Chapter 35

I thought everyone in that party had been seriously wounded… “I never was able to find the courage to fight the monster on my own, but with them behind me, I’m sure…” I listened to Yunyun’s confession, trying to decide when I should finally sit up. “Okay, I’m going now.” It was now or never. If I greeted her sleepily, pretended I had just woken up… “You’re the most important friend I have. I can’t let you go to that fight, knowing you can never win. So…” I wanted to respond, but I had no idea how. “Megumin, I’m sorry.” Her apology was so quiet, so gentle. “Sleep.” I couldn’t fight the magically induced fatigue… 8 “—!!” I leaped out of bed as soon as my eyes snapped open. I looked out the window and beheld a beautiful sunny day. As if to prove that it hadn’t been a dream, the cat plushie beside my door was missing. “She has done it now! For the first time in your life, Yunyun, you have tricked me!!” First and foremost, I felt bitterness and frustration that she had stolen a march on me. Suddenly, she was the first to join a powerful party, the first to do battle with Host. That might have seemed like all good things, but for me personally…! “Nothing is more humiliating for a member of the Crimson Magic Clan than having their moment stolen! Do not imagine it will end here!!” I shouted, then grabbed my staff and charged out of the room— “Eek?!” “Hrk?!” —and almost directly into Cecily, who was just outside. “Sorry! I’ve got to hurry. This is a bit of an emergency!! See you later!” “What’s going on? Why are you in such a rush? What kind of emergency?” I didn’t exactly have time to regale Cecily with the whole story, but I felt bad leaving her there with no explanation…! I tried to keep a handle on my rampaging emotions as I told her what the situation was. She looked at me curiously. “This adventuring party that went with your friend to slay the demon, Megumin, was it led by a person named Rex?” “Huh? Yes… You see, I guess they’re supposed to be one of the most powerful parties in Axel…” “I healed them!” Cecily said, giving me a big smile and an even bigger thumbs-up. “…Huh?” “I said, I healed them—that party! Didn’t I tell you I actually did some work yesterday? I wandered over to the Eris church, hoping to throw a wrench into things somehow, and there they were, moaning and groaning and looking like they were really suffering.” Why did I have a bad feeling about this? “Well, it looks like my faith in Lady Aqua was greater than the Eris priest’s faith in his goddess! He worked on them, but they could still barely move. He just had to stand and watch while I healed them to a point where they could fight, sort of, if they worked really hard at it and really wanted to! Ooh, you should have seen the look on that priest’s face!!” So she was the one who had screwed everything up! Although to be fair, I had never expected Yunyun would consider taking on the battle herself. I’d also assumed that even if someone invited Yunyun to party up with them, no one would be willing to go after that demon—no one except Rex. And yet, all stupid Cecily had done was heal some injured people, and I could hardly complain about that! “I can’t just stand here—I have to go…!” I was about to rush off again, but Cecily grabbed my arm. “I don’t have time to play with you right—” Then I looked into her face, and the words died on my lips. She was whispering something and looking exceptionally serious. “The goddess Aqua bestows her gifts upon you! Blessing!” A gentle light shone from Cecily’s outstretched hand. It enveloped my body… “I can barely remember the incantation for anything but that healing magic. I’m so lucky it worked,” Cecily said with a relieved smile. I couldn’t help but give her a bit of a smile in return. And I couldn’t help being a little bit thankful to this strange Axis disciple. With things the way they were, I had started to panic without even realizing it. Thanks to her, I was able to relax a little. “Miss…” “I really think you could afford to call me Big Sis by now…” I smiled again. “Big Sis Cecily… I’m going now.” “Of course. Come back soon!” 9 On the great field outside of town. Even the Giant Toads that normally hopped around the grassy expanse were nowhere to be seen. “We’ll stall him again! You, use the same spell as last time!!” “G-got it! Leave it to me!” Instead… “You think you can stop me? I’d like to see you try! I’m so sick of you small fries!!” …there were Yunyun and the others, engaged in a sprawling battle with Host, the demon. “Rex, fall back! You’ve done all you can!” “Yeah—your right arm is broken, isn’t it?! You’re pale as a ghost!” Host, missing one of his wings from his run-in with the magic-sword wielder, now had cuts and scrapes all over his body. I got the sense that he was weakening. “Crap… Normally I’d kick your small-fry asses without breaking a sweat, but…” Terry and Sophie stepped forward to relieve Rex. Host sounded like he was trying to