Isekai Journey Of The Magic Archer

Chapter 374 Mave's Story

[< Long time ago, in our village situated in the middle of this dense forest, all the families of these children and my own family of five, my brothers' sister and mom, lived with every day being a new kind of festive atmosphere.

My dear mother, the eldest and wisest one among us was someone respected by not only every one of us but also other intelligent creatures of the forest.

She... was a wise one. And also a being blessed by all six attributes.

She was a powerful being that was able to use high earth magic to create beautiful gardens or create food for villagers. She could use strong winds to dry lands or even trim, big grass.

She could use the power of flames to destroy the forces threatening our family or use water magic to ease the periodic cruel heat.

She could create light to help others during dark days or create special images with the natural darkness of the world.

She was an amazing creature. Her body was just like a cloud, pure white, while some part at the end of her fur was colorful. She was blessed by all elements with stable power, even though she wasn't a child of nature like your companion.

She was wise in true meaning, but... at the end of the day... she was bound by her race and couldn't overcome her limitations.

But she was always a stubborn person and that attitude at least granted her enough strength to rule the entire central part of this island.

Haaa...

Our lives were peaceful, the whole island had peace in a way, but then... that wretched day came...

Twenty years ago... the ancient evil spirit that had been slumbering deep beneath this island woke up because of some fuck-, some intruders.

And as soon as it woke up, it was filled with rage.

I had seen it with my own eyes and... it was just a swirling mass of impure dark energy.

As soon as it woke up, it finished off the intruders, flew out of its tomb, this very place, and spread devastation throughout this island.

Everywhere it flew, it left destruction in its wake. Trees were uprooted, giant boulders were shattered, and creatures of all kinds were just blasted away by its powerful magic power.

It mostly either killed or captured the beings of the island and eventually reached our home...

It was a small place, but far bigger than this one.

There were also countless flowers around our home, but when that bastard reached us, all the green withered away and the once colorful home that we all loved became black and white...

The enemy... was a master of dark magic.

It smelled the worst thing I had ever encountered in my whole life.

And when this filthy bastard reached our home, it just mindlessly started its massacre...

I was still a child, and these kids weren't even hatched at that time.

Being the youngest and a special one that even my mom recognized, they all did their best to protect me but, in the end, just before my eyes...

...

But mother stood against that creature.

She tried her best to make him calm down and regain his senses.

She tried her best, thinking she could save everyone.

She used grand spells that even that creature couldn't fathom and weakened the spirit and… it actually regained its senses.

But by that time, most of my beloved family was destroyed... and mom was critically injured.

She saved countless beings from the blind slaughter of that bastard, but...

That mother-faking son of a bitch!! He just killed the remaining adults, my big brothers, and sisters, and was about to destroy the eggs!

That good-for-nothing worthless cowered!

But thankfully… it found me interesting, bought me and the eggs in this accursed place, and just threw us here, never even actually showing its face again... >]

Tears unwantedly slid down her clear eyes, and her golden fur, and touched the ground.

And the place where this teardrop touched the ground, a new beautiful flower instantly grew up.

A beautiful blue glowing flower grew so beautifully that even I was astonished by this.

And the flower wasn't alone. Some blades of fresh grass also accompanied it.

This was the effect of her high affinity with high earth attributes and her special skill [Nature's power].

Her power was comparable to a [Florist]. Though not at that level, I think she can at least rejuvenate a small piece of desolate land if she can make this beautiful garden in a deep cave with almost no water or futile soil like this one.

But her tears were sad. Something I did not like.

So... I just picked her up, even though she was super heavy, almost like a block of pure metal, it was manageable.

Caressing her fluffy golden fur, I tried to calm down this now surprised fluffy furball.

"You are strong, Mave... very strong, if I say so. I don't know many who would love their family like you do and protect them with such great devotion.

You couldn't do anything when that bastard killed your family. But it wasn't your fault. You were young and naturally couldn't do anything.

Yes, you were weak at that time.

But now things are different, right? Now... you have a big family to look after.

You gained strength to better protect this family you so dearly cherish, right?

So don't worry... you are free now~.

We will defeat that bastard with whatever means needed.

You won't have to live in this desolate place from now on. You can again live in a big place that you deserve.

You're a great mother... and I know my own mom and aunts will like you a lot~."

I was smiling brightly, and she had calmed down, so she too gave me a thankful smile.

But the children who had seen her cry a moment ago were silently crying on their own.

Their tears were also sad and not just me, but she also didn't like these innocent tears.

She jumped down from my hug and once again embraced them.

[[ *They look adorable...* ]]

'It's the moments like these that I feel grateful for my memory...'

I can show this scene to Rein and I know she will just love it~.

'Oh... right.'

