Chapter 1 – Reasons for Fighting
Part 1
Ten years have already passed since I’ve recovered my memories.
When this otome game, which had a frivolous setting that was full of inconsistencies, became real, it made me boil in anger at this unsightly world as the days passed.
Well, I can’t help but be angry.
Though this is another world, a game world, there’s my livelihood that I have to deal with.
Though I’m a noble, I’m a noble that’s poor and in the countryside. Since I generally do farm work at home, I can help around still.
I’ve forged my body through farm work, making my expression look more tough than how I was before in my previous world.
Black eyes, black irises, and fifteen years old.
My face isn’t prominently beautiful, but I don’t think it’s something unsightly either.
However, this world is the unconventional world of an otome game.
Guys with good looks are commonplace all around.
I suppose that I’m one of the many others out there, the mobs.
My brother, who I believe I’m on good terms with, is in the mainland kingdom’s academy within the continent, and is living in their dorms.
That cramped room that I was using with my brother before is now being occupied together with my younger brother that’s six years younger than me──”Colin,” the fourth son.
I’m reading a letter sent by my brother.
He wrote “Finding a marriage partner is tough,” in the letter.
In this otome game world…it’s considered an issue if a man can’t find a marriage partner by the time he leaves the academy, and men that can’t find one by the time they’re twenty are considered defective goods.
This is particularly harsh for noble boys. Commoners might be forgiven, but noble boys that can’t find a partner by age twenty are given the cold shoulder.
This world is unthinkably tough for guys.
I can only pray that my brother finds a marriage partner soon as I read this letter in my cramped room.
To make matters worse, not being married will have an effect on finding a job or being successful in life.
Many of them will be forced to be expelled from their family in the future, even for second or third sons of nobles. When the eldest son can’t succeed the lineage, there will be a replacement in his place, and the eldest son will no longer need to give birth to a child that will be the successor.
In that case, our occupations will already be predetermined.
Mainly soldiers or government officials. The more novel ones become doctors or something like that. At any rate, it’s good to aim for an occupation that benefits the country and citizens. Anything other than that, and the cold shoulder will be given.
Then, the guys who can’t marry are treated as servants for armies or government jobs. They can’t hope for a successful career, nor will they be entrusted to any important tasks.
In any case, their social reputation will plummet.
This is a world where marriage is very important for men.
“At any rate, this is truly a tough world.”
Wars, skirmishes, sky pirates, monsters…there’s lots of conflict in the world, making the death rate of knights and soldiers high. There are a lot of children in my family, but the reason for that is because many of them will die.
It’s the job of the men to fight. To make matters worse, the central figure of the family is not going to change any time soon, so I have to work. Despite that, The females are the ones that hold authority…
The men fight with their lives on the line and easily die, yet our treatment is extremely poor.
“This world is too kind towards women.”
I’m sensing that this world is distorted because of the setting for this game.
This place is quite splendid for women. Even more so for nobles that are barons and above.
“Perhaps it’s because the capture targets are all rich dudes from good families?”
I want to cry if women dominate over men because of a game-like reason.
Why did I reincarnate into this world? Not a day passes by without this thought in mind. No wait, there’s some. There’s quite a few. In the first place, since my life is busy each day, I often forget about this.
It’s been ten years since I’ve gained my memories…I’ve gotten used to this.
Inside the room, Colin was lying down on the bed sleeping.
He had an innocent face.
People like us that aren’t successor are just spares, to put it bluntly.
When entering a game-like academy, we’ll only amount to mobs in the background.
We’ll be like the many others that only serve a supporting role.
At best, we’d get to say a word or two during the game.
Mob A or B, that’s our position.
I never even heard of the Baltfault baron family or anything like that within the game in the first place.
“A mob…that’s what I seem to be.”
I don’t want to admit it, but I’m the kind of person that faces reality. To begin with, I’m not the type of person that’s brimming with ambition to do something big and get ahead in life. If I’m a mob, then so be it.
Apart from that, I’m going to enter the academy starting next year.
One of the few advantages to this world is that nobles are able to enroll in an academy.
I feel a bit complicated when thinking about how this is the result of the game’s setting becoming real, but I’m grateful that I can become a government official or military personnel.
