Rain Vol 4 Chapter 3.2

Chapter 3.2

Of course, it was only natural that a gloom had settled over the Chandrys army .

Folnier was dumbfounded, despite the fact that she herself had spurred on the fight, and blurted out, “I didn’t think that Zartz of all people would be defeated so easily . ”

Lady Fol might still be underestimating Rain .  Joe could not help but think that she was . It was only natural that Zartz had been so easily defeated .

However, it wouldn’t be good if the enemy was allowed to think that there were no talented people in the Chandrys army . Indeed, it wouldn’t bode well for the future .

In addition, Joe couldn’t deny the fact that his blood had begun to boil a little .

“Then, shall I be his next opponent?”

“——! You, Joe?!”

Joe simply nodded with a smile at Folnier’s apprehensions .

“Rest assured . I won’t lose to a youngster who’s still in his twenties . ”

“Joe . ”

Folnier called out after him, but changed her mind and decided to encourage him instead, as if she too had resolved herself, after seeing him lead his horse forward without looking back .

“I’m counting on you, Joe! Show me a spectacular victory like you always do!”

Joe’s smile deepened as he simply raised a hand in the air .

Then, he left their formation with an air of composure and trotted up to the center point between the two armies .

He looked back at Rain, who was staring deeply at him, and raised his voice .

“I speak to Sir Rain . I, Joe Lamberck, request a duel!!”

His reply came a beat later .

Rain came galloping at full speed on his white horse . There was no hesitation in his eyes as he held onto the reins and sped over while looking at Joe with a gaze that seemed to shoot through him .

Still, what’s with that horse’s speed? It’s running over so lightly, as if it was a single ray of light cutting through the plains .  Even Joe had never before seen a horse so fine or fast .

Besides, the sight of Rain galloping forth across the earth as one with his horse with pike in hand was beautiful enough to draw sighs from those who saw him……

Rain pressed in close during the brief moment of Joe’s admiration .

He lifted up his large pike and quickly took an offensive stance .

“——! You’re here!”

“Did you really think that I’d ignore your challenge and run away?!”

Rain thrust forth his pike with a violent rebuke .

He attempted to skewer his opponent’s torso with such speed that even Joe couldn’t see him clearly with his dynamic vision .

Does this man truly wish for peace?!

Did I read him wrong——? Rain’s attack had been so merciless that Joe could not help but think so .

If anyone other than Joe had been his opponent, they would have failed to either catch or dodge his attack and would have undoubtedly perished on the spot .

Still, Joe, like Rain, was no ordinary warrior .

Even now, Joe followed his instincts and not his eyes .

Joe dodged instantaneously by turning his upper body and simultaneously thrust out his own pike .

Two streaks of blood danced under the clear blue sky . Rain’s attack had grazed the side of Joe’s neck, while Joe’s pike had grazed Rain’s arms .

Then, before their blood could hit the ground, their horses clashed with brute vigor .

Joe’s favorited horse failed to withstand the collision and collapsed on its side .

Joe let go of his pike and leapt before his horse fell and twisted his body mid-air to land .

He promptly drew his katana and braced himself for his opponent’s attack .

However, Rain did not insist on keeping either his advantage on horseback or with his pike . He returned his pike to his saddle and climbed jumped down to the ground of his own accord without any hint of lingering attachment .

He swiftly drew his magic sword .

The infamous “Siren’s Blade”, which radiated with an ominous blue light .

“It’s only fitting that a fight between us is settled with our swords, yeah?”

“To think that you’d abandon your advantage of your own accord . Will you insist over your obsession on having a fair match to the very end, Rain? Just what on earth drives you to fight so much?”

“Useless meddling will only shorten your lifespan!”

His words, advance, and attack were executed concurrently with no delay in between them .

He stirred up a wind and brought his magic sword down into a diagonal blow in less than a moment .

Joe deftly maneuvered his body and whipped his katana at his opponent’s torso . His blade, covered in a pure white aura, chased after Rain while leaving behind a trail of light .

The thought of going easy never crossed his mind . If he did, then he would likely be the one to suffer an attack .

As he’d planned, Joe’s katana zeroed in on Rain’s moving torso .

However, Rain maneuvered his body while allowing the attack to graze him and moved into an unpredictable attack . He changed his posture and, after bending his upper body halfway into a somersault, released a roundhouse kick in the blink of an eye .

He had changed his posture from his insane position as lithely and as magnificently as an acrobat .

Joe, however, dodged the attack by immediately jumping over it . Then, without a moment’s rest, he quickly stepped back in and rotated his body, causing his silver hair to flutter behind him .

He beat down a silver streak of light at Rain’s neck .

 

Claaaang!

Crackle crackle crackle!

 

Joe’s katana and Rain’s magic sword clashed violently and crackled audibly . They visibly scattered grandiose sparks into the surrounding area even under broad daylight .

Then, Rain raised his knee with terrifying speed and aimed it at Joe’s solar plexus .

“——! Mph!”

Joe quickly brought up his own knee to parry his opponent’s attack . They both jumped back after their knees hit each other’s .

“……Our sword skills are about on par, I think?”

Joe stopped moving for a moment and whispered, prompting Rain to answer in a tone filled with his steadfast self-confidence .

“You’re too easy on yourself, Joe . There isn’t anyone in this world who’s stronger than me, you hear? Your defeat was already decided the moment we first locked swords in this duel!”

He dashed forward fiercely as he spoke his arrogant words .

He raised his magic sword above Joe’s head with extreme speed .

His movements did not decline in the slightest . Not only that, but his speed had increased since the start of their duel and he was overflowing with power .

“——!!”

Joe just barely met the attack with his katana, but he staggered when the overbearingly heavy attack sent a shock up his arms . The numbness remained in both of his arms, even if only for a second .

(Even if he’s a Dragon Slayer—— . He surpasses me in physical strength?!)

“What’s the matter, Joe?! Your movements are getting dull!”

Rain raised his repelled sword once more and dished out an attack that looked like a shower of bluish-white light .

The trails left behind by his sword blurred, and even a man on Joe’s caliber could not keep up with the speed of Rain’s attack, which created countless afterimages in its wake .

Joe had been pressed into a purely defensive battle, even if only temporarily .

Rain refused to relent and pushed forward while concentrating only on his offense .

It was his distinctive strategy —piling on attack upon attack to the point that it was Spartan— that no proper swordsman would ever think to use .

It almost looked like he had abandoned his defenses from the get go . This wasn’t true, of course, but it was certain that he would step in as long as he would only suffer minor scratches and single-mindedly go deeper into the offense .

And with abnormal speed to boot .

 

Clack!!

 

“——! Mph!”

Joe’s defenses, prided as an impenetrable fortress, finally crumbled as a warped sound rang out . He had failed to properly parry Rain’s magic sword as it drew an arc diagonally upwards from below and his katana had been forcefully repelled . Joe’s body tilted unsteadily as a result .

It was only a tiny opening——perhaps only a hundredth of a second long .

Rain, however, did not let this opening escape him . He swiftly lowered his body and leapt for Joe’s bosom like a magnet being pulled toward another . His outstretched magic sword —its blade of bluish-white light— was thrust straight toward Joe’s chest .

Joe immediately thrust out his hand and released his magic on full throttle .

“Light!”

“Ugh!”

Even Rain had not predicted this turn of events .

He was hit with a magical attack from point blank and was blasted away far into the yonder .

 

Joe heard girls screaming from afar .

Joe had no way of knowing this, but those ear-splitting screams had belonged to Selphie and Senoa, the aide .

Senoa had brought up her hands to her mouth like an ordinary young girl for once, whereas Selphie had, characteristically, grabbed Yuri, who was standing next to her, by the shoulders and was shaking her furiously .

“L, Lord Rain is…! Lord Raaaaaaain!”

“Daaah! He’s fine, so let go of me! Did you forget, Selphie? The Geeneral has that thing——”

Shelfa alone was quietly watching over the fight with her hands clasped in front of her chest .

 

Joe, naturally, could not maintain his calm either .

“——! What have I done?!”

He immediately regretted his actions for a moment .

He had not meant to use magic . But, his instincts as a warrior had sensed danger for the first time in a truly long while because his opponent was so strong . And then, he had unwittingly ended up using magic——

Joe was about to run up to confirm his opponent’s safety .

Unfortunately, however, he had been too quick to worry about his enemy . Rain sprang right back up as hale and hearty as ever .

There was a faint trace of a rainbow-colored light around his body .

“Is that the anti-magic field that dragons are said to possess?!”

Joe murmured with his eyes open wide .

He had known that the ability existed, but this was the first time that he had seen it with his own eyes . Evidently, his worry had been nothing more than unnecessary meddling .

“Is that all you’ve got?! That was weak, Joe!”

Joe had no way of knowing how Rain was actually faring, but the latter didn’t seem to have taken any particular damage on the outside . Rain continued,

“if you wanna defeat me, then you’ll at least have to bring out something like this!”

Multiple fist-sized balls of orange light appeared around Rain as he spoke . They revolved around him, increasing in number as they did, and flickered repeatedly .

Then, once the countless beams of light intersected and gathered above his head, Rain swiftly raised a hand and pointed at Joe .

“——Go!”

All of the balls of light immediately rushed at Joe . Each and every ball of light was as a wave of energy created by a colossal amount of magic with trails of light following behind them .

“Mph!”

Joe spread out his hands and promptly put up a shield around himself .

The balls of light crashed against it one after another and created a thunderous chain of large explosions .

The overwhelming blasts of light, bright enough to out-shine the sun, burst against the surface of the shield . The violently exploding bursts of magical light blinded him and the aftershocks of their clashes against his shield shook even the earth itself .

The attack seemed to go on forever with no end in sight . The entirety of Joe’s translucent shield blurred and was on the brink of shattering from the impact of exceeding its limits .

