Kanna no Kanna

Chapter 1: Sudden escape from the castle

Greetings, this is Kamishiro Kanna. 17 years old, coursing through his 2nd year of high school and like any healthy adolecent boy, I would like a girlfriend.

You might consider this sudden, but right now I’m flying across the skies on top of a 『dragon』.

By dragon I mean what japanese would put it as 竜 . Not a codename that some combat planes might get from time to time; but a creature that has sharp tusks, long neck, hard scales and huge wings on it’s back. But what is it that, the pupil of the eyes are charming like that of a cute creature?

「N?　What is it?」

It’s certainly too much of a bother to keep numerating things as I would like to drift away from reality, my awareness is brought back by this girl who is sitting in front of me. A beauty who resembles works of art with radiant silver hair which reflects the shining sunlight; with two big blue eyes that could pass as precious stones, nice orderly features and a gorgeous appearance; she is a beauty which is as if it almost departs from human race; is there waiting.

── Correction, in the first place 『human』 is not applicable in this case. It’s enough to glimpse at the sharp, long ears that extend from her long hair; of course they are not fake as they do tremble from time to time as if to give evidence of their actual autenticity.

「Ah、nah. I was just escaping reality for a while」

「Again？　Well, thinking of what you have been through; that might not be strange at all」

To the me who was scratching his own head, this girl directed a smile.

「But more than that, isn’t this guy quite the comfortable ride?」

「If there is no issue with the pain in the ass when sitting; one can enjoying a pleasant scenery」

「Sorry, since it was summoned so suddenly there it was no chance to arrange something to use as saddle. Normally, I prepare proper equipement in advance」

「The first priority was to get away from that situation, right？　Then my ass hurting a little is no problem at all. Oh, and the texture is nice to the touch」

While rustling a little I touch the back of the dragon. If one just judges by looking, it would seem as if it’s hard and very hard at that; like any reptile, it can’t possibly be said that it has a smooth skin and the touch feels slippery like that of a snake; but that’s a misunderstanding if one only looks. It’s easy to become absorbed in the sensation transmitted by touching it directly.

Due to feeling me petting it, the dragon lets out a cute 「kyui kyui」 as if it’s the singing voice of a bird like. Just how soothing is this? Quite lovely.

「This guy is a little bit shy to strangers and not counting me it really doesn’t pay much attention to others. It seems it’s attached to you」

「Ever since young, for some reason or the other; animals are quite fond of me」

「That’s a good constitution」

「Once, there it was this one time where a large amount of cats collided with me as if it was the tidal wave of a tsunami」

「That’s……………… Extremely enviable」

Eyes of envy are directed at me, it looks like she is a cat lover. In truth, it’s not all that nice.

「Having your whole self covered and with all of that fur, the body temperature rises a lot」

In winter the heat is nice and all, but in summer it can get hot enough that it wouldn’t be weird to faint.

「ーーBy the way, here cats are small animals that go for like 30 centime………… no, that might not be here. They are for about this big covered in fur, the have ears like this and walk in four legs and they are quite cute life forms, they exit here?」

I draw the size of an average cat with my hands, imitate the shape of the ears on my head. At first glance they look like gestures of me screwing around, but this girl puts an earnest face and nods without laughing

「Aa, there is something like that. I don’t think I can give a conclusive opinion without seeing it,、but it’s mainly a small and cute animal, right?」

The reason of why I would enact such weird gestures is because I want to make sure that what I recognize as a 『cat』 and what she recognizes as a 『cat』 are the same exact thing.

Dear audience, you might have long realized it already. Probably from the onset where I brought up the word dragon; or rather, the bit with the beauty with long ears, silver hair, blue eyes might have been decisive.

Yes, I’m currently in another world.

I’m currently in another world; since it’s important, it might as well be said twice.

Oh yeah, this is the Kamishiro Kanna who has been summoned to another world.

Thanks for the chunnibyou? Nah nah, if it was just wild ideas that sprouted from an halluciniation due to chunnibyou, that would be a joyious thing rather. If I try to say that I wouldn’t enjoy any of those chunni like developments, that would be just a huge lie. To be summoned to another world as a hero, travelling while experiencing encounters with your companions for the sake of oppossing the demon lord which would be the basic standard in heroic fantasy. Even at this age, sometimes I think about stuff like that even if it’s just a little.

But when it actually happens, it’s truly some serious trouble. The two dimensions can be entertainment because they stay in the two dimensions; when they actually corrode into the 3D world, it doesn’t become something you can joke around with.

And to fall into that you can joke around with state of affairs; is where I am right now.

………………… Well, it’s quite true that reality and illusion are different. It was to the point were I was summoned as a hero, the template was fulfilled up to there; after that it became heinous thing after heinous thing.

It’s actually because it’s heinous that I’m going to omit a large chunk of it. The bottom line is that I ended up face to face with this beauty of long silver hair, long ears and blue eyes whose name is Real Farbell. As you might have realized, she is not from the human race and I should add that ever since the summoning, she is by far the person who has been the most overflowing with human compassion and warm heart that I have met; there is no room for discussion here. From the get go it was the very worst, it was by far the worst thing I have experienced in my life.

As expected, is better if I go with a simple explanation of the sequence of events….

At first, I was just attending classes in school.

Suddenly, I was surrounded by light and summoned to another world.

There it was obviously no prior notice while I was entertaining the thought of what to dine today to combat the boredom of being in class; that’s too cruel.

After being summoned to another world, in front of me who had reached the absolute peak of confussion; at such juncture stood the one who for me 『at that time』 became the number one beauty that I have ever seen in my life.

Be as it may, as expected the 「Hero, please save this world!」 line popped up. Naturally, if a girl who looks that pretty pledges you with teary eyes; the average guy will let out an immediate 「leave it to me!」 response. Even I at first was about to let out something like 「I’ll do something about saving this world!」 out of my mouth….

It might be something mysterious, but that line was stopped by that very same beauty even before the words could let my throat as I took a second glance at her. A strong, cold chill ran through my back, a tremendous shiver with an intensity as if liquid nitrogen was poured on me, right away cold sweat started running through my back.

Exactly because I saw that beauty more calmly.

And then I realized.

That dreadful something 『black』 that laid in the back of her eyes.

And after that, well; several things started from there.

Eventually, somehow or the other I was certain that I had to escape from the castle where I was summoned, losing my way in the dungeon; I released Real who I found was imprisioned there. Deciding to break out together, we somehow managed to leave the castle and it was at that point that Real summoned a Dragon for us to ride, putting a safe end to our escapade.

In a way, I could be described as someone with a 「quite the good intuition』. When betting on poker or stuff like mahjong, I think I’m strong, and I believe I’m someone sharp towards human sensibilities. But, this time it was too much of a large portion, I had never had a sweat as cold as that one.

According to what the story went, Real was captured by that beauty and arbitrarily framed. It doesn’t matter how innoncent she seems at first glance, in the end she was just wicked.

Probably, is exactly because she is wicked that she is pretending to be completely innoncent, and if that’s so then her level of darkness can only be described as ‘completely died’; a level of wickedness where she decides to make use even of her own beauty and that just shows how she is too dark in too many ways.

