Through Thick and Thin | Benimaru

Chapter 8: Gabiru is Here!

Katsumi woke up with a start, sweat rolling down the side of her face as she tried to even out her breathing. The sky outside was still dark with only the various lights of the night owls of the village. Myrd, one of the dwarves in the village, had led her to a hut after Rimuru had named them. Apparently. all the ogres had their own huts nearby. Myrd was a mystery to Katsumi, and she couldn't see to communicate with him all that well. Somehow, he got his message across, but all he did was hum and nod or shake his head.

Flipping the sheets off of her, Katsumi dressed herself into her blue kimono that the Princess had so nicely cleaned up for her and clipped the blue flower Benimaru had given her all those years ago. There was no way that she could sleep now. Not after that nightmare she had.

Since the night of the ogre village attack, she hadn't had a night free from the nightmares. The Orc General would stand over their dead bodies and insist that she was the one that killed her parents. She had these nightmares every night to the point that she started to believe the General's words. This last one was even worse, as she dreamt of the night her parents left her. However, instead of saying how much they loved Katsumi, they blamed her for their death.

Katsumi splashed some water onto her face, hoping the cold water would make her forget the nightmares. When it didn't help all that much, she picked up her claymore and strapped it to her back, heading out of her home and down to the field. The village was silent minus the occasional bird, and the moon was still high in the sky. If she had to guess, she probably only slept for three hours or so.

When she reached the field, Katsumi unsheathed her sword and began training with it. Despite the sword now being longer than she was tall, she found that it wasn't difficult to wield it at all. Perhaps the additional magicules had made it easier for her, but she was just glad that she didn't have to give up the sword that her parents had left her.

The blue-haired girl practiced for hours until the sun began to rise and the village came to life. Myrd was in the process of upgrading houses from the fabric huts to the wooden cabins, so the workers were up bright and early and had begun their tasks. The slight bustle of the village slowly grew louder as the sun continued to rise. When the sun had fully risen well above the horizon, Katsumi finally stopped training, sheathing her sword on the scabbard on her back and making her way into the village.

"Good morning, Katsumi," Rigur said as he and the goblin riders headed out to hunt for the morning. "Did you just wake up?"

"Good morning, Rigur," she greeted with a smile. "I just woke up. Are you headed out?"

"Yes, we're hoping to find a knight spider to have for dinner tonight. We've been craving it recently after tasting it a few days ago with you." Katsumi giggled and nodded.

"I hope you find it then." She was about to turn away, but then sheepishly looked at Rigur. "Do you perhaps know where the Young Master is?"

"Young Master? You mean Benimaru?" Katsumi nodded. "I think he's at the main hall. Just head down the middle and it should be right down the path."

Katsumi thanked the goblin and wished them luck as they left to search for a Knight Spider before she headed off in the direction Rigur had told her. As she walked, the other villagers would sometimes turn and stare since her movements were incredibly graceful. Despite carrying a large sword, the blue-haired girl walked almost as if she was gliding. In addition, she took the time to greet the villagers with a smile, which just made them love her even more.

Sure enough, the main hall was hard to miss as it was centered right at the end of the path. The land beside it look empty, which Katsumi supposed were in case they decided to expand this building. The dwarves truly were talented and it was obvious by the structure of the houses, which were a mix of wood and a few stone sections here and there. The houses in the ogre village had been entirely made of wood and were mostly only single story.