SBTMK Chapter 23

Its body was too big—arrows alone wouldn't cut it. Flora judged as much, switched weapons, and closed the distance.

There was a hope buried in the decision too: something this large might be slower to react up close than it was at range.

Up close, the thing was even more repulsive.

The sparse hairs along its legs caught the light like blades—looked like a weapon made to stop exactly this kind of close-in attack.

The beast had stopped spraying silk. Just as she'd expected, it moved its legs to try to crush her underfoot.

Several blade-length spines closed toward her body as if they might run straight through her. One misstep, one badly judged dodge, and that was the end of it.

Close combat was burning through her stamina far faster than range ever did.

Flora felt her breath choke up to her chin and ground her teeth together. With her free hand, she drew the dagger she'd kept ready.

She pressed as close to its body as she could, trying to dull the reach of its attack—and saw the hairs along the spider's trunk rise stiff, like a hedgehog's.

Flora drove the dagger into its body with everything she had.

Kkuuk. Purple blood welled up around the buried blade.

But the dagger was too short—the spider's own spines caught her hand in return, and a burning pain followed almost at once.

Her hand was smeared black-red with blood. She'd meant to tear the thing open. The blade was too short. It wasn't going to happen that way.

She stepped back once, then drove the sword she was holding into its trunk instead.

It seemed to have landed properly—the thing's thrashing grew fiercer. Couldn't read the pattern of its attacks anymore.

Flora hung on to the half-buried sword, and every time its body bucked hard against her, the spines tore her skin open, and it hurt.

But she knew that letting go now meant the end.

She gritted her teeth, held to the sword, and put her weight into it, slowly tearing the hide downward. The longer it went, the more wounds gathered on both her body and the beast's.

Sticky blood soaked her palm and made her grip slip. She needed to go for the weak point—and in the same instant, she registered how recklessly she'd been fighting.

The writhing spider scattered into a handful of dirt, and Flora hit the ground in a wet sprawl.

An eternity-like ten minutes, it seemed, had passed.

Good thing it ended before she died.

Flora finished the exam like that—soaked head to foot in her own blood.

"Isn't that girl a little terrifying, if she's that good? Where's a pearl like that been hiding, that she just shows up now?"

Hakra watched Flora fight, drooling all over himself.

There were still rough edges, sure—but that was just Hakra's own greed talking.

A rookie solo-clears a 3rd-rank mutant-beast clean like that, you'd make her a commander—why's she still a rookie.

"Her archery's much better than I expected. She fired two arrows at once while running, and both landed clean."

"I saw that too. If she ever learns to channel mana into her arrows, the impact's going to be enormous."

The two commanders were marveling at every moment of Flora's fight.

Hakra, apparently smitten, did nothing but heap on open praise; Kasin wasn't wearing Hakra's giddy expression, but he agreed and added praise of his own.

"She moves so nimbly. Like a squirrel!"

"True enough. Good with a bow like that, she'll be good up a tree too."

"At that level, she's a genius."

The two of them looked so much like a couple of besotted parents showing off their own kid that Erne's brow creased faintly.

"If she could get that mana of hers under control instead of just leaking out everywhere, she'd be even better. It's eating her stamina fast."

Kasin nodded as if he agreed.

"By the way, Commander Kasin."

"……."

"Why did His Majesty come? I've been wondering since earlier."

"Why ask me? Go ask that guy." Kasin's reply was flat, disinterested.

At his listless answer, Hakra turned to look at Erne, standing on his right.

"Did you tell him, Commander Erne? That there was a rookie with magical power?"

Erne shook his head, firm and final.

"Hm. That so?"

Neither commander looked like they believed the answer, certain there was no way Erne wouldn't know their lord's movements.

"We should pretend not to notice, right? Judging by how he's dressed, he snuck out."

"Probably for the best."

"Ah—Commander Erne, you're not planning to pull Flora into the Dawn Knights, are you? That's not allowed."

Erne gave a short nod, as if to say he understood.

"Then we're allies! What a relief. Don't go changing your mind on that."

Only then did Hakra let the suspicion drain from his eyes, and he beamed.

Flora blinked, slow and heavy.

She thought she'd lost consciousness right after returning to the cave, but somehow she was in an unfamiliar room now.

Not seeing the canopy she knew startled her, and her eyes darted around. But she found the person seated beside the bed and felt herself settle.

'……Asleep, is he?'

Simen still wore the white robe. With his eyes shut, there was a real pleasure in just staring at him, at her ease.

Watching him sit there, one leg crossed over the other, arms folded, holding himself with that composed remove—it seemed like a perfectly reasonable suspicion that the god Arzeka had sent an angel down to earth.

Her gaze settled on the long, pale hand in view. It called back how he'd gripped her steady in the cave, and her heart began beating out of rhythm the same way it had then.

Rough as he is, that much you could forgive—but warm too? That's just cheating, isn't it? She already knew he had everything. It was new to be startled by it all over again.

How much time had passed since then? A small knock sounded, and then the door.

At the same moment, Simen's eyes opened. Flora, who'd lost her chance to fake sleep, found herself looking straight at him.

