My Happy Marriage (LN) - Volume 3 - Chapter Pr

  PROLOGUE  

Buffeted by the cold autumn wind of night, the man trotted down a mountain trail covered in dead leaves.

He’d lost track of time and had gotten a late start on his trip home. It would take him a bit longer to reach the village.

They say some creeps have been drifting around here, too.

A few villagers claimed to have glimpsed a black-cloaked figure who kept their face hidden roaming around at night.

Though this individual had yet to do anything to anyone or cause a disturbance, their unnerving appearance had set everyone in town on edge.

The man was in his prime and fairly strong, but that didn’t make the mysterious figure any less frightening.

Better not get wrapped up in anything freaky.

He wanted nothing more right now than to hurry home, soak in a warm bath, have himself a drink, and hit the hay. Shivering in the night air, he quickened his pace.

All of a sudden, the man stopped in his tracks.

He could have sworn he’d heard a noise nearby. A bit like grass and dry leaves crunching underfoot. It occurred to him that it could have just been his footsteps, but the sound was slightly too far away for that.

Maybe a deer, or a boar… Hope it’s not a bear.

Just as he thought to slip away while he was unnoticed, his eyes fell on a silhouette. It clearly didn’t belong to any animal—only human beings walked upright on two legs.

Save for the locals, hardly anyone set foot in these mountains. Tourists or people with vacation homes in the area generally didn’t venture up this high. And when outsiders did pass through, they stuck out like a sore thumb, so word of their arrival would quickly spread among the locals.

That was exactly what had happened with the current talk of the town, the figure in black.

I’ve got a bad feeling about this.

What if their presence here brought harm to the village? What if this suspicious individual was involved in some sort of crime?

The man gulped hard then made up his mind before he headed off in the direction of the shadow.

After walking a short distance, he came upon the suspicious figure. A black cloak covered their body from head to toe.

If not for his sharp night vision, the man might have missed them entirely.

Their face is hidden. That’s gotta be them…

This was the black-clad figure he’d heard so much about. There was no doubt.

The person in the cloak was descending the mountain, whipping their head back and forth as if they were worried about being seen.

Breathlessly following after them, the man grew puzzled.

The only thing up ahead of them was a run-down shack. It was built on the outskirts of the village a long time ago and had fallen out of use.

Perhaps the building had become a hangout for outlaws.

If that’s the case, then I’m really going to have to check it out, huh.

Up until now, the villagers hadn’t pursued the creepy, shadowy figure very far.

Deep down, the man was scared to pursue them alone. But his sense of responsibility as a member of his community won out over his fear when he considered that this person could get up to even more trouble if he let them be.

He continued tailing after the black-clad figure, keeping plenty of space between him and the stranger to avoid being spotted.

Right as the shack came into view, the man stopped to watch as the figure opened the door.

Oh… So someone else is already inside.

Looking through the open door, he caught a brief glimpse of another black shadow. There were indeed multiple people inhabiting the place.

Should he go up and admonish them?

No, he would be better off hanging back if there was more than one person there. They were obviously a suspicious bunch, and he couldn’t say for sure if they were unarmed.

His mind set on returning to the village to inform everyone of this development, the man turned around. That was when he saw it.

A giant shadow, lurking there in utter silence to avoid giving its presence away.

It was over nine forearms tall and similarly broad across. It was looking down ponderously at the man. The moment their eyes met, a grating and unpleasant screech, like the grinding of teeth, assaulted the man’s ears.

It was dressed in the same large black cloak as the suspicious figure from earlier.

But this was no human. The man was viscerally confident of that.

Horrible. Horrible. Horrible.

It felt like a frigid hand had grabbed his heart. His spine stiffened, and his teeth chattered. The man retreated backward, but in his panic, he fell on his backside.

The shadow drew closer, letting out a sharp, grating sound all the while… Now that he had a better view of the creature, the man saw that it had two large, thick horns growing out of its head.

“A-aaaauuuugh!”

Unable to hold back his scream, the man lost consciousness.