“Well then, Jiro-, take care!”
“Ah, thank you. Please lend me your strength again.”
The battle between me and Fenrir ended in a mutual loss.
If that’s the case, I can’t maintain a high-ranking spirit like this for long, as it consumes a lot of magic power.
I sent words of gratitude and asked Valse-san to return.
Watching her disappear into light, along with her companion, a white snake, we were left in an untouched space despite the fierce battle.
“Hey! What are you going to do about these wounds?!”
“Saml didn’t stop you either. Haa, am I going to get yelled at by a sister for this?”
Although Fenrir and I reconciled through the fight, now the little ones are complaining to me.
Saml and Yaml, fuming with anger, were healing Fenrir.
It was mainly Saml who complained to me, but she didn’t stop her hands from treating Fenrir.
“I’m the one who’s all messed up here.”
I gave Saml a deadpan stare.
My whole body ached from the damage I sustained in the fight with Fenrir.
If I were told to fight another battle right now, I could do it, but the damage was enough to make me want to run away at full speed if possible.
That’s why I couldn’t accept Saml’s complaints. If anything, I had more to complain about.
Even though the battle started with my misstatement, I managed to win in a situation where my defense and attack power were lower.
There’s no reason for me to be complained at, as I didn’t intervene in the fight.
“Ngh!”
“Hold still. Honestly, you’re lucky to have only sustained these minor injuries when you challenged Fenrir without even bringing a potion.”
At least before the fight, Saml was watching with enjoyment.
I won’t accept complaints from someone like that.
As I glared at him, the bandage around my arm was tightened, causing me pain and a yelp.
Looking at Evia, who was treating me, she was frowning, looking at my injuries with an expression of astonishment at my resilience.
“Minor injuries? Several of my bones were cracked.”
“You mean it wouldn’t have just been cracks for a normal person! You’re lucky!!”
Evia called them minor injuries, but I could feel cracks in my ribs, legs, and arms.
Well, considering the power I faced, it’s a light injury if it’s only cracks.
Honestly, if I hadn’t been trained by the instructor, I probably wouldn’t have gotten away with just these injuries.
“I can’t deny that, but is it too much to ask to be trained a little more gently?”
“It’s excessive.”
“It’s excessive, you know! There are plenty of people who want to fight me?”
But even in my fights with the instructor, where I’ve become accustomed to it and given up any hope, I’m training my body in a way that would be considered abnormal from an outside perspective.
I thought I could at least express a faint wish, but my plea was deemed excessive by both Evia and the instructor, so I hung my head in disappointment.
“It’s done. Just hold still until the two of them finish treating Fenrir.”
“Thanks to you carving into him quite deeply, it’s going to take a while. Really, you cause so much trouble.”
“Come on, Saml, stop complaining and get to work!”
“I’m working!”
Saml and Yaml were the only ones who could use healing magic here.
They were completely engrossed in treating Fenrir.
That’s why Evia was applying first aid to fix me up.
“By the way, how did you manage to get past this kid’s defenses? It should normally be difficult to even wound his body.”
After the treatment, I had free time waiting for my turn.
I didn’t have any plans for today other than the beast reception, but I wanted to ask my past self why I was putting so much effort into just a reception.
I can’t undo what I’ve done, but I need to reflect, especially on the fact that my desire to fight had intensified. As I was heavily reflecting, Saml asked me another question.
When I turned my gaze towards her, I saw Saml frowning at the wound I had inflicted on Fenrir, and she turned her face towards me.
A girl healing the wound of a ten-meter-tall toy poodle would be a rather nice picture, but for some reason, I couldn’t accept it easily.
“Since you raised this kid, you should know more about him.”
Was it because we were just fighting for our lives, or was there another reason?
Either way, a girl who loves fighting and a divine beast that seems to enjoy fighting—this combination alone is not normal.
“It’s the opposite! Really, I adjusted my power so that only someone like Lord Luina could damage him. But he’s actually taking damage. If there’s something I overlooked, it means it could be a weakness against even a Hero. That can’t be right.”
“……”
I was taken aback when the battle-loving girl said she wanted to identify areas for improvement.
“What’s with that look? Like you’ve seen something unexpected.”
“Well, that’s true, but you’re surprisingly serious about your work.”
“Hmph! I’m always unserious, okay!”
This girl isn’t just a battle enthusiast; she also has the mental flexibility to honestly accept her mistakes and learn from them.
“So, are you going to teach me or not?”
But there’s a proper way to ask things, isn’t there?
Does she really think I’ll teach her with such a blunt question?
…Well, I’ll teach her.
“Before that, a confirmation: does this kid, uh, does Fenrir have a name?”
Before explaining, I couldn’t know the individual name of this Fenrir, so I looked up at the giant’s face and asked for its name.
“It’s Feri. Feri from Fenrir.”
“How uninspired.”
The simple name, just two syllables from Fenrir, brought a wry smile to my face. I gave Fenrir, Feri, a questioning look, and it asked back with a look that said, “Do you have a problem?” I honestly lowered my head and replied, “No.”
“Uh, right, the means of bypassing Feri’s defense.”
I changed my body into a more comfortable posture and quickly channeled magic into my eyes to see through Feri’s body. Unlike during the battle, I could see a gentle flow of magic.
“Feri’s defense method is essentially to constantly flow magic into the fur on its body to harden it, and to also cover the entire surface of its body with a membrane for defense, right?”
“That’s right.”
