Chapter Fifty-Eight: Jack the Pumpkin

Seeing the blue fireballs hurtling toward them, Eluca immediately grabbed Corona and pulled her aside to dodge. Chris, too, rolled to the side, pressing herself against the wall and taking cover behind a nearby minecart. At the same moment, the blue fireballs flashed past, striking with deadly accuracy the spot where the three had just stood. Explosions thundered in their wake, and those seemingly fist-sized flames erupted with a force rivaling incendiary bombs, brilliant fire roaring upward and racing along the mine’s ceiling, spreading in all directions.

Fortunately, as wasteland dwellers, Eluca and the others were long used to constantly surveying their surroundings, always prepared to respond to sudden danger. Even though they had been plunged into darkness without warning, they’d kept the layout of the area in mind. So when the attack came, the three instinctively found concealment, narrowly escaping being scorched by the flames.

Unlike the sisters, however, Ferrin didn’t react at all. He simply stood unmoving. Only when the blue fire reached him did his scalpel flick in a sudden, swift arc. As he moved, the flame before him seemed to split in two as if cleaved by a blade, then gradually extinguished.

And then, at last, the attackers revealed themselves.

They looked like dolls for Halloween, each sporting an oversized pumpkin head topped with a pointed witch’s hat. Beneath the pumpkin head hung an absurdly small, disproportionate cloak, and on either side, white gloves held lanterns aloft. But these outfits were meaningless—for they had no bodies at all. The cloaks and gloves were empty, not a trace of flesh or hair to be found.

“Ha ha ha!”

Though their surprise attack had failed, the pumpkin dolls showed not the slightest fear. On the contrary, they opened their mouths and let out that same infantile peal of laughter. Then, raising their lanterns, they swept their arms forward. At their gesture, fireballs appeared in the air and once again came hurtling toward the group.

This time, Ferrin acted. The moment the fireballs materialized, he darted forward in a blur, ghostlike, suddenly standing before the pumpkin dolls. He raised his right hand; the scalpel between his fingers traced a strange, gleaming arc through the darkness, slicing through the pumpkin doll and the fireball beside it. The doll let out a shriek, then burst with a pop into motes of light, vanishing into the darkness.

“Ha ha ha! Ha ha ha!”

Seeing their companion destroyed, the remaining pumpkin dolls immediately scattered, their laughter turning sharp and shrill. Clearly, this “laughter” was not an expression of emotion but simply a sound they made.

While Ferrin kept the familiars occupied, the three sisters quickly began their counterattack. Eluca led the charge—her “Ferocious Firepower” was a devastating weapon in such cramped quarters. With a shout, she unleashed a hailstorm of bullets from the far side of the tunnel, sweeping the pumpkin dolls in a torrent of fire.

Yet this overwhelming firepower, enough to wipe out a platoon in seconds, proved useless against these creatures. The pumpkin dolls simply raised their hands, conjuring blazing barriers of fire to block the incoming bullets. With a shriek, they spun around and fled deeper into the mine. So swift were their movements that Eluca was left gaping in astonishment—her laser rifle had been firing for barely ten seconds before the strange beings vanished into the darkness.

“What in the world…?”

Holding her rifle, Eluca was clearly at a loss. Chris and Corona, too, wore puzzled expressions. It was no wonder—after realizing they’d fallen into an ambush, they’d braced themselves for a hard fight, only for the familiars to flee in panic after one was felled by Ferrin. The sisters were speechless, while Ferrin remained composed. He bent to retrieve his hat from the ground, dusted it off, and put it back on.

“All right. Let’s keep moving.”

“Huh?”

The sisters stared, momentarily taken aback. Eluca glanced into the pitch-black tunnel, then at Ferrin, hesitating before finally voicing her doubt.

“Shouldn’t we get ready, Commander? Those familiars just ran off—it’s really strange…”

“It doesn’t matter if we prepare or not. In fact, there’s nothing strange about it. That’s just their nature.”

“Their nature?”

“That’s right.”

Ferrin continued onward as he spoke, and the sisters hurried to follow. Chris silently produced a glow stick from her pocket, snapped it, and held it high overhead. Bright white light spilled out, banishing the surrounding darkness. Corona and Eluca watched Ferrin intently. Knowledge was essential for survival in the wasteland—especially knowledge about such strange beings. Even if it seemed useless now, it might one day save your life. Ferrin clearly understood their curiosity, and smiled as he explained.

“When dealing with familiars, you have to cast aside all your human assumptions. Don’t try to judge these creatures by human standards. Remember—they come from a world entirely different from ours, so don’t expect them to see things as you do. Just now, for example…”

He gestured to a spot not far from them.

“To you, it was a sudden attack. But to them, it may have been nothing more than playing a prank—just like children do.”

“A prank?”

Eluca and the others exchanged uneasy glances, eyeing the charred pit nearby—the crater left by the pumpkin dolls’ previous barrage. The flames and shockwaves had blasted a hole in the ground, burning the minecart and the mining tools to ashes. It was easy to imagine what would have happened if that had struck a person.

(Familiars have no concept of life or death.)

At that moment, Derin’s voice echoed in the sisters’ minds.

(In our world, death is meaningless. Familiars don’t understand what death signifies, or what it means at all.)

“But… didn’t the commander just kill one of them? Isn’t that what scared the rest off?” Corona asked timidly. The black cat perched on Ferrin’s shoulder stretched out a paw to scratch its face, then flicked its tail.

(To a familiar, that isn’t death. As long as there’s enough network energy, they’ll be reborn again. Most familiars have no comprehension of the human idea of death. To us, it’s just an inefficient form of energy conversion. As for why those familiars ran away, it had nothing to do with their companion being destroyed by their master—they just got startled when their own attempt to scare you backfired.)

“Uh…”

Derin’s calm explanation left the sisters speechless. Just moments ago, they’d braced themselves for a battle to the death, only to discover that, in the eyes of their enemies, it was all a game—a farce.

“Then… why not let Miss Derin negotiate with them directly?” Eluca asked.

“That’s useless.” Ferrin waved a hand dismissively. “Many familiars may live in groups, but they’re essentially libertarians—they only care about themselves, and nothing else. Even if I sent Derin to speak with them, it wouldn’t matter. They might just forget the message and wander off to play another game.”

“Then… what should we do?” Eluca was growing frustrated. She’d always known familiars were odd and difficult to deal with, but she hadn’t expected them to be this troublesome. What could they possibly do about such creatures?

“In fact, the solution is simple—and effective.”

Ferrin’s voice rang out again, and Eluca quickly looked up at him.

“What is it, Commander?”

“It’s quite simple.” Ferrin smiled, held up a finger to his lips, and said, “Just keep fighting until they submit.”