Surpass the slave!

A strong wind blows. I grit my teeth, gripping the sword so tightly the tip stops dead in midair.

Glowing orbs zip past my eyes.

Stare. Track the motion with only my eyeballs.

"...huh!"

A sharpened strike.

Black light traces a sharp arc.

A high-pitched metallic ring echoes across the grassland.

(Onii-chan is amazing, you took it down with one hit!)

Hearing Rirya’s praise, I pick up the now-dull black orb.

"Ten of these, then."

(How much longer do we need?)

"The more, the better. This is material for the train that runs on rails. Of course, one train won’t cut it. I’d like at least one per town, connected by a network. Ideally, two per line—one up, one down—and a spare. Three total."

(That makes sense. Then we’ll have to hunt a lot more.)

"Yeah."

(Rirya will do her best. Going further, further.)

"Uh-huh."

Nodding, she searched for the glowing orbs, guided by the magic array radar.

They didn’t show up when hidden in grass, but the arrow pointed straight at them—easy to find.

The next one she missed with the first strike, then took it down on the second.

The one after that, she got in a single hit.

She kept alternating—taking them down in one blow, or missing the first and finishing on the second.

Missing the first meant taking a counterattack, but her black armor took no damage.

(Very smooth, going well.)

"...?"

(What’s wrong?)

Rirya, puzzled by my silence.

I let her go from the True Eternal Slave.

The black light vanished. The blade looked ordinary again.

Rirya, freed from the sword, returned to her plain slave form in a grass-green dress.

"Oniichan?"

"Stay back a bit."

"B-but..."

"Take this and stay back."

He handed her all the orbs he’d collected so far, neatly bundled.

Not angry. Not reckless.

Rirya, meeting his eyes, seemed to get it—she stepped back behind him, just as told.

"What should we do now?"

"I wanna try something."

"Try something, now?"

"Yeah. Feels like I’m on the verge of catching it."

"Huh... now?"

Rirya’s face twisted like a fox had just stolen her favorite treat.

He found the next target.

It rose from the grass, darting and whirling through the air.

Sweat trickled down his back.

A flash—what if it hit?

He pushed it away. Focused.

The slave sword—swung!

Solid hit. The orb flickered, dimmed, and fell to the ground.

"Phew..."

He wiped the sweat from his forehead with the back of his hand, then picked up the orb.

Maybe it’s just in my head, but I feel like my focus got sharper after taking Rirya off.

The thought that taking her off might cause trouble—yeah, that’s what pushed my focus up to another level.

I toss the orb toward Rirya with a flick.

Scanning for targets.

Same as before—search, focus, aim, strike.

Ten of them.

Ten in a row, one-shot kills, since I took Rirya off.

It started feeling easier.

Like when I first learned to ride a bike.

At first, I had training wheels and pads, fell all over the place. Then I took off the wheels, ditched the pads.

Once I got the hang of it, I just… clicked.

Since I took Rirya off, I haven’t taken a single hit.

I can feel it myself—my skill’s rising.

I can hunt the light orbs without Rirya now.

"You're amazing, Onii-chan. Rirya wasn't even needed at all."

Rirya was happier about that than I was.

Leveling up was pushed forward by the desire to show off to the slave.

It wasn't exactly noble, so I didn't say it.

But I did want to praise the slave who'd caused it.

Now I had a reason to celebrate her. Straightforward.

"Rirya."

"Yes?"

I pulled out a folded paper medal from my pocket and handed it to her.

An item I'd started keeping on hand—rewards for slaves.

"This... is the legendary medal!?"

Rirya reacted with exaggerated shock.

Come to think of it, she’d never gotten one before.

"You're giving this to Rirya?"

"Yeah."

"I'm so happy..."

——Magic power charged: 50,000.

She seemed genuinely thrilled.

"But... why is that, Rirya? I haven’t been much help today."

The second half came from the sword—seems only natural, really.

...Does a master need a reason to give something to a slave?

Nothing at all.

Rirya answered without hesitation.

This kind of response—she really is an Eternal Slave, isn’t she.

Her vigor is adorable.

Well then, shall we head back?

Yes, ma'am.

I handed the gem to Rirya, and we set off back toward Rebeck.