Black Badger

It sounded like something I had heard before.

But no matter how hard I tried, I couldn’t remember where. I was sure I had heard it at some point.

After struggling for a while, I gave up and asked.

“Was it the common tongue?”

“I think the tone was a bit different. So it might have been English.”

The common tongue was based on English. If there hadn’t been any altered words in the sentence, it would have been hard to tell whether it was the common tongue or English.

There were differences in stress and emphasis, certain words slightly altered—but still.

In any case, it wasn’t Imperial.

“Jack said he saw more. I think I did too, but I can’t remember the rest very clearly.”

Why did they bother transferring her first, then putting her into the flower? They must have kidnapped Shu because of her abnormality—her low portal compatibility.

Then why did I feel so bad?

I didn’t know the cause, but my mood sank heavily.

“When we get back, ask Jack more. He said he doesn’t really understand what he saw either, but if it’s you, Hilde, you might figure something out.”

“I will. Thank you for telling me, senior.”

In any case, it was a huge relief that we got Shu back before anything happened.

It seemed Kyle had requested that her life be ended cleanly once the experiment was finished, but whether the mage had obeyed Kyle’s words so obediently was questionable. Wasn’t he the one who created the Slip-Ghoul? There was no way someone like that would gently send her off after such a unique test subject fell into his hands.

Thank goodness we weren’t too late.

“About that person.”

I lifted my head at Shu’s voice.

“He was your friend, wasn’t he?”

I couldn’t answer right away. I looked into her blue eyes.

Shu stared at me with an unreadable expression.

“...Yes.”

“I see. Then the 10th-class Creature that appeared during the First War... was that someone you knew too?”

Rei.

I swallowed the name that lodged in my throat and smiled bitterly.

“Yes.”

“Ah.”

Shu didn’t ask any more questions.

Instead, she reached out and placed her hand on my head as I knelt on one knee.

“But Hilde, you didn’t turn to ash and disappear.”

Her small hand lightly patted the crown of my head.

“Eve didn’t make that game for nothing. Thank goodness. She’ll be so happy when she knows you read the letter.”

Something surged up inside me as I looked at Shu smiling faintly.

A human woman who always insisted on two-tone hair, just like Shu.

So painfully innocent that I could never bring myself to hate her....

“Welcome back to Earth.”

The small senior, who reminded me of Eve yet looked nothing like her, said with a smile.

“I’m glad your name wasn’t forgotten.”

Swallowing the emotions that surged up, I didn’t move for a long time.

***

The sun heated the land.

The skybirds, which had been nodding off with their heads tucked in, ignoring Ami’s constant hovering, began spreading their wings one by one.

Some even spared Ami—who had tried so hard to befriend them—a bit of attention.

When a skybird gently pecked at her crown, Ami was deeply moved.

“It accepted me!”

The other seniors showed no interest in the skybirds.

They weren’t the type to like animals. Ricardo seemed to have taken a liking to the giant snake, though.

As Kairos fastened the reins he’d made overnight onto the skybirds, he asked,

“We’re heading back to the nearest C Zone, right?”

“Yeah. There’s a portal in C Zone. GPS is working, so if I stray off course, I’ll let you know. Though you’ll probably read the GPS better than I do.”

We decided to split across four birds.

Walker would ride alone since he was so heavy. I would ride with Yun, who was carrying the mage’s corpse. Ami would ride with Shu and Ricardo, and Kairos would take Sophia and Carl Dow.

All four had already been contracted, but piloting skybirds was another matter entirely.

And it wasn’t like I’d had great experiences riding them before.

I approached Kairos looking a bit pale and muttered that I wasn’t very confident about flying a skybird. The summoner laughed long and loud.

He handed me reins made from a long strip torn off his combat uniform.

“They’re contracted, so it should be fine. If you really can’t handle it, tell me. I’ll guide it in a full domination state instead.”

That made me feel a little more at ease.

And my skill had improved dramatically since back then. I probably wouldn’t suffer the same horrific motion sickness I had as a kid. Back then, I’d thought it might actually be more comfortable to just fall out of the sky....

“Hm?”

While we were preparing to mount, Walker’s voice came from behind.

I turned my head toward the sound.

“It woke up.”

The fluorescent marimo.

It was slowly rolling across the ground.

Everyone’s gaze snapped to it at once.

The unidentified thing that had eaten the aircraft hull rolled sluggishly toward the skybirds.

Ami panicked.

“I think it’s hungry again!”

You’ve got to be kidding me.

After eating the entire transport?

“It looks like it’s coming for our guns or swords.”

I let go of the reins and drew my sword.

With the cool sound I loved, the blade slid free and flashed in the sunlight. Walker, Yun, and Ami couldn’t really move, but there was no harm in testing a sword strike.

As I took my stance, preparing to swing, Sophia poked my back.

Startled, I turned.

“Senior?”

“It’s trying to eat your sword.”

She pointed at the approaching fluorescent marimo.

“It’s coming for you.”

She was right.

I subtly adjusted my angle and looked at the marimo approaching me. The sun was high now, so it was hard to tell it was fluorescent, but it was clearly bigger than before.

I still couldn’t tell which part was its mouth or its legs.

I narrowed my eyes, steadied myself, and spoke.

“I’m about to strike. Please step back.”

Walker and Yun moved out of the trajectory.

Boom!

I unleashed a light sword strike.

The slash tore through the air toward the massive marimo.

Kagagagaanng!

The strike hit the marimo and shattered into white fragments.

The seniors let out sounds of disbelief.

“It’s fine.”

Shu murmured from Ami’s arms.

She was right.

The giant fluorescent marimo was completely fine.

That stung my pride a little.

“It’s fine.”

“It’s fine~.”

