SML Ch 44

Chapter 44

Thus, Reynald, the accompanying princes, and a few comparatively idle villagers set out toward the lake said to be in the east, carrying fishing rods.

“Alex, didn’t you flee saying you had work to do? You seem to be following along quite naturally.”

“I–I didn’t run away. Upon reconsideration, it didn’t seem all that important, so I thought it might be better to help out with the fishing instead….”

Reynald let out a quiet chuckle and shrugged. Though only Alex, Volant, and Lyndon had followed from among the villagers, the twenty knights escorting the princes had all tagged along, making for a sizable party.

The road to the lake was barren, much like most of the domain. Perhaps because it was daytime, there were hardly any monsters in sight. There wasn’t all that much to see, and yet Arun and Serna, for some reason, looked around at the scenery with great curiosity, as if everything was fascinating to them.

During this time, Reynald absentmindedly fiddled with the fishing rod in his hand. The metal rod Heide had dug out from some storage was nothing like the flimsy plaything a local child might swing around for fun. It was remarkably sturdy and flexible, unlikely to snap or break easily under ordinary strain.

“This fishing rod… is made of quite excellent material. Volant, have you ever fished with this before?”

“I do sometimes in spring or autumn. But only when we’re lucky.”

“Lucky?”

“Well, there are times when we’re fortunate enough not to be starving that year, so we still have some energy left, right? At times like that, we go to the river together for a picnic of sorts and fish. It’s fulfilling and fun. And the fish here taste pretty good, too.”

So, basically, there were even times they attempted fishing when they were too weak from hunger, and someone ended up getting eaten instead. Yet here they were, confidently bringing the princes along to fish—bravery, or perhaps sheer audacity, taken to the extreme.

No, come to think of it, these people used to wander into the Ratmen village frost zones without hesitation, didn’t they? It’s not exactly in their nature to avoid danger just because it could be life-threatening…

Most likely, recommending fishing to the princes came from the same mindset. It might be risky, sure, but if it went well, it would be both fun and filling—why not? That strange optimism radiated from Volant’s demeanor. His attitude was so devoid of malice—almost refreshing—that even the princes followed him readily without complaint.

“Your name was Volant, wasn’t it? Could you explain in more detail about the fish here? If there are differences from what we know, it might cause problems during the hunt.”

Serna, smiling brightly as always, peppered Volant with questions. The youngest prince was curious by nature, but he seemed especially intrigued by the people of this domain. Yesterday, too, he had eagerly questioned Heide about everything while being shown to his room.

“Uh, well, we don’t really know what fish are like in other regions, so it’s hard to say what’s different….”

“If you describe their traits, I can figure out the differences. How big do the fish here usually get? If they’re big enough to eat people, they must be enormous.”

“It depends on the species, but the ones we catch most often are usually over three meters.”

“It’s rare to find fish of that size in an ordinary lake. So, they’re more like monsters than animals, I take it?”

“I think so. But, Your Highness, honestly, I always get confused about the difference between monsters and regular animals. Isn’t it basically anything that isn’t dangerous to humans that counts as an animal?”

“Not dangerous? Didn’t you say those fish eat people…?”

“When they’re in the water, they don’t eat the people outside the water, right? So, in the end, aren’t they basically animals? Honestly, I think the bears near the lake eat more people than they do.”

“There are man-eating bears near the lake too…? And you’re just telling us this now?”

“Aren’t there bears pretty much everywhere? I didn’t think it was worth mentioning.”

“Man-eating bears aren’t everywhere!”

Watching Serna, who usually led conversations with ease, being pushed around by Volant’s nonsensical logic was oddly entertaining. Truthfully, even Reynald found Volant’s reasoning a bit unhinged, yet the locals seemed to accept it as perfectly normal. Everyone nodded along to his words.

Arun, however, watched Serna—floundering in the exchange—with a somewhat unimpressed expression before speaking.

“If you hadn’t slept through lessons on monster traits, Serna, you would know this. Monsters, unlike ordinary animals, are affected by magic, which makes them larger and stronger.”

“Wow, Big Prince, you sure know a lot!”

