Chapter 23<blockquote>


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    What I think about Grasis is that it wasn’t a particrly good country.


    Among the royal family and nobles, who were too busy quarreling and fighting, there was one thing they all agreed upon.


    The past was glorious, the founding king was great…


    But in the end, their fates were different.


    The royals pointed to the nobles’ extravagance and arrogance as the reason the kingdom had grown weak.


    In turn, the nobles med the king and the royal family for their ipetence andvishness.


    Watching these fools, covered in their own filth, bickering among themselves was not just amusing but pitiful.Whether it was arrogance, decadence, ipetence, or extravagance—


    Aren’t all those usations applicable to them as well?


    And could there ever have been a nation that was doomed from the start?


    Now, with the pirs of the housepletely copsed, talking about how prosperous it once was, how glorious it used to be…


    So what of it?


    If the past was so wonderful, why don’t they just create a time-reversal spell and go back to the past? But they can’t even do that, yet they keep pping their mouths.


    For that reason, I did not consider Grasis a good country, nor did I like it.


    Since the moment I regained the memories of my past life and became aware of my situation, I was destined not to like the country of Grasis. I found myself in a shabby shack in a dark alley, inhabiting the body of a four-year-old girl.


    The impoverished lived in constant worry, not about tomorrow, but about whether they could fill their stomachs tonight.


    Begging, pickpocketing, stealing, robbing… depending on the circumstances, even venturing outside the city was risky, so it was far from a stable life.


    If luck ran out, they could die, and if fortune smiled upon them, they might fill their bellies for a day.


    So, I could only assume my so-called parents raised me as a kind of investment.


    They must have believed that if I refrained from eating one marshmallow today, I would receive ten or more marshmallows in return in the future.


    Ironically, it was a mindsetpletely opposite to mine.


    How did they n to recoup their investment?


    As they imed, I could have been a warning signal of danger, or perhaps a meat shield or bait.


    Or maybe they simply sold me off to a ve trader or a brothel.


    I could never know the answer.


    The ones who knew the truth became the garbage piled on the heaps of refuse under a particrly dark night, when even the moon hiding behind the clouds was reluctant to shine.


    ording to the slum dwellers, it was a matter of bad luck.


    The miner who died before the canary in the cage…


    Truly, the world is filled with such ridiculous happenings.


    But that was that, and since the keepers of the birds had vanished, the remaining canary had to find a way to survive.


    The canary left its small, cramped cage and joined a group of orphans in simr circumstances.


    Life in the group was morefortable than expected.


    This wasrgely due to many of them trying to win my favor with food or by providing assistance.


    I couldn’t exin why I didn’t resort to forcibly taking from them.


    Perhaps it was the innocence typical of a young child?


    It is said that the purer a child, the more cruel they can be, but I want to believe otherwise.


    Two years passed like that, and then a horde of monsters invaded the city where I lived.


    In hindsight, it wasn’t a particrly threatening horde.


    With proper preparation, it could have been repelled without any casualties; that’s just the extent of it.


    However, as usual, the guard, who had been drinking, was unable to ring the bell to alert anyone of the danger, and the guard closing the door had also copsed beside him.


    It was as if they had left the door wide open, inviting danger in.


    Naturally, the monsters did not decline the invitation, and it took only a moment for the city to be a sea of blood.


    —


    “Hah… hah…!”


    My legs feel heavy.


    Looking down, it feels as if I have strapped on heavy sandbags, but all I see are legs stained with dust and filth.


    Why?


    I didn’t bother to ponder that question.


    It wasn’t particrly important, and it was better to take another step than to spend time contemting it.


    When the screams first echoed through the city, I immediately headed for the small hole in the castle wall.


    It was a passage used to sneak items into the city.


    In fact, hearing screams in the city wasn’t all that special.


    It could be the cries of the poor shing with nobles or the screams of ignorant mercenaries fighting… In any case, such things were quitemon in Grasis.


    Still, I ran.


    Perhaps I felt a crisis that others could not, just like my new name suggested.


    Whatever the case, it allowed me to escape the city safely, but…


    Khirruruk!


    Kyaak!


    “H-huh…”


    Now, even my breaths came out in ragged gasps.


    As if they took pleasure in ying with their prey, the monsters chasing after me stopped and slowly approached.


    With blood dripping from their jaws and flesh clinging to their ws.


    As I stared at them through my blurred vision, I gritted my teeth.


    “…Huh.”


    Maybe I will die here.


    It’s true that I don’t want to die, but I’m not sure if I have any regrets…


    I just know that I don’t want to die helplessly.


    I pulled out the dagger from my pocket.


    Its condition was poor, as it had been obtained from rummaging through garbage, but it was no different from a lifeline for me.


    Taking a deep breath, I sped the dagger tightly in both hands.


    —


    <i>Pat!</i>


    ‘…!’


    A monster in the shape of a wolf charged at me.


    With a heavier body than expected, I hurriedlyunched myself forward, and something ck zipped past my eyes, making my cheeks flush.


    I kept my eyes on the creatures while letting the blood that dripped from my body fall where it may.


    “It’s clear.”


    These guys are just ying with me right now.


    If they really wanted to easily catch and eat me, they would have done it shortly after I escaped the city.


    But instead, they lowered their speed just enough to let me escape, and instead of attacking all at once, they charged at me one by one, even intentionally missing their attacks.


    I can’t help but notice that unless they’re idiots.


    “Ha, haha…”


    As I involuntarily chuckled, I suddenly recalled a certain fact.


    Had I smiled at all since regaining my memories?


    Surprisingly, I couldn’t remember.


    It wasn’t that I forgot; it was because I had never smiled.


