Surviving a Cruel Fairy Tale

10 – Act 1. Little Red Riding Hood’s Forest – The Wolf Witch (1)

In the forest, which I thought would be forever dark, I saw a landscape full of lights for the first time.

The sunlight shining brightly through the tree branches.

She was blinded at first, probably because she had adapted to the darkness, so she couldn’t see it properly, but then she blinked her eyes to see a small hut.

“…… Here is….”

“Witch’s Abode.”

Little Red Riding Hood nodded her head slightly, then moved her steps slowly past her sunny clearing.

The walking path is reminiscent of a green meadow.

Come to think of it, it seems that she hasn’t seen flowers since she entered this forest, but the path she walked on was really colorful, from bright yellow flowers to shyly blooming blue buds.

“Follow me.”

Afterwards, she only slightly turned her head and beckoned, but she couldn’t follow.

Lack of trust?

Those things could be one of the causes, but if there is a bigger cause…….

“Grrrung… ….”

A low cry made my body stop.

Since she arrived in this forest, the cry of the beast she heard often prevented her from taking a step forward.

“Why is that?”

“…… No, that, what is it?”

There is a wolf.

A lot.

I wouldn’t be so wary if it was just one or two, but if the number is ridiculous, the story changes again.

If you are surrounded by numbers like that once, no matter how mysterious it is, you won’t have the courage to endure it.

Wouldn’t this be bitten off without an answer if thrown into the middle of it, no matter how good the hunter is?

“Don’t worry, I won’t ask.”

“…… Are you sure?”

“What if I’m not sure? Do you think you’ll be there for the rest of your life?”

That’s not it…….

“I know you don’t believe me, but do you have other options in this situation?”

Little Red Riding Hood asks with a bored expression.

Certainly that’s right.

It is clear that there are not many options left for me as long as I am clearly hostile to the village and the hunters.

Looking at it objectively, it is true that he was helped by Little Red Riding Hood in a desperate situation, but it was also clear that it was difficult to blindly trust because the premise that had already been predicted was broken.

Seeing my reaction like that, Little Red Riding Hood whispered in a small whisper.

“I don’t intend to blame that attitude. Disbelief is a virtue in this world.”

“A bitter virtue.”

“A world where trust is poison, and affection is nothing more than flab under relaxed pride. You’re doing well in that respect, but it’s not bad to take advantage of someone you can use.”

With that, she placed her hand on her own chest.

“…… Can you use it?”

“Yes. However much. If you have any questions, ask me anything. Let me know if you need any help. I will use you as you wish.”

There is nothing more dangerous than unconditional favor.

At least, I realized that through my work with the hunter.

“Are you still anxious?”

“I am a young man who loves virtue.”

“Having doubts is proof that you are constantly thinking and making judgments. Not bad. But as I said before, keep in mind that you don’t have a choice.”

I continued to think about her words for a while.

Certainly, there are two intelligent beings or forces in this forest.

Among them, the hunters became enemies.

Similarly, the residents of the village, which can be seen as his domain. In that respect, it is clear that only Little Red Riding Hood can interact normally, but it is a bit strange to be forced to do either way.

“Isn’t it enough to just leave this forest without having to choose one or the other?”

Yes.

If you don’t get involved in the problems of this forest in the first place, you’re a red cloak and a hunter, and you don’t have to worry.

Of course, I have no intention of choosing such a choice.

If you run away from the beginning, there is no guarantee that you will be able to do it properly afterwards.

It’s only natural that you have to be in touch with the story of this fairy tale world in the long run, with the mystery in your body, but Little Red Riding Hood, who says that there is only one option, has a strange misunderstanding and opens his mouth.

“You are talking as if there is only you or the hunter, but I don’t think so.”

A word I threw out without even thinking about it.

At those words, Little Red Riding Hood shook his head with a small snort.

“I don’t think I really heard anything from the hunter.”

“What are you talking about?”

“No human being who sets foot in this forest can get out.”

…… It’s really, it’s so amazing information that I can’t think of anything else to say.

“Why?”

“Because I am cursed.”

“Then who is the subject of the curse?”

“Forest.”

Wait, the curse of the forest?

If it is a world composed of unrealistic fairy tales, it would not be impossible to have a doctor dwell in the forest, but then another question remains.

“Why?”

“…… It’s nice to ask, but it’s inconvenient to talk at a distance. I don’t like to speak loudly.”

Certainly inefficient.

In the meantime, I still couldn’t answer the question of whether Little Red Riding Hood could be completely trusted, but that doesn’t stop the progress itself from hitting a wall like this.

The road passed by slowly following her.

The wolves gathered in this field each turned their heads to watch me, but soon as if they lost interest, they mingled with each other and rolled around in a relaxed manner.

“Why don’t you sit down?”

“Excuse me.”

Following her guidance, I sat down on a chair next to the table, and she briefly opened the cabin door and went inside.

I think I am left alone like that.

