Hard Work Will Never Betray Me

A few days after defeating the wyverns , I was flying alone  using my flying wings in a place near the Demon Forest.

It was a bit far from the village, so there was no one around. The reason I didn't bring Lily and Mei with me was because it might be dangerous if I wasn't alone.

In fact, after I received the request, I went to my parents' room and the guild's confidential archives, which are off-limits to those below B rank, to research the nature of wyverns. There are a few things that I learned.

First of all, wyverns are basically territorial and do not stray far from the area where they were born unless there is a serious problem. It seems that this is because they can monopolize their prey in an environment where there are no natural enemies without having to move.

And there are three possible reasons why a wyvern would move.

One is when the prey they hunt for food has become extinct. If the land is dry and not suited for living  , there are only a few animals and ,monsters living there, so a few wyverns with a big appetite can quickly hunt them all down. No matter how high-ranking the monster is, as long as it doesn't live off the haze, it has to eat its prey to survive. When they do, they usually go berserk and attack human settlements. This time, however, the herd of wyverns had come from the Demon Forest. The Devil's Forest is literally a den of  monsters . For wyverns, it's a heavenly environment full of prey. There is no reason for them to travel all the way to a region where food is scarce.

The second reason is if they are attacked by an entity that poses a threat to them. But this is also unlikely. Wyverns have a habit of fighting their prey and enemies in groups of several to a dozen animals that share their territory. And when it comes to a pack of A-ranked monsters, the threat level is frightening just thinking about it. Is there really a natural enemy that can attack such a herd so one-sidedly that the wyverns will run away? If it was an S-rank or higher demon like a dragon, it would be possible. I'm not sure what to make of this. It's hard to imagine that there are demons that would conveniently attack only wyverns, so this pattern is also dead.

The last thing I can think of is the most troubling reason I can think of, and I don't want it to be. It is a pattern that involves human hands. It is said that in the ancient times of magical civilization, there existed a  way  to manipulating  monsters . Even today, there are still ways to use  monsters , such as contracts  with magical beast   or with summoning  magic . Of course, what exists in the world today is just a degraded version of contract magic that only works if you pay a rational  monster , but even so, it is not impossible to use  monsters . And maybe some researcher  will reviving the legacy of an ancient magical civilization.

In short,  I don't know what the cause of the problem is, and in any case, the danger is quite high, so in order to find out what really happened, I have come to the Demon Forest alone.

✳︎

"......?"

For a while, I was flying low over the area around the wyvern colony where we were a few days ago while releasing a "sonar" with a narrower range and higher accuracy, when I suddenly caught a strong magical response . It wasn't moving, so it didn't seem to be a living thing. It's not a living thing. .....I wonder what it is. Is it a magic object?

I' ll try to land at the location where the response was coming from and search for the source of the magic while keeping an eye on the surroundings. Maybe there is a trap or something set up that won't be caught by the "sonar". There's nothing wrong with being cautious.

As I searched in the grass, behind trees, and in holes in stumps, I discovered that the magic waves were being emitted from the base of a tree about 10 meters high.

"...... Is this the cause?""

It was as if the ground had been dug up recently and the color of the soil had changed unnaturally. It was as if the ground had just recently been dug up and filled with something. I took out a shovel from my inventory and started digging up the suspicious area. As I expected, it had been dug once and was soft, so I could keep digging.

"I found ......."

What came out of the soil was a mysterious magic tool with a fist-sized magic stone fitted inside a cube-shaped case. The magic stone flickered suspiciously as it pulsated, emitting a reddish-black light.Every time it glowed, it emitted a wave of magical power, which was, quite frankly, very suspicious.

"I can sence it, ......."

That's the scent of the case. It couldn't be the legacy of an ancient magical civilization that had been  hidden for thousands of years. It is not possible to explain the recent migration of the wyverns. It seems certain that someone had intentionally buried the magic tools.

"I'll have to go home and report it to to my father  about this. ......

It seems that the territory of the Frontier Counties is easily targeted by bad people, whether it's the case of the  kidnapping two years ago or the Wyvern riots this time. I'm not sure if it's because it's located on the frontier of the empire kingdom , or if they think it's easier to attack than the center.

