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Demon-Slaying Arrows 3

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*****

Having finished crafting the Arrow of Banishing, we visited the Order of Knights' encampment to finally destroy the Ancient Alchemy magic circle.

It looked like things were getting worse much faster than we'd anticipated, with the mist creeping all the way into the encampment itself. Even though the miasma was still relatively thin here, it was far from a good situation.

The knights couldn't hide their exhaustion either, and our supply of Purification Potions was running dangerously low. If monsters started breeding abnormally under these conditions, it would turn into a total disaster.

Even if the knights managed to avoid getting wiped out, as long as that magic circle keeping the miasma and monsters coming existed, the casualties would just keep piling up. If the mist kept spreading like this, the whole area would turn into a monster den, putting us at a massive disadvantage.

Now I could totally understand why the King had gone so far as to bow his head to Obaba-sama to find a solution.

Ancient Alchemy really was a terrifying force capable of causing massive destruction.

We had to destroy that magic circle right away—

While I was feeling the looming threat of the magic circle down to my bones, my father, who was commanding the knights, stepped forward on their behalf and began to meticulously inspect the Arrow of Banishing and the longbow.

As someone who barely ever talked to her dad, this whole experience felt unusual and a little embarrassing. Still, since I rarely ever got praised, I figured I might as well get as many compliments as possible this time around.

Lavishly! In a loud voice! Right in front of this huge crowd of on-guard knights!

I wanted him to shower unconditional praise on the masterpiece of a Magic Item his own daughter had made!

「This arrow, brimming with such abundant mana, is without a doubt a true piece of Magic Equipment. It should easily wipe out the miasma that His Majesty is so worried about.」

Honestly, I wanted him to gush over it way more, but it was a pretty modest compliment, which was just like my straight-laced father. Not bad at all.

(Heheh. I bet he has absolutely no clue that his own daughter was the core crafter behind a masterpiece like this. I can't wait for the big reveal!)

「Assuming we can actually use it, that is.」

When my father suddenly dropped that ominous line, I couldn't help but step right up to him.

「Eh? The knights do basic archery training, don't they?」

「Of course, we have many skilled archers. However, we don't have anyone in our ranks with enough magic aptitude to handle Magic Equipment.」

「M-Magic aptitude...?」

It was all Greek to me, so I tilted my head in confusion, but Master Clein nodded as if he had expected this all along.

「I figured it would come to this...」

This was no longer a situation where I could casually shock my dad with a big reveal. Panic-stricken by this unexpected twist, I reflexively turned to grill Master Clein.

「W-What do you mean by that?」

「Normally, weapons forged by blacksmiths have high physical attack power, requiring physical strength and joint flexibility to wield properly. But weapons crafted by alchemists have high magical effects, meaning they can't be handled by anyone who isn't well-versed in manipulating mana.」

「No way... But the knights were using Leon-kun's Bracelet of Power!」

「You could say that's the difference between weapons and armor. Anyone can equip the Bracelet of Power or the Necklace of Warding, but the Arrow of Banishing is a completely different story. It's so intense that you can't even handle it without a bow specifically made to withstand its fierce mana.」

(With the Bracelet of Power, you channel your own mana to gain exactly as much strength as you need. And with the Necklace of Warding, which generates energy to protect you, there's zero burden on the user.)

(But the Arrow of Banishing, which unleashes the power enchanted by Sacred Alchemy at maximum output, is totally different. Does that mean if the wielder can't withstand the recoil of that overwhelming mana, they won't even be able to shoot it in the first place?)

「So basically, it's a super rowdy weapon?」

「Simply put, yes. You have to control it with mana just to make the weapon behave.」

(Talk about a double-edged sword. I knew it was a powerful weapon, but I never imagined it harbored a force intense enough to overwhelm its own user.)

(Still, while an apprentice alchemist like me might have been completely in the dark, I'm pretty sure Master Clein and Leon-kun knew about this all along.)

While I was lost in thought, Master Clein held out his hand to my father.

「I'll be the one to shoot the arrow this time. That's exactly why I came along.」

「……I'll leave it to you, then.」

There was no doubt that Master Clein, being a Court Alchemist, was highly skilled at managing mana. After all, he was the only one who kept a perfectly cool face while brewing those Purification Potions.

But Master Clein was always the one being protected; he seemed completely disconnected from actual combat.

「Master Clein, have you ever actually used a bow before?」

「I received training in both the sword and the bow back at my marquessate house. It's been a while, but if I utilize my mana to its full potential, I should be able to apply some corrections and at least line up a proper aim. Since we don't have any other qualified candidates, it can't be helped.」

Accepting the Arrow of Banishing and the longbow from my father, Master Clein took a slow, deep breath and raised the bow into position.

The next instant, an energy even more powerful than when deploying Sacred Alchemy enveloped the arrow, wrapping the entire area in a tense, heavy air.

「This certainly isn't something one should draw lightly.」

Master Clein muttered under his breath, channeling his mana to counteract the overwhelming power of the Arrow of Banishing as his grip tightened around the bow.

As the actual person who made it, I probably shouldn't be saying this, but it didn't look like something a human could control at all.

Watching the mana crackle and violently spark like discharging lightning, the sheer scale of its power felt completely overwhelming.

The Arrow of Banishing, capable of nullifying every imaginable magical effect. The force it was unleashing felt like the literal manifestation of divine judgment.

「I'm releasing it. There's no telling what might happen. Just to be safe, brace yourselves for the impact.」

While Leon-kun and I crouched down with our hands over our heads and the knights braced themselves, the mana around the Arrow of Banishing ballooned at Master Clein's fingertips.

The moment it was unleashed, a high-pitched sound rang out, like space itself cracking open.

*Shatter!*

It was blindingly obvious that the Arrow of Banishing had utterly destroyed the magical effect. The mist blanketed over the encampment shattered in a single split second, and the lingering mana drifted upward like smoke.

And as our surroundings cleared up, we saw that an immense number of monsters had bred so abnormally that they were easily visible to the naked eye.

「Order of Knights, fan out and secure the perimeter! We handle this before the miasma damage spreads any further!」

「Sir!」

While the knights sprinted off at my father's command, I timidly picked myself up.

「So the entire mist really was under a magical influence...」

It wasn't like I had doubted it, but after seeing the Arrow of Banishing completely nullify the magic effect right before my eyes, I had no choice but to accept it.

*****

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