14. The Furry Girl Called 'Wooser' or 'Usausa'

On the sixth floor, the same Mustard Dragon that had appeared as a boss earlier showed up again.

But for me, who had obtained 'Solitude', the poison dragon boasting its massive size was now nothing more than a small fry.

"Ora!"

Before it could even spew its poison breath, I instantly circled around and thrust into its vital point with a *zuburi* sound.

Its breath sac must have ruptured, and the poison circulated through its body. The Mustard Dragon writhed in agony and breathed its last, utterly pathetic.

The current me could probably take on two of these small fries at the same time and defeat them.

Of course, I wouldn't deliberately take such a risk, and would steadily defeat them one by one. By the way, if you didn't rupture the poison breath sac, you could eat the Mustard Dragon's meat.

Just like the giant poisonous worm, there was no poison in the meat. The poisonous purple scales were only on the surface, and if you peeled them off, red, delicious-looking meat would appear.

You just needed to drain the blood properly and eat only the non-poisonous, delicious parts. The rest would be eaten by the scavenger slimes.

Seeing that the color of the meat inside was the same, they might have originally been the same species as the Lesser Dragon.

Did the Mustard Dragon evolve by taking in chemical poisons into its body?

While pondering such monster evolution and continuing to defeat them as I went,

I noticed an NPC trapped in a prison cell and remembered, "Ah, this is the floor where Wooser is."

Wooser, or sometimes called Usausa or Usako. An unnamed NPC with rabbit ears.

Apparently, overseas she was called Rabitta Rabbit.

The reason she was called such strange names was probably because when she turned around, she had two large white fluffy 'rabbit tails' on her buttocks.

However, the rabbit tails that were fully visible in the game seemed to be hidden by a long skirt now that the reality was heightened.

So the tails weren't exposed because the reality was higher than in the game.

Anyway, seeing those adorable fluffy balls, you could understand why this NPC was called Usausa. I preferred the sound of Wooser, though.

Wooser's rabbit ears were long and big. They sprouted from her vibrant pink long hair with a *pyokon* sound. They were real rabbit ears, white with a pale pink inside.

Well, in this day and age, it wasn't unusual. Just an ordinary rabbit-eared girl. When she tilted her small head towards me, the ribbons on her blue hair clips swayed along with her rabbit ears.

Her looks were also pretty normal cute. Azure eyes, translucent white skin, and an oval, smooth, round cheekline.

If it weren't for the unusually long rabbit ears, she would be a very ordinary European-looking beautiful girl.

When "realistic" was mentioned in Western games, it often meant extremely realistic and scary faces, but since Genoria was an old game, it had instead become a Wonderland-esque, childishly beautiful girl with extremely exaggerated features.

I was glad it wasn't a game with cutting-edge polygons.

However, perhaps because of the extreme exaggeration, despite her small build, only her breasts and buttocks were unusually large.

With such prominent protrusions, I wondered if she could even see her feet. I felt sorry for her, as her daily life must be difficult with such huge breasts sticking out.

Another characteristic of Wooser was that she wore a blue and white maid outfit. Thanks to this, she was called the most moe character in Genoria.

In Japan, it was called a maid outfit, but since such a culture didn't exist when Genoria was popular, it was probably an apron dress with a fairytale-like image.

Despite wearing an adorable frilly apron dress, she had a large rucksack on her back because she was set up as an adventurer. That imbalance embodied a strange moe.

Either way, in Genoria, where there were only a handful of NPCs, she was a valuable presence that added a touch of charm to the game.

By the way, she had fallen into a prison trap and had come to the labyrinth with quite a few rabbit-tribe warriors, who had all been annihilated, leaving her behind in a very tragic situation.

Of course, this being Genoria, even the moe and adorable her had a tragic fate waiting for her as soon as she appeared.

If you continued straight down the passage to the prison, a trap would activate, and a drop ceiling would fall from above, crushing her to death with a *buchu* sound.

Moreover, after Wooser was crushed to death, the drop ceiling would slowly rise, kindly showing you the pink mincemeat that remained. I was dumbfounded when I first saw it.

The next time I played, I searched for a way to help her, but just searching for traps in the passage would trigger a trap and kill me.

After repeating save-loads and turning Wooser into minced meat about ten times, I finally realized. I just had to not go through the passage.

Wooser's very act of rattling the iron bars and pleading for help was the trap. I just had to not try to help her.

