Hi, I'm Taishi.
It is Taishi who brought in the wife's mother and the wife's childhood friend after being completely beaten by the gods. No, it's a conspiracy of useless gods.
"It's not good to blame people. Is it your choice after all? If you try to refuse firmly, you can do it, right? 』
I know you bastard!
"Well, it's a shame for a man not to eat at the table? You say you like hero colors? I don't think it's good to drag the customs of your hometown too much. When you enter a town, they say you should obey the town.』
Oh, noisy, noisy. And right now, the one who is whispering in my head to drag me down the path of depravity is the culprit of all this, Real, also known as the bad god.
"Yes♪ She's a super cute real-chan☆"
Please shut up. I just want to sort things out.
『Yeah, I'm busy processing pseudo-gods too, so see you soon. I think it will take a few days, so thank you.』
After confirming that the useless god has sunk into the bottom of my consciousness, I let out a sigh. Open your eyes and jump in at the simple tent ceiling. It's just big enough for three people to sleep side by side, and right now I'm lying down alone.
The light of the bonfire can be seen through the fabric of the tent, which is not particularly thick. Outside the tent, my daughter-in-law, Melkina's real mother, in other words, Elmina, who is my mother-in-law, and Melkina's childhood friend, the dark-skinned elf, Rifana, are probably watching over the night.
I stare at my right hand, which is illuminated by a faint light.
A familiar palm. There were no holes in it, no scars that looked like something had gotten stuck in it, and the palm was the same as usual. However, just a few hours ago, a pseudo-goddess entered my body from the palm of my hand.
In a nutshell, it was a 'magnificent experience'.
The pain that felt like the inside of the body was being cut by hard crystals seemed to last for about fifteen minutes. It's strange to say that it's "likely" when you say you've experienced it yourself, but while I was suffering from pain, I wasn't in a state where I could be conscious of the passage of time. I asked Dagami about the elapsed time later.
Well, this time I took in the ``pseudo-goddess'', but in a nutshell, it seems to be something like crystallizing the power of the gods of this world.
Long ago, the ancients dragged down the existence of gods, which could be called high-dimensional lifeforms, from the throne of gods and turned them into ``pseudo-gods,'' and used them as energy resources and weapons to reach the peak of their prosperity.
The reason why I took in such a thing is simple, to compensate for and regain the power that was stolen from me and the useless gods by the gods. That's why he's currently visiting forbidden areas in the Great Forest.
For the time being, the first thing I got today.
I was able to obtain the first pseudo-goddess within a few days of starting my search...I wonder if it's going well or not. I don't know how many I'll need, but I'm sure the bad gods will tell me about it once I've finished processing the pseudo-divines I've taken in this time.
But well, I feel really depressed. After all, taking in pseudo-gods is accompanied by great pain. It's a bit suspicious if you ask me if I can still challenge even if I know. As expected, it hurts to the point of fainting, but it hurts so much that I can't faint... it's the first time I've ever experienced that.
Ah, it's really depressing... No, don't fall into negative thoughts. Think of something fun. For the time being, let's think about the Snakeman tribe village we're planning to head to tomorrow.
The serpent people who live in the village we are going to go to tomorrow seem to be strange creatures with the upper body of a human and the lower body of a giant snake. According to my knowledge, Lamia is a half-human, half-snake demi-human. Although the name in this world is just the Snakeman tribe.
I plan to rest there for a few days. Elmina-san said that the serpent race's fighting ability is quite high, and if they stay in that village, they won't be attacked by monsters and will be able to live safely.
Rifana had a slightly confused look on her face, but I wonder if she doesn't like snakes? I don't dislike reptilians that much, including snakes, so it's no problem.
However, in the original world, Lamia was one of the most popular characters in the non-human girl category. Her upper body is a beauty, her lower body is a giant snake, and her beauty deceives men and sucks their blood. I can't wait to meet you.
While thinking about my encounter with the serpent people that I have yet to see, I was able to rest my body until it was time to change the night watch.
☆★☆
Chi-chi-chi, a small bird whose name I do not know is singing somewhere. The forest with the morning mist is still quiet, and all I can hear is the chirping of birds, the slight rustling of leaves, and the occasional popping of firewood in the hearth in front of me.
