Chapter 3 The Adventurer with a Blank Slate

“Fair enough. All right, then I’ll leave my life in your hands. I hope you’ll take that in exchange for your trust, Ms. Lanalliu, Laualli, Ms. Lanaju……Launalliuna. Ms. Laua…lliuna.” Take that, Isolla! See how I didn’t give up?!

“You can call me Lana, Souya.” Her lips curled up into a fragile smile, and my heart fluttered with the most joy I’d felt since landing in this world.

We hitched a ride on a horse-drawn carriage headed for the farms and arrived at the campsite. I negotiated with the farmer to see if he wouldn’t mind dropping off some vegetables on his way back to town, and he cheerfully agreed. The trick was to let him catch a glimpse of Lady Glavius’s feather, a tip I’d picked up from the young head of the Ellomere Traders.

“Give me just a second. I’ll set up a tent for you.” I couldn’t exactly lay Éa down in the pantry and supplies tent, much less my own messy sleeping quarters, so I pitched a new one for them. Having done it six times already, it had almost become second nature to me. First, I checked to see if the residential tent kit had all its parts. Then I spread out the inner tent, slipped the two main poles through the sleeves, and inserted the corner end tips into one side of each.

“Souya, I can help you,” Machina offered.

“Please. I’ll take the left pole, so you get the right, okay?” The two of us lifted up the inner tent. Once the poles fully extended, we inserted them into the empty end tips. I shook the expanded tent loosely to double-check if it would hold. Then I affixed the canopy poles into the designated end tips on the tent. One by one, I affixed the reinforcements to fasten the fabric to the poles. After that, I moved the tent so that it had its back end to the wind, lined it up with the other tents, and hammered in the stakes to secure it in the ground. I threw the cold weatherproofing fly over the whole thing, tied that to the poles, and drove stakes through its ends as well. The fly’s rope I used to adjust the tension on the tent and once again secured this to the ground with stakes. Thanks to Machina’s help, it didn’t even take me eight minutes to set up.

Machina’s help……?

“Hey, Little Miss Machina.”

“Yes?”

I casually tossed a question over to the robot, who stood at my side. “You’re pretty much moving by yourself, aren’t you?”

She threw a Huh?! up on her display screen, then tilted her body from side to side and rolled it around in a big circle. Finally, she returned to her normal position and responded, “I didn’t do anything. ♪”

You little—you’re doin’ it, too, huh?

“I just happened to lose my balance, landed by you, and assisted with the tent assembly, that’s all. More importantly, should you really keep your guests waiting? I’m worried about them!”

“I’m gonna grill you about this later.”

“Tee-hee-heeee. ♪”

Lana’s eyes had opened wide in shock. I lifted Éa, who I’d laid to rest at her side, in my arms and brought her into the tent. “Please, take a rest in here. I’ll get you some blankets. Hang tight for a little bit, and I can whip up something warm.”

“Were you not going to practice archery?”

“You and your sister’s health comes first. Any student would be beside themselves with worry if their teacher didn’t feel well. Oh, just take off your shoes, okay?” Lana stepped in the tent and sat down. She had beautiful legs—not too skinny, not too plump.

I stepped away for a minute and rummaged through the other squadron members’ personal effects until I found some women’s clothing. I’d tried not to think too much about it, but what had happened to them? It was probably better not to dwell on that. I grabbed some clothing and towels, a tub filled with water, and pillows and blankets and carried them all back over to the tent.

“You can change into these if you like. Oh, sorry.”

“It’s no trouble.” I’d walked in on Lana removing her accessories and smaller pieces of equipment. My eyes drifted toward her bare shoulder, but I quickly looked away.

“That’s a rather unique attendant you have,” she noted. “I’ve never seen anything like it.”

“She’s no attendant. She’s my partner.”

“Do you mean your friend? That mass of metal is your friend?”

“That’s right.” As soon as I left the tent, that very mass of metal started speaking to me.

“Mr. Souya, give me your poncho, please. Also, take these antibiotics, just in case.”

I took the pills and swallowed them, then removed my poncho and shoved it in the scanner drawer in her lower half. “Machina, what’s the recovery status on the medical program?”

“It’s at fifteen percent.”

“How many more hours will you need to recover full functionality?”

“Optimistically, I would estimate approximately three months. Please refrain from sustaining any injuries to your internal organs in that time.”

“Would it be possible to perform an abdominal surgery at this stage?”

“That would be difficult. We should have sufficient medical supplies for it, but considering Isolla’s and my own capabilities, I expect the probability of success would be rather low. I can, however, extract the necessary information from the medical program as a last resort. Nevertheless, in addition to rendering the original program useless, it remains uncertain that I would be able to perform a perfect medical procedure.”

“Hmm.” What a conundrum. “We’ll put this on the back burner for now.”

“Understood.”

It was time to prepare their food. I figured something easy on the stomach would be best. We had some leftover fish, so I chopped it into chunks and put it in a pot. Next, I threw in some grated ginger as well as smallish potatoes and onions cut into bite-size pieces. After that, I added the water, a dash of mirin and soy sauce, and some Japanese soup stock powder, then turned on the flame. Once the water boiled, I removed any fat that floated to the top, mindlessly scraping it off. It was menial labor but a good diversion.

“Isolla, come here for a sec.” I heard a roll, roll, roll.

“Yes, what can I do for you?” She’d scooted right up to me. I stepped on her.

“Once I’ve got a minute, I’m going to press you for every little detail on your treaty violations, got it?” I removed my foot.

“Oh nooo, I’m rolling awaaay!” She scuttled back into the supply tent.

I’m worried. More than anything else, I’m terrified of what these two will get up to. AI robots rising up in revolt is a sci-fi movie staple. Who’s to say they won’t abandon me and start up a new religion among the locals as their goddesses? I can totally see it happening, but I still need to rely on Machina for way too much. Most importantly, would they even be able to create the portal to get back home?

The soup had simmered for about ten minutes, so I turned off the flame and dissolved some miso in the water. I tasted it; pretty good, for myself. As something I would serve to others, it wasn’t bad. One miso soup with fish, ready to go. Funny how quickly I’d given up on adding any otherworldly elements to dish names.

“Something stinks.”

Éa came out of the tent wearing a T-shirt I’d lent them. Thanks to her short shorts, it looked like she was naked save for the shirt. Lana followed soon after.

“It’s not much, but I made soup.” I served Éa some in a bowl and handed it to her with a spoon.

“You eat that. I’ll choose my dishes and my food myself.”

“Éa, you’re being rude,” Lana warned.

“No, it’s fine.” Only a fool would take something as it was handed to them, no questions asked. I’d learned that lesson the hard way, too. I took a sip of the soup, slurping more softly than usual. “Does that satisfy you?”

“I don’t want to eat anything that fishy,” she announced. You don’t say?

“May I have some?” asked Lana.

“Just a seco—” I went to get her a new bowl, but before I could, Lana gently took the one from my hands.

“It’s delicious.” She hadn’t hesitated to drink from something I’d put my mouth on. For some reason, I felt kind of guilty. “What is this dish called?”

“Oh, arajiru.” I was mortified. I should’ve served her something a little more refined than that.

“Arajiru? What’s in it?”

“Umm, it’s stewed fish and vegetables with miso.”

“What is miso?”

“Miso is a seasoning from my world made from fermented beans. It’s not much to look at, but it’s good for your health.”

“How wonderful. Were you a chef in this foreign land?”

“Oh, no, no, not at all.”

“No need to be so modest. This is lovely.” One look at Lana’s genuine smile clearly free of hollow compliments sent a shock running down my spine.

……Huh? Why do I feel so good? Was it always this fun to tell other people about my cooking? I could get hooked on this.

I invited Lana to sit in one of the camping chairs and put the pot next to her so she could refill her bowl as she liked. Just then, looking terribly displeased, Éa demanded, “And what about for me? Don’t you have anything else?”

“All right, take your pick of whatever you want from here,” I said, ducking into the supply tent with her. Inside, I’d lined up all the meat, vegetables, and grains I’d bought in this world. I saw her eyes sparkle like a child’s. “If you’re hungry for meat, I’ve got a good cut of pork,” I suggested.

“Meat might not be the best right now.” She still looked a little pale. “Show me what’s in here,” she ordered, slapping one of the containers. I opened it for her. It held condiments, rice, dry goods, and the like, mostly instant foods in case of emergency.

“What’s this?” She picked up a cup of ramen and turned it in her hands inquisitively.

“It’s called ramen.”

“Ramen?”

“You add boiling water and it turns into a soup with wheat that looks like string. It’s not that good.” Honestly, I’d grown tired of it.

“This is what I want.”