I just had to bypass this passage by going around to the right and finding a hidden door.

Then, if I just went to the front of the prison, Wooser would be released from the cell.

Once you knew the trick, this kind of trap was this simple. Traps were probably better off being surprisingly simple; that's why you fell for them.

The door to the prison where Wooser was held captive could be easily opened from the outside by pulling a lever.

Judging from this mousetrap-like structure, I guessed there was bait placed inside the cage, and Wooser had gotten caught in the booby trap while trying to get it.

"Aaaah, aguu..."

"Agu?"

The rabbit girl stumbled out of the cell, her face bright red, tears streaming down her azure eyes like a torrent.

Whether she was crying from deep emotion or because she had been saved from a desperate situation, her reaction wasn't incomprehensible, but I wanted her to hurry up and advance the event. I wasn't exactly free either.

However, I couldn't exactly order the adorable rabbit-eared girl to "stop crying already."

After patiently waiting for her to be able to speak, Wooser lowered her head with a *pekori* while thanking me.

"I don't know who you are, desu ga, thank you for saving me masu!"

"Hoi hoi."

I didn't particularly intend to save her.

I just knew a way not to kill her, so I deliberately didn't kill her.

If she survived like this, Wooser would give me the lucky item 'Rabbit's Tail', so it wasn't a loss to save her.

With a *muku* sound, she pushed up her blue skirt from the inside, plucked one of the two white tails growing on her large buttocks, and gave it to me as a lucky item.

The way she tore off her tail wasn't a big deal when seen in Genoria's pixel art, but in reality, it should be a very subtle scene, which I was a little looking forward to.

The rabbit's tail was an item that didn't give you much noticeable effect even if you obtained it, but as a rare item collector, I wanted to get it.

The fluffy, round pompom could be considered a healing item to alleviate the boredom of the labyrinth.

In the West, a 'rabbit's foot' was said to be a lucky item, but in Genoria, it was a 'rabbit's tail'.

It was amusing how Genoria insisted on such strange originality in these trivial matters.

Since rabbits were animals that lived by digging holes, it seemed appropriate as a symbol of good luck in a dungeon.

"Um, I'm thirsty... Would it be alright if I had some water, desu ka?"

"The spring is right there. Oh, that's right, here."

It would be cruel to make her drink directly, so I gave her a flask.

Even NPCs properly lived in the world of Genoria.

"Thank you desu, using the same flask would be an indirect kiss, masu ne."

"Haa?"

What was with this big-breasted rabbit's way of getting involved? It gave me the creeps. Her bringing up indirect kisses reminded me of Kumiko's annoyingness.

Don't blush and turn your cheeks red. I didn't need such cheap developments in a hardcore game.

I didn't care, so she should just quickly give me the 'Rabbit's Tail' and disappear. She was making *gokugoku* sounds, drinking the water deliciously.

I became a little curious about the thirst and hunger of NPCs, so I tried feeding her.

"Here, want to eat this too?"

"Ahhh, that's dragon meat, uuuu. My favorite, desu!"

Huh? Wasn't a rabbit a herbivore? Since there were no vegetables in the dungeon, maybe she had no choice but to eat meat to avoid starvation.

She was cutely eating the grilled dragon meat with her small mouth, but Wooser had sharper teeth than her cute appearance suggested.

Even though she was a rabbit, why did she have canine teeth?

Well, in terms of setting, she was the last survivor of the rabbit tribe's selected members, so she was probably a reasonably strong creature.

The party she came with had been annihilated, and Wooser would also eventually die by the drop ceiling.

In the game, if you saved her, she would hand over the 'Rabbit's Tail', say thank you, and then disappear.

That was the extent of our interaction, but if I could talk to her like this, I might be able to hear about Genoria.

"Hey, Wooser. Can I ask you something?"

"Please ask me anything mase."

For example, how did they get into this closed labyrinth?

Since they were NPCs, anything was possible, but since there were such detailed aspects, there might even be a proper route of entry.

I didn't care since I didn't plan on leaving the labyrinth anyway, but I thought it might be better to let Seki and the others out.

Except for the guy who was a natural recluse, humans might start fighting from stress if they stayed in a closed space for too long.

That would be even more troublesome, so it would be best if I could drive the annoying ones out of the labyrinth.

While I was silently pondering such things, Wooser tilted her head and timidly asked me.

"But um, I've been really curious about this since a while ago, desu ga, who is this Wooser you keep talking about, desu ka...?"

