Near the entrance of a lonely village, a wooden signboard with worn out lettering lingered in the brush. Ivy swirled along the post, hugging it and at the same time tearing it apart. An old relic from the past that was still used to for its intended purpose; only time dictated whether or not it should still stand.

This place was Enrika Village.

A strange atmosphere stained the air. It was peaceful. It was warm. It was comforting. But... there was something off. A vague contradiction. A misplaced memory.

Gentle, but heavy. Clean, but oversaturated.

This was a town that was forever in waiting...

At the very edge...

A lone woman with long blonde hair...

"You... Don't appear to be merchants..."

Her blue eyes briefly studied the two before her. She bowed and, with a kind voice, apologized...

"I'm sorry, it may be rude to say this, but please go. Other than merchants, we don't allow anyone else in the village."

Still bending down...

"You may take offense at our prohibition, but this is how we've lived for a long time. If you are sensible, please let us be."

"..."

The boy frowned... but took her feelings in earnest.

"...I understand, sorry for the trouble."

He nodded his head and turned away.

The winding path leading back into the forest was far. Had he given up too easily? Maybe. But it was more strange why he was attracted to such a place to begin with. There was no reason for him to be there, but there was an unconscious drive that led him to wander towards this old forgotten village. He needed to move on. He needed to move forward. He began reaching to the place he ought to be.

But before his hand could catch the reflection of the sun...

"Wait..."

Hearing her speak up again, the boy turned his head. His gaze locked onto her soft expression.

"Could it be that... Is your name..."

"..."

The woman took a closer look... towards his face... his eyes... his hair... and towards the ring on his hand...

"Luka?"

He was puzzled. Not knowing how to react, he half-smiled as a default action.

"...That's right."

"..."

She stepped back and hesitated before introducing herself.

"My name... is Micaela..."

Speaking quietly, she lowered herself.

"I knew... your father and mother well..."

What would need to happen in Enrika Village is something reserved for a later time.

But along with the images that rushed through the boy's mind, Micaela's name is something he would not forget...

Chapter 4

One day later…

"Uwaaaaa~"

Alice raised a hand to cover a yawn. With her yellow eyes half open and her silver hair slightly in disarray, she uncurled herself from the tree she used as a resting spot.

"Oi. Luka..."

The monster girl sluggishly slid over to the boy's tent. She called out in a tired voice.

"Make me breakfast. I'm hungry."

The lamia pulled back one of the tent's flaps to look inside.

"A-Alice...! Is that you...!"

Luka was in a panicked state. The boy spoke through his teeth as he apparently could not open his jaw.

"I-I-I can't move for some reason...! I think I might be paralyzed!"

The monster girl narrowed her eyes.

Next to him, a shirtless girl with long brown hair was sleeping soundly next to him. Two long elephant leaves sticking out from the top of her head identified herself as a mandrake-type monster. How she got there? Maybe she snuck in overnight. Or more likely, dug herself up from underneath the boy's tent in search for light and nutrients. Either way, Luka wasn't reacting too well with her passive plant abilities.

"Sorry to interrupt."

Alice closed the flap.

"O-Oi! Where do you think you're going! Come back! Please come back!"

Feeling the mandrake girl drape her arm over his torso...

"Unyaa..."

"Huh? What was that?! Who's there?!"


"So... Is this going to be a running theme? Ignoring me every time I'm in trouble?"

"Is that what you call trouble? Most would consider you to be very lucky."

The boy and the monster walked side-by-side. Their destination: Happiness Village. The reason: to satiate someone's appetite. Truly, the path to becoming a Hero was long and far.

"And how quickly you choose to forget the incident in Iliasburg. I should punish you for being so ungrateful."

Luka's eyes glazed over.

"Oh, right. That... I don't think said it properly, but thank you for that."

"Don't get sentimental. It's disgusting."

Though she stuck out her hand for him to stop, she seemed to be enjoy the praise, even if it was half-hearted.

"..."

Luka decidedly raised his glance towards the sky. Through the foliage of the forest, he could pick out clouds and large birds surfing an endless blue landscape. Surely, a sunny day was a sign for a peaceful day.

"Hey Alice. I've been wondering about this for awhile now..."