「Well, what will you do from now on, Kanna? Do you have any objectives?」

「Rather than asking me I would like to hear the opposite; just who can tell me what am I supposed to do from now on？」

「No, well if I’m asked what I would do now……………………………。In my case, my current purpose is returning to my hometown」

For the time being, I could only care about getting away from that super wicked black princess （she might even have been a true princess after all）; so I could not spare any leasure on thinking what to do after escaping. It’s just that, if I had stayed in the castle; there is no doubt that it would have turned into something horrible. A hero, a brave; without a doubt a storm full of drama has been unleashed already and it was a storm full of drama huge enough that they had to call a hero to deal with it.

「Really, whether you are someone who acts after deep consideration, or if you are someone who haphazardly pushes on, I don’t really get which of those you are in the end」

「I get told that a lot」

「You get told that a lot!?」

But it’s true that I get said that a lot.

In case if there is any doubt, Real tone of expression is somewhat male like and it’s not like she is putting on airs of being a man, but that she comes out as a 『knight』; as if it’s a natural consequence of a girl having being raised in an all-male household.

Originally when I saw her in jail, she was in thin underwear only and with her hands restrained through a wodden tablet. The moment I saw her, my internal beautiful girl ranking was completely overturned and gained a new first place. The wicked princess? For that one, even when factoring her appearance; since the contents which are an absolute worst are considered, that sends her to the indisputed last place; that’s obvious.

Changing the subject, Real’s appearance is now a light armor that emphasizes mobility and protects only the vital points; she also has a great sword which is for about as tall as she is. Those two items were taken away at the time of her arrest, but fortunately were inside the castle and it was possible to recover them. At that time, there it was this chance where I actually had to hold her sword, and just as it looks it’s incredibly heavy.

「In any event, it’s not like they can officially organize a pursue party; the two of us don’t have any evidence of residence in this country and they can’t afford to reveal that we were there」

「Ah, so to say; you sound really certain of that, why is that?」

「If in this current time of 『peace』, the large powers get to hear that a 『hero』 was called for; that would be the same as telling them 「prepare for war」. Surely the ritual was made in secrecy and behind closed doors, they probably have already thought ahead on were to dispatch you. And at that time, you’ll likely be told lies in the lines of 「the enemy are invaders」 to get you to act」

「Scary. I am a man whose inclination is towards pacifism」

「…………………… Would a man who gives a flying kick to a guard without any moment of doubt, ever be described as a pacifist?」

「Pacifism and non-combatant doctrines are actually different things」

You should earn your own peace, that’s my motto.

「In my case I have my own circumstances, there is really plenty to consider. Probably, I was being kept to use as a 『trump card』 for 『diplomacy』… I don’t like to be reminded of it, but I do hold that much value. Additionally, they also surely had wanted to use me as a deal under the table. This goes without a doubt for this land that has already earned a lot of antipathy from the surrounding countries」

「Now that I hear it; this is probably a country overflowing with strong ambition. Is it noticeable?」

Once again I realize that I was really glad that I managed to escape.

Chapter 2: Crossing the mountain

We just ended our rest after flying for 4 hours on that dragon; then Real directed the dragon towards the foot of the mountain range.

「I appreciate your efforts, we were saved thanks to you so please make sure to rest properly」

Real tickled the jaw of the dragon to show her appreciation as she spoke before taking some steps of distance; receiving an animal greeting which sounded like kyui kyui before leaving, on it’s feet a large magic formation showed up shining in white light and when it’s whole body became enshrined in brightness, the dragon’s shape became less visible as the brilliance was gradually losing it’s shine to finally disappear when the radiance of the formation on the ground was completely gone; the order for that is exactly reversed from when she summoned it, implying that the fundation of process might be exactly the same. When I was shown this the first time, I became completely overwhelmed and it went way over my head.

It looks like summoning magic consist of calling forth something that was previously contracted by the user.

And quite properly, this fantasy world has what is without exceptions the quintessential example of what a fantasy world needs to have; which is the art know as 『magic』. This driving force known as 『magic』 is something that everyone needs to take a hold of, it might be easier to understand if you compared it to the energy source from our world known as 『electricity』.

「Hekkushou」

Hugging my body down with my own two hands, with chattering teeth; I let out some weird sneezing sounds. I can’t even imagine how high is the altitude of the mountain we have just crossed now since the actual top is in fact above the clouds. Would I really have had to climb such a high mountain while on my student uniform? Fortunately it’s not it’s coldest right now and a blessing in disguise is that I can take at least some peace of mind that my uniform is a long sleeved gakuran.

「Oops, sorry」

A light sign breaks through this open space as Real’s fingertip produces a fire and while pointing her hands in front of her, the flame leaves her finger and flew off through the air.

「Aaah……I’m being healed」

Thanks to the new found heat, he was moved to the point were tears almost fell down.

「When flying at such height the normal is to wear something that blocks the cold; at this time of emergency there is no choice but to rely on some fire attribute magic as a replacement………… I guess it isn’t warm enough？」

At the time we were gradually increasing the altitude while flying, Real deployed fire magic as to surround us as stop-gap meassure. It was not perfect, as the wind that could blew through from every direction ended up causing an overwhelming cold. At that time Real’s face spelt clearly a deep regret over her own lack of ability to cope with the sutuation.

「I have only learnt elemental magic up to the bare minimum, I apologize since I forced you to experience strong cold」

「I can say with confidence if it wasn’t for that fire, I would have long died frozen」

My consciousness would have flied far away as simply as that and I would have ascended to heaven. Speaking of, if I die at this place, I wonder which world’s heaven I would had ended up in?

Or rather, I wonder why Real doesn’t look cold at all.

「While I truly am not good at elemental magic, endowment magic is something I can take great pride in and that allowed me to use spells to ward off the cold. This type of magic strong point is defense」

Afterall.

「And then, with this is fine since we already earned some days of advantage. From leaving the castle till crossing the mountain, it doesn’t matter how fast we project them to catch up, they’ll need at least 3 full days」

「Even if the pursuers also use a dragon like we did？」

「Even if they try that, there is no dragon that can overcome this mountain so simply. I’ll allow myself to boast here, when it comes to classifications, my contracted partner falls into the upper ranks of the dragon species, and for that reason we had quite the advantage in our trip when it came to elevation & speed」

「Even when it looks so cute and soothing？」

「Even when it looks so cute and soothing; I mentioned something about it previously, but that dragon does not really get attached to people and this is common for their species. Is common sense that contracts are rare, regardless of the species involved」

In other words, Real who managed to achieve such an unusual contract is a remarkable individual. When Real noticed that within my sight some admiration was now mixed in, her cheecks flushed ever so slightly.

「Wel- Well, the fact that it’s unusual to achieve means not that it’s completely impossible; there are those who have achieved contracts so overwhelming when using me as a reference you can’t possibly even touch their feet」

For the sake of hiding her own embarrassment, she presses the talk towards someone on higher position, and her unusual hand gestures when losing compossure add a cute side that one would normally not notice, with her usual gallant expression.

「Le- Let’s return to our previous talk; regardless of how hard or pursuers chase us, there is no inconvenience factor for us if we spend a night in the local village. For any dragon, performing high speed continuos flight for long periods is not a simple thing– specially if you add human passengers to the mix; similarly to our current case, four hours should be the upper limit」

Should I relate this to engines and their gears? The strain when using low speed that requires low power becomes completely different when one uses a high gear with high speed which needs much more power.

「In one side we have that, but there is that it also looks like the day is about to end. It won’t do if we don’t secure a place to spend the night」

Right now we are close to the outskirts of a village; while crossing through the mountain the location of a village and it’s settlemens was clearly visible and we made the dragon land before we got close to the village; this was for the sake of being as less eye catching as possible. While magic in itself is widespread, summoning magic can be considered in the category of unusual…. In the first place, if we go to the village with a dragon in tow, there is basically no other way of gathering more attention than that.

