Two months had passed.
He'd drop by the Dedordia household regularly, share a drink, and swap stories about their pasts.
They were blood-soaked tales, but surprisingly entertaining to listen to.
The boasting of self-proclaimed former delinquents who used to be real tough guys, or something like that.
But they were probably true stories.
Just listening helped me learn a bit more about the Beast Race.
The Beast Race was a general term for the various species living in the Great Forest.
Among them, many had crossed over to the Demon Continent and come to be called Demons.
Their distinguishing physical characteristic was that they retained parts of animal features on their bodies.
In addition, each species possessed unique enhanced senses.
In a broad sense, even characters like Nullpara and Blaze had once been part of the Beast Race.
The Dedordia clan was a particularly special group among the Beast Race.
The clan that protected the Holy Beast and maintained peace throughout the forest — that was the Dedordia.
The cat-like Dedordia.
The dog-like Adordia.
These two formed the main families, which branched off into dozens of sub-clans.
You could call them the royal family of the Great Forest.
But they didn't particularly act like royalty these days — they only stepped up to lead when the need arose.
Also living in the Great Forest were the Long-Ear Race and the Dwarves.
They were apparently concentrated in the southern part of the forest.
They didn't have much contact with the Beast Race, but once a year they'd attend the tribal council, and they participated in the festivals held around the Sacred Tree.
According to Gustav, they were all companions living in the Great Forest, regardless of species.
Incidentally, the Coal Mine Race lived not in the Great Forest but further south, at the foot of the Azure Dragon Mountain Range.
The Azure Dragons basically flew across the skies of the entire world, only making their nests in the Azure Dragon Mountain Range during breeding and child-rearing season.
Like migratory birds, essentially.
Though unlike migratory birds, they only did this once every ten years or so.
Anyway.
The Beast Race had been warring with and befriending the Human Race since ancient times.
Apparently, minor skirmishes had occurred as recently as fifty years ago.
Gustav had participated in that war, and he regaled me with stories of the Beast Race's powerful warriors mowing down human soldiers who had strayed into the forest.
Well, the stories were quite embellished, but hearing things from the Beast Race's perspective was refreshingly entertaining.
To compete, Ruijerd brought out his family's prized tale — an anecdote about the Speld during the Laplace War Campaign.
The two men competed to tell the better story, but being old men having a conversation, it gradually turned into a "things were better in the old days" session.
"Warriors these days are completely worthless."
"I know exactly what you mean, Lord Ruijerd. They've gotten soft."
"Exactly. When I was young, there was nothing but fine men around."
They were really hitting it off.
Same in every world, these kinds of conversations.
"Absolutely. And Gyes became Warrior Chief, yet he still lacks good judgment.
He's good at rallying people, but if only he'd been better at reading the situation, Lord
"No, Rudeus is a warrior.
He should have known that letting his guard down in enemy territory could lead to capture and imprisonment.
And yet he let his guard down.
He could have easily subdued Gyes without breaking a sweat.
That was Rudeus's own screw-up."
Ouch. That hit close to home.
Ruijerd had trusted me and let me go alone.
And I'd gotten caught without putting up a fight.
In a way, I'd betrayed that trust.
"But Lord Ruijerd, isn't that a bit harsh?
A comrade suffered terribly, and yet..."
"A warrior must bear the results of his own battles.
Besides, Rudeus could have escaped on his own easily enough!
I'm glad he's trusted as a comrade, but he's not a child!
A warrior must never allow himself to be captured and put his comrades in danger!"
Man, Ruijerd was really drunk.
Well, I guess he probably could've escaped on his own even if he'd been captured.
Just don't expect too much of me, alright?
There's only so much I can do.
--- Being around Ruijerd made my ears hurt.
Getting near
So from midday to evening, I was left alone.
Having nothing else to do, I decided to practice magic.
Controlling water currents to cover the ground outside, freezing them.
During one of those sessions, I suddenly had the idea of using wind magic to fly.
This time, the reason I'd been caught and couldn't escape was because I didn't know the way.
If I could fly and see things from above, I could have escaped by the second day.
Gyes wouldn't have had to grovel in apology, and nobody would have had to endure a miserable time. It would have been a happy ending.
Thinking this, I headed outside the village.
Creating footholds by freezing flowing water, I found a relatively open area and cut down the trees there.
I made a ten-meter square stone slab with earth magic.
A practice arena, like the ring in a se* game.
It was a little slippery, but I wouldn't be running around, so it'd do.
"Alright then."
