I was preparing for the entrance ceremony at Memoria General Academy with Mother when I decided to check on the Memorian MINERVA one last time, only to find Hunters using MARS.
Since the entrance ceremony hadn’t happened yet, it was open to Hunters two days a week, and it seemed to be quite popular, which was good.
Currently, six Hunters were utilizing the newly added marine combat pattern to battle B-rank and N-rank Monsters, Thunder Squids.
“Is that a squid?”
“Yeah. It’s a B-rank Monster called a Thunder Squid. They often appear between Amister and Valentia, so those Hunters are probably heading to Valentia afterward.”
Hunters are also onboard the regular ships that sail between Amister and Valentia as guards. The reason for this is to deal with Monsters that attack along the way. Sea Monsters are difficult to fight, and without boarding a ship, there are few opportunities to fight them, making them frequently used among the illusion Monsters in MINERVA. Therefore, Hunters planning to travel by ship use it to learn about Monster ecology in advance. Thunder Squids and C-rank N-rank Monsters, Éclair Dolphins, are particularly common due to their moderate rank and frequent encounters.
“So, it’s not safe even on a ship.”
“On the contrary, ships are conspicuous and might even be more dangerous. Well, since we can’t travel without a ship, there’s nothing we can do about it.”
Even if one contracts a flying mount, it needs to be rested at a town, and there are many flying Monsters, so the skies aren’t exactly safe either. Besides, ships can carry many people at once, which is superior to mounts that can only carry the contractor and a few companions.
“I see. Yamato and the others travel in a Beast Carriage pulled by Athena and Eos, but that’s not common, is it?”
“It’s not common; even Royalty can’t do that. Well, Emperor Folias of Valentia is marrying Athena’s sister, so it might be possible after all.”
Athena’s sister, Iris, is scheduled to marry Emperor Folias in May. As a result, I will become Emperor Folias’s brother-in-law. However, as the Celestial Emperor’s brother-in-law, the Phantom King’s husband, and the future father of the next Vald Beast Duke, it doesn’t feel like a big deal anymore. Putting that aside, it’s a different matter whether the Dragon Queen can actually travel by Beast Carriage, as it would likely cause many problems.
“That’s true. Oh, right. Hey Yamato, can Mother use MARS later too?”
“Huh? No, I don’t think it would mean anything to you, Mother?”
Mother suddenly wanted to use MARS, but the Magic Stones with high usage frequency range from I-rank to S-rank, and there weren’t even any M-rank or higher Magic Stones available. So, if she uses it, it would be at most P-rank. But if Mother were to use it, I feel even Demise Species would be insufficient.
“I don’t want to fight, I just want to experience what it’s like. After all, you created MARS, right?”
“It wasn’t just me; Mako, Flam, and Ludia were involved too. In fact, the Crafter’s Guild is registered with four creators.”
I came up with the concept for MARS, but Mako’s wisdom was a great help, and Flam and Ludia also contributed their unique ideas for the overcoat and barrier patterns. Thanks to them, MARS was completed, so I can’t say I made it all by myself.
“I know that. But it’s true that Yamato is one of the creators, isn’t it? That’s why.”
If that’s the case, then fine. Well, since she wants to experience it herself, I suppose it’s alright.
“Understood. However, you can’t cut in line, so you’ll have to wait a bit?”
“Of course. Until then, I’ll watch the Hunters battle carefully.”
For some reason, I felt quite sorry for the Hunters. It’s reasonably well-known that my Father and Mother are at Helios Orb. While my being an Arc Human over level 210 isn’t public knowledge, the fact that I’m stronger than them is known in some circles. However, it’s not officially announced, so some people don’t know. Unless the Hunters are active in areas like Float, Polar, or Feel, few would have heard of it. So, it’s not strange for the Hunters using MARS not to know about my Mother, but knowing her level and race, I can’t help but think this way.
“Ah, that’s right. Hey Yamato.”
“Hm? What is it?”
“It’s nothing in particular, but aren’t you going to make Airships or something?”
“Huh?”
My Mother suddenly said that while watching the Hunters fight. Airships, why all of a sudden?
“Well, it’s a common trope in isekai reincarnation stories, isn’t it? That’s a story, but having actually come to this world, I thought flying vehicles would be useful. At first, I considered Dragonian transformation or flying Monsters, but if those aren’t common, then I thought maybe we could create them.”
Indeed, we have Athena and Eos pull our Beast Carriage for travel, and once we’ve been somewhere, we use Traveling, so our travel speed is probably the fastest in Helios Orb. While contracting with flying mounts is common, they require quite a bit of food, making them not easily accessible to everyone. Dragonians and Traveling are both rare, so being able to use them is unusual.
“So, you mean Mother wants me to try developing an Airship as a long-distance transport for ordinary people?”
“Yes. There are Monsters in the sea, and even more powerful ones at that, aren’t there? With magic that allows flight and running, isn’t the sky still easier to deal with?”
Indeed, my Mother is right; sea Monsters are powerful, and they are said to be equivalent to one rank higher when submerged. Moreover, even though I and Mako have tried water-breathing magic and other spells, there’s no sign of them being cast, so only Undines and Water Dragon-type Dragonewts and Dragonians can fight underwater. However, for flying Monsters, their Monster Rank is as it appears. With Prim and Mako’s Supplication Magic, Flying and Scaffolding, aerial combat is becoming mainstream, making them arguably easier to deal with than underwater Monsters. Of course, the possibility of encountering high-rank Monsters cannot be denied, but that’s the same for ships. Therefore, flying Airships might be safer.
