226 battle




 The round pupil in Samija's amber iris contracted, indicating the tension in the air.

I'm sorry Eizo, I was upwind and didn't see you until later. It's a big black bear.

 Samija apologized as she prepared her bow. If Cāmya didn't notice it, no one would notice it unless it was a human.
 I understand that this is why she is apologizing.
 I'll just say briefly, "Don't worry about it.

 Krull, who was looking around, and Samija were looking in the same direction.

"Do you understand me, Krull?
"Queue.

 Krull is getting more nervous than ever. If worse comes to worst, we'll just have her run away.
 I'm not sure what to do, but I'm sure I'll be able to do it.

Should we attack from here?
No, they're in the bushes, so we'd better not.

 We're in a place where the undergrowth is a little thin. The target that Samija and Krull are looking out for is a shrubby area that we can't see well.
 Helen and I stepped forward as the vanguard toward it. Behind us will be Rike with his spear, and further behind will be Deanna, Liddy, and Samija.

Do you think you and I can handle this?
I've never had to deal with a bear before.
I have.
"You have? ......

 Helen makes an exasperated noise. That time it was a spear, this time it's a shortsword. I think I should have brought a longsword.
 I thought about switching weapons with Rike, but then I reconsidered, since he has a spear to compensate for Rike's reach, and it would make no sense to do that.

 A rustling sound came from the bushes. My nose caught a faint whiff of the beast's scent, a characteristic smell that seemed to stick to me. The smell of blood.
 If I can faintly detect it, then Saamya must be feeling it intensely. I can't see her expression because I'm behind her.
 The tension in the room was overwhelming. For a moment, there is silence. All the birds and insects are hiding, and it's as if all time has stopped.

 The next moment, a huge body jumps out of the bushes. I thought it was going to attack us at once, but it stood up when it saw us. Maybe it was a threatening move.
 Whatever it was, Helen and I wouldn't have missed it. We didn't have a plan in advance, but we dispersed and ran at it.
 The bear looked confused for a moment, but then swung his arm down at me, who was approaching from the right side, probably because I was dominant.
 The thought of my previous run-in with another bear crossed my mind, but I quickly kicked it out of the way and managed to avoid its arm as I fell down.

"Phew!

 Helen took advantage of the opportunity to close the gap between them, let out a short breath, and swung her double-edged shortsword. The blue thunderbolts that you saw during the test flashed through space.
 After the lightning had passed, the bear's left arm was sliced off. It was nothing short of brilliant.

The bear grunted.

 The bear moaned. The bear's eyes seemed to be burning with anger, though I hoped it would be afraid and run away.
 It turned to face Helen with a swiftness that did not match its huge body. But then three arrows pierced her.
 They were all my own arrowheads. They could probably penetrate metal armor, but they pierced the bear's fur with ease.
 The bear barked again, this time trying to turn its head in that direction.

 But then two streaks of blue light flare up. Helen's shortsword struck the bear in the neck with another bolt of lightning.
 The headless bear's body wobbled for a while, and then fell to the ground.