“You got it.” I stepped out of the tent and turned the kitchen fire back on, then poured some drinking water in a new pot and left it on the flame. She was having a rough go at opening the cup.

“It’s got some clear skin. Doesn’t taste good.”

“Yeah, ’cause you don’t eat that part.”

Running her tongue all over the packaging plastic, she looked ready to start chewing on it, so I temporarily confiscated it. She pouted at me. I removed the film and pulled back the lid. Éa watched closely, transfixed. For someone who had been so wary, she had gotten pretty close to me. After an indescribable few minutes waiting, the water started to boil. I went to pour it in the cup, but—

“I wanna do it.”

—she insisted, so I left her to it.

“Fill it up until that line inside.”

“Got it.” She clumsily added the boiling water. I placed a spork on top of the cup.

“Machina, set a timer for three minutes.”

“Timer set for three minutes. Beginning countdown.”

Éa stared at Machina, her eyes bulging. And yet, her attention soon returned to the mysterious food in her hands.

“Once that round thing over there tells you it’s time, you can open it up and dig in.”

“Got it.” She sat down next to her sister, clearly excited. It was as if she was a child, I guess. Physically an adult but a child inside.

“Souya, I didn’t know you were back.” Lady Mythlanica appeared from within the tent. She walked gracefully, her tail straight up in the air. “Your guests?”

“Yes, I’ve asked them to teach me archery.”

“Look over at the river for a bit.”

“Yes, milady.” Don’t ask, just do. I turned my back to the sisters and Lady Mythlanica and gazed at the river. Fish swam in its clear waters. They, too, apparently belonged to merfolk, and we couldn’t take any of their resources without permission.

“I am Mythlanica of the Dark Flame, the goddess who has consecrated a covenant with this foreign adventurer. You are welcome here, beautiful elves. I trust my disciple has shown you no disrespect?”

“Not at all. He has treated us most courteously. I am Laualliuna Raua Heuress, daughter of Mellum, Disciple of Ezeus. This is my younger sister, Éa. She is yet a child. I pray you might forgive her coarse manners.”

Lady Mythlanica’s voice reverberated from up high. “All is well. I am no goddess of great refinement. And I would argue my devotee would match any boorish behavior, if not exceed it.”

“That could not be farther from my experience. King Remlia and your disciple, Lady Mythlanica, are the only ones who have shown us any respect. He is a good, wonderful person.”

“I see. We stand on land he has borrowed from the merfolk. May you forget the troubles that vexed you in the city and rest at ease here.”

“Thank you very much, Lady Mythlanica.”

“Souya, prepare my meal.”

“Yes, milady.” I understood that to mean my order to wait had lifted and went to spin around, but two hands reached out, caught my head in motion, and stopped me from going any farther.

“Slowly,” my goddess commanded.

“Ngh! Yes, milady.” I caught a glimpse out of the corner of my eye but failed to see her in full. She quickly reverted to her feline form and started snaking around my legs. What was that about? Was I maybe not devoted enough to her?

“Da-dada-daah… ♪ Deet-do-daah… ♪ It has now been three minutes,” announced Machina.

“Can I eat it?!”

“Go ahead.”

Éa opened the lid on the cup of ramen, totally pumped. She’d gone with salt ramen. She wrapped some noodles around her spork and brought it to her mouth to—

“H-hottt! It’s so hot!” Awkwardly, she shoved the noodles in her mouth, blowing on them as she went. Then she sipped the soup. Her whole face lit up. “Lala, this is really good. Want some?”

“I’m okay. I have this,” Lana replied, already on her third bowl of arajiru. Hmm, for some reason, she looked absolutely lovely eating the soup.

“Souya, I want some of that as well.”

“As you wish.” Who’d have thought I’d be presenting a cup of ramen to my goddess? What a cheap offering. I had gone back in the pantry tent, opened the container, and was debating which flavor to go with when—

“There’s a term called tainted.”

—Lady Mythlanica hopped up on my shoulder and whispered in an unusually quiet voice, “It’s a nasty custom the elves have. They use it to label illegitimate children or those with mixed blood. Laualliuna has also been labeled a stain upon her clan. Take caution. That woman is more than you can handle.”

“Mixed blood—do you mean she’s half elf?” I asked, also in a low voice. Now that she’d mentioned it, petite yet busty Lana did indeed differ from other elves.

“Who can say? I know not.”

“I only brought them here so the younger sister could teach me to use a bow. I just need to keep this relationship up until that’s done.”

“Good. Treat them well while it lasts. Lest you forget, you are the one who’s important to me, far more than any foolish elves.”

“I know.”

Lady Mythlanica rubbed her face against my chin, and I stroked her fluffy body in return. She picked the soy sauce ramen.

After dinner, we got straight into archery practice. The lesson fee we set at five silver pieces per day, on top of room, board, and clothing for both sisters. Was that a bargain? Expensive? Either way, I didn’t have time to look for another option. I took a target I’d made from scrap wood and drove it into the ground.

“What kinda archery do you want me to teach you—warrior or hunter style?”

I answered Éa’s question with another question. “Sorry, what’s the difference?”

She looked at me in disgust, then drew the bow she’d brought with her; it had the same shape as mine. She put her left hand on the bow; her right, on the string.

“Warrior style is when you hold the bow upright and nock the arrow on the right side of the string.” She pulled out an arrow from the quiver on her back and fixed it to the string, then shot it at the target about ten meters away. It hit the bull’s-eye perfectly. She hadn’t taken her eyes off me, standing at her side, the entire time. “When you hold the bow sideways, or diagonally, and put the arrow on the left side, that’s called hunter style.” Her posture changed, but her arrow landed in the same exact place. “Do I really have to explain what makes them different?”

“This is just a feeling, but…warrior style makes reloading quicker but aiming harder. It takes longer to nock an arrow in hunter style, but it’s easier to aim. Is that right?”

“Huh. If you can tell that much, you might be kinda cut out for this. With warrior style, you won’t bump into the person next to you in line formation, and since you can pull the string back farther, you can pack a punch even with lighter arrows. Hunting style lets you align your line of sight with your arrow, so you get more accurate aim. But you can only pull the bow back to your jaw, so you have to use heavy arrows. Show me one of those.”

I pulled an arrow out of the quiver hung across my back and handed it to her. “A cui arrow, yeah? It’s got good balance—not exactly light, not exactly heavy. Same goes for your bow. They’d both work with either style.”

“Is hunting style easier to learn?” I asked.

“Yeah, definitely easier. But you won’t be able to kill anything in the dungeon if you use it with that bow.”

“That won’t be a problem.” I’d found blueprints for a compound bow in Machina’s database. Once her manufacturing program got back up and running, I’d make a small pulley and remodel the weapon. That would probably be enough to take care of the power side of things.

“All right. ’Kay, so stand with your body perpendicular to the target,” she instructed. I turned to the side. “Hold out the bow toward the target with your left hand. Careful how you tilt it.”

“Got it.” I did as I was told.

“The arrow, you’re gonna hold with your pointer finger, your middle finger, and your thumb. Try as best you can not to mess up the feathers. But it doesn’t really matter as long as you can hold it in place. Just keep that in mind as a basic rule.” I held the arrow with those three fingers.

“Place the arrow on top of the bow. The tip should be either resting on your pointer finger or just above it.” I lay the arrow down on top of the bow.

“Notch the butt of the arrow on the bowstring.” I did. “Pull your right hand back until you touch your face.” I pulled. “Don’t let go yet.”

Drawing it back wasn’t so bad, but keeping it there was hard. Muscles in my fingers and my arms that I rarely ever used screamed in protest. Éa walked around behind me and stepped in close, then adjusted the bow’s angle and shifted my right arm into the correct place.

“Don’t ever forget this stance. When you let the arrow loose, you are a stone. Okay, release.” I released. The air whizzed slightly. It hadn’t flown as quickly as I’d expected, but the arrow hit the mark—right in the middle, in fact.

“Oh, I did it.” So basically, you had to keep your body still when you shot, just like with a gun. The biggest difference was that it took far more muscle power than I could’ve imagined.

“Hmph, good for you. My archery master always used to say, ‘Those who miss their first shot will miss their last.’ Maybe now you’ll make your last shot, too, no?”

“I’m not really trying to think about that just yet.”

“Okay, since it’s your first day, I guess I’ll have you do ten. Hit the target ten times in a row within thirty seconds. Call me if you get it. I’ll be sleeping until then.” She waved as she walked away.

Not entirely sold on that plan, I got started practicing anyway. First, I focused only on finding the target. Time didn’t matter. I carefully notched the arrow, slowly took aim, and quietly let it go. I shot. It hit. I’ve got skills, don’t I? I thought, and arrogance washed over me momentarily. Just as I’d been told, I focused on keeping my stance exactly as Éa had adjusted it for me.