catch his breath. I observed the goings-on and remarked: “Now, just look at this. I wonder if it’s really okay for me to join this battle…” The scroll with the light-bending magic had made me invisible, and I was watching from a distance. Recognizing Host was on the back foot, I was surprised to realize they just might pull this off. I had intended to go charging in, but maybe it would be best if I just watched for a while. This was bad timing for a Crimson Magic Clansperson to make her entrance anyway. It was all well and good to show up at a moment of crisis and save the day, but far be it from me to look like I was just riding the coattails of someone else’s victory. Yunyun brandished her wand in one hand, clutching a little stone in the other. “Lightning!!” I could hear her all the way across the field as she unleashed a bolt of tremendous lightning magic. The same instant the bolt struck, the stone in her hand shattered…! “Grgh?! Gaaaah, that hurts! You and that stupid spell are getting on my nerves! Dammit, I’m low enough on strength that I don’t want to use magic if I don’t have to, but…!” Host, reeling from the lightning bolt, raised both hands and intoned, “Get lost, twerps! Inferno!” Then he brought down his hands—! As if knowing what he would do, Yunyun had already dropped her wand and grabbed a scroll with both hands. “Magic Canceler!” The spell that should have come bursting out of Host’s down-swept palms fizzled and died. Instead, the scroll Yunyun had pointed at him turned black and crumbled away. The magic within had activated and countered Host’s spell. Yunyun collected the wand lying at her feet and produced another small stone from her pocket. I knew what it was: manatite. It was a mineral that contained magical power, and as an item, it could get dramatically expensive depending on the size and purity of the stone. Yunyun actually seemed to have the upper hand against Host, even if she did need valuable magical items to get and hold it. “Y’don’t give up, do ya, ya little worm? This is why I didn’t want to have to tangle with the Crimson Magic Clan!! Fine, you wanna do some target practice? Fire away! Forget bein’ clever; I’m just gonna smash you to pieces!” Now properly upset, Host closed the distance with Yunyun with a speed you wouldn’t have expected from a creature of his size. Sophie and Terry moved to cover her. “We’re going with Plan F, everyone!” Yunyun shouted—whatever that meant—and then she took out another scroll and prepared to use it. “I’m ready!” “All set! Go for it!” “Come at us!” This was apparently some tactic they had devised in advance. “Got another cute idea?! You and your little games—they ain’t worked yet…!” Host, unperturbed, charged in…! At the same moment, Rex and the others covered their eyes. As I watched, wondering what they had in mind: “Flash!” Yunyun exclaimed, followed by a burst of extremely bright light. “Ha! Us demons don’t see things with our eyes! This might be a temp body, but your dumb little trick still won’t work on it!!” “D-damn! …Agh?!” “Sophie?! Ngah!!” From the cries, it sounded like Terry and Sophie were down. I heard two thumps of something hitting the earth. “Dammit, it didn’t work at all?! I thought for sure I heard a little yelp…!” I must have judged correctly, because Rex’s was the only voice I heard. Incidentally. “—! —!!” The little yelp had probably come from me, where I was still rolling on the ground with my hands over my eyes. They burned with the light, but I worked my way to a crouch, trembling. “Right, we’re down to two of you, then. Any more little plans you want to try?” Host sounded downright triumphant. I struggled to open my eyes and discovered Yunyun confronting the demon. Rex stood beside her, his massive sword dangling in his left hand. The others were collapsed on the ground, and Terry (I think) looked like he was unconscious. In response to Host’s taunt, Yunyun and Rex quietly conferred. “Mr. Rex, demons have strong magic defense, so I don’t know if this is going to work, but…I do have one item left.” “…All right. What do you need me to do?” This was troubling. From the vibe, I could tell I could hardly butt in now. Clearly nervous, the voices of the other two finally sank so low that I couldn’t hear the last words they exchanged. “Huh, gonna try again? Cool, give it your best shot! Every time you try one of your dumb tricks, you leave yourselves vulnerable. Next time you fail, one of you two is going down!!” Host mocked them openly, but his golden eyes were clearly suspicious, on the watch. Then Yunyun pulled out some sort of bottle… “…? Is that a magic potion?!” As Yunyun went to down the draft, Host charged at her again. “Leave the rest to me, kiddo!” Rex bellowed and lobbed his sword at Host. “?!” Host probably never expected someone to throw a weapon at him, and he reacted a second late. He sent the blade flying away with a sweep of his thick-skinned arm. Then the massive