I took over the night watch after midnight, so I had too much free time, so I made a simple furnace like this and watched the pots.
"Good morning, Taishi-kun. How is your body?"
As I was stirring the pot, a gentle voice echoed in my earlobe.
"Good morning, so far there is nothing special.
"Oh, thank you.
Elmina-san who slipped out of the tent smiled and thanked me while walking towards the stone bucket where water was stored.
Rifana soon got up and walked to the water where Elmina-san was headed while rubbing her sleepy eyes. Rifana seems to be weak in the morning. She's always pouty Why is it so cute when a girl wakes up in a vacant position? I wonder if she's a gap moe.
"Hmm, is this the case?"
Taste the finished soup and mutter so.
Remove the meat from the bone-in meat brought from the elf village, wash the remaining bones well and boil them quickly.
Immediately cool it with cold water and remove the meat pieces, etc., and then crush it appropriately and put it in a pot filled with clean water. When it boils, simmer it on low heat.
"Oh, it smells good"
"I had some free time, so I made soup by stewing the bones thoroughly."
"I see"
Carefully remove the scum, add incense herbs and simmer slowly. Finally, the soup base was completed by straining the soup with a rough clean cloth.
In addition, salty dried meat is used instead of seasoning, dried vegetables and herbs picked yesterday are added to adjust the taste, and the soup is complete. Today's breakfast is accompanied by canned biscuits and canned fruits found during the exploration of the ruins.
"good morning"
"Hey, I'm ready to eat."
"yeah..."
Rifana seems to have washed her face too, but it's not fully activated yet. Well, the usual condition will come out while eating.
"What kind of people are the serpent people?"
"Hmm, it's normal? It's just that the lower body is a big snake. It seems that magic is not very good, but it seems that the power is strong. Actually, I've never been so deeply involved either."
"Really?"
"Yeah. We meet at Kett Sith and other bird tribe villages when shopping for supplies, and we exchange information from time to time."
"Are you okay with that?"
"It's okay, maybe."
Well, Elmina-san and Rifana are elves, so it should be fine, but I wonder if I'm okay as a human. I remember hearing that people who live in the Great Forest are terribly exclusive to people outside the forest.
"It's okay, no matter what happens, I'll protect Taishi-kun."
"That's cool. Hug me."
"What have you been saying since morning?"
"I'm fine, aren't I?"
Elmina-san's manly remarks made me cringe. I was rushed into Rifana with haste, but wouldn't it make you nervous if I was told that I would protect you no matter what? I'll follow you too.
After finishing breakfast and collecting the tent, we decided to leave immediately.
Since my weapon was destroyed, I'm equipped with a long gun type magic gun that I recovered from the ruins of the shelter. I'll become a blunt weapon if I have to!
"How long does it take to get to the Snakekin tribe village?"
"If you move at your usual pace, it won't take much time.
"A souvenir?"
"I'm talking about hunting some kind of animal instead of lodging."
"I see"
That's why I decided to prepare a souvenir to bring to the Snakekin village before the full-scale movement. It seems that both of them have never hunted around here, so it seems that they will be fumbling around, but is it okay?
"I found it. This is black elk dung. It's new."
"Where is it headed... I'm going around from downwind, follow me. Quietly."
"Ahaha"
In less than half an hour they seemed to have acquired their target. I can't find any droppings or footprints. No worries at all!
After following them through the forest like the wind for a few minutes, they suddenly stopped. I panicked and stopped. When I was suddenly confused about what happened, Elmina-san lay down in a bush a little away, and Rifana pulled me into a nearby bush.
"What happened?"
"Shhh, I'm coming, so shut up."
Rifana held my head down with one hand, quickly set up the bow she was carrying on her back, pulled out an arrow from the quiver on her waist, and set it up.
Silence fills the forest.
All I can hear is the faint rustling of leaves, the chirping of birds, the sighs of a nearby rifana and the sound of my heart.
After lying down for a while, something caught my attention. It's a fairly large sign moving at a slow speed.
A giant deer appeared from the depths of the forest. Isn't this what it is? A moose or something like that?
