This button, that shortcut, that menu.
Nine told many things to Fifty-three but the attack sound behind me was so loud I hardly heard them.
'I'll be back soon.'
Nine said and walked away. Wait! Don't go!
"Hold me tight."
I grabbed Altrez's body suddenly, his vines brought us from the behind tree that collapsed to another that was safer. Arrows didn't shoot at us anymore.
[W… Would you want some magic?]
Not yet. What's about Nine?
[He went out. I… I'll do my best!!]
Fifty-three was so trembling. I had to wait until he calms.
"You're safe. You can let go of me."
"O… Ok."
I hugged him strongly without knowing. When I released, he stood up and used some magic. The air was shaking.
"It's no good… They're too much. I can't separate enemy and their attack."
He might try to look through Detection Magic.
"Shorty!!!"
"Damn it! Get out of my way!!"
I thought Riche fought with Mazkhar again but not. Mazkhar had many wounds. He could crash one Bee Armor, but he got a lot of damage from arrows. Riche tried to heal him, but it was out of her hand. Her MP was running out. The next rain arrows attack was prepared.
"Water Magic! Water Guard!!"
"Arg!!!"
Mazkhar got to attack by the rain arrows. Altrez hurry used vines brought him back. Riche ran back too. She slid to avoid the attack. I looked at Color of the Sea Staff in my hand.
Why didn't the magic appear?!
[I… I'm sorry High Sage. I can't find it. I… I don't know where it is.]
What?!
[I'm sorry! I'm sorry! W… Who should I ask about this...?]
He panicked like a person who works with unfamiliar tools.
"Maz!! High Sage, please help Maz."
Vines brought Mazkhar in front of me. All arrows pulled out, but his wounds didn't stop bleeding. Mazkhar had a lot of wounds. Even he was always reckless but if he didn't do that, we would have trouble more than this.
Fifty-three, just a little wish… Help Mazkhar.
[I… I can do it!]
[Heal is… this button.]
After the click sound, high-level Healing Magic activated. Mazkhar's wound disappeared a little by little, but he got a lot of wounds, so he couldn't move immediately. Mazkhar smiled at Altrez. I felt relieved and looked around.
"Where is Gilda?"
"I'm here."
She came out from behind the tree with no wound.
"We have to make a plan. Let's retreat."
We came back to the forest. I set up tents and the same barrier for safety.
[I already decrease your money by 2,000 coins for the barrier's price. You have… 20,500 coins left.]
His sentence was different than Nine. He was some newbie.
[I'm… I'm sorry! It's my first time. I mean… I didn't serve someone before.]
[You don't like a newbie?]
It's a hard question.
[Maybe I should speak like... M… My Hig…h Sa…g...]
Stop that. I told him to talk normally.
[Understood…]
He became gloomy. He was cowardly and docile more than his voice. When I thought like that, Fifty-three apologized to me so hard. I stopped thinking and looked at my companion.
Riche drank Potion and looked for a little wound that she got when sliding. Altrez sat silent. Mazkhar was exercising a bit. Gilda looked for her armor, it had a little crack from the rain arrows.
If Nine here, what did he do?
He controlled everything from the beginning when he disappeared, I felt like I had to do it instead of him. So funny, my magic left me to the meeting.
No… I shouldn't think that. He was a leader. Maybe he shouldn't serve me in the first place. I had to do the thing I could do.
"I'll meditate in the tent. Everyone, wait for me a bit."
"Yes sir,"
Riche responded. I went inside the tent and covered it with soundproof and vision invisible barrier.
[This order is 2,000 coins. Your money is 18,500 coins.]
"Ok…"
My wallet was lower than 20,000 coins already, but it made me save from the spirit's eyes.
"Fifty-three told me what magic you can use."
[Healing Magic… I can use it special fast. Other than that, the support magic you use before. For the new magic, if you tell the name correctly, I can use it too. Now, I can… use Water Guard.]
His condition wasn't different than Nine.
"What's about creating magic? You can do?"
[Yes. If it isn't complex… I don't fast like Nine.]
"Nine?"
[Yes. Nine.]
I felt strange about the bluntly calling leader name. He didn't feel like the close person with Nine like Forty-one. Maybe it was the fake name.
Maybe NUMBERS hadn't a junior-senior system.
[Do you… want to know about us?]
"Not much…"
Not just NUMBERS, Nine too. Number Nine, Forty-one, and Fifty-three. Why the people around Nine were high numbers. The higher was the lower of service, wasn't it?
Why had he sent Fifty-three to me?
[About that thing… I want to know too but the others thing I can't tell. I'm sorry…]
"Don't think seriously. I don't want to know it now. I want to be glad more about your wonderful magic. When I have to know it. I'll know everything."
I relaxed my body and clapped my hands once.