This is a precious opportunity to get outside this territory.
Besides, I can look for a marriage partner while at an academy.
If I don’t leave this territory, then what awaits me is a forced marriage after some marriage talks taking place.
It’d be a little better if I got someone in the same generation as me, or even someone twenty years old, but it’s no joke if I’m the leftover-husband of a thirty or forty year old.
“When I think about it like that, I really am thankful for being able to enter an academy.”
Looking at my little brother Colin peacefully sleeping, I breathed a sigh of relief.
◇
“…M, marriage interview? What do you mean by that?”
It was after breakfast.
I lost my composure as I was called in father’s office──or rather, his workroom.
The reason is that the wife, “Zola Fia Baultfault,” was sitting down on the sofa and brought up the talk about a marriage interview.
My father, sitting on the chair he normally uses, was making an unpleasant face.
As I received personal background documents showing the photograph of a marriage interview partner and other various things, I had no choice but to be stunned.
Father was making a troubled face, but after looking at Zola’s face, he turned towards me.
“Zola brought up a marriage proposal. It seems that her acquaintance is looking for a leftover-husband.”
Zola complained as she drank an especially expensive tea in our house by saying “Cheap articles don’t suit my tongue.”
I raise my objections in disapproval.
“No, this isn’t right!”
The reason for my protest was because this is a cruel choice for a partner.
This partner seems to be a daughter of a baron household──but it’s written in these background documents that she’s over fifty years old, she’s gone through marriage seven times.
She has children too, but all of them are older than me.
Zola sets down her cup in a slightly violent manner, and then glares at me.
I could tell that she was irritated.
“This is something you would normally be indebted to me for. She’s a daughter of nobles from the royal court, and their family has a long history of serving the royal family. What are you dissatisfied about?”
What am I dissatisfied about? On the contrary, it’d be stupid to think that there’s anything I’m satisfied about. No wait, perhaps she may really be stupid. In the first place, what kind of daughter is fifty years old?!
“Why are you bringing up talks about marriage when I haven’t even entered an academy yet?”
It’s an unspoken rule that nobles basically marry after graduation. I suppose that’s due to the game’s setting, but at any rate, it’s a rule.
That’s probably because half of the nobles don’t graduate from an academy.
The exception to that is a marriage for political reasons. Or perhaps there’s some other reason out there for marrying early. Nevertheless, most are pretty much limited to just engagements.
Bringing up talks about marriage does not apply as an exception.
This partner is called a daughter of a baron household, but she doesn’t hold any of the heritage. More precisely, she’s a nephew of the main household, making her only a relative.
Furthermore, this marriage with me would be her eighth…it’s obvious that this marriage talk can only mean danger.
Zola got angry, and her tone of voice grew stronger.
“I can still allow the second son to enter an academy. However, there’s no meaning in sending the third son to one. Even if there were no entrance fees, there would still be other things that need money spent on them.”
I glare at Zola as father apologizes.
“I’m sorry that this is happening to you. However, the reality is that our household has little money. There are still ways of making money regardless of whether or not you’ve entered an academy.”
Father glanced at Zola from time to time. No matter what they say, I’m definitely not going to comply.
Zola reclined on the sofa.
“Even if you graduate from the academy, you won’t find work. The right choice is to marry for the sake of the family. Be grateful that you can peacefully go through marriage. I also made preparations for you to work as a soldier. Do your best.”
That’s when I noticed it.
…This person is planning to have me die in a battle.
Nobles. This is the same for soldiers, but when they die in a fight for the sake of the country, their family will be paid compensation.
For soldiers, payments happen en masse, but the case is a little different for nobles.
They will be given an honor for fighting on behalf of the country, and to make matters worse, their compensation is given annually.
The only thing I can hear from Zola’s marriage talk is the money she wants from my death and her subsequent honor from it. All the husbands of this partner so far have been written down on this background document as “honored by death in battle.”
Far from trying to hide it, it’s as if it was written down as a boast.
“No. I refuse.”
Zola pounded on the table and stood up in response to my refusal.
“Silence! This is my view on lowly third sons like you! If you’re a boy, then work for the family!”
