Atelier Tanaka

Book 6: Chapter 4 (13)

Academic City (2nd)

[Guguguuuooooooo!]

The tentacled slug started roaring once more.

Several tentacles started converging on me now that I was within reach.

“I’m not making the same mistake twice….”

This time I was trying to use a fireball with a much less intense heat. Dozens of magic circles formed in the air, surrounding the slug’s body. They were all close to six metres in size and the fireballs that emerged from them were close to the same size.

The colour was paler than usual which may indicate the power change.

“Fireball!”

The fireballs lurched forward and sped toward the target.

[Guguguooooooooooo!]

The slug showed the same reaction as before.

The main tentacle restraining the JC quickly moved and placed her in the fireball’s path.

“Gu….”

Not this time.

I quickly redirected all of the fireballs to avoid the JC. The sudden change of course caused several of the fireballs to miss the slug entirely and explode harmlessly in the streets leaving several craters behind.

Over a dozen of the fireballs managed to hit their target. The explosion tore large chunks from the slug’s body. However, the slug is so massive in size that even this seemed to do little to phase it.

NameErinSexMaleRaceChimera Body (High Demon)Level3205JobFormer Demon KingHP20010000 / 21950000MP18900000 / 18900000STR2537500VIT4677402DEX622994AGI14442INT4778030LUC123329

Almost no damage. This thing is going to take forever to take down.

I’ve always managed to win by going all out. I’ve been able to do this because most of the areas I’ve fought have been sparsely populated and I don’t have to worry about collateral damage. No matter how much damage I needed to inflict, I was never in danger of harming any innocent people.

However, this slug decided to attack a densely populated city.

Even if I land all of my fireballs, the explosion may cause collateral damage, maybe even causing more damage than the slug. Not to mention the fire from my attacks can cause further damage to the city. The few attacks that I’ve used have already caused many fires to spread.

I could continue this brute force method, but if this slug knows recovery magic, it will all be pointless.

My hesitation led to a lapse in my fireball onslaught.

[Guguguooooo!]

The slug had several tentacles poised for defence, but it now used these in attack in addition to the many that were already assaulting me.

“Nuu…..”

I used my flight magic and tried to fly out of range of the monster’s tentacles. However, the tentacles moved at a speed that outmatched my own and one of them managed to slash at my body.

My flesh was torn open and blood poured from my gut. Even though the tentacle hardly made contact, it was still enough to cut through flesh, muscle, and tendon. The wound tore open further as I flew through the air, still dodging countless tentacles, and bent my body in weird angles. A light slash from the tentacles does as much damage as a butcher’s knife. I can’t let up on my recovery magic for a second.

As long as I’m able to save the JC, all of this pain and suffering will be worth it.

Saying that is much easier than actually accomplishing it. There must be nearly a hundred tentacles swarming around me now. Due to the heavy congestion, they were starting to get in each other’s  way. Many of them had become entangled and knotted together, forcing them to fall to the ground in a wriggling mass.

“….”

Another tentacle managed to slash at my arm.

I’m really at a loss for what to do.

How am I going to save the JC?

That’s when a new hope was presented to me.

The tentacle holding the JC was cut near its base and the JC was finally free from the monster’s grasp.

“Who….”

[Guguoooooooo!]

Another pained cry from the tentacled slug.

The main tentacle fell to the ground.

It was still wrapped around the JC, who was doing her best to free herself, but she’s not going to make it in time. Both the tentacle and her will plummet to the ground and she’ll likely be crushed under its weight.

I flew full force toward the falling JC, but I quickly realized I wouldn’t make it in time. There’s nothing I can do.

I’m not going to be able to save her. All I can do is watch her fall to her death.

No, I just need to give it a little more and I can save her.

I was desperately trying to reach her when I saw someone snatch the JC from mid-air. The hand pulled the JC free and the limp tentacle fell to the ground causing a cloud of dust to erupt from the ground and the earth to tremble.

The person that saved the JC was holding her by one hand and floating in the air.

“Is this thing really that important to you, human? Is this what humans find attractive?”

It was the masochist demon.

He must be the same one that cut off the main tentacle. He probably used his teleportation magic to phase inside of the tentacle and sever it without the slug even noticing his presence.

Finally, something is going my way.

“Thank you. You saved her, Gerosu-san.”

“I didn’t do it to help you.”

“Did Doris-san tell you everything?”

“Ha? What do you mean?”

His tone was curt as usual.

He can be as rude as he likes. I’m thankful that someone as powerful as him is on my side.

Still, it’s unfortunate that he stole my final moment. The culmination of all of my efforts, wasted because I was too slow to act. This is the point where the heroine falls for the hero. She’s definitely going to fall in love with him. I know I’d be in love after such a heroic act. Not to mention the fact that the kimoronge is objectively handsome.

“….”

When I looked toward the JC, her eyes were locked on the kimoronge’s handsome face.

Her eyes were wide open and she couldn’t look away.

She doesn’t even need to say anything. I know exactly how she’s feeling.

His overall look gave off the quiet studious class president that was somehow cool. Now combine that look with his incredible fighting ability and throwing himself into danger to save the heroine, and you have a situation where no man or woman could stop themselves from falling for him.

There’s no doubt about it. I may as well leave now and get their marriage certificate written up.

But then, she turned her gaze towards me.