"Let's test the magic test. Are you ready, Fifty-three?"
[Yes! Yes sir!]
I tested Fifty-three with Water Magic that he should be familiar with. When he received the guideline, he was so excited. Even scurry, he could create the magic. If it was easy magic, he could finish with the near time of Nine, but if the magic level was higher, he used more time than Nine as he told.
Even that, the joy and excitement sent to me.
[It feels like I do a quiz.]
[High Sage, Um… Could you ask magic like a normal person?]
I didn't understand the meaning.
[Normally, contractors only want the result of magic, they don't interest in the way we create that's why it's very convenient for us.]
[But your case, except command, your habit send guidelines to us. It feels like… we see the correct way to create magic.]
[I… I feel shame. I don't want to send my magic to you.]
I got it. That's why Nine told me I checked the kid's homework.
[Yes, you like our advisor more than a customer.]
"What?!"
Fifty-three silent for a bit,
[High Sage, if… I send incorrect magic to you, please don't scold me…]
Fifty-three's voice was trembling. Did he become like this because Nine scolded him? If he was still unstable, it would be hard to speak with, so I changed the topic. I didn't know why, but it came back about Nine's thing.
[Nine, he's different from us. Even we're in the same place but he's too far. It feels like… we don't breathe the same air as him.]
For real?
[Yes. He's excellently so much to make he can do everything alone. We're his weight. Slowly, never be like he wants. We rarely see his smile, he's so scared.]
[We aren't brave to direct talk with him. We receive his order by Forty-one.]
I knew Nine had a leader mask that he didn't use with me, but… I was shocked a little.
Fifty-three small laughed for my thought.
[Everything changes when he met you, High Sage.]
[You make we see the man who likes the rock mountain shakes and collapses. Make we see he's tired, he loses to a problem and nearly gives up. The one who can do everything meet the thing he can't do. We're shocked so much. That makes us feel... Ah, he's still human. Even we don't brave enough to talk to him, we don't think he's different anymore.]
[That night, it was the first time that the man at the highest mountain taught me…. The miracle night was a special night to us too.]
I felt Fifty-three's smile. Maybe right because he laughed back.
[High Sage, the trust is we stun every time Nine hit on you. It's the secret topic we discuss him in a private room nowadays.]
Fifty-three tried hard to prevent laugh. What was the meaning of hit on?
I wanted more explanation.
[It's not that meaning. I don't talk about giving a sweet word to the loved one.]
[NUMBERS' hit on action means giving a sweet word to lead the target to do what we want.]
That's it… It looks like Nine.
[Ah! My bad. I shouldn't tell you about this. What I should do!!]
I kept my laugh about his voice that became nature. Fifty-three liked a shy kid but talked much with a close person. He told me many things.
[Fifty-nine wishes your next research won't be so hard.]
[Thirty-eight want to rest about three years.]
[That's right! Eighteen wish you can check about the number exactly.]
Who was Eighteen?
"Let's talk about the plan. Are you ready?"
[I'm ready!]
His voice was clear.
We had a little conversation before I walked out of the tent. The outside was wide, there were two missing persons.
"Where are Mazkhar and Gilde?" I walked directly to Riche.
"They're on patrol. I told them to stop but they… They want to explore around the edge of the forest."
"Do you have some plan?" Altrez sat next to her.
"Yes. Let's join them."
After taking off tents and barriers, we went to the edge of the forest.
Mazkhar kept looking behind the tree, he didn't come to Bee Armors' distance, so they didn't attack him. I looked around at that point too. The outside was a bit wide grassland with the mountain and waterfall behind. It didn't have another way. We came to the deepest of the forest.
"Those monsters were really the test?"
"It's not that, Auntie. Look at that."
Mazkhar pointed to the sword that stabbed on the ground in front of the waterfall. From Bee Armor's movement, it felt like they protected this sword.
"It'll be the prove about passing the test. I'll go to get it."
"Not like that."
I grabbed Mazkhar's shoulder. Luckily, I read the information before.
-[The Guide of Grey Forest is 3,000 coins. Er… NUMBERS has a bit problem, so this guide doesn't complete.]
-[And, your money was 15,500 coins left.]
The high-level monster would appear after pulling that sword out. It was the real test of the forest. Before fighting it, we had to get rid of all Bee Armors.
"That's the thing I know from the underground's power. About the plan is… Wait. Where is Gilda?" I asked Mazkhar.
"We separated. Her smell… is slight. I can't track."
"Then I'll do it."
Altrez released his power again. The wind blew at us once after waiting a little bit, he spoke.
"There… is someone with her. I saw many people."
"People?"
"Yes. I'm sure they aren't monsters."
I looked at Riche and nodded, maybe she thought the same as me.
"Let's go. Altrez, can you take us to her?"
"Yes, follow me~" He smiled and ran at the lead.