"Rem-sama, you've arrived!"
Greeting the two employees was the village elder Twyla. He was an old man in his fifties with grey hair. With his old age in mind, Twyla could not search for the missing children. Thus the village elder took reign as the search party's director. It was him that suggested requesting help from the mansion. Not only was the land Lord Mather's responsibility, but they also heard word from the children that the manor had hired a new mage.
"Thank you for coming all this way! Please give Lord Mather my regards."
Only recognizing Rem, Twyla gave a deep bow to the maid and her group. While she wasn't the Lord of the land, he understood that the maid was the representative of Lord Mathers. Proper etiquette was expected of him. He didn't recognize the young man in a suit and the woman wearing a hooded cloak but assumed they were the recent hires the children talked about.
Ram and Beatrice had stayed behind for defense. There was still a good chance the kidnappings were a trap. If the attacker's objective was the hidden library's compiled knowledge, the mansion residents had to stop them.
"Twyla-san, what happened? Where were the children last seen?"
"We're not sure, but we've seen Petra play around the fence earlier today."
"Alright, let's head there for now!"
The fence was where Rudeus had played with the children earlier the same day. Only coming up to waist height, the fences merely marked the village's safe area. It was insufficient to repel beasts or keep children and other villagers in. It would do nothing against a malicious third party.
Emilia noticed a peculiar gemstone missing from the tree line among the white, unharmed fence.
"There! The... the barrier is broken. A pack of Mabeasts must have taken the children!"
"Barrier?"
"This forest is a breeding ground for Wolgrams. Roswaal-sama and Emilia-sama have placed and charged the crystals to ward off any Mabeasts."
"But if the barrier is broken..."
"The Mabeasts must have taken the children."
"Then we have to go save them."
Emilia jumped over the fence as she replied. As the Royal Candidate, without Roswaal, she was responsible for the safety of Arlem. Of course, this was never officially stated by either party. Roswaal was merely a sponsor for the Emilia camp, and Emilia was still in the beginning stage of her education. Still, how could she hope to become the ruler of an entire nation if she couldn't guarantee the village's safety right before her?
"Please wait, Emili-sama! With Roswaal-sama absent, Rem cannot advise you to leave the village."
"But-"
"Emilia's right, Rem. The people here need help, and we're the only ones who can do it."
Rudeus had no qualms about helping the children. While he had no sense of righteousness or responsibility for the people, he could never turn away when children were involved. His promise with Ruijerd still lingered in his mind, and his new commitment to live life seriously weighed on him. With his liege pushing the agenda, he figured it best to try and convince Rem this was the best course forward.
"Rudeus-sama, how can you say that as Emilia-sama's knight?"
"Rem, my job is to help Emilia any way I can. If this is what Emilia wants, then this is what I'll do, simple as that."
His declaration shot deep into both girls. When she joined the Royal Selection, Emilia never thought she'd make a friend, let alone a knight. She was alone with Puck for so long in the forest. What did she do to deserve Rudeus?
Meanwhile, the village elder listened to their conversation in surprise. He had never seen the two strangers that came with the maid, but apparently, the man was a knight, and the hooded woman was his liege. He had hoped the rumors of the newly hired mage could lend a hand, and he just heard from his two ears that his hopes were indeed true.
"...Understood Emilia-sama. Rem will help in any way she can."
'Huh, looks like Emilia's orders are absolute. Not that I'm complaining. I doubt I could have convinced Rem without Emilia here.
Rudeus' loyalty was to Emilia. It was his best path to self-preservation, and Emilia seemed like a nice person and a nicer-looking person at that. Yet, despite his thoughts, Rudeus' main objective was to save the children. If Emilia had ordered him to stay, he would have forsaken his oath to Emilia and left anyway. He could never live with himself had he left them to die alone. He vowed to be better in this world. He couldn't be slothful.
Whatever the consequences were… Well, he's accustomed to living in the wild for extended periods. He figured he'd manage, somehow.
With a sharp clanging of heavy metals clinging to one another, a dark purple morning star appeared in Rem's hands. The slender handle with a metal chain was on her right, while the left held a spiked ball of death. The dense metal looked too heavy for a small girl like Rem to carry, yet she summoned the spike of extreme violence without issue, hinting at the maid's incredible strength.
Roswaal did mention both Rem and Ram were capable fighters. But it was then Rudeus realized how true those words were.
"Rem... that's..."
"It's for protection."
"Where do you even store that?"
"You don't want to know."
That only brought more questions to the boy. The more he thought, the lewder they became.
"Ok then... Twyla-san, we'll go ahead and scout out the children. Gather everyone else and follow along!"
"Thank you. I'll gather the rest of the villagers right away."
With a deep bow, Twyla turned to gather the rest of the villagers. But before he left, he looked back at the group with admiration.
"I apologize for not recognizing you. We've met Rem-sama from her trips, but we haven't had the honor of knowing your names…"
He eagerly looked at the two unnamed, one a lady while the other a knight.
