OVA 03: Sound of a Sword Guard Deep in the Mountains

## Plot

Hakuowlo and Touka are out fishing, accompanied by Aruruu and Mukkuru. While enjoying the idyllic break from constant battle—if failing to catch much—Hakuowlo tells Touka a story about the "guardian of the river," a huge fish that's racked up a significant number of reported sightings. Unfortunately Benawi, astride his white woptor, finds them, and drags his leisurely liege back to the palace to continue his official duties. Before he goes, Hakuowlo tells Touka to catch the guardian of the river, meaning it as a joke. Touka, like a clutz, takes it seriously.

Touka waits for the guardian of the river to take her bait and hooks a huge fish. During the struggle, the fish knocks Aruruu into the river, and she begins to float unconcernedly downstream. The slippery fiend drags Touka into the water next, but she somehow gets it up onto the land, where she silences it with a righteous karate chop. After drying her clothes, she shoulders the leviathan and carries it off in search of Aruruu.

It's dark by the time she finds Aruruu, sleeping on a rock in the forest, still wearing Touka's coat as a blanket. Touka builds her a makeshift shelter and sets up camp for the night, vowing to her sword to protect the girl. Her sword, however, she finds absent, still where she left it with Mukkuru at the fishing site upstream. The fish shows impressive resilience after hours on land by regaining consciousness and making a play for the river, but Touka recaptures it and knocks it out again.

The next day, at the palace, Hakuowlo and the others are having their breakfast. Uncharacteristically, only one of the twins who serve Oboro is present, so he asks where Oboro and Dorry are. Guraa tells him that they are out looking for Touka and Aruruu in the forest.

It hasn't taken Oboro and Dorry long to find Touka and Aruruu. The two sit in a tree munching on trail snacks, but instead of meeting with them immediately, Oboro tells Dorry they'll observe for now. Touka bravely dives into the river with a knife between her teeth, ready to retrieve a fishy breakfast, only to fall flat on her face in the shallows. Oboro laughs at Touka's blunder.

Back at the palace, Camyu tells Hakuowlo that a huge monster has been seen roaming the forest according to a newspaper and hopes that everyone in the forest are okay.

Touka's diving expedition has, unsurprisingly, failed, and she returns to Aruruu empty-handed. She finds Aruruu munching on what turn out to be edible grubs. Aruruu offers her one, at which she faints. After regaining consciousness, she goes to gather mushrooms. She identifies the poisonous ones by the traditional method of the Evenkuruga, and naturally she poisons herself in one bite. Aruruu quickly finds her an antidote. After that, they are on their way to return home. Touka leads the way and with every obstacle they found, she always fails to get by while Oboro gets to laugh at her. While taking their break, Touka remarks to Aruruu that Aruruu seems to be good at adapting in the forest. Aruruu tells her that she and Eruruu were trained by their grandmother because it is necessary for them to gather herbs in the forest. Touka's morale falters, and she apologizes for being useless. Aruruu gets up and encourages her, saying that they should return to the palace.

They're almost clear of the forest when they hear a scream, and go back to look for the source of the noise. There they find Dorry and a gigantic monster—evidently the true guardian of the river—with only Oboro's legs sticking out of its mouth. Touka frees Oboro from the creature, but it's too late for his dignity: he already stinks like the insides of a salamander, and he's obviously down for the count. Without her sword, Touka has a hard time fighting the monster until Mukkuru appears and delivers her weapon. As Touka attacks, she thinks to herself that even if the monster is the real guardian of the river, it's too disgusting a creature to present to her master. In four strikes, Touka defeats the beast, and it retreats back into the mountains.

Touka, Aruruu, and the others finally make their return to the palace, with Mukkuru carrying both Touka's big fish and a humiliated, unresponsive Oboro. Hakuowlo goes out to welcome them and is relieved to see that they're okay. Touka reports that she failed to catch the guardian of the river and instead presents her huge fish.

The fish doesn't like being presented! It wakes up and leaps upward, and when it comes down—it lands face-first on Oboro's head, to add insult to injury! Oboro is fish food once again.