Chapter 21: Another Outsider

The day after we arrived in Port Dena was shopping day. We had a goal to achieve.

As we walked through the town, I felt a strange sense of nostalgia in the salty sea breeze. Back when I lived in Japan, I used to go to the ocean quite often. Lulu and Yuria scrunched their noses at the scent of salt, but I’m sure they’ll get used to it soon.

As we strolled along the market street, casually browsing the stalls, we could see just how many different things were gathered here. There were, of course, food stalls, but also booths selling clothing and accessories.

Among them, Master and I were practically glowing with excitement in a slightly larger section that specialized in imported goods from the Shenlo Empire.

“Rice, Master! It’s rice!!”

“Yeah, it’s rice!”

Apparently, a large merchant ship from Shenlo had just arrived after several months, and it looked like a kind of trade fair was underway. Even Master hadn’t known about this, and when we spotted bags of white rice, we hugged each other out of sheer joy.

Our spirits were soaring thanks to the rice. It must be a product created through the hard work of previous transmigrators. Bless those transmigrators.

“You two seem to be in your own little world...”

“G-Good for you, Master, My Lady.”

I feel bad for them, but I can’t hold back the joy of obtaining something I’d long given up on. Please forgive us for a while.

“They’ve got soy sauce and miso over there too! With fish, we could make breakfast... my dream of a proper Japanese meal!!”

“Alright, let’s buy out the place! Yuria, Lulu, you’re guarding Sora!”

And with that, we split up and dashed off to buy everything we needed!

---

“Wooooaaahhh, riceeeee!!”

Just as we were trying to negotiate a discount using Lulu and Yuria’s, um, feminine charm, a loud scream echoed from behind us.

It was a young male voice. Wondering what was going on, I turned around to see a black-haired young man making a huge fuss. As expected, he wasn’t Master.

Black hair is rare, but he didn’t seem to be from Shenlo either. He was darting his eyes around, taking in all the goods in the market.

Maybe recalling Master from earlier, he quickly noticed the three of us staring blankly at him—and his eyes sparkled even more.

“Ooohh, cat ears! Elf! Cow ears!?”

The moment he said “elf,” the surrounding people began murmuring in confusion. This guy really has no filter… His face is definitely Japanese, and this reaction—could it be?

“Whoa, real cat ears! Let me touch them!”

Still riding a clearly unnatural high, he charged forward, breathing heavily, and without waiting for permission, reached for Lulu’s upright cat ears and tried to grab them—

“Eek!? Nooooo!!”

He got punched in the face, hard, and went flying. That was the first time I’d heard Lulu scream in panic like that.

Even Master, as reckless as he can be, never touches ears or tails without permission. He makes sure to push us into giving consent before he does anything.

This guy was so completely fired up that he wasn’t creepy like the greasy brown-haired guy from before—he was straight-up scary.

“Fphh-buh!?”

Lulu didn’t really hold back, either. She’s actually pretty strong. He spun through the air and landed in a heap. Honestly, it was exactly what he deserved.

Anyway, the molester had been dealt with, but the mention of “elf” still lingered and the murmuring hadn’t stopped. All eyes were now on my ears.

“Hey, little lady, are you an elf?”

“No, I’m a dwarf.”

“My Lady is so adorable, people sometimes get confused.”

Saying I’m a half-goblin is good for keeping men away, but it can also cause unnecessary trouble. So in town, we decided to go with the “dwarf” story. I just hope the excuse Yuria and I agreed on holds up. Though honestly, I’m not sure that explanation was the best idea.

“Ohh, I see. Yeah, people do say elves are beautiful. And if you’re as cute as this young lady, it’s no wonder folks get confused. Your Master must be completely smitten with you, huh?”

“Hehe, I’m jealous of how much Master dotes on her.”

I'm not exactly happy about it… but it's hard to outright reject it when it's thanks to that freedom that I’m able to live like this. Ideally, I wish he'd reserve his nightly affection for just the two of us, but things rarely go how we want them to.

“Well then, if you’ll excuse me… Lulu, come on.”

“What’s with this?! Ever since we started this journey, why am I the only one constantly getting groped?!”

Yuria accepted the goods and then called out to Lulu, who was shouting hysterically and clutching her head. She grabbed my hand and quickly led me away from the scene.

I'm still curious about that Japanese-looking guy, but staying here any longer would only cause more trouble.

It’s because some people have already started targeting us. They’re probably thinking of abducting me and Yuria. The slave protections only work within the country. If we’re taken abroad, we’d fetch enough money to let them live in comfort off our backs.

Seriously, what a mess he's caused. Judging by the school uniform peeking out from under his cloak, he must’ve just arrived here and doesn’t even realize what he’s doing. I get it, though—he saw rice, saw non-humans, and got excited.

In this region, you don’t often see demi-humans walking around in public, so it must’ve been his first time seeing fantasy races in real life. No wonder he was so fired up.

Anyway, I’ll report everything to Master later and have him deal with it. As we made our way to the exit of the district, avoiding attention, we spotted Master jogging toward us.