First, I decided to casually try creating a tornado.
How fast did I need to go to lift a person?
I think it was around 100 meters per second.
What did 100 meters per second even feel like?
Well, let's just give it a shot.
"Chinkhanahoi! Just kiddi— wha—!"
I was launched skyward like a leaf in the wind.
That was terrifying.
The next thing I knew, I was near the clouds.
Is a human body really this light?
And then pure terror set in.
The ground was rushing toward me at incredible speed, and my instincts screamed danger.
I reflexively activated my Foresight Eye.
Seeing one second ahead, I created an updraft with my right hand, and fired off multiple shockwaves with my left to slow my descent.
But it wasn't enough.
Crashing through tree branches with a series of snaps, I plunged into the water with a massive splash.
By that point, I had full-body contusions and broken bones.
Nosebleed streaming, gulping water, I manipulated the water flow.
Dizzy with pain across my entire body, I somehow managed to chant a healing spell.
Monsters attracted by the smell of my blood immediately swarmed in.
It turned out I'd fallen into a nest of Rain Swarm Lizards.
Listening to my own heart pounding, I mowed them down one after another.
I froze the surrounding water to immobilize them with my right hand, then shot earth bullets through their heads.
Rain Swarm Lizards were C-rank monsters.
They were fast in water, but once frozen, they were nothing special.
After defeating them all and piling up the corpses, I realized it was already dark, and I had no idea where I was.
I didn't know my current location.
That fact made me anxious.
I had to do something.
The village shouldn't be too far away.
I told myself to stay cool.
My head was burning hot, and my judgment was impaired.
From the outside, I probably looked less than cool — more like a fool.
First, I froze the water across a wide area.
Relentlessly lowering the temperature, I expanded the ice's range outward from myself, shivering violently all the while.
At the same time, I created a fireball in the sky above.
Warming myself with the fireball while continuing to freeze things.
Would monsters be drawn to the light?
No, monsters in the rainy season moved through water.
They wouldn't come running across ice.
Ruijerd and the others arrived within about an hour.
They'd come along the ice, together with the Dedordia warriors.
I was relieved.
Being thrown into an unfamiliar place was still nerve-wracking, apparently.
"Rudeus, what happened?"
"Just, uh, doing some training."
I didn't mention that I'd nearly died.
Kept up appearances.
"Is that so... That's the first time I've seen you get serious, and it's terrifying.
When the village was covered in ice, I wondered what on earth had happened."
"Y-Yeah."
"You froze all the monsters too?"
"Y-Yes, I was hoping someone could help me haul them.
Freezing the surrounding area was all I could manage."
"Easy enough. But next time, call for me too."
"If you're around, Ruijerd, it wouldn't be secret training anymore."
At that, Ruijerd gave a soft chuckle.
The Beast Race warriors stared at the Rain Swarm Lizards — frozen in place with only their heads smashed — with looks of sheer horror.
So... how about that?
Rain Swarm Lizard meat tasted similar to chicken.
--- After that, undeterred, I practiced wind magic flight several more times.
Keeping my body aloft with wind magic alone was difficult.
The most I managed was: creating an Earth Spear with a flattened tip under my feet to launch myself upward, then using wind magic to accelerate, decelerate, and adjust my landing point, slowing my fall with wind magic while simultaneously creating a pool with water magic to land in.
That was about it.
Truly pathetic magic.
I resented my own lack of talent.
I wanted to fly freely through the sky.
Still, I was satisfied with this result.
I couldn't fly through the air, but I could now travel at high speed using aerial routes.
I'd failed to achieve my original goal, but I'd gained something new.
I'd count that as a win for now.
--- Two and a half months had passed.
One day, the Holy Beast trudged into my room.
"Well, well, if it isn't the Holy Beast. What brings this sacred creature to my humble quarters?"
"Woof!"
"Two!"
"Woof!"
Apparently it wasn't going to say "three."
He or she — I couldn't tell which — the Holy Beast settled down right beside me.
I had a half-finished figurine in my hands.
It looked like there was still time before the rain stopped, so I'd been making one on a whim.
The model was Ruijerd.
Why him, you might ask.
But think about it.
The Speld were mysterious monsters.
One look at their green hair, and people would tremble in fear.
But my figurines had no coloring.
They were monochrome stone figures.
If I could make one that looked cool in that style, maybe people would be more accepting of them.
I'd start with the silhouette.
The hair could come last.
"Wafu."
The Holy Beast pressed its body snugly against my thigh and rested its head on my knee.
