Chapter 209: The Witching Hour
Ruin looked in the direction his companions were headed.
[……They’re late.]
[She may have run further away than we thought.]
Yuugungu said as he wiped the blood away from his axe.
Following the conversation, Myana uttered her regrets.
[I should have punished her more if she’s that lively……]
[I agree.]
Satsuki voices out his agreement.
[I had warned you before. That we should have taken her eyes away back then.]
He was blaming Ruin.
Hearing him, Ruin felt dejected.
[In the end, Satsuki was right huh…… Even though I’ve been so kind to her, I didn’t expect her to run away. For her to betray me like this…… It feels too cruel.]
Vexed, Myana’s eyebrows raised.
[Seriously, I can’t believe her……! Even though Ruin had been so kind as to give her the job of being our baggage carrier! What the heck was she complaining about!? Returning gratitude with resentment…… Nyaki’s the worst of the scums!]
[Now, now, Myana.]
Arene soothed her.
[You know that what you’re talking about isn’t a human…… It’s just like teaching some beast who has a bad memory how to do tricks, you know? Isn’t it wrong…… to expect from then anything, in the first place?]
Putting her hands on her hips, Myana pouted.
[That might be so but……]
Caro pats Myana on her back.
[It will be alright, Myana. They may take some time, but I’m sure Toad and Bard will come back with that fake-human. When she gets back, let’s make sure her eyes are properly gouged out. Come on, I’ll be the one carrying the luggages.]
Arene lets out a smile.
[I’m sure my cooking utensils will be safe if Caro carries them for me.]
[Well, I’m not a weakling like that fake-human after all!]
[Umm…… Can I be honest here? I didn’t really want Nyaki to carry my cooking equipment. I wouldn’t have wanted her to even touch me if it’s possible but……]
[Well, it’s natural why you felt that.]
Nana Tout nodded her head.
The atmosphere of the place was gradually regaining its peacefulness.
However, Satsuki brings the atmosphere back to normal again.
[I know everyone is concerned and even though I’m reluctant to say this……. but this is a situation brought by your own naivety, Ruin.]
[……I know. Nyaki may be a fake-human, but she’s someone that Vysis-sama is looking after. So, I desperately clenched my teeth and tried hard to keep the killing intent in my heart. And…… I enthusiastically tried educating that fake-human to be a useful tool for humans. However…… This is what happened. Nyaki betrayed me. In the end, she was the same as those Speed Tribe fake-humans who are crazy in the head…… D*mn it——- D*mn it……! D*mn it!]
Ruin punched the tree to the side.
The thick trunk shook with his punch, and leaves began fluttering around.
Tears of frustration appeared in Ruin’s eyes.
[Ruin, stop blaming yourself!]
Myana ran over and took Ruin in her embrace.
[Myana…… I just…… I just……!]
[It’s alright.]
Myana softly hugs Ruin.
[Everyone likes you…… Even Satsuki, he’s saying that only because he’s worried about you. You know that, right? In truth, Satsuki likes you…… Maybe even more than we do.]
“Hmph.” Satsuki snorted.
[However, I just…… I was——]
[How about we check if the Faraway Country really exists first? Then, we will join forces with the rest of Alion’s elite——- and wipe out all of these fake-humans ourselves.]
Myana breaks her embrace.
Next, she stands in front of him and puts her hands on Ruin’s shoulders.
Then, with a big smile on her face, Myana spoke.
[You are the symbol of the Heroic Sword, right?]
[Myana……]
[You’re the Hero that’s trying to save the world from the dangerous species that will harm humanity’s future, right?]
Giving him an encouraging smile, Myana continued.
[If it’s you, you can do it——– I assure you that.]
[—————]
Ruin wiped the tears away with his sleeve.
A strong glow returned to his watery eyes.
[My bad, Myana…… I was feeling a bit weak-hearted.]
Watching them, Arene let out a slightly self-deprecating smile.
