Arifureta: From Commonplace to World’s Strongest: Short Stories (Premium) Read online

  “What do you think you’re doing, Yue-san?”

  “Huh!?” Someone grabbed her arm. Trembling, she looked up at the owner of the hand that had grabbed her.

  “S-Shea...”

  “That’s right, it’s Shea. And I’m getting very tired of you trying to add the poison you call ‘originality’ to our food, Yue-san.” Normally she was the helpless, worthless rabbit, but at present Shea’s face was a mask of anger. Yue whimpered softly, looking anywhere but at Shea, and started explaining herself.

  “C-Calling it poison is a bit much. I’m sure this will make the dish taste even better—”

  “How many times have you said that now? And how many times have your ideas ruined my food? There’s nothing more dangerous than a beginner experimenting with recipes!”

  As she’d been royalty, Yue had no idea how to cook. Because of that, she’d started taking lessons from Shea, who was skilled in all sorts of housework. However, her attempts at adding a twist to Shea’s dishes had all ended in failure. At first, Shea had put up with Yue’s antics. She’d guessed Yue just wanted to impress Hajime with something she’d made and let it slide. However, Yue’s constant attempts to make something new and her complete disregard for the basics had turned Shea from a worthless rabbit into a wrathful rabbit. That was why Shea’s ears twitched angrily as she looked at Yue.

  “But I’m sure it’ll work this time. I’m pretty sure Hajime will love this taste.”

  “‘Pretty sure’ doesn’t cut it! Besides, it’s obvious that won’t do anything to improve the dish’s taste! That’s devilclaw fruit! One pinch of it is enough to ruin the taste of most dishes! Do you understand now!?”

  “But Hajime’s the one who’s going to eat it. And he likes spicy food... He’s even had demon meat before, so he’ll probably like something more stimulating.”

  “I just said probablys and pretty sures don’t cut it when it comes to cooking!” Shea forcibly wrenched Yue’s hand open and tried to throw Yue’s powdered devilclaw fruit into one of her spice bags. However, Yue resisted with all her might. Shea started pinching Yue’s cheeks with her free hand, trying to get Yue to let go, and yet the overpowered rabbit’s cheat-level strength was too much to fight against, and eventually she let go. However, Shea had put too much force into her hand.

  “Nuwaaah!? The spice really lives up to its name! My eyes, my nose—” Shea rolled on the ground as she clawed at her face. Yue looked down nervously as she watched Shea writhe in pain. Normally, devilclaw fruit needed extensive preparation before it could be used in anything, so just touching it was enough to burn people’s skin. However, Yue’s automatic regeneration ability had allowed to her to handle it raw without much discomfort, which was why she hadn’t realized just how potent a fruit it was. All she’d read was that properly prepared devilclaw fruit was the most exquisite spicy seasoning that could be added to a dish.

  “S-Shea? Are you okay?”

  “Of course I’m not okaaaaaaaaay! Water! Wash away the residue with water, pleaseeeee!”

  “Okay.” Yue cast a spell and a massive torrent of water appeared out of nowhere. Any normal person would have been crushed to death by the force of what was a veritable waterfall, but Shea knelt above the oncoming deluge, arms spread wide. She looked like a devout pilgrim seeking salvation. The water hit her with the force of a cannonball. Ten seconds passed, then twenty. Finally, the water stopped. A crater had formed where it had slammed into the ground, and its center was Shea, still kneeling in the same pose as before. She wasn’t moving.

  “Shea? Hello? Earth to Shea-san?” Yue timidly called out to her. Shea’s drenched rabbit ears twitched a little, then flopped straight up, shaking all the water off. Shea slowly got to her feet. Then, still dripping, she briskly walked up to Yue and firmly grabbed her by the shoulders. Yue shrank back from the intensity of her gaze. After all, Shea’s face was so close to Yue that their noses were practically touching.

  “Y-u-e-s-a-n!”

  “S-Shea, calm down. Your face is—”

  “S-h-u-t-u-p!”

  “O-Okay.” Yue’s expression stiffened as her facial muscles cramped up. Shea’s face was a complete mess. Her eyes were red and swollen, and drool, tears, water, and snot dripped from every orifice. Her lips were swollen, and flecks of red dotted her pale skin. To top it all off, her voice was raspy. All of that just gave her rage an even sharper edge. Her expression was positively demonic, as her swollen eyes promised death. It seemed that her anger had long since boiled over and shot up to the stratosphere.

