A recap of the story so far.
I stepped out for a stroll after beating some basic etiquette into my insolent disciple, only to find someone suspiciously loitering around. I went to investigate, wondering who it could be, only to find a pathetic soul who had decided to use someone else's front yard as their own grave!
Just who could this person be?
"Sob, hic… sniff… waaaaaah… hnnng…! Ugh, *cough*…!"
'She's really crying her eyes out.'
Seriously, who is this?
Looking at that black hair, she gives off a bit of a Kuchiki… vibe, but the thought that the stoic ancestor of the Kuchiki clan could be such a crybaby just wouldn't leave my head.
Are you telling me that Byakuya's ancestor was a woman who sat down and blubbered tears and snot everywhere just because she got lost?
Wow. That's a bit much.
Kuchiki Rukia?
No, she was originally from the Rukongai. She's an adoptee with no blood relation to the Kuchiki family, so let's move past that.
Anyway… then who is it?
If it is the Kuchiki ancestor, it's a bit tragic; if not, she could be a member of the Five Noble Families that was never revealed. Or if she just took a wrong turn… well, then it's truly tragic.
'Whatever the case, I should probably take her with me.'
It's not like I'm worried about my property value dropping.
If this were a society with an economic system developed enough to worry about that, I would have ditched this place a long time ago.
The reason I'm planning to take her in isn't anything special.
If I hadn't known, that'd be one thing, but knowing someone is alive and just leaving them there leaves a bad taste in my mouth.
But…
'When is she going to notice me?'
Actually, I've been sitting on a tree stump about ten paces away for the last ten minutes, watching to see when she'd notice my presence.
Does that make me malicious? Spare me, you only say that because you don't know the situation.
The person in question is a faint-hearted lady crying on the ground because she got a little lost. If a dark, brooding man like me suddenly popped up in front of a lady like that, how would she react?
'….'
I can't even imagine it. Regardless, it probably wouldn't be a good reaction.
That's why I'm simply waiting for the other person to notice and look my way first. It's an act of showing, "I have no intention of harming you."
'This is definitely not the perverted act of a voyeur watching someone cry. I am a gentleman.'
As soon as I thought that and nodded, the triangle in my heart known as my conscience began to thrash about.
It was cursing at me, calling me a shameless bastard.
'….'
Fine. To be honest, I'm just waiting because I have no idea how to comfort a crying woman.
Come to think of it, I haven't met a single woman in the decades since I woke up in the world of Bleach. Virgin? Of course I'm a virgin, damn it.
Shihoin? That tomboy isn't a woman. She's a beast.
Anyway, how could someone like me know the way to comfort a woman who's crying her heart out?
That's why I'm just watching.
If I tried to strike up a conversation for no reason and got told to get lost, it would probably hurt my feelings a bit.
"Sniff… just how long are you going to keep watching meeee…?!"
Oh, what?
Thinking maybe she'd called out by mistake, I slightly hid my presence, but the crying woman turned her head and looked exactly toward me.
"…So you knew?"
"Sniff, sob… well, hic. You were staring at me from such a close distance… sniff. Of course I knewwww…! Do you think I'm stupid…?!"
Finding something else to be miserable about, she burst into a fresh round of sorrowful wailing.
She was crying so loudly the heavens themselves could hear it, making me feel like I was the villain here.
"Ah, alright, I'm sorry, I'm sorry. Stop crying now."
"Hic, *sniff*…! Uuuuuu…"
"Sigh…"
Letting out a deep sigh, I approached the woman. She flinched, gave me a sidelong glance, sniffled, and then scooted over a bit.
It didn't feel like she was avoiding me particularly, but more like someone giving up a seat on the subway.
"You want me to sit next to you?"
"Sniff… are you also lost, Mister…?"
"Who are you calling 'Mister'?"
"Eek!? S-sorry…!!"
I was going to say that I wasn't quite old enough to be a 'Mister' yet, but the woman immediately put on a crying face and curled inward.
This is unfair. I really haven't done anything, but somehow the conversation… no, it's not even a conversation; just by standing here, I feel like I'm becoming the bad guy.
"Ha… I'm not angry, I'm not going to interrogate you, and I won't do anything to you, so just stop crying. You're making me look like a monster."
"Sniff…! Th-then… just a moment…. Please give me…. some time…."
She's been crying for ages and she wants more time?
I almost let out an unconscious sigh, but I held it in, fearing she would burst into tears again if I did.
