Vihera dodged the attack flying straight toward her through the air — not by a hair's breadth, but by putting significant distance between herself and it.
Normally, she would never make such an exaggerated movement when evading an enemy's attack. The reason she had dodged so widely this time was undoubtedly because the incoming attack was Mirage, the whip-sword wielded by Elena.
The strike, unleashed with the blade in whip form, curved sharply through the air with just a slight flick of Elena's wrist. If Vihera had dodged by a hair's breadth, it would have been meaningless — the whip-sword moved even more than that, rendering such tight evasion pointless.
That was precisely why Vihera had taken such a large distance, ensuring that Elena's manipulation of the whip-sword would pose no problem whatsoever.
Elena, of course, understood Vihera's intent perfectly... and yet, despite that — no, because of that — she moved her wrist even more violently.
The blade moved through the air far more than Vihera had anticipated. But perhaps because of the distance between them, Vihera read the attack as if it were only natural and immediately tried to close the gap with Elena in one burst.
The Mirage that Elena wielded, being in whip form, naturally shared the same weaknesses as an ordinary whip. In other words, just like a long-shafted weapon such as a spear, it was difficult to deal with once someone got inside its range.
...However, Elena, as the one who used Mirage, understood this better than anyone, and she also knew how to counter it.
"Do you think I'll let you!?"
With just the movement of her wrist, she tried to pull Mirage back to her side. That motion, as if to demonstrate that Mirage was a Magic Item, was anything but conventional.
The swift movement would have been more than enough to strike at Vihera's back had it continued on its course. But for Vihera, who had engaged in mock battles with Elena countless times before, it was easy to imagine what Elena would do when she made such a move.
...At the same time, Elena's actions were also well within Vihera's expectations.
Most of those who fought Elena wielding Mirage fell helplessly before the exceedingly rare weapon that was the whip-sword. Still, there were some who could respond to its attacks, and the tactic most such people employed was exactly what Vihera was doing — closing the distance in one burst.
For that very reason, Elena's response in such a situation was not particularly difficult.
"Hah!"
What Vihera did to counter the attack from behind was let out a sharp exhale and leap swiftly to evade the strike just before Mirage's blade could reach her.
Even if Mirage was a Magic Item that moved according to Elena's will, the fact that its blade physically existed was an undeniable truth. In other words, the sound of that blade slicing through the air reached Vihera's ears clearly.
Sensing that sound, along with the presence and killing intent coming from behind, she evaded the attack at the absolute last moment.
"Whoa—!"
Mirage's blade, which should have struck its target, naturally flew toward Elena standing beyond now that the target was gone. Elena manipulated Mirage, bringing the incoming blade to a halt — dead still, right in front of her eyes. But as if exploiting that opening, Vihera closed the distance and thrust out her fist.
Elena naturally reacted to that movement as well, attempting to block the fist with her free hand — the one not holding Mirage — but...
"And that's the end."
"Eh?"
A befuddled voice slipped from Elena's mouth. It was only natural. She had undoubtedly just deflected Vihera's right fist with her left hand. And yet, for some reason, her left hand had not made contact with Vihera's right fist at all, and before she knew it, Vihera's fist had stopped mere inches from Elena's face.
"...What did you do?"
When Elena asked with a suspicious look, Vihera withdrew the fist that had been held beside her face and spoke with a triumphant smile.
"Now, what could I have done?"
That attitude made it obvious to anyone watching that Vihera had no intention of explaining what she had done — how she had slipped past what should have been a solid defense.
"Mmph."
Though dissatisfied, Elena did not press Vihera any further. After all, even among comrades, one did not normally reveal their trump card so easily to an opponent. If Elena wanted to know what Vihera's secret technique was, she would have to figure it out herself — that much was certain.
...That said, at this point, Elena could not even begin to imagine what Vihera had actually done.
"Both of you, breakfast is almost ready."
What reached the ears of the pondering Elena and the smug Vihera was Marina's voice. When they turned their gaze toward the center of the courtyard, breakfast had indeed been laid out there.
Rei, who had been fighting some imaginary enemy as image training a short distance away, was heading over as well after returning Death Scythe and the Twilight Spear to his Misty Ring.
"Let us have breakfast, then."
Though still slightly puzzled by the incident with Vihera, Elena wanted to eat breakfast as early as possible, given what today held in store. After all, she was going to search for fairies together with Rei.
Whether they would actually be able to find fairies was, honestly, uncertain. But even setting that aside, being able to go out with Rei was, for Elena, something that brought her joy beyond measure.
...After all, until yesterday, it had been Vihera who went to the other world with Rei. Considering her own role, she understood it couldn't be helped. But still, as a girl in love, it was only natural that she would want to go out with the man she fancied.
...Not that she could ever say such a thing aloud.
And so, it was breakfast time for everyone.
Set and Ielo, just like yesterday, ate the dishes placed on plates set on the ground. There were leftovers from yesterday, but alongside those were freshly baked bread, newly made soup, fresh fruit, and salad. It was not exactly lavish, but anyone watching would undoubtedly have their stomach rumble from hunger.
Rei, Vihera, and Elena — having moved their bodies before breakfast — enjoyed the meal heartily. And once breakfast was finished, each of them moved into action.
