Part 6
"Light of Saber!"
A ray of light flashed through the monsters, neatly bisecting them.
"Fireball!"
A ball of fire scored a direct hit on a nearby monster, filling the air with the smell of barbecued meat.
Lynn, Loli Succubus and I stood in front of the carriage, watching Yunyun easily handle everything.
The enemies that we would've normally struggled against were being swept up like so much dirt.
"She's really enthusiastic."
"Yeah."
I replied to Lynn who was blankly staring at this scene.
"Aren't we unneeded here?"
"Yeah."
I nodded in response to Loli Succubus's genuine question.
The extremely hyped up Yunyun would immediately vanquish any monsters that appeared with a single spell, so we didn't get the chance to do anything.
Between her high firepower and her massive amounts of mana, we could do nothing but watch as the monsters were quickly taken care off.
Crimson Demons are really amazing. That explosion girl also has some pretty impressive firepower, but, considering their overall performance, isn't Yunyun the stronger one?
I originally intended to show off my merits in battle, but from the looks of things, Yunyun will have no problem handling all of them,,so I simply observed her together with the other two.
Once the monsters were all vanquished, Yunyun wiped the sweat off her brow and headed back to us with a bright smile on her face.
"I've defeated the monsters!"
"You're really strong. It's really something to look up to as a fellow mage."
"Yeah. You said you were going to become the chief of the Crimson Demons in the future, didn't you? You certainly have the ability to back that up, number one mage of the Crimson Demons!"
"That was so cool, Senpai!"
After receiving everyone's praise, Yunyun blushed and looked down at her feet.
Seems like she's seriously embarrassed. She probably isn't used to this.
I didn't expect things to become so easy just because Yunyun's around.
Wait, if I praise her and give her a good impression of this incident, wouldn't she agree to help me out in the future?
With her around, we'll be able to take down even high bounty targets. If that's the case, wouldn't our future as adventurers be secured?
Right, time to heap on the praise.
I sat down next to Yunyun.
"Seriously, though, your spells are really amazing. It's the first time I've seen such a powerful and exceptional mage."
"You're exaggerating. This much is normal for Crimson Demons."
"You're being too humble. That explosion girl can only fire a single shot and that's it. Compared to her, you can let loose multiple strong spells in quick succession without causing trouble for your companions. What else is that if not the best?"
"Am I really better than Megumin!? Do you really think so!?"
"Y-Yeah, you're definitely better than her."
"Ehehe, it makes me happy to hear that."
It's a lot more effective than I expected. I knew she often says that she and Megumin are rivals, but it seems like she puts a lot more weight on that than I thought.
Comparing her to Megumin is a great way to praise her. I'll have to take a note of that.
"You guys think so too, right?"
I directed the conversation over to Lynn and Loli Succubus so they could get their own praises in, but all I got in return was silence.
Hey, come on, read the mood a little. Don't you want to give Yunyun a better impression of these events?
Turning back towards the two, Lynn was watching the scenery flow by with a frown, while Loli Succubus was glaring in our direction.
Why are you guys so upset? Shouldn't you guys be celebrating after breezing through a fight like that?
"What's wrong? Did you get motion sickness or something?"
"Not a thing~. Yunyun sure is amazing, isn't she? She's totally unlike me who can only use intermediate magic. Well, not that I really want your praise."
"Senpai is quite different from someone like me who can only use a simple trick to control dreams. So you like strong mages, don't you, Dust?"
Are these two jealous of Yunyun's performance as a mage?
There are times when I too dislike getting compared to Kazuma. Seems like I praised Yunyun too much.
I suppose I should find a stage for us to show our stuff too.
Oh, what a great time for monsters to show up.
"Ooh, nice timing, I think I can see monsters approaching us. Take a break for this one, Yunyun. We'll take care of this bunch."
"Eh, monsters? Ah, some things really are running towards us."
Detecting the presence of several monsters as well as their footsteps, I ordered the driver to stop the carriage and went outside.
There's a horde of monsters heading towards us.
"It's a goblin horde!"
A man screamed from within the carriage.
Seems like our original targets were waiting close to the village to ambush us. If we take them out here, our quest will be completed in one fell swoop.
"You guys stay in the carriage. Time to show off what we can do."
"Yeah. I've accumulated quite a bit of stress recently. Time to vent some of it."
"I'll do my best too!"
Those two certainly seem motivated. I know what Lynn is capable of, but what of Loli Succubus?
To be honest, I completely forgot to plan for our battles.
Well, in any case, my job hasn't changed. As the vanguard, I need to hold the enemy off and buy time for the spellcasters in the back to chant their spells.
There are six goblins. Frankly, it's pretty tough for me to take them all on by myself, but I need to show off my manly side now.
They'd be easy to take on if I had a spear, but it's too late for that now.
"Come at me, you bastards! I, Dust-sama, will take you all on!"
I shouted and waved my sword around to attract their attention.
Right now, our goal isn't to defeat all of them. My job is to prevent them from sneaking behind me and attacking the carriage.
The two right in front of me seemed scared by my scream, but the others quickly moved to flank me.
I managed to fend off most of their attacks with my sword, but I couldn't make it in time to deflect the club that was swung at me from the other side.
I prepared myself to receive the blow as best I could, but instead of the shock or pain that I expected, the goblin simply fell to the ground.
The goblin that fell over without taking a single wound appeared to be soundly asleep.
"Are you alright, Dust-san? Good thing Sleep took hold."
Loli Succubus shouted at me from behind.
So she magically put them to sleep, huh?
"Great job, Loli Succu-Lolisa!"
I gave her a thumbs up, and she blush as she returned the gesture.
"Lightning! Now's not the time to be doing that!"
A flash of lighting flew past me, striking a goblin square in the chest and taking it down.
"Thanks, Lynn! Let's take them all down!"
Part 7
We managed to take down all the goblins.
Taking down two of them early in the battle made a really huge difference. Additionally, it really surprised me how well Loli Succubus performed.
She doesn't know any direct damage spells, but she can use spells like Sleep and Paralyze, which contributed greatly to the battle.
"That was amazing. Thanks for your hard work, everyone."
Yunyun, who sat on the sidelines as instructed, joyfully called out as we returned.
Hearing that, the previous awkwardness of the other two vanished, and the three of them happily chatted amongst themselves.
As the only male in the party, I was completely left out.
One of the villagers that we were escorting was sticking his head out the carriage, warily keeping a lookout on the surroundings. I suppose I'll have a chat with him.
"Relax, I defeated all the goblins."
"Oh, did you really!? Thank you very much. I'm really glad we hired you! Incidentally, how many of them were there?"
"We killed six of them."
I counted off the number of bodies laying on the ground and relayed it to the villager. In response, he frowned.
That's certainly not a satisfied expression.
"What's wrong? Do the numbers not add up?"
"Yeah, according to the rumours I've heard, it's a horde over ten members strong."
"Hey, didn't you tell us that there were around five to six of them before?"
That was written on the Quest notice. The villagers also mentioned the same figure when we talked to them directly.
"Yeah, about that, the more goblins there are, the more money we have to offer in recompense, right?"
"So you lied about the numbers…"
"I'm sorry! I mean, it's important to save money for old age, isn't it?"
"You won't get old if you end up killed by the goblins!"
