“Tek here, I’ve flown on airplanes before, but I never flew on a blimp. I made a hot-air balloon during my school days, but there are many things that are differences between a dummy model and the real thing.”

 

“Hey, won’t you raise the altitude? Don’t the beasts that live on the treetops seem to want to get on the airship?” Arisa’s concern is right on the mark.

 

“Nah, it’s alright.”

 

Actually, the airship has been jumped on twice since we departed, by beasts that were brimming with curiousity. Of course, since it was dangerous--mainly for them--I stopped them with Magic Hand just as they were about to jump.

 

All kinds of birds are also flying around and investigating us, but since none of them seem to have beaks that will be dangerous from the balloons, I leave them alone.

 

Just in case something goes wrong and we crash, the airship is advancing barely above the top of the trees.

 

I use Air Control Magic to propel the airship forwards, since it’s not originally a Magic made for flying an airship, we only advance at around 15 km/h. Since there’s a very high probability that the web holding the balloons together will break if I use Air Cannon or Magic of that kind, which I tend to use while using Sky Drive, I won’t use any of my acceleration Magic.

 

The speed may be slow, but since we are going in a straight line, the airship covers more distance than the wagon. When I fold the wagon’s canopy I can fit it inside the airship, along with the horses.

 

I made windows, for observation of the surroundings, in all directions on the sides of the airship. Well, even though I said windows, they’re just holes with covers. I made the side wall taller than the horses.

 

Tama has climbed up and sat on the side wall, watching the passing scenery since a while ago. It’s not as dangerous as it sounds, since I will catch her if she loses her balance and fall, so I let her do as she pleases--she has an incredible sense of balance, so I doubt that she would fall.

 

Nana is gazing out the rear window--she seems to think that the rear scenery is the ‘cutest’, I don’t understand how it could be considered cute. It’s Nana being Nana, I will let her do it.

 

Arisa, Mia and Lulu are reading books--well, Arisa is reading to Mia and Lulu. Putting aside Arisa and Mia, I didn’t expect Lulu to be fine with heights.

 

And then, whenever Tama leans forward out of curiousity, the airship sways--

“Tama, it’s dangerous! What would we do if we fall!”

“That’s right! Tama, behave yourself. Sky, we’re up in the sky--we can’t fly if we fall, you know?”

 

At first, Liza acted worried and stood behind me, holding my sleeves--but I pulled her into my lap. She is trembling--I didn’t expect her to be so scared of heights. Pochi as well, she sits on my other leg, and wraps her arms around me. She hasn’t raised her head for the last while, and her ears are down.

 

“It’s alright.” Tama answers calmly, with a smile.

 

Of course, Tama’s lightweight body and great sense of balance--there’s no way there would be any danger of the airship tilting very far, let alone overturning.

 

***

After a while, Liza relaxes and starts being able to move around--joining the other three in the back, and listening to Arisa read, closing her eyes. Pochi doesn’t relax, when I stand up--she wraps her arms and legs around me, hanging off me like she is attached.

 

There are even more problems than I expected--the first of which be the toilet. I intend to build one tonight while we are landed tonight, but now I need to take the members down one-by-one with Sky Drive at regular intervals.

 

The second was the meals.

 

Since we can’t use a fire, Lulu had made some rice and meat--vegetables and fruit for Mia and I, though I had a little bit of meat. She had heard Arisa talking about animes, and Arisa had talked about how the rice things had little images on the--so Lulu tried to replicate it.

 

“Chicks?”

“Woww, it’s chicks!”

“Flowers.”

 

The three seem to be really happy as they show me the images that Lulu made. She had asked me to make some dyes, which I did using Illusion Magic and herbs--with a lot of time researching.

 

Lulu did very well, she blushed and looked happy when I complemented her.

 

“Will it break if I eat it?”

“Is it okay to eat this?”

 

The two who are looking at the picture and at me with expressions alternating between delight and anguish, look so cute.

 

Mia seems to hesitate as to where to start.

 

“It’s okay , they’re food after all.”

 

“Nn.”

 

Everyone has images, Liza has a cute black spear and read lines all over it, she smiles when she sees it. Lulu made Arisa and herself ones with little images of me--which feels a little strange to watch them eat.

 

Nana has a chick one as well, but she is just staring at it instead of eating, “Pochi, Tama! I will safeguard those characters. If you eat something that cute--”

 

“You can’t.”

“You can’t.”