This Zola woman…basically lives in the kingdom’s capital, the “royal capital.” Unlike feudal lord nobles, she comes from royal court nobles that receive work from the royal palace.
Since she doesn’t want to leave the royal capital, father has to make arrangements for her residence and also send her money for living expenses.
We send money her way even though our income in the household is considerably tough, and yet this is the attitude she begets. However, father will gain a bad reputation if he cuts off ties with this woman.
If he casts Zola away at this point, her family won’t play nicely──and our status will suffer damage.
He can’t divorce her for that reason.
I rack my brain trying to figure out a way to break through this dilemma.
Then I remember.
I have the knowledge of this game──knowledge of this world.
I’m getting tired of this usual lifestyle at age fifteen, and I haven’t tried anything out in particular, but…isn’t now the time to use my knowledge of this game to the best of my ability?!
There’s no future for me if I don’t do my best!
“…So there’s no problem if we have money?”
Zola laughed scornfully towards my words.
“Oh? That’s quite the attitude for a good-for-nothing that can’t earn money.”
If you want find one of the few people to say that to, then take a look in the mirror.
I did not want to be called a good-for-nothing by Zola, a parasite on the Baltfault household that indulges herself in the royal capital.
“It’s rude to refuse talks about formal matchmakings. Please stop this if you’re thinking that earning enough to cover the entrance fees will work.”
Not knowing what I was talking about, father made his complaint towards my words.
However, father doesn’t go with a strong attitude.
“You’re still young, Leon. Doing something like that so hastily is──”
“Silence! Men over twenty won’t find a partner no matter what! You don’t thank me for finding you a partner so quickly, and now you’re being picky by making complaints…this is why I hate brats from the countryside.”
Quite absurd of you to blame everything on the countryside.
When I was about to raise a complaint, father intervened.
“Think about the feelings of this child. He can’t help but refuse when his marriage is with a woman that’s in her fifties. The age difference is almost forty years.”
I’d be the leftover-husband of a woman that has children older than me.
It’s natural that I would hate it. Even for a world where women dominate over men, this marriage talk, which she had decided as something unrefusable, is something that treads on peculiar territory.
A family where my is wife nearly forty years older than me and even her children are older than me…it gives me the chills just thinking about it.
My father breathed a sigh.
“…If he can prepare money, it’s fine to revoke these talks about marriage, right?”
Zola sat down in a violent manner and crossed her legs as she looked down at us.
“Oh? This is the first time I’ve heard about you having the resources to do so. I’d prefer you use it to increase the amount of money you send me.”
I’m not going to make false assumptions by saying that all women in this world are like this person. However, looking at this woman makes me feel disgust.
The image of women, particularly noble women, in this world is the worst.
Father held a hand to his head.
He then cast his eyes downward and spoke something as if he was squeezing it out of himself.
“Give me some time. I’ll find a way to arrange something.”
Seeing father looking discouraged while doing the unreasonable for my sake gave me a strong sense of guilt.
This really is a cruel world.
Part 2
Once Zola left the room, only father and I were left.
“That woman had us prepare a ship just for this occasion. Then we also had to make arrangements for her stay, I feel reluctant in having to think about the costs. Father, why did you marry her?”
Since she normally lives in the royal capital, we have to make necessary preparations when she comes here.
There’s the costs of the airship service, but we also have to deal with the preparations for her lodging room and her meal arrangements. We also have to cover her traveling expenses.
My father is weak-kneed.
There are reasons for that being the case.
“Don’t be angry. This marriage was absolutely necessary. My marriage with Zola lets us be treated suitably as a baron household. There’s no choice in the matter.”
Father must be thinking that he should be thankful for his wife coming over to this isolated island from a remote region. It seems that daughters of nobles from afar like to find partners of cities that they yearn to live in.
There are some oddballs among them, but those kinds of women have to compete against each other.
I believe that father got married because of what it meant to be married to Zola.
That alone makes her an important marriage partner. If a baron household doesn’t take an appropriate bride, then they’re declaring that they’re not a household of that rank. They’ll be made light of by other nobles, and some will attack them──it would start a war on the household.
In any case, they’d be unable to get along with other households as well as not being treated as barons.
