Magic Maker - How to make magic in another world - - Chapter 16

Magic Maker – How to make magic in another world –

Chapter 16   Goblin attack 2

How much time had passed?

Probably about an hour.

Suddenly, amidst the sound of rain, I felt there was another sound mixed in.

The unease gradually grew and approached.

A sound. Were these footsteps?

In the midst of it, there was something high-pitched.

An unpleasant sound, like scratching glass.

It was gradually drawing near.

Marie and Mom trembled more.

Everyone seemed to notice.

It wasn’t Dad and the others.

There was no signal.

And the sound moved towards the entrance and stayed there.

What were they doing? What was there?

I made associations.

But I didn’t want that to be the reality.

A few minutes of silence.

When I thought maybe they had gone somewhere,

Bang! Bang! Bang! Bang! Bang!

The door was being struck by something.

Small screams could be heard around.

As everyone trembled and huddled, covering their ears, I strained to listen.

The sound continued for a few minutes, but it seemed the door hadn’t been destroyed.

The sound stopped.

However, the footsteps started moving again.

Having moved to the side of the house, it stopped again, making a disturbing creaking sound along with an unsettling cry.

A clinking sound.

It was undoubtedly the sound of a window being shattered.

Once again, the banging sound echoed.

Amidst it, a creaking sound mixed in, and soon the most dreaded sound resounded.

Clearly, along with the sound of wood being destroyed, something came into the first floor.

No doubt.

This was definitely a monster.

A goblin.

“Giiiiiiiiiii!”

A shrill cry.

It reached from the first floor to the second floor, intensifying our fear.

Everyone was trembling, cowering, crying.

We could only stay still, without making a sound, waiting for the crisis to pass.

For a while, we heard sounds akin to something rampaging on the first floor.

Then a change occurred.

Thud.

Thud thud.

The sound of footsteps ascending the stairs echoed.

Slowly and surely, the presence of something was drawing near.

It reached the top of the stairs, moved down the hallway, and eventually stopped.

“Gigi, gigi!”

Close.

Right there.

Fear bound my body.

I couldn’t stop trembling, just staring at the door.

Marie clung to me.

Mom hugged me protectively.

Rose was crying while holding Maron.

Maron, too, shed tears from fear in a similar manner.

The situation didn’t last long.

A thin door shook violently.

“Eek…!”

A scream erupted from someone.

I couldn’t blame them.

In such a situation, there was no other way.

But the monster heard that scream.

The force striking the door became instantly stronger.

With each strike, the door warped.

It was certain that it would be destroyed soon.

But we had no way to deal with it.

We could only pray that the door and the desk in front of it would hold up somehow.

However.

That wish crumbled, fragile and shattered.

With the sound of destruction, the upper part of the door broke, and a hand reached into the room.

Something green.

It wriggled, adorned with sharp claws, clearly meant for killing.

A face peeked through the gap.

Ugly. A face embodying terror.

Its shape was contorted and repugnant.

The reddish-black eyes peered at us, and its mouth contorted.

It laughed.

“Gigiii, gigii, gigii!”

The goblin pounded on the door gleefully, like a maniac.

“P-Please, stop!”

Maron cried out. It was a wail.

Crying, her terrified screams echoed around, but no help came.

The upper part of the door was almost completely destroyed.

The goblin.

Had come in.

Hunched over, its belly grotesquely swollen.

It resembled more of a Japanese urchin than a goblin.

Instead of holding anything in its hand, it had thick claws.

Its mouth had extended fangs, and I knew that a bite from it would be fatal.

A monster was right in front of us.

The monster I had wanted to study.

At least, that’s what I had thought.

But now, there was not a trace of such thoughts.

I was just terrified.

I scorned my past self who had wanted to study such an opponent.

Who had belittled such a terrifying existence.

Monsters weren’t a big deal.

That’s what I had thought.

Especially goblins.

After all, they were treated as weaklings among monsters.

They were undoubtedly weak.

I had believed that.

But the weakling in front of me now.

It was despair incarnate.

Absolutely powerless to resist.

We were going to be killed.

Everyone understood that.

“P-Please, don’t come, stay away!”

“S-S-Stop, don’t, don’t kill us…!”

Maron and Rose screamed as they cried.

However, such words wouldn’t reach the goblin.

No, they did reach.

That’s why.

The goblin laughed gleefully.

Seeing its prey begging for their lives, it realized its overwhelming power and reveled in its superiority.

That meant it would never let us escape.

There were no more options.

We could only be killed.

