"I can't believe I have my own place now..." I muttered as I lay sprawled out on my bed.
Yes, I did just say that I had my own place now. And while it might be just a somewhat fancy tent, like the one Rimuru had, it was still a bit overwhelming. Up until this point I had been staying in one of the random empty wooden tents around town; however, the builders had apparently been putting this together for me.
Honestly, though, I would have been completely fine with my original accommodations; however, Rigurd and many of the townspeople thought otherwise. I had argued that they would just have to tear it down anyway when they started building actual structures, but they didn't see it that way. In fact, they just wanted me to have my own place, even if they would need to tear it all down to build something new later. Eventually I just accepted it, after all, they went through all this trouble just for me, so I didn't really have much of a reason to reject their generosity or their hard work.
"This... this is weird." I sighed after a second of silence.
"No matter how long I lay here I can't get used to it." I mumbled, shifting on the bed awkwardly. "The fact that it's so big is also throwing me for a loop."
(And it's not just the whole "me having my own place" thing now either.) I thought with an audible sigh.
I looked up at the ceiling blankly for a moment before continuing to myself. "I mean sure, I get that they feel sorry and everything, but them apologising so much is making me more uncomfortable than anything else."
(While I do appreciate their words, they didn't have to go as far as they did.) I thought, stretching my wings slightly.
That was also true. Over the last day and a half I had been visited by the evolved ogres. Honestly, I barely recognised them at first considering how much they changed, but that's beside the point. The reason they kept showing up one after another was because they were trying to apologise to me; that in itself was enough to make me flustered, but some of them had actually brought gifts or offered things. For example, Kurobe, the one who had the most drastic change in appearance out of all of them, had offered to work with Kaijin to make me a weapon.
Shion, the purple-haired one who I had fought before, had also offered to cook for me at a later date. For some reason the wind around us picked up violently, and I felt an instinctual chill run down my spine when she said that. Anyway, the sister of their leader, Shuna, had also brought me several things when she visited me this morning; in fact, I was currently wearing one of those apology gifts she had given me.
(They're really comfy, though...) I thought softly, looking down at my current attire: a black-and-purple top and white pants with black, wave-like patterns running down them.
"Why did she have to be so sincere about it, though?" I sighed, blushing slightly in embarrassment as I remembered the moment that happened a while ago now.
_ _ _ _Flashback_ _ _ _
"So... these... these are for me?" I muttered, blinking in confusion as I stood at the entrance of my newly constructed residence.
"Yes." The pink-haired girl standing in front of me answered with a pleased smile. "You see, I heard that you didn't actually have any change of clothes, so I made you some."
For a moment I didn't know what to say, so I just awkwardly mumbled out the first thing that popped into my head. "I... thank you..."
In her hands was a large stack of beautifully designed clothes; they looked as if a lot of work had gone into them. Honestly, I was a little shell-shocked right now, mainly because this was the first time anyone had actually given me a gift before. And so, because of this fact, I kind of just stood there for a moment, completely dumbfounded at the situation that I had not at all seen coming.
"It's no problem at all; the goblinas were more than happy to help me gather everything I needed, and the dwarves even helped by making the tools I required." She explained happily.
"You... your... errm... you're Shuna, right?" I asked nervously.
"Uh-huh, it was the name I was given by Lord Rimuru." She smiled proudly.
"I see..." I muttered, standing there awkwardly and not really knowing what else to say.
(It's true that I've been wearing the same thing for a while now but...) I thought, glancing between Shuna and the things in her hands. (This... this is the first time that anyone's ever given me... well, anything...)
"So do you like them?" Shuna asked, leaning forward slightly.
"Y-yeah, I can't wait to try them on." I muttered.
Her smile grew at that before she suddenly walked past me, much to my confusion. "Come on then!"
"Huh?"
"I'll help you try them on." She explained after noticing my clear bewilderment.
"O-okay." I said after a second of hesitation.
_ _ _ _Flashback Over_ _ _ _
As I remembered those events, I let out a low sigh. (She then spent the next hour and a half dressing me up like a doll.)
(I justJust wish she hadn't made so many dresses; I don't look good in them.) I thought, feeling a little self-conscious. (Oh well, at least I think I ended up making a new friend.)
In all honesty, even though I had been rather uncomfortable during the whole experience, I was happy. I'd never owned anything before, let alone such pretty and comfortable clothes. Although I was admittedly a little anxious about ruining them considering all the apparent work that went into them, especially since they were gifts, things made specifically for me. It was something that filled me with a strange emotion I didn't know the name of, some mixture of embarrassment and gratitude.
(At least... at least it was kind of fun.) I mused internally. (Although, I feel like she enjoyed dressing me up a little too much...) That was true; in fact, if we hadn't run out of clothes to try, she probably would still be using me as a model even now.
"Anyway, I suppose I should get out instead of lying here all day." I hummed to myself, although I made no effort to get up. "After all, there's still that I have to do."
