Wortenia Senki (LN) - Volume 5 - Chapter Ep

Epilogue 

Labored breaths escaped Asuka’s lips incessantly. She couldn’t tell how far she’d run already. 

“Over here! Hurry!” Kusuda, who had taken the lead, waved toward her. 

He stood beneath a tree overgrown with thick leaves. 

“Keep going, Tachibana!” He’d repeated those words for what felt like the hundredth time. 

How long has it been since...? 

It felt like she’d been running for half the day, but that couldn’t be. After all, the moon was still shining down on them from above. It had likely been an hour or so. They’d been on the run, trying to stealthily get as far away as they could. And worse yet, they were in a dark forest. There were no signposts and no one they could ask for directions from. 

And yet, they were lucky enough for the fact that Kouichirou Mikoshiba had fought as wildly as he did and drew attention to himself. This helped them escape the castle and reach the forest. 

But the way this is going... 

Tachibana was holding a handkerchief against his wound, but it was gradually becoming more and more stained with red. His only way of stopping the bleeding was by applying pressure to the wound. If they could stop and rest somewhere maybe they could treat him, but they were unfortunately on the run. The clotted blood was tearing off as they continued running. And yet, they couldn’t afford to stop. 

“Miss Kiryuu, hurry!” Kusuda motioned for her to rush over. 

“I’m sorry, I’ll be right there!” Asuka called back to him. 

Truth be told, Tachibana was already a burden to them. At first he was capable and lucid, but as they kept running his consciousness was beginning to fade. 

But... 

They all knew that logically speaking, leaving Tachibana behind would be the optimal course of action. But neither Asuka or Kusuda thought to suggest it. They knew that they were pushing themselves against a wall by doing this, and in fact, if either of them were to suggest leaving Tachibana behind, it would likely be done. 

But this was why they couldn’t stop. They feared that the moment they would stop, all the emotion they kept bottled up would rise to the surface. 

Before long, the light of dawn began painting over the sky. By the time the sun was approaching its zenith, Tachibana crumbled to the ground. They’d been running along this unpaved route for hours without anything to eat or drink. It wouldn’t be surprising if they were to pass out from fatigue. 

“Mr. Tachibana! Are you all right?! Hang on!” Asuka called out in surprise. 

“Tachibana!” Hearing Asuka’s exclamation, Kusuda hurried to Tachibana’s side and grabbed him by the shoulders. 

“Mr. Kusuda, don’t shake him like that!” Asuka stopped him, flustered. 

“Ah, sorry!” Recalling the wound to Tachibana’s head, Kusuda hurriedly let go of the man. “But what do we do? What the hell canwe even do in the middle of the forest?” 

For the time being, they laid Tachibana against a large tree’s trunk and let him rest. Kusuda’s expression was bitter. It would normally make sense for him to take over as leader, but he was still inexperienced. Overcoming this crisis would be difficult for him. The fact his speech had been growing rougher was proof of him losing his nerve. Asuka couldn’t blame him for it, though. 

“I don’t think we can keep going like this... We need to make sure Mr. Tachibana gets treated first. And we need water and food,” Asuka suggested. 

It was a reasonable idea. They were all nearing their bodies’ limits, after all. Force of will kept them going so far, but it wouldn’t last them for much longer. 

“Still, we can’t go back the way we came... And if what Mr. Mikoshiba said is true, this is another world, right? How are we supposed to treat him? Where would we find a doctor?” Kusuda fired off his questions one after another. 

Asuka wasn’t responsible for this situation, of course, but Kusuda’s tone seemed to blame her, as if it was somehow her fault. But upon watching her fall into silence, Kusuda was overcome with guilt. 

“I’m sorry...” Kusuda bowed his head. “That was wrong of me.” 

“No... It’s alright.” 

They both knew that quarreling here would be the foolish thing to do, and so they came to a compromise. 

“Let’s let Tachibana rest here...” Kusuda said. “I’ll go look for food and water for the time being.” 

He then pulled his collapsible baton out of his bag. 

“Judging by those people we saw yesterday, I don’t think it’ll be of much use... But I guess it’s better than going empty-handed.” 

“Then I’ll...” Asuka said, as she tried to get up. 

Kusuda stopped her, though. 

“No, you stay here, Miss Kiryuu. We can’t leave Tachibana here alone in this state.” 

Asuka immediately realized they didn’t have any other option. 

“All right. Thank you, and good luck,” Asuka said, bowing her head. 

Kusuda nodded back and soon disappeared into the forest. 

“It’d probably be best if I don’t touch it directly...” 

Asuka used her face sheet to clean Tachibana’s wound as he lay down. The blood clots had closed the wound to his forehead, and the bloodstained handkerchief, flaky to the touch, clung to his skin. The first sheet she used was soon dyed a dark red from blood, sweat, and filth. 

“What’s going to happen to us now...?” Asuka whispered, wiping his face with a second sheet. “Aah... It’s so dirty...” 

Asuka was discouraged as she watched the sheet turn black. Anger and doubt surged up in her heart. She kept asking herself why they’d found their way into this world, but couldn’t come up with an answer. 

