Chapter 72 - 'Daughters of the Beast Race Kidnapping and Con

第七十二話「獣族令嬢拉致監禁事件　前編」

Chapter 72 - 'Daughters of the Beast Race Kidnapping and Confinement Incident - First Half'

　リニア・デドルディア。
　大森林の守護者たるドルディア族がひとつデドルディア。
　その族長たるギュスターブの孫。
　戦士長にして次期族長たるギュエスが娘。

　プルセナ・アドルディア。
　大森林の守護者たるドルディア族がひとつアドルディア。
　その族長たるブルドグの孫。
　戦士長にして次期族長たるテルテリアが娘。

　ドルディア族。
　その種族は、獣族の中では特別な存在である。

　彼らのルーツは約5500年前。
　最初の人魔大戦の後まで遡る。

　人族と魔族の総力戦。人魔大戦。
　その戦争の勝者は人族であった。

　人族は魔族を奴隷のように扱い、増長した。
　次々と他の種族へ宣戦布告。
　それは広大な木材資源を持つ大森林に住む、獣族も例外ではなかった。

　迫り来る大軍勢。
　それに対し、当時獣族のトップであった『獣神ギーガー』が立ち上がった。

　卑劣な人族に対し、獣神ギーガーは獣族をまとめあげ、自らも最前線に立って戦った。
　力を振るい、時には知恵を巡らせ、時には他の獣族に助けられながら、
　最終的には大森林を守り通したとされている。

　『獣神』とは獣族全ての頂点に君臨する男であり、英雄の名である。
　そして、その獣神ギーガーこそが、ドルディア族だったのだ。

　ゆえにドルディア族は大森林に住む獣族のトップ。

　それだけ聞くと大した事がないように思えるかもしれない。
　しかし現在、獣族は大森林のみならず、
　中央大陸やベガリット大陸といった地域への分布も見せている。
　その総数は人族ほど多くはない。
　だが、決して無視できる数でもない。
　具体的に言えば、現在でもミリス神聖国と戦争できるだけの戦力を持っていると推測されている。

　それほどの武力を持った種族なのだ。


　そして、リニアとプルセナはドルディア族族長の孫。
　獣神の直系。
　特別な意味を持つ子。

　将来は族長か、もしくは族長の妻となる存在である。
　人族に例えるならば、王位継承権を持つ者……王女となるか。
　それも、人族の最強国家たるアスラ王国の王女に匹敵する。
　ゆえに、彼女らは入学当初、最も偉い存在であった。

　そんな彼女らがどうして故郷を離れて、遠く離れた地に勉強にきているのか。
　それは、前世代の王子・王女があまりにも不出来であったからだ。

　次世代である彼女らもまた、前世代の王子(ギュエス)・王女(ギレーヌ)の如く頭が悪かった。
　ゆえに、族長(ギュスターヴ)はその事を憂い、
　二人に遠い地にて学業をおさめ、知識を得てくる事を命じたのである。
　権力の通じない場所であれば、あるいは分別を身につけて戻ってくるだろう、と。

　が、さて。
　１つ誤算があった。
　二人は『獣族の族長の孫という立場が効かないであろう』という理由で、魔法大学に送り込まれた。

　獣族ということで、むしろ迫害を受ける事を覚悟していた二人。
　その二人を待っていたのは、
　自分たちを腫れ物扱いする教師や、
　媚びへつらう他の生徒であった。

　そう、効いてしまったのだ。
　ドルディア族という立場が、権力が。


　二人は調子に乗った。
　入学当初はややビクビクしていた彼女らだったが、
　ドルディア族に伝わる声の魔術と、高い敏捷性、筋力、種族特性による喧嘩の強さ。
　これに授業で習った詠唱魔術を組み合わせることで、上級生を難なく打ち倒せる事に気づいたあたりから、段々とガラが悪くなりはじめる。
　ボイコット、カツアゲ、タカリ、タムロ……。
　およそ不良生徒らしい事はだいたい行い、一年生にして群れのボスとなった。

　しかし、その快進撃は、すぐに終わった。

　二年にあがると同時に、アスラ王国からお姫様がやってきたのだ。
　アリエル・アネモイ・アスラ。
　アスラ王国第二王女。
　つい最近まで派閥まで作って勢力争いをやっていた人物。
　それが、護衛を二人もつれて、我が物顔でリニア・プルセナの縄張りへと入ってきたのだ。
　そして、気に食わない事に、今までリニアやプルセナに尻尾を振っていた教師連中は、アリエルたちに尻尾を振り始めた。

　それでも、半年は我慢した。
　気に食わない、気に食わないと思いつつも、なんでかしらんが我慢した。
　だが、すぐに我慢は限界に達した。
　アリエルは極めて優秀で、一年生にして生徒会に所属したのだ。
　優等生として褒められるアリエルと、不良のレッテルを張られた自分たち。
　リニアとプルセナには、まるでそれが当てつけのように感じられた。
　不良のレッテルを張られたのは自業自得なので、完全に逆恨みである。

　リニアとプルセナは、アスラ王女御一行にちょっかいをかけ始めた。
　歩いている所、目の前の地面に唾を吐くという地味な嫌がらせから始まり、
　わざと肩をぶつけたり、水を引っ掛けたり、
　下着を盗んで男子寮の前に捨てるなどとエスカレートしていき、
　最終的には不良生徒を集めての襲撃事件にまで発展した。

　そして、フィッツ先輩にボコボコにされた。
　二十名近い襲撃者はフィッツ先輩ただ一人によって撃破されたのだ。
　二人もフィッツ先輩によって容赦なく打ちのめされた。

　そして、事件が明るみに出た事で、
　教師陣の間でも話し合いが行われた。
　二十名近い襲撃者は軒並み退学となった。

　しかし、リニア・プルセナの二人は退学にはならなかった。
　さすがにドルディア族の令嬢を退学にするのはまずいという判断であろう。

　不良生徒は少なくなり、リニア・プルセナの株は暴落。
　アスラ王女一行は生徒から英雄視されるようになった。
　ちなみに彼女らも一応は特別生という位置づけであるが、アスラ王女たっての願いにより、一般生徒と同等の扱いを受けている。

　もちろん、リニアとプルセナは面白くない。
　面白くないが、戦力差は歴然としており、すでに手駒もない。

　せいぜい、去年入学してきた特別生のザノバやクリフが暴れていたので、鬱憤晴らしに因縁を付けて倒してみた程度だ。
　ザノバを使って王女らの情報を集めてはいるものの、復讐をするつもりもない。
　最近では多少素行の悪さを見せつつも、授業を真面目に受けている。
　更生した、と言えるだろう。

　新入生たる俺にとっては、フィッツ先輩スゲェとなるだけのエピソード。
　終わった事件。

　そのはずだった。



Rinia Dedoldia. The Dedoldia are one of the two Doldia clans that serve as the protectors of the Great Forest. She's the granddaughter of that clan chief, Gustav. She's the daughter of that clan's warrior chief who is also the next clan chief, Gyues.

Pursena Adoldia. The Adoldia are one of the two Doldia clans that serve as the protectors of the Great Forest. She's the granddaughter of that clan chief, Buldg.※ She's the daughter of that clan's warrior chief who is also the next clan chief, Telteria.

