Chapter 20

It had been three hours since the hunt began.

My legs were already trembling.

My knees were giving out. I can't do this anymore. I want to go home.

I'm sweating like crazy.

I definitely don't have the energy to make it back.

I'm probably going to die on the way back.

Giselle, I was wrong.

I didn't need strength. Archery was completely unnecessary.

Magic alone would have been enough.

"Father... shouldn't we turn back soon?"

I wiped the sweat from my forehead and suggested to my father.

"The prey we've left to you and the others is too easy, and the results are few. We'll head back after we catch the next one."

"Yes..."

If the results are so few, I wish they would lift the ban on magic.

I can lure the beasts with magic and then trap them all with a trap-type spell.

Three hours of work could be done in an instant.

I can't do this anymore.

No matter what, I don't have the energy to make it back.

I'm definitely going to die.

If I somehow make it back, I'll fiddle with the magic array on my status and remove the strength stat.

"You can go back right now if you want to burn that Simparrot."

"No, I've already named it."

In my fading consciousness, I answered.

"Hmm, really?"

"Doesn't this Simparrot look chubby like Sibyl? So..."

"Hey, you! What did you just say? I'll kill you!"

Sibyl grabbed the collar of my shirt.

No good, my consciousness is fading, and I said what I was thinking.

"Hey, Sibyl. Calm down. It's the truth."

"I don't like it because it's the truth!"

Galia laughed and interjected, but Sibyl kept yelling back.

She must have been aware of it.

Then, a loud noise was heard.

The sound didn't stop with one bang but continued, and the intervals between the sounds gradually became shorter.

Galia's smile faded, and she drew her bow.

"Hey, isn't that a Greater Bear?"

"Yes... This is a bit bad. The footsteps are huge. I've never heard such large footsteps. Abel, take Sibyl and run ahead. Galia and I will hold it off and follow. Run as fast as you can."

"Huh?""What?"

Sibyl and I spoke at the same time.

"J-Just kidding, Father. I can't run anymore. I'd rather have Sibyl carry me..."

"Father! I can fight! Don't group me with that guy!"

This guy, even at this moment, he's still talking...!

Does he have a grudge against me?

Ah, right, I indirectly compared Sibyl to a Simparrot and created a grudge.

"If you have time to say that, run already!"

As Galia shouted, a tree in front of us fell.

Behind it, a giant blue bear, nearly four meters tall, appeared.

That bear had knocked down the tree.

Its eyes were completely white, and its mouth was wide open, drooling profusely.

It had a droopy-eyed, smiling face, but there was nothing cute about it.

It seemed more like a monster than an animal.

"Guahahaha!"

Its cry sounded like a laugh.

Ah, this is a dangerous one.

Characters who laugh while fighting are strong. I learned that from Shonen Jump.

"Ah, ah, aaaaah!"

Sibyl collapsed and crouched on the spot.

I can't blame her. I can't even tease her.

In such a situation, if I were twelve years old, I would have done the same.

"Damn! Abel, please! Carry Sibyl and run!"

Galia fired an arrow.

It should have hit the Greater Bear's eye, but it was deflected by a blink.

The arrow didn't pierce the eyelid.

"Guahahaha!"

I couldn't believe my eyes.

A sharp metal tip couldn't penetrate such thin skin.

"...Listen, if we don't come back, report to the chief. Tell him a Greater Bear as big as a fool appeared."

"Father... No, no..."

Sibyl, still on the ground, tears welled up in her eyes.

"Drawn"

I floated a magic array in the air and pointed at the Greater Bear.

I was told not to use magic, but this is a different situation now.

"Sleep"

The light from my fingertips caught the Greater Bear's head.

"Guah!?"

The Greater Bear knelt on the spot.

I sighed in relief.

"Phew, that's good..."

"Abel!"

I heard my father's voice and looked up.

The Greater Bear had risen and was lunging at me.

The magic hadn't fully worked.

Mind-affecting spells are less effective on beings with magical power.

I had relaxed too much, thinking it was just on its knees.

