Mystic Life

Mystic Life

“You know, you’re actually a fun guy to hang out with.”

“Gahahaha, you don’t have to comfort me~Hic”

“I thought you would be some kind of annoying drunk when you approached. I didn’t think I’d be able to talk about games with you.”

“Hey! Are you trying to say I look like some sleazy scumbag, drunk~Hic”

“Yup”

The individuals sat in the middle of the night. Surrounded by nothing but trees and grass, the two people sat on the ground. One of them had an entirely red face. His eyes stared at the person opposite of him, yet, they seemed to be looking at nothing. As if they were just looking into blank air.

The two individuals were a man and a woman respectively. The man, the person with the red face, also grasped a bottle in his hand. The woman on the other side had a clear face, and she wasn’t holding anything of note.

The woman’s hair was long and the color green. Her emerald eyes seemed to match the hue of her hair. Her body, developed, but still young, if one had to guess, they would say she was a young adult.

“Still, you’re job seems to be really hard. Looking as you need to do all this to be able to enjoy your free time.”

“You’re Right! Hic! They make me work as if I’m a slave. Don’t they think-Hic-about how I feel? Hic! I’ve been loyal to them for years. They could treat me a bit better~”

The man complained about his company and how they treated him. Seeing as how he was drunk, his mouth was a little more louse than it normally would be. In society, if someone heard you saying this, it could negatively impact your future job chances.

But the woman just silently listened, a small smile plastered on her face. She seemed to be genuinely interested, so the man had an easier time talking.

“If you could wish for anything, what would it be?” she asked the man.

“What kind of question is that. Hic!”

“Entertain my curiosity. If you could wish for anything in the entire world. What would it be?”

“Hmmm...”

Putting his hand on his chin, the drunk man went quiet for a significant amount of time, before he opened his mouth and answered.

“If I had to choose something, I would want a more interesting life. Hic. This world is sooo boring. I just go to work and then home. If I could wish for anything, it would be a more interesting daily life.” the man answered. “Of course, a girlfriend that loves me wouldn’t be bad either.”

“Hmmm... Is that all? No powers? No other worlds?”

The girl seemed to be surprised and a bit disappointed at the same time. As if she was expecting him to pick something more ‘special’.

“Why would I want that? It seems like it’d be a hassle.”

The girl’s mouth opened a bit, and her eyes raised further up as well. Her eyes became bigger before she closed her mouth and a small smile appeared.

“Hahaha. You’re the first person to wish for something like that. As gratitude for humoring me, I’ll make your wish come true.”

“Hic! Let’s stop this serious talk and get back to drinking. This bottle won’t empty itself~”

The two continued drinking. The woman drank as well, maybe even more than the man himself. Yet, she didn’t seem drunk. Her face and movements seemed to be as clear as ever.

Blank

Before he knew it, the man blacked out. He could neither see anything nor feel anything. The next time he opened his eyes, he found himself in his bed.

“Agh! I feel like shit. I shouldn’t have gone drinking with those guys yesterday. I can’t remember anything. When did I even get home?”

The man, Erich, sat up. Something suddenly rushed to his mouth, forcing him to hold it shut and swallow the weird liquid.

“...I have to puke.”

His memories of yesterday were blank. He could only remember small fragments of the night, but nothing concrete. Last night was nothing but a couple of pictures in his mind. Blurry ones at that.

“I’m never going drinking with those guys again. They take it too fa-”

Another rush of liquid ran up his throat, forcing him to close his mouth once again. After that, he decided to drop the subject and leave his bed.

After leaving his room and entering the living room, he looked at the clock plastered on the wall. His living room and the kitchen were connected. Making one big area with the two.

“About two hours before work...I wish I could stay home with this hangover.”

Erich, regardless of his wishes, started preparing himself for work. He had breakfast, washed his teeth, got dressed, and before he knew it one hour had passed.

“The train arrives at 7:15. If I leave now, I should have time to spare.” Erich said.

His workplace wasn’t far away. Taking the train, he only needed to take a couple of stations before he arrived at his destination.

As he put on his shoes and jacket, his stomach still grumbled from the hangover he had. His head was in pain as well.

“I will so refuse them next time. There’s just no point in going on a workday. I wonder if I’ll survive the day without puking.” Erich said.

