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Late in the evening, I was running around an unnamed mountain, frantically searching for the rumored hideout of thieves, but there was no real gain.

As the cold, frozen leaves crunched in the night wind, a faint light seemed to shimmer from something reflecting the moonlight in the dark forest ahead.

Ploof-

I pulled on the bridle and came to a halt. The Nightmare, sensing the surroundings, began to snort and paw the ground with its front legs.

My breath turned white in the chill. Emerging from the eerie wind were dozens of soldiers clad in glimmering armor.

They did not look like ordinary thieves. The thieves I had encountered until now wore nothing more than chainmail or leather armor. These guys had an entirely different aura.

“What do you want…?”

I cautiously tossed out the question, and in response, the surrounding soldiers drew their weapons, aiming them at me.

It was just the moment I was about to draw my sword due to their rude demeanor when a massive shadow appeared behind the soldiers, accompanied by a heavy presence.

It was a familiar energy. A sharply honed sword seemed to be heading my way.

“It’s been a while. Fairy Swordsman.”

“You are…”

The figure that revealed itself was a middle-aged knight who had previously sought me out in the guardhouse, wanting to buy the Nightmare. He waved lightly as he spoke, fiddling with the massive cart the soldiers had brought.

“It seems I’ve delayed my introduction. I am Anderr Del Kofman. I hope you’ll just call me Kofman.”

Hearing the name, he appeared to be of noble birth, but without specialized knowledge, I couldn’t tell what title he held.

“So, what’s this about?”

“Isn’t it obvious? I’ve come looking for a deal.”

“A deal? With all these soldiers?”

Kofman gestured to the soldiers at my remark. The weapons trained on me were suddenly lowered in unison.

“I apologize. My subordinates may have been a bit rude.”

“Ha…”

The white mist from my breath blurred my vision. Just before I could say something, Kofman quickly continued.

“I’m offering thirty. Three hundred thousand gold. The gold in this cart amounts to three hundred thousand gold.”

I thought he might have given up since he hadn’t shown up after the last time, but that seemed not to be the case. He was still after the Nightmare.

“Are you still not willing to give up?”

“It’s too charming a horse to let go of.”

I glanced around before continuing.

“Are you threatening me now?”

“A threat? Did it look that way?”

“At least, it does to me. You’ve surrounded me with all these soldiers as if you were waiting for me.”

“Hmm. It seems there’s a misunderstanding. I’m only here to exterminate the thieves that are supposed to be in these mountains.”

I silently brought my hand to the sword at my back. Kofman also placed his hand on the sword at his waist.

“Do you really have to make such a choice?”

“Did you really have to make this choice?”

No further discussion was needed. He was the type of person who wouldn’t feel at ease until he secured my Nightmare by any means.

At the very moment our thoughts aligned, the fight began.

“Break the wings of the fairy.”

Kofman’s voice was the signal. The instant he finished his command, soldiers rushed at me from all directions. Sharp spears and swords sliced through the air, scattering faint light.

I thought I had gained quite a bit of notoriety, but perhaps my youthful appearance was the issue?

It seemed my skill itself was overshadowed by the fame of the Nightmare.

To dodge the attacks coming from all sides, I planted my hand on the saddle and leaped into the air using just the recoil of my waist and the strength of my arms. They were clearly targeting the safe capture of the Nightmare, which meant all the attacks were focused on me.

Hee-haw-!

The Nightmare, seemingly excited by the humans’ attacks, raised its front legs and kicked the chest of the nearest soldier away.

Whether it’s to kill or to spare, how could I resolve this situation? All I wanted was to continue my peaceful life as an adventurer, yet now I had to weigh their lives on a scale.

At that moment, dozens of arrows flew from afar towards me, suspended in the air. The tips of the arrows shone sharply as they cut through the wind.

As soon as I sensed the attack, my heightened instincts began to expand further. Instantly, the wind began to gather around me, and the arrows aimed at me changed their direction completely.

My aerial body could no longer withstand gravity and gently descended. The agitated Nightmare stepped forward as if to protect me, snorting and pawing the ground.

Facing off against dozens of soldiers was not overly difficult. The only concern was Kofman’s involvement.

With his arms crossed, Kofman observed me, seemingly ready to draw his sword at a moment’s notice, his muscles tensed.

As I dodged the attacks flying towards me, I frowned. I disliked Kofman’s gaze. His confident demeanor convinced that everything was going according to his plan was irksome.

