Volume 1 Chapter 4 Attack
Edited by: Kanaa-senpai
The next day, after the sun came up, I searched the cabin again and found a machete that looked like it was for chopping wood.
This is a big find. It’s probably made of iron since it has some red rust on it.
I started to think differently about the civilization in this world. I quickly sharpened it with some stones from the river and tried it out. It can chop wood, trim branches, and even peel bark.
I used the bark to make a simple outfit (more like armor, really) by tying it with the rope we were bound with. Now I can finally cover my bare upper body.
Then, I made a hole in the ceiling of the cabin to create a smoke vent. At first, it didn’t work well, but after adjusting it a few times, the smoke started to escape properly. Now we can use the fire even when we sleep.
As for food, when I flipped over some stones by the river, I found a lot of small insects. Wow, can we eat these?
Just then, Auntie said,
”These are probably edible. I heard that people in Nagano Prefecture eat river bugs.”
Well, we have no choice. I gathered the bugs and cooked them in a pot. Surprisingly, they didn’t have much taste, kind of like eating the shells of river shrimp, but my body seemed happy to have food after a long time, and I felt a bit more at ease.
”Hmm. If only there was a bit of salt or something.”
Auntie was eating the bugs without hesitation.
”But if we showed this to Tomori, ahe would faint.”
That’s true; ahe’s always been scared of bugs.
I felt a bit full, and since we had a fire going in the cabin, it was warm enough. On the third day in this world, I finally thought I could get some good sleep.
”Yuuta, it’s starting to snow!”
When I heard Auntie’s voice, I went outside the cabin and saw that it was snowing heavily.
This might pile up.
”Auntie, let’s go inside the cabin so we don’t get cold.”
”Yeah, good idea. By the way, Yuuta, can we talk? While we’re in this world, can you stop calling me ‘Auntie’? I mean, I am a Auntie, but I want to be your good partner while we’re here. So, I’d like you to call me something equal.”
I see. I don’t mind what she wants to be called, but I think it’s her way of showing her determination.
”Can I call you Ms. Akari?”
”Yeah, Akari is fine too… Haha, just kidding, that’s a bit embarrassing. Please call me Ms. Akari.”
”Alright, Ms. Akari. Let’s rest up for tomorrow!”
”Okay!”
Later that night, I woke up feeling something strange. Ms. Akari was sleeping soundly next to me.
The cabin was creaking a bit. Is it because of the snow pushing against it? I tried to go outside, but the entrance was almost blocked by the snow piling up.
I forced my way through the snow at the door and stepped outside. The snow had lightened up a bit, but if I didn’t clear the snow off the roof soon, we could risk carbon monoxide poisoning, and the cabin might collapse.
I went back inside the cabin and woke up Ms. Akari.
”Ms. Akari, wake up. The snow is piling up too much, and the cabin is in danger. We need to go outside for a bit.”
”Brr, it’s cold. The fire is still going, right?”
I put on the wooden armor I made during the day, cleared most of the snow at the entrance, and went outside. Ms. Akari followed me. It was dark with just the torch, but I could see that a lot of snow had piled up on the cabin.
We really need to clear this off. Doing it in the dark feels pretty dangerous, but we have no choice. I had Ms. Akari hold the torch while I climbed on the roof and managed to clear most of the snow. Just as I was trying to carefully get back down to the ground,
”WOOOOOOOOO!”
A loud howl echoed nearby.
What was that? A wolf?
”Yuuta, over there! There’s something!”
Ms. Akari shouted, pointing the torch towards the river.
”Ms. Akari, hand me the torch. And stay inside the cabin!”
How many are there? It doesn’t seem like just one.
Weapons… the machete is by the stove.
I made a mistake. It’s too late to regret that I should have left it in the cabin. I rushed over to the stove, but it was covered in snow and I couldn’t find it.
Damn, we’re surrounded. 1, 2, 3, 4… at least 5 of them. I don’t have time to waste. I quickly started digging through the snow around the stove. One of them jumped at me, but I kicked it hard in the stomach and sent it flying.
Is it a wolf? It seemed bigger than a regular dog, but… well, I’ve never seen a wild wolf before, so I don’t really know.
Anyway, I have to get out of this situation…
Oh, the stones from the stove! That means… found it! Grabbing the hatchet, I turned my back to the cabin and got ready.
If it’s a wolf, I remember they usually attack in groups.
The first one that jumped at me was probably just testing my strength. Soon, they’ll all come at me at once. How will I handle that? While I was thinking, two of them jumped at me from both sides at the same time.
I was worried I might not have enough space since I didn’t have a bamboo sword or a wooden sword, but in kendo, you can’t rely only on your eyes to hit your opponent. Especially not in the middle of the night.
I focused on their presence and dodged, landing hits on both sides.
”Yow!”
Alright, it looks like I hit them well. I felt the impact, but I couldn’t tell how much damage I did. Maybe they realized I’m not an easy target because it seemed like they started to keep their distance.
That means they might attack from all directions next. Can I handle that? But I have to try. I steeled myself and focused all my senses on the surroundings.
A silence spread, like time and space had frozen, and then, the next moment… here they come! From all sides… even above!
No way. Every direction to dodge is blocked.
In the next moment, my body moved instinctively, not rationally.
One! Two! Three! They attacked almost at the same time, but there was a tiny delay, and I used that gap to strike with the hatchet at the one jumping at me. I felt it hit! And then, 4 and 5! Damn, they’re almost simultaneous. I can’t keep up!
Just after I hit the 4th one with the hatchet, the fifth one bit down hard on my left shoulder.
”Ouch! That hurts!”
I shook off the fifth one, but the pain was so intense that I dropped to my knees. Because of the pain, I couldn’t sense much around me, but losing focus could mean death. Calm down! Take a deep breath.
It seems like two of them can still move. Can I still fight?
Luckily, my right arm is my strong one, so I can still swing the hatchet. Right, I have to fight my way out of this. If I go down, Ms. Akari will…
Then it happened. Suddenly, a huge fire shot up behind me.
What’s going on? Is the cabin on fire?
I could tell the enemies were startled by the sudden event. Damn, this is my chance. Feeling that, I charged at the remaining 2.
* * *
”Ah, what should I do? That hurts, right? Anyway, let me wash it.”
Thanks to Ms. Akari’s quick thinking, the cabin burned down, lighting up the area and scaring off the enemies, and I managed to take down the last 2. While the cabin was burning, other animals wouldn’t come close.
But the bite on my left shoulder is pretty deep.
”Ms. Akari, please keep the fire going. After washing the wound, we need to disinfect it, or I might worry about rabies…”
”Huh? But we don’t have any alcohol for disinfecting.”
”We have to burn it. It’ll help stop the bleeding too.”
”That’s so rough…”
”No, in this situation, it’s the only option. Please give me a torch. Just in case I pass out, can you keep it burning until the blood dries?”
”Ugh, okay… I understand…”
”Alright then,” I said, pressing the torch flame against the bite on my left shoulder.
”Ugh…”
A wave of intense pain shot through me, but I managed to hold on.
”Ugh…” Somehow, I was still conscious.
”Ms. Akari, I’m going to pass out soon, so can you cool the burn with clean water?”
”Yuuta…”
Ms. Akari’s eyes were already watery.
The snow had stopped, but we couldn’t sleep in the cabin anymore.
Starting over again tomorrow…
As I thought about that, my consciousness started to fade.
Please bookmark this series and rate ☆☆☆☆☆ on here!
Edited by Kanaa-senpai.
Thanks for reading.
Leave a Reply