By Zephyria 
I went out confidently, but it was too cold, so I couldn’t even take a long walk. I returned to the store and lazed around in my blanket until the sun quickly set.
I thought we were all moving together, but it turned out that only Sakira, Abyss, and I were going today. The remaining staff would organize the store a bit more and come in a few days.
The three of us rode in a carriage for a while until we reached a large open space. The first thing I saw were five men wearing long robes and a floor with a circular pattern drawn on it. The sun had already set, but the area was brightly lit by the surrounding torches.
Abyss got out of the carriage and was talking to the men, while Sakira and I waited inside for a moment. As I was looking at the unidentified pattern outside, Sakira said,
“It’s a teleportation magic circle. We came here using it too, but you don’t remember, do you? You had such severe motion sickness that we considered traveling by land, but the distance was too far. And there are too many monsters around.”
“Monsters?”
“This mountain is a complete monster den.”
Monsters? I’ve never seen one before. Is it because I never go outside?
As if reading my thoughts, Sakira smiled.
“Abyss periodically cleared the area. There were also many people on guard. It’s not difficult to protect one area, but when traveling by carriage, there are too many variables. Please bear with it, even if it’s uncomfortable.”
“How bad was my motion sickness?”
“You threw up several times on the way here.”
“……”
Seeing my complexion worsen, Sakira added,
“You weren’t in good health back then, so it was worse. You’re much better now, so you probably won’t throw up. Probably…”
Right, I’m taking that terrible, thick medicine three times a day, so motion sickness is nothing… I tried to think positively, but then I suddenly became curious and asked,
“But why did you open a store in a place like this?”
I thought I hadn’t seen any customers because I didn’t go outside much, but it turned out that it was strange for customers to come to this location in the first place. I couldn’t understand why they opened a store in the middle of a monster den.
But the question was quickly answered.
“There’s a medicinal herb that only grows here. You have to take it regularly, so we had no choice but to move our residence. You’re much better now, so you don’t have to take it every day like before.”
At those words, I asked in surprise,
“I don’t have to take it every day?”
“Yes, we’ll have to monitor your progress to be sure, but you’ll only have to take that liquid once or twice occasionally now. Instead, you’ll have to take more pills from now on, so please understand that.”
As long as it wasn’t that thick stuff, I wouldn’t mind taking a hundred more pills a day.
“Wow, finally…”
I was so moved that I wanted to cry, but no tears came out, so I just dabbed at my eyes with the back of my hand when the carriage door opened.
“We’re about to move soon. Do you have everything?”
Abyss asked, looking at me. I had nothing, so there was nothing I could have left behind.
“Yeah, I have everything. Do I need to get out?”
“No, just stay in the carriage. We’re moving the entire carriage, so it’ll be quick once we release the horses.”
“Release the horses?”
“There will be other horses waiting when we arrive. It takes three more Wizards to move the horses together.”
I didn’t know what that meant, but I nodded, guessing what he meant. It seemed that the more people there were, the more difficult the teleportation magic circle became.
“Shall we depart then?”
I asked, looking at Abyss, who was checking one last time.
“Aren’t you riding?”
“I’ll be in the driver’s seat. Tell Sakira if you feel sick.”
I nodded, and Abyss closed the carriage door. He even drew the curtains, so I couldn’t see anything outside. Sakira took out a thick cloth bag for me to use in case of an emergency. Was I supposed to throw up in this?
I clenched the cloth, determined to endure no matter what, when I suddenly felt like my body was floating. It wasn’t that my body was actually floating, but that’s how it felt.
I suddenly felt sick, but it wasn’t unbearable. I closed my eyes and endured it when the carriage door suddenly opened.
“We’ve arrived.”
I opened my eyes and turned my head to see Abyss smiling. Beyond his shoulder, I could see a bright blue sky and trees. It was night when we left, but it was day when we arrived.
I didn’t know if that much time had passed or if the difference between day and night was due to the distance. I wanted to ask, but I couldn’t open my mouth because I still felt nauseous.
