Reincarnated in a Light Novel

Eclair mulled over it but in the end, sighed and pinched the bridge of his nose. 

"Okay, you can scout, but if things get dangerous, do not push any further and go back."

This made Cookie happy as she jumped out of the ground and sank back down before she zoomed inside the tunnel.

'That's fast…"

Eclair noticed that Cookie moved with incredible speed as if the ground she swam through was water. He found it fascinating. Despite being just centimetres—perhaps even millimetres—away, the ground didn't change its consistency. When Cookie bumped her nose against his ankle, it confirmed that the ground remained solid, not turning into liquid.

Eclair was fascinated by Cookie's power. Since she was demonized, did her Omi aura turn everything it touched into a swimmable substance similar to water? Or was it just her?

"S-Sorcerer!" A sudden shout broke his train of thought.

Eclair's head snapped toward the voice. A guard, clearly out of breath, was looking at him with urgency.

"S-Someone just disappeared!"

Eclair's jaw tightened. 'Just as Cookie went in?' he thought, gritting his teeth.

Time was of the essence. Every second wasted gave the perpetrator more time to escape. He leaned into the tunnel and called out, "Cookie, it's time to leave!"

Standing at the tunnel's entrance, Eclair anxiously waited. His frustration simmered as the seconds ticked by. Then, with startling speed, Cookie shot out of the tunnel and stopped abruptly in front of him.

Eclair blinked in surprise at her swift return but didn't linger on it. Without hesitation, he turned to the guard.

"Go. Take me there," he said sharply. 

The guard, momentarily puzzled by Cookie's sudden speed, quickly dismissed it and focused on his task. Without hesitation, he led the way, running toward the site of the disappearance. By the time they arrived, the guard was bent over, gasping for breath, and kneeling on the ground.

They had entered a small neighbourhood where a distressed crowd had gathered. Children were crying, and adults were consoling them. Eclair strode toward the crying children, and the crowd instinctively parted to let him through.

"Excuse me," Eclair addressed the adults comforting the children. "Could you tell me what happened?"

"Who are—" a man began, his tone irritated, assuming Eclair was just another curious onlooker.

"I'm a Sorcerer," Eclair cut in firmly.

The man's expression shifted instantly. Though Eclair's claim might have been a bluff, no one dared to challenge it.

"T-that!" The man stammered before collecting himself. "The kids were playing under my wife's supervision when suddenly, a snake came out of nowhere and snatched one of them!"

So it's a demon, Eclair thought grimly. "Did you see where it went?"

The man, too shaken to speak, simply pointed toward the nearby woods. Without wasting a moment, Eclair sprang into action, bolting toward the forest with inhuman speed.

As he ran, his mind pieced together the situation. 'A lesser-class demon, most likely. Too weak to hunt adults, so it preyed on the vulnerable—the homeless, the poor, and now children.' It was a plausible theory, but he tucked it away for later.

Once inside the forest, Eclair spread his senses, searching for the demon's presence. Frustration mounted as he found nothing. Then, Cookie swam forward, her movements deliberate. She paused to look Eclair in the eye before surging ahead.

"Did you find something?" Eclair muttered, following her lead without hesitation. Cookie slowed her pace to match his, guiding him deeper into the woods.

Moments later, Eclair felt it—a faint presence of miasma at the edge of his senses. 'There!'

He surged forward, closing the gap. In the distance, he spotted the snake-like demon, its body grotesquely swollen from its recent meal. Without hesitation, Eclair dashed in front of it, slashing his hand in one fluid motion. With a single, decisive strike, he severed the demon's head.

"Sheesh,".

Wasting no time, Eclair tore open the snake's stomach and carefully extracted an unconscious boy. The child was still warm. Cradling him gently, Eclair turned and sprinted back toward town, his urgency overriding any concern for the mucus-soaked state of his clothes.

'Time is ticking,' Eclair thought. He wasn't going to let the boy slip away. Once he had reached the town, the onlookers looked at Eclair as if he reappeared after he just left. But more surprised and concerned when they saw the boy in his arms wrapped in mucus.

Help seemed to be arriving soon. Eclair gently laid the unconscious boy on a patch of grass as a couple rushed toward him, tears streaming down their faces.

"My boy! My boy!" the woman sobbed, clutching the child tightly.

Eclair sighed in relief and lowered himself to the ground, leaning back on his elbows. A soft bump against his right side caught his attention. Turning, he saw Cookie beside him. Eclair smiled and raised a hand to pet her nose. Cookie flinched slightly but didn't pull away.

"You did a good job!" he said warmly.

Cookie began swimming in excited circles, clearly thrilled by the praise. After a moment, she snuggled up beside him, leaning her sleek, shark-like body against his side. Eclair chuckled and began rubbing her scaly body as a gesture of affection.

'Does she have enhanced sensory abilities too?' he wondered. Watching her take the lead earlier had left him astonished. 'She can swim through solids as if they're water, has incredible speed, and now this large sensory range? That's amazing!'

He glanced at Cookie, who remained silent, in her usual state. Eclair figured that, in time, she might start speaking, but for now, patience was key.

"Uhm, Sorcerer," a hesitant voice called out, interrupting his thoughts. "Why are you keeping a demon on your side?"

"Oh, this one?" Eclair gestured toward Cookie. "She's the reason I was able to track down the demon that ate that boy."

The explanation seemed to satisfy the onlooker, but it jogged Eclair's memory. He frowned and stood up. "Right, I need to deal with that demon corpse." 

Before he could move, Cookie bumped him gently with her nose, then turned to the side and opened her mouth. To Eclair's astonishment, she spat out the severed head of the snake demon.

The head was enormous—easily a fourth the size of Cookie's own body.

"Cookie… what about the rest of the body?"

Cookie glanced at him briefly before repeating the motion, this time expelling the entire massive snake corpse.

She can store objects in her stomach too?! Eclair thought, stunned. He stared at her in disbelief, his admiration for her abilities growing with every new revelation.