Little Red Riding Hood said that humans cannot escape the forest. She called it the curse of the forest, so what could be the cause?

In the first place, how far can I trust Little Red Riding Hood’s words?

Yes, it is true that she helped me.

She actually answered my call, and she wasn’t entirely wrong when she said she was on my side.

The woman who was on my side.

A girl who told me to use herself entirely.

Despite being a character in a fairy tale, Little Red Riding Hood is a forest witch who opposes the village and drives humans to death.

…… Her head is messed up

It’s not that my thoughts aren’t organized. However, no matter how much I thought about it, the driving force to continue to the conclusion, that is, the information, was lacking.

Little Red Riding Hood brought a small kettle and two tea cups as she was still recalling the complicated situation that was not well organized.

“Drink first. It will make her body comfortable.”

Green tea brewed.

It’s the first time I’ve smelled incense, but I didn’t have the ability to distinguish the types because I wasn’t familiar with tea in the first place.

“…… Write.”

There is no way to distinguish the tea anyway, and the scent is good, so I drank it right away, but the taste was much more bitter than I thought.

“Still, it definitely smells good. I will drink well.”

I nodded and brought the cup to my mouth again, but Little Red Riding Hood looked at me with her eyes wide open as if a little startled.

“…… I don’t even hesitate.”

“Huh? What is that?”

“Of course I doubted that and thought I wouldn’t drink it.”

Yes, of course I doubt it.

I don’t have a verification method, so it’s natural to doubt everything and review it, but this and that are different stories.

In the first place, Little Red Riding Hood could have killed me with the flick of a finger.

Look at the number of wolves surrounding this cabin.

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If she really tried to harm me, there would have been many opportunities to do so.

She was prepared for that, at least from the time she followed her past the she-wolf and sat in the garden in front of this cabin.

Raise your head and look around.

I just took a step because there was something unknown in fear.

“I don’t trust you completely, but if you’re even suspicious of these things, I wouldn’t even sit down with you.”

“…… Okay?”

“And the one that saved me. I’ll say it now, but I’m truly grateful for helping out in the village. Really.”

At my reply, Little Red Riding Hood took a sip of tea without saying anything, then sighed and opened her mouth again.

“I didn’t ask for thanks.”

“Because it was something I had to say even if I didn’t thank you.”

“…… That’s done.”

She scratched her cheeks a couple of times as if she was being irritated.

“Anyway, if you have any questions, ask me anything. I will answer anything that I can answer.”

“Then I ask, if there is a curse on this forest, what is the reason?”

The truth of what is going on in this forest.

In other words, understanding the world view.

When writing or reading a story. In either case, it was difficult to understand without knowing the basis of the world, but in this case, the truth of the forest corresponded to the worldview.

Little Red Riding Hood nodded her head at my question.

“The curse of the forest began when a hunter led a large number of people into this forest.”

That was literally the story of the time when this forest began to change.

The hunter led hundreds of people to clear the forest and begin to settle.

At that time, the tin woodcutter was brought along.

The purpose of the hunter, who led non-humans and forcibly settled down to clearing the dense forest at the time, was this forest fairy.

“Hunting fairies?”

“There are different types of fairies. Fairies aren’t all that commonplace, the little things that fly out there even now.”

And in this case, what the hunters were aiming for was obviously a fairy that had grown to adulthood.

He led a large number of people to clear the village, and immediately began to hunt the forest elves.

A fairy can be used for simple s*xual purposes, but since it has a mystery in itself, it can be used for a variety of purposes and is traded at a high price outside.

The hunter, who steadily expanded his territory by overhunting the fairies that make up the forest, finally touched something he shouldn’t have touched.

“The daughter of the forest. Even the fairy that her mother’s tree loved was in her hands.”

The forest was furious.

The mother tree, which was just rich and warm, went mad with grief over the loss of her daughter, and thus cast a curse on all humans that exist in this forest.

That is the curse of forever wandering the forest.

A labyrinth from which you can never escape.

At the same time, the forest multiplied more densely, covering the sky with its branches, robbing everything in the forest of light.

“…… So all of this.”

“It started when the hunter came into this forest.”

If this is true, there is no longer any doubt.

However, there is one questionable part.

“Then what about you?”

The hunter cried out for Little Red Riding Hood until the end.

I don’t intend to understand the arrogance that everything in this forest belongs to me, but even so, that obsession is definitely strange.

She frowned at my question.

“The man said he took his daughter away in this forest. Originally, he should have sold it outside, but he didn’t.”

“If you are greedy… ….”

“Because the daughter of the forest was more beautiful than anyone else. So the hunter embraced the daughter of the forest, and consequently she gave birth to one of her daughters in exchange for her life.”

That’s who she is, she said with a wry smile.

Half human, half fairy.

She couldn’t stare straight at that figure, laughing as if she was self-deprecating, saying that she was a mutant that couldn’t mix with either side.