episode_0041

0.

Beyond the blurry vision, Altina’s tail, which had been wagging endlessly, appears to have stopped.

….Uh, what is it?

Before the feeling of discomfort crossed my mind, a word came out of my mouth.

“Arrival…”

After a long march, we finally arrived at the village.

As the tension released, my legs gave out and I collapsed to the ground.

“…We’re really arriving around the time the sun sets.”

“Right, Casselina? The sunset is really pretty because we came here just now. Exactly as I calculated.”

As Altina had boasted, we arrived at the village entrance just as the sun was setting.

I look up at the sky, where dense white clouds are dyed orange and burning like torches.

Everyone stops for a moment to admire the splendid scenery and watch the sunset.

“Hehehe…”

Altina, who was ahead, turned around to face me.

Then he said with a sinister smile and stretching out his hand.

…I was a little nervous because when that special smile comes out, there are often times when something mischievous comes out,

“Hand.”

It was just a favor to wake me up.

Let’s dispel the doubts about that favor, and the current scenery and Altina come together to create a single picture.

The red fox’s hair is a red and yellow color, like the fox’s.

A mysterious yet warm color like a sunset

A brilliant sunset now shines behind her.

The hair on her head shines like gold thread, and the wicked eyes in Altina’s face, darkened by the backlight, turn toward me.

He reaches out to me and draws sharp lines around his eyes and mouth.

“Hold my hand quickly.”

“Ah, ah yeah…..”

When I grabbed Altina’s small hand like that.

“Ouch…!”

Altina started to fall on top of me.

Just as applause requires a return of force to produce a sound, you need to apply force in return to attract people.

But it seems that Altina had no intention of raising him in the first place.

“Gyaaang~. What should I do? Kai is too strong~”

Because instead of giving me strength, he started to fall on top of me in a coquettish voice.

-Thud!

“…”

It was a sitting position to begin with.

Altina fell forward and pushed my shoulder, somehow managing to land on me.

When you are dumbfounded and speechless at an unimaginable turn of events.

“……Isn’t it pretty?”

Altina opened her mouth, baring her fangs.

He opened his mouth so desperately and drew a line, perfectly creating the picture he wanted.

I let my hair hang down in a flurry, shining against the most ardently burning, almost fading glow of the sunset.

Emitting one’s own scent over a short distance.

Shine the glow of sunset eyes.

“…….Uh. Too much.”

Without me knowing.

I answered as if I was literally possessed by a fox.

-Pusheeek!!!!

huh?

Where did the sound of steam escape come from?

“Ugh, ugh!!!! The sunset is so pretty! That’s right!!! This is the place I really wanted to show you!!! This is it!!!”

Altina jumped up and walked ahead with quick steps.

I was left behind after being knocked down.

And left a faint muttering.

“…..Pull out, I don’t usually do that…..”

ah.

I guess the goal was to calmly answer, “The sunset.”

But then an unexpected variable called an answer appeared.

Like a director who ruined the ending, Altina ran away when her plans went awry.

“Should I get up?”

Behind Altina, this time a hand full of genuine kindness is extended.

And as soon as I sat down and held that hand, the scenery before my eyes spun around and a completely different situation unfolded.

uh?

I looked around because I felt something was strange.

Behind us was a hut, and before our eyes there was a fire burning alone in the night.

When I tried to remember another cabin with a familiar structure,

“Kai. Should I eat dinner?”

Altina shoved the grilled fish next to my ear.

A silver fish was stuck in a crooked manner on a rough branch that looked as if it had just been cut down.

Is everyone preparing dinner?

As I looked around, thinking that I should do something too, Altina continued speaking.

“Now don’t just roast it, eat some too.”

“Huh?”

I looked at my strangely hot hands and saw that they were already covered in ash and salt.

Have you been busy grilling fish for a while?

“My arm hurts. Hurry up and listen.”

“Oh, oh. Thank you.”

When I awkwardly received the fish from Altina, the feeling of discomfort had disappeared.

No, I even forgot that I had felt uncomfortable in the first place.

So I picked up the silver fish that I had grilled myself.

Just like the video I saw before, the smelt is grilled with coarse salt, shaped like a fin, and slowly grilled close to the fire for a long time.

It was caught in midsummer, in season, and was fat and oily before the spawning season.

It is baked over a wood fire, so the outside is golden and crispy, and the inside is filled with melted intestines that soak into the meat.

-Bassac.

I broke the shell with my teeth, cut off a chunk of plump belly, and took a bite.

At the same time, the biggest characteristic that can be felt from silverfish.

The sweet scent lingers not in the nose but in the hot air that fills your mouth.

