Zombie vs. Plant (2)

"Come on, eat up, ya!"

"Ah, yes..."

The uncle, whose attitude had flipped completely, invited us to the village and even treated us to a meal. The man turned out to be the chief of this village, and we were currently enjoying a lavish dinner inside the village hall building. He even went so far as to treat Reve's wounds using medicinal herbs.

"There, all done, ya. Be more careful from now on, ya."

"Yes..."

The old man who appeared to be the village doctor gave Reve's bandaged side a firm slap before heading out the door.

"Grandpa! At least stay for dinner, ya!"

"I'm fine, ya. I've got patients all over the place to look after, ya."

Yakacham tried to stop the doctor as he turned to leave, begging him to eat with us, but he insisted he was too busy and simply walked away.

"...Are there that many patients in the village?"

"There are, ya. For some reason, the number of zombies has exploded lately, ya."

"Zombies...?"

Reve asked the chief with a puzzled look. The chief nodded, his expression darkening.

"There were always a few, but lately the zombies have suddenly multiplied, ya..."

"Is there any particular reason?"

"We don't know either, ya. If we at least knew the cause, we could try to fix it, but not knowing makes it so frustrating, ya."

As I listened to their conversation, I secretly asked Momo.

"Momo, do zombies actually exist?"

"W-well, yeah. Oh! Then do you know who these people really are?"

"I see..."

Momo ultimately admitted she didn't know their identity either.

"Um... Yakacham?"

"Yeah? What is it, ya?"

The chief was having a serious conversation with Reve, so I had no choice but to ask Yakacham.

"So... why exactly are you all living hidden away here?"

"Ah... there's a deep reason for that, ya..."

"A deep reason...?"

"Follow me, ya. How about a short walk, ya?"

"Sure..."

Since we'd almost finished eating anyway, Yakacham and I stepped outside and began strolling around the village.

"What do you think, ya?"

"...About what?"

"This village, ya. It's unbearably boring, ya."

"Uh... is it?"

I had only just arrived, so I didn't have any strong impressions of the village yet, but Yakacham seemed to have a lot of pent-up complaints.

"You asked about us earlier, right, ya? We are druids, ya."

"Druids...?"

Looking again, the leaf-and-vine robes, the wooden staff, and the way they lived in harmony with nature all matched what I knew about druids.

"And the reason we live together like this is for purification, ya."

"Purification...?"

"That's right, ya. This forest was the site of the hero's final battle long ago, ya."

The hero...? But which one is she talking about?

The First Hero again? He really is treated like a legendary figure around here.

"Because of the hero's final battle against great evil, the forest became polluted. Our ancestors stepped forward to stop it, ya."

Yakacham continued with a gloomy expression.

"That's why our clan has lived here for generations, purifying the forest and staying separated from outsiders, ya."

"I... see."

Yeah... I didn't know what to say. Telling her to hang in there felt wrong, but offering some shallow comfort seemed even worse.

"I'm so sick of this life, ya."

She must have been holding it in for a long ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠time, because Yakacham immediately started pouring out her complaints.

"I want to leave the forest and see the outside world, ya..."

"...Can't you just leave? I don't think one person missing would be a big deal."

It didn't seem like every single person in the village was needed to purify the forest. Surely they could manage without Yakacham? If there was a reason they couldn't leave, then...

"It's a rule of our village, ya... No one from the village is allowed to go outside, ya..."

"I figured as much."

"Really, ya? The hero really is amazing, ya!"

"...Well, it's a classic trope."

Yakacham looked at me with sparkling eyes as if she truly meant it and continued.

"Hero, ya. What is your hometown like, ya?"

"My hometown...?"

"Yes, I want to hear stories about the outside, ya!"

"My hometown is..."

Come to think of it, ever since I got dropped here, so many things had happened that I hadn't really thought seriously about home.

"Home..."

"Hero, ya...?"

Suddenly Yakacham pulled me into her arms.

"Mmph...?"

"It's okay, ya. My mom used to do this for me a lot when I was little, ya."

Yakacham wrapped her arms around my head and pulled me against her chest.

"I don't know what happened, but... you're clearly doing something incredible, Hero, ya!"

"I..."

"And you've been through a lot of hard times too, right, ya? It's okay, ya... You can rest easy here, ya..."

"..."

I could only close my eyes.

"Feeling better now, ya?"

"Y-yeah..."

