A Girl, Shovel, and Evil Eye

Disclaimer: This is an unlicensed fan-translation of the original Japanese-language work. I cannot read Japanese. This is a cleaned/rewritten MTL that, while I've tried to keep true to its intent, I make absolutely no claims of accuracy; there are plenty of idioms, colloquialisms, accents, etc. that I’ve missed due to a lack of knowledge and experience. This is a first pass, rough draft that will not be receiving updates at this location, barring gross errors. Later chapters may have undergone revision including, but not limited to, alternate translations of previously used terms.

Status:
Neko no Te demo Yoroshikereba/If You Don’t Mind a Cat’s Paw: c0-7, draft of free preview completed; hiatus pending acquisition of full novel.
Youjo to Sukoppu to Magan Ou/A Girl, Shovel, and Evil Eye: c0-c5.1; paused pending my irritating diminishing.

A Girl, Shovel, and Evil Eye
Prologue

“The story of human growth is the story of defeat,” is a claim that I read in a book when I was a junior high student.

I enjoyed reading the words of a poorly regarded author, but it was difficult to say if I had properly understood the contents of the book. Still, I appreciated the words in my own way.

Even though I haven’t read anything by that author in years, ever since he was arrested for child prostitution charges or something equally socially devastating, I suddenly recalled those words.

“Hey, You listenin’ to me, huh?”

For example, what would I have done just two or three years ago?

If nothing else, I wouldn’t’ve been the one to say “Yes, here you go.” on the bus when a crazy blond punk demanded my seat.

“Yes, here you go, please.”

But it’s what you see now.

When I was in elementary school, I’d’ve been screaming and yellowing.

When I was in junior high, I might’ve gotten into a bloody fistfight.

But, in the second year of high school, I understood what would’ve happened if I did that.

If I started a fight in a place like this, if I lost, I’d get hurt, and if I won, the police would arrest me, I’d be socially ostracized, and I’d be hurt all over again in a different way.

When I had to start thinking about my future, I’d have to avoid things like that.

That’s why I began to give up.

I started to smile and flatter them.

If this is the result of growth, then I can’t help but wonder what humanity is.

After I gave up my seat to that blond bastard, I was the only one standing in that swaying bus.

I looked around for an empty seat, but it seemed to be full.

If there was an empty seat, even a thug like him wouldn’t’ve demanded my seat.

I feel exposed when I’m the only one standing.

Well, it’s because I am actually the center of attention.

I can feel their eyes on me from all sides.

I don’t know if it’s a sympathetic gaze, or one of derision, but it’s uncomfortable in any case. It’s hard to escape a sealed room, even if it’s moving.

Why do I have to deal with this when I haven’t done anything to deserve it?

When I glanced at the guy who caused all this, he was fiddling with his smartphone as though he had totally forgotten about me.

Bastard. I want to punch him.

No, no, no. Turn away, ignore him.

If you look, you’ll get even more angry, and if your eyes meet, you’ll end up in an even bigger mess.

If you look forward and focus, you’ll be at your bus stop in no time.

If you get off the bus there, you’ll be done.

That’s the smarter way.

While I was telling myself that----the bus shuddered and lurched like it had run over something.

That’s unusual.

This bus only runs a single route.

I used this same bus to go to and from school every day until I had grown thoroughly bored of it.

Even so, it was the first time I had felt the bus shake like this.

What the...? I looked towards the front of the bus-------,

The windshield was a solid pane of white.

At the same time, a tremendous roar and a tremor hit me.

Before I could brace myself, the impact flung me off my feet.

My body was being thrown forward.

In contrast to my body that had lost control, my vision was perfect.

As though in slow motion, I could see the world around me clearly.

And, ahead of me is where I was looking. The windshield was a spider web of gleaming white cracks about to shatter and explode out to touch me.

I know this is bad.

But my body won’t move.

I want to protect my vitals from the debris, but my arm is moving too slowly.

I’ll be shot through by the rain of glass before they get there.

If I was wearing a blazer, that might’ve afforded at least some protection, but it’s just past the rainy season and approaching summer. Of course I’m wearing a thin short-sleeved shirt.

All I can do is close my eyes and tense my body.

The pain lasted only an instant, a sense of cuts and stabs all over my body.

It was over in an instant.

To be honest, I was expecting more.

I was relieved for an instant, but that wasn’t it.

This time, with the bus at an abrupt halt and my own momentum continuing, my chin slammed into the ground and I rolled until my back struck something hard.

----Pain.

My whole body hurts, but the last impact against my back hurts the most.

It feels like my flesh tore somewhere when I hit the corner of something.

This is bad. However, my back hurts so much because it’s injured, which means it’s just pain.

I know it’s not a fatal injury.

Such a blessing in disguise.

I mean, what is this? An accident?

It feels hot, but the bus isn’t about to start burning and explode, right?

Opening my tightly closed eyelids to make sure---- I see that the bus has flipped over.

No, wait. I’m upside down.

My upper body was lying in the aisle with my legs hooked on whatever it was that caught my back-- to be precise, it looked like I was sitting down and fell backwards.

Looking down towards my feet, I could see the fare box beside the driver’s seat, and beyond that, the windshield of the bus was a twisted and tangled mess.

