A peerless killer possessing a cat girl assassin from another world

"Tajima, once you take this step, there's no turning back."

"I know, but we have no choice."

Tajima talked to his deputy while standing on the sand dune.

What lay before them was the central area of ​​the Sea of ​​Death.

The low terrain and blinding sandstorms are the characteristics of this place.

"Tell everyone to keep close to each other...Otherwise, if you lose your way, you will be trapped here and die."

......

Several months had passed since the group set out...

We have only just entered the heart of the desert.

While there is plenty of food, there is not enough water...

We must break through this no-man's land in one go.

"I never thought... this is actually an ancient ruin..."

"Yeah, who would have thought? Maybe this was once a prosperous city..."

Anyone with a little knowledge of geography knows that the Mushasar Desert is the center of the entire continent. If there is a city here, it will definitely become a transportation hub of the continent with easy access.

But this is a desert. Although no one knows when it was formed, for the desert people, this sea of ​​sand has been there for thousands of years and has never changed, just like the rising and setting of the sun and the moon, and the stars in the night sky, which remain unchanged from time immemorial.

"Wait...what is that?"

"people?"

Everyone could clearly see several figures standing in the wind and sand in the distance.

"It's a mirage..."

"No, it's not a mirage. Mirages don't move..."

"Stay away from there."

Tajima intended to stay away from those figures, but those figures discovered the group of people and approached them.

There were more and more figures, until they surrounded everyone.

"Speed ​​up! There's a gap over there!"

Sensing something was wrong, Tajima immediately ordered everyone to speed up and pass through. There was something very wrong with those figures, and his intuition told him that this was the case.

"No, Tajima, there are too many things and there are injured people..."

"...abandoned the baggage, leaving only the dry food and all the water... "

"But, Tajima, those prey are..."

"Throw it away! Otherwise no one will survive!"

Tajma roared.

There was no other way, so the group had to throw away the prey they had exchanged for their lives and the inheritance they brought from the tribe like garbage, and rushed out of the area before they were surrounded by human figures.

Before leaving, Tajima at the back of the palace glanced back and happened to see the true appearance of one of the figures -

A person made entirely of sand, no... to be more precise, a "person" filled with sand... a cracked face with a few pieces of incomplete skin stuck on it, and a few long-rotten ribs faintly visible from the sand...

What on earth is this...

Even a warrior like Tajima, who was used to seeing dead things, didn't dare to look at it any more...

This is not something that should exist in the world... It is some kind of blasphemy...

......

"It's over... everything is gone... Tajima, what should we do..."

There was only enough dry food and water for two days... and they were still in the middle of the desert...

This place is not as rich in resources as expected... There are not even any monsters...

"...Believe me...we can definitely get out of this..."

Tajma looked at the pack animals and sand camels that were no longer carrying the baggage.

......

Dry food actually consumes more slowly than expected...

Because one third of the men in the team had died in the previous hunt.

The rest of the people lived frugally and managed to hold out for four days.

On the fifth day, Tajma ordered the killing of slow beasts of burden for food.

Starting from the seventh day, the extremely precious sand camels were killed one by one to replenish water...

On the twelfth day, the wounded began to die in pain because they had lost the support underneath them.

......

Thirteenth day.

"Child, eat..."

Tajima personally handed the remaining camel meat to Kenny.

"Tajima, what about you?"

"We have our own way... The important thing is that you have enough to eat... Just hold on for a while, and we will get out..."

But the fact is that without pack animals and camels, it is difficult for them to walk out of the desert on foot...

and......

With their current combat power, they can no longer hunt monsters like before...

That's right, even though we have reached an area with prey, we are no longer able to hunt...

How much food can Tajima, the only one who can hunt, bring back?

There were fewer and fewer people around us. They all fell down halfway, fell into the sand as they walked, and then rolled down the sand dunes.

Whenever this happened, Tajma would order the bodies to be buried on the spot.

Although he had never seen it with his own eyes, Kenny could imagine the scene.

......

Day 15.

"Children...eat..."

On this day, Tajima handed the roasted meat to Kenny.

"Tajma, the meat is not already..."

"Don't ask, just eat..."

Tajima didn't want to answer Kenny's question, so she turned and left.

......

On the sixteenth and seventeenth days...

Until the twentieth day, Tajima would bring Kenny roasted meat every day and leave without saying a word.

Kenny had already guessed some of it...

But he said nothing. He knew that some things were known to everyone, so it was better not to say them out loud. At least this way he could deceive himself and not feel so bad...

......

Day 30...

Kenny felt dizzy and his mind was often sluggish...

He didn't know how to describe the feeling.

Tajma fell down.

Even a professional like him, the strongest warrior in the tribe... couldn't withstand it...

Kenny tied together the clothes of the dead tribesmen, put the dying Tajima in them, and dragged him forward on the sand dunes...

The reason for doing this is that they are the only two of the group who have survived to this day...

"Child...don't waste your energy...just walk on your own..."

"..."

Kenny didn't say anything... because he didn't have the energy to speak anymore.

"Actually... you already know it..."

"It's a pity that you could hold on for so long... without saying anything..."

"This is the result of our secret discussion..."

"No matter what... I want you to live a little longer..."

"...That's enough..."

"It seems...I still didn't make the right bet..."

"Do you still remember what I said?"

"That's enough! Stop talking..."

Kenny dropped the clothes in his hands, and the pressure that had been accumulating for a long time poured out all at once.

But Tajima didn't care. She continued talking to herself, stretched out her hand, and reached out to the starry sky with her last bit of strength.

"...not 'for'...but...carrying..."

Halfway through her words, Tajima's voice fell silent, and her dry hands dropped...

Kenny knelt on the sand, howling hoarsely...but no tears came out of his eyes.

......

Day 31.

Hosat, a small border village in the Kingdom of Faga.

In the light of dawn, a skinny boy walked out of the village.

His clothes were torn and stained with dried blood, and his face was covered in stains left by a mixture of sand and blood.

For the villagers of Hosat, the sun just rose today as usual.

And for a certain child.

It was a "dawn without people"...

......