I’d aimed with my left hand and shot with my right when using the guns, too. It felt a bit different but like something I could get over pretty easily. The problem, as I’d feared, was simply a matter of muscle.

My seventh shot missed; a finger on my right hand had cramped just a twitch. I took a tiny break and steadied my breath, then started over from scratch, like a heartless arrow-shooting machine.

“May I interrupt you for a moment?”

“Be my guest.”

Isolla approached. I paid her no mind and kept shooting.

“Why didn’t you mention you were going to use a bow and arrow to me?”

“You know how?” I’d found the bow designs, but the manuals on how to use them had been illegibly corrupted.

“I have a record of every battle in human history stored within me. I could show you how to use a rock and club if you so desired.”

“You don’t have any gaps in the data?”

“I just finished decoding it all.” Made sense. “While neither Machina nor I are in peak condition, we still exert every effort to be of use to you. Trust us. Going forward, please make sure you always consult with me before you make any decisions regarding battle. Do you understand?”

“Got it.” Shoot. Miss.

“Allow me to make an additional recommendation. Lady Mythlanica mentioned this as well, but you should be very cautious regarding your relationship with these elves. If possible, it would be best to cut ties with them immediately.”

“Why?” Shoot. Hit.

“That is the conclusion I arrived at through data collection. Their race is at war with the Kingdom of Remlia due to a dispute over land sales. The problem began with an argument over discrepancies in the different units of measurement elves and heims utilize. A skirmish that resulted in grave injuries broke out, and King Remlia’s eldest son went to mediate and was evidently murdered. Despite their appearances, the elves are a savage race. Furthermore, your counselor Evetta has failed to mention one important matter.”

I drew the bow back and held it.

“If this country goes to war, adventurers will be compulsorily enlisted in its army. Do you understand what this means? The citizens of this country despise those two for no other reason than because they are elves. In addition, they’re also adventurers, which undoubtedly means members of their own race despise them as well. What good can possibly come from associating with people surrounded by hatred on all sides?”

Shoot. Hit.

“As I told Lady Mythlanica, this is only gonna last until I finish my archery lessons. I won’t get too deeply involved.”

Shoot. Hit.

“Understood… I will now update you on the progress status of our program repairs. Manufacturing is at twenty percent; medical treatment, fifteen percent; cooking, twenty-seven percent. Please choose from among these programs which you would like to prioritize for reparations.”

“Cooking.”

“……You should choose medical treatment and manufacturing.”

“You don’t say. Cooking.” Shoot. Hit.

“Wouldn’t you agree you already possess sufficient skills to prepare nutritious meals?”

“No, I’ve pretty much reached my limit.” I didn’t know many more recipes. I hadn’t gotten any better at trimming fish and still left meat on the bones. It was a waste. Just that morning I’d tried to make mayonnaise and wound up with a sloppy mess. If I’d known it would come to this, I would’ve paid more attention and learned more from my grandfather, a chef.

“We do have nutritional supplements, and if nothing else, the food available in this world could serve well enough to provide you the calories you require. You expend too many of your resources on food.”

“Well, food’s important.” It felt especially important now, for some reason. I wanted to make delicious meals for Lana.

Shoot. Hit.

“This is exactly why Japanese people are so—” Static drowned out the rest of her sentence.

“This is Machina. I exercised my administrative privileges to temporarily suspend Isolla’s functions. I apologize for the inconvenience. She has a slightly hysterical temperament. Allow me to take care of her.”

“Understood.” Sorry, Isolla. But I’m in a tough spot, too.

“As the analysis of your poncho has been completed, I will announce the results. The test found no traces of pathogenic bacteria. It identified stomach fluids and regurgitated pork, root vegetables, and beans. There is no risk of contagion.”

“That’s good to hear.” Shoot. Miss.

“Shall I provide you my report evaluating Ms. Éa’s condition?”

“I saw an injury on her when I carried her here, a gunshot wound to her lower abdomen. I didn’t see any sign of an exit hole, so I’m guessing the bullet is probably still in there.”

“Yes. She likely has severe lead poisoning. It may be life-threatening if the bullet is not removed immediately.”

“Makes sense.”

Shoot. Miss. I retrieved the arrows. A mini-kettle rolled up to my feet.

“Mr. Souya. What would you think about treating her wounds and having her and Ms. Lana join your party afterward?”

“You know, you’re suggesting the exact opposite of what Isolla said. I might have agreed with you if we had the medical program fully functioning. But just try and see what happens if we kill her during a foreign medical operation. It’d be plain murder. Sorry, but I’m not about to have loads of people hate me for no reason.” That felt like a pretty rational, unemotional call. And yet, I couldn’t throw away the possibility, either.

“A wise assessment, just like Isolla’s.” Do I sense some sarcasm? I meant to ask, but the mini-kettle rolled away before I could.

Nocking an arrow, I concentrated on my aim and shot. Miss.

I mean, who wouldn’t want to play god and save someone’s life? Even more so if that person happened to be a gorgeous girl. But the only ones standing here were a good-for-nothing dope with no idea of what might happen on the morrow and a couple of banged-up robots. What could you do with that? I needed to carefully choose how to use the limited resources I had at my disposal. Although I guess Isolla and I had different opinions on that matter.

The only people saving others should be those who could afford to do it. It was definitely not my job.

Shoot.

Hit.

I made a latish light lunch, then practiced my shots, made as sumptuous a feast as I could manage for dinner, then once again went back to practice. Night came early in this dimension. It washed over the world, oblivious to my personal turmoil. I coated the ends of the arrows with luminescent paint and set a lantern close to the target. It gave off a subtle, quietly beautiful light. The night winds whistling through the meadow made it seem like a giant snake. I sank my body fully into the dark and drew the bowstring.

This might have had something to do with the goddess I served, but I felt terribly at ease in this environment. Even the chill of night felt pleasant. The pain in my arms melted away into the darkness, along with the pointless thoughts running through my head.

My arrow hit its mark. I steadied my breath carefully, very carefully. In my left hand, I held on to three arrows along with my bow. I pulled another out of the quiver on my back, quietly notched it, and began to shoot. Hit. Hit. Hit. Miss.

I stopped breathing.

Next time, I held four arrows next to my bow. Notch, shoot. Shoot. Shoot. Shoot. The last arrow I pulled back slowly, aimed, and released.

Hmm.

They’d all missed. I retrieved the arrows and quickly checked to make sure they hadn’t gotten damaged, then put them in my quiver. I then started from scratch once more.

Over and over, hour after hour, I silently shot my arrows alone amid the darkness. Muscles in areas I hardly ever used wailed in pain. I pushed through it. I’d keep pushing through it until I died. If it ever became too much, I’d just break, that’s all.

What do you call that? What am I? Here I am, in some foreign dimension, all alone, practicing how to use a primitive firearm. I blew up all the weapons I had, threw the rest away, and— No, I can’t go down this road. There’s no point.

Any hesitation in my thoughts sent my arrows off the mark. I cleared my mind and notched an arrow. Aim. Shoot. Setting aside whether they hit or not, the whoosh the arrows made as they flew through the air had sharpened. Maybe I was getting the hang of this. Was I making any progress? Or was I straining too hard? Even if I’d wanted to ask, my teacher had long retired for the night.

I guess I should just take it easy, I thought and shot another arrow. Shoot. Shoot. Shoot. Shoot. Shoot. Shoot. Retrieve the arrows. Shoot, shoot, shoot, shoot, shoot-shoot-shoot-shoot, shoot-shoot-shoot-shoot. Retrieve the arrows. Shoot-shoot, shoot—

[9TH DAY]

Ngh.

Dawn had broken. I must have fallen asleep. No, more like passed out.

I felt grass and dirt on my cheek, and something white brushed against the tip of my nose—one of those otherworldly winged rabbits. They were wild animals, but they didn’t fear humans. Thinking back, one of them had sneaked into camp and gotten chased out by Lady Mythlanica.

I slowly extended my hand, and it sniffed the tip of my finger. I scratched around its neck a bit, and it ruffled its feathers. So cute. Maybe I’ll keep it.

“You’re white as snow, so I’m gonna call you Snowball.” I’m keeping him. I already went and gave him a name. “Do the rabbits here eat vegetables, too?”

I petted and stroked his head, but Snowball showed no signs of wanting to escape. No way he’d make it out here in the wild. Destiny must’ve brought us together. I had a cat and now a bunny.

“All right, let’s head back to—,” I started saying as I went to get up, when an arrow flew straight through Snowball’s head with a thunk.