“What happened?”

He must’ve heard the commotion. He looked worried. His hands were empty, probably because he stashed everything in the item box.

“It was a groper! Another groper showed up!”

“Some guy got a little too excited and touched Lulu-chan without permission… and while he was at it, he shouted something about My Lady being an elf…”

“Master, there’s something I’d like to talk to you about later.”

Each of us gave a different reply, but somehow he seemed to grasp the situation. His expression grew slightly stern as he wrapped his arm around my shoulders and led us away from the market district.

Apparently, someone had been tailing us. Master broke off partway and did something to throw them off, then led us on a complex route before finally getting us safely back to the inn.

Ugh… Where have the peaceful days gone…?

---

That night, while Master was wiping down my body, I told him about my suspicion and reasoning that the man we met today might be a Japanese transmigrator.

“—I think he’s probably Japanese too.”

“I see… I’d like to talk to him sometime.”

Master nodded while gently stroking my ears, his expression solemn. Of course he’d be curious about someone from the same world. Judging from what we saw, there’s little doubt, and I want to talk to him too.

“I’ll look for him tomorrow once things settle down. You, absolutely no going out alone. This area doesn’t have much more than lowlifes, but still—you need to be careful.”

He stroked my stomach, now much firmer compared to when we first met, as I sat on his lap. Even though he’s supposed to be wiping me down, the towel was just floating in the big wooden basin. That’s strange, isn’t it?

“Understood. Even inside, I’ll try to stick close to either Lulu or Yuria.”

“Good. Seriously, be careful.”

I answered while looking down, trembling slightly as I watched his hand slowly wander. My internal alarm was blaring at full volume. But I couldn’t escape. Sadly.

Huh? Why not, you ask? Well, my arms were raised in a "banzai" pose and gently tied behind Master’s neck. He’d tied them just loosely enough not to hurt. But with our difference in build, once he slipped his head between my arms like that… I genuinely couldn’t move. I never knew that was even possible.

“Yes… Um, Master?”

“Yeah?”

He kept stroking my ears obsessively. Goosebumps almost burst across my upper body, but I did my best to suppress my reaction.

“What should I do? I’m currently facing an extreme crisis here!”

“Don’t worry. If anything happens to you, I’ll always be there to save you.”

A voice so gentle I’ve never even heard him use it before whispers softly in my ear. If this were a normal situation, I might’ve swooned a little, sure. But sadly, this doesn’t apply to my current circumstances—because the one causing the crisis is Master himself.

“I see. Well then, I’d like you to help me right now, please. I’m being attacked by a pervert and am in serious danger. At this rate, something terrible is going to happen.”

If this keeps up, I’ll once again be subjected to the whole thing that happened last night, and my body simply won’t survive it. Seriously, I’ve had enough of this depraved lunatic!

“That sounds serious. Don’t worry—I’ll make sure you’re squeaky clean.”

I know what he’s trying to say, and I refuse to understand it. I worked so hard yesterday, endured the mortifying shame, even forced myself to call him “big brother,” and this is what I get?! Can I please just be set free today?!

“Nooooo! Help—mmgghhh!”

“Oh? So today you’d like to be treated like a captive princess?”

As I writhed in protest with my mouth covered, the bedroom door suddenly flew open—and my saviors burst in. Come to think of it, we didn’t lock the door today, probably because I was taken prisoner so quickly there wasn’t even time.

“Shuuya-sama!”

“Master!”

Seeing me in a state that might as well have been dinner served on a platter, both Lulu and Yuria’s faces hardened as they glared at Master and raised their voices.

“Senpai, it’s not fair you always get her!”

“My Lady, it’s not fair you always get him!”

…It appears I have no allies here. I’m doomed.

“…What now?”

“Do whatever you want… boil me, roast me, I don’t care anymore, you damn pervert of a Master.”

---

◇◆ADVENTURE RESULT◆◇

【EXP】

BATTLE TOTAL 11
◆【Sora Lv.47】+5
◆【Lulu Lv.17】+3
◆【Yuria Lv.15】+3
◇―
＝＝＝＝＝＝＝＝＝＝＝＝＝＝＝＝
Sora Lv.47 [471] → Lv.47 [476]
Lulu Lv.17 [173] → [176]
Yuria Lv.15 [154] → [157]

【RECORD】
[MAX COMBO] >> 30
[MAX HIT] >> 30

【PARTY】

[Shuuya] [Lv55] HP772/772 MP1380/1380 [Normal]
[Sora] [Lv47] HP50/50 MP420/420 [Normal]
[Lulu] [Lv17] HP602/602 MP32/32 [Normal]
[Yuria] [Lv15] HP1040/1040 MP60/60 [Normal]
＝＝＝＝＝＝＝＝＝＝＝＝＝＝＝＝

【Comment】

“They got mad at us at the inn for messing up the sheets too much.”

“Senpai, you really need to be more careful.”

“It wasn’t my fault! It’s all because of that perverted cheat-bastard!”