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81. I Didn’t Ask for This Kind of Surprise in Life
Even in the middle of winter, there are those rare days when the weather is oddly warm and sunny.
With a perfectly clear sky and a gentle warmth that made it feel like early spring, it was the perfect day for an outing. So here I was, holding hands with Regulus and Kanade, carrying a packed lunch, and making our way through the deep mountain cave—aka, currently exploring a dungeon.
Leading the group were Romanov-sensei and Lara-san, with Genzou-san and Viktor-san guarding our rear. On either side of me were Utsunomiya-san and Tara-chan. We were walking, step by step, through a surprisingly well-maintained cave.
Before heading into the dungeon, we stopped by the city’s guild to get our temporary adventurer registrations. We were given small, dog tag-style necklaces, which, according to Guildmaster Roland, were surprisingly high-tech.
You channel magic into the small metal tag and drip a single drop of blood onto it. The magic inscribed in the metal reacts, registering your biometric data. This system isn't unique to the Adventurer’s Guild—it’s used across all sorts of guilds. Even the wooden tag I got from the spice merchant had a similar enchantment.
In the Adventurer’s Guild, you're required to update your data yearly or whenever your rank goes up. Simply add another drop of blood to your tag, and the guild can use their special crystals to read your data, which also functions as an ID.
Therefore, it is clear that registering biometric data requires you to regularly check your status. And even though it’s highly personal information—only visible to the guild staff and the individual—in my case, Romanov-sensei insisted on handling it himself "for the sanity of the guild staff." Apparently, something about Regulus and Kanade had previously scared them.
So, when we did the registration with Roland there, he let out a booming, “Whaaaat the heeeeeck?!” while Romanov-sensei went dead serious.
Here’s what caused that reaction. Ta-da!
Name: Ageha Kikunoi
Race: Human
Age: 6
Level: 10
Occupation: Noble, Merchant, Advanced Enchanter, Advanced Beast Tamer, Divine Singer (Ultimate One)
Skills: Cooking A++, Sewing Ex, Cultivation A++, Crafting A++, Alchemy A, Swordsmanship E, Archery E, Horsemanship C, Magic A+, Taming A
Special Skills: Blue Hand, Green Hand, Supreme Craftsmanship, Blessed Weaver (Ultimate One)
Notes: Favorite of Princess Hyakka, Blessing of Igor (Medium), Favored by Princess Hyouwa
Yeah, some weird stuff showed up.
Also—what does “Ultimate One” even mean!?
Sure, I had assumed that some form of magic-based biometric reading existed in this world, but seeing it presented like a game status screen was overwhelming.
After that, things got a bit chaotic. Romanov-sensei pinched my slightly-less-chubby cheek and said, “Your skin’s still squishy and smooth! Lara’s facial treatments are amazing!” Roland bowed to me repeatedly. Both Lara and Roland spent a solid hour repeatedly emphasizing, "You must never show this to anyone under any circumstances!" I think I sprouted mushrooms in my ears from how many times they said it.
Apparently, my Enchanter status came from always using enchantments, which makes sense. As for Beast Tamer, that’s thanks to Tara-chan. Even though I received her from Hyouwa-sama, the moment I infused her with magic, a master-servant bond was formed. Teaching her to spin thread and weave cloth counted as taming, I guess. Who knew?
To avoid unnecessary trouble, all Beast Tamers are required to register their familiars with the guild. So Tara-chan now wears a leg band with the same kind of magic as the dog tags.
Interestingly, even babies can be temporarily registered as adventurers. If a couple works as adventurers, it’s not uncommon for them to have kids on the road. The temporary registration acts as an ID, and if anything happens to the parents, the guild will immediately step in to protect the child.
So now, with our registrations complete, Regulus, Kanade, and I can officially call ourselves “provisional adventurers.” There are even beginner quests we can take to earn pocket money. We can engage in tasks such as running errands for the elderly. Despite this, Kanade was filled with enthusiasm, declaring, "Now I'm a real adventurer too!"
It seems like being an adventurer is every little boy’s dream. Both Kanade and Regulus listened to the adventure stories of Romanov-sensei and Lara-san with a sense of excitement in their eyes.
As for girls, Elise said the most popular dream job is becoming an haute couture seamstress in the Imperial Capital.
Speaking of Elise, her embroidery and tsumami-zaiku skills have improved a lot lately. When I checked, it turned out she awakened the skill “Blue Hand.” That’s incredibly reassuring for the future of Effet Papillon. If profits keep increasing, I’ll need to start giving her a skill bonus.
Anyway, we waddled along at kid-speed, and being a group, we got many stares from passing adventurers. But the moment they spotted Tara-chan, they all paled and hurried away. She’s actually really docile, though.
Some folks even tried to pick a fight, but Genzou-san just glared them down, or Romanov-sensei and Lara gave them their signature “ice-cold smiles,” and that was that.
Still, there were kind adventurers too, who offered a friendly “Stay safe!” So not all adventurers are the same.
Eventually, after leisurely walking with many breaks, our stomachs started grumbling around lunchtime. We reached the border between the beginner-friendly floor and the intermediate adventurer floor via the shortest dungeon route.
It was slightly open there, so we decided to throw up a barrier and take a lunch break.
But as we started scouting a spot to eat, the thread connecting me to Tara-chan twitched sharply.
At the same time, Romanov-sensei and Lara-san—walking ahead—abruptly stopped.
“Aljosha (Alyosha),” Romanov-sensei said, “someone’s fighting up ahead.”
“...Strange,” added Lara. “There’s something in this floor that shouldn’t be here.”
“Something that shouldn’t be here?” I asked.
“Yes. Normally, there’s a specific monster here that you’re required to defeat. But this one feels even stronger than that…”
“It’s nothing you need to be scared of,” Lara reassured me. “We’ve got it covered.”
Still… if it surpasses the strength of this level's boss monster, isn't that a significant achievement?
While I was silently panicking, Regulus and Kanade looked more thrilled than nervous. Even Genzou and Utsunomiya didn’t seem particularly fazed.
“If you spot any enemies, Vitya, throw up a barrier just in case,” said Romanov-sensei “If the people fighting now are in danger, Lara and I will jump in.”
“Got it~,” Viktor replied casually.
So it wasn’t that serious, I guess?
The clash of metal echoed through the corridor, growing louder, along with a man’s shouts—or were those screams?
Gradually, we could see silhouettes of people… and hear a disturbing skittering sound, like a swarm of something crawling.
And that sound…
That sound was unmistakably similar to them. You know, the shiny black horrors that infest kitchens and fly when you least expect it—the dreaded “G” creatures.
Thank you so much for the translation!
ReplyDeleteThe story is great and I love the characters. Especially the bond between Ageha and Regulus!
You're welcome~!!
DeleteThanks for reading
The kids are too cute! I am on Ageha’s side. G creatures ughhhhhhh 😭
ReplyDelete