  Cold sweat poured down Yue’s back and she gulped audibly. Shea stared Yue in the eyes and rasped out a few words.

  “Respect your food.”

  Yue nodded.

  “The basics... of cooking... are important.”

  More nodding.

  Shea pushed down on Yue’s shoulders so hard that she was kneeling. Yue continued nodding as if her life depended on it, but there was no way the demonic rabbit was going to let Yue off with just that. Yue cast her gaze about, looking for someone to save her, and spotted her beloved lover, watching the proceedings from a few meters away. She begged to be rescued, but... Hajime averted his gaze. She looked at him in shock. Never had she expected that Hajime would abandon her in a time of need, but she didn’t have time to dwell on it.

  “Don’t look away,” Shea rasped out. The wrathful rabbit’s punishment was inescapable. Yue’s shoulders drooped, and she spent the next few hours listening to Shea’s lecture. Seeing Yue in tears for the first time actually turned Hajime on a little, but that was a secret he would take to the grave.

  A Wise Woman’s Dream

  Is that... Kaori? And is that... Nagumo-kun with her? Shizuku hazily caught sight of her best friend and her secret crush. For some reason, Hajime looked dim and somehow transparent to her, as if he were obscured by a fog. However, she knew it was Hajime because he was the only person Kaori would run so wholeheartedly toward. Kaori stopped in front of Hajime and started talking. Shizuku was standing too far away to make out what they were saying, but after a few seconds, Kaori leaped into Hajime’s arms and started weeping tears of joy. Whatever it was they had been talking about, it had clearly made Kaori happy.

  Good for you, Kaori... Shizuku was glad to see her best friend find happiness. She decided it wouldn’t be very nice of her to ruin her best friend’s moment, and was about to turn to leave when...

  Hm? Who’s that? And they finally got to enjoy their reunion, too... Is that a friend of Nagumo-kun’s?

  Two unfamiliar girls walked up to Hajime. Like him, they were covered by this fog and their outlines were hazy, but she could tell one of them was a small girl with beautiful golden-blonde hair. There was something almost bewitching about her as she walked up to Hajime and pulled on his collar from behind, separating him from Kaori. Then, to add insult to injury, she drew Hajime into her bosom.

  Wh-Whaaaaat? What’s going on!? What the heck is this!? Amazed by this soap opera-esque development, Shizuku hurriedly looked over at her best friend.

  Hiiii!? She summoned a demon behind her! A demon with a grinning theater mask appeared behind Kaori like a stand. It tapped its sword menacingly on its shoulder as Kaori walked up to the blonde girl.

  Run! I don’t know who you are, but run if you value your life! Shizuku tried to call out to the girl, but for some reason her voice wouldn’t come out. Realizing it was up to her, Shizuku ran forward. She needed to stop her best friend before she became a murderer. However, before she managed to reach them—

  What the!? Something just came out of the little girl too! What is that!? Some kind of golden dragon!? A golden dragon erupted from the golden-blonde haired girl’s back, coiling itself around her. Dark clouds billowed around it, lightning occasionally flickering from inside them. It looked just as ominous as Kaori’s demon.

  “Roaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaar!”

  “Hissssssssssssssssssss!”

  The dragon let out a thunderous roar, while th
e demon raised its sword above its head and hissed threateningly. For some reason, the two girls were posing in front of each other.

  Just what the heck is going on here!? Shizuku, the spectator, was far more confused at what was happening than the parties involved. An overwhelming pressure, so powerful it was tangible, pressed down on Shizuku. She could feel her sanity slowly being eroded away. If this were an RPG, Shizuku’s mental hit points would already have been in the red. She was almost out of sanity points. The final blow to her psyche was when the golden dragon charged at the demon.

  The dragon roared with the force of all the world’s storms. Lightning bolts rained from the sky in a never-ending barrage, but the demon cut down every bolt with its precise swordsmanship. Then, with a slash sharp enough to rend the universe in two, the demon sliced the dragon in half.

