…After the mysterious man showed up and defeated the monster, his eyes turned a different colour, it was now gold, and his demeanour changed. 

He seemed indifferent before, but now…. He showed some concern as he glanced at me, looking a little conflicted. 

He walked toward me, and a blue glow enveloped Miss Hilda and me. It was warm, and I felt my strength coming back as my bones bent back and my wounds closed. 

…Not only can he deal some serious damage… he can heal as well? 

“Sorry this had to happen,” the man said as he healed me. “Still… what are you people doing here? Building a camp near the city barrier?” He later asked. 

…City barrier? 

“S-sorry?” I replied, confused, as I got up and away from Miss Hilda, who was unconscious. 

Should I tell him or not? That we’re from another world? It’s hard as it is, but… if he finds out, will we be enslaved or something? Used as weapons….? I… I somehow doubt it since there already are people like him…. 

“A-actually, we’re from another world,” I cautiously said. 

Somehow, I could trust this man, and if I was wrong… then my judge of character would be the downfall of us all. 

“I see,” the man replied, seeming uninterested as he placed his hand on Miss Hilda’s neck. 

And for some reason, she coughed up a lot of blood. Which made me panic as I almost instinctively punched the man. 

But… I stopped. After all… why would he try to injure us after saving us? 

“She almost drowned in her own blood,” the man said. 

Hearing that, I panicked. 

“W… will she be okay…?” I asked, feeling a sharp pain in my chest. 

As I asked that, her pale skin started to show some colour again as he breathing became more normal. 

“She’ll be fine, though… I can’t make up the blood loss, make sure she eats properly when she wakes up,” and before he walked away, he glanced at her again and at me. He then pulled out something from nowhere like he did his sword. 

…storage magic? 

“Here, it’s a coat. She lost a lot of blood, so make sure she feels comfortable and warm, you too, for that matter.” 

He gave me and Miss Hilda a coat each. I put it around her as I got up and carried her in my arms. The man smiled at me before turning his attention to the extinguished bonfire. 

“It seems like your bonfire was destroyed, wait for a little, and I’ll make a new one,” so he said…. 

He formed some water in his hands and shaped it onto a blade, later cutting down a branch of one of the huge trees with no issue whatsoever…. 

Dude… these trees are hard af… and didn’t even catch fire with all the explosions going around…. And he just casually cuts off a branch with water? 

Wait… isn’t he going to take care of the others first? Ah… well, they seem fine now that I think about it… maybe a bit tired….

Then, we all gathered around the firewood as he lit it up with a blue flame. 

He made walls of earth and rock to shelter us from the wind and even places to sit or lie down. 

….I wonder….What can’t he do?

— :::: — 

As all of us gathered around the fireplace and waited for the man to come back, back with those who managed to escape. They seem sorry and guilty. 

But everyone told them it was fine, and they started comforting one another. The man also gave us some things that were left behind by those who died. 

“Sorry, I can’t give them a proper burial… they will end up becoming ghouls if I don’t incinerate their bodies,” he said. 

At his statement, I felt shocked. I’m sure I’m not the only one… as I looked around, the other students could only grieve about the loss. 

“You should rest until morning, and I’ll answer any questions you may have on the way to the city,” the man said. 

….

“Ah… Um… what is your name, mister?” I anxiously asked. 

He looked at me and tilted his head a little… I somehow think he’s a bit of an airhead…. 

“Sorry about that. My name is Alum Miller, a D-Ranked adventurer.” 

….He’s a D-Rank? Is this some sort of joke? Or… maybe this world is really scary… wait, it is hella scary!

“I-I see… thank you for saving us,” I replied. I wasn’t sure how to, to be honest…. 

The others thanked him as well, and with that, they tried to get some rest. 

I… couldn’t sleep… since I had already slept plenty, and I was more worried about Julia and Miss Hilda. 

Julia was close to me and had fallen asleep on my shoulder, muttering, ‘Stupid brother’ and so on…. 

Miss Hilda was resting on my lap as there weren’t any pillows, and… definitely not an excuse for me to be close to her…. 

“Difficulty sleeping?” Mister Alum asked me. 

I nodded and replied with a meek, ‘Yes….’ I… I felt so useless, and I miss my home…. 

