Chapter 17

“Wait, Senior, what happened…?”

Senior Farphistanya’s expression was clearly different from a moment ago. Well, to be precise, her face was still the same expressionless mask, but the aura she was radiating had completely changed.

“Come forth, Morti Olquente V.”

As she muttered those words, a giant owl appeared before her. To give you an idea of the scale, it was taller than a grown man. In fact, I wasn’t even sure if it was right to call it an owl.

“Morti Olquente V, another ‘Siz’ has appeared. We depart immediately.”

“Thy will be done, milady.”

The owl spoke in an archaic, formal tone, but strangely enough, it felt more like a “proper” familiar that way.

“Pray, mount up.”

Senior hopped onto the back of the owl as it turned around.

“Junior-kun, can you use levitation?”

“I can, but I’m incredibly slow. If the terrain isn’t too rough, I’m better off running…”

Everyone learns Levitation in their third year at the magic school, but it’s literally just “floating”; almost no student has the skill to fly around freely. A teacher might be able to fly across the Capital, but it requires intense mental focus and is so exhausting that it isn’t very efficient. If it were easy, I would have flown to work myself.

“I see. You can stay here if you want.”

Senior said that, but I hated feeling useless so soon. Though, I suppose it’s only natural for a guy who just started working to be unable to do much.

“Master, I shall carry you! Flying on one’s familiar is the basics of being a mage!” Cerulia proposed.

She was right; even Senior Farphistanya was riding her owl.

“But can you fly while carrying someone as heavy as me…?”

“It will be fine. In exchange, please hold onto me tightly.”

“Tightly?”

That was a strange request.

“Yes! And if possible, please whisper sweet nothings in my ear or stroke my cheek.”

“Wait, wouldn’t I lose my concentration and fall…?”

“I am a Succubus! The deeper my love for Master grows, the more power I can manifest!”

Succubus logic really is something else!

But we didn’t have time to dawdle. I wrapped my arms around Cerulia’s back.

“I can feel Master’s sturdy body against my back…”

“I’m a mage, so I don’t think I’m actually that sturdy.”

By then, Senior Farphistanya had already taken off on the giant owl at a terrifying speed. It was so fast I thought I was dreaming!

“What is that thing?! Isn’t it faster than a Great Eagle at full tilt?”

“It is a creature of the Underworld; it cannot be compared to a mere eagle.”

“If we ever went to war with the Underworld, this country would probably fall in three days…”

As we talked, Cerulia was chasing after them at considerable speed. We cut straight across the swamp. If we fall here, I’m going to drown, I thought—just as Cerulia’s altitude began to drop!

“Ah, I’m getting tired… Master, please show me some love!”

Hearing those words in this context was beyond bizarre… but I reached out and traced Cerulia’s cheek with my right hand.

“Cerulia… you look… cute when you’re flying, too…”

It was a cringey, cheesy line, and I felt embarrassed, but nobody was listening anyway. Being boldly romantic was part of the job!

“Become even more beautiful just for me, Cerulia.”

“Thank you! I have received power!”

Cerulia’s altitude shot up, and her speed increased! We cut through the wind and gained on the owl!

Still, I didn’t actually know what was happening. However, I noticed the emergency the moment we arrived.

A girl was about to throw herself into the swamp.

She was standing on the edge of a rock that jutted out like a diving board. I could tell what she was doing instantly because she had lined up her shoes neatly on the rock. Nobody practices swimming in their clothes in a swamp like this.

Nearby, Senior was hovering on her owl, seemingly trying to talk her down.

“…You mustn’t die. A Necromancer will just hire you under terrible conditions… You won’t just be worked to death; you’ll be worked for eternity…”

“I don’t care! I earned all that money for him to pay off his debts, but the moment I handed it over, he vanished!”

Apparently, she had been swindled by a bad man. She was a freckled, innocent-looking girl.

“I even gave him all the money my parents in the country gave me for my life in the city! There’s nothing left to live for!”

“…I see. Then I suppose it can’t be helped.”

“Senior! Don’t give up on the persuasion there!”

Say something passionate! Convince her to stay!

“…I understand how this girl feels.”

“Empathy is important, but don’t condone her suicide!”

“If you come any closer, I’ll jump! My mind is made up!” the girl screamed.

At this rate, I’d have to force her to stop. We could listen to her story later.

“Cerulia, pick me up later.”

“Wait, Master—?!”

I let go of Cerulia and dropped into the swamp.

Man, swamp water is cold. There must be a spring feeding into this somewhere.

“Wait! Why did you jump in…?” the freckled girl asked, looking confused.

Good. All according to plan.

“If you’re going to jump, then do it! I’m not letting you die alone! I’ll grab onto you and drown with you! You want to be stuck with a total stranger for all eternity in hell? You’d hate that, wouldn’t you? If you hate the idea, then stay where you are!”

I shouted while treading water, struggling to keep my face above the surface.

You can’t die quietly like this. If she feels even a spark of the terror of death, she’ll want to turn back. Besides, kids who try to kill themselves are often kind-hearted. If she thinks someone else might die because of her, she won’t be able to go through with it.

“Why would you go that far just to stop me?!”

The girl seemed genuinely stunned. I could feel her bewilderment overriding her tragic resolve.

Answering that question while drowning was actually quite difficult, but the answer was fundamental.

“If someone’s about to die, you save them! That’s all there is to it!”

The girl let out a long, heavy sigh.

“I won’t jump… so please, just help that man…”

It worked. It was worth putting my body on the line. I was immediately hauled out of the water by Cerulia.