“——Kugh! This magic, and it’s power! I can’t defend against it even with a magic shield? In that case…!”

Joe gathered his willpower and grit his teeth .

“Flames!”

A gigantic vortex of flames immediately stirred up with Joe at its center .

Joe suppressed Rain’s magical attack for a brief moment by bringing forth his own blaze . Taking advantage of that opening, he jumped back to avoid the rest of Rain’s attack .

Their magic converged where Joe had been standing just moments before and bore deeply into the earth .

Then, they brandished their swords once more and were on the verge of charging toward each other again .

——But just then .

 

“Hold! Both of you, hoooooooooold!!”

 

With a loud cry, Folnier had personally jumped in between them on her horse to restrain them .

She had wedged herself in between them just as they were about to clash just as she had done previously .

“……Lady Fol . ”

Joe immediately sheathed his sword and bowed .

He had cooled down completly upon seeing her .

To think that I would lose my head over Rain——over how strong he is .

We were in danger of making peace impossible if one of us died .

No——it’s possible that the one knocking on death’s door was…… Joe shook his head lightly and greeted Folnier, who was climbing down from her horse .

 

 

Rain shrugged and re-sheathed his own sword after seeing Joe put away his .

Joe was strong even according to Rain’s standards, and Rain thought that things could have gotten dangerous if they had continued .

Only, by ‘dangerous,’ he meant that he ‘could have accidentally defeated Joe . ’ Rain intended to stop himself at the very last moment, but he might not have been able to go through with that because his opponent was strong .

Or, in the worst-case scenario, they could have both ended up dead .

Neither swordsman had noticed, but both armies had been watching over them in complete silence . And, both armies had expressed an air of relief when Folnier interrupted their fight .

Not to mention that the Little one——Princess Shelfa, Rain’s liege, had somehow persuaded her horse to bring her to the very front of the vanguard of her allies despite the fact that she had been at the rear up until then and was staring at them .

Shelfa hadn’t looked particularly concerned because she had known about Rain’s defensive field . She was simply looking at Rain in earnest . Like she always did .

Rather, now that her gaze had met Rain’s, she was waving at him with great delight . She was waving furiously, as if she was stretching atop her horse .

Shelfa had apparently been blessed with good vision, much like Rain .

——Hold on .

The Little Lady is being unreasonable, even if Leni and Gazaram are with her, Rain thought .

What’s she planning to do if the enemy shoots at her or something now that she’s all the way out in the front?

Shelfa kept her cheer as Rain looked on at her in exasperation and continued to wave at him tirelessly without end . Then, her smile suddenly turned into an expression of sorrow . Rain tilted his head to the side .

Oh, she thinks I’m ignoring her .

Finally realizing her plight, Rain languidly waved back as his lips twisted into a wry smile . He gave her an extra freebie and waved back at her twice .

In return, she immediately returned to looking delighted again .

It was ridiculous……but it wasn’t a bad feeling .

“Sir Rain!”

Folnier called out to him out of the blue .

It seemed that she was done talking to Joe .

“What’s up?”

“It was worth seeing an impressive fight between two excellent swordsmen . But—— . Why don’t we end it here?”

Her eyes looked like they were searching for something .

But, unfortunately for her, Rain’s expressions didn’t change in the slightest . If she thought that he would come to her with his tail wagging, that it was just too bad for her .

“I never cared either way to begin with,”

Rain said while maintaining his cool . He leaned back against Kris, who was looking bored, and looked at both Joe and Folnier equally with narrowed eyes . He continued,

“I’m okay with fighting you guys, and I’m okay with not fighting too . But I’d rather you don’t forget . Other than the Princess, the rest of us are here because we had to be . If anyone’s gonna make a decision, it should be you guys . ”

Folnier wasn’t very deeply impressed by his words .

Her expression turned grim again and she began to whisper something to Joe .

Rain, however, had no intent on conceding anything at this point . He absolutely refused to concede, even if it meant that he was being pointlessly obstinate .

He would have Chandrys, the invaders, be the first ones to bring peace to the table . He couldn’t have Sunkwoll be taken lightly if he was to take their future perspective alliance into consideration . He would take the opportunity to force Folnier to give up the attitude that stemmed from the fact that Chandrys was a large and mighty nation .

There was no point in forging an alliance if the two countries weren’t on equal terms .

——And, with that as his underlying motive, Rain looked up to the blue sky and purposefully whispered, “Man~, the weather’s great today,” with an air of nonchalance .

Meanwhile, Ralphus and Shelfa, along with Leni and the others, had left their formation to come up to him, perhaps out of worry .

Joe and Folnier had finished their discussion by the time that Rain had finished explaining the details to them .

Folnier then turned to Joe and said,

“have all armies observe the progress of our negotiations through Magic Vision . ”

Such were her orders .

“……Are you certain you wish to do this?”

“Yeah . I’m sure they’ll all want to know . ”

Folnier nodded .

Ultimately, a large screen of Magic Vision was cast before both armies to broadcast their negotiations with Rain’s party without the latter’s consent .

Then, Folnier turned back to Rain .

“……You’re quite the impudent man as well . I was willing to fold with just one word from you . Have you no intent on saying it?”

Rain stared deeply into Folnier’s eyes .

“I guess there’s some truth in saying we should put aside our silly pride to prepare for the great wars to come . But I still think that everyone should take at least the bare minimum of responsibility for what they’ve done . You were the ones who started this meaningless war to begin with . You should be the ones to put an end to it too . Sunkwoll might be nothing but a weak little bug in terms of national might……but they say that even the weakest of bugs can kill the soul, y’know?”1

“I have never heard anyone say that before, ever . ”

Folnier looked up at Rain in a provoking manner .

Then, she cast a side-eye at Shelfa and continued,

“……now that I think about it, isn’t it strange that I’m negotiating things with you? After all, Princess Shelfa is here with us as well . ”

“……now that I think about it, isn’t it strange that I’m negotiating things with you? After all, Princess Shelfa is here with us as well . ”

“Unfortunately, it’s Ralphus’ and my job to deal with anything concerning war and negotiations at the moment . The Princess’ role as our liege is to make the final call . After that, we’ll be negotiating with you in accordance to her decisions . ……It’s not all that strange, is it?”

Rain replied readily and continued,

“and let me answer your next question too while I’m at it . Right now, the Princess has only just stepped out into the large world known as the public . She has obviously great aptitude as a ruler, but it’s only natural that it’ll take some time before she grows into the role . There’s no shame in receiving aid from her retainers when she needs it until her natural talents fully blossom . ”

“……You say that Princess Shelfa has great aptitude as a ruler . What is your basis for this?”

“Do I need to spell it out? Her aptitude is obvious from the fact that Ralphus and I have offered her our vassalage from the bottom of our hearts . ”

And my vassalage, in particular, Rain added as he calmly pointed at himself .

He boldly thrust out his chest and boasted,

“a ruler’s capacity can be measured by the quality of their retainers . Ralphus’ popularity and capability, and my genius (he was extremely serious as he said this) . The Princess doesn’t envy either of our abilities and has always entrusted us with her wholehearted faith . Do you think that’d be possible from anyone with lesser aptitude? Or, are you trying to say that Ralphus and I are blind?”

Princess Shelfa, whom Rain had been boasting about, opened her eyes wide, flustered, at Rain and Folnier’s war of words .

Rain’s declaration just now had been composed of his true opinions, but, unfortunately, Shelfa didn’t currently look the part enough to make his words sound very persuasive . And Shelfa knew this .

Sure enough, Folnier looked truly dubious as she examined Shelfa carefully from head to toe .

Ultimately, she said,

“……I don’t believe you . I don’t believe that she has any noteworthy abilities to her name other than her beauty . In the end, she’s simply relying on you for everything, is she not?”

 

“Hey, wait a sec!”

“Please hold a moment!”

 

Rain and Ralphus spat out oddly similar words and had stepped forward at the same time .

They exchanged glances and Rain conceded . He and Ralphus wanted to say the same thing anyhow .

Ralphus placed a hand on his magic sword, Justice, and said,

“to disgrace our liege is to disgrace us, her retainers, as well . I cannot overlook what you’ve just said!”

He was glaring sharply at Folnier .

He glared at her with his rumored stern eyes that could make his opponent straighten their posture with just his gaze .

“I ask this of you, Lady Folnier Lucida Chandrys! Are you so capable that your talents surpass even that of Sir Joe Lamberck standing over there? Can you assert that your leadership is always correct, that you have never once been saved by his counsel? Answer carefully . If there are any falsehoods in your reply, I’ll have your head here and now!”

Joe had tried to step in front of Folnier just then, prompting Rain to shout,

“don’t move, Joe! I’m within drawing distance from Folnier right now . I can kill her with my sword faster than you can move! Don’t you dare think I’m not being serious!”

Joe stopped in his tracks .

Instead, he placed a hand on his own sword and kept his posture so that he could leap out at a moment’s notice . And yet, there was no bloodlust in his eyes as he looked at Ralphus, but rather only a gentle light .

However, Ralphus, the man in question, never spared Joe a second glance and solemnly gazed only at Folnier .

The man named Ralphus Juliard Sunkwoll was always serious at times like these . He was a man unknown to inappropriate jokes or gambling . He would cut Folnier down without fail, depending on her answer, now that he said he would, no matter how disadvantageous his actions would prove to be in the future .

Folnier had undoubtedly provoked his imperial wrath . Rain felt the same way as Ralphus, of course . As a tactician, he knew that he should stop and reprimand his friend, but at the moment, Rain wanted to exercise his obstinacy alongside him . In the end, he felt that he was surely more of a reckless warrior than a tactician at heart——and he was right .

The soldiers of both armies, who had their eyes glued on the Magic Vision screens, began to stir . Would there be war……? They had reached a critical point in the negotiations .

