Chapter 97:
The Joint Mission
“So anyway, we’ll be taking a job together!”
“What do you mean, ‘So anyway?!’”
The group of six nodded, ignoring Mile’s interjection.
“We will not be able to proceed until we can bear witness to each other’s capabilities. To that end, we have no objections to this proposal,” said Marcela. Her two companions nodded.
And so, it was decided that the Crimson Vow and the Wonder Trio would accept a job together.
***
“Shall we go, then?”
“Okay!”
The next morning, after they had finished breakfast and had a short rest, the seven girls set out together as a temporary joint team.
It was imprudent to do any vigorous activities just after eating, but as long as they rested a bit and walked at a leisurely pace, by the time they arrived at the hunting site they should be in fine form. Normally, if they did not arrive at the guildhall early, all of the more appealing jobs would be taken, and it would take them longer to find one they wanted. In light of this, one would typically wish to head out just after breakfast, but there was no need to do so today.
The girls’ goal was not to take on any particularly notable requests, but instead, to have more of a “free play” session. In other words, they would be taking on dailies or gathering requests, jobs that would not require any preliminary preparation.
Their destination this morning was the part of the forest primarily used as hunting grounds by lower- and mid-grade C-rank hunters. It was the sort of area where ogres appeared, so it was not recommended for the lowest grade of C-rank hunting parties, those who were little better than D-ranks. Even if they could fell an ogre, if even one member of their party was seriously injured, that was a big problem. Having to support even one injured person on the way back would mean they might not be able to bring any game home. Plus, there was the cost of healing and the time they would have to take off until everyone was recovered, and so forth.
And of course, it was not a given that an injured hunter would be able to make a full recovery. If a party member suffered any serious lingering effects or lost any limbs, they would have to retire. Or worse, they could end up dead. Any parties who dared to risk such a danger tended to vanish within the first month or two.
Thus, the jobs hunters tended to take were those where there was a 95% certainty that they would make it back unscathed—with perhaps only a 4.99% chance that one or two of them might sustain some light injuries. Of course, there was no such thing as a 100% absolute guarantee of safety even with those jobs, no matter how skilled the party might be. There was always that 0.01% chance of unhappy accidents—so being able to minimize that chance as much as possible was a testament to a party leader’s ability and a party’s true strength in the face of danger.
That said, when it came to guard duties, it was impossible to calculate the possibility of being attacked and the strength of the enemies one might face. As long as a party was not attacked, all the party members would make it back unharmed, but if they were attacked, and got into a battle, the chances of injury or death leapt substantially. Thus, when it was clear that a party had no chance of winning, many of them would simply surrender from the start.
With this in mind, the seven hunters set out on some daily tasks.
The seven ladies are ready for work. Should we be singing “Heigh-ho?”
And as always, Mile’s mind was wandering somewhere…
“Ready? We’re going to be doing this job as a joint operation, as long as no expected enemies appear that put us in danger. If they do, we’re going to be fighting as our own groups. We don’t know much about each other yet, so fighting in tandem would be dangerous,” Reina explained.
Everyone nodded. If they were all to leap into battle together, having never even compared tactics, the mages would have no idea how to read the vanguard’s attack patterns, and the chances of friendly fire would increase immensely. The splendid coordination of the Servants of the Goddess was the result of years of continuous experience and training with the same group of people, and not something that was easily replicated.
“As for you, Mile, as long as no one requires your help, you are not to interfere or advise! If you don’t stay out of this, it won’t be a fair comparison!”
“S-sure, I understand.”
Given that, at first, it seemed she was going to be left behind entirely, Mile was in no position to argue. She was simply glad she had managed to plead her way into being brought along.
“So, beginning now, the Crimson Vow and the Wonder Trio will be spending the next three days and two nights as a joint party for dailies and gathering!” Reina announced ceremoniously. It was clear from the way she was speaking today that she was fully invested in this—she sounded serious and sincere. The five hunters gathered around and nodded…while Mile looked on.
And so, the seven of them left the inn and headed into the forest.
Mile, a bit troubled, fidgeted silently at the tail end of the group. However, Reina’s orders had been clear. “Outside of emergencies or other times your help is needed, you are absolutely forbidden to interfere or advise during normal operations! You are only permitted to speak about unrelated topics during normal conversation in our down times.”
This had been the condition attached to her accompanying them at all, so she had little choice in the matter, even if it meant she was unable to voice her concerns. Thus, she continued to quietly watch the Wonder Trio and the Crimson Vow from the rear.
The Wonder Trio, with their belongings on their backs and flasks on their hips, and the Crimson Vow, who carried nothing but their staves and sword…
***
“Well, I guess it’s about time for lunch. After that, we’ll start hunting. We’re all good with ignoring any valuable herbs or high-class food ingredients, yeah?” Reina proposed, once they had arrived at the hunting grounds and made it a fair distance inward.
“Yes, that will be fine by us,” Marcela agreed.
It was still a bit before the first noon bell, but it was not very efficient to take lunch right after beginning their hunt, so this order of events was preferable.
The Wonder Trio unloaded their packs from their backs and took out the preserved rations they had inside. Though they had to carry only easily portable foods, the members of the Trio were capable of making both water and fire with magic, and could produce warm soup and other cooked foods, which meant they enjoyed a far better outdoor dining experience than most other parties. The three of them were all mages, and relatively efficient ones at that, so cooking required little expenditure of magical energy. This was not a privilege afforded to parties who had only one normal mage in their lineup, and who could not afford to waste precious magical energy when they had battles ahead.