「…………If we speak about standing out, don’t those ears already are something very noticeable？」

After that line, her long ears trembled a little at the tip.

「This won’t cause any problem since the shape is different from the elves. While my mother was an elf, I’m only a half elf.」

And now that key world elf has popped up; the second quintessential example of what a fantasy world is meant to be like. Being immersed in the love for the 2D world or not is absolutely irrelevant; even if you only have a little bit of an otaku in yourself like me or not; the love for cute things will ultimately always win. And when those long ears tremble a little right in front of you, the feeling of wanting to touch them naturally comes.

「Actual elves are much less numerous than human beings; but whether it’s a castle or a castle town, you can still find some if you put your mind into it; in contrast elves travelling to remote areas like this village would be extremely unusual」

「Even something like travelling troubadours？」

The ones that I know from fictional works give the strong impression of always having a lyre or a flute at hand.

「You know well; that’s correct. Elves naturally have a strong awareness for excellence when handling instruments that stems from their very own fingertips. You can always find one passing through town and performing as to earn travel expenses— As expected I don’t have such gift for music」

「In other words, we are a pair of travelling mercenaries who merely are stopping at the village？」

「Playing that part would be indeed the safest route… I’ll have to treat you as an assistant even though I feel bad about it」

「It’s fine like that. I wouldn’t feel good if I merely keep receiving assistance here」

「My gratitude to you who saved me from that place will last for a life time. Helping this much is but a simple matter.」

After being forcefully dragged into this world, certainly having meet this woman has been without a doubt the greatest fortune. Exactly mirroring what she says, I myself have the mindset of rewarding her for all which she has done for me.

………… At this moment Real and I where completely unaware of it; and we wouldn’t even noticed it for a long while after that.

The mountant that we had just crossed with the dragon, has quite the big significance to this country as a sacred mountain.

Simply because Real used that elemental magic which is her weak point to produce a little bit of warmth, and the fact that I happened to go through a simple preset mountain path.

And lastly, the unique 『condition』 that I have been aflicted ever since being summoned to this world.

「Hekkushii！ urgh………… I want to quickly enter the bath. Rather, are there even baths? Or maybe I have just stated a super luxurious aspiration？」

「If you expect a small sized one, plenty of houses have. Of course an inn would count with one as well」

「UOOOSHAA! If there is a nice meal and a bath, then I can survive no matter the place！」

Chapter 3: It’s not like I like to pimp..

「Kuoooooh！　Cooooooold！」

The chill air strikes my skin as my eyebrows keep twitching while being frozen and the worse of all is this strong gust of wind that lowers the temperature of my body.

「………… Are you ok？」

「I can’t possibly be ok, but I’ll be ok！　I feel cold enough as if I’m dying; but I’ll be ok！」

「You are rather increasing my anxiety with such lines」

「It’s ok to just keep walking forward! I can still handle it even if we increase the pace more than this！」

After spurting that lively statement; I further dive my feet on the snowy fields as a show of my intention.

「………… It doesn’t look like you have that much leeway; why would you go that far?」

「Towards someone who is my benefactor, covered my lodging and is first and foremost of a lady— while that girl is working outside in this weather; I can’t possibly law down comfortably at home！ I have no plans of becoming a financially dependant pimp!」

「Pimp？」

「Is a known term for a guy that gets sustained by a girl without working himself.」

Greetings, this is Kamishiro Kanna.

Presently; I’m enjoying mountain climbing through a frozen slope. That exact mountain range that was previously easily skipped from travelling thanks to the corteous services of dragonic airlines.

I’m aware that I’m again skipping a lot of important details; but please let me of again by giving out the sequential order for the course of events yet again.

After passing the mountain range and decending through it’s feet; we encountered absolutely no accidents and we safely got into the neighboring village without any unusual events. The village on itself was quite peaceful, there it wasn’t any difference from how I imagined any countrisde village back in my world.

The absolute first thing we did was heading towards the inn and having Real book a room, after that she recommended me to enjoy the warmth of a bath. It was the turn for that inexperienced elemental magic increased the temperature of the water; and even the short interval needed for water to boil felt excruciatingly long for the I who was in a completely frozen state. Soon I felt honestly bad for being cared for time after time; but please let me get away with it now since the desire for a bath was simply winning me over — is what I thought as I was diving into the steamy water. I have to say that this is the first time in my life that I ever felt so good when entering the bath; that sensation of having the very core of my soul being surronded by warmth was so incredible that before realizing it I was spilling tears already. Ermn? Am I fragile to the point that I can be broken to tears easily?

I made sure that I was refreshed after a short dive in the bath and then I returned to the room… It looks like the structure of this inn is that all of the guest rooms are located in the second floor; while the first one has a large dining room which gives the impression of being quite satisfying for the palate of the local residents.

But; right now you can’t see the image of several customers enjoy the meal in their seats, but rather the sight of a bunch of serious villagers surrounding Real’s table with an atmosphere which is far from relaxed.

I was unsure of adding my presence to that place or not, but once somebody noticed that I was in this floor; their hand stretched and I was dragged towards the place where Real was.

「Oh, Kanna. Was the bath enjoyable？」

「The absolute best。………… Er, what sort of circumstance is this?」

Originally it was the smiling Real who recommended me to enter the bath first, but as expected even I can read the sort of weird air that this place is enshrouded in right now.

「Apparently, it seems that there is a girl who entered the mountain around noon and hasn’t returned yet」

「For mountain; you mean that exceedingly large one？」

Speaking of mountains, there is no other mountain in the vicinity that goes over the clouds like that one; why is that?

「That girl mother apparently caught a cold recently; and is well known that among the grass in that mountain there are medicinal herbs. Is easy to see that the girl’s purpose was collecting those」

「Such a thoughtful daughter has to be a good kid…………」

At the moment that bit was mentioned; I remembered the current time. A single glance outside the windows reafirms that we are already completely unto the night.

「Oi, is totally past the time the sun sets by now！」

「Exactly. It’s night-time already; and the weather becomes rather harsh in that mountain by nightfall– which is why everyone in the village is absolutely clear that they need to return home before the day ends. A girl who absolutely know this and climbed the mountain hasn’t returned by now has surely encountered some sort of mishap」

「Then; doesn’t that mean that we can’t idle around in this place? We should head out right now.」

「I know that much, but…. That mountain also has dangerous magical beasts; the fact that they have a nocturnal nature is one of the things that makes the mountain safer during the day」

「…………Oioi, that’s serious stuff」

Magical beastーー what some would spell as monster and is the quintessential example number three of the world in a fantasy genre. If it’s as their definition states; they are dangerous animal, flora and fauna that have this wonderful healthy habit of attacking people.

「Entering the mountain at night would be suicidal for villagers who have no strength to fight」

Hearing the conversation up to this point makes it obvious the villagers can’t possibly head out on themselves; bur rather they want to request the task to this Real present here.

「Bottom line is, these people are requesting you to find that daughter….」

「Precisely. And what do you think about it？」

「Hmn？ Let’s hurry up and save her」

「………………………………」

Ara? I’m looked at as if I said something strange.

