“A bear, you say? Where?”
“About a hundred meters ahead.”
Ilmera was smiling.
“I see… Yuika, shall we let Ilmera handle it?”
Given the vibe, it seems better to let her take it.
“I’ve hunted wolves already, so you can have this one, Ilmera.”
It seems Yuika read the room as well.
“Sorry about that.”
“Not at all, but do you need any support?”
I can only throw stones, though.
“I don’t need it. Let’s go.”
Ilmera began walking briskly into the depths of the forest, so Yuika and I followed her.
As we kept going deeper, Ilmera suddenly stopped.
“The bear has noticed us too. Let’s hurry.”
Ilmera started running, so we quickly followed her. Then, as we entered a clearing where trees were sparse, we saw a gray bear staring intently at us and stopped in our tracks.
The bear stared intently at us but didn’t move.
“You two stay still.”
Ilmera said this and then slowly approached the bear. The bear still remained still as Ilmera approached, but once she got within about ten meters, it charged at her.
“I’m glad you’re not running.”
Ilmera said this while readying her spear but didn’t move. Just as the bear was about to reach her, Ilmera leaped into the air and forcefully thrust her spear into the bear’s abdomen.
“That looks painful.”
“Truly, it does.”
The bear bypassed Ilmera and stopped a few meters away, then turned around and fixed its gaze on us.
Is it coming this way? I tensed up, but instead, the bear turned and locked eyes with Ilmera again.
“Why isn’t it coming?”
“Of course it wouldn’t. We haven’t done anything, but Ilmera attacked first.”
“You’re right…”
I understood as I watched Ilmera standing there with a confident smile, readying her spear.
Ilmera does seem like that kind of person.
“Come on over. This time, I’ll finish you.”
The bear, though it probably didn’t understand her words, charged again as she spoke.
Ilmera rushed forward and pierced the bear’s shoulder with her spear. Blood spurted from the bear’s shoulder.
Despite Ilmera’s smaller physique compared to the massive bear, it appeared her magic-enhanced strength had halted the bear’s charge.
However, the bear didn’t falter. It freed its spear and swung its thick arms.
“Ahaha! Too slow!”
Ilmera released her spear and dodged to the side, then suddenly drew a sword and beheaded the bear. Blood sprayed forcefully from the bear’s neck and flowed down.
“Looks like Ilmera’s having fun.”
“Seriously, don’t you think she’d be unpopular?”
“Scary.”
“It’s said that warriors are admired for their bravery.”
“Seriously?”
As we were talking, Ilmera and the bear faced off again from a new position. Ilmera, armed with her spear, and the bloodied bear eyed each other, creating a tense standoff.
“She should just finish it.”
“An injured beast can be dangerous. I heard something like that from my grandfather.”
What is she going to do? Just as we were wondering, the bear turned and ran.
“Ah, it’s running away.”
The bear ran deeper into the forest, but Ilmera didn’t move.
But suddenly, Ilmera disappeared.
“Huh?”
“She disappeared!”
Where did she go? Just then, Ilmera reappeared above the running bear and thrust her spear into its skull. The bear fell forward with great force, convulsed, and ceased moving when Ilmera pressed the spear further into its brain.
“Tsukasa, did you see that?”
“Not at all. That must be magic.”
“Was that the teleportation magic Juliet used?”
“Who’s Juliet, anyway?”
“Hey, I caught it!”
Ilmera pulled her spear out while calling to us, so we joined her.
“Was that teleportation magic?”
“Yup, indeed! It’s my ace against long-range magicians.”
No doubt, that was her ace.
If I hadn’t known, I might have been caught off guard at first glance.
Sharl… oh, wait, Sharl used teleportation magic too.
Hmm… could Juliet be Sharl?
That’s a weird nickname.
“Truly impressive, Ilmera. She’s strong.”
Yuika applauded.
“Indeed! Ahahaha! Ah, Yuika, take a picture for me to send to Dad.”
Ilmera handed her smartphone to Yuika and posed with a peace sign in front of the fallen bear.
“I’ll take it. Smile…”
She’s already beaming all over!
“Okay, cheese… Got it!”
“Sorry… It’s fine. Fine! Looks cute.”
Even if it wasn’t because of the bear, you definitely don’t look cute.
“Posting that will get you trending.”
“Not happening.”
“Not at all! Posting this picture and letting it go viral—someone scary will show up within an hour.”
That’s frightening…
I don’t even take pictures or use social media, but that’s just too dangerous.
“It’s something I should’ve learned earlier.”
“Why didn’t you know that… Isn’t it something everyone learns first?”
I haven’t learned from anyone, and I haven’t read that thick book I was given either.
“What should we do? We’ve taken out a big one. Shall we head back?”
Yuika asked Ilmera.
“Hmm. Let’s take it back and sell it. Tsukasa, where did you sell yours?”
“At a blacksmith Frank knows. A muscular old man named Klaus.”
“Figures… Alright, that place is good. Let’s head back.”
Ilmera cheerfully stored the bear with spatial magic, so we turned back and exited the forest. When we returned to the lake, we entered the teleportation magic circle and moved toward the industrial district.
Thank you very much for reading.
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