Chapter 4 (1/2)

Given to Kurando as his punishment was lumbering in the vicinity of the prison. That place was erected in a suburb of the capital and was located above a small hill. It was surrounded by forests growing on the gentle slope.

Considering the possibility of a revolt, 50 prison guards were deployed around the vicinity, armed with weapons and armor of steel. To do their job, they were only allowed to use old saws that had short teeth and wooden hoes. After cutting down the trees, they had to dig out the roots.

In that place, Kurando was paired with a man called McKinley who look like he was in his forties.

「That said, I’m your partner from now on. Nice to meet you. Bro」

McKinley, though his face looked like a skinny prying mantis, he was unecpectedly a caring fellow who would teach the ABC’s of manual labor in various ways.

At any rate I can’t put too much effort in the labor.

Lumbering is a continuing labour from sunrise till sunset. My body won’t last till the end if I go at full power since the very beginning.

On the other hand, the prison guards who kept watch won’t forgive me and will hit me with their stick if I’m too relaxed. Therefore, I took care to rest in moderation while keeping a constant speed at work.

「It’s not like the prison term will shortened if you’re diligent. On the other hand, If you keep at it like that, you won’t last even 3 days.. Do it moderately」

Dig out the densely packed root stump and carry it away with basket.

Though it was an extremely simple labour, the strength needed for it is no joke. They also had to carefully level the dug out earth. That, and with the surrounding forest s.p.a.cious almost without end, the work couldn’t be finished with only 100 people no matter how one thinks about it.

To make matters worse, Kurando was separated from Koizumi and co. He was put into the isolation cell.

He couldn’t even have an idle chatter during the manual labour. In short he’s left alone on his own; he pa.s.sed the time inside his room in boredom.

（s.h.i.+t. I look like a loner[bocchi] now. It’s lonely, I want to chat with someone)

This was clearly a hara.s.sment from Kamarovich. Isolating Kurando alone from the people in which he got closer to, this was a tactic to drive his mind into a corner.          Manual labour lasting more than 10 hours, digging and carrying, again and again without rest. Seven days has yet to elapsed and Kurando’s eyes had already lost it’s light.

「Nevertheless, what I can’t stand is the s.h.i.+tty food.」

The food delivered in morning and evening was just one slice of corn bread in small quant.i.ty and thin porrige resembling diarrhea excrement. Without any protein, and salt. Parted from salt, human will begin to lose their ambition little by little.   Kurando who was already accustomed to the thick seasoning of the modern j.a.pan have to endure this lack of salt.

Living bare of hope till the end. The eyes of summoned one lost with the pa.s.sing day, it’s just like he’s continue to wandering in infinite road without ending forever. [TL : his eyes become loser eyes(Hachiman eyes)]

An incident happened in the eight day.

「What’s happened？ 」

Kurando was carrying heavy load along with McKinley as usual, when he heard the cry of the other prisoners from inside the forest in lower slope.

「This is bad.   Bad news、BADNEWSBADNEWS、KURANDO! RUUUUUUUN! !!   」

「Oi, WA—. What just happened ! ？ 」

McKinley was shouting like a madman and had begun to run toward the prison.

The prisoners were stampeding in the same direction just like flocks of gazelle being chased by a lion as they’re fleeing from that place.

Kurando who didn’t understand anything ran to the upper slope following McKinley.          Strangely, the prison guards did not reprimand the prisoners for abandoning their labor. Instead, the group slowly turned their gaze as a whole to the bottom of the slope. While being puzzled, Kurando followed their line of sight.

At the place away from the prison near to the forest, where the prisoners were working earlier, he saw a swarm of small, black something.

「WHAT THE h.e.l.l IS THAT!?」

「Those are goblins. They make their homes within the vicinity of this forest.   Once in a while, those pests will come out to attack us like this.  s.h.i.+T！ ！ 」

Goblins were demi-humans that are frequently seen in this Romres kingdom and other countries bordering it.

Though they’re weak and short, they’re embodiment of jealousy, they’re creatures similar to imp with powerful reproductive ability.

They’re using official language of Romres, according to the area they’re a race that can’t be make light of even by human race.

Though it’s not that rare, this was the first time since he came to this world that he see such grotesque creatures.

McKinley clicked his tongue while cursing. The prison guards were watching merrily as if they’re enjoying the show of the goblins attacking the prisoners.   Somehow they’d also began to bet among themselves. He could see them pa.s.sing around bamboo basket with copper coin in it around.

The goblins stabbed the prisoners who fell behind with their weapons that resembled short spear and swiftly killing them. The prisoners who got pulled down struggled fiercely trying to escape like captured fish. But, only bitter wailings resounded from below.

He saw that the group of goblin cut off the neck of the prisoners who couldn’t move anymore and dragged him by his feet.        With their orderly movement, it felt like that they’re professional troop. [TL : Rou, is that you over here?]

「This neighbourhood has particularly low numbers of game*. That’s why those guys sometimes raid our woking site. 」   *. [TL : game here means hunting animal like wild bird, or deer, or something like that]

McKinley let out a frustated groan while trembling with his already paled face.       Clinging tightly to his own back and curling himself like an old man. That was the sign that this raid had happened on countless occa.s.sions.

「Those guys, are they eating humans?」

「No matter how you look at it, humans aren’t appetizing at all.   Those goblins carried the human that they killed to their nests, and minced their meat to mix it with the feed for their livestock*. Normally, the wild boars⎯ their livestock ate rabbits as their diet.」[TL : OMG, Gobu Rou is really here!!!]

