The three idiots who couldn't become heroes are preparing a man's meal today as well. - Chapter 110

TLN: Idk where the admin is, but it’s been like 2-3 month they are missing, I say missing because there isn’t any respond on Discord from them.

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Part 2, Vol 1 (TLN: just think of it as volume 5 and go on)

Episode 110. The Beast Lurking in the Forest

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“Uh, huh? What?”

The words slipped out of my mouth before I could stop them.

But can you blame me? Just moments ago, I had been completely absorbed in a novel.

And then, feeling something cling to my cheek like moist air, I looked up… and I was in a jungle.

“I mean… what? I don’t get this at all.”

Today, I came home from elementary school and, using the allowance I’d gotten in advance, ran off to the bookstore to buy the newest volume of a novel.

I was so eager to dive into the new story of my favorite book, I clutched it to my chest and sprinted home, told Mom I was back, and then just lost myself in reading.

I love the world this author creates, and the main characters are so cool.

I’ve read it over and over—really, countless times.

Thinking things like, What was that character feeling at this moment? or What did that line really mean?

Each time I reread it, I discovered something new. I think it was just about the time Dad would normally be coming home…

And then, when I happened to lift my gaze—Where am I?

“Huh? Wait, is this a dream? No, but—what? Huh?”

Still confused, I glanced around, trying to reassess the situation.

But of course, there was no new information to work with.

The air was damp and carried a strange scent.

It was so dark I could barely see a few meters ahead.

Around me was a dense thicket of plants and trees, growing wildly despite the chilly air.

And in the distance, I could hear the calls of insects and beasts.

No, hold on.

I mean, sure, I’ve read novels with scenes like this, so I can imagine it—or fantasize about it—but…

When it actually happens to you, all you can do is panic.

“M-Mom…? Are you there?”

I whispered in a trembling voice, but only silence answered me.

Of course. There’s no way Mom would be here, not in a place like this.

She’s probably in the kitchen right now, making dinner.

And Dad would be getting home soon, probably just about to call me.

So then—what the heck is this?

“Um… if this is, like, an ‘isekai summoning’ or something, uh… what do I do first? I’m in a forest, right? What do I even do?”

In stories, the protagonists somehow always manage to get through situations like this and survive.

Maybe it’s not a good idea to use that as a reference, but it’s all the knowledge I have.

So I carefully observed my surroundings.

There had to be something—there always was something in these stories.

The protagonists usually found something, or they checked their ‘status’ or whatever.

So…

“S-Status Open! Status Open! …Nothing’s happening.”

In the end, I just became a kid yelling embarrassing lines in the middle of a forest.

Seriously, what is this situation?

What am I supposed to do?

Just as I was thinking that—

“Grrrrrrr…”

“Huh?”

From within the forest, a tiger appeared.

And it was way bigger than the ones I’ve seen at the zoo.

I mean—what am I even supposed to do here?

“F-Fireball!”

If this is another world, then maybe I can use magic or something!

With that desperate hope, I thrust out my hand and shouted.

But of course, nothing happened.

Ah, this is bad.

That tiger is definitely coming this way.

“Uh, um… well…”

I knew.

I knew you’re not supposed to shout in a dark forest, especially with wild animals around.

It might work as intimidation, but it’s already right in front of me.

It’s probably already realized I’m small and weak compared to it.

Even so… even so…

“I—I don’t want this… Waaaaaah! Mom! Dad! Where are you!? Help me! Please!”

Crying and screaming, I turned my back to the tiger and ran.

Turning your back on a predator like that is basically saying “Please attack me.”

I knew that. I knew it, but…

What else was I supposed to do!?

“Uwaaaaaah! Don’t come near me! Stay away!”

I kept screaming and just ran and ran.

Behind me, I heard the heavy thudding of footsteps—thud, thud!

And the tiger’s breathing was right behind me.

It was definitely closing in.

There’s no way I can outrun this—

“Gyaaahhh!”

