Quantum Leap - Vol. 5 The Adventures Of Yokoso Harune

C003 I Need Coins To Survive, Dummy...!

Laying down in the cold and hard snow, I arranged my thoughts just like how a system would be like:

Name: Yokoso Harune

Alias: unknown

DOB: 20th June 1849

Strength: Elemental Crown level

Spiritual Skills: Kamehameha, Fire Release, Rise of the Sun, Psi Energy Healing Spheres, Third Eye.

Combat Skills: Pugilist, Short Staff, Kusarigama, Kodachi

Life Skills: Basic Blacksmithing, Basic Pill Making, Basic Herbal Medicine

Soft Skills: Cooking. Foraging. The rest was irrelevant in this era, such as bike riding et cetera.

“Hmm, that’s all I could think of right now. Such a pathetic system I had created in my mind right now. It is more like a collection of my set of skills rather than a system, but hell yeah, it’s better than nothing right?”

I thought to myself as I lay sprawled in the snow and went back to the group of Samurai. I dusted myself off properly, as I do not wish to think I had been playing in the snow instead of meditating just now.

I walked back, and the fire had turned to embers. “Excuse me, Samurai-sama, would you like me to add some more firewood?” I asked one samurai who was kneeling with one leg on the ground.

“No need. We heard some noises just now, and we are on high alert now. It may be some scurrying animals, but we are not too sure yet.”

I nodded and understood their meaning well. I used my Third Eye as I scanned the surroundings and accurate enough, there was no threat and it seemed to be 3 hyenas lurking around.

“Don’t worry, there are no enemies around but 3 hyenas. I think I should add more firewood now and it’ll scare the nocturnal predators away.”

I casually added a few small sticks to it, and when it caught fire, I added some thicker woods. The fireplace became a small bonfire, and it lights up the surroundings and radiating its warmth around it.

Suddenly an arm grabbed me and a low hissing voice screeched at my ear, “Listen up kid, are you sure it’s just 3 hyenas just now? I don’t hear any yelping and all I could hear was some quick movement around like as if there were some assassins around us! Are you trying to give our positions away, kid?!”

“Look, I may be 11 but I’m not as dumb as you think I am, alright?! Let my arm go or else...”

“Or else what, kid? What you going to do? Acting tough after Hiko had saved you?”

I looked right into his eyes and said, “I’m not acting tough, but I’m going to do this!” I hissed back at the unfriendly Samurai and suddenly I gathered a small form of energy on my right hand and I gripped his forearm that was covered with leather armour. A wave of intense heat quickly travelled through his armour and he instinctively let my other arm go before he let out a loud yelp. He looked at the part where I had gripped him and 5 finger marks appear on his armoured forearm.

“Hey... Hey... What’s the big fuss all about? Someone went forward and checked that it was just 3 hyenas, not some assassins. And what’s wrong with you yelping about like a small sissy girl, huh?”

Hiko was motioning to the other Samurai who seems edgy 24/7 and even the slightest sound made by a cricket, he would think a Demonic Beast or something made it. The other Samurai went up to Hiko and showed his forearm.

“Look...! My armoured forearm. See what the kid does to me! I was holding on his other arm and I was just talking to him not to get cocky or something and he did this to me! He’s a devil incarnation, I say... Get rid of this kid, Hiko... He seems cursed right from the beginning! “

“Harune-kun, come here. Did you do this to your senior? Look, his forearm armour has 5 little fingers on it and it still warm from the burn effect. Did you do this?”

I came over and hung my head because I did the inevitable which was using my powers to hurt others.

“Yes, Hiko-sama, I am the one that did this to him. I am sorry and they should punish me. I shouldn’t use my powers to hurt others. It’s not that Senior here is trying to hurt me, but I sense a sign of hostility on his voice that I cannot take it and so I retaliated. His way of gripping my other arm also showed that he is belittling me even though I am just an 11-year-old kid. I am sorry Hiko-sama, and I am sorry I did that on Senior.”

“Haa... Haa... You keep surprising me, kid. I accept your sincerest apologies and Senior, do you accept his apology or you intend to flog his ass when he gets to our village?”

The senior looked at me and said he accepted. However, his words were incomparable to his eyes that were watching me all the time, as if I’m going to burn his entire body next.

“Sigh... With many skills bestowed upon me, the more responsibilities I had to bear.” I sighed inwardly as I hung my head, bowed to both Hiko-sama and the Senior, and went to sit on the hard ground with a tree trunk supporting my back.

The entire night passed by with no incident except for some passing soul catcher demon that collects wandering souls to feed the host. It was eerie for someone with a Third Eye to see something like a snake floating in the sky and collecting people’s restless souls. This was the first time I saw such happenings, and it didn’t happen before in Thailand or modern Japan.

It’s time to break camp and head for the next destination. I would not waste some wood that me had prepared for the fire as a Samurai had picked some and carried it along on his pony. We had a quick breakfast, and I extinguished the fire properly and headed to Hiko-sama and said I’d like to walk with those Samurai on foot ahead.

