Cute Merry Man from Another World - Chapter 2
While walking through the forest, the scenery was all the same… green grass, trees, and even plants were green. Suddenly, they came to a stop because they saw a bow with an arrow that contained a letter on it. Hyde picked up the letter and read it. The letter is read as follows:
My Dearest Marian,
As the sun sets behind the canopy of Sherwood Forest, casting its golden hues upon the leaves, my thoughts invariably turn to you. Each whisper of the wind through the trees speaks your name, and every rustle of the leaves echoes the beating of my heart.
You are the beacon that guides me through the shadows, the light that pierces through the darkest nights. Your grace, your strength, your unwavering spirit—these are the qualities that inspire me, that fuel my resolve to fight for justice and for the downtrodden. In your eyes, I find my purpose, and in your smile, I find my solace.
Though the path I tread is fraught with danger, the thought of you fortifies my courage. Each arrow I notch, each stand I take against tyranny, is a testament to my love for you and my desire to build a world worthy of your beauty and your kindness.
Marian, my love for you is as boundless as the forest, as enduring as the ancient oaks. When I am away, your memory is my constant companion, a source of unending strength and comfort. I long for the day when we can walk together in peace, hand in hand, unburdened by the weight of our struggles.
Until that day comes, know that my heart belongs to you, now and forever. With each dawn that breaks, with each moon that rises, my love for you grows deeper, stronger, and more resolute.
Yours, always and forever,
Robin
As both Hyde and Linne read the letter, it turned out that it was a love letter for whoever this *Marian* was from whoever this *Robin* was, which was much of their confusion.
"That letter… why did it end up here…?" Hyde questioned. Of course, Linne had no answers to where it came from, who Robin and Marian were and most importantly, their love for each other.
"Your guess' as good as mine… Perhaps it's best for us to ignore it." She answered. Upon listening to her answer, Hyde picked up the bow and arrow. Seeing those two items, it reminded him of his time practicing Kyudo.
"You know… I've practiced Kyudo for at least 4 weeks. But I gave up because it wasn't my thing… Perhaps…" Hyde explained the reason he picked up the bow and arrow. Of course, Linne was reluctant to see someone picking things that weren't theirs to begin with.
"Hyde… I don't think that's a good idea…" She tried to stop Hyde from performing his thought-out plan. But of course, Hyde's curiosity of seeing both Robin and Marian has gotten the best of him.
"Come on, Linne…! I really wanted to see who Robin and Marian are…! It's like meeting a celebrity without even knowing it!" He exclaimed. Knowing she couldn't change his mind, Linne gave up.
The next day, they were meters close to some castle that belonged to the lion they met earlier, with Hyde preparing the arrow with the bow he picked up. He aimed too high, not knowing the consequences of doing it.
"Hyde… I'm warning you… you're pointing it way too high…" Linne tried to warn him, but he wouldn't listen, as he tried to adjust his aim. All of a sudden, he let out his fingers on the bowstring. This caused the arrow to go straight in the backyard. Seeing it, both Hyde and Linne were shocked beyond comprehension.
"Hyde… please tell me you didn't do Kyudo, without telling me you didn't do Kyudo…" Linne said, being completely disappointed in Hyde. Of course, he knew the consequences yet didn't have time to think of something.
"I-It was an accident…! I should have practiced Kyudo much longer!" He exclaimed. With no idea what to do, they retreated back to the forest.
Some time later they were near the little gate of the castle. It turned out that Hyde was planning to retrieve the arrow.
"Hyde… I know that you would want to retrieve the arrow… but hasn't your first encounter with Hilda taught you anything…?" She asked, reminding Hyde of the incident. Of course, Hyde knew what she was talking about, but he had to retrieve the arrow, apologize to Marian and get out of the castle.
"Look Linne, I know that It was stupid for me to even think of doing it… I admit it…! But it's too late to regret it now…! I have to retrieve the arrow and pretend like nothing happened!" He exclaimed. Knowing Hyde, despite being easily victim to shenanigans, Linne understood his responsibilities. Besides, Hyde carried the Insulator, which would be the deadliest weapon to have ever known. This caused her to sigh.
"Alright… Just don't take too long… alright?" She said while Hyde passed through the gate to look for the arrow.
Once Hyde was in the backyard, he looked every nook and cranny for it. But the arrow couldn't be found, causing him to worry more.