"I know! I know that, but my only son doesn't work and just lazes at home all day! I can't help but worry about my savings!"
"I get! I get it, so stop crying and clinging onto me!"
I won't feel anything if a middle aged man were to cling onto me.
As I desperately tried to wrestle him off me, Lynn and the others looked over in my direction and started whispering amongst themselves.
"He's been acting really suspicious lately. It used to be that he'd do nothing but chase after skirts all day, but he's been fairly quiet lately. It all started when he got hit on by a guy not too long ago."
"Eh, could it be that Dust-san leans both ways? I've read about such men who get lovey-dovey with each other in my stories…"
"I get what you mean."
"Hey, I can hear you! Don't just spout nonsense!"
In the first place, Loli Succubus should know the reason.
My needs are fulfilled every time I make use of that store, so I won't have such strong urges for the next day.
"Well, fine. We'll leave the talk of money for later; right now, we'll see this quest through to the end."
"Thank you very much! Really, thank you very much!"
"I told you, stop clinging onto me! It's disgusting!"
"I knew it!" x3
"Stop jumping to conclusions, you guys! I'm straight! I went through a lot of shit in the past, so this really isn't a laughing matter!"
Ignoring my denials, the girls started excitedly chatting amongst themselves.
It's nice that the three of them are getting along well, but it feels like this will end up putting me in a bad spot.
If they start swapping tales of what I've done…
"Come to think of it, back when he was with Vanir-san…"
"Eh? He did such a thing? I didn't know about that."
"And this happened too…"
No! This is seriously bad!
It was a mistake to put these three together!
"Oh, yeah, about what's up next-!"
I had no choice but to steer the conversation in another direction.
I forced myself into the group that was talking up a storm and started discussing our future actions.
Part 8
"Dust, is it really down this road? No matter how long we walk, all I see are trees."
"If you want to complain, go do it to the village chief. He's the one that said to follow this road."
After safely escorting the villagers back to the village, we got the details from the village chief and headed off to deal with the remaining goblins.
Of course, we asked for additional compensation. A person who'd risk their lives just out of the kindness of their hearts is the stranger one.
A person like me with a slacker's personality won't act without the promise of profit. I'm not like those knights who will act based on honour alone.
"Umm, there's a cave at the end of this path that the goblins have turned into their nest. We're heading to raid it in the wee hours of the morning, and my job is to put any lookouts to sleep. Did I miss anything?"
Loli Succubus recited what we explained to her back in the village.
Although she wasn't that into this originally, she seems quite pleased with herself after getting the chance to show off in the battle earlier.
She's always had a somewhat insecure side, so being useful even in this situation must have given her a sense of accomplishment.
"Um, if it's okay with you, should I take them all out with my magic?"
"It'd wrap things up really quickly if you were to get involved, but you should conserve your energy, Yunyun. If goblins are here, things might get troublesome."
"You're talking about the Rookie Killer, right? Kazuma managed to handle it somehow the last time we ran into one…"
Back when I switched parties with Kazuma, both his and my parties ran into a Rookie Killer.
A Rookie Killer is a troublesome creature that famously uses small fry monsters like Kobolds and Goblins as bait to lure in adventurers, which it then preys upon.
It's not impossible to defeat, but it's definitely a strong enemy.
"I got it. I'll refrain from using magic as much as possible and stay on guard!"
Considering her abilities, Yunyun will be able to easily handle a Rookie Killer. Simply keeping her as insurance will allow us to focus on taking care of the goblins and take a load off our shoulders.
"Right, let's cut the chatter here. We're drawing close to the cave."
I signaled to my companions to get down and crept ahead..
Poking my head out from behind the shadow of a large tree, I scouted our destination.
"I see the entrance, but there doesn't seem to be any lookouts."
There's a hole leading into the side of the mountain, and the path leading to it appears to have been flattened.
They definitely used this place as a base. I pricked my ears, but all I could hear is the sound of grass rustling in the wind.
Did the goblins run away after losing half their members?
I signaled to my companions to hold position and moved to the front of the cave.
Peeking inside, the cave was much larger than I expected, and dried grass was piled up inside in what passes as beds for the goblins.
And above all, there's not a single inhabitant. It's an empty house.
"Hey, there's no one here. You can come out now."
We investigated the cave and the surroundings, but we didn't find a single goblin, only traces that they've been here.
"They left a lot of their stuff back here. Doesn't it seem like they left this place in a hurry? What do you think, Lynn?"
"Yeah, I think the same way. Leaving their beds behind is one thing, but I don't think they'd leave their food behind if they had the choice."
The two of us tilted our heads as we surveyed the inside of the cave.
I understand being unnerved after your companions failed to return, but this feels like they left under much more pressing circumstances…
"Perhaps they got into a scuffle with some other adventurers?"
"The villagers said that they didn't hire anyone other than us."
"D-D-D-D-Dust-han!"
Loli Succubus called me by a strange name as she repeatedly tapped me on the back.
"Don't refer to me with such a cutesy name. I'm talking about something serious right now, so leave that till later."
"D-D-D-D-Dust-san!
What the hell is Yunyun doing? She has a higher level, so her strength is correspondingly higher too. That actually kinda hurt.
"Like I said, use my name properly. I already told you that I'm talking about something serious, didn't I!?"
I'm properly investigating for once, why the hell does everyone keep getting in my way?
Even Lynn must be exasperated… Why is she staring behind me without moving?
Following her gaze, I turned back and saw a large, dark green creature looking at us from the treeline.
It had a large maw lined with sharp fangs and two horns extending from the side of it's head.
The creature pushed aside the trees and foliage as it entered the clearing, revealing it's gigantic, lizard like body.
Yes, it's the most famous, and most feared of monsters, a dragon.
"Dr-Drago-gon!? What is it doing here!?"
You're way too surprised, Lynn.
All three of them simple stood frozen in place, staring at the creature, their weapons hanging limply in their hands.
Judging from its size and the color of its scales, it's probably a fairly old dragon.
"Oh, this dragon grew up quite well."
"Why are you so calm!? It's a Dragon, you know!? The strongest monster is right in front of us!"
Lynn was trembling as she clutched at my chest.
It doesn't seem like the other two are in a much better state.
"Guess I have no choice. I'll distract him, so hurry up and run. But don't turn your back on it. Get some distance while keeping your eyes on it, then make a break for it together… got it?"
I stepped in front and signaled them to get back with my free hand.
The goblins must have run into this dragon and hastily evacuated the cave. There's also the possibility that this cave was originally the dragon's nest.
"Stop pretending to act calm! This isn't the time to act cool! You need to run away too, otherwise you'll end up getting chomped on again!"
Lynn fearfully screamed at me.
"Yeah, you should get back, Dust-san! A-As a mage of the Crimson Demons, I-I'll defeat this dragon, gain the title of the Dragon Slayer, a-and boast about it to M-Megumin later!"
It's not at all convincing when you're shaking like a newborn calf.
"You should run too, Dust-san! Who will coach me in acting if you die!? And you still haven't returned me the money I lent you!"
Loli Succubus, who had been getting a lot more repeat customers recently thanks to my guidance, seems to be genuinely worried about me.
"Ah, right, return what you owe me too!"
"You had me cover your bill the last time we ate, didn't you!?"
The three of them pulled on my sleeves as if they wanted me to escape with them.
