Chapter 238 - Chapter 237: Paraleira's Hatred
The second month of Water, the fifth week, Day of Wind. Morning.
Mika was searching for Paraleira within the Royal Capital again, just as he had done yesterday.
Giving up on searching with no hints, he had dispatched someone to the Information Broker Guild to tail her.
She seemed to be on the East Main Street now.
"Really, already... every single day... what are you doing?"
Muttering to himself, Mika jogged along the East Main Street.
Then, a person who looked like a member of the Information Broker Guild raised a hand lightly.
"Good work. Where is she?"
"Right now, they are checking every single shop in that area, one by one."
The man pointed to a shop about fifty meters ahead.
Currently, the team tailing Paraleira consists of five people.
This man was the contact for Mika.
About four others were tailing Paraleira.
As Mika looked in the direction he pointed, Paraleira just happened to come out of the shop.
And then, she immediately entered the shop next door.
"Thank you. That's enough."
Saying that, Mika made the man hold a large gold coin.
This was strictly a tip.
Since the fee had already been properly paid to the Information Broker Guild, twenty thousand Rats went into the pocket of each member of the tailing team.
"With this, everyone can eat something delicious."
"This is... troublesome. Is it really okay, with so much?"
"We've been a bother since early this morning."
"Excuse me, then we won't hesitate."
The man gave a light hand signal to his companions, bowed his head to Mika, and withdrew.
Mika headed for the shop Paraleira had entered.
Peering into the shop through the glass from outside, Mika watched.
Paraleira checked the inside of the shop lightly and came back out.
"Chao."
"........................."
Mika waved one hand and greeted with a smile.
Seeing Mika waiting outside, Paraleira narrowed her eyes.
But, ignoring him, she immediately headed for the shop next door.
"I thought so! Wait a moment."
"Tch...!"
When Mika grabbed her arm, Paraleira grimaced blatantly and clicked her tongue.
I'm the one who wants to click my tongue.
"What are you doing? Every single day. The Cafeteria Ladies are worried, you know?"
"..................It has nothing to do with you."
Paraleira muttered with an irritated expression, turning her face away.
"It has nothing to do with you? What about your research?"
Paraleira needed to become a scientist and clarify the nature of magic power.
In other words, Mika was just imposing his own convenience.
It's fine, I'm aware of it.
"That's later...."
Hearing Paraleira's reply, Mika thought, Huh?
This research-obsessed fool, putting research on the back burner?
"..................Really, what are you doing? Paraleira-san, saying 'later' for research?"
Mika's voice tone dropped slightly.
Noticing that, Paraleira grimaced even more.
Mika looked up at Paraleira with eyes that had gained a bit of sharpness.
But, Paraleira kept her face turned sideways and wouldn't look at Mika.
At that moment, Paraleira's expression froze.
Gritting her teeth, a clear flame of hatred took residence in her eyes.
"Great God of Fire, the spark of creation. You, the great divine offspring, the god of surging and overflowing power. ————."
And then, she suddenly manifested [Physical Enhancement].
Paraleira's body was enveloped in a strong heat haze.
"Huh!? What are you doing!?"
Mika's eyes widened at Paraleira's sudden action.
Mika manifests [Physical Enhancement] casually, but only he is like that.
Normally, no one would manifest it openly in the middle of a street.
Paraleira did not answer Mika's voice and ran out fiercely as she was.
Mika also set [Physical Enhancement] to five times and chased after Paraleira.
Yes, I don't manifest it in the street, but I keep it active anyway.
Paraleira seemed to be chasing a black-haired figure coming out of an alley onto the East Main Street.
A woman? With hair tied at the back of her neck, reaching about halfway down her back?
No, even from behind, it felt somewhat like a man's build.
Mika quickly circled around to stop Paraleira, who was lunging at the black-haired man with terrifying momentum.
"Paraleira-san! That's bad!"
"Let go! You..."
Mika increased [Physical Enhancement] to ten times more to stop Paraleira.
It goes without saying that if one harms someone using [Physical Enhancement] in the middle of a street like this, a punishment that is no joke will be handed down.
If you are going to kill, you have to kill in a place that is less conspicuous.
