Oshino Meme
The old man that happened to pass-by, revealed his name.
I thought it was a ridiculous name, here was a person that needed to be rescued, I couldn’t say something like that towards him.
Even if he had this weird look.
Even if he was wearing this weird Hawaiian shirt.
As long as he had rescued me---I couldn’t point any fingers at him.
..........
But he really is a sluggish old man.....
“Ah....Oshino.”
Should I add –san to it? Should I use honorifics? I feel kind of lost---but, although he is my savior, as long as I don’t know his real side, I can’t just make any
move.
An enemy or a friend.
I still haven’t determined if I could be saved.
Although making any moves is kind of weird.
But, I should at least say thanks to him.
“Thank you for saving me.”
“No need to thank me. I saw you were alone so I helped you. That’s all, Araragi-kun.”
Oshino said in an innocent tone.
It was uncomplicated.
That aside, those three people---after the initial attack got blocked by Oshino, they escaped from the road they came from like on command.
In only a moment there were no traces of them.
They didn’t even leave a word of escape.
I didn’t finish the goal of retrieving Kisshot’s limbs---but at least my life was rescued.
Oshino Meme—
This Hawaiian shirt wearing man, doesn’t look like my enemy....nor Kissshot Acerolaorian Heartunder Blade’s enemy, but----
“Speaking of it, Araragi Koyomi----this name. It really has a feeling of bottomless waves. Haha, but this guy honestly. Any guy with common sense, wouldn’t open a barrier, stirring up trouble in a place like this. Probably a fellow with a lot of experience.”
“......”
“No need to be so alert around me, Araragi-kun. No need to stare at me. You are really energetic, did something good happen?”
While he’s saying that, Oshino took out a cigarette from his pocket on his Hawaiian shirt, biting it using his mouth--- I thought he would follow with lighting it with a lighter, but he just held on to the cigarette in his mouth.
“Well, in any case, let’s go home first, Araragi-kun.”
“Go home?”
“That cram school ruin.”
Saying it like it’s obvious, as Oshino prepared to walk----I yelled a line unconsciously towards his back “Wait a moment.”
“You, how do you know about that?”
“Hm? Of course I know—speaking of the reason, it was me who introduced that place to that child.”
This is a man who says such incredible words, in such a normal way.
Eh?
No, I have actually thought about how Kissshot could find that kind of place.....
This guy told her?
“Well, you have honour then you say you have bravery. That child----Heartunder Blade was dragging your body, looking very troubled--- so I told her about that good place.”
“You----know Kissshot?”
“........?”
Oshino didn’t answer my question, that meant he has questions about my words, moreover he looked at me with very weird eyes.
“.....what?”
“No----you called her Kissshot.”
“Hm? Ah.”
“Those three were like that too, calling her Heartunder Blade normally......I just thought why isn’t Araragi-kun calling her that.”
“Because....isn’t that very long?”
What.
What's there to mind about it.
“How I call her....it shouldn’t be that I definitely have to call her that?”
“Well, I guess that’s true. But the matter about you being a subordinate, is really incredible---- first let’s not talk about normal vampires, she----Heartunder Blade is the legendary vampire. Kai killer----iron blooded, hot blooded, cold blooded vampire----
“Vampire....you know the stuff about vampires?”
Well, it’s impossible to not know now.
Not knowing where he appeared, easily defending against those three people’s attack, just looking at those two points, I should already understand.
“You---what kind of person are you?”
“Me? Sometimes a mysterious child of the wind, sometimes a mysterious traveler, sometimes a mysterious drifter, sometimes a mysterious bard, sometimes a mysterious high-class homeless.”
All mysteries.
“Sometimes a female voice’s lowest range.”
“......Sometimes an alto?”
“Sometime I am, sometimes I’m not.”
“Only amended this point.....”
He suddenly shrugged his shoulders.
“I’m just an old man who passed by; that’s all.”
Then let out a breath, Oshino said that.
As I thought very weird.