Marina headed straight for the clinic, while Vihera and Byune went to the Guild to take on patrol duties.
Rei, Elena, Ara, Set, and Ielo — three people and two creatures — headed straight out of Gilm.
It was morning, with everyone about to head to work, but perhaps because Rei's group was clearly something special, the people walking through the streets naturally parted to make way.
Set... anyone who saw him would clear the path — in fact, anyone at all would naturally do so — and in Elena's case, her beauty and the renown of her alias, the Princess General, had spread far enough that no one would recklessly meddle with her. And if anyone did, Ara would immediately demonstrate her physical strength.
Rei was known by everyone in Gilm without exception, and even in the ongoing Expansion Construction, though he had been less visible lately, he had made considerable contributions until recently. In fact, if asked who was working the hardest in the Expansion Construction, it would not be strange for many to name Rei.
There were also some Set Enthusiasts among the crowd, but perhaps prioritizing getting to work, they only called out lightly to Set before moving on.
"Set-chan, Set-chan, Set-chaaaan!"
Amidst all that, a familiar voice suddenly reached Rei's ears, and a familiar figure appeared.
"Hey! Playing with Set-chan is my prerogative! What is wrong with you!"
...Two of them, in fact.
Mirene, who led the C-Rank party Scorching Wind, and Yohanna, who had served in the Mobile Unit alongside Rei during the civil war in the Bestia Empire. The two of them came running toward Set, competing with each other — but...
"Gyah!"
"Ow! Hey—!"
Surnin, the mage of Scorching Wind and Mirene's watchdog, struck Mirene on the head with his staff, bowed to Rei, and dragged Mirene away with a strength unbelievable for a mage.
Beside him, one of the men who had also served in the Mobile Unit with Rei punched Yohanna on the head with his bare hand, bowed deeply to Rei, and forcibly dragged her away.
"Popular as ever."
"Ielo will probably become popular too, eventually."
Rei replied thus to Elena's remark.
In truth, Ielo was also quite adorable, being a still-young Black Dragon in appearance. The reason it had not become as popular as Set was simply because it rarely had the chance to go out into town. Or perhaps it was because word had spread that it was the familiar of Elena, who bore the alias of Princess General.
To the residents of Gilm, the title Princess General carried great significance. Given that her origins — being the daughter of Duke Kerebel's House — were also known, recklessly meddling and incurring her disfavor would result in what could only be called the worst possible outcome. That was why no one could act carelessly toward Ielo, Elena's familiar.
That recklessly meddling would lead to a painful experience was something Rei was also known to bring about, but even so, the reason Set had become this popular was largely because Rei had had Set with him ever since he first came to Gilm. Rei, who was not yet an adventurer or anything of the sort... or rather, because Rei had been based in Gilm since right after becoming an adventurer, the many opportunities to interact with Set before Rei became well-known could well be the reason for Set's current popularity.
"...Anyway, shall we go?"
"Indeed."
Ignoring the spectacle that had just unfolded before them, Rei muttered. Elena, apparently agreeing with his words, nodded immediately.
(Ah, come to think of it... right. It wouldn't be strange if Mirene and Yohanna knew I came to Gilm yesterday. But where I stayed yesterday wasn't the Wheat Inn at Dusk — it was Marina's house...)
For both Mirene and Yohanna, the first place that would come to mind when thinking of where Rei was staying would be the Wheat Inn at Dusk. But the room Rei rented there only had Anastasia and Fana staying in it — Rei was not there. Naturally, even if they went to the stables at the Wheat Inn at Dusk, Set would not be there either.
And the Noble District was currently under strengthened security. Even so, Mirene of Scorching Wind was regarded as one of the most promising among Gilm's young adventurers. As for Yohanna, given that her family ran a merchant guild of respectable size within the Bestia Empire, it would not be strange for her to have acquaintances among Gilm's nobles.
In that sense, it would not be unusual for either of them to enter the Noble District, but...
(Ah, maybe they couldn't get onto Marina's property because of the Spirit Magic?)
What Mirene and Yohanna felt for Set was surely pure affection. But if that affection exceeded a certain degree, it could be deemed malicious by the spirits, and it would not be strange for Marina's Spirit Magic to prevent them from entering the property.
Understanding that this possibility was actually quite high, Rei continued down the road without mentioning it. Just as he was about to head toward the Wheat Inn at Dusk, Anastasia and Fana appeared from the opposite direction, each riding a deer.
In the other world, no one had particularly paid it any mind, but here in the streets, riding deer naturally drew the gazes of those around them.
Anastasia had a rather slender figure, but with her elfin features, her face was exceedingly refined — beautiful enough to be called so without hesitation. Fana, for her part, was wearing a mask. With two such individuals riding deer rather than ordinary horses, it would have been unreasonable to expect them not to stand out.
"Oh, Rei. ...Lady Elena too? What is going on?"
Anastasia smiled happily upon seeing Rei — not specifically at meeting Rei, but at the implication that they could go to the Treant Forest — but when she realized that Elena and Ara were with him, she cast a puzzled look their way.
Elena, meeting that gaze, spoke with a smile.
"Today, we will be joining them."
Elena's words were apparently unexpected for Anastasia as well, who opened her mouth wide in surprise.