Learning to Adapt
While Saren bathed at the water’s edge, I buried Chloe’s body. It wasn’t anything resembling a proper grave. I had neither the tools nor the strength to dig a hole, so all I could manage was to roll a heavy stone on top of her remains.
“Phew…”
“Hmm~ Hmm-hmm-hmm~”
That girl kept humming cheerfully the entire time she washed. I wondered how anyone could sound so lighthearted. For a moment I seriously questioned whether she even possessed a conscience.
“Ah, the saddle.”
Chloe’s words suddenly came back to me. I hurried over to the horse and inspected it. Just as she had claimed, a golden emblem was engraved there. I had seen the same mark on Vivian’s chest before. So this was the Elsia family crest. I wasn’t sure whether the information would ever prove useful, but I burned it into memory anyway.
The real problem was that the saddle could not be removed. Our luggage was already excessive even after we had cut it down repeatedly. What remained took up two full loads, eighty percent of which consisted of Saren’s medicine. I clicked my tongue. What was I supposed to do with all this?
“Brother?”
Saren’s voice from beside me made my whole body flinch. When I turned, I found her standing there completely naked, hands clasped behind her back, gazing up at me.
“Put your clothes on. You’ll catch a cold.”
“Hmm? How could anyone catch a cold on a day this hot!” she exclaimed, slipping her arm through mine. The heavy softness of her breasts pressed firmly against my forearm. Yet this time I felt no tremor of desire. The only thing left inside me when I looked at her was fear.
“We need to move soon, so get dressed.”
“Can’t we stay here a few more days? The spot seems perfect!”
“We can’t because of someone.”
“Oh my. Are you saying it’s my fault?”
“You killed Chloe. The smell of blood is everywhere now. Monsters or wild beasts could show up at any moment.”
“Then we’ll just fight them.”
“What?”
We stared at each other, both wearing identical expressions of utter confusion.
“You’ve already killed so many monsters, brother. Why are you suddenly afraid and trying to run?”
“……”
Those kills hadn’t been mine. They belonged to the original owner of this body. I didn’t even know how to fight.
“It means fighting is unnecessary right now. We’re already struggling just to conserve our stamina.”
“Hmmmm?”
Saren tightened her grip on my forearm and peered up at me through narrowed eyes. That sharp, searching gaze made me swallow involuntarily. No matter how I turned it over, I could find no logical excuse. There really was no pressing need to abandon such a good campsite when we were both exhausted.
Still, I prayed she would simply let it go. Please.
“Well, brother isn’t entirely wrong.”
“Right, so if you understand…”
“But still!”
“……?”
“We’re both worn out, so let’s rest here just one more day. All right?”
In the end, it seemed there was no avoiding it. No matter how many times I weighed the situation, this place was far too dangerous. Even I could still smell the thick metallic scent of blood; creatures with keener noses would find it overwhelming. An attack could come from any direction at any moment.
“Okay? Okay!?” Saren pressed eagerly.
“But do you even know how to fight?”
After what she had done to Chloe, I assumed she possessed some ability.
“Not at all. A lady isn’t supposed to do such things.”
“Ah.”
I hung my head. Nothing was going the way I wanted. What was I supposed to do now?
“Brother?”
“Fine. Go put your clothes on.”
“Hmm~ Yes!”
Saren rose onto her tiptoes, brushed a light kiss against my cheek, then spun around and skipped away with obvious delight. My gaze inadvertently locked onto her smooth, pale backside.
“Huu…”
I squeezed my eyes shut and shook my head hard.
“Saren, I’m going to gather some firewood.”
“Ah! Shall I come along?”
“It’s fine.”
While she gathered her scattered clothes, I slipped into the forest. The proximity to water had left every branch damp, so I pushed deeper in search of dry wood. My mind wandered as I walked.
Saren lacked nothing in beauty or figure. She had even grown up in comfort from birth. So what could possibly have twisted her mind so completely? Was it her illness? Or had she truly broken away from the original story? If the latter wasn’t the cause, it meant she had already been like this from the moment I possessed this body. I prayed desperately that wasn’t the case.
Crack—
“……!”
The sound of a breaking branch made me freeze and hold my breath. That noise had not come from beneath my own feet. Who was there? Saren? A monster? Some animal? Or perhaps imperial soldiers?
“Huu… Huu…”
I needed to either flee immediately or survey my surroundings. Tension had locked every muscle in my body; I couldn’t move an inch.
Crack— Crunch—
There it was again. The cold, snapping sound brushed past my ears once more. This time, however, I could pinpoint the exact direction. Not in front. Not behind. Not to either side. Directly above my head.