“Today is as so---I just happened to have once faced Heartunder Blade’s trouble. Relax. I’m not a vampire exorcizing specialist.”
“........”
Can I believe him?
No, it’s not like that.
It’s 'I can only believe in him.'
“Although it’s not like I know nothing----but my specialty is bigger than this. The amount of stuff I know is a lot. Well, let’s wait till later to do the self-introductions. First of all you go back to there, Araragi-kun.”
In the end, I could only follow Oshino’s words.
I followed Oshino back to the cram school ruin---as a tight possibility, it is possible that Oshino is a vampire exorcizing specialist targeting Kissshot.
But, at least Oshino knows about the fact that Kissshot is in this cram school ruin.
---Otherwise he wouldn’t have went directly to this ruin that isn’t in the town.
If he’s a different type of vampire exorcizing specialist than those three people.
Right now he could easily eliminate.
Eliminating the weakened Kissshot Acerolarorion Heartunder Blade.
Looking at it the other way Oshino isn’t an enemy.
But I still can’t call him simply a comrade.
“Hey! I’m back!”
I said some unneeded stuff to Oshino (Like animes from before, words that were really unneeded. I understood there was no point in determining if Oshino was an enemy or friend.), after walking about an hour, back to the second floor of the cram school ruin, Kissshot looked really happy, actually it felt more like she’s gotten tired of waiting.
Uwha.
This girl, she totally haven’t realized that her battle plan had a flaw.
After that she said.
“Hmm...? The guy behind..... I think I have seen that face from somewhere before?"
“That’s mean. Only remembering to this degree.”
Oshino could only smile.
“Wasn’t it me who told you about this secret base. Heartunder Blade, Kai Killer-chan.”
“Ahhh...right, that time.”
Kissshot nodded her head.
Ehm.
Anyway, it looks like he didn’t lie---Oshino really did meet Kissshot that night.
Then the fact that this place used to be a cram school, was probably heard from Oshino.
“Well?”
As if Kissshot had no interest in Oshino at all---she then looked towards me.
Like I said, don’t look at me with such eyes full of expectations.
“Well....listen to me calmly, okay?”
I don’t know ventriloquism, or speaking in circles. The me who avoided people calling me after becoming a high school student , had an unusually low amount of speaking techniques.
Basically---I got lost in talking about the situation where I had all three people; Dramaturgie, Episode and Guillotinecutter as opponents at the same time.
So I failed in retrieving the limbs.
Moreover I was rescued by Oshino from danger.
Just like that I shallowly explained it.
By the way, Oshino during this time gathered up the desks. I thought about what he was trying to do, who would have thought that he was just making a bed.
Why?
Is he tired?
What is this, this unconstrained freedom......
“Huh.”
After listening to everything, Kissshot didn’t show a sign of disappointment.
Should be so.
Although the attitudes of a ten-year-old can be misleading, but this person should be older than me.
She wouldn’t cause trouble out of nothing.
It is also possible that her brain is kind of slow.
“Troublesome.....those three people are still banding together. I thought after chasing me to this point, they’ll separate, and compete freely.”
“At least consider it for a bit.”
“They want to completely crush me---those three people. Then I have countermeasures here too. Besides, it is enough to damage me to this degree.”
“Something something about the reward money.”
“Hm. Ahhh. So...the present is like this. I see. This world is so cruel.”
Kissshot suddenly started laughing.
Did she think of something?
“I’m so stupid. It’s because of the jetlag.”
“How can it be like a tourist.....”
Hm.
Ahh. Right---this is the perfect time to ask. I kept thinking about my own stuff, that’s why I forgot to ask.
“Kissshot, by the way, why did you come to Japan? Moreover this rural little town.”
“Hm? Sightseeing.”
“........”
“Mount Fuji, Kinkaku-ji, I hadn’t seen any of them.”
She said it so easily.
It is a lie no matter how you look at it....it really is troublesome if, just because of a reason like that, you get attacked by people holding weapons.
