3 A strange world

"Wakey-wakey... how long are you gonna sleep anyway? You lummox. You should have listened!" A sighed of resignation was out of his mouth, facepalming over the stubbornes of his patient. "Well, can't blame you. Hunger can be quite a troublesome matter." The young man tended to Sougo's wounds with care even though they were strangers.

Miraculously, Sougo was no longer within the confines of the cave, but instead found himself resting upon a bed. With the aid of his steadfast companion, his noble steed, the young man gallantly hoisted Sougo onto his mount and secured him with a spellbinding magic–for the use of mere ropes would have exacerbated his injuries and impeded his vital circulatory system.

Thus, Sougo found himself in a state of wakeful paralysis, unable to move or sense the pangs of agony.

Recalling the consumption of a fruit that induced a severe headache, he found himself restrained by the mystic powers of a stranger who had deemed it necessary to keep him within his proximity until his recovery.

"Rest assured, I had only treated your wounds while using my magic to confine you to my care," the young man assured him with a careful tone, seeking not to cause trouble.

Despite uncertainty regarding the duration of Sougo's slumber, the young man was confident that given his formidable constitution, it would not be prolonged.

Subsequently, the young man tended to Sougo's ailments for an entire day until he finally regained consciousness. Although the effects of the fruit were meant to persist for a span of three days–Sougo's remarkable resilience enabled him to shorten his recovery to a mere one.

Sougo lifted his head and cast his keen gaze upon the unfamiliar abode. Within its walls lay a veritable treasury of knowledge, with volumes upon volumes of books gracing the shelves, and a plethora of herbs strewn about in wild abandon.

But what truly caught his eye was a glass vessel containing a mysterious, swirling liquid of kaleidoscopic hue that defied all explanation.

And as he took in the scene before him, his eyes fell upon the pristine oak flooring, hewn from the very heart of the forest, whose cleanliness surpassed even that of his homeland.

However, despite the evident wealth of knowledge and resources at the young man's disposal, the room lay in disarray, with all his belongings haphazardly strewn about.

"You've been out quite fast from what I expected. Your clothes are hung on the hanger, I cleaned them because they smelled so fishy. I know it's not my business but, from your katana and your weird necklace, I take it you're from another country?" The young man gazed upon Sougo's treasured possessions, his keen eyes scrutinizing both the gleaming katana and the intricately crafted necklace.

He opened the locket within the necklace, a poignant moment of remembrance overtook him, for within it lay the image of a girl and a matronly figure, seemingly Sougo's long lost family.

Sougo shouted angrily, "DO NOT TOUCH IT!"

"Woah, sorry! I didn't mean to..." The young man swiftly placed the necklace on the floor and Sougo's katana as well.

"I'm sorry, I didn't mean to get in trouble with you. As an apology, I cooked some food for you. Help yourself out!" With hunger gnawing at Sougo's stomach, the youth extended a kind gesture to Sougo by offering him a meal.

He prepared a total of five bowls, generously giving three to Sougo and keeping two for himself.

Sougo was grateful for the offer and eagerly savored the delicious meal that had been prepared for him.

He used his chopsticks to quickly devour the entire platter. Meanwhile, the young man sat across from him, stunned by Sougo's voracious appetite with eyes expressing concern that Sougo might choke.

Though their initial encounter had been frosty, the young man was amazed when Sougo gratefully accepted his offer of food, understanding just how ravenous he must have been.

Filled with gratitude, Sougo rose to his feet and humbly bowed to the young man for filling Sougo's empty stomach. Then, with a sense of new purpose, he strode over to the door, snatched up his garments, retrieved his katana and precious necklace, and vanished swift like the wind into the unknown.

"Hey! Wait! Gahhh! I was just about to eat and now you're leaving? Hey! Stop! You haven't fully recovered yet!" With a sense of urgency, the young man abruptly ceased his meal and bolted outside to intercept Sougo.

Despite being wounded, the young man was determined to halt Sougo's progress, but was amazed to witness Sougo's rapid strides, which defied his injuries.

"How are you moving so damn fast!?" the young man exclaimed, taken aback by Sougo's extraordinary pace, the young man struggled to catch up.

"Grr! If you get hurt, don't you dare come back crying to me!" The young man relinquished his quest, allowing Sougo to venture forth solo. And so, Sougo traversed the unknown terrain for a considerable span of time, perplexed and disoriented, ignorant of the circumstances that had led him to this foreign realm.

Rustle!

Suddenly, a faint rustle stirred in the vicinity, and Sougo braced himself, preparing to draw his katana. A beast resembling a bat, with razor-sharp fangs drooling with hunger, swooped down upon him, intent on devouring his flesh.

Responding in lightning speed, Sougo unsheathed his blade, bringing it down with a quick and deadly strike that felled the enigmatic creature. Despite his wounds, he remained guard and unyielding in the face of danger.

The strange creature's blood spewed forth a deep shade of purple, and as it touched the ground, it slowly disintegrated into nothingness. Sougo wisely kept his distance, wary of any further surprises–eyes sharpened like eagles.

But even as he stood there, victorious, he heard the faint rustle of another approaching creature. Soon, he found himself surrounded by a horde of the same creatures, all of them spitting deadly acids in his direction.

