Chapter 18

1 It sounded like the inside of my tiny tumbledown house was being torn apart. Someone was in the building, and they were looking for something. Who was the someone? One of those monsters. It had to be. And inside the house with it was— “K-K… Komekko… My Komekko…” “M-Megumin, calm down! J-j-just calm down, okay?!” Yunyun grabbed me by the shoulders and shook me as I unsteadily faced the ruined entryway. “My Komekkoooooooooo!” “Stop that! I told you, we have to stay calm!!” Her words brought me back to reality, and my brain went into overdrive. She was right: At a time like this, the key was to keep cool and think. “It’s all right! My little sister is in fact the reincarnation of Astroborg, the deity of violent hunger! In a crisis, her seal will be broken, and she and I will at last conquer the world!” “Calm down! Stay with me!” “Hrgf?!” Yunyun grabbed my cheeks and pulled, bringing me back to reality once again. “Eeeyow-ow… This is no time to be talking such foolishness, Yunyun! My sister must be in the house. We have to rush in and save her! A girl as street smart and brave as she is would never become monster food so easily! Come on—there’s no time to waste!” “…Wh-why do I have a bad feeling about this…?” Yunyun grumbled, but she followed me just the same, taking out the dagger at her hip, its silver blade gleaming. “For once your eccentricities serve me well, Yunyun. I do not have any weapon worthy of the name. If the need arises, I will be counting on you, all right?” “Eccentricities?! What eccentricities?! Hey, did I do something weird again?!” “Weird? Let’s just say that you are the only girl I know who would bring her favorite bladed weapon to school.” “Urgh… W-well, you’re right about that, but…still! Seriously, what is this unsettling feeling I keep having…?” I hushed the querulous Yunyun with a finger to my lips, and then we sneaked into the rattling house. I heard nothing resembling Komekko screaming. For an instant, my mind imagined the worst possible things, but I kept telling myself my little sister was immune to anything really awful…! We went in the front door…and came face-to-face with the monster. The creature and I stared at each other: There was a birdlike beak on its reptilian face… “………Ah, ahhhhhhhh! Yunyun, Yunyun! Yunyunyun! Yunyun!” “Wait don’t push me hold on don’t screw up my name wait just wait would you?!” “Shhhaaaaaaaaaa!” “It’s threatening us it’s very threatening, Yunyun, gut it with your dagger!” “But, but I can’t suddenly— How, I can’t kill a monster…!” The monster howled menacingly at us, the two yammering girls in front of it. Yunyun held her knife out, but she was shaking a little and looked like she might burst into tears at any moment. The monster observed her, then, probably deciding we were easy pickings, spread its arms wide and moved in… “Now’s your chance!” I exclaimed. Yunyun stabbed the monster in the belly using the momentum of me shoving her from behind. The creature screamed. “Hiiigyaaaaaaa!” “Eeeeeeeeeeek!” Yunyun, the unfortunate stabber of the monster, also screamed. The monster rolled around in the entryway. I grabbed the knife from Yunyun—who was still screaming—clutched it in both hands, and drove it into the creature’s neck. “Wa— Waaaaaaaaah! Megumin! M-Megumin, you—!” “P-pipe down already, Yunyun! We are Crimson Magic Clan members, whom even the Demon King fears; can we hesitate to exterminate a mere…monster…?” ………? The monster I had stabbed looked…off somehow. Wait… “…It disappeared?” “But…why?” After a few moments of suffering from its neck wound, the creature had turned to black smoke and vanished. What did it mean that it had left no corpse behind? Then I realized that the noise in the house had stopped. That seemed to suggest the monster we had just killed had been the only one searching in here. Yet, I had been sure we saw quite a number of monsters heading in the direction of our house. What had it even been doing here, ransacking a shack of a place that hardly had so much as food on the shelves? No, there were more important things to worry about now! “…That’s right: Komekko! Komekko, where are you?! It’s me! Your big sister is here!” “K-Komekko? Komekko!” Yunyun and I tore through the house, but Komekko didn’t respond to any of our calls. A thorough investigation of the place revealed no traces of blood. That might have meant she had already gotten away. Or been carried off by those monsters… “Yunyun, outside! I’m