Chapter 11

In the end, that day, I ended up inviting someone into my home for the first time.

It seemed novel to him, and Redgard looked around the house curiously, but since he wasn’t vulgar, I didn’t feel uncomfortable.

"Please."

"No, I can’t possibly take up your bed! I just showed up unexpectedly! It’s enough that you’re letting me shelter from the rain and wind!"

...Besides, you see. This person might be someone who can help the horses living in this forest. I think it’s fine to be kind to him on their behalf.

Also, it’s just that, it’s a bit strange to have my first guest sleep on the floor.

So... I quickly drew a picture right there.

What I drew was a sofa and a blanket.

Since I can use paint now, I can color surfaces much faster. With just a pencil, it always takes a lot of time to color surfaces.

In that regard, when drawing artificial objects like a sofa, having paint is a huge help.

"Wow... amazing, it really appeared..."

"Please."

Since he declined the bed, I decided to offer Redgard the sofa. He is taller than me and has a more solid, sturdy build. So, I made the sofa large enough for him to relax in... yeah, the house got a bit smaller. But it’s fine.

"Still, I’ve never seen such magic. Where did you learn this?"

"I don’t know."

Is this even magic in the first place? I don’t know anything, so I can’t give a proper answer.

Having someone in the house is more unsettling than I expected. I’m more nervous than Redgard. He’s already asleep, but I can’t seem to fall asleep and just keep tossing and turning.

...No good. I can’t sleep. And when I can’t sleep, the best thing to do is draw.

What should I draw? What do I want to draw...

"Figure drawing..."

...No, I’ll stop there. I’m a bit drawn to figure drawing, but it’s probably not right to draw someone while they’re sleeping.

Redgard, well, he would probably be fun to draw. Even from a male perspective, he has a fairly good appearance, his hair and eye color are beautiful, and most importantly, he has a good expression. Yeah. It would definitely be fun to draw him.

But, drawing someone while they’re sleeping is probably not right. Probably.

So, I’ll draw a carrot. I want to give it to the horses.

I lit the lamp (I drew a match, which is very convenient) and, using the light and the moonlight coming through the window, I started drawing a carrot.

...By the way, have the horses decided to settle around this house? They’re sleeping under the trees around the spring or walking around even though it’s night. Well, it’s fine.

"Poacher, huh..."

Still, a poacher, huh. There are such people in this world too. I guess it’s to be expected, but...

Pegasus wings and unicorn horns are beautiful. So, I can understand why someone would want them. I can also understand the urge to take them by poaching.

But... I don’t think it’s right. Especially after petting and healing the horses, and being approached and ridden by them. I have a connection to them, so I don’t want them to be hurt.

...I hope this problem gets resolved.

Morning came. I had a mountain of carrots. Redgard was surprised when he saw the mountain of carrots. Yeah, I was surprised too. Why did I keep increasing the number of carrots all night?

Well, it’s fine. What’s done is done. I called out, "Breakfast is ready," and went outside to distribute the carrots to the horses. ...The carrots were well-received. I’m glad they liked them.

"Oh, these are delicious. I was wondering what to do with so many carrots... but they’re not bad to eat."

And our breakfast also became carrots.

Redgard is eating the carrots raw, munching away. I didn’t have the courage to eat them raw, so I cut them into thin slices with a knife and ate them that way.

By the way, the seasoning is just salt. I thought it would be nice to have mayonnaise or something, but I’m too sleepy to draw mayonnaise, which would probably just turn into white paint, so I gave up.

"Still, it’s a nice day. Looks like the spirits aren’t angry with us."

Redgard, munching on a carrot, looked out the window and smiled brightly.

It’s a clear, sunny day. The weather is nice. ...But if the 'spirits' get angry, would it cause a storm?

"Hey, can I ask you something?"

"Hmm? Sure, go ahead."

Since I was curious, I decided to ask him.

"What are spirits?"

Redgard seemed to think hard, and then decided to explain while thinking.

"Hmm... well, they’re kind of like creatures that are closer to magic than humans? No, are they even creatures...? I don’t know."

I couldn’t understand from the start. I feel the cultural barrier.

