Chapter 4 – Black Bow

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Militsa was fifteen years old, or in other words, two years younger than Tigre and Mila. By now it had been around half a year since she became a Vanadis.

When Tigre introduced himself, she widened her eyes slightly, apparently surprised.

“So you were the gentleman who changed Elder Sister Ludmila, huh?”

“Changed, you say?” Tigre cocked his head to the side, having trouble understanding the meaning behind Militsa’s words.

“I heard Elder Sister used to be a very cold person in the past. Her way of speaking and attitude were relentless, curt, and merciless, or so I was told. Though I cannot say it with confidence since I have not known Elder Sister back then.”

“Well, now that you mention it, she did have such parts to her,” Tigre agreed while recalling their time from three years ago.

At the time when he met Mila for the first time, she was a high-handed, quick-tempered girl who made sure to show others whenever she disliked them. It took him a lot of effort to break the ice between them.

“But, I also heard she suddenly mellowed down and became quite easy to talk with at some point… Elder Sister Tina――the person you could call my teacher――happily told me that it was funny to watch how the coldhearted, frosty snow princess had became a snow maiden with her heart ablaze by love.”

“Okay, but what’s a snow maiden? It sounds kind of cute, though.”

“A snow maiden is a fairy appearing in our country’s fairy-tales. She was mischievous and froze whatever she liked on a whim, but one day she fell in love with a human youngster, stopped the mischief, and married him after a series of turns and twists.”

“J-Just so you know, I-I’ve been like this before I met Tigre, okay…?” Mila cut in, half pouting, half bashful.

Right now, she was being carried by Tigre. She herself had claimed that she could walk by herself, but Tigre hadn’t listened to any of it. While traveling in a way allowing them to avoid the lake, the three walked through the forest, heading for the joint camp of the Vorn troops and Olmutz’s army.

Militsa knew which way they had to take to arrive there. She had explained that she took a look at the terrain from above, so Tigre suspected that she might have climbed a high tree or something. At least Mila appeared to trust her words unconditionally, so Tigre decided to follow her lead. However, he didn’t understand what method Militsa had used to get her. Going by the fact that Mila didn’t ask anything about this, he guessed that it had very likely to be Militsa’s draconic artVeda. He could sense the same sort of aura from the scythe she was shouldering as from Mila’s Frozen Ripples.

“Why do you address Mila as Elder Sister?” Tigre asked her as he was curious about her relationship with Mila.

Maybe it’s a custom between Vanadis to call your seniors in such a way? But, Sofy used Mila’s pet name when addressing her during our last meeting.

The black-haired Vanadis looked up to Mila and gently smiled, “That’s because I’m deeply indebted to Elder Sister Ludmila. Back when I visited the capital after becoming a Vanadis, I was very nervous. During the audience with His Majesty the King, I blanked out so much that I can’t even recall what happened there. Once I came to again, I was in some place I didn’t recognize at all. Until then I had made a living as a doctor and had never entered the royal palace…”

“At that time, I was at the palace because I had some business to take care of over there. Seeing her Viralt, I knew that she’s a Vanadis, so I called out to her, thinking that she might be lost.” Mila supplemented with a wry smile from behind Tigre.

According to Mila’s explanation, she led Militsa through the palace, gave her an explanation about Vanadis, treated her to a meal at a restaurant she knew well, and even told her about a good inn. All of this led to Militsa becoming completely attached to Mila.

“If I hadn’t met Elder Sister back then, I wouldn’t be where I am right now.”

“You’re clearly exaggerating.”

“It’s something I can only say now, but Elder Sister Tina, who kindly picked me up at the inn, was very worried… When she heard about me having met with Elder Sister Ludmila, she immediately asked whether I didn’t suffer terrible verbal abuse, being called things like bumpkin and dullard, or being blamed for my lacking awareness as Vanadis and having small breasts.”

“Heeeh…”

A fierce coldness suddenly hit Tigre’s back, causing him to shiver with a start. He suspected that Mila’s arms were filled with strength because she overflowed with anger she couldn’t suppress completely.

By the way, Tigre had noticed Mila’s soft breasts being pressed against his back, but he strained himself to pay as little attention to it as possible. If he thought about unnecessary stuff, his dick, who had become limp by now, might revive once more.

“Did Valentina mention anything else about me?”

Going by Mila’s words, Tigre supposed Valentina to be the proper name of 「Elder Sister Tina」. Militsa let eyes wander between the trees, but then clapped her hands together as if having remembered.

“Come to think of it, she warned me to avoid being alone together with you because you possess seventeen deadly techniques based on black tea. Pouring boiling tea into your opponent’s ear, choking your opponent by stuffing their throat with dried tea leaves, and…”

Tigre reflexively stopped his feet because he had to pool all his effort into not roaring in laughter.

While pinching his left ear, Mila rebuked Militsa with a harsh tone, “What nonsense. Out of ten…no, fifty things that woman prattles, you can at most believe in one or two.”

“But, Elder Sister Tina is my teacher… Though, as her pupil I do occasionally feel worried about her not having stopped feeling like a newly-wed even after ten years since her marriage ceremony have passed.”

“You sure don’t hold back either, huh?” Mila sighed.

When their conversation paused, Tigre used the opportunity to ask her, “Lady Militsa, why did you come to a place like this?”

Although he had enjoyed listening to their chat, it didn’t seem like they’d ever start talking about the main issue at hand, no matter how long he might have waited for it.

“I won’t mind you calling me Militsa. Because it’s slightly complicated, I’ll take the liberty to talk with Elder Sister first.”

Militsa stood on her tip-toes to make herself taller, and whispered something into Mila’s ear. Tension spread across Mila’s face.

“You were a bit too late, Militsa. We already fought Rusalka this morning.”

Militsa’s eyes flew open in shock. Tigre also gasped, staring at her.

“Do you know something about Rusalka?”

“Not so much me, but rather Elder Sister Tina. She has researched various things about demons. Although it sounds like there are still many things we don’t know yet,” Militsa began to explain after tightening her expression. “A record from almost a hundred years ago mentioned that a Vanadis fought Rusalka in Muozinel. Rusalka is also known as 『Nixy』. It seems she can manipulate water and gets stronger through water.”

“Indeed, she was a terrifying opponent.”

Mila told Militsa about their fight against Rusalka. Militsa nodded thoughtfully after listening to the end.

“As we thought, there appears to exist some sort of fateful connection between demons and Vanadis.”

“Fateful connection?”

“We don’t know the details yet. But, the demons have some sort of objective, and the generations of Vanadis have been preventing them from achieving their objective. At least that’s what Elder Sister Tina said.”

“But, wouldn’t proper documents about such matters remain in such a case?” Tigre voiced his doubt.

The Vanadis were accepted rulers of principalities. Not wandering knights or some such. If they fought against demons, it wouldn’t be weird for official records to have been left behind about those events.

“One of the demon’s traits is them possessing the names of monsters, fairies, or spirits as they appear in fairy-tales. Lord Tigrevurmud, didn’t you hear of the fairy-tale hosting Rusalka?”

Comprehending what Militsa wanted to tell him, Tigre grimaced, “In other words, it’d be difficult to distinguish such military exploits from fairy-tales, even if the Vanadis of old had left behind such records, you say?”

“Yes,” Militsa nodded. “Even the Vanadis of old didn’t note down the precise times and locations, or made mistakes in their description. Many of those documents were discarded or destroyed due to certain circumstances, too…”

“That’s quite troublesome then.”

All of this sounds like searching for a need in a haystack, but I guess investigating demons has to be nothing other than that. Even if a Vanadis makes use of her status, discovering the true identity of demons is an extremely challenging task. No, I think it’s no exaggeration to say that you won’t even reach the starting line unless you have the standing of a Vanadis. Still…

Tigre corrected his piggy-carry of Mila. While sensing the warmth of his lover on his back, he fought down his feelings of bitterness.

A fateful connection between Vanadis and demons. That’s a connection I always imagined and wished for. But, I, as someone who’s not a Vanadis, cannot get involved in this.

He was tormented by a vehement feeling of powerlessness.

――Isn’t there anything I can do? I’m not going to wish for something as conceited as a power to protect Mila. I simply want to support and help her.

“About Rusalka――” Militsa continued her explanation to Mila, “――that Vanadis caused Rusalka to fall asleep for a long time in a region called Oltu.”

“Do you mean to say she sealed Rusalka?”

“Elder Sister Tina said that this might be the case. Accordingly, I was asked to go and take a look at Oltu, but…it seems like the seal has come undone.” Militsa furrowed her eyebrows, appearing to be troubled. “It seems like Rusalka will be pulled back to Oltu when she weakens. If we assume that she got injured in the battle against you, she might currently be back in Oltu again.”

“Leave it to me. I do not have any intention to let such a dangerous demon on the loose,” Mila declared with a winning smile.

