Prologue

To make a long story short, the war ended really quickly. Incidentally, about this war—it wasn’t a war against fellow humans. Instead, it was against troops of demons that were approaching our northern border and threatening to overrun us. I joined the fray relatively late, but to be frank, it was a pretty dire state of affairs. Among those demon troops were wicked dragons and even the legendary Gigantic Troll. I saw the troll for myself, and I’d wager it was about fifty meters high. I mean, a wall similar to the Great Wall of China had been built along our border, but that thing was big enough to just casually step over it.

However, the human side crushed those demons. Well, it was actually the Genos Breaker that did the crushing. Yep, I used a remote controller to summon it and have it charge into enemy lines. Its strength was unbelievable...

Unfortunately, the Genos Breaker was destroyed in combat and would never move again. Most likely its core had been damaged. It had fought by itself against a line of gigantic monsters, so that was probably just the natural outcome. It was a shame, considering how useful it’d been for developing Luganda in all sorts of ways. I was sad. Mister Mani also seemed a bit sad. When I reported the Genos Breaker’s grave damage, he hung his head.

“I’m sorry, Mister Mani,” I said dejectedly.

“Well, it’s fine,” Mani replied. “The most important thing is that you and the others are okay. Also, other Zolids such as the Zero Crisis should still be sleeping underground. If I get lonely, then I’ll revive them. I have forgotten where they are buried, though, ho ho ho.”

There are more of them where that thing came from?! That was reassuring and all, but I really was a little scared. Part of me was sad we’d lost the Genos Breaker, and another part of me was relieved. People like me get nervous possessing such immense power. I was a mere dagashi-ya with not a single itch to grasp for more power. Excessive weapons didn’t suit me. At most, Eight-Round Pistols or Murasame Replicas were just right for the likes of me.

Actually, the country had apparently suspected me of plotting a rebellion and had deployed an investigation team to Luganda. I’d heard that they had looked into whether I was hiding other Zolids or anything like that. Nothing suspicious had turned up, though.

We’d had some disputes like that, but far from finding fault with me, they’d instead found it strange that such an accomplished vassal remained unrewarded, so they’d made me an earl and even awarded me a plot of land in the capital’s high-end residential area. However, this wasn’t just a reward. It was infused with a strong implication that I must primarily live in the Royal Capital; placing me in a remote region had been dangerous, it seemed.

Well, using the teleportation portal would let me return to Luganda in an instant, so the move probably wouldn’t interfere with my territorial management. My aide, Mister Nakaram, was competent, and my dagashi-ya branch stores were doing well. I didn’t have any particular complaints.

On top of that, the plot of land I’d been awarded was in an awesome location. Prime Minister Ethel had personally selected the spot, and he really hadn’t disappointed. He truly understood me. To my surprise, I had been given a plot that was between two schools.

The first of these was the Royal Academy, an elite school that the children of the wealthy, including influential aristocrats, attended. It was also the school that Michelle had taught at. It was like one of those combined junior and senior high school institutions back on Earth. The other one was the Adventurers’ Academy and was a school many children of knights and soldiers attended. It had been founded to foster first-rate adventurers through a curriculum close to what you’d find in a vocational school.

In other words, they were places full of children. That was a fact that ignited the merchant spirit of a dagashi-ya. Additionally, after hearing about our move, the director of the Royal Academy requested that Michelle be reinstated at the school. She’d had apprehensions about it, but in the end, she had taken up teaching Basics of Dark Magic and A Guide to Curses.

As for me, if I chanted, “Store, open,” then my store would spring right up. In other words, no matter where I went, I could do business at the drop of a hat. They say there’s no time like the present, so I decided I’d start selling my goods right away. This time, Dagashi-ya Yahagi would be having a grand opening in the academy neighborhood.

Chapter 1: A Strange Store Has Appeared

Michelle and I went to the plot I’d been awarded and brought out my live-in store in the middle of one night. The store was a stand-alone wooden house, the type of construction that overflowed with retro Showa vibes. We could live in it while also running our store from it, which was convenient. It was on the small side for an earl’s residence, but it was just right for me. Cleaning and such would have been a pain if it was too big, right? A dagashi-ya that looked like Buckingham Palace or a state guest house would have been absurd. This was just right.

At Michelle’s request, I did make the kitchen extra big, but the bath was the same size as before. I’d been given a strict order not to change it. She said it was just the right size to be pressed up against each other when we bathed together. I agreed with Michelle, but I did also feel that it’d be nice to be able to stretch out in the bath. We would be going back home to Luganda all the time anyway, though, so I supposed we could just stop by Hot Spring Yahagi along the way.

Today was the school entrance ceremony, and it was also the day Michelle would meet her new students. She’d been all over the place since this morning, struggling to decide what to wear and how to do her makeup. It was standard for professors at the academy to don a mortarboard cap and a black cloak with purple borders, but she couldn’t choose what she’d wear underneath her cloak.

“What should I do?” she asked. “This one shows off my figure too much. But then this one is tacky...”

“I think both of them suit you,” I told her. “Personally, I’d recommend the latter, though.”

“Really? You don’t think it looks lame?”

“Not at all. The other choice is too stimulating, and it’d get in the way of your students’ studies. Also, I’d be jealous if anyone other than me got to see your figure.” A teacher shouldn’t be wearing tight clothes that showed a little cleavage. Even if her outfit would be obscured by a cloak, it was easy to imagine that the boys would stare.

“Okay. I’ll do what you suggested, then,” she said. “But just this by itself is too plain, so maybe I’ll put on a brooch...” She picked up the brooch known as the Bloodstained Princess’s Dagger. Made of silver and garnet, it had the magical effect of broadcasting a commanding presence to anyone who looked at it. “Yeah, I think it’s looking good.” Finally pleased with her appearance, she kissed me. “A-All right, I’m off.”

“Don’t be so nervous. You’ll do well,” I assured her.

“Will my students look down on me?” she worried. I felt like that at least wouldn’t happen. She was an accursed witch whose deeds had struck fear into the hearts of people all over the country. Even the senior teachers—let alone the students—probably wouldn’t look down on her. On top of that, Michelle also had the brooch’s magical effect. She exuded a dominance that no one could defy. However, if I said that out loud, she might get self-conscious.

“There is the possibility, since you’re such a cute teacher...” I admitted. I put on a troubled expression, and Michelle cheered right up.

“It’s okay, Yusuke. I’ll curse every person who bothers me! I have a curse that’ll make their hair fall out, a dislocation curse, and I also have a stripping curse.”

“They’re all related to removal,” I noted.

“Yeah, I’m good at that type. ♡” She looked really happy when she talked about curses.

“I understand hair loss and dislocations,” I said, “but what do you mean by a ‘stripping’ curse?”

“It makes their belts and the elastic in their pants suddenly break,” she replied. “Also, it does stuff like unbutton their clothes out of nowhere.” The effects were pretty low-grade but unpleasant all the same.

“You can’t curse anyone,” I told her sternly. “You can vent to me if anything happens.”

“Yeah... If anything happens to you either, tell me.”

“To me?” I blinked. “Well, I’ll certainly keep you informed, but not many unpleasant things go down at a dagashi-ya.”

“You never know,” she said. “A lot of cheeky kids might come by.”

That was possible, but they were just kids. They probably wouldn’t try to kill me—or so I’d thought at the time. Really thinking back on it now, I had been naive to think that way. This was another world. I’d forgotten that things were different from the hometown that I’d known growing up.

“I’m telling you, you worry too much,” I continued.

“You don’t know,” she insisted. “There’re seriously a lot of cheeky kids at the Royal Academy.”

“You’re an alumna too, right? Were you also cheeky?”

“I-I was on the quiet side!”

“I hear a lot of things, though...” I trailed off. Apparently, many legends concerning Michelle remained at the academy. There was one about locking the vice principal in a never-ending hallway for sexual harassment, and one about casting a curse that made it so snakes and frogs and even poisonous bugs jumped out of the mouths of bullies every time they talked...

“I-I was just young and stupid...” she mumbled.

“You’ve mellowed out, so you’re content with just a stripping curse now.”

“Th-That’s right.”

Once more, I gave her a goodbye kiss. “Be careful.”

“Yeah. We’ll continue this after I get back home.” With a dreamy look on her face, she headed to work.

Now then, I got down to dealing with my own concerns. My target customers were kids, so I’d open my store after school. Until then, I had to return to Luganda and manage the territory. Well, I said “manage,” but I’d only be hearing Mister Nakaram’s reports and replenishing any sold-out goods. If I had time, I’d pop by where the adventurers were to say hi and open up my street stall inside the Lugandan Dungeon.

After I’d looked over my schedule for the day, I headed to the teleportation portal inside the dungeon.

***

Once the afternoon rolled around, I opened up my store for real. Finally, it was the grand opening of the Dagashi-ya Yahagi Royal Capital Shop. The academies were still quiet, so classes were probably in session. I heard the occasional sound of an explosion. Were those magical experiments or something? For now, I looked over my goods and removed the ones that seemed too dangerous. My customers weren’t adventurers. They were students. I wouldn’t sell them goods that could harm people.

Additionally, I displayed today’s hot item in a prominent location. This was what I’d be recommending today.

Product name: Star Konpeito

Description: If you bite down on it with your molars, you can move at high speeds. (Not an accelerator.)

Creates an effect like scattering stars when you move.

Price: Thirty rims

They were pastel-colored konpeito packed into small blue bags—a very pretty item. Konpeito was a simple type of candy that consisted of little clumps of sugar. The description said they’d let you move at high speeds, but at most, they’d double your natural speed and that only lasted for about fifty centimeters. Well, if a master swordsman or someone used them, the result would probably be pretty crazy, though.

Oh, I just heard bells from both academies. That was probably a signal to mark the end of the day. After I’d waited for a while, children began appearing on the streets. Not many students came outside, though, probably because both academies were boarding schools. Are they going back to their own rooms first?

The kids that passed in front of my store immediately appeared interested and began looking over at me as they whispered to their friends. They were wearing the Royal Academy uniform. It had a blazer-like design and boasted well-made fabric. Its striped necktie was also stylish.

I guess I’ll shoot my shot and try calling out to them. “Welcome,” I greeted the students. “Dagashi-ya Yahagi just opened today!”

Their interest seemed a bit piqued, but they appeared to still be hesitant. Or maybe there were school regulations or something against entering stores like mine?

I took out one Star Konpeito, chomped down on it with my back teeth, and started dancing. At once, rainbow-colored stars scattered from my feet and my body’s movements flowed as if the earth had drifted away from me. “My snacks are full of delightful things. Please stop by and have a look!”

“Whoa! Amazing! What is that? Magic?” Three excited boys approached. I guessed they were about the age of middle schoolers in Japan. These three were wearing uniforms from the Adventurers’ Academy. This uniform included a leather guard that covered their vital areas and was made in such a way that they could enter combat in the blink of an eye.

“If we eat the snacks here, will we be able to scatter stars like you did just now?”

“Yep,” I replied. “I have a lot of other stuff too, so have a look.”

The boys clamored with oohs and aahs as they entered the store.

“What is Ten-Rim Gum, Mister?”

“Oh wow! There’re Mobile Forces!!! These are super rare!”

“Gungalf! Sell Gungalf to me!!!”

“Okay, I’ll be right there.”

The Royal Academy kids left with disinterested expressions, but thanks to the lively boys, other students began coming by one after another, though my customers were entirely made up of students from the Adventurers’ Academy. The kids hung around right up until their curfews.

***

By the time I’d been doing business there for a few days, Dagashi-ya Yahagi had started bustling with students in the after-school hours. Most of them were students from the Adventurers’ Academy, with few from the Royal Academy. The ratio was maybe about nine to one.

My particularly passionate regulars were a trio: Cart, Goat, and Kicker. They were lively fourteen-year-olds, first-years in the Adventurers’ Academy’s junior high school division. Cart was the leader. Goat was the quiet, cool type with a handsome face. Kicker was a girl who seemed like a good caretaker. The three of them had stopped by again today and were packing snacks into their baskets.

“Oh, you guys are buying a lot today.”

“We’re finally going to have some practice in the field tomorrow,” Cart told me. There was a mixture of anticipation and anxiety on his face.

“By ‘practice in the field,’ you mean you’re heading into the dungeon?”

“Only B1.” B1 was full of weak monsters that even I could take care of, but that didn’t change the fact that it posed a threat to your life.

“Then you need to make the proper preparations,” I said. “Tastes and preferences aside, you should take care to pick based on effects as well.”

“Yeah. I can spend up to 500 rims, so I’ll choose carefully.” There were about 90 first-years in the Adventurers’ Academy’s junior high school division. It seemed they were grouped into teams of three for field practice. I was a bit worried for them, but they would have instructors posted in various places, so it was probably fine...

“Still, everyone seems to be in high spirits,” I noted.

“The money and magic stones that drop from defeating enemies become pocket money, so our hype is on another level.”

I see. So that’s how it is.

“If I get some pocket money, I’ll definitely buy Renewed Zako II’s equipment and weapons!” Kicker exclaimed. “And nippers too!” Huh, she likes Zako, hmm? I might introduce her to Meryl eventually. They might get along.

“Mister Yahagi, what snacks do you think would be good to buy?” the coolheaded Goat asked, calmly seeking my advice. I’d heard Goat had a lot of fans, and he really did look like the type to be popular.

“The essentials are Odama Candy and Ten-Rim Gum, no doubt,” I replied. “It’d also be a good idea to take along Morocco Yogurt to heal wounds and grape-flavored Powdered Drink Mix in case you get cursed.”

“Okay, and grape-flavored Powdered Drink Mix.” Goat heeded my advice and put the suggested items into his basket.

“You may not need them yet, but it’s convenient to have stuff like the synergy-raising Cocoa Cigars or Monster Smoke that reduces the risks of retreating.” These items might not have been necessary yet if the students were only going to B1, but they’d probably need such things very soon.

“Any other recommendations?”

“I have this new product.”

Product name: Milky Biscuit Balls

Description: Though they are lightly crunchy, they melt as soon as you put them in your mouth, creating a curious mouthfeel.

Raises your defense upon consumption. Duration is thirty seconds per biscuit.

Price: Twenty rims

This was a longtime seller from my grandparents’ generation. You got a huge bang for your buck, and they had the potential to become an essential snack for exploring the dungeon. The fact that you could quickly eat them in times of emergency was also a point of attraction. They didn’t last as long as other defense-boosting snacks, but the effects stacked—up to ten biscuits. You could precisely manipulate the effect’s duration, and they were a popular snack for those adventurers who pursued efficiency.

“At that price point, I’d like to buy at least one.” Goat put some Milky Biscuit Balls in his cart as well.

“Good grief,” I heard a snide voice say. “You can’t even go into the dungeon without these cheap crappy snacks?” It had come from a boy who stood dressed in the Royal Academy uniform. He was probably around the same age as Cart and the others. He had silver hair which he wore fully slicked back.

“Tch, we’ve got trouble here...” Cart muttered under his breath as he glared.

“Whaaat, 20-rim snacks? How could these possibly be useful for exploration?” The boy made a face of exaggerated surprise to emphasize his ridicule, and his followers all laughed along. “Seriously, I doubt your sanity. I’d never want to rely on these pathetic snacks. My pride couldn’t take it. This is precisely why you adventurers are beyond help.”

Hmm, he’s disturbing my business. It wasn’t good to get in the way of everyone having a good time. Also, I was on the side of those who headed into the dungeon. Even though he was a kid, I couldn’t just let someone make fun of the adventurers.

“You’ve gone into the dungeon before?” I asked.

“As the eldest son of a viscount, there’s no way I’d go somewhere like that,” he scoffed. So that’s the source of his haughty attitude...

“I see. That’s why you’re saying something so unbelievably naive.”

“Wh-What did you say?!”

“Take any help you can possibly get—that’s the kind of place the dungeon is. You know nothing about it, so don’t purposefully flaunt your ignorance.”

Had my annoyance made me say too much? His previously pale face had turned bright red, and he was angry.

“Are you making fun of me?” he cried. “I’m Marl, eldest son of Viscount Permanente!”

“I’m not making fun of you,” I said. “I’m only telling you the facts.” It looked like he hadn’t had much experience being opposed. The boy trembled as he shook his fist at me.

“Damn it, I’ll get you for this! I’ll tattle on you to my father and you’ll definitely end up crying!” Spitting out this parting threat, he left the store.

He said the word “tattle” with no shame... It was a bit of a culture shock.

“Mister Yahagi, are you all right?” Cart asked me with concern.

“What do you mean?”

“He’s pretty well-known—in a bad sense.”

“Does he do stuff like this elsewhere too?”

“Apparently, there have been many shops that have actually gone under because of him.” The group looked disheartened.

“Don’t worry,” I assured them. “We’ll be fine.”

“But...”

If anything, I was worried for the Permanente family. If I told Michelle about this, she’d rip them apart. I had to take care of it in private.

“Well, it’ll work out,” I said. “More importantly, you should worry about your field practice. Did you finish choosing your snacks? Oh right, Super Tight String is another recommendation of mine.”

“What is that?”

“It’s a 127-centimeter-long string gummy. Not only is it tasty to eat, but if you wrap it around a wound, it’ll quickly turn into emergency first aid tape for medical use.”

“That sounds interesting!” Their smiles returned to their faces, and they resumed filling their baskets with snacks.

***

An incident happened the very next day. After I had finished up business in Luganda and was on my way home, I happened across a noisy duo out front of my store. They were both well-built with detestable faces. From their vibes, they were obviously bad guys. Each of them held a large hammer. What are they going to do?

“Hey, get out here!” one bellowed at the closed door. “We’re gonna bust down the door if you don’t!” They were shouting such lawless things in broad daylight. But were they serious? It’d be such a huge hassle if they did something like that.

“Don’t go chickening out now! We’re envoys of Viscount Permanente’s family! Hurry up and open this door!”

Oh, that Marl guy from yesterday sent these two to me, huh? I figured there was no need to give them a warning, then. Instead, I’d give them a bit of a tough time.

Since I’d let them be for a while, they seemed to have developed the misunderstanding that I was pretending to not be at home. At last, they raised their hammers and attempted to intimidate me. “This ain’t just a threat, you hear? We’re gonna bust down the door and get a good look at your mug!” The two of them took their big hammers and swung them down as hard as they could. However, rather than the door, it was the two hammer-wielding men that were sent flying.

Oh, they flew five meters at least. The barrier magic spell Michelle had put up hadn’t disappointed. It reacted automatically to any attacks. Their bodies looked sturdy enough, but were they okay?

“Ouch...”

“What happened...?” They were as tough as they appeared. Though they looked to be in pain, they didn’t have any significant wounds. Things had turned out pretty bad for them, but they still weren’t giving up.

“Damn it! We’re not mere errand boys. As if we’d go home over this!”

It’d be annoying if they stayed here until opening time, so I figured it was about time I confronted them. They had ferocious faces, but things would probably work out if I spoke with them—although it was almost as likely that I wouldn’t be able to get through to them.

Even in the face of these ruffians, I didn’t feel much fear. I supposed I’d also built up some courage after experiencing the dungeon and an actual battlefield.

“What are you doing in front of my store?” I called out to them from behind. They hurriedly leaped to their feet and put up a tough front.

“Are you the shopkeeper?”

“That’s right,” I said. “Did you come here to buy snacks? We’re not open yet.”

“Idiot! Who the hell wants your snacks? We’re envoys of the Permanente family. You made a fool of our young master! How do you intend to settle this matter?” Their actions weren’t those of the nobility, but of the yakuza. Were they gonna ask for money? Or would they simply wreck my store? I think that’s impossible because of the barrier, though.

“There’s no matter to be settled—” As I tried to convince them to leave for the time being, one of the men began comparing my store’s sign to my face and went pale.

“W-Wait! This person...”

“What?”

The pale-faced man gulped. “Um, are you Sir Snacks Yahagi?”

That nickname again? Meryl had spread it as a joke, but it sounded like he knew about me. In that case, maybe I could get through to him a little? “Well, yeah, I am...”

“I-I belonged to the Northern Troops’ second regiment!!!” he exclaimed. Oh, he saw me during the war, huh?

“What are you talking about?” The other man took in his buddy’s befuddled state with a confused expression.

“Y-You idiot,” he stammered, “this is Sir Yahagi—the hero of the country’s salvation.”

“Huh?”

“It’s Sir Yahagi, who used his mechanical dragon to slay monsters one after another!”

“Ah!!!” It looked like they’d both realized my background now.

“W-We deeply apologize for our insolence. What are you doing here, Sir Yahagi?”

“This is my store,” I told them. “I don’t want to scare off the kids, so I want to keep the fact that I’m a nobleman a secret. Promise you won’t tell?”

“O-Of course!”

“So, do you have any business with me?”

“N-No, not at all. If you’ll excuse us!”

Ah, they ran off. They were surprisingly swift. Well, this would probably stop the harassment too. For now, this would do.

As always, I began preparing to open my store for the evening.

***

Incidentally, that night, Marl and his father dropped by as I was closing up shop. Marl had a bruise on his face like he’d been socked. Both parent and child apologized profusely, but I’d already informed Prime Minister Ethel about the situation through an Assembled Glider. I couldn’t forgive the fact that Marl had destroyed ordinary people’s stores. Such actions should be given a proper investigation and judgment from the law.

Even so, the matter had been peacefully brought to a conclusion. If this had reached Michelle’s ears, both father and son of the Permanente House would’ve been reduced to shreds...

Marl’s Side

As soon as the carriage reached the mansion, Viscount Permanente agitatedly barked out an order. “Take Marl to his room and keep him there!”

With a disbelieving expression, Marl protested, “No, father— Why...?”

“You’re asking me why?” The viscount glared at his son as if he were looking into the face of his enemy. “The Permanente family is on the verge of a crisis because of you! You have no idea how much it will cost to cover up this incident!”

“I-I simply—”

“You simply what?!” the viscount demanded. “Picked a fight with the hero who brought about the country’s salvation and had our servants attack him? You idiot!” He then sighed heavily. “We could’ve found a way to avoid trouble if you’d at least used money to hire some hoodlums instead.” The viscount shook his head and ordered his servant again. “Take him away.”

“Please wait, father. I still haven’t eaten.”

His father continued down the hallway without looking back.

“Father! Father!!!” His face soaked in tears and snot, Marl spat out, “You damned Yahagi. One day, I’ll definitely get my revenge!!!”

