The Spearmaster and the Black Cat

“I’m Nemus!”

Nemus drums her massive torso with her huge arm. The roso consisting out of steel with a black luster and wood creaks, creating warped, unique 『Chords』. First the dull sound of a cylindrical container, and then a dry sound as if striking a wooden board with clappers. She makes those sounds reverberate in succession. It’s a musical piece as if she’s completely trying to match Moga who’s taken a pose as you’d see it in kabuki. <a href='#easy-footnote-bottom-1-25946' title='Imagine Jiraiya's appearance in the early days of Naruto with the accompanying music.'>1</a>

“――Let me show you the dance I learned from Himika Danzo, the damsel I fell for heads over heels in Shijima Town!” Moga shouts.

It looks like he fell in love with someone in Shijima Town. Each time Moga whirls around as he dances, Nemus accompanies him with her clappers-like sounds.

――Nice tune. I guess this is a special skill of Nemus.

Moreover, the branches of the plants growing on parts of her torso and arms overlap. Thereupon, sounds similar to wavelets also occur as dry leaves flutter down. Those leaves add coloring to Moga’s new poses. That and Moga’s outfit are pretty cool.

For a short moment he stands still as if rooted the spot, just to finish up with pose of him standing on one leg, unlike before, on top of Nemus’s left shoulder. Around the time when Moga is about to showcase his finishing pose alongside a series of drumming sounds, Nemus’s swaying intensifies.

In the next moment, Moga tumbles down while squeaking. Truly the epitome of a simple penguin who can’t fly.

However, while falling, he twists his body around, pulling off a clean landing in a penguin pose. At the same time, Nemus’s drumming sounds stop, and the dry leaves are carried away by the wind.

…Their duo performance gave me goosebumps.

“――Haha, you woke the urge in me to applause, but are you actually okay over there?” I ask while laughing.

In response Moga whirls around with a momentum that makes the feathers flutter on the wings covering his hands, and then looks back at me.

“――Aye. Anyway, about what we talked about before…”

After performing a flashy rotation, Moga quickly straightens himself.

“What about it?”

“On top of having saved our lives, you even made a home for us. That’s why we’d like to return that debt.”

“Nevermind, it’s no biggie.”

“――Be a good boy and listen to me. We’re wandering adventurers. At times we’re at odds with other adventurers. But, I intend to be a virtuous person. And acting like it’s nothing doesn’t sit well with me as a man. Hence, I’ll naturally assist in the reconstruction of Cydale which is also your wish. I’ll also keep Muu company in her training, and…”

At the end he makes a pause.

“Is something wrong?”

“No. You see, this is just if you’re okay with it, but…”

Moga’s eyes are shifting around restlessly.

“What’s with that vagueness now after all this time? Just spit it out man.”

“A-Aye. You’re right. Alright…here it comes…”

Moga looks at Nemus. I feel like Nemus slowly nods at him, but she’s definitely blinked her eyes several times. After nodding back at her, Moga faces me again.

“…Could we join your party, Shuuya? We’re fine with all the loot being yours, too.”

Despite his penguin face, he looks serious. I guess he’s brooded this over in his own way.

Well, I’ve got no reason to turn them down. It’s Moga’s choice based on his experience as an adventurer.

“Sure. Let’s go together whenever I accept some requests at the adventurer guild, including labyrinth crawls, okay?”

“Ooohhh! So we’re friends. You became our friend!”

“I am Nemuuus!!”

“…nh.”

Seemingly overwhelmed by joy, Moga caresses Muu’s head after she’s been listening while looking around restlessly. His hand with the fluffy, soft inner fur ruffles up her hair.

Muu glares at Moga as if yelling at him, 『Stop it, penguin!』, but he continues to stroke her head.

And Nemus also lets her joy free reign. She exhibits a weird dance by repeatedly swinging her huge arms up and down. While causing heavy lumbering sounds with her feet, she strikes the wall made out of evil domain trees from above.

Because she hits the wall several times with her huge fists, the wall dents in at the places she hits and the stakes below, which are buried deep in the ground, are driven even further into the soil at a section of the wall.

