Aqua lovingly stroked the money I had given her and thanked me once again.
"Thanks! Tae-jin, friends really are wonderful."
"But how did you end up spending 100,000 Eris?"
"Well... the restaurant got some premium Shuwa Shuwa in, and I was curious what it tasted like, so... teehee!"
Listening to that, Kazuma snapped at Aqua as though he could not believe her.
"What do you mean, teehee?! Why are we eating premium Shuwa Shuwa when we’re in this situation?! We need to hurry up and move to a new place! How long are the three of us supposed to keep sharing one room?!"
"All right, all right."
At this point, Aqua would normally call Kazuma out for secretly masturbating in the middle of the night, but perhaps because the three of them shared a room, Kazuma had been restraining himself, so she said nothing of the sort.
Aqua went and paid off her tab at the guild restaurant.
"Aqua, teach me a healing spell first. I’m taking requests with Yunyun right now, but neither of us has healing magic. It could be dangerous if either of us gets seriously injured."
"Okay."
I learned [Sacred Highness Heal] from Aqua. [Sacred Highness Heal] was the most powerful healing spell among all healing skills. I wanted to learn more, but I did not have enough points, so I decided to settle for a healing skill for now.
Just then, I saw Yunyun rush into the guild in a panic.
"Hey, Yunyun!"
"Have you been waiting long? I’m sorry. I overslept."
Yunyun must have been exhausted too, after working so hard catching cabbages yesterday.
"No, I just got here too. Yesterday was supposed to be our day off, but those cabbages showed up out of nowhere, so we couldn’t rest. I overslept too. Haha."
"Whew... that’s a relief. I was worried you might abandon me for making you wait because I overslept."
What did this girl take me for?
"Yunyun, I’m not the kind of person who abandons a companion just because she was tired and overslept."
"Yes... I’m really... so lucky. To meet such a wonderful companion..."
Yunyun suddenly grew teary-eyed. She must have been seriously worried that she would be abandoned by her companion for oversleeping.
The fact that something so trivial moved her showed just how lonely she had been all by herself. Was this what it would be like to have a timid little sister?
"Yunyun, then you must not have eaten yet. I need breakfast too, so order whatever you want, including mine. I’ll go settle the payment for the cabbages we caught yesterday."
"Okay! I’ll order something delicious!"
Hearing that, Aqua suddenly spoke up.
"Tae-jin! Buy me food too! I came out early, so I didn’t get to eat either."
"Y-Yeah, go ahead and order."
Having no money after what happened earlier, Aqua brazenly asked me to buy her a meal. For a moment, I was dumbfounded, but it was bothersome, so I let it slide.
I went over to Luna and asked her to settle the payment for the cabbages we had caught yesterday.
"There were so many caught by you and Yunyun that it took some time to calculate everything, but the total comes to 4.2 million Eris. Please confirm it."
That made me realize just how insanely lucky Kazuma was. Combined with what Yunyun had caught, we must have caught nearly ten times as many as Kazuma, yet we had earned only a little over four times as much. When it came to luck, no one could match him. Except Eris, the goddess of luck.
"Yes! I’ve confirmed it. Thank you."
"Oh, right! And thank you for earlier. For helping me..."
Luna thanked me with a blush, referring to how I had stopped Aqua from causing a scene earlier.
‘Oh! Could spring finally be coming for me too?’
Luna was truly an excellent romantic prospect. She had a glamorous figure, a calm personality, blonde hair, and a pretty face. But I could not tell whether there was something between us or not. Having lived in a bunker for so long with no dating experience, I was not used to situations like this.
"Ah, no. It was nothing."
Perhaps because I was nervous, I stammered a little. Luna saw that and smiled.
"I’ve been working a lot of overtime lately as well. Today would be difficult, but I would really like to treat you to a meal sometime, Tae-jin."
‘This is an invitation to a date, right? Ah, I should have watched more romance stories.’
"I’m looking forward to Luna treating me to a meal. Let me know whenever you have time. I’ll keep that evening free."