But it was then that Asuka heard a soft chiming sound, like a bell’s, ring out in her ears. 

“Huh? It can’t be...” 

She turned to look in the direction of the sound, where she found a katana propped against a tree’s trunk. It was Ouka, the sword Kouichirou gave her. 

“Why? Why are you calling out...?” 

It was as if it was calling out to Asuka, trying to warn her of something. Asuka gripped the katana. And at just that moment, a massive shadow barreled toward the girl. 

“Aaaaaaaaah?!” Asuka exclaimed in shock. 

But while her body was about to squat in place and freeze up, she suddenly stopped moving. A heat suddenly blazed through her limbs. It felt as if the blood running through her veins turned to lava. And then, Asuka unconsciously released Ouka from its sheath — drawing it at lightning speed. 

With her body positioned as it was, she moved as if she was a doll having its strings pulled, and thrust the blade into the mass lying on the ground. A long, pained howl of agony rattled the forest’s trees. 

Asuka’s confused mind was beginning to realize what just happened. The first thing she saw was the body of a dead animal lying on the ground. 

“No way... Is that a tiger?!” Asuka whispered in surprise. 

Lying before her was the dead remains of a large animal that weighed five hundred kilograms. Each of the fangs extending from its mouth were larger than most knives Asuka had seen. Its claws were also sharp, and the shape of its face was decidedly feline. 

“But this isn’t a tiger, is it...?” 

Looking closely, what should have been a tiger’s sleek fur was a coat of fur that seemed to be made out of sharp needles. And more than anything, it was far too large to be a tiger. Typically, tigers weigh three hundred kilograms at most. But the tiger-like animal lying dead in front of Asuka was nearly three times the size of the tigers she had seen in the zoo. It also seemed to have a third eye on its forehead. A three-eyed tiger. 

Once she noticed the third eye, the cogs inside her head began spinning. 

Yeah... This isn’t Earth, is it...? 

Even after braving that much danger and hearing Kouichirou’s explanation, Asuka still couldn’t tell if the reality playing out before her eyes was real or a dream. She didn’t want to admit it, and preferred to believe this was all a product of her imagination. 

But the three-eyed tiger that had just attacked her and which she cut down forced the gears within her mind to move. The act of taking a life rattled the heart of a normal human being to the core. That made it clear why Kouichirou chose to come back to Rearth in order to save Asuka. 

But what really bothered Asuka right now was the odd sensation that had overcome her body when the tiger attacked her. 

“But I... How did I...? It’s like someone else was moving my body... Yes, it was like something was controlling me...” 

But the indescribable sensation still lingered in her fingers. Her nostrils felt warm, and were filled with the scent of blood, which she had smelled too many times since yesterday. Her gaze turned in the direction of the smell, where the massive three-eyed tiger lay on the ground with a vertical slash across its stomach. 

It seemed her initial slash when she first drew the blade ended up being a fatal blow. The creature’s intestines were spilling out of its stomach and onto the ground. She thrust her blade into its forehead, so as to make sure she took it out of its misery. But even so, it was a gruesome slash. 

It can’t be. I couldn’t have done something like that... 

Kouichirou did train her a bit in swordplay, but it wasn’t anywhere near the thorough training he’d put Ryoma through. 

And yet, fate was moving far too fast to afford Asuka any time to think... 

“Hey, I think that howl came from that way!” 

“Yes, that sounded like a Third Eye’s roar.” 

“All right, everyone, remain cautious! As large as those things are, Third Eyes are savage predators and can mask their presence to ambush their prey. If you let your guard down, it’ll bite you down before you know it!” 

Those voices were accompanied by the sound of twigs being crushed by multiple footsteps. 

Those voices, there’s people coming here... What should I do...? 

Unable to decide if she should hide or ask them for help, Asuka stood stock still. Before long, a group of men clad in metallic armor appeared from the thicket. 

“It smells like blood... Did we finally corner that thing?” the man leading the group remarked, sniffing the air suspiciously. 

He was a young man, about one hundred and eighty centimeters in height. He had a thin but well-toned form. He looked to be in his mid-twenties. He was a handsome man with gold hair, tied into a ponytail at the back of his head. He looked like he might be the most popular member of an idol group in Japan. 

The man soon noticed Asuka’s presence, and his face stiffened. 

“Who are you?! What are you doing here? And that behind you... Wait, that’s a Third Eye!” 

From his perspective, he’d just found a girl standing in the middle of the forest, gripping a bloody sword. His reaction could be called appropriate. It was like a scene from a horror movie. And when he realized the beast he was sent here to slay was lying dead at her feet, his confusion only deepened. 

But what came next only served to leave him even more astonished. 

Upon seeing the man’s face, Asuka suddenly collapsed. 

“Huh?! What, what’s wrong, all of a sudden?!” the man exclaimed and hurried to her side. “Aah, what is going on here?!” 

The man clicked his tongue and reached for the water canteen dangling from his waist. 

“All right, have this, drink it!” He lightly tapped on Asuka’s cheek a few times and tipped the canteen against her lips. 

