We leave the village called Birkas and walk for around half an hour before
we enter a forest. While the place where I first got sent to was just a vast
plain, the landscape became more and more dominated by trees after I left the
shelter of that enormous tree under which I met the young shepherd. Around
these parts, it's already looking like Northern Europe's deep forests.
Of course, I never went there in my previous life, but I've seen photos of it
before. I've always wanted to go there on vacation someday, and maybe
eventually an opportunity would have arisen if I hadn't died.
So when I think about it, this is a second chance at seeing the world. Albeit
a world filled with fantasy and no smartphones to take photos with. But
maybe it's better this way; I can take pictures with my mind and commit
everything to memory, rather than let things get filtered through automatic
beautification software.
"Gram, prepare the bait. We'll be setting up camp here." Rolan announces
as we find a clearing a few hours into the forest. There's a tiny creek flowing
through it, and it seems to be the perfect place to stay for a while. It's really
idyllic.
I noticed that Rolan sounds like a proper leader when he gives out orders.
Well, he actually is the leader, and I'm sure there is a reason he could gather
these people around him, other than just because of his good looks.
Aside from Luna that is. I'm sure she's mostly here because of his good
looks.
"Sigurd, try out your suggestion. You never know, it might work." He turns
to the bard; apparently, he's trusting the latter to do something. Let's see how
that pans out.
Gram places his massive shield on the ground, then takes out something
wrapped in a sheet. It's the severed leg of a lamb, still bloody and fresh.
Classic bait material.
I approach the shield and only now do I realize how big it is. Gram is
already more than a head taller than I am, so in relation to him, it wasn't that
obvious. I could stand behind this thing, and nothing would be poking out on either side. This thing must be extremely heavy and surely requires two hands
to carry.
So, the tank is really just a shield bearer?
"What is your weapon, Mister Gram?" I'm curious how he fights while
carrying such a massive thing.
"My shield is my sword, Miss Marcott." He sounds proud. I should have
expected this response. "It's enchanted to repel physical and magical attacks,
and it's thick enough to deflect even a ballista shot. I leave attacking to those
I protect with it."
Just like a tank in multiplayer games, his role is to block the damage
directed at the squishy damage dealers such as Rolan and Luna, huh?
"And just in case, he can bash someone over the head with it." The leader
adds while setting up the camp with Luna. That girl's glaring at me for some
reason. Maybe you shouldn't be too friendly with another woman in the
presence of your sweetheart.
At least I'm not wearing my makeshift clothes cut from the tent sheet
anymore. It was sure to stir any man's libido because it resembled a naked
shirt look. The bard was kind enough to buy me a set of clothes from the
village's tailor. The material is rough, and it itches, but I can't complain about
his goodwill.
The outfit itself consists of a woolen long-sleeved shirt and overalls one
can immediately associate with what a farmer normally wears. Considering
this is a farming village, it's to be expected that they wouldn't have the latest
fashion trends available for a city girl like me.
My underwear is something I can only describe as granny bloomers.
Completely unsexy, but at least it covers me up. Then again, I wouldn't mind
going fully naked. It's this medieval society that minds.
The howling of a wolf interrupts my thoughts. So my suspicion that the
name wulfar refers to a wolf-like beast turned out to be true, huh?
But really, it's already here? That was unexpectedly quick. Did it react to
the smell of people or the bait so soon? But it sounds really close. I look
around and find the bard cupping his mouth and howling again. He notices
my gaze, smiles, and winks at me.
Ugh, so annoying.
I don't know whether it's an accurate call or not, but he can imitate a wulfar
with his voice, it seems. I hope that was a mating call and the beast will come running to mount him. Though I do have to admit that he seems to be quite
talented with his voice at least.
If it was just me alone, I'm sure it would have already found me. And
knowing my luck, it would have been in a pack, too. I already had such an
experience before, so I know how to deal with a group attacking at the same
time. Hedgehog Mode is waiting to be unleashed again someday!
But for now, I'll have to play the helpless girl who can only watch as the
humans go about their business. I use this time to practice manipulating the
shape of my body, as Maou-mama told me to do whenever I can. Not only
should I exercise changing my outward appearance, but also learn to control
my insides in subtle ways.
Aside from designating one space for storage and others for varying
degrees of dissolving speeds, I'm currently learning to perform precise
motions, such as taking out objects from the backpack inside my body and
then putting them back in, without actually looking.
About half an hour passes during which I seemingly sit still and in
complete silence, while the adventurer party sets up everything. I've been
successful in shifting things in and out of the backpack inside me. It's
becoming progressively easier to learn new moves, as I get more and more
used to this body.
