Chapter 61

Even if Sequoia tells me not to worry, I can't help but feel anxious.

"I'm going to take a look. Make sure you have the rope ready."

"That's why I'm telling you to wait. If you go, you'll definitely fall. You won't be able to hold onto the rock face."

Come on. Let go. Let go.

I try to shake off Sequoia, who is pulling me from behind.

The place where Sequoia is holding me is bad. My pants start to slip down...

I adjust my pants back to their original position as if nothing happened and clear my throat.

"Just looking down won't make you fall."

"You'll fall because you lean too far. Even if you're holding onto the rope, if you fall, the cat girl will try to save you."

I can easily imagine myself slipping off the rock face.

Swinging in the air, with Sequoia pulling me up with a "wooo," I'd be dangling like a fish on a line.

I even hallucinate Alru clinging to me.

Ah, this is bad.

I clutch my head, and Sequoia pats my waist with a smug look.

"Hey, Joshua."

Oh. What a lecherous grin. That face doesn't suit a young girl.

"Damn it. I get it. I'll give up on stepping out onto the cliff, but I can't help worrying about Alru."

"Master Joshua! Did you call Alru?"

"Whoa. Alru!"

Alru pokes her head out from the cliff, her ears twitching.

"Ah."

Her face disappears down the cliff.

Before I can think, "Oh no," Alru's lithe legs flip, and she lands with a soft thud.

She's wearing light purple today.

I don't know what, but...

Hey, I'm feeling pretty calm, aren't I? I'm casually checking out someone's underwear...

No, no, that's not it. I'm so anxious about falling that I even tried to go down the cliff.

"Did you see?"

"No, no, I didn't see. Was that you, Sequoia?"

I thought I'd be scolded by Alru.

Sequoia, pouting, suddenly grabs her skirt.

But, blushing and fidgeting, she doesn't move her hands any further.

I, the gentleman, silently place my hand over hers and shake my head.

"Joshua?"

"You don't have to force yourself to compete just because you're embarrassed."

"Sometimes you can say something manly, you know."

"Haha. I'm always manly. Hehe."

Good. I changed the way I said it.

I almost said, "I don't want to see Sequoia's panties."

This isn't the time to play with a little fox girl.

"Alru, I was worried about you."

"I'm fine. I'm a cat girl."

Alru grins and bows, pinching the hem of her skirt with her fingertips.

"Still, if you suddenly go down the cliff, I can't go see you."

"I'm sorry, Master Joshua."

"No, it's fine. Just let me know before you move. I'm glad you're safe."

"Okay! Master Joshua, listen. Alru."

"Take your time. There's no need to rush."

"Yes! There's one up there and two down there. Caves? Holes?"

"Oh, wow! That's amazing, Alru."

"Hehe."

Ah, I'm being too soft.

I was trying to advise Alru to stop doing reckless things, but I ended up praising her.

"Joshua, let's go check out the cave with the cat girl."

Sequoia, who had been quietly listening to our conversation, suddenly declares.

"No, no, wait. Alru, being a cat girl, can probably make it to the side cave. But, Sequoia... and I, well, I can't do it. Didn't you say that just now?"

I know my limits.

Sequoia, being an old fox, might use magic to get through.

But I'm different. After being advised by Sequoia, I finally understood... or rather, was made to realize that it's impossible for me to climb down the rock face.

Haha. It's not for nothing that I can't do a single pull-up.

I'm pretty weak.

"No problem. We have this, right?"

Sequoia shows me the rope I was holding earlier.

"No, no, wait. I'll just fall straight down."

"You're not thinking clearly. Are you stuck on the fact that you can't climb down the rock face? The side cave might not be a dead end."

"...I get your point. It's worth checking out."

"Right?"

I understand Sequoia's intention and the logic behind it.

The cave could have been formed over a long time or suddenly by an earthquake, or by a large animal.

If it was formed over a long time or by tectonic activity, there's a good chance it connects to the surface somewhere.

For example, by water erosion over a long time.

But that's a different matter.

"I'll fall, so that's a different issue."

"If you go alone, you'll fall 100 times out of 100. And you won't even make it a meter down."

"How about at least a couple of steps?"

"It's impossible. Even a meter is an overestimate."

"...Even a couple of steps?"

"You'll start trembling and then fall straight down."

"...Well, you're not wrong. You know you can't do it, right? Haha."

"If you go alone. But we have the cat girl and me, and we have the rope."

Wait, wait.

Sweat drips down my forehead. Ignoring my attitude, Sequoia pulls the rope.

The moment the force hits my waist, my body floats up and is sucked into her small frame.

Sequoia wraps her arms around my waist and hoists me up, placing my body on her back.

"Cat girl, tie him up."

"Master Joshua, I'll do it."

"You need to lead the way, right?"

"Ugh."

Alru, easily persuaded by Sequoia, wraps the rope around Sequoia's waist, securing me to her.

Sequoia nods, satisfied, as she checks the rope with her small fingers.

"Alright, let's go, Joshua."

"Eh, eh...?"

"It's just me and the cat girl. No one will know. Right, Alru?"

"Yes! Lip lock!"

Alru places her fingers on her lips and shakes her head.

Ah, ah. I'm being lifted.

Guh, are we really going? Are we really going?

"Ooooh, so high, so high, so high."

"Shut up. You're distracting me."

I'm scolded and ignored by Sequoia, but I can see the ground below.

It's dizzying. I can't say where, but it's shrinking, oh.