Eve's Story | Judgment Fable | Ella and Yoru | Episode 32: Kuro and Shiro's First Job
Having obtained her new swords, Ella had been restless since the morning.
She looked right, she looked left, and she stared intently at the grass a little ways ahead.
Enemies only ever fail to appear at times like this.
Ella and Yoru: Episode 32
[Kuro and Shiro's First Job]
Equipped with our new gear, we left the city.
At Ella's waist were two curved swords.
Kuro, with the black hilt.
Shiro, with the white hilt.
At my waist was my rapier, Silve.
Oto was walking along as usual, carrying her small luggage and instrument.
The road was peaceful.
The sky was clear, and the wind wasn't strong.
Low grass swayed along the roadside, and a small forest could be seen in the distance.
It was a perfect day for traveling.
Except for one person.
“...Ella.”
“What?”
“Look where you're walking.”
Ella had been staring intently at the bushes on the right.
“I felt something move just now.”
“It's the wind.”
“But it might be an enemy.”
“If it were an enemy, it wouldn't sway that little.”
“It might be a very small enemy.”
I replied with a shrug.
“Probably a bug.”
“Maybe a bug-type monster.”
“You just want to use them, don't you?”
Ella fell silent for a moment.
Then, without a word, she looked ahead.
—She's so easy to read.
Oto was giggling behind us.
“Ella-san, are you that eager to use them?”
“I just want to test them properly.”
“A test slash?”
“A test... performance?”
“Even if you change the wording, it's basically the same thing.”
Ella pouted.
She kept glancing at the hilts of Kuro and Shiro at her waist.
The black and white braided cords swayed slightly with every step.
Before, Ella had treated weapons as mere tools.
If it could cut, it was fine.
If it could swing, it was fine.
If it broke, she would just use something else.
I think that's how she used to think.
But now it's different.
She's trying to cherish them.
However, her sense of distance is still a bit off.
“Yoru.”
“What?”
“If an enemy appears now, should I draw Kuro first? Or is it better to start with Shiro?”
“It doesn't matter.”
“It does matter. It's the first time, you know?”
“Why don't you ask the enemy?”
“Do you think they'll wait for me to ask?”
“I don't think they will.”
“Then I have to decide beforehand.”
She was seriously agonizing over it.
I looked up at the sky for a moment.
It was very clear.
I really felt like nothing would happen today of all days.
In fact, that premonition was correct.
Even after walking for a while, no monsters appeared.
No bandits appeared either.
There were no suspicious shadows, no travelers in trouble, and no broken carts.
The road just continued on.
It was peaceful.
As a journey, that's a very good thing.
For Ella, however, she seemed a bit dissatisfied.
“It's peaceful, isn't it?”
Oto said lazily.
“That's a good thing.”
I replied.
“Yes, it is. I'm grateful that no enemies are appearing.”
“Yeah.”
“It's just, when I look at Ella-san's face, I feel like I'm doing something wrong.”
Watching Ella look around restlessly, I gave a wry smile.
We continued walking for a while longer.
The road was gently sloping upward.
It wasn't a large hill.
But when I looked back, the roofs of the city we had just left were visible in the distance.
High places like this are perfect for drawing maps.
When I thought that, I suddenly remembered the snowy mountain.
A blizzard.
A white world.
The sensation of falling from the night sky.
And the moment we all flew through the air.
—What was that?
—Magic?
That's not a term I've ever heard for it.
At the very least, I don't know of any such magic.
Magic to fly through the air is something out of fairy tales or dragon stories.
People floating without any tools.
That sort of thing doesn't happen normally.
“Ella.”
“What? An enemy?”
“No.”
I wish she wouldn't sound so disappointed.
I slowed my pace a little.
“It's about the time on the snowy mountain.”
“When we were escaping from the cult, we flew through the air, right?”
Ella looked blank.
Oto looked at me too.
“Come to think of it, at that time...”
Oto muttered as if remembering.
“We were flying, weren't we?”
“Though we fell.”
I looked at Oto.
“I'm certain we were flying through the air before we fell.”
“Given the situation, my memory is quite shaky as well.”