It was a silly mistake due to my lack of practical experience, having only trained.

"Ah..."

I stepped back, but it was too late.

The Greater Bear moved in front of me and swung its massive claws.

I'm going to die.

At that moment, I was pushed away by my father.

I threw my bow and Simparrot and rolled, stopping against a tree.

I managed to sit up and look ahead.

My father was lying on the ground, bleeding from his stomach.

He had taken the Greater Bear's attack in my place.

It was clear that my father's injury was severe.

It was uncertain how long he would last.

He needed immediate treatment.

Vaguely, I thought of my father from my previous life, who was a magician and was killed.

"Father!"

The Greater Bear stood in front of my fallen father.

"Guahahaha!"

"Come here, you big brute!"

Galia took a ball wrapped in cloth from her pocket and threw it on the ground.

The ball burst, releasing a strange-smelling smoke.

The Greater Bear shifted its interest to Galia and charged at her.

It seemed the ball was a tool to lure the beast with its smell.

I ran to my father and lifted his shoulder.

"Father! Hold on!"

My father weakly raised his hand and touched his stomach wound.

He brought his bloodied hand in front of his face, opened his eyes slightly, and smiled weakly.

He must have realized the severity of the wound.

Then, his face tightened, and he looked at me.

"...Until now, I couldn't show you a proper fatherly figure."

"That's not true! Don't talk like it's the end!"

"Abel, you often didn't listen to me, but... you were a smart kid. When you asked me questions, it was mostly for confirmation. Every time I saw your 'I knew it' face, I felt uneasy.

So, I sometimes put on a show. I sometimes overreacted. I knew you hid a disappointed look after I scolded you. I didn't know what to do."

My father weakly shook his head.

My father must have been struggling too.

With the memories of my past life, I couldn't fully accept Zeleroot as my father.

I might have thought he was artificial.

But he couldn't be artificial.

He was happy when I was born and had always been seriously concerned about my every move.

Even things I thought I had hidden were all known to him.

Zeleroot was indeed my father.

I had often thought about it, but it finally felt like I understood it in my heart.

"I'm not without regrets. I wish I could have seen you in your wedding attire and Giselle in hers. But... at least, I'm glad I could do something fatherly at the end."

Blood dripped from the corner of my father's relaxed lips.

Thick, dark red blood. Evidence of internal organ damage.

"Abel, take Sibyl and run. I'm done for. Take care of Giselle and your mother."

Ah, right.

I thought that if I knew magic was real, my father would come back, and that's why I clung to magic in my past life.

I can't lose my father in this life with magic.

If I do, I won't know why I've been training in magic.

I stood up and glared at the Greater Bear.

Galia parried the Greater Bear's claws with a knife.

The knife's blade broke, and Galia's fingers were twisted.

Still, Galia continued to fight the Greater Bear.

Galia chanted a spell, floated a magic array, and shot a ball of fire at the Greater Bear's face.

The Greater Bear easily deflected it with its claws and swatted it away.

From the look of it, it wouldn't have caused much damage even if it had hit.

Moreover, the Greater Bear had stopped attacking while Galia chanted the spell.

It seemed to be toying with us, seeing us as inferior.

"...I can't leave Father and run."

"Hey, Abel!"

The Greater Bear's skin is so tough that even arrows can't penetrate it.

But I have nothing left but magic.

"Drawn"

I used all my magic power.

I had never used magic to its full extent before.

It could be dangerous if it backfires, and I'm not confident I can control it. Plus, wasting magic power would reduce my training time.

But now, I'll use all the magic power I can muster.

I don't think I can defeat such a tough beast.

I just want it to be surprised and run away.

I took my time drawing the magic array in the air.

Attacking the Greater Bear's tough skin normally would be useless.

I used all my knowledge to modify an existing magic array and release it with maximum power.

I've never heard of developing a magic array during a battle.

Magic arrays are usually improved over time by magicians.

This time, even if it's a partial adjustment for the situation, the risk of failure is high if done hastily.

But I don't think an existing