Death March kara Hajimaru Isekai Kyusoukyoku (LN) - Volume 23 - Chapter SS

EX: Flying Magic

Soaring through the sky was always a dream of mine ever since I was a child. It was a dream that felt unreal, like aspiring to be a hero, but now it’s almost within reach. To repay those who lent me a hand, I’m determined to make it a reality.

—Zena Marientelle

“Kyaaaaaah!”

A woman’s scream echoed across the wilderness adjacent to Labyrinth City Celivera.

“Zena!”

Lilio, a soldier from Seiryuu County, looked up at the sky and called out her colleague’s name. In her line of sight was Zena, the magic soldier, spiraling downward after losing control of her magic.

“Haah,  …”

In Zena’s panicked vision, the ground was rushing up to meet her. A white figure suddenly cut into Zena’s field of vision.

“Froggy, ‘Expand,’ I declare!”

Zena felt a jolt run through her body around the same time as someone’s voice sounded. It wasn’t the impact she expected from meeting the ground—instead, she was engulfed in a soft embrace, like a bed of flowers, before bouncing back into the sky again. After bouncing a few times with a gentle boing, boing, Zena felt her momentum finally slow, and Iona and Lou from Zena’s squad rushed over to catch her. As Zena’s vision leveled out, she saw the image of a Labyrinth Frog with its belly puffed up. Beyond it stood Huit, the youngest of the Nana sisters. It seemed that Huit’s summoned beast, the Labyrinth Frog, had been the one to catch Zena as she fell.

“Are you okay, Zena?”

“Yes, I’m fine.”

Lilio checked Zena over.

“I’m relieved you’re fine, I declare.”

“I have you both to thank, Huit and Froggy.”

“Don’t mention it, I declare.”

Zena seemed relieved to see them.

“Zena, didn’t you promise not to go too high until you got used to it?”

“That’s right, Zena. You had us in a panic because you went so high.”

“I’m sorry. I couldn’t control it.”

Zena shrank away after being scolded by Iona and Lou.

“Thankfully, Huit summoned Froggy.”

“I welcome your praise, I declare. Compliments help Huit grow, I inform!”

Lou patted Huit on the head as she responded joyfully, although she wore a blank expression.

“When you’re unable to control it, it’s best to switch to a different kind of magic.”

“Like Resist Fall or Air Cushion.”

Zena agreed with Iona’s advice. Normally, if she fell from a height, she would slow her descent with Resist Fall and soften the landing impact with Air Cushion. But she was so focused on regaining control of Fly that she missed the opportunity to use them.

“Or she should practice flying over safe areas like water or sand where falling wouldn’t be a problem.”

While there were areas in the current wilderness where sand from the Great Desert had accumulated, it lacked enough cushioning to soften a fall. At best, it could only reduce injuries from a rough landing.

“You’re right, I’ll give it some thought on how best to practice.”

Zena spoke, once again holding her head down in shame in front of the more experienced people with her.

“Looks like I’ll have to venture to the Great Desert anyway…”

Zena sat in the plaza in front of the guild, resting her chin on her hand and sighing dejectedly.

“Ms. Zena, did something happen?”

“…Mr. Satou?”

Zena turned around with a beaming smile, but instead of her crush, she found herself face-to-face with Akindoh, the merchant affiliated with the Pendragon family. His face bore no resemblance to Satou’s face at all.

Why did I think it was Satou? He doesn’t even look like him.

Zena was internally confused.

“Does my voice resemble the viscount’s that much?”

Akindoh held back a smile as she spoke. He was, in fact, Viscount Satou Pendragon.

“I-I’m sorry, Mr. Akindoh.”

“It’s fine, no need to apologize,” Akindoh responded, smiling.

“You don’t seem to be in your usual high spirits. Is something the matter?”

“Oh, it’s nothing.”

“I find people often feel a lot better if they share their worries with others. I don’t mind if you just need to complain. So what’s wrong?”

“Well…”

After some hesitation, Zena finally opened up about how Flying Magic hadn’t been going so well for her.

“Flying Magic is advanced magic. I had no idea you were that advanced with magic that you could use Flying Magic.”

“Oh, no. I still have a ways to go.”

“Ah, no need to be so modest. You ought to be proud. You must have had an excellent tutor.”

“Yeah, my tutor was strict, but they were one of the best.”

