To Abel, just saying the name of the task was already exhausting.
A mine crawling with magical beasts…it was nothing short of a nightmare.
But to Kashe, it seemed to have all the appeal of an amusement park.
Abel watched in stunned silence as her expression lit up…no, it practically gleamed.
“That sounds amazing! I’m coming too!”
“No way in hell you are.”
His real voice slipped out before he could stop it.
While Abel and Kashe were locked in a back-and-forth, the ceremonial knight Stalfon approached.
“What’s going on here? Hmm. Abel, it’s you. What’s the matter?”
Abel quickly explained the situation, and just like that, Kashe’s defeat was sealed.
Stalfon declared that he would keep her from leaving the castle. Even if it meant putting a collar on her.
A collar? That’s… a bit extreme.
But then again, on a headstrong beauty like her, it might oddly suit her.
Kashe glared at Abel with a look of pure resentment.
If he left her like this, it wouldn’t just cause bad blood. He might actually get revenge taken on him.
This called for damage control. After all, being a functional adult was all about knowing how to follow up.
“Lady Kashe. How about just one round of sparring? Let’s call it even for today.”
“Of course! I’m not going to calm down otherwise!”
They moved to the training area in the courtyard.
One round wouldn’t take too long.
Abel chose a shield and a light wooden sword.
He hadn’t been using a shield much lately, but he wanted to keep training in the Swi Defense style.
Besides, despite being a sheltered noble lady, Kashe was surprisingly quick and accurate with her attacks.
He wanted to try a more defensive fighting style against her.
The spar began.
With strength and speed surpassing that of most adults, Kashe unleashed a flurry of blows with her wooden sword.
But Abel blocked every single strike using the Boujin style he’d learned from Walter.
It looked like he was just defending, but that wasn’t the whole story.
Kashe grew increasingly irritated. None of her attacks were landing.
Even if she had stamina to spare, mentally, she was starting to fall apart.
Seeing the moment arrive, Abel deliberately shifted his shield to the side, creating an opening.
Kashe took the bait and launched a reckless attack.
Abel suddenly thrust his shield forward and charged.
Once he had fully closed the distance, he thrust his sword which was previously hidden behind the shield straight at her.
It was practically a surprise attack.
Kashe barely managed to twist her body out of the way, but Abel had anticipated that move and slammed her with the shield.
Kashe was knocked back and fell to her knees on the ground.
Abel lightly pressed the tip of his sword against her throat. The match was over.
“I was trained by my father, and he taught me that a shield isn’t only for defense. It can be used to strike or to hide your sword. The Swift Defense Style has several techniques for overpowering an opponent using a shield. Well then, that’s it for today.”
Kashe bit her lip in frustration.
“I want to go on a mission too!”
“Why not try asking the Count?”
—Not that it’ll do any good…
Abel added silently in his mind.
Abel and Ise left the main castle and reported the situation to Baron Gatu.
Gatu dug through a mountain of documents and pulled out requests and records related to the Aldoba Mine Ruins.
“The area sees frequent sightings of magical beasts. They’ve made the ruins their den and have been attacking nearby villages. The request is to exterminate them completely. Also, according to the Adventurers’ Guild, at least four groups have gone missing this year alone after setting out to investigate. Chances are high they were wiped out inside the mine.”
“Oh… now that’s exciting.”
Ise muttered something that sounded ominous.
Abel could only stare at her with an expression that said, “Are you serious?”
“You’ll be fine, Ise, but that professor Casalos isn’t used to combat. We could use more people… but sorry, I can’t go with you this time. I’m busy with something else.”
Abel recalled the beastkin Walt.
“Um. I have a beastkin slave. Should I bring him along?”
“What’s this? You’ve got something handy there. Ise, is that beastkin any good?”
“For someone from the Wolf race, I’d say his skill is around average. With proper training, he can still grow stronger.”
“Alright, then. Be careful out there. I’ll be waiting for your safe return. Oh, right….here’s a map of the ruins. A knight drew it about twenty years ago during an expedition. Take it with you.”
Abel and Ise returned to their room.
Walt had found a sunny spot near the building and was napping there.
He looked exactly like a giant dog.
When he sat up and yawned, his sharp canine teeth were clearly visible.
“Must be nice, being able to nap in the middle of the day.”
“Humans are smart, but they’re stupid. They work themselves to death growing more food than they can eat. I just don’t get it.”