“SNOWBAAAAAAAALL!”

“I caught breakfast!” cheered Éa, who had loosed the arrow. That one shot ended Snowball’s life. I wanted to believe he didn’t suffer. Reality was truly a cruel mistress. “Wait, were you out here practicing all night?”

“My memory cuts out just before dawn. You know, this is really fun. I might be kind of good at it.”

“Hmph, I’ll be the judge of that. But after breakfast.”

She handed me Snowball’s dead body, minus the arrow. I carried him by the ears back to camp; they still felt warm.

“Good morning, Mr. Souya. It’s great to see you excited about practice, but please take good care to get enough rest as well. Shall I make some coffee? Or would you prefer hot cocoa?” Machina had turned the kitchen stove on and was boiling some water.

“Make it two cups of cocoa.” I figured Éa would like something sweet. “Machina, can you skin a rabbit?”

“I can trim fish, but I’ve never done rabbit before.”

“Huh? You can prepare fish?” I’d asked her the question offhandedly but her response surprised me.

“Ahem. The machina unit series was originally produced as a cooking robot. Bits and pieces of those older generations’ memories and experiences are still stored within me, so trimming a fish is as easy as pie.”

“Right, so how about any experience with rabbits?”

“Rabbit does not traditionally play a part in Japanese cuisine, you know. Do you think it would suffice to drain its blood, remove the guts, and skin it?”

“Probably.” The two of us stood there, our heads tilted in question, pondering what to do. I couldn’t really understand how Machina’s frame managed to tilt like that.

Is she also sitting on some transformer abilities? I mean, she was made in Japan. Oh, I can also see her having some superpower to combine with other machina units.

“What? You can’t skin a rabbit? Pfft!” Éa mocked me. “Sheesh, heims really don’t know how to do aaanything. I’ll do it.” She took Snowball from my hand, pulled out a knife, chopped off his wings and head, put a gash in his stomach and fished out all the organs, sliced a line from one of his hind legs to the other, and then pulled off his skin with her hand as if taking off a piece of clothing. “Here you go.”

I took Meatball from her hand. A somewhat complicated emotion came over me. Still, I couldn’t waste him. But how would we eat him?

“Your cocoa is ready.”

“Ouch, that’s hot. What is this? It’s so sweet!”

And so the conversation went on at my side as I stared at Meatball on the cutting board. Since nothing else had yet come to mind, I threw his unhygienic entrails in the garbage pit and washed my hands. Next, I moved over to the pantry tent and grabbed a cut of pork, vegetables, and seasonings.

“I’m borrowing one of these pots,” I told Machina.

“Okaaay.”

I eyeballed some soy sauce, mirin, noodle soup base, and sugar, then checked the taste with my pinky finger. Good. “Tell me when it starts to simmer.”

“Roger.”

I got to work dissecting Meatball. First, I hacked off his nails. Then I chopped the rest of the meat into bite-size pieces, avoiding bony areas as I went. He looked just like chicken. If I’d had the luxury of time, I would’ve slowly and thoroughly simmered the bony bits. That I didn’t have, though, so I smashed them with a meat-pounding hammer. Those parts I’d eat myself. After that, I cut up the root vegetables into similar-sized chunks. Finally, I stuck the prepared ingredients onto skewers.

“It’s simmeriiing.”

“Thanks.” I looked in the pot, then sprinkled in some water-soluble potato starch to give the mixture some thickness. Once more, I checked the taste. Not bad. Hmm, something’s missing, but it might throw the whole thing off if I add anything else. I guess this is the best an amateur can do. I removed the sauce from the flame.

“Machina, can you handle this?”

“But of course.” I handed her some skewers. She lined up the ingredients with her arm and drove the skewer through them in a flash.

I heard the creaking of carriage wheels approaching, the neighing of an easygoing old horse, and an easygoing old man’s greeting. The farmer I’d spoken with the day before had arrived. I had him show me the freshly harvested vegetables loaded on the carriage, and I chose five white eggplants, three big, fat cucumbers, and three vibrant tomatoes. Unbelievably, it cost only five copper pieces. Vegetables that didn’t keep long generally went for pretty cheap, apparently. I asked him to come by again the next day and waved good-bye.

“Okay, all done.” Machina had finished skewering all the ingredients.

“You’re good at this.”

“I know!”

I dipped the loaded skewers into the sauce, then put a metal net over the flame and grilled one of the skewers to test it out. The sweet aroma of grilled soy sauce mixed with sugar wafted up to my nose. It hit me like a punch to the gut so early in the morning.

I want rice so baaad. But I don’t have much, so hold it in, self.

“……” Éa stared at the skewers as she drank my cocoa. Her eyes gleamed like a hunter sizing up its prey. The little fat in the rabbit meat floated up to the surface with the heat, then dripped down. The edges of the onions browned a bit.

“You should flip it over right about now.”

“Got it.” I flipped it over and added a little more sauce. The sauce’s merciless fragrance enveloped the entire campsite. Nothing in this world tasted bad if you grilled it with some sweetened soy sauce, in my opinion.

“Is that about done?” The meat had browned well, and the vegetables looked nice and tender.

“I would give the grilling about thirty-five points. It is, however, safe to serve.”

“You’re one tough critic.” I went to take a test bite right away, but Éa caught my wrist.

“Are you gonna eat that?”

“Yes, why?” She had a pretty strong grip. The skewer wouldn’t move any closer to my mouth. I tried to bring my mouth to it, but she twisted my arm away. “I need to try it out to see if it’s any good, you know.”

“Then just one bite. I’ll take one bite first. Just one,” she insisted.

“Liar. You’ll eat the whole thing.” She had it written all over her face. We had so many other kebabs waiting to be grilled, but here I was fighting over a single skewer with her. “Okay. Let’s take a bite at the same time,” I finally suggested.

“Ew! Gross!”

“Hey, that hurts! We’ve got more coming, so just hang on a second. Just a second!”

“Why don’t you hang on a second? I wanna eat it now! GIVE IT TO ME!” What is she, a child?! I thought but also refused to give in myself. I had a feeling that if I gave in now, I’d be resigning myself to a long future of the same thing happening over and over.

We were right in the middle of this little scuffle when—

“You there, elf,” I heard a voice say from behind me. “Unhand that man. How dare you attempt to steal my guest’s fare? Shame on you,” Ghett said, his harpoon raised and ready.

Why did he have to come at such an awkward moment?

“Ee—” Hmm? Éa’s face turned pale white and then—“Eeeeeeeayaaaaaah!”—she let out a piercing scream. She immediately ducked behind my back for cover, trembling.

“My Lord Ezeus, my Lord Ezeus, grant me the grace of the forest and protect me from the beasts of the deep.” You can use me as a shield, but I’m not good for much defense.

“I’m sorry, Ghett. She’s just a child. Please forgive her.”

“Why do you apologize, Souya? I cannot understand this.”

I calmed them both down and had them sit for the meal. All this time, Machina had been grilling the kebabs. I glanced over at her. It hurt to admit, but she did it better than me. The skewers she’d plated looked so perfectly grilled that they could have been served at a real restaurant. In any case, I ate the one I grilled. Oh, it’s pretty good.

“Souya, is it breakfast yet?”

“Good morning, Lady Mythlanica. It’s almost ready.”

“Hmm, Machina. What kind of meat is that?”

“Freshly hunted rabbit.”

“Rabbit, huh? I detest boney meat. I’ll take the pork one over there. Make sure you cool it down properly. Oh, and dip it in that sauce once more before you serve it to me.” Lady Mythlanica had jumped atop Machina’s head and was putting in orders for her own kebabs.

“Oh, Souya,” said Ghett. “I’d forgotten. Here.”

“Thank you for bringing me something every day.”

“Don’t mention it. It’s only fair, since you give me breakfast.” He handed me a net full of shellfish. Wow, so many oysters. No time like the present.

“Machina, scan this, please.”

“Okay. I’ve got my hands full, so please put it in the evaluation box below.”

I dropped one of the oysters in her drawer. Since the seafood Ghett brought me came from the Maudubaffle Ocean, whose waters ran clean, we could eat most of it raw. But of course, it could be infected with parasites, so we needed to test everything to be sure.

The remaining oysters I scooped out of their shells, rinsed off, sprinkled with potato starch, gently massaged, and rinsed off again. I repeated this process about three times each to remove the sliminess and clean them. Afterward, I dropped them in some salt water and set it aside.

I lightly seared the eggplants on the flame and sliced them into sticks. The cucumbers I cut the same way, while the tomatoes I sliced into quarters to make them easy to grab. I planned to go a little wild today and make everything finger food.