 

A mere few seconds stretched on horribly for Rain and the others .

 

The scales of history were tilting at this very moment .

Folnier braced herself and looked away a short moment later . She looked considerably vexed, but she admitted to her mistake all the same .

“It’s true that Joe’s helped me out multiple times in the past and that I seek out his advice . I am in the same shoes as Lady Shelfa in this regard . ……I take back what I said earlier . As such, I am sorry . ”

She bowed her head a little to Shelfa .

Ralphus returned his gaze to Folnier after he confirmed that Shelfa had shaken her head vigorously to indicate that she didn’t mind in the slightest . He took his hand off his sword and returned to where he had been standing previously .

“I, too, must apologize for my insolence . ”

Ralphus bowed deeply as he spoke in a tone that retained none of his previously explosive emotions . He returned to his usual quiet demeanor and urged Rain to continue with his eyes .

It was basically ‘that’ .

It was his way of notifying Rain to continue with the negotiations now that things had been settled .

 

——What, is it my job to do all the boring stuff now?

 

Rain shelved the fact that he had drawn a ton of attention to himself just moments ago and scowled .

Even still, he turned to confront Folnier again .

“And so, that brings us back to square one . ”

He summarized everything readily because it was too much of a hassle to do otherwise . Then, he continued,

“and it’s not like we can stick it out here until the sun goes down . Why don’t you tell us what you want to do?”

Folnier sullenly kept her silence .

She was angry at what Ralphus had said, but she was also reluctantly impressed with him at the same time . The way she looked at Ralphus had visibly changed .

However, she still wasn’t up to honestly bring peace to the table——or something like that .

She’s such a handful .

Then, Shelfa, who had been docile until now, timidly cut in .

“……Um…”

Everyone immediately turned to Shelfa as one .

Unwillingly showered by the brunt of their gazes, Shelfa sounded flustered as she said, “Um, can’t we stop the fighting? I don’t think that there’s any reason for us to fight . ……I think there is something wrong about starting a war and causing many people to die because of it . ”

She stuttered a little, but she was doing her very best .

And lo and behold—— . Both enemies and allies alike were stunned into silence .

From Rain’s point of view, Shelfa’s words had not been born of any stubborn adherence to the boring calculation of interests and had won her the support of the common soldiers . It was obvious that the once bloodthirsty mood in the air had changed completely as well .

But, Rain, who had been fighting a tough war of words until then, had no choice but to smile wryly . Diplomatically speaking, he felt that her words had been far too honest .

There were times, of course, when an honest attitude bore more fruit . For example, it would have been the correct way of dealing with a king with Ralphus’ personality (if such a king even existed) .

But as for Folnier——

Rain’s apprehensions were on the mark .

Folnier’s smartly beautiful face crumpled into a frown as if to say, “How naïve of you,” with her eyes .

Unfortunately, Shelfa’s gracious proposal had failed to leave a deep impression on her .

She opened her mouth to say something, but then closed her mouth again upon changing her mind .

A mischievous smile graced her visage when she opened her captivating lips again .

“——I see, there is some merit to your words . Then why don’t we do this? I don’t necessarily want for war either . And so, I want you to show me your aptitude as a ruler that Sir Rain vouches so strongly for, and I will choose for peace if I am satisfied by what I see . No——rather, I wish to join an alliance with you as heartened friends, as was our original intent . ”

“Truly?!”

Shelfa clasped her slender hands in front of her chest in excitement where she stood .

She had naturally not forgotten how Rain had told her that their policy was to “achieve peace with the ultimate goal of forging an alliance on top of that” when he asked her to approve of it .

She was probably thinking about how things would splendidly go just as Rain wanted them to .

Her expression brightened .

“I, too, think that will be for the best!”

She said with a cheerful grin .

Then, she tilted her head a little to the side and asked,

“but, um……how do I show you my aptitude?”

 

This is bad!

 

thought Rain, who was not as honest as his liege .

There was no way that the obstinate Folnier would fold so easily . In other words, she had to have an ulterior motive .

Folnier looked at Rain in his worry with irony in her eyes and said,

“what, it’s no big deal . It’s actually rather simple . That being said——”

 

As Rain had predicted, the selfish empress proposed something truly preposterous with her hand placed proudly at her waist .

 

 

Rain was the only one to disapprove of Folnier’s proposal for some reason .

What she proposed was dangerous no matter how he looked at it, but everybody, including Shelfa herself, and even Ralphus, whom Rain had thought would be the first to oppose, readily agreed to it .

What she proposed was dangerous no matter how he looked at it, but everybody, including Shelfa herself, and even Ralphus, whom Rain had thought would be the first to oppose, readily agreed to it .

Rain asked Ralphus about it after everyone except Joe, Folnier, and Shelfa had backed away . It was only natural that he did .

“Hey . What’s the meaning of this? Why didn’t you stop them?”

“Where was the need to? This is easy enough, if it means that we can achieve both peace and an alliance with this . ”

Damnit, did he eat a rotten egg as a snack and let it affect his head or something?

Rain seriously thought this for a moment as he stared at his friend so hard that he could have bored holes into the latter’s face .

Ralphus broke into a smile as if he was having fun .

“What’s with that look on your face, this isn’t like you at all . I guess there are some things you just can’t understand no matter how wise you are . ”

“You——”

“Well, it’s just as Lord Ralphus says . It’ll be fine since you yourself vouched for it, General . ”

Leni, who had a look that said, “Ahh, there’ll be war if things go poorly! I……I’m terrified!” on his face just moments earlier spurted some nonsense . Not only that, but Gazaram and Senoa were also nodding at his side .

To think that they’d also join in on this bet, putting Gwen and Nigel aside because they were Ralphus’ followers .

“……Were you guys not listening to anything I said? It’s true that I haven’t seen him cast it yet, but I know about the spell itself . It’s a fairly complete spell, meaning that you can’t take it lightly . It wouldn’t work on me, of course, but it’s an easy one-way ticket to Hades for the likes of you . ”

“But, if the spell works like how you said it will, General, I don’t think it’ll affect the Princess either,”

said Gazaram with an annoying boost of confidence .

 

“Shall we begin?”

 

Everyone other than Rain nodded with Joe called out .

Even Shelfa .

Rather, she had been the first to reply, “Yes . ” ——And with a smile to boot .

Unable to hold it in any longer, Rain walked up to Shelfa in long strides and whispered in her ear .

“Hey, Little one, you sure you aren’t overdoing it? We can still stop . I can refuse for you, if you’d like . ”

Shelfa looked deeply into Rain’s eyes .

“I have faith in you, Rain…… I’ll be all right since you vouched for me . ”

“I’ll vouch for you as many times as you want me to . ——But still…”

“Then everything will be fine, truly…… . Oh, but…”

Shelfa looked to Rain after having thought up of something good . She continued,

“if you’re still worried for me, then would you……ki, kiss me please? I’m sure it’ll cheer me right up!”

 

What, just what are you saying!?

 

Rain looked at Shelfa in exasperation .

To begin with——

How cheerful one was or wasn’t had no bearing on this test . Regardless if she was healthy, sickly, half-asleep, or even hale and hearty, Shelfa would die if her confidence was misplaced .

Shelfa, however, was looking up at Rain with her face brimming with expectation . Her cheeks were flushed red as she awaited his response with her hands clasped against her chest .

Rain bent over and lowered his voice .

“Everyone’ll be watching if we kiss . That okay with you?”

“——Well…”

Shelfa looked……as if he’d just reminded her of this fact .

Still, all she did was blink her sapphire eyes a few times before replying without any sign of agitation .

“……I’ll be a little embarrassed, but I’m all right with that . Um, is that bad?”

 

Yes, it is, more so than you can ever imagine!

 

Rain swallowed down his words before they made it out of his mouth . She would gradually gain a sense of “a ruler’s consideration for her place” one day (he hoped) .

“……Well, how about this? I’ll give you a proper kiss another day, and I’ll kiss you so much that your lips will get swollen . ”

——So bear with it for now .

Rain spoke, recalling way too late that it was a terrible idea to run jokes of this nature by her, causing Shelfa to suddenly stop whispering and raise her voice as loud as it would go .

“Truly?! You’ll really do this for me?!”

 

——Do this for her?

——Just what are you gonna do for her?!

 

Rain felt like jealous gazes were flooding him from all directions .

“Well, let’s talk about this some other time . Are you sure you understand that your life is on the line right now?”

“Like I’ve said, I will be just fine . I’d actually rather be talking about this instead . And you still haven’t fulfilled your promise about kissing me all over the place in the baths yet……”

Shelfa pouted a little with upturned eyes .

Rain thought that she had great memory of all the things she didn’t need to remember . He would endeavor not to say anything unnecessary to her from now on . He’d promised himself something similar a number of times before, but history always had a way of repeating itself for some reason .

He let out a small sigh and knelt before Shelfa on one knee .

Then, he took the petite white hand before his eyes .

“Make do with this for now, alright?”

He planted a kiss on the back of his sulking princess’ hand . He’d never thought that he’d ever give a lady such a proper, knightly kiss in his life, but–—

Life apparently had other plans for him .

“……Oh!”

Shelfa’s cheeks lit up bright red again . Her mood appeared to have recovered, at the very least .

“That spell is designed to directly attack its opponent’s ——that’s you in this case—— heart . It’s actually a fake attack, but your heart will make it real . That’s why the spell will lose effect as long as you don’t believe in it . Do you understand?”

“I’ll be all right since you vouched for me, Rain . ”

Shelfa patiently repeated herself like a mother explaining things to a dull-witted young child .

To begin with, she was more concerned with the fact that Rain had been so quick to let go of her hand and raised her hand to him once again in her reluctance to part with him .

Rain saw her do it, but intentionally stood up and turned resolutely to Folnier and Joe .