It’s a case of ostracism.
“So, how are you going to prepare the money?”
I asked for confirmation, but I could already guess from father’s bitter expression.
“To be honest, it will be tough. Our house is already in debt. Any further than this and we won’t be able to recover. Even so, why did she bring up this talk all of the sudden?”
Father was also curious about it.
“…Why didn’t she bring up a conversation about this with my older brother?”
Father tilted his head after hearing what I said.
“Even for Nicks, there would still be too big of an age gap, but…it’s certainly strange. It seems that she doesn’t want you to enter an academy.”
I was holding a conversation here at home, but I was wondering if things were going alright on the other side.
However, the answer was beyond my imagination.
◇
It was a week later──I was in the storehouse at home.
I was retrieving some weapons that were being stored.
Since the weapons are the property of the parents, my father gets angry if I use them without permission. However, nobody here is going to stop me right now.
There was an old-style rifle, the type that can only hold five magazines.
It was the most suitable object, so I took it to disassemble for maintenance.
I placed a decorated sword on the table and checked to see whether or not it was usable. I also gathered up other important tools.
My father looked at me doing this with unease.
“H, hey, what do you plan on doing?”
When I read a letter from my brother a while ago, I decided to resolve myself.
I’ve been thinking carefully about how to use my game knowledge to earn money, but now I’ve realized that it’s easier said than done.
“I need to make money at any cost before I get sold off to some perverted old woman! I don’t want that to happen, not at all!”
My mother was getting teary-eyed while behind my father.
It seems the house that I’m potentially being sold off to is one with a bad reputation.
There’s this forest of ladies, I believe? It’s gathering held with men that are slaves, making it fine to treat them in any way, according to what those old women said.
It seems that the treatment of the slaves is even worse than that of sub-race servants.
They’re a pack that enjoy using men and then crushing them.
They’re the worst.
Furthermore, there are rumors that old women of high noble status gather there, and even that men who aren’t of use are sent to the battlefield to die. They’re probably thinking that it’s better off to dispose of them through deaths in battle.
What’s cruel…is that Zola is one of the people involved in it.
Not one of the people that gather there, but one of the women that are thinking about making a profit by selling off us spares of the eldest son.
They’re a group that no decent person wants to get involved with, and even other fellow females would back away from.
There’s a reason why she didn’t mention the elder brother in her talks and why she’s been trying to prevent further talks about me going to the academy in the royal capital. They’ll gather together young men like me that don’t know anything, and have their way with them. That’s how the forest of ladies works.
They’ll mutually make schemes for those that aren’t students at the academy, so at any rate, it seems that entry to an academy works against them. Due to that, Zola had been putting forth a marriage proposal before I could enter an academy.
“Why does a mob have to get involved with perverts like them! I’d rather have a more calm life without any mountains or valleys!”
My mother was worried about what I said.
“I don’t understand what Leon is saying.”
“I don’t understand either. What is he planning on doing, taking out that weapon? Don’t tell me that he’s planning on marching into the royal capital? D, don’t do that!”
Looking at me maintaining the weapon, father made a worried face.
I do want to march there and wreak havoc, but that’s impossible for my current self.
Even if I march into there, I’m going to get apprehended since the demi-human servants near the noble women have been forged to become strong, so approaching them is not a simple matter.
“…Being an adventurer is the best option for getting money.”
Both of my parents exchanged glances when hearing my words.
In this world, an adventurer is a recognized occupation. One could say that it’s an occupation that has to be recognized.
At any rate, nobles can be traced back to being descendants of adventurers.
In this game’s setting, nobles are people that obtained land by discovering it as adventurers. Adventurers that earned numerous fortunes from their adventures became nobles.
So, that’s the game-like excuse for why nobles need to be adventurers when they’re at the academy.
This lets dungeons give the protagonist a way to raise love meters, but I can use them here to save my own hide.
My father shakes his head.
“Stop this. Going to a dungeon alone won’t do anything, and it will take time before you can get money.”
My mother was the same.
“T, that’s right. Besides, it’s hard to find a floating island now. You won’t be able to earn money.”