"Ah, my name is Emilia, just Emilia. And this is my knight, Rudeus! We'll do our best to find the children."
In her usual soft-bell-like voice, Emilia replied for the both of them. Her courage from the first day was missing, replaced with an unusual timidness. Was it the weight of the promises that scared her? Or the fear of being rejected for her heritage?
Regardless of her intent, Twyla gave another deep bow and left to gather the rest of the villagers.
They had been running for ten minutes through the forest. They had yet to find any signs of mabeasts or the children. With the likely threat being Wolgrams, they could only head from the village towards the forest's center, the Wolgram infestation area.
"We're close. I smell something alive." Rem declared after some pointed sniffing.
The idea that Rem could smell people's location was as unsettling as it turned Rudeus on. In the span of seconds, he imagined what her secret ability could do in certain... circumstances.
If only he could experiment with them for research purposes.
"The kids?" Emilia asked.
"I'm not sure, but it doesn't smell like animals."
The two followed Rem deeper into the forest. Their steps opened up to a clearing of grassy hills. A group of eight or so small children were lying on their backs in the middle.
"It's the children."
Rem was the first to find the missing children. They all rushed faster at her words, hoping they weren't too late.
They approached the kids and inspected them one by one. Rudeus first started with Petra. He held his hand toward her nose to confirm whether she was breathing. He felt a faint breeze touch his skin. The sensation felt uncanny. He was excited that he wasn't late, but their breaths were too shallow—only the faintest heat radiated from their bodies. In short, the kids were barely holding on to their lives.
Just what had happened to them?
"She's alive. They're alive!"
Rudeus was the first to shout out after checking Petra's pulse—the first sign of hope for the children's survival. Yet, Rem did not join in on the celebration. She, too checked the conditions of the unconscious children. With better knowledge of the beasts roaming around the forest, she quickly stopped him in his celebratory tracks.
"They're still breathing but are very weak."
"Weak? What do you mean, Rem? Why would they be weak?"
"Wolgrams can inflict curses that drain a person's mana dry. If they're weak, that means their mana reserves are low."
Rem patted through one of the unconscious children. She inspected head to toe to find a Wolgram bite mark. Sure enough, every child had a bite mark on their arms or legs, indirectly proving the cause of their affliction.
'A curse? That's... that's an illness, right? Could detoxification magic work?'
"I'm going to try and cast a detoxification spell."
He didn't wait for Rem or Emilia to confirm. He held Petra's hand and chanted in the Human Tongue language.
"Divine breath is the source of nourishment, give those who are sick the strength to wake up again. Detoxification."
A bright green hue passed from his hand to the girl's whole body. Rudeus was only a beginner at detoxification magic. If curses in this world were similar to his old world, then a single spell would do nothing to help them. Still, he felt he had to try at least. This new world was filled with the unknown. Even with the slightest of chances, he had to try at least.
The spell finished its magic, cleansing all toxins and diseases from the girl. Yet, her condition did not improve. Her breathing was coarse, and she did not wake from her sleep. Detoxification magic is only able to cleanse diseases and basic toxins. It's unable to undo the effects of a curse in both worlds.
Rem just looked at the boy with wide eyes. This was the first time she had heard Rudeus' magic chant. She'd seen him use voiceless incantation and assumed his magic was the same. The human tongue language was like nothing she heard of all her life. The urge to stop the boy immediately bubbled up, but she refrained from action.
"Ah... as I thought, it's no use..."
'Could I have lifted this if I studied detoxification magic more? Was there even anything more to learn? Mother's books had nothing above beginner spells for detoxification magic. Ahhh, why am I so useless!'
He cursed to himself. He went out of his way to endanger his liege and still couldn't do anything.
How slothful.
"Emilia! Rem! Can either of you undo the curse?"
"No, only Beatrice-sama knows how to undo curses."
"Then... we need to bring them to the village and call Beatrice. Rem, can you guide the villagers here and get Beatrice from the mansion?"
"And leave you behind with Emilia-sama?"
She muttered her last words under her breath. She mulled over their options with her head down, avoiding eye contact with the mage.
Under the stoic professional mask, Rem was suspicious of their new hire. After all, their master Roswaal had given them orders to keep an eye on the man. While he hadn't taken any suspicious action yet, Rem's nose did not lie. The man had the faintest stench of the which lingering on him.
The scent was enough to remind her of the massacre of her village. Had she been any stronger, or the man acted out on his own, she would have taken action to protect her sister.
It was truly a miracle Rudues hadn't evoked the fury of the blue-haired maid.
And now, with the slight haze of those horrendous fiends, this mysterious new hire suggested leaving him and her liege alone. She couldn't help but suspect his intentions.
"Emilia-sama, what are your orders?"
