My father died as long as I can remember.

My mother, who gave me wisdom on how to live in the forest, died of a frightening accident three years ago.

 

I was alone.

 

My mother told me that there used to be other Mr./Ms.people in this forest besides me, but now they are gone.

It seems that there are few survivors of natural disasters.

There were other people alive somewhere in the woods, but after losing my mother, who was my only source of support, I decided to live alone.

 

I am strong.

My magic is a great fire beast.

Bigger means stronger.

That's why I was the strongest in this forest territory, and I was second to none.

I can live alone.

I will always ...... it.

 

"———, ...... people in the forest like this?"

 

I should have thought so, but then I met Shea.

A woman with short ears who stepped into her territory.

I was trying to intimidate him as a nushi, but I couldn't help but be stunned by the existence of a human being that I had never seen other than my father and mother.

 

"Rune is alone......

"I'm not alone, this is my territory. All of you here are my servants.'

"It's amazing."

 

Shea was a strange person.

He taught me things I didn't know, and he even gave me delicious food that I had never eaten.

I lived with Shea for many days, talked to her, and my daily life changed.

It was the first time I had ever felt it.

I had no idea that exchanging words could be so much fun.

 

"Sia, do you want to go somewhere?"

『…… No. The truth is, I don't want to go anywhere.'

 

Shea sometimes looks pained.

He doesn't tell me why, and when I ask, Shea just laughs like he's in trouble.

I didn't like to make Shea look troubled or distressed.

 

"Then you can stay here!"

"....... Thank you, Rune."

 

Shea strokes my head.

Remembering the time I was with my mother, I close my eyes to snuggle up to Shea.

 

"Uh, uh, uh...... Hate...... I don't like .......'

『…… Shea'

"Oh...... Why me...... Such ......

 

Shea is always snarled.

She was holding her own body, shivering as if freezing in the cold, and suffering with tears.

All I could do was snuggle up to the trembling Shea.

 

"Usato...... Help me .......'

『……』

 

I knew it was someone's name, even though I wasn't smart enough.

Someone who isn't me.

Shea asks him for help.

I was kind of angry and asked Sia about something called Usato.

 

"Who is Usato?"

 

Shea looked at the question as if she didn't want to be asked.

I didn't want to make him look like that.

 

"He's the one who helped me."

"Are you strong?"

"Strong, yo."

"In what way"

 

Hearing this, Shea crosses her arms as if growling.

 

"I can't express this in words......

『??? What does he look like?'

"Why do you care?"

"Shea, I wanted to see you in my sleep."

『…… What!? Oh, what, a lie!?"

"So if you find it, you'll be scared."

"Don't mess with it!?"

 

The one with black hair and white clothes.

That's all I remembered.

Shea wants to see me, so I'll let her see me.

With that in mind, I slept snuggled up to Shea as usual.

 

The next morning, Shea was gone from her bed.

 

Shea's luggage is also empty.

All that was left was a packet filled with Mr./Ms. of my favorite food.

I was distraught when Shea disappeared without saying a word.

Even after searching in the forest for a long time, I couldn't find Shea.

 

Sia, where have you been?

Is it my fault?

Did I disappear somewhere because I was a bad boy?

 

The food that used to be delicious doesn't taste good at all.

My fellow demons looked at me anxiously when I was depressed, but they didn't make me feel better at all.

But at that time——— a person like Shea stepped into my territory.

 

"Who are they?"

 

The same human as Shea.

Mr./Ms.'s guys came into my territory.

He observes them closely from a distance as he and his monkeys are being chased. According to my mother, I am descended from the Erufu tribe, so my eyes are very good.

Since you can clearly see distant places, you can see both monkeys and humans who are being chased.

 

「…… Hmmm."

 

Most of them have horns and the same skin color as mine.

There are also strange humans with animal-like ears and tails.

Running at the center of it all ———、

 

"Black hair...... ...... white clothes!"

 

It's him.

He's ...... Usato!

 

"It doesn't look weak at all......"

 

Shea also looked weak, though.

But he didn't look as strong as she said.

