Chapter 94: Run!
"Since you put it that way, then forget it."
Subaru Natsuki was about to stand up and pretend like he was going to leave.
Seeing this, Otto immediately clung to Subaru's leg.
"It was my fault! I shouldn't have spoken like that to my benefactor. Mr. Natsuki, please, I must speak with you in detail!"
With a face full of forced smiles, Otto looked like a drowning man clutching at his final straw. Only this time, the hand he grabbed could really save him — not a useless straw.
"You bastard, don't suddenly latch onto me like that! You reek of alcohol!"
"I'm terribly sorry! But I absolutely won't let go unless Mr. Natsuki swears to it!"
"Swear your head! Get off me already. I told you I'd help you, and I mean it!"
"Really?"
Otto looked up at Subaru with eyes full of hope, only to see him looking down at him with a face full of disgust. Stunned, Otto finally understood what that look meant.
He hurriedly let go of Subaru's leg, stood up, dusted himself off, and removed his hat, placing it over his chest as he bowed.
"Allow me to introduce myself again. My name is Otto Suwen, a humble merchant."
"Subaru Natsuki, just a servant."
"Thank you very much for your help, Mr. Natsuki. Right now, I don't have anything with which to repay you.
However, I overheard your conversation earlier.
You're with the Margrave Roswaal's household, correct? In that case, I actually know of a path that can bypass the fog and lead you straight over there."
Subaru blinked, surprised. He hadn't expected that helping Otto on a whim would bring such an unexpected reward.
"If you knew about it, why didn't you go that way yourself?"
"My destination was different. Though it might sound a bit cold, there's not much profit to be made near the Margrave Roswaal's domain. Our goods wouldn't sell well there."
Subaru nodded, realizing it made sense.
Roswaal's territory only had one small village under its control, and most of the villagers were self-sufficient.
For merchants, it was hardly a profitable destination — more like a sightseeing trip.
And there really wasn't much scenery worth seeing around that village, either.
"You're a huge help. We're in a rush to get back. When we return, I'll buy all your goods! Let's set off right now!"
Subaru grinned excitedly. Now that they didn't have to wait around any longer, he was eager to get moving.
Otto nodded and replied, "Then, Mr. Natsuki, please wait here for a moment while I prepare. You should also get ready — the path we're taking is not an easy one."
"Got it. I'll leave it to you."
"No no, this is just a small gesture of gratitude. After all, you helped me tremendously."
"Cut the formalities. Save your words for later. I'm going to get ready too. Hurry up, Otto."
Without waiting for Otto's reply, Subaru turned and walked over to Rem. After telling her about the situation, the two of them returned to their dragon carriage.
Despite saying they needed to prepare, Subaru and Rem didn't really have anything to get ready. After a short wait, they saw Otto's dragon carriage approaching.
"Mr. Natsuki, I'm ready. Let's go. Please follow me."
Subaru nodded.
Once Otto's carriage started moving, he nodded at Rem, and the two dragon carriages departed, leaving behind the sympathetic gazes of the other merchants.
At night, visibility was already low. Driving the dragon carriage into the forest made it even harder to see more than five meters ahead.
Without the glowing lamp attached to Otto's carriage, Subaru wouldn't even be able to tell where he was.
Subaru completely forgot that this wasn't his own world. And the girl sitting next to him, Rem, was far from ordinary. As a Oni, this level of darkness meant nothing to her.
The dragon carriage continued its bumpy ride through the forest for quite a while.
Then, the jostling suddenly eased, and Subaru's field of vision widened.
When he saw the landmark giant tree, Subaru realized they'd exited the forest. If they kept going across the plain, they'd reach the mansion soon.
Under the moonlight, even without the lamp on Otto's carriage, Subaru could clearly see where they were.
He had seen this view once before when heading to the royal capital, but that was during the morning. Now it was night.
The same scenery at different times of day had its own charm.
Now that they'd left the forest, Subaru's anxiety and restlessness also eased. Traveling through this peaceful environment brought a calming sense of comfort.
Subaru couldn't help praising himself in his mind. If not for that hunch earlier, he and Rem might still be stuck back there waiting.
As he relaxed, Subaru's expression softened and he settled in to wait out the remaining travel time. But that peaceful mindset didn't last long.
He noticed that Otto's carriage had slowed down.
Slightly confused, Subaru looked over at Otto, now driving parallel to him.
"What's wrong, Otto? Why did you slow down all of a sudden?"
"Mr. Natsuki… we might be in danger…"
Subaru froze. Seeing the panic and fear on Otto's face, he was just about to ask what kind of danger he meant when everyone suddenly noticed something was off.
First, the visibility had worsened.
And the surroundings had become eerily quiet.
If the forest had been naturally quiet before, now both the forest and grasslands were wrapped in a suffocating silence — the kind that made you feel like the world itself had abandoned you.
Realizing this, Subaru's body shuddered.
He quickly looked up and saw thick fog descending. But that wasn't the worst of it — he noticed strange, unnatural movements in the mist.
It was as if something massive was moving through the fog… watching their dragon carriages.
"Run! Faster! Hurry!!"