Meanwhile…
“Okay, guess we’ll… Hm, what should we have today? Any recommendations, Mile?”
Even if they could produce their own hot water and cooking flames, the results were nothing compared to the dishes that Mile so lovingly made in her free time. Reina turned to Mile, a casual look upon her face. However…
“Nope.”
“Huh?”
For a moment, Reina was lost, unable to parse what Mile had said to her.
“Well, I mean, you forbade me from helping you or giving you advice on any practical matters, right? Food is obviously a big part of going on an extended trip like this, so…”
“Ack!”
Mavis and Pauline were taken aback, suddenly understanding exactly what she meant. Reina froze in place. Then, Mavis muttered, paling, “D-don’t tell me we didn’t pack anything …”
Reina shook her head slowly.
The three fell silent.
Other than their armor and weapons, the members of the Crimson Vow were completely empty-handed.
Until now, the Wonder Trio had primarily stayed at inns on their journeys, but they at least carried with them the basic minimum camping equipment.
“Goodness, what’s the matter?” asked Marcela with a grin. Monika and Aureana were smiling as well.
To think they had intended to leave Mile behind. They had worried that they were too reliant on Mile, and even tried doing some jobs without her. And yet…
This was bad. This was terrible .
Normally, if they were with someone who was in trouble, the Wonder Trio would likely have shared what they had. However, this was not a normal circumstance. There was no reason to help out their opponents when they were attempting to compare abilities with one another—particularly in a contest they could not afford to lose. They could help them out all they liked after the victor had been decided.
“………”
The Crimson Vow was off to a disastrous start.
“Well, I guess we should get started,” Reina announced unhappily, when it was time for their trial to begin.
Naturally, she—and the other members of the Crimson Vow—had gone without lunch.
They had not had the time to waste hunting down some food and processing it, and even if they were to have plain, boiled water, they had no cups, nor any other means of drinking it. Given the time constraints, they had to abandon any thought of sustenance entirely. Of course, they had drunk some water, but as they had no cups or flasks, they had to take it directly into their hands, most of it spilling everywhere. With two accomplished mages in their group, it was not a huge feat to at least get some drinking water, so that was something to be grateful for. If they were the sort of party with only one normal mage, they would need to reserve their energies for battle and would simply have had to bear the thirst. Still, the whole thing was inefficient and unpleasant.
Thankfully, though most were still in the habit of eating only twice a day, the members of the Crimson Vow had taken up the practice of eating three meals, so they had at least had a proper breakfast. It was a small meal, of course, to avoid walking on a full stomach, but at least it would make going without lunch more bearable. In truth, they had gone without lunch plenty of times before while on the job.
For the Crimson Vow, this whole thing was more a matter of psychological damage than physical. How had the three of them, with their wits combined, not anticipated this issue? If Mile had not tagged along, they might have realized it. However, the moment it was decided she would accompany them, they had instinctively thought, Oh, it’ll be just like usual —the stupidity of which was patently obscene.
Worse, that evening, dinner and camping awaited them. Surely, they could not go without dinner as well. And then there would be breakfast the next morning. Skipping meals would be a huge impediment to their success the next day and at worst might even cause them to slip up. They would have to figure something out before evening.
“Mavis, Pauline. If you see any edible-looking wild vegetables or fruits along the way, pick them up. And Mavis, we’re going to need you to cut some wood and make some makeshift cups before dinner. So, we’ll start setting up camp a little earlier than usual,” Reina softly whispered to the other two, quick as always to respond to the situation. The pair of them silently nodded. It vexed her to be the one to suggest an early rest, but there was little else they could do.
It was as Mile always said, after all: “You can’t make an omelet without breaking a few eggs.”
***
“Jackalope!” Monika announced, spotting one.
“Leave it!” Marcela directed her.
Reina, however, replied, “Let’s get it! Pauline!”
“On it!”
The Wonder Trio stood by and watched while the Crimson Vow launched into battle. Pauline halted the rabbit with her wind magic, while Reina carefully brought it down using ice magic (instead of fire, which might cause wildfire), and Mavis handily drained it of blood.
“………”
As the Trio silently watched this display, a number of thoughts ran through their heads.
Why would they hunt something that wouldn’t go for much? Oh, perhaps it’s for their dinner…
Still, they should wait to hunt something that small… If they’re hunting something for dinner this early, they’re just going to have to carry it around while they search for larger prey.
Or maybe, they want to make sure not to go without dinner, but they don’t have time to make any more efficient plans. They started thinking they would have to grab food the moment they spotted it…
The Trio continued to watch with pity. Noticing this, Reina’s face reddened as she guessed what they were thinking…and subsequently realizing their own lapse of judgment.
Indeed, they had been too hasty. They could easily hunt something like this later, and if they were to take down a larger creature, they could just have part of that for dinner instead. They would only be bringing home the more valuable parts, after all.
There were limits to how much six young girls could carry. Thus, they would have to carry back home only the best parts of the beasts they felled today and tomorrow, which they would preserve with ice magic. Of course, in reality, they were going to have Mile carry all the “discard” parts back home in her storage space and then split the proceeds amongst the group…
Worried for what awaited the Crimson Vow if they did not catch anything else later on, the party wasted some extra time on their journey, as well as carrying an extra burden. Of course, the Trio couldn’t complain about the added weight itself, as it was the members of the Crimson Vow who were carrying it, and they had little else to carry in the first place. Still, the Crimson Vow’s continued failings at this point had them quite discouraged.