  However, a rain of lightning fell on the dragon, fusing it back together. It then fired a beam of lightning from its mouth. The force of its attack was so great the very atmosphere was carbonized, but before the light of destruction could reach the demon, it deflected it with its sword. It flew into the sky, drilling a hole in the dark clouds above. The earth shattered, the skies wept, and the atmosphere burned.

  It was as if the final judgment had come. Shizuku trembled like a newborn fawn in a tiny corner of the crumbling world. Any desire to stop them was gone. She just wanted to run away. She turned to flee, but her decision had come a moment too late. The demon’s slash and the dragon’s breath collided, and were deflected straight toward Shizuku.

  Wait, no... Aaaaaaaaaaah!

  “Aaaaaaaaaaah! Oh, it was just a dream!?” The light of despair filled Shizuku’s vision, and she awoke with a bloodcurdling scream. It really was just a dream. She wiped sweat off her chin as she recalled what a terrifying dream it had been. Then, she sighed with relief.

  “Thank god it was only a dream...” She looked over at her best friend. Surprisingly, her scream hadn’t woken Kaori.

  “Haha, there’s no way Kaori’d be like that, right?” For some reason, chills ran down her spine, and she shivered. Was it really just a dream, or perhaps a premonition...

  Valentine’s Day in a Parallel World

  In a certain small town, the atmosphere was currently very lively. Hajime, Yue, and Shea had stopped for a short rest, and were curious about the sweet, somewhat excited mood that filled the town.

  “Hey, is there a festival or something today?”

  “Hm? You don’t know? Today’s Fris Day. Come on, you’ve got to know what it is. You even have two lovely ladies following you around.”

  The person Hajime had asked was a bald, macho flower salesman. It appeared today was a celebration most people knew about. When he pressed for details, Hajime learned that Fris Day was a day for people to confess to their crushes. The reason it was called Fris Day was because of the abundance of white fris flowers everywhere. It was said that if someone confessed with a fris flower and the other person accepted, the couple would be together forever. As Hajime looked around, he noticed there were a lot of people selling white flowers, and plenty of young guys and girls were gathering around them.

  “I see. While it’s not exactly the same, it’s basically like Valentine’s...”

  “Hm? Valentine’s?”

  “What’s that?”

  Yue and Shea spoke up. Reminiscing about his home world, Hajime explained Valentine’s Day to the two of them.

  Valentine’s Day, a time where warriors go forth to do battle. The hot guy sorcerers usually dominate that day. For Hajime, it had been a day he’d spent running away last year. Had he been caught, he knew what hell awaited him in school.

  “Hm... So Hajime, there was a girl who confessed to you that day. What was her name and what did she look like? Go on, tell me.”

  “Eeeeeh you have another lover, Hajime-san? How many dozens of women came before me, I wonder?”

  “Can you two at least watch your mouths in public?” Hajime backed away as the seductive vampire princess and the crying worthless rabbit bore down on him. Phrases like, “How many dozens of women came before me,” would definitely get misunderstood.

  “Oh my, what a wonderful battlefield of love.”

  “It looks like that guy over there’s a real playboy.”

  “He just toys with girls’ feelings and throws them away when he’s done with them! What a heartless brute!”

  “Don’t meet his gaze! You’ll get pregnant!”

  The onlookers all started voicing their opinions. His mouth twitching, Hajime hurriedly tried to flee to somewhere more private. He picked Yue and Shea up, then carried them to the closest inn.

  That evening, the three of them had split up to get their shopping done. Once they’d gotten everything they came for, they rendezvoused at the inn to get dinner. Hajime was sitting at a table by the window, his chin resting in his hands. Yue sat next to him. Shea had insisted on cooking dinner for him today, and was currently borrowing the inn’s kitchen.

  “Sorry for the wait~ Here’s Shea’s ultimate special~”

  “Ultimate special? What on earth did you make... Wait, this is...”

  “That’s right, it’s a meat and potato stew. Well, I don’t know what potatoes are supposed to taste like, so it’s just my imitation of it.”

  Hajime had told Shea all about the food he used to eat in Japan. Considering how many of the fruits and vegetables in this world resembled fruits and vegetables from his own, he’d thought it might be possible to recreate the same dishes. After a lot of trial and error, Shea had managed to replicate the stew decently enough with her stellar cooking skills. Hajime tentatively lifted a spoonful to his mouth.

