Finally outside.

[Still Randall's POV]

At the moment, I am resting beneath a tree's peaceful shade.

We arrived at a human town, after wandering through the dark, treacherous underground routes of the mountain. The days back in the cave weren't wasted away, fortunately.

Back there, the stones always surrounded us. Rarely, some minerals would rest out in the open, but those were a minority. Most tended to hide within the rocky walls. 

She gladly dug out a few of them with her own claws. "This should be worth a few hundred dollars."

There's also the bleak, brown mushrooms we had to eat. According to Anne, they were healthy… For the most part.

"It's not starving to death. That's all that matters," she stated, when asked about the side effects of the dirt-looking mushroom.

Way to be useful, Anne. 

'I bet I'll end up with chronic diarrhea or something like that.'

… On a more serious note, in order to take advantage of the environment, she also taught me some things about my body. Mostly, how to "activate" my claws.

Summon wouldn't be a proper word for it, either.

That, fortunately, decreased the number of wounds I obtained due to involuntary self-harm. Which usually meant activating my claws, or rarely my wings.

Regardless, this wouldn't turn me into a master at flying or fighting, but it was the first step.

The first out of thousands.

There's also a few more things I started practicing, like manifesting my Ego and using magic. Mostly the former, though. Magic was a bit complicated for my current self.

But I'm sure I'll tackle it soon.

… Besides, if I have to be honest, I felt weird whenever I manifested my rapier. I couldn't help but think that something within myself was missing.

Knowledge, to be exact. Tons of it.

On another note, we finally left the cave on the third evening. It was refreshing to finally be finally free from that restricted space.

… The sunlight did hurt quite a bit, though.

'I suppose that's what seeing sunlight after days of darkness feels like.'

With a particular brown sack held by one of Anne's slender hands, she kept her gaze on the place ahead.

I still recall the open field surrounding the exit we took. Purple flowers sprouted in almost every spot my eyes traveled to, except for the spots with the flowing rivers. 

A few clear spots stood out from the violet field, and the soft-crowned trees only served to improve the naturally born sight.

They weren't as big as the ones I saw in Edelchia, but their size is nothing to scoff at either. Some of their lavender leaves fell on the water currents, where they'd drift aimlessly along the flow.

'I wonder how much money would be needed to buy a sight like this…'

It wouldn't be cheap. That's for sure.

While I gazed at the gorgeous environment, Anne took the time to snap me out of it, only to tell me something important.

"Now that we've left the cave… We have to leave Jobbernowl, first and foremost. Staying here is too risky, especially with your condition as a wanted criminal."

"Right. So… Where are we going?" I inquired. In spite of having a few of my own ideas, I figured hers would be safer.

Given the amount of planning she has shown so far, it's reasonable to assume she has something. Even if it's not as good as the original plan, it'd still be better than whatever I can come up with.

'Besides… I might have to keep an ace up my sleeve. Just in case things go south with her, or with her allies.'

"We'll return to Teutonia."

"We… what?"

I might need that ace up my sleeve.

"I've already told you, most of my original plans are unusable. We have to go to a small Teutonian city and hope to be able to sneak into their shelters when the Extreme Fall arrives."

That term… I saw it multiple times while reading in Fegendale's library.

The "Extreme Fall" is a part of this planet's six-season cycle. Yes, six.

Unlike Earth, which has Spring, Summer, Autumn and Winter, each with a duration of roughly three months… This place, apparently named Coveneath, had six of them.

They have their equivalents to Spring, Summer and Autumn, which are Rebirth, Blossom and Decay respectively. Blossom lasts three months, and the other two last 2 months.

Then, there's the equivalent to Winter.

The Falls. Periods of time where the planet's temperature would slowly decrease to incredibly low degrees… to the point that, at its worst, the surface became outright inhabitable. 

They're divided into three periods: Light, Heavy and Extreme.

During the Light Fall, it'd just be a tad more cold than usual. It served either as a warning that the Extreme Falls were coming, or that the Fall period as a whole was coming to an end.

Then, the Heavy Fall. By this point, snow would fall to cover the surface. Most people would stop venturing out, instead opting to collect food in their nearby areas, and prepare themselves to retreat into the underground shelters.

And finally… The Extreme Fall. Everything that attempted to go out… would die frozen. Not even cold-resistant monsters were capable of surviving.