limb was thrust in the direction of Rex. “Paralyze!!” At the exact same instant, Yunyun intoned a spell with all her might after she downed the potion. I was sure that against a demon in a temporary body, paralysis would never— “Huh! Not very well-informed for a Crimson Magic kid, are ya? Demons aren’t affected by p-para—Huh…?!” Host went from triumph to chagrin in an instant. “Paralyze doesn’t work on demons? Believe me, I knew that! I was the second-best student in my class, I’ll have you know!” What Yunyun had just consumed was commonly known as a magic potion. Such a drink could increase the power of a specific spell or kind of magic or, alternatively, it might alter the effects of a spell completely. From the fact that Host couldn’t move, it was obvious the spell had worked. Yunyun hadn’t used the potion earlier because it was a gamble on whether it would be effective. A gamble she had won. Now they just had to finish off the immobilized demon. “Heh, that’s gotta be some potion to bind me, the great and powerful. But I’ll bet y’used up a lot of your magic doing that. Think you have enough to finish me off before I’m not paralyzed anymore? With a spell like this, I bet you got a few minutes, tops. You don’t get the job done before time’s up…and your time’s up. Y’feel me, little girl?” The fact that Host had suddenly become a talker again was proof that he was in crisis. “So I got a proposition for ya. How ’bout we both just go home for today? Don’t you want to get some help for your little friends there? I’ll make you a promise: If we both call it quits here, then even if this Paralyze wears off immediately, I won’t come after you again today. I know y’might not believe me, but a demon never breaks a promise.” Yunyun, apparently unable indeed to believe him, didn’t say anything. Host was starting to get nervous. “…You said you were the second-best student in your class, right? Then you of all people oughta know demons never break contracts or go back on our word!” Nervous and angry. “………………………………………You’ve got it wrong,” Yunyun said quietly, her voice shaking. “Wrong? What did I get wrong?” Host asked. “Ummm… Listen. Your deal, it sounds all right. I mean, the thing about quitting for today.” Yunyun’s voice was cracking. And then… “Hey, wait…a second…” Rex said from nearby. “Yeah, don’t…worry about us…,” Terry said, apparently having come around. “We’ll be just fine,” Sophie added, as if to give Yunyun the final push. “So go ahead…finish him off!” …I, however, understood what had happened to Yunyun. “Um, well…?” Yunyun still hadn’t moved a muscle. “Hang on. Don’t tell me…” Host appeared to have figured it out. “You can’t move, either, can ya?” The whole field seemed to fall silent. At last, Host’s uproarious laughter split the air. “You—you Crimson Magic types! You might be a pain in the neck, but I knew I liked you! Got balls enough to cast Paralyze on yourself!!” As he continued to guffaw, tears streamed down Yunyun’s cheeks. “Look, I don’t know how it works! It was the last thing I bought, and it was just marked ‘hugely increases Paralyze’s power and area of effect’! And all I know is that the pretty shop lady was willing to sell it to me for really cheap!!” Normally, I would have gotten all over Yunyun for buying something so stupid, but when I saw the empty bottle at her feet, I could only hold my head. A potion that caused spells to affect even the caster? An idea that dumb could have come from only my own father. “Ahhh, I needed a good laugh. So what’s the story, huh? I know you don’t exactly trust me, but you got a choice to make. You gonna take my offer or not? I’m stuck like a statue right now; you sure you don’t wanna try to finish me off? Hey, you just made today so damn funny that I’ll say the deal’s still on if you want it—how’s about that?” Host sounded mocking again, but he still couldn’t move. Rex and the others, who had sounded so sure of themselves a second ago, could only listen in silence. Perhaps this was the moment. “Ohhh… A-are you trying to pick a fight?! M-members of the Crimson Magic Clan never back down from a fight! Even if they can’t possibly win, they…never…?” Still weeping, Yunyun trailed off. “Hngh?! Where the hell did you come from?!” Host was just as surprised as Yunyun. The effects of the scroll had deactivated, and I had appeared out of thin air. Already paralyzed, both my onlookers went stiffer still with shock. “Hello, everyone. I understand you all can’t move.” Quite a thing, for them to go off and leave me like this. “Don’t mind me—I’m just a passing great wizard. You all seem to be having so much fun, now that you’ve ditched me.” 10 “Hey, I know you! You’re that spell-caster who was all talk! Great wizard, my ass! What are you even doing here? Get out of the way—it’s dangerous!!” Rex, still unable to get up off the ground—perhaps because of his wounds or perhaps because of Paralyze—sounded downright panicked. “Megumin…?” Also