Rem turned to Emilia. She was her superior in this instance. Rudeus hadn't said anything wrong. With the circumstances, splitting up was the best course of action. Her suspicions of the man couldn't help it. Four days was not enough the veto a man. As hopeless as it was, she looked up at Emilia, hoping she would disagree with the boy.
Sudden shock overcame the half-Elf. She had to become King one day. She had to be a leader. She had to be in charge of the operation, but the sudden change of attention made her realize she was not in control of the situation. When did her wonderful knight take the reins? It wasn't a bad feeling. Nevertheless, it didn't feel good either. That said, she couldn't disagree with the knight. She simply lamented that she wasn't the one to say those words herself.
"O-of course. Yes, I agree with my knight. Rem, please, bring the villagers back and call for Beatrice."
"Hmm. Understood, Emilia-sama. Please, stay safe."
With a curt bow, Rem took off to get back up. She still didn't trust Rudeus, but if Emilia-sama ordered it, she'd have to follow.
Only a minute had passed since Rem left to gather the children when Rudeus spoke up, still worried about the children's condition.
"Is there anything else we can do for them? I feel completely useless, just twiddling my thumbs."
"I can use my healing magic to stabilize them, but that's all I can do."
Blue hues illuminated Emilia's hands as if her words triggered the mystic arts. She drew mana from the nearby lesser spirits and spread their power to children. One by one, the children relaxed in their slumber. They stopped shivering, and their breathing slowed down to normal.
Her healing was more effective than she thought. Only seconds passed when the oranged-haired girl, Petra, began to wake up from her forced slumber and barely managed to open her eyes. Rudeus was quick to react and kneeled in front of her.
"Petra! Petra! Are you awake? How are you feeling?"
"There's... another one... out there..."
"Petra! Petra!"
It took every ounce of power to say those words. Even with Emilia's healing, the curse wreaked havoc on their mana. She fell back asleep after meeting Rudeus' eyes. She didn't recognize who the man was, but he did call out his name. She figured he couldn't be a bad person if he were helping her.
Then he realized Meili, the girl who brought the mabeast to the village, was missing from the group.
"Emilia! I need to go deeper into the forest. Meili's not here, and Petra said she might still be out there!"
Rudeus got on his feet to sprint ahead toward the Wolgram breeding grounds. He'd joined rescue missions during his time in the Northern regions of the Central Continent. The most important aspect of a successful search was time. These missions brought immediate attention to any adventurer. With human life on the line, they paid extremely well and brought much gratitude. The latter was most useful to Rudeus as he only cared about spreading his name. That experience made time the most important factor in a successful rescue. And time wasn't something he had much of right now. Add the dangers of the curse, and he couldn't afford to waste a second.
"But, Rudeus. That's too dangerous! You can't go out there all on your own! Who knows how many Mabeasts there are. They might chew you up whole!"
He knelt towards the crouching healer. His eyes had a sharp glint she'd never seen before. They shouted confidence and determination. He needed to save the children. He just had to, even at the risk of himself.
"Emilia, when Petra woke up, she didn't complain or ask for help. She reached out to help her friend. She valued her friend's life over hers. At the least, I want to respect her feelings."
Emila held an unreadable face to Rudeus. Was it safe to send Rudeus alone? What would happen to the girl Petra talked about? Wouldn't they be too late by now? She could only worry at the horrors the missing girl and Rudeus would face if he went on alone.
"I'm heading out now. I'll throw a fireball to the sky once I find Meili."
"No, Rudeus-"
He cut his liege's words short and ran deeper into the Mabeast-infested forest. Emilia wanted to follow ahead. She hated the idea of sending people into trouble. But she couldn't leave the children here unguarded. Her knight had forsaken her orders and ran forward to save Meili. She was proud that a selfless person was her friend and knight. She wanted to be happy with Rudeus' decision. But she couldn't help but worry about the boy's safety. Her glinting eyes shook as his back vanished behind the trees.
(Line Break)
A light-brown-haired magician dashed through a densely packed forest. He jumped over puddles, boulders, and fallen tree stumps. He seemed like a completely average man with no talent for combat. That is until you notice the peculiar staff he had.
The citizens of Lugunica were foreign to the concept of staves. There were wands to amplify magic power, but long stout staves like the one the man possessed were rare. Aqua Heartia was not a regular staff. Its head had an ornate blue gem with glittering sparkles floating inside. Anyone would have noticed its majestic build and could only guess what it was. The seemingly average boy appeared much more confident with the magical item. He looked ready to take over the forest and eradicate the mabeast infestation.
But inside, he was freaking out as he had little knowledge of the monsters of this world. He was an A-ranked mage in his previous world. His greatest feat was the single-handed subjugation of a Red Wyrm, the strongest monster from his last world.
While many would consider "The Adventurer Quagmire" a great mage and exemplary foe, Rudeus felt indifferent about his strength. He believed his victory was only achievable due to the terrain. Red Wyrms, while powerful, could not take off from flat land. They had to drop from high mountain tops and glide to maintain flight. He convinced himself he stood no chance against a Wyrm in its natural habitat.
