Chapter 5: Salamandra

「Okay, okay, make way—coming through, Ara-kun.」

A pair of rugged gauntlets skimmed through the air, parting the students, and down the path they opened a sofa drifted along, bobbing as it floated. Both were magic-powered devices Inis had made.

She called the gauntlets Invisible Butler, and the sofa Inis-chan’s Lovely Chaise—names she had given them herself.

「What… do you want, Inis?」

Ara, his body frozen white in places, glared at Inis with bared-fang ferocity. In this second attempt of his he’d taken several blasts of chill but was somehow clinging on against Jack Frost’s attack.

「In that state you’ve got no chance. Just fall back.」

Invisible Butler grabbed Ara by the scruff, hoisted his massive frame with ease, and pitched him away.

「Kya— geez, Inis-chan, that’s dangerous!」

Mel was right where Ara landed and gave a small shriek. A human would have been badly hurt, but Mel—also a centaur, solidly built and wrapped in fluffy fleece—seemed none the worse for wear.

Jack Frost also seemed to recognize Inis as the new opponent and turned to face her. Inis, unusually, pushed herself up on the sofa and flicked away a small board-like slab.

「Expand.」

At the short spell, the slab transformed into a massive wall that sprang up between Inis and Jack Frost.

「Butler-chan, if you would.」

At her voice, Invisible Butler split left and right to close on Jack Frost from both sides. Jack Frost tried to intercept with a blizzard, but the little gauntlets darted through the air and slipped past it.

Despite the name, there was no literal invisible something moving the gauntlets. Magic was woven into them and they moved at Inis’s will, but their motion was so smooth and human it made everyone picture an unseen butler at work. Even Jack Frost seemed taken in—its aim was slightly off the gauntlets, striking at a transparent butler that didn’t exist.

「Expand.」

From the gauntlets’ palms, small boards shot out and ringed Jack Frost on three sides in a U-shape.

「’Kay, and that’s a wrap. Expand.」

Meanwhile Inis-chan’s Lovely Chaise, with her still on it, had rolled to take the high over Jack Frost, and fresh walls snapped into place like lids behind and above it.

「And now—Join.」

At that further verse the walls meshed and joined, sealing seamlessly without a gap.
The deftness of it left the surroundings perfectly still.

「Seal complete.」
「…Splendid.」

As Inis flopped back onto the chaise and let out a long yawn, I found myself applauding.

「It’s a method that skillfully exploits enchantment’s property of fully manifesting from a single word. You also read the opponent’s abilities well. Jack Frost, an ice-and-snow spirit, can conjure a ferocious blizzard, but conversely its physical attack power is not high. Boxed in by stone walls like this, it has no way out.」
「Well, roughly like that.」

At that exact moment, a sharp crack rang out.

「Well—if we were dealing with an ordinary spirit, that is.」

As if in answer to my words, the stone-wall seal Inis had made blew apart. Yuuka and Rin batted down the flying chips of stone.

That Jack Frost can produce ice and snow without limit. It packed the interior with ice and blasted the walls out from within.

「Wh-what!?」

Inis sprang upright on the chaise with a shout. I’d never seen her move so quickly.

「Hey, hey, Sensei—can Mel try toooo?」

Mel raised a hand and bounced on her hooves. She did that often, and every time her chest swayed tremendously—did she realize how people either averted their eyes or, conversely, stared openly? For the record, I was the former and Rin the latter.

「Sure. Challenges are always welcome.」
「Yaaay!」

Overjoyed, Mel dashed—not toward Jack Frost but toward me.

「Er, Mel…?」

As she plastered herself right up against me, I worried she might not have grasped the point of this.

「O fire. Red one, blazing one, burning hot one—unto you I grant a name and a form—」

She had, and perhaps better than anyone here.

「O fire-lizard, Salamander—show yourself before me…」
「H-hey, wait—」

A tug—as if something were being yanked out. Before I could stop her, Mel pulled it free—

「Eat it!」

What came out was a fire lizard so huge it filled the courtyard. It opened its great jaws and swallowed the little snowman in a single bite.

…I see. Humans can’t beat spirits. Then pit a spirit against a spirit.
That, too, is one answer.

If you can turn a blind eye to the chance that the spirit you summoned to fix a rampaging spirit will itself rampage and make a bigger mess.

More than once in my long life—no, dragon-life—I’d considered calling on the fire spirit Salamander, and every time I held back. I knew it could only end badly.

And today that conviction grew stronger. What Mel dragged out of me was just a fragment, and it was this big. The thought of what would happen if I summoned it in earnest chills me.

「…For now, Mel, could you dismiss this one?」
「’Kay. Thank you, Salamander. That’s enou—」
「Please wait!」

Ara’s voice stopped Mel as she addressed the spirit.

