The Mysterious Child: An Adventure Tale Beginning with Numerology

"Eh, what's this... Where am I? Hey, Ruruk-sama, what's going on!?"

I am Ruruk.

Today, I tried kidnapping a girl (actually over 100 years old) for the first time. Tehe-pero.

"This isn't Bargia... is it? Where have I been taken? Hey, Ruruk-sama, say something! Could this be a kidnapping... No, could it be! The rumored elope--"

"Here, take this weapon. Fight."

"Huh?"

I handed a bow to Karmarike, who had started getting excited on her own, and she froze like a stone.

I pointed to the sky and said,

"Look, there's a huge swarm of monsters right above us, right? It's a pain to defeat them. I wanted a skilled archer."

"What's that!? I was kidnapped from the Elven village for such a reason? And what's with that number... I've never seen anything like it!"

"What a coincidence, it's my first time seeing it too. There are probably about a hundred parent individuals, so if you defeat those, the rest will be easy. Do your best. I won't let you go home until you defeat them all."

"Ruruk-sama's cruelty... Oh, that's normal. But thinking about it, couldn't this be considered a date... That's right, Karmarike, this is a date! A monster-slaying date!"

She started getting excited on her own for some reason.

Well, it's better than losing motivation. She's still the same loyal dog Karmarike.

"Here, use these arrows. They're both high-performance weapons."

"Thank y-- Wait, this! Isn't this the Elven village's sacred treasure!"

"That's right. It was sleeping in my item box, so use it."

It's the holy-grade weapon "Sacred Bow: Dew Harvester" that I received as a thank you for saving the Elven village from the petrification disease. And the arrows are the boomerang arrows I recently acquired.

Karmarike, with trembling hands, said,

"I-Is it okay for me to use this?"

"I, the owner, give you permission. You can use it until it breaks."

We wouldn't use it anyway.

"I-I won't break it... but yeah, such opportunities are rare! I'll do my best for Ruruk-sama!"

Karmarike, though nervous, smiled as she nocked an arrow to the bow.

She aimed at the sky, focusing intently.

I'll explain for now.

"The Black Mist Bats have parent individuals, and unless you defeat them, the black individuals will revive infinitely. There's probably one pure white bat among the hundreds, that should be the parent... Hm? Karmarike? What's wrong?"

Karmarike was frozen with her eyes wide open, still aiming the bow.

When I asked what was wrong, she slowly turned just her face towards me and said,

"...Ruruk-sama. I think I just got a new skill..."

"Huh?"

At this timing?

I decided to do a detailed appraisal of Karmarike.

[Name] Karmarike

[Race] Elf

[Level] 38

[Health] 780 (+1120)

[Mana] 1970 (+2100)

[Strength] 510 (+710)

[Endurance] 580 (+830)

[Agility] 1110 (+1370)

[Intelligence] 670 (+720)

[Luck] 108

[Theoretical Skill] 240

[Magic Skill] 670

[Mystical Arts Skill] 1420

[Possessed Skills]

≪Automatic Type≫

"Concealment"

"Presence Suppression"

"Presence Detection"

"Trap Detection"

"Wind Magic Aptitude"

"Water Magic Aptitude"

"Earth Magic Aptitude"

"Holy Magic Aptitude"

≪Activation Type≫

"Heavenly Eye"

"Acrobat"

"Spirit Summoning"

"Equipment Summoning"

"Transcription"

"...It's true. It's increased."

Wait a minute.

I'm sure this "Sacred Bow: Dew Harvester" was a weapon with illusion-breaking effects. Perhaps it had a skill that affected vision.

If that's the case, the fact that she learned a new skill the moment she held it means...

"H-Hey, Ruruk-sama... What's happening to me?"

"I guess you were too compatible with the weapon."

Karmarike's archery skills were already incredible.

But it wasn't just about accuracy. No matter how far the target was, she had a perfect sense of distance, and whether it was an arcing shot or a straight shot, she almost never missed.

Her spatial awareness must have been exceptionally good to begin with.

This Karmarike held a holy-grade weapon that affects vision. You could say the weapon acknowledged her.

"Anyway, Karmarike. Doesn't this make it easier to aim?"

"...You're right. I can see! I can see, Ruruk-sama! I can see the parent individuals clearly!"

Karmarike shouted joyfully as she drew the bow and released an arrow.

Ignoring gravity and wind, the arrow flew straight, piercing a Black Mist Bat, and then curved widely to fall back into Karmarike's hand.

"Wow! It came back!"

"That's called a 'Boomerang Arrow'. It's a holy-grade weapon that always returns in an arc, even if it's knocked down or caught by an iron shield."

"Eh... It always comes back?"

"I've experimented by throwing it in various ways, so I'm sure. It ignores any weights and comes back. It doesn't stop until it pierces through obstacles, and since it's made of Hihiirokane, it even repels magic. It has crazy performance."

