Fairies Are Comparable To First-Rate Mages

“Yeah, thanks.”

Kikori said that in thanks to Orphe.

Then he carefully looked around.

The steadily falling snow was already trying to cover up the yeti’s corpse.

The scorched white fur was hard to hide, but if it had been its original fur color, it would have quickly vanished into the snow.

But that was not all. That yeti—

“It was… hiding ‘inside’ the snow. Which means it has no problem staying in the snow for long periods of time.”

“I’m sure that’s true.”

“The question is how long it had been hiding there. Did it dig a hole in the snow and lie in wait?”

With the way the snow was falling, that would have been possible.

If it could stay buried in the snow for a long time without issue, then that would be the perfect way to catch its prey off guard.

Just like the kobolds had been inside holes, it was possible to think of the yeti as a monster that lived inside the snow, but…

No, it was probably better to think of that as the way it hunted.

Assuming that was the case, then here…

“You’d get killed here even if you didn’t let your guard down. If only I could sense something off about the ground a little better…”

To be honest, Kikori thought that was impossible.

The crunching sound of footsteps on the snow. Those footsteps might let the yeti know where Kikori was, but Kikori had no way of sensing any sign that the yeti was about to attack.

The moment his footsteps made noise, Kikori was already at a massive disadvantage.

“If only I could at least fly…”

“Then why don’t you fly yourself?”

“I’d be doing that if I could.”

He tried glancing toward Orphe, only to get that cold response back.

Well, asking Orphe to carry him had never really been realistic in the first place…

In any case, he had no choice but to keep going with whatever options he currently had.

He tried to make as little noise with his footsteps as possible… no, impossible.

The snow made a merciless crunch beneath Kikori’s armored feet.

There was simply no helping that.

So instead, he started walking as quickly as he could.

Orphe flew overhead with an easy, carefree air.

Yet strangely enough, Kikori found that very composure reassuring.

Fairies were comparable to first-rate mages. That rumor was true.

“…What’s that?”

Beyond the curtain of steadily falling snow.

He spotted something gliding toward them through it, and Kikori raised both axes into position.

One, two, three.

Three giant crocodile-like creatures came sliding toward them.

White crocodiles. Snow Alligators.

“Mjolnir!”

Lightning gathered around both axes, and Kikori threw them.

One. Two. The flying axes struck the Snow Alligators and discharged lightning into them.

…But.

“They bounced off!?”

The axes were deflected by their hide with a metallic clang, and the lightning slid harmlessly across the surface of that hide.

Mjolnir had been completely shut down.

At that fact… cold sweat ran down Kikori’s back.