The Adventurer Meryl’s Diary: Entry 1

What am I going to do? Mister Yusuke went off to the Royal Capital! I never thought he’d leave us behind to go back to the city... I heard that he was awarded a plot of land for his service in the war. On top of that, it’s apparently in a prime location in the Royal Capital between two academies. It seems he intends to open his dagashi-ya there. I lived in the Royal Capital pretty much my whole life, but I’ve never gone that way before. It’s a high-end residential area that has nothing to do with commoners like me.

Mister Yusuke looked really happy. I bet the fact that he can run his dagashi-ya for kids is fun. I guess it’s way preferable to selling to us out in the sticks. It probably makes a lot more money too.

Still, I get jealous of those kids. I wanted Mister Yusuke to be our exclusive dagashi-ya forever.

“Don’t look so sad. You look worse than that time you lost a lottery five times in a row,” Mira teased me. But I’m not the only one who’s bummed out. Garmr, Rigal, Marco, and everyone else are worried that he won’t come back from the city.

I’ve kinda lost motivation. I don’t wanna go to work anymore...

***

Mister Yusuke came home! Man, everyone was all worried for nothing. There’s no way Mister Yusuke would abandon us to move to the city.

“I’m still the feudal lord of Luganda. Of course I’m gonna open my dagashi-ya here too,” he said. Then, he went on to quietly whisper in my ear. “Also, I have the teleportation portal, don’t I? That’s why I can sell at both locations.”

I nearly started crying after hearing that, but I held back my tears. I was too embarrassed to say what I’d actually been thinking. You could never get me to admit to him that I thought he’d abandoned us. But I was glad.

From now on, it seems he’ll sell in Luganda in the morning and in the Royal Capital in the evening. He said he’s already established a store there. It’s probably fancy since it’s in a well-off neighborhood full of mansions. Is it like a stylish new café? On top of that, he’s an earl, so his own mansion must be amazing too.

“Mister Yusuke, can I go hang out at your place in the Royal Capital sometime soon?” I asked.

“Sure thing. We’ve got a room, so you may as well stay the night. I’m sure Michelle would be happy too.”

“Thank you!”

So, I would have a fancy guest room, eat dinner in a spacious dining room, and then get to sip on some after-dinner brandy in their cozy living room.

“You better keep your word. It’s a promise!”

“Yeah, definitely,” he promised me.

“Now then, I guess I’ll pull a Scratch Card again today!” I declared. None of the resulting images matched, so I lost, but I was so happy that Mister Yusuke was here that I didn’t know what to do with myself.

Chapter 2: The Kids at Dagashi-ya Yahagi

It’d only been a week since I’d moved to the Royal Capital, but business was going well. When the after-school hours rolled around, students crowded in, so lively that the store got too loud.

Most of my customers were students from the Adventurers’ Academy. Of course, there were some Royal Academy students in the mix, but I got the feeling that they were all kids who didn’t quite fit in with the vibes of their academy. The most striking example was probably Carmine.

First off, she looked like a gyaru. Even here in this world, there was no other way to describe her. She had blonde hair with dyed-pink tips. She also wore a full face of makeup, so she really stood out next to the other kids. After school, she would hang out at my shop for long periods of time, always sitting in a chair close to the wall while blowing Fruit Gum bubbles.

Product name: Fruit Gum

Description: A bubble gum containing four pieces per box.

Comes in four different flavors - Orange, grape, strawberry, and melon.

When you blow a bubble, your body slightly levitates for just three seconds.

Features a lottery.

Price: Twenty rims

Carmine seemed to love this gum, so she bought it every day, but she didn’t do anything else. All she did was camp out in the corner of the store and blow bubbles. Is she the type who doesn’t show emotions on her face much? Even when she won the Fruit Gum lottery, she didn’t look particularly happy about it. Meryl would’ve been over the moon, making a loud show of it.

In addition, it had become her daily routine to stare idly at the other kids while they played with Mobile Forces and Mani 4WDs.

“You’re not gonna play with everyone?” I’d asked her.

“Nah, I’m having fun just watching,” she’d replied. So, she’s a loner gyaru? She didn’t look like she was having that much fun, but Carmine herself didn’t seem too bothered by that fact. From an outsider’s perspective, I couldn’t tell what she was thinking.

At first, I’d thought she didn’t have money, but that didn’t seem to be the case. She’d taken out a silver coin when she bought gum today. Was her family wealthy after all, as one would expect of a student of the Royal Academy?

It didn’t feel like she was being bullied, but I got the sense that the other Royal Academy students were slightly keeping their distance from her.

The store was noisy again today, but it was getting dark outside. The afterglow in the westward sky would disappear soon as well.

“All right, guys, I’m about to close up shop,” I announced. “You all have curfews, don’t you? You should hurry on home.” Both of the academies were boarding schools, so the students would get penalized if they didn’t return in time.

“Oh crap!” Cart cried. “Goat, Kicker, let’s go!” He and the others hurriedly jammed their Mobile Forces and Mani 4WDs into their bags.

“You got everything?” I asked.

“Even if I forgot myself, I’d never forget about Gufufu!”

“Don’t pay less attention to yourself than to Gufufu...”

“Sure! Anyway, see you again tomorrow!” Cart and the other students sprinted off. Is this the true spirit of youth? Even the rookie adventurers didn’t have that kind of energy.

When I turned back to the suddenly silent store, Carmine was still there blowing bubbles with her gum and bobbing in the air in her usual spot.

“What’s wrong?” I asked. “You still not heading home?”

“I’m staying somewhere else today,” she replied. The schools had dorms, but there were also kids who went home due to their particular family circumstances.

“Are you going to your parents’ house?”

“To my mom’s.”

“I see. Won’t she be worried if you don’t go soon?”

“No. She’s working at the healing center, so she’ll come home a little later...” I’d heard that the Royal Academy was full of kids from wealthy families, but it sounded like Carmine’s were commoners. Or did her mom earn a lot of money?

Carmine turned her eyes away from me and kept chewing her gum. Would it feel too lonely to return to a house where no one is waiting for her? She might’ve come here hoping for a place to belong.

“Then I’ll keep the store open for a bit longer,” I told her.

“Thank you,” she said. “You’re nice, Yuyu.”

“Could you not call me that?”

“What’s the harm? It’s cute.”

I just think you’re making fun of me, I thought to myself. Well, it was fine since it sounded like she was calling me that affectionately.

But now that I was alone with this girl, I didn’t know what to talk about. I was at a loss as to what to do with this time that we suddenly had on our hands.

An idea sprang to mind. “Oh, how about you have a Mobile Forces match with me?” If I remembered right, she had Kian.

“Whaaat?”

“I won’t force you if you don’t want to.”

“I’ve, like, never fought against someone before, so...”

“You can practice against me, then,” I said. “I’m not that strong, though.”

“Well then...”

It had turned into a showdown between my Gungalf and her Kian. We started the match, but...

“You’re so strong!” I exclaimed. “You’re amazing, Carmine.”

“Y-You think? Hee hee.” Her strength was overwhelming. I could tell since I’d observed so many players—she was really skilled. To be frank, I could even say she was a genius. She had enough potential to eventually make a name for herself at the tournament level.

“You could enter a tournament somewhere,” I told her. There were always tournaments going on all over the place these days. They were hosted by aristocrats and wealthy merchants who loved Mobile Forces, like Prime Minister Ethel. There were even stories of some pro Mobile Forces handlers popping up recently. In those kinds of tournaments, there were junior divisions as well. I thought that Carmine could definitely get some good scores. However, her response was blunt.

“What? That kinda stuff’s not my thing.”

“That’s such a waste. I think you could really rack up some wins.”

“Hmm, I’m not really interested, so...”

As we conversed, I heard the rattle of the entrance’s sliding door opening.

“I’m home,” a voice called. “You haven’t closed up shop yet, Yusuke?” Michelle had returned.

“Welcome back,” I said. “Just had a bit of a situation today.”

“What happened?” Then she paused, staring at my customer. “Wait, you’re...Carmine?”

“Professor Michelle!” The two of them were surprised, their expressions clearly stating that they’d just met each other in a completely unexpected location.

“Why are you at the dagashi-ya, Professor Michelle?” asked Carmine.

“Well...that’s because no matter what happens, my soul is fated to return to Yusuke...” She was wriggling bashfully. Still, that was a pretty extreme explanation.

“Your soul...? Wait, are you guys dating?!”

“She’s my fiancée,” I said. “We plan to get married once things calm down a little.”

Carmine stared at us in wonder. “Amazing... I never guessed there was a man out there who could accept the cursed witch of so many legends—I like totally respect you!” she exclaimed. She didn’t pull any punches, that Carmine.

“Yes, Yusuke’s special!” Michelle beamed. She doesn’t care?!

“Yeah. Well, I can see that you guys look good together,” said Carmine.

“Thank you. What a good girl you are!” You’re too soft!

“Ah, I gotta go soon.”

“Be careful,” I warned her. “It’s dark outside.”

“Don’t worry. I got some guards.”

“Guards?”

“See ya!” Carmine cheerfully sprinted out.

“What did she mean by guards?” I asked Michelle.

“There was one person by a tree and one by a building.”

“I had no idea at all.”

“I’m not entirely sure myself,” she said, “but she’s probably of a decently high social standing.”

So she had some Secret Service-like guards, then. But she’d said her mom worked at a healing center. “She’s a good girl,” I said, “but a little strange. She has a peculiar vibe.”

“Yeah, but she gets really good grades in magic. She has an A+ in a Guide to Curses.”

“Huh.”

“However, it seems she hasn’t really opened up well to those around her. She’s just like how I used to be...” She gave a wry smile.

“She looks totally different from you, but maybe you’re actually two of a kind?”

“I don’t know about that. However, I can at least tell that she’s lonely. That’s why I was surprised just now.”

“What do you mean?” I asked.

“She seemed really happy to be playing with you,” she told me. “I’ve never seen her smile like that at school.” There might have been some reason Carmine struggled to fit in. If that were the case, it’d be nice if my store could provide a place where she could belong. “Yusuke, be nice to her, okay?”

“Yeah...” I said. Michelle might be seeing her past self in this girl.

“But you definitely can’t cheat on me!”

“I only have eyes for you,” I assured her. Jeez, there’s no way I’d go for a girl that young. Still, I’d watch my step so that the Royal Capital wouldn’t end up reduced to a pile of rubble.

***

Carmine came by the shop again the next day. It seemed she wanted to buy her favorite Fruit Gum once again.

“Aww shoot, the melon flavor is out...” she sighed, her shoulders slumping. I handed her a product.

“Here you are—the melon flavor.”

“Huh? Why?”

“I set it aside for you since you buy it every day,” I said.

“What’s with this incredible service?!” she gasped. “This dagashi-ya is giving me some TLC.” She was once again here today, not to hang out with someone, but to vacantly stare at the happenings around the shop as she sat in her corner. Still, she seemed to be having fun in her own way. As she blew her bubble gum, her body rose up and bobbed gently in the air.

***

Early one morning, I headed to the dungeon and used the teleportation portal to travel to Luganda. This had become my work routine as of late. Every day, I would receive written reports from my aide, Mister Nakaram, replenish the goods at my store and at the branches, and chat with the residents before making my way back home. I was about to do the same thing again today when Meryl and Mira came by.

“How rare,” I commented. “Are you taking the day off?”

“Yeah. We have something to ask of you.” Meryl’s lips drew close to my ear. “Can we use your teleportation portal? We wanna show our faces to our parents for the first time in a while.” I had told a very few select individuals I trusted—Meryl included—about the teleportation portal’s existence.

When I asked them why, they said they wanted to hand over the money they’d saved to their parents back home. It was possible to hire someone to send money and letters, but the adventurers who undertook the delivery often weren’t trustworthy. Depending on the circumstances, they might just make off with the money. That was why it was more reassuring to hand the money over directly.

These two were my longest-standing friends since I’d come to this world. They were my comrades who’d fought at my side in the war, heedless of the danger. Back then, Michelle, Meryl, Mira, Rigal, and Garmr had all volunteered... I’d been so happy that I’d cried.

Marco had been banished to the frontier as a punishment, yet he’d said he didn’t care if he ended up getting arrested—he’d come along with me anyway. Well, everything had turned out all right in the end, once his participation in the war had been officially recognized. His past crimes had been wiped away as payment for his service. As a sign of gratitude to Prime Minister Ethel, who had pulled some strings behind the scenes, I planned to present him with a new type of Mani 4WD.

Because of all of that, it wouldn’t be a big deal to bring Meryl and Mira with me to the Royal Capital. “No problem,” I told them. “In that case, let’s head out right away.”

“While you’re at it, you may as well show us your Royal Capital mansion,” Meryl said.

“Mansion?” I blinked. “It’s the usual live-in store, though?”

Meryl stared up at me, dumbfounded. “What? You became an earl, Mister Yusuke. Why are you still in that run-down house?!”

“Don’t call it run-down. That’s rude. It’s just right for someone like me.”

“Whaaat?” she complained. “I thought I’d get to see some really fancy rooms.”

“Now, now,” Mira soothed her, “isn’t this just like Mister Yusuke?”

Through Mira’s mediation, we finally headed out together.

***

Once we’d leisurely walked home from the Royal Capital Dungeon, we found kids gathered in front of the store even though it wasn’t yet noon. Thinking about it, there’s no school today. With too much time on their hands, they’d probably come to see whether the store had opened yet.

“Oh, Mister Yahagi came back!” My regular Cart was the very first one to spot me.

“Hey, Cart,” I greeted him. “It was your first day in the field yesterday, right? How did it go?”

“Well, I managed,” Cart replied. “Your dagashi really helped me out.” He had taken down a Slime and a Big Spider. Neither of those was a strong monster, but he’d really put his life on the line. As they showed off the fact that they’d won their first battle, self-confidence peeked through Cart’s, Goat’s, and Kicker’s expressions. “By the way, Mister Yahagi, who are these people? Your girlfriends?”

Meryl’s, Mira’s, and my faces all turned pale at once.

“Don’t say something so careless!” I shouted.

“Do you wanna die?!” Meryl demanded.

“Do you want the Royal Capital to get blown away?!” Mira cried.

“All three of you are denying it that desperately?!” he shouted back. “What’s wrong with me asking such a simple question?”

With a grave expression on her face, Meryl explained, “What do you think would happen if Miss Michelle heard you?”

“Oh yeah, a cursed witch lives here!” It appeared that the news that Michelle lived here was gradually spreading among the kids. I had thought that would drive away customer traffic, but it seemed they were itching to glimpse something scary, so more kids had started coming instead.

“I have Michelle,” I said. “There’s no way these two are my girlfriends. They’re active adventurers and Dagashi-ya Yahagi regulars.”

“So they’re our seniors. Nice to meet you!!!” The three of them bowed their heads to Meryl and Mira. The kids probably felt a kinship with them, hearing that they were adventurers.

“Incidentally, what’re you up to?” I asked. “You come here to buy snacks or something?”

Cart wagged his finger. “Nope, Mister Yahagi. We’ve come here to prepare for our exploration.”

“Exploration? Didn’t your field practice finish already?”

“Heh heh heh, look at this!!!” Cart, Goat, and Kicker all simultaneously held up small metal plates to me.

“What’s this? It says, ‘Adventurers’ Academy’s Skill Evaluation Proof. D-Rank, up to B1.’”

“It’s proof that we got good scores!” he exclaimed. “We can enter the dungeon now that we have these.” You didn’t need government permission to enter the dungeon, so it seemed to be something the school itself required of the students. “There aren’t many teams that were able to get this in our year. We came out on top!”

“That’s impressive,” I said. “So, you’re preparing for your next exploration, then.”

“Well, we’re actually planning to go right now.”

“To the dungeon?”

The group would be going to the dungeon in order to do some optional practice and get some pocket money.

“M-Ma’am! What kind of snacks would you buy?” Cart asked Mira. He’d had to muster enough courage to address a young lady he respected.

“Me? Let’s see... If I were going to B1, then I’d get the essential snacks like Ten-Rim Gum...and perhaps Magic Flute Ramune.”

“Magic Flute Ramune?”

Product name: Magic Flute Ramune

Description: Ramune candy with a hole in the middle. It makes a sound when you put it to your lips and blow.

Monsters are lured in by the sound.

Toy included.

Price: Sixty rims

“Wow, there’re dagashi like this?”

“It’s useful since there aren’t many monsters on B1,” she said. It was pretty convenient since it worked within a maximum range of two hundred meters. “But if you’re not careful,” she continued, “you could find yourself surrounded.”

“I see.”

“However, not only can you call monsters, but you can also use it to lure them into a trap.”

“What kind of trap?”

Meryl, who had a knack for setting traps, explained. “There are normal traps like bear traps, and then there are also high-grade types that act as mana detectors. When it comes to simple bear traps, only monsters with low intelligence fall for them.”

“Those monsters don’t drop much money,” Mira chimed in.

“Uh-huh.” It was probably great for Cart and the others to hear what working adventurers had to say. They were sincerely taking in the pair’s words. Watching them all interact, I felt that Mira and Meryl really had grown up.

“By the way,” Cart said, “what happens if I blow the Magic Flute Ramune here? Will monsters come out of the dungeon?”

“Of course not,” I said. “I haven’t tried it, though.”

“Then I think I will.” Cart took the Magic Flute Ramune he’d bought, put it right to his lips, and sounded it. The moment he did, the door to the back of the store opened.

“Did you call me, Yusuke?” Michelle had emerged.

“Gah! The cursed witch?!” he squeaked.

Hey! Not that he was wrong... Cart and the others were pretty scared of Michelle, who was the subject of many legends. She’s so cute, though.

“Yikes...” he said. “All I did was blow it a little bit, and the final boss showed up. If I used this in the dungeon...”

The three kids were shaking in their boots, but Meryl calmed them down. “Don’t worry. There’s nothing in the dungeon as terrifying as she is.” That’s a big ouch, Meryl.

“What about me?” Unaware of why she was being discussed, Michelle was looking around the group with curiosity.

“Nothing. I was just formally introducing you to these guys as my fiancée.”

Michelle smiled at once. “Oh, I see. Have fun and take your time shopping, everyone. I’ll go make lunch. Meryl and Mira, you two eat with us as well.” Humming to herself, she withdrew to the back room.

“Whew,” Meryl sighed. “World peace was preserved once again today.” She was just being dramatic. Cart and the others continued to shop while glancing occasionally toward the back of the store.

“All right, we’re heading to the dungeon!” Cart eventually announced.

“Seriously, don’t lose focus.”

“I know!”

Goat and Kicker nodded.

“Don’t worry,” Goat said. “We know what we need to do.”

“I’ll be with them, so I won’t let them do anything dangerous,” Kicker assured us.

The daring Cart, the calm Goat, and the knowledgeable Kicker—these three probably balanced one another well.

“Be careful,” I called as I saw them off at the storefront.

***

Carmine came to the store that evening. She hadn’t come here to do anything in particular, instead buying gum and blowing bubbles as always. She still seemed a bit out of place, but I was getting used to the sight of her floating there with her gum. As usual, she wasn’t playing with anyone but she seemed to be having fun in her own way.

“You’re always buying Fruit Gum,” I noted.

“What?”

“I have a lot of other varieties, like Ten-Rim Gum or Balloon Fruit Gum, right? I thought maybe you’d branch out.”

Product name: Balloon Fruit Gum

Description: Includes three flavors - Blueberry, sour berry, and yogurt.

If you eat all three at once, you can enjoy a berry yogurt flavor.

Vision improves for a while when you eat it.

Price: Eighty rims

It was a plastic container with gumballs inside. Back in Luganda, it was a popular snack with middle-aged adventurers. After all, even though the effect was temporary, it worked against age-related problems with vision. It was a scene that evoked pathos: the middle-aged adventurers whose vision had started to decline with age, chewing on the berry-yogurt-flavored gum, filling the air with its scent...

Most of the customers at my Royal Capital store were kids, so I wasn’t selling as much Balloon Fruit Gum as at my main location. However, because you could enjoy three different flavors, it seemed it was still pretty popular purely as a snack. I had a lot of different varieties of gum, but Carmine only ever bought Fruit Gum.

“Why don’t you try a new one every once in a while?” I suggested.

“I, like, have a no-cheating policy...”

“Just buying a different gum isn’t cheating, right? Venture out.”

“Mm... I’ll think about it.” I didn’t mean to force her, but a lot of these items were among my most recommended snacks. I wanted Carmine to enjoy more things.

Talking about venturing out reminded me of Cart and the others who’d gone to the dungeon, and I wondered if they had come home. The sun was already dyeing the western sky. This was around the time to be heading back...

A flash of anxiety crossed my mind, and I ended up checking the far end of the road several times. However, it seemed that I hadn’t had any reason to worry. After a while, the team of three returned. They looked tired, but I didn’t see any injuries.

“Oh, they came back safe and sound,” I noted.

I wasn’t sure when, but Carmine had walked up next to me and was also staring at the group. “Y’know, haven’t their faces changed?”

“They’ve experienced the dungeon now. Of course their expressions have changed.”

“Huh.”

The evening light shining on them, Cart and the others arrived at my storefront. Their faces and equipment were covered in mud. They’d probably had some intense battles.

“Welcome back,” I said. “Are you hurt?”

“Yeah, but we only got scratched.” Cart, Goat, and Kicker all wore smiles on their faces.

“That’s great,” I said. “Not getting hurt is the most important thing.”

“Our dream is to go to the dungeon depths and find treasure,” Cart boasted. “We can’t be stumbling at this level!”

“So, what’s your haul?”

“Heh heh, take a look at this!” Emptying his small leather bag into his palm, he showed me the contents. There were some copper coins and several small magic crystals. It was probably around 1,900 rims total.

“For three first-timers on their own, these earnings are pretty decent,” I noted. Even if it wouldn’t have been enough for a professional adventurer, the amount wasn’t half bad for a student’s pocket money. Besides, the group would only get stronger from here on.

Having observed our conversation, Carmine murmured a few words. “The dungeon, huh? I might wanna try going...”

Cart responded on reflex. “You planning on going into the dungeon? You’re gonna die if you don’t have the skills and knowledge!” He sounded a bit full of himself, but he wasn’t wrong. However, I was curious about how Carmine had become interested in this when she was so passive about everything else. It was dangerous, but if it was only B1...

“Are you serious, Carmine?” I asked.