As for the more common monsters, his party used his supportive spells to keep the beasts in place rather than directly attacking them. This gave him a repertoire of the local beasts and strategies to fight them. So long as he knew the threats and his surroundings, he could conjure a plan to hail victorious.
The downside was that Rudeus had little experience facing enemies head-on. Despite having the magical power to hurt the esteemed Dragon God, his overly cautious nature made him afraid of all the dangerous beasts he could encounter.
'Dammit. I have no clue what Wolgrams can do! It looked like a normal puppy, but clearly, it was much stronger! For all I know, that could have been a familiar or summon, and the real thing is a hulking beast with unstoppable strength!'
'If they're anything like Assault Dogs, I could easily dispatch a few, but if they corner me at once, I'll have to run rather than fight them head-on. Actually, now that I think about it, why wouldn't Roswaal exterminate these beasts himself? He is a strong mage with political power and money to hire mercenaries. With the right plan, I doubt anything could beat a flying man shooting nukes from the sky.'
'Does that mean these Wolgrams were that hard to kill?'
With each thought, the image of one of the most basic mabeasts grew in his mind. Only the sudden smell of animals and manure brought him back to the world.
"I smell animals. There must be Wolgrams close by."
The smell led him to a small open field. He couldn't see any threats immediately but took the time to scout out the area. He saw a fallen tree stump and a pair of tiny feet poking out from behind a bush. He couldn't see anything other than that.
'It could be a trap... I don't see any monsters, but it seems too quiet. There's a chance they'd pounce me as soon as I get near her. They did take only one child from the rest, probably for bait. That means Wolgrams have some semblance of intelligence.'
His cautious nature rooted him in place. He might have charged in without a second thought if he had still been in his old world. He knew the local monsters and their counters. But now, he had nothing to work with. Only his wits and magic. One wrong step, and he wouldn't get a fourth chance.
He thought back to the numerous quests he had taken. How did he manage his first quest? How did Counter Arrow deal with rescue missions? How did Zoldat take care of unknown threats? How would Ruijerd deal with this?
"Ruijerd wouldn't hesitate."
Ruijerd would do anything to protect children. He wouldn't dare be slothful. He steeled himself as he imagined the will of his former protector and friend.
He jumped up and ran toward the two feet. Beyond the tree stump was Meili unconscious. There was no blood or visible wounds, so Rudeus' trap theory grew increasingly. He took a closer look at the girl and noticed something strange.
There were no bite marks on Meili.
In fact, Meili showed no symptoms like the other children. No steaming sweat or shaking breath. Had the curse not affected her? Was she even cursed, to begin with? If so, why is she unconscious?
'Now that I think about it, I was also bitten by the dog. Did I get lucky and not get cursed? I don't feel cursed. Does the curse not work on me because I'm from another world?'
With questions about his health, he had already forgotten about the biteless child.
"Grrrrr."
Behind him was a wolf the size of a large German shepherd. It had bright red eyes, black and brown fur, grey claws, spikes along its spine, blood-red gills on its torso, and a stout and stubby horn on its muzzle. Rudeus looked surprised at its appearance. He expected a Wolgram to appear, but its appearance was so different from the little puppy, nor did it resemble anything from his previous world.
'I don't know what this thing can do. I might unknowingly trap myself if I make the wrong move. I'll wait and let it come to me.'
With his Demon Eye active and mana swirling to his staff, he took a defensive stance, blocking the Wolgram's sight from the little girl behind him.
"Grrrrrrrrlll, *psssshh*"
"Huh?"
The dog beast faded into the shadows. When he foresaw it with his Eye of Foresight, he didn't understand what the beast had done.
The sound of rustling bushes invaded his mind. Whatever that beast did didn't make it incorporeal. It was still here, somewhere. He hurriedly looked around, left, right, up, down. Even with the Demon Eye, he couldn't predict things he couldn't see. He had to stay vigilant. He had to know where it was coming from.
"Kraaah"
With its silent footsteps, the Wolgram appeared from his blind spot and bit his left arm. Its white fangs pierced his clothes and skin. An acute, warm sensation covered his entire forearm. It felt like it was burning. Each prickling fang dug straight through his skin and muscles. He could even feel his fingers begin to lose strength.
"Ack."
He swallowed down the pain and prepared mana to his staff. He cast a sharp earthen spike underneath the air-borne Wolgram. It shot up near instantly, tearing through the beast, cutting it in two. Its upper torso hung on his arm as its intestines, flesh, and skin dangled.
"Aghrooooh!"
With a howl shaking the night sky, the beast lost strength and fell off the victorious mage.
Rudeus had just killed his first beast in this new world.
"Agh, damn, they're faster than I thought."
He changed to focus on his injured left arm. Four trenches of torn-off meat oozed out blood. He tightly gripped his forearm and chanted a healing spell. He'd deal with the curse later.
