CHAPTER 36

Sniper

Beel Bub lowers its gaze in the direction from which the light arrow came, then cautiously mentions:

“I’ve done a lot of research about magic arrows. You could say it’s the only thing humans can use to oppose me, after all… But something’s not right.”

“What do you mean ‘something’s not right’?!” I yell out to it while holding Rosalie in my arms.

“I wasn’t just randomly flying up. I was doing so with magic bows’ effective range in mind. I don’t care how far light arrows can go. There is no way it should have made it this high from the surface. Plus, not even magic arrows can completely ignore air resistance.”

“Hmph! Do you want me to tell you why the arrow made it this far? It’s because Seiya is a Hero of extraordinary talent that’s one in a billion!”

After a few moments of silence, Beel Bub finally opens its mouth.

“…Lucifer Crowe.”

“Wh-what…?”

“It’s the name of a legendary demon who existed in Gaeabrande long ago. They say Crowe could shoot a magic arrow from the Aness Plains to the top of Mount Glastora. But from the surface to where we are is much farther than Crowe’s magic bow’s effective range.”

“Th-that’s because Seiya is far more gifted than any demon—”

“Wait, wait, wait. That’s a little hard to imagine. I mean, Lucifer Crowe’s a legend. For the sake of argument, even if he was somehow as good as Crowe, there is no way a human would ever be able to surpass a demon. And yet, his arrow made it all the way here and with force, too.”

“Just get to the point! What are you trying to say?!”

Beel Bub lets out an ear-wrenching, roaring laugh.

“There’s only one conclusion possible! The Hero shot that arrow while flying, and he’s closing in on us as we speak!”

“What…?!”

The fly monster points at the sea of clouds below with its pointy hand.

“Just like a hunter crouching in the bushes, he’s hiding somewhere inside this vast sea of clouds! Wait. Actually, he’s probably moving around while concealing himself to make it harder to find him!”

I-it’s just a stupid fly, yet it’s calmly analyzing the situation just like Seiya!

Taken aback by Beel Bub’s surprising intelligence, I glance at the blurred surface in the distance and clench my teeth.

It’s probably spot-on with its analysis of the situation! There is no other way to explain the precision and power of the arrow that almost hit Beel Bub! After taking care of the flies on the surface, Seiya must have noticed that we were out of his magic bow’s effective range, so he flew after us! Then he must have hidden in the clouds somewhere just like Beel Bub said…!

“Hey, Goddess! Do you know what this means? I am the fastest being in the sky in the Demon Lord’s army! There is nobody who can defeat me in the air! In other words, he will have no way to defeat me once I find him! The moment I do is the moment he dies!”

I put on a bold face, but my heart is violently hammering against my chest.

Wh-what are you going to do, Seiya?! You’ll be in serious trouble if you miss!

Beel Bub looks down and taunts Seiya in a powerful voice.

“Yo, Hero! Show me what you’ve got! I won’t run or hide!”

The monster talks a big game, but it’s paying close attention to the clouds so it’s ready for Seiya’s arrow. I secretly use my goddess powers, increasing my dynamic vision. Then I survey the clouds below. Rosalie looks up at me as I hold her in my arms.

“Goddess! Is the Hero going to be okay?! Can he beat that thing?!”

“I-it’ll be fine! Seiya said he was perfectly prepared! He’s going to win! Of course he’s going to win!”

…But a few moments go by and nothing happens. The silence slowly drifts along like the clouds below. Just when I am about to relax, though…the inside of a cloud illuminates continually in the distance! Immediately, I notice something about the luminous points reflecting in my eyes…

S-seven points?! That means there are seven arrows! This is… Don’t tell me it’s…!

“Seven-Shot Shining Arrow!”

This is what makes him one in a billion! Despite being human, he’s already at the Goddess of Archery’s level! And Mitis said that if you use Shining Arrow and spread out all seven arrows…then it would be absolutely impossible to dodge—such a monster doesn’t exist! The luminous points I see in the sea of clouds are all over the place! I bet he calculated and spread his shots so he would hit Beel Bub’s head, arms, legs, and wings! There’s no way to dodge this! It’s like a human trying to dodge a shotgun fired point-blank! It isn’t possible!

I am sure of our victory, but…

“Bzz, bzz, bzz! Rolling Dodge!”

With my goddess-enhanced dynamic vision, I see Beel Bub twist its body like an acrobat before spinning and dodging each ray of light, in spite of them traveling faster than the speed of sound.

Rosalie freaks out even before I do.

“I-it dodged all of them?!”

“Th-that’s impossible…!”

Th-th-this can’t be happening! The Goddess of Archery gave this seven-shot rapid-fire attack her stamp of approval, and yet…!

So this is what it means to be an S-ranked world! The difficulty is beyond the common sense of the gods!