He's much taller than me. Probably less than three meters. It weighs about a ton, doesn't it? Can you kill this with a bow and arrow? You don't need an anti-material rifle? Are you okay?
Next to him, Rifana draws his bow silently and points the arrowhead at the moose (provisional). The moose (temporary name) stopped moving as if it was wary of something.
The next moment, the arrow that was shot rushed forward wrapped in wind and pierced the elk's (provisional) eye. Her huge body trembles and falls down with a roar. When I jumped out of the bush, Elmina-san had already killed the moose (provisional name) with a knife into its thick neck.
"It was a good arrow, wasn't it?"
"Because it happened to stop the movement at a good angle."
Even though she is humble, she doesn't feel bad about being praised by Elmina-san, and Rifana's ears are happily moving up and down. How cute is she?
"Taishi-kun, I'm sorry, but can you hang this from the tree over there?"
"Understanding the point"
Take a rope from the treasure box, tie its hind legs and hoist it to a nearby large tree. Anyway, if I don't drain the blood, I can't talk about it. If you don't drain the blood, the meat stinks and you can't eat it.
It seems that my heart is still beating, and blood is coming out from Elmina-san's severed neck. Hmm, I'm used to this kind of scene. It seems that I am adapting to the different world smoothly.
"What are you going to do with this? Isn't it hard for the three of you to dismantle it?"
"Well, it's not like it can't be done. For now, let's just take out the internal organs. Let's have the snakeman village do the full-scale dismantling."
"roger that"
I also use water magic to drain the blood, split the stomach and take out the offal. Shoot the removed offal into the treasure box! It's hard for three people to do the skinning and dismantling, so I stuffed the ice made with water magic into my belly, put it in a treasure box, brought it to the snakeman village, and had the snakeman dismantle it.
"Then shall we go?"
"yes"
"Hey"
Following Elmina-san who immediately started running, Rifana and I also started running. The forest around here has a relatively calm appearance, and you can't feel the gloomy atmosphere peculiar to forests where monsters appear.
It takes about an hour to run like the wind through such a refreshing forest. Elmina-san stopped her feet as if she sensed something. Nothing has been done to detect my presence yet, but what exactly did Elmina-san detect?
"It looks like we've entered the territory of the snake race. Let's take it slow from here."
"How did you know?"
"Look at that tree over there.
Certainly, looking at the tree that Elmina-san is pointing at, there are spiral marks that look like they were scraped with a huge file or something.
picture? If the serpent race is wrapped around, what is this thick tree like? It's not a roll me or something like that, but if you get caught, you'll get a compound fracture of your whole body, that. No, the flesh might be scraped off and ground down before it becomes a compound fracture.
"It sounds dangerous if you get caught"
"It seems to be good at sneaking up and strangling."
Snakekin-san was more powerful than I thought.
Well, I guess I can't live in a forest like this without being powerful. I took a quick look at Rifana, but it didn't seem like she was particularly pale. It's not like I don't like snakes.
I ended up walking between Elmina-san and Rifana without my hands. Because if I, a human, had something like a weapon, the serpent people might be wary of me.
"I get nervous when I meet someone for the first time."
"You don't have to worry so much. I don't think they will suddenly attack me when I'm with Rifana."
"No, it's okay if you get attacked."
"Just because I'm okay doesn't mean I'm okay with being attacked or hated."
I'm not the kind of person who feels good or exhilarated when someone is hostile towards me. Isn't it natural for people to want good intentions rather than hostility or malice?
Another thirty minutes of walking, and there were multiple reactions to the presence detection.
"There's something nearby. If you keep walking like this, you'll be surrounded."
"Do you understand well? Well, there's nothing to worry about. Let's move on."
Elmina-san walks forward with a relaxed smile. Where does this courage come from? Is it still an experience? Something like an adult's leeway. After a few minutes of progressing, there were three snake people-like shadows standing in front of us. The responses that seemed to be from the serpent race that hid themselves remained at six, and now they were completely surrounded.
