TNZKMA 24

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When I asked Saine which side is that neighbor, he said it was on the right side. The neighbor on the right is an elder and the one on the left is a carpenter. The ones directly opposite us and on both of its sides are farmers, so is the one right behind us. Only the elder on the right is always present.

 

And thus, I’m going for a belated moving-house greeting.

 

[…………]

 

S, scary. This is no elder. The elder that I have in mind is shorter than me. And yet, this elder is way taller than me and gazes at me from above. He’s extremely scary. Just when I’m about to get used to Saine, this world sure has a lot of high hurdles.

 

[Uhm, uh, nice to meet you.]

I quickly bow my head. Above everything else, let’s greet him with a smile first.

[I, I’m living in Saine’s place…. Uhm, I’m a Reincarnator. Please treat me well.] (TN: Dude, what is your name? It’s been more than 20 chapters already!)

[Just how do you want me to treat you well?]

It was just a casual greeting though, how difficult. Being asked again, it is indeed weird. What am I asking him for?

[Err, please remember my face, I guess? But, I am going to be sold off eventually…. Hmm, oh, that’s right. I’m afraid there will be loud noises in the garden from time to time, I think I’ll make it about that. I’m sorry, and please overlook it.]

[Did you…… make a noise?]

[We did. I broke some pepper stones before, and we chopped some woods yesterday as well.]

[Ohh, the firewood. Now that you talked about it, Saine came here out of the blue and brought my firewood with him. What was up with that?] (TN: Oooh, hubby got busted already?)

[? Isn’t it because Elder has a hard time chopping firewood, so Saine always does it for you?]

 

When I asked him that, he, ‘uhya uhya’, laughed.

 

[That’s impossible. There’s no way that guy would do that.]

[Hmm~, then I wonder why? Oh well, it doesn’t matter. Saine sure is amazing. I couldn’t even chop one firewood but Saine did it so easily and quickly, you know? He’s really amazing.] (TN: So hubby just did it to get more praise? hohoho)

 

When I suddenly laughed and said that, Elder looked down at me as if he’s amused.

 

[…… Oh well, it doesn’t feel bad to be praised.]

 

He muttered softly and opened the door wider.

 

[Come in. I’ll serve you some tea.]

 

I unreservedly entered.

 

[Elder’s house has a window.] 

 

I noticed it even outside, but there was a window in his house. The house is built the same as Saine’s but the kitchen has a window. It’s bright thanks to that, and he doesn’t seem to need candles.

 

[That’s because the windows next door got embedded.]

[Why is that?]

[Who knows. Being a Guard is something we don’t understand quite well.]

[What did you do before, Elder?]

[I was a Fisherman. I used to live in the South-South section when I was young, you see, and I always went out to the sea every day.]

[The sea! There’s a sea here? I mean, I’ve never seen a fish ever since I came here.]

[Of course, there is. If you leave the South-South Section and you keep walking all the way, you’ll get to the sea. Fishermen would leave the town and head to the port, and they would spend 5-10 days there. Once they go fishing, they will not return until they have a catch. Even if they do get a catch but it’s small in size, they will give those to the port and get out to the sea any number of times.]

[Do they live in the port?]

[There is always someone in the port, but no one lives there all the time. It’s around an hour’s walk from the port to the town. Carts make a round trip regularly. It’s emotionally uplifting when there’s a big catch, you know? There would be carts with heaps of fish lined up……. The tip of the horses’ noses are close to the carts in front of it.] (TN: Due to how crowded it is, I guess?)

 

‘Hyahya’, the elder laughs. I imagined that scene.

 

[That’s awesome~. If there’s that much fish, the port must be in an uproar.]

[Oh, it’s like a festival. Those who go fishing, the ones who are waiting at the port, and the people who pull the carts. Different people jumble together and it’s a bustle. If there aren’t a lot of fish then all of them will be dried and be brought to town, but in the end, fresher fish will fetch a higher price. During a big haul, fishes will be quickly placed in wooden crates and brought back without being dried. That’s because the crates will be immediately filled with fish, and even if they get loaded to their full capacity, lots of fish are still coming up.]

 

Elder’s story is so interesting that I lean forward to listen. Even though I’ve never seen it, I could see a vibrant port in my head. Many boats returning from the sea. Men loudly shouting in the port. The cheers must have echoed amidst the blue sky, blue sea, and the glittering sun.

 

[Are they also selling fish here? I’ve never seen one in the market.]

[I wonder. They were selling it before, but I haven’t seen it lately either. I believe they’d probably be selling it at the marketplace in the central plaza, but the fish might not have reached the east end.]

 

Elder said so and sighed.

 

[Why haven’t they reached to the East, I wonder?]

[The haul has probably decreased. By the time I quit being a fisherman, I couldn’t catch much, after all.]

[Hm~m…… I wonder why you couldn’t catch them?]

[Why indeed. Perhaps the monsters have eaten them.]

[There are also monsters in the sea?]

[You bet there are. There were times when we’d go bottom trawling and they’d snap everything right up and swim off with it, even the net. Still, you were lucky if it was just the net. Sometimes they swam off with the fisherman, too.]

[Fishermen are taken……]

 

Does he mean that they’re dead? My heart was pounding.

 

[Monsters will eat anything. Those things in the sea are even more ruthless. The mountain hunters may be risking their lives, but it’s also risky in the sea.]

 

The elder’s house was a bright room with sunlight passing through the window. But with his story, I could feel the room’s temperature drop in an instant. I’ve never seen how monsters look. Saine said it’s safe as long as we stay within the town. That may be the case. However, if we took even one step out of it, monsters are lying in wait for us. In order to turn us into prey.

For the first time, I feel that I can be prey to something. Maybe it wasn’t the case in my previous life. The chill from my ankles spread throughout my entire body and I shivered.