Chapitre 4: Ch-4 Attack
The next day, after the sun had risen, I looked around the shed again and found a hatchet that looked like it had been used for chopping firewood.
This was a great find. It had red rust on it, so it was probably made of iron.
This discovery made me see the level of civilization in this world in a new light. I tried to sharpen the hatchet on a stone from the riverbed and found that it could be used not only for chopping firewood, but also for cutting branches and peeling bark from trees.
From the bark and ropes, I quickly made a simple garment that looked more like a suit of armor than anything else. Now I wasn't shirtless.
Then I made a hole in the ceiling of the hut to create a vent for the smoke. It didn't work well at first, but after a few adjustments, I got it to work properly so the smoke could escape. Now I could keep a fire going even while I slept.
As for food, when I turned over a rock in the riverbed, I found some small insects. Could I eat them?
Just as I was thinking about it, aunt said:
"This is probably edible. I've heard that people in Nagano Prefecture eat river bugs.
I didn't have much choice. I collected the insects, boiled them in an earthenware pot, and tried to eat them.
They were surprisingly bland, like eating the shells of river shrimp. But my body felt relieved after eating for the first time in a while, and I felt a little more at ease.
"Hmm. I wish it was a little saltier," I said.
Aunt Hoshi also ate the insects without hesitation. "If I showed this to Akari, she'd faint," she said with a smile.
It's true, he's always been afraid of bugs and such.
With my stomach a little fuller and the hut warmed by the fire, I thought I'd finally be able to get some good sleep on my third day in this world.
"Yu-kun, it's snowing."
I went out of the hut when I heard the aunt's voice, and indeed, it was snowing heavily.
"It might pile up," I thought aloud.
"Auntie, let's go into the hut so you don't get cold," I said.
"Yes, I will. Yu-kun, I have a request... While we're in this world, could we stop calling each other 'Auntie'? I mean, technically I am your aunt, but here I want to be a good partner to you. So I'd like you to call me as an equal."
I understood. It seemed like a declaration of intent on her part.
"Then may I call you Hoshi-san?" I asked.
"Yes, Hoshi-san is fine," she replied, although she seemed a little embarrassed.
"Alright, Hoshi-san. Let's get some rest and prepare for tomorrow!"
"Yes!"
Later that night, I woke up. Hoshi-san was sleeping soundly next to me.
The hut made a creaking sound every now and then. Was it the snow pushing against it? I tried to go outside, but the snow had piled up so high that it blocked the entrance.
I pushed through the snow to get outside and saw that the snowfall had slowed down. But if I didn't clear the snow off the roof, I was in danger of carbon monoxide poisoning, and the cabin could even collapse.
I went back in and woke up Hoshi-san.
"Hoshi-san, please wake up. There's too much snow, and the hut is in danger. Let's go outside."
"Ugh, it's cold. The fire is still burning," she mumbled.
I put on the makeshift wooden armor I'd made that day, cleared the snow from the door and stepped outside.
Hoshi-san followed me. It was dark and I couldn't see very well with only a torch in my hand, but there was definitely a lot of snow on the roof of the hut.
It would be bad if we didn't remove it. Working in the dark was risky, but we didn't have a choice.
Hoshi-san held the torch while we climbed onto the roof and managed to remove most of the snow. Just as we were about to climb down, careful not to slip, a terrible wailing sounded nearby.
"Aaawooooo!!"
What was it? A wolf?
"Yu-kun, look! There's something over there!"
Hoshi-san pointed torch in the direction of the riverbank.
"Hoshi-san, give me the torch and go back to the hut!"
How many were there? At least there wasn't just one.
My weapon, the hatchet, was in the hearth. 🪓
I'd screwed up. There was no time for regrets. I ran to the hearth, but it was buried in snow and I couldn't find it.
Damn it, I was surrounded. One, two, three, four... at least five of them. There was no time to hesitate.
I desperately started digging around the hearth. One of the wolves lunged at me, but I kicked it hard in the stomach, sending it tumbling away.
Was it a wolf? It seemed bigger than a dog...but I'd never seen a wild wolf before, so I couldn't be sure.
Regardless, I had to survive this.
Finally, I found the hearth! And... there it was! I grabbed the hatchet and stood with my back to the hut.
If they were wolves, they would probably attack as a pack.
The first lunge was probably to test my strength. Soon several of them attacked at once. While I braced myself, two of them lunged at me from each side.
I worried if I could get close enough, but in kendo, you can't rely on sight alone, especially at night. I relied on their movements alone, dodging and striking to the left and right.
"Take that!"
It seemed I'd hit him well. I felt a solid impact, but I couldn't tell how much damage I had done. The wolves seemed to realize I wasn't an easy target and kept their distance, preparing to attack from multiple directions.
Could I make it? I had no choice but to give it a try. I focused all my attention on their movements around me.
A tense silence fell, as if time had stopped. Then they attacked! Front, back, left, right... and above!
I was out of options. All escape routes were blocked.
In the next instant, my body reacted instinctively.
One! Two! Three! The attacks came almost simultaneously, but there was a tiny delay. I used that brief moment to swing my axe and felt another hit. Then four and five! Damn, I wasn't quick enough!
As I swung at the fourth, the fifth grabbed my left shoulder with all its might.
"Gah, that hurts!"
I managed to shake off the fifth, but the pain was excruciating and I fell to my knees. The pain dulled my senses, but to lose concentration would mean death. I forced myself to stay calm and took a deep breath.
Two of them were still moving. Could I take them out?
Luckily my right hand was still working and I had the hatchet ready. I had to fight through this. If I lost, Hoshi-san would be in danger as well.
Suddenly, a huge pillar of fire appeared behind me.
What was that? Was the hut on fire?
The wolves seemed to flinch at the sight. Now was my chance. I faced the remaining two with determination.
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"Ouch... what should I do? This really hurts. I'll rinse it off first," I mumbled.
Hoshi-san had burned down the entire hut, which lit up the surroundings and scared the wolves away.
With one last effort, I defeated the remaining two. As the hut burned, the other creatures stayed away.
However, my left shoulder, where I was bitten, had a deep wound.
"Hoshi-san, please keep the fire going. If we don't disinfect the wound, I'm afraid of infection... or even rabies."
"But how? We don't have any alcohol or anything."
"There's no choice but to burn it. It'll also help stop the bleeding."
"That sounds terrible..."
"We have no other choice. Give me a torch. If I pass out, keep burning the wound until the bleeding stops."
"Alright..."
I pressed the flame against the bite mark on my left shoulder.
"Guhh..."
The pain was excruciating, but I forced myself to stay conscious.
"Hoshi-san... please, as soon as I'm out, cool the burn with clean water," I said, clenching my teeth.
"Yu-kun..."
Hoshi-san was already crying.
The snow had stopped, but without the hut, we had nowhere to sleep. Tomorrow, we'd be back to square one...
And with that thought, my consciousness began to fade.
État de l’alimentation hebdomadaire
-- Classement
Power Stone 
-- Power
stone