GILF Hunter

’Hold on tight!’

The mercenaries all lowered their bodies and hurriedly grabbed nearby rocks.

Along with a monstrous cry, the ground shook as if a massive earthquake had occurred. It was the vibration of Behemoth struggling.

To struggle this much... meant that the attack just now was highly effective.

With that thought in mind, everyone pressed their bodies close to the ground and waited for Behemoth’s thrashing to end.

Behemoth’s rampage did not last long.

Soon, with a shock that shook the earth, Behemoth completely slumped to the ground.

When no further movement was felt after that final massive impact, the mercenaries who had been lying flat slowly raised their heads.

Did we really get him...

A few of the mercenaries, exchanging glances, cautiously stood up and went down to the pit where Behemoth’s source had been to check.

No mana could be felt anymore from the place where Behemoth’s mana source once resided.

Rin raised her head and looked up at the sky.

Far off at the top of the canyon, the figures of people looking down appeared small. If she looked closely, she could see some people waving what looked like flag signals.

They hadn’t prearranged a specific signal, but given the atmosphere, it seemed they were signaling success.

If it had been a failure, the attacked Behemoth would have continued to rampage, and the reserve unit at the top of the canyon would have been busy responding instead of leisurely watching from above.

Finally feeling relieved, Rin let out a long sigh.

The other mercenaries were also letting out sighs of relief.

To think they truly destroyed such a dense mana source in one go.

Although it took a considerable amount of preparation time, the number of mercenaries capable of such a feat was rare even in Labyrinth city.

’She really took it down with a single strike...’

’I’d only heard stories about magic swords, but seeing one in person is no joke.’

The nearby mercenaries naturally gathered around Rin, each offering a word.

’But why is she still Rank B? She’ll probably rise to Rank A within the year.’

’I hope your revenge succeeds as well.’

’To build up a curse this strong... it must have been a truly terrible enemy.’

’Ah... ye, yes.... Thank you.’

Everyone offered congratulations to Rin, but none asked to shake hands or came too close.

It was due to the thick aura of erosion emanating from Rin.

Perhaps because her control over mana was still unrefined, she would remain in this state for a while after using mana infusion.

It was only a lingering scent and didn’t actually spread erosion to the surroundings, but it was an aura that anyone who had been in the Labyrinth would naturally avoid.

Rin had already experienced this reaction through her own members, so she wasn’t particularly disappointed.

’...?’

When the situation had settled somewhat, Airi noticed several mercenaries wandering around picking up stone fragments.

As she watched with questioning eyes, a mercenary who made eye contact approached Airi and handed her a stone fragment he had just picked up.

’Ah, Lady Airi! A gift.’

’What... is this?’

’It’s a spoil from this expedition!’

’...Isn’t this, uh, just an ordinary rock?’

To Airi’s eyes, no matter how she looked at it, it seemed like an ordinary piece of rock.

...Is he talking about a souvenir?

While Airi was thinking that, Ariel, who was nearby, provided a more detailed explanation.

’We took down a monster like this; the Guild won’t just stay quiet.’

’Ah... ye, yes. I suppose so.’

’While Behemoth was alive, we kept it a secret because there was no benefit in the city folk knowing... but now that the subjugation is a success, there’s no need to hide it. They’ll announce it grandly, of course.’

While Behemoth wasn’t exactly a legendary monster, it was certainly a rare monster that only a few had ever seen in person.

It was a monster so rare that even those who had heard stories from someone who saw it were hard to find.

But now, a party had appeared that actually met and subjugated a Behemoth. Naturally, the attention of the whole city would be focused on them for a while.

’How much would a fragment brought from the actual subjugation of such a monster sell for? Everyone, pick one up. It’ll be enough to replace at least one piece of equipment.’

’...’

It was a piece of know-how directly from Rank A mercenaries.

The Rank B mercenaries who had been blankly standing there nodded in admiration and belatedly began scanning the area to pick the most impressive-looking stone fragments.

＊　＊　＊

Ian, who had been watching the battle from atop the cliff, also confirmed the success of the Behemoth subjugation.

Behemoth, after struggling for a moment, finally could no longer stand and collapsed to the ground, immobilized.

It meant Rin had successfully destroyed Behemoth’s mana source.

Ian confirmed Behemoth’s state and nodded, saying,

’It’s done. Let’s send the signal.’

’Yes!’

A firework launched from the top of the canyon rose high into the sky.

It was the operation termination signal for the reserve forces and the barrier team waiting nearby.

And the Guild’s support forces, who were hurriedly gathering in case of an emergency, would have seen the signal as well. Guild personnel would arrive soon.

