As expected, Downs' thoughts started wandering off again:
No wonder he's my master! His knowledge is so profound. I'm afraid I could study my whole life and still not learn it all.
[Knowledge] is power!
That wasn't just his master's catchphrase; it was an unbreakable truth of the magical world.
When would he be as magically powerful as his master? No, not power—[knowledge]!
Just then, perhaps because he'd eaten a little too much today, Downs burped. A slightly chilly breath rolled out of his mouth like a cloud of smoke.
Wait! Master said mist was a conductor. Could combining lightning with some kind of conductor make it even more powerful?
Downs suddenly understood. His eyes flew wide open.
"I get it! Master pretended to be angry with the Embassy, then took the chance to kill a White Dragon he couldn't stand. He planned it all. He knew we'd bring the White Dragon meat back, so he deliberately pretended it would give him diarrhea if he ate it, then let me have most of the dragon meat. No wonder I've been sensing the Frost element so much more strongly lately. It was all part of Master's plan."
At the thought, two streams of excited tears shot from Downs' eyes. "Master! Master's been so good to me! He never says it, but he really cares about me... Sob, sob, sob..."
Having lost his father as a child, Downs was suddenly overcome by a warmth he hadn't felt in a long time.
"I—I have to do something to repay Master for his kindness!" Downs immediately started thinking. "Is there something I can make that Master would like?"
He surveyed the area. Though it would take a while to walk from one end of the small valley to the other, nearly everything was visible at a glance.
After a moment's thought, Downs simply jumped into the Cold Pool and swam back out through the waterfall.
"Since Master already killed the White Dragon that was prowling around here, there shouldn't be any powerful magical beasts nearby, right?"
It was a rule of nature. When the ruler of a territory was killed, the whole area experienced a brief power vacuum until a new ruler arrived to claim the fertile hunting grounds.
Downs' stroll might have looked reckless, but he thought he was safe.
"With Lone Peak at the center, I should be safe within five miles in every direction. I can handle the small magical beasts myself, and Master can deal with the big ones."
Sometimes, ignorance really was bliss.
Birds of a feather flock together. Anyone named Quijote had to be at least a little reckless. So there he was, sauntering through the woods that had once been the Ice Dragon's hunting ground.
As expected, Downs ran into trouble before he'd gone a mile.
"Hm? What's that...?"
A horse's whinny rang down from the sky, catching his attention.
Following the sound, Downs looked up at the gray sky and saw what seemed to be a strange rainbow diving out of the roiling clouds.
A rainbow in a gray sky stood out like a lighthouse in the dark. It was impossible to miss.
Even more so when a large flock of evil, fire-wreathed flying creatures was hot on its heels.
The flapping "balls of fire" circled around the rainbow, clawing and pecking at it.
Downs stared blankly for a moment, then looked closer. The rainbow was actually a magnificent little foal.
It had no wings, and its coat was bright silver. But its mane, tail, and the hair streaming behind its hooves were all rainbow-colored.
It galloped through the sky, rapidly stamping all four hooves in midair, using the Wind Element as a foothold.
If the pursuing Fire Bats hadn't been faster, the silver horse would have been the most eye-catching thing in the entire sky.
It was in terrible shape.
It had at least twenty wounds, and the worst was a horrifying gash over a meter long, stretching from its left leg to its belly. Silver blood kept spraying from it.
What surprised Downs was that the Rainbow Horse was falling toward the woods where he stood.
This was... an opportunity!?
The magic within Downs surged. His heart pounded, and the elements began gathering around him.
His muscles tensed instinctively.
He was going to ambush them!
Flying horse or Fire Bats, he'd take them all down.
Then Downs thought of something. If he used a powerful lightning strike, would he blacken half the horse's head, like Master had when he killed the White Dragon? Lord Ganis and the others had said that would cut the dragon head's value by at least half. Master might not care... but horsehide could be made into boots. Silver boots with a rainbow mane would look beautiful. If he brought Master an intact hide, Master would definitely be happy.
With that thought, Downs immediately changed his mind.
He took a deep breath, and the magic within him surged. Though his reserves weren't all that impressive, his constant training had helped him resonate well with the Wind Element.
At this crucial moment, he started overthinking again.
"Master said conductors could increase the transmission of electrical energy. So if I add this... wouldn't it work even better?" Downs narrowed his eyes and suddenly thrust out his left hand.
A mass of white mist abruptly appeared in the air, swirling like cotton balls dancing in the wind. Each time the light flickered, a cold aura settled over the Fire Bats pursuing the Rainbow Horse.
Then a much larger cloud of white, icy mist spread across hundreds of cubic meters of sky.
For anyone else, trying this would have been like playing with fire.
But Downs had an inexplicable sense that the magic within him remained in a remarkable state of balance.
A subtle feeling—that one plus one was greater than two—began to give him the dizzying sense that his magical abilities were rapidly reaching new heights.
As the Rainbow Horse and Fire Bats stared in surprise at Downs' sudden appearance, a dazzling flash of light lit up his right hand.
The brilliance of [Lightning Chain] became the only melody in the sky the very next second.
Normally, a Formal Mage's [Lightning Chain] couldn't take down a flock of fifteen Fire Bats. Magical attacks and natural lightning alike lost energy as they traveled.
But the affinity for the Frost element he'd gained from eating White Dragon meat had let Downs master [Cloud Mist Technique] without instruction! It was, after all, the White Dragon clan's Talent Skill!
When Cloud Mist Technique, fixed in place around the Fire Bats, worked together with Lightning Chain, they formed a brand-new combo...
If some transmigrator had been there, he would have cried out, "Holy crap! That's original!"
Downs didn't realize that his combo had another, even more brilliant feature.
The winding Lightning Chain struck the Rainbow Horse. Then, because the horse seemed immune to the Wind Element, the lightning reached the Fire Bats without losing any power.
"Bzzzzzt—"
The Fire Bats' audible cries, accompanied by terrifying ultrasonic waves, rushed toward Downs.
The Fire Bats fell from the sky like rain, but Downs was hit by their desperate counterattack and groaned in pain. He collapsed, instinctively wrapping his arms around a tree, unable to stand. His limbs convulsed, and he could barely move.
Just then, the Rainbow Horse unexpectedly flew down to him. Only when it reached him did Downs realize it wasn't even fully grown.
It snorted and sniffed him.
Downs gave a bitter smile. "Damn it! I was going to kill you, too. But now I can't bring myself to."
The little silver horse with the rainbow mane blinked with startling intelligence, as if to say, "We're in the same boat!"
Downs touched the blood dripping from his nose, his smile turning even more bitter. He took off his bracer and put it in the horse's mouth for it to carry. "If you can understand me, fly to that Lone Peak and find my master. He's the only one who can save us."
The Rainbow Horse really did understand him. But instead of going to fetch help, it stubbornly grabbed Downs by the clothes and staggered back into the air, wavering as it flew toward the valley that represented hope.
Meanwhile, Lein was busy studying recipes for White Dragon meat. He stared in utter astonishment as the Rainbow Horse came down from the sky with his beloved apprentice in its mouth. His first reaction was to hear a catchy tune rise in his mind:
"You're the one, the one, the one... Sunshine Rainbow Little White Horse!"
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