Oh, it’s so hot because all the cool air conditioned air is escaping.

Global warming is becoming serious, if a little thing like this can make it so hot.

With wandering thoughts like that, I turned to the rest of the bus.

----Looks like all the passengers are okay.

Only an auntie, sitting facing the aisle towards the back, appears to have slipped from her seat and bumped her elbow, but the other passengers, surprisingly, weren’t even jostled and there was no indication that anything had happened.

The worst was a man rubbing his head after bumping it against the seat ahead of him.

That means I’m the worst off?

Seriously? How unlucky can I be?

I get into a mess with a delinquent, catch everyone’s eye, injured in an accident, and I’m still the center of attention?

What a pathetic combo.

Well, this wouldn’t’ve happened if I was sitting in my seat. It’s all because of that fucking blond bastard. At the very least, that guy should’ve gotten a minor injury or something.

While thinking about that, notice the eyes of the people in the bus and a feeling comes over me.

----All the passengers are looking at me.

Whether I look to the left or the right, my gaze meets the eyes of everybody in each seat.

And everybody has the same look on their face.

It was a stunned look, as though they were looking at something unbelievable.

Horror.

A chilling sensation runs over me, like I had never felt before.

A sense of dread.

I turn my gaze towards the rest of my body…

Red.

It was bright red.

Reflexively, I wondered if I accidentally wore a red shirt to school today.

There’s no way that’s the case.

I’m just trying to ignore it.

Because, once I do, it’s too late.

So I cling to it.

It’s different. I want it to be something else.

However, the next sight denied my prayers.

Glop, glop, red fluid was spurting out from my neck, dyeing the shirt.

Glop, glop, glop, overflowing to show the rhythm of my heart.

Reflexively trying to put pressure on my neck---------

----It didn’t move.

My fingers could barely move, and I couldn’t lift my arms.

I couldn’t move my left arm, and I couldn’t move my right arm.

I don’t think I can lift my arms.

It was hot earlier, but now it’s cold---

Why?

What’s going on?

No way… I’m… dying?

You’re kidding me, right?

It was a normal day today, and I spent it like usual.

Sure, it was a bit off on the return trip…

Ping~!

There was an incongruous sound in the quiet bus.

From my current position on the ground, it was from above.

In other words, from a passenger.

Looking towards it-- it was the blond bastard.

The asshole had his smartphone pointing at me.

This….! I’m amazed even as I’m lying here dying.

He… he’s recording it.

I’m about to die, I’m dying---

And this guy’s shooting a video.

----My vision goes white with rage.

Absolute fury.

It’s probably the first time since I was born that I felt a murderous rage like that.

Screw you…!

While I want to attack and kill him right now--- I can’t even more.

“-------------Aa…”

I tried to rage at him with my mouth, but my lips barely moved.

Unforgivable…! This can’t be happening…!

Die. DIE!

He excitedly recorded me as I glared back.

It’s all I can do.

At the very least, I wanted to condemn him with my eyes, and make sure he knew it.

Why did I have to die instead of you, my eyes screamed in anger.

Why did I bow and scrape before a guy like this? My glare radiates that regret.

I put all my curses into my eyes.

I glared. I glared. I glared. I glared. I glared. I glared. I glared.

I continued glaring even as my blood ran out.

I continued glaring even as my breath stopped.

Even when my vision turned white and I couldn’t see anything anymore, I continued to glare, believing there was something there.

I kept glaring until the end.

And the moment when my consciousness started to fade in the whiteness---

“-------------------------------”