When floating islands where people can live or floating islands with resources are discovered, they become property of adventurers. If one feels inclined to, they can potentially own that territory independently, but…there’s no suitable islands remaining around this continent.
There shouldn’t be any left, but I know of one.
“Sorry, I’ve decided on it. I’m going.”
If I was alone, then running away would be fine, but my younger brother Colin is still nine years old.
I don’t want to see my younger brother being sold off to perverts.
Sympathizing with my resolve, my father opened his mouth.
“Is there anything you need?”
I didn’t hesitate to tell my father what I needed to gather. It’s a little unreasonable to force this on him, but this is a critical moment that determines either my life or my death.
If I don’t do anything, I’ll end up as a plaything for a perverted old woman. There’s a possibility that I might die doing about I’m about to do, but I’m going to take my chances.
“Something like a ship would work. An airship. After that, I need some bullets. A specially-made kind.”
My father tilted his head.
“What in the world are you planning to do? Are you challenging a dungeon somewhere? In that case, a passenger ship should be fine.”
“It’s somewhere where passenger ships don’t go.”
I assemble the rifle.
Rifles are a bit odd in a world of swords and magic, but this is a world where airships exchange gunfire using cannons. Rifles are a normal thing here.
When I pulled the trigger, the rifle operated, and a metallic click sounded.
I was able to keep living somehow after reincarnating into this world. Since I was satisfied with my life day after day, I didn’t do anything special.
However, as expected, even mobs have to give something up.
I’m going to have to decline a life of being a plaything.
That’s why I’m going to fight.
I’ll show them all the willpower of a mob.
“I understand. I’ll prepare them as soon as possible. However, you absolutely must come back. If you can’t promise me that, then I won’t do it.”
I intend to return, but I know that things are going to progress into a life and death situation.
So, I told a lie.
“…I’ll definitely return.”
I want to protect my life, save my brother’s life, and while I’m at it, outwit Zola. One day, I’ll get revenge on that wench who tried to sell me.
While my heart harbored such a strong feeling, I resumed my departure preparations.
◇
“This is the first time worked this seriously.”
Though this is an otome game world, it’s still a game world.
It’s not just once or twice that I thought about using knowledge of the game to be unparalleled.
However, my motivation for it disappears with the exhaustion of my every day life.
I eat a simple meal. My father trains me in the morning, and I do farmwork afterwards.
It becomes dark by the time it’s over, and studying awaits me once I get back home.
In this world, barons from a remote and isolated island are poor.
Basically, many are poor compared to others in the cities of the mainland, but become even poorer because of women like Zola.
Rank ascension──there are many fathers who complained about how they used to be wealthy as semi-barons before they got promoted.
Naturally, there are rich barons too, and also affluent baron households that have wealth at an absurd level compared their previous generation.
As far as our home is concerned, if we remained at the scope of semi-barons, then the contributions we need to give would be suitably low, and we wouldn’t have to deal with a high-class wife like Zola, so our spending would reduce.
…Things really were peaceful when we hadn’t ascended in rank.
Heading to the edge of the floating island, I readied the bolt action rifle and pointed the trigger at a very odd flying-fish thing I found.
The existences called monsters are evil beings of the world within this frivolous setting. Since they’re evil, I don’t feel a sense of repulsion in killing them to the point that it actually feels refreshing.
I suppose the fact that they vanish when you kill them is one of the reasons for that.
It’s better to kill these things since they’ll rush to attack a human if they find one.
However, what’s gained by killing them is not visible to the eye, “Experience Points.”
“Damn it! It dodged.”
I soon loaded the next bullet into the rifle, set it up, and took a careful aim.
My opponent noticed me and was coming this way.
It’s about one meter in size.
Normally, having the target come closer is better for shooting, but if it dodges and it turns into a close quarter combat, I’ll die in the worst case scenario. Monsters are too dangerous of an opponent when they’re alive.
I can fight because of this rifle.
However, bullets aren’t free.
It’ll be expensive if I just blow shot after shot.
The approaching monster opened its large mouth and tried to bite at me. There were sharp teeth along its mouth, and it was frightening to look at.
“If I run away from just this much…then my life will be done for!”
