Chapter 14

That night, I spent the night not in bed.

Outside. In front of the house.

Under a tree, wrapped in a blanket... I slept surrounded by horses.

After all, I had seen Redgard off and spent the afternoon relaxing by the spring, but when I tried to enter the house, the horses wouldn't let me in.

I guess they must be anxious. They had just been through a terrible ordeal, and I had worried them by collapsing.

...So, I ended up sleeping outside, surrounded by horses.

But I couldn't settle down.

...Basically, I think I have a nature where I can't relax when there are other living things nearby when I sleep. Especially horses, which have a higher body temperature than humans, and you can really feel their presence when they're close... well, I just can't relax.

The horses, too, would close their eyes and then open them again, and it was hard to tell if they were sleeping or not. I guess they can't relax either. ...No, maybe it's because horses don't sleep much in the first place, so I can't really say.

Unable to sleep, I started thinking about various things.

First, the poachers. Will they be properly punished?

...When I think about this, I feel a bit uneasy. I want them to be punished, but I feel guilty for wanting them to be punished.

Well... yeah, it can't be helped. That's just the kind of person I am.

Then, about that bird.

The bird that brought the document that could be used as evidence to punish the poachers.

...What exactly is that bird? I thought maybe it's normal for this world, where there are horses with wings and horses with horns, to have giant komatsugumi birds, but still... it seems strange.

It has a rich expression. It doesn't fear humans. It made me incubate its egg. It even brought the document.

What exactly is it?

...And finally, my thoughts turn to the original world.

It's been about a month since I came to this world, hasn't it? I'm not sure if I've been counting the days accurately, but probably about a month.

A month... When I return to the original world, will everything be okay? What about my high school credits? Will I have enough attendance?

I've never really thought about how these systems work. ...Well, I've never had to take a day off from school unless I had a cold, so I never had to worry about it.

Yeah, I've almost always attended, so I guess my credits will be fine.

If not... well, I don't really want to think about it. Let's not.

But even if I set aside the issue of high school credits, I'll probably have to go to cram school every day to catch up on the lessons I missed... I might not have time to draw.

...I don't like that.

I don't want to go back to the original world.

I have only one clear reason to want to go back, but that alone... there are just too many complicated things.

Maybe it's because I'm having a good time in this world... I'm starting to not want to go back to the original world.

While I was thinking about these things and rolling around among the horses, I realized it was already morning. I don't know if I stayed up all night or if I fell asleep at some point.

...Well, it doesn't matter.

The sky at dawn was glowing pink and was very beautiful. I think it was worth not sleeping well just to see this.

After that... well, I guess the horses were satisfied.

That day, I was taken care of by the horses.

When I woke up, the horses had already brought me fruit for breakfast. After that, I was taken to the spring by a unicorn to bathe, dried off with a pegasus's wings, and changed into clothes I got myself. Then, I was surrounded by horses again and took a nap.

...What is this?

One after another, different horses came to lie next to me. It seems they are taking turns. Hmm, I don't know why they are taking turns, but they are smart...

That night, I ended up sleeping surrounded by horses again... Since sleeping on the ground with a blanket and horses as bedding was getting uncomfortable, I hung a hammock from a tree and decided to sleep there. The horses seemed to accept this, but they still tried to stay close by, even crawling under my hammock to sleep.

And the next day.

...I felt a bit more energetic.

I thought I hadn't recovered much because I hadn't slept well the previous nights, but apparently, I had... The discomfort in my body was gone.

"Maybe it's because I slept surrounded by horses."

I whispered to the horses, but they just walked around leisurely, eating grass. ...I guess there is such a thing as animal therapy, horse therapy, or something. Hmm.

Feeling a bit more energetic, I started drawing again.

This time, it was just a sketch. ...There was a beautiful stone among the things Redgard was wearing, and I wanted to record its appearance, so I drew it.

A bracelet with a deep red stone. I recalled it was on his left wrist and started drawing.

Just then.

"Hey! Togo!"

...I saw Redgard coming with a smile from a distance.

"Did it! I caught all the poachers!"

It seems he successfully used the document to bring the poachers to justice.

"There's still a lot of procedures to go through, but at least this case is settled!"

"That's great. I'm glad."

This way, the poachers won't come back. The horses will be safe. I'm glad.

I told the horses, "It's good, isn't it?" and they neighed happily. Yes, it's good.

"This time, I really owe you a lot. You helped catch the poachers... and even provided the document."

"I was helped by the horses and the bird. Not me. And I caused you unnecessary trouble with the poachers."

"No, you helped. Thanks to you, we were able to present the document properly. It was pretty easy to catch them, and we even caught the buyers."

Ah, right. If there are people selling horse wings and horns, there must be people buying them. And this time, the "buyers" were also caught.

That's good. It's not my doing at all, though.

"...But you did help. If you weren't there, I don't think the pegasi and unicorns, and... the bird, would have helped."

But Redgard patted my back.

"Thanks, Togo!"

Yeah. If I could be of help, that's great.

...But, could you please pat me a bit more gently next time?

"...So, I was thinking about how to thank you. Giving you a thing doesn't seem right. You can get anything you want by drawing it, right?"

Redgard's eyes were on the bracelet I was sketching.

"Actually, I didn't draw it because I wanted it. I drew it because it was beautiful, as a record..."

"Huh? Oh, I see. A record... Yeah, the actual thing would be the best record, wouldn't it?"

That's not what I meant... I didn't intend to materialize it, so I tried not to draw it too detailed... but I'll keep quiet.

"What would you like... Maybe a medal? I'll have to discuss it with my father."

"No, I don't need that."

"Okay? Then, land?"

"No, I don't need that."

I don't need land. ...But, yeah.

"Then, what do you want? If there's something you want, I'll try to provide it."

"...Anything?"

Looking up at Redgard, I hesitated a bit... but for the future, I decided to say it.

"Then, please give me permission to live here."

"...You don't ask for much, do you?"

I'd like to be called safety-oriented.

...After that.

Redgard continued to handle various procedures to deal with the poachers. He seemed busy, but he would come to visit in his spare time.

He would bring food as a gift, or brushes for the horses.

And he would tell me various stories... most importantly.

"I'm going to take a nap!"

"Sure. I'll start drawing, then."

"Haha, go ahead. Take your time."

"You too."

Redgard would come to visit, take a nap, or rest, and then go back. It seems he comes here to relax.

While he naps, rests, or reads, I... use him to practice figure drawing.

Today, I started practicing with him as he started his nap in the hammock.

The human form is complex. It's interesting.

...Yeah. I'm glad Redgard started coming here. It's fun.