"A-Amazing..."

Well, since the trajectory is fixed, it's not very convenient to use. It's too dangerous to use in places without a good view because it will pierce through houses or walls to return.

It's a weapon with an excessive homing instinct.

"But if that's the case,"

Karmarike muttered softly, then observed the large swarm of Black Mist Bats and aimed at the edge, adjusting her strength.

After piercing another parent individual, the arrow curved in the sky to return.

On its way back, it pierced another parent individual from above.

Catching the falling Boomerang Arrow, Karmarike jumped up and down happily.

"I did it! Two in one shot! Hey Ruruk-sama, isn't that amazing?"

"It's godlike. Aren't you too compatible?"

It was truly a weapon set made for Karmarike.

Encouraged, Karmarike continued to shoot and take down parent individuals.

As long as they don't revive, the threat level of the swarm in the sky drops dramatically. The magician corps seemed to notice our supporting fire and started accurately firing magic at the places where parent individuals had disappeared, reducing their numbers.

After Karmarike continued shooting for a while, it seemed that the number of parent individuals had become countable. The swarm had now become small enough that even ordinary soldiers could handle it.

"Karmarike, that's enough. You've been a great help."

"Yeah! Hey, was I useful? Hey, hey!"

The loyal dog looks up at me, wagging her tail.

I pat her head.

"You were super useful. Good job, good job."

"Ehehe~"

"You there! Thank you for your support!"

One of the magicians jumped down from the spire.

Manipulating the wind, he landed nearby. He was a staff-wielding magician, still in his early twenties.

"We are the royal magician corps. You seem to be an elven marksman, are you an adventurer?"

"Nope. I'm Karmarike, the vice-captain of the Elven village's guardian unit."

"Oh, so you're the deputy official of the Elven national defense force. And your companion... no, you're not together. Are you an adventurer?"

"Yes. I'm Ruruk, and this is Seori. We're just humble adventurers."

"...Hm? I feel like I've heard that name somewhere..."

The magician pondered.

We haven't done anything, so there's no need to tell him specifically.

"By the way, may I ask about the situation on the battlefield? I thought you'd have a clear view from the top of the tower."

"Yes, it's been about three hours since we engaged in battle. We're currently defending at the first wall. The enemy's momentum is fierce, but we're not losing either."

"Should we head there to provide support now?"

"No, it's too late for today. The late-arriving adventurers are being managed in rotations to defend the second wall. Even if you go now, you probably won't get a turn until noon tomorrow."

"I see. You're fighting more strategically than I thought."

"Of course. War isn't about improvising."

"That's informative."

I abandoned my studies of being a lord and the knight order, so I had zero knowledge about war like this.

Anyway, if that's the case, let's rest for today.

The sun is about to set, and Seori is low on magical power too.

"Well then, Seori, shall we get an inn?"

"As you wish!"

"Karmarike, you should return to the Elven village--"

"No way! I'm staying with you tonight!"

"Eh? But surely you can't stay out without permission?"

"I worked hard! Give me a reward!"

Karmarike puffed out her thin chest, asserting her achievement.

Well, I was planning to prepare some kind of reward since I forced her to fight experimentally.

"What kind of reward do you want?"

"I want to have a pajama party with Ruruk-sama!"

"...Is that enough for you?"

"Yep."

She's not very demanding, is she?

"But are you sure? Look, I could give you money or something. I picked up all the parent individual materials that fell, but they won't sell for much."

"I don't have any use for money in the village anyway. Besides, Ruruk-sama, you always go home at night even when you come to play in the village, right? That's why I want to stay over together sometimes!"

"Alright, I got it. Then that's what we'll do."

Well, I guess that much is fine.

The only thing I'm worried about is complaints from the Elven village... but I can just blame it on Karmarike. I know nothing after that.

"Then Seori, is it okay if Karmarike joins us?"

"...Fine."

Seori nodded reluctantly. She's pouting a bit.

Well, Karmarike's performance shone this time. I'll have to ask the shy dragon princess to be patient tonight. Besides, Karmarike is a familiar face, so she probably won't be too wary.

"Well then, we'll be going now. We'll join the battle tomorrow, so please support us."

"Understood. I'll report this to the commander. If you'd like, come to the castle after the war is over. We'll have a reward for you there as well."

"Thank you very much. Well then."

"Ah."

The magician manipulated the wind and jumped across the roofs back to the spire.

As expected of a staff-wielder, he was quite skilled despite his youth.

"Shall we go then?"

"Staying overnight with Ruruk-sama~ Fufufu~"

And so, Seori, Karmarike, and I headed to a nearby inn to stay the night.

Perhaps because of the war, we were lucky to be able to stay in a large room for adventurers at a very reasonable price.