Until now, I had been thinking about trying to earn experience someday. I would become an adventurer, discover an island, and explore it. I would earn money──Right, I would do it “someday.”
I had been thinking about it, but never did it until now.
However, with this current situation where I’m already short on time and I can’t run away either, I was finally being pressed to move forward.
When I pulled the trigger, the bullet entered the monster’s mouth and pierced through its back.
Losing its vigor, it then finally dropped down before me.
Looking at its condition, it had been engulfed in a black smoke and vanished before its descent reached the seawater.
“…Did I get experience points from this?”
I took a look at my left hand, but I didn’t feel any sensation of the sort. Perhaps the game and reality really are different?
However, not gaining experience points is not a reason to stop. I needed to sharpen my shooting skills anyways.
Leaving the rifle aside, I won’t be able to reach my destination without getting a boat, the kind that flies in the air, and the knowledge of operating it.
What I had been thinking about doing it someday was retrieving a cheat-class item, as it would be called in game terms. Among the paid content, if I acquire this thing, then negotiations would go by quickly.
I had also been pondering about the possibility that it isn’t there.
Originally, it’s an item, a treasure that the protagonist is supposed to obtain, among other such things, but my life is at stake here. This is a disservice to the protagonist, but I need to get that thing above all else.
I hold the rifle in both of my hands.
“I’ll have to sacrifice the protagonist for the sake of my happiness. It’ll be fine. According to my calculations, I’ll be in the same grade as the protagonist. I’ll return the favor someday to make up for it.”
I had feelings of guilt, but an even stronger desire to not get sold off to a perverted old woman.
This is a crisis of my chastity.
“Is this how a woman being sent off to a perverted middle-aged man feels? Damn it! What’s with this world?”
I have little time available.
“It should have went for it sooner.”
I looked for monsters in the surroundings while in regret.
Part 3
It was a month later.
This one small boat is surprisingly well built.
There’s a propeller attached to the engine, and it’s easy to operate.
I was on top of the boat.
I wore a robe that hid my body well from the sun, and put on the hood. Water, food, and some weapons to use were loaded aboard.
This amount is enough for a single person to do fine.
“It seems I asked for the unreasonable from my father as well.”
He didn’t just prepare a ship for me, but a sword and rifle. There a lot of other things too.
It wouldn’t be enough to only thank my parents.
I probably forced something very unreasonable by having them gather this much stuff.
The boat itself is basically like a small propeller engine attached to the stuff I’m carrying. Even so, preparing just this much is a hefty expense for poor nobles.
“All things considered, I wonder what kind of fantasy world has gas and electricity?”
Sitting while grasping the rifle close, I hold binoculars in my hand while looking at the surroundings.
I brought out a map and fetched a compass.
“I suppose it’s things like this that make it a fantasy.”
The compass shows the direction and which way to go. Along with a needle that points towards one’s direction, there’s also a needle that knows where the destination is.
Compasses with two needles are a thing here.
By setting up the location with a dial, it’s a handy tool that points towards the destination.
Since it was ten years ago, my memories of the game and such are fading, but right after recovering those memories I had written down coordinates. Well done, past me!
When I regained my memories, I had only delusions of running around as a cheat at the time, but I wasn’t able to start on anything because of the business of my daily life.
“I would have been better if I had started working hard long ago.”
It’s only human to have such thoughts like that yet not move. One could say that’s the type of person I am. Many times I’ve grumbled about things like this, regretting how I didn’t take action.
I had continued idling around day after day until I was pressed for time.
In the first place, my life here is tougher than my previous one.
I get up early in the morning, study during the night…farmwork is really severe. It’s normal for me to get to bed right after it’s all over and sleep just like that.
I was exhausted every day. I didn’t have the spare energy to do self-training, and I also didn’t have any special knowledge or skills. Being a cheat with reincarnation perks? If I had such things, then I won’t be going through hardships.
Being a cheat through knowledge from home? I don’t have such knowledge, and I wouldn’t know how to apply it to this world.
There was a scenery with occasional floating rocks.
“There’s the blue sea and sky…and also the white clouds, but I’m getting tired of just that.”
I grasp the rifle tightly while controlling myself from going insane.
