by Ao Jyumonji
“Really?” Soma asked Shima with a serious look on his face.
“Yes,” Shima said flat out. “That’s the kind of man you’ve always been.”
Soma lowered his eyes, sighing slightly. “I see...”
Soma is looking kind of depressed? Haruhiro traded glances with Ranta and the rest. Somehow, this Soma... he’s kind of different from what we expected... don’t you think?
He glanced to the bogie corpses. Most of the bogies had died from a single stroke. With just one stroke, they had been slashed to death. Soma had made a clean sweep of around ten bogies in an instant, all by himself. He was the most powerful volunteer soldier, someone who could do the impossible like that with ease. He was strong, just incredibly strong, and probably wise, too, and cool, a person so far out of Haruhiro and the others’ reach that he might as well have been above the clouds, and there was no way to get closer to him. That was the image they’d had... but not anymore.
“If you’re so inexperienced that the three demi-humans would pick a fight with you,” Lilia said, pointing deeper into the Wonder Hole, “you can just race past this section. If you go four hundred meters, and enter the nest of the muryans, the three demi-humans won’t chase you any further. If you’re foolish enough to explore the Wonder Hole without knowing even that much, I advise you to turn back now and live out the rest of your days in quiet self-reflection.”
Every word the elf spoke hurt. However, she wasn’t just criticizing Haruhiro and the party, she was also giving them advice.
I don’t know whether to think she’s scary, or kind, Haruhiro thought.
“Hey, wait, you guys.” Kemuri took a quick look at Haruhiro and company’s faces. “You’re them, right? The ones who took down Death Spots.”
“Yeah, yeah! That’s right!” Ranta looked ready to do a happy dance. “You remembered, huh! It’s an honor! Seriously, seriously! I’m the man who took down Death Spots!”
“All of you did, you mean,” Kemuri corrected.
At the correction, Ranta got down and prostrated himself. “—Y-Yes! That’s very true! It wasn’t me, it was all of us! Sorry!”
“One of you’s missing,” said Kemuri. “Monroe, was it? What happened to him?”
“His name was Moguzo,” Haruhiro said in a strong tone, then looked downwards. “...He died. We let him die, you could say. At Deadhead Watching Keep...”
“In Blue Snake Force, huh,” Kemuri said, slapping his forehead. “Well, for a tank, it’s better to die than to let your comrades die.”
“Is it?” Shima asked.
Kemuri shrugged his shoulders a little. “I’d think so.”
“Hmm,” Shima said. “That’s pretty cool.”
“...They’re a bunch of idiots,” Pingo muttered. “Tanks are nothing but idiots... Uheheh...”
Soma furrowed his brow. “Are tanks idiots? I’m a tank. That would make me one, too.”
“I can’t disagree,” Lilia said, coldly as ever.
“It happens often,” Shima said with a sad smile. “And you can’t cry each and every time it does. But, deep in your heart as you may try to bury them, those lukewarm tears will seep out. Always and forever.”
Haruhiro wasn’t confident that he understood Shima’s poetic words. However, he would surely never forget them. Not Manato, or Moguzo. Merry probably couldn’t forget her comrades, either, and it must have been the same for Kuzaku.
Why, when it meant having feelings like these, did they continue being volunteer soldiers? To make a living? That was part of it. Stubborn pride? That was probably part of it, too. An addiction to the thrill of risking their lives? He couldn’t entirely deny it, but that was definitely not all there was to it.
It was to never forget.
Manato, and Moguzo, they had lived as volunteer soldiers, had used their lives for that, used them up, and died.
He didn’t want to reject the lives his comrades, his friends, had lived. He didn’t want to think they were worthless. He wanted to carve them into his memory.
Truthfully, he wanted to see what lay at the end of this path, the one Manato and Moguzo should have trodden.
“...I’m not sure we need to bury them,” Haruhiro said.
Shima nodded slightly, gesturing for him to continue.
Haruhiro wasn’t entirely sure what he wanted to say, what he was trying to say. Still, he couldn’t remain silent.
“This may seem like clinging to the past, but rather than bury them, wouldn’t it be fine for us to hold them tight?” he asked.
