The Tentacle Awakens

by J. J. Pavlov

  "We should be fine. As dangerous as a wulfar may be, if it is us four, it will not even have the freedom to consider attacking the lady." Flowery language as usual, but at least he's contributing.

  Really though, these guys should be more concerned about protecting themselves. If it comes down to it and I have to show my full power, they won't be getting away alive. I don't want any witnesses to my real identity in the human territory just yet. It'll only make my journey unnecessarily difficult.

  - Chaos has joined the party -

  Chapter 6 - Powerlevels

  We leave the village called Birkas and walk for around half an hour before we enter a forest. While the place where I first got sent to was just a vast plain, the landscape became more and more dominated by trees after I left the shelter of that enormous tree under which I met the young shepherd. Around these parts, it's already looking like Northern Europe's deep forests.

  Of course, I never went there in my previous life, but I've seen photos of it before. I've always wanted to go there on vacation someday, and maybe eventually an opportunity would have arisen if I hadn't died.

  So when I think about it, this is a second chance at seeing the world. Albeit a world filled with fantasy and no smartphones to take photos with. But maybe it's better this way; I can take pictures with my mind and commit everything to memory, rather than let things get filtered through automatic beautification software.

  "Gram, prepare the bait. We'll be setting up camp here." Rolan announces as we find a clearing a few hours into the forest. There's a tiny creek flowing through it, and it seems to be the perfect place to stay for a while. It's really idyllic.

  I noticed that Rolan sounds like a proper leader when he gives out orders. Well, he actually is the leader, and I'm sure there is a reason he could gather these people around him, other than just because of his good looks.

  Aside from Luna that is. I'm sure she's mostly here because of his good looks.

  "Sigurd, try out your suggestion. You never know, it might work." He turns to the bard; apparently, he's trusting the latter to do something. Let's see how that pans out.

  Gram places his massive shield on the ground, then takes out something wrapped in a sheet. It's the severed leg of a lamb, still bloody and fresh. Classic bait material.

  I approach the shield and only now do I realize how big it is. Gram is already more than a head taller than I am, so in relation to him, it wasn't that obvious. I could stand behind this thing, and nothing would be poking out on either side. This thing must be extremely heavy and surely requires two hands to carry.

  So, the tank is really just a shield bearer?

  "What is your weapon, Mister Gram?" I'm curious how he fights while carrying such a massive thing.

  "My shield is my sword, Miss Marcott." He sounds proud. I should have expected this response. "It's enchanted to repel physical and magical attacks, and it's thick enough to deflect even a ballista shot. I leave attacking to those I protect with it."

  Just like a tank in multiplayer games, his role is to block the damage directed at the squishy damage dealers such as Rolan and Luna, huh?

  "And just in case, he can bash someone over the head with it." The leader adds while setting up the camp with Luna. That girl's glaring at me for some reason. Maybe you shouldn't be too friendly with another woman in the presence of your sweetheart.

  At least I'm not wearing my makeshift clothes cut from the tent sheet anymore. It was sure to stir any man's libido because it resembled a naked shirt look. The bard was kind enough to buy me a set of clothes from the village's tailor. The material is rough, and it itches, but I can't complain about his goodwill.

  The outfit itself consists of a woolen long-sleeved shirt and overalls one can immediately associate with what a farmer normally wears. Considering this is a farming village, it's to be expected that they wouldn't have the latest fashion trends available for a city girl like me.

  My underwear is something I can only describe as granny bloomers. Completely unsexy, but at least it covers me up. Then again, I wouldn't mind going fully naked. It's this medieval society that minds.

  The howling of a wolf interrupts my thoughts. So my suspicion that the name wulfar refers to a wolf-like beast turned out to be true, huh?

  But really, it's already here? That was unexpectedly quick. Did it react to the smell of people or the bait so soon? But it sounds really close. I look around and find the bard cupping his mouth and howling again. He notices my gaze, smiles, and winks at me.

  Ugh, so annoying.

  I don't know whether it's an accurate call or not, but he can imitate a wulfar with his voice, it seems. I hope that was a mating call and the beast will come running to mount him. Though I do have to admit that he seems to be quite talented with his voice at least.

  If it was just me alone, I'm sure it would have already found me. And knowing my luck, it would have been in a pack, too. I already had such an experience before, so I know how to deal with a group attacking at the same time. Hedgehog Mode is waiting to be unleashed again someday!

  But for now, I'll have to play the helpless girl who can only watch as the humans go about their business. I use this time to practice manipulating the shape of my body, as Maou-mama told me to do whenever I can. Not only should I exercise changing my outward appearance, but also learn to control my insides in subtle ways.

  Aside from designating one space for storage and others for varying degrees of dissolving speeds, I'm currently learning to perform precise motions, such as taking out objects from the backpack inside my body and then putting them back in, without actually looking.

  About half an hour passes during which I seemingly sit still and in complete silence, while the adventurer party sets up everything. I've been successful in shifting things in and out of the backpack inside me. It's becoming progressively easier to learn new moves, as I get more and more used to this body.

