Upon arriving at Sheep Island, we were first greeted by sheep.
As she said, there didn’t seem to be many people. Thanks to that, we weren’t particularly bothered as outsiders. It was lucky to meet such a thoughtful girl on this deserted island.
After a little while, the girl who went to inquire about the ship returned.
“Sorry to have kept you waiting. The earliest ship is in three days. Is that alright?”
“Well, if there’s no other option, then it can’t be helped. Is there any place we can stay?”
“Yes, there is, though it’s a bit small. Not many ships come these days, so I think it’s probably free.”
We were led by the girl through the village. Occasionally, people we passed would stare at us.
“Oh, right. I haven’t introduced myself yet. My name is Arisugawa Hiroaki. Pleased to meet you.”
“My name is Mary. You all seem to be of different races, is there a particular reason for that?”
Mary turned to look at all of us.
“No, we just happened to be traveling and more companions joined us along the way. By the way, Mary, are you a Satyr?”
“Broadly speaking, yes, but I am called an Obithyros. The one we just met is called a Minotaur. Though, strictly speaking, she isn’t a Minotaur.”
These were more races I’d never heard of. It seemed that sheep-like Satyrs were called Obithyros. I remembered Minotaurs being monsters with bull heads, but they were probably called that due to some resemblance.
“We’ve arrived. The rooms are small, but please use them freely.”
We were guided to a two-story inn. It was quite a large building for this village. Inside, the innkeeper, a man, was idly reading a book.
“Oh, customers at this time of year? You’re not from a trade ship, are you? Are you here for sightseeing?”
I told him we would be taking a ship in three days.
“Hmm, I see. Three days from now, huh? I won’t say anything bad, but it’s best not to go outside too much.”
“Is there… some kind of trouble?”
I asked about the unsettling atmosphere I’d felt since arriving on the island.
“Lately, there have been wolves around here. They break down the sheep pens and take them away. There have always been wolves in the forest, but they rarely came near the village. It seems there’s one incredibly large and ferocious one, so be careful at night.”
Perhaps the ships weren’t running as usual because of this. Everyone was too busy dealing with the wolves to care about anything else. So, for the time being, I decided to stay put as the man advised and keep a low profile.
However, I still needed to buy some necessities for our future travels, so I went shopping with Sharin.