“It’s safe here, so you can open the window. Would you like to come down for a moment?”
I wondered if I would feel better if I stood on the ground, so I got out of the carriage. It was much warmer than where we had been, but the wind was still cold, so I instinctively hunched over.
But the unfamiliar man who was connecting the horses to the carriage was wearing a thin short-sleeved shirt. I asked Sakira, who had gotten out with me,
“What season is it?”
“Late summer? It’s almost autumn. Are you very cold?”
Now that I thought about it, Sakira and Abyss were also wearing thin clothes.
“Why am I so cold? Is this related to my illness?”
“It could be, but you’ve always been sensitive to the cold since you were a child. It’s also colder in the mountains than in the city.”
Sakira came over to me, put a cloak around me, and tied the strings tightly in front. At that moment, Abyss, who had disappeared somewhere for a moment, jumped out of the bushes.
“Try eating these.”
In his palm were small, red berries. Seeing them, I suddenly realized that I had seen this scene somewhere before. Did this happen often before I lost my memory?
“Have you picked berries for me often?”
Abyss nodded, looking puzzled.
“I used to pick them for you sometimes. I’ve also caught rabbits and grilled them for you.”
At those words, I brought the small berries up to my eyes and examined them closely. The red berries seemed familiar, but also not.
Red…
Now that I thought about it, red had appeared in my dreams too. I couldn’t remember what was red. Was it the sky? The ground? It felt like it was someone’s eyes… Or was it just berries like these?
I stared intently for a long time, but nothing else came to mind. I put one in my mouth and chewed it. It didn’t taste like much, but it was fun to pop them in my mouth, so I kept eating them.
“Should I pick some more? There are many nearby…”
That’s when it happened.
I heard a sharp, piercing bird cry from far away. It wasn’t very loud, but Abyss reacted so strongly that I was startled as well.
I dropped all the berries I was holding and was about to bend down to pick them up when I heard the sharp cry again.
“Go inside.”
“What?”
“Now!”
“…?”
Was he this panicked just because he heard a bird cry? Sakira forcibly pushed me into the carriage, and I saw Abyss draw the sword he had at his waist.
Following his gaze, I raised my head and saw a huge bird, whether it was a hawk or an eagle, diving down with its large wings spread.
With one last sharp cry, as if screaming, the carriage door closed. It became quiet as if nothing had happened. And the moment the carriage lurched violently, light burst out of the window.
Even though I hadn’t drawn the curtains, the outside of the window was blurry and I couldn’t see anything.
“This is a safe zone, so where did it suddenly come from?”
Sakira frowned and muttered to herself.
“Isn’t it just a bird?”
“There are no birds that big. It’s probably a monster.”
Now that I thought about it, I was too flustered to notice earlier, but it seemed quite large, so much so that the perspective felt strange even though it was quite far away.
“Anyway, just wait a little bit. Abyss will take care of it. The carriage has Protection magic on it, so it’s safe.”
“Won’t he get hurt?”
“Oh, come on. And even if he gets hurt a little, it’ll heal quickly if he puts on medicine. He used to fight things much bigger than that…”
Sakira started talking, smiling brightly as if trying to reassure me, thinking I was anxious.
But I didn’t hear a word she said. It wasn’t because I was worried about Abyss. It was because I suddenly felt like I had seen that bird somewhere before.
I don’t think it was that big… But if it’s small, isn’t it just a common bird? It didn’t look particularly special. If it’s a bird, I would have seen it anywhere.
“There are also monsters with green skin. They look a bit like pigs…”
“…Pigs?”
“Yes, green pigs.”
“……”
What is it? Something about pigs too… No, but pigs themselves are common animals without anything special like birds…
“What’s wrong?”
Sakira asked as I kept tilting my head with a strange expression. I stared blankly at her and asked without realizing it,
“Are you sure they’re green pigs? Are they white by any chance?”
“Huh?”
“Maybe not?”
“I’ve never heard of white monster pigs.”
Did I misunderstand?