sure my little sister must be outside. I will go look for her. You stay here in case she comes home before I do. Shove the furniture up against the front door as a barricade. Oh, and I’m going to need to borrow this dagger for a bit.” I excused myself and made to leave when I felt Yunyun grab my collar. “N-no, you can’t! Megumin, you can hardly survive gym class! You’ll get eaten alive out there! I’m going with you!” Grrr… “That little taste of victory over me earlier certainly has given you a smart mouth. But very well, let us go together, then. That being the case, Yunyun, I will let you handle any monsters that appear.” “What?! I-I’m not sure I…can…” As we spoke, Yunyun and I drifted outside… …and came face-to-face with a monster tearing apart the bag I had left out there. “Ink! Didn’t you put Ink in that bag?!” Yunyun’s shout caused this next monster to notice us. “Th-there’s no hope for her now; we have to leave her behind! We can memorialize her with a proper grave later to honor her valiant sacrifice on our behalf! It’s all right—she will still be with us. Yes, she will always be in our hearts…” “She’s alive! Will you look already? She’s right there! It’s too soon to give up!” Yunyun grabbed the nape of my neck as I tried to flee from the monster. She pointed at my bag. I could indeed see Ink crawling out from among its tattered remains. The monster, though, seemed to mean no harm; it simply watched her go. For that matter, it showed no interest in us, either. “I don’t know what’s going on, but this is our chance! That fuzz ball seems to have provoked the creature’s maternal instincts or some such! Now is our moment to get out of here and find my sister…!” “Wait! Please, please help Ink, too! I know how worried you are about Komekko, but please!” “What are you saying? If we steal Ink from a monster that is clearly deeply attached to her, I am sure it will attack us! Mostly sure anyway!” Yunyun looked at me like a child begging her parents to keep a puppy they had found. …Argh, how irritating! “You get ready to run!” I said. “I am going to get back the fuzz ball my sister has been raising so diligently!” Raising as emergency provisions, to be more specific—but I left out that part. Yunyun’s face lit up, while I took the dagger and sneaked around behind the beast… …and found the monster follow suit and move at the same time. The creature reached out and took Ink in both its clawed hands. She didn’t resist its embrace but was, in fact, quite calm. The monster spread its wings and prepared to leap into the sky…! “If I let them take that cat, my little sister, who has been waiting so patiently for her to grow up, will never forgive me! Behold my knife-throwing technique!” “Ahhh!” Yunyun cried. I flung the dagger, and it sailed off into the distance. “…Dastardly! Who knew it would protect itself with a wind barrier…?!” “It didn’t protect itself with anything! You obviously just can’t throw straight to save your life!” “This is no time for an argument over a minor detail! Ink is—!” “I know! You’re right, Megumin, but this whole situation has just felt really wrong to me from the first minute!” While Yunyun and I quarreled, the monster carrying Ink swept up into the sky and started flying away… As we watched Ink being carried off, I mused in a strikingly calm voice, “…I am certain that cat was an angel from heaven. She is simply going back to her home. Hence, we mustn’t cry but watch her depart with gladness…” “Don’t just give up on Ink because of some weird scenario you just created in your head! What are we going to do? She’s been kidnapped! What do we do; what do we do?!” Yunyun collected the dagger but was nearly in tears. “Well, now, calm down. Considering Ink did not fight back when the monster picked her up, I don’t think she’s in much danger. Life in my house has trained her well to detect imminent bodily harm.” “Hey, how exactly have you been raising that cat?! You haven’t been torturing her, have you?!” Yunyun grabbed my shoulders and shook. In any event, Komekko was more important than Ink right now. “We must let Ink go for the time being. Komekko is what matters. My little sister is quite tough and resourceful. She is not one of those soft girls who would weep and cry and get themselves brutally killed. She must be here somewhere…” “Y-you’re right! Do you have any idea where Komekko would be likely to go, Megumin?!” Someplace she would be likely to go… I couldn’t possibly