At the end, I thought I heard something in the light.

~~~~~--Eyes--~~~~~

Chapter 1 - Words

Notes: I’m almost positive I got the opening book wrong, but half an hour of searching later, I can’t find an actual book or author with that name, though the title is used as sort of a social awakening movement. I’m still undecided on how to handle how this flicker between first and third person at times… and others, it just straddles the line in an awkwardly ambiguous fashion.

“The future is not where the future continues.
By nature, the world extends further into the past.”
Excerpt from “Myself in the World”, by Hirohiro Tachibana.

SSS

This place was surrounded by brown rock surfaces that looked too fragile to be referred to as rock walls.

The top, bottom, and sides were covered in the same uniform brown stone-like material, and no other color could be seen.

It’s because of its size that it didn’t have an oppressive feeling despite being like that.

The space was comfortably wide and tall, and extended off into the distance in the other two directions to form a tunnel.

It’s a natural cave.

In a place like this--

The thoughts of Sumihara Tsuguto were purely confusion.

“--------Wha?”

That was the first breath he took, and the first thing he managed to force out from his lungs

It was a sound that couldn’t even be called a word, but Tsuguto himself was surprised to hear his own voice.

He raised a hand to his mouth to make sure it was truly his, and was even more surprised to feel his breath against his palm, and even more by how he was able to move.

“---Am I… alive?”

That’s ridiculous, Tsugito thought. There’s no way I could’ve been saved, the way I was bleeding.

So he turned his attention to his clothes.

It wasn’t a bright red shirt stained with blood, but the clean white shirt of a school uniform.

Seeing that, the thought that everything that happened on the bus was a dream crossed Tsuguto’s mind, but it was equally undeniably the same uniform.

It was shredded.

It was covered in tears, cuts, and frays, as though it was mercilessly attacked by blades.

The condition of the uniform confirmed that it wasn’t a dream.

Th-then… feeling his neck. ...Nothing.

The shoulders, arms, and torso... Nothing.

Although the uniform had been torn into shreds, there were no injuries on the body of Tsuguto underneath.

“What happened...?”

Is this, right now, the dream, and now what happened on the bus? But I think this is too realistic for that.

There’s a thing called lucid dreaming, where you’re aware that you’re dreaming, but in my experience, dreams are so unstable and nebulous that the time and place can freely change if you’re not careful.

Compared to that, this place felt too real. The chill in the air I was breaking and the hardness of the ground underfoot felt so realistic that I can’t believe it’s a dream.

“Then… was I saved?”

Tsuguto looked around.

It resembled a cave formed by rugged brown stone.

There was about four to five meters to the ceiling, and while the width was inconsistent, it was also about four to five meters wide in most areas.

Although it was a bit wider than expected, it looked like a pretty normal cave to Tsuguto.

He felt the wall of the cave while gathering his thoughts, but the situation was strange no matter how he thought about it.

Even if you were saved from a situation like that, you should be in the emergency room or an ambulance. But of all places, this is undeniably a cave. The situation went far beyond just unnatural.

No, even if I were in the hospital now, it’s still weird.

Because the injury, which is the reason why Tsuguto would’ve been taken to the hospital, had disappeared.

His physical condition was excellent. It would be a nuisance for a doctor to waste time checking over his body.

(If that’s the case, was it a dream? No, my uniform is ruined…)

Tsuguto let out a groan, holding his head in his hands.

If you tried to force the situation into a semblance of logic, it’d resemble this:

Tsuguto was severely injured in an accident, but was rushed to the hospital in time to miraculously save his life.

However, he did not return to consciousness while in the hospital, not until his wounds had fully recovered.

Somebody left him in a cave for some reason, while still unconscious.

While still wearing a tattered uniform.

Then, by sheer coincidence, he woke up-- into the current situation.

“Yeah, no.”

Even though it was the most plausible explanation, Tsuguto hung his head again due to the sheer insanity of it.

“Then, what on earth happened…”

It was then, when he was alone and at a loss for what to do--

There was a clacking sound like that of a bouncing pebble.

When Tsuguto turned his eyes towards it with a start, it appeared from the shadows behind a bend in the tunnel.

It was over 180cm, with a heavy body, wearing a dirty yellow shirt that probably started out white, and trousers and boots that looked like leather. His hair was a washed out brown. A wooden bucket was in his left hand, and a pickaxe resting on his shoulder was gripped in his right.

It was a man.

The man also noticed Tsuguto and turned to look at him.

For an instant, Tsuguto was surprised by the unexpected appearance of the man. He was grateful to meet another person when lost in a cave and was about to speak to him, but something made him stop.

It was when their eyes met. The man’s eyes were a pale blue.

What? He was confused again.

The man’s face had deeply set features and blue eyes with brown hair. He was probably over forty, but Tsuguto didn’t have a good grasp of the man’s age because of his race.

Yes, their races were different.

He was clearly not Japanese.

(No way. This isn’t even Japan…!?)

The man who had been eyeing the frozen Tsuguto suspiciously eventually frowned in irritation and said, “Hey, no-tag; if you’re passing through, hurry up and go.”

He directed the “words” at Tsuguto, while jerking his thumb behind him, further in the direction he came from.

However, when Tsuguto heard the “words”, he froze even more rigidly and couldn’t manage a reply at all.

The man clucked his tongue in irritation at his reaction.

“If you’re not going to pass, then stay away until I’m done!” he said and made a threatening gesture.

Seeing Tsuguto standing in unresponsive silence, he clucked his tongue again, turned to the wall, and began to bring the pickaxe down on the stone wall.

The clanging sound of a pickaxe striking stone echoed down the passage.

In the meantime, Tsuguto was in a state best described as ‘panic’.

It was after he heard the “words” of the man now concentrating on swinging a pickaxe.

Until then, Tsuguto’s concerns were elsewhere.

Looking at the man in front of me, this isn’t Japan? If that’s the case, I wouldn’t be able to communicate with Japanese either. Could I make my way to the Japanese embassy? I’m not too confident in my English grades…

That’s all he could do.

But, this changed things.

Tsuguto could easily understand what the foreign man said.

Normally, this would be cause for celebration. He was worried he wouldn’t be able to communicate, but it turned out to be groundless. It would’ve been welcomed, in hindsight.

But it’s different. It’s not welcomed anymore, because the situation has changed.

Tsuguto certainly understood the man’s “words”.

But, at the same time, he had no idea what language the man actually spoke, and by extension, where he might possibly be.

What came from the man’s mouth obviously wasn’t Japanese. And it wasn’t English or Chinese, either. It also wasn’t anything he had seen on TV, nor anything close to resembling any language he had ever heard of before.

But he was able to understand it.

He understood the meaning of the litany of unfamiliar sounds coming from the man-- “words”.

Tsuguto’s thoughts entirely stopped.

He finally realized that the situation was far beyond anything he expected and could figure out on his own.

He wished somebody would just explain what was going on.