"Damnit…! Where is that goddamn arrow…?!" He silently exclaimed to prevent him getting caught. He looked through the backyard for quite some time… But the arrow couldn't be found. The only place he should go to was every room there was. But because of the idea of multiple rooms, he would have a hard time to find the arrow. Nevertheless, he went up to the castle.
As he was guessing which room the arrow would be, Hyde opened the door that was closest to him. There, he found noble furniture, meaning the bed, the wardrobe, the night table, etc.
As he went inside he silently closed the door not to attract unwanted attention. He noticed the arrow that Hyde used.
"Finally…! The arrow…!" He silently exclaimed, as he grabbed the arrow, relieved. "Now I should get out of here and…" before he could finish, he hit his back on something that shouldn't be there. Was someone following him…? Or was there an obstacle that shouldn't be…?
When feeling his back on an obstacle he was confused as to what it was. And so, he turned around, only to realize that someone was following him.
The person following Hyde was an undoubtedly beautiful, tall, slender, anthropomorphic vixen roughly three times taller than Hyde. She has scarlet fur, a cream muzzle and underbelly, pale orange eye patches, and brown eyes. Her color palette on her fur is slightly lighter in hue than Hyde's.
The primary and most common outfit she wears is a pale-lavender floor-length dress with a matching-colored sash holding it in place around her waist and a wide V-shaped collar. Under the dress, she wears a deep pink blouse with large, puffy sleeves that reach halfway down her forearms with matching cuffs.
On her high collar is a Gold brooch with a blue gem (probably a sapphire in it) held in place with a purple ribbon around her neck, and she wears simple lavender high-heel pumps.
On her head, the person wears a simple, lavender-colored, present-shaped headdress that covers her ears and wears a light pink veil just on top of that.
Seeing the person, Hyde quickly backed away, being at least 3 meters away from her.
"Y-You were following me…?!" He exclaimed, scared of what would happen next. "Of course I was, darling." The person spoke with a hint of an amused smirk at the end of the simple sentence. "This is my bedroom, I think a better question would be why *you* are here." She said to Hyde.
Hearing what she said, Hyde had no choice but to reluctantly explain why he would be in her room.
From what he told her, he used the dropped bow and arrow that both he and Linne found in the forest. When he tried it, he aimed too high and the arrow must have landed in the backyard with the love letter. Regretting it, he was desperate to retrieve it. When he noticed that the arrow was taken somewhere else, he went to what seemed like his best bet, which would be her room.
"And when I retrieved it, you were behind me as I walked backwards and.. Here I am…" He finished his explanation. The person's smirk became a little more visible as she listened to him, before taking a single step forward.
"You know, *darling, I don't think you'd accidentally manage to shoot an arrow into my *backyard*..." She said as she took another step towards him. "You don't seem like *that* good of an archer." She spoke. Of course, hearing Hyde knew how bad he was at archery.
"It's pretty obvious…" He said, ashamed of his actions before looking at her again. "L-Look…! Can you please let me retrieve my arrow and walk away…?" He asked, hoping that she would let him go. Of course, the person wouldn't let him go so easily.
"Let you walk away? Oh, I suppose I could let you…" She said teasingly as she took another step closer to him. "But how do I know you won't just do it again? It seems very *suspicious* to accidentally shoot an arrow straight into my backyard, darling." She asked, wanting to know the way that Hyde wouldn't pull the stunt he did hours ago again.
"I-I'll throw the bow and arrow away in the river if that's what you want…!" He suggested his way of not doing it again. Hearing his suggestion, she hummed, now standing directly in front of him.
"That sounds like a good idea. But before you leave…" She said as she lifted her hand to Hyde's chin and gently tilted it upwards so he was looking directly at her. "Why don't you stay for a bit, darling?" She asked, wanting him to keep her company, despite him not knowing her yet.
"S-Stay…? Why…?" He reluctantly asked, hoping that her answer won't be as bad as he thought. Hearing his question, she gently rubbed his lower lip with her thumb.
"Isn't it polite that you stay and apologize to the lady of the castle you've just barged into the room you're now in?" She asked, with her smile still on her face. "And if you behave well, maybe I'll even let you go without telling the Prince that some *rogue* shot an arrow into my backyard." She said.
When the person said *prince* Hyde recalled about the time where he and Linne toppled down the guards of that arrogant lion for a prince with powers that were very unknown to this world. If she were to tell that arrogant lion about him shooting an arrow into her backyard, there wouldn't be much he could do about it.
