Yuu Tanaka Read online

  CLANG! Clang! Clang!

  Alarm bells rang in the night as a large crowd of people ran toward safety. It was a

  normal reaction, given that a dangerous prisoner had just escaped from death row.

  “Lady Miriam! We’ve received news of his last sighting!”

  “Where is he?!”

  “The military docks, ma’am!”

  “Impossible!”

  How was he at the docks already? I’d even posted more guards there!

  “Carla, we’re heading down there!”

  “Yes, ma’am!”

  He’d managed to escape a maximum-security prison. He must’ve had help on the inside.

  “Is he alone?”

  “No. There are reports of him with the murderer brothers…”

  “Confound it! They were in the same cell?”

  “They escaped together. The guards have already suffered casualties.”

  “At least we know where they’re going.”

  “The Sea Dragons?”

  “Valussa, to be specific. They’re still contracted. He’s going to take his Sea Dragon and

  run.”

  The Sea Dragon-class vessels were Seedrun’s strongest battleships. We only had two

  actual Sea Dragons left to run them, which left only two vessels: my sister’s Warnate

  and my Aqouis. Wishkar, my uncle’s former vessel, was currently out at sea. My fool

  brother’s dragon, Valussa, was being treated after the damage Fran had done to it.

  “We have to stop him from boarding Valussa.”

  Valussa was still hooked up to its ship and, since we couldn’t get a new captain to form

  a contract with it, still connected to my brother. He couldn’t have picked a better time

  to break out of jail. Stealing Valussa must’ve been his plan all along.

  “We can’t let Suarez take our Sea Dragon…!”

  ***

  We left Ulmutt and ran toward Bulbola. Of course, Jet did most of the running, while

  Fran and I just rode on his back. The roads were beginning to look familiar. It had taken

  us four days to get to Ulmutt, so I was sure we would could make it back to Bulbola

  quicker.

  As it turned out, that wasn’t to be. Two days later, we were most of the way there, but

  we ran into something we couldn’t ignore.

  “H-help!”

  “Eeek!”

  “Gaaargh!”

  Lesser Wyverns surrounded a band of merchants. The monsters were no match for us,

  but they were more than enough to terrify the businessmen. The sight reminded me

  of the Lesser Wyvern I fought back in the Demon Wolf’s Garden, back when I had just

  reincarnated. I fought it to the point of shattering, so I could only imagine the fear the

  merchants were feeling. There was a whole flock of the drakes, too. Over ten, at least.

  “Jet.”

  “Woof.”

  At Fran’s signal, Jet broke into a full sprint.

  “Oh gods!”

  “As if those winged lizards weren’t enough, there’s a direwolf now, too?!”

  “We’re done for!”

  The sudden appearance of a giant wolf threw the merchants into further panic. None

  of them expected help to come riding on such a beast. They ran, although they looked

  like they’d given up. As panic turned into despair, they slowed down. Fran called out

  to reassure them.

  “Friendly.”

  “Wait, what? A girl?”

  They finally noticed Fran.

  “I-Is that your wolf, little lady?”

  “Hey… you’re the Black Lightning Princess!”

  “Hm.”

  They knew Fran well enough. Now that their hope had been rekindled, they ran faster.

  Not bad for people whose main priority was money. At least it was better than curling

  up into a ball and crying.

  “You guys need help?”

  “Yes!”

  “Please!”

  “W-we’d really appreciate it!”

  I wasn’t expecting much of a reward, but leaving them to die would haunt me in my

  sleep.

  “I get to keep the materials.”

  “Of course!”

  “We’ll pay you!”

  “Not handsomely maybe, but…”

  “Shut up, you idiot!”

  “What if she leaves us to fend for ourselves?!”

  “Guys, she’s a high-rank adventurer! Do you really think we have enough money to pay

  for her services!”

  “W-we may not have enough money now, but that can be arranged…”

  The men were hopeful enough to start arguing. Was it all an act to get a price cut? It

  didn’t matter. I would’ve saved them for free, but if we did that, we risked getting

  underestimated in the future. If word got out that the Black Lightning Princess had a

  soft spot for innocents in trouble, a lot of not-so-innocent people would take advantage.

  But there was one problem: we didn’t know the going rate for saving people from

  immediate danger.

  What do we do, Teacher?

  Quoting a random price would only cause problems down the line. We’ll put aside the

  issue for now.

  “Pay me later. In the meantime, you can discuss how much you think being saved is

  worth. I’ll take that as payment.”

  “Huh? Uhh—”

  “Now get going. You might get caught up in this.”

  I buffed us with support magic and we ran faster. Before the merchants had a chance

  to open negotiations, Fran and Jet left them in the dust.