~~~~~--Eyes--~~~~~

Chapter 2 - Exit

Notes: Thank you, Google: “With that in mind, Tsuguto explores his ass pocket.”

The blue-eyed man was silent as he swung his pickaxe against the cave walls.

Despite being rock, it didn’t seem to be particularly hard, so it wasn’t unbearably loud.

Every once in a while, once debris started to build up around his feet, the man would pick them up and examine them carefully.

Most of the shards were discarded, but a few glassy looking pieces were tossed into the bucket.

How much time passed?

By the time Tsuguto snapped himself out of his mental stupor and realized that the man was mining for something specific, the bucket was already full of various stones.

The man patted the bucket with a satisfied expression before glancing at Tsuguto suspiciously. Then, without a word, he rested his pickaxe against his shoulder, picked up the bucket, and walked back the way he came.

Tsuguto was mutely observing the situation in confusion, but realized he was missing an opportunity.

The man was probably heading for the exit.

He needed information, and he couldn’t stay in a cave like that forever.

Tsuguto started to chase after the man, but stopped as he passed the section of the wall that was gouged out.

(...What was he mining?)

At a glance, it was just random chunks of crushed stone, but upon closer observation, there were clear blue grains amongst the leavings.

(Are these… crystals?)

Was that man mining gems?

The man did seem to be concerned about him approaching. He was probably worried that Tsuguto would try to steal them while was preoccupied.

“I’d rather mine myself, than steal from another.”

Tsuguto wedged a finger into a crack in the wall and pulled at it. The stone was softer than he expected, and a slab fell away easily.

Studying the slab, there were more blue flecks visible than in the scraps the man had discarded, mostly along the edges.

(If these stones are worth something, should I take it with me?)

Thinking about that, Tsuguto checked his pockets. There was supposed to be a wallet on him, but they were empty.

Other than the torn clothes on his body, there was nothing on him at all.

Lost, alone, and in an unknown situation… even a stone that only might be useful can be a source of comfort.

(Should look for some more…?)

Tsuguto continued to pull at the wall with his hands, but, unlike the first chunk, there were only a few more grains to show for his effort. It really was just garbage.

.Evidently, they weren’t something that could be found so easily. That, or the man already found everything worthwhile.

(If it’s not there, it’s not there. I don’t even know if it’s valuable, to begin with.)

Just as he was about to give up, something glittering from a section he uncovered caught his eye.

Looking at it more closely, a beautiful, transparent, colorless stone, markedly different from the small blue grains, was buried there.

SSS

Tsuguto was past the corner where he lost sight of the man. He was long out of sight, but it wasn’t a problem since the passage continued on without any breaks.

The transparent stone he had dug up-- a palm-sized gem that was embedded in the wall but pulled out without a scratch-- shined brilliantly in the light of the tunnel as he firmly gripped it.

This should be valuable. Tusugto was distracted by the splendor of the stone and hadn’t thought about it until then.

He stopped and looked down the tunnel.

The exit should be somewhere up ahead, but it was still out of sight.

Then, he turned his gaze to the walls and ceiling.

There were no openings there either.

And there were no other objects in sight. Despite that--

(Why does this cave look lit?)

The interior of the cave was bright enough that he could visually confirm that the gem was in pristine condition.

He looked around again-- but there was nothing resembling a light source.

“... … …”

Even though his previous questions were unanswered, he was now faced with another inexplicable situation.

Tsuguto wanted to clutch his head in frustration again, but, having once concluded that he lacked the ability to do anything about it, simply made a mental note of yet another oddity and moved on.

Further down the tunnel, he approached the first fork.

It was a Y-split, with passages leading to the left and right.

Immediately, one would wonder which would be the correct path, but plenty of people were exiting from the right tunnel and exiting to the left. Everybody taking that passage had buckets filled with stones. If this was a mine, then, just like the blue-eyed man from earlier, they’d be bringing in empty buckets and carrying out full ones.

Tsuguto put on a casual expression and quickly joined the flow of people heading towards what was probably the exit.

After about five minutes, a staircase leading upwards entered his sight.

It was the same width as the tunnel and allowed the passage of ten people side by side.

As he climbed the stairs and his gaze naturally turned upwards, the light was natural and familiar, unlike the unnatural light of the cave-- sunlight filled his eyes.

Tsuguto was relieved to get outside, and quickly climbed the stairs with the rest of the crowd carrying heavy loads.

SSS

It was already approaching dusk, and the surface was a noisy bustle.

Tsuguto stood to the side and observed the crowd while standing on the hard, dry, soil.

He had gone up the stairs, and exited the cave.

Outside, there was a plaza or square of some kind made from carving out the face of the mountain.

It was thickly wooded to both sides, not to the point you would call it a wilderness, but you could definitely call it a forest.

However, it wasn’t constricting at all. The area felt open, and possibly as large as a schoolground.

There were several wooden buildings, varying in size, but they were clearly all old. Further away, there was a single larger stone structure.

Tsuguto wandered around.

It was filled with people going to and fro anyways.

