by Okina Baba
If I want to know more about all that, I’d have to ask someone with more information.
But what do the people in this world think of the administrators anyway? I have no idea.
Really, if you think about it, I can’t communicate with anyone here, huh?
You’ve got me!
And me!
Yeah, but you guys are just me! I’m talking about other people, like actual OTHER people!
Whew. Man, now that there’re enough idiots on board, it’s extra-hard for me as the information brain, aka the only smart one.
Anyway, yeah, communication.
I didn’t do a lot of communicating in my past life, either, but I was able to get data just fine thanks to the Internet.
But not anymore. I have Professor Wisdom, but I can really only look up information about skills.
Besides, even if I could check it, I wouldn’t be able to get to the bottom of things.
Any information that might be connected to the administrators can’t be Appraised.
Really, from a global perspective, I’m just some homebody who’s never once been outside.
I’ve been in the Great Elroe Labyrinth all my life.
Can you blame me for not knowing anything about the state of the world when I’ve been trapped inside without any input?
If I want to know more about the administrators, I need to get out of this labyrinth and interact with the various people who live in this world.
But I’m a monster, and I can’t talk. How am I supposed to carry on a normal conversation?
Well…I can’t do anything about being a monster, but maybe I can find a way to talk after all.
One option is to gain the Telepathy skill.
The other is to evolve into a certain monster.
See? There’s another new tool Professor Wisdom gave me: an evolution tree.
Studying it, I can see at a glimpse what kind of monsters I can evolve into in the future.
Whenever I evolved up until now, I just picked mostly going by my gut, but apparently, I had the right idea.
Looking at my evolution tree now, I can see that I’ve been choosing poison types and relatively rare species. Including my current species, Zoa Ele.
But that’s not the point right now.
The real matter at hand is the intel I found about a certain monster that appears further down the line of my evolutionary tree.
Arachne. A monster with the lower body of a spider and the upper body of a human.
As a concept, it’s pretty well known even back in Japan.
If I want to evolve into that form, it’ll be a bit of a long haul, but I can do it.
And if I have a human upper body, I’ll probably be able to talk.
The problem is I’ll still be a monster, so I don’t know if humans will be willing to talk to me.
Either way, though, being able to have a human body—even just half of one—would be huge.
Sure, I’ve gotten used to my spider body and all, but what kind of healthy former human girl would want to spend the rest of her life this way?
You wouldn’t, would you?
If I have the opportunity to become even partially human, of course I’m gonna go for it.
But there’s no point dwelling on that now.
It’ll be a long time before I have to decide whether to go that route.
I have to get out of the Middle Stratum before I can even consider leaving the labyrinth in the first place.
I’ll worry about the rest later.
EARTH WYRM ATTACK
Shortly after we get back to the school, it suddenly appears.
To be precise, it must have been following us the whole time.
“Wh…what…?”
I hear someone groan in disbelief.
That’s how terrifying its presence is.
The earth wyrm.
An incredibly high-powered monster that should never be in a place like this.
And yet, here it is, baring its teeth at us on academy grounds.
“Natsume! Is this another part of your scheme?!”
Ms. Oka confronts Hugo in a rage.
“D-don’t look at me! If they planned anything like this, nobody told me!”
Hugo looks genuinely panicked. I don’t think he’s lying.
“Hey, guys, what the hell is this thing?!”
Hugo turns on the group of criminals arrested for working with him.
“It was supposed to be the ace in the hole for our plan.”
“So you guys prepared this?!”
“That’s right. A summoner contracted it. But apparently, it’s no longer under his influence.”
“What? Who was it?!”
“It’s me, but I can’t stop it now. It was too strong for me to control in the first place. It was docile enough when I first captured and contracted it, but now it won’t obey me at all!”
The criminals, all similarly hysterical, rush to answer Hugo’s questions.
I barely resist the urge to slap a palm to my forehead.
What kind of idiot summons a monster they can’t control?
In my time with Fei, I also acquired Creature Training, a skill necessary for summoners.
But it only lets me handle monsters weaker than myself.
It is possible to form a contract with a stronger monster if they agree to it.
But that only works if there’s mutual trust between both parties.
Otherwise, it’s entirely possible for the monster to betray the summoner. Like what’s happening right now.
The wyrm flexes its sharp nails and beats its huge, log-sized tail.
The students and their seniors who were participating in the exercise are trying to intercept the beast, but the difference in power is clear.
It’s no wonder. Appraising it, I can see its stats are all around 2,000. It’s incredibly powerful, even for a wyrm.
“Well, doesn’t this look great!”
Fei, who’d come out to greet me, communicates her unease through Telepathy.
“At this rate, we’ll all be killed. I have to help!”
“Wait just a minute! I won’t allow that. It’s too dangerous!”