"You know… when you said *prince, are you referring to that one lion guy who stole money from the poor with his so-called taxes…?" he asked, making sure that it was the same arrogant lion that she was talking about. Hearing his question, she rolled her eyes, now lowering her hand from his chin, a sign that it was the same person that she was talking about.
"I am, in fact, referring to Prince John." she stated, with her voice now slightly more annoyed as she spoke about him, which is another sign that it was the same person as Hyde and Linne met in the forest.
"Why do you ask?" She asked, as she had suspicions about Hyde meeting Prince John. Of course, Hyde knew that he met Prince John, but not in a good way.
"*So that's his name… Because of her attitude when she talked about him… I feel like she and I have one thing in common to say the least…*" He thought to himself before admitting to her that he met him.
"Yeah… long story short, I sort of met him while me and friend Linne were going towards town…" He explained. Hearing his short explanation, the person's expression turned to one of both shock and curiosity.
"You've *met* Prince John…? How in the name of God did you manage to survive an encounter with that man?" She asked, worried about him now that she knew that Hyde met Prince John. Hearing her question out of worry for him, it was at this point that Hyde had to tell her about him and Linne.
From what he remembered, Hyde and Linne were once superhumans before coming to this world. Once they realized it, they were turned into young anthropomorphic fox children, much to their confusion. Because of that, they decided to know where they were and what was going on.
While doing so, they saw Prince John surrounded by the anthropomorphic rhinoceros guards for his safety. Before both Hyde and Linne could do anything, they were caught by one of the guards and were sent there to Prince John.
Prince John would threaten them, upon being brought to him, should they dare to get in his way. Little did he know that, because of both Hyde's strength and Linne's that were beyond his comprehension, he was taken aback.
Both Hyde and Linne couldn't kill the guards because of them looking like they're children and their powers couldn't affect them. They were, however, powerful enough to incapacitate them to the point where it would take days to recover from their injuries.
"And so, despite the fact that it won't be the last we'll see of him, we knew that we would make him go cry to his mom if they dared to hurt someone both emotionally and physically." He ended his story. The person stood as she listened to his story, and by the time he was finished, her expression was a mixture of surprise and relief.
"So you actually intimidated *that* insufferable excuse of a prince? If I could, I would get everyone in our kingdom to throw a party just to honor you and your friend *Linne* for doing such a thing." She said, as she would try honoring both Hyde and Linne for what they did. Unfortunately…
"Believe me, as much as I would like it, me and Linne are not party types… And besides, I don't think they'll know us yet, which is actually the best… Just from the fact that both me and linne are not from this world." He said. Before he knew it, the person was closer to him and, because of the difference of heights, he only felt the fabrics of her dress.
"W-What are you doing…?" He asked. She leaned forwards to that their faces were only a few mere inches away from each other, her smirk back on her face.
"Nothing, darling~" She replied, leaning even closer until her lips were almost touching his ear. "Just admiring my *dear guest*." She whispered. Hearing her whispering into his fox ears, Hyde stood still as he could feel chills down his spine just from her whispering.
"U-Uh… You do realize that my face was touching your dress, right…?" He asked, making sure that she was aware of it, in which she was, as she chuckled.
"Darling, I'd have to be blind not to realize that." She said, with her tone almost teasing, as she continued to speak into his fox ear. "But tell me, does it bother you, having your face pressed up against my dress like this?" She asked, as she whispered into his ear. Of course, he stood still, as he wasn't used to it.
"From someone who I don't know yet… it does a bit…" He replied, as he walked backwards a bit. Seeing him walking backwards a bit, she hummed, before taking a single step towards him, closing the gap he had put between them.
"From a *certain* perspective, I suppose that's a reasonable reaction." She said, as she continued to speak into his ear. "But darling, I must say I'm slightly offended. I did invite you to my room, and yet you still view me as a stranger…?" She asked. Hearing her question, Hyde was confused. She didn't invite him, he was intruding, there's a difference, and he knew that difference at least.
"You invited me…? I thought I was intruding to get my arrow…" He called out the difference that she made. Of course, she knew that he would call out the difference.
"Oh, you certainly were *intruding, but I decided not to throw you out." She replied bluntly. "A lot of women would have just kicked you onto the streets by now, and yet here I am, letting you stay in my room of all places." She said, as she rubbed his hair.