In response, Militsa bent her head to the side in doubt, “But Elder Sister Ludmila, you’re in the middle of a war, aren’t you?”

“That demon is an opponent I ought to prioritize over a war. After all, I won’t be able to focus on the matters at hand while not knowing what she might do next.”

Militsa revealed a happy smile at Mila’s words. At that moment, Tigre realized that her face had very likely stiffened up out of nervousness.

――Well, it’s been only a half year since she became a Vanadis. She must have been quite anxious deep down. As such, she’s a rather stout-hearted girl, if I assume that she acted like this to cover her own tension up like that.

“Which reminds me, I have this for you two.”

Militsa inserted a hand into her loose sleeve and retrieved two, round objects with the size of a thumb. The light-brown color made them look like nuts.

“Please chew them thoroughly and then swallow all of it. It’s a medicine against fevers, but I think it will also relieve you of some fatigue.”

Given that both of Tigre’s hands were occupied, Mila fed him the medicine after receiving her and his share from Militsa. When she brought the medicine close to his face, a peculiar aroma tickled his nose, causing him to screw up his face.

“The leaves of pine trees? No, it’s similar, but then again different…”

Militsa narrowed her eyes in admiration when hearing Tigre’s comment.

“I finely chopped up dried pine leaves originating from Jaffa, and after cooking the powder with two other medicinal herbs, I formed the resulting mass into these balls.”

“I see. As for the other two――”

Noticing joy coloring Militsa’s eyes, Tigre decided to accept her challenge. He’d have only made Mila worried if he pretended to be serious, and this was just perfect for a change of mood. While assiduously chewing on the medicine, Tigre tried to determine the identities of the medicinal herbs, going by the sensation on the tip of his tongue.

Then he brought his mouth close to Militsa’s ear and whispered his guesses. When it came to the recipes of medicines, they were often kept confidential. And sure enough, Militsa’s face bloomed into one of utter admiration when she heard his reply.

“That’s correct.”

“I often enter the mountains by myself. I remember most of the useful, wild grasses. The explanation that it’d also relieve some of our fatigue also helped here.”

“Nothing less of the gentleman whom Elder Sister Ludmila praises on every occasion.”

“I-I don’t remember praising him that much,” Mila tried to deny Militsa’s remark with a somewhat quick objection.

Militsa tilted her head to the side, “But, this man is the standard in men for you, isn’t it Elder Sister? Just a little while ago, you said that a man must be able to take down deer and boars, bring them back home, and prepare them properly by himself, if he’s going to be the partner of a Vanadis. Didn’t that cause several people to be completely dumbfounded? I was even wondering just what bug had bitten you to say such strange things.”

“…Did anything like that actually happen, I wonder,” Mila feigned ignorance while looking into the far distance, before adding something that sounded more like an excuse than anything, “Olmutz has many mountains after all.”

“Very well, then there’s something I wish to ask you as well, Lord Tigrevurmud. Did Elder Sister make you travel incognito or inspect the castle town during your stay in Olmutz?”

Tigre nodded at Militsa’s leading question while recalling the events of that time.

“She did. We ate wheat porridgemanakashja and fish soupucha at various eateries and compared them. We were taught how to play a gusli and balalaika by an old man who claimed to be a troubadourmenestrel… We also caught fugitive criminals together, and buckled over after drinking too much vodka.”

“Is the story about you getting pushed down by Elder Sister after she got drunk true?”

For an instant, silence reigned. Tigre had already grasped that this girl loved drama and scandals, but he wondered where she might have heard of this.

“No, I was the one doing the pushing. Though I got immediately knocked over and harshly scolded.”

“Then, what about Elder Sister singing a song for lovers while using your and her name in the lyrics after being taught how to play the balalaika?”

That was something Tigre hadn’t heard of. As such he looked back over his shoulder.

“…Who told you about this, Militsa?” Mila asked with a low, subdued voice while hiding her face by clinging to Tigre’s back.

Militsa warded Mila’s anger off with a cheerful face, “I heard so from Lady Svetlana.”

Tigre and Mila were at a loss for words when they were confronted with the name of an unforeseen, formidable foe. Because she was Mila’s mother, it was extremely difficult to deny it outright.

As both of them fell silent, Militsa giggled into her sleeve, “Just that reaction alone is already plenty. Thank you for allowing me to enjoy the relationship between you two.”

Just when Mila was about to say something in response to that, the three heard the voices of several men. Once they looked in the direction, armed men were standing between the trees. They were soldiers of Alsace and Olmutz.

“Lord Tigre!” “Lady Vanadis, you were safe!”

The soldiers ran up to them while chaotically expressing their joy. Tigre and Mila had finally gotten back to their camp.

†

The sky was hidden behind a blanket of thick, overlapping, gray clouds. At the same time, a cold, piercing wind was ravaging the lands.

Learning of Tigre and Mila’s return, the camp of Olmutz and the Vorn unit was wrapped up in cheerful voices, but that lasted but a moment――immediately superseded by an atmosphere of unrest and anxiety.

One of the reasons for this was to be found in the appearances of their two commanders. Fatigue was clearly edged into Tigre and Mila’s faces. Their clothes were creased, making it obvious that the fabric had dried just recently. On top of that, mud stains conspicuously covered their bodies and clothes at various spots.

The other reason came from Militsa’s presence. Olmutz’s soldiers had been aware of the close relationship between Mila and her, but they got obviously worried about the possible implication of a Vanadis, who ought to be in Zhcted, being present in this place.

At present, Tigre, Mila, Militsa, Raphinaque, and Galyinin were holding a meeting inside the commander’s tent. Tigre and Mila recounted the events of the morning to their adjutants.

“A demon…you say?”

As might only be natural, Raphinaque and Galyinin appeared to be confused.

“If you don’t want to believe it, you’re free to disregard our words. However, everything we’re going to talk about next will be based on the existence of demons being a given. I’d like you to understand that much.”

As far as Tigre was concerned, he couldn’t say much more than that. Mila had remained silent while observing the two’s reactions. Raphinaque and Galyinin looked at each other, but before long, the Brunian spoke up.

“This morning we searched the area after realizing that both of you were gone. Next to the lake, we found a bizarre sight of the trees being covered by mud and the ground being gouged out all over the places, as if war elephants and an earth dragon had rolled around while playing in the mud, but…”

“That’s the place where we got attacked by Rusalka,” Tigre said.

Mila nodded. Her eyes, as she gazed at Raphinaque, were filled with fighting spirit.

“There’s a reason why we told you about the demon. We’re going to act separately from now on. Militsa and I will head over to Oltu. Galyinin, please head towards Brune’s army while obeying Tigre’s command.”

“I shan’t do anything like that, Lady Ludmila!” Galyinin raised his voice.

Tigre and Raphinaque stared at the elderly knight, both being dumbfounded. It was their first time witnessing that man raising his voice.

“Did you not tell us just now that you almost drowned while fighting that demon or whatever it was? Noon has passed a good while ago, but looking at your face, it is clear that your physical condition has not recovered yet. For now, you ought to rest here. The matter with the demon can follow afterwards.”

“Sorry, but we don’t have much time,” Militsa objected while not getting perturbed by Galyinin looking at her angrily. “Rusalka is said to be a demon who becomes stronger through water. There is the risk that a change in weather will heal her wounds and bolster her powers.”

Sweat that contained his seriousness ran down from Galyinin’s forehead to his cheeks.

“Rain…!”

“Certainly, the sky has been cloudy all day long… I didn’t consider it as anything but a welcome cooling,” Raphinaque looked up to the ceiling, his face pale.

Mila announced with a dignified voice, “Just as you’ve heard, Rusalka possesses enough strength to easily lop off the heads of dragons. She can easily cause a flood or tsunami, too. We must take her down before she attacks us. I don’t want to imagine it, but if she were to attack us while we’re marching, I wouldn’t be able to protect everyone.”

“But…” Galyinin opposed it further with his face hardened by the unwillingness to understand.

Several strands of his gray hair were about to fall down on his forehead. Mila deeply thanked the elderly knight, who considered her so dearly, in her mind.

“Galyinin, you have served Svetlana, the previous Vanadis, for a long time. You must have heard a bit about the reason why her left arm became disabled, right?”

Mila chose her words, referring to Svetlana as a Vanadis and not as a mother. Galyinin stared at his current mistress with a surprised look.

“Lady Ludmila, there exist things an old, incompetent fool like me cannot comprehend no matter what, but――” Galyinin bowed his head as respectfully as always, clearly appearing as if he made up his resolve, “――I shall serve you in any way within my capabilities. So that you can fully concentrate on the battle against that demon. Would that be acceptable, Lady Ludmila?”

“Thanks, Galyinin,” Mila grabbed Galyinin’s hand with a smile.

After having witnessed all of this, Militsa quietly stood up. She had apparently waited for the conversation to conclude.

