Yuna, Myungho, and wasn’t it Alize? The tall girl. They were going around the village checking on the sick. Mari would probably be over there at that house, taking care of someone.
Or maybe not. Could they be doing rounds together conducting examinations? That seemed likely. There was no need to go look for them, right? I have to help Akashi…yeah, with this knife.
Something felt wrong. So I tapped the rock-knife with my tail and reshaped it into a large spoon for cooking porridge. It’s strange needing a knife to cook porridge.
I wonder where Akashi is. Smelling the air, I caught a scent—something fragrant and nutty coming from over there. Ah, there he is.
Carrying the large spoon on my shoulder, I strolled over and saw Akashi stirring a pot like some witch from a fairy tale.
The only difference between him and a witch is that instead of brewing something sinister, his concoction smelled pleasant—not foul like me.
“…Do you think you can stir all that with such a small thing? Use this. It’ll be much easier.”
“Did you shake off the dust? Humans aren’t like you; we can’t just crunch up pebble crumbs. Carefully clean it and bring it back.”
Akashi took the stone ladle from me without even looking, complaining about its weight as he stirred the pot. Irritating as it was, he was right, so I shook off the dirt and pebbles.
“Here. You could’ve done this yourself, you know.”
“You actually do what I tell you to. Something feels…off, doesn’t it? What are you even doing here? Shouldn’t you be glued to Myungho’s side?”
Akashi received the stone ladle from me, struggling briefly under its weight before inserting it and stirring vigorously. It looked like it could scrape the bottom well.
Still, something was strange. Isn’t helping a comrade obvious…or is it? No, that’s correct, but why am I helping Akashi? I should be stopping that girl from doing anything funny to Myungho.
Akashi continued to stir while grumbling about how heavy it was and asked if I could make it lighter next time. He looked quite irritating.
…Above all, it was odd that Akashi had helped me. Regardless, I should head back to Myungho. My head spun—it felt like I’d missed something significant, but I couldn’t recall. It was hazy, as if someone had deliberately blurred my memories.
“Well… that sounds right. Why did I help someone like you? It’s strange… Where’s Myungho? Do you know anything?”
“He went into that fancy house with the red roof earlier. Though, since the village is tiny, you’ll find him quickly if you miss him. Hurry. Whatever you’re worried about might already be happening. Oh, by the way, keep doubting. Alright, now leave.”
Akashi dismissed me with an expression that made me want to hit him. Setting aside the confusion, I headed toward the house with the red roof he mentioned.
However, when I opened the door, the girl I’d seen earlier walked past me, glaring straight at Akashi. Her eyes practically sparked with flames—it seemed she’d done something wrong again.
…No, her eyes were literally glowing. But the girl didn’t seem to notice I’d caught it as she immediately began whispering something to Akashi.
…
“I never said I’d take your side. When have I ever? If anything, I’m on the side of fun.”
He’s spouting nonsense again. Talking about remnants of a god or something grandiose, but considering his actions so far, none of it feels genuine.
Inside, Myungho was listening to the village chief’s story along with Mari and Alize. Since Mari wouldn’t understand human language, practically only Myungho and the tall girl were really listening.
“That’s all there is. I don’t know how this old man got this way. It’s not even cold season…”
“No, it’s fine. We’re grateful just for your explanation. Don’t worry too much. Please rest. You seem to have mild symptoms, so you’ll recover soon.”
“Hmm… that would be best. Thank you, adventurer. Ignore an old man like me and tend to others who are worse off. The neighbor, Stewart, has been coughing badly…”
This elder was in better condition than others, merely groaning occasionally and coughing intermittently. At least unlike the young man earlier, he hadn’t lost control of his bowels, which was fortunate.
…But wait. I remember the young man’s house didn’t smell of feces. This recurring sensation, like something trying to surface but failing, gave me an uneasy feeling, akin to being on the verge of sneezing.
“Oh. You’re here, Altera? Thankfully, not everyone is as bad as that person earlier. Most people, like the elder here, can’t work strenuously but manage their daily routines. Did you fetch water?”
“Yeah. That unlucky guy was also boiling porridge when I left. Hey… Myungho. Come out for a moment. There’s something I need to talk to you about.”
Upon hearing the request to meet privately, Myungho agreed to step out but, oddly, Alize tried to follow too. So I gently stopped her and suggested she stay behind.
“…Alize. There are things one shouldn’t intrude on. For instance… conversations between lovers.”
At the mention of “lovers,” Alize startled and said she’d stay inside. The elder chuckled and commented that it was a beautiful sight before coughing.
Myungho asked why I called him out. His face showed genuine curiosity about what conversation warranted a private meeting.
“Myungho, haven’t you noticed anything…odd? Anything at all.”
Leaning close to Myungho’s ear, I whispered quietly if anything felt strange. Despite his puzzled expression, he thought hard about it.
“Hmm, people saying inconsistent things… But given that they’re sick and may know different things from each other, that seems plausible. I don’t see what’s strange.”
Quietly conversing, both of us noticed Yuna walking away holding white cloth. She held it at a distance, as if it were dirty, which seemed suspicious, so we called out to ask.
“Yuna, where are you going with that? It looks brand new.”
“Really? Does this look new to you? Can’t you see the stains of poop and pee? Ugh, it smells. An elderly woman who can’t even get up needs help. See that small house in the corner? Go help her. It’s such a mess I can’t handle it alone, it’s exhausting…”
After saying this, Yuna walked off towards the well.
“…Myungho. That thing doesn’t just look white to me, does it?”
“Yeah, to me too, it’s completely a new blanket. As you said, something’s a bit off. Let’s go check. If what Yuna said is true, we need to help either way, and if not…”
Myungho didn’t elaborate further. He must be sensing the same strangeness I feel now.
We approached the house Yuna pointed out without a word and knocked. From inside, we heard a cough followed by an invitation to enter.
“…Excuse us. Are you alright, ma’am?”
Cautiously stepping inside, the house was nothing like what Yuna described. It was old and worn, with cracks everywhere, and dimly lit furniture made it appear chaotic at first glance.
However, despite the poor condition of the items, everything was neatly arranged, and there was no sign of excrement as Yuna claimed.
Myungho calmly examined the grandmother lying in bed but found none of what Yuna had mentioned. He exchanged a glance with me after exchanging pleasantries with the grandmother.
As our eyes met, doubt turned into certainty. Someone is deceiving us.
…Perhaps the entire village.
—
Enshulos, Zikur Mountain Range, Korbo. These were places left with traces by that witch’s offspring. While the marks in Enshulos and Korbo could be quietly overlooked, those in the Zikur Mountains were too blatant to ignore, so I destroyed them.
The lingering magical residue and the dragon’s power saturating the leg were almost brazen in their lack of concealment.
“…Ahh…! I’m sorry!”
While checking Korbo for any overlooked traces, a mermaid girl ran into me, not watching where she was going. In the process, she spilled her drink on me.
It smelled fruity, probably orange juice.
The girl flailed nervously, her tail flicking anxiously. Clothes can be remade, and bodies washed.
Since I’m currently disguised as a priest, I smiled warmly and told her it was fine but advised her to be more careful next time.
“Thank you…! Um… could you tell me your name? I’m Mari. I’ll pay for the laundry costs later…”
Mari. Likely one of the slaves rescued by the witch’s daughter…right?
It was probably for the best that I hadn’t spared her.
But did she absolutely need to die? That was uncertain. One more scrawny mermaid alive wouldn’t change the world.
“…Kalpira. No need for compensation. I was planning to discard this outfit anyway.”