「…………Did you not listen to what these people said？」

「The outline it’s about how we should hurry so the girl won’t be eaten by some monster; right？ That’s exactly why we should head out to help as soon as possible. Ah right– friendly neighbors of this village; would you mind lending some clothes strong against cold? Please at least offer that level of cooperation」

「No, I’m talking about the bit where beast will come attacking」

「That’s why I’m saying that I heard it. In a place where gruesome sights are common, we have a rarity for the season: today’s special consist of delicious village girl （In a cooking ingredients sense）」

「So it really is; that you are planning on tagging along….」

「You have been strange for awhile. （Like our setting points out） Mercernary girl Real has been requested by this people to search for that girl and you took on the job; right? 」

「Certainly that’s how it went！　The actual issue is that I am going alone！」

「What a foolish thing to say. It’s settled in stone that I’ll be tagging along as well」

「I really did not want you to say that. The people of this village don’t have any relation with you, right？」

「That’s no different for you; yet you are brimming with motivation of helping out, right?」

「That’s due to my personal motivations. Well, I really can’t neglect the intention of my travelling companion; that’s why please listen…………」

「Details might as well not matter in this situation！ There are things that I also can do and there is also the motivation to do such when it counts！ There is no spare time to hesitate！ Since this goes according to Real’s will; I’m just going to accompany you to the extent of the power I have！」

And that’s how we returned to the beginning.

「Is way too unlucky that a snow storm began the moment we started to climb！」

「It’s like, we should be worrying that we are not the cause for this weather」

There are things that after once said as joke; they may eventually change to truths. Please remember this for later.

「Or rather, why are you dressed so lightly in this storm！？」

「Because I used magic that makes me resistant to cold, this much is enough」

Right now I’m wearing quite the fluffy jacket to ward off that cold; while Real is wearing her usual light armor with a sole simple cloack added in.

「Just how convenient is that magic, oi」

「My speciality only lies in this type of spells. As my elemental attribute magic is not that wonderful; for battle this is the one guy I can rely on」

She says that while emphasizing the large sword at her back.

Certainly, she was quite amazing. At the time we had to force a way out of the castle; it didn’t matter how many guards or knights came swarming… They were all blown away with a single attack from that great sword and without any single exception. There it were plenty of guys with full body armor and / or heavy equipment in those ranks…. That amount of battle power on a single person wouldn’t mean that she is good enough to be selectable in those games that are placed in the sengoku era?

「More than that Kanna; is the part where the herbs grow still further ahead？」

「Just some steps away」

With a map in my hands; I check the shape of my surroundings and compare it with what was written to assest the current location. There is a large bag on my back; which is meant to be used to keep that child from the cold.

When the village girl set out during the day; apparently she was dressed lightly. Even if she happens to be unharmed; the intense cold of this snowstorm is more than enough to make a person not being able to move.

If that happens to be the current situation; Real on her own would have needed to carry the bag in her shoulder and in the case of beasts showing up she would have needed to fight the monsters with that handicap—- which is the reason of why I was so adamant about following her. In a dual sense you can say that I’m here for the luggage.

「Really, to volunteer for luggage duty. Quite the evident reason」

「And it’s because Real understood that such a thing was necessary; that you let me tag along, right？」

Initially, she had the idea of relying in one of the villagers; but after considering it calmly a little I became the obvious choice. Compared to them; she made the judgement that I’ll drag her feet much less.

「You are also quite softhearted; to go this far for a girl you don’t know」

「I’m not entirely moving out of good will. There is a profit factor added in」

「Truly. When you began the talk of how much the pay was going to be; the faces of the villagers turned delicate」

Handling so coldly people that we are not acquainted with; even if they ask for a refund later we can’t be held punishable. In any event— with one night stay and several days worth on food; is only that much what we requested as the completion fee.

「Seriously. Should I put it that you might be someone of high prudence? You are really a man who is hard to judge」

「Was that praise just now?」

「I wonder?」

As we were brooding over such conversation in this cold, we steadily approached the specified location which is towards the place where the medicinal herbs grow. This is the same place that the girl was aiming at and thus there it might be some sort of trail.

Close to 30 minutes after we started or climbing through the mountain and while it’s fully dark; we safely reached our destination. Even when burried in he snowstorm, the thick herbs are in abundance…. Now we need to check the surrounding terrain and sort the information we got from the villagers.

Chapter 4: Reconfirming the reality of this world.

「…………Looks like several stuff happened」

Canine creatures whose fur is between white and grey move around walking in four legs; that stare which focuses on us with their bloodshot eyes doesn’t show any signs of a warm welcome.

「『Snow Wolf』 is a wolf shaped magic beast frequently found in cold regions. They tend to band in groups and normally they habitate more hinterland locations… it looks like a group of them ended up climbing down the mountain」

Real calmly pulled out her sword from the sheath and prepared herself as I was provided with an explanation. She keeps great composure in front of the surrounding murderous air– unlike me whose legs are about to give out.

「Kanna」

「I will absolutely not leave your side, so no worries！」

I shout at full lung that miserable statement; pitable isn’t it? Well, it beats some lame attempt at acting tough and ending up as the dinner of a pack of wolves!

「I see. Then………… they are already close」

Real has a bitter smile as she proceeds to leash out sharp slices; with a strong voice she matched the charge of the group of wolves.

「Seiッ」

Momentarily, a surge of intense spirit could be felt as the great sword drew a long angle; the ashen wolf that who lunged forward and had his ready to bite jaw wholy open got blown away with it’s head bisected vertically.

「Nextッ」

Wolves that approach from the side with the intention of using their nails or wolves that approached in grouped straight on with their fangs; all of them where crushed by Real’s giant sword.

「Daryaaaっっっ」

As each sword swing turned a wolf in a slump of flesh; the constant splashes of blood turned the pure white of the snowy ground crimson.

I held down the sound of my nausea as the blood and pieces of flesh where splattered everywhere.

Even if your opponent is a monster that attacks people; there is no mistake that those are still living organisms. Without minding that Real surfaced no hesitation nor didn’t gave signs of any strong feelings as the bloodbath kept increasing… her eyes completely focused on the opponent and her hands accurately commanded the sword movement…

It doesn’t matter how much fiction this world seems to me; for the people residing here 『this is」 reality… For every living creature that has possess the gift of life there is -without any exception- another creature that has no choice but to kill others for the sake of keep on living. There is not any sin in this… and if I don’t want to end up dying; I need to act just like Real has just done.

And for that reason; make the choice of burying the enemies in front of you.

Right now I’m but a baggage carrier that has absolutely no strength on his own… for the sake of triumphing over this type of dangerous situations; she has deemed necesary power. That’s why; it doesn’t matter how much you clown with your words or how easily your legs give away; I need to imprint this scene in my eyes.

…. I have still not answered the question she once gave me…

“What will you do from now on, Kanna?“, was it?

The answer is the tragic event in front of me.

It’s obviously not a clear answer; but there is at least one reality that was reconfirmed now.

I have to make absolutely sure that I can survive in this another world.

The extermination of these magic beast took roughly 10 minutes; the immediate area has been filled with stashes of corpses from these grey wolves that now smear the snow surface red. At the center of this mess stands Real; cooly using her blue eyes to check her great sword. In contrast I am here; even though no enemies remain, my heart still races…

A minute was spent as she was making sure that no surrounding enemies were approaching and only after that; Real allowed herself to breathe in relief. Even I who was on his toes, strongly lushed out the air accumulated in my lungs after the battle was over.