Considering what’s hitting the wall, it might be smart to see it as some kind of art.

“…Nemus, please be careful when we challenge requests and labyrinths as a party.”

“I, a, m, Neeemus.”

Nemus has apparently noticed that her actions have become quite extreme as her movements suddenly become much smaller. Oh well, “Kaede” dwells within the giant, so yeah.

“Ahaha, Nemus, you’ve become so obedient after that pose I haven’t seen you doing yet!” Mowa laughs out loudly.

He’s stopped stroking Muu’s head. After moving close to Nemus feet as if sliding quickly across the ground, and while gazing up to Nemus, who’s stopped moving in a strange pose, he holds his sides in laughter.

It looks like it fully caters to Moga’s sense of humor.

“Also Moga, assuming you enter Innocent Arms, there’s also requests that don’t go through the guild like the one from the Gramps Kistrin and the ghosts.”

“Ah, the one over there, huh…?” Moga turns his eyes towards the hill’s back.

“Correct. Ahead of the holes in the hill behind my house that continue into the underground. I don’t know how deep the tunnels run. I can hope to not get lost since I’ll have a guide called Golden Path, but it might become a long journey. I’ll also try to check my mirrors, but well, expecting things to be too convenient is, you know… Besides, the problem is the underground goddess. Challenging a goddess who stole a sanctuary…this won’t be any ordinary request, for sure. Rather I think it’ll become an extremely dangerous journey. But…would you follow me into such a reckless adventure?”

“Obviously. We entrusted our lives to you, no, Innocent Arms! Right, Nemus?”

“――I am Nemus!!!”

“――Guuaah.”

Nemus apparently tried to give Moga a high-five with her huge hand, but…Moga was caught by the hand and slapped away. Currently he’s stuck in the ground around the edge of the training ground…head first. His penguin legs are trembling.

Pheew, so he hasn’t died from getting blown away. However, it makes me happy to feel their dignity as adventurers. …They’re my new friends and party members.

At this rate, the group might grow to a big party by the time I head into the underground.

Hankay should be interested in the whereabouts of his Budand Clan, too. Though I can’t say anything yet since I don’t know whether his clan has moved underground. I suppose it’s also possible that Hankay won’t come with me underground, and instead is going to travel eastwards while at the same time training up his skills.

Well, I think I’ll try to invite him at a good time.

◇◇◇◇

Afterwards, we checked the unknown stringed magic book for whether it was created by Zedel’Guo Sail, one of the Eight Geniuses of the Spirit World, together with Moga & Nemus.

I didn’t know anything about it besides it being a magic or sorcery book formed out of many sturdy, mana-laden strings being tied together in various ways. It’s just that Muu has a lot more mana than the magic book. Still, you can reliably feel a high-quality mana from the strings binding the book.

Just like on the first inspection, we could only find out that the strings and threads are very, very special. Kisara might know more about it, so I guess we have no choice but to wait for her to come back from her sky stroll.

A little later, the Rollo Squad returned to the training ground. At the same time, Moga & Nemus left. They headed over to the village office, where Quiche is currently at, to have a chat with her about various things, including the matter of being active as adventurers.

When Nemus entered the part of the earthen slope that isn’t covered by a stairway as she heavily trudged downwards, a section of the soil there collapsed, causing a landslide at the hill’s lower section. It’d have been better if I had reinforced the soil of the slope with a lawn.

I suppose I’ll reinforce it with wooden boards and planks later on.

As I’m pondering about that, I look at Muu. Muu is staring at Baldok.

Grasping Baldok while sensing her eyes being focused on it, I tell Muu, “…Although I said we’d train, we need to get some groundwork done first. Once you can reliably use the strings of that magic book, they might serve as replacement for artificial leg and arm. But, for now I’m going to create an artificial leg and arm with <Tree of the Evil King> while taking the structure of the wood for you into account so that you can do basic exercises. Got it?”

Muu has been expressionlessly staring at my lips.