Sougo took action to avoid its dangerous acids and tried to slay them one by one. However, they kept coming and coming, blocking every corner of his path.

"Stand still!" The young man's commanding voice thundered, compelling Sougo to halt in his tracks.

Raising his bow, the young man drew back the string with focused eyes, taking aim at the mysterious creature. With a resounding twang, the arrow was released, striking its target with a bolt of electrifying energy that incinerated the entire swarm in a dazzling display of lightning.

"How often will you bother me today? These are Mulkums ; if you killed one of them, the swarms would attack you because you may have disturbed their sleep. To get rid of these bloodsucking parasites, it is preferable to avoid the area or use a strong-smelling perfume. They are quite a pain in the arse if you're not careful." The young man described the creature, despite only being active at night, they attacked Sougo.

Not even expressing anything, not even gratitude, Sougo left on his own again.

"Heh... again with the cold act, stop ignoring me, would you!?" Sougo, in his solemn demeanor, had departed the vicinity once more.

The young man, cognizant of his unfamiliarity with the terrain, was coerced to keep a vigilant eye on him, to keep him from any unwanted harm.

"Come to think of it, we still haven't introduced ourselves, and I'm not sure what to call you... So, I'm wondering... My name is Mika Ozolyne. You'll get used to the strange-sounding pronunciation of my last name, I hope. What's your name? Where are you from?" Mika made a formal introduction and asked Sougo for his name and address.

After Mika presented himself to him, Sougo heard but gave no response.

"Judging from your cold attitude, you must have had it rough in the past. Well, I get the feeling. Life is too difficult, and I wholeheartedly concur. Despite being only fifteen years old and barely standing at 5 feet 4 inches tall, I am still strong." Mika displayed his small biceps, claiming that he was at least enough to fight on his own in the wild.

'This place... it isn't earth at all...' Sougo pondered the whereabouts of this very site, whereupon he did surmise that whilst the flora and fauna appeared distinguishable, they were of a most commonplace nature.

His descriptive faculties did desert him, leaving him dumbfounded over the peculiarity of this world.

Suddenly, Sougo came to an abrupt halt, having encountered perils that were naught but routine for him, and responded by instinct alone.

He stood rooted to the spot upon hearing a clamor emanating from afar, heralding the approach of an enormous creature.

As Sougo and Mika emerged from the thick forest, their eyes beheld a sight both fearsome and dire: a winged rhinoceros in hot pursuit of an unfortunate girl.

In an act of great valor, Mika forsook Sougo and hastened to the aid of the imperiled girl.

With swiftness and strength, Mika snatched the vulnerable girl and carried her to safety, shielding her from the relentless charge of the savage beast.

However, even as the girl was secured, the winged rhinoceros persisted in its pursuit, turning its fierce attention towards Mika and her, who stood defenseless before the beast's wrath.

Swift as the wind, Sougo sprang into action, seizing Mika by the clothes and pulling him from the path of the rampaging beast.

The creature, with all its ferocity, charged towards them, colliding with a boulder with such a force that it was shattered into a thousand shards, while the beast remained unscathed.

Quick to respond, Sougo unsheathed his katana, poised to strike at the fearsome foe. Yet, the beast was not without defense, for it was clad in a formidable armor, covering its head and upper body.

Undeterred, Sougo aimed for the one vulnerable point, thrusting his blade into the beast's belly with all his might, where no shield could protect it.

However, despite his efforts, Sougo's strike was in vain, for the creature's hide proved impenetrable, and his blade merely bounced off harmlessly.

In a display of its awesome power, the winged rhinoceros unleashed a burst of energy from its back, akin to a jet engine, propelling itself forward with incredible speed, rivaling that of a cannonball.

Seeing the beast charging towards him with deadly intent, Sougo braced himself for the worst. But in a moment of selfless heroism, Mika hurled himself into harm's way, preventing the beast's charge, and sparing Sougo from certain doom.

"Something must've triggered it into a rampage. There's no way such a friendly beast would harm people." Mika doubted that a beast like that would harm people for no good reason.

"We have to use its weakness, or else we're... Huh? Wait!" Mika applied himself to devising a plan to subjugate the beast without placing it in peril, but regrettably, Sougo paid scant attention to his words and impulsively charged into combat.

Leveraging his exceptional speed, which surpassed that of ordinary humans, Sougo endeavored to bewilder the beast by dashing around it and executing intricate maneuvers.

He scrutinized its every attack, adroitly utilizing each of its actions. He was cognizant of its difficulty in maintaining command over its movements.

The beast, lacking in wit and driven solely by its base instinct to slay Sougo, gradually found itself confounded by the situation. It spun about in a frenzied daze, until finally, exhausted, it collapsed to the ground.

When Sougo ceased his restless movements, the beast lay subdued, without being harmed. Mika and the girl gazed upon Sougo in utter admiration, awestruck by the brilliance of his tactics in neutralizing the beast.

After defeating the beast, Sougo promptly strode forth unaccompanied, venturing once more into the forest.

"Hey! Wait up!" Mika directed the helpless girl to hurry back home while she herself pursued Sougo, who intended to roam about on his own.