"Yes, look forward to it. I’ll buy you something delicious."
I was having such a pleasant chat with Luna that I forgot I had ordered food.
"Hey! Tae-jin, your food’s going to get cold!"
Only when Aqua called out loudly did I come to my senses and say goodbye to Luna.
"Oh no, I was having such a nice conversation with you, Luna, that I forgot my companions were waiting. Well then, I should get going."
"I enjoyed it too. Enjoy your meal."
I went over to the table where Kazuma and Yunyun were sitting and took the seat where my meal was waiting.
"Tae-jin, Tae-jin, you looked like you were in a pretty good mood. Did something happen?"
Perhaps it was obvious from my expression, because Aqua began prying with curious eyes. Kazuma and the others were all looking at me too, apparently curious.
"Ah... no, it’s just that we made good money from the cabbages..."
"Come on! I don’t think that’s it?"
Aqua kept asking while nudging my waist, but I did not answer. I was embarrassed, but nothing was certain yet, and I also did not want rumors to spread and put Luna in an awkward position.
"Oh, right, Yunyun. This is your share of the money from the cabbages we caught yesterday."
"Okay..."
I handed Yunyun 2.1 million Eris, half of the 4.2 million, but rather than being happy to receive the money, she looked deeply gloomy.
"Yunyun, are you sick? You don’t look well."
"N-No, I’m fine."
After we finished eating, Kazuma and the others said they were tired because of yesterday’s events and decided to rest, returning to the lodging. Yunyun and I accepted requests and went hunting.
For about three days, we did nothing but requests at a grueling pace. Verdia would be coming to town soon, so I needed to level up, and Yunyun needed to learn advanced magic too, leaving us no time to rest. That did not mean we took requests indiscriminately; for the sake of our reputation, we did not touch low-difficulty requests that beginner adventurers could handle.
Thanks to working hard for three days, I raised [(D) Kingdom Samurai Swordsmanship] and [(D) Flash Step] to Rank C, and I also acquired [Physical Resistance] and [Magic Resistance]. My level rose to 10 as well.
"Yunyun, if you level up from today’s request, you can finally learn advanced magic, right?"
"Yes! I only need one more level before I can learn advanced magic."
"Oh! Then will I get to see Yunyun use flashy magic today?"
"Just wait and see~"
Today, we were on our way to hunt a manticore and a griffin. A manticore looked similar to a lion, but it was completely different. It was far larger than an ordinary lion and was distinguished by its enormous bat wings and scorpion tail filled with potent venom. A griffin could similarly be thought of as a massive, four-legged bald eagle. They had appeared in the original story too, and the manticore and griffin were said to be fighting over territory, causing considerable damage around the area.
We decided to hunt the manticore first. Both were flying monsters, but there was a difference. The manticore had greater attack power, while the griffin was faster. Their dispositions differed too: the manticore charged headlong, while the griffin struck swiftly and retreated. So we planned to hunt the manticore first, which would be easier to fight on the ground, then once Yunyun leveled up, use her powerful advanced magic to take down the griffin as well.
We arrived at the manticore’s territory Luna had told us about. The manticore and griffin must have fought countless times, because nothing around us was intact. Nearly all the nearby trees were smashed to pieces, and the ground was gouged out here and there.
Grrrrrr...
A lion’s low, rumbling growl echoed deep through the forest from somewhere in the distance. It could not even be compared to the growling of lions I had heard in documentaries.
Looking toward the sound, it seemed to be coming from halfway up the mountain directly ahead.
"I think its nest is on that mountain over there. The sound came from there. What do you think, Yunyun?"
"Yes, I think it came from there too."
We cautiously began climbing the mountain. As we climbed higher, a foul stench of animal carcasses mixed with the smell of beasts gradually grew stronger.
"Yunyun, get ready. I think we’re almost there."
Yunyun gripped her staff tightly, ready to cast magic at any moment.