“Elder Sister Ludmila, I will got to the forest――the place where Rusalka appeared earlier.”

“Is there anything bothering you?” Mila frowned while looking up to the younger Vanadis.

“Maybe I will be able to find something with Ezendeis’s powers. This child is outstanding after all,” Militsa explained while lovingly caressing the handle of the scythe in her hand.

And as if to respond to that, the scythe’s blade released a dull light.

“I understand. I will come with you.”

Mila extended a hand for Lavias which was leaning against the tent’s wall. But Militsa shook her head.

“Elder Sister, please remain here. It’s possible that Rusalka will attack this place once she’s released again. It was you who taught me about a Vanadis’s responsibility towards her soldiers, wasn’t it?”

Mila’s hand stopped right before it reached Lavias’s handle.

Militsa revealed a beautiful smile, “I will run away at once if I feel that it’s dangerous. You know about my veda, don’t you?”

“I do, but still…”

“How about you let me lead you to that place then?”

Tigre got up as if to wedge himself between the two Vanadis. Mila and Militsa both widened their eyes, but Raphinaque was even more surprised than either of them.

“Young lord!? What are you talking about all of a sudden!?”

Raphinaque raised his voice while baring his front teeth. In contrast to that, Tigre responded to him calmly, “You’ve heard Lady Ludmila’s story, haven’t you? Leaving Rusalka to her own devices would be like letting a stray dragon roam the lands unfettered. I want to do anything I can since it’s also for our own sake.”

And, if possible, he wanted to find at least a clue how he’d be able to fight on even ground with Mila and Militsa.

Yet, Raphinaque didn’t concede in light of Tigre’s earnest opinion.

“Milord, it sounds like you keep forgetting that you will become the next lord of Alsace. You have a duty to survive. Even more so than we do.”

“There’s no way that I’d ever forget Alsace, is there? I’m taking action BECAUSE I want to survive. It’s for the sake of avoiding the error of overlooking tomorrow’s danger on behalf of today’s safety. Raphinaque, demons are truly terrifying.”

Tigre spun his words frantically. Raphinaque scowled at his young lord while remaining silent. Because his emotions were so high-strung, all blood had actually drained from Raphinaque’s face.

After waiting for his adjutant to calm down somewhat, Tigre entreated, “Please. Listen to my selfish request just this once.”

“I wonder just how many times I’ve had to hear this line so far,” Raphinaque answered with sarcasm right away.

But, his voice was lacking most of the previous anger. He muttered, “Bloody hell, we’ve got a truly restive young lord on our hands,” as if having given up.

“Please listen to me, young lord. If a demon or anything else dangerous should come out, run away at once. Otherwise I will get killed by Lord Urs, Bertrand, and Titta.”

“…I’ll do my best.”

Raphinaque smiled bitterly at that reply. And then he faced Militsa next.

“I am terribly sorry, but would you please be so kind as to use our young lord, whose purpose in life it is to be reckless and unreasonable, as a guide? If it looks like he is going to become a hindrance, please do not shy away from forsaking him.”

“Very well. I shall look after him,” Militsa bowed quickly.

Watching all that, Tigre ransacked his dull red hair.

I’ve been called selfish, so this much should still be permissible.

Galyinin asked Mila in a whisper, “Are you fine with this?”

“It’s not said that Rusalka will definitely show up. Besides, I’m here right now because I was saved by Tigre on many occasions. I’d be worried about letting Militsa go by herself too…”

She couldn’t phrase it out clearly, but if she was going to entrust Militsa to someone, Mila couldn’t think of anyone suitable for this other than Tigre. However, she couldn’t fully disregard the possibility of her assessment of him being too soft.

Either way, it’s a fact that we need as much information about Rusalka as possible.

“Be careful, you two.”

Being sent off by Mila, Tigre and Militsa departed the camp.

†

Tigre and Militsa were silently weaving their way through the forest. Tigre held his black bown in his left hand with a full quiver hanging at his waist. He knew it wouldn’t do him much good against a demon, but demons weren’t the sole danger they could possibly encounter inside the forest.

Before long, the lake came into sight. Seeing the lakeshore, now turned into a muddy quagmire, and the mud-caked trees and branches littering the whole area, Tigre’s jaw dropped. He didn’t have the time to take in the scenery during their earlier fight, but it looked almost as if a tornado had passed through. Broken pieces of wood were serenely swaying on the lake, too.

“What a devastation…” Militsa stood at the shore without a care about getting dirty.

She had planted her big scythe Ezendeis into the ground so that it was standing next to her like a flagpole.

“…I cannot feel the presence of a demon. I guess she did return to Oltu as suspected.”

Hearing her remark, Tigre relaxed somewhat. Of course he still kept up his alertness to be able to fight at any moment, but once he knew that no demon was in the area, a feeling of relief spread in his chest.

However, he had apparently rejoiced too early. The Viralt in Militsa’s hand released a violet light. Almost as if to warn its wielder.

And then, both heard the sound of something huge and heavy being dragged.

Tigre swiftly grabbed Militsa’s hand, who was standing still while in a daze, and rushed back into the forest while pulling her along. Once they stopped and looked in the direction from where the sound was coming, both couldn’t help but to blink in surprise.

A huge cluster of water, located around 80 chet (approx. 8 meters) away, was looking down on them while wriggling eerily.

As soon as Tigre strained his eyes, he could immediately see that this cluster had the form of a gigantic snake with seven heads. It had a huge frame that rivaled or even surpassed that of the earth dragon which had accompanied Brune’s army. Each of its heads and necks was around twice as thick as an adult’s torso. The tail, on the other hand, was short. Underneath the gray sky, the whole thing had a murky water color.

“What’s…this thing…!?”

“Very likely a monster created by Rusalka,” answered Militsa with a calm tone.

At a glance, she looked composed, but Tigre had noticed that her face had clearly cramped up.

“Please run away,” Militsa asked Tigre while staring at the huge snake.

Tigre shook his head.

――This monster mustn’t be allowed to leave the forest.

A scene of his own soldiers and the Olmutz troops falling into chaos crossed his mind. He couldn’t allow this monstrosity to get close to the camp, no matter the cost. Mila was holding the fort in case of the worst situation, but if possible, he’d like her to rest up as much as she could.

In such a case, they had no choice but to confront that thing in this place.

“Please don’t worry about me and focus on the battle. I’ll be able to at least serve as a decoy.”

One of the snake’s heads moved. It flung its jaw wide open and swooped down towards Militsa as if to swallow her whole. Slightly faster than it could reach the girl, Tigre hugged Militsa and rolled across the ground.

A loud splash could be heard, shortly followed by a huge spray of water raining down on the area. The two had just barely dodged the snake’s jaw. But, they didn’t have the spare time to get back up. The other six heads didn’t waste any time and swooped down in succession, too.

Tigre kept rolling across the ground with Militsa in his arms, evading the second and then the third attack. But, right after the third attack, he hit the roots of a tree, thwarting his further escape route. The fourth head came down at them while ripping through the air.

“――Space CorridorVuoldohl,” Militsa muttered as if chanting a spell while holding onto Tigre with her left arm.

A weird sensation, as if he was floating in the air, enveloped Tigre. And then, in the next instant, Tigre’s visual field abruptly changed altogether. Although he should have been staring at the lower part of a monster and the muddy ground, he was now looking at the tree’s foliage and the monster’s heads. What he had been looking up to was now on the same level as his line of sight. The feeling passed on to him from beneath his body had changed as well. Instead of the cold ground and tree roots, it was now a thick tree branch.

“Please stay still. Otherwise you’ll fall down.”

Tigre came to his senses thanks to Militsa’s voice. She was scrutinizing the monster’s movements while clinging to a branch. Once his mind was pulled back to reality, he also noticed that they were both covered in mud from head to toe.

“What did you do…?”

“My Ezendeis possesses a power allowing it to move from one place to another in an instant. I used the same power to arrive here from Osterode, too. However, since it was difficult to determine the destination, I had to stop over many times.”

“I see…” After agreeing, Tigre further added, “Thanks.”

If she hadn’t used her Veda, both would have been in the stomach of the snake around now.

“Given that Elder Sister Ludmila likes you, I didn’t think that you’re just some random, lustful guy, but now I know that you’re an unexpectedly vast person as well.”

“Vast…?” Tigre frowned, ignoring the part about lustfulness and so on.

“It means brave and capable in my home town.”

The monster had apparently lost sight of Tigre and Militsa, seeing how its seven heads were restlessly moving around. The foliage nicely hid the two from sight.

“I will draw its attention, so please use that time to escape.”

Militsa shouldered her scythe again while standing on the branch.

Tigre quietly asked, “How much combat experience do you have?”

“I have subjugated bandits on several occasions during this half year.”

“That’s really reliable then.”

Now Tigre could understand why her movements seemed somewhat slow. She clearly lacked experience. And yet, this girl was telling him to get away while courageously trying to carry out her duty.