“Wait here for a bit . There’s something I wanna say to them . ”

 

 

Their conversation finally concluded as Folnier waited patiently and Rain began to walk toward them——alone, for some reason .

“She’s ready……I think . You can start . ”

He nodded arrogantly, as was characteristic of him .

In the lieu of a reply, Joe began to concentrate as he prepared the spell .

Yet——

Rain, who had begun walking away, turn around once again and looked not to Joe but to Folnier .

Then, he began to whisper in a low voice that the onlooking princess could not hear .

“……This was all a result of my failures . I don’t have any other choice but to place my bets now . But if this test ends in my failure as well—— . Then I’ll have you prepare yourself for what comes next . ”

He wore not his usual brazen smile brimming with self-confidence, but a composed expression that was as calm as stilled waters . Folnier felt that there was an endless abyss of sorrow in his black eyes .

Perhaps this is the man’s true nature .

Folnier, at least, thought it was thus .

And this sense of intimidation……I feel this bottomless fear just because he’s looking at me .  An instinctual fear that seemed to lower her body temperature by several degrees at once began at the soles of her feet and ran up her spine . She had come to understand the greatness of Rain’s fighting spirit only now that it was pointed directly at her .

Still, Folnier mustered up her spirit and replied,

“Are——you trying to threaten me?”

“A threat, you say?”

Rain replied, still as quietly as ever . He continued,

“threats are usually made when you don’t actually have the intent to see them through . But unfortunately for you, I’m dead serious . I’ll pray, for your sake as well . I don’t believe in any gods, but just in case . ”

He swiftly lowered his hand and rested it on the hilt of his sword .

“The “Siren’s Blade” is infamous to the whole world . Once long ago, it was said to have sacrificed a thousand lives when it massacred the people of Celestia…… . I don’t know how much of a warrior the crazed man who wielded it was, but what do you think will happen……if I decide to bring out its full potential?”

Folnier was unable to reply this time around . She had thought that the man before her was fundamentally a tactician at heart, but she now knew that she had been naïve in her readings of him .

It was possible that he would move without taking any calculation of interest into account if it came to the eleventh hour . To be frank, she no longer knew if this test was the right thing to do or not . Then, as if to make his point doubly sure, Rain declared,

“mark my words……if anything happens, I’ll drown the entire Chandrys army into a sea of blood . ”

A chill ran up her back .

“mark my words……if anything happens, I’ll drown the entire Chandrys army into a sea of blood . ”

A chill ran up her back .

His declaration had been so threatening that even Folnier, as unyielding as she was, took a step back . She had not intended to, but she ended up convinced……that the man before her would really do as he promised .

 

Then, Rain’s fighting spirit suddenly abated .

He promptly wiped away the shadowed expression off his face when Princess Shelfa, who had grown tired of waiting, tottered over to where they were (in other words, when she had come close enough to hear their conversation) .

He smiled a refreshing smile that seemed to forcefully assert, “I can’t kill even one little bug!” and said, “Well, that’s how it is . G’day to you . ”

He made to walk away after one-sidedly cutting off their conversation .

“Rain!”

Joe called to his retreating figure .

“What?”

“I believe that your princess holds a lot of faith in you . Why don’t you open up your heart to her a little——”

“Yeah~, I don’t need your nagging . ”

Rain scowled and waved his hand . He continued,

“is this the power of lineage too? You’re way too similar to Ralphus . ”

Rain’s words made even Joe’s heart skip a beat . Evidentially, he had already seen through the relation .

“Besides, I don’t have the right to earn someone else’s faith or be liked by——”

Rain saw Shelfa’s face mid-sentence and cleared his throat .

“Anyway, just start already . ”

This time, he finally returned to where his troubled comrades were waiting for good .

Folnier exchanged looks with Joe and let out a soft sigh .

“……A dangerous man, that one . ”

“Indeed . I’d hate to make him my enemy . ”

Then, someone cut in,

“Rain is a very kind person!”

Both Folnier and Joe blinked .

When Folnier turned to see who it was, she found that the Princess was looking up at them from nearby . She had been around too, now that Folnier thought about it .

The Princess’ eyes glistened like that of a fanatic believer of “the Church of Rain” as she repeated,

“Rain is easy to misunderstand in many ways . But actually, he is a very, very kind person . ”

She was truly evangelizing with all her might .

Folnier understood from the girl’s passionate and dreamy tone that she had absolute confidence in her convictions .

The girl before her probably wouldn’t change her mind even if Folnier told her, “This supposedly kind man just told me, “Hey, you better prepare yourself in anything happens, you know?”” Instead, she’d likely reply, “Rain did that for me……?” with deep emotion .

And, while this was also just an assumption——

Folnier felt like even she, as skeptical as she was, would end up saying, “I’ll follow Lord Rain forever!” if she were ever locked up in a room with Shelfa for an entire day and made to listen to the latter sing Rain’s praises with the same zeal that she held now .

The Princess’ words were simply that persuasive .

Folnier looked down at the Princess for a brief moment before rubbing her temple (her head had started to hurt) and waving to Joe .

“——Let’s begin already . ”

 

 

Joe closed his eyes and began to concentrate while Rain looked on at him from where Ralphus and the others were .

Rain was fretfully anxious underneath his calm visage, and it didn’t help that the enemy brought forth something ridiculous either .

Something huge abruptly materialized after the atmospher shimmered…… Coarse body hair peeked through the gaps in the crude hemp cloth it donned for clothes .

But its head was bald and shiny despite that, and it carried a spiked log club . The club itself was about the size of a fully-grown adult human .

Its entire figure was nearly ten meters tall——

It was a member of a species that had gone extinct ages ago——a giant .

They were said to be much closer to humans than the monsters that lived deep in the woods, but most people were still repulsed by them . In fact, while Rain didn’t really think much about it, Leni, Senoa, and the others had subconsciously taken a step back away from it .

Rain found it strange that they all had their hands over their noses and mouths and asked,

“what is it?”

“You can’t tell?”

Leni looked incredulous as he asked . He continued,

“the stench is horrible! It’s like you took the body odor of a middle-aged man who hadn’t bathed in about a year and concentrated it even further . The smell’s just so bad——”

“Yep, that sounds horrible . ”

Rain said as he looked over cynically at Leni and the others . He continued,

“congrats . All of you are already half-trapped in Joe’s spell . Aren’t you glad you aren’t the person being tested?”

This is why I was so against this .

After Rain finished grumbling, Ralphus asked,

“that’s an illusion?”

“It is . I won’t be tricked by it . It’s just an illusion no matter how well it’s been recreated . The smell too, of course . If you guys can smell body odor that shouldn’t be there, then that means that you already believe that it really exists . That thing’s attacks will start taking effect next once the spell moves on to the next stage . I told you before . It’s no one else but your own heart that’ll make the fake attacks real . ”

“That’s quite something,”

Ralphus whispered before nodding deeply . He continued,

“——hmm . Most of the stench disappeared after hearing your explanation . ”

“Wait, seriously?”

Rain looked dubiously to his friend before he knew it . It was certainly true that the magic would lose its effects the moment you believed that it was just an illusion . But all things regardless, was it really possible to simply believe it just like that? Senoa and the others were still frowning with their hands over their noses even now . No, wait, Senoa just removed her hand .

Whatever, these guys aren’t that important right now .

Rain faced forward again and purposefully allowed the spell to work on him .

The giant’s sweaty skin glistened as it stared down at Shelfa with clouded yellow eyes . A low growl that sounded exactly like distant thunder leaked out from its enormous cracked lips .

He even heard a small noise as the giant readjusted its grip on its club . Joe’s spell was truly a detailed work of art .

Shelfa turned around at the end of Rain’s gaze . She was looking deeply at him . She wasn’t holding her nose .

She cupped her hands in front of her mouth and yelled .

 

“Mr . Giant here is an illusion, yes? It’s not actually there?”

 

“That’s correct!”

Rain immediately yelled back .

He adjusted his tone so that he would sound composed and confident . It was quite difficult, considering the circumstances .

“Even if you hear its footsteps, even if you hear it growl, or even if it smells—— . All of it is a deception made from magic . As long as you understand that it’s an illusion, you absolutely won’t be affected by it any more than that . I’m well-versed in magic—please trust me on this, even if only for now!”

His last few words sounded like a plea . There was nothing close to confidence in them

And Shelfa——

Shelfa smiled back at Rain with a complicated smile on her face—one that was a little lonely and yet ever so slightly pouty .

“Someday——”

she said before looking to Ralphus and the rest behind Rain .

She stopped speaking normally and continued the rest in a sigh of a whisper that no one else could hear .

However, Rain, who had superhuman hearing, could hear every word she said .

 

“Someday—— . May these feelings of mine reach you, Rain……”

 

She turned back around once the whisper had left her lips .

The giant let out an outraged howl as if it had been waiting for her and raised its foot . It meant to stomp down on Shelfa . ——Rain’s comrades stirred .

Gwen let out a grim, “Y, Your Highness!” from somewhere in the back .

Naturally, a silent scream arose from both armies as well .

Rain clenched his teeth and subconsciously put a hand on the hilt of his magic sword . Then, the area around Shelfa suddenly went dark . The stupidly large foot had blocked out the sun . Shelfa, however, simply raised her arms a little and made no motion to evade it . From behind, he could see that she was looking up at the giant’s oncoming foot, but it was impossible to know what expression she was making on her face as she did .

But Rain thought that the Little one had probably kept her smile . No, he was sure of this .

 

The foot came crashing down with a tremendous noise as Shelfa disappeared from view .

