IPDT 42

Fleabag, who had been silent for a moment, let out a loud, fake cough.

[Ahem! It is nothing!]

His voice, which sounded somehow pleased, seemed to be tinged with a sense of triumph.

I kept my back turned to Yul until a villager brought us our meal, saying it was morning. Because I didn’t want to make Yul uncomfortable. But I couldn’t very well keep my back to him while eating. In the end, we sat facing each other at the table placed in the middle of the lodging.

“…”

“…”

But only silence lingered between us. The only possible topic of conversation was something starting with ‘yesterday on the bed…,’ and that would surely make Yul uncomfortable.

So, I ate the meat, quietly picking out the vegetables, without saying a single word. Clatter, clatter. Only the sound of utensils clashing went back and forth across the table.

Around the time I had eaten two pieces of meat, I thought of something I wanted to ask Yul. I cautiously lifted my head, which had been hung low, and at that moment, my eyes met Yul’s. I flinched, then opened my mouth, pretending to be unfazed.

“Yul, are you going anywhere today?”

“No.”

Yul answered immediately, as if he had been waiting. I nodded my head and lowered my gaze back to my plate.

“I see.”

“Why.”

“Huh?”

“I asked why you were asking.”

I hadn’t expected Yul to ask back, so I blinked my eyes blankly. Yul’s brow furrowed slightly. At that sight, I belatedly came to my senses and hurriedly opened my mouth.

“I have something I need to look for, so I’m going to be out for a bit. If you were going somewhere, Yul, I was going to say that I can’t go with you today.”

“Let’s go together.”

“Huuh?”

“Where you’re going, I said let’s go together.”

I frantically waved my hands at the expressionless Yul. I had no intention whatsoever of forcing him to come with me.

“You don’t have to, Yul! You must be tired, so get some rest.”

“…”

Yul’s eyebrow twitched slightly. He seemed to be displeased with something.

…Don’t tell me that even telling him to rest felt self-righteous? I swallowed a dry gulp. What if Yul says something hateful again? I felt like I would be really hurt if I heard sharp words this time too. I should get out of this situation before that. I put down my fork and shot up from my seat.

“Ah, I’m done eating. Yul, I’ll be right back!”

[Master, this Fleabag will accompany you!]

As I grabbed my hood and put it on, Fleabag poked his head out from inside my pocket. Ack, what if he gets discovered! I pushed Fleabag’s head down into my pocket with my hand and left the lodging. Even then, Yul was still sitting at the table, just watching my departing back.

Click. Only after the lodging door closed did I remove the hand that was holding Fleabag down.

“Fleabag, do you think Yul is really angry? He was glaring at my back until the door closed.”

“Do not worry, Master! It is certainly not anger!”

“Then?”

“Ahem, there is an old saying. That you may not notice a filled spot, but you will an empty one. That foolish human has finally realized just how sweet the master’s generosity was.”

So, what Fleabag is saying seems to be that Yul is missing my generosity… but that premise is flawed from the start.

“But I’m still generous to Yul.”

“Yes, yes. That is so. Therefore, there is nothing more for the master to worry about! Let us hurry!”

A beaming Fleabag lifted his forepaw and pointed ahead. Then, as if he had suddenly remembered something, he looked up at me.

“But Master, where are we going?”

“You remember the villager yesterday mentioned a ‘flower field,’ right? We’re going to find it. I have a place in mind, too.”

“A place in mind?”

“Yes.”

The day the first monster appeared in the village, Yul had grabbed me by the collar and headed toward the outskirts of the village. As I was being dragged along then, I felt the scent of flowers growing stronger and stronger. The flower field was probably near there.

I retraced my steps, searching my memory. This is where the monster appeared, and here is where Yul grabbed me by the collar. And I think I was dragged about this far… As I steadily headed toward the outskirts of the village, the smell of flowers intensified.

[Master, the humans are staring at the master.]

As I was searching my memory, I heard Fleabag’s voice. I belatedly realized that the humans were watching me out of the corners of their eyes. Their eyes were as if they were monitoring me.

I wanted to blind the humans who were brazenly staring at me, but I didn’t want to cause a disturbance while Yul was still in the village. I ignored the humans and kept walking. I still couldn’t see anything. Is the flower field outside the village?

“Hey, you! Where are you going!”

It was when I was tilting my head and stepping outside the village. A human stood blocking my path.

“Are your ears plugged? I asked where you’re going!”

The man, who stood with his arms spread wide, was holding a shovel in one hand. The end of the shovel was caked with dirt that hadn’t yet dried. As if he had just been planting something.

[Master, there is dirt on this human’s shovel.]

[Yes. I’m going to try to sound him out.]

I met the eyes of the human, who was looking at me anxiously.