"Let this divine power be as satisfying nourishment, giving the one who has lost their strength the strength to rise again! Healing."
His flesh melted and mended itself as the green hue of mana encompassed the reddened meat. Soon enough, the arm was good as new.
"Time to get out of here."
He picked up the sleeping girl with his left arm. With a grunt and a swoop, he tossed her over his shoulder and carried her like a potato sack. When he turned around, dozens of growling red eyes stared back.
He was surrounded.
'That last one taught me enough. Wolgrams can vanish into shadows, but offense-wise, they aren't much different from a typical wolf beast. This time, I'll hit them first before they can vanish.'
The spells ignited the entire area before them. Quagmire melted the ground into deep, sticky muck. The trees and Wolgrams sank, trapping them in place. Frost Nova hovered above the liquid earth, preventing it from freezing. The super chilled mist spread through the trapped wolf beasts and froze them whole. The ones that struggled shattered to pieces, opening a frozen path for Rudeus to escape. He didn't remember the way back, but he couldn't stay here. He'd need to find cover to funnel the beasts.
The instant he saw a path through the densely packed sculptures, he dashed through without a second's thought.
The surviving Wolgrams charged at their escaping target. They surround the mage in three or four packs and lept at once.
Rudeus threw wide slices of air. Each spell tore apart the Mabeasts in half. Their heads rolled mid-air as their necks couldn't hold the weight.
Raising his staff to the sky, Rudeusshot up a sphere of condensed flame. The ball flew high in the sky and burst into shards of multi-colored explosions. He used the same spell to rescue Eris when they were kidnapped. Hopefully, someone would notice and come pick them up.
With his emergency signal fired, he continued to dash away from the frozen landslide with the unconscious girl still on his shoulders.
"Emilia-sama!"
The village chief and their men ran towards the valley. Twyla recognized the cloaked woman and called out to her. As the villagers got closer, they saw the children writhing in pain. They gasped at the sight, worried they were too late to help.
"Twyla-san! It's good you're here! I've stabilized them enough to be moved. Rem should be back with Beatrice soon. She can break the curses on them!"
With her practiced authoritative voice, she commanded the villagers. They had never seen the girl before, but her tone left no questions to ask. Their chief seemed ok with the circumstances anyway.
"Understood, Emilia-sama. But what of Rudeus-sama? Were you not with him?"
"My knight went deeper into the wood. Petra-chan said another girl was in the woods."
The villagers sounded surprised at the girl's words. Just who was this woman? The playful servant that played with the children earlier today was her knight?
"*BOOOOOM*"
A loud crash cut their thoughts short. Everyone looked toward the sound and saw a vibrant display of colored fire raining down from the sky. The dynamic mix of reds, greens, and oranges felt hypnotizing. If not for the children, they would have watched in awe, contemplating its beauty.
Emilia looked surprised. She had never seen such a spell before. That meant it could have only been him to fire such a blast. Her knight was in trouble and needed help.
"Th-that must be Rudeus! Twyla-san, please take care of the children. I have to go save my knight!"
With her Elven speed and endurance, Emilia bolted towards the explosion. Twyla and the villagers looked jaw slacked at the young woman speeding faster than a dragon carriage. Just who the hell was she?
"Ha, ha, ha, ha."
Emilia's breaths drew harder with each step. The densely packed forest separated them for at least half an hour. Who knows how far he had gotten? She just had to hope she wasn't too late. She had to find him in time.
Another ten minutes passed by, and Emilia found it. She stopped to a halt at the mystical sight in front of her. The entire forest was frozen solid. The trees were coated with a solid layer of blue ice. The frigid sculptures of Wolgrams littered the ground as they sunk deep into the muddy earth. Strangely, the ground was not frozen at all. It retained its vicious nature as if a flood had run through.
'This has to be Rudeus.'
Only he could have performed such magic, which meant she was getting closer. She ran. She ran past the frozen Mabeasts and jumped over the swampy ground. At the end of her dash, she found him. Surrounded by hundreds of growling beasts, Rudeus stood tall. Blood and guts covering him, and a little girl on his shoulder. His left held the girl steady while his right swung his staff, firing wind blades. They sliced through the leaping Wolgram pack, each falling with a scowl and slump.
Emilia called out to the lesser spirits. Borrowing their gates, she cast several ice spikes and shot down the incoming Wolgrams. The sudden fall of a dozen Wograms caused half to divert their attention to the half-Elf. Noticing the sudden drop in aggression, Rudeus turned to see Emilia fighting the rest.
'Finally! She's here. We don't need to fight. We just need to get out of here.'
Lost in the forest, Rudeus had no way to escape the drooling clutches of the Wolgrams. Once he found a suitable high ground and bottle-necked area, he camped to defend the little girl until help arrived.
"Emilia! We can't fight them at once! We need to get out of here!"
