because almost all ces did. Steff looked a bit worried, saying, You think that magical beasts raid the town? I think they usually avoid human towns. If Luka said that, with her expertise, then it was probably true. Even so, this areas magical beasts were quite strong. If they did decide to raid the town, a guard alone might not be enough. But like this, someone wanted could just sneak in... Well, they might not have the resources to ce a guard. I wondered if they even had an official here. I was a bit of a worry. So we all passed through the gate and inside. There was a lot going on inside, so much that youd expect a guard. A lot of people in the streets, and quite a few devils around to. Maybe three humans to seven devils...was the ratio. Yureena was busy looking all around her. Wow, this ces changed! Well, there was no one living here thest time we were here. And thest time we were here was to finish off the Demon Lord. We had finished off each section of his army, and then went to Elkay. First the Four Sub-Bosses...one was Vi-Vi...and then the boss. I remember beating only three of them, but that was a different story. I guess because I didnt recognize Vi-Vi as a sub boss back then. This is where we defeated the final sub bosses. Takes you back. Sure does. There was the rumor among the devils that the hero was a horrifically cruel person. I think it was the final sub boss that spread it, and as a result, everyone in the town fled. Then we had our final battle against the zombies and magical beasts of the Demon Lord. It was quite a grand battle. There were a few devils mixed in, but it was mostly zombies and magical beasts. As soon as we beat the Demon Lord, all the people came flooding back. It was just as Yureena said. And in addition, the business from the capital flooded in as well. There are a lot of devils here though. Sure are! Vi-Vi looked quite happy. And Leah, whose father was a devil, seemed happy as well. Her beast-tail wagged slowly. Just then, a boy ran up to us. He was about 10 and a devil-child. He smiled at us and said, Brother, are you on a trip? I guess so. I have something to do in Elkay, and havee from the capital. I see. Well, its a long journey. Have you found an inn? Not yet. We might be going back before night, so I hadnt decided. We would see what would happen. But it would take one day to walk from Elkay to the nearest town. Normally, anyone would stay over or have decided by now. So the kid continued as if we were obviously looking. I have a ce to rmend, if youd like? He was a panderer to any traveler in town. If he brought in a customer, he got money. Can the cow stay with us? ...the...the COW? The kid looked a bit confused. Moo mooo Moofy proceeded to sniff the kid. It might be bad if it poops or pees in the room... Then its okay! Really? Of course! Then...okay. I guess so. I guessed we could ask him to help. Even if we went back before night, I needed a base. Okay, show us the ce. Thanks! The kid happily led us to a very old and crappy looking inn. And it wasnt an inn, but just a house. Chapter 329 – Tom and Kay

Chapter 329 C Tom and Kay

What an elegant location! ...is this a location? Yureena and Luka said. d that we found a ce, though. Timi said, entering the ce and not really noticing. Steff and Leah, on the other hand, looked a bit unhappy. For me, as long as it has a good roof and walls, theres no problem. I went in, and the kid smiled at me. You can use this room or this other room as you like. Thanks. There were a few beds, but that wasmon in inns in the country. The kid was fidgeting, and asked, Can I ask for payment before you stay? Sure. How much for six people and a cow. Well... He thought about it a bit, and gave me a very cheap price. The same as one person staying in the capital. I paid, and the kid looked at me happily, Thanks! No, Im d it was so cheap. While we were talking about it, from inside the house, a little girl emerged. She was smaller than Collette. Brother...customer? Yeah, to stay here. Wee. She said, with a bow of the head. Thanks for having us. Yureena gently responded, and patted the girls head. You want some candy? And the girl happily gobbled the candy down. ryaa ryaa Shiggy stuck her head out and looked around. The girls eyes lit up. S...so cute! ryaaa Can I touch? Sure. As soon as I answered, Shiggy jumped out and towards the girl. Shiggy really liked children, but this one looked a little thin. Well, looking at both of them, they both looked thin. It might be that they were living through hard times. Whoa! Whoa! The girl pet Shiggy very happily. Then I told the boy, I thought you were just pandering to customers, but you own this ce? Yep. The boys name was Tom and the girls was Kay. Both their parents had died...and they were siblings. They worked very hard and saved money but... It was hard for kids like Tom to make money. The home the parents had left Tom, Tom turned into a lodging. Kay, wait a second. I have to go buy food. Yaaay! He was going to use the money I had just given him. Seems that he was pretty low on money. Maybe Id give him a tip when I leave. Is there a food store around here? Sure is! I have something to buy, so take me with you. Really? Yeah, its been a while since Ive been in Elkay. I have no idea where anything is anymore. So Tom would lead me to the store. I gave him some extra money on top of the payment. It was a little less than I paid him for the stay. Are you giving this to me? Sure. Its for letting Shiggy in to. ryaa! Shiggy stayed and yed with Kay while I left for the store. While I was going there, I looked over the town. Many people, and quite busy. Here it is. Tom took us to a shop that was falling apart. The ce was a dump, but there were quite good materials there. After buying a certain amount, Tom said, For taking me here, Ill buy you some food. Really? Sure. Thanks. Tom didnt hold back either. He must have been thinking about his hungry sister. After buying a lot, we headed back. We borrowed the kitchen and made some food, and we all ate. Tom and Kay ate with us. Its great! Kay was quite happy with the food. And after cleaning up, I asked Tom, Can I ask you a question? Sure? Do you know Damian, of the Neglys? Damian was the guy who was in control of the Negly Gang in Elkay. I had gotten his name from Bill and the boss of the Neglys back in the capital. Hearing Damians name, Tom straightened out like a bolt. He must have been scared. Sir, are you his friend? Nope. Hes just caused some trouble doing business with me. I had to choose my words carefully until I knew that Tom was for or against him. I see... Tom looked relieved. He was the type though that you could tell what he was thinking. I guessed that he wasnt friends with Damian. Tom, you dont have any problem with Damian, do you? Well...yeah. Tell me if you want to. Sure. And he told the story inly. He owed money. Of course he did. It was hard enough to live alone as a kid, but with a little sister... When I needed money, Damian would give it to me. Really? Weird. This guy Damian might actually be nice. But he told me he GAVE me the money, andter said he LENT me the money. I see. So...not so nice. He told me, theres no way Id just GIVE you the money! What a scoundrel. Yeah, then he starts talking about interest? And now its a lot of money. So the first amount he gave Tom was a little, maybe enough to stay a night at Toms ce. Then the interest was put on it, and it exploded to 500 times the amount. Damian was going to use that im to take the house from Tom. But that much interest was illegal. Tom should just tell a official. Why not just tell an official? I went to it, but he didnt listen...they chased me off. Seems that the official didnt care. So Damian was able to do what he wanted. Well, that sucks. A LOT. Thats why I have to save as much money as I can. I see. I couldnt overlook this. There was no way this kid could out-earn the amount of interest against him. And at this rate, the Neglys would have his house soon. Then the kid would probably be forced to do bad things at Damiansmand. This was the route of a lot of abandoned or orphaned children...straight into criminality. Well, I guess I have something to discuss with this Damian. Can you do it? Sure. Im very good at talking to people like him. Thanks! Tom smiled ear to ear in happiness. Chapter 330 – Visiting Damian

Chapter 330 C Visiting Damian

So I heard the information from Tom. Everyone listened carefully. Even Yureena, who had Kay on top of her knees. Wow, that is a problem. Not a huge one, but no kid is able to return that big a sum. Vi-Vi nodded and said. We have to do something. Luka said to herself, while Leah and Steff nodded along. Then, Tom told me about where Damian lived and I headed out. Wait here, Luka and Yureena. Okay, why are you going alone? I dont want a huge group with me. And I want someone here just in case. Yureena nodded. Yeah, if a big group goes, theyll run and that will make it harder. I dont think theyll run, but its better to scope the ce by walking around it instead of some of them running up to us. Got to know they of thend. How about the others? Luka asked, and Vi-Vi said, Im going with Al. Me too. Its a chance to see what happens with Alra. Moo moo ryaa ryaa Id like to go with master as well. So Leah will stay with us? Yes. And like that, the team was decided: Vi-Vi. Timi, Shiggy, Moofy, Steff, and I. Luka would stay with Yureena and Steff and look around. Both of the groups had important roles. Be careful, old man! Well be safe. Dont worry. See you! You too Shiggy! ryaa ryaa! Tom and Kay said, seeing us off. After a while, Vi-Vi said, It was such an old house, why do you think Damian wants it? Well, it was a big house. Big, but old. Maybe he only wants thend? Thend? Vi-Vi thought it over with a serious face. It was big enough to have a big house. It might have been that Toms parents were quite rich. But it was old and no one had taken care of it, so it was falling apart. And thend itself wasnt bad. If he built a real inn on the ce, it might make some money. So I exined it to Vi-Vi, The problem is that there isnt many visitors to Elkay. Even with goodnd, there wasnt much to be made from travelers. Master, is there an adventurers guild here? Steff asked me. Probably. There were a lot of magical monsters around the town, after all. So there had to be an adventurers guild to handle them. Ill ask Luka after were done. If there is one, Id like to see it. Yeah, well see it if there is one. ryaa? Shiggy peeked out from my pouch. She looked around at the vige streets. It was probably strange for her to see a vige full of devils. Well, Alra, what now? What do you mean? Threaten him, be modest to him, what? Yeah... I thought it over. Basically, threaten him, I guess. Master, youre going to threaten him? Not talk to him first? Steff looked a bit shocked. Just like most adventurers would. Well, the guys already a Negly bad guy. We either throw money at him or threaten him, thats the only way we get info. I see...is that how you do things? Probably. He probably threatens others. There was probably no sense in appealing to emotion or logic. If youre going to threaten, Im very good at that. Timi, please dont roar at him. Hm? No hm about it. Youll cause a lot of panic. ...really? ...ryaa. Timi and Shiggy looked sad. But as we were talking, we found we had arrived at Damians hideaway. There were two thugs talking in front of the ce. They probably were lookout. Okay, Im going. Sure, well look around. So I walked up to the hideaway. Who the hell are you? Is this Damians house? Answer our damn question first! Well, if this isnt his house, then Im just going to cause trouble. What the hell are you talking about? First impressions are important. I grabbed onto one thugs temples by the hand, and holding one temple by the index finger and one by the pinky started to squeeze. Owoww!! The thug went to grab my hand by both arms, but fell to one knee. So, is this Damians house? You bastard, leggo! The other guy threw a punch at me, but I grabbed his neck and lifted him. Agghghhhg He gurgled in pain. So, is this Damians house? Y...yes! Yes! The guy that I was holding by the head answered, so I let them both go by casting them to the ground. Answer me and stop wasting my time! ...who the hell ARE you? Is Damian at home? ... Youre still going to stay quiet? I took a step forward and one of them shouted, Hes inside! He is! Honesty is the best policy. I said with a smile, and went inside of Damians house. Chapter 331 – Damian Discussion

Chapter 331 C Damian Discussion

Damians house was quite clean and well furnished. It was almost more like a business office. Who is this guy?! I ignored the thugs inside and just walked by. Those that came at me I just mmed to the ground with barriers. It was the same thing I did in the Negly base. Hello? Damian? Are you here? I called out, as I walked in. Damian,e oute out, wherever you are? After hearing some loud cursing, a guy came out from a back office. Im Damian. Who are you?! The Mysterious Wolf Mask. Whaa? I didnt have one on...but I kind of did...still in my heart. If you dont know, ask your boss in the capital. Well...whatever...why are you here? I guess he was ready to hear me out. He saw I wasnt here as an act, so he knew I was the real thing. Almost the same as the animal world. If you know the other guys stronger, youre willing to hear him out. He took me back to a very well furnished room and told me to sit. No need to talk and stand, Damian, please sit. Almost like I owned the ce. So I decided to get right to the point by asking, Lately, did you have someone looking to get some spirit stones? Whaaa? He was quite surprised. Almost like he was wondering how I knew. What? I heard you were looking for them from your boss in the capital. He red at me for a second. He must be doubting my story. ...What does that have to do with you? Well, a ruler has had some trouble with someone that might be your client. That ruler was Cruz. And it was true that there was damages. Of course, I wasnt sure that Damians client was the one behind it. Damian was a bad guy though, and Bill and the others made it obvious. Also there was Toms dealings with him, so a bit of threatening might work. I want you to tell me who is asking you to buy those spirit stones. ...no way I can tell you. Too bad. No one wants trouble, Damian. I dont know what trouble youre talking about. So, I decided to scare him a bit, No, Damian, youre the one in trouble. Whaa? Either way, this rulers pissed. You had better settle with her! What the hell do you mean?! Ive nothing to do with it! If you dont tell me who youre trying to sell the stones to, then youve got to settle it with the ruler! What kind of logic is that! Youre messed up! Damian was kind of right. My logic was messed up. But it was messed up that he was trying to rob Tom of his home too. No need to use logic with someone that doesnt use it himself. And since he was all into survival of the fittest, then I would use it on him. And now it was time for him to pay. So I acted like Damian was the one that wasnt understanding the logic, What? Whats messed up? You wont tell who youre buying for, so youve got to settle it with this ruler whos pissed! Thats obvious! Nonononono, I dont get it. I have nothing to do with whoever that guy is trying to get the stones and that ruler! He was right, but I didnt care. You cant just let a guy like that win. Even if his logic made sense. Listen, Damian, youre acting a little TOO irresponsible here. Hell if I care. Well, I could care less too! What do you mean, care less? About all this crap, youve got to settle this with that ruler! ...you asshat! Messing with me like this...Im the chief of this branch of Neglys! The boss already told your story. Dont you remember? Then, I smiled. Your boss was the one that understood my story. He not only apologized but told me that I had to settle it with YOU! Dont lie to me! Why dont you see if its a lie? Well, it would take a month to walk to the capital and back.... I can check now. Wait a second. No, why do I have to wait for you? I need to settle this now. Why would I wait for you to check with the capital?! So then this whole discussion is pointless?! I guess I had won. I made everything rely on the fact that Damian had something to settle with a ruler. But I was alone, but there was no doubt that I would beat him in a fight. So, what? How are you going to settle this? Money? How much... Lets see. Well, Cruz was a ruler, and hernd was wrecked by all those blizzards, so I gave him an estimate. WH WHAAA? It was so much that Damian turned pale. Well, Ive heard that youve made quite a bit here already. But...that much...I... I stood up. I looked for a safe. There was something like it in the back of the room. How much is in there? N...no. He resisted, but I went for the strongbox anyway. Bastard! Stop right there! And just then, Damians thugs burst into the room. Chapter 332 Damian Discussion 2

Chapter 332 Damian Discussion 2

I knew that theyd be pissed if I went for all their money. So I used a barrier to knock them all down on the floor. I hardly even had to use magic. Damian looked up at me, dumbfounded. Are we done here? Please...spare me. He was the chief, but he had never tried to attack me. I didnt know how strong he was, but he knew that hed lose to me. However, he was shocked that I was able to st all his boys away without a scratch. I ignored all of them and went over to the strongbox, Damian, open this. ...theres no way I would... I see. If he wont open it than Id open it myself. I put magic into my hands and used the magic to wrench off the opening by its hinges. Cruz and Luka might be able to do something like this with bare hands, but it was a bit harder for a magician. I used the magic well so Damian didnt see it, and opened the strongbox. Hmph! I said, as if it was just through power I was opening it up. Now Damian definitely thought I was a monster. Wha? That was a bit tough. A good safe. ...how did you open it? Lets just say Im good at opening things. And with that, I threw the lid of the box at Damian. I could see the guy was sweating like crazy as he caught the lid and I looked inside. There was money, gold bars, jewels, and IOUs inside. I see theres a lot in here. You shouldnt lie to me. I said, and took everything inside. T...that money, you cant take it...please... I mean, this isnt even a slight payback. Youll have to write me an IOU... I fanned myself with all the IOUs. I picked out Toms IOU and looked at it. It was signed in Toms childish signature. The amount was just a little bit. Three days stay in his house. It was the amount of three days work in the capital. However, the interest was an enormous amount. Forgive me...I worked hard... Worked hard in CRIME you mean? A hard working criminal is WORSE than azy criminal, you know? He was so hard working that he was trying to fraudulently steal a kids house. That was something I couldnt overlook. So I stared at him and said, ...who asked you to buy them? Who? Bill? He didnt just tell me it was you just so Ide all the way here to kick your ass, right? It wasnt Bill! Then who? Maybe someone in the head hideout that doesnt like you? The boss? Maybe it was a fight for power inside the Negly Gang. And if they wanted to have a fight like that, it was fine. But I wouldnt let the fight get so out of control that it would hurt others. If its a fight for power in the Negly family, I have no interest. Dont lie, if not then why... Damian, you seem to not know what position youre in. ...what does that mean? Youve got a tiger by the tail. Youve got someone out there thats willing for you to be destroyed. Damian looked at me, shocked, and I said, I am, now, looking to destroy all of the Negly Gang. But...thats impossible. I mean, by now, the capital gang might already be destroyed, right? Cruz and Femm were in the capital. If the gang had started moving again, Cruz would crush them. Just then, there were voices outside, Damian! Theres some weird folks outside! Ok! Bring them in! Then Damian red at me, The tables have turned! How? Your people were lurking outside, right? Youre strong, but you guys outside arent! Its true, my people are outside, but I dont think youll be able to take them hostage. Damian said nothing, but still red at me. He probably thought I was lying. Then the thug came in the room, D...Damian... ...what the? His face was covered in blood, and he was floating in the air. Someone was clenching onto his neck from behind. Alra, we were outside, and this guy showed us in. Nice of him to do that. She was carrying one guy by the neck and one by the cor, dragging him along. Master, sorry toe in so suddenly. Steff came in bowing over and over. You told them toe in, so its fine! Moo moo! Then Moofy and Vi-Vi came in. Moofy was pulling a thug by the leg with her mouth. Youre that ass Damian?! Ripping off that kid! Vi-Vi was pissed. What did that thug do? He tried to grab Moofy to sell him! Mooo! Moofy was expensive meat, after all. The thug tried to fool or threaten or steal that cow. Damian looked at the ceiling with a look of giving up. Okay...Ill tell you who it is. You could have done that in the first ce. I said, putting my hand on his shoulder. Chapter 333 – Damian’s Information

Chapter 333 C Damians Information

Timi threw the thugs onto the floor. Then she came over and pped me on the shoulder. Great job, Alra! You actually got this fellow to talk without force! Timi looked over at us and made that assumption. Of course, Damian wasnt injured at all. The thugs were spread all over the floor, but she didnt pay any mind to them. Thats right. If we just are truthful with one another, well get through it. Yeah, peace is the best option. I said some cliched phase, to which Timi responded with augh. You got through it? Steff said, looking at all the fallen thugs on the floor, I mean, it takes different methods. Mooo Vi-Vi and Moofy both nodded, but then Damian looked at us and said, Wait...thats getting through it? Seems that Damian had someint. But we ignored him as Timi looked over the empty strongbox. Hm? She then took it her her hand and crushing it, said to herself, ah. It was like a paper box in the hand of a child. Sorry, Damian, or whomever...I broke it. ... Damian looked like he was about to faint. The box looked pretty strong, but I guess it was kind of brittle. Timi said, sounding genuinely sorry. Yeah, sorry, how much did it cost? She asked, but Damian shook his head. No. Its fine. I see. Good. Sorry about that. No, its perfectly okay. He was very scared and moved over to sit in a chair. Just then, Shiggy popped out of my pouch. ryaa Eeep! He shook even though the dragon was so cute. I guess anything would scare him now. Thanks for talking to us about this. ...sure So, who was the one that was going to buy the stones from you? ...the Demon Lord. Everyone looked at me. I had forgotten, but I was the Demon/Magic Lord. But that didnt make sense at all. Is there someone else that uses that name? Someone else? Nothing. Who is this...lord? In autumn, the fellow that began living in the castle. He calls himself the Demon Lord. Well, thats some new info. Whoever it is, they have ten-pound balls to say that. So they just started living...in the castle? Vi-Vi asked with a doubtful face. What about the official that has control over this ce? No one said anything? No idea, he might be getting bribed...or threatened. Either way, the official obviously wasnt in charge. That might have been why there were no guards at the gate. So you guys did whatever you wanted because no official said anything. Yeah, but... Anything else? The Demon Lords scarier...than any official. Damian said. And if someone like a Negly chief like Damian said that, then he had to be scared. So...someone that would even scare a guy like you Damian? Wha? Damian was a little pissed at that sarcastic statement and looked upset. I got angry and red at him. N...no. You guys are scarier than that Demon Lord. Whatever. Im a niiiice guuuy. Suuuure. Damian said, a bit sarcastically back. Anyway, we went back to the conversation at hand. So this so-called Demon Lord, what did he tell you about the stones? One of his guys said that if you found them being sold in the city, to go out and buy them. And it would take a month to walk to and from the capital. It only look a week for Tokul to show up after Linmia put the stones up for sale. Something was up. Maybe he had a special method, or a way of contacting others. Magic circles or some kind of transmission tool, or something else. Damian, so how did you contact the capital? Once the buyer was ready, the Demon Lords guy would make a contract, and theyd send a horse into town. I see, so the Demon Lords guy would contact whomever. Pretty much. It was obviously not a horse. It would take longer than a week. There had to be another method. So I asked Damian about the Demon Lord. Seems like all the taxes and so on were being done by him and not the official either. It might just be that the capital is so far away, it didnt have the power to control it. I guess the kingdom is a bit wrong in thinking they have this ce controlled. Youre right, I fear. After hearing that, I said to Damian, No more crime. ...I know. I didnt trust him, but Id let him go anyway. I had not jurisdiction anyway. Honestly, the previous matter is settled. Oh... Youre wee... Thank you. Okay, now with that done, get your heart straight and do decent work. I said with a smile, and pped him on the shoulder. If you dont, this guy maye back to y with you again! I...Ill be careful... Damian seemed genuinely sorry. I hoped that hed act cleanhanded from now on. Chapter 334 – The Adventurer’s Guild of Elkay

Chapter 334 C The Adventurers Guild of Elkay

We left the room, leaving Damian, though I didnt know if he was actually apologetic or not. Before we left, I said to Damian something, as if I had just recalled it, Oh yeah, from now on, Im going to do some business in this town. Dont tell me. Go ask the Demon Lord. No no no no, this involves you as well. What do you mean? I was thinking of doing the business at little Toms boarding house. What? I took out the IOU that Tom had signed and showed him it. Damian jumped back a bit when he saw the note. So, youre going to take back this IOU for all the trouble youve caused. W...wait a second... Damian seemed to be really flustered. It was weird. After all that threatening, I thought he would just take it back. Is there a problem? Well, the Demon Lord specifically requested... I had no idea why this self-dered Demon Lord wanted Toms house. There must be some special reason. This Demon Lord...or whatever, really has some diversified interests. I dont know anything about it. Maybe this Damian fellow was just the Demon Lords errand boy. Maybe he was more of the Demon Lords guy than a chief in the Neglys. If I take that IOU back, the Demon Lord will kill me... Dont worry. Youd be killed for messing up that spirit stone transaction first. It seems Damian finally realized the mess he was in. He turned pale. Rx. Ill settle the ount with the Demon Lord myself. Uh...sure... And if you care for your own life, you best support me in doing so. I...earnestly hope...youll win, then. And with that, I hope he really did learn his lesson, but I didnt expect much. So finally, I gave him ast warning. Listen, Damian. Dont mess with my business ever again. I...I... You havent learned your lesson. ...yes...I have...I understand. Dont cause Tom any more problems. Understood. And tell your thugs the same. Sure. I still didnt trust the guy, so I finished with, If your thugs pull anything, Ill settle it with you. Sure. Dont talk to those kids again. ...okay. I wont. Because Ill be back. Okay? I know...I wont. Damian looked quite frightened. So I said, The Wolf Always Watches. What? But I wasnt wearing the mask, so Damians face was one big question mark. If he contacted the Neglys, however, theyd tell him. Iughed to myself, and left the hideout. Vi-Vi was waiting outside. So what happened? I told him the IOU was settled because of the trouble he caused me. I see. So lets head back to Toms!Timi said, starting off. There were about 10 of Damians thugs on the ground outside the hideout too. She must have blown them away before they even got in the door. I looked them all over, and they were mostly human. Maybe one devil for every 9 humans. It might have been the fact that they were Neglys that they were mostly human. I got something to eat on the way back and returned to Toms house. Luka, Yureena, and Leah were waiting. Same with Tom and Kay. Wee back, mister! Kay ran out to us. Hey, I got you some souvenirs. Whoaaa! Kayughed happily while Tom looked unsettled. C...can we really have them? Sure, lets eat. But, my money... I said souvenir, right? I dont need money. Because of all that mess with Damian, Tom must have learned that nothinges for free. We started eating what I had brought back, and Luka asked, How did the tracking him down turn out? I guess you could say, as expected. I told them all what had happened, and the information that Damian had given me. Then I gave the IOU over to Tom. Tom, Damians apologized. You dont own him a thing. R...really? Yeah, Im good at talking to guys like Damian. Luka looked at me with a smirk. There wasnt a lot of talking, I bet. Im more worried about this new Demon Lord, or whoever. What is the agent doing, anyway?! Vi-Vi said, a bit angrily. Luka, what about the adventurers guild? Theres a branch office here. Any problems? I asked around, and heard theres not a lot of action. That was weird. Elkay was in the middle of a lot of magical monsters, and growing leaps and bounds. A ce like this should be teeming with adventurers and quests to be had. So it was strange to hear that there wasnt much going on. What could that mean? No idea. Theres no info that gets to the capital from here either. I bet. Quite a few mysterious things were going on. Chapter 335 – Checking Tom’s House

Chapter 335 C Checking Toms House

Then Vi-Vi asked, I dont get it. I thought you were top of the adventurers guild, Luka? I guess you could say that, but in the capital area. This is outside my jurisdiction. I see. I didnt know what was going on here. And that was something she really had no power over. She did her best, but it was the chief out here that was in charge of this guild. Then I asked Yureena, What about the church here, Yureena? Its a small one, one priest. Any followers? Not really. It seems like the church wasnt doing that much either. Only some asional visits by young believers trying to spread the word of God. After all, this old Demon Lords domain needed some serious missionary work. They woulde to the church here and then spread out into the old Demon Lords domain. I can see why the churchs influence is limited here as well, Yureena. Its unavoidable. As we were talking this over, Kay scrambled up on Moofys back. Wee! Yaah! Moo mooo! ryaa Shiggy was dancing around on the back of Moofy as well. Seeing Kay so happy, Tom smiled and looked in good spirits. And I was happy to see these poor children with smiles on their faces again. With children like this in Elkay, it means there must be good people living in this town. Of course!Vi-Vi said. So what is the agents doing? I wonder. Probably thinking something up with that Demon Lord, right? It was just as Luka said. We have to do something about that Demon Lord or whoever. Yeah! I just have to ask, that agent of the Demon Lord isnt in the castle, right? It seems that he was just working for the Demon Lord, after all. No need to fight with him. Yeah, it seems he has his own ce near the church. Well, thats a relief. I said, and Timi leaned forwards, Hey, Alra. Are you ready to burn that castle down? I was thinking about it. You want me to drop down from above? I can blow my breath down and st it. ...no, no need for that. Wha... Ryaa... Timi and Shiggy both looked a little disappointed. The castles in the middle of town, after all. Hmph. If you st the castle, the towns going to take a massive hit too. Yeah, I think its a bad idea, too. Well, if you and Luka say so, then I guess I wont st the castle. But then Timi asked, Not even a little dragon breath, though? The castle might crumble. If you breathe on it, everyone in there is going to die. Yeah, and then were going to have no idea why they want these spirit stones. Then, from the corner of the room, Leah raised her hand. Um... What is it, Leah? Do you think my brother will be in that castle? Theres a possibility. Timi said and then noticed she said it, and put her hands over her mouth. Sorry I blurted that out. No...its okay. And if I breathed my dragon breath onto the castle, if Leahs brother was there, then hed die. That could happen. Then I wont. And so it was decided. Then I asked Tom, Let me ask, what is it about this house thats so important? What? Why does Damian want it so badly? There has to be a reason that the Demon Lord was willing to kill Damian over it. I had to know. Um, I really dont know. Have you heard anything else about this ce? No...my dad might have known something... I see. Then Vi-Vi said, Lets check it out! Yeah. Can we look around, Tom? Sure! Tom said, without hesitation. We need your nose too, Moofy. Moo moo! And so, with Kay and Shiggy on her back, Moofy started sniffing around. Vi-Vi searched around magically. We all looked around carefully. I dont sense any magical circles. Yeah... Al. Is there something magical here? Doesnt seem to be. Luka walked up to me while I was searching the ce magically. She had found something and wanted me to check it. What about this Al? It looks pretty old. It looks like some trace of ruins. I heard this town was built on the ruins of an older one. You think thats something the Demon Lord is interested in? No, the whole town is filled with them. I dont think Toms ce is special in that regard. Hm. Luka looked a bit puzzled. So I guess theres nothing magical here. Yeah. And after Vi-Vi and I finished checking the ce over, we didnt think there was anything special here. So why does the Demon Lord want it so badly? Maybe we should ask the Demon Lord. That would be faster. And so we headed off to the castle. Chapter 336 – Heading by the Elkay Adventurer’s Guild

Chapter 336 C Heading by the Elkay Adventurers Guild

There was a possibility that Damian had contacted the Demon Lord about us. It was his mistake after all, so he probably would figure that he had to say something. Even so, the Demon Lord probably had other things to think about than that, I bet. I guess we should get going there, then. Yeah, and Iming with you.Luka said. Me too.said Yureena. Ryaa ryaa! And Ill be going too.said Vi-Vi. Moo moo! So three girls, and two beasts, then. Let me go as well! Yeah, I guess since your brother might be there. I thought it would be good if Leah went as well. Hmph. I guess Ill stay here.said Timi. Ryaa? I thought it would be good to go with you, Shiggy, but I think theres enough fight in your group. Yeah, I dont think anyone could beat us. And some of those thugs mighte here after all. Yeah, it would be a big help if you watched over this house. And so Timi decided to stay with the kids, and that was a relief for me. There wasnt much chance that Damian would attack though. However, I didnt know if that Demon Lord or whatever might send someone. There was a chance that someone else might attack. So I turned to Steff, What about you, Steff? Are you going to stay with me, Steff? Timi asked her. Do you need help? Hm. I guess I dont need help in case someone attacks, but it is a bit much being alone. I might need you to buy something. I see. Youre right. If only Timi was there, then Tom and Kay would have nowhere to go. And if they had to buy something, the house would be left empty. It would be best if another was there with them. Okay, then well stay here. Miss Steff! You can y with me! Kay seemed pretty happy to have Steff with her. She was ying around with Steffs ratherrge tail. Seeing this Timi looked rather lonely. I guessed it was because Timi was so strong, it was hard for her to get close to children. However, it was best she remained there, so Im sure shed make friends quickly. Now that the groups were set, Vi-Vi said, Should we check out the guild before we go to the castle? For information? Yeah. Sounds like a good idea. And you can let me do the talking. Timi said, knowing that with her position, she could get a lot more out of whomever was there. So we decided to set out to the guild first. See you allter. Sure. Be careful. Youre going to the castle after the guild, right? In case nothing happens. Timi petted Shiggy and looked a bit forlorn. Good luck, master! See you! Be careful! And so we all left the house. This is the way to the guild.Luka showed us. Hm...there are a lot of people here. But everyone looks so poor. We watched people as they walked by us. They all had clothes that looked old and tattered. Even though it was winter, many houses didnt have smokeing from the chimneys. I guessed that people just didnt have the money to pay for heating themselves. Its strange that the only people that have money for decent clothes were those thugs. And there were a lot of them in Damians gang. Hmph. I really wonder what that agent is doing. Vi-Vi said again, angrily. We might want to have a talk with him as well. Wait a second. Instead of you talking to him Al, leave the agent to me. Im not going to do anything rough, but it might be better for someone like Yureena to talk to him. I think thats a good idea. Its safer. Luka said, agreeing. Some thugs came up to us on the street, and Luka knocked them all down. This ce really is unsafe. Way worse than the eight ward of the capital. At least in the capital, you have the crown watching over you most of the time. And so we arrived at the guild. Is this really the guild? It says so on the sign board. But the building was smaller than even Toms house. Excuse us... Luka said, without hesitating, walking straight in. Following her, I entered. There was a counter inside, with one fellow sitting there. This guy was probably the Elkay Guild Master. Who...who the hell are you?! He said, a bit frightened. Were just adventurers. This ce is pretty dead. I see...adventurers... The guild master seemed a bit relieved. There was no doubt he was probably getting hustled by thugs and was happy to see some actual customers. Its been a while since Ive seen new adventurers. Strange to hear a guild master say that in the bordends. You guys should probably get out of here as quick as you came in. What do you mean? Luka asked, and the guild master started talking. The tax rate on taking a quest in Elkay was astronomically high. The usual tax on quests were designated by the towns, cities, and viges. The capital never made aw on how much it should be. It was the region that decided, however, because they wanted the guilds to provide a lot of work for them, they usually kept it low. Even in ces that didnt like adventurers justing in and out, it was still quite low. Seems this agent really doesnt like adventurers. Luka said with a furrowed brow. Chapter 337 – The Guild Master’s Worries

Chapter 337 C The Guild Masters Worries

The guild master gave us a look of abandonment. Seeing it, Luka sighed, I know how you feel, but snap to, buddy. But...miss... Anyone here actually operating as an adventurer? Five, F Rank. Just five... She was at a loss for words. An F rank was the absolute lowest, and usually just had started. And just as the guild master had said, they were 5 youngsters from Elkay. They all probably were in the same fix as Tom was. No job, but they didnt want to just sit back and do nothing, so being an adventurer was the easiest. What kind of quests are they doing? Gathering herbs nearby. You always need herbs, you know. There was no vige without its sick or injured. But the magical monsters around here are strong, right? Are they okay? I tell them to be careful until Im blue in the face...its always a worry for me. It seems that they crept carefully outside the town to avoid the monsters, and returned with the herbs...or something like that. The tax is high too, right? How much for gathering herbs? This much. The guild master showed the quest forms. Compared to the capital, about half the tax, but the danger was about 100 times the capital. Either way, it was money. Why didnt you notify the headquarters in the capital? We did, but... It turns out that they did send a request for help to the main office. You would think that someone would have sent something by now. It might have been the fact that Lukas position in the capital was honorary that she hadnt heard about it. Also, the capital really was only involved in the guilds in its area as well. Elkay was in the bordends. There was probably no one willing to send a bunch of adventurers out here anyway. Luka whispered to herself with a serious look, Hm...have to do something... I appreciate your feelings, but perhaps its best with these five after all. But you need new people here, right? I tell them all to go somewhere else. Most here have siblings and cant go other ces. If thats the case, then Ill help. Luka showed the guild master our cards. WHA!? Youre the legendary Viscount Luka Langow! Yes. Even though my title is honorary, I AM the director of the guild. So I will help. Thats such a help, but...this is all thats here. What do you intend to do? Hm...youre right. Al, what do you think? Well... I seriously thought it over. Way back, the Grand Master had approached me about being a Guild Master in the old Demon Lords territory. It was right after beating the Demon Lord, but before I ended up in Mulg. I could have ended up here, if I had gone with it. I think the ce they wanted me to go was even farther on the border, though. I think we have to talk to this agent, though. Hes just a yes man thats in with the Demon Lord. Oh really? Seems like that agent would do whatever the Demon Lord told him. This is all so weird.Luka said. Yeah. Normally, the representative of the capital wouldnt end up a yes-man. Even if the Demon Lord was really powerful, the agent of the crown was still just that. He could call forces from the capital here. And not only that, but Cruz woulde running as well to y the new Demon Lord. Hmph. Maybe we should see this agent of the crown first. Even before we go to the castle? You can see him since youve got a title, Luka. But I dont think youll need to use it. We did need to see what info we could get from this guy. I did think it might be difficult, though. I think this Demon Lords really got a hold on him. Youre probably right. It would really suck if this so-called-Demon Lord took off if he caught word. It could happen. Then the guild master said, No no no, youre not thinking of just attacking the Demon Lord, are you?! Yeah, why, is there some problem? I know that youre very strong, Viscount Langow, but this is the DEMON LORD. You think Ill lose? Dont think Im mocking you...I dont think youd lose, even one on one, but all the followers... Dont mind it. Just rx...itll be fine. But the guild master still looked worried. Listen. Theres over 100 followers in there...some even look to be dragons! Oh? That DOES sound dangerous. Yes. No magical monsterse here even without guards, and Ive heard the reason why is because of all the strong magical beasts inside the castle. I would expect there to be some very strong magical monsters in this area too, so if the rumor was right, it would be quite interesting. Do you have any proof of that rumor? Anyone that resisted this Demon Lord would be set upon by magical beasts and be killed. Adventurers, businessmen, anyone! Not just by chance? Thats hard to imagine. So it seems that as long as you paid the Demon Lord, you were left untouched. But if you didnt pay, then you ended up dead. It was quite a despicable way to threaten others. And they werent just killed either. Blood and bones were left for others to see. Listen. Even if you didnt leave the town, youd be attacked and die. They even attack you in your home? Yes. No matter where you are in the town! Thats hard to believe even in a ce like this. Luka said, even with her experience as a specialist in magical beasts. Right? That means that even youre paying up heavy amounts to this Demon Lord? I asked, as the guild master frowned. Chapter 338 – On to the Castle

Chapter 338 C On to the Castle

Yeah! Whats wrong with that?! I dont want to pay! But our only B Rank adventurer here tried to avoid paying, and the next day, he was dead! Killed, huh? Thats not nice. Well, it seems that we need to pay these murderers a visit. I think we know why this agent of the crown does nothing. Luka, Yureena, and Vi-Vi all said. If you let these murderers go, then the whole area descends into anarchy. Of course, its made to look like an ident. The adventurers are attacked during their quests. Theres never any proof of criminality. Do you really think you can beat the Demon Lord? After I spoke, the guild master asked us, and we all nodded. I see. Because whenever theye to collect and are denied, they always say they hope nothing bad befalls the one not paying. And the next day, some unknown beast attacks the adventurer that refuses to pay. Then the guild master said, ...all I have are these F Rank weaklings. I cant let them be killed. I knew why he was so intent on protecting these new adventurers of his. I didnt want him or the others to be attacked either. I probably would have payed the high taxes if I was in his position too. I understand. But we cant just let this so-called Demon Lord get away with it. Lets go then. Hey, wait! Didnt you hear what I said? We did. Well, then... Yureena then stood before the man and presented her card. Listen, its not just Luka, Im here too. ...the priestess Yureena Linmia... And thats Alfred. You mean... the great magician... He finally seemed quite relieved. I heard that you were heavily injured to the knee, Viscount Lint? ...yeah, well, thats true, but Ive fought through it I guess you could say. Is that so? He looked us over again. And the hero? Shes in the capital. ...I see. He seemed a bit disappointed. Were fine without her. At least with this fake Demon Lord. If we donte back or something happens, just call a girl called Timisoara at Toms house. Toms house? So I showed the master where Toms boarding house was. Shes very strong as well. If you run to where she is, I can guarantee your safety. I see. He looked a bit hesitant, but still nodded. Well tell you what happened when its over. And so we left the guild office, straight to the castle. Vi-Vi was riding Moofy when she said, This is some really bad business. Youre right. ryaa ryaa! Even Shiggy seemed upset. Seeing all this go on, Leah quietly said, Um, about my brother! What is it? If hes the bad guy...just finish him off, okay? Kill him without worrying, is what she meant. I can see why, after seeing what happened to Elkay. I guess thats why she felt the need to say so. Hey, if we see we have to, then wed do so even if you told us to stop. If there was no other way, then wed have to destroy him. With all our power. But if it wasnt necessary, we still might be able to save him, but thats all Ill say for now. We might figure out a way. This so-called Demon Lord might be on the same level as the real one though. He did cast psychological magic on Leah, after all. That made whoever it was seem quite strong. You dont need to call Timi? I think well be okay. If we needed her, I could call out and magically expand my voice. Moo moo! Well be fine with Al.Vi-Vi said. I guess so. And with that, we had arrived at the Demon Lords castle. Two henchmen stood by the gate of the castle. Their faces were covered in ck cloth, with pitch-ck clothing. You ready? The Demon Lords castle...kind of nostalgic being here again. I ignored the guards and headed right in. The two henchmen grabbed onto my shoulder without a word. Moo mOO Twomp! Moofy headbutted one of them. The fellow on my right all in ck was sted away by Moofy. Moo? After that, Moofy looked confused. What is it, Moofy? Moo MOOO Thump! And now the guy on the left was knocked far away. Moo? Again, she looked confused. Zombie. Huh? Was zombie. I guess the two guards were zombies, and Moofy had noticed. Really? And saying that, Luka ran over and peeled back the ck covering from the fallen guard. We could smell the faint odor of rotten flesh. What the... It really was a zombie. Yureena said with a grimace. Chapter 339 – Straight into the Castle

Chapter 339 C Straight into the Castle

I thought it was pretty impressive that Moofy could figure out they were zombies just by headbutting them. Good job, Moofy! You really figured that out fast! ryaa! I patted her on the head. Shiggy popped out of my pouch andplimented Moofy as well. Moo mOo! Moofy sounded pretty proud about it. ... The zombies started to rise up to attack us, so I finished them off. Once youre a zombie, you cant go back. sting them was morepassion than anything. I should have brought Chel. Yeah. Chel on the other hand, as the Death Lord, could finish off zombies instantly. We didnt have time to go back to Mulg, though. Leah. Get on Moofy. Youll be safer there. I understand. Moo! And after checking that Leah was riding behind Vi-Vi on Moofy, I told Luka, Since theyre using zombies, theres no need to talk over whether to attack or not. Yeah, lets just blow through to wherever the boss is. Lets get this over with! Yureena said, taking off into the castle. Al, we have to keep up. Luka said, grabbing me under the arm, and sprinting off after here. Moofy was right behind us. W...wait! Luka! Shut up, youre just going to bite your tongue. Your knee hurts, so this is the only way. Even so... Femms not here, so theres no other way, right? Maybe I should get on Moofy instead. She could carry three people easily. But Lukas and Moofys legs werent stopping. ryaa ryaa! Shiggy was having a great time, crying out. Well, okay. I guess it was no big deal. Can you fight like this, Luka? Ill put you down if it looks dangerous. And... Luka looked right ahead. And there was Yureena was knocking through a group of zombies ahead of us. GET AWAAAAY! She shouted without stopping, while waving her staff left and right. And with that, five zombies were knocked to the ground. I guess all I have to do is run. Yeah, Luka. All of the standing zombies ahead of Yureena were mowed down by her. Its been a while since Ive seen Yureena blowing enemies away. Sure has. Yureenas staff was long and made of a light wood. I had put magic on it so that it wasnt easy to break, but even so, it wasnt a mace or anything. So I hadnt put any offensive magic on it so that it would hit harder. Shes got some power to be destroying zombies with a wooden staff like that. She should have a hammer or mace. Youre right. While we were talking this over, Yureena just kept the zombie destruction going. And they werent all human zombies wither. There were monster zombies as we went along. So she continued to mow down the human zombies that came at her. At the same time, a massive spider attacked Yureena from the ceiling. Even if it was a zombie spider, it still looked scary crawling towards Yureena aftering down. Hiyaah! She reared back and punched straight into the spider. ǣɣɣɣɣɣɡ The spider cried out in response. Yureena had punched right through the spiders stomach as it reared back. She was covered in spider slime from head to toe. Even so, she wasnt fazed...just like a S Rank adventurer should be. If it cried out like that, its not a zombie. Maybe a pet of this fake Demon Lord? I wonder if youre right. As we were talking this over, Are...arent you scared?! Leah was really frightened by it all. Nah, its always like this. Yeah, just as Luka says. ...really?! I kind of knew how she felt though. And so Yureena kept knocking the crap out of enemies with the staff while punching others down with her fist. Not really the image of a holy priestess. Her white robes were now almost a kaleidoscope of color of different types of blood and liquids. ...Yureena...might be letting go of some stress, I guess. ...Maybe so. It might make her feel better to knock some heads with her bare fists, after all. As Luka carried me along, I saw the bodies that Yureena was leaving behind. There are a lot, but they dont look strong. Yeah. But they do look like a lot of human zombies. I looked back and could see Leah looked disgusted by all of them. But she was also checking to see if any were her brother. I hoped that she didnt find him among any of them. He was probably in the throne room, if anywhere. So we just ignored all the other rooms and ran straight towards the middle. Moofy, tell us if you smell anything powerful. Moo. It seems that we were almost at the throne room. Yureena didnt stop, but just kicked therge door open. And as the door opened, a zombie basilisk charged at Yureena, Hiyaaaaayaaaa! She swung the staff at it with both hands and knocked it clear to the back of the room. The devils in the room were struck by the pieces of the basilisk. She really messed up everything here, huh. Someone said, and I was a bit unsure about what was to happen. Chapter 340 – The “So-Called” Demon Lord Versus the REAL Magic Lord

Chapter 340 C The So-Called Demon Lord Versus the REAL Magic Lord

I saw the new Demon Lord sitting at his throne. I red at him, and said, Youre the one thats messed up this whole town! Whatever I do in my castle and town is my business. He said, raising his hand and and then dropping it down. At the same time about 10 zombies came forward to attack us. Yureena swung her staff and fists at them all over again. Vi-Vis magic exploded while Moofy ran around headbutting zombies. They were dispatched in a sh. I looked at the demon again. He didnt seem surprised that we had destroyed his zombies so quickly. I guess he trusted his strength quite a bit. This isnt your town. The kingdom might say that it is... I guess he was saying that he was the only one in control of this castle and town, and for now, he was right. But, I wasnt going to allow that to continue. Nor would the royalty or the nobles. Theres no reason to put children into such deplorable conditions. And so talking time was over, Who told you that you could take the name or demon or magic lord? I wasnt proud that I was chosen, but it was weird this guy thought he could take the title. And I really didnt want the name sullied by a loser like this. He didnt even answer my question, ...what a fool. You carry along kids and girls with you to fight? Im not a kid! Yeah! Moo moo! Yureena, Vi-Vi, and Moofy seemed a bit angered by that remark. Arent you embarrassed to be surrounded only by women? ... Mooo! I was silent, and Moofy mooed loudly. I guess I had nothing to say, because that was the way it looked. I was being carried by Luka, after all, Hup. And so Luka, understanding what was going on, let go of me and stepped back. So I stood there and addressed him, Who told you that you could take the name or demon or magic lord? I asked again, since I didnt get an answer. I am the true sessor of the previous Demon Lord. So youre his kid? Why do I have to ANSWER YOU!? And at the same time he shot a powerful fireball at me. Whaa... I was a bit surprised. We were just talking up until then. Even though he called himself Demon Lord, I wish people like this would stop with the quick temper. So I knocked the fireball away. Vi-Vi, do you remember the previous Demon Lord having a sessor? I have no idea who this old guy is. So, there is none. I guess even the old Demon Lords sub boss doesnt know this guy. He probably wasnt even in his army as amander. Hey! Are you mocking me?! Come forward! One of them he called forward was definitely a demon, no there were two. There were many types of demons, they were twice as big as a man, and wide too. They had long fangs and sharp ws. They also had one horn that came out of their foreheads. The bigger and less they looked like humans, the more powerful they were. So these two looked like they were pretty strong. One more had a mask and was probably a devil, seeing from the horns. Or it might be a demon near the size of a human, so much weaker. Are they zombies? Can you tell, Moofy? Mooo.....? I guess she couldnt tell unless she hit them with her nose. Wed check after wed defeated them. You think youre hot stuff just because you have demons? Toote for you now. I am the Demon Lord, and you are NOTHING! He said, again waving his hand in the air. Guess he liked that little gesture a lot. At the same time the demons let fly a bunch of massive magic spears at me. Youre the one thats nothing. I threw up a magic barrier with my left hand to protect Moofy and the rest. At the same time, I shot gravity magic at the Demon Lord and others with my right. Uggg... Gggg... Aggg... They all fell to their knees. The Demon Lord had no idea what was happening, you could see it on his face. The spears they had thrown at me hit the magical barrier and broke. Luka and Yureena hit them with their weapons. .These arent just magical spears! It had a real spear inside, so youd better be careful! And as they were saying so, they picked up the spears they had knocked to the ground. W...what have you done? Without answering the Demon Lords question, I simply walked closer. Youre the Demon Lord, right? If you really are, then release yourself. I strengthened the gravity magic. We were inside, so I had to limit the range of the magic. If it hit the ceiling, the ce might fall down. Agg..... Gggg.... Ughh... They all got to their knees and then fell with their hands to the floor. From the demons backs, two more arms sprung out. Seems this wasnt their final form. However, those limbs were weighed down as well and stuck to the ground. Demon Lord, you head is so low...almost as if youre bowing to me... You bastard... I got closer and strengthened the magic even more. Then I put him in a position that made him look like he was prostrate and begging for mercy. Chapter 341 – Demon Versus the Magic Lord

Chapter 341 C Demon Versus the Magic Lord

He was facing me, on his hands and knees in a begging pose. What is it? Do you want to apologize? I took a spear and pointed it at his head. It was the spear that Luka had knocked down when the demons attacked us. Agggg... Gahh... I crushed the Demon Lord and the masked person to the ground so they wouldnt move. I had no idea whether it was their ribs or nose I broke, but there was blooding from their nose and mouths. Maybe I should crush their bones into pieces. If I did that, they wouldnt move again, and then I could ask some questions. As I was thinking it over, You fooool... One demon used all their strength to attempt to stand again. He were probably far stronger than the Demon Lord. In fact, they were probably just using him as a front, but just strong doesnt mean youre smart or great. Just like a demon. Youre still trying to stand. I strengthened the magic on him further. Gaaah! The demon fell back to the floor with a p. I put the same strong magic on the Demon Lord as well. Aggg... Gaaaahhh! CRACK! POP! The sounds of cracking bones echoed in the room. Ill never...forgive...lowly humans...GAAAHHH! Lowly humans? But wevepletely beaten you already. The prone demon was still quite lively. He screamed out again. The four arms flexed with renewed,rger muscles. Gaaahhh! He pushed four arms to the ground and tried to push himself up. Still trying? You are tough! ǣ! They screamed in a way human words couldnt describe. At the same time, more zombies came from behind the throne. That scream must have called them into battle. A basilisk, hydra, chimera, A and B ranked zombified monsters. Luka shouted, Leave these weaklings to us! Sure. Me too! Luka and Yureena went after the new enemies. Moofy, take care of Vi-Vi and Leah! Moo moo! Moofy responded happily. And with the girls on her back, she charged right into the zombies. Even though there were a lot, with all of them there it wasnt such a big deal. Luka and the others rammed and shed, and many zombies fell near my feet. Ooops! Its okay, there are a lot of them. The corpses would naturally get spread all over the ce. So I used my left hand to y the zombies while keeping my right hand over the Demon Lord and others. I just shot magical bolts at them. When I blew away a zombie chimera, I felt a surge of heat. Since I was paying attention to the zombies, the demon shot a fireball at me while I wasnt paying attention. It was the perfect timing. Whoa! I put up a barrier just before it hit me. I thought it was over, but when the fireball disappeared I saw the demon standing before me. He had somehow gotten out of the gravitys reach and had stood and attacked me. He had a sword, and pulled it out so quickly a normal adventurer would never see it. It was that fast, so fast the eye almost couldnt see it. I blocked it but felt pain in my left knee. How did you...block! You mean how I blocked your fireball? He was more surprised that I blocked the fireball than his sword. In addition to gravity magic, I had shot magical bolts at zombies, AND blocked his fireball. Three different magics. I think any magician would have a very difficult time doing three at once. Thats why he was so surprised. Im surprised you can move. Dont mock demons! He said with a fanged grin. Maybe he was just faking not being able to move. Or I thought so, but I noticed two of his arms were broken. He had sacrificed two in order to crawl out of the range of the gravity...quite some guts. I guess I shouldnt have tried to keep them all alive, but then the demon said with a grin, The reason you will lose is because you didnt finish me with that magic! Then he swung the sword with his right hand. I spun to avoid it, but then he flung the nails of his left hand towards me. They sprung out from his fingers and seemed to chase me. It would be bad to be hit, but even worse if he hit the girls behind me. So I put a barrier up and stopped them. Too bad! That was your only chance to flee! He seemed quite sure of winning. I could see the two broken arms from his sides were also healing quickly. You think I used all my power to fight you?I said. What? He looked at me fiercely as I started using gravity magic again, even more than before. The Lord and the masked man were already ground into the floor, so I used all power on him. FWUMP! And with a great mming sound, the demons body hit the floor. Chapter 342 – So-Called Demon Lord Army Versus Magic Lord Army

Chapter 342 C So-Called Demon Lord Army Versus Magic Lord Army

He looked at me as if hed never seen such a thing before. What the... I know how much lifeforce you demons have. You dont just die easily. Aggg... Trying again? WHUMP! So I put even more gravity on him. This time he was almost ttened into the floor. See if you can get up now. Basstttardd... He opened his palm and shot a magic bolt at me, which I quickly deflected away. If youre going to use magic, you need to do better. Ugggh... So I strengthened the gravity until I could hear bones cracking under the pressure. By then all the zombies were gone. Hes going to die if you crush him like that. These guys dont die even if you almost cut them in two. Ive see it! Vi-Vi said, remembering a past battle with a demon. Al, still, I need you to not kill him yet. Sure. Luka wanted to question him. We needed to know whether it was the Demon Lord or the demon who was in charge. Well, this is a demon. We have to hurt it some more or its going to go nuts like before. You want to split this one in half? Yureena said, perhaps recalling all the crap we went through with the old Great Demon. Well, that was that really strong mithril great demon. This ones going to die. I think youre right. The mithril Great Demon was the one that defeated Shiggys mother. The great demon had spent 200 years in order to finally steal Shiggy from her mother. As we talked it over, the demon groaned, You fools...are the ones...that defeated...the great demon... Yeah, you know about it? ... The demon said no more. Whatever. Well have plenty of time to askter. Theres no doubt that this demon was under the great demons control at one time. I strengthened the gravity even more so that even more bones would break. Even after breaking his bones to dust and crushing his muscles, he coulde back. Destroying them was easy, but taking their power without destroying them was very hard. I took magical spears and plunged them into some vital points. Both shoulders, both knees, his navel. With that, I threw a magical over him to bind him. Its really going to suck when we have to carry him. Yeah. We had beaten the Great Demon near the capital after all. Thats why we could give him over to the crown quite easily. Theres no government here, after all. Nor really any guild. We would have to contact the capital about this, and in order to do that, we would have to transport there from Lindobal forest. And we didnt want the demon to know about all those magical transports. We would have to transport him without him knowing. Ill watch him while you check the others. Got it. Leave it to me! Luka and Yureena looked over the masked man and the Demon Lord. Their bones were broken and they were also unconscious. No way they could move even if they woke up. ...you...bastard... The so-called Demon Lord whispered with blooding from his mouth. Ah, you woke up! Pretty strong there. ~~~~~ The Lord was murmuring about something. Just then, the masked person started to twitch more and more. What is it? Weird if all his bones are broken. Luka and Yureena took a step back. Moo mooo! ryaa ryaa! Moofy and Shiggy looked a bit scared. The masked person stood up before us. There were bones sticking from his legs through his meat, and blood everywhere. Luka! Knock the Demon Whatever out! Sure! The masked persons movements were so strange. Almost as if he was magically made a marites puppet. If thats so, the controller must be the Demon Lord. Hyaa! Luka punched the Demon Lord square in the face and he immediately passed out. But the masked person didnt stop. Leave it to me. And as soon as Yureena took a step towards the masked person, spirits of fire rose up all around us. The heat in the room suddenly increased. 12 spirits of fire! It would really suck to have to fight spirits here. Especially fire spirits. Moofy! Out of the room! Moo! Moofy started to run out of the room with the girls still riding. But the spirits blocked her path. If it was just Moofy, shed charge right through them, but not with Vi-Vi and Leah on her back. Moo moo! Moofy dodged the fireballs they threw at her. Al! Over here! Luka cried out. Her sword had no effect on the spirits. I had to take them out myself. Then Vi-Vi cried out, Leave it to me! And at the same time, arge magic circle arose from the floor. It was massive, and I realized that she had been writing it from afar as the whole battle was progressing. She started the magic flowing about the ring, and the room suddenly filled with chilled air. Chapter 343 – The Mysterious Spirit Sorcerer

Chapter 343 C The Mysterious Spirit Sorcerer

The moisture in the air suddenly froze. Wha... Even I was surprised. Vi-Vis circle was multyered too. This circle quickly lowered the temperature of the room, but if you looked closely, there was a ring for almost everything: wind, fire, ice, magical force. There were four that she could pick from. Since the fire spirits were called, she used the ice. Its amazing how she learned to do these things. And as I was surprised at that alone, the ring began to shoot ice into the air as well. When the hell did she have time to write that? H...hey?! Dont just shoot random ice around! The ice didnt just shoot at the fire spirits, but at all the girls as well. Luka and Yureena quickly dodged all the ice that came at them. I put up a magical barrier to protect them. Sorry...theres no friend/foe function on it! WE KNOW! That was a much harder circle that she didnt have time to draw. ˣӣɣɣɣɣ...... The spirits voices faded as the ice hit them and their numbers slowly decreased. I hit them with magical bolts as well, and after a bit, they were all sent back to the spirit world. Well, that was a bother. Theres no way to deal with fire in a small room like this. And saying that, Luka got close to the masked person. It seems that the Demon Lord was controlling him...could you tie him up? Sure. So I put a magic over him as well. After making sure of it, Luka took off the persons mask. He had beast ears and two horns. And also a beast tail. Devil? No...beast? Brother... I heard Leah whisper. She jumped off of Moofy and ran to the masked person. Leah, your brother? ...yes. I asked, and she picked him up and answered while tears streamed down her face. Moofy. Moo... I called Moofys name. I wanted to see if her brother was turned into a zombie or not. Of course, in front of Leah there crying, I couldnt just ASK Moofy if she could check. Moo moo Still, Moofy stuck her snout out and sniffed. Then she sniffed once more, just in case. I guess the cow knew exactly what I was thinking. Moofy? Moo Okay. She said, but I still had to make sure. Not a zombie. Not zombie. Everyone seemed to breathe a sigh of relief. Well, then. Great to hear. Vi-Vi and Luka said, and sighed again. Al, look him over. Sure. So I checked the person over as Luka has asked. The same as Leah. Magical hypnosis? Yeah. Break it. I remembered back to when I broke Leahs hypnosis, and she remembered still what had happened. Best to break this as quickly as possible. We wouldnt want the Demon Lord to wake up and start controlling him. Yureena, heal him first. Youre right. Give me a second. All of his bones were broken, after all. And not only that, but the Demon Lord had controlled him, making his injuries worse. He was an absolute mess. If I would break his hypnosis now, he might pass out from the pain. Its going to take some time. I know. I cant even tell how many bones are broken. There might be a hundred or even 200 breaks. She had to heal all of it, and a regr healer would take days to do that. Luka, could you, Vi-Vi and Moofy search around? Got it. Luka alone might miss some magical traces. But with Vi-Vi, it would be okay. And Moofys nose could pick up the rest. Ill watch over the Demon Lord and this other demon. Okay. Leave it to us. Moo moo! ryaa ryaa Shiggy waved to Luka and the others as they left the room. Leah prayed while Yureena healed her brother. Just leave it to Yureena, itll be okay. ...okay... Then, Yureena looked like she remembered something. Um! What is it? What kind of punishment are you going to give my brother?! Well, the Demon Lord and this other demon are going to get some severe punishment. I dont know about your brother. The people of Elkay are pretty sure to feel like theyve been wronged by anyone in this castle, after all. Well, we wont know until we asked, but Ill see what can be done. T...thank you. Just then, Yureena looked at me. Im done for now. You finished all the important work? Yeah, stopped the bleeding, and set the broken bones. ... I guess she was pretty much done. ...that was fast. Well, Im good at it, so it doesnt take long. She was a holy maiden, after all. However, if it took this short of a time, I should have just asked Luka and the others to stay. Okay, Ill remove the hypnosis. Please... Leah said, with a bow. Okay. And with that, I removed the hypnotic spell over Leahs brother. Chapter 344 – The Brother’s Story

