Lar Bats

The more he knew, the less safe he was.

Arnold's gaze at him grew colder and colder, and Ace felt an extreme sense of danger.

"Ever since I was little, I've wanted a good friend. You're the smartest person my age that I know. I like your 'Dictionary,' and I deeply admire your 'Logic.' Shall we be friends from now on?"

"It would be my greatest honor to befriend Your Highness. How about we first sign a magical item that can Keep secrets, then have a proper chat?"

"Wonderful!"

Athena spun around happily, tugging at the frosty-faced Arnold. "Uncle, you're a Great Hero. There could be no better witness for our oath than you."

Arnold reluctantly stood between them and pressed both their hands onto the Pact Scroll. "In the name of the descendants of the God of War, I bear witness to the two before me. Ace must Keep secrets regarding the curse Athena tells him. This is an unbreakable oath!"

The Pact Scroll instantly erupted with white light, swallowing them both. In his daze, Ace felt as though something had been branded onto his soul. An unseen restraint had been added, making him unable to reveal the other party's secrets about the curse in any way.

Once the oath was formed, Athena happily invited Ace into the palace and asked him to teach her about logic. Ace, however, felt awful. Though he had not yet discovered any other hidden dangers, the feeling of having his fate beyond his own control was truly terrible.

But since things had already come to this, he could only find a way to adapt to the new situation.

Over the next few days, Ace continued writing Logic at night, taught Athena logic during the day, and took the opportunity to browse the secret knowledge of the nobles in the royal library.

At last, he completed the full version of Logic and included a workbook. After copying out a version for Romon to print, he gave this first complete set of Logic and its workbook to Athena as a gift, then bid her farewell.

"Must you really leave? Can't you stay with me a little longer?"

For a moment, Ace seemed to sense the girl's loneliness. To her, he was a rare playmate. If he were merely an ordinary person, perhaps that would not be so bad. Unfortunately, he had his own extraordinary path to walk, a lonely and arduous road.

"Your Highness, I am determined to establish New Medicine and ease the suffering of all those tormented by illness. New Medicine must travel throughout the city-states and even the Salia region, seeking local remedies, treating all kinds of patients, and collecting and recording every sort of medicinal herb. This is my ideal!"

Ace answered with a righteous expression.

"I truly envy you. Though you are not of divine descent, the radiance of your character far surpasses that of most nobles." Athena stroked the complete set of Logic and workbooks Ace had given her, looking both envious and moved.

"You gave me a gift, so I should give you one too." She rummaged through chests and boxes, found a bracelet, and placed it on Ace's right wrist.

"This is a parting gift for my good friend Ace. It is called the Ring of Protection. When its wearer suffers a fatal injury, it will unleash a protective barrier to shield them. This barrier can withstand several attacks from powerful Low-level Demonic Beasts and can last for nearly half an hour at most. After it is activated once, this bracelet must lie dormant for a month before it can be activated again. I hope you can fulfill your ideal and return safely."

Ace was somewhat surprised, and somewhat touched.

After several days of contact, he felt that Athena was indeed pure and innocent by nature, the result of being carefully protected. He had only given her the books in hopes that she would not keep him here any longer. He had not expected to receive such a precious magical item in return. He did not refuse, but accepted it readily.

Having a friend like this was not so bad.

After bidding farewell to Peter, Romon, and the others, Ace left the city-state and rode toward his estate. The sky gradually darkened. On this road he had traveled many times, he felt something strange for the first time. Even the horse beneath him was growing restless.

A swarm of dark bats flew in from the horizon, several dozen of them, plunging straight down toward Ace and his horse. Ace's pupils constricted sharply. His spiritual power sensed a vague rhythm—these were a flock of Low-level Demonic Beasts! He leaped off the horse and rolled repeatedly, dodging most of the bats' attacks.

The horse Ace had been riding was not so fortunate. It was immediately surrounded, chased down, and gnawed apart by the bats. The swarm emitted howls that Ace could not hear, yet the vibrations left his head muddled and his stomach churning.

Enduring the dizziness and nausea, Ace triggered the Calming Technique in his Spellbook, clearing away some of the negative effects. Several bats could not squeeze into the swarm feeding on the horse's corpse and flew toward Ace instead.

Ace rolled left and right in a sorry state, using his spiritual power to connect with his cards. Bats were weak-sighted and nearly blind, so gaze-type spells would be difficult to use against them. The Dizzying Spell made all those within its range undergo a spiritual power check; anyone whose spiritual power was weaker than Ace's would be stunned. Several bats were hit by Ace's Dizzying Spell and fell dizzily to the ground.

Taking advantage of the opening, Ace cast Mechanical Mind on himself, blocking the vile effects of the bats' howls. He then drew his shortsword and finished off the bats.

By then, the bats had devoured the horse's corpse clean, leaving behind nothing but a heap of white bones. One particularly strong bat let out a loud howl. The other bats seemed to receive some kind of command; after circling in the air a few times, they dived toward Ace.

Extreme danger!

In his Mechanical Mind state, Ace's emotions remained calm. He quickly ran through his spells.

I've decided. Activate Beguile Creatures. Target: that particularly strong bat.

The card activated, stirring a mysterious rhythm that condensed into a force of temptation and shot toward the strong bat. It was struck by Beguile Creatures, fluttering and struggling back and forth before finally stopping in midair. Its mouth opened and closed soundlessly, releasing brief, silent howls. The other bats also began circling in the air and no longer attacked Ace.

It worked. As expected, that bat's spiritual power was weaker than his.

After the battle, more than half of Ace's spiritual power had been consumed. Estimating what remained, he could still cast three minor spells.

To prevent any accidents, Ace had the strong bat order the remaining twenty-odd bats to gather on the horse bones. Then he activated a spell card: Dizzying Spell.

Ace picked up his shortsword and stabbed the bats to death one by one. Then, using Acid Conversion, he turned most of the bats into pus. Of the remaining dead bats, he kept three.

He picked up the remaining two by their folded wings. These were rare experimental materials and could not be wasted.

The strong bat circled overhead on guard. By evening, Ace finally arrived at Buku Town. He ordered the strong bat to wait near a dead tree outside town, wrapped the bats in his robe, and headed for the town inn.

"Boss, please give me a clean room. Prepare some hot milk and bread, along with hot water for a bath, and send them to my room."

Ace spoke wearily to the innkeeper at the bar. The owner was a shrewd middle-aged man and had seen Ace before. When Ace first came to Buku Town to buy his estate, he had spent a night here.

"Welcome, great scholar. You look rather tired. Would you like a glass of pure malt beer? I see you've been injured. Did you run into some trouble on the road?"

"Don't mention it. I was attacked by Demonic Beasts. Several terrible bats attacked me. My poor horse was gnawed clean to the bone by them. Luckily, they were too busy feeding. I managed to stab several to death, and the rest fled."

"You must have encountered Lar Bats. A few of these Demonic Beasts are not frightening. But once they gather in a swarm of more than twenty, they can easily wipe out a small squad of militia. I never expected our great scholar to be not only lucky enough not to encounter a swarm of bats, but also such an outstanding warrior. Otherwise, I would never have seen you again."

Ace nodded, still somewhat shaken. "From the sound of it, you know these Demonic Beasts well?"

"Haha, these Demonic Beasts appear in swarms every September and do not stop until winter arrives. It seems they migrate from the Lar Mountains to some island out at sea. During the migration, they attack living creatures along the way. Anyone from Buku Town knows to stay home in September and avoid going out."

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