Part 3 – Osaka’s Auntie, Rescue the Beastmen

Chapter 11 – To Meddle in a Fight

 

There was a large man taunting a girl with cat’s ears on her head.

The girl looked like she was part of the Beast Clan, people with animal features that existed in this world.

As for the large man, he looked like he’s part of a multi-person party. However, Haruna did not recognise his face.

She also did not recognise the cat-eared girl, who looked to be in her early 20s, most likely a magic user. The staff in her hand was the sort that was used by magicians to draw sigils and spells on the floor. Her long brown hair was also rather eye catching.

Anyway, adventuring was a bloody business, literally, and the guild had to deal with fights and quarrels among its members on a daily basis.

“Didn’t you hear me? I said NO, I’ll never join a party run by monkeys like you!”

“You! You watch your language!”

Clearly, she had been approached by this party, but had flatly refused them. It’s not hard to imagine why she had refused to join their group.

When Haruna first saw people quarrelling using the standard Japanese dialect, it felt really weird. In Osaka, people all quarrelled in the Kansai dialect. Other Japanese who witness a bunch of people yelling at each other in the Kansai dialect would find that it at least 30% scarier compared to standard Japanese quarrels.

“Who’s a monkey! You brat, you’re just a slave, beast men like you are just slaves, aint’cha!” The large man retorted viciously, not bothering to pull punches with his words.

“Slave creatures like you have no right to be so proud! You should behave according to your class and beg for forgiveness!”

“That law had already been repelled a hundred years ago! Us Beast Clans already suffered years of insults from it!”

As she uttered those words, the cat-eared witch tightened her grip on her staff.

It was a clear sign that she was about to use magic.

“You should watch your own words! Fireball!”

“Ah, I should stop this, wa.”

In a flash, Haruna cut into the fight.

—doom!

Haruna took a direct hit to her back from the Fireball. The noisy crowd suddenly fell silent. Taking such an attack to the back would normally result in horrible injury, if not death.

The cat-eared girl’s expression became distorted. It was one thing to pick a fight, quite another to involve unrelated people into said fight.

However, Haruna’s face never showed any pain. Due to her ridiculously high status, the only thing that was damaged were her clothes, which were now full of holes.

“Maa, maa, please don’t fight you two. Can’t the two of you give face to Haruna and stop?”

After Haruna spoke, the people around them became noisy again. Though she had taken a direct hit, she seemed unmoved by it.

Moreover, Haruna was very well known to the Old Saxon Guild members. Anyone who had any contact with her would understand why.

“Now, how should I deal with the two of you? Let you guys have one strike each~? No, no, that’s a terrible idea, na.”

“What the, you-”

As the cat-eared witch uttered those words, her face went cold. However, there was a trace of surprise in her voice.

In the end, she could not deny that her magic had no influence against Haruna.

“Oi, beast girl, don’t tell me you have no idea who Haruna is? As expected of an outsider! Haruna is a monstrously powerful swordswoman. She’ll beat you into a pulp without even pulling out that sword!”

The large man was unrestrained in his boasting about Haruna’s power. Haruna’s strength was the village’s pride after all.

“Calling me monstrous is just too much, ya. Especially since I’m such a cutie. Don’t you think I look just like a Takarazuka [1]?

Haruna beamed a little smile. Right now, her expression was like an embarrassed actress surrounded by her faithful fans.

“Oh, ah… ah, right, not a monster at all, but an angel, angel…”

With the full power of the smile directed at him, the large man suddenly felt shy.

“…I’m going to savour this good mood and go home to enjoy it properly…”

The guild’s magic users have also appeared, having heard about the quarrel.

They all thought that trouble had been averted.

In fact, “As expected of Haruna-chan!”, “Haruna is the hero of this town!” and such statements were thrown about.

However, things have yet to come to an end on Haruna’s side. She grabbed the cat-eared magic user by the shoulders.

“Hey, just wait a bit.”

“What the heck, just what is this…”

The cat-eared magic user’s face stiffened.

“Naa, what’s troubling you? You definitely looked troubled, don’t you? If there’s anything bothering you, feel free to speak to me about it.”

“Eh, ah…”

The cat-eared magic user looked quite bewildered by this sudden barrage of questions.

But an Osaka Auntie would always show an unflappable face in public.

“Wh-why should I talk to a weird person like you? There’s no reason for me to speak with you!”

“Oh, so there really is something troubling you, yan. I can tell just from your face. You have a face like an open book, na. Go on, go ahead and tell me, ya.”

“Nonsense! I’m just a lowly wandering Adventurer. Please, leave me alone!”

“Hey, you know that kind of cool attitude will get you in trouble one day. Be a little true to yourself! No one cares about appearances here. This isn’t Tokyo after all. So, you can unburden yourself from all those ridiculous peer pressure nonsense. This place is nothing like Tokyo or Katsushika [2], where everything is about honour and duty and not sticking out.”

“Wh- cool…?! I- it’s not like that!”

After hearing those bluntly spoken words, the magic user faltered.

“Look, there’s no need for you to live like so, te.”

“I’m sorry, live like…what?”

 

‘Ikiru’ or literally ‘live like so’ is a slang term in Kansai dialect for ‘putting up appearance’ or ‘putting up a front’. Generally, people from Osaka tend to loudly declare their intentions and disliked putting up fake appearances.

Additionally, there’s a term in West Osaka, ‘ichibiru’, that is sometimes used to comment on shocking behaviour. For example, ‘What the heck, that’s ichibi’te, nen!’

 

“I totally understand. There’s a boy near my neighbourhood who always tried to show off his independence. Saying things like “I’m gonna live on my own” or something with a totally dull face, pretending to be cool. What da heck, a laughing face is the best, laughter makes the world a better place. Also, laughter will increase your body’s immunity, ya de.”

Although no one could actually follow what Haruna was saying, she continued to babble on.

“Go ahead, tell me what’s troubling you, ya. I’ll definitely be able to help you somehow. I have lived through many years, so I am very experienced in dealing with life.”

“Wait, aren’t you younger than me…”

The body that Haruna had transmigrated into was a pretty girl, about the age of a high school girl after all.

The cat-eared magic user finally buckled under the cheerful pressure of this unusual character.

“I understand… I shall speak of it. Let’s find a bar and I’ll tell you all about it…”

 

[1] Takarazuka – A Japanese all-female musical troupe based in Takarazuka. Women play all roles, including the handsome male leads. Mainly western style shows with very luxuriant clothes and powerful make-ups.

 

 

[2] Katsushika – Very historical city in Japan. It also has a Detention House and has one of Japan’s seven execution chambers in the Tokyo Detention House.