Kays Translations

Chapter 10: Junkyard of Reunion ③ – Bone-Extraction, Brain-Spilling, Asura Hunting Hand

Juicy Tasan. A noble.

Even I’ve heard of her. Marquis Tasan—one of the great aristocrats of this country.

That’s all I know. I remember hearing that they have ties with the Frontier Count.

So, she’s the Marquis Tasan’s daughter.

But why is the daughter of such a powerful noble here?

She looks like the kind of idol who’s at the peak of her popularity—delicate, gentle, and quiet, the type you’d want to protect.

But on the inside, she’s a pure-blooded grappler of the werewolf race.

The contrast is way too extreme.

When I look at her with my Relic 【Crisis Detection】, she’s white, red, and black.

Safe, yet dangerous. And there’s death.

No… She’s safe, but dangerous, and death is present.

This has never happened before.

Is my Relic malfunctioning?

“Um, um, Wof-sama! I have something I want to ask!”

“You don’t need to call me ‘sama’. What is it?”

“Then, um, Wof-sama! What is this hole? What is it?! I feel like I’m almost able to get in!”

‘Then’ what?

Also, Juicy’s eyes are sparkling like stars as she looks at the hole.

Her ears are twitching, and her tail is wagging like crazy.

She’s so easy to read.

Almost able to get in? No, not even close.

Only a faint purple light is leaking out from a tiny gap.

Ah, right. Dogs love digging at things like this.

It’s nostalgic—reminds me of my past life’s pet dog back home.

It used to bury balls, toys, and even dig up the soil all the time.

So that’s what this is?

No, wait. She’s not a dog.

Feeling like my phrasing was a bit off, I asked:

“…Do you want to dig it up?”

“Yes! When I see things like this, I just want to dig! Wof-sama, may I dig? I may dig, yes? Then, I shall dig!”

‘Then’ what?!

Juicy suddenly dropped down on all fours. Huh?

“Wait—”

“Um, um! Here I go! My ultimate move! Bone-Extraction, Brain-Spilling, Asura Hunting Hand—Bakkotsu Nouzui Shura Shu Shu Shu!!!”

Bone-extraction—wait, what?!

She started digging with both hands.

She’s like a dog… no, a wolf.

She’s not even considering her current appearance or posture.

She’s too true to her desires. She’s totally a dog. No, a wolf.

Even her hand movements, wolf ears, and tail are perfectly synchronized.

And this isn’t just a garbage heap—it’s a mountain of scrap metal.

Sure, there are bits of leather, wood, stone, and other materials, but nothing soft.

On top of that, there are plenty of broken weapons mixed in—this pile is dangerous.

I move diagonally to the side so I don’t end up in a… problematic position behind her.

Even so, her digging speed is insane.

She’s not digging—she’s grabbing and tossing.

At an incredible speed—

Torn leather armor. A broken, rusty iron blade. A shattered shield.

A rotting wooden shield. A snapped necklace. A rusted iron dagger. Just a rock.

A torn scroll. A frayed rope. A shredded piece of metal armor. Something spear-like. A bowstring. Just an arrowhead. Just fletching. A burnt tobacco pouch. Oh—A knife!

Ah—The blade is trashed. Damn.

A broken-faced doll. Why is that here? A bronze mirror. A shattered mirror fragment.

A snapped chain. A whip with a severed tip. A broken collar. A collar?!

A used candle. A cracked stone. Another broken mirror.

A bloodstained clown doll… Creepy.

Some kind of weird red iron rod. A dirty cloth. A chipped, rusted iron axe.

A cracked, worn-down bronze axe. A stone axe with a fractured blade.

A stone axe?!

Oh—a knife!

This one… YES!

A proper knife!

“HELL YEAH!!”

Knife GET!!

“Woof? Is something wrong, Wof-sama?”

Juicy stops her hands and looks at me curiously.

I suddenly realize what I just did—and feel embarrassed.

“Ah, no, nothing. Please continue.”

“Woof! Alright, just a little more!”

I got too excited about finding a knife and shouted out loud.

But still, this is the first proper knife I’ve found in this junkyard.

A large, curved, black single-edged blade with a round sword guard.

It looks kind of like a Japanese katana’s tsuba.

The handle is made of white stone—rare.

Smooth to the touch.

The sheath is made of hard wood, I think?

Yeah.

It’s a good knife.

