“ ~!!”
A jolt suddenly ran through Sen’s body, violently yanking him from unconsciousness. His mind was hazy and unfocused, but his body was anything but. His eyes snapped open to the view of the vast blue sky, and with a surge of power from his pounding heart, Sen instantly propped himself up and scanned his surroundings with bated breath.
A few seconds later, Sen finally dropped his guard when he confirms his safety and started to calm down and patting down his body,
‘Head? Good. Arms and legs… nothing wrong. …No pain, and… No wound, either. Phew. My things… they’re there. Good.‘
Relieved that there’s nothing wrong with him, Sen got up and started to wander around the area to try to figure out where he is.
‘Now then, just where am I now?’ Sen pondered as he tried to recall what happened to him. ‘I should’ve crossed to Izumi yesterday… and then going along the highway… aaaahh,’ he facepalmed, ‘Right, right. Got ambushed. Dang. Did those bastards drag me here then? Probably, but why? There’s no – hm? ’
Unfortunately, his train of thought was interrupted as he heard a snapping branch from behind him. His body immediately sprang into action, moving into stance while spinning around, his hand reaching to the katana on his waist. ‘Is that them? Nice. I can just ask them directly.’
Moments later, the bushes started rustling, and they, no, it, appeared: a small brown child-like creature, strolling around while humming and swinging a stick on its right arm merrily, holding a bunch of fruits on its’ left hand. What caught Sen’s eyes, though, is its’ unhuman lower half and the pair of curved horns on its’ head.
“…… A yokai?” Sen blankly muttered the first thing on his mind.
The creature suddenly froze upon hearing him, opened its’ eyes and slowly looked up until it meets Sen’s eye… and threw the stick straight to Sen’s forehead.
“Am not!”
***
A few minutes later, Sen is now walking through the forest with the small child(?) on his shoulder, bombarding his ear with his rants, “…I mean, really, how could you mistake a faun for a yokai? You’re lucky I’m in a good mood today, only letting you off with this much! Besides, Gem is….”
Apparently, it was a very rude thing to call Gem, this ‘faun’, a yokai, and the appropriate punishment for that is a shoulder ride lift? Well, at least according to him anyway. Sen didn’t really mind, especially since he said he wants a lift to Scribel, the nearest city to the south of the forest.
“…And that’s why it’s a very rude thing to call Gem a yokai! You got all that?” Asked Gem as he ended his long rant, much to the pleasure of Sen’s ears.
“Yes, I’m really sorry about my rudeness,” Sen replied, trying to sound as sincere as he can. ‘Well, better not offend my guide, after all.’
“Fumu, good. I see you’re one of the better-mannered otherworlders. You’ll make a good adventurer, I tell you!” Gem said with a proud ‘Hmph!’
“Um, so, can I ask you something? Why do you keep calling me an ‘otherworlder’? And what is an 'adventurer'?”
“Hm? That's how we call people like you, who left their world and came here. As for adventurers, it's a job! They're employed by the guild to complete quests! The guild take in just about everyone, so many otherworlders go work there. Pretty nifty, I would say!" Gem answered.
"I see. But I don't remember leaving my world, though?. How would someone even leave a world, anyway?"
"Well most otherworlders came through something we call a "gate", though sometimes they can also appear out of nowhere like you. Well, those people usually were either sent here by a god or just straight up died on their world, though,"
'Died, huh? Well, I guess that explains it,' Sen frowned upon hearing the last part of Gem's answer, though he quickly dismissed it.
“I see you’re rather knowledgeable. Thank you, it was very helpful.”
“E~h? It’s nothing, you know~. Everyone know this much~,” Gem denied, though Sen can feel him grinning widely from his praise.
They then continued their conversation for the rest of the way, though it didn’t last long as patches of farmlands and a large city wall, which Sen assumed was Scribel, soon came to view.
“Huhum. Amazing, isn’t it?” Gem commented, “Anyway, this far is enough,” he said while jumping down from Sen’s shoulder.
“Eh? Didn’t you said to go until we reach the city?”
“Yep! Never said you have to bring me, though. Take this,” Gem said as he hands Sen a small pouch he took out of nowhere, “and give it to the person working at the adventurer guild! You can do it, right? Oh, and this one’s for you! It’s money!” Gem added as he presented a different pouch on his other hand.
“Well, I sure can, but – “ Sen answered while taking the pouches from Gem’s tiny hands, only to have Gem suddenly run off with a smile. “Good! I’ll see you later then!”
“Wha… – wait! Geez. The hell’s wrong with him?” Sen said, dumbfounded with Gem’s sudden takeoff. ‘Oh well. Might as well finish the job,’ He thought as he resumed his way to Scribel.
