Ch.391Retreating NPC. (4)
by fnovelpia
“Ah? I see. Then, Ray, sorry to ask, but could you take Gor and Ira and quietly draw a teleportation magic circle without anyone here noticing? Make it large enough to take everyone here. Direction is Neity, though you don’t need to arrive exactly there. Just tell Ira to make it as far away as possible.”
…
“W-what was that flash just now…?”
“Huh?! W-where are we?!”
“W-what’s happening! Everyone get up!! Ene…!!”
“Everyone, please calm down! We have an exceptionally talented mage in our group who can use teleport, so we moved urgently! There’s a village nearby, so anyone who can move, please consult with me and prepare to go call for support from the village!!”
[And when I set off a flare in the mountains, tell Ira to move immediately. Don’t worry. If it’s in the direction of Neity, I’ll run at full speed and definitely arrive within half a day, no matter where you are.]
After saying that, Jack told everyone that he was leaving me in charge of controlling our companions and the adventurers, then disappeared right after dinner. Gor, Miho, and Chikuyo were guarding Ira’s side. He had told Luxuria to hide nearby without being noticed. And I just kept watching the mountains.
‘…Jack, what exactly is going on? This seems like we’re trying to escape from something at all costs…’
After explaining to the confused adventurers that we used magic urgently because there were people in critical condition, and concluding that we should request additional support from a nearby village, I sent the gold and red parties to the closest village. Having teleported so many people at once seemed to have drained Ira’s magical power; she collapsed into Gor’s arms, saying she was dizzy, and fell asleep. Seeing this, Chikuyo perked up her fox ears and approached me.
“Where’s Jack? I can’t smell him. Did we move without him?”
I hadn’t told our companions what Jack had said to me. Everyone just followed my instructions because I said, “Jack told me to do this.” Actually, Jack had told me not to tell anyone, but since we’ve already moved, I guess it’s okay to explain now.
“Actually…”
I don’t know much either, but Jack suddenly gave instructions that seemed like preparations for escape, and I followed them. Jack went up the mountain visible from where we had dinner, and from there, he sent a signal flare for us to move without him. After I explained this, Chikuyo frowned and began sniffing the air around us.
“…We’ve moved quite far. This is where we were yesterday afternoon.”
“Jack said that if we teleport in the direction of Neity, he’ll join us within half a day, no matter where we end up. No need to worry.”
“But, Miss Ray, from what you’re saying, it sounds like Jack evacuated us. Was there an enemy there?”
“That’s…”
I don’t know either. Honestly, neither Gor nor Luxuria could figure out why Jack had us do this. Even Ira, who has the best detection abilities among us, just did it because her brother told her to. How would I know? As I expressed my frustration,
“…This won’t do. I’ll go check. Since I’m a beastkin, I won’t miss Jack on the way. I can track him by smell and sound.”
“Eh?! Sister, then I should go instead…!”
“No. Jack asked you to guard Ira. Ira is the most precious person to Jack. Don’t you understand what that means?”
“Ugh…”
“Guarding the young lady…”
I conveyed Jack’s feelings. If they truly intend to be Jack’s women, they should prioritize what he values most. Chikuyo frowned at my words, while Miho nodded her head and wagged her tail in understanding. Hmm, even without Ragni, I can handle this much!
“Then, please protect Ira with Gor. I’ll keep watch in the direction of Aigram.”
“Eh?! Wait, if that’s the case, I should…!”
“Stop it, sister, give up. If Jack saw how you’ve been acting lately, you’d lose points not just as a primary wife but even as a concubine.”
“Kong?!! M-Miho?!! Kyaaang!!”
‘…K-kong? Is that because she’s a fox beastkin…?’
Miho, who seemed to have become genuinely more dignified than before, grabbed Chikuyo’s ear and dragged her away. I tilted my head slightly as I watched, then turned around after confirming they joined Gor, who was sitting with Ira in his arms, his eyes gleaming. I don’t know how skilled those two are, but if Jack trusts them, I trust them too.
‘Jack, please come back safely.’
This was Jack’s first retreat after always fighting strongly in front of us. Hoping it wouldn’t turn out badly, I kept watch in the direction of Aigram.
*
-Tap tap tap tap! Tap tap tap!
I dash through the mountains, kicking off trees, stepping on vines, and deliberately treading on tree roots as I move in all directions. There’s no sign of him following, but just in case he can use some kind of tracking skill, it’s better not to be traced. I leave traces in all directions to confuse my trail and avoid being tracked.
