Chapter 27

Kazura stood at the entrance of the classroom, took a deep breath, and firmly held the secret letter given to him by his mother.

Early the next morning after Kazura was recognized as a human by Valletta, the surroundings were still dim, and the village of Gricia was quietly still. Kazura walked along the path between the fields, holding a Boston bag, heading towards the stone-paved path that connected to Japan.

Today, Kazura's attire was different from usual; instead of the clothes sewn by Valletta, he wore jeans and a T-shirt.

Until now, the purpose of returning to Japan was solely for gathering supplies, but today's purpose was different.

"Mr. Kazura, Mr. Kazura, when we go to Japan, I want to visit a bookstore first!"

As Valletta walked beside Kazura, her face full of anticipation, Kazura replied, "Sure, that's fine."

The purpose of this trip to Japan was not to gather supplies but to bring Valletta to Japan. After Kazura told Valletta that he was human last night, Valletta asked:

"Um... if it's not too much trouble, could you take me to your country next time?"

Kazura thought, "It should be fine if it's Valletta," and agreed.

After securing Kazura's agreement to go to Japan, Valletta seemed extremely happy and continued to ask Kazura questions about Japan until late at night. When Kazura's watch pointed to 1 a.m., Valletta finally realized she had been talking non-stop and hurriedly apologized before going to bed. However, her face clearly said, "I want to go right now!" Kazura, being considerate, suggested:

"Why don't you take a short nap, and then we'll head to my country right away?"

Three hours later, they were now on their way. Incidentally, Kazura didn't know this, but Valletta had been so excited that she hadn't slept at all last night.

"But before we go to the bookstore, we need to buy clothes and shoes. The clothing in Arcadia is quite different from that in Japan."

Valletta was currently wearing her usual plain clothes and straw sandals. This outfit, which was unremarkable in this world, would undoubtedly draw attention in Japan, especially with her status as a blonde beauty. If they were to tour Japan, they would first need to acquire and change into appropriate clothing.

"Oh, right... the money, this won't work, will it?"

As a precaution, Valletta took out a few 100 Al silver coins from the cloth bag tied to her waist. While these coins were quite valuable in this world, they would be treated as mere antiques in Japan.

"Money from Arcadia won't work. I have Japanese money, so don't worry."

"I'm sorry... I should have caught some Arcadian bugs. They could be sold in Japanese stores for money."

"Yes... I wonder about Arcadian bugs... It might cause a lot of trouble before they even sell."

While talking, the two arrived at the edge of the mixed forest that led to the stone-paved path. It was quite dark inside the forest due to the dense trees and the early hour. Valletta's face showed a slight tension as she stood before the dimly lit forest, a place she never ventured into.

Noticing Valletta's unease, Kazura patted her back lightly.

"Don't worry, it's fine. I always go through here, and it's just a normal forest."

"Y-Yes."

Kazura smiled at Valletta and, using a penlight from his pocket to illuminate the ground, started walking into the depths of the forest. Valletta followed slowly, stepping into the forest.

"There's a stone-paved path that connects to Japan ahead. It's not far, so we'll arrive soon."

"Is that so... According to the legend, once you enter this forest, you end up back at the entrance without realizing it..."

As they walked deeper into the dark forest, Kazura turned back and smiled at Valletta.

"That's an interesting legend. But if that were true, I wouldn't be able to return to Japan no matter how long I waited. It's fine, we can pass through normally."

"That's true... since you always go through here."

Kazura nodded and pointed to a tree ahead.

"There are marks on the trees to prevent us from getting lost. If we follow these, we won't get lost."

"Markers? Then we won't get lost."

"Yes. Look, the marks are large and made of stone, so they won't disappear for a while... Valletta?"

Kazura approached the marked tree, traced the mark with his hand, and turned back, but Valletta was nowhere to be seen. He looked around, but there was no sign of her.

"What... just a moment ago, we were talking..."

Kazura, sweating nervously, called out Valletta's name loudly. However, his voice echoed through the forest without any response. Kazura stood there in shock for a moment, but if Valletta had been taken by a supernatural force, it would be a serious situation. Praying that she had returned to the entrance of the village as the legend suggested, Kazura ran at full speed back through the forest.

"Ah, what! Mr. Kazura!?"

