“I’m sorry… It seems I need to change my thinking.”
Kurt finally snapped back to reality and murmured softly.
“It’s not that I underestimated Nero. I just thought that real combat would be too much of a burden given his limited experience…”
“I understand. You’re always concerned about my well-being, right, Dad?”
Kurt broke into a broad smile at my words.
“Whoa, Nero! What a remarkable child you are! Dad is so proud!”
He hugged me tightly, rubbing his cheek against my face.
“Hey! Okay, okay, I get it!”
His beard is scratchy! Also, I’m a little worried about how tightly he’s squeezing me.
“More importantly, Dad, is your arm okay?”
“Huh? My arm? …Ow! Ow, ow, ow…”
Kurt finally started writhing in pain. Well, it’s no surprise—his bone might be broken. His excessive doting nature made him forget about his injury, though. That’s just like him.
To put it another way, he’s a musclehead, but in a positive light, he’s true to himself.
Anyway, I need to do something about his injury. Are there hospitals or doctors in this world? Or maybe healing magic, since this is a world of magic? I should ask.
“Is there any magic that can heal your injury, Dad?”
“Healing magic? Yeah, there is.”
So, it exists. But if it were that easy, he would have used it already. There must be some reason why he hasn’t.
“We should head to the clinic we know.”
“Giselle’s place, right? I’ll help you stand.”
“Thank you.”
Ayra supported Kurt’s body and helped him stand. According to them, only a few of the registered Magic Breakers at the church can use healing magic. Just because they can use magic doesn’t mean everyone can heal.
Kurt slowly got up and looked around with a dazed expression.
“Still, we made quite a mess…”
As he said, the remains of the giant centipede I had just defeated were scattered all around. The pieces were so small that you could hardly tell what it originally was. The only parts that retained their shape were the head and the tip of the tail.
“Let’s call someone later to collect the larger parts. They could be useful for research on magical creatures.”
“How do they conduct research?”
“By infusing a small amount of magic into the corpse, they can learn about the creature’s characteristics and habits.”
So, the corpse of a magical creature has a use like that too, huh? I should have tried to keep it more intact… But at the time, that was probably the best option. Its body turned out to be more fragile than expected, after all.
Now that I think about it, the giant centipede didn’t seem to put up much of a fight, even though Kurt and the other Magic Breakers were so on guard. Even if I am an exception with my Seventh Magic Horn rank, it felt strange that a creature they were so wary of was this easy to defeat. Something feels off.
Apparently, the creature only preyed on one or two humans at a time, constantly moving its hunting grounds. Unlike black ants or ground spiders, which would attack people on a larger scale, this approach allowed it to avoid detection. For magical creatures, securing a steady source of food is crucial, so they must try to act discreetly to ensure long-term survival.
But I don’t think this giant centipede had that kind of intelligence. It seemed rather clumsy, and its body was too large to move undetected, even with camouflage magic. Could there be more enemies out there?
Maybe I should try using magic detection again. Last time, I found a magical creature right after starting my double-layered detection, so I didn’t have a chance to search a wider area. This time, I’ll extend it to cover the entire city.
I quickly deployed my Magic Horn. This time, I started with a double layer, initiating a chain reaction. The Magic Horn expanded, enveloping me, transmitting magical information across the entire city-state of Felgaia.
The magical energies of the city’s inhabitants entered my mind as countless points of light. There was no trace of any magical creatures. If there was one with more advanced camouflage than the giant centipede, I might not detect it.
So, I increased my Magic Horn to triple-layered detection. But the result was the same—nothing out of the ordinary was found. Was the giant centipede really the culprit?
I glanced at the giant centipede’s head lying nearby and thought.
…
……
………
Something still doesn’t sit right with me…
Come to think of it, they mentioned earlier that you can study the behavior and characteristics of a magical creature by channeling magic into its corpse. Could I do that too? If I could, it might provide some clues.
“Hey, Dad, do you mind if I examine this giant centipede?”
“Examine it… how?”
“You mentioned earlier that you can channel magic into a magical creature’s corpse for research.”
“Ah, yes, but it’s not something that can be done in a day. You need to inject different kinds of magic under various conditions, collect the responses, and analyze them comprehensively.”
Sounds like a painstaking process. It’s not as simple as infusing magic and getting an instant answer. It’s like modern scientific methods, in a way.
“Well, you can try channeling a tiny amount of non-elemental magic first. You should get a general response that’s common to all magical creatures.”
According to Kurt, for example, if you channel fire magic and get a response, you can infer that the creature has some resistance to fire. But since even fire has many different subtypes, and there are interactions with other elements, the analysis can be quite complex.
Right now, he suggested trying non-elemental magic. That way, I’d get a reaction that only magical creatures have.
“Alright, I’ll give it a try.”
Just as I was about to extend my hand and deploy my Magic Horn, Kurt stopped me.
“Not like that. You need to touch it directly.”
“Wait, touch it!?”
I hadn’t expected to actually touch the corpse of a magical creature. Even though it’s dead, it’s still gross… But if doing this will open a new door for me, it’s worth it. I have to try new things.
As I hesitantly reached out towards the giant centipede’s head, Kurt suddenly yelled.
“Hold on!”
He stopped me urgently.
“This thing is a new species that the church hasn’t recorded yet. Just to be safe, use your Magic Horn base to touch it. Some magical creatures have venomous fangs or skin.”
“?!”
He could’ve said that sooner! I almost touched it with my bare hands!
I steadied myself, keeping my Magic Horn base extended as I touched the giant centipede’s head. Immediately, a sensation as cold as ice ran through me.
He mentioned that only a small amount of magic was needed, so just a light touch should suffice.
This unusually cold sensation… This must be the typical reaction of a magical creature.
But there’s something unsettling about it. I feel like I’ve encountered a similar sensation before. What could it be?
As I searched through my memories, a certain scene from my past came to mind. A chill ran down my spine.
“…!”
I finally realized the source of the unease that had been bothering me. This is… could it be…?
Before I knew it, I was already moving.
“Dad, I’m heading out for a bit.”
I dashed off without waiting for a response.
“Hey!? Wait! Where are you going!?”
“Just focus on getting your arm treated!”
“That’s not the point! What are you…?!”
Kurt’s voice faded into the distance as I ran. He sounded panicked. It was only natural—his son had suddenly sprinted away without explanation. But I didn’t have time for explanations.
I activated physical enhancement magic and sprinted through the night.
My destination—
Home.