Luka movements were a bit stiff as he walked. The effects of the mandrake's pollen hadn't completely worn off yet.

"There have been monsters out there saying that I smell 'good'. What does that mean? What do I smell like...?"

Alice put a finger to her lips.

"If I had to describe it... maybe ripe cherries?"

"Cherries?"

"No, nevermind. In any case, it's pointless to worry about it."

"Why shouldn't I be worried? It seems like I'm being targeted because of it."

"It's somewhat expected. After all, you weren't baptised now, were you?"

The boy was confused.

"...? It has something to do with that?"

"A baptism changes your scent. You didn't know that?"

"...Well, not really."

Alice sighed audibly.

"How did you get so far without knowing at least that much?"

The boy took a moment to recover from an imaginary blow. He continued on shortly after.

"I thought receiving Ilias's blessing was more or less a symbolic ritual... I didn't expect there to be a real purpose behind it..."

Alice frowned and explained it to him.

"The baptisms work as a repellent of sorts towards weak monsters. They cause humans to reek of Angel Liver, and to say the least, these humans become undesirable to be around."

"I see... (Huh? What? Angel Liver?)"

The lamia crossed her arms.

"But even without a baptism, there are other factors that determine whether or not certain humans become prey for monsters. Age. Threat. Personal tastes. Taking everything into consideration, generally those who are attacked and eaten are the ones with young faces and submissive personalities."

"..."

Luka pointed at his face.

"And that's... supposed to be me...?"

Thinking about how to respond, Alice smiled deviously.

"Would you like to find out?"

Her tail graced the back of his leg, causing him to jump up in reaction.

"Tha-! That isn't funny, you know!"

Alice stifled a laugh with her fingers.

"Relax. A connoisseur like me has no interest in dining on such skimpy dish. Though... that could easily change if I don't get any Happiness Honey anytime soon..."

"Really! Stop that!"

"Oh? Did you think that was a joke?"

"..."

Quickly turning away...

"Happiness Village shouldn't be too far."

"That's good to hear."

Becoming increasingly aware of the dangers of traveling with a monster, the boy continued walking, making sure to keep his distance from the lamia.

"Do you know why they call it 'Happiness Village'?"

Alice popped a question. No doubt, she already knew the answer from reading the 'World Traveler' guidebook; however, Luka was getting tired of being treated like a fool.

"I'm sure you're going to tell me."

"Really. Guess now."

The boy's expression thinned.

"I suppose... it's because it's a very happy place?"

A short-lived image of villagers skipping through a field appeared in his head. The lamia cheerfully smiled.

"What are you, an idiot?"

[ Screams internally. ]

"The reason stems from the closeby Harpy Village."

"I see..."

He let out a breath.

"Happiness... Harpy... I can see the possible etymology there..."

"With that in mind, it'd be in your best interest to keep your guard up. Harpies can be rather difficult to deal with. Especially when they're in the air. You never know when one could swoop down and carry you off to a nest."

This is important information, so don't take what I'm saying lightly. It'd be troublesome if-"

She glanced to the side and noticed an outline taking the spot where Luka used to be.

"..."

In the split second Alice took her eyes off him, the boy had been whisked away by a bird-like creature.

"...Ara?"


It was like an out-of-body experience. His vision had turned into video footage, and the camera had suddenly rocketed into the sky. The ground quickly grew into a distant sight. Along with the shrill sound of wind passing by Luka's ears, he could also hear someone whistling.

"Oh ho~ That was a nice catch~ Oh hey~!"

"..."

He looked up.

Feathers. Feathers were what the boy's eyes were drawn to, as they extended out and blotted the sun from his point of view. While the girl's face and torso resembled that of a human's, in place of arms were massive hawk-like wings. And feathers traced down her waist and legs to the talons that gripped the boy's shoulders. Luka was in the presence of a new type of monster.

He immediately started yelling.

"HA-HAAAAAAAAAA?-! WHAT THE- LET ME GO! WHERE ARE YOU TAKING ME?-!"

"It's a good day to fly, don't you think mister? Oh ho~"

She gave him a wink.