Most of the people carrying pickaxes, shovels, or buckets were clustered together. There were almost all men, but their ages ranged from small children to the elderly. All in all, their numbers easily surpassed a hundred.

On top of that, a steady stream of people were flowing from the mouth of the cave.

(This really isn’t Japan. All these people, and there’s almost nobody with black hair. And everybody’s dressed strangely.)

There was something wrong with everybody’s clothes. They looked “old” in some way. It wasn’t that the clothes were worn out, but the design of them-- they were antiquated.

(Almost medieval, or something…)

As Tsuguto was studying their clothes in dismay, he noticed that everybody carrying a full bucket was walking in the same direction.

Tsuguto turned towards their destination.

They were heading towards the largest mass of people in the area.

“---Are they getting in line?”

All of them were standing around waiting with heavy buckets of stones.

It looked like a chaotic mass of people at first, but there did seem to be some kind of organization to it upon closer observation.

(Maybe that’s where they’re selling the stones?)

Tsuguto moved to a better vantage point where he could observe the head of the line.

There was something like a counter set up there.

A row of pedestals were placed, and, in front of them, miners with their buckets were waiting.

People who were clearly unlike the rest of the crowd stood on the other side of the pedestals.

They were dressed in clean white shirts and black vests, giving a neat and formal impression.

Each of them received a bucket, placed it on the pedestal, checked something, and handed over some kind of scrip in exchange.

Seeing this process, Tsuguto wondered if he should join the throng.

(This is it...)

Sighing inwardly, he pulled out a stone laced with blue flecks from his pocket and looked at it.

Even those with an entire bucket of stones couldn’t be said to be looking well off, by any stretch of the imagination.

Evidently, the amount of money you could make from mining these stones was small.

And by extrapolation, the value of a single stone was clear.

(Penniless and lost in an unknown country...)

Tsuguto was at a loss at what to do next, when--

“--Hey brother, you okay?”

He heard a voice from behind him.

For Tsuguto, it was still an unknown language, but he understood the meaning behind the words as easily as he did in the cave, so he turned around.

There was a stall with brightly colored jars arranged on a series of crates.

