by Necoco
It seemed excited, like it was telling me to follow. Maybe it smelled something interesting? It must’ve been good if the lizard was this happy about it. I didn’t have any particular plans for this walk, so I didn’t mind going a little out of the way. I let the black lizard take the lead.
It was in such high spirits that I couldn’t resist getting pulled along in its wake. Before, I’d figured that the black lizard wouldn’t know how valuable the piperis was, but now I realized that it was happy just because I was happy. We couldn’t communicate with words, so it was just a guess on my part, but I really hoped it was true.
“Gssh! Gssh!”
The black lizard let out another excited cry, and this time I found it alarming. I thought it was just my imagination, but I couldn’t deny my looming sense of dread. And as we walked further, a horrible stench invaded my senses.
The rotting carcass of some animal? Maggot-infested flesh? A corpse? A terrible monster—maybe something undead? Are you sure everything is okay? Maybe we should head back.
I couldn’t tell if the lizard had picked up on it, but ahead lay danger. My dragon instincts were going wild. But the lizard seemed so thrilled it was practically skipping. I didn’t have the heart to stop it. And even if I did, I doubted I could.
Its pace grew faster, but I dragged my feet, letting more and more distance grow between us.
“Gsh…?”
The lizard turned and looked at me sadly, seeing that I was so far behind. I took a deep breath and put one heavy foot in front of the other. Might as well get this over with. No sense in getting scared now. If some kind of fearsome monster had something the lizard wanted, I’d just have to knock the beast out.
No matter what was ahead, I’d ravage it with a blast of Baby’s Breath. I caught up to the lizard and we walked side by side once more. The thick smell of death drawing nearer set off warning bells all throughout my body.
The bravado I’d just mustered moments ago dissipated like smoke. Meanwhile, the black lizard hurried merrily on its way. I was sure of it now. We were definitely heading towards that mysterious stench of death. I was hoping the path would branch off, but no luck. We were headed directly there.
I sensed an overwhelming malignant force down to my bones. It was the presence of death, coming closer and closer. An undead king? Yeah, that was it. There had to be an undead king up ahead.
I was positive the black lizard’s nose worked, so why did it look so happy-go-lucky? Maybe I was the only one who could sense this since I was a Plague Dragon.
I knew I should stop it. My internal warning system was going absolutely haywire.
Are you sure? Are you absolutely sure we should keep going this way?
“R-raar…”
“Gsh!”
I expressed my hesitance, but the black lizard responded confidently. Fine, then I’ll trust you. I’m trusting you, all right?
We walked and walked, and suddenly we were there, standing in front of an enormous, sinister mushroom as tall as I was. It had a large, thick cap with an eerie, mottled pattern that reminded me of Edvard Munch’s “The Scream.” Most significant, though, was that the thing emitted an overpowering stench of death. It stank so bad my eyes watered—and that was an understatement.
This was it, the presence I’d felt. This mushroom was my undead king. I didn’t even like looking at it, but I had to check. I squinted at the monstrous mushroom.
Candidi Cadaverous: Value B-.
A mushroom called “The Corpse-Eater” due to its unique appearance and odor, which resembles that of a corpse. Regardless, it does not actually survive by eating the dead bodies of animals. It merely emits the odor of rotting corpses.
It is extremely poisonous, so no creature would ever dare to eat it. Even starving animals avoid this mushroom at all costs.
What kind of demonic creation was this? Hey, black lizard–I bet you were attracted to it because it’s so poisonous, huh? Don’t tell me you’re gonna eat it! Please, whatever you do, don’t touch it!
“Kssh!” The black lizard made a gleeful noise.
Sorry, but I can’t share your happiness. Think about how bad your breath is gonna smell if you eat that thing! Besides, there’s no way you could finish it all at once. Please don’t tell me you plan on bringing that home with you! It would stink up the whole cave, and I’d probably die. I bet it would rot all my other meat just by sheer proximity!
“Kssh!”
I stepped in front and let out a gust of Baby’s Breath. The giant mushroom withered from the hot blast, letting off sparks as it slowly shrank. Black smoke wafted up toward the sky with a putrid stench. I doubted anything in the world had ever smelled this bad.
Every blade of grass, leaf, and tree that the smoke touched lost its color and wilted, returning to the earth like I was watching a decades-long time-lapse play out in front of my eyes.