“You know what...” Soma suddenly crouched down in front of Haruhiro. They were staring into one another’s eyes, and it made him feel a little restless.
“Will you come join my place?” Soma asked.
“...Come again?”
Join? His place? What does he mean, his place? Haruhiro thought. His house? Go to Soma’s house? That’s not it, huh. That’s probably not it.
“Erm... By your place, you mean...”
“The Day Breakers.”
“Ohh,” Haruhiro said. “I get it now. Of course that’s it. Hahaha... Wait, whaaaaaaaaaaaaa?!”
Ranta and the others probably shouted out loud or jumped up in reaction to that bombshell, too. But Haruhiro was so floored that he didn’t hear or see any of his comrades’ reactions.
“Wha—Huh...?! Wh... B-but... It’s so sudden... No—I don’t know what to say, huh...? A-Are you pulling my leg...?”
“Pulling your leg?” Soma didn’t bat an eye—he looked down at Haruhiro’s leg. “That’s an awfully sudden thing to ask.”
No, you’re the one who’s sudden! Haruhiro thought.
While Haruhiro was in a daze and couldn’t deliver that witty retort, Lilia shook her head and sighed. “...Soma. What are you saying all of a sudden?”
“Did I word it poorly?” Soma asked. “I’m trying to invite them to join the Day Breakers.”
“I understood that much,” said Lilia. “Are you mocking me?”
“Why would I mock you, Lilia? I respect you.”
“Th-That’s...” Lilia’s cheeks, normally white as the fresh fallen snow, turned slightly pink. “...I can feel that. Or rather, that’s not what I was trying to say.”
“Can’t I?” Soma looked to Lilia, Shima, Kemuri, Pingo, and the golem in turn. Then, he hung his head and lowered his eyes. “I can’t, huh...?”
He’s depressed... right? Completely, Haruhiro thought. No matter how I look at him.
“I don’t know that you can’t.” Lilia bit her lip. “...It’s not so much that you can’t. That’s not it, I was just trying to say...”
“We don’t have many receivers left, you know,” Shima said looking slightly exasperated as she gave Lilia a little help. “You do understand that, right?”
Soma furrowed his brow slightly, tilting his head to the side. “What’s wrong with that?”
“What, you ask?” Shima answered.
“If we run out, we just have to find more,” said Soma. “Don’t get so hung up on them.”
“...That’s—Well, yes, you’re right,” she admitted.
“You’re an idiot.” Pingo leaned back against the golem, looking up into the sky. “You’re an idiot. An idiot beyond all saving. But I knew that. Uheheheh...”
Kemuri gave a short “Ha,” then slapped Soma on the shoulder. “What you’re saying isn’t wrong. You’re able to do it. Do what you like, Soma.”
Soma placed his hand on top of Kemuri’s. “Thanks, Kemuri.”
“...No.” Kemuri looked a little shy. “You don’t need to thank me...”
“Now, then,” Soma said, turning back once more and looking straight into Haruhiro’s eyes with his perfectly clear ones. “Our goal is to invade Undead DC in the former Kingdom of Ishmal. We’re currently in the process of searching for the route, but I don’t expect to be able to accomplish that goal right away. It will take time. We’ll need power, too. The power of even one more person helps. I don’t mind if you’re inexperienced
. Everyone starts that way. You just need to build up more power. If you will fear not death, face death, and seek life when faced with death, I welcome you.”
This is a fork in the road, Haruhiro thought. It’s a turning point in our lives.
Still, could this be any more sudden? I want time to think it over. I want to decide once I’ve had sufficient time to discuss it with my comrades. But, probably, I don’t have that kind of time. We met Soma here. It was a miracle that Soma saved us. I shouldn’t assume I’ll ever have a chance like this again.
Whether they made use of this opportunity or let it go to waste, that was up to Haruhiro and his comrades. No, not quite.
It was up to Haruhiro.
Is that okay? Won’t they hold it against me later? I mean, this is more than we deserve. Won’t I regret it later? This is no time to be indecisive.
Haruhiro stood up.
“Please, let us in. Let us join the Day Breakers.”
Merry, or Shihoru, or Yume, or perhaps all three of them, gasped. Ranta shouted “Hi-yah!” and started pumping his arm, while Kuzaku let out a “Huh...?”