And then, she softly muttered.
[……I’m really no match from her.]
Yuugungu puts her hand on Arene’s shoulder.
[Are you going to give up?]
[……No. I’ll go do my best for a bit more.]
[I see…… I’ll be rooting for you.]
[……Thanks, Yuugungu.]
[Gahahaha, that’s because I’m betting against Bard afterall! If you lose, I will lose my bets!]
[G—–Geez! Yuugungu, you……!]
Looking as the two of them talk exchange such conversation——-
Everyone laughed.
[……What’s the matter, Ruin?]
[No, it’s just that…… I finally remembered how much fun the atmosphere around us was when that stranger isn’t around…… I feel glad.]
[That it would be great if Nyaki doesn’t come back?]
[Frustrating it may be, but that’s not going to happen until we open the door to the Faraway Country. She also had another Divine Beast, but Vysis-sama seems to want to preserve that one…… We have no choice but to rely on Nyaki.]
[I don’t know if I should say you’re patient or not but…… You’re really splendid. It’s as if you believe in humanity.]
Ruin lowered his gaze.
[In the end though…… Nyaki was the same as the Speed Tribe.]
[……Yes, that’s right.]
[She’s different from humans. She isn’t someone that wouldn’t be able to do something after she was trained…… We really have to destroy their kind.]
*poink*
Myana poked Ruin’s forehead with her fingertips.
Ruin looked at her, puzzled.
[ ? ]
[Your eyebrows are creasing up again, you know?]
[Aahhh……]
[Remember what you said…… when we got rid of the Speed Tribe?]
Myana smiled.
Ruin understood.
That’s right——- There’s that huh.
[……Killing Nyaki with just hatred isn’t good, right?]
[That’s— what—- I mean. That also includes those that are living in the Faraway Country, alright?]
[Thank you, Myana. It’s as you say.]
Everyone was silent, listening to their conversation.
Ruin looks over at everyone.
Yuugungu smiles at him and nods his head.
Arene, smiling as well, and nods her head.
Satsuki, even though he snorted in response, slightly nods his head.
Caro, smiling with one eye closed, gives him a thumb up.
Nana Tout, stroking her chin, spoke her understanding.
Ruin’s eyes completely regained its radiance.
[Yeah, that’s right…… Unnn…… Whether it’s killing Nyaki or those who are living in the Faraway Country…… It’s too sorrowful to just carry it out with hatred in our hearts…… That’s why……]
“The Heroic Sword”, Ruin Seal radiantly smiled, with a sense of mission in mind.
[Let’s think of a way to make our killing fun for everyone! Let’s do this for the deceased Strife too!]
▽
However…
Whether it’s killing Nyaki…
Or checking the location of the Faraway Country…
All of this could only be done after bringing Nyaki back.
Ruin and the others waited.
However, neither Toad not Bardwitcher seemed to be coming back at all.
The two of them are the best trackers in the group.
There’s no way that the two of them wouldn’t be able to chase after someone like Nyaki.
[…………………..]
The darkness of the night began drawing near.
Nana Tout groaned.
[That beast should be so hungry that she can’t muster much strength. Thinking that something like this may happen, I sometimes even wake her up in the middle of the night on purpose……]
[Nyaki was probably moving all the time while we were saying our goodbyes to Strife…… But in her current state, she should have been caught by Toad and Bard by now……]
Caro, who is good at analysis and calculations, said.
But in reality, they haven’t come back yet.
That is strange.
With a face filled with regret, Nana Tout hits her knee.
[I really should have gouged out her eyes.]
[Her ears too, Tout. We should have taken away her hearing too. We were…… too naive.]
[Even if that’s the case, it’s still weird that those two haven’t come back yet……]
Arene said.
Ruin, who had been silently listening to them, held his hand over his mouth before he spoke.
[Could it be…… that they encountered a Human-Faced?]
[——–That might be possible.]
