Chapter 220 - Vol. 4 - 19

Yumi

Yumi was conflicted. On one hand, Amber, and everything surrounding it, was so different from what Yumi had seen in the confines of her shrine that even a casual glance in a random direction was enough to provide a wondrous, new glimpse into the world. On the other hand, Yumi was too busy dealing with brand-new emotions to fully admire them. 

She was simply too focused on either lusting over the half-demon or wanting to retreat into a private corner to alleviate that lust, to actually do what she'd set out to do, which was learn about things. 

She wondered what the cause could be, as, from seeing how Keiko interacted with Ash, she figured her current status was not common. Was it her isolation? It had been so long since Yumi had even spoken to someone in a serious, extended manner that perhaps going from that to... what she and Ash did at the portal, caused some bonds to form between them, in Yumi's heart. Or, could it that her body had secretly been longing for another person's touch this whole time?

Yumi was, after all, 37 years old. Even though the mask she'd worn, and still had in her possession, had halted her body's aging during her time at the shrine, to the point where she still looked just 22, internally, Yumi had felt every second of that time.  Maybe this was natural. Maybe she was merely pent-up. 

Regardless of what the answer was, Yumi still had her duties. That much, hadn't changed from moving away from the shrine and joining Ash's group. She had to get up and get her day started, though she had little idea how she would do that in this strange manor. 

Still, Yumi, who woke up alone, in her dark room, got up. She yawned, stretching her arms as she took a deep breath. 

"... I suppose I should try to find breakfast," Yumi muttered. Every now and then, she would wonder how the protagonists of the novels she'd read during her time at the shrine would handle her situations. 

That was, of course, how Yumi had entertained herself for upwards of 15 years. By reading. She read the same hundred or so books, over and over again, to the point where she knew what happened in them by heart.

She got up, off of her bed, and walked over to the door. She was dressed in a simple white nightgown, one of the few things she'd brought with her from the shrine after she left it. 

She unlocked the door, opened it, and stepped outside. 

"... Hm?" 

Someone hummed as Yumi walked out, and her eyes went up. 

When she saw what, or who, was standing in front of her room, Yumi paused. In front of her, was, undeniably, the tallest woman Yumi had ever met. She stood two heads above her and had sharp, yellow, slitted eyes, aimed right at her. She had black hair, just like Yumi's own, only hers reached all the way down to the floor. Her skin was brown but slightly lighter than Metsumi's. Her arms, legs, and abs, all visible due to her lack of clothing, were all toned and firm, as though her body had been carved out of stone. A black tail went from her back down to her legs, resting on the ground. She had scales as well, which resembled images Yumi had seen in paintings of dragons, on her elbows, her knees, and her waist. 

When she saw Yumi, she raised a brow, and her eyes never left Yumi's own. 

"..." Yumi blinked twice before clearing her throat. "Hello." 

"Are you the half-demon's ally?" She spoke with a voice that, ironically, reminded her of the girl she'd just mentioned. Firm, and that straight-to-the-point tone that Yumi had become familiar with.

"... Yes?" 

"I was supposed to enter this place," she gestured at the room Yumi had just walked out of. "But you placed a barrier on it." 

"A ba... You mean I locked it?" 

"... I guess," the woman shrugged.

Yumi shook her head, trying to shake off the surprise of the situation. From what she could gather, Ash had met this woman and told her to share Yumi's room, without asking her, and the woman had been unable to because the door was locked. 

"... I'm sorry?" Yumi said, shrugging.

"Hm? For what?" The woman asked. 

"Well, for not letting you-, I mean, I believe I should have been asked first regardless, but, for not letting you in." 

"Oh. Do not be," the woman shook her head. "This strange floor was rather comfortable."

"I-I see..." Yumi half-wondered if this was a dream, and she was actually still in her bed. Then again, why would she dream of tall, strong, half-human, half-dragon women? 

... Actually, she knew exactly why she'd have that kind of dream, but, pushing that aside, she asked:

"Why are you here?"