Hearing what she said, her demeanor and personality reminded him of his worst enemy… Hilda, known as Paradox, leader of Amnesia, back in his world. However, he tried to ignore it and shrugged. "If you say so…" He said before turning his back to find his arrow.
It was at this moment that she caught him off guard by grabbing him with her arms and put his head on her chest. This sudden action shocked him.
"W-What are you doing…?!" He exclaimed. Despite his sudden outburst, she couldn't help but chuckle at his panicked reaction.
"What, are you surprised, darling? It's a good way to make you *stay put*." She said, with her arms wrapped around him firmly so he couldn't escape. He was completely embarrassed by the fact that a princess like her would wrap her arms around him so that he wouldn't escape.
"W-Well… That's… true… but I'm not… you know…" Hyde hesitantly said upon getting hugged by her, with his fox ears twitching down.
"Not what, darling?" she teased with a smirk on her face. "Not used to a lady wrapping her arms around you and holding you close?~" She asked, with a feeling of teasing him. Just as she was about to hear her answer, she could hear him snoring, with his face planted on her chest. Upon hearing him snoring, she was both surprised and amused at the fact that he suddenly became tired enough to pass out right in her arms.
"Oh, this is just rich…" She muttered to herself with a smirk as she wrapped her arms around him tighter and gently rubbed the back of his head. Time passed and suddenly, Hyde slowly woke up.
"Ugh… Why did I pass out…" Those were the first words that Hyde woke up. He saw her smiling at him, making his face blush even more redder. As he noticed that he was wrapped up by her arms, he slowly got himself out of her embrace, embarrassed by the fact that he suddenly passed out. Seeing this, she chuckled at his embarrassed reaction.
"I don't know, darling. But I certainly wasn't expecting you to pass out like that. You must have been pretty tired…" She teased before continuing. "Did it help you rest though?" She asked, still teasing him.
"Y-Yeah… I guess…" He answered, trying not to look at her eyes, still embarrassed about it. "A-Anyway, I-I'm off…!" He said, as he grabbed the arrow and ran off. Before he could leave, she quickly grabbed his wrist.
"Ah…! You're not going off just yet, darling!" She exclaimed. "You promised me that you'd stay and apologize for barging into my room unannounced!" She exclaimed, still holding his wrist. This caused him to panic a little.
"L-Look, I'm sorry alright…?! It won't happen again…!" He exclaimed while bowing to her after she grabbed him by the wrist. Of course, hearing it, she smiled and chuckled a little.
"Good boy~" She said as she ruffled his hair with her free hand, before releasing his wrist. "And I trust that you'll actually stay true to your word, darling." She said, as she was still ruffling her hair. This caused him to nod a little.
"R-Right…" He said before looking at a wanted poster.
In it, there was an anthropomorphic fox with scarlet fur, a cream muzzle and underbelly, and pale-orange rings around his brown eyes, though his color palette is a bit darker than the person herself.
His outfit depicted in the poster is a simple, Lincoln-green tunic with two brown straps under the flapped collar, short-sleeves like a T-shirt, and a small brown belt with a gold buckle on his waist, as well a pair of matching green, medieval-style shoes, but no pants. He wears a green type of hat called a bycocket with a red feather situated on the left-hand side.
What he couldn't understand is that in the poster, it was depicted that this anthropomorphic fox was wanted with the prize of 1000£, which is a type of currency that Hyde didn't have.
"Huh...? Who is he in this poster...?" He asked. Upon hearing his question, she walked over and looked at the wanted picture before responding.
"That is Robin Hood, darling." She answered. "Somewhat of a 'hero' around here. A common thief that steals from the rich to the poor. That sort of thing. But unfortunately, the evil Prince John is trying to capture him." She told him about Robin Hood.
When she talked about Robin Hood, upon seeing that poster, he suddenly wondered where he heard that kind of story. It was then he realized that he ended up in his favorite movie when he was a kid. Not wanting to be excited, he shrugged off his brain.
"I see… I'm no law expert, but… Isn't stealing from the rich considered as robbery…? Unless he has a pretty good reason for being a vigilante…" He said, raising his concern. She chuckled before responding.
"I suppose you're right, he's technically not supposed to do that. But everyone around here adores him, because of the fact that he's giving to the poor. It's only Prince John and the corrupt guards that want him captured." He said, as he was completely disappointed in Prince John. When she said that, it reminded him of the consequences of intimidating Prince John.
"*Hmm… I suppose I could end up being an outlaw since that John guy feared both me and Linne…*" He thought to himself before facing her.
