Chapter 16: Escape! That's My Fight!

Escape! That’s My Fight!

***

…Though I tried to sound cool with my declaration, objectively speaking, do I stand a chance against these guys?

Yeah, I thought so.

Yeah, I thought so.

Escaping from this situation and surviving, how about that?

…Right!

Let’s calm down and reassess the situation.

I’m sitting on the ground, having been kicked down, trying to sit up. Two pieces of trash are approaching me from the front, and the Trash Head is standing imposingly behind them.

I focus my eyes. 【Magic Perception】activated. The bodies of the trash are covered in a red-black mist of magical power, especially the Trash Head, who has a lot of it. I can’t win against that.

Even though I’ve been trained under the guidance of Extra-sama, I’m not a reincarnated being with divine protection. I’m just a well-trained 5-year-old girl, not strong enough to beat these thieves who’ve lived through rough experiences.

Ah, 【Magic Perception】is, as always, the technique to see and understand magical power with one’s eyes, something Extra-sama saw in . It’s quite difficult to master, but Extra-sama praised me quite a bit when I managed to use it relatively easily, saying things like or . When I got carried away and asked, “So, do I have a talent for magic?” I was immediately shut down with a . What’s with that!

Well, at that time, I was a 3-year-old. It’s important to flatter and make a child feel good, but it’s also troubling if they get carried away and do something dangerous. It’s probably Extra-sama’s way of handling a child.

The reason I panicked more than necessary when we were discovered by the trash earlier is probably because I sensed their magical power. All creatures in this world have magical power to some extent, but if you’re not conscious of it, some of that power leaks out. It’s possible to gauge an opponent’s strength by the amount of leakage, although it’s only effective against untrained low-level thieves and wild monsters, as professionals tend to control their leakage better as they become more trained.

“So, who’s gonna go first?”

Trash A asks Trash B while clapping his fists together, making a thumping sound.

“You go ahead. But hey, Tappa, don’t kill her too quickly, alright?”

Trash B steps back after saying that. Hearing this, Trash A approaches me with an even more disgustingly leering grin.

The match will be decided in an instant. I’ll end it in a moment and escape like a startled rabbit. My hand, secretly slipped into the right pocket of my pants without them noticing, starts to feel damp.

“Hehehe… Do you know what’s going to happen to you now?… No? Is that why you’re looking so spaced out? Hehehe.”

Trash A takes another step closer. I make an extra effort to appear expressionless, pretending to be dazed.

Trash A takes another step closer. In their eyes, I’m just a little girl who’s been kicked so hard that I can’t move properly, completely dazed and confused.

Trash A takes another step closer. I continue to feign. To maintain their underestimation.

“Hehehe… Hehehehehe!”

Trash A, smirking, reaches out to grab my hair.

…Now!!

I instantly concentrate 【Body Strengthening】 into my right arm! Grabbing a pebble always hidden in my pocket, I hurl it towards Trash A’s face with a 【Stone Throw】! The pebble whistles through the air, followed by a sickening squelch upon impact.

“GYAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHHHHH?!”

Trash A reels back, clutching his right eye, blood gushing profusely. The thrown pebble hit its mark right in Trash A’s right eye!

“Tappa! Tappa!!?”

Trash B’s eyes widen in shock. The target’s bigger now, making my job easier! I leap back to create distance and launch another 【Stone Throw】.

“GUUAAHHHHHHHHHHHHHH?!”

This time blood spurts from Trash B’s right eye. Now they’re matching. How nice for them!

“You… BRATTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTT?!”

Shoving aside the suffering underlings, Trash Head charges at me. I hop back, maintaining distance, and keep throwing stones, 【Stone Throw】, 【Stone Throw】, 【Stone Throw】! But it’s no use. As expected of Trash Head. He guards his eyes with his arms, perfectly blocking the pebbles! Probably his arms, strengthened by 【Body Strengthening】, are unscathed by my pebbles, which bounce off with a satisfying pop.

Trash Head closes in with furious speed. I’d probably lose in a chase. 【Stone Throw】is ineffective, he’s faster.

No way out?

…Not a chance!

I plunge my hand into my left pocket, pulling out a small bag and fling its contents towards Trash Head’s face!

“Guuh… What is this!? It… hurts like HELL?!”

The powder dances in the air, entering Trash Head’s eyes and causing intense pain. This is it! My trump card for today! The powder from the Shoma fruit I just gathered! My precious find, a spicy, high-grade seasoning! Used as a weapon against Trash Head without even getting to taste it!

Damn it! Damn it! I wanted to try tasting it!

Right, Extra-sama! The underlings are cowering, and Trash Head has stopped in his tracks, clutching his eyes.

This is my chance!

I run!!!!

Familiar with Naso Forest, once I’ve got some distance, I’m home free!

Waahahahahahahahaahahahahahahahaha!!

***

By the time the pain in Megzam’s eyes subsided enough for him to move, the expressionless black-haired vagrant child was nowhere to be found.

He’d been done in. Outsmarted. By such a child.

In the thickly overgrown Naso bushes, under the dimming light of the setting sun, finding her now would be difficult. All that could be heard were the chirping of insects and the groans of his two underlings. The smell of burning meat wafted from the fire.

Megzam just stood there, utterly stunned.

***

And there you have it! Emi-chan successfully made her escape!

After that, I mixed in 【Presence Concealment】 as I ran toward the trashy village.n/ô/vel/b//in dot c//om

Yeah, well, that’s true. If the villagers find me, I might end up in a worse situation than just getting hurt.

But now that those guys have taken over my base in the Naso Forest, I don’t have a safe place to stay in the forest anymore. I figured sneaking into the attic of my so-called home and staying there would be much safer. That drunken trash of a man is usually just drinking and sleeping, so he probably won’t notice me in the attic. It’s really frustrating to have to rely on the village I wanted to sever ties with!

If the thieves do attack the village, Torch-kun will probably take care of them easily. Well, getting involved in an incident related to him is really scary, too. It’s like choosing between the devil and the deep blue sea…

But, seriously, Torch-kun! What’s with him? Those trashy thieves attacked the village, right?

Why let them live? Because he didn’t finish them off properly, I ended up losing my base!

Ah, it’s so infuriating. Why do I always have to suffer because of him?

…Yeah, you’re right. The village’s security must be tighter after the attack by the thieves. For now, I’ll use 【Presence Concealment】 and observe from a distance, planning to sneak in when the night gets darker.

***

Dusk.

The sun continued to sink. Purple spread across the blue sky.

I made my way out of the forest, crossed a small meadow, and hid in the shadow of a tree on a hill to watch the village. It was probably time for dinner preparations. Smoke should be rising from the chimneys of the houses, glowing orange in the sunset… that was the expectation.

But, that wasn’t the case.

I was dumbfounded.

Why?

To put it simply…

The village was destroyed.