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“…Ah, I see, you’re an Outlander.”
“Outlander?”

The pink-haired girl whom I met after landing on the surface after a thousand years tilted her head.

She wore clothes resembling sailors’ attire, with an unknown material, and a knitted overcoat that seemed like insulation against the cold.

But it was an inadequate outfit to traverse this snow-covered area, as if she had been suddenly transported here without knowing anything about the place.

“Sometimes people from different worlds end up wandering here. You probably found yourself in an unfamiliar place, right?”
“Wow… I see, so that’s what happened! So, this is another world!”
“I shouldn’t be saying this, but you really should be a bit skeptical.”
“Huh? But there’s no need to lie, right?”

Swallowing such an absurd story about another world without any doubt, it was a disconcerting lack of skepticism, almost making me anxious.

But I had no obligation to worry about her, since this was likely just a temporary encounter.

“Anyway, it seems we both have complicated circumstances. How about we focus on that.”
“Yes, meeting here must be fate! Let’s go together!”

…I tried to casually leave, but she interpreted it completely differently.

“I’m Momose Kaguya! Nice to meet you!”
“Wait, hold on a second. There are things I want to say, but first, wait. Why are you talking as if you accompanying me is already a done deal?”
“Because I’ll die quickly if I’m alone!”

That’s true too. As an Outlander, she had no means to stay warm in this blizzard.

If she stepped even a foot outside this space which I was warming up, she wouldn’t last long.

“But I have no reason to take you with me, and it would waste a lot of magic power. Can you provide proper compensation?”
“C-compensation? Um…”

There was none. After all, she had been thrown into another world with just the clothes on her.

Her only luggage was the handbag she held dear, and whatever was inside was most likely nothing significant. The simplest form of compensation would be money, but she certainly didn’t have the currency of another world.

It was a pretty mean thing to do even if I say so myself. Making it seem like there were grounds for negotiation, while having no such intention from the start.

“Um… if this will suffice.”
“What’s this? It’s surprisingly lightweight for metal.”

However, as she rummaged through her bag, she pulled out something cylindrical with a mysterious metallic sheen. Despite its metallic appearance, it felt soft to the touch. It seemed there was something inside the outer packaging.

“Hehe, it’s a calorie bar for a snack. Maple syrup flavor.”
“Food… it’s not poisonous, is it?”
“High school girls don’t carry around poison, you know!?”

I didn’t quite understand what a “high school girl” was, but there certainly weren’t many fanatics who liked carrying poison on them at all times.

I tried tearing open the outer packaging with my hand, revealing a wheat-colored bar similar to a ration. It didn’t look very appetizing, but the faint sweet smell was certainly that of syrup.

…At least it didn’t seem poisonous. Come to think of it, it’s been a while since I’ve had a proper meal. There would be no merit in harming me, who was keeping her warm, so out of curiosity… I took a bite of this so-called “calorie bar”.

――――――――…………
――――……
――…

“Listen, I haven’t fully accepted your company. This is a give and take. It’s a contractual relationship where I’ll safely escort you to a secure location in exchange for providing food.”
“I don’t understand all those difficult words, but I’m glad you liked the calorie bar!”
“It’s just a matter of common interests, don’t get it twisted!”

Laika was a good person. In exchange for sharing the calorie bar, she promised to take me to where people lived. I was worried for a moment, but meeting such a kind person was lucky. Thank you, calorie bar.

“Laika, we’ve been walking for a while. Do you know the way?”
“I got a rough idea of the surface when I fell. I confirmed there was something like a village in this direction.”
“Wow, that’s amazing. …But why did you fall from the sky?”
“Technically, it’s from ‘the prison in the sky.’ I was pushed down, even though I had just finished a 1000-year sentence.”

“A-A 1000-year sentence… Is that normal in this world?”
“No way, it’s abnormal. It would’ve been quicker to just give me the death penalty.”
“Woow, that’s unbelievable.”
“…You don’t believe me, do you?”
“No, no! It’s just… you seem quite young for that.”

1000 years. Even I understood that it was an incredible number. Even turning into a granny ten times over would not amount to it. It was a cruelly long time for a single person to endure. But the Laika in front of me was like a grade school girl. No matter how hard I tried, I couldn’t see her as a granny.

“Oh, my original body has long rotten and cast away. This current body is just the last vessel I transferred into after several body swaps over a thousand years.”
“???”
“Oh… Transferring just the soul from a body that reached its lifespan into another young body, repeating that for a thousand years until finally transferring the soul into this girl’s body.”
“Wow… That’s… that’s… huuh!?”
“It took you quite a while to grasp it.”

It took some spinning of my deficient brain to finally understand. But still, isn’t that an outrageous method?

In a world with magic, it might indeed be possible to transfer a soul from one body to another. But it feels like it crosses a line as a human being, doesn’t it?

“Um, is that… is that okay?”
“It undoubtedly crosses several ethics and taboos. Well, in most cases, the mind just deteriorates and you become a cripple.”
“I knew it… But a thousand years… What kind of crime did you… huh?”

I was lost in thought for a moment and looked away from her. That’s when it happened.

She disappeared. Laika vanished from right in front of my eyes. In an instant.

No, that’s not it. Upon closer inspection, she was just lying face down on the ground. Her pure white hair blended in with the snow, momentarily making her disappear from view.

“What’s wrong, Laika? You’ll catch a cold!”
“……I can’t move.”
“Huh? A-are you okay!?”
“My legs are heavy, breathing is difficult, my body feels like it’s made of lead… Could it be a delayed curse…!?”
“Isn’t that just exhaustion?”
“Just… exhaustion…?”

Laika was much shorter than me. Considering that she’s been exerting herself to trudge through this thick snow, and on top of that, it’s been a thousand years since she was last out… she must be seriously out of shape!

“I can’t believe it… this body is ridiculous… beyond pathetic…”
“Even if you rest, it’s impossible in a place like this. I’ll carry you! Besides, this chain is heavy and in the way, so I’ll remove it!”
“Stop! Don’t touch me, don’t pick me up, don’t carry me! And this chain has a curse engraved on it, so if you touch it recklessly—”
“Oh, sorry, it just snapped when I pulled it. Maybe it’s turned brittle with rust?”
“What the heck???”