A subtle watermelon scent.

It blends with the flesh like a seasoning that leaves a refreshing scent rather than a strong, hot, sweet scent.

When you enjoy a meal that combines the subtle scent of watermelon and the soft flesh of salmon.

“Hehehe. Oh, I ate.”

Altina put two fingers together to make an index finger and covered her face.

An advanced strategy of hiding one’s face while pretending to cover one’s eyes.

I couldn’t understand why he was doing such a strange thing, so I put down the silver fish I was eating so deliciously.

And as I stared at Altina, she brought her mouth close to my ear and answered me.

“Is that a secret?”

…Whatever.

Are you going to combine the meaning that silver carp is good for stamina and the word “ssal silver carp” to make a sex joke?

“I caught it. Hehehe.”

ah.

I got hit again.

It became clear when he placed a hand on my shoulder at the same time he said those words.

“Do you understand what I mean?”

Now he was scratching my shoulder with his long nails and his voice was soft.

Ha, this is a perfect fit.

But here’s the even more creepy fact.

“…The reason you told me yourself was for this…?”

Altina says she’s been building up to perfecting this drip for half a year now.

Let me ask you my guess with a dumbfounded expression.

“After.”

“Ouch, ticklish.”

Altina stepped back, blowing the wind in her ears.

Let’s glare at Altina as if to protest, with goosebumps running down her spine.

Instead, he started staring at me.

…or more precisely, the fish in my hand that I have already taken a bite of and the corner of my mouth.

Let’s see how it goes.

Knowing this meaning, you can decide whether or not to eat the fish you have already ‘taken a bite of’.

If I eat it, it means something like that, but if I don’t eat it, it means that I am conscious of such intangible traditions.

“…”

A moment of thought.

And after a war of nerves between our eyes, I made up my mind.

If we think about Altina’s recent appearance, it would have been better to charge forward instead of gently scratching her.

He, in common parlance, is like a fox on the outside but a rabbit on the inside.

She dreams of a desirable appearance, but inside, she has a more girlish sensibility than anyone else.

-Wow.

He took another big bite without saying anything.

But it’s a clever idea of its own.

The part where the head and body of the fish connect, not the belly part, with subtle teeth marks.

It was delicately cut with the canines and front teeth.

An act that is much more obscene and provocative than you might think.

Did you move to Altina?

I also had a feeling that I had become an idiot, but I tried to ignore it.

‘So, what do you think? Show me your reaction! This time, you’ll blush and collapse with a squeak, right?’

Let’s look at Altina with a sidelong glance, thinking about that.

Something completely different from what I expected happened.

“….hee.”

Altina’s face didn’t turn red.

I was fooled by my own trick and didn’t feel ashamed.

She was just showing a loving smile, unable to contain her overflowing happiness.

Like a bride who has achieved my love.

He was showing off his innocent smile without any hesitation.

Altina’s face, illuminated by the red firewood, was filled with nothing but happiness.

“…What are you laughing at?”

I felt embarrassed for no reason, so I intentionally turned my gaze away.

The end of his gaze was directed to the back of Altina’s head.

huh?

Something is strange.

“Kai~ Why are you taking such a long time? You didn’t forget already, did you?”

“It’s simple.”

Then I ran the comb in my right hand through Altina’s hair.

After smoothing it out to create a soft texture, I divided it into three strands with my fingers and held them together.

“Is this how it’s done?”

“I don’t know what it is, but it’ll be right. Our youngest does it too?”

“How old is the youngest?”

“3 years old?”

“…”

Wow.

I braided my hair little by little, grumbling inside.

When I finished braiding all my hair that went down to my waist.

“…Can I tie it with this accessory?”

“Yeah. I explained the origin before, right?”

“This tradition was created after seeing the fox tribe jumping around with butterflies… Is that right? It was so long ago that I can’t remember.”

“Yeah, that’ll be about right.”

Then she takes out the butterfly-shaped hair tie that was in my arms.

When I went to the old village, I bought it for Altina, but I never actually used it.

It’s strange that I forgot about it for a while and am only asking for it today.

“Okay. Now, let’s finish.”

Hair neatly braided like a well-woven quilt.

It resembles a fox’s tail and also looks like a thread.

“Hehehe. Hehehe! Alright! You braided this. Right? Right, right? ”

“…Hey, honestly. Doesn’t this have some kind of weird meaning?”

Altina jumped up, stepped away, and turned her back to the sunset.

“…Secret!”

“Oh my.”

I thought I had been fooled by the fox’s trick again.

She was so happy that it didn’t matter what the hidden meaning was.