It was well past evening.
After a long briefing on the Melo-Melon business, I’d spent the last while up on the mountain being lectured on the finer points of Flight Magic.
Give her a magic staff to straddle, and Carta becomes the most powerful person in all of Noblesse.
"Nyao, nyaoo."
"Nyagoon!"
"Nyao?"
As for Carta’s specific training method...
"What the hell is this? Some kind of feline theme park?" I muttered.
"The kitties love the sky, you see!" she chirped. "That’s why we take turns flying them up high like this."
Even a fantasy novelist would have been taken aback. It was just a constant loop of her taking off while cradling a cat in her arms.
Well, I suppose having a goal is better than nothing, but this is way too much like a fairy tale.
That said, cats are delicate creatures. They’re basically liquid; they can slip right out of your arms in a second, and if you lose your posture for even a moment, they're going to plummet headfirst.
In other words, this required extreme Balance.
Wait, I see what she’s doing. Carta, you’ve actually put some logic into this madness.
Carta floated down softly, landing with the grace of a feather. I stepped forward, insisting firmly that it was my turn.
"Alright, let's go, Nyantaro. Get on my back."
"Nya... nya..."
"Weiss-kun, are you going to be okay...?"
"Don't insult me. Of course I am. Hey, Nyantaro, get on."
For some reason, the jet-black cat was looking at me with absolute terror in its eyes.
"Good grief. You really remind me of someone, you know that?"
[DEBIBEE!?]
I ignored the auditory hallucination and scooped the cat up. The creature hopped onto my back with a wary thump, and I borrowed Carta’s staff.
"Are you sure you don't want me to go with you?" she asked.
"Yeah. In the worst-case scenario, I’ll at least make sure this guy survives."
"Nyaaa!?"
Seriously, do these animals understand human speech?
I shook the thought away and focused on the mental image of flight. Naturally, my feet began to lift off the Earth. It seemed I was finally getting the hang of this—even if I wasn't exactly reaching record-breaking altitudes.
"Nyanyanyaaa!"
"Heh. You actually enjoying yourself now?"
Since we were on the mountainside, the view was breathtaking. I get it now. If this is the reward for all that effort, I can see why she works so hard.
Right then, I spotted something in the distance. My heart skipped a beat, and my posture broke—
"Nyanya—!"
"H-Hey! Stop struggling!"
The cat went into a full-blown frenzy, thrashing wildly. I managed to scramble back down to the ground somehow, but not before the cat left a fresh set of claw marks across my face.
"Weiss-kun! A-Are you alright?"
"...Don't worry about it. I have a solid reputation for my natural healing," I wheezed. "More importantly, it looks like she’s arrived."
"Ah! Then it’s time for dinner for everyone! Come on, let’s go!"
With that, Carta patted the back of her staff. I climbed on behind her without a word, and we took off with a violent whoosh, accelerating at an incredible speed.
"You really don't care about my pride at all, do you?" I sighed into the wind.
"—Eh? Did you say something?"
"Nothing."
Well, whatever. It’s probably a good thing to have a wall I want to overcome so close at hand.
Now then, I suppose I should go greet my Fiancé.