Chapter 28: The Great Search
There was a small incident, but during that day’s camping, Fran hung thinly sliced meat on the branches around the campsite.
《Everyone, it’s meat~》
《Meat♪》
《Thank you~, Master》
《That’s mine~》
《First come, first served》
Killer Bees flew around Fran, landing on and biting into the meat, while Rebun watched resentfully.
Even Fran, who feared the wild dance of a large swarm of Killer Bees, seemed to have completely gotten used to a few dozen of them.
That guy Rebun had just drunk a delicious Potion, so he shouldn’t be able to taste tonight’s meal; serves him right.
On the second and third day, as we headed deeper into the forest in search of Brown Bears, we occasionally encountered unexpected beasts.
If there were too many beasts to avoid, it was Fran’s turn to step up.
This time it was a Horn Boar, a giant creature about 1.5m tall and over 3m long.
Since it looked like it would charge straight at us, Dorado shouted, “Fran, Shelter first!” and gathered everyone.
The Shelter enveloped all eight of us, and just as we were breathing a sigh of relief, a thunderous roar
With the Shelter easily withstanding the Horn Boar’s charge, Dorado and the others were also relieved.
“This expedition feels so much safer.”
“Yeah, a Horn Boar this big would be a handful.”
“Yeah, for its size, it’s surprisingly agile, and its tackles and tusks are incredible.”
It’s certainly impressive. At this rate, my Camping Barrier might even collapse.
I’ve heard it can withstand attacks from Orcs and buffalo-like creatures, but I should get an upgraded version soon.
Fran created an arrow slit and was about to attack with Stone Lance from the front, but I stopped her.
“Fran, there’s a risk it’ll be deflected from the front. Wait until it shows its side.”
“Shinya’s right. If you’re aiming from the front, go for the forelegs, but even for its size, they’re thin and hard to hit, so it’s better to wait.”
《Bee-chans, you can sting the ears of that big guy in front of us as much as you want.》
《Yay!》
《I’m first~♪》
《I’ll go to the other side!》
《I’ll go for the nostrils!》
“Hey! Something’s wrong with it!”
“Isn’t it acting annoyed?”
“Fran, when it turns sideways, aim for its head or heart!”
“Yes!” …
“Hey, hey, that was a pretty loud sound…”
“Ah, it’s staggering!”
“Fran, hit it again!”
“It’s like a rock head, so aim for the heart!”
<…Hah!>
This time, a Stone Lance pierced its flank. It staggered and its hindquarters collapsed, but it was still alive.
“Alright, now for the finishing blow. Stay calm and do it!”
《Master, something big is coming.》
《Something big? …How many are there?》
《Just one. But it’s so furry, our stingers probably won’t reach.》
《I hate this guy!》
《It’s the one that destroys our nests!》
《Its nose is hard and its ears are full of fur, I hate it!》
《Is it coming towards us?》
《Yes, from the opposite side of the one that just fell.》
Hey, hey, give me a break.
The one that destroys Killer Bee nests… it couldn’t be a Brown Bear, could it?
“We did it!”
“Fran, well done!”
“It’s been a while since we got such a big one.”
“Quiet! There’s another one!”
“No way.”
“You can’t be serious, another one near such a big catch?”
“Dorado-san, take a look from here. It’s a Black Bear.”
A moment ago, (Tame) [Black Bear, 74] appeared, so there’s no mistake.
“Damn it, it really is a Black Bear! Why are there two huge beasts so close to each other?”
“Fran, you can still go, right?”
“I’ll do it!”
“It’s probably better not to aim for the head.”
“This time, I’ll take it down in one shot.”
“Huh, it’s heading for the fallen Horn Boar!”
“Is it trying to snatch our prey?”
“To it, it’s just food lying there.”
“Even if we ask Fran to handle it, it’s bad if it shows us its rear.”
“Fran, shoot a Stone Lance into its butt. If it gets angry and stands up, its orientation won’t matter, right?”
She nodded once, began chanting internally, <…Hah!>
A Stone Arrow deeply pierced its butt, and with a tremendous roar
<…Hah!> A Stone Lance was sucked into the back of the standing Black Bear; it twitched, and its movements stopped.
(Tame) [Black Bear, 10……]
(Tame) [Black Bear, 4……]
(Tame) [Black Bear, 1…] Looks like it’s kicked the bucket.
“Looks like it’s dead. Congratulations, Fran. You’re a full-fledged Earth Magic User now.”
“Thank you very much, Shinya-san.”
“Well done, Fran.”
“Whoa, taking down huge beasts one after another.”
She’s getting her back slapped repeatedly, so maybe I should help her out.
“Don’t slap Fran too much. If the Killer Bees see you, they’ll attack.”
My words made them freeze.
“That’s right. I completely forgot.”
“Good thing we’re inside the Shelter.”
“There probably aren’t any more, right?”
“Seriously, a third one would be too much to ask.”
“Put this one in Fran’s Magic Bag. Mine won’t fit it unless we cut off its limbs.”
“Will it fit~?”