“Yeah, I thought it might be nice to be an adventurer after I graduate.”

“But it’s dangerous to go into the dungeon by yourself,” I said. “How about you gather some friends at least?”

“I, like, don’t have any friends, so...”

As if wanting to mock her, Cart declared, “Some weakling from the Royal Academy’s gonna go to the dungeon? And then become an adventurer after graduation? Don’t make me laugh. Just be normal and get a job at the Royal Palace.” The students of the Royal Academy were elites, so many of them went on to become bureaucrats or high-ranking military officials.

“I can do whatever I want, right? Also, I’m not weak.”

“What did you say?”

“I can use offensive magic.”

“Don’t be letting that go to your head. Kicker is a fighter, but she can use Wind Magic!” Cart scoffed. Kicker wriggled her nose a little.

“It’s true that I’m not good at close-quarters combat,” Carmine admitted, “but I can use Magical Blessings too.”

“Magical Blessings?” The three of them were stunned.

“I can also use Recovery Magic and curses...”

The three of them fell silent in the face of Carmine’s prowess. Actually, Michelle had also said she had good grades.

Cart took one step forward and peered into her face. “Then I’ll put your skills to the test.”

“Hey, don’t start a fight,” I warned.

“That’s not what I mean,” he said. “I’m talking about a Mobile Forces match!” Following his emotions, Cart slammed her with a challenge, but she flatly refused.

“Pass.”

“You gonna run?”

“What?”

It was a battle of wills between Cart, who always charged in headfirst, and Carmine, who always kept her distance. If these two fought... Actually, what would happen if these two teamed up? I was honestly curious. “How about you give it a bit of a try?” I suggested. “I want to see you use your Mobile Force unit again, Carmine.”

She hesitated for a while, but in the end, she nodded her head. “If you say so, Yuyu...” She took out her Kian from her bag. She always carried it around like that. She might’ve actually wanted to fight against someone.

“Looks like you’re down for the challenge. I’ll teach you a lesson!” Cart also took out his Gufufu. Kian versus Gufufu—they were both Mobile Force units suited for close-quarters combat. This battle would get heated.

Drawn by the noise, the other kids began to gather, fully surrounding the pair.

“Then I’ll be the referee,” I said. “Let’s start.”

And thus the battle commenced.

***

The plot of land I’d received was pretty spacious, probably around a thousand tsubo—about 3,306 square meters. In that vast lot, there stood a lone live-in store, so luckily, I had as much free space as I wanted. We’d set up several Mobile Forces arenas next to the store. Michelle had built them, of course, and all of the arenas were exceedingly well-made. There was even quite a diversity of varieties. There was the most basic type of arena—an amphitheater—another one with rope around it like a pro wrestling ring, an arena that looked like a ruined city so you could enjoy a street-wrestling vibe, and more. If I had to pick out a particularly strange arena, it was the one with traps set here and there that activated at certain times. There was also an arena with fantasy vibes and flower decorations.

“I’ll let you pick where you want,” said Cart. “Well?” He was acting nonchalant, but it didn’t feel like he was looking down on his opponent.

“The most normal one.” Carmine also looked calm on the outside, but she was pretty tense. I could tell since her face was stiffer than usual.

“I’m really good at playing in that arena. You sure?”

“Makes no difference...”

The arena would be the amphitheater one, and the match would have no time limit. Victory would be decided when one of them surrendered, had their link snapped, or was pushed outside of the ring.

“Watch me, Yuyu.”

“Yeah. Do your best.”

With a small nod, Carmine linked up with her Kian.

***

Cart’s Gufufu moved the instant the match commenced. This assertiveness was Cart’s strength. However, it seemed Carmine had also been anticipating his movements. She dodged at once and returned her own sequence of light blows.

When it came to Mobile Forces, reaction speed and power varied slightly depending on the strength of your mana. Drawing out the limits of each Mobile Force unit was where your piloting was put to the test. That might translate as only a slight difference in results, but in battle, a split second was a really long time. The way Carmine moved was almost as fast as Meryl and the other veteran players. No, it might have been even faster in some instances.

“Damn it!!!” Cart had probably realized that his opponent was tougher than he’d anticipated. I could see the panic on his face. However, he hadn’t lost yet. Displaying his explosive power at critical moments, he was striking back against her advantage.

“Ack...” Carmine also had to be cautious of Cart’s fierce attacks. Power fighters had the absurd ability to deliver a blow that could abruptly turn the tables.

The match had no intervals, so they continued to fight for over ten minutes straight. The two of them were dripping with sweat, their eyes alight with a fiery glare. I’d never seen Carmine more aggressive. As she fought, her eyes were reminiscent of a large beast’s while stalking prey. I’d always seen her just idly chewing gum, so it was refreshing seeing this new expression of hers.

They were going back and forth, first one gaining the upper hand and then the other, but suddenly, Kian’s movements grew weaker. It was delivering lifeless blows like a boxer who’d run out of stamina.

“Did she run out of mana?”

“Go, Cart, go!!!” the kids outside the ring shouted. Most of the audience were students of the Adventurers’ Academy, so a majority were cheering for Cart. This was a match where Carmine was on the away team.

Pushed on by the cheers of encouragement, Cart stepped forward. He was going to unleash a final blow that would decide the match. Gufufu raised its sword above its head. However, Carmine’s Kian also accelerated suddenly at the same moment.

It was a bluff?! She’d faked running out of mana to trick Cart into letting his guard down. Kian’s sword was aiming to slice through Gufufu from below. Their two units, moving at top speed, were now fully committed to their trajectories.

“Whoaaa!!!”

“Gooo!!!”

The two swords clashed. However, Carmine had been faster by just a hair. The tip of Kian’s sword tossed up Gufufu’s forearm. Having caused Gufufu to lose balance, Kian’s sword came back down and cut it diagonally.

That was a wrap—that was what everyone must have thought. However, the well of Cart’s tenacity hadn’t yet run dry.

“Not yeeet!!!” He poured in the maximum amount of mana he could just before the link broke. Gufufu knocked down Kian with a tackle, and the two of them fell from the arena. Then, both Mobile Forces stopped moving.

The audience around the arena flew into an excited commotion, waiting for me, the referee, to pass judgment.

“The winner is Carmine,” I announced.

“Boo!!!” Some of the students jeered, but I stood by my decision.

“Carmine did go out of bounds first, but Cart’s link was the first to break,” I explained. “Therefore, Carmine won.”

The person who stepped forward to quiet those who continued to complain was none other than Cart. “It’s just like Mister Yahagi said. My link snapped first. That’s why I lost.” Since he had graciously admitted defeat, no other students voiced any further complaints.

“How did you find Carmine’s skills?” I asked Cart.

“Yeah, I’ll acknowledge her. I won’t lose next time, though.”

“Thanks.” Her attitude was as disinterested as ever. However, Cart’s next words left her stunned.

“So, from today onward, you’re part of our team.”

“Excuse me?”

“You’re interested in the dungeon, right? Then why not join us? Let’s go together.”

Carmine was fidgeting in the wake of his pushy invitation. “Why? I’m a Royal Academy Student...”

“What? You don’t wanna team up with Adventurers’ Academy students?”

“That’s not it!”

“Then it’s fine, isn’t it?”

“Yeah...” she mumbled. Cart looked away, and Carmine bashfully hung her head. Life brought us all certain unforgettable moments. For these two, this moment right now might have been one of them. The group of four was already discussing their next exploration.

“Whew. I’m hungry,” Cart sighed.

“I’ll give you this. It’s melon-flavored—my favorite.” Each packet of Fruit Gum had four pieces. The sight of these four kids sharing a packet of gum was one I felt I wouldn’t forget until the day I died.

The Adventurer Meryl’s Diary: Entry 2

Mira and I had Mister Yusuke take us along with him when he was going to the Royal Capital. It was a shock. I mean, the mansion I’d been anticipating simply wasn’t there! All that was there was that familiar run-down live-in store standing in a high-end residential area. Mister Yusuke would scold me if he heard me call it run-down, but it seriously was totally disappointing. My short-lived dream of living luxuriously in a lavish mansion while being served by attractive butlers and cute maids just crumbled to dust. What the hell! I got my hopes up for nothing!

I mean, yeah, Miss Michelle’s cooking was tasty, and that six-tatami-mat room or whatever it’s called was relaxing, and the bedding called futon wasn’t that bad, but Mister Yusuke is an earl, so he can afford to grant a commoner’s dream. Well, it’s whatever.

We got along well with the Adventurers’ Academy students at the dagashi-ya, but I was shocked that they thought we were Mister Yusuke’s lovers. Well, I am an adult woman, so maybe there’s no avoiding how it looks? Eh heh, if I had to be honest, it did make me a little happy. Mira too, probably.

However, that wasn’t something to be giddy about. Miss Michelle might get the wrong idea if she knew about it. If that happened, then the Royal Capital would collapse. I’m neither joking nor exaggerating. It’d definitely collapse. She’s recently stopped calling us hussies, but she had her doubts about us for a really long time...

That reminds me, Mira’s apparently healed from the wounds of her broken heart. It seems she still likes Mister Yusuke, but she said she doesn’t spend painful nights like she used to. Well, life isn’t always about romance. I think you can live a happy everyday life without it. That being said, I still want a boyfriend soon. Isn’t there one out there for me?

After learning that we’re active adventurers, Cart and the others looked at us like grown-ups they admired. Man, it embarrasses me a little. Though, as expected, Mira’s boobs did stand out more than I did. Those pervy kids! Still, they were earnestly asking for advice about taking down monsters in the dungeon. They even asked about which dagashi were most practical. As their senior, I gave them all kinds of advice. When they begged me, I even told them how to make traps to defeat monsters.

They were so cute, all young and innocent. Was I like that too until just recently? Rigal used to be cuter, but he’s more cheeky now. It makes you feel how quickly time passes.

Cart and the others idolized me, so I showed them my beloved treasure. It was the SSR card I finally got after buying a whopping three hundred Monster Chips bags.

SSR: Ragaraja. Its Killer Technique, Heavenly Arrow Attack, uses thousands of arrows of light to exorcise all enemies.

They were surprised, exclaiming, “You bought three hundred whole Monster Chips just to get this?!” They were all pretty impressed. There’s no doubt they respect me even more... Huh? No, wait, could it be that they were actually baffled by me?!

Chapter 3: Chichi’s Illness

There was about to be a drastic change of plans. At first, I’d been thinking I’d close my store on days school wasn’t in session, but that was now a no-go.

“Come to the dungeon with us, Yuyu,” Carmine said.

“Yeah!” Cart chimed in. “If you did business in the dungeon, Mister Yahagi, it’d help us out a lot too.”

Not only were Carmine and Cart asking me, but so were the other students. The two schools had the same days off, and there’d be a total of three free days within the next ten. The students would use that time to go dungeon diving. I was worried for Carmine and the others. Michelle got all sulky about the fact that we’d be spending less time together, but I decided to open my store in the dungeon.

***

For the first time in a while, I opened my store on B1 of the dungeon. When I had just come to this world, this was where Meryl and Mira had taken me. Back then, I hadn’t had the money to buy a business license, so I’d done business here where there were no taxes. This was also where I’d first met Mister Sanaga and Miss Mirai.

I felt so fond thinking back over the several years I’d spent in this world that I wound up getting lost deep in my emotions while staring at a completely blank rock wall.

“Huh? Mister Yahagi? It’s been a while! What are you doing here?” My adventurer acquaintances were peering at me in surprise. There were many rookies who’d grown pretty tough in the one year since I’d last seen them.

“I decided to open my store here just for today,” I said.

“Really?! Let me pull the Rocket Bomb lottery, then.”

“Gimme Jumbo Cutlets.” Academy students weren’t alone in lining up at my store—there were several of my regulars as well.

“Yuyu, are you a famous person?” Carmine asked, looking at me curiously.

“I used to open my street stall in the dungeon a long time ago,” I told her.

“Oh, is Hot Spring Yahagi yours, then, Yuyu?”

“That’s right. The gnomes showed it to me.”

Cart was astonished, taking a good hard look at my face. “So that means... You’re that famous Sir Snacks!!!”

“You’ve heard of me?”

“Of course I have!” he exclaimed. “You’re the legendary Sir Snacks, who completely subjugated the ultimate demoness and put her under your thumb, dug up a hot spring, and pulled the strings behind the scenes in the current king’s military coup d’état.”

No, I hadn’t dug up a hot spring nor had I participated in a military coup d’état, much less being capable of pulling the strings from behind the throne. Furthermore, even if she is the cursed witch, that doesn’t mean she’s the ultimate demoness! Yet Michelle, who’d come along with me, was happily giving him a big nod.

“Yes! That’s precisely it! I was completely subjugated by his charm!” she exclaimed. What a thing to say to kids. When did I subjugate you? It was like she was affirming that she was a demoness too. You had to be careful with your words and actions so that other people didn’t get the wrong idea. These rumors weren’t just taking on a life of their own—they were racing off at breakneck speed.

“Ninety percent of that is false information,” I firmly denied, but Cart was mostly not listening to me.

“Still, you’re the legendary Sir Snacks!” he exclaimed. I was an earl now actually, but it’d be a hassle if that set some more rumors loose, so I decided to stay quiet. “By the way, aren’t these products different from the ones in your usual store?” He was tilting his head to the side, picking up products he’d never seen before.

“That’s because this is the dungeon,” I replied. “I decided I would offer these powerful products that I normally don’t put up at my store. Here I won’t treat you like students. You are all adventurers.”

Cart and the others nodded with humble smiles and began carefully selecting the snacks that fit their budget. Today, Goat had a short bow on his back. The short bow’s weakness was that its piercing power fell short of other weapons’ but it was superior in its ease of operation and quick firing. For those reasons, it was often used in the dungeon. Basically, battles commenced with mid- and long-ranged attacks. Those who could use offensive magic would start battles using that, and those who couldn’t would shoot arrows. Goat was skillful and appeared to be a master of the bow. That same Goat was buying twenty whole boxes of Ten-Rim Gum, a snack that restored mana. What reason did he, who didn’t use offensive magic, have to buy it?

“You sure are buying a lot,” I noted. “Are you going to have your arrows enchanted?”

“Half of them’re for Kicker. This bow’s piercing power is weak, so Kicker uses Wind Magic to boost it. So, as thanks for that...” The coolheaded Goat was a little bashful. He was at an age when giving a girl a present might have still been embarrassing.

“So you guys give your arrows a tailwind to boost their power. I’ve got this, then.” I brought out a pot of a new type of snack.

Product name: Mintos Mini

Description: Mint-flavored chewy candy. Features three flavors - Strawberry, orange, and lemon.

Strengthens Wind Magic upon consumption.

Price: Thirty rims

“It’s a steal since it also keeps your mana consumption low when you’re using Wind Magic,” I said.

“Yeah. The package is cute too. I think I’ll buy one of each type.” He wasted little time in handing Kicker her presents of Ten-Rim Gum and Mintos Minis.

“Oh, you didn’t have to do this...” Kicker gasped.

“You’re always helping me, so...”

“Thank you. Let’s share and eat them together later.”

“Yeah.”

What’s this? It was just an ordinary conversation, yet it smelled so strongly of the springtime of youth. I could almost see the cherry blossom petals fluttering through the air around Goat and Kicker.

“Jeez. I get annoyed looking at those two,” Cart grumbled, scratching his head.

“You jealous?”

“No way! Those two are both in love with each other, yet they never get anywhere!” he exclaimed. So that’s the issue. “That Goat—he should hurry up and confess already. He’s just been twiddling his thumbs.”

“What’s wrong with that? Everyone can go at their own pace when it comes to romance,” the carefree Carmine said, blowing a bubble with her gum.

“Jeez, how pathetic.”

“How about you hurry up and confess to Miss Mira too already?”

“Gah...” Called out by Carmine, he suddenly started acting suspiciously. “U-Um, I need to grow up a little more first, or maybe after I become a full-fledged adventurer, or...”

So he likes Mira? With Mister Mani the oldest and Cart the youngest, she seriously was popular among men of every age. However, considering the fact that she was still single, maybe she had high standards? Or was she the type who wasn’t interested in romance in the first place?

“Even you’re pathetic, Cart.”

“What about you, Carmine?”

“Me?” she asked. “I don’t need romance. Having Yuyu and you guys is enough for me.” As she responded in a warm, carefree way, her big bubble popped.

I see. Happiness comes in many forms, huh. After coming to this unfamiliar world, I’d looked for a place to belong for the longest time, so I understood Carmine’s feelings well.

***

After I opened my store in front of the Lugandan Dungeon early one morning, a depressed-looking Marco came by.

“Good morning, Marco,” I said. “You look kinda down.”

“Chichi has been ill since last night,” he told me. Restless, Marco gazed off in the direction of their house. Even at this moment, he was probably worried for Chichi, who he said was resting at home. Luganda was still firmly in the development phase, so there wasn’t a single doctor. Chichi had been working hard as the only healer—what a predicament that she of all people had fallen ill.

“Can healers not heal their own illnesses?” I questioned.

“I asked her the same thing, but she said she just can’t get herself to focus. Mister Yahagi, do you have the universal elixir?”

“Ahh, that...” In the past, there had been a retro game at my store called Dungeon Conquest Game, one of the ten-rim games. It’d been really difficult to play, but its prize had been the elixir. However, the ten-rim games no longer existed. The consoles had actually been replaced, and the ten-rim games had disappeared. In their place, the video games Invaders and Puckman had made their debut. There weren’t any prizes, but Meryl was hooked on them. She was obsessed to the point that her name was always ranked among the top ten. As usual, she hadn’t been cured of her easily fired-up personality.

Chichi was the only healer, so the fact that there was no one who could examine her was a problem.

“I’ll go visit her too after this. If her symptoms seem bad, then I’ll have Michelle come over, so don’t worry,” I assured him.

“I’m glad to hear that. She says it isn’t that bad, but she is acting a bit weird. I’ll leave it to you.” Marco entered the dungeon with Team Harukaze, and I made my way to Chichi’s place.

***

I headed straight to Marco and Chichi’s house and knocked on the door, but there was no response.

“Hey, Chichi. Are you there? It’s me, Yahagi.” Marco had said she was home, so this was weird. Putting my ear to the door to gauge what was going on in there, I heard a small groan. It was mixed in among the sounds of vomiting and gasping.

“Yahagi... Help...”

Panicked, I opened the door and headed inside. “Chichi!”

She looked really worn out. Her skin had lost its moisture, and her once-plump lips were shriveled. Even her cheeks were thin and sunken in.

“H-Hey...” I gasped.

“Yahagi... The grape-flavored Powdered Drink Mix...”

“Powdered...? O-Okay. I’ll get it ready right away, so hang in there!” I burst into the kitchen and looked for some water. Still, she said the grape flavor? There were so many flavors to choose from, so why had she chosen that one? My Powdered Drink Mixes had various effects, and the grape flavor’s dispelled curses. No way! Has she been cursed?

Propping up the staggering Chichi, I had her drink the beverage. “Well?”

“I feel a bit better,” she sighed. “So these really were the symptoms of a curse, huh...” The grape beverage cured mild curses, but it was just a dagashi in the end. It wasn’t a medicine for a specific condition, so its effects were limited. She seemed to not be completely cured, so she sluggishly limped toward the bed, her face pale.

“What’s going on?”

“Several days ago, I began to display symptoms of a curse.”

“So, someone placed a curse on you?” I asked.

“If this is a curse, there are so many people who may hold grudges against me that I can’t guess who the culprit might be.” Chichi ridiculed herself in a sardonic tone. She had extravagantly spent as much as she pleased back when she’d been a queen, so she likely had a lot of enemies—even though after meeting Marco and being exiled to Luganda, she’d started devoting herself to its inhabitants...

“I’ll bring Michelle to you later, so let her examine you,” I said.

“I can fix a little thing like this myself.”

“Don’t go acting stubborn for no reason. If you could do that, you would’ve done it already, right? Marco’s worried about you. Hurry up and get better.”

As soon as I brought up Marco’s name, she fell silent and ceased her protests. Once upon a time, she’d been a scandalous woman, the topic of many adulterous rumors, but these days she was devoted to Marco alone.

“For now, I’ll leave ten packets of the grape-flavored drink mix, so take them if your symptoms get bad.” After preparing a pitcher and cup, I left Chichi’s house.

***

Even after returning to the Royal Capital, I couldn’t relax because Chichi’s condition seriously concerned me. It had seemed that her symptoms had subsided a little thanks to the grape beverage, but I felt like it was only a matter of time before she had another attack. Michelle was teaching a class, so she’d come back home in the evening, but it might be too late by then. I hesitated a little, but eventually I put up a sign that said “Closed temporarily” and rushed out of the store.

***

It was my first time entering the Royal Academy. That was probably no surprise since I was neither a student nor a professor. The school grounds were surrounded by tall fences, and the gates were magnificent like a castle’s. I could tell that they’d spent a lot of money on this facility that elites attended.

There was a security guard hut next to the gates, and a gatekeeper with a sharp expression was keeping constant watch from there. The gates were locked up tight, so you needed to obtain permission to enter.

“Hello. I’m Yusuke Yahagi,” I said, “and I’m a friend of one of the instructors here, Michelle. I’d like to go to her laboratory due to an emergency. Could you let me through?”

All he did was stare at me with suspicion. “You’re a friend of Professor Michelle?” he asked incredulously. “What proof do you have?”

“I don’t have any,” I admitted.

“This academy is off-limits to anyone outside of the school. Please leave.”

“One of her relatives is sick, and I have to tell her as soon as possible. Could you please get in touch with her somehow?” I asked him politely, but his attitude didn’t change. Even worse, he even started shooing me away as if he just wanted to avoid trouble.

“Go on. Go home,” he said. “This is no place for commoners.”

Hmm, he probably wouldn’t believe me even if I said I had a noble rank. I was wearing ordinary clothes since I’d been in a rush, and I’d come here on foot on top of that. This was a school that the children of royalty and aristocrats attended, so he probably wasn’t blocking me out of malice.

While I was wondering what to do, Carmine came running from the other end of the plaza. “Yuyu, what’s wrong?”

“Oh, Carmine. I need Michelle for something, but I can’t get in. I hate to ask, but can you call her for me?”

“I can, but the next class is gonna start really soon.” She turned to the gatekeeper. “Let Yuyu in.”

“H-He’s a friend of yours, Lady Carmine?” he stammered. The gatekeeper’s face turned wretchedly pale. Why was that?