Chapter 344 C The Brothers Story

Even with the hypnosis broken, consciousness wouldnt return immediately. Leah, sorry, but Im going to leave him tied up. I understand. There was a chance hed go wild after he wakes up. Yureena, thanks for healing him so quickly. Well, his bones werent as badly broken as I expected. Yureena said as she looked over the so-called Demon Lord. The Demon Lords bones were broken all over, but Leahs brother wasnt hurt that badly. He must have a strong skeleton. Even so, it seems that 30 bones were broken. And Yureenas healing was so fast it was supernatural. I asked Leah, What was your brothers name again? Its Leo. I see, nice name. Leahs brother Leo. Easy to remember. After a bit, Luka, Vi-Vi, and Moofy returned. You find anything interesting? Some weird magical machines... Reallyplex, with transfer circles in them. I see... We had to check those out. After waiting a while, Leo awoke. The reason he woke before the so-called Demon Lord was because of Yureenas healing. ...brother... Leah? Why are you here? Leo...Ive been searching for you EVERYWHERE! She embraced him with tears in her eyes. Leo still looked confused, and looked around trying to understand where he was. Still, he tried to embrace her as well and looked like hed tear up as well. ryaaa Shiggy just stood there, watching. I waited for them topose themselves as well. Since he didnt look like he would fight anyone, I released his magical bonds. And after wiping a few years, Leah and Leo both bowed and said, Were sorry for all the trouble we caused. But thank you for saving my brother! Its what adventurers do, help each other, so dont worry. Then Luka said, I do have something, Id like to ask. Whatever you wish... So she began asking them various things. I just watched over the so-called Demon Lord and his underlings. Dont say anything until I ask you, Leah. Sure. Luka wanted to make sure both stories would match, that neither were lying. When did you first meet that guy? She pointed to the so-called Demon Lord. After the Demon Lord was defeated, I came to Elkay to work as an adventurer. Huh, thats strange. Well, the money I got doing it was a drop in the bucket because of all the taxes on quest payments, but as the only B-Ranked adventurer, I felt like I was helping, so... The Guild Master had told us about the only B Rank adventurer, who refused to pay taxes, and then was killed. Seems that he wasnt killed, but was Leo, and was alive. Even so, the Master said that there was a lot of blood and guts left at the spot. Maybe that was all a ruse. So then how did you be one of his underlings? Luka added, but didnt mention what the Guild Master had told us. She wanted to make sure there were no contradictions. He lived in the castle and was collecting massive amounts of taxes. Both I and the Guild Master tried to tell him to bug off. Then the next day, a demon came, attacked me, and carried me off. A B Rank adventurer would have trouble with a demon, thats for sure. Yeah, so they brought me to the castle. They hypnotized him, and made him an underling. After this Lord killed so many people, why didnt he kill you? He didnt kill people...just kidnapped them and shut them in the castle...some of them he zombified. He kidnapped them and then hypnotized or zombified them. Then he used them however he wanted in that condition. With hypnosis, he could get them to do much more detailed tasks than a zombie. And if the person wasnt worth the time, hed just zombify them. After that, Leo was sent to Cruz realm to create all the Jack Frosts. That n went south, so he was tasked with finding, learning, and using magical machines. He found Leah and put her under his control, and then used her. The Lord must have thought these machines are just that important. What kinds of machines do you have? Transfer circles, devices that create magical crystals and drugs, medicines. Then they would sell all the crystals and drugs to the capital and make a lot of cash. Theres no doubt the Neglys were heavily involved in that process. Seems that this so-called Demon Lord was really interested in making money. So you cant make a magical machine that makes spirit stones? Yes. Magical stones and crystals, sure. Spirit ones, no. So using Leah, he was going to try to make them. When that failed, he tried to buy them from us. With that done, now Id like to hear direct from this Demon Lord. Sure. Yureena, can you heal him enough that hell just wake up? Thats a really hard thing to ask. Bet even so, she started to heal him. It took much longer than Leo did. I connected his torso...but left the arms and legs as is. Good. We cant let him run away. So I conjured and his face with some ice. And he slowly came to. Chapter 345 – Interrogating the “Demon Lord”

Chapter 345 C Interrogating the Demon Lord

As soon as his eyes opened, he screamed, Aaaghhghh! The painnnn!!!! Shut up. As he was crying out, I saw him nce around trying to ascertain what was going on. Then we started asking questions. If he tried to m up, wed stomp his arms and legs until hed answer. Seems as though this was the son of the previous Demon Lord. He had reached out to the other demons in order to get revenge against Cruz. I looked over at the other demon. And this? An underling of that Great Mithril Demon King. I see. After I had defeated him, the underlings were captured. But apparently they didnt capture all of them. And this was one of those. If hes one of Mithrils...he knows zombification quite well. Youre right. He also had all the magical devices and such left over from his father. The demons wanted to be around those as well. So also they zombified the agent of the crown from the capital and had him support the Demon Lord at every beck and call. So hes already a zombie. I guess now we see why this town is in the condition it is. A normal big town would have a transport circle to the capital, but Elkey was newly added to the kingdom. There was no transport circle. The demons took advantage of that. So, whats your objective? To murder that diabolical fiend Cruz! And avenge my father! Avenge your father? Well, I can understand that. So thats why you summoned all those spirits in her realm? Yes. Then why did you then go to another realm and do the same? I thought it would help me clearnd to grow a new demon army to attack the capital and eventually get to Cruz there. So the creation of spirit stones and gathering of spirit force was his n. This demon must have had a st doing that! Yureena said, kicking the leg of the unconscious demon next to her. Seems like these demons are really in it for the kicks. Thats why theyre not disciplined enough to put a magical army together. You cant just acknowledge this kid of the Demon Lord to be as good as his father, either. So, what should we do, Al? Do we have a box to put him in? Like made of mithril or orichalcum? I asked, just in case we did. We didnt need them to hear our conversations. A small one, but nothing big. I think there was one when I was walking around the castle. That would help. We need to put them in, seal it magically, and then take them to the capital. It would be necessary to give them a hole to breathe, but it would take time. Still had to do it though. Sounds good. We need to be ready, just in case, and we dont want them to know about the transport circle in Cruz castle. Even if the demons escaped execution, theyd probably never escape the prison. But you never knew what could happen. Vi-Vi, I need a transport circle here in Elkay. Sure. Sounds like a good idea. It would take hours to return to Lindobal. Just easier to make a circle. Vi-Vi, you and Luka go to Toms house and return to Lindobal with Timi. What about the circle? Do you want me to connect it to Cruz ce or Mulg? Just Mulg for now. Got it. I added Luka just so Toms ce would be safe when the other girls left. After Vi-Vi, Moofy, and Luka left for Toms, I asked the Demon Lord, So, Demon Lord, whats so important about Toms house. Toms house? I told him the house I meant. Oh...that one. Seems that deep below Toms house there was an entrance to ancient ruins. It wasnt magically sealed, so it didnt set off my magical senses during the search. What about these ruins? I dont know. Something helpful for attacking the capital, someone told me. I wanted to ask the other demon, but they usually never talk. I guess I would leave it to an expert in the capital. Ill get the box Luka told you about. Sure. Yureena left to get the box. She had heard from Luka where the box was, so she should be fine. After a bit, Yureena came back. It was a metal box. It had two sections that were half as tall as I was. We can put them in there. First, the demon? I picked up the demon and dumped him in with gravity magic. He was big, but I squeezed him in. It was easier than usual C his bones were all broken. Gyaaaaa! I thought he was asleep, but I guess he had awakened. I ignored him, shut one segment, and sealed it. Then I looked at the Demon Lord. P...please, stop. Ill die! You look pretty close to it. But before I put him in, I had to change the box a bit to fit him. Chapter 346 – The Agent of Elkay

Chapter 346 C The Agent of Elkay

It took a bit for Vi-Vi and the others toe back through the transport circle. Just had to wait. Leah and her brother were talking about what had happened up to now. The box with the demons was shaking, and I asked Yureena, So the capitals agent is a zombie. Yeah...its no good to do the usual... The usual? Well, it would cause problems. I understood what she meant. The agent was a zombie, but you couldnt just execute him like a normal zombie. Tie him up, take him to the capital? We couldnt just bring him in through the transport circles, then. I guess Timi could fly him in for us. I really wish Cruz could take care of this, but its the old Demon Lords ce. Yeah, just her stepping in here would get some monsters raging... I kept her away so that no one would get killed in the process as well. I just wish shed understand why shes not wanted in a ce like this. I guess we could ask Luka to do all of it. You could do it yourself, Al? Yeah...ugg... This was going to suck. I guess itd be better for an old guy to do it than these kids, but, Lukas better at exining off stuff than I am though... Yeah, I guess youre right, Al. So for the next few hours, I changed the box around so it could fit the Demon Lord. And after that, Vi-Vi and Timi arrived. So this is the Demon Lords castle! You look great, Shiggy! ryaa ryaa! Shiggy was happy to see her aunt. And Vi-Vi said that she had put the circle in Toms home with no problems. Seems that Cruz was waiting for us in her pce in the capital. Well, lets get the demon and the Demon Lord to the capital. N...no! Pleasssse! I picked up the box with both of them sealed inside. Since they fit pretty well, I was sure neither would die. But it would probably hurt. After shutting the box, I sealed it magically so they couldnt see or hear outside the box. Then I ced a gravity spell on the inside so they couldnt tell which direction they were being moved. With that done, we went to Toms house. Then to Mulg, then to the capital. Cruz was waiting for us there. Luka exined to her everything that had happened. Al...this is the box with the two inside? Yup. Now I have to get the zombified agent here as well, so wait here. Roger that. So I went back to Elkay with Luka and Yureena. Timi was waiting at Toms house. When I tried to enter the agents home, a soldier stopped us. I am viscount Luka Langow, I have something for the agent. Hes busy. Please leave. Strange response for when a noble visits. Normally theyd let you in without a word. Even so, I must see him. Hes busy. Please leave. The same words again. This is hypnosis. Yeah, please, Al. The soldier could speak, so he wasnt zombified. It was one glimmer of light in all of this darkness. I knocked him out, and we entered. There was a servant, but he didnt notice us. Maybe all of them were zombies. As we went in, we found the office to the agent. And there a secretary arose and shouted at us. You there! What are you doing! I am Viscount Luka Langow. Ivee to see the agent of the capital. He is very sick. I am here in his ce... Excuse me. This guy had to be an underling of the so-called Demon Lord. Luka pushed him over and entered the office. Then the smell of rotting flesh hit us. There was the zombified agent, signing and stamping documents. What the hell? SOMEONE! GRAB THESE INTRUDERS! He shouted, but the zombies didnt move. Luka grabbed him and mmed him to the floor. If youre going to give a zombie an order, you have to know how! Yureena walked over to the agent and whispered into his ear. I am the holy Yureena Limnia. Please endure a little longer. I will soon set you free. I could see the agent still signing and stamping papers...but a drop fell and spread on a paper he was signing. Almost like a tear. We bound and knocked out the secretary and brought the zombie agent to the capital. We also killed all the zombies in the home. I gave zombie over to Cruz when we got to the capital. Al, thanks so much. Leave him to me! And thanks for this! She said, handing over the wolf mask. Im off to the Ministry of Justice! Moofy! Come along! Moo moo! Cruz jumped on Moofy while I put the box and agent on with magic, and Yureena and Luka left with her. The Ministry of Justice and Commerce...well almost all the Ministries would be in an uproar about what had happened. If I could help, I would. In Cruz pce was a maid petting Femm. Femm, its been a while! Wuff! Without you, Id have a lot harder of a time! Wuff! Wuff! Femm said with a wag of its tail. Chapter 347 – Checking Around Elkay

Chapter 347 C Checking Around Elkay

I petted Femm as Shiggy flew down and petted Femm too. The maid did as well. Femm was cute, after all. We left the pce to the maid and went back to Mulg. Then we went to the death temple, got Chel, and went to Elkay. Of course, Femm and Shiggy were with me too. Wee back, old man! Wee! Tom and Kay were there to greet us. Im back. ryaa ryaa Shiggy was happy to be back too. A big doggie! Kay was really happy to meet Femm. Wow, can I touch your dog? Sure. Yay! Tom and Kay were so happy they grabbed and hugged Femm. Femm just stood there and took it. Femms tail wagged slowly. Then Chel looked over at the kids, a bit lonely, PigGi It said, and shook. Kay, looked over, interested, Whats that? Its Chelnobok, a slime. Can I touch it? Sure. So she touched Chel. Wow, its jiggling. Whoaaa The kids looked impressed at Chel too. PigGgi PIggi And Chel also looked happy. On the other hand, Timi was petting Shiggy happily. I guess Timi had yed with the kids already too. So Leah, Leo, Steff, and Tom were at the house, as well as with Vi-Vi. Master! Wee back! Im back. Leah came up to me a bit cautiously. Um!! What is it? My brother...what will happen to him? We havent decided. I see... Leo looked at me seriously and said, Im prepared for it. Even being hypnotized... He had caused all the Jack Frosts in Cruz realm to form. There was no doubt about it. After that, at the Demon Lordsmand, he had helped him. Even though, I think it wouldnt be a serious punishment. The agent had been turned into a zombie, and that was much more serious. Leos crime was at the bottom of the stack right now. He was hypnotized, but you also had look at it from the victims side as well. It was hard to find the right punishment. He might even get away with a p on the wrist. Thats what I expected at least, but it might be that hes heavily punished. Well, well find out sooner orter. I dont think Cruz will give that much of a punishment. Im...happy to hear that. After that, we walked around Elkay proper. I put on my wolf mask as well. I was with Femm, Chel, Shiggy, and Steff. Shel was riding on Femms back. Femm, Chel, check if there are any zombies around. Understood. Okay. We had to be sure. Moofy had noticed there were zombies around there. So we searched every part of Elkay. Some thugs had attacked us here before, so we had to be sure. I can smell dead bodies! Lets see. We ran to where Chel was pointing. There was a man in ck in front of a house. It was a huge, old house. There were high walls around it. Zombie found! You could kill the smell, but not the sense that they were around. Chel. Are there zombies inside. Smell them. Chel answered, so I grabbed the guy in cks arm and lifted him. He struggled, but I didnt care.I just dodged his punches. I went into the house with him over my head. There were tons of zombies. Mostly zombie beasts. So you were using THESE to attack people on the streets. Steff said, and she was right. There was a small path connecting the house to the outside. This is where they left and attacked people, mostly adventurers. Chel, go ahead. Sure. Chel shook. The spirit left the zombies and they all fell to the ground. Chel had quite the power over the undead. Thanks Chel. PIGgi I alsoid the motionless man in ck on the ground. They need a proper funeral. After that, we walked around some more and returned to Toms ce. Cruz, Luka, Yureena, and Moofy hade to join us. So, what happened? Theyre trying to find a new agent to send out here. And they will send soldiers out here as well! The agent would take some time, but currently 20 soldiers were on their way. That would take care of the safety problem. Leah looked to me and asked. About my brother... Its not going to be bad. Luka said with a smile. If thew would be applied rigidly, 90 percent of the Elkay poption would be punished. And not a light one. Because of the taxes paid directly to the so-called Demon Lord, they all hadmitted treason by basically bing their own territory. You could be executed for treason. Even so, with the agent zombified, they hadnt had the protection of the kingdom either. The kingdom didnt know about the situation, so there would be no recourse. Good to hear, brother. Thank you... Leah and Leo looked relieved. Chapter 348 – Peaceful Elkay at Last

Chapter 348 C Peaceful Elkay at Last

Luka looked over at the happy brother and sister and said, Its going to be a while until the agent shows up. We should stick around at let the thugs know that they cant mess around. I think youre right. It was just as Luka and Yureena said. Should we tell the crown about the transport circles? Steff asked. Nah...dont think so. Why not, master? Because we cant let anyone know Vi-Vi can make such a difficult thing so easily. You almost forget she could make such circles, because its such a radical power. Plus, the royal magical magicians could make them themselves. However, that itself took several magicians a few weeks. And then all other work stopped, this is why they never made a portal in Elkay. Are you saying that they might kidnap me? MOO! Vi-Vi said a bit tly, while Moofy seemed quite enraged at the thought. Theyd probably try to use you for themselves. All the nobles would try to grab her because of ambition. It would throw the government into chaos. I see. I guess we shouldnt tell them. I guess not. Steff seemed to understand now. So I said to the siblings, Maybe you should head over to the guild, Leo. You think so? The guild master thinks youre dead. Itll relieve him. No...not now. No matter what the punishment, I should be punished first. He wasnt ready to be an adventurer again until then. So that was what he was worried about. With Elkay being leaderless now, itll be chaotic. They need adventurers as the weaker ones will have their hands full. Cruz said with a smile. Yeah, I agree as one of the leaders of the guild myself. If you want to work off a punishment, then just work for the people of Elkay for a while. Luka and Yureena said with smiles. I see. Then Ill pay some of my crimes back by helping Elkay. Do you want to join him as an adventurer, Leah? Cruz asked. B...but I wasboring to pay my crimes off... You were here to fight that Demon Lord, so I think the debts paid. PiGGI paid. See, even Chel says so. You want to be with your brother, right? ...I do. Since Cruz gave her the punishment as marquis, she could easily remove it too. Leo! Do you two wanna live here? Can we? Sure! We have no customers anyway. So Leo and Leah decided to stay at Toms ce. Also, I paid to rent two rooms at Toms. It was the room with the magic circle and the room I used when I arrived at Elkay. After that, Leah, Leo, and Luka and I got ready to go to the guild. Then Timi jumped forward and said, Alra! Let me look around Elkay with you! ryaa ryaa! Well, there is evidence that monsters might attack now from the outside, so sure. So we all left. I put on my wolf mask, and we all headed to the middle of the town. Femm and Chel were with us. GAOOOOOOOOOOW! Femm howled, not too loud, and while the vigers watched, Timi changed form. If she had done so on the ground, it would have destroyed the buildings. So she levitated up and changed. Everyone could see her massive dragon form throughout the town. Eeeeeek! The vigers squealed in fear. The dragon and wolf watch for evil! Those who look to cause evil, remember this sight! If any other attempts to assume the title of Demon Lord, he shall DIE! ryaaa ryaa! I jumped on Femm with Chel still riding while Timi flew above. How was that? Pretty good Alra. Elkay had no leader watching over it. It would take a while to recreate order, so I had to threaten everyone. And I could do it again, if necessary. Chel, do you see any zombies? Over there. Chel could sense them and then we dealt with them. Are we done? Yes. Seems we had repaired most of the damage that the so-called Demon Lord had caused in Elkay. Timi then said down to us. A lot to be done, but I think were done for the day. Yeah. ryaa ryaa Shiggy said. She then pped her wings on my shoulder. We went back to Toms and Kay greeted us. Wee back, old man! Im back. Did you eat something? Not yet! Okay, time to buy something then. Yaaay! B...but thats too much... Kay was happy, but Tom was a bit reluctant. Dont worry about it. Master! Ill go with you! So Tom, Kay, Steff and Vi-Vi went with me to buy food. Tom and Kay were very happy, so I guess I was too. Chapter 349 – Strolling through Elkay

Chapter 349 C Strolling through Elkay

Elkay was the town below the old Demon Lords castle. There were many devils living there, much more than other towns. Because it was far from the capital, prices were quite high. I was walking through Elkay with Vi-Vi, Steff, Femm, Tom, and Kay. Of course, Shiggy was with me in my pouch as well. Kay was happily riding on top of Femm. Femm, theres a weird looking statue over there. Wuff Kay was the small daughter of two deceased devils. Since she and her brother Tom were still kids, they were running their parents house as an inn. Femm, lets go see the statue! Wuff Wuff! Femm did love children. With Kay riding, Femm looked happy. Kay, dont leave us...were going to buy food. Tom said, chiding Kay. He was a pretty serious kid sometimes. Maybe about the age of 10. Sorry, bwother. Wuff. Kay looked a bit sad, so I reached up and patted her head. No, we have plenty of time, lets go see the statue. Really? Sure. Yay! She looked happy again. However, Tom looked a bit flummoxed. It really isnt a bother to you? We still dont know this area well. Best to look around. Yeah, you dont need to worry about getting stuff done right away. Vi-Vi said, sounding suddenly like a bigger sister to them. Plus, I kind of wanted to see what the statue was. It wasnt just seeing the statue that was my goal, though. I wanted everyone to see Tom, Kay, and Femm with me together. If everyone sees that were walking around the town, the town thugs arent going to try anything. Hmmmm...even with one day passing, the town seems a lot more peaceful now. You think? Vi-Vi said with a doubtful look. It was only a day since I got rid of the so-called Demon Lord. Seems the fellow kept the town in a constant state of fear. And the old agent in charge of the town was changed into a zombie by him. It would take a few weeks until a new agent from the capital got here. We cant rx one bit...there are a lot of thugs left here! Youre right, Vi-Vi. Weve only had a talk with Damian, after all. Damian was the leader of the Negly Gang from the capital here in Elkay. He had tried to obtain spirit crystals and other illegal things at the request of the so-called Demon Lord. I cant trust him, but I was at least able to shut him down for a while. Ah, look! The statue! Kay said to me, while pointing happily. Ah...wha? What is that? See! Weird, right? A strange statue C tall as a man. It was made of metal, but not a statue of man or beast, but something like a rippled triangr pyramid. If I had to guess...Id say it was a pine cone or something... Is that devil art? If so, you people have some strange aesthetics... No, I dont know what that is either. I think its COOL! Vi-Vi looked confused, but Kay still was happy about the statue. I have no idea what it is either. Seems like Tom was confused as well. From there, we went on to buy food. We walked through the various paths to get to the market. As we turned the corner, I bumped straight into Damian. Ah! Damian saw it was me and turned pale. Tom looked scared and hid behind me. Kay just looked confused, sitting on top of Femm. Well, Damian, what a surprise? How are you? Heh, heh...uh...good, I guess. Youre not up to anything bad, are you? N...never... Well, not like I believe you anyway. N...no need to be mean... I could see he had broken out in a cold sweat. You heard the dragon say it yesterday, right? That we cleaned out the so-called Demon Lord? W...wait, that was you? Yeah, that dragons in my party. W...well...I guess that makes sense. So dont think that Demon whatever is going to protect you. If youmit a crime, you WILL be punished. And there was no reason to tell him about the new agent either... Um, well, Ive decided to leave...my life of crime... Can you quit the Neglys that easily? T...there are scarier things than the Neglys. I see. After talking a bit more, Damian left, still looking quite scared, but saying, I am sorry to have bothered you, Master Tom. He even apologized to Tom. Wow, Al, Damian even bowed to ME! You really ARE good at talking to people like him, old man. I watched Damian scurry away, and thought out loud, I wonder what the Neglys are doing in the capital... Cruz is watching them. I think its fine. Youre right Vi-Vi, but shes busy enough as it is. She had taken the zombified agent and the two demons to the Ministry of Justice. It would take quite a lot of time to exin everything, and she would have to do it, so its not like she had much time to watch the capital. So I decided to take a look myself. Im going to go check. Thus, I decided to go back to the capital and check on the Neglys. Chapter 350 – The Neglys…and…

Chapter 350 C The Neglys...and...

Femm wagged its tail and said, I think the Neglys arent bothering anyone. Is that so? Well, lets see then. So, youre fine with going? So we bought the food and went back to Toms house. Then I put on my wolf mask and we went to the capital C Femm, Shiggy, and me. We left Cruz pce and walked over to the Negly hideout. I put on a magical perception-hiding spell, just in case. It was already evening, but even so, I had left Cruz to check out Elkay only yesterday. She really didnt watch the ce for more than a day. With that short of a time, I wondered why I hade back in the first ce. Somemotion... Even so, much less than before. Femm and I said as we walked along. As we got closer to the slum where the Neglys had their hideout, themotion got louder. Wha? So thats why. What happened?! The Negly hideout was now a mountain of debris. The boss was in front of it, sitting next to a fire. A thug was sitting next to him with his arm on his shoulder. A bit away I saw someone I knew. Is...that Bill? And Dag too. Bill and Dag were the two that had fooled the Tolf kid. Bill was a chief of the Neglys. Dag was a dealer for the Neglys. Wow...they looked pretty run down. Bill and Dag were seated beside the mountain of rubbish, looking up at that evening sky. You bet! Femm said, with a knowing look. Wait, so what did Cruz do to them? She and I watched the ce after you left. Okay? I told them never to touch the Tolfs ever again. We tailed the thugsing out of the ce, but none of them went to the Tolfs. Well, I DID threaten them. So it seems that Cruz didnt need to take revenge in case they went after the Tolfs. But even so, why was the Negly hideout destroyed? But, these thugs we tailed WERE doing bad things. Oh? We let them off three times, but the fourth time, Cruz blew up. So what did they do? Femm said they had ripped people off, threatened people, and sold illegal things. On the other hand, Cruz forgot she had no authority, but still punished them herself. I think it was natural for her though, her values of justice. And she had lost her patience with them. It was them ripping kids off that pushed her over the line. Yeah, that would be like her. Same thing that Damian did to Tom in Elkay. That was the dealing that most Neglys did. So she beat up all the thugs and after they came back here, she went inside. Okay, I get that, but why is the house destroyed? Since she wore the same mask but her voice was different, the boss made fun of her. Oh. Cruz did have a cute voice. Compared to my old man voice, she sounded much sweeter. He might of thought some kid was trying to mess with him. He told her they werent going to stop crime and to get the hell out, and so on... So thats why the house is like this? Pretty much. Hm. I thought about it seriously. Femm looked at me curiously, Was it a little too much? No...I guess not. Did you get rid of all evidence? Of course. Someone COULD say that the house was broken down when other criminals were looking for the safe. Okay. I thought it over, and released my perception-hiding magic. The Negly boss jumped when he looked over after sensing me. And Femm was beside me. Eeeek! No...no more! No more! W....what is it, boss? The WOLF! THE WOLF! He pointed at us, finger...well...whole body shaking. I had already recast the perception and shape hiding magic again. Nothing there, boss. The thugs said after looking in my direction. N, no! I saw them! The wolf! Theres no one there! C...cant you see! Ah...the wolf...was grinning at me! I thought no one could see me, but the boss clearly was scared. He turned to them, and they all could see his terrified face. Boss...what is it? Hes gone senile. To see the devil of the Neglys be reduced to this. We gotta decide on a new boss. I guess Bills our best bet for that...for now. Bill was just looking at the sky, sayingSuch a beautiful sky. And I guess that now he was the candidate for the new boss. We gotta call Damian from Elkay... Maybe Damians the strongest boss we can choose? Seems like they respected him a lot too. But if we call him, the fastest we can have a new boss is next-next month. I guess we gotta stay quiet till then. So I guess thered be no trouble for a while. Still, if something bad happened, I would have to threaten whomever was in charge. Well, I guess I can rx now... Told you! And so we both returned to Cruz pce. Chapter 351 – Tom’s House

Chapter 351 C Toms House

After that, Femm and I went back to Elkay, back to Toms house. Wee back, old man! How have you been, Kay? Good! She was always happy. Master! Wee back. How were the Neglys? Um, fine, I guess... Well, thats good to hear. Lately, Steff had decided to stay at Toms house. That was in addition to Leo and Leah staying there. I guess adventurers were back in business in Elkay. Leah and Leo were both B Rank adventurers, after all. Seems that Vi-Vi would stop by Toms whenever she had time as well. All,e over here. Hm? What is it, Vi-Vi? About the defense circle you drew for the transport circle... Did I leave something out? No, just... I had drawn a defense circle for the transport circle. It was the same that I had done in Mulg and in the Death Vige as well. Its a little TOO narrow for a ce like Toms house. Or...you could say its a little TOO close to where people are living. Yeah, I guess so. It was near the size of the one I had made in Cruz pce, but it was a bit too big for Toms house. If I cast other circles to make this living ce stronger, it kind of affects this transport circle room...think we can do something about that? So Vi-Vi got permission from Tom and cast the same anti-shock, anti-fire, etc., circles that she had done with my house in Mulg. Once she was done, she had made the ce as solid as any top-rate lodge in the capital. I watched her go through the process as well, while my student Steff watched along. Hmmm...I see. But it seems there was a problem if she cast the exact same circles as those on my home in Mulg. With Cruz and your ce, the circles for the structure and the transport circles are far away. I didnt notice...Ill fix it. Um, master...I have no idea whats going on... Heh heh, Steff, its just basic logical reasoning. Nothing hard. Vi-Vi said, as she exined the circles distance and applications to her. Steff listened seriously as Vi-Vi happily babbled along about the circles. I was beside them, fixing the defense circle by making it smaller. Shiggy was watching closely. Al, youre done! Yeah, take care of the rest. Leave it to me. Steff can watch, too. Thank you both for teaching me! And so Vi-Vi began to inscribe her own magic. Vi-Vi, are you getting even better at this? Maybe? That ice attack circle you used on that so-called Demon Lord was something. Heh heh, I guess? Maybe not that great though. She blushed. You made it so that it could change elements though, right? Yeah, it could utilize any elemental attack. You just have to adjust the elemental ss. Vi-Vi was also bing a better fighter. During all this, Tom and Kay were ying, Femms such a cute doggie! Wuff! Kay hugged onto Femm. So soft...and smewws good. Well, Femm took a bath every day, so of course. Listening to their conversation I said to myself, I havent had a bath for like...three days... That was no good...and no good for my knee. I had to get to the hot springs soon. Thinking that, Vi-Vi had just finished with the magic circle. Tom, the circles are done. Thanks, Miss Vi-Vi. What kind of circles though? Well... So she exined them all to him. Wow! Miss Vi-Vi, thats really something! Right?! Tom was happy, with Kay happy right beside him. And after a bit, Leah and Leo came back to the lodge. Were back! Wee, how was today? Well, we killed some monsters with no problems. They had defeated some monsters that were getting too close to where the newbie adventurers were collecting herbs. Leah and Leo had apanied the newbie party to make sure they were safe. They were pretty strong for newbies too. She said happily. I knew the new adventurers would grow well with someone like these two looking over them. With Leo and Leahs help, the adventurer guild would be fine here C but it would take a while to recover to what it was before. If you need any help, just ask. Thank you. Vi-Vi stood up. Okay, so, back to Mulg? Yeah. So with Leo and Leah and Steff, Toms house would be safe. We had cast magic circles just in case as well. And they could run away to Mulg if they had to. You gowing home old man? Be back tomorrow. Okay, Iww be here! So the two kids saw us off, and we left for Mulg. Chapter 352 – Into the Hot Springs

Chapter 352 C Into the Hot Springs

Moofy came running up to us as soon as Vi-Vi, Femm, and I returned home C Chel was on her back. She had waited patiently beside the magic transport circle, it seems. Moo moo! PiGGi Were back. You were waiting for us? Moffy nuzzled into both Vi-Vi and I. Chel jumped down off of Moofy and onto my shoulder. ryaaa On the other hand, Shiggy jumped from my pouch and onto Moofy. I guess they wanted to change ces. There were also four wolves that had has there, waiting for us to return. Wuff Wufwuf Femm and them sniffed each other, barking and so on. I petted Chel with one hand and Moffy with the other. So how was today, you two? Moo moo! Normaaaal! They said happily. I guess everything was normal for them today. Seems that Moofy had gone to the death temples town. She had to cover for Leah, since she was gone. Moofy probably did a lot more work then Leah did, anyway. Al! We name vige! Oh, so, what is it? I had forgotten that the vige had no name... Chelnovige. Oh? From Chelnobok? Seems so. Its a good name. PigGi PiggI Chel said, with a jiggly shake. Even so, it was a secret to all of the followers that Chel was the Death Lord, but they named the ce after him anyway. I guess the priest had convinced all of the followers that Chel was very special. After talking to Chel, Vi-Vi said, Arent you all cold? Lets get in the house! Yeah, no need to catch a cold. The weather was nice, but it was still winter. The sun was down and the wind was blowing. The stars, however, shown vividly in the dark sky. ryaa? Seems that Shiggy and the other magical animals were perfectly fine with the cold. I thought it was a nice cold feeling, but I could feel my body taking in the frigid air. So we went back to the house. Wee back old man! Mister Al, wee back. Would you like a bath or dinner? Millet and Collette said, as they greeted us. Either would be great. Femm and Moofy both wanted to get into the bath...you could see they were waiting patiently. Their tails were slowly wagging as well. What about Cruz and the others? They havente back. I see...well Ill wait for Cruz toe back before eating dinner. Okay, take a bath then. So I asked Vi-Vi, Are you going to get in first? Hm? Ill wait until my sister arrives. I see. So I went to get in the bath. ryyaa ryaa Moo moo Wuff wuff PiggIII The beasts all followed me in, so I took off my clothes, got washed off, with all the beasts sitting there with me. They were probably wanting me to wash them off too. Take your turns. Wuff So first I washed Femm. Tom and Kay said you smelled good. Of course. Im no ordinary wolf. I guess Femm was prideful about that. That reminds me, are the other wolves bad with taking baths? Not bad with them, just dont care for them. I see. Since its winter, they dont take them. I guess not. Once your wet and cold, youll freeze. Its hard to be a wild animal. After I washed Femms soap off, I smelled Femm myself. It was a pretty good smell. Yeah, youre fine. Thanks. Then I washed Moofy and Chel. I especially washed off her hooves and legs. Chel was small and jiggly, but fast to wash. Shiggy could wash herself, but there were ces she still missed, like her back. So I washed that. They all obediently waited until I told them, Okay, everyone in the bath! Wuff Moo! PiGGi ryaa So they all happily got in. I watched them, and then washed myself off. When I got in, I noticed Femm happily swimming in the bath. You like swimming, huh? Feels good. Moo moo PiggGGi ryaaa Shiggy was good at it too. Thanks for your hard work today, Moofy. Wee What did you do at Chelnovige? Carry things. I bet she carried a lot. It seems she also helped hunters with hunting out game. I think Chelvge okay now. Chelnobok said. You think it can operate on its own from now on? Pretty much Thats why the vige finally took a name, I guess. Good to hear, but if you need anything... Thanks... When spring begins, so does the farming. Also, many believers will arrive from around the globe. Its going to be quite a season. I guess theres not much left to do this winter, then. But I was happy to hear all the good news. Chapter 353 – Shiggy’s Spoon and the New Agent

Chapter 353 C Shiggys Spoon and the New Agent

After we all got out of the bath, Cruz hade home. Luka, Yureena, Timi, and Vallimie as well. Seeing me fresh out of the bath, Cruz puffed out her cheeks. Ah, Al! You took a bath ALONE! Not alone...I had all these four. Hmph! I wanted to get in too! Yeah, well maybe next time. After hearing Cruz joke, everyone gathered for dinner. It was stew with a lot of milk and cheese, bread, and meat. Great food like always, Millet. No need to tter me... She said, but her ears did turn red, I guess she was embarrassed. ryaa! Shiggy said, drinking down the stew. She actually had started to use a spoon to eat stew instead of just sucking it down. She would grab it with both ws and use it...it was cute. Shiggy also had a little bib that Vi-Vi had sewn her. Hey, youre dripping it. I said, while wiping her off with the bib. ryaa She really loved that spoon, but eating with it was a pain. I would try to feed her myself, but Shiggy would just shoutryaaaand avoid me. She wanted to eat it herself. I wonder if shes the size yet to use a spoon like that. She does look cute though. Timi said, while watching Shiggy eat. Cruz looked at Shiggy and said, No, because Shiggy eats so much, the spoon is small? With how short the sentence was, it was hard to understand. Maybe we made the spoon a little too small inparison to her body? And if thats so, than its hard for her to use? I guess she was trying to say. Yeah, it is quite small for her hands. Shiggy was about the size of a small dog, but the spoon was a small teaspoon, the end the size of a fingernail. With a tiny spoon like that, shell never be done eating. Kind of sad. Vi-Vi said, with Luka agreeing. And Shiggy ate a lot for her size. About the same amount as Collette, though she was half her size. I wonder where Shiggy puts it all away? Luka said, while reaching over and patting Shiggys head. Shiggy just kept chomping at the spoon. I guess its obvious that dragons eat a lot. Yureena said, nodding. Timi, whats a spoon she can eat easier with? Hmm...hard question. When a dragon is small, what do they use to eat? Well, when theyre younger, they usually dont use a spoon. I see. I guess she started using one because she was raised by a human. So I thought, I guess one with a long stem is good. She needs space for her ws. However, the head of the spoon needs to be big. I guess well look for one at the capital next time. ryaaa Shiggy seemed happy about that. Then she ate the bread and meat. After dinner and I had finished cleaning up, we all gathered in the living room. We all wanted to be near the firece C it was winter. Dont let your fur get burned. Were fine. Moo I always worried about how close they were to the firece. They always seemed TOO close. Both animals had fire protection, so they would be okay. Still, it made you worry. So I sat down and asked Cruz and the others, How did the Elkay situation resolve? Well. They decided on a new agent. Cruz said with a smile while petting Chel. Then Luka petted Shiggy as well, ryaa ryaa Shiggy wasying back to the floor, so she was rubbing her belly while Shiggys arms and legs pped away. Seemed pleasant. Seems that the crown will pay more attention this time. I see. Makes sense after what happened. Yeah, the new agent is a royal, by the way. That is strange. Seems like this time the crown was sending their own representative to be the agent of Elkay. The kingdom might have felt responsible for the problem. Even so, the fact that your agent was changed to a zombie without knowing must have been a shock. Seems like the crowns had a lot to consider. How did they react? Vi-Vi had an obvious question. Even though they were the royals, it could have been a half-cousin or a third cousin or something the crown sent to Elkay. Maybe something like the grandson-cousin or someone far down the line with not a lot of responsibility. Its the eldest daughter of the king. My! That is quite someone. She was also one of the first in session. I just wondered what kind of character she was. Is she good at making decisions? Ive heard shes quite reasonable. The new agent was also a knight. So she could hide herself, looking like a knight, and act like she was someone low ranking. Even so, she had risen to the rank of vice chief of the knights. Thats some trust the royals put in her. Yeah, she must have some ability with the sword. I was thinking the same thing. Also, shes associated with the church, so shes popr with the people. Well, I guess theres no worry now. Quite a person chosen to watch over Elkay...I suspect it will be peaceful for as long as shes here. So I rxed a bit. Chapter 354 – A Look at Elkay

Chapter 354 C A Look at Elkay

I thought a little, and then said to Yureena, Could we ask Linmia Trading to ship goods out to Elkay? Well...its possible...but it takes time. Even though it was the great Linmia Trading, it would take time to ship things from Linmia. And that was in addition to lugging all the goods there. To get it there fast, it would cost a lot of money. What about if I get Moofy to help and carry the stuff there? Good idea! Cruz supported what i said with a smile, but Luka looked at me seriously, If youre going to carry it, Al, use your magic bag and the transport circles. I guess youre right. But if thats the case, no trader canplete with you. Hm, that is a problem. Vi-Vi was listening and said to me, seriously, With all the traders already in Elkay that had to pay that Demon Lord guy all those taxes...theyve already felt enough pain. I guess so. Youd have to be some rich and proud trader to refuse paying those taxes, so even if everyone was paying them, there was no way for any honest trader to get ahead. So what youre saying, Al, is that a lot of these traders are ck market? Just as Vi-Vi said, they all all overpriced and overvalued their goods. It was way too expensive even considering the costs of shipping. Its true theres way too little investment in Elkay. So if we dont make a mistake in finding a way to help, therell be no problem, but... ...the problem is finding the right way. Yureena finished off Lukas thought with a serious look. So I said, Maybe we can get Linmia to help after all? I can ask my father. I can help with the investment. Luka frowned at me, We know youre rich, Al, but its not good to just toss money around when people need work. No, no, no, Im not going to just toss it around. But if I use the magic bag and transfer circle, I can get things here for them to be sold. I guess youre right there. And making money isnt the goal, so it can be done quickly. I said this already, then youre going to destroy all the traders in town. I see. Then we have to let the profits be spread around. It was a difficult discussion. We can send in requests to Tolf as well. Yeah, I dont think its good for my dad to have a monopoly over the whole town. I think you should ask Tolf as well if youre going to do this. Even though Linmia might lose profits, Yureena said so. The next day, Yureena and I went to Linmia trading. Cruz went along as well, for some reason. I want to see what happens too! Youre going to be a good ruler after all with all this learning, Cruz. Eheh heh I also had the wolf mask on as well. Also, just like always Moofy and Femm were with us. We didnt really worry if we stood out in the capital this time either. We arrived at Linmia, and the chief of operations smiled widely at us. Mr. Wolf! Nice to have yourpany. Let me greet you, and of course, the marquis. I have to talk to dad...is he in? Ill call him for you, so please wait here. We sat in the waiting room. They brought us tea and candy...they were delicious cookies. Shiggy jumped out of her pouch. ryaa ryaa! Shiggy! Have some, okay? ryaa? Shiggy jumped on the table, looked around, and then saw a teaspoon. She tried to use it to eat a cookie, without much luck. ...ryaa You eat a cookie with your hands, Shiggy. I took a cookie in hand and ate it to show her. ryaa! And Shiggy did the same. I guess Shiggys really into using spoons now. Seems so. Even though shes seen me eat cookies countless times...and shes eaten them countless times with her own ws. I guess people forget things when theyre interested in other things. Femm, you and Moofy can eat too. Wuff Mooo Yureena gave the two a cookie to eat each. I just patted Shiggy on the head as she ate. Seems like theyve really given us a greeting. Well, you are the hero marquis, Cruz. Yeah, its because of you, Cruz. As we ate, Cruz looked confused. Its Al they should be greeting though. Not at all. No, Als way more of a deal than I am... Cruz thought it was strange. Well, dont worry yourself over it. Yureena said...a little embarrassed. I was going to ask why she was embarrassed, but, Well, well, if it isnt my future son! Thank you foring! Yureenas father had arrived. Sorry toe here when youre busy. What are you saying?! You are wee at any time! Thank you for helping with the spirit stones again... Yureena told her father all that had happened as a result. But I felt that I should thank him as well, Ah, Miss Moo is here too! Moo Moo It seems that Yureenas mother really loved the cow. She would quickly walk up and pet Moofy every time we came. You as well, Femm. Wuff Femm was pleased to be noticed as well. Yureenas mother seemed involved with the animals, so I went direct to the point. Actually, I have something to ask. And that is? Yureenas father said with a nod and a smile. Chapter 355 – Can’t Make Money in Elkay

Chapter 355 C Cant Make Money in Elkay

I expected that Yureenas parents were busy. So I decided to dispense with the smalltalk and go straight to business. Its rted to the logistics of supplying Elkay, the town under the castle of the former Demon Lord. Let us hear the details. So Yureena and I described the situation that Elkay was in. And after the talk was over, Yureenas father said, I see... He whispered to himself, and seemed to ponder. Father...is there a problem? Not in the way you think. Just trying to sum up what kind of business opportunity Elkay would provide... It had been months after we had killed off the real Demon Lord. Of course Yureenas father had already thought over the opportunity Elkay didnt or did provide. Are you implying that Elkay doesnt provide very much of a business opportunity. Exactly. Just as sharp as a future son of mine should be. And Linmia Trading wasnt a ce that just gave out charity. It was a ce of people with ambition. They all moved around because money was good, and not because ofpassion. Its a new city. I think therell be plenty of opportunity soon... You may think so, dear, but... Then the father began exining things slowly, There still is very little poption. Also theres no production. The ground there is too bare for crops. In addition, since the previous agent was just a tool, there was no safety. The adventurers guild had just started to revive. And until the new agent arrived...well, there wasnt structure. So obviously Yureenas father wasnt a big fan of investing there. I see. Then I guess I have to invest in themunity myself. Yourself? I know that you have money, son, but... It wasnt arge town, but it was still a town. One mans money wouldnt mean that much, at least he thought. And he was obviously right in his thinking. Even though its winter there, theres not enough fuel for fires. Theyll run out soon. I thought I should bring them some wood myself. Hm...I guess... Yureenas father said, with Cruz following, I can pay as a marquise as well, I just need the people. People? I think there IS a way to make a profit, right, Al? ...well, not for now, I think. There was the possibility of making a lot of money off battle treasure received after killing strong magical monsters. So strong adventurers should gather as well. Also, because the ground was so hard to farm, it meant that there was a lot of magical stones and crystals that could be mined. We could extract those by using Vi-Vis magical circles. It wasnt clear that we could find adventurers toe to Elkay. Elkay had a bad reputation, after all. There were so many taxes on quest payments and adventurers that refused to pay them were killed. Even though there was a lot of room for improvement, theres a lot of adventurers that would just blow the town off. As for the magic stones, if Vi-Vi produced a lot of them from the ground, then the alchemists get undercut. It probably wouldnt be a good idea for Linmia Trading to invest too much. What method are you thinking of? After hearing me start talking about profits, the father reacted. I exined how things might work using adventurers. Cruz added to my exnation, And since the ce is directly controlled by the crown, we also might find favor with them. ...I see. After that, we finished negotiations, and Linmia decided to send one clerk out to Elkay. He would bring Linmia goods out with him. I was very thankful. I have someone perfect for the job, so Ill get her on the move right away. So Linmia left and brought us a woman, a devil, with short, little horns. I am Millia. I am pleased to help the marquise with whatever she desires, and its my honor to work with you. Ah, Millia, nice seeing you again. Its been a while, miss. Just call me Yureena, like usual. H...however... Cruz and Al arent stranger, after all. I guess she had called her miss because she was in front of us. Alfred here will be Yureenas groom, after all! Is that so?! Well, congrattions. T...thanks. There was no way to say it was fake in front of the father...I was a little ufortable. But the father continued happily, Since Millia is a devil...shell fit in perfectly in Elkay. Im d to be of service and will do my best. Apparently, Millia was a friend of the child of one of Yureenas mothers friend. Her parents died from a sickness, so Millia was almost like an adopted child. Not really part of the family that would inherit and so on, but supported by them. I guess something more than a guardian would be appropriate. As she grew up, she started working at Linmia Trading. I can rx if Milliasing with us. Seems that Yureena really trusted this girl. Chapter 356 – Merchant Millia

Chapter 356 C Merchant Millia

Yureenas father smiled and continued, Millia is young but VERY talented. You can trust her. I dont think Im as talented as you say. Theres no one that could do a better job at Elkay, I think... I...dont know what to say... She was quite bashful about it. Yureenas mother stopped petting Moofy and took Millias hand. Millia, my dear. I know my husband says such about you, but will you be okay? Elkay does sound a bit dangerous... Ill be fine, dont worry about me. But...I worry about you... Then the mother looked over at me. Well, Alfred, I guess Ill have to entrust Millia to you. Leave her to me. Moofy, Femm, you watch over her, okay? Moo moo! Wuff. The two animals responded and then went over and sniffed Millia. Femms tail was straight up. I guess Femm wanted to show trustability. Millias very smart...but quite weak sometimes...I still worry... It seemed the mother really worried over the girl. Moo moo With the mother sounding so worried, now Moofy seemed worried as well. Moofy chomped down on Millias hand. Sorry...Moofy just does that sometimes... I apologized and pulled Moofy away. Its just that Moofy liked to chew on peoples hands. She could do it with me or Cruz, but it wasnt good with others. Moofy...you cant put the hands of people you just met in your mouth. Moo Seems as though Moofy understood. Millia then said to the mother, Id just like to say...my body is not that weak... You dont have to deny it...you sometimes feel ill after eating the same food that Yureena does... Yureena has a tough tummy. Cruz said. I thought the same. Not just that, dear. When you were attacked by that wild dog... It seems that both girls were attacked by a wild dog when they were young. Yureena knocked the crap out of it, but Millia was injured, even though she was older that Yureena. I think that just shows how extraordinary of a girl Yureena is. That takes me back. Millia was injured trying to protect me. No, you were the one that saved me Yureena. If you hadnt handled that dog, it would have eaten me. Yureena and Millia said, recalling the past. How old were you back then, Yureena? Uh...how old was I...I think about 10... No...I was 10 and Yureena was 5. Most 5 year olds wouldnt stand a chance against a wild dog. It just proves how strong of a girl Yureena is. After hearing all this, I thought it over. It seems that Millia had a normal physical condition, but because of Yureenas strength, Yureenas mother saw Millia as weak. Cruz, Alfred, please take good care of her then. She said again, and bowed to us. Understood, madam. Well take good care of her. I will too! Then Millia smiled at us. Okay then, Millia. Cruz said, shaking her hand, I...Ill do my best...Hero Cruz... Millia was locked in nervousness, but still shook Cruz hand. After that, we all headed out to Elkay. Before we left, we exined the circles to Millia. Wow...I never knew about these... Well, they ARE a secret. I think they should remain that way. If anyone knew, theyd fight over them because of all the profitability. Millia said seriously. She understood the usefulness of the circles. Before we left Linmia, Cruz said, Al, since were here anyway, you want to buy something? Yeah, I think thats a good idea. I said that to Cruz, and then Millia interjected, Wait a second. What kind of goods do you need? Theres not enough wood for the fire and they need food there as well. I see. If thats so, since you have the magic circles set, let me go there ahead and see what exactly is needed. Good idea, Millias got sharp eyes, so she can make sure that we dont bring anything unnecessarily. Im not that good at judging, however... Millia was humble, but it seemed that Yureena really trusted her. All the rest of us were new to trading and selling. I was sure though that shed do the best job out of all of us. Sounds like a n. What do you think Cruz? I agree! She was also investing in the town, and she had agreed. So we decided to go to Elkay first. First lets go to my ce. Sure. So we went to Cruz, and then made our way to Toms in Elkay. Chapter 357 – Cruz Goes to Elkay

Chapter 357 C Cruz Goes to Elkay

Okay, lets go to Elkay! Cruz said, proudly. Yureena looked a little flustered and said, Wait a second. Cruz, you shouldnt be seen in the old Demon Lords realm! Whaaa? Cruz puffed out her cheeks in dissatisfaction. Cruz DID however have a huge presence in politics in the kingdom. If she entered the old Demon Lords realm, everyone would be up in arms. But, I dont think its that bad of a thing, the way the town is going. Youre probably right... Well, if you say that, Al... Telling Cruz not to enter the old Demon Lords ce might be true in peacetime. She shouldnt get people upset if theyre all rxed and then she suddenly shows up. However, now some demon who called himself the Demon Lord showed up and took over the castle and the town. He turned the kingdoms agent into a zombie. If the hero returns to Elkay now, the instability would probably go away. It might be better to have the hero there. Things will settle down a lot faster. True. I think it probably will. Mooo Yureena agreed, after thinking a bit. Next to her Moofy looked a bit confused by the situation. But if the hero shows up like this, theyre going to wonder how Cruz got here without anyone seeing her arrive... Yureena was worried about people finding out that the transport rings were connecting Elkay and the capital. There was no way to hide them, but we definitely should hide the fact that we could quickly produce them. It wouldnt be a huge problem if they were revealed, but people would be begging us to use them. Then theyd be begging us to make them for us as well. And I dont think anyone but the military should be able to use transports like that easily. After thinking a bit, I had a n, Maybe she can just wear the lion mask? Sounds good! I think thats fine. So thats what we decided on, and we went to Elkay. Old man, wee back. Did you eat, Kay? I did! Steff made some for me. Good to hear. Sounds like Steff knows how to cook as well. Kay looked behind me. Hey, theres some coowl person here... Yeah, Im cool Cruz. Wow, the wion can speak. Kay was so happy, she ran up and grabbed Cruz. Cruz picked up Kay and swung her around. Then Steff came up to us, Master, youre back. Steff, thanks for feeding them. Did you take some time to practice your magic? She was my student in learning advanced magic. But it was bad that I had little time to train her. O...of course. Ive made more of an effort than when I was in Mulg. If you need help in learning magic circles, you can ask any time. Thank you Vi-Vi. After that, Kay jumped down and hugged Vi-Vi as well. Seems she really liked Vi-Vi too. What is it Kay? I wanna study magic with both of you. Kay asked, but Steff bowed her head and frowned, Sorry, but I myself am training in magic...I dont think Im good enough to teach others magic. No, no need to be sorry about it, youre a great magician. You can teach her the basics, right? If you say so, master. Steff was actually pretty decent as an adventuring magician. She had also achieved quite a bit at the magicians guild. So I told Steff, Well, since the area is a bit safer, you can probably work as an adventurer, too. I was thinking about that, but... If it gets really bad, then you can always run away through the transport circle. Tom was cleaning the inn, and said, If Steff wants to do it, she can go ahead and do it. Kay and I can take care of ourselves. Steff thought a bit, But, its still unsafe. Damian...well...now hes quiet, but... No need to worry, just do what you desire. Understood. Master, please dont bother over me. As we talked it over, Kay looked interested in Millia. She was hanging on to Vi-Vi, and asked, Who is that girl? Im Millia, nice to meet you. Millia then bowed politely. Millias almost like my big sister. Really? Like a big sisters big sister... Seems that Kay okay with it after hearing Yureenas exnation. She left Vi-Vi, went over, and took Millias hand. Im Tom, and I own this ce, and thats my sister Kay. Heh heh, nice to meet you. Quite a ce to be managed by a young boy! Millia said, and Tom was a bit embarrassed. And Im Steff, Master Als student. Steff greeted Millia, while Tom shuffled over and asked, Whos the cool lion mask? Tom was probably talking about Cruz. Im cool Cruz! Nice to meet you, cool Cruz. So Tom grabbed and shook Cruz hand. Kay looked on happily and then ran up and hugged her. Chapter 358 – Going out to the Market

Chapter 358 C Going out to the Market

So all the introductions were over between Tom, Kay, Steff, Millia, and Cruz. I rented a room for Millia for the night from Tom. Its great that I have so many customers now! Yeah, brother! Yup, now we can afford some candy, at least! Yay! I was always putting candy into the food supplies that I bought Kay and Tom. Tom, however, up to now never had the money to buy it himself. So its hard for you to buy candy will all our rents being paid? I can buy them, but you gotta buy meat and veggies first right? He was right. Pretty mature for a 10 year old. Youre right, kid. Even though Kays five, she looks too small. Hmph! I scruffed Kays hair as I said it. Its true the girl was smaller than Collette, even though they were the same age. But that might just be individual differences as well. I dont think you have to worry too much. But we hadnt been able to fill your stomachs until a bit ago. I understood Toms concerns. You have to focus on food first. Never know whats going to happen either, so you gotta save. He really was mature for a kid. Youre right, but if you even need something to eat and are hungry...juste to Mulg. Cruz now scruffed Toms hair. ...with her lion mask still on. But both of them HAD called her cool. Just jump in the room and itll happen, you told us, but I still dont understand it. They didnt get it, so the magic room might seem a bit scary. I know how that feels. It would be impossible to exin it to you anyhow. Vi-Vi said, nodding her head. But just trust it works. It always does. Okay. While we were discussing it, Millia and Yureena were looking around the house. How much did you buy this firewood for? Al bought it for me. Its expensive, so I cant afford it. So how much is it at the market then? Well, this much is... When they heard the amount from Tom, Millia was shocked. It must have been way more than she expected. I have to take a look at this town! And with that, she was ready to go. On the other hand, Cruz and Kay were ying with Moofy, What? Youre going shopping? I wanna go too! Dont be rude, Kay! Okay, brother. Tom scolded Kay and she politely nodded. Well, we probably should all go together. Yay! Thanks old man! Its not a bother? Not at all. So we prepared and left. It was Kay, Tom, Steff, Cruz, Yureena, Millia, Vi-Vi, and I. With Moofy and Femm, of course. Shiggys been pretty quiettely. Shes been sleeping in my pouch. Well, sleep is important to a baby. They say sleeping kids grow big. If thats the case, than Shiggys going to be huge. With Millia in front, we meandered around the stores and stalls of the town. She was seriously taking down all the prices she saw while we just watched and let her do her thing. Kay, Tom, let me buy you some candy. Would you? Yay! Thanks old man! Just like good old Al! Cruz didnt buy any, but was still excited about me buying it. So I went ahead and bought her some too. The candy was kind of like bread. Like a very sugared bread with a little bit of honey on top. Here, Tom and Kay. Thank you! Thanks, old man. Here Cruz. Thank you! After I gave her the sweets, she slipped it under her mask without even taking it off. Then I gave Vi-Vi and Steff some as well. So this is Elkay sweets? Guess I should at least try it. This would taste a little better if they used more eggs. Vi-Vi whispered as sheined. Hearing that, the store owner said, I think so too, but the eggs are so expensive, its impossible! Hearing that, Millia ran over from another stall and asked, Hey, how much are eggs?! Uh...oh...well. Hearing the price, Millias brow furrowed. That is TOO high. Right? The store owner nodded seriously. Try one, Millia? Ah, sure. Thank you. She took a bite and said, Its quite good. Really? Well thank you.the store owner said. Using a small amount of egg to make this, with this taste is impressive! You really know your stuff, girl! The store owner said, happy. ryaaa Shiggy had woken up. She looked around. Have one, Shiggy. ryaa So the beasts all had some as well. While we walked along and ate, Millia said, softly, Looks like there ARE decent tradesmen in Elkay, after all. Seems she was ready to get things done. Chapter 359 - Figuring out the Logistics

Chapter 359 C Figuring out the Logistics

So Tom, Kay, Shiggy, Femm, and Moofy ate the sweets happily. We ate as we walked, kind of bad manners, but oh well Cruz had finished it quickly and was looking around. The people at the stores were a bit taken aback by the lion mask. Its good, huh, guys? Moo Moo Wuff Kay asked them as she was riding on Moofy. Femm sniffed Tom and Kay again. While this was going on, Millia continued looking through all the stores. She was talking with a store that sold firewood. I may have only gotten here today, but it looks like you have quite a bit of wood stacked uppared to others. Whaa? A thug-looking storeman red at Millia. She didnt seemed fazed, though, Where did you get all this wood from? I aint gotta tell you nothing! He grabbed Millias arm and, as soon as he went to pull her closer, she said, Dont be rude, just tell me. I stepped towards them, next to Millia. Eeep! The man quickly let go of her and stepped back. Whoa, um, this guy, is he with you?! Yes. Do you have a problem with that? Nononot at all. He must have heard what I had done to Damian. Or maybe the announcement that any thug that bothers with people would be dealt with. The guy suddenly looked weak and said, WwellI had no ideaI apologize to anyone thats with this guy. You should be more careful. There are violent people out there. Yyes, Ill take it to heart. I said, just in case, And Id also like you to tell Millia where you got that wood from. Yyes sir! Ill tell you anything. So the guy talked. He got them from a wholesaler who had paid a lot of taxes to the so-called Demon Lord for the license to provide wood to everyone. So that guy got special treatment and was allowed to monopolize the wood supplying to everyone in Elkay. Ah, so thats why its so expensive. Yes, thats right. Now please, forgive my previous behavior. He was bowing and I could see cold sweat on his forehead. Seems that not only was that guy monopolizing, but he was contracted by the so-called Demon Lord himself. Thats why the fellow didnt want to say anything, but threatened Millia. Cruz finally came back from wandering around and said, Wheres that wood provider youre walking about? The guy looked very puzzled at Cruz. He wondered who she was. She had a lion mask on after all. He then looked over at me to see how I was reacting and after guessing she was with me, spoke openly, He brings the wood in periodically, so he may not be in Elkay When will hee next? He told me tomorrow. I see. So I asked him what system the guy used C I wanted to know the details. Seems that all the stores but ones endorsed by the so-called Demon Lord were paying outrageous amounts. Were any of them killed or so on? You may not believe me, but not really. The store owner told us that no one tried to get resources outside the town because of the threat of magic monsters attacking them. Anyone who went out to do so would be attacked immediately. Even so, no one was really badly injured by the attacks. Cruz then asked, You have no guards? Many of the richer shops that tried bringing in resources had them. Many of them ended up dead. None of the store owners ended up losing all of them, though. The n was clear. That Demon Lord faker was using zombies to attack anyone that broke the rules. This was to frighten everyone inside and outside Elkay. Yureena said, nodding. Any trader that came in here would tell about the fearful condition. Theyd then spread the rumors in their own towns, telling their story. If it was just one time, it would just sound like bad luck. But repeated over and over, it made Elkay sound like a cursed ce. At least that was easy to determine. With all the guards of other traders getting killed, the Demon Lord was able to get his own appointed traders? Yes. Becausewellthen we could only get wholesale from the appointed dealers. I understood. And this way the thugs got power over the whole system. Why is it so expensive though? The wholesale to us is expensive. How much are you talking? Here. Apparently from his books, firewood was three times the price of the capital. Seeing this, Yureena whispered into my ear, Wed make bank selling stuff here undercutting the others. Yeah. Wonder why my dad was so against selling here. Probably because of all the bad rumors? As chief of Linmia trading, he had to know about the rumors. The risks were high and the profit low, he thought. Maybe we should just go to your father and tell him the situation. That might be difficult The biggest problem is that there were no guards to be found to carry the goods. The death rate for them was very high. Just the same as a quest with a chance of death. In order for them to ept, youd need massive amounts of hazard pay. If you tried to defray the cost in the cost of merchandise, it pumps the price very high. But my father does know about the transport circles. We could carry those ourselves. We need to keep them a secret. Ok, sounds like a n. Yureena understood what we were about to do. Chapter 360 - The So-called Demon Lord’s Chosen Merchants

