“…Tiera?”
“Hyaaa!!?”
Tiera was probably surprised, suddenly hearing a voice so close to her ear.
She jumped in response.
“M-Master. Please don’t startle me like that.”
“Though it’s good to concentrate, pay attention to your surroundings. You didn’t even notice when I was calling you earlier.”
“Uhh, I’m sorry.”
Tiera apologized while hanging her head.
Somehow, her long ears also seemed to face the ground.
“Never mind. Tiera, although this may be difficult for you, there has been an urgent business that has come up and you need to accompany me from now on.”
“Urgent business?”
“Yes, it’s about the King’s castle.”
The King’s castle, Tiera understood it, was not a place she could go.
If she was still at Tsuki no Hokora, she certainly would have retorted in a loud voice. However, because of Shin and his actions, she was not surprised by a thing of such degree.
“…I’m starting to get used to these situations that happen while accompanying Master.”
‘As expected from Master, you and Shin are certainly the same’, agreed Tiera as she thought to herself.
“It’s not a story to explain in here. Let’s go outside.”
“Understood.”
Tiera obediently followed Schnee who turned back towards the street.
It wasn’t a problem for Tiera, since she had no intention of buying anything in particular.
While walking on the road that lead to the King’s castle, Schnee explained the situation.
“…So in other words, I will have to defeat ‘it’ from now on?”
“That’s how it appears. Because you have reached the point where you can go outside, there’s no guarantee that you wouldn’t get involved with ‘it’. There are no documents or rumours about ‘it’, and it’s better if you understand ‘it’ by yourself.”
‘It’ was different from the monsters that attack people for food or to protect their territory. ‘It’ was different from the thief who steals items and money. ‘It’ was the antagonist who afflicts and entraps people.
“It’s a perfect chance for Tiera to learn about the existence of demons.”
――Demon.
Was a monster said to be born from miasma.
It was greatly different from other monsters, because it was not subjected to ability restriction at the place where miasma accumulated; instead it was strengthened. Again, in the demon’s area, the transmogrification of monsters were also accelerated by miasma and in the areas affected by it; the presence of demons increased the degree of difficulty.