“Three orcs ahead! 130 meters at 1:30!” said Monika in a soft but sharp voice. The six reflexively halted.
“How do you know that?! You aren’t Mi…” Reina began to protest, before she trailed off entirely.
Indeed, this was a sort of magic that Mile had never offered to teach the Crimson Vow, and so they thought of it as a sort of magic that only she could use. One of Mile’s famous “family secrets”…
Dark.
The expressions on the faces of the members of the Crimson Vow had all turned incredibly dark…
“Let’s get going!”
“Yeah!”
The Wonder Trio psyched themselves up in soft but spirited voices, lowered their stance, and kicked off running, the Crimson Vow following frantically behind.
H-how…?
Mile was left stock-still and speechless. Her search magic was something she had discovered after leaving the academy. So, naturally, it was not something she had taught to the Trio. So, how was it they were able to use it?
D-don’t tell me they figured it out on their… Crap…
She shouldn’t be surprised. After all, there was Mavis, who was not a mage, and to whom Mile had never taught anything about magic beyond how to deal with mages in battle. Despite this, Mavis had managed to equip herself, entirely through her own efforts, with pseudo-healing magic as well as her peculiar Mavis Loop technique, having taken hints from Mile’s search magic.
And so, if Marcela, Aureana, and Monika were to have put their heads together after learning the principles of magic from Mile, and if they were given enough time… Say, two years, perhaps…
Mile had far, far underestimated her own allies and the people of this world.
Crap, crap, crap.
Mile paled, trembling. Suddenly, she regretted that she had neglected to tell the Trio to keep concealed not only the special magic she had taught them but also any spells they had developed themselves from the principles she had taught them. She had of course reminded them not to teach other people how to use these spells, but she had not cautioned them about the need for discretion when using the spells in front of others, and certainly not warned them to conceal the fact that this sort of magic existed at all. And never once had she thought they would develop something like search magic all on their own…
Of course, the hunters of the Crimson Vow were Mile’s fellow party members, so naturally the Wonder Trio would have assumed that they would be aware of the strange magics Mile could use and would likely even have learned those techniques from her. Surely, they would think there was no need to conceal Mile’s brand of magic in front of her closest comrades.
It was true that the members of the Crimson Vow did know about Mile’s search magic. They had seen her use it right before their eyes many times, and it had saved them just as many. Thus, there was nothing surprising about seeing such spells.
However …
The Trio had been taught about Mile’s most secret of “family secrets,” which she had never shared with the Crimson Vow.
This had delivered an even greater shock to the members of the Crimson Vow, Mile imagined. When they glanced back at Mile, she knew her feelings of guilt were plain on her face.
This wounded them even more.
She could have at least attempted to play dumb, the way she usually did. She could have worn a vacant look upon her face, as though she had not realized anything was wrong.
A short distance from the Wonder Trio ahead of them, and Mile at the rear, Reina quietly shared her thinking with Mavis and Pauline.
“Those guys are weak, so they need to avoid any stronger monsters. That’s why Mile taught them that magic when she left them. We’re strong, and Mile isn’t going to leave us. That’s why she hasn’t had any reason to teach us those spells, which are probably something she’s absolutely never supposed to share with anyone else. That’s all it is!”
The other two nodded silently.
That was right. That had to be it. But then…
“Soil Spear!”
“Ice Nail!”
“Water Cutter!”
Ka-shnk!
Bsh bsh bsh bsh!
Slice!
“Huh…?”
“Soil Spear!”
Monika struck one orc, who had not been instantly killed and instead only rendered powerless, with a second earthen spear. There had been barely any gap between her firing the first spear and the second. Even if she had quickly incanted the spell in her head, that was still exceedingly fast…
“N-no way!”
The members of the Crimson Vow and Mile were all speechless.
The ladies of the Wonder Trio had fired off three attacks with the name of the spell alone, hitting the orcs the moment they had emerged from the trees. It was fully spell-less casting, done with only the name of the spell and not even the full incantation. Their opponents were not humans, who might guess what was coming based on the name of the spell, so they had been able to launch a surprise attack from a significant distance. Indeed, these were spells that had been easy for them to fire, which they could have simply recited the full incantation for if they needed to.
And yet, the pause between Monika’s first and second shots was so short. Far too short…
If the Crimson Vow had been the ones on the attack, the result would have been almost identical. First Reina and Pauline would have each taken down one orc with their magic and then Mavis would cripple one with her Wind Edge, and finally, she would strike the finishing blow with her sword—or else, Reina or Pauline would strike a second blow with a spell.
They were equal. It was one thing for Pauline to face this truth. Reina had spent years being taught by the Crimson Lightning, worked independently, spent half a year at the Prep School and then one and a half years as a C-rank hunter. Mavis had been trained for years by her excellent family. For them to be just equal to a group of young maidens who were fresh out of the academy and had never known hardship, who were only playing at being hunters…
And really, on second thought, there was no doubt that Monika’s speed with mental incantation was even faster than theirs.
“Tch…”
However, there was nothing they could say right now. Indeed, now all that would matter was their actions and the results.
“H…hmph! Very well done. I guess we’re up next!” said Reina, stepping out in front of the Wonder Trio with her two partners. She seemed to intend to spot the next group of enemies before the Trio, so that the Crimson Vow could take them down.
“Please wait!”
Yet Monika called after them.
“What is it?!” asked Reina crankily, coming to a halt.
“Are you just going to leave those orcs behind?!”