Next, I made a dressing of granulated Japanese soup stock, vinegar, sugar, soy sauce, and sesame oil, and mixed it all up nicely. After a quick taste test, I added more vinegar and soy sauce. I loaded the vegetables onto a plate and filled a cup with the dressing next to it.

“Mr. Souya, the examination is complete. These can safely be consumed raw.”

“Great.” I pulled the test oyster out of the box, sprinkled some lemon juice and salt over it, and ate it just like that.

Whoa… Delicious doesn’t even begin to cover it.

The meat was so fresh that I half expected it to start dancing in my mouth. Chewing on the luxuriantly thick muscles provided an absolutely exquisite sensation. It had a rich and creamy taste and slipped gracefully down my throat like a piece of fruit.

“Souya, where’s mine?” Ghett gave me the stink eye as I trembled, overcome with emotion.

I slipped the rest of the oysters into a bowl and drizzled a bit of ponzu and lemon juice on top. Though I tried not to go too heavy-handed on the condiments, since Ghett already knew the oysters’ natural flavors so well, I wanted to let him experience them anew with Japanese seasoning. I washed the shells quickly with some organic dish detergent. Once clean, I arranged them on a plate and filled them back up one by one with the seasoned oysters. Lastly, I sprinkled just a little more ponzu and lemon juice on top. I put the finished product on the table. Machina served her dishes at exactly that moment, too.

“For today’s breakfast, we have raw otherworldly oysters with a large side salad garnished with Japanese dressing.”

And…

“Fully-loaded grilled skewers.” Machina also added a pot of green tea.

“Whoa, whoaaa!” Éa looked half joyful, half terrified. “These are raw, right?” She pointed at the oysters.

“Yeah, but they’re fresh and safe to eat,” I assured her.

“Yes, they are completely safe.”

“Don’t force yourself if you don’t want to,” Ghett added, diving straight into the oysters, shells and all, just like always. After some rather disturbing crunching noises, he exclaimed, “Hot damn!” His sunglasses slipped down his face, and I saw his eyes fly wide open. “I’d long grown tired of these shells—were they always this good?” Talk about a luxurious diet.

“Éa, wash your hands before you eat. Also, go wake up your sister.” I brought over a bowl for handwashing.

“She won’t get up until midday. She went to bed really late again last night, so let her sleep in.”

“Wha……? Ohhh, I see. Yeah, good idea.” I decided not to ask why she’d been up so late. But it made sense; she was in a total stranger’s home. It would have been careless to let her guard down.

Éa washed her hands and very nervously brought an oyster to her mouth, but— “Actually, you eat one first.”

“I already did.”

“Just do it!”

“Okay, okay.”

“Good grief. No use sharin’ something this tasty with the elf,” Ghett grumbled, exasperated. I washed my hands, brought them together in thanks for the meal, and ate an oyster.

“Mm! So good!” The ponzu hadn’t overpowered the oysters; if anything, the two had combined and harmonized beautifully with each other. Ghett and I gobbled them down without pause.

“Lady Mythlanica, did you not want any?” I asked, slurping another oyster out of its shell.

“I cannot eat anything raw for religious reasons.” Well, no working around that. Though I did sort of remember her saying she’d eaten raw rats once before.

“What the—?!” Éa exclaimed after eating her first oyster. Even her fear of Ghett flew out the window as she reached for more. Wait, why had she been so scared in the first place? Did children have any particular reason to fear merfolk? “I wish I could give Lala one of these.”

“Hmm, raw food goes bad pretty easily,” I explained. “We’ll give her some another day.” I’d have to find a way to make a refrigerator. We had a battery for electronic devices and solar-powered chargers, but what else would we need?

“Promise me! You gotta swear you’ll do it!”

“All right, all right,” I promised all too easily. For the time being, the three of us scarfed down the rest of the oysters. There had been about twenty to start, but it didn’t even take us five minutes to devour them all.

“Lady Mythlanica, your skewer has cooled.”

“Mm. Serve it to me as you see fit.” Our skewers went to the goddess first. “Mm-mm. Mmm. Not bad, not bad at all. Mm.” Machina hand-fed her the pork-and-onion skewer. Obviously, you should never, under any circumstances, give onions to a normal cat. Ever. It just so happened that my cat was a goddess, so it wouldn’t do her any harm. “Machina, I think I will take a rabbit one as well.”

“Yes, milady.”

Then I guess we could also dig in.

“So sweet and salty. It tastes weird.”

“You don’t like it?”

“I wouldn’t say that.” Éa looked like she found it about 70 percent good.

“Spoiled child. I think it’s great,” Ghett announced, his words clearly holding no lies. He held a skewer in each hand and took bites back and forth between the two. An idea came to mind, and I went to get another spice.

“Éa, try sprinkling this on top. Just a little, though. It’s extremely precious in this world, you know.” I handed her a small bottle of a seven-spice blend. Curious, she flipped the lid open and closed, shook a bit on her skewer, and took a bite.

“Oh, that’s really good!” Her eyes sparkled. She vigorously sprinkled more on her food and went to town. She’s just a kid, but I guess she likes her food with a kick to it, huh?

“Souya, hand me some of that,” ordered Lady Mythlanica.

“Me too,” Ghett chimed in.

They both tried it. Lady Mythlanica did not approve, as she hated spicy food. On the other hand, Ghett climbed fully on board. I loved him for eating everything I served so heartily.

“Wait, you guys, don’t forget about the vegetables,” I reminded them. They didn’t seem to be going very quickly, so I did my best to clean the plate. They had a rich, fresh flavor.

I don’t think they taste bad. Is the dressing what they’re not liking? I’ll have to try harder next time.

Meals were always more fun with a bigger group. We all shared a rollicking, jolly breakfast. Her stomach full to the brim, Éa sprawled out on the grass and rested on her side, and Lady Mythlanica stretched out next to her. I was washing the dishes in the river when Ghett came over and took a seat next to me.

“There’s a lot I’d like to say to you, but after all, you’re the kind of person who doesn’t blink at a friendship with a merman. Nothing I could say would change your mind. And of course, it’d be presumptuous of a man of the sea to speak of the muddled messes the races up on land get themselves into. However, I have welcomed you here as my guest and cannot in good conscience let you entirely alone. So, here.”

“What is this?” It looked something like a dried finger? No, an octopus tentacle?

“This tentacle belongs to my Lord Ghrisnas. If, in your darkest moment of need, you happen to be near some water, hold this in your hand and call out to him under my name. If you’re lucky, help will almost certainly, probably, come, I hope.”

“O-okay.” Not the most reliable lifesaver.

“My god does as he pleases. Not even men of the sea can comprehend him. Use this only when you truly have no other choice. But be prepared for a fate much more atrocious than death. Better yet, try not to get into such a dangerous situation in the first place. You’re a smart human, I think. I believe this is true, but you are also foolishly stubborn. Personally, I don’t hate that dangerous side to you, but it’s too much for one with only limited life left to live. So anyway……I’m going home. See you tomorrow.”

“Later.”

Splash jumped the merman into the river. Like a shadow, he disappeared. Looking at the tentacle I’d gotten made me crave takoyaki.

All right, time to practice.

Picking up my quiver, I left the campsite behind. Once in front of the target, I drew back the bow that now fit a little more snugly in my hand. I shot around ten arrows with about 70 percent accuracy. I’d be happy if I could keep that up at all times, but my stamina and concentration would only go downhill from here.

“Ahh, nope, no good. You’re straining too much.” Éa was behind me, lying on her side like a reclining Buddha. “Pull the bow back with your breath and release. You’re using more power than you need to now because you’re out of sync. Keep that up and you’ll hurt your elbow and your wrist.”

“Got it.” I tried breathing like she told me but messed up my timing, and my arrow went flying in the wrong direction.

“Breathe in after your arrow hits its mark. Keep your body still until about then.”

“Yes, ma’am.” She was starting to sound more like a real teacher. I did exactly as she’d instructed. It hit. It was a clean shot and also less taxing on my body than I’d expected.

“Repeat what you did just there until your body instinctively knows how to do it.”

“I see.” I drilled that sensation into my body as if carving it into my skin, over and over and over. I’d thought this basically paralleled shooting a gun, but it didn’t come close. Little by little, I erased the gap in those sensations from my mind. I wasn’t shooting anything; I was firing, letting loose. My hand found nothing but air when I reached back for another arrow.

“Try these.” Extra arrows jangled as they fell in my quiver. Their weight made me stagger backward. “My sister spent all night putting them together. Where’d you get the parts?”

“At Zavah’s. A beastman recommended them to me, though.”

“Makes sense. They look like the hunting arrows the Rusasa Clan uses. They’re super powerful if you hit your target, but they’re that much heavier.”