“…”

“I think we’ll do it inside. It’s too cold out here, isn’t it?”

“――mh.” Muu shakes her head.

It seems like she’s alright with the training ground. Well okay, then I’ll make them out here.

I kneel down so as to match eye level with the small Muu.

“――Alright, I’m going to try making them now.”

I focus on smiling as much as possible to give Muu a peace of mind.

“…tg.” Muu nods lightly after looking embarrassed.

She passed the magic book to me. And then, since she tried to take off her simple dress while silently raising both arms, I helped her with that.

“N, nya～”

“Rollo, you don’t need to help.”

“Nyao.”

“Alray, you neither.”

Leaving the cats aside, I’ve got to hurry since Muu is going to catch a cold, now that she’s naked, if I take too long.

I’ll make the artificial limbs’ ends in a shape matching with the triangular protrusions. I focus on <Tree of the Evil King>. I create several axis, deciding to integrate holes that will allow the strings to pass through from the tips of the pyramids If you combine all the small axises, they’ll also allow for the wrist to rotate

At the time when the strings freely flutter, Rollo kicks up a fuss by meowing excitedly. She apparently considers the strings to be prey.

“…Rollo, these strings are no prey. Now’s not the time to play around. If you want to play with Muu, do it later.”

“Nnnn.” Rollo answers with nothing but a long growl.

It seems inevitable for her to regard the strings manipulated by Muu…as prey.

“Muu. I think Rollo understands now as well, but…better be careful for the time being.”

“…mh.” Muu nods after her body trembles with a start.

Well, it makes sense since she’s seen Rollo fight after having turned into a huge divine beast from very close proximity.

In the meantime, I also created several holes in the artificial leg and arm to allow Muu to capitalize on the strings of her magic book. Considering its stability, I can’t open up too many of those holes in the wood, though.

This might be my experience of me having built everyone’s houses being at work here. I haven’t obtained any woodworking skills, but the experience of working with wood has become a strength for me.

However, her scars…look pitiful… The magic crests have been imprinted onto the surface of the pyramidal flesh protrusions which are growing out of the scars. And the threads extending out of the pyramids are mysteriously connected with the magic book’s threads.

Mu was locked up by the vampires precisely because she possesses such a unique body…one can immediately guess that someone tampered with her body as a child.

“Nya～” Rollo seems to also feel sympathy for Muu after seeing her body, seeing how she meows sadly.

Still, I wonder what has been done to Muu. Are these operations that have been performed on her body the reason for her having lost her voice? Or maybe she doesn’t talk because of the trauma of her family having been killed or her having been kidnapped?

While feeling sorrow clamping down on my chest, I created an arm out of wood, and then went on to make her a leg.

Maybe she went through experiments that used various parts of her like her blood? Is the Valmask family attempting to create new lifeforms in this world? You could even say it’s a way of thinking typical of reincarnators, if Hoffmann has been spearheading such scientific experiments. Creating new life…that’s extremely interesting in itself.

I also created a <Disciple of Light Evil> in Tsuan & Purin & Catiza. And the Light Demon Lucival also belong to the side of darkness as beings desiring blood.

But, kidnapping a great number of innocent people and using them as materials while they’re still alive or killing them is despicable. Even if they weren’t innocent, violating their personal will is…

Well, this won’t lead anywhere. …After all, evil follows its own justice which has its own righteous cause.

Just as I thought that…I finished Muu’s artificial leg and arm, albeit very simple versions.

I wonder whether this will be okay. I guess it’ll be alright as long as I regularly adjust the size to match Muu’s growth. I created openings at the ends of the prostheses to allow them to mesh with the pyramidal protrusions. If only I had something like silicon to fill the gaps caused by the unevennesses of the pyramids, it would make the movements of the prostheses much smoother.

Mysty might have been able to create amazing prostheses which would have integrated metallic parts like the new leg she made for Eva. But for now, these simple versions will do.

“…Alright. How are they? Can you walk?”

“――nh.” Muu smiles, apparently overjoyed about having obtained new artificial limbs.