I'd never been this close to an animal before, so I was a little flustered.
"Woof?"
The Holy Beast looked at my hands with a "what are you doing?" expression.
So composed for its age, this little pup.
I started petting it around the neck for the time being.
"Nothing much to do, so I'm engaged in creative pursuits."
"Wafu."
It licked my hand.
Its tail was wagging.
Seemed like it didn't dislike me.
With the rain still going, the Holy Beast must have been bored too.
I didn't know where it had been these past two months, but the fact that it came all the way to me meant it had to be starved for stimulation.
"Want to play?"
"Woof!"
And so, I ended up roughhousing and playing with the Holy Beast.
I got to enjoy the fluffiness, and the Holy Beast got some exercise.
A true win-win situation.
--- Knock knock.
While I was playing with the Holy Beast, there was a knock at my door.
"Hmm? Come in."
"Excuse me. The scent of the Holy Beast was coming from here... ah."
In walked a woman dressed as one of the village warriors.
It was that guard from before.
"Oh, hi. Long time no see."
I bowed my head in greeting.
The moment she saw me, her face went completely pale.
"Oh, yes, hi, um, long time no see."
She was the one who'd stripped me naked and dumped cold water on me while hurling harsh words.
Come to think of it, I hadn't seen her in these two months either.
Where had she been?
"I'm terribly sorry about what happened back then."
She bowed deeply.
"No, no, it's fine. That matter's been settled."
"Still, to do something like that even though it was just a misunderstanding..."
"You say 'something like that,' but all you did was strip me naked and pour cold water on me, right?"
At that, the female warrior turned even paler.
She looked like she might collapse on the spot.
"I... I'm... so sorry."
I'd heard this from Gyes, but for the Beast Race, stripping someone naked and pouring cold water on them was apparently an incredibly humiliating act.
"A-At the time, I was told you had done something sexually terrible to the Holy Beast..."
"And I'm sure you've heard that was all a lie, right?"
"Oh, yes, of course."
As she said this, she kept glancing at the Holy Beast.
Right now, I was using the Holy Beast as a pillow, and the Holy Beast was licking my hand.
Did she have a problem with that?
"I don't hold the past against you. I'm not angry.
But I do wish I'd at least gotten a proper apology."
"That's, um, I'm very sorry. Gyes ordered me to avoid meeting with Lord Rudeus as much as possible."
Ah, so that was it.
Yeah, having the perpetrator right in front of you would naturally make you want to get revenge.
Gyes had made the right call.
"So why come here if you were told not to?"
"That's, well, the Holy Beast went missing, and I followed its scent here."
"Woof!"
The female warrior was sweating nervously.
I didn't think she needed to be that afraid.
Gyes had already apologized properly, and I was satisfied with that.
Once the rainy season ended, he'd also give me money and a horse and carriage as compensation.
I'd only spent a week in a cell. Talk about a good deal.
I really wasn't bothered by it anymore.
Having cold water dumped on me and being called a pervert — those were fond memories, really.
If something awakened in me in the future, it was guaranteed to get me excited.
"Oh, by the way, I heard you're getting married when the rainy season ends.
Congratulations."
When I said that, the female warrior flinched.
Had that sounded like some kind of sarcastic remark?
I genuinely meant it as a normal congratulation.
"Um, what would I need to do for you to forgive me?"
Hmm.
She seemed to be misunderstanding something.
This was kind of nice.
I was getting a real sense of superiority.
Was this what they called NTR?
Heh heh.
Of course, I should have her strip completely and get on all fours and...
No, no, that was no good.
Gyes had told me to cut it out, and I didn't know when Eris and Ruijerd would be back.
How much punishment would be appropriate?
For the Beast Race, full nudity was definitely out.
Cold water too, probably.
So how about I have her wear just a white T-shirt, and use water magic to create something like a squirt gun and douse her with lukewarm water?
Wow, I'm a genius.
"Woof!"
The Holy Beast moved as if to shield the female warrior.
It glared at me.
What the heck.
It was a joke. Don't get angry.
"I did receive a proper apology. So I have nothing further to say on the matter."
The female warrior let out a visible sigh of relief.
"Thank you."
Then, as if to signal that matter was settled, she glared daggers at me.
"More importantly, Lord Rudeus, please stop taking the Holy Beast out on your own."
"What are you talking about? I didn't take it anywhere."
Oh, another false accusation.
You haven't really changed at all, have you?
Watch your mouth, or next time you'll be the one in a cell while I get to do the water splashing.