—I went and did it. I arbitrarily made the decision on my own.
“I’ll be glad to have you,” Soma said, rising with a slight smile, then waved to Pingo. “Give me a receiver.”
Pingo pulled a black, flat stone-like object from somewhere and passed it to Soma. Soma, in turn, passed it to Haruhiro.
“That is a relic called a receiver,” Soma said. “You know what relics are, yeah?”
“...No,” Haruhiro admitted. “I don’t know.”
“Well, you see, here’s what relics are.” Shima began to explain. “It’s an overarching name for anything that can’t be made with modern technology, and was clearly made in the past. They’re usually weapons or armor, or handy items. What you have there is of the handy items variety. Hold it up to your ear.”
“Oh, okay.”
When Haruhiro pressed the receiver to his ear, Soma held a different stone—it was shaped the same as the receiver, but the color was different, it was pure white instead—up to his mouth.
“This is Soma.” “This is Soma.”
“Whuh? It kinda vibrated... I heard you twice—Huh?! What is this...?”
“The one Soma is holding is a sender.” Shima held a different receiver up to her own ear. “The receiver is a relic that his voice can reach no matter how far apart you are. Well, there are channels, and a bunch of other stuff involved, too, though. When the receiver receives a voice from the sender, it vibrates while emitting sound and, also, light.”
Shima pointed to the lower end of her receiver. When Soma pressed on the sender with his thumb, the section Shima was pointing to flashed green.
“We’ve made some new comrades.” “We’ve made some new comrades.” “I’ll introduce them.”
When Soma finished speaking, he pointed the sender towards Haruhiro. Say something, was that it?
“Uh... um... er...” Haruhiro cleared his throat. “—I am Haruhiro... the one being introduced. Nice to meet you. Is that good enough?”
“Yeah.” Soma brought the sender back to his mouth. “Six people, including Haruhiro, have joined us. That is all. May we meet again.”
“Take good care of it... Uheheheh...” Pingo laid a shockingly dark glare on Haruhiro. “There’s only one receiver left. Also... If you think you might die, destroy the receiver. Before you die... be absolutely certain you do. You also never know when Soma may contact you for the most trivial of things... like just now. Keep it on you at all times. Don’t miss what he says, you trash.”
“Y-Yes, sir!” Haruhiro stammered.
“Well, for now, just survive,” Kemuri said, as if it was tiresome.
“Yes.” When Shima crossed her arms, it accentuating her voluptuous bosom, which was kind of dangerous. “That would be for the best.”
“I’m not expecting anything,” Lilia said, cold to the end. “Do try your best not to completely waste that receiver. As things stand, you six are worth far less than a single receiver.”
“If you go through the domain of the three demi-humans into the muryans’ nest, there are ustrels lurking there.” Soma gestured in that direction with his chin. “Once you’re able to defeat an ustrel, the area you can operate in should expand considerably.”
“...An ustrel,” Haruhiro said.
“May we meet again.”
Soma left them with just those words, then was gone like the wind. Kemuri, Shima, Lilia, Pingo, the golem, all they did was wave, without so much as a word of parting, and the next thing he knew they were out of sight.
Was it all a dream...? A daydream? No, it wasn’t. That wasn’t what happened. Haruhiro was holding the receiver firmly in his hand.
At a glance, it was just a flat, black stone that fit in the palm of his hand, but it had ridges and slits on it, and it didn’t feel quite like stone or metal. Anyway, it was a mysterious item, whatever it was.
Haruhiro looked at his comrades. All of them, even Ranta, were dazed.
“Ha ha...”
For the moment, Haruhiro decided to play it off with a laugh. Not that he could.
Haruhiro scratched his head. “Looks like we joined the Day Breakers.”
17. Run
Haruhiro had had a certain encounter.
Thinking it a chance he couldn’t afford to miss, he had grasped it without hesitation.
The chance to change had come. It was no longer time to walk. Now was the time to run.
“Ghh! Urkh! Ahh!”
Kuzaku was desperately holding off a muryan’s attack with his shield.