The strange pattern of the human faces on its cap flickered in the flames, swallowed up by the black char.
“Kssh…”
The black lizard let out a disappointed cry.
Sorry. Anything but the candidi cadaverous. I promise I’ll make you an even better poison next time. Don’t be mad at me, okay?
Bonus Story 2:
A Day in the Life of the Girl
THAT DAY, I’d gone out into the forest to gather medicinal herbs at Marielle’s request. She had gone to the city to buy some medicine at her friend’s shop, but she wanted to stockpile some ingredients of her own.
I wished she’d take me with her to the city, but lately she always went alone. I was dying to sample all the delicious food in town and window shop, too. But even more than that, it made me anxious to think about Marielle going off by herself.
I was sure that if I told her that, she’d just scowl like she always did. Maybe it was because she looked so young, but I always worried that she’d get kidnapped, or lost, or attacked by wild dogs or something. Even though deep down I knew she was more mature than I was, and capable of fighting off a pack of wolves, much less dogs.
Even if I hated it, I knew why she left me behind.
I went with her to the city a short time ago, and she’d said, “All right, I’m going to visit with a friend. She doesn’t much like strangers, so I want you to wait here.” Then she left me and went into the shop.
I heard cheerful voices in the distance, and I was so curious that I disobeyed Marielle and began to wander on my own.
A cat on the street corner was performing tricks and charging people money to watch. It was a creature called a cat-sìth—rare, extremely intelligent felines that could use magic.
The crowd was large, and I had to stand on my tiptoes to catch a glimpse of the cat’s performance. It balanced on two legs on top of a ball, balanced a smaller ball on the tip of its nose, and danced. Halfway through, a kind person noticed how interested I was in the performance and let me stand in the front.
It was so fascinating that I lost all track of time and watched until the very end. I splurged a little and paid a fee so I could shake the cat’s paw.
When it was all over, I snapped back to reality and rushed to the door of the shop, but Marielle wasn’t there. I went inside and asked the proprietor, but she said Marielle had left a long time ago.
I ran through the streets asking everyone, “Have you seen a little girl? She’s about this tall!” No one had. I couldn’t find her.
I stopped to catch my breath, leaning my hands against a wall and panting. “I’m going to get in so much trouble,” I muttered to myself. Just then, I looked up and saw Marielle flanked by two city guards.
Apparently, much to her dismay, they’d mistaken her for a lost child. She was desperately trying to explain the situation to them.
“As I said, due to my ancestry I appear young, but I’m not!”
“Yes, yes, we heard you the first time. Someone’s been looking around for a lost kid. Maybe your mom or your older brother is out searching for you?”
“I
-I I told you!”
The guards clearly didn’t believe Marielle and chuckled at her story. I tried to intervene, but I just ended up making it worse.
“Excuse me! I’m the girl’s mother! I’m so sorry about this!” I ran over and dipped my head to the guards. Marielle bit her lip and stared coldly at me. Meanwhile, the guards grinned hugely. I could still see it vividly in my mind.
Marielle hadn’t taken me with her to the city ever since then.
I stopped as the forest shrine came into view. Everyone in town said it acted as a boundary, marking where the deep forest began. Beyond the shrine was where the monsters appeared.
I checked the medicinal herbs in my basket. I knew I should probably turn back soon. I had enough. I’d mainly gathered Sawtooth Grass, good for absorbing blood and the main ingredient in Sawtooth spirits, a cure-all draft. The Sawtooth spirits didn’t actually do anything, but for some reason they fetched a high price in the city.
Well, the mind was a powerful thing, so as long as the people who bought it were satisfied, I supposed it was harmless. I just hoped no one ever tried to start something over its lack of effect.
I headed back to town and headed for Marielle’s house. She was due back from the city, and I hoped she’d brought me back a souvenir in exchange for gathering the herbs. The thought of that put a little skip in my step.
I rapped on her door. No answer.
“Marielle!” I called out as I eased the door open. I always checked on her medicines and took care of her plants when she was away, so I was allowed to come and go as I pleased. I had a spare key and a room made up for me, too.
I looked around inside, but Marielle was nowhere to be found.
“Marielle?” I called out again. I wondered if she could be cooped up in her room, working on something.