They usually complain about me everyday, but when push comes to shove, they do have a pretty kind side, don't they?
… I'll just pretend that they didn't bring up the issue of money.
"It'll be fine, I won't die. I just happen to know a little bit about dragons, so if I'm by myself, I'll be able to do something. In the first place, did you really think I'd sacrifice myself for the sake of my companions? It's all because I have a plan-"
"Oh, yeah, that's true. Everyone, let's go!"
Lynn interrupted me as I was in the middle of reassuring them.
"Ah, yes. There's no way Dust-san would want to do something so admirable. He probably thought of something too underhanded and cowardly to do in front of us. Like perhaps Vanir-san is in hiding or something?"
"I think so too."
All three of them were immediately convinced… You know it's fine to worry about me a little more, right?
Normally, this'd be the time for me to say something cool and change the way you guys look at me.
"Oh come on, I'm begging you, just hurry up and run!"
"I believe in you!"
Lynn yelled as the three of them made their escape. Hearing that line gives me quite a bit of motivation.
Without drawing my sword, I walked up towards the dragon who was simply observing our interactions.
The dragon warily snorted and let out a loud roar.
However, there was no change in the size of its pupils, and I don't get the feeling of an imminent attack coming from it.
"Well, I stopped using this, but against a dragon…"
Without raising my guard, I approached the dragon.
Part 9
After clearing up the issue with the dragon, I headed in the direction that the three of them left in and found them surprisingly close by.
Were they too worried for me to run off?
"But was it really okay? I really don't think that Dust-san can take on a dragon alone. I knew I should've stayed back too. Dragon or no, Advanced Magic will definitely be able to do something!"
"Stop it, he'll probably be fine. Dust doesn't get up to anything good and seeks an easy life by cheating and deceiving others, but he does have some hidden depths."
"Hidden depths? I don't think there's anything else to him apart from the heart of a pervert."
It'd be kind of awkward for me to appear now.
I should hide myself and observe for a while longer.
"Well, I do agree, but… No, that's not it, it's like, how do I say this, sometimes he gives off a different feeling. I can't put it very well, but it's like every so often, he starts seeming like a proper, stand up guy… I do think that I'm seeing things sometimes."
"Is that so? My image of Dust is someone who spends all day hitting on girls with his friends, getting drunk, and getting into trouble."
"I have a similar impression. All he does in the store is stare at butts with a perverted look on his face. But… Lynn-san has spent the most time with him, so maybe you noticed something that we missed."
"It's more like he just keeps clinging onto me. It's not like I understand him because I want to."
The three of them exchanged glances and shared a wry laugh.
Those guys sure are shooting their mouths off.
Though, stuff does come to mind whenever they point it out, but I won't apologize!
"Can't you guys worry a little more about me?"
"Ah!"
The three of them exclaimed at the same time as I revealed myself, and for a moment there I swore I could see them tear up a bit, but it was soon replaced by an expression of relief.
"You came back earlier than I thought. What happened to the dragon?"
"You don't need to worry about that. It seems like it got into a fight with some other monster or some adventurers recently. There was a sword stuck in its foot, so I removed it, and it gave this to me."
I tossed over a bag containing some precious metals and gold that I got from the dragon.
Dragons are known to collect shiny items, so there are occasions where people receive a ton of treasure after defeating one. There are quite a few people who seek to challenge dragons with fame and riches in mind.
It's not very well known, but there are intelligent dragons who aren't particularly belligerent towards humans, so simple trades and deals such as this can be cut with them.
"Eh? You reached an understanding with it!? I've heard that there are dragons who are particularly intelligent, but… So it was true after all. Well, there's a story about a Dragon Knight who fights on the back of a dragon in a neighbouring country, so this isn't that unbelievable."
"I know of the story of the Dragon Knight too! I heard it from Alice-chan before! It's the story where the son of a lower ranked noble family managed to qualify for the rare class of Dragon Knight at a young age, right!? I've heard that he's the strongest spearman in the country, handsome, dependable, and the perfect ideal of a knight!"
Yunyun's eyes were shimmering as she excitedly said that. She's way too into it.
"Dragon Knight. The strongest spearman in the country, huh?"
Lynn was looking at me like she had something to say.
"Handsome and dependable, huh? Hey, doesn't that sound like me!?"
"Not at all."
Yunyun's and Loli Succubus's voices overlapped.
Lynn still regarded me with a suspicious gaze, but eventually mumbled, "Nah, that's not possible," and sighed.
"Well, it doesn't matter. Anyway, there's quite a bit of stuff in that bag. We've really hit it big this time!"
With that much money, I'll be able to replace the clothes and equipment that I lost during the fight against the Hydra.
"So it was a friendly dragon… Here I thought that it was finally my chance to become a dragon slayer… I wanted to see Megumin's envious face…"
Everything always ends up being about Megumin, doesn't it? You could say it's because she's especially conscious of her rival, but it seems like they're closer than that.
"Isn't it fine that everyone's safe? With this, the quest is complete."
Loli Succubus seems to have a bit more confidence after this adventure. She's certainly a little bolder than she was before this.
It ended up being a bigger deal than I expected, but the cave is quite some distance away from the village. Even if the dragon holes up in that cave for a while to lick its wounds, it wouldn't cause any issues.
It's a pretty sharp dragon, after all. It wouldn't purposely go out of its way to antagonise us humans.
"Well, let's go home. It went pretty well for our first party, didn't it?"
"Yeah, it somehow went better than it usually does."
Lynn and I shared a smile, and turned towards the other two…
"With this, Megumin won't be able tease me about that! Even I can find a proper party and go on one or two adventures together!"
"So this is how adventures are. It's been an educational experience. I'll use this experience and improve the authenticity and lewdness of my dreams. Then, one day, I'll become the number one…"
These guys weren't paying attention at all, were they?
The two of them were completely lost in their own worlds.
Bah, it doesn't matter. Let's just leave them be.
"It's quite different from what I had in mind."
Kazuma was always alone with a party of three girls. I'm in the same position now, but I can't say it's been a totally pleasant experience.
There are things that you won't understand unless you've personally experienced it.
"True companions are really great to have, aren't they?"
Being surrounded by three girls certainly isn't easy.
I've finally experienced the troubles that Kazuma goes through.
I guess I'll treat him to a drink with the money we earned today… While I'm at it, let's invite Keith and Taylor too. I'm a little concerned as to how they are holding up.
-x-X-x-
Konosuba Dust Spinoff 2: Chapter 3
-x-X-x-
Part 1
"Dust, do you have a moment?"
I was roaming the town, searching for pretty women and ways to make easy money like I usually do, when I heard someone call out to me from behind.
"Oh hey, Kazuma. What's up?"
A weak-looking, plain faced man greeted me as I turned around.
He looks to be a weakling no matter where you're coming from, but it wouldn't be much of an exaggeration to say that he's the most accomplished adventurer in this town.
In addition, he's also my best friend.
"Are you in a rush?"
"Nah, I'm quite free right now. Ever since I got revived by that party loving priest of your after that hydra gulped me down, my body hasn't been feeling great. I've been taking a little rest since then."
"Oh, yeah, that did happen a couple of months ago. You still haven't recovered from it? This is lucky, then. I won a few vouchers for a hotel in Alcanretia from the raffle that the shopping district was hosting. It includes traveling expenses. So, you interested?"