    “…Congrattions.”


    Somehow, it was odd that the kids were doing their best to entertain me in front of them, but you managed to do what they couldn’t.


    Thanks to those creatures waiting for me, my breathing had calmed down.


    As the threat of death loomed, perhaps it was the adrenaline that kicked in because I no longer felt the weight that had been tying down my legs.


    Would hunting like this make the meat more tender?


    I probably didn’t need to do that; my flesh should be tender enough as it is.


    While I indulged in such trivial thoughts, Iid my dagger down to aim at the monster.


    After all, I was at a disadvantage in both speed and strength.


    I had never properly learned how to fight, but for some reason, I felt that charging in first was the right answer, so I slightly bent my knees andunched myself towards the ground.


    <i>Taat!</i>


    My body sprang forward as if a spring had been released, quickly closing the distance between me and the monster.


    The monster’s eyes followed my movements, while mine trailed after its eyes just a fraction slower.


    When I got close enough to feel its breath, it jumped sideways and evaded the rusty tip of my dagger.


    I forced myself to stop my body, which was being pulled forward by momentum, as if nting my legs firmly in the ground.


    In return, I swung my dagger toward the spot where it had leaped.


    Again, I missed.


    The distance was short, yet it wasn’t the monster that dodged.


    The sound it made, a short “crack,” felt like it was mocking me.


    If it had been a proper sword, or if only my arm was a bit longer…


    Setting aside my fleeting disappointment, I jumped back, and the four sharp ws of the monster swiped through the air where I had just been.


    “…Hoo.”


    Only three exchanges had taken ce, yet I was already starting to lose my breath.


    …This is why having a child’s body is so inconvenient.


    My limbs are short, so I have to move more than an adult, yet just a little movement leaves me breathless.


    There’s no need to mention my strength and stamina.


    If I were to point out any advantage, at least I recover quickly.


    But recovery is something I can only do after surviving a fight and resting well, which renders that advantage meaningless in this situation.


    How much longer can I hold on?


    Once? Twice?


    Negative thoughts kept swirling in my mind, but I didn’t show it and tightened my grip on the dagger.


    If I can’t survive, at least I have to take one of them down with me.


    I’m not thrilled with the exchange rate, but I know I should be grateful for even that much.


    That’s how severe the disparity is.


    Before I could catch my breath, the monster swung its ws at me.


    Even though I was attacking with all my might, I must not have posed much of a threat because its rxed attacks were still filled with intent to take me down.


    <i>ng!</i>


    “Ugh…!”


    The strong vibration that started from my dagger as I blocked its ws traveled up my arm and gnawed at it.


    I almost dropped my dagger.


    Ignoring the throbbing pain in my arm, I desperately racked my brain.


    ‘How do I, how do I get out of this?’


    A chuckle escaped me uncontrobly.


    I must have been thinking about this the wrong way.


    If I was going to take it down anyway, I didn’t need to worry about self-preservation.


    Even if my legs were torn off, if I could crawl and stab that cocky head with my dagger, it would be my victory.


    As I embraced that toxic mindset, I felt oddly relieved, as if breathing had be a little easier.


    Did the creature notice my change in mindset? Its eyes grew cautious as it faced me.


    I sighed as I realized I was engaging in a kind ofmunication that I had no expertise in, nor was it something I wanted to do.


    If I’d known this would happen, I should have watched some dog training channels in my past life.


    Even amid all this, my body was diligently avoiding attacks, but my breathing was starting to bebored.


    As time went on, I became more ustomed to the attacks, and my evasive maneuvers grew more fluid, but that didn’t mean my physical abilities suddenly improved, so it was impossible to turn the tide.


    If I just endure, surely an opportunity will arise.


    Just then, the moment I had been waiting for finally came.


    Kugh!


    “…!”


    It’s my chance!


    The monster, frustrated with how its prey kept dodging at thest moment, roared ferociously and charged at me.


    Big movements create big openings.


    Although the speed of the charge was difficult to react to, I had noticed it earlier and was prepared, so I managed to evade it by a hair’s breadth once again.


    <i>Boom!</i>


    The monster, having passed me, mmed its head into the rock behind me.


    Seemingly dazed by the impact, I rushed towards it.


    <i>Thud!</i>


    <i>Yelp!</i>


    It’s funny how it lets out a dog-like whine at times like this.


    …That phrasing feels a bit off, but anyway.


    As the creature turned its body, I raised my hand as high as I could to finish it off.


    Suddenly!


    <i>Wham!</i>


    “Gyaah?!”


    A heavy shock hit my back, and I went tumbling forward.


    “Ugh, ugh…”


    Pain shed before my eyes.


    I had forgotten. I wasn’t fighting just one of them.


    Even trying to rise was impossible, as I couldn’t muster the strength to push myself up and kept face-nting into the ground.


    Ultimately, I lost even the strength to prop myself up and red at the approaching monsters from my fallen position.


    As if they had lost interest in ying, three of them were closing in on me simultaneously.


    “You bastards…”


    The hand gripping my dagger trembled.


    In the end, it seems I wouldn’t even be able to take one of them down.


    With my venomous gaze fixed on them, I prepared to meet my demise.


    The leading monster lifted its forefoot and then—


    <i>Whoosh!</i>


    It vanished, spraying ck blood.


    The two beside it also met the same fate, with shes marking their bodies before they followed their fallenpanion to the afterlife.


    A man had appeared to fill the space left by the vanished monsters.


    — “Brave girl! What’s your name?”


    I blinked rapidly.


    “…Sir, who are you?”


    — “Ah, ‘sir’? How could you call me that…?”


    That was the beginning of my encounter with Garid.