There's no denying that my grandmother, my mother, and I are definitely related by blood, even if the mystery of where the beautiful gene disappeared between us remains.
Our hair and eye color are exactly the same—there’s no arguing with that.
Firstly, to safeguard the portrait from any harm, I requested a magical clearing of the dust. With help from Romanov and Viktor, we managed to hang it up properly.
The sunroom, now all cleaned up, might just resemble the state my grandmother loved it in during her lifetime.
Well, in any case, it’s certainly more comfortable now.
I went to fetch Tara-chan from my room and let her out of the cage. She bounced out energetically, looked around cautiously, then started spinning her web near the skylight.
Despite being the size of a child's face, Tara-chan didn’t spin a huge web. Instead, she made a neat little hexagonal pattern and then began exploring the sunroom using her silk threads.
She was careful not to let her web touch the portrait—which confirmed just how smart she really is.
“By the way, what does Tara-chan eat?”
“Oh... apparently tempest killer bees and poison moths. They say one meal can last her for about a year, but that just feels wrong somehow.”
I mean, I eat three meals a day. Just because she can go a year without eating doesn’t mean she should.
As part of the cost of acquiring her silk, I considered putting in a request at the Adventurers’ Guild to gather her food.
When I said that, Romanov, Viktor, and Lara formed a little huddle and started whispering among themselves.
Things like “It’s about time…” and “But she’s not doing well with physical activity…” floated out, making it clear they were talking about me.
I stayed quiet and waited. Eventually, the three of them raised their heads.
“In that case, it’s time for a field trip. We’ll go gather food for Tara-chan,” said Romanov.
“Um… what now?”
“Fortunately, both tempest killer bees and poison moths can be found in the Kikunoi dungeon. He added, "I believe it's time for you to begin observing dungeon combat firsthand."
I blinked, unable to quite nod in agreement, and Rottermeyer stepped in from the side.
“Please wait, . The young master is… well…”
“Even if he’s not suited for combat, monsters won’t take that into consideration. And since Kikunoi has a dungeon within its territory, we have to be prepared for the possibility of an outbreak.
If that happens, it may fall to Hōchō-kun to lead the subjugation. This isn’t a peaceful enough world where one can just say, ‘I’m not good at it, so I won’t do it.’”
Romanov's usually gentle expression turned slightly stern, and his words made Rottermeyer gasp.
Seeing that, Viktor and Lara stepped in to ease the tension.
“Hey now, I get that it’s a bit sudden, but this is something that has to be done sooner or later. Fortunately, A-tan’s got some serious skill in enchantment magic. As long as the right gear is prepared, he won’t even get scratched.”
“Exactly. And not just Alyosha—Vitya and I will be there too. The Kikunoi dungeon is beginner-friendly, so it’ll be more like a picnic than anything dangerous.”
Lara gave me a reassuring pat on the shoulder, and Rottermeyer's worried brows slowly began to ease.
Then, Regulus-kun raised his hand.
“Ree wants to go too! I’m going too!”
“Lord Regulus, your brother isn’t going there to play. You’ll stay behind with Utsunomiya, all right?”
“Nooo! I wanna go toooo!”
Regulus stomped his feet, throwing an unusually strong tantrum.
Apparently, even before coming to Kikunoi, Regulus was known for being well-behaved and rarely throwing fits.
Normally, if he was told “no,” he’d look disappointed but wouldn’t push it any further.
I hesitated, unsure of what to do, and gently held his hand.
“Listen, it’s not going to be fun. It might even be scary. It’s not the kind of place little kids go to…”
“Nooo! I wanna go tooooo!”
“I’d really rather you stayed home…”
“I don’t wannaaa! I wanna gooooo!”
Tears welled up in his eyes as he threw his fit—something I had never seen before.
I glanced at Romanov for help, and he tilted his head thoughtfully.
“I don’t mind. I did say it’s like a picnic, didn’t I? Should we invite Kanade-kun and Genzo-san too?”
“Fuh—!?”
“But of course, we’ll prepare properly. And before we go, let’s visit the Adventurers’ Guild, take the beginner’s orientation, and learn what adventuring really involves.”
Wait… really?
We’re actually going into a dungeon!?
That’s dangerous!
I was still stunned when Lara and Viktor both nodded casually.
“Yeah, there’s no way we can’t handle this dungeon.”
“Seriously. We could even take you to the bottom floor if you want.”
Their carefree tone suddenly reminded me—oh right. All three of them are state-certified heroes. They’re insanely powerful.
I’d gotten so used to seeing them doing farm chores, chasing chickens, throwing snowballs, getting muddy, and dancing the Oklahoma Mixer and Jenka that I’d honestly forgotten.
Apparently, I wasn’t the only one. Rottermeyer, Utsunomiya, and even Elise had spaced on that fact.
“Ahh, come to think of it… the s are… strong, aren’t they?” they mumbled, nodding in unison.
By the way, Elise is even better at disappearing her presence than Utsunomiya.
Maybe feeling awkward from those “oh yeah” glances, Romanov-sensei cleared his throat with a light cough.
“Well then, with that settled, we’ll hold a Kikunoi Dungeon Tour as an extracurricular lesson. Don’t forget your lunch.”
"Of course, we can also prepare food on-site if needed."
“So the participants will be me, Vitya, Alyosha, Marumaru-chan, Hiyoko-chan, and Kana and Genzo-san, correct?”
“I—I’ll also join as Lord Regulus’s attendant!” Utsunomiya raised her hand at Lara’s suggestion.
After confirming the group, Rottermeyer double-checked everyone’s names.
When Kanade-kun dropped by to study and Genzo-san arrived for work, both agreed instantly to join in.
“Alright, Hōchō-kun. As part of your enchantment studies, let’s get started on making some equipment for you, Regulus-kun, and Kanade-kun.”
“Yes!”
Thank you so much for the update! I'm glad that all's well and you've had a fun adventure.
ReplyDeleteIf you end up short on proofreader and typesetter options, I do have a little bit of experience there. I can de-anon to see if we have a useful potential contact method, if it comes down to it.
ooohh that would be nice. Would you like to have the copy of the raws?
DeleteYay dungeon lol. Also, hope you had a ton of fun! Thanks for the chapter! 😁
ReplyDeletei had tons of fun but tbh for someone who's always been an indoor type...my body could not keep up. >.< I'm also not used to this sort of heat wave.
DeleteAre you still interested in working on the manga? I'm a redrawer/cleaner and I'd love to do this series
ReplyDelete