The owner smiled kindly at him.

~~~~~--Eyes--~~~~~

Chapter 3 - The Street Vendor

Two rectangular wooden crates turned onto their sides were transformed into a magnificent merchandise display by the simple addition of a clean blue cloth.

A series of small barrels and baskets were lined up, and the many jars were particularly eye-catching. They were filled with vibrantly colored dried fruit.

Tsuguto idly wondered why there were stalls selling dried fruit as he gazed at their preserved vividness. Looking around, there were very few stalls like it.

Most of the people who weren’t carrying buckets had already sold their haul and were shopping in this area.

“--Hey bro, did somebody steal everything?”

The same vendor called out again.

The man who appeared to be the owner of the dried fruit stall looked to be around thirty and smiled with a genial look that seemed to encompass the goodwill of humanity.

Hearing the words of the vendor, Tsuguto furrowed his brow.

(What’s this about something stolen?)

Then he realized how he must look right now.

He was standing amidst the stalls, clutching a single stone, shoulders drooped, sighing. It was reasonable for anything seeing him to think that he was at a loss for what to do because somebody had stolen his bucket.

“That’s a tragedy-- or rather, wasn’t that a bit careless? Normally, you’d carry it on you.”

(No, because if you were carrying it, you couldn’t swing a pick.)

Tsuguto responded that way in his mind, but didn’t say it aloud.

He could understand the unknown language of this land for some reason, but he didn’t think the vendor would be able to understand Japanese.

“Do you have any money on you? Just one chunk of magic ore doesn’t go far.”

The vendor nodded at the stone in Tsuguto’s hand.

“---Magic ore?”

The word that Tsuguto heard was ‘magic’, and it was so clear that there was no room for an alternative interpretation.

That was his first reaction, but---

“Yeah? That’s magic ore. Magical ore. Were you mining without knowing that?”

The vendor responded to Tsuguto’s Japanese with ease.

“Eh? You can understand Japanese?!”

“Japanese? ...Oh, is that what your tongue? No, that’s the first time I’ve heard of it and can’t speak it.”

There was something off about the exchange with this vendor.

Even though he claimed he didn’t understand Japanese, he responded smoothly to what Tsuguto spoke.

If  he really didn’t understand Japanese, then something was very wrong with this conversation.

“No, you see---”

As Tsuguto was about to start arguing with the vendor, he realized something.

It was the same for him.

Just like the street vendor who was unfamiliar with Japanese, Tsuguto had never head the language spoken by the vendor. He didn’t understand the pronunciation or the grammar. Yet, he understood the meaning of every word that was spoken.

He thought he had gone crazy and was the only one in such a state, but perhaps it was the same for the vendor-- or maybe everybody here was like this, considering how casually people reacted.

Until now, he assumed that once he had some more information he could figure out what happened, but the more the learned, the more perplexing it became.

Seeing that Tsuguto had stopped mid-sentence, the vendor cut in. “...I know it’s tough bro, but it’s okay. Being depressed won’t get your stuff back.”

The vendor didn’t quite get it.

Tsuguto, who was lost in his thoughts, came back to reality and nodded at the vendor.

It would be better to think about it once he had a better grasp of the situation.

“...True, that’s right. Well, it’s more like I’m confused, than depressed.”

“Confused… have you just arrived in Berg?”

Berg… is that the name of this place? He cocked his head.

“Very recently… today, actually.”

“Oh, then that’s really bad luck. There’s always a shortage of magic ore, so anybody is welcome here if they’re able to dig… we get a lot of people from the cities here, because of how easy it is to work here.” While saying that, the vendor looked out across the square towards the crowd selling their stones and lowered his voice. “And because of that, there are a lot of people with unusual circumstances, thieves, and pickpockets.”

In other words, that kind of thing is common around here.

Tsuguto frowned bitterly at the vendor’s words, but he couldn’t ignore the unpleasant truth before him.

“--So, what’re you going to do?” asked the vendor, pointing at the stone still in Tsuguto’s hand.

“Seems kind of pointless to line up just for this.”

“Haha, true. I’ll take it off your hands, if that’s okay?”

“Really? How much?”

“One large copper is the going rate for a piece like that. Well, the purity looks pretty good, so I’ll do you a favor… how about one large plus a small, eleven larks total?”

Tsuguto was about to ask how much that actually was, but held himself back in time.

It was a bad idea to announce to the world that he had no idea what the value of money was.

If other people caught wind for it, it’d be an invitation to rip him off, and, worse, it would mark him as a suspicious foreigner.

“Eleven larks? Anything here you’d recommend with that?” Tsuguto asked, while looking at the various products, trying to get a rough baseline for the value of the currency.

“Well… for eleven larks, it’ll be these fruits. One scoop per lark. Oh, and do you have a bag? If not, these are thirty larks each.”

The scoop the vendor was holding was tiny, about the size you’d use to scoop sugar for coffee. One of those per lark. If he tried, he could probably eat all eleven scoops in a single mouthful.

On top of that, the small drawstring pouch the vendor had gestured to cost thirty larks. Even a bag like that was beyond his means.

Despite that, eleven larks seemed to be a trifling amount of money.

In Japan, it might not even be a hundred yen.

Tsuguto had hoped that he could at least get a meal out of it.

He glanced at the setting sun as he tried to decide what to do with his piddling amount of money when he remembered something.

Digging through his pockets, he pulled out the transparent gem and showed it to the vendor.

“Is this worth anything?”

The vendor’s eyes widened in surprise when he saw the gem sitting in his palm.

“Ohhhh, an ether crystal.”

Apparently, it was called an ether crystal.

“You’re a lucky man if you found one of those on your first time! Well, everything else got stolen, so I wonder if you’re unlucky over all? Hah!”

(In other words, I’m lucky since I didn’t have anything to get stolen. But a lucky person wouldn’t end up in this situation to begin with, so…)

“---Well? Are you interested?”

“Of course. I’d love to get my hands on one of those! I’ll beat their price for it, two large silvers and five smalls for it.”

The vendor held up two fingers on one hand and five on the other, with a confident expression on his face-- so how is that, now?

Tsuguto frowned slightly, unsure of its value.

“What? Unhappy about it? If you tried to sell it over there, they’d give two large silvers. Maybe one or two silvers on top, if you were lucky.”

Tsuguto had no idea if the vendor was telling the truth about the line of people buying from the miners, but he also didn’t want to stand in line, so he accepted the offer.

“I get it, it’s fine, but I want one of those pouches too.”

“--A fruit bag? Just the bag?”

“For a money pouch.”

“Ahhh, I see. Then, one magic ore and one ether crystal for 2,511 larks and a bag.”

While counting the money and putting it into his newly purchased bag, Tsuguto compiled the information from the vendor so far.

Two large silver coins. Five small silver coins. A large copper coin. A small copper coin. In total, 2,511 larks.

One large silver coin is one thousand larks.
One small silver coin is one hundred larks.
One large bronze coin is ten larks.
One small bronze coin is one lark.

Simple as that.

Now that he had a grasp of the units of currency, he could just browse the stalls until he could determine its value more clearly.

He pointed at a reddish-black lump about the size of a soda can in a basket and asked the vendor,  “How much is that chunk that looks like meat?”

“It’s not ‘like meat’, it is dried meat. One silver. Oh, and the meat bags are larger, so that’ll be another five large copper.”

It was a bit much for one meal. Assuming he could live on just one meal a day and it’s just one small silver, he figured there was enough to live for nearly a month.

“Sounds good, I’ll take it.”

Tsuguto handed over two silver coins and received the meat in a bag and five large copper coins back.

With the first concern of food resolved, Tsuguto moved to the next issue.

“Do you know anywhere to stay around here?”

This was becoming increasingly urgent.

Considering the position of the sun, it wouldn’t be much longer until it went down entirely. If he didn’t manage to find a place to stay, he’d be camping in the wilderness in an unknown land.

“An inn, maybe? If that’s what you’re looking for… go straight over there--” The street vendor explains while pointing at a corner of the square where the trees seemed thinner than elsewhere. “Just before the main street, there’s an inn called the ‘Dragon’s Den Pavillion’ that I recommend.”

“‘The Dragon Den’s Pavillion’. Got it.”

Regardless of anything else, he had food and a place to stay now.

“Yeah, well, don’t be discouraged. If you keep working at it, you’ll save up your first gold coin in no time!”

“Gold? Ahhh, you’re right.”

Thinking about the value of a gold coin, Tsuguto started to head in the direction of the inn.

“Oh, and… Welcome to Berg! Good luck in the city!”

For the first time since arriving, Tsuguto’s face broke out in a smile.

