After walking through the forest for about an hour, I finally found a tower built on top of a hill.

　The roof of that tower is a cone shape that looks like a triangle.

(Looks pretty old, doesn't it?)

　A lot of plant ivy was tangled in the stone exterior walls.

　I approached what seemed to be the entrance to the tower.

　There was a massive door with a Kannon opening.

''..........''

　But it's covered with a lot of ivy there too.

(I mean, no one has been in and out of this tower for a long time... that's proof, right?)

　slumping

　I'm still depressed.

　I still tried to go inside, but

　Guh, guh.........

(...tsu, I can't break the ivy.)

　The tangled ivy was strong and didn't break into a thousand pieces even if he pulled with all his might.

　This would be impossible even for an adult's muscle strength.
　.........Plants, strong.

''What should I do?''

　Distressed, I went around the back of the tower.

(Oh?)

　The second floor of the tower had collapsed and cracks were forming.

　There was a pile of crumbling debris, so it looked like we could use that as a foothold to get in.

(Okay, let's go!)

　I managed to scramble up the debris, struggling to stretch the kid's short limbs.

　After nearly falling several times, I finally make it through the crack and into the tower.

'Phew.'

　It was in the middle of a spiral staircase that had been built inside the tower.

　The stairs stretched up and down, with a vaulted center section.

(Oh?)

　Inside the dimly lit tower, for some reason, only the downstairs was brighter.　　

　What could it be?

　Knock, knock, knock.

　My feet descended the stairs to the bottom of the stairs as if they were being sucked in.


　◇ ◇◇◇◇◇◇◇◇◇◇


　The first floor had been turned into a chapel.

　Decaying couches and other objects were lying around.

　At the front of the chapel, on a raised platform, was a human-sized statue of a goddess.

　That goddess statue was shining.

(Oh... what was that!

　It's the first time I've seen this fantastical scene and I'm a little excited.

　I approach the goddess statue with my eyes shining, hoping that maybe I can hear the goddess's voice.......

''.........''

　I soon realized.

　It wasn't the goddess statue that was glowing.

　It was water spilling from the goddess statue's hands.

　The glowing water fell onto the shell-shaped pedestal at her feet and pooled like a small pool.

　Too bad.

　It wasn't as much of a fantasy as I thought it would be.

　But I'd never seen glowing water before, either.

(Hmmm?)

　If you look closely, you'll notice a small hole in the goddess statue's wrist, through which water comes out. There is also a drainage ditch in the shell base.

　Perhaps they are circulating water from a spring underground?

　Then I was peering into it, and I suddenly realized.

　In that glowing surface of the water, I saw the reflection of a boy I had never seen before.

''..........''

　He's a boy of about ten years old with brown hair.

　An ordinary face of Asian descent.

　His blue eyes are striking, and he looks a bit like a mature puppy.

(Heh.....)

　I stroked my face.

　The boy did the same and stroked his own face as well.

　I couldn't help but laugh because it was so funny, even though it was so obvious.

"Ha-ha. Yeah, it's nice to meet you from now on.

　The reincarnated me, reflected on the surface of the water, still smiled back at me in the same way.


　◇ ◇ ◇ ◇ ◇ ◇ ◇ ◇ ◇ ◇ ◇.


　There were two other rooms connected to the tower's chapel.

　Open the door of one of them.

　It was a living space.　　

　There was a broken bed, an old desk, and a bookcase.

　Although the room was covered in dust, there were definitely traces of a person's former life there.

'Ah, the books.'

　There were only a few books on the bookshelf, books that seemed to have been forgotten.

　I pick one up.

　Bharallah.

　The string that was binding the paper was weak, it snapped and the paper spread out on the floor.

　...........

(I'm sorry.)

　In my mind's eye, I apologize to the owner of the book who is not here.

　I regain my composure and take another book.

'Hmm?'

　On the cover of that book, which had never been broken, there was a magic circle on it.　　

　It was similar to the magic circle in "The Stone Pedestal".

　When I flipped through it, I saw a line of characters I'd never seen before and many magic circle figures.

(Ah.........these letters were also used in that magic circle, weren't they?

　That time I stroked it with my hand, so it looked familiar.

..........

　I looked at the room again.

　In other words, this tower must have been built in the same year as that "stone pedestal" was built.

(.........were there many worshippers in those days?)

　I feel a little sad thinking about the abandoned chapel.

　I let out a breath and put the book on the desk.

(Hmm?)

　And then I noticed a drawer in that desk.　

　Gakoch.

　I pulled it out and inside were three small pendants.

''It's ... beautiful.''

　It was a simple structure, just a string attached to a transparent blue gemstone that looked like a marble.

　There were glowing letters floating inside the gemstone, and the entire gemstone also glowed faintly.

(Why is it glowing?)

　It's very intriguing, but if you take it out without permission, you're a thief.

　After looking at it for a while, I put the pendant away in a drawer.　　

　I searched the room after that, but I didn't find anything else of note.

　I left the living space.


　◇ ◇ ◇ ◇ ◇ ◇ ◇ ◇ ◇ ◇ ◇


　The other room was the kitchen.

(Water, food!)

　I searched frantically, but there was nothing on the shelves, and the contents of the big bottle were empty.

　I am often depressed.

　What I found were wooden forks, knives and dishes.

　They are unlikely to be weapons of self-defense.

Let's move on.

　I left the kitchen, dragging my heavy legs behind me.

