Bab 3: Taste of Death

The three thugs had us surrounded. Subaru stood beside me, his breath hitching as he assessed our few remaining options. The knives looked really sharp and cold sweat ran down my forehead.

"That's enough!"

A female voice is heard and we all turn to see who it was.

"Stop now and I will spare you," says the silver-haired figure as she approaches.

"Please return what you have stolen, she looked at them with a determined face."

"Steal what?" We didn't steal anything! the little guy with the bowl hair spits out.

"Wait, didn't you come to help these 2 guys?" the piercing guy licks his dagger.

"Well, no," she replied, "but-"

"Then you have no business with us. We ain't got any of your stuff, so scram." The small guy rudely interrupted her. "If anyone's got your stuff, it's probably that little brat that ran past us a few moments ago. Now shoo." He waved his hands at her, expecting her to go away.

"She thinks for a second, then sighs. Well, you don't seem to be lying,' she says before casually walking past us to the end of the alley. She's leaving? That's it. Game over. Day one and I'm dead meat. Dad, you were right, I was too cocky. Should've stuck with taekwondo. And... well, I forgive you for not being around most of my life.

"-but I can't ignore what is going on here."

Suddenly, several small ice spheres materialized in the air. Although I watched a lot of fantasy anime in my other world, seeing real magic for the first time was something special.

"The ice spheres shot forward with precision, striking the three thugs squarely. Each hit landed clean, sending them tumbling to the ground without any resistance, their faces twisted in shock as if they couldn't believe what just happened."

Me and Subaru seize the moment to sneak up behind the silver haired, pointy eared girl. Yes, it's very unmanly, but it's better than being stabbed from every angle.

"I don't care if you use magic!, bitch!, we're going to kill you!" The thugs are running towards us. "Yes, let's see if you can fight against us!"

After they said that, a voice suddenly came out of nowhere, "It would be unfair for all of you to go against them, so do you mind if I join in?"

Suddenly, a ray of light blinded us all for a moment, and some kind of spirit cat materialized.

The mere presence of the great spirit scared the bandits away. "Are you a spirit user? RETREAT!"

As they ran past, the cat said, "That's right, run away. If you do anything to her, I'll haunt you and your kin forever!" After a slight pause, he added, "Not that there'll be anyone to haunt if I get my hands on you."

Me and Subaru were in a state of shock, it was too impressive for us.

"Wow! you saved us! thank you so much. i really appreciate it." Subaru smiles.

You stole my stuff?. she made eye contact and we both broke it.

"A-ha! You looked the other way because you have a guilty conscience. Looks like I'm still an excellent judge of character! Now, give me back what's mine."

She was too ignorant to realize that she is very attractive, and when she looks at us that deeply, it is normal for us to get nervous.

"Relax, Lia," Puck said in an unconcerned tone. "I don't sense any malice in them. so you don't have to worry."

Kaoru, confused, looked at the little spirit.

"Who is this furry one?"

Puck cocked his head, feigning offense.

"Furry'!? What a lack of manners. I am Puck, the great spirit and guardian of this lady."

"Oh okay. and what are you looking for?" I asked

"A insignia, did you see one or someone wearing one?" The girl asks worriedly.

"Mmmm I have no idea." Answer Subaru. "And you? Kaoru?"

"I think it was that short blonde girl we saw earlier, Subaru. I could see she was holding something in her hand."

"Is that so? Thank you for this information." Emilia turned her back to you. "Now, I'll be making my way to find this girl. Have a nice day." She started to walk off.

"Hey!, wait a second. Let us help you!"

I stared at Subaru with curiosity. Why would he want to?... well, seeing the girl, I don't blame him. What the hell, me too.

"Why would you two want to help me?" asks the girl with curiosity.

"So I can do my daily good deed, right? Kaoru-san?" Subaru smiles knowingly and I smile back. "Of course. And I have to do my daily good deed too."