“If I am tired, I would ride on the pony with you, Hiko-sama. At this moment, I feel alright and I want to exercise my body a bit.”

He waved me off, and I walked together with the Samurai were on foot. There were just the 2 of them and the one I had used my Kamehameha strength on, was also walking along.

I tried to strike a conversation with those two and the friendlier one introduced himself as Hide-sama, while the latter was Kami-sama. So, Hide-sama was the one who gave a roasted fish and onigiri to me the evening before. Kami-sama, with his face mask on, just looked on forward but kept his ears peeled as he listened to what I had been telling Hide-sama. As angry as he was with me last night, he was curious about my life back in the past village.

We walked along the beaten path, not meeting another soul or beasts along the way. The sun was already high in the sky before we took a brief break for lunch. It was the humble onigiri and a piece of roasted fish that they had caught the night before.

As we were walking the stream, we had a constant supply of freshwater. With the spare wood on the back on one of the pony, we made a fire quickly and boiled some water that was collected from the stream.

We had hot green tea afterwards. Several patches of snow had melted on some parts of the land, they saw drips of clear water cascading off from the tall grasses near the stream. It seems the end of winter is coming soon and welcoming the new season in a month or two.

After we had our fill, we broke camp again and this time I rode along with Hiko-sama as I was feeling tired walking on my two rather short legs for quite a distance. We had covered almost 20 or more kilometres since we had left during the break of dawn.

“So you had ridden with me then? You made friends already with Kami-sama and Hide-sama?”

Hiko-sama laughed at me while I just plainly nodded. I was wondering how the 2 samurai that I had talked to was on foot. Maybe they prefer to be on foot or had lost their mounts somewhere. However, it is, it is good to know that these samurai were friendly enough and not like those mysterious Shinobi or Ninjas who were forever masked with an aura of murderous intent.

Yup, Ninjas that don’t have a name or identity, moving in the shadows and ready to strike at a moment’s notice. Deadly at long or short-range, but with little or no armour at all. Stealth and surprise attack was their main forte. However, a Samurai was all-rounder, which I soon felt that learning from these martial artists would prove beneficial in the long run.

I wished to take up a kind of residency or shelter in the village that was pointed earlier by Hiko-sama, and with the skill sets that I had attained in the past Leaps, and the skills that had been given in this body of mine I hope I would be of service in the next village.

“Hiko-sama, could you tell me more about your village? Is there an orphanage for children like me?” I asked him as I looked back and glanced at his masked face.

“Ah, my village is small. The total population was around 10,000 people and comprises a ratio of 35:35:25:5 of men, women, children and babies. You understand about ratio, right?”

“Yes Hiko-sama, I learnt about ratio and understand them well. So what is the principal occupation and trade over in your village?”

Hiko-sama looked at me and wondered if he was conversing with an 11-year-old kid or a 21-year-old young man. Through his mask, he was wondering deep within the back of his mind about me.

“The occupations over there were as follows farming, foraging, blacksmithing, logging, woodcutter, livestock herding, rock mining, coal mining, metal ore, copper and tin mining, hunting, fishery, weaving, pottery, stonemason, a herbal shop, tannery and a clothes shop. I think there’s more, but you can find out about it in the business district. We have several districts divided in the village, as mentioned the trade district, business district, housing district and governmental District.”

“Wow, a small populated village with an enormous array of trades available. I could get a job there easily or I could open up a trade when the time comes. Even though it is a mouthful to chew right now with the information given, at least I have a rough idea of this village. With the current population, it should be called a town instead.” I thought to myself as I listen to Hiko-sama narrates about his village.

“There are a few temples there for worshipping, three junior schools and a high school. Everyone had compulsory education there to learn how to read and write and do simple calculations. A governmental office stands in the middle of the village.”

“Could I attend school there and is there an entrance fee or exams to determine one’s knowledge?”

“Education is free there. And there is an examination to test one’s capability and to suit which class they should be in upon admission. Are you interested to go to school? You are self-taught at home, right?”

“Yes, I am self-taught at home. And yes, I am interested to go to school and mix with the rest of my peers. But Hiko-sama, I am a nobody and I don’t even have a copper coin with me. This Mr Director is stingy and did not even supply me with some coins to start my life anew.”

“Don’t worry about money, I am sure you could survive with no at this moment. Why do you need coins for?”

“I am used to having money with me, Hiko-sama. With money, it gives one a sense of security and without money, it just despairs me a lot.”

“Hmm, you talk as if I am talking to an adult instead of an 11-year-old kid. I have taken you into my household before this. I am a single man and even if I have a girlfriend, my duty to the Emperor take the priority. You understand that, right?”

“I am 11 years old kid, but I have vast experiences as any of you. I can’t reveal much right now because no one will believe me. But as soon as time passes by, I am sure one day you’d understand. Thank you for having the kind thoughts of taking me in your household. Don’t worry, I would make the best of it, I promise.”

I replied as I beamed at his masked face. At least now I have a shelter and the next thing would be survival and making use of my time to cultivate as much as I could in this era and this especially young and active body.