Suddenly, Kazura's figure disappeared before Valletta's eyes, and she looked around in surprise. The scenery had changed completely, as if the space had been entirely replaced, the moment Kazura touched the marked tree and turned back.

"No... he was right in front of me..."

The surroundings were different from where she had been with Kazura a moment ago, and the marked tree he had touched was nowhere to be found. Overwhelmed by the sudden turn of events, Valletta stood there in shock. Then, she heard her name being called from behind. It was Kazura's voice.

"Valletta! Thank goodness, I found you..."

"Mr. Kazura, why are you behind me...?"

Seeing Valletta's confused expression, Kazura, still catching his breath from running, explained.

"Well, I don't understand it either, but when I turned back, you were suddenly gone... I remembered the legend and rushed back. But it's a relief that it wasn't a supernatural force..."

In contrast to Kazura's relieved expression, Valletta was checking her surroundings and her body, looking puzzled. According to the legend, entering the forest would eventually lead one back to the village entrance, but she hadn't expected to be the only one forced to return while walking with Kazura. She hadn't disbelieved the legend, but she had assumed they could pass through the forest together.

"Perhaps, as the legend suggests, I can't pass through this forest..."

Seeing Valletta's dejected expression, Kazura took her right hand in his left.

"Ah..."

"Maybe if we hold hands, you can pass through the forest with me."

Kazura could move freely through the forest, and holding hands might allow him to bring Valletta through. Nodding with renewed hope, Kazura smiled at Valletta, who looked up at him with a worried expression, and started walking deeper into the forest again.

They walked in silence for about two minutes and stopped at the spot where Valletta had suddenly disappeared.

"I think it was around here where the scenery suddenly changed."

Valletta picked up a stone from the ground and threw it into the depths of the forest. The stone didn't disappear and rolled along the ground, passing by the marked tree.

"The stone seems to be fine..."

Confirming that the stone hadn't disappeared, Valletta, still holding Kazura's hand, hugged his arm with her other hand. Kazura squeezed her hand back and slowly walked towards the marked tree.

"Alright, let's keep going... What!?"

Just as they were about to reach the marked tree, Valletta suddenly vanished from his side. The weight in his left hand disappeared, and he nearly lost his balance.

"Ah, that's close... What's going on here?"

Even after encountering various surprising situations in this world, Kazura was speechless at the sudden disappearance of a person right in front of him. It was more shocking than the first time he had passed through the portal to another world.

Kazura stared at his left hand for a few seconds before turning and running back.

"Valletta!"

When Kazura returned to where Valletta had been teleported, she was sitting on the ground, hugging her knees and looking dejected, surrounded by fallen leaves. As Kazura approached, Valletta looked up at him while still hugging her knees.

"It didn't work..."

She whispered, her gaze returning to the ground. Tears welled up in her eyes, and she seemed very upset.

"Hmm... I don't understand why, but it seems we can't go to Japan right away..."

Kazura could move freely through the forest, but Valletta couldn't, which was puzzling. Moreover, she was not only unable to pass through but was also teleported back to this spot, a supernatural phenomenon. The only differences between Kazura and Valletta were their gender and the worlds they came from. If either of these was the reason, it would be impossible for Valletta to go to Japan.

"...I really wanted to go to Japan..."

Seeing Valletta's sad expression, Kazura, unsure of what to say, watched as she took a deep breath, stood up, and brushed the dirt off her clothes.

"There's no point in complaining about the impossible. I'm sorry for being selfish."

Kazura felt guilty, even though it wasn't his fault. He had never expected such a phenomenon to occur and had agreed to Valletta's request to go to Japan. The greater the expectation, the greater the disappointment when it couldn't be fulfilled.

"No, it's not selfish... There might be a way, so let's try again later."

"Right... that's true."

Although it wasn't completely impossible, there might be a way to go to Japan. Kazura tried to stay positive, but Valletta, looking down, seemed to have already given up. The legend had come true, which was quite a blow.

They stood in silence for a while, but then Valletta looked up and spoke.

"Mr. Kazura, I have one request..."

"Sure, what is it?"

Smiling, Kazura responded, and Valletta, blushing slightly, looked away and smiled back.

"I want to eat canned peaches again."

"Eh? Canned peaches?"

Kazura was puzzled by the request for canned peaches at this moment, but when Valletta said,

"Yes, canned peaches. Is that okay?"

with a look of apology, Kazura immediately nodded and smiled.

