80. I’m a Fairy Too!

If I could, I wouldn’t just want to refuse; I’d even want to give the eyes in front of me the middle finger. But soon I realized: compared to the other Nilu fairies, the wind fairy Magnis seemed to be the one who hated me the most. She didn’t even need me to gesture; seeing that I was completely unwilling to hand over Icarus, after a few attempts at persuasion, this fairy simply couldn’t hold back any longer and openly revealed her hostility toward me.

“Eu·Qi·Li·De, don’t think your ‘King’ status means anything; it was given to you by the master! You’re so ungrateful while the master is busy, I’d love nothing more than to chop you into pieces right now!”

Now, aside from following the script and knowing in advance what kind of attack Magnis would launch against me so I could dodge, I had no other options. I couldn’t interfere with Kephiel; it seemed I had to truly solve this myself!

That said, haha—this seemed a bit difficult.

“Bringing Icarus to a place like this! Eu·Qi·Li·De! If you don’t want to break your arms and legs, throw Icarus away!”

The wind Magnis summoned flipped me over again, the fierce gust cutting into my skin like a knife. Bound by Nilu’s orders, the fairy Magnis didn’t dare to kill me, but she certainly had the guts to “bleed me out”!

If it were a normal attack with knives or clubs, I could rely on the script to dodge in advance. However, facing this fairy who controlled the power of “wind,” even if I knew when she would launch her attack, there was simply no way to evade it!

The script became useless in an instant, and just then, I heard Icarus’s voice by my ear.

“Proposal: Please remove me from your ear; I need to disengage from mechanical form.”

I paused for a moment, but I quickly realized what Icarus was planning to do!

“No way!”

“…This is the optimal solution.”

“Ha! Well, that’s unfortunate, because I’m not buying your algorithm at all!”

Even though I knew it was unavoidable, I still watched the script while using my body to shield the little fox, trying to evade Magnus’s attacks. As for Icarus’s intentions, hmph, even without the script, I could guess them pretty accurately!

[Icarus plans to deal with Magnus!]

She probably understood that Magnus’s only goal was to destroy her, and that I was an existence that Magnus could not eliminate. So, to prevent me from continuing to suffer under Magnus’s wind magic while protecting her, she intended to revert from this “glasses form” that I was using to protect her to her original fairy form, and fight Magnus to the death on her own.

This fairy, who had clearly known her own limitations in battle before, had been hiding deep within the core area of the Kingdom of Plouce, right? What good would it do to suddenly want to show off now! Not to mention that from the very beginning of my script, Icarus’s storyline had always been “to be destroyed.” If I agreed to her request for my own safety and tossed her out carelessly, I could only imagine the fate she would face in front of Magnus.

“Don’t think about going to your death.”

I lowered my voice, “You are an important fairy, and I explicitly agreed that you could come along!”

Whether it was for Kephiel’s “main storyline”; or for the trust in Adelf, and the Kingdom of Plouce; or even… for my own “bottom line as a man”…

“So, I can’t possibly hand you over to this twisted fairy, Icarus.”

With Magnus’s magic looming, I gritted my teeth as I spoke, finally silencing Icarus.

But, while my words sounded cool, they didn’t solve the actual problem. Magnus was still floating high above, using her wind magic to harm me for her amusement. I had no strange hobbies, and naturally, I didn’t want to end up covered in blood, especially with a little fox in my arms!

Unable to use Kephiel’s fairies at this moment, I couldn’t find a hint of a “way out” in the script, but there was one thing I had to accomplish before things went wrong!

“Zelus, find an opportunity to slip away.”

Taking advantage of the moment when Magnus wasn’t paying attention to me, I whispered to the little fox in my arms, though her response seemed quite unexpected.

“Eep?”

“Eep your head! Aren’t you usually good at slipping away!? I’ve already spotted a spot where this fairy isn’t using a barrier; she’s too busy with me and Icarus, so even if you slip away, she won’t care about you.”

More importantly: if I continued to carry the little fox, she could very well become “cannon fodder.” Since Magnus couldn’t be bothered with this little fox at all, at least I could manage to let her escape!

“……”

“Stop dawdling! You useless burden!”

In a moment of desperation, I let slip some harsh words, but… Zealous fell silent, an unusual reaction for her.

Then, she looked up, her emerald eyes locking onto mine with intensity.

“Useless human, I am not a burden…”

Then why don’t you just run, you little darling! Even if I wanted to be your meat shield, I can’t guarantee a hundred percent defense!

Just as I was about to say that, I noticed: Zealous let out a deep sigh, looking very “helpless.”

Next, she suddenly lifted her head and gazed into my eyes… no, she was looking at the “glasses” on my face—Icarus!

“Alas… it seems I can’t pretend not to see it. Though you’re an annoying human, I suppose I can tolerate it for now…”

What nonsense is this fox spouting again!?

【Zealous has decided to acknowledge her master.】

See! You’ve disrupted the script! Don’t mess with my script like that! It’s my lifeline! Huh? Wait, what was that content in the script just now…!?

“Hey, Icarus, I’m going to do ‘that thing,’ so get ready for me!”

Suddenly, the little fox seemed completely “off,” as she spoke strange words to Icarus! And by the time I finally grasped what the content of the script meant and what the little fox had just said, there were some things… that simply wouldn’t allow me any resistance.

After all… Zealous, this bear fox, was currently cradled in my arms for protection, and if she wanted to do something, it would be all too easy for her.

For example…

A “smack” right on my lips! And just like that, as if a miracle had occurred, the script that was once perilous for both me and Icarus changed in an instant!

【Eugene defeated the wind fairy Magnus!】

【The insight fairy Icarus was not harmed!】

And…

“Shape-shifting Fairy Zelus, now at your service.”

【Ogilid has gained the power of the self-disciplined fairy Zelus!】