The Anzu birds are said to be further east of the town, in the high rocky cliffs.
The uphill path, with brown earth continuing, has a cliff on one side, making it very dangerous. We’re fine since we can use flight magic, but it’s surprising that those adventurers also decide to walk this path to go hunt monsters.
Below, a forest spreads out, and jagged, solid-looking rocks peek out from the mountainside.
A distant thunder rumbles in the sky, gradually getting closer, with the sound overlapping. It feels like there could be several creatures.
“There they are, there they are!”
Finally, the Anzu birds reveal themselves, and Belial’s face lights up with joy.
“There are three of them!! Flame, rush forth like a raging torrent! I am the King of Flame, Belial! Sword forged in the heat of inferno, appear!”
With a blazing sword in hand, he charges into the rain of lightning unleashed by the Anzu birds.
I wonder how much lightning Belial can defend against…?
The Anzu bird, with the face and upper body of a lion and the hind legs and wings of an eagle, has feet as large as a human’s. The sight of three of them flying together is overwhelming, their bodies wrapped in lightning as their roars become flashes of lightning that strike down.
Belial avoids the lightning and slashes one straight down from the head, throwing a huge fireball at another one coming toward him. As he parries a flash of light from the Anzu with his sword, it shakes. While it’s not as strong as magic, it’s an attack with a numbing effect.
A direct hit from such a close range seems to cause damage.
“Flicker of light, spread and scatter like petals. Wind, the breeze that scatters the clouds, rise, and the sky will clear. The angered storm has passed, listen to the distant thunder. Bo-Tan-Sier!”
I cast a specialized defensive magic to block the lightning attack. Although I was unsure of its effectiveness, the lightning bolts that had been drawing streaks of light stopped abruptly. The duration seems short, but it’s a great result!
“Why didn’t you use that sooner!!”
Belial protests while piercing the Anzu in front of him with his sword, filling it with fire and defeating it.
Angered by the extinguishing of its lightning, the next Anzu charges at him, but he douses its open mouth with flame and swiftly slashes it as it suffers.
When he injures the leg of the last one, it hesitates, then hurriedly turns and flees, cutting through the air in retreat.
Chasing after it, the nest will be eradicated, and that will be the end!
The Anzu aims for an even higher peak of the mountain, diving into a rocky area.
There, more than ten Anzu birds, including smaller ones, are gathered! Lightning crackles everywhere, and the sound is so continuous it’s impossible to have a conversation. It’s difficult to approach.
They are definitely in the midst of a breeding frenzy… At this rate, they might soon be classified as a disaster.
“Ugh. This is troublesome…”
Among the monsters that use lightning, Anzu has strong attack power and a tendency to gather in groups, plus they can fly.
“I’ll start with magic. Please don’t go ahead.”
I’ll use the magic I saw the mages use in the mine. If I let the magic power flow for a longer time, its duration will increase.
“Breath, solidify, and freeze into ice! Load, give me the trigger. Strike down like a torrential downpour of countless hard ice shards. Create a barrier of bullets! Glass-Lon!”
Dozens of ice shards are created and fly out with great speed. The range of ice is narrow, but I can shift their trajectory, so I can aim them at multiple Anzu birds in a fan shape, hitting them all at once.
Though I don’t manage to finish them off, more than half of them fall. The lightning from the others weakens, and I can feel the definite results.
After this, Belial happily finishes them off, and everything is done. I collect five Alectoria Stones!
Returning to town, I report the completion of the Anzu bird extermination and the nest location to the Adventurer’s Guild before heading to the mine. They mentioned something about rewards and treatment costs, but I was in a hurry, so I left quickly. The work in the mine had already begun.
In the mine tunnels, excavation work continued from yesterday. As expected, no one could sense the aura of the Hihiirokane, so progress was slow.
The removal of the rubble from the previous day was finished. We needed to get to work immediately.
“Sorry, I was out on a quick extermination. Belial, please search for more Hihiirokane. I can sense it at this depth, so I’ll handle the excavation here.”
“I hear you were called away for quite the difficult extermination. Just having you here is a big help. Hey, over here, use magic…”
Even though more Anzu birds could become a problem, I had dropped everything to come here. I thought I might be scolded, but the supervisor didn’t utter a single complaint. He’s a well-composed man. I must help properly!
“No, as an apology, let me use my magic to dig.”
“Can you use that magic? It’s not really a magic for an exterminator to use…”
“Break the hardened rock! Dig deeper, create an opening and make a path. Crush the soil wall blocking the way and invade. Excavation!”
Everyone was digging carefully, but I could sense where the Hihiirokane was buried, so I decided to collapse the area right before it in one go.