Moreover this rural little doesn’t have Mount Fuji, or Kinkaku-ji.
But, lying so straight, it’ll be hard to counter it.
“You’re not trying to conquer Japan, right?”
I closely asked her.
“Hm, no.”
She said that.
“Anyway---you couldn’t defeat those three people even at full strength? Then, your subordinate me, how can I win against those three people?”
“.....Like I said, fight them one by one.”
“They are cooperating, so that’s impossible. You said it was okay to just dillydally here, but even here, sooner or later we’ll be found out----“
“There’s no problem about that matter.”
Suddenly, Oshino opened his mouth.
Looking at his side, he is lying down on the simple bed he finished.
Too free.
“While you guys were sleeping I had set up a barrier here.”
“.....Barrier?”
He had said something like that before too.
But, what is a barrier?
“....Something like a field?”
“Hm, you can call it that.”
Clearly you can tell it’s not something like that, but he probably felt it was too troublesome to explain, so Oshino answered with that.
“People who know the area very well aside, it is impossible for people like strangers to discover this place---“
“.....you.”
I asked alertly.
“What do you want?”
“What what do you want?”
Oshino laughed while answering.
Anyway, very strange.
How old is this guy?
Definitely over thirty ... ... humans, after living for thirty years, would you still talk like this?
Humans, anyone that is passed their thirty is a decent adult, right?
"Why ---would you help Kissshot and me? Although I know you are not the enemy - but I don’t think you are one of us."
"You are saying some really mean words."
The cigarette that was always in his mouth, finally left Oshino’s mouth.
Back into the pocket.
"However, like I just said - I originally didn’t intend to help you guys. No reason to save you guys. Not an enemy or a comrade. As to why I helped you guy, it is just that I felt like it. "
"... ... I don’t understand what you said."
"I want to achieve a balance."
Finally --- Oshino said some slightly understandable words.
"To say, it is my job."
"... ..."
" A job about communication between here and there."
Oshino continued to explain.
"About vampires, they are very troublesome things - for that side it is just too powerful. Not to mention it is the Kai Killer. From just listening to the tone of Araragi-kun it seems like those three men are despicably attacking this child; that is completely not the case. This child – Heartunder Blade, it is worthwhile for them to do so. "
"Such words of praise are really embarrassing."
Kissshot said as she raised her chest.
She raised her chest that had no point in being raised.
The subtle feeling doesn’t feel like praise , but I'll just leave this matter.
The question now is Oshino’s side.
"You made a self-introduction, didn’t you say you would follow-up your introduction?"
"Oshino Meme . A free man of no residence."
So to say.
"Well, just think that I’m an authority in terms of monster changes --- haha. I’m not the same as those three people, I’m not great with monster exorcizing.”
"What not great... ..."
"To put it simply I don’t like it."
"But --- not a specialist."
"I am a specialist, that’s why I help with maintaining the balance. In a neutral position, basically I help with negotiating. Well, basically I’m a negotiator."
Negotiation?
Here and there - connecting?
What is here - what is there?
Here is a human, there is monsters?
But – right now which side do I belong to?
"Monster. Great. Calling me a Kaii is better."
"Kaii---"
"Then this child is called the Kaii Killer --- you know why? She is a rare type of vampire that can absorb energy from Kaiis. Well, that’s why this child is famous. "
This time it seems to be Kissshot who is upset.
Ten years-old is a very troublesome age, this guy is the same as her appearance age.
Her appearance is still different from her inside, probably because it still takes some time getting used to her ... ... because of this reason, I keep thinking she should return to full power as soon as possible.
"Don’t act like you know everything - brat."
Kissshot used brat to refer to Oshino.
If she really is 500 years old, then calling him that should be right.
You might as well say that the fact that Oshino calling Kissshot 【that child】【this child】is disrespectful.
But like the wind just blew over, Oshino didn’t mind the term brat.
"It’s just like you said, Heartunder Blade."
He said it like that.
