Chapter 7

Summary of the previous chapter:

The girl kept climbing up and up, the knots untangling.

(This is not a typo)

7

I had Lily use magic to prepare water and told Kato to clean herself, then left the hut ahead of them.

I left Rose behind to help. I thought that since Rose, who looks different from humans, was there, it would be easier for her to expose herself.

Kato herself refused the help, but after I suggested it a few times, she accepted my proposal.

I couldn’t tell if this was the right decision. Moreover, considering that half the reason I assigned Rose to her was to monitor her, I couldn’t say it was for her benefit even if my mouth were to tear.

"Master, are you really going to take that girl with us?"

"Right off the bat?"

As soon as we left the hut, Lily asked in a slightly suppressed voice, and I couldn’t help but smile wryly.

"Don’t laugh, okay?"

"Sorry."

Lily pouted her cherry-colored lips, looking very young.

"Are you dissatisfied with my judgment?"

"I wouldn’t oppose Master’s decision."

"That’s not an answer to my question."

Lily follows my decisions because I made them, but that doesn’t mean she agrees with them.

She probably couldn’t hold back and asked when we were alone.

Of course, I wouldn’t feel uncomfortable even if she opposed me. I already knew that her dissatisfaction stemmed from concern for my safety.

"I’m not saying you have to risk your life to protect her. Just do it if you have the spare capacity. Prioritize yourself first, then me, and finally Kato. See? The priority is simple, you won’t get it wrong."

"You’ve got the first and second priorities mixed up."

"Anyway, she doesn’t have the strength to fight on her own."

I decided this conversation would probably go in circles and moved on.

"I don’t think she will become a danger to us. There will be some minor inconveniences with her around, but I think they are within acceptable limits."

"On the contrary, you’re going to protect Kato, right? Like hiding her true identity?"

"If it’s too much, I can reveal it. It’s not that important. It’s just a precaution."

"You’re changing the subject, Master. I won’t let you get away with that."

Lily looked more worried than dissatisfied.

"Do you really care that much about that girl?"

"No, it’s not that."

I stroked her beautiful flaxen hair.

"What I want to protect is probably something vague inside me."

"Something?"

"Yesterday, I protected Kato. Whether it was out of momentum or circumstances, the fact remains that I protected her. Abandoning a stray cat I picked up would be irresponsible—though that’s a cliché. I have a responsibility, and I need to fulfill it."

...I think.

Or rather, I can’t help but think that.

The reason is certainly not out of moral or ethical considerations. After all, I’ve already broken the taboo of killing three people.

So, why?

If asked, I wouldn’t understand my own heart.

That’s why I can only describe it as ‘something.’ That’s how it is.

"Master—"

Lily looked at me with her large eyes, as if trying to say something, but then smiled a little awkwardly, perhaps unable to find the right words.

"Master is serious, huh."

"I’m often told I’m boring."

"That’s not true."

It was a conversation that felt nostalgic.

"Master isn’t like that."

Lily pressed her head against my forearm.

"So, yeah. For Master, I can protect that girl too."

"Is that so?"

I pressed my cheek against her flaxen hair.

"Thank you."

It was strange.

Despite being in such a dangerous forest, all I felt at that moment was happiness.

Perhaps, if I lose this ‘something’ I want to protect, such moments will disappear...

I just vaguely thought about it.

Then, I suddenly realized.

If that’s true, what I really want to protect might be this irreplaceable fragment of happiness.

***

After waiting for Kato to finish cleaning herself, we left the hut.

"Did you forget anything? We won’t be coming back here, so bring everything you need."

"…Yes."

"Hey, are you going to abandon this hut, Master?"

Lily, who had been clinging to my arm since this morning, asked from below.

Kato glanced at Lily.

But she didn’t say anything.

She didn’t ask anything.

Lily, who appears to be a student from the same Japan as us, doesn’t seem suspicious of calling me ‘Master.’

Yet, she hasn’t asked anything so far. I wonder why.

I thought about it, but couldn’t come up with an answer.

I could ask, but there’s a saying, ‘a snake in the grass.’

Moreover, if it’s something bad, she wouldn’t answer honestly. Asking would be pointless.

It’s frustrating.

Whether it’s Lily or Rose, we’re connected through the pass, so we can communicate somewhat, and I trust them.

In that sense, Kato’s presence is stressful.

However, I knew that bringing a human along would lead to this.

I just have to endure it.

"Master."

"Yeah, um, right."

I stopped my pointless thoughts and turned to Lily.

"There was a barrier around this hut to keep monsters away. But now it’s gone. There’s no need to make our base so conspicuous."

