I Was Transported to Another World with a Male-to-Female Ratio of 1:3000 and Made into a Breeding Pet for the Demon Lord’s Army - 57

Chapter 57: It’s Unfair for a Short-Lived Species to Be This Cute!

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“In the end, this is how things turned out…”

In front of me sat Ken-chan, perched neatly on a desk with his legs swinging back and forth. He held a pen and paper—uncommon tools in this region since they didn’t rely on magic—and stared at me intently.

“Funya funya~”

Ugh… The village chief ordered me to teach him our language, but honestly, I really didn’t want to. If I could, I’d vanish from this place right now, but if I ran, I would just get scolded through telepathy. There was no escape.

“Haah…”

I had put together what seemed like a decent study plan, but was this really okay…? That beastkin person had been glaring at me with sharp eyes ever since we first met. If I made a single mistake, I felt like I’d be buried on the spot…

Wait! Maybe that’s exactly why they chose me to accompany him…That’s it! They picked me on purpose to get rid of the village’s good-for-nothing!

“Oi, Fiilia! Got a moment to talk?”

“Ah! Yes! I’ll do my best, so please don’t kill me!”

“I won’t kill you, as long as you don’t lay a hand on Ken-chan. Before we start studying, could you explain the plan? Two weeks is a bit short to learn a whole language, after all.”

“Ah, yes. The goal this time is for him to be able to express basic intentions… That’s all.”

“…Why did you choose that as the goal?”

Her piercing gaze shot through me, clearly not convinced by my reasoning.

S-Scary. This person really is terrifying…

“A-As you guessed, mastering a language perfectly in two weeks is difficult. So we’re starting from creating an environment where learning is possible… Ah, just a moment, please.”

As I said that, I rummaged through the bag I’d brought from home and began laying picture books out on the desk.

“Once he learns some simple words, I plan to use these picture books for daily read-aloud sessions and pronunciation practice.”

“Hooo…”

“If there are words he doesn’t understand, I’ll have him ask about them on the spot so he can learn the meaning. If this method takes root, he should be able to keep learning even without someone who can use telepathy.”

“………………”

“S-So… that’s why… I think it’s important for him to first be able to ask things like ‘I don’t understand this’… Yes.”

By the time I finished speaking, my voice had grown faint from the mix of tension and anxiety. Would she really accept such a flimsy explanation? A cold unease spread slowly from deep within my chest.

“You…”

“Eek! I-I’m sorry!”

“You seemed like someone who didn’t think things through, but you’ve actually given this proper thought. I’m impressed!”

“Eh!? …R-Really?”

The words I received as I flinched reflexively were completely unexpected.

“When the village chief brought you along, I honestly wasn’t sure what to expect, but this might actually work out for the best!”

“W-Well, I was the legendary genius who got first place on tests countless times at the magic academy 80 years ago! Hehehehehe…!”

Smack smack!

She slapped me hard on the back multiple times, the impact rattling my bones. It hurt…But… How long had it been since someone last praised me?

Maybe this beastkin—uhh, was it… Lu… Mii-san or something? I couldn’t remember her name, but maybe she wasn’t so bad after all. For just a little bit, I felt like… maybe I could be friends with her.

“Fuhihihi… Alright then! This genius is going to teach you the language in no time! Everyone else, feel free to take a week-long nap or something!”

【Telepathy】

(Nice to meet you, Ken-chan.)

“Funya funya!”

“Ugh… S-so cute. But no, I can’t get attached. He’s a short-lived species. Calm, stay calm… Ahem.”

(Let’s start by introducing ourselves…)

＝＝＝＝＝＝＝＝＝＝＝＝＝＝＝＝＝＝＝

“Me… Male… Demi-human… Like.”

“K-Ken-chan’s talking! We’re throwing a huge celebration today!”

“Me… One… Six… Years old.”

“This is amazing… For him to be able to speak this much in just one day. Clearly, my teaching methods are flawless.”

Right. Thanks to Fiilia-san’s kind instruction, I was starting to get a feel for the language of this world. To put it simply, the structure was close to English. Of course, there weren’t any familiar letters or sounds like the alphabet but the grammar, I guess, was similar enough.

Thanks to that, even just lining up simple words conveyed more meaning than I expected.

I had been worried about how to learn a language in a world without textbooks, but maybe I could do this after all.

(“Welo”… This is used to affirm or accept something…)

“Yes! Welo!”

It was a big help that the words came directly into my mind—I didn’t have to worry about mishearing or mispronouncing them. Also, listening to Luna-san and Lammy-san talk every day helped a lot. I’d often think, “Ah! That word came up the other day!”

