I WENT TO A DESERT ISLAND
“Oh no…,” I muttered, my voice groggy.
Before me was a beach, ocean waves lapping against it. Beyond it was a vast, empty sea—or so I thought, but there were lots of islands out there.
This island was a part of that cluster. I said island, but it was tiny, small enough for me to walk around in thirty minutes. I think it would be better described as a mountain floating in the sea.
“I guess this is what you’d call a desert island, huh…?”
So why was I out here all alone?
Let’s go back a little bit.
One hour earlier, I was riding on Laika in her dragon form, heading to the south.
“Oh, sorry about all this, Laika, but the herb I’m thinking of only grows in the south…”
“I do not mind. I am your apprentice, Lady Azusa.”
Well, I knew that was how she was going to respond, but I still shouldn’t rely on her too much.
“Some parts of my medicine-making have been slipping lately. I thought I should do a thorough search for some good herbs.”
“I understand. I have a feeling your strength has improved lately. Anything combat-related may not even be necessary for a while.”
“You can tell all that… I’m impressed, Laika…”
I did actually grow stronger. Even though I was supposed to be at max level, I went above that, thanks to the Godly Godness incident.
Getting stronger was always better than the opposite, but I had a feeling I was getting further and further from my real job as a witch… So I went searching for herbs to get back to my roots.
“The wind is really warm here, isn’t it~?” I observed, riding on Laika’s back.
“I believe there’s a warm current blowing here. And I’m not very far off the ground.”
Wow, it really was the perfect temperature.
“I doubt you have any reason to worry, Lady Azusa, but do take care not to fall.”
“Well, even if I did, I can levitate with my magic.”
“Yes, that’s right. My concerns were unfounded.”
—Ten minutes later or so…
“So warm…so warm…”
I was practically asleep.
No, I can’t fall asleep. I have to stay awake…
—Another five minutes later…
I (apparently) zonked out completely.
My body tilted over—
—and I (apparently) fell off Laika.
By the time I actually came to, I was midair, and I’d already fallen quite a long way.
“Aaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaah!! Oh no!”
In a panic, I cast Levitation and slowly descended toward the earth.
Luckily, the patch of ocean right below me was full of different islands and not the open sea. I picked the one that looked the biggest and crash-landed on the beach.
It didn’t seem like Laika had noticed I’d fallen, and she flew off into the distance.
And so I’d come to what looked like a desert island.
However, I couldn’t be certain it was deserted. Obviously, there was more to it than just me and a single palm tree. A whole forest and a mountain stood behind me.
“Now what should I do…? I guess things’ll work out.”
I felt no sense of impending danger. My stats were high enough to let me beat any animal, and I could fry and freeze things with my magic.
If anything, I felt terrible for making Laika worry.
Knowing I needed to make some kind of sign, I wrote AZUSA HERE in big letters. I’d initially written AZUSA’S CRIB, but…that sounded more like an invitation.
“I hope she’ll see this…”
Staying here wouldn’t accomplish anything, so I tried to see if I could use Create Spell to warp myself back to the house in the highlands or link me telepathically to Laika, but nothing worked.
Since I was creating these spells using the knowledge I’d accumulated over the years, that didn’t mean I could just whip up anything that came to mind.
I could probably put something together with a bit of studying, but I didn’t have any of my tomes. I also couldn’t just sit around meditating on what I knew and expect some light bulb to suddenly go off. I needed resources.
“Okay, I’ll live here for the time being!” I declared defiantly.
There was no point brooding over it—I was going to think positively!
“First, I need to secure food, clothing, and shelter. For food, I can probably find some nuts somewhere on the island. For clothing, I have what I’m wearing, so I’m fine. That means the most important thing is…to do something about shelter.”
I entered the forest and snapped some trees.
Tearing them down was easy, but I didn’t know if I had the skills to assemble them…
I buried the trees and secured them in a spot where the ground was firm. These would be the support pillars. Then, I put holes in the pillars and passed thinner trees through them from the side. These acted as crossbeams.
There were lots of palm-looking leaves, so I would use those to make the roof.
Laika had renovated the house in the highlands a long time ago, so I wondered if this was similar. It was like making a house out of matches.
After about an hour and a half, my temporary hut was finished.
Doors and locks were too hard, so none of that!