That might be true.
The dragon stone glowing, and before I knew it, I was in the air holding Ella's hand.
And then falling from there.
I was so focused on escaping that I had completely forgotten.
I looked at Ella again.
“How did you fly?”
“Did I fly?”
“You were flying.”
“Wasn't I falling?”
“At first, you were floating.”
“Hmm.”
Ella tilted her head.
She really had no idea.
“It happened occasionally since I was little.”
Ella looked into the distance as she walked a little ahead.
“You know how I try to draw maps and sometimes want to see from a high place?”
“Usually, I climb a tree or a high mountain.”
“But there are times when I want to see from even higher up.”
Ella looked at the sky.
“At those times, I feel like my body becomes light.”
“Light?”
“Yeah. Like the ground beneath my feet disappears. But I'm not scared. It feels like my body is being pulled toward what I want to see.”
I listened in silence.
Oto was also suppressing her usual lighthearted tone.
“Since when?”
“Since I was small.”
“Did you tell anyone?”
“No.”
“Why?”
“Because I thought it might be a dream.”
Ella smiled a little.
“I'd find myself on a high tree branch or on a roof, slightly shifted from where I was initially.”
“But I don't remember how I did it.”
“That's dangerous.”
“Yeah. If I lose focus, I fall.”
Ella said it easily.
“So, that was probably it when I first met Yoru, too.”
I stopped walking involuntarily.
Oto stopped too.
Ella walked a few steps before turning back.
“What's wrong?”
“No.”
I put my hand to my forehead.
“Was that the reason you fell from the sky when we first met?”
“Probably.”
“That's not something you should just brush off with a ‘probably’.”
“But I did fall.”
“That's not the point.”
Oto covered her mouth.
She was laughing.
But there seemed to be a hint of surprise mixed in.
“In other words, when Ella-san wants to see from a high place to draw a map, she sometimes floats.”
“Probably.”
“And when your concentration breaks, you fall.”
“Probably.”
“That's dangerous.”
“You think so?”
“I do.”
Oto and I said in unison.
Ella smiled, looking a bit troubled.
“But I can't do it every time.”
“What about now? Can you do it?”
I asked.
After thinking for a moment, Ella stood by the side of the road.
She lightly held the hilts of Kuro and Shiro, looked at her feet, and then looked at a distant hill.
“I want to see from a high place.”
She whispered softly.
The wind blew.
The grass swayed.
Ella's purple hair fluttered slightly.
But nothing happened.
Ella squinted and looked into the distance again.
“I want to see from a high place.”
Nothing happened.
Her feet remained on the ground.
A silence followed for a while.
“...It seems I can't do it today.”
Ella said, scratching her head a little.
“Is that how it ends?”
“Well, I can't do it.”
“Do you see different colors of Minia at that time?”
“No.”
“Do you chant?”
“No.”
“Do you use tools?”
“No.”
I said, a bit exasperated.
“Then what is it?”
“I don't know.”
Ella looked genuinely troubled.
There's no point in blaming her.
She probably doesn't understand it herself.
I sighed.
“Well, thinking about it now won't help.”
“Yeah.”
Oto said with a slightly serious face.
“But it's good to keep in mind.”
“That's true.”
I nodded.
“Before you fall.”
“Yeah.”
Ella nodded too.
She had a slightly serious expression.
After that, we started walking again.
The conversation about flying through the air stopped there.
We didn't find an answer.
But there are many things in a journey that remain without answers.
I had no choice but to accept that it was just one of those things for now.
By dusk, we decided to camp a little off the road.
There was a small grove nearby, and it seemed like it would block the wind.
There was a water source a short walk away.
We built a fire and put down our luggage.
Oto went to gather dry branches, and Ella looked around the area.
I'm sure she was looking for an opportunity to use Kuro and Shiro.
“There was nothing.”
Ella said, returning with a slightly disappointed look.
“That's good.”
“It's good, but...”
“It is good.”
I replied while putting the pot on the fire.
Today's meal was black bread we bought in the city and a simple soup.
It was a common meal on the road, with some dried meat and vegetables.
It wasn't luxurious.