「By all means; we are done with that」

Returning the sword to her back, I noticed that Real’s breaths were not disturbed in the least… I was shown that type of intense huge battle and are you telling me that you didn’t experience physical agitation in the least? Just what type and just how much of an intense training was drilled into you as to reach that level? I who was merely watching the performance from the side, am showing signs of fatige in my shoulders…

Rather than being submerged in awe’s embrace; I need to regain my composure.

Our goal for coming to this mountain is not subjugation of beasts nor the collection of medicinal herbs…

At least I have to check the corpses.

「Oioi oyeoye; wasn’t this the place the village girl was supposed have passed?」

It’s not truly certain that these wolves encountered that daughter at thee time she was picking up herbs… however, the possibility is undoubtedly there.

It might even be that…………。

「…………We should also consider even the worst case sceneario」

To the me who couldn’t but be drawn back a little by this much blood; Real responded to with a calm behaviour. Her voice was slightly stiff; meaning the idea we had was the same…

A bad image of a young girl sinking in a sea of blood came to my mind; I couldn’t help but to be still in my own place… Bitting my own teeths; I forcibly move those clinged legs with strong steps.

「Screw it! Oi Real! In any event let’s just keep looking！」

「I agree」

We split and circled around inside the area were the pile of corpses laid; continuing the search… One after another I kept bumping into sight of death wolves… Maybe the the next body I find; would be a human one? Without being able to push away the dismay in my chest; I desperately continued to search.

「Just please be safe」

She is someone who I don’t know the looks nor the name; yet I am wholeheartedly praying for her well being. Truth be told; I’m not the type that prays much to gods… However; if it’s for the sake of someone else being saved— whether it’s a god or a devil; I’ll gladly pray as much as I can…

Suddenly, as I was concentrating on looking for the young girl; I was assailed by a huge gust of wind– The great wind took advantage of me being focused in something brought negligence towards my feet; I was sweeped at until my balance was lost…

As a bonus; bad luck dictated that the place where my feet had to fail; was the place where a descending slope was forming–

「Nowaaaaっっっ」

「っ、KANNA!っ」

Real made swift response to my shriek; but even faster than her, I proceeded to roll down the slope. As my field of vision continued rotating I could only feel panic and curl my body to reduce the shock.

After a few seconds of rotation; my body was struck by a floating sensation…. It couldn’t be; was I seriously flung off from the cliff? –Despair proceeded to rule my heart; but the next moment I felt a strong impact in coming from below as everything became white.

At this time my train of thought returned completely to normal; it looks like something stopped my body… I touch myself thinking of the after effects of the crash; I ended up stopping in a face up position.

Keeping my position I look at the slope I fell off from; it looks like due to the fortune of the snow cushion being here is that I didn’t proceed further down…

「Are you ok, Kanna!?ッ」

There are two declining edges on the cliff that I fell from; Real slides here in a hurry through the other pathway. Without standing up, I made hand gestures to show that I’m safe. While breathing a huge relief, Real grabs my hand and helps me stand up.

「Seriously; try not to surprise me like that anymore. I though my heart would stop」

「I’m really sorry; I was too distracted」

As I was slapping off the snow out of my clothes; I directed my eyes to the place I thumbled down from… It can’t be possibly seen from the area where the herbs grow due to a blindspot; but a cave happens to be there.

Real who was lured by my sight, also became aware of the cave’s existence.

Additionally; there is in that place a bag that without a doubt belongs to a person.

… Quickly opening the bag disclosed that the contents were a bunch of medical herbs which grow on the upper part from here… This can only be -without a doubt- property of the village girl we are looking for.

「Probably, while running away from the wolves; she fell here」

「So, that means–」

「It might be wishful thinking; but at least the prospects are there」

After strongly nodding at each other; we took steps into the cave.

Chapter 5: Found the girl, but got myself confined

The inside of the cavern was completely enveloped in darkness; Real fingertips produced an illuminating flame, for the sake of advancing.

If asked if this was cold, it was obviously cold; but in comparison to outside, it was much better due to the absence of the gale winds… That being said; without clothes specifically designed to guard off low temperatures, being here would be unacceptable.

Initially I wanted to call out for the girl to know that we are here; but Real quickly vetoed my idea– If it happens to be a demon further inside the cavern, it would surely be roused by human voices– and when that happens, there is the possibility of him finding first the young villager in this confined environment.

With a strong feeling that we shouldn’t stray from each other; we stepped into the cave…

And then…………。

「Ah」

At the inner most part that the flame illuminated; we could see her figure… Trembling on her knees, the young girl fit perfectly the description we had previously heard. I had to force myself from giving an expression of joy as I directed my steps towards her.

She slowly raised her face to the sound of my steps

「Oni-chan, who are you？」

「Don’t worry, we came to help！」

To ease her worries I touched her with my hand; I touching her was as cold grasping ice.

… This is bad; her body temperature has lowered too much already, checking her face under the dim light of Real’s fire magic is enough to see that her complexion is already quite blue– At this rate, she might even break down from the cold before we put the clothes we brought for her…

Even if I’m slightly reluctant; it’s better if I settle this in one go.

First thing is me taking off my valued clothes for the cold; so I stripped everything off from my upper body. Let me add a note that I’m extremely cold right now!

「Ka- Kanna？」

At the sight of me who had suddenly started a strip show （upper half only though）; Real’s eyes became a monocrome… She can complain later; but right now there is no time to put any explanations into words. More than anything, I feel soo cold that it’s a pain to open my mouth to talk…

「Forgive this for awhile」

Shivering with cold my voice gave an onesided notice to this girl as I proceeded to take off all of her clothes; that done I began to wear again my clothes again, but I put her inside as well this time. When I pressed the girl skin unto my chest, it felt terribly cold; for a moment I wanted to push her away, but I buried those feelings as I put my arms around her; making sure of holding her with my whole strength.

「Oi, just what is the deal!?」

「The fastest way to warm up the body is doing it from skin to skin！ More than that Real; please increase the fire！ I’m seriously freezing here, I might even end up freezing！」

After realizing my intention; Real used her two hands to make the fire bigger and the heat increased accordingly. The girl’s deprived body temperature was returning by using me as a warmer.

「Aaa, how refreshing」

Yet again the blisfull physical heat made me spill tears…

「When you suddenly stripped off, I seriously started doubting your sanity」

「Naturally, I can’t boss around a woman like you with words like 「undress quickly！」 」

Between my own temperature and the fire; the young girl is radiating now heat of her own. She has also stopped trembling… I could only breath a sigh as we evaded the most dangerous situation.

Maybe because she regained a normal temperature, the senses of the girl seem to have returned, and she now gazes me from point blank distance.

「Sorry, for having stripped you so suddenly」

As I apologized I pat her head, the girl shook her head to refute me.

「When you are freezing, you should do it like this; is what my otou-san said」

Apparently, over here it’s also wide-spread knowledge that an emergency measure against cold is to increase the warm skin to skin. Since the Lolicon label won’t be added to me, once again I’m compelled to breath in relief.

「Well, why are you at this place？ Since you didn’t return by nightfall, everyone in the village was incredibly worried, you know？」

「Eto, because okaa-san caught a cold, I came to pick up medicinal herbs, but…………」

The outline was just like we had imagined it; as she was done picking up herbs for her mother, the howl of the wolves could be heard. In a fluster she hurried down the mountain and -just like I did- she treaded upon the slope; falling through the cliff. Even then, she could feel quite close the roar of the wolves; thus she could only think of seeking refuge in the cave that was in front of her.

