Beyond the Chase
A few days have passed since the Empire's international students arrived.
"Tigaro-sama. A letter has arrived."
What Kenna gently held out on the desk was a sealed envelope.
The sender written on the envelope simply says Mikikonis Company.
Tigaro cut the seal with a knife, took out the letter inside, and looked through it.
"It's a letter from Lapeia-dono."
Ostensibly it was from Mikikonis, but inside it was a letter from the woman he met in front of the party venue the other day―― Lapeia Ila Asur.
When Kenna heard that name, her tail swayed as it hung from the hole in the skirt of her maid uniform.
"...What's inside?"
"It's about time we go and talk to her about what's going on. Haha, we're talking about that inquisitive old lady. I'm sure she wants to know about Eul-dono and the others who came from the Empire."
After meeting Tigaro, Lapeia and the others disappeared into the venue.
Most likely, after that, they saw Eul and the others who were exchange students from the Empire in the venue and wanted information.
Normally Kenna wouldn't show any interest in Tigaro's letter, but there was a reason why Kenna showed interest in Lapeia's letter.
The reason is that Lapeia is the one who previously cured Kenna's tail.
Kenna's tail was half torn to pieces when she met Tigaro, but thanks to Lapeia's recovery magic, there are no traces of it now.
Kenna seemed to be interested in Lapeia, perhaps because she was Kenna's benefactor.
Tigaro stood up and picked up the robe that was hanging on him.
"Let's go and order some sweets. Mikikonis should still be open at this hour."
"I understand."
From Tigaro's standpoint, it is not convenient for many people to know about his relationship with Lapeia, so only a few people know that the two of them are communicating through letters.
It would be especially troublesome if the members of the Noros family found out about the relationship.
Tigaro kept their relationship a secret even from his father, Lemalgoas, the head of the Noros family.
He hadn't arranged for a carriage to take him to the company, but considering the possibility that Lemalgoas' slaves would report to Lemalgoas about the relationship between Tigaro and Lapeia, it was rather convenient that there wasn't a carriage.
It wasn't too far to walk, so Tigaro decided to walk to the Company.
---
"What kind of sweets would she like?"
"Lapeia-sama likes sweet things, so I think sugar sweets would be safe."
Tigaro walks through the streets of the royal capital at night with Kenna holding a lantern.
After dark, the Water Holy Knights' [Water Eyes], whose night vision is ineffective, also disappeared.
It's not like there are no knights or other guards, but the number of soldiers is significantly reduced compared to during the day.
However, the royal capital is fairly safe at night, perhaps because there are many eyes watching over it during the day.
Besides, this is still an aristocratic town.
It is the safest section of the royal capital.
There is also light leaking from the houses along the street, so you won't get lost even without a lantern.
The most important thing to be aware of at night is that on rare occasions the Noros family secretly kidnaps a commoner girl.
Tigaro and Kenna were walking from the aristocratic district in the south to the commercial district in the west where Mikikonis was located.
"Hmm? That's..."
A figure runs away from the royal capital in the darkness without even holding a lantern.
Seeing it disappear around the street corner, Tigaro frowned.
In the darkened cityscape of the capital, what was visible for a moment, illuminated by the city lights, was a figure of fluttering red hair behind a figure.
He thought it was a mistake, so he checked with Kenna who was also looking in that direction.
"...Kenna, did you see it?"
"It's definitely Eul-sama. I don't know what the circumstances were, but it seemed unusual."
Tigaro confirmed that he had not made a mistake and thought about it for a short time.
Even though the Shirsodi Kingdom and the Asurora Empire are friendly countries, it is strange for her to be walking alone in the foreign land of the royal capital at night without an attendant.
From the testimony of Kenna, who has good night vision, it seems that this is not normal.
"Just to be sure, let's go after her. Kenna, put out the lantern."
"Yes"
Kenna opens the lantern and lets out a puff of air.
The fire quietly went out, and the area became even darker.
There are city lights, so it's not hard to see faces if you're nearby, but it's too dark to recognize people far away.
Tigaro chased after Eul, with Kenna, who had good night vision even in the dark, in front of him.
When Tigaro and Kenna turn the corner of the city, Eul has already disappeared into the darkness.
"This way."
Kenna twitched her nose and followed the trail with her beastman's keen sense of smell.
Kenna's sense of smell is perfect for situations like this.
Turning right and sometimes left along the street.
They followed Eul for a while, and eventually came to the edge of the aristocratic district.
There are many mansions of lower-class nobles in this area, probably because it is close to commoners.
Kenna, who was following the traces left by Eul, suddenly stopped.
"…I can no longer smell it."
"……What do you mean?"
Kenna's sense of smell is so precise that she can detect even the slightest trace of magic.
It was an unusual situation for her to be able to track her so far without hesitation, and then suddenly couldn't find her traces.
"Did she find out we were following her?"
"I don't know, but I guess you could say it's being drowned out by some other strong scent."
Kenna sniffed.
"No, this... has a different smell...?"
When Kenna said that.
"Kyaa!?"
A loud scream echoed through the town.
"――――!!!"
What followed was a roaring sound that was so loud it was hard to believe it was human.
Hearing that voice, Tigaro faced Kenna, who was looking at him for confirmation, and immediately took action.
"Let's go, Kenna."
"Yes"
The two of them, who had been sneaking around so that Eul wouldn't notice them, started running without worrying about making noise, emphasizing speed.
The scream was from a place not far from where Tigaro and Kenna were.
Tigaro's eyes widen in surprise as he sees the large wings visible from the corner of the building.
There's no way a mere human could have wings that big.
According to Tigaro's knowledge, there is only one creature that matches those wings.
"A monster!?"
