Kousuke’s action was to make the tools he brought from the future recognizable in the current era.
For this purpose, he specifically had Ines write it.
The reason for using the Migiri leaf was purely as a catalyst; it held no inherent meaning.
Regardless, thanks to that effort, the environment for transferring Kousuke’s and Shurein’s words to Gerta was successfully established.
“Now, try writing something as a test, Shurein.”
“Hmm. Understood.”
At this point, Shurein understood Kousuke’s intention, so she immediately nodded, took the pen from Ines, and began to write.
Incidentally, the characters Shurein wrote were not the common script that Kousuke and the others normally used, but an ancient script that Vampires used long ago.
“Can you understand this now?”
Gerta, who had been staring with wide eyes at the pen that pulled away from Ines’s hand and began to move on its own, nodded emphatically upon seeing the written characters.
“I can see it clearly.”
“Is that so? This way, we can talk directly without going through Ines.”
“It seems so.”
Understanding that conversation was clearly established, Gerta let out a deep, emotional sigh.
For Gerta, Am’s existence held two meanings.
One, of course, was Wraith, existing as a Monster.
The other was not a Monster’s existence like that of a Wraith, but a spirit body that existed with various purposes.
Even though she had only seen two sentences, the fact that it was uniquely visible only to Ines and not to herself, and that the conversation flowed properly using Vampire script, strongly suggested the latter was the case.
She had heard it in legends, but Gerta never imagined she would witness it herself.
Incidentally, by Shurein’s era, the existence of the latter, spectral beings, was normally recognized.
With Gerta gaining a means to converse with Kousuke and the others, she turned her gaze towards the place Ines had indicated, a place where she perceived no one was present.
“First, I’ll ask: who are you?”
“As for who we are, can you properly answer who you yourself are?”
In response to Gerta’s direct question, Shurein replied with a wry smile, even though she knew Gerta couldn’t see it.
Incidentally, she had received permission to maintain her usual speech pattern.
“That’s not what I want to know. If you are someone who would harm us, we will have to take appropriate action.”
“I see. However, I wouldn’t recommend that.”
“What do you mean?”
To Gerta’s puzzled expression, Shurein paused for a moment before answering.
“If we wanted to, we could destroy a village like this in an instant.”
If Kousuke used the tools stored in his Item Box, it would indeed be possible to do such a thing immediately.
However, neither Kousuke nor Shurein were foolish enough to do something like that out of the blue.
As Gerta remained silent, Shurein continued.
“Considering Ines’s personality, you’re probably saying this deliberately to threaten me, but it’s meaningless, so you should stop. Wouldn’t it be better to have a more constructive conversation?”
Shurein believed that Gerta had deliberately asked such a question earlier. She understood that it was for the sake of the village, so she did not harbor any ill feelings. After all, if Shurein were in the same position, she would do the same.
In response to Shurein’s words, Gerta, who had been silent for a while, eventually sighed resignedly.
“…Oh dear. I guess I can’t really play the villain. …So? What do you want to know?”
While Ines hadn’t noticed, Gerta had correctly realized why Kousuke and the others had come to the village. Shurein had said they could destroy the village at any time, but even without doing that, they could escape whenever they wanted. The fact that they were deliberately not doing so implied they wanted something. Gerta didn’t know if Kousuke and the others, who were in spectral form, needed food, but if that were the case, they would have asked Ines for food from the start. Therefore, she deduced that they wanted something other than that.
Shurein smiled at Gerta’s attitude and began to write the next question on the paper.
“Is this village a place of wandering?”
“No, it isn’t.”
At this question, Gerta’s expression became momentarily puzzled, but Shurein pretended not to notice. Of course, doing so was of little consequence since Gerta couldn’t see it. However, since Ines was observing this exchange, she did it as a precaution. …Looking at Ines, who was watching their interaction with a bewildered expression, it was unclear whether it had any real purpose.
Leaving Ines behind, Shurein and Gerta’s conversation continued.
“Are there any villages or settlements of other races in the vicinity of this village?”
“…No, there aren’t.”
“Does this village have a name?”
“…The Land of Beginning.”
At Gerta’s answer, Shurein’s pen stopped. Although Gerta couldn’t see it, Shurein looked up at the ceiling.
After gazing at the ceiling for a moment, Shurein turned to Kousuke and said, “Kousuke, I’ve figured out the approximate era.”
“…Judging by your face, it seems the result isn’t very good?”
“Whether it’s good or bad, I can’t say, but it’s more than I expected.”
“I see. So, how much time?”
“It’s not a matter of hundreds of years. Fortunately, it doesn’t seem to be over tens of thousands.”
At that answer, Kousuke looked up at the ceiling, just as Shurein had done. His expression seemed more resigned than lamenting.
Kousuke and Shurein’s conversation was being thoroughly translated by Ines for Gerta.
“Are you perhaps travelers from another time? And from the future?”
“Well, something like that.”
In response to Gerta’s words, Shurein reacted and gave a proper answer. They had no intention of hiding the fact that they came from the future. However, they didn’t intend to widely publicize that they were from the future, as they didn’t know what kind of influence it might have. They felt it was acceptable to tell people like Ines and Gerta.
After a brief silence upon seeing Shurein’s reply, Gerta let out a deep sigh.
“My, my. What an unusual turn of events.”
“Indeed.”
“So? What do you plan to do next?”
“Well. That’s precisely what I wanted to know by talking like this.”
“If you hear the story here, you’ll find out?”
“It’s a confirmation that includes that.”
At Shurein’s answer, Gerta nodded deeply.
“I understand. At least I know your purpose. I’ll confirm, but is it alright to tell the village elder about this discussion?”
“Of course. However, I think it would be best not to spread word of our existence too widely.”
“That goes without saying. …Ines, did you understand that too?”
“Y-yes!”
Suddenly addressed by Gerta, Ines replied with a slight jump. Seeing her reaction, Gerta gave a wry smile, while Kousuke and Shurein looked at each other and laughed.
Let the writing begin!
Incidentally, regarding Shurein’s written conversation, while short phrases like “so it is” are presented as part of the dialogue, there are also instances where Ines conveys them verbally. It’s too much trouble to write everything out!
