“—What’s wrong, big bro? You suddenly look spaced out.”

“Ha—?”

I was unexpectedly caught off guard by the voice of a middle-aged man with a tough face.

Seeing my dull response, the middle-aged guy scrunched his already wrinkled brow even more.

“I’m asking you what you’re gonna do about it! Are you buying the Ringa or not?”

“Ha—?”

“Ringa! You wanna eat it, right? You asked me about it, and now you look like your brain short-circuited. So, what’s it gonna be?”

The muscular Scarf Face has a cute little red fruit resting in his palm.

Comparing the fruit that looks like an apple with his face, I said,

“Ah, actually, I’m broke as a joke.”

“…What? You’re just messing with me, huh? Then scram! I’m busy here. I can’t waste time on jokers.”

With a dismissive wave of his hand, I found myself hurriedly ushered away.

He—Natsuki Subaru, looked around while muttering,

“Eh? Eh? —What does this mean?”

All I could do was spit out confused questions directed to no one in particular.

※※　※　※　※　※　※　※　※　※　※　※　※

The Main Street was as crowded as ever, with pedestrians spilling over the sidewalk, only occasionally interrupted by a lizard-drawn carriage passing by.

The sun was still high in the sky. It wasn’t so hot, but seeing a wolf-like humanoid—a werewolf, perhaps—walking by made me think, “It must be sweltering for them.”

I fleetingly had that thought, but then realized,

“This is no time for silly thoughts like that. Uh, wait, what!?”

Grabbing my head, I twisted my waist. I struck a pose of anguish, and I attracted quite the crowd around me, intrigued by my bizarre behavior.

It was a familiar gaze, starkly reminiscent of what I’d just experienced hours ago—no, to put it correctly, it was identical.

“That was just hours ago… but…”

As I looked around, I gazed up at the sky and tilted my head.

The sun was high. At least according to my recollection, it had just set moments ago.

This wasn’t the first time I had such a weird feeling.

I had felt the reversal of night and day when I was dragged into this different world. Thus, the shock wasn’t as bad as before, but there were definitely different conditions this time.

“My stomach wound… isn’t there.”

I rolled up the hem of my tracksuit and confirmed my abdomen.

There should have been a gaping wound from a gigantic blade, a massacre of blood and guts, yet there was nothing there. Naturally, there weren’t even stitches, nor were there any traces of blood on my clothes.

In fact, my beloved tracksuit didn’t even have dirt or mud on it.

The convenience store bag in my hand was still intact, and my phone and wallet were snug in my pants pockets. In every way, I was in perfect initial condition.

—My mind nearly broke.

“Being summoned to another world already pushed my limits, and now this state… what the hell am I supposed to do?”

Thinking about the healing of wounds, I could rationalize it thanks to Satella’s example; thus, I could accept the lack of injuries.

However, the injury I received in the Thieves’ Repository was clearly fatal. I felt death itself the moment I lost consciousness.

If such a wound could heal, it could only mean that the magic in this world could even revive the dead.

“The value of life sure seems to have dwindled… but, who even did that?”

I was determined to shake off the confusion in my memory, desperately trying to recall what happened just before I lost consciousness.

Yes, I had been nearly killed after being sliced open. I remembered there was a woman’s voice.

After finding a corpse in the Thieves’ Repository, I was attacked by someone who seemed to be the killer of that corpse. In that perilous situation—

“Right, Satella!”

The Silver-Haired Girl had come in, worried about me, into the Thieves’ Repository.

Realizing my actions before that moment, I was now filled with regret within.

I had been clearly told by her.

Not to try to handle it alone, and to call her if anything happened.

That message carried the deeper meaning of signaling her that I was in a critical situation.

Yet, I had neglected to raise my voice to call out.

As a result, I couldn’t escape the attacker and ended up leading Satella into that horrific scene.

In the darkness, drowning in the pool of my own blood, I clearly witnessed the Silver-Haired Girl cut down by the assailant.

I saw her collapse into the sea of blood, unable to move before I could.

“I was told to take care of Satella… wasn’t I?”

I recalled Pack’s figure as he seemed to tell me that right before he vanished.

Those words were anything but light. I simply had not taken them as seriously as I should have, and the situation that the small cat had worried about was now upon us.

And despite multiple warnings, I let the opportunity slip away due to mere oversight.

Now, this was the result.

Being tossed into the street without any understanding, not knowing if my acquaintances were safe, and utterly lost.

“Am I an idiot…? No, I’m definitely an idiot. What time do I even have to hang my head in shame? Anyway, I have to find Satella and Pack…”

They could both be dead—such a cruel thought flashed into my head, but I shook it off.

Even someone as utterly useless as me, a mere waste of resources, somehow managed to survive.

So, there’s no way those two—a benevolent girl who could use magic and who was a straightforward yet sweet beautiful girl, and a laid-back, elusive spirit—would be dead.

No, I didn’t want to believe they were.

“Anyway, now…”

—Subaru made the decision to head back to the Thieves’ Repository.

If that place was where I lost consciousness, I felt my actions would provide some kind of clue.

No time to waste, he promptly resolved to act, his speed of decision-making evident again. In his original world, he often reluctantly settled on “I think I’ll skip school today,” but this time it meant cutting through confusion decisively.

Yet, just as he sprang into action with that determined decision—

“Hey, bro! Why don’t you hang out with us for a bit?”

Three guys were blocking the alley, interrupting his plans.

※※　※　※　※　※　※　※　※　※　※　※　※

“Hey, hey, look at that spaced-out face. What’s up?”

“Looks like he’s clueless about the situation. Why not enlighten him?”

Seeing Subaru remain unresponsive to their threats, the men twisted their lips into mocking smiles.