guess. But wait… Something Komekko had said recently nagged at me. What was it? What had she said…? “It’s not an idea, precisely, but call it a hunch. When I was young, I was much like Komekko…” At least in the sense that our parents often got mad at me for leaving the house without permission. Before I could voice this thought, a memory came back to me. I remembered how, when I was a child, I had played with the puzzle that kept the Dark God sealed inside, considering it like a toy. “…Oh!” “…? What’s wrong, Megumin?” When I’d asked Komekko what she was doing outside, she had said: “I found a toy, and I was playing with it! You wanna try it, too, Sis?” …Her toy. … Could she possibly have meant…?! “Ahhh… Ahhhh…! Sh-sh-she might be…!” “What? Megumin, what are you muttering about all of a sudden?” That was it! It all made sense now! Our house was too poor to have any toys. And yet, Komekko had said she was playing with one. It was always possible that my dear little sister had wheedled a toy out of some villager, but the most likely thing was…! 2 The tomb of the Dark God loomed outside the village. Illuminated by magical lamps, the place gave off an eerie vibe, not helped by the fact that it was nighttime. We were there despite the monsters still flying in the sky. They paid us no mind even when they did spot us, as if they were searching for something but not us. “Hey, Megumin, whatever hunch you have, I really don’t think Komekko would be—” I didn’t answer the nervous Yunyun as we spied out the situation at the tomb from our hiding place in the bushes. “………Oh, there she is.” “…Yes indeed, she is there.” Komekko was standing in front of the tomb, her hands full of puzzle pieces, whatsoever it was she intended to do with them. I knew they were really the pieces of the seal. Seriously, what was she doing with them here? Increasingly dubious, I followed where she was looking. “…Good news, Yunyun. It looks like our fur ball is safe.” “How can you be so calm?! This is a nightmare!” Komekko, with the puzzle pieces in her hands, was silently facing a monster that was holding Ink. “Ohhh, wh-wh-what do we do?! Where did the other villagers go anyway?!” “It doesn’t seem to me that any new monsters are emerging from the tomb. Once they were confident there were no more coming, I assume they scattered through the village to exterminate the rest of the beasts.” The night sky had been periodically lit up by bursts of magic from here and there around the village. If things had been different, Komekko and Yunyun and I could have been watching from the window of my house, enjoying the show like it was a fireworks display. “In any event, remain calm. As you can see, we face only one enemy, and it is distracted by Komekko. So long as we don’t let our guard down, I think we will be fine. We have already defeated one of them together.” “Y-yeah, you’re right. Thanks for using your head.” Seeing me logical and calm seemed to help Yunyun settle down. Then Komekko put the puzzle pieces on the ground and threw her arms wide, approaching the monster. “…I wonder what your sister is doing.” “Trying to intimidate it, perhaps. She appears to be attempting to make off with Ink.” The monster backed away as Komekko came slowly but steadily closer. Even Ink seemed to be trembling for some reason. “It looks like she has the upper hand, and I’m rather curious to see how this will play out… But we must act now, Yunyun. Distract it, please!” “Oka— Hey, wait! Why do I have to be the bait?!” “Because you are too much of a wuss to kill the monster. Give me that dagger… I promise I won’t throw it this time, so hand it over—quickly!” “N-no way! I’ll do it this time, I really will, so, Megumin, you go out and be the— Huh?!” As we grappled for the knife, Yunyun happened to look up at the sky. I followed her shout and looked up to discover five additional monsters coming in for a landing around Komekko. “W-w-we’re gonna be okay, right?! Megumin, you have a plan, don’t you?!” “Of course. At desperate moments, a heretofore-dormant power always conveniently awakens or reinforcements arrive just in the nick of time. If I simply give one good girlish scream…” “Megumin, what are you talking about?! For that matter, where are you looking?! Your eyes are so empty! Don’t tell me… Do you just crumble that quickly in the face of adversity?!” The monsters that had surrounded Komekko paid no heed to my bout of escapism but began to howl threateningly at