Akindoh noticed Zena was referring to her tutor in the past tense, but he decided not to ask about it.

“Did you receive a Flying Magic scroll from your tutor?”

“No, I got it from Hikaru—I got it from an acquaintance.”

“Oh, that’s nice of them.”

“Yeah. It’s thanks to them I was able to learn how to use advanced magic.”

Zena grew a bit wistful as she recalled the grueling days of boot camp.

“In that case, can’t you ask them to teach you Flying Magic?”

“They were unable to use Air Magic…”

Zena frowned as she responded.

“Then it’s probably best you learn from someone who is good at flying.”

“Someone who is good at it? I don’t think it’s that easy to find someone who’s good at flying.”

“I think it is. If it’s simply to learn about flying, birdfolk and batfolk would know a lot.”

At Akindoh’s words, Zena looked as if a veil had been lifted from her eyes. Then, based on Akindoh’s recommendation, they went to meet with some birdfolk who had assembled at a messenger post.

“You wanna know how to fly?”

The birdfolk, who spoke in high-pitched voices, were much more fluent in their speech than the beastfolk were.

“You just flap your wings, catch the wind, and whoosh, off you go!”

“Exactly! Once you float up, you can glide smoothly like swoosh-swoosh!”

But their explanations, filled with sound effects and gestures, weren’t particularly helpful. “Isn’t there a bit more practical advice you could give?” Zena asked.

“Well, that’s easier said than done…”

“I’ve been able to fly since I can remember,” one birdfolk said, shrugging. Seeing Zena’s frustration, Akindoh stepped in, but the birdfolk still seemed oblivious to why their explanations were unhelpful.

“Oh, how about Kairos, the Fallen Bird?” one suggested.

“Kairos?” Zena asked.

“Yeah, he only learned to fly around adulthood. Unlike us, he might actually be able to explain it to you humans.”

“True, he’s a bit of a logical thinker,” another added.

“All right, let’s go meet Kairos,” Akindoh said, striding off purposefully.

“Um, Mr. Akindoh,” Zena called after him.

“Yes? What is it?”

“Do you actually know where Kairos is?

Akindoh paused briefly at her question.

“Yes, I’ve seen him there before. I’m sure he’ll be in the same place today.”

In truth, he’d looked it up on a map earlier, but, using his “Deception” skill, he’d crafted this plausible excuse.

“There he is,” Akindoh said, his gaze directed at a slender, winged youth sitting atop a broken tower. Unlike the birdfolk’s inverted-triangle build, he appeared delicate and slight.

“A human? No, he has wings,” Zena noted.

“Looks like he’s one of the winged folk. I’ve never seen one before, but I’ve heard they live on a peninsula to the south,” Akindoh replied.

“The peninsula past the trade city Tartumina?” Zena asked, confirming her hazy knowledge. Akindoh nodded.

“Hello! Are you Kairos?” Zena called up to him.

“What do you need?” he asked.

“We’ve come to ask for your help on a job.”

“Sure, what and where am I delivering? I’ll warn you now—I’m slower than the others, but if that’s fine, I’ll take the job.”

He accepted without even checking who they were, perhaps due to a lack of work offers.

“The job I’d like to offer is to teach her how to fly.”

“Teach a human?” Kairos asked, eyes widening in surprise.

“You want to fly even though you don’t have wings?”

“She’s a magic user.”

“You want to fly with magic? Like a wooden horse?”

“No, no. She wants to fly like you do.”

“Oh, in that case, I can probably teach her.”

Kairos agreed to teach Zena in exchange for a silver coin. They relocated to a natural park near the Ivy Manor in Labyrinth City Celivera.

“We’re practicing here?” Zena asked.

“Yes. Grass is softer to fall on, and if you fall from a height, the branches will cushion you a bit and make serious injuries less likely,” Kairos explained, sharing why he had chosen the location.

Then, with a hint of self-deprecation, he added, “When it comes to falling, I’m a bit of an expert.”

“How high can you fly? Are you able to fly at all?”

“I’ve flown before, but I lost control in midair and fell…”

“Try and fly a little bit now. Feel free to go straight back to the ground after.”

“All right.  …  Hikou Fly!”