“Ah…”
***
“Okay, that should be it!”
Normally, this was the point at which they would pick out only the most valuable parts of the orcs to carry along with them. However, this was merely a test of strength, so instead, when it came time to return home, they would only be carrying sandbags the same weight as the amount of orc meat they would have been transporting. The hunted orcs themselves would be taken out of the equation and carried home in Mile’s storage—Mile having declared that practice maneuvers like these called for special measures. They could not ask the Wonder Trio to keep up with the Crimson Vow if they were already pushed to the limits of their carrying capacity, and disassembling the orcs now would mean they would be mushed, bloody lumps of meat by the time they headed home, so no one had any complaints about Mile’s ruling.
So, the party started forward again to resume their hunting.
This time, the Crimson Vow took the lead, ignoring small birds and mammals that would not sell for much in search of larger prey. Then, after a while—
“Target spotted! Four ogres!”
“Okay, let’s get ’em!”
Mavis was typically the first to spot their prey when Mile was not using her search magic, and true to form, she was the first to see them. Unlike the orcs the Trio had felled, these were ogres, more powerful creatures, and there were four of them. They were the perfect target to show off the Crimson Vow’s strength.
“Pattern S-1!” Reina directed.
This pattern was a full-on attack, one performed regardless of who was watching, without reservation. Mile had taught things to the Wonder Trio that she had not taught to them, but the Trio had probably thought it was fine for the Vow to witness those “family secrets” of Mile’s; they might have assumed that she would have taught them to her new friends also. Perhaps they had merely meant to show off, to convey to the Crimson Vow, You aren’t the only ones who have learned Mile’s secrets .
Still, to fell just four ogres, the Crimson Vow didn’t even need to use anything Mile had taught them. As they did not have access to search magic, like Monika did, the ogres were closer than the orcs had been when they spotted them. However, this was still just the right distance for Pauline to use her shorter-range, most sinister of area attacks. Plus, unlike the Trio, the Crimson Vow had a vanguard who could hold the enemy back, so they were safe.
“Hot Tornado!”
“Icicle Darts!”
“Wind Edge!”
Though Pauline was less skilled in typical attack spells, she instead utilized her hot magic, her most wicked of attacks.
Both due to the fact that they were in the middle of a forest—which meant her fire magic was off limits—and because their enemies were so many, Reina, like Pauline, had chosen an area attack, striking down on the ogres to lower their combat strength with a flurry of seven or eight throwing darts made of ice. As for Mavis, she struck the target first with a Wind Edge, and though it did not have the power to take down an ogre, that didn’t mean it was pointless by any means.
Mavis could not strike into the enemies right away without being caught up in the lingering effects of Pauline’s hot spell, which would have her suffering right along with the ogres. Thus, she had to wait. Fortunately, the luxury of time was on their side, as the ogres were in no condition to strike back due to Pauline’s magical sabotage.
One of the ogres, having been struck by Mavis’s attack on top of several of Reina’s ice darts, fell, and while the remaining three were still standing, they were truly no longer in fighting condition. Then, the mages fired their second wave of attacks.
“Icicle Javelin!”
Reina let off a targeted attack.
“Wind Storm!”
Then, Pauline blew away the lingering hot magic with a wind spell. Reina’s attack had decisively felled one of the ogres, so that left two more. Mavis plunged into the enemy line, not raising a cry. There was no reason to go out of her way to alert the enemy of her position and intent to attack after they had already destroyed the enemies’ sight and smell, after all.
Each ogre had individually taken little damage from the ranged attacks, but they were now decently blinded, their sense of smell deadened, and they were wounded all over. In that state, they did not stand a chance against Mile’s special sword and Mavis’s new left arm.
Careful to position herself between the ogres and the mages, so that even if she slipped up, there was no chance of the monsters getting past her and endangering the others, she cut down the ogres in one fell swoop.
It was a no-damage, 100% flawless victory.
The Wonder Trio had downed three orcs with three people and four magical attacks.
The Crimson Vow had downed four ogres with three people and five magical and sword attacks.
On first glance, these numbers seemed fairly equal, but given how much more magical strength was required to defeat an ogre than an orc, a much weaker enemy, there was a chance that even if they had stepped into the fray, the Wonder Trio might not have been able to manage what the Crimson Vow had accomplished. However, the members of the Crimson Vow were not going to start running their mouths over hypotheticals. Had the Trio been up against ogres, there was a chance that they, too, would have just used more powerful spells.
So, as of now, they were tied.
However, while being tied with the Crimson Vow was no bother for the Wonder Trio, the members of the Crimson Vow could not abide being on the same level as the girls they had looked down upon and considered amateurs.
From there, both parties proceeded with their dinner preparations, eschewing stalking any more significant prey in favor of hunting up a number of jackalopes. Neither party was inclined to slice into an enormous orc or ogre just for a bit of dinner…
Making camp went relatively smoothly.
The surprise of finding themselves without food at lunchtime had been unsettling for the members of the Crimson Vow. However, now that she had gotten situated and had plenty of time on her hands, making camp was no huge bother to Reina, even with insufficient equipment. After all, she had spent a long time working as a hunter before Mile, including her time with the Crimson Lightning.
Plus, camping simply, without a tent or cloak, was easy compared to camping out in the rain or wind or in the middle of winter. Even a day or two of eating nothing but meat was not enough to throw one’s nutritional balance out of whack. Thus, Reina and Pauline prepared a simple camping stove out of rocks, skewering the jackalope meat onto sticks for roasting while Mavis cut into some suitable logs, carving wooden plates and saucers. Easy peasy. It was less simple to carve a cup with her short sword, of course, but she had done her best to make the dishes deep enough, and the results were serviceable.