"Because if nobody took it out... the Holy Beast can't leave the Sacred Tree on its own power."
"Oh? Tell me more."
About anything.
The Holy Beast was a species of magical beast born only once every few hundred years.
It had no official name.
Legend held that whenever the Holy Beast appeared, it meant the world was in crisis.
When the Holy Beast grew to adulthood, it would set off on a journey with a hero and use its immense power to save the world.
That was the story passed down.
So, deep in the Dedordia village, the Holy Beast was raised with utmost care inside a barrier on the Sacred Tree.
Like a sheltered princess, basically.
Keeping the innocent Holy Beast from the harsh outside world.
Incidentally, the Holy Beast wouldn't reach adulthood for another hundred years or so.
If the legend was true, that meant the world would face crisis in a hundred years.
And the female warrior apparently now served primarily as the Holy Beast's guardian.
Behind that blocked-off passage.
So that was why you'd never run into her in town.
"Woofen!"
The Holy Beast let out a bark.
The female warrior looked startled.
"What?! You don't say!"
Huh?
What?
"Woof!"
"I see, but still..."
"Woof!"
"...Understood."
Why are you having a normal conversation with a dog?
The Holy Beast's language wasn't Beast God Language, was it?
How could she understand it?
Were you using some kind of bow-wow translator or something?
"The Holy Beast says you have nothing to do with this."
"See?"
Tell it more, why don't you.
"The Holy Beast seems to be grateful to Lord Rudeus."
"Oh, I figured it had forgotten all about me since I was left in the cell."
"Woof!"
"It says that stings. It gave orders to make sure you were served good food. And Lord Rudeus did enjoy the meals, didn't it?"
That was true.
The food was legitimately good.
And I got seconds.
For a prison cell, that had seemed odd.
So that was the Holy Beast's doing.
Still, prioritizing food delivery as a thank-you — that was truly the way of a dog.
"But if that's the case, I would have at least liked to be let out of the cell."
"Woofun! (What's a cell? — That's what it's asking.)"
"A place where bad people are locked up."
"Woof! (It says it was locked up too.)"
After that, I had the female warrior translate for a while and talked with the Holy Beast.
It turned out the Holy Beast didn't really understand what had happened.
It didn't even know I'd been giving off mating scents or anything like that.
It didn't understand the meaning of Gyes capturing me, either.
Being captured itself was something it only understood as "something scary happened."
In other words, it was still a child.
It wasn't right to demand too much from a child.
It couldn't be helped.
"Thanks to the Holy Beast, I was able to live comfortably.
Thank you."
When I expressed my gratitude, it wagged its tail and licked my face.
Heh heh, what a cute little thing.
I scratched its neck vigorously.
Then I was tackled over.
Oh no, not in front of company...
"...Lord Rudeus, the Holy Beast is a sacred being.
Could you please refrain from flirting with it?"
"That's not what's happening. This mating scent is directed at you."
"What?!"
"Pardon me, never mind."
No good, no good. My true feelings slipped out.
"Ahem. Then, Holy Beast, let's return to the Sacred Tree."
"Woof!"
The Holy Beast obediently nodded at the female warrior's words and left.
After that, the Holy Beast's escape became a topic of discussion among the Beast Race.
In the end, the culprit who had smuggled it out was never identified.
They concluded that guard security needed to be reinforced, but given that a kidnapping incident had occurred just recently, the guards were on edge.
--- After that, the Holy Beast appeared at my place multiple times.
That's right — for some reason, it came to me.
Of course, the second time, I was suspected again.
But luckily, that day I'd been attending the drinking party with Ruijerd and Gustav.
I hadn't been drinking, but the walnut-like nut snacks were delicious.
In other words, I had an alibi.
Some said that a mage capable of freezing an entire forest could probably find some way of doing it from a distance, but Gustav's sharp rebuke cleared my suspicion immediately.
Being framed again wasn't going to be fun.
So I tried to stay near Ruijerd, Eris, or Gustav as much as possible — and then gave up on that.
Instead, I deliberately stayed near Gyes.
He was the Warrior Chief. Head of all security.
He was busy every day, but having him vouch for my alibi was the most effective approach.
"I thought you hated me, Lord Rudeus?"
When I stuck to him all day, he gave me a bitter look.
"I don't mind at all. Just give me your next daughter when she's born."
"...Are you seriously saying you want to marry my daughter?"
"No, it was just a joke.
Oh, pardon me — did I give off a mating scent just now?"
