Sister Citry was a woman of stunning beauty and unshakable composure—a rare prodigy even in the Imperial Capital, where finding fault with her was nearly impossible. But once the Master got involved, she became a little hopeless.
Before Tinno's anxious eyes, the battle between the Sewer Dragon—shortened to "Sewer-Dra"—and the most powerful curse was about to erupt.
Tinno had no idea what Sister Citry was planning. Still, it didn't look like she stood a chance. No matter how legendary a presence the Sewer Dragon might have become, her opponent was likely a genuine, legend-tier curse. It had already been proven that even Anthem and Ark couldn't handle it.
For starters, Tinno had never even heard of a "Sewer Dragon"—it was probably a term Sister Citry had coined. Tinno was a devoted follower of the Master, but also knew Sister Citry's capabilities… Did she really stand a chance?
A short distance from the Master, who was peculiarly cheerful about egging on the Sewer Dragon, Sister Citry and an elderly alchemist were whispering to each other.
"At last, the power of Strawberry Blaze will be put to the proof."
"…Still, those three—I don't know who they are, but the miasma they give off is terrifying. Even if we unleash every monster from the sewers, I'm not sure we'd stand a chance—"
"It'll be fine—Klye can handle anything, I'm sure. …Oh, I know! What if the Sewer Dragons get eaten and the control potion's effect transfers over to them?"
Sister Citry declared this with total confidence, completely ignorant of the situation.
Sister Citry, I really don't think that curse eats Sewer Dragons… In other words, she already knew there was no winning a straight-up fight. "What do you think?" she says…
The Sewer Dragons, though under the Master's control for reasons Tinno didn't understand, seemed to cower at the presence of that thing. Besides, if Tinno's memory served, the sewer monsters weren't supposed to attack large groups of people. How could they possibly defeat a curse that had plowed straight through a church full of people?
Before Tinno, who could only pray for the Master's brilliant scheming, Sister Citry looked at her and spoke.
"And besides… if things go south, we'll use Tee-chan—and if that doesn't work, Kirukilu as a decoy—to escape! We need to regroup."
"!?"
At Sister Citry's outrageous suggestion, Tinno quietly turned away.
Sister Citry still didn't understand at all… What that thing was chasing was Mastaa! They had to fight somehow to save Mastaa!
Even if they used Tinno or Kirukilu as decoys, the curse would keep pursuing the Master.
On the Master's command, the myriad creatures that made the sewers their home—Sewer Dragons, insects, rats, bats, and more—began closing in on the Spiritfolk curse all at once.
And then they stopped, just a few meters short.
"Sister Citry, they're not advancing…"
"…It seems their instincts are holding their bodies back."
It was rare to see a contest where the outcome was this painfully clear, Tinno thought.
She couldn't imagine a single instant where victory seemed possible. It almost seemed like it would be better if Tinno fought instead. For that matter, which was stronger—a Sewer Dragon or a Hot Spring Dragon?
When the Spiritfolk took one step forward, the Sewer Dragons retreated one step. It was a brutally one-sided tableau.
And sure enough, that Spiritfolk wasn't going to eat the Sewer Dragons… She couldn't imagine that eating them would change anything anyway.
No—but the Master had chosen to come here, that much was certain! The Master had pulled off miracles countless times before. Perhaps there was a chance the curse's specific weakness happened to be Sewer Dragons…
"Do your best, Sewer Dragons!"
"Grgyaaaa!"
The Sewer Dragons roared at the Master's words, as if mustering every ounce of will they possessed. Yet their legs didn't advance a single step forward. Watching them felt almost like looking at herself, and Tinno felt a pang of sadness. There were things in this world that sheer motivation simply couldn't overcome.
What on earth was the Master planning? As the Master gazed at the Sewer Dragons with a troubled look, the Spiritfolk curse—for the first time—spoke.
"Weaklings. Be gone."
A voice so cold it could freeze one's heart—icy and absolute. At those words, the Sewer Dragons let out a scream-like roar.
As if flung backward, the Sewer Dragons and all the other small creatures fled en masse into the half-destroyed building—the sewers.
Tinno barely managed to dodge sideways, nearly getting trampled in the process.
