The Shaman can't become a Hero
Act 6: Food Demon
Chapter 68: Kizaki Akane and Kitaoji Rurika part.1
“Kyaaaaaaa!”
A girl’s scream, like the tearing of silk, echoes throughout the cave of insects.
“Hey Akane! Isn’t that enough crying, give me some cover already!”
“G-g-gimme a break here— There’s bugs, there’s ants, I can’t do thiiis!?”
In the dark cave where light wouldn’t reach, blazed a spot of fire. This floating ignis elemental shone on two girls wearing the Shiramine Academy’s sailor uniform, and also illuminated the forms blocking their way; clacking their large mandibles, what stood before them was a swarm of pawn ants.
“Just shoot dammit!”
“Nooo! ignis kris sagittaaaa!”
Her eyes moist, the girl called Akane fires a chantless, fire attribute, intermediate level, attack magic.
Having the misfortune of getting involved in a sudden otherworld summoning, she was a student of Class 2-7, Kizaki Akane.
Quite like a girl of her age, faced with large ant monsters, she furiously cried out in her displeasure; but in contrast, her tall and slender figure didn’t allow her to hold such a small and frail image.
With her bob-cut hair, and sweet, droopy eyes, Akane was blessed with tall stature, but had an innocent face and timid personality. She was especially weak to every variety of insect. And faced with such gigantesque arthropods, she was more than likely to lose composure when handling her fire.
“Hot hot!? You idiot! Planning to burn me here!”
“Sorryy, Ruri-chaan!”
The girl complaining to this fire mage, Kizaki Akane, held an iron sword in her hand, solidifying her role as the vanguard. Akane having aimlessly shot magic that made sudden bursts of flame spread out in this narrow cave was quite a reproachable act.
“Well, I guess it took care of some of ’em... Leave the rest to me!”
“Ok, go for it Ruri-chan! Ei, ignis enchant”
Having her blade receive the fire enchantment as support, Ruri took her red hot, spark-bursting, scorching sword in one hand, and dived into the fray of ants.
Exhibiting such brave and bold combat, wielding the Vocation of swordsman was Ruri, full name Kitaoji Rurika; another student of the same Class 2-7[1]
Compared to Akane, who boasted a height befitting a member of the volleyball club, Ruri was around a head shorter. Along with Reina A. Ayase and Takanashi Kotori, she was in a three-way deadlock in achieving the title of smallest in Class 2-7.
Small build and a tender visage like that of a small animal. Putting her long, black hair up in a ponytail; it was a heartwarming tale of wanting to imitate Kenzaki Asuna, one she admired for her gallant form.
And despite the difference in appearance in the two, their great courage in taking up the sword to battle fearsome monsters was all the same.
“—fuuh, that wasn’t too bad”
With fire being effective against the ants, together with Ruri’s own martial arts easily cutting into the carapace, all the enemies had been safely defeated. At the end, Ruri took a big swing, dispersing the flames of enchantment, and with practiced motions, returned her blade to its scabbard.
“L-let’s get out of this place already”
“Yeah, it’s pretty tight in here, too risky. Let’s walk faster”
The two girls warmly held hands, walking through the cave.
Kizaki Akane and Kitaoji Ruri, these two were certainly best friends. From a young age, childhood friends who’ve always been together. However, now they are—
“—Yaay! A fairy square, look Akane!”
“Huff, thank god, we can finally rest”
After many encounters with ant swarms, and somehow defeating the formidable mantis, the two had surmounted the cave and made it to an oasis of the dungeon commonly dubbed fairy square.
With the fountain trickling refreshing water in front of her, as if parched, Ruri rushed towards it, scooping up the cold springwater to drink.
“Haa, so good”
And as she cupped her hands to raise a 2nd mouthful, Ruri’s small lips were blocked. What entered her mouth was not cold, soothing water, but hot, vigorous meat. The touch of a seductive tongue, coiling about.
“—M-Mmn! Puhaa!? Geez, what’s up all of a sudden, Akane!”
“I-I mean... it was scary...”
Ruri, having found herself held to Akane’s chest, was angered with the sudden deep kiss— or so her blushed cheeks, and clouded eyes failed to support. Looking up, right above was Akane with the same, no, with an even deeper tint of cerise.
“So, hey, it’s fine right, Ruri-chan”
Closing her ecstatic eyes, once again Akane’s soft, pink lips close in.
“N-not fiiiine!”
Perhaps her embarrassment won over arousal, with a shout, Ruri used her thin arms to reject Akane’s face and body.
“O-oh no!? Ruri-chan dumped me!?”
“No I didn’t! Wait no, if you do it so suddenly... I haven’t washed... so I definitely stink of sweat right now...”
Seeing the girl’s lovely figure embarrassedly squirming, Akane’s breath grew rough.
“That’s okay, I don’t mind that at all! Ruri-chan’s smell, I love it!”
Fully ignoring how she was pushed away once, Akane jumps at Ruri’s small body a second time. A strong hold with both hands, as if she’d never let go. Between the breasts whose size you’d reach faster counting down from biggest in class, Ruri’s face is buried.
“I-I’m saying I mind!”
“Aah!?“
Rejected yet again, Akane moaned uwuwu as she crumbled to the ground and took a fetal position.
“Geez... don’t be depressed, c’mon stand up. We’re gonna be doing it together anyway right, the bath”
“Really!?”
With the nimbleness of a cat, Akane vroomed her body up good as new.
“Can’t really wash my back by myself... so help out you hear”
Hmph, she looked away, playing hard to get as if acting out the age old cliché.
“Ok! Let’s scrubba-dub-dub, Ruri-chan!”
With that, the two began taking off each other’s uniform. And for a short while, echoing in the fairy square were the sounds of splashing water, and the frolicking voices of maidens.