When I thought that, Marie suddenly stood up.

Drawing a sword from its sheath, she took a stance.

She had her back to us, as if protecting us.

A swordsman confronting the goblin.

But her shoulders were trembling abnormally.

“I-I’ll, I’ll be the one to face, the, enemy.”

Ah, it’s impossible.

We definitely can’t win.

We’re going to be killed.

Her courage was so admirable and wonderful.

But reality is cruel.

Against this monster, we couldn’t do a thing.

Suddenly, without any context.

The goblin waved its hand, and Marie’s sword danced through the air, embedding into the wall.

“Huh?”

Marie let out a frantic cry.

With just a light wave of the goblin’s arm, she released her weapon.

The opponent was a monster. It might lack intellect, but its combat prowess was overwhelmingly superior.

It was a bit taller than Marie.

Small.

But its body harbored immense strength.

The goblin raised its arm.

“A-A… Aaa…”

Marie couldn’t move in fear.

Instinctively, I tried to rush towards Marie.

But before that, someone covered my field of vision.

I couldn’t see.

There was a sound.

Someone had fallen.

Two people.

My sister and… Mom.

Blood was spilling.

Overflowing.

Deep gashes ran across Mom’s back.

Mom had shielded Marie.

Marie was underneath her, seemingly unharmed.

But she looked at Mom, her eyes filled with distress.

Mom sat up halfway.

“A-Are you… alright…?”

“I-I’m… I’m, alright. It’s, Mom, who…”

“I-It’s okay. If you’re, safe, then, th-that’s enough.”

It was undoubtedly a serious injury.

The amount of bleeding was substantial.

It felt like the heat was leaving her body.

Mom might die.

Thinking that, I was so scared, utterly terrified.

The goblin walked towards Mom and the others.

Casually. Almost as if to taunt.

Seeming to enjoy the situation.

Mom held Marie, turning her back to the goblin, shielding her.

No, no, no, no!

They were both going to be killed.

My family were going to be killed.

I absolutely hated it!

I impulsively kicked the floor.

No one could have predicted my actions.

So, no one could even shout.

And it seemed the goblin was the same.

Just a child.

It seemed it never even considered that a sudden attack might come.

That’s why.

I could easily reach out and touch the goblin.

My eyes met its gaze.

The red eyes were looking at me.

What a horrifying face.

And the goblin grinned when it saw me.

Of course.

The opponent is a child. No weapons. Nothing. A helpless child who can’t do anything.

Even if I grabbed its arm, what difference would it make?

I knew that too.

I couldn’t do anything.

But I couldn’t just do nothing.

There was no plan. Nothing.

There wasn’t— or so I thought.

Until I noticed a faint light dwelling in the goblin’s body.

I realized it as I looked closely.

A release of magic.

Suddenly, my head became clear.

I thought for a moment.

I remembered everything up to this point.

I don’t even know what triggered it.

But it was certain, everything was connected.

Everything I had cultivated until now.

And I came to a conclusion in an instant.

The nature of magic.

The reaction of magic.

The answer derived from there.

I instinctively entered a magical state and began gathering magic.

Magic gathered in my right hand, touching the goblin.

The goblin extended its claws towards me.

The magic surged suddenly.

The goblin’s claws were about to touch my eyes.

In an instant.

“Aaaaaaahhh!!”

The goblin screamed.

A burnt, foul stench filled the room.

The goblin’s arm was smoldering and burning, emitting steam.

Burns invaded, and the arm was being gouged.

From the spot my hand touched, the goblin’s body changed color, as if a virus were devouring it.

There was no fire. Yet, a phenomenon like burns occurred, and the goblin’s arm was being severed, eventually falling to the floor.

Perhaps due to the intense pain, the goblin thrashed about on the floor.

But it was still alive.

I had to kill it.

Or else everyone would be killed.

I quickly placed my right hand on the goblin’s head and released magic again.

Steam rose from the head, along with a foul odor, and the goblin screamed.

But it didn’t last long.

Ten seconds.

In just that time, the goblin died and became motionless.

“Haa, haa, haa…”

I was desperate.

So, there was no time to acknowledge what I had done.

Those with magic would react to magic.

Touching magic would bring warmth and sensation.

With weak magic, it was a mild warmth.

So, what about well-honed, strong magic?

I bet everything on that.

About a year of studying magic and training magic power.

As a result, it seemed that a considerable amount of magic power gathered in one place in me.

It was still a hypothesis. Somewhat experimental.

But it was a success.

With my magic, the goblin died.