[※Note: His name is just 'bulldog' with less emphasize on the 'g' sound (or you could say lses emphasize on the 'do' sound depending on how you want to describe it.) lmfao]



The Doldia clan. Among the Beast Race, they're a special existence.

They have roots that go back roughly 500 years. They span back to the time of the first Human-Demon Great War.

An all-out war between the Human Race and the Demon Race. The Human-Demon Great War. The winner of that war was the Human Race.

The humans treated the demons like slaves, and grew arrogant. One by one, they declared wars with the other races. The Beast Race that lived in the Great Forest with plentiful wood resources was no exception.

An approaching army. The one who rose up against this threat was the top of the Beast Race in those days, 『Beast God Giger』.

Beast God Giger gathered a Beast Race army to face the cowardly humans, and naturally fought on the front lines himself. Exhibiting his might, and occasionally his wit, occasionally saving other Beast People, in the end he managed to protect the Great Forest.

『Beast God』 was a man who reigned over all of the Beast Races. It was the name of a hero. That Beast God Giger was a member of the Doldia clan.

As a result, the Doldia clan became the top clan of the Beast People that lived in the Great Forest.

It might not sound like that big a deal. However, currently the Beast Race don't exist only in the Great Forest, and the Beast Race diaspora can be seen even on the Central Continent and the Begaritt Continent. The total population isn't as great as the Human Race. However, it is definitely not a number that can be ignored. Specifically, they possess enough power to wage a war with the the Holy Kingdom of Miris.

They're a race with that much military might.

And Rinia and Pursena are the grandchildren of the clan chiefs. They're the direct descendants of the Beast God. They carry a special significance.

They're people who will might become clan chiefs, or the wives of clan chiefs in the future. To use the Human Race as a reference, they're something like people who have the right to inherit the crown... princesses, you could say. On top of that, they could be said to be on the level of princesses from the Human Race's greatest country, the Kingdom of Asla. As a result, when they first enrolled in the school, they were seen as extremely important personages.

Why were such important girls separated from their homelands and sent to a far off land to study? That's because of a screw up caused by the previous generation's prince and princess.

Like the prince (Gyues) and princess (Ghislaine) of the previous generation, these two girls were stupid. As a result, lamenting about this, the clan chief (Gustav) sent them to study in a far off land with the mission of acquiring knowledge. In a place where they couldn't use their political power, they might acquire some good judgement of their own, he thought.

However... He made one miscalculation. He had sent them to the Magic University thinking "they won't be treated as the Beast Race clan chief's granddaughters".

Because they were of the Beast Race, the two of them even thought they might be persecuted instead. What awaited the two expected were teachers who treated them with great caution, and students who sucked up to them.

Right, in other words it was the result of the Doldia clan's political power.

The two of them got carried away. Though they were a little afraid when they first enrolled, because of the voice magic passed down in the Doldia clan, their superior agility, their physical strength, and the characteristics special to their race, they were strong. Furthermore, when the magic they learned in class was added to this, they could even beat down upperclassmen without much trouble, and when they ntoiced this, their attitudes gradually grew worse and worse. Boycotting things, shakedowns, extortion, loitering... They'd basically do everything that a bad student would, and became gang bosses in their first year.

However, that steady advance suddenly came to a stop.

When they became 2nd years, the Aslan princess came along. Ariel Anemoi Asla. She was a person who until just recently was wrapped up in a power struggle amongst political factions. Along with her came two guards, and as if they owned the place, intruded on Rinia and Pursena's territory. And unbearably, the students and teachers who had been wagging their tails at Rinia and Pursena now wagged their tails at Ariel and her lot.

Even so, they endured it for half a year. while thinking that they couldn't accept it, absolutely couldn't accept it, they still endured it. However, they immediately reached their limits. Because Ariel was outstanding, she became the student council president as a first year. When Ariel ascended to student council president, it was almost saying to them that Ariel was admired as an honours student, while they were labelled as delinquents. Because the label of a delinquent was due to their own actions, the resentment towards Ariel was unjustified.

Linia and Pursena began making trouble for the Aslan princess and her entourage. They began straight out harassment like spitting on the ground where she was about to walk, or going out of their way to bump shoulders, or splashing water, and escalated even to stealing her underwear and leaving them in front of the boy's dorms. In the end they gathered the other delinquents and led and attack on her.

And then they were beaten up by Fitts-senpai. Almost 20 attackers were crushed by Fitts-senpai alone. The two of them were also beaten mercilessly by Fitt-senpai.

When the incident came to light, the teachers even had a conference. 20 or so attackers dropped out of school.

However, Rinia and Pursena didn't. It was judged that expelling the two ladies of the Doldia clan would be bad.

The number of delinquents dropped, and Linia and Pursena's influenced crashed. The Aslan princess and her entourage were seen as heroes by the other students. Incidentally, the Aslan princess was also going to be a Special Student, but in accordance with her wishes, she was enrolled as a normal student and treated the same as the others.

Of course this wasn't amusing to Linia and Pursena. Though they found it unamusing, the difference in their power was clear, and they already had no underlings to use.

At best, because the special students Cliff and Zanoba who entered last year were rampaging about, they used it as a pretext to pick a fight and defeated them. They used Zanoba to gather information on the princess, but they didn't plan on revenge. Recently, though they still showed some bad behaviour, they were properly attending class. You could say that they were rehabilitating.

To a new student like me, it was just a story about Fitts-senpai's greatness.

Case closed.

At least it should have been.


--- ザノバ視点 ---
--- Zanoba's Perspective ---


　ザノバ・シーローンである。

　事件の始まりはそう、ある日の夜だ。

　師匠はジュリに、ひたすら土魔術を教えていた。

　師匠が「実験です」と言って行った修行方法は奇異なものであった。
　一日のはじめに一度だけ詠唱で魔術を行使させ、
　以後は一切の詠唱を教えずにひたすら無詠唱で土弾を作らせるのだ。
　最初に見た時、そんな事で無詠唱魔術が使えるわけがないと、余は思ったものだ。

　しかし、一ヶ月。
　そう、一ヶ月で、ジュリは土弾の生成に成功してみせた。
　無詠唱でだ。
　驚くべきことだ。

　師匠曰く、ジュリの魔術はまだまだ望むものには程遠いという。
　確かにジュリも無詠唱による土弾の生成は数度に一度しか成功しない。
　魔力切れも速い。
　丸一日、一度も成功しない事も多い。
　しかし、才能のない余に比べれば……。
　よそう、余は別の方面から力を加えればよいのだ。

　それにしても。
　このような幼子であっても無詠唱で魔術を使うことが出来るとは。
　師匠は「フィッツ先輩のアドバイスのお陰ですね」と言っていたが、何をいわんや。
　教えたのは師匠だ。
　ここは、流石師匠というべきであろう。

　師匠に弟子入りした余の目は間違っていなかった。

　師匠はそれと平行し、ジュリに人間語も教えている。
　驚いた事に、彼女は片言でなら人間語を理解できていた。
　思えば、親と一緒に中央大陸で何年か暮らしているのだから、当然なのだろう。
　そのせいか、教えるのは結構簡単そうに思えた。
　あの商人めが嘘をついていたのだ。
　いや、嘘をつく理由もないので、単にジュリが喋らなかっただけかもしれないが。