"I wonder if the little one is even still aroun-" Before I could finish that sentence, however, a familiar voice interrupted.
[Reminder. The entity "Suu" had previously requested to be notified when the hobgoblins were beginning their training session.] The mechanical words of Great Sage echoed in the back of my mind.
"I guess it really is time to get up, huh?" I mused as I finally made an effort to stand.
Letting out a breath as I stood and stretched, I couldn't help but think to myself. (Okay... no more hiding.)
Yeah, this was to be the moment I finally tried to overcome my aversion to social interactions, or at least confront it. I had been planning this for a bit now, but my skittishness had been causing me to hesitate. Of course, after a while I forced myself out of my comfort zone, I couldn't get the training I needed if I kept stalling, after all.
"I wonder if I'll even be any good at it. I mean, maybe that time with the ogres was just a one-off?" I hummed outwardly as I glanced down at what I currently had on.
(I should get changed; I don'tdon't want to ruin these after all.) I hummed internally.
Before doing that, however, I didn't forget to say, "Thanks for the reminder, by the way."
[Notice. As previously mentioned, such appreciations are unnecessary.] Great Sage answered back, causing me to shrug.
"I know, I'm not going to stop though."
[...]
Seeing that she wasn't going to say anything more, I turned my thoughts elsewhere. (No more putting it off, it's time to get going.)
(Although... there's one more thing I need to do before I head off.)
Before heading over, I first changed into something more suited for my upcoming task, mainly just the outfit I had been wearing previously. After all, it wasn't a gift or something I had been borrowing; it was just what I had on when Rimuru found me.
Once that was done I reached to my side and grabbed a small bowl filled with broken pieces of meat and fish, leftovers and scraps that I had collected from around town. Without any further hesitation I stood up and walked outside, heading to the back of the structure. There, next to an area of the village that bordered a region of forest so heavily shrubbed it was nearly impossible to see all that far with normal sight, I paused for a moment. After a second I placed the bowl down on the ground and turned to leave.
As I began to go, I couldn't help but smile to myself. This was because of one fact: as I left, a somewhat familiar presence stared at my back from within the foliage. I didn't turn back to look, however; instead I simply continued to walk toward the training ground.
It didn't take me long to get there, a few minutes of walking at most. As I got closer, however, I found myself slowing down, my feet dragging as I heard the sounds of voices from up ahead. I did stop, mind you, but there was definitely a little voice whispering in the back of my head, telling me to turn back.
"No... I won't let my fears control me." I breathed, ignoring that little voice as I continued.
(I can't afford to hesitate.) I muttered internally, trying to shake my anxiety away. (Who knows what dangers this world holds after all.)
(And if I'm going to be even remotely ready to face them, then I can't let my decisions be influenced by my anxiety.)
The area I had entered wasn't much, just an open space devoid of any real greenery. It was practically a rectangular dirt field surrounded by trees on all sides. There were a few training dummies and wooden weapon racks set up, but it wasn't anything revolutionary. This was mainly because it hadn't been fully set up yet; however, it was still adequate for what it was currently being used for.
What truly caught my attention, though, were those currently using this open space. There weren't as many people here as I had expected, which I supposed made sense because most of them were probably on patrol. After all, with the potential threat of the orcs and the fact that Rimuru was still unconscious, the village couldn't afford to be relaxed on its security right now. Despite this, what surprised me was the fact that the old man was here.
"You're all tuckered out already? Seems we'll have to add stamina training to your future regimens." He muttered with a sigh as he rested his wooden katana at his side.
"Can't you go easier on us, old man?" Gobta groaned; he and his friends looked like they'd been beaten to hell and back.
The moment those words left the short hobgoblin's mouth, however, the atmosphere around his apparent teacher suddenly shifted. "What was that?"
"Oh... well... errm..." Gobta stuttered as his face went pale with fear. He glanced around frantically until he finally spotted me. "Look! A distraction!"
"H-hello." I said, waving at them awkwardly.
"Oh? If it isn't the young miss." The elderly individual said, sounding pleasantly surprised, although I suspected he had sensed me coming ages ago. "How are you doing?"
"I'm alright." I mused back, shifting my weight slightly.
"If I may ask, why are you here? Have the ogres started joining the training sessions too?" I asked, then paused and quickly corrected myself. "Wait, you're kijin now, right?"
"Indeed, we have all evolved into kijin after Lord Rimuru so graciously gave us names." He confirmed with a nod.
(This whole "naming a monster causes them to evolve" thing is really confusing.) I sighed internally.
"Ah, right. I suppose I should introduce myself. I have been given the name Hakurou." The newly introduced kijin announced with a slight bow.
Before I could respond, however, the severely bruised Gobta picked himself up and asked, "So, why are you here, Lady Suu?"
"The thing is, I was just wondering if…"