my sister. “Kishaaaaa!” “Hey, Megumin! Is Komekko okay in the head?! She’s getting ready to take on all those monsters by herself! She doesn’t look the least bit scared, and actually, I think the monsters look more frightened of her!” My little sister might really be quite a big deal. Ink, I could understand. She and Komekko were natural enemies. But why were the other monsters afraid of her? It was as if Ink’s fear was being communicated to them. “Argh, we don’t have time for this! ……This is the one thing I wanted to avoid, but…” As I spoke, I pulled out my trump card—the one hanging around my neck. Yunyun saw me. “Your Adventurer’s Card? …Huh? Megumin, you’re not going to—!” But indeed I was. Sometimes one simply has no choice. When I had to decide which was dearer to me, my little sister’s life or explosion magic, the answer was clear…! “Stop right there!” Komekko and the monsters turned at the sound of my voice. I emerged from the bushes holding my Adventurer’s Card in one hand. “I am Megumin. Greatest genius of the Crimson Magic Clan and wielder of advanced magic! Now step away from my sister!” “Oh, hey, Sis! That guy took my food!” “Komekko?! What food are you talking about?! You don’t mean Ink?!” Yunyun yelped. I was trying to be dramatic here, but these two—! Yunyun, dagger in hand, jumped out after me. “…Hey, Megumin, did you really learn Advanced Magic? After all that talk about how much you love Explosion?” “…A genius of my distinction should be able to grind monsters for skill points easily enough. However long it takes, be it a few decades or more, I swear I will learn Explosion.” …In spite of my bold declaration, though, something in me still hesitated. Yes, even though I was standing face-to-face with a crowd of monsters. During all this, the beasts had turned their attention to Yunyun and me and were moving to surround us. One of them spread its wings and bounded into the sky to attack us from the air. The hand holding my Adventurer’s Card started trembling. This was the dream I had cherished since childhood. It wasn’t easy to just throw away. But there was no other way to protect my little sister. …It’s all right. I worked hard before, and I’ll do it again. With that thought in mind, I took my card…! “Your voice is shaking as hard as your hand. Something’s holding you back, isn’t it?” Yunyun slipped the dagger into its place on her hip as she spoke. She had her Adventurer’s Card out just like I did. “What are you—” —doing? I didn’t get to ask. Instead… “Lightning!!” …I was cut off by Yunyun shouting a spell. 3 I dashed along holding Komekko by the hand, using the lamps that shined here and there to guide me. “Sis, Yunyun was awesome, huh?! Her lightning was like, boom!” Maybe it was the excitement that made Komekko grip my hand so hard. “Yes, she was very awesome, wasn’t she? But I tell you, I cannot believe that I, of all people, was beaten to the punch by Yunyun! I always thought she was so timid and hesitant!” I said regretfully and continued my search for the adults. Yunyun had learned Intermediate Magic. And learning magic meant you graduated from school. Graduating meant you could no longer get the rare skill-up potions that were so generously given to young members of the Crimson Magic Clan. If Yunyun wanted to learn Advanced Magic after this, she would have to do it by hunting monsters in battle to raise her level. If I remembered right, Intermediate Magic cost ten skill points. That was how many levels she would have to gain to earn those points back. The higher one’s level got, the more difficult increasing it became. Yunyun was still low-level, so she would probably gain quickly. But to gain ten levels, no matter how readily they came, would probably take at least a year. My rival would spend the next year being treated as an inexperienced, immature member of our clan. It wouldn’t matter that she had worked so hard to be worthy as the chief’s daughter or that she had always had some of the best grades in class. “Sis, are you crying?” “I am not crying! The regret is causing my MP to come out my eyes!” As she vaporized the head of the creature holding Ink with a lightning bolt, Yunyun told us that she would collect our cat, so I was to take Komekko, get away, and find an adult. While I had dithered, Yunyun had ceased to be a wizard-in-training anymore. And then the girl who had always refused to harm so much as a fly had cast her spell without a moment’s hesitation. Wimp