　余にとってもジュリはいい買い物であった。
　ジュリはよく気がつく子である。
　アレを取れと言えばアレを取り。
　コレを持っていけと言えば、コレを持っていく。
　余の意を汲むのが上手いのである。
　まるでジンジャーのようであるな。

　本来なら奴隷には購入した者は逃げられぬよう焼印あるいは特殊な魔術印などを施すのが普通である。
　だが、師匠はそうしたものは好まぬようだ。
　購入した時もそうした処理は施さなかった。
　奴隷ではなく、あくまで弟子として扱うという事であろう。
　ならばこそ、余もジュリを弟弟子として扱うと決めている。
　奴隷ではなく弟弟子、そう考えれば、不思議と可愛く見えてくるから不思議なものであるな。


　さて。
　あの日の事件は、授業の後に起こった。

　師匠の授業が終わった後、余はジュリに人形の素晴らしさについて語る。
　重要な時間である。
　情熱無くして大業は成せぬ。
　師匠の壮大なる計画の骨子となるジュリは、人形の素晴らしさを理解せねばならぬ。

　あの日はそう。
　今日は、『ルイジェルド人形』を例に、師匠の人形造形の素晴らしさについて語ろう。
　そう思い、余は鍵付きの保管箱の中から、人形を取り出した。

　師匠は帰り支度をしながらそれを見ていたが、ふと口を開いた。

I am Zanoba Shirone.

Right, the beginning of this incident was on a certain night.

Shishou was single-mindedly teaching Julie earth magic.

Shishou had said "This is an experiment." and started some strange training. At first he had made her practice chanted magic only once, but after that he had her do nothing but create earth bullets chantlessly. At first I had thought that there was no way she'd be able to use such a spell without chanting.

However, just one month. Right, in just one month Julie succeeded in using the earth bullet spell. It was chantless. It was something to be amazed about.

According to Shishou, Julie was still far off from our desired level. Certainly, though Julie had tried to use earth bullet many times, she only succeeded once. She also ran out of mana quickly. On some days she wouldn't succeed even after practising the whole day. However, compared to I who had no talent... I expect that it would be best if I increase my abilities in another area.

Nevertheless, a young child like this could use chantless magic. Shishou had said "I was just following Fitts-senpai's advice" and didn't say anything else. But the one who taught Julie was Shishou. As expected of Shishou.

I had not made a mistake in becoming Shishou's disciple.

At the same time as doing this, Shishou also teaches Julie the Human Language. Surprisingly, she can understand it as long as it's just some basic words. Thinking about it, since she had spent a number of years in the Central Continent with her parents, this much is natural. It might be because of this that teaching her is really simple it seems. That merchant lied. No, since he had no reason to lie, it might be that Julie simply hadn't spoken it in their presence.

I think that Julie is a great purchase as well. Julie is a really sharp child. If I tell her to bring me this, she'll bring it to me. If I tell her to bring that, she'll bring it. She's good at guessing what I mean. She's almost like Ginger.

Normally so that they won't run away, a slave will be branded using a special magic seal. However, Shishou doesn't like those sorts of things. When we bought Julie, we didn't do that either. In the end he treated her as a disciple rather than a slave. Because of that, I decided to treat Julie as a young disciple. Thinking of her as a younger disciple rather than a slave, she mysteriously became more adorable.

Now then. That incident happened after class on a certain day.

When Shishou finishes his lessons with Julie, I tell Julie about the magnificence of dolls. It's an important time. One can't achieve great things without passion. Julie who has become the core of Shishou's grand plan must come to understand the magnificence of dolls.

Right, on that day. Today using the 『Ruijeld Doll』 as an example, I was going to talk about the greatness of Shishou's doll creating. Thinking that, I took out the doll from the locked box.

While Shishou was preparing to return to his room, he suddenly opened his mouth.

「そういえば、ロキシー人形の方はどうしたんですか？」

　冷や汗が流れるとは、まさにこの事であった。
　今までずっと、聞かれまい、聞かれまいと思っていたことを聞かれてしまった。
　余は、思わず、シーローン王国に置いてきた、と言いそうになってしまった。
　だが、ぐっと唇を噛み、耐えた。
　余は嘘はつかない。
　師匠に対しては、決して、嘘をつかない。

"Speaking of which, what happened to the one of Roxy?"

Because it was this topic, I ran a cold sweat. What I had thought he wouldn't ask, definitely wouldn't ask up until now, he asked. I had unconsciously made to tell him that I had left it in the Shirone Kingdom. However, I bit my lip and resisted. I won't lie. To Shishou, I'll definitely never lie.

「実は……あるには、あるのですが……」

　口が上手く動かない。
　手が震える。
　この事実を知れば、師匠は余を破門するかもしれない。
　そう思うと、身体が鉛のように重くなる。

"The truth is... it's, I have it here but..."

I can't speak smoothly. My hands are shaking. If Shishou knows about this, he might excommunicate me. Thinking this, my body feels like lead and I become unable to move.

「あるんですか？　久しぶりに見たいので、出してもらってもいいですか？」

　師匠のわくわくしたような声。
　胸が痛い。

　やっとの思いで、ベッドの下から鍵付きの箱の一つを取り出す。
　震える手で鍵を開け、中身を取り出す。

　それをみた瞬間。
　師匠の目が座った。

"It's here? Since it's been a long time I want to see it. Could you please bring it out?"

Shishou's excited voice. My chest hurts.

After much effort, I finally bring out a single locked box from under the bed. My shaking hands undo the lock, and I produce the contents.

The moment he saw this, Shishou's gaze stopped moving.

「おい、なんだこれは……」

　師匠の声が震えている。
　平坦で、抑揚のないのに、声が震えていた。
　余は泣きそうだった。
　こんなに怖いことはなかった。

　師匠の一大傑作。
　『1/10ロキシー人形』は、
　……無残にも五体バラバラにされていたのだから。

　首は取れ、服をきせるためのパーツは砕け、
　腕は肘から砕けて、足もあらん方向に曲がっている。
　無残な死体だ。
　杖だけは頑丈で、折れていなかったが。

"Oi, what is this...?"

Shishou's voice is trembling. His flat, monotonous voice is trembling. I wanted to cry. It wasn't anything that scary.

Shishou's number one masterpiece. The 『1/10 Roxy Figure』 was... cruelly broken into pieces, after all.

The head was removed, the parts for dressing her were broken, the arms were broken from the elbow, and the legs were twisted in unnatural directions. It was a miserable corpse. Only the cane was strong, so it wasn't broken.

「どういうことだザノバ、お前、俺が、おい、どうなってんだこりゃ、えぇ……？」

　あの師匠が怒っていた。
　普段は平坦な口調で、淡々と敬語を喋る師匠。
　その呂律がまわっていない。

"What's the meaning of this Zanoba? You, I, oi, just what the hell happened, hah...?"

Shishou was mad. Shishou who normally would speak uninterestedly in honorifics. His speech was strange and offtone.