*Sniff sniff* "...No, you didn't."
"Oh, so this level is fine."
Sure enough, if there were no women nearby, my tomboyish tendencies wouldn't go full tomcat.
If they weren't in my line of sight, it was no big deal.
"...I've come to understand something over the past month.
You're a remarkable person, Lord Rudeus.
For someone so young, you've earned Ruijerd's recognition as a warrior."
"What's this? Suddenly being nice to me?"
Creepy.
How quickly he'd flipped.
"Initially, I thought you were just a brat borrowing Lord Ruijerd's authority to do whatever you pleased."
Oh.
He's really going for it.
Well, he wasn't entirely wrong.
"Your magic skills are... beyond my imagination.
Freezing a forest during the rainy season is something you'd only hear about in fairy tales."
"Hmph, my teacher is even more impressive than that."
No reason not to give
You could never praise Roxy enough.
"And above all, despite possessing such power, you never once turned it against us, the Dedordia clan, even after what we did to you."
Come to think of it, that was true.
But you know, like Ruijerd said, I'd been careless too.
We could both learn from this.
Besides...
"This is Ghislaine's hometown, after all."
"...What does Ghislaine say about this village?"
"She hasn't said much about it, actually."
Ghislaine hadn't been too fond of the Great Forest, apparently.
Even when she taught me Beast God Language, she'd had a bitter expression on her face.
"I want to get along with the clan of my respected teacher."
"...Would you allow me to apologize once more?"
"That bow isn't necessary.
Forget all that — give me the right to make a move on Minotona."
"If Lord Rudeus is genuinely serious about courting my daughter, I wouldn't object."
"Wait, really?!"
Seriously?
He was going to grant me the right to make a move on the cat-eared girl!
No, no.
We were having a nice conversation here, and you — stay out of it.
"Of course it was a joke. Eris would probably be mad."
"I thought I caught a whiff of mating scent just now."
"Well, can you blame me? That was your own careless comment's fault. Read the room, will you?"
"Is that so... My apologies."
Honestly.
I'd made a proper promise with Eris.
Fifteen.
Four more years.
Four years, and it'd be paradise.
Speaking of promises, I'd made one with
How was Sylphie doing?
Was she okay?
I hoped she wasn't getting bullied over her hair...
"Oh, it's here again today."
While I was lost in thought, the Holy Beast appeared once more.
"Tch — what are the guards even doing...!"
Gyes gritted his teeth at the sight.
The Holy Beast cheerfully barked "Woof!" at me again today.
I scratched its head in response, then suggested: "Maybe it can leave on its own power?"
"No, it's definitely being helped out by someone."
Gyes said this while looking at the Holy Beast with a troubled expression.
Being helped out by someone.
It was undoubtedly an inside job, but everyone had an alibi.
Creepy.
"Should Ruijerd and I investigate?
With Ruijerd's Eye, we could probably figure it out quickly."
When I suggested this, "No, guarding the Holy Beast is a matter of Dedordia pride.
We can't involve outsiders."
I was turned down.
"But defending the village is fine?"
"That's a different matter entirely."
Defending the village was fine, but monitoring the Holy Beast's escape was off-limits.
A tricky line to draw, but I supposed that was a difference in common sense.
Well, if they wanted to handle it that way, that was their call...
"Having it escape over and over like this is worrying.
Right now it's fine because of the rainy season, but when it ends, it might get kidnapped again.
And monsters appear throughout the village, so there's always a possibility of something going wrong."
"That's true..."
Gyes looked troubled.
"If the Holy Beast's goal in coming out is just to visit me, then wouldn't it solve the problem if I went to visit it every day instead?"
"That would be... but... hmm..."
He was agonizing over it.
They didn't want outsiders near the Sacred Tree, after all.
I'd try to be understanding.
"Then how about this: rather than letting some unknown culprit take it out, we deliberately bring it out near the Sacred Tree ourselves, and I and the guards watch over it.
That way, the worry of 'someone taking it away' disappears."
"...Isn't that putting the cart before the horse?"
"I think it's better than losing track of the Holy Beast's whereabouts, even for a moment?"
"..."
Gyes agonized.
After much deliberation, this was the outcome they settled on.
--- And so, for nearly two weeks, I spent my days playing with the Holy Beast.
The culprit was never identified, but at least the Holy Beast stopped disappearing.
Incidentally, it's a secret that the guards chewed me out when I tried to teach it tricks.
--- And just like that, three months had passed.
The rain stopped.