Subaru woke when the light filtering through the broken roof turned soft and white, no longer the pale blue of early morning. She lay still for a moment, staring at the cracked ceiling above her, dust floating lazily in the air. It felt like noon, or close enough. Her body felt light. Not empty. Full.
She inhaled slowly, then exhaled.
"…Huh."
There was no ache. No stiffness. No lingering panic clawing at her chest. The strange inner pool she had come to recognize as mana felt calm and complete, like a cup filled to the brim. For a brief, dangerous second, she almost forgot everything. The forest. The deaths. The loops. The horns.
Almost.
Reality returned the moment she shifted and felt fabric slide against her legs. Frills. Stockings. A body that was still not hers.
Subaru sighed and pushed herself upright, rubbing her face with both hands. "Right," she muttered. "Fantasy world. Demon girl. Still real."
She swung her legs over the side of the makeshift sleeping spot and stood. The abandoned house was quiet, just as she had left it. No new sounds. No presence pressing against her senses. Whatever those senses were, they stayed silent.
After stretching her arms and back, she stepped outside.
The village looked the same in daylight. Less frightening, maybe, but more sad. Houses leaned against time itself. Doors hung open as if waiting for people who would never return. The sun revealed details she had missed at night. Scratches on walls. Burn marks on wood. Old footprints fossilized in mud.
She walked through it slowly, not rushing. Since she had survived the night, she might as well be thorough.
House by house, she searched again.
Most of it was useless. Broken tools. Rotten food stores. Furniture too damaged to carry. She found scraps of clothing, but none better than what she already had. A cracked mirror showed her reflection again, horns hidden beneath the cloth turban she had wrapped the night before.
She paused in front of it, tilting her head.
"…I still hate this," she said quietly.
Moving on, she entered a smaller house near the center of the village. This one had a low table and shelves that had not fully collapsed. She checked them carefully. On the bottom shelf, half hidden beneath debris, she found a small pouch.
It jingled when she picked it up.
Subaru blinked, then opened it.
Coins.
Not a lot, but not nothing either. They were heavy, round, and unfamiliar. She rolled one between her fingers, feeling its weight. Real. Solid. Useful.
She stood there for a second, then did something that surprised even herself. She stepped back, bowed deeply toward the empty room, and spoke clearly.
"Thank you for the money. I will put it to good use."
It felt silly. It also felt right.
She tied the pouch securely and tucked it away, then left the house without looking back.
By the time she reached the edge of the village, the sun was already beginning to drift westward. She adjusted the cloth around her head, making sure the horns stayed hidden. The fabric was soft against her skin, surprisingly comforting.
North.
That was the direction she had chosen. Not because it felt right, but because it felt less wrong than the others.
She started walking.
The road, if it had ever been one, was mostly gone. Grass and dirt replaced stone, but the path was still faintly visible, like a memory the land had not fully let go of. Trees lined both sides, thinner than the forest she had fled from, their leaves whispering quietly in the breeze.
Her pace was steady. A little too steady.
After an hour, she noticed it.
"…Am I walking fast?" she asked herself.
She slowed down deliberately. Her body resisted, like it wanted to keep moving at that speed. When she relaxed again, she found herself covering ground far quicker than she should have.
"Right. Demon body," she muttered. "Of course."
She kept going.
As time passed, she became aware of movement beyond her sight. Shapes. Presences. Small things watching her from the trees and brush. She did not see them directly, but she felt them, like faint taps against the edge of her awareness.
They stayed away.
Subaru frowned. "That red-haired guy was a hundred," she said under her breath. "You're what, five?"
Whatever they were, they did not approach. Perhaps they sensed what she was. Or perhaps they sensed what she could do. Either way, she did not bother drawing her weapon.
She walked for hours.
Her thoughts wandered as her feet carried her forward. Not to anything useful. Just fragments. Her parents. Games she had played. The smell of convenience store food. Things that felt distant and close at the same time.
Every so often, she touched the turban again, checking it was still secure. It was becoming a habit.
Eventually, something changed.
It was subtle at first. A faint pressure. A warmth in the air that was not from the sun. Subaru slowed and closed her eyes, focusing.
Mana.
Not wild. Not hostile. Structured. Many sources, overlapping but distinct.
Her eyes snapped open.
"…A village," she whispered. "Or something like it."
She could feel it clearly now. People. Or beings like people. Magic in use. A place that was alive.
Her hand rose to her head again, fingers brushing the cloth. The horns beneath felt heavier all of a sudden.
"Should I?" she asked no one.
Information meant risk. But ignorance was worse.
She took a breath, tightened the turban one last time, and stepped forward, heading north toward whatever waited ahead.
───✧───
Subaru slowed her steps as the village came into full view, the dirt path widening into something more deliberate, worn smooth by years of use. She did not fly this time. She did not rush. Every sense she had was stretched thin, waiting for the smallest hint of danger.
Another loop would break her.
She crossed the edge of the settlement carefully, eyes moving first, body following second. There was no sudden pressure in the air. No hostile mana flaring up. No invisible blade racing toward her neck. Just sound. Normal sound.
Voices.
Footsteps.
The creak of wood and the soft splash of water.
"…Okay," she whispered. "So far, so good."