Hoping to sate their empty, grumbling tummies, the members of the Crimson Vow chomped into the roasted meat… That’s right. Plain, roasted meat, without any seasoning whatsoever.
Of course, the meat itself did have some umami, a sweetness and richness in the juices and fats that melted out of it during cooking. It was a primal flavor, one enjoyed by man since time immemorial, so that was bearable. Along with it they had some freshly made soup and plain boiled water.
The Wonder Trio, on the other hand, shaved some salt off of a small lump with a tiny grater and finely crushed some dried herbs as garnish, to accent the flavor of their meat. Naturally, they had herbal tea as their beverage. The weight and volume of the dried herbs amounted to practically nothing. They could carry a fair amount of them with little added burden.
The Crimson Vow, of course, normally had a great deal of cooking herbs in the party’s possession…all within Mile’s storage.
As far as their bedding, most normal hunters did not walk around with tents on their backs. They carried no more than a cloak, tarp, or poncho to stave off the cold, wind, and rain. Even the Wonder Trio had nothing but thin waterproof blankets to wrap around their most easily chilled extremities. Indeed, the Crimson Vow was very much an exception to the rule. For camping, most just put out a bit of dried grass on the ground to lie upon. Going without even some type of tent or bedroll was no big deal. Even Reina had slept this way hundreds of times before.
“…My back hurts. It’s cold…”
Reina was stunned to hear the words slipping from her own mouth. She would have just grimaced and ignored the sentiment if it had come from Pauline or Mavis. However, she was shaken to realize that she herself had complained before even the other two. She, who had had so many years of experience that by now she really should be entering the ranks of veteran.
She had been corrupted. She had gone soft .
When a fighter or athlete goes without practicing for months, their body weakens, and their slackened muscles never go back to what they once were. The same apparently went for the stoic, tenacious disposition of the veteran hunter.
“This is bad…”
Reina was trembling, but it was not from the cold. Meanwhile, though Mavis and Pauline had thought to themselves, Man, it would suck to live without Mile , they did not seem to be particularly aware of any danger. They had no idea that their complacency was, in and of itself, an immense source of peril…
***
“Today, we’re going to show off our close-range combat skills!” Reina announced. They had just finished a simple breakfast of meat from the night before, reheated along with plain boiled water (though of course the Trio had herbal tea).
Even without Mile, the Crimson Vow still had Mavis on vanguard. Besides, they also had Reina, and even Pauline, who were both well trained in the art of staff fighting. This only stood to reason—being able to wield a staff was an important means of self-defense and might be necessary to protect their own lives. The Wonder Trio, meanwhile, had graduated from a school attended by only nobles and little rich girls. They had no such training—making them a party of three rookie thirteen-year-old girls, with no vanguard.
Yet no matter how young they were, they still had plenty of talent, especially when it came to magic… That, and Mile’s “family secrets.” Still, no matter how skilled one was with magic, a hunter’s life depended on their combat abilities at close quarters. Not only would there be unexpected encounters with monsters but also bandits who might ambush a party. Not to mention the fact that a hunter might be betrayed by a party they had joined up with, or attacked by guards and merchants from wagons they met on the road…who were in fact just bandits in disguise, pretending to be passing through. Even with search magic, an enemy’s offensive attacks could sometimes still make it through, necessitating close-range combat.
Reina’s intention was to make the Trio aware of this and then show them how their lack of strength would force all of the burden onto Mile.
Was this a little petty? The Wonder Trio were still not yet of age, but Reina was already sixteen, a legal adult…
“Understood. Well then,” Marcela replied, “we shall do the same.”
Reina and Pauline grinned. Pauline seemed to have picked up on Reina’s ulterior motive immediately. And so, everyone packed up their things and set out for the day’s hunt.
***
“We’re going to have them fight first,” Reina whispered to Mavis and Pauline, so that the Wonder Trio could not hear. “Trying to take down a kobold or a group of goblins without damaging them would probably be about right. No matter how fast they are at casting, it won’t be enough to keep up with more agile enemies, and if they end up in trouble, we can just step in to help. If it’s just some kobolds or goblins, they should be able to take a few hits, especially since we’ve got both Mile and you here, Pauline, so healing won’t be a problem. Plus, I’m sure that Mile will go leaping in if it looks like any of them are really in danger…”
Indeed, no matter how much one excelled at combat magic, it was inevitable for monsters to sometimes leap out at close range when one traveled through a forest. Against such enemies, a party of nothing but young ladies, with no vanguard, would be defenseless. Reina was convinced that making the Trio aware of this fact was a kindness—a considerate act. Her goal? To let these girls know that proper young ladies were not fit to live as hunters, that they should abandon their frivolous thoughts and head back to the futures that awaited them in noble society and the world of business…
Just before evening, after hunting numerous orcs, ogres, and jackalopes, the group had switched to gathering higher-priced medicinal herbs and tree fruits for dinner, when a horde of goblins appeared.
“Seven or eight goblins at 1:30, coming in fast! They’re probably on their way to ambush us!” announced Monika, who had been walking at the head of the group.
“Roger that!” Marcela and Aureana replied calmly. Yet, in spite of their reply, they did not seem to be preparing any spells, only continuing to walk normally.
“All right! We’re going to show you our close-quarters fighting skills now.”
“Huh…?”