But having something warm makes a big difference.
While the soup was warming up, I tried to cut the black bread.
It was hard.
Much harder than I thought.
I took out my small knife and applied the blade.
It made an unpleasant grating sound.
It wouldn't cut.
I applied more force.
The blade slipped a little.
“...”
I looked at the blade of the knife.
—It's chipped.
I had been a little concerned about it since yesterday, but it was worse than I thought.
“Ella.”
“What? An enemy?”
Ella's eyes lit up a little.
“This black bread is hard. Cut it.”
“Bread?”
Ella looked at the black bread in my hand.
Then she looked at Kuro and Shiro at her waist.
And then she shook her head.
“No way.”
“Why?”
Ella put her hands on Kuro and Shiro.
“Kuro and Shiro's first job would be cutting bread.”
“What's wrong with that?”
“It's not good!”
Ella's tone became sharper.
“It's bread.”
“That's exactly why.”
Ella turned away.
—I don't understand.
Oto looked at us while putting down her water bag.
“What's the matter?”
“Ella won't cut the bread.”
I complained to Oto, not understanding the situation.
Hearing that, Ella replied while still looking the other way.
“Kuro and Shiro would feel sorry for themselves.”
“Sorry for themselves?”
Oto looked a bit troubled.
Ella was serious.
“It's their first time. I want a more proper opponent.”
“What do you mean by a proper opponent?”
“Like a monster.”
“None appeared, did they?”
When I replied, Ella muttered while looking down.
“...So I'll wait.”
“The bread won't wait.”
My voice grew louder.
Ella looked up.
“Besides, bread doesn't run away!”
“I'm hungry.”
Ella pouted.
Then she looked at Silve at my waist.
“Then you should cut it with Silve.”
The air stilled for a moment.
The sound of the campfire crackling could be heard.
I looked at Ella slowly.
“What did you just say?”
“I said you should cut it with Silve.”
“With a rapier?”
“Yeah.”
“The black bread?”
“Yeah.”
I sighed.
“It's hard to cut, isn't it?”
“Kuro and Shiro would feel sorry for themselves too.”
It's a child-like logic.
I lowered my voice slightly and continued.
“Doesn't Silve feel sorry for itself?”
“Silve is more mature.”
“What kind of reason is that?”
“Just because.”
“Don't make Silve cut black bread just because.”
“Then don't make Kuro and Shiro cut it either.”
I was getting increasingly angry.
I couldn't suppress my irritation.
“I'm asking because the kitchen knife is dull.”
“Then just eat the bread as it is.”
“It's hard, so I want to cut it.”
“Eat it with spirit.”
I tapped the rock-hard black bread lightly and showed it to Ella.
“My teeth will break.”
“Teeth grow back, don't they?”
“They don't.”
“Then that's no good.”
Ella pouted and turned away again.
“I don't want Kuro and Shiro's first opponent to be black bread.”
“Don't call it an opponent.”
My voice was getting louder little by little.
Oto hurriedly stepped between us.
“Now, now, both of you. Please don't fight over black bread.”
“It's not the black bread's fault. I just don't understand what Ella is saying.”
“It's a Kuro and Shiro problem.”
Ella said quietly.
“It's mostly the black bread's fault, though.”
Oto said that and picked up the black bread.
“I'll try to break it with my hands.”
“I think that's impossible.”
I said.
“Surprisingly, things like this are more about technique than strength.”
Oto held the black bread with both hands and put her strength into it.
It wouldn't break.
She put her strength into it again.
Her face turned a little red.
The black bread didn't budge.
“...It's hard.”
“I told you.”
Oto then tried to break it against her knee.
—You shouldn't do that.
The moment I thought that, Oto gave up first.
“My knee is about to lose.”
The three of us stared at the black bread.
Over the fire, the soup was quietly steaming.
The twilight sky was beginning to change from red to purple.
The day of the journey was about to end peacefully.
At the center of it all was the uncuttable black bread.
Ella was silent for a while.
Then, she slowly placed her hands on Kuro and Shiro at her waist.
“...I understand.”
Her voice was strangely heavy.
It was as if she had made a major decision.