As he thought this———, he grabbed the arm of the black human next to him and threw him towards the monkeys.

 

"What!??"

 

A black human moves his limbs in a panic and is attacked by monkeys.

I let out a hoarse voice in my throat at the unbelievable act.

 

"...... you use your friends as decoys?"

 

A moment later, something green that the black-haired guy had attached to burst and blew the monkeys away.

 

"What's that...... That'......."

 

It was bizarre.

He didn't even want to understand that he would not hesitate to throw his companions into the herd as a sacrifice and then explode at the end of the day.

 

"Friends, even though it's ......."

 

Hierarchical relationships are important in territory, but I know that it is even more important to be friends.

I no longer have a family.

But it's the same monster...... There are friends who can be followed as Nushi.

That's why I was so scared of what that black-haired man had done.

 

"Dangerous guy......!!"

 

Shea wasn't asking for help.

I was scared of him!!

Because of him, Shea is gone from my presence!

Maybe he took Shea somewhere!

 

"I'm going to catch you and find out about Shea."

 

I decided to observe Usat first.

Monsters and humans are no different.

The first step in hunting is to observe the prey.

 

 

——— he rained something green from the sky!

 

 

●

 

I restrained the stunned girl in a cloak and joined my friends who were engaged with the demons.

The demons themselves had already been defeated, and they should have continued on their way, but they decided that they should first hear from this mysterious girl, ——— a dark magic girl who has both elven and demon characteristics, so they decided to temporarily set up camp.

 

"You really don't attract dark wizards."

"It's a coincidence...... isn't it?"

 

Koga looks at the sleeping girl and says so, and her head hurts.

 

"I'll tell you, I'm not in a position to attract dark wizards, and although I'm also incited by the Demon Lord, I'm just related to dark wizards as a result."

"Yes, Usato is right, Koga, Usato isn't trying to attract dark wizards, he's just in a position where he's more likely to get involved in the case."

"Amako, I guess you think you're following me, but I haven't, right?"

 

Depending on how you listen to it, isn't it worse than attracting dark wizards?

Koga agrees.

With a shrug of his shoulders, he looked at Hannah Mr./Ms. and Nea, who were observing the girl up close with interest.

 

"It looks like a hybrid of elves and demons, it's quite small, but it has horns that are characteristic of the demon race."

"At this age and this size, it doesn't look like it will ever get any bigger...... Well, that's interesting."

 

The thirst for knowledge is too much and both of them are in a terrible eye, but is it okay?

The girl is about the same age as Amako.

He has a distinctive color of silver hair and green hair mixed like a mesh like a mesh, similar to Ferm and Kira, and his facial features look as strong as his words and actions when fighting.

 

"If you dare to name it, it's a demon elf? Dark Elf?"

"There's a fictional race in our world called the Dark Elves, what do you think?"

"Huh? What an interesting story. I'll tell you later."

 

You don't have to say it in such a sharp .......

I'm still thirsty for knowledge, Nea.

Anyway, as a temporary name, it seems that he will be called Dark Elf.

 

"For the time being, Usato, when this child wakes up, it might be better to move to a place where you can't see it."

"I think it's better that way, and I don't want to be in a situation like I was with Linka."

 

I remember when Amako's friend Linka attacked me, mistaking me for the one who had killed her.

It was hard to explain the situation at that time, and first of all, I had to get Amako and the others to explain that we were not enemies.

 

"I'm going to try to find something to eat for the time being, and I've also seen that there's a river nearby...... Koga, lend me your alter ego."

"Fine, but what are you going to do?"

"Throwing nets"

「…… I see."

"Koga-kun is coming to terms with his treatment of dark magic......

 

Mr./Ms. Hannah pulls at Koga, who nods with somewhat vacant eyes.

No, it's pretty convenient.

Despite all the talking, Koga lends him his dark magic alter ego.

 

"Can I have Mr./Ms. Nagi follow me?"

"What? Oh, yes."

 

Mr./Ms. Nagi also has a story to tell, so let's ask her to follow us.

She and I travel to a nearby river to catch fish for food.