I used my aura to gauge the size and depth, and imagined the soil crumbling. With a loud crash, the earth I had broken apart tumbled at my feet. Since I broke it all at once, a small avalanche occurred. My ankles almost got buried.
I shaped the ceiling into an arch. It turned out cute and just right.
“Eh, you did all this in one go…?! And the ground and walls are both shaved so cleanly!”
“I haven’t used this magic much, but is this what you had in mind? You can already start digging for the Hihiirokane.”
The supervisor nodded in admiration, clearly impressed.
“Isn’t this amazing…!? Way better than us specialists!”
The people who were digging with magic also praised me. They were gently brushing the shaved wall.
“I’m good with magic.”
I couldn’t help but feel happy when my magic was praised.
“If you ever run out of work, feel free to come work at the mine!”
“Yeah, exactly! A capable, beautiful woman like you would be especially welcome!!”
They were lifting me up so much, it was almost embarrassing!
Now that I think about it, everyone here is male except for me. That’s probably why! But I don’t want to work at the mine, though… there are sandworms around.
“Oh, well done, Lady Iriya . I’m heading to the next tunnel for a bit.”
“Next?”
Ekvar passed by lightheartedly. It seemed the other adventurers were staying here. Since the supervisor hired them, I guess that makes sense.
“I was asked to help with a strong monster that appeared, so I’m going to give them a hand.”
“Does that mean there’s a crisis?”
“Some guy rushed in, flustered, and we couldn’t even get a word out. I won’t know until I go.”
Most of the monsters that appear in the mine don’t fly, so I’m sure Ekvar will be fine. After seeing him off, Belial and I returned to our work to catch up on the lost time.
After a while, a man who seemed like a worker waved his hand.
“I heard there’s someone who can heal multiple people at once. We’ve defeated the monster, but there are a lot of injured, and we need help with the treatment.”
“I’m fine with it… Is that alright with you, Supervisor?”
I felt bad about taking breaks frequently, but I wanted to help if needed. I asked the supervisor, and he immediately agreed. The work had progressed faster than planned, and since Belial was here too, there were no problems.
Near the entrance of the tunnel Ekvar went to for the subjugation, there were many people bleeding and injured. It seemed that monsters had appeared in the narrow tunnel during the work, causing the damage to spread.
Luckily, no one had injuries so severe they couldn’t move, and they had managed to escape the tunnel and gather here. I took out my healing magic staff just as Ekvar emerged from the depths.
“Lady Iriya … what’s that, that incredible staff?”
“This is the Asclepius Staff, my healing magic staff. I’m not that great at healing magic, though.”
I briefly explained and focused on the magic. The people gathered around were whispering, probably wondering if I was a hired mage.
“The full moon hangs in the sky, casting a faint light. The darkness rests in its embrace, seeking a moment of rest. Ah, the quiet of evening, now even the sounds of insects cease, and the curtain falls to the ground. The proud moon, I dwell upon the moss of the rocks. Fufela Lunae.”
A small light was born in the dim tunnel, floating gently among the people. As many eyes looked on curiously, the light suddenly flared white, blocking out the view, then vanished like the receding tide, and the quiet gloom returned.
When the magic finished, every single one of the injured had their wounds healed, and they were astonished by how I had managed to heal so many at once.
“In the dark, I just want to use dark magic, you know?”
“This magic… I’ve only seen it in books… You can use it?! And you say you’re not good at it?!”
“Well, I can only do it with the staff! It’s dark magic, so it’s unpopular, and there aren’t many people who use it, right?”
They were oddly persistent. I pointed to the staff, emphasizing that it was thanks to this. Ekvar stepped closer, stared at it seriously, then widened his eyes.
He whispered, making sure no one else could hear:
“…Isn’t this material from the World Tree Yggdrasil?! It’s bigger than the one my Egdoarm has!”
“I got it from Lord Belial.”
“Anything goes, huh, devil…!”
The staff, about my height, was entwined with a serpent sculpture made of mithril, crafted from the Yggdrasil material.
When I realized such a precious material was used, I was truly surprised. I’d have to be careful not to let it get stolen.
Everyone thanked me, and the digging for the Hihiirokane continued smoothly, so it seemed we would accomplish our goal.
The Hihiirokane would be refined before being delivered, so I wouldn’t receive it right away. I promised to have it delivered directly to Timo’s workshop.
As for the Alectoria Stone, I had broken the barrier and gave it to Duke August. Apparently, it was still not enough, but I was glad I managed to gather it. When I told him there were sixteen Anzu birds but only five stones, he was puzzled as to why I’d gone to the mine for Anzu.
Oh, I forgot the reward… I haven’t stopped by the Adventurers’ Guild after that.