I, who had been in my previous world, was thinking that perhaps if I commit suicide with this rifle, a better life would await me next──but I vigorously shook my head sideways.
“Even if I die alone, it wouldn’t resolve anything. Instead of me, it would be Colin that becomes victim to the perverts.”
I give up on that thought and raise my head.
The sun was radiant.
I had been thinking many times that perhaps I could try abandoning everything and running away.
However, this world is more dangerous than Japan from my previous life.
With monsters and thieves, one’s life is always at risk.
In my current situation, I’m flying out alone without even a means of economic security. I miss Japan from my previous world.
I’m getting fed up with this situation where I can’t find refuge.
“This world is harsh for mobs.”
I’ve been speaking to myself a lot, but I don’t care.
I’m done for if I come across sky pirates at a time like this.
With such a thought, I once again become cautious of my surroundings, and then a sudden wind blew strongly. The map made a a flapping sound.
The compass had been placed on top of the map to prevent a blowing wind from sweeping it, but the needle pointing to the destination spun around.
“What?”
As I got up, the wind blew even stronger, and I had to resist it or else my body would topple over. I clutched a nearby handrail and scanned my surroundings, but the sea was calm.
The movement of the clouds was also normal.
It doesn’t look like a storm or anything is happening.
As the boat proceeded, the sun was blocked by a shadow.
“──Something above?”
I glanced up, and there was a white cloud.
A large cloud.
I looked at it and clenched my left fist tightly.
There was something under the boat.
Looking at the sea, a part of it was shining green.
I slumped over, and hit myself on the forehead while bearing a smile.
“That’s right, it’s this thing──I’ve come across that! Perhaps it’s because of the micro-transactions? Or perhaps it was here from the beginning? Well, it doesn’t matter either way…I’ve hit it. I’ve struck the jackpot!”
I got up, spread both of my hands out wide, and looked up to the sky while raising a cry.
I really am thankful that this thing exists.
I had been thinking that it would be nice if it existed. I came here without too high expectations to confirm it, but──I hit the jackpot.
“Whoops, I still haven’t gotten my hands on it yet.”
Pulling myself together, I moved to the rear of the boat and operated the propeller mechanism.
I moved the boat close to the sea. Heading to the place that was casting light, the boat began to creak as it shook.
I lowered my body and clung on to the boat.
“Please work.”
Though I wasn’t operating the boat, it began vigorously rising. The force was too much for me to get up. I could only bear with it while I was on my knees.
The soaring boat was thrown entirely into a cloud, and my surroundings were pure white.
My body’s cold.
My clothes are wet.
I protected my rifle by tucking it under my robe, and I moved the boat while not being able to see anything in the cloud.
There was something sweeping from outside the cloud, and I moved the boat in the direction against it.
I moved to oppose the sweeping while not seeing anything, but it felt as if I was moving along the raging stream. Well, I’ve never experienced a raging stream, but anyways, a violent wind was blowing within the cloud.
The engine made a loud sound as it was being pushed to its limits. However, even that sound was being drowned out in the roar of the wind despite that I’m right next to it.
The two needles on the compass were spinning round and round, not serving to be of any use, and I was in state where I didn’t even know where I was.
Yet, I had no choice but to continue moving against the flow, and when I realized it, my body was drenched in water. It was cold to say the least.
My clothes, soaked with water, felt heavy.
The boat was somehow operating against the stream, but I was uneasy about if this would work. I was challenging a storm by myself, alone.
“I beg of you! I’ll ask again and again for my chances──!”
It’s been several tens of minutes, or perhaps several hours?
With my sense of time also being unclear, the overworked engine began to spout a fire.
“Wait! Wait a minute! If I get thrown out like this, it’ll be a disaster for──”
Instantly, the worst case scenario popped up into my head. In the next moment, the engine exploded and the propeller spun away while on fire.
The fire spread onto the wooden boat, and it suddenly began to shake while I was thinking that I needed to extinguish the flames.
The boat violently shook, pierced through the cloud, and was thrown out──then right there, a floating island covered by the cloud appeared.
Being ejected from the cloud, I resigned myself to my fate, but my eyes opened wide upon seeing the floating island. It’s something I’ve viewed many times in the game, but when seeing it in reality, it was grand.