“Militsa, let’s decide on our roles. I’ll attract that thing’s attention while you finish it off. Got it?”

“I told you to flee――”

Without letting her finish, Tigre jumped off the branch while tightly clasping his bow. As soon as he landed on the ground, he drew an arrow from his quiver nocked it on the string. The instant all seven heads turned in his direction, he released the arrow.

The arrow pierced the snake head on the furthest right and was fully absorbed into that head as if sinking into water. And then it got spit out as if the head rid itself of a foreign element.

“I had already expected that it might not work, but…”

After pondering for a short moment, Tigre fired another arrow. This time aimed at another head. The arrow accurately hit the snake between its eyes, but that arrow was absorbed and then ejected just like the first.

――Where should I aim next?

When Tigre pulled out a third arrow, one of the snake heads opened its jaw and spat out a white clump the size of a human head. Tigre dodged that by leaping to the side.

The clump hit the tree that had been behind Tigre, just for white smoke to rise from the place the clump came into contact with the bark. On a closer look, the trunk had been gouged out deeply after having been dissolved by the white mass.

Tigre looked up to the monster with the corners of his mouth twitching. The snake heads adjusted their aim, spitting one clump of white venom after the other at Tigre. He whirled around, and dashed away while weaving his way between the trees.

When it came to the opponent having a ranged weapon, things changed significantly. Tigre ran in a zig-zag, following the lake as he made his way past the trees, away from their camp.

The monster chased after him while dragging its big frame. Tigre had expected that it might get ensnared by the trees because of its big body, but that didn’t come to pass. The monster passed through any tree in its way as if the tree didn’t exist in the first place. Just like water.

――This thing is bad news.

Even Tigre felt himself in danger due to this. It was hard to describe the monster’s movements as smart, but if it could advance completely unhindered in any terrain, it’d be a lot faster than Tigre.

At that moment, space above the monster warped, and Militsa appeared there with her scythe raised overhead. Tigre blinked his eyes several times in a bid to rid them of an optical illusion.

Militsa roared a battle cry, before slamming down her scythe while utilizing the momentum of her fall. One of the snake heads was cut off, fell to the ground, and shattered amidst a flurry of water.

Militsa thought she’d gracefully land, but instead she slipped on the wet ground and toppled over. Tigre ran up to her in a hurry.

Just before the other heads could launch their attacks on her, he picked her up in his arms and rushed away. A lower jaw grazed his left arm, causing blood to scatter alongside a dull pain.

Probably because having lost one of its heads, the monster’s movements were sluggish. The two used this to narrowly take some distance.

“Wasn’t that great? Let’s go with the flow and cut off another head,” Tigre encouraged Militsa while grimacing at the pain in his arm.

“Rather than that, if we stay like this, you’ll leap together with me.”

Militsa didn’t seem to have much leeway either. Tigre thrust her behind a tree, turned around to the monster, and fired an arrow without a moment’s delay. This caused new blood to gush out of his arm.

This time the arrow didn’t hit a head but buried itself at the root of a neck, but just as before, this arrow was ejected as well. However, Tigre was satisfied with the monster turning its attention on him.

――Besides, the number of its heads has decreased by one…

Just when he thought that, white smoke billowed up from the decapitated head and its cut section, just to be followed by water rising and forming a snake head. The monster had regenerated the head.

While clicking his tongue, Tigre dashed across the ground, moving to the monster’s left flank. The next arrow he fired flew basically right above him, drew a parabola, and stabbed into the monster’s back.

While ejecting that arrow, the seven heads spat venom at him all at once. As he rolled over, Tigre shot one of his arrows at one clump of venom. Venom and arrow collided in the air, soon followed by both being smashed apart.

Leaping into the gap opened up by that, Tigre evaded the other venom spits.

However, at that point something unforeseen occurred. One of the venoms blew up a branch above Tigre’s head. A thick wooden piece with the size of an adult foot fell down and struck Tigre in the back.

Tigre crouched down on the spot. At the same time, the mouths of the seven heads swelled, about to shower him with a new barrage of venom.

“――Space CorridorVuoldohl.”

Yet, someone reacted faster than they could. Militsa appeared, hung over Tigre, and leaped away through space once more. Immediately following, the place where the two had been seconds ago was clustered with venom. The ground was hollowed out and a tree, which got hit by a great amount of venom, tilted over, before breaking and falling down.

Tigre and Militsa watched this happen from atop a tree standing several dozen steps away from the monster, both faces growing pale.

Militsa asked him, “Is that arm…alright…?”

Her eyes were pinned on his left arm. The injury was close to the elbow, but the blood had run down alongside his arm, having reached the back of his hand by now.

“It’s no big deal, really. You think you’ll be able to somehow manage this thing?”

“I hadn’t expected it to be that tough, to be honest.”

Militsa frankly admitted the inadequacy of her judgment. She hadn’t imagined that the monster would quickly regrow the head it lost. While chewing on her lips in frustration, she cast a glare at the monster.

Tigre looked at her profile and showed a pang of hesitation, but then he made up his mind, and said, “Could you try aiming at its back next?”

In response to his request that could be rightfully called odd, Militsa asked him why with her eyes.

Tigre answered, “Its response to the arrow I fired at its back was duller than the other places.”

Just because Tigre had drawn the monster’s attention, it didn’t mean that he had continued firing his arrows aimlessly. He had observed how the monster would react to his arrows hitting various parts of its body.

Militsa stared at him with a dumbfounded look.

“So that’s why Elder Sister Ludmila is so enamored with you.”

“I’m also deeply in love with her,” Tigre responded without a hint of embarrassment while wryly smiling at Militsa.

†

Tigre went down on the ground after having gotten his breathing in order again. Up to six of the seven snake heads had spat venom at him. Even while feeling that the trajectories of those venom projectiles were somehow intentional, he dashed while avoiding the rain of venom.

The remaining head, which hadn’t spat any venom, drew a large arc, went around Tigre, and cut him off at the front.

――So that was the plan!

Breaking his posture on purpose, Tigre dodged the snake’s jaw by mostly sliding across the ground on his back. At the same moment, Militsa manifested behind the monster. After raising her scythe overhead, she slashed it down to tear through the snake’s back.

Water burst open. Its big frame collapsed as the monster bent back and writhed. Joy colored the faces of both humans due to the apparent reaction by the monster.

But, it still hadn’t been defeated. One of its heads moved swiftly, swallowing Militsa whole. Without even any time to dodge, the Vanadis disappeared inside the monster.

“Militsa!” Tigre shouted.

In reflex, he drew an arrow and nocked it on his black bow, but then stopped. He knew that his arrows wouldn’t work. He had learned it the hard way. And even if he ran up to the monster, it’d only result in him being swallowed in the same way. Thus, he lacked the means to save Militsa.

――Something…can’t I do anything…?

Tigre tightly clasped his bow. His running blood dyed his palm crimson.

『Shoot』

A voice addressed Tigre’s mind without any forewarning whatsoever. The voice of a woman. But, one he had never heard before.

Tigre looked around himself in surprise, but the only ones present in this place were him and the monster, and Militsa who was currently inside the monster. He wondered whether he started to hear fictional voices now that he was faced with a hopeless situation.

『Shoot. And it will be as you wish』

He heard the voice once more. Suddenly Tigre remembered the bow in his hand, and thus he looked down at it. Lana had said that it possessed a special power.

――Is this the bow’s voice? …Very well, I will do it!

He made up his mind in no time. He had no other options available, and he should try any method, if it would possibly allow him to save Militsa.

He drew his bowstring and took aim. At that moment, something inside the snake’s body released light. It was the scythe in Militsa’s hand. The arrow left the bow’s string as if guided by that light.

In an instant, a fierce recoil assailed Tigre’s entire body. At the same time, a huge, round hole appeared in the monster’s big body. As if it had been cleaved open by a gigantic blade. The arrow, which Tigre ought to have fired, was completely gone.

The monster’s movements stalled, and its seven heads melted apart. The huge cluster of water turned into a flood, washing away everything in its vicinity.

Tigre swiftly grabbed a nearby tree and withstood the large amount of water swooping down on him. Spotting Militsa being washed in his direction, he immediately clasped a sleeve of her clothes and pulled her over.

The flood quickly ended, but it left a ground that could be only described as one huge quagmire in its wake. No traces of a monster’s existence could be seen anywhere. But, the stream of mud, which should have been impossible under normal circumstances, had created a bizarre scene.

“I defeated it…?”

Finally realizing that plain fact, Tigre stared at his black bow with his mouth open. Just as it wasn’t shining, its shape hadn’t changed either. It was the plain, old bow he was used to seeing.

“Was it you?” He resolutely called out to the weapon in his hand, but received no reply.

At that moment, Militsa squirmed in Tigre’s arms. Seeing her faintly open her eyes, Tigre breathed out in relief. He had been able to save her.