Of course, he knew that it contained not water, but some brandy which he carried in place of smelling salts. It was naturally illegal to do so. But in the state Asuka was in, brandy served just as well as water. 

Asuka’s throat gulped twice, then thrice. Her eyelids fluttered and half-opened, but her stamina was already at its limits. She let her consciousness slip without drinking much. 

“Hey! Hey!” 

He called out to her again, but Asuka’s limp body showed no response. The rest of the group soon appeared behind the man, wearing matching suits of armor. An insignia of a cross held against the sun was emblazoned on their armor, likely the symbol of their group. 

They were probably knights serving some country. 

“Leader! Why did you break formation?” One of his subordinates approached the man. “Normally you’d stay at the back of the line... Wait, who is this girl?” 

He noticed Asuka lying unconscious in the man’s arms and tilted his head in surprise. None of the men present understood this situation. 

“I don’t know... What is she doing in the forest...? But she’s still breathing, so I don’t think she’s in danger of dying.” 

Asuka’s attire didn’t make her look like an adventurer or mercenary. But the weapon in her hand told a different story. 

“Judging by her outfit, I’d assume she’s from Rearth,” one of the knights said, removing her helmet. “I don’t know if she somehow managed to cross to this side or if some country called for her, though.” 

She had a soft, chime-like voice and sleek black hair. She looked to be the same age as the golden-hair leader. 

“And what’s more... this girl looks like she’s Japanese.” 

“Menea, are you serious?” the leader asked, his expression clouding over with surprise. 

“Yes, Mother has told me much of that land, and I’ve seen people summoned from there as well. Her outfit should be typical of the Japanese... Except...” 

“Except what?” 

“The sword she’s holding is a weapon traditionally used in Rearth’s eastern regions. But in that world, carrying weapons is mostly prohibited, so I must wonder where she found it... And the way the Third Eye’s body’s been slashed is peculiar, too. Its fur is said to be like steel, but the cut goes as deep as the flesh.” 

“So it’s some kind of exceptionally sharp sword?” the man asked. 

“There’s no doubt that this katana is quite sharp, but the quality of a tool matters little...” 

“So that girl is this skilled?” 

“I can’t say... As weakened as it may have been, that is still a male Third Eye. The fact she slew it by herself and without any visible injuries means her skill is somewhere on the level of a captain of the Temple Knights. But honestly, if she were that skilled, she wouldn’t pass out from exhaustion like this.” 

The leader looked down at Asuka’s body, confirming the woman’s words were true. Indeed, her body was covered in many scrapes and a good deal of dirt, but there were no serious wounds to be found. Her attire didn’t seem like something one might wear for an exploration of the forest, which made it likely she wasn’t in this forest of her free will. 

And yet, the body of the Third Eye she slew was a problem. 

Well, blast... What now...? 

In truth, he couldn’t come up with any other way to describe his current predicament. Reality was about to become much more cruel, though. 

“Leader, there’s another man here! He’s injured, and doesn’t seem to be conscious!” 

“What in the world is going on today?!” 

The situation was introducing one startling development after another, and the man had no recourse but to utter the name of the God he worshiped. 

“Meneos, what is the meaning of this...?” 

Nine days ago, at dusk, they received orders to return to the Church and left the town they were stationed in. It was a sudden order, but it was signed by both the knight captain commanding the Temple Knights and a cardinal, and so they couldn’t refuse. 

And yet, the elder of the village they stayed in begged them to slay the Third Eye that made the forest its home. And so they spent the last nine days tracking the creature, and when they thought they finally cornered it, all they found was a corpse and this unfamiliar girl. 

And now they found an unconscious, injured man. The leader couldn’t help but grumble. 

“How do we approach this, Leader?” Menea asked, standing behind him. 

“You’re asking me that...?” 

“Considering when we’re supposed to return home, we don’t have time to go back to the village. It would take us too long.” 

The man’s face hardened at her words. 

“Then what do you suggest? That we just abandon them here?!” 

“Of course not,” Menea said, a bitter smile on her lips. “I didn’t mean to imply that. Our God would never tolerate such an act... And even if I were to suggest it, you would never do so, Leader.” 

This man’s unit had always been seen as heretics of sorts by the other members of the Temple Knights, who always prioritized the Church’s orders. This was despite the fact that, in a way, this man and his companions were the ones who abided by the Church’s teachings more closely than anyone else. 

This man had never turned a blind eye to the troubles of the weak and the downtrodden. This was why he chose to help the village elder, even though they only stayed there for a single night. And he did so knowing it would delay his return, which was a military order. 

Hearing Menea’s words quieted down the leader’s anger somewhat. He heaved a deep sigh. 

“Then what are we supposed to do?” 

“Have our men carry them until we return to the Church. If we’re lucky, we’ll find a town along the way, where we can leave them with some money.” 

Since abandoning them wasn’t an option, Menea naturally suggested they take them along. 

I guess that’s the only choice we can take here... 

The man sighed again and looked up at the sky. 

What is it that you seek of me, God...? 

The sun, of course, didn’t answer his question. It simply shone in the heavens, the same as it always did, blessing the earth with its gentle warmth.