I couldn’t have won if the goblin didn’t possess magic.

Even if I gave it magic, it wouldn’t react without internal magic.

I retreated from the corpse, keeping my rough breath.

It was disgusting.

I felt like throwing up.

Both because of the smell and what I had done.

It couldn’t be helped.

But the fact that I had killed a humanoid being made me intensely disgusted.

The peculiar gazes I received from Maron and Rose.

Marie looked at me with surprise.

“Mother!?”

Mother who was holding Marie to protect her fell to the ground.

Marie shook mother, crying.

“N-No, you can’t move!”

I quickly moved closer to Marie.

Marie was quite confused.

But for now, I had to detach her from her mother.

But there was no other choice.

In a situation where your own parent is on the verge of death, you can’t stay calm.

I wondered why I was so composed.

No, I’m scared. Scared, but the adult in me whispered.

If I don’t stay calm, I’ll lose something important.

That’s why I defeated the goblin.

I can still remain calm now.

Because I thought if I didn’t, someone would die.

I had been restraining the struggling Marie, but Rose hurriedly came to help.

“I-I…”

“P-Please…”

“Mother! Mother! Let go, let go!”

Rose pulled Marie away.

She seemed to be relatively calm.

Maron remained stunned, watching the situation.

I checked my mother’s complexion. She looked pale. Clearly, there was too much bleeding.

Her pulse… was still okay. But it wasn’t safe.

There were lacerations on her back.

The bleeding hadn’t stopped yet. I needed to stop the bleeding.

It’s better not to move her much, but treating her on the floor would worsen her condition.

I wanted to at least move her to the bed.

But Marie was in a state of semi-madness.

Rose was restraining Marie.

I was a seven-year-old and small in size.

Maron remained stunned.

Either way, it would be impossible with just children.

Carrying one adult was already quite challenging.

There shouldn’t be any more goblins. There was no sound.

“Someone! Come here and help!”

I shouted, and someone came out from another room.

Women and elderly individuals looked surprised as they observed the room, and when they realized the goblin was dead, they hurried over.

“W-What on earth?”

“We need to do something about mother now! Carry her to the bed!”

The adult women cooperated and carried my mother to the bed.

Mother, who had been so lively and kind, was now completely motionless.

She was breathing. It’s okay, she’ll be fine.

Marie also seemed to be calming down gradually. She was no longer struggling, even though she was crying.

“Is there anyone knowledgeable in medicine or pharmacy here!?”

Everyone just looked at each other.

It was a small village. There probably wouldn’t be anyone with that kind of knowledge.

What should I do? It’s undoubtedly dangerous to leave it like this.

If no one can do it, then I have no choice but to do it.

Calm down. If I don’t stay composed, my mother will die.

If I think about what I should do carefully, it will be alright.

“Then, is there anyone skilled in sewing!?”

Several people raised their hands.

Choosing the person said to be the best among them, I had them move to the side of the bed.

A young woman. Probably around fifteen or sixteen.

She was an ordinary girl with braided hair, and freckles were a distinctive feature.

“Um, wh-what are you going to do?”

“Just wait a moment. Someone else, please fetch the sewing tools from my mother’s bedroom.

Also, there’s alcohol in the kitchen, so bring the high-concentration one.

And draw water from the well, heat it up, light a candle, please.

Bring as many clean cloths as possible! Each of you, take on a task and prepare!”

When I said this, for reasons unknown, they hurried to start moving.

“For the remaining people… um, could you please take the goblin’s corpse out into the corridor?

I know it’s unpleasant… but please.

After you’re done, wait in the corridor. If something happens, I’ll call you.”

Everyone moved as per my instructions.

Perhaps because no one took command, it was even easier to act.

The movement of the corpse went surprisingly smoothly.

Maybe they’re used to it…

In the room, only Marie, Rose, the braided girl, and I remained.

I quickly moved closer to Marie and started talking.

“Sister, I’m going to start treating Mom now. So please stay calm. If you don’t, Mom might not make it.”

“I-it’s not… I don’t… I don’t want her to… to die.”

“That’s why you need to calm down. If you panic, Mom will be in danger. Understand?”

I held Marie’s hand and looked into her eyes intently.

It seemed to calm her down a little.

Marie nodded repeatedly.

“Okay. Then, please watch from there. Also, do you have a dagger or something?”

“Uh, yes, over there.”

It seemed to be on the shelf.

There was a palm-sized knife there.

There was no convenient tool like scissors.

I returned to the bed and, while speaking to the braided girl, checked on Mom’s condition.

