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“Now then, just who are you?”
The shining, savage blade remained pressed up against the tip of my nose. It sure did look sharp. The length looked to be about 80 centimeters, while it was approximately 10 centimeters wide. The whole thing was rather thick like a machete, but even so, the edge of the blade was certainly plenty sharp. Something like that could hack through the flesh and bones of any prey.
Hey, wait, this isn’t the time to be getting all impressed by something like that!
“W-What the...? What’s with the violent greeting?! I already apologized for the pitfall!”
“Cease your chattering. Just hurry up and answer the question.”
The girl seemed to have calmed down... but that actually just felt all the more frightening.
I looked back and forth between the face of the girl and the tip of the blade, then gave a sigh.
“Before that, just where exactly am I? It doesn’t quite have the feel of the afterlife, somehow, but...”
“This is the forest at the foot of Mount Morga.”
“Mount Morga?”
“In the territory of the Western Kingdom of Selva, ruled over by Duke Genos... Just where the hell did you come from?”
I seriously had no idea what was going on. But still, considering the circumstances, I saw no option but to answer truthfully.
“I was born in a country called Japan. The Chiba Prefecture, to be specific. Do you know of it?”
“Japan... Chiba...?”
Yeah, she hadn’t heard of it. Of course she hadn’t.
In all likelihood, this was a world completely removed from the country known as Japan in every sense imaginable. I mean, in the world where I was born, there weren’t any boars with horns, nor were there any girls who walked around with such huge blades.
And besides, this girl looked different than anyone I had ever seen before. Her skin was dark, like a sort of creamy chocolate color. And yet, her hair was a dull blond. And on top of that, her eyes were a deep blue. Her golden-brown hair seemed to be quite long, but she had it done up in an unusual manner using a leather strap. Her blue eyes shone with a strong, sharp shine about them, even in this dim light.
As far as her facial features went, well, she was definitely good-looking. Her slightly arched eyes were reminiscent of a wildcat, and she had a thin, perfectly formed nose and petite lips the color of cherry blossoms. She had nice, soft cheek lines, giving her face just a bit of a childish look, but she must have been around the same age as me.
Yeah, she was a pretty high-level beauty. Actually, maybe it would be better to call her an unparalleled one, at that. At least on a personal level, I couldn’t help but find that combination of dark skin and pink lips incredibly sexy.
Still, what was with that outfit...? She had a thick, blackish-brown fur cloak draped over her shoulders. Underneath that, she had some cloth of a stunning hue wrapped around her chest and waist... and nothing else on. There were complex, beautiful patterns on the fabric, and it didn’t look shabby in the least. But still, that getup was just a bit too stimulating.
As for the rest of her outfit, she wore a necklace made of numerous white horns or tusks and a bracelet made of nuts strung together, and she had a small knife in a leather sheath dangling from her waist. And so, her smooth, dark skin was quite generously exposed. Ah, and she had what looked like leather belts wrapped around to up past her ankles, which must have been some sort of footwear.
Faced with such a stunning, excessively exposed beauty, though, the only thought that ran through my mind was, Wow...
Her facial features may have been adorable, but the expression on her face was ferocious. Her eyes burned with the intensity of a real wildcat, and her lovely lips were firmly pursed. She was rather tall for a girl, and had a slender frame. However, there wasn’t even a hint of weakness about her. Her bare arms, legs, shoulders, and stomach were all taut like a leather whip, without even a bit of excess fat. On top of that, she also had white scars scattered here and there, telling of how rough a life she lived.
She was a girl who seemed to be full of some sort of primal energy and strength, the sort that modern man had lost in relying so greatly on science.
Still...
Just what is this smell? I’d been wondering that ever since I stood face to face with this strange girl. It was an incredibly complex scent. It was sweet, like overly-ripe fruit. A gentle fragrance like flowers about to bloom. Refreshing, like dried herbs. Just a bit powerful, like strong spices. And that overwhelmingly delicious aroma of animal flesh and fat...
All those scents were melding together in a complex manner to positively tantalize my nostrils.
Not to brag, but as someone who had trained to be a chef since childhood, my sense of smell is definitely above average.
At any rate, it was a scent that strongly aroused my hunger... And acting in concert with that thought, my belly let out a growl.
The girl’s blade wavered, as if showing a bit of hesitation.
“Just what are you intending?”
“Hey, it’s got nothing to do with my intentions... I’m just hungry.”
My stomach added a gurrrgle.
Yeah, I wasn’t exactly looking cool here...
The girl’s well-shaped eyebrows rose in a rather dangerous-looking manner.
“Hey, stop messing around! Are you trying to make fun of me?”
“I’m seriously not messing around. I mean, I can’t exactly control my physiology, can I? My stomach just naturally reacted to that delicious smell all over you.”
“What are you talking about? I don’t have any food on me, and I didn’t catch anything today, thanks to you.”
“Right, like I said, I’m sorry for wrecking your pitfall, but still...”
The end of my sentence was accompanied by a grrgrooowl!
My stomach really was being way too noisy.
Ah, that’s bad. The look on the girl’s face was growing more and more dangerous, and her shoulders had even started shaking.
Was I seriously about to die for a second time for such a stupid reason?
“At any rate, I didn’t have even the slightest intention of messing with your turf. I mean, it’s a real issue for me too, being thrown out into a place like this with no idea as to what’s going on. But if it’s a problem, I’ll leave as soon as I—”
Groooowowowowl!
...I’m done for.
No matter how sincere of an apology I may offer, my stomach will just butt in and ruin it.
