New chapter of Plant Magic Lord is out! (8/10 chapters)

 

 

Mastery

(Thank you for reading at bayabuscotranslation.com)

After that, Leia and the ninja parted ways with us, and we decided to return home. Stella still had her eyes covered.

It was completely night now, but we could walk by starlight and the lights from the houses. However, walking with a blindfold would be impossible, I thought. If it were me, I would probably walk cautiously with a bent back, scared stiff. But Stella was doing fine. She walked while rhythmically clicking the castanets tied to her leg.

*Click, click*

She made sharp, high-pitched sounds, and her footsteps were steady. That was impressive. She even avoided small stones. It seemed it did not interfere with walking.

“Ugo ugo, can you walk even if you can’t see?” (Wood)

“I can walk. I can tell where Wood is too…” (Stella)

Saying that, Stella turned her face toward Wood. Dia spoke excitedly at that scene.

“Piyo, amazing piyo-yo!” (Dia)

“Can I do it too!?” (Marcosias)

“…Maru-chan will get hurt, piyo.” (Dia)

“Gah-n!” (Marcosias)

“Well… You will get hurt.” (Elt)

“Gagaa-n!” (Marcosias)

They cut it down instantly. Even walking normally tired her, and I saw in the forest that his athletic ability was not good. It was safer to avoid it

“Uuuu…” (Marcosias)

“Piyo… How about walking while closing one eye first, piyo?” (Dia)

“That’s a good idea.” (Elt)

“I see, starting with one eye first! As expected of the master!” (Leia)

“Piyo! …First, put me down, piyo.” (Dia)

“Got it!” (Elt)

Dia slid down and came beside me. Or rather, she might be running away. Or maybe she sensed something.

“All right, with one eye, hmm…” (Marcosias)

“Ugo ugo… wobbling.” (Wood)

She looked suspicious from the very first step.

“Piyo… Is it no good, piyo?” (Dia)

“I-It’s fine!” (Marcosias)

“Is it really fine…?” (Elt)

*Totter, totter*

Marcosias’s steps were even more unstable than Dia’s. It seemed better to stop. It was clear she couldn’t reach the house.

Then, suddenly, Marcosias lost his balance.

“Ah…!?” (Marcosias)

Did she trip over a small stone!?

“Watch out…!” (Elt)

But Stella stretched out her arm and caught Marcosias’s body before she fell.

Nice follow-up.

Of course, Stella’s core strength was solid, so she didn’t even budge. Or rather, it was surprising that blindfolded Stella was the one who saved him…

“Ah, thank you… Mother.” (Marcosias)

“Hmm, please be careful.” (Stella)

“…Understood. Sorry.” (Marcosias)

“Piyo… the path to becoming like Mother is far, piyo. You can’t become it right away, piyo.” (Dia)

“My master, that is true… Someday I must surpass my mother…” (Marcosias)

“…Was that the topic?” (Leia)

“I don’t think so…” (Elt)

At that, Marcosias shook his head.

“I thought I could do echolocation, but my body can’t keep up.” (Marcosias)

“Hmm…?” (Elt)

Wait, I never said “echolocation”. Of course, I explained the principle, how to capture the location and size of objects by the echo of sound. But echolocation is a term named on modern Earth, so I didn’t say it. If a different name is used in this world, it might cause inconsistencies later.

Thanks to Leia’s timely help, I avoided explaining it in detail.

“Is this called echolocation, Maru-chan?” (Leia)

“Yes, that’s right… I only know the name. I don’t know who found it or when, even if asked.” (Marcosias)

“Hmm… Can’t you remember where you heard it from?” (Leia)

“…It just came to mind suddenly, so I don’t recall where I heard it.” (Marcosias)

“That’s amazing, piyo.” (Dia)

The word echolocation never appears in the game… I think. Of course, I haven’t memorized all the game’s texts, but it never appeared in any memorable scenes. Still, Marcosias was able to say the word “echolocation” aloud. She perfectly understood its meaning.

Whether it is knowledge from his time as the Marquis of Hell or some coincidence, in any case, Marcosias is not an ordinary resident of this world. I should consider that might be related.

I don’t know well, but if we can salvage her memories, there might be knowledge we can use. Alright, I’ll remember this.

 

—

 

The next day.