「And it was then, that the weather turned into a snow storm…」

「It became impossible to leave, you got cold to the point you couldn’t to move anymore」

As Real added the last bit, the village daughter nodded quietly in a sorrowful manner.

「I- I’m very sorry」

「Don’t worry about it, as long as you are unharmed, it’s ok」

The girl narrowed her eyes confortably as I placed my hand on her head with a heartwarming face. Taken by the mood, Real also surfaced a smile… Normally she dons a very dignified look; but yet again I realize that superb beauties like her really need to smile like this.

「Very well, since the girl is safe; we have no more business in this mountain」

「That’s true…………」

From the bag I was carrying Real took the clothes we had brough for the girl and proceeded to dress her on them… As this was happening, a large DOOOOON resounded, as if it was the roar of a stomach; followed by a small incessant trembling… The feeling continued and small peebles kept falling from the ceiling.

The vibration and sound that stopped quickly enough where followed by a rather strong wind current that poured from the entrace. The gust of wind settled down in a few seconds, and as it did, large amounts of sweat poured from my back.

「………… Real-san, I somehow; have an incredibly bad premonition」

「Coincidentally, me to」

I noticed that Real’s face had gone stiff.

Once again I check that the girl and I have properly set our clothes on.

The village girl buried her face in the cotton of her garment while enjoying it’s warmth; unfortunately I can’t afford such allowance in this weather. Real is not present among us, she went to to check the condition of the entrance.

As she returned, her countenance was quite grim… It looks like that bad premonition was on the mark.

「For the looks of it…」

「Yeah; it’s completely buried」

That shaking and roaring from before are probably the work of a snow slide. And then, the reason of why the wind blew so intensily; was because the avalanche was pushing air in as it was blocking the entrance.

「Melting it with magic？」

「I gave it a try and proved impossible. With my capacity I would exhaust completely my magic without making a hole in that wall of snow」

「How about using that large sword as a shovel？」

「Just what do you think of other people’s loved sword… But, I also thought about it– however, the piled up snow is so much that it’s now compressed and has high density, right now is similar to bedrock in firmness… Digging through there would be unreasonable」

「Does endowment magic allow self strengthening？ If that’s possible, we could—」

「Yes; as you have surmissed, increasing your own strength is possible. It’s common to use it as ace when it comes to fighting… However; unlike spells that increase tolerances, increasing the capacity of your own body has a big recoil and can’t be put into use for long… We don’t know how thick the blockade actually is, it would be better not to try it」

For defense, it’s enough with merely coating the surface of your own body with the spell; however since for strengthening you are using magic to mess around with the internal functions of your body at a muscle & bones level; the backlash has to be serious. It’s like artificially trying to increase an already huge fire scene? Maybe I should even enlarge that example many folds to get a proper description…

「Then, the conclusion？」

「We are completely trapped」

After clearing one dangerous situation; you find yourself in the next one…

「We should think positively from now on…………」

What just was pointed out by Real does have some truth. For example; if the avalanche would have occurred as we are exiting the cave, we would surely had been involved. When thinking about that, perhaps this was our fortune.

「But the fact that we encountered an avalanche makes our luck value switch to minus already」

「Don’t say it; I feel like holding my head at that」

We could only muster a sigh at the events.

「Well, what do we do Kanna？」

「Don’t ask me something I want to hear myself」

Even if I complain, I need to squeeze some ideas.

「Real, let me hear it straight… For how long would you be able to use magic？」

Activating spells obviously consume the user’s magical strength. What’s necessary to fully recover one’s own depleted magic power is to have a good night of rest; conversely, as long as one keeps casting spells; it won’t be possible for your own magic to gradually recover… In the current situation, our last ray of hope is Real’s magic.

「Since I unconscously protect my own body against the cold; there is no issues with myself. The thing is, the elemental magic I’m able to use…」

There is obviously individual differences with the amount of magic each person posses. Additionally, even if several people cast the very same magic spell, the magic consumption will be different in each case due to differences of suitability to that magic type.

The amount of magical energy that Real posses seems to be quite outstanding compared to any regular person. As her speciality lies in reinforcement type of spells; consumption for elemental magics can’t be good compared to the ones from her natural trait.

「I can’t exactly tell right now… I can’t hold this peace for too long; and lasting until morning would be out of the question」

Humans need heat to be healthy; and right now we don’t have at hand any sort of meal that would grant us that effect… The village girl and I have no means to increase our bodily heat other than rely on Real’s magic– Magic that can’t be possibly held for long.

「It’s a big pinch」

「Surely, a big punch」

「A pinch？」

This girl repeats after us.

「Yeah, an ultra absolute pinch」

The level was increased.

It might not sound like much from our talk; but this is a serious pinch.

「Help will probably come with the morning, right？」

「They will probably come, but it’s not sure if they’ll know about this cave.。 Ojou-san, are people aware of this cave in the village？」

「Maybe, I think that otou-san and the others know about; but, it’s my first time comming here…………」

「It’s not like I want unreasonable wishes granted; but at least our luck should change a little bit more for the better」

「It’s still to early to be relieved」

Reasonable enough, but; if prospects become zero then it would be hard to keep your mind together.

Well, right now there is nothing we can do about this other than leave it to heavens and eagerly await for tomorrow’s rescue.

Fyuoin—-

「「Hekkushi…………」」

The freezing wind blows, the girl and I sneezed simultaneously. Not only the village girl, as there it was no choice but for me to hog her low temperature; so my body feels quite cold now. Catching a cold would be one thing, but there the uncertainty if we’ll even make to tomorrow.

「Oi, are you ok？」

「I can’t be ok now, it’s obvious I’m super cold…………」

As a complain escaped me, I noticed the essence of the natural phenomenom that has just transpired…

The wind blew; in a cave that’s supposedly sealed shut.

To make certain of this, I turned my way towards the bottom of the cave.

「What is it, Kanna？」

「…………If there is wind blowing, that means that the air is flowing inside………… If the air is flowing inside; that means there it has to be some sort of hole or access to the outside.」

The entrance we used is already blocked by the avalanche; if despise that the wind still blows, then there it has to be another exit to this cave.

「The value of our luck seems to keep increasing」

「It might not be necessarily big enough for a person to pass, you know？」

「Even if it’s like that, we just need to have Real use brute force to enlarge the hole, right? If muscle reinforcement can’t be used for a long duration; then it won’t be a problem if it’s used for only a bit, isn’t？」

Pure muscle strength, enough to send fully armored knights flying; enough to produce huge gusts of winds like the ones from this mountain. Unless the rock around it is extremely hard, there is no mistake on placing our hopes on the rocks being blown away.

「Even if we can’t turn around our current situation, rather than just regret it later; wouldn’t it be better to try everything we can while we can still move？」

「…………True enough; I got it, I’ll go with your idea」

It’s great that she agreed with me; once that’s settled I show my back towards the young girl.

「I’m not sure how much we’ll need to walk; so hop on」

「Y- yeah」

The village girl couldn’t get our talk just now; she only seems to have understood that we need to move out and obediently climbed on me.

「Oni-chan’s back is wide」

「Being a man not just for show」

I wonder if the guys that have cute younger sisters feel like this? Just by carrying her, I somehow feel my heart fulfilled.