"stop"
All of the serpent people blocking their way were armed with spears. The upper body is a beautiful woman, and the lower body is a giant snake. Impressed by the "Lamia"-like visuals as you can imagine. The beauty of the upper body is of course, but the seductiveness of the snake body is also eye-catching. The scales that reflect the sunlight filtering through the foliage sparkle and are very beautiful.
"The elf's... face I've seen before. What's your purpose in bringing a human to our village?"
The snakeman tribe in the middle asked me with an expressionless expression that could not feel any emotion at all. She is also stunningly beautiful. Standing on either side of him were probably his subordinates, and they were quietly looking at me from a step back.
"I came here thinking that the three of us could stay at your village for a few days.
"Inn...? Your village is certainly far from here, but... why are you here in the first place?"
"There are some circumstances.
"Forbidden land…?
The gazes of the snake people and Elmina-san gather on me. No, I get a little nervous when I get attention from such beautiful women.
"I'm Taishi, I'm good at general combat and blacksmithing, and I can use magic fairly well!
I gave him a thumbs up and gave him a batikone and a wink. With this, my Snakekin Onee-san will feel tight with me and this place will settle down peacefully. no doubt.
"... what is this?"
"Hmm, what is it? A boy without discipline?"
"Wait a minute..."
"Ouch! My side hurts!
Rifana seriously grabbed the soft part of my side. No matter how much you level up and get a high status, that kind of thing hurts, so please stop it.
"Hold on... but what should I talk about? What do you want to hear?"
"What is your relationship with the two?"
"This is my mother-in-law, this is my wife's childhood friend, and they are both partners."
"???"
At my explanation, the serpentine woman showed a bewildered expression and tilted her head. It's kind of cute when an expressionless beauty suddenly shows a bewildered expression.
"I don't know, but I do understand that they are close. So can you swear that you have no ill will towards our settlement, and the people who live in this great forest?"
"At least, I don't have that kind of thing at the moment. I can't guarantee that as long as I'm alive in the future.
"Honestly."
The serpentine woman nodded and turned her gaze to Elmina and Rifana.
"Then, you two elves. Are you prepared to give your heart when this man's spiteful misfortune strikes upon us?"
"Of course"
"If that happens, I'll kill him and I'll die too."
heavy! Heavy! But the fact that you're prepared to do that for me, how can I say this, it's heartbreaking. Never do anything that betrays this trust.
"Then let us allow you to stay in our settlement.
A woman twists her body, turns around, and begins to move forward. The two who were at her side also turned their backs on us and started advancing. The gait of the serpent people, who can move smoothly without shaking their upper body at all, is very strange.
While walking behind me, I stare at the voluptuous snake body in front of me. Umu, it's beautiful reflecting the sunlight filtering through the foliage. The scales of the serpentine woman who was exchanging words with us a little while ago are beautiful emerald, and they sometimes shine in rainbow colors when they catch the sun. Beautiful indeed.
The serpent race that advances on both sides seems to be younger than the woman in the middle. Both have reddish scales. This is also beautiful with glittering scales that occasionally shine like rubies or something. As I was walking while looking at them, I met the eyes of the three who were looking back at me before I knew it. I feel embarrassed somehow.
"Human, aren't you afraid of us?"
"Huh? No, not at all. You guys are beautiful. Your scales are beautiful."
"HM...?"
The serpentine woman continued to move forward with an expression as if she wasn't convinced.
"You are a strange person"
"why"
I was quickly dismissed. why.
After that, for some reason, the waviness of the serpentine daughters advancing forward increased by about 30%. The movements are dynamic and impressive. And something else is glancing back at us. What are you guys?
When I suddenly look to the side, Elmina-san is grinning, and Rifana is somewhat swollen.
"what do you want?"
"Hmm? It's nothing, you know?"
"Hmm"
I know, I know this
As expected, if you spend this much time in this world, you'll soon be able to figure it out. I'm not that Nibutin either. I mean, isn't that what it means? It's rare to see a human man who calls the serpent race beautiful, beautiful, and the previous three took a little interest in me, right?
If so, what happened? Well, it's better to let yourself go with the flow.
Consecutive updates for the 8th volume released on November 10th Don!
The basic flow is the same as the web version, but I hope you'll enjoy the book version, which includes corrections and short stories! _(:3"∠)_