Death March to the Parallel World Rhapsody, Vol. 3 Read online

  Copyright

  Death March to the Parallel World Rhapsody, Vol. 3

  Hiro Ainana

  Translation by Jenny McKeon

  Cover art by shri

  This book is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, and incidents are the product of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously. Any resemblance to actual events, locales, or persons, living or dead, is coincidental.

  © Hiro Ainana, shri 2014

  First published in Japan in 2014 by KADOKAWA CORPORATION, Tokyo.

  English translation rights arranged with KADOKAWA CORPORATION, Tokyo through Tuttle-Mori Agency, Inc., Tokyo.

  English translation © 2017 by Yen Press, LLC

  Yen Press, LLC supports the right to free expression and the value of copyright. The purpose of copyright is to encourage writers and artists to produce the creative works that enrich our culture.

  The scanning, uploading, and distribution of this book without permission is a theft of the author’s intellectual property. If you would like permission to use material from the book (other than for review purposes), please contact the publisher. Thank you for your support of the author’s rights.

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  Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data

  Names: Ainana, Hiro, author. | Shri, illustrator. | McKeon, Jenny, translator.

  Title: Death march to the parallel world rhapsody / Hiro Ainana ; illustrations by shri ;

  translation by Jenny McKeon.

  Other titles: Desu machi kara hajimaru isekai kyosokyoku. English

  Description: First Yen On edition. | New York, NY : Yen ON, 2017–

  Identifiers: LCCN 2016050512 | ISBN 9780316504638 (v. 1 : pbk.) |

  ISBN 9780316507974 (v. 2 : pbk.) | ISBN 9780316556088 (v. 3 : pbk.)

  Subjects: | GSAFD: Fantasy fiction.

  Classification: LCC PL867.5.I56 D413 2017 | DDC 895.6/36d—dc23

  LC record available at https://lccn.loc.gov/2016050512

  ISBNs: 978-0-316-55608-8 (paperback)

  978-0-316-55615-6 (ebook)

  E3-20170818-JV-PC

  Journey

  Satou here. In old computer RPGs, I always felt gaining the ability to travel via horse-drawn carriage was an important turning point. It’s not nearly as comfortable as a car, though.

  The carriage rattled and rumbled along the main road.

  “Ooh!”

  “Meeeow!”

  Each time a small animal like a mouse or a rabbit peered out from the bushes on the side of the road, Pochi and Tama nearly leaped out of the carriage. And each time they did so, Liza was there to hold them back by their belts.

  The carriage was rolling along no faster than a family bicycle, but it would still be dangerous if they fell and got dragged under the wheels.

  “Pochi, Tama, you’ll fall out if you lean over the sides, so please keep your backs against the coachman’s box.”

  “Yes, sir.”

  “’kaaay.”

  The two responded in the affirmative and situated themselves on the left and right sides against the back of my seat.

  I knew they would behave only until something else caught their attention, though.

  The breeze was a little chilly, but it felt nice with the warmth of the sunlight.

  Since this was a fantasy world, I had expected some random monster encounters, but in reality the journey was actually quite peaceful. This was probably thanks to the efforts of Zena and her comrades on their patrol.

  However, when I checked the map, I saw monsters lurking farther away from the road. Understandable—it was probably impossible to eradicate them completely.

  For about an hour after we left the city, our surroundings resembled more of a random smattering of trees than a full-on forest, but we had left that behind and were now journeying through a very hilly area.

  In the distance on our left, I could see the mountains leading to the Cradle of Trazayuya, where the Undead King Zen had held Mia captive.

  The occasional tree or shrub poked its head out from the sea of weeds between the road and the foothills.

  Before we’d reached this uneven area, we’d encountered other travelers in wagons or on foot, but most of them had gone west at a fork in the road.

  Down the west highway was Seiryuu County’s mining city, and beyond it, the road crossed two more counties into one that was apparently a very prosperous area for trade. Most merchants would be heading that way.

  According to my map, there were still a few other carriages on the south highway besides ours, but none that I could actually see.

  There were counties and baronies to the south, too, but because of the relaxed laws there, merchants tended to keep their distance.

  The trader who’d filled me in on all this had added that things were safe enough in the Ougoch Duchy, which was famous for the night view of its canals, but any farther than that and one would find cheap prices and a market tightly controlled by local sellers.

  There were more villages near the west highway, too, so that probably factored into its popularity as well.

  “Meeeat?”

  “Sheep, sir!”

  Following Tama’s and Pochi’s stares, I saw a distant hill where a shepherd was herding a large flock of sheep.

  The two waved frantically toward the hill, but apparently the other person couldn’t see us, as they gave no response.

  The shadow of what seemed to be a small sheepdog ran about, skillfully keeping any errant sheep from straying too far. It seemed to be an ordinary dog, not a beastfolk person. I hadn’t seen any dogs or cats in the city, but I guess people did have them in this world after all.

  While I enjoyed the view, the mostly straight road turned into a wide curve along a hill.