though she usually was, it seemed Yunyun could steel herself when it came to protecting someone else. Seeing my rival like that, she seemed so impossibly bright… “…? Sis, what’s wrong? Are you tired from running?” I had stopped moving. Komekko looked up at me, puzzled. My self-proclaimed rival was facing down those monsters alone at that moment. My self-proclaimed rival, who had never technically defeated me even once. My self-proclaimed rival, a strange girl with no friends who had somehow caught up with me. If I run now for the sake of my own dreams, I will never again be able to hold my head high in combat with this girl who calls herself my rival. “Komekko. Do you love your sister?” “I love you!” she replied immediately, beaming. “…Would you love her even if she couldn’t use the most powerful spell? Even if she wasn’t the world’s most powerful older sister?” “It’s okay. Then I would become the strongest for both of us!” She was still smiling broadly. Of course. I knew she was going to be a big deal: already seeking to be the strongest at such a young age. “…Komekko. I’m going to go help Yunyun now. So you—” I looked up at the sky as I spoke, trying to pinpoint the nearest location where there was fighting. There was a flash not far away. I crouched down so I was looking into Komekko’s eyes. “Run for the place that light came from just now. There will be grown-ups there. The monsters in the sky are looking for something; I don’t think they’ll be hostile to you. Besides, if you made it all the way to the tomb with everything that was going on, I know you’ll be all right. Try to be inconspicuous. Stay out from under the lights if you can and hide whenever you—” “Uh-uh! I’m coming, too!” Komekko said forcefully. “…Do you understand? I’m going to go fight. Even your strong, cool sister might not win this time. So…” Even as I tried to talk her out of it, Komekko balled up her little fist in front of her chest and said hotly, “I’ll fight, too! I’ll get back the food they stole!” That made me worry a little about her future, but it was also greatly heartening. As we retraced our steps, I kept saying, “Now, listen! You have to stay close to me!” “Got it!” “You must not immediately launch yourself at the monster who has Ink! Let me get her back for us! You understand?!” “Got it! I’ll try to hold back!” “Don’t tell me you’ll try; tell me you won’t!” “Got it!” Was this really going to be okay? Honestly, I had serious doubts. But even so, it was probably safer than sending my kid sister off by herself right now. …I’ve made up my mind. I wouldn’t give up on Explosion. I didn’t care if it took me years, decades—I would learn it. I was just taking a bit of a detour. Yes, just a small change of plans… 4 “Blade of Wind!” Yunyun shouted the words and slashed through the air with her hand, causing a gust of wind. Little eddies turned into blades, cutting one of the monsters out of the sky. Intermediate magic couldn’t usually inflict fatal hits; it must have been thanks to Yunyun’s innate magical power. I would expect no less from the second most capable person besides me. Komekko and I stood apart, watching Yunyun fighting her valiant battle. “Sis, aren’t we going?” “Just hold on, Komekko. Your ever-intelligent sister has noticed something. There’s no need for me to learn Advanced Magic. We only have to survive to get out of this place.” As I spoke, I sized up the situation. …I was not being a coward. Certainly not. If, instead of consuming the huge amount of skill points necessary for Advanced Magic, I could skate by with Intermediate Magic as Yunyun had done, that would be ideal. Yunyun was pressing her advantage. These monsters didn’t leave corpses, so it was hard to say exactly how many Yunyun had defeated, but I recalled that when I had left, there had been six of them. Now, there was only a single one. Yunyun had set Ink at her feet and was standing over her to protect her. “…This is bad indeed. It looks as if Yunyun may defeat them all by herself.” “? Is that bad? Is Yunyun not allowed to beat them all?” “She is not. If she did that, then all my summoning up resolve and turning back would be for—” Then it happened. As if in answer to my prayers, seven more monsters came dancing out of the night sky. Perfect! This was my opportunity to rush in and rescue Yunyun in return for what she had done for me. “My name is—” “My name is Komekko! She who is entrusted with watching the house and slyest demon