Translator: Haruto.

After leaving the fortified city of Arcana, I, Alize, run straight towards the Evil Forest.

Considering how this is a race against time, I think I should summon that guy…  

I stop in front of the forest and whistle as loud as I can. Moments later, the boisterous sound of some sort of creature approaching is heard from inside the forest.

“Did you call, Dear Master?” A giant Enchanted Wolf appears and stands before me.

Surprisingly enough, this guy is not a monster but a kind of forest spirit. I actually mistook him for a monster when I first saw him, and I would have slain him were it not for him suddenly breaking down into tears. In the end, he became my servant.

“Yeah, I’d like you to take me to the Lake of Grief where mandragoras grow.”

“It’d be my pleasure… but can I also expect a reward for my efforts today?”

What he—Kamia would like as a reward is nothing more than a few plain old copper coins. That’s right, he wants copper coins, not gold or silver. It seems he enjoys cleaning and polishing corroded copper coins until they look brand new.

“Sure. I received plenty of copper coins in town today.”

Kamia’s eyes sparkle in excitement. “I already cleaned all the coins you gave me last time, so I can’t wait to get more!”

It sure must be difficult to restore small coins with such a giant body. I almost can’t hold back my laughter imagining him hard at work.

“P-Pff… A-Anyway, let’s go. I’m kind of in a hurry here.”

“Very well. I shall run at full speed.”

“…Huh? At full speed? H-Hold on. I don’t think—”

Before I even manage to finish my sentence, he puts me on his back and breaks into a sprint.

Uwoooooooooooo!!

He’s too freaking fast and his whole body shakes violently when he runs. I’m starting to feel nauseous.

When we finally arrive at the Lake of Grief an hour later, I feel so dizzy I can barely stand. That’s not to say I’m not grateful to Kamia, though. It’d have taken me three days to reach this place on foot. I just wish there was a more comfortable way to travel on his back.

“Bleeeeeeeech…! Yeah, I’ll never get used to this…”

“Hmph! You sure are weak, Master… only when it comes to motion sickness, of course,” Kamia adds in a hurry. He didn’t have to, though. I don’t think of myself as particularly strong, to begin with.

“Alright, let’s find us a mandragora!”  

“I do poorly against the mandragoras’ screams so do you mind if I wait somewhere else?”

“That’s fine.”

It’s understandable. Most people can’t bear listening to them.

I also find their screams utterly unpleasant, though I’ve gotten used to them over time. After all, Mandragora Extract works not only against the Curse of the Woods, but various other maladies as well. I even had to collect some when Ruin came down with a pretty aggressive cold.

“Now then, where are you, little buddy…?”

Mandragoras spend most of their time hidden in tall grass so it’s not easy to spot them. They hate high-pitch sounds, though—as ironic as that may seem—so I grab the iron plate I was carrying with me and begin scratching it with my nails. The awful shrilling sound forces something to jump out of the tall grass.  

It’s a mandragora.

It turns its head in all directions trying to identify the source of the sound, and when it notices me, it looks at me with absolute hatred.

Mandragoras are not really that strong. The only thing you have to be careful of is the dangerous screech they produce when they die and the clever methods of escape they sometimes come up with.

I break into a sprint as I pull my sword out, and the mandragora starts running away. I’m overwhelmingly faster, though, so it doesn’t take me long to catch up to it and cut it down. A second later, its terrible screech is heard all through the forest.

Yeah, it’s as annoying as I remember. Unfortunately, once it starts, all I can do is wait for it to stop.

About ten minutes later, the mandragora goes silent at last.

“Alright, time to head back to town.”

I pick up the mandragora’s body and walk back to Kamia. He appears to be in a sour mood.

“I heard it from here! I wish you’d have waited until it was farther away to kill it!”

“Sorry about that. Let’s get out of here.”

Knowing well I’ll have to get all dizzy again, I set off for the city of Arcana…

Hop, hop, hop. Shake, Shake, Shake.

Once we’re out of the forest, I end up throwing up one more time. I then look at Kamia tiredly and say, “Here’s your reward. Thanks for your help, Kamia.”

“Anything for you, Master,” Kamia responds, walking back into the forest.

I reach the city, wobbling uncontrollably still, and run into Lulune who seems to be on her way out.

“What’s wrong, Alize-san?! You look sick!”

That’s just what happens when you have to endure a torturous amount of bumping and shaking.

Unable to stand any longer, I pass out in front of her.

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