“Yes. He’s an important person. Even my father tips his hat to him.”

“What?” The gatekeeper’s face went from merely pale to stark white. “My apologiiies!!!”

I’d somehow been granted approval to enter. But Carmine’s dad...? I’d thought that she definitely came from a single-mother household, but it looked like that wasn’t the case.

“Your dad knows me?” I asked her.

“Yeah.”

“Who is he?”

“It’s a secret,” she replied. It sounded like she didn’t want to say it. She might have had her reasons. But a person I knew who’d tip his hat to me...?

Don’t tell me it’s Prime Minister Ethel?! But when I’d been invited to his estate and introduced to his family, Carmine hadn’t been there. His wife didn’t work at a healing center either... Is she his secret love child?! It apparently happened a lot among aristocrats, so it wasn’t impossible. Still, that Prime Minister Ethel... That meant that beneath his gentle face, he was a majorly pervy old man.

“Professor Michelle’s laboratory is over there.”

“Thank you,” I said before something occurred to me. “Oh, right, the dagashi-ya is temporarily closed today. Sorry.”

“Huh...?” Her expression turned very sad.

“Don’t look like that. I’ll definitely open my shop tomorrow.”

“Okay...” She suddenly drew close to me and lightly rested her forehead against my chest. “I wish you were my dad instead, Yuyu...”

“Hey, can’t you at least say ‘older brother’?”

Already all traces of her earlier sadness had disappeared from her face. “Ah ha ha ha. That’s fine too, I guess. See ya.” Waving her hand, she ran off. It was just a hunch, but I felt like I’d once again gotten a glimpse of her loneliness. I felt a surge of terrible sorrow welling up inside me, but for now, I hurried to Michelle’s laboratory.

***

The laboratory I’d been looking for really stood out. A crest depicting a skull holding withered purple roses in its mouth decorated the door, along with numerous talismans surrounding it. There was something like a dinosaur’s foot growing from the wall holding the door closed—was that the lock? The thick claws were digging into the door. But something like that wasn’t enough to perturb me. It wouldn’t have been strange to discover that Michelle had a watchdog from hell chained up here. I lightly knocked on the door and waited for a response.

“Who are you? Name yourself...” I could hear a muffled but intense voice. She was putting on an act so she wouldn’t be looked down on as a teacher. She was probably having a hard time in her own way. It reminded me of the time before we’d begun dating, when she was still disguising herself as the Shinigami Minerva. I’d been mistaking her for a guy since she’d been using her cognitive obstruction spells. Those were all memories I looked back on fondly now.

“It’s me—Yusuke.”

“Yusuke?! Why are you here? I’m gonna undo the barrier, so wait for me. ♡ Don’t be going on home.” She’d gone back to her usual cute voice once I’d named myself, and following that, I heard a chant. The dinosaur foot holding the door closed shuddered and the claws released. The door opened with a squeak, and standing on the other side was Michelle, smiling shyly.

“That’s a pretty secure lock,” I commented.

“There are dangerous books and chemicals here, so I made it difficult to get in,” she said. Guess that can’t be helped. “I’m so happy. Come in. I’ll show you around. Are you thirsty? I’ll make you some tea.”

“No, I can’t be taking it easy,” I said and then told her about Chichi’s condition. Michelle remained detached even as she listened to my report about her sister. She wasn’t especially worried, but it didn’t feel like she was coldly pushing her away either. That was why I also avoided touching on their sisterly matters any more than necessary.

“Something does bother me a little,” she commented.

“What’s that?”

“She’s a pretty cautious person,” she said. “Even in her usual day-to-day life, she wouldn’t neglect preparing a barrier against curses. She’s even repelled mine.”

“If that’s the case, then does that mean she was cursed by a powerful magic wielder?”

“A wielder of magic even stronger than me, huh? Hmm...” she murmured. I felt like no such person existed.

“But the grape-flavored Powdered Drink Mix worked on her. That dispels curses, right?”

“That’s right. But that’s not proof that she’s definitely been cursed. It’s a snack that has a certain level of effectiveness against similar symptoms of illness...”

At the present, it sounded like she couldn’t say anything for certain.

“For now,” she continued, “it seems like I’ll have to examine Chichi. Let’s go at once.”

“What about your work?”

“I’ll cancel my afternoon class for today, or I’ll ask another teacher to be my substitute.”

“Sorry.”

“It’s nothing you need to apologize for,” she said. “I haven’t completely forgiven Chichi, but it’s a fact that, currently, she’s working hard for Luganda. This is for everyone’s sake.”

After completing the necessary proceedings, Michelle and I hurried to Luganda.

***

After examining Chichi with a stern face, Michelle let out a big sigh. “I’ve got the general picture. It presents similarly, but this truly isn’t a curse after all. It’s an adverse reaction.”

That was unexpected news to me, but Chichi didn’t say anything. It seemed something had clicked for her. “An adverse reaction?” I asked.

“Yes,” Michelle confirmed, her tone bitter. “Chichi, you laid your hands on Combination Charms, didn’t you?”

“Tch...” Her vexed click of the tongue was proof of the affirmative.

“What are Combination Charms? Explain them to me so that I understand.”

“A forbidden technique,” Michelle replied. “To give a rough explanation, it’s a technique that lets you obtain great power by combining mana of different wavelengths. However, you suffer a major recoil from doing so, and if you fail, you exhibit symptoms similar to being cursed—like this.”

“Hmph. I totally thought you’d cast a curse on me,” Chichi huffed. Her words themselves were nasty, but her heart didn’t seem to be in them.

“Why were you trying to use Combination Charms?” I asked.

Chichi fell silent, not responding, but Michelle answered for her. “She’s probably chronically deficient in mana.”

“What do you mean?”

“Healing Magic uses a lot of mana. If you work hard for the adventurers every single day, it’s improbable that you’ll recover in just one night’s sleep. Also, because of that, your total mana can decrease.”

“So she used Combination Charms in order to do something about that.” I looked at Chichi. “Sorry, Chichi. We’ve been relying on you too much.”

“It’s fine... I only wanted to test it out a little.” Chichi looked away.

“I’ll treat you for now, but it’ll take time to heal the base issue. It’s a hassle to gather the ingredients to make a remedy...” Michelle gave a small sigh.

“There’s a remedy?” I asked.

“There is, but it doesn’t have a dramatic effect. The only real remedy is slow and steady healing. You need to gather a lot of linseed weeds, though.”

“Is there a problem with that?”

“They’re commonplace grasses that grow in the dungeon’s upper floors, but they’re not something a pharmacy handles. They’re more like weeds than medicinal herbs.”

In short, if there was no demand, then no one was gathering them. Such an ordinary grass would serve as Chichi’s remedy.

“Then I’ll gather them for you.”

“You will, Yusuke?” Michelle blurted just as Chichi cried, “You will, Yahagi?”

“I’m always going into the dungeon anyway,” I said. “I’ll look for them while I’m at it.” I had plenty of chances, like when I commuted between Luganda and the Royal Capital, and when I opened my store for the academy students.

“It’s dangerous. What are you going to do if you’re attacked by monsters while you’re looking?” It seemed Michelle was unbearably worried. However, even if it was me we were talking about here, I would be fine enough if I was only going to B1 and B2. I had my dagashi and toys too.

“You don’t have to worry about me,” I assured her. “I’m telling you, I’ll be fine. I’m pretty used to it by now. Also...”

“Also what?” She was pouting, looking like she was still against the idea.

“You’re going to marry me soon, right? That means Chichi’s going to be my little sister too. I can’t just ignore her.”

Stupefied, they both fell silent. Before long, Michelle returned to her senses and lightly slapped the back of Chichi’s head. “Wh-What are you getting all red in the face for?!”

“I-I’m not!” Chichi cried. “You’re the one who’s looking red. That’s embarrassing at your age.”

“I mean, Yusuke just said ‘marry’ out of nowhere. You shouldn’t be getting all shy about him calling you his little sister either!!!”

“Shut up! I’ve only had a gloomy older sister until now, so I just kinda thought it might be nice to have an older brother! That’s all!” They were having yet another sisterly feud over nothing.

“Stop arguing, you two,” I sighed. “For now, I’ll go look for the linseed weeds. Even without seeking them out specially, I go to the dungeon every day anyway, so I’m just doing it along the way, right?”

After I reasoned with her, Michelle finally accepted it.

“How are you feeling, Chichi?” I asked.

“It looks like Michelle’s magic and the medicine are working,” she said. “I’m a lot better than I was before.” The color was returning to her face too.

“You’ll suffer if you get careless,” Michelle said. “You’ll periodically be attacked by headaches, dizziness, insomnia, and hot flashes.”

“It sounds kinda like menopause,” I noted.

“It truly does.”

“I’m not old enough for that!” Chichi gasped. “What a terrible thing to say to a girl still in her twenties...” She was mumbling some complaints. I supposed I should give her some snacks in place of a get-well gift.

Product name: Fruit Gummy

Description: Fruit gummies that use natural fruit juice. Features several flavors such as grape, strawberry, and mandarin.

The pomegranate flavor eases menopausal symptoms.

Price: One hundred rims

“Here, this is a get-well gift for you,” I said, handing it to her.

“I’m telling you, I’m not old enough for menopause!” she cried. She was huffy, but she looked a lot better than she had this morning. Michelle’s treatment had probably been effective. But this was only treating the symptoms. Our ability to treat the source was dependent on me gathering the linseed weeds. We left both medicine and gummies and exited Chichi’s house.

***

My days of looking for the linseed weeds had started. Every day, I returned to Luganda in the early morning to deal with government affairs and conduct my dagashi-ya business, then I loitered in the dungeon around midday looking for linseed weeds and opened my dagashi-ya in the Royal Capital after school.

While I was talking to Carmine and the others who’d stopped by my shop, the topic of linseed weeds happened to pop up in our conversation.

“Whoa, you’re dungeon diving, Yuyu?” Carmine asked.

“Only B1 and B2 since I’m just gathering linseed weeds. We need them to cure a friend of mine’s illness.”

“How many do you need?” She looked unusually serious.

“A lot—so much that no matter how many we have, it won’t be enough.”

“Then I’ll look for them too.”

“Leave it to us.” Cart and the others who were with her also offered their help. This might’ve been a good thing, though. If I bought linseed weeds from them, then they could earn some pocket money, and it’d help me out since I needed so many. It was a win-win arrangement.

“Really? I’ll buy them off of you, so I’ll leave it to you guys.”

“They’re trade-in items!” Cart exclaimed. “We’re becoming more and more like adventurers!” They were over the moon with joy.

“But whatever you do, do not get reckless,” I warned them. “Linseed weeds grow on B1 and B2, but don’t let down your guard.”

“We know. We’ll gather lots of them and play the drawstring lottery ten times!” Despite this childish exclamation, they could be relied on to get the job done.

***

When I left for the dungeon on the schools’ day off, Cart and the others were just about to depart. It seemed they’d arranged to meet in front of my store.

“Good morning, Mister Yahagi!” Cart called out to me.

“You’re going now?” I asked.

“Yep! We’ll make some good money!” Iron breastplates, leather shoulder and elbow guards, and steel-plate boots—they had some pretty good equipment on. It was said that Adventurers’ Academy students weren’t wealthy, but that was only if you compared them to Royal Academy students. These three came from families of knights and high-ranking soldiers, so they had a decent amount of money. Compared to the items used by, say, Rigal—who had started out as a porter—this was some extraordinary equipment.

Even so, Carmine’s kit was something else. At first glance, they just looked like normal clothes, but her equipment’s antimagic effects and physical resistance were apparently high. Michelle told me that the clothes were made of leather acquired from an extremely rare dragon. They were exceedingly pricey and weren’t something you could just buy from a boutique around here.

But then again, the heart-marked sweater I was wearing under my leather armor was even more special. This was an artifact-grade piece of clothing made by the cursed witch which had taken half a year to weave. The only thing was, Michelle’s and my names were finely woven inside each individual heart mark. I was so embarrassed that I really couldn’t show it to people. I promised myself that no matter what, I absolutely would never take my armor off in front of these kids.

***

I’d been overlooking them until now since I hadn’t been aware of them, but there were a lot of linseed weeds. They were grasses similar in appearance to red clover but only one-fifth of the size. Maybe it would be more accurate to say they were a bit bigger than the benitade plants that had been used as sashimi garnish back in Japan. There were a lot of them growing close together near walls and the like.

“It’ll be easy finding them, but they’re so small that they don’t take up much space.” Carmine was plucking the linseed weeds and stuffing them into her jute bag.

“Make sure you don’t remove the roots. They’ll grow again if you leave them.”

“Okey dokey.”

Just like Carmine had said, it was rather difficult to gather enough of the plants. You needed a lot of linseed weeds to make the medicine. Isn’t there a more efficient way of finding these? It’d be simple if I used my Clairvoyance, but that’d be a waste of my mana. Oh right, I could use dagashi to enhance my sense of smell!

Product name: Original Plum Jam

Description: A sweet-and-sour jam made with plums in small packets.

Enhances your sense of smell upon consumption.

Price: Ten rims

This was another snack that really took me back. I remembered back when I was a kid, I’d eat these by spreading them on thin rice crackers and stuff. In this case, its special characteristic was that when the plum’s scent passed through your nose, it enhanced your sense of smell to the level of a dog’s. The effect only lasted for thirty minutes, but it might be useful for finding the linseed weeds. What was really good was that it sold at a cheap price of ten rims, so you got a big bang for your buck.

I soon handed them out to the four-member team, but Carmine looked apprehensive.

“Is this really going to be okay?” she asked. “We’re not gonna die from shock if Cart happens to fart or something, right?”

“Hey, that’s rude!” Cart protested. “My farts aren’t that smelly.”

“No, they’re so smelly that they’re deadly!” Goat and Kicker were both nodding. Don’t tease him too much. Poor Cart.

“Don’t worry,” I assured them. “Dogs don’t die even if your farts are smelly, do they? It’s just like that. All it does is raise your ability to distinguish between smells, so it won’t double your sensitivity.”

After I’d convinced them, they ate the plum jam.

“Ah, it’s not as sour as I expected.” Kicker smiled broadly.

“Right? It seems this product was developed through trial and error. Even Meryl, who’s bad with sour things, happily eats this stuff.”

She’d taken one doubtful little lick of Mira’s jam and then wasted no time buying one for herself.

“Huh? Doesn’t something smell good?” Goat was raising his nose in the air and slowly turning around. The levelheaded Goat wouldn’t overlook the slightest change in their surroundings.

“What good smell?” Cart moved his nose around the same way, but it seemed he didn’t smell it.

“Over there.”

Goat had pinpointed where the smell was located, so we all headed in that direction. After taking several steps, I also understood what he was talking about. It was a citrusy smell with a refreshing sweetness that also made you think of a green forest.

“It’s an alluring smell and all, but it’s not a trap set by monsters, right?” I asked. There were monsters who’d tempt human hearts through smells and voices. Stories of someone being lured in by the voice of a bewitching woman only to stagger over and get their heads gnawed off by an ugly monster were a dime a dozen.

“It’s all right. This smell is probably the smell of lyzen flowers.” Kicker was nodding with apparent confidence.

“I’m surprised you can tell,” I said. “Are you familiar with plants?”

“Not just plants,” Cart told me in the shy Kicker’s place. “She knows about stuff like monsters and minerals too.” She was always getting A-pluses in Natural History, apparently.

We needed to gather medicinal herbs, but I was also interested in those lyzen flowers or whatever they were called. That was how attractive they smelled.

“All right, let’s go check them out,” Cart declared. We headed toward an end of B1 that I didn’t normally go to and found orange flowers growing in the corner of a blind alley.

“So these are lyzen flowers,” I murmured. They looked very similar to daffodils, but their smell was much more splendid.

“They say that their smell takes away the suffering of sick people,” Kicker said.

“Is that true, Kicker? Then can’t we sell them for a lot of money?” Cart was excited.

“Yeah. They should be about 3,000 rims through an ordinary trade-in.” That was probably a pretty good amount for a rookie adventurer’s extra income. For the academy students, it was decent pocket money. If these flowers took away the suffering of sick people, then Chichi would probably be happy to have them.

“Can you sell them to me?” I asked Goat, who’d found them first.

“I don’t need money,” Goat replied. “Take them.”

“I don’t need money either,” said Carmine.

“Yeah, same here,” Kicker agreed.

Cart seemed conflicted. “Ngh... W-Well, it’s fine. I don’t need it either!”

They were such nice kids. I handed each of them a one-thousand-rim silver coin.

Chichi’s Side

Marco immediately noticed the scent in the room when he came home from work. The house was brimming with a fragrance that seemed to make the exhaustion of the day fly away.

“I’m back. What’s this smell?” Marco asked, entering the room to find Chichi sitting upright in bed. She looked to be doing a lot better than usual. Lately, Chichi’s brows were often furrowed from pain, but her face, illuminated by the evening sun, now had a tender expression.

“Welcome back,” she said. “My sister and Yahagi were just here a second ago. They gave me lyzens as a get-well gift.” Next to the window, a bundle of sweet flowers glowed in the setting sun’s rays.

“These are lyzens?”

“Yes. For a sick person, they’re desirable flowers. Yahagi said he found them in the dungeon.”

“I see,” said Marco. “We can’t be thankful enough to Mister Yahagi.”

“Indeed,” she agreed. “Of course, I’m fully devoted to you, Marco, but I feel like having a new big brother isn’t so bad either.”

Sitting side by side, they breathed deeply of the flowers’ scent. For the first time in a while, both the caretaker and care-receiver felt at peace as they huddled against each other.

The Adventurer Meryl’s Diary: Entry 3

Marco told me that Chichi has fallen ill. She’s in pretty bad shape apparently. Since Marco is worried about her, he’s becoming more distracted. He’s a pro adventurer, so he fulfills his role in battle properly, but while we’re on the move, he’s only there in body, not in spirit.

He says that he’s fine, but I really can’t believe him. It lowered the amount of money we could earn, but we didn’t go deep inside the dungeon today, instead settling for only defeating monsters on the upper floors. Life is long, so these kinds of days are bound to happen. As Team Harukaze’s leader, I aim to not take risks. Surviving was more important than earning big today.

Yeah, I think those are some pretty nice words that I came up with. Next time, I’ll tell them to Cart and the others. I’m sure they’ll deem me an even more admirable young lady.

***

After wrapping up our work for the day, we all decided to go together to see Chichi. She was originally an unpleasant woman, but for now she’s Luganda’s healer anyone can rely on. I think she’s been getting nicer since she started living with Marco.

Plucking flowers and bringing handmade herb teas and the like, we went to Chichi’s place. However, she declined to see us.

“Sorry, everyone. She says she doesn’t want to see you,” Marco said, apologetically bowing his head.

“Does she feel that sick?” I asked.

“She says she doesn’t want you guys to see her without makeup.” Even now, Chichi regularly puts on a full face of makeup. Apparently, even Marco had scarcely ever seen her bare face before, although he always boasted about how she was a beauty even without makeup. “I think she probably doesn’t want you to see how worn out she’s become from her illness. She’s a prideful person, so...”

“So that’s how bad it is...”

“It might be the result of someone’s curse,” said Marco, smiling ruefully.

“So, she doesn’t want to see us since her face is all swollen from the curse?”

“No. It’s only that she gets headaches and dizziness, and her body gets hot. It seems she can’t sleep at night either.”

It seemed her condition was worse than it had been this morning.

“If she isn’t better by tomorrow, why don’t you talk with Mister Yusuke about it?” I suggested.

“Yeah, I’ll do so.” Marco nodded, and I felt that his face looked a bit brighter than before. He really has complete faith in Mister Yusuke—not that the rest of us are any different.

We couldn’t do anything about her not wanting to see us. We handed over the flowers and tea to Marco. However, just when we were about to leave, I suddenly got curious about something and asked him, “If—I’m just speaking hypothetically—but if her face became ugly from a curse, could you still love her?”

“Yes,” he replied immediately. I had to make doubly sure of it.

“Really?”

“Yeah,” he affirmed. “It’s just that I think Chichi wouldn’t want me to see her looking like that. That’s why, if that happened, I’d go into the dungeon and touch Oeipus’s statue.”

I was speechless. Oeipus’s statue was a cursed statue located on B4 of the dungeon. It depicted a man with crushed eyes who was wearing tattered clothes. If you touched it, it would steal away your sight. “You wouldn’t mind not being able to see anymore?”

“I’d be happy.”

Now that I thought about it, Mister Yusuke had told me a similar story once. I think the heroine was a young lady named Shunkin. It was apparently a Jah-pon-nese story from Mister Yusuke’s hometown. There are all kinds of relationships in the world, huh? I somehow felt a bit sorrowful.

***

For the first time in a while, Marco had a chipper face when he came to meet us. Apparently, Mister Yusuke had brought Miss Michelle. It seems Chichi’s illness is a side effect of something and can be cured with medicine. However, you apparently need a ton of linseed weeds to make that medicine. Of course, we promised to help gather them.

I kinda felt relieved. Marco can avoid going blind now. I think he would’ve seriously done it. To be honest, I think his love is as heavy as Miss Michelle’s.

Chapter 4: Chocolate Egg

Our days of looking for linseed weeds continued on. Thanks to the medicine Michelle made, Chichi’s condition remained stable. However, that didn’t mean the medicine had fundamentally cured the Combination Charm’s side effects. Her body had gotten better recently and she was back to working as a healer, but she could have an episode at any time. Medicine was vital to her everyday life and even Michelle didn’t know how long it’d take for her to make a complete recovery.

In addition to the students, the members of Team Harukaze had come to the Royal Capital Dungeon today. Of course, the teleportation portal was a secret to the students. Our story was that Meryl and the others had traveled by land.

“I’m sorry for always troubling you. I’ll work hard today too, so...” Marco bowed his head apologetically.

“Don’t be so humble,” I reassured him. “Let’s do our best and get a bunch of linseed weeds.” I was really grateful that Chichi was working hard as a healer in Luganda. We should all live while helping each other out.

***

As Goat held off an enemy attack, Cart’s and Kicker’s swords cut up the monster’s torso. The enemies were Gigantic Snails, which were classified as powerful monsters on B1. There were two of them but Carmine was already detaining one with Earth Magic. “Are you done yet? My Earth Claws are, like, hitting their limit!”

