Ryuu Kusari no Ori -Kokoro no Uchi no 'Kokoro'-

[LN] Volume 2: Chapter 7.1

Volume 2 Chapter 7.1

Light Sinking in the Shadows Part 1

Translator : PolterGlast

After walking through the forest, Shina and her friends eventually arrived at Shino's hut.

Shino's hut has a different structure from ordinary houses on the Arkmel Continent, partly because its original owner was from the Far East.

The entrance is spacious, with a water tank on the bare ground and a fireplace next to it.

The interior is simple, with a fireplace in the center of the wood-paneled room and a small chest of drawers at the end of the room.

At first, everyone was surprised that there was a hut for people to live in this deep in the forest, but there were many who were injured, so once they entered the hut, they put the injured to sleep and began treatment immediately.

Those who could use recovery magic gave priority to those who were seriously injured, while the others went to help.

Kevin was also receiving treatment from Karanti, but his expression was still not good.

Mimuru laid the injured Tom down in Shino's hut, took medicines and medical tools from the shelves, and began to treat him.

She washed the wound, sewed it with thread, sprinkled potions on it, and bandaged it.

The bleeding was under control, but Tom was still breathing heavily and his forehead was covered in greasy sweat.

"......"

Shina, on the other hand, was casting a healing spell on Tom, but was somewhat absent-minded, as if she was worried about Nozomu, who had just become a bait and had to take care of the aftermath.

The light of healing that emanated from her hands was not stable.

"Shina, you need to concentrate ......."

"S-, sorry......"

After being scolded by Mimuru, Shina refocused her magic in a hurry.

Mimuru's voice was somewhat stiff and cold, perhaps because she too was preoccupied with her lover's wounds. Obviously, she didn't have a lot of time to spare, either.

Eventually, Tom's expression, which had been suffering from rough breathing, began to soften.

"......I think this will do for now."

"Yeah ......"

Even though they had finished treating him, Tom's injuries were so deep and there was so much blood that had spilled that he fell asleep almost as soon as the pain subsided.

After Tom's treatment was complete, they sat down to rest, but they were silent, unable to say anything to each other.

Shina was staring at the floor, her shoulders slumped, perhaps concerned about her earlier blunder, and her hands, folded in her lap, were clenched tightly.

Mimuru's hands moved restlessly as if she was getting impatient, and her gaze never left Tom, who was asleep.

An awkward atmosphere filled the room, but there was nothing they could say that would blow the tension out of the room, only silence.

"...... Hey, Sheena. Why didn't you try to run away back then?"

Eventually, Mimuru broke the silence and asked Shina about her earlier actions.

"No matter how we looked at it, that demonic beast was abnormal. We knew right away that we couldn't handle such a demonic beast. Why did you try to do something reckless?"

"T-, that's ......."

Mimuru's tone of voice was strong as she questioned Shina. Driven by the anger that welled up in her, her words gradually turned into condemnation.

Shina, too, was at a loss for words under Mimuru's angry gaze.

"If you had just stayed out of the way at that time, there would have been no need for Nozomu to do anything reckless. Tom wouldn't have had to get hurt!"

"............"

Shina could not say anything in response to Mimuru's words and looked down.

Considering the current situation, Mimuru's questioning and one-sided condemnation at this moment was not a praiseworthy action.

They had escaped from [Gray], but this safety was only temporary. The black beast was not the only demonic beast in the forest.

Asking Shina why she didn't try to escape, or even just blaming her one-sidedly, could trigger a complete split in the party.

However, Mimuru, too, was mentally cornered because her boyfriend, Tom, had been seriously injured, and as a result, she was taking it out on Shina, who had created this situation. The fact that she was able to escape to a safe place for the time being caused her tense feelings to break down, and the fact that Shina was lying on the ground without saying anything in response to her questions also added to her anger.

"You ...... please say something!"

Mimuru's voice gradually became louder.

Mimuru grabbed onto Shina, but Shina just closed her eyes tightly and bit her lip.

Seeing Shina's silence, Mimuru's patience has reached its limit. She raised her hand and tried to slap Shina.

"That's enough."

It was Kevin, who was receiving treatment from Karanti, who stopped Mimuru.

His body, which had been exposed to [Gray]'s torrent of magic power, was burned in various places, but fortunately, he was not seriously injured.

However, perhaps because he exerted all his energy to protect his friends, there was a deep color of fatigue on his face.

Even if the wounds could be erased by recovery magic, he would not be able to fully recover. Even so, it was urgent that he regain his strength, even if only a little.

"But what was that demonic beast? No matter how one looks at it, it's more than we can handle."