  “Wow!” Hajime exclaimed. It wasn’t exactly the same, but it was about as close as it could get.

  “But why’d you decide to make this again today?”

  “Ehehe... Because today’s Fris Day. You said people give gifts for that Valentine’s Day or whatever, right? I thought the best present I could give you was food from your hometown, Hajime-san.”

  “I see. Well, thanks. This is really good.”

  Shea’s rabbit ears flopped around happily. Then, Yue gently tugged on Hajime’s sleeve, so he turned to face her, and she pointed out the window. He looked outside quizzically, spotting speckles of white falling from the night sky.

  “Is that... snow?”

  “Mhm... Snow doesn’t fall on the northern continent, but you said it snowed in your hometown around Valentine’s Day, so I made it snow with magic.”

  Both Yue and Shea had worked hard to give Hajime a Valentine’s/Fris Day present. They both knew how badly Hajime wanted to go back, and this was the closest thing to home they could have given him. Hajime smiled gently at the two girls. Such a tender smile was rare for him.

  “These are the best presents I could ever ask for. Thank you.”

  “Mhm...”

  “You’re welcome!”

  While people outside frolicked in the snow that was neither cold nor wet, the three adventurers spent Fris Day with each other.

  A Certain Peaceful Hero Party

  This is a story that occurred a short while after the students were summoned to Tortus. After some time had passed, the students had finally begun to get used to the fantastical situation they’d been thrust into and returned to some semblance of a normal daily life.

  Kouki and his party were especially unused to all the praise and respect they were being showered with. As they were the group that would lead the vanguard in the war to come, the residents of Tortus had practically been worshiping them. However, they’d grown accustomed to it, and even made friends with some of this world’s inhabitants.

  Happy with the results of the day’s training, Kouki wiped the sweat off his brow and started heading back to his room. Ryutarou, who he was rooming with, had already returned ahead of him. Seeing as there was still time before the sun set, Kouki was thinking of inviting him to hang out somewhere. When he got back to his room, he noticed th
e door was slightly ajar. As he put his hand on the doorknob, he heard a voice coming from inside.

  “Hoooh... Haaah... Haaah...”

  Kouki peeked through the gap in the door and saw his best friend posing in front of the mirror. He shifted fluidly from pose to pose, as if he were going through a martial arts form. At times his large muscles relaxed, while at other points they tensed. Kouki could tell that Ryutarou was dead serious about whatever it was he was doing.

  I guess he’s checking the condition of his body or something? Or maybe it’s some kind of exercise?

  Sadly, Kouki couldn’t muster the courage to find out what Ryutarou was actually doing. In fact, he couldn’t even walk inside his room. The reason being because Ryutarou was doing all of this buck naked. Just then, Kouki’s gaze met Ryutarou’s. Or rather, the reflection of Ryutarou’s gaze in the mirror. They both froze in place. It was as if time had stopped. Expression stiff, Kouki muttered something.

  “Oh yeah, I just remembered I forgot something at the practice grounds. Bye.” Kouki wanted to escape from this awkward predicament as fast as possible.

  “Wait, Kouki! Don’t get the wrong idea. I was just practicing my forms!”

  “While... n-naked?”

  “W-Well, I just... Oh, who cares! Colonel Stuart was naked in the movie too!”

  I see. So Ryutarou was just acting out scenes from Die Hard 2. Kouki nodded in understanding, giving his best friend a look full of pity all the while.

  “Don’t worry; I didn’t see anything, Ryutarou... Anyway, I should go check up on Shizuku.” Kouki turned on his heel and high-tailed it out of there.

  “Ah, dammit, Kouki! Stop right there, you bastaaaaaard!” Ryutarou’s embarrassed shout echoed through the hallway. For days afterward, he could feel his classmates shooting him pitying looks. Needless to say, Ryutarou was traumatized from that day onward.

  That night, Kouki was relaxing in his bedroom when the events of that afternoon suddenly came back to him. Back when they’d been kids, they’d often tried to imitate the heroes they’d seen in movies. It had been pretty embarrassing whenever Shizuku had caught them doing it. By the end of elementary school, though, Kouki had grown out of it.