"You got yourself a good smell for a hubby~! Oh hey~ Couldn't resist picking you up on the spot~! Oh ho~"

"L-LET ME GO!"

Forcefully shifting his weight around haphazardly, Luka was desperate to literally escape her clutches. This threw off the harpy's balance somewhat.

"Mister, it isn't a good idea for you to be moving so much...! Oh hey~!"

She seemed genuinely concerned for his safety.

"AS IF I'D LET MYSELF BE KIDNAPPED LIKE THIS! I'M SUPPOSED TO BE A HERO DAMN IT!"

As Luka struggled, the harpy started to sweat. She obviously didn't anticipate her load to be so difficult to handle. The two were flying through the air in an almost sine wave from a lateral perspective.

"Mister, if this continues on-"

"JUST LET GO ALREADY!"

Fwip!

That was the sound of the boy slipping through her claws.

"I told you so... Oh ho~!"

"...?"

With his back turned towards the surface of the Earth, the boy half-smiled after realizing how painful this was going to be. Luka quickly plummeted downward in a freefall. And eventually crashed through the thatch roofing of someone's home.

Luka had been dropped off in the thicket of Happiness Village.


Shortly thereafter arriving...

Inside a different home, the boy found himself having tea with an elderly woman shrunk with age. Her white hair had been tied neatly into a bun and her clothes suggested that she was of high status; however there was a certain livelihood that she exuded that conflicted with her image.

"Welcome to Happiness Village! ...is something I'd like to say but no doubt your experience so far hasn't been pleasant."

Steam gently rose from the ceramic teaset.

"As current acting chief, I'd like to apologize for that. I wish a traveler like yourself could've happened to our village under more... normal circumstances."

"Oh, no! I should be one apologizing here! After all, I just destroyed someone's roof! Hahahaha!"

The elder didn't find it funny, so Luka immediately stopped laughing.

Bits of straw stuck out of Luka's hair. Falling more than ten stories high, it was a nothing short of a miracle that he made it out with only a few scratches. Of course, the boy would currently rather be lying down than having tea. And while not apparent, he was suffering from a massive headache.

"Lively aren't you? Regular people would need more than a few hours to recover from a fall like that. Are you sure you're alright?"

"Eh...? Uh, I think I'm more lucky than anything… If I landed on a rock or didn't have anything to break my fall, I think I'd be dead…"

"I guess you're right…"

The Village Elder raised a cup to her mouth and lowered it.

She sighed.

"Young traveler... would you be so kind and take a look out that window for me?"

Luka blinked but did as he was told. Standing up, he walked over to the nearby window.

"Tell me, what do you see?"

He observed through the glass.

"... Everything seems to be peaceful. I can see villagers attending to crops. And... those must be the beehives Happiness Village is so famous for..."

He began noticing.

"Wait..."

His eyes darted around the scenery as he searched, but not a single one was in sight.

"Where... are all the men?"

...

The Village Elder slowly rose from her spot.

"It's... been more than a month since the harpies have started raiding our village. But instead of taking livestock or gold, they've been abducting the men of our village. My husband, the real village chief, was one of the first to be taken..."

"..."

Looking out the window, she gazed into the distant forest where a fleet of shadows hovered in the air. She closed her eyes.

"In the beginning, the kidnappings were far and few in between. As time went by though, their frequency increased. Fathers and sons. Brothers and uncles. Day by day, they were all picked off, carried away never to return. And eventually... this village became a settlement of only women..."

A quiet anger was building up.

"We have no idea what they could be doing to them. Working them as slaves? Eating them for food? It's a nightmare that only plagues those left behind..."

She spoke in an unfeeling manner.

"Young traveler... though you may have just arrived here… and you may not be in the best of shape… I urge you to leave this place as soon as you can. As the acting Village Elder, it is my responsibility to tell you that as long as you're in Happiness Village, you are in danger."

Luka turned his head. And the defeated expression of a stern old woman met his glance.

At that moment, he knew that there was no turning back from this point.

...

"...I understand."


Within the forest, there was a clearing. A large circular area partitioned from the rest of the woods. Short grass laid the foundation for a natural buffer-zone and in the very center of the circle, a group of massive trees towered over the rest of the wildlife. Here was the place the harpies created a settlement.

