Credits
Chapter 2: Revenge!
Originally published in the February
1990 issue of Monthly Dragon Magazine.
It happened so suddenly.
“Lina Inverse, prepare yourself!”
“Huh—?” I barely had time to react.
The tip of a spear grazed my nose as I jerked backward, “Hey, what’s the big
idea!?”
I nearly toppled over but managed to
steady myself, standing up from my chair and turning to face my attacker.
We were in a small restaurant in the
trading town of Tales City. Someone approached me about a job while I was
enjoying my lunch when—bam!—this happened.
Finally getting a good look at my
assailant, I noticed that she was a girl.
“—What on earth are you doing!?”
“Shut up!” she snapped, her sharp
blue eyes burning with anger.
Yeah, I doubt I’ll be able to talk
my way out of this one.
“You’re an enemy of my brother!
Prepare yourself!”
“Wait, what—!?”
Another thrust! I barely dodged her
spear and bolted out of the restaurant.
Ack! I hadn’t even finished half my
meal! But now that I think about it, at least I didn’t have to pay… so that’s
kind of lucky?
...Although, considering the
situation, maybe not.
Charging down the main street in
broad daylight, we immediately became the center of attention. Brawls aren’t
uncommon around here, but a young girl with a spear chasing a beautiful,
innocent sorceress (that’s me, by the way) wasn’t exactly an everyday sight.
Of course, if I wanted to, I could
end this in an instant.
Out of all the fools who have attacked
me to make a name for themselves, maybe a handful lasted longer than it takes
to toast a piece of bread.
After all, my personal sorceress
philosophy is: Destroy everyone with attack spells!
...Hey, don’t look at me like that.
I can be reasonable!
I mean, evil people don’t exactly
have rights, do they?
People who steal from others, or
love violence for the sake of violence, are usually called “thieves” or “berserkers,”
and lumped in with goblins or kobolds. And if this girl were one of those, I
wouldn’t hesitate.
But we were in the middle of a
crowded town, and she called me her “brother’s enemy.” I couldn’t exactly
unload my best attack spells on her.
That’s called self-control.
A typical mage might have panicked
and started flinging Fireballs everywhere.
...Okay, maybe not a typical mage.
Anyway, since I wasn’t fighting
back, she got cocky and kept attacking.
“Stay still!”
“Calm down!”
Her spear sliced through the air,
startling an old man and sending a cow into a rampage. The whole chase was
probably hilarious to bystanders.
Unfortunately, I wasn’t laughing.
But finally, an opportunity
presented itself. As we passed an antique shop, I finished chanting a spell.
Then, just around the next corner, I stopped and drew my short sword.
She charged right after me, only to
freeze in place as I threw my sword at her feet.
The blade hit its mark, pinning her
shadow to the ground.
“Ugh…!” Her entire body went rigid,
sweat beading on her forehead.
“It’s useless,” I said coolly. “Shadow
Snap. A spell that locks its target in place from the astral side. No amount of
brute force will break it.”
Unlike my usual flashy spells, this
one requires a bit of skill. As the name suggests, it needs a shadow to work.
If a cloud passed over, the spell would break. A pretty big weakness, huh?
“Now,” I continued, crossing my
arms. “How about you calmly explain yourself?”
“So this is how it is…”
She looked around seventeen or
eighteen, older than me, maybe around my sister’s age. She had short blonde hair
and was strikingly pretty for a warrior.
Her outfit? A white breastplate with
gold trim, and a long spear.
“Don’t think I’ve forgotten what you
did six months ago!” she spat.
She couldn’t move, but she could at
least talk. That’s the point of Shadow Snap, an interrogation spell.
“Six months ago…?” I searched in my
memory.
Beating up bandits, taking out
frustration on Blue Dragons, using Dragon Slave whenever I felt homesick…
Ah, peaceful days.
I didn’t recall wronging anyone, at
least, not anyone who didn’t deserve it, but…
“Hey, was your brother a thief or
something?” I asked.
“Of course not! He was a good
farmer!”
“Huh? Then this has to be some kind
of mistake.”
“There’s no mistake! I remember
clearly—”
CRASH!
“Out of the way, out of the
waaaaay!!”
A deep voice suddenly shouted as a
carriage full of soldiers barreled toward us.
Right. We were still standing in the
middle of the street.
Not wanting trouble, I quickly
stepped aside.
“GYAAAAAAA!!”
...Oh yeah.
I forgot to undo the Shadow Snap.
CRASH!!
Whoops. They hit her.
It was nighttime when she finally
woke up.