"But now that I thought about it… remember that conversation about Prince John…? About me and my friend intimidating that John guy…?" He asked. Of course, she remembered that conversation.
"How could I forget that?~" She replied, a smug smile on her face. "You and your *friend* certainly gave Prince John a scare with how you intimidated him and the guards, darling." She added. Of course, this caused him to blush a bit.
"Well if I intimidated him, wouldn't that mean that-" Before he could finish, he found another wanted poster, which depicted both him and Linne as a wanted criminal. Seeing the poster, there was a mix of anger, shock and disappointment.
"What the… What the hell is this?!" He exclaimed. It turned out that Prince John wouldn't take his grudges lightly. In fact, unlike Robin's poster, his poster depicted that both him and Linne were now wanted for a prize of 10 000£, 10 times more than Robin's. Upon seeing the wanted picture, she looked at it in surprise, before scoffing.
"Prince John really is a coward…" She muttered. "Trying to ruin your reputation by putting out a wanted picture and placing a large amount on it so everyone tries to capture you. The nerve of him…" She coldly said. Of course, this wouldn't make Hyde more happy, the longer he looked at the poster.
"The nerve of him indeed… When I see him, I'm gonna impale my sword so far up his-" Before he could finish, she put her index on her lips, trying to calm himself down.
"Careful, darling." She softly said, a smirk on her face. "You shouldn't use such *violent* language like that. Someone might *overhear*." She lowered her hand, before continuing to speak.
"What happened to that sweet, shy demeanor you had when we first met earlier?~" She teased. Of course, he forgot that she would tease him as time would pass.
"S-Sorry… It's just that… When I see or hear something that makes me furious, I get worked up." He tried to apologize. Of course, she rubbed his hair.
"Oh, how sweet that you're apologizing for getting worked up, darling." She said, with a smirk. "But you better learn to control your anger. Otherwise, you could end up doing something that you regret later." She advised Hyde as she would be worried about what Hyde could do to Prince John.
"Yeah… I guess you're right…" He said. The next thing he did was bowing to her after he took his arrow and the wanted poster that he folded until it could fit in his school pocket.
"Look, I'm very sorry about barging into your room… I promise it won't happen again." He apologized. She chuckled at him who was bowing to her again.
"As I said before, It's okay, darling. But I'll hold you to your promise of it not happening again." She replied before crossing her arms. "Where are you heading off to now anyway?" she asked. Now that he thought about it, he could think that Linne would be worried about him.
"I'm pretty sure that my friend was worried about me… She should be at our house we made…" He answered. Of course, she was understanding.
"Ah, that's understandable." She replied, with a hint of mild disappointment in her tone. "But before you go, may I ask you a question, darling?" She asked. Of course, Hyde was very reluctant to ask what she would ask, but he decided to hear it anyway.
"Huh…? What is it…?" He said, confused on what she would ask him. Hearing it, she smiled with a hint of a smug smirk. "You told me *quite* a few things about you so far, but you never told me your *true* name, darling." She said. Hearing it, it made him feel embarrassed by the fact that he didn't tell her his name.
"O-Oh…! Sorry… It's Hyde… Hyde Kido. What's yours…?" He introduced himself before asking her name. "Hyde Kido, huh…?" She murmured to herself before speaking again. "It's a nice name." She said, with a hint of teasing.
"As for my name, It's Marian." She said as she walked closer to him and held out her hand. "But you can simply call me *princess, darling~" She introduced herself, still teasing him. Of course, this caused him to back away from her a bit out of embarrassment.
"N-No thanks…! I'm good." He said while he got out of the room. Of course, Marian wouldn't let him go without a proper goodbye.
"Oh come on, darling, it was just a suggestion~" She said as she chuckled, before walking behind him. "Don't tell me you're planning on leaving without *properly* saying goodbye to me." She said. Hearing it, Hyde was completely out of touch because of his nervousness.
"O-Oh! R-Right…!" He said as he went to her and shook her hand with his. "I-I hope you had… a… Nice day…!" He said before taking off instantly. A smile appeared on her lips as he shook her hand, before her smirk came back as she watched him dash out of the room.
"Have a good day, *darling, try not to get into any trouble now." She called to him as he dashed out. And so, Hyde took off, with him being out of her sight. Once she was out of her sight, Marian's smirk faded into a smile on her face.
"A shy *and* polite boy." She muttered to herself. "How very cute~" She murmured to herself.