 

"Is this okay?" Usato"

"It's okay, I'm holding my hands and Nagi Mr./Ms. holding my legs...... Okay, then I'll pull it while deforming it."

 

Mr./Ms. and I hold the hands and feet of the dark magic alter ego and stretch them as they are.

The stretched alter ego is transformed into a mesh as it is and thrown into the river.

 

"Okay, let's pull together."

"Maybe I'm in touch with the mysteries of dark magic right now......"

 

Mr./Ms. and I hold a cast net that transforms Koga's alter ego and wipe out all the fish in the river.

It's just today's food, so if you can't eat more fish than you can eat, you'll let it go, but it's more efficient than taking them one at a time.

Seeing a number of fish jumping in the net, Kira, who was in her cloak, came out.

 

"Wow, that's a big catch!"

"Keira, can you make your cloak into the shape of a tub?"

"I'll give it a try!!"

 

He twirls the cloak around and changes the edges to look like a slightly larger tub.

Then, after scooping up the water from the river, they throw the fish they caught there.

 

"Usato, aren't you too good ...... dark magic?"

"It's not me, it's Keira."

"Ehehe"

 

It was none other than Kira who made it possible for her to handle dark magic so far.

I'm just manipulating it, so if you're going to praise her, I want you to praise her.

 

"Okay, now you can carry it fresh, let the others go...... Let's go, shall we?"

"That's right."

 

He walks with Mr./Ms. Nagi on the road back to the camp.

 

"That girl looks like shea was meeting her."

"Yes, but where on earth is Sia Garmio going?"

"Mr./Ms. Nagi doesn't have any idea?"

"Hmm, I didn't have much to do with the Demon Realm before it was sealed. After all, aren't you drawn to the fragments of the Demon King's power?"

 

After all, that's right, isn't it......?

In fact, that's the only thing I can think .......

 

"It could be dangerous."

"I suppose I should contact her sooner, but if I get lost here, it will take even longer, so I might as well wait for that girl to wake up first and ask her to show me around the forest."

「…… I see."

 

Certainly, you may be familiar with the terrain here.

In order to do that, I guess I have to clear up my misunderstandings first...... Why did I suddenly become hostile and attacked?

Did you get hostile from the healing bullet ...... the other day?

 

"Anyway, she's a valuable source of information, and I need to talk to her as little as possible."

"Well, that's with Amako...... I'm going to leave it up to Keira."

 

They're about the same age, and it's easy to let your guard down.

When I returned to the camp base while having such a conversation, I was stunned! I saw a black flame erupt with a loud sound.

 

"Mr./Ms. Nagi"

"You seem to have woken up."

 

I woke up earlier than I expected.

Well, there's Koga in there and I'm sure he'll be fine, but he'd better hurry up.

 

●

 

When they returned to the camp, they found that the girl, who would have been violent in her sleep, had been subdued by Koga.

Well, although it is dark magic similar to Koga, in terms of its nastiness and power, it is overwhelmingly superior to Koga, so it was rather a natural result.

Right now, he was preparing the fish he had just caught, skewering it, and interrogating the girl he had restrained so that it was wrapped in a cloak of dark magic.

 

「…… Hmmm."

 

A girl who looks away from me.

This is quite disliked.

With a wry smile, I bend down to make eye contact with the girl.

 

"We're here to help Shea."

"Can you believe it, a guy like you?"

「…… Well let's see. You're attacking me."

 

How on earth did it get so bad?

I know Shea said something about me to this child...... Maybe they hated it?

 

"You're going to decoy your friends with no problem."

「? I don't remember doing that......

 

...... decoy your buddies?

As I tilt my head, Amako, Nea, and Hannah Mr./Ms. behind me come out in a lift.

 

"I think Usato is the type of person who wants to be rather than a decoy."

"This is a monster that can run out of stamina on opponents with healing magic and gooey physical abilities."

"And they usually join us without incident, you know."

"Actually, that was the case for me......

 

Is that you guys?

Is he my enemy?

Dangerous.

Nea, Amako, and Hannah Mr./Ms. are followed by Kira, who enters and almost breaks her heart.