Carrying her on his back as she appeared to be absentminded, Tigre tried to walk like that, but his legs gave way after the first step and he collapsed on the spot.

“Ah…eh…?”

He felt dizzy. Fatigue was assailing his whole body, making it impossible for him to even raise his body.

“Lord Tigrevurmud?”

Militsa unsteadily separated from Tigre’s back. But, she also fell on her backside right away. Both looked at each other’s faces.

“Umm…are you alright?”

Being asked so by Militsa, Tigre revealed a cramped smile that came with a tinge of bewilderment.

“It’s a tad…tough.”

He felt his body ailing all over, but none of the pain was serious. Him being unable to stand up came from the fierce exhaustion weighing down on him. He felt so sluggish that he couldn’t even raise his arms.

“I don’t quite understand…how am I still okay?”

In response, Tigre told Militsa about the strange happenings triggered by his black bow.

“Just as I thought that I wouldn’t be able to save you, I suddenly heard that weird voice. Then, light gathered in the bow, and I became able to blow away that monster.”

“A weird voice, you say?” Militsa sat up and closely scrutinized Tigre’s bow. “Come to think of it, I happened to hear about your bow having some mysterious power or something like that from Elder Sister Ludmila… But, since she didn’t mention it afterwards, I forgot all about it.”

“Yeah. But, how was I able to access it…?”

He was sensing something like zeal from his black bow. Something he had never felt from it before. However, he wasn’t quite sure whether he’d be able to shoot the same type or arrow as earlier once more.

Militsa stood up. Using Tigre’s shoulder as support, she picked up her scythe.

“For the time being, let us go back to Elder Sister. The fact that Rusalka sent a monster our way instead of coming herself must mean that she cannot move from Oltu yet.”

At that moment, something moved at the edge of Tigre’s vision. In spite of being completely drained, Tigre readied his bow, mostly on a conditioned reflex, and shot his arrow. His target quickly hid itself behind a tree.

――A monster?

He wondered, but nothing like the special inhuman presence or unique bloodlust as he was able to sense from Rusalka, for example, was directed at him. Tigre forced his tired body, and nocked a new arrow on his bow.

Then he commanded with a confident voice, “Come out. If you do it now, I’ll spare your life.”

He didn’t really expect the other party to come out. It was just a means to assess the other party’s intent. However, as if having resigned themselves to their fate, that person stepped out from behind the tree. Not only Tigre, but Militsa as well looked at this with eyes full of suspicion and surprise.

The other party was a youth with an age of around twenty who had a brown skin as it was characteristic for Muozinel people. A black cloth was coiled around his head, and he wore leather armor. Further, he was holding a curved sword in his hand.

Once Tigre repeated his words in Muozinel, the man dropped his sword on the ground. Tigre cautiously eyed the young man without lowering his bow. He couldn’t feel any hostility from the youth. On the contrary, fear and anxiety clearly flickered across the man’s face.

“Are you alone? What about your comrades?”

“I have none,” the man shook his head.

Apparently unable to endure it any longer, he worriedly asked, “What are you people? And just what the hell was that monster from earlier…?”

“We can talk later.”

Tigre finally lowered his bow. He felt some sympathy with the man. This Muozinel being so awfully upfront had to be because he watched their fight. Tigre was sure that he had to be completely confused.

When he asked him for his name, the man introduced himself as Damad.

†

With his hands bound by a leather strap, Damad was taken to the camp of Vorn and Olmutz while walking with Tigre being in front and Militsa behind. His usual brazenness was all but gone, replaced by timidness.

It was yesterday when Damad had discovered Tigre’s group after having pursued them by himself. Using the reports of his men as reference, Damad was able to distinguish Brunians and Zhcted. Given that Tigre was the sole Brunian with a bow, he could also tell who had to be that remarkable archer. Moreover, he realized that Tigre’s group was heading towards the western border.

It’d still take them a few days to reach the border, as such he decided to wait for an opportunity to get Tigre’s head while keeping an eye on the enemy’s movements.

One couldn’t call that idea necessarily wrong, but it proved to be a total mistake when looking at the outcome.

From this morning all the way until noon, the enemy camp was wrapped up in a hectic atmosphere of busyness with the soldiers walking all over the place. Thinking that they might have noticed his continuous pursuit at a reasonable distance, Damad decided to get away even further.

And then, around a quarter koku ago, he came back while passing through the forest. However, what spread out in front of him as he hid himself between the trees was the mortal battle between Tigre, Militsa, and a water snake. The whole event defied all the common sense he had fostered over two decades. He couldn’t comprehend a single thing about it.

Even though he tried to run away, his feet wouldn’t move as he was too scared of the monster, and thus he was doomed to remain a spectator. His state was so bad that he actually felt relieved when Tigre called out to him.

Damad was forced to sit down at the edge of the camp. In addition to the strap binding his hands, his legs were tied down as well. A quarter koku later, Tigre showed up. He had changed his clothes and finished treating his injuries. Tigre stared down at Damad with a quizzical look.

“You said it had to be me, when they were going to interrogate you?”

“You can at least humor that much, right?”

Damad finally smiled.

At first, Raphinaque and Galyinin had attempted to question him, but Damad refrained from answering anything and demanded Tigre to be sent over instead.

When probed, Damad told Tigre that he was a soldier of the Muozinel army and that he had been chasing their group, targeting an outstanding archer. Moreover, he requested an explanation about the monster.

“It seems to have been the underling of a demon who had been sealed in this area in the past.”

After having listened to everything Tigre had to say, including a demon called Rusalka, Damad frowned.

“It’s not like you’re feeding me some silly fairy-tale to try to deceive me or anything like that, right…?”

“Personally I’d welcome it very much if all of this was just a fairy-tale with demons and their likes not existing in reality.”

Damad pulled a curious look since Tigre had said so with an overly serious expression.

“You blew away that monster with your strange bow, didn’t you? Aren’t you used to those sorts of things?”

“Back then it was my first time to be able to use it like that. If I had been accustomed to it, I’d have used that option much earlier.”

Damad considered that to be a reasonable argument since he had watched Tigre run around between the trees while eagerly dodging the monster’s attacks.

Calming his voice, Tigre asked, “Do you know a land called Oltu?”

Damad’s face paled without him being consciously aware of it.

‘Why has that name come up here?

With his eyes wide open and his voice trembling, Damad asked, “Is there something…in Oltu…?”

“I told you about Rusalka, didn’t I?”

The words of Ayşe crossed Damad’s mind. It was her tiny fief where a flood had occurred the other day, according to her. The story he had heard from her about a demon called 『Nixy』 definitely aligned with Tigre’s story.

“…I know it. It’s one day on horseback away from here.”

“Really!? Please guide us there.”

Damad nodded at Tigre who had leaned forward while eagerly requesting Damad’s help. Even though the sky was cloudy enough to allow the air to feel refreshing, Damad’s face was drenched in sweat.

‘Is it a coincidence that I’m currently here? Or divine guidance?

However, for some reason he felt extremely furious about the fact of a demon nesting in Ayşe’s territory. Even though he hadn’t sworn fealty to that provoking girl.

At the end, he was asked something weird by Tigre.

“Looking at the sky, do you think it’s going to rain soon? Please tell me the truth, even if you don’t know.”

Because of the earnestness written on Tigre’s face, Damad seriously scanned the sky.

“I think it won’t rain today, but…the pack will be reshuffled tomorrow.”

Tigre sighed at that reply.

The interrogation ended at that point, but in the evening, Damad was told that they’d depart to Oltu. The ones traveling there were Tigre, Mila, and Militsa.

“We will release you once we reach Oltu.”

Being told so by Tigre, Damad noticed a certain circumstance.

“Did you spare my life for the sake of asking me how to get to Oltu?”

“Of course, that played a role as well, but…” Tigre revealed a bitter smile, “…back then I was tired. Besides, you didn’t look intent on fighting either.

“…What a softhearted man,” Damad spat out with a tone that could be interpreted as mocking or praise while twisting his lips.

†

On the next morning, just as dawn broke, the sun was hidden behind a blanket of dull gray, just like yesterday. It looked like it could start raining at any moment, but as of yet the ground remained dry.

Guided by Damad, Tigre, Mila, and Militsa arrived at a small village located in Oltu. Before leaving, Mila and Tigre had entrusted their troops to their adjutants and told them to head towards the border. It was planned that Mila and Tigre would join back up with them after their battle against Rusalka was over.

According to their scouts, the Muozinel army appeared to be headed straight west. Mila and Tigre both predicted that the Muozinel were aiming for the border, seeking to fight Brune’s army. They couldn’t be negligent, but it looked like they’d be able to join up with Brune’s main force at this rate.

――Though that also depends on us defeating Rusalka.