She starts to walk around while breathing out. She seems to be limping in a cute way, but for the time being, she can use the artificial leg for walking. Then again, she did walk nimbly even when she had just one leg. I had thought so before, but she must have trained her inner muscles quite a bit. That or just as those scars suggest…Muu’s body might contain unknown monster parts or special muscle tissues…

I mean…just the fact of her body possessing a connection with a magic book…is already plenty weird to begin with… I’m slightly worried about her future.

“…You’ll catch a cold if you stay like that, so put on your clothes.”

“…”

Hearing my words, Muu stopped. She turned around, and came back in a trot. Her expression beamed somehow with her smiling brightly. She picked up the simple dress, put her artificial arm through its sleeve, and pulled the dress over herself.

Muu apparently becomes aware of the existence of her artificial arm as it protrudes out of the sleeve. Lifting her new arm several times, she points its scissor-shaped end towards the sunlight. She looks truly happy. Her heart seems to leap with joy.

Muu makes her artificial arm rotate.

“Nn, nyaa～” Rollo also appears to be happy and delighted.

Next to Muu, Rollo starts to wander around her. At times she bumps her head against Muu’s legs.

The axis of Muu’s new arm uses the same methods as that of a water wheel. I also added an axis at the wrist to allow her to swing the end part up and down. But, it has no fingers. Instead I’ve equipped it with a gap, allowing the insertion of weapons such as spears, and a wooden mechanism imitating scissors, allowing it to grab things.

“Muu, here you have the magic book back.”

“…” Muu nods.

Apparently manipulating the threads extending from the pyramids’ tips, she makes them pass through the interior of the artificial limbs, just for them to shoot out at the holes I had added. Those strings and the strings of the magic book connect in midair, but she doesn’t pull the book to herself.

Muu lets the book float above her head.

Still, I gotta say, the prostheses came out surprisingly well…Mysty might have been surprised, if she saw them.

But, the all-important spearmanship training, huh…? Back when I trained at the Goldiba village, Master Achilles hadn’t taught proper martial arts to Lefa yet. Though it seems like Lefa learned it by secretly watching and training herself.

At that moment, “――Shuuya-sama!”

“Eh? We ran into an affair? Kisara, I’d be really worried about the signs if I were you, even if the other party might be a child.”

“Stop saying stuff that pisses me off to no end!”

At that moment, the fate of Rotalz-kun was decided. Kisara’s heel sank into his head directly from the front, causing it to dent in. Immediately following Rotalz crashed below the cliff that continued out of the village on the right side.

The sparks from his depressed forehead… Hahaha, again?

I end up bursting into laughter because of his hilarious way of falling.

“Kisara, that was a magnificent heel kick!”

“It’s not worth mentioning, but thank you very much.”

“His Excellency exhibited a similar style of kicking technique during the mock battles with me, but your style is nice as well, Kisara. And it shows me that the demonoid martial arts of the Heavenly Witch Style, which handles many things from hand-to-hand combat to secret art-like magic, is truly bottomless!”

“For my fighting style to resemble Shuuya-sama’s…that makes me happy――”

While bashfully twisting her body in the air, Kisara places both her feet on the handle of her witch spear, and then descends towards the ground while riding the wind as if surfing. In no time Kisara lands beautifully while her spear vigorously embeds itself in the ground. She kicks off the ground, instantly closing the distance between us. As soon as she’s in front of me, she genuflects and lowers her head.

“Shuuya-sama, we continued watching the surroundings while strolling across the sky. A unit of wolfsmen led by Higlia-chan and Daon-dono kept patrolling the ground. This village is safe. However, according to a report by the Burning Knights, an orcish swordsman with a strange appearance and his platoon fought against various monsters in the distance.”

The orcish swordsman was the one who gave the Burning Knights such a hard time, wasn’t they? He was called Tokk Ghul Kaibacz, right? They mentioned a platoon led by an Ogre Skull User.

Well, the orcs have civilizations on the surface and in the underground, too. The orcs I encountered when exploring the big passage of the Pel-Heca-Line weren’t all that strong, but I’m sure they should have many outstanding fighters in their ranks.

