Chapter 83

Enrolling at Mires University, I became friends with a girl named Maren, who wanted to summon a demon. We ended up going to the south of Mires to defeat the monsters that roamed there to gather the materials needed for summoning the demon...

"I said I would go, but I didn't expect to go in such a hurry..."

I am now walking a pathless path in a dense forest. This is the forest beyond the wall to the south of the university.

Maren, who is walking ahead, cuts through vines and branches with a machete as she proceeds.

"No preparation is necessary. When you have the will, the day is auspicious!"

"I'm feeling a bit uneasy..."

Still, even if we were to prepare, there isn't much we can do. It's dangerous to go with just a child, even if they are equipped with armor and a sword.

But of course, we're not going alone. Elicia is walking closely behind me, and something that looks like light is trailing above us.

A mass of magic... no, upon closer inspection, it has a shape like wings.

As I look up at the sky to observe the light, Maren says,

"My servant. Holy Owl."

Holy Owl. It looks like a white owl, always enveloped in white light. It is friendly to humans and is called a holy beast, like a unicorn or a pegasus.

"A holy beast that only exists in deep forests or highlands... I've never seen one before."

I've never seen one even in the capital. It's that rare a creature. It is said to be very intelligent and can understand human language.

Maren laughs and says,

"Hehe. His name is Hogue. I found him in the forest two years ago."

"I've heard that the forest where holy beasts live is beautiful..."

When I mutter this, Maren answers after a moment.

"...Yes. It's a very beautiful place. I want to show it to Alec someday."

Maren says this and then continues walking forward.

I feel a strange sense of urgency from Maren, who seems to be in a hurry. Perhaps it's just her personality?

I feel uneasy as we advance deeper into the forest where monsters appear.

Still, if anything happens, I can defeat the monsters. Elicia is also on high alert, and there's the Holy Owl.

Moreover, I can detect magic. So far, there hasn't been any particular reaction—no, wait.

I sense the movement of magic to the right.

The trees in this forest seem to be rich in magic, which delayed my detection.

It's hard to grasp just by magic... then, in such a situation,

It's time for the Dragon Eye, which I received from the Ancestor Dragon, to come into play. The Dragon Eye allows for clairvoyance.

Focusing on the direction of the magic, I can clearly see the figure.

A large scorpion... a monster called a Hell Scorpion.

It's moving alongside us, probably waiting for an opportunity to attack.

But then, a "Hoo!" sound comes from above.

Maren, hearing the cry, immediately points in the direction I was looking.

"You're caught—come forth, Ice Wolf!"

Light is emitted from Maren's hand, and a blue light in the shape of a wolf appears. It's Fenrir, the highest-level summon beast.

However, it's smaller than usual, more like a large dog. I've heard it's supposed to be as big as an elephant, but Maren's current magic power can only summon it this size.

Fenrir flies straight to the Hell Scorpion.

Soon, a thud is heard.

"Good!"

Maren immediately runs towards the sound.

I quickly follow and see that the Hell Scorpion has already been defeated by Fenrir. Its body has been bitten off, and there are bite marks on its head.

"Amazing..."

The Hell Scorpion's exoskeleton is as hard as iron. To bite it off... even though it's small, Fenrir is indeed a powerful summon beast.

Additionally, I was surprised by the high detection ability of Hogue, the Holy Owl. He cried out immediately after I noticed, giving enough time to protect his master.

It's no wonder she can advance into dangerous places... and she seems quite wild.

Maren dissects the defeated Hell Scorpion with her machete, ignoring the black blood that sticks to her.

"Want to help?"

"No, it's fine. Just being with you is enough, Alec. It's hard to get them to appear when I'm alone."

So, I'm basically a decoy... well, I guess they don't expect much combat from a child of the same age.

Maren freezes the Hell Scorpion's tail, which has a poisonous stinger, and puts it in a burlap bag.

"By the way, if you want, you can take the skin and eyes. They should sell for a good price."

"Really? Then—"

I turn and nod to Elicia.

"I'll take care of it, Alec-sama."

Elicia draws her sword, made from the Ancestor Dragon's horn, and begins to cut the Hell Scorpion's skin into pieces. She then puts the pieces into a burlap bag.

It seems to weigh as much as a grown man, but in front of Maren, I can't use my Black Box. Still, with Elicia's strength, she easily picks it up.