「俺がどれだけ先生に感謝し、尊敬してるか、お前に言ってなかったっけか？
　この像を作るときに、どれだけ先生への想いを込めてたのか、
　お前、知ってたんじゃなかったっけか？」

　師匠が本気で怒っているのがありありと分かった。
　リニアとプルセナに馬鹿にされてもへりくだるだけで、
　クリフにつっかかられてもションボリするだけで、
　ルークに馬鹿にされても困った顔をするだけだった師匠が。

　殺気を放っていた。
　ジュリが怖がって余の後ろに隠れる。
　余だって隠れたい。

"Haven't I told you how much I respect, and am grateful to her? Didn't you know just how much of my thoughts for Sensei were put into this figure?"

I clearly understood that Shishou was truly mad. Shishou who abased himself and praised Rinia and Pursena, who was just downhearted after being attacked by Cliff, who just made a troubled face when he was made fun of by Luke was truly mad.

He let off killing intent. Julie had become scared, and was now hiding behind me. I'm the one who wants to hide.

「お前、もしかして、ロキシーの事、馬鹿にしてるの？
　ねえ、お前、もしかして、俺の敵なの？」
「ちちち、違います！」

　余は慌てて首を振った。
　師匠より、ロキシーの事は常々聞いている。
　素晴らしい人物だと、尊敬すべき人物だと、師匠は常々言っている。
　そこには憧憬だけではない、狂信的な何かを感じ取れたものだ。
　そう、ミリス神殿騎士団から感じるのと、同じものだ。

　正直、余はロキシーなどどうでもいい。
　だが、ここでそれを正直に言えば、師匠は魔術を使うだろう。
　師匠が本気で使う魔術……余は消し炭すら残るまい。
　怪力の神子などと言われているが、この体は魔術にはそれほど強くないのだ。

"You, could it be that you're ridiculing Roxy? Hey, could it be that you're an enemy?"

"T-, t-, t-, that's not the case!"

I shook my head in a panic. I always hear Shishou talk about Roxy. Shishou would always talk about how she was a wonderful person, or how she was someone who should be respected. It wasn't just admiration; you could feel some kind of fanaticism from it. Right, it's the same type of feeling that you'd get from Miris' Order of the Temple.

Honestly speaking I don't care about Roxy. However, if I say that plainly right now, Shishou will probably use his magic. If Shishou uses his magic in seriousness... I won't even leave behind ashes. Though I said to be a miko with superhuman strength, this body of mine isn't that strong against magic.

「違います！　これはリニア、プルセナと決闘した時に賭けた、余の最も大切なもの！
　決闘に敗北した時に無残に壊され、踏みにじられはしたものの、
　決して、決してロキシー殿を馬鹿にするような事はありません」
「決闘だぁ？」

　余は弁明を続けた。
　ひたすらに真実を話した。
　一年生の時、リニア・プルセナに決闘を挑まれた事。
　その際に、お互いの大切なものを賭けた事。
　自分は「1/10ロキシー人形」を持ちだした事。
　神子たる余はシーローンにおいては負けたことがない。
　ゆえに勝利を疑わなかった。
　「1/10ロキシー人形」が掛かっているのだ。
　例え上級魔術を使われても、耐えて鉄拳を振るう覚悟があった。
　だが、奴らは唐突に変な術を使った。
　それにより、余の自由を奪われた。
　そして、なぶりモノにした。
　余は為す術もなく敗北し、泣く泣く人形を手放すこととなった。
　仕方がない。負けたのだから。
　あの素晴らしいものを奪われるのは仕方がない。
　誰だって欲しいにきまっている。
　そう考えれば、諦めもついた。
　だが、事もあろうか、物の価値のわからんあの雌どもは。
　「なんなのこれ」「きっもちわるいニャ」などといって人形を落とし、足蹴にして踏みつぶし、バラバラにして蹴り散らかしたのだ。
　と。

　師匠の殺気が収まっていた。

"You're mistaken! This is something that I bet in a duel against Rinia and Pursena; it's something that is extremely important to me! When I lost the duel it was cruelly destroyed and stepped on, but I'd never, never think of ridiculing Roxy-dono!"

"Duel?"

I continued my explanation. I spoke single-mindedly. About how in my first year, I was challenged by Rinia and Pursena to a duel. About how at the time we wagered what was important to us. About how I brought the '1/10 Roxy Doll'. As a miko, I've never lost in the Shirone Kingdom. That's why I had no doubts about my victory. Even if they used advanced level magic, I was resolved to bear with it and swing my fists. However, they suddenly used a strange technique. Because of that, my free will was snatched away. After that they harassed and made fun of me. Losing without being able to do anything, I let go of the doll in tears. It couldn't be helped. I had lost after all. It couldn't be helped that that wonderful doll was taken from me. It was something that anyone would want. Thinking this, I resigned myself. However those two bitches※ who don't know the value of things... They'd say things like "What is this?" and "It's gross nya" and dropped the doll, kicked and trampled it, and broke it into pieces.

Shishou's killing intent lessened.

[※Note: uses 'mesu', which means female, but specifically used for animals]

「そっか、お前も悔しかったんだな」

　ポンと肩を叩かれた。
　わかってもらえた。
　そう思って顔を上げて、余は情けなくも「ヒッ」と声を上げた。

"I see, you've suffered as well."

He pats me on the shoulder. He understood. Thinking this, I raise my voice and let out a miserable "Hii".

「そういう事があったんなら、最初から言ってくれよ。
　もし知ってたら、あんなヘラヘラ笑ったりはしなかったんだ」

　優しい言葉を発するその顔は、透き通ってみえた。
　口調がいつもと違う。
　怒りを通り越して、師匠はどうにかなってしまったのだ。
　師匠は人形に対して、あまり多くを語らない。
　あるいは、それほど人形を愛していないのかもしれないと、最近はそう思っていた。
　だが違った。
　師匠の内に秘めた心は、誰よりも熱いのだ。

"If something like that happened, you should have told me from the start. Had I known, I wouldn't have smiled at them so frivolously."

Those kind words are said with a colourless face. His tone is different from usual. Somehow Shishou has gone past anger. Shishou doesn't talk about dolls often. Lately I had been thinking that perhaps he didn't love dolls that much. However I was wrong. The passion that Shishou hides deep down burns hotter than anyone's.

「彼女らに思い知らせてやりましょう」

　今晩、二人は死ぬ。
　余はそう確信した。
　恐怖で震えそうになった。

　だが数秒後、その震えは歓喜の震えに変わった。
　余は力強い味方を得る事で、人形の仇を討てると思い至ったのだ。

"Let's teach those girls a lesson."※

Tonight, those two girls are going to die. I had confidence in this. I became to tremble in fear.

However, after a few seconds, that fearful trembling stopped and changed into trembles of joy. I realised that I had gained a power ally and would be able to take revenge for the doll.


[※Note: lit. 'make them know how we feel']

「はい、師匠！」

"Yes, Shishou!"