The girl hesitates for a few seconds about what to do. "Don't worry, Lia, I think we should take them with us. At least they'll serve as meat sacks if we get into a fight."

"IS THAT WHAT YOU WANT US FOR?!" Subaru shouts in indignation as Puck looks at him with a mischievous smile.

*sigh*, I should beware of that cat, it doesn't give me good vibes.

"Let's go"

--[Time Skip]--

We searched in various parts of the city but found nothing satisfactory, at least it was fun to see Subaru trying to enter restricted areas or falling off a fence while trying to climb it.

We stop at a high terrace, and from here, the city stretches out before us like a painting. It's hard not to admire how lively and vibrant it all looks from this view.

Subaru sighs, "This city is too big to search for such a small girl."

"This is the capital of Lugunica. Didn't you know that? eh .... We didn't introduce ourselves right?"

"I think we should" I answer and Subaru nods and then we stand up.

"My name is Natsuki Subaru! I don't know anything and I have nowhere to fall dead." "And my name is Kaoru Shimizu and I am in the same situation as my friend."

"And what is your name? we already know the spirit's name but we also want to know yours."

"My name? uh.... Satella. responds somewhat nervously and shyly."

"Satella, huh" Natsuki looks at the girl with a slight blush, he definitely fell in love with her at first sight. I know she's cute, but stop ogling her like that, I thought.

"So Satella, what a peculiar name." I answer.

The girl gets even more nervous when she sees my intrigue for her name and Puck comes up to her ear. "Come on, Lia. You don't have to hide it from them".

"Okay!, okay!, my name is not Satella, my name is Emilia," she pouts and looks away."

Puck approaches Subaru and Subaru caresses him, which impresses the girl that someone can touch the spirit without much trouble.

"It's unusual to see someone that can casually touch a spirit like that. Where exactly are you from?"

Before Subaru thinks about answering, I stop him, I don't trust this guy enough to let him explain something that could make us suspicious.

"We lived in a small village just outside the borders of this country. We speak the same language, but we use a different writing system and currency. That's why we can't read the signs or buy anything."

I had planned this answer as we looked around town for the blonde girl. I even worked out a story to explain why we were here. There shouldn't be any major gaps in this version, so we should be fine. I don't think it's a good idea to say we're from another world.

"They may be in an even worse situation than we are," stated Emilia.

"Well, I doubt that. Aren't you rich or something, since you seem to have such a valuable possession?" asked Subaru.

"No. I'm also broke." Both of our jaws were gaping after Emilia said this.

"But looking at you both, you have good physiques." Puck curiously inspects us by hovering and circling around us.

"I try to work out and stay in good shape since I'm the shut-in protector of my house."

"Yes. I don't do much exercise myself but I try to maintain my figure."

Subaru's use of terminology confused Emilia. "I don't know what a 'shut-in' is, but I guess that means that you are from a reputable family, correct?"

Out of the blue, she grabs Subaru's left hand and your right hand. She examined both before saying, "Your fingers don't look like the working type at all, and the muscles don't look like the kind that you get from field work."

Dang, I need to find a way to explain this.

Kaoru, with a somewhat forced smile and a somewhat relaxed tone, steps forward to intervene.

"Ah, that... Well, we come from a family that is dedicated to handicrafts and sewing, and although we didn't work directly in the fields, our lives is filled with other activities that require a lot of manual dexterity."

You made this up on the spot, and hoped that everybody would buy this.

Emilia seemed like she believed you, but you couldn't read Puck.

Subaru, silently thanking you for coming up with such a great cover story, said, "Well, I guess we should start asking around. We saw the thief, so we should see if anybody recognizes her from our description."

"That's a great idea Subaru, lets go!" Emilia started walking towards a crowed street, and everyone followed.

--[Time skip]--

We really are in circles, *sigh*

The group walks through the streets of the city until Emilia notices something.

