Chapter 148: Battle with the Amber Crow
Ren pulled back, and an amber-coloured shadow shot through the place where he’d been standing.
Flap!
The large bird-type magical beast landed on a nearby branch. Sunlight caught its amber feathers, giving them a metallic sheen.
Ren held his breath. The Amber Crow glared down with sharp eyes.
“Keeee!”
It spread its wings threateningly. Perhaps it was enraged that he’d killed its companion.
Without looking away, Ren took an arrow from his quiver and raised his bow.
Flap!
Before he could draw, the Amber Crow kicked off the branch and flew straight at him.
“Small Box!”
A shield appeared.
Thud!
The bird struck the box and bounced away. Ren tried to aim, but it recovered in mid-air and was already circling back.
“It’s fast!”
There was no time to nock an arrow. Ren gave up on his bow and pulled out the old spear he’d bought back from the merchant.
He braced it in both hands.
The Amber Crow flew low and thrust its beak at his face.
“Small Box!”
Bang!
As if anticipating the shield, it twisted before impact, struck the box with one wing, and tried to slip around it towards Ren.
He thrust his spear, but the heavy weapon wavered and merely grazed the base of its wing. The bird twisted and soared high into the air. It was even faster than he’d expected, and each beat of its wings stirred the wind.
“Keeee!”
High above, it opened its beak wide.
Rattle-rattle-rattle!
Small brown stones rained down.
“Whoa!”
Ren summoned a box above his head. The stones struck it with sharp, dry sounds, but he had no time to relax. The Amber Crow dived from a different direction.
“In front!”
Ren brought out another box.
Thud!
The bird bounced away, flipped in mid-air, and attacked from the right.
“Right!”
Thud!
“Left!”
Thud!
Ren blocked one attack after another. He was becoming breathless.
(It’s relentless!)
The Amber Crow aimed for a gap between two boxes. Ren summoned one directly before himself and focused hard.
“Let only half of it through!”
Thump!
The bird’s beak and head entered the box, but its spread wings caught on the rim. Half its body was embedded in the box, unable to escape.
“Kee!?”
It thrashed, its head raging inside while its wings flapped desperately outside.
“Now!”
Ren tightened his grip on the spear. He couldn’t let it wobble. Remembering what he’d just learned, he held the shaft firmly near the rear, lowered his hips, and stepped in.
“Hah!”
The spear point pierced its neck.
“Keeeeee!”
The Amber Crow thrashed with its remaining strength, scattering blood across Small Box. Ren gritted his teeth and put more of his weight into the weapon.
“It’s over!”
The point sank deeper into its throat. At last, its struggling wings slowed and went still.
Clatter, clatter…
Several reddish-brown stones fell from its mouth.
Ren kept the spear embedded until he was certain it had stopped moving, then slowly pulled it free.
“…Phew. That was difficult…”
He had defeated a beast with a spear, but the spear alone hadn’t been enough. Neither had Small Box alone. He’d stopped it with Small Box and finished it with the spear. Only both together had given him victory.
“That was hard… and it’s huge…”
The first Amber Crow had fitted inside Small Box without much trouble, but the second was one or two sizes larger. Ren had to force its wings closed before he could store it.
He looked at the reddish-brown stones on the ground. They were opaque, like hardened earth.
“…Can they be used for anything?”
He picked one up and washed it with Water Magic. It felt heavy and hard. When he struck it against a nearby rock, it made a solid clicking sound, but left a brown mark behind. It seemed more brittle than expected.
He struck it again, leaving another brown mark, then rubbed one corner against the rock and produced a brown line.
“Oh… Maybe I can write with it?”
Ren’s eyes lit up.