He swung open the door leading outside. A fresh breeze entered his nostrils, as the cool air awakened a small shiver in him. He opened his eyes to greet the outside view.

Only to see a strange creature stand in front of him. With wings resembling those of birds, and claws as its feet and hands, the girly-faced creature stood in front and stared at Erich.

Its eyes, hawk-like in resemblance, quickly blinked.

Erich closed the door and took a step back. He held his head in his hands out of disbelief. His eyes were no longer to be trusted, he thought to himself.

“Just how much did I drink yesterday? To still be seeing things after I slept, maybe I should just stay home for today.” Erich said. But thinking of how he would get chewed out by his boss, his fear won out.

Believing what he saw was just his imagination, Erich confidently opened the door. Once again, the strange, winged being stood in front of him. Too stunned to close the door, Erich stared at it. His mouth open.

The Being looked back at him as well, her hawk-like eyes staring into his soul. This can’t be real. Did a monster come to kill me? Erich thought.

His mind was jumping to conclusions, trying to figure out what was going on. Interrupting his thought process, a bright light shone in front of him, obscuring his eyesight, making him unable to see anything.

“What’s going on?! Is this how I die?!” Erich shouted.

He closed his eyes and waited. Some time passed, however, he still didn’t feel anything. Did he already die? Was this heaven?

“U-Umm... I would like to introduce myself. M-My name is-”

“Aaahhh!!!”

“Eek!”

Erich screamed, in response, the girl that stood in front of him screamed as well. She no longer had any wings, nor claws. In fact, only her long, light brown colored hair and human body stayed. She had normal human-like hands and legs, with normal-length nails. What is going on? Erich thought.

Silence~

There wasn’t a word spoken between the two of them. The shouting had cut the girl short and Erich wasn’t going to start the conversation either.

Fiddling with her hands, the girl’s eyes were turned downwards. She opened her mouth, a meek voice leaving it.

“C-Can I come in?” she asked weakly as she looked up at Erich.

“No!” he said as he slammed the door shut.

What am I going to do now?! I wasn’t hallucinating after all! That girl, S-she just transformed in front of me!

Erich lost his composure and his mind went into panic mode. Having slammed the door shut, he was now locked into his room. He had denied the girl entry into his room, but he couldn’t get out either.

His apartment was on the fifth floor. Way too high for him to just leave through the window. If he didn’t hurry, he was just about confirmed to be late to work.

Who cares about work, that girl came to kill me, didn’t she? Erich’s mind continued with the wild accusations and theories.

Sob Sob

A weird noise came from the other side of the door. It was enough to drag Erich’s focus back on The situation he was in. His theories were indeed scary, but he was still alive. Whilst he had the chance, he should focus on what is happening, instead of worrying about what might happen. He still wasn’t dead after all.

Erich put his ear to the door to better hear the noises.

Sob Sob Sob

“That kind of sounds like... It sounds just like how a girls crying would sound. Is that girl c-crying?”

Erich was confused. Was this just a plot so that he would open the door and get killed? But if that girl really wanted to kill him, why wouldn’t she have already done it? She had the chance earlier.

“Ahh. I’m so confused. I don’t understand what the hell is going on. First, a monster turns into a girl, and then she starts crying in front of my door. Is this a sign of the end of the earth?!”

Erich struggled with what he should do. But after some more thinking, he decided to just open the door.

Creak

Slowly opening it and peeking out, Erich saw the weeping girl. She held her head in her hands, large tears flowing down her face. As she noticed the door opening, she lifted her head a little.

Her beautiful eyes, covered with tears, and her slightly inflamed cheeks struck Erich’s heart. As soon as they made eye contact, Erich lost all sense of danger.

The door slowly opened, exposing Erich’s entire body. His body was stiff and his expression frozen.

The girl looked at him with upturned eyes. She wiped her tears with her hands.

“...Y-You came back?”

Her voice was quivering and quiet. Combined with her cute face and figure, Erich couldn’t resist. He bowed to her in apology.

“I’m sorry I slammed the door like that. It’s just that you transformed so suddenly. It creeped me out.”

“C-Creeped you out?”

“Ahh. That’s not what I meant to say...You wanted to talk, right? I don’t have a lot of time, but I’ll hear you out.”

The girl’s face seemed to instantly lighten up. Erich invited her in, and wiping her tears away, the girl entered his apartment. She walked into the room, wide-eyed at his apartment.