And with that, a sense of despair hangs heavily over my shoulders. The once boundless sea of clouds slowly opens…right where the powerful magic arrows were shot, and before long, the sky is crystal clear. Just as Beel Bub predicted, soaring there is the Hero holding a bow of light.

“There you are, Hero!”

Th-this isn’t good! Seiya is at a huge disadvantage in close combat in the sky! B-Beel Bub is going to kill him…!

Beel Bub instantly speeds in Seiya’s direction as if planning to tear a defenseless human apart. But out of nowhere, the monster suddenly vomits a purple liquid.

“Gwa…ha…!”

“Huh?! Wh-what’s going on?!”

It looks like Beel Bub has no idea what just happened, either. However, it doesn’t take me long to figure out.

There’s a gaping hole in its stomach! After a slight delay, copious amounts of purple liquid begin pouring out of its body!

Before I even realize it, six birds are flying around Beel Bub. They’re similar to the Automatic Phoenixes Seiya creates using fire magic, but they’re moderately different. These are brilliantly shining birds of light.

Beel Bub coughs up another pint of purple liquid.

“L-light magic birds…! Where did those come from…?!”

Seiya must have created them, and one of them must have torn through Beel Bub’s stomach! B-but when did he conjure six birds out of light magic? …W-wait! Six birds? If you count the one that drilled through Beel Bub’s body and self-destructed, then that makes seven in total—the same number of arrows Beel Bub just dodged! It all makes sense now! After Beel Bub dodged Seven-Shot Shining Arrow, the arrows transformed into Garudas! Then they must have flown back and attacked Beel Bub when its guard was down! In other words…

“Transform: Automatic Garuda!”

Beel Bub probably realizes now what Seiya’s strategy was.

“You…little piece of…!”

The monster’s utterance drips with spite, but those end up being Beel Bub’s final words. As the demon starts slowing down, the birds of light ram into it, exploding at an ultrahigh temperature and emitting a blinding flash. The only thing before me when the light fades is Beel Bub’s charred remains as they plummet to the surface.

…My entire body is riddled with goose bumps.

Wh-what is with this Hero?! He isn’t satisfied just learning the divine skill Seven-Shot Shining Arrow, despite it apparently being an impossible feat for humans? He even considered what to do if all the arrows missed?! Even though Mitis said no monster would be able to dodge the attack?! I mean, what kind of person would doubt the Goddess of Archery?! I-it’s like… It’s like he doesn’t even listen!

Floating in the distance, Seiya watches Beel Bub drop to the surface, but without showing even a hint of satisfaction, he disappears into the clouds below.

But it’s fine! It’s absolutely okay! If he didn’t pursue the monster’s charred remains, he wouldn’t be Seiya Ryuuguuin! The only one who can save the S-ranked world Gaeabrande is this man—a man who won’t even let the words of the gods sway him from his overly cautious ways!

I descend back into the woods where Elulu and Mash are waiting, taking the emperor’s daughter with me. When I see Seiya, the first words that come out of my mouth are:

“I saw what you did! Transform: Automatic Garuda! That was amazing!”

Thereupon, Seiya twists his head.

“Trans-what? What are you talking about?”

“Oh…sorry! I came up with that name myself! Hey, what was that move you just used? The one where the light arrows transformed into magic birds!”

“Oh, you mean Birdie Boom Boom?”

“…! What kind of name is that?! Since when did you start naming things like that?!”

“What? I’ve never put much thought into it.”

“Th-then you can use the name I came up with. Take it.”

“Hmph. That ‘transform’ something or other? It’s just long and drawn out. It’s not even a good name.”

“It still beats Birdie Boom Boom at the very least!”

Mash and Elulu push me out of the way to rush over to Seiya.

“Master Seiya! That was insane!”

“Yeah, seriously, nobody can beat you!”

As they shower Seiya with praise, Bhat and the other soldiers crowd around Rosalie.

“Ah, Madam Rosalie! I am so glad you’re safe!”

But she bluntly tells the moved soldiers to get out of the way and approaches us. I think Rosalie is going to thank us for saving her, but she pins Seiya with a frigid stare.

“You are no Hero, just as I thought. There is no honor in winning with a surprise attack like that. A true Hero would risk their life to confront the enemy head-on in a fair fight. Just like my father.”

Rosalie wastes no time in vilifying Seiya, causing me to lose all sense of propriety as a goddess.

“Listen here, you! The only reason you’re alive is because Seiya saved you! Would it kill you to show some respect and thank him?!”

But Seiya sticks his hand out in front of me as I rage.

“Seiya?! Say something to her!”

“Just let it go, Rista.”

“B-but…!”

“Just let the dog bark.”

Rosalie’s face immediately turns red.

“Wh-who are you calling a dog?!”

Wh-whoa…! This Hero is amazing…! He dealt more damage with just five words than he could have yelling at her a hundred times!

“Mn…!”

Rosalie is on the verge of tears, but…

“Ah! Rosalie’s going to start acting like a dog again!”