Stella’s team joined in defeating the Flower Archers. They planned not to attack the enemy headquarters but to clear the enemies around it. A group of around-thirty-year-old adventurers provided support for Stella’s team. Since they were not facing the Flower General, it was not very dangerous. Today, the plan was to steadily reduce the number of Flower Archers.

However, they all walked through the forest with puzzled expressions.

“…What is that thing on Stella-san…?” (Adventurer)

“They say it’s an instrument tied to her leg that goes ‘kachi-kachi’ called castanets.” (Adventurer)

What caught their attention was the castanets tied to Stella’s leg. Also, unlike yesterday, Stella wore a black bandana wrapped around her head. Perhaps her spirit was different than before. The around-thirty-year-old adventurers had received an explanation earlier, but they didn’t fully understand.

They knew about monsters that emit sounds and catch echoes. However, that was supposed to be a feat only monsters could perform. It was not something within human capability. Yet Stella was trying to take on that challenge, with castanets tied to her leg.

*Click, click*

The castanets rang regularly. They were about to reach the spot where the Flower Archers lurked. Even being told she would detect them with that, they did not quite understand. They walked through the forest for a while. They should encounter the Flower Archers soon. The weather was good, and there was almost no wind.

Then, the adventurer in his thirties spotted the Flower Archers at the edge of their vision. The number matched the scout report, about 20.

“…They’re here.” (Adventurer)

“Yes…” (Stella)

Stella answered, then slightly lowered the bandana to use it as a blindfold.

“Huh!? What are you…!?” (Adventurer)

The sudden action left the adventurers dumbfounded.

“…Please don’t worry about it.” (Stella)

Saying that, Stella quickly took a batting stance and dashed forward. Should one say she ran like an arrow?

*Click, click!*

“…No way…!” (Adventurer)

She was supposed to be blindfolded. Still, Stella dashed through the forest, closing in on the Flower Archers. The Flower Archers sensed her and got ready to shoot.

“Hey, hey, this is bad…!” (Adventurer)

“What do we do…!?” (Adventurer)

The group of adventurers panicked, but they already knew it was too late. They could not catch up, and the Flower Archers’ shooting was perfectly accurate. The arrows would surely hit their target.

*Click, click!*

Stella lightly exhaled and stopped. Then, she smoothly took her batting stance, without any strain, even gracefully.

The lead Flower Archer fired a seed. It did not matter if the opponent made sounds or was blindfolded. They had no thought process to question that. It was a world measured in fractions of a second. Her legs moved in small steps, and the sound spread through the world.

*Click!*

Stella remained calm. Even without seeing, she understood. She understood the shape of the Flower Archer and the trajectory of the seed. She definitely understood.

If she mastered this, she could hit it, even those invisible magic bullets. With conviction, Stella swung her bat.

*Ka-kin*

The bat hit the seed. The ball Stella hit back flew just over the Flower Archer’s head. It was close, but it did not hit. Still, the adventurers were stunned.

“No way…!? It almost hit…!” (Adventurer)

“She’s returning it normally…!!” (Adventurer)

“Impossible, such a thing…!” (Adventurer)

“Ugo ugo, so close!” (Wood)

Stella quietly asked.

“…How far off was it?” (Stella)

“Ugo ugo, about one head’s length above!” (Wood)

“I see… It was too high. I thought I hit it.” (Stella)

The adventurers shivered at that answer. She was not rejoicing that she hit it. She was thinking only of hitting back and defeating them. But was such a thing possible? To hit back the seeds accurately while blindfolded…

“I’ll hit next time…!” (Stella)

The Flower Archer fired the next seed. Stella swung. It took only a blink of an eye. The adventurers were certain they would never forget this scene their entire lives. It was that shocking. Blindfolded Stella kept hitting back the seeds and defeating the Flower Archers one after another. It was an unbelievable feat.

The adventurers thought… Hitting back and defeating Flower Archers while blindfolded… They could never do that themselves. Yet someone could.

“…If I tell this to others, they won’t believe it…!” (Adventurer)

After a dozen or so minutes, the Flower Archers were completely wiped out by Stella’s echo strike. Stella muttered, feeling a definite sense of accomplishment.

“One more step… toward Koshien…!” (Stella)

 

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