Ms. Oka tries to hold us back.
But I can’t just ignore all the people being injured right before my eyes!
I shake Ms. Oka off and run toward the wyrm.
“Well, if that’s how it is!”
“I’ll come with you, Brother!”
“Let me heal you!”
Katia, Sue, and Yuri follow.
I start preparing magic as I run—the water spell I learned in class.
Activate! A sphere of water flies toward the wyrm.
Just before it hits, though, the attack disappears as if it evaporated.
“It has Imperial Scales!”
Imperial Scales, an advanced version of Dragon Scales possessed by upper-class wyrms.
In addition to a simple increase in defense power, it interferes with the composition of magic spells.
This nasty skill makes landing both magic and physical attacks difficult.
“Students, get back!”
One of the teachers yells at us, but we can’t stop now!
I rank among some of the strongest people here.
I can’t back down just because I’m a student.
“Sue! Back me up!”
“Right!”
Sue and I release more water magic simultaneously.
The spells combine in midair.
Like me, Sue’s highest aptitude is water magic.
If we combine our powers, it might be enough…!
This time, the Water Shot hits the wyrm’s body without scattering.
The wyrm roars in discomfort.
This could work! It’s not a lot of damage, but at least we can penetrate its defense!
Following our lead, the other teachers and students start combining their spells.
Katia and Professor Oriza work together to shower the wyrm in fire magic.
Then, when it shrinks away, the people who specialize in close combat push in for the attack.
The damage still isn’t much, but it’s not nothing.
But just as I start feeling hopeful, the earth wyrm stretches its neck.
It’s preparing a breath attack.
“Retreat!”
Someone shouts, but there’s no time!
Instead, I take a step forward and activate Magic Warfare and Mental Warfare at full power.
At the same time, I use skill points to pick up Light Attack.
Filled with light, my sword intercepts the wyrm’s breath.
“Aaaargh!”
Hang in there, body! Come on!
“Honestly! You’re so reckless!”
I hear Fei.
At the same time, the breath attack abruptly stops.
My sword swings toward the wyrm’s exposed neck and slices right through.
* * *
“Don’t move, okay? I’ll treat you in just a moment.”
As the Word of God informs me that I’ve leveled up, Yuri uses recovery magic to heal my body.
My arms are in particularly bad shape. If the breath attack had lasted any longer, they might’ve been blown right off.
The thought makes my body tremble belatedly.
Sue and Katia wanted to come check on me, but before they had the chance, they were pulled away to help care for the others who’d been injured.
I don’t want them seeing me like this anyway.
When it happened, I was just focused on the battle.
But now that it’s over, the terrifying realization that I could’ve died is sinking in.
At the same time, the sword still clutched in my hand as if frozen in my grip looks terrifying to me now.
The feeling I experienced when severing the earth wyrm’s head remains vivid.
This is what it means to take a life. This is a real battle.
I was confident I could fight because of my high stats and skills.
And in theory, that’s exactly what I did.
But now that the battle’s over, I’ve realized something.
I didn’t have a clue what combat really means.
Is fighting always this scary?
Killing…?
Slowly, I release the sword.
My fingers move stiffly, as if they’re numb with cold.
Only when Yuri finishes healing me do they finally let go completely.
Assuring me that everything’s okay now, Yuri is dispatched to heal others.
My injury is all right now. But I can’t say the same for my mental state.
Honestly, it’s pathetic.
Sure, I didn’t expect to fight something so huge in my first battle, but I shouldn’t be freaking out this much.
Especially when the fight’s already over.
My older brother Julius fights battles like this practically every day.
If I want to catch up to him, I should be able to get over something like this without a problem.
And look—now a few people are eyeing me worriedly.
I have to smile and reassure them I’m okay.
I’m sure that’s what my brother would do. Come on. Smile!
…I can’t do it.
I’m scared. Scared that I could have been killed. Scared that I killed a living thing.
How can my brother, or any of the inhabitants of this world, do such a terrible thing so easily?
How could Hugo try to kill me like that?
If it’s this upsetting just slaying a monster that had to be defeated anyway, how could anyone stay sane after killing another person?
Why would anyone even consider such a thing?
Or is it just that Hugo had already gone mad a long time ago?
That’s definitely possible.
Hugo had the title Monster Slayer.
It’s something you receive after defeating a host of monsters.
Which means Hugo’s already killed tons.
That he’s done what I just did over and over.
Maybe he grew accustomed to it somewhere along the way.
Numb to the act of killing.
Will that happen to me, too, someday?
I’m terrified. Just imagining it makes it hard to breathe.
I inhale deeply and try to calm down.
I still can’t sort out my feelings about all this.