“How is it fine after taking Hilde’s strike....”

“It’s shaking.”

Yun muttered in a low voice.

“It’s vibrating.”

He was right.

The marimo stopped dead in place and began to tremble. The way it stood there, shaking violently, was extremely ominous.

The seniors instinctively took a step back.

Why did I feel like it was about to explode?

Judging by the way Ricardo and Kairos moved up behind me one after the other, I wasn’t the only one.

“Doesn’t it look like it’s about to blow~?”

“Looks like it’s going to explode.”

“Run.”

I didn’t hesitate.

“All units, mount the skybirds!”

The seniors scrambled onto the birds. Grabbing only the bare essentials, they climbed onto the sky-blue feathers.

Once they were settled, I climbed on in front of Yun.

I secured myself roughly and tightened my grip on the reins.

The skybird Kairos was riding had already spread its massive wings.

Please don’t go berserk.

I took a deep breath and was about to pull the reins when Yun, sitting behind me, muttered in a low voice.

“Why is your posture so awkward?”

Ugh.

“I haven’t ridden a horse.... No, that’s not true, I have.”

“...This isn’t a horse. It’s a bird.”

I blurted out a flimsy excuse.

“It’s different.”

“No matter how you look at it, you’re sitting on its neck.”

Flap! The other skybirds began flapping their wings to take off.

The wind from their wings whipped my hair and clothes around. The thunderous sound of wings battered my ears from all sides.

“Bird’s going to get a slipped disc.”

“...Is this okay?”

“No, you need to move further back.”

Yun grabbed my torso and pulled me sharply backward.

Dragging me until our legs nearly collided, the shooter seemed unconvinced and reached forward to take the reins.

“It’s better if I hold these.”

I didn’t refuse.

Or maybe I should’ve just switched seats.

Before I could say anything, Yun snapped the reins. The skybird spread its huge wings and beat them hard.

I stared up at the sky, trying to suppress the unpleasant memories tied to skybirds—memories of flying insanely fast and high, then vomiting everything out the moment I landed.

Riding the updraft, my body lifted.

The marimo exploded.

Pop pop pop pop pop pop—BAAANG!

“What the—?!”

I turned my head and witnessed a rain of tiny, fluff-like marimos.

The massive marimo had burst apart, splitting into acorn-sized fluorescent marimos. They burst apart noisily, then drifted down over us as we ascended.

Not like flower petals on the wind.

The fact that it actually looked beautiful was the most ridiculous part.

I heard the seniors’ hollow laughter from above.

As we soared into the sky, I let out a disbelieving laugh myself and brushed the marimos clinging to my clothes.

The shooter behind me said,

“Put everything stuck to you into a sample pack. Don’t throw any of it away.”

Of course.

***

The return was quick.

There were no major issues until we reached C Zone and returned via the portal. Everyone was pale by the time we dismounted the skybirds—the air up there had been far colder than expected.

Still, we arrived safely in C Zone, and the portal functioned properly.

All of us returned without incident.

Just like when we returned through A Zone, our bodies and weapons were fully disinfected. After that, we exited the portal zone and headed to the waiting lobby.

The distinct air of Center Core wrapped around us. As the seniors headed toward the lobby, they spoke calmly among themselves.

I listened to their conversation with one ear while checking the pile of accumulated messages.

[Rehab Room / Deltei: Took it out of Vault From A. You can play it when you’re back.]

[Bobby: HILDE!!!! They got in touch with that franchise CEO!!! Let me know what dates you can match.]

[Rookie Chat / Hesh: Anyone in the Core right now?]

[San: A Black Jack sign got delivered to my house, this is because you mentioned it, right? It is, right?]

[Notification: TF Emergency Disbandment]

What?

I froze mid-motion, about to sit on the lobby sofa.

I stood stiffly beside it, staring at the red message.

Emergency disbandment?

Something must have happened.

Why all of a sudden....

Bang!

Heat brushed past my cheek.

My cheek, burning as if scorched, immediately grew wet. Pain followed, and the scent of blood filled my nose.

The waiting area froze in an instant.

The sound of a safety being disengaged.

The sound of guns with their safeties off being ⊛ Nоvеlιght ⊛ (Read the full story) aimed at a single point. I slowly lowered the phone in my right hand and lifted my head.

And I saw the man lowering his gun.

Someone I’d never seen before.

Blood not yet fully washed away, his body carrying the stench of sand, blood, and ammunition.

“Ruta Ayer.”

Yun broke the frozen silence of the waiting area.

“Any reason you just split my deputy’s cheek open?”

There was a snake-like hiss mixed into his voice.

Hearing the shooter’s voice—one that made no attempt to hide its killing intent—I didn’t move. I didn’t speak to Kairos or Ami, who were now standing in front of me. I didn’t react even though I could see sharp silver thorns aimed at the man’s throat.

I ignored the fact that Sophia’s and Carl’s guns were perfectly trained on his hand.

I simply waited.

Until the senior—clearly one of the strongest among the Black Badgers—looked straight at me and tore through the silence.

“Hildebert Taleb.”

His voice was cold and solid, like that of a mercenary.

“You seem to be their traitor.”

I couldn’t see a humanoid Creature detector.

But his gaze never left my unhealed cheek.

“One squad was wiped out. Another was entirely kidnapped, except for me.”

The senior spat blood-tinged saliva onto the carpet.

“And they demanded you as the ransom.”

The one drenched in the blood of dead and wounded Badgers.

The Badger who must have arrived at Center Core through a portal just hours ago finished speaking in a voice that scraped his vocal cords raw.

“They said they’d release the kidnapped if you showed up alone.”

What they desperately wanted was the neck of a traitor to their kin.

If they could get that neck, they would give anything.

If they could get my neck.