I just gathered a bunch of grasses to make my bed. There was quite a heap of them, and since climate was warm here—hot, even—I probably wouldn’t be catching a cold.
“Yep, I think that’ll do for my shelter.”
Next was food.
I went into the forest again and ran into a rather large bird.
The bird also looked startled to see me. What kind of weird thing did I just run into…? it seemed to be thinking. At times like this, anyone would stop in their tracks…
The bird was about to fly away, so I burned it to a crisp before it could!
“Yep, food won’t be a problem.”
I wish I had some seasoning, though… Hold on, I bet I can get some.
There was a coconut tree, so I scooped out the inside of the coconut and made a simple bucket.
Then I filled an indented stone that was right next to the ocean with sea water.
I used Flame to dry it out.
Rinse and repeat.
After several rounds of this, salt finally started to gather at the bottom.
“Yeees! Minerals, precious minerals!”
This could keep me going for a good while. My first day of survival would have earned me a passing grade, I think.
But now I was living the survival life instead of relaxing…
That night, I lit a fire to act as a beacon, but Laika never came.
It was hard to tell where exactly I fell, and Laika wasn’t exactly traveling along a standard route like a train. I wouldn’t be easy to find.
I sprinkled salt over the roasted bird and ate it.
“This is surprisingly good…”
I kept hydrated with the liquid inside a coconut. It tasted like diluted juice, but I could drink it.
It was still too early to sleep, so I built a fire on the shore and gazed out to sea.
“Mmm. I guess camping like this is bound to happen at least once in such a long life. It’s not so bad.”
I looked at the crackling flames of the fire. I was alone—of course I was. The island was deserted.
“Oh yeah, this is the first time I’ve been alone in a looong time,” I commented, carefree.
When I heard myself say that, I realized just how long it had been.
I’d lived alone in the house in the highlands for three hundred years.
I’d woken up and gone to bed alone, of course, and I’d rarely ever considered my solitude difficult or sad.
The village of Flatta wasn’t that far away, after all. I could mingle with other people all I wanted if I went down to the village. I guess that didn’t make it much different from living alone in Japan.
But once Laika joined me, my had life changed dramatically. Almost literally—like something straight out of a TV show.
Falfa and Shalsha had shown up, then Halkara joined the group. Then came Rosalie, Flatorte, and Sandra.
When you counted the visits from Beelzebub and Momma Yufufu, things had gotten even livelier.
I’ll throw Pecora’s name in there, too, because she might get mad if I don’t name her specifically…
I’d lived alone for much, much longer, but I could never go back to that life. Living with everyone was way more fun.
“I know this is a luxury, but…I think that’s why I sometimes need time alone like this.”
Solitude like this was precious and perfect for reflection.
Being alone helps you truly appreciate your family and how thankful you are for them.
Okay. The next day, I was going to go in the forest and do a thorough search to see if I could find any good plants to use in medicines.
I had to accomplish something from my original quest, especially when Laika was probably busy looking for me.
The rest of the family must have been worried, too. I hope Falfa and Shalsha aren’t crying.
“Man, if only I had a phone… If only I could contact them…”
The next morning, I secured some more bird meat for breakfast and went into the forest.
I made markings so I wouldn’t get lost—or I would have, but then I realized if I did lose my way, I could just use Levitation and make my way toward the beach.
Just a few steps into the forest, I found thickets and thickets of plants I’d never seen before.
“It’s not so bad if I think of this as fieldwork.”
I was relatively determined. Now that I had to spend time alone, I should at least do my job as a witch.
I’m gonna do everything I can do now! There’s a lot I can only do when I’m alone on this (probably) deserted island!
There was a rustling sound coming from the underbrush.
Oh, another bird? Another delicious dinner for me!
I parted the tall, dense grass and pushed forward.
There, I ran into an odd creature.
It was about four feet tall with thick, fuzzy brown fur. It had two big, round eyes, short arms, and two feet that looked like they belonged to a penguin. It was toddling forward.
The thing reminded me of some kind of local mascot. I didn’t think mascots like this existed in this world, but that was the first thing that came to mind.
What was this thing…?
A monster? A wild animal?
The mascot creature and I stared at each other.
This reminded me of when I ran into the bird the previous day, but I could sense the light of intelligence in this thing.
“Naaa, naaa, naaa.”