I carried her to an inn, rented a
room, and treated her wounds. Of course, just in case she tried attacking me
again, I had her immobilized with Shadow Snap once more, using a lamp to keep
her shadow pinned.
“Finally woke up, huh?” I greeted
her in a gentle voice. If I went “Mwahahaha! I see you’ve awakened!” I’d sound
like a villain.
She looked like she was about to cry
but, realizing her situation, settled for glaring at me instead.
“Listen,” I said, keeping my tone
even. “What happened earlier was clearly a misunderstanding. I’m sure we can
talk this out, so trust me and tell me your side of the story.”
I locked eyes with her. If you want
to persuade someone, eye contact is more important than words. A sincere
expression and a straight gaze, that’s the key to winning people over.
She didn’t look convinced.
“Come on,” she said, eyes burning
with suspicion. “You tied me up, hung me from the ceiling, and immobilized
me, and now you expect me to trust you?”
..Ah.
“Don’t mind that.”
“I do mind.”
For some reason, she looked grim.
Eventually, she relented and told me
her story.
About six months ago, a sorcerer claiming
to be Lina Inverse killed her brother. But I’ve never been anywhere near her
village. Hell, I hadn’t even heard of the place before.
When you get as famous as me, people
will start using your name for their own ends. And in this case, it seemed
someone did.
But, of course, she wasn’t in the
mood to listen to my explanation.
“I’m not believing a single word out
of your mouth! I was there! You stood beside my brother’s body and said, ‘My
name is Lina Inverse! If you want revenge, then pursue me! Of course, if you
don’t value your life!’”
“I’d never say that…! Hold on, then
that means you saw the person who killed your brother?”
“Of course I did!” She looked at me
dead in the eye. “I could never forget that long, black hair—”
For the record, while I do have long
hair, it’s chestnut brown, not black.
“A pitch-black cloak—”
Most sorcerers wear one.
“And a ram’s skull as a crown—”
I’m pretty sure this bandana is
synthetic.
“The appearance of that ghastly man—”
“Stop.” I glared at her, raising an
eyebrow.
“Now that I got a better look at
you—” she squinted back, “You don’t look alike.”
“Of course not! What were you
thinking!?”
“…”
I buried my face in my hands. “Ahhhh!
First that weird pacifist, and now you, why do lunatics keep gathering around
me!?”
“Birds of a feather flock together…”
“Oh, really! … Anyway, now you must
realize I’m not your enemy!”
“…I’m sorry,” she admitted,
surprisingly straightforward.
“Now that you mention it…” Freed
from the spell and ropes, she sat on the creaky bed, rubbing her wrists. “I
think I saw a sorcerer wearing a ram’s skull yesterday.”
“Here!?”
“Yeah. I thought it was kinda
suspicious, so I asked his name, but he said it was Laun… something. Figured I
had the wrong guy. But now that I think about it…”
I nearly screamed!
A ram’s skull!? Who even does that?
The only people who’d go that far
are evil high priests. But at that point, you’re practically screaming “Hey,
I’m up to no good!”
“Whatever,” I groaned, clutching my
head. “We’ll look for him tomorrow. For now, let’s just get some sleep.”
“Right.”
I’d been so careless. I hadn’t even
noticed…
I was fully caught up in this mess
now.
…Don’t laugh.
The next day.
We found him almost immediately.
Seriously, all we had to do was ask, “Hey, seen a guy wearing a ram’s skull?”
and the second person we asked pointed us in his direction.
“Finally! Looks like you’re going to
get your revenge,” I said, then frowned. “Oh, by the way, what was your name
again?”
I’d been so busy I’d completely
forgotten to ask.
“Canny.” She casually extended her
right hand.
Hmm. Maybe she’s not a warrior after
all? A proper fighter wouldn’t offer their dominant hand like that. Or maybe
she just trusts me now?
I hesitated before shaking her hand.
I consider myself a warrior and a sorceress, emphasis on the latter, but I’ve
never been comfortable with handshakes.
“There he is!” Canny suddenly
shouted.
I looked up just in time to see a
man disappearing around the next corner.
“Let’s go!” She bolted before I
could stop her.
“Hey, weirdo!”
At the sound of Canny’s voice, the
man actually turned around, so at least he had some self-awareness. He looked to
be in his thirties, slim, with a black beard. Handsome, even.
“Are you talking to me?”
“Is there a bigger weirdo in this
town?” I asked as I caught up.
He looked genuinely offended.
“You! You’re Lina Inverse!”
No, he isn’t!
I nearly tripped over myself. How is
she still confused!?