immobile, Yunyun sounded hesitant, like a child afraid of being scolded. She looked at me carefully as she spoke. I didn’t respond to either of them. “I forgot to let off my daily explosion yesterday, and then in the middle of the night, just when I was about to get up and do it, someone cast sleep magic on me…” “Grgh?! Y-y-y-you were awake?! Oh no! Don’t tell me you were awake for all that?!” I brandished my staff menacingly in Host’s direction. “And now I’ve been looking for something to do with all this extra magic I’ve got lying around… Something good to unleash my spell on…” “H-hey, your—your eyes…! Okay, h-hold on! Let’s all just calm down! We can be reasonable about this!” Host said, his voice starting to squeak. “Megumin, please answer me! How long were you awake?! How much did you hear?!” Yunyun shouted, eyes brimming again. “How long was I awake? Since about the moment you unlocked my door and whispered, ‘Megumin, are you asleep…?’ I suppose.” “Noooooooooooooooooo! Arrrrrrrrrrrgggghhhhh!” Yunyun cried, her face bright red. She tried to flee, but she was still paralyzed. “Now, then. You certainly did torment me, oh funny friend of mine who confesses embarrassing things to a person who is actually awake and then paralyzes even herself.” “Aaaaaaah! Stop it—please! Have mercy on me! I’m sorry, I was wrong, just stop! Are you angry that I cast Sleep on you and then went off to fight without you?! That I helped myself to your plush toy?! I apologize for everything—just stop already!!” “It’s very embarrassing, the way you can bring yourself to say, ‘Megumin…you’re the coolest, most incredible person I know,’ when no one is listening…” “Yaaaaahhh! Nooooooooo!” “‘You’re the most important friend I have’… Yes, when such things are whispered to me, even I cannot simply stand by!!” “Somebody kill me! I can’t run away, I can’t move, I can’t even end it all myself! Somebody please put me out of my misery!! I can’t bear to live anymore! Just kill me now!!” Yunyun sounded like she was about to break. Host was watching us with something like amusement. Finally, Rex, who had been quiet until that moment, burst out, “C’mon, Big Mouth! How long are you gonna play around? Just hurry up and………? Wh-what? Hey, what’s going on here? You’re looking really strange!” Well, yes. While I had been busy waging psychological warfare on Yunyun, I had also been gathering my magic. “The spell I use requires an immense concentration of power. This particular situation is ideal for me.” “You need to concentrate even more? I’ve lived a long time, kid, but I’ve never been this freaked out by a magical aura before…” Host was sounding more or less resigned but also a little intrigued. “I will now unleash my secret technique. It is the same spell that crushed your companion Arnes.” “So you’re the one who did her in… I see it now. Magic like this, I don’t think she coulda stood up to it.” I felt more magic than usual bubbling up within me, maybe because I hadn’t used any of it yesterday. There was so much of it that I could hardly control it all, and the air around me began to vibrate, then crackle with electricity. “G-geez, what the…? What’s going on…? I’ve been adventuring a whole lotta years, but I’ve never seen anything like this…,” Rex mumbled, finally able to turn his head to look at me. “I can’t believe it—you weren’t just talk after all…,” he said, terrified, his face pale. I didn’t bother responding, just sort of smiled. “Here goes,” I said. “My ultimate technique, Explosion!!” When Host heard the name of the spell I planned to use, he heaved a sigh—a remarkably human gesture. …I’m not an expert reader of demon emotions, but I think he might be sort of smiling, just like Rex. “Ah, geez… Y’know, if I were in top shape, I think I could survive that. If I hadn’t been attacked by that stupid-tough Crusader and her Thief friend yesterday. Weirdos…” He was still paralyzed. “I had this idea, see. I was gonna get ’em back by attacking the town… But all of a sudden, this freaky lady working on building the walls suddenly cast just the worst exorcism magic on me…” It almost sounded like Host was…complaining. “That took out one of my lives. Looks like I’m going to be forced out of my contract with Lady Wolbach… Yeesh, at this rate, I really will end up being summoned by that kid to be her servant.” I didn’t really get what he was talking about, but he didn’t sound too upset. “…Explooosion—!!” “What the hell is even with this town?! Bozos and weirdos everywhere! Bad news, all of ya! That includes you with your stupid spell! Stupid, stupid—!” 