"Seriously!? Of course I'm interested! Alcanretia is the city of hot springs and water that is famous as a health resort, right? Gimme!"
"S-Sure… It makes me feel a little guilty when you're so eager…"
"What, is there some kind of downside to this?"
Kazuma smiled wryly.
It's probably something like the inn is haunted, that's why it's so cheap or something like that. It's the shopping district that the petty owner of the general store is part of, after all.
"Rather than downside, it's more like the inn and the entire town is… Well, the town might actually be quite a good fit for you."
"Then there's no problem, is there? But, is this really okay? Not that I'd return it even if you ask me to."
"Y-Yeah, we already went there once. We don't really want to go back there…"
"Ah, I see. Visiting tourist spots once is more than enough, right?"
"…Yeah."
Kazuma averted his gaze and sighed.
I've heard rumours that he visited that town quite some time ago. He went with the usual three girls and the beautiful shopkeeper of the magic item store that Sir Vanir was working at.
There's no way nothing happened when visiting a hot springs resort with such a group, but when I asked him about it, he would just become listless and say 'I don't want to remember it…', so I didn't pry any further.
Normally you'd expect something enviable to happen during such a trip, but judging from his reaction, not only did something like that not happen, but he ended up experiencing something really unpleasant over there.
Well, that's to be expected with those problem children.
The crazy Archpriest who would boldly proclaim herself to be a goddess.
The crazy Archwizard who thinks of nothing but releasing her Explosion.
And the crazy, total masochist Crusader who couldn't land any of her attacks.
"… It's been hard on you."
"So you do understand!"
He tearfully exclaimed when I gently patted him on the shoulder.
I knew it, he must have experienced something really horrible over there. It's no surprise that he wouldn't want to go back.
"Seems like the shopping district has an abundance of vouchers, so I got eight of them. You can take all of them if you want."
"Oh, thanks. I'll gladly have them."
So, eight people, huh? Keith, Taylor, Lynn, and I takes four, so that leaves four more slots.
A number of faces appeared in my mind, so I guess I'll go invite them.
After inviting my party members… Yeah, he'll probably be in that magic item shop.
Part 2
"Guys, this is a little sudden, but we're going on a trip the day after tomorrow."
I told my party as we were having a meal at our usual spot at the guild.
I expected them to act a little more surprised, but they simply continued eating after throwing me a doubtful glance.
"Hey, hey, shouldn't you guys say something? I'm doing this to help cure Keith and Taylor too!
Come on, at least show me a little courtesy!"
"Dust, before we talk about taking a trip, do you even have the money required to pay for it? We haven't scheduled any quests recently, so we have the time, but you don't have the money, do you? You're the only one who didn't get any rewards from the Hydra battle, after all."
"I used the money you got from selling the dragon's treasure to repay your debts, so don't expect anything from that."
"Oh, thank you so very much for repaying my debts for me!"
"Don't mention it."
I said through gritted teeth, and Lynn returned with a laugh.
She said that she would sell it for cash, so I trusted her with it, but she used it to repay my debts. before I knew it.
Well, I incurred some new debts after those were cleared, so things haven't changed much.
The three of them stopped eating and fixed a suspicious gaze on me.
"You can relax on that point. I won't ask you for money. It'll be my treat!"
I proudly declared.
Taylor let out a small chuckle and returned to his food.
"Hey, if you won a windfall through one of your games, then go repay your debts. You weren't up to anything criminal, were you?"
"Dust's really bad at gambling, so there's no way he made a windfall with that. I'm sure he got that money through some underhanded means."
"Why the hell do you think I can only earn money through gambling or criminal acts!? I've still got quite some money from selling some of those porn books! And I got vouchers from Kazuma that cover lodging and travel fees!"
The moment I said that, my companions instantly perked up.
"You should've said that earlier. Where's the destination?"
"As expected of Kazuma-sama. How many nights are we staying?"
"It's nice to go for a little R&R every once in a while."
"They sure got energetic all of a sudden…"
They ignored my grumbles and started talking animatedly.
Seems like everyone intends to join. That makes four people.
Right, I guess I'll go invite that person who takes care of me every day.
Part 3
At a certain famous Magic Item shop in Axel.
"Fuhahaha! You sure have an admirable attitude, debt-ridden adventurer!"
Sir Vanir responded as such when I offered him the voucher.
I wanted to offer an invitation to the beautiful shopkeeper too, but it seems like she's out to make some purchases. Plus, I've heard that she went with Kazuma the previous time, so I think I'll pass on inviting her.
"Sir has helped me a lot in the past, after all. This seems like the perfect chance to repay you for that."
"Were Moi not a devil, such an act would've raised my affection points by quite a bit. Very well, Moi shall accept your offering. The city of hot springs and water, huh. That foolish town that would get involved with that layabout goddess. Moi has always wanted to see it with my own eyes."
"Who exactly are you calling a layabout goddess!?"
The one who interrupted the conversation was the girl who was fiddling around with various items in the store, Kazuma's Archpriest, Aqua.
Despite being on bad terms with Sir, it seems like she spends quite a bit of time in this store..
"I'm referring to the girl who nonchalantly comes here to drink tea without buying anything and badgers the incompetent shopkeep daily. Yes, the self-proclaimed, blue-haired goddess with a truly pitiful brain."
"Oh, this place was a shop? I've never seen any customers here, so I thought it was a rest stop or something. My bad~"
Aqua cutely tilted her head and clasped her hands together, trying to provoke Sir Vanir.
"Certainly, there are no customers here, merely trash and pests."
"Sir, doesn't that mean…"
"Umm… Does that include me…"
I think I heard someone else's voice along with mine, but it was probably my imagination.
"Hah!? Who are you calling a pest!? You're a devil! You're even lower than pests!"
"Unlike a good-for-nothing like you, Moi routinely tidies the rubbish, chases away crows, and has a good reputation amongst the neighbors. Don't lump me together with you who does nothing but drink in the guild all day."
"Grrr! Devils like you should cause some trouble for the residents so I can purify you!"
"If you're talking about causing trouble, shouldn't we first talk about your troublesome religious organization that encourages swindling and the use of forceful methods?"
"I can accept you speaking badly of me, but I won't forgive you for speaking badly of my children! That's it, I'm mad now! I'll send you back to hell right here!"
"You're offering to send me back to my homeland without charge? Well, this might be the first time something good came out of your mouth, you source of all evils!"
Both of them seemed fairly on edge as they slowly inched closer to each other.
This is quite a dangerous situation. They might have some… interesting personalities, but there's no denying that both of them are quite skilled.
I'll definitely be dragged in if they go wild here.
"Oh, yeah, Kazuma was looking for you earlier. He was saying something about hiding things from him."
"I wonder what it could be? Ah, don't tell me that Kazuma found out that I was using his jacket as a tablecloth before I washed it? Hmp, seems like you got lucky today. I'll let you off this time."
After saying something that you would never expect to come out from a priest's mouth, Aqua hastily left.
"Don't ever come back again, you goddess of misfortune! Where's the salt!?"
Vanir leaned out the door and angrily shouted towards Aqua's quickly retreating back.
A priest being treated as a nuisance by a devil… What has this world come to?