Kurando’s expresion was turning pale, his body s.h.i.+vering at the violence that happening below him. Did he get carried away, planning to go out (for them)?. McKinley grabbed Kurando’s shoulder and shook his head.

「If you’re trying to help those guys below, forget that idea right now. It’s futile. There are several hundreds of those goblins.        The result will be the same, even those armed prison guard won’t try to attack them.   You’re safe if you stay near the buildings. Moreover, they’re armed with swords and spears. I don’t know they got it. We can’t do anything with our bare hands alone. We can only abandon those guys who were late to save themselves」

「But still」

「It’s futile. At any rate, we have no choice but to keep our vigilance when working in the vicinity of the forest. If you sense something bad even just a little, don’t think about other people and run. That is the secret of having long life in this place」

It happened when Kurando was clenching his teeth.

The voice of a young girl could be heard in the middle of hoa.r.s.e screams of the men.

When he quickly s.h.i.+fted his gaze, he saw a tiny shadow running here from a far-off slope.

Her gray robe, her dishevelled light brown hair were fluttering with the wind.

The strange mask that she wore to hide her face was the thing that made him remember her in some respect.

「Aryaa, it’s Maggot!!」

It’s the shout of someone amongst the prisoner.        The men were excited at once.

「To run into the goblins when she’s going down the hill to throw the trash！！ 」

「What a bad luck!」

—-

From behind the staggering and gasping Maggot, four goblins were seen chasing after her.

「Wait’ a minut’ there, I’m comin’ yer help now！ 」

「Ou, I’m pitchin’ in too」

Somehow with they seemed full of chivalric spirit. Or was it that they’re expecting a reward after rescuing her, their ulterior motive was clear as day as they descended the hill to Maggot’s rescue. Well, only their voices were full of spirit. One of the men was shot by relentless arrow coming from deep inside the forest as he was shouting and das.h.i.+ng down the slope.

「UOOOoo..ugukhhkho..」

And the other one, arrows whizzed and embedded his chest, throat, and stomach. His life instantly extinguished as his body rolled down the slope toward the forest.

That place was considerably close to Kurando and McKinley on the upper hill. They had just watched the efficient goblins at work. A bluish black imp that looked like their leader dealt with the body diligently, stabbing his dagger to the lump of meat that was still warm. It plunged it’s dagger into the throat and swiftly cut the neck off. Then as if it was just a hindrance, it kicked the head away toward the slope.

“Byuubyuu” the sound of blood gus.h.i.+ng out from the body. As if it paid no heed to it, the imp pierced through base of the shoulder with its blade, then skillfully cut of the arm.

The corpse, with only its torso and legs looked like an abomination, a mutated being, that had never existed. Maggot who already lost her will power to escape sank down and sat frozen as she was on that place. It seemed that her hips had already failed her. Her hood gently fell, revealing strange shapes attached to her head.

「Ears……！」

Kurando with his excellent eyesight noticed. Two ears protruded on top of Maggot head, no matter how he look at it, those weren’t the ears of a human, those were the ears of a beast.

「What was that, a demi-human. CEH!」

「Even if she is a woman, she just a beast HUH」

When Kurando was still mesmerized by the ears that were protruding from the top of Maggot’s head, the prisoners who had been watching left for the prison building one after another letting out a pity-like voice.

「What the heck happened to everyone. What’s wrong with demi-human! 」

「Haa？WHERE THE HECK DID YOU COME FROM? Aryaa~, from the shape of those ears it looks like she’s from Werecat tribe. Che, why should we trade our lives for that lowly beast. 」

While Kurando stood there dumbfounded from their comments, Mckinley, with a tired face, supplemented what prison guards just said.

「Maybe you didn’t know about it since you’re a newcomer, there’s a jinx in this place saying that you will never leave this prison till your death if you have s.e.x with demi-human woman. Pity for Maggot, heh. It’s no wonder she cover that face at work. If she got found out, none of them guys would get happy gettin’ food from her. Though rumour said it was superb, doing it with one of them… I see, demi-human is it. 」

McKinley turned his back. The goblin who had finished dismantling their game[prisoner] came and put their hand on the cuff of Maggot’s robe. She couldn’t even scream anymore. That little figure of hers was swarmed by the goblins.

Kurando cheeks burnt hotly like it’s set ablaze.

By the time he noticed, he was already running toward them with hoe in his hand.

A voice calling him to come back was heard from his back.

But he ignored it.

[I won’t just stand and do nothing in this place. ] Kurando

Kurando attacked the head of the goblin with his hoe while letting out a b.e.s.t.i.a.l roar.

He could feel his hands go numb.

The little monster which got his head smacked really hard fell to it’s back with it’s limbs twitching.

「STAND UP！COME HERE! 」

「EH, AH……？」

Kurando kicked away the swarming goblin while pulling out Maggot.

The goblins whose height were less than 140 cm height couldn’t even jostle around Kurando who weighed close to 80 kilogram with his 180 cm stature.

The three remaining goblins then charged at him letting out some kind of war cry.

Despite their small frame, they’re armed with dagger in each hand.

Kurando brandished his hoe as if losing himself. While protecting Maggot, he retreated backwards little by little.

「URGH!？ 」

Because he was too focused on the ones before him, he became careless of the surrounding. The goblins which sensed the impending crisis to their companions started to send reinforcement fire. The arrowhead logged themselves on the sides of the body, his right shoulder, and wrist. Kurando was only a normal college student; this was basically his first battle in which he’s putting his life on the line.

That was the only one that occupying his head while he’s bombarded with those arrows.

His fear was stronger than his pain.