↑ Rain misspeaks an idiom here . The original idiom, “五分試し (gobu dameshi),” means “killing by inches/progressively torturing to death . ” What Rain actually says, however, is “五分の魂 (gobu no tamashii),” which translates literally to “a soul of five parts/one-half . ” It is in character for Rain to misspeak some idioms, as he’s done it before and other characters (namely Yuri in vol . 1) have pointed out that he occasionally says things that sound strange . It is my personal interpretation that Rain’s slip of tongue here is supposed to belie his composure in this scene .

Of course, it was only natural that a gloom had settled over the Chandrys army

Folnier was dumbfounded, despite the fact that she herself had spurred on the fight, and blurted out, “I didn’t think that Zartz of all people would be defeated so easily . ”.

Lady Fol might still be underestimating Rain .  Joe could not help but think that she was . It was only natural that Zartz had been so easily defeated

However, it wouldn’t be good if the enemy was allowed to think that there were no talented people in the Chandrys army . Indeed, it wouldn’t bode well for the future

In addition, Joe couldn’t deny the fact that his blood had begun to boil a little

“Then, shall I be his next opponent?”.

“——! You, Joe?!”.

Joe simply nodded with a smile at Folnier’s apprehensions

“Rest assured . I won’t lose to a youngster who’s still in his twenties . ”.

“Joe . ”.

Folnier called out after him, but changed her mind and decided to encourage him instead, as if she too had resolved herself, after seeing him lead his horse forward without looking back

“I’m counting on you, Joe! Show me a spectacular victory like you always do!”.

Joe’s smile deepened as he simply raised a hand in the air

Then, he left their formation with an air of composure and trotted up to the center point between the two armies

He looked back at Rain, who was staring deeply at him, and raised his voice

“I speak to Sir Rain . I, Joe Lamberck, request a duel!!”.

His reply came a beat later

Rain came galloping at full speed on his white horse . There was no hesitation in his eyes as he held onto the reins and sped over while looking at Joe with a gaze that seemed to shoot through him

Still, what’s with that horse’s speed? It’s running over so lightly, as if it was a single ray of light cutting through the plains .  Even Joe had never before seen a horse so fine or fast

Besides, the sight of Rain galloping forth across the earth as one with his horse with pike in hand was beautiful enough to draw sighs from those who saw him…….

Rain pressed in close during the brief moment of Joe’s admiration

He lifted up his large pike and quickly took an offensive stance

“——! You’re here!”.

“Did you really think that I’d ignore your challenge and run away?!”.

Rain thrust forth his pike with a violent rebuke

He attempted to skewer his opponent’s torso with such speed that even Joe couldn’t see him clearly with his dynamic vision

Does this man truly wish for peace?!.

Did I read him wrong——? Rain’s attack had been so merciless that Joe could not help but think so

If anyone other than Joe had been his opponent, they would have failed to either catch or dodge his attack and would have undoubtedly perished on the spot

Still, Joe, like Rain, was no ordinary warrior

Even now, Joe followed his instincts and not his eyes

Joe dodged instantaneously by turning his upper body and simultaneously thrust out his own pike

Two streaks of blood danced under the clear blue sky . Rain’s attack had grazed the side of Joe’s neck, while Joe’s pike had grazed Rain’s arms

Then, before their blood could hit the ground, their horses clashed with brute vigor

Joe’s favorited horse failed to withstand the collision and collapsed on its side

Joe let go of his pike and leapt before his horse fell and twisted his body mid-air to land

He promptly drew his katana and braced himself for his opponent’s attack

However, Rain did not insist on keeping either his advantage on horseback or with his pike . He returned his pike to his saddle and climbed jumped down to the ground of his own accord without any hint of lingering attachment

He swiftly drew his magic sword

The infamous “Siren’s Blade”, which radiated with an ominous blue light

“It’s only fitting that a fight between us is settled with our swords, yeah?”.

“To think that you’d abandon your advantage of your own accord . Will you insist over your obsession on having a fair match to the very end, Rain? Just what on earth drives you to fight so much?”.

“Useless meddling will only shorten your lifespan!”.

His words, advance, and attack were executed concurrently with no delay in between them

He stirred up a wind and brought his magic sword down into a diagonal blow in less than a moment

Joe deftly maneuvered his body and whipped his katana at his opponent’s torso . His blade, covered in a pure white aura, chased after Rain while leaving behind a trail of light

The thought of going easy never crossed his mind . If he did, then he would likely be the one to suffer an attack

As he’d planned, Joe’s katana zeroed in on Rain’s moving torso

However, Rain maneuvered his body while allowing the attack to graze him and moved into an unpredictable attack . He changed his posture and, after bending his upper body halfway into a somersault, released a roundhouse kick in the blink of an eye

He had changed his posture from his insane position as lithely and as magnificently as an acrobat

Joe, however, dodged the attack by immediately jumping over it . Then, without a moment’s rest, he quickly stepped back in and rotated his body, causing his silver hair to flutter behind him

He beat down a silver streak of light at Rain’s neck

 .

Claaaang!.

Crackle crackle crackle!.

 .

Joe’s katana and Rain’s magic sword clashed violently and crackled audibly . They visibly scattered grandiose sparks into the surrounding area even under broad daylight

Then, Rain raised his knee with terrifying speed and aimed it at Joe’s solar plexus

“——! Mph!”.

Joe quickly brought up his own knee to parry his opponent’s attack . They both jumped back after their knees hit each other’s

“……Our sword skills are about on par, I think?”.

Joe stopped moving for a moment and whispered, prompting Rain to answer in a tone filled with his steadfast self-confidence

“You’re too easy on yourself, Joe . There isn’t anyone in this world who’s stronger than me, you hear? Your defeat was already decided the moment we first locked swords in this duel!”.

He dashed forward fiercely as he spoke his arrogant words

He raised his magic sword above Joe’s head with extreme speed

His movements did not decline in the slightest . Not only that, but his speed had increased since the start of their duel and he was overflowing with power

“——!!”.

Joe just barely met the attack with his katana, but he staggered when the overbearingly heavy attack sent a shock up his arms . The numbness remained in both of his arms, even if only for a second

(Even if he’s a Dragon Slayer—— . He surpasses me in physical strength?!).

“What’s the matter, Joe?! Your movements are getting dull!”.

Rain raised his repelled sword once more and dished out an attack that looked like a shower of bluish-white light

The trails left behind by his sword blurred, and even a man on Joe’s caliber could not keep up with the speed of Rain’s attack, which created countless afterimages in its wake

Joe had been pressed into a purely defensive battle, even if only temporarily

Rain refused to relent and pushed forward while concentrating only on his offense

It was his distinctive strategy —piling on attack upon attack to the point that it was Spartan— that no proper swordsman would ever think to use

It almost looked like he had abandoned his defenses from the get go . This wasn’t true, of course, but it was certain that he would step in as long as he would only suffer minor scratches and single-mindedly go deeper into the offense

And with abnormal speed to boot

 .

Clack!!.

 .

“——! Mph!”.

Joe’s defenses, prided as an impenetrable fortress, finally crumbled as a warped sound rang out . He had failed to properly parry Rain’s magic sword as it drew an arc diagonally upwards from below and his katana had been forcefully repelled . Joe’s body tilted unsteadily as a result

It was only a tiny opening——perhaps only a hundredth of a second long

Rain, however, did not let this opening escape him . He swiftly lowered his body and leapt for Joe’s bosom like a magnet being pulled toward another . His outstretched magic sword —its blade of bluish-white light— was thrust straight toward Joe’s chest

Joe immediately thrust out his hand and released his magic on full throttle

“Light!”.

“Ugh!”.

Even Rain had not predicted this turn of events

He was hit with a magical attack from point blank and was blasted away far into the yonder

 .

Joe heard girls screaming from afar

Joe had no way of knowing this, but those ear-splitting screams had belonged to Selphie and Senoa, the aide

Senoa had brought up her hands to her mouth like an ordinary young girl for once, whereas Selphie had, characteristically, grabbed Yuri, who was standing next to her, by the shoulders and was shaking her furiously

“L, Lord Rain is…! Lord Raaaaaaain!”.

“Daaah! He’s fine, so let go of me! Did you forget, Selphie? The Geeneral has that thing——”.

Shelfa alone was quietly watching over the fight with her hands clasped in front of her chest

 .

Joe, naturally, could not maintain his calm either

“——! What have I done?!”.

He immediately regretted his actions for a moment

He had not meant to use magic . But, his instincts as a warrior had sensed danger for the first time in a truly long while because his opponent was so strong . And then, he had unwittingly ended up using magic——.

Joe was about to run up to confirm his opponent’s safety

Unfortunately, however, he had been too quick to worry about his enemy . Rain sprang right back up as hale and hearty as ever

There was a faint trace of a rainbow-colored light around his body

“Is that the anti-magic field that dragons are said to possess?!”.

Joe murmured with his eyes open wide

He had known that the ability existed, but this was the first time that he had seen it with his own eyes . Evidently, his worry had been nothing more than unnecessary meddling

“Is that all you’ve got?! That was weak, Joe!”.

Joe had no way of knowing how Rain was actually faring, but the latter didn’t seem to have taken any particular damage on the outside . Rain continued,.

“if you wanna defeat me, then you’ll at least have to bring out something like this!”.

Multiple fist-sized balls of orange light appeared around Rain as he spoke . They revolved around him, increasing in number as they did, and flickered repeatedly

Then, once the countless beams of light intersected and gathered above his head, Rain swiftly raised a hand and pointed at Joe

“——Go!”.

All of the balls of light immediately rushed at Joe . Each and every ball of light was as a wave of energy created by a colossal amount of magic with trails of light following behind them

“Mph!”.

Joe spread out his hands and promptly put up a shield around himself

The balls of light crashed against it one after another and created a thunderous chain of large explosions

The overwhelming blasts of light, bright enough to out-shine the sun, burst against the surface of the shield . The violently exploding bursts of magical light blinded him and the aftershocks of their clashes against his shield shook even the earth itself

The attack seemed to go on forever with no end in sight . The entirety of Joe’s translucent shield blurred and was on the brink of shattering from the impact of exceeding its limits

“——Kugh! This magic, and it’s power! I can’t defend against it even with a magic shield? In that case…!”.