Seeing Elulu’s eyes glowing with expectation forces Rosalie to swallow her tears and twitch her nose before walking away in silence. Bhat and the others bow before following after her as well.

Seiya lets out a deep sigh.

“…All right, then. Let’s go take care of the leftover flies.”

Oh yeah. Beel Bub may be dead, but there are still over a hundred of its giant underlings flying around their nest. We can’t afford to ignore them.

While I stare in admiration at the stoic Hero who doesn’t even let his amazing victory go to his head, he places his hand on Elulu’s and Mash’s shoulders.

“Mash, Elulu, you’re up.”

We’re all surprised by what we hear.

“I’m not blind. I know you two trained and acquired new abilities.”

“M-Master…!”

“S-Seiya…!”

“Let’s go. Show me these new skills of yours.”

“Y-you’ve got it!”

“I’ll do my best!”

With mirth in their steps, they follow Seiya in high spirits until they reach the nest…where Seiya repeatedly uses Seven-Shot Shining Arrow and annihilates the remaining flies in the blink of an eye.

“U-um… Master Seiya…?”

“Seiya…?”

Elulu and Mash stare at the hundred or so dead flies in muted shock. Seiya then shifts his focus to Elulu.

“Perfect. Now, Elulu, use Haste on Mash to increase his speed.”

“Uh… O-okay.”

After Elulu casts Haste, Seiya instructs Mash to transform his hand into a dragon claw.

“Next, I want you to use that giant hand and bring the dead fly carcasses over here.”

“O…kay…?”

Mash restlessly starts carrying the dead flies to a giant circle Seiya drew with a tree branch.

“Hmm. Haste really helps speed things along. It’s extremely satisfying to watch.”

After Mash finishes, Seiya—as pleased as can be—burns the gathered fly carcasses with Hellfire until they disintegrate into nothingness.

“Good work, you two.”

While Seiya is genuinely complimenting them from his point of view, they drop their shoulders and hang their heads low, clearly dejected. Staring hard at his hand, Mash mutters:

“What am I, a broom?”

While I try to come up with just the right words to cheer them up, I hear the sound of horses’ hooves from behind. When I turn, Rosalie is staring down at us from a white horse.

“Hmph. You disposed of the remnants of the enemy’s army? The Roseguard Imperial Knights could have taken care of that without your help.”

I glare at Rosalie before Bhat suddenly chimes in.

“M-Madam Rosalie! We must tell them about that!”

“I—I know! You’re an irritating bunch, but I suppose I’ll tell you.”

Rosalie takes in a deep breath as if trying to calm herself down.

“…Are you listening? The legendary armor is being kept in a shrine near Izale village. You will need it to defeat the Demon Lord.”

“‘Legendary armor’…?”

Bhat nods.

“It is said that, in the days of yore, the great sage Mustaf prepared the armor, for he believed that one day a great danger would befall Gaeabrande. We were planning on telling you earlier, but we didn’t get the chance to once the flies attacked the fortress.”

“The people of Roseguard have been carefully watching over this sacred armor for generations just for this moment. Make sure to show some gratitude when you take it.”

Seiya quizzically responds:

“You better be telling the truth. This armor isn’t cursed or anything, right?”

“Did… Did you not listen to anything we just said? It’s legendary armor that the great sage prepared for us! The people of Roseguard have been watching over this sacred equipment for generations! There is no way it would be cursed!”

“It could be ‘the sacred, legendary, cursed armor’ for all I know.”

“…?! Don’t be ridiculous!”

Rosalie violently shakes her head after screaming.

“Why does the Hero have to be someone so morbidly paranoid…? This is the height of absurdity! That armor was meant for the strongest warrior—such as my father…!”

After her brief complaints, Rosalie tugs the reins and turns her horse around. Then she rides off without even glancing in our direction. Only Bhat and his men express their gratitude before disappearing into the distance as well.

“So, Seiya…”

I look back at Seiya.

“Since we’re going all the way back to Izale village to get that armor…how about resting for a bit while we’re there?”

We were originally planning on doing that after leaving the Dragons’ Den, but we were immediately summoned to fight the flies.

“Come on. We need to take a break every once in a while! Let’s just sit back and relax today!”

Elulu’s and Mash’s faces light up the moment I suggest it—Seiya’s, too, surprisingly.

“Okay. I’m running low on MP thanks to the magic bow, so let’s go to the inn and rest a bit.”

He genuinely agrees with me for a change. I don’t know if it’s because I’m tired, but I feel a little chilly, so I’m relieved to hear Seiya say that.

“Then to the village we go!”

I chant a spell and create a gate that will take us to Izale village. It’s a small town, but the warm atmosphere will surely bring us the peace and rest we need. However…the moment I open the gate and arrive at the village, I freeze.

…I wasn’t feeling chilly because I was exhausted. My goddess intuition was just trying to warn me.

The ravaged fields…

The horribly devastated houses…

Izale village has been destroyed.