Was it embarrassment, or perhaps because she was happy? Ilya turned away and muttered quietly.
“I-I guess it can’t be helped… I wanted to move my body anyway, so I’ll help out with someone’s oh-so-generous volunteer work.”
“Yeah, now that’s more like it.”
Phil laughed and then jumped straight down from the hill.
He landed right in the middle of the night raid scene. Which side was the Alm Empire and which was the Alarde Kingdom—the structure of attacker and attacked was obvious at a glance.
When Phil landed, the people around immediately began making a commotion.
[Wh-what are you!? Where the hell did you come from!?]
[Wait… a plain mask and black clothing—could this be the [Hero of the Shadow]!?]
[Dammit! Why is he appearing here!?]
Phil showed no reaction to the people making a fuss.
This was how Phil normally was when active as the [Hero of the Shadow].
He said nothing. He helped people on his own and left on his own.
He required no reward, confirming that someone had been saved before disappearing like a shadow.
This time, he would support the Alarde Kingdom to prevent the nearby village from being attacked, and repel the Alm Empire.
The goal was to resolve things peacefully without killing enemies as much as possible. After all, he was completely uninvolved, and whatever happened to another country’s conflict was none of his business.
“Alright, alright, let’s do this! Here comes the beautiful girl mage Ilya-chan!”
At that moment, Ilya in her maid outfit gently descended near Phil.
Several small daggers floated around Ilya. She had jumped down yet landed gracefully—this was likely due to Ilya’s [Gravity] magic, which was also keeping the daggers floating.
What convenient magic, Phil thought with a wry smile behind his mask.
[Someone else came!?]
[The [Hero of the Shadow] has companions!?]
Even in other countries, the [Hero of the Shadow] was well-known.
That’s why they were surprised by Ilya’s appearance. Kahlua rarely came along, and rumors hadn’t spread about him having companions.
“You guys get the hell out of my sight! Today I’m busy with a little hero roleplay!”
Ilya’s daggers shot out at tremendous speed.
They accurately assaulted the Alm Empire soldiers, piercing through their armor and sending them flying, unable to kill the momentum.
Using that as a signal, everyone around understood which side the [Hero of the Shadow]s were supporting.
The panicked Alm Empire soldiers all rushed toward Ilya at once, but just before getting close… they all collapsed to the ground in an instant.
As if something heavy had been pressed onto their backs.
(Magic that manipulates [Gravity]. It seems applicable in many ways, and the range is wide. Well, that’s probably why she lost to Kahlua.)
Ilya’s theme was [Gravity].
Magic that could manipulate the strength of gravity in a certain range, making things float or crushing them.
The daggers floating around her were probably because she had made the area near herself weightless. When firing them, she applied immense gravity, transforming objects weighing just a few hundred grams as if iron balls had been dropped from great height.
Additionally, for the people collapsed around her, she was likely continuously applying immense gravity over a certain range.
While it was magic that could only manipulate a single point, the power it could generate was diverse.
The breadth of application might reach Phil’s level.
(Well yeah, the compatibility with Kahlua who focuses on a single point is bad. It’s like having a person who loves fish taste-test a full course of meat and vegetables.)
Well, I’d better do my part too, Phil thought, gathering shadow in his hand and compressing it before tossing it into the air with one hand.
What’s that? Such words arose from the knights around them.
But before anyone could answer that question—countless chains extended from the sphere toward the knights’ heads.
[Wh-what is this—gah!?]
The chains gradually began to cover their entire bodies. And then, those bodies were gradually pulled up toward the sphere… and their forms disappeared.
To someone watching from the side, it would look as if they were being “sucked in.”
Since a small sphere was taking in the bodies of many people, they could only be amazed at this phenomenon that defied physics.
Phil’s theme was [Binding]. He bound objects, or gave himself freedom from binding to make it his magic, applying it in a wide range of ways. Even traveling here had been through Phil’s magic.