At that instant, the Nightmare lifted its upper body significantly, then slammed its sparkling front leg down forcefully on the ground.

In response, sharp crystal stones erupted with a thunderous noise, centered around a certain radius.

“Ugh…!”

The sharp crystal pierced through the bodies of the soldiers. Those who had gotten too close began to bleed from their arms and legs, as well as their chests and abdomens.

Having succeeded in both attack and defense, the Nightmare let out a rough breath as it began to chew on the bloody crystal stones that had sprouted before it.

Was this how the monsters of Monster Island felt? It was incredibly concerning when dozens of soldiers swung their swords at me.

Moreover, Kofman, who showed a sharp aura that suggested he could move at any moment, kept prodding my nerves.

At that moment, an idea struck me. A method to quietly bury today’s events without anyone dying.

I exhaled quietly and began to draw up my mana.

Kiiing-!

The sound of my heart spinning, audible only to me, grew increasingly amplified as blue lightning gathered in my left hand.

Crackle-!

The moment the blue lightning materialized, the expressions of the soldiers and Kofman turned to disbelief. Kofman hurriedly moved as if to draw his sword, but the lightning shot out from my hand even faster.

Kwooo-!

The wildly dispersed lightning struck the nearest soldier directly. The blue lightning didn’t stop there; it branched out in all directions, causing a chain reaction.

Crackle-!

The soldiers caught in the blue lightning began to fall.

The number of fallen soldiers amounted to a whopping fifteen.

“A, a wizard…?”

Kofman, who had been watching the scene in shock, muttered with a pale face. I tucked the red scales sprouting from my left hand behind my back and smiled lightly.

“Kofman. Do you understand what you are doing right now?”

In this world, wizards were usually affiliated with the Mage Tower. There were no independent wizards. The study of magic belonged solely to the Mage Tower. Thus, it wasn’t strange that they mistakenly thought I was a wizard from the tower.

Wizards in this world dealt with a variety of matters. From slaying monsters to joining wars as mercenaries, and even calling forth rain in drought-stricken lands. These mages from the tower were a group with a significant impact on the world.

“Do you think you could handle this situation?”

Kofman’s hostile actions would severely harm the relationship between the tower and this country. Of course, only if I were actually a wizard from the Mage Tower.

“Are you, really a wizard?”

“Want to see again?”

I scattered blue lightning behind me. The dazzling lightning shot out in all directions, threatening the soldiers surrounding me.

“N-no… there’s no need for that…”

“Step back this instant.”

Kofman’s expression twisted beautifully. He blinked his eyes full of despair and pulled his soldiers back.

“Wizards shouldn’t wield swords…”

“Can’t a wizard use a sword?”

“W-well, that’s…”

A strange silence fell. The once overbearing Kofman had vanished. What remained was a middle-aged man looking anxious for the sake of a girl who was smaller than him.

“How do you think it will be if this matter reaches the tower officially?”

Of course, it would never get out. I wasn’t a wizard from the tower. Though even if it did come to light, it wouldn’t result in a bad relationship between this country and the tower.

But Kofman was unaware of that fact. And he would remain in the dark about it.

“P-please, let that be…”

Kofman pleaded with me in front of his men. His firmly held beliefs crumbled before the power wielded by wizards.

“Today, you didn’t see me.”

“What do you mean by that?”

“Why do you think I was operating as a swordsman? A wizard from the tower, to be precise.”

Kofman’s face started regaining its color. He looked at me, perhaps with a glimmer of hope.

“So, what about today’s events…?”

Instead of answering, I frowned and shot out blue lightning. Kofman startled and bowed his head.

“Do you understand what I mean? Get lost right in front of me.”

Kofman couldn’t utter a word as he called his soldiers back. Numerous soldiers hidden in the forest revealed themselves and began to rush back.

Just as Kofman was about to leave with his soldiers after gathering everyone, I called out to him.

“Leave that behind.”

I pointed to the cart Kofman had brought. Before the fight, he had mentioned it contained gold coins he had brought along.

“T-this…”

Kofman’s face turned pale. He was about to lose a staggering amount of three hundred thousand gold due to his poor choices.

After much contemplation, Kofman slumped his shoulders and began to descend the mountain with his men, leaving the cart behind.

I watched them with folded arms until they completely vanished from sight.

The moment Kofman and his soldiers’ faint presence disappeared, the Nightmare standing beside me licked my cheek.

 

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