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NATURALLY, that night, I was quick to try out the magical device that Gil and the others had gifted me. Both Lord Viol and I were excited and taken aback by what it could do.
Although it looked like a small, cute glass bottle that resembled a perfume bottle, it was actually a highly functional magical device from which small floral light flecks slowly emerged, and it even emitted a soft floral scent and delicate music at the same time.
Seeing it at work in the dark made the atmosphere so romantic… I could gaze at it for hours. I was also fascinated to find out how it worked. But we had to suppress our excitement, and both agreed to take a closer look at it the following day.
After all, tomorrow was the big day… Going into the forest to investigate the source of the magical energy. We needed to sleep well to be in tip-top physical condition. Saving something fun for later only prolonged the excitement. Filled with anticipation, I fell into a happy sleep beside my husband.
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THEN, the next day came.
Our research team loaded our carts with food and water, just in case, and headed towards the Kichul Forest. Today, Vellia was driving very safely, and Arshtag, riding in the rear, had his arms folded and was taking command with dignity.
Apparently, when the High Mages go out to survey things, they usually do so on foot, going from the plains into the forest and defeating monsters as they go. It takes considerable time to progress, especially from the deep forest onwards, where there are many powerful beasts.
The team will investigate the magical beasts they encounter, searching for plant-origin beasts and evaluating their strength while also searching the forest depths for the mysterious magical energy source.
“If there’s a place with a high probability of magical energy accumulation, let’s direct our search there first.”
That was what Arshtag had decided. So, we set off and were now leisurely sailing across the sky, heading for that particularly large tree we’d seen before.
According to Arshtag, we would need to eventually investigate the number and level of any magical beasts we could find, but if we could pinpoint the location of the magical energy source, we could focus our investigation there, which would be extremely efficient.
“It’d be great if that giant tree really is the source of the magical energy.”
“But, until now, we’ve been going bit by bit, by foot, progressing deeper into the forest, y’know? It’d be a bit too easy if we just found it that easily now, yeah?”
“Hmm, well, you’ve got a point there.”
During the flight, I heard two of the survey team members, Gyle and Yukka, discussing the mission. No doubt these two, who’d been working on this project long before I’d ever joined, had their own feelings about the mission.
“But, we never had even the faintest inkling where the source might be. If we find it now… Well, it’s high time, I’d say.”
“Well, I suppose it’s better than just searching aimlessly.”
“Speaking of which… Take a look below.”
Yukka’s comment caught my attention, and I looked down, too. Below, the deep forest seemed to stretch on endlessly. And, in the distance, one giant tree rose above the rest.
“Viewing from above, you can notice points of interest much more easily, eh? It definitely looks like something’s there. Yeah, I’d bet money on it. And I can sense magic… strong magic… in a sort of haze.”
“Yeah… Couldn’t tell from down on the forest level. Even though we went quite a way into the deep forest ourselves. This is a huge leap compared to the tiny mouse steps we were making in OUR investigation. It’s sort of depressing.”
“It’d take us ten days, more or less, to get this far on foot. Being able to fly here… It’s pretty amazing.”
“We’ll be reaching our destination soon! Everyone be on your guard!” Arshtag’s voice filled the air, and everyone stiffened up in anticipation. The giant tree was already quite close. But I couldn’t see the aforementioned haze of magical energy at all.
“Gyle, Yukka, you go and do a reconnaissance,” Arshtag ordered. “Feel free to cut away some branches to make it easier for the rear flyers to make their way through. Open up a nice path for us to conduct our investigation.”
“Roger!”
As the two yelled out to acknowledge the request, the cart they rode upon suddenly swooped down towards the giant tree. Truly, what smooth movements. Proof that all that time working on getting the teams to work together on flying had been well spent.
Since those two were both veterans from the survey team, I was sure they’d return without any issues, but I noticed Arshtag glaring at the giant tree with a stern expression.
“Arshtag… You look concerned…?”
When I called out to him, Arshtag muttered under his breath, never taking his eyes off the giant tree. “If that giant tree really is the source of the mysterious magic, then we can expect the beasts living in its vicinity to be more powerful than any we’ve ever encountered. Those two haven’t just been sent on a simple scout mission. If they run into any magical beasts, they could find themselves in great peril.”