“My name isn’t Big Prince. It’s Arun. To answer more precisely, ordinary fish would hardly grow to over three meters in a mere village lake. There wouldn’t be enough food to sustain such bulk in the first place.”

“Now that you mention it… Oh, right! I just remembered something—Ratmen and Swines seem to eat surprisingly little for their size. I happened to notice they usually make do with just a bit of bread and a few pieces of fruit.”

“Ratmen and Swines here are herbivorous…? In any case, if their intake appears small, it’s because they supplement their lacking nutrition with the naturally occurring magic in this land. That’s why monsters thrive in places saturated with magic. In areas where magic is abnormally concentrated, monster sightings are far more frequent.”

“So that’s why. Thanks for explaining!”

Who would have thought the two of them would get along so well? While Arun and Volant excitedly conversed, Serna quietly sidled up to Reynald and whispered, “Those two seem oddly similar in temperament….”

Reynald somewhat agreed. It wasn’t so much that their personalities were similar, but rather their shared level of nonchalance. Volant didn’t seem particularly intimidated regardless of whether he was speaking to princes or commoners, and Arun, similarly, spoke to both younger siblings and village youths without much distinction.

“So then, what was it—magical energy seeping from the ground? If that decreases, do the monsters’ numbers also go down?”

“There’s no guarantee, but it’s possible. Reduced magic won’t make existing monsters vanish outright, but without the extra energy they need to survive, they’ll naturally die out.”

“I don’t fully understand since it’s complicated… Oh, so basically, the monsters will need to eat more, making survival harder, right?”

“More or less, yes. But deliberately reducing magical energy is no easy task. Unless someone intentionally flooded this land with magic and you could simply remove the source, naturally occurring magic is something even mages can’t do much about….”

Volant, surprisingly, was quite the attentive learner, readily absorbing explanations he was hearing for the first time. Oddly, however, Arun kept sneaking glances at Reynald as he spoke, as if gauging his reaction. When Reynald remained impassive, Arun eventually gave up and looked away.

What’s that about? Does he have something he wants to say to me?

Perhaps he should ask when they were alone later. Reynald was still mulling this over when Lyndon, who had been walking briskly at the front, shouted:

“There, just below that hill—it’s the lake! We should be seeing it any moment!”

Everyone’s gaze followed Lyndon’s pointing finger. Sure enough, he was right. Beyond the seemingly endless expanse of wilderness, where the horizon stretched unbroken, a lake came into view, ringed by trees just beginning to bud with fresh green leaves.

The sight widened Arun and Serna’s eyes in shock. It was understandable—they had assumed, from Arun’s earlier description, that this so-called lake would be nothing more than a modest little rural pond, typical of any countryside.

But now, seeing it with their own eyes, it was clear it was far beyond that scale. Even Reynald found himself gaping at the sight.

“…Couldn’t you have mentioned there was such a massive lake here earlier, Volant?”

“But you can’t even get close to it until the weather warms up. And honestly, it’s still a bit dangerous even now. As I mentioned before, the bears just waking from hibernation are still wandering about.”

The lake before them was vast enough that fish four meters long could swim freely as part of its ecosystem without seeming out of place. Its sheer scale was such that it seemed it ought to be marked on maps. Referring to it vaguely as “that lake to the east” hardly did it justice.

The lake was so broad that its far shore wasn’t visible. Its waters were a strikingly pure, icy blue, belying its nature as a monster den. It exuded such a serene and fresh atmosphere that it wouldn’t have been strange to see countless animals gathering to drink—if not for what they all saw next.

“…And it’s not even the bears that are the problem here. Right now, in plain sight, are monsters—plenty of them. Why do I get the feeling you’ve been conveniently omitting important details today?”

“Do you mean the frogs? Frogs are basically found by every lakeshore, aren’t they? Those guys aren’t even that aggressive, so it’s fine!”

Reynald could only stare at the frog-headed monsters—Anura, each about a meter tall—knowing full well they likely carried enough deadly toxin to kill a person in under thirty seconds.

Admittedly, they didn’t look aggressive at the moment. Far off, oblivious to the approaching humans, the Anura were peacefully minding their own business—mending nets, cleaning fish innards, and otherwise tending to whatever served as their livelihood.