  Gram has set up the meat in something like a bear trap, while the bard has tried various interpretations of the howl. None have gotten an answer, but maybe the wulfar is really far away and can't hear it.

  I seriously doubt that a predator is going to fall for a trap involving a piece of dead meat, and I'm fairly certain a wild animal should be able to distinguish the sounds the bard is making from those of its kind, so the party will have to begin actively searching for it eventually.

  "How did you get to know the others?" I ask Rolan when he sits down at the camp. Since we'll be traveling together for a while, I'd feel awkward not to hold any conversations. I'll just kill some time by learning more about his relationship with the other three here. It should come across as small talk, but the only thing I'm interested in is why the bard is in this group.

  "Well, Runa and I are from the same village. We were neighbors before we decided to take on this profession." So that's how long they go back together. No wonder, it's the childhood friend route that came to a good conclusion.

  My male childhood friend thought I was a boy until the end of middle school, then he moved away with his family, and we lost contact with each other. He did say he was going to come back for university, but now I'll never know. Not like I would have started anything with him anyway since I prefer girls.

  I think maybe the shock of him suddenly moving away caused me to go down this alternate route...

  "We met Gram and Sigurd during our travels. They accepted the same request from a village as we did due to the guild's mistake, so instead of falling into a rivalry, we decided to group up. We've been a team since then." So the bard was traveling with Gram before meeting Rolan. Don't tell me the bard is actually a damage dealer then? After all, the big man is a tank.

  I just can't imagine how they were able to fulfill any quests before meeting Rolan and Luna.

  "It's been three years now, huh? Time sure flies..." Gram states with a distant look. He sounds like an old man, reminiscing about the past when he was still a youngster. Well, he does look like an old man.<
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  "We're only getting started. We aim to take down the demon queen one day so that her corruption of this world ceases and we'll have peace from monsters." Rolan drops this incredible bombshell with a half-joking but unexpectedly determined expression. Careful what you say, you have that demon queen's daughter in your presence.

  So he wants to be a hero? The hero? Should I kill him and his party right here right now?

  "I do not think we will get the chance. The alliance army led by Third Prince Ulterius and Elven Queen Lillian should have reached the demons' capital a few days ago, and I am sure it has fallen by now." Makes sense that information doesn't travel that fast in a world without Twitter. The bard just named two people who I know for a fact are dead already.

  At least I assume that this Third Prince Ulterius was the 'human king' Maou-mama gave me to eat for breakfast the morning I first woke up in this world, and Elven Queen Lillian was the 'elven queen' my mother ate. Of course, I don't say that out loud.

  But it's quite pitiful. These people believe that whatever army they sent was able to finish the job. From Maou-mama's behavior, it felt like she only saw it as a minor inconvenience. It either indicates that she's incredibly powerful, or that humans are incredibly weak.

  The reason I'm coming along with these four is to find out which of the above two is the case.

  "Yeah, you're right. Well, I can't complain if that's true. Even if we're out of our job then, it's better than having to live with this constant danger." Rolan seems quite easygoing about giving up his adventurer lifestyle. Must be because he can always choose to settle down with Luna and become a hunter, or something like that.

  From this conversation, I can gather that the humans and demons are irreconcilable in their existences. As long as demons exist, humans will face dangers in their lives. Not that it wouldn't be the case without demons since they would just start tearing each other apart instead.

  During my previous life, I would try to ignore such news when they appeared on TV, but I was well aware that the rest of the world was far from peaceful. People suffered in wars for resources and outdated ideologies, while the so-called developed countries lived in affluence. I was one of those people living in such a developed country, in peaceful Japan, knowingly closing my eyes and ears to those matters because they were uncomfortable.

  Shaking my head of these thoughts, I return my attention to the conversation at hand.

  "Can you tell me more about the corruption spread by the demon queen? I was never taught about it." I keep up the appearance of a sheltered noble girl who never learned about the world.

  Maou-mama didn't tell me anything about any corruption, so maybe it's just human propaganda. It would be a very effective method to make it seem like her existence can't be allowed. And if that's expanded to say that all demons spread corruption, then the entire race becomes something humanity could never coexist with.

  "Every demon has an aura of corruption that surrounds them. This has been known for centuries." The bard is the one who replies. He seems to be quite knowledgeable if nothing else. "But the far more powerful corruption spread by the absolute leader of the demons was only discovered during the reign of the previous demon king. And the current demon queen is on a completely different level even compared to him. According to people who have been to cities near the sea facing the Demon Continent, her aura sometimes turns into a tangible miasma that is deadly to humans."

  "Wild animals that are affected by it become more aggressive and sometimes turn into powerful monsters." Gram scratches along the line of his mustache and explains. The others go quiet, and silence spreads like a blanket over us. It's safe to assume that they know something about the big man's statement that I don't.

  "With the demon queen's corruption come curses that no magic can revert." A grim expression on his face, Rolan finally speaks up and continues the conversation. "There have been more and more cases of children being born deformed by those curses."