“Yeah, I took care of this one. I’ll head over right away!” Cart called, his voice overlapping with the sound of Goat’s arrow. Its power amplified by Kicker’s Wind Magic, the arrow penetrated the Gigantic Snail’s shell.

“This will be the finishing blow!” Bursting into the fray, Cart swung his sword to cut off its head, and the Gigantic Snail disappeared into smoke.

“You guys are so strong now,” I remarked. Compared to the period immediately following their field practice, there was a world of difference in their abilities now. Even active adventurers like Meryl found their competency deserving of praise.

“I think you’re plenty capable of even going to B2,” Meryl said.

“Really, Miss Meryl?” Cart asked.

“Yeah. So long as you don’t let your guard down, you’ll be totally fine. You wanna go to B2 today?”

“We do!!!” the four of them said in unison.

“Will that be all right?” I asked, concerned, but the four members of Team Harukaze gave them their stamp of approval.

“With their equipment and how competent they are, there’s no problem,” Meryl replied. “Plus we’ll be with them.” Meryl and her teammates weren’t rookies anymore. With Mira and Rigal as the group’s main firepower and Meryl and Marco excelling in both offense and defense, Team Harukaze was currently Luganda’s top team.

“If you say so, then I’ll believe you,” I told her. “Let’s stop by the hot spring while we’re at it. I’ll treat you to some Ramune at least.”

Cart and the others cheered at my proposal.

***

Taking down monsters and gathering linseed weeds along the way, we made it to B2. The student group didn’t hesitate even there and were taking the initiative in defeating monsters.

“Beyond there is the hot spring,” I said. “You can relax there since monsters don’t spawn once you’re inside.”

“At last, the coveted Hot Spring Yahagi.” Cart was nodding thoughtfully.

“This is my first time going to a hot spring,” Carmine said.

“Same here,” said Goat.

For dungeon newbies, it seemed reaching the hot spring was something like a beginner’s milestone. When we reached the clearing in front of the hot spring, the four of them began looking all around the place.

“Whoa... We’ve all finally made it to Hot Spring Yahagi,” Cart murmured in awe.

“Yeah. It feels like we’re finally at the starting point of being an adventurer.” Cart and Goat were rejoicing, each with an arm slung around the other’s shoulders.

“Let’s hurry up and get in the bath,” Carmine piped up. “I, like, can’t wait.”

“Me neither.” Carmine and Kicker restlessly peered at the hot spring’s entrance.

“Then I’ll show you around,” offered Mira. “Welcome.” She took the two of them into the women’s bath.

As he watched them head off, Cart muttered, “I’m jealous... Getting to take a bath with Miss Mira...”

“I understand how you feel,” I said, “but don’t go peeking in there no matter what.”

“I-I know! I was just kinda saying it...”

Rigal and Marco led Cart and Goat into the other bath. I was in the mood to take one too, but it ended up being impossible.

“Long time no see, Mister Yahagi. Perfect timing. I wanted to drink some after-bath Ramune for the first time in a while.”

“Mister Yahagi, the water guns for massages broke. Do you have any new ones?”

There were so many familiar faces that it seemed I wouldn’t have the free time to relax and soak in the bath.

“All right. I’ll bring out my store right away,” I told them.

“Oh, there’re snacks I’ve never seen before. I guess I’ll buy one of those Fruit Gummies or whatever.”

It looked like my shop was about to get busy, but I was pleased to see the happiness on these familiar old faces.

***

The girls came back from the bath and Meryl was the first to notice my new item. She was a sucker for new products.

“What are these? Chocolate eggs?”

“Good guess, Meryl. These are actually new products that I got just now.”

Product name: Chocolate Egg (Familiar Series)

Description: Oval-shaped chocolates containing familiars.

The one who opens the egg can use the familiar that’s inside.

Price: Three hundred rims

“A familiar sounds like fun. Gimme ten!”

“Just to let you know, there’s no point in trying to have ten familiars serving you,” I warned Meryl, who was itching to buy in bulk.

“Why?”

“Each person can only use one familiar.” The chocolates were designed so that once you opened a new one, the old familiar would disappear.

That disappointed Meryl. “Boo. I wanted to liven things up with a bunch of familiars.”

“Don’t say that. The upside is that the familiar’s heart will be connected with their master’s, and they’ll grow alongside you.”

“Really?” she asked, her interest piqued again. “Then I’ll go ahead and buy one.” Meryl took one Chocolate Egg from among the many on display. “I feel like this one is calling to me. Now then, what’s gonna come out...?”

Everyone seemed interested, their gazes all focused on Meryl’s hands. When she tore off the aluminum foil, an egg-shaped chocolate appeared.

“What should I do with this?”

“There’s a trick to cleanly splitting Chocolate Eggs,” I told her before turning to Carmine. “Can you use your magic to chill the chocolate, Carmine?”

Carmine was a great magic wielder. She wasn’t skilled in close-quarters combat, but on top of commanding all four elements of magic, she was also deeply knowledgeable about Dark Magic. At my request, she immediately chilled the egg.

“All right, this is plenty chilled,” I said. “Meryl, there’s a vertical line on the egg, right?”

“Oh, this.”

“That’s right. Squeeze the egg between your fingers and apply pressure along the line, sliding up and then down.”

When she followed my instructions, the Chocolate Egg split in two with a nice pop. There was a red plastic capsule inside. “It’s tiny!” she exclaimed. “Is there really a familiar in here? Munch munch.”

She’s already eating the chocolate...

“That should be right. Open it. You’ll know soon enough.”

“Okay...” Meryl gulped and carefully opened the capsule.

“Woof!” Inside was a tiny puppy.

“Wow... Th-This is too cute...” she gasped. Amazingly, a tiny shiba inu, even smaller than a miniature mameshiba, was sitting square on her palm. It was about the size of a stuffed animal you’d get from a small crane game. Gazing up at Meryl with cute round eyes, it appeared to be smiling. It was as if it were greeting her, saying, “Eh heh heh, nice to meet you.”

“I’ve never seen a dog like this before,” she said.

“It looks like a species native to my birthplace,” I told her.

“Ja Pan, was it?”

“Yeah. They’re called shiba inu.”

“Shee-bah ee-noo, huh? I think I’ll name it Shiba, then.”

It might’ve understood her since it wagged its tail in response.

“Oh, you like your name too, Shiba?”

“Woof!”

There was a small explanatory note inside the capsule it had come out of.

Dog

An animal-type familiar.

An exceedingly loyal familiar. Once it grows up, it becomes useful for hunting.

“It’s so small—can it really hunt?”

“It gets bigger as you work together, maybe?” I suggested.

“I see. I’ll take Shiba into the dungeon from now on, then. I’ll raise you to be a fine familiar, Shiba.”

“Woof woof!”

Absorbed in Shiba, still atop her palm, she gently brushed it with her fingertip. Seeing this, her teammates and the children all immediately sprang into action.

“Please give me one Chocolate Egg, Mister Yahagi!”

“Me too!”

“Same here!”

I had a hunch this was going to become a new hit product. Everyone there bought a Chocolate Egg. Mira opened her capsule first.

“Is this...a ring?” There was a stone head and small arms and legs growing from the ring. Their restless movements were comical to see. The stone head was a transparent green color, like an emerald.

Ring

A golem-type familiar.

You can equip it as a ring. It’s a golem that supplies its master with mana.

When grown, it can also use offensive magic on its own.

“It’s a welcome familiar for a mage like myself.” Mira named this familiar El, which she had apparently taken from the word “emerald.”

The next one to open their capsule was Rigal. A gold rectangular cigarette lighter came out.

Light

A golem-type familiar.

Can be used as a lighter when ignited.

Transforms into a humanlike shape. It’s a tank with good defense.

When Rigal poked it with his finger, the familiar instantly transformed from a lighter into a humanoid golem. “Whoa! What is this? How cool...” The metal of the transformed golem gleamed.

“This guy has high defense, so it looks like it’ll be a good partner for you when it grows up, Rigal,” I said.

“I’ll take care to raise it well!!!” Rigal named his lighter Litan. So, a gold Litan, huh?

“All right, come out, my partner!” Making a show of it, Cart opened his Chocolate Egg. What came out was only five centimeters long, but it had bulky muscles all over its green body.

Green Man

A special-type familiar.

It has unparalleled physical prowess.

Excels at close-quarters combat.

“This is nice!” he exclaimed. “When he grows up, we can do a combination attack or something!”

“Raising him won’t be easy,” I warned.

“I know!”

Cart named his familiar Hogan after a legendary martial artist.

“What familiar did you get?” I asked Goat, who’d already opened his Chocolate Egg.

“This.” Goat quietly presented what he’d gotten, which was a hawk circling around on top of his palm.

Great Hawk

An animal-type familiar.

It attacks with its sharp claws and beak.

When it grows up, it can also carry its master on its back!

It was an animal type like Meryl’s. It looked like animal-type familiars had a particularly strong connection with their owners. It’d probably become a good partner for Goat, even though it was still pretty small. He named his familiar Hawk.

“Look at mine too, Mister Yahagi,” Kicker said. Atop her hand was...

“A fairy?” I asked.

“No, Sylphs are spirits.”

Sylph

A spirit-type familiar.

A wind spirit.

Amplifies the effects of its owner’s Wind Magic.

“I’m happy for you,” I said. “It’s a perfect familiar for a Wind Magic user like you.”

“Yeah. Let’s do our best together from now on, Luff.” The Sylph happily flew up to the top of Kicker’s head.

“Look, look, Yuyu! My familiar is totally cute.” Carmine showed me the familiar on top of her hand. This is...a stuffed doll?

Margarette

A special-type familiar.

A stuffed toy that predicts danger and gives warnings.

It has the power to see slightly into the future.

“Say hello to Yuyu, Margarette.”

The stuffed toy on her palm stood up and extended her small hand to me. I extended my index finger to her as well for a handshake.

“Gah!” Man, that had surprised me. The minute my finger had touched Margarette’s hand, our mana had passed through each other like electricity. My finger was still a little numb. Margarette’s ability was to see the future, which was similar to my Clairvoyance. It was probably for that reason that we had gone beyond logic and been able to communicate with each other.

Margarette hadn’t said anything, but I felt like she’d asked me to use my power to help her master. She bowed her head earnestly.

“Don’t worry. Dagashi-ya are the allies of children,” I assured her.

The stuffed toy had no facial muscles. However, I somehow felt like she was smiling at me.

Marco bought two Chocolate Eggs, saying he was buying one for Chichi. He wouldn’t open his here, instead planning to do so together with her. I decided I’d follow his example and buy one for Michelle too. The remaining Chocolate Eggs were bought up by the other hot spring goers in the blink of an eye.

***

After Michelle came home from work, we opened our Chocolate Eggs together.

“I wonder what’s going to come out? I hope it’s something cute.” When I explained everyone’s familiars to her, she excitedly went to split the chocolate. Ice Magic was a piece of cake for Michelle.

Pop!

With a satisfying sound, the egg cleanly broke in half. Then, Michelle’s familiar appeared.

Dark Dragon

A spirit-type familiar.

As a guardian of the underworld, it’s the strongest of the strong.

When you max out its level, it can make minuscule black holes.

“This isn’t cute at all...” she mumbled dejectedly. Not only was it not cute—it was scary! Well, it does feel like an appropriate familiar for Michelle, but...

“This is the most powerful dragon, hmm?” It’d probably become gigantic one day, but it was smaller than a gecko right now. Its eyes were big, and the way its tongue flicked in and out was cute. “It has a lovable face if you give it a good look.”

“You think?”

“Its eyes are round and adorable... Its tongue is pink...” I pointed out its most lovable features. “Aren’t they cute?”

“Now that you say that, it might be a little cute...” she admitted.

She named the Dark Dragon Pluto.

“The next time I have a day off, I’ll take it to the lowest level of the dungeon,” she said. “I’ll have you grow up fast, Pluto.” That’s gonna be some crazy leveling! It’ll immediately get big and scary. I felt like it wouldn’t be long before black holes started appearing.

“Let’s look at your familiar too,” she continued. She chilled my Chocolate Egg for me. Putting strength into my fingers, I split the egg open with a pop. There were four types of familiars: animal, golem, spirit, and special. Which one will come out?

“What is this?”

???

???-type familiar.

An envoy from space.

???

That explanation didn’t tell me anything. It looked like a round mochi rice cake and was harder than a slime. It was similar to the traditional Japanese sweet tsurunokomochi, which was in the same category as the snack known as suama—a sweet mochi cake. So, I named it Suama.

“So this is a familiar...” As I stood there, bewildered, Suama jumped onto my shoulder. Judging by how it didn’t move once it was there, it seemed that it found that spot relaxing. Seeing it there, I started thinking it was cute somehow. “From today on, your name is Suama.”

It jiggled a little in reply.

***

It looked like Cart and the others had shown off their familiars at their academies, so students seeking to buy my Chocolate Eggs flooded my store.

“Heh heh heh, we really got the word out for you!” Cart proudly puffed out his chest, but this had turned out to be trouble for me.

“I’m grateful,” I said, “but I’m getting too many customers to keep under control.”

“The familiars are a hot topic even at the academies. Everyone’s wanting one.”

“I see. But won’t the academy get upset if you bring in your familiars?” I’d had my handheld consoles and manga confiscated as a kid.

“Yeah, Instructor Littenpike immediately started griping. That lady’s really strict.” Littenpike was the instructor in the study of ancient hidden treasures, but she was particularly strict with students. She would snidely point out small mistakes and was apparently disliked by all.

“Looks like any school out there has teachers like that. But was everything okay? Did any kids have their familiars confiscated?”

“Nope, we’re all totally fine! Everyone’s familiars, like my Hogan and Goat’s Hawk, escaped out the window.” A familiar’s bond with its master went deep, so it wouldn’t just disappear.

It’d only been a few days since I’d started selling them, but I was taken aback by just how popular they were. It went far beyond my expectations. Today, not only were there students from the Adventurers’ Academy, but there were also a lot of Royal Academy Students who normally wouldn’t set foot anywhere near this place. A fascinating product really did have a strong allure.

However, I only got thirty Chocolate Eggs per day. Even if I sold only one per person, I could only reach thirty people in one day. There were just so many people who wanted these that I started taking an hour after school to distribute lottery tickets, creating a sales system by which the prizewinners were selected through a lottery. That took time, but there was nothing else I could do to ensure fairness. At the moment, I even needed to employ part-timers just to sell these Chocolate Eggs.

My plot of land was spacious, so the lottery was conducted in the empty lot next to the dagashi-ya. If I hadn’t done that, then the people wouldn’t have been able to fit into the store. It was a fine arrangement on sunny days but disastrous when it rained. On those days, everyone participated in the lottery decked out in cloaks meant for adventuring. Even so, there was no end to the customers who came with their sights set on the Chocolate Eggs.

“Number thirty-one! Number thirty-one!”

“Yay!”

Once again today, one cheer and many sighs rang out every time a lot was drawn. It was normal for the winners to open their products on the spot. This was because otherwise, they might be given a shakedown by bullies or stronger students. When you opened a Chocolate Egg, you were tied together with your familiar by a bond. Once master and familiar were established, there was no way to steal your familiar. Of course, there was no one who’d attempt to steal a Chocolate Egg in front of my eyes. One person had tried, but once I’d warned them, they’d withdrawn immediately. They’d probably heard that the son of a viscount’s family had met an ill fate before. What was that kid’s name again? I couldn’t remember anymore...

When combining students from the Royal and Adventurers’ Academies, there were around one thousand students, so these Chocolate Eggs should have reached everyone in thirty days or so. However, it had recently started to become common for adventurers to come here. They were also enamored of the Chocolate Egg’s allure. That familiar was probably the cause...

Thud! Thud!

“I’m back, Yusuke.” Michelle came home mounted on her Dark Dragon, Pluto. Pluto was completely grown and was currently as big as a military horse. Its black scales had also grown hard, and the horns on its head and long nails had become impressive. It could easily defeat any monster that appeared up to about level B3 of the dungeon.

The other adventurers would gaze at Pluto with longing. They probably wanted to obtain their own familiars and have them become strong partners. However, Pluto was special. Michelle had done some crazy leveling in the dungeon depths, and that was why it had leveled up so fast. Such a task was impossible for normal people. Even so, the adventurers wouldn’t stop dreaming.

“Welcome back. Whoa, hey! Don’t lick my face! Gah!” I sputtered. Pluto’s body was big now, but it was still very much a child inside. Even now, it would fawn on me, which was both troubling and cute.

“Squawk!”

“I’m still in the middle of work. I’ll play with you later, so just wait.” Despite my words, Pluto pulled on my sleeve. This signaled that it wanted treats.

“You want this again? You really like the fried chicken-flavored Potato Fries.”

Product name: Potato Fries - Fried Chicken Flavor

Description: A crisply fried potato snack. Four pieces included.

Slows loss of stamina upon consumption.

Price: Forty rims

“Don’t give him too much before dinner,” Michelle chided me, but I handed Pluto the Potato Fries anyway.

“What’s the harm?”

“Squawk!” After it had loudly chowed down on the snack, it nuzzled against the back of my neck as if to say thanks. This was cuter behavior than you’d expect from a Dark Dragon. That aspect of Pluto was similar to Michelle.

Not only Pluto, but all of the familiars had been growing up favorably. Cart’s Hogan and Goat’s Hawk had grown one size bigger, and Kicker’s Luff’s face had become a bit more mature. Carmine’s Margarette had gotten a bit bigger and had recently started talking a lot. Not only would she greet us with “Good morning” and “Good night,” but short phrases like “The sky is pretty” had also started to be mixed in. It seemed like she hadn’t predicted the future yet, but it might only be a matter of time.

“Still, Suama hasn’t changed at all.” I poked my familiar, Suama. It only jiggled without making a peep. “Well, it’s not like I mind.”

Suama nuzzled against my finger. This was what made it cute. It seemed to understand what I said, and it always watched what I was doing from atop my shoulder.

“This is the last number for today. Seven! Number seven!”

The last person accepted their Chocolate Egg, and the students who’d lost trudged away. The winner was a Royal Academy student, and they opened the Chocolate Egg on the spot.

“Whoa, it’s a Great Hawk!” they exclaimed. “It’s so cool. Nice to meetcha.” A Great Hawk just like Goat’s Hawk had emerged. There were degrees of rarity among familiars, so it was common to get the same ones as others. Things like Michelle’s Pluto were pretty rare. It seemed that my Suama was regarded as a secret. Cart’s Hogan and Carmine’s Margarette were also categorized as rare.

Now that I thought about it, what familiars had Marco and Chichi gotten? I guess I’ll have them show me tomorrow when I deliver the linseed weeds.

It was already getting dark outside.

“Now, I’m about to close up shop,” I announced. “I’ll have another thirty Chocolate Eggs tomorrow, so look forward to that.” As I watched the children dash off, Suama and I locked up the doors and windows.

The Adventurer Meryl’s Diary: Entry 4

Hey, everyone. Do you know what happiness is? You see, happiness is...a life with Shiba!

Yes, I’m a doting parent. Say whatever you want because I don’t care. That’s how cute Shiba is! He comes out immediately when I call for him, smiles up at me, wags his curly tail, mostly understands what I’m saying now that he’s grown more—he’s just so unbearably cute. He sleeps with me at night too. Man...there’s no greater happiness than this!

At first, he was only about as big as a Chocodora, but as I kept taking him to the dungeon, he grew into the size of a Round Bread. Mira’s El, Rigal’s Litan, and Marco’s Nuinui have all gotten big too. You can now change the color of the stone head of the ring, El, to green or blue, depending on your mood for the day. It looks like the amount of mana it supplements has also increased, though it remains weaker than the effects of Ten-Rim Gum. Still, Mira dotes on El and always wears it on her finger. If it grows even more, will its head become able to change to a ruby red or a transparent color like a diamond?

Rigal’s Litan is funny. No matter how many times I witness it, I never get tired of seeing it change from a lighter into a human. It’s the size of your palm, so it isn’t useful in battle, but I think a lighter is an excellent item. It can light candles and is convenient when you have a bonfire. Although small, it’s powerful, so it fetches a great many things for us.

Marco’s familiar, Nuinui, is a spirit like a fireball that can immediately be useful in battle. It gets bright like a lantern, so it’s super nice in the dungeon. It’s become a vital member of Team Harukaze. Marco’s had a gloomy face ever since Chichi got sick, but it seems like he’s comforted by Nuinui’s existence. He’s stopped losing focus in the dungeon, so we’re relieved too.

Everyone is so happy about the progress of their familiar’s development that, instead of doing it for our livelihood, we’re dungeon diving more for the sake of our familiars now. It’s because the more we explore the dungeon, the more our familiars grow.

Then today, something crazy happened. Believe it or not, my beloved Shiba sniffed out some monsters!!!

He sensed the monsters’ presence and alerted us, emitting a low growl while staring into the darkness. What a smart boy!!! He’s really small, but it wouldn’t be an exaggeration to say that he has the makings of a hunting dog! Oh goodness! I’m almost afraid to see what happens next!

If he grows more and becomes even bigger, will he become a pillow for me or something? We’ll work hard again tomorrow to level up our familiars.

Chapter 5: Wicked Professor

For the first time in a while, we went to see how Prime Minister Ethel was doing. I had some things to discuss concerning taxes and other such topics.

After some discussion, we resolved the matters. Luganda was a frontier town, so it could receive preferential treatment for the time being. Even though it was developing at an unprecedented rate, the prime minister promised to overlook that.

When our business discussions ended, we shifted gears to idle chat. The nice smell of coffee filled the parlor and I felt at ease.

“Have you found any gold coins or the like in the Lugandan Dungeon?” Prime Minister Ethel asked me as though he’d just remembered it.

“No, I haven’t received any such reports.”

“That is a shame.”

“Why gold coins?”

“The market prices on gold have been rising lately,” he explained. “If you, Earl Yahagi, happened to have some gold assets in your possession, I decided I should advise you to sell them a bit later. As long as you restrict it to an inconspicuous amount, I would recommend you buy some gold right now.”

I see. So the rich obtain good intel like this and increase their assets. However, all I had right now were Gold Chocolate Coins. If the Lugandan adventurers happened to obtain gold coins from the dungeon, I decided I’d tell this information to them in secret.

“Thank you, Prime Minister Ethel. As thanks for that helpful information, I’ll present to you this new product of mine—a Chocolate Egg.”

“Oh! The one from the rumors!” he exclaimed.