  “Wait—”

  “What should we—”

  “Can we get a baseline price—”

  Even as we left them behind, they were still shouting at Fran for a quote. I hoped they

  could settle that themselves, since we had no idea…

  Maybe we were being too harsh. In effect, a C-Rank adventurer had asked how much

  their lives were worth. Pay Fran too little, and they risked rumors of their insincerity

  and cheapness, which would really spell the end of their business careers. Perhaps we

  should’ve told them to pay us at market rate.

  Well, it was too late to worry about that now. We had Lesser Wyverns to kill. The

  monsters were little more than wild animals, and they felt Fran and Jet’s presence as

  an immediate threat. They stopped chasing after the merchants and hovered over us,

  glaring down from their vantage point. Whether they charged us or fled, they knew

  they were dead.

  “Teacher.”

  What’s up?

  “There’s something I wanna try.”

  What?

  “Kanna Kamuy.”

  Uh-huh…

  We had tested the skill in dungeons before, but never in actual combat. When we’d

  used it at the fighting tournament, it was restricted by a barrier. Now was a good time

  to see what it could do.

  “Let’s fire a shot and see what happens.”

  Alright. I’ll get it ready, so make sure those drakes don’t get away.

  “Hm.”

  Kanna Kamuy was a Level 10 thunder spell, and very difficult to control. The slightest

  mistake in the incantation and I’d have to start all over again. That was probably why

  my version was significantly more powerful than Fran’s. The casting only took half the

  time for me, too. I had Speed Thinking, Double Mind, and Mage to thank for
that.

  There was one other problem. Casting Kanna Kamuy gave Fran fierce headaches. The

  first time she tried it, she got a nosebleed. The load it placed on her brain was just too

  much. I never wanted Fran to use it again. A spell which took such a great toll on her

  mind sounded like it might also shave a couple years off her life. Which meant that I

  was on Kanna Kamuy duty. As Fran and Jet Intimidated the Lesser Wyverns to prevent

  them from escaping, I focused my mana.

  Okay, I’m good to go!

  “Hm. The merchants are at a safe distance, too.”

  There was no threat of them being caught in the explosion. I released the spell.

  Kanna Kamuy!

  A brilliant pillar of white lightning fell on the Lesser Wyverns. The spell’s destructive

  power was more visible out in the open. The light split the sky open and even seemed

  to singe the clouds. The flash was followed by an appropriately loud crack of thunder.

  The lightning was bright enough to blind, and its thunder loud enough to deafen. It

  caused a rumbling that reverberated to the pit of your stomach, like the descent of a

  furious thunder god.

  Fran and Jet covered their ears, but the merchants could only shriek in fear. When the

  flash of lightning dissipated, Fran and Jet tilted their heads to look at what was left of

  the battlefield. I would’ve done the same, if I still had a head.

  “Huh?”

  “Woof?”

  Oh?

  The Lesser Wyverns were completely obliterated.

  I guess that was too much.

  There wasn’t a trace of them, not even ashes. All that was left was a crater, fifteen meters

  in circumference. The center of it had crystallized into glass, and the surrounding

  forest wasn’t spared from the lightning, either. What wasn’t disintegrated was burnt

  to a crisp and scattered by the explosive force of the thunderbolt. Using this spell in a

  city would spell disaster for hundreds of people.

  Let’s not use this unless we absolutely have to.

  If we had allies with us, they definitely would’ve been caught up in it. Even the

  merchants didn’t escape completely unscathed. The loud blast certainly damaged

  their eardrums and they were screaming in terror. Fran hurried to their side to

  administer healing magic.

  I don’t see any crystals left, either.

  “What a waste.”

  “Woof.”

  Jet barked in disappointment, having been denied fresh (or even burnt) wyvern meat.

  “You okay?”

  “…”

  “…”

  After Fran had healed the merchants, they got back up and surveyed their surroundings.

  “Oh, uhh…”

  “Thank you…”

  “So about that payment…”

  It took a while before they came back to their senses, and their faces were still pale.

  The spell was too intense for a civilian. Given the devastation we’d caused, there would

  be no bargaining. The merchants were probably still frightened for their lives.

  “I’m so sorry, but the three of us only have 50,000G on us right now…”

  That was quite a lot, but I guess it was necessary considering their trade. 50,000 didn’t

  sound like much to them—employing a high-rank adventurer must cost a lot more.

  Fran beat an A-Rank in the tournament, so she must have been worth more than the

  average C-Rank. Still, she consented to the price.

  “I’ll take it.”

  “What? Are you sure?”

  “Hm. You still got hit by my spell.”

  Our experiment had hurt them, even though we managed to heal them in time. Having

  threatened their lives, it was only reasonable that we gave them a discount.

  “Th-thank you very much.”

  “You saved us big time!”

  “We mean it!”

  The businessmen thanked us, despite having to hand over all the money they had. The

  market rate must’ve been a lot. We parted ways and went ahead of them, still on the

  same highway. We planned to clear the way, not as an after-sales service, but just so

  they wouldn’t get in trouble again.