Several people at the Guild, who likely hadn’t slept for a while lately, would finally be able to go home.

Or... they might rush straight to this scene.

Since the chance to see a monster like Behemoth in person doesn’t come often.

Even here, Rank A mercenaries who had seen almost every monster imaginable were all looking down the canyon, admiring Behemoth’s figure.

’Man... the price of crystals is going to go up.’

’Crystals?’

A mercenary next to Ian muttered. He was the person who introduced himself as the Vice-Guild Leader of the Ariel Mercenary Group.

The mercenary nodded and explained to Ian.

’This canyon was the closest path connecting to the crystal mines. Now that it’s blocked like this... shipments will be delayed by another two weeks. Since it’ll be hard to find an escort mercenary group on short notice that can spare two weeks, a massive surcharge will be added to commission fees for a while.’

...It seemed that once you reached the level of a Rank A guild, most vice-guild leaders thought of money problems first, regardless of what amazing thing they were looking at.

＊　＊　＊

’Mika. A signal came from the main force. It’s over.’

’Th-then, can I release the barrier?’

’Most likely? Behemoth seems to have collapsed as well.’

The barrier that had been blocking Behemoth’s advance could no longer maintain its structure and shattered.

Mika, who had been holding her staff, plopped down right there.

The auxiliary mages, who had used most of their mana, were sitting in a similar state to Mika. Everyone was on the verge of mana exhaustion.

’Phew... it’s been years since I’ve used up my mana like this.’

’I almost collapsed halfway through...’

The reality is that there are almost no opportunities to actually use Grand Magic in practice.

Moreover, one usually had to consider what comes after, so using magic with such full force that mana was completely depleted was something they hadn’t experienced since they were novices.

Everyone rubbed their throbbing heads, enduring the dizziness that rushed in due to their empty mana.

Lia, who had been on guard duty, looked at Mika and said,

’Good job. You really blocked Behemoth.’

’I thought I was going to die...’

Even Mika herself had attempted it while thinking this might be impossible after seeing Behemoth’s size.

It was surprising even to herself that she somehow succeeded.

Mika, whose headache had subsided to some extent, noticed the mages sitting nearby were hurriedly writing something.

It was a log recording information about the magic ritual they participated in today.

’It’s my first time seeing Barrier Magic in person... it’s much more robust than I thought.’

’The mana consumption was quite high, but to think it could block a monster of this scale...’

One mage, who had scribbled notes as fast as possible, looked at Mika and made a subtle suggestion.

’Miss Mika. I’d like to submit the record of this magic to the association; would you mind if we put our names together?’

’A record...?’

Upon hearing the explanation, it was something like a report recording various pieces of information about the magic ritual one participated in.

It felt like the commission reports mercenaries submit to the guild after a job, or a Labyrinth exploration log.

’What’s the difference if my name is on it?’

’If the person directly involved participates, the credibility of the data is high, so we can get more points.... Ah, you can share the points too, Miss Mika. Besides, data on Barrier Magic is rare, so you’ll be able to get even more.’

’Points...?’

Since Mika had lived her life detached from the Mage Association, their system was completely foreign to her.

’What do you do with points?’

’You use them to view other important records... or you can receive support in the form of association facilities or materials.’

...Ah. Guild coins?

Mika, understanding it by substituting it with the more familiar mercenary guild system, nodded. It seemed mage associations had their own similar system.

Recalling how Ian frequently visited the guild’s archive, Mika asked about the Mage Association’s record room.

’Is that record thing very helpful?’

’Yes. The volume is quite large, so just looking through it once in a while when you have time helps a lot. It was especially helpful back when I was a novice mage. Most beginner materials can be viewed almost for free.’

No wonder all the auxiliary mages were so skilled in rituals. It seemed they learned by looking up these records.

Mika fell into thought for a moment.

In the past, she had detested the Mage Association since she lived a life detached from things like research, but now that she had started research late, the story had changed. She was in a situation where she needed even the smallest bit of help as much as possible.

...Could my research get some help too? It would be helpful if I could see similar experimental records.

With that thought in mind, Mika subtly asked one of the mages.

’Um... can I submit that record and get points even if I’m not a member?’

’Of course. Normally, they don’t accept mediocre data, but... since everyone will be curious about Barrier Magic, they’ll welcome you if you submit it yourself.’

Mika, who had occasionally followed Ian and watched these negotiation scenes from the side, caught a general sense of how much she could get by looking at the way the other person’s eyes shifted.

It seemed like something that would sell for a very high price.