Death March kara Hajimaru Isekai Kyusoukyoku (WN)
Book 6 Chapter 6.1: I Want to Practice Magic [Failure Arc]

6-1. I Want to Practice Magic [Failure Arc]

Satou's here. My karaoke points has never been higher than 60. Yearning for that thing called absolute pitch, Satou's.

◇

I'm hearing singing birds signaling morning.

Opening my eyes, I see faint light from the cloth roof. It's a bit dazzling.

Ah right, I slept in the wagon because the camping ground was wasteland covered with stones yesterday.

While lying down I look down to my chest, and see a hand grasping my shirt loose. I look to the side, a beautiful black-haired girl is sleeping there while hugging my left hand.

I've gotten quite accustomed to it but it makes my heart jump for a bit. If there's no age difference between us, I wouldn't be able to retain my reason.

Next I turn my view toward the opposite side.

There, a girl whose head is being pressed by two gigantic pair of hills is sleeping with unpleasant expression, and the owner of the hills herself is hugging my arm while having innocent sleeping expression on her truly beautiful face.

Since it'd be too bad to wake everyone up, I doze off while enjoying the soft and nice fragrance of women.

I peek at the wide neckline of Nana's pajamas, locking on soft-looking valley is a man's nature. Since I use all my might to suppress the natural phenomenon that happens to man every morning, I'd like you to forgive me doing this much.

"Master, the breakfast preparation is about to complete, so please get up."

Liza who had been on guard duty for until dawn comes to wake me up. Her voice sounds a bit flat, it must be my imagination.

I almost say, "I'm sorry", out of guilt, but somehow I reply back with a good morning.

Lulu and Mia are waking up after hearing the voice.

Lulu is saying good morning while shyly fixes her hair and clothes, and Mia shortly says, "Morning" in a small voice while cruelly shoving Nana who had been hugging her aside.

After greeting Lulu, I hand out a white apron to Liza out of the wagon. Nana doesn't seem like she'll wake up even after getting cruelly shoved.

When I look at my feet, Arisa is asleep while grabbing the cuff of my trousers and on top of her, Pochi and Tama are sleeping while looking like they're holding her down.

I can somehow imagine what happened. Arisa was going to do yobai and tried to move Pochi and Tama out of the way, they counterattacked and they were exhausted halfway through. And then Lulu gained profit from all of these.

Hearing rustling clothes, I turn toward it, and Mia is there with her clothes already taken off.

"Wipe me."

Mia gives me towel and makes me wipe her back. It seems that she's sweaty because Nana hugged her all night.

After being saved from the magician, Mia sometimes becomes dependent like this.

It's not like she's fallen for me, it feels more like a sibling love.

"Mia, don't thoughtlessly undress yourself in front of an opposite sex."

"N."

She's answering briefly while nodding, does she really understand?

Her character would probably get mended when she's old enough even if I leave her alone, so I won't fuss over it too much. It's fine just to remind her occasionally.

Since I've finished wiping her back, I'm giving the towel to Mia. Mia reverses her direction and spread her arms wide assuming, 'wipe me', posture.

She's wearing an underwear of course, but only her long hair covers her upper body.

"Here too."

"Mia, wipe the front yourself."

"...Satou."

"I won't do it even if you act spoiled."

She demands with upturned eyes, but more than this is dangerous. Even if she's flat, I'm afraid that I'd caught little girl preference (curse).

Mia reluctantly receives the towel and begins to wipe her front.

Since it feels indecent if I look at it too much, I wake Nana and the girls up and get out of the wagon.

◇

The outside of the wagon smells of blood---

On a tree near where Liza is cooking, there are 5 animal bodies hung on a rope in order to drain their bloods.

The AR indicates that it's [Brown Wolf Meat]. Come to think of it, they were eliminated by Pochi and Tama at midnight. Since there were just 10 low leveled animals, I just watched over them on the radar. So half of it became, "Meat", huh.

Looking at this state, it means that the breakfast is going to be meat. I do like meat, but I'd love if it's not that from the morning.

"It's going to be done soon, so please drink this for now."

Lulu says so while serving me tea.

Since she's only wearing a simple apron over her pajamas, her body lines visible under the morning light before my eyes, I'm a bit troubled to where I look.

"We have prepared vegetable soup and breads for master and Mia, so please don't worry."

"Thank you, I appreciate it."

If I leave it to Liza alone, it'd certainly become a meat fest, so I'm happy with Lulu's concern.

Mia has somehow quietly sat down beside me before I was aware, snatches the cup from my hand and drinks the tea.

There are usually three little girls scrambling around me, but it's different in the morning. They're going to Liza's, asking to help while tasting this and that, and getting scolded. It reminds me of the nostalgic time when I was a hungry child.

"Master, 'ning."

"Good morning Nana. Morning greeting is [Good morning] you know. Forget strange things Arisa taught you."

"Yes, my lord."

I look up Nana who answered while saluting. Seen this close, her face is hidden by her breasts looked up. Truly a splendid view.

While I'm correcting the strange words that Arisa taught her, we sit on the sheet.

Since the clothes that she wore looked like what a cheap courtesan would wear, right now she's wearing Liza's reserve clothes. At first I wanted to lend her my robe but for some reason Arisa was strongly against it and Lulu also weakly opposed it, so it was rejected.

On the large platter are wolf intestines with fried vegetables and boiled potatoes, vegetable soup for breakfast it is today. There are cut bread and fruits made for me and Mia.