According to the ranks that indicate the threat level of demonic beasts, it might reach the rank of "S". Such powerful demonic beasts rarely appear in the Spasim forest.

This is because such powerful demonic beasts generally have their own territory and rarely come out of it.

"...... it's probably the Direwolf that we defeated. That's their leader."

"I knew it. We didn't confirm it was dead......"

Kevin put his hand over his mouth as he thought about what Shina had muttered. Certainly, a wolf-shaped demonic beast that boasts such a stature is limited in existence in this area.

"So, what do you know about that demonic beast?"

Shina was clearly familiar with that jet-black demonic beast. The eyes of those present were drawn to her.

"It looked like ....... The same demonic beast that destroyed my Nebula Forest ......."

Shina began to speak profusely in the face of the questioning eyes. Her voice trembled like that of a frightened child.

"I felt it when that demonic beast glared at me. I felt as if countless spirits were screaming in my ears......"

"You were supposed to have lost your connection with the spirits though."

"It ...... still is. When that demonic beast took my home away from me, I lost the power of the spirits."

She lost her family, her connection to the spirits, everything.

"At that time, I lost everything. My family, my dear friends, everything. That's why......"

That's why I wanted to at least take revenge for that. Mimuru became furious upon hearing these words.

"But thanks to that, Tom was seriously injured!"

Tom's wounds were the most severe of all those injured.

Hearing the reason for her recklessness did not make Mimuru feel better. In fact, because she had heard the reason, the wave of her emotions became even more violent and turbulent. Just as a taut string shook violently with the slightest force, Mimuru, who had lost her composure, had now taken out all her negative emotions on Shina.

"You two can fight all you want, but I have no time to spare right now. I've got to get these guys back to town as soon as possible in the morning......"

Kevin stood up with his bandaged arm draped around his neck and looked up at the night sky through the small window of the hut.

The sun was already setting. No matter how superior the physical abilities and senses of the beastmen, this forest would not be easy for them to carry a large number of wounded people with them.

"Wait, what about that guy? ......"

"...... Sorry, but right now we've got our hands full with these guys."

Looking over at his friends groaning in pain from their wounds, Kevin let out a self-mocking sigh and slumped his shoulders.

In fact, having Nozomu as a lone decoy to distract the demonic beast had cast a shadow over their hearts.

"Haa, I know it's pathetic. Just laugh at me. I've been calling you withered ears and such for years, and now, when the time comes, I'm like this."

Kevin is not one to simply sit idly by and rely on his talents. He himself came to this school to reclaim his lost homeland, and he has worked hard and behaved accordingly.

The fact that he was able to maintain the largest party in the third grade is proof of this.

But in the end, nothing could be done. A sense of helplessness filled Kevin, and without realizing it, he clenched his fists tightly.

"But that bottom-feeder ...... no, that Nozomu Bountis. How does he know about this hut? This place was obviously used until recently."

"There was even a grave in the back. Maybe someone related to him lived here......"

Perhaps because of the mention of Nozomu, Kevin and the others finally begin to voice their doubts about the gap they felt about Nozomu.

But then the beastman's superior hearing caught the sound of rustling grass.

Then, footsteps approached the hut.

The image of the black demonic beast flashed through the minds of everyone in the hut, causing them to tense up.

Shina readied the bow that was by her side, and Mimuru drew the dagger from her waist. Kevin stepped forward to protect Karanti and the others, clenching his fists.

Then, with a clatter, the door of the hut shook.

Kevin and Mimuru lowered their hips, ready to pounce at any moment, while Shina drew her bow, ready to fire an arrow at any moment.

Then the door rattled open. There was something humanoid, covered in mud all over.

"Ueeeee...... this is bad!"

"Mimuru!"

"Teeryaaa!" "Uoooo!"

"Eh?"

Shina shot an arrow right between the eyes of the humanoid, and Mimuru and Kevin leaped at it. The humanoid seemed to be saying something, but it was drowned out by Mimuru and Kevin's yells, and the others could not hear it.

"Uaaaa!"

With a cry and a body movement that did not seem to suggest the humanoid was made of mud, it turned its head away and avoided Shina's oncoming arrow, but this time Mimuru and Kevin stepped forward and swung their daggers.

"Haaaaa!"

"Wait-, waiit......."

The humanoid deflected the oncoming dagger blade by striking it with something stick-like.

Mimuru was surprised that her attack was parried, but Kevin took advantage of the opportunity and thrust his fist at the humanoid's face.

"Wait! I said wait!"

The humanoid stepped forward to avoid Kevin's fist strike while fending off the outstretched fist with his left hand.

