"Gyaaaaah, Chief, please forgive me! Please forgive me!"
Nielson screamed as she flew through the air.
...More accurately, she wasn't flying of her own will—the Chief was forcibly launching her through the sky.
Rei knew the Chief possessed a power akin to Psychokinesis. When she had accepted fruit from him earlier, she had kept it floating in midair without chanting any kind of spell. She had done so without the slightest sign of effort.
For the Chief, who manipulated objects as easily as moving her own limbs, swinging Nielson around—lighter than any piece of fruit—with Psychokinesis, or perhaps a force better described as an invisible hand, was no difficult task at all.
As a fairy, Nielson could fly freely through the sky on her own. But there was a world of difference between flying under her own power and being spun helplessly through the air by Psychokinesis, unable to move.
Nielson screamed desperately, trying to somehow break free, but unfortunately the Chief was letting her words go in one ear and out the other.
Feeling that Nielson was pitiful in such a state after all, Rei opened his mouth somewhat timidly.
"Chief, could you maybe let Nielson off around there? I'm the one who said I was going to take out the Orcs, and Nielson just followed along. So... you know?"
At those words, the Chief paused what could only be described as a forced roller coaster of a punishment... but shook her head at Rei's request.
"Even if it is Rei-san's request, I cannot grant that."
The Chief respected Rei's words, but even so, she stated that she could not pardon Nielson in this situation. That was how unforgivable this incident was to her—Nielson having arbitrarily picked a fight with the Orcs.
"I see. Sorry about that."
"Wha—eh!? Rei, why are you giving up so easily!"
Perhaps not expecting Rei to back down this quickly, Nielson's voice rang out in disbelief. With Rei as her only hope in the current situation, being abandoned this easily left her with no means to oppose the Chief.
That said, it was also true that Rei wanted to avoid provoking the Chief any further in this situation. There were any number of things he wanted to ask of her—the Fog Sound, Bob's defilement, a dissection Magic Item, and the dismantling of the Orcs.
...At the same time, he also hoped she would keep Nielson's punishment moderate and focus her efforts on those matters instead.
"N-Now, Chief. Isn't it possible that the Orcs might have come to the Fairy Dwelling? And I defeated them... so it might not be something worth praising, but I don't think it's something worth being scolded for either. What do you think?"
Nielson pleaded desperately, trying to avoid the Chief's punishment. If this excuse failed, she had no idea what kind of punishment awaited her. And as long as that was the case, she wanted to avoid it at all costs.
Nielson was a curious fairy, but that didn't mean she had any interest in experiencing the Chief's punishment—that was simply unreasonable.
"I see."
Perhaps because Rei was present, the Chief showed a willingness to listen to Nielson's desperate excuse to some extent. That said, it was an undeniable fact that Orcs had been near the Fairy Dwelling. The Fairy Dwelling had multiple layers of countermeasures against intruders, but they were not absolute. Considering that, defeating the Orcs before they could reach the Fairy Dwelling was certainly not a bad option.
But whether that meant she could overlook Nielson acting on her own—the answer was still no.
"I see. Then, let me think a little regarding the matter of defeating the Orcs."
"Eh? Really? Then..."
At the Chief's words, Nielson harbored the hope that perhaps her punishment would be waived, but...
"Yes. Therefore, the punishment will only be for the other matters."
"...Eh?"
For a moment, Nielson wore a blank expression, unable to comprehend what had just been said. Having thought—even if just for an instant—that her punishment had been lifted, the prospect of being punished for something else as well was entirely unexpected.
"Umm... Chief? I did my best, didn't I? So why am I being punished..."
"You don't understand? I see. Then it seems the punishment must continue until you fully grasp the matter."
"How could... why... gyaaaaaaah!"
Not even allowed to finish speaking, Nielson was once again set in motion by the Chief's Psychokinesis.
Hearing Nielson's scream, Rei tried to say something to the Chief, but...
"What is it?"
She asked with a smile.
Her words were polite, and a smile graced her face. But if he said anything to the Chief here, it would be problematic in various ways. Rei sensed something from the Chief that made him think exactly that.
"No, it's nothing. I was just thinking that you mentioned Bob's defilement could be dealt with by tomorrow, so I was wondering if there were any issues on that end."
"Reiiiiiiiiiiii! Don't abandon meeeeeee!"
Even while being flung freely through the air by the Chief's Psychokinesis, Nielson still managed to shout those words. ...The fact that she could still accurately grasp what Rei was saying even while being punished by the Chief suggested she actually still had some degree of leeway.
Judging so, Rei asked the Chief once more.
"So, how about it? For my part, it's fine for you to punish Nielson, but I'd be in trouble if that meant Bob's situation... or the Fog Sound and such got deprioritized."
"I am making progress on that front, so there are no issues. I simply have nothing in particular to do right now, which is why I am punishing Nielson like this."
Told that, Rei couldn't argue back. If she had said she was putting off Bob's defilement or the Fog Sound, he would have asked her to postpone Nielson's punishment and attend to his matters first. But since she said she was properly progressing on those as well, Rei had no grounds to object.
"I see. Then I'm relieved. I'll go check on Bob for a bit, then."
"Yes, I don't mind. ...Ah, right. I'll dismantle the Orc corpses, so please leave them here."
"Are you sure? Well, I'm not exactly sure whether I should be asking you to do this even."