… And that's why we have to get to a shelter. Otherwise, we'll meet our end-

"Are you done daydreaming?" asked the female figure with her green overcoat, who tapped my shoulder rather lightly.

"Ah, yes. How did it go?"

"Perfectly. We got ourselves a ride up to the borders, and a bit of an extra bribe convinced the driver to keep this off the registry."

I couldn't help but smile. "Great. When are we departing?"

"First hour of the morning. We load up supplies on the wagon, and depart as soon as we're ready."

I nodded, and glanced in her direction before getting up.

Her simple figure stood upright, and the soft pink mask censored whatever expression she maintained. 

"So, we just wait until the time arrives?"

"Correct."

After she replied that, I got up from the stone and stretched my body. My eyes fell on the town in the nearby distance.

… Yes, we still had work to do.

***

In a far more glamorous room, a youth with brown hair rested on a bed. The soft features of his face remained under the watch of no one. A slender, purple hand held the young man's white, rough hand. 

This purple hand belonged to a particularly gorgeous demoness. Her voluptuous body collapsed by the bed's side, and a pair of dark bags weighed down her closed eyelids. 

The lad's body trembled ever so slightly. The woman got up at the speed of lightning, only to see his eyes slightly opened.

"Randall!" She almost yelled, before lunging ahead and hugging him tightly.

His eyes widened slightly, as her arms locked him down. "I'm so, so sorry… you shouldn't have been involved in this. A look at your current state makes me regret everything."

In spite of not shedding tears, the remorse in her expression was palpable. 

"It's fine…" replied the brown haired man, who didn't move much.

"Ah, right! I'm supposed to tell one of the healers that you're awake…" stated the demoness, whose expression went from relieved to absolutely unhinged.

"... Whoever messed up our wedding will pay." 

She hurriedly left the room shortly after.

The man looked down on his body, mostly covered by the sheets.

'I can't feel my wings, nor my claws… wait. Wasn't that bitch the Demon Queen?'

"... Wait, isn't this the body of the human Prince?"

He stared at his hands, unsure of how to react. Yet, a smile slowly drew over his face.

"Hah. Now that I'm a Prince… Hahaha."

He almost broke out in a fit of laughter, but his own coughs cut him off. "Guh, fuck… Haa, I've been rewarded for my efforts," he mumbled, the insanity in his face slowly making itself clearer.

"No more struggling. Now, my life shall be nothing more than making my own desires come true…!"

Thoughts of female demons with particularly slim bodies plagued his mind. And lewdness took over not just his face, but even his body.

'I'll become the next genius of my generation, and change the world. All the men shall bow down to me, and I'll build my own harem!... Starting with Fegendale.'

"Hehehehe…"

A door slam shut down his ramblings, and multiple people breached the breathtaking room.

'Fuck-'

Three knights, along with a man and a woman both wearing robes were the first to enter. Following right after, a woman with a blue dress underneath her dark jacket came in with a panda-woman.

"Prince, you're truly awake!"

"Yeah, of course. That wouldn't be enough to get rid of me!" he declared with a smug smile, and a voice full of pride.

The healers performed a few tests on him, then gave a verdict. 

"We'll need to perform some additional check-ups later, but you seem to be doing miraculously well, considering you took a stab to the neck…"

"Nah, no need for that," he replied, before getting up and flexing his muscles.

'Heh.. wh- NOOO, MY MUSCLES!'

Hiding the pain in his face while pretending to be alright, the healers and guards both stared at him. Stupefied.

The panda woman looked somewhat surprised, but her human companion didn't show much of a reaction. She was used to seeing him going against the laws of the world as if it wasn't a big deal.

So, he ended up dismissing the five strangers.

"So, Randall? I know you said you're doing good, but… are you really fine?"

'Alright. From what I heard, the woman with big tits is named Jean, and the curvy half monster's name should be Hiyoshin. This is where my harem starts- on second thought, maybe I'll start with someone else. Possibly someone as flat as Anne.'

He smiled, while replying to Jean. 

"By the way, Hiyoshin?"

The room's atmosphere froze when her name was uttered.

'... Did I fuck up?'

… Twenty minutes later, they left the room to give "Randall" some breathing space. While walking in the halls, a certain phrase resurfaced in Jean's mind.

'I lost ownership of my own body...'

Right then, the seed of doubt sprouted into a small plant.