「Then onee-chan, let’s go ahead」

「Of course………… Erm, how did I ended up as your sister？」

「Nah, it’s that, you know? Going by the air you seem older」

「I’m only 18 years old」

「You really are older………… eh, only 18？　Even though you are from the long eared tribe？」

「Elves and half elves growth is not really that different from humans up until the 20 years old. Why were you thinking something unusual about me？」

「You are always so composed, being experienced in several areas; I thought you were from a well versed age」

「And if I heard what actual concrete age you were thinking, I’ll make mince meat out of you with this blade?」

「You are making it sound scary, so please speare me from that」

Even for half elves; it looks like women of all origins are concerned with their age………… And it seems to be something common regardless of the world.

It can be seen thanks to the illumination magic that Real is using; the scenery is completely made from rock without exceptions; the sense of time is being affected due to the lack of progress even if we haven’t walked for 5 minutes… There is not only stamina to consider, but we also shouldn’t stray too far to the point we lose our return path; while thinking that I saw a light at the bottom of the cave.

「This somehow, looks amazing」

We eventually stepped into a different area from the closed tunnel which was the cave so far; ending up in a room that had a huge open space. One could see the ceiling was quite high, to the extent our voices could perfecly echo around from the back; translucent shining ice walls created a hemispherical form that was dyied with different colors; I greatly admired the magnificent view which was like nothing I had seen up to now.

「Sorry Kanna, but try to focus your eyes on the center most position of the ceiling」

Rising my eyes as I was told; indeed at the highest point on the ceiling, it immediately came to view that a gigantic hole was there. Strong winds were flowing through that place bringing the cold air.

「To think the hole would be in a high ceiling. And there is no place to climb」

「Should I summon the dragon？」

「…………No, if we go outside now we’ll only bump into the snow storm; the moment we leave, such strong strong wind is enough to smash us on the rocks 」

That reason was why we initially did not use the dragon this time around and we ended up walking. Additionally; thanks to not being familiar with the local area and since it’s dark; we could only bet on flying at blind, which would end up being dangerous.

「Rather, I’m cold. It’s this room the coldest place here？」

「Indeed; even I started feeling the cold」

「In any event we’ll have to show our guts and stand the cold until morning; by the time the snow storm stops, by summoning the dragon we’ll get out; we should focus on preserving our stamina until then and since this is the coldest part; we’ll return to near the entrance of the cave.」

「There is no other options…………。 Finding a hole that leads outside is already a great thing」

From here on, the girl and I can only face straight on this endurance race to see how weakened we are until morning; return to the part of the cave where it’s less cold and quietly resist there without moving a finger.

I glanced around on last time with the girl at my back before turning back…

… But before that, I felt as if my eyes were sucked towards the central part of this space.

It is only now that I noticed this; a strange shining object is placed at the center; it’s long and narrow like a stick, that cylinder grows out from the hard rock.

「Oi Real, what do you think is that？」

「That’s………… A lance？」

Focusing where I said, Real narrowed her eyes and unveiled the identity of the object. In all probability, the elves eyesight may be many folds stronger than that of us humans; for that reason she can’t be mistaken.

At that time a rejection………… A subtle feeling that I shouldn’t leave was born.

「………… When you find a weapon in a place like this; the normal would be for a shady story to be related to it… In the fairy tales I know at least; stuff like this is the usual pattern.」

「Normally, it shouldn’t possibly be like that; but there are such stories around as well. More than that; if there is an story that comes with this, it’s probably something about a seal. If the weapon on itself gets sealed; then it’s probably something you wouldn’t want to touch.」

「And so it isーー」

It’s not an unpleasant feeling… it is not; but I still feel like I’m going to bump into a great crisis. Ever since I ended up in this world, it’s as if my 6th sense was awakened… I’m feeling uneasy now.

「………… The best would be if we don’t even look at it」

「Agreed」

After a serious consense, without even looking we where to proceeded back…

ーーーー Moving my sight, by coincidence I saw the ceiling…

Something like a magic formation appeared in the air…

「ーーーーEh, seriously？」

The formation was completely composed by light; the image was very similar to the formation on the floor that was used to summon me to this world and was at the castle.

Real also seems to have noticed the anormality; her eyes raised to the air and glimpsed the formation.

「Crap ………… It has to be a 『guardian』」

「No need to guess, it’s here to protect that spear？」

There are plenty of those in RPGs… As the name implies, it’s the last ordeal placed to protect the treasure.

「It does look like that spear has a shady story attached… Unauthorized entry probably won’t be forgiven, thus a summoning trap was stablished to deal with those who approach. Well Kanna, what now？」

「Why is the opinion of me who is a total beginner in this world keps being asked!? My vote naturally goes to running away! The truth of the issue is that surely you believe that worrying about bothersome things is too much of a pain!」

「I’m a knight after all」

「Don’t put a satisfied face in this situation!」

I strongly played the straight man, in a fluster I went back to the entrance of this space. Not even talking about me, I have the village girl on my back; from the start we didn’t had the aim of hunting for treasures, but just to rescue this girl.

The light from behind became way more noticeable; it has to be from the summoning formation… After a short period; a big sound and violent tremors could be felt on the floor. I exerted my guts as not to have my legs entangled; and I made a full speed dash towards the entrance.

Only a little bit more, as I almost said that; a large shadow could be seen at my feelt.

「-!? STEP ASIDE, REAL！」

Real who was running in front of me was only a couple of steps from the exit of this area; however as soon as my voice reached her, she jumped to the side. Almost at the same time, the sound of something incredibly large could be heard landing in the place where she just was.

Chapter 6: Ice giant draws near!

Finally some visual confirmation, huh? With a body completely made out of ice that’s over 3 meters tall, it’s a giant completely made out of ice. It’s also translucent with several colors, but white is the more prominent one. The appearance is like a giant armor without a neck and on his hand it has a gigantic sword fit for his size.

「………… This is one of those guys known as Ice Golem, huh？」

「You know about golems? They are man-made life created by pouring magic power into them; it’s an automatic doll」

The Frozen Golem stands in front of us in a way that perfectly blocks the entance.

Obviously, it won’t allow us through so easily.

「………… Can you beat it？」

「I wonder? For golems, the basics is that their capacity changes greatly depending on who created them; and it’s easy to tell that to make a golem of that size one needs considerable skill.」

The motion she performs to ready her sword is the same one she did when fending off the wolves; however unlike then, now clear traces of tension could be seen in her face.

「I’ll face this guy… Kanna, in the mean time use the gap and take away the ojou-san, just leave this place. Since he is a guard, he won’t give chase if it means leaving.」

「………… Roger」

I could feel weight in my mouth as I blurted a positive answer. I’m aware that her plan is certainly the most feasible… But having no choice other than using Real as a decoy is something that feels pretty damn bad…

「Don’t worry, after exchanging some blows; I’ll be sure to run away as well, I don’t have any suicidal tendencies.」

She only barely sided her face and then smiled at me.

That face, it struck me heavily.

I took the chance to see the girl on my back; she was shaking with fear. Her sight was not directed at me nor appealed for any requests… However, now I can only smile just like Real has.

I can’t die in a place like this, our two hearts are probably engraved with these same words; if not, we would have never had made it outside that castle.

「Well then…………………… Let’s go!」

Real advanced, wielding that heavy giant sword and with enough power that her steps crushed the ground; with enough speed that I wouldn’t think of possible. I also added power to my legs, taking a stance that would allow me to run at any time.

The right time is when Real attack lands square; once that’s done the guardian will set his aim fully on her… She will probably concentrate her attacks to leave a gap for me to escape, it’s simple; but we can only proceed with a plan like this; that’s why, I need to pull all of my effort there.

The golem reacts to Real’s movement brandishing his own sword.