Chapter 360 C The So-called Demon Lords Chosen Merchants

As we were talking this over, Steff said, What are you talking about? We wanted Linmia Trading to help the town, but the price of supplying it would be very high. Hm? What do you mean? Theres no way Linmia Trading would allow anyone to freely know about those transport circles, so in that case, he could only leave it to someone he really trusted. In other words, Millia. I seenow I understand. Steff then nodded. So old man Linmia gave us the one person he trusted. And she really was the best to check out Elkay. Seems Linmia had thought out everything. It was quite a big deal for Linmia to loan someone like her to uswe really owe him. Dont worry about it. Yureena said with a smile. Even so, I would have to bring him something to show my appreciation. During our conversation, Millia was talking with the store owner. After that, she said, Thank you very much. I might set up my own shop in a bit, so it will be nice working around you from now. What? Is there a problem? I asked with a smile, and he put his hands up and shook them. N, no! No problem! However, there is the approved selleryou wont make much with his outrageous supply price. Dont worry. There are other routes to that. The guy had guardsso if he sees you selling, he might be upset. So you think that hes going to be upset about me? Its not the level of upset. People taking other routes to get supplies led to their shops being destroyed. And the travelling sellers got it even worse. Some of them were tied up and thrown in the river. Thats interesting. But youyou may not be afraid of him. I would just be carefulheh heh. He said, with a tinge of ttery. The guy probably thought we were scarier than whomever that wholesaler was. Youve already said that anyone taking the title of the Demon Lord would be crushed, so I think hell back off. That wholesaler probably has no idea that its happened. What you you think, seller?Vi-Vi asked. II dont know, butit would be weird if he hadnt heard already. He said with a faintugh. I was pretty sure that the wholesaler didnt have all the details, working out in the forest as he probably was. Why do you think hed know? Yyes, well, his boys always walk around getting information before he shows up. Keeps people in check while making sure to show his power. Then he sells after that. I guess those that seem against the wholesaler get the worst treatment of them all. Now I see why all the traders here seem so weak. Where is the guys base located at? No ideaI heard at the capital So I also asked about the guards the guy had. 10 rough looking thugs who would beat up anyone that resisted. Just ten? Well, theyre very strong. I see! Since this guy wasing tomorrow, Id have a word with him. About that sellerI Dont worry. We wont say a word about you. I said, looking seriously, while the seller nodded. No, you can tell him. What, really? Yeah, hes going to find out one way or another. If thats the case So we said our goodbyes and continued with our look around. As we were walking, Cruz said, If he does know what you did, Al, what do you think hell do? Probably freak out, jump on his knees and bow. Nah, hell probably attack Al. Steff and Vi-Vi had their own theories. Seems that Millia didnt seem too interested in the conversation, though, With a guy like that selling at illegally-pumped up prices, we cant lose against him. Even so, Millia, we shouldnt use force without reason. Heh heh, stop joking around Yureena. Youd kick his ass in a heartbeat. Youre probably right. Add to that Cruz and Alfred being here. But whats more important is finishing up looking at the logistics of this town. And so Millia continued. The others had seen us question the wood seller, so they all answered Millia with nervous, aloof answers. But we heard more about this wholesaler Chapter 361 - Finding a Spoon for Shiggy Chapter 361 C Finding a Spoon for Shiggy After checking through the market, it was evening. I left Tom, Kay, and Steff at Toms house, and left for the capital. I went with Vi-Vi: I wore the wolf mask, she wore the cow mask. Millia went with us to Linmia, to stock up for the town. Nice to see you wolf-maskand Master Viscount. Always the same greeting. Wevee to stock up for the town. Were prepared for that. Please, this way. This time we were brought to a negotiation room, not the usual Linmia fathers office. From there Millia and Cruz did most of the talking. Millia spoke about the resources needed, Cruz about the money. For me, I just let Cruz, Millia, and Yureena do all the work. So I stood up and walked over to the store floor. Vi-Vi, Moofy, and Femm walked out with me. You going to buy something? Yeah, Im looking for a spoon for Shiggy. ryaa Shiggy cried out from inside the pouch. Really? Then well look too. Sure. So we all looked for Shiggys spoon. But a spoon like the one Shiggy needs isnt in a regr set. Not really a lot of spoons that Shiggy can use. Yeah, she cant eat much with a small one. Hmph. As we were talking, we heard, Ah, the wolf, youre with Yureena. It was Yureenas mother. Since I was hiding that I was Alfred, she just called me the wolf. Wuff. Cute as always, Femm and Moofy. Since Femm had responded to being called the wolf, she rubbed Femms head. Then she also rubbed Moofy with the other. Yureena is in the negotiations room with Cruz and Millia. I thought you were good with negotiations, Mr. Wolf? No, no, no No need to be humble. No, its not humility. I think she tended to tter others quite a bit. And you came along as well, Vi-Vi. So the mother patted Vi-Vis head as well. Contrary to what I thought, Vi-Vi didnt resist it. If youre bored, why note over here? I have snacks. ryaa? Shiggy peeked out as soon as she heard snacks. Usually Shiggy tried to hide so that she wouldnt be noticed. With just her beak out, she kind of just looked like a lizard, Thank you so much, but actually Im looking for something. Hmmm? Shiggys been using a spoon recently, but shes just too big for a regr spoon. Is that so? Well then Yureenas mother thought a bit. Then she smiled at me. Well, for now, lets sit and think it over with something to eat. Wuff Moo moo ryaa The beasts seemed happy about that. Then Yureenas mother smiled at them. I need to know how big Shiggys body and ws are then. Okay, then well sit and spend a little time, I guess. So we went to a waiting room at the back of the store. Someone brought tea and snacks, and Yureenas mother said to the attendant, I need you to bring spoons of all sizes and shapes in here, please. Yes maam. Shiggy took a cookie in both hands and ate. ryaamm ryamm We have cakes as well. ryaa After eating a cookie, Shiggy took a spoon in both hands. She probably wanted to eat a cake with it. This ones too big for her, though. Her body is a bit small, but she eats a lot. So I see. So something like a teaspoon would take too much time. Yes. Vi-Vi measured the length of Shiggys arm, the width of her w, and her height. Since she knew how to sew, Vi-Vi was excellent with measuring. While this was going on, an attendant arrived with a rolling tray filled with different spoons anddles. These are all the different spoons in the store, maam. Thank you. We have more that we could order though, right? Yureenas mother asked with a smile. Yes, but these are all the ones asrge as a spoon that we sell at the store. Seems that they could order a whole bunch of different designs as well. Thank you for all your help. I said to the attendant. Kind of rude to thank her with the wolf mask on, but whatever. Shiggy, does one of these look easy to use? ryaa? Shiggy took some spoons in her hands. I took one that was right in front of me, a short tea spoon. Something like this is easy for you to use? ryaa Shiggy took it in hand as if to use it. Something like this, but with a bigger scoop? ryaa! Then Ill have it made, immediately. Thank you. Seems like Shiggy would get the spoon she needed. Chapter 362 - Selling in Elkay Chapter 362 C Selling in Elkay After finishing the order for Shiggys spoon, Cruz and the others joined us. Yureena and Millia as well. Al, what were you doing with my mother? We were ordering Shiggys spoon. How did the preparations for bringing goods to Elkay go? Perfectly! Cruz said while petting Shiggys head. I said my thanks to Yureenas mother and the staff, and we headed for Elkay. I noticed that the sun was already venturing towards the horizon. Its alreadyte, so lets sell this stuff tomorrow. Where will you sleep Millia? What are my choices? Mulg, or Elkay, or at my pce in the capital I think Ill stay in Elkay, I know the ce pretty well already, I guess! So we left her and all went back to Mulg. The next morning, when I was preparing to go back to Elkay, Luka said, Im going with you. To contact the adventurers guild? I guess that could be a reason. She was a chief of the adventurers guild after allshe had work to do. So after a bit, we ventured to Elkay. It was Cruz, Yureena, Vi-Vi, Luka, Femm, Moofy, and I. With Shiggy, of course. At Toms, Leah, Leo, Steff, Millia, Tom, and Kay were waiting. Okay, Im going to the adventurers guild. If something happens, you know where to find me. Got it. If youre going, then well go with you! And so Leah and Leo headed off with her. Then Millia raised her fist and said, Lets sell this stuff! And so leaving Steff, Tom, and Kay at the house, we went off to the Elkay market. On the way Yureena said, That reminds me, today that seller of the so-called Demon Lord is supposed to show. I know. We might have to deal with him. If we sold the goods at a much lower price, no one would buy from that swindler. It would probably start to really hurt his business. Hed probably flip out and try to attack me, so Id have to do something. When we arrived at the market, Cruz called out with a loud voice, Wolfs Wholesaler is here! Come get your wholesale goods for cheap! And she was shouting it with her lion mask on. Mine was off, but I noticed that Vi-Vi had put her cow mask on too. While Cruz was calling out, Millia was cheerfully putting up a signboard. Whats that, Millia? Made itst night. It was a board withrge, beautiful characters that said WOLFS WHOLESALES. We knew that there wasnt enough goods in Elkay. However, we had expected the merchants toe scrambling, but that wasnt the case. They just watched us from afar, reticent toe and see our wares. Seeing this, Cruz said, What? Not going to buy? Thats strange, I thought theyd line up to see. Eep! Hearing what Cruz said, a worker ran up, Ah, youre hear to buy?! Yyes! ButI dont have muchI cant buy that much Dont worrythe Wolf is always on YOUR side. Millia said with a smile as the face of the merchant looked quite strained. Seeing this Yureena said, I bet this guy thinks that youvee to collect protection money, Cruz. Really? Look at him, its the way this market is. Vi-Vi nodded. If we sell cheap, that might clear up the misunderstanding. I see. I noticed the wood seller we had talked to lining up behind the other merchant. When we had checked around before, he had helped us quite a bit. Hey, thanks for your help. S, sureIm happy to be of service to you. Youll be able to see wood for cheap from now on, so rx. Sure. The wood seller answered, still a little unsure about us. It didnt matter if they had a misunderstanding. Once theyd hear the prices, theyd rx. We saw other pale faces of merchants that were lining up. They were talking very softly. I used magical hearing to listen in on what they were saying. Why today? You know HES going to show up Yeah, this sucks. If I buy from this wolf guy, HES going to wonder why I have no order money left. But this is the guy that knocked out Damian, right? He might kill us if we DONT buy. What a mess. They were very worried. I said loudly so that all the merchants would hear me. You dont have to worry about the so-called Demon Lords wholesaler, even if he demands you buy from him. yeahhard to believe that The wolf will take care of him. Hearing this, a merchant replied, in a low voice, So youre saying if we buy from YOU, youll protect us from HIM? Yeah, so were just paying someone ELSE protection money? I guess we gotta go with the wolf, then. They were really scared of having to pay double protection. Just then, the merchant in front said, Wha? Are the prices really this cheap? And saying this, the merchants all rushed forward to see. They were all quite shocked. Chapter 363 - The Wholesaler Arrives Chapter 363 C The Wholesaler Arrives Cruz happily said, Of course! Rx and buy all you need! She had her lion mask on, so you couldnt see her expression, but her voice was all smiles. Well, then just this. A merchant said, and pointed out what he wanted. Just that? Yes, I dont have muchHES going to be here this afternoon, and hell kill me if I dont have the money for his wares. I see Cruz was thinking, and said, So youre worried that this Demon Lord wholesaler is going to say something, and I wont do anything about it? IIm sorryIts not that I dont trust you, Miss Lion She was Miss Lion now, and people were worried about her lion. Since this is the Wolf Wholesaler, you can call me wolf too. Wha? But The merchant looked confused, then looked over at Femm and Moofy. Okay, Wolf Miss Lion. And he was probably guessing that Vi-Vi was Miss Cow from her mask. I know youre worried, but you can pay tomorrow if you need to. Rreally? Millia said, continuing, But, tomorrow, Im going to be able to collect my debts, right? Of course! Make sure you buy what you can pay for! Yes, thank you. The first merchant bought and turned around, saying to the others, Its really cheap here! Dont trust them over that, knucklehead! but still There were plenty of merchants there that still didnt trust us. I guess I understand how they feel after the suffering theyve been through until now. I said, with Vi-Vi saying, Yeah, Al Moo moo ryaa Seems they all agreed. Shiggy had responded with her little nose peeking from my pouch. When the merchants bought stuff, Cruz said, Dont you rip off customers with high prices! II wontI promise. Both Femm and Moofy were next to Cruz. Just them sitting beside her still gave off a strong aura. After about eighty percent of the merchandise was gone, WHAT THE HELL ARE YOU DOING HERE?! We heard a bellowing voice from behind Cruz and Millia. And with the voice arrived a muscr, tall man. There were five other well-built and muscr men that stepped up next to them. Maybe a magician in the mix as well. They were smiling, but I could tell their eyes werent. I saw all the merchants faces stiffen. Wwhat are you? Nnowe They were trying to exin off why they were buying. Seems the Demon Lords wholesaler had arrived, earlier than expected. Cruz turned around andughed, saying, Were selling goods! You can leave it to the Wolfs Wholesalers! oh? Seems theres not enough supplies here in Elkay. Did you get the okay from the town agent? Seems that this wholesaler had gotten a license from him. Of course, he was a zombie, so it was just an okay from the Demon Lord. Nope. Thats not good to hear. Were the only one with a license, see. We also cant let people get away with illegal sales! Hmph. Cruz said, and I could tell she was smiling, but since she was wearing a mask you couldnt see it. Line up if you want more! You asshat! Dont you know youre going to get wrecked! The muscle-man reached over and put his hand on Cruz shoulder. A man I assumed was the wholesaler said, Im going to the castle. After you kick her ass, bring her to the castle as well. Yes, sir. The muscled freak bowed to the wholesaler. Then he looked over at the gathered merchants. You think you are gonna get away with all those illegal purchases? WWERE SORRY! We then saw the wholesaler leave with someone I think was his magician. So I yelled, Dont think anyones left in the castle! WhaaA? The wholesaler spun and I could see he was a bit scared. I had ttened all his muscle boys to the ground in a second. The wolf destroyed that idiot who thought he was the Demon Lord. Theres no way Way A demon cant be defeated that easily A demon or even a demon lord cant win against the wolf! Cruz said, giggling. Its impossible So you knew about the demon as well? Cant let you get away with it now Yyou fool! Get him! The wholesalers magician got to work. He fired a chantless fireball at memust be a decent magician. NO FIREBALLS IN TOWN! Cruz had run forward and grabbed the fireball in her right hand, FWUSSSSHHHH And while grabbing it, mmed it into the magicians throat as she grabbed his neck. He fell limp and blood ran down his neck from the strength of her grip. These houses might burnit would be a shame! Vi-Vi said, chiding. Maybe she remembered the time she fought Luka and burned my house down. EEEEK! The wholesaler screeched, and fled. And it IS really dangerous to use a fireball in the middle of town. Chapter 364 - The Wholesaler’s Trump Card Chapter 364 C The Wholesalers Trump Card No way I was letting him run. He woulde back and mess with these merchants for this and I wouldnt let that happen. So I chased him, Ah, ow! My left knee hurt when I put effort into to, and even more when running. So I stopped. Moo moo Then Moofy ran over and using her horn, hooked into the clothes of the wholesaler. Wwhat the hell is with this COW! Mooo! Using her horn she then flipped him and he fell st onto the ground. She then stomped down on the wholesaler with her front hooves. Eeeek! So I told the guy, Okay, now we can talk. I got nothin to say to you! The merchants were all gathered around watching what was happening to the wholesaler closely. They were probably waiting for their time to kick the crap out of him. So I told Millia, Leave this guy to mejust keep selling, Millia. Got it! Yureena, you help as well. I know While this was going on, Moofy still had her hooves on the bandit. Moo moo! You could tell she was having fun, as she was lightly pricking her horns into the face of the wholesaler. Even so, she didnt try to bite down on his hands or anything. Maybe that was something she only did to those she held affection for. Sstop! You think you can get away with hurting me!? Cruz looked over at me, asking, What would happen? Listen! Im the only wholesaler given approval by the town agent! We know. If something happens to me, the agent, and the crown himself will bring you to justice! No, I dont think that will happen. Normally that would be what would happen. However, the agent was a zombie C and zombie-made documents were invalid. Even if the agent forgives you, the owner of the castle will never let you live! Maybe he thought I was lying about no one being in the castle. Cruz then said with a sigh, I told you we got rid of him! Theres no way! Its true! The Demon Lord, his demon, theyre in the capital prison now! Hah! Its only been two weeks since I saw himst! It would take that long to bring him to the capital and back on HORSE! It IS true. He really thought that we were lying. I wondered where his base washave to check it outter. While Moofy was pressing down on him, the wholesaler took something from his bag. Moo? Moofy looked at whatever it was closely. It was a whistle, maybe to call something. He was being pushed down, but could still get his hand to his mouth. So he blew into the whistle, PIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIii It was a very high sound. Heh, heh! This is the end of you! What did you call? Hmph! Youll see! He had a prideful look, and all the merchants scattered. W, whoa!Run! Eeeeek! Everyone scattered from the market. There were some that stayed, but they looked too scared to run. Yureena folded her arms. Geez, and we were in the middle of a sale. I think theyll be back soon. Even so, lets clean it up so we can sell the rest. Help me, Yureena. Sure! Millia looked unfazed as she calmly asked Yureena for help. Wonder whatsing? Cant wait. Cruz and Vi-Vi said. What do you think it is, Al? We beat all the zombies around here. Right? What do you think it is, Cruz? Umwell he LOOKS like its going to be something big, so maybe a dragon? It cant be that big of a thing. Just then, something magical arrived at the entrance to Elkay. It was a giant man with a pig facean orc. And there were 10 more behind him. There were also five that were bigger than orcs, with horns on their headogres They loved to eat human flesh. 10 orcs and 5 ogresFemm, are they zombies? Correct. I see. Looks like instead of using taming magic they were just turned to zombiesa shame. Its horrible! Femm was very upset. You cant eat zombies as well. So of course Femm was angry. Moofy. Make sure he doesnt get back up. Moo moo. I was about to attack them, but Cruz stopped me. Al, I saw your knee hurt, so just wait here. Really? Sorry No problem. The wholesaler thenughed at me, Hah! What are you waiting for! Kill all of them! Cruz ignored him and ran towards them. You shouldnt forget about me either! Vi-Vi let some magic fly. It was a magic circle that appeared below the orcs and ogres without her needing to write anything. Suddenly, ice spears sprung up from the circle and pierced the monsters. Whaa?! The wholesalers face was aghast. Seems he had some zombies tagging along with him. Chapter 365 - No More Zombies Chapter 365 C No More Zombies The orcs and ogres were pierced by the ice and their legs frozen. Their lower halves couldnt move. However, they were struggling like crazy to get free. They heldrge, metal clubs in their hands, probably given to them by the wholesaler. Cruz was about to sh into them when she saw Vi-Vis magic take effect. Wow, some magic, Vi-Vi! Hah! Not enough to kill them though. Well, they are zombies. Cutting their heads off works the quickest. Okay then. So Cruz quickly jumped around, dodging, and cut off their heads. At the same time, you could smell the rotting flesh. MAN, zombies stink! Moo moo! ryaa! Ryaaa! I had said, and the animals agreed with me. Smells terrible. Femm said, as Femm and Yureena both clenched their noses. We cant burn them here. We need to get them outside and burn them. Well leave that to you, Cruz. Sure! So I froze all the heads and bodies of the zombies. You just cant let that smell spread. Then, we got some boxes from the merchants to carry them. It was easier to use magic, but not in townyou cant show everyone. I was always careful not to show my magic too quickly. Moofy, help us too! Moo! Femm changed off with holding the wholesaler down, and Moofy carried the bodies. She was so strong she was almost able to carry all the bodies at once, but there werent enough boxes. So we had to make three trips. We piled all the bodies up in preparation for the fire, when Vi-Vi said, I thought we killed all the zombies around here. Why are there so many? Its sad to say, but, I think the Demon Lord used them to guard himself. Thats a good possibility. I think we should ask the wholesaler. So we got the final heads and bodies on the stack. First we need to ask Luka about this. Okay, Al Then I helped Vi-Vi with the disposal of the bodies. Even though they were magical monsters, it was still sad they were zombified. We burned their bodies while having silence for the dead. After burying all the ash that was left, we returned to Cruz. Seems that Millia had finished selling things as well. The merchants had seen the wholesaler punished and were now at ease. The transactions went smoothly from then. While this was going on, Femm had its paw on the head of the wholesaler. He had given up trying to run and was now pretty obedient. Luka arrived from the guild, so I asked, Luka, did youe to see what was happening? Actually, some merchants ran in the guild, begging for help. They probably had scrambled when the wholesaler blew that whistle. Leah and Leo were outside town on a quest, so only Luka hade. I am d that they came to the guild when they felt in danger. Luka said with a smile. Luka, they WERE beasts that had been zombified. I said as I took out one zombies head from my magic bag that I kept for her. Thanks. Ill check it out. After that Cruz tied the wholesaler up and asked, Al, what do we do with him? I guess we should give him to the new agent. Its going to take a while for her to get here. Maybe up to three weeks if she goes slowly. So we need a ce to shut him up. There was a jail here in Elkay, but there was no guard. After thinking a bit, Cruz said, I guess we should just leave him tied up? Could we let adventurers guild take care of it? Nobut there is a cage that we keep captured beasts in It was at the guild, but for the adventurers to keep quest beasts in. Or at least, that was what it was made for. Then well put him there. After deciding that, I said to the wholesaler, Did you get those zombies from the Demon Lord? Hmph! Still didnt want to talk. Femm? GAOOOOO! Femm growled loudly straight into his face, with a little magical power inteced. Eeeeep! With Femm being that close, the wholesaler passed out quickly. If hes that weak, then he should have just talked. Resisting is pointless. Luka said with a sigh. Millia and Yureena were frowning at him too. Yureena, wake him up. Okay. She stepped up beside him and dropped some water on his face. Dont need magic for this Good job! Heh heh Cruzplimented her, and Yureena blushed. AH! Eeeeep! The guy woke up and started shaking. I have something to ask you Grrrr After I said that, Femm growled. Yyes! Anything you want! He was pale, but nodded over and over. Femm was big, so Femm struck fear into strangers. Chapter 366 - Getting all the Wholesaler’s Guys to Jail Chapter 366 C Getting all the Wholesalers Guys to Jail I was about to begin questioning the wholesaler when Luka said, Its cold out here. Maybe we should move inside to the guild? Yeahplus, everyones watching out here. Yureena said with a smile. The wholesaler was shivering in his bonds. Wha? Huh? Are you saying youre going to torture me?! Youre just imagining things. Yeah, dont worry about that. Eeee Cruz said to him and put her masked face right up to the wholesalers. The lion mask looked so real that you could see the fear all over his face. I guess youre rightlets take him into the adventurers guild. I said, and we picked him up and tossed him on Moofys back. Moo! Moofy mooed unhappily, probably because she didnt like the guy who was on her back. Sorry, Moofy. I know how you feel, but we need your help. Moo moo Moofy mooed with a nonchnt sound, as if she understood but still didnt like it. Thanks Moo We took the carrier that Moofy used to carry all the zombies and put the wholesaler and his guards on it. Five muscr, scary guys, one magician, six in total. I had tied them up before they regained consciousness. Well see if well be nice to you AFTER we have a little talk. I said, and one of the guards screamed at me. I was just paid to do this! Its all his fault! Ill listen to youter. You just need to be honestbecause if youre not, well, I dont have to tell you, right? Ssure! I understand! The conscious guard nodded furiously at me. I bet it would be fun to separate them all off and interview them each like this. So we walked over towards the guild. Millia joined us after finishing the saleswe were all together. I could hear all the merchants, who had followed me, murmuring in the background. Theyre gonna torture the guy Man, sucks to be him! He deserves it! So many people died because of him. Youre right. Seems like the wholesaler really was a REALLY bad guy. Vi-Vi spun around and walked up to the merchants, saying, Hmph, how many died, then? Ssorry They didnt expect that she heard them, and now they looked frightened. No worries, I just wanted to ask. One of them spoke. there were those that were killed directly by himand those that died because they ran out of food or wood to warm themselves I see. If basic supplies get too expensive, you can die from it. I guess that summarizes what the merchant said. Because the agent was incapacitated, there was no way to tell who or how many had died. However, from the sound of the merchants description, it DID sound like quite a few. The guild master jumped as we entered the guild. There were a lot of people. Luka told him,, We need a ce where we can lock people away. There are seven men? You want them locked up separately? Of course, but, if thats too hard, you can group them together, too. There was the problem of them getting their stories to fit before being questioned, but we could just question them before we locked them away. It also would be bad if they nned a break out together, but if there was no space, there was nothing we could do. We have a cage for big monstersif thats okay? The adventurers guild was in the middle of the town, just like with many towns. The cage was to keep monsters found in town from causing any trouble. But no one imagined that youd need a huge cage to keep a bunch of people. It was a cage for just one monster, but it was enough to stuff seven guys into. Could we take a look at it? Sure, over here. I followed the guild master as he showed me inside. Cruz and Femm followed. But Al, we cant let them talk to each other right? Can we stick them all together? Lets question them first and see. The guild master was looking at Cruz masked face suspiciously. We were in the back of the building, to a ce where the guards and wholesaler couldnt hear us. The master said quietly to me, Um, Alwhos the lion mask? Umtheres a reason shes hiding herself. I thought a bit. The guy knew that I was Alfred, who had in the previous Demon Lord. However, this might be the first time he had heard of Cruz. Even if it wasnt, he didnt recognize her with the mask on. Al, can I take the mask off? If you want. Roger! Well, then Ill introduce myself. Just keep who I am a secret, okay? She said, and she took off the mask. The guild master jumped back, eyes wide open. Itits the hero, the marquise! Have I met you before? SorryI cant remember Certainly! At an adventurers guild I saw you from afar. If thats the case, then I wasnt rudeso phewany way, nice to meet you. Yes! Its my honor! Its kind of bad for the hero to be in this area, so keep it quiet, okay? Yes, mistressI will take it to the grave if necessary. And that means anyone who works here as well. Certainly, I understand. He shook her hand and looked quite pleased. Cruz was popr as usual! Chapter 367 - Getting the Prison Ready Chapter 367 C Getting the Prison Ready After walking a bit more, we finally came to the monster containment cells. In Elkay, there were three, made to contain big monsters. They were very clean; they almost looked brand new. The bars are close enough together that you can keep humans in. Very clean I can only smell steel. Femm said, while sniffing around the cages. Well, thanks to the former Demon Lord, there was little need for an adventurer guild. It is as you say, Master Alfred. There were no quests for capturing monsters since he took over I bet the master didnt want all the cages to be used though. Well, we will just require two of the cages. Thank you for leaving me one just in case. I looked the cages over, and Cruz said, We need to partition these off and have Vi-Vi ce sound dampening circles around the cells, I think. If we got some wood and such together, we could block them off pretty easily. AlfredI dont mean to pry, but Seems that the guild master didnt want us to upgrade his cells any. When he actually starts capturing magic monsters, itll be harder to keep them. Also, there arent many materials in Elkay to perform such a job Hes right, you know. Kind of funny the reason that we didnt have the materials was due to this wholesaler we were about to shut up in a cage. Well, then, what about using the cell next to the agents ce? Cruz said, and the guild master replied, Wait, you can use that ce? Well, its not made for it, but an emergency IS an emergency. And I think the agent would allow us if she just talked to Luka. Yeah, I guess so Seems that the guild master had confidence that Luka could negotiate something like that. Theres not one person left in that agents ce, anyway. No ones there to manage or watch the cells. Wed also have to employ some people to provide food to the prisoners. But no one was watching out for them. Well, I guess heres best, right Al? Yeah, I guess so. Really? Any ce that I lock with a magic key isnt going to be openable to anyone other than a good magician. And itll be hard to break into. And if someone was going to break down a cell, it wouldnt be the wholesaler. After were done questioning him, well shut him in a cell. Yeahum, master? I wonder if we could use a cell though? We just need to give them some food in the morning and night. There would be no reason to bring it twice either. Just two loads in one. Of course. Thank you! There was no way the guild master could deny a request from someone like Cruz, anyway. Cruz gave him some money, and Luka signed the documents showing it was her responsibility. I went back to the rest and said, Vi-Vi,e with me so we can set up these cells. Leave it to me! Luka, Yureena, can I leave the questioning to you? Sure, but can we get Femms help? Wufff? Femm was a fearsome beast. But Femm would hold back when it barked at the prisoners, I hoped. So we left the inside of the guild to the cells. Mooy also followed us. Moo moo ryaa ryaa Moofy was mooing happily, as Shiggy cried back. Then Vi-Vi said as she rode Moofy, Weird to set up cellsdo you need me to make some magic circles? Defense from cold, sound, shock, and fire I guess? I knew youd ask for defense from sound and shock, but cold? It would suck if they died before the agent showed. Hmguess youre right. Moo moo She still had the cow mask on, but was nodding. Seeing Moofy nod along with her made meugh a bit. As went out to the cells, a group of people gathered around the merchants. They were probably getting ready to go out and resell our wholesale goods. Seeing all these people, I guess theyre selling our goods pretty cheap. If they try to rip anyone off, the wolf will get them! I guess it was good to threaten them a bit. We took a look at the prices from afar, and it seems that they were okay. I was relieved. After walking a bit, we saw the agents ce. Right next to the agents ce was where they shut in prisoners. Is this it? I guess so? Lets check the inside. I walked in first. It was quite dirty. No one had taken care of the ce for a while, after all. Maybe we should clean it up? Noleave it. We can leave it to the agent when she gets here. Just make sure to strengthen the cells. Got it! Moo moo! Moofy was sniffing around like crazy. Then she said, Moo! What is it? Moofy? Person! Seems like someone was left here. Chapter 368 - The Prisoner Chapter 268 C The Prisoner Vi-Vi heard Moofys words, and surprised, said, You think this is someone the agentno the agent was a zombie, so this is someone the so-called Demon Lord caught? Notheres no way the agent could have kept this guy There was no way the agent couldhe was zombified. Maybe the Demon Lord forced the agent to arrest this person, would be a better way of saying it. The agent was a victim, after all. You dont want to make it sound like the agent was a bad guy. I remember checking before we took the agent into the capital. This jail was empty. Hm? If it was someone left in this cell, they would have died fromck of water. Moo moo! Moofy ran in. She then flipped open a wooden box with her snout. Whoaaaaa! Forgive meeeee! There was a devil kid in tattered robes inside. Hair all over, smelly as hell. About the same age as Tom and Kay. Moofy sniffed at the kid. Dont be afraid. Why are you here? Sorry! Sorry! Ill leave right away! The child was very scared. I was d we didnt bring Femm along. Femm would have scared the piss out of the kid. You look hungry. We can give you some food. And youre cold. Wear this. Vi-Vi and I said at the same time. Vi-Vi gave the kid some candy while I gave the kid the robe I was wearing. You had to do something right away with a kid this deprived. Hm? Here, just eat it. Vi-Vi said, smiling at the kid. Thank youThank you!! The kid said, sticking the candy in their mouth. Tell us if youre cold. Thank you! Im fine! Very warm. Thank you! The kid said over and over. Moofy was still smelling their head. After the kid calmed down, Vi-Vi asked, What are you doing here, anyway? Sorry! Sorry! No, were not angry, just rx. The kid was really scared though. Your name? Do you have parents? Im Tant. No parents. Tant exined, still shivering. Well, it was snowingso Seems that Tant had no home and would eat garbage. He lived in an abandoned home. However, since it was so cold outside, he got inside this much better built jail. Theres no doubt this ce is warmer than an abandoned house. And inside the box, theres no wind and you can save body heat. Sorry for breaking in here! No skin off my back. Come with us when were done. Well get you a room. Whaaa? He still looked quite scared. Probably thought I was a ve trader. Seems like he had lived a very desperate life. I tried to calm him down, saying, Dont worry, Im no ve trader. okay. He still didnt believe me. I guess hed rx once he saw what I did. Vi-Vi lets get these circles done and get out of here. Got it! So Vi-Vi and I worked on magic circles to strengthen the jail cells. Moofy stayed next to Tant the whole time C probably worried about him. We can keep them from fleeing from the inside, but make sure no one can get in to let them out too Yeah. Make sure no one can get in and murder them to shut them up as well. And protection from cold and heat, right? Exactly. The easiest way to kill a bunch of people is just light the jail on fire. And then make it look like an ident. If that was impossible, you could freeze the inside as well. All youd have to do is open up a part of the wall. It was easy to murder people that way and cover up your own activities. If there IS someone behind the scenes. I think youre worrying too much, Al. Vi-Vi said, even though she continued with the magic circles. All the while, Moofy stood next to Tant. Tant was surprised at Moofy at first, but now was petting her. After that was done, Vi-Vi proudly said, Hows that?! Well done. Then I locked the ce with a magic lock. It was very strong against a magic attack. This is going to be hard to break in or out of now! Moo moo! Moofy then hit her horns against the cell walls to check their strength. I made a physical key for when the agent finally shows up. I also made on to give to the guild master. I checked the ce over again, and figured we were done. Chapter 369 - – Return to the Guild Chapter 369 C Return to the Guild After making the final check, I remembered how good Vi-Vi was with magic circles. Thats really some temperature regtion in those circles. Anyone could live in those cells easily. Vi-Vis magical skill was improving constantly. Someone like Tant could live herefortably for a long time. Yeah, but its sad the prisoners get such a nice ce to live. Maybe we could poke a hole in the wall to give them a cold breeze? No, Vi-Vi, its fine as is. Even if its afortable jail, youre still locked in a cell. And there would be seven of them. It was going to be a very crowded cell. Nothingfortable about it. Nomaybe a little too ufortable. They might get in a fight and kill each other. Maybe I should get an adventurer not only to give them food but watch them as well. sounds good, Al. I looked over at Tant. Theres no way that kid could do it. If we could get some adventurers to stay here, this town would improve a lot. Yeah, lets clean the ce up a bit for whomevers going to watch these fools. Ill help too! Thanks Tant. There was a wardens room in the jail. Vi-Vi did her magic circles there as well. Tant and I cleaned the ce up. I also got Vi-Vi to make a calming magic circle around the whole jail to keep the prisoners head level. If they get angry and start fighting, theyll get shocked! Not enough to kill them, but theyll stop moving for a while. Great! I think were done. Back to the guild. Okay, Tant,e with us. Sure. Seems that Tant wasnt scared of us anymore. When we walked outside, the snow was falling, looking like ribbons of blowing curtains. Been a while since weve seen a blizzard like this. Yeah! Lets hurry to the guild, Al! Um, sir. Heres your robe back. Tant said, offering it back to me. Its yours. Wear it. Arent you cold? Nnoits a warm robe. Thank you. Well, good. The robe had anti-magic, anti-heat, anti-cold, and other magic statuses attached to it. So it was quite warm. Vi-Vi was holding on to Tant as they rode Moofy. You ride too, Al. Three is maybe too much. Moo! Seems that Moofy wanted me to ride her. Okay, then please. Moo moo I got on and Moofy ran happily into the snow. ryaa Maybe because she was aware of Tant or because of the torrents of snow that Shiggy cried softly. Because of Moofys speed, we were back at the guild quickly. I jumped off Moofys back as Cruz ran up to me, wearing the lions mask like usual. Al! What did youwho is this kid? Someone that was in the jailhis name is Tant. I seenice to meet you Tant. Ahyeah, my pleasure. He was scared again. Theres no kid happy to see someone in a lions mask. I may look weird, but Im not a bad guy, so dont worry. Okay. Wuff! Eeep! He was scared of Femm as wellno helping that. So I introduced Tant to everyone. He was very frightened, but hell get used to it. Here, we have snacks and some hot tea for you. Luka sat him in a seat and said. After he started eating and rxed, Luka said, So, other than Tant here, hows the condition of the jail? Completely ready, thanks to Vi-Vi. Good job, Vi-Vi! Moo moo! No big deal! All helped as well. Cruz scruffed Vi-Vis hair. Then Moofy bit down on Vi-Vis had. I asked Luka, How was the questioning? They all answered quickly. Thanks to Femm. Wuff! I bet Femm scared the hell out of them. Good job, Femm! Of course! So I petted Femm, while Femm wagged its tail. Seems that Luka asked and heard from each of them, one by one. Those who werent being questioned were watched by Yureena so they wouldnt talk to one another. So, what did you find out? Seems that this wholesaler was just a bad businessman. But not a leader or anything. Doesnt seem so. The Demon Lord and his demon aide did that job. I guess so. d to hear nothing out of the ordinary. Anything about the zombification? We heard it was from the demon aide. And all the money they took from the people? Thaaaats a little more difficult of a tale ording to Luka, it seems that it all was deposited into a bank in the capital. Confiscating all that money would take a lot of differentwsuits, so the agent would have to take care of those proceduresand that might be better to leave it to her anyway. Chapter 370 - Putting the Wholesaler’s Gang in Jail Chapter 370 C Putting the Wholesalers Gang in Jail Luka and I talked over what we should do until the evening. Then Leah, Leo and the other F ranked adventurers came home. When the guild master greeted them, Cruz ran out and said, d youre back safe! Yyeah Were you okay in the blizzard? Yeah, we had a n for collection and it wasnt too hard. Its good when you can get stuff done easily as an adventurer! d to hear! Ah, yeahthanks Seems that the F rankers were a bit scared to talk to someone in a lion mask. Only Leah and Leo knew that it was Cruz and they stood there snickering. Cruz just kept on talking, Sorry about this since you just got here, but, I have a quest for you! A quest? The F rankers looked a bit scared and looked over at the guild master. Shes dressed strange, but you can trust her. Ohis that so? Just rxpretend its a quest from me. If its from you as well, Luka, then were happy to take it! The F rankers looked relieved that Luka was asking for the same thing. Since Luka had introduced herself and stated her position, they all trusted her. So let me exin the quest to you. So Luka carefully exined the situation to them. She needed him to watch over the prisoners until the agent showed up. So she exined the points step by step they needed to watch for. Is that all we need to do? Pretty much So the F rankers decided to take up watching the prisoners. After hearing a detailed exnation about how to provide food to the prisoners, we all went to the prison. I asked the guild master, Where is the wholesaler and others now? In the monster cells. Shouldnt we not let them talk to each other?asked Vi-Vi. The questioning is over and Yureenas still watching them. I didnt even notice she wasnt here! Vi-Vi seemed to jump. I noticed she wasnt here as well. Ill go call for her and the others. Thanks Cruz. No problem,e with me Femm and Moofy. WuffMoo moo! So Cruz left and came back with Yureena and the wholesaler and his crew. Yureena, thanks. Wait, whos this kid? Names Tant Tant saw the wholesaler, jumped, and said, Hyaaaaa, sorry! Sorry! He was terrified. Its okay. Luka held Tant close. Did this guy do something to you? Well ask when he settles down. We need to get the wholesaler and others out of here. Okay, Al. So we got the wholesaler away from Tant. Best to calm him down right away. Yureena, Luka, Ill leave him to you. Sure. So we carried them all to the jail on Moofys back. The F rankers followed us there as well. On the way, I asked the wholesaler, What did you do to that kid? Cant remember doing anything. He said, but I saw his eyes shift away. I see. Well, well see. I said, and the wholesaler seemed to rx. When we got there, I exined all the magical circles to the F rankers. What a system! Sure is! Vi-Vi said, proudly. Pretty nice ce to live for a jailer!said Vi-Vi. It is quite warm. Yeah! We also set out some food and tea for you to have until next afternoon. What, really? Sure. We have to ask you to do work that adventurers never do. This is the least we can give you. If you need anything else, please ask. Thank you! Then I told the wholesalers group. If you fight, youll get electrocuted. Sure, we promise not to. Youre not lying? No, we understand what will happen. Im sure we scared him enough. With how small the cell is, though, theres no doubt theyll fight. Then if they did, theyd get hit by lightning and wonder what happened, so best to tell them. So, what DID you do to that kid? huh? Dont say huh to us. I didnt do anything. I silently set off the non-fighting ring. -BZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZz The cage was hit with a light shock of lightning. GYAAAAAAAAAAAAA! They all cried out from the pain of being shocked. Seeing this, Vi-Vi said, Its not strong enough to KILL you! Ahookay The F Rankers looked quite scared as well. What did you do to that kid? nnothing, I Set off the switch, they screamed again. Then they calmed down again, and I asked again, So what did you do? Ssure! Ill tell you! Just please The wholesaler said, terrified. Chapter 371 - Tant and the Bath Chapter 371 C Tant and the Bath So the wholesaler told us everything. TTants Our Tant? Yyeah. Tants house that he lived inwe used zombies to break it down. This is when the so-called Demon Lord just began to rule from the castle. At that time, there were many people that rebelled against him. We had to make an example of othershad to make all people in Elkay fear himor at least thats what the Demon Lord told me. The so-called Demon Lord. Yeah, the so-called Demon Lord. They used zombies to trash the stores and homes of the tradesmen that resisted him. However, the so-called Demon Lord still thought that wasnt enough. So he started attacking residents as well, which is why Tant ended up as he did. Tants parents store and home were destroyed. Tant would run from abandoned house to house, and those were destroyed one by one as well. If someone gave him food, they were attacked. Finally, no one was left to help him. But Tant never gave up and decided to just die. In fact, the constant attacks made him want to live all the more. He burrowed into trash and then lived off any food he found. After all, if he was seen getting food from others, theyd be attacked. So Tant was a living tragedy in Elkay, with residents unable to help. Everyone was too fearful of being destroyed by the so-called Demon Lord. You guys really are trash. Iwas just following orders! Thats no excuse! Vi-Vi said cooly, then, Maybe we should just kill them. Eeep! Leave the punishment to the agent. Hmph. Okay, Al. So Vi-Vi, Moofy, and I left the adventurers to watch the prisoners. As we walked through the snow, Vi-Vi said, Thats so horrible what happened to Tant. Youre right. After all that tragedy, he must have thought wed do the same. yeah We went back to the adventurers guild, and Yureena was caring for a much more rxed Tant. She was a holy maiden, so it was her natural talent. So I took Tant back with me to Mulg. I introduced him to Millet and Collette, and got him right into the bath. He had been living in garbage, so he stunk quite a bit. Okay, Tant, into the bath. Sure. So he immediately got in. Mooo mooryaa ryaaWuffPiGGi Of course, all the beasts wanted in at the same time. Shiggy was still aware of Tant, and said nothing. We got into the dressing room, and Shiggy jumped on Tants head and started petting him. Eheh heh heh Tant seemed to like Shiggy quite a bit. Then Cruz came in with her lion mask still on. Im getting in too. Why are you getting in now? I told you I was getting in with youst time! Huh? I guess you did Come on, Al, you cant just forget that! Okay, Well get in first, then you can get in after. Got it! I had to wash the beasts and Tant, so Id be busy. I was going to wash Femm, Moofy, Chel, and Shiggy in that order. Tant got in before Cruz. I asked him, Can you wash yourself? Yeah. Okay. So Tant started scrubbing himself down as well. ryaa ryaaPiggGi As I was washing Femm and Moofy, Shiggy was washing Chel. It was cute. After I finished washing Shiggy, Cruz walked in, You took too long! I couldnt get the zipper for the lion mask off! It had bent a bit and was hard to take off. She had taken a while because she didnt want to break the zipper. Al, Ill wash your back. Wash Tants first. Okay I started washing myself while Shiggy flew behind me and squeeze water on my back. Thanks. ryaa As I washed, Cruz said, Youre such a cute kid, Tant, that we have to clean you up well! Why do you want to Then we have to get Yureena to find some cute clothes for you. Wha? I heard Tants voice changeI had thought Tant was a boy. Wait, isnt he a boy? You can see shes not. Cruz said with a sigh. II see. I knew by her smell. um Honestly, Tant only had the smell of garbage before. After everyone was washed off, we got in the bath. Um, no need to take care of me like this Dont worry about it. If you didnt help me, Id be in real trouble I took care of the so-called Demon Lord alreadyjust rx. Moo moo! Moofy happily paddled up and licked Tants face. Wwait, Moofy. Wait! You took care of him? Tant asked as she pet Moofy. She didnt know what I meant by took care. I guess she couldnt believe someone could just take care of someone like that. Cruz patted Tants head and said, Its because Im the hero! Wha? Its true! A weakling like that so-called Demon Lord was a breeze to beat. She said, going back to the changing room and bringing back a steel ball. Why are you walking around with one of those? I asked with a sigh, Look at thisCruz said, holding it out in her hand. Then she passed it to Tant as said, See? Ssure. Tant felt how heavy the ball was still in Cruz hand and pulled back. After a bit, Tant started crying Waaaaah! Its okay.ryaa Shiggy and Cruz tried to calm down Tant as best they could. Chapter 372 - Protecting the Orphans of Elkay Chapter 372 C Protecting the Orphans of Elkay During the next days breakfast, I turned to Cruz and said, How many orphans do you think there are in Elkay? Hm, I guess I have no idea. I dont think theres so manybut Cruz and Luka looked at each other and said. Yureena then said in a serious voice, Usually the church takes care of them, but Since the church in Elkay was almost empty There was one priest. Hardly any followers. Almost no money. They couldnt be relied on to care for orphans. I then asked Tant as she ate away at her breakfast. Tant, is there a lot of orphans in Elkay? Mmphmmphmpphh Tant tried to answer with her mouth full. You dont have to say right away. Swallow your food first. Ophkay Tant had to be worried about something like that. Shiggy ran over the table and gave her a cup. ryaa? Thanks Shiggy. ryaa Seeing this, Timi seemed to tear up. Youve be such a big girl, Shiggy. Alra, did you see that? Yeah, I did. Timi was very emotional about Shiggy growing, and I could see why. We had raised her to be kind, so I was happy as well. Tant drank down the tea and said, About five kids. Is that so? How are they staying alive. Unlike me, they werent hated by the Demon Lord, so So theyre just staying in abandoned houses? Yeah. The wholesaler hated Tant so much that Tants house got burned down. However, the others didnt have such problems, and could hide out on their own. There were a lot of empty houses from the previous Demon Lord, so it was possible. And their food? Other people in town provide it. Seems that if the kid wasnt hated by the higher ups that people would provide. Maybe most people in Elkay were kind-hearted. I guess we really need to make an orphanage in town. Yeah, I agree. We can get the guild to help with that as well. And the church too. With both of them cooperating, they would have a decent orphanage for the kids. We could invest in it as well, but we would need themunity to invest in it after a while. Hearing this Vallimie said, If you need me to help, I can. Food for the residents too, just ask. Just send any request over to Lindobal Forest. Timi also said, We cant take them into Shiggys pce, but we can share whatever money and food they need. Thanks Vallimie and Timi. I think itll be fine though. It was very kind of them, however. After breakfast, Cruz, Luka, Yureena, Vi-Vi, Tant, and I went back to Elkay. Femm, Moofy, and Shiggy too. Steff, Leah, Leo, Millia, Kay and Tom were waiting at his lodge. After exining everything, Millia nodded strongly. I see. I can ask the other merchants about the orphans as well. Please do. And leave it to me to ask the F rankers about them as well. Leah said as well. I bet that the F rankers knew exactly who they were. Kids without parents? I bet theyre all over and not living together, but theyre probably living somewhere around here? Tell me what you know. So the ce Tom told us about was in the center of town where it wasnt very safe. Right around Damians hideout, actually. We havent seen Damiantely, have we? Yeah, but no bad news about him either. Seems that Luka and I had the same idea. Damian was the boss of the Elkay Neglys after all. And Tom had owed him a lot of money in extorted interest. Also, the so-called Demon Lord had tried to get spirit stones through him. He WAS a bad guy. If we havent heard bad thingsit means hes not UP to bad things. Its a good thing. Yureena and Vi-Vi nodded at each other. As we were talking it over, ryaa Good job, Shiggy. Stack it up here, Shiggy. ryaa ryaa! Shiggy, Kay, and Tant were ying with toy blocks. Shiggy was trying hard to build a tower. Cruz had just given the girls a set of them. Shiggy was the youngest of them all, but was having fun ying with them. After that, Luka, Leah, and Leo went to the guild. Leah and Leo were the towns top adventurers now. They had a lot of work to do. Luka had to be busy as well. She was going to help with making the orphanage. Yureena went to the church and wanted to help too. Finally, Millia and Steff went to the market to buy a store. Make sure they give you the right price! Millia was sure to make Steff protect herself from being ripped off. They had a lot of money to spend but if Steff was with Millia, it would be okay. Al, take care of all the orphans you find. Well stay the night at the store once we buy it. Thats great. So after Steff and Millia left, I left to see what other things were unsafe in Elkay. Chapter 373 - Checking out the Dangerous Part of Elkay Chapter 373 C Checking out the Dangerous Part of Elkay I left Tom, Kay, and Tant back at Toms house to see the most dangerous part of town. If I took Tom, Im sure he would be okay, but I was worried about Tant and Kay. Vi-Vi thought about it and said, Would it be bad to leave these kids at home alone? Yay! Vi-Vi are you staying with us? Kay said as she happily embraced Vi-Vi. Hm? I guess I could y with you all. Vi-Vi said happily. Tant looked happy as well. But Tom looked a bit nonplussed. Thanks for your worry, but I can take care them myself. Well, just in case. Im pretty sure theres no own stupid enough to mess with Toms house, though. The Wolf Wholesalers name was out there already. However, until the agent showed up, real peace wouldnt be restored in the town. Okay, take care of them, Vi-Vi. I know already. Well be waiting for you toe back. Vi-Vi said, flexing her small bicep, while Kay said, Show me howta make magic ciwcles, Vi! Magic circles? Thats a bit too hard for you I think. Whaaa? Ill show you some easy magic instead. Kay seemed pretty interested in that though. Tant seemed quite interested in it as well. Magic really excited a lot of kids. So Cruz, Femm, Moofy, Shiggy, and I left Toms house. Cruz had her lion mask on like usual. Also, Cruz was riding on Moofy. She really stood out. Hmm hmm hmm Moo moo moo Cruz and Moofy were in good spirits. Even so, the people of Elkay seemed quite scared. Moofy was so cute that she shouldnt scare anyone, but that wolf mask After walking a bit, we got to the area in question. Eeeep! A thug was walking near us, saw Cruz, and jumped, Umcan I ask you something Cruz said to the thug, but the thug acted like he didnt hear anything and started walking away quickly. Didnt he hear me? Moo?! Want to chase him down, Moofy? Cruz was ready to chase him down. I guess I should stop her. No need to scare guys like that too much. Wait CruzHe might have heard you and was just busy. Maybe youre right, Al. Maybe he had to go to the bathroom. He looked like that. yeah. After walking a bit, I saw Damian a ways away. I remembered that Cruz had never seen Damian. Ah! Damian saw me and started scrambling away. Get him, Femm. Leave it to me! Femm shot at him like an arrow. Damian was caught immediately. Femm bit onto the back of Damians shirt. Femm didnt try to knock him over. However, he was scrambling to get away so much that he fell to the ground. Gaoo! Nnothing! I havent done nothing! I mean it! He was so scared his arms and legs were pping on the ground. I caught up to them. Damian, long time no see. Yyeah! What can I help you with?! I told you Id do nothing wrong! So why did you run? Tthe lion mask! I just I see. I could understand that. Cruz got closer to his face and said, So youre the legendary Damian that bullied Tom? Ill remember your face! Nice to meet you. She was totally threatening him, probably because she was pissed that he bullied Tom. Eeep! Sorry! SORRY! No need to be scared. If you do nothing wrong from now on, that is Yes, I promise never to, ever, EVER again! I put my hand on Damians shoulder. Damian, the reason Im here is to ask something. Yyeah! Ask away! Do you know of any orphans living around here? Huh? They are I guessbut I havent done anything bad to them. So Cruz followed up with, d to hear. If you did, youd know right away. More threats. Damians face turned white. I then asked with a kind voice, So, do you know WHERE they are living? Theres no way I would know that. But even so he did tell me what he did know. Lately where the kids had gotten food and where they slept. I see, if you see any, be kind to them. Sure! Ive learned my lesson! And if you see them, tell them they can get food and snacks over at Toms house. Uunderstood! Make sure to tell other kids you see too, okay!? Damian nodded over and over. With that, I was sure wed find all the orphans quickly. Either Damian or the other kids would tell them. From there, we went to the ces that Damian had told us about. Chapter 374 - Protecting the Orphans Chapter 374 C Protecting the Orphans First we went to a house where Damian said he saw some sleeping. Cruz looked over the abandoned house and said, Looks more beaten down than even I thought. There must be a lot of houses like this. Theyre using ones that dont stand out. Even though kids shouldnt be put through this The other empty houses in better condition probably had people looking over them. Youd get chased out if you tried to sleep in there. And it might be that because of that they decided on this old, beaten up house. Femm, anyone inside? I can hear something moving around, so SOMETHING is there. I see, thanks. Moofy, Cruz, go around to the back. It would suck if they ran away. Got it. Moo moo! While letting Cruz ride, Moofy ran around to the back. I got closer to the entrance. Femm came closer as well, Femms tail straight out. Hello, anyone there? I said as positively as I could sound. At the same time I magically strengthened my hearing. I could hear voices inside. Ssomeones out there. Who do you think it is? Someone angry that were in here? We gotta go out the back quit so we dont get caught. No! We gotta apologize. So the door opened slowly. Some kids came out in tattered clothing. They were kids about the same age as Tom. I smiled so they wouldnt be scared. Then they apologized. Were sorry! Nono, Im not angry. Were the Wolf Wholesalers Wolf Wholesalers? Seems the one kid out in front, the same age as Tom, maybe 10, was the leader. Behind the kid was a four and six year old. The six year old stuck his head out at us. AI know him. He has the wolf and lion face store, right? The kid was smiling, obviously not threatened now. Yes, the Wolf Wholesalers. I responded with a polite response. However, the older kid brushed the younger kid back behind him. Then, the kid looked at me with a doubtful eye. What does the Wolf whatever have to do with us? We have something we need help with. Help? Well I tried to exin what I needed help withmaybe just to help Millia with odds and ends at the store. We didnt need their help, but if I didnt say so then they wouldnt believe us. So I asked them for their help. Youll get food and and a ce to sleep. Were thankful, but Is there a problem? I can help you, but this little one here Ah, I see. The kid was worried that the littlest wouldnt be much help. I can do the little ones work for you, so maybe thats goo enough? Of course, thats what I wanted from the beginning. With that said, the oldest kids face lit up. Then we will help you! Thats great. So it seemed that everything was decided. Cruz came around from the back, not needing to be there anymore. Femm Wuff! Femm came along with her. The kids all saw Femm and said,That doggies so big!. They walked up to Femm and Moofy and started petting them. Hello everyone! Im the lion mask of Wolf Wholesalers! Moo moo Wow a lion mask!Awesome!A cow! Moo moo! So the kids surrounded Moofy and Cruz. They all petted the beast and Moofy sounded happy about it. The lion mask was popr with children. On the other hand, they had left the wolf behind, and Femm looked a bit sad. So I rubbed Femms head in exchange. So all the kids headed to Toms house. They happily rode on Moofys back. Lets take them back to Mulg and get them decent clothes. Even if you ask for that, I dont have any on me. I have plenty of cloth with me, it shouldnt be too hard to make. We went to Toms ce and the five kids, Tant, and I went back to Mulg. Vi-Vi, Yureena, Luka, and Cruz came along to help, and everyone got in the bath. The horrible smells changed to nice ones, and we gave all of them new clothes. Millia returned about that time and said to the kids, I need a lot of help from all of you. Well do our best. Good answer! Dont worry, its not hard work. Just a little help. So for three days, the orphans stayed at Toms house. During that time, Steff read with them, had them write, and did simple math. On the other hand, Vi-Vi and I did some magical circles over the store Millia had bought. Chapter 375 - Everyone Goes to Tom’s House Chapter 375 C Everyone Goes to Toms House Elkay had calmed down quite a bit, so I started working as a guard for Mulg again. But I was still worried about Elkay. I would have to check on the orphans at Tom and Kays sometime soon. Also needed to train my pupil, Steff, in magic since she was living with them now. Needed to check on the prisoners next to the agents house as well. I finally made my way there after worrying over days and found my worries were unfounded. The wholesaler and his crew were obedient and the orphans were all working hard. Millias new store was near Toms house as well. She brought many new goods there and the orphans helped her with everything. Tant was happy as well. They lived well with Tom and the orphan leader helped Millia with whatever he could. It was two weeks after we had captured the wholesaler. I was eating breakfast, and the little elf girl Collette said to me, Old man! Old man! Hm? What is it? I wanna go to Elkay too! Sure, want to see the ce? Yay! I get to go withsth the old man! Millet looked a bit worried. Is it really okay? Elkays pretty much at peace now. You want toe too, Millet? Yes, I do. I want to see Steff and Tant again. Okay, then lets all go. Vi-Vi said, also nodding. She frequently stayed in Mulg until morning and then would go to Elkay until night. She was busy helping Yureena and Millia. Ah, Ill go too. I want to see Tant and the other kids. I dont have to oversee whats going on in my realm today. It had been a while since Cruz had gone there. She was busy with her work as a marquise. That realm of yours has kept you busy. Luka had been busy working on restoring the adventurers guild in Elkay. They had a lot to do as well. I want to go too, but I have business in the capital. Yureena said, always busy. Timi was listening and added, Ill go as well. ryaa ryaa! Shiggy cried happily upon hearing that. So we finished breakfast and, Be careful everyone! Tell Millia I said hi. If she has any trouble, just let me know. We saw Vallimie off as well as Yureena, and then ventured to Elkay. PiGii! I noticed that Chel was riding on top of Femm. You cane too, Chel. No work today. Seems that Chel was taking a day off work at his vige. I wondered what work Chel was doing there in the first ce. I would have to go to Chelnovige and see myself sometime. So we arrived at Toms ce, and Kay and the other kids ran out to see us. Old man! Wee!Old man! The kids jumped all around me. Im back. Nice to see you all in good spirits. Yeah! We have a lot of customers! Is that so? Tom was surprised to see all of us. There were many guests, but this was the first time he had seen Millet and Collette. Everyone else had visited Mulg but them. Thats why it was the fours first meeting. My name is Millet. Nice to meet you. Are you Kay? Im Collette from Mulg. Im Kay! And Im Tom, nice to meet you two. After introductions, Collette called to all the other kids, Everyone, letsth y! Okay! The kids ran around, and Shiggy stuck her beak out of my pouch. ryaa! You want to y too? ryaa ryaa! Shiggy pped her wings and jumped on Collettes head. Then the kids all danced around Shiggy. Seeing this, Millet said, Tom, heres a gift from Mulg. Wha? Can I really have it? Sure! Millet took out some freshly baked cookies. Kay, we got these from Millet! Thank you Millet! Kay bowed a quick bow. Then Tom called to Millia, Leah, and Leo. Got some cookies, lets have some! And some tea as well. Thank you! Everyone sat the table together, including me. Even the little kids sat down politely. Toms table was a veryrge one,rge enough to seat everyone. Tom also poured the tea as we all ate the cookies Millet had made. Delicious! Yeah, theyre very good! Tom and Kay were very appreciative. Millet always cooked good food, so it was nice that Tom and Kay got to appreciate it. Heh heh, Milletsth good at making cookiesth Collette was very proud of her sister. Shiggy have some too! Try one, Mr. Shiggy. ryaaa One of the kids slipped Shiggy a cookie. For some reason, Tant had started calling Shiggy, Mr. Shiggy. I guess because Shiggy was the one thatforted Tant the most when we first found her. Chel jumped up onto my knee. Femm and Moofy were next to me, both seated. ryaam ryam And so the kids took turns in feeding Shiggy. Shiggy was still small but chomped away at whatever she was fed. Even if she ate a lot, she hardly ever seemed full. Vi-Vi ate some as well and fed Moofy while she did so. You really make good snacks, Millet. MOoomph Mooph Thank you very much. Yeah, thanks as always, Millet. Mister Al, dont make me blush! And so, because everyone wasplimenting her, she turned red. I handed Femm and Chel some of the snacks too. Good! PiggGi The beasts were all quite happy. Chapter 376 - The Wolf Wholesaler Chapter 367 C The Wolf Wholesaler Moofy then went over and chomped on Vi-Vis hand. Millia, You need help from this afternoon?momph mphh Sure, Id be happy to have it. Leave it to me!mpph I need your help as well, kids. Well do our best! Vi-Vi and Millia seemed they were doing well. I wondered how well. What do you do other than guard, Vi-Vi? Of course a lot of stuff! Thanks to Millias hand in business, I dont have to worry about anyone trying to swindle from our store. You picked someone really good for the store, Al! Cruz said after eating a cookie. Cruz had her lion mask on too, so she had to slide it under. I think the real reason she always wore it was because the kids loved it. I would like for Vi-Vi to find some good ces for farming when she has time free. Youre nning to farm Elkay? Think theyll make a profit? Thend is cheap so its easy to buy. And even if there are no crops we can harvest magic stones, so its a win-win. I see, sounds good Vi-Vi. Either way, we still need to try and n something during spring. Cruz looked over, confused. Was Elkay ever farmed before? The main industry was finding mithril in the mountains. However, no one really farmed here much. Millia answered with a smile. I see. Its because this was always under the rule of the Demon Lord. He only did things associated with his military. But you couldnt feed a military with mithril. You did have to have cksmiths, ranchers, and armor makers as well. In addition, you had to have people that would sell and buy from them too. Elkay was made for that after all. After Millia nced over at Cruz, she looked at Tom, Kay, Tant, and the others. before the hero came, everyone ran away but the Demon Lords army. After the Demon Lord was defeated, there were many that never returned. I see. Cruz said, with a nod. Elkay was mostly a consumingmunity. Hearing that from Millia, it seems that you could still get mithril from the nearby mountains. Even so, there isnt a huge amount that you can get from the mountains. With that being said, people could still find enough if they looked. The wholesaler stopped all of that and got it for himself. So the merchants had enough work just trying to sell things to someone else. I think you can get lumber as wellI could ask my older sister about it. Yeah, I think Vallimie would be of help. Vallimie used to be known as the forest hermit, specializing in lumber. She had turned a wastnd into a forest in ten years. Even so, we didnt know if anyone in Elkay wanted to work at cutting the wood. I guess wed have to worry about thatter. After eating the cookies, Millet and Collette went home. Millet had