~~~~~--Eyes--~~~~~

Chapter 4 - Not Earth

Notes: Some of this serious awkwardness is from the author, and really isn't just how I'm translating. "'Here's a McGuffin.' 'A McGuffin?' 'Yeah, a McGuffin.' It's called a McGuffin." *facepalm* WE GOT IT THE FIRST TIME.

Steps extended down from the edge of the plaza.

It was made by setting flagstones about two meters across and one meter deep into the side of the hill. They were irregularly shaped and each the size of a tatami mat.

People heading home after mining were descending the stairs.

Among them was Tsuguto.

The path was surrounded by the forest on both sides and the foliage overhead made the path even darker.

If it were earlier in the day, the sun would’ve shone through the branches and leaves, making it a comfortable shaded path, but, unfortunately, it was already late in the day. What little light that managed to filter its way to ground level was weak and did little to warm the people heading down.

(...Isn’t it getting pretty cold?)

Tsuguto rubbed his arms, exposed from his short-sleeved shirt.

It should be almost summer in Japan, but it felt entirely different here.

There was still a ways to go before it dropped to freezing, but staying out much longer would definitely be uncomfortable.

While trying to ignore the cold for ten minutes or so, the slope of the stairs gradually tapered off before stopping entirely.

At that point, there was a break in the trees and the city ahead was visible.

SSS

It was a beautiful city.

Unlike the stairs that were formed with irregular stones, the roads were paved with uniform cobblestones and lined on both sides by two or three-story buildings with plaster siding.

As expected though, the streets used traditional construction methods with no sign of modern technology at all.

(Straight down, on the left, just before reaching the main street… as I recall.)

Tsuguto recalled the directions supplied by the street vendor and followed them carefully, making sure he avoided any side streets.

Soon enough, he came upon a busy road.

It cut off the street he was currently on and extended to the left and right.

(Is this the one he meant?)

Looking down the street, it was a boisterous place with crowds gathering in front of many busy shops.

(This is probably it, but if the inn was before the main street, that means I already passed it…?)

If that’s the case, there was nothing he could do but backtrack.

With that in mind, he turned back in the direction he came from--

And then,

Very casually,

It came into view.

The head of the road.

Past the stairs.

Even further than the cave he started in, it was----

There was a mountain.

No, not a mountain. Every mountain Tsuguto knew had a vaguely triangular shape with slopes going to the peak. That’s what a mountain was.

If so, that’s not a mountain.

That’s a spike, not a mountain.

It reached from the ground to the sky-- it was a spike, shaped like an upside-down icicle.

But, at this scale, you’d never call it a mere spike.

It rose above the forest canopy, beyond the clouds, and pierced the heavens.

Calling it anything less than a mountain would fall short of its majesty.

Tsuguto gazed in open-mouthed shock at the impossibly-shaped mountain.

It was a shocking sight.

And, forced to confront a view that contradicted the world he had known until now, faced with mysterious events one after another, the undeniable answer exploded forth in his brain.

All the knowledge he had gleaned over his seventeen years in Japan were blown away, leaving a single elegant solution in the center of a mind now devoid of all irrelevant thought.

---- This was not Earth.

The city bustles with the sound of life.

A shopkeeper rushes to close his store. Another man rushes in and asks him to wait a moment. Women are returning home while chatting with one another.

The ringing sound of metal on metal echoes throughout the city with a clang clang, clang clang.

It’s not a harsh sound. Instead, it’s a gentle wave.

As though awakened by the tone, Tsuguto is called back from his thoughts.

With a mind still blurred, he looked around and saw a cityscape enveloped by the setting sun and a thorn-shaped mountain dyed in scarlet madder towering above the world.

(Reality… is this reality? ...What is reality?)

Torn between a rising concern that he’d be stuck wandering the streets after sunset and the desire to retreat from this strange reality, he cast his eyes about to look for the inn the vendor recommended in a tenuous state.

Until now, he was able to remain calm because it never crossed his mind that he was in a different world. The unconscious mind immediately dismissed it as an inherent impossibility.

It only took a few minutes of both feet and eyes wandering in search of an inn to find it.

--The Dragon’s Den Pavillion.

The building he was looking for was only about ten meters away from the main street.

Tsuguto was able to read the characters engraved on the metal sign attached to the building-- it felt similar to katakana, but, at the same time, different-- something unlike normal words. Not only was he able to understand the spoken language of this world, but also their writing.

(I was transported to another world after aliens rebuilt my brain? No, there’s magic ore, and if there’s magic, then that means it’s a fantasy world…)

Darkness crept up on him as the sun dropped below the horizon while he was standing around in front of the sign, lost in thought.

The darkness snapped him out of his meandering thoughts and urged him in. He pushed the door open with a hand and entered the Dragon’s Den Pavillion.