"Oh, Sir, that layabout goddess you were talking about earlier is referring to the Goddess Aqua, right?"
"Oh, yeah, you don't know. Don't worry about it, it's but a trifling matter. Anyway, about the hot springs trip, I see some interesting things down that path, so you can look forward to it."
"That just makes me more anxious, Sir."
I can't ignore the words of the Devil that can see through all.
After all, I ended up going through something horrible after he said something similar in the past.
"It's not just bad things that will happen on the trip, you know? Hot springs means mixed baths. It seems that you have some expectations on that front. Worry not, those expectations will be met."
"Seriously, Sir!?"
"Delinquent whose head is filled with desires that cannot be shown to others, if Moi says anything more right now, it might end up bringing disaster upon you."
Sir was looking somewhere behind me as he said that. I followed his gaze and saw Yunyun sitting by the window and looking at me suspiciously.
I didn't notice her presence until now.
"Oh, you were there? So you've improved your loner powers to the point where you can erase your presence completely. That's amazing."
"You're not praising me, are you!?… No, nevermind that, what were you guys talking about just now? It seems like you're looking forward to the mixed baths, but the only women who'd use them would be those of quite a ripe age. There aren't that many young girls who would make use of them."
Yunyun was looking at me with contempt.
What she's saying might make sense, but it doesn't sit well with me to be talked down to by a girl as unknowing of the world as Yunyun.
"Hey, you were holed up in the Crimson Demon village before you came to Axel, right? You're telling me to trust in your knowledge of the world? Have you never thought that what you know of might be wrong?"
"What are you saying? Common sense should apply wherever you are! At the very least, I can say I'm better than Megumin!"
"So you're saying that the Crimson Demons have the same way of thinking as the rest of the world?"
"… When you put it that way…"
I've heard that Yunyun was regarded as an odd one amongst the Crimson Demons.
Generally speaking, Crimson Demons have a different set of values and way of thinking as compared to the rest of the world. A prime example is that Explosion Girl.
Standing out in battle is the utmost importance to them, and introductions need to be done in that embarrassing, bombastic fashion. That's their common sense.
Despite having been raised in such an environment, Yunyun is surprisingly sensible. Thus, she's very vulnerable when attacked from that direction.
"As a friend, I'm really worried about you. You'll just needlessly embarrass yourself if you don't understand the common sense of the world. And given how shy you are around others, there's no way you'll be able to learn this by talking to people, right? That's why I'm explaining this to you."
"You're more of an acquaintance than a friend, but I'll thank you for your concern."
This girl is really gullible, to the point where it seriously worries me.
… But I'll make use of that personality of hers in this case.
"Mixed baths have been trending recently, and it's highly recommended that young women make use of them. It's important to take care of your skin when you're young. Apparently, having their skin seen by men makes something go boom and brings out their luster."
"Your explanation seems haphazard and isn't convincing at all. I can't see it as anything but the product of some perverted scheme. In any case, it has nothing to do with me."
"It does have something to do with you. I still have a whole bunch of the vouchers that I gave to Sir. Would you like one?"
"Eh, you're offering one to me!?"
She seems really surprised. Doesn't seem like she expected that.
When I handed one of the vouchers over…
"Wow! It's a little strange for Dust to offer something like this, but it's the first time I've been invited on a trip together with a large number of people. I need to write this in my diary later!"
Her eyes were shimmering as she said that.
She was quite excited when I invited her on an adventure a couple of days ago, so this wasn't entirely unexpected, but still, I didn't think she'd be this excited.
… She's so overjoyed that I felt a little sympathetic for her.
She happily stared at the voucher in her hand for a while, grinning from ear to ear, but she suddenly looked up at me with a fearful expression on her face.
"Ah, don't tell me you have your eyes set on me!? I'm not that easy of a woman!"
"I have no interest in that kid-like body of yours. If you say that you would like to enter the mixed baths, the other women might let their guard down and join you. I'm betting on that scenario!"
She doesn't have a bad body, but she's way too young for me to make a move on her.
It'd be pretty nice if she were two years older, though.
"It's a relief to hear that you aren't interested in me, but that's infuriating too!"
"Then what do you want? This is why women are so troublesome!"
I've always been bad at dealing with women.
"I'm honestly happy that you invited me, but there's no point in trying to trick me. No matter what you say, I'm not entering the mixed baths."
"Do as you wish."
Despite her complains, Yunyun certainly seemed quite pleased about this whole affair.
After telling her the date of the trip, she said 'I need to make preparations!' and happily skipped out the door.
"The girl who's reached the zenith of loners seems to be in a good mood. As a friend, Moi should offer my gratitude. As thanks for that and driving that party goddess away before she caused a ruckus, take this with you."
Sir took a small marble off the shelf and placed it on the table.
It felt slightly squishy in my hand as I touched it.
"Oh, do be careful with that. It will create a large quantity of smoke when it hits the ground. It's not dangerous, but those that inhale the smoke will fall in love with the user. Yes, it's an item that grants the desires of men."
"Huh!? Such a dreamlike item is… You're kidding! Sir, can I really have this? Not that I'd return it even if you asked me to."
"Devils do not go back on their word. Make good use of it. However, it will not work on a complete stranger. One must have a certain degree of familiarity with the target in order for it to work. Keep that in mind…"
Sir seems to be saying something, but I wasn't really paying attention right now.
I quickly ended the conversation and flew out of the store.
"Right, then, next is… Oops, hey."
As I walked down the main street, deep in thought, I suddenly received a bump to my shoulder.
Seems like I ran into someone while I wasn't paying attention.
"Hey, watch where you're going. Well, if you're a young girl, I might consider treating you gently… Wait, you're the guy from-"
That voice sounded vaguely familiar, so I turned around, and the three men immediately averted their gazes.
I only saw their faces for an instant, but I feel like I've seen them somewhere before…
"Say, have we met before?"
"It's probably just your imagination, right, boss?"
"Idiot! Don't call me boss!"
They were whispering something amongst themselves. Well, I have no interest in the secret conversations of men, so I bid them a 'Oh, is that so? Sorry,' and carried on.
Normally I'd stick with them to try and wring some money out of, but I'm only focused on how to put that marble to use right now, and that would be time I can't afford to waste.
"Anyone who breathes in the smoke in this thing will fall for me, right? That means I need to find the proper scene to use it. Dropping it in the women's baths or a bar seems like it'd be interesting, but it won't work unless I'm acquainted with them…"
In other words, the best time to use it would be when a lot of women I know gather together.
In order to create such a situation, I'll put the remaining two vouchers to good use!
"That's the only way."
I'll use the vouchers to invite women that I know on the trip. Once they are all gathered, I'll use the marble to make them all fall for me. That's a pretty good plan, if I say so myself.
The only problem is who those two people will be.
The only female acquaintances that come to mind would be the other adventurers, but I'm not particularly well acquainted with them.
We have surprisingly little contact despite being fellow adventurers. Female adventurers in particular tend to keep their distance from me for some reason, so our relationship only really extends to trading the occasional greeting.
Those three girls popped up in my head, but I immediately pushed them out.
I'll leave them to Kazuma.
"Just two more left. I'll have to carefully decide on who to bring."
"Um, Dust-san, can you stop mumbling while pacing in front of the store?"