It was lying with its limbs outstretched, so it looked like a tight fit for Fran’s 4-30 Magic Bag, and it would be better if Rebun didn’t find out about the 5-90.
“Fran, it looks like a tight fit for your Magic Bag, so I’ll put it in mine.”
When I said it with a glance, she nodded lightly and bowed her head, saying, “Please do.”
“What, Shinya, you have something other than a Rank 3?”
“It’s a family heirloom Magic Bag. It’s Rank 5, so it should fit.”
“Ho, you’ve got quite something there.”
I tied the Horn Boar’s front and hind legs, pulled it closer, and pop into the Magic Bag.
The Black Bear looked like it would fit as is, so I popped it in, and it fit.
“Good grief, we came to hunt Brown Bears and ended up catching something outrageous.”
“Leader, are we going to keep looking for Brown Bears like this?”
“Yeah, we can’t afford to leisurely head back once. It’ll be bad if the village suffers damage. The place where we found the tracks is another day and a half away. Shinya and Fran have plenty of food, so we should be fine even if the schedule is extended a bit.”
＊ ＊ ＊ ＊ ＊ ＊ ＊
We arrived at the location in question past noon on the second day, but since days had passed, fallen leaves and such had piled up on the tracks.
Even after searching the surroundings, we couldn’t find any new tracks, so we called off the search before dusk.
The next day, we searched the area again but found no leads. Before dusk, as I was placing raw meat on tree branches to feed the Bee-chans, Dorado-san spoke to me.
“Hey Shinya, you can make requests to the Killer Bees, right?”
“Yes, simple things like ‘help’ or ‘stop’.”
“Couldn’t we use the Killer Bees to search for the Brown Bear?”
While he called it a consultation, it was likely a suggestion based on his feeling that I could communicate with the Killer Bees to some extent.
Following tracks covered in fallen leaves would just take time, and if the tracks disappeared, that would be the end of it.
I could ask the Bee-chans to search, but then it might seem like I’m controlling specific Killer Bees.
“I’ll try asking the Bee-chans tomorrow morning, but please don’t expect too much.”
“Bee-chan?”
“Ah, ‘Killer Bee’ is long, so I call them Bee-chan.”
＊ ＊ ＊ ＊ ＊ ＊ ＊
After breakfast, while I was butchering a Horned Rabbit I got from Fran, I asked the Bee-chans to find their comrades and call them over.
A short while after placing chopped meat on the surrounding trees, I heard, 《This is No. 20~. I brought them~!》 and soon, a deep buzzing of wings also became audible.
“Fran, get everyone into the Shelter!”
“Got it! Dorado-san, a huge swarm is coming, so please come over here!”
Hearing Fran’s scream-like voice, everyone hurriedly gathered, and were enveloped by the Shelter in the nick of time.
《Master, we’re back~♪》
《Master, did you call for us~?》
《It’s Master~!》
《Ah, there’s meat~♪》
《Everyone, I have a favor to ask, but please eat the meat first.》
《Is it okay~?》
《Thank you~》
《Meat~♪》
Enveloped in the deep buzzing, it resonated in my stomach; the surroundings grew dim, and we were completely surrounded by Killer Bees.
《This is No. 41~. There were lots of comrades~!》
《No. 6, found them~♪ They say they want to greet Master~》
Hey, hey, that’s an incredible number, but how many swarms is that?
“Hey, that’s a huge number of Killer Bees!”
“Fran, is he always like this?”
“Usually it’s just a few dozen, and even when a swarm comes, it’s not this many. Though it’s still enough to look like a mosquito pillar.”
“Standing in the middle of that… he’s not in his right mind.”
“This is the biggest swarm I’ve ever seen… I wonder if that’s enough meat for them.”
“Wait, you’re worried about the meat?”
“Whenever a swarm comes, he offers them meat as thanks for listening to his requests.”
《Thank you for the meat, Master.》
《What are we doing~?》
《Where are we going~?》
《When you’re done eating, look at this.》
I took the Black Bear out of the Magic Bag and placed it down.
《Ah, it’s that furball bastard!》
《This guy destroyed our nest!》
《It’s the one our stingers can’t reach!》
《Are you Master’s messenger?》
《No, that’s not it. Subjugation… it’s dead. I want you to search for one similar to this.》
《Okay~, leave it to me!》
《Master’s requests are my command!》
《Where is it?》
《Starting with the one who ate the meat, can you fly and search in the direction I point?》
《Here I go~!》
《Which way? Where’s the finger?》
《Alright, let’s begin. If you haven’t found it by the time the sun is high in the sky, return to the nest.》
I pointed east, and as Bee-chan and the others began to fly, I slowly started turning clockwise.
As I turned, the direction they flew off in shifted from east to south, then to west, and concluded as I turned from north back to east.
“Amazing! The Killer Bees are flying off in the direction Shinya points!”
“After seeing that, it’s hard to believe him when he says he’s not controlling the Killer Bees…”
“If he could control that many, he’d be invincible!”
“Dorado-san, are there really Tamers who can control bees?”
“I’ve never heard of such a thing. I’ve only ever heard that animals are the only things that can be Tamed.”