of the little sisters of the Crimson Magic Clan!” Komekko took the wind straight out of my sails. “Komekko! You… You naughty child, how dare you steal your sister’s big moment?!” “Not sorry.” “K-Komekko!” “Hey! Why are you two here?! I thought you ran away!” Yunyun shouted at us without ever taking her eyes off the monsters as they landed one after another. “Surely you don’t think that I, of all people, could run away, leaving myself indebted to my self-proclaimed rival,” I said. “Will you stop with this ‘self-proclaimed’ business already? And anyway, I’m a real wizard who’s learned real magic now! I’m not a pretend, wannabe wizard like you anymore, Megumin!” “A pretend wizard! Ooh, now you’ve gone and done it, you intermediate magic–user!” “Don’t call me that like it’s a bad thing!” As we argued, the last of the previous group of monsters lunged at Yunyun. She had never taken her eyes off it even while we were fighting, so she scooped up Ink in one hand, rolling away in a dodge. With her free hand, she whipped out her dagger and flung it at the enemy. Maybe it was just luck, maybe, but her knife lodged cleanly in the monster’s throat. “Fweeee!” The monster clutched at its throat, making a sound like a flute as it collapsed to the ground and vanished in a puff of black smoke. That convinced the newly arrived monsters to focus their attacks on Yunyun! “Looks like you’re in quite the fix, Yunyun, you intermediate magic–user! I, who am about to become a user of advanced magic, shall deal with these small fry in one swift stroke!” “What?! Megumin, what brought that on?!” Yunyun jumped to her feet, holding her free hand up toward the sky as she spoke. “Why do you think I even learned Intermediate Magic…?!” “From this day forth, I no longer consider you self-proclaimed but magnanimously recognize you as my true rival! And I refuse to be indebted to my rival! What’s that? You were hoping to steal a march on me by graduating first? You know, I think I recall you wanted us to graduate together! And with this, we shall—” “Fireball!!!” “Huh?! Hey…!!” Yunyun didn’t even let me finish but launched a ball of fire at the monsters. No doubt it was imbued with considerable magical power: It detonated among the group of enemies with a force one would never have expected from intermediate magic, filling the area with an earsplitting roar! The seven monsters that had come down from the sky turned into black smoke. Yunyun made sure they were all gone, and then she slumped to the ground, probably out of magic. I rushed over to her. “Now you…don’t have to learn Advanced Magic, Megumin…!” she said with a triumphant smile. “…Some kind of a girl you are. And after you tried so hard to discourage me from learning Explosion— Why did you change your mind?” As I spoke, I pulled Yunyun to her feet, supporting her on my shoulder. “I d-d-didn’t change my mind… I still don’t think you should learn Explosion, but I just couldn’t stand to see you give up on your dream because of something like this… And! And! Since I went and learned Intermediate Magic because of you, I wanted to make sure you paid me back properly! I’ve never gotten a chance before to have you be in debt to me!” “In recompense, I will help your poor, immobilized, magic-less self get back to your home, and then we will be even.” “Huh?!” Komekko ran past the two of us to grab Ink. My sister’s crimson eyes shimmered as she stared at the cat. I’d like to think she was overjoyed that Ink was safe. “Come on, Megumin—I actually took Intermediate Magic to help you; there’s no way we can be even just because you walked me home!” “You are most contrary. You have used all your MP and can’t move, so what if I left you here and some more monsters came along and ate you? It would not be an exaggeration to say that you owe your very life to me, Yunyun. So you have saved me once, and I have saved you once, no?” “That’s the dumbest logic! I risked my life in a huge fight with a bunch of monsters, and you…” Suddenly, Yunyun stopped upbraiding me. I followed her gaze, and then I, too, went silent. “Sis, there’s a bunch of those flying guys! Sis, are they edible? Can we eat them?” Komekko asked excitedly as we looked up at a flock of monsters dense enough to blot out the night sky. 5 I feel like I’ve done nothing but run today. “M-Megumin, ow! I think my toe boxes are going to break off!” Yunyun complained tearfully from my back. “That is too bad! I might argue that there is