Gram has set up the meat in something like a bear trap, while the bard has
tried various interpretations of the howl. None have gotten an answer, but
maybe the wulfar is really far away and can't hear it.
I seriously doubt that a predator is going to fall for a trap involving a piece
of dead meat, and I'm fairly certain a wild animal should be able to
distinguish the sounds the bard is making from those of its kind, so the party
will have to begin actively searching for it eventually.
"How did you get to know the others?" I ask Rolan when he sits down at
the camp. Since we'll be traveling together for a while, I'd feel awkward not
to hold any conversations. I'll just kill some time by learning more about his
relationship with the other three here. It should come across as small talk, but
the only thing I'm interested in is why the bard is in this group.
"Well, Runa and I are from the same village. We were neighbors before we
decided to take on this profession." So that's how long they go back together.
No wonder, it's the childhood friend route that came to a good conclusion.
My male childhood friend thought I was a boy until the end of middle school, then he moved away with his family, and we lost contact with each
other. He did say he was going to come back for university, but now I'll never
know. Not like I would have started anything with him anyway since I prefer
girls.
I think maybe the shock of him suddenly moving away caused me to go
down this alternate route...
"We met Gram and Sigurd during our travels. They accepted the same
request from a village as we did due to the guild's mistake, so instead of
falling into a rivalry, we decided to group up. We've been a team since then."
So the bard was traveling with Gram before meeting Rolan. Don't tell me the
bard is actually a damage dealer then? After all, the big man is a tank.
I just can't imagine how they were able to fulfill any quests before meeting
Rolan and Luna.
"It's been three years now, huh? Time sure flies..." Gram states with a
distant look. He sounds like an old man, reminiscing about the past when he
was still a youngster. Well, he does look like an old man.
"We're only getting started. We aim to take down the demon queen one day
so that her corruption of this world ceases and we'll have peace from
monsters." Rolan drops this incredible bombshell with a half-joking but
unexpectedly determined expression. Careful what you say, you have that
demon queen's daughter in your presence.
So he wants to be a hero? The hero? Should I kill him and his party right
here right now?
"I do not think we will get the chance. The alliance army led by Third
Prince Ulterius and Elven Queen Lillian should have reached the demons'
capital a few days ago, and I am sure it has fallen by now." Makes sense that
information doesn't travel that fast in a world without Twitter. The bard just
named two people who I know for a fact are dead already.
At least I assume that this Third Prince Ulterius was the 'human king'
Maou-mama gave me to eat for breakfast the morning I first woke up in this
world, and Elven Queen Lillian was the 'elven queen' my mother ate. Of
course, I don't say that out loud.
But it's quite pitiful. These people believe that whatever army they sent was
able to finish the job. From Maou-mama's behavior, it felt like she only saw it
as a minor inconvenience. It either indicates that she's incredibly powerful, or
that humans are incredibly weak.
The reason I'm coming along with these four is to find out which of the
above two is the case.
"Yeah, you're right. Well, I can't complain if that's true. Even if we're out
of our job then, it's better than having to live with this constant danger."
Rolan seems quite easygoing about giving up his adventurer lifestyle. Must
be because he can always choose to settle down with Luna and become a
hunter, or something like that.
From this conversation, I can gather that the humans and demons are
irreconcilable in their existences. As long as demons exist, humans will face
dangers in their lives. Not that it wouldn't be the case without demons since
they would just start tearing each other apart instead.
During my previous life, I would try to ignore such news when they
appeared on TV, but I was well aware that the rest of the world was far from
peaceful. People suffered in wars for resources and outdated ideologies,
while the so-called developed countries lived in affluence. I was one of those
people living in such a developed country, in peaceful Japan, knowingly
closing my eyes and ears to those matters because they were uncomfortable.
Shaking my head of these thoughts, I return my attention to the
conversation at hand.
"Can you tell me more about the corruption spread by the demon queen? I
was never taught about it." I keep up the appearance of a sheltered noble girl
who never learned about the world.
Maou-mama didn't tell me anything about any corruption, so maybe it's just
human propaganda. It would be a very effective method to make it seem like
her existence can't be allowed. And if that's expanded to say that all demons
spread corruption, then the entire race becomes something humanity could
never coexist with.
"Every demon has an aura of corruption that surrounds them. This has been
known for centuries." The bard is the one who replies. He seems to be quite
knowledgeable if nothing else. "But the far more powerful corruption spread
by the absolute leader of the demons was only discovered during the reign of
the previous demon king. And the current demon queen is on a completely
different level even compared to him. According to people who have been to
cities near the sea facing the Demon Continent, her aura sometimes turns into
a tangible miasma that is deadly to humans."