But the deterrent power of the northern generals should be quite strong , so the ones who will attack will be small fish who can't even recognize the difference in strength and risk between them, or even ----

"It's either a small fish that can't even recognize the difference in strength or the risks involved, or it's a strong enemy that's confident enough to play a big game against the ---- Northern General.

"This is the first time I have not been able to detect the presence of an enemy by sonar.I found myself being backed up by someone I thought I could do pretty well.

"I guess I'm not ready yet. But it was out of my range, so I guess I'm not too bad."

At this point, I have more fighting power than my father. In addition to mastering both the front and back of the North Shogun Bushin-ryu, I have an enormous amount of magic power and unique skill [shock].

However, when it comes to experienced interpersonal skills, such as detecting  things and observing, I was still not as good as my father.

I was able to use "sonar" from an early age . ...... I guess it's also because I didn't feel too threatened. It's like a certain space emperor who relied so much on his scoutmaster that he couldn't detect his chi. I need to reflect on this.

"Hey, are you the one who buried this?"

I turned around and tried to see who it was, he had fooled me, an S rank adventurer. I'm sure he's some kind of otherworldly ninja who specializes in stealth. ......

His extremely well-developed muscles and the imposing appearance they created gave him the air of a king with a hundred beasts at his heels. The supremacy that he wore around his body kept the surrounding  monsters at bay, and even though  we  were  close to the demon forest, the area was quiet.

"What?"

. The supremacy that he wore around his body kept the surrounding demons at bay, and even though he was close to the demon forest, the area was quiet.

He was probably in his late thirties. He was probably the same age as my father. I could feel the thickness of his body that young people can't produce, a power that was almost overwhelming. It's impossible to recreate in just a year or two, but his perfected body intimidated me with its overwhelming presence.

"Hmm, you're pretty strong."

A muscular man scratched his blond hair with a square cut and looked at me. other party, the other party was also looking at  me , just as I was looking at  him 

This is the North Shogun Bushinryu, which I  have mastered speed and technique.In contrast, my opponent is a warrior who has mastered power and stamina. I'm not sure what to do . It's not safe to get into close combat.

Then, just as in the past  when i fought Felix, I had no choice but to attack from a distance. A standoff attack with a "shock bullet " is one of my trump card .

"I will ask  you to give me that magic tool".

A muscular man with a haircut that resembles Dwayne Johnson's if he were a skinhead approaches me with caution. I can't give this to him . It is a valuable resource for investigating serious incidents that are occurring in our frontier county and, by extension, in the empire.

"I'm sorry, but I can't do that. . I have a responsibility to take this home and examine it.

I put the Cube shaped magic tool in my inventory and turned to the muscle man. He looked at my inventory and didn't seem to be the least bit upset.

And even if he  left me off the hook, that's no reason for  him, to let  me  off the hook. This is the most suspicious activity in the territory of the frontier territory .

"...... Oh, that's too bad. Then I'll have to take  it by force.

"I won't let you do this ."

The muscular man stepped back and half-heartedly took a stance.

I'm not going to let that happen. ...... All at once, the guy's intimidation increased. It seems that he is now in a fighting stance.

I also use my mind to "mix blood and magic" and activate the North Shogun Bushinryu "Ura" Uchinokata "Robe ".

Thud, thud, thud,......, with each passing beat, the magic power around the entire body increases, strengthening the body cell by cell.

"It's the type of  skill that will make you stronger in stages,"

The muscular man immediately recognized the features of the " robe " and told me. He doesn't seem to have a clue what it is, but he has a terrific eye for observation.

"That's the type of instantaneous enhancement you are. I've seen that you can't be continuously enhanced due to magic consumption."

This time, I'm going to try to figure out the muscle man's fighting style. When the muscle man hears this, his expression tightens and he shifts from his no-holds-barred stance to an even more aggressive stance and takes a fighting stance.

We both don't want to fight each other too much. But if  I  don't fight here, the people will suffer even more. I can't back down.

"Let's go to ----."

"Hmm, I'll go with you then."

The battle was about to begin.