Demon Sword Maiden-Novel

The Bloodtail emitted a warning sound from its crest voice emitter, and its approaching presence was almost upon us.

“Leafa, be careful.”

“I’ll be fine. But more importantly, Alfe, you must never come near me if anything happens, okay?”

“…Okay.”

Confirming that Alfe had escaped from the attack range by floating in the air, I returned my focus to the Bloodtail on the screen.

The most troublesome aspect of fighting the Bloodtail was the poison stored in its poison gland located in its crest. However, since it was injected through its fangs rather than being shot out, it wouldn’t affect Arkecius. So, the strategy should focus on dealing with its flexible tail and charging attacks. But, it was crucial to avoid crushing the poison gland. When attacking with Arkecius’ drill, I had to ensure to avoid hitting the poison gland.

Watching the charging Bloodtail, I calmly analyzed the situation. It didn’t seem too intelligent; while it avoided Arkecius’ drill arm, it lowered its posture and charged straight toward the torso.

“Graar! Graaah!”

Issuing a threatening cry from its crest, the Bloodtail charged towards Arkecius.

“…Ugh.”

Though I attempted to meet it head-on as planned, the impact was stronger than expected, causing my hands to slip from the control stick.

“…Hah! I should have considered the impact on the interior, even when fighting with Arkecius.”

It was a significant miscalculation on my part. I quickly manipulated the control stick and foot pedals to somehow get Arkecius back on its feet after falling due to the impact.

“Graah! Grraaaah!”

However, while I was struggling, the Bloodtail seemed to have sensed an advantage and began charging again.

“Oops.”

Although the machine itself had suffered minimal damage, I wouldn’t have been able to fight if something had happened to me. Realizing that it would have been reckless for me, with my childlike strength, to try to withstand another impact unsupported, I activated the vernier thrusters attached to the soles of its feet to increase the machine’s propulsion force. I evaded the charge for now and searched for something that could support the machine using the visual display. Spotting a large tree nearby, I moved Arkecius towards it.

“Graa! Graa!”

The Bloodtail followed closely behind Arkecius. So far, everything was going according to plan.

I rotated the machine in front of the large tree and braced against it. Just as I was getting ready, I heard Alfe’s scream.

“Leafa!”

“Don’t come, Alfe!”

I shouted through the megaphone towards Alfe, who should have been fleeing in mid-air. In that split second, I saw the Bloodtail leap towards me.

“…Ugh!”

The control pod trembled violently from the tremendous impact1. However, by leaning Arkecius against the large tree, I managed to effectively absorb the Bloodtail’s charge.

“Too bad for you.”

Bending Arkecius’s left arm forcefully, I secured the Bloodtail’s neck. Without hesitation, I activated the drill on the right arm and drove it straight into the creature’s neck.

“Raaah! Raaaaaaah!”

The drill penetrated the Bloodtail’s neck, spurting out purple blood as its body collapsed sideways. Though its chest was faintly rising and falling, indicating it was still alive, it wouldn’t be moving anymore. After checking the surroundings to ensure no other creatures were approaching, I then inspected Arkecius’ head. The spot where Alfe sat seemed clean.

“Leafa!”

I could see Alfe’s figure floating in the air a little distance away. However, her voice reached me clearly through the audio receiver.

“Alfe, I’m coming over there, so wait!”

Guiding the machine towards her, I didn’t want Alfe to witness this scene any longer than necessary, even if it involved just a magic beast.

“Leafa, Leafa!”

As I approached, Alfe slowly descended and landed on the ground, calling my name.

“…Aren’t you getting on?”

“No, turns out there’s dark matter here too.”

As Alfe said this, she pointed to an empty space. Although I couldn’t see anything, Alfe could see it clearly. Once again, Alfe’s Pure Eye was proving useful.

Having set Arkecius in a parked position with its legs folded, I grabbed a special glass bottle called mana storage container and a scroll from the bag I had placed in the cockpit, given to me by teacher Lionel.

The mana storage container was a long, large bottle that I could cradle in both hands, sealed with a lid made of clay-like Kaitaba. The scroll was a piece of parchment inscribed with a simplified formula of runic symbols, activating magical effects by channeling aether through it. This one had a simplified formula written in runes, using the Wind Flow technique to specialize in suction. This method of collection was still common, just as it was during my time as Glass.

“Now, let’s dig a hole. Which area do you think is best, Alfe?”

“Over here.”

With that, Alfe used earth magic to create a hole large enough to accommodate the mana storage container. I was surprised; I had been planning to dig by hand. Ah, of course, why didn’t I think of using magic to dig the hole?

“Thanks, Alfe.”

I promptly buried and secured the mana storage container in the ground and activated the simplified formula by wrapping the scroll around it.

“Wow, amazing!”

It seemed the dark matter collection was going smoothly, as Alfe gazed at the air with sparkling eyes. It was reassuring to know what was happening through Alfe’s reaction, even if I couldn’t see anything. But when should I stop?

“Alfe–”

“Leafa, it’s almost full.”

Just as I was about to ask, Alfe preemptively informed me about the status of the bottle.

“Thank you, Alfe.”

While thanking Alfe, I approached the bottle where Wind Flow was activated and brought the clay-like Kaitaba close to the mouth of the bottle. The Kaitaba adhered to the mouth of the bottle due to suction, effectively sealing it. With that, the collection was complete.

“I’m glad we collected a lot.”

“Is there that much in there?”

While I could tell that the bottle was full, I wasn’t sure how to evaluate the quantity. Since the weight wasn’t significantly different from air, I couldn’t discern even the slightest change by holding it in my hand. Of course, neither I nor my mother had anything to measure it with.

“Yeah, enough to make the vortex in this blowhole disappear.”ɴᴇᴡ ɴᴏᴠᴇʟ ᴄʜᴀᴘᴛᴇʀs ᴀʀᴇ ᴘᴜʙʟɪsʜᴇᴅ ᴏɴ ɴoᴠel Fɪre.nᴇt

Once again, having the ability to ‘see’ was handy. I envied Alfe’s Pure Eye. With that amount, it should be enough to synthesize Darklight crystals.

Thanks to Alfe, we successfully completed the dark matter collection2. On the way back, Alfe was in high spirits, singing a tune. The lyrics were a bit strange and unfamiliar, so I still didn’t know what song it was, but Alfe’s singing voice was pleasant to my ears.