We were able to encounter the Dark Harpy woman, but it was difficult to get her to talk.
The woman told us that if we could capture her in the darkness, she would answer our questions.
“The deadline is dawn, no, a little before. You guys can cooperate, but only the kid can touch me.”
With that, she disappeared into the forest.
“Arisugawa, what do we do? You can see in the dark, right? I’m also good at night, but not that much.”
With the deadline being before dawn, there wasn’t much time left. She was probably planning to walk through the forest and slowly return home.
I don’t know how much the Dark Harpy can see, but she must think we can’t see her at all. She thinks she has an advantage in sight, meaning she relies on it so much.
Besides, my prediction is that they are very sensitive to even the slightest light. That’s why we were able to find the light of a small bonfire in the forest.
“Alright, Sharin, you’re with me. Nina and Philiana, take lights and walk from both sides.”
Nina shrugged and disappeared into the forest as I suggested.
“Be careful,”
With that, Philiana also started walking from the opposite direction of Nina.
I followed the woman without holding a light, with Sharin.
“Let’s try to move as quietly as possible and stay low. I can’t see at all, so I’ll rely on you for guidance.”
“Mhm, leave it to me.”
But even if I tried to follow behind, if I fell a little behind, I would lose sight of her.
“Um… If it’s okay, can I hold your hand?”
“Huh, ah, right. You couldn’t see at all, could you.”
I gently took Sharin’s hand. The back of her hand was covered in soft fur, but her palm was like skin to prevent slipping.
We slowly advanced for a while, crouching and hiding in the grass.
“Hey, look at that.”
At Sharin’s voice, I looked up and saw a single orange light floating in the darkness.
“It looks like she’s smoking. This is our only chance. It will be harder to confirm her location if that light goes out.”
It’s quite a bold move, but sometimes she looked around, and the light from her cigarette swayed left and right.
Then, as if she finished smoking, the light went out. Did she notice our presence?
“Ah, Arisugawa, the light went out! No, it’s okay, she started smoking again.”
We both let out a sigh of relief. After a while, the light stopped, pointing to the side. She must have spotted the light from Nina’s or Philiana’s lantern.
I let go of Sharin’s hand and quietly approached her, hugging her in the darkness.
“Ahhhhhh!!”
The woman let out a tremendous scream and jumped.
“Haa, haa, what, it’s you? Tsk.”
“As promised, I caught you. You’ll answer my questions, right?”
She clicked her tongue again, saying there was no choice.