For a while afterward, a slight awkwardness lingered between us.

"I should head back now, ya. You should go inside quickly too, Hero, ya!"

With that, Yakacham hurried off.

"Whoa, crap—I should get back too. I left without even telling Reve..."

"Huh? Momo, what did you say?"

I could feel a strange, deep anger in Momo's sudden words.

"W-well..."

"Huh? No, that's not what I—"

"Uh..."

"N-no! If it weren't for you, Momo, I'd already be dead! You've been teaching me all sorts of things this whole time! I rely on you so much!"

"Hero!"

While I was talking with Momo, Reve called out to me from far away.

"Momo, what were you—"

"O-okay!"

I ran over to Reve.

"What's going on?"

"We need to talk."

Reve led me back to the village hall.

"We... fight the zombies...?"

"Please help us, ya!"

What I heard inside the hall was shocking. ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠The chief was asking me and Reve to fight the zombies alongside them.

"Ugh..."

"Hero, ya, we're begging you, ya!"

"Just a moment..."

I pulled Reve outside the hall.

"How did it come to this?"

"It's not for any special reason... I asked the chief about the origin of this village."

"Ah, so you heard about it too."

If I'd known, maybe I should have just listened together? No, if I had, this situation probably wouldn't have happened...

"Yeah. As far as I know, the only heroes who traveled with a druid companion were the First Hero and the Fifth Hero."

"So which one is it?"

"The Fifth Hero's final battle was in the Holy City, so... it must be the First Hero."

"I thought so..."

But the Fifth Hero had a druid companion too? They mentioned village rules, though...

"The rules? Well, there's always someone unhappy with the rules no matter where you go. They probably ran away in secret."

"Ah... I guess so..."

"You went out with Yakacham earlier. Don't tell me..."

"I-it's not like that!!! Nothing happened!!!"

"I was going to ask if Yakacham wanted to leave the village... but it looks like something did happen."

Reve spoke as if she'd seen right through everything.

"I told you it's not like that!"

"Right, I understand."

But her expression said she didn't understand at all.

"A-anyway, let's talk about the zombies!"

"Ah, right. It wasn't that they wanted us to solve the problem while living here. They just said the number of injured has increased lately and they're short on fighters."

"Then...?"

"There's a regular cycle when the zombies attack, and apparently it's tomorrow."

"They just want us to help for one day?"

"That's right."

"Then... it should be fine, right?"

After all, it's only one day... Plus we'd already received lodging and food today...

"This isn't something you can think about so lightly. It's on a completely different level from fighting that bandit leader."

"..."

Reve was right. I didn't know how many zombies there were, but the fact that they were asking for our help meant the battlefield would definitely be extremely dangerous. And the only combat experience I had was fighting skeletons a few times in the underground prison, plus that one time against the bandits after escaping.

"Besides, I won't be able to help much right now either."

While I was lost in thought, Reve added more.

"...The wound tore open more than I expected."

"Ah..."

Now that she mentioned it, Reve had been holding her side ever since she called me outside.

"In other words, you'll have to do more than one person's share, including mine."

"..."

"...I'll follow your decision. If we're leaving, it has to be now."

She was essentially telling me to decide immediately.

"Momo... what do you think?"

"Sigh..."

In the end, everything depended on my answer.

"I..."

Yabure, the Elder Druid and the only one in Capa Village to hold that title, returned to his house after hearing the hero party's answer.

'Sigh...'

Yabure's mind was complicated. The hero certainly resembled the stories passed down from his ancestors. Black hair, black eyes, and even traveling with a demon companion. Given the passage of time, it couldn't possibly be the same hero from the ancestors' tales, but the fact that he called himself a hero suggested he was likely a successor or similar being. The aura he gave off, and especially the sacred energy felt from the mask the ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠hero possessed, more than proved it.

On top of that, his daughter had grown even more silent since his wife's death, which already gave him headaches. Now the zombies that had been appearing little by little had suddenly increased in number. Yabure's head hurt even more.

"I'm back, ya."

"Dad's home, ya?"

Yabure opened the door and saw his daughter ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠preparing dinner.

"I asked the hero for help, ya."

"Help, ya?"

"Yes, ya. He'll fight alongside us tomorrow, ya."

As Yabure spoke, he recalled how Yakacham and Lee Siwoo had gone out alone earlier.

"...You went out with the hero earlier. What happened, ya?"

"Nothing happened, ya!"