"Wild animals that are affected by it become more aggressive and sometimes turn into powerful monsters." Gram scratches along the line of his
mustache and explains. The others go quiet, and silence spreads like a blanket
over us. It's safe to assume that they know something about the big man's
statement that I don't.
"With the demon queen's corruption come curses that no magic can revert."
A grim expression on his face, Rolan finally speaks up and continues the
conversation. "There have been more and more cases of children being born
deformed by those curses."
It sounds like radiation. That's the one thing burned into my memory from
our school trip to Hiroshima, where we visited the Peace Memorial Museum.
Inside, I saw the effects of the radiation on the people who survived the
atomic bomb in graphic details. I can understand why humans seek to kill the
demon queen if by just being alive her existence causes the same kind of
effect on people all over the world.
But she is my mother, and I'm just like her. While I wouldn't consciously
wish mutations and slow painful deaths on even my worst enemies, I'm not a
charitable person either. If I have to choose between my own life and that of
people I don't know, I would never hesitate to choose myself first.
It seems the others are taking my silence as an indication that this topic is
too depressing, so they stop talking about it. The mood hangs heavily over
the camp as everyone remains quiet, acting like they are busy with
something.
I fall deep into thought, mulling over everything I just learned.
The wulfar didn't show up at all, and for the past several hours the party
has been in a slump. The sun is going to be setting soon, and we're preparing
to spend the night here. My first full day on this human continent is about to
pass, and while I did meet new people - temporary travel companions - not
much else happened.
Gram and Rolan are about to go off to gather firewood when the bard stops
them in their tracks.
"Shhh, something is coming." He must have really good ears since he
seems to be the only one who noticed; I didn't hear anything at all, and
neither did the others, it seems. The party is instantly on full alert, and I find
myself in awe at their discipline.
I can only act nervous and look around with a hint of anxiety since that's all I'm good for right now. In reality, I'm quite curious about what's going to
happen.
We're hiding behind a fake brush, set up to camouflage the camp, which is
overlooking the clearing with the trap in the middle. The bard silently points
towards the trees on the other side of the trap, and everyone's eyes turn
toward it. The undergrowth is shaking and then parts, to reveal a wolf-like
animal with fierce eyes.
That looks like a vularen, but when I use the severed lamb leg as an
indicator for size, I'd say it's smaller than the ones on the Dark Continent. The
spines on its back are also much shorter, and the color of its fur is different.
While the vularen were dark brown with silver backs, this one has a dark
green coat.
The jungle of Yagrath consists of bigger and older trees than the ones here,
which grow to have a much denser canopy and cause the interior to be quite
dark. There is also less green undergrowth to blend in with over there, so I
guess this one is better adapted to living in this younger forest with plenty of
brushes to hide in. In other words, it must be a subspecies - just like in a
certain monster-hunting game.
In either case, this means that humans are quite weak. They consider one of
these dangerous even when they are in a party of four, so they wouldn't stand
a chance against a pack of vularen. Then again, Maou-mama did say that they
are dangerous to even well-trained soldiers among the demons. I guess that
means my kind is just incredibly strong.
Well, I already knew that from Maou-mama's teachings.
"It's corrupted..." The bard whispers, barely audible to not give away our
location, and Gram's expression grows grim. Rolan and Luna hold their
breaths as they watch the wulfar.
It's almost in range to step into the trap, but hesitates and sniffs the meat.
Then it seems to smell something in the air and turns its head towards our
hiding spot. Its red glowing eyes meet with mine behind the brush.
Ah, I'm sorry, it was me. It seems I have a very special smell which
animals hate.
"We've been spotted. Change of plans." Rolan stands up and draws his
sword. Gram and Luna spring into action as well, the former bringing
forward his shield while the latter raises her staff.
I turn around to see what the bard is doing and find that he's not readying his lute. Instead, he takes something out from under his cloak.
Wait, is that a crossbow? Don't tell me he's actually a ranger. I'm not sorry
for doubting you since you acted like a bard all along! With the crossbow
hidden but the lute carried like his primary weapon, he was really misleading.
In either case, I won't stop calling him bard.
"Be careful not to let it bite you. It may carry a powerful curse!" He warns
the others and fires at the wulfar with his crossbow. It hits the creature square
in the shoulder, causing it to yelp from the pain and jump back in shock.
That looked easier than I thought it would. How can this beast be
considered dangerous even for a party of four, if a crossbow bolt alone can
deal so much damage to it? Then again, I don't know in what way corruption
or curses play into this difficulty ranking.
