Menosorpo (7)
"Frondier is in danger!"
Rishae Mansion.
That was the first thing Sybil blurted out upon meeting Elodie.
"Ah, what?"
Naturally, Elodie didn't understand.
Everything was too sudden.
To begin with, Elodie had hardly ever spoken with Sybil. They only greeted each other when passing by face to face.
They only knew each other's names because both were so famous.
And yet, someone she had never had a conversation with comes to her house and mentions 'Frondier.'
"What are you talking about?"
"So, that is..."
When Elodie pressed for answers, Sybil briefly explained the whole situation.
"──Hmm."
After listening to Sybil's story, Elodie seemed to ponder, fiddling with her lips.
Meanwhile, Sybil seemed a bit calmer as she explained.
"Of course, I don't know if Frondier is in immediate danger. Just because they've targeted him doesn't mean they'll harm him right away. But just in case..."
"No."
Elodie shook her head.
"Probably, she is in danger now. Frondier."
"What?!"
"If Indus really has targeted Frondier, they won't miss the opportunity when he is alone."
"How would they know? That Frondier is alone right now."
"There's someone among them who can tame animals. He must have been caught in their surveillance net."
Elodie had been aware of being watched for some time.
At first, even she hadn't noticed it. The presence was too faint to be detected by mana sensing.
But if it continues not just for a day or two, but for weeks or months.
Even without mana sensing, one becomes aware of the 'gaze.'
'I was reluctant to kill the animals and didn't do anything special, so I left it alone.'
To think such a troublesome thing would happen.
Elodie 's eyes darkened.
"So, what do we do? Where could Frondier have gone?"
"That's the problem."
Sybil might have come with some expectation.
But Elodie also had no idea where Frondier might have gone.
Now, it seems we can hardly call our relationship friendly anymore.
Now, even if we look at it favorably, we can't say that our relationship is close.
Maybe in the old days.
"...The old days."
Thinking about it, a place came to mind. The annex of the Roach family estate, the cabin where we played together as children.
But did Frondier really go there? It's a place we haven't even glanced at in years.
Memories of the past come flooding back.
The foolish me pestering Frondier with "Fron~ Fron!" and chattering away,
"Ah."
Suddenly, I felt a wave of displeasure. I'm not at all keen on the idea of saving Frondier.
Just die, Frondier.
"Why, what's wrong?"
"No, shall we go check it out?"
"You think you know where it is?"
"Roughly."
At Elodie's words, a flush of excitement appeared on Sybil's face.
Elodie caught a glimpse of that expression for a moment.
Is Sybil this happy about the possibility of finding Frondier?
...Because of Frondier, no, surely not.
It must be because Sybil is too kind.
"Okay, what should we do? Take the car?"
Sybil was fidgeting, showing her impatience.
Elodie grabbed Sybil's waist.
"No."
"Huh?"
"This is faster."
And then.
"Huh? Woaaaah!!"
They flew.
Sybil screamed as she suddenly found herself quickly rising away from the ground.
"What, what's this?! Flying magic?! 'Wings'?"
"No, it's a bit more advanced than that."
"Woaaaah!"
Elodie, holding Sybil, flew towards the cabin as their target.
It was a memorable first flight for Sybil.
And her impression of it.
'It's, it's heavy...!'
Because of the wind and gravity, her body felt heavy.
It wasn't her flying on her own, after all.
For a first flight, it wasn't pleasant.
* * *
"So that's how we got here. Ta-da, pretty impressive, right?"
Sybil said with a proud expression, even forming a 'V' with her fingers.
I replied.
"...Yeah. It really is impressive. Thanks."
I had no choice but to say that.
I'm just grateful to her for worrying about me and running around in a situation that wasn't even certain to be dangerous.
But upon hearing my response, Sybil became dazed again.
"──Eh, eh? No, I mean, it's nothing..."
Her voice trailed off, as if shrinking back.
Why is it nothing?
"Impressive, huh?" I just bragged to myself.
"Who's that child?"
Elodie asked, looking at the child I was carrying.
"One of their siblings."
"Why is he here?"
"He's my hostage, and theirs as well."
"Huh?"
They both tilted their heads, seemingly confused by my explanation.
I smiled bitterly and continued.
"They had the child act and cry to lure me out, and when the child got close to me, one of them shot an arrow."
"What? At their own ally's sibling?"
"Yeah. Well, not exactly an ally. Seemed more like a hired mercenary."
As I answered Sybil's question, Elodie's eyes quickly turned cold.
"…Can I shoot an arrow too?"
"No."
"Why? They shot one."
"If you shoot, you'll kill them all. One arrow is enough."
An arrow shot by Elodie would be akin to one of the five gods, 'Rudra's 'Storm Shot.'
Shooting something like that wouldn't just kill people; it would change the landscape here.
If someone unfamiliar with this area looked at a map to find their way here, they'd say, 'This map is useless,' due to how much it would change.
"So, we're good now?"
Sybil asked with a worried tone.
I shrugged.
"Well, with Elodie here."
"What? You're going to leave everything to me?"
"No need. Their goal was to frame me as a murderer and bury me. That's something that only works if I'm here alone. With Elodie here, it's actually a disadvantage for them. The teachers at Constel might not believe me, but they'll believe you."
I felt Serf's intention to continue using this kid to frame me as a murderer.
By now, Serf probably tried to make it look like I kidnapped the child.
If I had been here alone, and if it were known that Indus, a 'good organization,' viewed me unfavorably, it would have been easy for them.
'Maybe Serf tipped off Sybil aiming for that. If it's known that Indus is targeting me, naturally, people will think there's a problem with me.'
But Elodie had a reputation beyond Sybil, and above all, she possessed the strength to defeat all of them if they attacked.