‘It sucks, but he really seemed to be the Pope. And I couldn’t bear the thought of our companions getting involved while trying to protect people injured in a fight there.’
If it had been just us, or if we could have put more distance between us and Aigram, I would have considered fighting him, but his “evening walk” only took us far enough that screams wouldn’t reach Aigram. Fighting him there and having others caught in wide-area attacks was a predictable disaster. Plus,
‘I couldn’t see his status window.’
Ray only called for adventurers. There weren’t any priests who could use holy power among them. It was all too natural—no one suspected the shabby hooded old man mixed among the people. But I “fortunately” bumped into him, and after hearing about the people who came to Ray, I tried to check him out. As a result, I discovered he was a strange opponent with “no visible status window,” which made me prepare just in case.
‘Of course. If the status window isn’t visible, even Gor wouldn’t notice. Besides, Avalitia said she couldn’t sense his holy power until she saw his face. It’s natural that even the capable Luxuria couldn’t sense it. And Ira probably just thought he was a kind old man healing people.’
That’s why I was suspicious, and that’s why I acted as soon as he revealed himself in the mountains. Well, it’s not that I had no intention of fighting, but the conditions weren’t right. Still,
‘I made them all disappear right in front of him, so I’d say I gave him a proper taste of his own medicine.’
He probably never thought I’d run away the moment I saw him standing there ready to ambush me. I can’t help but laugh thinking about how many seconds or minutes he might have stood there alone, posing ridiculously. In boss fights, trying usually means death, so there’s no option to flee, but this is reality. There’s no reason to fight when at a disadvantage. And,
‘After moving everyone and taking Avalitia to Neity, I’ll prepare and face him again.’
Since I couldn’t see his status window, I wasn’t sure if I could win one-on-one, and above all, he’s the final raid boss of ep.7. There’s nothing more embarrassing than getting torn apart after acting tough. Next time we meet, I’ll make sure to finish him with an overwhelming group attack. As I’m thinking this while falsifying my trail in the night mountains and running quickly toward Neity,
-Tap!
“Oh, there they are?”
It’s almost dawn, and the colorful hair of the women gathered outside catches my eye. Seeing that there are few people around, they must have moved everyone to a nearby village or town. I was right to ask Ray for help.
-Tap tap!
“What are you all doing outside? If there’s a village nearby, shouldn’t you be resting…”
“Master. Why did you run away like this?! You should have explained to us!!”
“Jack!! Do you forget how many months we traveled from Ponia to the Empire just to meet you?! How could you separate from us and act alone again?!”
“Sister, please… But I was worried too.”
“Mnya… Bwothew. Too noisy… Sleepy…”
“Eek?!”
As I came down to the road and approached my companions, they all rushed at me as if they were going to devour me, making me flinch and step back. Well, in Ira’s case, she’s reflexively reaching out to me, wanting me to hold her quickly, but anyway, it looks like they’re all rushing at me…!!
No. I explained to Ray, didn’t I? D-didn’t she tell them?!!
“Hahaha. I did explain, but everyone seems to have built up complaints. Well, this is karma you’ve accumulated, Jack, so you should accept it.”
“What? Wait. M-Miss Ray?”
“Master. This won’t do. Let’s have a proper talk about this.”
“Jack! Are you neglecting us sisters because you’ve already decided on a primary wife?! This won’t do!! We really need to talk!!”
“…I-I’ll talk to you separately later. If I’m lumped together with my sister, I feel like my score will only drop.”
“Kong?!!”
“Hey, husband~ I don’t really understand what’s going on, but how long do I have to keep hiding this kid? I’m getting tired~”
When even Luxuria, with only her upper body half-visible in midair, starts muttering something, the atmosphere becomes almost like a horror movie. Ah, wait a minute. I was just facing off with the ep.7 boss until now. W-what did I do wrong for everyone to be like this…
“Master!! By ep.7 boss, do you mean the Pope?!”
“Jack?! I didn’t hear that part either!!”
“We really have no idea what you’re talking about!! Explain properly to us too!!”
“…Um, well. Yes. Now that you mention the Pope, I’d like to hear about it too.”
It seems I said the wrong thing. Faced with the pressure from these women—more terrifying than any boss fight—I crouched down as the morning sun rose in the background.
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