But if the person who’s supposed to lead the way to victory is in such a sorry state, it’ll be hard for everyone else to celebrate.
I don’t think I can smile just yet, but I should at least try to put on a dignified air.
Even if it feels like it’s a little late for that.
Just then, I notice Fei nearby, looking at the fallen earth wyrm.
Fei was the one who saved me.
At that crucial moment, she bit the wyrm’s neck, interrupting its breath attack.
If she hadn’t, I might have been killed.
“Fei, you saved my life. Thank you.”
I push down the fear threatening to rise again as I offer a belated thank-you.
“Sure. Don’t mention it.”
Fei continues staring distractedly at the dead wyrm.
“What’s the matter?”
“Take a look at my status.”
Puzzled, I obediently Appraise my vaguely depressed-looking companion.
Then I notice her new title.
[Kin Eater]
As its name suggests, it’s a terrible title conferred on those who have eaten the flesh of a blood relative.
“It…can’t be…”
“I don’t see any other explanation, do you?”
Fei must have bitten right through the wyrm’s neck.
If so, her grant of this title would make sense.
In fact, that’s the only way it could have happened.
“I wonder if that wyrm came here…looking for me?”
It’s…not impossible.
Fei’s egg was found in the Great Elroe Labyrinth, a dungeon far from here. If that wyrm wasn’t one of Fei’s parents, I can’t see any other reason why it would have come all the way here.
In which case, a parent who’d come looking for its kidnapped offspring might have been killed at the hands of that very child.
Which means I decapitated one of her parents right in front of her…
“Ugh…bleegh!”
I empty my stomach.
My first real battle has become a truly bitter memory that will be forever seared into my mind.
DESPAIR OF THE DEFEATED
“Shit! I won’t let it end like this! This is my world! It exists for me, only for me! Like I’d accept this ending?! Not a chance in hell! It’s not over until everything is mine!”
“Damn that elf! I’ll have my revenge! She’ll goddamn well rue the day she messed with me!”
“I’ll take everything from her someday! Just like she did to me!”
“Just you wait! I’ll destroy all she holds dear! Then I’ll beat her to a pulp while she wails and cries over their remains!”
“You watch! I’m gonna take this world back for myself!”
THE DUKE’S DAUGHTER AND THE NOISY REINCARNATIONS
“Fei, are you okay?”
“I’m fiiine. Sure, it was a bit of a surprise, but…even if that was one of my parents, it’s not like we ever met, right?”
“Gotcha. Make sure Yuri doesn’t find out about this, all right?”
“Good point. If she found out I have Taboo now, she’d probably kill me.”
“Hmm? Did someone say my name?”
“Huh?! I definitely didn’t!”
&n
bsp; “Don’t pop up out of nowhere like that! It’s bad for my heart.”
“What do you mean? I just walked over here quite normally.”
“It’s all right. I’ll just have to scare you as compensation for the year I just lost off my life.”
“What?! Why?!”
“Oh hey, so are you giving Shun a pass on your missionary work today?”
“Oh, I already did it earlier.”
“You did, huh…?”
“Why, I couldn’t possibly abandon my mission to convey God’s greatness to others! Even if you don’t understand it now, I’m sure the time will come when you all recognize God’s glory!”
“Can’t wait.”
“I just realized, this whole blind faith thing is a bit like those ridiculous siblings.”
“Oh yeah, I think I know what you mean. Shun is a Follower of Julius, and Sue is a Follower of Shun.”
“Quite so! He treats me like a religious fanatic, but he doesn’t realize that he’s a hero fanatic himself! Isn’t that just awful?!”
“That’s rich coming from you.”
“I guess I kinda get what you mean, though. When it comes to Julius, that guy never shuts up.”
“Yeah, I’ve heard enough tales of the hero’s bravery to teach a class on it myself.”
“Like the one where a poor village couldn’t afford to pay for monster extermination, so he saved them free of charge?”
“How do you feel about that, as part of the Church the hero is supposed to work for?”
“Well, he isn’t supposed to do things like that, but…he makes up for it by donating to the Church himself, so the higher-ups can’t really complain.”
“That’s royalty for you. Is he loaded or what?”
“Yeah, he’s got the support of the whole kingdom behind him. If the hero were just a commoner, he’d probably be wielded like a weapon and sent out on all kinds of dangerous missions. But if anyone tries to force Julius to do too much, they risk making him an enemy of the Church.”
“Seems complicated.”
“Yeah, and apparently, Julius takes it upon himself to do dangerous work like that anyway.”
“He’s quite the hero!”
“I’ve actually met him, too, and he totally lives up to the hype. His existence itself is a miracle.”
“I guess with an older brother like that, you’d either rebel or end up worshipping him.”
“Maybe it’s better this than rebelling, then?”