“So this is what an apartment looks like. I always wanted to enter one.” the sadness in her voice seemingly disappeared and a happy smile appeared in its place.

“D-Do you want something to drink?” Erich asked the girl that walked around his apartment barefooted.

“You have liquids stored in this place as well? Is there a miniature river hidden somewhere?”

The girl looked at Erich curiously as she asked the question. Erich in turn couldn’t fathom what was happening to him. He took a glass, poured some water, and set it on the table.

“Here you go. I hope water is fine.”

“I-It’s fine. If anything, it’s more than fine. I’m already grateful that you let me come in.”

The girl’s curiosity seemed to subside a bit, as her shyness took over. She took small sips of water in between the newly set in silence. When she didn’t hold the glass, she fumbled around with her hands, looking down.

This is just so weird, Erich thought. This entire situation made absolutely no sense. But looking at the fact that he was still alive, at least he could surmise that the girl wasn’t planning on killing him.

Just looking at the way she acted, the idea of her hurting, much less killing someone seemed too farfetched. This girl wouldn’t be able to hurt a bug.

But, even though Erich was confused and this entire situation bordered on insanity, he still had something to take care of. Something he was more afraid of than anything.

He had work today. And looking at his clock, he would be cutting it close. Being late was a one-way ticket to the boss’s office. There he would get chewed out, his entire day ruined. He was already feeling like shit, being yelled at wasn’t exactly what he needed.

“... Listen, I don’t know why you’re here or why you approached me. But I think you got the wrong guy. I have a long day ahead of me today, so if we could just bring an end to this misunderstanding, that would be for the best.”

The girl made eye contact with Erich and answered.

“... T-This isn’t a misunderstanding. You’re the person I was looking for.”

“That can’t be. Why would you be looking for me? I don’t even know who you are.”

“U-Um... It’s a bit complicated so I need a bit of time to exp-”

“Just go for it. The sooner you start, the sooner you’ll be finished.”

The girl’s face reddened and her already down-turned eyes turned even lower and more to the side. Her cheeks seemed to puff up a bit as well. When she opened her mouth, a weak, embarrassed voice, entered the room.

“... I-I’ve come here to get married and build a family.”

Erich seemed stunned for a moment. But then confusion hit him. Why did she come to him if she wanted to get married. Why couldn’t she just have gone to the person she was meant to marry.

Unless... But that couldn’t be the case. Erich didn’t even want to consider it. Lest he be met with disappointment.

“I’m confused. Why did you come here then? Aren’t you supposed to go to the person you’re going to marry? I don’t understand why you came to me.”

“Y-You’ve been chosen as the person that is to become my husband. T-That is why I’m h-here. To get m-married to you.”

Stumbling over her words as she spoke, the beautiful girl closed her eyes out of embarrassment. Her face was completely dyed red, all the way up to her ears. Even her hands, which she had fumbled around with earlier, were now cowering her face.

Erich’s jaw dropped. His eyes opened wide and his mind went blank. He couldn’t fathom the words that were being said to him.

This has to be a dream. Am I starting to hear things because of the booze? Erich’s thoughts raced at a thousand miles an hour.

Whilst this silence, the cute girl fidgeted on the other side of the table. Sneaking glances at Erich occasionally. She would quickly avert her eyes and her face would get redder.

“I-I don’t understand. Why m-me?” Erich asked.

“After searching the entire world for a suitable partner, you were chosen as my fated partner.”

“B-But what about the others? You’re not human, are you? Aren’t there some among your race that could become your husband?”

“I don’t match with any of them...”

So that was the story. Erich had been chosen to be this girl’s partner using some unknown criteria. And now, she came to him to propose and get married. This shy girl built up her courage and approached him.

Yet, for Erich, this seemed to be going a bit too fast. He was still single when he woke up, he can’t just change his status to engaged in such a short time, can he?

“W-Wait, this is going a little too fast for me. I mean, are you even okay with this? Marrying a person you don’t know or like? Isn’t there someone you could complain to, to change the situation?”

“The decision is final. You’re the person that is meant for me, there’s no changing that.”

“But I’m a human... Before that, what exactly are you even?”

“I’m of the race of harpies...”

“Is that even okay? A human and a harpy. Isn’t it against your rules or something.”