--- ルーデウス視点 ---
--- Rudeus' Point of View ---


　まったく許せん話だ。
　人の作ったものを奪った上でわざわざ踏み潰して壊すとは。
　とんでもない暴挙だ。
　パソコンをバットで破壊するも同様の所業だ。
　人のものを簡単に壊すなんてのは！
　ああ、くそ。
　呆れた奴だ許しておけぬ。

　何よりも許せないのはロキシーを足蹴にした事だ。
　例え人形とはいえ、ロキシーを足蹴にした事だ。

　俺はかつて、踏み絵というものを馬鹿にしていた。
　あんなもので隠れキリ○タンを判別できるわけがないと思っていた。
　だが、今はわかる。
　キリ○タンの気持ちが。
　目の前で信じるものを踏みにじられる者の屈辱が。
　島原の乱の真実が。
　カノッサの屈辱が。
　無理をおしてまで進められた十字軍の遠征が。

　思い知らせねばならぬ。

　あの愚かな二匹の雌がどんなことをしでかしたのかを。

　思い知らさねばならぬ。

　好き放題に生きれば報いがあるということを。

What an absolutely unforbivable story. To not only steal away something a person created, but also crush it underfoot... It's an outrageous display of violence.※ It's the same as smashing up someone's laptop with a baseball bat. To destroy people's belongings like nothing is...! Aahh, shit. They're disgusting and I can't forgive them.

What I can't forgive above anything else is that they kicked Roxy. Even if it was a doll, they kicked Roxy.

In the Edo period, the Tokugawa shogunate would force concealed Chr○tians to step on pictures of Jesus or Mary.※ In the past, I had laughed at this. 'As if you could identify them with a test like that!' I had thought. However, I understand it now. The feelings of those Chr○tians. The disgrace you feel when something you believe in is trampled in front of you. The reality of the Shimabara Rebellion. The Humiliation of Canossa. The crusaders who forced themselves forwards even when it was impossible. I understand it now.

I have to teach them a lesson.

I have to teach those two stupid animals just what it is they've done.

I must teach them a lesson.

I must teach them that there are consequences born from doing whatever you please.


[※Note: Violence: 2. action intended to cause destruction, pain, or suffering.]
[※Note: Fumi-e. Incidentally, the concealed Christians particular to Japanese history are called Kirishitan, specifically Kakure Kirishitan (hidden Kirishitan).]

「よいですか、ザノバさん」
「は、はい」
「連中は生け捕りにします。殺しはしません。神に逆らった罰を与えなければなりませんからね」
「罰ですか、なるほど」
「さしあたっては、一人ずつ捕縛できればと思っています」
「しかし、奴らは常に二人で動いています」

　ツーマンセル。
　群れる動物は実に賢い。

"Listen up, Zanoba-san."

"Y-, yes."

"We'll catch them alive. We won't kill them. We must punish them for defying god."

"Punish them? I see."

"I think that for now we should catch them separately."

"However, those two always act together."

A two-man cell. Animals that move in packs really are smart.

「そうですね。畜生とは思えないぐらい賢い事です。そして二対一とはいえ、神子であるザノバさんを完封した戦闘力……なかなか厳しい戦いになりそうですね」
「いえ、師匠であれば余裕かと思いますが」
「過大評価はおよしなさい。勝利とは、常に謙虚なるものの手に渡るものですよ」

　俺は自身を冷静に保つ。
　冷静に。
　クールに。
　冒険者時代には、クールであることが生死を分けた。
　常に、クールに、冷静にだ、畜生共をぶっ殺してやる。

"That's true. They're smart enough that you wouldn't think them animals. And speaking of those two, they have combat strength enough to defeat you, a miko... It seems like it'll be quite a tough battle for us."

"No, I think that with Shishou here it'll be more than manageable."

"It's no good to overestiamte me. Victory is something that you grasp by always being modest, you know."

I keep myself composed. I keep composed. I keep cool. In my adventurer days, whether or not I was cool determined whether I lived or died. I'll always keep cool, always keep composed, and beat those animals to death.

「作戦を伝えます」
「ハッ！」
「奴らの戦闘力は未知数ですが、戦い方はすでに掴んでいます。
　片方が高速で移動しつつ魔術等で撹乱し、もう片方がその間に声の魔術にて敵を無力化する。
　シンプルですが、同等の身体能力を備えた二人。
　後衛を攻撃されても、すぐに役割を入れ替える事が可能です」

　攻撃されている方が回避に専念し、
　もう片方がひたすらに麻痺の術を使う。
　フィッツ先輩は、この連携をどう打ち破ったのだろうか。
　聞いておけばよかったな。
　まあ、それはいいだろう。

"Let me tell you the plan."

"Sir!"

"Though their battle strength is unknown, we've already grasped their attack style. One of them will quickly charge forward while causing chaos with magic, and in that time the other will voice magic to render the enemy powerless. It's simple, but the two of them are equally strong. Even if we attack the one in the rear, they have the ability immediately change roles."

The one attacked will devote themselves to defence, and the other will wholeheartedly try to use the stun technique. Did Fitts-senpai defeat this combination? It would've been good to hear about it. Well, whatever. It's probably fine.

「ですが、今回は二対二です。
　地力の勝負となれば、ザノバ君、神子たる君が彼らに遅れを取るとは思えない」
「……いえ、二対二でなくとも、師匠であれば一人でも十分だと思いますが」
「ザノバ。君は私を師匠と慕ってくれる。それは嬉しい。
　ですが、私は白兵戦においては、二歳年上の幼馴染に、いつもボコボコにされてきました。
　あれから自分でも少しは鍛えたつもりですが、ぶっちゃけ全然自信ありません」
「えっ！？　師匠をボコボコに出来る人がいるのですか！？」
「いますとも、少なくとも私は三人知っています」

　エリスと、ルイジェルドと、オルステッドだ。
　知っているだけで三人もいるのだ、きっと探せばもっといるだろう。
　そして、リニアとプルセナがそうじゃないとは限らない。

　エリスに対しては魔眼と魔術を使えば勝てる。
　だが、実際に本気でやりあったことはない。
　リニア・プルセナはエリスと同じくらいの歳だ。
　それぐらいの強さを持っていると見た方がいいだろう。

"However, this time it'll be two on two. If you use your real power, I don't think that you, a miko, will lose to them."

"...No, even if it wasn't a two on two, I think that Shishou alone would be plenty though."

"Zanoba. You admire me as a shishou. I'm glad. Regarding close combat, however, I have a childhood friend who's 2 years older than me that would always beat me up. Since then I've been trying to work out, but frankly speaking I have no confidence at all."

"Eh!? There's a person who can beat Shishou up!?"

"There certainly is. At the very least, I know of three such people."

They're Eris, Ruijeld and Orsted. Though I only know three people, if I searched I'd definitely find more. And it isn't necessarily true that Rinia and Pursena aren't among them.

If I use my mmystic eye and magic, I can win against Eris. However, I've virtually never fought with her for real. Rinia and Pursena are about the same age as Eris. It would be better to treat them as having that level of power.