The island was entangled with the roots of large trees, and was green from being wrapped up in nature.
Looking at the surface of the dirt, roots were also sticking out from it, and there was vegetation growing there.
“──How amazing.”
I gradually approached the island. Actually, I suppose it was my boat that was heading towards it.
I tried moving it in a panic, but since the engine was blown away, I couldn’t operate it. While I’m on the topic of the engine, it was also on fire and very dangerous.
“Are you serious!”
While approaching the surface of the floating island, I held onto my luggage and calculated the timing so that I could jump off the boat and escape.
Letting go of the luggage I was holding, I rolled over onto the surface and stopped when my back hit a large tree root.
The boat smashed into pieces when it hit crashed into the surface, and my luggage fell apart as it scattered around.
I got up in pain as I wiped my cold sweat.
“Ah, that was dangerous. It was risky to come here on boat.”
Things would have been easier had it been a larger airship, but we didn’t enough money to buy one. While I’m talking about this, we’ve also run out of money from our loans.
“But, I managed to somehow arrive.”
My vision was still flickering. I hurried to gather my important luggage while holding my aching head.
Some of the luggage had been burned, but I’ll be able to manage somehow with what’s remaining.
I gathered the luggage in one place and collected wood from the burnt boat.
I arrived at my destination, but I lost my boat.
With this, I really can’t escape.
There won’t be a problem if I can retrieve “that” which is laying dormant in the island, but I won’t be able to leave if “that” isn’t there.
Sitting down to take a break, it seemed that quite a bit of time had passed.
The surroundings have begun to darken.
I took out food and water from my luggage to eat.
I ate some cracker-like food and washed it down with water into my stomach.
It was food that only served to fill the stomach rather than satisfy taste.
“If nothing’s here after I’ve come this far, then I can only laugh.”
Things will be busy starting tomorrow.
I start a bonfire using the broken pieces of wood from the boat and warm my cold body.
I checked the condition of my rifle and also looked for any abnormalities in my other equipment.
“It seems fine. All thing considered, it’s quite the relief that this thing is okay.”
Within the light of the bonfire, I count my bullets and load them into magazines.
The bullets I have are specially-prepared ones. A mark of a thunderbolt is inscribed on the surface, indicating that they’re different from normal bullets.
In terms of Japanese yen, a typical bullet goes for around 3,000 to 5,000 yen.
This is a special bullet──a magic bullet that can give rise to magic effects. These are fantasy bullets that can burst open a fire upon a direct hit, have a freezing effect, or other such things.
Due to that, the price for one shot effortlessly exceeds past 10,000 yen.
I have only feelings of gratitude to my parents who were able to gather these bullets in great numbers.
“If I make it back alive, then it seems I’m going to have to pay tribute to my parents…Come to think of it, I didn’t pay tribute to my parents back in my previous world.”
When I think about how I died before my parents did in my previous world, it would definitely make me seem like someone who didn’t respect their parents.
“I wonder what happened to my sister? I’d even be glad if she were here to give me just one insult.”
I still remember the day I woke up in this world, or rather, the day when I regained my memories. I miss having to do an otome game for my sister.
Thanks to that, I’ve been able to make use of the knowledge from this game, so I suppose it’d be better if I show gratitude towards her, maybe?
Then again, if she didn’t force this otome game onto me, I’m pretty sure I wouldn’t have died.
Is there anything missing?
Once I finished checking the rifle and bullets, I placed them beside me as I rested my back against the large tree root.
Since I’ve been living on a boat for quite some time, this was the first time I’ve laid down on the ground for a long while.
“…Why did I reincarnate into an otome game world? Normally, I would have reincarnated into the typical fantasy world of swords and magic. No wait, I’d prefer if it were my previous world. Right, it would have been better to reincarnate in Japan if possible.”
Thinking about it, it was quite lucky of me to have been in Japan, where monsters didn’t exist and sky pirates weren’t a thing.
While thinking as such, I closed my eyes.
“…I’ll have to…work hard tomorrow…”
The largest gamble in my life awaits me.
Source: 2slow2latemtl.icu
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