Leave a comment

「By the way, Arlon. What happened to that Sky Denizen man? Considering how you celebrated, I presume he got his revenge on the manager of the facility, yes?」

Once they were done offloading the carriages, the Fifty Bells higher ups and famous adventurers began boarding. Mira spoke to Arlon on the deck.

Zele Schedar, the man in charge of the control systems. The Sky Denizen had been chasing after him, and they had definitely fought somewhere, either inside or outside the facility. Arlon was in charge of the attack there, so he had to know more details.

「I don’t know how to say this properly. But first off, we’ve found the body of the facility’s master. We don’t really know what happened with the Sky Denizen though.」

As the airship began floating into the air, Arlon seemed slightly baffled by the situation. He pointed at a spot a certain distance away from the scorched village.

「See those burned off traces over there? That’s where we found the body of Chimera’s guy. There were also the Sky Denizen’s clothes, his glasses, a broken sword and parts of a crossbow scattered around there. They were pretty burned too, so the consensus is that he threw them away since they were useless. But that’s pretty much all we know, we have no idea where he went off to.」

Looking more carefully, Mira noticed a black spot around the rocks there. It was hard to say why they had fought so far away from the village, but even from a distance it was clear their fight had been fierce.

「I see… I really wanted to talk with him again…」

Mira muttered as she watched the charred spot grow smaller in the distance. She wanted to know about his village worshiping spirits, how they lived, and his position there.

Spirits and summoners had a strong connection, so maybe there was something she could learn from him. That was her main hope, though there was one other thing she wanted to ask him.

「I’m sure you’ll see him again somewhere. He left his broken sword and crossbow behind, so he had no need to repair them. Basically his revenge is complete.」
「Hmm… That’s true. I guess I’ll just have to wait then.」
「Though he might not even remember who you are when that time comes.」
「…I can see that happening.」

The scorched rocks were no longer in sight. But the two continued looking in that direction, smiling as they recalled their first encounter. His eyes had been burning with hatred that time, though he remained cold.

(I wonder how he’ll live the rest of his life, now that he has satiated his thirst for vengeance.)

That was the other question Mira had for him. He had lived wishing for revenge for a long time, so that question might be cruel, but that made it all the more important. Mira did not want to leave him alone if he became a lifeless husk without a goal in life. Though she did not know what she could do to help him. Still, it would be better than leaving him on his own.

In a way, he had been the instigator of the fierce battle that was waged on that place. Grado Schedar, a Sky Denizen, part of a branch of the Fifth Anima, a group that worshiped spirits. Mira had never heard his name, but his existence had been burned into her memory.

Less than an hour later, the airship had arrived above Sentopolly. A bit before that, Mira had summoned Garuda, a summon that would attract plenty of attention as Kagura had requested. Mira had ordered the bird to stand out as much as it could, so now it flew in circles around the airship, gently flapping its wings to show off, the feathers reflecting the morning sun in richly saturated colors.

It was still somewhat early in the morning, right around the time when most of the bustling in the streets had calmed down, while the adventurers began to go out and head to work.

Everyone was looking up and making a fuss at the large airship that came out of nowhere, and the brightly colored bird circling around it that could be mistaken for a sacred eagle. That noise caught the attention of those staying indoors, who began opening the windows and looking up as well.

「I guess we should start soon.」

When the chattering reached its peak, Alioth stood on the airship’s bow. 「Let’s do this then,」 he told the spirits. The spirits were ready, and nodded before activating their magic. A thick cloud spread in front of the airship, but it was not a normal one.

「Oh… it’s a screen.」

Mira watched from a corner of the airship, half impressed and half shocked. Water spirits created the veil of mist, then the light spirits dyed it with colors, acting like a projector showing Alioth standing on the airship’s bow.

There was even more noise coming from the streets below, but Mira felt even more spirit magic around her, the effect of which she soon noticed.

『We’re here to announce that early this morning, a secret operation conducted by our subjugation troops finished the long fight against the great evil known as Chimera Clauzen.』

The loud announcement of their victory could be heard throughout the city. Everyone heard Alioth’s voice as clear as if he was standing next to them.

(So the wind spirits are acting like megaphones. I was wondering how effective this would be from this height, but with the spirits’ support it’s working surprisingly well.)

By being projected on the sky, his voice audible in the entire city, and the contents of his announcement, Alioth had attracted the attention of basically everyone in the city. Though their shock at what surrounded the airship gripped their attention more than the announcement. Some were doubtful of the news, while many others simply pointed at Garuda and muttered, 「What’s that, it looks so amazing,」 in wondrous voices.

But they had anticipated that reaction. After a pause for dramatic effect, Alioth continued.

『Let me introduce you to some representatives of the people who fought with us. First, he’s an adventurer famous as a dragon slayer: Jack Grave the One Hit Dragon Slayer!』

As he spoke, the large floating screen showed a picture of a warrior standing on the ship’s deck.

『This is Jack Grave, I led a group of valiant warriors in this mission. I’m quite relieved knowing we were able to put an end to that evil organization Chimera Clauzen.』

He seemed to be in his mid-twenties, carried a long and wide sword on his back, and wore crimson armor. He had sharp, handsome features, but in contrast to his appearance his voice and demeanor were gentle, and after a quick bow he smiled bashfully.

That was followed by loud high pitched shrieks that reached all the way up to the airship.

He was strong enough to take down dragons, strikingly good looks that caught the eye, but a shy smile that activated a motherly instinct, that was Jack Grave. In a way, he was a bonafide idol, the material of heroic tales.

(I see… He’s the perfect choice for a role like this.)

Mira had an awkward smile as she watched the immediate effect he had on the streets, which were filled with shrill cries.

In a situation like this, the best option was to seize the people’s attention. It was a really good strategy to differentiate the reactions people had to Chimera Clauzen’s defeat.

Even if there was an opposition to the group in the future, Jack Grave knew his participation had been correct, and that fighting Chimera Clauzen was the right thing to do. Everyone in the city also agreed to that now.

As Mira thought of all that, they introduced the next person.

『Next, she’s the leader of the White Moon Knights guild, the group of heroes that single-handedly liberated a country’s capital from the grasp of the Orc General’s army: Eleonora of the Moonlight Cross!』

Just like with Jack Grave, after Alioth introduced her, the picture of a female knight standing on the ship’s deck was transmitted onto the screen.

『It’s nice to be here, everyone. I’m Eleonora, leader of the White Moon Knights. We fought as part of the second unit in this battle. Chimera Clauzen were an evil and dastardly group, and they fought back vehemently. But with the help of all our dependable allies reunited here we managed to take them down without suffering any losses, which I’m truly grateful for.』