a bit of work to do. Come to Mulg to see us anytime! Sthee you allter! The two girls said, and Tom replied, Sure! Millet and Collette, see youter. Ille too! Kay and Collette seemed to be friends. Through the magic circles it was almost instantthey were like neighbors now. I think theyd see each other much more from now. Luka, Leah, and Leo set out for the guild. Millia, Vi-Vi, the beasts, Timi, Cruz and I headed for Wolf Wholesaler. Tant and the orphans came along as well. Its very near Toms house. Sure is. It was a merchants store and house and was empty. We bought it. It was old, but a big house. Vi-Vi had set some circles around the house, so it had be easier to live in. With just a few beds, anyone could live there. Femm, Moofy, Chel, and Shiggy circled the house. They sniffed the ce out, I guess checking whose territory it was. Always on the guard for any enemy. Youre not selling anything right now. Because were a wholesaler. Theylle for goodster. Are you selling mithril too? Sure we are. With the other wholesaler gone, there was nowhere to buy mithril, so Millia sold that too. Of course, it was at a good price, so everyone was relieved to see it. Were willing to buy and sell it at a good price, so theyre all very happy. Millia said with a smile. After a while there, a few merchants came by. There was no system for days of purchase like with the old wholesaler. People just came to buy and sell when they had the chance. And with the orphans as workers, the work went quickly. While there were no merchants there, Millia and Vi-Vi worked on a n to buy and farmnd. Do you want to see it from above? You can ask anytime! Timi said. Yes, if we were to do that Millia said to herself, but then a merchant walked up. It was an Elkay F ranker adventurer, one of them in charge of the jail. What is it? What happened? I asked, then the adventurer took a deep breath and said, Um, everyone! The new agent is here! Oh, finally! Yes, and she wants to hear about the wholesaler. Can youe with me? I think it was obvious thats the first thing on her mind. I guess Lukas better at that, maybe? Cruz said. Lukas on a quest with Leah and the others Then I guess Ill go. I said, and headed off to the house. Chapter 377 - Getting Ready to Meet the Agent Chapter 377 C Getting Ready to Meet the Agent Cruz looked a little worried. Bbut Al! Ive been hiding my identityI shouldnt see her! Thats not a reason for you not to go, Cruz. II guess not. After hearing that, Millia said, Then Ill go with you. So what will you say if she asks how you beat him? Cruz asked, and Millia looked a little bothered, Well Just leave it to me, Al!Vi-Vi said. Youre going to tell her, Vi-Vi? Yeah, I can say Luka and I creamed those orcs and ogres, right? Then Timi said, Let Millia take the front while you take the rear. I think thats good. Magicians do always stand in the back of a party. I thinkI should go too, I want to see her face. Hearing all this, Cruz then worryingly asked me, Al, are you going to at least get a disguise? Theres no way the agents going to allow me in there with a mask on. I should at least put a beard on, though. After I put the beard on, Millia looked at it and said, We should have Timi there as a guest as well. HmI guess I dont mind, but why? Well, she is an ancient dragon. Wha? Timi didnt seem to understand, so I exined. With a fake beard on. Youre not going to grovel to an agent as an ancient dragon, right? Of course not. She was almost like a god, being an ancient dragon. There was no reason to. If I was there to guard Millia, she would expect us to bow to her. And without doing so, Linmia trading would be in a fix. However, if Timi was the guest of Millia, then she would be there as a great ancient dragon. No reason to act lower than the agent. I see, it makes sense. Ill be her guest. Timi seemed to understand my exnation. However, she thought a bit, looked at me and said, Hm, but, if thats the case, then your beard would be bad, right? Bad? It would. If someone came to me in a disguise or to Shiggy, I would punch him. Punch me?ryaa? Shiggy looked up at me from my pouch. Yeah, I would! Its rude, youre hiding your true identity from me, after all. I guess if you say so, youre right. I had the feeling that she was right. If anyone came before an agent in disguise, then they must be plotting something. Even something like assassination. Of course, if you were disguised FOR Shiggy, then I would understand. And if we knew that you were doing that for a reason, then wed forgive you, but Timi was saying that wearing a disguise in order to deceive a ruler was unforgivable. The agent wasnt a ruler though, but was royalty, and was also in the family of the crown. So the direct hand of the crown. This, of course, extended over all humans. So it was bad to have a disguise. Also, since its the crowns family, you probably already know her, right? the possibility is high. After beating the Demon Lord, I had attended many parties with the royals. Well, the nobles, the royals, their retainers, and so forth. Honestly, there were so many parties in such a short time, I cant remember it well. If she knows you, then your beard might be revealed. Millia said seriously. What? I dont think shed know. After all, I didnt know it was him when I first saw him. Wha?!ryaa? Timi, Millia, and Shiggy were all surprised to hear that. Yeah, thats true. You didnt know it was me. It was right after I arrived at Mulg. When I saw Cruz again, I had this beard to hid myself. Cruz was totally fooled. No, shed totally know. Yeah. Both the girls were sure I would be found out. Really? Cruz was still unconvinced. Vi-Vi was just watching, but said, Hmph, maybe we should just leave Al at home. I know he wants to meet her, but that might be best. When I had given up on meeting the agent, Well, instead of being Millias guard, he can be my friend, and put the wolf mask on. Timi said happily. Thats right! He is my friend, after all! Right, Shiggy? ryaa ryaa Shiggy was happy at the fact. Its true that there would be no problem if you wore that mask with Timi. No way a human could question the ways of an ancient dragon. No matter how royal, there are just somethings you dont do, like test the gods. So I turned out being Timis friend in the visit and not Millias guard. I guess this was more honest than the other way. So put that mask on! Yeah!ryaa! And thats what happened. Chapter 378 - Meeting the New Agent Chapter 378 C Meeting the New Agent I put on my wolf mask and got ready to see the new agent. Millia, Vi-Vi, Timi, Shiggy, and I all got ready to make our way through the town to the agents residence. We left behind the other beasts, Cruz, and the kids. Do your best, Al! Wuff!Moo!Piggi! Cruz and the beasts cheered us on. Cruz also said to Millia, Cruz, you can just leave the store to Tantthanks. Okay. Cruz and the orphans saw us off. Millia was in front of us all. She seemed a bit tense. Millia, youre not nervous are you? Yes, I am. Arent you all? Vi-Vi looked confused and said, Noits just an agent. Not like Im visiting the crown directly. Timi stuck out her chest and said, Im stronger and greater than her! Yeah, you are. Not just me, but you too, Al! I am strong, but not really great. Youre the guardian of the great Duchess Sighisoara, right? That makes you greater than a king! I see, well I guess Id agree then. Hearing that Millia said, Are you nervous, Al? Im worried a bit that I can keep her from finding out who I am. But with this mask on, I should be okay. I see. After talking for a while, we arrived at the agents residence. There was a proper guard standing at the entrance. They were a 40 and 20 year old devil, two standing on each side. Looks like order is back again. Its almost moving to see it back. While Vi-Vi and I were whispering that to each other, Millia spoke to the guard. I am Millia of Wolf Wholesaler. I am responding to the summons given by the new agent. The older devil responded to her. Thank you foring. And who is behind you? My guard and a guest. A guard? By guard she meant Vi-Vi. She was a very thin, young, girl. Nothing like a guard. It wasnt strange that the older devil thought theres no way she could be a guard. Shes an excellent magician. Oh, a magician. He seemed to understand that though. There were many proficient devil magicians. The guard was on as well, so he understood that. Why have you brought them to the agents questioning? She was the one that captured those that are in the jail presently, so I thought she would be helpful if the agent has any questions That is well understood. And the guest? Without waiting for Millias introduction, Timi stepped forwards and said, I am Timisoara. I am a viscount ancient dragon. I havee to greet the newly arrived agent. The young devil guard jumped, What? An ancient dragon?! No way! Hey! Hold your tongue! The older guard said in strong voice to the younger. It was very impolite to doubt the identity of royal or ancient blood. Mistress Timisoara, I give my humblest apologies. It is of no matter. I must remain a human in this ce. Theres no way he would believe me, anyway. The ancient dragon was a legendary, almost mythical beast. Of course the younger guard doubted. But if he wants to see, I can return to my form here. N, no need! Really? Alright If she did return to a dragon, the ce would be in shambles. Thats why the older guard freaked out. The older guard had the younger run inside the building to tell the agent that we had arrived. Thank you for being so tolerant of him, your majesty. And this is? The guard looked at me. The person in that mask is Alra. He is a follower of mine. Understood. As soon as the guard returns from notifying the agent, I will see you in. After that, and without waiting long, they showed us in. Both guards left their posts. It was more important to show Timi in than guard the ce. Thats how big of a deal Timi was. Without Timi being there, we probably would have to wait a while. So we were taken to a waiting room. Even though the agent had just arrived, no one had really cleaned the ce. I could tell they swept it over, but there was still dust here and there. They still havent cleaned everything. Look at the dust! And like a impertnent sister-inw, she smudged her finger over a dusty shelf. Yeah, I think its the most important to clean this ce first. No need to have a dirty abode for an ancient dragon. However, the agent never thought that one would visit. There was nothing to be done but just take the slightly repugnantck of care. As we were talking it over, we heard argeBababababoom. The waiting room opened. Thank you for waiting. Our greatest apologies for all the dust. She had a strong entrance and spoke grandly to us, this mid-20s woman. She had on very beautiful metal armor and a scabbarded sword. She also had a golden ponytail that flowed down her back. Millia looked lost but said, Uh, um Havent introduced myself. I am Belda Lingen. I have been entrusted Elkay by the crown. Millia quickly took a knee and bowed. Vi-Vi did as well. However, Timi and I didnt move. Lingen was a name of the royalty. I am Millia. I run the Wolf Wholesaler. Raise your head. Shows character for someone as young as you to be running it. Thank you very much. And what about the Mistress Viscount? Saying this, she gazed over at Timi and I, who remained motionless to her presence. Chapter 379 - The Agent’s Questioning Chapter 379 C The Agents Questioning Timisoara glided into the room following Beldas steps. I am Duchess Timisoara of the ancient dragon throne. Thank you for having me. It is my honor to receive such a distinguished dragon as yourself. They then sped hands in greeting briefly. And this person in the lion mask is my follower, Alra. It is my pleasure, Alra. The pleasure is all mine. After the appropriate greetings were finished, Belda said, I have heard that you have suppressed someone that attempted to take the title of Demon Lord. The crown sends his deepest thanks. Hm? How did youe to find out about that information? I heard that viscounts Linmia and Langow, as well as you, aided in his capture. Linmia was Yureenas family name, Langow was Lukas. Seems like the information left me out of the story. Well, theres no mistake in the information. Other adventurers in Elkay helped as well. I didnt do much, myself. Is that so? I have to thank these adventurers and your followers, though. Belda was a beautiful woman with a long, blonde ponytail. She spoke a bit like a man, though. She had hidden her royal heritage and had risen in the ranks of the knights to vice-chief, as a woman. I guess thats why she spoke a bit roughly. Please, Viscount Timi, please be seated along with your follower. Thank you.Thank you very much. Millia, please sit as well. Thank you very much. After having us sit down, she had Millia sit as well. It wasnt normal for amoner like Millia to be offered a seat by an agent like this, however. And Vi-Vi was left to stand, as she was the guard. After speaking to Timi for a bit, Belda then spoke to Millia. Id like you to exin who those people in the jail are. They were under the employ of the so-called Demon Lord, and were given exclusive ess to buy and sell all goods to and from Elkay. Oh? Millia also exined the crimes they hadmitted. She was very intelligent, so she exined every charge very clearly. Belda listened to it all silently. I see. I have many things to askbut I wonder which to ask first. She thought a bit, then said, My workers have found that the condition here in Elkay has improved quite a bit. This is mainly due to the Wolf Wholesaler. I must thank you as the crowns agent. No need to say. It is our pleasure. However, this Wolf WholesalerIve never heard of before. It was only created a bit ago. A bit ago? Why did you choose such a name, Millia? I did so at the bequest of Linmia Trading. Oh, Linmia Trading? And the capital for this store? Oh, it came from Marquise Conradine. Oh! The fabled hero! For her to give her own money to the people of Elkay like that! Quite generous of her. Belda looked genuinely moved. She then moved on to the fighting power of the wholesaler in the jail. To be honest, my guard and the viscounts follower might have more information than me. Belda looked over to me. Then Id like to hear it. She also looked at Vi-Vi. A direct answer is fine. No need for pleasantries. After I exined about the wholesalers guards and zombie army, Belda looked stunned. A zombie army of orcs and ogres?! Yes, 14 orcs and 15 ogres. You did well to dispose of them. It would be a difficult job even for the dragon knights. Its my follower, after all. Timi said proudly. I see. With a follower of the ancient dragon viscount, I guess it is of no surprise. Belda said, with me adding, Viscount Langow was also here in Elkay, fighting. I would expect that from that holy maiden as well. Belda said, nodding. From when was Luka called the holy maiden before? I had never heard it. Timi said to Belda, After the so-called Demon Lord and his demon adviser were defeated, we also went around with the adventurers to find and purge the zombies from the town. In other words, that wholesaler in the jail was using them as his own minions. and that heavy crime will be repaid heavily, I can assure you. One of the two seemed to have quite the skill in changing people into zombies. She continued peppering us all with many questions. I could feel that Belda was going to treat themunity of Elkay fairly, though. She looked very serious about her responsibility. She also ended up paying the adventurers that watched the jail herself. With one segment of questioning done, she ordered refreshments to be brought in. Tea and food will be brought in. You may all be seated now. Vi-Vi then looked to take a seat. May I? Certainly. Even though she was a royal, she was quite rxed. The public questioning about the affair was over. Thats why she didnt allow Vi-Vi to be seated. However, now she would ask us questions off the record. I thought it was a good choice to ask whatever else in a more rxed way. The snacks were brought out, and Shiggy was looking intently at them from inside my pouch. She could smell theming. quiet. I whispered to her. She stayed quiet. She was very smart for a baby. I would give her a lot to eatter. We had the snacks, drank tea, and Belda continued with the questioning. Oh? You know another ce with good food like this? Id love to try it. I guess it was more like smalltalk than questioning. However, she still was searching for information. She was a very sociable royal. Chapter 380 - The Agent and the Dragon Chapter 380 C The Agent and the Dragon Belda continued to question us, though it seemed like small talkdoing well to get important information without looking like it. And with discussion of food came talks of how Elkay was supplied. From that, came the discussion about the orphans of Elkay. So youre raising the orphans while teaching them about running a store? Its not that big a deal. Theyre just helping us out. Dont be so humble! If theres any way I can help, let me know. Thank you very much. So the conversation now shifted from orphans to thugs and the empty houses. After talking about that, Belda finished and sighed. I prepared myself when the crown assigned me to the town of Elkay, but it seems many of the problems I worried over are now solved. Then she bowed deeply to us. Millia, being just amoner having a royal bow to her, was shocked, and suddenly said, Madam! No need to act that way! It is my thanks to you. If you werent here, many more in Elkay would have died. We just did what we could Its not just did. Anyway, I hope you continue doing whatever you can. Were all pleased to help. Then Belda looked over at Timi. Viscount Timisoara. Thank you again as well. Sure. As far as I can tell, I have no reason to object to you, so I wish you the best as well. Thank you very much. But she did look a bit confused. Ahem! Is something wrong? Well, I was wondering, what does Alra think? With this timing and this question, it might mean that she wanted to introduce Shiggy. Of course, since she was asking me, she wanted me to make the determination. I think you are right, Timisoara. Heh, I see. So with that permission, Timiughed a bit. Sighisoara,e out. ryaa Shiggy came out from my pocket and looked around. Shiggy,e to your aunt. ryaa So Shiggy crawled over and then ran up to where Timi was sitting. Timi held Shiggy in her arms. Seeing this, Belda froze up, Wwhat? Is that?! She couldnt think of what to say in her surprise. Sshes so cute! It seems that Belda had never seen something so cute as Shiggy. Oh well. Sighisoara, have something to eat. ryamm ryamm Timi lifted a snack to Shiggys mouth, and Shiggy quickly ate it. She should refrain from it while were talking, but she still ate away. Need some tea? ryaa So Timi put some tea in a cup in front of Shiggy, which Shiggy picked up in her hands. Dont drop any. ryaaa Even so, the little that leaked from Shiggys mouth Timi happily wiped away with a cloth. Belda watched the whole thing and said, Vviscount Timisoara! What is it? Is it okay if I hold your niece? What do you think, Alra? As long as Shiggy says its okay. For an instant, Belda looked at me. Timi didnt seem to mind, but just smiled. What do you think Shiggy? ryaa She cried out happily, then she pped her wings. Sighisoara thinks its okay. Thank you very much. Belda reached out her hands a bit timidly. And rubbed Shiggys back. Its such warm dragon. ryaaa She fed it some snacks while she continued to rub it. After eating, Shiggy grabbed onto Beldas finger. Wha? ryaa? Shiggy then held out a snack for Belda. Youre giving it, to me? ryaa Thank you. Belda took the snack in hand as if it were something very expensive. Almost like something shed treasure forever. And so the agent and the dragon were met. Chapter 381 - The Agent and the Ancient Dragon Chapter 381 C The Agent and the Ancient Dragon Timiughed when she saw Belda act so. Its your snack. If you dont eat what Shiggy offers you, shell be sad. Yyoure rightthen I will. She tasted it slowly at first, then ate it down. While Belda ate it, Timi continued, as if talking to herself, Seeing Shiggy like that almost makes me forget about my sister, the archduchess. Wha? In other words, Shiggys the current duchess. Of the six grand pirs of the ancient dragons, one. We owe our loyalty to all of them. These ancient dragons, close to gods, didnt consider their leaders heads or beings, but pirs, showing their respect for the throne. All the other dragons were counted as heads or beings, but the duchesses were seen as pirs. gulp Belda, without thinking, loudly swallowed the snack. She then got down from her seat and bowed on knee to Shiggy. Duchess of the ancient dragons. I regret my rudeness, though I had no idea. Please forgive me. ryaaa She is grateful for your humility. Timi said to Belda. But Shiggy is still an infant. Nowhere near as strong as me. Because of this, please keep her existence secret. Yes, I will. If someone were to hear that the duchess of the ancient dragons were here, some unsavory characters might gather. It was a bad idea to let anyone know about Shiggy unless you had theirplete trust. Timi again tried to feed Shiggy, but Shiggy passed the snack back over to Belda. Ah, thank you Ryaaa! I appreciate it greatly. Shiggy then bowed three times toward Belda. Hm, well, Miss Belda. I think perhaps you should hold Shiggy yourself. However Shiggy was the ancient dragon duchess, so near to a god, really. You had to pay utmost respect, even if you were a human and a royal. I think Shiggy would be happy that way.ryaaa If thats so Timi then fed another snack to Shiggy and asked, Do you like dragons, Belda? Yes, I am a member of the dragon knights, after all. The dragon knights? Ive heard of them, but how are they different from regr knights? The dragon knights are knights of dragons, in other words, they are knights whose mounts are dragons. I seeso you ride dragons? Timi seemed quite interested. Belda quickly realized that Timi might feel quite unhappy about fellow dragons being ridden by humans. Belda scrambled to exin the situation. Oof course these dragons are a c,pletely different species that a, ancient dragons! Oh? Timi seemed to not understand why Belda was suddenly so nervous. Seems like a perfectly normal thing to her. Timi thought it was an obvious fact. Even though ancient dragons and other dragons were of the same shape, in reality they werepletely different. Something like a cow and a human both being mammals, butpletely separate. Timi rubbed Shiggys head and said, So, it could be said that since youre a dragon knight, you like dragons. Yes, Im still part of their group even now. So you havent quit them just to be Elkays agent? Im still registered in service as one of their knights. Belda was still the vice-chief of the dragon knights, even as an agent. Timi looked over to Vi-Vi. Perhaps she rides dragons much as your sister, Vallimie, rides a dragon? My sister rides Rai all the time. Hardly ever rides Doby. Vi-Vi said, but now since Rais wife was pregnant, he was quite busy. So if she needed to get somewhere, shed ride Toby for sure. I see. That reminded me that yes, Ive only ever seen her ride Rai. Dobby was Vallimies favorite great dragon. And Rai was her massive lion. Belda was confused by all of this and asked, Who is this Vallimie you speak of? A magician who keeps a great dragon as a pet. Do you know of Lindobal Forest? Ah, the ruler of Lindobal Forest? I had no idea that she kept a great dragon. Shes quite a strong magician. I heard that the ruler of Lindobal was a famed magicianbut not that strong. Belda sounded rather impressed. Timi then said, wondering, Do the dragon knights ride great dragons? No, theyre very difficult to manage so Oh? So what kind of dragons do you ride? Most of the knights ride wyverns, one group lesser dragons, another smaller group elder dragons. Wyverns were quite weak dragons. They were very quick fliers, though. Lessers were the lowest ss of proper dragons, but stronger than wyverns. Elders were seen as grown dragons, they were quiterge. Many saw them as an upper ss of dragon. That said, elders were still weakpared to great dragons. And ancient dragons far out-ssed great dragons. What about yours, Belda? An elder dragon. Oh, very good. Timi nodded as she heard. She assumed that Belda was quite high in the dragon knights. And it was impressive for a woman in her 20s to achieve the position of vice-chief. After the conversation, she found that Belda had also brought some dragon knights to Elkay. Do you have an elder dragon here? Id like to see it. Would you? Then I can show you Timi seemed very interested in Beldas elder dragon. Belda had raised the dragon herself, after all. Chapter 382 - The Dragon Jearl Chapter 382 C The Dragon Jearl After Shiggy and the others finished with the refreshments, Timi asked, Miss Belda, I would love to meet your dragonmay I? Of course, Ill show you right away. So we moved out to the dragon stable where the dragons were held. And when I say dragon stable, it was justrge barn with open walls and a roof for horses. Since there were no walls, there was no protection from wind or cold. The previous agent had no dragons, so the dragons were just ced in there like horses. Seeing Belda approach, one dragon jumped and started wagging its tail. Gaaah! Calm down. This is my baby, Jearl. Belda tenderly petted the dragon. Timi looked over the stable and said, There are no walls here. Dont they get cold? Yes, we just had nowhere else to put them. There were few carpenters and materials, after all. Well, there were carpenters. There were definitely other things to take care of in Elkay first, however. I thought it was sad as well and wanted to make a special ce for them, but with Elkay having a broken gate and bridgeswell I guess youre right. And as an agent of the crown, she was concerned with the lives of her popce first. Also, a strong elder dragon like this wasnt going to be hurt easily by cold. It was still cold, thoughsad to see the dragon in this way. Hmmm. Timi seemed to groan as she looked over the dragon stable. Even Shiggy popped her head out to look around. ryaaa She then put out her hand towards Jearl. She was interested in the dragon. You want to be friends with Jearl? I got closer and Shiggy grabbed on to the end of Jearls beak. Gaaah Jearl put its tail between its legs and backed up, hitting the wall behind it. Jearl was scared of Shiggyit made you feel bad for the elder dragon. Seems like the dragons nervous. I guess you two can yter. ryaaa I pushed Shiggy down into the pouch, and since Shiggy realized she was scaring the elder dragon, she obeyed. She might have been a bit sad, though. I rubbed her through the pouch. On the other hand Belda struggled to calm her dragon down. Wwhat is it? Jearl? To see a brave dragon put its tail between its legs like that! Its the first time! I asked her, Is Jearl always brave? Yes. Even against strong magical monsters, Jearl doesnt shrink back a bit. Hearing this Timi came closer and rubbed the dragons head. Youre brave, huh? You dont have to be afraid of Shiggy or me at all. Gaahh Timi smiled at the trembling Jearl. See? Nothing to be afraid of. gaahaaahhh SPLISSSHHHHH Timi was rubbing Jearl kindly, but Jearl groaned a bit and urinated all over the ground. And just like an elder dragon, it was a lot of pee. Timi, leave the dragon alone for a bit. YyesI apologize. I didnt think the dragon would be that afraid, though. Timi frowned and bowed a bit to Belda and Jearl. Nno need. You did nothing wrong. Its just Jearls instincts, after all. No, I should have been more attentive. While Timi was apologizing, now Vi-Vi was rubbing the dragons snout. I know how you feel. Ancient dragons are very strong. I knew the Vi-Vi of all of them understood Jearls feelings. gaahhh You have to get used to them though. I did my best to get used to them, Jearl. Vi-Vi said, trying tofort Jearl. Vi-Vi had worked hard to be able to take Femms roar without peeing herself as well. In order to do so, she had forced herself to stand up to Femms bark over and over. I found the strength to stand up to it. Youll do so too. Gaaah. Jearl wasnt scared of Vi-Vi at allin fact the dragon rxed. Timi looked at me and said, Alra, Id like this dragon in a proper stableis there anything you can do? ryaa Seems both of them thought the dragon was having a hard time. And maybe a little sad they had scared Jearl. With some y, I guess I can do anything. Timi looked very happy when I said that. Really? Great, Alra! Do you have some dirt around here we could make a stable with? Ah, yes, I guess soTheres not a lot of supplies for carpentry though. If theres dirt, than just leave it to Alra. Timi said, looking proudly at me. Belda didnt know what was going on, but told me a good ce to build a dragon stable. It was right near the agents house, in the ruins of a mansion. I didnt know why the mansion was destroyed. It must have been some evil plot of the so-called Demon Lord, or maybe during the war with the real Demon Lord. We went back to Wolf Wholesalers from the ce and asked Millia, We need supplies to build a dragon stable. Do you have anything that will help? I dobut Al, are you buying from your own pocket? I guess so. Wait, Alra, Ill pay for it. Vi-Vi said, If you need wood you can just ask my sister to provide. I guess so, Vallimie does have a whole forest. Yeah! Well just ask her what part needs to be thinned out. Okay, then to Vallimie it is! Yeah! So we saw Cruz and the kids inside the store as well, and then went to Lindobal to buy some wood from Vallimie. Chapter 383 - The Children of Wolf Wholesaler Chapter 383 C The Children of Wolf Wholesaler Cruz was just sitting in front of the firece with Moofy and Femm, staring at the fire. On the other hand, Tant was talking to customers. Of the lumber we have, pick what you desire from here. Ah, thank you. When do you think the shipment will be in? Probably from tomorrow. Wonderful. Well, Ill see you then. Tant had be a very efficient salesgirl. And behind her the other orphans were running around, helping. The merchant noticed Milliaing in with us and greeted her, Wee back! Tant and the others greeted her as well. They all are doing a great job. Yes, they help quite a bit. Millia said with a smile, as Tant blushed. We still have to work harder. No, take a rest, youre doing fine. Sure. I looked at Cruz. She was just sitting next to the firece, and then she jumped up, Al! Wee back! WuffMoo moo The beasts ran over and I petted them. Hey guys, thanks for taking care of Cruz. Then I exined about the agent, and the kids ran over. Lion mask Cruzwhat is this? Huh? What? Oh this Thanks. Seems like Cruz wasnt just zoned out in front of the firece. She was teaching them this and that as she sat there. But she still had her mask on. So I said to Millia, Seems like Cruz is teaching them things too. Yes, and Steff also helps them back at Toms houseso Just recently Tom, Kay, and the orphans started learning; their learning speeds being different. So, in order to make their learning differences closer, Cruz and Steff helped the ones behind. Vi-Vi said proudly, I can teach them anytime too. Oh, that would help. Thanks, Vi-Vi. Vi-Vi was a bit of an academic. She had studied magic so much, after all. She probably wouldnt have any problems as a teacher. I never thought Cruz could teach much, though. Are you teaching them well, Cruz? Of course! I have things to teach them with Thats great, Cruz. I can help them with you. Yeah, thanks, Vi-Vi. So Vi-Vi moved to the back of the group of kids and said, Are you studying? Yeah! Vi-Vi, I did this! Wow! Eheh heh. Millia was also talking to Tant. Thanks for taking care of the store. Ill take over so take a break. Sure! Tant joined the other kids, studying instead of resting. You should take a break ,Tant. But I have time to study! Seems she was quite interested in school. It was refreshing, but maybe better if she rested. Vi-Vi was thinking the same, Okay everyone, time for snacks. Yaay! Yay! Ill get some tea! They were all ready to stop work and rest. The kids were very happy. I think Vi-Vi picked the perfect time for the break. ryaa ryaa Shiggy popped out from the pouch and cried out happily. She then flew over to Vi-Vi. Huh? Snacks?! Yay! The kids with Cruz also got up. Moo mooPiggGi Moofy and Chel came over too. Femm was just seated, waiting. You can have some too, Femm. Im not a kid. But the kids will be happy if you join them, right? I guess then I should. So Femm barked with a ruffand joined the kids. I sat in front of the firece and exined the situation to Cruz as she ate. The new agent and Jearl as well. Seems that the kids and beasts were interested in hearing about Jearl. Then she listened to what the kids were talking about. I had warmed up enough in front of the firece, so I told Millia, Okay, time to go to Lindobal Forest Oh, yeah. Can I leave it all to you? You certainly can. We were off to Lindobal forest to by wood from Vallimie. Since she was our friend, it made everything easier. We wouldnt need Millia with us. Will we need stone to be bought? NoI think lumber is enough. Understood. We headed off to Toms and Timi told us, Ill go with you. Sure. M, me too!Wuff!Moo moo!ryaa?Piggi! Cruz and the beasts were ready to go too, but they were still eating snacks. Of course, they were confused at what to do next. Well be right back, just stay and eat with Cruz. Ssure! Moo!Wuff!PiGGi!ryaa ryaa! It seems the beasts still wanted toe with me. They all ran up to me. Ill go with you! Vi-Vi wanted to go because Lindobal was her home. I knew why she wanted to go. Okay, lets go then. Its not a sightseeing trip, though. So Timi, Vi-Vi, and the beasts and I went to Toms Cruz stayed and watched over the children. Chapter 384 - Doby of Lindobal Chapter 384 C Doby of Lindobal Tom, Kay, and Steff were in Toms house. They noticed me, and Kay ran up, ecstatic, Wee home old man! Im back. She ran over and petted all the beasts in order. The beasts were quite happy. Also, she pet Shiggy, who was still in my pouch. Wait, wheres lion mask? Cruz is at Wolf Wholesaler. I have something to attend to that wont take long. Okay! Kay squeezed my right arm while Vi-Vi was holding onto my left arm. Are you studying well, Kay? Yes! Tom looked at me. Are you going to use the magic circles? Sure are. Then Steff asked me, Master, can I help? Im fine, but thanks. Arent you teaching these two? No, were taking a break. I see. Kay then said proudly, See? I can add now. I can write too. Wow, thats great! Look, old man! She then wrote her name out for me. It was scrawled in kid-like letters, but it was correct. Pretty good for a four year old. Thats really good! Great! Eheh heh I looked over at the table theyd been studying on. I saw Toms work there as well. He was doing wellquite a bit ahead of Kay. Youre doing well too, Tom. Steffs been showing me how to do things as well. He said, and blushed a bit. Thank you Steff. No problem, Im learning magic from you, after all! Steffs tail wagged a bit. Timi patted Kays head, Keep it up, you two. Okay! They said back to Timi. Then, we made our way off to Lindoball. I took off my mask. We made our way back to the Lindobal circle, where, Gyaa gyaa Dobby was happily waiting, and greeted us. He bent down and I petted his head. You look happy. Gyaa Dobby was the great dragon that Vallimie kept as a pet. He had recovered from illness at Mulg as well. Youve gotten used to humans. Vi-Vi said, tapping Doby in the stomach. Dobby looked happily at her. With that said, the beasts all appeared as well. Chel was on top of Femm. WuffMoo mooPiggGi Femm and Moofy sniffed at Doby. Chel rode on Femms head and jiggled around. Chel was probably trying to sniff Doby as well. After all that was done, Timi arrived. Gyaa gyaa Toby suddenly became very upset. Timi walked over and touched Toby to rx him. Im d to see youre good, Toby. gyaa Toby fell on his back and showed her his stomach. Timi rubbed his stomach and Toby shuttered. Toby was very scared of her, after all. I thought he had gotten used to her, but I guess he was still very scared. As a living dragon, he knew that ancient dragons were at the apex of their group. Timi, hes still scared of ancient dragons? Yeah, I think youre right. But theres nothing I can do. Timi said and took a step away. I remembered how Beldas mount Jearl had reacted. Doby, dont be scared of Timi, shes okay ryaa I patted him on the head, and Shiggy jumped up on his belly. gyaaa Doby didnt seem afraid of Shiggy. He had yed with Shiggy a lot and was used to her. He put his finger up to Shiggy. ryaa ryaa Shiggy grabbed his finger and held tight. Im d theyre so close. Yeah. Timi nodded, satisfied. I just stood back and watched them. Before Doby was taken by a demon and left to starve. Toby got a bit fatter. I guess hes been eating well. Because of the scales that dragons had, it was hard to tell how fat they had gotten. But after touching Doby I could tell. It was because of Vallimie that he was in such good spirits and very happy. Timi walked up beside me and started petting Doby as well. Youre right Gyaa I could feel the dragon jump a but, but he wasnt as scared as before. Maybe because I told him not to be scare, but it might have been that he got used to her. Either way was fine with me. I kept talking to Doby, Doby, we came to see Vallimiewhere is she? gyaaa He got up and started walking. I guess hed show us. Shiggy flew back into my pouch. The beasts followed us as well. This time Chel was riding on top of Moofy. PiggI! PiggGi!Moo moo Moofy and Chel were pretty happy because of all the green surrounding them in Lindobal Forest. We came to an opening and there was a wooden building there. It was simple and un decorated, but huge. And inside it, I guessed was Vallimie. Chapter 385 - Doby’s Hospitality Chapter 385 C Dobys Hospitality There were many magic circles written inside the building. I guessed that Vallimie had written them to increase the strength of the ce. Those are some great circles, older sis! Vi-Vi said as she happily looked the over. I then asked Doby, Is Vallimie inside there? gyaa gyaa Doby nodded his head like crazy. Timi petted him and said, Thank you, Doby. gyaa gyaa He was still scared. He jumped when she touched him. I dont know this building, though. Is it a new one? I think it is. gyaaa I couldnt tell what Doby meant from his reaction. Well, in my dragon form, I couldnt fit in itmaybe Moofy in her gian form could. Yeah, it is big. Its smaller than my sisters castle, but bigger than Als house. Way bigger. As we were talking it over, GAAAAAAAAAH We heard a loud howl. There was magic mixed into it. Vi-Vi and Doby both jumped. Timi looked confused. Is that Rai? Sounds like it, but different. I guess so Femms tail was standing straight up, and Femm said, Thats a scared sounding cry. Its not Rai? No, different. Never heard it before but it sounds scared. Its probably Lee.Vi-Vi said. Lees Rais wife, right? Yeah, it might be that she just had a child. I see. Well, thats how life is. We did just hear that Lee was pregnant and almost ready to deliver. I didnt have any idea how long it took a magical dragon to give birth to a child, but it wouldnt be strange if it was around now. It might be that Vallimie made this ce for them I guess we shouldnt get any closer to investigate. Yeah, lets just ask my older sister for the wood. Sure. Lets go. Animals defend their young with rage, so I didnt want to get involved with Lees childbirth. Especially a mother that just gave birth to an infant. There was no reason for someone to bother an animal that had just given birth, even if its just a dog or a cat. I mean, a human or devil like Vi-Vi, or Moofy wasnt so bad, but we had a carnivore like Femm with us as well. In addition, we had a massively powerful ancient dragon with us as well. Lee might be frightened by that. So we decided to retreat back into the building with the magic circles. When she calms down, Im sure we can see the baby tiger. Yeah. ryaa ryaa Shiggy wanted to see it too. She pped her wings happily. So as we walked back, gyaa ggyaaa What is it Doby? gyaaa Dobby was asking us to go a certain way. He pulled at my arm. We walked until we came to another building. Seeing it, Vi-Vi said, This is Dobys home. I seethanks for showing it to us. gyaaa He opened the door and pointed inside. So we entered. The ce was made to house a great dragon like Doby. The inside was veryrge and had a bit of a strange smell. It wasnt really a smell that I liked or disliked, just different. Femm, Moof, and Chel all rxed. Vi-Vi got off of Moofys back and kicked back as well. gyaaa Seeing that we had seated ourselves, Doby cleaned up a little. Then, after looking for something, he got some raw meat and fruit and brought it to us. gya gyaaa Is this for us? gyaaa-aaa I guess it was. Seems like Doby was quite polite for a dragon. Thank you! And saying thanks we petted Doby. gyaagyaa Doby happily wagged his tail. The beasts all split and consumed the meat. Moofy, Timi, Vi-Vi and I ate the fruit. They were apples and oranges. Fruit, even in the winter? You can get them different times of the year here. I see I guessed that with all the magic that Vallimie used, she probably had some magic orchards as well. Timi peeled back an orange and ate it while petting Doby. This is good, Doby. gyaa gyaaa Even now, when Timi touched Doby, he tensed up a bit. He didnt jump or shiver at being touched though. I guess he was getting used to Timi. ryaaa Shiggy finished eating and flew up and on top of Dobys head. Then she started to pet Dobys head. Shiggys saying her thanks. gyaa gyaa Doby happily wagged his tail. Then Timi reached up and gave Shiggy a piece of orange. Shiggy happily ate it. Just then, the door to Dobys ce opened, Ah, is this where you all were?! Vallimie came into Dobys house. We were all thankful for Dobys hospitality. Chapter 386 - Vallimie’s Circumstances Chapter 386 C Vallimies Circumstances Seeing Vallimie, Doby jumped up happily. Shiggy was still riding on his head, too. gyaa gyaa ryaa ryaa Doby rubbed his huge face into Vallimie, asking for her to pet him. At the same time, Shiggy jumped over to on top of Vallimies head. Okay, okaythanks foring too, Shiggy. Vallimie rubbed Shiggy with one hand and Doby with the other. Then she came and sat in front of us. Thanks foring. Im sorry I couldnt make myself immediately avable. Were sorry for not letting you know. You cane whenever! You came near to where Rai was, right? You noticed? Yes. Lee cried out, and I wondered why, and then Rai told me. Oh, so you were inside that ce. Yes, Ive been with those two a lottely. I guess Lee did really feel that we were bothering her. Then Vallimie and Rai had worked to calm her down. Sorry about that. Dont worry about it. Vallimie had left Rai to calm Lee and hade to meet us. Even so, you did well to know that we were here. Its because you went towards the magical circle room without Dobying back afterwards. I guess when nothing else was happening, Doby would always be around Vallimie. He really did love her. Youd always see him run up to her when she returned to Lindobal. So I took a look at Dobys house. I see. He was very hospitable to us. Saying that, we showed her the fruit he gave us. Femm also took the meat to show her as well. He gave me some meat. PiGGiMoo moo Hes a very smart dragon, sister. Yeah, he is a great, great dragon. So everyone said their thanks and praised Doby. Vallimie petted Doby once more. gyaaa Doby was a little embarrassed. He put his tail in both of his hands and hid his face with it. Yeah, youre a wonderful great dragon! gyaaa Then Timi looked at him seriously and said, I agree. Usually great dragons arent this intelligent. Timi was quite open about how she felt. So I asked Vallimie, So that reminds me, did Rai and Lee have a baby? Not yet Vallimies answer seemed strange as time had passed since we were told Lee was going to deliver. Also, we thought that Lee was defensive because she had delivered a child. I guess the period of pregnancy is quite long. Well, the two arent just lionstheyre magical lions. Pregnancy takes a long time. She said, and continued. A big animal like that tends to have a long gestation. A normal cat takes two months and a normal lion takes four month. A magical lion is much bigger, so I assume it takes much longer. A magical wolf takes very long too. Femm told us. I see Not only gestation, but raising a magical animal takes long as well. Femm said, and Vallimie nodded. Yeah, just as raising a magical wolf is slower than a wolf, raising a magical lion is slower than a lion. I didnt know that. Even so, shell give birth very soon. So I guess thats why she was bothered. She was about to give birth. Thats why the two wanted to be along. Vallimie said now even she rarely visited them. Thats why Doby was wandering lonely when we came out of the magical transport circles. I guess they dont want us around before or after the birth. Vallimie said, with a lonely-soundingugh. Well, I guess we shouldnt get close to them again. Wed probably see the little lions once they had grown a bit. It was something to wait for. But it hadnt happened yet. Chapter 387 - Getting Materials Chapter 387 C Getting Materials Timi continued to rub Doby and said, You must be lonely without Rai or Vallimie to y with you. You cane to Mulg any time. gyaaa And if you want, you cane to Shiggys pce as well, okay? ryaa ryaa! G, gyaaa Shiggy cried out happily, but Doby seemed a bit reserved. It wasnt just Timi and Shiggy at the pcebut many more ancient dragons around. I dont think Doby would go to a ce so fearful as that. Even so, I tried to be gentle to Doby and said, Well, if you dont want to go to Shiggys pce, you can alwayse to Mulg. The magical wolves would love to see you. ryaa ryaa gyaaa Then Vallimie said, Is there a reason that you came to see me? Yeah, we do. I told them about the dragon stable that we nned to build in Elkay. Vallimie nodded as I exined it to her. Beside her, Doby did the same. So you need lumber in order to build it? Exactly. Do you have some left over? Well pay you whatever you need. Timi said right away. I think that Timi felt sad that she had scared Jearl and caused the dragon to pee itself. Dont worry about it. No, well pay you whatever you need. Well, if you say so Timi. After that was over, Vi-Vi said, Sister, how much do you have? Leave it to me. I have lumber and stone. Enough to sell anyone! Good to hear, sis! Al, do you need stone too? Depends on the size and amount. If I was going to build this dragon stable, Id need big wood and rocks. It would be good to just use lumber if the amount of stone wasnt enough. Let me take you to where the stone is stored so you can see for yourself. Thanks. So we left Dobys house and went with Vallimie. Thanks, Doby, for the snacks. gyaaa. Doby was happy that we had thanked him for it. After walking a little, we found about 10 storehouses all in a line. There are a lot of storehouses. I have lumber, stone, golem-building materials, and a bunch of supplies for the forest here. Do you want me to write a circle to expand the insides like I did in Mulg? If you make a circle for size expansion, one storehouse can store almost 20 times normal. After exining that to her, Vallimies eyes lit up. What? Can you!? Sure. That would make me very happy! Vallimie did look genuinely pleased. I took a look inside where she stored stone. It seemed that there was a lot and of good quality. Youve harvested stone from Lindobal forest as well Yeah, theres a quarry I get it from. Vallimie said, so apparently there was a ce in the forest for getting stone. While I was growing this forest, I had to remove somerge stones to open the way. Seems like that really piled up. Yeah, well you can sell wood a lot easier than stone. So it seems she didnt get a chance to sell them either. Can you use them for a golem? No real need. If you need a skilled golem, you choose metal; if you need a cheap golem, you choose wood. She was an expert ,after all. Shed use whatever golem matched the task. Sell the stone to me then. Sure! You can pay me by expanding my store houses! Really? Sure, and if you need more for the work, I can pay with more stone. No, but if you have mortar on hand Certainly! Hearing that Timi said, I can help with the expansion as well. Thanks. So I took what I could and put it in my magical bag. After that, I said, Okay, time to expand this storehouse. What, youre going to do it now? I can do itter, but you dont know when Lee will give birth, right? True. And then I wont be able to be around. So thats why I can get this done now. Well, then, thanks I walked around the storehouses to see which were best and then expanded some as payment. Chapter 388 - – Preparing the Land for the Stable Chapter 388 C Preparing the Land for the Stable After seeing the storehouses finished, Timi said, Which warehouse are going to do? Well, this one doesnt have much inside, so maybe this is the best to ce a magic circle. Yeah, what do you think, Vallimie? Im fine with any warehouse you choose. That one is perfect. Got it. We put the few things in the storehouse in a magical bag. After that, I started writing an expansion circle. I wrote all the script about expansion, Vi-Vi wrote in status stability, and Timi added some ancient dragon magic while Shiggy was on her head. Shiggy, this stops any shock from hurting the storehouse. ryaa! And heat! ryaa ryaa! And this too! Shiggy got happier and happier which made Timi get more and more into it. She cast more and more things because of Shiggy. Timi, you dont need to cast that much. Ah, yeah, I guess not. We didnt need to magic up this ce like a castle. So Timi ceased casting for a second. And seeing this Vallimie appreciatively said, With all the different magics youre including, its amazing none of them cancel the others out. Al and Timi are very good at magic. So are you Vi-Vi. Thats not true.Moo moo! Vi-Vi blushed after her sisterplimented her. Moofy pushed Vi-Vi with her nose as well. Youve really grown Vi-Vi I said to her, honestly. You think so? I do. Eheh heh. With that done, I ced the stuff we had taken out back in the newly expanded storeroom. That was a big help, thanks. Thanks for the stones. Give Rai and Lee our greetings. And thanks Doby! Gyaa gyaa Vallimie and Doby saw us off, and we left Lindobal forest. We went through Toms house and made our way to the agent in Elkay. Wuff wuffMoo mooPiGgi! All the beasts wanted me to take them along. No. Moo? Im not going to see Belda, just to make the stable. Yeah, Moofy.said Vi-Vi. If someone asks who you are, just say youre a follower of mine. Since Timi was ancient dragon royalty, she was outside humanw. If she said anything about anyone, her word would have to be taken seriously. Well, I guess you can alle with then. Wuff!Moo!PigGgi The beasts all looked happy now. I guess they could find something to do while I created the stable. I made sure my mask was on before I left though. We also stopped by the Wolf Wholesaler, heard from Millia, and left for the agent. The two guards outside looked frightened by Timis approach. Madam! Were d you have visited us! Well tell Miss Belda immediately! You may wait inside for her! No, no need. Were going to build a dragon stable for herjust let her know. Yyes maam! The older soldier said, while the younger soldier ran inside. After getting the okay, we left for the open area that Belda told us about. Timi looked the ce over and said, Quite arge ce for the ruins of some nobles. Even though Jearl is a big dragon, well make a ce big enough for him to rx in. I said, while Timi nodded deeply. Sounds good. ryaa ryaa I noticed that Shiggy nodded along with her. Smelling the area around, Femm asked, So this Jearl is a big dragon? Femm had yet to meet Jearl so Femm was trying to gauge the size that was necessary. No, smaller than Doby actually. Oh? Even so, hes bigger than a regr dragon. I see. Femm now nodded, understanding. The other beasts were checking out the area as well. Find something wrong, you two? No!No! Chel and Moofy responded quickly. Moofy also peed on the corner of the property, probably showing her territory as she was very interested in marking what was ours. Femm always seemed to shy away from things like that. If Femm did pee somewhere, all the mice or magic mice would shun the area, so I wish Femm would do the same as Moofy. You can mark the territory too, Femm. I dont do that kind of thing. Moofys urine might have an effect, but nothing like Femms. Femm, though, seemed to hate the idea of marking territory. So I guess wed have to leave it to Moofy. Chapter 389 - Checking out the Site Chapter 389 C Checking out the Site I gave up on trying to push Femm to mark the territory and asked Vi-Vi, Hey, isnt this the ruins of the mansion where the army housed the generals or something? Yeah, I think soOne of the Twelve Heavenly Disciples or something? Cant remember. She was one of the Four Sub-Bosseswell the fifth one. Of course, that was way back when the demon lords army was at peace in Elkay. When Cruz, I, and the others showed up and raided the ce, the town was prepared for war. Vi-Vi looked at me like she was recalling something in the past and said, I was one of the Sub-Bosses, but I wasnt in Elkay much. You were in charge of improving the crops. Yeah, I was. I would show up asionally if there was an important meeting or something, though. Vi-Vi actually lived in the kingdom, right on the border of the Demon King. Thats why she didnt know a lot of what was going on at Elkay. Even so, then, she had her own ce in Elkay. So, Vi-Vi what happened to your ce here in Elkay? I went to go check it out myself because I was wondering about itbut someone burned it down. I see. That might have been our fault. It probably burned when we fought the demon army. I and the magicians of the enemy got in a magical battle the burned a lot of things down. So I felt that I was responsible in a way. Dont worry. I hardly saw the ce and didnt feel any attachment to it. Ahokay. As we were talking about it, the beasts were sniffing around everywhere. They said nothing was here, but they still kept sniffing. Even Femm was examining the ce closely. ryaa ryaa Do you want to sniff, Shiggy? ryaa I guess she wanted to imitate Femm. I put her on top of Moofys head. ryaa ryaa Mooo! And so they started sniffing around together. I said to the beasts, If theres nothing there, you dont need to keep smelling, right? MoooPiGggiii Moofy and Chel looked a bit troubled. Femm then said to me, I think nothings here, but What is it? You noticed something? I think so. Hm. I did a light scan for magical sources, just in case something was around. Allow me to search too. And me. So Timi and Vi-Vi searched in their own ways. If something magical was there, we couldnt overlook it. As I was searching magically, at that moment, RYAAA! Shiggy cried out loudly from the top of Moofys head. What is it, Shiggy? What did you find? ryaa Shiggy had just dove off Moofys head and grabbed a mouse on the ground. She happily showed it to us with both of her ws. It was quiterge, almost as big as Shiggy. She held onto it tightly so it couldnt flee. ˣ! The mouse cried out loudly. Wait a second! I got closer and scooped the mouse up myself. It was obviously not a normal mouse, but a magical one. ryaa ryaa Shiggy looked upset that the mouse wasnt in her ws anymore. You did well to catch this, Shiggy. I patted her head. But this mouse is dirty and quite dangerous. ryaa I used magic to kill it. Very strange to see a magical mouse on the street. I guess Elkay has a long recovery ahead. The guild was trying to clean things up, but it was still very early. They didnt have time for things like cleaning up nests of magical mice. Maybe theres a sewer around here? I asked Femm. Femms tail stood up and looked serious. No entrance here? You sure? Oh yes. If there was one nearby, I could smell the stench. Okay. Yeah, I guess it would stink I think people could cover the stench so that it wouldnt bother the people outside. But that may not be possible to the level that Moofy and Femm couldnt find it. Timi came over and looked at the mouse, petting Shiggy, Shiggy, good job hunting. You have such a bright future! Then she looked at Vi-Vi, If theres no sewer, where would theye from? Do you have any idea, Vi-Vi? None. From what I know of Elkay there should be no magical mice here. So she also wondered where the mouse hade from. And these mice were enemies of the people of the town. Chapter 390 - Mysterious Relics Chapter 390 C Mysterious Relics Vi-Vi thought a bit, and then added, Well, I guess I dont know THAT much about Elkay though. I think I wouldnt be surprised if there was a reason for the mice. I know Just then, Femm, Moofy, and Chel came closer. If there WERE some kind of sewer, the beasts would have probably found it. True. So what does it all mean, Alra? Im thinking that theres some kind of magical block over it? Hm? We need to think about this AFTER we check the whole ce out for magic. So, thats first, Al? Got it, Alra. PigGii Timi, Vi-Vi, and Chel all answered. Then I asked Chel, The stench aside, are you able to search for dead bodies? I did! I mean, I feel with no search. Really? You are strong. This cute slime was the Death Lord, after all. Just like the Holy warrior Cruz, Chel had authority from the gods. Chel could sense the dead without even having to try. PiGGi PigGi Chel appreciated being called strong. He jiggled over and over. I put Shiggy in my pouch and put Chel on my shoulder. Watch this, Shiggy. ryaa I started searching magically and could feel a very small trace of something. Vi-Vi and Timi began searching as well. Hm? I cant find anything.Vi-Vi said. Yeah, waitwait a second.Timi said. Timi then looked very seriously at something. Alra, something over therefeel it? A small response. I thought so. Timi nodded. Vi-Vi looked a little disappointed that she hadnt felt anything. Hm? Where? Over here. I seeI guess I feel something. Seems like she detected it once she focused. It was just small enough that a seasoned magician like Vi-Vi could miss it. Its such a small response that its actually stranger. It feels like a magical tool thats been abandoned eons agosomething like that. Yeah. We moved over to where we felt itslowly, because we were careful. Vi-Vi and Timi were with me with the beasts following behind. ryaa ryaa? Piiggi Shiggy and Chel were nervous, I could tell. I ignored them and checked the ce where I felt the response. This is I found a round, steel te that was under the snow. The diameter was the length of my forearm. About the size of a small shield. I didnt smell anything metal Mooo. The both looked quite down about missing the scent. After checking out the steel cover, it seems that it was cleverly hidden, both physically and magically. It had severalyers of concealment magic cast on it. Even this close, without using magic you would never find it. Yeah, youre right I asked Femm, You cant smell anything? Nothing. Moo moo I see. Seems the beasts couldnt sense anything from the cover either. There was magic to hide the covers smell as well. With so much work done to hide this, not even the agents top magician could find it. Wonder why someone would work this hard to hide this?Vi-Vi said. Lets check. Help me out. Sure Alra. Okay. We all inspected this metal disk. The magic cast on it was made cryptic so it was hard to decipher. Shiggy watched us all very closely. After finally breaking the concealment magic, a very faint magical circle appeared. A veryplex circle. Yeah, and very thin. It is somethingwhat IS this, Alra? Vi-Vi already started reading the circle. I and Timi tried as well, but the circle was very thin. This is going to be mind-racking work. You think so too, Timi? Yes. Vi-Vi was the magic circle expert C she could solve most circles with one look. For her to say it was mind-racking work meant that it was one hell of a circle. After a bit she looked up. This is a transfer circle. She thought about it and then nodded. Apparently, thats what it was. Chapter 391 - The Strange Circle Chapter 391 C The Strange Circle I let Vi-Vi analyze the circle as she was faster than I was. Once she said that it was a transfer circle, the writing in the circle became quite obvious. I see, a transfer circle. Strange that Vi-Vi was the one to tell us. If she didnt tell me then Id still be analyzing it. You too Alra? I see. Now that shes told us it seems obvious. Timi was a bit happy that it took me a while to analyze the circle too. She then smiled and asked Timi, How did you find that this is a transfer circle? Is there something particr? Well She pointed and quickly exined how she had determined that it was a transfer circle. There were certain aspects that ur in magical text only with them. And, see, this part After exining the easy parts, she then exined how the magical circle was made. It was a very thin ring for being hidden in the ground. If you didnt train your eye, the small symbols would be unreadable. And the circle was actually huge. We were just seeing one part of it. It seems that the ring was a part of a huge magical system. Most of it continued underground. Even with me not being able to quickly decipher the ring, I didnt know most of it was underground either. After seeing Vi-Vis exnation, I was able to understand pretty much all of it. Someone like Vi-Vi could look at one part and assume what the whole system was about. Shiggy was watching and listening closely to Vi-Vi from my pouch. I wondered if she understood, as Timi said, Thats some magic circle. I was surprised at how detailed it is. I said, and Vi-Vi nodded, saying, It is, but there are ces where it can be made more effective, I think. Really? Seems that Vi-Vi had some issued with the writer of the circle. Its just way too big. This was a dozen, or maybe a hundred times bigger than her transfer circles. Hers were very small inparison to this. I wonder who made something like this. Vi-Vi said, nodding to herself. I could tell she was quite interested in the circle. However, I had noticed something else about it. I think the question iswhere is it connected to, Vi-Vi. Yeah, Al. I wonder too. You think that mouse Shiggy caught came from here? Maybe so. ryaa I petted Shiggys head. Well, lets take a look inside. Isnt that dangerous, Alra? You didnt know where unknown transfer circles would take you to. It was dangerous to just step into one. But if a magic mouse emerged from it, it would mean that it was a ce where magic mice could survive. So a ce humans could survivewed be okay. It might be dangerous, but we cant just forget about it. The ring itself was 30 times bigger than one of Vi-Vis. There were also ces not written on the outside ring that look up another dozen times her circle. Wed have to dig up a bunch of houses in order to analyze the wholework. If only we could scrape off a part of the circle and put it somewhere else. I guess a circle like this has parts unwritten that hold meaning for the whole system. Youre right, Al. It was so big, there was no way we could move it. Even so, we couldnt destroy it either. There might be some historical significance to it. We needed to know who made it. In other words, we had to find where it went. Well, then Ill go and see where it leads. You, Timi? Im an ancient dragon. Im a lot stronger than a human. She was much more adaptable to environments than a human. The ancient dragons pces were put in ces nearly uninhabitable. Shiggys pce was at the pole, and there were others at the bottom of the sea and on mountaintops. They were purposefully put in ces where no humans live. Okay, then go ahead, Timi. Sure, leave it to me. Be careful! When you find out where you are,e back. I know. She made the circle move and went inside. Then we were enveloped in silence. I guess we could rely on someone stronger like Timi. Chapter 392 - Planning the Dragon Stable Chapter 392 C nning the Dragon Stable We all watched Timi silently jump into the magic portal. After about 20 seconds, the circle lit up again and Timi returned. ryaa ryaa Shiggy jumped out of my pouch and flew over to her. She was happily wagging her tail. Just that alone makes you rx. I bet she was happy Timi was back. Phew, well thats over. Did you miss your Aunt Timi, Shiggy? ryaaa She hugged onto Shiggy and patted her head. Timi, were d youre back safe. What was the other side like? Well, it was definitely a ce humans could live. Let me see too then. I said, while Vi-Vi asked Timi seriously, Was the other side some man-made ce? No. I didnt check everything, but a cavernor maybe a dungeon? I seewas there a strong feeling enemies are there? No, nothing special like that. I guess I went there and came right back, so maybe there is. I thought it over. It was one hour until sundown. I think maybe itd be better to check out tomorrow. Even soif its a dungeon or a cavern, you dont need to worry about sunlight. No difference between day or night, so no problem. Maybe we should check it out. Waitif theres no immediate enemy, then we can just leave the portal sealed. We can check it out tomorrow. Timi thought a bit and said, I think its sad to leave Jearl freezing for another night. So we sealed the portal and went back to building the stable. We would have to hurry if we were going to get it done. After I sealed the portal, I said to everyone, Theres little time until sundown, so lets hurry. Okay! Leave it to me! ryaa ryaa Vi-Vi, Timi, and Shiggy all answered. I looked over the size of the future stable in my mind and marked it on the ground. It would be a simple structure. Nothing like my house. Just four walls and a roof, with a door and maybe some windows. Timi takes out the stone and lets fit them to suit the stable. Understood. Ill line them up, so you put mortar on them, Vi-Vi. Leave it to me! I took everything out of my magic bag andid it out, and Vi-Vi said, Looks like she gave us more than enough mortar. Yeah, its really helpful. Nothing changes after being put in my magic bag. You could p the mortar right on and not have to remix it. Because of that, we really appreciated Vallimie. It made the process much faster. When did Vallimie mix this mortar up? Maybe while we were writing a magic circle for her storehouse? I lined up the stones that Timi had cut into small bricks. Vi-Vi then applied the mortar. Then we lined them up on top of the previous line. You cut these very well, Timi. You think? Im d then. Timi had cut the stone to perfect size. About half the size of a human. Also she cut little indentations so they fit into each other easily. If you put them together, you could stack the blocks without them falling over. Shiggy, you can cut blocks easily with this magic! ryaaa! Shiggy was on Timis head, watching her work. Alra, are blocks like this safe? Yeah, just stacking them seems to take up time. Im d you can use that gravity magic, because theres no way I could lift any of these up! After talking about that, we moved the blocks around and finished the job. I had experience from making my house, the wolf house, the storage house, and so on. I was used to it actually, so it seemed like I took a breath and was done. Let me show you my power by doing the roof. Okay. Shiggy. Youre aunts going to do something great! ryaa! Shiggy was really excited, so Timi looked at us proudly. Timi fused together a massive stone nk for the roof. She used magic to heat and bend it into an arch. Can you lift it onto the stable? Sure. Leave it to me. I lifted the roof with gravity magic. Timi jumped on and from the roof, reached down and applied some mortar to it. The roof was finished quite quickly. Looks good! Impressive we could finish it that quickly. Now to write the magic circles! I was looking the stable over when I heard a voice behind me. Whoaaa. I saw Belda standing there, surprised. Chapter 393 - Belda’s Visit Chapter 393 C Beldas Visit Belda was patrolling the town so she brought three strong looking devils with her. She was a superior knight, but as an agent she needed a guard as well. Timi spoke to her, saying, Ah, you got here with perfect timing. SShiggy Belda had noticed Shiggy standing on top of Timis head. Shiggy was cute, so I understood why Belda liked her so much. Belda?ryaa? Ah, sorrykind of lost my train of thought. She said, wiping the bottom of her mouth. She was about to drool? Timi looked at Belda and said, Are you all right? I am. Even so, seeing the stableplete already Its not totallyplete. We have to enclose it in magical circles. Oh! Timi, leave the magical circles to us. You can exin what we did here. Vi-Vi and I just continued writing the magical circles, ignoring Beldas shocked reaction. We added a strengthening circle and a circle to make the ce more livable. If those were added, then Jearl would have a perfect ce to live. While we were finishing up the circles, Moofy looked around, bored. So she slowly nuzzled up to Belda. Moo moo moo! Wha? Beldas eyes opened wide when she saw Moofy. She didnt expect to see a cow wandering the city streets alone. Her guard stepped up in front to guard her, but she waved him back. Moo? Moofy stretched out and sniffed Beldas hand in curiosity. Belda didnt look to put out by it, but was a little confused. Ahand who might you be? Belda said, asking Timi. All of the beasts stayed home the first time we went to meet Belda. Thats why it was her first time. Oh, this is Moofy. Shes a very smart cow. Is that so Belda said, rubbing Moofys snout. Eheh heh heh Belda said with a strange voiceI knew how she might feel. Moofy was cute, after all. PIggiWuff Then Femm with Chel on Femms back approached as well. They had been hiding themselves behind a building. Now was the time to introduce themselves, they probably thought after seeing Beldas reaction to Moofy. Wha!? The guards were shocked again and both now stood out in front of Belda. Moofy was a cowthats not very scary. But a big wolf like Femm could startle someone very easily. No need. Stand back. But, madam These two are your friends as well? Yes! The magical wolf king Femm and the slime Chelnobok. She got a little closer to the two. I am Belda. It is my pleasure to meet you. WuffPiGGi She smiled as well and reached out to pet them. After a bit of petting theyd be okay with her, she probably though. Belda then coughed and added, Please allow me a second to peruse your work. I think you did a splendid job. It was just a simple job. Theres nothing simple about it. I should repay you some how. Dont mention it. Its my payment for having scared Jearl so.ryaa Belda looked at us seriously and bowed deeply, saying, I appreciate your thoughts for my friend Jearl. Belda was not only in the family of the crown but a representative as well. No citizen would expect her to bow to someone else for such a thing. I think Timi knew how much the help was appreciated, so she smiled an said, Ah, I think you can speak to us as friend from now on, as long as its not in formal circumstances. Madam Timiis that really fine with you? Yes. I dont mind. And we shall do the same with you, if you dont mind. I am truly grateful. I would much rather call me by Belda. Hearing her say such a thing now made her