I went upstairs and knocked lightly on the door. Normally I would wait until I heard her voice from inside, but visions of souvenirs danced in my mind. I was impatient.
I opened the door and peeked into the room. Marielle was inside, standing in front of the mirror with her head bent. She was looking at the reflection of her feet.
Suddenly, she whipped her head up and blinked at me, eyes wild. She grabbed the mirror and quickly flipped it down to the floor with a thud and a cloud of dust.
“Hrm… Looks like this place could stand to be aired out.” She was trying to sound nonchalant, but the expression on her face gave everything away. Her eyes darted around awkwardly, and the corners of her mouth were tense. “C-can’t you wait to be allowed inside? That wasn’t very ladylike of you.”
“I’m sorry. Um, I did call your name several times, so I thought you would’ve heard me if you were in here.”
“O-oh, did you? Sorry, then.” Marielle finally met my gaze.
Odd. Normally, we couldn’t make eye contact unless she looked up at me, but for some reason we were currently at the exact same height.
I looked down at her feet.
The soles of her shoes looked awfully thick. Was she planning on climbing a mountain of needles or something? She realized where I was looking and met my eyes with panic.
“Well, I’m very busy!” I said. “I-I’ll just put the herbs next to the fireplace!”
“H-hang on a minute. Wait, Myria! It’s not what you think!” She tried to stop me but I ignored her, shutting the door behind me and racing down the stairs.
I set the basket down and left her house. I thought back to what I’d seen. Was she wearing those shoes to make herself look taller? Did she go all the way to the city just to buy them? I guess her height really did bother her.
She must have felt self-conscious about it. That was why she was staring at her reflection. I’m sorry, Marielle. But it feels really weird for you to be tall!
Afterword
HELLO, it’s nice to meet you! I’m the author, Necoco. I originally submitted this story to a certain website that features novels, but then I was contacted by Earth Star Novels, who asked if I wanted to publish. After editing and rewriting, it was turned into a book.
When I first received the message through the site asking if I would consider publication, my heart pounded like crazy. I wouldn’t say it felt like it would explode or anything, but I definitely felt like I’d lost at least three days off of my lifespan. Because my heart raced like that for literally three whole days.
It was only the second time in my life that my heart had ever raced like that. The first was when a car plowed through a guardrail right in front of me.
Please drive safely to avoid accidents, everyone. You never know when something dangerous can happen. And sometimes it happens when you least expect it. I still have dreams about that and think “I would’ve been crushed as flat as a newspaper.” Just so you know, there were apparently no serious injuries or fatalities, so please don’t worry.
Sorry, I went off on a tangent there. I was using up space. I’ll get back to the point.
I thought things would go smoothly with the publishing process, but there were tough obstacles standing in my way and one storm after another.
I went back and forth about how I wanted the Status Screen to be displayed. I asked my parents for advice but then they told my entire family about the novel. I was so embarrassed, I got into a huge fight with them for the first time in years. Then, I forgot the password to my email account and couldn’t get in contact with my editor. Looking back on it I can say I totally self-destructed.
But it was all worth it in the end, because the status screen turned out wonderfully. I made several suggestions and someone worked very hard on the layout for me.
To my editor, I’m so sorry I was so demanding even though we were so short on time. I’d like to take this moment to apologize. Even though I don’t actually feel bad about it.
Supposedly it’s getting more and more rare to see status screens in stories published on the web; most of them are written out vertically.
But why? They look so much better when they’re written out the other way! Or at least that’s what I thought, so I decided to do it horizontally. But as the manuscript went on, I realized that writing them out horizontally was so restrictive. I got so frustrated I even cried about it.
After going back and forth on it several times, I finally agreed to do it vertically.
I’m very relieved that it looks like this now. I have plans for even more parts about the main character’s status in the story, so I hope you don’t mind. There might be a ton of status screens in the second volume. Sorry if the book ends up being so thick you can’t even fit it on your shelf. I guess you’ll have to stack it on its side.
I’d like to end this by saying thank you to Earth Star Novels for publishing the book, NAJI Yanagida for the beautiful, realistic illustrations, everyone who supported me since my days on the website, and of course my readers who purchased this book. Thank you all so very much.
I hope we meet each other again very soon.
Writing this as I look out at the wilting avocado tree beside my window.
—NECOCO
Thank you for reading!
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