“Based on the feel, it’s like five or six layers. Is it like a layered barrier constantly wrapped around it, with the fur beneath absorbing the impact?”
“You’re right.”
Furthermore, based on the feel I got when I fought Feri, I deduced Feri’s defensive method. Saml, as if displeased that I was correct, urged me to continue with a sulky expression.
This much can be figured out quickly in a fight.
“And the most troublesome thing I found during the fight was that layered barrier. The spell for each layer is different, isn’t it?”
From here on, it’s speculation.
Feri’s defense felt like hitting a compressed block of metal.
At first, I thought it was just hardening its body by channeling magic into its flesh, but in reality, it was demonstrating that level of defense with magic alone.
“You knew that much?”
“And you can change the order of the membranes that appear on the surface, right? Or perhaps, you could change the spell of the membrane itself?”
“……”
The trick behind it is changing the order of the membranes according to their purpose.
There are membranes specialized for magic defense, membranes specialized for physical defense, and others that can handle poison, curses, or even other things.
The strong barrier deployed constantly changes its durability depending on its purpose.
A versatile barrier can handle all sorts of situations, but on the other hand, it can be broken by specialized firepower.
As it defends universally, its strength is diffused.
Conversely, if it deploys defenses specialized for flames, it’s perfect against fire, but other aspects become neglected.
That’s why Feri’s defense used a continuously flowing magic barrier manipulated with an inexhaustible amount of magic.
“Defense can also be an offense. This is what it looks like when Feri maximizes its defensive spells. It’s stronger to focus on defense and brute force with Fenrir’s inherent abilities than to have various other means.”
The claws and fangs hardened by defensive spells simply became weapons.
Fangs and claws harder than anything else.
There was almost nothing that couldn’t be crunched or torn.
With the ability to brute force with magic, there was nothing to fear.
“So, are you satisfied with showing off that your prediction is correct?”
The more accurate my prediction was, the more Saml’s mood soured.
This was just confirmation, but she completely missed the point.
“This is where the main topic begins. Looking at the magic flow, it’s clear that its entire body is enveloped. At that point, I understood that its body itself wasn’t being strengthened, but the problem is whether the barrier can be broken even if the logic is understood. In the first place, our magic capacity difference is like trying to counter a power plant with household solar panels. The fundamental aspect needs to be changed for this to work.”
Feri’s magic capacity is vast enough to maintain a dungeon.
My own magic capacity has also become quite considerable…
If I wanted to, I could probably activate a dungeon myself, but my recovery rate hasn’t reached superhuman levels yet.
Even if I could match the output for a moment, I would lose in terms of endurance.
Up to this point, I have lost in the area of magic.
And losing in the area of magic means I cannot break through Feri’s defense.
“……Change the fundamental aspect? How?”
“That’s my trump card. What spirit is Valse-san?”
However, that’s if I fought one-on-one with the same output.
“I think she’s the spirit of time, right?”
“Yes, that’s right. I used Valse-san’s power to become ten times my normal self for that moment and unleashed it.”
“Huh? What are you talking about? I don’t understand.”
And it’s impossible for them to understand just because I suddenly became ten people.
“I see, so that’s what it means.”
“Hahahaha! You’re thinking of something interesting.”
“Ah, I see, so that’s what it is.”
“What? Everyone else understood except me! Hey Jiro-, what’s the answer?!”
“Well, I’ll tell you, but…”
Saml, perhaps not wanting to hear it, tried to get the answer quickly.
If someone asked me like that while I was a child, I’d want to tease them, but time is precious, so I’ll just tell her normally.
“I used a delay magic. The moment my attack touched Feri’s defense. I extended the thought time, accelerated one second into ten, and continuously cast the same magic right at the moment of impact.”
“Eh, does that mean…”
“Yes, to break through the barrier, I cast ten spells in an instant without Feri noticing. In other words, it looked like one spell, but I actually cast ten spells.”
“What the heck?! That’s cheating!”
“It’s a cheat-like ability because it’s a special spirit. But this has its drawbacks too. It consumes a lot of magic power since I’m using ten large spells for a single attack, and I’m also using magic to activate Valse-san’s ability, so effectively, I’m consuming double the magic power.”
A cheating ability comes with a corresponding price.
This was a technique I originally devised to inflict great damage on the instructor in an instant, but it’s not something I can use often due to its poor fuel efficiency and significant reduction in sustained combat capability.
It’s unavoidable that this was the only method I could think of on the spur of the moment to break through Feri’s defense.
The opponent was expecting to receive one attack, but I had prepared dozens of attacks to be delivered consecutively.
I figured that way, I could break through its defenses.
“Cheating, cheating, cheating!! You won with such power!”
“Unfortunately, adults are cunning creatures.”
It’s unfair to be told that the power I gained through hard work is cheating, but I casually brushed it off with the confidence of a victor.
To onlookers, it might seem like an adult beating a child in a childish manner, but in reality, Saml is older.
The winner is just; that’s the Demon Lord’s Army’s principle.
“Now that we seem to have reconciled with the divine beast, let’s discuss what happens next. Is that alright?”
Evia’s expression, as she interrupted our exchange, was one of slight exasperation, as if to say, “Enough already.”
Today’s word:
Sometimes, you can’t choose how you do things.
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Currently, I am serializing another work: Pandora Pandemic Panic. The Pandora’s Box has been reopened, but we are fighting back with various things at our secret base! Please check it out as well!
