Chapter 3: Picking Up a Child in Another World, Part 1

Peeking cautiously from behind a wall, Irumi looked out at the plaza and saw an unbelievable scene.

In the center of the plaza, a gaunt, emaciated child lay collapsed on the ground. A group of adults surrounded the child, hurling insults and beating and kicking them mercilessly.

The horrific sight triggered a memory Irumi didn't want to recall, and he instinctively covered his mouth.

"Dad, stop! Don't hit Mom!"

Unbelievably, the onlookers in the crowd were laughing. Even a woman holding a child of similar age sneered, calling the beaten child a "monster."

When one man raised an axe toward the child, Irumi snapped out of his daze and shouted, "Stop!"

He leaped in front of the child without thinking. One of the men attacking spoke up.

"Get out of the way. This thing is a monster born of a beast and a human. Look at those horns."

Following the man's pointed finger, Irumi saw the collapsed child had wine-red hair with two black, goat-like horns protruding from it. Fangs peeked out from their closed mouth. Indeed, they didn't seem entirely human.

"So what? Ganging up on a kid like this is insane."

The townspeople looked at Irumi as if he were mad, exchanging puzzled glances.

"Who are you? Your face looks foreign. An outsider?"

"Kids with beast blood grow up cruel, savage, and evil, even if raised by a saintess. That's why we kill them before they grow up. Move."

The man raised his axe again, but Irumi stood silently in front of the child, unmoving. The crowd, frustrated at having their cruel spectacle interrupted, turned their anger on him.

"I said move!"

"You wanna die too?!"

A stone flew from somewhere, hitting Irumi's temple. More stones followed, and soon the crowd's assault escalated to punches and kicks.

"Ghh…"

Irumi shielded the child with his body, realizing he might die. In this world, you had to protect yourself. Desperately, he raised his hand and focused, summoning that underwhelming ability of his—a warm light.

Pouring all his strength into it, a blinding flash enveloped the area.

"What the…?"

Dazzled, the crowd closed their eyes and stepped back. The light didn't do anything beyond that, but it served as a distraction.

"What was that light?"

"Holy light? No, it can't be…"

The crowd muttered in shock, but Irumi had no time to care. Seizing the moment while they were stunned, he scooped up the limp child and ran like a startled rabbit.

Blood streamed from his nose after being brutally kicked. His back and stomach throbbed with pain, and nausea welled up. The child was barely breathing, likely unconscious from the beating or starvation. Irumi wanted to get them to a doctor, but the risk of them being killed made it impossible.

He ran relentlessly into the forest, following marks he'd secretly carved on trees, and reached the dilapidated shack he used as a hideout.

Finding this shack was pure luck. Until a month ago, he'd slept on the streets, but the rampant crime—near robberies and assaults—made it impossible to rest.

The forest at night was supposedly dangerous due to beasts, and even the toughest locals avoided it. So Irumi found it safer than the town. He stayed inside the shack at night, and strangely, he'd never encountered a beast. Once, a large bird-like creature attacked from above, but his mysterious light startled it into fleeing.

While searching for edible fruit in the forest, he'd found this abandoned shack. It was small but had a hearth and basic furnishings, though the table and chairs were rickety.

He laid the child on a makeshift bed of gathered leaves covered with tattered cloth. He started a fire in the hearth with water from a nearby stream to warm the room. In this world, magic stones were cheap and made fire-starting easy.

After finishing, there was no sign of pursuit. Relieved to have escaped, Irumi let out a deep sigh and slumped to the floor. The moment he relaxed, the pain he'd ignored surged back. He hadn't noticed in his frenzy, but he was injured all over, his shirt soaked with blood.

(Ugh, my only good shirt…)

He'd need to wash it in the river, but he lacked the energy now. Sitting on the floor, he watched the child, who slept deeply. Touching their forehead, he felt a fever, so he lifted their bangs to place a damp cloth on it.

(Still… what an incredibly beautiful boy…)

The townspeople called him a beast's child, but his angelic beauty, like something out of a religious painting, left Irumi awestruck, forgetting the situation. The black horns suited his otherworldly appearance perfectly.

As he watched, the boy's long lashes fluttered, and he opened his eyes. They were blood-red with needle-like pupils.

"Hey, you're awa—"

Before Irumi could finish, the boy shoved him with surprising strength for a child. Irumi's body flew back, crashing into the wall with a low groan.

As he struggled to get up, the boy approached, stepping on his shoulder to pin him to the floor.

"Who are you?"

The boy's guard was up, radiating hostility. It made sense—waking up after being lynched by adults to find a stranger nearby would scare and alarm anyone.

Clutching his aching head, Irumi calmly explained.

"I'm just someone who happened to be there. You were hurt, and it was dangerous to stay, so I brought you here. If you have a home to return to, tell me. Once your fever's down, I'll take you there. For now, please rest."

But the boy ignored him and moved toward the door. Irumi hurriedly blocked it.

"The forest is dangerous at night. Can you at least wait until morning?"

Crouching to meet his eyes, Irumi spoke.

"I'm Irumi Sakuma. What's your name?"

He tried his best to smile reassuringly, but the boy said nothing, clearly distrusting him. It was understandable—child abductions under the guise of "protection" happened even in Japan, so the boy's wariness was natural.

Judging by the hatred in his eyes, he'd likely been betrayed by humans before.

"Where have you been living? With who?"

"…"

An orphan, perhaps? Yet, despite his youth, he had an oddly refined air, an aura that made one want to serve him. Regardless, Irumi felt he had to take responsibility for the boy until a guardian was found.

Then, the boy stared at him closely and asked suspiciously, "Just to be sure… you're not a woman, are you?"

Irumi had never been mistaken for a woman before, but his slim build might have caused confusion in this world. Smiling, he replied, "Huh? Oh, no. Just a regular guy."

"…Then I'll leave without hesitation."