“I’m going to the flower field.”

The shoulders of the human blocking my path trembled noticeably. That wasn’t all. The humans nearby all turned to look at me at once with eerie eyes. As if a secret that should never have been revealed had been discovered.

“You all know about the ‘flower field,’ don’t you?”

“…”

There was no reply, but the humans’ silence signified affirmation. I turned my gaze to the young man standing closest to me.

“Guide me to where the flower field is. If you tell me obediently, I will at least spare your life.”

The young man readjusted his grip on the shovel. It seemed he intended to fight me. If it were me, I wouldn’t make such a foolish choice. Is it because he’s a foolish human that it can’t be helped?

As I let out a sigh and looked around, I saw the remaining humans also grabbing tools one by one. A hoe, a stone, a tree branch, the things in their hands were quite varied.

“The outsider has found out about the flower field.”

“We have to kill him.”

“We can just tell the hero that he died in an accident.”

They began to approach me, muttering something. I shook my head from side to side.

“It’s really impossible to reason with humans.”

“Die!”

As soon as my words ended, the humans charged, spouting cliché lines. I first grabbed the human who swung a shovel at my head, twisted his wrist, and was about to cast a spell on the remaining ones.

“Aaargh!”

But when I turned around, they were screaming, clutching their wrists. The hands that had been holding their tools had been severed at the wrist. In their midst, I saw the back of a human whose black blade was trailing on the ground.

“Yul?”

Yul turned his head and looked at me. I blinked my eyes blankly. Why is Yul here? He definitely said he wasn’t going anywhere when we were having breakfast.

“Heu, ugh.”

“Why is the hero…”

Yul walked past the groaning humans and approached me. Then, he kicked away the human who was rolling on the ground with his shovel, his arm twisted. Only then did I snap back to my senses.

“Yul, why are you here?”

“Is there a reason I shouldn’t be here?”

“No, there’s nothing like that, but.”

“Then that’s that.”

…He was right. Feeling somewhat embarrassed, I just rolled my eyes back and forth, and Yul stood beside me.

“Where is the place you’re going.”

“The flower field… Ack, but Yul, you can’t go!”

As I exclaimed urgently, Yul furrowed his brow.

“Why can’t I.”

“Ah, you see.”

The moment I was about to explain, ‘If you, a human, go to the flower field, there’s no telling what might happen,’ Yul’s gaze turned fierce. Huuh? Did I say something wrong? While I was flustered, Yul glanced sharply down at his own foot. I followed his gaze.

“Hero, the reason you are spilling blood in our village is to protect the village, is it not?”

A human whose wrist had been cut off, I don’t know when he crawled over, was clinging to Yul’s leg. The human grinned, even with a face pale from blood loss. Yul twisted his expression as if he had seen a maggot, then stomped on and broke the man’s remaining hand.

“Aaargh!”

“I don’t need an explanation. I’m going regardless of what excuse you make.”

Yul silenced the screaming human’s mouth with the sole of his shoe.

“I’ll stop by the place you’re going to, and then I’m leaving this village.”

I, too, had no more business in this village once I purified the flower field, so I nodded my head. At that, the humans began to cry out.

“The hero cannot leave our village!”

“Someone grab the hero. We can’t let him leave!”

The ones who had been smiling brightly even when someone died now contorted their faces like monsters. The humans who had been sprawled on the ground with their wrists cut off staggered to their feet and began to walk toward us. Every single one of them was hell-bent on catching Yul. It was a bizarre and horrifying sight.

[They are truly not in their right minds.]

As soon as Fleabag muttered as if he were fed up, one of the humans shouted as if vomiting blood.

“Did you not promise to become the guardian deity of our village!”

“When did I ever say such a thing.”

The blood-tinged black blade trembled with a hummm, hummm, as if resonating with Yul’s emotions. Crack. The head of the human who was being stepped on by Yul’s foot burst like a soft fruit. Even so, the humans approaching us did not stop their steps.

Reason no longer existed in their eyes. As if the part of their brain that feels fear and terror had broken down.

Is the only way to save Yul from these people to resort to physical force? I let out a deep sigh and extended my hand forward.

Clang, tang, tang! Suddenly, some kind of can fell at my feet.

“Huh?”

Fwoooosh…

The can started spinning, emitting a pure white smoke. The smoke, which began to spread in an instant, started to cover the entire area. What is this? My attention was stolen by the strange object I had never seen before, and I belatedly collected myself. Ack, Yul?

“Get a grip.”

When I quickly lifted my head, Yul poked my forehead with his finger. I covered my forehead and examined his face. If there were toxic substances mixed in the smoke, there would have been a change in his complexion, but Yul was still pretty with a healthy color. Still, I asked just in case.