“Are you feeling better?”
Pastel looked over Melissa, who had drunk the emergency antidote.
“The pain relief is quick and effective. My worsening injury should be calmed down for a bit. I should be able to meet the medical team like this.”
Melissa touched her chest and replied softly. Then she smiled slightly.
“Pastel, you have an excellent talent for alchemy. Or maybe you’re just great at acquiring related trading guilds.”
Ugh.
How completely calm.
To be so composed in self-reflection even after inhaling poison gas.
Is this really the heir of the Southern Commander?
I can’t keep up with pastel pink Pastel.
Melissa pointed beyond the purple poisonous gas mist. The obscured area was shrouded in mist, and gunfire echoed from within where visibility was zero.
“I’m fine, so go help Belamont. It doesn’t sound like a good situation with all that commotion.”
Pastel shook her head.
“Objectively speaking, the situation with Belamont isn’t urgent. I think we should evacuate you first before heading over.”
‘Immediately after the gunfire, the sound of spear blades deflecting bullets sporadically echoes. Given the consistent intervals between bullet and spear sounds, the distance bullets are flying remains constant. There’s a clear stalemate where neither side is closing the distance nor pulling apart.’
The demon deduced the situation just from the sounds beyond the gas.
‘Even if it’s a premeditated murder plan, killing a minor noble isn’t easy. The terrorists are surrounding the duke’s daughter, buying time to intoxicate her with gas. It’s not like they’re knight-level immunity against the gas, so it will take some time, but it’s a sure method.’
What a reliable demon.
“Huh?”
Melissa cocked her head.
An innocent reaction typical of a wizard not sensitive to their surroundings.
Pastel made a gesture to listen closely and then confidently explained.
“My smart deduction tells me that the sounds we hear indicate a stalemate. Since Elshire is strong, the terrorists can’t do anything and are just containing her. They want to deal a critical blow with a gas attack.”
Melissa’s mouth dropped slightly.
“You can tell such things? I can’t imagine how hard you must have worked.”
It was a look that acknowledged she had fallen behind Pastel in grades throughout the semester.
“Of course! That’s not all I know!”
Pastel added extra comforting words while sitting Melissa on the broom.
Melissa’s eyes widened.
“You mean you can deduce something else in this situation?”
“Yup! I’m smart!”
“What kind of deduction?”
“Well, um….”
Thinking, Pastel rolled her eyes. Then she desperately glanced at the magic sword at her waist.
Demon! Demon!
‘Why are you looking at me?’
Hurry! Hurry!
‘Hmm.’
Melissa, awkwardly positioned at the back of the broom, looked on curiously.
“What kind of deduction?”
Uh-oh.
I don’t even know!
Pastel’s mouth fell open.
‘If I had to argue, the terrorists’ motive doesn’t seem to lie only in the murder of the duke’s daughter. It’s not just because they’re radical demon mercenaries. They release poison gas and do nothing with it for a massacre. Thus, they seem to have entirely different motives.’
The demon muttered to think.
‘The terrorists probably don’t intend to resolve the stalemate anytime soon. The sound of bullets being deflected is audible even in the airship above. The fact that the duke’s daughter is still alive means the airship isn’t bombarding due to that signal. If the terrorists had a different ulterior motive, they wouldn’t take the risk.’
Wow!
The demon’s thoughts matched mine!
In truth, the clever Pastel had already known but just wanted to confirm if the demon was aware!
While riding at the front of the broom, Pastel quickly recited the demon’s words.
Melissa was impressed.
How satisfying.
“Now you’re reassured, right? I’ll take you to the medical team.”
Using her powers to control magic stones, the white broom carrying two people groaned and lifted off laboriously.
Broom friend, don’t play around and do your best.
Pastel tapped the broom. The broom trembled as it lifted off. However, it wouldn’t rise beyond a certain height where her feet left the ground. The flying speed is terribly slow too.
“Is it broken?”