The familiar voice finally stopped the three from moving.

The humanoid is a person with mud all over his body and was the decoy that helped them escape just a few minutes ago.

"Nozomu?"

"Yes, that's right. That's me! Why am I suddenly being attacked by my own allies!?"

Even though Shina and the others had no bad intentions, Nozomu had acted as a decoy to get everyone out of there and finally managed to join them, but when he was welcomed with arrows, daggers, and fists with the intent to kill, anyone would have raised their voice.

"W-, well, my bad......"

"Sorry, Nozomu."

"Umm ...... I'm sorry......"

"Haa, forget it......"

Nevertheless, Nozomu himself, in consideration of his current muddy appearance, recalled that it was not a good idea to have a weapon pointed at him, and he calmed down his anger.

"...... So, why are you covered in so much mud?"

Once again, Mimurul asked Nozomu what was going on.

"After I shook off that black demonic beast, I was chased by another demonic beast. I shoved it against a group of goblins I met along the way though ......"

Nozomu was blown away by the aftereffects of the [Qi-jutsu・Light of Annihilation] but encountered another demonic beast that had heard the commotion and came over. Once again, he was forced to play tag with it in the forest.

By the way, the one that chased him was an [Einherjar Horse Spider]. It is a wandering spider-type demonic beast that builds webs in the soil and roams the ground in search of food. Its rank, indicating its threat level, is B.

Its body is larger than a horse, and as its name suggests, it is named after the fact that it will eat even large animals like horses. It is an extremely dangerous demonic beast with a strong shell, sharp fangs, and even poison.

By the way, goblins are green-skinned, demonic beasts with a body the size of a human child. Its threat level is E.

The reason why they are categorized as demonic beasts despite having a body similar to that of humans is because they are a marauding and cannibalistic race.

In the past, communication with them was attempted several times by different means, but since proper conversation was never possible and they repeatedly attacked those who tried to negotiate with them, they are now treated the same as demonic beasts.

"Even after escaping, I couldn't bear to be chased again by other demonic beasts, so I removed my scent and covered myself with mud at a nearby reservoir."

Because Spasim Forest is covered with dense trees, there are many demonic beasts that rely on scent to find their prey. Wild Dogs, Mad Bears, Direwolves, etc. are representative examples of animals that rely on their sense of smell to find their prey.

Although [Einherjar Horse Spiders] also have a sense of smell, they rely more on hearing, touch, and sight, using air vibrations to locate their prey.

Nozomu drew water from a water jug at the entrance of his hut and poured it over his head.

As soon as the mud covered all over his body fell off, he felt a sharp pain in his right arm.

"~ ......!"

"That injury ......"

"Well, I got a little hurt when I was fighting that black demonic beast......"

Nozomu's right arm, exposed after the mud fell, had numerous lacerations. The lacerations were a backlash from the [Qi-jutsu・Light of Annihilation] that he had used after releasing his [Ability Suppression].

(When I used it at the Francilt mansion, I didn't get this bad of a wound......)

The reason was that he used it on the spur of the moment, which caused him to lose control of his Qi slightly.

The reason he rubbed mud all over his body was also to seal the wound with mud so as not to spread the smell of blood.

Nozomu took out a potion he had with him to treat the wound for the time being. Then, at that moment, Shina gently grasped his hand.

"...... Sit down, I'll treat your wounds."

"No, I'll do it myself, so it's fine......"

"Come on!"

Nozomu reluctantly sat down on the planks, urged on by Shina's strong tone of voice.

After confirming that he had sat down, Shina sprinkled the potion she had taken from him and began to wrap a bandage around him.

Her expression is still somewhat gloomy.

The only sound was the shuffle and rustling of the bandage.

The others remained silent, watching Nozomu receive treatment with somewhat awkward expressions on his face.

"How's Tom's injury?"

"He's already received first aid, and he's sleeping now. But I think we should get back to town as soon as possible......"

"I see......"

The conversation did not last. Nozomu glanced at Mimuru as if asking for help, but she just stared at Shina and then turned away.

For some reason, Kevin also seemed to be shaking his body uncomfortably, and his party members also looked away with a difficult expressions on their faces when they met Nozomu's gaze.

Nozomu tilted his head at the unnatural reactions of those around him.

"Hey, did something happen?"

"...... What do you mean?"

"As I said-......."

"It's done. I'll be watching outside, so if you need me, just call me......."

Nozomu tried to ask about the delicate atmosphere inside the hut, but the moment Shina finished treating him, she walked out without answering any questions.