It was then, only few seconds away from their swords engaging, that the golem jumped. A large jump unthinkable for such large mass…

With great momentum added, Real’s sword struck nothing; her balance completely broken. There is no way that I’m just going to watch this till the end, I don’t have that time… Because even while it’s on the air, I can tell that the landing point of the golem is right behind Real, the place I had planned running towards to.

「HEY– YOU HAVE TO BE KIDDING MEEEEEEE!!!」

Up until now in my life, this has to be the most excellent, worthy or respect ultra fast reaction I have ever had; before the golem reached the highest point of his leap, my body was already sliding sideways to another direction. The giant gave a strong swing to the location where I just was, gravity and body strength worked together to pulverize the floor’s surface with a ground shattering impact. The aftermath of said impact struck my legs… Once again I made use of a yet to be seen in my life sense of balance to keep myself standing and made a beeline towards the entrance.

It was then when I felt a shiver in the temple of my head, trusting that feeling I bent my whole body forward; when I was half bented, I had the sensation of a large mass that created winds passed through the place where my head would normally have been. My face collapesed to the ground… When I directed my eyeline there, I noticed the giant ice sword was sweeping the air, the golem had thrown it.

「Are you safe, little girl?」

「I- I’m safe…………」

After hearing that terrified reply, I stood up and turned around to check the golem; from the now empty arms of the golem ice stretched giving out a cracking sound, within seconds a new sword was created.

「Give me a break…」

I once again readied to break into a run, at the same time the golem was readying to throw his new sword!

「DEYAAAAA!!」

A great shock ran through the side of that enormous body, Real hammered that arm with a tremendous attack with that giant sword which is as big as a person. While the difference in volume was obvious, Real strike was espectacular enough to completely overwhelm the body of the golem; the frozen giant flew for a moment to then crash loudly into the ground.

「That’s some outrageous power」

Even if it’s from an ally, that great power is enough to bring chills to my spine.

「Retreat now, Kanna!」

Sadly I have no time for assenting words, now is the time to run quickly towards the entrance.

However, reality seems to be cruel…

The ice titan forcefully threw his sword even from a knocked down position; the target is not Real nor me… and thinking that it failed a throw would be an overly hasty conclusion. The giant ice sword landed on top of the exit that I was just dashing towards to.

The impact of a great mass and speed is exactly what would correspond to the description, the vecinity of the tunnel was completely destroyed; it came broking down with a large DOOON sound effect. I can’t immediately compute the scene in front of my eyes, thus my own run towards that place was not stopped and I set foot on where the exit once was.

Touching the mountain of rubble that covers the only exit, I am forced to finally face reality.

「Perfectly trapped…………」

Deprived of the sole means of escaping, a complete sensation of despair fills my body.

Even then, I refuse to give in to hopelessness and I refuse to release the power on my feet; the reason being the extra 『weight』 I feel on my back.

「Blocked in every direction.」

Before I realized Real was already at my side; I felt her breathing on my shoulder… It looks like she had already gave some blows to that giant.

「The person who made that golem surely has an amazing ability. Someone who is able to perform such a precise automatic control, is already worthy of the royal court of most countries」

「And how amazing is that？」

「With 10 people like that, you can overturn thousands of troops fighting without any tricks」

「That’s monster level…」

Once said that, just for a milisecond; Real’s eyes weavered.

「Ah, Real; please hold this a little」

「Ah？　O- Oi, Kanna!」

I forcefully passed the girl to Real before she could said anything; then I made a dash without stopping.

From when I started moving, the ice giant switched his course to me.

「「Demolish it」, Real!!」

Just once, I pointed my finger beind her.

「ーーー!!。 Damn, so I have to do this！」

Real instinctively got my intention in an instant and readied her stance towards the blocked escape way. It really is mysterious, ever since we meet, she can read my intentions perfectly with me only varely phrasing some words about it.

「Don’t die like this, Kanna!」

After such outcry, Real mows down the blockade horizontally with her sword; a great deal of rubble was blown away with each swing.

The ice golem completely ignored Real’s actions and kept turning as to always face my direction– So it was true…

It’s unknown why, but this giant has designated me as the target from the start.

Thinking back, since it appeared; the golem attacks have always involved me in some form, while completely ignoring Real whose firepower is the only threat.

Originally I had no way of ruling out that it wasn’t me, but the village girl that was in my back; but after leaving her with Real the fact is that he isn’t even looking at her right now.

Understanding that much it becomes simple, I just need to fill in the role of decoy that originally Real assumed. I’ll get his attention and Real will dig the way out; this is what’s know as the right person in the right place.

If there is a problem with this isーーーー。

「UUUOOOOOOHHHH!!!」

The giant gave yet another jump, strongly swinging it’s blade from an overhead position, he did this by the time I was screaming.

ーーーー The problem is that I need to survive until the excavation work on the exit is done.

「My parallel world life is way too filled with Violence–」

While renewing my resentment towards that princess and her whole family for having selfishly called me here, I increase the distance between me and Real. It’s true that I’m the target now; but there is no guarantee that it won’t switch to Real later.

Probably it’s because such a large object can’t ensure other means of fast movement; but the giant kept chasing me with leaping attacks again and again. Each time I narrowly dodged I felt as if my soul was being chipped away, I kept a zigzag shaped evasive route and I’m fully aware that the moment my legs fail; It’ll be my last. Probably it’s due to the fear of becoming minced meat, but right now keeping my balance while running at full strength is quite the ordeal…

Ever since arriving at this world, I have tasted it God knows how many times; that 「chill runs down my spine」 feeling which is now warning me about each and every time the giant makes a leap.

Right now the feeling is slightly different…

I turn my sight to notice that the Golem is taking different action than before. He is not straddling for a jumpstart, he raised overhead that giant sword; is he going to throw it again?

But he did not threw it; he stabbed deeply at the ground with it, smashing the surface. After that, a countless number of icebergs popped from the ground, that large amount of mountain swords came lunging, directed at me while crushing everything on their way. The speed was much lower than throwing the sword, but the targeted area increased many folds…

「ーーーー!?」

I barely escaped a direct hit from the group of raising icebergs; but the aftermath of the attack bulged the ground and sent me flying.

「Kuh…………-」

Not landing head first was the only fortune, my back struck the ground and I was send rolling. The force of the impact made me discharge a lot of oxygen from my mount, that made my field of vision blink reddish brown.

After hitting on a metalic object, my rolling was stopped.

I felt as the pain ran across my body as if it was cracked. I somehow lift my upper body; I was thrown quite far away from the straight line of icebergs; I guess that’s the true meaning of being blown away. Checking the starting point of the iceberg attack, I noticed that footsteps of the golems where drawing close.

「KANNAAAA!!」

Real stopped the work on the entrance and ran towards the golem… The distance is just too far appart, while the golem movements are slow; the distance to covered with each step is just too different, the golem will get here long before she does.

I withstand the pain in my body, and stand up by forcing my knees.

「Damn bastard………… Don’t screw around!」

If there is pain, that means that I’m still alive. Since I’m alive, it’s natural that I can move my body… I glare the approaching ice giant, I clench my own teeth as if to break them and pour more strength into my legs.

「Nuhーーーー Gaahhh」

As if they had run out of oil, every joint in my body screams in pain; but I manage to stand up. The ice giant is no longer in sight…

I don’t have time to be immersed in despair nor leeway to remember how to be afraid.

What only matters is surviving.

Keep moving forward, you can’t afford to give up here!