"Got it, canned peaches. I'll buy them right away, so please wait at the mansion."

"Thank you."

After Valletta thanked him, Kazura said,

"See you later,"

and ran off into the depths of the forest. Valletta watched him go, waving her hand, and sighed deeply.

"Ah. I need to cheer up before Mr. Kazura comes back. Come on, I can do this."

Valletta made a small fist in front of her chest to muster her courage and then left the forest to return to the village.

A few minutes after parting with Valletta, Kazura stood in front of a grave beside the stone-paved path, looking down at it with a serious expression.

"Hey, was the Graciel who appeared in the village hundreds of years ago you?"

According to the legend Valletta told him last night, Graciel escaped from the lord's captivity and disappeared into this forest. It was said that Graciel instantly untied the rope around his neck and dodged all the lord's sword strikes. However,

"Even if he managed to untie the rope and escape, it's more plausible that he was cut several times and died here from his injuries..."

The collapsed corpse in the corner of the path and the legend of Graciel seemed to be related, but it was difficult to confirm if the corpse was indeed Graciel, given that the story was hundreds of years old. However, if the legend was true, it was reasonable to assume that the skeleton under the grave was Graciel.

When Valletta mentioned the legend, Kazura had thought, "Hmm?" but he didn't think it was necessary or appropriate to tell her about the grave. Even if Valletta could pass through the forest with Kazura today, he had planned to pass by the grave without stopping.

"If you also came to this world from that mansion, could you be one of my ancestors?"

When Kazura's father, Shino Masaharu, advised him to take refuge in the mansion, he had mentioned it as a "mansion passed down through generations." While it was unclear how long the mansion had been in the Shino family, if it had been for hundreds of years, it wasn't entirely implausible. However, it was puzzling why no one had told Kazura about the room in the mansion that connected to this world. It seemed unlikely that someone who knew about the room would forget to mention it. On the other hand, it was also unlikely that Kazura's father would deliberately keep it a secret, as there was no reason to do so. The most natural explanation was that no one had tried to open the door, and thus no one knew it connected to this world.

"But then, who locked the padlock? And where did it go after it fell on the tatami... Ah, never mind, I'll casually ask my father about our ancestors next time."

No matter how much he thought about it, he wouldn't get a clear answer here, so Kazura scratched his head, stopped thinking, and entered the stone-paved path to return to Japan.

While Kazura was in Japan buying canned peaches, in the training ground in the city of Isteria, Isaac was doing push-ups with 100 of his subordinates. The training ground, surrounded by a 3-meter stone wall, was a bleak open square. The large wooden gate connecting the square to the city was open, and a guard stood beside it. Many citizens passed by and showed interest in the training, some even talking to the guard.

The soldiers were young, with Isaac and his deputy, who were both 20 years old, being the oldest.

"48, 49, 50! ...Huh? No one is lagging behind?"

After completing the predetermined number of push-ups, Isaac lifted his head from the ground. His subordinates had all kept up with him, standing up and brushing the sand off their hands. For the past few weeks, Isaac had been away from the unit, assigned to other duties by Nelson. To tighten the slack that had developed in his absence, he had pushed the subordinates to do push-ups at a high speed. Surprisingly, everyone had kept up. If anyone had lagged behind, he had planned to make them run twice the distance in the next long-distance run, but that wasn't necessary.

Impressed by his subordinates, Isaac turned to his deputy, who was brushing the sand off his hands and pants and sighed.

"While you were away, Lady Zirconia occasionally came to check on the unit. Her training instructions were hellish. Your planned training seemed like a mercy from the gods."

"That explains why you all have such good stamina. It's a good thing, isn't it?"

Isaac's response made the deputy look at him with a tired expression.

"It's not a good thing. About two weeks ago, one of the soldiers cursed the training, and immediately after, everyone was made to do combat training with Lady Zirconia's mock spears. The results were..."

"What!? Lady Zirconia sparred with you? How envious... So, how did it go!?"

The deputy could tell Isaac really wanted to participate in the training and looked at him with a strange expression.

("What kind of person finds that so enviable...")

The deputy then continued.

"It was terrible. No one lasted more than 20 seconds before being forced to the ground. Even when we fell, we were made to stand up until we couldn't move. I was repeatedly shouted at, 'Do you plan to stay on the ground in battle?' and beaten with spears. I couldn't move the next day because of the pain."

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