“There are no rules that forbid love between races.” the girl said, her face deeply red.

Erich couldn’t believe her words. It seemed like she was alright with it. Almost as if she had already accepted it.

“...Besides, it’s not like I don’t find you... A-Attractive...”

The girl’s words trailed off, her face redder than it had ever been before.

Erich on the other hand felt an exhaustion he had never experienced before. It was as if this exhaustion was reaching the bottom of his soul. His mind and body were both tired. They couldn’t take any more of this.

Out of exhaustion, his eyes wandered to the clock on his wall. His eyes picked up the time, however, his mind didn’t register it. That is, only for the first few seconds.

Erich’s mouth slowly opened, and his eyes regained the vigor they had before.

“I-I’m going to be late!” he shouted as she instantly shot up from his seat. The girl stared at him from the other side of the Table, spooked because of his sudden movements.

“Late?” she asked.

“Shit. I was so caught up with this nonsensical situation that I just completely forgot about the time.” Erich said.

“Nonsensical...”

“The last possible train I could’ve taken already left. If I leave now, I’ll only be about 30 minutes late. I myself get carried away with unnecessary worries and ended up forgetting about what’s really important.”

“...Unnecessary...Really important...”

A small sulking voice came from the other side of the table. In his worrying, Erich had completely forgotten about the girl that sat opposite of him. He let his mouth get loose and say his thoughts out loud.

The girl was sulking a bit, some tears haven formed in her eyes. She lowered her shoulders and her posture shrank. Erich was about to apologize...

Then it dawned on him. He thought of a crazy idea. He approached the girl, closing the distance between them.

Picking up him coming closer, the girl’s posture tensed up. Her face a mix of confusion and fear.

“N-No...I-I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to distract you. P-P-Please don’t hurt me. I-I’m really sorry.”

“...”

“Sob, Sob. Please f-forgive me.”

She was afraid. Erich approached her silently, without saying a word. His eyes looked at her, but they didn’t seem to hold the best of intentions. She didn’t know how to react, and as such, resorted to apologizing.

Erich stretched out his hand, placing it on the girl’s shoulder.

“Eek!!!” she shouted.

“Can you carry me to my workplace?”

Silence~

The room descended into quiet, neither one saying a word.

“Huh?”

“There are no more trains that can get me to my workplace on time. But you’re a harpy, right? That means you can fly. You could pick me up and carry me to my workplace. That way, I wouldn’t have to be late.”

Erich explained his thought process to the wide-eyed girl in front of him. She didn’t say anything, so he continued with his explanation.

“I saw your wings before you transformed. Those aren’t just for show, are they? If you have wings as big as that, it must mean you can fly, right?”

“Y-Yes, I can fly.”

“In that case it’s perfect. You can take me to my workplace so I won’t be late. What a genius I am!” Erich said happily.

“B-But... There carrying someone has a special meaning for harpies.”

“It’ll be fine, I’m not that heavy or anything. I’ve actually been on a diet recently. Though, the drinking hasn’t been nice on my stomach...”

“Your weight isn’t the problem. It’s something else.”

Looking at the girl, she seemed worried for some reason. Erich thought that the biggest problem would be his weight. Yet, it seems there was something else even more serious.

“Those that mean it’s impossible?” Erich asked.

The girl looked around the room, then at the floor, and then her face finally reddened. She opened her mouth, a shaky voice leaving it.

“...I-It depends on you. A-Are you fine with me d-doing it?”

“Of course, I’m fine with it. You’re the only person I can ask to carry me.”

What a pointless question that was. Erich didn’t know any other harpies or anyone that could fly for that matter. If she wasn’t the one that carried him, who else would?

The girl’s eyes shot up, shining as they looked into his eyes. She turned her face to the side and covered her mouth with one of her hands, her cheeks red.

“...Then, I’ll try my best from now on...”

“Sure, let’s just go. Even with flying, I might end up being late.”

The two of them left the apartment, Erich locking it behind him. The outside air was still a bit chilly, though Erich liked the refreshing feel it gave off.

Around him were nothing but smaller houses and other small apartment complexes. He lived in a quiet neighborhood, away from the hustle and bustle of the city.

“Can you fly like this? Or do you need to transform into your other form?”

“...I have to transform...”