(Is that the issue? ...That is the issue, yes.)
I don't know the circumstances, but Paraleira's demeanor suggests a deep grudge.
If it's a reason Mika can understand, he wouldn't mind turning a blind eye.
But, this place is definitely bad.
Depending on the situation, I might even help, or I could introduce you to the Assassin Guild, so back off!
Please!
Noticing the commotion between Mika and Paraleira, the black-haired man turned around.
And then, he looked at Mika and the others with a surprised expression.
What a terribly sickly face.
His cheeks were sunken, and his sunken eyes were bulging.
"Hibujiza!!!"
Paraleira desperately tried to push Mika aside, squeezed out her voice, and screamed.
The man called Hibujiza made a puzzled face and then tried to go somewhere.
"Wait, Hibujiza! I'll kill you!!!"
"Lies! It's a lie! It's a joke! Ah, ahahaha..."
Paraleira tried to pull away from Mika and chase the man.
With attention gathering from the surroundings due to the commotion, Mika desperately held back Paraleira, laughing off the unsettling word "kill."
The man, indifferent, was quickly trying to enter some alley.
"Great God of Fire, the spark of creation! Enveloping everything ————!"
"Huh!?"
Hearing Paraleira's rapid incantation, Mika turned pale.
(Who would fire [Explosive Flame] in the middle of a street like this!!!)
There is a limit to being indiscriminate.
At this point, it seems Paraleira has lost her mind.
"Blast!"
For a moment, a blast of wind hit Paraleira's face.
The wind, strong enough to make the body recoil, interrupted Paraleira's incantation.
The man looked back once, made an expression like a strange smile, and then entered the alley.
"What are you doing in a place like this!"
Mika shouted at Paraleira while lowering his voice.
But, Paraleira glared at the alley the man had entered with a look of regret.
Mika's home in District 2.
In Mika's room, Mika placed a cup of tea before Paraleira, who was slumped over like a husk.
The place where Paraleira caused a commotion was quite close to Mika's house.
Well, "close" meant about five hundred meters away.
Since it seemed like it would become a somewhat complicated story, he had dragged her all the way home.
When Mika brought Paraleira home, Nerisfeene had a pale face and seemed to want to say something.
Mika was also curious about Nerisfeene, but decided to leave that for Kistil for now.
Anyway, first, he wanted to get information from Paraleira.
"..................Can you explain?"
Even when Mika said that, Paraleira remained slumped over.
Seeing that, Mika sighed.
(He said Hibujiza, right?)
With a sickly complexion, he was a very eerie man.
What happened between Paraleira and that man, Hibujiza?
(If it's a love triangle, it's not my place to interfere.)
Still, he couldn't overlook such a violent act in the middle of a street.
If you are going to kill, do it a bit more skillfully.
But, at that moment, something floated in the corner of his mind.
(..................Speaking of which, there was someone Paraleira hated so much she wanted to kill, right?)
A mage of the Court Magic Institute.
The man who drove Paraleira out of the Court Magic Institute and stole her research.
He went to investigate a prehistoric civilization ruin in Modesse Forest and went missing.
Also, Paraleira seemed to have some thoughts about the people of the Court Magic Institute, but...
(Who were the man and woman who visited the dormitory before?)
Mika's guess was that superiors were involved in the expulsion.
Were those man and woman involved in Paraleira's expulsion?
(But, the man I saw today is a different person from the man who visited the dorm.)
Still, that hatred Paraleira showed was extraordinary.
Nine times out of ten, it must be related to the Court Magic Institute.
(..................Did I do something bad?)
He had hoped that if she immersed herself in scientific research, the hatred would eventually fade.
It just hadn't surfaced yet, but it seemed the hatred had swollen considerably.
"...Hibujiza of the Court Magic Institute."
When Mika muttered that, Paraleira twitched slightly.
And then, she slowly lifted her face, which had been slumped down.
She turned her eyes, filled with hatred, directly toward Mika.
Shiver.
Mika's body trembled slightly.
Mika silently accepted that gaze.
(..................That's impressive.)
What should he say?
He had never seen such pure hatred before.
If he didn't suppress it with reason, he would feel the urge to brace himself.