I tried nocking it. The shaft was made of metal, too, making it weigh at least three times more than the arrows I’d used so far. Taking that into consideration, I aimed a little higher than usual. I stopped breathing. No matter what, I had to make this first shot.

I released. The hum as it flew sounded somewhat deeper, too. A dull thud rang out when the arrow found its mark. It had pierced straight through the target.

“Okaaay, now practice, practice, practice.”

“Got it, got it, got it.”

Maybe it was because Éa was watching, or the new arrows suited me better, or I’d gotten the hang of it, but I decimated that target. It felt amazing. This could go to my head.

Straight through the target they flew. The beam supporting the board teetered on the fourth shot. On the fifth, it broke down completely. I looked at Éa, a smug grin on my face. She looked back at me with mixed emotions.

“Th-that’s nothing! I did that, too, you know! And I did it like half a day after first starting to learn!”

“That’s pretty crazy.”

“Forget it; just practice! Get one hundred in before lunch!”

“Got it.”

Anticipating this might happen, Machina had made an extra target for me, which I stuck in the ground. I picked up all the arrows, checked they weren’t damaged, and put them back in my quiver.

“Oh, wait,” Éa called out. “From now on, every time you hit your mark, take three steps back. If you miss, go back to your starting point. Okay, go.”

“You got it.” Doesn’t matter what you’re doing; it’s all about practice.

Mindlessly I released arrow after arrow, willing my body to learn how to shoot someone dead. But I knew this could all still come to nothing. I could carry a first-class bow and acquire first-rate skills, but it wouldn’t mean anything if my scroll swept those accomplishments away with all my other information.

Well, if it doesn’t work, I’ll move on to the next thing. And if that doesn’t work, I’ll try the next thing after that. I’ll keep trying, forever and ever, until the day I’ve lost all the strength to think or try. I’m pretty sure that’s exactly how my life, how my time here, will go.

My fourth shot went awry. Éa stood behind me, booing every time I missed. I moved back to my original spot. Over and over, I repeated. And I started to feel a difference more quickly than I had expected.

By the seventh shot of my fifth try, eighteen meters stretched out between me and the target. I nocked the arrow, drew back the bowstring, pictured the arrow’s trajectory in my mind, aimed accordingly, and released. At that exact moment, a gust of wind blew past. The arrow spun, its shaft wobbled, and it still hit the mark. My intuition had told me the arrow would miss, but the wind had corrected its path.

I think it must’ve been a miracle, sent by the gods as either a blessing or a prank. Of course, it had relatively no meaning. But a hit was a hit.

“How d’ya like that, Éa?” I turned around and pumped my fist in the air. But I didn’t see her anywhere. Wait, there she was, lower than I’d looked. She’d curled up into a ball and was having trouble breathing.

“……Éa?”

No answer.

The moment of truth had come. Evetta had just finished writing my details on a scroll (that the Guildmaster made me buy for a silver piece). Looking terribly bored, he recited the blessing over it.

“I am Saorse the Small-Winged. In the name of my beloved and venerable Medîm, I raise up my voice in prayer to Lord Windovnickel. Under Thurseauve’s holy name, I hereby pledge to preserve nothing save the truth written herein. Should any falsehoods taint these pages, may the grace of the divine flames purge them from sight. However, may any shame upon this man remain in perpetuity. This marks my thirty-second try at blessing this new adventurer’s scroll. It’s starting to drive me crazy, so if you could please hurry up and make this the last one, I’d—”

“Hey,” I cut in. The incantation had started to sound like a vent session. Lana, who had been talking to her own counselor, came over to me.

“What was that about?” I asked, curious.

“I received an invitation to join a party. I’ll meet up with them early tomorrow morning and explore the dungeon.”

“That’s great news.”

“Yah!” The Guildmaster imbued the scroll with light; it pissed me off how cute he looked doing it. He rolled it out, and Evetta, the Guildmaster, Lana, and I all stared at it.

“Ah,” Lana murmured, and as I had feared, once again all my information began disappearing from top to bottom. Man, why did my name have to disappear, too?

“Hey, Otherworlder.” The Guildmaster slapped my back. He turned his lovely, beautiful face and gorgeous smile toward me and said, “Give it up.”

“Nyyeeeoooo.” A strange sound escaped my mouth. My heart felt about to break. It might’ve already chipped.

“Souya.”

“……Evetta.”

“……”

Stop that! Don’t look at me so pathetically!

“Excuse me, but is this—?”

“Huh?”

Lana’s voice snapped me back to reality.

“There’s a part down here that hasn’t disappeared,” she explained.

“Seriously?!” A few symbols that looked like writing remained visible down near the bottom of the scroll. “Is this—huh? What does it say? Guildmaster!”

“It says, ‘Studied archery under Éa Raua Heuress.’”

“JESUS!” I screamed unintentionally in prayer. “Which means! From here on out, it should record any new skills I get no problem, right?!”

“Don’t forget to ask your counselor to update your scroll.” Just how straitlaced was this dude?

“Souya.”

“Gah!”

Evetta hugged me. She smelled amazing. And yet, my muscles strained, and my bones creaked under her grip. It wrung the air out of my lungs.

“You did a great job,” she praised me.

“No, Evetta. He hasn’t actually done anything yet,” the Guildmaster corrected.

“Oh, right……” She released me. My vision blurred as the blood flow that had been cut off rushed free and almost knocked me out. The Guildmaster’s voice came to me sounding somewhat far away.

“Good for you, Otherworlder. Now it’s up to your party members to decide if they’re willing to take you with your lone skill in archery. Good luck.” He flashed a brilliant smile at me. This bastard said all that on purpose.

“On an unrelated matter, Princess,” he continued, turning to Lana. “As you can very well see, this Otherworlder is a bumbling blockhead who has caused nothing but trouble since he registered with the Kingdom of Remlia’s Adventurers Guild. He has barely scratched the surface of the dungeon, yet he is a constant thorn in my side. I say this out of concern for your person: I do not know why you are here with this man, but I can promise you nothing good will come of a sustained acquaintance with him.”

“On the contrary, my sister and I have been the ones imposing on him,” she replied. One of the words the Guildmaster used piqued my interest, but even if I tried to ask, would anyone explain it to me?

“Is he perhaps holding something over you? If so, say the word, and I will entreat our king for assistance at once.”

“No, I assure you he’s done nothing of the sort.”

“I understand you find yourself in a precarious position. Humble as my capabilities may be, I, Saorse, pledge to—” He’d seriously pissed me off by that point, so I grabbed his face in both hands.

“I may not know much, but I know how to treat my guests. I swear it on my country’s name. Keep trash-talking me and I’ll pluck your feathers out, stick you in oil like fried chicken, and make a down comforter out of you, got it?”

“S-Souya.” Evetta looked panicked for some reason. The Guildmaster grabbed my neck and pulled me off him, his face hard as stone. Morons who smile at everything always looked like this when they got mad. His congeniality only ran skin-deep. I couldn’t fathom what might’ve motivated him to lead the Guild.

“Indeed, while uncivilized, you do have some sense. I apologize for the affront to your honor. And I will forgive you this one time, but try laying your hands on me again and I will evaporate you on the spot.”

“……” Only an idiot would respond to his cheap provocation. I answered with silence, soon broken by a grumbling stomach.

“Evetta, can you honestly not wait until lunch after that enormous breakfast you had?” asked the Guildmaster, exasperated.

“It wasn’t me,” she replied.

Lana had turned bright red and looked down at the ground. She’d skipped breakfast, after all.

“Right, I guess we should get going,” I said. “See you later, Evetta. Don’t forget, breakfast is the most important meal of the day.”

“Agreed. But like I said, it wasn’t me.”

I took Lana’s hand and left the Guild. It was still a bit early for lunch, but… “Shall we grab a bite to eat somewhere?” I asked her.

“O-okay.”

I could’ve brought her back to the campsite and fixed her something there, but I would have felt bad making her wait that long. Lana hunched her shoulders as she walked along with her staff, her face still turned downward. Her stomach had only emitted a natural physiological response, but that didn’t make it any less embarrassing. She did seem to come from a well-to-do family, too. Also, I really, really wanted to ask what that princess was about. However, Isolla had warned me not to get too involved.

I decided I wouldn’t try to imagine what might connect the key words of elf, war, defeat, princess, and adventurer. Throw in beautiful and cute, in dire straits, and ill younger sister to the set, and I would 100 percent sympathize with her. I’d want to lend her the meager power I had—no question.

Don’t lose sight of your goal. Think of your own sister, my still functioning rational brain interjected, ordering me to get a grip.

