Chapter 53

I didn't realize its approach at all while I was in the sea.

Not only me and Zelly, but even the magic ship and military ships a little further away were covered by a large shadow—the magic airship was lowering its altitude and gradually getting closer.

"W-What is that, young master? A new enemy!?"

"Zelly, it's a good thing."

"What is!?"

"It seems we're going to be saved."

The person leaning out from the deck of the magic airship was someone I knew well. Despite the danger, it seemed their actions were becoming more and more bold.

"—Raiji!"

Seeing the high elf royal waving, I thought to myself.

"Asha! Use magic!"

The sea monk seemed to sense the threat in the sky and directed a beam of light upward.

I had no idea why Asha was here, or what that magic airship with the unfamiliar flag was, but breaking through this situation was the priority now.

"—We just need to defeat that, right?"

"Huh..."

At that moment, a chill ran down my spine. It was a chill that couldn't compare to when another sea monk appeared.

"Zelly! Run!"

"Huh? But that airship will take care of it..."

"Just go!"

Panicking, I used [Water Magic] again to create a water current.

"You'll get caught in the crossfire!"

I didn't care about balance; the speed-boosting magic pushed our bodies forward, but it was just barely too late.

The sea monk fired a laser beam into the sky.

At the same time, Asha cast her spell.

The flaming spear she created was so massive it could pierce any castle wall or gate.

The two collided head-on—shockwaves from the impact slammed down on us from above.

"Glub!?"

Zelly and I sank into the sea, but the intense light from the collision illuminated the deep ocean.

The dead sea monk shimmered in the curtain of light, almost ethereal.

"Glub—Oh no!?"

When we resurfaced, reality awaited us.

The sea was churning, pushing our bodies forward, and the intense heat was vaporizing the surrounding water, making visibility worse.

It seemed the laser beam and the flaming spear had collided and vanished, but the scattered flames were exploding on the surface with a sizzle and a boom.

"Zelly!"

"Y-Young master... Are you okay...?"

"Stay focused. Let's try to escape as quickly as possible."

"Is there... something else?"

"If Asha casts another spell, the surrounding area will turn into a hot spring."

"I'm running for my life!!"

Zelly started swimming, clearly intending to leave me behind! I had recovered enough to swim and hurried to follow.

"—I can't see anything. But fire is effective against sea enemies, right, Raiji!?"

Terrifying words came from above.

But if I stopped Asha, the sea monk's tentacles would attack, so I couldn't stop her.

The only thing I could do was,

"Asha! Please, try to minimize the area as much as possible!!"

"—Understood!"

Through the fog, the same flaming spear appeared.

No, no, that's not it... That's not it!

The face with the black sunglasses flashed in my mind.

While I was thinking about that,

"—Raiji, I'm coming to help now!"

The most threatening thing I faced today, the flaming spear, pierced the sea surface.

★

"I'm... I'm very sorry..."

Asha, hunched and small, seemed genuinely remorseful.

We were at the mayor's mansion, and the high elf royal, Asha, had been welcomed here.

It had been a day since the battle with the sea monk, which I genuinely felt was a life-threatening situation. Lark was exhausted and had fallen asleep.

"...It was great that we defeated the sea monk, and since the only casualties were Raiji and Zelly, it should be fine, right...?"

The mayor said, sounding troubled.

Asha's [Fire Magic] had killed the second sea monk, leaving no trace, and the surrounding seawater temperature had abnormally risen.

Thanks to my quick "Dive!" shout to Zelly, we weren't caught in the explosion or the scalding water. Well, we were dragged deep into the sea by the chaotic water currents, and I saw the face of Death, but after counting prime numbers to calm down, I managed to return to the surface.

Steam rose from the sea, and fish that had been caught in the explosion floated around, creating a hellish scene. The magic ships and military ships had been pushed far away, so instead of swimming to them, I used a weak [Light Magic] to flash and waited for rescue.

"It's not fine at all! I almost died, you know, young master! Ah, this is it, I can't work for a while, and you'll have to compensate me for that—Ouch!?"

I slapped the back of Zelly's head, who was acting like a scam artist, and said,

"If Asha hadn't come, we would have been killed by the sea monk, so considering that, what Asha did wasn't wrong."

"Raiji...!"

Asha looked at me with the eyes of a child who had just been praised after being scolded.

"...But, you need to learn to control your magic better."

"Y-Yes..."

She drooped like a scolded puppy. She's a busy person, but it's nice to see her becoming more emotionally expressive.

"So—why are you here, Asha? And who does that magic airship belong to... or rather, who are those people?"

Behind Asha, three elves stood. They wore the same green combat uniforms and matching laced leather boots.

One of them was someone I recognized.

"...One of them is Polina, right?"

Yes, the first time we met was when she joined the party "Golden Brigade."

She was an elf who had been in the party with Dante and Mimi, led by Leon.

However, she had only joined the "Golden Brigade" to enter the Red Magic Empire, and the last time I saw her was when I sneaked into her room to make Asha "speakable."

She had mistaken me for a thief and paralyzed me with a poison.

Thanks to [All Things], I remember that clearly.

—What do you mean by attacking Princess Anastasia?

She aimed her bow at me and asked,

—Raiji, if you don't harm the princess, that's fine. But if you get close again, I won't show mercy.

And with that, she left.

It seemed she had a "secret mission" or something, but I hadn't seen her since the Red Gate appeared, so I wondered where she had gone—never expecting to meet her here.

It was a long and winding path, but finally, the plot threads are being tied up.

There are still a lot of plot threads stuck in my throat like fish bones...