Mika's instinct was ringing the alarm bell: "Strike before being struck."
It felt just like when the naked appetite of magical beasts was directed at him.
"You knew...?"
As Mika tried hard to restrain himself, Paraleira muttered softly.
Mika exhaled deeply, as if spitting out the tension within him.
"I didn't know. But, as expected, it was related to the Court Magic Institute."
Even when Mika answered that, there was no fluctuation in Paraleira's gaze.
She doesn't believe me. This is it.
"If you want to kill, just kill. But, please think a bit more before killing. In the middle of a street, openly. And [Explosive Flame]!? Are you an idiot?"
When Mika said that, the sound of Paraleira grinding her teeth came.
How hard is she gritting them?
Mika shook his head in disbelief and sighed.
And then, raising his hand as if surrendering.
"Understood. I understand. I will cooperate. That man's house. His mistress. The bar and gambling den he frequents. I will strip him bare. Or should I bring his body? Or just his head?"
When Mika ranted all at once, the color of hatred faded from Paraleira's eyes.
Finally, can we talk a little now?
"Wha... what is it, exactly. That man."
But, even when Mika asked, Paraleira fell silent again.
"I said I would cooperate, so at least share some information."
Paraleira looked steadily at Mika, but soon let out a deep sigh.
And then, finally muttered softly.
"That guy."
"That guy...?"
This guy? That guy? Which guy?
When Mika asked back, Paraleira scratched her head vigorously.
Hmm, did she become a little like her usual self?
"..................The one who drove me out of the Court Magic Institute."
"The one who drove me out...?"
Huh?
That means...?
"Was it about three and a half years ago? When he went missing, or something?"
When Mika asked that, Paraleira nodded firmly.
That means...
"Huh!? It's him!?"
Mika was so surprised that he involuntarily leaned forward and shouted loudly.
"No way!? Because, it's been three yea—"
"There is no way I would mistake him! His appearance has certainly changed, but it is definitely him! Absolutely!"
Hatred flickered in Paraleira's eyes again.
Mika blinked with a blank face.
(Eh...? Can that happen?)
It was hard to believe at first glance.
Paraleira said that a man who had been missing for three and a half years suddenly appeared.
Mika leaned heavily against the backrest and looked up at the ceiling.
And then, he ran his hand through his hair and organized things in his head.
(Um... what was the story again?)
He recalled the story told to him by Ozendorwa again.
A mage who went to investigate the ruins in Modesse Forest and disappeared.
He thought there were several people who had gone missing.
There were no traces at all, so the Shesbarno squad of the Fifth Knights Order was dispatched to search.
During that search, the forest was sealed off, and Kistil was unable to go gather herbs.
(Nostalgic.)
He was immersed in memories for a moment, but that wasn't it.
(There was a Chimera in that ruin... No, it was set up there.)
The first time Mika saw the young man with reddish-brown hair was at that ruin.
Although the young man had already been cut down by Ozendorwa, he was a troublesome existence.
And he hinted at companions like A-chan and Ho-chan.
(..................Could the missing mage have been a companion of the young man with reddish-brown hair...?)
That possibility exists.
But, with the information at hand, one can create a fairly good story with any hypothesis, and it can be forced.
(This requires information gathering first. I need to inform Ozendorwa as well.)
Although the search was called off, the Fifth Knights Order was in charge.
Mika decided on a tentative policy and looked at Paraleira.
"Understood. I remember his appearance too, so I will use the Information Broker Guild to gather information. I want to talk to the Fifth Knights Order, is that okay?"
"...The Knights Order?"
Paraleira showed reluctance to provide information to the Fifth Knights Order.
Well, if the goal is to kill him with his own hands, the Knights Order would only be in the way.
However, Mika felt a bit reluctant to hide this information from Ozendorwa.
But...
"Understood. Contact with the Knights Order will be put on hold for now. Anyway, let's gather information first."
When Mika yielded, Paraleira nodded obediently.
"Could it be that Paraleira-san has been looking for that man, Hibujiza, all this time?"
"Yes..."
Apparently, on the day he went for a walk with Mika,
he happened to spot Hibujiza.