“I never thought of that. But you might be right, Mother. I’ll talk to everyone when we get back and try to figure something out.”
“Yes. I’d like to ride it if possible, but two weeks is pretty tight, isn’t it?”
“I can’t really say.”
Since Mother came up with the idea, I’d like to make at least a prototype and let her ride it. However, with only about two weeks left until Mother returns to Japan, it’s undoubtedly difficult. Of course, I’ll do my best, but there’s also the problem of how to make the ship fly, and it could take days to even come up with an idea. Scaffolding uses Magic Power to create an artificial foothold, so its applicability to Airships is questionable. Flying requires wings, so it’s also unpredictable how it would turn out if applied to an Airship. The standard propeller seems like the safest bet, but then maybe adding wind-attribute magic would suffice.
“Ah! That Hunter just lowered their weapon!”
“Ah, that’s because they received a fatal blow and dropped out. See, Life Bar.”
“You’re right. It’s good that it can be confirmed from the outside.”
As I was contemplating Airship development, one of the Hunters was hit by an intense blow infused with the Thunder Squid’s thunder-attribute magic, depleting their Life Bar. Ah, they’re having trouble recovering after one person was taken out. All six Hunters currently fighting are Normal Class, but they don’t seem very experienced in combat.
“They don’t seem very experienced in combat, do they?”
“You think so too, Mother?”
Mother had the same impression as me, which was understandable. Even I felt they lacked experience, so to Mother, they would seem even more unseasoned. As expected, after one person was taken out, they were defeated one after another, and the last remaining Hunter was also struck down by a direct hit of thunder-attribute magic.
“If they could have recovered there, it might have been different, but after losing one member, they got flustered, and from then on, it was a downward spiral.”
“That’s fatal for a Hunter. It’s understandable to get flustered when a comrade falls, but they didn’t even show a sign of recovery, so it’s only natural they were wiped out.”
“If this weren’t MARS but a real fight, those kids would have died, wouldn’t they?”
That’s right. If this were on land, there would be the option to escape. But in a ship battle, there’s no escape, so the chances of survival are virtually nil.
“I designed this to reduce such situations, and I’ve heard it’s effective, but there are still those who overestimate their abilities. Especially since it’s an illusion, they won’t get injured no matter how much they’re hit, and they might get arrogant after defeating it once, even by chance.”
Illusions are just illusions, after all. If you encounter the real thing, you can’t experience the pressure or poison the opponent exerts. Poison can be fatal, and encountering high-rank Monsters might leave you unable to move. Therefore, it’s necessary to understand that an illusion is not the same as the real thing. While I hear there are fewer Hunters acting recklessly now, I suspect reckless hunters will emerge eventually. It’s a Hunter’s own responsibility, so I can’t take responsibility for that.
“So, are those kids too early to fight a Monster called a Thunder Squid?”
“Rather, it’s too early to fight on a ship. I suspect they have almost no combat experience against B-rank Monsters. It would be tough to handle a Thunder Squid unless they’ve at least fought a land-dwelling B-rank Monster.”
Since Thunder Squids are aquatic, in the marine combat pattern, they can be considered one rank higher. In other words, a B-rank Thunder Squid becomes equivalent to an S-rank. Judging by their performance, they likely can’t even handle a land-dwelling B-rank Monster satisfactorily, let alone an aquatic one on a ship.
“You’re just spouting whatever you want, listening silently until now!”
“That’s right! We were careless earlier, that’s why we lost, but if we fight properly, we can handle B-rank Monsters!”
It seems they overheard our conversation, and the Hunters from earlier started complaining, but I guess we were also at fault. However, carelessness against Monsters is a matter of life and death, and making such remarks proves their immaturity.
“I didn’t mean to ridicule you, but do you understand that those words are not valid excuses?”
“Where do you get that? Since it’s an illusion, you can fight it as many times as you want, right?”
“That’s just it. While you can fight it again because it’s an illusion, if it were real, you all would be at the bottom of the sea, ship and all. In fact, the ship has been judged as destroyed and sunk.”
“Saying you were careless because it was an illusion is a third-rate excuse. Aren’t you going to get yourself killed by the real thing, disregarding the outcome because it’s ‘just an illusion’ even if you lose?”
Mother’s words are harsh, but I agree with her.
“You said it! Then, why don’t you try it!”
“That’s right. B-rank Monsters are troublesome for us too, so you’ll defeat them easily, won’t you?”
Ah, so they have experience subjugating land-dwelling B-rank Monsters. So, the next step is an aquatic species, but their reasoning is too simplistic, or rather… If they want me to do it, fine, but don’t these guys know who I am? I’ve been to Memoria quite often, so I thought I was moderately well-known. It doesn’t matter, though.
“Okay. Then I’ll do it.”
“No, Mother, you don’t need to. I’ll handle this.”
“But Mother wants to try too?”
“I’ll prepare it later. Besides, this is a matter I should handle.”
They seem greatly surprised, perhaps not realizing we are parent and child. In fact, Mother seems a bit younger since coming to Helios Orb, so it’s not strange they don’t see us as parent and child. While looking younger could mean someone is trying to appear youthful, it mostly signifies evolution, so they would at least understand that Mother has evolved. For a High Class, B-rank Monsters are easily subjugated individually, so it wouldn’t mean much to them, who are already mistaken.
That being said, it wouldn’t make much difference even if I did it. Well, since they asked me to, I guess I’ll do my best to meet their expectations.
