I stared at the fire absentmindedly, watching the flames dance hypnotically as I let out a small yawn. I started poking it with a stick, sending up embers into the air as I moved the wood around and watched as Teacher cleaned Bugbear's grease-filled face with a napkin, who was muttering in displeasure at the action.
I closed my eyes for a moment, breathing in the smokey wood smell, hearing the wood crackling from the intense heat, pretending just for a moment that I was camping with my family again. Sitting down with a full stomach even if the meat was a little bland and chewy, helps sell the illusion until I notice how quiet everything is.
By now, my dad would've started singing an oldie song loudly in an off-key tone with my mom and little sister following along. I would smile and hum along while making a quadruple stack s'more, trying and failing to get it all in my mouth in one bite, which would be smeared all over my mouth and chin. Mom would complain about that and Beth would laugh at me and try to eat it herself, saying that she could do it and make a mess.
Chuckling at the memory brought tears to my eyes, and I silently cursed those damn sneaky onion ninjas. They always seemed to find me wherever I went, even in other dimensions, it seems.
Opening my eyes, I lay down on a soft patch of dirt, looking up at the stars in the cloudless night sky. I spent the next few minutes simply staring at the stars, not thinking of anything particular until my mind decided to bring up something I've been trying hard not to focus on. 'Killing was easier than I thought it would've been,' I thought, staring up at my hand, remembering how easily the blade entered the goblin's flesh, piercing its heart and brain. Which tells me something important, either my mind has been messed with, or I'm a sociopath. Or is it a psychopath? Eh, it doesn't even matter and I'm grateful for it. From what I've already seen in this world, having such weakness would be the literal death of me, and I promptly repressed that line of thought down deep as I focused on something else more important than my mental health.
Plumbing and electricity. Does this world have it? Based on the type of monsters, weapons, and coins I've seen, I'm more than likely to be in a hentai type of medieval fantasy world. Or I could be wrong since many types of worlds have a medieval setting with some modern technology powered by magic or something similar thrown in. Hopefully, it's the latter; I would rather not go to the bathroom in a hole or, god forbid, a bucket, especially in a town or a large city where you empty it on the streets, aka Kings Landing. Just thinking about it makes me want to throw up in disgust from the mental image.
Just as I was about to sit back up, I started yawning. "Hmm? Why, aaah~, am I feeling tired already?" I asked, yawning mid-speech, thinking that my adrenaline rush was finally coming down or something as my eyelids grew heavier with each second until I fell asleep on the ground.
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(Teacher POV)
"Sleep well, John," the Teacher said as the spell finally took hold she created a blanket from some leaves before placing it on his sleeping form. Using her fingertips, she lightly moved his hair from his face and smiled slightly as he started breathing softly.
"What do we do with the women we rescued?" Onmyoji asked as she put the finally dried talismans inside her sleeves. "It's not like we could take them with us, but we can't leave them alone either."
"That's true," the Teacher said, sighing as she placed a hand on her cheek. "Unfortunately, we will have to wait until John wakes up for his input, but it's most likely that we'll drop them off at a nearby town or a village after finding out where we are."
"Do you think that they can go back to their lives if you do so? They were raped for so long before we rescued them that it broke their minds. Even if you could remove those memories, their bodies will remember it and there is a possibility, no matter how small, that their memories might come back with enough trauma."
"Not to mention, we don't know anything about this world we're in. We could be deep in enemy territory for all we know," Bugbear added, her voice sounding more mature than the child-like tone she had from before. "Even if we're not, those women could be taken advantage of, or they could be sold as slaves once we leave. There's too much we don't know."
"It may be cold-hearted Teacher, but we can't take them with us. We must protect John at all costs," Onmyoji said, lightly placing her hand on the Teacher's shoulder and squeezing it to comfort her.
"I know," Teacher replied, looking dejected, her shoulders sagging slightly as she let out a depressed sigh.
"At least you rescued them from that fate, and you should be proud of that," Onmyoji added, trying to cheer Teacher up, and it sort of worked.
"Yeah, you're right." Teacher replied, feeling somewhat better.
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(Odin POV)
High above the heavens sat a mysterious old man with long grey hair and a long flowing beard, with an eye missing on the left side of his face, staring out in the distance,e, looking at nothing in particular. His name is Odin, king of the Norse gods.
His face twitched slightly as he sensed something peculiar just for a moment before it vanished somewhere down below in Midgard.
"Hmm? What was that?" Odin asked softly to no one in particular, trying to track it down, and found himself surprised and intrigued that he couldn't locate it. There are only a few things he couldn't see and none of it were good. Sitting up on his throne, he waved his hand, bringing forth images of all of the valkyries that serve under his command until he stopped at one that was kneeling in prayer.
She is a beautiful woman with long blue hair that frames her face perfectly with emerald green eyes. She's wearing a light pale blue dress that spreads out around her knees but keeps it modest and a pair of blue ankle-high heels. She's his best and greatest warrior and leader of the Valkyries, the goddess Frejya.
"Frejya, I have a special mission for you and you alone," Odin spoke seriously staring at the picture.
"Of course lord Ordin," Frejya said, her voice originating from the image that echoed out into the throne room. "What is the mission?"
"I sensed something peculiar moments ago and whatever it was hid itself from my senses in Midgard when I tried searching for it. I want you to go and investigate this matter yourself."
"What would you like me to do when I find it?"
"If it's peaceful and harmless, bring it back to the castle and study it. But, if it's evil and causes chaos, destroy it so our enemies won't use it against us or the people of Midgard."
"As you command, my lord."