Ahate Appears and Dies Casually

Lit by the sinking sun.

Through the forest I run.

The scenery flows by, red and black.

The colors of bright red sunset and shadow.

<What's with you, Emi? You've suddenly become quite poetic.>

Ah, maybe it's that.

Maybe my artistic sense has finally gone and exploded.

<It's alright, Emi. It is poetic, but it is by no means good.>

What do you mean “it's alright,” I'll smack you.

That's just plain embarrassing, then!

While chatting about random things with Omake-sama, I run, run, run through the forest!

Put some power into a leap, and from there on it's aerial travel, forest only.

I kick, kick, kick the trunks of the many giant trees!

I move as if I were literally flying.

I adjust my strength so I don't kick the footholds to pieces.

I kind of feel like I'm getting stronger by the day, so for me, holding back my strength is the hardest part.

<Ah, Emi, there's a body of water.>

At that, I look hard ahead, and there's a beautiful, round, fairly large spring.

Alright!

I kicked off a giant tree trunk and dove straight into that spring!

Dobbooooon!!

The spray scatters high into the sky and glitters as it catches the setting sun.

I gaze at that sight while floating on my back, bobbing in the spring.

Gazing at it, I clean off the blood and mud that caked my whole body down underground.

【Peel】, 【Peel】, 【Peel】!

With a special ability, even caked-on grime comes right off.

Without even having to scrub with my hands, I become clean just by floating.

Ah, this feels so good.

<Even so, was it really okay not to ask?>

......What's with the sudden question, Omake-sama.

Ask what?

<About Leseida. You suspected that one might be a blood relative of Kamasse, didn't you? Was it really okay not to confirm it?>

Ah...... that.

The hair color, the facial features, the look in the eyes......

That scholar who went by Leseida-san or something really did look a lot like Kamasse.

They're definitely siblings or cousins, or something like that.

<So, was it really okay not to confirm it?>

It's fine, it's fine.

Even if I confirmed it, it's not like anything would happen.

‘If that face died on me, it'd leave a bad taste,’ that's all there is to it.

It didn't die on me, so that's all fine.

Bobbing, bobbing, floating.

This time, I held my breath, rolled over on the surface and ended up face down.

【Peel】, 【Peel】, 【Peel】!

Now the front of my body is all sparkly clean, too.

<Even so, today was truly a disaster.>

Yeah, no kidding.

Just when I thought I'd finally escaped from my smothering mother, I get caught up in an incident like this.

Talk about a surprise.

<I never imagined either that the ground would suddenly collapse while we were walking through the forest.>

The shrimp was delicious, so I guess it's fine.

No, really, every single time I get caught up in something.

Me, I guess I'm, like, seriously a magnet for this stuff.

<............Yes, truly. That is your, destiny............ yes, mm, it may well be, mm.>

I roll over again and come up for a breath, pwah.

Since I'm completely clean, I lazily swim toward the shore while staying on my back.

Spread across my view are bright red clouds drifting by in the light of the setting sun.

And the stars that have begun to twinkle.

By the way, Omake-sama.

<Yes?>

That guy, Mitran.

He was kind of weak, but.

He really is a reincarnator, right?

<There's no doubt about it, I think. He had that smell. And now and then, a little Divine Aura was leaking out.>

But he was weak, wasn't he?

<He was reasonably strong, surely. Besides, to make the story of their own Isekai Reincarnation Broadcast interesting, the gods often don't power up the protagonist too much from the start.>

Hmm?

<Furthermore, if you fought Mitran, you would lose. If you pushed him into a corner, the god would forcibly make him “awaken.” Once that happens, it's over. When you punched him that once at the end, I honestly felt a chill......>

Well, I mean.

Since he's a reincarnator, isn't he also a classmate from my previous life?

I don't know who, but.

I had to hit him at least once.

......What does bother me is whether anyone will find out that I'm a reincarnator too.

In my previous life, I was hated, totally and utterly, by everything in the world, to a degree that made no sense.

The moment it gets out that the girl I was in my past life is Emi Rune now, I think even Mitran, who didn't hate black hair and black eyes that much, might turn hostile.

<It is not an absolute certainty, but please rest assured. Basically, the reincarnators appearing in the gods' Isekai Reincarnation Broadcasts have their thoughts controlled so that the idea ‘there might be other reincarnators besides myself’ does not arise. If they started searching for other reincarnators, not only their own but the stories of other gods would also be ruined.>

I see, that's good.

Then I can relax.

<If anything, the problem is the god who will be watching Mitran's activities this time. Since you, a mysterious powerhouse, suddenly appeared, there's no way they wouldn't be interested.>

I see, that's not good.

Then I can't relax.

<But I have taken countermeasures as well. I am a being who merely clings to your soul and gazes upon this world, but I am working to veil your soul so that it shows in the gods' eyes as little as possible.>

Eh, ehh!?

So that's how it was!?

Omake-sama, you were doing that for me!?

<If I didn't, well, your soul is so distinctive, you see. The gods would find you right away. And the interference you'd get as a result...... I, for one, would not find that amusing.>

Ah, I see.

Is my soul really that smelly......?

<Ufufu, not at all. It's only that the lot who can't appreciate your good qualities are of such a low caliber...... But I've digressed. As for me, I want you to live freely and enjoy this world. To that end, I'll gladly give this much support as often as needed...... Anyway, it will be a long while yet before the gods catch you. Please rest assured.>

Phew, I see, I see.

Then I can breathe a sigh of relief.

Now then, zabari.

Having reached the shore, I stand up and shake my body.

I apply 【Desiccation】 to dry my body.

Then, I spin around and look back.

And what stood there.

Was a pure-white giant deer, bathed in the setting sun, its fur dyed a fiery red.

It was a huge deer I felt I'd seen somewhere.

◇ ◇ ◇

<<<You filthy human! How dare you defile the sacred ground protected by this Guardian Sacred Beast Ahate!?>>>

The giant deer, its body trembling with rage, hurled those words at me the moment our eyes met!

Eh, ehh!?

A deer is talking!

<No, there's no way a deer would talk.>

No, smart deer talk!

Or rather, this is 【Telepathy】!

It's not an impossible story; this world is pretty fantasy!

<<<Hey! Can you not hear me!?>>>

The giant deer doesn't seem to find my spacing out and chatting with Omake-sama to its liking.

Swinging its antlers around and kicking at the dirt with its front hooves, it's trying to intimidate me.

Come to think of it, though.

I feel like I've seen a deer like this before.

<Ah...... we hunted one, one night, didn't we.>

That giant deer too, I kinda had this feeling it was saying something.

So it wasn't just my imagination after all, I bet.

<That one was delicious, wasn't it.>

<<<Tch, are you so overcome with fear that you cannot even speak...... well, no matter. In any case, the moment you set foot in the spring that is my sacred ground, your sentence of death was sealed. Atone for that discourtesy with the pain of death!!>>>

Having declared that, high-handed and one-sided, the giant deer began charging at me, swinging its antlers!

Even if pierced by those sharp antlers!

Even if kicked away by those giant hooves!

Any ordinary human would be killed instantly, no question!

<What will you do?>

While watching the scene, Omake-sama asks me that.

What'll I do?

Isn't it obvious?

That thing, turned on me.

I'll kill it.

◇ ◇ ◇

That night, I grilled and ate a large amount of meat.

It was delicious.