Hearing a familiar voice, I looked up and met the eyes of Loli Succubus, who was sweeping away dirt outside the cafe.
Seems like I subconsciously walked over to the succubus shop.
"You, huh… even if someone with such few curves were to fall for me…"
"You sure are saying something very rude all of a sudden. No matter what happens, I won't ever fall for Dust-san, so rest assured. The only one in my heart is Vanir-sama!"
Come to think of it, most of the succubi are big fans of Sir.
Vanir is quite highly ranked compared to the succubi, so it seems like a lot of them look up to him.
This girl will undoubtedly want to come along if I told her that Vanir is coming with us. It'd be quite easy to bring her along; the question is if there's any benefit for me to do so.
"Do you get along well with the other succubi?"
"Where did this come from? Well, we get along well enough. They've been asking me for tips on how to create better lewd dreams lately."
"You seem pretty proud about that, but isn't that due to my help?"
It's true that the quality of their dreams have been increasing lately. I'll acknowledge that.
But that's only due to the advice that I've been sharing with Loli Succubus.
"Er, when you put it that way… But unlike you, I have a lot of friends. Yeah."
"I have a lot of friends too. There's Taylor, Keith, Lynn. Kazuma. Then there's Yunyun, and… and…"
"Who else is there?"
"Wait. Hold on a minute! There are definitely others! There's a whole bunch of guys who help me out with my schemes!"
"Those don't really count as friends, right? I have a lot of friends~ I'm on good terms with the other Succubi, and I'm familiar enough with the various adventurers that I've shown dreams to that we'll engage in small talk when we run into each other on the street."
It's the complete opposite of Yunyun.
Well, now that I think about it, it's probably to be expected for Loli Succubus to have better interpersonal relationships than Yunyun.
She doesn't have a very good figure, but she's friends with the Succubi with sexier figures. If I make her fall for me, I can get her to introduce me to her friends later.
Yeah, that can work!
"Right, I'll give this to you."
"What's this? A voucher for a trip to Alcanretia? Umm, I don't have any money right now, so I'm not buying it."
"I said I'll give it to you, didn't I? You've helped me out quite a bit in the past, and you're giving me a big hand at night too, so this is just a little thank you for that."
"This smells really fishy. And, Alcanretia is that city, right?"
Don't pick it up with your fingertips like you're holding something dirty.
Why the hell can't anyone just accept a person's goodwill?
"Well, if you don't want it, I don't really mind. Sir Vanir will be accompanying us, though."
"I'll go! When is it!? Is it today!? Tomorrow!?"
"C-Calm down! I get it, so calm down!"
After somehow calming Loli Succubus down enough to tell her the date, she immediately ran off from the shop.
"I have to buy some clothes that look like they'd catch Vanir-sama's eye!"
I heard an excited voice from somewhere down the street.
I'm a little jealous of Sir Vanir's popularity, but she'll probably thank me for this, so I consoled myself with that.
There's only one voucher left.
A girl who's on good enough terms to accept an invitation from me, huh?
Just then, a certain figure appeared in my mind.
Right now, there's a lack of women with erotic bodies. If I manage to invite her, the entertainment value I'd get from the mixed baths will be doubled.
Well, she probably won't accept, but nothing ventured, nothing gained.
Part 4
"Megumin! Listen to this! Someone invited me to go on a trip!"
"Did you fall victim to some kind of suspicious salesman? Or did someone pressure you into buying it? I'll go with you, so let's get your money back."
The two crimson demons were excitedly chatting in an alleyway next to the guild.
It feels like I'll just be dragged into a whole host of trouble if I were to call out to them, so I think I'll just scoot by.
"I didn't buy into any strange sales pitches or anything! A guy gave them to me as a gift!"
"And who is that guy? He probably said something like, 'I'll be your friend, so let's check into the inn together,' or something like that, right? You really should stop following strangers just because they show you a little bit of kindness."
"Just what kind of person do you think I am, Megumin!?"
"An easy woman."
"That applies more to you! That person who properly invited me…"
"Look me in the eyes when you say that! I've heard some rumours that you've been getting close to a blond-haired delinquent recently, but those are just rumours, right!?"
They were arguing about something pointless.
Megumin was vigorously shaking Yunyun who refused to meet her gaze, and in return Yunyun nervously responded with excuses.
It would've been fine to just say that you got it from me.
"I bet the whole invitation thing is a lie anyway. You probably got anxious after hearing about me and Kazuma sharing a bath together, that's why you came up with this fantasy, right? You don't need to worry over that… After all, it's too early for you to become an adult."
"T-That's not it at all! I did get invited! Don't give me such a gentle expression while saying that!"
Ignoring those two, I entered the guild and headed straight for the counter.
After arriving in front of Luna who was in charge of the reception, I stared down her cleavage.
This angle provides a really clear view of her peaks. It's the best!
"Dust-san, do you have some business here?"
She was smiling as she said that, but there was a strange intensity behind it.
She also covered up her cleavage, so I gave up and talked to her.
"You sure work hard every day. Isn't it tiring to be dealing with such troublesome matters day in and day out? I'm sure your shoulders and back are aching right now."
"Please stop saying sexually harassing stuff right off the bat. Well, if a certain someone would stop getting into fights with the police, stop getting arrested for perverted actions, and stop attempting to swindle others, perhaps I'd have a slightly easier time of it."
"There's such a person? I'll properly lecture him the next time I see him."
I confidently responded with a bright smile, and Luna responded with a long sigh.
Seems like she's accumulated quite a bit of stress.
"Oh, forget it. Anyway, why are you here today? Are you here to pick up a quest?"
"No, that's not it. I came here to see you today. How would you like to take a trip with me to a hot springs resort?"
"Huh? Where did this come from? If you're here to hit on girls, please do it elsewhere. Even if you weren't joking, there's no way I would be able to take such a long time off. What's that about a trip? Are you teasing me? Are you provoking me? Is playing around with me really that amusing?"
The smile disappeared off Luna's face, and she leaned over on the counter as tears started welling up in her eyes.
"I want to go on a trip or two too! Just handling the complaints and issues of adventurers takes up all of my time, and my precious days just keep slipping by! My colleagues keep getting married and retiring, whereas I'm still here, all alone…"
A constant barrage of complaints spewed forth from her mouth. Looks like she really does have a lot of stress built up after all.
In such a situation, my opinion is unnecessary. All I need to do is listen and nod. This is the proper way to respond as told to me by Sir Vanir. Thus-
I was totally exhausted by the time she let me go. The desire to invite her has completely vanished.
I collapsed into the seat by the window and laid down on the table.
"I'm done. Seriously, who cares about the remaining one…"
There's no need to use all of them up. It's fine even if there's one left.
"Say, do you mind giving one of those vouchers to me?"
Looking up at the sound of a familiar voice, I met eyes with a silver-haired thief girl with a scar on her face.
"Aren't you the thief who was quite close to that masochistic knight and got her panties stolen by Kazuma?"
"Don't describe me that way! I'm Chris!"
.
------------------------>
.
"Ah, right, that was your name. Anyway, where did you hear about the vouchers?"
"After the ruckus you caused with Luna-san, anyone would've heard about it."
Oh yeah, she was half crying and screaming about stuff like wanting to visit a hot spring and take her time rejuvenating both her spirit and body, wasn't she?