A sharp pain and a powerful impact hit my back, and I tumbled to the ground.

It hurts, it hurts, it hurts!

An intense pain I’ve never felt before shot through my back, and the wound felt like it was pulsing with heat.

I could feel something warm flowing out—my back was on fire.

And yet, my fingertips were starting to go cold.

I didn’t understand anything anymore.

What is this? What should I do?

Shaking uncontrollably, terrified of the beast’s breath so close behind me, I curled up into a ball, making myself as small as possible—

“Hissssss!”

“Rescue target spotted! Kou-chan, don’t get him caught up!”

“That kid’s injured! Saint-sama, it’s your turn!”

“Y-Yes!”

“Master! That magical beast has incredibly strong legs—”

Right after all those voices rang out—

With a light thunk! and then a heavy thud, something huge hit the ground.

And the tiger’s breathing stopped.

I was still too scared to lift my head…

But what in the world had just happened?

“—That may be so. But it had nothing to do with you, Master. Good work.”

Right after I heard that line, a warm palm touched my back.

“It’s okay, I’ll heal you right away!”

The warmth spread throughout my body, and before any time could really pass… the pain vanished.

What the heck just happened?

As I wondered that and looked up—

“Are you alright? Does it still hurt?”

There was a woman with horns like a dragon’s, smiling gently.

“A goddess?”

I murmured without thinking.

『Nope, boy. We’re “Dragonkin,” the one and only new race in this world.』

Her expression changed for just a moment.

Her lips curled into a grin, and she bared her beastlike fangs.

Even that, somehow, looked beautiful.

“Kana! What are you doing scaring him like that!? Um, sorry, okay? You’re safe now.”

『Nozomi, even so… isn’t this better than that one?』

Even though she was alone, she kept talking like she was having a conversation with someone.

But somehow, I understood.

She was one person—and also two.

No matter how you listened, it was the same voice, and yet… the way they spoke didn’t sound like the same person at all.

The atmosphere, too, was completely different.

Probably… some kind of split personality—

“That one…?”

『Look, that!』

She pointed, and I followed her finger with my gaze—

Standing there were unmistakable “Reapers.”

Jet-black armor, gleaming so darkly it reflected the moonlight.

One of the three figures, clad in that eerie shine, yanked a spear from the “tiger” that until moments ago had seemed like the real threat.

Blood sprayed through the air, splattering across their bodies.

But he didn’t seem to care at all. He just casually swung the spear, shaking off the flesh and blood from the blade.

“Ahh, damn. This thing’s had it. The blade’s all messed up.”

“Well, it’s not like we got it maintained or anything… That dragon really pushed it. Mine’s pretty wrecked too. My ‘Full-Hobby Loadout’ ended up like this, all busted.”

“Same here. My pile bunker’s broken…”

They checked their weapons with casual sighs, like it was no big deal—and it was terrifying.

I couldn’t help imagining it—what if I was next to be cut down by those blades?

The moment I thought that, all three of them turned to look at me at the same time.

“Eh, wha? Um, are you okay!?”

『Hmm, maybe that was a bit much for a little kid.』

Wrapped in something soft, I lost consciousness.

………

“Oh? What’s wrong?”

“He passed out…”

The boy in the Saintess-sama’s arms had gone limp, completely leaving himself in her care.

He must’ve been utterly exhausted.

After all, he was just a small boy, all alone in a forest like this.

Can’t really blame him.

According to what I heard from Kua, slaves sometimes run away, or other complicated stuff happens… Wait, hold on.

“Am I imagining things? Doesn’t that kid look like he’s wearing a polo shirt? Huh? Do we even have that kind of clothing around here? Saintess-san, could you check the inside of his shirt real quick? See if there’s a tag or something?”

No matter how you looked at it, he was dressed like someone from “the other side.”

No, no, let’s not jump to conclusions.

Even if he was a “dud,” no one would just abandon a kid like that, right?

If there’s a country nearby that actually did something like this—then yeah, they’d be picking a fight with us.