The members of the Crimson Vow were unable to hide their surprise at the utter calm with which Marcela had spoken. Indeed, the Crimson Vow had been certain that the Wonder Trio would be no good in a melee, assuming that the Trio’s version of close-quarters combat would just be to fire off an attack spell at short range…
When the Wonder Trio ended up in danger, the Crimson Vow would help them, and then they would show them what close-quarters combat was really all about.
At least, that was what the members of the Crimson Vow had assumed. However, the Trio were walking calmly, not appearing to be making any preparations for battle.
If they had this much time on their hands, then regardless of their ability to cast without spells, they ought to at least be preparing an incantation, just in case. However, the Trio appeared to be preparing no spells at all, silently or otherwise. Unsettled, Pauline and Reina stood by at the ready, silently holding targeted attack spells in their heads, keeping enough to a distance not to interfere with the Trio’s battle but staying close enough that they might jump in to help at a moment’s notice. Mavis left the magical interference to the other two, ready instead to draw her sword to intervene as required.
Then, a few minutes later, the party encountered the goblins.
Their numbers were roughly equal. However, “juvenile human females” were the goblins’ preferred prey. They were a soft and succulent meal, with no means of fighting back. Moreover, they were an attractive meal, one with which the goblins could satisfy other desires before slaking their hunger. They would never let such creatures out of their sight.
Without any coordination, or even a loose formation, the goblins came swarming in one after another. Judging from the girls’ appearances and the fact that they seemed to be wielding nothing more than wooden sticks, the monsters had probably judged that these humans would be unable to muster a counterattack. There were many goblins who thought like this, knowing that their kind often attacked village girls and lived to tell the tale—though any goblin who attacked a female hunter would perish on the spot.
Looking at the Wonder Trio, who did not appear to be using any magic, Reina had come to a similar conclusion as the goblins… Namely, that the Trio, who could only fight at long range, were frozen in fear at seeing the goblins close up. On this assumption, Reina was just about to let loose the attack spell she had been holding, when—
“Hold on!” Mile interrupted, gripping her shoulder.
Indeed, the members of the Wonder Trio were not the type to be overconfident in their abilities. Furthermore, even if they might be willing to put themselves at risk, they were not the types who could ever put their friends in harm’s way. This meant they must be certain they could win. After all, even on the off-chance something went wrong, they could just put up a barrier between themselves and the goblins. With a bit of serious healing magic, they would manage.
Certain of this, Mile put her faith in the Wonder Trio, her very first friends.
The members of the Crimson Vow stared silently, Mile still gripping Reina’s shoulder as she, Pauline, and Mavis all remained in their stances, ready to fire a spell or leap out at a moment’s notice.
And then…
Bam!
Bash!
Thud!
Crack!
Smack!
Shunk!
The Wonder Trio thrust with their staves, bashing into the goblins. Then…
Fwsh!
Slish!
Ka-shff!
Stab!
They drew their matching short swords, slicing and stabbing through the stunned, cowering goblins.
“Uh…?”
Their strategy had been flawless. It was a total, brutal annihilation.
The members of the Crimson Vow—this time, including Mile—were speechless.
***
“Huh? Well, Miss Aureana grew up on a farm in the countryside and had to help out around the house since she was just a wee thing, so she is stronger than she looks,” Marcela explained.
“That’s right,” Aureana agreed, nodding. “I started helping with weeding and other simple chores when I was four or five and soon grew into carrying firewood and drawing water and such, so by the time I enrolled at the academy, I could already lift as much as the boys my age who grew up in the same village.”
“And as for Miss Monika…”
“My family’s business isn’t that big, so my role was very much that of an unpaid laborer. I carried grain, grain, and so much grain, so much that I thought I’d end up a hunchback. So, I could best any weak little lords who grew up in town easily, in terms of strength and power,” Monika replied, her gaze distant.
“As for me, even though I am not as strong as they are, I practice the art of self-defense, which is so essential for a young noble lady…”
“………”
Reina was dumbfounded at these revelations. After all, she had assumed that anyone who attended a school for little lords and ladies would never be able to fight.
Finally, she found her voice. “But even if you two got strong helping out at home, actually being able to fight is totally different!”
“Well, we were taught combat skills at the academy!” Marcela retorted. “It’s their policy to have even those who cannot perform magic attend magic lessons, in case they end up with mages as their subordinates, or end up facing mages in battle. Likewise, they feel it important that even young ladies and those who have no intention of participating in combat still know how to fight, so we all participated in sword fighting lessons. Obviously, it would be too much strain on the body to spend hours waving around the sort of short sword that a grown man would use, but we did practice wielding staves and daggers and such, at least for a little while.”
“I see.” The members of the Crimson Vow sighed. Having never attended such a school, they could only accept Marcela’s explanation, clueless to whether this was a unique facet of the curriculum at Eckland Academy or if this was standard practice at all “academies” attended by young lords and ladies.
“But wait!” Pauline started, “Mile, who also went to that school, didn’t have any training at a—”
“She’s an outlier!” the members of the Wonder Trio snapped in unison.
“Aha…” The Crimson Vow immediately understood.
Mile only hung her head, face reddening. As much as she wished to be average , this was a cold, hard fact. Given her excess of speed and power, she had never been able to master the finer points of technique. To use an analogy, it was as though one were attempting to practice eating curry with a spoon attached to the arm of a backhoe…
“Furthermore, we were only able to do our real magic training on our one rest day of the week and only when we were not going on any escort missions. During the rest of the week, we had to stick to training that would not raise any questions among the teachers, combat instructors, or other students—in other words, melee combat training. The academy made sure we were taught enough that we would not die after graduation, you know? It was such difficult, difficult, difficult, difficult training…” Marcela trailed off, her gaze growing distant. Monika and Aureana nodded in agreement.
