Chapter 384: An Apkallu? Or Not?

Arte’s puppet approached at top speed and swiftly slashed its tail fin. It was so huge that it might have only been a mere cut, but it succeeded in stopping its movement. Then, I fired an iron bolt with the ballista, shooting right through the center of its body.

The monster whale let out a deafening scream that made me want to cover my ears as it made its final resistance. Watching that, Panamera unleashed her final fire magic.

“Fire Rain.”

When Panamera announced that in a small voice, countless small fireballs rained down upon the monster whale’s body. There was no physical impact, but it was a terrifying magic that seemed to burn a wide area to ashes. In the blink of an eye, a sea of fire spread out with the monster whale at its center.

“……Th-That might be a little overkill, huh.”

When I muttered that, Arte and Till also let out dry laughs.

“It was scary, but it’s a sight that almost makes you feel sorry for it……”

“So this is what happens when Lady Panamera gets seriously angry……”

As I gave a small nod in response to their reactions, Panamera came walking over, brushing her hair back with one hand.

“How rude. There is no way I would use such magic against anything other than in a war or against magic beasts, right?”

Panamera testified. Hmm, a suspicious testimony.

“……What would you do if some noble tried to assassinate you or something?”

When I asked as a test, Panamera answered as if it were obvious.

“That would already be a war, wouldn’t it? I would burn their entire territory for them.”

“Resulting in not a single blade of grass left……!?”

Hearing Panamera’s statement, I felt a terror even greater than the monster whale. If I were a judge, I would have detained her as a dangerous person. No, it’d be scary if she held a grudge, so I’ll put her under house arrest at a resort with a vacation home instead.

While I was thinking such silly things, Till pointed at the sea and spoke.

“Umm, there is an Apkallu in the sea.”

“An Apkallu?”

I repeated Till’s words and shifted my gaze. Then, I certainly spotted a human-like figure similar to an Apkallu near the coast. The way only its face popped out of the sea surface made it seem very Apkallu-like.

The monster whale has stopped moving, so maybe I should go to the sea.

“……It looks safe now, so shall we go see how things are?”

When I offered my opinion, Panamera crossed her arms and groaned.

“……Indeed. However, wouldn’t it be difficult to pass through that sea of fire?”

“Eh?”

Surprised by Panamera’s words, I pointed at the burning monster whale and the sea of fire.

“You can’t extinguish it?”

When I asked that, Panamera furrowed her brows in a troubled manner and spoke.

“What is burning right now is not my magic, but the driftwood and the large magic beast’s fat. It will probably burn for several hours.”

“Ehh!?”

Hearing Panamera’s statement, I was made to recognize the terror of fire magic once again. Those it is used against in war must find it unbearable.

“……For the time being, let’s wait a little longer.”

Reluctantly saying that, I decided to rebuild the log house anew. Since I was at it, I installed ballistae in all directions on the log house, and also neatly maintained the underground passage. With this, it should be okay from next time, right?

Has it been about three hours? Finally, the only fire left was the one burning the monster whale. Or rather, wouldn’t that monster whale be very delicious? It’s full of fat.

“Hot!”

“We can’t get close at all……”

Feeling scared that it might start moving again, we were sneaking along the edge of the coast heading toward the sea, but even so, the heat from the fire burning the monster whale felt like it was going to burn us.

“I feel like dried squid. I’m going to get roasted and become delicious.”

“O-Oh, do you become delicious if you get roasted?”

“Delicious. If you roast it, it’s pretty much guaranteed to be delicious.”

“……Boy, don’t spout random nonsense.”

“I-It’s too hot, I don’t even have the leeway to laugh~……”

The four of us moved toward the sea while grumbling. As expected, moving right to the water’s edge made it cool down instantly.

“I-I’m back from the dead~”

“It is cool.”

“Phew…… I worked up a good sweat.”

“I-I want to drink water, but this water is……”

Even upon reaching the sea, the four of us were having a disjointed conversation. Then, a severed head came smoothly gliding across the sea surface toward us. It was the Apkallu from earlier. It approached to a distance of about five meters, and I noticed a difference from an Apkallu.

Its bright, translucent blonde hair was long and spread out in the sea. Its ears were long and slender like an elf’s, making the difference from an Apkallu obvious. And its gender was that of a young woman.

“Ooh! A mermaid! It’s a mermaid!”

Excited by her appearance, which was just like a mermaid princess, I raised my voice. At that, the mermaid backed away about two meters.

“……Lord Van, you are being treated with caution again.”

When Till said that with a wry smile, I remembered when I first met Ladapriola. Come to think of it, I raised my voice back then too and made her cautious. And then, I lowered her guard by luring her with food.

“Alright. Meat and fruit. With those, she’ll come closer.”

“……Are you sure that’s an appropriate response?”

Hearing my opinion, Panamera voiced that in an exasperated manner.