Get Them Out! The Village of Schemes*1
“So, we’re back.”
“Ah, yeah, welcome back… Lisas-san, are you okay? You look pale…”
“Ah, ah, sorry… I just remembered some things from back then…”
When I brought Lisas-san back, thankfully, Mishisia-san was still busy snacking, so we were safe. Thank you! Seriously, thank you!
“Ahh… leaving Lisas-san alone right now worries me. Maybe we should all just ride this carriage back together?”
“No, that would trouble you, Asuma-sama…”
“I’ll be fine. As long as Lisas-san lends me his lap!”
Yeah. Leaving him alone in this state would weigh on my conscience. If he drove the carriage by himself, he’d probably get lost in thought even more…
“So then, let’s hurry up and head home! And let’s skip Lark Town entirely—let’s just go straight to Panis Village!”
“Eh!? B-but, that would be…”
“I don’t care! Do it!”
… Because come on, Lisas-san’s ex-wife and that cheating bastard of a former colleague are definitely going to stay overnight in Lark Town! Which means we could totally bump into them at an inn there! No way! Absolutely not!
If that’s the case, then I’ll just give up on my carriage motion sickness and have them dash all the way back—arriving at Panis Village late tonight! That’s way better! Way better!
“Ah, in that case, Asuma-sama—how about this?”
… Mishisia-san suddenly made a suggestion.
“Camping! I’m really good at it!”
“Oh…?”
Looks like I’ve got myself some pretty great companions, huh…?
And so, after a little more shopping in the capital, we set out.
And while I expected to get sick again pretty quickly… the increased weight of the carriage actually made the ride smoother.
Plus, I was so worried about Lisas-san that I didn’t even have time to feel nauseous. Turns out, the ride back wasn’t nearly as bad. Unexpectedly nice outcome.
… Well, I mean, yeah. I was seriously worried about him. Seeing him like this—like he’s reliving all his trauma at once—there’s no way I could just focus on being carsick.
Sometimes he’d rub his left arm a little. That’s gotta be… memories from when he’d lost that arm, right!? Is he really okay!?
I was really worried, but every now and then, Lisas-san would shift me a bit on his lap, or talk to me, and that seemed to calm him down a little… I think.
If I can help him even a little, that’s enough for me. But really, seeing those dark, hollow eyes—just like when he’d lost his arm and eye—it’s hard not to worry.
… Anyway, thanks to that worry, I didn’t get too sick. Maybe I’m just used to it now. But more than that, I guess when you’re that tense and anxious, your body doesn’t have time to feel bad. Still, I was really drained by the end of it…
And so, we arrived at the forest near Lark Village.
Then—
“Welcome to the forest! … Well, not my forest, but still. Ehehe.”
As Mishisia-san hopped down from the carriage, she spread her arms wide with a beaming smile.
“Alright! Let’s start setting up camp!”
She was so cheerful that both Lisas-san and I couldn’t help but get swept up in her energy. Her brightness was… precious! Thank you, Mishisia-san!
“First, let’s borrow a place to sleep for tonight.”
“Borrow…?”
And thus began our exciting camp adventure—but Mishisia-san’s choice of words made both of us tilt our heads. Borrow? From who?
Still smiling, she looked around at the trees for a bit…
“Hmm… ah! This one looks cooperative. Heeey!”
… And then she started talking to the tree.
“I’d like you to prepare a bed for this little one… yeah! Thank you!”
The tree stretched out its branches, twisting them together, and before I knew it, there was a natural hammock.
“Here you go, Asuma-sama! Your bed for tonight!”
Wow… as expected of a forest-dwelling folk!
Then she made hammocks for herself and Lisas-san too, asking the trees for help. Each time, the branches would twist and weave together again. Amazing.
And then—
“For dinner, we’ve got the veggies and dried meat we bought in the capital! I’ll make soup out of those, and we’ll eat it with the bread we bought! Oh, and I saw some berry bushes over there—we’ll have those too!”
“Ohhh!”
Mishisia-san started cooking with practiced ease. She called out instructions like, “Lisas-san! Make a stove!” and “Asuma-sama, go gather some dry branches! Not fresh ones, okay!”—and thanks to that, we could help efficiently and have fun doing it.
Once Lisas-san lit the fire with his magic, the twigs began to crackle and burn…
“When you cast elven magic over the fire like this… it becomes a barrier that protects the forest from nasty pests.”
The smoke that rose from the fire shimmered softly, spreading out in a fluffy glow—and glowing runes floated in the air. It was such a fantasy sight! Wow, this really is fantasy!
“Amazing… so this is elven magic. How beautiful…”
Even Lisas-san seemed impressed. I guess elven magic really is different from human magic.
“It’s one of the most basic spells. When we borrow the forest’s shelter and bounty, we return the favor—that’s an old promise between elves and the forest.”
Mishisia-san giggled shyly. She’d mentioned before that she’s not very good at magic, so maybe it’s a bit of a complex for her… but from our point of view, it was nothing but pure wonder.