“Ella?”
Ella drew Kuro and Shiro.
The curved sword with the black hilt.
The curved sword with the white hilt.
Catching the firelight, the two blades shone faintly.
Ella crouched down in front of the black bread.
And then, she said to the two curved swords with a serious face.
“Kuro. Shiro.”
—I wish she wouldn't.
“Your first job is to cut this bread.”
I really wish she wouldn't.
I put my hand to my forehead.
Oto was covering her mouth and trembling.
She was laughing.
She was definitely laughing.
Ella didn't notice.
“The opponent is strong.”
“It's bread.”
I said it before I could stop myself.
Ella looked at me.
“Yoru.”
“What?”
“Don't underestimate black bread.”
“I don't think it's sweet.”
“That's not what I meant.”
“I know.”
Ella turned back to the black bread.
She gently applied the blade of Kuro to the black bread.
She was quite careful.
She probably didn't want to damage the blade.
If that's the case, it would be even better to buy a new kitchen knife.
Ella steadied her breathing.
“Here I go.”
I don't know who she's talking to.
The black bread?
Kuro?
Shiro?
Or herself?
Ella put her strength into Kuro.
Grating.
It made an unpleasant sound.
The black bread didn't cut.
Ella's eyebrows twitched.
“...It's hard.”
“I told you.”
This time she applied Shiro.
She changed the angle of the blade and applied a little force.
Grating, grating, it made an even more unpleasant sound.
The black bread still wouldn't cut.
Ella's face became a little more serious.
“It's strong.”
“So don't say bread is strong.”
“This is probably not normal bread.”
“It's normal black bread.”
“No.”
Ella asserted.
“This is a high-ranking black bread, even among black breads.”
“High-ranking.”
Oto repeated softly.
It was hopeless.
She couldn't hold back her laughter.
I stirred the soup.
If I wasn't doing something, I felt like I would start laughing too.
Ella was challenging the black bread, using Kuro and Shiro alternately.
Rather than cutting, she was fighting it.
However, the black bread wouldn't break easily.
Watching her, I thought for a moment.
I don't know the reason she flies.
She floats when she wants to see.
She falls when she loses focus.
I don't know if that's magic or something else.
But right now, Ella in front of me is seriously agonizing over black bread.
She is genuinely troubled that the first job of her precious swords is to cut bread.
In that respect, nothing has changed.
While remaining unchanged, she is changing little by little.
“Ella.”
“What?”
“Lend it to me.”
“Eh?”
“Not Kuro, the black bread.”
After hesitating for a moment, Ella handed me the black bread.
I wrapped the black bread in a cloth and placed it on a nearby stone.
Then, I put a little weight on it.
Crack, a dull sound echoed.
The black bread finally broke in two.
Ella and Oto cried out at the same time.
“Ah.”
“Ah.”
I looked at the broken black bread.
It wasn't cut.
It broke.
But it was now in a size that could be eaten.
“I should have done that.”
Ella muttered.
“From the start, right?”
I replied.
“What about Kuro and Shiro?”
“I didn't have to use them.”
“What about their first job?”
“Next time will be fine.”
Ella thought for a moment.
Then she looked at Kuro and Shiro.
“...Today is a field trip.”
“Do that.”
Ella carefully wiped the two curved swords with a cloth before sheathing them.
“That's good, Kuro-san, Shiro-san.”
Oto said.
“Your first job didn't end up being black bread.”
“Yeah.”
Ella nodded with satisfaction.
“But the black bread was strong.”
“You're still saying that.”
I said, exasperated, as I lined up the broken black bread next to the soup.
Even hard black bread becomes easier to eat if you soak it in soup.
Dusk was already beginning to turn into night.
The sound of the fire grew quiet.
I could hear the sound of birds in the distance.
Today, no enemies appeared.
No monsters, no bandits, no suspicious shadows appeared.
Ella's new swords haven't cut anything yet.
Even so, Ella seemed somewhat satisfied.
Kuro and Shiro were back at her waist, and the black bread was submerged in the soup.
Watching that, I smiled a little.
Perhaps.
The black bread might be the strongest enemy yet.
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