“It’s not a half bad deal sweetener, right?”

“You are a wicked one indeed,” he chuckled.

It was essentially just a 300-rim bribe, but Prime Minister Ethel played along well. When he promptly split the chocolate shell in half, a palm-sized knight came out.

Guardian Knight

Golem-type familiar.

A golem shaped like a knight. It becomes a shield for its master and serves as their sword.

When grown, it becomes a horseback rider and can put up defensive magic.

“Ho ho, this is interesting. Shall I have it join my guard forces?” Prime Minister Ethel squinted at the Guardian Knight, who bowed from atop the palm of his hand. “If His Majesty were to see this, he might want the same thing. Will you give me two or three more?”

“I only have one more on me,” I told him. “I do apologize, but you’ll have to wait a while until they’re for sale again.” They were chocolate, so they were extremely sensitive to heat. That was why they stopped being stocked during the hot seasons. They were scheduled to come back next fall. I handed over the last one to Prime Minister Ethel.

“Oh right, it has become hot as of late,” he said. “I plan to follow His Majesty to his summer villa shortly.” Summer in the Royal Capital was hot, so they were going to transfer to a royal villa located in the northern mountain district. If I remembered right, the name of the town was Gras. It was thirteen hundred meters above sea level, making it cool even in the middle of summer. “How about it? Would you come along with me?” he offered. “Having you there would be a delight.”

“Unfortunately, I’m just so busy...” I sighed.

The vast majority of nobles would follow His Majesty to the royal villa or return to their own domains. As for me, I’d commute between my domain and the Royal Capital. I had to help out with the management of my territory, which I was leaving entirely up to Mister Nakaram, and I had to gather linseed weeds for Chichi as well.

“If you have any urgent business with me, please fly this my way.” I gave Prime Minister Ethel an additional Assembled Glider and excused myself from his Office.

***

With the discussions now ended, I was heading down the long corridor of the Prime Minister’s Hall when I heard a woman’s voice call out to me from the other end. She was wearing the garb of a healer.

Apparently, upon seeing my face, she had suddenly spoken to me. “Excuse me, but are you Earl Yahagi?”

She might’ve been in her mid-thirties or so—a beauty who gave off a lively impression. However, I didn’t know anyone matching her description. “I am, but who are you?”

“I’m Pharma Charlotte. I’m Carmine’s mother.”

“Oh, Carmine’s mom!” I hadn’t expected to meet her somewhere like this. Had she come here to receive child support from Prime Minister Ethel? Well, I wouldn’t ask, but I couldn’t help but suspect it.

“Thank you for always taking care of my daughter,” Miss Pharma said, gazing at me happily. “You seem to be an honest person, just like Carmine said.”

“Oh no, that’s not—”

She giggled. “Hee hee. You’re completely different from her father.”

I’d heard about it from Carmine before, but her parents had split up before she was born. The cause had been her father’s lust for women. Having discovered her husband’s infidelity, Miss Pharma had given him a good wallop before running out of the house. After that, she’d given birth on her own, and Carmine had said she’d brought her up as a single mother. I see. The woman before my eyes—Miss Pharma—was brimming with energy.

“She’s been smiling so much more since meeting you,” she told me. “She’s constantly talking about you, even at home. Oh, and it seems she’s made some friends recently.”

“Those are probably Cart and the others.”

“That’s right!” she exclaimed. “I was worried since she’s not good at socializing, but it seems she’s learned to open up thanks to you. I am truly grateful to you.”

“I haven’t done much of anything at all.”

“No, it’s thanks to you,” she insisted. “I’d like to be there for her a little more but I have so many patients to take care of that I just can’t find the time.”

It seemed that Carmine’s mother was a brilliant nurse in high demand everywhere. I felt bashful in the face of her humble thanks.

***

As the wysterie blossoms wilted, large clouds floated across the sky. It was feeling more and more like early summer and Shaved Ice was selling well.

“Thank you for waiting,” I said, bringing over the Shaved Ice. “Strawberry condensed milk, lemon, and melon, right?”

Cart, Goat, and Kicker were all sitting at the table, staring intensely at the dungeon map. It was the one that I’d previously produced of B1 and B2. They were in the middle of preparing for the Adventurers’ Academy midterm. If this had been Japan, we would have been right around July. In this world, they had midterms at the beginning of summer and finals in the winter.

While their masters were stressed out, the familiars were relaxing and doing as they pleased. Luff was peering at the map with Kicker, Hawk was smelling Goat’s lemon-flavored Shaved Ice, and Hogan was doing push-ups. All of the familiars had grown a bit bigger since the day they were born. They were probably growing along with their masters.

“What do you do for the midterm at the Adventurers’ Academy?” Carmine asked blithely, setting Margarette on top of her palm. Cart wore a face that said he was fed up with studying.

“We gotta gather designated items from B1 and B2 while defeating monsters. Also, we need to go around to where the teachers are stationed at different points and get their signatures.”

It sounded like orienteering with combat added on to it.

“Huh. It sounds kinda fun,” Carmine said.

“There’s no way tests are fun!” he cried. “I’m so jealous. People who don’t have midterms are so carefree.”

“I like, literally had midterms too. I already finished them, though,” she defended herself. It seemed Carmine had received excellent grades. She’d gone out of her way to report them to me, so I’d given her plenty of praise.

“It’s not fair that Carmine’s finished,” he whined. “Damn it, I don’t wanna study anymore!!!”

“No. Bad. Bad.” Oh, Margarette is talking. She’d added some more words to her vocabulary.

“I know. Don’t butt in over every little thing.”

Without saying anything further, Margarette stared into empty space with a blank expression. I got the feeling she wouldn’t respond if we called out to her.

“Man...” Cart heaved a big sigh while beside him Hogan started doing squats.

“What are you gonna do for summer break?” I asked Carmine.

“I’m going to papa’s,” she replied. “It’s in a town called Gras.”

Prime Minister Ethel had said he was going to Gras as well. Then Carmine really is Prime Minister Ethel’s...

“You got good grades on your midterms, right? I’m sure your papa will be proud.”

“I wonder...” Carmine blew a bubble with her Fruit Gum.

***

In the boiling heat, Cart and the others headed out to take their midterm. That day, I was carelessly snoozing away.

The Royal Academy had entered summer break earlier than the Adventurers’ Academy, and Michelle had also gained much more personal time. I’d stayed up late because I’d been fooling around with her; she’d been fawning on me without reserve for the first time in forever.

Nevertheless, my oversleeping might have proven fortunate. Normally, I’d be going out to Luganda at this time and wouldn’t be in the Royal Capital. However, that day, someone came to visit me.

While my sleep-addled brain was contemplating the golden dust circling through the air, someone started banging on the front door.

“Yuyu, please! Answer me!”

Is that Carmine? It sounded like she was in trouble. Had something happened?

I jumped to my feet and slid open the front door. Carmine looked up at me, panting and out of breath. It appeared she’d come here running.

“What’s the matter? You look pale.”

Carmine showed me Margarette sitting atop her hand. “She keeps repeating ominous things!”

Margarette was a familiar that predicted the future every once in a blue moon. Up until now, Carmine had said she hadn’t predicted a single thing. Is Margarette finally using her ability?

“Danger. Danger. Cart and the others are in danger.”

I felt my back break into a cold sweat at Margarette’s monotone voice. Did she say Cart and the others are in danger? They should have been dungeon diving for their midterm exam right then. Was she saying that something unexpected would happen?

“Come in for now.” I pulled the pale-faced Carmine inside. “Is it possible that the future she’s seeing is wrong?” I asked her.

“I literally don’t know that either. This is the first time she’s used this ability.”

“Yeah, that’s true. At any rate, we’re going to head to the dungeon. We should be able to avoid most dangers if we take Michelle with us.”

“If we have her, I think we’ll be all right if any monsters show up,” she agreed, “but we don’t know where those three are.”

“I might have an idea.” I should be able to tell immediately once I used my Clairvoyance. “Wake up, Michelle!” I called toward the back of the shop. “We have an emergency!”

I heard a small yawn. Then, the sliding door leading to the back opened. When Michelle appeared, she was in an immodest state with only a bedsheet wrapped around her naked body. “What’s wrong, Yusuke? It’s morning. What are you yelling fo— Eek! Why is Carmine here?”

“Whoa, Professor!” Carmine gasped. Michelle normally wore a thick robe and cloak, so a lot of people didn’t notice. Yep, she’s pretty impressive when she takes it all off. This wasn’t the time to be saying that, though.

“Hurry up and put some clothes on,” I said. “Cart and the others might be in trouble. Come to the dungeon with me.” I hadn’t explained much but she immediately understood the situation.

While she was changing, I used my Clairvoyance in the tatami room. When I searched up “Cart,” it immediately identified where they were.

The group was presently located around the central region of B2. I observed their surroundings, but there wasn’t anything particularly suspicious. I hadn’t caught sight of either dangerous monsters or thieves.

“I’m ready, Yusuke.” Michelle entered the room decked out in full gear.

“They’re safe right now,” I told her. “They’re all on B2.”

“How do you know that?” Carmine asked, her eyes wide.

“It’s like a dagashi-ya’s fortune-telling. It’s pretty accurate.”

“The dagashi-ya’s power—it’s stronger than mine,” Margarette spoke once again.

“Yeah,” I said, looking at her. “You and I have similar powers.”

She said nothing. As always, you couldn’t hold a conversation with Margarette.

“I kinda don’t get it,” Carmine said, “but I’ll believe you, Yuyu. Let’s go right away.” It sounded like she intended to come with us. However, I couldn’t take her.

“No. Stay here and take care of things.”

“But they’re my friends!” she insisted.

“The probability that we won’t come back isn’t zero,” I reasoned. “If Michelle and I follow in their footsteps and don’t return, contact people who can help.”

She hesitated before she reluctantly nodded. “I got it.”

“Michelle, let me ride Pluto. I’ll use my Clairvoyance along the way and trace where they are.”

“Isn’t that dangerous?” she asked.

When I was using my magic, my consciousness was separated from my body, so I wouldn’t be able to balance on top of Pluto anymore. I usually sat firmly on the floor or in a chair when I used my Clairvoyance so that there would be no risk. However, this wasn’t the time to be worrying about that. “Sorry, Michelle, but can you support me?” It’d probably be fine if she firmly held me from behind.

“Leave it to me! I won’t let you go even if the world flips upside down!” With Michelle in weirdly high spirits, we hopped onto Pluto’s back together.

“Hurry to the dungeon, Pluto,” I called out to it.

“Squawk!” It understood me loud and clear, and we immediately began racing to the dungeon.

***

Pluto dashed down the road at breakneck speed. It was more nimble than you’d expect based on its huge body, and it easily avoided any obstacles in its way.

“Ack! We’re gonna crash!”

A single horse-drawn cart was slowly trudging along in front of us. The road was narrow with no room to evade it. Even so, Pluto didn’t lower its speed and kept shortening the distance. I braced myself for impact, but that wasn’t necessary. Instead of crashing into the cart, Pluto kicked against the earth and leaped into the air. Dragons possessed some crazy physical strength. On top of that, it used its joints to absorb the shock, so the impact of landing on the other side was minimal too.

“Yusuke, hurry up and use Clairvoyance!” Pressing her chest against me, Michelle embraced me from behind. I probably wouldn’t fall like this. I concentrated and used my Clairvoyance.

***

My consciousness flew to where Cart and the others were in an instant. They looked to be progressing well through clearing their assignments. I heard Cart calling out to Goat, “All right, we got all the items we needed?”

“Giant Snail’s Shell Fragments, Flying Piranha Wings...pongal mushrooms... Yeah, we’ve got everything.”

Cart was greedily trying to raise their grades. “Next, we should go to A-3 and get the instructor’s signature.”

“Huh? We’re going that far in?” Kicker asked, tilting her head to the side. However, he stood his ground.

“That’s exactly why. It’s the back regions, so the other students will probably ignore it, but we should get a high score if we go there. We’ve been doing well until now. Timewise, there shouldn’t be any problem.”

Kicker and Goat consented to his proposal.

“By the way, who is the professor stationed there again?” Cart asked.

“Instructor Littenpike,” replied Kicker.

He winced. “Urk... I’m not good with that instructor. No matter how hard I try, she’s always got something to say.”

Kicker shook her head in agreement. “I hate that instructor too.”

“Actually, you were taking one of her classes, right, Kicker?”

“Basic Research on Ancient Treasures,” she replied. “To be frank, it sucks. The actual content of the lessons is fine, but Instructor Littenpike shows favoritism.”

“Huh?” he blinked. “She’s got students she actually likes? I thought she antagonized every student out there.”

“She likes Roost, for example.”

“Roost? Ah, that kind of quiet kid.”

“Yeah! It seems Instructor Littenpike likes boys who are skinny, quiet, and innocent-looking. She gets all touchy-feely and constantly pets them. I feel bad for Roost. He finds it annoying, but he can’t tell her to stop since he’s so timid.”

“That old hag,” he grumbled. “You could report that!”

“It’s terrible,” she agreed. “She’s particularly harsh with girls. No matter how good my grades are, she says stuff like, ‘Kicker, can’t you write more elegantly?’ and deducts points.”

“She’ll probably make some snide comments today too.”

“Oh well. If we get her signature, then that’s plus twenty points. Let’s hurry and get it and move on to the next spot,” the coolheaded Goat comforted the weary Cart and Kicker. It seemed Littenpike was a particularly terrible instructor.

As an ethereal form, I moved forward with them into the dungeon. No new monsters appeared, and the dungeon was peaceful at the moment.

Rounding the corner, we finally reached the Gargoyle Statue. Right next to it was a middle-aged woman holding a cane. That was probably Instructor Littenpike. I hated to say it, but the sharp look in this middle-aged woman’s eyes rivaled the glare of the gargoyle that was right next to her. Her skinny and high-strung appearance was also very similar to the gargoyle’s.

“You’re the only ones who’ve reached this point,” she said. Hearing that, the group started rejoicing before she put a damper on their celebrations. “You haven’t done anything dishonest, have you? I feel as if you’re a little too early.”

“We’ve done nothing like that!” Cart protested. “We came here honestly—”

“Then that’s fine,” she replied curtly. “Don’t be so loud. This is the dungeon. Be careful with your actions.”

Ugh. I couldn’t deal with her. There were times you just instantly disliked a person. I immediately disliked Littenpike. Would she be the cause of the emergency that they’d find themselves in? However, although not a perfect one, she was still a professor. I couldn’t imagine that she’d harm students. Although she made snide remarks, she did sign their papers.

Then is it the Gargoyle Statue? This statue was actually a trap that would invoke a dizziness spell when you touched it. Meryl had done so a long time ago. It had been just after I’d come to this world, and I’d cured her by giving her the grape-flavored Powdered Drink Mix. That was a fond memory now.

It was a dangerous statue if you touched it like Meryl had, but this trap was pretty famous. I believed that the group knew about it, but...

That was when Kicker’s familiar, Luff, fluttered over to the Gargoyle Statue. Scattering phosphorescence, it gazed at the statue.

“Be careful, Luff,” Kicker warned her. “You’ll trigger a dizziness spell if you touch it.”

Whew. Kicker, the walking encyclopedia, was well-informed about the trap. However, in the process of calling Luff back, she also headed to the Gargoyle Statue and then started behaving as if she’d found something. Staring intently at it, she froze in place.

“What’s wrong, Kicker? Don’t tell me you touched it?”

“No, Cart. That’s not it...” she trailed off before she perked up. “Yep, I knew it! I found them thanks to Luff’s light, but there’re numbers here!”

“Numbers?!” Littenpike leaped up faster than anyone and hurried forward, pushing Cart and Goat aside. Her voice trembled a little, and her tone of voice suggested she was pressing Kicker for more information. “Miss Kicker, what do you mean there are numbers here?”

“Here. It’s usually dark, so I never noticed before, but I saw them with Luff’s light.”

Littenpike stooped down and peered at where Kicker was pointing. The number was engraved just around where the Gargoyle Statue’s forehead was. It was blurred, worn out by months and years of weathering, but there was certainly a mark similar to a number. However, it was tricky to determine whether it was actually a number or not. The carved line could also look like just a wrinkle on the gargoyle’s face. “There’s just one vertical line. Why do you think this is a number?” Littenpike demanded.

“If that’s all there was, then I don’t think I would’ve known either,” Kicker explained. “But look, there’s some here...and here.” She pointed out where the numbers 2 and 3 were written as well. They were casually engraved at the fingertip and at the end of the wings and were small enough that, in the dim dungeon, you’d overlook them if you didn’t know they were there. If you looked closely, there was also the number 24 written on the palm, so that meant there were many numbers engraved into the statue.

“You say those are numbers?” she asked incredulously. “They’re completely different from the symbols we use.”

“These aren’t the numbers from our country. They’re from Mister Yahagi’s hometown,” Kicker informed her, brimming with confidence.

“When you say Mister Yahagi, you mean that dagashi-ya?”

“That’s right.”

“Why do you know the way numbers are written in his hometown?”

“I like the snack called Number Chocolate, so...”

Product name: Number Chocolate

Description: Colorful round chocolates in packaging shaped like Arabic numerals. Each package contains five beads.

Corrects the accuracy of your offensive magic by three percent.

Price: Ten rims

The Number Chocolate’s packaging sheets were shaped into Arabic numerals from 0 to 9. Kicker bought these all the time, so despite being from this other world, she’d learned Arabic numerals.

“Hey, Kicker. Forget about that—let’s hurry up and go. We’re still in the middle of the exam,” Cart urged her. The assignment’s clear time also played a factor in their midterm grade. They didn’t have time to be dawdling here.

“You’re right,” she agreed. “Let’s come back here again next time to investigate. We’ll be leaving now, Professor.”

“Wait!”

As they were about to hurry away, Littenpike’s sharp voice stopped them.

“What’s the matter? We’re in the middle of our exam.”

Littenpike’s pupils gleamed red, her eyes a color that could even be described as wicked. “This might be a historical discovery! If we touch the statue in numerical order, it’ll probably undo the trap, and some kind of treasure should appear. So, can you teach me about those otherworldly numbers or whatever they are?”

“Well...”

She was obviously planning to steal the treasure. Goat stepped in without a moment’s delay. “That’s Kicker’s discovery. We’re going to come here to investigate another day.”

“What...?” Littenpike was speechless, but she suddenly put on a wheedling voice and attempted to win them over. “Aw, don’t say such a thing. I’m a researcher in ancient treasures. I’m just so curious about this. Of course, whatever treasure we find belongs to you.”

“Really?” Kicker asked incredulously.

“Please don’t misunderstand me,” she continued. “As a researcher, I simply want to be present to witness the moment history is made. Furthermore, if we succeed in undoing the trap, I can guarantee that you’ll have grades that will make you the top three of your year. I’ll also write you letters of recommendation at your graduation.”

“But...” The three of them looked at Littenpike with doubt. You couldn’t blame them. Even I couldn’t believe her.

Once the group showed their refusal, she returned to her former haughty attitude. “Hmph. If you don’t want to, then that’s fine. However, you’ll fail this midterm.”

The three protested in indignation at such an injustice.

“Why would you do that?”

“That’s tyranny!”

“You’re terrible!”

However, her eyebrows didn’t even twitch. “Rude behavior toward an instructor results in points deducted from your grade. I am authorized to do so if I deem it appropriate.”

Now that she’d said that, she’d left the three of them no choice. You could call it an abuse of power, but such things went unpunished in the schools of this world.

She flashed them a sadistic smile. “Do as you like. Will you fail, or will you undo this trap and seize the glory of first place?”

Damn it. There was no doubt that she was going to steal the treasure from them. It was even possible she’d kill them to keep their mouths shut. This was the crisis that Margarette had predicted. They’d be in danger if we couldn’t get there as fast as possible!

I undid my Clairvoyance and my consciousness returned to my body, where I discovered that Pluto was in the middle of racing to the dungeon plaza at full speed. I turned to Michelle behind me and said, “Michelle, it’s the Gargoyle Statue on B2. That’s where they are! Hurry!”

“Got it!”

“Please, Pluto. We’re relying on you. Save everyone.”

“Squawk!”

The adventurers near the dungeon panicked and made way for the Dark Dragon charging in with great force. Without dropping its pace, Pluto flew down the dungeon staircase.

Please make it in time. I said a prayer and called upon my Clairvoyance once more.

***

When I activated my magic, my consciousness once again flew to where the trio were. Kicker had dropped to her knees in front of the Gargoyle Statue. They were just about to start undoing the trap. Littenpike was haughtily giving them commands. “There shouldn’t be any issue so long as you touch the statue in the correct order. Hurry up and start.”

Although that was what she said, the statue had a trap that would cast a dizziness spell. Goat looked in his pocket for a dagashi and took it out. “Whew, I really did have one. Here, this is a Powdered Drink Mix to dispel the curse. With this, we’ll be safe even in the worst-case scenario.”

With Goat’s encouragement, Kicker also steeled her resolve. With her index finger trembling, she brought it to the 1 carved on the Gargoyle Statue’s forehead and touched it. After a pause, she murmured, “I don’t feel dizzy... The curse doesn’t activate even if you touch it!”

Littenpike was triumphant. “It’s just as I thought. Continue, Kicker.” She acted so pompous despite doing nothing.

Next, Kicker searched for the 2. It was engraved like a fingerprint on the left hand’s fingertip. It seemed she still wasn’t fully confident, and she nervously touched the 2.

“I really don’t feel anything!” she announced again. That had probably reassured her. She touched 3 and 4 without hesitation. There really were no abnormalities.

When she touched 5 next, the Gargoyle Statue lit up a little.

“There’s no doubt. This is the seal protecting the treasure!” Rubbing her hands in excitement, Littenpike pressed her to continue.

“Next...” Kicker trailed off before she called to her familiar. “Luff, come here and light up the statue, please.”

Relying on Luff’s phosphorescence, she found the 6. She touched 7, 8, and 9, but her hand stopped here. There were only numbers 0 through 9 on the Number Chocolates. She didn’t know the number 10.

“What are you doing? Touch the next number!” barked Littenpike, who didn’t know anything, urging Kicker on. However, Kicker remained calm and gathered her thoughts.

“This is probably 11. So that means over here is 12. Then is this one 10?” The clever Kicker used her powers of deduction and succeeded in finding the correct engraving. The moment she touched the 10 engraving, the Gargoyle Statue shone even more. “I did it!”

