Master led me to the mansion where he usually stayed.
Fine.
It wasn't as if being given orders by Master was anything new, and having him say outrageous things wasn't exactly a rare occurrence either.
But I never expected that waiting for me at our destination would be someone I'd been trying to kill just the other day.
When I reflexively tried to cast a spell, Master kicked me.
I came within a hair's breadth of having my HP drop to zero.
At least he didn't actually zero me out — today was already looking up.
He must have been worried about destroying the mansion, because he bound me with thread first and only kicked me after that.
The oni watching this was visibly shaken, but this was just how Master operated normally, which was the real problem.
Master handed the oni a book and what looked like a kendo-style training uniform, then promptly went off somewhere.
On his way out, he also handed me a book, so I figured he wanted me to read it — but what else was I supposed to do with it?
For now, I just glared at the oni.
That outfit was definitely handmade by Master.
I'd received one myself before. Master actually rather enjoyed making clothes, it turned out.
He'd produce garments with such quality you'd think he was a professional.
That said, being Master's taste, most of them were absurdly plain and devoid of ornamentation.
The outfit he'd given the oni — its quality, its simplicity, and above all, the fact that it couldn't be Appraised — all served as proof it was Master's handiwork.
Master himself aside, even clothes made from his thread couldn't be Appraised.
Well, never mind the clothes.
The real question was why Master had gifted them to the oni.
Master gifting clothes to someone? The only recipients had been me,
Why was he suddenly handing them out to some random newcomer?
I couldn't quite figure it out, but it grated on me.
"You don't have to glare so hard. I have no intention of fighting you anymore."
The oni spoke.
I'd actually been glaring about the clothes thing, but whatever — now wasn't the time.
"So you can talk."
During our fight, the oni hadn't said a single word. I'd honestly questioned whether he even possessed enough sanity to speak.
All he'd done was radiate murderous intent like a madman.
So I hadn't expected him to be capable of speech. But the oni standing before me now was a completely different person — calm, composed.
The shift in atmosphere was so drastic I couldn't be sure he was even the same individual.
"Back then, I was under the influence of
Wrath — that had been one of the oni's Skills, hadn't it?
Its influence had caused him to lose his sanity?
And from the sound of it, he hadn't been acting of his own will?
"Wrath is one of my Skills. When it activates, I lose my rationality. Worse, there's no guarantee I'll come back from it. I activated Wrath too many times and paid the price — I completely lost my reason and became nothing more than a creature that killed everything it saw. I retained some awareness partway through, though, which is why I remember you."
My confusion must have shown on my face, because the oni provided a careful explanation.
So he'd gone berserk after losing his reason.
What kind of Skill was that?
"You actually used a Skill like that? Are you out of your mind?"
"I can't really argue with that. Though I'll say there were times I had no choice but to use it."
"The idea that someone like you — a monster — had to rely on that kind of Skill to get by... that's hard to believe."
The oni gave a wry smile at my words.
"Aren't we both monsters, though?"
Rude.
I wanted to say, but I couldn't exactly deny it.
"I wasn't always this strong. In the beginning, I was truly weak. And even after that, all I had were near-death experiences."
"Oh? You're not Human race or Demon race, are you? Could you be an evolution from a Monster?"
Master had told me he himself evolved from a spider Monster into his current humanoid form, so maybe the same applied to the oni.
"Yeah. I started as a Goblin."
"Huh?"
Goblin?
Goblin as in... that kind of Goblin?
I wasn't much for games or manga, but even I knew what a Goblin was.
Green, about the height of a child, weak Monsters.
"You're kidding."
"I'm not. Born a Goblin. When I said I was weak, that's what I meant."
He really had started as a Goblin.
If that was true, then the fact that he'd evolved from such a weak starting point was, in its own way, worthy of respect.
"Because I was so weak, I had to borrow the power of Wrath just to survive. Without it, I'd have been dead long ago. Die or be consumed by Wrath — those were the only two options I had."
Brutal.
I'd lived a pretty harrowing life myself, but I'd rarely been pushed to that kind of ultimate choice.
Well, there was a period when I was nearly dying every day, so maybe that counted.
"Standing around talking isn't ideal — why don't you sit?"
At the oni's suggestion, I took a seat in the offered chair.
"I figured since I've met a fellow reincarnator, I'd like to hear about your experiences."
"...Eh?"
The word slipped out before I could stop it.
"...Eh?"
Silence.
"You're Nagishi Akiko, right?"
How did he know — wait, the only person who could have told him was Master.
Master had explained everything to the oni.
"Right. So you really were a reincarnator."
Having it confirmed, it all made sense.
That was why Master had gone out of his way to have us meet, and why he'd given the oni clothes.
"...Eh?"
"...Eh?"
Silence.
Why was there a questioning response at that point?
The oni's expression shifted into something awkward — half embarrassed, half pained.
"Ah, yeah. You're right. It's been quite a lot of years by now. I wouldn't expect you to remember a classmate's face."
What was he talking about — hold on.
Now that he mentioned it, there was something vaguely familiar about him.
I'd reincarnated into a completely different body, so I'd never even considered it, but Master still looked like his original self.
So... the oni too?
Looking more carefully, he had horns growing from his head and his eyes were red, but his facial features were distinctly Japanese.
"I'm Sasajima Kyoya. Though over here, I go by the name Raas. Nice to meet you properly."
Sorry.
Hearing the name didn't really jog my memory.