“I’m glad I got to see it. This is the first time I’ve ever witnessed elven magic up close.”
“Same here!”
“I’m glad you liked it!”
Mishisia-san smiled happily, the pot of soup bubbling beside her, and the whole mood felt even more like an idyllic fantasy camping trip.
… What started out as a bit of an accident actually turned out way better than spending the night in Lark Village. This is so much nicer! I feel like I’m winning at life!
And the soup she made? Delicious. She said she borrowed some herbs from the forest, and they added such a nice touch.
The roasted bread and the thrill of camping made it an absolutely wonderful dinner.
But that dinner wasn’t just about being delicious.
“Alright, Lisas-san! Time for a strategy meeting!”
“Eh?”
Mishisia-san grinned mischievously, soup bowl in hand. I grinned back—ah, I see where this is going!
“Your ex-wife and that backstabbing ex-colleague—they’re going to Panis Village, right? Then there’s a good chance you’ll bump into them there.”
At that, Lisas-san swallowed his bread, lowered his gaze, and said quietly:
“… Then maybe we should camp out for another night or two…”
“But who knows how long they’ll stay? What if it’s a week or more? Are you just going to live out here camping all that time…?”
Even Lisas-san knew that wasn’t realistic. He sighed, shoulders drooping. Ah, there goes his energy again!
“Listen, Lisas-san. If you really, truly don’t ever want to see them again, we’ll help you with that too. You can hole up in Asuma-sama’s house or a dungeon or something. There are plenty of books to keep you company…”
Yeah, as Mishisia-san said, if that’s what he wants, I’m totally fine with it. I could even build a special facility—“The No-Human-Contact but Super-Comfy Retreat.” Whatever it takes, I’ll help.
“… But, what if they end up saying something like, ‘Panis Village was such a lovely place! Let’s come again!’ or ‘Yeah, let’s vacation there every year!’ Then they might show up out of nowhere next time…”
“Ugh…”
And she’s right. With travel between the capital and Panis getting easier, the odds of running into them someday are pretty high.
Especially since I’m planning to improve the carriages and boost trade… plus, I’ll still be making book runs to the capital now and then…
“So that’s why—it’s better to settle things sooner rather than later, right? For your own sake, too.”
Yeah. I agree with Mishisia-san on this one.
The rest was up to Lisas-san.
“Come on. Don’t you want to make them regret what they did? Just a little?”
Exactly, big bro Lisas! Time to make sure those bastards know not to mess with us again!
He thought for a while. We didn’t rush him—just enjoyed our bread, soup, and post-meal berries.
And then—
“… I’m a pathetic man. I accomplished nothing, lost my arm and eye, and my wife left me on top of that.”
Whoa. That’s dark.
“Hey now, it’s the wife who’s at fault there!”
“Yeah, you’re right… Lady Laperesiana said the same. ‘You’re not to blame.’ But at the time, I just couldn’t see it that way… even now, maybe I still can’t…”
He spoke slowly, thinking out loud. Yeah, I get that—sometimes talking helps you sort your thoughts out.
“… So the idea of getting back at them never really crossed my mind. Even if it had, I didn’t have the strength to act on it anyway…”
He paused, then asked quietly:
“Is it… alright for me to hate them?”
“I think it’s more than alright!?”
“Wait—what!? You hadn’t even gotten that far!? You were just sad!? Lisas-san, you’re way too good a person! You can afford to be at least a little worse!”
“No, that’s what led me to… that, remember? I’m not a good person…”
Ah… right. That. He’d ended up doing bandit work with ex-adventurers back then. So it was because he had nowhere to put his emotions, huh…
I bet if he’d just allowed himself to hate them and process those feelings properly, he might’ve recovered and gone on to live a normal life. But instead, he turned his self-loathing inward to cope… ahh, poor guy…
“Alright, then let’s decide! Even if you can’t bring yourself to hate them yet—at least make them regret it! Make sure they get what’s coming to them! Deal?”
“Ah, ahh…”
And with that, the gloomy Lisas was completely swept up by Mishisia-san’s bright, stormy determination. Yeah. What he needs now isn’t more brooding—it’s momentum, energy, and friends to back him up.
“… Yeah. I’ve made up my mind. It’s time. Time to face them.”
“Yes!”
“Yes!”
And with Lisas-san’s resolve set—it’s go time! Once we’re back in Panis Village, things are about to get busy!
“So, what’s the actual plan?”
Well, I was all fired up but… totally had no plan. Just full of “Let’s do this!” energy like some rookie adventurer.
“Hehehe… leave that to me! I’m surprisingly good at this kind of thing!”
Oh? I didn’t expect that! I thought this would not be her strong suit!
“Okay, so, my idea is… there’s this really beautiful village chief in Panis Village, right?”
Yeah. That would be Edele-san—the graceful, kind, soothing woman who’s amazing at putting me to sleep.
“We’re going to ask for her full cooperation!”
… Right.
Right?
What do you think about this chapter?
