As we walked down the dirt track toward what looked like the Kingdom of Lugunica in the distance, I slumped my head down the whole way, despairing about the world I was transported to. I didn't even know whether it was good that at least Arc 3 hadn't happened yet since the tree was still standing.
No way I would be so lucky that I can just live a relatively quiet life. I mean, I was transmigrated here, so I'm probably gonna have a part to play in all this... I sighed and walked straight, thinking about what I had to do first when we entered Lugunica. We needed money too, of course.
"Finally picked your head up straight, ehh~? I assume you know where this place is, since you randomly shouted my name like that? Appreciate that, by the way." He giggled to himself as we walked side by side, looking like the most odd yet somehow matching companions.
"Yeah, I guess you could say that. I've never been here, but all you need to know is that this is a dangerous world, worse than our previous ones..." I said seriously to him, which he actually seemed to acknowledge, though he dropped the topic. But now there was the other problem...
"Walking takes too long! Isn't there a faster way to reach there!? When I suggested I change my form to get us there faster, you declined because 'too suspicious' or some other shit. So, any other bright ideas??" He practically shouted his frustration out loud, but he was kind of correct. I did suggest walking instead, but this was taking longer than I thought it would.
"I'm just trying to keep us safe, he—" I was going to argue back before we turned toward the sound of trotting 'horses,' which I suspected was just an earth dragon-mounted caravan being driven by a merchant. Although it was moving considerably fast, it was still quite a distance away from us.
Before I could wave for help, Mahito touched my shoulder with a knowing smirk, which I knew meant trouble. "Just watch how quickly I solve our little dilemma~" He made a shushing motion with his finger as we waited for the merchant to come closer.
"You a traveler or something? We have been getting a lot of them recently." The merchant spoke down from his seat as he stopped in front of us. He had a deep voice and a solid build, suggesting that he'd been doing this labor for a while. But nothing could have prepared him for what was going to happen next.
"We're pretty new in this area and we have no means of transport, so I was wondering if we could hitch a ride with you," I said politely while Mahito curiously checked out the earth dragon in front like a little child. I wasn't naive, and I knew he was planning some way to get this guy's caravan, and he was going to make it as sadistic as possible. But a part of me hoped that maybe he was different because he was summoned by me.
"Kid, you don't understand our language or something? What do you mean 'we'?" My eyes widened in realization. I completely forgot that Curses were invisible to normal people. Meanwhile, Mahito rolled his eyes at me and stuck out his tongue for finally remembering, knowing that I had just made myself look stupid.
"Whatever. You know how rough this business is. I expect some compensation. How about one silver?" the merchant replied. I was disappointed but understood his predicament. Not everyone in the goods and services business was going to hit it big.
Suddenly, my eyes snapped to Mahito, where I could see his hands glowing slightly, and the face of the earth dragon changed before returning to normal as if nothing had happened. He definitely used his Cursed Technique on it!
Since the merchant's attention was mostly on me, and humans can't see Curses, he couldn't notice what had happened. Mahito then walked back to my side before smiling at me innocently.
I should've been angry or tried to stop him, but I genuinely didn't want to risk rejecting Mahito any further. I don't know how friendly he actually is toward me. He could still easily kill me if he wanted to. So, in conclusion, it's better if he dies than me...
"I'm so sorry," I said as I looked down at my feet. He seemed confused before turning his head toward his earth dragon, which suddenly became erratic.
"Hey, girl, calm down!" He tried to calm it, and then suddenly his eyes widened in horror as his precious earth dragon looked back at him. Its face was completely disfigured, one of its eyes missing and its skin rotting. He couldn't say any more words as the now-transfigured earth dragon leapt up and bit down on him mercilessly.
I couldn't bear to see the gruesome sight. All I heard were his screams of agony and him shouting at me to help him. The worst part was hearing Mahito clapping and cheering the dragon on as she tore apart her former master.
I crouched down and covered my ears, trying to bury my head in my chest, trying to ignore everything I was hearing, trying to convince myself it wasn't my fault that a completely innocent man was dying so unnecessarily painfully in front of me.
"ithadtobedoneithadtobedoneITHADTOBEDONEITHADTOBEDONENOTMYFAULTNOTMYFAULT—!" I rambled quietly to myself. I was barely an adult, and now I had just lured a completely innocent man into a torturous death—and for what? His dragon and caravan? We could've just stolen it...
I knew this was going to happen when I realized my summon was Mahito, so why am I so pathetic now? Why did I think Mahito would be even a slight bit merciful!? He probably had a wife and kid waiting for him at home, friends still waiting to share their experiences, and now? We just took it all away. And it's all because of me... because I was inwardly glad that he would die instead of me.
These thoughts constantly plagued my mind as I sat in the driver's seat of the caravan, the transfigured earth dragon pulling it on its own, its increased strength making the journey faster. I sat listlessly, letting the wind hit my face as I looked down at the 'monster.' Its face was now back to normal, and the blood and body of the merchant were also gone, probably thanks to the Curse sleeping casually at the back.
I closed my eyes and tried to sleep as well, uncomfortably certain that the now-transfigured earth dragon could fend off any trivial threat. I didn't have nightmares about his gruesome death or recollections of happy memories. All I could dream about was when I would become strong enough to fully take control of my situation.
Let's hope I don't get any more lunatics...