"Sorry I was late for the meeting~ Oh ho~!"

A familiar harpy landed herself on a branch of one of the trees. She looked up towards someone perched from above.

"What's the excuse this time? Did you get lost? Did you get distracted by something interesting?"

The familiar harpy tilted her head.

"Interesting...? Maybe? I saw a boy in the woods. I tried bringing him here, but he fell out of my grip mid-flight. He's probably dead now. Oh hey~"

...

"..."

The familiar harpy began to sweat. She could feel a condescending glare beat down on her.

"Oh, is that all now?"

Quickly whistling:

"Ah, well... Now that I think about it, when I picked up that boy, I saw a snake lady close by... Oh ho~"

"A snake... lady?"

The harpy nodded.

"Yeah, yeah! Long silver hair, purple-ish, snake tail! Bonafide lamia! Oh hey~!"

"..."

...

The harpy raised a wing.

"Umm... can I go now? Oh ho~!"

She felt another glare.

"You may... But send a message to the others..."

[ INAUDIBLE ]

Blinking, the familiar harpy stammered.

"Are you sure? That's... why would..."

"There's no proof, but it'd be wise to prepare if such an outcome were to come forth. Go now and spread the word."

"R-Right! Oh hey~ Oh ho~!"

Flapping her wings, the harpy took off.

And left by herself, the residing Queen of Harpies smiled.

"Indeed. This is interesting news."


Ka-cha~!

Alice sneezed.

Rubbing her nose, she made note of all the molted feathers around her. Though, it seemed most were swept to the side as to clear the roads, the smaller feathers had a harder time sticking to the ground.

( "Oh? Who's that?" )

( "A traveler?" )

( "She's got quite the outfit." )

After a long trek, the monster girl had finally reached the front gates of Happiness Village. And she was met with suspicious glances from a few of the townsfolk. While some were interested by her arrival, others carried on with their daily activities.

Of course, Alice had changed herself into her human form before entering.

"..."

She narrowed her eyes. Scouring the humble farming community, she saw various townswomen transporting beehives and working with heavy equipment. She singled one of them out with a finger.

"You there...!"

"...?"

The lamia had chosen a girl with a young face and submissive personality. She beckoned her to come forward with a hand motion, and in response the Village Girl nervously approached.

"W-Welcome to Happiness Village... You came all the way here... but there's nothing here to entertain a traveler with..."

The Village Girl looked towards the ground.

"D-Due to a shortage of manpower... most of us have been bus-"

Cutting her off.

"Tell me. Have you seen any harpies fly by carrying onto a screaming boy?"

"..."

The Village Girl raised her glance.

"If it's harpies you're looking, there are plenty that fly over this town... Usually they come in droves in the late afternoon... But boys..."

Tilting her head.

"...?"

Something lit her eyes.

"Ah! This morning there was someone that came crashing through the roof of one of my friend's! And he was screaming!"

Screaming was the natural thing to do in that situation, but to that girl it was an afterthought.

"I think... He bought himself a jar of honey and left..."

Alice narrowed her eyes.

"Did he now?"

The monster girl had a look of exasperation on her face. She seemed to be piecing together the jist of the situation.

"When you mentioned a shortage of manpower, I don't suppose you mean that harpies have been taking men from this village."

"Uh… um, that's exactly what's happening."

Alice narrowed her eyes further. She sighed.

"That idiot… He's gonna get himself killed…"

Leaning back and scruffing her hair in frustration, Alice groaned.

"Looks like I'll be waiting here for a while then."

The timid girl slowly backed away from the foreigner.

"If… there's anything else I could help you with… I could…"

"There is."

The disguised lamia robotically turned her head. There was something she needed to do. Her duty as a connoisseur was calling in the wake of arriving at the village.

"Happiness Honey. Where is it."

Less of a statement and more of a demand, Alice's appetite took control of her voice.

"Uh… uh…"

The girl was increasingly becoming more uncomfortable with the visitor.

"Our final batch… just left a few hours ago to Iliasport by carriage… We won't be able to make any more until tomorrow… that boy took the last jar in our stock."

"Eh?"

( Part 1 of 2 complete )