Chapter 8: The Underdog
The girl lifted her head and began to introduce herself.
"My name is Iris Silverbullet. I'm a candidate to become a magic knight."
"I see. So you came to the forest for practical training."
"Yes... well, it's actually remedial training. You see, I'm a bit of an underdog and I'm in danger of repeating a year. So, I have to do a practical exercise to collect medicinal herbs in the forest to make up for my grades."
Iris looked like she was in her early teens, and it was probably true that she was a student. Some parts of her body seemed to have grown beyond her age, but let's leave that aside. She was a beautiful girl with black hair and distinctive golden eyes.
Shu tilted his head in response to Iris' story.
"Then why are you here in the middle layer of the forest? Medicinal herbs grow in the shallow parts of the forest. What are you doing here?"
"Huh?! When did I go that far in...?"
Shu understood.
This girl had no sense of direction.
"Can you find your way back by yourself?"
"I-I'm not confident..."
"Well, at least you're aware that you have no sense of direction..."
Shu didn't hate humans in particular. He had some knowledge from when he used to be human, so he could sympathize to some extent. He didn't want her to get lost again on her own and end up encountering monsters and dying, as that would be a bad dream to wake up from.
"Got it. I'll take you to the exit of the forest."
"Really!?"
"I'm not that heartless. Follow me."
Shu said as he began to walk. Iris hurried to follow.
Then, with a little bit of ease, Iris started to ask Shu some questions.
"By the way, Shu, are you a magic knight too? You fell from the sky earlier. Is that your ability?"
"I don't know."
"But there was "Sky Flight" in the fourth tier of the wind attribute. Is that it?"
"It's a secret."
Shu had no intention of being friendly with Iris, so he brushed off her questions lightly.
Then, realizing that he wouldn't answer her questions, Iris began to talk about herself.
"I became a candidate for magic equipment users since last year, but I'm not good at manipulating magic power. I can only use the first-tier magic of wind, Impact. And even that, I fail immediately when I panic...so I'm called a dropout."
"Oh."
"But my magic power level is A rank! That's the only thing I can boast about."
"A rank, huh? That's high."
"I'm the highest among my classmates."
The evaluation of a magic equipment user is determined by factors such as their magic power level, ability to manipulate magic power, and magic equipment strength. These factors collectively determine the rank of the candidate after graduation.
The fact that Iris's magic power level is A rank is quite impressive.
"But for some reason, I can't manipulate magic power. My evaluation in that regard is still F. It's frustrating to have so much magic power but not be able to use magic."
"But you have magic equipment, right? You don't have to be fixated on just magic."
"Well, my magic equipment doesn't have any attack power."
"Is that so?"
"Yes."
Magic equipment is the materialization of magic power and manifests its unique abilities. The materialized power usually converges into visible forms such as weapons or armor, which almost always have some kind of attack power.
However, there are exceptions.
"My magic equipment is an expansion type. I materialize myself as the core of the power. My ability is immortality. As long as I have magic power, I won't die or age."
"That's crazy."
"Yes, but since I don't have any attack power, I'm useless as a magic equipment user without learning magic."
Shu was also surprised.
He never expected there to be a magic equipment with immortality.
Until now, he had been avoiding involvement with humans, but he began to think that he should investigate more clearly. After all, he had become an Elemental spirit and was able to materialize.
It might be better to blend in with humans and gather knowledge.
"Immortality, huh..."
Come to think of it, Shu wondered about himself. As a ghost-type magical creature, he was probably unaffected by aging. He wasn't immortal, but he was ageless.
It had been about a year since he became a ghost, but he felt like he had rushed through life a bit.
He had plenty of time.
It wouldn't hurt to waste some time.
"Speaking of which, are you a magic equipment user, Shu?"
"That's a secret."
"Aww."
Iris puffed up her cheeks like a child.
Well, she was still in her early teens, so she was technically a child. As a candidate for a magic knight, one could join at the age of 12, so Iris was around that age during her first year.
(Well, she's just a child. I don't need to answer seriously.)
Despite the fact that Iris was a child, Shu didn't intend to teach her anything that would put him at a disadvantage. It would be best to accept that they had met a mysterious young man today.
Iris asked questions unilaterally, and Shu gracefully deflected them for a while before the two finally returned to the shallow part of the forest.
"We're almost there. Once I take you there, it'll be time to say goodbye."
"Eh? Shu-san, are you not going back to the city?"
"I came just to take you here. I have things to do too."
"I'm sorry."
It was a lie. Shu was incredibly bored. However, if he were to be found out, he would likely be bombarded with questions again, so Shu lied deliberately.
(If she apologizes, I'll feel guilty... Ah, something's there.)
Shu noticed something with his magic detection. He quickly restrained Iris with his hand to stop her. She, who couldn't sense anything, just tilted her head, but soon the opponent appeared.
A plant-based monster that moved its thick vines wrigglingly appeared from behind a tree.