I didn’t know if that was its natural cry or if it was trying to talk to me, but it made a noise.
I followed its lead and said, “Naaa, naaa, naaa” in response.
“Naaa! Naaa! Nanananaaana!”
Its voice got louder!
Oh no, did I make it angry?! What was going to happen?
Then, a huge group of similar faces poked out from behind it.
It called its allies?!
They were working in groups, walking on two feet, so were they the indigenous people of this island…?
Had they decided I was their prey? A target for attack?
I was not going to lose, but I wanted to resolve this peacefully if possible.
If it came right down to it, I could escape using Levitation… The island wasn’t very big, though, so there was a good chance they’d find my hut and attack it…
But—
The mascots started hopping in place.
“Naaa, naaa.” “Naaa, naaa.” “Naaa, naaa.” “Naaa, naaa.” “Naaa, naaa.”
It looked like they were…dancing. I didn’t sense any hostility from them, at least.
Then I noticed one of the creatures was holding a leather sack.
It reached in and took something out—a pretty shell, nicely polished—and held it out to me.
“Are you giving this to me…?”
“Naaa, naaa.”
It looked like they were welcoming me.
I had a feeling my alone time was already over.
Afterward, the strange tribe brought me to their village.
There were a lot of little huts that looked like the one I’d made.
“So this island wasn’t deserted…”
There was a little society here.
I was given a meal in the open space in the center of the settlement.
There was roasted bird presented on a leaf and sprinkled with some sort of spice.
There was also some kind of vegetable stir-fry sitting on another leaf.
No doubt about it—this was a warm welcome!
“Thank you… Wait, they might not understand that, huh…? Naaa, naaa.”
“Naaana!” “Naaanaaanaaa!”
I didn’t really understand, but I could communicate somehow just by saying Naaa, naaa.
I had no idea a species like this existed… There’s so much I don’t know about the world…
I’d found way more here than just some weird-looking plants.
Upon closer inspection, these mascots came in different sizes.
The biggest of them was about my height. On the other hand, there were some that barely reached three feet. I guessed they were children.
Treating this tribe like they were mascot characters was kinda rude, so I decided to just call them the Masco Tribe for now.
Everyone was looking at me. Did they want me to eat?
I started with the vegetable stir-fry. Naturally, I ate with my hands. These vegetables were good, though I had no idea what any of them were.
“Ooh, the salt adds a lot; that’s pretty good. I can see some leaves that taste kinda herby. I bet girls would like this a lot. Yeah, I love it.”
“Naaa?” “Naaa?”
They were asking me something. I guess they wouldn’t understand if I said it was tasty or delicioso or any other human words.
“Naaa!” I replied with a vigorous thumbs-up.
“Naaanaaa!” “Nananaaa!” “Naaa!”
The Masco Tribe cheered. Communication!
Next up was the roasted bird.
It was a different species from the one I’d hunted. Using my hands again, I grabbed it and took a bite.
Ooh, it was overflowing with juices! The outside was crisp, and the inside was succulent! The flavor was higher quality than I thought it would be!
“Naaa! Naaa! Super naaa!” I tried expressing how delicious it was in my own way.
The Masco Tribe started hopping with delight.
All right, now I knew how to communicate. If I just said Naaa, they’d know what I wanted to say!
Then, a member of the tribe brought over what looked like a piece of bark.
Inscribed on it was what looked like the Masco Tribe’s writing, and there was a picture of roasted meat in the lower right.
“Is this a menu?!”
The problem was that, to my eyes, the writing looked just like a series of capital NAs with horizontal bars.
I had no idea what kind of food they would give me! There weren’t even any hints!
This was like going into a fancy French or Italian restaurant and not being able to figure out what kind of food there was from the menu. Not like I ever went into restaurants that fancy, though…
What should I do? I already had chicken. If I got something overly filling, I might not be able to clear my plate. That might insult my hosts.
I was about 60 percent full, so I wanted to order something. I could still do a small dish like ochazuke—but they didn’t have rice or the tea to pour on it to make ochazuke.
Was this even free? Or was this some kind of Masco Tribe establishment? They weren’t going to ask me for money and then treat me like a dine-and-dasher, right…?
Well, those questions were beside the point.
I tapped my finger on the menu.
“I’ll have the second one from the top, please.”
One of the Mascos took my menu and left. I hoped my order got through…
My next selection finally arrived.
