[Part 1/4]
'Haah... haah...!'
Through the damp marshland and into the forest, I sprint. My field of vision violently sways, blurring everything. My breath is ragged, but I keep running desperately. I'm running to escape the terrifying presence closing in from behind. To save her.
'Haa... haa... haaah...!!'
I gasp heavily, and there's the taste of iron in my mouth. I can't hold back, and I involuntarily look down. Nausea hits . Bitter bile drips from my mouth. My sweat pours like a waterfall, splattering on the ground.
Still, I couldn't stop. I couldn't afford to stop. Not just for my sake but also to save her.
'I'm okay! It's alright!! We've made it out. Hahaha, how about that, you b*stard!!'
As I turned forward again, I laughed twistedly, masking my impatience and fear. I acted as if I were triumphant, even though I didn't know what I was saying anymore. All I knew was what I had to do.
But the warmth on my back was growing colder by the mont. There was no response. There was no ti. I panicked. I rushed. I ran. I kept running. Run. Run. Run...!
'Haa, haa, d*mn... d*mn...!!'
How did it co to this? Why did things turn out this way? I didn't understand. Why... Why am I the one still alive? Why ? Again, why ...!?
'Hey, you okay? Are you still alive? Ugh...!? Pull yourself together!! You're alive, right!?'
In a faint murmur, my expression, previously one of despair, seed to have a glimr of hope. I called out desperately. I kept calling out. To ensure that she didn't lose consciousness. To believe that there was still ti. I didn't want to go through that again. Once was enough.
'It's getting... sleepy... Is it okay if I'm left behind?'
'Don't be stupid! It's too late for that now! Besides, wouldn't you do the sa...!?'
It was a really late conversation. The most dangerous part was already behind us. It would be foolish to waste all the effort we had put in up to this point. Above all, those words should have co from my mouth.
I, who had begged for help in such a pathetic manner, would be despicable if I abandoned her in the sa situation.
'Ha, haha... Stubborn, aren't you? Trying to act cool?'
'Showing off in front of girls is a guy's privilege...!!'
With a dry, bitter smile rather than a taphor, I laughed and responded in kind. It was an obvious display of bravado. I couldn't hide my desperation. There was no room for pretending. That's how it sounded, a small, contemptuous chuckle, next to my ear.
But I didn't mind. As long as she was alive, even if she laughed at ...
'Then... um. Can I ask you a favor? It's a bit... heavy.'
'Just a little!'
'...Afterward, I'll treat you to so dango. The expensive ones.'
'Seriously!?'
The last request she made was so faint that, despite all my concentration, it was barely audible...
...
...
...
"Hey, idiot, wake up. Ti to get ready for departure."
"...Ah."
I was shaken by my colleague, or maybe I had just awakened from a dream. I looked around, surrounded by the dense forest. I sharpened my senses. As far as I could sense, there were no signs of anything beyond the ordinary.
I was on a rock. At the top of a large rock in the middle of the forest, allowing to survey the area. It would be aningless if I had been sleeping, though.
(Really, it's pointless.)
Negligence was out of the question for those responsible for surveillance in the area. Fortunately, nothing had happened this ti, but it was only a matter of luck. When sothing did happen, it wouldn't be as simple as taking responsibility.
"You surprised there. Were you napping? It's a rare sight. What would you have done if you'd been eaten while you were asleep?"
"I'd be more afraid of getting caught and beheaded."
My colleague shrugged, as if exasperated by my reaction. It wasn't a joke. It might have been a joke during the Loli Era, but in the main story, Gorilla-sama was a boss who surpassed a bossy boss. Even with the recomndation from her beloved father, there were limits. She could easily lose her temper and end up killing .
"Alright, let's go. It's alti."
"What's on the nu?"
"Porridge."
"The usual, then?"
"No, not quite."
As I sneered, my colleague, Tsukuba, shook his head in disagreent.
"It's noticeably thinner than usual. It seems our allotnt is being used as paynt. Likely the work of Princess's laborers."
"That's..."
Truly loyal subjects, indeed.
"There's no point in lodging a complaint. Let's endure it."
Resigned, I climbed down from the rock. Following Tsukuba, I headed beyond the cooking smoke-filled forest.
"Oh, right, Tsukuba."
"...What is it?"
"Thank you. You saved ."
I felt genuine gratitude for waking from that nightmare...
* * *
In the sixth year of Emperor Seiri's reign in the northern region, towards the end of June, when even the Northern region begins to feel the heat of the sumr, a group set out from Onitsuki Valley. They were a party of the second princess of the Onitsuki family, heading to a forbidden area as per orders from the Imperial Court.
The group consisted of one ox cart, six horse-drawn carriages, and a total of 46 personnel. This included 15 laborers and maids who took care of their daily needs, four mbers of the Hidden Group, one dic, 20 temporarily hired soldiers, and five servants.
Their destination was the third-class forbidden area in Fusō-kuni's Northern region, the "Silent Curse Deep Forest" (黙呪深林, Doku Noroi Fuka Hayashi). Their objective was to thin out the creatures inhabiting that place and, more importantly, secure the rare spiritual herbs that grew naturally in that area.
The "Ifukamuta," which only grew in certain rich and unique spiritual places, was also the subject of a secret request from an anonymous noble in the Imperial Court. Success in this mission would solidify the Imperial Court's trust in the Onitsuki family. It was a once-in-a-lifeti opportunity and a task worthy of determining the next head of the Onitsuki family.
"For appearances' sake, yes."
On the fourth day since the group's departure from the valley, the group were about eight-tenths (8:10) of the way to their destination. Among the group marching along the city road, I carried a spear and continued to walk, sighing at the sky for the umpteenth ti.
That was rely a front, at least for Psycho Father-sama, who had taken on this request. It seed to be a job that couldn't be refused, not only to live up to her father's expectations but also to achieve a decisive victory in the competition for the next head of the family against her big sister. Moreover, Loli Gorilla-sama must have been delighted that he had assigned the task to her rather than any other mber of the family. She expected sothing from him.
But in reality, it was a cunning trap...
"...Senpai... Senpai?"
"Hmm!? Hisa, right? What's up?"
I asked, trying to hide my surprise, to the petite girl who had been walking alongside . Perhaps she had called multiple tis, but I hadn't noticed.
"Oh, um, nothing..."
Maybe it was because my tone of voice was a bit hoarse, or maybe it was because my words were a bit strong, but Hisa seed to be really afraid of . Her attitude reminded of a puppy again, so I pushed those thoughts away and confird it again.
"Hey, I'm not angry or anything. I'm just curious. Co on, what's on your mind?"
"Well... I just noticed that you seed to be lost in thought for a while. So I wondered..."
It seed that I had been quite preoccupied. Perhaps she felt anxious because the seniors she relied on were acting so absent-minded.
"I see. Well, it's nothing much. I was just thinking about my hotown."
I look away from her, trying to cover it up.
My vision is filled with lush green ears of rice, reaching high into the sky and swaying in the wind. The lush paddy fields that promise a bountiful harvest are the blessings of the spiritual vein itself. A sight I will never see in my hotown...
"Your hotown?"
"Yeah. it's a cold village in the countryside. The land there is barren, far from any spiritual veins. It's quite different from around here."
It was impossible to grow rice there. They only grew enough rice to pay taxes, and the rest of the land was used to cultivate hardy grains that could withstand the cold. Fortunately, there were no orders to forcibly cultivate rice, like in the real Edo period in Tohoku. If there were, my family would have been wiped out by famine.
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