CH 229

“Is this where the Red Elk lurk?”

“According to the request form, they’re not that far up. Let’s look for them around the middle of the mountain.”

“You’re really good at this, aren’t you? Have you been doing this since you were ten?”

“Yes, I was in the guild as well as the holy knight club, so I know how to look for requests.”

I’ve been requested to hunt down monsters that appear in the mountains where Verna-sense lives, so I’m familiar with them in that sense. 

I was separating my horse from the back of the carriage so that it wouldn’t be attacked by a monster, and they were talking about that kind of thing. Then suddenly, Basleigh-sensei asked Makina.

“Oh, by the way, Makina-chan was aiming to become a knight, right? It seems that you didn’t end up doing that, but there is a vacancy for a knight, and judging from your ability, you are at the level of being hired immediately, so I thought it was a waste.”

Makina looked a little confused at her words, then turned to Basleigh-sensei and smiled.

“…… If I hadn’t become Lars’ Lover, I might have aimed for that. Lars had decided that he was going to be an adventurer, so I decided to be an adventurer as well. But there was one more reason.”

“What’s that?”

“The way I fight. A knight’s main weapon is his sword, spear, or bow, isn’t it? When I was training for a year before I graduated and turned 16, I did some research and found out that knights who fight with their fists are rare, right?”

“…… Now that you mention it, you’re right. There are not that many knights that are good at hand-to-hand combat. But there are a few knights like Makina-chan who have such hand-to-hand combat skills, though.”

“Hmmm, but that kind of person can also use a sword, you know. My magic is not very good at all, and when I use a sword, my mind goes to that part of my body that I’m not used to, and it messes up my fighting style. Tigre-sensei pointed this out to me, and I gave up being a knight.”

When Basleigh-sensei heard this, she said it was a waste and straddled Johnny.

I once said that since she was going to the capital anyway, why not become a knight, but the answer was still the same.

And now, Makina says something that I’ve never heard before.

“I think I’m going to master hand-to-hand combat in order to make use of these [Kaiser Knuckles]. I thought I should try to specialize in close-quarter combat, aiming for decoys and one-hit kills, since Lars can use magic and swords!”

“Ah, isn’t that a great idea? Fumu, you could also create a new combat group with Lars-kun as the leader ……?”

“I won’t do it, though, because I won’t be able to move freely if I serve the country, will I?”

“Fufu, if Lars won’t do it, I won’t do it either.”

“Kuh~ …… You’re really showing it, aren’t you …… Oh, there’s a Red Elk over there!”

Basleigh-sensei shouted from his horse, and when I looked, I noticed a large elk with large fan-shaped antlers looking at her.

“Take care of the horse, I’ll take the lead sometimes!”

The one who moved quickly was Makina, because she had her pack strapped to her horse and could run quickly.

I also calmed down Mora, the other horse that wasn’t Johnny, and quickly jumped forward to cover Makina.

“Two monsters, huh? I guess it’s better to do them one at a time.”

“[Kaiser Knuckle]!”

“Brrrr ……”

As soon as I made that decision, Makina attacked the closest Red Elk. The Red Elk seems to have recognized Makina as an enemy, and with a short snort, it lunges at her with its horns pointed at her!

“It’s pretty fast, but I don’t plan to go head-to-head with you!”

“Hyain!?”

Makina quickly evades the lunge and thrusts her fist out from the side, causing the Red Elk to scream with a cracking sound. 

“Yes, I’ve got some reaction!”

Makina smiles and declares victory, but right after that, the Red Elk turns his head towards Makina with all his strength. 

“Look out, Makina!”

“Don’t worry ……! Here!”

Makina sees it coming and hits a short jab to the corner. The recoil caused Red Elk’s head to snap back in a way it shouldn’t have, and it fell to the ground.

“‘Phew, I’m going to the other one just like this!”

The other Red Elk, too, was excited that its companion had been killed and was rushing at Makina.

“I’ll cover you! !”

Before Makina could run off, I used magic to restrain the red elk. When Makina saw it and approached its pair, she struck [Kaiser Knuckle] between the eyebrows of the Red Elk.

“Gueh!?”

“This is the end ……!”

Not forgetting that she had raged to the brink of death earlier, Makina quickly punched the base of the horn and snapped it. The Red Elk will die without being able to do anything.

“If It gets hit on the head, It’ll die, after all. Good work, Makina.”

“Yay! Yeah, I’m totally fine. Thank you for the help too, Lars♪ though I would have preferred to defeat it alone–“

“Nn!? Makina-chan, please get away from there!”

Then, suddenly, Basleigh-sensei, who was in the back, raised her voice in panic. Then the third one appeared, dashing at Makina from behind. The initial response is slow because Makina is turning around to look at us ……! Will my magic make it in time ……! A fast-fire firelance!

“”

Makina quickly guards, and I hold up my hand as I approach Makina to shoot my magic.

But then–

“Thunder Fang!”

“Kyuruooon!?”

“What the!?”

Sky …… No, a figure descended from the tree tops, shouted something and attacked towards the back of the third Red Elk.

It was only for a moment, but with a roar, I saw a pale light glow.

“Is that …… lightning?”

“Lightning? That’s the thing that rumbles when the weather is bad, right? Oh, there’s someone out there, it looks like he helped us.”

“Are you okay, Makina-chan-!”

Makina pointed to a small figure.

I stood in front of her as Basleigh-sensei joined her and called out to the figure.

Whoa, who is this figure ……?

Thank you for reading!

[Afterword Theater]

“I’m glad there’s not a lot of Basleigh component in this chapter ……”

I don’t like that in itself when she’s active …….