第４６掘：妖精族の事情 (Part2)
"There’s hardly anyone stronger than you!! I know it, I can tell!! That car of yours was a surprise, but for a human, your internal mana is abnormal!! I can sense it’s several times stronger than ours!! Why is that? Is it some kind of urgent business!? Tell me!!"
"I can't say."
"Grrr!!"
"Want a banana?"
"I'm not a monkey!!"
No, I thought you were a monkey too.
Besides, the fact that he’s even carrying a banana... he’s really wasting his Item Box space.
Still, how does he put up with it? I wouldn't be able to stand that screeching voice.
"...*Sigh*, what do you think, Rurua?"
"Huh?"
Yuki suddenly addressed Rurua, who had been relegated to a listener until now.
What is this about?
"Don't give me a 'huh?' The field commander here is me, the younger brother, but the one who decides our policy is Rurua-neesama."
"Me?"
"Yeah. Because this journey is for your sake, neesama. What do you want to do?"
"Wait, that woman was the leader!? I thought Yuki was the one in charge. Please, I’m begging you!! Save my village, please save my village!!"
"……I’ll be honest with you. I don't have the luxury of saving your village. Furthermore, if it’s already been attacked and is nearly annihilated, this wouldn't be a rescue... it’s highly likely to be a confirmation of total destruction. Covil-san, you realize that you’re being pushed back because your magic isn't working, right?"
"……Yeah."
"We are in a hurry. I don't have the time to indulge in actions just to satisfy your peace of mind. Please go to the city of Kiris and recruit adventurers. As Yuki-san said, you’ll likely gather plenty of help. If we were to assist, it would have to be just us. We must avoid drawing any attention to ourselves right now."
"……You can't tell me the reason, can you?"
"No. It is not something I can talk about lightly."
"……*Hic*, everyone, I’m sorry, I’m so sorry. I couldn't save you all..."
As Rurua gave a clear refusal, Covil landed on the ground and began to cry.
"Hmm, neesama. Could you listen to me for a second?"
"What is it?"
"If we can gain the cooperation of the Fairy race, wouldn't it make achieving the goal of our journey easier? The Fairies are so influential that many nations are told not to lay a hand on them. If we bring them along and gain their support, I think it would make it impossible for anyone to touch you—politically, defensively, or offensively. Our journey so far has been ahead of schedule. We have enough leeway to take a detour. Even if the Fairy village is destroyed, if we can at least secure their items and have Covil on our side, it would be a fair trade. I think it’s a good card to have in our hand, don't you?"
"But, the sooner we arrive, the better...!!"
"I agree, faster is better. But in the end, we can't just take action the moment we arrive anyway. It’s a toss-up. Oh, and let me be clear: this is just a suggestion. 'Rurua' makes the final decision."
"…Understood."
The girl Rurua’s expression is complicated. Well, she wants to return to Litea as soon as possible, after all.
But Yuki is right. If it goes well, we’ll gain a powerful asset.
"Covil-san, let me make you an offer. As my younger brother, Yuki-san, just said: if we lend you our strength, even if the village is wiped out, the items will belong to us. And you, Covil-san, will come with us and cooperate to help us achieve our goal. Oh, and as I said, we don't want to stand out, so we will be the only ones helping. If you don't like that, then go ahead and do as you please in the city of Kiris."
"Eh?"
"Don't just cry, answer me. As I said, our time is precious."
The girl urged Covil to respond, her gaze sharp enough to pierce.
"I understand. I’ll accompany Rurua and the others on their journey!! So, please, save my village!!"
Covil wiped away her tears, stood up, and bowed her head to Rurua.
"Well, looks like the city of Kiris will have to wait. I’ll bring out the Marauder, so let’s ride that to make things a bit easier."
Yuki brought out the Marauder and climbed in.
Hey, hey, was all the walking we did up to this point a waste of time!?
Is this what they call "the long way round is the shortest way home"?
I hope it turns out for the best...
So, that was the situation with the Fairies.
This guarantees a detour. Though, we’re saving quite a bit of time by using the car.
For Rurua, this must be incredibly nerve-wracking.