sound quite masculine. Understood, Belda. And with that, the two shook hands. It was good to see the two royals get along so well. As we continued with the magic circles, we watched the, and then Belda turned to me and said, Um Moo moo Um, Moofy We actually found something very disturbing before we began building. Belda was about to say something to me, but Moofy had stuck her snout between Beldas legs. Timi just continued speaking to Belda as if nothing happened and pointed over to the mysterious transfer circle. Belda pusher her away and petted her, and said, What is it? Im sure its probably something magic, but A transfer circle. Oh Tomorrow, wed like to take a look ourselves. Are you sure, Timi? I can put out a quest for the adventurers guild instead That would be fine, but I think the guild itself has its hands full. Well, then, I thank you. She said with a heartfelt thanks. Chapter 394 - The Dragon Stables and Belda Chapter 394 C The Dragon Stables and Belda Then Belda said that she wanted to pay us a quest fee for doing the exploration job. Since it was Timi and the rest of us, it would have to be a very high amount. Even though Timi had no adventurer reputation, if she was ever appointed adventurer her rank would be S ss, and if that were impossible, A ss. A ss fees were very high. Even so, Timi refused them. Elkay just didnt have the funds to pay for something like that. After we finished discussing our little investigation partyBelda said, Anyway, thank you so much for making these stables for Jearl. No bother. Again, Im sorry I scared him so. Thats too much for an apology though. There must be some way I can If you want to thank someone, thank Alra and Vi-Vi here. Belda came closer to Vi-Vi and I. She stepped behind a wall so her guards couldnt see and bowed deeply, I appreciate it greatly. No worries. Yeah! There must be a way to thank you. You should pay those two instead. Timi said with a mischievous smile. We dont need anything. Use it for Elkay instead. Yeah, if Timis not going to take anything for it, then its pointless to ask us. But I Its okay. Its best to use anything to help the people of Elkay. then I thank you. I couldnt thank you a million times and it be enough. She continued, Should I wait for you to finish the investigation before I put Jearl in here? I think theres no problem nowwhat about you Alra? Hm? Well, the ce is sealed now, so I think its fine. Timi asked me for my opinion so I gave while finishing up the circle. Timi nodded at my opinion. Yeah, you can move him. That would help a lot. Hes having to endure some fierce winds. And with that, Vi-Vi and I finished the circles up. I thought we did a good job. Were done! Looks good. Yeah, even in the middle of winter with a heater, you could put people in here. Vi-Vi was exaggerating a bit, but it would be cold without a heater. However, with a small heater and a nket anyone could stay here. Jearl would be a lot morefortable than he is now. Ah, youre done already? Hearing that it wasplete, Timi walked over to the building with Shiggy still riding on her head. She embraced me from behind and then looked over the stable. Thank you! She looked very happy as Belda joined us. Then the beasts came in and inspected the ce as well. Beldas guards just looked a little bored and stood by the entrance to the ruined mansion. As Timi looked over the circles, she said, Yes, you both did a great job! Nah, Vi-Vis the real expert here. Tthats not true! Vi-Vi said, her face turning red. ryaa ryaa Oh, are you that interested, Shiggy? Vi-Vi, Shiggy would like an exnation about the magic circles. Leave it to me. So Vi-Vi began showing the circles to Shiggy and exining them. Instion, anti-shock, anti-quake, fire-prevention. While Shiggy was watching this, Belda was listening very intently as well. And with the exnation concluded, Belda said to us, Very easy to live in, but very defensive as well. Yeah, thats my own touch. I could perform my duties at the agents house and then live herethank you. Then she stared at Vi-Vi and said, Vi-Vi, youre the younger daughter of the former viscount of Lindobal Umyes, I am. After a slightly ufortable pause, Vi-Vi answered. She thought Belda knowing this might end up troubling her older sister. Vi-Vi and Vallimie are my friend, Belda. Timi said, just in case any bad vibes were felt by Vi-Vi. I see. Then please give your older sister my best wishes. You got it. After that, Belda and her guards returned to her home. They quickly brought the elder dragon Jearl with them, and seeing Timi there, Jearl again jumped, Gaaaaa. No need to be scared.ryaaa Timi and Shiggy said in attempts to calm Jearl down. Shiggy then flew over and next to Jearl. ryaa ryaa gaa gaaa Shiggy was an ancient dragon as well, but still an infant. Nowhere close to as scary as Timi. Just like humans, mama bears are always scary as hell, but cubs are cute. I guess its the same with elder dragons. Jearl was petted by Shiggy and calmed down a bit. Belda petted Jearl as well. Timi is our friend now. No need to be scared. Gaaaa Jearl looked over and bowed, but he couldnt look directly AT Timi yet. Chapter 395 - A Mysterious Attack Chapter 395 C A Mysterious Attack Timi felt that Jearl was still too scared, so she didnt try to approach him. Sorry about before. Ill try not to scare you, so please rx. gaa gaaa Jearl still looked quite scared by being there with Timi. I think he knew in his head he didnt need to be scared, so maybeter the fear would ebb. Vi-Vi grabbed Jearls hand and said, We made you a stable! You can go inside now! Vi-Vi then led the elder dragon into the stable. It was made of stone and white. Windows, roof, door, everything stone. The windows and doors were covered with lightly cut stone, easy to open and shut. Even so, they were strengthened by magic circles, so they wouldnt break easily. gaaaa Jearl said, surprised, as he entered the ce. Its big enough for you to rx in here. No bed for you yet, though. gaa gaaa Jearl happily nuzzled up to Vi-Vi in thanks. What about this in exchange for a bed? What is that, Timi? Its a big washbasin. He can use it to was his feet too. She took out a huge washbasin from her magical bagit was ancient dragon size. It looked just right for Jearl though. Here, this too. She then took out a big nket from the bag. Seemed like a nket any adventurer would want. gaa gaa! Jearl happily wagged his tail. He took the overturned washbasin and pulled the nket over and sat on it. Belda bowed again, So much to thank you forbut again, thank you. So we exined the existence of the transfer circle to Belda. It was sealed, but just in case, we told them where it was so as not to touch it. Belda and Jearl listened carefully to the exnation. Then we headed home to Mulg. It waste at night and I was asleep, but awoke when Femm licked my face. What? You need to use the bathroom? Are you joking? We have visitors! Now?! We both got up and soon heard someone banging at the front door. Mister Al! Mister Al! It was Toms voice. He hade through the transfer circle. I put Shiggy in my pouch and opened the door. What is it, Tom? The statue moved! Huh? The statue in Elkay? Yeah! Its going crazy! Come with me! Sure. I had no idea what he was saying, but it seemed that something was wrong. Something had happened in Elkay for sure. We got ready and I put my wolf mask on. Cruz, Yureena, Femm, Moofy, Vi-Vi, Chel and I all went. Timi was off in the dragon pce resting. Cruz, put on your mask too, just in case. You got it! Cruz made sure to put on her lion mask and I asked Tom, And Luka? Luka hasnte back to Elkay yet. Luka was off doing something for the guild away from Elkay. Luka, Leo, and Leah were all away, but Steff was still in Elkay, so it would probably be okay. We all rushed through the portal and into Toms house. Toms house had Millia and the kids there with Millia trying to calm them down. They all looked relieved that we had showed up. Are all the kids here? Yeah, were fine. Millia answered. Kay and the other smaller kids were clinging to her. The older kids were at the door guarding it. And Steff? She went to help people flee from the statue. I see. Tom, help take care of the kids. Sure! We left the house and suddenly heard a loud voice, DDϣϣϣϣϣϣϣϣ Whats that sound? The statue? You think? Vi-Vi and Cruz questioned each other. There was no moon in the sky. Also the heavy snow clouds covered above, so there was no starlight either. Also, Elkay had little light from the houses. It was pitch ck. I would have to wait until my eyes adjusted to itor It may not be necessary, but I cast nightsight on all members of the party. Thanks, al! I can see well! Vi-Vi and Cruz said happily. ryaaaaa Shiggy cried out from my pouch. Im sure the nightsight change shocked her. We could also see a huge statue ahead. It was big as Moofy in her natural state. What is THAT?! I dont know. Yureena and Vi-Vi were both shocked. Lets think about how to defeat it! Cruz said, running at it. Femm! I called out, and Femm grew to natural size. I jumped up on Femm before it grew and Femm ran off. Vi-Vi and Yureena were on Moofy, who ran behind us. We got near to the statue and could also see some destroyed houses. Getting closer, we found Steff. MasterIm d youre here. Are you okay? I wouldnt say so I saw that the lower half of her body had been petrified Chapter 396 - Healing Petrification Chapter 396 C Healing Petrification It seems that Steff had stopped the statues legs from moving as well. She put up a magic barrier to stop the statues legs from running around town and destroying things. Good job, Steff. Leave the rest to us. Master. Thank you. This thing responds and runs after any light it sees. Thats why all the lights were out in town. She must have noticed and told everyone to put out any light. Then she used a magical barrier to stop the statues legs. The statue was still swinging its arms around, but it couldnt move any further so there was no more damage it could cause. It also blows a petrification curse from its mouth. Be careful! I guess Steff got hit by it, which is why her legs turned to stone. There were also a dozen people around that werepletely petrified. I knew some of themthey were the F ranked adventurers of the town. Isnt that Belda, petrified next to the legs of the statue?! Vi-Vi said, shocked. And just a bit away from Belda was Jearl, in the same condition. Because I cant move, you have to save her! Sure! Im sure that Steff was half-petrified trying to save Belda. I continued the spell Steff was using to stop the statues legs and extended it upwards over the whole body. Steff watched this and I could see she was relieved. crickcrickcrickkk Her petrification was extending up her body as her upper half started to petrify. She was magically trying to resist the petrification curse. Yureena, take care of her. Ill heal Steff. So she ran over and immediately began to heal the petrification curse. GIGIGIGIIIII The stone statue made a strange sound and tried to move, but it was no use. It blew a gray cloud from its mouth towards us, so I countered with an upward blowing wind spell. I saw a bat fall from the sky, now changed to stone. Cruz! Get it! Leave it to me! My words were already toote as she ran to the statue. Thats just how fast she was. In a few seconds, she had cut the statue into pieces with her holy sword. I just wanted you to save Belda from the statue, Cruz, but Well, I guess breaking it into pieces was fine as well. Cruz pointed at Belda and asked, Is this her?! Yeah, Bring her over here! Sure, Al! So Cruz, Femm, and Moofy brought all the petrified people over into a group and lined them up near Yureena. I made sure to stay cautious in case something else happened. There were only a few houses destroyed even though the enemy was so huge and strong. It was a silver lining in a way, Belda and Steff prevented more people from being hurt. And so all the statues were lined up for Yureena to attend to. Dissolving a petrification curse was a difficult treatment, but nothing Yureena couldnt do. And after a moment, the reanimated Belda looked over at us, confused, Where am II Youll remember in a bit. Its verymon to have amnesia after being restored from petrification. But ites back to you quite quickly. Yureena just ignored it and went on to healing the next person in line. Vi-Vi got close to Belda and asked her, Are you okay? AhI wasoh! The statue started moving, and JearlJearl protected me! We destroyed the statue already. And Jearl will be healed quickly too. Vi-Vi said, hoping to alleviate any worry. While this was going on, Yureena went and healed the remaining people. There were some injured as well, who were quickly healed. With the humans restored, she then moved on to Jearl. Jearls a lotrger so a normal healer cant just Yeah, Im done. Belda was about to voice her concern, but Yureena had healed Jearl in an instant. GGGAAAAAAAA!! With his memory gone, he was confused and ready to attack. Nno! Calm down! She ran over to Jearl as quickly as she could, but, Nothing to be afraid of. No need for violence any more. She had stopped Jearls right arm that he had swung at her with her left arm. Even so, he didnt seem like he was calming down. He spun and tried to strike her with his tail. She wrapped his tail up with her right arm and pulled and flung the dragon using his own attacking force against him. Then she patted his head. Are you okay now? Gaaaa It seems that his memory hade back again. He was definitely quiet. I could see Jearl was shaking though after a young girl like Yureena knocking him over that easily. Cruz then smiled and said, Hey! Good one, Yureena! If you show a littlepassion, even animals will respect you. Yureena said proudly. Compassionyou just tossed him on the ground Vi-Vi said to herself, and I didnt miss her saying it. Belda finally got to where Yureena and Jearl were standing. It seems I cant thank any of you enough for all youre doing for Elkay. Yeah, ites with the territory. Belda took a look around her. She wanted to know what had happened while she was petrified. So Steff began exining all that had happened. Chapter 397 - The Stone Statue, Again Chapter 397 C The Stone Statue, Again Hearing Steffs exnation, Belda rxed a little. Even though I was petrified, you kept more damage from urring in Elkay. Thank you. It was because of all of our effort. No, you had a big effect on the oue. Ill have topensate you somehow. Then Belda also instructed both the adventurers and the local citizens caught up in it. She needed to find what damages had been done to themunity. And also where and why the stone statue had appeared. After that was settled, Belda came back over to us. We were very fortunate to have a healer like you at hand, Miss Yureena. Well, d to be of service. Belda had no idea that we hade through a transport circle to be here. She thought that Yureena just happened to be residing here when it happened. Are you here working for the church in Elkay? Yeah, I guess you could say that. Yureena looked a little confused and gazed at me for help. Before I said anything, Belda noticed Cruz. She still had her lion mask on. No way shed know it was Cruz. And this person is? Uma friend of Timi. Before Cruz said anything, I told Belda, and Cruz naturally added, Yeah! Thats the ticket! Timis good friend. Cruz said with a smilebut though I could feel her smiling though the maskthe mask was still on her face. This was the first time the two girls met Belda, after all. However, I knew they had met her over and over after we defeated the Demon Lord. I knew that if she took off that mask, Belda would know exactly who she was. I could see that Belda was starting to suspect something. Youtheres no way that Belda was about to ask something more from Cruz when I quickly interrupted with, Hey, so where did the stone statuee from, anyway? Ah, right over there, they said. She pointed over to the statue that Kay showed us a few days ago. The statue had started moving on its own somehow. It was just a statue at the time, though. But the shape was definitely the same. The height back then was the same as a tall human and it was metal, not in the shape of a human or beast. It was like a strange melted looking pyramid. I think we can assume that it was some kind of magically imbued statue. Vi-Vi, do you know something about it? No idea, the only time I saw it was when Kay showed it to us. I had no idea what it was back then either. It didnt seem to have been a magical tool, nor was there any magical circle ced on it. It was a really cool looking statue. CrI meanI think so too. Yeah. I made sure not to reveal that Cruz was the lion-masked mystery that Belda was suspicious about. We decided to go and check out the ce of the statue that Kay had told us about. Cruz followed us and check it out as well. On the other hand Moofy stayed and sniffed around the destroyed stone statue. Someone really went out of their way to hide the magic in this strange statue. There has to be some strange magical force in it. Yeah, theres no way theres a magical circle done around this strange pyramid, but maybe theres some strange magical force hidden inside of it. We said, and Vi-Vi approached the strange pyramid. I could see some very faint magical force in the statue now. There was no connection to the portal, I guessed, and I didnt sense any connection either. Hm? Something really feels bad about this thing though. Yeah. This magic circle connected to the portal might be bigger than Elkay itself. If the circle was this big, it could take even an expert like Vi-Vi a long time to discover how everything was connected. Moo moo! Just then, we could hear Moofy mooing very loudly. All the pieces of the stone statue reformed again, and within an instant were back to their original huge shape. DDϣϣϣϣϣϣϣ What?! Its moving again!Gaaaaa! I could also hear Belda and Jearl shouting too. I saw her take out her sword while Jearl prepared to attack. Belda and Jearl reacted quickly, just as youd expect. Moo moo! Moofy was small-sized, but still charged right into the statue. Even that was enough to nearly knock the statue over. Leave it to me! Cruz said, and the statue was sliced up into pieces again. But as they fell, they reformed back into their original shape. This thing wont die!Mooo! Seems that whatever made this statue move wasnt actually inside the statue. It might have been this huge interconnected magical circle that we discovered before. If that was the case, unless we reduced it to dust, it would keep attacking. What do we do Al? Didnt want to go this far, but, oh well. Okay! I didnt want to use heavy magic in the town, but this stupid statue kepting back to life. Go find an enemy somewhere else. I used gravity magic to lighten the statue and then a barrier to m it into the sky. DDϣϣϣϣϣϣ And so the statue flew into the sky far away from Elkay. Chapter 398 - The Next Enemy Chapter 398 C The Next Enemy Seeing the statue fly instantly into the air, Belda and Jearl stood there with their mouths agape. What the?Gaaa? I would have to exin it to herter. Leave the rest to me! Femm! Wuff! I got on Femm and left the rest to Cruz while I chased after the stone statue flying through the sky. Ill take care of the town Al! You take care of the statue. Cruz shouted happily as Femm ran through the town. Femm ran after the flying statue as only a magical king of the wolves could. We quickly left the town and went into the woods. After a little more, we found the statue on the ground. In pieces again. Well, the magic I lifted it into the sky with, once it left the town, I reversed and made it heavy with. And it hit the ground with a lot of damage. If its connected with the magical circle, then its outside of its reach now. It shouldnt move. DDϣϣϣ It moved. Yeah. Everyone makes mistakes. Femm said, with a slightly disappointed voice. It was a bit embarrassing, so I decided to dispatch it immediately. I surrounded the statue with a ball of white hot fire. We could both feel the heat from afar. Thats so HOT! Back up then. With the ball of fire, the statue still moved. It was stone and thus defensive against fire. Its whole body was in the fireball and it swung its arm at us. The grass around it caught fire. I dodged backwards and Femm shouted, Its going to cause a fire! I have to take care of the statue first. I would take care of any fire afterwards with ice. But I had to keep burning the statue. Its having no effect. Dont worry, it is. Then I trust you. The stone began to turn red. Only a little more. Just as I was about to cast my next magic. I knew it was you, Al. Ah, Luka, what a coincidence. No coincidence. I knew that it was your magic, so I ran away to here. Oh? If she ran away from something else then it must have been a strong enemy. She was answering a quest about something outside of Elkay from yesterday. It must have been a very strong enemy. Leah and Leo, who were B ranked adventurers, ran up behind her. Luka was pretty dirtied up, and Leah and Leo looked worse for the wear. They also looked like they were very tired. If it was a hard fight for Luka, then it must have been way harder for the two siblings. Leah and Leo, run back to town and tell Cruz and Yureena whats going on. Understood, well do it! The ran off, and Luka stood with me to watch me do my work. So what did you run away from, Luka? Maybe you should take care of this guy first. You cut it up and ites back together. So I thought Id burn it into powder. I see. I can tell by how hot youre cooking it. Exactly. After heating the statue up to immense heat, I then extinguished the fire and froze the statue immediately. CKraack! The sudden change in temperature caused the statue to dissolve into a powdered lump. There were severalrge pieces remaining though. Luka jumped right into it. She cut the remaining pieces down into dust. Some sword technique you have, Luka!Wuff! It takes some detail, but you cant leave anything. Yeah, no sense in beingx. Femm said something like that after hearing me say that it wouldnt move again before. So what did you run from, Luka? Some strange y-like thing Ive never seen before. If a magical monster expert like Luka had never seen itthen it must be new. y? Cut it over and over and nothing hurts it. So like this stone statue? I dont know anything about this stone statue either, but I guess the same. Luka said, still smashing the thing with her sword. I put whatever I could into my magic bag so I could check it overter. I see. What do you mean, I see? We need to hurry so show me this y thing. Sure. Luka ran off, and I followed with Femm. While we ran along, I asked her, What did you mean I see? Well, you put that piece in your magic bag, which means its not alive. Youre right. And? I was thinking that this statue and that y think are linked somehow. Okay, somethings controlling both of them. Exactly. A person or people, or maybe something else. As we were talking it over, there were several y things in front of us. Three times as tall as me, three mountains of y. Theyre fast, so watch out. Got it. She ran right at them. They all moved to attack her. Part of their bodies turned into something like a spear and moved in to attack her. She cut them into pieces and then cut the y monsters up as well. In an instant it seemed they all fell to pieces. They do this every time, and thene back together. She said, looking at me. Do something about them. If Luka asked like that, then I had to do something. Chapter 399 - The Manipulator Chapter 399 C The Maniptor As she asked me for help the y pieces slimed back together into the three bodies again. Luka, cut them up one more time so I can get some time to think up something. Sure! She ran back into the fray and cut them up again. I searched for any magic I could find being used around me. Luka wasnt a magician, but she did have a good sense of perception. She had fought these things for a while, but didnt sense what was controlling them. Whatever enemy magician controlled them had to be very advanced. The magician was good with concealment, as we discovered in the ring that was near Jearls stable. Will it take more time? Im ready. Femm, run as I tell you! Sure. I read a very faint flow of magical stream. I got Femm to run along it. Luka ran with me. This way? Seems to lead far away. Yeah, normally the controlling magician would be close. Femm followed my directions and ran full speed for 30 minutes. Femm, Luka, dont stop. If you see something, cut it down! Wuff!Sure! Just then I took a huge magical bolt and mmed it deep into the ground, as if I was charging through the earth. The ground echoed in the st and the wind as we ran past pushed against my back. The snow and earth mixed and spread over the ground around us. The dirt in the air fell, and we could see something moving in the air because of it. There it is!!!! Luka said, and charged right at it with an attack. Gyaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaa! Its scream rattled in our ears and we saw blood spray and fall on the ground. I can finish it now! No, Luka! Not yet! If we finished it off now, we couldnt ask why it was doing this. As our eyes followed the trail of blood, we could see who it was Luka had cut open. It had changed its concealment magic to healing magic and left itself open. I can smell him! Thats some concealment magic! It seems that this was a small demon. It had a deep stab wound in its chest. It was trying desperately to stay alive and had stopped moving. Another demon But even a demon like this could control those y things from afar. You think that statue too? Too hard for it, I think. We were quite a ways from Elkay now. It would take a lot of magic to control both of the monsters from far distances. I bound the demon up so he couldnt move. Where are the others! The demon stared at me and said nothing. I wasnt good at questioning others, and it was hard enough to get a demon to talk. Lets take him to the agent. Yeah. Demons werent people. An agent really had no jurisdiction over them. Even so, since the town took damage because of them, we should leave the matter to the agent to deal with. Luka, take care of those y monsters now. Sure, you take care of Mister Demon. Got it. d I lugged this cage I made previously in the bag. I took out the cage I made for the so-called Demon Lord and his friend and put him in. You just going to stick him in there? Luka asked, as she dispatched the y monsters that had arrived and now she putting in her own bag in heaps and clumps. I guess. You need something for the y, like a jar or something? No need, my bag wont get dirty because of something like this. I see. You could just run water through it to clean it, after all. It just took time and was a bit tedious. Thats why you didnt put a lot of dirty stuff inside. Im used to putting dirty stuff in it anyway, no big deal. I know, but Should I put it in that cage instead? Its a small demon, so not a tight fit. Yeah, hes a lot smaller than that demon lord or his demon friend. So I put him in the cage. He resisted, but it was for nothing. Then I sealed it with a strong magic seal. Ok, now how do we carry him? With gravity magic? Luka was done with the y monsters and said. Thats the easiest, but people will notice the magic. Luka said, picking up the cage and putting it on her shoulder. I was thinking shed at least look back and tell me shed carry it, but she put it back down again. Wuff wuffFemm said happily, wagging its tail. You blew that statue into the sky. Wherever the other demon is, its gone into hiding now. Youre probably right. So I lifted the demon-in-a-box with gravity magic and got on Femm. We rode back into Elkay with Luka running beside. Did you fight those y things all night? Well, I guess you could say that. You should have called me. I could have helped. I know that but Something else wrong? Luka nodded and looked at me seriously. Chapter 400 - Strange Barrier Chapter 400 C Strange Barrier Luka continued running without slowing as she exined it to me, Elkay has a mithril mine, right? Yeah, I heard that. The mithril mine was Elkays prime production resource. The mine had gone dry though, so Millia and Vi-Vi were nning to try agriculture. The first job that I got when I came to Elkay was to clear out the magical monsters in the mine. Oh? Yeah, and that wasnt very difficult, but What were the monster ranks? B rank magical monsters. Luka said they werent that high, but B rank monsters were a threat to everyone. Also, there werent any adventurers in Elkay with that level. Well, except Leah and Leo. Even so, Leo and Leah fighting monsters like that alone was still quite dangerous. That said, there was no point in sending the other adventurers with them. All the other adventurers in Elkay were newbies with F rank levels. If they went along, Leo and Leah would have to defend the F ranks and would be attacked even harder, thus resulting in a higher chance of someone dying. I also heard that all the monsters werent in one group, so just in case I went along. Good. Id rather have an A rank squad against B ranked monsters like that. Yeah. I went along with Leah and Leo. So Luka and the others travelled down into the mine and quickly killed five B ranked magic monsters. Pretty obvious Luka could do that easilyLeo and Leah werent weak either. So we were on the way back to Elkay and the monsters kept on attacking us on the way back. Oh? It seems that the monsters were intent on retaking the mine again. Strange, because something like that isnt natural. Zombies? They werent zombies. That makes the whole thing really strange then. I dont think thats the case. Maybe Luka is right, buttely all the monsters controlled have been zombies. I guess there are different ways to control monsters So with the two others we fought all night to destroy them. Sounds rough. It was, but if we ran off, theyd destroy the inside of the mine we thought, right? That would be a big hit to Elkay if there was still mithril in there. So were you able to defend the mine? Yeah, thanks to Leah and Leo doing their best. I bet they had to have been super tired. Fighting hour after hour and Luka still looking pretty healthyit was strange. So we were hunting down monsters on the way back to Elkay And those y monsters attacked you. Exactly. They were definitely headed to Elkay as well. And it seemed that they were a lot faster than expected. You cut them up and theyd stop, but then theyde back to life again. So they cut them up over and over to stop them, and just as Leah was about to go for help, We saw that stone statue fly over us and crash into the ground. I see. And the only one that could do that is you right? Luka said with augh. While we were talking about it, we had arrived at Elkay. We were stopped at the gate of Elkay. Theplete town of Elkay was now covered in a pale white magical barrier. ryaaa? Shiggy said when she saw the barrier. What can this be, Al? Did we set off something, you think? She touched the barrier and it pushed her back. Femm tried to w the barrier. GRAWNNNN Even my ws cant pierce it! Inside was Cruz and Yureena. Vi-Vi, Steff, Leo, and Leah as well. I knew they were probably okay, but I was still a bit unsettled. Al, Ill leave this to you. I need to get my strength backif something happens, I might be out of strength. Sure, leave it to me. I put the box with the demon in it on the ground. It was easy for even someone like Luka at the end of her strength to be hurt by fighting further. So I rode on Femm, closely observing the barrier and its magical flow. The center is that weird metal statue again. That ugly looking pyramid? Yeah, I guess we shouldnt break it though. Both Cruz and Kay thought that weird looking pyramid looked cool. Kay and Cruz had good sense in this case. If Cruz thought it looked cool, then there was a chance the statue wasnt just something evil. Even so, I had to examine the flow of the barrier and open a hole in it. Just then, I could feel a strong flow towards the middle of Elkay. Luka, Im opening a hole, so go inside. Sure. She grabbed the metal box with the demon and went inside the hole. Femm, go on. Wuff. Femm ran inside with her and I entered, and allowed the whole in the barrier to close. Okay, at least then we can connect with Cruz. Yeah, I wonder if Leah and Leo did the same. It depends on the timing of this barrier. So we ran towards the center of Elkay. Chapter 401 - The Battle of Elkay Chapter 401 C The Battle of Elkay Everyone inside the barrier was running around wondering what was happening. Is there a battle going on? If something bad is going on people can run away to Elkay, but Femm, please Wuff. Femm ran off towards Toms house to check. On the way there were a few y creatures and stone statues that we fought as we went along. Only a few y creatures, but more stone statues. There were some buildings destroyed, but Toms house was still untouched. We opened the door and no one was inside. Theres a note here. Theyve gone to Mulg. Millia had left the note in an easy to find ce. Well, thats a relief. They must have fled in all this chaos. Toms house and the Wolf Wholesaler havent been touched at all. Its because of Vi-Vis magical barriers. So we continued trying to fight off the monsters and ran towards that strange pyramid. A, Al! We waited for you! We cant defeat all these things! Vi-Vi took care of a lot of them but theyre stilling! Seems like Yureena and Cruz took care of a lot of the monsters that raided the town. Vi-Vi rode on top of Moofy and used magic circles to lock up all the fallen y and stone monsters. There were ten or more of the stone monsters shut up into each one of her magical circles and five magical circles. 50 of those things!? Vi-Vis quite the warrior. And I also used magic as well! Also, new ones kepting over and over and we couldntst that long against them. She had sweat beading on her forehead, and she kept putting up magical circles. The stone statues were running out of stone to reform into new statues so what Vi-Vi was doing worked. Bleda, Jearl, Leo, and Leah were fighting as well. Hm, still more stone statues than y things. Dont take time counting them! We dont have time! Femm said, mming a stone statue to the ground with its ws. Wait, are these things trashing stone houses so they can make more warriors? And the stones on the street too! I guess thats where theyreing from The reason that many buildings were destroyed was to replenish the numbers of stone statues. Because many of them were trapped in magical circles, they couldnt get any more resources, which is why there were most stone statues. If the whole of Elkay wasnt surrounded by a barrier, then thered be more y things too. Cruz, Yureena, thanks for taking care of this. Yup, we definitely did. Cruz said with a happy reply as she cut up another statue into dust. I ced the cage with the demon in it near Cruz. Take care of this. Theres a demon inside. Got it! We need to take care of the rest quickly. Yureena was punching and mming her staff into the stone statues around her. Cruz and Yureena formed a defensive formation to protect me. Instead of going out to find and attack new statues, they were probably more intent on preventing new damage to the town. We cant hold out a lot longer like this.Moo moo! Moofy said as she crushed a statue beneath her hooves. I know, just give me a second. I have a n. What is it? Same as before. Find the one controlling these statues. I answered Lukas question and Cruz shouted to me, Seems like theres something weird over therewe should check it out! Show me, Cruz! Sure!PiggGi Chel was on top of Cruz head. Are youing too, Chel? Yeah, weird! Seems that Chel might have been the one that felt it. Then Ill take care of the fight here for Cruz! Thanks, cut them all up for us! Okay! Luka swung her sword around and destroyed the 10 foot statues around her, some with her fist. She also cut them down with her excellent sword swinging. Over here, Al!PIggI Femm ran after Cruz and Chel. I used my senses to find the flow of magic around me. Youd need a lot of magic to resurrect a statue that Luka had cut down, and that would make it hard to control as well. As a result, the magic flow gets stronger, and you use up more of it. Since the enemy was using concealment magic, it was hard to find where they were hiding. However, since Cruz showed me the direction, it became easier to read the magic flow. After a little more of a run, Cruz stopped. I think its around here. Seems that the Holy Hero Cruz could feel the source herself. Leave it to me!Wuff!PiggI! I said along with Femms bark. Femm was probably wanting to lead the fight. GAOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!PIGGGGIIIIIIIIII! Femm and Chel both roared as loud as they could in one direction. We saw 10 zombified ogres blown into pieces. Whoa! I knew something strange was there, but didnt know there was any ogres! If they could fool Cruz, then they had excellent concealment powers. But with the magical king Femm and the Death Lord Chels powers, the small group of ogres were blown away. How about stopping all this hiding anding out to face us?! Or do you think you can escape? You foolish mortals certainly did quite a job A man answered my challenge by saying. Chapter 402 - The Lord of the Undead Chapter 402 C The Lord of the Undead A man in a dark hooded robe with arge staff stood before us. Medium height, medium build, nothing special about his face. He looked 50 and 20 at the same time. But his face was pale like wax. Hes dead! The Death Lord Chel said out loud. Is this the Lord of the Undead? The Lord of the Undead was the highest level of undead. A magical monster that was A rank, way over a lich or lich king. Even so, it was the highest of the A ranked monsters. In fact, it was way above all of the A ranked monsters. A lich was a normal A rank monster. Then the lich king, and way above those was a Lord of the Undead. They were all A ranked, but the Lord of the Undead was far the highest. A Lord of the Undead. Looks strong. Femm, Im getting off, so fight however you want. I said as I jumped off of Femm. Really? Ill leave the fight to you and Cruz. Im ying defense so the rest of this town doesnt get destroyed. Got it, leave it to us!Understood. Top magicians that subjugate the powers of death be Lords of Undead. They be undead, though they were human, and also remain magicians. Though they were high level magicians, they use all their time to study the undead until they finally achieve immortality. They also be far stronger than they were previously as humans. I dont know what this guy is trying to pull as an undead, so lets beat him first and think about itter! Youre right. Kill first, then think! Cruz! I know! Hold back with all the chopping the head off part! With that, the Lord of the Undeadughed suddenly. Shallow-thinking morals with their haughty ways After all those zombies, its nice to face a fresh-smelling undead. Dont mock me by thinking me a zombie, mortal adventurer. Al, let me at him! I said before, watch out for the damage to the town. Thanks! Cruz pulled out her sword and began shing immediately. -GAKINNNN! The Lord of the Undeads barrier knocked her holy sword away. Oh? A holy sword? So youre a Holy Heroor just a mortal hero? You know a lot for an educated zombie. So youll challenge ME? He snorted augh again and shot magical arrows at us. Not just arrows, the same immortal killer arrows that hit my knee. Cruz continued shing at him, while I used magical barriers to stop the arrows from damaging anything. Funny that a Lord of the Undead would shoot undead killer arrows. You know of them? Strange for an elevated monkey to know such things. Cruz kept trying to get at him as I joined the fray. Things started to get close to resolution, and it wasnt such a hard battle, though, Dont think Ill die so easily. GAO GAAO!!Youll be blood on my ws! Cruz and Femm attacked quickly and it was almost too fast to see. They were about to finish him off. Ugg. The Lord of the Undead was stunned by the strength of Cruz and Femms attack. He was probably shocked that the real attack came from Cruz and not me. Also, she shed and stabbed so quickly it was nearly impossible to stop. Heh heh. Seeing the Lord of the Undead struggle so made me giggle to myself. Whats so funny! The Lord of the Undead continued to struggle with the attacks, so I decided to join. He charged up all the magic he could into one transcendental burst of magical force. Fire, ice, wind, all the elements, magical arrows, magical spears and temporal magicbined into one. He defended against Cruz sword and Femms ws and fangs while shooting magic at me however he could. I dodged everything, while also making sure the town wasnt damaged. Not much of an attack, but quite the defense. I whispered to myself. He was blocking everything the Cruz and Femm threw at him. In addition to magical barriers, his magical robe and staff were very strong against attacks as well. His attacks werent that strong, but there were a lot. A veryrge amount of magic. You could hear everything being deflected by my magical barriers. The area lit up like daytime. That is some magical barrier. Cruz said, taking a step back to take in a breath. Too hard for you Cruz? Need help? NoI meant your magical barriers, Al. She said, then cracking through his magical barrier and shing off the head of the Lord of the Undead. His head fell to the ground and rolled, but he was smiling! I am the unkible Lord of the Undead. The head disappeared into a vapor of ckness and his head reappeared on his neck again. Wow! Cruz said smiling and then shed at him again. She this time shed everywhere and his body was cut into pieces. Noing back to life now, right? Even his heading back after getting hit by the holy sword was impressive. You werent supposed to finish him off. Ah, Al! Im sorry! Forgive me! Behind Cruz, the pieces of the Lord of the Undead turned into ck vapor and coalesced into a body. Not over yet, Cruz! Ah! He then shot multiple arrows at us, and they were undead killer arrows. Chapter 403 - Fighting the Lord of the Undead Chapter 403 C Fighting the Lord of the Undead Just before Cruz was about to be pierced by numerous undead-killer arrows She spun around with her magic sword swishing through the air and cut all of them down. Gaaaaaaooo!ryaaaaa! Femm and Shiggy both cried out in surprise, but Cruz herself wasnt bothered a bit. Whoa, that was close. Youre not cautious enough, Cruz. Soooooory. Even so, I didnt DIE! The reborn Lord of the Undeadughed again. I told you I will never DIEEeee He didnt get to finish though, as Cruz had silently chopped his head off again. My He was trying to say something, but Cruz kept chopping at his body over and over. It was a battle between Cruz holy sword and the Lord of the Undeads ability to resurrect. Even for a Lord of the Undead, this guys ability toe back is unreal! Seems like this fellow had something else going for him. Just then, I noticed several poisonous looking snakes slithering towards me. Snake zombies? Seems as though the Lord of the Undead had called them to aid in his fight. I wondered where they came from as Elkay was surrounded in a magic barrier. Transport circles? I had sealed the transfer circle near Jearls stable. If these things dide from there, that meant they broke my sealand thats not good. Leave the snakes to me, Cruz! I think theyre my fault! I dont know what you mean, but okay! And as I was about to hit them with a magic, GAAAAOOOOO! PIGGGIIIIII! Femm roared while Chel jiggled full of light and shouted as well. The approaching snakes, with raised heads to strike, were blown across the ground. From the power of both Femm and Chel. Nuaaaaaa! I noticed that the vapor of Lord of the Undead trying to reincorporate had been blown away too. Cruz, now Okay, Chel! Hearing Chel call her, she began swinging her sword again. Chel was on top of Femm, jiggling and shimmering. The remaining vapor absorbed the light of Chel and became lighter. Naaaaahhhh! Cruz shouted with sword out, swinging at the mist. Chel used its power as the Death Lord to weaken the Lord of the Undeads resurrection ability, while Cruz attempted to chop him up. The ck vapor was reforming again, when, GAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAOOOOOOOOOOOOON! Femm roared again and scattered the vapor. Even if this guy was some special Lord of the Undead, he couldnt reincorporate. Soon all that was left was the guys severed head. He had respawned it since he couldnt get his body back. He must have expended a terrific amount of magical power. Thats why he couldnt resurrect his whole body. Looks like we won! Cruz said, jabbing her sword into the guys nose. HA, HAHA, AHAHAHAHAHAH! Heughed in a loud voice, though I had no idea where theugh wasing from without lungs. Whats so funny? Nothingsorry Holy Hero. For some reason this Lord of the Undead was apologizing? Then he looked over at Chel on top of Femm. Not just the Holy Hero, but the Death Lordnever expected that. Youre just outssed. I said, and his head turned to me and looked at me with a smirk. And the true Magic Lord as well. Heh heh, I guess there was no way to win. You wouldnt have beaten Al alone either. Cruz dered. The head smiled and continued without protest, Maybe. However, youre all at the beginning of a short lifedont you think youre overestimating yourselves? Hmph, maybe. Cruz said after thinking it over a second. So three servants of the gods have defeated me, with a magic wolf king. The head said, apparently recognizing who Femm was as well. Seems like I can shed this human form now. I thought it was strange how he continually mentioned humans as something foreign. Even though he was undead, he might have still recognized himself as human. It was hard, however, for him to consider himself as the same as we mortals. Of course, whos going to write the book on undead psychology? I used my sense-strengthening magic to sense the sounds around me. I could head Luka, Moofy, and others relieved voices. Somehow they had stopped all the statues and crushed all of them. This Lord of the Undead had to have been the one controlling them. I was relieved, so I asked the head, Why are you attacking us anyway? Hmwell. Since you defeated me, Ill tell you out of respect. The Lord of the Undead began his story. A Lord of the Undead with massive powers had been shut up in a massive dungeon under Elkay. You? Are you referring to yourself? Noa demon that became a Lord of the Undead. This Lord of the Undead was a human that had be immortal. But if a demon were to be immortalno telling how strong he would be. Way stronger than this Lord of the Undead, I was sure. So you tried to free him? Why? Cruz asked, and the head continued, An immortal demon lord would be close to a god. Like a god over men here. And if he was raised up and out of the dungeon? It wouldnt be a good thing for humans The head said with a sneer. Chapter 404 - The Lord of the Undead and the Holy Hero Chapter 404 C The Lord of the Undead and the Holy Hero This surprisingly pleasant head of the undead looked at me as I asked, I know it wouldnt be good for humans, but why would it be good for you? I understand the distrust, Magic Lord. Perhaps I could strengthen my undead powers even further! Sounds like a cheap reason to me. Yes, even if I did, the Demon Immortal would never think of it as a favor. Youre right. Theyre not an admirable race. Yes, perhaps I would be immediately destroyed. Cruz looked confused, So, why? Holy Heromy life is too long. Ive no magic left to study. Sothen whats the problem? Its the same as being dead. Perhaps being truly dead would be better. He was tired with living; had lost interest in it. If you used the Immortal Demon Lord, he might gain ess to higher knowledge. And if not and his life ended, that would be well with him too. I guess thats what he was thinking. And that might be why he didnt seem so upset about losing. Cruz thought about his story a bit and asked, That so-called Demon Lord said that there was something in that dungeon useful for attacking the capital, right? Heh heh, how would he be useful? He would just destroy Elkay and all that were in it first. So why did the so-called Demon Lord think he could use the demon? I think the demon that was with him was there to raise the Immortal Demon Lord himself. And the Demons outside of Elkay? Yesall of the demons see this Immortal Lord as special. Then the head cheerfully said, I think its perfect timing now that the fake Demon Lord and his follower have been dispatched. Then why didnt you move as soon as we defeated him? You need the blood of royalty to remove the seal. AhBelda! Exactly. Once both were in ce, I moved. But I had no idea the Magic and Holy Lords were here. Cruz asked, So why are you telling us all this? I told youbecause I respect you. Oh? Cruz still had a question mark on her face and he continued, I have lived a long, long life. I have respect for anyone that would put and end to it. Is that all? Being killed by an unformidable foe would make the life that Ive lived so far seem purposeless. I dont think thats true. No, it is. It might be the machinations of a Lord of the Undead that had worked centuries to improve his ability to fight someone greater than him. The head looked at Cruz, a bit wistful, You, as the current Holy Hero, are much stronger than thest. You mean the one that lived 300 years ago? Yes. You know about the previous hero? Yesmy friend. Wha? Cruz looked shockedsurprised even. The previous hero had built Mulg. You fought the Demon Lord together? Yes. That as well. Magic Wolf LordI was friends with your predecessor as well. You met my grandfather? I seenot the childbut the grandchild. What kind of wolf was he like? A magical wolf without peer. Wuff Femm barked and was silent. Maybe thinking about the situation. why were you friends with the previous hero and then became the Lord of the Undead? Cruz asked, and at first the head was silent, then, I have said too much. Maybe back then I was too wild You wont tell us why you chose to be a Lord of the Undead? Perhaps I thought it was my duty to protect my life at all costs. I dont get it. You might understand if you investigate the dungeon of Elkay. And that is not just me saying so. Hm Cruz finally sounded satisfied though. Heughed at her again and said, I regret that is my time to go. No need to stretch my days longer. Finish this. You want me to finish you off? Yes, please. The Death LordI plead to you. Chelwill you? Sure. Thank you. Chel had the ability to send the undead to the other world. If Chel finished the head off, then his spirit would cross over to the death god. At least people thought so. I never talked to Chel about what happened after death. But with Chels ability to Turn Undead, it doesnt seem like a bad thing. At least I felt so. Goodbye, Holy Hero, Magic Lord, Magical Wolfand Death Lord. Yeah, see you on the other side. Tell the previous Hero hello. And as soon as Cruz said that, the head gave us aplex look, and then giggled. And before we could ask him why heughed, PIGIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIII! Chel jumped on the Lord of the Undeads head and began shimmering and jiggling. And where his spirit really went is still a mystery. Chapter 405 - After the Battle Chapter 405 C After the Battle Chels shimmering increased in brightness. I saw the heads expression rx. Even without touching them, Chel could send weaker undead straight to the heavens. With stronger one, Chel would have to touch them directly. After a bit, Chels shimmering weakened. Done. Thanks, Chel. PiggGi And then Chel jumped back on top of Femm again. We saw the expression fade into a dead, nk look. What do we do now, Al? Well He was dead, so I guess wed bury him. Luckily the damage wasnt so great due to Yureenas abilities. I dont think anyone wouldin if we gave him a proper burial. Maybe we should bury him next to the former Hero? Yeah! I think thats great. Where is the former hero buried? No idea. Maybe Luka knows. And saying that we left to see Luka and the others and clean upter. Just then the barrier over Elkay disappeared. Ah, the barriers gone. It protected Elkay from the Lord of the Undead, right? No. Maybe it protected the seal of the dungeon. The deal of the Immortal Demon Lord? Yeah. I noticed that Shiggy had been sleeping in my pocket. Shiggy was a baby that slept nights. She was so cute when she slept. While we were talking what had happened over, we met Luka. There were remains of stone statues everywhere. Luka smiled when she saw us and Moofy happily ran up. Untouched? Well, Alra, I guess I didnt need to worry.Moo moo Yeah, pretty quickly taken care of. Were you okay? I petted Moofy and looked around. I didnt see any injuries. Of course, someone had to have been hurt in all this, but Yureena had already healed them. There were a lot of them but they were way weaker than the first one. No need for a hard fight. d to hear. I told her about how the Lord of the Undead was the source and how we beat him. Cruz and the other fighters all started looking for battle treasure. Vi-Vi, Steff, the beasts, and I all helped Belda remove all the stones littered everywhere. This is hardbor. Not just gstones and stone building pieces, but boulders as well. Belda had a lot of work ahead of her. Alra, what now? Vi-Vi was calling me Alra so Belda wouldnt know who I was. I guess I should ignore the rest and lift the boulders with magic. Are you okay, Alra? Didnt you use too much magic? Nah, Im fine. Using the same method I blew away the stone statue with, I blew away the boulders one by one. I shot them all to one ce outside town. Could use themter. wow. Belda was surprised, but then went back to giving orders. With our help we cleared a lot of it away. I was d the monsters attack an area with a lot of empty homes. Night came and the clearing was pretty much done. I guess Elkay would get back to normal soon. We had gotten rid of a demon and the Lord of the Undead. Nothing to threaten us again for a while. And there was no need to go into the dungeon anytime soon, so we went to Toms for some rest. Belda, would you like an exnation of what happenedter? Yes. I guess theres no danger anymore though. For now. Good. As we began to leave, Belda ran up to me and asked in a low voice, Uh, Alraum What is it? That gravity magicits not normal magic. Youre no ordinary magicianare you No, that was justright Cruz?Yyeah! Nothing! Cruz and Vi-Vi responded nervously. They thought shed find out I was Alfred. It would be worse for her to find out Cruz identity than mine. With that lion hat on she was hidden, but Vi-Vi had said Cruz name. No, they probably called her name out quite a bit in battle. Not just Vi-Vi, but everyone. Vi-Vi, whats wrong with you! I told you her name was us! Ah, us! Right! Yureena said quickly trying to cover for Cruz, but I think its toote. No, no need to hide, I know who you are Marquisor Hero Ah, okay, yeah. Belda smiled at the clearly flummoxed Cruz. I know your situation, so dont worry. But more than that. Belda now looked at me. Who is this wolf masked man, who I seem to remember during the dungeon copse from a stone naga? Ah!ryaa! Shiggy cried out. Maybe she woke up. That reminded me of itlong time ago. Luka had introduced me as a follower of Cruz back then. She watched my reaction and after checking, added, You were that person back then, right Mister Alra? For some reason she was calling me Mister Alra. She bowed again to mestrange to see from a royal. I looked around me to see if anyone had seen her bowno one seemed to notice. I really, really thank you for that. I have no words enough to thank you. I had helped those new dragon knight recruits that were captured inside when the dungeon copsed. Now she was the vice head of the dragon knights. Must have been some of her soldiers. Dont worry about it. It was Cruz request, you should thank her. I was leading them and inside as well. I owe you my life. Its nothing. Its not nothing! She thanked me over and over and I went back to Toms. They hade back to Elkay untouched, so I went to my room and slept. If something happened, I could get up and take care of it. But nothing should happen for a while. So Femm, Moofy, Chel, and Shiggy all surrounded me in sleep. END OF VOLUME 10. Chapter 406 - Noon at Elkay, I Awake. Chapter 406 C Noon at Elkay, I Awake. It was now the day after our night of defeating the Lord of the Undead in Elkay, I had fallen asleep in Toms house afterwards and awoke after noon. Whoa! I jumped a bit after seeing Timi sitting there watching me. Alra, youre awake. Ah, hello Timiyou came to Elkay. It might have been the sensing of her arrival that had woke me up. She was holding on to Shiggy and petted her as she said, I have something I must tell you. Hm? Whats that? I asked her and, ryaaa! Shiggy spread her wings and flew towards my head. Her wings pped in my face. morningShiggy. ryaaa While I was fighting, Shiggy had slept the whole time in my pouch. Thats why she was awake so early. I sat up a bit and held Shiggy in my arms. I petted her and noticed something strange, Shiggy, you look more noble than before. ryaa! I guess she always thought she looked noble. But she seemed different from yesterday. Hm, what do you think Timi? I seeits just as you say, Al. Shes always been noble and god-like to me though. I guess so What do you think, Femm? Wafffooo? Femm was lying on the bed, got up and off, and stretched. With Femms movement, Moofy and Chel also woke up. MooooooPiiigggiiiii Moofy and Chel also stretched. Chel moved to beside my pillow and jiggled. Toms bed was somewhere between big and small. It wasnt like my bed in Mulg where everyone could fit without feeling cramped. Femm and Moofy were basically almost falling off the bed. So I was squeezed into an unsafe position on the bed. Femms seemed to stretch more carefully than usual, and after that they all sniffed at Shiggy. ryaa ryaa Wuffsmells like usual. CuteShiggy. Femm and Moofy seemed to think that Shiggy was the same as usual. But Chel said, Very noble! Well, Chel, you have good eyes! PigGGi You imagined it. Femm, Shiggys always been noble. Maybe you think shes especially noble today? Yeah, just as Alra said! just like a doting parent would say. Femm said tly, while licking Shiggy. I guess Shiggy was just growing daily. Seems like Timi, Chel, and I were the only ones that noticed it. Femm and Moofy were the ones that didnt. The daily changes were very minute. No wonder we never noticed. So, arent you all tired? Must be hard sleeping on that bed. Enough for me. I could fight a battle if I had to! Moo!PigGii Seems as though Moofy and Chel were fine too. Maybe she asked them that because she saw I looked tired. Sorryit was a long fight. I pet all the beasts in order. Timi sat down on the bed and took Shiggy from me into her arms. Alra. Seems you were pretty busy yesterday. Why didnt you call me? The enemy wasnt enough for me to really worry about it.ryaa Hmph! I was being honest with her, but she was unhappy. She probably came back to Mulg in the morning and found Shiggy still gone. Also, Millia and all the kids from Elkay had also stayed in Mulg. She knew something was up. And they had told Millet that the Lord of the Undead was gone and that Elkay was at peace again. So thats why she was concerned. There were stone statues! Sounds like it was interesting! Different from golems? Yeah, quite different. I want to know more! Well, thoseand some y monsters. y monsters!ryaa ryaa! Her eyes lit up. Seeing her so perked up, even Shiggy wagged her tail. Yeah, there were y monsters and the enemy turned out to be a demon and a Lord of the Undead. No big deal. Hmph! She knew that it wasnt big enough a battle to call for her, but she was still unsatisfied. ryaaa? So, sweet, Shiggy. You make your aunt feel better. ryaaa? Shiggy was noble and kind. I had raised a good dragon. Timi then said, So, Alra, tell me what happened in detail. Ill exin it allter. I have to exin it to Cruz as well. I see. Im sure that Belva wants to know as well. Kind of a pain to exin over and over. I understand. Moo mooo. Anyway, Timi, you said you wanted to tell me something? Yeah, its about a follower of the god of destruction. Moo moo! Moofy then bit and pulled my sleeve. Chapter 407 - Who Cooked Lunch? Chapter 407 C Who Cooked Lunch? Are you hungry? Mooo!Pigggi!ryaa ryaa! The beasts all responded at once. Timi was holding Shiggy, but she was still pping her wings as she answered. Shiggy actually had something to eat before I slept, but like a baby, was hungry again quickly. Timi, can you tell me whatever it is you were going to tell me after we eat? Sure. No problem C its no big rush. I see. Well, then lets eat. Its already afternoon, so Ill go buy something and well eat it. Mooo!Pigggi!ryaa! Femm just stood there wagging its tail. Looked hungry as well. So we all went out. Timi followed us, holding Shiggy. Ah, Al! Good day! Tom said, running up to us. Hey, did you eat yet, Tom? Yeah! Had breakfast! And lunch? Not yet! Okay, well were hungry so were buying lunchyou want toe? No, we already got it ready! He said happily and grabbed my hand and pulled me into the kitchen. Old man! Good morning! Morning! Kay saw me and ran right up to me. After that, all the orphans greeted me as well. Hey everyone. Come and eat lunch with us, old man! Now Kay grabbed my hand and led me to the table. Thanks. I guess we should eat with you guys then. Sure! I looked on the table, and everything there looked delicious. Shiggy pped her wings while in Timis arms and wagged her tail. ryaa, ryaa I bet she was really hungry after one nce at all that food. This looks really good. Is there a ce in Elkay nearby that makes all this? I made it! Kay helped! They both looked at me proudly. Thats really good, Kay. I patted her head. It wasnt the level of food that normal kids would make. It might have been that Millet had a hand in it. She probably made them food in Mulg and they just brought it back to Elkay. If that was the case, then Id have to thank Millet as well. I helped too!And me!I helped! All the orphans said together, so I patted their heads as well. Great work, all of you. It looks delicious. I helped as well. You did well, Tant. Heh heh. Tant really recovered in thest few days. She smiled at me. Kay then pulled at my arm and said, Right, right? We thought youd wake up soon. Must of been hard to make all this good food. Did Millet help you? No! It was Belda that helped us. Wha? Belda?! What kind of appointed agent does cooking? There had to be a mistake. Maybe there was another woman in town named Belda. As I was thinking this, I heard Beldas voice from inside the kitchen. Hey, kids! I have these fresh pies to pull out! Come and help me! Sure! They all ran deep into the kitchen. I decided to go with them. There I saw Belda standing, facing away from me. She had a pink apron on and her long, blond hair was tied in a white ribbon. Next to her was Cruz and Vi-Vi, and they were both without their masks. I guess Belda really did know who they were. She knew Cruz was the hero, but Belda didnt know who I wasI think. Thats why I quickly slid my hand into my magic bag and pulled out my wolf mask. Hey, kids, be careful with this, its hot! Ah, Alra, good morning! Yourete! Well, after yesterday, I guess I cant me you. AAlrayou woke up! Cruz and Vi-Vi greeted me, and hearing this, Belda then did as well. Good morning, Ms. Agent. Whats going on here? Um She started to blush. I was going to ask you more about what happened yesterday, and I guess just got drawn into this Seemed like she was quite nervous and having trouble exining herself. She hade all the way to Toms to ask about yesterday. She knew that I was asleep and that the kids here had nothing to eat. Seeing that the kids only had dried meat to eat, she started fixing food. Thank you for feeding these little ones. Its no problem! Theyre the most important thing in Elkay. And if you need an exnation, Id be happy to provide it now. No need! I have all the time in the world. She probably was reluctant as she knew I was tired. I was thankful for that, but an agent is busy. Especially after what happened yesterday. She probably was very unsettled. Youre busy, though, Belda. Are you okay being here for this long? Certainly. I have all my affairsplete for the day. Belda must have just told all of her workers what to do, so she had nothing to do. Or at least thats how it seemed. She must be some leader to have everything thought out and directed to workers after a day like yesterday. And her workers too had to be superior to carry everything out. Help us carry this, old man! Im hungry! Me too! Yeah, Alra! My stomachs growling! So everyone helped her carry the pies. We got to the dining room and Luka, Yureena, Millia, and Steff were there. Seems that the four had done some work at Wolf Wholesaler. Then Tom had called them in here. The store was close to Toms after all. It probably took him a few seconds. And hearing Belda talking about pies, they knew that lunch wasing. Good timing, Tom. Yyeah! Tom blushed a bit. And so we all ate lunch. Belda looked a bit nervous as she nced at me from time to time. It was hard to eat with someone watching you like that. Even so, I think anyone that makes food is nervous like that. I took a bite from some vored meat, Is it good, old man? Yeah it is, very good. Its great! Cruz said with a smile. And with that the kids and Belda looked a bit relieved. Chapter 408 - About Last Night… Chapter 408 C About Last Night Even Timi munched away at lunch. Yum, this does taste great. Shiggy, eat some. ryaaa The meats good too. ryaamm ryammm Timi held Shiggy to her chest while the little dragon ate. I was looking at Shiggy and asked the others without thinking, Do you all think that Shiggy looks more noble than yesterday? what do you mean by noble? Just what I meant, Vi-Vi. She looks the same as usual Seems like Vi-Vi didnt notice anything. Maybe shes just so young she wouldnt notice. What do you mean? What do you mean by noble? I guess she looks noble Cruz, Yureena, Lukalook closely. So they all petted Shiggy and looked at her closely. Shiggy just kept munching away at the meat she was eating. Looking at hershe was cutewith dignity, I guess. She does look noble. You think? I think she looks cute as usual. Her weight hasnt changedso I dont see much change. Cruz is the only one that sees her nobility, I guess that makes sense. Eheh heh Cruz blushed, and Luka said, Cruz was just saying what she always says. I wasnt just saying it! SheslikeBYAAAAor something. What does that mean? I looked over at Belda, who was staring at Shiggy eating a snack with both hands. Eheh heh. Belda was smiling at the dragon. Seems that the beasts werent paying much attention to our nobility conversation, on the other hand. All of them were just eating whatever they could find. Very good food!Moo MooGood! They all seemed satisfied, though. The kids were all happily eating too. It must taste even better since they helped. Yeah, it is good. I agreed, and Belda woke up from her zoning out and added, Im happy that it fits your taste. She was blushing, probably because she thought Shiggy was so cute. Its very good, Madam Agent. I told you, please call me Belda. I dont like formal names among friends. Well, we do have to acknowledge your position. You dont need to in a ce like this. Even so AlraPlease, just call me Belda. It was a bit of a problem though. She was a royal, and I also had trouble calling her by her first name as she was the appointed agent. Timi looked at us both with a questioning gaze. Beldayour tone sounds different than usual I dont think thats the caseyou think so Timi? You dont notice it? Noyou definitely have a different tone when you talk to Alrawhy is that? I dont think I dobut Timi was right thoughshe had a bit more muddled way of talking, like she was holding back. I mean, it could just be she was tired from yesterday. After a while shed be back to normal. Just ignore it for now I guess. Madam Agent, I was going to exin yesterday to you if I could while we ate Please, Alra, DO call me Belda. okay. Belda, let me exin then. Sure. So, with Steff, Luka, and Cruz help I exined what happened yesterday. Luka, Steff, Yureena, Vi-Vi-, Cruz and I all had different information. Luka was fighting at the mine with the y monsters, and then talked about joining me for the fight against the demon. Steff told about her fight with the statues until I showed up in the town. Yureena told about how she joined Vi-Vi in protecting the town. And Yureena, because she helped those injured, was probably the most effective at keeping Elkay intact. Then Cruz and I talked about our fight against the Lord of the Undead. With all that information given, Belda had a good idea of what happened. Timi didnt fight with us, so she was very interested in everyones stories as well. Madam Belda, do you have any questions? Alra, I said you dont have to speak politely to me. Well, I just Please. Then she bowed. Alra, Im asking you myself. Please dont trouble yourself by speaking to me politely. She was the vice- chief of the dragon knights and the agent of the crown. I guess she had just gotten tired of everyone speaking to her politely. So, any questions, Belda? Yes! She said with a happy smile and then asked, Do you think that attack at the mine was part of the Lord of the Undeads plot as well? Its very possible. Possibly as a diversion. Yeah, the only one in Elkay he knew that was powerful was Luka. What do you mean? Belda looked confused, so I exined. If he knew that Cruz and Yureena were in Elkay, the diversion at the mine wouldnt be enough. But Luka was the only one the Lord of the Undead knew about in Elkay that was strong enough to match him. If Luka didnt know of the threat, he could draw her to the mine and thenplete his n. So by diverting her out of town, he thought the town was defenseless. Or, at least, he thought so. I guess Elkay was saved because of his mistake. Belda whispered, and then Vi-Vi responded, after thinking a bit, In other words, the only enemies we faced were the Lord of the Undead and the demon, right? I think so. We can confirm that all the monsters were controlled by them, after all. The stone statues and y monsters, and the beasts at the mine, right? I believe so. Vi-Vi put down her fork and crossed her arms, Hmph. Something you dont understand? Its not that, there werent any zombies at the mine, right? Vi-Vi said, looking at Luka. Luka had some bread in her mouth, but nodded. There were zombies in Elkay, but none at the mine. Maybe the Lord of the Undead was controlling the zombies, while the demon didnt have control of any? I think so too, but Seems as though I didnt answer Vi-Vis question. I know what youre doubting. How and who were controlling all those monsters, right? Right. It might have been some kind of charm that was put over them. Something simpler than zombification. You think so? Yeah, so the control should also be weaker than control over a zombie. Luka exined what she meant by the difference. With a zombie, you had control of them forever, but the charm might have been for just temporary control. Vi-Vi might not have known about that. There were strange ways to control others and