“May I ask your name?”

“I-I’m Lia.”

“Formal language is fine. You’re younger. Let’s talk normally. My name is Shion.”

“Uh, yeah, I-I understand. Shion-kun.”

She seemed nervous. This situation is a little tricky.

Her role is quite crucial.

I cut Mom’s clothes with the knife, exposing the wound on her back.

Blood was oozing out steadily.

“The wound… it’s… severe.”

“…But the wound doesn’t seem as deep as I thought. It stretches from the shoulder to the back.

Is there poison in the goblin’s claws?”

“I-I don’t think so. I’ve never heard of that.”

“That’s a relief. There’s nothing we can do about poison.”

However, it’s undoubtedly dangerous if left untreated.

In this world, there are no hospitals.

Even a minor injury can be fatal.

Even without poison, there’s a possibility of some kind of infectious disease.

I’ve heard that people in the past often died from a simple cold.

Though I believe that’s not the case since we have a relatively better quality of life.

We can’t afford to be careless.

“I-I brought them! Shion-kun!”

The villagers had prepared everything I had asked for.

I asked a skilled-looking woman to stay, and I asked the others to go outside.

As a precaution, I asked them to keep watch in the corridor in case there were more goblins.

If any appeared, they were to return to the room immediately.

“Alright, let’s begin.”

“Um, w-what are you going to do?”

“Suturing. Stitching up the wound.”

“W-What!? W-why would you do such a thing?”

I’m in a bind. It seems that the concept of suturing itself doesn’t exist or hasn’t permeated this world.

Surgical procedures, during that time, seemed to have faced a fair amount of criticism and persecution.

Well, injuring the body isn’t likely to be well received, so I’m sure it’ll be okay.

However, it might be a problem if I were to make an incision with a scalpel or something.

“If we don’t suture the wound, the bleeding won’t stop, and it’s dangerous to leave the wound open.

So, we stitch it up to simulate a state without the wound.

This way, the wound heals faster, and bleeding is controlled.

It’s easier to prevent infection… Anyway, just follow my instructions, okay?”

Receiving puzzled looks as to how I knew all this, I hurriedly explained.

I was starting to realize the gravity of what I was doing, but now was not the time.

The most important thing was to help Mom. That’s all.

“I-I don’t quite understand, but… t-that being said, I can’t injure Madam.”

“Is it better to save by causing injury, or to abandon without causing injury?”

I was saying the worst things.

But I was desperate.

Even while doing this, Mom’s condition was deteriorating.

Besides, I didn’t know if I could stitch properly.

That’s why I was asking her.

Though hesitant at my words, Lia nodded slowly.

“I… I understand. I’ll do it.”

“If anything happens, it’s all my responsibility. So, first—”

I started giving instructions.

Since it was first aid, it wasn’t too complicated.

First, wipe the blood with a clean cloth, disinfect with alcohol, wash hands thoroughly, heat the needle with fire, and stitch the wound. That’s all.

However, it was Lia’s first time, and the patient was the lord’s wife.

Lia was probably quite nervous from her perspective.

Yet she proceeded without much resistance, which was reassuring.

It was just a simple suturing. It wasn’t that difficult and was completed in about ten minutes.

Suturing the wound stopped the bleeding.

The stitching was quite neat.

Her sewing skills were as good as she claimed.

Contrary to appearance, she seemed to have courage.

I was really thankful.

After applying bandages, I laid Mom on her back.

“Thank you. You saved her.”

“I-I see. But, will Madam be alright?”

“If she rests quietly, probably. The bleeding is substantial, but I don’t think it’s fatal.”

If only we could perform a blood transfusion, but such things don’t exist here.

There’s likely no technology to create syringes in this world, and even if there were skilled individuals, the time and cost of production would be significant.

We don’t have the luxury to wait until such a solution is possible.

Looking at Mom’s pulse and complexion, she seems stable for now.

“S-Shion. How is Mother?”

“She’ll be alright now.”

“R-Really?”

“Yeah. We’ll have to keep an eye on her for a while, but she’ll be fine. She’ll recover.”

“U-Ugh… Shion… Mother… Mother…”

Marie contorted her face and clung to me.

I patted her back, reassuring her repeatedly.

I understand how she feels.

Because I felt the same way.

Before I knew it, I was also crying.

Emotions I had been holding back for so long overflowed.

It was terrifying. Very much so.

I was scared beyond words, and then I felt relief, and all my strength drained away.

I realized it was all over a few dozen minutes later.

When Father and the others returned.