"Well, spirits live in places like forests or springs... and they’re said to be the embodiment of forests or springs. Basically, they protect the surrounding area. And they have much more magic power than humans."

I won’t ask what magic power is. It’s probably some kind of power. I can kind of tell from the atmosphere, so it’s fine.

"Most spirits dislike humans. But if they like someone, they’ll help them. Heroes in fairy tales are usually the ones who are favored by high-ranking spirits and given power. ...Basically, they’re someone stronger than humans, different from humans, and a bit whimsical."

I see. So, it mostly comes down to that. In that case, it’s probably similar to the 'mountain gods' in Japan.

In essence, I think it’s one form of nature worship. Well, since this world has magic and all, it’s not strange for such 'spirits' to exist...

"Oh, right. And spirits are said to have beautiful appearances. The spirits in fairy tales are all handsome men and beautiful women. ...But I’ve never seen one, so I don’t know what they really look like."

"Uh-huh..."

...Did I get mistaken for one of those? What kind of face should I make?

Maybe because I had a 'what kind of face should I make' face, Redgard noticed and added with a wry smile.

"Oh, you? Well... yeah. If you saw someone surrounded by Pegasus and unicorns, smiling while bathing, you’d think they were a spirit. That scene was just too surreal."

Ah, yeah, that’s right... But it’s the horses here that are strange, not me...

About an hour later.

"Thanks for everything! See you!"

After breakfast of carrots and fruits, Redgard decided to leave. He’s going to keep looking for poachers.

"I’ll definitely find the poachers and beat them up! I won’t let them hurt the horses here anymore!"

"Uh-huh. Good luck."

I waved goodbye to Redgard, who left with a smile, until his colorful head disappeared behind the trees.

Well.

The horses seem to really like the carrots. They nudge me with their noses, asking for more carrots.

I’m in charge of taking care of the horses today. ...And the birds.

The bird came again today. It might have come a bit later because it was wary of Redgard.

Anyway, this giant waxwing is here again, taking over the spring. Yeah, it’s fine. Feel free to bathe as much as you like.

But today, the giant bird... seems to have brought me something.

As soon as I started bathing, the bird nudged me and pushed something in its beak against me.

"Huh? Huh? What, what is this?"

It was a piece of paper... but...

"I can’t read it."

I tried hard to read the paper the bird brought, but I couldn’t. The writing was completely different from any I knew.

It seems to be written in a different world’s script, which, unfortunately, I can’t read. The only thing I can tell is... well, this is probably some kind of document. There’s a seal and a thumbprint on it.

But... I can’t understand anything else. So, well, I’ll put this away for now. I’m sorry, bird.

...But the bird seemed satisfied. It chirped happily when it saw me put the paper in my pocket.

Then, I lounged on the bed. I’ve been passing out from healing horses lately, so maybe I shouldn’t draw anything today.

But not drawing makes me restless, so I decided to draw something anyway. I took my sketchbook and drawing materials outside. I thought I’d wander around and draw something I like.

Hmm, should I have drawn Redgard before he left? It would have been a good opportunity for figure drawing...

I was thinking about that when...

A horse neighed and came over to me.

Then... it started pushing me with its nose.

"Huh? Huh?"

I was pushed along from in front of the house, past the spring, and then... as soon as we reached an open area, I was scooped up by a unicorn’s horn and placed on a Pegasus’s back.

"...Huh?"

Before I could even think about what was happening, the Pegasus started galloping through the forest.

The Pegasus was fast.

It moved smoothly through the forest, weaving between trees without slowing down. And sometimes, it flew.

As the trees of the forest rushed past, I... could only cling to the Pegasus with all my might. If I fell off, I’d definitely die.

The Pegasus paid no attention to my struggle and kept galloping.

...By the way, it seemed to be in a hurry but wasn’t flying, and I wondered where we were going and what was happening, but I just kept being carried by the Pegasus.

After about 10 minutes of being carried by the Pegasus,

The Pegasus finally stopped. Then, it moved forward slowly and cautiously, as if trying to avoid being noticed.

Soon, voices could be heard from beyond the trees, and an open area came into view.

"Here is..."

Then, I saw the scene and held back my words.

...There, surrounded by two Pegasus, a group of people... were trying to cut off the Pegasus’s wings.