Blond Curly-Haired Big-** Dill

"Woo-hahaha~ You outsiders have such interesting names."

The hunter roared with laughter and invited them:

"Want to come over to my place? My house is pretty big."

"No thanks, mister. We're planning to wait by the sea for rescue."

Dill waved him off, took Robin and Hina by the hands, and jogged away.

"Huh, what's the hurry..."

The three figures receded into the distance.

The hunter clicked his tongue regretfully and continued roasting the venison in front of him.

About half an hour later, Dill and the girls came running back.

"Why did you come..."

"Mister."

Dill interrupted the hunter and asked with a sincere expression:

"Do you live alone?"

The hunter shook his head, looking proud.

"I'm Hunter Dill! How could I not have a wife!"

"She's Blond Curly-Haired Big-** Dill, and we have a son called Little Dill No. 9527."

"Wait!"

The corner of Dill's mouth twitched, and he couldn't help interrupting again. Had he just misheard something?

"Mister, what's your wife's name?"

"Blond curly-haired!" The hunter smoothed his hair.

"Big **!" The hunter outlined two soccer balls in front of his chest.

"Got it?"

"G-got it. Then we'll come sit at your place for a while. Sorry for the trouble."

Robin and Hina: "..."

"Woo-hahaha~"

The hunter clapped Dill hard on the shoulder, no longer concerning himself with why the three had left and returned:

"9527 will be thrilled. That kid's always asking me to tell him stories about the world overseas."

He picked up a deer leg and waved for the three to follow.

Robin hurried forward and asked quietly:

"Dill, is it really okay for us to go like this?"

Earlier, pain had forced her to release her ability, and before Dill could get the masks, the hunter's arrow had arrived, leaving all three of them showing their real faces.

Hina was fine, but she and Dill were wanted criminals.

"It's fine. The hunter's okay. Just put your masks on so no one else sees you."

Dill took two masks out of his bundle and handed one each to Robin and Hina.

He had left earlier to check whether the hunter harbored any ill intent.

If he did, he surely would have chased after them when he saw them leave.

But the hunter hadn't done that.

In that case, traveling with the hunter would be a better choice. Whether they were looking for the port or investigating this strange Dill Island, it would be more convenient.

The sun rose high, and the mist gradually dispersed.

Dill and the girls followed the hunter through the forest and reached a village that looked very peaceful.

The road was flat and wide, with houses lined neatly along both sides. Strolling elders and children playing freely showed how comfortably the villagers lived.

The hunter's house was the largest and most lavish in the village.

After taking Dill and the girls inside, he hurried off without stopping, returning to the forest to continue hunting.

He had no intention of entertaining his guests at all.

Sitting on the sofa, Dill met the lady of the house, Blond Curly-Haired Dill.

He looked her up and down and discovered that the hunter hadn't lied. They really were big.

"Big brother! Big brother!"

Eight-year-old 9527's eyes shone as he kept shaking Dill's legs:

"Are you really outsiders? Do all outsiders wear masks?"

"Is the outside world really full of monsters like the books say? What do those monsters look like? Can you beat them? Can I go fight monsters too?"

"Come on, come on, tell me, big brother!"

"9527!"

A cool voice rang out. The little boy instinctively stood bolt upright and shouted:

"Here!"

"Go to the backyard and do today's training!"

"Yes!"

The boy jogged away and began running laps around the yard, huffing and puffing.

"Sorry you had to see that."

Blond Curly-Haired brought over three cups of tea with straws in them and smiled a little sheepishly.

"He's always longed for life overseas. If possible, I'd like you to make life out there sound a little more frightening."

"Why? Hi-mmph~"

Dill reached out and covered Hina's mouth before she could finish her catchphrase, though he had the same question himself.

So he longed for it. That wasn't such a big deal. Making up frightening stories would only make a child more curious.

Guiding was better than suppressing.

Rather than doing this, she might as well find a passenger ship and take 9527 out for a trip.

"Because we can't leave."

Blond Curly-Haired sat on the sofa, her expression suddenly turning somewhat sorrowful. Her hands trembled slightly around her teacup as she murmured:

"Everyone on this island bears a curse. Once we go beyond a certain distance from the island, our bodies instantly explode, killing us."

"People can't sail far away. Even those who go out fishing have to be constantly careful not to cross that boundary."

"His Majesty is kindhearted and has been working hard to find a way to lift the curse, but he still hasn't found one."

"To keep hotheaded youngsters from dying untimely deaths, the king ordered his ministers to publish a book depicting the outside world as a terrifying place filled with monsters."