The scene was like a tide receding. This wasn't a contest at all… Wait—weren't they supposed to be following the Master's orders?!
The Master blinked in surprise. Sister Citry's eyes went wide, and she turned to the alchemist beside her.
"Nikolarf. It seems Strawberry Blaze operated exactly as we'd long theorized—its power was connected to curses."
"…The stronger curse overwhelmed it and broke the binding… The diluted potion wasn't potent enough…"
Now really wasn't the time for analysis… Was there even anything else they could try?
The Spiritfolk glanced at the remaining Tinno and her companions, scoffing with contempt.
The Wailing Marin trailing behind looked somehow awfully concerned… Don't tell me it was being pitied by the curse?!
Just then, a potion bottle soared through the air. Sister Citry had thrown it.
The silver-white potion inside the bottle crashed down right in front of the Spiritfolk curse and shattered. Then—it exploded.
It was a tremendous explosion. The blast hurled bodies through the air, slamming them hard against walls. A massive hole opened in the ground, and the walls crumbled to pieces.
It was Sister Citry's Explosion Potion. She used it without any warning, and in the middle of town, no less— Tinno endured the pain and struggled to her feet. Sister Citry, sheltering behind the half-destroyed building at the sewer entrance, was tossing potion after potion with light, nimble movements.
"Hei, hei, hei! This time I prepared something special when I heard it was a curse—the Holy Water Purification Explosion Potion! First reveal!"
"Pl-please, don't, Sister Citry…"
From within the chain of explosions, the wailing of "The Wailing Marin" rose up. At this point, it was less purification and more pure physics…
For starters, even Sister Citry couldn't possibly defeat them with potions! Even Anthem hadn't been able to do anything about them!
She must have known she couldn't win, yet her killing intent was through the roof.
Finally, a white potion was hurled, and an unnatural cloud of white smoke billowed upward. This was—a smoke screen. Tinno caught on at once.
Sister Citry was planning to… escape with Mastaa. Tinno wouldn't allow it.
She stuck a finger in her mouth and blew with all her might, producing a sharp whistle. Ka-kun, who had been hiding in the shadow of the building, heard the sound and came rushing over.
This place was done for. Even Sister Citry couldn't turn things around. What they'd gotten here wasn't even a proper monster showdown. What had Mastaa been trying to do…
Tinno jumped onto Ka-kun as it arrived. Soaring through the air, she grabbed the hand of the Master—who stood like a statue in the smoke, eyes distant—and took off into the sky. Dangling the Master below, she asked.
Tinno was giving it everything she had. She was doing everything in her power to handle this situation. Despite knowing the Master's personality and ferocity better than anyone, she had no choice but to ask.
"Mastaa, where to next?!"
"Tinno… since when did you learn to handle Ka-kun that well…"
"Mastaa, they're coming after us again! Even though we escaped through all that smoke!"
As expected, it must have been tracking them with some special ability rather than sight. Terrifying persistence.
It had apparently stopped transforming into its larger form and was now pursuing them aboard something resembling a massive black bird. Its speed was even faster than before.
It didn't appear to be injured, but it was clearly angrier than before. Having the Sewer Dragons set on it and then having strange potions hurled at it—anyone would be furious.
"Ka-kun, faster!"
"…"
For some reason, the Master's eyes were distant again. Ka-kun seemed to heed Tinno's words, surging forward with a burst of speed.
Tinno didn't know where Ka-kun's limit was, but the gap between them widened slightly. They could hold out a little longer.
She was getting used to riding the carpet. If only this weren't an emergency…
Come to think of it, Sister Citry had only managed to enrage the curse… It had been a mistake to think an alchemist like Sister Citry could accomplish what even Anthem couldn't.
But it wasn't entirely bad. Sister Citry should now have a clear picture of the situation. Given time, she would surely come up with some countermeasure… Wait! Could Mastaa have been aiming for that all along?!
Then, from below, the Master called out.
"…All right, Tinno—next, let's go to Lucia's place. The Zebuldia Magic Academy! Lucia should be able to help, and Professor Sage is there too! Maybe the old firebrand is there as well…"
"Mastaa… Yes, understood."