"That's a Touch Demon Vine Evil Plant."
"Isn't that a low-level Lesser Class?"
Shu didn't know even if he was asked such a thing. He was impressed that he knew the answer in reverse.
"Well, nevermind. It's in the way."
Shu activated his magic spell "Slicing Sky Area Divider Line." A magic circle spread out from Shu and the Touch Demon Vine Evil Plant entered the range of the spell.
At that moment, a thin area of one atom's thickness had its magical power stolen, and at the same time, a decomposition magic spell was activated. The Touch Demon Vine Evil Plant was split in half.
From Shu's perspective, who was already a high-level Greater Class, the amount of magic power he could obtain from the Touch Demon Vine Evil Plant was only minimal. At best, he could recover the amount used in "Slicing Sky Area Divider Line."
Without paying attention to it, Shu tried to move forward, but Iris was different.
"W-What's that?!?"
"...? Why are you suddenly making a fuss?"
"I-I've never seen or heard of the magic that Shu-san used... So, does the fact that it was beautifully sliced mean it's wind attribute? Judging from the size of the magic circle, it should be at the level of the sixth tier. But the wind attribute of the sixth tier should be 'Cyclone Veil,' right?"
To be honest, Shu didn't really understand the concept of wind attributes or the sixth tier. All his magic was self-taught, so he classified it based on fundamental phenomena. As for his current "Dividing Line of the Slashed Sky," it was simply a combination of boundary setting, magic and decomposition magic.
"What do you mean, Shu-san!?"
"It's a secret."
"Is that your answer again!?"
Iris kept bombarding Shu with questions, but he still refused to answer. Especially since the "Dividing Line of the Slashed Sky" was his trump card, he had no intention of revealing its mechanisms.
Meanwhile, the two of them had passed through the Aldera Forest.
"Look, we're here."
"W-Wait, my questions aren't finished yet!"
"Just go home already. You won't get lost from here, even if you're directionally challenged, will you?"
Even from here, the nearby city could be seen. Even if Iris was directionally challenged, there was no way she could get lost. Shu made a 180-degree turn and headed back into the forest.
However, Iris was not giving up.
"Please wait!"
"I said go home already!"
Shu activated his movement magic without any further discussion. The target, Iris, was forcibly moved towards the city at a constant speed.
"What is this? Aaaahhhh!"
Ignoring the screams from behind him, Shu returned to the forest.
***
Basically, Shu spends his time idling around in the depths of the Aldera Forest. Other than practicing magic manipulation, he has nothing else to do, so it just happens naturally.
As an elemental spirit, Shu has no appetite, sexual desires, or desire for sleep, so he has no particular desires. As such, he had allowed himself to live a life of doing nothing day by day.
(Come to think of it, I wonder what happened to my story from the human side.)
Deploying a large magic circle in the dimly lit forest and killing a holy knight in the royal cemetery.
Shu wondered how he was being treated among humans. It had been more than half a year since then, so it was likely forgotten among ordinary citizens.
As the saying goes, "a rumor lasts seventy-five days."
It would be unlikely to find any useful information by investigating now.
(Well, in any case, it's impossible for me without any money or common sense to blend in with the town.)
Shu realized that becoming a demon was surprisingly easy in his current position. Even as the boss of Oni or Buta Oni type demons, they were just powerful in terms of strength. They spent their days by themselves, and there was nothing for Shu to do.
And, after being in this position, the demons started to look cute to him.
(Well then, shall I look for a stray demon in the forest again today?)
Unlike the dimly lit forest, relatively strong demons appeared occasionally in the Eldera Forest. Shu accumulated magic power by defeating them and protected the safety of the village at the same time.
Floating, Shu spread his magic sense.
At least one stray demon appeared every day, so this was now his daily routine.
(Oh, it's here today too.)
If he floated around for a few hours, the stray demon would naturally appear during his walk. However, this was only possible with magic sense, and he might not find it even if he spent the whole day searching without it.
Shu descended based on the reaction he sensed and slipped through the branches and leaves of the trees to the ground.
There, he found Iris Silver Bullet, bound by the Phantom Demon Flower Arlaune.
It seemed like she hadn't noticed Shu yet. Her mouth was covered with tentacles, and she was being tightly restrained in a dangerous manner. Thanks to her power of immortality, she seemed to have become a torture tool. Originally, she was supposed to lose consciousness due to the paralysis poison secreted by those tentacles, but Iris's ability seemed to even restore abnormal conditions.
"Hmmph!"
(What is this girl doing...)
For the time being, Shu materialized and used "Dividing Line of the Cutting Sky Territory" to tear Arlaune to pieces.
While feeling that a considerable amount of magic power had accumulated, he called out to Iris, who had been freed.
"Is it your hobby to be attacked by demons?"
"T-The voice is Shu-san's!? N-No, it's not like that! I don't have such a perverted hobby!"
Anyway, Shu looked at Iris with a disappointed expression.