I took a deep breath. Okay, I can do this.

We wandered around looking for a restaurant. Street food that we could eat as we walked probably wouldn’t cut it. The only place I knew where we could sit and have a meal was the boss’s bar, but it would be awkward to run into Arvin and the others there. I hadn’t really been paying attention, but I realized I still held on to Lana’s hand. As long as she didn’t mind, I wouldn’t say anything. Yet here I was, walking hand in hand with a big-bosomed, ill-starred elf.

Aaah, this is one of those moments that make me glad I came here. If my sister saw me like this, she’d hit me with a dropkick, no doubt. If she used her prosthetic leg on me, could I get away with just some pain? Or would she scrape half my face off?

“Oh, what about here?” I asked.

“Okay.”

Those worries bouncing around in my mind, I came upon a random shop, a small, two-story restaurant. Without much thought at all, we stepped inside. It was a dingy, grim place with, of course, equally grim patrons. I felt my skin tingle under someone’s gaze.

I’d messed up, big time.

I stopped in my tracks, but Lana pulled me into the store and sat down. She had more guts than I’d thought. I let go of her hand and sat directly across the table from her. I hastily asked our waitress, a middle-aged woman, to bring us some drinks, bread, and soup. And then, silence. Crap, I don’t have anything to talk about.

Lana looked captivatingly lovely beneath the dim glow of the emiluminite lights. She saw me admiring her and looked away. What the—? My heart’s going crazy. It’s not like I’m in middle school and she’s my first crush.

A minstrel sat off in the direction where Lana had averted her gaze, in a corner of the restaurant. I could’ve sworn our eyes met. He started strumming a small, guitar-like instrument and softly began to tell a tale—a hushed fable.

Long, long ago, at the ends of the east stood a city infested with demons. The desolate city had no name. A cursed giant spider—Rhora, the Dragon Eater—spun her nest in its ruins. Seeking fame and acclaim, a thousand adventurers challenged her in battle, but none ever returned. Countless heroes tried to vanquish her, fell under her curse, and joined the hordes of her children. Her nest ate away at the vast continent, and her children greedily devoured everything in sight. The giant spider even attempted to spin her web inside the Tower of Legions. However, one hero thwarted her plan.

A hunter lived in the forest of the elves—a great hunter who bent the mists to his will. The fog wound its way all around the giant spider and her minions. A thousand arrows rained down upon the chalky cloud, slaying her children, and a hundred more pierced through her many eyes. When the fog finally lifted, only the spider’s corpse remained.

The hero’s name was Heuress. Great hunter of the forest, nameless sorcerer. Should Rhora ever appear again, he shall return, together with the mist.

The song finished, and our food arrived, a soup with vegetable scraps floating at the top, dark bread, and fruit wine. I immediately dug into my portion so Lana wouldn’t hesitate to start on hers. The soup had as little taste as its appearance suggested, and the bread was even harder than it looked. I didn’t know what regular wine tasted like, so I couldn’t compare. Lana tore her bread into little pieces before bringing them to her mouth.

“Sorry, it’s not very good, is it?”

“Huh?” Lana finished her first spoonful of soup and blinked in surprise. “Certainly, the fish soup you made yesterday was divine compared with this. Are you quite sure you’re not a professional chef?”

“No, I’m not.” I wouldn’t even call myself a hobbyist with the skills I had.

“Then you must hail from a land with delectable cuisine. I envy you.”

“Yeah, we’ve got some good food. Speaking of which, what kind of meals do elves normally eat?”

“Elven cuisine……” A bitter smile came to Lana’s lips. “Essentially, we have fruits straight from the tree or dishes with raw, wild herbs piled on top. We do make some fermented food and alcohol that I find pleasing, but there’s not much I could confidently recommend to someone else.”

“I see.” So very organic dishes, huh? It’s probably really good for you, regardless of how it might taste.

“Your sister seems to like pretty spicy or salty foods. Do you think that’s a backlash to more traditional elven fare?”

“My sister studied under a beastfolk master who influenced her in many ways. You might say she’s not very elven and neither are her dietary preferences.”

That made sense. “What do you like, Lana?”

“Huh……? Who, me?” She ate another spoonful of soup and fell deep into thought. Was it that hard a question?

I glanced over at the minstrel again, and our eyes met for sure this time. He’d locked onto me and, like, stared. I don’t go for men, I thought. He coughed once. This was a tough one. I tried my hardest to decode his signal but came up blank. I set him aside.

“I don’t dislike fish. Alcohol, either, although actually, I guess it’s not my favorite. I’ve never gotten drunk before. As for vegetables, well, I’ve grown tired of them. So is it maybe meat?”

“I don’t know.”

“I’m sorry.” What a vague discussion. Maybe she didn’t spare much thought for food in general?

“In any case, once we get back to camp, I’ll let you try a whole range of foods, and you can let me know if you like any of them.”

“Oh, okay.” I’ll keep lunch light and go all out on dinner. I just hope Éa’s condition improves a bit by then.

“So, um, about Éa…” The question slipped out; I just had to know. “…Do you have any leads as to what might cure her?” Even if our medical technologies couldn’t save her, maybe they had some kind of magical treatment here that could help.

The look that came over Lana’s face defied all description. I didn’t need to ask anything else.

The restaurant door swung open, and light flooded in. A party of adventurers walked through the doorway. The minstrel launched into his song again and sang the ballad of Heuress, the hero.

Hmm? Heuress?

“Lana, was your name Heuress?”

“Yes.” It all clicked. The minstrel told us the story praising Heuress once more. As the song finished, I caught the man’s gaze and threw him a copper coin. He grinned and—didn’t catch it. A dark brown feline beastmaid stole my coin midair. At that same moment, someone kicked our table and sent it flying. Our half-eaten meal and the dishes smashed against the floor and walls, then scattered all over.

“Want me to tell you the rest of that story? That heroic Heuress’s grandchild stupidly started a war with the almighty humans and lost miserably. But his granddaughter did something even more brainless. After realizing they would lose the war, she trapped her people and burned half their forest down to the ground.”

A young man spoke. He had chestnut-brown hair and had contorted his face into a twisted expression. He wore clearly expensive armor and a cape and carried a pointlessly fanciful sword. Behind him stood a female knight in a skirted full suit of armor and a young, possibly noble, female mage in her prime wearing a dress.

“And what might that very princess be doing in a dreary place like this, I wonderrr?” the young man sneered, not a shred of decency to be found on his visage.

There’s something more important, this asshole—!!

“Don’t you dare waste perfectly good food, you jackass!!” If you dared kick food in front of a Japanese person—in front of me—then you’d best be ready to pay for it with your life. Sure, it didn’t taste all that good, but that didn’t mean you could send it flying.

Incensed, I wound my fist back to pummel the dude, but his lady knight cut me off. I couldn’t see much through her helmet, but judging by her general vibe, she was probably rather beautiful. It made me even angrier to think someone like that would be serving this tool.

“Huh? Who the hell are you?” he demanded to know.

“Who the hell are you?!”

He snorted. “What are you, a moron? You think I’d believe someone in this country doesn’t know who I am?”

“Don’t have a damn clue. If you’re that famous, why don’t you write your name on your forehead or something.”

Pfft. The beastmaid behind me laughed. Maybe that’s what set him off, but the veins on his face popping, the young man shouted, “I am the prince of the Kingdom of Remlia, Georg ole Remlia.”

“And?” What of it?

This prick probably thinks he can wave around his authority and get out of anything, doesn’t he? No way in hell am I letting his rude, idiotic behavior slide that easy. And there’s especially and particularly no chance I’ll suck up to an asswipe like him who goes around wasting food. He doesn’t scare me for shit.

I kept talking. “You’re trying to tell me that not only does the prince or whatever of this country not have the most basic manners, he also makes it a habit to kick people’s food across the room and interrupt their meal with a beautiful woman? Man, you must have so much free time on your hands. I wish I had it that easy.”

“You bastard!” The idiot prince took the sloppy bait I dangled in front of him and put his hand over his sword. I reached for my woodsman’s hatchet, too.

“Souya, go outside. I’ll take care of this,” Lana said.

“Not happening. Leave this to me.”

Lana grabbed my hand that held the hatchet. “I’m ordering you to leave. This is a matter between royals. There is no place for a mere adventurer to interfere.” Her lips trembled. For a moment, I wavered. Since first coming to this dimension, I had never hesitated more or faced a heavier choice.

“I’ll wait for you outside,” I muttered, following her wishes. I threw the minstrel a copper coin, and he caught it, then hung his head and cast his eyes downward. The light blinded me when I stepped outside.

“Would you like to see footage of what’s going on inside?” a message from Machina chimed in.