Maren exclaims,

"Wow, amazing! You're so strong!"

"I'm nothing. I can't compare to the future Alec-sama."

Elicia answers with a proud face.

Even if I grow up, I don't think I can match Elicia in swordsmanship or other skills...

Maren looks at me intently, with a face that says, "What about you?"

I shake my head in response.

"Elicia is always like this. More importantly, Maren is strong too. I was surprised."

"It's nothing."

Maren's cheeks slightly flush, but she looks proud. She seems mature, but this reaction feels age-appropriate.

"Besides, there are still many monsters to defeat. The Hell Scorpion's stinger is fine, but we still need the fat of a Troll and the fangs of an Abocobra."

"Wait a minute. Abocobra too? I heard they appear in deserts."

It's a monster you don't usually see near human settlements. Why would it be in such a lush place?

Maren answers calmly,

"It's not unusual in my hometown, but is it?"

"Yes. Moreover, Hell Scorpions usually live in deserts, and I've heard Trolls are more common in caves. It's like there are many types of monsters."

"Hmm. According to a story I've heard, various monsters come from one of the ancient ruins in this forest. It used to be a research building for a professor, and due to a failed experiment, monsters... something like that."

Or, Maren continues,

"To make it easier to obtain the materials needed for research, it's said that the university administration has released monsters."

"Interesting."

Given the many secrets of Mires University, both stories seem plausible.

However, Maren answers,

"Well, it doesn't matter. I just want to complete my research. And... ah!"

Maren notices the "Hoo-hoo" sound from the sky. Hogue seems to be issuing another warning.

"Trouble... we might have gone quite deep."

"We've been walking for about two hours..."

"Two hours!? ...Anyway, it seems a considerable number of monsters have noticed us."

"Then let's run quickly. We can deal with the Abocobra and Trolls tomorrow."

"Right... then let's ride Fenrir to go back! Three people should be enough—ah!"

Saying this, Maren turns around.

But there, a small, cute ice wolf is there.

"Kyun..."

It makes a sound and disappears.

"Damn...! Magic power..."

"I'll send you my magic power. So—"

"Your magic power isn't enough... we need to call three adults who can use magic... anyway, we have to run! Ah!"

As Maren is about to run, a Hell Scorpion appears in front of her.

But a shadow from the sky—Hogue—slashes the Hell Scorpion with its claws.

"Thank you, Hogue."

Hogue, turning around, looks somewhat exasperated. It's probably a daily occurrence for him.

Then, a sound like cutting through the air is heard from behind.

"Alec-sama! Leave it to me!!"

Turning around, I see a pile of Hell Scorpion corpses. Elicia is running around us, cutting down Hell Scorpions one after another with her sword.

Elicia is indeed reliable. She has emergency and defensive magical devices, so there's no need to worry.

Hogue also has considerable combat power, defeating Hell Scorpions one after another with its sharp claws and the light emitted from its wings.

But focusing on the distance, I can sense a considerable number of monsters approaching.

More than a hundred are already surrounding us. Among them are large, humanoid monsters called Trolls and snake-like monsters with swollen heads called Abocobras.

It's not right to leave it all to Elicia. Since I have the clairvoyance ability, I'll start taking down the distant monsters.

In the midst of this, Maren says,

"S-Sorry, Alec! Don't worry about me, grab Hogue and run. Elicia can also leave me behind with that speed."

If Maren were alone, she could probably escape by grabbing Hogue in any situation. But she can't carry me and Elicia.

In such a situation, should I stay behind and let everyone else escape...

I can see a sense of guilt on Maren's face, which looks like she's about to cry. She's a responsible child.

"No, Maren. Elicia is here, so it's fine."

I answer calmly.

She's still a child. I had this situation in mind.

"But—"

"I'll send you a little of my magic power. So, Maren, use your summon beasts to fight."

"Okay... I understand."

Maren looks anxious but nods.

Then I send Maren a level of magic power that won't make her suspicious while using the Dragon Eye to take down distant enemies with the "Dark Slash" skill.

Maren summons small summon beasts like dogs and birds to fight. It seems that the image of the target is important in summoning magic.

Also, it seems that the summoner needs to provide the corresponding attribute magic in a certain shape. That's why Maren wants the powder that produces dark magic.