Having just moments ago been asking her to focus on the work he had requested rather than dealing with Nielson, the Chief's offer was somewhat unexpected to Rei as well. That said, it was undeniably helpful.
Rei was skilled at dismantling Orcs, having done a fair number of them by now. But being skilled didn't mean he could dismantle them faster than the Chief's Dismantling Magic... or even at the same speed, for that matter. That was just how quickly her Dismantling Magic could dismantle things.
(Will I be able to go back to my old lifestyle once I leave the Fairy Dwelling?)
It made Rei wonder that much. It is difficult for people to forget the taste of luxury once they have experienced it. It would also be accurate to say that it is hard to lower a standard of living once it has been raised.
Given the situation, being under the care of the Chief—who dismantled things cleanly without him having to lift a finger—it was only natural to worry about whether he would be able to function as a normal adventurer again.
...Of course, in Rei's case, he normally asked a Dismantler or the Guild to handle his dismantling, so he was already living easier than the average adventurer even with that. A normal adventurer would dismantle the monsters they defeated themselves. After all, asking the Guild or a Dismantler meant paying a fee for the service. Compared to that, doing it yourself was free. Of course, if you made a mistake during dismantling, the Guild or merchants might refuse to buy the materials, or even if they did, they might lowball the price.
"What is it? Rei-san, the Orc corpses."
Prompted by the Chief, Rei nodded and retrieved the Orc corpses from his Misty Ring. With torsos severed and heads crushed, they were not particularly clean specimens. However, the Chief showed no sign of displeasure upon seeing them.
"Then, I will dismantle these Orcs."
"Yeah, I appreciate it. ...Right. You can go ahead and take the Magic Stones."
"Eh? Are you sure?"
From the Chief's perspective, since Rei was known to collect Magic Stones, she had assumed he would take them. If these had been unknown monsters, Rei would have done exactly that, but... he had defeated Orcs countless times before, and naturally, Death Scythe and Seto had already been making use of their Magic Stones.
Even among Orcs, Rei would have wanted Magic Stones from Rare Species or High-ranking Species, but he had no need for ordinary Orc Magic Stones. If he took them, he would probably just sell them to the Guild. Or perhaps use them as fuel to power some Magic Item. But with Rei's own magical power, there was no need to use Magic Stones to operate Magic Items.
...Of course, there were also Magic Items designed from the start to use Magic Stones instead of magical power. Even if it came to that, Rei had some Magic Stones stored in his Misty Ring—collecting them was a hobby of sorts—and if it came down to it, it wouldn't be difficult for Rei and Seto to defeat monsters in the area to obtain more.
"I was after the meat in the first place when I hunted the Orcs, after all."
Since he was after the meat, he didn't particularly need the Magic Stones. He might end up selling them to the Guild as a matter of course, but if the Chief would use them to create Magic Items, she was welcome to them.
"Thank you very much. Then..."
Saying that, she secured Nielson so she couldn't escape—upon learning that the punishment was not yet over, Nielson was in tears—and then used Dismantling Magic. With that, the numerous Orc corpses were quickly dismantled.
(This is... I know it's a bit late to ask, but the meat, bones, and skin are one thing. How does she determine which parts can't be used as materials?)
Rei could understand dismantling the meat and Magic Stones. But the other parts... even the internal organs were properly dismantled, and the portions that could be used as materials were carefully preserved.
Or perhaps the Chief simply had the knowledge for that sort of thing, but what about cases where parts that couldn't currently be used as materials might become usable in the future for some reason? Rei harbored such doubts, but he accepted it as being because it was magic... and not just human magic, but fairy magic.
"I'm finished. Here is the meat."
"Thanks."
Meat cleanly separated from the bone—thanks to the magic's effect, not a single scrap of flesh remained on the bones—and Rei stored it all into his Misty Ring.
Watching Rei do so, the Chief smiled and shook her head.
"No, not at all. You're letting us have not only the Smog Panther Magic Stones and various other materials, but these Orc Magic Stones as well. This much is no trouble at all. ...Now then, I still have business with Nielson, so please excuse me."
"Ah... Rei, hey, Rei! Are you really going to abandon your comrade in arms!? Help me!"
Nielson shouted, her body immobilized by the Chief's power, but Rei quietly looked away. Since he owed the Chief for various things, he judged that it was better not to interfere unnecessarily here. At the same time, given the convenience of the Dismantling Magic, he also wanted to continue relying on her for various things in the future.
(Dismantling Magic... by the way, what would happen if she used that on a living person? If it had the same effect, I think it would be less a Dismantling Magic and more something you'd call an instant death magic.)
Instantly dismantling a living opponent. The power of that magic would be extremely potent... no, it should be described as atrocious.
"Hey, before you punish Nielson, could I ask something?"
"Yes? What is it?"
"The Dismantling Magic you use... what would happen if you used it on a living person?"
"...It would be like this."
"Gyaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaah!"
The Chief casually used Dismantling Magic on Nielson. Understanding what had just happened, a loud scream erupted from Nielson's mouth.
However... in reality, Nielson suffered no particular harm.
Smiling sweetly, the Chief spoke.
"As you can see, Dismantling Magic does not work on living subjects. After all, it is strictly a tool for dismantling."
So said the Chief, but even so, the fact that she had used Dismantling Magic on Nielson without the slightest hesitation was surprising even to Rei.