Looking at his daughter, who had inherited her mother's beauty and was the prettiest girl in the village, Yabure thought it was about time he should find her a suitable partner.

"Yakacham, ya. About what I said before—"

"Dad, ya. I... want to follow the hero, ya."

But the words that came from Yakacham's mouth were completely different from what Yabure expected.

"What! What are you saying, ya!"

"Exactly what I said, ya! When the hero leaves the village, I want to go with him, ya!"

Yakacham's thoughts were firm.

"What nonsense is this, ya! You are to succeed me as chief of this village, ya!"

"I don't want to, ya! I'm sick of this village, ya!"

"You are a druid, and druids must follow the rules, ya!"

"Because of those precious rules, you didn't visit Mom even once before she died, ya!"

"You... what are you—"

Yabure's words were cut off because Yakacham stormed out of the house.

Yabure sank into a chair and stared blankly at the door his daughter had left through, thinking of his wife.

"Sigh... I miss her even more today, ya..."

Meanwhile, Yakacham ran through the forest path toward the cliff at the edge of the village. It was an ordinary cliff, but to Yakacham it was a place she and her mother had often sneaked away to when she was little, behind her father's back. Whenever she missed her mother, she would come here.

Standing on the cliff, Yakacham looked up at the shining stars and shouted loudly.

"I'm sick of this village! I'm sick of this life, ya! In my next life, please let me be born as a handsome flower boy outside the forest, ya!"

Just then, a rustling sound came from the grass near the cliff.

"...! Who's there!"

Yakacham whipped around in shock. The thought that someone had heard her embarrassing outburst made her head go completely blank.

I'm crazy, ya... I want to die of embarrassment, ya...

"Um... I was taking a walk and you suddenly ran off..."

Fortunately, the person who emerged from the grass wasn't a villager—it was Lee Siwoo.

"Hero, ya..."

"Uh... are you okay...?"

Yakacham thought to herself how lucky she was as she approached Lee Siwoo.

"That... what you heard..."

"Ah, of course I'll keep it a secret."

"Thank you, ya..."

His black hair and black eyes were different from the villagers', and unlike their leaf-and-vine clothes, he wore refined outside clothing. There were even fewer reasons for Yakacham not to like Lee Siwoo.

"Um... it's going to get dangerous soon... I heard the zombies are coming tomorrow?"

"Ah... I heard from Dad, ya. He asked the heroes for help, ya."

"I see..."

"...Why are you acting like that, ya?"

"Ah, it's nothing. Just trying to reassure you."

After Lee Siwoo spoke, a strange silence fell between them.

"This place... is somewhere I often came with Mom when I was little, ya."

"...Your mother—"

"She returned to nature, ya."

"..."

Yakacham crouched down, reached toward the edge of the cliff, and made a single dandelion bloom.

"...A flower?"

"Mom taught me, ya."

"It's beautiful."

"...Mom liked dandelions the most, ya."

The sight reflected in Lee Siwoo's eyes looked incredibly beautiful.

Yakacham stood up and suddenly stepped into Lee Siwoo's embrace.

"H-hey, Yakacham?"

"Hero, ya... I want to follow you, ya..."

"What...?"

Yakacham had become even more captivated by him after his reassuring words. His tall stature and sharp features—different from the village men—were exactly like the prince from her fantasies.

"When you leave the village, will you take me with you, ya?"

"...Do you really, truly want to leave this village?"

"Of course, ya! I want to live in a wider world, ya!"

"...Alright. After the zombie attack is over, let's leave together."

And Lee Siwoo gave her the words she had longed to hear more than anything.

"Really, ya! I'm so happy, ya!"

"Well... there have been people who ran away before..."

"It's a promise, ya! Here, ya!"

Yakacham held out her pinky finger.

"Huh...? This part is the same too..."

Lee Siwoo naturally held out his own pinky and hooked it with hers.

"I promise. Let's go together tomorrow."

"Thank you, ya! Hero... I love you, ya!"

"Eh? What did you just—"

"Then I'll be going now, ya!"

Finally, Yakacham kissed Lee Siwoo on the cheek before running off.

Yakacham ran home with a heart full of joy. If she stayed out any longer, she'd have to worry about her father's wrath, and besides, she'd gotten a clear promise.

As she ran, Yakacham thought, Tomorrow will definitely be a happy day, ya! It felt like her mother in the sky was saying the same thing.