“You’re amazing, Kicker!”

“Way to go.”

The three of them happily hugged each other. Even Littenpike complimented Kicker. “Miss Kicker, you’ll no doubt be the top student of this year.”

It seemed Kicker completely understood the numbers’ rules. She confidently moved from 19 to 20. I, on the other hand, felt uneasy. Kicker, undo the curse slower. Go slowly until we get there! However, my feelings had no means of reaching her, and Kicker continued to undo the trap. She proceeded to 29—there were only a few numbers left.

With every number, the Gargoyle Statue glowed more brightly. It was currently as dazzling as Christmas decorations.

“Whew. Finally, the last one.” With her shaky index finger, Kicker approached the gargoyle’s stomach. There was the number 32 right at the navel. I could almost hear all four of them swallowing hard. Even though I was in my ethereal form, I was also stiff with tension. What was going to happen?

“Huh?” The moment Kicker touched 32, the gargoyle began to flicker intensely. It was just like the light from a burst of flash photography.

“Wh-What is this?!” Cart gasped.

“Did the trap activate?!” Kicker cried.

“Calm down,” Littenpike told them. “This is proof that the trap has been undone. The curse that had been cast on the statue is being released. It’ll stop soon enough.” Just like Littenpike had said, the light disappeared before long. The dungeon returned to its dim state. Finally, with the sound of scraping stones, the gargoyle raised both arms. It looked like a demon giving a hurrah. Once both arms were up in the air, the stomach opened with a pop.

“Huh?” Kicker blinked. “An idol?” What came out from inside was a small golden idol. It wasn’t even ten centimeters high, but if it was gold, then it had to be pretty valuable.

Kicker and Littenpike were surprised, but I was even more so. I mean, no matter how you looked at it, that gold figure was Billiken! Its pointed head, its comical almond-shaped eyes, and its large, outstretched feet—there was no mistaking it. That was Billiken.

Why is Billiken in this other world? Hadn’t it been a god of good luck enshrined at Osaka’s Tsutenkaku Tower? I’d heard that it was originally designed by an American illustrator, though...

Kicker was laughing happily as she held the figure. “Wow, it’s heavy!”

“Is this the real deal? Let me hold it too.” Cart and Goat took turns holding the Billiken Statue, delighted. They were probably even happier since it was something they’d suffered to obtain. Seeing the three of them so innocently happy, I also smiled unconsciously.

However, Littenpike proceeded to rain on their parade. “Bring that to me.” With a wicked smile, she held out her hand.

“Didn’t you say that whatever treasure we found would be ours?!” Cart shouted. Their attitudes shifted to distrust.

“I changed my mind,” she said. “Whatever, just be obedient and hand it over. Or else...” Without letting her guard down, she held her cane.

“You won’t get away with it if you do this!”

“Yeah, that’s right! We’ll report that you stole the idol from us!”

Even at Kicker’s and Cart’s objections, Littenpike merely continued to smile daringly. “Do as you like. I’m a researcher of ancient treasures. On the other hand, you’re simply students. On top of that, you’re first-years who just entered the Adventurers’ Academy this year. Who do you think people will believe?”

“Damn it. That’s playing dirty!” Cart cried.

“I won’t hand this idol over!”

“That’s right,” agreed Goat. The three put up their weapons, but she showed not a crack in her carefree attitude. There really was a world of difference between the abilities of academy first-years and a professor.

“You’ll die if you’re too greedy,” she said. “Well, that’s fine. Learn that from experience!!!” She was a professor, and yet she was a despicable person who’d steal the accomplishments of her students. Even if heaven forgave such violence, there was no way I, a dagashi-ya, would!

***

I undid my Clairvoyance and asked Michelle, “Where are we now?”

“We just entered the staircase heading to B2. We’ll arrive any moment now.”

“Hurry. They’re really in an emergency!”

Pluto ran as if it were flying down the narrow corridors, and despite the fact that there should have been no wind in the dungeon, it left dancing whirlwinds in its wake.

***

The place where the Gargoyle Statue was located was just ahead. Pluto kicked against the other wall and made a sharp turn around the corner. Then, at the other end of the passageway, we could vaguely make out the four people in the dim light.

“That’s far enough, Littenpike!!!” I bellowed.

Littenpike’s body froze at the sight of us appearing out of nowhere. The carefree expression was wiped off her face and only a stiff smile remained.

“Mister Yahagi!” Letting out sighs of relief, Cart, Kicker, and Goat rushed up to us.

“It’s all right,” I assured them. “I’m here now—well, it’s Michelle who’s here, actually, but...” I turned around to face Littenpike. “Littenpike. Your wickedness ends here.”

Littenpike was suddenly at a loss for words, but she tried to smooth it over. “Wh-What are you talking about? I was simply here as an examiner for the midterm...”

“I know you were going to steal the gold idol from them,” I said. “We’re witnesses.”

“Cease your false accusations!” she cried. “Who’s going to believe you anyway? You’re a mere dagashi-ya!”

Cart stepped forward without hesitation. “Hey, Littenpike. Don’t think he’s just an ordinary dagashi-ya. He’s the famous Sir Snacks!”

“What?!” she gasped. “The one rumored to have manipulated the military coup d’état from behind the scenes, destroyed the northern demon troops, and become the head of the secret force of Shadow Knights that’s under the prime minister’s direct control? That guy?!”

It seemed the tall tale had grown a little taller... What secret forces? I do have a gummy called Shinobi Meshi, though.

Product name: Shinobi Meshi

Description: With just one bead, it’s possible for you to move with energy for eight hours.

Makes it easier to land a deadly blow.

Features three flavors - Grape, plum, and cola.

Price: One hundred rims

It was a popular product among veteran adventurers who went on long-term explorations. It seemed the great thing about it was that it didn’t become extra baggage since it wasn’t bulky.

“I’ll report this to the school through a relevant party,” I said.

“By that, you mean...?” Littenpike’s face was pale. I did, in fact, have an acquaintance among the nobility—it was none other than that guy.

“Prime Minister Ethel.” When I spoke his name, she hung her head with a shocked expression on her face. And then, she started muttering something. “What is she saying?”

“Be careful, Yusuke! That’s a magic spell!” Michelle leaped in front of us.

“Is that a teleportation spell?!” I asked, surprised. Teleportation spells were a particularly high-level kind of magic that enabled you to teleport short distances.

“You’re trying to run? I won’t let you!” Michelle tried to fire a simple offensive spell to cancel the other professor’s magic. Cart and the others also had their guards up, clutching their weapons. However, in the end, neither Michelle nor Littenpike’s magic activated.

“Huh?” Michelle blinked.

“What’s going on?!” cried Littenpike.

Both of them were surprised, although Michelle seemed dumbfounded while Littenpike was agitated.

“Yusuke, did you do something with your dagashi?” Michelle asked me.

“No, nothing.” I didn’t have a dagashi that could stop Michelle anyway.

“Mister Yahagi, Suama is...” Goat was pointing to Suama in surprise, where it was sitting on my shoulder.

“What about Suama...?” Then, I paused. “Huh?” Suama had always been pure white, but now its color had changed to pink. It really did look like a red tsurunokomochi. “Wh-What’s wrong, Suama? Are you okay?!”

It quivered as always. There didn’t seem to be anything in particular amiss. It only seemed to have changed color.

“Anyway, let’s capture Littenpike!” Michelle declared. Cart took out a rope meant for exploration.

“Let me go!” Littenpike screamed shrilly but she was pretty powerless without her magic, and they easily tied her up.

“We’ll take her away,” I said. “The rest of you should work hard at your exam.”

“Oh right! I completely forgot we were in the middle of exams!” Cart exclaimed.

“Mister Yahagi, can you hold on to this for me?” Kicker handed me the Billiken Statue and a rolled-up parchment.

The Billiken Statue aside, what is this parchment?

“This was inside with the gold idol.”

“Are you sure you wanna leave these with me?”

“I’ll feel at ease if they’re with you,” she said. “I mean, dagashi-ya are always the allies of children, right?”

“If that’s how you feel, then I won’t let you down.”

Littenpike was thus caught and taken in for questioning.

***

By the time I’d dealt with the aftermath and returned to the store, it was evening. Carmine was standing alone out front, illuminated by the setting sun. She had been waiting there for our return the whole time.

“Yuyu!!!” Carmine ran over to us in a panic.

I calmed her down. “They’re all okay—thanks in no small part to Margarette.”

Carmine let out a big sigh of relief and hugged her familiar. “Thank you, Margarette.”

“You wanna stop by for a bit? I’ll make you some tea.” Inviting Carmine in, I entered the store. I made tea, and while we relaxed, I told her the details of what had happened.

“Still, Margarette’s predictions are something else,” I noted. “If we hadn’t had them, things might’ve turned into a big mess.”

“It startled me since it was the first time she’s predicted anything, but I’m really glad Margarette was here,” said Carmine before she paused. “Ah, but she hasn’t said anything since then.”

Michelle placed a hand on Margarette and examined her.

“She probably used up too much mana,” she concluded. “I think she’ll be able to talk again come tomorrow. However, it might be impossible for her to make predictions for the time being.”

“Really?”

“You need an immense amount of energy in order to peek into the future,” she explained. I myself had finally become able to see into the future recently, but the burden it placed on my body truly wasn’t something to take lightly. She’d probably worked hard as well since her master’s close friends had been in trouble.

“Pluto was a big help today too. It makes me happy seeing everyone’s familiars being useful,” I said.

Setting her cup down, Michelle opened her mouth. “Speaking of familiars, about Suama...”

“What about it?” I poked Suama where it sat on my shoulder. The squishy texture felt nice. Suama nuzzled against my finger, seemingly happy too. Suama had turned red in the dungeon but at some point, it had reverted to its usual white.

“Back then, neither my magic nor Littenpike’s activated, right? Maybe that’s Suama’s power?”

“Surely not...?” You’re telling me that this squishy thing stopped Michelle’s magic? I couldn’t imagine it being capable of something so crazy, but...

“Why don’t we test it?” Carmine took out a small wand. Michelle’s expression changed at once.

“What are you going to do?!” she cried. “Even if you are a student, I won’t forgive anyone who tries to hurt Yusuke!”

“I’m just going to cast some mild Lightning Magic. It’ll only shock him a little...”

“No! What would happen if Yusuke awoke to masochism?! Ah, I guess I could just do that to him every night. Still, you can’t! I’m the only one who can open new doors for him!!!”

There it is!!! The delusions are in overdrive!!! “I’m not gonna acquire such a stupid kink,” I sighed. “Well, either one of you can do it, so just test it out. If Suama has the power to disable magic, I won’t even get shocked in the first place.”

“Then I will.” Michelle gathered mana in her hand.

“H-Hey! Don’t make it too strong!”

“Hee hee. Don’t worry. This magic will only paralyze you for two hours.”

“What if I have to go to the bathroom?!”

“Hee hee. I’ll take care of everything for you. ♡”

“Give me a break!!!” I turned toward Carmine, seeking help, but all she did was send me a look that said, “My condolences.” The only thing I could do was put my faith in Suama’s power.

“Now then, here I go.”

I wasn’t even old, so being nursed was a hard pass for me! “Stop Michelle, Suama!”

Wiggle wiggle wiggle wiggle.

“Huh?” The mana pooled in Michelle’s palm suddenly dispersed. When I looked at Suama, its body was pink.

“So it really is Suama...?” I placed Suama on my palm and stared at it closely. I didn’t see any abnormalities compared to how it had been just moments before. Only its color seemed to have changed.

“Carmine, you try using your magic too.”

“Okay, Professor Michelle,” she said, making a similar attempt before pausing. “Huh?”

It looked like Carmine couldn’t use her magic on me either.

“I knew it. I still don’t understand the logic behind it, but you can’t use magic around Suama.”

I guess this is Suama’s special ability. I’d thought it was only a sort of mascot but it had been hiding a power like this. We decided to call this ability Zero Mana Domain.

***

After both schools had entered their vacations, Cart and the others came to the store in the morning. Today was also a break from the usual daily routine of picking linseed weeds. A merchant introduced to me by Prime Minister Ethel was going to come purchase the Billiken Statue.

“Good morning, everyone,” I greeted the students. “How were your exam results?”

“We passed with flying colors! Look at this!” Cart exclaimed.

They brought out their Adventurers’ Academy Skill Evaluation Proof plates. Before, they’d read “D-Rank, up to B1” but now they had “D-Rank plus, up to B2” written on them.

“Well, it doesn’t change much since we’ve already been making B2 our main battleground for a while now,” he said. Despite that, the trio seemed happy. According to Meryl and the others, they were at a level at which they could even visit B3.

“Now then, do you want me to return the golden idol I’ve been holding on to?” I brought out the Billiken Statue and the parchment I’d placed in my carrying-pole store and stored in the gap between dimensions. “Go ahead and check it.” I handed it over to the main person who’d discovered it—Kicker.

“Yeah, it really is heavy,” she confirmed.

“L-Let me hold it one more time.”

“Me too.”

Cart and Goat reached out, and the three of them happily felt how heavy it was.

“By the way, why don’t you open that parchment there?” I suggested. The parchment was rolled up and secured by something that looked like cotton string.

“You’re right. There may be something important written on it.” Kicker drew the knife from her waist, cut the cotton string, and spread out the parchment. “Um...”

“What’s written on it? Does it show the locations of even more treasures or something?” Cart peered at it from over her shoulder.

“I don’t know. It’s written in letters that I can’t read.”

“Lemme see...” Cart squinted before appearing taken aback. “Whoa, what the hell are these letters?! I can’t read them at all. Can you, Goat? You took Overview of the Study of Historical Documents, right?”

“Hmm. This isn’t ancient script. I haven’t seen these letters before either.”

They kept cocking their heads, puzzled.

“If Michelle were here, she might be able to read it, but she’s out today,” I sighed.

“Can you read it, Mister Yahagi?” Kicker handed the parchment to me.

“There’s no way I’ll be able to read it,” I said, taking it anyway. “I don’t even know how to read magic writing and stuff...” I paused, my eyes widening. “Huh?!”

“What’s wrong?”

I was well acquainted with the words that were inscribed on the paper I’d been handed. “No, I—I can read it. I mean, it’s Japanese.”

“When you say Ja-pan-nees, you mean the writings from Hah-chi-oh-jee?”

There hadn’t been any language specific to Hachioji City. It wasn’t that unique. However, these were modern Japanese characters. The writing was a bit angular, but it was a letter that was written neatly so that it was easy to read.

To Whom It May Concern:

My name is Kenichi Hasegawa. I’m a Japanese person born in 1962. It’s not certain that a Japanese person will receive this, so I’ll write this in English for good measure. However, I’m not good at English. I’ll keep it simple.

My name is Kenichi Hasegawa.

I am from Japan.

This is a present for you.

The fact that he’d written out “My name is” was very Showaesque. I felt like recently, they’d been teaching it as “I am Kenichi” instead. Anyhow, I kept reading.

I came to this world on December 10th, 1987. I received a job running a Laundromat. I experienced some hardships but I became the owner of a dry cleaning business with a reputation for removing stains that were impossible to remove even with magic.

I’ll be seventy-two next year. Looking back, I’ve lived a fulfilling life, but the regret I left behind in Japan is that I can’t see my parents. Even now, I miss my hometown.

So, that’s why I think I’ll at least leave behind a portion of my assets to those who come from the same place as me. It doesn’t have to be Japan. I’ll gift this Billiken Statue to those who come from Earth. May you put this to good use.

Kenichi Hasegawa, Marm 472, Spring

“Marm 472?” I asked.

“The name of the imperial era changed twenty years ago. If this is from year 472 of the Marm era, then I think that’s about 150 years ago.”

It seemed that the timeline of this world was a bit different from Earth’s. What era we were transferred to might have been up to whatever felt right to the gods.

He had probably remembered his birthplace when he’d made a statue shaped like Billiken. He hadn’t written it down, but he might have been from Osaka.

Kicker, who’d opened the letter, looked worried. “By Billiken Statue, he’s talking about this gold idol, right? Is it okay for us to have this? Isn’t this a piece of treasure that should belong to you, Mister Yahagi?”

It seemed that had been Mister Kenichi’s intention but Kicker had been the one to solve the Gargoyle Statue’s puzzle. “Nah, I’m not strapped for cash. I don’t care to live in luxury. If we’re talking about an inheritance to pass down to those like me who’ll come later, I’ll just make a new gold statue.” Maybe I should make a golden Gungalf? It’d be cool, like the old Chogokin toys. It’d be made of gold, not die-cast metal, though.

I didn’t know how Mister Kenichi had put the gold statue in the Gargoyle Statue, but if I asked Michelle, she’d probably do it for me.

“But I still can’t help but feel bad...” It appeared that the reserved Kicker was feeling hesitant.

“Even looking like this, I am an earl. If I have to, I can make as much money as I want. Look, don’t be so modest and just eat this.”

Product name: Gold Honey Candy

Description: A gold-colored candy shaped like a crystal.

Increases your money luck just a little upon consumption.

Price: Ten rims

This was also an old candy. From what I’d heard, it had been made in the Taisho era. I’d been told that it’d been imported to Taiwan, various Asian countries, and even the US. The raw ingredients were only sugar, mizuame, and spring water, and its special characteristic was how, despite being simple, it featured a deep flavor that you never grew tired of. This was also a traditional candy I’d get an occasional hankering for.

I took out one bead for each student and handed them over to the trio. “You should eat them before the merchant comes here to purchase the gold statue. Eating them might raise the price they’ll purchase it for. Don’t get your hopes too high, though.”

“Really?”

“Meryl got greedy and stuffed her mouth full of them before heading into battle but only the usual amount of money dropped. She was mad that all they’d done was make it hard for her to breathe. Well, that just means their effect isn’t that strong.”

“Ha ha ha. That’s Miss Meryl for you.”

“For sure. However, Meryl’s gonna keep buying them since they’re tasty.”

The three of them promptly unwrapped their pieces of candy and tossed them into their mouths.

***

Just like Prime Minister Ethel had said, the value of gold had risen. The Billiken Statue sold for a little over 3,000,000 rims. Even with the money divided among the three of them, each person got to take about 1,000,000 rims home. They were gonna invest this money in their future, but not by buying stocks and bonds. They’d decided to buy some new equipment.

“Good equipment costs a lot of money,” Cart said.

Even for the cheap stuff that the average adventurer used, they said that, from top to bottom, the whole set would cost at least 100,000 rims. When it came to higher-quality equipment, just the sword and armor alone cost about 1,500,000 rims. The difference in quality should make a huge impact on the outcomes of their monster battles.

“I won’t have to trouble my dad now.” Kicker’s dad was a soldier at the royal palace. He was better off than ordinary folks, but there wasn’t a lot of wiggle room in their budget. The three of them were all happy that they could be kind to their parents.

The Adventurer Meryl’s Diary: Entry 5

Cart and his group found some treasure! I heard that it was a gold statue of a god from another world, and they apparently sold it for over 3,000,000 rims. The price of gold has risen lately, so...

I’m so frustrated! I would’ve never guessed that students would discover something like that before I did! I can’t maintain my honor as their senior like this!

According to Mister Yusuke, the gold statue was of Billiken, and if you rub the back of his feet and make a wish, he’ll bestow a blessing upon you. He’s apparently a wondrous god that grants wishes for prosperous business, success with entrance exams, requited love—you name it!

If he’s such an amazing god, then I should have at least been told that before he got sold. I want to rub his feet and wish for treasure too.

Would rubbing Mister Mani’s feet do anything? I considered doing it but he wouldn’t let me. He said he was a machine god anyway and that I couldn’t since he was ticklish.

“In that case, maybe I’ll teach Shiba the smell of gold and have it find some for me,” I said aloud.

The people around me looked my way with respect in their eyes. Even Garmr, who I always butt heads with, was impressed, exclaiming, “You’re so smart!” My reputation suddenly shot up. However, Mister Mani crushed my hopes.

“Pure gold is odorless. You shouldn’t inconvenience Shiba.”

Shiba whined.

What?! No...there’s no way... But Mister Mani wouldn’t lie to me. Shiba was looking up at me apologetically. It had its tail tucked under its hind legs.

“Man, I admired you for nothing. In the end, you really don’t think that deeply, Meryl,” Garmr complained, his words stabbing me, and my reputation took a nosedive.

“Well, if you got a metal detector, then it wouldn’t be impossible to find...” Mister Mani piped up. Everyone around us got excited.

“Really, Mister Mani?!” I gasped.

“It is possible,” he affirmed. “You can probably find where any treasure is located under the earth or in the walls with the readings that it displays.”

I clasped both of Mira’s hands. “Please, Mira! Ask him!” If Mister Mani’s favorite—Mira—asked him, he might make that metal detector thingy. In that case, getting rich quick wouldn’t be just a dream. Arise, Luganda’s gold rush!!!

Mira smiled brightly and asked Mister Mani, “Can you really make a metal detector?”

“Hmm... I’ve forgotten how.”

“I knew it.”

In the midst of the despair that we adventurers had fallen into, Mister Mani and Mira were the only ones smiling.

Chapter 6: Allies in Revenge

At a tavern, a lone woman raged. “Why did this have to happen to me?! This has to be some kind of joke!”

Her name was Tidith Littenpike. She’d been a teacher at the Adventurers’ Academy just the other day, but after the injustice she’d inflicted on some students had been brought to light, she’d been dismissed as punishment. Since she’d been fired, she’d begun binge drinking day and night, regardless of the time.

“What’s up with students these days anyway?” she cried. “I don’t get the impression that they’re being polite to their seniors!!! And then there’s that school. I’ve contributed so much to the field of ancient hidden treasures, and they fired me?! That’s this world’s loss!” As she gulped down beer, Littenpike’s complaints didn’t let up. “That Yahagi man is really the one who’s at fault here! I don’t care if he’s the Sir Snacks—he teamed up with that gloomy uggo and got in the way of my plans! I’ll definitely get my revenge!!!”

Spitting out curses, she drained the remaining beer from her mug. “Hey, hurry up and give me another round! Jeez, how long are you going to keep me waiting... What? What are you staring for? You think a female drunkard is that rare?!”

She was harassing everyone, so the other customers and the employees had all grown fed up with her. Thinking that nothing good would come of her drinking even more, the shopkeeper gently suggested, “Miss, I think you should leave it there for now...”