“All three of us graduated with honors, but that was not merely due to our scholastic and magical achievements. At Eckland, you can’t receive honors merely if you’re talented, or studious, or strong in magical or martial maneuvers. You need the whole package—I mean, not that we’re bragging or anything…”
“If that isn’t bragging, then what in the world is ?!” Reina, who had always been the most insecure member of the Crimson Vow, seemed on the verge of snapping.
“………”
She was at her wit’s end. Reina’s expectations for this day had been all wrong. Now, she certainly wouldn’t be telling the Trio that their weakness would only bring Mile down. She thought back to the speech she’d planned: “You all have no hope of surviving in a melee, so if you were ambushed and didn’t have time for a spell, you’d be powerless. That would put all the burden on Mile to deal with the enemies. You all are just baggage for her.”
When it came their turn to fight against goblins, or even a strong opponent like orcs or ogres, in melee combat, the Crimson Vow could not possibly hope to outdo the Trio’s display. Mavis aside, they could not take down an orc or ogre with just their staves. They had no choice but to use magic to land the finishing blow, or rely on Mavis… And though she and Mavis were one thing, without her magic, Pauline’s combat prowess was vastly inferior to that of the Wonder Trio.
“Hm?” Pauline asked, noticing Reina looking at her.
Pauline was not stupid. On the contrary, she was perhaps the sharpest member of the party—setting aside Mile’s rare moments of clarity. There was no way she could have failed to understand the meaning behind Reina’s gaze.
“………”
Previously, Reina had teased her for her terrible reflexes, but they both had known this to be nothing more than a joke. Now, however, she frantically averted her gaze.
“………”
Though their primary function was to support the vanguard, it was also only proper that the rearguard be skilled enough in close quarters combat to able to defend themselves, and even to protect the vanguard from behind should it be necessary. In fact, Olga, the mage from the Roaring Mithrils who Pauline had faced at the graduation exam; Tasha, the archer from the Servants of the Goddess; and Lacelina and Leatoria, the Servants’ mages, were all quite accomplished melee fighters. Plus, both Lacelina and Leatoria were younger than her, and Leatoria was only a D-rank, a brand-new hunter.
Pauline hung her head, utterly mortified.
In the end, the Crimson Vow did not make any display of their own, merely proceeding with their normal hunting. No suitable numbers of goblins or kobolds appeared, and hordes of ogres and orcs were too far high-level of an opponent for Reina and Pauline to deal with via melee alone, with staves as their primary weapons. Mavis aside, there was no way that they could surpass the Wonder Trio’s earlier display, so they decided it best not to force themselves into anything rash.
It was decided that transporting their quarry was outside of the bounds of the “no Mile” exclusion, so everything got put away in her storage. To leave behind anything they had gone out of their way to hunt was simply disrespectful to their prey, and neither the god of hunting nor Pauline would forgive them.
Dinner that evening proceeded as normal, but the three members of the Crimson Vow seemed to be in low spirits.
After breakfast the next morning, they would be starting on their way back home, arriving at the capital that afternoon. Naturally, the slower pace on their return would be due to the sandbags the six girls would have to carry as replacement weights for the meat they had hunted. The referee (read: Mile) had deemed that, at least, would not be excluded in the rules.
Though both the Crimson Vow and the Wonder Trio had made their own separate preparations for dinner, they sat together around the same bonfire. The two parties were not enemies, so there was no reason to eat apart. It was easy enough to surmise that doing so would only lead to Mile standing stock-still all alone in between the two groups, petrified with indecision over who to sit with, and neither party was inclined to put her in this situation. However, while both parties were close to Mile, they had only ever met each other once before. Between this and wishing to allow Mile a pleasant chat with the Wonder Trio, the members of the Crimson Vow only sat by quietly.
It was much the same as their first meeting. They had little to talk about in terms of normal conversation—that is, anything unrelated to their hunting activities—and even those topics they had in common, they had already more or less exhausted in the discussions of the previous day and a half. In other words, it was going to fall upon Mile, the mutual friend of both parties, to find some way to drum up conversation. However…
No way! No way, no way, no way, no waaay!!!
Implementing such a high-level normie social technique was out of the question for Mile. The degree of difficulty was far too high…
In this way, Mile found herself in a frantic double jeopardy, speaking with the Wonder Trio, then the Crimson Vow, then the Wonder Trio, then the Crimson Vow…
Eeeeeeee!!!
Normally, both parties were comprised of the sort of people who would be considerate about this. However, there was a time and place for everything, and currently both sides saw the other as a threat. They were too busy scrutinizing one another to be in the mood to let their guards down for a pleasant chat. Furthermore, the current joint operation had still not ended, so Mile was still forbidden from advising either side on their job or battle techniques or magic. There was no way for Mile to play hostess this way. Though of course, that would have been difficult for her, even without such restrictions…
Fortunately, though things were awkward for some time, eventually both parties came to recognize that in both being friends of Mile (Adele) and rookie all-female parties (though the Crimson Vow had recently ceased referring to themselves as “rookies”), they had plenty in common. And so, they began reluctantly to converse, granting Mile some relief…
***
Breakfast the next morning concluded uneventfully, and the girls started home. Six of them would have to lug heavy sandbags the whole way, so they were careful not to overeat.