not much I can do about the difference in our heights! If your feet hurt so much, then grow shorter!” “Okay, Yunyun, I’ll hold your feet!” I was pulling Komekko along and had the MP-less, immobilized Yunyun on my back as I dashed as fast as I could down the dark night path. “Eeeyow-ow-ow! Komekko, don’t! If you hold both my feet, I’ll end up arched like a shrimp!” “What are you both doing? This is an emergency! Please don’t toss and fight on my back! Do you want me to leave you here?” The horde of flying monsters swooped overhead even as we argued. …Where did they all come from and why? As if in answer to my question, magic lanced up toward the sky all around us. By the time we realized what was happening, the villagers unleashing their magic on the monsters had closed the distance. In other words, the monsters hadn’t gathered together. They had been chased here, and we just happened to be in the middle of it. “I guess this is where they’re corralling the monsters,” I said. “So they’re chasing the monsters right to the tomb of the Dark God?! Why would they…? Are they hoping to get them in one place and seal them up all at once?” …That made sense. As Yunyun said, perhaps the adults meant to seal up the creatures in one fell swoop or otherwise blast them away with a single terrific volley of firepower. Which meant we needed to be out of here the moment we could. Easy enough to say, but… “…Yunyun. If you have always wanted to say those most famous words, now is your chance. Go ahead: ‘Forget about me; save yourselves!’” “D-don’t forget about me! You said yourself! You said you would get me home safely, and then we would be even!” Curse me and my big mouth…! I went along, Yunyun in tow, to the sickening cries of monsters overhead. Truthfully, even advanced magic would probably not have saved us against so many enemies. We kept away from the lamps, moving through the shadows and praying they didn’t see us. And right then… “Mrrrow.” Ink let out a little meow from where Komekko was holding her. It was very, very little, but it was enough. The monsters fixed immediately on our position. But that told me what was going on! “Komekko! Throw that fur ball as high in the sky as you can!” “What are you talking about?! Megumin, have you gone crazy?!” “I finally got my food back! I can’t give her away!” “Komekko, you too?!” …Gods above. To think it took me—me—so long to realize it! Those monsters must have attacked our house because they were looking for Ink. The school field trip had been the same. The monster had ignored all the other students there and come straight for me, the one carrying Ink. Komekko had been playing with the pieces of the Dark God’s seal on all those trips out of the house. And then one day she suddenly came home with this fur ball. The sightings of the Dark God’s servants started about the same time. And with just one little meow, Ink was able to get their collective attention. All these facts led to just one conclusion—! “Owww, my head hurts! My brain can’t think anymore! It’s gone into self-protection mode…!” “Megumin, what are you babbling about?! This is no time for escapism, okay?!” Yunyun’s words brought me back, and I took stock of our situation afresh. The monsters in the sky were all zeroed in on us now. I would have liked to simply offer up Ink, but… “Sis, look at all that chicken! Let’s get a bunch of it and take it home!” My little sister—definitely a big deal in the making—offered this suggestion with a huge smile even as Ink trembled in her arms. With Komekko’s admiring eyes fixed on me, I set Yunyun down, looked at the sky, and pulled out my Adventurer’s Card. “M-Megumin?” Yunyun whispered apprehensively from the ground. Magic flew into the air, spell after spell, not far away. I would learn Advanced Magic and buy us some time. If I fired a spell into the air at this distance, somebody would have to notice and come running. “Sis, what’s wrong? Your eyes are redder than usual.” Yes, of course they were. In the grip of such strong emotion, how could they not be? “Yunyun, you stay with Komekko.” I looked at the sky and began to whip up the magical power within me. I had never cast a spell in my life, but my Crimson Magic Clan instincts told me how to wield the magical power that coursed through my body. The servants of the Dark God circled warily above, not landing; maybe they thought we had Ink hostage. But I could tell they wouldn’t wait forever; the slightest thing