“Uwaah!!”
A chill raced across my skin. Pure instinct hurled me sideways.
KUUUUUNG—!!
A tremendous crash shook the ground as dust exploded from the exact spot where I had been standing.
“Huk… Huk…”
From within the swirling dust rose a massive shadow accompanied by a low, heavy growl. The creature possessed the enormous frame and beast-like outline of a monster, yet faint traces of humanoid shape remained. This was one of the monsters that roamed this world.
I had no time to hesitate. My hand shot into my inner pocket, but my fingers closed around nothing.
“Huh?”
The dagger that should have been there was gone.
……Why?
[KRAAAAAH!!]
Seizing my momentary shock, the monster burst through the dust cloud and charged straight at me.
“Ugh!!”
I rolled desperately to the side, snatched up a rock, and hurled it with all my strength.
Thud—!
The impact produced not the soft sound of flesh but the dull clang of stone against solid armor.
“Ha, fuck.”
How was I supposed to defeat something like that with my bare hands?
[Grrrr!!]
Irritated by the rock, its rotting eyes glowed a sickly yellow as they fixed on me. The creature resembled a werewolf clad in armor, yet its body was thoroughly decayed. That meant it belonged to the Demon King’s undead forces. Why were they here?
“Haa… Haa…”
I had to focus. This was no time for idle thoughts. I couldn’t abandon Saren and flee. That left only one choice: fight with everything I had.
Without a dagger, I had no way to pierce that thick armor. My only hope was to blind it by attacking the eyes, then escape. I groped across the ground, scooping dirt into one hand and grabbing a sharp wooden stick with the other.
The plan was sound. I had the resolve to carry it out. But—
“……Cough?”
When awareness returned, a massive claw had already punched straight through my stomach. I never even saw it move. No—the monster had definitely been slow, yet my body simply refused to respond.
Did it hurt? I couldn’t tell. All I felt was bitter resentment. I had struggled so hard to survive. I had turned my back on Vivian, who sacrificed everything for us, and run. Was everything truly impossible without her?
No. Even if she were here, I still wouldn’t be able to defeat this monster. This wasn’t about Vivian’s presence. I was dying simply because I was weak.
At least Saren hadn’t died this time. Even if her mind was broken, she was still my sister—the one I had to protect. That was enough. That was…
My trembling arm rose. With the twig clutched in my hand, I feebly tapped the undead between its eyes and gave a small, wry laugh.
“Hurry up and kill me, you rag-wearing bastard.”
The moment the words left my mouth, the monster’s other claw tore through me as well. With a sickening rip, it wrenched my upper and lower body apart.
“Guh—!!”
It hurt.
“Huk… Kheok……”
It hurt. It hurt. It hurt. It hurt.
Yet I could neither scream nor twist my face in agony. My body had already ceased to function. All I could do was lie there helplessly, drowning in the terror of death.
I was scared. I wanted to live. I didn’t want to die.
I would come back again this time, right? It couldn’t really end like this, could it?
The possibility that this might be my final chance made my teeth chatter with fear so intense it felt as if my mind were shattering. But even that thought lasted only a moment. Soon I could only stare at my severed legs lying on the ground as consciousness slowly faded.
“Huuuuk—!!”
I gasped violently and my eyes flew open. Once again I found myself floating in that dark, empty space.
“Huk… Huk…”
Experiencing it twice had brought both relief and certainty. Until I completed this entire story, I would not truly die. More precisely, I would die—but I would always come back. That single simple truth dulled the fear of death, if only slightly.
[Together with the Three]
Starting point has been altered.
The story will now begin from the moment the three of us stood together at the mansion’s back gate.
“……Huh?”
From the very beginning, the three of us together? So this was essentially a save point.
One more thing. The fact that a save had been registered meant the story had followed its predetermined path at least up to the scene where the three of us met at the mansion’s back gate.
“Ha… Haha…”
Realizing that what I had dismissed as meaningless flailing had actually been inevitable sent an unexpected flutter through my chest.
Chloe’s Protection? Was this the reward for encountering her? The fact that such a reward existed suggested she truly was a saint. Still, one hundred percent resistance against the undead left no room for hesitation.
“YES.”
[Chloe’s Protection] title has been equipped.
I felt no physical change, so I couldn’t tell whether it had truly taken effect. Still, the system didn’t lie. I could only trust that the title was now active.
To the Beginning
This death had given me both a clue and a sliver of hope. That single realization kept a smile fixed on my lips. At last, I was beginning to grasp how this world truly worked.