11 Yes, I had destroyed Host, but afterward, with me rendered immobile for lack of magic, Yunyun was the only one out of any of us who could move. The people who came from the Adventurers Guild put us all on stretchers. It was a sorry sight—but that was yesterday. As for right now… “I knew you could do it! Yes, I always believed in you, my dear, sweet Megumin! Your big sis always knew you would win!!” Cecily was embracing me warmly in the doorway of our inn; in fact, she was rubbing her cheek vigorously against mine. Which was—I mean, with Yunyun standing beside us and watching, it was sort of embarrassing. “Um…miss?” “Call me Big Sis! You did it yesterday!” “Miss. I’m, uh, getting sort of hot, so if you could let me go…” “Oh, you’re so hot and cold!” She wasn’t making sense, but at least Cecily finally released me. She looked me over and, grinning, said, “Are you really sure about this, Megumin? Giving up the entire bounty?” That’s right: I had taken the reward for getting rid of Host and given it all to Rex and his party. Admittedly, I was the whole reason Host had shown up in this town at all. Or, to be more precise, the reason was the fur ball that was even now curling around my feet. “Yes, it’s fine. I just got the easy part—striking the finishing blow. I wasn’t the one who fought a grueling battle against him.” “The way you desperately need money but work so hard to act like it doesn’t bother you is just the cutest thing, Megumin!” “I’m not a-a-acting! It’s all true, got it?! I just started to feel like it was sort of my fault that Rex and his party got hurt!” “Ugh, you can never just come out and say what you’re feeling! But I don’t dislike that about you!” Cecily was in such high spirits that she seemed about to sweep me up in another hug. I gave her a lopsided smile. “…Okay, then. I hate to say it, but I think it’s time for me to go.” She hefted her luggage onto her shoulders. “Will you go straight back to Arcanletia?” I asked. Cecily grinned like a child with a prank in mind. “Uh-uh, I’m going to go on a journey! I learned something with everything that happened here. Namely, that I can’t get by with healing magic alone! I only bothered to learn it in the first place because I play around so much that I tend to get injured. But doing all the stuff I did here, casting Blessing on you and sort of acting like a real priest, it got me thinking. What if I wasn’t just a beautiful priestess but a really good one, too? And there you have it!” Talk about the most shallow reasons. “Plus, if I reach a certain level, the Church will let me be a branch manager in any town I like!” Totally shallow. “…Don’t tell me you’re angling for a secondment to Axel.” “That’s a secret!” …That’s exactly what she’s hoping for. “So anyway. Don’t get all sad and cry just because I’m not here, okay?” “I won’t… But really, take care of yourself. You really are pretty when you keep your mouth shut, so don’t get sucked in by some awful man.” “That’s supposed to be my line! Listen closely, okay? You need a party, but pick one very carefully!!” And with that, Cecily left as abruptly as she had arrived… Yunyun, who had watched the entire exchange silently, was looking very serious. “Hey, uh, Megumin? Could you come outside of town with me for a moment?” There beyond the city gates, we found the Giant Toads, previously hidden away in fear of Host, hopping happily around the field. We could see adventurers chasing after them here and there. “I think this would be a good spot,” Yunyun said. She was walking a few steps ahead of me, but she suddenly stopped. And then… “O my friendly rival, Megumin, called first among the Crimson Magic Clan!” She was blushing crimson but managed to point at me emphatically. “My name is Yunyun! Arch-wizard and wielder of intermediate magic, and she who will one day be chief of our clan! …I’m going to leave on a journey now. A journey on which I will finally master advanced magic so I can topple you, my rival!” “…As I recall, it was just the other day that I was not your rival but your most important friend.” “Aaaaah, I can’t hear you; I can’t hear you!” Yunyun cried, somehow managing to turn even redder. “Let me guess… Would the real purpose of this journey be to get out of town for a while until the embarrassing things you said blow over?” “Come on! Even I know better than that! Ahem, um. That might…just…be a small part of it… B-but, but anyway!” This time she pulled out her wand and, gripping it tightly, pointed it in my direction. “When I’ve learned advanced magic, then we’ll settle this! …It kills me to admit it, but you’re the one who finished off that demon, Megumin. I finally have to accept that I can’t beat you, not as I am now. If I stayed with you here, I would never catch up to you.” “No kidding. As our record currently stands, I believe I am essentially undefeated.” “L-lay off! I’m trying to be serious here; don’t throw in your little jabs! Anyway, it doesn’t matter! Like I said, once I have mastered advanced magic, then we’ll see if you have the nerve to really settle this!” Yunyun was shouting and just about to burst into tears. I turned so I was facing her directly. “Very well, so we will. When the time comes, we’ll settle this, no tricks—fair and square.” And then I smiled at the rarest of things: a friend.