To be fair, compared to the wolves from my previous world, this one
would be considered impossibly huge. This particular one's about as big as a
lion. And in that same vein, the vularen of the Dark Continent are almost as
big as brown bears. If the theory that this one is a subspecies holds true,
getting bitten anywhere should be quite dangerous since it would have acid
saliva that can dissolve wood very quickly.
Not including the curse, whatever that may be.
I see something like dark smoke rise from the wound caused by the
crossbow bolt. Maybe that's how the corruption expresses itself, by spreading
a toxic miasma around it?
Gram takes the point and charges straight for the wolf with his shield.
Rolan follows behind him and brandishes his sword with both hands. The
bard readies another bolt while the two melee guys engage in close combat.
It's a testament to their courage that they're able to stand their ground even
with the danger of incurring some kind of curse from the corrupted beast.
Luna has begun to chant words in a language I don't understand quietly.
Maou-mama never taught me any magic, most likely wishing for me to learn
it myself, so this is the first time I get to see it from up close. And it appears
that magic requires an incantation in an arcane language in this world's
setting.
The wulfar rushes forward to attack Rolan, but Gram bashes its flank with
his shield. That was a nice hit, and it causes the wolf-like beast to jump back.
It seems to have learned its lesson and begins to circle the two looking for an
opening.
Another crossbow bolt flies at it, but this time it doesn't manage to hit,
whirring past its ear. Still, the wulfar flinches at the sound and using that
moment of distraction, Rolan jumps in for a two-handed slash with his sword.
It grazes the wolf's side, but the cut is shallow, as it's able to dodge just in
time. In response, it lunges at the swordsman but Gram somehow jumps
between the two, and his shield turns into an insurmountable wall against
which the wulfar crashes.
Clearly, the MVP of this battle is the tank!
I turn to look at Luna and find that she's still chanting. A magician who
takes more than half a minute to invoke a single spell is just useless in actual
combat. Even the bard is more useful than her by at least providing a
distraction with his crossbow. Even then, he doesn't seem to be a great shot,
so he might not really be a trained ranger.
When Rolan called this party a ragtag bunch, he wasn't kidding.
A loud yelp draws my attention back to the melee battle. I find that the
leader has landed a powerful strike on the wulfar's flank. It has started to
bleed profusely, and even if left alone, it would only be a matter of time until
it dies.
Then Luna appears to be finished with her incantation, as orbs of energy
manifest in thin air and swirl around her staff. One of the orbs bursts into
flames, one generates sparks, one turns into a sharp looking icicle, and one
more distorts the air around it.
"Elemental Overload!" She's calling her attack! That's so embarrassing!
But the power of her magic is real. The four elements fly out in arcs and
assault the wulfar one after the other. The sparks hit first, electrocuting the
poor creature and rooting it in place with paralysis. It's not enough to kill it,
but the effect is enough to prepare the target for the three other elements that
follow.
The fire sets the beast's fur alight, which is then fanned by the wind,
causing its whole body to burst out into flames. As it draws back from the
pain and stands up on its hind legs, the icicle pierces its chest cleanly, ending
its life in an instant.
From its entire charred carcass, a black mist seeps out and dissipates in the
breeze, before the mortal remains begin to crumble away. After a while,
nothing remains but a dark stain on the grass, leaving behind a patch of
cursed ground.
Or at least that's what I think it is.
This is bad. I'm sure if I got hit by Luna's magic, I wouldn't fare better. If I
get hit, that is. After all, it took her quite some time to chant, so I wouldn't
give her the time to invoke her magic in the first place.
But I have to admit that they have pretty good teamwork. When Luna
called out her spell, Rolan and Gram made way and circled the wulfar to
force it to remain in the center. That way, it wasn't able to get out of the way
of the sparks, which guaranteed that the entire spell hit.
Still, this group wouldn't stand a chance against me. I know that I don't
have any need to dodge crossbow bolts since I can just take them inside my
body. Furthermore, I would eat up the sword along with Rolan, and then
Gram and his shield as well. And in regards to Luna, I could use the bladed
whip to slash at her and break her concentration - if not outright decapitating
her.
Stop it! Happy thoughts! I don't need to treat them as enemies just yet.
In fact, I've decided: I'll travel with them for a while and see more of what
they're capable of. This way, I'll be able to gauge their abilities compared to
those of other adventurers. If I only use them as a reference and they're just
rookies, I'd be getting a wrong picture of the potential of the more powerful
humans after all.
