“It’s scary at night, isn’t it?”
Today’s supposed to be a day off, but Nina and Clarice are working overtime.
With a Hero and a Sage, there shouldn’t be any problems. In fact, they might even reach the Boss Room as a pair.
But in reality, Nina probably wants to catch up to me in level as soon as possible.
“I want to attack properly soon too,” Anju said.
Anju and I came to that archery range by ourselves.
We had gotten permission from the Guild, as long as we reported our comings and goings.
“Alright, I’ll turn it on, Light!”
My Magic Power increased with my Level Up, making it as bright as daytime. Yes, I can see the targets clearly.
“Okay, Anju.”
“Yes.”
I equipped my short crossbow.
The sleeves of my robe were too big, so I rolled them up.
Then, just as I was about to shoot at the twenty-round target drawn on the tree trunk…
“I’m going!”
She floated up, shot at a target in front of her opponent, then moved to another tree with each shot.
She hit one of the blunt arrows onto a tree, then moved to another.
This way, she hit all ten shots on different targets and returned.
“I did it…”
“No, it’s not ‘I did it’! Oh, but this…”
If her aerial movement is smooth and accurate, it wouldn’t be that strange in actual combat.
“I’ll praise you since you hit all of them, though.”
I took off my hood and ruffled her hair.
Looking at her tanned skin and her smile, I thought her dark blue hair had become even more beautiful.
“Hehe.”
“But as an Illusionist, you’re weak, Anju. If a strong enemy’s attack hit you, you’d die.”
“I won’t. I’ll dodge.”
Certainly, if she could avoid everything, it would be perfect. But how would she increase her aerial movement speed? It’s definitely dependent on Magic Power, so it must be through Leveling Up.
“But if a large enemy comes at you from both sides, you might not be able to dodge everything.”
“Mmm.”
“Let’s do some normal training too, okay? Here.”
I collected the blunt arrows and infused them with Light Magic.
This way, I can pick them up even if they get lost deep in the forest.
“I’ll shoot this too.”
She shot an arrow at the sole observer this time.
“Whoa! That was close!”
“It’s obvious you were followed from the Adventurer Guild.”
It was the boy from the Magician’s Nest. He could still be considered a boy.
He was the self-proclaimed ex-boyfriend who claimed he and Anju were still lovers.
“Are you going to be my target?”
“Anju, what are you saying to someone you loved so much?”
“I was just asked to, that’s all. I lent you copper coins too.”
Ah, so he was just taking advantage of Anju’s inability to refuse anything.
“Flying is unfair! Make me stronger too!”
“Huh? Are you talking to me?”
“Yeah! Make me stronger too, and let me team up with Anju!”
Hmm, this is troublesome. If he had potential, he would have found his own path by now.
“Beauty, you don’t have to return the copper coins. Just stop bothering me.”
“Why?! I’m still Anju’s boyfriend!”
“Unfortunately, I’m not…”
She purposefully pulled her hand out of her oversized left sleeve to show off her engagement ring.
“What? No way! You’re being deceived!”
“I’m sorry.”
“No! Anju, Anju, you’re being deceived!”
What is this guy saying, when he just wanted to use her and exploit her?
“Um, your name is Beauty, right?”
“Either train me or give Anju back to me, or I’ll reveal that you can fly.”
“No, there’s no need to reveal it. I already showed the staff at the Adventurer Guild.”
I was prepared for some of it to be revealed.
Besides, I’ll probably be flying normally for transportation from now on, so it’ll be obvious anyway.
“Is that okay? It’ll reveal that Anju is high-level.”
“Those who need to know already know. And besides, I don’t plan on staying in this country for long.”
“Anju, come back! I’ll love you again!”
Ah, she’s aiming her bow and arrow again!
“Whoa, whoa!”
“It’s glowing, but there’s no attack magic in it, and the arrows aren’t sharp, so it won’t hurt much even if it hits you.”
“Go home. Don’t interfere with me and Derus.”
I have no choice.
“Well then, if you keep interfering…”
I threatened him by taking out the Adamantite Sword from my Item Box, and he ran away at full speed! He shot a single Fireball just as he was melting into the darkness.
“Fuu, what a pain.”
I caught and extinguished it with my bare hands. From the difference in Magic Power, it was no contest.
“Anju, was that guy a graduate?”
“No, he failed in the first semester of his first year.”
“So he’s been there ever since?”
She nodded vigorously.
Well, let’s not pry into the past any further.
“Do I have to shoot without moving?”
“Yes. Floating in mid-air is also forbidden.”
After about an hour of training like this…
“Fuu, are you starting to get the hang of it?”
“I don’t know. But I’m having fun.”
“Then that’s good. Then, it’s time for practice now.”
We illuminated the sky above us with Light Magic and deliberately deviated from the path, heading deeper into the forest.
“Let’s see, I’ll switch to sharp arrows. They’re enchanted.”
Clarice had enchanted one hundred arrows with Wind Cutter, and I had Anju equip ten of them, placing another forty in the Item Bag she wore on her waist.
“This seems to be a habitat for Night Bats, who are called ‘Flying Slimes’ because of their weakness. So don’t hold back. Those arrows are no match for me if they hit.”
I wrapped myself in the Sexy Panther Mantle. My Magic Power provides incredible Defense, so they won’t pierce me. Even if one managed to get through a gap and hit a vital spot, at worst, I could revive once even if I died.
“Understood.”
“I think you’ll be fine with that robe too, Anju, but be careful not to get hit in the face.”
“I’ll dodge… I’m okay.”
She sounded a little nervous, as “okay” came out as “dajyobu.”
“Alright, here we go!”
I changed the Light Magic into a Light Ball and threw it into the depths of the forest. Dozens of startled Night Bats appeared – a large swarm, over fifty of them.
“Hii, hii, hii.”
I dodged the swarm flowing towards me with a flourish and shot arrows with my one-handed bow! Ah, I see, I was shooting at the dense part of the swarm, so of course, I hit them. And although I’m trying to dodge, I’m getting hit quite a bit.
“Well, this is just a warm-up.”
And so, I began teaching Anju, starting from extremely low difficulty and gradually increasing it.
(I shouldn’t think about what an Illusionist is doing in the middle levels of the Main Dungeon, right?)
“Hii, hii, hii, hii, hii… I need to restock.”
