Chapter 17: Embodiment of Ruin / Warmy Wurm

「It’s over there, Nokia-san!」

Chryse led us with a light, bouncy skip. Her golden hair streamed in the wind, glittering in the sunlight. Seen in this light, I could tell her hair wasn’t pure gold—there was a faint mix of pink in it.

As she neared the great‑antler deer pen, gashaan! A tremendous crash rang out—the sound of a great‑antler deer, having spotted Chryse, slamming its antlers full force against the fence.

「That’s a great‑antler deer.」

As Chryse suddenly hurried back to me, I patted her head and said that to Nokia.

「I-it really is a wild great‑antler deer!」

After ramming its antlers against the fence two, three times, the great‑antler deer seemed to realize it was useless, snorted, and looked away. We’ve been keeping them for nearly four hundred years now, and they’re still as untame as ever.

「Eeeh… won’t it ever break out?」
「Sometimes.」

Nokia asked this with her face drawn tight with fear, and Nina answered lightly.

「It does!?」
「Well, if it runs, we just catch it.」

They’re just animals; compared to a rampaging spirit, they’re nothing. When I said that, Nokia looked at me as if seeing something unbelievable.

「More to the point… what is this fence made of? To withstand a blow from a great‑antler’s antlers…」
「Higane.」

Nina gave a brief answer to Nokia, who was staring at the fence.

「It’s iron mixed with a metal called Hihiirokane.」
「Hihiirokane…」

Hihiirokane is rare, and mixing it with iron boosts the strength dramatically. What you get is higane.

「Could it be that metal that’s fiery red in color and a little heavier than iron…?」
「Sounds like the same stuff.」

Reddish brown would be one thing, but a flame‑like red—there’s nothing else like it.

「That’s fire‑dragon steel!」

Nokia screamed.

「Why—why would you use something like that for livestock pens!?」
「Because it’s sturdy… wait, is that bad?」

What came to mind reflexively was poison. There’s a theory that ancient Rome used lead in its water pipes, causing lead poisoning. If Hihiirokane had some similar toxicity, that could be serious.
After all, we already use Higane all over the village.

「Bad isn’t the word… no, it isn’t bad. In fact, for that use it’s probably the optimal metal…」

Nokia looked back and forth between my face and the fence, her words trailing off.

「Um, won’t it get stolen…?」
「Stolen? What for?」

I couldn’t begin to imagine what anyone would gain from stealing a livestock pen.

「Fire‑dragon steel is an extremely precious metal. At least in Mashiro, even a pinky‑tip’s worth would let you live in leisure for ten years. To think… this much of it, in a place like this, just lying around—unbelievable.」

I tilted my head. Hihiirokane is certainly rare, but only compared to iron or copper—gold and silver are rarer still. And even those aren’t worth that much here…

「Eeeh, then that frying pan Daddy always uses is super expensive?」
「Come to think of it, that one’s all Hihiirokane.」
「You mean I was fed food cooked in something like that just yesterday!?」

Hanging from my neck, Chryse said that, and Nokia’s eyes bulged.

「Well, it’s tough, conducts heat well, doesn’t scorch—very handy.」
「Of course it is!」

Nokia hugged her own body and looked up at the sky.

「Fire‑dragon steel—as the name implies—is a metal that can only be found in mountains where fire dragons dwell. If it’s being mined in such quantities, that means… a fire dragon lives nearby.」
「Huh, so that’s how it is.」

I see; no wonder it’s abundant. But if it can be obtained around Hiiro, that would make it not a metal found on mountains chosen by fire dragons, but a metal that wells up naturally where a fire dragon lives. How does that work?

「Isn’t that terrifying…!? Fire dragons are the Embodiment of Ruin—the living calamities that have destroyed countless countries…!」

At Nokia’s earnest insistence, Nina couldn’t help but burst out laughing. Chryse joined in, and I could only give a wry smile.

「W-what’s so funny…?」
「Don’t worry. The fire dragon that lives around here is… well… let’s say he’s a quiet one.」

Nina wiped at the tears at the corner of her eye with a fingertip, apparently finding it that funny. You don’t have to laugh that hard.

「A quiet… fire dragon…?」

Nokia looked as if she’d just heard an impossible phrase.
I only know one fire dragon besides myself, but I’d say my mother’s pretty mild‑mannered too.

「I can’t believe such a thing exists—like a bird that can’t fly or a mermaid that can’t swim…」

I wondered what face she’d make if I told her she’d just eaten dinner yesterday with a mermaid who can fly and drowns in the bath.

「But if it truly lives alongside a fire dragon and remains unharmed… then I can see how a human town could arise in a place like this.」
「What do you mean, ‘a place like this’?」

Nina’s tone carried a faint edge of irritation.

「If even a fire dragon overlooks it, perhaps you’ve never encountered them. This world is teeming with ferocious creatures… and we humans live under constant threat.」

Nokia said it with a grave expression.

「Beastfolk with an animal’s lower body. Scalefolk with four arms and hides of scales. Butterfly‑folk who bewitch and drive people mad. And giants, whose mountain‑like bulk lays waste to all. This town is ringed by the lairs of such monsters.」

It goes without saying that Nina and I exchanged a look despite ourselves.


* * *


It would be quicker to show her than explain. With that judgment, I took Nokia to the school and asked Chryse to round up some examples.

「You called for us, Sensei!」
「A w-werewolf!?」

As Ara came running over, Nokia let out a scream‑like cry.

「Waaait for me, Ara‑kun—」
「A were‑sheep too!?」

Seeing Mel toddle after him with little thudding steps, Nokia’s eyes bulged even further.

「Hellooo, Sensei.」
「Dragging me out all of a sudden—what do you want?」

And the instant she caught sight of Ruful and Tia looming out from the school building’s shadow, she slipped a hand under her cloak. What she drew with a fluid motion was something I recognized.

「Don’t shoot!」

At my short command, Nokia jolted and froze mid‑motion.

「It’s okay. They’re not enemies, and they won’t harm you. So… lower that, please.」

I spoke slowly to soothe the tense‑faced Nokia. The others watched with blank looks. Which made sense—no one but me had ever seen one before; they probably didn’t even recognize it as a weapon.

A wooden body with a metal bow arcing in a curve; a drawn string with a short bolt set on it.
Smaller than the ones I know, but unmistakably a weapon of the type called a crossbow.

「I-I’m sorry.」

Obediently following my words, Nokia put it away. I could see a holster under her cloak for storing the crossbow.

「No, we’re the ones at fault for springing this on you without explanation.」

I never imagined she had something that dangerous concealed. Not that a tiny bolt like that would likely pierce Ruful through her Giant’s Might anyway.

「…But just in case, could I hold onto the bolts?」
「Ah, yes. Of course.」

When I asked, Nokia readily handed me the crossbow—holster and all.

「You can keep the bow itself.」
「No—the others won’t relax with an armed person standing here. And in fact I nearly attacked just now…」

And then, just rolling her eyes around the circle of onlookers, Nokia added:

「Given the situation, I’ll probably survive better if you understand I bear no hostility than if I’m clutching some piddling little weapon.」

So saying, she raised both hands with a teary, about‑to‑cry smile.