*Blizzard Storm*
Hundreds of ice shards beckoned their call and shot around the blood-soaked image. The sudden burst of dead Wolgrams opened enough space for an Earth Lance to rise from the guts and gore.
"Huh? Ahhhh!?"
In seconds, both were shot in the air, launching them away from the pack of beasts scavenging the forest floors.
Emilia was surprised at the sudden change in scenery. Half a second ago, she was on the ground shooting Huma crystals. Now, she was in the sky, plummeting toward the ground.
"Emilia! Grab me!"
Rudeus called out and reached for the falling girl. Emilia had no idea how they would survive the fall. She looked afraid. She couldn't believe she was hurling toward the ground. She clawed the boy's arm, wrapping herself tightly as if it were her last lifeline.
*Wind Blast*
As they were seconds from the ground, Rudeus shot out an instantaneous blast of air to slow their fall. He'd practice this move enough times to land a safe landing.
They plopped on the ground, landing on their feet. Rudeus checked back on the girl riding on his shoulder while Emilia fell flat, still shocked at what happened. After confirming Meili's uninjured body, he knelt beside Emilia and helped her up.
"That was a surprise, right? Sorry, I couldn't find another way to get us out. Do you think you can still run?"
She shook her head side by side. This wasn't the time to panic and collapse. This child still needed help. She'd scold her knight for his reckless behavior after this was over.
"I'm... handy-dandy, Rudeus. Are you ok? You're completely soaked!"
"...I'm good. I can still run. How do we get back to the village? I lost my way after finding Meili and had to wait for someone to find us."
"Alright. It should be... that direction. We should go away from the moon to get to the village."
That didn't make much sense to Rudeus, but it was better than nothing. She had lived here far longer than he had. Who was he to question her. With a simple nod, the two ran from the moon as if the moonlight was pushing them toward their destination.
"I-I think I can see the village! You were actually right!"
"Did you just admit you doubted me?"
"No, not at all. I had complete faith in you!"
The villagers lit a campfire in the town center to help anyone lost in the forest. Plumes of smoke floated to the sky. Rudeus and Emilia instinctively followed the smoke, though they had no clue they were following a guide. They were merely a hundred meters away from the village when the howls stopped them in their tracks.
A huge pack had followed them back to the village. Hundreds of angry mouths and blood-red eyes appeared under the meadow. Rudeus was sure they shook them off with the Earth Lance. How did they manage to follow them so fast?
"Emilia, is the barrier repaired?"
"I don't think so..."
Without the barrier, the entire pack would ravage the town, dooming everyone to the death of a hundred bites. He could almost hear the screams of desperation as the claws and teeth gnaw and saw through the villagers.
He could not let that happen.
"Emilia, take Meili and head to the village. I'll buy you some time."
"What? No, I can't let you do that! There's too many to face them alone!"
A meek smile fazed over Rudeus. Even with his massive mana pool, he'd have difficulty dealing with many beasts simultaneously. But all he could do was walk forward.
"Don't worry, Emilia. I have a plan. Set up the barrier, and I'll run back. I promise. I'll be right behind you."
He dropped the girl gently on the forest floor and ran towards the pack of Wolgram. He assumed Emilia would never agree to his plans, so he went straight ahead without looking back.
*Flame Slice, Flame Slice, Flame Slice*
He shot out blades of heat. The wolves charged straight at the boy through the burning corpses and trees. They sliced through the pack in dozens, cutting and burning the beasts and forest together.
*Wind Blast, Earth Lance, Flame Slice!*
He continued to kite the wolves with Wind Blast. The knockback flew him meters away from the charging claws. Earth Lance gave him elevation to leap above the Wolgram pack while Flame Slice burned the surrounding area.
Even the continuous barrage of spells was insufficient to stop their unrelenting raids. Slowly, Rudeus accumulated bites and slashes over his entire body. One by one, he would mistime his Blast, or his Flame Slice didn't entirely eliminate the fiends in their tracks, opening him to their sharp claws and fangs.
It had all gone to plan.
Rudeus cast another Earth Lance, but this time increased its speed. He shot up high in the sky, above the raging canines.
'Perfect! They can't leave. Thanks to the ring of fire, I've gathered them all to this spot.'
From atop the sky, a fence of blazing trees encompassed the Wolgram pack. Rudeus planned to herd as many Wolgrams as possible and fend them in a cage. With the beast trapped in a wall of flame, he needed one good explosion to wipe them out. The raging fire would be troublesome to handle, but that was that, and this was this. He'd deal with that later with Cumulonimbus.
He gathered mana for his staff. He focused on the raging flame circulating from the tips of the crystal ball. A roaring thunder of hot explosion.
*Exodus Flame*
A large wave of radiating heat launched toward the wolf pack. The cone of fire rushed to the ground and imploded with a loud bang. The ground instantaneously caught on flames as the surrounding Wolgrams burnt to a crisp. The explosion engulfed the entire enclosed area. Those outside the direct combustion caught on fire. They scurried left and right as their fur burnt away, fat and muscle bubbling like magma, leaving charred tar stains on the ground.