—Chained Shadow.
It forcibly bound those connected to chains, transporting them to a space Phil had created.
Phil’s space could generally be taken out or taken in at his discretion. The only exception was Kira’s escape during the North-South War the other day, but that was an exception among exceptions.
Objects were always bound to the space by something like chains. Structurally, one could escape if they had the strength to tear through them, but that was only possible because of Kira’s magic that [possessed power greater than the target according to the target].
Ordinary mages, regular people—they had absolutely no means of defending against it.
“That’s pretty brutal. I don’t mind you picking them up, but make sure to throw the trash in the trash can later, okay?”
Ilya, who was freely manipulating her daggers and knocking down surrounding knights with expanded gravity, said such a thing.
Even without being told, Phil thought, responding not with words but by raising one arm.
(At the rate Ilya’s going, this’ll be over quickly. As expected of a hired mage… even though she lost to Kahlua, she’s skilled enough to be hired.)
Phil leisurely took a step forward in the battlefield.
(Now then, time to teach a lesson to these bastards who don’t respect others’ freedom. I need to make sure they study hard about what happens to people who trample on others’ happiness.)
He smiled behind his mask.
At that instant, a towering wave of shadow arose from behind Phil.
READ THE ORIGINAL TRANSLATION AT gadgetizedpanda.net
After that, Phil and the others successfully protected the village people from the skirmish.
They politely transported the Alm Empire’s people far away, knocked them unconscious to give them a chance to regroup, and through Ilya’s connections, told the Alarde Kingdom soldiers to fight in a distant location.
After that, they returned to the estate, and with sleepy faces, each returned to their own beds.
And then, that morning—
“Fwaaah…”
Phil woke up to sunlight streaming in through the window.
He looked around. Kahlua hadn’t come to wake him today, it seemed.
That made sense—Kahlua knew that Phil went out at night to help people.
Someone who worked hard… or rather, someone who had done good deeds deserved some reward.
That aspect was also why Kahlua always let Phil rest leisurely on days when he had worked as the [Hero of the Shadow] at night.
“…What time is it?”
He glanced at the wall clock to check the time.
The hands were still gathered near the bottom. Apparently his sleep had been light, and timing-wise, it was right about when everyone would be waking up.
Should I go back to sleep? Thinking that, Phil slowly laid his raised upper body back down on the bed.
—It was at that moment.
Finally, his drowsy consciousness noticed something odd.
Specifically, that there was a large bulge next to him.
Phil rubbed his heavy eyelids while slowly pulling back the sheets.
And there was Kahlua in her sleepwear—
“…Whoa, right from the opening, a morning-after situation that’s every man’s dream. Even I, the leading man, can’t help but be surprised.”
Phil pressed his forehead for the moment.
Her beautiful yet somehow still cute refined features were defenseless. She was breathing peacefully in her sleep, her body turned toward him in a way that showed trust.
Additionally, there was a faintly sweet scent. If he moved even slightly, their bodies would touch.
When they had returned to the estate yesterday, no one had been in the room. When he woke up on his own and looked around, his partner wasn’t there, so he’d thought she was letting him sleep peacefully.
But what was the meaning of this? Overturning all his situational judgment, an unexpected reality had struck.
“…………….”
Phil’s just-woken thoughts still hadn’t fully awakened.
This situation, this timing, this person. He pondered and pondered over how to behave and act.
However, those thoughts quickly vanished.
“Mmm…”
Kahlua’s hand reached toward Phil’s waist.
And then she began to embrace him as if pulling him close.
(…This is bad.)
What’s bad? Well, the holy sword he hadn’t used in a while was trying to regain its vigor, that’s what!
Though it probably doesn’t need to be said at this point, Kahlua was a beauty recognized by all.
Embarrassing as it was to admit, Phil had been conscious of her many times. More than the various women who gathered around, more than anyone.
So it was impossible not to be conscious of her in a situation like this.
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