It was a plain medieval village, almost painfully normal after everything she had been through. Wooden houses with sloped roofs lined the path, smoke rising lazily from a few chimneys. Chickens wandered freely, pecking at the ground. Somewhere, a hammer struck metal at a steady rhythm. The smell of bread drifted through the air, warm and comforting.
No mage waiting to ambush her. No insane red-haired warrior leaping out of the bushes. No light beam descending from the sky.
Nice.
She reached a small wooden bridge spanning a shallow stream. The water was clear enough that she could see stones at the bottom, sunlight breaking into ripples as it flowed beneath her. Subaru paused in the middle of the bridge, gripping the railing lightly.
This felt real.
She crossed the rest of the way and stepped fully into the village, her boots tapping softly against packed earth. As she walked, people noticed her. Heads turned. Conversations paused. Eyes lingered for a second too long.
A stranger.
But no one stopped her. No one reached for a weapon. A few villagers nodded politely. One woman pulled her child a little closer, not out of fear, but curiosity.
Subaru let out a breath she did not realize she was holding.
"Good," she muttered. "Don't look like a demon. Step one complete."
She wandered without a clear direction, letting the flow of the village guide her. She passed a well where two women were drawing water and talking quietly. She passed a small shrine with faded carvings and offerings of flowers that had seen better days. The village was modest, but alive.
As she walked, her eyes kept drifting down to her clothes.
The frilly dress.
The stockings.
She grimaced.
"I really need new clothes," she thought. Something simple. Something plain. Something that did not look like it belonged to a walking fantasy illustration.
Then another thought followed immediately, sharp and unwelcome.
A seamstress would ask her to undress.
Her hand shot up to her head, fingers pressing lightly against the turban.
"…Nope. Bad idea," she whispered. "That's a future problem."
She was not ready to explain horns. She was not ready to explain anything.
Information first. Shelter second. Clothes later, maybe never.
She eventually reached what looked like the center of the village. An open square with a few stalls, a notice board with faded parchment nailed to it, and a stone fountain that had seen better maintenance. People moved through the space naturally, buying, selling, talking.
Subaru stopped near the edge, pretending to examine the fountain while scanning the area.
This was the place.
A middle-aged man noticed her hesitation and approached with an easy smile. He had a broad build, weathered skin, and the relaxed posture of someone who had lived his entire life in the same place.
"Good afternoon," he said. "You're not from around here, are you?"
Subaru turned to face him, posture straight but not stiff. "No," she replied. "Just passing through."
"Thought so," he said, chuckling. "Name's not important. What brings you to our village?"
She hesitated for half a second, then answered with the safest truth she could manage. "I'm heading north. I saw the village and decided to stop by."
The man nodded slowly. "That makes sense. Not much else out here. This is a plain place. Alt Woods doesn't have much to offer, but we do have an inn if you're looking to rest."
Subaru's ears perked up. "Ah, Alt Woods," she repeated quietly, committing the name to memory. "I keep messing up names,"
"Yes," he said proudly. "Been called that longer than I've been alive."
She tilted her head slightly. "You seem to know a lot about this place."
He laughed, loud and genuine. "Of course I do. I was born here. Grew up here. Probably die here too. If you want to know anything about Alt Woods, you just ask."
Perfect.
She smiled faintly. "Then can I ask about the best route north?"
The man scratched his chin. "North, huh. Well, if you have enough money, you can take the sea path. It's safer and faster."
Subaru shook her head. "I don't."
"Ah," he said, sympathy flickering across his face. "Then you'll be going on foot. That path is rough. Monsters. Demons. All sorts of trouble."
Subaru's stomach tightened. "Demons are that dangerous, huh?"
He stared at her like the answer was obvious. "Of course. If it weren't for the Hero Himmel and his party eighty years ago, we wouldn't have survived this long."
Her eyes narrowed.
Hero. Party. Eighty years ago.
She kept her expression neutral, but her mind raced.
"So he saved humanity," she said slowly.
"That's right," the man replied. "Defeated the Demon King and ended the great war. Still, demonkind wasn't wiped out completely. They're fewer now, but they're still out there."
Subaru nodded, piecing it together. A central power. A king. Destroyed. The rest scattered. It fit.
The man studied her more closely. "Where exactly are you heading, if you don't mind me asking?"
She froze for a fraction of a second, then spoke before she could overthink it. "The northernmost side."
The words sounded ridiculous even to her own ears.
The man blinked. Then he laughed. "You must be joking."
She gave him a flat look.
His laughter faded. "You're serious?"
"I have my reasons," she said evenly.
"I see," he replied, tone shifting. "A few weeks ago, a man passed through here. He said only a first class mage, or a party with a first class mage, can pass through the Northern Plateau."
Her brows knit together. "Are you a mage?" he asked.
"Yes," she answered automatically. Then hesitated. "But I do not know what a first class mage is."
The man stared at her.
Then he laughed again, louder this time. "You must be joking! I'm no mage. I'm just a priest. Even I know that."
Subaru felt heat rise to her face. "I'm underinformed," she said quickly. "You see."
"Huh," he said, still smiling. "That's a new one."
He tilted his head. "What was your name again?"
She met his gaze. "I'm Subaru."