Drifted Into a Reversed World ~ The One Method for Me, a Japanese Guy, to Survive in a World Where Men and Fertility Are Scarce ~ - 6

Chapter 6: Defenseless

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If someone had told Sota that the scene before his eyes was a dream, he would have believed them. Firis’s knife flashed right and left, accurately tearing through the throats of the Imperial soldiers. They attempted to surround her and overwhelm her with numbers, but the golden trajectory of her movements slipped through them with effortless grace.

Sota even thought it was beautiful. It was as if he were being shown a magnificent choreographed sword dance. That was how overwhelming Firis was as a warrior.

(Amazing…)

Despite the fact that people were being killed, the reason Sota didn’t feel agitated was that it seemed like a sacred martial arts demonstration. It was likely also due to the unrealistic situation of potentially being in another world. Before he knew it, only one Imperial soldier remained. Realizing she couldn’t win against Firis, she turned her back and began to run.

“Wait!!”

Firis’s roar sharply pierced the air of the forest. …However, contrary to her shout, she dropped to her knees as if she had suddenly tripped.

“Firis-san!?”

Did something happen? Worried, Sota instinctively rushed out and supported Firis’s body. Firis’s eyes widened at Sota’s sudden action. However, the one who showed even greater surprise was the retreating Imperial soldier.

“Eh…!? A man…!?”

Her eyes opened so wide they looked ready to fall out of her head as she looked back and forth between Firis and Sota. Then, after a brief moment, she gulped loudly, turned her back again, and sprinted away.

“Ah, hey!! Wait!!”

“Firis-san, don’t push yourself!”

“Tch…!!”

Firis could do nothing but bite her lower lip and watch the receding back of the Imperial soldier.

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“Whoa… it’s incredibly swollen…!”

Sota’s eyes widened as he wrapped a cold towel around Firis’s red, swollen right ankle. It was a spot he hadn’t noticed when he treated her yesterday. It was likely a broken bone or a severe sprain. Sota was equally astonished by the fact that she could perform such an intense fight in that condition.

“Was it hurting?”

“…Yes. But I can endure this much.”

“What do you mean ‘this much’…”

“More importantly, pack the bags quickly. We can’t stay here any longer.”

“Eh?”

“That soldier is likely going to report this to the main unit. If we dally, we’ll surely be found. If she reports that a man was with me, that tyrant Ronia will definitely come flying here. If that happens, your life will be forfeit… Let’s hurry.”

“Y-Yes!”

Sota quickly packed the bags, and with their preparations barely finished, he left the hollow accompanied by Firis. Naturally, he did as much as he could to treat her leg, but he didn’t know how much effect it would have.

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“Huff… huff…!!”

It began to rain. Rain in the forest was troublesome. Fallen leaves and soil turned into a quagmire, and visibility worsened. The temperature also dropped significantly; it was the worst possible condition. Sota carried his rucksack in front and Firis on his back, walking persistently over the messy mud.

“T-That’s enough. Please, put me down…”

Firis said this with a truly apologetic expression, but Sota remained stubborn and refused to budge. For a while after they left, Firis had insisted she was fine and walked on her own feet, but the swelling and pain only grew worse. Sota, sensing this, had forcibly taken her onto his back. Firis had struggled, saying it was shameful to make a man do such a thing, but Sota refused to move unless she let him carry her. Reluctantly… truly reluctantly, Firis allowed Sota to carry her, but…

“Huff… huff…”

Going through a muddy path with poor footing while soaking wet and carrying a person was much more heavy labor than he had anticipated. The rain sapped Sota’s body heat, and he shivered even as he moved forward.

“Sota…”

“…Firis-san, let’s definitely get out of this forest alive. I’m still full of things I don’t understand, but I know that you are a good person.”

Saying that, Sota smiled. He didn’t quite have a grasp on where he was or what he was doing. However, his heart cried out that he had to protect the warm presence of Firis on his back. Even so, despite his high spirits, his physical strength was nearing its limit.

“Ah.”

Just then, he discovered a hollow in the rocks, similar to the one from before. It was the perfect space to take shelter from the rain and check the progress of her leg. Firis, on his back, gave a firm nod. Sota gathered strength into his thighs, chiding himself inwardly that it was just one more push as he braced himself.

“I’m a bit tired, as expected…”

“I’m sorry, Sota… All because I messed up my leg like this…”

As soon as they reached the hollow, Sota threw down his rucksack. Having absorbed a great deal of water, it made a squelching sound, splattering moisture all around. Next, after carefully helping Firis sit down, Sota collapsed there like a landslide.

“Are you really okay? …I must have been heavy… to think a man had to carry a woman.”

“Ahaha, I feel pathetic as a man, huffing and puffing just from carrying one woman.”

“No, no! There aren’t many men who could carry a woman… let alone those who would even try?”

“Is that so? More importantly, excuse me for a moment, even though it’s an eyesore.”

“Eh?”

Without waiting for Firis’s response, Sota stripped off his soaking wet shirt.

“Heh…?”

Because it was such a natural movement, a momentary blank space opened in Firis’s thoughts. …But the instant she grasped the situation, Firis’s face turned beet red and she looked away from Sota.

“W-W-W-What are you doing…!? N-Naked…!?”

“Ah, sorry. But wearing this is just too cold after all… was it not okay?”

“I-I-It’s not that it’s not okay! It’s not that it’s not okay, but… no, but still…!”

Firis was in a complete panic. The virgin-like reaction seen in this Demon General—who was normally entrusted as a General of the Kingdom—would have left anyone who knew her normal self utterly dumbfounded. But it was only natural.

In this world, the values of men and women were reversed. (Actually, it was even more than that.) In a world where it was common for men to be ashamed of their skin being seen and for women to look at a man’s body as if licking it all over, what did it mean for a man to strip off his shirt?

Firis stole a glance at him, trying not to let Sota notice. Her breathing was heavy, and even though she tried to be subtle, the way she shifted her gaze was so suspicious it was practically that of a pervert. From top to bottom, from bottom to top. The sight of Sota’s shirtless upper body—fair-skinned, without a single wound, and possessing a modest amount of muscle—was far too easy to stir Firis’s base desires. Whether it was because of the rain or her own arousal… Firis’s underwear was soaking wet, as if she had stood under a waterfall.

“Since it’s an emergency, I’d appreciate it if you could forgive a man’s nakedness…”

“A-Ah… y-yeah, it’s an emergency after all… it can’t be helped, right…?”

“Ah, of course, I won’t take off the bottom, so please rest easy.”

Firis could only give a dazed reply as if she were delirious. From her perspective, she didn’t understand at all what about “not taking off the bottom” was supposed to be a relief. If anything, she wanted him to take it off. She wanted to see.

Firis’s heart beat like a frantic bell. It was a heart-pounding sensation that struck the brain, not something typically gained during wartime. Her body took on a damp heat, and she couldn’t help but pour a gaze filled with animal lust upon Sota.

“…? Is something wrong?”

Sota didn’t notice. Without noticing, he wore that gentle smile. That appearance was far too innocent and yet, that form exposing his soft skin, that smile, it was all far too provocative for Firis.

“Firis-sa—”

She didn’t wait for his words. When she next realized it, Firis had pushed Sota’s body down.

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