Though, if I were to find that they are among the stronger ones, then
humanity as a whole would be nothing to fear. I mean, I know for a fact that
average humans incapable of magic aren't even worth mentioning. After all,
I'm practically impervious to physical attacks.
Oh, I just realized something: The bard wasn't of much use.
It's almost completely dark when we return to the village. Rolan and Luna
disappear into their rooms on the upper floor of the tavern the moment we
arrive. They both give the very obvious excuse that they are tired after the
fight and want to hit the sack early.
Oh, I'm sure they'll be hitting the sack. Quite a bit so, too.
Gram, the bard and I stay downstairs as agreed on earlier today, to
celebrate the completion of the quest with the villagers. It's loud enough in
here to drown out whatever sounds may spill from upstairs. Well, the big
man's booming laughter is making sure of that in one corner, while the bard's
retelling of their exploits against the corrupted creature is distracting from the world in another.
I'm in the middle, with a huge jug of ale in front of me. This will be my
first time drinking alcohol ever. I'm only seventeen years old, but apparently,
no law to prohibit underage drinking exists in this world. I see a few
youngsters in their mid-teens lifting normal-sized jugs to the big man's jokes
at his table.
So, it's alright for me to drink. And even if it isn't, I don't care!
I take up the jug with both hands since it doesn't look like a human of my
size should be able to lift it with one hand, and begin to chug away.
I might have gotten ahead of myself with this amount. If I were a human,
this would have been enough to make my belly swell. But as I am now,
nothing is visible on the outside. I down the whole jug and suddenly a wave
of cheers runs through the tavern.
Huh, what is it now?
"Wow, the lady is quite the drinker, isn't she?"
"That's incredible, young lady!"
Ah, everyone was watching me.
"You seem to be able to hold your liquor, Miss Marcott." Gram approaches
me with a jug of his own. "What say you we have ourselves a little contest?"
Hey, are you seriously inviting a girl one third your weight - and
potentially half your age - to a drinking contest? If I weren't a Crawling
Chaos, my belly would explode after the second Gram-sized jug. Scratch
that, those aren't jugs, those are buckets!
But the big man makes his look normal-sized.
"Alright." I don't know why I accepted, but I did, and it's too late to back
out now. Another huge jug is placed in front of us each, and we drink on
three, downing it all before putting it down.
"Whoo, that hits the spot." Wiping his mustache on his sleeve, Gram slams
his empty jug. Are you a middle-aged single salaryman or what's with that
cliché line? "You're not half bad, either. Starting to feel the effect already?"
"You wish!" I grin and wave over the second round. Now that he pointed it
out to me, I realize that I'm not feeling anything, and wonder about the
alcohol content in this brew. Am I just drinking the kiddy version? I look to
the tavern keeper, but he's filling our jugs from the same barrel. So that's not
it.
Shrugging, I chalk it up to this convenient body of mine.
Four jugs later, accompanied by loud cheering, Gram retires. He's holding
his belly, and his face is flushed red from the alcohol. I still don't feel
anything though? Don't tell me I can't get drunk?
"Where is she storing all that ale?"
"This lady is a drinking goddess!"
Thank you, thank you.
"Miss Marcott, are you even human?" Gram asks while burping and I
freeze up. He doesn't know, does he? I mean, it does look quite suspicious
how I seem to have just downed my body's weight worth in liquids, and my
stomach didn't even grow. "That's some drinking you only see in an elf!"
He doesn't suspect a thing, so I'm safe.
Well, I might be as beautiful as an elf, but my ears aren't pointy. And an elf
can defy the laws of physics by storing such a huge amount of alcohol in their
bodies without it showing in this world, huh? That's interesting to know.
"You jest, Mister Gram. I'm just a normal human girl." Ah, that was such a
bold-faced lie, I'm surprised at how I can keep a straight face. The villagers
look at me unbelieving, but since there's no other indication for my
inhumanity, nobody suspects anything.
Note to self: Don't do things humans can't.
But I won't give up on eating a lot whenever I can. For tonight, I'll restrain
myself and just consider the ale as food.
The party slowly trickles out following our contest, but not before
everyone had their fair share of alcohol. Gram is lying down on a bench and
dozing off, surrounded by empty jugs and plates of snacks. The bard is
playing some relaxing tunes on his lute, lulling the people around him to
sleep.
At this point, everyone is either heading home or falling asleep on the spot.
This feels like how a party in a fantasy world should be. I wouldn't know
about any in the real world since I never went to one before.
My eyelids begin to feel heavy as I watch the people around me,
illuminated by the candlelight. The last thought that crosses my mind while I
slip into slumber is that it may actually not be that bad here.