It was a tremendous storm. I'm used to storms and thunder, but I can only count on one hand the number of times I've encountered one in the sky.
The hull rocked violently, there was light and sound. Without this Treasure Weapon shirt…『 Pleasant Vacation 』, it would have been impossible to stay comfortable.
There was nothing I could do. Franz had told me not to do anything, so I had no choice but to play with a carpet in my room, ready for the ship to fall at any moment.
The carpet was in high spirits despite the rocking, waltzing with the carpet I'd purchased in Vettant. The one I'd bought was reasonably expensive, but it was still just a carpet and couldn't move, yet that didn't seem to bother this one at all.
It was so fond of it that it might even run off together on the lam. Treasure Weapons really are mysterious.
I forced my gaze away from the carpet I kept wanting to watch and looked at Krus.
"Come to think of it, Krus, did you do something rude to Termu?"
"Hah? If anyone was being rude, it was that weakling, ya know."
Krus crossed his arms, wearing a displeased expression. It's a harsh way to put it, but since he'd been making Franz furious left and right, I couldn't exactly argue.
Still, that was a separate matter. Termu had said she was considering taking care of Krus. For the always-composed Termu to go that far, he must have done something seriously offensive. Krus isn't a bad person, but Spiritfolk have a particular attitude that makes them easy to misunderstand.
It could also just have been a joke from Termu, but…
"In any case, that weakling calls on me way too much, ya know! I get that you'd rely on me, but quit calling for me all the time, ya know! Every single day, dragging me to the room… could it be that you're in love with me, ya know?! Give it up, ya know! The only reason I follow you around like this is because of Lapis's orders — there isn't a single shred of affection, ya know!"
He rejected me before I'd even confessed.
I'm sorry for calling you every evening to charge my Treasure Weapon. But you're asked every time, so a normal person wouldn't misinterpret that, right?
But I don't dislike Krus. Anyone who charges my Treasure Weapon is someone I love, and the grumbling he tags along with is far more tolerable compared to the others.
Lapis sent me a great operative. My luck with people this time seems pretty good.
Could it be that this time around, I'm… on a roll?
"Come to think of it, Termu's misunderstanding didn't seem to be cleared up."
"…That's exactly why those humans who are in heat all year round —"
"…Please don't tell His Majesty about that."
"!? Of course I wouldn't, are you making fun of me, ya know?! Don't lump me in with that weakling, ya know!"
Right now, Krus was under my command. If I couldn't hold him back and he ended up charged with lèse-majesté, I'd never be able to face Lapis — the one who had entrusted me with Krus as a favor.
Still, once this was over, I should thank Krus too… Maybe I'd send him a huge supply of Amuse Nuts? He seemed to like the taste, and as long as you didn't use mana, they wouldn't cause pain either.
The worst seemed to have passed, and the ship's rocking had stabilized. Rain was still falling outside the window, but it looked like we'd gotten through without major damage.
My precious sheet ghosts had been struck by lightning, but they wouldn't die from something like lightning or a fall, so there was probably nothing to worry about.
Just then, I heard frantic footsteps, and the door burst open.
"Fwah… fwahahahahahaha!"
It was Franz, drenched in sweat.
He'd been giving orders to everyone — there was some fatigue visible on his face, but his eyes were blazing with intensity.
Franz didn't seem to notice Krus's cold stare at all. He let out a wild, cackling laugh and pointed at me.
"How's that, Thousand Transformations! We made it through, we actually made it through! A storm is nothing! Your prediction was wrong — this ship is invincible!"
"Huh… oh, yeah, yeah, that's right?"
Wasn't he celebrating a bit too much? For starters, I'd said there was a ninety percent chance we wouldn't go down. There was no prediction.
Franz looked like he was about to burst with joy and start dancing at any moment. If he wanted to dance, I'd be happy to lend him my carpet.
"Hey, weakling, what did you do, ya know? You've picked fights with way too many people on all fronts, ya know."
I had no memory of picking any fights, yet they were being bought. Strange.
But being told that much, even I felt like putting up a small defense.
"The storm hasn't passed yet, so… you should be careful."
"Fwahahahahahaha… say what you want, even if it's sour grapes! I'm done humoring your little charade! Stay put! I must report to His Majesty…!"
Franz was extremely hyped up.
With that full-confidence declaration, Franz marched out, chest puffed out like a proper aristocrat. Come to think of it, he was one, wasn't he.
Even Krus was wide-eyed at the force of that storm-like exit. After the door closed, he was silent for a while before muttering, exasperated.
"He's way too stressed, ya know. When that happens, he should drink some herbal tea and relax, ya know. Humans should live more freely, like we do, ya know."
"Herbal tea… yeah, that sounds nice."
Citry used to brew it for me often. As I nodded earnestly, Krus furrowed his brows and made a face, somehow looking affronted.
"…That weakling doesn't need any, ya know. You seem to have even less stress than us Spiritfolk, ya know."
Still, when someone's that wound up, it was almost worrying in its own way. I just wished this storm would hurry up and fully clear out…
§ Once the storm calmed down to a certain degree, the ship was remarkably stable.
I was comfortable in any situation thanks to the power of my Treasure Weapon, but Krus and the others weren't complaining either, which said something about it being cutting-edge. Maybe it was possible to stay even without the Treasure Weapon without getting seasick or ringing ears.
As befitting transport for the nation's important figures, each room was more than comparable to the inns we'd stayed at so far.
The furnishings and furniture were all high quality, and the beds were plush. If Liliz — who loved exploring this kind of place — were here, she'd want to tour the entire ship. Sadly, she'd already been struck by lightning and fallen out.