[[ "Celes, what's she doing now?" ]]

[[ ...Oh. Yes, master. Sorry, I was absorbed in their cuteness.

Sister Elle finished the skeletons a while ago and now she is on her way to the undead hounds. She should be able to finish them off far quicker than the skeletons. ]]

[[ "Which means we have to move too. Did you see what's ahead of us?" ]]

[[ Hmm~. They are big monsters with long noses and green skin. There are also some big wooden bats in their hands. There's a similar but bigger creature with gray skin which has great magic power and a wand-like thing. ]]

[[ "Most probably trolls. Alright, thanks Celes~." ]]

[[ Hehe. Yesss~. ]]

So, I will have to face some difficult creatures now.

Just that mage would be a problem, but overall, everything should be alright.

Well, their cuteness overwhelms my tension...

"Haaa..."

I sighed with a smile as the furballs finished their special moment.

Mave calmed the kids, talked with them for a while, and then returned her attention to me.

I looked at every one of them with a warm gaze and they smiled with... their mouth closed so they looked cute.

[< "Let's go..." >]

I smile, and the children nodded with a smile, but Mave had a confused expression on her face.

[< But how will you fight the opponents ahead with us there? Won't we all just be a hindrance more than anything? >]

[< "Hmmm, yes. Why don't you stay in my storage space until I reach home then? I will call Mave out during the spirit raid and you can watch from the side with our families." >]

[< Storage... space? Do you mean something like personal storage skills? But... how can we live in a closed space for such a long time? >]

'She didn't even question if living creatures can even stay in my storage space. She actually trusts me that much...'

The smile on my face deepened, and I shook my head at this cute, worried person.

[< "My storage space is special. Instead of explaining, why don't you experience it yourself first?" >]

I extended my hand and, though confused; she walked forward and her head touched my fingers.

'White crack.'

The familiar white crack that only I could see opened behind her and her body vanished inside the endless space in that place.

She vanished without any precursor of anything which shocked the children.

They were creatures that could feel Mana, but… they didn't sense anything. The natural aura she possessed also must have vanished with her, so this was even more catastrophic for them.

[< Mama? >]

[< Mama!? Where did she go?! >]

[< M-mama!!! >]

They were confused, and some even got afraid that something had happened to their mama.

I didn't want to see them crying again, so I just called the white crack back and took her out of that space.

And she soon as she came back, her eyes still open and looking in the direction they were looking at before she vanished, she heard the sudden cries of her children.

[< W-what happened? W-why are you all suddenly crying? >]

'She must be confused...'

In the white crack, the truth called [Time] actually didn't exist.

I don't know just how that was possible. It actually shouldn't be possible.

Maybe the time there was just too slow it seemed to be stopped, but when I put alive creatures inside it, time practically stops for them and when they come back, they would be in exactly the same position as they were before going in.

The same thing happened to her...

For her, it was just a moment as short as a blink, but for these children, it was some solid seconds.

[< Mamaaaaa! Mama vanished for a while! >]

[< Mama actually disappeared! We couldn't even sense mama's energy! >]

She was confused by their sudden hugs and looked at me.

I sighed with a smile and shook my head as I looked at her.

[< "Special, right?" >]

She was confused, but she just shook her head... there was only a head, yes, but whatever...

With a new smile after calming her children, she nodded at me with eyes full of absolute trust...

[< We will be in your care. >]

[< "I know you will be happy~." >]

***

"When will big brother come back...?"

"Soon. They went on a short trip, so they should be back in a day or two. Don't worry~. I know they will be alright~."

"Hmm... he will be alright, right?"

"Definitely~. You know Celes and big sister Elle are with him, right? They aren't doing anything dangerous, anyway."

"You know where they went?"

"No, cute one. I know because I know. I can feel him, you know."

"Even if he is far away?"

"Even if he is far away in the sky~."

"Wow~! Sister Zoe is amazing~!"

"Huhuhu. I'm not that amazing~. My Anna is the most amazing~!"

"Hehehe~."

Two gorgeous young girls, sitting in a small pink room filled with beautiful dolls, were dressing up a small cat... or more accurately, a miniaturized tiger.

The tiger was unwilling. The older girl knew what this little one was doing would be madness in normal circumstances, but even the cat herself couldn't yield to the charms of the little girl.

The tiger had an unwilling expression, but she was just helplessly wearing the specially made dress of the young girl.

Well, they had a cheerful expressions, and the tiger wasn't particularly offended despite this grave act. She had become accustomed to things like these over time, anyway.

She wanted to go spend some time with her hubby, but, well, playing with these cute girls was also fun.

So... a normal afternoon was going on in this house, with everyone doing their own work.

But the two people these girls were worried about... were going to face an opponent that would be 'a bit' outside of their predictions, which would force them to show something more than they might have thought...