"It's you, Wooser."

"Eh, me?" Wooser pointed at her small face, making a subtle expression.

"Watashi has a proud name inherited from my ancestors: Aliceidia Adelaide Alfonsina Angelique Arlette Arabel Aline Diana, masu. I don't really like such a monster-like name, desu."

"That's too long. If you don't like Wooser, you can choose from Usausa, Usako, or Rabitta Rabbit."

I had no intention of remembering such a hard-to-remember and unnecessarily long name.

It was just for this occasion anyway, and it was an unimportant setting.

"Among those, Usako is cute and good, desu."

"Alright, then your name from now on is Wooser. I will call you Wooser."

"Then, Wooser is fine desu... Also, Rabitta Rabbit is the name of our race desu. Did you know about us, desu ka?"

"Hoh, so there was such a setting."

"Setting?"

Wooser made a puzzled face. Our conversation wasn't quite clicking. Which was natural.

There was no way I could have a proper conversation with a creature living inside the game.

"Never mind that. Anyway, quickly explain how you Rabitta Rabbits got here. I came from the city above, but it was closed off from the outside, and I couldn't get out."

"That's right desu ne. This labyrinth, you can enter from the outside, but you can't exit from the inside. We entered from above the city, desu. We came to stop the Genesis Rupture Genocide Reality and save the world."

Wooser declared with a determined face. So, you couldn't escape from here until you cleared it.

Hmm, 'Genocide Reality' was translated as Genesis Rupture in their lore.

"By the way, what do you know about the Genesis Rupture?"

"Yes, the labyrinth of the Genesis Rupture Genocide Reality was born from all the sins and sludge that the Genesis God, Ji-All-sama, sealed at the bottom of the earth when he created the world, desu."

Wooser spoke eloquently, like a miko reciting an oracle.

"It was wrong for the people living on the earth to have lost their love for the world, Amor Mundi, desu. The foolish tragedies and violence that people repeated piled up at the bottom of the earth, and finally, the Roaring Chaos was born, desu. If we don't stop the invasion of the Roaring Chaos that has swelled up underground, this world, Mundus, will face its destruction, masu. We, the subjugation force, have come to stop the Genesis Rupture Genocide Reality, desu!"

Wooser, who had been speaking so enthusiastically, perhaps realizing the outcome, suddenly lowered her head and let her rabbit ears droop. The subjugation force had been annihilated, leaving Wooser behind.

It was almost the same as the Genoria setting I knew. It was the first time I heard that these rabbit warriors were called the Rabitta Rabbit tribe.

I had thought it was a common name in English-speaking regions, but maybe there were hidden settings not written in the officially translated Japanese guidebook.

After all, the home of Genoria was the United States. I wish I could read English websites like my native language. I had been reading while translating difficult words, so there were some parts I didn't quite understand.

"Hmm..."

Wooser spoke to me, who had fallen into thought again.

"Um, are you one of the human subjugation force, desu ka?"

"...Well, I am one."

Explaining was a pain.

There was no point in talking to an NPC who would just give me an item and then immediately part ways.

"May I ask your honorable name, desu ka?"

"I am Shinjo Wataru."

"Shinjo Wataru-sama, that's a very unusual sound, desu ne. Black hair and black eyes... such rare features. It's the first time I've seen someone with pale orange skin, neither white nor tanned. Did you come from a distant region, desu ka?"

"That's right, far away..."

Somehow, Wooser kept asking me about this and that in detail, and it was gradually becoming annoying.

Besides, I was tired from talking to someone after so long.

I figured I had heard everything I needed to hear, so I should quickly get the item from Wooser and have her leave.

"Wataru-sama is..."

"Wooser, just give me the 'Rabbit's Tail' already."

As if taking my words as a signal, Wooser stretched her long, drooping rabbit ears straight up to the ceiling, her white cheeks turning bright red, and her body stiffened with a *piki piki* sound.

What was with this intense reaction? She was like an instant water heater.

"N-n-n-n-naaa!"

"...What? Did I say something strange?"

"How could you say such a thing all of a sudden, desu kaaa! You should say such things after we've become closer, desu. It's incredibly rude to say that on our first meeting, desuuuu!"

"Is that so?"

If she wasn't going to give it to me on our first meeting, when was she planning to give it to me?

By the way, if you examined the crushed corpse, you could get a 'Blood-stained Rabbit's Tail', but it would turn into an unlucky item.

