Chapter 9
Chapter 9
-----------------------------------------------------------------
>Translator: Lord First
>Chapter: 9
>Chapter Title: From the Flames
>-----------------------------------------------------------------
Residents of a Gag World Are Fine Even When Hurt.
Before Rania could say anything to stop it, a flame shot out.
"Gah!"
In that instant, time began to slow down.
*Thwip.*
My body straightened.
*Thwip.*
My back arched into a curve.
*Whoooosh—*
The slowly approaching fireball passed through the ring I’d formed with my body and hit the floor. I rolled forward twice, landing on one knee with my arms spread out to the sides.
BOOM!
Like something out of Power Rangers, a massive explosion erupted behind me. I grinned, pleased with myself, until...
*Fwoosh!*
"Ack."
The smell of burning wood made me whip my head around.
"Aaaah! F-fire!"
I hastily took off my shirt and flapped it at the roaring flames, trying to put them out. But the fire only grew stronger, as if I’d fanned it.
"Looks like it'll burn just fine on its own. Let's be on our way, Master."
"N-no, wait. I owe that guy."
"Huh? Owe him?"
Rania and Mia's words didn't quite register in my head.
'The underground prison! If I leave things like this, all the kids could die!'
I wasn't sure how different this place was from a gag world, but I knew for certain that death was a real possibility here.
'I have to save them!'
As one of the gag folk who rides roller coasters without a seatbelt, holding back was out of the question. With a grimly determined expression, I headed for the underground prison.
SLAM!
I burst through the door and rushed down into the basement.
"Kids! Get out, quick! There's a fire!"
"F-fiwe?"
"Uwaah... ugh..."
The children, who hadn't learned to speak properly yet, bit their tongues and stared with wide eyes. Meanwhile, the flames grew, and acrid smoke began to seep into the basement.
*Clang! Click!*
I quickly took out the key, unlocked the doors, and started pulling out the children, who were sitting there with blank faces.
"N-noo!"
"Waaaaah!"
Thinking they were being dragged away by a black mage, the children collapsed to the floor and began to cry.
"Aah?! H-hey, kids, don't cry! C-come on, be good now, okay?"
In the chaos, I fumbled around, flustered, before finally trying to lift a child into my arms. Just then, Noah, emerging from the next cell, shouted with a deep frown.
"Stop it! Do you all want to die here?!"
"Hic!"
At the harsh reprimand, the crying child froze. Noah looked at the children and said.
"You may not be able to speak well, but you can understand me, right?"
As Noah met each child's gaze, they hesitated before nodding. Noah squeezed Nero's hand tightly and continued.
"You all heard it earlier. That sound."
"Huh? What sound?"
I looked between Noah and the children, the only one out of the loop. Noah casually ignored me and spoke to the frozen kids.
"And look over there."
*Fwoosh!*
Beyond the wide-open door she pointed to, licking flames were visible.
"The fire is real. If we stay here, we could all die. So stop throwing a fit and follow me. You don't want to... die here, do you?"
I applauded internally, impressed.
'Wow... The original characters really are on another level.'
Following Noah's lead, the children began to head out, one by one. Though there was a fire, it hadn't spread too far yet, so escaping wasn't difficult. Or so it seemed.
"...Wait, what about that girl?"
Noah said, her face alarmed.
"The one with the red hair who was in the same cell as me—"
"...!"
Before Noah could finish her sentence, I dashed back into the blazing building.
"Wait...! You—"
Noah's words were swallowed by the roaring flames, impossible to hear clearly.
"Jess! Where are you, Jess!"
The inside of the house was already engulfed in flames. I covered my mouth with my sleeve and pushed through the fire. The tops of my feet were cooking, turning a grotesque color, but I paid it little mind. It didn't hurt as much as I expected, and I instinctively knew I'd be healed by tomorrow.
"Jess!"
"Hng..."
"..!"
I found the little beastman girl, Jess, in the kitchen, where the fire had just begun to spread. She was crammed inside a cabinet, hugging her tail with tears welling in her eyes.
"Haa... Thank goodness."
"Huh?"
Jess must have eaten a lot in the meantime, as there were food crumbs around her mouth. Seeing that, a laugh escaped my lips out of sheer relief.
I took off my shirt and soaked it in the clean water I'd drawn for cleaning. When that wasn't enough, I grabbed an apron that was starting to catch fire and soaked it too. I poured the remaining water over my own head. Then, I wrapped the wet cloths around Jess's body.