「師匠はご謙遜が過ぎます」
「ザノバ君。勝利は確実なものでなければなりません。
　もう二度と、ロキシー先生が踏みにじられるようなことがあってはならないのです。
　本当はフィッツ先輩やエリナリーゼにも手伝ってもらいたい所です。
　生憎と二人とも忙しいようなので、今回は我々だけでやりますがね」

　エリナリーゼは私的な喧嘩はあまり参加してくれない。
　あいつもロキシーに世話になった身だろうに。
　人形ぐらいいいじゃないですの、ロキシー本人がやられたわけじゃあるまいし、ときた。
　薄情な奴だ。

"Shishou is being too humble."

"Zanoba-kun. Victory is not something you can be certain of. We mustn't let Roxy-sensei be trampled on again. I actually want to ask Elinalise or Fitts-senpai for help. Unfortunately the two of them are busy, so this time it'll just be us."

Elinalise doesn't really get involved with personal quarrels. Even though she had been in Roxy's care, 'Isn't it fine if it's just a doll? It's not as if Roxy herself has been done in.' she said. She's a cold-hearted one.

「ハッ、ではすぐに決闘のための手紙を送りつけましょう。
　我が祖国では古来より、手紙にナイフと一輪の花を添えるのが作法となっています。
　ドルディア族の中では腐った果実を相手の頭部に叩きつけるのがそれに当たるそうです。
　もっとも、そんな作法は聞いたことがないので、嘘かもしれませんが、
　余の時はそれが合図であったと聞きました。
　師匠はいかがいたしますか？」
「奇襲を掛けます」
「え？　それは卑怯なのでは……？」

　ふん、卑怯で結構だ。
　これは決闘ではない。
　これは聖戦だ。
　聖戦だから卑怯でもいいのだ。
　宗教の名の元なら何をやってもいいのだ。
　勝てばよかろう、なのだァー。

"Sir! In that case let's immediately send them a letter for a duel. In my country, we have an ancient custom of sending a letter with a knife and a single flower when we duel. The Doldia tribe have a similar custom where they throw a rotting fruit at their enemy's head. However, I've never heard of such a custom so it might just be a lie, but it's what I heard when I dueled them. What will Shishou be doing?"

"I'm going to ambush them."

"Eh? Isn't that unfair...?"

Hmph, if it's unfair then great. This isn't a duel. This is a crusade. Since it's a crusade, being unfair is fine. As long as it's in the name of religion, anything is acceptable. Victory is all that matters.


---


　けど、奇襲は諦めた。
　ドルディア族の鼻をごまかす方法が思いつかなかったからだ。

　結局、単に彼女らを待ちぶせする形になった。
　真正面から、正々堂々だ。

　本校舎からやや離れた位置にある別棟。
　そこから寮へのルートを探り、やや人気のない場所を陣取る。
　林に隣接している、やや見通しの悪い広場だ。

　そこで、堂々と仁王立ちになって待つ。
　時刻は夕暮れ。
　人通りは少ない。
　決闘とはやはり夕方に行われるべきだとかいう、そういうポリシーはない。
　彼女らの授業が終わり、校舎から出てくるのがこの時間だからだ。
　一日の終わり頃なら、彼女らの魔力も減っている、という目論見もあった。

　それにしても遅い。
　奴らは不良の風上にも置けない事に、ちゃんと最後まで授業を受けているのだ。
　午後はフケて屋上にでもたむろしてりゃいいのに。

　俺が腕を組み、ザノバを従えて仁王立ちで待ち構えている。
　夕暮れが過ぎ、辺りが暗くなり始め、人影が完全に途絶えた頃。
　奴らが現れた。

However, I gave up on the ambush. I couldn't think of a way to fool the noses of the Doldia tribe after all.

In the end we simply waited to attack them. It was from the front, fair and square.

There's a separate building a little distance away from the main school building. From there we search for a route to the dorms, and position ourselves somewhere with no people. It's by the forest and is an open space that's hard to see from elsewhere.

There, we wait grandly, taking imposing poses. It's evening now. There are few passerbys. I don't have a policy of holding my duels during the evening or anything. It's because right now is when their lessons end and they're leaving the school building. At the end of the day their mana is depleted, or so my plan went.

EVen so, they're late. They disgrace all delinquents because they properly attend their lessons. Even though it would have been fine to gather on the rooftop late in the afternoon.※

My arms are crossed, and together with Zanoba I'm waiting in an imposing stance. It had gone past evening and it was just about to truly darken, and was around the time that I'd be done with dolls. At that time, they appeared.

[※Note: This is just how yankees/delinquents do things lol. BTW, don't think the buildings here have rooftops.]

「ニャんだ？」
「なんなの？」

　仁王立ちする俺たちを見て。
　リニアの方が訝しげに俺を睨んできた。

"What's this, nya?"※

"What's this?"※

They saw the two of use posed here. Rinia glared at me in suspicion.


[※Note: Rinia has 'nya' scattered within her sentence, and actually doesn't end sentences in 'nya' that often. It's generally a replacement for 'na' sounds which Japanese has a lot of.]
[※Note: Pursena ends things in 'nano', which has uses that change depending on context, but can generally be described as something that places emphasis. Her swearing (fakku nano) is also the same.]

「おい、お前ら、そんなところに突っ立ってると邪魔ニャ。
　道を開けるニャ」

　リニアが言うが、俺達はどかない。
　プルセナがくんくんと臭いをかぐ。
　プルセナはペロリと口の端を舐め、ニヤリと笑った。

"Oi, you guys, if you stand there you'll get in people's way, nya. Move aside, nya."

So she said, but I don't move. Pursena sniffs at the air. Pursena licks her lips and grins broadly.

「リニア、あいつらやる気みたいなの」

　リニアはそれを聞いて、俺の後ろに立つザノバをまじまじと見つめた。
　そして、ため息一つ。

"Rinia, it seems that these guys wanna have a go."

Hearing this, Rinia stares at Zanoba who's standing behind me. Then she sighs.

「ザノバ、お前、恥ずかしくニャいのか？
　いつぞやの仕返しをするのに、一年坊主を連れてくるニャんてニャあ……」
「ふん」

　鼻息１つでそっぽを向いたザノバ。
　リニアは額に青筋を浮かべた。

"Zanoba. Aren't you ashamed, nya? Though it's revenge for that time, what's the deal about bringing that first year boy along, nya...?"

"Hmph."

Zanoba snorts and turns his head away. A vein bulges on Rinia's head.

「むか、気に食わニャい態度だ。もう片方の人形もバラバラにされてーみたいだニャ」
「むぅ……師匠、ここは余が」

　ザノバはムッとした顔をして前に出ようとするが、俺はそれを掴んで止めた。
　腹立たしいのは俺も同じだ。
　もう片方の人形とはルイジェルド人形の事だろう。
　俺の恩人にして友人の像をも壊そうというのだ。

"Pissing me off, it's an attitude that I can't stomach nya. It looooks like I'll have to break the other doll, nya."

"Mu... Shishou, I'll-"

With an angry expression Zanoba made to step forward but I stopped him. I'm irritated as well. By the other doll, she probably means the Ruijeld doll. In other words they intend to break the figure of my benefactor and friend.