  It sounds like radiation. That's the one thing burned into my memory from our school trip to Hiroshima, where we visited the Peace Memorial Museum. Inside, I saw the effects of the radiation on the people who survived the atomic bomb in graphic details. I can understand why humans seek to kill the demon queen if by just being alive her existence causes the same kind of effect on people all over the world.

  But she is my mother, and I'm just like her. While I wouldn't consciously wish mutations and slow painful deaths on even my worst enemies, I'm not a charitable person either. If I have to choose between my own life and that of people I don't know, I would never hesitate to choose myself first.

  It seems the others are taking my silence as an indication that this topic is too depressing, so they stop talking about it. The mood hangs heavily over the camp as everyone remains quiet, acting like they are busy with something.

  I fall deep into thought, mulling over everything I just learned.

  The wulfar didn't show up at all, and for the past several hours the party has been in a slump. The sun is going to be setting soon, and we're preparing to spend the night here. My first full day on this human continent is about to pass, and while I did meet new people - temporary travel companions - not much else happened.

  Gram and Rolan are about to go off to gather firewood when the bard stops them in their tracks.

  "Shhh, something is coming." He must have really good ears since he seems to be the only one who noticed; I didn't hear anything at all, and neither did the others, it seems. The party is instantly on full alert, and I find myself in awe at their discipline.

  I can only act nervous and look around with a hint of anxiety since that's all I'm good for right now. In reality, I'm quite curious about what's going to happen.

  We're hiding behind a fake brush, set up to camouflage the camp, which is overlooking the clearing with the trap in the middle. The bard silently points towards the trees on the other side of the trap, and everyone's eyes turn toward it. The undergrowth is shaking and then parts, to reveal a wolf-like animal with fierce eyes.

  That looks like a vularen, but when I use the severed lamb leg as an indicator for size, I'd say it's smaller than the ones on the Dark Continent. The spines on its back are also much shorter, and the color of its fur is different. While the vularen were dark brown with silver backs, this one has a dark green coat.

  The jungle of Yagrath consists of bigger and older trees than the ones here, which grow to have a much denser canopy and cause the interior to be quite dark. There is also less green undergrowth to blend in with over there, so I guess this one is better adapted to living in this younger forest with plenty of brushes to hide in. In other words, it must be a subspecies - just like in a certain monster-hunting game.

  In either case, this means that humans are quite weak. They consider one of these dangerous even when they are in a party of four, so they wouldn't stand a chance against a pack of vularen. Then again, Maou-mama did say that they are dangerous to even well-trained soldiers among the demons. I guess that means my kind is just incredibly strong.

  Well, I already knew that from Maou-mama's teachings.

  "It's corrupted..." The bard whispers, barely audible to not give away our location, and Gram's expression grows grim. Rolan and Luna hold their breaths as they watch the wulfar.

  It's almost in range to step into the trap, but hesitates and sniffs the meat. Then it seems to smell something in the air and turns its head towards our hiding spot. Its red glowing eyes meet with mine behind the brush.

  Ah, I'm sorry, it was me. It seems I have a very special smell which animals hate.

  "We've been spotted. Change of plans." Rolan stands up and draws his sword. Gram and Luna spring into action as well, the former bringing forward his shield while the latter lifts his staff.

  I turn around to see what the bard is doing and find that he's not readying his lute. Instead, he takes something out from under his cloak.

  Wait, is that a crossbow? Don't tell me he's actual
ly a ranger. I'm not sorry for doubting you since you acted like a bard all along! With the crossbow hidden but the lute carried like his primary weapon, he was really misleading. In either case, I won't stop calling him bard.

  "Be careful not to let it bite you. It may carry a powerful curse!" He warns the others and fires at the wulfar with his crossbow. It hits the creature square in the shoulder, causing it to yelp from the pain and jump back in shock.

  That looked easier than I thought it would. How can this beast be considered dangerous even for a party of four, if a crossbow bolt alone can deal so much damage to it? Then again, I don't know in what way corruption or curses play into this difficulty ranking.

  To be fair, compared to the wolves from my previous world, this one would be considered impossibly huge. This particular one's about as big as a lion. And in that same vein, the vularen of the Dark Continent are almost as big as brown bears. If the theory that this one is a subspecies holds true, getting bitten anywhere should be quite dangerous since it would have acid saliva that can dissolve wood very quickly.

  Not including the curse, whatever that may be.

  I see something like dark smoke rise from the wound caused by the crossbow bolt. Maybe that's how the corruption expresses itself, by spreading a toxic miasma around it?

  Gram takes the point and charges straight for the wolf with his shield. Rolan follows behind him and brandishes his sword with both hands. The bard readies another bolt while the two melee guys engage in close combat. It's a testament to their courage that they're able to stand their ground even with the danger of incurring some kind of curse from the corrupted beast.

  Luna has begun to chant words in a language I don't understand quietly. Maou-mama never taught me any magic, most likely wishing for me to learn it myself, so this is the first time I get to see it from up close. And it appears that magic requires an incantation in an arcane language in this world's setting.