Demon Hunter (Teramachi Akeho)

Chapter 20

THE FESTIVAL AT DERUFOI

The Derufoi city was a city overflowing with liveliness .

Despite the cold weather that seemed it would start snowing, the main street was crowded with people . And what´s more, each person walking there was showing a smile . Whether it was the street stalls or shop windows, all was brilliantly decorated . The merchants using varied colorful masks and mantles would raise their voices, full of energy . As Riku looked at her surroundings with deep emotions, the little girl walking beside her let out a smile .

“It´s your first time being to this kind of place, isn´t it?”

With her face buried in her muffler, the girl whispered to Riku .

In reaction to the girl´s question, Riku showed a wry smile . In these ten years, whether it was training or going to war, all she had been doing was only either of those things . Even before that, she wouldn´t really leave the Barusak residence . She remembered participating in the festival promoted by the royal capital, although to Riku, it was a memory she didn´t like .

“That is true… I´ve never been to places of this kind too much . ”

“What, captain, you are wasting your life . Listen, from now on, I will teach you how to have fun . ”

Saying that, the girl pulled Riku´s hand . The girl advanced through the crowd of people as if she was already used to doing that . As the girl was walking, her blonde hair that was tied in twin-tails would be moving left and right at her back . At one glance, it felt she was a bit like an ojou-sama from some rich family, but the girl wasn´t just an ordinary ojou-sama . While holding her hat that felt like it was falling off her head, Riku whispered next to the girl´s ears .

“Um…Is it fine for Charlotte-sama to not use a hat?”

Her two magnificent horns located a bit above her ears were like they were a hair ornament, but they were clearly real horns and could be argued they were inhuman . After Riku asked her that, Charlotte gave a mischievous smile .

“Look your surroundings with more attention, captain . At this town, there is nobody worrying about my horns . After all, the day after tomorrow is the festival . ”

“Festival, you say?”

“That´s right . It´s a costume festival! Look, there are also other people already hasty for the festival . ”

Charlotte´s thin finger pointed straight to a crowd of people . Looking where the finger was pointing at, it was possible to see there was a boy wearing a headdress of a cow and a girl wearing fox gloves playing with each other . It was possible to see other people also wearing costumes now and then . Most likely, Charlotte´s horns were being mistook for it being only a costume .

“I see… That´s why you chose to come to this town?”

“Although there are other reasons as well . Hey, let´s go . ”

Charlotte went running full of energy straight to a shop stall . No matter how one would think, her appearance was only of a normal girl . While wondering if she was really born more than two hundred years ago, Riku followed after her . Looking behind, it was possible to immediately see that there was a group that was following them and was checking their situation at the back-alley . All of them were wearing the same long hood and were armed with swords . It was most likely Charlotte´s personal escorts Gortoberuk previously talked about . They looked almost like a group of kidnappers . Thinking about that, a memory she didn´t really want to remember surfaced in her mind . Trying to take those memories out of her mind , Riku averted her eyes from them .

“Captain, what are you taking so long for? Come quickly!”

“Yes, Charlotte-sama . ”

One by one, Charlotte was checking the stalls; she was happily looking around at the festival .

While chewing a bird skewer that had Tare sauce*1 on it, she picked up a pendant she got interested in, which was made of gems that were visibly cheap and had parts coated in gold . Naturally, to her, who would actually use real ones,*2 there was no way she would buy it, and actually went there only to make fun of the shop .

“It´s fine for you to buy what you want . However, I will subtract the payment from your wages . ”

So said Charlotte, but there was nothing she particularly wanted to buy . She thought of buying a souvenir to Leivein, but she didn´t think there would be anything he would be happy to receive from those shops .

“That´s right . If there are weapons or the sort, it might be good to check it out…”

“Haa… Captain, you should forget about things related to war for the moment . Otherwise, there would be no meaning for you to not have brought your weapon here . ”

With Charlotte´s response that was accompanied with a sigh, Riku showed a wry smile .

The halberd she had been long using was left at an inn far from the city . Even if the city was crowded with people using costumes, a girl wielding a halberd would be too much suspicious . Therefore, right now, Riku was only wearing clothes a normal girl at a town would . If danger came towards Charlotte, all she needed to do was to defend her with her bare hands . The demon banning arts didn´t have effect on Riku, and if she were to buy enough time, the escorts that are tailing after them would do something .

“Understood, Charlotte-sama . ”

Sounds of different timbres were resounding throughout the town . Before the festival, the town was this much lively already, but when the actual festival starts, it should liven up even more . Putting her hands that seemed to be becoming numb by the cold in her pocket, she walked next to Charlotte, somewhat behind . And then, putting off finding something suitable to Leivein to tomorrow, she started to consider buying souvenirs for Vrusto and her other subordinates .

“Hm! Captain, look at that!!”( むっ)

Charlotte stopped in front of one of the stalls .

It was a shoot the target game . There were many prizes being laid there, and in front of them, at the counter, there was a short bow . *3Charlotte had her eyes glued at a cute teddy bear, which was one of the prices . Absentmindedly gazing at the teddy bear, she looked like a girl in love . Riku became stunned . She was wondering if person that was now that restless over the stuffed toy was really the one leading the Demon Lord army .