Until then, since he had gone missing, he had somehow pushed the hatred deep into the bottom of his heart.
But, after seeing him once, his desire for revenge seemed to swell up all at once.
If he missed this chance, there might never be another opportunity.
Driven by hatred, he had continued to search the Royal Capital.
For two and a half months, continuously.
After the conversation ended, Mika decided to send Paraleira back to the dormitory.
He didn't think it would happen, but if he saw Hibujiza again on the way back, he might use [Explosive Flame] in the street this time.
"Mika-sama... um."
When Mika and Paraleira headed for the entrance, Nerisfeene called out with a pale face.
"Sorry, Nerisfeene. I'll just see him off."
"..................Yes..."
"And Kistil, sorry too."
Mika signaled with his eyes to ask Kistil to take care of Nerisfeene.
Kistil nodded with a dark expression.
While Mika was talking to Paraleira, Kistil must have been listening to Nerisfeene's story too.
He didn't know what happened, but he couldn't just leave Paraleira like this for now.
To prevent a major disaster in the Royal Capital.
(Sorry, Kistil. Nerisfeene.)
Mika apologized to the two in his heart and left the house.
■■■■■■
"Ahaha. That was super lucky."
How lucky am I?
This must mean even God is helping me, right?
"I ran into Te-chan by chance, and I can even use 'Word'."
Various troubles were saved.
Yeah, I'm definitely on a roll.
After seeing off Te-chan until he disappeared, Ignis headed for Te-chan's house.
There, the two girls he had seen before were seeing off Te-chan, just like Ignis.
Even after their figures disappeared, they stayed there.
"Such a brave spirit. Good girl, good girl."
This will definitely make good bait.
If I secure these two, Te-chan will definitely come along.
When Ignis came to the front of the house, the silver-haired girl turned around and stiffened her face.
Her face, which was already pale, turned completely blue in an instant.
"Nerisfeene? Are you okay?"
The other girl with golden hair, noticing the silver-haired girl's condition, asked worriedly.
But, the silver-haired girl was so wide-eyed with surprise that she couldn't even hear that voice.
"Huh? Maybe you can see something?"
Even when Ignis asked that, the silver-haired girl did not answer.
She simply shielded the other girl with her trembling body.
"...Kistil. Run away."
He heard her whisper that softly.
"No good. You can run, but I think it's useless?"
Hearing Ignis's words, the silver-haired girl made a face as if she had lost all hope.
"..................Please forgive me alone. Please... this girl."
The silver-haired girl pleaded in a trembling voice.
Yeah, she is really a good girl.
The blonde girl being shielded seemed to sense something and pulled the silver-haired girl behind her.
"Nerisfeene. Go inside the house."
"No, Kistil. Don't move."
The two girls seemed to be trying to protect each other.
But, the silver-haired girl seemed to understand the situation, while the other girl did not seem to know.
"Please. Please, this girl..."
"No! What are you saying, Nerisfeene!"
It was a rather beautiful mutual protection, but it was getting a bit annoying.
The annoying knights around had already been dealt with beforehand, but being disturbed here was troublesome.
Let's get the job done quickly.
Ignis took the Magic Bag in hand and opened the mouth of the bag.
And then, quickly grabbed the silver-haired girl's neck from behind and shoved her into the bag.
The blonde girl was surprised and tried to scream, but Ignis grabbed her neck in the same way and shoved her into the bag.
"Ki, Kyaa—!"
"One down."
Today is lucky, yeah.
Preparation went very smoothly.
"Oh, right."
He must write a guide letter properly.
Ignis went into the house and opened the door closest to the entrance.
It seemed to be the dining room.
"If I leave it here, Te-chan will see it, right?"
Ignis went around the other rooms and brought paper and ink.
He drew a map quickly and easily, but clearly indicated the surrounding territories so it would be understood.
"Yeah, you're good at this. Te-chan won't get lost with this."
And then, he added a message.
Placing the ink bottle on the paper, Ignis left the house in a good mood.
"Bait secured. Alright, let's get to work!"
Saying that brightly, Ignis started running.
Deep inside the house, Fee, in stealth mode, had shrunk down and was just trembling.