"You want the voucher? Well, here you go. Do as you wish with it."
"Huh? You're giving it to me without prying for details? I have some business in Alcanretia, so, is this really fine?"
"At this point, even thinking is a chore. Burn it or sell it or use it as toilet paper, I don't really care."
"Ah. Well, I'll gratefully accept it. I have some business to attend to, so I might be late, but don't bother waiting for me if that happens."
It's too bothersome to reply, so I simply waved her away and laid down on the table.
Well, I managed to give away all the vouchers. Now all there's to do is wait for the day itself.
Running through the list of women that I managed to invite, I noticed a certain commonality amongst them…
"It's full of girls with few assets. Seriously, Yunyun's the most well developed one out of all of them… "
I had one less thing to look forward to on my hot springs trip.
Part 5
As I waited at the shelter for the carriages with my party, the other members slowly turned up.
"T-Thank you for inviting me on this trip! T-This is a simple gift, but…"
Yunyun, who showed up with a luggage big enough to fit a person, started handing out courtesy gifts to the others present.
You could say that she's being polite, but it's more like she's just plain unused to meeting others.
"You don't need to go that far."
"Oh, we haven't really had the chance to talk, have we? I'm Keith."
"I should introduce myself too. I'm Taylor the Crusader."
"Thank you for your polite greeting. Um, I am-"
Seems like my companions and Yunyun are getting along well. It'd be nice if she becomes a little less of a loner after this.
Oh, yeah, it's been a week since Keith and Taylor fell ill, hasn't it? Apparently, they felt extremely lethargic and couldn't gather up the will to do anything.
Well, they've recovered a fair bit by now and seem to be looking forward to enjoying this hot springs trip.
"It appears Moi is a little late. Lecturing that inept shopkeeper took up more time than Moi anticipated."
"It's fine for them to wait a little while for Vanir-sama!"
Oh, that sounds like Sir and Loli Succubus.
A masked man in a tuxedo and a girl who seems to be a little more spirited than usual.
Looking at things objectively, it'd be easy to mistake them for father and daughter.
"The man who didn't get much sleep last night owing to anticipation of the use of that item, is this everyone?"
"Please keep that a secret, Sir! I did invite someone else, but she said that she'll meet up on location so there's no need to wait for her, so we can set off now."
I really hope this ends up being a fun trip.
"Wait, first, we need to handle the division of carriages. There are two four-seater carriages available, so one of them will be me, Lynn, Yunyun, and Lolisa."
"Hell no! You'll be the only one surrounded by women in that case! You went and fooled around with them on an adventure before, didn't you!? This is so unfair! Why the hell are you the only one who gets special treatment!?"
"I-I get it! I get it, so stop wiping your snot and tears on my clothes, Keith!"
I tried to fend Keith off as he clung onto my clothes.
Taylor didn't say anything, so it seems like he's fine with that arrangement.
Sir Vanir appears to be enjoying the dark emotions flowing from Keith.
And the girls are…
"Let's decide with drawing straws or rock-paper-scissors. That'd be fair."
"I-I think that's a good idea."
"I agree with that! Let's go with drawing straws!"
Drawing straws or rock-paper-scissors, huh?
Heh, this is all within my expectations.
"Oh fine. I thought this might happen, so I prepared the straws in advance. There are ones with red tips and ones that are blank, so we'll split up with this."
I took out the straws from my bag.
"You're pretty well prepared today, huh?"
"You girls can go first."
Saying that, I offered them to Lynn.
It was all I could do to hide my smile as they reached out for the straws.
– There's a little trick to these.
Every single one of them has a red tip. I'll let the girls pick first, and I'll go immediately after them.
After that, all I have to do is to get rid of the evidence somehow and I'll have a trip surrounded by girls to look forward to.
"Ah, mine's red."
"Mine's red too. Please let me be with Vanir-sama. Please let me be with Vanir-sama. Please let me be with Vanir-sama…"
"Me too! I brought a lot of games with me, so let's play them in the carriage!"
Right, now all I have to do is quickly draw one of them and get rid of the evidence.
"It's quite uncanny that the three girls ended up in the same group. Anyway, I'll go next…"
Just before I could draw a straw, someone grabbed my hand from the side.
"Hey, what are you doing, Keith? Let go of my hand."
"You did something to these straws, didn't you, Dust? I'll be going next."
Dammit, did he notice the trick?
He was with me at the gambling den quite a number of times, so he probably picked up on it.
"L-Let go! I didn't do anything!"
"Then let me go first! If you didn't do anything, it shouldn't make any difference!"
As I was struggling with Keith, the straws slipped from my grasp and fell to the floor.
And of course, every single one of them had a red tip.
"I knew it! I'm confiscating these!"
"Dust, this won't do. We're redoing things from the start."
"Underhanded Delinquent, isn't there a better way to go about doing this?"
Keith held me in a nelson hold while Taylor lectured me.
All of my plans are for not… or so you'd think.
I made eye contact with Loli Succubus and nodded.
"Right, I'll handle the straws this time. I'll leave one of them red and the rest will be blank. You girls are fine with how things currently stand, right?"
Saying that, Loli Succubus cut the tips of three of the straws with a knife.
With this, I won't be able to pull off any tricks… that's what most people would think.
Everything that happened so far is within my expectations.
Naturally, I had already secured Loli Succubus's support in advance.
I want to travel together in a carriage with the girls. Then I'll use the item and enjoy the three of them fawning all over me.
In return for Loli Succubus's cooperation, I promised that I'd arrange for her and Sir to share a room.
"Why don't we have Dust go first? Let's get this over and done with before he has the chance to come up with any more tricks."
No one thought that she'd be in cahoots with me, so nobody objected.
Yes, they fell for it.
We already arranged for the red straw to be the leftmost one.
I reached out towards that leftmost straw-
"One moment, Underhanded Delinquent. Allow Moi to go first."
"Wh-Sir!?"
"There is no particular reason behind it, Moi simply felt like going first. There's no reason to scuffle about the order, is there? Not unless you have some kind of trick up your sleeve…"
Sir had a slight smile as he said that.
Did he see through my plan? Oh, yeah, he's the great devil that can see the future, isn't he?
I tried to secretly plead him to let me off, but…
"What kind of strange dance are you doing? It's a little too early for the festival, you know?"
Shit, Sir likes to taste dark emotions, doesn't he?
Watching me sweat like this must be like a delicious appetizer to him.
There's nothing more I can do but place my hopes in Loli Succubus.
"Are you going first, Vanir-sama!? I recommend picking this straw!"
Don't just smile at him and offer him the red straw!
Weren't you on my side!?
Part 6
"Say, why is there no one here but men? It's all because Dust did all those unnecessary things!"
"Shut up. In the first place, I'd be enjoying a trip surrounded by women by now if you didn't get in my way!"
"Please cut it out. Seriously, give it a rest and behave yourselves."
A tired sounding Taylor tried to calm Keith and I down.
After that, Sir pulled out the red straw, of course, and the rest of us men had to spend the journey cooped up in the same carriage.
"He's probably surrounded by women right now. Ahh, I'm so envious…"
"Don't say that, Keith. It's not like we can do anything now. Ah, screw it, I guess I'll just take a nap."
There's nothing I could do, so I decided to just sleep it off.