Joe gathered his willpower and grit his teeth

“Flames!”.

A gigantic vortex of flames immediately stirred up with Joe at its center

Joe suppressed Rain’s magical attack for a brief moment by bringing forth his own blaze . Taking advantage of that opening, he jumped back to avoid the rest of Rain’s attack

Their magic converged where Joe had been standing just moments before and bore deeply into the earth

Then, they brandished their swords once more and were on the verge of charging toward each other again

——But just then

 .

“Hold! Both of you, hoooooooooold!!”.

 .

With a loud cry, Folnier had personally jumped in between them on her horse to restrain them

She had wedged herself in between them just as they were about to clash just as she had done previously

“……Lady Fol . ”.

Joe immediately sheathed his sword and bowed

He had cooled down completly upon seeing her

To think that I would lose my head over Rain——over how strong he is

We were in danger of making peace impossible if one of us died

No——it’s possible that the one knocking on death’s door was…… Joe shook his head lightly and greeted Folnier, who was climbing down from her horse

 .

~~*~~*~~*~~.

 .

Rain shrugged and re-sheathed his own sword after seeing Joe put away his

Joe was strong even according to Rain’s standards, and Rain thought that things could have gotten dangerous if they had continued

Only, by ‘dangerous,’ he meant that he ‘could have accidentally defeated Joe . ’ Rain intended to stop himself at the very last moment, but he might not have been able to go through with that because his opponent was strong

Or, in the worst-case scenario, they could have both ended up dead

Neither swordsman had noticed, but both armies had been watching over them in complete silence . And, both armies had expressed an air of relief when Folnier interrupted their fight

Not to mention that the Little one——Princess Shelfa, Rain’s liege, had somehow persuaded her horse to bring her to the very front of the vanguard of her allies despite the fact that she had been at the rear up until then and was staring at them

Shelfa hadn’t looked particularly concerned because she had known about Rain’s defensive field . She was simply looking at Rain in earnest . Like she always did

Rather, now that her gaze had met Rain’s, she was waving at him with great delight . She was waving furiously, as if she was stretching atop her horse

Shelfa had apparently been blessed with good vision, much like Rain

——Hold on

The Little Lady is being unreasonable, even if Leni and Gazaram are with her, Rain thought

What’s she planning to do if the enemy shoots at her or something now that she’s all the way out in the front?.

Shelfa kept her cheer as Rain looked on at her in exasperation and continued to wave at him tirelessly without end . Then, her smile suddenly turned into an expression of sorrow . Rain tilted his head to the side

Oh, she thinks I’m ignoring her

Finally realizing her plight, Rain languidly waved back as his lips twisted into a wry smile . He gave her an extra freebie and waved back at her twice

In return, she immediately returned to looking delighted again

It was ridiculous……but it wasn’t a bad feeling

“Sir Rain!”.

Folnier called out to him out of the blue

It seemed that she was done talking to Joe

“What’s up?”.

“It was worth seeing an impressive fight between two excellent swordsmen . But—— . Why don’t we end it here?”.

Her eyes looked like they were searching for something

But, unfortunately for her, Rain’s expressions didn’t change in the slightest . If she thought that he would come to her with his tail wagging, that it was just too bad for her

“I never cared either way to begin with,”.

Rain said while maintaining his cool . He leaned back against Kris, who was looking bored, and looked at both Joe and Folnier equally with narrowed eyes . He continued,.

“I’m okay with fighting you guys, and I’m okay with not fighting too . But I’d rather you don’t forget . Other than the Princess, the rest of us are here because we had to be . If anyone’s gonna make a decision, it should be you guys . ”.

Folnier wasn’t very deeply impressed by his words

Her expression turned grim again and she began to whisper something to Joe

Rain, however, had no intent on conceding anything at this point . He absolutely refused to concede, even if it meant that he was being pointlessly obstinate

He would have Chandrys, the invaders, be the first ones to bring peace to the table . He couldn’t have Sunkwoll be taken lightly if he was to take their future perspective alliance into consideration . He would take the opportunity to force Folnier to give up the attitude that stemmed from the fact that Chandrys was a large and mighty nation

There was no point in forging an alliance if the two countries weren’t on equal terms

——And, with that as his underlying motive, Rain looked up to the blue sky and purposefully whispered, “Man~, the weather’s great today,” with an air of nonchalance

Meanwhile, Ralphus and Shelfa, along with Leni and the others, had left their formation to come up to him, perhaps out of worry

Joe and Folnier had finished their discussion by the time that Rain had finished explaining the details to them

Folnier then turned to Joe and said,.

“have all armies observe the progress of our negotiations through Magic Vision . ”.

Such were her orders

“……Are you certain you wish to do this?”.

“Yeah . I’m sure they’ll all want to know . ”.

Folnier nodded

Ultimately, a large screen of Magic Vision was cast before both armies to broadcast their negotiations with Rain’s party without the latter’s consent

Then, Folnier turned back to Rain

“……You’re quite the impudent man as well . I was willing to fold with just one word from you . Have you no intent on saying it?”.

Rain stared deeply into Folnier’s eyes

“I guess there’s some truth in saying we should put aside our silly pride to prepare for the great wars to come . But I still think that everyone should take at least the bare minimum of responsibility for what they’ve done . You were the ones who started this meaningless war to begin with . You should be the ones to put an end to it too . Sunkwoll might be nothing but a weak little bug in terms of national might……but they say that even the weakest of bugs can kill the soul, y’know?”1.

“I have never heard anyone say that before, ever . ”.

Folnier looked up at Rain in a provoking manner

Then, she cast a side-eye at Shelfa and continued,.

“……now that I think about it, isn’t it strange that I’m negotiating things with you? After all, Princess Shelfa is here with us as well . ”.

“Unfortunately, it’s Ralphus’ and my job to deal with anything concerning war and negotiations at the moment . The Princess’ role as our liege is to make the final call . After that, we’ll be negotiating with you in accordance to her decisions . ……It’s not all that strange, is it?”.

Rain replied readily and continued,.

“and let me answer your next question too while I’m at it . Right now, the Princess has only just stepped out into the large world known as the public . She has obviously great aptitude as a ruler, but it’s only natural that it’ll take some time before she grows into the role . There’s no shame in receiving aid from her retainers when she needs it until her natural talents fully blossom . ”.

“……You say that Princess Shelfa has great aptitude as a ruler . What is your basis for this?”.

“Do I need to spell it out? Her aptitude is obvious from the fact that Ralphus and I have offered her our vassalage from the bottom of our hearts . ”.

And my vassalage, in particular, Rain added as he calmly pointed at himself

He boldly thrust out his chest and boasted,.

“a ruler’s capacity can be measured by the quality of their retainers . Ralphus’ popularity and capability, and my genius (he was extremely serious as he said this) . The Princess doesn’t envy either of our abilities and has always entrusted us with her wholehearted faith . Do you think that’d be possible from anyone with lesser aptitude? Or, are you trying to say that Ralphus and I are blind?”.

Princess Shelfa, whom Rain had been boasting about, opened her eyes wide, flustered, at Rain and Folnier’s war of words

Rain’s declaration just now had been composed of his true opinions, but, unfortunately, Shelfa didn’t currently look the part enough to make his words sound very persuasive . And Shelfa knew this

Sure enough, Folnier looked truly dubious as she examined Shelfa carefully from head to toe

Ultimately, she said,.

“……I don’t believe you . I don’t believe that she has any noteworthy abilities to her name other than her beauty . In the end, she’s simply relying on you for everything, is she not?”.

 .

“Hey, wait a sec!”.

“Please hold a moment!”.

 .

Rain and Ralphus spat out oddly similar words and had stepped forward at the same time

They exchanged glances and Rain conceded . He and Ralphus wanted to say the same thing anyhow

Ralphus placed a hand on his magic sword, Justice, and said,.

“to disgrace our liege is to disgrace us, her retainers, as well . I cannot overlook what you’ve just said!”.

He was glaring sharply at Folnier

He glared at her with his rumored stern eyes that could make his opponent straighten their posture with just his gaze

“I ask this of you, Lady Folnier Lucida Chandrys! Are you so capable that your talents surpass even that of Sir Joe Lamberck standing over there? Can you assert that your leadership is always correct, that you have never once been saved by his counsel? Answer carefully . If there are any falsehoods in your reply, I’ll have your head here and now!”.

Joe had tried to step in front of Folnier just then, prompting Rain to shout,.

“don’t move, Joe! I’m within drawing distance from Folnier right now . I can kill her with my sword faster than you can move! Don’t you dare think I’m not being serious!”.

Joe stopped in his tracks

Instead, he placed a hand on his own sword and kept his posture so that he could leap out at a moment’s notice . And yet, there was no bloodlust in his eyes as he looked at Ralphus, but rather only a gentle light

However, Ralphus, the man in question, never spared Joe a second glance and solemnly gazed only at Folnier

The man named Ralphus Juliard Sunkwoll was always serious at times like these . He was a man unknown to inappropriate jokes or gambling . He would cut Folnier down without fail, depending on her answer, now that he said he would, no matter how disadvantageous his actions would prove to be in the future

Folnier had undoubtedly provoked his imperial wrath . Rain felt the same way as Ralphus, of course . As a tactician, he knew that he should stop and reprimand his friend, but at the moment, Rain wanted to exercise his obstinacy alongside him . In the end, he felt that he was surely more of a reckless warrior than a tactician at heart——and he was right

The soldiers of both armies, who had their eyes glued on the Magic Vision screens, began to stir . Would there be war……? They had reached a critical point in the negotiations

 .