I’m sorry, I got carried away. Fighting a country is definitely not happening.

“Umm… it said something like polyester or whatever. Ahaha…”

“Ahh, come on… First we get dumped into a forest out of nowhere, and now it’s another ‘otherworlder’?”

I instinctively held my helmet and looked up at the moon—it was a stunning full moon.

And all around us, forest.

But it was nothing like the forests we knew.

The humidity was high, and the plants were clearly different. That magical beast we saw earlier? Never seen anything like it.

A tiger. A tiger, for real.

Makes you think the pelt would sell for a good price.

“Up until a few days ago, we were saying stuff like ‘Just being alive is a win’… but I really wanna reach a town soon.”

“Right? And that magic bag that Kita-kun brought barely had any money in it, so even if we do reach a town, we might be in trouble. Didn’t you give the platinum coins we had as backup to that princess?”

“I told you already, I’m sorry about that… But come on, you guys would’ve returned it too, right? In that situation?”

““Of course we would.””

I sighed deeply as I got matching responses from the two of them.

It’s been a few days, give or take.

Since we killed that dragon, smashed through a collapsing ceiling, and used that teleportation magic circle.

It was an emergency—of course we used it.

Although now that I think about it, maybe just busting through the wall would’ve been faster.

The entrance had caved in, so we had no choice but to rush back to the deepest part…

But thinking about that now is pretty pointless.

Everyone was in terrible shape, and we were out of magic stones for our “Full-Hobby Loadouts.”

Given all that, well, can’t really blame us.

“Master, what shall we do? At this rate, even our equipment is becoming unreliable. Continuing to use the exclusive weapon for ‘Hearty Eater’ is proving difficult as well.”

Minami, who had just stowed the tiger into the magic bag, spoke with a troubled expression.

Yeah, it’s getting rough.

My spear’s a wreck, Nishida’s gear is out of stock.

Azuma is holding on with a bent shield, of all things.

And to top it off, Minami’s crossbow is out of bolts.

At this point, we have to head to civilization.

“Sure would be nice if there was a village or town nearby.”

“But… we don’t have money…”

“Right…”

Unfortunately, we left our funds back at the orphanage and the Home. The magic bag only had our gear, rations, cooking tools, and a few seasonings.

We gave the other bag to Kua, so no matter how much we complain, the money we earned is locked in the Home’s vault.

And the platinum coins we brought for emergencies…

“Maybe I should’ve waited a bit before giving those back to the princess…”

“It couldn’t be helped. She’s not someone you can meet just any time.”

Letting out a massive sigh, I gazed around at the surrounding forest.

“Well, I guess you guys wouldn’t care about our situation anyway.”

I threw a sharp glare toward the shadows peeking at us from between the trees—and they ran off.

That—that right there is the problem.

They used to come straight at us, and now they run away.

What, are the monsters in this area all cowards?

None of our “meals” are coming to us anymore.

“Aaahhh, seriously! What the hell is with all of them!? Screw it, let’s just try eating the tiger!”

“Agreed. With so little equipment left, we can’t afford to chase after anything either…”

Minami muttered regretfully, staring longingly at a bird that flew off into the night sky.

It’s been quite a while since we came to “this side.”

And yet, this sort of thing never happened before.

Because it never happened before, this current situation makes no sense.

“Sigh… Our only catch today is one tiger, huh…”

“Everything keeps running away lately…”

“Well, at least we still have what’s in the magic bag… But we might end up needing to buy food after all…”

Everyone spoke in gloomy tones as Minami pulled the tiger out again and began butchering it.

I wonder if it’s tasty. I hope it’s tasty.

Lately, it’s been a string of “blanks.”

No prey.

Or rather—they run away.

Why? Weren’t monsters supposed to be way more aggressive?

With that thought in mind, I got to work on the tiger.

Oh, the pelt came off clean.

Let’s sell it.

Thinking that, our days of camping out continued once again.