「Sensei… please give me one more chance!」

I couldn’t help exchanging a glance with Yuuka.

「If I can defeat this Salamander…! Would you allow me into your laboratory too, Sensei?」

Uh, that’s a bit much, isn’t it?

I looked again at the fire lizard. Jack Frost had been child-sized, but the fire lizard before us was far too large. And while the aged Jack Frost had been holding back, this fire lizard had just been born; I couldn’t imagine it doing anything so delicate.

Yuuka, looking troubled, met my eyes with an urgent, pleading look.
I figured that eye contact meant exactly that…
I chose to trust the instinct I’d honed over more than two hundred years since her childhood.

「…Very well. If your resolve is that firm, I’ll allow it.」

I sighed and said:

「If you fight, you may not walk away unhurt. Even so, will you challenge it?」
「Yes!」

He answered without the slightest hesitation, and I saw Yuuka’s expression twist in shock.

「Anyone besides Ara wish to challenge this fire lizard?」

I looked around as I asked, but no one raised a hand.

「Very well. …O fire lizard—my breath, kin that issued from my belly—Salamandra!」

At my renaming, the fire lizard’s back split open. A pair of wings unfurled from the seam.
Its hind legs swelled thick and massive, its neck stretched long, and horns creaked out from the back of its head. The hazy outline sharpened into a distinct border—

It was, to a tee, a likeness of me in dragon form.

Crap. I figured since Mel pulled it out I could just wrest control—but it powered up this much?

「I am thou and thou art I—shadow double, my duplicate—gather to my body and be my strength!」

As the students screamed and scattered, Ara thrust up one arm and shouted. His shadow, thrown stark by Salamandra’s light, swelled and wrapped his body, forming a complete set of arms and armor.

「Stretch, my shadow!」

The jet-black spear Ara swung shot longer and jabbed up into Salamandra’s palate. But a stab means nothing to formless flame. It simply slid its body aside and brought a forepaw crashing down at Ara.

Ara dodged quickly, but the impact flung fire in every direction, scorching everything around. A berserk, reckless assault.

「Expand!」

But an unfolded stone wall took the flames, and Invisible Butler hefted Ara up onto its arms.

「You’re pushing it way too hard!」

Inis griped from atop the flying sofa.

「Jack Frost-san, pleeeease.」

Spirits don’t die when dismissed. Mel summoned Jack Frost again to keep Salamandra in check—a development I hadn’t quite expected.

「Don’t! This is my fight!」
「If you die, it’s all for nothing.」

With an exasperated face, Inis casually plopped Ara onto the backrest of the sofa.

「That said—ugh, what a hassle. Mel, think you can do something—?」
「Might be impoooossible…」

Jack Frost, under Mel’s control, was blasting a desperate blizzard, but against the roaring Salamandra it was literally a drop on a hot stone.

Worse, the heat pouring off it melted the snowman spirit to sludge, and then even the stone walls Inis had raised were softened and crushed beneath Salamandra’s forepaw.

「Ah. We’re dead.」
「Run!」

Salamandra flicked its tongue out toward the flying sofa. Inis murmured with bizarre calm, and Ara spread his arms to shield her, planting his limbs on the cushions.
…Time to move.

「Yuuka.」
「Okaaay!」

Before I could even finish saying her name, Yuuka at my side sprang forward and swung her sword. The flame-dragon that shouldn’t have been vulnerable to physical attacks was cleaved cleanly in two by that single stroke and vanished.

…If she can do that, she can probably cut real fire, or even the flow of a river. I’ve no idea how on earth that’s possible. Anyway—one more job.

「Ara.」

I spoke slowly to Ara, who was staring blankly where the spirit had vanished under that sudden interjection.

「You were not able to win.」
「…Yes.」

He dropped to his knees, his fur singed and curled by the heat, and hung his head.

That goes for Inis and Mel as well. Of those present, only someone like Yuuka could beat a spirit like that.

As for Rin… I have the feeling she’d manage something I’d never think of, but let’s set that aside.

「But even after you realized you couldn’t win, you kept fighting without running. That courage—more than any little tricks—is the rare quality you need when facing spirits.」

Ara looked up at me, startled.

「Ara. Inis. Mel. You have it. The way to actually fight spirits—and the judgment to know when to pull back. Learn those under me.」
「—Yes!」

Overcome with emotion, Ara bowed deeply.
…Did that tie it up plausibly enough?

Honestly, if they’re that motivated I don’t have much reason to refuse—but saying yes too easily would send the wrong message to the others. When Inis and Mel jumped in right as I was about to ask Yuuka to finish it, I nearly panicked, but it seems to have worked out.

「…Wait, I’m included too!? In something that dangerous!?」

Inis, only now realizing it, started making a fuss. I pretended not to hear.