“No… My name is Dilus…”
“Oh, I must’ve gotten the wrong
person again.”
“Are you kidding me!?” I snapped.
Then, turning to the guy— “Hey, you. You killed this girl’s brother, didn’t
you?”
“In the northern village of Vorn!”
“Ohhhh…” Beneath the ram’s skull,
his eyes narrowed. “Yeah, I remember you. Didn’t recognize you in that warrior
outfit.”
“So it was you! I knew it!”
Did you?
“So, you actually tracked me down.”
He folded his arms. “If you’d just accepted your fate and stayed a country
bumpkin… But instead, you chose to chase after Saat-Plazer—”
“Wait. Didn’t you just say your name
was Dilus?”
“Fuahahahaha!” The man puffed out
his chest. “I am the man of a thousand names, Baluf Luquas!”
…Does he even remember his real
name?
People really shouldn’t brag about
trivial things like that. It’s hard to take them seriously.
Still, I could hear the townsfolk
whispering.
“Hey, it’s those girls from
yesterday”, “It’s so sad…”
“Whatever your name is, prepare
yourself!” Canny rushed forward—
And the guy… moved!
His foot flew straight into her
face, knocking her flat without a second thought.
The crowd burst into laughter. I,
meanwhile, pretended I had nothing to do with this.
Canny got up, scowling. “He’s
strong!”
“No, no, you’re just weak.”
“Hey, don’t say that!”
While we bickered, the man turned to
a passing cart, grabbing the driver by the collar. “Hey, listen. If you do what
I say, I’ll pay you later. If you don’t—” His eyes gleamed beneath the skull. “You’re
dead.”
The driver, sufficiently terrified,
whipped his horse.
“Hahaha! Try and catch me now!” The
weirdo cackled, dramatically balancing on top of the cart.
Of course, he looked absolutely
ridiculous.
“I won’t let you get away!” Canny
sprinted after him.
I sighed, then started chanting
under my breath before taking off.
Canny must’ve realized by now that
this guy wasn’t just some two-bit villain.
The cart wasn’t going that fast. Was
he trying to tire us out?
Because that’s not going to happen.
I grabbed Canny’s hand. “Let’s go!”
“Huh?”
“Ray Wing!”
We soared into the air.
“What the hell!?” the man shouted,
his voice quickly drowned out by the murmurs of onlookers. You don’t see a
warrior and a sorceress flying overhead every day.
Ray Wing is practically a lost art.
A spell difficult to learn and even harder to master. Most sorcerers stick to
Levitation, way easier, but much slower. According to legend, Ray Wing let a
sorcerer fight a griffon at high speed.
As for why do I know it?
…Because I wanted to show off back
home.
Long story short, I lost control,
crashed into a restaurant, and had to spend two days washing dishes to pay them
back.
Ever since, I’ve used it sparingly.
“Tch!” The man clicked his tongue
and signaled the cart driver to speed up.
“You’re not getting away!” I pushed
us forward, but that meant losing altitude. Ray Wing creates a wind barrier
around its user, but speed, weight, and height all depend on skill. I couldn’t
just drop my baggage (i.e., Canny), and she wasn’t exactly helping with
balance.
We were barely a meter above the
ground now.
…Come to think of it, I’ve been
hearing some loud thuds near my right hand, where Canny is dangling.
Was she crashing into things?
…Eh, she’ll be fine.
“Curse you!” the man shouted,
rummaging through his pockets. Ray Wing’s wind barrier made it difficult to
hear what he was chanting, but judging by the rhythm, it wasn’t an attack
spell.
At least he wasn’t foolish enough to
fire off an offensive spell in the middle of town.
Then, he threw something to the
ground.
And the ground itself rose!
The thing he tossed had a familiar
shape, roughly humanoid.
A Clay Doll!?
Interesting. He’s trying to slow us
down, knowing I can’t cast another spell while maintaining Ray Wing. If we
don’t stop, we’ll crash.
Or so he thinks!
CLASH!
The clay doll shattered into pieces.
“What!?” the man yelled in shock.
It’s true that I can’t use high-tier
spells while keeping Ray Wing active, it’d be too taxing. But a simple spell
like Bephis Bring? No problem. It’s a basic earth magic spell that calls on the
spirit of the ground. In short, it makes a hole.
And when used on clay dolls, it
blows them up.
Of course, if this guy were more
skilled, the dolls would’ve been sturdier, and we would have crashed.
Magic isn’t just about
firepower, it’s about how you use it. Even simple spells can have devastating
effects on the right hands. Plenty of sorcerers obsessed with high-level
destruction magic have lost to those who can’t even cast a proper attack spell.