The village had been literally turned into ruins. One could vividly see the traces of the recent flooding all over the place. A thick layer of putrid stench hung over the whole area and almost all buildings had collapsed, or at least tilted over. Devastated furniture and torn, dirty pieces of clothing were scattered across the ground.

“How terrible…,” Mila muttered with an expression full of pity.

The dark sky gave the whole scenery an even more gruesome impression. Tigre let his eyes wander, his face showing that he found this unbearable. He mumbled a prayer under his breath. And seeing how Militsa was slightly knitting her eyebrows, she had to have the same mental state as the other two.

“Mila, are you alright?” Tigre asked her to change the topic.

As a matter of fact, the three hadn’t taken any breaks on the way here. They spurred on their horses, intent on fighting Rusalka before an eventual rainfall. Tigre and Militsa were still exhausted from their fight against the water snake, too.

“Yes, thanks to you two, I was able to rest up properly. Rather, how about you two?”

“I’m fine since I’m younger than you two.”

“But, you’re still not used to riding a horse, are you? Don’t force yourself too much,” said Tigre with a serious and worrisome tone.

Militsa hid her mouth behind her sleeves, “Please try to use words that possess a bit more persuasiveness. Also, can you use your bow?”

“I don’t know, but if it’s no good, then so be it. I’ll show you that I’m useful either way,” he declared while lowering his look on the black bow in his hand.

Right after the battle against the snake, he had felt as though he’d be able to freely use that mysterious power whenever he needed it, but now, a day later, he didn’t feel so certain about it anymore. He didn’t know how he could exhibit that power. As such, he had also decided to consider the worst case where he wouldn’t be able to rely on his bow’s power.

Damad hadn’t joined the three’s conversation at all, always riding his horse at the front. Tigre suspected that a part of this came of him being aware of himself being a guide and prisoner of war, but ever since learning about the village’s state, his face had turned expressionless. Tigre didn’t try to talk to him out of consideration. Then again, they only shared a short relationship as well.

Before long, a stone-made temple came into sight.

“Alright, up until here is enough.”

Tigre dismounted his horse, and handed a jute bag that could be carried with one hand and a sword to Damad. The bag contained provisions and water.

“You’re free to go wherever you like.”

Tigre had no plans to drag Damad, an ordinary human, into the battle against Rusalka. And with a day having already passed, he shouldn’t be able to find the Vorn troops and Olmutz’s army anymore either. Besides, Damad’s target was Tigre. As such, the youth didn’t expect that the young Muozinel would insist on chasing after the troops anyway.

Damad stood stock still in silence while holding the bag under his arm. Meanwhile, Tigre, Mila, and Militsa entered through the temple’s door with their weapons at the ready.

†

Inside the temple was quite dim. Given that it was a temple erected in a small village, its structure was simple and the number of rooms was low too. Tigre’s group kept proceeding straight ahead, but then stopped halfway through. A mix of intense bloodlust and pressure drifted their way from beyond the double door ahead of them. It was oppressive enough to make any average person completely stop in their tracks.

“Further down from here is…”

“According to Damad, it should be the prayer hall with an altar,” Tigre replied to Mila while clenching down on his bow.

At that moment, the door opened by itself, and a white mist spilled out from the other side.

“How nice of you to come visit me.”

Rusalka manifested with her body clad in mist. She was smiling with the corners of her mouth clearly pointing up. Behind him, Tigre could hear Militsa gasp.

“Spear and scythe, huh? Nice, now that you’ve come all the way here, I won’t let you get away no matter what…”

A change occurred to Rusalka’s figure while she was still speaking. Her golden hair turned emerald while waving. Her eyes started to shine crimson. Her skin changed into a poisonous purple. With her body swelling up dramatically, the pressure exuded by her increased instantly.

Tigre was unable to tear his eyes off that abnormality.

Once the mist got scattered, Tigre couldn’t help but to groan. The lower part of Rusalka, from her waist downwards, consisted of around a dozen tentacles with suction pads and another dozen big snakes with blue scales. Tentacles and snakes both possessed the thickness of an adult. arm.

A chill and shudder traveled across Tigre’s whole body. His breathing became rough and irregular. What was existing in front of him and his two companions was an incarnation of fear. Compared to this thing, an earth dragon was no more than a lousy stray dog.

“What…”

Tigre frantically squeezed out his words with his hands trembling. He had to ask at any cost.

“What are you? Are you a water spirit living in Muozinel?”

“No way. Please don’t lump me together with those inferior beings,” Rusalka shook her head with a laugh.

Her green hair swayed as if she was inside water right now.

“We’re the ones beseeching.” Upon Tigre pulling a doubtful expression, Rusalka continued as if singing, “Indeed. We beseech our very own sky, land, and sea. We cause strife, initiate bloodshed, and pile corpses within the darkness…”

Suddenly, Rusalka glared at Mila and Militsa, her crimson eyes pregnant with frenzy and murder.

“The ones who have been crushing our dreams are those filthy, detestable Vanadis. But, this place is going to become your grave. I shall stack up your corpses.”

“Give it your best shot! This time I’m going to freeze you to death for sure.”

No sooner than shouting that, Mila raised Lavias overhead and charged straight at Rusalka. However, she stopped very quickly. Countless drops of water poured down on Tigre’s group like rain.

Militsa screamed lightly while protecting herself with her scythe. As soon as a water drop landed on her body, it caused a pain as if she’d been punched on the spot. Tigre went down on his knees, unable to bear it.

“――Silent WorldEisberg!” Mila shouted while thrusting Lavias upwards.

The ceiling, which was high up, got frozen, thus stopping the rain. Rusalka used that moment to charge by gliding across the ground, closing in on Mila.

Mila leaped backwards after making a last-second call. An instant later, a flock of tentacles and serpents passed through the space where she used to stand, grazing several strands of Mila’s hair.

Next, the demon spewed a huge amount of water from her mouth. Mila blocked it with Lavias, but was blown away due to the power of the stream.

“Mila!”

Tigre lifted his bow, nocked three arrows at once, and shot them at Rusalka. But, all of his projectiles were knocked down by tentacles and snakes, never to reach Rusalka herself.

“What, that’s all you can do and yet you dare to interfere, little boy?” Rusalka looked Tigre with eyes full of contempt while spitting those words out in disappointment.

Tigre grit his teeth. It didn’t look like he’d be even able to serve as decoy with Rusalka as opponent.

In the meantime, Militsa had tried to go around to get behind Rusalka while shouldering Ezendeis. But she wasn’t even allowed to get anywhere close. Suddenly, there were pools of water at Militsa’s feet, preventing her from moving thanks to the water coiling itself around her legs.

“Nice try, but too bad.”

Tentacles and snakes assaulted Militsa from all angles. Without averting her eyes from those, Militsa breathed in lightly, and raised her scythe overhead.

“――Space CorridorVuoldohl.”

Militsa vanished, and then an instant later, she reappeared above Rusalka’s head, just to slash down her scythe with all her strength. Rusalka blocked Ezendeis with both arms, but got insjured, seeing how black blood sprayed out of her right arm.

“Now you’ve done it.”

The demon’s emerald hair undulated, wrapping itself around Ezendeis’s blade. Militsa was unable to react to this on the spot, nor could she let go of her viralt. As such she got dragged along by Rusalka’s hair and was slammed against the ground.

Rusalka tried to finish the job with her tentacles and snakes, but Mila sharply thrust Lavias at her after getting back up. After having her hair cut off, Rusalka retreated.

“Can you get up?” Mila carefully walked up to Militsa and helped the younger girl up.

Militsa’s hair was a mess and she was drenched in sweat, but she nodded slightly. Mila tapped her shoulder, apparently feeling relieved.

“Drawing this out will be dangerous. I’ll draw her attention, so…”

“Okay, I understand,” Militsa answered curtly after judging that they had no other option than this.

Mila kicked off the ground, and while heading straight for Rusalka, she started to extend her spear. Rusalka greeted her with a calm smile, casually holding out her right hand. A circular mirror surface made out of water was created in front of that hand.

In the next moment, a clear, metallic clank filled the room. Mila’s spear had been repelled by the mirror. Mila was blown away, but the mirror likewise shattered into thousands of small pieces, turned into water, and rained down on the floor.

Although was about to fall over, she quickly fixed her stance. After retreating while gliding across the ground on her soles, she immediately shifted back to attacking. Closing the distance, she mowed down the tentacles and snakes coming at her.

Tigre tightly clasped the black bow while watching the exchange between demon and Vanadis. The power, which he had demonstrated during the fight with the water snake, showed no signs of reappearing here. He couldn’t find any opportunities to help Mila and Militsa either.

――Still, her way of attacking is awfully passive.

Looking at it as a spectator, Rusalka possessed various means of attacks. She manipulated her hair, she used the snakes and tentacles below her waist, she spewed water from her mouth, and at times, she’d even use trickier moves like making it rain from the ceiling.

But, she never used all of those attacks at the same time.

