Chapter 22

“The name of this guy is Castle Ant … It’s an ant that is said to have destroyed a citadel.”

I described the ant moving around in the palm of my hand.

It’s about the size of my thumb. It’s one size larger than a normal ant. It has a grayish body color and looks like it has a crown on the face of an ordinary ant, so it is called a crown ant in some regions.

“Well, I see. You even have the knowledge of such ants. As expected of an S-class hunter. You’re knowledgeable, aren’t you?”

Rafina suddenly begins to laugh.

She glared at me without breaking her expression.

“But you forgot, Zelet-sama. This is a game of comparing the rank of monsters caught. But you have caught small ants. I understand that it is a fairly rare kind, but you made a mistake in the purpose. Didn’t you? “

“I haven’t made a mistake, because this castle ant is also a kind of monster.”

“What?”

You must be kidding? Rafina looks back.

When she turns her eyes to Olivia, she nods.

“Yes. Castle Ant is a kind of monster.”

“You’re lying! Even though it’s so small?”

Rafina points to Castle Ant playing on me. She was so shocked that her fingertips quivered like a rabbit.

“Monsters are neither small nor large. Organisms that do harm to humans and ingest more magical power are called “monsters”. ”

“But! How small an ant can do harm to humans …”

Rafina defended without giving up, but Olivia shook her head.

“As  Zelet-san said earlier, Castle Ant is a terrifying monster that is nicknamed after the destruction of the castle. The power of each one is not great, but they will be in groups of one hundred, one thousand, ten thousand. It’s so ferocious that there is an anecdote that the castle was destroyed by taking advantage of that number. “

“That’s … Then, what is the rank of this castle ant? No matter how high, ants are not C rank, right?”

Rafina’s voice is getting louder and louder.

It seems that the mask has peeled off. However, she is still young. I think she was too young to always hide herself.

“Rafina, as you say, Castle Ant is not C rank.”

“After all … No matter how small an ant is …”

“Castle Ant is a monster that falls under Rank B.”

“Eh —-? And B rank …!”

At that moment, Rafina’s expression crumbled and almost collapsed. She tried to hold it, but the whiteness of her skin was even more striking, and it seemed to burn out like ashes.

She must have been convinced of her victory.

“It’s still pretty hard to pay attention to Bradrabbit in this season, young lady.”

“Oh, thank you. But —-“

“Yes. The young lady overlooks the big ones. There are dangerous monsters, even if they are small. Rather, there are more of them. If you make a mistake, your mansion will eventually be eaten by the Castle Ant.

Did it sound like a sermon?

It’s not a pattern, but it’s important. It is also my role as a hunter to properly convey the knowledge of monsters.

――By the way, I wasn’t a hunter anymore.

“May I ask you something?”

Rafina hangs her head down and then looks at me. There were tears in her eyes.

“Did you happen to find Castle Ant? Or —“

“When I came here, there was a tree-lined avenue of conifers.”

“Eh? Yeah … It’s a tree that my house manages.”

“I saw Castle Ant building an anthill in the tree.”

Ordinary ants, if anything, create anthills in laurel forests and soil.

On the other hand, Castle Ant is resistant to the cold, so it lives in the cold northern countries. Therefore, anthills are often created in coniferous trees.

“I see. The game was determined from the beginning. Even in my own garden and even if you were dragged into it, I lost ……… I’m completely defeated. “

Rafina was slammed.

“Be more careful. There may be a castle ant colony around here. Not a joke, the lady’s mansion may be dangerous.”

“Yes! That’s a problem!”

Rafina leans towards me. At that time, her shoes slipped and she almost fell back.

It was me who pulled her hand.

Rafina’s head is pulled towards me before it touches the ground.

“Oh, thank you, Zelet-sama.”

Rafina’s face was bright red.

Did I pull her a little too strong? Rafina grabbed me and just fell on my chest.

Softly Rafina’s perfume-no, it smells like a hair wash.

“I’m sorry, I’m sorry.”

Rafina apologized, but I just put my hands on her waist and hugged her tightly.

“――――!”

Olivia is getting excited next to her. Rir on the side had a big yawn without being concerned.

“That! Zelet-sama! Well, it’s still early … Hi, in front of people. I’m still preparing my heart.”

“Keep on …”

“Yeah, yeah yeah yeah yeah!”

I hug Rafina strongly.

Olivia, who was looking by her side, put her hand on her mouth and stared at me.

“That … Zelet-sama?”

Rafina’s cheeks were bright red. I can see that her body gradually relaxes.

Apparently, she finally got the idea.

“Zelet-sama, you’re a food provider … and I’m the daughter of the Duke … Do you know what that means?”

“It doesn’t matter”

I was gradually out of breath.

Palpitations are also strange. There is a clear excitement.

But I can’t control it anymore.

I had another one and I couldn’t control it.

“Breathing like a beast. I understand … I’m ready. I, Rafina Zard Astowari, will abandon my family name and as a woman …”

“Let me subdue the S-rank monsters soon …”

“What?”

Rafina raises her voice.

Olivia, who had a red face on her side, had a white expression as if a hundred years of love had cooled down.

Yeah? Did I say something wrong?