“Oh, ojou-chans! Won´t you come play shooting the target?*4 It´s three copper coins each try . ”

As the stallholder looked at Charlotte, his eyebrows loosened .

After thinking for a few seconds, she firmly pulled Riku´s sleeve .

“Captain, It´s an order . Shoot down that target . ”

“…Isn´t it fine to just buy a teddy bear similar to that one?”

“It´s not! This is a fated encounter!! If it´s not that one, then it´s not the same!!”

“…”

Too much surprised, Riku became unable to say anything .

She once again wondered whether that selfish girl really was the one leading the whole Demon Lord army . Flustered by such doubts, she held herself from putting them into words . If she were to pick ill intent now, Gortoberuk, who had recommended her… Didn´t really matter . But Leivein, who had recommended her to Gortoberuk, would get part of the bad reputation . She mustn´t let Leivein´s evaluation go down because of her .

“Hey, captain! Quickly, shoot it down!”

“…Yes . ”

The target was small and seemed to be a bit hard to hit . Even with that said, it wasn´t that she didn´t have experience using a bow . By using three shots, she should be able to hit it . Riku leaned down and was about to get the bow .

But…

“The ojou-san there, could I go in your place?”

The bow her hand was about to hold was taken by someone beside her .

“Eh? Bu-but even if you get it, I won´t give it up to someone like you! That bear is mine!!”

“Yes, of course . I just wanted to give you a hand . Besides…”

The boy shot the arrow . Flying through the air, it hit the target right at the center .

“Oh, a great hit! It was very amazing, onii-chan . Here, take it . ”

The stallholder gave the teddy bear to the silver haired boy . Receiving the teddy bear, the boy gently gave it to Charlotte .

“Yes, it´s this one, right? The special teddy bear you wanted . ”

“U, umu . I-I won´t say any thanks . ”*5

Charlotte´s cheeks blushed .

Hugging the teddy bear, this time she had her eyes glued at the silver haired boy .

“Hm? Is there something in my face?”

“There is no such thing! Mo-more importantly, where did you learn how to use the bow like that? I saw you did it very skillfully . ”

As she asked that, the silver haired boy hung his head down . From Riku´s angle, she couldn´t see the boy´s face, but she felt an unpleasant feeling spreading in her heart . Riku immediately took Charlotte´s hand and intended to leave this place, but Riku couldn´t move . As if the world had stopped, she couldn´t move from that place .

“Yes, I learned it from my childhood friend… She used to be much better than me . ”

“Used to be, you say?”

Noticing his use of past tense, she inquired about this point within the reasonable limit . As if he was feeling hatred about something, the silver haired boy raised his face .

“Yes, she is… Already dead . At the Myuuz castle battle, she…”

A single tear fell from the boy´s eyes . Charlotte glanced at Riku for an instant . She was showing a face of someone that seemed to want to say something .

The possibilities were very limited on that crossbow girl being his childhood friend . There were very high chances of Riku being the killer . Although there was somebody that had a connection to someone she had killed right in front of her eyes, she didn´t feel anything in particular .

More than that, there were no doubts that this childhood friend of that archery expert who participated at the Myuuz battle had connections with the spiritualists . As Riku was winking, trying to make an eye signal, Charlotte opened her mouth .

“…Do you have resentments for that?”

“…I don´t know . But I think it would be better for this miserable thing to end already . ”

“Miserable?”

As if the message of Riku´s winking did not reach her, Charlotte kept talking . Riku was preparing herself to kill that person who had connections with the spiritualists at any moment . She was only waiting for the order .

But Charlotte didn´t show any signs she would be giving any orders .

“Yes . I think it´s miserable how the spiritualists and demons fight, washing blood with blood . ”

The boy was muttering his conviction . As if Charlotte had been captivated by it, she was attentively listening to his conversation . Riku suddenly got the feeling they should get away from here as soon as possible . Thinking this decision must be the correct one, she patted Charlotte´s little shoulder .

“Charlotte-sama, soon we should…”

“Captain, I want to talk to this guy . Sorry, but can´t you step aside?”

Riku was amazed by Charlotte´s declaration . She wanted to be together with that suspicious spiritualist alone . She didn´t know what was going to happen to Charlotte from now on, but she had the responsibility of dealing with any unexpected incidents, and so, in turn, it would be Leivein´s responsibility . From anything that could happen, only that she needed to avoid at any costs . Riku was desperately persisting .

“But, Charlotte-sama!

“How insistent! This is an order! If not, then what, captain . . ? What would you be scheming by defying my command?”

Charlotte was glaring at Riku . During that moment, the escorts that should have been following both of them from behind tried to held her down . It was a great amount of strength being used at her, but it was still to the point of her to be able to easily shook it off .

“Let me go!”

Riku put strength into her arms . Shaking them off was easier than twisting the arm of a baby . However, when she was able to get free again, Charlotte´s figure was already nowhere to be seen .

…She had already gone together with the silver haired boy she was talking to before .