I’m not just wary of monsters. Humans are also potential threats to me.

In that regard, this mountain hut was too conspicuous.

However, as long as we have Kato with us, we need to contact humans to ensure her safety.

The best scenario would be to find a human group, confirm their discipline, and send Kato to them without us making contact.

Of course, that’s unlikely to happen smoothly.

"Shall we go?"

"Sure."

"…Okay."

With Lily’s enthusiastic agreement and Kato’s contrasting dejected one, we left the hut.

With Rose leading as the vanguard and Lily, who has long-range attack capabilities, serving as the rearguard and protecting Kato and me, we ventured deeper into the forest.

"Kato, walking in the forest can be tiring. Let me know if you get tired."

"No, I’m fine… I’m sorry."

"Master, aren’t you tired?"

"No, I’m fine."

Even Lily, who usually clung to my arm, let go now.

I felt a bit nostalgic for the warmth that had left, which was probably noticed through the pass.

Feeling inconvenienced only at such times… I might be a bit selfish.

We walked for a few hours, taking several breaks, before we noticed something amiss.

"…A stench?"

I wrinkled my nose involuntarily.

It smelled like something was rotting.

"What do we do, Master?"

"Right."

I’m the leader of this group.

I may be a pitiful leader who can’t even protect myself properly, but I have to make the decisions. I can’t rely on Lily or Rose for that.

It’s good that we noticed something amiss.

But what should we do?

Getting closer might be dangerous.

But there’s no safe place in this forest.

Since the anomaly is clearly visible, we can observe it discreetly, which might actually be less dangerous.

"Let’s go."

I made up my mind in a few seconds.

"Is that okay, Kato?"

"…Yes."

We headed toward the source of the stench, which was so strong it could bend your nose. The forest scent gradually faded.

Soon, we discovered what appeared to be the scattered bodies of about five students.

"…This is terrible."

Their bodies existed as scattered, half-eaten pieces of flesh.

After observing from a distance, we determined that the threat had passed and approached the scene.

"From the looks of it, they were killed by a large beast, right?"

Lily speculated about the cause of death, which I couldn’t determine.

"Killed by a monster?"

"Probably."

"I see. If we investigate further, we might find out more."

As I was about to approach the bodies, I suddenly stopped.

Unlike the previous incident with Mihoro Mizushima, these bodies had been dead for some time, and decomposition had set in, attracting flies.

Although I had already experienced killing, this was a different matter.

But this is something that must be done.

If people are dying here, it means there’s a clear threat.

This massacre was most likely caused by a monster, but it could also be a new monster I haven’t heard of in the colony.

If we miss a clue and end up dying, there’s no point in regretting it later.

"Let’s investigate. …What is it, Rose?"

I was about to step forward when a wooden hand was thrust in front of me, and Rose stepped forward.

"Are you going to do it?"

Through the pass, I received a nod of affirmation.

"O-oh…"

Rose, unusually, started investigating the bodies without my permission.

She silently, as she can’t speak, began examining the scattered bodies of the students.

From her posture, I could sense a sense of duty, as if she felt it was her responsibility to do this.

"Hey, wouldn’t it be better if Rose guarded and I investigated? It would be easier to report back to Master later."

Lily suggested, but Rose stopped her with a hand.

Rose quickly arranged and confirmed the items left behind.

We watched from a distance.

During this time, my attention was completely focused on the bodies in front of me.

Looking back, it was a fatal lapse in attention.

One that could have cost me my life.

"Master!"

Lily suddenly raised a sharp warning.

Even though my attention was elsewhere, my basic alertness kicked in, and my body reacted to the warning.

"What—!?"

In my field of vision, something leaped out from the bushes.

"Yaaah!"

By the time I saw it, Lily was already charging at it.

A literal body tackle.

There was no time to use magic.

She didn’t use the spear in her hand, probably judging that it wouldn’t stop the attacker’s charge.

"Grrroooh!"

"Kyaa!?"

Lily, being light, was thrown back, but the attacker’s path was also deflected.

The fangs aimed at me clacked together fifty centimeters away.

The presence landed and adjusted its stance.

In that time, I managed to raise my shield.

Something leaped at me. By the time I recognized it as a gray wolf, it was already attacking.

I faced the shield toward it and braced for impact.

And—collision.

"Guh, ooh!?"

The balance held for a moment.

I was knocked down and fell on my back.

Panicking, I realized this was bad when a whistling sound filled the air.

"Whoa!"

The force pinning me down suddenly disappeared.