Kinda like those Shinkenzemi education programs? I had only read the manga versions though.

(Ah, but please be careful. If you carelessly use this in front of a female… In the worst case, you’ll die. So only use it once you’ve really learned the language.)

“Got it! Welo!”

“Speaking of which, Luna-sama, didn’t you receive a sealed letter from the Demon Lord?”

“Hm? …Ah, that’s right. I was told to have Ken-chan read this document. Fiilia, think he can manage it?”

“Eh, uh, yes… I think so, but… What is this document? It reeks of malice.”

“Seems it’s meant to be sent to the humans. Supposedly to prove that ‘Ken-chan was only rescued and not captured.’”

“Ugh, this could start a war… Oh, wait—are we still at war? I forgot since elves are neutral. Sorry.”

“Honestly… What a shut-in race.”

“That hurts to hear. But still, it’s strange to send something like this during wartime…”

“I think so too. There’s no reason to bother with the humans while at war… But we’ve been ordered, so we must do it. I’m sure the Demon Lord has her own deep reasoning for ordering this.”

“Working really is tough… Alright, here we go.”

(Ken-chan, please repeat the words I say from now on.)

(＄％＆＃％＄＆％＆!)

What was that? Like with “Lavais” from before, I understood how to pronounce it, but not what it meant.

When that happens, I think I’m supposed to…

“Me… Different… Meaning… Please teach.”

“Ohhh. It’s still a bit broken, but you’ve memorized the standard phrase for asking about unknown meanings. Good job. However…”

(You don’t actually need to memorize this one. It’s a kind of “mouth exercise” used to learn the demon language.)

Ah, I get it. Like Japanese tongue twisters—“The red water strider a-i-u-e-o” or “Raw wheat, raw rice, raw eggs.” They’re more about pronunciation and rhythm than meaning, and even if someone explained them in detail, I probably wouldn’t get it.

(I’ll go as slowly as I can, so for now, just repeat after me without thinking too much.)

Nod…

“Human race… Watching?”

(Ah, please try to say it cheerfully with a smile. Maybe wave your hand too…)

“Please try to say it cheerfully with a smile. Maybe wave your hand too..”

I just repeated it without thinking, but I just realized I was totally speaking in Japanese…

“Huh??? …Ah, so that’s what you meant.”

(That was just an instruction, so don’t repeat it… Sorry.)

Nod… 

So embarrassing.

(Alright, let’s start from the top again. Repeat exactly as I say.)

“Humaaaan~ Are you watching?”

I flapped my hands up and down. 

“I… like demons! They saved me… From monsters! Unlike humans… They treat me gently… When mating.. Demons…Their bodies… are really big and strong…. Humans… Their bodies… are so scrawny… they can’t satisfy me.”

I smiled sweetly at the camera pointed my way.

“Every day, I’m happy… I don’t need rescue… I’ll live in the Demon Realm! I’m here… of my own… free will… Bye-bye!”

Click!

“Alright, weo got a solid recording! This should satisfy the Demon Lord. Ken-chan, good work!”

(I’m so exhausted…)

One way or another, I had already been studying the language like this for several hours. It had been a long time since I focused this hard on studying. I still felt a gentle kind of fatigue in my body, but strangely enough, it was pleasant.

Back at the hospital, studying was something I did just to escape reality. I only went through the motions. But now, studying was directly tied to survival, and that gave me a real sense of fulfillment and accomplishment.

So studying could actually be fun…

(Ken-chan, are you tired too?)

“Yeah, Wero.”

“Hehe. In that case, that wraps up today’s study time. Mother—no, the village chief—has prepared some fruit ice treats, so let’s go! Come on, hurry!”

Fiilia-san pulled my hand with a happy smile. From her expression, there was not even a trace of the gloomy and heavy atmosphere I had felt when we first met.

“Oh, right.”

(Lastly, I’ll tell you an absolute taboo you must never say to a female. If you say it in front of one, don’t be surprised if you get attacked—so be careful.)

There’s a word like that? Come to think of it, in my original world too, there are words that would get you punched the moment you said them in public. Considering how many different races there are in this world… Maybe there are even more taboo words than I imagined.

It had never even occurred to me that such taboos existed, so I was glad to have learned about it now.

(That word is “Lavais.” It’s the highest expression of love, basically equivalent to a marriage proposal. So you must absolutely never say it in front of a female unles—Ken-chan? Huh? Why do you look so aghast? Wh-What’s wrong? Helloooo?!)

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