It was a soup with finely diced poultry and vegetables. The bowl was a coconut.
Ooooh! This looks pretty good!
I would probably burn myself if I tried eating with my hands, so I blew on it while drinking straight from the bowl.
It was delicious and just a little spicy. I was warming right up.
The soup was generous with the meat and vegetables, so it was filling my stomach nicely.
Geez, I was nervous at first about this weird restaurant, but this was great.
I told the Masco Tribe how delicious it was again with a little “Naaa!”
Many cheerful “Naaa!”s came in return. I’d already mastered the Masco Tribe tongue.
“By the way, do I need to pay you for the food I’ve eaten? Oh, you probably don’t understand that.”
I had to say it in their language.
“Naaa, nanana, naaanana?” (Is this food free?—was what I thought I was asking.)
“Naaa.” (Yes, it is—was what I thought they said.)
Yep, it was free. Perfect.
Afterward, about ten Mascos came to me.
I wondered what they were going to do, when one of the Mascos behind them started beating a big taiko-looking drum.
The Mascos in front of the drum started dancing in time to the rhythm.
“Naaa, naaa ” “Naaa ” “Naaa, naaa…na ……Na ”
It was a welcome dance! I hadn’t really done anything for the Masco Tribe, but they were entertaining me! Based on the singing, one of them was really tone-deaf!
I was being treated as their guest. If this were the bullet train, the service would rank higher than that of the green car. Something with a cool name. Like grand cross or something.
As I watched their weird dance, though, unease started bubbling inside me.
This was all way too good to be true…
I wasn’t going to end up being offered as a sacrifice or anything, was I…?
To be honest, the Masco Tribe and their cutesy appearance didn’t make them look like they’d do anything cruel, but they were still treating an outsider with almost too much warm hospitality…
I had a feeling the sacrifice option was much more likely…
If I got into trouble, I could just run…although escaping to my hut near the coast wouldn’t actually solve the problem… Hurting the Masco Tribe wasn’t my intention anyway, especially not after they’d fed me so well.
I watched the dance with mixed feelings, but it came to an end without incident, and the Mascos dispersed.
A Masco Tribe member took my serving leaf away.
Wait, they weren’t even watching me?
No one was looking, so I could easily escape…
So they weren’t going to sacrifice me. Maybe they would when night came, though, but I found it hard to believe they would leave me unattended if that was their plan.
“I guess I’ll get some fieldwork done while I’m still safe…”
I decided to observe how the Masco Tribe lived.
There was a pair sitting facing each other across some kind of table.
By the way, the Mascos apparently couldn’t sit down because of how their legs were built. Their legs and feet were a lot like a penguin’s, after all.
There were rows of black and white shells on the table.
Was this supposed to be a game of go?! It sure looked similar!
Both of the Mascos wore hard looks on their faces and stared at the board—although the Masco Tribe always had leisurely expressions, so I couldn’t actually tell.
“Naaa. Naaa. Nananana, naaa.”
On closer inspection, there was one more Masco between the two that was saying something. Was that one the judge?
Reluctantly, one of the other Mascos put down a white shell.
What appeared to be the opposing player put down a black shell without a moment’s hesitation.
At that moment, the Masco that had moved the white shell fell flat on its back.
The Masco that put down the black shell said “Naaanaaa” as it jumped. I guess that meant it was happy.
“They even have real games…”
Next, I went to a hut that had a lot of white smoke coming out of it. There, they were roasting and simmering fish and meat in an oven. Some were even busy boning and gutting fish.
Beside them was a Masco boiling some herbs.
“They’re doing some serious cooking…”
Was their level of civilization much higher than I thought…?
As I stood in the middle of the kitchen, a Masco brought over a grass plate with some food on it for me.
Was this a taste test?
I said “Naaa, naaa” in thanks, then ate it. I wasn’t sure what kind of dish this was supposed to be, but it was good anyway. I could eat it again~
“Naaa, naaa!” (To me, this meant That was very tasty.)
“Nananaaa.” (That’s what the Masco said. I think it meant Glad to hear.)
Maybe I had been accepted into the community?
Before I knew it, the sun was setting.
A big group of Mascos came to me again.
“Naaananana.” “Nanaaanana.” “Na, nanana.”
