The Human Among Oni

Subaru was starting to feel more and more like a protagonist... like Harry Potter.

The room he had been assigned was clearly a hastily converted storage closet. It was pitifully small, its four walls covered in dust accumulated over the years, and the air smelled of old wood. There was no furniture at all.

At least he had a room to himself. Subaru tried to console himself. At least he wouldn't have to squeeze onto a communal sleeping platform with strangers.

Rem had helped a little, at least. She had found him an old quilt and a sleeping mat, their fabric faded white from washing. Even so, the difference between this and Subaru's old room, crammed with light novels, game consoles, and manga, was enough to make him want to cry.

"Look on the bright side..." Subaru spread the quilt on the floor, talking to himself in an attempt to cheer himself up. "There's no way I'd sleep in somewhere like this. And it's neither hot nor cold, so I don't need air conditioning. Ah, I said it. How heartless, this village in another world..."

He kept muttering, but his hands never stopped. He borrowed a broom and a rag from Rem, rolled up his sleeves, and started cleaning the dust that had been collecting for who knew how long on the four walls and the floor.

I need to hurry up and earn some money. Subaru made a mental to-do list as he wiped the floor. I also need to figure out how to get stronger. Ideally, I'll find someone to teach me magic-if oni can control Mana, humans should be able to use it too, right?

Getting stronger and earning money were his two most pressing goals for now. The first would keep him alive; the second would keep him from starving.

After cleaning the room until it was at least presentable, Subaru brushed the dust off his clothes and headed outside. He planned to look around the village for something like a library. He knew next to nothing about this other world, not even what Lugunica was.

He had only taken a few steps outside when the rich aroma of freshly baked bread drifted over on the wind. Subaru's feet slowed against his will, and his stomach promptly protested.

It was dinnertime.

Cooking smoke rose from the chimneys of several nearby houses, and the scents of stew and roast meat mingled in the air. Subaru swallowed and realized something-most likely, no one would be taking care of his dinner tonight.

But he still had the cup noodles he'd bought at the convenience store. Thinking that only made Subaru feel more miserable.

"Here, take this. You must be hungry, aren't you?"

An old, gentle voice came from beside him.

Subaru turned to see a gray-haired old woman behind a roadside bread stall, smiling as she held out a loaf to him.

"Thank you very much for your kindness-but I don't have any money. Is that really all right? No, I should say, is it really all right to give it to me as charity?"

"It's all right, take it. I can't just stand by and watch a child go hungry."

So his shrunken body had come in handy.

Since she'd put it that way, Subaru didn't refuse again. He accepted the bread with both hands, then bowed ninety degrees and thanked her loudly.

"Thank you very much! I'm deeply impressed by your saintly kindness, Granny! I'll definitely repay you someday!"

The old woman narrowed her eyes, amused by his exaggerated display. "What a sweet talker. If I didn't already have three grandsons, I'd love to take you in as my granddaughter."

"...I'm a boy."

"Oh, really? What a shame. You'd be so cute if you grew your hair long."

Subaru gave a wry smile and bit into the bread. Sure enough, here it was again. As a child, Subaru had surprisingly delicate features, and older women often mistook him for a girl. That mix-up had continued until he'd grown a little older.

"Looks like my voice changed back too." Subaru mumbled indistinctly as he chewed. "I guess guys really are the only ones who don't notice their own voices changing. It's only when the kid next door suddenly goes from sounding 'kind of cute' to 'like a deep-voiced old man' that you realize your own voice changed ages ago."

"Damn it! I don't recognize a single character!"

After asking for directions, Subaru had found the village library without trouble. It was called a library, but it consisted of a few rows of wooden shelves stacked with books of varying ages, and the air smelled of paper and old wood.

But when he eagerly opened the first book, he was dumbstruck on the spot.

I can't read this writing.

That's strange. I can communicate just fine, so why is the writing completely different? Does speech come with a built-in translation function, but reading doesn't? This other-world transmigration package really cuts corners.

"So this is where you are. Honestly, the sweet potato has already gone cold. All you do is cause trouble for Rem."

A voice tinged with exasperation came from behind him. Subaru turned and saw Rem standing there with a bowl in her hands. Inside was a steamed sweet potato.

So she still remembered their promise in the forest.

Subaru closed the old book, which might as well have been written in an indecipherable script, and scratched his head apologetically.

"Sorry, sorry. I really have so, so many questions, but asking them nonstop would be too much trouble for other people, so I thought I'd rely on books and figure things out myself... only to find I couldn't read a single character."

Rem held out the bowl. Subaru took the sweet potato, and when his fingers touched the rim, he felt a trace of lingering warmth.

"...Rem-chan. Could you help me?" Subaru looked up, gazing straight into her blue eyes. "This is really important to me."

"But Rem still needs to go back and keep her sister company..."

"Please! This is really important to me-it's something only Rem can do."

"...Something only Rem can do?"

Rem stopped what she was doing. She neither refused nor agreed right away, instead repeating the words softly.

"Yeah." Subaru nodded firmly. "In this unfamiliar country, in this unfamiliar place, I have no family and no friends. Only Rem can do it. Only you."

The library fell quiet for a moment.

"...I see. I suppose it can't be helped." Rem sighed softly, then sat down across from Subaru. "So what questions do you have? Rem will do her very best to answer them."

"Huh-you agreed that easily?"

"Because if Rem doesn't look after you, no one else will help you, right?"

It seemed the words "only Rem can do it" really had struck a chord with the little girl.

Subaru didn't refuse, and poured out all the questions he'd accumulated over the past half day. How many countries were there in this other world? Were there any especially dangerous beings he needed to watch out for? Were there any taboos or rules he absolutely had to follow while living here?

And Rem patiently gave Subaru the answers he'd been longing for, one by one.

The oni village where Subaru now found himself lay on the border of the Kingdom of Lugunica. Because the country had made a pact with the divine dragon in ancient times, it was also known as the Dragon Kingdom.

The royal family ruled these lands, and there was no tyranny or oppressive taxation. With fertile soil and a climate suited to farming, most of the people could lead peaceful, stable lives.

However, just a few years ago, an event had occurred in the kingdom that shook the entire nation.

Five years ago, signs of a calamity that threw the world into chaos had appeared in the skies above the kingdom: the White Whale, one of the three great mabeasts.

To subjugate the monster, the kingdom had sent out its strongest sword, its pride.

The Sword Saint, Theresia van Astrea.

However, the final outcome was-the Sword Saint fell in battle. The White Whale devoured most of the subjugation force. It was a complete and utter defeat for the kingdom.

The entire Dragon Kingdom mourned the loss of its Sword Saint for months, but the White Whale still roamed somewhere in the skies above the land, and no one dared speak lightly of subjugating it again.