BSS 35

chapter 35

Yes, Master!]

“Take this barrier up out of the water. Can you do it?”

[It’s a little hard but… I’ll try my best!]

Undine fluttered her tiny mermaid tail as she lifted the barrier with both hands. She was barely the size of my palm, yet she was trying with all her might to move this massive barrier—before I knew it, I had my hands clasped like I was praying, staring at her desperately.

“You got this, Undine!”

At this point, you’re the only one I can trust!

Maybe because the current was so strong, but even just pushing the barrier up was draining her mana at a frightening speed. Still, the surface of the water began to come into view.

“Just a little more!”

My life is weirdly tenacious.

Outside the transparent barrier, I saw the roaring water surging past.

The barrier moved upward—slowly, but definitely upward. At last, it broke the surface with great difficulty. The pitch-black water was eerie under the night sky.

“Undine! Now… that spell! The one that lets me walk on water!”

[Water Walking.]

The barrier dissolved like melting mist, and instead, with a splash, my body rose to float gently above the water.

I immediately felt the water flow beneath my knees.

I was walking on water, but my steps were as unstable as a newborn’s.

I slipped, stumbled, and kept falling. There was no way I could fight against this vicious current with my own strength.

In the end, I changed my mind and started running with the flow of the river.

Remaining mana: 20%.

If mana drops to 10%, you’re supposed to stop using magic—so practically speaking, I was almost dry.

Any more magic and my body would fall out of balance, causing what people commonly call internal injuries. And those hurt like hell.

[Master! Just a little further and there’s a waterfall!]

Of course. I knew the current was too fast. Damn it—after everything, misfortune just had to pile on top of more misfortune. I stopped running.

But the current still dragged my body along.

Now what? I had no magic left to use.

Panicking, I sprinted toward the lowest-looking section of the riverbank. Fighting the current sideways was hard. I barely reached the edge, but I couldn’t climb the cliff.

I reached out, trying to grab any protruding rocks on the cliff face—but I couldn’t reach anything. Nothing was working out.

“Undine! Help me! Bounce me upward with water. Can you do that?”

[Yes!]

The water beneath my feet swelled. Riding the big wave that surged upward, I managed to grab onto a solid rock protrusion.

“Ugh—!”

My fingers locked onto the stone, toes scraping the cliff—right as my mana dropped to a dangerous level.

I had no time to even say goodbye before forcibly unsummoning Undine.

“Wh—What the hell is this?!”

My mana was empty, and now I was barely hanging onto some cliff I didn’t even recognize.

*******

Cold reality came and slapped me across the face.

Without mana, I couldn’t summon any spirits. I was utterly alone.

I looked up the cliff, but it soared into darkness. It looked at least ten times my height. Could I even climb that?

“Impossible.”

I knew my limits.

Forget climbing—just hanging here wouldn’t last long.

The only small mercy was that I had a place for my feet, but how long could I endure? My hands were already numb, my calves burning with strain.

I leaned against the wall, trying to steady my breath.

I’m really too young to die, aren’t I? Why was I suddenly feeling so wronged?

Darkness cloaked everything around me. I couldn’t see a thing. Only the roaring water threatening my life echoed sharply in my ears.

Let’s sort this out.

“Even in a tiger’s den, if I stay calm… I’ll still get mauled.”

To recover mana, I needed about three hours. I didn’t need full recovery—if I just held on for an hour, I might be able to summon Undine again.

But the first problem: I couldn’t survive like this for an hour.

Second problem: Even if I summoned Undine, I couldn’t swim upstream. And if I fell off the waterfall, I wasn’t surviving that.

Even with full mana, neither option offered hope.

Worst of all, my party had almost no chance of finding me here.

I’d run through the forest a long way, fallen off a cliff, been swept downriver… and the cliff I climbed was on the opposite side from where they’d be.

Looking at the moon’s direction confirmed it.

“…Am I going to die? No way. Probably not.”

I said it out loud on purpose, but it only made the dread stronger.

I had no plan, but jumping back into the river wasn’t an option either. So I clung to the cliff and tried to maintain my strength.

It was freezing. The cliff was so cold. Suddenly, I felt the urge to cry.

[Master!]

Something slid down onto my hand. Heavy and long—curling around my arm. That familiar sensation!

“Rai!”

I had been so tense my voice cracked.

I lifted my head, and under the dim moonlight, Rai’s pitch‑black body shimmered.

I could practically imagine him flicking his tongue and wagging his tail excitedly.

[I’ve been searching everywhere! I thought you abandoned me!]

“Rai… I never thought I’d find you cute one day.”

[Hahaha! I’m glad you’ve realized it now. But… what exactly are you doing down there?]

Can’t he see? …Well, of course he can’t. He’s a snake.

“Emergency! Pull me up!”

Honestly, I wanted to grab him and kiss him, but my hands and feet were locked in place, and I was exhausted.

[How?]

“Either drag me up or make a foothold under me! You said you can control stone, right?”

[This material is not something I can control.]

“Then create metal and make a support!”

[I have no mana. Where did you use it all?]

Of course. Why did I expect anything? Fury shot straight up my spine.

“JUST DO SOMETHING! If I die, it’s YOUR loss!”

[Die? No way. Just because you fell into water—humans WOULD die! This is an emergency!]

“YOU JUST REALIZED THAT?! Useless snake—fine! Go get people!”

[How? Humans with low affinity can’t hear my voice.]

“…Then grab something expensive-looking and run! If they look like beggars, bite them and run!”

[That I can do! Leave it to me!]

This must be what it feels like to grab at straws. Rai slithered back up the cliff, leaving me hanging.

Watching him go was depressing.

Honestly, every task I’d ever given Rai had gone wrong, so I had no faith in him at all.

“Please… Rai, please…”

Time passed.

My strength—already at its limit—waned even further. My hands and feet trembled uncontrollably. My body shivered; I was getting sick.

If I die, at least I won’t catch a cold…

“Hah… hah…”

I forced a laugh, but the river surged again, splashing near my feet. Great, the water mage is getting water trauma.

[Master! I brought someone!]

“Rai?”

His voice echoed in my head. I couldn’t see anything in the dark, but instead of fear, relief washed over me.

[Yes! It’s me!]

“You came! Did you tell them how much I trusted you—”

[Well, I grabbed the bag, but those slow humans didn’t notice. So I had to bite one to get attention, then grabbed the bag and came. I did great, didn’t I, Master?]

“Yes! You did amazing. Genius! Rai! Where are the people?”

[They should be looking for me up there.]

I looked up, but I still couldn’t see anything. Who would look over a cliff for a snake?

But if I strained my ears, I could faintly make out voices. The river was too loud to hear clearly, but…

“Ador!”

[Hmm? Master! Being unsummoned without warning earlier—quite rude!]

“Shut up. I’m giving you your last chance.”

[…Yes, ma’am.]

“If you don’t want our contract terminated, go up there and GET THEIR ATTENTION. Use your mana if you have to!”

At this point, falling into the river again was a real possibility.

My fingers had long since gone numb. It was a miracle I was still holding on.

Ador grumbled but flew upward. Soon, the tiny amount of mana I had regained drained away—and above me, an enormous flash of light exploded.