That little girl, doesn't she look lost? asks Emilia while me and Subaru look around. And yes, the little girl has a worried face, looking from side to side, surely looking for her family.

Emilia approaches and then bends down and tries to talk to the girl, but she gets scared. poor girl. she really has a hard time and i understand her. i would be scared if i saw a demi-human that was 190cm tall and had a head like a lizard. although i don't think that example would work in this world.

I give Subaru a little push to try it.

"You know what to do, Balse~."

Subaru approaches the girl and does a coin trick that makes her laugh.

Emilia and Subaru were holding the girl's hand as they walked down the street in search of the girl's mother, and I was walking behind them, a little jealous to be honest. Emilia is quite attractive and Subaru seems to be winning her over.

Subaru and Emilia guided the girl back to her mother, which didn't take them long.

"Emilia," Subaru asked, "what benefit do you think you got out of that? I know you like to help others, but how does this benefit us?"

Emilia smiled warmly. "That's easy! Now we can continue our quest with a clear conscience because we did the right thing." A sudden thought crossed her mind. "By the way, Subaru, since you helped, isn't that your good deed for the day?"

"You know, Emilia, you're being a little picky about this!" He replies

I still have to do my good deed for the day! I respond

"Hey. Why don't we go back to where the theft happened. Maybe we can find some clues."

Emilia seems to agree and takes us to where the insignia was stolen.

Arriving at the crime scene I recognize a familiar face, Subaru seems to recognize it too and starts walking towards it.

"I have valiantly come back to this fruit stand looking for clues!" He used his best fake smile, but it had no effect.

"It's you again!" The Appa guy seemed pretty irritated. "If you're not gonna buy my Appas, scram! I don't want you tak-"

"Hey mister, thank you for your help earlier!" The little girl from earlier came up and hugged Subaru.

We all are confused.

What are you doing here? asks the Appa guy, and the mother comes over and tells her husband that we were the ones who helped the little girl find her parents.

Oh, is that so? The man's a little embarrassed. I'm sorry. You helped my daughter, so I want to thank you. Ask whatever you want.

--[Time skip]--

We are in the slums, the appa guy told us that the girl's name is Felt and she is a professional thief and that she is frequently found in this area.

The atmosphere changes as we move into the more rundown areas of the slum. The streets, once bustling with activity, become narrower and darker, with rickety buildings that seem to stand for sheer stubbornness.

"So this is the place the appa man talked about, huh?" asks Kaoru, pausing to look down an alleyway filled with shadows.

"Yes, he said Felt usually hangs around here," Subaru replies, though his tone indicates he'd rather be anywhere else. "What kind of person steals a insignia and then disappears like it's nothing?"

"An experienced one, clearly," Kaoru adds. "If she moves around here, she sure knows this place like the back of her hand."

What kind of a government allows so many people to fall into such a deep level of poverty?

Puck yawns with tired eyes and approaches Emilia: "Emilia, I'm running out of mana"

"Spirits sleep too?!" asks a surprised Subaru.

"Let's say it's more like a suspended state, because I'm made of mana. I lose it over time in the environment and have to recharge it. so my schedule is from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m."

All right, rest. Puck. She places the crystal nearby for Puck to make him enter. We will continue. Emilia responds

Sorry Emilia, I'm going to sleep. If you need me, use your od to summon me.

"Well, I hope we don't have to fight now that we're missing" Puck, *sigh*

"I think we should split up and ask around. We should meet at the wooden bridge over there" I suggest.

As the three of them walk through the narrow streets of the slums, Kaoru stops the group with a gesture. "Hey, it might take too long if we keep going together. I think it would be more efficient if we split up and ask for Felt on our own."

Emilia frowns slightly. "Split up? But this place isn't safe... What if something happens?"

Subaru crosses his arms, obviously uncomfortable with the idea. "Yeah, I don't know if that's a good idea. What if we get even more lost or one of us gets into trouble?"