“Do some kind of special conditions need to be met? I don’t have a lot of time, so it would be best if we could leave as soon as possible.”

“...Turn around please...”

Erich didn’t understand why, but seeing her reddened face, he turned around, enough to not be able to see her.

“Are you finished?” he asked.

“Mmh...”

The figure of a winged beast, half human-half bird greeted him. In a sudden onslaught of fear, he was forced to swallow his saliva. But he had already decided to have her take him, there was no going back anymore.

“A-Are you ready?” the girl asked.

Erich nodded. The next second, his elbows got grabbed by the girl’s claws. He opened his mouth to say-

“On second thought I-”

The girl leaped off of the platform and entered into free air.

“Aaaahhhhh-”

Fear having taken over, Erich closed his eyes shut and opened his mouth to scream. Was this the end of him? Did he really just jump down from such a height?

Yet, he felt no pain. Only a feeling of chilliness grazed the outer layer of his skin. He felt incredibly light. As if he had lost all weight.

Did his soul leave his body and was now heading to heaven?

“H-How does it feel? Am I holding too hard?”

A familiar voice spoke to him, spurring him to open his eyes. In front of him, he saw the ceilings of countless buildings below. There was nothing in front nor behind him. He was in the air.

He couldn’t believe it. This couldn’t be reality. He must be dreaming. No human had ever flown this way before. It was all thanks to the harpy that was carrying him.

“I am holding too hard aren’t I? I’m s-sorry, I’ll try to loosen it a bit.”

As soon as she said that, her clinch loosened, and with it, an accident occurred. Erich slipped from her grasp, entering a state of free fall. Wind cut through him, blowing his skin in all directions.

“I-I’m really sorry about that...”

The harpy was apologizing for dropping him earlier, her voice carrying genuine sadness. Erich grabbed his mouth to hold back the liquid that was threatening to escape.

“It’s fine, just make sure it doesn’t happen ag...Blurgh.”

“...”

“...”

Both of them just ignored what happened, as if it hadn’t happened at all. The girl’s eyes still contained her feelings of sadness in them.

“...I forgot to ask you because of the hectic meeting, but what’s your name? You know mine already, but you didn’t tell me yours yet.”

“I-I’m sorry...My name is P-Podarge.”

“Ppodarge? That’s a weird name.”

“No, it’s just Podarge. I made a mistake.”

“That’s still a weird name...”

Just what kind of name was Podarge? Was it Asian? American? Erich didn’t know where the name came from. Though, it wasn’t a large surprise. After all, the girl he was talking to wasn’t human.

“Still, I want to thank you Podarge. Without your help, I would’ve been late for work.”

Of course, this was her fault in the first place, but Erich left that unsaid. He was grateful that she carried him to work.

“...”

“I’m sure the situation you’re in is complicated, but I’m positive you’ll be able to solve it. You’re a smart girl after all.”

“...”

Erich appreciated her confession, but he couldn’t just accept it. Podarge was forced into it by someone. There was no way she just accepted it either. She must’ve been putting up a front this entire time.

Erich wanted to let her down slowly and gently so that her confidence wouldn’t be hurt.

Before long, they arrived there, and with a single goodbye and thank you, Erich left her behind.

“Man, today was such a horrible day...”

Night had dawned as Erich was returning from work. His shoulders slumped, he was exhausted. He had arrived to work on time, but as the adrenaline from the flying faded, the hangover returned. Numerous trips to the bathroom later, he returned home.

Click! Push!

“I just want to hop into bed and-”

“W-Welcome home, husband...”

Erich’s shoulders dropped lower and his jawline followed suit.

“What are you doing?”

“Wa-Waiting for you to return home...”

“Have you been here the entire time?”

Nod

“But I haven’t agreed to the Marriage yet”

Podarge fidgeted with her fingers before she looked up at Erich.

“...I told you that there was a special meaning to carrying someone for harpies.”

The special meaning? Erich had agreed to be carried because he was afraid of being late. He hadn’t fully thought about what the special meaning was.

“The special meaning...W-We harpies can only carry those we consider family...”

“That means...”

...The moment he had agreed to get carried by her, it was basically the same as accepting her marriage proposal. Erich had unknowingly agreed to the marriage.

Podarge bowed deep, her clothes fluttering with her sudden movements.

“I-I’ll try my best... Please take care of me from now on.”