Stoned Rat

It’s early morning.

At about the time the sun peeks its face out from the other side of the mountains.

In the corner of the Lagine Village about to wake up, there is a voice singing and tranquilly echoing.

The voice’s owner was a woman.

While sitting down on tinder logs placed in the village chief’s yard, she sings and her white-golden beautiful hair swings, closing her eyes.

The song was one that praised the gods — A hymn.

Her sweet pink lips scatter many different words to praise the gods. Those words are given beautiful rhythm, and become a song, the atmosphere surrounding her shakes.

The residents of Lagine Village — especially the ones who live close to the village chief’s house, hear the song and bask their ears in its beauty.

「This song is…. The rumored 《Holy Maiden》-sama?」

「Ah, isn’t she Bikkuri’s daughter, the one who lived here once? A long time ago she was called crazy but…. 」

While heading to the field, the two farmers listen to the song and talk to each other.

「Isn’t that wrong though? It seemed that《Holy Maiden》possessed a lot of magical power from a small age, and foresaw certain events. 」

From a young age, the《Holy Maiden》had foreseen events through her dreams, and told them to the surrounding adults.

But, the still young girl unable to convey it well to the adults, she was misunderstood as crazy.

That was the most recent rumor going here and there around Lagine Village, and what everyone had heard.

「And, those forseeings by chance finding their way into the ears of a great priest-sama, and until she was called the《Holy Maiden》-sama she was raised by them.」

「Hmm, even a great priest-sama wouldn’t know what you were talking about if they just heard what you were saying.」

「I’m sure he used some kind of magic, correct?」

「I get it. If we’re talking about a great priest-sama from the royal capital, he would at least be able to use magic. Then, what kind of foreseeings did she see?」

「The governor-sama’s young master… no, he’s already our village chief, huh. The village chief said that the《Holy Maiden》-sama had predicted from a young age that when this country falls into disaster that there would be a savior that would appear.」

The residents of Lagine village also recently heard of the gossip that the Royal Capital got attacked by a fearsome monster.

And, as the《Holy Maiden》had predicted, a savior appeared, and he splendidly defeated the monster. That was the story that Deagan, the new village chief, had told to the citizens of the village.

「Then, it seems the savior who defeated this monster became《Holy Maiden》’s husband, too.」

「Ah, that person who is always wearing that pitch black armor.」

「That armor apparently is proof that he’s the person who exterminated the monster.」

Of course, Joruto is the person who had purposely spread that rumor.

Once, in this village Calsedonia was thought as insane.

In order to wipe out that past, Joruto intentionally spread this rumor.

At the spread of this rumor, the villagers’ viewpoint toward Calsedonia was changing. Of course, that included her family too.

The echoing almost as if eloquently flowing《Holy Maiden》’s song.

There was one more melody suddenly layered upon the high-pitched song.

It was a male’s voice, and it was a lower-toned melody than the woman’s and powerfully sounded.

If the woman’s voice was for example the wind, blowing through, then the male’s voice would be a large tree that has firmly planted its roots in the earth.

How the wind was shaking through the tree, it was like the branches were playing an instrument.

The tree was almost as if entrusting itself to the wind, blowing through softly.

The two songs mutually lifting each other up, they flow through the corner of the Lagine Village.

Suddenly hearing a singing voice that wasn’t hers, Calsedonia opens her closed eyes.

Reflected in her deep crimson opened eyes were, of course, the person she loved the most in this world.

Him — Tatsumi comes close to Calsedonia while singing, and continues to sit down next to her.

Tatsumi, also being a priest, generally knows the hymns.

Originally, Tatsumi did not hate songs. His dad, aiming to be a musician, taught the basics of music to him, and he had the singing ability of that of a novice bard.

Tatsumi and Calsedonia both smile at each other and continue singing.

Tatsumi’s deep voice, and Calsedonia’s high voice create depth to the melody, combining as if taking hand in hand, and early morning in Lagine Village slowly passes.

Soon the end of the song accepts the end of its lyrics.

The two breathe all the air left in their lungs at the same timing. And, looking toward each other again, unintentionally chuckled.

「When I woke up this morning I couldn’t see Calse… When I thought as to where she went, I could hear a song from outside the window.」

「I just woke up early earlier…. I went out myself since Danna-sama was still sleeping.」

Tatsumi and co. are staying the night right now at the village chief’s house.

As Calsedonia’s parent’s house is too small, there’s no way it has the surplus for the two to stay.

At first they had planned to stop in an inn, but Deagan who had become the village chief managed to let them stay at his house.

Of course, along with Joruto, Yerimao, and Morgan who had finished their Toga city inspection too.

「Are you feeling okay? Today Calse is the lead actor?」

「Yes! Let’s do our best and exterminate those stoned rats!」

Today they planned to carry out a plan of rounding the stoned rats up.

The stoned rats had the trait of forming groups. In order to attack the stoned rats who form groups all at once, Calsedonia’s area attacking magic would be essential.

For that reason, Tatsumi and Morgan would act as support around Calsedonia who would round up the stoned rats with her magic. That was the general plan for today’s strategy.

