The Wrong Way to Use Healing Magic

With Nair's help, we succeeded in getting out of the prison and were climbing up the stairs to the ground with Hayate, who still didn't know what was going on.

"Néa, is Amako all right?"

"Yes, it's nighttime now, so I'm covering it up. From their point of view, I'm just an owl, so they don't seem to think I'm that dangerous.

Hayate, who was standing behind me, let out a surprised sound at the mention of Nair's messenger.

"A messenger demon?　Is she a demon?　Humanoid demons are rare, but I didn't expect her to be a messenger demon. ......"

It's a long story, so I'll spare you the details. My messenger, Nair, was transformed into an owl and followed Amako around."

"Well, well, I don't think it's a humanoid demon in disguise, so ......"

"Yes."

A messenger by itself is not considered that dangerous.

And since Nair is naturally playing the role of a carefree owl who doesn't pose any threat, they won't even know that he is a powerful demon.

"But I don't know what the plan is. What was the point of the conversation between you and Amako?"

"First of all, Amaco told us that he saw a prediction that we were going to die. First of all, even if he was right, she wouldn't give up like that.

The prediction that saw me stabbed by Nair.

Amaco had so much faith in his prediction that he thought the future would turn out just as he had predicted. But she learned that she could not understand the whole future, only one aspect of it.

There is no way she can say that she should give up because she saw the prediction.

She would never say with a straight face, "What?　Usato won't die from this much" with a straight face.

I knew it was a lie when she said all her friends but not Nair.

I mean, how can you die? How can you die? You are a monster who would fight a dragon man head-on.　Let alone a human Aruk."

...... Let's punish Nair later, now that I'm explaining it to Hayate.

Remember, when we get back to the Lingle Kingdom, I'm going to turn you over to Inukami-senpai with your dog ears still on! ......!

"And I'm not even going to think about it alone. First of all, Amako is not alone.

"......, I see. Amaco had this girl with him. ......"

There's also Bullein, though.

I only dared to mention my name and Mr. Aruk's name so that I could notice.

"The other thing is ...... that Amako said she can't think alone. I knew that Amako was lying in the first place, so I decided that Nair had found a clue to save Amako's mother. Right, Nair?"

I called out to Néa walking in front of me, and she turned around, looking a little surprised.

"Well, I'm not sure, but I think I found it. Well, I'm not sure, but I found it. But ...... I'm surprised you came up with that idea. Are you really Usato?　You're so perceptive it's weird. ...... Oh, I'm sorry. I apologize, but please don't clap your hands in my ears.

"...... huh. I'm surprised you didn't know and check it out."

My guess is that I knew from the beginning that Amaco's words were a lie.

As for Néa, she has been in hiding lately, but she is a curious person at heart. <.

"I was most worried about whether or not you would come to our rescue. Well, we could have broken the shackles and the cage and escaped, but then the noise would have been noticed and there would have been a commotion. So we waited for you until the sun came up."

"Then the reason you guys have been quiet all this time is ......."

"It's all an act to make it look like I'm depressed."

"...... alk too?"

Aruk nodded with a wry smile at Hayate's words, and his shoulders slumped.

He must have been worried about me.

He must have been angry not only for Amako's sake, but for our sake as well.

"Nair, have you seen Bulrin?　If you know where he is, I'd like to take him.

"Don't worry about that. I brought him with me when I came here. I stumbled across ...... with her."

"Her?　Did you bring anyone else?"

No, no, I think it's more accurate to say I picked her up than brought her here.

"?"

Nair says this with a subtle expression on his face.

As you are about to ask her about it, you realize that the staircase ends and you are on the ground.

The air feels better than it has in a long time, and the moonlight is shining down on us from above. When I finally step outside, someone jumps at me from beside the door.

Enemy?　I thought, but when I realized who it was, I took it instead of avoiding it.

"Usato...!　Amako has been captured!　I tried to do something about it, but it was no use at all!　The soldiers gave me some sweets and sent me home!

"Ri, Rinca? ......"

I can see why Nair has a delicate expression on his face.

She hugs me with her face covered in runny nose and tears, so I hold her down so that she doesn't get her uniform dirty and try to calm her down.

"Amaco will be saved. So stop crying first."

"Zubi ...... yeah."

Is she really fourteen?

She's the opposite of Amako, who's all grown up.

I'm relieved to see Linka finally stop crying, and then the burin that Nair brought with her approaches from the direction from which she flew.

"Grrr!"

"Bulrin, did they hurt you?"

"guffaw!"

He slapped his stomach, his expression somewhat satisfied.

Don't tell me that the beastman gave him a lot of food?

......Well, I'm just glad that Bulrin is okay.

"Linka!　Thank goodness. You're safe!　Did Jinya do something to you?

Hayate-san, who had followed me outside, approaches Rinka with a look of relief on his face.

Upon seeing her father again, her reaction was more indifferent than I had expected.

"Ah. Dad. You made it out, thank God. I'm fine.

"Oh, what?　Isn't he reacting a little too lightly?　It's like ...... you could be more pleased with me. ......"