  As we walked along the road, we found people marching from Bulbola to Ulmutt. The

  squadron looked too lightly armed to be knights, but they were far too uniform to be

  an adventuring party. Their discipline suggested that they were not your run-of-the-

  mill bandits, either. But they were certainly armed, and broadcast a violent atmosphere.

  Well, what now? Hopefully, they would let us pass without batting an eye… But things

  might get hairy if they decided to pick a fight.

  “Do we take a detour?”

  No, they might misunderstand that.

  We were already in their sights. Dropping off the main road would make it look like

  we were running away. We didn’t know what they wanted, but any suspicious moves

  on our part might provoke them.

  Just be ready for a fight.

  “Hm.”

  “Woof.”

  Jet slowed down, and we walked toward the mysterious squadron. As we drew closer,

  the unit readied their weapons. I even spotted an archer among them. They were wise

  enough not to attack on sight, mainly because we weren’t broadcasting any murderous

  intent. The unit wasn’t particularly strong, so they had every reason to be cautious.

  Each individual was around the same level as an E-Rank. Their leader might be on the

  cusp of hitting D-Rank.

  Their gaze was fixed more on Jet than Fran. Fair enough. A powerful direwolf would

  give even the sleepiest of vanguards cause for concern. Jet was nothing more than a

  cute big dog to us, but to the unacquainted he was a gigantic menacing wolf.

  Fran, get off of Jet and start walking. We don’t want to spook them.

  “Hm. Got it.”

  Jet, get in the shadows.

  “Woof.”

  Jet shrank and melted into Fran’s shadow, eliciting a startled cry from the squadron.

  Fran walked toward them. I readied myself to teleport us above them and rain down

  magical death if things went south.

  Fran kept walking. Fifty, then forty, then thirty, then twenty meters. As we passed them,

  the leader of the squad called out to Fran.

  “H-hey! You!”

  “Hmm?”

  “Where’d that wolf go?! A-anyway, how dare you just walk by us without saying a word!”

  “Hi. Bye.”

  “Get back here, girl!”

  Oh boy, here we go again. What should we do? They were weak enough to be cut down

  and forgotten about, but… we still didn’t know who they were.

  “You’ve never heard of the Dimmel Squad?”

  No, of course not. Were all mercenaries like this? Fran frowned; their behavior

  reminded her of the Blue Pride group we encountered back in Ulmutt. I don’t think

  we’d met a single decent person among the mercenary class. I supposed it was a last-

  ditch occupation, which attracted the attention of outcasts from all walks of life.

  The man leaped from one question to another, starting from Fran’s identity, to Jet’s

  whereabouts, to what lay ahead on road. He was getting increasingly frustrated at

  Fran’s flippant treatment, speaking louder with every word.

  What now, Teacher?

  Hmm. Just ignore him, I guess.

  Just as we were about to move on, something stirred behind the vanguard. Backup had

  ar
rived, and there were enough of them now to present a mild threat. I charged my

  mana and observed the situation carefully. If it came to it, we might have to wipe them

  out.

  “What’s the holdup, Vasque?”

  “Dad—Boss. I was interrogating a foreign element.”

  “Interrogate? Our job is to exterminate the Lesser Wyverns that are terrorizing the

  highway. Did you find a bandit scout?”

  “Not exactly, no…”

  “Then what is it? We didn’t come out here to play!”

  “I’ll squeeze whatever information I can out of her, just wait a minute!”

  Squeeze information out of Fran, you say? Interesting. I’d love to see you try. We could

  kill him and use the rest as target practice for Fran’s thunder magic. She looked like

  she was on board with the idea. She squinted and dropped into a ready position. As

  soon as the fighting started, she’d lop off Vasque’s head. After that, the squad would

  scatter.

  Their leader sensed our growing battle urge. He pushed his son out of the way and

  stepped forward. Did he want to see who his enemy was? A single glance at us and he

  turned pale. The man turned around and punched his son squarely in the face.

  “Gah! What are you doing, Dad!”

  “You idiot! You stupid, stupid idiot!”

  “Urk! Gah!”

  He followed up with enough kicks to knock Vasque unconscious. The other mercenaries

  could only stare at him in confusion. We could relate. Did he think Fran was nobility?

  “I am truly sorry for what my foolish subordinate did! We are no threat to you! Please

  forgive us!”

  The men were even more startled now—their leader was on his knees, apologizing as

  if his life depended on it. He must have mistaken Fran for somebody important.

  “On your knees, you lot! Now! Or I will cut you where you stand!”

  The order was absurd, but the threat was not. The other men slowly got to their knees

  and bowed. The gesture was obviously insincere, but we dealt with it.

  “I truly apologize for the rudeness of my men, Black Lightning Princess.”

  I guess he knew exactly who he was talking to. Fran was famous enough now that

  mercenaries didn’t want to get on her bad side. At the very least, their boss knew that