There was a counter immediately visible opposite the entrance. To the right, a noisy dining room was lined with tables. The room was packed with tough looking men gobbling down their food.

Tsuguto ignored the smell of food threatening his hunger and headed directly for what appeared to be the reception desk.

“...........”

The person standing there didn’t look quite like what he expected.

He wasn’t expecting a beautiful receptionist.

Despite that, he still approached the counter thinking that it’d be a jolly old man or a kindly middle-aged person.

They weren’t either of those.

It was an enormous man who could be mistaken for a giant.

He easily cleared two meters. His massive body was equally muscular and his white shirt was torn from the strain of trying to restrain them. And, to top it off, his shaved head glistened as sharply as his piercing stare.

Those eyes, edgier than an assassin’s, were trained on Tsuguto.

(No way would there be a guy like this where I’m staying…)

It crossed his mind that he entered the wrong building.

That was impossible. The sign was clearly posted right outside.

Maybe he was tricked by the vendor.

With nothing else to do, Tsuguto finally broke the awkward silence and spoke. “I’m looking to stay one night. Is there any room?”

“...Private room only. No dining room. ...If you want it, five silver.”

Looks like that was the inn.

Tsuguto silently apologized to the vendor for doubting him.

There was no problem with a private room since that was what he was looking for to begin with. It also gave the impression that there were other types of rooms available.

Does that mean that there were restrictions on using the dining room? Either way, he had a chunk of dried meat so there was no problem with that. He handed a large silver coin to the man.

After returning the change, the fierce-looking man led him to his room.

He was guided up the stone stairwell to a room directly across from the stairs on the third floor.

“Here is the key. One for light, another for hot water.”

The innkeeper handed him a simple key, a rod with a protrusion, and two silver metal cylinders about twice the length of a battery.

(I get the key, but what’re those?)

Tsuguto frowned slightly, looking at the unknown metal pieces.

If there wasn’t a translation problem, the man said ‘light’ and ‘hot water’, but that didn’t explain anything. They were a pair of metal cylinders.

“...What’re these?”

It didn’t seem like something that could be figured out even if he thought about it, so he asked bluntly. The innkeeper frowned at the question, as though wondering where the misunderstanding could possibly be.

At his reaction, Tsuguto realized that it was something that was common sense in this world. He was a paying customer though, so he pointedly glanced at the cylinders and waited.

The innkeeper took one of the cylinders and inserted it into the head of a lamp-shaped object in the room.

Immediately, the object lit up.

It’s certainly a light, Tsuguto thought.

The cylinders act like a battery of some kind.

“--It’s the same for hot water. If you put water in the kettle and insert the ‘magic stone’, it’ll heat the water. When you want it to stop, remove the stone.”

Saying so, the innkeeper removed the thing he referred to as a magic stone from the object and the light went out.

It didn’t look like a stone at all, but when Tsuguto shook it, there was a rattling sound inside. It was a container of some kind. Maybe whatever was inside was the stone.

“Thank you, I get it now.”

“Check out is until the bell rings at noon. If you’re still here after that, there’ll be an additional fee.”

With that, the man left the room.

“----...Ahhhhh.”

And Tsuguto locked the door, flopped on the bed, and took a deep breath.

It was the most turbulent day of his life.

He died in an accident after school, woke up in a cave, and found himself in a different world.

He still didn’t know what was going on, what was going to happen, or how to get home.

Despite that--

“I’m alive.”

He clicked a fist tightly then relaxed it.

His palm, which had turned white, flushed with pink as blood continued flowing again.

That, more than anything, was a relief.

Regardless of what else happened, he was undoubtedly alive.

Tsuguto took another deep breath and enjoyed the feeling of sinking into the bed.

He continued to enjoy it for a while, but unaware of the fatigue he felt, even his consciousness sank into the bed.

~~~~~--Eyes--~~~~~

Chapter 5 - Dungeon

Clang clang, clang clang. The sound of bells echoed over the city.
Tsuguto woke to their tone.
“...Mmmm, nnnnng.”
With that, he got up from bed.
Exhaustion set in and he fell asleep before he knew it.
He looked around the room in a daze.
Despite the lack of a light source in the room, he could clearly see with the sunlight leaking in from the window.
It was still dim, so it was probably around dawn.

“...I’m thirsty.”

After all, he fell asleep without putting anything in his mouth yesterday, so he was both hungry and thirsty.
There was still the piece of dried meat, but it’d be tough to get that down without drinking anything first. However, there was nothing in the room that looked like a waterjug.

(There was a bath in here. That means there should be water available?)

The room was about eight tatami (13sqm or 140sqft) and had a second door.
As soon as he opened the door, there was a washbasin. Beside it was a small bath and toilet.

“It has water… right?”

The basin had something that looked vaguely like a spigot, but Tsuguto wondered if that was where the water came from.
For lack of a better idea, he twisted the strangely shaped thing that might’ve been a spigot and water poured out.
Looks like that’s the water supply.

--PAUSED--

...Okay, I can't take it anymore. About 10% of the entire story complete and the inanity of this writing style is grating on me to the point of infuration. (Though Lourie shows up at the end of the next chapter (image): https://23938.mitemin.net/i303734/)