Chapter 47

The results of the inquiries were, as expected, not good.

Dena probably didn't need to lie, and it seemed unlikely that information wouldn't reach Dena on the front lines.

Perhaps, "We don't know the cause, but the animals went berserk and the dragon appeared" was the shared understanding of the villagers.

The villagers don't know.

If they don't, searching within the village would be futile.

If I investigate the forest, might I find something?

If the cause of the berserk behavior was something in the forest, there should be traces left behind.

But that might be difficult too.

The dragon came from the foot of Mount Nerg.

If so, the cause is probably at the foot of Mount Nerg. I don't really want to go that far, and I don't feel like I can go there yet.

Would investigating the dragon reveal something?

I don't even know what the cause is, but if there's something strange about its body, I might be able to deduce something from that.

First, I came to the foot of the dragon.

Still, it's a huge dragon.

Its massive body towers over me, and from the closed eyelids, I can tell the eyeballs are probably over two meters in diameter. The body length must be over fifty meters.

Even lying on the ground, its size is impressive.

And the skill Dena used to defeat this dragon must be considerable.

It seems Dena didn't defeat it in one blow, as there are many wounds. Some still have broken arrows embedded.

But each of these, compared to the massive body, is as thin as a hair. It's clear that these wouldn't be fatal.

The largest wound is, of course, the mountain-piercing shot.

Centered around the left chest, the flesh is torn away. Was it aiming for the heart? But it's not just the heart; a large part of the torso is torn away and blown off. Even if it didn't hit the heart, it would be a fatal wound.

While examining the dragon, I found something strange.

There is a wound on its white neck.

There are other wounds, like the many arrow wounds from Dena.

But this is different.

This is a cut, made by a blade. It's shallow but sharply and cleanly sliced.

Even when I touched it up close, it didn't seem like it was caused by an arrow.

Did Shium or someone else fight alongside? Or did Dena use a blade?

No, if that were the case, there would be other cuts.

"Those internal injuries, they were there from the beginning, right?"

Suddenly, a voice came from behind.

I was startled, my shoulders shaking. I hadn't sensed anyone.

I turned without showing my surprise and responded to Dena.

"Ah, Dena. Are you done with your business?"

"Yes. Only some minor things are left."

Dena smiled and approached, making no sound at all. It was unnaturally quiet.

"So, what are the internal injuries?"

"Oh, you didn't know?"

Dena stopped a few steps away from me, scratching his cheek as he explained.

"Creatures with magic, like dragons—when you use strong fighting spirit to wound them, the healing process slows down. That's called an internal injury."

"Is this neck wound an old one?"

"Yes. But it wasn't very dirty, so it's probably a wound from the past few days."

"Huh, so it was when it went berserk...?"

When it went berserk, meaning when it was at the foot of Mount Nerg. A wound from a fight... using fighting spirit?

"Right, this might be the cause of the berserk behavior!"

Dena answered enthusiastically, as if saying "Bingo!"

"Also, that wound was probably inflicted by a human."

"So, that means..."

"Someone intentionally made this dragon go berserk."

Dena's expression turned serious.

This is bad, the atmosphere is bad.

Before I knew it, Dena's left hand was holding a short bow.

"Know anything, fairy?"

My blood ran cold. I was caught.

This is bad. This is a combat stance.

"I just got here a little while ago. I'm the one who needs to know."

I took a few steps back, preparing to escape by deploying my magic. I could disappear at any moment.

I want to say that talking will help, but I have a history of running away. Will he believe me?

"What do you mean by fairy? I'm just a human child."

"You disappeared from the forest about a year ago. You reappeared right after the dragon went berserk. You must realize how suspicious that is."

...I can't answer. Any words would sound hollow.

Fight? Impossible. I might have considered it before, but now that I know Dena is a legendary explorer, I can't even think about it.

Call for help? "Against a child like this..." If I could use that.

No, the villagers would believe Dena over an unknown child. It would only make things worse.

Talking won't work, fighting won't work, and escaping is probably impossible.

I'm at a dead end.

"Can I run away, just in case?"

I'm almost giving up. A hopeless question. There's no way I can win.

"Sure, I guess?"

"Right."

Well, it's probably impossible.

Resistance is futile.

But I don't want to end without resistance.

Dena still hasn't drawn the bow. But the string is still on, and Dena can shoot instantly.

But I have time to think.

The problem is that fast-shooting, strong bow, and the mountain-piercing shot. That's all.

That's all it takes to overwhelm me.

The futility of resistance made me want to laugh.

Still, I'll take them down one by one.

If I create a barrier with the wind, I can block the arrows without fighting spirit.

I subtly put up a barrier while watching Dena's face. I'm afraid even of his finger movements.

But the strong bow and the mountain-piercing shot... there's no way to block them.

If I get hit by the mountain-piercing shot, I might be obliterated.

I think desperately. I need a way to survive this.

...Right. I might be obliterated.

If I fly to Nerg, it has the power to cause another monster to go berserk.

I slowly move to the side, away from the dragon, and stop with the forest behind me.

Dena murmured, "Impressive."

"Smart. They say mages mature early, but you're exceptional."

"Thank you."

My thanks is hollow. I'm more worried about when I'll be pierced by an arrow.

"You don't need to use the mountain-piercing shot to hunt it."

Dena's arm twitched for a moment.

The moment I thought that, over twenty arrows hit the barrier.

Clack clack clack clack clack

"..."

I can't breathe.

None of the arrows seem to have fighting spirit, and they all bounce off and fall to the ground.

But I didn't even see the shooting motion. If he had used the strong bow, I would be dead.

"So, you are a mage."

Dena smiled, as if he had come to a conclusion.

"You must know."

That's why he came after me.

Some time has passed since we faced off.

I feel a slight sense of unease about this.

I'm still alive.

Of course, that's a good thing. But that's what makes me uneasy.

If Dena were serious, or even without being serious, he should be able to hunt me down.

I have no way to defend against a strong bow with fighting spirit.

But he only used the fast-shooting earlier.

Even though the strong bow, unlike the mountain-piercing shot, wouldn't be a problem if used.

He doesn't shoot.

He's thinking.

That must be the key to my survival.