It was then that the girl suddenly looked to the side. While she kept the blade in her right hand trained on me, her left hand went to cover her mouth. The trembling of her shoulders grew more and more violent.
“What’s wrong...?”
Groooooowl?
The blade fell to the ground, tip-first.
The girl’s face was beet red.
“Hey? Are you feeling sick or something?”
Groowl? Grooooowl grooowl?
It was then that a “Pfft” snuck out in a sort of strange tone.
The girl’s eyes were filled with tears as she looked at me.
“It’s alright... Don’t talk...”
Her voice seemed weak, somehow, making me feel all the more worried.
“Come on, even if you ask me that...”
Growl. Grooooooooooooooooooooowl.
The girl had been using her blade as a cane, but now she suddenly fell down on her rear.
And then, she let loose a, “Bwahahahahaha!”
Ah, she’s super cute when laughing, too. Oh, but wait, she was just trying to hold back her laughter?
After that fit of laughter, the girl stood up while wiping the tears from her eyes, then pointed the blade at me once again. Then, she simply said, “...You’re dead.”
“Why?!”
I hurriedly tried to retreat, still seated on the ground. However, waiting behind me was the pitfall I had just climbed out of.
The metal tip steadily drew near my nose.
“This is the most shame I’ve ever faced in my whole life... I swear I’ll kill you.”
Even in the darkness of night, I could clearly tell that her face was beet red.
She’s embarrassed? So she really is a tsundere? No wait, that’s not right!
At any rate, I can’t let myself get killed over something like this!
When my hand finally reached the edge of the pit, I raised my hands up in a plea to hold on.
“If this rude stomach of mine has hurt your pride, then I apologize! It’s my hunger that’s at fault! And now that I think of it, I haven’t eaten anything since lunch today!”
She stood there silently.
“I seriously am in a bind! I don’t know what sort of place this is, or why I’m here, or anything! If I get killed by you now, without knowing a thing, then just why did I...”
Why did I risk my life by diving into those flames?
When that thought crossed my mind, my words suddenly got caught in my throat.
I couldn’t think of anything else to do, so I stared intently into the girl’s eyes. The girl’s deep blue eyes somehow had a look about them like they were looking at some sort of mysterious, unknown creature.
“I have absolutely no idea what you’re talking about.”
The tip of the blade lowered just a bit.
“Don’t you come from the city of stone?”
“City of stone? Like I told you before, I’m from a country called Japan.”
“...I’ve never heard of a country by that name. I suppose for now, it’s at least safe to assume you haven’t lived under Genos’s rule,” the girl said, finally lowering her blade. However, the suspicion and distrust in her eyes remained. And yet, I could sense a complex mingling of emotions beyond that dangerous glint in her eyes.
“Could I hear a bit more of what you have to say...?” the girl asked in quiet tone. “Come to my dwelling. If you don’t wish to do so, though, I can simply leave you here instead.”
“You’d go and invite a complete stranger into your home...?”
“It’ll be nighttime soon. There’s not any more time to be hanging around here asking you questions... Let me just tell you that if you stay out here in the forest at night without so much as preparing a fire, you will die.”
She picked up the leather sheath at her feet and returned her blade to it. I placed my hands on the ground and stood up as I watched that elegant maneuver.
“Got it. I’ll follow your lead, then. Ah, by the way, we still haven’t introduced ourselves yet. I’m Asuta Tsurumi.”
“Asootasoo... Roomy?”
“No, Asuta Tsurumi.”
“Asoot Aroomy...”
Well you sure are a cute one, aren’t you?
The way that her facial expression was totally serious only made her all the more adorable.
“Right. Well, if that’s too tricky, then just call me Asuta. What’s your name?”
“Ai Fa,” she let slip in a low voice, then spun around so her back was to me.
She may have had a slender and tall build, but sure enough, she wasn’t actually taller than I was. She must have been 167 centimeters or so tall at most.
So how was it that someone so slim, of such an average height, could swing around such a stupidly big blade with one arm? Maybe the people here were built completely differently in terms of muscle strength and bone density...
Ah, as I was nonchalantly pondering such matters, I got shot a sideways glare.
“What are you doing? You injured your foot, didn’t you? Grab onto my shoulder.”
“Huh? You don’t mind?”
“We’re short on time. Hurry up and grab on.”
I put my right arm around Ai Fa’s right shoulder, feeling a little awkward about it all the while.
Suddenly, her elbow came flying right into my solar plexus.
“Who said you could put your arm around me? I just told you to grab my shoulder.”
“Gah... Right, so that’s it, huh?”
I rubbed my solar plexus while grabbing Ai Fa’s left shoulder with my right hand.
I wasn’t all that injured in the first place anyway, so this was more than enough support to walk on. And besides, she had on a thick fur cloak, so my hand couldn’t feel anything but the stiffness of the fur.
“Is that a blade that you have hidden there near your chest...?”
“Huh?”
I froze in place.
When I tried to wrap my arm around her, my chest had touched her back. But still, she managed to figure that out through that thick cloak? That was far scarier than the blow I had taken to the solar plexus.
“I-I’m surprised you figured it out from just that instant... Of course I don’t mean you any harm, though, so don’t worry about it.”
“Why should I need to worry? If you wish to take a swing at me, then please, be my guest,” Ai Fa said, shooting an incredibly chilling sideways glance back at me. “When you do, my blade will simply slit your throat even faster. If you think I’m lying, then go ahead and test it out whenever you wish... Asuta.”
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