They each spoke to me. I had no idea what they were saying…
Then the Mascos started moving. Some of them even turned back to look at me.
“I guess they want me to follow them.”
I followed the ten or so members of the group through the forest.
Where were we going? We were heading in the exact opposite direction of the beach where I was staying.
Finally, we reached our destination—a cliff that jutted out into the sea.
It was a little short to be a precipice, about thirty feet high at most.
The sound of the waves crashing against the cliff face rang painfully in my ears.
A sinister fantasy crossed my mind again as I looked at the violent water.
Could they be planning on sacrificing me by pushing me off…?
Of course, the entire village wouldn’t necessarily participate in a sacrifice.
It was very possible they would drop me from here as an offering to the ocean god…
The Mascos again said, “Naaa, naaa.” Were they telling me to jump?
Sorry, but I wasn’t going to die here.
Had the moment finally come where I had to leave the Masco Tribe?
But they ignored me as I tensed—
And then they started leaping into the ocean one after the other. They looked like a group of penguins.
“You’re going in?!”
After a moment, the first Masco to jump came back, soaking wet.
Then it leaped from the cliff again.
“I guess this is their way of playing…”
You know, like how people in the countryside jump off bridges into rivers. I’d never seen it in real life but had read about it in stories that took place in the countryside. Something like that.
The Masco Tribe said something to me that sounded something like You jump in, too! But I said “Nana, na, nanana” (No, thank you) and refused.
When the sun finally set, the Masco Tribe members returned to the village from the cliff, satisfied. I followed them.
Back at the village, dinner had been prepared for us, and some of the Mascos were dancing as they lit the bonfire. I ate my meal as I watched them dance. Several dishes came out from an all-new menu, including a dish of fried fish that had been mixed with vegetables.
They led me to a bed made of gathered down, then to a rock bath filled with hot, boiled water.
“They’re being super thorough about this!” I commented as I stepped into the bath.
How strange… I’d been hoping to live the desert-island lifestyle, but now I was just a tourist…
I felt sorry for the rest of the family… I was taking a vacation all by myself.
I got out of the bath and crawled into bed but couldn’t get to sleep.
Should I keep living like this?
Probably not. I bet Laika was desperately looking for me…
“I should do something about this. I will tomorrow.”
The next morning, I woke up to the cries of the birds the Masco Tribe kept.
“Gockadooldoo, gockadooldoo,” they crowed like a rooster with a cold.
When I went to the clearing in the center of the village, the Masco Tribe was all hopping and twisting together in time with some music.
There was no other explanation for this—they were doing morning calisthenics!
The lifestyle of this tribe might have seemed primitive, but they were somehow refined…
Last night before I went to sleep, I’d decided I was going to take action today, but…I saw no harm in joining them for a stretch, too… It wasn’t a bad thing to get moving first thing in the morning…
Next was a good breakfast.
I got something that looked like a salad made of herbs with fermented beans. I wasn’t used to the smell of fermented food, but it wasn’t inedible.
Well then…now that I was full, it was time to move.
I walked to a spot far enough from the Masco Tribe settlement.
Just in case, I paid close attention to see if I was being watched, but no one followed me.
They were giving way too much freedom to an outsider… I wondered if they would survive if they ever had visitors with ill intent…
On the ground, I drew a certain magical circle.
I then added a demon incantation to it.
“Vosanosanonnjishidow veiani enlira!”
An ominous black wind appeared. Yes, it worked!
Beelzebub safely appeared about ten feet away from me, caught on a tree branch!
“Hell’s bells! Why must you always summon me to the oddest places?! Will you not let me appear normally on the ground?!”
Maybe I shouldn’t have said she appeared “safely”… Eh. Details…
The point was to summon Beelzebub! Now everything would work out!
Demons like Beelzebub would know all sorts of magic to get people from one place to another—and if she didn’t, at least I had someone else around who understood me.
“Hey, Beelzebub, I actually fell from Laika, and one thing led to another…”
I gave a brief explanation of my situation.
“In short, this is all your fault… One must not sleep on a dragon… You may be the strongest in the world, but you are so oblivious to danger… Any regular person would have died from that…”
“Yeah, I’ll be more careful next time… And sorry for summoning you so suddenly.”
My strategy was to apologize before she called me out.