“Tch!” The man clicked his tongue
and jumped off the cart. I guess he figured that if he couldn’t shake us off,
he had no choice but to fight head-on.
Nearby vendors finally realized what
was happening and ran for it. Not that I blame them.
“Canny, you’re up!”
“Yeah!” She instantly understood,
nodding firmly before charging straight at him.
With Ray Wing still in effect, I let
go of her hand. Cloak fluttering behind me, I gently descended.
Spear in hand, Canny shot forward
like an arrow.
“I’ll avenge my brother!”
And then…
The man dodged.
Easily.
Canny had run at him in a straight
line. Not exactly difficult to avoid.
CRASH!
She slammed headfirst into a pile of
fruit, her legs sticking out like some kind of weird scarecrow.
I glared at the man.
“That was a terrible thing to do!”
“I didn’t do anything! She—”
“Anyway!” I cut him off with a
dismissive wave. “Seems I’ll have to avenge both Canny and her brother!”
I wanted to say something cool, like
“You don’t get to kill my companions without my permission!” But before I
could, I noticed him chanting.
His expression darkened.
Fire Ball.
A highly dangerous spell. A
condensed orb of flame that explodes on impact, indiscriminately scattering
fire everywhere. Used on a human, it can reduce them to ashes.
Is he insane!? Using that in the
middle of a crowded town!?
I considered trying to talk him out
of it but quickly dismissed the idea.
There was a glint of madness in his
eyes. He wasn’t the negotiating type.
Fine, then.
I began my own chant.
His eyes widened in recognition. He
knew what I was about to use.
Dill Brand, a spell that launches
anything in a circular radius straight up. Much easier to control than Fire
Ball, and with a significantly shorter cast time.
Not the most powerful spell, but
enough to throw someone off balance. Against a well-armored opponent, it’s
practically useless. More of a disruption than an attack.
But for him? Well…
I have magical power second to none.
If I wanted, I could blast this guy into orbit.
Of course, that would also take the
entire city with him.
The man clapped his hands together,
spreading them apart. Between his palms, a bright sphere of fire ignited.
“Fire Ball!”
“Dill Brand!”
He launched his spell just as the
earth erupted beneath him.
A massive pillar of stone shot
skyward, engulfing his entire body.
Then—
BOOM!
A fiery explosion erupted within the
column, followed by a distant, fading scream.
The onlookers murmured.
And that was the end of the nameless
sorcerer.
I smirked, flashing a V-sign to the
sky. “Victory!”
“...It’s over.”
I turned in surprise.
Canny stood nearby, her gaze
distant.
“Brother… I avenged you…”
“You didn’t do anything!”
“Don’t say that!”
Later, on the town’s outskirts,
Canny came to see me off. She extended her right hand.
The first time she did that, I
thought she was some clueless amateur. But now, unarmed and dressed in simple
clothes, it suited her.
I chuckled and shook her hand.
I worked for free this time. Not
something I do often, but once in a while, it’s nice to help good people.
“So, what will you do now?”
She smiled brightly. “I’m going back
home to work the fields, with my family.”
“Yeah, that kind of life suits you
better.” I smiled back. “Well then, take care.”
“You too.”
As my cloak billowed in the breeze,
a thought struck me.
“Hey, this might not matter anymore,
but… why did that guy kill your brother?”
She hesitated, then smiled a little
sadly. “Well… my brother was drunk and, uh… hit him in the back with a club as
he was passing by—”
“W-WAIT A MINUTE!” I cut her off,
waving my hands frantically. “You don’t have to tell me!”
Her expression darkened slightly.
No.
No way.
There was no way that guy had an
actual reason!
No, no, NO! The guy with the ram
skull was a completely evil villain! I mean, he threw a Fire Ball in the middle
of a city! That’s it! He was definitely evil, and he definitely killed an
innocent person!
Canny tilted her head. “Why the
sudden change?”
“No reason!”
She shrugged. “Well then, take care,
Lina.”
“You too… Hahaha…” I forced a laugh
and hurried away.
Personal note: Don’t judge a book by
its cover.
Contents
Chapter 1: The Prince of Saillune
Chapter 2: Revenge!
Chapter 3: The Robbers’ Killer
Chapter 4: Naga's Challenge
Chapter 5: Elsia's Castle
Chapter 6: Slayers Excellent — Villain Fight!
Afterword, Color ilustrations and Download Links
If you liked what you've read here and would like to help to make more feel free to support on Patreon or Kofi!
Comments
Post a Comment