I peeked outside several times through the window installed in my room, but there was nothing but dark clouds — no kites or ghosts were visible.
My childhood friends were all the type to do reckless things, so it wouldn't be surprising if they tried again, but even they had probably realized a storm was impossible. Though honestly, the idea of riding a kite and flying through the sky was a bit detached from reality to begin with.
The food, too — I didn't know the details, but it was exquisite. The meat, fish, and vegetables were all delicious. There was probably a dedicated chef on board. It looked like the provisions I'd asked Citry to prepare wouldn't be needed after all. Even the crew, who'd been frantic when we hit the storm, had calmed down considerably.
Rolling around on the bed, I watched the carpet darting around the corner of the room and tilted my head.
"…Will we crash…?"
Even the worries I'd had were settling down.
Considering my bad luck, it was entirely possible, but from Franz's demeanor, this ship was apparently extremely sturdy. He knew dragons had attacked in large numbers before, so he must have been confident it could handle even a dragon assault.
Of course, crashing would be bad. The ship's destination was the capital of the sand kingdom, Toizant.
Toizant was a small country compared to Zebuldia, but it had prospered with its own culture and apparently had a reasonably high level of technology, so the risk of being attacked within the country probably wasn't that great.
"…So the contest will be a matter of days, huh?"
I felt like I was thinking seriously for the first time in a while. Well, I wasn't thinking about the escort plan itself — just about when it would end…
As I mumbled to myself, there was a knock at the door.
Termu's voice came from the other side. I hurriedly scrambled out of bed and shuffled about, pretending to be busy working.
Hunters have their pride, too. If the leader was always lounging around, there'd be no motivation. Unlike Eva, Termu didn't know about my pathetic side, and if word of my embarrassing behavior reached that old woman from 'Abyssal Fire Annihilation' through Termu, she might start ranting about how, as a fellow Level 8, she couldn't let that slide, and come over to burn me.
Termu appeared at the door, and despite the late hour, he was in perfect form.
"Sorry to disturb you in the middle of the night, Thousand Transformations. I wanted to touch base on the upcoming matters, just in case. Kecha seems concerned as well."
"…Yeah. I figured you'd be along soon."
I couldn't help but get flustered and put on a hard-boiled act. When Termu was nearby with that hard-boiled atmosphere, I always got pulled into it.
Touching base on upcoming matters! What a diligent hunter. As a Level 7, it was honestly embarrassing for a washout like me to praise him, but his sense of responsibility was truly impressive.
This was the mark of a battle-hardened veteran who'd survived countless crucibles. I wanted to brew up Luke's nail clippings and make someone like him — who was always doing whatever he pleased — drink it.
"I should thank 'Abyssal Fire Annihilation' sometime."
"!? That's quite the confidence… but Rose is unquestionably first-rate in terms of destruction. Surprise attacks won't work on her. She's probably the incarnation of destruction beyond what you're imagining."
When I murmured that, Termu's eyes went wide — had he caught what I said?
Huh…? If I went to thank that old woman, she'd burn me? Why?
She was even more terrifying than I'd imagined. If anything, I'd think not thanking her would get you burned, but Termu didn't look like he was joking.
…When the time came to pay my thanks, I'd make sure to fully charge my Barrier Ring beforehand.
"W-well, I suppose it depends on the approach. More importantly — touching base and confirming, right? I don't need anything special. Same as before, I'll follow Termu's lead."
"What!?"
Was that too hands-off? But my combat ability and command ability were both garbage. Like when we'd been ambushed by the Chuldora swarm, in a pinch, it went better when I left everything to the experienced Termu rather than giving orders myself.
If I gave orders and something went wrong, I'd get blamed, so I'd rather not. Well, I'd get blamed even without giving orders, but it was easier on the mind that way.
"Sorry, but this is how I do things. Oh, of course, I'll handle coordination. And about Krus — I've already talked to him, so that's sorted."
Franz also listened to me more or less as I asked, and His Majesty seemed responsive to the aura of a Level 8 as well. As long as I didn't do anything too flashy, persuasion would work. Though honestly, I thought the chances of nothing happening were higher.
"Hmm… so you're leaving execution entirely to us, then."
"…Got a problem with that? I'll support you if anything comes up."
"…No, that's fine. If that's your way of doing things, I'll adjust accordingly. With everything laid out for us like this, it should be an easy mission."
He said "easy," yet his expression was stern — perhaps this was the difference in responsibility.
And "laid out for me"… I hadn't done anything at all. To have even lip service be perfect — I was impressed. I wished I could age as gracefully as this nice middle-aged man.
§ Setting aside Franz's efforts and the diligent Termu's worries, the voyage proceeded without any particular incidents.
The airship was stable but not especially fast — if everything went according to plan, it would take three days to reach Toizant.
The first day had been rough, tossed about by the storm, but after that, no one came to call for me, and I spent unexpectedly tranquil hours.
Franz's complexion in our briefings was getting better and better.
At this rate, we might arrive without incident. Just as that thought began to cross my mind, it came.
I was in my room, playing with Krus, when Franz came rushing in.
The expression on his face wasn't fear or panic — it was bewilderment.
"Thousand Transformations, His Majesty requests your presence."
"? What happened?"
There was no commotion. As I stared at him wide-eyed, Franz frowned and said: "…Look outside. You've probably noticed by now — no matter how long we wait, we can't get out of this storm."
"Huh…?"
I instinctively looked toward the window. Outside, the dark sky stretched on, just as before.