But then…
“These are heavy…”
“………”
They were only carrying normal sandbags, but perhaps because of her usual intensity, Marcela had loaded herself to her limit. Reina, seeing this, had loaded herself up with the same number of sandbags and was now wobbling, anguish clear on her face.
“You two! If you wear yourselves out like that, you won’t be able to fight if any monsters or bandits suddenly attack! Plus, if you push yourselves too hard, you’re going to be completely useless for the next day or two, unable to do anything but curl up in bed with muscle fatigue. That’s a huge net loss!”
Mile, of course, could not fail to step in here. She likely felt that she was not showing favor, since she would be pointing the problem out to both sides.
“Ah…”
Seeing the error of their ways, Marcela and Reina reluctantly gave up a few of their sandbags. Mile then stored the excess away. Preparing these sandbags had of course meant procuring the sacks, going somewhere to fill them with sand, and then sewing them back up, so obviously they were not just going to throw them away. Not when they still might come in handy again someday.
After some time, the group finally arrived back at the inn.
“I’m exhausted…”
“Me too…”
“The walking was one thing, but we never carry around stuff this heavy…”
Unlike the Crimson Vow, who would never openly admit such weakness in front of the Wonder Trio, Marcela spoke without a care, Monika and Aureana chiming in with agreement.
Indeed, except for the times when the Wonder Trio had joined up with other parties to hunt orcs in the name of practice, they had not often taken on the sort of jobs where they would be expected to carry heavy things. Their jobs were mainly escort duties, missions to gather pricey medicinal herbs or other rare components, or exterminating job involving those monsters that were not worth bringing back to sell—which meant that they never had to do much lugging.
They would never take on jobs where their success depended on how much they could bring back with them. Acknowledging that this was simply not their specialty, they did not particularly mind accepting that this was a weakness of theirs—especially as it was one they could probably overcome with enough effort. For now, their habit was simply to avoid those sorts of jobs and focus on the ones they were good at.
Anyway, the jobs they had taken during the year and eight months when they were working as hunters while still at the Academy had chiefly been in their area of expertise: guarding young maidens. There was no point in switching that up now.
The Crimson Vow were still hellbent on convincing Mile that they were the most suitable party for her. The Wonder Trio, however, figured—or rather, they knew —that Mile (Adele) could never choose between her friends, much less prioritize them based on their strengths, so they were not as concerned about this.
Marcela had accepted Reina’s proposal to venture out together on the rationale that until they saw each other’s strengths, the conversation would go nowhere. However, she had never believed that Mile should decide which party to join up with based on which of them had the advantage of strength. The Crimson Vow had emphasized wishing to see the Trio’s strength, and so they had simply gone along with it.
The Wonder Trio had never thought themselves more skilled than the Crimson Vow. They knew they had only taken on escort requests in their spare time, during their off days from school, and they knew this made for a peculiarly imbalanced composition of skills and experience… Plus, they had rarely ever faced serious attacks. Even the few times when they had come under fire, it was largely at the hands of some random thugs or low-ranking hunters who happened to mess with them. They had never faced assassins, bandits, or nobles’ personal guards. Thus, they had hardly any combat experience fighting other humans…though they were fairly sure that their unusual brand of magic probably would give them an advantage when they needed it.
By the time they arrived at the inn, it was around the second noon bell (3 PM), so the group, deciding to forego lunch and stick it out until dinner, gathered in the Wonder Trio’s room and sat down on the beds to have a nice little postmortem. The job itself was over, so Mile was now permitted to enter the conversation.
So, Marcela began, “It would seem that the Crimson Vow truly are far stronger hunters than we are. I suppose that makes sense, given both your experience and your initial abilities…”
“Huh?” The members of the Crimson Vow, having been certain Marcela would declare the Wonder Trio superior, looked surprised. In a battle over which was the stronger group, they would still confidently declare themselves the victors. However, when it came to each party’s abilities as hunters, the members of the Crimson Vow had made far too great a disgrace of themselves over the past three days. They had assumed that Marcela would harp on this point and insist that the Wonder Trio was the better party, a claim they would not be able to refute.
Marcela, however, had surprised them. And she had recognized her own party as the losers…?
Has she given up on Mile? Reina wondered. However…
“With your exceptional abilities, the three of you hope to rise to A-ranks and make lots of money, is that right?”
“…Y-yes?”
They had implied as much during the conversation they had managed to make the night before.
“In that case…”
“In that case?”
“It is best that you focus on those goals and leave Miss Adele, who desires only a plain, inconspicuous, normal happiness, to live as a C-rank hunter with us, living a carefree life and doing fun and interesting things as we travel the world. Perhaps ten years would be nice… By then, we will be twenty-three. If we return home as B-ranks, we’ll have all the recognition our experience brings, and both of Their Highnesses should already have taken proper wives to be their future queens, so that should put you in the clear there, Miss Adele. It would be one thing to insist on taking you as a main wife, but surely they could not strong-arm you into becoming some secondary wife or lover, so there is no need to worry about that.
“By the time we’re that age, no one should go rudely following us around, either. And so, we can all move back to your estate, snag ourselves some fine gentlemen, and the four of us can live as a happy family. Come, let the four of us bosom classmates embark on a glorious, wonderful adventure together!”
Shimmer…
Mile’s eyes were glimmering.
We’ve been swindled!!!
The members of the Crimson Vow could only stare in shock, their eyes wide.
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