A mere few seconds stretched on horribly for Rain and the others

 .

The scales of history were tilting at this very moment

Folnier braced herself and looked away a short moment later . She looked considerably vexed, but she admitted to her mistake all the same

“It’s true that Joe’s helped me out multiple times in the past and that I seek out his advice . I am in the same shoes as Lady Shelfa in this regard . ……I take back what I said earlier . As such, I am sorry . ”.

She bowed her head a little to Shelfa

Ralphus returned his gaze to Folnier after he confirmed that Shelfa had shaken her head vigorously to indicate that she didn’t mind in the slightest . He took his hand off his sword and returned to where he had been standing previously

“I, too, must apologize for my insolence . ”.

Ralphus bowed deeply as he spoke in a tone that retained none of his previously explosive emotions . He returned to his usual quiet demeanor and urged Rain to continue with his eyes

It was basically ‘that’

It was his way of notifying Rain to continue with the negotiations now that things had been settled

 .

——What, is it my job to do all the boring stuff now?.

 .

Rain shelved the fact that he had drawn a ton of attention to himself just moments ago and scowled

Even still, he turned to confront Folnier again

“And so, that brings us back to square one . ”.

He summarized everything readily because it was too much of a hassle to do otherwise . Then, he continued,.

“and it’s not like we can stick it out here until the sun goes down . Why don’t you tell us what you want to do?”.

Folnier sullenly kept her silence

She was angry at what Ralphus had said, but she was also reluctantly impressed with him at the same time . The way she looked at Ralphus had visibly changed

However, she still wasn’t up to honestly bring peace to the table——or something like that

She’s such a handful

Then, Shelfa, who had been docile until now, timidly cut in

“……Um…”.

Everyone immediately turned to Shelfa as one

Unwillingly showered by the brunt of their gazes, Shelfa sounded flustered as she said, “Um, can’t we stop the fighting? I don’t think that there’s any reason for us to fight . ……I think there is something wrong about starting a war and causing many people to die because of it . ”.

She stuttered a little, but she was doing her very best

And lo and behold—— . Both enemies and allies alike were stunned into silence

From Rain’s point of view, Shelfa’s words had not been born of any stubborn adherence to the boring calculation of interests and had won her the support of the common soldiers . It was obvious that the once bloodthirsty mood in the air had changed completely as well

But, Rain, who had been fighting a tough war of words until then, had no choice but to smile wryly . Diplomatically speaking, he felt that her words had been far too honest

There were times, of course, when an honest attitude bore more fruit . For example, it would have been the correct way of dealing with a king with Ralphus’ personality (if such a king even existed)

But as for Folnier——.

Rain’s apprehensions were on the mark

Folnier’s smartly beautiful face crumpled into a frown as if to say, “How naïve of you,” with her eyes

Unfortunately, Shelfa’s gracious proposal had failed to leave a deep impression on her

She opened her mouth to say something, but then closed her mouth again upon changing her mind

A mischievous smile graced her visage when she opened her captivating lips again

“——I see, there is some merit to your words . Then why don’t we do this? I don’t necessarily want for war either . And so, I want you to show me your aptitude as a ruler that Sir Rain vouches so strongly for, and I will choose for peace if I am satisfied by what I see . No——rather, I wish to join an alliance with you as heartened friends, as was our original intent . ”.

“Truly?!”.

Shelfa clasped her slender hands in front of her chest in excitement where she stood

She had naturally not forgotten how Rain had told her that their policy was to “achieve peace with the ultimate goal of forging an alliance on top of that” when he asked her to approve of it

She was probably thinking about how things would splendidly go just as Rain wanted them to

Her expression brightened

“I, too, think that will be for the best!”.

She said with a cheerful grin

Then, she tilted her head a little to the side and asked,.

“but, um……how do I show you my aptitude?”.

 .

This is bad!.

 .

thought Rain, who was not as honest as his liege

There was no way that the obstinate Folnier would fold so easily . In other words, she had to have an ulterior motive

Folnier looked at Rain in his worry with irony in her eyes and said,.

“what, it’s no big deal . It’s actually rather simple . That being said——”.

 .

As Rain had predicted, the selfish empress proposed something truly preposterous with her hand placed proudly at her waist

 .

~~*~~*~~*~~.

 .

Rain was the only one to disapprove of Folnier’s proposal for some reason

What she proposed was dangerous no matter how he looked at it, but everybody, including Shelfa herself, and even Ralphus, whom Rain had thought would be the first to oppose, readily agreed to it

Rain asked Ralphus about it after everyone except Joe, Folnier, and Shelfa had backed away . It was only natural that he did

“Hey . What’s the meaning of this? Why didn’t you stop them?”.

“Where was the need to? This is easy enough, if it means that we can achieve both peace and an alliance with this . ”.

Damnit, did he eat a rotten egg as a snack and let it affect his head or something?.

Rain seriously thought this for a moment as he stared at his friend so hard that he could have bored holes into the latter’s face

Ralphus broke into a smile as if he was having fun

“What’s with that look on your face, this isn’t like you at all . I guess there are some things you just can’t understand no matter how wise you are . ”.

“You——”.

“Well, it’s just as Lord Ralphus says . It’ll be fine since you yourself vouched for it, General . ”.

Leni, who had a look that said, “Ahh, there’ll be war if things go poorly! I……I’m terrified!” on his face just moments earlier spurted some nonsense . Not only that, but Gazaram and Senoa were also nodding at his side

To think that they’d also join in on this bet, putting Gwen and Nigel aside because they were Ralphus’ followers

“……Were you guys not listening to anything I said? It’s true that I haven’t seen him cast it yet, but I know about the spell itself . It’s a fairly complete spell, meaning that you can’t take it lightly . It wouldn’t work on me, of course, but it’s an easy one-way ticket to Hades for the likes of you . ”.

“But, if the spell works like how you said it will, General, I don’t think it’ll affect the Princess either,”.

said Gazaram with an annoying boost of confidence

 .

“Shall we begin?”.

 .

Everyone other than Rain nodded with Joe called out

Even Shelfa

Rather, she had been the first to reply, “Yes . ” ——And with a smile to boot

Unable to hold it in any longer, Rain walked up to Shelfa in long strides and whispered in her ear

“Hey, Little one, you sure you aren’t overdoing it? We can still stop . I can refuse for you, if you’d like . ”.

Shelfa looked deeply into Rain’s eyes

“I have faith in you, Rain…… I’ll be all right since you vouched for me . ”.

“I’ll vouch for you as many times as you want me to . ——But still…”.

“Then everything will be fine, truly…… . Oh, but…”.

Shelfa looked to Rain after having thought up of something good . She continued,.

“if you’re still worried for me, then would you……ki, kiss me please? I’m sure it’ll cheer me right up!”.

 .

What, just what are you saying!?.

 .

Rain looked at Shelfa in exasperation

To begin with——.

How cheerful one was or wasn’t had no bearing on this test . Regardless if she was healthy, sickly, half-asleep, or even hale and hearty, Shelfa would die if her confidence was misplaced

Shelfa, however, was looking up at Rain with her face brimming with expectation . Her cheeks were flushed red as she awaited his response with her hands clasped against her chest

Rain bent over and lowered his voice

“Everyone’ll be watching if we kiss . That okay with you?”.

“——Well…”.

Shelfa looked……as if he’d just reminded her of this fact

Still, all she did was blink her sapphire eyes a few times before replying without any sign of agitation

“……I’ll be a little embarrassed, but I’m all right with that . Um, is that bad?”.

 .

Yes, it is, more so than you can ever imagine!.

 .

Rain swallowed down his words before they made it out of his mouth . She would gradually gain a sense of “a ruler’s consideration for her place” one day (he hoped)

“……Well, how about this? I’ll give you a proper kiss another day, and I’ll kiss you so much that your lips will get swollen . ”.

——So bear with it for now

Rain spoke, recalling way too late that it was a terrible idea to run jokes of this nature by her, causing Shelfa to suddenly stop whispering and raise her voice as loud as it would go

“Truly?! You’ll really do this for me?!”.

 .

——Do this for her?.

——Just what are you gonna do for her?!.

 .

Rain felt like jealous gazes were flooding him from all directions

“Well, let’s talk about this some other time . Are you sure you understand that your life is on the line right now?”.

“Like I’ve said, I will be just fine . I’d actually rather be talking about this instead . And you still haven’t fulfilled your promise about kissing me all over the place in the baths yet……”.

Shelfa pouted a little with upturned eyes

Rain thought that she had great memory of all the things she didn’t need to remember . He would endeavor not to say anything unnecessary to her from now on . He’d promised himself something similar a number of times before, but history always had a way of repeating itself for some reason

He let out a small sigh and knelt before Shelfa on one knee

Then, he took the petite white hand before his eyes

“Make do with this for now, alright?”.

He planted a kiss on the back of his sulking princess’ hand . He’d never thought that he’d ever give a lady such a proper, knightly kiss in his life, but–—.

Life apparently had other plans for him

“……Oh!”.

Shelfa’s cheeks lit up bright red again . Her mood appeared to have recovered, at the very least

“That spell is designed to directly attack its opponent’s ——that’s you in this case—— heart . It’s actually a fake attack, but your heart will make it real . That’s why the spell will lose effect as long as you don’t believe in it . Do you understand?”.

“I’ll be all right since you vouched for me, Rain . ”.

Shelfa patiently repeated herself like a mother explaining things to a dull-witted young child

To begin with, she was more concerned with the fact that Rain had been so quick to let go of her hand and raised her hand to him once again in her reluctance to part with him

Rain saw her do it, but intentionally stood up and turned resolutely to Folnier and Joe

“Wait here for a bit . There’s something I wanna say to them . ”.

 .

 .

Their conversation finally concluded as Folnier waited patiently and Rain began to walk toward them——alone, for some reason

“She’s ready……I think . You can start . ”.