Seriously, how can she be more of a brat than the Shihoin kid?
…Wait, no. Shihoin is a brat in a different sense.
'Now there are two brats…'
Wow, damn. Just imagining it gives me the chills.
Ugh, hell. It's horrific, truly horrific.
As I waited idly with my arms crossed, the woman, who had been sniffling to herself for quite a while, finally let out a long breath.
Thinking she was finished, I opened my eyes only to see her clutching her fists tight and muttering something to herself.
"It's okay… I can do this… He's not a Hollow…. Since he's not a Hollow…"
Ah, so this woman ended up here after running away from something, just like I did.
A sense of empathy, support, and solidarity washed over me, shifting my image of her from just a 'tearful brat' to a 'pitiful woman whose heart had grown frail from suffering.'
'I suppose anyone would be like that after being chased by a Hollow.'
Yeah. That makes sense.
Wait? No. I wasn't chased by a Hollow; I was chased by the Soul King.
…Well, being chased is being chased, so I guess it doesn't matter.
As I was thinking that, the woman finally spoke up.
"Um…. Are you, by any chance, the master of this forest…?"
Judging by how she's stealing glances while she speaks, she's still quite timid.
I guess she was just born that way.
"It's polite to state your own name before asking someone else's."
"Ah, well…. I… don't have a name yet…."
Since she made it all the way here, I assumed she was associated with the other families or the Soul King, but I guess not?
I scratched my head.
"If you don't have a name, there's nothing for it."
"Are you… going to kick me out?"
"Kicking someone out just because they don't have a name is a bit much, don't you think?"
I'm not that much of a piece of trash.
At my words, the woman's eyes sparkled.
"Th-then, please help me…! I want to get out of here, but the forest is so vast, no matter how much I walk, it never ends…. Hnng…."
"The forest isn't vast; you've just been spinning around in circles in the same spot."
"What!? M-me!?"
The woman blinked and looked around.
Looking at her reaction, she wasn't acting; she genuinely didn't know.
"If you'd marked the trees or something as you went, you wouldn't have been going in circles."
"I-I know that much! But…. the trees here are so hard, I can't even leave a scratch on them…!"
Are the trees here really that hard?
I reached out and gripped the tree right next to me. With a *crunch*, the wood was crushed into the shape of my hand.
"Seems to mark just fine to me."
"Hieeeek…! A m-monster…!"
"…."
If you're shocked by just this, you'll faint when you see the Soul King later.
But calling me a monster is a bit harsh.
"I'm sorry…. I was just so surprised…."
"As long as you know you were wrong, fine. Anyway, we can't just stay here forever, so follow me."
"Wh-where are we going…?"
"Deeper into the forest."
"I, I asked for help getting out of the forest, s-so why are we going deeper…?!"
The woman covered her chest with both hands, taking a pose that screamed, 'You're planning to ravish me! Just like in an ero-doujin!'
How ridiculous. This is an absolute forced frame-up.
"It's nothing like that, so don't get the wrong idea. I'm just saying it's safer deeper in."
"It's safer… deeper in?"
"At least there are no Hollows. If you want to leave, I can send you out. But are you okay with that fear chasing you again once you leave the forest?"
"H-hollows are scary…. Uuu…. By any chance, is there anyone else inside besides you, Mister?"
"About three others—a tomboy brat, a shady disciple, and a talkative guy named Shiba. And sometimes the Soul King and the Baldy Monk drop by."
"That's… quite a lot… right?"
Tell me about it. At first, I was living here alone in peace, how did it end up with so many people…?
Sigh…
"So, are you going or not?"
"I-I'll go."
"Right, follow—huh?"
Speak of the devil. How could they show up the second I mention them?
"What…. is it…?"
"Ah, the Soul King and the Baldy Monk I mentioned just arrived."
None of those guys can take a hint. Well, one of them is a King, so I guess it doesn't matter.
The Soul King probably came because he had business, and I'll have to tell the monk to give this woman a name while he's at it.
With those thoughts in mind, I brought the woman back to where the Soul King was.
And…
"Oho! If it isn't the Forerunner! It has been twenty years! Hahahaha!"
"What the hell is that lump?"
Where did that kid go, and why is there a Daruma sitting there?
Ah, that's the original Hyosube Ichibe. He looks so different from when he was a kid that I almost didn't recognize him.
========================
The website for reading paid chapters is available on my Patreon. The number of chapters on Patreon: 49
Link: patreon.com/UltraMagnus_T