Ep.1 - The Great Thief Philmark (2)
Ep.1 - The Great Thief Philmark (2)
*
Even after a grueling day, the sun eventually set.
Night always found us like that, granting sweet repose to the waking spirit.
The moon's hour, when darkness spread everywhere...
"Here, eat."
Right on cue with the moon's hour, a Bandit Woman plopped a bowl down beside the man's head.
A dagger stained with beast's blood.
Boar meat neatly sliced with it.
Various context clues naturally indicated that the bowl contained a meal.
"..."
But the man was having a hard time regaining consciousness.
His body had decided it needed a brief 'power-saving mode' to process the accumulated fatigue and overstimulation. This is the survival instinct — the restorative function of a physical mechanism.
"Hey. Hey!"
However, such a restorative function — in other words, [Rest] — inevitably required a considerable amount of time,
and the Bandit Woman had neither the leisure to wait nor any reason to do so,
"I said get up!"
so she immediately strode into the iron cage and kicked the man's butt repeatedly — thump, thump — demanding an immediate response.
"Ah... hgk..."
The man woke. Consciousness returned.
Though one might have wondered if it wouldn't have been better to just stay passed out, he stubbornly regained his spirit.
'...fuck.'
"Eat. Can't you hear me?"
Tap, tap—
The Bandit Woman poked the bowl placed before my eyes with an irritable air.
"Eat it before I knock it over."
I couldn't count how many times I'd heard such coercive words just today alone.
In this lawless space ruled by force and violence, there was no such thing as human rights, and naturally, no consideration either.
I picked up the bowl with trembling hands and inspected its contents.
Meat.
Had quite some time passed since it was cooked? A pool of dark red juices had collected at the bottom of the bowl.
"..."
I stole a glance at her, showing no sign of leaving, then picked up the meat and carefully bit into it.
They say in these fantasy worlds the cooking is usually terrible or it stinks of gaminess, but
the meat they gave me was so excellent I found myself tearing into it ravenously before I knew it.
Maybe it was because I was so damn hungry. It was my first meal after being raped like crazy all day — I guess anything would've tasted good.
"Is it good?"
Seeing that Bandit Woman grinning from ear to ear made me feel like spitting out the meat I'd been enjoying, but since I had no idea what they'd do to me if I showed my true feelings, I forced myself to nod.
"Hey, you know how to drink, right? Want a glass?"
Did I want a glass?
'Who knows what they're trying to feed me... no. What they're going to do to me.'
"Watch your eyes. You wanna loosen up? Huh?"
'...First, I turn my eyes toward the bowl. I don't want to get hit. It hurts like fucking hell.
Every time they hit me, my head rings numb, so now my body automatically flinches the moment they even raise a hand.'
I couldn't for the life of me understand how they were so strong. As far as they were concerned, they seemed to be pulling their punches and slapping me around like a joke, but from the receiving end, it hurt enough to make me black out...!
"Anyway, I'll bring some, so you drink too. Got it?"
She just laid out her own words persistently and then sprang up and headed somewhere.
Only after confirming she had gone quite a distance away was I finally able to look around the space enclosing me in detail.
This place was, quite literally, a prison — an area completely blocked by cave walls except for the entrance, which was sealed tight with what looked like iron bars.
"..Save."
[Save point set!]
'Good.
Finally, the time has come to properly utilize the Save&Load ability.
This is the only thing I've been given, so I had to understand it inside and out and use it well wherever appropriate.'
"Oi, catch!"
"Ah? W-wait..."
Just as I was reading the save confirmation message, a fairly large bottle came flying toward my face.
I stared dumbly at the bottle that had ended up in my arms and gauged the Bandit Woman's reaction.
Wasn't she leaning against the wall, chugging her drink while sending a rather kindly gaze my way?
I wasn't quite sure why her smile beyond the iron bars suddenly felt so kind.
I just,
hesitated a moment at that fleeting kindness, then soon accepted the drink she'd given me and drank.
The liquid, which seemed like a half-and-half mix of wine and vodka, slid down my esophagus and warmed my stomach.
"Keok, ke-heuk..."
"Pft! That's too strong for you? You really are a little lord."
'That's not it — it's because I'm drinking alcohol after being wrung dry for ten-some hours without even a sip of water...!'
I hurriedly wiped my mouth with my wrist and then slammed back more of the drink.
If I'd been in my original world, I would never have drunk like this for fear of throwing up on the street midway.
"Whoa~ finally drinking like you mean it. That's more like it."
I wasn't drinking to be her drinking buddy. Nor was I drinking out of despair to forget my exhausting reality.