“You say that, but weren’t you the one who drifted in here on the brink of starvation?”
“The reason there wasn’t enough food was the weather. It wasn’t our fault.”
Abel felt like he was starting to understand how beastkin thought.
It might be a good opportunity to learn more about the mindset of other races, he thought.
Maybe I’ll keep this one around for a while.
“Lady Ise. Mind if I arm Walt?”
“Yeah, it’s probably necessary. Looks like that one’s gotten attached to you, Abel. I think there’s a spare dagger lying around somewhere. He can borrow that.”
Ise returned with a sword belt and a dagger from her room.
The dagger was double-edged, with a blade about the length of a palm.
Walt wrapped the leather belt tightly around his body.
He slid two daggers into the leather strap.
Once they had their gear ready, they waited just inside the outer gate of the castle. Before long, Professor Casalos arrived on horseback.
“Sorry to keep you waiting~”
As always, his expression was hard to read.
Narrow eyes, brown pupils.
His features gave off an intelligent vibe, but there wasn’t a trace of tension anywhere.
Abel couldn’t tell if the man truly understood the danger they were about to face. He looked like he was just heading out for a casual stroll.
They stocked up on supplies in the town of Porto, and the journey began.
Abel was still riding double with Ise.
Thanks to her breastplate, he couldn’t feel anything.
Not that he would try anyway. Armor or not, touching her would probably end with a shattered face.
Walt, who was proud of his strong legs, insisted on walking. “Ain’t no horse faster than me.” he said.
Professor Casalos seemed to have just enough skill to manage a horse, but the one he borrowed was extremely well-trained.
It calmly trotted along behind Nana.
It was strange how they were starting to feel like a proper party.
Along the way, Abel asked Casalos about ores and magic stones. As expected of a professor, he explained everything clearly and to the point.
Magic stones were a general term for crystals or stones where magical elements, which were naturally present throughout the world, had accumulated.
These magical elements exist everywhere, but extracting them was extremely time-consuming and inefficient as a power source for casting magic.
However, since magic stones already contain condensed magical elements, one can draw out magical power directly from them.
In short, they were like dry-cell batteries.
That said, just as a person can’t extract electricity simply by holding a battery, living beings can’t directly draw magic power from a magic stone without the proper technology.
In reality, magic stones were everywhere. In the soil, for example.
But the ones found like that were of poor quality.
If you need to gather thousands of them just to make use of them, they’re practically worthless.
What Casalos was after were not those worthless pebbles, but first-class magic crystal stones that stored enormous amounts of magical power.
He wanted to use one as a power source to build a flying magic device capable of carrying multiple passengers.
And Casalos’s ambition happened to align with the plans of Count Barth Highwand.
Abel suspected the Count intended to use the flying device for military purposes.
“So, this flying magic device….how much has it cost so far?”
“All things considered, probably around two thousand Imperial gold coins.”
Imperial gold coins were the highest denomination in circulation within the Empire.
Abel had received only one from Walter. Just in case of an emergency.
It was an enormous expense.
“No wonder the Count’s pissed.”
“Can you blame him? Everything has to be custom-made. And we’re talking about flying through the sky. What if it crashes because we used cheap parts?”
“Well, yeah… But still, Professor Casalos, you don’t seem like someone with a strong sense of budgeting.”
“Money is a trivial matter compared to the pursuit of knowledge, Abel. You’re brilliant, yet you say such petty things.”
Their journey continued, filled with casual conversation.
Ys remained silent, merely listening.
They traveled without getting caught in the rain, making steady progress.
Walter, perhaps thinking of it as just a pleasant walk, followed along with a cheerful expression.
The territory of Count Highwand was said to lie at the easternmost edge of the Empire.
Beyond that to the east stretched the region known as the Central Plains of the continent.
The Central Plains were vast and fertile and for many years had been a contested battleground between the Empire and the Kingdom of Ordain.
Continuing further east across the plains, the land eventually became the territory of the Empire’s longtime enemy, the Kingdom.
To the north of the Count’s domain lay what was called the Northern Mountain Range.
The range was steep and rugged, home to many magical beasts and wild animals.
Beyond the Northern Mountains, it was no longer human territory. It was said to be the domain of the non-humans…
Abel felt the vastness of the world, realizing he knew only a small part of it.
One day, he wanted to travel to the ends of the earth.
A feeling that never faded, always swirling in his heart, was searching for something.
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