“It must just be heavy.”
Hmm.
Focusing her mind, Pastel sensed the broom’s interior and felt the magic stone fuel being exhausted excessively.
I should’ve ordered a two-seater.
Melissa looked on, intrigued.
“Does performance vary with weight? It seems so. How can it fly in the first place? You’re not a great mage, yet you can fly.”
Oh?
Is flight that unusual?
Should I not be using the Demon King’s powers so conspicuously?
“Broom friend can fly just because he’s broom friend.”
It’s a broom after all.
Melissa tilted her head.
“Broom friend is broom friend because he’s broom friend.”
Yup, yup.
“Is that so?”
Melissa looked puzzled and suddenly pointed her wand toward the poisonous mist.
Light erupted from the tip of the wand. The lightning round, which had been prepared, flew out. A moment later, a scream was heard as the gas shimmered in the shape of a person. A sound of something collapsing followed.
Oh?
Pastel was taken aback.
Melissa chanted a spell again to reload her magic and casually said, “I guess I sent someone to check if I was dead. Let’s go. If the broom can’t do high-altitude flight, we’ll just go along the ground to the arena exit. Along the way, we’ll sneak a look at Belamont’s situation.”
“Ugh, okay.”
Melissa is scary.
To kill a person really is a moment’s work.
A coward like Pastel, with zero kills, is encountering a level of experience she has never known.
Silently, she controlled the broom.
While avoiding the area where gunfire was being heard, she managed to approach appropriately. The sounds of Elshire and the terrorists grew closer.
She swallowed hard.
‘The broom doesn’t make footstep sounds, so that’s good. Inside the gas mist, even if the terrorists are only minor nobles, they likely won’t easily notice us.’
Ah, I see.
Relieved.
‘After the terror ends, making a potion that creates mist would be good too. An mist potion would ensure that even if you accidentally break it while being clumsy, the surroundings would remain safe.’
Huh.
Why does the demon naturally assume that I would accidentally break it?
Maybe there’s a lack of trust.
After all this, I need to show my superb hand movements to the demon while juggling paralysis potions in my bedroom.
Pastel made a determination.
The demon, completely unaware of what she was thinking, diligently continued to teach.
‘Listen closely to the sounds. The duke’s daughter has been cornered against the wall. You can hear the voices of the terrorists who have created a barrier. Every time the duke’s daughter deflects gunfire with her spear, the barrier’s participants tense and make noise. It’s typical behavior of troops that have received inadequate training.’
Pastel focused her ears. As she excessively ingested magic stones, her senses were starting to stray far from humanity, which helped her hear sounds clearly.
Each time Elshire deflected a bullet, the personnel making up the barrier flinched, exchanging voices as they reorganized their formation.
Wow, it really seems that way.
She worried Elshire might suddenly rush in to massacre, and doubly worried her comrades might flee first, making them check on their trust in each other by vocalizing.
Now she understood what “inadequately trained” meant.
‘I see. Now, estimate the positions of each individual from the sounds of the duke’s daughter deflecting bullets and the voices of the terrorists.’
Yes.
Pastel concentrated her mind.
Her synesthetic associations transformed sounds into images. The shapes of Elshire and the barrier were grasped solely from sound.
Wow?
‘From your expression, it seems you’ve done well. Once you have gauged their positions, now guess the weapons being used by the personnel forming the barrier.’
Huh, is that the next step?
‘The distance between the duke’s daughter and the barrier is around five meters. Considering that she uses a spear, despite being a generous distance, it can be inferred that the barrier is using long weapons. While they’ll probably be the usual spear types, it seems unlikely they have standard equipment across the board, so personal gear is likely mixed in too.’
Pastel rolled her eyes as she thought.
So, um, um….
Then she nodded.
It seems the demon is right!
Those vile terrorists are using spears!
They’re actually using spears!
How bad!
Pastel let the overly rapid pace of the demon’s teachings wash casually out of her mind.
