Kays Translations
Just another Isekai Lover~
Chapter 34. Part-time Work Experience Is Important
What should you do if you encounter a bear?
What do I do, what do I do?
Let’s calm down for a moment. Bear sightings have become extremely frequent in recent years, and even in the countryside where I lived, there were reports of bear sightings almost daily.
Wait, The place where it was spotted is less than a five minute drive away?*Eh, that sighting location is less than a 5 minute drive.
That’s what I kept thinking then.
I’ve even taken a firecracker gun I bought at the 100 yen store — the kind they crack at the start of a sports day to make a bang — and brought it along in my bag when I went to visit a grave, just in case I might encounter a bear someday. But then I thought to myself, What kind of dangerous person am I? I seriously didn’t want to be questioned by the police then.
Graves tend to be in quiet, natural places with few people around. Honestly, I once found footprints that I had no idea what they belonged to. Could those have been bear tracks?
Images of bear sightings and footage captured by car dashcams keep flashing through my mind.
My thoughts are now flashing like a revolving lantern. More information than usual is flowing through my mind.
I remember, you shouldn’t turn your back and run away.
It is an animal’s instinct to chase something that runs away..
Should I avoid making eye contact, or should I not look away?
If it were a cat, I think it would be best not to make eye contact with it. Making eye contact with it would be like a threat. It’s a sign of hostility.
But how are cats and bears different? A bear cat is a panda right?
It’s huge. Is that really a bear?
First of all?
Could it be some kind of monster?
Information about bears raced through my head at high speed.
OSO18, Wonder Vogel Club, Kumarashi… what else was there?
All of these are true stories that make you feel utterly hopeless. When there’s a documentary or specials on them, I can’t help but watch. No matter how many times I watch them, it’s still terrifying.
Bears have a great sense of smell, are fast on their legs, can climb trees, and they aim for your face. If they cut you parallel to the ground with their claws, stitching it up is difficult, and it’s dangerous when you get an infection. They have a strong attachment to anything they think is prey. I’d rather they not eat me alive. Cats, on the other hand, aim for the carotid artery—so I think they’re gentler in that way.
Anyway, my top priority right now is to avoid provoking it and get far away from here.
But—
The distance is way too close. Not even 50 meters. Probably around 30 meters.
The bear, which was on all fours, suddenly stood up and turned to face me.
It noticed me!?
It’s huge. Our eyes met.
No way, I can’t just look away and pretend I didn’t see it. I have to look.
Its eyes are red. Scary.
Trembling, I somehow managed to conjure the storage. I was afraid that the bear would disappear from sight, so instead of opening the door in front of me, I opened the door to the right.
As I opened the door and tried to slip inside, my eyes momentarily left the bear—
The bear moved with incredible speed. I could feel its presence. The pressure is intense. It’s coming towards me. Fast.
I try to get myself into the storage, but I’m just a little too slow.
Claws approaching.
I shut my eyes tightly.
Bang!
The sound of something hard hitting something with a thud echoed.
The impact on my shoulder pushed me into the storage.
It hurts.
Did I hit something when I fell? I try to get up, my body aching. My heart is pounding wildly. Thump-thump, it’s racing.
I cautiously check myself over, especially around the shoulder that took the impact.
There’s no bleeding.
Instead, I see a faint, shimmering membrane wrapping around my body. What is this?
As I watch, the glow slowly faded and disappeared..
Um, what just happened?
I’m stunned.
I can’t believe I survived. From the open door, I see the angry bear, furious because its prey vanished.
Could it be…
An idea suddenly flashes in my mind. I reach inside my clothes and pull on a string.
One red stone was missing from the protective talisman that I brought out.
I clutch the talisman tightly and press it to my forehead, whispering my thanks.
“Grandpa Jill, thank you.”
It saved my life. Just imagining what might have happened without this makes me shudder.
Grandpa Jill is the best!!! So cool! I’m smitten!! The world’s greatest magical tool craftsman!!
The adrenaline rush after the terrifying attack makes my mood spike.
Really, it’s incredible that I could block that sudden strike from the bear.
Auto-defense? Barrier magic? I don’t quite understand, but it’s like some kind of protective magic must have been triggered.
When I received this item that day, I thought it was probably something expensive, so I tied a string to it and wore it around my neck so I wouldn’t lose it.
Because keeping important things close makes you feel safest.
It reminded me of an old, handmade charm my grandma gave me, which I always wore. For some reason, that charm had a pickled plum inside. Why?
Now that I’m safe, stored in the storage, I feel relieved. Here, at least, physical attacks shouldn’t reach me.
But from the looks of it, the bear doesn’t seem to be going away.
It’s been making some kind of barking gesture since a while ago. It’s searching around aimlessly, clearing away the surrounding bushes.
There’s no cubs here, right?
a bear with cubs is the most dangerous thing in the early spring . Mother bears can be extremely agitated.
If you bother her cub, you’re done for.
This bear isn’t with cubs, but it seems agitated.
You don’t have to get so angry…
It’s scary, but I have no choice but to stay put or do something.
First, I figure a bear’s nose is about as good as a dog’s.
The contents of bear spray are capsaicin, I recall.
One type of chili pepper, costing around 105 yen.
I’ve already confirmed with the Rock Turtle that if I buy chili pepper for 105 yen, the whole bottle will come out. So I prepare to buy just the contents for 104 yen.
I can’t decide where to aim against the moving bear.
Even if I spray it randomly, at that speed, I might miss.
I look around inside the storage for something to distract it with.
My eyes land on some vegetables I got from Nia Farm.
I’m pretty sure bears are omnivores, leaning more toward herbivorous.
I grab a carrot from another world and throw it near the door, while calling out:
“W-welcome~!!”
I don’t usually raise my voice, so that’s what naturally came out.
It’s a phrase I’ve repeated countless times at my part-time jobs.
Sorry.
I made a mistake in calculating the remaining balance,
I’m afraid I’m going to be a little bit unable to beat it.
It will take some time to update the next chapter as I have to re-calculate and reassemble it. ……
I shouldn’t have been eating udon.
Tl note:
Word play;
熊猫 (kuma neko):
This is the kanji (Chinese character) for “panda”. It literally means “bear cat” (kuma = bear, neko = cat).