CH 4

Words : 1237 Updated : Sep 10th, 2025

I Helped a Strange Woman Thanks to Leo, we had an unexpected meal. Now that my stomach was full, it was time to really start thinking about how I was going to get out of this forest. “Leo. What should we do to leave this forest?” “Wou? Wuff!” I didn’t want to rely on Leo every time I needed help, but Leo had done so much today, so I couldn’t help but be a little expectant. However, even she did not seem to know, as Leo just tilted her head to the side. “…Hmm. Well, there’s a river, so maybe we should just follow it.” “Wuff.” Because if there was water, we at least didn’t have to worry about getting thirsty. As for the remaining orc meat… I didn’t have a bag or anything, so I’d just skewer what I could and carry it with me. Once I had finished preparations, I put out the fire with some river water, and then we started walking along the edge of the river. As the water was flowing, that meant it should be a slope. But it was so gentle that it didn’t feel like we were climbing up. So this was likely just a forest and not a mountain. Being lost in a mountain seemed like it would be worse…I think. “Wuff! Wuff!” Leo looked to be in a very good mood as she walked next to me. Was it because she had eaten so much? “You’ve become so strong, Leo.” “Wuff!” I said as I recalled how she had killed the orc and then cut it into small pieces. Leo turned to look at me. There was something like pride in her expression. This was the same Leo that had been shaking and was so scared when I found her. I was in an unknown place and encountered unknown creatures. But I felt confident because Leo was with me. “I’ve said it many times before, but thanks, Leo.” “Wou? Wuff-wuff.” Leo tilted her head once and then barked. It was as if she was saying that we helped each other. This pleasant atmosphere continued as we walked for some time. And then suddenly, I noticed something while looking at the trees. “The trees that grow in this forest…I’ve never seen them before…” “Wou?” It wasn’t like I knew a lot about trees, but I knew what kind of trees grew in Japan. And I had never seen trees like this there. They weren’t terribly strange or anything. But the shape of the leaves and the length of the branches were just different. Well, it was possible that they just happened to be a type of tree that I didn’t know about… “Surely we can’t be in a place that isn’t Japan.” “Wou!” It all felt like a bad joke to me. How could I wake up one morning and end up in a place that was not Japan? Of course, suddenly waking up in the forest was already quite ridiculous enough. But I tried to not think about it. Leo’s voice seemed to disagree, but I ignored it. But maybe I was just trying to escape from reality… “…!” “Hmm?” I thought that I heard something. “…ka! …ii!” It was a human voice! I could hear that someone was shouting up ahead! “Let’s go, Leo!” “Wou!” If it really was a normal person, then I might be able to ask them for directions. Thinking this, Leo and I dashed in the direction that we heard the voice. …While I was running as fast as I could, Leo kept up with me with movements that were the same as when she walked. It was amazing… As for the meat I was holding, I threw it away before I started running. I had heard a human voice, so food wasn’t a priority now…though… That was my dinner… “Someone! Please help me!” It was the voice of a woman. I could hear it more clearly now that we were closer. Something must have happened for her to need help in a place like this. Had she gotten lost, just like me? If so, I wouldn’t be able to ask for directions… In any case, we rushed to the place where the voice came from. “Ha… Ha… Ha…” “Wuff!” I was getting out of breath while running, but Leo still seemed perfectly fine. I suppose it was because of a lack of exercise that I was like this. “Someone!” “…That…” As we got closer to the area that the voice was coming from, what I saw was the back of an orc. And in front of the orc, was a woman who had fallen on the ground and was shouting for help. …Blonde hair? She had pretty, long blonde hair which was rather unusual in Japan. The orc looked down at the screaming woman and raised its spear. “She’s in danger! Leo!” “Gaau!!” Leo reacted immediately, and in a flash, she passed me as I ran and jumped on the orc. “Graauu!” Leo barked and swung her claws. And like that, the orc was split into two. The orc wasn’t even able to scream as the two pieces fell apart and sunk to the ground. “Ha…ha…ha… Leo…well done…ha…ha…” “Wou!” I finally reached Leo and praised her with a feeling of pride. Then I caught my breath and called out to the woman. “…Ha…ha…are you all right?” “…Uh…yes. …Somehow…I’m fine.” The woman who answered looked to be in her twenties. And her face was every bit as pretty as her golden hair. I felt that if she were to walk through town, every man would turn their head to look at her. That was how beautiful she was. “…” “…Um…is something wrong?” “…Ah. No, I’m sorry. …Are you hurt?” “No.” “Wou!” Damn it. She was so pretty that I had been staring. I hoped that she didn’t think that I was a strange person. Leo. Don’t look at me with that exasperated expression. “Thank you for helping me. Uh…the Silver Fenrir that defeated the orc. Is it your familiar?” “…Silver Fenrir? Familiar?” “Wou?” For some reason, she was calling Leo a Silver Fenrir… But Leo is a Maltese. Well, though she hardly resembled one now. Leo also looked puzzled. Were Fenrir those wolf monsters from games? And what is a familiar? “Um…what is a familiar?” “Huh? Well…it’s a monster who obeys and works for you…” Monster…yes, monster… Had I been playing video games before falling asleep…? “And what exactly are monsters?” “…Huh? You don’t know what monsters are!?” She looked at me with a shocked expression. Was it really so surprising? Did everyone know about them here? My idea of what was common knowledge was starting to collapse… “I’m sorry, I really don’t know much about anything… Could you possibly tell me?” “…Ah… Uh, monsters are creatures that appear in nature. No one knows why, but they just seem to appear. It is said that if left alone, they will breed in great numbers. Many, like the orcs, are known to attack indiscriminately, so you have to be very careful and avoid encountering them when coming here.” “Monsters that attack humans…huh.” “Wuff?”

CH 4

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