I’ll take care of it.

I won’t let it break easily.

Juicy looks like she’s having a blast.

She really reminds me of my past life’s pet dog.

It used to dig up the fields and get scolded by my grandpa.

But how is she even doing this?

She’s picking up and throwing garbage at insane speeds.

And she’s sorting it—grabbing only what’s safe to touch, or gripping things in a way that won’t hurt her.

And yet, her hands never stop moving.

How is she deciding?

Could it be some kind of Relic?

Juicy’s movements suddenly stop.

She’s made a hole big enough to fit through.

Her tail is wagging like crazy as she runs up to me.

“Um! I did it! Now we can go in!”

“Thank you.”

“No problem! I had fun—woof!?”

Ah—crap.

I ended up patting her head like she was a dog.

“Um, um! Woof! Woof! Woof! Woof! Woofwoof!”

She’s happily barking.

She really is like a dog…

Wait, this is bad.

She’s a werewolf girl.

Treating her like a dog is probably really bad.

I quickly pull my hand away.

“Woof? Um, Wof-sama! Thank you for petting me!”

She beams at me with a pure, radiant smile.

Her sparkling chestnut-colored eyes gaze at me with unfiltered joy.

She really does remind me of my past life’s pet dog…

Oops.

I refocus and look at the hole.

It looks like we can climb down.

But it’s dark.

“Right.”

I pull a small orb from my pouch.

The moment I do, Juicy’s eyes change.

Her tail starts wagging rapidly.

Her gaze locks onto it like a target.

“Ah—no, this isn’t—”

“Woof! Woff-sama! Is that a ball? Is it a ball? Is it?!”

…She really is aiming for it.

Dogs, man.

“No, it’s not. I think you press here and—”

Click.

The orb floats up and starts glowing.

“Ah! It lit up! Is this a Legacy? So pretty!”

She totally just tried to pounce on it.

Close one.

“Well, something like that.”

This is a mysterious light orb Liv gave me.

She had a bunch of them and just handed me one like it was nothing.

I remember being confused when I got it.

It’s pretty handy at times like this.

Of course, it’s not actually a Legacy.

“Alright. Looks like we can go down.”

The light reveals the ground below, so I climb down the hole.

Juicy follows right after.

…Huh?

“You’re coming with me?”

“Um, um! I’m really curious about what’s down here!”

“Yeah, so am I. But it could be dangerous.”

“Um, um! Woof! But that’s the same for you, Wof-sama!”

…Why did she bark mid-sentence?

“I have a reason to go. You don’t, right?”

“I don’t! But I want to go! So I will!”

She’s already inside.

I glance at Juicy.

Her tail is wagging like crazy, and her wolf ears are standing straight up.

More than anything, her eyes were sparkling and glinting.

There was no way to convince her otherwise. Even if I tried, she’d probably force her way along.

“Alright. Just make sure to listen to what I say.”

“Woof! Understood, Wof-sama! I’ll listen to you!”

“Also, you don’t have to add ‘sama.’ Just call me Wof.”

“Understood! Then, Wof-sama it is!”

What’s with that “then”… And what exactly did she understand?

I expected this, but the “sama” isn’t going away. Dogs tend to be like this.

Oh well. I’ve got a bad feeling about this, but I’ll just have to manage.

“Stay close behind me.”

“Woof! I’ll stick right to you!”

…Is this really okay? Dogs tend to rush ahead…

Maybe a collar and leash—no, no, she’s not a dog! She’s a wolf!

But… she really is just like a dog.

The light from the orb illuminates the surroundings. It’s all garbage. I hadn’t realized just how much had piled up.

I thought the source of the purple light was directly below this hole, but it looks like it’s actually further down.

I carefully watch my step, but strangely, there’s nothing dangerous among the trash at my feet.

It’s like this path wasn’t naturally formed, but rather, made to be walkable from the start.

As we continue, the space gradually opens up. The ceiling has risen before I even noticed.

It’s about as tall as a school gymnasium now. And yet, the purple light is still further ahead.

I don’t know what’s waiting for us.

I should stay on guard. But still, since I have Juicy here, I might as well chat.

“By the way, Juicy, how old are you?”

“Um, um, I’m 13 years old!”

“What a coincidence. I’m the same age.”

“Woof! We’re the same age? Wow! Wan! That makes me so happy!”

Staying silent while moving forward would be the smart thing to do.