「いいじゃないですか。何も恥ずかしい事はありません。
　いつも二人でつるんでる彼女らの方がよっぽど恥ずかしい。
　なにせ、群れないと何も出来ないと喧伝しているのですから」
「ニャんだと……」

　リニアとプルセナが中空に「！？」と出そうな顔で凄んでくる。
　しかしながら、やはりあまり恐ろしくない。
　俺はもっと恐ろしい殺気を放つ人物を知っている。
　その人物は、あんなことを言われれば口など開かず襲い掛かってくる。
　殴って、引きずり倒して、上に乗って拳を振り上げながら啖呵を吐く。
　こいつらは温い。

"Isn't it fine? There's nothing to be ashamed about. You two who are always together are much more shameful. People are always saying that you can't do anything by yourselves, anyhow."

"What was that nya...?"

Rinia and Pursena are making threaning expressions like "!?" are floating in the air. However, as expected they're not scary. I know a person who holds a much more terrifying bloodthirst. If that person was told a line like that, without a sword she'd jump in and attack. She'd hit you, pull you to the ground, mount you and pound you with her fists while hurling acidic words at you. These guys are lukewarm.

「てめぇ、新入り、あんま調子こいてるんじゃニャーぞ。
　じーちゃんの知り合いみてーだから見逃してやってたが、
　あんまりでかい口叩くとぶっ殺すぞ」

　なんだそれは。
　まるで、俺達が何の理由もなく喧嘩をふっかけているようではないか。

"You... Don't get too carried away, you first year. Since you seemed to be Jii-chan's acqutaince I overlooked you nya, but if your myouth gets too big I'll beat you to death, you know."

What's with that? It's like we're picking a fight with them for no reason, isn't it?

「ほれ、わかったら散るニャ。
　あちしらはもうヤンチャを卒業した優等生だから忙しいニャ。
　喧嘩は他所でやるニャ」

　リニアはそう言って、手をヒラヒラと動かした。
　坊主憎けりゃ袈裟まで憎い。
　そんな言葉がある。
　昔はこのニャーニャーいう言葉に大変興奮していたが、
　こちらが割りとマジで怒っている現状、
　馬鹿にされている気しかしない。

"Look, if you get it then piss off nya. We're already done with myessing around, so we're busy honours students nyow. Go pick a fight somewhere else, nya."

Saying that, Rinia waves us away. I can't stand anything about her.※ Though I used to get really aroused by this 'nyaa nyaa' business in the past, I'm angry at the moment and I can't see it except as making fun of us.


[※Note: He says a phrase that means to 'hate absolutely everything about a person'. Then the next line says something like 'there's an expression like that'.]

「ニャーニャーうるさいんだよ。
　獣族はみんなそんなヘタクソな人間語しか喋れないのか？
　俺の知り合いの獣族はきちんと喋ってたぞ。
　赤ん坊じゃないんだからきちんと発音してみろよ！？」
「ニャ！？」

　！？
　リニアの口がカッと開いた。瞳孔がスッとすぼまった。
　フーッと怒りの息を吐き、尻尾がピンと立った。

"You're freaking noisy with all the 'nyaa nyaa'. Can the Beast Race speak nothing but that kind of shitty Human Language? My acquaintances all speak it perfectly, you know. You're not a baby so how about you try pronouncing things properly!?"

"Nya!?"

!?

Rinia's mouth shot open in anger. Her pupils suddenly narrowed. She let out a breath angrily, and her tail is standing on end.

「てめぇ……裸に剥いて水ぶっかけてやるニャ！」

　それはもうやられた事ある。
　脅しとしては二流だな。
　てか、こうして聞くとずいぶんと間抜けに聞こえるぜ。

"You... I'll strip you nyaked and pour water all over you!"

That's something that's already happened to me. It's second-rate as a threat. And hearing this makes her seem like quite the idiot.

「もう、リニアはすぐにキレる……ファックなの」

　プルセナはそうつぶやきつつ、牙をむき出しにしながら、口元に手を当てた。
　ギュエスにやられた時の事がよぎった。
　声の魔術だ。

"Geez, Rinia gets angry right away... Fuck."

Muttering this, Pursena bore her fangs and brought her hands to her mouth. It brought to mind the time when I was done in by Gyes. It's voice magic.

「フカァー！」

　プルセナの動作が呼び水になったかのように。
　リニアが地面を蹴った。
　バンと音がして、リニアの身体が横っ飛びに消える。
<リニアは三歩ほど真横に移動してから、急転して襲い掛かってくる>
　そこそこ早い。
　だが、俺もすでに予見眼を開眼している。
　見えないほどじゃない。

"Hukaaah!"

Pursena seemed to be preparing her technique. Rinia kicked off the ground. With a sound, Rinia leapt sideways and vanished.

<Rinia will move right beside me in 3 steps, and will suddenly charge in to attack me>

It's reasonably fast. However, I've already activated my mystic eye. It's not so fast that I can't see her.

「ザノバ！　プルセナだ！」

　俺はリニアを目で追いつつ、ザノバに指示を出す。

　言いながら、プルセナに対して腕を突き出す。
　声の魔術は魔眼では判別しにくい。先に止めておいた方がいい。
　だが声の魔術の魔力の流れはわかっていない。
　ゆえに乱魔が通用するかはわかっていない。
　なので、彼女の眼前に大量の砂煙を作り出す。

"Zanoba! Pursena!"

I watch Rinia and give instructions to Zanoba.

While I speak, I trust my hand towards Pursena. It's difficult to tell when her voice magic activates using my mystic eye. It'd be better to stop her before that happens. However, I don't understand the flow of mana for the voice magic. As a result, I don't know if I can use Disturb Magic.※ That's why I create a huge cloud of sand before her.


[※Note: Kanji reads 'ran'(disorder/disturb) 'ma'(magic), but the name of this spell is read aloud as Disturb Magic (in English).]

「……っ！　ゲホッ！　ゲホッ！」

　大きく息を吸い込んだプルセナは、土煙を吸い込み、大きく咳き込む。

"...! Cough! Cough!"

Pursena who inhaled quite a bit is now coughing violently.

「シャー！」

　同時にリニアが突っ込んでくる。
　見えている。
　遅く、拙く、力任せだ。
　恐らく、予見眼を使わずとも、余裕で見える。
　エリスの足元にも及ばない。
　エリスはもっと早く、鋭く、獣族より獣っぽく、したたかで、そして強かった。

　カウンターを合わせる。
　掌底がコツンと顎先を撃ちぬく。
　それだけで、リニアはガクンと足をもつれさせた。
　俺はさらに追い打ちをかける。
　こめかみを殴りつけて地面にたたきつける。
　胸を踏みつける。
　見下ろしながら、岩砲弾を見舞う。
　パガンと快音が響き渡る。

"Shaa!"

At the same time Rinia thrusts. I see it. It's slow, crude, and she throws her whole weight in. I could probably dodge it just fine even without using my mystic eye. She can't even hold a flame to Eris. Eris was faster, sharper, more beast-like than the Beast Race, more determined and finally, stronger.

I match her movements and counter her. I shoot my palm towards her chin. With just that, Rinia jerks and messes up her stance. I pursue her. I strike her forehead and bring her to the ground. I step on her chest. Overlooking her, I create a rock bullet. A clear sound resounds.