　Next, I head to the top of the spiral staircase.

　Knock, knock, knock.

　With the sound of footsteps, we eventually arrived at what seemed to be the topmost watchtower.

　There were pillars at all four corners and a roof over it.

　A chain hung down in the center, which I guessed was because a bell tower had once hung there.

　From the watchtower, I looked out.

'....Wow.

　I couldn't help myself.

　A great forest as far as the eye could see.

　A carpet of green foliage stretched far beyond the horizon. In the distance, the blue haze of the mountains could finally be seen.

(How many dozens of miles are there?)

　This is a nature that cannot be found in Japan.

　And, to my horror, I couldn't find anything man-made anywhere in that forest.

(............)

　What a place to be reincarnated, me.

　Three directions were like that.

　But the one direction that remained was a little different.

(Is that a cliff?)

　At the end of the forest, which continued for some time from here, there was a huge cliff.

　Even at this distance, it was clearly visible, and the height of its wall was 50 meters. Maybe even 100 meters high.

　It continued to the left and right, to the edge of the horizon.

(..............like a prison wall to keep me in.

　And the other side of the cliff is a forest again.

　Is this what despair is all about...?

　I slump into place.

'....I'm thirsty.

　I muttered.

　From what I could see from here, there didn't seem to be any rivers, ponds or lakes nearby.　

　That fact stimulated my thirst again.

　Even though it was my first day of living in another world, I walked through the forest and explored the buildings with the body of an unaccustomed child.

　I was quite exhausted.

(.........it can't be helped. Let's take a leap of faith and try it out.)

　In a fit of desperation, I stood up.


　◇ ◇ ◇ ◇ ◇ ◇ ◇ ◇ ◇ ◇　


　I came to the statue of the Goddess.

　In her small hands, there was a wooden bowl I had gotten from the kitchen, which was now filled to the brim with glowing water.

(...........)

　I stare at the surface of the water unconsciously, uneasily.

　It's beautiful and shiny, but it still takes courage to drink the ungainly water.

(But it's only a matter of time.)

　If I can't drink this glowing water, I will die of dehydration in the not too distant future.

　With that in mind, even if this is a poison, it only makes the difference between dying late and dying early.

'Yeah. I've already died once anyway.

　I prepared myself and put the bowl to my mouth.

　Cock.

　Take a sip.



　Instantly, I stiffened.

'Tasty!'

　The glowing water was sweet and refreshing.

　I couldn't find any pain or physical ailments anywhere.

　Gurgle, gurgle, gurgle.

　I couldn't help but drink several cups of it.

　Drinking this glowing water seemed to mysteriously make not only my thirst disappear, but my hunger disappear as well.

(It's like magic water!)

　After ten drinks, I'm finally satisfied.

　As I'm letting out a big breath, I suddenly notice the eyes staring at me.

(Ah.)

　I straightened up and clasped my hands on the goddess statue.

　I bowed deeply and thanked her.

Thank you for the meal. It was very good. Thank you very much.

　...........

　Of course, the Goddess didn't say anything, she just continued to stare at me quietly, but.......　


　◇ ◇◇◇◇◇◇◇◇◇◇◇


　That night, I was looking up at the night sky from my watchtower.

　The sky was full of stars, something that would never happen in the city.

　There, I could see two moons floating in the sky, shining beautifully in red and white.

(.........It's really a different world.

　I realized that.

　I realized that I hadn't transplanted to any part of the earth, it was a complete unknown.

''..........''

　Her memories of her previous life are vague.

　Still, I feel a pang of loneliness at the reality of never being able to return to Japan again.

(...It's okay, it's okay.)

　bang

　I realize I'm feeling down and slap my cheek.

　If I let my anxiety take over, I won't be able to walk anymore.

'Alright, let's get some sleep tonight!

　I said that aloud, and I stood up.

　And that's when.

(.........Huh?)

　In the forest below, I see a strange purple light.

　The forest is all black at night.

　The forest at night was all black, and there was a flickering purple light.

　Looking at that light, for some reason, I feel a pain in my chest.

''........Ah.

　No, upon closer inspection, a strange purple light was born here and there in the vast forest.

(............)

　Without a second thought, he crouched down and hid behind the wall of the watchtower.

　Boom, boom, boom.

　Why is that?

　My heart beats so much harder.

　I don't know what that light was. It just felt like something not so good.

　The purple lights still flickered in the jet black forest.

　...........

''Yeah, let's wait until tomorrow to find out for sure.

　As expected, I don't have the courage to walk out in the forest at night.

　I let out a deep breath and walked down the spiral staircase.

　I fill a wooden bowl in the kitchen with glowing water and leave several on the stairs, so the light is perfect.

　I decide to sleep in front of the brightest statue of the goddess.

　Rustle.

　There was a lot of leaves piled up there.

　The 'leaf bedding'.

　It looked like it was going to be hard to sleep on the hard stone floor, so I gathered them up near the tower while there was still daylight.

'Oh?　It's surprisingly comfortable to sleep in.

　I lay back down and was a little surprised.

　It's so much softer than I thought it would be and I can't help but laugh.

　I close my eyes as it is.

'Well, good night then.'

　Without saying a word to anyone, I muttered and then exhaled heavily.

　I was so tired that I quickly fell asleep in front of the statue of the Goddess watching over me.

　The first day of my otherworldly life came to an end like this.

　-- but the really hard part happened the next day.