  The carriage swayed and rattled over a rut. Behind me, I heard small shrieks from Lulu and Mia and curses from Arisa, but I let them pass on the wind, pretending not to hear.

  Since the road was obviously just dirt, not paved with stone or asphalt, it was natural that carts would leave ruts and furrows along the way. However, because no two carts followed exactly the same path, some areas were so rough they threatened to damage the wheels.

  The horses proceeded along the road at their own discretion, but in order to avoid these ruts, a coachman had to fine-tune their course.

  Even with the assistance of my skills, I still didn’t have enough experience to avoid all of them.

  While I made such excuses to myself, Arisa poked her head in from behind me, propping herself up on Pochi’s head.

  “Be more careful with your driving!”

  “Don’t ask so much of me. I’m still a beginner.”

  I brushed off Arisa’s protests noncommittally.

  Pochi didn’t look too pleased about being used as a step stool. “Arisa, you’re heavy, ma’am.”

  “Sorry, sorry. It’s just that you were in the perfect position for me to climb on top of you, so I couldn’t help it.”

  Apologizing, Arisa removed herself from Pochi’s head, snuggling into my shoulder instead. This might have made my heart pound if
she were a beautiful woman, but since the girl was so young, she just seemed like a spoiled child.

  At that moment, I caught wind of a querulous little gurgle. I was probably the only one who’d heard it, thanks to my “Keen Hearing” skill.

  This must have come from Lulu. Even the sound of her stomach grumbling was cute.

  I checked the map for a good place to stop for lunch.

  “It’s almost lunchtime. There’s a stone slab on the next hill that seems like it could protect us from the wind—let’s stop and eat there.”

  My proposal was approved with a unanimous cry of joy.

  After we’d made our way up the weed-covered path, I stopped the carriage in a sunny area near the megalith.

  “All right, here we are. Everyone, it’s time to take care of the horses and prepare our lunch.”

  As I spoke, I climbed down from the carriage and fixed the stoppers in place, similar to the parking brake on a car.

  Because I’d already assigned roles before we arrived, everyone set about their work without needing any further instructions.

  Pochi and Tama hopped down lightly and pulled out tools from the storage space under the coachman’s box to tend to the horses.

  The overcoats they normally wore in public must have been inside the carriage, because now they were wearing white shirts and matching poufy shorts. Tama’s shorts were pink, while Pochi’s were yellow.

  “I’ll take care of your hooves, sir!”

  “Dig, diiig!”

  “Be careful not to get stepped on by the horses, you two.”

  “Yes, sir!”

  “Rogerrr!”

  I warned the girls to be careful as they dug the dirt and stones out of the horses’ hooves. The horses snorted indignantly, as if to protest that they would never have been so careless.

  “Nana and I will look for rocks to build a stove.”

  “Great, thanks.”

  Clad in light-brown leather armor, Liza headed over to gather some of the smaller stones near the large slabs.

  “Master, I will be back, I bravely report.”

  Nana was the next to speak as she descended from the coachman’s box.

  Her long blond hair was tied back in a loose ponytail with a ribbon. She wore a scarlet dress, the likes of which would never be seen in modern Japan, with sleeves that puffed out at the shoulders and a dark-red vest that threatened to burst open from the pressure of the generous bosom underneath.

  Naturally, I made sure to mentally record the bouncing that resulted when she hopped down from the carriage.

  I didn’t want her nice dress to get dirty while she gathered rocks, so I discreetly pulled out an apron from Storage under the shade of the carriage and handed it to Nana.

  I felt eyes boring into my back and turned around to find Lulu. It seemed as though she had been waiting for a chance to speak.

  “Master, I brought the bag.”

  “Thank you, Lulu.”

  I accepted the Garage Bag from Lulu and offered a hand to help her down from the carriage.

  I was accustomed now to her moment of hesitation before accepting my hand, but the fact that she still turned red every time really revealed her shyness.

  Lulu stepped onto the ground, her fine black hair swishing smoothly. I caught the briefest glimpse of her white legs as her skirt fluttered in the air for a moment. Although the white dress she’d worn in the city had suited her better, Lulu was now wearing a cream-colored shirt and a dark-blue skirt for the journey. Most likely, the white fabric would have gotten dirty too easily.

  Arisa was next to approach the coachman’s box from the interior of the carriage, striding up with a confident gait.

  “Master, help me down, too!”

  Arisa’s outfit, a dark-red jacket over a fluffy pink top and bottom, seemed unsuited for travel. She reached out her hand and issued a demand in a rather spoiled tone.

  Her violet hair swayed in the wind. She normally wore a cloak or a blond wig to avoid attracting attention in public, but she had left those inside the carriage.

  It was no big deal, so I reached out to help her down.

  …Then, on a sudden hunch, I leaned my head to the side.

  An instant later, Arisa’s face was where mine had just been, with her lips puckered. That was close.

  “No more casual sexual harassment, please.”

  “Aww, I’m only trying to serve my master in accordance with my oath! You’re so cruuuel.”

  “Shush.”