make them do bad things that didnt involve zombification. I see. I guess I just need to study more. Vi-Vi said, finally seeming to understand. Chapter 409 - Explaining Things Chapter 409 C Exining Things I exined it a bit more to Vi-Vi, who looked sorry for not knowing. Hey, but charming or zombification, there are magicians and adventurers that dont know of both, of course. Really? Yeah. Then Steff looked at me, a bit troubled, Master, I didnt know as well. I need more study as well. Steff was a magician and an adventurer. Well, its stuff that most people dont know, so dont feel bad. Yeah, first time I heard of it as well. Cruz said with a smile. Then Luka looked at me and said, Not a good sign if youve never heard of it, Cruz. What? Yeah, youre an S Rank adventurer. AND youre a ruler with the power to punish crime. Yeah, I guess I need to learn a bit more as well. It would be hard to charge someone that was under a charm spell, after all. That was what Luka was trying to say. Did you know about it, Belda? Cruz asked Belda, perhaps since they were in the same position as deliverers of justice. YesI know about it a little, I guess. Really? Wow! There were a few events involving zombification a few months ago, after all. What happened? An attempted assassionation of the inheritor of a marquis realm. Sounds crazy. I read about it very closely to find out what happened. Really? Can I find a book like that to study? There had to be aw book about situations like that for Cruz to study. Cruz, you always work so hardyoull be fine. Eheh heh. Yureena said, patting her head, and Cruz happily blushed. Luka had actually introduced Cruz to aw teacher at the academy who had taught her quite a bit. She was a very hard worker. You are a hard worker, Cruz. Eheh heh heh Iplimented her as well and she blushed. Just then, Timi looked over at me with Shiggy still in her hands. Alra, what was that barrier covering Elkay that you mentioned? I thought it was protection against the Undead Demon. You dont think the demon or the Lord of the Undead made it? Maybe that weird statue did it C Cruz said it looked cool. Hm? Alrawhat do you think it means? Timi looked at me confused. Belda had the same questioning look. Cruz has very good intuition, after all. Eheh heh heh. She blushed again, a lot of blushing for one day. You really are the hero marquise. Belda said honestly, but Timi still frowned and said, I dont doubt her intuition, but is there any proof other than that? Of course theres more. Then let me hear it. To entertain Timis questions, I spoke about when I opened the barrier. I felt all the flow from the barrier towards the inside of the town. Also, because both the Lord of the Undead and the demon fought with stone and y. So what does it all mean, Al? All of those monsters were created from buildings and stones on the ground. If Elkay wasnt sealed from the inside, then why would be able to pull in more materials from the outside. That would mean more y monsters and charmed beasts from the outside. The Lord of the Undead would have used orc zombies and other zombies from outside as well. That barrier was nothing but a huge handicap to both the demon and the Lord of the Undead. So because they didnt cast it, it was meant to protect the town? I think it was less about the town and more about that Immortal Demon the Lord of the Undead mentioned. Hm, do you think it was actually the Lord of the Undeads way of keeping you out? I dont think he was aware of our fighting strength. And Cruz was already inside the barrier. Yeah. He probably would have noticed that there were other strong warriors inside the barrier when he put it up. So the barrier is part of that huge magical circle? It was a monstrous circle. Vi-Vi, you mean the one you found when making the stable for Jearl? Yeah, it wasnt just a transport circle. What do you mean? Cruz asked, and Vi-Vi began to exin. There was a massive circle system attached to that transport circle. Way bigger than any normal one. If it was just a transport circle, thered be no need for all the huge system attached. Your transport circles ARE small, Vi-Vi. No, its because hers are special. Most normal ones are quiterge. I said, and Vi-Vi nodded. Cruz then followed up, I seewow, you are good with circles, Vi-Vi. even so, no transport circles are THAT big. Vi-Vi said, with a little blush. Is the town circle bigger because the circle makers werent that skilled? Vi-Vi shook her head at Lukas question, I used to think so, but I think its just different technologies. That concealment magic is very strong as well. Alras right. Its not because whoever made it was just bad at circles. The transport circle was quite detailed, after all. In other words, we should think of that transport circle as just one piece of the puzzle. Vi-Vi said, sounding assured of her opinion. Chapter 410 - Thinking over the Transfer Circle Chapter 410 C Thinking over the Transfer Circle I thought Vi-Vis opinion was correct. No matter how advanced andplex the transfer circle was, it was just far too big if it covered the whole town. Its just as Vi-Vi says. It was careless of me to think of it as just a transfer circle. I had to apologize for that mistake, at least. Its just too big, Al! With the whole town of Elkay on top of it, its impossible to see its scope. Yeah, if Al and Vi-Vi cant figure it all out, then well have to leave it at that. ryaa Timi said, kind enough topliment us. Shiggy also happily chimed in. Then Belda looked at us seriously and said, So you mean that transfer circle over at Jearls is just one part of a big system? Yes. And it probably is connected with that strange pyramid statue. Well, if you say so, Mr. Alra, Im not going to argue. Belda was speaking to me in a strange wayIt was hard to respond to that. So what happened to the demon? Seems as though Vi-Vi didnt notice how Belda was speaking to me. Still imprisoned in that box. Wont answer anything about Elkayquite a problem. If he wont, then can I finish him off? If were ever up against a wall like that, Cruz, then well ask you. Leave it to me! Anytime! Belda nodded, and Vi-Vi asked, Do you think we can carry him to the capital through the transport circle? Welluh. Vi-Vi causing problems again. We wanted to keep THAT circle secret. But it was toote. She had asked about the transport circle in front of Belda. Belda, I admit that we have a transport circle here in town. You can go to the capital immediately with it, but wed like to only use it in emergencies. Understood, Mr. Alra. I will remember that. So Belda seemed to be in agreement. Youre not going to ask why its there? You say its there, and thats enough. Seemed a little too quickly epted. She noticed my difort at that and continued, Youre concerned that the knowledge of that circle will get out, right, Mr. Alra? Correct. And if it does get out, someone will try to exploit it? High possibility. We also dont need the crown to know. She looked at me and nodded deeply. It was a difficult thing to think that the powerful might do something with that circle, but it was there. There were definitely power people in the capital that had evil intentions. But Belda had understood. Leave it to me then. I will treat it with utmost secrecy. These lips are sealed. Belda then said proudly. Thanks, so what do you think about taking the demon? I asked Luka. Yeahif you think about the timing at which Belda arrived here, theyre definitely going to figure out that a transport circle was used. If thats the case, then theyre going to demand usage of it. So what if we take him without the circle? It wasnt enough to just ask the guild or the agents men for help. Without a strong guard, that demon was going to be trouble during transport. You had to have someone strong in the case he busted out. And if someone attacked trying to release the demon, you had to have the power to drive them back. So, the F rank adventurers were out of the question, as were probably Beldas men. Even with B ranked Leah and Leo, you still had your worried. If Timi could carry the demon, then it could work. I see. Even when I arrived after with the box, two or three dayster you coulde through the circle and no one would question it. Exactly. Cruzno, if I went with Luka, then we could exin it off. I looked over at Luka and she looked back at me seriously considering it. I guess that would work. Okay. Leave it to me. Huh? Mr. Alra, why are you sending Luka and not me? Cruz looked a bit settled. Well I tried to choose the right words. The reason is that I kind of couldnt depend on Cruz. You needed someone that could have authority yet lie like the wind. Cruz couldnt lie like that. Even so, it seems that Cruz might have been hurt by what I said. We cant let them know that you went to Elkay, Cruz. I see, political problem? It would be too much of one, right? Yes. There could be a lot of problems revealing that the hero was in the old Demon Lords domain. I see! Then Im fine with Luka. Leave it to me then. And with that, Luka patted Cruz head. After talking it over a but more, we kept the demon locked up in the agents jail for a few days more. At the right time, wed send Timi and Luka to the ministry of justice. If I give my name as an ancient dragon, I think they will believe us. Well, you are like a god to most. Okay, if there are no questions, then lets begin. I said, but Timi responded, I have something to ask, Alra. ryaaa? Shiggy looked a little confused at the serious look on Timis face. But even so, Shiggy kept on eating. She was eating from Timi when we had started, but now I was feeding her. I guess she just wanted that. So what is it, Timi? Well, the Lord of the Undead said he was friends with the former Hero, right? Yeah, he did say that himself. Well, do you think the former Hero might have BECOME the Lord of the Undead? I thought, but took a guess that wasnt the case. I could understand why she considered that though. I dont know, but You dont think so, Alra? It was true that the two knew each other. And that they were both magicians. I knew thats why Timi was trying to put two and two together. I think the conditions were different from 300 years ago until today. Hmmm. The hero 300 years ago, after defeating the demon lord, was treated quite coldly. Thats why the hero had left the capital and ventured out to create the town of Mulg. He was givennd from a ruler, and lived quite differently than Cruz, who was praised by the people and the crown. Also, the human life is very short. I dont think hed have the time to study what was necessary. I see. Timi looked a bit confounded. It would be hard for someone like her to consider how short the human life was. However, I guessed that she could somewhat imagine it. So, if you need time to study that type of magic, just tell me okay, Alra? She was obviously thinking that I would and wanted to stop me first. Yeah, I dont think Im going to study the undead arts, so rx. Okay, but I mean it, right? I know. Timi said, looking at me seriously. She probably was quite worried. And after everything that transpired yesterday, I decided to ask her, So, Timi. You said you had something to say about the follower of the Destruction God? Yeah, thats right, I did. I said, and Timi looked all of us over. Chapter 411 - The Follower of the God of Destruction Chapter 411 C The Follower of the God of Destruction Is that how it is? Alra, you knew about the follower of this God of Destruction? I guess I did. It was back when we were searching for the follower of the Death God. The follower of the God of Destruction shone dimly yellow on the map. Back then, Timi told us that it was the follower of the God of Destruction. The light was quite weak and we talked about it Yeah, buttely its gotten quite strong. So maybe whoever or whatever it is, is growing? Just as you say, Alra. It was said that follower was the one that took the God of Destructions word to destroy civilization. The God of Destruction was one of the evil gods. Hearing this, Belda said, The follower of the God of Destruction, an evil godwe should be careful. Well, you cant say that right away. Are you for certain, Alra? Gods and their motives surpass theprehension of good and bad to we humans. I said that as I patted the followed of the Death God, Chel, a god that was thought evil as well. PigGi Even so, they must be quite strong, so we should talk to them. Lets meet the follower, Alra! Cruz said, eyes shimmering, but Timi said, Theres no need, right? Why? If its our destiny to meet them, then the follower will approach us. Wait, the follower of the Destruction God will? Yeah. Whoever it is approaches us from the capital. How far are they? About three days walk from Elkay. I guess we can just wait, then. What do you think, Alra? Were busy, so we should just wait for them. Alras right. Thats the best n of action. Belda agreed with me and the others, so we decided to wait. Then Luka said, It would probably be better for us to search out that dungeon first. I thought as well it would be good to hurry and check the ce out. Even though its sealed, we should probably confirm whats inside the ce before we judge what it is. Okay, well take a look. We definitely needed to confirm what condition that Immortal Demon was in. The seal on the Immortal Demon had to be checked. I was d that the plot the Lord of the Undead had wasnt carried out. But the enemy now was this unbelievably strong Undead or Immortal Demon. It might be that we were still part of the whole plot to release this demon. It also might be that the seal barring the demons release was now breaking. I exined all this to those other than Luka and Yureena. Cruz heard it all and nodded, Hm, I guess so. If that seal ever breaks, its going to be trouble. Just as you say, Hero Marquise. Alra, can I ask you something? Sure, you want me to see the inside of the dungeon, right? I want to go too!PigGGi It was the Immortal Demon that was sealed. I would feel better if the Holy Hero Cruz was along with me when I went. Wait a second. Hm? Its a bitte in the day for that now. Youre right. Lets go tomorrow. I was rearing to god, but Yureena and Luka stopped me. Its a dungeon though, right? Day or night has no rtion. Maybe not inSIDE the dungeon, but if somethinges out, then the people outside will be in trouble. I guess youre right. I had just woken up after all. I was rested enough. Femm, Chel, Moofy, and I had all slept. I had also forgotten to ask the others if they were rested. So all of you others are tired? Me? No, Im ready to go! Cruz said looking confused. Luka sighed, Yeah, Cruz, you sleptfor one hour. We all had an hour to sleep and then woke up in the morning. I seeI guess Im not giving you much time to recover. Sorry. I bowed, and Vi-Vi said, Its not your fault, Alra. Did you sleep, Vi-Vi? More than these other girls. So I guess she didnt get that much sleep either. Moo mooPigGGi I and the beasts all looked at them apologetically. And Belda? Well, the city is my duty I guess she didnt sleep much either. I see Wed be hard up if you ran out of magic or your knee started hurting. Better to rest. Yureena said with a smile, then, Alra, how is your knee? Has it worsened? It did hurt when I used too much magic. So she was worried. Thanks for worrying over me, but Im fine. I said, and Luka and Yureena smiled back. Chapter 412 - Elkay Layout Chapter 412 C Elkay Layout I was thankful they still worried about me. Chel had healed the curse in my knee, however. That was after I killed Chels predecessor. From then, my knee hasnt hurt very badly. PiGGI Actually, Chel was on that knee right now, jiggling. Curse was healed Thanks. Chel told me this just so I was sure the curse was gone. Chel had to be the most knowledgeable about that immortal killer arrow. Okay, everyone rest. Ill take a look at the dungeon myself. What? Youre going by yourself?! Cruz was surprised and stood up from her chair with a clunk. Well, just a little look. No! Youre not keeping that dungeon all to yourself! Moo! Moofys face peeked out from between Cruzs leg as they both protested. I ignored Moofy and told Cruz, Just a bit, itll be okay. Youre just nning on killing that immortal demon alone! Thats not true Cruz was right though, so I was a bit taken aback. I knew that for some reason she wanted to enjoy exploring the dungeon as well. I knew how she felt as it had been a while since we had raided a dungeon. If that were so, I guess we should wait a day. Cruz always worked so hard. I guess I should let her enjoy the dungeon with me. Okay, then well go check the dungeon tomorrow. Yeah! Even so, we cant just let that portal be. We need to seal it. It would suck if a monster got free from the circle. Before a magic mouse came out so it was possible. Thats fine!Moo moo! Then Ill help!ryaa! Vi-Vi, Moofy, Timi, and Shiggy all answered. Im going to help with yesterdays reconstruction after checking the circle. Its fine, Mr. Alra, almost all the work is done. Almost everything? Yeah, because of the hero, Luka, Yureena, and Timis cooperation. I see. I guess they fixed the town up while I was sleeping. Everything else is the responsibility of the craftsmen, so no bother Alra. Elkay was quite poor. There werent enough jobs. This might provide some employment for the people. I knowif you need me, just let me know. Thank you. After lunch was over , we all split. Belda went back to the agents house, while the others went back to their respective ces. Vi-Vi, Timi, and I went to Jearls stable. There was a transfer circle there after all. All the beasts were with us as well. Beldas a hard worker. Yeah, she does her best. Shes young, not like you, Al. Vi-Vi said, snickering. Belda was in her 20s while Vi-Vi and Cruz was in their teens. Continuouste nights do wear you down. You feel the same, Alra? All humans do. Hmmm. Timi said, thinking something over. As we talked, we ventured to the middle of Elkay. As Belda said, all the confusion was pretty much over. There were a lot of houses damaged, but the road stones were almost all fixed. That was fast. Yeah. Timi did a lot to fix everything. So did you, Cruz. Timi was an ancient dragon. Even in human form she had far more power than a human. Moofy looked like a little cow even though she could be a lot bigger. 10 times more powerful than an ox. Cruz also was way stronger than most people. There are a lot of broken buildings. I wonder what will happen to those that lived there. There are a lot of empty houses. Youre right. After looking it over from the sky, there theyre all living over there. I guess with the agents authority, she allowed them to live in the empty homes. Im d they had somewhere to stay. It was winter, and no home meant no life. Since Elkay had been depopted, this would actually mean some of the homes got fixed up. As Belda said, there was a lot of work to be done. Even so, people are quite busy. Belda had givenmands to carpenters and masons with which buildings to fix and they were all beating away rhythmically with their hammers and tools. And with Millia selling everything wholesale, its enough. Even after the Lord of the Undead and his demon friend had attacked, the rebuilding of Elkay had already begun. Chapter 413 - Going to Meet Jearl Chapter 413 C Going to Meet Jearl We walked through the town looking at all the interesting progress going on in Elkay. The dragon stable was a massive building in the middle of the town, so people were looking it over as they walked by. Looks like nothing hit it. Yeah, it was close to the battle took, so Im happy it was undamaged. Your good work shows, Vi-Vi. Saying that caused Vi-Vi to blush a bit. Since she had cast protection circles around it, it remained untouched. Shiggy peeked out from my pouch, ryaaryaaryaaryaa She cried out rhymically. It was very cute, and sounded respectful. She might have started to feel as dignified as an ancient dragon duchess should. You really are noble, Shiggy. Ryaa? I patted her head. There were people rebuilding houses around us. Maybe Shiggy was ryaaing along with the hammers rhythm around us. I patted her head in tempo as we walked to the dragon stable. Gaaa We were still a ways away, but I could hear Jearl. I think he was quietly huffing instead of crying out. Seems that hes in the stable. I wonder if I should give him something. I searched in my magic bag for something. There was some magic boar meat left. Youre rightlet me see as well. Timi started searching in her bag as well. Im still sorry I scared him. Maybe something good to eat will fix that. She looked a bit upset about it. As we stopped and she continued looking, Gaaa?! I could see Jearls face looking out from the stable at us. He probably noticed that we wereing. ryaa ryaa Shiggy noticed this and happily called out. Jearl came out of the stable and greeted us. It was bad to keep him waiting, so we quickly walked up to the stable. Jearl, thanks foring out to see us. Gaaa He stood proudly before us, but still would not look in Timis direction. His tail wasnt between his legs, but you could tell he was trying not to shake. Timi still scared him, I bet. ryaaaMoo moo Shiggy flew on top of Moofy and got close to Jearl. Gaaaa Jearl patted Moofy with his hand and Shiggy flew onto it. Gaaa? Jearls eyes got bit as Shiggy approached. ryaa? Gaa gaa gaaa Jearl shook a bit. What is it, Jearl? Gaaa He noticed that Shiggy grew as well. Good eye, Jearl. Gagagaga Timi now got close and patted Jearl. Jearl shook a bit. However, he didnt pee himself. I guess he was getting used to them. Jearl, you look much better. gaaa Im d youre not frightened. You can have some of this. Ggaa Timi took out some ball of meat. He looked at it and seemed to be reserved about it. Its okay, Jearl. Shiggy had lunch already. ryaa! Gaaa! Timi petted him again and the dragon began to eat. I have more if you want it, Jearl. I gave him what I had and he quickly ate it up as well. Must have been hungry. ryaaa Shiggy said quietly and then flew to me. What? You want some too? ryaa Because Jearl ate so happily, Shiggy must have felt hungry as well. So I took some more food from my bag as well. She was a baby, so it was good to feed them when they were hungry. Eat it all so you get bigger. ryaa ryaa I enjoyed seeing the tiny dragon eat. Timi watched me feeding Shiggy and said, We came for another reason as well. We want to search that magic circle. Gaaa Oh, youre okay with it? Thanks. Gaa gaa Timi made sure that Jearl knew we were going to check that magical circle as well. I was surprised they couldmunicate. But they were both dragons. So I continued feeding Shiggy and said, Timi, you understand Jearlsnguage? You dont? Wha? I think I know what youre talking about at least. Yeah, Jearl said it was okay to check. You got that right? I dont understand the words, but I guess I figured it out, by looking at his face. Is that all? Yeah. Timi looked a bit proud of herself, so I looked at Jearl. Gaa? Jearl was still eating. I guess he really didnt notice anything special about the circle. Jearl, can we go inside the stable? Gaa So we took a look inside the ce. I didnt know what he was saying, but he could understand us, I guessed. gaaa? So we went over to the magical circle as Jearl looked at us curiously. He seemed to be asking, What do you want with that? The seal hasnt been broken. Vi-Vi said, looking at the sealed entrance. Chapter 414 - Back to Mulg Chapter 414 C Back to Mulg Timi checked over the magical circle. Even though he was a Lord of the Undead, he had trouble with Alras seal here. Yeah, theres no damage to it. I looked it over, and it seemed that the seal waspletely secure. It was the same seal as I had ced on it. Maybe since the guy knew there was no way he could break it, he put off doing it untilter. But if thats so, where did that zombie snake cookie from? When we were battling the Lord of the Undead, a giant zombie snake attacked us. Thats why I thought that the Lord of the Undead had used the transport circle to call the snake. Vi-Vi thought about it a bit and then said, Hm. He might have just hid it from us. In the middle of Elkay? Can you hide something that big here? I guess not It might have been a special technique or magical device that helped Timi said, thinking it over seriously. I couldnt think of anything that would do that, though. However, there were things in this world I still didnt know about. Well, in the 300 years that Lord of the Undead studied, he probably could have created the magic to do that. Yeahif he had ab, Id like to see how he did it, too. Magicians that research all havebs of their own. I was pretty sure that the Lord of the Undead had one as well. No idea where it would be now. Would be bad if someone evil found it. Femm said, sounding worried. If we could seal it, then we could make sure no one evil found it. Yeah, at least we wouldnt worry then. If we could find it. Femm said, a little more rxed. On the other hard, while we were talking, Moo mooPiGGigaa gaa The beasts were all spending time ying with each other. After we confirmed nothing had changed with the transfer circle, we saw Jearl off and left the stable. And after we checked that strange pyramid onest time, we headed for Toms. Then we headed for Mulg. Timi, Vi-Vi, Femm, Moofy, Chel, Shiggy, and I. Ah, wee home, old man! Colette greeted us as we came out from the storehouse with the magical transport seal. She practically sprinted out to see us. Chel was on my shoulder and jumped on her head when she approached. PiggGi Were you good, Chel? PiGGiPiggGI Chel jiggled happily. Wuff Wuff! The magical wolves ran circles around all of us as well. I guess they had been ying with her. They were all happy to see Femm again. They sniffed each other and ran around. Shiggy mixed in with them, even though she was much smaller than the wolves. Whoa! Timi was a little unsettled, but I put my hand on her shoulder. Itll be okay. Really? Yeah. The magic wolves were used to ying with cubs the size of Shiggy after all. And Femm was there as well, Wuff wuff! The little cubs were drawn by the sound and all came out as well. ryaa! So little Shiggy started ying with them as well. After that, Timi started to calm down. Old man, did sthomething crazy happen in Elkay? Colette asked me as he sped my hand, Chel still on her head. I guess so? What? We were attacked by stone and y monsters. So I exined everything as simply as I could to an interested Collette. Woww! Collette then ran around and Moffy chased her. All of this running around was making me dizzy. What is it, Moofy? Moo moo! Moofy had chomped on my hand and was pulling. She was nipping me into my house. Are you cold? Bath Ah, you want to take a bath? Moo! I guess I havent hit the hot springs in a while. There was a bath in Toms house, but it was nothing as big as the onsen here in Elkay. Also the water quality here was much better, so thats why she wanted a bath. I guess I have done a lot of worktely. I should warm myself up and rx. Moo moo! Good idea. Piggig!! All the beasts said in chorus. How about you Shiggy? You want a bath, or to stay here and y? ryaa! Shiggy flew out of the clump of wolves towards me. I guess she wanted in as well. Okay, lets go! And so we left for the hot springs. Chapter 415 - Into the Bath Chapter 415 C Into the Bath So I told the magic wolves, Thanks for ying with Shiggy. Were going to the bath now, so Ill see youter. Wuff!waffwaff The wolves all seemed to understand, sat down, and barked at us. The cubs might not have understood, however, so they kept running around my feet. Okay, see you. So cute. Yeah, you guys can y with Shiggyter. I petted them, and we all left. Shiggys auntie will give you some treats. Timi said, throwing some meat to them from her bag. They looked very happy. Thank you for that. Dont worry, its to thank them. Femm thanked her and Timi thanked Femm back. Old man! To the bath! Yeah, I know. We got into my house and Millet came running, Wee back, Mr. Al. Im back. So, was Elkay alright? For now. Well check again tomorrow. I see. Would you like to eat dinner here? I was expecting to Good, then Ill make you something special! Thank you, Millet. Wuff!Moo moo!PiggGi All of the beasts were ready to eat. Im going to get in the bath with old man. Ah, thats nice. Are youing, sister? Well, I Collette, dont bother your sister. Whaaa? Colette puffed her cheeks out, a bit angry. Moo moo!! Moofy started pushing me towards the bath. She was very strong even in her smaller form. Dont push. I know, Moofy. I want to get in too. Moo! Okay, Millet, Ill take a bath and be back. Sure, take your time So I went in the bath with Femm, Moofy, and Chel. ryaaryaryaa ryaa You dont have to take clothes off, all of you, so it must be nice. ryaaa? Collette, how about you? I can do it myself. So I took off my clothes, covered myself with a towel and went in. All the beasts were waiting for me inside. Sorry for making you wait. Sthhiggy, Ill wash you, okay?! ryaa! So Collette grabbed Shiggy and dashed off to the bath. Dont run! Its dangerous! Yesth Sthir I went inside and all the beasts were seated waiting. Near the ce I always wash myself was Femm, Moofy, and Chel. Femm, wait until Collette gets washed off. WuffMooPigi So I helped Collette get washed off. If you made her wait, then she might catch a cold, unlike the other beasts. Collette, wash your hair first. Thanksth old man. Ill wash Shiggy too. Thanksryaa So I washed her off and rinsed her while she washed off Shiggy. Sthiggy? Are you itchy sthomewhere? ryaaryaa! Hey, stop pping your wings! ryaa Shiggy was happily enjoying the bath. Then Chel bounced up to us. ryaa! PiGGi Now Shiggy jumped on Chel and attempted to wash it. ryaa ryaa ryaaPipiggi Shiggy actually did it quite gently and Chel was happy. Femm just sat there while Moofy seemed to be getting bored, so she walked over and started chewing my hair. Moofy! You cant eat my hair! Mommf? Moofy looked surprised. Either way, I finished rinsing off Collette. Okay Collette. Get into the bath. Thankth. I can wasth your back off. Youll catch a cold, so hurry and get in. Okay, go on Shiggy and Chel. ryaapigGi Shiggy really wasnt that dirty. She might not have even needed to be washed. Chel was the same. Any dirt would just slide right off. For some reason Chel just sat there waiting for me. Collette, be careful in there. I know. Im good at sthwimming. Just take care. Okay Moofy wait a second. So Moofy waited with her mouth on my head while I washed Femm. Chapter 416 - My Own Onsen Chapter 416 C My Own Onsen I began washing Femm, and Femms tail happily wagged. You really love taking baths. It feels good. Is that something rare with wolves? I think all wolves like taking baths. Really? Well, not in winter because your body freezes You do get a cold if you dont dry off. Wuff Femm would wait and allow me to wipe all the water off but a normal wolf wouldnt. And I guess normal wolves only bathe in the summer. Anyway, I washed Femm off. From nose to tail, ears, chin, everything. Do you have somewhere you dont want to be washed? Im fine. I see. My footpads are ticklish. I see. But thats the dirtiest ce. I can take it. Good to hear. So I finished washing Femm offpletely. Okay, go get in the bath. Next is you Moofy. Thanks.Moo Femm went by Moofy to the bath, and Moofy backed up a bit and sat. You love the bath too. love. Moofy snorted a bit and continued, Like getting washed. I see. Then Ill make sure to get everything. Thanks. While I was washing her, Moofy looked very happy. Im washing your face so close your eyes. Moo So I washed over her horns, nose, and snout. Her butt, even her hooves. Do your hooves hurt? Moo? You always are letting people ride or hefting cargo around, so I thought getting horseshoes might help. But if she turned to a bigger size, theyd probably pop right off. It was a problem. Ill ask Luka about itter. moo moo Okay, go and get in. Thanks. With that all done, I started washing myself off. I could hear Collette and the others having a ball in the bath. Femm was just sitting there, making sure the others were safe. I washed off all the slobber Moofy put on my head. It really isnt that sticky though. You would think out of all the slobber out there, that cow slobber would be the worst. But Moofys was actually quite smooth. I guess she really was a special cow. Hm. Well, her slobber WAS magic and holy cow slobber. It might actually be cleaner than water, or good for your body. While I was thinking about that, I washed my hair and closed my eyes. And I heard a voice from behind me, I can wash your back off Sure, thank? I thought it was Collette, because the voice was simr. But it wasnt Collettes voice. It was a voice like Collette had gotten bigger. Is that you Millet? Yes. Do you have somewhere you need washed? No, I feel pretty good right nowum, I mean d you feel good then. I was in the middle of washing my own hair off. My face was covered in suds so I couldnt see anything. I would wash off my own back, but the bucket in front of me was gone. It might be that Millet had used it. That was fine, but it was a little hard to escape with your face covered with suds. Ah, sthisthter! I wasth going to wasth histh back off with that! Youll catch a cold, stay in there and stay warm. Yeah, Colette, dont get out. Okay, I guessth I have to. Then I heard a bunch of sshing. ryaa! Ryaa! Sounded like Shiggy and Collette were close to me. They were having fun. Are you having fun Shigy? ryaa I see. Auntie told you that you should stay in the bath. Hm? I said without thinking. There was a voice I didnt expect. It was Timis. Isnt it nice knowing you can enjoy yourself without having to be formal all the time. Yeah, I guess so. I feel the same. Its a great feeling. It would be bad to not be able to enjoy a bath. Well, thats not what I meant. So did Timi already wash and was now in the bath? Or why did Timi even need to get in the bath? ryaa ryaa Hah hah hah, calm down Shiggy. okay. I guess Shiggy and Timi were going to have fun anyway. After all, Timi could change from dragon to human form easily anyway. There was no way her body was like a humans though. She had magical clothes on when she was human. I wasnt sure if she was taking a bath to keep them clean though. So ancient dragons like baths? Yes, especially Mulgs. ryaaa Shiggy likes it too. So I learned today that all ancient dragons like baths. Chapter 417 - Everyone Takes a Bath Chapter 417 C Everyone Takes a Bath ryaa ryaa Moo! I kept washing my hair while listening to Shiggy and Moofy y around. With Timi watching, I guessed it wouldnt be a problem. Then Millet came to me and washed my back off. Ill wash your arms next. No, I can do it myself. Please, just allow me. And so Millet moved on to washing my arms. No, I can wash them myself Dont worry. Sometime I have to repay you for teaching me magic Millet, Colette, and Steff were my magical followers. Its true that many followers would do things for their masters in this world. But most of that is the stuff of old stories. Im sure some still do, but theyre in the minority. You dont have to act like thatno one does that anymore. Well, then consider it my personal thanks. Just rx. I mean Its hard for you to wash your arms with your eyes closed, right? Well, if you just rinse my hair off. Just wait. And with that Millet continued in washing my arms. She did it with just enough strength. She was quite good at it, I guessed. Do you have anywhere that itches? Ah, no Tell me if Im rubbing you too hard. No, it feels really good. Eheh heh heh I had finished cleaning my hair and wanted it rinsed out. Millet, do you think you could rinse my hair? I searched the floor for a water bucket, but when I reached out, Al, do you have somewhere that itches? Someone else was rubbing my hair, ah, Cruz. Its Cruz. I washed my hair already, you dont have to. What? But its hard to wash with your eyes closed. Not really. Wait a second. Everyone washes their hair with their eyes closed. You do too right? I usually have Yureena wash it. I see. I thought she did it alone. I remembered she did previously when we got in the bath together before. I guess Yureena scolded her for not doing it right when she did it alone previously. hmm hmm hmmmmm She hummed along and washed my hair again. Cruz, Im washing Mister Al, so go and wash yourself off, okay? No, I got this. Im his follower so please allow me. Being a follower has nothing to do with it. I guess Cruz was finally right about that. The problem is that I didnt need my hair washed again twice. Ah! Im a follower too, let me wasth him! Moo moo Now both Collette and Moofy were getting excited about nothing. Collette, stay in the bath. Youll catch a cold. But I told them, but still could hear a lot of sshing. I guessed Collette wasing this way. Wuff What is it Femm? Wuff wuff kyaaa I guessed that Femm had stopped Collette. She still was having fun, it seemed. I knew that Femm would watch out for her though. Very dependable. On the other hand, Millet and Cruz were fighting over me. I can wash him better! Really, well Cruz, just see how good I can do it! Ah! You cant just start washing him like that! Hah, no fooling me! Millet, you cheater! Then you can wash his body and Ill wash his hair. So with that said, Cruz started to wash my hair. I was already done washing it though. All I needed was to rinse it off. Even so, I guess she was good at it. It felt good, I mean. Geez, Cruz Milletined while she washed my arms and shoulders, and then my neck. Millet was quite good as well, it was like getting a massage. Al, do you have anywhere that itches? No, thanks, Cruz. Mister Al, your shoulders are tight. Even your neck is. Thanks Millet. It does feel good. Im d. I was already getting a little sleepy, but if I fell asleep here, Id catch a cold. Okay, Im washed enough hmm hmm hmmmm I was trying to get them to stop, but both of them wouldnt. I asked them over and over, but they refused to listen. I had to do something before I fell asleep. So I used magic to lift some water and dump it on me to rinse me off. Chapter 418 - The Bath 2 Chapter 418 C The Bath 2 I tried to avoid using magic for daily circumstances as much as I could. With magic you could do everything you needed without taking a step out of bed. But if you did that, then your body would atrophy. You could train your muscles with magic too, but thats not a very healthy way to live, I thought. Thats why if I could do it by hand, I would do it that way. But this time I thought it was fine. I dumped a bunch of water over me. Hey, you cheater! Cruz said, but it wasnt cheating at all. Ah, Mister Al, you could have let me do the rinsing. I would have, but I had asked over and over, but no one did, so, oh well. It felt so good I was beginning to fall asleep, and if I fell asleep like that something crazy might have happened to me. So after washing myself off, I opened my eyes. Thanks Cruz and Millet. I can wash your backs off, if you need it. Then I turned around and, Kyaaa! Millet screamed, embarrassed. She had a big towel wrapped around her so nothing could be seen, but she was still embarrassed. Wha? No ones going to willfully go into a bath and then scream like that. Let me wash your backs off, turn around. Normally, youd wash the girls hair off and then rinse it. But I had no idea how to wash a girls hair. Cruz hair was short so it might be easier, but it wouldnt be fair to just wash hers. So I decided just to wash their backs off. No! No need to. Millet refused, but Oh, sure, go ahead Al! Cruz eyes glimmered. Here then! Cruz said, turning her back to me. Hey, no fair! Millet then said, I guess she really wanted me to even though she refused. Wash her front. I said, while I washed Cruz back. She was embarrassed about fronts before. Shes gotten braver. I could hear Femm say. Tthats not true! Theyre getting to be rivals. Nno were not! Femm and Cruz said to each other. I had no idea what they were talking about, so I just kept washing Cruz back. Millet then washed Cruz neck and shoulders. Heh heh heh Cruz said, seeming to enjoy it. I guess Millets way of washing really was pleasurable. And after we were done, Millet said, Ah, um, me too Yeah, go ahead and turn around. So I washed Millets back. Millet, your shoulders are really stiff. yes, they always are Must be tough when youre young. I know that Cruz shoulders are never like that. Maybe because Cruz shoulders are so built, while Millets are different. I was thinking it over and Timi said to me, I guess when people have big ones their shoulders are stiff like that. whatwhat do you mean I could see that Millet was blushing. I didnt know what Timi meant, but then Cruz followed up. Strange for elves to have boobs that big. Yeah, my sthisthers got really big boobiesth! Colette said while happily sshing around the bath. And theyre only getting bigger! You like big onesth, old man? Wha? What big ones? I knew exactly what she meant, but Im not going to answer a question like that. Little girls arent fooled though, they cut straight to the chase. What? Boobiesth of coursthe! Collette said with apletely normal smile. Wellum I was hoping that Millet would say something to defray the situation. She just sat there though, waiting for the answer. I could feel the skin around my ears getting hot. Then I said to Cruz, Well, Cruz Cruz just sat there silent. She looked at me very seriously. Wellum So which old man? Big onesth or sthmall onesth? Which?! Colette kept up with her demand to know. There was no way to runor to answer. I guess I like both types Whaa? Colette looked a bit put out by my answer. An indecisive answer like that doesnt match the great Alra! Dont try to fool us! ryaaryaa! See, Shiggy wants to know as well! ryaa I dont think Shiggy wanted to know that badly. She just was responding to how excited Timi sounded when she asked that question. But, there was no way to escape, so I had to answer, Well, I guess I thought long about what my answer should be. Chapter 419 - The Bath 3 Chapter 419 C The Bath 3 I tried to say this as quietly as possible. It was embarrassing enough as it is. I really like both, I guess. But if you had to pick one? Timi said, looking at me seriously. Well, I guess I like both of themis all I can say. Oh? ryaa ryaa Timi was staring at me, and Shiggy was on her head doing the same. I guess if I had to pick one, big is good. Yess! Millet said softly, putting her hands together in front of her chest. Cruz, on the other hand, puffed out her cheeks, Whaa? So you dont like them small? No, thats not it. Just if I absolutely had to choose. So you like small ones too, youre saying? I said that already. Okay then. Cruz said, smiling, as she got up and walked to the bath. I guess she had finished with the washing right away. Okay, anywhere left to wash, Millet? No, Im fine. Okay, well Im finished. Thank you! It felt great. So I rinsed her back off and went to the bath. Everyone was in the bath but Millet. Moofy, calm down. Moo moo! But like usual when Cruz got in the bath, all the beasts were happy, especially Moofy. Femm slowly drifted over to Cruz as well, as did Chel. They all liked drinking the water that Cruz had been in. I watched them as I got in the bath as well. Fyew It felt great. The water pierced all the way into the pain in my knee. ryaa Shiggy pped over towards me. Youve gotten good at swimming, Shiggy. She is growing very quickly. Timi then came beside me as she chased after Shiggy. Shiggy can shoot magic darts now. Youre right. All of the beasts learned to shoot magic darts together, including Shiggy. It was a normal ability for ancient dragons, but Shiggy learned it very early. You taught it in the same way you did Millet and Collette with their magic exercises, right? Yeah, I did. I guess it was a good thing to teach them to focus their magic power within. I guess Shiggy just copied what they were doing then. Really? Thats why my niece is growing so quickly. You think those magic exercises work for ancient dragons too? Dont you think? Well, she is growing quite precociously. Timi wasnt sure that the magic exercises were the reason, but she was sure that Shiggy was a total genius. Well, dragons and humans have arms and legs, so the exercises probably focus magic in both. If you say so Timi, then I believe you. And while we talked this over, Colette came over. I think Shiggys done the same magical exercises as you Collette. Really?ryaa? Shiggy looked confused but she still wagged her tail happily. Colette grabbed and held her. Lets do the magical exercises together next time. ryaryaa! Shiggy happily buried her nose into Collette hair. Maybe the reason Shiggy became so noble was because of those exercises? ryaa? Its possible. What do you think, Colette? Hm? I dont know, Timi. Really? Millet had finished washing and now came towards the bath. It was a big bath, but she sat right next to me. Arent you a little close? Wha? I dont think so. Well I guess I should ignore it. It might just be me. Al, teach me some magic exercises too sometime. Youre strong without them, Cruz. What?! Now Cruz scootched up beside me on the other side. All the beasts followed her to me. This bath is so big, but now it feels so packed. What do you mean? Cruz said, confused. No no no, I dont think Im making it up. Yeah, you are. Moo moo! Seems that Moofy was agreeing with Cruz. So Moofy now came close to me, putting her fore-hoof on my thigh and her head on my shoulder. What is it Moofy? Moo Maybe she wanted to be petted, she was always like that. Shiggy flew on Moofys head as I petted her. WuffPiggi! Now Femm and Chel both came up close to me, wanting to be petted. They were all such suckers for being petted, but I did so all the same. Chapter 420 - Preparing for the Dungeon Chapter 420 C Preparing for the Dungeon It was the day after we had enjoyed the bath. We ate breakfast and we made our way to Elkay. It was time to check out the dungeon. Those I was taking with me were Cruz, Femm, Moofy, Chel, and Shiggy. Timi and Vi-Vi would see us off. Vi-Vi was wearing a mysterious backpack that I guessed was filled with food for the trip. Tom, Kay, Tant and the rest all wanted to see Jearl, so they came with us. And then Steff came along to watch over them. Wow, look at Jearl!So cool!Huge! The kids are petting him without being scared. Tom started, and then the other kids followed in looking over Jearl. They petted him without even being frightened. It might have been that Steff was a bit more scared than the kids were. Gaaa And Jaerl wasnt taken aback by the children either. He just wagged his tail happily. Jaerl seemed to like people, one reason being that Belda had cared for him so well. On the other hand, Cruz, with her lion mask still on, was ready to go. This is going to be fun, Al! Yeah. I just hope you dont get carried away. Of course I wont. You two can rx, because Im going too. Youreing with us, Vi-Vi? Cruz looked confused. That was the first time I heard of it as well. I thought she was just going to see us off. Of course! Theres magic circles in there! Who else is going to help you with them? I see. Well, Im happy youe with us Vi-Vi! Cruz said, and hearing that, Timi thought a bit and said, Is this the first time in a dungeon, Vi-Vi? Yeah! Well, I think youll be fine C Alra and I will be there too. Seems that Timi was intent oning too, which made us even stronger. We had packed up everything the previous night. We still went through a final check. And while this was happening, Luka and Yureena ran up to us. Hey! Wait! Were you thinking of leaving without us?! Yeah! What a shock! We werent leaving you, I just thought you had guild business, Luka, and Yureena had church business. Yeah, Als right. But Id be happy if you came with us too. Cruz and I said, and Luka responded proudly, This dungeon is under guild jurisdiction. Of course I have to go. Ah, I see, thanks. Dont worry about it, Al. Then Cruz said with a bit of worry. Im happy that Lukasing, but is it going to be okay? I told Leah to handle all the guild quests from now/. Itll be fine. Yureena was clinging on to Cruz with a worried look, but then patted Cruz head. If you get hurt, Ill heal you right away. Yureena, thanks, but Ill be okay. Yeah, dont worry about Cruz. Shell be fine. I know, but But healing was the only healer in our party, though everything else could be aplished by the other party members. And so while Luka helped us check through all our final supplies, the kids yed with the dragon. And Jaerl was saying Gaa gaahappily. Huff huffBelda was out of breath as she ran up to us. Please wait, Sir. Alra. What is it? Are you seeing us off? No, not that, I wanted to go as well. It was a surprise to hear such a thing from Belda. Wha? With us? Gaa! Cruz and Luka AND Jaerl were surprised. There thereBe a good boy. The kids just kept petting the dragon. Yes, please. I must know what is in there as the agent of Elkay. What do you say, Alra? Luka said, with a troubled look. Id leave this to Alra. Yeah, what do you say? What do you think? Just do what you want. All the girls wereying the responsibility with meso I thought a bit. Belda, its dangerous. I am prepared for that. But Im not some summon soldier. Belda was the vice chief of the dragon knights. She was also a very strong fighter. You dont have responsibilities as town agent? No. I have many talented workers. And theres a person that can help them take care of things. Help them? An excellent vice agent whom I trust. I wondered why I never met the fellow, but I knew she was telling the truth. I seethen I guess its okay. There was no problem with Beldas situation, so the only problem left was the dungeon. The Lord of the Undead had said that royal blood must be near for the dungeons seal to be broken. It seemed we were carrying that key, as Belda was with us. Cruz said, as she saw me worrying, Alra, just bring her, youre going to ughter anything in there anyway. I dont know if you can say that. There was also the n B of running away and resealing the seal stronger. What? You dont kill whatever is down there? Luka said, a bit confused. We should just kill whatever it isits easy. I know you say that, Timi But, we should think it over. With an ancient dragon like me, Alra, and all the others, theres really no one that can stop us. You can say that, but If we just seal the thing, demons and other stuff is going to raid Elkay. Timi was probably right about that. It might be better to just defeat whatever was down there. Okay. Belda,e with us. And with me saying that, Belda smiled happily. At the same time, Jaerl cried outGaaa gaaain a confused voice. Hearing this, I got closer to Jaerl, and looked over at Timi, who was suddenly nervous. Chapter 421 - A Huge Shadow Chapter 421 C A Huge Shadow I saw Timi, with her confused look, and a stance like she was ready to fight. Jaerl looked terrified as well. This was the first time I saw Timi look this scared. What is it, Timi? Alra, you dont feel that? What do you mean? Alra, you have got to protect Shiggyokay? Timi looked very serious about this, as I picked up Shiggy and put her into my pouch. ryaa? Shiggy looked at us if asking What is it? But it seemed that whatever had caused Timi to jump had also scared Jaerl. Timi, Jaerl, what is it? Even someone with strong intuition like Cruz was a bit confused at what had happened? You cant feel it? The pressure in the air around us? Hm? I took Jaerl out of the dragon stable. All the others came up to us wondering what had happened. Jaerl walked all the way to the exit of the stable and looked outside, his head trying to sense something. I looked into the air. There were heavy clouds, and it looked as though it would rain. Other than that, I felt nothing. However, Timi seemed quite apprehensive so I tried to sense whatever it was some more. I sent out my magic in a thinyer around me, trying to find something. Even so, I couldnt sense anything that Timi was wary about. So I sent it out even further, to a ce maybe three days walk away, when I finally sensed something. what the hell? You sensed it, Alra? What is it? Hey! What is it! Tell me! I want towha? Cruz, who was happy about this little adventure suddenly got serious and grabbed her sword. After a bit, I could see that serious look extend to Luka and Yureena as well. I think we all could feel somethinging. It seems that Femm and Cruz were just a littleter than me in noticing. But now they were poised and ready. What is it, Alra? What do you sense, Sir Alra? Vi-Vi and Belda were the only ones that didnt sense it. Youll see before I can exin. And as I said that, I pointed to the sky. You could see one heavy cloud split open. It was as if an explosion had urred that wiped the cloud away. But there was no wind that assailed us on the ground. Then, six giant dragons appeared in the sky above Elkay. They were bigger than Timisoara in dragon form. Those are some huge dragons. Timi, ancient dragons? Yes. And also Yes. Alra is correct. Its the strongest of ancient dragons. The duchesses. There were seven duchesses of the ancient dragons. I had heard that Shiggys mother was one of those seven. This meant that with Shiggy here, all seven dragon duchesses were together. ryaaa Shiggy was crying out from my pouch, happily. Why are they all here? Do you know why, Timi? No idea. However, theres only one reason I can think of for all of them toe together at once. And that reason is? Before Timi could answer Vi-Vis question, the six dragons slowly descended. They each were as big as a mountain, and there were six of them. Elkay was covered in a massive shadow. If they descended directly downwards, they would crush the town to bits. Timi, I dont know why, but it must be that they are going to meet Shiggy. Yes, youre right. Theres no other reason. Then we should leave to the outside of Elkay. Whether they came to talk or fight, it was going to be a problem for the town. The duchesses were massive dragons. And if they decided tond on Elkay, a lot of people would die. Al, get on! Thanks, Femm! Femm had quickly transformed back to its huge size and I was on Femms back in a sh. Vi-Vi, Steff! Take care of the kids! Okay!Leave it to us! Femm. Get out of the town however you can! I know already! And Femm dashed forwards. Cruz, Luka, Yureena, Moofy, and Chel on her back followed. Belda tried to dash after us, but couldnt keep up. Belda,e with me. And so Timi picked up Belda and ran. After we were a ways outside of Elkay, Femm stopped. The others soon arrived behind. Then the six dragons slowly changed their position and followed us. Even if theynd here, theyre going to cause a lot of damage. However, if they were here to fight, it would be even worse. Hopefully we wouldnt have to use all of our strength. And so finally, the dragons descended in for anding. ryaaa? Shiggy just watched the whole event happily. She really was a duchess, like the others, so she wasnt scared. I watched them all descend as well. I wondered who would win in a fight. Even one versus one would be one hell of a battle, but six versus one, there was no way to win. Even so, I didnt feel any hostility from them. I dont think they came for a fight. At least I hoped so. In the least, I dont think they came to destroy us. If they had, they would have just sted us from the airit was the easiest way. But in this case, there was probably some kind of negotiation they had to speak with us about. And considering this, while watching them descend, Timi said in a loud voice. All of you need to get away from Alra! And she said it with a very forceful voice. Chapter 422 - Duchesses Chapter 422 C Duchesses Okay, got it! Cruz sprunk backwards, as did all the others. However, Femm, Moofy, and Chel didnt move. Femm, Moofy, Chel,e over here! WuffMooPigGgi All three of them refused to move. They were nning to fight with me. Do what Timi tells you. I dont think theyre here for a fight. I know that.MooPiggGi Femm and the others separated from me, so it was just me and Shiggy. As soon as this happened, the six dragons descent quickened. Theynded without sound in front of Shiggy and me. They were the size of six mountains and it was very threatening. I looked over and Timi had taken a knee in front of them and bowed. But it wasnt the six she was bowing to, but to Shiggy. I was thinking that maybe I should bow as well, but not knowing dragon rules, it was probably just better to remain silent. But I did think for a second that I should bow. If that was necessary, though, Timi would have told me. So I just stood there, not bowing or anything. As I stood there alone, the six dragons red at me, while I red right at them. Well, not red, but more like observed. While these duchesses werent overflowing with magical force, they were quite intimidating. After these six duchesses looked me over, theyid on the ground, and their chins touched the ground. We, the duchesses are here at the behest of the dragon god. One of the duchesses said in a very respectful tone. ryaa? We hope to be proper servants to the new queen of the dragons. Another duchess said to us. ryaaa Our High Duchess. We serve you, the queen of all dragons, and pledge our loyalty to you alone. We hope that you will consider us as your loyal servants from now on. ryaa ryaaa! Hah hah, we all thank you! It seems that the six duchesses all pledged their loyalty to Shiggy. Shiggy? Are you the queen of the dragons? ryaa? Ryaa. It seems that she might not have understood, but was still happy. Maybe because all these dragons hade to see her. I could tell she was wagging her tail because I could feel it inside the pouch. And the duchesses didnt raise their heads either. They stayed prostrate, heads on the ground. They were probably waiting for Shiggys permission to rise. I didnt know what the rules were for these dragons, but I thought it was best to tell them to rise some time soon. I looked over at Timi. However, Timi was still bowing as well. Oh well, I had to whisper into Shiggys ear, Shiggyyou shouldnt leave them bowing like that. ryaaryaaryaaryaayraaaaa It sounded like I had tickled her and she wasughing. I could feel her tail wagging again. It was cute. And with that said, the prostrate duchesses said, Dragon queen! Let me humbly say, that Grand Duchess! I bet they were asking why a human was so close to her. I was about to introduce myself, but Timi stopped me and said, This is the great Alfredora Lint. He was given peace to care for her by her mother Jilnidora Timi attempted to introduce me as the caretaker for Shiggy. I remembered that some ancient dragons had said rude things about me before, and when corrected, they showed their bellies as a sign of apology. Maybe Timi wanted to prevent that all from happening again. I am Alfredora Lint. Pleased to make your acquaintance. You are the fabledah, I apologize. No need to worry. And just in case, the duchess continued, I need to make sure, but this is the one that was entrusted with care of Sighisoara? Yes. It is just as regent Alfredora states. Regent? In the case of a carer for or rather a advisor of a dragon queen, the proper name is regent. Is that so? Somehow, me taking care of Shiggy had made me a regent. So I guess that Shiggy really was the new dragon queen. I had heard about the dragon queen before from Timi. It was when we were searching for the death lord. We had a map that would indicate her presence when she arrived, and when she did, the other duchesses would gather to pledge their loyalty. That reminds me, we had that map that showed where she would be. So I took the map from my bag. It unfolded from its tiny folded state into a big map. Hm, it seems that the dragon queen is here in Elkay. In the ce where Elkay was, there was a strong gold glow of the dragon queen. And there the magic lord, me, the holy lord, Cruz, the death lord, chel, but our colors were hidden by the golden glow. The map was made to find the dragon queen first, after all. Perhaps the whole purpose was to know where the dragon queen was at all times. Thats why the color of her map point was so bright. And that reminded me, yesterday we had talked about how the follower of the god of destruction wasing in this direction. I looked over the map to try to find the marker for it, but I couldnt find the destruction lords indicator anywhere Chapter 423 - Dragon Queen Sighisoara Chapter 423 C Dragon Queen Sighisoara Hm? Theres no destruction lord. Timi, I thought he was getting closer? Yes, much closer. Timi said, still kneeling. And in a tone more polite than usual. She must be treating me like a regent because the six duchesses are watching. The dragon world has a lot of rules. The destruction lordisnt dead, right? So that means whoever it isis very close. After all, there was a good possibility he was hidden just like Shiggys light hid all the other lords. I guess I would find out about who it was soon enough. First, we had to get those duchesses off the ground. You couldnt just keep them in that pose forever. Duchessesplease stand. We thank you very much. And so the duchesses slowly stood from the ground. ryaaryaa! Ryaa Seeing how huge their bodies were made Shiggy excited. Thank you, queen. One of the duchesses said, seeing Shiggy so excited. It seems she understood what Shiggy meant. And now let me introduce the friends of the dragon queen here. ryaa Certainly. I introduced Cruz, Luka, Yureena, and Belda. And I didnt forget the beasts either. After the introductions, I thought I needed to greet the duchesses as well. Though we are all standing here, well There was no way to invite them in for a proper wee. I thought that perhaps they could transform to human form like Timi did. However, asking them to be human was a little rude. Since I didnt know ancient dragon rules, there was no way to proceed. No need, we have had all the greetings needed for today. We simply rushed here to make sure the dragon queen had our deepest loyalty. We will conduct any ceremonies at ater date. And so the duchesses filled me in on what was to happen quite kindly. Shiggy looked at each duchess and saidryaaryaato them. And seeing that, each duchess teared up and prepared to leave. With the ceremony over, the duchesses all flew into the sky. They would all go back to their own pce and notify their followers of the new dragon queen. And so they circled in the sky about Elkay a bit, and then suddenly disappeared. After they left, i asked Timi, Timi, did you not notice that Shiggy had be the new queen? sorry You dont have to apologize. I had checked before I left the pce, but there was no indication then. I see. In other words, it had just happened, yesterday or today. It must have been such a huge event to get the duchesses to speed to this location. Usually these dragons had their own pces on high mountains, the moon, or in the deep sea. Those duchesses are something. Theyre very fast. I should learn from them. I was surprised that Shiggy ascended to duchess before And dragon queen was out of the picture? Im ashamed to say I thought so. Well, it surprised me too. I will say that I did notice she had be more noble. ryaa? And Shiggy had looked noble, but now she was looking over at something. What is it? ryaa ryaa Hmmm Seems that Shiggy had noticed something. Somewhere I felt that someone out there was quietly watching and holding their breath. Good job, Shiggy. ryaa So I said out to the forest while petting Shiggy, No need to hide, the ceremony is over. you did well to notice me. Someone said, and then a boy with a handsome face emerged No, it was a girl. A bit of an androgenous one. It wasnt me that noticed. This young one here has good intuition. I noticed.Moo moo I noticed too! Seems that Femm, Moofy, and Cruz had all noticed as well. Strange that Femm had just let it go and not mentioned it. Even so it was a great concealment magic. Who are you? Femm, Cruz, and Moofy all had very good senses. And this person had approached without even an S rank adventurer like me noticing. Also, the person was so young, it was a tremendously skillful aplishment. So I looked the youth over and Belda said, Sir Alra, this is my vice agent. Ohthe vice chief for Belda. Youve picked quite a talented person. Thank you. That reminded me that Belda had mentioned her vice chiefing. I wondered if the reason Belda continued to be so polite was because I was the regent of the ancient dragons now. Excuse me for intruding. And your name? The Marquise es Halewood. I see, so Miss Marquiseare you the follower of the destruction god? And after I said that, she stared at me and took a step back. Chapter 424 - Destruction Lord Chapter 424 C Destruction Lord es looked scared and ready to fight. Belda was worried and asked me, Sir Alra, what do you mean by follower? The one on this earth chosen by their respective god to represent them on this earth. I seeso es is one of those followers? Seems so. I said while smiling at a still cautious es, saying, Dont be so afraid. You saw how proper this dragons ceremony was, right? Then I exined it all to Belda and es. What it meant to be a follower of the various gods as a lord. And also that the dragons could detect such followers from their magical maps. Also, the fact that the follower of the destruction god, who had been approaching Elkay, had disappeared on the map, so we knew that this destruction lord was very close to us. I wonder if weve established that you, thus, are the destruction lord. So youve figured me out? Seems so. Even if you told others that you were the destruction lord, no one would know what you meant. And if I was wrong, I would have apologized to her. But, it was true that wherever the destruction lord was, he or she was very close to us. And also, this was a very talented youth. There was little left to doubt. Very much like the regent of a dragon queen to detect me. es Belda looked quite worried at es and my conversation. So what do you n to do with me? Get rid of me? E, es! What are you saying?! Sir Alra, she may be associated with the destruction god, but shes a wonderful person. I can guarantee it. Belda hurried to cover for es. By the way Belda spoke, she did know that es had some kind of extraordinary power, but because she trusted her, she gave her position as vice agent. No need to worry. Im not going to do anything just because shes a follower of the destruction god. however, I am his follower. And he is considered one of the evil gods. We humans cannot simply determine if the actions of gods are good or evil. Upon hearing this, es eyes opened wide. She seemed surprised. Timi had said something like that before. I was just repeating it. And alsoChelnovok PiggGIryaaryaa! Chel bounced all the way up to me after I mentioned it. I kneeled down and Shiggy picked the blob up in her hands. Can I tell her, Chel? Sure! Thanks. This blob is the follower of the death god. Pii! Ddeath god? Yes. And though the death god is considered one of the evil gods as well, Chels not an evil slime. Piggi! I not bad slime! Chel made its own appeal as es looked at the blob in surprise. You probably were able to determine that on your own after seeing the dragon ceremonyMarquise ryaa? Shiggy herself is the dragon queen, in other words, the follower of the dragon god. I see. I had no idea what es meant, but I guess she had understood something. Though you are a follower of a god, it doesnt mean youre impelled to do the gods bidding. Im not worried. Understood. es seemed to rx, and so we were finally able to exchange pleasantries. So I introduced the others to her. I introduced Cruz and Yureena so as not to hide who they were. And Luka introduced herself with a smile. I am Marquise Luka Langow. Youre the dragon killer es Halewood. Ive heard many things about you. Seems a guild high-up like Luka knew a lot about es. She had dispatched three dragon zombies and a demon soon after registering as an adventurer. And she had been pretty much alone. Thats something! We were very happy to have you, but after you were proimed Marquise, you returned home, and To tell the truth Belda interrupted to exin. It seemed that es step-mother had plotted to disinherit es, and did so, so she became an adventurer and became quite famous. Then the plot became public and es became a Marquise, and joined the knights of the crown. During this, Belda did a lot for her and she became the second inmand under the vice chief of the dragon knights. Even as second inmand, shes still a Marquise in the government As a result, the uproar about the plot was suppressed within a few months. Belda was now calling es her vice agent, although she had to take care of her own responsibilities as well. Is your realm okay? Cruz asked es, as Cruz herself had recently taken an interest in politics. Yes, because I can ask Belda to help me anytime. Oh, and Marquise Langow! What is it? Could you aid me in seeing something? what can I help with? The fabled holy sword of the holy hero! I long to see it! es looked quite excited by even mentioning it. Then Belda said, Luka, Marquise Halewood is from a family with a long line of sword fighters I know. Her father was once the royal swordsman for the crown. Yes. Thats why I knew of her at first. Belda was royalty as well. Thats why she knew of es father. Ive studied the sword my whole life! Id love to have a bout with the hero! es said, kneeling before Luka. Chapter 425 - he Holy Sword vs the Destruction Lord Chapter 425 C The Holy Sword vs the Destruction Lord es was still bowing to us when Luka said, I dont want to admit this, but Cruz is way stronger than me, right? Well, I think Im stronger, but Alra here is WAY stronger than I am. Dont say such things, Cruz. It would suck to be forced into a fight just because Cruz bbed her mouth. I am a swordfighterI would like a bout with the holy hero if possible. Well, okay Thank you very much! es said, almost in tears. I think she actually wanted to face off against Luka. As a swordswoman, Luka was quite famous. So, if you want to fight, where would be a good ce? If its okay, here and now would be fine. Ookay, Im ready when you are. Yes. You can show us whatever strength you got from the god of destruction as well. I wont use that. Why not? Are you saying Im too weak? I am a swordfighter. I will fight as one. Hmmm, whatever I guess. As soon as Luka gripped her sword, es stood up. Then she said to Luka, a bit hesitant, Um, swordswoman? Hm? May I begin? Hearing this, Luka looked a bit confused. Since she had said,ready when you arethat meant she was ready from then. Luka had the look now ofhow long are you going to make me wait? Ive been ready. At that moment, es attacked. Her speed and attack was excellent. However, Luka just dodged the shes without unsheathing her sword. She could see exactly where es attacks were directed. es was a fine swordswoman, but Luka was quite better. As soon as I thought that, es sword seemed to blur instantly. The de that Luka had been easily estimating and dodging was nowing right at her. KLAAANG Luka jumped up while knocking the sh away with her sword. Luka suddenly didnt look so confident anymore. Then es said to Luka, Do you think Im a match for you? I think so. Sorry, I shouldnt have mocked you. Thank you never much. Well, I guess I should fight for real then. I saw Lukas appearance change. It seems that she had acknowledged es as a worthy opponent. es happily smiled while running with sword towards Luka. Luka