I feel like I’ve heard the Ogre Skull term somewhere else before…

Oh well, whatever. I’ll remake the village’s main gate later, and it might also be a nice pastime to hunt down that orc platoon if I got some free time.

It seems like Higlia is helping Quiche by leading her own troops.

I recalled the conversation between her and Quiche during the meeting.

『The battle is going badly for us ancient wolfsmen? Don’t make me laugh. It’s a daily occurrence for us to take back the territory after getting attacked over and over again. Besides, don’t you feel it when looking at the movements of the companies led by Daon and Ryokline? They’ve come chasing after me while following the faintest traces of my scent within the Sea of Trees. Just by that fact, you should understand their individual prowess, right? And although Sachsel was defeated, there are still the clans led by wolf generals such as Azelan, Oulia, and Bydoln left in our hometown. They’d lose to Shuuya, but they’re still strong. Especially Bydoln, Daon’s grandfather, possesses an abnormal strength that goes beyond mine who’s received the God Wolf’s divine protection. He’s an old wolf general, a living legend called 【Werewolf Legend of Silver Fur】 who returned alive from a battle against the Death Butterfly people… Bydoln has thwarted all invasions by Ancient God Go Rad’s dragon flies and apostles. Currently he’s protecting our Sea of Trees turf next to the 【Valley of Hidden Time】. Or rather, he’s actually expanding it into the 【Valley of Hidden Time】』

Quiche looked very happy after she heard that, didn’t she? Well, she’s the village chief, so it’s only natural if you consider the village’s security. After all, she gained a mighty power that looks like they could become an ally besides human forces.

As I pondered about that, I turned to Kisara and said, “…I see. Thanks for your work all the time.”

“…No problem.” Kisara answers curtly while looking at me with an entranced expression.

I smile at her.

At that point, the witch spear, which is on the other side of her head, enters my visual field. Its spearhead is stabbed in the ground. Its knuckle guard and handle furiously swing up and down as its filaments flutter as if depicting a banner.

I’m reminded of Kisara when she held that spear. The battle surrounding the Eight White Shadow Star Sword Style at Lake Rhinoceros. She must have gone through countless battles in the great desert. She might have had a conspicuous presence like Jeanne D’Arc.

The battles between the Blood Bone Nymphs, martial artists, and demonoids should have been intense. I’m also curious about the existence of the Desert Hermit Spear Kisara had mentioned to be lost. As expected, it’s most likely a magic spear. Precisely because I’m a spearmaster…

Thereupon, I can suddenly hear Puyuyu’s voice trembling, “Puyuu…puyuyu, puyuu～”

Helme has been holding the small bear cub at her chest like a plush toy. It apparently feels scared after having seen the power of Kisara’s kick. I’m sure it doesn’t want to be on the receiving end of that heel kick.

Its round and cute eyes are trembling, it clenches its pure white teeth down as they’re chattering.

The sight of Rotalz, a huge darkness whale, going down like that must have been traumatizing. I can tell that it’s agitated. After all, it’s been launching its weird tiny dinosaur spell at Kisara.

Kisara seems to still worry about that time, seeing how she occasionally covers one breast.

Puyuyu makes its dense fur tremble. And then it inserts the back of its head into the Helme’s cleavage created by her underboobs. You damn furry shit! Did you plan that!?

“It looks like you like my breast, Puyuyu-chan. But, pressing against that place is a no no…”

Helme-san, who appears like a goddess holding a baby, flies down to us while commenting like that.

“…”

Muu seems to be proud of her new prostheses. Her strings are extending from the holes in the wood. While maintaining the connection between her own strings and the magic book’s strings, she walks step by step, using her unhurt and artificial leg in alternation. Her gait is still clumsy. However, I can sense from her that she’ll go on doing her best from now on.

For some reason, Rollo looks awfully triumphant next to Muu. She circulates a tentacle to the back of Muu’s knee, trying to support her so that she doesn’t fall down.