In the middle of this royal capital, it was letting out a roar.
The monster has an unnatural body with a union of different parts. It has sharp fangs and ears like a tiger, but its eyes have pupils like a snake.
It has a lizard-like tail and a lion-like body with four legs.
Its large paws, as thick as a giant man, trampled one carriage and destroyed it in half.
Tigaro is even more surprised when he sees the back of a girl who is facing the monster.
She was floating in the air with her blue hair fluttering as she shot magic at the monster several times.
She is Tigaro's childhood friend and the most promising mage in the kingdom.
There's no way her magic is weak, and she's violently attacking the monster.
However, the monster is also showing signs of resistance, and is slow to let go of the carriage.
Tigaro stands next to the girl who once again released wind magic.
"Aifietouka-jou, are you okay?"
"Tigaro...!!"
Aifie looked surprised when she saw Tigaro, but it was only for a moment.
She immediately changed her expression and looked at the monster's feet with a stern, panicked look.
"A person is still inside!!"
Aifie, who was desperately shouting, pointed her finger at the carriage that was being trampled by the monster.
The carriage was already half destroyed, and he could hear the girl's screams coming from inside, as if it was about to be crushed.
Aifie couldn't use her magic to fight off the monster and save the girl, nor could the carriage get involved either, so it seemed like she couldn't use her powerful magic.
Tigalro grasped the situation in an instant.
"I will create an opening. Aifietouka-jou, please shoot magic at that monster."
With that said, he ran towards the monster.
What Tigaro approached was the foot trampling the carriage.
Seeing Tigaro leaping in front of it, the monster reflexively released its closest leg―― the foot that was trampling the carriage, and pointed its large claws at Tigaro.
If you fight against a leg that is as thick as a giant, you will definitely be defeated.
Tigaro understands this and has no intention of directly confronting the approaching monster's feet.
He dodged the monster's legs as it tried to hit him, and he slipped under it.
"[Spirit Tail]"
He used the magic tentacle that came out from his waist to stop his sliding momentum, and use it to accumulate strength.
Before the monster could make its next move, Tigaro quickly turned his body around and gained momentum.
"Fuu!!"
He jumped while stretching out his Spirit Tail and hit that thick leg with a kick.
The monster's legs, which were thrown up by the strong impact, floated slightly and moved away from the carriage that it had been stepping on just a moment ago.
After confirming that he had gained some distance between the monster's legs and the carriage, Tigaro immediately jumped back using the legs of the monster he kicked as a foothold.
As Tigaro retreated from the scene, the monster's feet appeared in Aifie's field of vision.
In Aifie's hand, she was already holding magic like a bow.
The magic, which resembles an arrow, is imbued with so much mana that its outline can be clearly visualized.
"[Gale Arrow]!!"
Aifie fires a powerful spell at the monster's floating leg.
The arrow that was shot reached the monster's thick legs in an instant, without giving it time to react.
The magic of the arrow, which was condensed from the swirling air, landed like an explosion, and the thick legs that had been floating due to Tigaro's attack were blown away.
The monster with thick legs lost its posture and was completely separated from the carriage.
Meanwhile, Kenna approaches the carriage with quick movements, grabs the lone woman who remains inside, and leaves.
When Tigaro looks at the face of the woman who was rescued, it happens to be the same female student who saw Tigaro before and was rude to him.
Kenna entrusts the female student, Mozu, to a person who appears to be Mozu's servant who was hiding nearby, and urges her to run away.
The servant holding Mozu nodded and hurriedly fled into the darkness.
After leaving the female student in its care, Kenna tried to return to her master, Tigaro.
Tigaro controls it with words.
"Kenna! Prioritize the evacuation of surrounding residents!!"
Some of the nearby buildings have been reduced to rubble, probably due to the monster that suddenly appeared and went on a rampage.
Judging from the monster's attempt to get up, there is no way to stop the damage from expanding.
If they can get the people around them to escape before that happens, they will be able to limit the damage to human lives.
Kenna stopped moving for a moment, but she nodded, obedient to Tigaro as usual.
She changed direction with an indifferent expression and disappeared into the dark night in the opposite direction from the monster.
After confirming this, Tigaro opened his mouth to Aifie who was next to him while staring at the monster.
"Aifietouka-jou. Would you please leave this to me and call the knights?"
"W-why!? It's dangerous for you alone!!"
It seems that Aifie thought that she and Tigaro would fight the monster together.
If the goal is to defeat the monster, her decision to fight together is correct.
In fact, Aifie's magic is powerful, and it has been proven that it can even be used against that monster.
However, the goal now is not to defeat the monster, but to minimize the damage caused by the monster.
"If you want to limit the damage to those around you, it's best to call in the knights as soon as possible. Besides, I've also trained to some extent. There's no I would be defeated by a wounded monster."
"In that case, you should call them! I'll deal with this guy!"
Aifie came forward, but Tigaro shook his head without taking his eyes off the monster that was getting up.
"When it comes to movement, your magic is the fastest. ――Please, before the damage spreads any further."
"……I got it."
Perhaps deciding that it was no time to argue now that time was of the essence, Aifie relented to Tigaro's request and chanted a spell and floated into the air.
However, before flying away, Aifie glanced at Tigaro.
"I-if you can’t hold out by the time I come back, just run away!!"
Tigaro smiled bitterly at Aifie who yelled worriedly, but he hid his emotion with his usual thin smile and waved his hand to shoo her away.
A gentle breeze blew, and Tigaro could feel that Aifie flew away.
It's a shame that he couldn't see Aifie off as she flew off into the night sky with his own eyes.
Even though Tigaro thought so, he couldn't take his eyes off the monster that was getting up in front of him and glaring at him.
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