If you were to describe muryans with one word, they were ants. In terms of size, they were larger than humans. They were grape-colored, with bodies that were more solidly built than those of ants, and they had small heads. Depending on the type, some had one pair of arms in addition to their three pairs of legs. There were a lot of differences, yes, but they were similar to ants. Giant ants that had built nests all over the Wonder Hole, where they bred.
“Hah! Hah! Take that!” Ranta hollered.
Ranta was locking blades with another muryan. The one Kuzaku was facing was a type of muryan commonly called a samurai. They were a vicious variety that used their dexterous hands to hold weapons which they used to brutally attack hostile creatures. Meanwhile, Ranta was fighting one that primarily fought to protect against external threats to the nest, a soldier with two blade-like arms.
In addition to that, Haruhiro and Yume were each fighting a muryan soldier, and Merry was in the back, guarding Shihoru.
“Jess, yeen, sark, fram, dart...!” Shihoru cast Lightning. A bolt of lightning fell on Soldier C, the one Yume was fighting with.
It wasn’t clear why, but Falz Magic seemed to work well against muryans. Soldier C leapt away with a jolt, its body shaking before it collapsed. Yume put away her machete, readied her bow, and nocked an arrow. With a shout, she loosed the arrow, keeping a new enemy, Soldier D, in check as it came out of the nest. Haruhiro wasn’t good at handling the non-humanoid muryans. He focused on using Swat to defend himself while keeping track of the battle situation.
“Kuzaku, Ranta! Incoming!” Haruhiro called.
“Just telling us isn’t going to help!” Kuzaku yelled back.
It looked like Kuzaku was at his limit just blocking the samurai’s black katana-like weapons with his shield. That katana wasn’t metal. It looked to be something like porcelain, but it was hard and had destructive power. The samurai had a natural affinity for dual-wielding, so it was hard to blame Kuzaku for struggling against its two-weapon style.
“Zwoosh! Ha! Avoid!” Ranta fell back using Exhaust to draw in Soldier A, then took a stab at it.
Soldier A took a sword through the face, and yet wasn’t dead. All the same, with its face, including its eyes, smashed, that was no minor injury. With heavy grunts and repeated shouts, Ranta went to town on it, slashing it over and over. Soon enough, Soldier A stopped moving.<
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“Yume, help Kuzaku!” Haruhiro ordered while defending with Swat.
“Aye, sir!” Yume called, and went to support Kuzaku.
Ranta took a swing at the newly arrived Soldier D. Shihoru cast Lightning again. The muryan trying to follow behind Soldier D, Soldier E, was struck by lightning.
Another soldier came, and Merry moved up.
“Haru, switch!” she called.
“I’m counting on you!” he shouted back. He left Soldier B to Merry, moving forward himself.
Yume drew her machete, trying to attack the samurai from the side. Even so, the samurai faced down both Kuzaku and Yume, not willing to give an inch. It really was a formidable opponent, but, in all honesty, Haruhiro wished Kuzaku had taken it down, not just kept it busy.
I want him to show that he’s at least trying, Haruhiro thought. The way things are, he’s not a proper tank. Is he okay with that?
But enough moaning, he added to himself. It can wait.
Haruhiro stopped Soldier F’s advance with a Swat. You’re not going any further.
“Leap Out!” Ranta called, and jumped forward on the diagonal. However, he did more than just slip past Soldier D. As he passed by, he lopped Soldier D’s head off. “—Wahahaha! I’m amazing!”
“Ranta, next!” Haruhiro shouted.
“I know already, okay?!”
Soldier G’s coming in, noted Haruhiro.
Ranta closed in swiftly with Leap Out, bashing his longsword against Soldier G repeatedly.
He’s getting carried away. It’s fine for now, but—the problem’s what comes next. If more of them come out...
Whenever Haruhiro started thinking that, they always did. And sure enough...
Of course they came, he thought in frustration. Here’s Soldier H.
“Jess, yeen, sark, fram, dart...!” Perhaps getting a little impatient, Shihoru let loose Lightning on the samurai. Unlike with a soldier, samurais couldn’t be immobilized with one shot of Lightning. Still, the samurai fell back one step, or a few dozen centimeters.
Kuzaku bellowed a war cry, and Yume shouted, “Meow, meow, meow!” as they both whaled on the samurai.