In that case, I wonder if she can summon dark summon beasts...? They might attack humans immediately, but I'll try it next time.

As we do this, the surroundings become quiet.

Looking around, I see a large number of monster corpses and pools of black blood. Some of the monsters seem to have fled, judging that they couldn't win.

...This place is like a demon realm. When one is defeated, many more are attracted by the smell of blood.

It's surprising that such a place exists in Mires, which is considered safe. As Maren said earlier, it's possible that this place is intentionally left alone, but it's also possible that the monsters are too powerful to be defeated.

When the battle ends, Maren bows her head.

"Sorry... Alec, Elicia."

"Don't worry. Elicia is always with me for such situations."

Elicia, putting away her sword, answers proudly.

"As you say. I won't let a finger touch Alec-sama or Alec-sama's friends."

Elicia's confident answer.

In such situations, she is indeed reliable.

However, Maren still looks apologetic.

Indeed, she might not have thought it through, but she has empathy. She was more concerned about my safety than her own. She's definitely not a self-centered person.

She will be more cautious next time.

To encourage the dejected Maren, I say in a bright tone,

"Next time, we'll be more careful. But... we've defeated a lot of Abocobras and Trolls! We should have enough materials, right?"

We've defeated at least thirty monsters.

Maren nods.

"Y-Yes! This should be enough. I'll start dissecting them, so please wait."

"Maren-sama. I'll help. Let's go back today."

Elicia says this and starts cutting the monster bodies. Maren, grateful, puts the materials into a bag.

I use the Black Box in an unseen place to collect the monster corpses. Elicia and Maren easily defeated them, but these monsters are tough enough to give adventurers a hard time, and their bodies are valuable.

After the collection is complete, we return to the Melder building of the university.

In front of the cabin, Maren bows her head.

"Alec... I'm sorry for scaring you on the first day of school."

"No, really, don't worry. I also want to see a demon... and it's good that we have the materials."

Maren nods deeply in response.

"Yes... this is enough material. I'll do the experiment again tomorrow."

"I'll come and watch. See you then."

As I say this and prepare to leave, Maren lets out a "Eh" sound.

Tilting my head, I see Maren looking surprised.

"Eh? Aren't you staying at school from today? Then, why don't you stay here?"

"N-No. Actually, I planned to return to the continent after a short stay. I thought I'd stay at an inn when I need to. So, I don't intend to stay at the university all the time..."

As I say this, Maren looks disappointed.

But she quickly pulls on my sleeve and says,

"B-But, you'll see the demon summoning tomorrow, right? Then, why don't you stay tonight! I'll tell you about my research!"

Maren, pleading desperately, looks like she's about to cry.

Until I came, Maren was alone. Alone at school... I can understand how she feels.

Living under the same roof with a girl... and we're not at an age where we'd feel awkward.

Turning to Elicia, she only nods. She probably means to inform the other vassals like Yuri.

I want to know about the demons and dark magic that Maren knows. I also want to learn about summoning magic.

"...Okay. I'll stay tonight, then."

"Yay!!"

Maren beams with a full smile. She hugs Hogue, looking incredibly happy.

She seems so happy, but I don't mind either.

"Then, come in. I'll cook for you! I brought some Hell Scorpion meat! It's delicious when simmered!"

Maren says this, takes my hand, and leads me into the cabin.

She's indeed a forceful child... but I don't dislike it.

After that, I enjoyed a delicious stew made by Maren and listened to her stories.

I didn't get any new information about demons or dark magic, but I learned a little about summoning magic, and it was a fun night.

【Promotion】

The book version of this work will be released on October 17 by Dengeki Shin Bungei!

The illustrator is none other than Mr. Nadare Takamine! He has beautifully drawn the characters!

The cover is here ↓↓

The content has been revised from the web version and significantly expanded (no characters have been removed or added).

It seems that some bookstores have already received the book. I would be very happy if you could pick it up for your weekend reading!

Unfortunately, I can't post the link for the bonus information, but it is available on the official Dengeki Shin Bungei website. If you are interested, please check it out.

Additionally, the manga adaptation of this work will start serialization in the December issue of Dengeki Daioh, released on October 27!

The manga adaptation is by Mr. Kajiro Abe.

He has beautifully drawn the characters! I would be very happy if you could read it.