「ギニャン！？」

　リニアはあっさりと意識を手放した。
　俺は潰れたカエルみたいな格好になっているリニアから足をどける。
　戦いの衝撃でスカートがめくれ上がっている。
　ふん、今日は白か。

　プルセナとザノバの方へと眼を向ける。
　作戦通り、ザノバは声の魔術を使う方、後衛へと向かっている。
　プルセナは四つん這いになって、犬のようにザノバから距離を取ろうとしていた。
　ザノバは追いつけない。
　四足になったプルセナは速い。
　てか、ザノバの足もおせえ。投げキャラかよあいつ。
　あるのは腕力だけか。走りこみが足りんな。

　俺はプルセナの眼前に泥沼を発生させた。
　彼女は唐突にぬかるんだ地面に足を取られ、顔面から泥の中に突っ込んだ。

"GINYAN!?"

Rinia easily parts with her consciousness. I remove my foot from Rinia who looks like a squashed frog. Because of the force from the fight, her skirt is upturned. Hm, it's white today, huh?

I turn my eyes towards Pursena and Zanoba. As according to the plan, Zanoba moves towards the attacker in the rear who is assigned the role of using voice magic. Zanoba can't catch up. Pursena who is moving on four limbs is fast. Or more like, Zanoba is slow. Is he a throw character or something!?※ All he has is physical strength. He needs to train his running more.

I create a bog in front of Pursena. Because the ground in front of her was suddenly turned muddy, she tripped up and fell face first into the mud.

[※Note: Throw Character(投げキャラ) is a type in fight games. Typical traits:
- Has a ridiculous and excessively huge body
- Their normal attacks have short reach
- They have low mobility and can't dash nor use double jumps
- In exchange, they have strong defence and can advance while defending
- Their throws are very strong; often equal to a normal character's combo
- They have super specials that use up half of their own hp]

「わふっ！？」

　それと同時に、俺はさらに土魔術を使い、泥を硬化させていく。

"Wahu!?"

At the same time, I use earth magic and harden the mud.

「なに！？　なんなの！？」

　慌てつつも、硬化した土から身体を引き抜こうとするプルセナ。
　俺は左手で岩砲弾を放った。

"What!? What is this!?"

Pursena was trying to pull out of the hardened mud in a panic. I fired an earth bullet from my right hand.

「ギャン！？」

　パガンといい音を立てて、プルセナは昏倒した。

　終わった。

"GYAN!?"

A nice sound rang out and Pursena fainted.

It was over.

「ふぅ……よし、こい！」

　合図を送ると、近くの茂みに隠れていたジュリが、大きな麻袋を持って小走りにやってくる。
　彼女はザノバと協力し、手早く二人を袋詰めにする。

　それにしても、わりとあっけなかったな。
　こんなものなのだろうか。

　エリスだったら、わざわざ横から攻めようなんて考えないだろう。
　彼女の拳は常に最短を走る。
　また、最初のカウンターは決して貰わないだろう。
　仮にもらったとしても、ポイントは外して、脳震盪は避けたはずだ。
　そうすれば、こめかみに攻撃を食らって、地面に倒される事もなかったはずだ。
　よしんば倒されたとしても、すぐに組み付いて攻撃を仕掛けたはずだ。
　胸に足を乗せられるなんて事もないな。
　そんな事をした瞬間、膝か足首を掴まれて、砕かれていたかもしれない。
　砕かれても岩砲弾は止まらんが。

　プルセナの方もそうだ。
　エリスだったら、目の前の足元が沼になった所で、足を取られはしない。
　きちんとバランスを取るか、寸前で立ち止まって沼から抜け出ただろう。

　もちろん、エリスだって最初から出来たわけじゃない。
　俺との対戦経験を積むことで、対処してきた。
　だが、パウロは似たようなことをしても、きちんと初見で対処してきた。
　実戦経験豊富な上級の剣士なら、泥沼ぐらい回避出来るのだ。

　それに今日び、魔物だって泥沼に足を取られたりはしない。
　はぐれ竜だって……。
　あれ。はぐれ竜って泥沼にハマってたよな。

　……あれ。

　もしかして、パウロとかエリスって相当強いのか？
　そりゃ才能はあるとは聞いていたけど……。

"Hu... Alright, come!"

At my signal, Julie who's been hiding behind a bush trots over with a large sack. Together with Zanoba, they stuff the two girls into the sack.

Still, that ended more quickly than I'd expected. Is that just how these things are?

Eris would never think to go out of her way to attack from the side. Her fist would always find the shortest path. Also, she would never have been hit by that first counter. Even assuming she was hit, she'd have changed the site of impact and avoided being concussed. Doing so, she wouldn't have received the attack on the temple and fallen to the ground either. Even if she did fall to the ground, she'd immediately begin to grapple and attack. She wouldn't have allowed me to step on her chest either. In the instant that I did that, she'd catch my knee or ankle and might even break them. Even if she broke them, my rock bullet wouldn't stop though.

It was the same for Pursena's situation too. If it were Eris, she wouldn't have tripped up just because the ground in front of her turned into mud. She'd properly keep her balance, or she'd stand still and get out of it.

Of course there's no way Eris could do this in the beginning. Because she stacked up a lot of experience in battling me, she became able to cope with it. However, when I did something like that to Paul, he dealt with it even on the first time. As long as it's an advanced ranked swordsman with plenty of experience, they'd be able to avoid something like a bog.

Moreover, these days even monsters won't be caught by bogs. Even the stray dragon... Hm?※ The stray dragon got caught didn't it?

...Hm?

Could it be that Paul and Eris are just really strong? I'd heard that they had talent but...


[※Note: are?]

「さすが師匠です、余の出番はありませんでしたな」

　麻袋を担いだザノバが戻ってきた。
　俺は思考を打ち切り、彼に向き直る。

"As expected of Shishou, I didn't even get a turn."

Zanoba returns carrying the sack. I stop thinking about those things and turn to face him.

「いえ、自分でも驚いています」
「ご謙遜を、ささ、部屋に戻りましょう」
「ああ」

　俺たちは、暗くなった道を行く。
　誰にも見つからないように気をつけつつ。

"No, even I was surprised."

"You're being modest. Come on, let's return to the room."

"Yeah."

We walk down the now dark path while taking care not to be seen by anyone.

「ジュリ、足元に気をつけてくださいよ」
「だ、だい、じょぶ」

　心なしか、俺を見るジュリの眼に怯えが混じっているような気がした。


"Julie, watch your feet, okay?"

"I', I'm fi, ne."

It feels that there's a bit of fear mixed into Julie's eyes when she looks at me.


------------Author's comments below------------
副題を

「ルーデウスvsリニア＆プルセナ」
「ろくでなしブルーデウス」
「二匹のペットがうちにくる！？　ペット騒動で大波乱！」

のどれかにしようかと思ったけどやめた。

I was wondering just which of these I should pick as the subtitle,

"Rudeus vs Rinia vs Pursena"

"Good-for-Nothing Bluedeus"※

"We're Going to Get Two Pets!? Huge Chaos Due to Pet Turmoil!"

but decided against it.

[※Note: Rokudenashi Blues?]