「Yesterday I slept soundly again, so my magic power is in its perfect condition. But….. 」

Calsedonia’s cheeks flushed a bit as she squirmed and shifted her hips to get closer to Tatsumi sitting next to her, and she looked at him with a smile.

「…. Could we stay like this for a bit longer?」

Entwining Tatsumi’s right arm in her own left arm, Calsedonia leans her head on Tatsumi’s shoulder.

「…… If we’re doing this….. I feel more energized…..」

Tatsumi keeping Calsedonia’s head on his shoulder, she closes her eyes, looking like she’s in a good mood.

Tatsumi softly smiles at her, and gently strokes her head.

The stoned rat’s lifestyle, even though given the name of a「Rat」, is similar to a river seal.

It creates a nest at the bank of a river, and eats small fish and other aquatic animals.

Sometimes it leaves the bank of the river and eats tree nuts, but it does not often leave the riverbank.

The stoned rat that attacked Lilinalia too, probably went up on land individually in order to eat the vegetables near her house’s fields.

The stoned rat, being a small magical beast, would make it hard to concentrate on the fact that she was working in a field, nor realize the fact that it is a field.

Lilinalia, not realizing that the stoned rat had come close, probably unknowingly surprised the stoned rat, and took the poison in her legs.

In Lagine Village there were wells in various places, but only the river had flowing water.

If you go a bit away from Lagine Village, there’s a large river, but even so there’s only one small stream in the village, near the outskirts of the village, near Bikkuri’s household’s house.

The surroundings of the river was where the stoned rat’s area of activity was, and also the reason the only one in the village who had gotten stung with the poison of the stoned rat was Lilinalia, which Calsedonia and Morgan had decided knowing the stoned rats’ style of life.

Regarding yesterday’s search, Morgan had gone a small bit upstream to where he found a nesting hole of stoned rats.

Tatsumi was unable to find this nesting hole, and having more experience hunting magical beasts, Morgan splendidly found the ingeniously hidden nest.

「….. So this is the nest of a stoned rat….. 」

「Yeah. It will become a useful reference from now on, so make sure to remember it.」

Since Morgan was his senior in hunting magical beasts, Tatsumi obediently nodded.

Tatsumi, after spending his time relaxed with Calsedonia, Morgan took him to the nest of the stoned rats.

Morgan’s objective was of course, as he was saying, to use it as study for from now on.

Tatsumi with his eyes was unable to find the nest yesterday, even though he searched the area around the next yesterday. But, on the bank of the small stream, as if it was hiding just inside the grass, the nest was certainly there.

The stoned rat being a small magical beast, naturally their nest is also small. This smallness and it being in the shadow of the grass contributed to the inexperienced Tatsumi overlooking the nets.

「Would it be bad to just close this nest up?」

「Since the stoned rats are really good at digging, even if you closed up the exit here, they would just make another exit somewhere else.」

Again, the stoned rats nest became more complex than the nests of the ants that Tatsumi knew, Morgan teaching him that even if you attacked the opening with magic, it wouldn’t exterminate the whole group.

「Then that would mean that as planned from the start, Calse will all at once attack the ones that come out from the nest?」

「It would mean that. Around evening, just before night of the next day starts is when the stoned rats are the most active, so just before twilight is when the match would start.」

Tatsumi and Morgan quietly walk away from the stoned rats’ nest.

「The plan is going perfectly. We must now finish our preparations by night.」

「Yes, understood.」

Tatsumi nodded strongly to Morgan’s words.

In a patch of ground just a little bit away from the stoned rats’ nest, there is a large pile of small fish laying piled up on the ground.

Breaking away from the small dead fish in the area was a peculiar smell floating in the air.

These small fish are, of course, decoys for luring the stoned rats out.

At the new village chief Deagan’s directions, the residents of Lagine Village cooperated to collect these small fish during the day, and place them nearby where the stoned rats’ nest is.

Now, when the sun goes down and the stone rats become active, the less wary magical beasts will be drawn to the smell and show themselves.

Before long, the sun will set and the sky will dye itself from red to ultramarine.

The leader, a small rat-looking animal peeking its face out, while twitching and wiggling its nose, scenting out the smells around it.

That leader starts to go towards the fish from the hole, and another one pokes its head out, checking out its surroundings.

After that, another, yet another rat-looking animal figure appears from the nest, and they start to go toward the fish.

The two who were observing this from a place just a bit away from the nest were Tatsumi and Calsedonia.

Calsedonia uses her〈Holy〉system《Life Force Detection》to look at what was happening in the nest.

「—- It seems all of the stoned rats have left the nest. They count 28 in number.」

「Okay, then let’s start.」

Tatsumi, hearing what Calsedonia was saying, moves Calsedonia and himself using《Instant Transfer》.

After transferring a few times, they appeared 20ish meters away from the mountain of fish in the shadow of a tree, at least according to Tatsumi’s intuition.

Right there, Morgan who had already been arranged to stand there waiting.

Even though Tatsumi and Calsedonia suddenly appeared, Morgan didn’t seem especially surprised.

Everything was going according to their prior preparations.

Tatsumi and Morgan say nothing, nodding at each other. At the same time, Calsedonia began chanting a spell in a whisper.

And at the same time her chant ended, around the mountain of small fish several fibers of lightning incessantly fell.