Chapter 21
Hirata’s head rolled across the ground and stopped right at my feet.
I blinked, unable to believe what had just happened.
“Is… is he dead?”
“Yes.”
“……”
Kaizen wiped the monster’s blood off his sword with Hirata’s clothes, then calmly slid the blade back into its sheath.
The named monster had disappeared the instant he arrived.
A one-second kill…
Isn’t this… completely broken?
I should’ve known the moment he strode into the cave alone without hesitation. Anyone who says, “I can handle it by myself,” usually has a reason.
Forget strategy. Kaizen doesn’t need any of that…
In the game, he started at the beginner level.
Now, he was practically a finished product.
“Wow, Kaizen. You’re amazing.”
When I praised him honestly, Kaizen rubbed the back of his neck, slightly embarrassed.
“Let’s find the child and finish this. I’m tired.”
“Right. Just getting you here was a miracle for someone with burnout.”
I had just taken a step toward the deeper part of the cave when tiny lights began drifting inside from afar. Little glimmers, like fireflies.
And then—
“Romi-nim! Hero-nim!”
Hamma came charging through the cave entrance, yelling loud enough to shake the walls. I stared, eyes wide.
“Hey! I told you to wait outside the cave! Why did you come in?”
Good thing we’d already killed Hirata. That idiot coming in like this…
When I scolded him lightly, Hamma pouted.
“Is that what matters right now?! I found Zek!”
“What? Are you serious?”
No sooner had he shouted it than a small figure peeked out from behind him.
The child caught sight of Hirata’s severed head and quickly hid behind Hamma’s back.
“Ahem. I found Zek, so stop calling me a scaredy-rabbit. Call me a brave rabbit.”
Someone was more smug than usual.
I stepped past him and knelt in front of the boy.
When our eyes met, a shy blush spread across his round cheeks. Unlike white-haired Hamma, the child had fluffy brown hair.
“Hello. Are you Zek?”
Wary but curious, Zek nodded timidly.
Behind us, Hamma puffed up his cheeks and grumbled.
“Hmph. Ignoring me again… only in moments like this!”
Leaving the dramatic rabbit to sulk, I held my hand out to the boy.
“My name is Romi. Nice to meet you. Can I ask where you were hiding?”
“I was behind a big rock next to the cave…”
“You’re brave.”
The child stepped forward a little, gaining confidence with each word.
I gently brushed his soft hair.
“But didn’t you want to come into the cave?”
Hirata had cast an illusion at the cave entrance—something that lured people inside.
If you knew about it like Kaizen and I did, you could resist it.
But someone who didn’t know would be helpless.
So how was Zek outside the cave?
As I wondered, the boy wriggled his lips.
“At first, I did want to go in. My mom was waving at me to come.”
“And then?”
“But… there wasn’t a shadow under her feet. So… I got scared and hid.”
“There was no shadow?”
How did he notice that in a pitch-black forest?
I tilted my head—then—
“Romi-nim! Look at this!”
Tiny lights, the same ones from earlier, were gathering around Hamma.
As I absentmindedly watched the floating specks, realisation struck me.
“Huh? These are…”
“Pretty, right? They’re forest sprites! I found them not long after you two went in. And they’re the ones who showed me where Zek was!”
The sprites circled Hamma and Zek gently, almost affectionately.
And in that moment, the truth clicked.
“It’s because of the luminescent necklace.”
“Huh?”
Sprites usually weren’t friendly to anyone but their own kind. But they hovered near those two as if drawn in.
“That necklace… It must attract sprites.”
Kaizen spoke flatly, clearly thinking the same.
A necklace that was said to bring good fortune… Apparently it brought more than that.
“Looks like it. Maybe that’s how Zek noticed the missing shadow.”
“Lucky child.”
Where there is light, a shadow forms.
With the sprites around him, Zek noticed what others wouldn’t have.
I reached out to one of the sprites, but it flitted away in surprise.
Scratching my cheek awkwardly, I said:
“Anyway, good. Let’s head back to the village, Zek. You want to see your parents, right?”
“Yes…”
Zek tightly held Hamma’s hand and nodded.
I grabbed Hirata’s head and headed toward the exit.
Finding the way out wasn’t hard. The torchlight helped, but the sprites guided us as well.
By the time we stepped outside, dawn was breaking.
I turned to the others with a grin.
“Let’s go home. Good work, everyone.”
The village erupted in cheers.
The moment they saw Zek safe, the inn couple collapsed into sobs and clung to the boy.
In the peaceful morning air, I pulled Hamma aside.
“Hamma. When did you get your memories back after eating my food?”
“Mmm… it’s been so long, I’m not exactly sure… maybe a day?”
Kaizen regained his memories three days after eating my food.
Was the timing different for everyone?
I fell into thought.
“Are we staying here longer?”
A flat voice. I looked up—
And froze.
“Oh my god. Kaizen, you—”
“……?”
“You were that close to dying of exhaustion?!”
Above his head, the skull icon that had shown two bars was now at three.
The beastmen need to regain their memories before we negotiate with them…
Maybe we should go home first and return later.
But before I could decide, a commotion stirred at the community hall. Exchanging looks, we hurried over.
Two beastmen were arguing loudly.
“I’m telling you—you borrowed money from me!”
“What are you talking about? Are you dreaming?”
“I mean, in our past life you borrowed money and never paid it back!”
“What nonsense! Past life, my tail! Move aside if you’re going to keep babbling!”
Watching the chaos unfold, I smiled in satisfaction.
Hamma’s eyes widened.
“They’re already getting their memories back?”
“Good. Everything’s going according to plan.”
“But… what are you planning to demand from them?”
“Labour. For housing development.”
“…What?”
His eyes shook violently.
“What’s the use of supplies? It’s just the three of us. We need waterways. Fields. Infrastructure.”
“Oh no… poor beastmen… what are we going to do…?”
“That’s called payback.”
They deceived and used us. Now we’d collect the debt—in labour.
Hamma stared pitifully at the quarrelling beastmen.
I took out my notebook and scribbled quickly.
“I’m going to the grocery shop. Take this to the village chief. If he hesitates even after regaining his memories, throw Hirata’s head at him.”
Hamma peeked at the note and blanched.
“Oh… the future of this village looks bleak…”
But my instructions were simple.
“When you remember your past life, bring all beastmen to the riverside beyond the forest.”
It was only a matter of time before the chief remembered.
Even if he didn’t understand the note now, once he remembered, curiosity would push him straight to me.
Then we’ll get the labour force.
Some beastmen might rebel, of course.
That’s why I had a secondary plan: bait so irresistible they had to help us.
A proper carrot is essential when recruiting someone.
Feeling pleased with how smoothly things were going, I browsed the shop with a goofy smile—
Then the door slammed open.
Kaizen approached, face completely drained of colour.
“…Right now… I think… I really… kind of want to die…”