Satsuki held the same opinion.
“Umnnghhh…” Yuguungu’s lips crooked.
[I thought that the area we passed through would be safe now……]
Ka-shannn
Satsuki drew the blade of his katana out of its scabbard for a bit.
[I’ll go.]
[I’m coming with you.]
Nana Tout sat up, Caro followed her.
[Me too.]
Nana Tout and Caro.
They seemed to be angrier than they thought.
Of course, it was about Nyaki.
Caro asks Ruin.
[If I catch her, it’s fine if I crush her eardrums, right?]
[I guess…… It can’t be helped.]
[I’m going to use my katana to cut off her ears. Just crushing her eardrums won’t clear away this anger…… Don’t you dare stop me, Ruin.]
No.
It seems that Satsuki is also the same.
Everyone holds the same thoughts.
They really wanted to kill her right away——
All of them are angry at Nyaki for running away.
It was probably something inevitable.
Somehow, Ruin knew that.
They all felt this way, though they didn’t say it out loud.
“Tracing it back to the source, isn’t Strife’s death also entirely Nyaki’s fault?”
—is what they are thinking.
[……I know how you feel. However, don’t get too worked up and end up killing her, okay?]
[I may look like this, but I know when not to cross the line. You know as well as I do, don’t you?]
Nana Tout, who had finished her preparations, brushed away the dirt off her butt and asked for approval.
[I’ll crush both of her eyeballs as soon as I find her, okay?]
[……She’ll probably be wailing and screaming, so you have to bear with it when that happens.]
[Fufu, you really are kind. Don’t worry, I won’t get upset and kill her just for that.]
[I’m sorry for always making you endure, Tout.]
[Fufufu. It’s not like I’m enduring as much as you do.]
Caro adds.
[Then what about me? Should I break her legs then?]
[No…… That would require someone to carry her on their back. However, no one is willing to touch Nyaki, right?]
Ruin asked everyone with a glance.
Everyone instantly agreed with him.
“There’s really no need to check with them though.”, is what Ruin thought as he let out a self-deprecating smile.
[Then, I’ll go tie Nyaki up…… We’ll just have to make her walk while dragging her by a rope. If she walks too slow, she would need more “training” but…… That’s until we find the location of the Faraway Country. We’re almost there. This journey where we have to endure the presence of this fake-human who keeps on striking our nerves…… We just have to brace ourselves for a few more steps.]
“Alright.”
The three of them, who were on their way to search, vigorously responded.
▽
After Satsuki and the others disappeared into the forest, the remaining Ruin and the others waited for them.
[……I hope Satsuki and the others safely met them already.]
[It’s alright, Ruin. Satsuki is there with them.]
[Gahaha! You’ve always been quite the worrywart, Ruin!]
They aren’t in the forest now.
They were in a reasonably open place.
There are a few stone-made buildings erected in the vicinity.
However, most of them don’t have the appearance of a building.
There are some stone walls, but they are already crumbling and aren’t high enough to provide sufficient protection.
Therefore, there was virtually nothing to block the view.
They could hear the chirping insects.
They could also hear birds, though it was rare, and what seemed to be monsters’ roars from the distance.
However, Satsuki and the other have yet to return.
[……The sun is about to set already.]
Looking at the sky which was dyed a deep purple, Arene muttered.
“The Witching Hour”
Such words suddenly popped into Ruin’s head.
He heard that these words were handed down by a Hero from another world long ago.
This is the time of the day when demons appear——
It’s also the time of the day when disasters come to people.
Arene sighed.
[The skies look ominous.]
—————————————————–Badump!
It came fiercely into his mind.
Ruin’s heart leapt.
(This is——-)
His instincts——- His intuition is telling him.
That it’s drawing near.
Something is.
Something dangerous.
[……Something’s weird, Ruin.]
Yuugungu spoke.
[The insects around the surrounding simultaneously stopped chirping.]
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