When Zena activated the Wind Magic spell Fly, a powerful gust swirled around her. The overgrown grass rippled in waves, and loose blades of grass and insects were blown outward in all directions. After scattering a tempest at ground level for a while, Zena suddenly shot into the sky, as if vanishing from sight. In no time, she had soared over thirty-two feet up, but then lost her balance and began plummeting.

“Ah!” she squeaked, letting out a short cry as her own spell took control of her. Unlike before, when her colleagues or Huit had helped, this time, as soon as she realized she’d lost control, she canceled her Flying Magic and began casting Air Cushion.

“…  Kikabe Air Cushion,” she chanted, but it was a bit too late, and she couldn’t decelerate enough to avoid the ground entirely.

It looked as if she was about to crash hard, but miraculously, she landed on her feet without a scratch. Unbeknownst to Kairos, just before she hit the ground, a Physical Defense Enhancement spell had been cast on Zena, and Magic Hand had absorbed some of the impact. Naturally, it was Akindoh, standing beside him, who had intervened.

“That was pretty rough,” Kairos remarked.

“Sorry, I’m not very good at flying yet,” Zena said, bowing her head apologetically at his harsh critique.

“So, what should I work on?” Zena asked.

“I could tell you’re using wind pressure to fly,” Kairos replied, “but it’s hard to pinpoint what’s wrong without being able to see wings…”

As he mulled over the question, Akindoh pulled a small pouch of white powder from his pocket. With a quick sprinkle, the powder drifted with the air currents, making them visible.

“If Ms. Zena wears a pouch filled with this powder on her back, it should continuously slow the flow of air. Your clothes will get covered in powder, but just think of it as part of the training expenses.”

“Thank you, Mr. Akindoh,” Zena said, fastening a small backpack with a drawstring to release the powder as needed.

“You… How on earth did you have something like that on hand?” Kairos asked, dumbfounded.

“Just had a feeling it might come in handy,” Akindoh replied with a composed expression. Zena, used to Satou’s inventive solutions, seemed unfazed.

“All right, here I go.  …  Hikou Fly!”

Zena activated the Flying Magic once more.

“You can’t fly by just moving your wings up and down. When you bring your wings back up, make sure they don’t catch the air,” Kairos instructed.

“Don’t catch the air?” Zena tilted her head, puzzled.

“Like this,” Kairos demonstrated with his own wings, showing her the correct motion.

“Like…this? Oh! I’m doing it!”

“Exactly! You’re doing great!”

As Zena floated up gently from the ground, Kairos was overjoyed, as if he were the one flying.

“Keep your balance! The air density and wind aren’t constant. Be aware of how much air your wings are catching.”

“Yes! Ah—whoa!”

“Don’t rush! It’s fine to make mistakes; just pay attention to the relationship between your movements and the way you actually fly!”

With Kairos’s guidance, Zena’s flying gradually improved. She crashed a few times, but thanks to Akindoh’s subtle support, she avoided any serious injuries and was able to continue her training.

“I did it! This time, I actually flew!”

“That’s it! Keep it up. Now, land carefully—kill your speed…yes, just like that!”

Zena floated gently to the ground, landing with a soft thud.

“Well done. Remember how that felt. If you do, you’ll be able to fly whenever you want.”

“Thank you so much, teacher!”

“Teacher? Me?” Kairos said, taken aback.

“Yes! Thanks to you, I can finally fly.”

“Me…?” Kairos murmured in disbelief, a stunned look on his face.

“…Anyway! Practice again before you forget that feeling!” he stammered, trying to regain his composure.

“Yes, teacher,” Zena replied, casting her Flying spell and rising gracefully into the air. Watching her from below, Kairos murmured.

“Teacher, huh?”

“Yes, you’re an excellent teacher,” Akindoh remarked.

“Nah, it doesn’t suit me. I’m just Kairos, the Fallen Bird, who couldn’t fly for ages.”

“No, you’re a remarkable teacher. It’s because you struggled to fly that you’re able to teach others.”

“Is that so…?” Kairos muttered, his head lowered as his fists trembled, not out of anger, but with emotion. He was deeply moved, feeling that he had finally done something he could be proud of.

“Teacher! Mr. Akindoh!” Zena called, waving from the air.

Akindoh, not wanting to intrude on Kairos’s moment of fulfillment, looked away and waved back at Zena. The next time, he would stand before her as Satou, he thought, and that would be the day he’d take her for a stroll in the sky. Holding on to that hope, Akindoh continued to watch over her flight practice.