Episode 60: Out of Character
In the end, they stayed the night at an inn in Epfel Village.
They’d been treated to dinner at Helena’s house, and there had even been alcohol. Strangely, though, sleep wouldn’t come.
Once she’d made sure Yuria was asleep, Fiine quietly slipped out of the inn. She headed for the forest.
The place where the big rats were thought to live.
In other words, the place where the king rat was.
(I know this is out of character for me. I do know.)
The villagers’ countermeasures against monsters were solid, and they could probably hold off big rats well enough. But if the king rat attacked, the damage might be enormous.
The moment Fiine stepped into the forest, she heard the monsters crying out. They were reacting to her magic.
She took out her staff and drew a magic circle of light in the darkness.
“…If I’m too flashy, everyone will find out, won’t they?”
She didn’t want anyone to know about tonight. It was better if they didn’t.
The peace that was coming wasn’t something Fiine had brought them. The villagers had won it together, by their own effort.
(I know.)
She raised the staff. The magic circle spread wider and wider, and from it countless stars were released.
Like shooting stars, light-attribute magic rained down on the forest.
Even if the villagers saw it, it would surely look like nothing more than a meteor shower.
To the monsters, those beautiful shooting stars were baleful stars that called down death.
The dying screams of monsters filled the forest. Then came the sound of heavy footsteps.
Thud!
The king rat. It looked almost the same as a big rat, only enormous.
Its eyes, glaring at Fiine, were blood red, and its sharp fangs were like blades.
The annoying part was that, for such a huge body, it was quite fast.
“But you know, I’m pretty fast too.”
Self Marionette.
Fiine’s unique magic. She hadn’t used it in a long time, but for fighting alone, there was no easier way to do it.
She kicked off the ground. Boosted by wind magic, she reached the king rat in an instant.
As it lunged to bite on reflex, she punched it in the eye and burned it, eyeball and all.
“Giiiiiiiiik!”
The king rat let out a scream so loud she wanted to cover her ears, and she kicked it in the belly.
Drawn by its second scream, several big rats came out.
Most of them should have died in the shooting stars, but a few must have survived.
The big rats surrounded the king rat, now unable to move, as if to protect it.
Maybe monsters have their own side of things.
(But I don’t care. Humans have their own reasons too.)
She scattered the handful of big rats. When her light-attribute magic annihilated them, the king rat glared with furious, slanted eyes.
But it had no strength left to move its body.
She punched it with a fist wrapped in light. Engulfed in dazzling brightness, the king rat vanished.
(It’s been a long time since I fought on my own…)
She lay down on the ground and stared blankly up at the night sky.
She noticed that her heart was beating far faster than it had in a long while.
“…Honestly, I hate this.”
She didn’t want to remember.
The training with Burkhardt. The combat classes at the magic academy.
There had been plenty that was hard, but more than that, it had been fun.
Being praised, being acknowledged, growing stronger.
Using magic. Fighting.
“…Why am I so weak?”
If she’d been stronger, Yuria wouldn’t have died.
By now, the two of them would still be dreaming on together.
She might have been working as Burkhardt’s subordinate.
She might have been getting along well with her colleague Bianca, trading complaints all the while.
(Because I was weak, I lost everything.)
There was no one nearby, human or monster. So Fiine cried for as long as she needed to.