Starting with Fireflies, Speedrun the World

The girl looked at the boy beside her and felt he looked somewhat familiar...

"Hello! My name is Tatsumi."

Noticing that Clara was looking at him, Tatsumi introduced himself and patted his chest, exuding confidence.

"Although he is not famous yet, he will definitely become a well-known figure in the entire capital in the future."

Although he hadn't even arrived in the capital yet, he already felt as if he were becoming a famous and important figure.

“T...Tatsumi…”

really.

Upon hearing Tatsumi introduce himself, Clara's eyes flashed with certainty. No wonder he seemed familiar; he's the protagonist of this world.

In this world, someone dies in every episode, and even the male protagonist couldn't survive.

At this moment, Clara finally understood exactly what kind of world this was.

"Hello... My name is Clara."

Clara also introduced herself. She thought highly of Tatsumi, saying he was a good person and very hardworking.

"Your name is Clara, I've got it!"

"By the way, what's that metal thing on your back? It looks really strong..."

Such a beautiful girl's name is worth remembering, but compared to that, Tatsumi is more concerned about Swaro behind her.

I think this big guy is much cooler!

“Mr. Schwarz isn’t a lump of iron; he’s Clara’s family…”

Clara was a little annoyed when she heard Tatsumi call Swallow "Iron Lump," and then she began to introduce Swallow very seriously.

"Uh, family..."

Are a lump of iron and a little human girl family?

Although he felt a little strange, Tatsumi didn't dwell on it any further. He wasn't entirely lacking in emotional intelligence and knew that saying these things would upset the girl in front of him.

At this moment, the guards who had run away earlier, upon noticing that the earth dragon was dead, actually ran back.

The coachman returned to the carriage and began reloading the goods. Tatsumi saw this and went over to help.

Although there was a near-death experience, one cannot give up if one wants to continue living in this world; one must overcome everything.

The goods on the truck still need to be moved, and money still needs to be earned.

"Thanks, kid."

After the goods were loaded, the driver thanked Tatsumi.

"It's nothing, it's what I should do."

Tatsumi scratched the back of his head and smiled innocently.

After all, it's just a small favor; we should help if we can.

The coachman, looking at the innocent Tatsumi, recalled his earlier words and couldn't help but ask, "Judging from what you said before, you don't actually want to go to the capital to make your fortune, do you?"

"Yup!"

"To carve out a niche for oneself in the capital is the romance of a country bumpkin!"

Tatsumi nodded without hesitation when asked by the coachman.

This is why he left his hometown for the capital, but unfortunately his companions were separated from him by bandits along the way.

However, upon hearing Tatsumi's words, the coachman shook his head and began to earnestly advise him.

"Take my advice, it's best not to go to the capital."

"……Why?"

This sentence startled Tatsumi, who was puzzled.

"The capital city... is not the kind of place you can make it in just by working hard, as you might imagine."

"While it's lively and bustling, it's also home to monsters even more ferocious than earth dragons..."

The groom looked at Tatsumi very seriously, and the way he spoke made it seem as if he had experienced it firsthand.

"What... does that mean there are dangerous species everywhere on the streets?"

Tatsumi asked in confusion, "Could it be that the capital is a world overrun by dangerous species?"

It's too scary.

"It's a person..."

"Those kinds of people, wearing human skin but with monsters at heart... there are them everywhere in the capital..."

The coachman explained weakly.

However, Tatsumi smiled slightly at these words and slowly sheathed the longsword that was still sticking out.

"While I am very grateful for your advice, now that I've come all this way, I have no intention of turning back."

“I…we…”

Tatsumi looked up at the clear blue sky, lost in thought.

"We must make money in the capital to save the village from its crisis."

"Hey……"

"Then you'd better watch yourself. I've said everything I needed to say."

Seeing Tatsumi's reaction, the coachman said no more; good words are useless against a death wish.

Then they boarded the carriage and continued their journey...

Watching the carriage drive away, Tatsumi didn't think much of it and turned around to continue on his way, only to find that Clara was also heading towards the capital.

Moreover, the big iron lump had completely disappeared, and no one knew where it had gone, leaving Clara all alone.

After thinking for a moment, Tatsumi quickly chased after him.

Chapter 8 Spectacularity Leads to National Detriment

"Clara, are you also going to the capital?"

Tatsumi quickly caught up with Clara, feeling a little uneasy watching such a timid girl hurrying along.

I have no idea where that lump of iron went.

"Ah."

Seeing that Tatsumi was catching up, Clara nodded without paying any attention.

Whether she travels with others or alone to the capital, it makes no difference to her. Now that she knows what world it is, many things become simpler.

"Why are you the only one here? Where is that...that Mr. Schwarzlo...who was with us before?"

Tatsumi looked around; in just a short while, they had completely disappeared.

“Mr. Schwarz has always been by my side, and he will appear immediately whenever Clara needs him.”

Clara didn't intend to hide it and spoke very frankly, because there was no way to hide it. She wouldn't let Swallow remain in his ethereal state forever.

Besides, even if they knew, it wouldn't have much of an impact.

"Always by my side? I haven't seen you."

Tatsumi scanned his surroundings, but there was still nothing there. Suddenly, something occurred to him, and a chill ran through him. It couldn't be what he was thinking, could it?

It's not human...

"Because Mr. Schwarzroth has gone into hiding."

"hide……"

This is incredibly well hidden; it's completely invisible.

Looking around for places to hide, Tatsumi couldn't see any signs of people hiding in those places.

"By the way, I'm also going to the capital. Why don't we go together?"

Finding nothing amiss, Tatsumi stopped insisting and suggested they travel together, so he would have someone to talk to on the road.

He didn't set off alone to venture into the capital; he traveled with two close friends.

They all hoped to make a name for themselves in the military.

However, on the way, they were attacked by a group of bandits, causing him to become separated from the other two.

By this time, Sayo and Ieyasu might have already arrived in the capital. Perhaps they've already enlisted, or at the very least, settled down somewhere.

"Shall we go to the capital together? Clara has no objection."

After hearing Tatsumi's words, Clara thought about it and did not refuse.

"I still don't know what Clara is going to the capital for? I'm going to join the army, make a name for myself, and then earn money to save my hometown!"

Following Clara, Tatsumi curiously inquired about Clara's reasons for going to the capital, wondering if she was doing the same thing as him.

Although I don't know her very well, that huge thing I just saw didn't seem like something an ordinary person could create. I heard from the guards that the capital once had something similar, but I don't know if it's true.

"It's not confirmed yet. Clara plans to wait until we get to the capital to see what happens."

The girl shook her head. Although she understood the situation of this world, she had no clear direction on what to do.

Should we join the Night Raid, join the resistance to overthrow the empire?

Or should I join the empire, climb the ranks, and implement internal reforms?

However, she found that neither of them suited her, and she didn't like any of them. But overthrowing the empire was much easier, since the empire was going to be overthrown anyway, and she could just watch.

As for reforming the empire, not only was it already corrupt after a thousand years, but there was also a minister who controlled the government, and the young emperor was just a puppet.

The goal was to overthrow the ministers in court and then implement comprehensive reforms...

You can't even do it if you just think about it.