I quickly adjusted my stance.

I saw the wolf land a short distance away.

Almost simultaneously, Rose, who had been a bit away, rushed to my side.

"Thanks, Rose."

She didn’t have her axe. It seemed she had thrown it at the wolf in a moment of desperation to save me. As a result, Rose was now only equipped with a shield.

"Grrrrrr…"

The growling gray wolf.

This is the ‘Fire Fang’ monster from the colony, I’m sure. Its characteristic is, as the name suggests…

"Be careful. Rose, fire is coming!"

As I shouted, the wolf opened its mouth wide.

"Gaaaah!"

A red flame, like a flamethrower, was spewed out.

Without hesitation, Rose stepped forward and blocked the flame with her shield.

The flame was momentarily blocked, but the amorphous fire broke through Rose’s defense.

Red flames spread before me, and then—

"Uwa…aaaah—!?"

—just before I was engulfed by the flames, my body was swept away from the side.

"Master! Are you okay!?"

"Lily!?"

Lily, with her sweet and composed appearance now stern, had saved me.

After shielding me from a surprise attack, she quickly adjusted her stance and saved me from the approaching flames.

"Thanks, Lily. I owe you one."

"I’m glad you’re safe."

Lily carried Kato and me in her arms and ran.

"Rose, hold them off for a bit longer!"

Lily gave a sharp command.

Rose stopped and blocked the fire spewed by the Fire Fang with her shield, preventing it from pursuing us.

The shield Rose made herself, despite being wooden, didn’t burn due to the magic effect, blocking most of the flames.

After we retreated out of range, Rose switched from defense to evasion.

The Fire Fang’s flames chased her, but she skillfully maintained her distance.

The magical puppet has higher defense than it looks. Although the flames must have scorched Rose to some extent, the damage seemed minimal from her evasive movements.

I sighed in relief.

"Master, can I take it down?"

"Permission granted! It can’t be a familiar!"

"Understood!"

Lily’s palm glowed a vivid blue.

To my knowledge, magic requires a magic circle.

The color of the magic circle determines the attribute, the size the power, and the shape the nature of the magic.

There are people who are particularly particular about such things, and in the short time I’ve been in this world, I’ve classified most combat magic. For example, a magic circle about thirty centimeters in diameter is first-tier, with the killing power of a small handgun.

Lily’s magic, created in a few seconds, was a second-tier water magic.

It had the killing power of a hunting rifle and the nature of a sword.

Three water swords appeared in the air and flew like hawks.

"Grrrooah!"

To me, they were launched at an incomprehensible speed, but the Fire Fang stopped spewing fire and dodged by turning its body.

However, this was part of Lily’s plan.

"Clang!?"

Rose’s thrown shield struck the Fire Fang’s snout hard.

...It’s a bit irrelevant, but Rose often throws things.

By the time this thought crossed my mind, Rose was already attacking the Fire Fang, which had lost its balance in mid-air.

Without a weapon, Rose tackled the opponent before it could properly adjust its stance, preventing it from using its speed.

Rose clamped the wolf’s body under her arm and pinned it to the ground.

The wolf let out a series of yelps.

In the colony, Fire Fangs were considered more dangerous than magical puppets, so I was momentarily startled when I saw Rose charge in unarmed, but it seemed she would be fine.

I sighed in relief.

The true terror of Fire Fangs lies in their pack behavior. This might have contributed to Rose’s victory.

Lily finished it off with a wind magic, severing its head.

"…It’s over."

After watching until the end, I finally exhaled.

My heart was pounding uncomfortably, and I could feel my face was tense.

"I was a bit scared. …Kato, are you okay?"

"…Yes."

Kato nodded.

Her expression was slightly pale, but I was probably in a similar state.

"I’m sorry for being a burden."

"No, I’m the same."

As I answered, I grimaced.

In the previous battle with the magical puppet, we had the initiative, but of course, there was always the possibility of being attacked. I knew this, but it was a miscalculation for us to be so much of a burden.

We were lucky to get out of it.

Of course, it was thanks to Lily and Rose’s dedication.

It was also fortunate that we managed to hunt the Fire Fang. This might allow Lily to acquire the Fire Fang’s sense of smell through her mimicry ability.

Unfortunately, we didn’t get any useful information from the students’ bodies.

But we didn’t expect much from the start, so it’s fine. They were probably killed by the Fire Fang we just encountered.

We cautiously continued through the forest, but we didn’t encounter any more monsters that day and returned to the cave.

Thank you for reading up to this point.

I was surprised by the sudden increase in views over the past few days. Rather, I was