“Well, I know you were in an accident, but would using your Teleportation spell not be the quickest way about this? Although, if Laika is searching frantically for you, then it would be bad if you went back to the house in the highlands first…”
Even though this world had Teleportation magic, communication spells that could substitute for a telephone weren’t very developed, not even among the demons. They always came all the way to our house to deliver invitations.
“No, that wouldn’t be very nice to Laika. I’m also planning on staying on this island for a little while anyway. I’d really appreciate it if you could go back to the house in the highlands and let everyone know I’m safe.”
“Aye. Your little mishap should not cause the girls any worry. I must let them know you are safe at once.”
Seriously, stop talking about my daughters as if they’re yours… Beelzebub was helping me, though, so I kept my mouth shut.
This solved my biggest problem.
“Also, I called you here because there’s something else I want to talk to you about.”
“Are you finally allowing me to adopt Falfa and Shalsha?!”
“Nope.”
I pointed in the direction of the Masco Tribe village.
“There’s a mysterious tribe of…somethings living over there! This might be the discovery of the century!”
I felt like it would be best to tell a demon about the Masco Tribe.
The demons were like an aggregate of all sorts of species, so they’d probably straighten this out however they thought was best. At the very least, the Masco Tribe was probably safer being discovered by demons than by human nations.
“What? A mysterious tribe?”
“Yes, yes! They’re strange, fuzzy creatures, but they’ve built houses, know how to cook, make music, and dance!”
Beelzebub’s expression was the epitome of doubt. If you’d ever wondered what doubt on someone’s face looked like, it looked like her.
Or did she not believe me? I wouldn’t tell obvious lies.
“Did this tribe put you in any danger? Either way, it is hard to imagine they would succeed.”
“Not at all. They welcomed me.”
“Then I suppose we can have a look at this tribe.” Beelzebub walked briskly off toward the village, and I followed her.
When we neared the settlement, I could hear the “Naaa, naaa,” “Naaa. Naaa,” again.
Apparently, the Masco Tribe noticed Beelzebub, too.
Oh, was this going to be a historical meeting between the demons and the Masco Tribe?!
“Ah, the yetis living on Sanshu Island. I am Beelzebub, the minister of agriculture of the demons,” Beelzebub deadpanned without a hint of surprise.
The Masco Tribe froze in place.
“Naaa, naaa… Oh, the minister of agriculture. Why is another VIP here?!”
They could talk normally?!
A lot of the tribe members could understand Beelzebub, too…
Beelzebub whirled around to look at me. I guess explaining things to me came first.
“Azusa, this is not any sort of mysterious tribe at all. This is a type of demon called a yeti. They usually live in rather frigid places, so I don’t suppose you have ever met one before.”
“Sorry… Let me just…get this situation straight…”
Beelzebub nodded and turned back to the Masco Tribe. “While I have you, could you fetch me your leader?”
“Very well. We will call the chief.”
I was the only one still confused…
Beelzebub and I were brought to the chief’s house, though it was really hard to discern which one was the chief.
“Ahem, now, Azusa, I shall explain.” Beelzebub cleared her throat. “This group of yetis is living as a tribal community here on Sanshu Island. In short, they are playing pretend.”
“Pretend…?!”
The chief spoke this time. “Yes. We yeti typically live in the frozen tundra, even in the demon lands. Many of us yearn to live in the tropics. That is why we kicked off a plan three years ago to live on a desert island, like a tropical-island tribe.”
Wait, uh, what…? This was kind of a shock…
“Then what’s with the naaa, naaa?”
“We wanted to. We just made a rule where we could only say naaa, naaa.”
You should have talked normally from the beginning! I don’t know what to do with this!
“After three years, a human castaway finally came to our island, and we were all determined to work hard and act like a tropical-island tribe.”
Seriously?!
“We wanted to see how the castaway might react after seeing and hearing our tribe-like dances and songs. It was certainly fantastic. Thank you so much for coming!”
“I guess I’m glad you’re glad, but I still feel really conflicted about this! I honestly thought this might be a first-contact situation!”
“Is that not a classic experience associated with this kind of island life? Well~ It was worth doing this for three years.”
I was basically just playing along with a game of pretend…
Beelzebub patted me on the shoulder. “Demons live far longer than humans. Some will want to spend a few years on fancies like this. It causes no one else trouble since it is a desert island.”
“I got you.”