"You can’t judge using rumors --- not caring about if the opponent is human or not. However, hmm, listening to the conversion you guys just had, it seems like this matter is particularly serious. I couldn’t have imagined that something so troublesome would happen."
"Not troublesome at all. It is very simple."
"To a vampire that can live for a long time, it is very simple --- but for us humans it is very difficult. Right, Araragi-kun?”
"Eh."
Wow.
This guy – has already grasped the situation of this matter.
Of course--- he saw me as a human.
On this side – he said that.
"... ... ... ..."
"En? What, your reaction was very strange – Araragi-kun, didn’t you want to change back into a human? Is that not it?"
"No, that’s it ... ..."
"If you want to become a human being, of course you’re a human."
Basically it is like that.
Oshino said it like that - and then looked towards Kissshot’s side.
"Moreover --- I’m interested in you, Heartunder Blade. Araragi-kun, who is a subordinate, you are willing to help him turn back into a human. I’m interested in this point."
"Ah ~ ~ ~"
But - this time is obviously a compliment, but Kissshot is reacting unhappily.
"I don’t know anything about stuff like negotiators ---- don’t say any superfluous words, brat. I have hated people who speak randomly since before."
"Speak randomly? That’s something that has nothing to do with me. You might as well say I separate everything I think of. Well, okay. I don’t intend to say any random things either-- -"
Oshino Meme said that while laying on the bed.
In a posture that has absolutely no convincing power, he spoke.
"- --Then I can stand in the middle."
"Stand in the middle?"
Between here and there?
"In between - those three people?"
"There’s no other."
Oshino nodded his head.
"Actually, introducing this cram school ruin to you, and then also opening the barrier, I already helped a lot, well, you can also say it was some sort of fate."
"Can – can you help us?"
"I’m not helping you. I’m only lending you my strength."
Oshino said it like that.
"Right now, as expected, it is still not balanced – like this you’ll only get bullied. Towards these guys’ exorcising, I don’t really like it---“
"Then, you – are a comrade?"
"No. Not a comrade, nor an enemy."
Oshino is neutral.
"I said I was along the line? In other words, I stand in the middle. The upcoming things are up to you. In actuality the person acting is not me. The people in the whirlpool, no matter what you have to retrieve the nut among the fire yourself. –-- the reason and results have nothing to do with me. At most I can do little adjustments."
"... ... ... ..."
I looked at Kissshot ---- even Kissshot is suspicious of Oshino’s attitude.
What does this guy want?
"Ahhh, of course, this is a job so it can’t be free of charge. Travelers really need money when on the road. Right --- about two million yen?"
"Two, two million!!!"
Towards me who released a sound of shock, Oshino was still calm.
"I won’t press about when to pay. But if I don’t make a request like this – then I can’t achieve balance."
"... ... But, but."
Only---believe.
Can I really believe him?
This - passing old man?
Introducing this place to Kissshot, also rescuing me from those three people – the matter about the barrier aside, this is already enough to cause people to believe.
But --- really suspicious.
"... ... Can I hear about the specific plan?"
This is the difference between Kissshot and a boy who hasn’t even lived for seventeen years, she immediately agreed.
"Although you say it’s negotiations, but it is not easy – are those three people easy to convince? Moreover since you are neutral, you won’t be retrieving my limbs back from them?"
"Even I wouldn’t go that far. The plan also hasn’t been thought out yet."
Oshino’s words are really frustrating.
But, this is more reliable than matters being done just because he felt like it.
I felt very much at ease.
"I can do it, I just need to bow my head and ask. If they refuse even when I am full of sincerity then I can only use dangerous methods. Fortunately, this is a game that can be solved by words."
"You call it a game?"
"But, first of all we need to separate those three people. It’s no problem if it’s one by one as opponents --- but, Heartunder Blade, even you can’t see through them? So, I need to fulfill that point."
Of course, Oshino said that.
"You guys have to risk a certain level of corresponding danger to do so – don’t put any thoughts on this matter."
"No, that I already know. I have the determination, of course my servant also has it."