"Because he's your father. Amako is more important!"

"Oh, my God. ......"

Is she a rebellious daughter ......?

Hayate, whose shoulders are slumped at the blithe Rinka, turns around to face us after regaining his composure.

"......Usato, I'm going to call Fubard now, is that OK?"

"What?"

"Wait a minute, if I call him 'hoo-bird', people will notice."

Is he sending a letter to someone?

Nea's doubts are justified, but Hayate seems to have an idea, so let's hear her out.

"I've been assigned to assist the chief as part of my position, and as part of that I've been leading a security force to guard the country. So I would like to tell my men to get out of here and join me at a place away from the country. ......

"My men?　By "my men," do you mean the ones who met us when we ...... arrived here?

Yes, that's right.

You mean the beast lady I scared away.

I don't know, it seems a bit imprudent to send Hooverd here.

"...... Are there any of Jinya's men in the mix?"

"I don't think so. I don't think so. They have been my subordinates since before I became an assistant, and they could have found a better place to keep an eye on me, since I often give instructions away from the field.

I see.

If he is an assistant to the chief, he must have many other jobs besides guarding.

If that's the case, it would be better to have Hayate slip into a closer position than to go to the trouble of watching over him with a security team.

"Besides, ...... we need at least one friend right now."

Hayate's eyes looked as if she was prepared for something as she muttered this.

Certainly, I want to have at least one friend for the future.

While I was worrying with my hand on my chin, Hayate-san continued to speak in a bit of a panic.

"Oh, don't worry about Hoo-bird, too. What I'm going to call you now is not an ordinary hoo-bird, but a special hoo-bird for the unit, so no one other than my subordinates will be able to find out about it."

Usato, you decide.

"...... understand. But please be very careful."

There are dangers, but there are also positives for us. We can follow Hayate to the rendezvous point where there is a danger of an ambush.

Hayate nodded at my words and whistled with her fingers in her mouth.

All that remained was to wait for Hayate's hoo-bird, so I decided to take advantage of this time to talk to Néa.

"Neah."

"I know, I know. I'll take care of Amaco."

"Thank you. And ...... you know how to help Amaco's mother, don't you?"

"I'm not sure. But it's worth a try. ...... The only problem is, we'll have to wait for them to finish <>."

"Waiting for completion?　...... means that's why Amaco stayed."

"Yes."

If is a condition for saving Amako's mother, then she must be paired with . But will not be paired with Amako if she is not there.

So, Amako voluntarily stayed behind.

"Amako is also reckless. ......"

"You're always so reckless, though. Do you understand?　You know how we feel.

Yeah, this makes me want to say a lot of things.

When I put myself in the other party's shoes, I feel like I can't do anything.

Now is not the time for sentimentality. Even though we are not making a scene, we are in the middle of enemy territory. We can't take our time.

And I'll tell you what I found out about Jinya's precognition magic.

Hmm?　What is it?

Jinya's precognition magic is weaker than Amako's.

"Oh, really?"

Yes, he heard Amako's prediction of the future and didn't say anything. In normal times, he can predict the future within ten seconds or so.

"How do you know all this?"

Nair smiled wickedly at the continued question.

"Because the moves we had to make to catch you were too random. Maybe they thought Usato was just a human and set a trap for you. The way you panicked when you stopped Usato, you were going to do something, weren't you?　And since you succeeded, you were so distraught.

"...... I see."

"In other words, if he can see into the future and can only take that kind of countermeasure, then Jinya's precognition magic is not much better."

I can't help but feel that I'm being treated like an outsider, but I'll leave that aside.

In other words, according to Amako and Nair, Jinya's precognition magic is a backward compatibility of Amako's. Well, I can't say it's a weak magic either way, but it's a good thing to hear.

"Also, I know this is a bit of an after-the-fact question, but ...... is it safe to use my ability here?"

"...... your abilities, huh?"

In this case, I'm not talking about witchcraft, but about the vampire charm and the ability to control people that you just used. A power of deception that, until now, I have forbidden you to use for your own physical appearance.

I have been forbidden to use this ability because I don't want to use it in a manipulative way, but in this situation I can't help but use it.

But in this situation, I can't help but use it. Rather, if I'm being mocked this much, I'll use it to my heart's content.

How many people can you get on your side?

"I myself have limited time to act, and with Jinya, who has precognition magic, I have to move with extreme caution. And since there's the matter of magic power,...... I think I can do about three ...... quarters of the soldiers here in three days."

"Can't you control Jinya-san directly?　Or maybe we can charm her to death or something."

That's impossible. It's too risky to use against a magician with precognition magic, and just so you know, charms don't work on everyone.　It hardly works on someone like Usato, who has an abnormally strong mentality."

It doesn't work on the mentally strong.

And the ability to manipulate people is useless if you don't take advantage of them, because you have to bite them.

They say everything useful has its drawbacks, and Nair's ability is no exception.