“And what am I supposed to do with that information?”

“I’ll leave that up to you. Mr. Souya, let me give you one piece of advice. You are the only person in this world with the power to limit your actions.”

You’re goddamn right I am.

“Show me the feed.” Video from a bug drone showed up on my glasses. It picked up the sound inside without a problem, too. Lana had knelt before the dumb prince who sat in a chair, one leg crossed over the other.

“Please forgive my companion for his discourtesy, Your Highness, Georg ole Remlia, second prince to the Kingdom of Remlia.”

“Ever since you filthy elves murdered my elder brother, I am now the only prince of Remlia. Do not repeat this mistake, Tainted Princess.”

“Yes, Your Highness. I am terribly sorry.”

The dumb prince looked down at his shoes. Some soup must’ve gotten on them when he kicked our table away. They were wet.

“Now look, you’ve gone and dirtied my shoes. Wipe them.”

“Yes, Your Highness.” Lana pulled out a cloth.

“No, no—with your mouth. Stupid elves have no place impersonating humans.”

“Yes, Your Highness.” Lana got down on all fours like a dog and stuck out her tongue.

Talk about a sick fetish. And yet, the other customers in the restaurant salaciously looked on. Witnessing a beautiful royal princess get sullied before your eyes qualified as the world’s greatest entertainment to some.

“Machina, blow up all the drones inside.”

“Understood.”

The feed cut out. I waited to hear their high-pitched explosions, kicked the door down, and ran into the restaurant. Everyone had their attention turned in the direction of the blasts. That, of course, included the idiot prince and his guardian knight as well.

I swirled through the air. The dropkick I learned directly from my sister hit the prince square in the face. He spun halfway around and slammed into the wall.

“Secret move, Yukikaze Special.” The trick was to turn your body at the point of impact. It might not deliver that much damage, but it looked cool as hell. I half hallucinated a vision of my sister in the air, pumping her fist. If she’d been here, she would have busted out that move the instant our food fell under attack.

“Souya!” Lana screamed, almost shrieked. I paid her no mind.

“Do you understand what you have just done?” the knight asked, pointing the slippery tip of her sword at me, down on the ground where I fell after fumbling the landing for that kick. I stood up slowly, never taking my eyes off the blade.

“What? It’s just a fight.”

Leaning on the beastmaid’s shoulder, the prince staggered to his feet as well.

“Lanceil, cut him down.” The knight refused to follow her prince’s order. Lucky for me, she was rational. “Hey! Lanceil! Did you not hear me?!”

“But, my lord—”

I laid the bow and woodsman’s hatchet I carried down on a table, then tore off my glasses and handed them to Lana.

“We’re doing this. A fight between adventurers. Or what? Are you saying the so-called royalty in Remlia’s so used to hiding behind his authority and his ladies that he can’t even fight for himself? Show some balls.”

“What did you say to me?!” The prince drew his sword.

“My lord! Please desist! The long-eared wench you can torture all you like. They’ve done more than enough to deserve that. However, this man is an adventurer. It would be treasonous for the prince of adventurers to turn his sword on one. You would besmirch the king’s name. Furthermore, your opponent has challenged you to a bare-fisted fight. Is your sense of valor worth so little you would ignore this fact?”

I thought about pointing out that Lana was also an adventurer, but they probably wouldn’t have cared regardless.

“So what’s it gonna be? Your lady-in-waiting makes a fair point,” I said.

“Hmph, fine. I won’t need anything but my fists to crush a bug like you.” The prince sheathed his sword. He’d knuckled under. Dumbass. The only one who wouldn’t need anything but his fists around here was gonna be—

About an hour later.

“And then, he got beaten to a pulp and lost.”

“Wow, my disciple is pathetically weak!”

“You suuuck!”

Lady Mythlanica and Éa did not mince words in commenting on Machina’s report. More importantly, I couldn’t see a single damn thing.

“You three! You’re getting in the way of his treatment! Either help or leave—pick one!” Lana shouted, then dragged me along the ground and into my tent.

“Ms. Lana, here are some disinfectants, wet compresses, and bandages. It may be best to first cool off the wound,” suggested Machina.

Oof, that was a close one.

Not that I was doing so hot at the moment, but if Pops hadn’t happened to walk by, break up the fight, and save me, I might have died. I’d gotten lax or, like, forgotten one vital detail: I was ultra, mega-weak in this dimension. I might have had a chance against a normal person, but I never should have fought hand-to-hand against a relatively experienced adventurer. This was what they meant when they said, I couldn’t even get a punch in. Except that I did—it just did absolutely no damage.

“I use a fire-type healing magic, so it manifests as heat. It works wonders on lacerations, but it’s not well-suited for blunt-force traumas. And his ryvius is lower than average, so I’m not sure what to do……” Yep, I had about as much ryvius as a puppy.

“Éa, lend me your gauntlet.”

“Whaaat?! This belonged to Lord Heuress, you know. Are you sure it’s okay to lend one of our most precious elven treasures to a heim?”

“He’s almost completely out of both internal and external magic. I’m going to divert some of the magic in the gauntlet to his ryvius. Hand it to me.”

“But, Lala, that’s not what I’m asking.”

“I said hand it to me!”

“A-all right.”

The gauntlet, warm from Éa’s body heat, slid onto my arm. She whispered into my ear, “You owe me five cups of ramen.”

I gave her a thumbs-up to say, You got it.

After her, Lana whispered, “My Lord Ezeus, command Mertome, God of the Torrents, to grant me the graces contained in this treasured relic and strike up a gust that will rouse its magic. O holy wind, dance and spin, mingle, melt, and wash over this man and this ancient vessel.”

A cool breeze swept past my cheeks. Lana’s enchanting whisper continued. “I raise up another prayer before you. Harmonia, Goddess of Unity, instill, arrange, align, and unite this magic and become one with this man.”

My muddled senses and consciousness cleared, and the pain began to slowly sink in. Just as a sponge dissolving in an acidic bath, my swollen flesh faded away. My vision cleared. Lana’s large breasts hung so close that they almost touched my nose.

“Wooow, impressive. Eighty percent of his bruising has dissipated,” I heard Machina gasp.

“One last thing. This may hurt a bit, but please bear with it.”

Lana shook her staff back and forth in small movements. I did what I could, but my eyes stuck like glue to the two melons before them swaying from the movement.

“O fire, dear fire, bless us all with your light and your grace. With your heat and your pain, alleviate this man of his suffering.” Lana’s right hand glowed with light. That’d be an awesome finishing move if she hit me with that, I thought, and she pressed said hand to my face.

“EEAYAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAH!”

“Please, don’t move!”

It’s hot! Lana’s hand is like burning steel! Hot! I’m gonna die! This pain is gonna kill me! I’m gonna burn! I’ll have to get a full-face mask to cover up these scars!

I tried to get away, but Lana sandwiched my head between her plump thighs. The fleeting happiness I felt soon disappeared beneath the heat and the anguish.

“AghhhhAAAAAAAAAAAH……” I passed out but regained consciousness right away.

“The wounds on his head have diminished to five percent of their original severity. This is an absolutely wonderful medical treatment. He has a small contusion on his abdomen, but that should completely heal in about three days.”

“Haah, I’m so glad to hear that.”

“……” My whole body twitched in agony. But the treatment had gone perfectly, it seemed. “Lana, thank…you,” I managed to choke out. Now I owed her two favors.

“You realize this is all your— No, I’ll restrain myself. This whole ordeal has given me a very clear picture of the kind of person you are. Aaaargh, I swear!” Lana sighed.

I couldn’t make anything of her expression. She was hard to read. Did she feel exasperated, or thankful, or something entirely different? Should I curse my own stupidity? Or take pride in my horrible luck? I’d have to make sure my reckless move this time paid off in the next.

Why the hell have I come this close to dying outside the dungeon? Someone, please tell me. Oh, it’s ’cause I’m a dumbass.

“Souya, I’m hungry. Prepare lunch,” ordered my goddess.

“Heim, I’m hungry. Can I take one of those ramen cups now?” asked Éa.

These two.

“……Time to cook, I guess.” My body wouldn’t move. “Huh?” I broke out in a cold sweat. It felt as though I’d been bound in chains; I couldn’t lift a finger. “Lana, Machina, I can’t move.”

“That’s probably because I infused your body with magic,” explained Lana.

“Mr. Souya, does this hurt?” Machina reached her arm in from outside the tent and pricked my finger with a needle.

“Ow!” My knee jerked a bit at the pinch.

“Your nerves are working, and your reflexes respond properly, too. I presume severe exhaustion is causing your symptoms. Let’s wait and see how you do overnight.”