She felt the same guilty jolt as someone caught mid-theft. Flora let her gaze slide away without meaning to.

"Who's—— ah. It's you, Your Majesty."

The one who'd come in was Eden.

He'd been briefly thrown, thinking another priest had gotten there first, but caught sight of Simen and smiled, faintly.

Simen only tipped his chin at the greeting, arms still crossed, head tilted at an angle as he looked down at Flora.

"Lady. It's been a while."

"It has, Eden."

Flora greeted him, doing her best not to notice Simen watching her.

Come to think of it, it seemed like she only ever ran into Eden while she was lying down. It was a little embarrassing.

"You said you wanted to see the temple. And here you are—like this."

"This is……the temple?"

"The temple's next door. This is the lodging where the Holy Knights stay. Everyone who sat the entrance exam is staying here."

Flora blinked.

"I was waiting for you to come by once the healing was finished, but I didn't hear anything, and I'll admit I was a little hurt."

"Ah……I've been busy, getting ready for the exam."

"There's plenty of time ahead of us. Once you've settled a little, let's go see it together. It's right next door, after all."

"I'd like that!"

Flora and Eden smiled at each other, easy and warm.

Then a sulky, off-key voice cut in.

"You here to play around?"

Simen's sharp gaze had fixed on Eden.

"……Right, then, let's start by checking your condition."

Eden opened his mouth, blithely ignoring the Emperor's remark.

"Can you sit up?"

"Yes."

Eden supported her as she rose.

"Now move your body slowly and tell me if anything feels wrong."

"……Ah!"

Just as he'd asked, Flora tried moving her arms and legs—and abruptly curled inward with a short, involuntary cry.

A short, sharp pain, like a blade sinking into her left wrist, had struck without warning.

"Lady, did you injure your arm during the entrance exam?"

At Eden's words, the gruesome memory she'd briefly forgotten came rushing back.

She'd felt the spider's spines pierce her flesh, felt the skin torn through.

"……Yes."

"It seems your nerves are still holding on to that pain."

"……."

"May I take a look?"

She nodded at his polite request, but the pain she'd just felt made her wary of moving the arm carelessly.

Understanding, Eden spoke again.

"……I need to check for a wound too, so I'll cut the sleeve open just around the arm. You can stay just as you are, Lady."

Eden took scissors from the small case he carried and began cutting the sleeve.

He seemed deep in concentration for a while, then murmured, indifferent.

"Your Majesty, while the Lady's being treated, wouldn't it be a good time to go change your clothes? If the High Priest catches you, I'll be the one who gets an earful."

"……That's not a bad idea."

"My healing needs a calm mind above all, and if Your Majesty keeps interrupting right now—"

"Just say it—tell me to scram."

Simen rose from his seat, irritated. It looked like he'd simply walk straight out—and then he reached out and ruffled his hand through her hair, quick and careless.

"I'll be back. Rest well while you're treated."

The sudden touch left Flora briefly stunned before she managed a nod.

Something rippled, the way the surface of water does—sometimes still, sometimes churning hard.

An emotion she couldn't name crashed over her like a tidal wave.

'……Weird. Really weird.'

In the end, Flora had to watch his retreating back until he left the room.

"Ah! Captain."

Erne stopped at the familiar voice calling him and turned around.

'What is this. What is she doing?'

Lugaria, in the Dawn Knights' uniform, carrying a tray—the two things sat together awkwardly.

Erne's gaze landed on what she was holding.

"Ah, this is for Lady Flora. Today's my last day as a maid too, you know. I wanted to say a proper goodbye."

At her answer, Erne's expression turned disapproving.

〈How many times I gotta say it—stay away from that woman.〉

At the rebuke, Lugaria puffed her cheeks out, looking like she was bracing for another lecture.

Erne barely managed to hold back the twitch at the corner of his mouth as he reached a hand toward her.

A leaf caught in her hair had been bothering him for a while.

But Lugaria flinched and shut her eyes, and he stopped, mid-motion. His hand hung there in midair, lost, with nowhere left to go.

"Ah—I thought you were gonna knuckle me one."

Cracking one eye open, Lugaria laughed, sheepish.

〈Have I ever hit you.〉

Erne plucked the leaf from her hair, indifferent, and his expression settled flat.

Only then did Lugaria realize what the captain had actually meant to do, and she bit down on her lower lip.

"That's not it, I just——"

The small voice, suddenly deflated, grated at him. Erne looked at her bowed head a moment, then changed the subject.

〈This—you're allowed to bring in?〉

"Ah! I already asked Eden about that this morning! He said it's fine, since it's where the Holy Knights are staying."

〈……〉

"Anyway, why are you here, Captain?"

〈His Majesty's inside.〉

"Then let's go together!"

Instead of answering, Erne snatched the tray right out of her hands.

"Ah, I could've carried that——!"

Startled, Lugaria's already large, round eyes went wider as she looked up at him.

But Erne paid her no mind and started walking ahead.

Lugaria stood watching his retreating back for a moment, then called out that she was coming too, and scampered after him like a puppy at his heels.