Forcibly tearing it off wouldn't work either. Unless she willingly gave it to me, it wouldn't have its lucky effect.

As I watched silently, Wooser, her face bright red, lowered her head, and her rabbit ears drooped with a *heta* sound.

"That's right desu yo, but um... it's not like I dislike it either. If Wataru-sama really wants it, I'll give it to you, masu."

"Yeah, then give it to me."

"W-wait just a moment, please. Asking for it so easily, there's the preparation of the heart, or rather desu ne, that order is all wrong... but um... does that mean you've come to like me that much, desu ne?"

With a hopeful look on her face, she fidgeted with her slender fingers in front of her, and with her moist azure eyes sparkling, she sent a sidelong glance my way.

Her rabbit ears had been thrashing around since a while ago. What was this feeling? Goosebumps. I could strongly sense the scent of trouble.

"Wooser, wait. On second thought, I don't really need the 'Rabbit's Tail' that much anymore."

"Eeeh, wait just a moment, please! I just said I would give it to you, desu ka!"

I had a really bad feeling about this.

This pattern... I had a déjà vu. This was a sign of trouble so troublesome it wasn't even funny.

"No, that's right. On second thought, ripping off a tail sounds really painful. Yeah, never mind."

"M-m-wait please. I've heard it's a little painful when you take the tail, but all girls take it when they become adults, desu yo. I think I could give it to you, Wataru-sama. Please don't hesitate."

"No, somehow..."

"Watashi has already made up my mind, desu. If Wataru-sama hadn't saved me here, I would have died, desu ne. I think offering it here was fate, masu."

Saying that, Wooser gathered up her long skirt and grabbed the white tail on her buttocks.

Her cheeks flushed, her azure eyes welled up with tears, and she bit her lower lip tightly.

With a *buchitto* sound, she tore off the white, fluffy tail from her butt and forcefully pressed it into my hand.

"I feel kind of bad."

"No, not at all. With this, we are a married couple who have exchanged vows, desu ne. Watashi also I love you desu!"

"Wait..."

"Yes! What is it, my husband?"

Wooser's cheeks were flushed, and her azure eyes were sparkling brightly. Dammit... this pattern again.

I thought she would just say thank you and disappear, but what was with the "I love you"?

"Wooser, just to be sure, you're not going to disappear after this, are you?"

"A wife will not leave your side, no matter what. In sickness and in health, I will be by your side, my husband, desu. Until death do us part..."

Wooser knelt down in front of me, clasped her hands in front of her large breasts, and gave me a melting smile on her ecstatic face.

That pinkish atmosphere made me instinctively take two or three steps back.

This is bad... I've been set up. Is this another one of Genoria's traps?

I felt a sharp pain around my temples and pressed the white, fluffy pompom I was holding against my face.

Ahhh, fluffy... so soothing.

　　　　　※※※

I was a retro game enthusiast, and rather quite the otaku.

So, the line "Please give me the 'Rabbit's Tail'" being a marriage proposal signal in the Rabitta Rabbit tribe was the kind of thing I'd laugh at as a common trope.

It was a common pattern in misunderstanding-based comedies.

If it were someone else's problem, I'd just laugh it off, but this was my reality game.

'Once you know the trick, this kind of trap is this simple. Simple is good, that's why you fall for it.'

Those were my words from just now.

Genoria's specialty: 'instant death for first-timers'.

I never thought it would turn out to be foreshadowing like this.

Having evaluated Genoria's traps that way myself, asking for the 'Rabbit's Tail' so carelessly was far too reckless.

Of course, I immediately explained to Wooser that there had been a misunderstanding.

However, I couldn't exactly say that I was mistaken because that's how it was in the game's development, and even if I said I didn't know, I had already mentioned the Rabitta Rabbit tribe and Wooser's race name.

My desperate explanations didn't reach the crying Wooser.

"Uwaaaaaa, waaaaa, watashi is finished guuuuuuuu!"

"Don't cry, don't wail, don't wipe your nose on my sleeve."

One of the Rabitta Rabbit tribe's tails would come off when they became adults. It was an important thing to give to their life partner.

Once plucked, it could never be recovered.

Wooser, whose real name was Aliceidia Adelaide Alfonsina Angelique Arlette Arabel Aline Diana, had mistakenly plucked that important 'Rabbit's Tail'.