Using the same Wind Blast technique, Rudeus safely landed outside his blazing fence. He leaned on his staff and slowly walked back to the village before passing out from exhaustion. With the hours of running and fighting, he felt hazy in his head.
The bright-orange scenery of dancing trees was the last he saw before his eyes refused to open.
"I don't recognize that ceiling."
When he opened his eyes, the unfamiliar sight of a wooden ceiling greeted him. He wore the same shirt and pants from his excursion to the forest. Under him was a stiff mattress, and a heavy blanket covered his entire body.
The bright sun shined through the window, waking him from his morning haziness. Though, he couldn't shake the sense of dense weights pushing him down to bed. Was he exhausted? Was it from the blood loss?
He gathered strength to his core and arms. He sat up from his bed when a shock of pain tore through his peaceful smile.
"Ugh."
He grunted, informing a floating cat attending to a silver-haired girl sitting nearby. He flew towards the boy and hovered just above his eye line.
"Good morning, Rudeus."
"Hey, Puck. So, tell me, what happened after I fainted?"
"I could ask the same thing. Honestly, how are you still alive?"
'How was I alive? What kind of question is that? My body is intact, and I feel like shit. Just what the hell happened?'
"How I'm... alive? Puck, you're scaring me here. It's as if I wasn't expected to wake up or something."
"Well, aren't you quick to catch on? You were out for three days. Nobody expected you to wake up. I'm surprised you even have the strength to talk to me!"
His words did not match his indifferent tone. A three-day coma wasn't a good sign. And what was this about nobody expecting his recovery?
"Alright, I need answers, Puck. We won't get anywhere if I don't know what happened."
"Well... After you were gobbled by those Wolgrams and set the entire forest on fire. Emilia found you unconscious on the ground. She dragged you here and healed you all night. We thought it was over until Betty took a look at you. I'm not sure what the others told you about Wolgrams, but they feed on the mana they siphon from the curses they inflict. You had dozens of curses, all eating away at your mana. Anyone would have died in hours from mana depletion."
"Mana... depletion?"
"Yep. Mana is like a life force for us. If it's forcefully taken, we die."
"And despite that, I somehow lived..."
"Hmhmm! You're one of a kind! Those curses sucked you all night, and you're still fine! Just how much mana do you have?"
'Yeah, how much mana do I have? Is it that I'm special? I always thought I had more mana than others, but nothing ridiculous. Yet, everything points out otherwise. Even Kishirika and I think Orsted mentioned my mana capacity rivaled the Demon God Laplace. I spent mana like water during my adventures, and I've never felt mana exhaustion these past few years.'
He held his hand to his chin, rubbing an invisible beard. It helped him think, or at least he thought it did.
'Hmm, maybe not. Sylphy didn't grind magic as young as I had, but she had a lot of mana. Maybe mana grows exponentially the more you use it? Maybe it's because I had an early start? Yeah, that's it. Damn, that book really had no clue what it was talking about.'
"I'm unsure how to answer that question, but I've never experienced mana exhaustion. Maybe I just have a lot more mana to work with?"
Puck wasn't satisfied with this answer. Emilia was his daughter. He would never allow this lustrous boy to take her away from him! If Rudeus' mana reserves were as large as he suspected, he was a threat to be reckoned with. He couldn't wait for the boy to take away his precious daughter.
For now, he'd act aloof to the boy. He hadn't done anything yet, but Puck made a mental note to ensure he wouldn't get his hands on Emilia. His contingency plans started now.
"Well, if you say so. Other than that, what happened to your hair? It turned white overnight!"
The sudden claim shocked Rudeus. Was his appearance changing again? Sure, this body was multitudes better than his previous self, but getting used to more change might be another ordeal. With a swipe of his hand, he conjured an ice mirror and saw a branch of bleach-white hair stemming from his head.
"What... why is my hair changing?"
"Hmmm, so you don't know too..."
"AHHH! Is this a metamorphosis? Am I turning into a beetle?"
"Woah, woah, calm down there, Rudeus. Quiet down. I don't know what meta-more-fa-sis means, but you're not turning into a beetle. Besides, Emilia sat next to you all day when you were asleep. We wouldn't want to wake her, now would we?"
He pointed to the corner of Rudeus' field of vision. He saw her, the silver-haired half-Elf he swore his allegiance to. She sat peacefully in her sleep, blissfully unaware that her knight had just woken up.
'Emilia stood all night healing me, huh? I guess I owe her now. Maybe I'll get her to let me lick her feet.'
"Hmm? Why did I feel sexual arousal there, Ru. De. Us?"
'Hngk! I forgot, her dad's an empath!'
"I swear, Rudeus. You've made Emilia so much happier but make no mistake. You put that filthy hand on her... AND I WILL SHOW YOU THE POWER OF THE BEAST OF THE END!"
