Having accepted the contract, we left the guild. We were about to make our way to the specified locale, per usual, but I stopped.
“What do you want to do? It would be fine if you two wanted to stay behind this time, but...” I started. They had seemed so scared earlier. If they said they would prefer to remain in the city, I would respect their wish. It was necessary to have a party when picking up contracts of level B and above, but carrying out the objective safely was of the utmost importance. In practice, it wasn’t required that every member who signed up actually participate in the battle.
The two of them shook their heads without hesitation.
“No way. We’re coming with you,” Oltea said.
“It’s not like we can be all that helpful, but I don’t want you to face that danger alone!” Frieze said.
“Thank you both! I’m happy to hear it,” I said. I cherished them both as friends. My desire to keep them far from danger was strong, but so was my desire to have them by my side. For me—someone who’d never had friends growing up and had been unable to enjoy school trips at any point in my childhood—flying along while talking was a pleasure I did not take for granted.
I promptly summoned Stick Beam. It was as thick as a log but made of light and thus not at all heavy. Like witches mounting a broom, we all got on. I brought forth Shield Beam to serve as a windscreen to our fore and fired Jet Beam from my feet to bring us into the air. We began flying straight toward the Great Forest of Mist.
It felt like we were moving at about two hundred kilometers per hour. Safe and secure, we enjoyed the flight until the sun was high in the sky, at which point a large wooded expanse came into view beyond the marsh below us.
“I can’t believe how massive the forest is...” Oltea said.
“Finding the poison moth down there is gonna be like looking for a needle in a haystack,” Frieze said.
“The poster said it was in the vicinity of the Greeze River, though. We don’t need to search the whole forest,” I said, driving us all the while toward the skies above the dense woods and searching for the waterway.
The Greeze River was a huge artery, as majestic and impressive as the Amazon, enveloped by the thick trees. Were it not for the heavy mist, it might have made for a nice kayak cruise.
“Poor visibility, just like we were warned. Dropping our altitude a bit could help, but...” I said.
“I’m fine with that,” Oltea said. “How about you, Frieze? Scared?”
“Of c— Of course I’m not scared! I’m a brave hybrid!”
“For someone who isn’t scared at all, you sure are holding on to me real tight...”
“Th-That’s ’cause I like the way you feel! Your nice softness is addictive, that’s all!”
“Don’t call me ‘soft’!” Oltea shouted. Frieze did seem spooked, but I knew that acknowledging that would wound her pride. Pretending not to be aware of her fear, I flew lower. If I flew too low, we would run the risk of inhaling the moth’s poison powder. I stopped fifty meters above the ground and, paying heed to the direction of the wind, began the search in earnest.
We glided smoothly above the trees for some time. Eventually, as the setting sun was casting brilliant light on the western horizon, we left the forest having failed to find our mark.
“Ugh, my neck hurts from looking down for so long...” Oltea complained.
“My eyes are feeling really strained...” Frieze joined in.
“Did you forget to blink?” Oltea said.
“I didn’t know when the monster would pop out, so I did my best not to. Not that it made a difference... What if the poison moth has just changed up its territory?” Frieze asked.
“It could have, or maybe it’s nocturnal. There was one place that looked kind of suspicious. We should swing back and give it another look,” I said.
“A place that looked suspicious?”
“Yeah, where the trees were dead. Could be the fault of the moth’s poison and, if so, could be where it makes its home base.”
“Now that you mention it, I think I saw that too,” Oltea said.
“I’m pretty sure I saw that spot too, but the poison moth wasn’t there,” Frieze said.
“Moths are pretty good at camouflage,” I said. “I think it’s possible we missed it because it blended into the background.”
“In other words, you don’t think we’ll be able to see it unless we get up close?” Oltea asked. Doing so would require putting ourselves in danger of inhaling the poison powder. If possible, I’d prefer to keep our distance.
“That would be the last resort, but if this moth shares the characteristics of a normal moth, then that won’t be necessary.”
“The characteristics of a normal moth?”
“Yep. In any case, we’ve gotta take care of this while the sun is still out. Once it’s dark, we won’t be able to find the spot with the dead trees.”
We turned around and headed for the skies above the river once more. After flying for a spell, we finally arrived at our destination as the sky was growing gloomy. From above, we could see a cluster of dead trees, around one hundred meters long, despite the lush, verdant greenness of the foliage surrounding it. The lone stretch of dead and wilted trees stood out as obviously unnatural against the rest of the scenery. Perhaps the poison moth really was lurking within.
“I still don’t see the poison moth, but...you think there’s a way for us to find it without getting closer?”
“Yes, but I can’t be positive it will work. If my prediction is correct, then its appearance is going to be pretty sudden. We need to make sure we’re mentally prepared,” I said. Having warned them, I created a ball of light, roughly five meters in diameter, below us. I dubbed it Light Beam. I directed the luminescent ball—the movements of which followed my mental guidance—toward the dead trees. That’s when it happened.
“Ahh!”
“Th-There it is! It came out!”
Oltea and Frieze both screamed. A massive moth had suddenly burst forth from within the withered trees. It flapped its heavy, dark brown wings, and jet-black scales scattered in their wake. It matched the depiction we had seen on the bulletin. It was the poison moth!
Like a small insect drawn to a flame, the giant insect was lured to the ball of light I had created. I extended my right hand toward the beast, drew forth my Sword Beam, and imagined it rapidly extending like the magic staff of legend.
The blade swept across the horizon until it met its target with a resounding snickt!
✦ ✦ ✦
The moth’s head, now detached from its torso, dropped like a stone. At the same instant, the monster’s corpse, plummeting all the while, began to dissolve into a syrupy goop. Before all five meters of its hulking form could dissipate, its remains slammed violently into the thicket of dead trees.
Watching the defeated beast’s descent, Oltea and Frieze calmed down and breathed sighs of relief.
“I know you said it would, Kaito, but the moth really did jump out suddenly,” Oltea said.
“If it was so well hidden, why did it burst out so quickly?” Frieze asked.
“Phototaxis. The poison moth was drawn in by the light,” I said. There were two kinds of phototaxis: the kind in which light was repellent to the subject and the kind in which light drew the subject in. For example, mice possess the phototaxic characteristic of light avoidance, whereas moths, flies, and the like are phototaxically lured toward light.
The poison moth only outwardly resembled a normal moth and was perhaps not, strictly speaking, a proper insect. Nonetheless, it had jumped out at the light, meaning that our monster likely possessed the same phototaxic characteristic as a normal moth.
“You’re so knowledgeable, Kaito,” Frieze said. “But why wouldn’t the poison moth have flown toward the sun, then?”
“I suppose because it’s nocturnal,” I said. As I did, I sprayed the swath of dead trees with Clean Beam. The laser passed over the woods and removed the poison as we descended. As we drew closer, a sparkling object was visible sitting amid the decay, nestled in the roots of the wilted foliage.
The object, bright and shining red, was the poison moth’s devil stone.
“I guess this means mission accomplished, yeah?” said Frieze.
“We were able to take it down without incident thanks to you, Kaito,” said Oltea. “Now that things have calmed down...I’m kinda hungry.”
“Me too,” I said. “Let’s head back to the capital and get a bite to eat.”
We straddled Stick Beam once more and set off for the city while we debated what to have for dinner.