The Era of Heroes

Ch.3

Mr. Shiratori felt a sharp pain in his head, whether it was the celebratory sake last night or the sounds of that buffalo he couldn't tell, but it didn't shake off the accidental hangover. His wife was already up as he entered the main room and looked out to the rice paddies. The wife handed him a morning bowl of food and water she boiled to help shake off his sluggishness when the man noticed one thing missing from outside, "Is Utano still sleeping?" he asked.

"Once everyone left I thought I heard her go to her room, is she with the beast outside?" she asks as her husband grabbed a quick bite before checking outside but found no signs of her, the look on her husbands face quickly worried her to look in her daughter's room but found no one. The two scoured the in's and out's of thier home and field but saw no sign of her, "S-she had to have gone out again, that girl's always running out when she's-"

"And she's smart enough to know when to come back," the father responded as he began to quickly pace out of the house towards the village center.

"Where are you going?"

"To ask the others to help, check the fields again and wait here in case she comes back," he said as he walked a bit faster to thier friends homes as Utano's mother ran deeper into the paddies as she tried telling herself this is all just an over-exaggeration, in trying to clear her head that field beast began roaring. She wanted to pay it no mind and focus on spotting her daughter, but the constant noise was pushing her to her wit ends, she goes back inside to find that whip to warn that beast when the earth below them began to shake violently.

Ch.3: An Unexpected Return

Mito sleep soundly in the surprisingly soft bed, there was a cool breeze above, but a warmth next to her kept that from being a bother, what was becoming bothersome however was a dreadful snore like sound. It couldn't be her she wondered which slowly pushed her to wake up as she opens her eyes to the morning sky, rubbing her eyes and noticing the book was still in her hands and she was ontop the grass. A slight feeling of worry came when she saw she fell asleep in her reading and stayed out all night, imagining what her parents may say but then sadly realized they probably wouldn't have even noticed, she closed her eyes again when she felt that warm feeling clinging onto her which was odd since the weather should be freezing and the only warm thing would be...she then immediately open her eyes again and saw Utano was not only the source of that snoring but was hugging her like a pillow.

Mito's face suddenly felt hot as she jumps up in surprise and turns her back in processing the fact they been sleeping like this all night when Utano sits up and stretch her arms. "Man, haven't slept like that in forever!" Utano exclaimed as Mito tried to act as that hasn't happened and clears her throat.

"Y-yeah, unfortunately, we've overslept in the woods and your parents must be very worried! Let's get going now shall we?" Mito insisted Utano smiled as her friend's new energy till something popped in her head.

"Wait, we overslept!? Crud! What are your parents gonna say with you missing, I need to get you back!"

"I-it's fine Utanon, they probably don't know I'm even gone, just focus on getting-"

"Not till your safely back home," Utano told Mito as she got thier stuff and took her to the path Mito came from, "I rather get scolded by my parents than leave you out here alone, it's what friends are for right?" Mito didn't have anything to say, mostly due to Utano's passion making it hard for anyone to change her mind. Yet her spirit was always something Mito clung onto, she didn't have much her own courage, and Utano continues to help fill that part of her missing.

As they were about to enter the dense treeline, the earth below them suddenly shock with such ferocity, Mito grabbed onto Utano as the two tried to keep thier balance and wait it out, but with every passing second, it only felt like these shocks were getting stronger. After over, minute things got worse as they hear something break, and then another and another till they found a tree began to fall. They notice it's changing shadow and looked to see it collapsing, Utano pushed Mito out of the way before barely dodging herself, without even a second passing Mito saw another falling fall, aiming at Utano.