He nodded arrogantly, as was characteristic of him

In the lieu of a reply, Joe began to concentrate as he prepared the spell

Yet——.

Rain, who had begun walking away, turn around once again and looked not to Joe but to Folnier

Then, he began to whisper in a low voice that the onlooking princess could not hear

“……This was all a result of my failures . I don’t have any other choice but to place my bets now . But if this test ends in my failure as well—— . Then I’ll have you prepare yourself for what comes next . ”.

He wore not his usual brazen smile brimming with self-confidence, but a composed expression that was as calm as stilled waters . Folnier felt that there was an endless abyss of sorrow in his black eyes

Perhaps this is the man’s true nature

Folnier, at least, thought it was thus

And this sense of intimidation……I feel this bottomless fear just because he’s looking at me .  An instinctual fear that seemed to lower her body temperature by several degrees at once began at the soles of her feet and ran up her spine . She had come to understand the greatness of Rain’s fighting spirit only now that it was pointed directly at her

Still, Folnier mustered up her spirit and replied,.

“Are——you trying to threaten me?”.

“A threat, you say?”.

Rain replied, still as quietly as ever . He continued,.

“threats are usually made when you don’t actually have the intent to see them through . But unfortunately for you, I’m dead serious . I’ll pray, for your sake as well . I don’t believe in any gods, but just in case . ”.

He swiftly lowered his hand and rested it on the hilt of his sword

“The “Siren’s Blade” is infamous to the whole world . Once long ago, it was said to have sacrificed a thousand lives when it massacred the people of Celestia…… . I don’t know how much of a warrior the crazed man who wielded it was, but what do you think will happen……if I decide to bring out its full potential?”.

Folnier was unable to reply this time around . She had thought that the man before her was fundamentally a tactician at heart, but she now knew that she had been naïve in her readings of him

It was possible that he would move without taking any calculation of interest into account if it came to the eleventh hour . To be frank, she no longer knew if this test was the right thing to do or not . Then, as if to make his point doubly sure, Rain declared,.

“mark my words……if anything happens, I’ll drown the entire Chandrys army into a sea of blood . ”.

A chill ran up her back

His declaration had been so threatening that even Folnier, as unyielding as she was, took a step back . She had not intended to, but she ended up convinced……that the man before her would really do as he promised

 .

Then, Rain’s fighting spirit suddenly abated

He promptly wiped away the shadowed expression off his face when Princess Shelfa, who had grown tired of waiting, tottered over to where they were (in other words, when she had come close enough to hear their conversation)

He smiled a refreshing smile that seemed to forcefully assert, “I can’t kill even one little bug!” and said, “Well, that’s how it is . G’day to you . ”.

He made to walk away after one-sidedly cutting off their conversation

“Rain!”.

Joe called to his retreating figure

“What?”.

“I believe that your princess holds a lot of faith in you . Why don’t you open up your heart to her a little——”.

“Yeah~, I don’t need your nagging . ”.

Rain scowled and waved his hand . He continued,.

“is this the power of lineage too? You’re way too similar to Ralphus . ”.

Rain’s words made even Joe’s heart skip a beat . Evidentially, he had already seen through the relation

“Besides, I don’t have the right to earn someone else’s faith or be liked by——”.

Rain saw Shelfa’s face mid-sentence and cleared his throat

“Anyway, just start already . ”.

This time, he finally returned to where his troubled comrades were waiting for good

Folnier exchanged looks with Joe and let out a soft sigh

“……A dangerous man, that one . ”.

“Indeed . I’d hate to make him my enemy . ”.

Then, someone cut in,.

“Rain is a very kind person!”.

Both Folnier and Joe blinked

When Folnier turned to see who it was, she found that the Princess was looking up at them from nearby . She had been around too, now that Folnier thought about it

The Princess’ eyes glistened like that of a fanatic believer of “the Church of Rain” as she repeated,.

“Rain is easy to misunderstand in many ways . But actually, he is a very, very kind person . ”.

She was truly evangelizing with all her might

Folnier understood from the girl’s passionate and dreamy tone that she had absolute confidence in her convictions

The girl before her probably wouldn’t change her mind even if Folnier told her, “This supposedly kind man just told me, “Hey, you better prepare yourself in anything happens, you know?”” Instead, she’d likely reply, “Rain did that for me……?” with deep emotion

And, while this was also just an assumption——.

Folnier felt like even she, as skeptical as she was, would end up saying, “I’ll follow Lord Rain forever!” if she were ever locked up in a room with Shelfa for an entire day and made to listen to the latter sing Rain’s praises with the same zeal that she held now

The Princess’ words were simply that persuasive

Folnier looked down at the Princess for a brief moment before rubbing her temple (her head had started to hurt) and waving to Joe

“——Let’s begin already . ”.

 .

 .

Joe closed his eyes and began to concentrate while Rain looked on at him from where Ralphus and the others were

Rain was fretfully anxious underneath his calm visage, and it didn’t help that the enemy brought forth something ridiculous either

Something huge abruptly materialized after the atmospher shimmered…… Coarse body hair peeked through the gaps in the crude hemp cloth it donned for clothes

But its head was bald and shiny despite that, and it carried a spiked log club . The club itself was about the size of a fully-grown adult human

Its entire figure was nearly ten meters tall——.

It was a member of a species that had gone extinct ages ago——a giant

They were said to be much closer to humans than the monsters that lived deep in the woods, but most people were still repulsed by them . In fact, while Rain didn’t really think much about it, Leni, Senoa, and the others had subconsciously taken a step back away from it

Rain found it strange that they all had their hands over their noses and mouths and asked,.

“what is it?”.

“You can’t tell?”.

Leni looked incredulous as he asked . He continued,.

“the stench is horrible! It’s like you took the body odor of a middle-aged man who hadn’t bathed in about a year and concentrated it even further . The smell’s just so bad——”.

“Yep, that sounds horrible . ”.

Rain said as he looked over cynically at Leni and the others . He continued,.

“congrats . All of you are already half-trapped in Joe’s spell . Aren’t you glad you aren’t the person being tested?”.

This is why I was so against this

After Rain finished grumbling, Ralphus asked,.

“that’s an illusion?”.

“It is . I won’t be tricked by it . It’s just an illusion no matter how well it’s been recreated . The smell too, of course . If you guys can smell body odor that shouldn’t be there, then that means that you already believe that it really exists . That thing’s attacks will start taking effect next once the spell moves on to the next stage . I told you before . It’s no one else but your own heart that’ll make the fake attacks real . ”.

“That’s quite something,”.

Ralphus whispered before nodding deeply . He continued,.

“——hmm . Most of the stench disappeared after hearing your explanation . ”.

“Wait, seriously?”.

Rain looked dubiously to his friend before he knew it . It was certainly true that the magic would lose its effects the moment you believed that it was just an illusion . But all things regardless, was it really possible to simply believe it just like that? Senoa and the others were still frowning with their hands over their noses even now . No, wait, Senoa just removed her hand

Whatever, these guys aren’t that important right now

Rain faced forward again and purposefully allowed the spell to work on him

The giant’s sweaty skin glistened as it stared down at Shelfa with clouded yellow eyes . A low growl that sounded exactly like distant thunder leaked out from its enormous cracked lips

He even heard a small noise as the giant readjusted its grip on its club . Joe’s spell was truly a detailed work of art

Shelfa turned around at the end of Rain’s gaze . She was looking deeply at him . She wasn’t holding her nose

She cupped her hands in front of her mouth and yelled

 .

“Mr . Giant here is an illusion, yes? It’s not actually there?”.

 .

“That’s correct!”.

Rain immediately yelled back

He adjusted his tone so that he would sound composed and confident . It was quite difficult, considering the circumstances

“Even if you hear its footsteps, even if you hear it growl, or even if it smells—— . All of it is a deception made from magic . As long as you understand that it’s an illusion, you absolutely won’t be affected by it any more than that . I’m well-versed in magic—please trust me on this, even if only for now!”.

His last few words sounded like a plea . There was nothing close to confidence in them.

And Shelfa——.

Shelfa smiled back at Rain with a complicated smile on her face—one that was a little lonely and yet ever so slightly pouty

“Someday——”.

she said before looking to Ralphus and the rest behind Rain

She stopped speaking normally and continued the rest in a sigh of a whisper that no one else could hear

However, Rain, who had superhuman hearing, could hear every word she said

 .

“Someday—— . May these feelings of mine reach you, Rain……”.

 .

She turned back around once the whisper had left her lips

The giant let out an outraged howl as if it had been waiting for her and raised its foot . It meant to stomp down on Shelfa . ——Rain’s comrades stirred

Gwen let out a grim, “Y, Your Highness!” from somewhere in the back

Naturally, a silent scream arose from both armies as well

Rain clenched his teeth and subconsciously put a hand on the hilt of his magic sword . Then, the area around Shelfa suddenly went dark . The stupidly large foot had blocked out the sun . Shelfa, however, simply raised her arms a little and made no motion to evade it . From behind, he could see that she was looking up at the giant’s oncoming foot, but it was impossible to know what expression she was making on her face as she did

But Rain thought that the Little one had probably kept her smile . No, he was sure of this

 .

The foot came crashing down with a tremendous noise as Shelfa disappeared from view

↑ Rain misspeaks an idiom here . The original idiom, “五分試し (gobu dameshi),” means “killing by inches/progressively torturing to death . ” What Rain actually says, however, is “五分の魂 (gobu no tamashii),” which translates literally to “a soul of five parts/one-half . ” It is in character for Rain to misspeak some idioms, as he’s done it before and other characters (namely Yuri in vol . 1) have pointed out that he occasionally says things that sound strange . It is my personal interpretation that Rain’s slip of tongue here is supposed to belie his composure in this scene

Chapter end