I am going shopping We are out of mayonnaise
Machina left the mountains for the time being
That spot has the greatest concentration of demonic energy Call me if you need anything
Lucia took a nap on the large rock by the river he had also climbed onto the day before
Mutsuki followed Ange’s advice by staying where he could see Lucia while he washed everyone’s changes of clothes and hung them up to dry
Once he had time he decided to gather some edible plants in order to make a nutritious dinner instead of the unhealthy lineup of barbecue and cup noodles
Saya went with him although she was unusually low energy after overheating in the bath the night before
Mock strawberries and chameleon plant There’s all sorts of good stuff here
Mutsuki strayed further and further from the path as he picked the wild plants and stuffed them in a bag
Sigh You’re picking more of those awful strawberries
Yeah I dropped them yesterday so we can actually use them today
We really don’t need those
But they’re so nutritious And they help if you have stomachache
We don’t need it I have some Seirogan Seirogan works better
Saya was against gathering the plants but she did enjoy picking some flowers They were both enjoying the mountain in their own way
The girl suddenly sighed when she saw a mountain lily blooming on the side of the path
Is something the matter If you aren’t feeling well you should take a break
It’s not that I’m feeling bad
If you have a stomachache the mock strawberries work really well
No thank you She bluntly refused his offer and then started muttering to herself Even if I
was overheated having a dream like that is pretty damning isn’t And with Machi-nyan as well as Ange I’m so unfaithful
He could not quite make it out but she sounded depressed When he tilted his head
Mutsuki what’s your opinion of homosexuality
N-no I’m not talking about you and Satowa Um that’s just between the two of you and girls have no right to say anything about that world
But um I wanted to hear what a guy thinks when it’s between two girls Or how about three girls No maybe I should choose one of them But they’re both so great
Mutsuki
Y-you saw Lucia and me
No Um We were just playing around yesterday We were just messing around so-
Now Mutsuki was acting oddly as well He shook his head and hands and stepped away from the puzzled-looking girl
And because he stepped back without looking
Watch out
The ground seemed to vanish below his feet and he almost fell backwards
Nothing happened because Saya immediately pulled him toward her but when he looked back
Ohwow That was close
He had not noticed as he left the path gathering wild plants but the slope had grown quite steep
He was shocked to see what was almost a cliff If he had fallen backwards he would have fallen right down It would not have killed him but he might have been seriously injured
Thanks Kurikara
Don’t worry about it But do be more careful
That moment of terror had changed the atmosphere She gave her usual smile of endless optimism which brightened his mood
It was a problem if she had seen what had happened in the bath the night before but
Wow We’re pretty high up here What a great view
Saya changed the subject and looked down the slope
Mutsuki looked out as well The area around the river had been covered in too many trees to tell but the campground was apparently quite high up He could see the mountainside down below
The green trees decorated it like waves
But he noticed an unnatural color buried in there
A single mansion lay in ruins among the green forest
Hi-no-Hoka Valley’s Hi-no-Hoka Town had failed but some villas had still been built
That was why the campground was located upstream where transportation options were limited and the downstream land had been bought up by individuals The unpopular villas had taken up all
of the best locations
But this one building was located in the inconvenient upstream area And it was at least twice the size of the others It almost seemed to be hiding itself from prying eyes
It had apparently been abandoned so it was at the mercy of the elements
Why had it been built there And why had it been abandoned No one knew Around a dozen people had seemed to live there about a year before but the building had been badly damaged one day and the people had simply disappeared The locals say they were attacked by someone Broken windows would be one thing but apparently there are holes in the walls floor and ceiling too A bear wouldn’t be able to do that
Yeah
It was just past eight that evening They were having a barbecue for dinner again and everyone’s excitement had dropped when Mutsuki brought out his wild plant salad
And you know what that means
Sakae had finished telling them a story the locals (who he claimed were his fishing buddies now) had told him
Time For A Test Of Courage
He shined a flashlight up at his face
It takes 30 minutes to walk to that villa and back That’s the perfect distance And it’s a single road so there’s no chance of getting lost
Isn’t that dangerous
Not at all I visited during the day and it was a normal mansion even if it was pretty run down
He had already prepared everything so he pulled out maps of the campground area that he had procured from somewhere
Mutsuki checked one and saw that it was indeed a single road to the ruined mansion he had seen from the slope
And while I was there I left some of my fishing equipment at 3 points in front of the mansion
We’ll split into 3 boy-girl pairs and go bring one of them back That sound good for the rules
The other five did not even try to hide their annoyance but Sakae ignored them and pulled out some lots he had made They were divided between boy and girl and A B and C They had no choice but to draw one each Mutsuki was C
Who’s the C girl
Oh Ibekusa We’re partners then
The test of courage began with a harmonious mood
Team A was Saya and Lucia It was an unusual pairing but it would not be a problem since both of them could get along with anyone When they returned in 30 minutes with a fishing rod they were smiling as if they had enjoyed a nighttime stroll instead of going through a test of courage Ah ha ha That was fun Lu
Yeah I’m glad I got to speak with you Saya I feel more confident now
So do I
Yeah gender means nothing when it comes to love
It was unclear what they had discussed but they did seem to be getting along quite well
Team B was Ange and Sakae
Ange still looked on edge Since the area was so comfortable for demons did it make an angel like her uncomfortable
And Sakae misunderstood her tension
Don’t worry Jiyuuni You have Tomono Sakae the reliable guy by your side so there’s nothing to be afraid of
Let’s just get going
He tried to act cool but she started without him
She must have kept up her quick pace throughout because they were back with a lure set a little faster than Team A’s time
Ow ow ow ow
Wh-what is it Sakae Ange did something happen
Nothing happened He just got scared by a rustling in the bushes and tried to cling to me I was on edge too so I accidentally elbowed him
A hit from the strongest angel’s elbow That was a real tragedy
And with that it was Team C’s turn
Let’s go Ibekusa
Machina nodded and they started walking down the mountain road
The dark road was honestly quite scary
Unlike walking to the lodge the night before they could not see their goal and it felt uncomfortably like they were descending into pure darkness
They had a flashlight but its light was weak and only made the trees blowing in the wind look all the more creepy The summer’s night wind was oddly damp and seemed to cling to their bodies
They would sometimes here rustling sounds from the bushes on the side of the road