I keep a calm but firm tone. "That's why we should agree on a meeting place. The main bridge is nearby, isn't it? We will meet there in half an hour. That way, we can cover more ground without going too far."

"Well, I guess it's not too bad. But stay out of trouble, eh, Kaoru?" Subaru smiles.

Kaoru smiles slightly. "Same to you. See you on the bridge."

--[Time skip]--

After the 30 minutes we returned to the bridge, I could not find any clues in my case. I hope Subaru or Emilia found something.

"I couldn't get anything. You guys?" I asked.

"A local told me that Felt lives with old Rom in the slum loot house just over the bridge." Subaru answers cheerfully. "Let's get that insignia soon."

After a couple of minutes of walking we arrived at the front of the loot house.

This gives me a bad feeling. My body is telling me not to go in there and my hand is shaking a little.

"Is something wrong? Kaoru?" Emilia notices the slight tremor I have and so does Subaru.

"No... nothing. Let's go in."

Me and Subaru used our mobile phone lights and entered Old Man Rom's loot house followed by Emilia.

"All this is stolen? and why is no one here?"

"It's strange, isn't it. Did you find your insignia Emilia?"

As Subaru walked on, illuminating the corridor, he found a huge figure sitting on a wall.

"What the-?"

Subaru's eyes widen in horror as he illuminates the figure, it is a corpse, its guts open and full of blood dripping all over the floor.

As Subaru takes a step back, he stumbles and sees that he's tripped over an amputated leg. He can't speak because of the panic and his chest contracts and when he looks at his body, his stomach is open and his intestines are protruding.

*Stifled moan of pain*

"E-Emilia....."

"Oooh~, you're such an adorable little thing~ Your guts have a very healthy color~, it's so cute~."

"Subaru?... Subaru? Where are you?" Emilia and Kaoru ask worriedly.

"Ngh!, don't come... stay... away.."

Emilia walked up to Subaru and was killed with a quick and silent cut to the neck.

Emiliaaa....

Subaru can't scream and is losing more and more blood.

hurts, hurts, hurts. E-Emilia.... K-Kaoruuu... get out of here.....she.. will kill you.

Kaoru's Pov

Kaoru, stunned by the oppressive silence of the warehouse, advanced cautiously. He could barely make out shapes in the gloom. All was still, and the air reeked of blood and death. Finally, his eyes adjusted enough to perceive a figure lying on the floor: it was Subaru, badly wounded, with one hand outstretched towards.... Emilia.

Emilia's body lay lifeless, her serene countenance in cruel contrast to reality. Subaru was barely breathing, but his fingers clenched Emilia's as if he were trying to keep her in the world of the living.

"Subaru...?"

Subaru raised his head with a heartbreaking effort. His eyes, filled with tears and despair, met Kaoru's.

"I... couldn't... save her..."

Kaoru took a step back, her mind filled with a jumble of thoughts and emotions. Before she could process what had happened, however, a soft, honeyed voice echoed in the darkness

"Ara ara~ am I interrupting something~?"

Kaoru's heart froze. Elsa emerged from the shadows, her silhouette barely illuminated by a faint glimmer of light filtering through a crack. Her smile was hauntingly charming as she twirled her dagger playfully between her fingers.

"Your friend was so persistent~. Though, in the end, all bodies end up being just as beautiful on the inside, don't you think~?"

Subaru had already bled to death in front of Kaoru's eyes, and the image of his corpse clutching Emilia's hand makes everything look even more grotesque, causing a black bile to rise in Kaoru's throat.

Kaoru took a step back, her breathing quickened as she watched Elsa, who seemed to enjoy the tension in the atmosphere. The assassin tilted her head, as if she was really considering the best time to finish him off.

"Ara~...don't worry~. I promise you'll be... unforgettable."

With one last glance at Subaru and Emilia, Kaoru clenched her fists, mustering every ounce of courage she had left to face what seemed inevitable.