It was still early in the morning. I had just finished making something for all of us as we waited for everyone to wake up.
And well… they would soon do just that since the scent of food lingers in the air. And if I do say so myself, I'm a relatively good chef.
'Njyhihi~'
"...Bro, why creepily giggling?" Julia asked as she stared at me.
"....."
Her gaze hurts a little, but… well, it doesn't bother me too much.
"...Nothing," I replied, handing her a meat skew, "Here, taste."
"...." Julia looked at the meat and glanced at brother Al, seeming to question if the meat was edible or not.
Well… it certainly wouldn't be if he made it….
Then again… maybe not. Since he's making some as well, I guess I can have a taste… y'know? To see if I'm wrong about his skills in the kitchen!
Julia closed her eyes and tasted it; then, her eyes sparkled, saying, "It's good!"
I rested my chin on my palm and gently watched over her.
"That's nice to hear," I replied.
Which made her blush ever so slightly as she glanced at me.
"Obviously, since you're making it…."
How do I say this? She's been like this for a few years now. Quite the rebellious lil sis, huh? Well… I'm not complaining since this is cute in its own right.
After breakfast with everyone, and as I had guessed, brother Al's cooking was terrible; he made some too, saying it was practised….
It was so atrocious that I had to help him step by step, but it somehow turned terrible anyways!
"...Brother Al, do you have some sort of curse or something?" I jokingly asked.
He seemed surprised, "How did you know?"
….So he is cursed!?
"But it isn't related to food or anything," he added.
How are you so chill about being cursed!? Like… I'd freak out if I were you! Wait… was being this chill normal for people from his world?
"...off topic, but what sort of life did you have before arriving here?" I asked.
I didn't want to pry, but… I'm curious! And it appears Julia is too!
"My life? I was looking for my parent's killer."
…..
…
You were what now!? How old were you even?
"I-I see… did you find them?"
"Yes, about 6 after I found them. I attended university."
"..."
I'm starting to think it's the person himself and not where he came from.
— :::: —
As we all finished eating, we started to follow brother Al as he led us toward the city. It's apparently not that far away, maybe about 15km? And we'd be there by evening.
And… well, we found out some disturbing things as well as we walked. He told us that, before he found us fighting the Pale Mimic, he had come across a pile of corpses inverted inside out, as beasts in the forest feasted on them.
He said that they all had missing heads and that he incinerated all of them so that monsters wouldn't get stronger by eating them.
Apparently, in this world, if a monster eats a humanoid, they gain more intelligence and has a higher chance of evolving.
So… in the end, we were fortunate, weren't we?
As I was in deep thought, Miss Hilda, who I had been carrying, began to talk to me.
"I'm not heavy, am I…?" she shyly asked.
"You're not," I casually replied.
I mean… even if she was. I'd never say that. Besides, I feel more sturdy than ever!
"I'm glad… b-but do you have to… c-carry me in your arms like this…?" she said, turning red as she fumbled over her words.
…That's right, ladies and gentlemen, I'm doing the princess carry! Of course… I have my reasons, and no… it isn't because I'm a romantic, more like…. I'd be too conscious if her chest always pressed against my back.
Okay… the real reason is that she felt dizzy each time he had to sit up or stand, so this was the optimal option.
… she's a little taller than me, but I find her cute anyway. And what did that have to do with anything? Dunno… I sort of wanted to point out the things I find cute.
"...Sorry, bear with me, Miss Hilda," I replied.
I knew that people were teasing us, but they all also knew that this was the best way to handle the situation. Julia is staring at me, though….
— :::: —
After walking for about an hour, we stumped upon a path, and… as generic as it sounds, bandits jumped out of the bushes.
"Hieaa! Hand over you yer stuff!" they yelled.
Shit… brother Al is a D-Rank, and there's no way he can take all of them! After all, brother Al demonstrated the powers of a Rank D and these bandits have been out here, so there is no doubt they're strong as well!
Everyone got ready for a fight as we were surrounded. I activated [Eye of Concept] and looked around. There were about 50 of them, and they were all armed. The situation looks severe—huh?
They're all strapped up in something blueish, is… is that water?
To my and everyone's surprise, brother Al just casually walked up to the man that seemed to be their leader and asked, "Tell me, where are your carts?""
…I'm speechless. He's so considerate of us!
Wait, now's not the time!
I seriously doubt that whoever evaluated him made a mistake!
They were all tied up and yelled, "Let us go!" and so on… it was… pathetic, to say the least…. I relaxed as the situation seemed under control, and Miss Hilda also let out a sigh of relief as she smiled at me.
"Seems like we're really lucky, huh? Finding someone reliable like him in a time of need…."
I nodded and couldn't help but stare at him. I… I also want to become like that, I thought. And suddenly, someone appeared from the sky, and a sword appeared in front of us. It was blue and beautiful, generating what seemed to be a barrier around us.
"...If you don't want to see bloodshed, close your eyes," brother Al said, looking disinterested in the new arrival. It seemed like he was looking at something else deeper inside the forest.
There was a man with black hair and red eyes that wasn't here before standing beside him. His aura felt similar… oh wait, it was the aura when he first drew the sword… was he the cause?
"Hilos, you take care of those deep inside the forest, and I'll take care of the approaching cultists. But… be sure to not destroy the forest."
"...sure, sure," the man replied and disappeared.
…Cultist? Really? First bandits, now cultists?
My luck suuuucks!