What is happening? Her eyes grew even wider when she saw me.

Oh, right. It’s because I’m naked. Who wouldn’t be surprised?

Not to mention the countless attacks I’ve suffered from the tentacled slug. I’ve healed all of my wounds, but I’m still covered in blood. I’m a naked man that’s been assaulted by tentacles. I don’t think a man could look more pathetic if he tried.

Her eyes are starting to get my son excited.

It’s over for me.

I’ve been locked out of the JC route.

“….”

“What is it? You mentioned my Master earlier, did something happen to her?”

Screw it. It’s already happened so I might as well embrace it.

I’m going to flaunt my son at the JC without holding back.

Let the image burn into her mnd.

“No, she’s fine. I was just trying to think of a strategy for how to handle this.”

“How to handle it? You’re capable of ending this at any moment. Unless there’s some other powerful being here that used that maximum magic. I would’ve made it my life’s mission to kill if you harmed my master all to save some child. A strategy? Y-You’ve got to be joking….”

“…maximum magic?”

“Yes. Now, I don’t want to be involved in this any further, alright? …I’ll watch over this human while you ‘handle this.’”

Aah, right.

I guess the kimoronge came here after seeing the second sun that I summoned. He never spoke to Drill-chan. The fireballs were enough to tell him that I was here.

What a considerate demon.

“Thank you. I won’t let something like this happen again.”

“Ku, to think such an insane human existed….”

The hostage was successfully saved thanks to the masochist demon.

All of the despair I felt moments ago went away now that the JC was safe.

“But are you okay with this? You attacked that monster to save her.”

“Your point?”

“I thought you might have a conflict of interest.”

“…not at all. Burn this disgusting lump of meat to a crisp for all I care.”

“I see.”

I thought he might align himself with the creature due to it being a demon as well, but I guess I was wrong. I guess he doesn’t have anything to do with this creature appearing here. With him cleared, the next likely suspect is Pi-chan.

We can find who’s at fault later. There’s more important things to take care of.

“Good.”

“H-Hmm….”

I noticed the kimoronge’s knees were trembling.

This reassured me.

“Thank you. I can fight without worrying about her now. I’ll take care of things from here.”

I used my flight magic and flew high up into the sky directly above the slug. I made sure I was out of reach of all of the slug’s tentacles this time. I misjudged it last time and paid the price for it. I’m not going to make such a stupid mistake again.

I’m going to put all of the pain and frustration I hold from having the JC route stolen out from under me after doing so much to even have a chance of progressing down her route.

The slug’s level is in the thousands after all. I need to go all out with my fireball to make sure I can defeat this thing.

“There won’t even be a single trace of you left.”

I’m going to kill this thing in a single attack.

I still need to be smart about how I do this.

I need to find a way to concentrate the damage on my target while reducing the collateral damage.

Thinking about this reminded me of something Edita Sensei told me when we first arrived in Academy City.

“I know of someone working on a way to manipulate the shape of your favorite spell, fireball.”

I always regretted being an F ranked student that majored in liberal arts.

I should be focusing more on the shape of the fireball rather than its size.

“Nnuuuuooooo”

I held my hands towards the sky as I had previously.

A magic circle nearly a hundred metres in size appeared in the sky above me.

My previous magic circles had all been flat, but this one was convex.

I need something precise that can damage the slug without destroying the city. I envisioned a pointed fireball that could precisely target the slug. I focused all of my mana on the magic circle with this image in my mind. I put all of the mana that I could into it.

And, ooh, something’s happening.

A pointed fireball emerged from the magic circle.

It almost looked like a large spaceship emerging from an interstellar warp gate. It took several seconds before it was fully clear of the gate. It’s shape closely resembled a spear over one hundred metres in length. Flaming tendrils coiled around the roaring inferno. This may be the coolest thing I’ve ever seen.

This attack deserves its own name.

“Let’s do this: Type F, Fireball!”

I don’t need a flashy name like ‘Fire Arrow’ or ‘Flame Lance.’ Fireball is perfect for a busamen like me. A busamen only needs one trump card. After all a trump card isn’t a trump card if you need multiple.

Never underestimate something because it’s F ranked.

I threw my hands downward toward the tentacled slug.

The flaming spear hurtled toward its target.

[Guguguguoooooooo!]

The tentacled slug let out a roar unlike anything I’d heard before once it realized the danger it was in. It gathered all of its tentacles together in defence. Countless tentacles interlaced together and formed a thick wall in front of my attack.

My F ranked attack streaked toward its target. The magic circle hung in the air nearly two thousand metres from the slug, but the flaming spear covered that distance in a matter of seconds.

The tip of the spear pierced through the tentacle wall and made contact with the main body.

No explosion followed.

The explosive force was concentrated in the tip and once it made contact, all of that force was unleashed inside of the monster.

[Guguguooooo!]

An earth shaking boom rang out across the city and the force of the explosion reached me from my place in the sky.

The flames spread across the creature like a wildfire across a dry forest. The tendrils of flames crept across its body and wrapped around the tentacles, burning them to charcoal. The indescribable stench of burning tentacles reached my nose.

As the last of the tentacles were burnt to bits, the main body was thrashing around as the flames burned its skin to a crisp. It was as if somebody had poured salt on a slug.

After several minutes of this, the former demon king fell motionless.

No more cries of pain.

“…alright.”

Mission complete.

***