"Pu-hek, he-euk... hoo..."
The alcohol would hit me soon enough. My brain would go hazy, my body would heat up, and a sharp headache would set in.
"From now on, you live here. The Boss already gave her permission. This back part is your home, so remember it well. When you need to go, just do it anywhere. This space was specially made to hold hostages until we squeeze out their ransom, so excrement and stuff get taken care of automatically."
'Right. What a convenient feature.
It seems like a space with magic applied to it, huh?
Even if it's a shitty situation, it definitely feels like a fantasy world. Being able to naturally spout such ridiculous nonsense — that's only possible because they have unreal abilities like magic.'
Apparently magic was quite common in this world, seeing as even these thieves talked about it like it was nothing.
In a lot of comics and novels, things like spatial magic were depicted as considerably high-level spells, but this place seemed to be a different case.
'Alright...'
"Hoo..."
The intoxication was kicking in.
"Hey, if you can't drink well, take it slow. At least keep me company while I'm standing guard."
"You might as well just fuck him. That'd pass the time better, wouldn't it."
"...Are you trying to seduce me? Seems the drink's bringing out your true nature."
"But it's true. Why just stand there watching without doing anything? You could touch him however you want, grope him... do everything."
"The Boss said not to lay a hand on him for a few days, so I'm holding back. Remember what you just said a week from now. As soon as the Boss gives the okay, I'll right away..."
'Right.
Okay.
They won't touch me for a week.'
"Load."
[Loaded to save point.]
"Oi, catch!"
A fairly large bottle came flying toward my face.
Just like before, the flying bottle slipped right into my arms, and
leaning against the wall, the Bandit Woman chugged her drink. Her eyes were rather kindly.
I silently observed that fleeting kindness, then soon accepted the drink she'd given me and drank.
The taste was exactly the same, the aroma was exactly the same,
and the burning sensation that came with the swallow was exactly the same.
There was no alcohol buzz at all yet. It would probably hit me soon. Since I'd just drunk it.
"..."
The first fact I learned.
When I Load to a save point, I return to the physical state I was in at that time.
The second fact.
Nevertheless, my memories remain intact.
The third fact.
The moment I shout Load, I return to the save point instantly. Without even a moment's gap, it happens the very instant the word finishes.
"You drink a fair bit? It's pretty strong~"
And it seemed like people didn't feel any sense of dissonance even when I returned to the exact same point.
'First, let's just drink moderately and pass the time.
Until that day when an opening appears, I'll endure somehow,
and the moment I see one, I'll use the Save&Load ability and run away.'
...
"So, against those crazy female knights, our bandit troop managed to escape together, all of us in one piece, and spread the infamy of the renowned Philmark Bandit Troop even further! That's the story~"
"Yesss... well, I suppose so."
Whether it was the drink that had lifted her mood further, the Bandit Woman started spilling all sorts of stories about themselves.
How they'd looted the treasure of some royal family, stolen a necklace from some dragon's nest, snatched a holy cross and fled...
Listening quietly to her bragging so proudly about such crimes, I was truly dumbfounded. Why the hell did they do that kind of shit, I wondered.
Of course, I had to hide those negative thoughts and listen very attentively to her stories.
I wasn't particularly interested, but it was a way to grasp clues to understanding this other world.
Starting with what nations existed, what kinds of monsters there were,
the value of money, the flow of combat, the locations of nearby villages,
people's lifestyles, their values...
Of course, just listening to one Bandit Woman would be woefully insufficient for understanding this other world, but it was certainly better than not listening at all.
"So then, what happened next?"
"After that, we took the treasures we'd grabbed, split up and sold them off, and then..."
"Rami. How far are you planning to go?"
...My attentive listening came to an end like that with the appearance of the bandit boss, who stared at the Bandit Woman and me with piercing eyes.
"B-Boss...?"
She walked over very slowly, yet with immense menace,
and then planted a hand on the Bandit Woman's shoulder and gave an order in a low voice.
"Leave. I'll take over the watch personally."
"Y-yes, ma'am!"
The Bandit Woman named Rami caught the strange vibe the boss was giving off and hurriedly fled the scene as if running away, and
"Euh..."
left all alone, I agonized hundreds of times over whether to Load or not, reduced to just gauging her mood.
That stare, glaring like a ferocious predator — it kept drilling into me with a force that seemed ready to chew up people and everything else alike.
"Ah... I should sleep now... ha-um..."
Utterly unable to understand what she found so hateful, I just slowly turned over and desperately tried to fall asleep.
Of course, that sharp gaze kept sticking into my back, so I couldn't easily drift off...