 

The two respond in unison, quickly trying to dart around behind me.

 

As it would be dangerous if the horses get agitated, I pick the three of them using Magic Hand.

 

“Master, this is an unfair capture. Requesting Liberation.”

 

“You made a ruckus in the narrow airship, so you’re guilty.”

 

“Please reconsider!”

 

“No, eat up there.”

 

I grin at Nana who looks imploringly at me.

 

Tama and Pochi giggle as they eat their food, before relaxing their bodies and looking like corpses.

 

“Master.” Nana isn’t giving up today--

 

What-is-she-doing-I-wonder?

 

Using an unthinkably sexy technique, she manages to slip out of the restraints. Her shirt and bra are left behind as she lands on the floor, but she sees that Tama and Pochi are done, she kneels. Lulu rushes up, placing a cloth over Nana.

 

Using a sexy technique like that, she’s grown up.

 

No, that’s not it. That is not it--I have to talk to her about it later. Tell her that some cute things can be eaten, since they were designed for that--I will convince Arisa to make her a chick plushy.

 

***

The third problem is it attracts a lot of attention.

 

Since we’re deep in the mountain, there’s no need to worry about people seeing us, but there seem to be curious Monsters and animals that are following along behind us, without stopping.

 

We’ve arrived at the base of the mountain during our second day of flying, but it was troublesome to clean up the animals that had gathered when we landed to make camp yesterday--since Pochi and the others were happy with, “Pray!”, let’s treat it as a good thing.

 

Originally, it should be unexpectedly difficult for an airship to ascend and descend. Which is because you need to adjust the buoyancy--however, in our case, I can put the balloons one-by-one into my storage and we can easily descend. After putting away some of the balloons, I use Air Control as we descend to the ground, to ascend, I just take them back out of storage.

 

Today, the airship is anchored at the side of a lake.

 

There is a Monster on the bank of the lake, which had been watching us descend. Once we finished, beaching the airship on the back, Liza and the others immediately intercept the Monster.

 

The opponent is the Horned Snake that has been slithering parallel to the airship since a while ago. Since they are strong enough to win, as well as having Arisa and Mia back them up, I sit down and Lulu starts dinner. I can’t help but be wary, so I keep an eye on them, with the Magic Pistol within easy reach.

 

After everyone has finished with the hunt, let’s all stroll around the lake, riding the horses, so-as to enable them to get exercise.

 

***

“Arisa! Hold back the snake’s attack for a moment. Nana! When the snake stops moving, put your shield up again.” Liza is taking charge as usual.

 

It seems that they are having an unexpectedly difficult fight.

 

Pursuing Liza and Nana, the snake which breaks out of the forest is quite big. I can’t see how many it is in length, but it’s at least as thick as Mia waist.

 

The horn between its eyes, which points straight up, is about 50cm long. This horn seems to have a paralyzing poison in it, but even without that, you would be seriously injured if the horn pierces you.

 

I hold the Magic Gun with one hand, and are prepared with Magic Hand, and Flexible shield, so I can intervene at any time.

 

The snake arches up, forming a sickle shape, which is about 3 meters high, and as Nana is about to hit it with her shield, Arisa keeps it in check using the Space Magic Isolation. This Magic seems to make a wall out of rents and rifts in Space, but, it’s quite fragile. When we tried it before, I broke it with a single hit, without even using Magic Break.

 

According to Arisa, a normal person would have needed to use Magic Break or Rip, which is also a Space Magic Spell, to destroy this Isolation Magic.

 

As for me--well, for some reason I can destroy Magic that interferes with…‘The Other Space’…like Space Magic, Shadow Magic, and Summoning Magic, without much effort.

 

Leaving that aside, Nana puts up Shield again, and seems to have finished chanting Sharp Edge.

 

Arisa removes the barrier, and the second round begins.

 

First, Mia fires off Water Cutter, but it is easily avoided.

 

Nana uses Provoke, “Now, come! I declare, I’ll make you realize that you don’t have arms or legs.”

 

No, well, snakes usually don’t have arms and legs.

 

The Horned Snake uses its horn to repeatedly stab at Nana. Pochi and Tama are attacking from either side, aiming for its body, but their attacks don’t quite reach it--since the flexible tail obstructs them.

 

Liza activates Magic Edge, and is taking a posture to attack.

 

At that time--

It appears from the forest.

--It seems to be aiming for the fisherman’s profit.