She looked back at Melissa seated at the back of the broom. Not wanting a voice to be heard, she communicated through her gaze.
With my smart brain, I deduced that it’s definitely a complete stalemate!
There’s no need for Melissa, who inhaled gas, to strain herself fighting!
Melissa stared into the invisible purple gas, nodding her head in a vague understanding.
Good.
Elshire, hold on a bit longer. I’ll take Melissa to the medical team and come back to help soon.
Not me, but the hormonal friend!
She maneuvered the broom, circling around the barrier.
A gunshot echoed. Pastel flinched but realized she hadn’t been detected and felt relieved.
Elshire’s mocking voice could be heard after deflecting the bullet.
“It’s useless. Even being at the level of a minor noble, I’m not so pathetic as to die at the hands of a terrorist like you, who depends on gunpowder weapons. There’s a difference in rank within the same level.”
Ugh.
Such a vast difference from Melissa’s temperament.
However, no matter the provocation, the terrorists seemed concentrated on containment. Every time Elshire showed any movement, gunfire erupted.
After deflecting the bullets, Elshire reorganized herself.
“Is it that a demon, who can only conduct a suicidal terror of recklessly crashing an airship into the arena, can’t even grasp the difference in rank? The only thing you can do is hope for luck and wish to survive the crash, waiting for the Demon King to grant your pathetic success—”
“Don’t speak as if you know me!”
The terrorist exploded in rage.
Pastel tilted her head at the familiar voice.
It seemed to be the terrorist and demonic mercenary captain that she had handed over to the Knight Corps.
His name was probably Mr. Tmout?
“You’re not in a position to call the Demon King by name!”
Huh?
That person is indeed the same one.
Excuse me, Knight Corps?
Why is the work being handled like this?
“Did you really believe that crashing an airship would yield good luck? No way! I’ve discerned the weakness of this academy’s protective barrier!”
Tmout continued, firing his gun.
“During the admission practical exam, Viscount Craft crashed an airship into the testing ground and still came out unscathed! The transparent barrier covering the sky absorbed the collision! This is an act of terror that utilized that data! It’s not luck; it’s a meticulously planned act of terror!”
Oh?
Why is my name suddenly.
Elshire reacted immediately.
“Could it be that rumor is true? That Craft, seeking to obtain the sky island, instigated terror to swallow the academy first? The next target is the Knight Corps?”
“Instigating terror?! Don’t look down on us! Who do you think I am, a servant of such a clan!”
Tmout seethed. The sound of a fist crashing against his chest echoed.
“I’ve come here to kill you humans by my will and my heart!”
Gunfire rang out into the sky.
“Even if Craft admitted this place is a chessboard, this decision is my will!”
“What?”
Elshire gasped in silence.
“Did Craft himself acknowledge it…?”
And Pastel, along with her, was shocked.
What does that mean?!
I never said such a thing!
Somewhere in her mind, a memory surfaced.
It seemed she had made a shadowy remark in Craft’s acting mode to Mr. Tmout.
Gasp.
Pastel’s mouth hung open as she froze.
Rolling her eyes, she swiftly erased the memory from her head like an eraser.
Swish, swish, swish.
Nice and clean.
Then she thought again.
I never said such a thing!
Ughhh!
How unfair!
Feeling an intense gaze, Pastel looked back at the back of the broom.
Melissa was staring intently.
Those eyes that seem to see the shadow!
Ughhh!
Double unfair…!
Tmout’s voice resonated.
“Of course I acknowledged it, and in a moment of fear, I turned and mocked—”
Whaaaa!
As the exposure was about to continue, Pastel hurriedly thumped the broom.
The slow broom broke down and accelerated.
Whoosh!
A quick escape…!
Swiftly handing Melissa over to the medical team, Pastel turned back to help Elshire.
I will enforce justice against that evil terrorist…!
It’s absolutely not because I want to silence him.