The girl looks more confused by such a defense.

 

"Hey, I did it yesterday! When the monkey is being chased together. I used my comrades as decoys and ran away!"

「…… Ahh

 

Maybe he's referring to the time when he used Koga's alter ego as a decoy.

Did I mislead him into thinking that I was using my ally as a decoy because I was looking at him from a distance?

 

"Hahaha, it's a misunderstanding.

"I see, that's what I mean."

 

Koga, who was nearby, creates an alter ego of dark magic.

The girl's face turned pale when she saw it restraining her, but she immediately looked at her alter ego and had a huffed expression on her face.

 

"This guy was used as a decoy yesterday."

"This is my magic, a mon who creates another self with the same dark magic as you, Mr./Ms.."

「…… Same as me? What do you mean?"

 

You don't know dark magic, do you?

It's quite possible that I used it without knowing it, and in fact, I was able to handle it well because I didn't know it.

 

"Then you just let me be wrong...... What's that?"

 

The misunderstanding has been cleared up...... Okay?

Then, the girl stares at the ground and begins to drip tears.

Sudden tears made me panic and remove the cloak that restrained the girl.

 

"Uh, uh, are you okay?"

「…… I'm sorry."

"What?"

"My mom said she would apologize if I did something wrong, so I'm sorry."

 

This kid was just desperate.

…… I have to apologize too.

 

"I'm sorry I scared you."

「…… Oh, yes......

 

It's only been a short time since we've spoken, but I can tell she's worried about Shea.

Otherwise, he wouldn't be provoking the monster or trying so desperately to fight me.

 

"Ugh...... Ugh...... Gush......"

 

But I don't know what to say to a crying child.

I don't think it's enough to simply comfort them, and I should wait until they calm down.

As I was thinking about this while looking at the girl holding her knees and sobbing, I suddenly noticed that Mr./Ms. Hannah was coming next to me.

 

"Mr./Ms. Hannah?"

"Usato and Koga-kun, don't intimidate the child, I, as the elder here, can afford to be an adult, and I'll show you how to treat this child."

"You're only three or four years older than us......!"

 

Mr./Ms. Hannah ignored Koga's point.

Well, I knew I liked kids from the way I dealt with Kira and Lamb and Rosé......

 

"We're not angry, so it's okay."

 

The girl's hand flicked Hannah Mr./Ms.'s hand, and she hardened like a stone.

Déjà vu.

The image of a senior who tried to stroke Bullin crossed my mind.

 

"Children are pure."

"Oh, I can see who has a dirty heart."

"Eh, I'm sorry, I'm going to look for a handy stone, so I'm going to leave."

 

Mr./Ms., who fixed her expression with a fixed smile on her face, leaves her seat.

Nea, who had seen her back, looked at me with a stunned expression.

 

"Usato, Hannah went to find a stone to kill you, what are you going to do?"

"We're harder than stones."

「…… That's the way it is."

"I think it's a little different to admit it there, Nea......!!"

"The citrus looks hard, doesn't it?"

"Hey, I'm a girl!!"

 

Well, I know it's a joke, so leave it alone.

Hannah Mr./Ms. ...... because she's mentally quite vulnerable.

 

"First of all, I need to get to know this child...... Keira, can I ask you a favor?"

"Yes!"

 

When he calls for Keira, she comes out of his cloak.

The girl is visibly upset by Kira, who suddenly jumps out.

 

"Huh!? What the hell are you!? Where did it come from!?"

"Nice to meet you! I'm Keira! Tell me your name!!"

"Why do I have to tell you my name?!"

"Then what should I call it?"

"Whew."

 

A girl who is dismayed by the pure eyes of Keira, who is close to her age unlike us.

After a moment's hesitation, she speaks awkwardly, her mouth furrowed.

 

"I am Rune, the name given to me by my father and mother."

___________________________________________

Misconception ← "decoying my friends"

Misconception ← "exploded my comrades"

"Usato is a dangerous guy" ← correct answer

 

Rune's hostility towards Usato was due to his concern for Shea and a misunderstanding.