Lucia… Indeed, if anyone could handle this, it would be Lucia with her "Abyssal Fire Annihilation." And she had heard that Sage Clasta of "Immortal" fame had Spiritfolk blood. Perhaps they could find some lead to a solution.
But still… Wouldn't it have been better to go there first instead of enraging the curse?
This was bad. The enemy was so absurdly powerful that it didn't even feel real. It was like having some kind of weird dream.
Mastaa dangled through the air, watching the Spiritfolk pursuing them on a massive black bird with a wry smile.
The situation was changing so rapidly that his mind couldn't keep up with reality. It had been a while since he'd felt anything like this.
To think there was an opponent even Anthem and Ark couldn't take down… Hugh had really brought back a monster of terrifying proportions.
His plan to pit them against the Wailing Marin and the Black Knight combo had backfired, and when he'd heard the Sewer Dragons could be controlled, he'd thought that would do the trick—but that too had gone exactly as poorly as expected. Nothing was working.
…Actually, now that he thought about it, what even was a Sewer Dragon?
But no matter how dire the situation became, what Mastaa could do didn't change. What he could do was—nothing.
Tinno had somehow learned to control Ka-kun with complete mastery. The carpet had never listened to a word Mastaa said, yet it obeyed Tinno instantly—what an outrageous carpet. Once this was over, they'd need to have a serious talk…
Still, that Spiritfolk was absolutely furious…
With nothing else to do, Mastaa stared intently at the wooden ring that had attracted the curse—the root of all this trouble. He'd been told that was simply what Treasure Weapons did, but for a curse with a consciousness powerful enough to communicate to fixate so obsessively…
Of course, he had no intention of blaming Tinno for bringing it. It was obvious she hadn't meant to put him in danger—besides, she'd risked her own safety to obtain the ring. If anyone was at fault, it was Mastaa for putting it on without thinking— And just then, as he was rubbing the ring against his lip, the ring that had been impossible to remove back at the Clan House slipped off with effortless ease.
"?????"
He involuntarily widened his eyes. He looked up at Tinno, then down at the ring, and finally fixed his gaze on the Spiritfolk curse pursuing them.
The reason it came off required no thought. The mana had run out. There probably hadn't been much mana left in it to begin with. Mastaa himself barely had any mana, and the ring's ability to drain mana from its wearer to sustain itself was meaningless without mana to drain.
The question was—huh? …When exactly had the mana run out?
When Marchis had appraised it, it definitely hadn't come off. And when they'd checked at the Clan House, it still hadn't come off.
Anyway, if he just threw the ring away, the curse should stop pursuing him. Lucky.
Just as he was about to toss the ring aside, Mastaa suddenly noticed something.
If he threw the ring away, wouldn't that curse start attacking the city instead?
As grim luck would have it, as long as the curse was chasing him, the city was safe.
Anthem and Ark hadn't been able to stop it, but they were top-class Hunters—buy them enough time and they'd surely devise a countermeasure.
And while the curse was fast, Tinno on her carpet could keep ahead of it. If the city ended up cursed, he'd be cursed along with it anyway—and he could always throw the ring away later.
It seemed… he had no choice.
"Tinno, I've got a great idea! How about we circle the world on the carpet, just like this?"
"Wh-what are you talking about?! Mastaa?!"
Tinno let out something between a scream and a shout. He'd at least like to ride on top instead of dangling the whole time—but was that too much to ask? Was there some trick to getting up there?
He carefully put the mana-depleted ring back on and looked toward the Spiritfolk curse.
He had no idea when it would realize the ring's power had failed… Actually, it was chasing them even though the mana was gone—that was just absurd. Regardless, he needed to somehow keep drawing its attention… What to do… What to do?
…For now, maybe he'd just wave.
He forced a smile and waved his hand, seeking love and peace. The Spiritfolk curse's expression twitched, and the Wailing Marin behind it was inexplicably shaking its head back and forth.
The Black Knight hefted its great sword high, fully prepared to throw it. It was pointless—he still had three Barrier Rings left… You really shouldn't.
With a hard-boiled shrug born of cool acceptance, Mastaa watched as—a fire tornado erupted from the ground below and engulfed the Spiritfolk curse whole.