Jess, being malnourished, was so small that the damp cloths covered most of her body. She looked up at me, her eyes brimming with tears. Her ears and tail were trembling pitifully. I put on my most nonchalant smile and said.
"We'll be outside in a second, so just keep your eyes closed, okay?"
"Un..."
Holding Jess wrapped in the cloths, I looked back. Dark red flames were already creeping into the kitchen.
'Times like these, it really sucks being a slave.'
To prevent escape, the kitchen had no windows, and the walls were built incredibly thick. The only way out was through the blazing entrance.
I muttered with an awkward smile.
"At least... I hope my hair doesn't burn off."
The cruel gag world... it'll heal anything else... but it won't protect your hair. Probably because it's funnier that way. *Sob*.
Determined to protect my eyebrows and hair, I ducked my head as low as I could and escaped the house.
CRASH!
Behind me, I heard the sound of the house's pillars falling and furniture collapsing. Odil's house, which I'd always complained was too cramped, felt far too spacious today.
*Tsssss!*
The smell of my own flesh burning filled my nostrils as I made it out of the house.
"Gasp!"
Maybe because I'd inhaled so much thick smoke, but the moment I was outside, I could finally breathe.
"Rian!"
"Hyeong!"
The children, who had been huddled together outside, ran toward me. I collapsed to my knees on the dirt ground and looked down at Jess in my arms.
"Hahh..."
Jess's eyes fluttered open, and she looked up at me. Thankfully, she didn't seem hurt anywhere. I carefully set her down on the ground and immediately raised a hand to feel my hair.
It's there! It's here! A little singed at the ends, but otherwise, it's fine!
"What a relief!"
"What do you mean, 'what a relief'?! Are you crazy?!"
Noah cried out, looking at my skin, which was so red it was peeling. My feet were in especially bad shape. The skin had burst, and they were bleeding and oozing fluid.
"Ah, this is fine. It'll heal up soon."
"Hmm. Now that's quite an interesting story."
Before Noah could get angry, an alluring voice came from behind. I turned my head to see Mia staring at my feet.
"To heal this quickly..."
Her eyes sparkled as she watched my feet healing. While the recovery was too slow for a normal person to perceive, her eyes seemed to be observing it perfectly.
"You said you had nowhere to go, didn't you? In that case, I shall take you with me."
"Oh, that's a good idea. But if you're taking him, try not to kill him before he's an adult, okay?"
Rania, who was standing with her hands clasped behind her head, grinned as if things had worked out well. At the warning not to perform any experiments lethal enough to kill him, Mia's expression soured slightly before she nodded as if she had no choice. Rania came up to me, leaned down, and whispered in my ear.
"Consider the cookie you ate earlier paid for, got it?"
With that, she spun around and disappeared into the dark street. Onlookers who had been creeping out to see if they could scavenge anything from the burning house took one look at Rania and fled in terror.
"Well then, shall we be going?"
Mia pulled on my arm, the skin of which was peeling from the burns. It was a grip completely devoid of consideration... but my attention was focused on something other than the pain.
*Squish.*
'Gasp!'
The soft... anyway, the indescribable pouches of wisdom pressed firmly against my elbow.
'What a reward... I am grateful.'
With that thought, I staggered to my feet.
"Um, if it's alright, could you take these children as well?"
"What?"
As soon as I made the request, her expression soured. It was a look that said, 'Why is this bug talking?' I waved my hands frantically and explained.
"W-well, they're like my little siblings. If they're not with me, I might get so sad that I just die of depression or something."
"Is this related to your body?"
To her skeptical question, I immediately nodded my head vigorously.
"Y-yes! If my psychological state deteriorates, my physical condition gets ex! treme! ly! bad, so..."
"Hmm, if that's the case, I suppose it can't be helped. However..."
She leaned down toward me. And against my burned chest... Mia's large, magnificent breasts were squashed. At the same time, I could feel her breath, her sweet breath. I froze completely, staring blankly at her beautiful face.
'The belle of my school wouldn't even compare.'
My stiff expression was reflected in Mia's glasses. Fortunately, I wasn't making a dumbfounded face.
"You won't mind if the experiments get a little more... intense, will you?"
"Y-yes."
Intense, she says. What's intense? Ah, experiments? She said experiments, right? Intense experiments? That has a nice ring to it.