dodged her, taking the blows with her own sword, waiting for a gap in es attack. Cruz was watching the two go at it, and stepped over to me with a smile, Hey, Al, Al! What is it? That es is pretty strong. Yeah, I can see why she beat a demon and dragon zombies. Shes maybe at the top of an A ss. Yureena had stepped over and was nodding as well. Belda too. It looks like es is pushing her back, but Yeah, I see it too. es is trying to ovee her Cruz answered Belda with a smile. You dont think that es is stronger? Not really. Luka is still hard to ovee. Shes just holding back for a counter. Cruz said, exining it simply. However, it still seemed that Belda didnt understand what Cruz meant. If she keeps trying to beat Luka, shes going to lose. Sir Alra, are you saying that if she keeps attacking hard like that, shell lose? Exactly, it looks like es is ahead, but its still hard to tell who will win. I said it was hard to know, but I was pretty sure that objectively Luka was closer to winning. Im guessing its a 70% chance of a Luka winno, maybe 80%. Cruz said with augh. I see, I thought that she was such a hard worker and so talented, but Belda said, a bit sadly, Lukas just way too strong, even though es is good. I was surprised. Cruz said, folding her arms in front of her chest and nodding. I dont know what skills that god of destruction gave her, but they might allow her to beat Luka Sir Alra, is she right? Yeah, but she is very good as your vice agent. Thank you very much. Im happy to hear that. And so thepetition continued as we spoke. es attacks became weaker while Luka turned the tables on her. Lukas sudden attacks were sharp and fierce, and blew back es defenses. And then es sword was on the ground. Luka took a step back. Maybe we should see this destruction power of yours? as a swordfighter we know all that. But shouldnt you use all your power to defeat an opponent? In a sword fight, dropping your sword to an opponent means that you lose, but es hadnt used all of her power, it was just that Luka had far more experience. Since you asked me for a fight, Im asking you to see what this power is you have. Understood. And so es picked her sword back up. Thank you. Howeveryou are prepared to see my power, right? Im prepared for anything you have. And with that, es shed her sword. Luka went to dodge the sword, and then es stretched out her arm to Luka. Ah! At the same time, something shed at Luka from the air. CCLANG! That is some technique. I never thought the destruction gods power would be to strike at people. Huh, so thats the fabled power? Quite an attack. And somehow, Luka had knocked that legendary attack away with her sword. CCLANG! CLINK! CLANG! After that es attacked with her sword while using the destruction gods power. Luka continued to knock both attacks away. Well, thats odd. Seems that Luka can knock away that power of hers. I said, while Cruz looked confused and said, Of course she can hit it, whats strange about that? Well, if the power is from the god of destruction, youd think it would be so destructive that you couldnt knock it away. I guess for Cruz and Yureena, it was just about destroying things. I think its strange you can defend from it. If I had to fight es, I would have to think about how to handle it. So I just watched es and Luka fight. I could see in the corner of my eye Belda watching the match with bated breath. It still seemed that Luka was just ahead of es. Luka really is something. Shell win even against that power. And as I watched, I felt that I could sense the power of this god of destruction. I couldnt actually tell why though. Couldnt see it, couldnt hear it, couldnt smell it, and it was different from magic. But it was something that I could feel. Hm I thought that I could beat es if I had to. Chapter 426 - The Lords of their Gods Chapter 426 C The Lords of their Gods While the fight was going on, I asked Chel, You think you could beat her, Chel? No way! Well, it would be hard for Chel to fight in the first ce, so I understood. That reminds me, since you have the power of the death god, you cant feel that destruction power. I thought about the fact that I was unable to feel it. PiggI! I guess not, I didnt feel it either. And it wasnt just me, Cruz didnt feel it either. Chels power was only with the undead. Because of that, Chel had no effect against the living, so maybe es power was hard to notice. Do you and Yureena think you can beat her? I know I can! Well, she is quite strong, but I might be able to. As we talked it over, Belda said, es is still just only 15 years old Yeah, shes done quite well for being so young. Luka was 17 so she was 2 years older. Even so, Cruz and Yureena were still 15. They werent children. And they had the achievement of defeating the Demon Lord. 15 year oldstely are pretty scary. Ah, the fight is over. Cruz said, with augh. It seems to have ended as expected, with Luka winning. It was a good fight for both of them. Thanks, es was strong too. Luka was sweating and breathing heavily. I hadnt seen her this tired in a long time. Thank you for this fight. es said with a deep bow. I guess I have a long way to go to beat someone like you. es said with a look like something in her mind had passed and now she was relieved. I kind of knew how she felt. I could tell that she had worked on her skill almost endlessly, and that she had a lot of talent. She was quite young at it too. Therefore, realizing her own ability she continued to train until she could fight someone like Luka. And the girl she fought was almost the same age as her. Whether she had won or lost, she needed the experience of fighting someone like Luka. If she hadnt, she would have never known if that work was all for something. It helped her realize she had progressed by fighting Luka, whether she kept fighting with the sword or decided to abandon it. Marquise, are you finished? Yes, I am sorry if I wasted your time. No, no need for apologies. I felt I learned much. Well, thank you. Then es continued with some trepidation, Um, Regent of the dragons Hm? I have sometime Id like to talk to you about And you dont want to talk about it here? Its fine if we speak here, but it might be a long story es said, and Belda interrupted. Well, then maybe we should go to the agent office. Thats fine. And so we all went there with Cruz, Yureena, and Timi. When we got there, Vi-Vi, Steff, and the kids were gone. Because those dragons were flying in the sky, they probably went back to Toms house. I did see Jaerl there though. Gaaa Jaerl was in a corner of the stable with his wings over his head. His tail was between his legs and you could tell he had peed all over the stable. Jaerl, you must have been scared. ryaaa Shiggy said, jumping out of the pouch and trying tofort him. Timi and Shiggy both petted the dragon. All those duchesses in the sky, it must have been scary. But theyre gone now, so dont worry. Gaaa Im sorry you had to go through it, Jaerl. Belda also said, trying tofort the dragon, and the dragons finally seemed to be relieved. Then Jaerl noticed that es was there as well. Gaaa! Jaerl rubbed his head up against es. I guess he was used to her. Long time no see, Jaerl. es said, petting Jaerls snout. After we left Jaerl, we made our way to the waiting room of the agents house. Everyone sat down, and I asked her, es, what was it you wanted to tell me? The oracle has fallen to earth. Oracle? From the destruction god? Yes. That reminds me, Chel got the oracle before too. Got it. However, Chel had given the oracle over to the priest of the death temple. This was when Chel was the death lord and had to kill the previous one. Shiggy, what about her? ryaa? Cruz and I hadnt received our various oracles yet. I guess each god has a different policy for how it is given. Well, and about that oracle She said, and looked around at all of us, The hero here is the holy gods follower, the holy lord, right? You figured that out well! the destruction god will soon bring all the other lords together in one ce. Huh, so the destruction god said that? Yes. And Alra is the magic lord, right? Huh? What are you saying, es. Theres no way hed be that! But thats the only exnation. The hero killed the previous lord though! Belda said, looking at me with worry. Chapter 427 - The Destruction God’s Oracle Chapter 427 C The Destruction Gods Oracle Iughed and looked over at es, You figured that out well. I knew it! W, what? Youre the demon lord, Alra? Belda said, shocked after hearing it the first time. I said this before, but the magic lord doesnt have to be part of a magical race. Yeah, it just means that the person is the one chosen by the magic god. Dont worry about the whole rtion to the demons. Luka exined. I guessnot But Belda was still very surprised by it all. So Timi continued the exnation to Belda, A lord is just a follower of a certain god And hearing her exnation, Cruz was nodding along seriously, Is that how it works I thought you knew about this, Cruz Heheh heh But Timis exnation was easy to understand. It was so easy that Cruz, who hadnt understood it until now, suddenly did. And more importantly, Belda understood. After the exnation was over, Timi asked es, So what is this god of destruction like anyway? Just as the name states. He can destroy things. Hm. A little too simple. But thats why hes regarded as so strong. Thank you very much. Since Timi was so interested in this god, she continued to want to ask questions, but Yureena stopped her, Im interested in the powers too, but I want to know about the oracle. Yes, sorry. es, please tell us about the oracle. Yeah, did it only say the lords wereing together? Luka said, and es just nodded. Exactly. It wanted the lords tobine forces and defeat whatever was deep inside the dungeon. Hearing that, it was pretty obvious the dungeon was the one inside of Elkay. The one that the Lord of the Undead said housed a sealed up very strong undead creature. So, I guessed that the destruction god wanted that thing destroyed. At least, thats what we were all thinking. But I asked es just in case, What dungeon do you mean? And whats inside of it? I dont know that. The god didnt tell me that much. I guess I could figure that out without being told. Cruz had a serious expression as she asked, If you think about it, maybe its the Elkay dungeon she means? And the thing we have to beat should be that very strong undead whatever inside? Youre both right, Cruz and Luka. es, to be honest And so I exined everything that had happened so far to her. Even the battle with the Lord of the Undead. We were nning on going into the dungeon today, but the dragon duchesses showed up suddenly. Is that why es nodded, finally understanding it all after my story. Cruz then asked es, You can help us go into the dungeon, es! Thats what I was nning. Okay, then lets go now! And saying that, Cruz eyes sparkled. No joke either, she was ready to go. So I stopped her, Cruz, wait. es and Luka have just been through a harsh fight. Yeah, and we need to get ready to search the dungeon and Im still a little tired from fighting es. And not only that, but es was on a journey too, so she has to be tired. Not at all. You did fight with your all though. I see Thank you. es was a little embarrassed to mention that Luka had fought so well, but still smiled at her with blushing cheeks. Yureena finally spoke up after a long silence, I wonder if we should trust this god of destructionor even her. Yureena said, very cautiously. This was probably because the god of destruction has always been seen as an evil god. After all, that Lord of the Undead also wanted to go into the dungeon and unseal a very strong undead creature. And as the oracle stated, we had to unseal the thing in order for all of us to fight it. But Yureena, we had nned to go in there and defeat the thing even before we knew about this oracle. thats right, Cruz. What do you think about your own gods oracle, es? Yureena said, now asking es. Well, first, we dont have to speak so politely to each other. But Im asking you. It just makes it easier. Okay. And since Belda asked after es, Yureena would cut right to the chase. After that, es began speaking again about everything she knew about the god of destruction. Chapter 428 - The God’s Opinion Chapter 428 C The Gods Opinion es looked straight in front of her. I guess logically, we shouldnt totally trust this god. Wha? Why not? Well, Cruz, I dont though I am thankful for him. So she spoke about her experiences as a follower. Firstly, her family, the Halewoods, were famous for their use of the sword in battle. However, because es couldnt use her sword well, she was going to be disinherited. That day I received power from both the destruction god and his oracle. I think he liked my personality. Wwait a second. Luka butted into the story, Theres no way theyre going to chase you off because of yourck of swordsmanship, right?! Well, I was cursed It seems that her stepmother of the Halewoods who had wanted a boy, but was left with a girl, had cursed her. She was so beset by the curse, she couldnt even perform daily chores and waspletely useless as a swordfighter. Because of that, even with daily harsh training, she was still unable to use a sword. The god of destruction gave me power and released me from my curse And with the curse gone, you were able to use your true power. Correct. I see. I can really respect your ability now, es. Th, thank you to be told that by you Luka After fighting you, it must have been quite some training you went though. Yes, I think shes quite a fighter too. I couldnt imagine not being able to move freely, not improve, and not being able to train the way that I wanted to. Because of training, your sword skills would get better. Thats why these girls loved fighting so much. And because you improve, you try harder. I believe in this god of destruction. What? Why, Luka? I could understand why es would, but Cruz, think about it. Even though she had no chance of improvement, she kept working at it. A person like that is rare. And respectable. I guess so. I think if he epted her because of that personality, he cant be that bad. I seemaybe youre right. Cruz seemed to understand. And so Luka and es shook hands and exchanged a nce. es, you really are strong. Im impressed. Thank you very much. And es seemed almost like shed tear up. Hearing that she was respected by the famous swordswoman Luka must have made quite the impression. I knew how she felt, so I waited until she was a bit more calm before proceeding. We then began discussing whether we should do exactly what this oracle was saying. I had first just wanted to explore, but I wasnt against defeating the monster inside either. But I still wanted to hear everyone elses opinion. What do you think, Belda? Because I trust es already I see, and Yureena? If Cruz trusts her, then I agree too. It seems that Yureena was just trusting Cruz intuition. And I trusted it too. What do you think, Timi? Well, I dont really care about trusting a god or not. What? You dont care? No, Cruz. After all, neither man nor dragon can understand a gods thoughts. I see. Theres no way to understand the logic behind a gods opinion. Theres no point in thinking about something you cant understand. This was already the answer that I expected from Timi. If we dont understand it, are you saying we should just follow it? Yeah, its just as Alra was saying. Along with the timing of Shiggy being picked as the Dragon Queen. Now Shiggy looked up at me, confused. Timi walked over and petted the small dragon. Trying to figure out what the gods are thinking is quite presumptuous. But the timing is a little too good. Yes. You think so too, Alra? After all, it had said that all the lords woulde together. And then at the same time, Shiggy ends up being the dragon lord. You cant estimate the gods thoughts, but even so Its obvious that some of the gods at least are trying to get us all here together. Just as you say, Alra. So I guess we should go in there with Shiggy. ryaa! Shiggy was happy to go in there with us. I guess we should all go in there as lords and defeat whatever was in there as the oracle had stated. And if thats so, then it would only make sense to bring the dragon queen, Shiggy, with us. So we all decided to go into the dungeon the next day. The members would be the lords, Cruz, es, Shiggy, Chel, and I. And then the royal Belda, Luka Yureena, Timi, Femm, and Moofy. Chapter 429 - Rest Chapter 429 C Rest As we decided to attack this dungeon, Luka and es went out to get some things in preparation. First, you need to dress appropriately in order to attack a dungeon. Since es was still new at adventuring, Luka went with her to give her advice. Then, Belda went back to her office while I and the others went back to Toms house. Mister Al! Those dragons were really something! Tom ran out and shouted. Im pretty sure everyone in the town noticed the entrance of those dragons. Also, Belda would probably have to go around and smooth some nerves after all the ensuing ruckus. Yeah, were those dragons friends of Shiggy? The kids surrounded me and asked. Vi-Vi was tasked with watching over the kids, apparently. Timi puffed her chest out in pride and said, Theyre not Shiggys friends, theyre her servants. Servants?! Whats a servant? The kids asked innocently. Servantlike a helper Wow, Shiggy has helpers like that? Wow! Ryaaa! After we had talked quite a bit about it, Luka and es returned from their preparations. Now that es was ready, you could tell she was very anxious to get started. She had chosen easy-to-move-in armour and a lighter de. Also, a torch, rope, emergency rations, everything she needed. It was clear that Luka in her experience had gotten her everything she needed. After introducing her to Steff and the children, we all sat down for snacks. There Luka asked es, es, what does an oracle usually look like? In the case of Chel, the words just came to them, Chel and the priest. Yeah! PigGi! And hearing that, Chel jiggled in agreement. Ive never gotten word from any oracle! I havent either, Cruz. I wouldnt even know about this lord stuff if it wasnt for that magic map from the dragons. Wow, I never knew of lords like you es was quite surprised to hear what I had said. So how did it feel to you, es? Was it like wordsing to you? Cruz asked, and es began telling the story, The oracle came to me in a dream. A dream? Like literally appeared in the dream? Luka said, looking at es closely. There were many kinds of dreams. Did the oracle just appear in the dream, or was it like some kind of trance that she was forced into? Thats probably what Luka was thinking. es talked about the dream she had received. It seems that she had seen it over and over. This was everything she saw. As soon as she became the destruction lord, she was given messages from the oracle. And the powers she was given were revealed through the dreams as well. That destruction god watches over you closely. Cruz said with a nod. Its true they are dreams, but Im 100% sure they are from the oracle. I see? Luka looked a bit confused. I guess she wasnt sure why es was sure that it was from the oracle. So es continued exining it to Luka, And when I was able to use these powers, I was instantly aware of it. Awareokay I cant exin it with words, but when I saw it, I understood the destruction element of it as well. I think I can understand that. Like understanding when and where you can sh. Luka nodded along as she said. However, Luka was a woman that trained in the art of the sword, and was different from someone bestowed with an oracle. Not only was I thinking this, but Timi as well, Maybe thats a little different, Luka. I think so too. Its like understanding without logic or something. Alras right in saying that. Timi said with a nod. I guess she understood. Since we had some things to talk about the day before entering the dungeon, we took it easy and didnt do any work. es and the kids, the others, and the beasts all got along and enjoyed time together. When evening came Belda joined us at Toms and we had a happy dinner together. Chapter 430 - Beginning the Dungeon Dive Chapter 430 C Beginning the Dungeon Dive It was the next day. We would enter the dungeon the day after the whole incident with the dragon duchesses and es. We finished checking everything with our new adventurers Belda and es. Vi-Vi came along with us as well. She had that same mysterious backpack she was lugging yesterday. Vi-Vi, what do you have in that backpack? Hm? Just stuff you need, not really for the dungeon or anything. Huh? Are youing too? Of course! Right, Moofy? Mooo I guess I should have realized she was joining us with that ridiculous backpack on. Vi-Vi, its going to be dangerous. Im going to a ce with magic circles. You need a specialist like me there. I dont think its that important. Im still going! Okay No matter what I said, Vi-Vi was strongly against it. And she was a good magician. It was just a dangerous dungeon where you had no idea what could happen, but I guess shed serve a purpose anyway. As I was worrying about her, Cruz smiled and said, Vi-Vi, do your best, okay? Leave it to me! Okay then, I do know you are a very good magician, Vi-Vi Yeah. But please follow my instructions, okay? I will! While we were talking, we arrived at the dragon stable which was in front of the portal to the dungeon. We all said hello to Jaerl and petted him, and he was the usual settled and happy dragon. After a while of this, Cruz said, Okay, lets go! Are you ready, Alra? Yeah, Im ready. Wait a second, Alra, let me take a look inside once more. Ah, go ahead Timi. So Timi was going to scout the ce, just in case. She had already done so before, but time had passed, so it was good to do so just in case. I unsealed the seal of the transport circle. Then I activated the circle. You can go through now. Thanks, Alra. Shiggy, just wait here, okay? Timi then jumped through the transport circle. She quickly came back. Nothing different than before. We can survive by breathing in there. Did you transport to the same ce asst time? Yes. I did. Before, Timi had said that it looked man made, but that it also looked naturally made. When I asked about it further, she really couldnt exin what it looked like. Okay, lets go. I and Timi will go first, and thene in one by one every ten seconds. Understood! Cruz said happily. Timi and I went in first, then Cruz and Yureena, then the beasts, es and Vi-Vi, and finally Luka and Belda. Lets go! Okay!ryaa! And so Timi, Shiggy, and I all jumped into the magic circle. We could feel ourselves transported, and then everything was pitch ck. I guess there was no light in this dungeon. I cast a night vision spell so that I could see inside the dungeon. Timi, do you need night vision? I can see without it, but it makes things easier to see if I have it. ryaa Got it. So I cast it over Timi and Shiggy as well. And after looking over the ce once more, I saw we were in a long room of some sorts. The circle was at the end of our side of the room, and there was a wall on the other side. The walls, floor, ceiling, were all made of the same rock. There were no seams other than the wall at the end, so I guess the whole room wasnt rock ced together, but rather cut from the inside of a big rock. Alra, you cant see any joints in the rock, so its a natural cavern, right? But it does look like it was dug out by someone. Hm. Youre right. However, it being cut rectangrly like this means its probably man-made. I think youre right, but doesnt that also happen naturally with crystals? There are rocks that make rectangr crystals, but you think they make them this big? You dont see that with rock, but there are some natural rocks like fools gold that make crystals in that shape. And outside of that, there are others that can cut through with clean edges like this. As we talked it over, Cruz and Yureena arrived. I cast night vision on them as well. Hm, yeah, this is a dungeon. Cruz said while touching the stone wall. Then the beasts appeared, and then Luka and the others. I cast night vision on all of them, even though it wasnt necessary for the beasts. WuffMoooPiGGi The beasts began sniffing away at the floor immediately. You smell something? Just rocks. Moo. Moofy seemed a little sad to not be able to smell anything with that sensitive nose of hers. I reached out and patted between her horns to rx her. Alra, alra What is it, Chel? There is undead smell. Smell of the undead? Chel was the death lord, after all. Chel wasnt able to literally smell the dead, but it was more like sensing. Very strong It must be that Undead Demon King. might be. And saying that, Chel shook a bit and jumped from Moofy to my shoulder. Chel could jump quite well. Then I looked over at es, Vi-Vi, and Belda, who all had little experience with dungeons. I could tell es was a bit anxious, but rxed. Vi-Vi was even more rxed. Probably because Timi had taught her to calm herself. Belda, on the other hand, was very nervous, and had her right hand on her sword. Belda, you dont have to be that nervous. Y, yes! Ill try to calm down! Thanks. Even so, its not simple to just stop being nervous when someone tells you to calm down. Even if you want to calm down, you cant ryaa? Shiggy could sense her worry and flew over to her shoulder. Shiggy, youre so cute ryaa? She buried her head in Beldas bosom as Belda petted her. Shiggy, youre so sweet. Heh heh. And petting Shiggy, Belda seemed to rx. I guess this was the best way to calm her down. Okay, now were on our way. Shiggy, get in my pouch. ryaa This was an unknown dungeon, so the danger was very high. Shiggy would be better close to me. Shiggy cried out once, flew over, and burrowed into my pouch. ryaa And with that, Okay, you ready, ShiggY? Lets go! Cruz said happily as she walked to the gate. Then she unconsciously put her hand out to the gate. Hey, Cruz Yureena was toote to stop her. Hm? Yureena, why? She turned to look back at Yureena as she pushed the gate open. At the same time BOOM! There was a small explosion. But Cruz had bounced back after sensing it. That was dangerous! It surprised me! . Belda looked shocked and speechless at what had happened in front of her. Whwhat the Wow! That was scary! That would kill a normal person! Moo moo moo es, Vi-Vi, and Moofy were all surprised. The explosion was quite strong, so it scared many of the party. es, Belda, Vi-Vi, and Moofy. These are everywhere in dungeons, boobytraps. I see, Sir Alratraps. Scary Moo moo If you get hit straight by one, youre dead. But even this trap would hurt Cruz only a little bit if it hit her. Thats why we have to check gates before we continue! I know. Ill be careful.So will I. I know already! Mooo! I made sure that the newbie knew not to touch things without checking them. You be careful too, Shiggy! ryaa! I could feel Shiggy wag her tail inside of my pouch. Chapter 431 - Wall Trap Chapter 431 C Wall Trap After I told them all to be careful, Cruz smiled. I knew she was smiling because she was sorry she set off the first trap. Because its dangerous! I guess she wasnt sorry at all. I should yell at her. It was a bit shameful for a girl that had seen so many dungeons to fool around like that. She was a bad example for these new dungeon explorers. And it was bad for Shiggys education. I thought about how to address it, but doing it directly was best. Cruz, That was really bad. You cant be an adventurer and do that! Sorry Ive told you again and again. I know. Not just with dungeons either. All the time. I know. Im sorry. Cruz looked quite sad. She had good luck and ability, but she was really unaware of what she was doing. And that luck she was blessed with wasnt going tost forever. Well, I guess it wasnt luck so much as, she should start avoiding making stupid actions. After all that, Cruz said, Okay, I promise to be careful. Then Luka shouted at Cruz, WHEN YOU OPEN DOORS? Be careful of traps. AND WHEN YOU WALK THE PATH!? Be careful of traps. AND?! Be careful of ambushes. Good! Now make sure you do it! Thank you. Yureena held a crestfallen Cruz and patted her head, You just were a little uncareful, Cruz. But a littleck of care could cost your life C there was no excuse. And I was always having to review basic things with Cruz. But it seemed that she had corrected herself at least for a while. She wouldnt act so leisurely for a while. She seemed a bit more serious than she was at the onset. Cruz, take care as you progress. Just take it slow. Understood! Even with her being careless, she was the best to put up front. She was aware of danger and could respond quickly to traps, and she was a fierce fighter. So, she was in the front of the party. Next was the beasts, Vi-Vi and I, and behind was Yureena, es, and Belda, and finally, Timi and Luka. Yureena was there to watch over the two newbies. Vi-Vi was on top of Moofy next to me. And Moofy was strong, so there was little need to worry. As we continued, Cruz stopped ahead of us. Ah! A trap! Since I just scolded her, I guess I should praise her now. Good job finding it, Cruz. Great job, Cruz! As I was praising her, Yureena also ran up and hugged her. Itsno big deal. I know you can do it, Cruz. Eheh heh While Yureena was patting Cruz on the head, I checked the trap. It was quite a well-hidden trap, and it was hard to dispel. You did well to see this, Cruz. Heh heh, thanks. Its a hard to find trap. Heh, youre making me embarrassed. As we talked, I continued checking the trap. If this was the only trap, then just checking it would be enough to disable it. But we were at the beginning of the beginning of this dungeon. I had to know this traps construction, setting, strength, intention, and other attributes. So I checked it very carefully as Vi-Vi watched over me. Moofy bowed low so she could see better. Alra, what trap is it? Moo moo Moofy was interested as well. I exined the trap to everyone. It was hidden quite well, but ced in a ce that an intruder would find it. Oh? I had no idea, Alra. Even if you were to tell me, I dont think I would have found it. The magic circle was inscribed in between two walls of stone, just below. The trap would sense you passing and then be sprung. Belda looked over the magic circle closely. Belda, dont get close to it. I havent disarmed it yet. Yes, Sir Alra. Thank you for telling me. Of course, I could have stopped any trap with magic after it was sprung, but it was best not to spring it in the first ce. So, if its sprung, what happens? The trap is sprung right here. Then it explodes. So its just like the one that Cruz sprung? Yeah, but the force is different. The strength is about five times the previous one. Eeek! As I said that, Belda took a step back. Vi-Vi pulled back as well. So if it was sprung it would kill all of us? Well, the person that ced it was expecting so. If that was the case, it would blow the whole path us. Luka said, touching the walls of the path. I dont think thats entirely true. Timi, what do you think? Theres magic in this trap that wasnt in the previous room. So something that would prevent the walls from being destroyed? I think so, what about you, Alra? Not just keep them from being destroyed, but to reset any damage. Even if the walls were damaged, the walls would be reset back again. The magic was there. It was true that whoever was the magician that set this was an expert. Chapter 432 - Checking the Dungeon Chapter 432 C Checking the Dungeon Timi looked over the walls and said, Just as Alra said. If no one told me, I wouldnt have noticed. So the level of magic is that high? I guess it is, Luka, even though its embarrassing to say. If Timi didnt notice, then it wasnt just a regr magician that made this. And that said, Timi would have found it if she was searching closely. But the fact that she missed it meant that almost anyone would miss it as well. Shiggy, remember that traps like this exist. ryaa! Shiggy poked her head out and said with a nod. Then I disarmed the trap. Cruz, I disarmed it, so go through. Ah, Alra, can I ask something? Cruz said, before she tried to go through. What is it? What do you mean by the walls getting rebuilt? Just that. Remember the y and metal statues we fought? Back in Elkay, when we had fought the Lord of the Undead. Yes, it was hard because as soon as you busted them up, they reformed. Well the same spell is in these rocks. So if the ce exploded, the rocks would reform back to how they were. Thats bad! Wait? So maybe they dont even need the explosive? What do you mean? Luka asked. If they wanted to kill us, they could just have the rocks squish us to death. Thats some imagination, Cruz. Moo mooo Vi-Vi said, scared, with Moofy mooing in front of her. I guess Moofy was telling Vi-Vi to leave it to her to protect her. Theres no function in this wall to crush. I dont know why though. If you say so Alra, I believe you! Okay! And so Cruz walked through the path. Be careful, okay, Cruz? I know, but thanks. Femm used spirit-speech while walking behind Cruz, so we could all hear. What would we do if it did try to crush us? Just a magic barrier. Or I could crush the wall itself. Who could perform magic like that? Timi or I, I suppose. In other words, this is a trap that would kill anyone other than very experienced adventurers? Well, I guess so. But thatst trap would have killed a normal party as well. Do you think reforming the walls was a more difficult magic than it just crushing you? No, the crushing magic would probably be easier. I dont know Hearing this, Luka then said, In other words, if you wanted to kill a whole party, you would have had the walls crush them? I guess so. Its easier than blowing up the ce and then having it form back, right? Pretty sharp answer, Femm. Of course! Im a magical wolf king, after all! I think Femm was a little too pleased after being praised by Luka. At least I could see Femms tail wagging happily. Good thinking, Femm. I said as I walked beside, and petted Femms head. I think theres a key to understanding the trap makers intent there as well. Yeah, we should check the next one carefully as well. And so we had Cruz continue into the next dungeon. I continued searching for enemies and traps as well, but I had been searching for traps since the first one. You couldnt just trust Cruz luck for everything. Cruz then found three traps and I solved them. I praised her each time. Good job finding that Cruz. Eheh heh ryaa! Alra, what are these traps consisting of? Timi asked. She wanted to know how they were set off, and she asked at the third trap. The same as before. They sense you and then BOOM! That type. Hmph, pretty talentless. Yes, but all are very hard to find. Oh? The same type, but they get harder to find? Moo? Vi-Vi and Moofy seemed very interested. Belda approached us with a very frightened look. See, look over here! Hm? What do you see? Maybe you could dispel that trap from over here. Timi looked over and said. If you did that from there, it would blow up! Yeah, I think the trap maker is trying to make explorers rx by making them look the same. This is the real thing. Its quite scary. Belda said, genuinely scared. The dungeons near the capital are pretty general ones, Belda. Belda had explored a dungeon with new recruits near the capital. That time, a stone naga copsed the opening of the dungeon, and I came to save them all. Youre right. That dungeon waspletely different, which is why Im lost. Yeah, that dungeon was full of monsters. Were not seeing any enemies here As soon as Cruz said that, we heard some small pebbles fall from the ceiling. Chapter 433 - Checking the Dungeon 2 Chapter 433 C Checking the Dungeon 2 Seeing small blobs fall from the ceiling, es shouted, Is this a slime? Piggi? Chel was very surprised. No! Its not a monster! Hold your breath! What was falling were drops of poison. It was another trap. However, this trap wasnt made to react to adventurers. It just dripped poison all the time from the ceiling. In the case you couldnt unseal thest trap fast enough, the poison would finish you. Ew! It stinks! Cruz said after sniffing the poison and tearing up. If it wasnt Cruz, whoever sniffed in that much would be dead. I cast a wind spell quickly pushing the drops upwards and then a gravity spell to press them to the ceiling. Because the poison was liquid, I pulled a bit into a magic bottle that I had pulled from my bag and sealed it. It still stinks a bit, but I can breathe now. That really stunk! Stink Im fine! At least two of the beasts smells were affected, it seemed. ryaa ryaa! Shiggy said, and then buried herself in my pouch. She was probably running from the smell as well. Ill cast antidote on everyone just in case. Thanks. So Yureena cast antidote over everyone and I passed the bottle of poison over to Luka. You can have this. Thanks. Ill take it to the royalb. You do that. Only Luka could examine the actual makeup of the poison, but I could check how the trap worked. In order to know and disarm trapster. Theres definitely a system that allows the poison to drip gradually from the ceiling Theres no way theres a limitless tank of poison up there. So whats the system? It might be that the liquid and gas form change off periodically even so, how does it work? Its hard to physically understand looking at the construction of the room and so on. I wonder if its magic? If Luka said it was hard, then it definitely was. I tried to think that if I was making a trap like thi, how I would do it. Well, we had to fight those y and stone statues before, right? Yeah, and youd cut them up and theyd reform. If we used that, it might exin it. Maybe the drops of poison were like those y statues reforming whenever you cut them up. But forming drops out of gas was a bit harder than that. However, using pressure magic could allow it to happen, perhaps. You did mention that the rooms were made kind of like the whoever made those stone statues. Yeah, if it was them, then it would make sense. Hmmm Mooo. Seems that Vi-Vi and Moofy were both deep in thought about what I said. They both looked cute being deep in thought. Just then, I could feel something out there with my magical searching. A, an attackSomethingsing! It was something that Cruz could sense the same thing as me without having that magical detection. Before I had noticed that something was attached to this poison trap. However, it had to be so simple that I overlooked it. But I guess sometimes Im not cautious enough as well. One part of the wall opened and a metal golem came out. An orichalcum one! Vi-Vi said, and with her experience in golems, she probably knew what it was made of immediately. Weapons! Cruz said happily as she pulled out her sword. And there wasnt just one, there were three. Come on! There! But in a moment, Cruz had sliced them all up. es had pulled her sword out as well, but had no time to attack. Cruzwow! Heh heh heh es praised Cruz but looked a little disappointed, so I told her, es, best to let Cruz deal with the weaklings. Sure Youd get tired using that destruction power over and over, right? Yeah, I guess so. Just keep it ready in case we really have to use it. Understood. Luka said to her, kind of acting as an advisor to es now. On the other hand, Cruz was happily checking through the remains of the golems. This is good orichalcum! Yeah, I need to check this closely afterwards. I need to study it. Vi-Vi said as she took and examined one piece of the golems left arm. Im just going to check it a bit for now! Moo moo! She said while checking over it with magic. I checked it over as well, because I was curious about them. Moofy sniffed away at the golem as well. Id like to see them as well. Vallimie would be pleased to see these. Yeah, my sister would love them! This dungeon was old. Those golems were locked up with some technology that was centuries old. I bet if Vallimie was here, she could tell us a lot of how these were put together. Ah, Sir Alra? Yes, Belda? You said these golem were made from orichalcum, correct? Yes. Cruz got rid of them, but they are very fast and strong. Formidable enemies. Maybe A or B rank? Luka said while thinking it over. You would need an A rank party to beat one of these. All three would be a tough fight, though. This dungeon is horrific. The construction and number of traps are far too much for a beginner. Belda said, probably thinking about that dungeon near the capital. That dungeon before was at a level for beginners, but the basics here require advanced adventurers. Just as Yureena said, the differences between dungeons are usually the strength and frequency of enemies. Strength of enemiesand these were orichalcum golems. You hardly ever see them, so I wouldnt worry any longer. I guess not. And with that, Belda seemed a bit relieved. But in an instant, all the pieces of the golems reformed back to their original shapeand it was very fast. Chapter 434 - The Dungeon’s Design Chapter 434 C The Dungeons Design The golems had started to rebuild themselves. Ah, theyre moving again Cruz nonchntly cut them apart again. These golems were just like the y and metal statues that ravaged Elkay. So this time Cruz picked up some pieces of the golem and said, Maybe I should put these in my magic bag? Yeah, thanks. Give me a piece as well. Here you are, Vi-Vi. And so Cruz handed over a finger to Vi-Vi, which Vi-Vi began to look over. The piece she was previously looking over was a finger from the other hand. I wondered why it was still there and not trying to rbine with the other pieces. I guessed that it meant it hadnt tried to rbine with all the other pieces. Hmmm. You figure out something? Alra. Look here. This is from the left hand and this is from the right. I see, so the right hand of the golem is gone. Yeah, and this was the one from the beginning. Its just like those statues we fought. This second time, there were parts of the golems that didnt try to rbine. Some of the magical circle that activated these golems has be powerless. Maybe the reason why is because the one in your hand is now under your magic? Timi said, while staring at Vi-Vis hand. I think thats the reason. I think we need to bring these pieces of the golem into our magic as quickly as possible. Okay, Cruz, try to get all of these in your bag as quickly as possible. Got it! So she stuffed the golem parts away and they came under the control of the bags magic. Perfect for stopping them from reattaching. Okay, lets keep going. But we might get attacked by poison again?! Moo moo! And it stinks! I cant smell as well. ryaaa! I okay Chel seemed to be the only beast that could take the smell. And it wasnt just an okay smell, but Chel might have actually liked it. We just need to be very careful and scan for anything strange. Yeah, okay, Cruz, you take point. Got it! Cruz said as she happily started walking. Everyone then followed her. If she just walked slowly, we could check carefully for any traps. So I put forward a magicyer and made sure to look carefully for anything. Luka spoke softly to es, saying, Think you can beat an orichalcum golem? If I worked hard, I think I could cut it up, but with that destruction attack, in one shot! That sounds dependable then. I would have trouble shing those things apart too. You would? Of course, theyre orichalcum, right? Yes. They are strong. I knew that power was strong. You can rely on it in desperate times. Yes! Ill do my best! By getting es to rx, Luka was beginning to sense how strong es destructive force was. She was bing like a younger sister to Luka as well. It was kind of cute to hear them talk that way. After that, we were attacked periodically and encountered traps from time to time. After the third enemy attack, Luka was checking through the spoils and said, A lot of inorganic enemies. Most of them golems. Well, if they were organic, theyd probably die from waiting in this dungeon. I said, and Luka nodded. You need something to eat, after all. I think so too. Vi-Vi said. It was a massive dungeon so preserving whatever was inside it was difficult. Even though it was huge, there was no way you could keep living things alive in here after a few years. They would all die quickly if you didnt take care of them. And even if they didnt die, theyd probably all burrow away to somece or another. Whoever made this dungeon made it for a specific reason. Yeah I cant tell what it is though. Luka said, while Cruz asked, You dont? Hm? Cruz? What do you mean? I was just wondering why you cant figure out the design of this ce? What, you can, Cruz? Luka looked at Cruz seriously. She wasnt too surprised though. Because Cruz doesnt think too much, sometimes she nails simple exnations. Yureena, Luka, and I all knew that. And she had very strong intuition. However, Vi-Vi was very surprised. Wait, you know? ryaa! Shiggy seemed surprised too. I think so. The enemies are getting stronger, right? Yeah, I think youre right. And the traps are getting harder and harder, right, Alra? Cruz looked at me, because I had solved all the traps. Youre right. And there are things for both scouts-things and magician-things Scout-things and magician-things? Thats just Cruz way of saying things. Right Cruz? Yeah, I just made that up now. So Cruz exined what she meant. There were traps that challenged scouts, that you had to be good at scouting to find, and there were magical traps that skilled magicians had to find. Thinking about that, if you had a badly bnced party, youd be dead, right? I see A party without a good scout would die from it. A party without a good magician would die from it. Hearing that, Vi-Vi though it over and said, Its true those golems are strong and defensive against magical attacks, and they are interspersed. An attack heavy party would be killed by how strong the golems are. A magical heavy party couldnt use basic magic against the golems and would be killed. And the poison would mean you need a healer or your party gets killed as well. The trap with falling poison was a very difficult one. Once you were attacked by it, if you had no healer, you were dead. It seems that this dungeon was made to kill any party that wasnt properly bnced. Chapter 435 - The Dungeon’s Design 2 Chapter 435 C The Dungeons Design 2 Belda folded her arms in front of her chest and asked, Well, Herowhy do you think that the designer would want to get rid of unbnced parties? Hmm, I wonder. I could understand why theyd want to get rid of bnced parties. Because theyre strong enemies. I guess we cant know unless we ask them. What do you think, Alra? Well.. I thought about it, Wait! You can think and talk about it all you want, but if you do, more poison mighte! Yureena said, because poison frequently came when we were hanging around. I guess this dungeon didnt let you think much either. I dont know who made this thing, but it was one bothersome dungeon. Yeah, lets walk and talk about it! So, Cruz started walking ahead. I know she was happy to be walking, but she really needed to be careful. So I kept searching for traps and enemies with magic. So, what do you think, Alra? Well, this is just a guess, but maybe the dungeon creator wanted us to defeat him? Sir Alra, you mean that the dungeon creator wants us to defeat that undead demon inside the dungeon? Thats what I think. There was an undead demon at the core of this dungeon. The Lord of the Undead that attacked Elkay had told us about it. Chel, the lord of the dead, said it could smell it, so it had to be right. Since he told us of it, it has to be true. So youre of the same opinion, Luka and Alra? Think about it. The creator of the dungeon is probably the same person that sealed the ce as well. In other words, the person that confined the demon in here was the person that sealed it too, right? Yeah, and he did much to protect the town of Elkay as well. All the things he did to defend the town, including creating a barrier to surround the town. And, in the middle of the barrier, there was that statue that Cruz and Kay said was cool. Well, that demon had been sealed in here, and its not very easy to set him free. Genius releaser of traps, analyzer of magic rings. And a general genius altogether. Thats why we kept bumping into traps and the partysplete power was needed. At least, I thought so. Very good Alra. Im ever more impressed. Y, yeah, thanks. Belda was quite dazzled by me even though I hadnt said much. She thought the ce looked strange from the first time she saw it, after all. In other words, this is an experiment, then? Lets beat it! ryaa ryaa! Moo moo! Cruz said proudly, with the other animals excited as well. I guess they thought they were breaking this dungeon along with the others. Everyone, you dont have to get so charged up. Yeah, if we cant meet the terms of this experiment, our only choice is to escape. Yureena and Timi on the other hand were quite dismissive. Timi was there in case something happened where we would need someone to destroy a massive part of the dungeon. And she could do it, but in her dragon form. Shiggy, just rx and let auntie do the work. ryaa! Shiggy was having a great time C not nervous at all. After that we continued through more and more treacherous traps and stronger golems. When there were too many, Luka and es would smash themand es swordsmanship was excellent. After they fell, Luka said, This is one long dungeon. Are you getting hungry, Luka? Thats not the problem. But I think we should eat something as we walk along. Shiggy was perfectly fine with being fed as I walked along. The other adults could just be patient. But there was a limit to anyone. And we needed time to sleep as well. Hearing that, Belda asked, In the case of long dungeons like this, what do you do about eating and sleeping? Well, normally we find a safece and sleep in turns. a safe ce. You think theres one here? Im d youre so cautious. Those poison traps make it hard to know. Yes, Sir Alrait will be hard to continue if we cant sleep anywhere. You could eat while moving, but not sleep. Or maybe we just had to think of a way to sleep while moving We might be forced to sleep being piggybacked by another. Well, Id like to avoid that if possible. Luka said with a frown. Yeah, I dont want to do it either. They drop me if they suddenly got into a fight. I dont think I could even sleep like that. I thought wed be fine unless someone got super sleepy. But, even if you tried to piggyback someone, it would just make the person holding you sleepier. Youd probably fall asleep yourself. Wed also always need a scout. Yureena was right, no matter how sleepy we were, Cruz and I couldnt sleep. Cruz, and even worse, I might be forced to continue without sleeping. So we had a big problem with finding time to sleep. Chapter 436 - Rest Chapter 436 C Rest While I was thinking about sleep, Timi said, Hm, if this goes on too long, I might have to break through all the walls. How are you feeling, Timi? No worries. I can go without sleeping or eating for a few months. Not that, I mean remaining in a human form C you said your legs hurt, right? Oh! Yeah! You remember well, Alra! Timi was always saying that when we first met. In order to watch over Shiggy, I had to start taking on human form a lot, but now Im used to it. You can get used to that? Yeah, now it doesnt hurt too much. Good to hear. Sure. I know Shiggy sleeps a lot now, but when she gets older, she wont have to as much. Shiggys just a baby, and babies and kids sleep a lot. Even ancient dragons? Of course. While Timi and I were talking this over, I saw Luka taking notes behind her. But we still had a long path ahead of us. We had entered the dungeon in the middle of the morning. It was hard to tell time without being able to see the sun, but I bet we had been in here a day at least. We kept moving so the poison wouldnte out, solving traps as we went. We fought many golems, and disarmed so many traps, I lost count. I could see everyone getting quite tired, and right as I was thinking of leaving, I saw the dungeon change a bit. The walls colors changed! Cruz said, happily. The stone walls didnt change, but theposition of the rock did. It became quite white. The walls looked almost like marble. The walls seem wider. And the ceiling, seems to be higher as well. Luka said, looking closely but being careful not to touch the walls. Its possible this is a strong trap, or has strong enemies. And saying that Yureena then said, I know. Im checking just in case as well. I was more worried about enemies than traps. Traps were only dangerous in small ces. You couldnt get away. But in a normal, big ce, a strong enemy could attack. But, Alra, you dont feel any enemies or traps, right? I guess not. Maybe they got better at hiding? Cruz said, a bit confused. Alra, really? You dont sense anything? No, happy to say. I wonder why not. It makes no sense. Luka was very cautious. Hmmthe traps are over, so maybe we passed the experiment? Timi said. If thats the case, Im happy we did. Best not to expect wishful thinking though, if you want to remain an adventurer. I continued to check around. There were no traps. No magical creatures. And there was no poison. There was also no magic to reform or move the stone walls. Doesnt seem theres any danger, but we cant be careless. I know that. I hope you two are right. Belda said to the both of us. We were all tired, but we were still alert. On the other hand, Vi-Vi said, fwaaaaa, zzzzz She was sleeping on top of Moofy. It made sense, though. You had to get some sleep when you could. Femm, what do you think? I dont feel any hostility. Thanks. Wuff You want to ride on me, Alra? Your knee must hurt. Thanks. It is getting tough. Anytime. So I petted Femms back. Femm was very strong. Anyone could ride on Femm when it became necessary. But we had to keep Femms strength going in case we needed it. What do you think, Moofy? Moooo Moofy seemed to think it over. Nothing there. I see, thanks. Moo Moofy mooed quietly so Vi-Vi didnt wake up. And you Chel? There is undead! But do you feel it close? Far! I see, thanks. PigGi! So I said to everyone. Theres no traps, no enemies. We should take a rest here. Good idea. Yeah, I agree with you. Me too. And so they were all ready to take a rest here. Belda, dont take your armor off, just in case we need to fight. Understood. We are all still in a dungeon. We need to be ready to move. Sure. It would be a relief to take off the heavy armor and so on, but we didnt have that luxury. While I was saying that to Belda, I heard, Were taking a rest? Seems that Vi-Vi was awake. She got off Moofys back and began writing a magical circle on the ground. Vi-Vi, are you okay? Yeah, *yawn* Im fine. She was half-asleep as she continued writing the magical circle. Even so, it was well written. No somewhat strong enemy could attack the circle, and it would repel everything but the strongest attacks. It also had a rxing and fatigue recovery effect. Nice circle, Vi-Vi. *yawn* Its okay After drawing it, she climbed back on Moofys back and fell asleep. Chapter 437 - Rest 2 Chapter 437 C Rest 2 And so we took turns getting some sleep. Ill guard as well as someone. Me too.Me too. You can sleep, Belda and es. They were new at dungeoning, so there was no reason to let them or Vi-Vi post guard. I and Luka, then Cruz and Yureena would sleep in pairs. First was Luka and my turn to post guard. Timi didnt need to sleep, so she watched with us. Femm, Moofy, Chel, go to sleep. WuffMoooPiGGi Femmid down next to me and quickly slept. It was a light sleep. Femm was still watching, in a way. No matter what happened, Femm was ready for me to ride if we were attacked by something. Moofy had Vi-Vi on her back, while Belda and es climbed up and slept as well. Moofy was kind so she would watch over these new dungeon explorers. Chel was in Cruz arms as they both slept. Chel was warm so it was a good ce for it to be. And Yureena was behind Cruz holding her as well. I remembered that I had a thick nket in my magic bag. It was more for use as a bed than as a nket. You could stay warm even if you slept on rocks with it. The humans and the beasts were all sleeping on a nket, even though the beasts already had fur, but I knew why they preferred it. So I put the nket around me and sat myself down in the middle of the path. Timi and Luka were awake as well and sat near me, Wow, I just realized how tired I was. I said, rubbing my aching left knee. After Chel had relieved me from the curse, my knee still ached. And since I had walked quite a bit, it ached a lot. Seeing me rub my knee, Luka asked, This is a more difficult dungeon than we thought, huh? Yeah, this is the first time Ive seen a dungeon thats this hostile. This is the first time for you, Alra? Timi was surprised. Yup, Ive been to a lot with strong enemies, but this is the most dangerous one Ive seen. I see, I guess I think so too. You too, Luka? Its a strange dungeon for someone like we two veterans to be surprised by. Well, you have good luck to be with us, Timi. Yeah. Timi said happily as she ate some smoked meat. Timi didnt need to eat every day. In fact, it would take years for her to starve to death. If we ran out of food, then Timi could just endure not eating. However, Cruz, Luka, Yureena and I all had food in our magical bags. And we had a lot in preparation for this trip. Luka and I just ate a bit. We simply had some bread with some meat. We used to only eat dried meat all the time, but now we had magic bags that kept the meat from status changes. Now we can have soft bread and warm meat even during long trips. Luka handed Timi some bread while saying, That Lord of the Undead, was he nning to break into this dungeon? He said so. He was hoping to join forces with that undead demon. If both the Lord of the Undead and that demon broke into here, you think you could make it? I wonder myself. Luka and Timi both looked over at my answer in interest, Yeah, they might, but it would be hard. Both knew that the two werent very good at solving traps either. One trap couldnt stop them, but they were everywhere. It takes a toll on magic and physical strength. And then the poison trapsit wouldnt stop the Lord of the Undead, but the demon would be affected. And there were very strong golems and ones very resistant to magic as well. You think theyd get tired? I think theyd get worn down. I see. Its better that we didnt allow the seal to be opened, I guess. I think maybe the Lord of the Undead could have broken in. However, if that Lord of the Undead forced his way through that seal, it would have killed Belda. Belda was the key that would make the seal open, after all. If the Key to the Seal was removed because of her death, then the Lord of the Undead would have to leave, but maybe he didnt consider that far about the dungeon. So I exined that all to Luka and Timi, I see, so there was no way to get through all the traps and attacks while carrying Belda through at the same time. Maybe thats because it was sealed against anyone that couldnt do something so difficult. I think Timis right. So we talked it over while we guarded. After that, we switched with Cruz and Yureena, and Luka and I slept. I did so holding on to Femm, because Femm was so warm. I couldnt sleep on hard rockfortably without having something like Femm to hold on to. And Luka held onto Chel doing the same thing. Have a good sleep, Alra. Cruz said as she started to eat. With Cruz, Yureena, and Timi there, I could rx. Thanksdies. Leave it to us. Just sleep. Take your time. And so I fell asleep. Chapter 438 - Mystery Ambush Chapter 438 C Mystery Ambush I wonder how long I slept. I got up and reacted to a hostile force by shooting a magic bolt at it. It was far away, but I could feel the hostility. However, it was able to knock it away with a magical barrier. There was no damage, but I could feel that it now sensed me. It stopped and looked in my direction. It seems that this hostile force wasing towards us from the opposite direction we hade into the dungeon from. DDǣ The hostile force cried out, and the dungeon reverberated. Alra! An ambush! Seems like it. Cruz and Yureena were surrounding those sleeping to protect them. Femm had already awoken and was ready to fight. Moofy was up too. Hm, whats happening? Luka said, waking up right after me, and then springing up instantly. She had Chel on her shoulder now and her sword was out. Eeep! What the?! Vi-Vi said, springing up on top of Moofy. She was quite rxed after that loud enemy cry. This again was probably due to Timi having trained her. An enemy? es said, getting up quickly. E, e, e, enemy? A, a, a, attack?! Belda said, springing up after sleeping next to Moofy. She looked pretty confused. A cry like that would make anyone confused, however, but you couldnt let it get you scared. It looks like it could be a dragonwhat do you think, Alra? Timi said, pointing in the direction of the hostile force. Whatever it was had stopped and was now looking at us. I could feel a strong hostility, and if it found a way to strike, it would immediately do so. Isthat a dragon? It had much more magic than a great dragon. But I couldnt tell if it was a dragon yet. It had no wings, so it had to be an earth dragon. You dont know either, Alra? I have no idea. ryaa After hearing it was a dragon, Shiggy peaked from my pouch. She really loved other dragons. But it was sad for me to have to kill one in front of Shiggy. Go back to sleep, Shiggy. ryaa? Just sleep back in my pouch again. ..rya It was still too soon for a baby like Shiggy to wake up, so it squirmed around inside the pouch. I patted Shiggy from top of the pouch, while Timi said, Wait, could this be someone you know, Timi? I couldnt tell if it was a dragon, but it did have a simrity to the duchesses that just visited. There was no doubt that it was somewhat near that strong. And if it was a dragon, then it is certain that Timi would know about it. No, this is a dragon I had no idea existed. Its hard to even think a dragon like this exists. However, there was no way there was a THING this big and stronger than a dragon. Thats why we were both confused. Timi, forget that its a dragon and exin. Dragons have high intellect, but this thing probably was in the same range as it was stronger than most dragons. A monsters intelligence was often closely linked to its power. If it was this strong and this intelligent, then it could probably be reasoned with. Lets see, you want to drop it to the ground first, Alra? Lets try it. If it was a dragon, I could see why she wouldnt want it destroyed right away. If it wasnt a dragon, then it would be different. But it was clear that this enemy wasnt ready to talk. And it wasnt just because it had shot a magic bolt while I was sleeping. I had reacted because I had felt such a strong hostile force from it. Thats why I shot that bolt. If I used my force to crush it to the ground, it was possible to talk to, and then the hostility might go away. Luka, do you know what that thing is? no idea. You dont know either Kind of odd for a student of magical beasts not to know. I thought Timi would know if it were a type of dragon. I dont know if it is one! Both girls were lost. Chel, is it undead? No. I see. And if Chel said so, then that was that, so no one knew what it was . If we fought it though, I bet we could find out. But if not, maybe we could speak to it. Cruz, Luka, Yureena, leave this to me. Go head, Alra. Get him. Sure. So they trusted me as usual. Femm, wait. Im going to try talking to it. Understood. We were in the middle of a dungeon walkway. It was quite wide, but there was no way the thing could move around quickly. It could shoot breath down on us, but then I would have to stop it with a magical barrier. Chapter 439 - Cursed Beast Chapter 439 C Cursed Beast So I loosened up a bit. This thing was still very hostile, but not attacking. If that was so, then maybe we could talk. Perhaps it knew how much magic I could unleash. Even so, I had to be ready to strike hard and fast. This thing was probably going to attack me no matter what, and so our first real battle would begin. I walked out to it, feeling Shiggy in my pouch. She was asleep, so I wanted to get this over with in a way that wouldnt wake her up. I stopped about 20 paces in front of the beastwhich was huge. It was smaller than Timi as a dragon or the other duchesses, but the size of a great dragon. The whole beast looked like it was covered in metal, however, when I looked closely, it was more like metal tes of armor. This is why both didnt know what this was. At this close, the beast could see that I knew what it was made of. It knew that something that had magic inside but was covered in metal armor was an oddity. But it was a small difference. Unless you got to 20 paces away, you couldnt see the difference. It had probably spent much of its life armored in these tes. What are you doing here? I will kill all you. You think so? Are you cursed? . The beast shut its mouth. Even so, the fear and power it put out seemed to fade. You could tell it wasnt so hostile. If youre cursed so you cant converse, you dont have to say anything. You can just listen to me for a bit if you wish. The beast just stayed silent. You could tell it was even less hostile. Maybe the silence itself was a sign of this. Are those tes of armor part of that curse? Is the person that cursed you that undead demon sealed in the depths of the dungeon? no So the person that created this dungeon was the one? Hm. So as the protector of this ce, you were cursed and shut in here Well, theres a holy woman here that can release you from it. .impossible The beasts words didnt say anything about the curse Even so, you could tell the beast felt anguished by the curse. Just speaking about the curse seemed to hurt the beast. If we spoke more about it, even with a huge beast like this, it might die from the pain. It seemed the force stopping it was that strong. Why impossible? No, no answer needed. I wouldnt want you to suffer or die. The beast was about to say something, but gave up. It was clear that it was impossible for the beast to speak directly about the curse. Some hell of a curse. Seems the creator of this dungeon seemed like the type to cover every angle. If we were to try to release you from the spell, youd die? The silence was an affirmation. Well, then just rx. you need to GO Seems that it didnt trust me. But it was more obedient as it just stared at me. The hostility from the beginning, however, waspletely gone. Yureena! Come here The cur I know. I heard everything. I didnt speak so loudly to her, but our words seemed to echo through the cavern. Okay, please. Yureena approached the beast closely, and then stopped three paces ahead of it. Do you think you can release it? Well, wellthis is some difficult curse. Difficult? Of course it is. So can you do something about it? Sure, Alra. Take care of me, right? Yeah. It was a very difficult curse, even for Yureena. Something like this would take a lot of time. While this happened, I couldnt rely on her for help with a battle. And I would have to protect her if something happened. Of course, I was going to from the start. Sure, Ill leave that to you. As we spoke, Cruz came up to us. Chel was riding on her shoulder. Thats a curse. I can feel really bad vibes from it. Yeah Since Chel was with her, I decided to ask, Are you able to unlock curses, Chel? No. I see. Chel was able to cure the curse in my knee, which was hit by that damn immortal killer arrow. Chel was able to do that because it was cursed under the power of the death god, which Chel now had the power of. I guess anything outside of that power was unreachable to Chel. Well, Cruz. Since youre here, help protect Yureena. Got it! We had Vi-Vi and Belda guarding, with Timi and Luka left. And then Femm and Moofy, so I guess wed be okay. No real need to send Cruz backshe could stay here with me. Yureena, take off the curse. Cruz and I will defend you. Alllra, alllllllra Hm? I can do a little Chel said, bouncing up and down on Cruz shoulder. Chapter 440 - Release Chapter 440 C Release I didnt really know what Yureena and Chel meant, so I asked. A little? You can release the curse? Yes Hm, can you exin what you mean? Okay And then, Chel jiggled a little bit. I wondered how it was going to exin things. So I waited a bit. Um, a bit is zombie Wait? A part of this is zombie? Yes! Chel bounced up and down on Cruz shoulder, apparently happy the point was made. As a zombie, even though yourepletely aware, you cant control your body at all. Also, it pained the soul, and even with the bitterest of pain, you could everything but die. It was a horrible curse when you thought of it. The curse is zombie With a Death Lord like Chel saying that, it made it so. But the beast isnt a zombie. The shiny part zombie! Inside okay. Yureena looked confused. So youre saying that the metal parts are zombie? Yes! Like you say. I see. I nodded, and Cruz asked, So, what does that mean? Well I tried to exin it with the magical examination I had done. The flow of the metal on the beast was slightly different than usual. However, if I cant get very close, I cant sense the difference in the beast and its armor. So its almost the same as skin? I thought at first that it was a beast with shining metallic skin at first, but now it was clear that the metal skin was a coating of some sort. Yeah, almost the same. But that metal part seems to be a different being. Hm? And Chel said that the metal part is zombified. So the metal part is alive? It must be a very rare beast, but it exists. Maybe I should ask Luka. I had never encountered anything like it before. It was very resistant to danger and magic, but until I attacked it, I wouldnt know. I bet if I did destroy it, Id get a lot of rare items. It was the type of beast that I bet if youd encounter, youd avoid, ordinarily. Well, maybe it wasnt even a beast, but something more like a nt. Theres no way a metallic thing like that could be zombified, Alra I would have thought it impossible before as well. It might have been made to increase a beasts attack by giving it more defense. And maybe also it could surround and threaten the beast into doing what it wanted as well. Yeah. With that in mind, Ill take an even closer look, Alra. Thanks, Yureena. Yureena looked at the beast seriously and lifted her staff. She began examining the curse. Even though I knew it was cursed, I didnt understand the details of the curse. Just leave all the dispelling to her. So I tried to make Yureena feel safe so shed get done quickly. I could tell she was done analyzing, and had begun to try to release it, when, DDDDǣգң The beast cried out and tried to attack her. Seems that the curse forced the beast to attack when broken. The beast was quick as well. It opened itsrge maw and in the blink of an eye tried to bite Yureena. Time for you to calm down. I used magic to tie up the beasts four legs and stop the attack. Then I used magic to close the beasts mouth and keep it closed. DDDDգǣգգգա The beast groaned, but couldnt move. It seemed that Yureena was done with her preparations. Here it goes. I have to touch it, so please, Al. Sure. I put a strong gravity spell on the beast to weigh it to the ground. And then I opened the beasts maw and forced it into the ground. It looked like it had six feet, with four real ones and two sizes of its mouth in the ground. That way I had six ces where