――Is it because she has been weakened? Or, is she aiming for something with this?

Tigre carefully inched closer so that he’d be able to rush over whenever something happened. Rusalka had apparently lost all interest in him, as clear from her not even wasting a single glance on him.

Mila freely used the limited techniques available to her, continuously attacking Rusalka. She stabbed from the front, swiped from the right, scooped up from below, and loudly knocked away the counterattacks by the tentacles. With each of her blows, white sparks scattered while Lavias drew a trace of cold air. But, none of it reached Rusalka.

Rusalka spit a raging stream of water out of her mouth. Mila swiftly dodged it and tried to stab Lavias into the demon’s flank.

It was at that moment that an arrow came flying from an unexpected direction. Mila reflexively evaded the arrow by bending back. Since she dodged it, it induced surprise. After all, it had been an arrow fired by Tigre.

“――Space CorridorVuoldohl.”

At the same time, Militsa appeared behind the demon after crossing through space. Ezendeis’s blade bisected Rusalka from the head all the way down to the abdomen.

Water splashed. Yet, it was Militsa, the one who had attacked, to have her face stiffen up. The feedback she got from her viralt resembled one of cutting through water.

Rusalka’s face, now sliced right in half, twisted in annoyance at an angle not visible to Militsa. Her snakes and tentacles thrashed around in madness, assailing Mila and Militsa.

Mila barely weathered through Rusalka’s attack by swiftly jumping back while brandishing Lavias. A sheen of sweat glistened on her forehead as she shuddered in fear. She knew that she’d have been unable to avoid the attacks if she had stepped in deeper beforehands.

Militsa also endured with Ezendeis. As Rusalka’s attacks had been focused on Mila, Militsa was fortunate enough to only be attacked by a few snakes and tentacles. But, Militsa was exhausted to such an extent that her breathing was going hard and rough, making it look unlikely that she’d be able to move right away.

“You sure are being a nuisance to me…,” Rusalka coldly glared at Tigre in the distance.

He answered with a daring grin, “Seeing how someone like me can predict your movements, you must be quite a weakling among demons.”

Tigre came to the conclusion that Rusalka had been aiming to lure in Mila. So far, Rusalka had been once forced to retreat because of Mila. On a battlefield advantageous to her, on top of that. Therefore, she was a lot more cautious of Mila than Militsa, and Tigre had suspected that she’d prioritize killing Mila. In addition, it was pretty clear that Mila was much stronger as a warrior, if you took a look at the way Militsa was moving.

Rusalka lightly swung her right hand upwards. Immediately following, Tigre felt a stinging pain from his left arm and leg. Once he looked at his feet, he spotted a pool of water. Its water had turned into sharp blades. Just now those blades had stabbed Tigre from below.

He tried to bear the pain by gritting his teeth, but unable to do so, he went down on one knee.

“Tigre!”

Mila was about to rush over, and seeing that, a cruel smile formed on Rusalka’s face. Moving by sliding across the floor, the nixy charged at Tigre. She was moving much faster than Mila.

Oh shit, Tigre thought. Rusalka’s aim still remained with Mila. She intended to create an opening in Mila’s defenses and exploit it by attacking him. Tigre guessed that Mila was also aware of that fact, but she was still dashing his way. In order to save him.

“――Lavias!”

Ordering her viralt, Mila caused a part of the floor to freeze. Sliding on that ice layer, she rushed over to Tigre. Rusalka didn’t shy away from attacking both fiercely.

Mila had Lavias release cold air, trying to protect the two of them. But, Rusalka unleashed a merciless onslaught. Her emerald hair buzzed, the raging stream spat out from her mouth transformed into a ferocious spear, and all her snakes and tentacles lashed out. With the barrier of cold air shattered, Mila and Tigre were blown away, rolling across the floor.

“You’ve been making things hard, Spear Vanadis…”

Rusalka slowly approached Mila. Using her snakes and tentacles, she restrained Mila’s arms and lifted them up. Mila hadn’t let go of Lavias, but unable to resist, she was now at Rusalka’s mercy.

“After torturing you to my heart’s content, I’ll extract all moisture from your body. It’ll be great to watch you dry up completely like ash. But don’t worry, I’ll have the other two follow you very soon.”

While scowling at that scene, Tigre endured the sharp pain assailing his whole body and rose up. The youth felt the same power as when he had defeated the water snake surge from the black bow in his hand.

――I don’t understand the underlying principle here, but…

While looking at the bow which was dyed by his own blood, Tigre revealed a smile.

――With this, I’ll be able to save Mila. But, right now Rusalka is likely wary of me as well. It’s questionable whether I’ll be able to make my arrow hit her. No choice, I’ll make it happen.

He clapped his quivering left leg with his right hand and stood up. He felt like the bleeding of hos left leg became worse in exchange, but he decided to consider that issue later on. He extended his ailing left arm straight ahead, checking the insider of his quiver. He still had some arrows left.

Tigre’s breathing was disheveled and the hand holding the bow was trembling. Even so, Tigre was confident that he’d be able to hit a human opponent in this state. Unfortunately, his opponent was a demon though. He wondered whether Militsa would be able to assist him.

“…Hmm?”

Rusalka stopped what she was doing, tore her eyes away from Mila, and stared at Tigre. The youth gasped. He nocked his arrows and drew the string to the limit.

The nix’s eyes widened as she tilted her head to the side.

“Boy, that bow is…”

At that moment, the white mist wafting behind Rusalka swayed. Tigre’s eyes widened.

The mist was divided and a black shadow leaped out from within, assaulting Rusalka.

It was Damad. Rusalka had been pointing her back towards the temple’s entrance while fighting Tigre and the two girls. With his curved sword raised overhead, Damad came at Rusalka with a loud roar. His following slash combined speed and violence, but it passed through Rusalka’s body as if slicing through water.

“You silly boy,” scorned Rusalka.

Even with his face cramping up, Damad responded with a fiendish smile, “Then, how about this one, shitty monster?”

The blade of Damad’s sword went up in fierce flames. He turned over his wrist, twisted his body, and drove a flame-clad slash into the crowd of snakes and tentacles. Several snakes and tentacles were torn apart. Sprays of water and gray smoke billowed up at the same time.

Rusalka’s movements stopped for a moment. Mila’s restraints loosened, causing the Vanadis to drop to the floor.

“Ooh, that’s holy oil for you. Burns nicely,” Damad looked at his own sword while swiftly jumping backwards.

The flames had barely lasted for one slash, and yet the blade wasn’t only damaged, but had become mostly useless. Yet, you could vividly feel the satisfaction from having been able to land a blow on that monster from Damad’s smile.

However, his offense ended at that point. He got blown away by an unhurt tentacle, tumbling across the floor.

At that moment, Rusalka noticed it. White light was overflowing from the spearhead of Mila’s Lavias, and that light was sucked into the arrowhead of the arrow nocked on Tigre’s bow. In an instant, the arrowhead’s brilliance grew stronger, its pressure making Rusalka falter.

The arrow was released.

Even while leaking a scream, Rusalka succeeded in instantly creating a circular mirror.

A flash of light burst. A roar echoed across the temple as if thunder had struck. The atmosphere trembled as if scared.

Although she’d been forced to retreat widely, Rusalka remained unhurt. On the other hand, Tigre’s face was pale from exhaustion and blood loss. He had trouble getting his breathing in order.

But, Tigre took one step, and then another, forward while drawing a new arrow.

Rusalka didn’t move from where she was standing. She probably believed that she’d be able to pull through this.

Mila stood up, unsteadily. While using her spear as a cane, she walked up next to Tigre. Militsa also ran up to Tigre, while remaining cautious of the demon.

“That’s the power of your bow, huh…?” Mila commented.

Tigre nodded. Even that gesture alone was already painful enough as is, but he still had some willpower left in him. His eyes with a strong will dwelling within pierced straight through Rusalka.

A radiance started to gather once again at the new arrow he had nocked. From Mila’s Lavias and Militsa’s Ezendeis. A brilliant-white gleam started to spill out of Lavias while Ezendeis overflowed with a violet gleam. Both were drawn into the arrow’s head.

“Let’s go, Tigre.”

“Mila mustered her last strength, and kicked off the floor. She challenged Rusalka from the front. It was pretty clear that she was a diversion with Tigre’s arrow being the real attack, but that didn’t mean Rusalka could ignore her.

The demon had all her tentacles and snakes head for Mila.

“――Freeze the heavensCielo Zam Kaphar!”

Mila vertically stabbed Lavias into the floor alongside that yell. A huge amount of cold air was released from the spear and a crystalline hexagon was drawn at her feet. A huge swarm of ice spears with sharp blades came into existence, countering the attacking snakes and tentacles.

A plethora of ice fragments disorderly whirled through the air, accompanied with shattering sounds. Mila’s veda caused the tentacles and snakes to freeze and smash apart in their entirety, but that was all.