But that sound had gradually turned fiery; the white, naked figures of the two young women began to fervently, tightly, violently entwine together.
Their secret game, only to be observed by the lovable statue of a fairy, fixtured on top of the fountain.
Their sweat-filled bodies washed clean, Akane and Ruri lay on the soft grass, ever so close, wearing jerseys in place of night wear.
“...It’s kinda, like in a dream”
Akane mutters with a sigh.
“Yeah... fighting, dungeon life, I’ve gotten used to it, but yeah, it’s still like a dream”
I didn’t mean it like that though, she didn’t put to mouth.
Kizaki Akane was in love with Kitaoji Ruri. Even as kids, she had always loved her. They’d fought many a time, but she had never felt true anger, true hatred towards the girl, she could say that with confidence.
As a child, Akane was much more timid than her current self, and quite socially awkward as well; she couldn’t speak up very well. Naturally, those types of children were prone to be isolated... but she had Ruri.
Curious and bold, a rascal who confidently pushed through all obstacles, the ball of feistiness that was Ruri would always grab Akane’s hand, forcefully pulling her along, engaging her in various things. For that Ruri, Akane was likely seen as a convenient henchman of sorts to drag around.
Always, at any moment, those two would be together like sisters. Becoming the closest of friends before they knew it, looking back, all of Akane’s memories were dyed in the wonderful colors of Ruri’s smile.
And when she noticed how great a role that girl had played in her happiness, they had already become middleschoolers. It wasn’t the case that something special had happened. It could be said that this realization was the proof of Akane’s maturing.
This wont do. I can’t keep relying on Ruri forever. I must stand on my own two feet.
With those feelings, Akane joined the volleyball club. Ofcourse, she didn’t tell Ruri, it was too embarrassing. That she was tall so it would probably go well, she gave out a simplistic reason.
And as luck would have it, Akane had talent in volleyball. Already a head taller than her middleschool classmates, one could say that just her height played a major role in blooming that talent.
Despite her personality making her weak to tough challenges, with her reasonably good athleticism, and tenacious will, Akane began to grow in body and spirit. She had discarded her awkwardness. She learned to speak while looking straight at the eyes. The members of the volleyball club, her teammates, had all become important friends to her.
But her feeling for Ruri, only those reached deep in her heart.
No matter how many new friends she made, no matter how well she did as the volleyball ace, it wasn’t enough. Ruri, if that girl wasn’t there, she’d fall apart. She didn’t need to rely on her anymore, neither did she need her hand pulled along. Yet, if that girl wasn’t close to her, the loneliness, the pain, something would plunge her into disarray.
The girl called Kitaoji Ruri was her most precious, a special existence for her; That was something she realized soon after entering Shiramine Academy.
“—Hey, that Souma-kun, isn’t he like, crazy hot?“
A classmate, a boy they’d seen since middleschool; he was incomparably handsome, he was bright, refreshing, just like a real prince. Or so Ruri described him with glistening eyes.
Akane felt jealousy.
And at the same time, awakened to her sexuality.
Akane perceived her unattraction to the opposite sex. That being said, it wasn’t like she would be aroused by females instead.
It was simply the case that, the person she loved happened to be of the same sex.
“...Sigh, I wanna go home”
“Yeah”
When she noticed her love for Ruri, Akane had suffered. Endlessly worried and suffered. Hers was a love that wasn’t meant to be.
“I wonder, if they’re doing alright, Meiko and Hime”
“I’m sure they are. We’re somehow doing fine see, so those two, they’re definitely alright too”
Ruri leaked with a sigh, words of worry for her friends, and Akane gently replied.
Futaba Meiko and Himeno Airi. Those two, making four with Akane and Ruri, were friends who would always group together in Class 2-7.
She was bad at cooking, so she’d improve; or so Ruri determined to do in her first year of highschool, and then, her getting along with Futaba Meiko, a classmate and something of a pro at the art, took a natural course in a good direction. Meiko was of gentle demeanor, and perhaps she was reminded of the timid Akane of day gone by, Ruri soon hit it off with her.
Though when Akane saw her playfully hugging the soft, squishy Meiko who boasted great volume both heightwise and widthwise, it made her burn with quite the jealousy.
As for Himeno Airi, she was a classmate of Akane’s since her 1st year; their seats were close, they ended up talking, and before they knew it, they’d become friends who hung out. The girl wasn’t as outstandingly big as her or Meiko, and wasn’t as small, child-looking as Ruri either. Plain and docile, she was a normal girl you could find anywhere... but one of the few who knew of, and understood Akane’s feelings.
For Akane, and for Ruri, both Meiko and Airi are their important friends. Though they also worried about their other classmates, they would end up thinking first about the safety of those two.
“Hey Akane, when we get back, what are your plans?”
Though Akane had brought up the subject, as if trying to ease her anxiety, Ruri took it upon herself to carry it along.
“Eh, yeah, I wanna go play around a lot. With Ruri ofcourse... where should we go~”
“If you ask me, it’s gotta be the mall. Kufufu, I’ll go on a crazy shopping spree”
“Preach. So after that, should we go for some expensive fine dining?”
“Ah, what was it, that one, you know, that famous high-class restaurant. The one in front of the station. Let’s go there”
“Hey, after dinner, umm... I, kinda, umm, wanna go, to a, hotel, maybe“[2]
“C-calm your pants... didn’t we just do it, pervert”
Ruri says cheeks flushed, laid, sleeping right next to her. Ah, this is bliss.
Dungeon survival; perhaps it’s because of this harsh environment, that Ruri had relinquished her body to one of the same sex, to her best friend Akane. Perhaps the truth was that Ruri too held feelings similar to hers.
Kizaki Akane no longer cared for the reason.
Her love had been answered. Only that mattered.