"But every year, there are always fearless youngsters who sail away and die silently at sea."

"The hunter's always saying youngsters should have dreams, that even if they're shattered someday, it's better than having none, but..."

Smack!

Blond Curly-Haired slapped the table hard, and the soccer balls displayed astonishing bounce.

She pressed her lips together, tears welling in her eyes, her voice carrying a hint of a sob:

"I don't want anything at all to happen to my son! Can you understand how I feel as his mother?!"

Dill and the girls exchanged glances, and finally Dill spoke up with a promise:

"Ma'am, we promise we'll describe the outside world as the most terrifying hell imaginable!"

Though they didn't know whether the curse was real, the three simply couldn't refuse at the sight of Blond Curly-Haired's tear-streaked face.

"Thank you so much. It's a promise, then."

Blond Curly-Haired immediately stopped crying and put on a beaming smile.

Dill: "..."

That expression changed way too fast!

"Son, come shopping with Mommy!"

"Huh? But I haven't finished my training."

"Less talk. Helping Mommy carry things later will count as training."

Blond Curly-Haired took 9527 out the door.

Only the three of them remained in the room, exchanging bewildered looks.

"Isn't... isn't she afraid we're thieves? And why did she leave with her son the very next second after making that promise with us? Hina is confused."

The people on this island were too strange. Hina felt her head was a mess.

Robin thought for a moment and offered her interpretation:

"The promise was just a precaution, I think. At dinner, for instance, with the hunter there as the head of the household, she wouldn't be in a position to stop us from speaking, so she made us promise beforehand while he was away."

"As for why she isn't afraid we're thieves... I don't know either."

Dill didn't join the discussion. He reclined on the sofa and stretched comfortably.

A sofa really was comfortable to sit on. After rushing around for most of the night, he could finally rest a little.

He had no interest in investigating any curse.

Their king had failed to find a solution even with the entire country's resources. He didn't think he was more capable than a whole country.

Right now, he only wanted to leave this strange island as soon as possible, lest he get caught up in some trouble.

"Let's go ask around and find out where the port is. We'll leave this island as soon as we can."

"Wait!"

Robin suddenly spoke, rubbing her legs together somewhat awkwardly.

"I need to use the bathroom."

After taking care of that bodily need, the three went out together to ask around and soon obtained the information they wanted.

The port was on the eastern side of the island, about a two-day walk away.

Besides that, they also cleared up a few questions they had.

The villagers were simple and honest. No one pocketed lost belongings, and doors were left unlocked at night.

Blond Curly-Haired's full name was Blond Curly-Haired Big-** Actress Dill.

She was a somewhat well-known actress in the village and had often performed skits for the villagers before getting married.

The villagers had always been very supportive.

That was why she could plead through tears one second and take her son shopping with a smile the next.

The hunter had left in a hurry because the Hunter Ranking Tournament had begun.

Hunters across the island would try to hunt as much game as possible and cut off their prey's heads.

Then they would strip away the fur and remove the flesh, leaving only the skulls.

The judges would weigh the skulls, and whoever brought in the greatest weight of skulls would become Hunter Dill.

"The ranking tournament only takes place once every ten years. This one's rather strange, though. I remember..."

The gray-haired old man sat in a recliner, fanning himself with one hand and tapping his forehead with the other, trying to clear his head.

"Oh~ Now I remember!"

"The last one was three years ago. But after that rainbow-colored mist disappeared a few days ago, His Majesty suddenly announced that the ranking tournament would begin."

Robin asked in confusion, "Why?"

"No reason!

"If His Majesty says to hold it, then we hold it."

"But isn't it really easy to cheat in this competition?"

Hina blinked.

"If you're only weighing skulls, couldn't you just buy some?

"Or several people could give their hunted skulls to one person and make that person Hunter Dill."

"Ah, there are idiots like that every tournament. Just this morning, a Long-Bearded Bald Dill was trying to sell my grandson a black bear skull."

The old man grinned, revealing a mouthful of rotten teeth, and stared at Hina with eyes that were almost entirely white:

"But those idiots always end up dying horribly."

"On this island, no one can deceive His Majesty!"

The old man's unnerving smile scared Hina into taking two steps back.

Just as she was about to hide behind Dill again, Dill frowned and stepped forward instead.

Something suddenly seemed a little strange about this old man.

He waved a hand in front of the old man's face, calling repeatedly:

"Sir! Sir? Sir!?"

A bad feeling flashed through Dill's heart. He placed a finger beneath the old man's nostrils and held it there for a moment.

In the end, he reached a conclusion he could hardly believe.

"He's dead?!"