“Hmm, we’ve made it this far while taking careful stock of the magical beasts we’ve encountered along the way, but to suddenly descend upon the nest of the beasts, so to speak… Yes, it could be dangerous indeed.” Vellia was also staring severely down at the forest. My breath caught in my throat at the danger.
“They’ll be fine.” Lord Viol patted my shoulder reassuringly from behind.
I let out a breath I didn’t even know I’d been holding.
“Gyle and Yukka know this forest. Gil’s got muscle and a history as an adventurer. The Arshtag is a powerful warrior mage himself. And we have a full complement of talented wind mages,” Lord Viol said. “This survey team has the best possible people for the job. We’re well-prepared to directly enter the vicinity of this concentrated source of magical energy.”
“Right. We can handle a few magical beasts,” Vellia reassured me.
Right. Of course. These people had already proven their worth in Lord Viol’s eyes. There was no reason at all for me to be concerned.
Also… Even if some fearsome beasts did appear, I had Lord Viol at my back. I could think of nothing more reassuring. My job today is to fly the cart. I should focus on that so Lord Viol and the others can do their best at their jobs. Rationalizing like that made my anxiety and fear fade away.
“This really is a strong team, isn’t it?” I remarked.
“It is,” Lord Viol nodded. “And their judgment can be relied upon. Let’s just wait for their report.”
“Right.”
Then, just as we finished our discussion…
“That’s odd…” Arshtag muttered under his breath.
“What’s wrong?” Vellia frowned, pushing up her glasses with a long finger.
“The magic I’m sensing… It’s not simple magic, such as would be needed to blast a path through tree branches. Not at all… Everyone… Prepare to move.”
Everyone did as Arshtag ordered and braced themselves for action.
Out of nowhere, a huge fireball seemed to set the entire forest on fire. A cart came zooming up out of the trees.
“Super advanced level beast! Yukka is currently engaging it! Quick! We need backup now!” It was Gyle and Yukka’s cart!
“Let’s roll!”
“Aye, aye!”
“I’ve been dying for a fight!”
Just as I was about to act, Arshtag, seconds away from zooming to join the fray, turned and yelled over his shoulder.
“Archmage Viol, Lady Seren, stand by! Don’t engage!”
“What?!”
Stand…by?
A super advanced level magical beast… That had to be something with an insane level of strength! And we were supposed to stay here? I looked over my shoulder at Lord Viol, who nodded firmly.
“I’m not always available for surveys like this. My hunch is that they want to see if they can handle it on their end first,” he said.
“Oh, I see…”
Yes, that made a lot of sense.
“Still, I hadn’t expected to encounter a powerful beast while aiming for the magical energy source from the air. It looks like this investigation will be more difficult than we thought.”
While we were talking, I could hear massive explosions down in the forest. The battle was an intense one. I felt so frustrated sitting there doing nothing while everyone else was fighting so hard.
“Would it be okay if we went closer?” I asked.
“I’m sure that would be fine. Descend until we can see what’s going on. But don’t get involved. Remember, we’re on standby. We have to follow the captain’s orders, after all.”
“Understood…”
“Based on the magical energy I can sense below, everyone’s all right for now. Though the enemy does seem to be very advanced, it looks like our eight elite fighters are more than a match for them,” Lord Viol reported.
“You can tell all that?”
“Yes… Of course.”
“Lord Viol, you really are extraordinary…”
“As are you, Seren.” Lord Viol gazed at me earnestly, but seriously… I’m nothing in comparison.
Until now, being able to fly was the one thing I could do that few others could. But now, everyone else had gotten the hang of it. It was no longer such a remarkable feat.
“I have no idea what’s going on down there, so I guess I am still a bit worried… But I’ll just get us a little bit closer and see,” I said.
“All right. Just make sure you don’t get in the way.”
“Okay.”
The spells being cast below were so extravagant that I wasn’t sure how close I could get before we were “in the way.” Nonetheless, I plunged into the forest.
As I brought us towards all the clamor, chopping off any branches that impeded our path, I realized I could make out a vague mass through the branches and leaves.
“Is… Is that a magical beast?”
I realized my voice sounded tremulous.
I could see it, even from a distance. A huge mass resembling a gigantic rock, with fallen trees and animal bones all clumped together. An extremely bizarre sight…