Oomi
“Harvester!”
Relief burst out of me in a loud voice.
“Glasses, you did well bringing everyone here. You can relax now.”
Good thing it was dark. At least no one could see me crying for the second time inside the Stone.
“Sorry it took so long to pull the ship in,” Rhone’s bright voice came through.
“It was the first time we had to pull in a ship still tied by a ladder.”
Even if it was by chance, I was the one who put the ladder there. I felt awkward.
“What about the Watcher Bird?” Oze-san shifted the topic casually, saving me from the mood. He was being considerate.
This book was originally published on Royal Road. Check it out there for the real experience.
“Outside the Stone it’s a mess. As always, the birds that feed on hearts are raging in their final struggle. We have to be careful here too. They’re not good at changing their size, so I doubt they can squeeze through that narrow passage. The Watcher Bird is fighting them—ah, it’s moving.”
I also felt the train begin to move. But I had no clue which direction we were headed.
The Harvester of Hearts smacked a seat with a loud bam. The vibration traveled into my back.
“The ones in this row are facing forward. That’s the direction we’re going.”
Something had puzzled me, so I asked.
“Harvester, can you see in the dark?”
“No. My senses are just sharper than yours. All right, we’ll sit behind you. We should reach the square before the central plaza in less than thirty minutes.”
With that, I heard the thuds of two people settling into the seats behind us.
I only hoped Rhone wasn’t taking advantage of the darkness to sit too close to Harvester. Still—
“This is the last train in this world. I want to hear your story, Harvester.”
“My story doesn’t matter.”
Contrary to Harvester’s curt reply, everyone agreed with me.
“I want to hear the old man’s story,” Mamoru-kun chimed in.
“Uru-ruu,” Ululu added.
“You guys don’t even get the situation… how carefree can you be? Fine. Before we arrive, I’ll tell you a short one.”