Chapter 78

The thunder beast, having drunk two barrels of Cumberland syrup, charged its back with a pale blue electricity and turned its head around.

Is it satisfied?

Ugh, it's glaring at us! Its gaze alone makes my body freeze.

Even I can feel the danger of this beast, so the thunder beast must be a really formidable monster.

"Lord Joshua, there's no need to worry. I don't sense any hostility. Didn't you see it look at Lord Joshua just now?"

"It was glaring."

"It's just a bad look. Be like Galuga. Haha."

No, no, this isn't something to laugh about.

I've heard that Sequoia is a herbivore? Or rather, a herbivore-leaning omnivore that is gentle, but it doesn't seem that way at all.

After all, when it opens its mouth, a row of fangs is visible.

"Lord Joshua, you can relax now. The tension we felt when the thunder beast appeared is gone."

"Is that so?"

This time, Galuga tells me there's no problem. From the fact that his bristling fur has returned to normal, it seems he's not lying. He turns his body towards me and points ahead with his log-like arm. There, Sequoia has quietly moved to the front of the thunder beast's face.

She reaches out to the thunder beast's neck.

Surprisingly, the thunder beast bends its front legs to make it easier for her to reach and slightly raises its neck. The throat is a vulnerable spot for many creatures. Exposing such a vital and fragile area can be seen as a sign of trust.

Sequoia buries her hand in the thunder beast's fluffy fur and extends her other arm to hug its neck. The thunder beast doesn't resist and lets her do as she pleases.

"It has such fine fur. I can understand why Joshua wanted to pick up the fallen hairs."

Sequoia, who has pulled away from the thunder beast's neck, says something impolite.

"No, no, hold on. Don't say things that could be misunderstood."

I immediately call her out, but she coolly ignores my words.

"As you can see, the thunder beast has accepted us. Well, it's a deal until the barrels run out."

"With that many barrels, it will cooperate for a few days, right?"

"Yes. Let's head back to the forge. You can touch it too, Joshua."

"No, no, that's... for another time."

Its ankles and back are highly charged, so I might get electrocuted... I'll leave the touching to Sequoia. In any case, the supervision of the thunder beast will be entirely up to Sequoia.

◇◇◇

"Oh, this is very interesting. That pale blue light is electricity, right?"

As expected, the penguin is very excited, flapping its flippers wildly. We brought the thunder beast back to the back of the forge right after. The penguin, carried by Ely, came out of the forge and we've been here since then. Incidentally, the penguin seems to have forgotten to get down from Ely and is just flapping its beak. It looks very silly, but his intelligent mind must be working at full speed.

"Sequoia, can I ask for a tuft of fur?"

"Sure, from the tail area."

"Got it. Then, excuse me, Sequoia, please."

"Fine, fine."

In place of me, who is too scared to get close, Sequoia, with a very reluctant look, extends her finger and cuts the fur from the tip of the thunder beast's tail.

"Hmm, what's this?"

"When used as a filament in a light bulb, it was found to last for a long time."

"Have you discovered a material that can replace tungsten? Joshua, your idea is brilliant!"

"It was just a lucky guess. I thought, well, since it's so charged and glowing..."

"The fur of the thunder beast is a completely different material from tungsten. It's also easy to process. I can't say much until I study its properties, but it seems to have other applications."

"Right! But, let's put that aside for now."

"Indeed. I'll rely on you, Sequoia."

Ely, noticing the penguin's flapping flippers, gently puts him down. I think it would be better to carry him, but he starts wobbling towards the thunder beast, as if drawn to it. Touching the thunder beast is like touching a high-voltage wire. It's dangerous.

"Ely, can you hold the penguin until he says it's okay?"

"Understood. Excuse me."

Ely reaches out from behind the wobbling penguin and picks him up again. The penguin, who was flapping his feet in protest, finally seems to have balanced his interest and danger, and his feet stop moving.

"Sorry, I got carried away."

"Well, only Sequoia can touch the thunder beast so easily."

"Right. How much electricity is flowing through it? Even with an insulator, it might burn away."

"Huh?"

"Surely, you don't think it would be safe with Stuka sap or rubber, do you?"

"Haha, of course not."

Damn, I want to punch myself for thinking it would be safe with an insulator. Fortunately, nothing happened to the thunder beast...

Oh, I can't keep chatting with the penguin. This is a precious time when the thunder beast is cooperating.

Sequoia is playing with the thunder beast... wait, where did she go?

"Here."

"Whoa."

Looking around for where she went, Sequoia's face suddenly stretches down from above, almost touching my nose. How does she do that? She's floating in the air, head down. At least, she should hold down her skirt... Ely is holding her to prevent her from falling.

"Sit down."

"O-okay."

When I sit cross-legged, Sequoia lands on me. She beckons the penguin and grabs its flippers as it sits with its back hunched.

"Can't you 'see' unless you touch?"

"Yes. Sharing vision is quite complex. Touching is the easiest way."

"Got it. I'll rely on you."

When Sequoia, sitting on my lap, closes her eyes and focuses, a faint magical circle appears on the ground, including me and the penguin. The circle disappears quickly, but I feel no change in my body.

"Can you 'see' now?"

Sequoia raises her chin and looks at Ely, who is standing next to us, as if she has an idea.

"Yes. Focus your eyes, Ely."

"Understood."

Ely squats next to me on my right side.

Well, can I see it if I look?

I stare at her face, but I can't see anything.

Focus. I should be able to "see."

Oh, she turned her face away.

"I didn't say to stare into each other's eyes. Look at the area around Ely's chest."

"Okay."

Staring at her chest might not be appropriate...

However, Sequoia wouldn't tell me to look just to be perverted. Oh, oh, I see.

A vague aura or something, a mysterious mist, moves from her chest to her arm.

"Can you see it? That's the flow of magic power."

"Oh, does mana circulate from the heart?"

"Yes. It varies from person to person, but looking at the center of the body makes it easier to see."

The magic Sequoia cast on me allows me to temporarily share the "eye to see magic power." I thought I could observe the flow of the thunder beast's magic power and see how it charges. I asked her if I and the penguin could observe from a different perspective while she handles the detailed analysis. What? Of course, I didn't know about the "eye to see magic power." She told me there was such a spell when I consulted her.

"Shall we start the observation?"

"Yes."

Sequoia whistles, and the thunder beast slowly approaches, lying down about three meters away.