With Liza's instruction, the three little girls are quickly distributing plates and tablewares. Of course they also don't forget to encamp near the platter with meat.

The battle begins after everyone had sit down and said, "Itadakimasu". With Liza as the chief, Pochi, Tama and Arisa aim at the meat platter. Although it has fried vegetables, around 70% of it is meat, and it's disappearing fast. Around 3-4 kilos of meat are eaten up in a blink of eyes, it feels like watching a fast forwarded video.

On the other hand, Lulu is putting meat together with vegetable on her mouth in good manner. She's eating calmly, but her hands aren't stopping so her appetite is probably plentiful enough.

It's nice to be young~. They could eat so much meat since morning. I feel like having heartburn even just by looking at it.

Nana drinks water while watching them.

I'll say this beforehand, this isn't a bullying.

It's said that for approximately half a year after her birth, she can only receive water and magic power. Since the same things is also written in the alchemy book left behind by Trazayuya-shi, it's probably true.

There three ways to supply magic to Nana.

The first is by using a facility called Regulation Tank. When she was with Zen the magician, she used this method.

The second is by doing naughty thing with a man. The so-called bed technique. Frankly speaking, it's sexual intercourse. I was fine with this method, but Lulu suddenly cried, "I'm first!", so I stopped. Her crimson red figure afterwards was quite cute. Of course, Arisa also objected but since it was completely overshadowed by Lulu's impact, there isn't any impression left. It seems that it was a verbal slip, she couldn't look me in the eyes for 2 days after that.

The third and the last is by placing hands near her heart and pouring magic power to her heart which operates like a magic tool. To have a justified reason to touch that splendid hills, I have no complaint--- but, when I'm about to do it, Mia blocks it with a single word.

"Back."

Yes, as long as it's near the heart, it's fine to do it from the back.

Well fine, I'm still enjoying her fascinating nape and the lines of her bare shoulders from the back. Just once, yes, just once is enough, let me do something as I please.

◇

After the meal, I'm supplying magic power to Nana who has her back exposed.

When I strengthen the magic supply, she react ticklishly, it's interesting.

Although, Arisa and the girls are staring here like they're monitoring, so I can't play around. Even though the charming voice of a beautiful woman would warmth my heart, this is too bad.

"Are you going to practice again today?"

"Of course."

Let me say this, it's just a magic practice. It's nothing that would make me feel guilty.

Not only me, Pochi and Tama are also holding short canes. They wanted to imitate me when they see me practicing magic, so I lent them the canes.

"Then I'll give you an example. I will only do it once, so watch it well."

Arisa with a long cane faces toward where there's no one and starts to chant.

"■■■ Breeze"

After the chant is complete, gentle winds shake the weeds.

"Uuu, my head hurts. The burden of using magic without the skill is big after all. It might be using five times more magic power even."

I thank Arisa and begin to chant the magic.

It's a magic with the shortest chant among the life magic and high success rate.

"■▼▲ Breeze"

Like usual, I failed.

"Not good, it's not good at all. Only the first node of the beginning was right. Moreover the rhythm was strange."

Rhythm huh, I'm not confident with that.

First let's do something about the fumble.

"Nyrurireato saru mina ra me ra to oi yoi oi wan"

"Nyururiareto saru ra mina metora oi yoi io nyan"

Pochi and Tama facing each other, are reciting random chants while waving the canes around like dancing.

Of course it doesn't work, but I won't say anything unnecessary since the two looks really happy.

"■◆▲ Breeze"

"■▲◆ Breeze"

"▲▲◆ Breeze"

"No good, it's getting weirder."

I tried for so many times but Arisa keep disapproving it.

"Let's change the approach."

"Like how?"

"Let's see, do it calmly, first why don't you make sure that you get the pronunciation right?"

That reminds me, I've bought books about reciting and pronunciation too.

While reading the book, the practice begins.

When I start practicing tongue-twister, Arisa who was looking at Pochi and Tama's dance interjects.

"Try saying 'kami anime' 5 times fast."

"Kami anime, kami amime, kami ami i, I can't."

What the heck is this. It's difficult.

"Next is, try to pronounce the vowels, 『a』 and 『i』 clearly."

Fumu, I think I had heard the same thing from seiyuu who act as BGM from the net radio when I was on break in the rest area during my job.

Let's try this.

"Slowly okay."

"Kami anime, kami anime, kami anime, kami anime, kami amime."

"Too bad, only the last one was out, once more! Come, stand up, if you're like that then the lowest seat of celestial maiden is but a dream!"

Arisa is hiding half her face with hair while saying that.

For now, let's challenge it once again.

"Kami anime, kami anime, kami anime, kami anime, kami anime."

>[Tongue-twister Skill Acquired]

>[Smooth Talking Skill Acquired]

Alright, I max out the point for both and activate them.

The me now is able to utter any kind of tongue-twister.

"■◆◆ Breeze"

...I failed.

"You didn't bite your tongue, but your rhythm is wrong."

I tried to practice with Arisa's help for many times, but the chanting never succeed. I have no sense of pitch. I wonder how often did I bicker with sound creators for not recognizing the sound difference during bug report...

Liza is calling since the preparation for departure is complete, so I finish the magic practice.

Unfortunately I can't practice on the wagon.

I almost bite my tongue, and my voice vibrates from the shaking, so practice isn't possible.

I make a promise in my heart to do my best tomorrow, and go on the coachman stand.

I pat Pochi and Tama's head who positioned themselves on both sides of me and depart the wagon.