"It's almost impossible to aim at someone in his sleep in a limited time because he's so well protected by his guards. The man is very protective of himself when he's unconscious."

"I guess that's kind of natural."

Jinya-san probably has full confidence in the magic of precognition. It would be strange if he does not take any measures at bedtime, which is his only weak point.

He seems to have a lot of faith in the magic of prediction, but it is also a weakness.

"...... Okay, I get it. Try to be as non-suspicious as possible."

"I know. I've ruled a village for 300 years without anyone noticing.　I wouldn't screw that up.

"I'm not proud to say it, though."

She laughs at Nea's words, but her confidence is reassuring now.

"Well, I'm going back to Amako's. Oh, by the way, Usato.

"Hmm?"

I have a message for you from Amako.

A message?　What the hell is that?

When I was preparing myself for something important, Nair spoke the message with a bit of a false sense of purpose.

"<>" she says.

"......!"

The words startle me for a moment, but I quickly smile.

"Yes, of course. Tell him I'll definitely help him.

"Yes, I'll make sure to tell him."

With a pop, Nair transformed into an owl, nodded her head, and flew away as if melting into the darkness of the night.

I took a deep breath and made up my mind, then turned around to face Aruk and the others.

I took a deep breath and made up my mind to go back to Mr. Aruk and the others.

After parting with Nair, Hayate-san, who had sent Huberd to his men, was trying to escape from the beastmen's country with us.

Even though we were trying to escape, it was the time of night when everyone was asleep. Since no one but the soldiers on guard duty were out and about, the trip itself was not too difficult.

"I knew I was right to wait for Nair."

"Yes, that's right. If we had caused a commotion there, it would have been difficult to escape.

Worst-case scenario, me and Bulrin could have carried everyone out, but that would have been too dangerous, so it was a last resort.

So I am very glad that we were able to escape without anyone noticing.

"But I would have liked to have brought my horse, too.

"I don't care if you've got a small burin, you're going to have trouble getting around in the dark with a horse. ....... Next time we come back, we'll get them back together with Amaco."

We have walked a long road together, and the horse is one of us.

That's why we wanted to take them with us, but we had to leave them for now. ......

"......"

"Linka, are you still mad at me?"

Linka, who was walking next to me, looked up at me with a mousy expression on her face.

"Of course you are. I'd have this look on my face if I heard that Amako got caught for such a super stupid reason.

I told Linka why Amako had been captured.

It was probably better not to tell her, but she was Amako's friend, so I decided it was best to explain it to her.

When Linka heard what I had to say, she was so angry that her face turned bright red.

"What did Amako do to you? ....... Amako lost her mother and now she's going to lose her freedom for such a selfish reason. ...... That's just too crazy."

"......, yes, I think so too."

I agree with Linka's words, stifling my emotions.

I guess she was concerned about my situation, because she looked up at me with a slightly quizzical look.

"Aren't you angry, Usato?　You haven't shown any signs of anger at all since a while ago.

"Me?　I'm not ...... mad at you."

"That's a lie."

Surprised at the immediate response, Rinka looked somewhat confident.

"Usato, you are actually very angry, aren't you?　That was so unnatural. Your eyes weren't smiling at all, and you looked so normal, but you weren't normal at all.

"...... I guess I'm still prone to show it on my face."

As a matter of fact, I've been suppressing my anger.

But I didn't let it explode in the cage because my anger is not good for Amaco.

"To be honest, it's hard not to be angry. My friends are about to be hurt. But now is not the time to put my anger first, so I'm trying to stay calm."

This time, we can't solve the problem by losing our minds and lashing out.

We must save Amako and save Kanoko's life.

For that reason, we have no choice but to suppress our anger and hold back now.

"But if I explode, I might be in trouble. Ha-ha-ha."

"It could be a real problem. Usato has more legs and strength than a beastman.

My joke finally brought a smile to Linka's face.

"But what's really going to happen?　Will he go on a rampage like a big monster?"

"That's just..."

Just as I was about to say "No," Bulrin looked up as if he had noticed something, and I switched my attention to him.

"Hey, guys!"

came a voice from behind me.

I turned around before anyone else and saw two beastmen holding lights and readying their weapons at a distance of more than 20 meters from me.

As soon as I recognize them, I kick the ground hard, and in one breath, I am within a stone's throw of them.

"He?"

Huh?

"I'm sorry."

Muttering quietly, he delivers a healing punch to the abdomen, one blow at a time.

I am careful, but I hit him with enough force to knock him out for sure, so he will not wake up until the dawn.

After checking the two beastmen for any injuries, I wipe my forehead and turn back to Mr. Aruk and the others.

"Whew, thank goodness they knocked me out before they found out. ...... hmm?"

""......""

Behind you, you see a father and son, their faces pale and stunned.

Near them is a smiling Mr. Aruk, and a pouting Mr. Bulrin.

I look at the unconscious soldier again and return with a sullen look on my face.

"He's going to be fine, he's not going to die."

""Lies!""

Parents and children are so alike.

I couldn't help but smile at the two of them as they dexterously stifled their voices.