Convinced that Mila would withdraw next, Rusalka held up a circular mirror in Tigre’s direction.

But, at that time the youth had already vanished from Rusalka’s sight. Militsa, too

“――Space CorridorVuoldohl.”

Tigre and Mila were standing behind Rusalka. And Tigre’s arrow had already amassed enough power.

――Eat this, you bitch!

He fired his arrow. Possessing two radiances, the arrow flew straight ahead, embedding itself in Rusalka’s forehead.

The instant it hit, light gushed out of the arrowhead and a golden pillar blew up. It was a torrent of terrifying 『power』. The atmosphere got violently disturbed by the shock’s after-wave, and a furious gale was whirled up.

Once the wind settled down, the light pillar turned into small particles which soundlessly rained down within the temple.

When the light completely vanished, only a handful of earth was lying where Rusalka was supposed to be. That earth crumbled apart and got scattered, even without any wind going.

Tigre watched it happen in a daze.

“We managed to defeat her…?”

The dreadful pressure and bloodlust from moments ago was now gone like a bad dream. Mila walked over to him while using her spear as a crutch. She looked up to Tigre and smiled.

“I got you to show it to me. Your power.”

At that moment, the sound of water reached their ears. Startled, Tigre, Mila, and Militsa surveyed the vicinity.

They saw through the wide-open door how it had started to rain outside the temple. This marked the end of the battle.

†

The group decided to take a rest inside the temple until the rain would let up. All of them had used up their physical and mental strength, making it impossible for them to move anyway. As far as Tigre and Mila were concerned, the slightest stirring caused their bodies to scream in pain.

“Why didn’t you run away?”

“Isn’t that obvious? Why would I leave the disposal of such a monster to foreigners?”

This was Damad proudly answering Tigre, who was astonished about him staying back. According to Damad, he had quietly watched how things panned out inside the temple from the entrance since he felt lost after seeing them off.

At the start, he could only watch the fight as his body shivered too much, but gradually his anger won the upper hand over his fear, before he eventually rushed inside the temple.

“You’re lucky to not have died then and there. I suppose Lady Luck is smiling kindly upon you.”

“Didn’t the demon simply disregard him as irrelevant?”

The evaluations of both Vanadis were harsh, to say the least, but even so, they felt grateful towards Damad. Because of his intervention, Mila escaped the demon’s binding and Tigre as well as Militsa managed to grasp victory.

Damad addressed Tigre while lying on the floor.

“How far can you shoot your arrows?”

“……Would you believe me if I told you that it’s 250 alsin?”

Tigre replied with a conservative estimate. Damad sat up with his eyes sparkling.

“You can? Then, how about 300 alsin?”

“Hmm, I think that much would be impossible for me as well.”

In reality, he could actually pull that off as well, but since he felt suspicious of Damad’S attitude, Tigre gave him that sort of answer.

But, the Muozinel warrior tenaciously hung on.

“You never managed to reach that distance? Not once?”

“Why are you so curious about this?” Mila asked with a chilly look.

“I’m just interested. Given that it happened on the battlefield, I don’t feel like blaming him for it, but several of my men were done in by his arrows.”

Militsa directed a probing look at Damad who was trying to deceive them with those words.

“Is it not related to the prince on Lord Tigrevurmud’s head? You did mention that you had been chasing a superb archer.”

Damad’s expression changed in a fairly obvious way. Meanwhile, Mila nodded in a comprehending way.

“Ah, I see. So it’s a sly calculation that he might be able to raise the bounty if his target can shoot an arrow up to 300 alsin.”

“Should I then claim that I can make arrows fly 400 alsin?” Tigre asked with a laugh.

But, at that moment, his wounds hurt all over, causing him to grimace.

If he said that he could shoot his arrows on targets up to 400 alsin away, no one would believe it instead. Even Tigre couldn’t pull off this feat. At least, not for now.

“Someone like that wouldn’t be a human.”

Damad gave up on further pressing the matter, shrugging his shoulders. He put some strength into his body and stood up.”

“Well then, I’m off now. You have my thanks for defeating the monster for us.”

“It’s still raining outside, you know?” Tigre called out to Damad’s back as the young Muozinel was heading towards the temple’s entrance.

Without looking back, Damad replied with an appalled voice, “I don’t have the spare time to hang around here and take shelter in a happy circle with you guys. Resolve yourself for when we meet on the battlefield next time.”

“Could I ask you just one thing?” Militsa detained him.

Damad shook his shoulder as if telling her to spit it out.

“You’re not holding any bitterness or anger?”

“We fought straight from the front and I lost, right? In such a case, I have no choice but to accept the outcome. Well, someone dear to me not having died because of this also played into this…”

Saying so with a sneer, Damad left for good this time.

“Alright, I shall take the liberty to go back home as well,” Militsa announced while embracing Ezendeis.

Mila grimaced, “Won’t it be fine for you to rest a bit longer?”

“My task here is done,” Militsa slowly shook her head while stroking the handle of Ezendeis.

In the first place, she had transferred from her principality to this area to warn Mila about Rusalka and investigate the seal at Oltu. She likely hadn’t anticipated that she would fight the demon on the occasion, but seeing how she had accomplished her goal, she saw no reason to stay any longer.

Tigre and Mila looked at each other. Mila took Militsa’s hand with a smile.

“You were a huge help, Militsa. If something should happen at Osterode in the future, I will gladly provide my advice.”

“I was allowed to gather plenty of precious experience thanks to you, Big Sis. By the way, let me give you one warning.”

Militsa lowered her voice unnaturally. Mila tilted her head in confusion.

“I think it would be best for you to firmly hold onto Lord Tigrevurmud. At present, it feels like he’s exceedingly close to a failure, but he might improve drastically. He’s well versed after all.”

“W-What do you mean…!?” Mila knitted her eyebrows.

Due to Mila’s reaction, Militsa sighed theatrically.

“Just when I felt relieved because we had confirmed each other’s feelings, he got snatched away by someone else. That sort of story is pretty commonplace. You could hear many versions of it in my hometown, too.”

“At times, I get really scared when thinking about the village where you grew up… In the first place, who’s going to snatch Tigre? Don’t tell me…are you harboring such plans?”

Mila tried to muddle through with a joke, but Militsa answered very seriously, “No, I will follow Big Sis Tina’s example and marry a kind and rich gentleman.”

After Valentina had stopped being a Vanadis, she got married to a certain royal. Mila had heard that she was currently protecting her family and happiness in the capital. That part was still fine, but Mila got pissed off by Valentina having become someone you could describe as a scandal collector at some point.

“Please be careful so that even your daily life won’t become like Valentina’s.”

“I will be seriously cautious of that. Especially when it comes to that habit of her praising her husband,” Militsa consented with an extremely serious look.

Then she stood up, beat off the dust, and looked at Tigre as if having recalled something.

“Lord Tigrevurmud, there is one matter I would like to inquire about.”

Tigre urged her to continue by nodding.

“…Do you know of 『King of Demonic Archery』?” Militsa asked after making a short pause.

Tigre shook his head, “I’ve never heard of it. Though I feel like it’s something that would appear in very old legends and stories.”

“That is correct. It is an old legend. Just now I remembered it for no particular reason,” said Militsa, before continuing, “A certain man was granted a bow said to always hit its target by a goddess. After shooting all sorts of enemies to death, he finally attained kingship… That is the kind of story it is. That man was called the King of Demonic Archery.”

Tigre looked at the black bow near his hand. He didn’t know what material it used. He didn’t know its origin either. It never degraded, even if you didn’t maintain it. Moreover, it caused a phenomenon as though it was resonating with the viralt of Vanadis. Also, it was capable of unleashing a blow mighty enough to defeat a demon.

“The bow of the King of Demonic Archery, huh? Sounds kinda cumbersome.”

“Of course, I do not intend to say that it’s your black bow. Besides, I have heard so much about your archery skills from Big Sis Ludmila that my ears almost started to bleed,” Militsa said while making Mila blush on the fly.

“However, I remembered something along those lines in the legend of a special bow, so… I think your bow is extremely special, Lord Tigrevurmud. I doubt I need to tell you, but please treat it with great care.”

“Thanks,” answered Tigre honestly.

His heirloom was shrouded in mysteries, but once he considered that it could be something granted by a goddess, he somehow started to feel like it was magnificent, and he could even comprehend while maintenance was unnecessary.

“Very well, Big Sis, Lord Tigrevurmud, may the God of War be with you.”

Once Militsa swung her scythe, she disappeared soundlessly, just like she had previously appeared in front of the two.

Tigre and Mila exchanged a look and then snuggled up to each other for some reason.

Feeling safe at long last, they were able to fall asleep. And before long, both were peacefully snoring.

†

Two days later, both managed to rejoin Olmutz and Alsace’s forces. It took them another two days to reach the border, where they ran into Brune’s army.

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