Some things still didn’t sit right with me, but I had to respond like I understood.
“Ah yes. Witch of the Highlands, you must be finished checking all the plants on this island, so why don’t I bring some specimens for you?”
The Masco Tribe, er, the yeti chief made an offer I appreciated very much.
“Oh, yes please!”
“Then please follow me.”
The chief took me to a cave outside the village. The stone door opened, revealing a room filled with documents.
“This place looks way more modern…”
“Times of emergency aside, this storage room is the only place where we are allowed to say things other than naaa, naaa.”
I dunno, this is getting complicated…
“Aside from playing tribe, we are also conducting biological research on these southern islands whilst living here. This is a trove of information that could not be comprehended by human nations.”
Demon progress was marching on while we weren’t looking…
I received documents on the island’s plants, and a sample set of all its herbs.
When I took a glance at the documents, I saw that their medicinal effects had already been described in detail…
There’d been no need for me to study these plants, had there?
When we returned to the village, the yetis were awfully excited. Too excited for it to be about us.
“Has a new castaway arrived, then?”
“It might be possible. Wait…I think I know those horns…”
There was Laika, in the middle of the yetis!
“Naaa, naaa.” “Naaa, naaa.” “Nanananaaanaaa!”
“Um, is there anyone here who understands my language? I am searching for Azusa, Witch of the Highlands!”
Now they were confusing Laika!
“Sorry! Laika! I’m here! I’m so sorry I worried you!” I dashed toward her.
“Oh! Lady Azusa! I’m so glad you’re safe!”
Laika and I hugged each other tightly.
I’m so relieved… Seriously relieved… I’m so glad I didn’t worry her for an entire week or two…
“I’m sorry. It’s all because I wasn’t paying attention…”
“Do not apologize. Let us rejoice in our reunion, Lady Azusa!”
Oh, she is the best apprentice. I’m just gonna do it and smush my cheek on hers.
“Erm…Lady Azusa, I am happy, but…you are much too close…”
“It’s fine, it’s fine! This is a special moment.”
But I made a point of stopping before she got too grumpy about it. I didn’t want to make this too big a deal.
“Indeed. I’m relieved to see this matter resolved.” Beelzebub was behind us, her arms crossed.
These little creatures had taken care of me, so I would bring my daughters along to play or something next time.
When I told Laika about the yetis, she was stunned. “Some people live strange lifestyles, indeed…”
I was honestly shocked, too.
The yetis said “Naaa, naaa,” inviting us to join a welcome party or something like that, but we respectfully declined.
I climbed onto Laika, and we headed straight back to the house in the highlands.
I had to tell the family I was okay!
When we got home, Falfa and Shalsha hugged me.
“They didn’t fall apart or anything, but they were still upset. You’re a parent; get yourself together,” Sandra scolded me, her arms crossed.
She was probably older than me, so I was being reprimanded by my elder.
“Yes, I’ll be careful…”
I reflected on the whole fiasco and reminded myself to follow the three Cs: Contact, Communication, and Consultation.
A few days later, I made some new digestive medicine.
“All right, it’s finished! These are Hiland Pills, made with care by the Witch of the Highlands! Eat too much? Heavy stomach? Take this!”
I showed Halkara the medicine. No one else besides her would be as quick to appreciate how amazing it was.
“Wow! How splendid, Madam Teacher! What plants did you use~? They have names unfamiliar to an elf from Hrant…”
“There are some great ones in the southern islands.”
Sanshu Island, where the yetis lived, was rich with exactly the plants I needed.
They seemed to be growing everywhere there, so I got a whole big batch of them.
“It has been a long while since you last did any witch work, Madam Teacher~”
“It hasn’t been that long… I worry about that…”
Even though I spent a while as a castaway on a tropical island, I got my hands on some data about these plants, so all’s well that ends well.
“I also have one more: a pill… Well, it’s more like a tree nut that fights drowsiness.”
“Is it really that effective?”
Halkara took the nut and popped it in her mouth. Oh no, you’re not supposed to eat it raw!
The elf suddenly opened her eyes wide.
“Ahhh! It’s like there’s electricity inside my mouth! I cannot sleep like this!”
“Yeah… I was thinking about chewing on one before I need to ride Laika… It’s to make sure I don’t doze off…”
I’d lived for three hundred years in this world, but I could still grow as a person!
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