I was forcing it down. And it was all through gravity magic. It goes without saying that gravity is possibly the strongest magic out there. Are you okay, Al? Using seven gravity magical spells at once made Yureena worry that I might quickly expend all my magic. Im fine. Leave it to me. Since Chel had solved the pain in my knee, it never became very difficult to cast multiple magics again. Good to hear. But dont push yourself too hard. Yureena said with a smirk. Chel also was on her shoulder, getting closer to the beast. She reached and touched the metal part with her left hand and the tongue of the beast with her right. Chel, do it. PIGGGGGGGGGGGIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIII! Yureena asked, and Chel began to glow immediately. It was a bright light that soon also covered the beast. It was Yureenas release spell, while Chel used its ability with the metal zombified beast. DDǣգգգգգգա The beast made a pained cry, but then we heard something like metal cracking with a CRINK! The beasts metal armorliving zombiething dispersed into a powder around it, and we could see the beasts real form. It was pretty clear that it was awolf. Chapter 441 - Magical Wolf King Chapter 441 C Magical Wolf King With that strange magical armor surrounding it, we were surprised to see that the inside wasnt a dragon. A wolf? Its a magical wolf. What do you think, Yureena? Yyeah. Youre right. It looks like a magical wolf. This magical wolf was even bigger than Femm. Even so, it had spoken human words. Femm had always only spoken human words through spirit speech. Hearing a magical wolf speaking human words must take even more effort than spirit speech. In reaction to having the curse released, the magical wolf slumped into the ground. It must have little power to move. With no power, that armor it had on it must have forced it around constantly. It was almost out of breath, but the wolf said, thank you. I cant believe someone exists that could release me. The wolf seemed to be able to speak freely with its curse gone. When it was still cursed, it seemed like it was pained as it spoke. Dont worry about it. We can hear your storyter. You may ask anything. If I can answer anything, I will. Thank you. But we need to treat you first. Then Yureena called out to the rear guard. Luka! I have to treat it, soe here and help. Sure. Luka ran up and checked the wolfs condition. Yureena checked for injuries and cuts, and began treating the wolf. Everyone gathered in closely to watch. After checking the whole wolf out, Luka said, Skin and bones. The organs are shrunken from starvation. Just enough nutrition was left to feed it and the armor. It seems to have been sucking magic from around it. Magical beasts could live off the magic present around them. So, thats why it didnt die deep in the bowels of this dungeon. Youre right. Yureena, anything else? Nothing other than starvation. There are injuries where that armor thing dug into its skin. Seems that the armor had dug so deeply into the wolfs skin that it had pierced the wolfs blood vessels. It could control the wolf by magic sent through its blood. After a bit, Yureena was able to cure it. In other words, the wolf was almost starved to death, but was healthy in most other ways. Ill get some food for the wolf. Its been a while since it ate, so something thats very watery at first. I amgrateful Luka rummaged through her bag and started making something for the wolf. Make sure to eat this slow. slurpslurp She had taken something like a warm porridge out and offered it to the wolf to eat. It might not be enough, but a little is good, too. thankyou Yureena and Luka continued looking the wolf over. Meanwhile, Vi-Vi, Timi, Chel, Moofy and Cruz checked over the remains of the zombified armor. Complex magicimpressive. Its quite interesting. The armor was a living being. If you can call it that. PiggiMoo moo Strange that living things like this exist. Leave the remains for me to check as well. I need to do some research. Luka said, while Vi-Vi put some remains of the beast into her bag. Just then, Belda and es came up behind Yureena and Luka, and looked at the wolf with some worry. Also, Femm came up behind those two and stared at the wolf. Femm, what is it? Are you shy talking to other wolves outside of your pack? I asked, but Femm didnt respond. Something was wrong. Femm, what is it? Father? Femm said, in spirit speech, quietly. Wha? Father? I was surprised. The two looked at each other, and I could see that they did look quite alike. It didnt make sense that the father would be here, though. This dungeon was made hundreds of years ago. And, this wolf was set here as one part of the dungeon. In other words, this father of Femm would have to have been here hundreds of years. I thought you said your father was dead. Femm had be the king of the wolves because the previous king, the father, had died. At least, thats what Femm said when we had just met. However, I never heard anything more about the father. I took a few steps closer to the wolves. Are you my father? Femm called out, and the other beast looked up. I have no daughter Butbut The wolves silently sniffed each other. It is an old smellsmells like my son. Son? Femm looked surprised. But hearing this, I had a theory about it all Wolf, I have something to ask. Go ahead. You know the name of Mulg Vige? Why do you know that name>? I am a guard there. And this, Femm, now is the king of the wolves around that vige. I seeI understand. The wolf sighed and looked at the ground. Then it looked up, as if it were tired to talk. However, it did stare at Femm. And it looked at Femm kindly. Chapter 442 - Magical Wolf 2 Chapter 442 C Magical Wolf 2 After looking Femm over for a bit, the magical wolf continued, humanyou are correct, I was the former king of the wolves of Mulg. I knew it. What? What did he say? Cruz said with her eyes shimmering. This great magical wolf was not Femms father but her grandfather. Whoa! Femms grandfather!? Grandfather Femm looked at her grandfather closely. It was the first time she had seen her grandfather. Youre Femm, then? Good name. I got the name from Alfred here. I see. Thats good. We hadnt been formally introduced. So he didnt know exactly who Alfred was. And so Femm nodded over in my direction. My name is Alfred Lint. Magician. And So I pointed over to the others around and they answered, Im Cruz. Luka. I know magic beasts well. Im Yureena Linmia. Im Vi-Vi. Belda.es. I am Timisoara. We had little time, so names alone were good enough. I also remembered to tell them the names of Sighisoara, Moofy, and Chelnovok. My name is Moko. The wolf told us. It was a cute name that didnt quite fit a noble magical wolf. My master as well gave me that name. I seeits a good name. Yes. Moko must have meant the hero from 300 years ago. The wolves had no history of giving themselves names. Thats why Femms own father didnt have a name. Femm. Is my son still in good health? Last year he died of sickness. I seeHe was a great wolf. And he died only 300 years old Yes, he was a great magical wolf king. Both Moko and Femm seemed sincerely sorrowful about the death. Femm, youre so young and yet you had to be kingit must have been hard. I am fine. I was helped by Alfred. Femm didnt act as prideful as usual. She was actually quite humble. Perhaps she didnt think she needed to act like a king around her own grandfather. And so they sniffed each other out. It was an important thing for wolves. They probably got more information from that than from talking. I had a lot of things I wanted to ask Moko. However, the reunion of the two was much more important. So I just stood back and watched them with Luka and Yureena. With the greetings over, Moko slowly stood up. you have things you wish to ask. Whatever you desire. Moko. Dont push yourself too hard. You havent totally recovered, right? I thank you for your caution. Master of Femm. Master? If you named Femm, you are Femms master. Is that so? Its just a convenience! Femm said, a bit embarrassed by it all. I was the one that named her, though. Seems from the first days we knew each other, I had always been her master. Master of Femm. I appreciate your caution, but I am fine. Moko, I really mean it. Arent you tired? My wounds are healed. I also ate porridge. I was tired from all the urging to fight, but nothing too much to speak of. I see. Youre very strong. And a king of the magical wolves lives a long time. Moko said, a bit proud of himself. I guess being too careful, trying not to hurt Mokos pride more than anything. Well, since Im going to ask, please rx, you cany down if youd like. as you wish. And so the standing Mokoy down. We were about to go and defeat whomever is deep inside here I see. So I guess you know whats down there. We have heard that its an undead demon living down there. I dont know if wepletely trust that information, though. What do you mean? Moko asked me, and I tried to exin. A lord of the undead hade and tried to destroy the town below the Demon Lords castle. He told us that his real mission was to resurrect the demon lord of the undead inside the dungeon. I had only heard about the demon lord of the undead from the lord of the undead so I see. Thats why Im not one hundred percent sure. It was just something an enemy told me. Even so, I dont think the lord of the undead would tell me a lie. My intuition told me he wasnt lying from his expression and tone. But I didnt trust my intuition one hundred percent either. Master of Femm. Your information is correct. There is an undead demon inside the core of this dungeon. Moko revealed, making it a fact. Chapter 443 - Moko’s Story Chapter 443 C Mokos Story Timi seemed quite satisfied with Mokos story and nodded, Yes, well, it seems we have an undead demon! Good! We have something worth defeating! Madam Timisoara. I understand that you have matchless power from that statement You do? I am happy that a great magical wolf would say so. However, this demon is not defeatable. It was shut in here because of that fact. Oh? I wont mince words. You should probably turn back from here. I didnt sense that Moko was worried about us either. If you could put it one way, I guess that he was more scared that the demon would be set free in case we couldnt destroy it. Is the demon really that scary? He is very strong. No human could match it. What makes him so hard to defeat? Cruz asked. Cruz was getting really excited by an enemy that strong. It was a bad habit of hers. Its not just the unbelievable magical and physical strength, but regeneration. And his battle experience is abnormally strong. I see. The regeneration is annoying, but its not really different from anyone else weve fought. But you say that not ever having seen the enemy, Cruz. Well, who do you think could beat it, Moko-chan? Moko-chan? Hearing himself called Moko-chan, Mokos ears stood straight up. Not out of anger, but more of a loss of what to say. Yesthe thing that could beat that demon Moko said, thinking it over. Even if a Magic Lord and Herobined strength, it might not be enough. What about with a Dragon Lord, Destruction Lord, and Death Lord? thats nonsense. A hypothetical like that? Well I guess they might Then were okay! Cruz, what do you mean? Im the heroand Alra here is a Magic Lord. And Cruz proceeded to name all the other lords present here as well. I see. You really did well toe together. And the oracle of the destruction god said that all of these people would be here together at the right timemaybe. Cruz said, with Shiggy saying, ryaaafrom my pouch. I seethe godswell, I guess it might be time. It seemed that Moko said so with a far-away look. I noticed that Moko looked quite different and asked, Moko, I have something What is it, Master of Femm? You were forced by that zombie armor to live and attack whatever came in here, right? Correct. I was thinking that the dungeon maker was the one that forced you to be here, but I said, while Moko wagged his tail softly. Master of Femm, you are correct. I myself wanted to be here. What does that mean? In order to understand, you must hear the story of that undead demon and my master. It is long, but I dont mind. Please tell us. I see. I was wondering, how much do you know about me? Not much. I just know there was a wolf king 300 years ago near Mulg, who did what the hero back then asked him. After the hero defeated the Demon King 300 years ago, he was received coldly by other regions and so decided to create Mulg for him and other run-aways. At that time, he took the nearby magical wolf pack under his wing. As you say. And after the hero died, the wolf left Mulg, thats all I know. A heavenly magical wolf was the highest position of the magical wolves. After Cruz had touched Femm for a while, she had be a heavenly magical wolf. Moko had probably be the same after being around the previous hero for so long. I see. Seems like the same thing happened today. I think its different though? Master of Femm. Have you seen the heros grave? I guess I havent, now that you mention it. Do you not think it is strange? He created that vige after all. He should have been buried there. Moko said, and Yureena responded, Youre right I thought that he was just buried with the other vigers Luka said, while Vi-Vi nodded in agreement. I thought the same as Luka as well. I guess after the fellow died he didnt really want to stand out as special. He certainly was a humble man, but not, its not so Which means? He didnt die in Mulg. He left Mulg with me. Did something bad happen to him at Mulg? No. His life was quite rxed at Mulg, but there was somewhere else that needed him. And that ce happened to be Elkay? Yes. After he defeated the Demon Lord, the devils in the town were harassed mercilessly. He tried to do something about it. Seems that 300 years ago and today, history has repeated itself. Chapter 444 - A 300 Year Old Tale Chapter 444 C A 300 Year Old Tale Of course, whats happening today must have been far less desperate than 300 years ago. But even today, there are horrible people doing horrible things. The lord of the realm where Cruz reigns now was like that. He had many victims before he was stopped. Same with Tant. She had to endure much hardship, as did Leah, since her father was a devil. There are still people that do bad things, like enving others for no reason. es said. es herself, after being expelled and bing an adventurer, saved a devil family from being enved. Belda said, patting es head. Its not something many people do today, es. Well, thank you. As Belda said, its not amon thing. She was expelled from her family and dropped amongmoners. If something like that happened to you or me, we would try to survive, and no one would me you for looking the other way. But still, she had done the deed of rescuing them. Thats a fine thing to hear, es. Its very kind! She was embarrassed as everyone praised her. So what happened to that family now? Theyre working in the mansion of Marquis Halewood. es answered Vi-Vis question with a smile. She lived in her own house until she was made a marquis. Then she became one and asked the family to attend to her, and now they are all her vassals. The sry of the family isnt a small amount either C definitely enough to take care of themselves. Well, thats good. I thank you as a devil myself. Vi-Vi said, nodding to es. Theres no need to thank me for it. Her face was bright red now. Moko was listening, and said, Yes, even after 300 years, that discrimination continues. Yes, I apologize the crowns power is not enough Belda said, looking like she felt somewhat responsible. Just because youre royal doesnt make you responsible. Even so, Im notpletely guiltless. Belda does have a strong feeling of responsibilityjust, it seems simr what does? To the royals I knew 300 years ago. Belda now looked concerned because she seemed alike with a centuries old member of the royal family. There was nothing I could say. The status of the royal family was secured by bloodlines, after all. If you have the status and privilege of the bloodline, you should also take responsibility for their actions. And there were still devils that were oppressed. After 300 years, that was still the reality. Its a bit embarrassing. Well, its not totally fixed, but its better than before. You think so? Yes. If you were ruler, Belda, then I think we could expect a bright future. Sir Alra. She looked like she was tearing up. On the other hand, Cruz asked Moko, So did his quest to save the oppressed seed? Notpletely, but there was an effect. Wow, sounds hard for even me to do. Well, it was a great sacrifice. Sacrifice? Yes. 300 years ago, the hero moved to Elkay with Moko. Elkay had the most devils being oppressed after all. At first, the hero tried to save them through negotiations. But the hero was treated coldly after dispatching the Demon Lord. No ruler would hear what the hero had to say. Still, he endured and did his best. While petitioning one lord, he subdued a great beast in thend for free. He even used the fortunes he amassed as an adventurer to buy food for the devils. But the negotiations failed. You said he was effective to some extent, though. Cruz asked, and Moko nodded deeply. Yes, unfortunately that urred after the next step. The hero had negotiated well but tenaciously, an incident urred that broke his patience. A certain ruler hunted devils that he bought as ves. The furious hero protested this, but the lord would not receive him. On the contrary, he seemed to hunt these devils down even more. Almost as if these non-humans were toys for the human aristocrats. It was a day where there was arge hunt. The hero headed out there, and hunted them himself. What does that meandid he Current hero. It is exactly as you are thinking. He killed the nobles as his prey. The rulers thought they were safe on this field, but were hunted down just like they had hunted down the devils. They had cried and begged for their lives. But he killed them just as they had killed their devil prey. Chapter 445 - A 300 Year Old Tale 2 Chapter 445 C A 300 Year Old Tale 2 Moko then said the following with a bitter face, My master did not forgive them. I hunted them all down with him. Even now, I can taste my fangs ripping into their flesh and taste their blood on my tongue. Well, those rulers got what they deserved. Just as Vi-Vi said, but they didnt allow it to end like that. Yes. Its normal for things like that to explode into war. And this is the sacrifice I spoke of. So the hero led these devil ves who were hunted by the rulers and fought against others. These oppressed devils gathered under the heros g and became quite a fighting force. As they had high magical ability, they were excellent troops. But wasnt it a horrible battle? All those lords have armies, after all. Luka said, and Moko nodded. Yes, of course. But the Demon Lords previous healers and mages and other warriors also aided us. Well, if the hero had helped them at firstthen Not only that, but the Demon Lord as well. What? I thought he was killed. We defeated him, but as you know, demons are very hard to kill, and I didnt know about this until after the hero beat him. So then Moko and the hero came to Elkay and met the Demon King. During that time, the Demon Lord lived quietly in the mountains a day away from Elkay. So the master and the Demon Lord joined and fought with the devils. We were able to expel all the rulers around Elkay. However, like humans, they didnt give up for long. Arge army organized and attacked. Also knights such as guards of the crown, dragon knights, and pce knights as well as court mages. The devil army, led by the hero, struggled against them. The blood flowed from ally and enemy. That will happen I said, and Moko nodded. The hero made one decision. He stopped me. He stopped everyone. And he went ahead with his decision. What was it? That he would be a demon. Moko said, trembling. Luka, who was calm as always, asked Moko, Can humans be demons? Usually, no; you of course have to be born as one. Then how did he be one? An oracle came down to him after a fierce battle. From the Holy God? No, an oracle from the god of the demons. The god apparently is different from the magic god that blessed me. It was quite confusing, but I guess clearly different. A very minor god of evil, actually. Strange that a minor god would offer an oracle to an apostle of the holy god. The demon god gave an oracle to devils and humans it approves of, and if epted, they be demons. I didnt know. Usually no one does. I didnt know until he actually became one. But if you take the demon lords blessing, you lose the holy blessing, right? that didnt happen. What do you mean? Even after receiving that oracle, he remained the hero. So he was a follower of the holy AND the demon god? Yes. Vi-Vi was listening and asked, What does that mean? You would think the two would be ipatible. Vi-Vi, as I said before, its pointless to try to guess the intentions of the gods. Timi said again. Gods are far superior to humans. Its meaningless to guess the meanings of their actions or apply values of good or evil to them. Gods and men have different criteria for making judgements. Thats what the god of destruction said. Different criteria for making judgements; is that a legal term? Luka said, but es shook her head. I thought so too, but its different. The gods are superior in every respect. Timi nodded to this, As es said, God cant be measured by human holiness or depravity, good or evil. Does that mean even if a human bes a demon, he can still fulfill the will of a holy god? Hard to believe that! Cruz said with a smile. It is hard to believe. Too hard to believe. But its useless try to understand a gods will. So continue with the story, Moko. Very well, master of Femm. In addition to the holy gods blessing, the blessing of the demon god was very, very strong. He destroyed the human army, attacked the royal capital, killed the king, and ughtered the royal family. Wait a minute, that means the current royal family Correctits a new dynasty created 300 years ago. Neither Belda nor Luka looked very surprised. It wasmon sense when you consider history. Chapter 446 - A 300 Year Old Tale 3 Chapter 446 C A 300 Year Old Tale 3 So I asked Moko, From the story so far, the immortal demon inside is your master, Moko. Correct. I know the hero is the demon, but how did he be immortal? And I also didnt know the reason why the undead demon hero was shut inside there. It was a very difficult thing for my master, who destroyed the humans and became a demon, but he did so all the same. So that hed have a body that would neve die and be able to fight with immense strength. Yes, he stopped me and all his other friends. Otherwise, we would have seen him destroy the capital with our own eyes. I see, so your master had a reason to do so. Thank you for understanding, master of Femm. Moko wagged his tail. Even though he was an immortal demon, he was still a 300 year old hero and important to Moko. Even I can understand respect for a brave man like him. He did whatever he could to defend those oppressed devils. I guess I understand as well. Luka said, while Cruz, Yureena, and es nodded to the same opinion. So why is he sealed in there? Well, Its the price for being immortal and a demon. A price? I would think losing his humanity would be a big enough price. Not just that, his thoughts and personality began to be crazy. So he lost his human emotions and personality to one of a demons? Yes, he was mild-mannered and merciful, but became ruthless and brutal. Moko said, looking very sad. It probably stunned him to see his master change so. When he killed the human royals, he was probably already too far gone. Even though some were against the execution of the royal family, I knew why he was convinced it was necessary. Even after that, though, the hero became more and more cruel. He also lost the blessing of the holy god. So, one day, my master asked me to kill him. Seems that even the hero knew he had changed. But I couldnt Because he was yourpanion? I guess I cant deny I didnt feel it was so. But that wasnt it. He was just too strong. There was just no way to kill a demonand being undead, he would regenerate endlessly. Each time you hurt him, his rage would increase. Every time you hurt him, that humanity left it his heart would break. So I had to seal him in. If Ipletely lost him to his demon side, then there would be nothing left. So there was a mage and healer who were friends of the hero. And he was the present magic lord. All of them used thisbyrinth of the gods below Elkay, remodeled it, and sealed him inside. And so I stayed here, hoping to keep the seal intact. So who was the one who cast that metal zombie creature on you? I asked the mage and the magic lord. It was the only way to allow me to guard this ce for thousands of years without changing my character So thats why Moko wanted to stay restrained by the curse. I guess he didnt want to be changed like his own master Wait a secondis that mage from the story the lord of the undead? Yes. He said he knew the hero from 300 years ago and also knew Moko. When I said that, Moko sighed. Well, he became a lord of the undeadhe was certainly familiar with forbidden magic. It seems that he came to break the seal for the undead demonbut we defeated him. The mage helped create thisbyrinth. He would have known that he couldnt break through without the help of a demon. So why did the Lord of the Undead want to break into the dungeon? Moko seemed to think about it. maybe he wanted to die at the side of the hero, or maybe he was drawn to the immortal side and lost all his judgment. Moko looked far into the distance. I dont want to think he lost his senses, so maybe he just wanted to die with the hero. I think that might be the case. Master of Femm, thank you for stopping him. No need to thank me. Cruz was listening and asked, We know what happened to the mage, but what about the healer and the magic lord? Ive been here the whole time, so I have no idea, but the magic lord said hed go to the countryside where hed live a quiet life. And the healer? He became the king of the humans. The royal family is so simr to Belda, that I can tell his descendants are still kings. Mokoy on the ground and put his chin down and exhaled. Chapter 447 - A 300 Year Old Tale 4 Chapter 447 C A 300 Year Old Tale 4 Moko had just been lifted from a curse. For 300 years, he survived only by the magical power absorbed by a zombified metal creature. No matter how much magical power he got, though, without food, you felt like starving. Moko, take a rest. Thanks for your concern, master of Femm. But Im fine. If you have any other questions Cruz hesitated to open her mouth Um, Moko. Cruz was probably worried about Mokos strength. Please, go ahead, hero. Ask anything. Are you okay? As I said, you can ask as its no concern to me. I see. Moko, what kind of person was the hero 300 years ago. Gentle, merciful, fair. Kind to all, strict to me. So he was a noble person. And a little childish. He called me Moko because he said it sounds what being furry sounds like, mokomoko I guess it helped me understand the name a little better. It might have been that Moko was something like a puppy to the hero. It makes sense to me. Do you think so, hero? I also like the name. Moko said, wagging his tail. And looking far away again, Moko said, And so much stronger than everyone else. .that much? Oh yes, thats why I dont want anyone to break that seal. Are you worried about us? Or you dont want anyone to get rid of him? Im worried. Not only Femm and her master, but I like all of youso So hes that strong. Maybeall of the followers of the gods might be killed. And if that happens And though not everyone may die, some might. So I ask you to go back. Yureena then asked Moko, You dont want us to subdue him? Yes. He had a beast put on his back and a curse cast on him after all. Exactly what Luka said. Whats your real intention? If you really dont want us to Thank you, but thats not the case. I hope he is defeated. Really? Yes, I am here to protect the seal and not my master. What do you mean? If I could defeat him, I would break the seal and do it myself. But if I broke the seal, I know he will bring only cmity. So youre saying you dont want him to cause any more destruction? Hero, exactly. But thats not what my master wants. Hearing that, Cruz looked at me. So Alra, what now? Theres no doubt this is a dangerous task. Everyone can decide if they want to be involved. And if we dont have enough power after that, we can tryter. Are you going, Alra? Sure. Then Ill go too. Me too.And Im going as well. So all my old party was in. And I will go too. I will fight with you. Moo! GO! PiggGi Me too! Ill go too. So far it was Cruz, Luka, Yureena, Femm, Moofy, Chel, and Vi-Vi. Well, I must go, because the seal cannot be broken without me. And I as well, as I am the lord of destruction. So Belda and es will follow. And you, Timi? Well, I dont know, Alra. You dont know? Timi nods to Cruz question. I normally wouldnt hesitate, but I wonder if Shiggy would be in danger. Sure that would be the case, but what would you do with her? ryaa? Shiggy popped her head out and shook her head. Timi came over and stroked Shiggys head. But there was an oracle of the god of destruction, which did say the dragon god blessed Shiggy with being here at the exact time. So Shiggy was protected by the dragon god, and as a result became the dragon lord. No wonder, as Shiggy did grow very quickly a sheer genius. And the dragon god didnt even wait for the dragon to mature. Of course, to a god, waiting for hundreds of years for Shiggy to mature would be like a moment, at least, thats what I thought. Maybe Shiggy would y a role in subduing this hero from 300 years ago. And Timi was thinking the same thing as me. I know that a gods intentions and means are pointless to think about, but still. Yet Timi did believe in the dragon god. Chapter 448 - The Young Dragon Lord Chapter 448 C The Young Dragon Lord Timi stroked Shiggys head and asked me, Alra, what should we do? I dont know, but even the dragon god has put her here. maybe. I think Shiggy will be okay. I dont want to take any risks, though. I know, and if it bes dangerous, Ill ask you. okay, to escape with Shiggy? Exactly. It might be that Shiggy had some role to y in the subduing of the undead demon hero. And all the other lords as well. But then, the safety of Shiggy is also important. However, everything is dust in the wind, right? And that barrier that seals that 300 year old hero is no exception. He might never emerge from it while Im alive, but the life of a dragon is much longer. It might be that hees back when Shiggy is still alive. And then how likely will it be that we all can fight together? Shiggy might have to face him alone. Thats a bit too much to ask. We should do it now. All the lords are together and its the best opportunity. it might be impudent for me to say this That being said, Moko stands and stretches his spine. Please save him from himself. He will no longer be a man and lose all his human will. That might be true. But still his noble soul is trapped inside that immortal body of a demon. And Moko bowed. So let me plead again. Please save him. It pains me that he has sacrificed himself for all, and yet still ended up trapped in a demons body. Timi nodded to Mokos words. I understand, wolf king. Ill help you as well, but I will give priority to the safety of Sighisoara. Thank you. Seems that everyone will participate in the attack on the 300 year old hero. So I asked Moko again, So is the innermost part where he is that way? Its close. When you pass that door I emerged from, youre already in the innermost part of the dungeon. So Moko himself was thest guardian of the dungeon. He had been waiting here for 300 years and emerged since we camped nearby. The next room is the barrier of the core, and if touched by the descendents of the healer, the barrier will be lifted. Can we touch it? Considering the traps weve seen, the final might be the worst. And a spell with something that specific to release the barrier must be some exact magical release. Moko continued, You only have to touch it, but it must be done by someone from the royal bloodline. Then all trials are over. Really? So this is the final ce to rest before the fight? Yes, rest here, win, and youre done. So why did youe out? If you didnt take enough rest to win, I would attack youat least that was my n. I guess the length of rest was one part of the trial. All trials are over. No enemies, no traps. Just rest. Thank you. I was awakened and wondered if Id ever sleep again. Another nap! Ill sleep too! Cruz agreed with me and got ready as well. Femm walked over to get ready as well. ryaaa! You too? Okay. ryaaa Shiggy might have some work to do as well. Everyone else was sleepy and prepared to sleepfor a while. When we awoke, we ate. We had plenty of time. Start a fire, make a soup with dried meat, and warm some bread. I can get you some more porridge. Thank you so much. And so Moko was given a heavier porridge than before and ate. Grandfather, when youre better, lets have some meat together. Good, Femm, I look forward to it. Femm barked and wagged her tail. Her father died and she became leader of the magical wolves, so she had a lot of responsibility. But it was good to see her rx with her grandfather. Femm spoke in humannguage though it was not necessary, and so everyone could hear it as well. Well, thank you, Femm. I said, patting her head. What is it? She was a bit taken aback, but still wagged her tail. Chapter 449 - The Deepest Room Chapter 449 C The Deepest Room We had enough to sleep and a warm meal. Everyone seems to have lost their tiredness. Okay, are you ready, Belda? I am. Moko, its going to be a rough fight. Please stay here and wait. I thought it would actually be harder on Moko psychologically than physically to fight his master. So I urged him not to fight, giving that excuse. I thank you for the consideration, but I shall go as well. But Moko I know that Im not much of a fighter in this condition Thats not the case. No, I know it very well. Im thin and weak, but please dont even think of me as being there. Femm saw my expression and added, I ask as well, Alra. My father must see his end. Hm He stayed here for 300 years to make sure. Its more important than his own life. Femm, thank youI feel that way. Really? Its dangerous. Youre weak There was a high possibility of Moko dying. So Vi-Vi said. Of course it would be sad, but its the pride of being a magical wolf. My son seems to have been a good father. Moko said, happily wagging his tail. He knew that his granddaughter understood the pride of a wolf. Okay, I guess Moko cane too. Thank you, master of Femm. So we all entered thest room. The room had all the same material for the walls, floor, and ceiling. It looked like white marble, but it wasnt marble at all. And everything was engraved by fine letters. The width was about 30 times a mans width, and the ceiling about 8 times a mans height. The depth was about five men deep as well, quite shallow. There was a transparent round crystal object sitting on a pedestal near the back of the room. And the room smelled of wolves, as Moko had lived here 300 years. This is a bit too small for you, Moko. Yes, but I couldnt move freely due to the curse. So it didnt matter. And with that said, Moko looked around the room. He couldnt even do so for 300 years because of the curse. Maybe this is the first time in 300 years he could freely look at it. I walked over and stroked Mokos head, thinking of the 300 years of loneliness. Moko was surprised at first, then epted it, saying, Madam Belda, that sphere is the key to the royal family. Here? Belda walked directly up to the sphere. I walked up as well and examined it with magic. Vi-Vi and Timi were behind me, doing the same. Vi-Vi was on Moofy, who was sniffing it. Dont think theres a trap, Alra. Moo moo. Yes, but it is advanced technology. Was this made by the demon lord? Yes, and the mage and the healer. Quite some magicians. Yes, and the Lord was still stronger than all of them BEFORE he became a demon. Moko said proudly, but a little lonely. That hero was stronger than the three that created this dungeon. Then became a demon, immortal, and even stronger. Got to get ready for this! ryaaa! Shiggy was ready to go as well. Just put your palm on the sphere and the seal will be broken. Only that? Yes, the moment you do, the hero will be free. If youre uncareful, hell wipe you out immediately. Some responsibility. She looked very nervous. So I said to Belda. Belda, wait just a moment. Sure. Moofy, can you get bigger? This will be a fierce battle. So Moofy grew to twice the size, about three times the normal size of a cow. Moofy, could you put Belda on your back? Shed be rtively safe there. Okay, I do it. I dont mind. Thanks. Belda, stay there, okay? Understood. So Belda got up on Moofys back. She was a dragon knight, so she was quite good at hopping on. Chel, onto my shoulder. Piggi! Got it! Femm, now let me ride. Sure. I was on her back, and we were all ready for battle. Chapter 450 - The Immortal Demon 450 C The Immortal Demon I looked around. Are we ready? Sure. Always.Lets go. Cruz had her sword out and ready to use. Luka had hers out as well, and was looking alert. Yureena had her cane and was behind Moko. Anytime. Moo moo!PiggI!ryaa! Im ready. Get ready! And so all the rest of the crew were ready to go. Timi and es as well. I may not be useful, but I can do what I must. Im ready. And so Moko and Femm were also ready. Everyone was ready to go. So I said, Be mindful. The enemy is a former hero, but now is an immortal demon. Dont waste time trying to talk. If you try to talk to someone like that, youre only wasting time. Especially when that person was formerly a good person. Were all just too kind. But its better to think he doesnt have any feelings whatsoever. Everyone nodded to me seriously. Death for this hero is salvation from god. It would be his wish when he was still human. I know, Moko, just leave it to us. Please. So I asked Belda, Ready? Yes, my heart is set Then touch the sphere whenever you feel ready. Understood. Moofy crouched down. Belda breathed out and slowly reached out to the sphere. Her palm steadily made contact with it, and three secondster, KIEEEEEEEENNNNN There was the sound of a high-pitched jarring. The sound rang out and the back wall broke in half and opened like a door. The room behind it was the same height as the room here. But the depth was much farther, about 100 mens arms outstretched back. The walls, floor, ceiling, all were covered in ancient script. The room itself was a magic seal. It wouldnt break easy from a magical or physical attack. A young man stood with his eyes closed inside of a small study in this sturdy and spacious room. The demon immortal. 300 year old hero. Looking only like a man. He was tied inyers of a shining chain, which now suddenly broke, as it was connected to the seal. master Mokos voice trembled when he saw the hero. The hero opened his eyes, and they were red as blood. He silently waved his hand and des made with magical power flew towards us. Everyone sprung back, but I put up a barrier to protect Moko. Dont worry about me! Its not a drag on me! The hero continued to attack without a word. I was actually grateful there was no talking this time. Cruz! Got him! She was fast and already at him, ready to sh. His expression changed when he saw her holy sword. Maybe because that was his favorite weapon when he was the hero. He shed out and deflected her with his own magical sword. I could hardly keep track of the nging swords, while Luka and es approached and also attacked him. Even so, his skin seemed to harden. Even with Cruz sword strikes, he was only hurt a tiny bit. They shed at him mercilessly, but the scratches all vanished in under a second. The speed only increases as the three girls shed at him over and over. Go, Moofy! Moo moo! Just then Moofy charged in with Vi-Vi on top, while she carved magical circles into the floor. Shes gotten better again I said to myself. She started to cast the circles now, instead of just tediously inscribing them. Magical bullets and charges pop out of the circle and fly towards the former hero. She attacks him from far away, but he simply epts all the attacks without attempting defense. Are you really immortal? Vi-Vi says, but now his wounds heal instantly. He doesnt even need defense. Cruz, Luka, and es have received wounds as well, but Yureena heals them from afar. Timi was standing by Yureena, working as defense. She was there to protect Yureena in an emergency. Timi was also firing magical attacks at him. This guy! Hes tougher than a dragon! Even the magic of an ancient dragon seemed not to affect him. So I decided to attack myself while riding Femm. Chapter 451 - Fighting the Undead Demon Hero Chapter 451 C Fighting the Undead Demon Hero The room isrge, so the magic I can use is limited. If I cast a huge fireball, then Cruz will be hurt, but weak magic will do nothing at all. So I got a sharp magic bullet and shot it at him. It pierced his hard belly and left through his back, but the scratch regenerates without any scars. He does have fast regeneration. Al, want to get closer? Femm thought it might be dangerous to hurt him from long range. No, Im fine, I can do this. What are you going to do? The moment Femm asked, the stomach of the hero exploded. My arrow left a magical bomb in his body, pretending to just prate him. I guess his skin is hard, but not his insides. His abdomen was blown away and he stopped. All three girls jumped on him again. They shed him up. Go for his guts! Cruz shouted and the front guard lunged in on him. Guroooooooo! The former hero howled at all the countless cuts he was taking. He suddenly grew and wings stretched from his back as his limbs stretched out. His ws and fangs grew long. He was clearly a demon now. Ahmaster. Moko seemed to moan when he saw this. The former hero continued to changehis skin took on a metallic luster, shining dully. Here! Cruz shed at him again and the sword hit his neck directly. There was a violent metallic sound as it only cut halfway through. Its too hard! I cut with all my strength! Cruz said, surprised her holy sword couldnt cut him. If Cruz cant cut him, I cant! Luka said, backing up. Not that Luka didnt have the ability, just that her sword was useless. And her sword was a first ss magic item, but not a holy sword wielded by a hero. If so, Luka could probably cut him, but the heros regeneration was just too fast. So Luka took a step back so she wasnt exhausted. es dashes in and shes the hero demon herself. Whooaaaa! She roared as she shed down on one of the demons arms. But it was there her sword broke. She jumped backwards without being panicked, just getting distance. The demon let loose a magical attack, just your ordinary magical arrow. But the speed and power was tremendous, so they did their best to dodge. Even with its skin still metal, it still could regenerate quickly. In fact, so quickly all the heros wounds were healed. es pulled out a new sword that was a size shorter than the ones she used already. Better get ready for some scratches And as soon as she was about to rush forward, Chel said from her shoulder, Immortal Killer Arrow! I knocked down the arrow that was about to strike es. It was an arrow the demons used. Dont let it hit youits an immortal killer arrow! I told everyone again. When we subdued the previous demon lord, he hit me in the knee with one, and it was tough. It has curses that affect your soul and hinder healing. Immortal killer. Thats dangerous! Stay away from it, es. Ookay. I can feels something really terrifying from those arrows too. Not only Chel but Cruz felt the danger as well. He could hide the danger of it better than the previous demon lord. I said, and Cruz nodded. He was so adept that even Cruz didnt notice. So the demon continued shooting them and the girls kept their distance to avoid it. Timi and I stayed in the rearguard knocking the arrows down as they were shot. Its hard to go on offense, Al! What now? Yeah, well my magic es then said after I responded to Lukas question, When I hit it with the sword, I could feel its core. The barrier that covers the core cant be touched by swords or magic, but by the power of the god of destruction! She must have been able to read it with that power. Good, so where is it? Right below his heart! Seems that it was between his heart and diaphragm. Thats deep inside the body! Can you break into it? No! I cant break it unless its exposed! So I have to open him up? What a strange phrase. You have to attack through immortality arrows into a guy that constantly regenerates, and who is now partially metal. Even with a sword or magic, hes not easily hurt. If I can touch him, I know, PiggI! Chel says, apparently using the power of the death god, which makes sense because the demon is immortal, but almost impossible to get a slime that close in. I guess I had no choice but to take him. Everyone else seemed to understand. Just support me! Defend Moko and Belda! Timi started attacking fiercely and knocked down all the arrows shot at Moko and Belda. Thanks Femm! Sure! Femm charged towards the demon, avoiding his arrows easily. I cast magic from her back. I could knock them down myself with simple magical bullets. And it was not hard, but I treated it seriously. As the demon was hit by our magic, it was hurt, but then quickly recovered. Damn, his regeneration is so fast! When Femm and I approached, a third eye opened from the demons forehead and he shot more arrows from his hands. The iris was white and the pupil silver. His mouth opened wide revealing a bright red tongue and long, sharp fangs. KEEEEEIIIIEIEEEEEEE There was an inorganic sound that was so high pitched, it seemed impossible to be made. It had a very strong magical power. Femm and I took the cry at a close distance. My head hurt like crazy as Femm tumbled and fell. The demon followed with immortal killer arrows while I desperately shot them down. Sorry, Im okay. Dont overdo it, Femm. Femm tried to get up, but the cry didnt stop. My legs were wobbly and I couldnt get up. I got off of Femm and stood in front of her. Even with the headache, I could shoot down the arrows myself. Chel almost fainted off my shoulder and Shiggy was quiet as wellprobably fainted too. Wwhat they hell? A mixture of curse and magic. Luka said, kneeling and Yureena staggering. es fell hard as she lost her bnce and couldnt get back up. This sucks. Cruz was resistant to this but even so, held her head. Everyone calm down. Leave the arrows to me. I shot all of them down that I could and with some time, I could get Cruz to attack and gain the offensive, but I needed time. Moo moo! Moofy backed up with Vi-Vi and Belda as well, because it hurt and she was working hard to protect Vi-Vi and Belda. Timi ran along with Moofy but was holding her head as well. This is tough, A, even for me as an ancient dragon! Even so, she was attacking the demon and shooting down the arrows. Timi seemed to have just a headache, but wasnt just stumbling like the others. It made it much more simple to maintain a front line. On the other hand Vi-Vi shouted, Didnt think it would go this far! She was pale and sweating, but she held on to Belda so she wouldnt fall from Moofy. And while doing so, she cast her magic power from her right hand to the circles she carved. The countless magic circles began to glow blue and my headache subsided quickly. I have a magic circle defense system, but I didnt think he was so powerful. Theres no way to eliminate the effect of the cry totally. Well, it helps! But the girls still seemed to be having trouble returning to the fight. Cruz starts running towards the demon, though. Thanks, Vi-Vi! And Cruz goes on the offensive. She knocks down an arrow and shes at the demon again. Her shes finally begin to catch up with the regeneration. But Vi-Vis circles also begin to break, one by one. They dontst much longer! Hey, even a little while is enough. Okay! And so Cruz went on the offensive even more. She wants to go all out while the circles are up. I also helped by knocking the arrows down and shooting the demon as well. The arrows pierced it and exploded like the first one and the demon gradually began to copse due to our attacks. A little more! But the final circle of Vi-Vi had shattered. We were immediately struck by the howl of the demon again. It was like your head cracked open. You couldnt control your magic and even movement was hard. Sorry! Im Vi-Vi said, almost passed out on Moofys back. This is really bad, Alra! We need to care for Sighisoara! Timi shouted. Ryaaa? Shiggys head popped out, probably because she was called, and she looked in good shape. Almost as if she didnt even hear the demons cry. She just looked around and took in what was going on, her eyes opened wide and she inhaled through her noseand she seemed angry. Maybe shes angry at this race of demons that killed her mother. Or the devils howl itself? Or both? She was angry. Timi, take Shiggy. Okay. From now on, I would have to concentrate to handle this situation. Timi could care for the little dragon. And if necessary, escape with her. Shiggy, go to Timi. Ryyyaaa! Come with your aunt, Shiggy! Ryaa! Ryaa! Dont be selfish, Ill be right there! Ryaa! I was shooting down the arrows during this conversation and the devils howl was splitting my head openit seemed stronger than before. I tried to prevent my body from being disoriented, but I had to keep knocking the arrows down because if I failed, they would hit my friends. I had no time to spare anything, and there was no time to go on the offense. Ryaaa! Ryaa! I could tell that Shiggy was resisting going to Timi. Shiggy,e with auntiehuh? All of us were suffering from the crybut Shiggy wasnt at all. Shiggy? Shiggy then opened her mouth wide. RYAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA! She screamed loudly at the demon. There was magic in her scream, and it wasnt normalit was one I had never seen, strong. I could feel the scream spread throughout the room. The two sounds collided and a strange new sound reverberated.it almost sounded like REEEEEEEEE. The painful cry of the demon is drowned out and the cute sound of Shiggys ryaaaa reced it. The demon was still screaming, but his voice was drowned out. My headache was gone and I could move easily. Shiggy, you save us! Shiggy shook her tail as she continued to cry out. It was probably the will of the dragon god, and es, the lord of the destruction god stood, knowing what to do as wellprobably as soon as she saw Shiggy. The devils howl disappeared and the front group moved in againI shot down everything I could while attacking. Leave defense to me! Ill drop the arrows! Good! They all lunged in and attacked while es howled and punched into the demon with her destruction punch. A fist-sized hole popped open in the demons body. Then Cruz and Luka followed up with their swords, trying to cut through the hard metal skin. Get on! Thanks! So I got back on Femm, as she began running at once. The demon tried to sh us with his arms but it bounced off my magical barrier and momentarily got tied with a magical rope. PIGGIIIIIII! And with perfect timing, the death lord Chelnobok touched the demons arm. There was a strong light as if Chel had be a little sunit was Chels turn undead spell. In that moment there was a rainbow-colored haze that emanated from the demonChel had stripped it of its immortality. I could see that the regeneration had slowed down considerably. We can beat him now, maybe! So the girls went back to shing at the demon. But even so, the demons body was so hard, the swords had a hard time prating him. And since his regeneration slowed, he began to defend himself. He stopped just taking the attacks and began to block them with magical barriers. So the three girls feinted and attacked his limbs instead. The limbs were softer and harder to cover with a barrier. And the demon was intent on covering his torso. Its defense is too strong! Not only that, but hes actively defending! Aim at the limbs! You can damage them! The girls were getting desperate. The swords couldnt hack the torso, so they had to do something else. I kept shooting the arrows down while shooting the magic arrows at his abdomenthe magic barrier became thicker because of how dangerous my arrows were, and they were repelled quickly. No good? Try this! So I upped their power. I poured everything into them so the demon would have to as well. He shot all his arrows in my direction to stop me. Lets see how strong you are! Aparison of effort and powerI cant lose this. If I do, then my friends will be struck. Hundreds of arrows collide. The demons power is enormous, and its a hard battle. Come onnnnnnnnnnnnnnn! But I finally could push him back. My magical arrows struck him and crushes the barrier he threw up. It hit his skin, exploded inside, and the wound stayed openhealing, but much slower. I see it! es points to the demon, seeing the center of the demons torso exposed. The core of the demon was blown open by one destruction punch by es. Now me! Then Cruz jumped at the demon and plunged her holy sword into the core as wellwhen she pulled it out, a transparent blob was stuck on the swords tip. And the demon moanedGiiigiigiiiiias the sword was pulled back, and fell to the floor. The metallic skin suddenly returned to human color and his body shrunk to human size. He had lost his demon form and returned to human size. But he didnt look like the young man we saw when entering C 10 secondster, there was a wrinkled old man lying there on the ground. Chapter 452 - Giscard, the Hero Chapter 452 C Giscard, the Hero 300 years had passed, so it was natural for him to look this old. The big hole in his chest had closed, but that was likely because his body had shrunk. Moko approached his old hero. Master Moko, youve gone thin. Are you okay? The old man reached up and stroked Mokos head. master Moko gently licked the old hero. Youve had it rough because of me Its nothing. Yes, thats Moko for you. Then the hero looked over at us. You had it rough as well. It must have been hard work. Yeah, it was very hard. And when I said that, the hero smiled. Im Giscard. I used to be called a hero many years ago. I killed the king of the humans, so I dont know what Im called any more. It was 300 years ago, so I dont think anyone knows. History is only known by schrs and royals. When Luka said this, Giscard nodded with a smile, Isnt my name known? Im d its not. I told the healer not to mention it. Why did you do so? I have no regrets about crushing the royals and epting blessings from the demon god. I think those devils were treated so poorly that I couldnt do anything else. Yes, well there are still problems, but theyre much better. Good. But again, what I did cannot be forgiven. Giscard caused a war, resulting in the bloodshed of enemies and allies. Then he became a cruel, immortal demon. Thats why he was happy with his name as a hero disappearing. What IS happening in the world today? Luka briefly exined all that had happened in thest 300 years. He listened to it all with interest. Thank you, and could you give me your names, as those that defeated me? So we all gave our names to Giscard. We simply introduced ourselves as we did to Moko. We began with Cruz the new hero, and the lord of the holy god. Giscard was more surprised that I guarded Mulg than that I was a magic lord. Mulg is still there? Then Im happy. Yes, everyone is happily living there. It should be safe if the magic lord is protecting it. And saying that, Giscardughed, Thank you lords for working together, because I would have ughtered countless people if let go. Then he asked, Do you know what happened to my friends? I was worried about how to answer. So Moko answered softly, Master, the healer became a king. He was quite talented, and his descendants are still kings. Really? See Belda? Shes the niece of the current king. See the simrity? She is? I thought she looked the same, beautiful, smart, and kind. Thank you very much. Moko had said the same as well. And when he did, she had a strange expression. And the demon lord withdrew to the forest. Moko has no idea where. I see. If Lindobal said so, then I guess he did. Did you say Lindobal? Vi-Vi said to Moko. Yes, thats right. My name is Vi-Vi Lindobal. I grew up in a big forest. I see. Both Giscard and Moko seemed surprised. So you dont know what happened to him? I didnt even know that the name of the demon lord friend of yours was Lindobal! Vi-Vi was raised by her sister, after all. Her mother had died when she was young, and she knew nothing about her grandparents and great-grandparents. I see. I dont know either, but Id like to have children like I assume he did. So whats going on with your family now? My sister, Valliimie Lindobal is the viscount of Lingen and she owns that forest of Lindobal. Well, even devils can be aristocrats now. Giscard looked at her happily. And then es said, And Im marquis es Halewood. So you must be rted to King Halewood? Giscard stared at es, You know him? Yes, Alra, Halewood was a fellow that helped me destroy the power of the old demon lord. The same as Luka in this generation. They are all living well, and even Moko has descendants. Mokos granddaughter Femm leads the wolves around Mulg. Giscard now turned to Femm. Femm, will youe here? Ruff. Giscard stroked Femm. Exactly the same. Im honored. After stroking Femm a while, Giscard asked Moko, And the mage? Hard to say, but it seems he became a lord of the undead and attacked Elkay trying to get into the dungeon. And he was beaten? Yes, by me. Hearing this, Giscard nodded. Im sure thats what he wanted. To be defeated by the current magic lord. Then he closed his eyes. Maybe he was trying to save me. I should have remained a human. Giscard seemed to regret it more than be sad. Then Moko said to him, I am very happy you have returned. Yes, Im grateful as well. Lets go to the countryside and live peacefully together. Yes, it would be nice if I could. Yeah, I will go to Mulg with you master. Ill get you some food, so just sleep. Sounds good. Sure! They seemed to have fun talking about it, and then, ButMoko Its okay! Youre just tired, master. Moko tried to cover what Giscard was about to say. But Giscard stroked the wolf as if to remind him. Humans cant live for 300 years. Its okay! Theres magic, and you can heal quickly! Moko said, trying to sound happy, but I could see his tail wasnt wagging. Giscard would diehe was almost there. He was barely alive as the demon in him left. It wouldnt be surprising if it happened suddenly, but he had an hour left at most. Moko, I was happy to see you at the end and hear about everyone else. Masterdont dieI waited for 300 years. Yes, and it was a very hard time, so live long. If you die, then I too No, Moko, this is mymand. Be happy. Then Giscard looked at us. Take care of him. And Mulg Vige. Sure. Thank you againfor freeing me after all this suffering of 300 years. Sure. And all of the lords that came to your aid. Thank you. Would you like to see Mulg before you die? It would have to be fast, if we were to take him. But he shook his head. Thank youI cant make it in timeand Im losing my sight. I see. He seemed to be aging even faster now. And there was no magic that Yureena could use to stop it. If I could be selfish onest time, bury my bones in Mulg. Thats no problem. I will. And Giscard nodded, satisfied, at me. Moko, are you there? Im here, master. Moko leaned down and licked Giscards face. He hugged the wolf tightly and stroked his back. You are still fluffy And that was thest word the hero said. Chapter 453 - Final Chapter – Mulg Village Chapter 453 C Final Chapter C Mulg Vige After Giscard died, Moko snuggled up to him and continued to lick his face. Moko cried like a puppy. We kept ourselves quiet and watched until Moko was done mourning. And after a while Moko stopped weeping and stood up. Thank you again. Thank you for saving him. No problem. Can we say goodbye now? Yes, and Alra, Yureena. I have something to ask. What? Anything Alra, please burn the body, and Yureena, please say a prayer over it. Alright. Certainly. If the corpse is not burned, someone mighteter and reanimate him as a zombie. Even if that were not so, there might be bad spirits that make their home on him. Giscard suffered for over 300 years as an immortal demon. Moko wants me to incinerate the body so no one is ever able to toy with it again. And Yureena is a priest, so she can conduct the funeral. I magically incinerated the body as Moko wished. Giscard wanted his bones buried in Mulg vige, so I burned everything but the bones. Yureena prayed over the body in song as I incinerated it. Moko simply stared at the process while not saying anything. When everything was done, I carefully wrapped his bones in cloth and put them in my bag. Moko, lets go back to Mulg vige. We have to make a grave. I want your opinion on it. Understood. Thank you for askingthis is the way back. And so Moko guided us. Behind therge room where Giscard was sealed was a room with a hidden transfer circle. The door opened when Belda again put her palm on a slightly discolored panel. Everyone then passed through the magic circle. It was connected to the circle outside of Jaerls dragon stable, the one that we used when we entered. I guess both seemed to be a one way path. Its dark out, Alraseems that we did this quite fast. Right When we went in the circle, it was just before dawn. We entered yesterday morning, slept a few hours in the dungeon, and then fought Moko and Giscard. Even a whole day hadnt passed. Gaaaa. We all patted Jaerl, who looked at us anxiously. Then we returned to Mulg vige from Toms house. Moko did the same, of course. By the time we got there, the sun was rising. We left the warehouse where the transfer circle to Mulg is located, and saw the mayor making his morning walks. Going home in the morning? You are awfully busytely. No more. Even so, youre quite busy yourself. Well, old men wake up early! While we were talking about that, Millet and Collette came out from my house. Old man! Good morning! Good morning everyone. Ill make you all breakfast soon. Good morning. Whoa, a new wolf! Colette said, noticing Moko. I introduced Moko as Femms grandfather to the chief, Millet, and Collette. Also Belda and esof course, I didnt mention their formal titles. While they were speaking with the elder, the wolves all gathered around Femm and Moko, and Femm introduced them to Moko. Then they sniffed each other like usual. I see, so youre Femms grandfather. Nice to meet you. Nice to meet you, Moko. So furry The vige chief also weed the wolf. Moko wagged his tail, though he was a bit reticent. Mr. Chief, I was wondering What do you want, Moko? Well I tried to exin everything that had happened for Moko. 300 years ago, the brave man that created Mulg was sealed and released, we fought him and he died, but told me he wanted to be buried in Mulg for certain reasons. I didnt mention that Giscard became a demon or immortalit was too shocking. So does that mean that Moko here has his fangs enshrined in the town?Belda asked. Correct. When I first arrived in the vige, I was shown Mokos fang as a treasure of the vige. Even so, did this brave man find peace before death? Yes, I was able to send him peacefully on his way. I think its safe to say Yureenapleted all required formalities. Seems that the chief was quite relieved by this. So, wed like to get permission to bury this hero from 300 years ago. I know the chief wouldnt oppose it, but I still had to get permission. Certainly, he is the great hero and founder of this vige. All vigers will help in constructing his grave. Okay then. Lets eat breakfast and get ready for everyone to get up. After that, we all ate a delicious breakfast made by Milet. Moko had heavier food and not just porridge. Moko was also watching everyone eat while he ate slowly. At the end of breakfast, Moko said in a soft voice I missed eating with others. Then we washed dishes and left the hut, and all the vigers were gathered by the cemetery. The mayor himself had called them. They all gathered to greet the new guests. I briefly introduced Belda, es, and Moko again and the vigers weed them. When I heard you were building the grave for the man that build Mulg, I had to help. So where are you building the grave, Mister Al? Apparently all those that werent working were ready to help build the grave. The mayor himself was ready to help. I was thinking of asking the heros servant Moko here to show us where to put him. Sounds fine. What a massive wolfwas this the owner of the fang of the vige? Wow! The vigers said, while stroking Mokos fur. Moko was confused, but still wagging his tail. So, Moko, where do you think your master would like? Well, he did like ces where he could see over things, like this ce where he can see over the town. Moko said, turning to a high ce on the edge of town. It talked! Well, he was the servant of a 300 year old hero, so he talks sometimes. I seeamazing! Everyone follows Moko around, as he looked over the spot. Moko stopped for a bit, looked around, and walked a bit more. A few wolves came from behind us and the vigers. Moko, is this taking you back to the old days? Or has itpletely changed? Its changed a lot. Not a single building is the same. Are you disappointed? No, its strange, but I can recall this spot all the same. I see. We were at a small hill on the edge of Mulg. There was a thick and tall tree next to Moko. This tree was here 300 years ago, but it was smaller. Really? My master woulde out in the summer morning and in spring and autumn and lean on this tree and look out over the town Moko said, sniffing the wood. He would just stand against it in the winter as well. I see. It made him happy to rx here after all the fierce battles he was in. However, those days of rest didntst long, and Giscard would throw himself into war againso I was d he had some time for peace. Moko, you would like a grave around here? Is that okay? Leave it to me. So I worked with the vigers to make the grave under that tree. The ground was dug, a stone chamber made, and it was strengthened by magic. There was a stone I magically hardened to make a gravestone. What about an inscription? He told the king not to leave any trace of his name. My master died as a human, so.I Giscard told the first king that he was demon and immortal, and hadmitted such a great crime that he didnt want his name left behind. However, he had died as a person. Following the so that Moko said, I think Giscard had paid enough for his sins in 300 years. Its like he paid as a prisoner, being locked up all that time. And Moko was his loyal follower all that time as well. I patted Mokos head as she shook himself and his tail. So I thought of a tombstone inscription. What about this kind of text, Moko? It looks fine. So I engraved the tombstone with magic: -GISCARD, A HERO OF HUMANS, KIND AND MIGHTY, SLEEPS HERE- Then I magically strengthened the stone from further engraving. Okay, Im done. Millet and Collette came with Moofy and the other vigers to see thepleted tomb. Moofy had a basket, wrapped in cloth, on her back. You must be cold. Heres some warm milk and bread. Old man! Eat sthome lunch!Moo! Is it that time already? Thank you. So we hade to lunchtime after making the grave. Working in the cold of winter does make one hungry. Everyone elsehave some. Thank you. And so the other vigers took what they could and had a light lunch. I thought it would be better for everyone to go home and eat in this cold. But, perhaps Giscard would want others to eat near him and be merry on this day, and perhaps everyone else sensed it as they stood around and ate. Moko ate bread soaked in milk as well. Your bread is good, Millet! Thank you! We could have a pic here if it wasnt winter. Sure, we can do it in spring. Yeah, make sthure to bring Moko too. thank you. Then the chief said, Maybe we could have a festival here? Yeaaaah! The vigers all agreed that a new festival should be held in Mulg. And so I stood beside Giscards tomb and looked over Mulg. I could see a child wolf and Shiggy, Chel, Colette and the other children ying with each otherno one caring about species or race. Femm and Timi were also watching the children y. There were about 60 houses towards the center of town. I could see 10 vigers or so outside, chopping wood. Others were taking a break. And because it was winter, most were working inside their homes. Vigers such as elves, dwarves, beasthumans, humans, devils. Everyone is just enjoying their time. You could see hot springs steaming from some houses as well. So I said to Moko, who was looking over the town with me, Moko, will you get in the hot bathter? can I? Im a wolf Femm always gets in. I seeso its okay? No one cared here in Mulg. You could be a magic lord, a hero, a saint, a dragon king, a lord of death, or a lord of destruction. Vi-Vi is a devil, Millet and Collette are elves, Steph and the vige chief are beasthumans. The cow, wolf, dragon, slime, they always get in together. Dont worry about it, Moko. I see, what a nice vige. Well, your master made it. yes. Moko looked out into the distance and then bowed to me. Thank you for my masters tomb. Moko said, bowing as humans do. Then the chief asked Moko, Are you joining Femms pack from now? Its hard to be older and yet not king, so I think Ill venture far away for a while. It was a bit worrisome as Moko was a magical wolf and very strong, and while hes not in good shape now, hes also old. Moko, you dont have to join the pack to stay here. I cant just waste the food of others though. Well then, why not be our guard as Al has? Guard? Yes, the payment is food, clothing, shelter, and use of a hot spring in the vige, right Al? Right. And I have to go to Elkay and Chels vige recently so I need a secondary guard. The vigers also supported this idea. Thank you. I guess I will ept then. Great! I guess we need a weing party! Millet says when she hears that. Lets have the weing party at the hut! Good! Ill bring beer and foodter. Ill cook. And I can help too.Vi-Vi said. All the vigers mingled and spoke of the developments and walked into town. Belda and es followed, as apparently they would join the party. Okay, Moko, lets clean up in the bath before the party. I said as we walked to my house. Shiggy flew up to me, not wanting to be left behind. All the other children and beasts ran after us. You can y with them. ryaaa Yes, so Moko, is there any food you like or dislike? I dont dislike anything but that bread was wonderful. Millets bread is good. Yes. Me too. We looked up and the sky spread above without a cloud. Nice weather, Al.Cruz said to me. Its going to be coldI need to keep warm after this bath. Cruz, you probably will catch a cold. Sleep next to me after you take a bathYureena said. And so everyone was enjoying the day in Mulg. What a nice vige. Yes. Moko responded, sounding somewhat proud. The Novel will be updated first on this website. Come back and continue reading tomorrow, everyone!