We ran into a few monsters along the way, but between Yunyun's magic and Vanir's mysterious beams of light, they were quickly taken care off.
There's a vast gulf between their abilities. It's good that we had an easy trip, but apparently that wasn't anywhere close to Sir's true powers.
… I need to make sure never to make him angry.
As the sky began to darken, the carriages stopped and made preparations to set up camp.
We should be able to reach Alcanretia around noon tomorrow.
The carriages formed a circle around the fire that we built. With this, they'll be able to act as barricades against any potential monster attacks.
After having dinner, we men didn't have much to do amongst ourselves, so I thought that I'd turn in for an early night.
The girls on the other hand seemed to be having a lively conversation by the fire.
Women sure love to talk, don't they?
… Wait a moment, they're all gathered together. This is the perfect chance.
I took out the marble I received from Sir. All I need to do now is approach them in a natural seeming manner and drop it.
"What's wrong, Dust? Aren't you sleeping?"
"Not yet, I have something I want to talk to them about. You can go ahead and turn in first, Taylor."
"I see. Well, Keith already fell asleep, so try not to cause too much of a ruckus… And don't try to do anything perverted."
"I won't do that!"
After confirming Taylor lying down out of the corner of my eye, I slowly wandered over to the girls.
Come to think of it, how strongly do I have to throw it for it to break?
Judging from how it feels in my hand, it seems pretty flexible. I'd probably have to throw it fairly hard to break it.
Naturally start a conversation, then throw the marble against the ground as hard as I can.
… That's totally suspicious no matter how you look at it.
"What are you doing? Do you have some business with us?"
I arrived before the three of them without realizing it.
Right, first off, start off naturally.
"The weather is pretty nice, isn't it?"
"It's completely pitch black out there."
Looking up, it's too dark to tell what kind of weather we are having.
I messed up my first step, but I can still salvage this.
"Ah, well, about tomorrow's plans, is there anything you want to do after reaching Alcanretia?"
"You're thinking about the hot springs, right? Sorry to disappoint, but we won't be entering the mixed baths."
Yunyun hurriedly averted her gaze as Lynn said that.
She probably told them that I was obsessed with the mixed baths.
"Huh? I have no interests in looking at breasts that may or may not even exist. If you really want to show them off to me, I can look at them from below while licking with my tongue-"
"I'll rather die than than let you see them. Actually, go die, you pervert!"
"Such actions are against the law!"
"It's best to keep that sort of things in your dreams."
Such reactions are within my expectations.
In fact it's going pretty much as I imagined it. Now, I'll raise this marble while pretending to stretch.
"Hey, you don't have to go that far! Ahh, fine. Guess I'll do a little light exercise before turning in. One, two, three, four."
Right, now all I need to do is throw this marble against the ground.
Aiming for the center of where they are gathered, I threw the marble with all of my might.
"Ah! Where did this wind come from!? *cough cough*"
Just before the marble broke, a strong gust carried a bunch of dust through the camp, causing everyone to close their eyes.
As a result, they didn't see what I did.
Yes, yes, this is great! With this, my harem is complete. I wonder what these girls will do now that they are heads over heels for me.
"Hey, don't you girls have anything to say to the great Dust-sama?"
Saying that, I looked down towards the three… only to find them looking at me with a gaze of scorn.
Huh? Isn't that odd?
"What are you saying? Have you been drinking? Don't just barge in while we're having some girl's talk. Come on, go over there. Shoo shoo."
"Yeah. I always looked forward to talking about matters of romance with other girls before heading to bed."
"… Please go someplace else."
This is completely different from what I've been told.
Weren't they supposed to fall for me after breathing in the smoke from the marble?
Smoke did come out, so… could it be that the gust earlier dispersed it?
Ah, dammit! I should've waited till they were indoors to do this instead of rushing it!
Forget falling for me, they look like they might be seriously ticked off right now.
"Yeah, yeah, seems like I was just in the way. Fine, I'll just go to sleep."
This was a one in a lifetime chance, and I just wasted it.
In the first place, I didn't even know if that item even worked at all. There's a high chance that it was defective from the start.
"Guess this is it. Sigh."
Returning to where Taylor and Keith were sleeping, I spread a blanket over the ground and collapsed into it.
I should've been enjoying a glass of beer while surrounded by three girls right now. Dammit.
"What's wrong? It seems like something's eating you."
"Did you get into a fight with them?"
Taylor and Keith asked, apparently having been awoken by my arrival.
They had a genuine look of concern on their faces.
"Yeah, what I really should be looking for is male friends. Women are no good."
"Ah, of course, women are no good… Hanging out with us guys is the best."
"I agree. Hanging out with men is better than women. It's easier for men to understand each other… and it also feels better."
Are the two of them trying to comfort me?
Normally they'd be making fun of me… Friends are great things to have, aren't they?
"Yeah, yeah! Friendship between men are the best… hey, why are the two of you shifting closer to me?"
"It's a little cold out tonight, right? It isn't too bad for us men to huddle together every once in a while."
"Let's warm ourselves up. While we are at it, we can comfort each other as fellow men…"
The two of them slowly shifted closer from both sides.
Is it just me, or do their eyes look bloodshot? And it feels like their cheeks is redder than normal…
Seeing that reminded me of that time with Lynn- Yes, it's the same sort of expression that the noble had.
"W-Wait a moment! Cut it out with the jokes!!"
"I've always thought that your firm butt was quite impressive…"
"I like guys with huge pecs…"
"Stop saying such scary things! Seriously, don't say things that'll change the way I look at you!"
The two of them approached with crazed eyes.
Backpedaling, I felt my back run up against something hard.
Turning around in a panic, I saw Sir Vanir standing there.
"D-Don't tell me Sir is aiming for my ass too!?"
"Moi has no gender, thus Moi is not interested in such matters. Still, this has turned into an interesting situation as I expected. You truly are a man that I can never grow tired of."
Sir Vanir had a smile playing upon his face as he said that. It seems like he's well aware of what's going on.
"Sir, this is different from what you told me! It didn't have any effect on the girls at all, and then these guys started acting weird!"
"There was a gale, wasn't there? Seems like these two ended up breathing in quite a bit of the smoke and went into heat. That inept shopkeeper surprisingly bought a functioning item for once."
"You used me as a test subject!"
"Fuhahaha! Don't get that angry. From what I've read, this is a fine item. It will take some time for the effects to show if a small amount is breathed in, but if someone inhales a large amount of smoke at once, it would cause their emotions to go into overdrive. If someone of the same sex were to breathe it in… The effects will probably wear off after about an hour."
I listened to what Sir was saying as I kept the two crazed beasts at bay with my sheathed sword.
Seeing men panting heavily as they approached me is far scarier than any monster I've faced.
"They'll be in this state for an entire hour!?"
"Do try your best to get away. If you were caught by them, Moi cannot guarantee that your ass will come out of this incident intact. The great devil that sees through all so declares-"
I ran away from the scene without waiting for Sir to finish his sentence.
"Why the hell does this keep happening to me!? Just what did I do!?"
"Though, if a person of the opposite sex were to breathe it in, it would take time for it to come into effect, and it should last one or two days…"
Sir seems to be saying something else, but I don't have the luxury of paying attention right now.
The monster infested plains are far safer than this place is right now!
I'll escape from these two even if it kills me!