The Strongest Orfred Vs. ???

The crimson-bodied bull-headed monster――the Red Minotaur opened its huge mouth.

“Bogaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaa!”

The next instant, flames burst from its mouth.

Even in the scorching heat that singed the skin, Orfred’s expression did not change in the slightest.

“Hmph.”

Without the least concern, he swung the magic sword Dainsleif.

In that instant, the flames were split apart.

The adventurers around him cried out in astonishment.

“Uooooooooooo! As expected of the leader of Black Dragon’s Fang!”

“The Sword Saint and the Sage!”

“Orfred, the living legend! He even cut through fire!”

Hearing those words, Orfred laughed inwardly.

(No human could possibly cut flames.)

Even Orfred, with his peerless skill, could not do such a thing. He had merely unleashed the power of the legendary magic sword Dainsleif he carried.

However――

Orfred had no intention of correcting their misunderstanding.

This was fine.

Let them misunderstand. Reputation shaped a person. If it worked to his advantage, he could let people say whatever they pleased. That was how the legend of Orfred was made.

There was no need to feel guilty about it.

Because――

“Too slow.”

Orfred’s sword bisected the Red Minotaur in a single blow.

Because Orfred was this strong. The strongest being the strongest――that fact did not change.

And that was by no means mere overconfidence on Orfred’s part.

In fact, half of the monster corpses lying across this battlefield had been slain by Orfred’s own hand.

Without the slightest emotion, Orfred swept his gaze across the battlefield. Most of the Stampede monsters had already been defeated, and only the numerous weaklings remained. The mopping-up could be left to the ordinary adventurers.

Orfred’s work here was done.

(…Hmph, truly disappointing…)

Even a Stampede capable of destroying a city was no real problem if Orfred was present. That was reality.

“Orfred-sama!”

Phonic the Meteor Swordsman came running over. He had been carrying out a subjugation mission in the forest, but after noticing the Stampede, he had returned and joined the battle line here.

“My section has been dealt with as well! The Stampede is nearly over!”

“So it would seem. However――”

At that, Orfred tilted his head. He looked toward the Great Forest and pointed.

“What is that?”

“Wh-!?”

Phonic was struck speechless.

A massive plume of smoke was billowing up from deep within the forest.

(Was it then――?)

Orfred remembered something.

While he had been fighting, a tremendous blast had echoed from deep in the forest, and the ground had shaken violently.

“What in the world is happening, I wonder?”

Orfred activated levitation magic and rose into the air. He smoothly ascended skyward and turned his gaze toward the source of the smoke.

It was a fire.

The flames were spreading, and the forest was burning. It was on quite a large scale, and if left alone, it would become a serious disaster.

(I see. How interesting.)

“Heh heh heh,” Orfred laughed deep in his throat.

(If I extinguish that with ease, then my legend――and the name of Black Dragon’s Fang――will thunder across the world once again.)

As he said that, Orfred projected image magic into empty space.

There, he displayed the burning forest.

“Ooooooh!” the adventurers roared.

Orfred then used a spell to amplify his voice and spoke at a volume that resounded across the entire battlefield.

“Behold! The Great Forest is burning! The green forest that sustains countless living creatures and nurtures countless plants is being engulfed in flames! Many of you must have scraped by in your rookie days by gathering medicinal herbs in that forest! If this continues, the forest you all loved will be turned into an enormous mass of ash!”

The adventurers cried out as if screaming.

To Orfred, that sound was delightful.

All things required presentation. It could double or triple the impact of one’s deeds.

Simply carrying out a task as-is was the mark of a second-rate man. It was only by multiplying the results through proper presentation that one became first-rate. If one was going to expend the same effort either way, then one ought to draw out even more with a little extra work.

The eyes and ears of the adventurers were all focused on Orfred.

(…The stage is set.)

Surely they would spread news of Orfred’s accomplishment far and wide.

Satisfied, Orfred extended both arms before him.

“O countless waters dwelling in the atmosphere! Reveal the form you have concealed before me and gather within these hands. Take the shape of the Noble Water Dragon King and swallow our enemy whole!”

One water orb after another rose around Orfred. They fused together, gradually growing larger, forming a single shape.

A gigantic dragon composed literally of water, encircling Orfred.

One of the higher-order spells, Water Dragoon――

For Orfred, who bore the title of Sage, it was a trivial spell.

“Uoooooooooooo! As expected of Orfred!”

“The leader of Black Dragon’s Fang!”

“A forest fire will go out in one shot!”

The excited voices of the adventurers――to Orfred, they felt exceedingly pleasant.

(Praise me, extol me. And pass down what happened here today as well. Carry the names of Orfred and Black Dragon’s Fang far, far away――!)

The perfect stage had been prepared for him to display his power.

The flames covering the forest spread wide, and thick smoke poured upward. There was no problem at all. Once Orfred’s Water Dragoon struck, every flame would be extinguished.

――Now, behold my power!

“Water Dragoon!”

Orfred unleashed his magic power.

The enormous water dragon flew forth, and with its massive volume and pressure of water, it should have crushed the raging flames――

“――!?”

But that was not what happened.

The Water Dragoon he had tried to release did not budge in the slightest. Worse still, after giving a single shudder, its body began to collapse, as though the threads holding it together had come undone.

(…W-what…!?)

Orfred was shaken.

It was an emotion that surfaced only on the rarest of occasions in his life.

Why was this happening…?

And yet it was happening. Orfred the Sage, Orfred the leader of Black Dragon’s Fang, Orfred the greatest military force in the Imperial Capital――

The magic power he had painstakingly refined was unraveling.

(…Impossible…!?)

Orfred’s sharp intellect analyzed the situation.

It was not that his spell had failed. It was being taken from him. Someone was stealing his control over the moisture in this space.

That fact―― sent an icy chill down Orfred’s spine.

(A mage exists who can seize control from Orfred, the Sage, the greatest mage of any generation!?)

It was unbelievable, yet such a person clearly did exist. A monstrous being like that――an irregular existence beyond even Orfred.

The water vanished.

(…What kind of spell are they trying to use!?)

A spell that required even more water than Water Dragoon. If such a spell were activated, it would surely stand out. He had no intention of missing it.

(The moment I find it, I will go there and determine the caster’s true identity!)

Orfred stared intently at the forest.

――And thus, the spell was activated.

A tiny, peculiar sensation touched Orfred’s rich silver hair.

Reflexively, Orfred looked up at the sky. It should have been a clear blue sky just moments ago, yet now gray storm clouds stretched across it.

“Wh-what!?”

Then a second raindrop struck Orfred’s face. Their numbers steadily increased―― and a torrential downpour of astonishing intensity came crashing down.

“It is rain, it is rain!”

“Oh, if it is this much, the fire will go out!”

The adventurers cried out in carefree voices.

(…Rain, rain you say…!?)

This was not naturally fallen rain. Someone had stolen control of the vast amount of moisture from Orfred and used it to create these rain clouds.

There was nothing wrong with that deduction.

Except for one single point: magic that controlled the weather was of such overwhelming difficulty that the technique had been lost at some point, and no one could use it anymore.

Naturally, Orfred was no exception.

“…That is impossible…”

Orfred stood there dumbfounded, continuing to be pelted by the downpour――

“OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!”

and screamed at the top of his lungs, driven wholly by emotion.