"Hm?" The woman tilted her head. "I just explained it. I was unable to enter." 

"N-No, I mean, why did Ash bring you along?"

"Oh," she nodded. "To help train her." 

"Train her?" 

"Yes," she nodded again. "To train her." 

"O-Oh... Are you a warrior?" 

In all honesty, she felt stupid asking her that. In what world would a woman who looks like that not be a warrior?

"Yes." 

"What do you fight with?" Yumi asked, feeling slightly more comfortable now that they were speaking in a realm that she understood. After all, she'd spent all of those years at the shrine honing her skills. Maybe this was a realm where she and this stranger could connect. 

"My hands." 

And just like that, Yumi was confused again. Yumi had known that hand-to-hand combat was a thing that existed, but from the moment she'd started her career, it was laughed away as an unviable option. Simply put, it was expected that, under no circumstances, would Yumi ever be separated from her weapons. Therefore, she need not train in that, and instead, she practiced her blade techniques.

"I, truly?" 

"Yes," she replied. 

"I... I see." 

The dragon-like woman stopped suddenly.

She sniffed the air twice and narrowed her eyes at Yumi. And then, she asked:

"Why do you smell so good?" 

"..." Yumi paused. 

Am I the strange one for getting flustered? This never happened in my novels. I do not have the social skills to engage in this kind of conversation if this is what reality is like. She thought as the woman waited for an answer.

"I-I wash myself. Often." 

"... I see," the woman replied, nodding. 

Then, her eyes drifted down to Yumi's chest, and they remained there for an uncomfortable amount of time. Yumi couldn't help but blush at that as a door opened, and thankfully, it was Ash who walked out into the hall. 

"Oh, fuck," Ash said, yawning. "Huh?" She looked at Yumi and the other woman. "You two are up already?" 

"Uhm, Ash," Yumi said as she walked up to the half-demon. "Who is this?" 

"Huh? Uh, this is Sinneah," Ash said. "Sin, you didn't introduce yourself? I told you to tell her who you were." 

"... I tried, but a spell was cast on the door. I believe she called it 'locked'." 

"... Oh," Ash blinked. "Yeah, I should have checked. Sorry," she turned toward Yumi. "I was a bit more tired than I thought I'd be. So, I just went straight to bed. Anyway," she gestured from Yumi to the woman, "this is Sinneah. Sinneah, this is Yumi." 

"... Yumi," Sinneah nodded. "Understood." 

"I suppose that's one mystery out of the way, but, Ash, she said she's going to train you. What is that about?" 

"Oh, yeah. So, there's this person I heard about from her, her name's Tomoe. Apparently, she could do some really sick shit and Sinneah learned how to fight from her, or something. I wanted to see if she could teach me a thing or two." 

"... Tomoe?" 

As soon as Yumi heard that name, it had seemed familiar to her, though she couldn't quite tell where she'd heard it from.

"Yeah," Ash nodded. "So, we're gonna train together. You're welcome to join in, I dunno," Ash shrugged. "If you want to." 

"I-I suppose it... may be interesting." 

"Cool. So, first things first then," she turned toward Sinneah, "I'm gonna take you to the bathroom and you're going to take a bath. After that, we'll get something to eat, and we'll get started as soon as we're done. We can train right outside of this place. How does that sound?" 

"Good. But, what is a bathroom?" 

"I'll show you, come on." 

With that, like a passing storm, Ash dragged the girl away while Yumi stood there, frozen.

... Maybe it is a good thing to have strange mornings like these,  Yumi thought, sighing.  It will keep me on my toes. 

---

A while later, Sinneah, who was nearly shining from having bathed, was standing across from Yumi outside. Ash was sitting by a bench, watching them. Before they really got any training done, Ash wanted to watch them fight and, admittedly, Yumi also wanted to test Sinneah's skills for herself. 

So, as Yumi picked up her naginata, Sinneah cracked her knuckles. 

"Don't worry, I'll heal you," Ash told them from the side, "just don't kill each other and you're good." 

"Right." 

And, with a deep breath, Yumi charged toward her.