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Even though I was fully motivated, the sky continued to pour rain as if saying, “Not my problem.”

And as long as the rain kept falling, it was certain that humans would struggle to exterminate the magic insects; the most realistic measure would be simply preventing them from getting close to the town.

In other words, as long as the rain continued, I would have to keep running away from those troublesome insects.

(The more I think about it, the more annoying this tactic is.)

I wasn’t sure whether the humans had considered potential losses on their own side, but I had no choice but to acknowledge that it was a highly effective method.

The bad weather made the situation even worse, since it was possible we wouldn’t notice the insect swarm approaching in time and end up sustaining damage.

Even if it was just a coincidence, it was quite a harsh situation.

“Do I take a defensive stance…? Attacking now would be foolish. Since I already understand the terrain, wandering around and bumping into insects would be a waste.”

In short, I had nothing to do.

I sighed and looked up at the sky. “When is this going to stop?”

It turned out to be a day that drove home just how agonizing boredom could be.

And so the night passed.

With the risk of the insects approaching, I couldn’t exactly sleep soundly, so I spent the night training in magic instead—but the results were mediocre at best.

It couldn’t be helped; training while distracted would only lead to this sort of outcome.

Still, the rain had noticeably weakened this morning, which was a good sign.

“If it stops today, that would be ideal,” I thought, deeply appreciating the value of weather forecasts.

Truly, people ought to live alongside the tools of civilization, I grumbled inwardly as the monster that was me reluctantly got moving.

Even if I didn’t need to eat to survive, not eating at all felt unsettling.

So I went hunting, secured prey on the western side, and returned to the temporary base for breakfast.

After that, I headed out for a boredom-fueled patrol around the area—only to find something unexpected.

A large number of insect corpses—taking cannibalism into account, it was almost certain that an entire swarm had been wiped out.

(Ah—right, there’s also the poison-bait variety.)

The Empire usually used gas-spraying types, so I had completely forgotten this variant existed.

Whether the humans chose to eliminate the swarm before it grew too large, or deemed it ineffective and disposed of it, I didn’t know—but either way, the fact that movement was easier now was certain.

There was still a possibility that other swarms existed, so I couldn’t relax entirely, but things were clearly beginning to shift in a favorable direction.

And if the insects had been fully cleared away, it wouldn’t be strange for merchants to resume traveling.

Which meant this was the best time to strike.

It was common sense that halting logistics couldn’t last forever.

I doubted people would start moving before confirming safety, but there was still a chance I was already behind. So I threw on my pack and hurried toward the highway.

Getting my belongings wet wasn’t ideal, but there wasn’t much I could do about that.

I ran through the forest, keeping close enough to observe the highway while maintaining cover, and headed north.

Using my telescopic vision, I looked around but found no signs of anything passing through.

(In this rain, the traces could have washed away… meaning I’ll just have to check manually.)

I slowed down to avoid missing anything, scanning both the forest and the road as I moved northward.

But I found nothing.

Even after reaching the point where the forest thinned out, there were no traces on the highway at all.

(No—attacking wagons exiting to the south wouldn’t get me what I want. I need to target the ones coming in, not going out.)

I chastised myself for losing my cool after the insect incident and reaffirmed my goal of improving my living conditions.

Of course, hostile actions would continue.

After all, they picked this fight, so I had no reason to hold back.

And I wanted them to stop thinking they could deal with me using something as trivial as insects.

I had already given up on making any sort of arrangements inside the Kingdom of Canaan, so I no longer needed to hesitate with these brute-force solutions.

“How will the Kingdom of Canaan overcome this crisis? Find out next time!”

I struck an exaggerated pose, imagining a nonexistent camera dramatically zooming in.

(…No good. My excitement is totally out of control.)

I took a deep breath to calm myself.

Truthfully, I was a little curious to see what they would try next.

They were a good opponent to test the limits of what I could handle now—and also someone humanity might have to face in the future, meaning it was a record worth leaving behind.

I thought it sounded like a good line, but chose not to think about what would happen if I didn’t actually leave any record.

Someday I would have to seriously consider that—but today was not that day.

As the rain cooled my head, I turned back toward the temporary base—when a flicker at the edge of my vision made me stop.

Instinctively using my camouflage ability, I slipped deeper into the forest and hid, staring down the highway.

(It wasn’t my imagination…)

The visibility was terrible, but the shadow I saw was definitely a carriage.

“But only one… no, there’s a second one behind it, but they’re both small. A miss, then?”

They were more like passenger carriages than merchant wagons.

It was safer to assume an important person was traveling, so I decided to let these two pass.

Whatever they were planning, it was something I wanted to see.

So I remained hidden in the forest, watching them pass by.

But when the first carriage drew close—I sensed something from it.

(What is that? I feel like I’ve sensed it somewhere before…)

I tilted my head and tried to recall the sensation, but as the carriage moved away, the prickling, unpleasant sting faded.

Then I finally remembered the word and murmured it aloud.

“…A spirit blade?”

I wasn’t certain.

But I was sure it was some kind of magical presence.

(It’s possible. But it could also just be a very powerful magic sword. Since ordinary weapons don’t work, they must have sent a strong weapon—and someone who can use it.)

I let my shoulders slump.

The reason was simple—if what I felt was a spirit blade… could its wielder surpass that elf?

I immediately answered myself.

“So they still think they can defeat me with honest, straightforward means.”

I muttered while watching the now-vanished carriages.

Were they refusing to accept reality?

Or was this genuinely someone strong enough to defeat me?

If it was the latter, I would gladly see what they could do—but if it was the former, then they would suffer for clinging to that delusion.

It was the least I could do as someone who had once been human—a kind of insurance.

…Or so I claimed, but in truth, I was just throwing a tantrum over being disappointed.

Wryly amused by my own pointlessly rising excitement, I slowly left the area.

The humans’ preparations would be done soon.

(A surprise encounter wouldn’t be bad, but lying in wait also had its charm. And if they don’t come, I can always attack first. Hm, so many choices!)

My original goal had long since evaporated—so when I returned to the temporary base in high spirits and remembered it, all I could do was hold my head in my hands.