But I’m walking alongside such a cute girl—how could I not talk to her? That’s not even an option for me.

“I’m happy too. But… why is the daughter of Marquis Tasan in a garbage dump?”

“Um, um, um, I’ve known about this garbage dump for a while. Scavenging through it is like treasure hunting! It’s the first step to becoming an explorer! And, woof! I had some business in Hydrangea with my eldest sister, who’s acting as the family head. So, I asked her to bring me along. That’s how I got here, and I’m super happy!”

“Treasure hunting, huh? I suppose it does have that aspect.”

Finding an unexpected treasure and selling it for a high price—that’s an indescribable feeling.

And once you experience it, you can’t help but want to go back and find something even better.

“I love treasure hunting! I’m actually really good at finding and digging things up!”

I can believe that. I saw it firsthand earlier.

“Are you hoping to become an explorer?”

Scavenging in a garbage dump isn’t exactly a rite of passage.

It’s not entirely unrelated, but I never really thought of it that way.

“Um, um, um, woof! Yes! I want to be an explorer!”

“I see, I see.”

Why does she bark? Is it just an expression of excitement?

I don’t remember wolf people being this dog-like…

Liles, the chef at the Cidre Inn.

Luki, the waitress at the Cidre Inn.

Heinen, the butcher’s shopkeeper. Yuro, the dungeon gatekeeper.

They’re all wolf people, but they act more human.

Sure, beastfolk in general have some animalistic tendencies, but not to this extent.

Yeah… this must just be a Juicy thing.

She’s just really expressive.

So, Juicy is my age and wants to be an explorer—wait, something about that sounds familiar.

Not long ago, I had a conversation similar to this…

Where was it…?

As I think, I look up—

And see a giant, one-eyed skull on the ceiling.

W-what is that? A monster? Or maybe… a Legacy?

For how big it is, it must be a giant… No, wait, it’s a Cyclops.

A Cyclops skull with beam-shooting eyes. There’s no mistake. Why is it in the garbage?

“Um, Wof-sama, are you also aiming to become an explorer? Will you become one?”

“Yes, for now, I do intend to become one.”

Why did she bark halfway through?

There’s nothing special going on. Right now, I’m just aiming to be an explorer.

The money is part of it, but dungeon exploration was fun, even though it was tough.

“Um, um, woof! We’re the same! Woof! woof! I’m so happy!”

Looking at her, I really do think of the dog from my old home in my past life.

She would act the same, pleading with her eyes as if saying, “Praise me, look at me,” just like Juicy.

“Ahem. Anyway…”

How long does this garbage corridor go on? It feels like we’ve walked a lot already.

Hmm? Did something move ahead…?

“Um, woof, grrrr, something’s here! Grrrrr!”

Juicy growled. Her wolf ears twitched.

I also activated the relic [Crisis Detection].

A red dot. It’s coming closer. An enemy?

I drew the knife I had just obtained.

Juicy got into a crouching stance, like she was about to pounce.

My dog back home used to growl and then get into that exact posture, ready to jump at anything suspicious.

“……..”

As I waited, tense, it appeared.

The light orb illuminated it… a black humanoid monster.

Its neck was long, and its face was missing. It had a tail.

“What is that…”

It vaguely resembles a Lizardman.

A faceless Lizardman? Its body looked like a mannequin.

What is this? It feels like something from my past life… a figure… material?

No, more like a base. That’s it! A base!

Could it be the base for a dungeon monster?!

“Grrrrrr, woof woof, Wof-sama. It’s unusual for a monster!”

“That’s a base for a dungeon monster.”

“Um, um, the base for a dungeon monster… woof, it’s coming!”

The dungeon monster base… The Base A suddenly ran toward us.

It wasn’t holding a weapon, so I expected it to come at us barehanded.

But Base A twisted its left arm and turned it into a blade.

It swung down as it ran, and I stepped forward to block it with my knife.

In that instant, the blade of my knife melted.

“Huh?”

As I stood there, dumbfounded, Base A swung down again—

Juicy lunged at it.

Like a dog, she pounced on Base A, hitting it, kicking it, hitting it again and again, then hitting it more.

Then, with a powerful kick to its right leg, she shattered it.

“Woof! Um, um, Wof-sama, are you okay?”

“…I’m fine.”

I discarded the melted knife, feeling like I might cry.

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