  Arisa’s response was so absurd that I flicked her lightly on the forehead to scold her. Judging from the way she rolled around on the grass dramatically clutching her head, I doubted she felt much remorse.

  The wording of our particular agreement did nothing to prevent harassment. I had to be careful not to rely on the contract as a deterrent, much to my frustration.

  If Arisa were at least twenty years old… Well, I probably still wouldn’t welcome her advances, but I might not mind them so much. But she was the age of a kid in elementary school—I was definitely not interested.

  Really, though, Arisa’s personality reminded me of something from the middle of last century. I didn’t know how old she was before she was reincarnated here, but she didn’t seem to want to say.

  “Satou.”

  Finally, Mia the elf appeared, speaking up with a bright smile. Her pointed ears peeked out from underneath her light blue-green pigtails. She wore an outfit that looked like a light-blue version of Arisa’s.

  With her current healthy complexion, it was hard to imagine how weakened she’d been when I’d rescued her from Zen.

  She’ll have no trouble enduring the long journey to her hometown in this state.

  “Do you want me to help you down, too?”

  “Mm.”

  Standing at the ready with her arms outstretched, Mia nodded happily.

  I lifted her by her delicate waist and set her down carefully. Unlike with Arisa, I had no need to worry that she might try anything.

  “Thanks.”

  “You’re welcome.”

  Mia smiled bashfully as she thanked me, then plodded over to the large rocks.

  I took a bucket and a small barrel of water from the Garage Bag to give the horses a drink.

  Incidentally, I had given the girls an equivocal description of the Garage Bag as “a magic bag that can hold a lot of things” at the beginning of our journey. Just to be safe, I instructed them to keep it a secret so thieves wouldn’t try to steal it.

  “Mission complete, sir.”

  “Dooone!”

  “Good work, you two.”

  Pochi and Tama approached to report the completion of their work, and I patted them both on the head.

  Just then, Lulu returned from inspecting the undercarriage.

  “Master, there are no issues with the wheels or the axle. They had bits of weeds stuck to them, so I cleaned them off.”

  “Great. Thank you, Lulu.”

  Since our inspection was over, maybe now would be a good time to feed the horses—no, maybe I should make them a bit more comfortable first.

  “Lulu, can you help me unharness them?”

  “Certainly, sir.”

  With Lulu’s help, I released the horses from the yoke and hooked the reins to the carriage.

  I checked their faces where the bits had been attached, but the horses didn’t seem to have any scratches. It was probably fine.

  “Master, can I help you with anything?”

  Arisa dusted off her clothes as she approached me. There was a faint red mark on her forehead; I’d have to take care to be gentler with my forehead flicking from now on.

  “Yeah, give salt and fruit to the horses, if you would.”

  After I withdrew a small trough and a sack of feed from the Garage Bag, I handed Arisa two pieces of fruit and a small pouch of salt.

  The fruits were a reward to the animals for their hard work. The veteran coachman had warned Lulu and me not to forget to supply c
art horses with salt on a long journey.

  “Okay. Mia, come help me.”

  “Mm.”

  Arisa called out to Mia cheerfully. The elf girl, who was gazing at the megaliths, nodded and began tending the horses with Arisa.

  “Pochi, Tama, isn’t that dangerous?”

  “We’ll be all right, ma’am.”

  “Fiiine!”

  I followed Lulu’s nervous gaze and saw Tama perched atop Pochi’s shoulders to wipe down the horses’ backs with a dedicated towel. It did look dangerous at first glance, but Pochi’s feet were planted firmly on the ground, so they should be safe.

  Maybe I should pick out some materials and build a stepladder?

  As I contemplated this, I prepared lunch for the horses in the trough: a mixture of grains and straw. It was a simple meal, but for cart horses it would be top class.

  The horses finished off the fruit from Mia and Arisa in no time at all, then plunged their heads into the trough to chow down with fervor.

  “They’re munching, sir!”

  “Yummyyy?”

  Pochi and Tama plopped down in front of the small trough to stare enviously at the food within. Their eager gazes seemed to make the animals uncomfortable.

  For the sake of the horses’ mental health, I sent Pochi and Tama to find rocks we could use to hold down the blankets we’d sit on during lunch. The pair readily agreed and zipped away, excited to have received another assignment.

  “Excuse me, Master. Is it all right if I use some of this thick fabric?”

  “Sure. Are you making an apron?”

  “I want to touch up the straw cushions.”

  After washing the horse drool off her hands in the water bucket, Arisa wiped them clean with a handkerchief as she made her request.

  I had hastily crafted some straw cushions to help protect the girls from the vibrations of the horse-drawn carriage. The makeshift pillows were simple bundles of straw with cloth wrapped around them like sushi rolls.

  I had tried to buy some premade cushions at a shop, but no one was selling them in Seiryuu City, and since ordering them would take too long, we had concocted a solution ourselves.

  “So the straw isn’t quite cutting it, huh?”

  “That’s not it. The actual cushioning is fine, but the straw is starting to pop out and scratch my bottom from all the shaking.”