Watching their attitudes felt akin to being treated to a ridiculous performance that I didn’t ask for.

Three of them. Their outfits were far from decent, showing off physical features that screamed their rough upbringing and character—typical thug appearances.

Visible scars on their faces and rough skin gave off an air of violent familiarity.

All of this gave me an unmistakable sense of deja vu. After all, they were the ones who…

“Hey, did you guys hit your head or something without me knowing?”

They were the same bunch that had set the stage for me to meet Satella and Pack just hours ago.

They definitely had mob-like roles, but since this other world resembled a three-dimensional globe, they couldn’t be reused characters. So it must be similar-looking different guys, right?

“Yeah, right! Three guys with similar faces pulling off a robbery? Give me a break!”

If it was just one similar face, maybe, but three of them? Forming a party with the same face was too far-fetched. Therefore, they were undeniably the same faces from my memory.

“Have you hit your head? Or is this just a quick revenge? I guess even in fantasy worlds, that hasn’t changed. At least you’re not bringing along your buddies, so that’s a plus?”

In the real world, take out one guy, and the guy you defeated would come back with friends seeking revenge. Ultimately, it was common to face endless waves of enemies until you faced some absurdly strong foe that led to game over.

Compared to that repetitive negative cycle, I should’ve appreciated the fact that these guys were facing me independently.

Either way, saying they were revenge-seeking against me made no sense considering the situation.

“Well, I get the vibe that you want to hit a weak spot, so I won’t say you’re wrong. But, the timing is pretty bad…”

“What’s this guy saying? Is he out of his mind or something?”

While I was contemplating a peaceful resolution, the guys mocked my thoughts.

Even I couldn’t hold my anger. I wanted to sort this out peacefully, but usually, I was a pretty short-tempered guy.

Still, considering the severity of the situation, I was prepared to endure small jabs—

“Alright then, listen up, bro! Hand over all your stuff, and I’ll let you off easy.”

“Ah, right, all of my stuff? I’m in a hurry, so just that would be just fine, seriously.”

“Also, act like a dog! Get on all fours and bark ‘Help me!’”

“Don’t get cocky, you little—!!”

As that overly arrogant remark flew out, my patience finally snapped.

In the sudden burst of rage, the thugs were startled. Seizing the bewildered moment, I zeroed in on the second-in-line thug.

He was the only one who had successfully repelled my onslaught with a knife before. Naturally, he would get trigger-happy now and whip out a knife again.

“Let’s start with you! I hate those who don’t value their lives! Die!!”

I unleashed a powerful palm strike that sent the thug’s chin flying. Following through, I delivered a left hook to his open midsection, slamming him against the wall.

Stunned by the sudden turn of events, the others reacted too slowly. So, I swiftly swept the legs of one thug, causing him to tumble. Then, I made a beeline for the final one.

Lowering my body, I leapt toward the thug like an animal, targeting his lower half.

Utilizing a body tackle, I lifted him up and slammed him head-first into the wall. Following the impact, I finished him off with a kick, spun around, and found the thug I had tripped back on his feet.

“Uh… You…!”

“Alright, one-on-one. The knife and hatchet are knocked out, but what’s your next move?”

Fueled by adrenaline, my confidence was pushing me forward. The thug appeared somewhat intimidated by my bravado; he was one who had been knocked out earlier thanks to Satella’s magic.

Though he hadn’t officially checked for an opponent yet, I could tell from his coy reaction that he didn’t possess any lethal weapon.

“If we’re just trading punches, I’m not going down easily.”

“Shut it, you bastard! Oh! Don’t look down on me, kid!!”

Tossing out my hand to bait him into attacking, I spat the insult with a gleefully malicious twist.

As he lunged at me, I met him with a straight punch. I connected solidly with his chest, and he crashed into me, trying to pin me against the wall. But,

“Pathetically weak!”

Grabbing the shoulders of the thug, I overpowered him easily with my grip.

I could see a look of sheer panic flashing across his face. I twisted it into a villainous grin.

“Just because I’m a recluse doesn’t mean you can underestimate me. My grip strength is over seventy kilos thanks to all those pointless training sessions swinging a wood sword daily! I can bench press eighty kilos too, you know!”

Once upon a time, I had mildly embarrassed myself crushing apples in a gathering of friends.

I hadn’t given up on training my body during my hopeless recluse days. When it came down to a strength contest with someone of similar physique, I had the foundational stamina to not lose under any but the most extraordinary circumstances.

As the thug screamed in agony from my grip crushing his wrists, he loosened his hold. In that split second, I drove my knee into his gut! The thug bent double, gasping for air. Swiftly, I rounded behind him.

“Don’t hold a grudge if you end up dead! I’ve always wanted to try this, the ground throw!”

Wrapping my arms around his waist, I flung him back with all my might.

It was similar to a pro wrestling backdrop throw, only much more vicious since I released him midway. He crashed headfirst into the wall, lying motionless, not even twitching.

Confirming that both of the thugs were down for the count, I moved towards the first one who I had taken down with a knife.

The relatively healthy knife thug groaned as he desperately reached for a knife hidden in his pocket upon seeing me approach. However, before he could draw it, I mercilessly kicked his face. He was knocked out cold.

“—Easy victory! There’s never been a time when evil thrived in this world!”

Natsuki Subaru struck a victory pose, cheering for himself alone.

Seeing my pointless workouts had indeed paid off was a relief. But…

“The circumstances haven’t changed at all. We still have to get to the Thieves’ Repository.”

Confirming none of the three men were dead, I hastily left the alley.

As I emerged from the street unscathed, I noticed passing pedestrians giving surprised, “Whoa” reactions; I wanted to shout for them to report the obvious robbery.

Of course, shy Subaru wouldn’t be able to do such a thing and hurriedly fled the scene.