I used the thief skill [Ambush] to erase Yunyun’s and my presence and scent, then moved forward slowly. After going a little farther, we saw a large cave surrounded by piles of animal and monster bones.
When I used [Enemy Detection], I could sense that the manticore was inside the cave. Judging from its location, the cave did not seem very deep.
"I’ll hide above the cave and ambush the manticore when it comes out. Yunyun, once I’m in position and give you the signal, fire a Fireball into the cave to lure it outside. Even if the ambush fails, I’ll stay on it and keep fighting, so don’t worry too much. Just support me with magic."
"All right."
I reduced my weight, climbed to the cliff directly above the cave entrance, and hung there.
Then, when I signaled Yunyun, she fired a Fireball into the cave.
Roaaar!!
As the manticore came charging outside with a deafening roar, I leaped from the cliff at just the right moment and fell toward it at maximum weight.
[Quick Draw]!
I poured mana and weight into Enma and unleashed [Quick Draw] from above the manticore.
I had intended to kill it with the first ambush, but the manticore was no easy opponent. It sensed the danger and twisted its body in that brief instant, avoiding a fatal wound.
"Did half the ambush succeed, then?"
Looking at the manticore’s condition, half of its left wing had been severed, and a deep, massive gash near its left ribs had begun to bleed.
Its injuries meant it would no longer be able to fly, so it looked like we only had to deal with it on the ground now.
Grrrrr...
It had to be in considerable pain from its wounds, but it kept its guard up as it watched me.
[Wind Moon Slash]!
The manticore leaped sideways and avoided [Wind Moon Slash].
When I immediately closed in with [Flash Step], it saw me and hurriedly swung a forepaw to counterattack, but Yunyun cast paralysis magic at exactly the right moment.
[Paralyze]!
The manticore flinched for a moment, and I did not miss that opening, sending a slash at its head.
Raaagh!!
A huge wound opened on the right side of the manticore’s face, and it began to back away.
As the distance between us widened, Yunyun immediately fired off spells in succession.
[Lightning]!
[Blade of Wind]!
The manticore struggled to evade the magic, but it seemed only barely able to avoid fatal injuries as more and more large and small wounds accumulated.
When I quickly darted in from the manticore’s side, Yunyun shouted a warning.
"Tae-jin!!"
As a shadow suddenly fell over my head, I instinctively used [Flash Step] to retreat.
The manticore’s scorpion tail slammed into the spot where I had been with a boom.
Ding~!
You have acquired the [(D) Danger Sense] ability.
You can sense danger.
Getting a skill was nice, but I had nearly died. As expected of a high-difficulty request, it was not easy.
‘I won’t let my guard down anymore.’
I sheathed Enma and began gathering mana to use [Quick Draw].
The manticore seemed exhausted too, panting and breathing harshly. Blood and saliva dripped from its mouth.
When I reduced my weight and rapidly approached, it attacked with its tail again.
Now that I knew about its tail attack, I dodged it slightly, and the instant its tail struck the ground, I unleashed [Quick Draw] and sliced the tail clean off.
Slice!
At that very moment, Yunyun attacked with magic at perfect timing as well.
[Lightning]!!
Whether because its attention was focused on me or because it was exhausted, the manticore failed to evade Yunyun’s spell this time.
Raaaagh~~~!!
Lightning crashed down on the manticore, and it finally collapsed with a scream amid the smell of burning flesh.
When I slowly approached to check, it had closed its eyes and was only breathing raggedly, apparently close to death.
"Yunyun, finish it. A monster like this should be more than enough for you to level up."
"Okay."
In the world of Konosuba, experience points went to the person who landed the finishing blow on a monster. Later, Kazuma would also get carried this way and defeat the Demon King.
Yunyun finished the fallen manticore by firing a Fireball at it and burning it.
After the hunt was over, we checked inside the manticore’s nest and found that there were not only animal and monster carcasses, but adventurer corpses as well.
They were probably adventurers who had challenged the manticore, failed, and died. I collected the adventurer cards they had carried and checked whether they had anything useful.
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