could provoke the burgeoning horde into a sudden and merciless assault. The slightest thing such as, for example, a magic attack from me. It’s all right. I’ve made up my mind. “M-Megumin, I think they’re just watching us. Maybe we can wait until the adults get here…!” I will have no regrets. I can keep striving for my goal. “Sis, your eyes…” Komekko, still holding Ink, looked up at me anxiously. I patted her head as if to tell her it was all right. Then, screwing my resolve to the sticking point, I raised my Adventurer’s Card to select Advanced Magic. When I looked at the card, I briefly froze. Then, unable to restrain myself, I started laughing. “Wh-what’s going on?! Megumin, have you really lost your mind this time?!” “Sis broke!” “Th-that is most impolite! Both of you!” Even as I shot back at them, though, I didn’t take my eyes off my card. I have the skill points. I had all the points I needed to learn Explosion. 6 It was the magic I had worked for all my life, even knowing how foolish it was. “Sis, you’re shaking! You’re quaking!” “M-M-M-Megumin?! What is this?! What’s happening?! What advanced-magic spell are you planning to use?! Even the village grown-ups don’t look like this when they’re using magic! Tell me what kind of spell this is!” It was the incantation I had recited every day without fail since learning it by heart so long ago. The air around me began to change in response to the magical energy I’d summoned, answering the words of the spell I was weaving together. Static electricity ran around me; nearby scenery grew hazy. It made sense; not only was I about to use magic for the very first time, the magic I was going to use was the spell that boasted the highest degree of difficulty: Explosion. Most likely, I couldn’t quite channel all my magical energy into the spell, and some of it was escaping into the air around me, causing strange phenomena. As I recited the incantation, memories went through my head. I recalled needing just one more point to get Explosion. Then I remembered wringing the neck of the Duxion that appeared in the park just after Yunyun and I had argued. That must have caused my level to go up and gained me the point I needed. Perhaps sensing that something out of the ordinary was happening, the servants of the Dark God began to screech in their unearthly voices. I knew that each word of the incantation that activated a magic spell consumed magical energy. And although I was confident in my supply of MP, I nonetheless felt a trickle of sweat. Explosion was known for consuming more magical energy than any other spell, and many who learned it simply lacked the innate energy to use it. That was what the textbook had said anyway, but I was a member of the Crimson Magic Clan. How could I fail to cast the spell? I shook my head and kept chanting. And when I had finally finished…in the palm of my hand, a small light shined. …I did it. In order to give birth to this tiny light, I had worked and struggled since I was a child, and I’d finally learned this spell. I didn’t yet have a staff to multiply the power of my magic. If I released my explosion now, it would probably be only half as strong as it could be. And yet, even so. “Yunyun. Komekko. Get on the ground and keep your heads down.” I was sure I could clear away the crowd of monsters jostling above us in a single blast. Yunyun dragged her weakened body over to Komekko, holding my little sister in her arms as they both lay on the ground. She seemed to know what I had in mind. The light in my hand was as hot as if it was on fire, yet it also had a pleasant pressure, like a massive power shrunk down to a small size. It’s all right. It’s me. I can control this, I told myself as I looked up at the sky. Explosion, the spell I had been waiting and hoping for for so long. Explosion, the magic I had always been smitten with. Explosion, for which I had been willing to risk my life. Humanity’s greatest and last resort, which, with a direct hit, could annihilate a dragon or a demon, even perhaps a god or the Demon King. The image that had been burned into my mind as a child, I would now re-create with my own hand— “My name is Megumin! Greatest genius of the Crimson Magic Clan and wielder of Explosion! This spell! This spell is all I have sought, and I have finally obtained it! This is the day I shall never forget! …Take this!!” I opened my eyes wide, thrust out my hand with the ball of light, and shouted— “Explooosion!!!”