Don’t be determined just because you felt like it.
It was my determination in the first place ... ...
"But, brat, how are you going to negotiate with those three people?"
"Like I said, ask while bowing my head - Well, those are a bunch of people who are easy to talk to."
Oshino spoke like if he was telling a joke.
There has to be a limit to useless Q & A, talking with those three people who don’t listen to the words of others?
What kind of pacifist are you?
"The fine points are a trade secret. Then Araragi-kun will retrieve Heartunder Blade’s limbs back. If you safely retrieve Heartunder Blade’s two arms and legs – Heartunder Blade can also go back to full power. This way Araragi-kun can safely turn back into a human."
"... retrieve it back."
Sure enough the most difficult task was left to me.
One by one as opponents --- that being said, but it’s three people.
Dramaturgie, Episode, Guillotinecutter.
Duel-wielded huge wavy swords, a giant cross, the unknown man.
Honestly, I have absolutely no confidence in winning.
Because it was for myself, it’s something I can’t refuse to do, but I don’t it want it to be like tonight, challenging them without any tactics or reason.
Might as well say today I was thinking too much.
Although I wanted to be calm, but in the end I was still anxious.
I’m like this - moreover Kissshot was like this too.
Like I said.
If I’m fighting them once again--- I need some strategy.
"Hey, servant."
Kissshot said to me.
"... ... What, Kissshot?"
"I didn’t prepare any human currency --- I’m not clear about what something like two million yen is. Can I give you this debt to carry?"
"... ... ... ..."
"Don’t worry. This brat's skills are real - this point I can tell you. The matter about you being rescued by him, I also saw it using hyperopia. Even if presently I’m very weak, I can still do that."
"But – not an enemy or a comrade, a neutral?"
"I didn’t bet on the fact that he’s a comrade right from the beginning. If this guy was an enemy who is absolutely clear of my current position, I would have already been finished. There’s no choice even if we wish ... ... Well since he said he was neutral, then it is kind of good too."
"... ... Ah."
There’s also that way of thinking.
Understanding means being very careful.
Furthermore, at least it’s not so blatantly that if Oshino’s negotiation fails, it’ll be anything negative.
The eyes aren’t the only things that cold.
That’s why--- there is only one question left.
An old man that was just passing by.
Just passing by.
But--- is Oshino just passing by here really a coincidence?
Meeting Kissshot just when she was in trouble, appearing just when I was being attacked - indeed, it is too coincidental?
If there is any meaning here – can Oshino get anything? – I just think it is too much of a coincidence.
But – that might also be the case.
Just meeting by coincidence, and then observing from behind – if it’s like that, then the afternoon after the closing ceremony, when I was roaming around the school, the matter with passing by Hanakawa when I was coming out of the school gate, that is really only coincidence?
Thinking about it carefully, if I didn’t meet Hanakawa, I wouldn’t have sneaked out of home that night to the bookstore. I also wouldn’t have met Kissshot----I’m probably thinking too much.
Right now.
... ... Meeting this strange man, I feel we are too lucky.
Towards my savior, this is the only point I don’t want to say, really, it’s the person I’m the least good at facing.
But.
I was determined, so I said.
"Although I haven’t saved up much money ... ... but if you won’t press, and I don’t need a guarantor - I'll bear this debt."
No choice.
To borrow money already at this young age; I’m such a poor thing.
"Well, it’s decided. Haha, thank you for your patronage ~ ~ ~"
Oshino said while pleased.
"I’m also going to live here, starting from today. Please take care of me. Also, originally I’ve targeted this place ever since I came to town. I gave this place to you guys after looking at it morally, indeed this town has no better ruin than this one. First of all, what should we do first? In order to fuel the future, a huddle?"
While lying down, and while in a posture that has no momentum, Oshino said that --- of course, me and Kissshot, did not follow according to his non-sense.
I didn’t notice when time already passed 0:00am.
The date changed to March 29th.
If you talk about tomorrow, actually right now is already tomorrow.