I suppose I’m starting to have these thoughts, as it feels safe now…. I miss the banter I’d have with dad, and I missed stepmother’s cooking. 

At least I have Julia with me… well… she’s been by my side since little… she used to be so clingy to me, and… look at her now… she’s all grown up and dependable. This honestly makes me a little sad, but I was also proud…. 

“...Say, mister, I know you said to save the questions for the morning… but….” I was a little reluctant, but I was a little impatient… he smiled at me and handed me a cup. 

He had made something in the fire earlier… and as I took a sip… 

“Urah… it’s terrible….” I accidentally blurted out. 

Mister Alum drank the stuff as well, but without making a grimace. 

“Mmm, you’re right,” He replied. “I’m sort of bad at it… sorry.” 

I shook my head in a fluster as I apologised, but… I do feel calmer now. 

“...Sorry about that, so… um… where are we exactly?” I asked. 

Mister Alum tilted his head a little and used some sort of storage magic to bring out some… snacks? He handed me some and began to talk. 

“Well, it’s going to be long,” he said. 

I took a bite of what he’d given me, expecting it to taste horrible as the drink, but… it was ultra delicious!? 

Maybe it tastes so good because of the bad drink…? 

Anyhow…. 

“You’re currently in a world called Lethren. It’s a world filled with monsters such as these.” 

…He speaks as if he’s not from this world… could it be? 

“Ahh, um… this may sound strange, but is Mister Alum perhaps not from this world?” 

He nodded, saying, “That’s correct.” 

…so that was the case, huh? 

“So, um… what’s this world like?” I asked. I started to feel a little excited, as I wanted to hear the perspective of another worlder like me. 

“...Inside the cities, it’s comfortable. However, that can’t be said about the outside world.” 

…I see… so if we get to a city, we’re safe? 

“You were honestly very unlucky, I must say,” Mister Alum said. His expression didn’t change much, but his tone told me the severity of the situation we were in…. 

“That monster is called ‘Pale Mimic’, and it took the form of an ‘Armoured Death Blade. And Pale Mimics tend to play around with its victims as well as mimic others it’s consumed.” 

….What? Those are some ominous names… I see… that’s why it could take Jack’s form…. 

“...You said you were a D-Ranked adventurer… but do monsters have ranks too?” 

“Yes, the Pale Mimic is originally a C-Ranked monster, though, probably a low B when it takes the form of the Death Blade, which usually hovers around A to AA.” 

‘Gulp….’ 

What the hell? Is it... Normal to be able to solo things above your rank? 

“I… see,” I don’t know if he’s lying or not… but that thing was fierce… and from the looks of it, he didn’t seem to look like a guy that would lie just to show off—

“...Can we get back to our world…?” Julia suddenly asked. 

…When did she get up?

“The possibility isn’t zero, albeit close to it since you didn’t arrive in this world through summoning.” 

“...How would you know that?” Julia asked with a grim face.

“Well… first off, there is something called divinity, and someone told me that there was a lack of it, and summoning magic requires that… that’s presumably why.” 

Julia was on the verge of tears hearing that, and she glanced at me. 

So… there is almost no chance for us to return to our world?

“...That someone… are they to be trusted…?” I asked, to confirm. 

Of course… I didn’t want to doubt the man that saved us, but I still had my doubts. 

“Well, he’s an ancient being. Basically, a demi-god who can destroy the world if he so wished… and I doubt he’d lie since there haven’t been any cases of summoning since the history of this calendar…..” 

…A demi-god? 

“I… see,” I replied. 

“Do you have more questions…?” Mister Alum asked. 

I shook my head. All of this was a little too much to take in at once… 

“I’m good… what about you, Julia?” 

She shook her head that was placed on my shoulder, and I could feel some moisture… so she was probably crying. 

And… honestly, I doubt she was the only one awake listening to our conversation. I looked at Miss Hilda’s sleeping face and then glanced at Mister Alum. 

I’m probably not in tears now because I had to look dependable to her and the others… honestly… I wanted to cry as well. 

“...Again… thank you for saving us,” I said, hoping that my gratitude reached him. 

“You’re welcome,” he said with a soft smile. 

And before I knew it, I had fallen asleep.