At such a young age, this was the moment her lifelong spinsterhood was decided.

Even though I thought she was an NPC, seeing a girl break down in tears in front of me, saying "I've been made into someone who can't get married!", I couldn't help but feel guilty.

What a troublesome situation I had gotten myself into. Was it my fault for underestimating Genoria?

"Cruel, cruel, you tricked watashi!"

"No, that's why I'm saying I didn't know..."

"But you said, 'Give me the tail,' Wataru-san!"

"Just calm down and stop crying. A tail is something that can be fixed, right? Here, just stick it back on with tape or something."

I explained that there was a convenient tool called adhesive tape or cellophane tape that could stick things together.

It should be in the classroom; if we stuck it on with that, it would be back to normal.

When I desperately tried to reason with her, Wooser glared at me with tear-swollen, bloodshot eyes.

"Watashi will die, please let me die!"

"Whoa there, stop!"

Wooser tried to commit suicide by jumping into a nearby pitfall, so I desperately hugged her to stop her.

It was super troublesome, but I couldn't just watch her die like this. My conscience wouldn't allow it.

Despite her small appearance, Wooser tried to thrash around with tremendous strength. I desperately held her tightly, immobilizing her, until she finally stopped sobbing. But that wasn't the end.

It was just the beginning.

Now, Wooser's resentful complaints began, persistently following after me as I started walking.

"Ah, Wataru-sama is also human, desu ne. Grandpa told me that some humans advocate for animal welfare on one hand, but on the other hand, they skin rabbits alive and sell them! It's terrible, desu!"

"Who are you even talking about..."

"Watashi heard it, mon. 'Rabbit's Tails' apparently sell for a very high price, desu ne. Since they can't be forcibly taken, marriage scams are rampant... Ah, I never thought I would be deceived myself, deshita ne."

"Don't say such slanderous things."

I never thought I would be labeled a marriage swindler.

I just wanted a rare item, but this was so troublesome.

"Please feel a little more responsible, desu! Because of you, the proud lineage of the Diana family is destined to end, desu yo!"

"That's why, Wooser, if we go to the classroom, there's this sticky thing called cellophane tape..."

"If you say that again, I will really jump and die, masu. I'll come back as a ghost and haunt you forever, masu kara! The giving and receiving of the 'Rabbit's Tail' is a sacred, once-in-a-lifetime marriage ceremony for the Rabitta Rabbit tribe, desu yo!"

My suggestion of sticking the 'Rabbit's Tail' back on with tape seemed to be a desecration of the sacred ceremony.

By the way, the reason such a custom was born was apparently because the Rabitta Rabbit tribe had such a strong reproductive ability that they engaged in indiscriminate promiscuity, and they were on the verge of extinction due to overpopulation.

Therefore, a strict rule was born that they would only reproduce with their one and only lifelong partner.

To despise this ceremony was equivalent to seceding from the tribe. If it came to that, they would rather "just die, masu kara."

"Alright, I get it. Then I'll marry you."

"Hoeh..."

Wooser, who had been crying and wailing in despair and trying to commit suicide, and then glaring at me, saying she would haunt me as a ghost if she died, suddenly had a blank look on her face.

There was no other way to describe it; she had a dazed expression.

"I said I'll marry you. If I marry Wooser, you won't have any complaints, right?"

"That is... really?"

It was true.

I had already wasted a considerable amount of time here.

Killing the loudly wailing Wooser with 'Solitude', and if a Wooser ghost appeared, slashing that down with 'Onsetsumaru' as well...

Since I didn't have the resolve to do all that and move on, I had no choice but to marry her.

What? Even if I said I'd marry her, it was just words. It was a game after all.

I could just take her to the city and tell her to wait there until my adventure was over, and that should avoid any trouble.

This line of thinking already sounded like a marriage swindler, but in for a penny, in for a pound.

It was only until I cleared this game or I died anyway.

"Alright, now that that's settled, let's go. I'm going to head back to the city for now, collecting as much gold and items as I can along the way. You're going to help me."

"Ah, yes! That's right desu ne, I was about to forget our purpose. To stop the Genesis Rupture Genocide Reality, we need to regroup first, desu ne. Please wait for me, my husband!"

I wasn't going to wait anymore. If she wanted to follow, she could. Having to go back was a significant loss, but I couldn't afford to waste time standing still and thinking.

Having decided to go back, I started sprinting back along the route I had come as fast as I could.