Nozomu had no choice but to call out to Mimuru, who was closest to him.

"Hey, what's going on?"

"I don't give a crap. I don't care about Shina......"

Mimuru being Mimuru. She didn't make eye contact with Nozomu, and her mouth hung agape at him.

Sighing heavily at the sight of the two of them, Nozomu pulled out a large pot from the kitchen.

"...... What are you doing?"

"What do you mean? I'm cooking a meal. In a situation like this, if you don't eat when you can, your body won't be able to hold out."

While filling the pot with water and putting it on the fire to boil, he made a simple soup by scraping dried meat he had stored in the hut with a knife to make a broth, and adding potatoes and other ingredients.

When the soup began to boil, he seasoned it with rock salt and other seasonings, and poured it into bowls. Unfortunately, the number of bowls was limited, so they had to take turns eating it, and the pot was small, so it had to be made in multiple portions, but right now they needed the energy anyway.

"I can't guarantee the taste, but it'll warm you up. I left some for Tom, so if he wakes up and is willing to eat, let him eat."

Mimuru took the bowl Nozomu offered, but she was staring at the bowl in her hand with a complicated expression on her face.

"...... Are you okay?"

"Y-, yeah, I'm fine! Don't worry about it ...... thanks."

Mimuru immediately smiled, but even Nozomu, who wasn't the most perceptive, could tell that she was pushing herself too hard.

Nozomu, for now, divided the soup for the three of them and took the rest to Kevin and the others.

"T-, thank you ......."

"Sorry. Thanks for your help."

"No problem, it's just the way things are."

Kevin handed Karanti the bowl and pot he had received, and she began to go around giving soup to each of the wounded.

"Then again, I heard that that demonic beast also appeared in the Nebula Forest during the Great Invasion."

"Yeah, that's what that elf said. We have no idea why though ......"

"Did Shina-san mention anything else about it?"

"Well, she said she could hear the screams of countless spirits in her ears......"

"The screams of the spirits, huh?....... But she ......"

"Yeah, she shouldn't be able to hear them. The fact that the demonic beast that Irisdina and her team were supposed to have defeated looked a lot like the demonic beast found in the Nebula Forest, which shouldn't be in this forest, is also a story that I don't understand."

"It's no longer something that students can do anything about......"

"Indeed. It's a problem that concerns the whole of Arcazam. Nah, I hope that's the extent of what we are going to have to deal with. Anyway, as soon as I can move, I've got to get back to Arcazam......"

Saying so, Kevin gulped down the soup in the bowl in one gulp.

Emptying his bowl and letting out a big sigh, he turned a meaningful glance at Nozomu, who was standing by him.

"...... What is it?"

"No, I'm just thinking you're an amazing guy."

"Huh?"

Nozomu was taken aback by Kevin's sudden words of admiration.

"Look, I become a mess like this, but you managed to escape from that thing with only an injured right hand, didn't you? Seriously, what does bottom-feeder even mean? The school's grading system is so lousy......"

Nozomu was struck with an indescribable feeling as Kevin looked down at his own bandaged body and smiled to himself.

"But your injuries were caused by protecting your comrades, weren't they?"

In fact, Kevin's injuries were borne while protecting his comrades. It should be something to be proud of, not something to mock at.

However, Kevin's smile deepened and he spoke.

"What are you talking about? Aren't you the same?"

"Huh?"

From Kevin's point of view, Nozomu's action was an action that helped not only his own friends but also other parties, and the results were far superior.

On the other hand, Nozomu had a look of surprise on his face upon hearing Kevin's words, and Kevin's eyes fluttered as he saw such an unexpected reaction in him.

"Hmm, is it wrong? Weren't you and Shina's party teaming up together to go into the forest today?"

"No, we just happened to meet at that collection area......"

"I see ...... I thought you were an idiot when I heard rumors about you during freshman year, but you, you're an even greater idiot than that."

"...... What do you mean?"

Nozomu tilted his head at Kevin's implied line.

"Well, that means Irisdina had a good eye."

With a meaningful smile, Kevin pointed to the bowl of soup that Nozomu was preparing.

"More importantly, take that soup to that elf."

"Ah, right. Then, Mimuru here-......."

"Sorry, but Nozomu, you should be the one to take the soup to her. If I took it, I probably wouldn't be able to stand it and we'd fight again ......"

Mimuru asked Nozomu to do so with a gloomy expression on her face. Nozomu was unable to say anything at the look of extreme regret on her face.

"...... Alright."

Leaving Mimuru, who had turned her back on him, Nozomu took the remaining bowl of soup and walked out of the hut.

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