The sudden proclamation brought a chill of shock to the injured man's spine.
Ignoring the pain wracking his entire body, Rudeus prostrated himself atop the bed, begging the scary magical cat floating above him.
"Say no more, Puck!"
After casting several healing spells on himself, Rudeus felt as good as he could. His mana levels were relatively low, and healing magic didn't restore blood loss, but he didn't feel pain when he moved. A significant improvement in his mind.
"So, let me get this straight. The curses are still active and eat at my mana reserves at midnight. I just happen to have enough mana to push through. And nobody in the mansion can fix this many curses at once."
He recounted his current condition with Puck once more. His greatest asset was now hindered. With this new condition, he had to understand his situation. He was supposed to be a knight protecting his liege, and on his first week, he contracted a fatal wound.
"Yep. You got that all right. Until we find you a sound healer, you'll have to tone down on the magic for a while."
"*sigh* I guess it can't be helped."
Ever since his rebirth, Rudeus loved magic. He loved learning and casting this mythical strength from his fingers. Having to restrain his otherworldly passion was a shame, but it had to be done if he wanted to stay alive.
"Hmmm, Ehm."
'Ho, looks like we woke up, Emilia. I'll have to thank her for everything.'
With a soft whimper and rustle, Emilia opened her eyes. She rubbed them in exhaustion, letting deep sighs echo through the room. She had barely slept in the past three days, spending all her mana to heal her reckless knight. When will he wake up? Will he even wake up at all? Her mind went through her usual thoughts until she met eyes with the brown-haired boy looking at her.
Without hesitation, she leaped toward the boy and tightly hugged him, pushing his face to her endowed bosom.
'Ah, I can't breathe, Emilia. I could die happy if my little buddy were awake, but I still need air!'
His cries for help didn't escape his throat as the half-Elf's strength easily overpowered him.
"Rudeus! Rudeus! I was so worried! You were sleeping for so long. Beatrice-chan told me you wouldn't make it. You made me worry so much, dunderhead!"
"Uhh, Lia. I don't think he can breathe..."
"Huh? Oh, I'm sorry. I didn't notice."
She let go of the boy suffocating in pleasure. Emilia was weirded out when he saw him smiling but didn't think much of it. She would be smiling, too, if she woke up from nearly dying.
"Thank you very much, Emilia."
"Eh, why are you thanking me, Rudeus?"
"Ah... haha. It's nothing, don't think about it."
He waved off his earlier comment as he felt the sharp eyes of the floating feline behind him. He just woke up from a near-death experience. That was enough dying in a single lifetime.
"Rudeus!"
His worry vanished as he saw and heard Emilia crying. She silently wept as streaks of tears flew down her cheeks. Now that he looked closer, her eyes were swollen and bloodshot. Had she been crying all night?
"Why?"
"Emilia?"
"Why did you run off when I told you not to? Why didn't you listen to me?"
'Ah, she's upset I disobeyed her orders? That did make sense. I swore my allegiance to her, so maybe absolute discipline is expected.'
"Emilia, I'm sorry. I didn't want to disobey you. I just-"
"You got hurt so much because of me... You ran off all alone and almost died!"
"Emilia, listen, I-"
"Promise me."
"Huh?"
"Promise me you'll listen to me. Promise me you won't run off alone and get hurt."
Emilia's cries grew louder and louder. The tears didn't stop flowing as she demanded her knight promise her. She was so happy when he made a new friend and had her knight. She nearly lost her friend due to his recklessness and will not let that happen again.
She dug her face into his chest, snuggling hopelessly as if he would vanish if she walked away.
"Please, I don't want to see you hurt or lose you. Promise me you won't be reckless anymore."
Rudeus was awe-struck at her words. It's been less than a week since he met Emilia. Had he affected her to this degree?
'Well, I can't complain about such beauty being clingy. Maybe this will help my understanding, but there's no point in thinking it through. She just wants me to listen to her words. I can do that easily. Nothing to worry about, Emilia! I promise to stay loyal and listen to your words to a T!'
"Alright, Emilia. I won't go running off on my own and disregard your words. I'll listen to your every order down to the wire."
She looked up at the boy, and their eyes locked. She couldn't quite tell what those gems held. But promises were important. Rudeus would keep a promise. He was a good boy, after all.
"Rea~lly? You promise?"
With his free arms, Rudeus held her closer. He could feel her slender body so fragile and soft. His arms locked firmly around her back as he returned her hug.
"Mhh. I promise."
The two snuggled together as Emilia continued to cry. Soon enough, her whimpers quieted down, and she was fast asleep again. With his healed body, Rudeus gently pushed her away, hopped off the bed, and laid her back under the blankets he warmed.
"Even after that, there's no reaction." He muttered.
"What was that?"
"Ah, nothing!"
He ran from the angry cat for his life. He'd had enough near-death experiences, after all.