“Shut up, baldie! Who do you think you’re speaking to? I’m Professor Littenpike, known throughout all the world. Hurry up and get me more beer!” Incidentally, Littenpike had no qualification deserving of the title of professor. Another one of this woman’s specialties was lying in order to make herself look good without batting an eye. However, nothing about that was surprising. Drunkards like this in pubs were a dime a dozen—poor people who actually ran errands but claimed to be as wealthy as CEOs, or colonels who wore shabby shoes. The entertainment district was overflowing with daydreamers.

After being called a baldie, the shopkeeper shrugged his shoulders, at a loss as to what to do.

“This lady is waiting on some beer. Hurry up with it!” cried a boy, tossing a silver coin onto the countertop. He was young, but his twisted personality oozed out of his expression. He seemed to be a bit too young to be frequenting a tavern, but he was doing his utmost to act like a much older hooligan.

“Oh, how thoughtful,” Littenpike mused. “And you are...?”

“I’m the eldest son of Viscount Permanente,” he replied. “I’m Marl. I was drinking over there but I heard something that got me curious.”

“Wh-What is it?” She tensed upon hearing that he was of the nobility. She thought he might be a friend of Yahagi, who was also a noble.

“You said you wanted to get revenge on that man, right? The dagashi-ya you mentioned...”

“W-Well...”

Marl gave her an insincere smile. “Fear not. I’m also someone who bears a grudge against that man.”

“Really...? Is that so?” She cautiously looked up at him with bleary eyes.

“He puffs himself up over the fact that he’s friends with Prime Minister Ethel. I got a taste of that behavior myself.”

“Well, that’s the same as me.”

Marl and Littenpike had been the ones to start the trouble in the first place, but their memories had altered themselves to their own convenience.

When Marl took the beer that was brought over and sipped it, he grimaced. It seemed to be some kind of old cask beer and it was pretty acidic. If he’d been his old self, he definitely would’ve called the shopkeeper over and given him an earful. What was more, he probably would’ve even hit him and not even hesitated to skip out on the bill. However, he no longer had anything like that kind of freedom. He’d been told that, if he were found to have resorted to violence again, he’d even be stripped of his rank. Everything was because of Yahagi.

“I don’t have a concrete proposal yet,” he said, “but I intend to scare the hell out of that man one way or another.”

Littenpike nodded deeply. “How wonderful. By all means, allow me to help as well.” Her voice had been loud until this point, but it gradually quieted down. All you could hear now was a bit of murmured conversation leaking out. The two kept an eye on their surroundings as they engaged in their secret discussion.

Yusuke’s Side

The boiling summer ended and the new school term started. Dagashi-ya Yahagi was as successful as ever and Shaved Ice and Ramune were selling well.

“Let’s go, Hogan! See if you can take this!” Cart was pitting his own familiar, Hogan, against his Mobile Forces unit, Gufufu. Hogan had grown over the summer and was about as big as a Mobile Forces figure, making him just the right size for fighting against one.

“Also, if I train him like this, he’ll grow up faster.” Kids came up with all kinds of ideas. This was how he and Hogan were both training together.

“Huh?!” In the pro-wrestling-type arena, Hogan swung Gufufu into the rope. After bouncing against the elastic rope, Gufufu stumbled forward, having lost its balance. That was when Hogan used his explosive Lariat. It was a bold move by which he stuck out one arm laterally and slammed it into the opponent’s throat and chest.

“Whoa!!!” Gufufu was sent flying, somersaulting through the air, and its link with Cart snapped. I’d thought that Cart would surely feel frustrated after losing to his familiar, but he scooped Hogan up with a radiant smile. “You’re amazing, Hogan! You developed a new killer technique!”

“Number one!” exclaimed Hogan. I didn’t really know why, but he’d gained the ability to say this phrase when he was happy. Having won his practice match against his master, he was thrilled as he breathed heavily through his nose. Cart was also as happy about Hogan’s development as if the familiar’s progress were his own, not caring about the fact that he’d lost.

Hogan was still quite small, but he’d probably acquire some crazy combat power if he grew to the size of a human. He’d probably become something like a heavyweight fighter.

After watching Hogan’s match, one of the other kids called out, “Mister Yahagiii! Gimme Turtle Crackers! I’ve got a tank endurance exam tomorrow!”

“Sure thing.”

Product name: Turtle Crackers

Description: Bite-sized deep-fried rice crackers. With their sweet and salty flavor, they’re a popular longtime seller.

Turns a part of your skin as hard as a tortoise’s shell upon consumption. What portion hardens is up to you.

Price: Thirty rims

This snack looked like it’d pair well with Hogan. If he hardened his arms or his fists, he could probably use it for both offense and defense. I figured I should give it to him one of these days.

Speaking of defensive ability, it was a shame that golem-types like Rigal’s Litan couldn’t eat. In that respect, animal-types, who could use dagashi to raise their abilities, had an advantage. Among special types, there were those who could eat, like Hogan, and ones like Margarette who couldn’t. Suama’s type was unidentified but it ate regardless of its preferences. It seemed it wrapped up its targeted food and digested it the way a slime would. It became a little hard when it ate the Turtle Crackers.

“Mister Yahagi, Yakisoba, please!”

“Hang tight a second.”

“Ramune over here, please.”

Orders came in one after another. Large columns of clouds bobbed in the sky, marking the remaining traces of summer. However, the wind that blew in, rocking the noren curtains, had begun carrying a hint of autumn.

The dagashi-ya was peaceful again today. However, recently, I’d felt like someone was looking at me... I didn’t have any proof, but it felt like I was being watched. Even now... See!

I suddenly turned around, but I saw no one there. Huh?

“What’s wrong, Yuyu?” Carmine asked me upon seeing my behavior. She was blowing bubbles with her gum in her usual spot. She looked perplexed by my suspicious actions. I was beyond embarrassed.

“I just kinda felt like I was being watched from behind. It looks like it was just my imagination, but...”

“Isn’t it Miss Michelle?”

“Why would she be doing that?” I asked.

“Just looking at you makes her happy. Or maybe it’s to check to see if you’re cheating?”

It was a likely story, but I felt like it was wrong. I could kinda sense Michelle’s gaze. Margarette looked up at me from where she sat on Carmine’s knees. Ever since she’d warned us about the danger Cart and the others had been in, she hadn’t predicted the future again. It seemed that was because she’d used up the mana in her body. “Hey, do you know something, Margarette?”

There was no response. The stuffed toy Margarette’s expression didn’t change...but was I only imagining that she looked like she wanted to say something to me?

“A fan of yours is probably watching you in secret,” Carmine said. “Or do you have something you’re worried about?”

“No, it’s nothing quite that serious. Yeah, it’s as you say. It’s probably a fan of mine. Or it could be a customer who’s after the Chocolate Eggs’ reappearance since the temperature’s getting cooler.”

“That could be it,” she agreed. “They say that the adventurers in town are also looking forward to the Chocolate Eggs’ restock.”

That sounded about right to me, so at that time, I remained carefree.

***

I went to see Chichi with Michelle. We’d been bringing the linseed weeds to her for about three months and she was looking a lot better.

“What do you think, Michelle?” I asked.

Michelle, who’d been examining Chichi, gave a big nod. “Yes, she’s finally made a full recovery. The side effects of the Combination Charms are completely gone.”

Marco had tears of gratitude in his eyes. “Thank you so much, Miss Michelle and Mister Yahagi.”

Even Chichi, who usually didn’t get along with Michelle, spoke her thanks. “Thank you, big sis...”

“It was nothing...”

They both looked awkward. Marco’s and Chichi’s familiars were also making merry around the bed.

Shiranui

A spirit-type familiar.

A red ball of fire. There are rumors that it is a soul of the deceased. Becomes a light or a flint.

It can use offensive Fire Magic attacks when grown.

Woodman

Golem-type familiar.

A human statue made of wood.

Your hand-to-hand combat abilities increase just by holding it.

When you train with a grown Woodman, your hand-to-hand combat abilities dramatically increase.

Marco’s familiar was the Shiranui and Chichi’s familiar was the Woodman.

“Shiranui isn’t hot even when you touch it,” I noted. The Shiranui was flying around as if playing with Suama on my shoulder, but I didn’t feel any heat.

“It can ignite kindling as well, but it seems it normally suppresses its heat. Come here, Nuinui.” When Marco reached his hand out, Nuinui fluttered over and settled on his palm. It seemed to be pretty attached to him.

On the other hand, the Woodman was moving restlessly down on the floor. It looked like it was practicing kung fu combat sequences. Its face appeared to be drawn on a wooden stick with a felt-tip pen, but it moved well, like a cartoon flip-book. I found it comical—a little charming, even.

“This one is a pretty lively familiar,” I said. However, Chichi didn’t look satisfied.

“Why is this my familiar? I wanted a cuter one or one that turns into jewelry like Mira’s Ring,” she grumbled. It was true that Woodman didn’t suit Chichi. “Tifa, don’t move around so much in the presence of a sick person!”

So, Chichi had named her Woodman Tifa. Scolded by Chichi, it suddenly stopped moving. Even its felt-tip-pen-drawn face had knit its eyebrows together. Yep, it definitely had a lovable charm.

“What’s the harm?” I asked. “You’re not sick anymore, right?”

“That’s true, but...”

Marco told us, “Even if she acts like this, Chichi really dotes on Tifa.”

“Really?”

“Man, it’s enough to make me jealous too. She’s all cold to it in public, though.”

“Marco! What are you saying that for?” she cried. I was happy as long as she was cherishing her familiar.

“More importantly, Yahagi—” Chichi abruptly cut off the conversation as if to hide her embarrassment. “Take this.” She handed me a somewhat large silver ring. It was simple in appearance and lightly decorated with an ivy design.

“What is this...?”

“It’s my thanks for the linseed weeds,” she said. “I wanna owe as few debts as possible, so...”

“You’re an honest little sister.”

“Little sis—?!” she sputtered. “You dummy! Don’t say such weird things!”

“Ouch, you didn’t have to hit me.” She’d smacked my arm pretty hard. However, this might’ve been the first time we’d interacted with each other like this. I figured that meant we were both getting used to each other.

“More importantly, be careful. When you pour mana into that ring, gas will blow out of the top.”

“Gas?!” I exclaimed. “It’s not poisonous, is it?”

“It’s not. It’s the Submission Gas that I created.”

“What?” That was a kinda scary name that she’d given it. “Tell me specifically what it does.”

“If you make someone smell this and order them to do something, it makes them unable to defy you,” she replied.

“Hey! What do you think you’re giving to Yusuke?!” Michelle’s face changed color as she grew upset but Chichi didn’t seem bothered at all.

“What’s the harm? He wouldn’t abuse it, would he? He can have it purely for self-defense. Also, the effect lasts for only about ten minutes.”

Still, that didn’t change the fact that it was pretty dangerous.

“Be careful—the spray has a short range, both vertically and horizontally. This is infused with my feelings of thanks, so be grateful and accept it.”

“Okay.” When I put it on my right index finger, it was a perfect fit, as if it’d been measured beforehand.

“It’s filled with several uses’ worth of gas, so why don’t you try it on my sister?”

“On Michelle?”

“That’s right. She’ll listen to anything you say. You can order her to do things that she normally wouldn’t.”

Chichi laughed in a bewitching way. However, Michelle would happily do anything I asked of her.

“Don’t be stupid! I’ll repel it!”

Chichi kept laughing at Michelle as she grew angry.

“Then why don’t you try ordering Yahagi? He’ll answer any request.”

“Anything...?” Michelle paused. “Yusuke would...”

“That’s right,” she giggled, enticing her. “He’ll do anything no matter how abnormal the request. Hee hee hee...”

Hey now. “Leave it at that,” I told Chichi. “If you don’t, I’ll spray the gas on you and order you to shut up.”

“Okaaay.” She nodded without any fuss, but her eyes were still smiling.

***

After we finished visiting Chichi, we returned to the manor house and received written reports from Mister Nakaram. It seemed Luganda’s population had increased again.

“Things are going well,” I commented. “I’m glad that not only do we have more adventurers, but we also have more immigrants who are farmers and tradesmen now.”

“Yes. Luganda’s fame is continuing to climb. By the way, Sir Yahagi...” Mister Nakaram hesitated to say what he was thinking, the muscles which were his pride and joy twitching.

“What’s wrong?”

“Um... When will the Chocolate Eggs be sold again? I thought it’d be nice to have a familiar as well, so...”

“Oh, you want a Chocolate Egg too?” I asked. “Other people have also been asking me, but wait until fall. It melts quickly in the heat, so I can’t stock it during this season.”

“I see...” Mister Nakaram dropped his shoulders dejectedly.

“Hmm... A familiar for you...” I trailed off. “What kind of familiar do you want? A cool golem-type like Rigal’s Litan?”

“I-I want a cute animal-type one like little Shiba...” he murmured. Meryl’s Shiba, huh? He liked that type instead. “If possible, I’d like a rabbit-type...”

Oh right, he liked rabbits. Personally, I felt that rabbits really suited macho guys, but did I have rabbit familiars?

“I generally don’t take reservations, but you’re always helping me, Mister Nakaram, so once I get some in stock, I’ll reserve one just for you,” I promised him.

“Thank you!” He gave me such a strong handshake that my hand went numb.

I had a feeling that Chocolate Eggs were going to be popular in Luganda too. As the feudal lord, I couldn’t neglect my territory. I had reached a point where I’d supplied enough for the demands of the academies, so I’d focus on Luganda specifically next time.

Selling them around the branch stores would be a good idea, but I only received thirty boxes a day, so I figured I should limit sales to just Luganda for the time being. As a famous local product, it might attract more tourists.

***

Back in the Royal Capital, I cleaned up the road in front of the shop after lunch. Prime Minister Ethel had suggested I employ some servants, but as a dagashi-ya, this was my job. I didn’t intend to leave it to anyone else. Besides, a dagashi-ya with servants was weird. I wanted to do my business in a way that was both carefree and sincere.

After I finished cleaning the road, I polished the arenas and Mani 4WD racecourses. I was careful to avoid creating any technical difficulties as I prettied up the courses.

Yep, these racecourses shining with a dark-gray color are awaiting the kids’ battles. I could comfortably welcome customers now.

While I was looking over my work with satisfaction, I noticed Michelle at the far end of the road, coming home mounted on Pluto. Though we were in the middle of town, she looked like she was really speeding. That was weird. Today was the day of the Royal Academy first-years’ field trip to the dungeon. She had gone as a chaperone, but was she back already?

Observing her more carefully, I noticed how stiff her facial expression was. She usually came home with a radiant smile on her face.

Pluto came to a sudden halt in front of me.

“Welcome back,” I said. “You’re early.”

“No. I have to head to the school right now,” she told me urgently. “Something happened at the dungeon.” She mournfully shook her head.

“Was it bad?”

“Yes. A student got caught in the Dyne Girl’s trap,” she said. The Dyne Girl was a demonic female statue on B3 of the dungeon. She was a beautiful girl with horns on her head, black wings on her back, and a tail sprouting from her behind. The problem was, this beautiful woman was stark naked. Additionally, she had a voluptuous figure that seduced those who laid eyes on it. Her most private parts were hidden by her hair, but the issue was that it seemed like you could catch a glimpse if you just got the right angle.

It tickled a man’s inner pervert, overflowing with an appeal that made them think, “I’ll go around it and have a peek.” Apparently, it emitted a weak charm spell that covered a broad area.

However, going near this stone statue was absolutely out of the question. In the worst-case scenario that you actually touched it, hair would materialize and coil around you. This was the Dyne Girl’s curse. Once you were entangled in her hair, it would change into a wirelike material, making it impossible to escape. You couldn’t get free even if you hacked at it with an axe, and there was no way to burn it off with magic.

The method for escaping was simple, though. All you had to do was pay a ransom to the Dyne Girl. In front of the statue stood a box like the type shrines had for offerings, and the box was set up so that, when a hostage was caught, the sum of money needed would be displayed there.

If you just paid the ransom to the Dyne Girl, the hostage would be released immediately. However, if the ransom wasn’t paid, then they’d be trapped until they died, and the statue would suck out their life energy.

The amount of ransom was random but was always 50,000 rims at the very least. At the high end, there were records of it going up to 100,000,000.

“How much is the ransom?”

“It’s 6,660,000 rims.”

“That’s a lot of money.”

“The parents of the student who was caught are wealthy merchants. I think they can handle it somehow. I intend to tell the school about this and return to the dungeon,” Michelle said. Pretty much all of the Royal Academy’s students had rich parents. That would prove fortunate, yet they’d probably still want to avoid paying the ransom if possible.

I picked up one of my store’s products.

Product name: Yogurt Jelly

Description: A tube of jelly with a smooth mouthfeel.

Makes you capable of slipping out of a bind upon consumption. You could even slip out of handcuffs!

Price: Twenty rims

“I don’t think it’ll prove effective against traps in the dungeon but take it just in case,” I said, handing it to her. “If you have the captured student eat it, he might be able to escape from the Dyne Girl’s hair.”

Michelle took the Yogurt Jelly and ran off to the school on Pluto.

***

The Dyne Girl’s trap was the hottest topic of conversation after school at the dagashi-ya. Carmine had been there at the time and was filling in Cart and the others about the details of what had happened. “Sadly, the Yogurt Jelly didn’t work and Panac’s parents had to pay the ransom.”

“You mean the 6,660,000 rims?” Cart asked.

“Yep.”

“Dang! My parents would never pay that much!”

“Same here...” Goat mumbled.

Cart’s family were low-class knights, and Goat’s parents worked as the leaders of a hunting group.

“Make sure you guys don’t let your own perverted hearts lead you to the Dyne Girl.” Carmine riled Cart up in a teasing tone.

“I don’t care about that stuff!”

“Really? But you’re always looking at Miss Mira in a pervy way.”

“N-No I’m not! I never do that!” he protested. Getting so worked up over a joke showed how young he was.

“You be careful too, Yusuke,” Michelle said to me. “Don’t get seduced by the Dyne Girl’s charm and try to touch it.”

“I’m telling you, I won’t.”

Michelle warned me away, but I’d actually already had my fill of observing the Dyne Girl Statue. To put it bluntly, it was dangerous. It had a pretty irresistible attraction. I fully understood why adventurers who passed in front of the Dyne Girl closed one eye so they didn’t see it.

As for me, I’d used my store’s product, the plastic Opera Glasses, to look as much as I wanted. I was scared to get close, after all.

Product name: Folding Opera Glasses

Description: A box-shaped pair of folding opera glasses (Magnification 4.0). Features an image stabilization effect that uses mana.

Price: Three hundred forty rims

It was a cheap, plastic thing but it was a fairly useful item in spite of that. I’d even managed to see the details clear as day. Her butt was really sexy. I’ll mentally apologize to Michelle...

Once the girls left, Cart whispered, “Still, I really do get curious.”

Goat nodded without dispute. “Should we just look at it from afar? It seems the charm spell’s target range is pretty short.”

“Oh yeah, can’t we use this?” Cart picked up the Opera Glasses. He came up with the same idea as I did... “I wanna buy this!”

Cart and Goat pooled their money and paid 170 rims each, purchasing the Opera Glasses. It was a somewhat sizable sum for them, but it didn’t look like they cared.

“Be careful. Don’t you dare get close to the Dyne Girl,” I warned them.

“I know! That’s why we bought this,” Cart huffed. Cart and Goat were apparently going to invite the other boys and go together on a Dyne Girl observation tour. It was a ridiculous plan, but it was probably safer than just the two of them going alone. Also, it wasn’t like I didn’t understand their feelings.

“If you use Light Magic or have a lot of lanterns, you can get a good look.” The brightness of binoculars was determined by the aperture of the objective lens. The Opera Glasses’ lenses were small.

“Oh, that’s some good advice. Let’s invite Grets, then. He can use the Lamplight Spell.”

The two of them carefully made their plans.

The Adventurer Meryl’s Diary: Entry 6

I bought Yogurt Jelly at the dagashi-ya. I bought it because I like it, not because I intend to escape from anything. I just can’t get enough of its smooth mouthfeel. Moreover, the amount is just right. I also like how you can eat it in the dungeon right away when you’re feeling a bit peckish. I’ve never tried it myself, but even if you get caught in a binding trap, you might be able to escape it by eating this.

“You shouldn’t expect too much from it,” Mister Yusuke warned me. “It didn’t do anything for the Dyne Girl’s trap.” He told me about the incident that happened with a Royal Academy student. Apparently, a certain schoolboy had been captivated by the Dyne Girl. In spite of the warnings to never touch it, apparently he touched the Dyne Girl’s chest anyway. Boys really are perverts.

“It can’t be helped. It’s a charm-type spell. That kid probably wasn’t used to the dungeon either,” Mira defended the boy. She has proportions that even the Dyne Girl can’t beat. I couldn’t even guess how many boys yearn for her.

“The real Dyne Girl is so nice,” I sighed.

“Me, a Dyne Girl? I don’t like that. I’m not a demon!”

Yeah, yeah, you’re an oblivious angel. An evil angel who corrupts people. Well, if some pervy kids ever tried to touch her, I wouldn’t forgive them!

***

Chichi has made a full recovery. She thanked me since I helped gather the linseed weeds too. I was surprised that she of all people thanked me!

“It’s my principle to not accumulate any debts. If there’s anything I can do, let me know.”

I immediately took her up on that offer. I’ve heard that practicing against a Woodman will raise your close-combat abilities. Therefore, I borrowed her familiar, Tifa.

No, of course that didn’t mean I was going to train against it. I did want to try, but it was impossible, sizewise. My little Shiba was the one training. If I give it a gifted education right now, it’ll probably grow to be an amazing familiar.

I went to borrow the Mobile Forces arena for the drills, and the results were amazing. I think Shiba’s combat power dramatically improved. Its size is small, but its movements are starting to exhibit rhythmic flow and feinting skills.

Was my feeling that my precious Shiba has been gifted with the makings of a martial artist a result of me being a doting parent? No, I think Shiba really did get stronger.

Seeing Shiba and Tifa’s training drills, Rigal asked if Litan could join in on the practice. Chichi was happy that Tifa would level up from all the practice. She’s completely healed from her illness, so she’s going to start being more proactive with leveling it. After discussing it, it was decided that she’d come along with Team Harukaze to the inner parts of the dungeon tomorrow. I’ll buy a few more snacks than usual and work hard!

Chapter 7: Trap

In one part of the Royal Capital’s old town, there was an old apartment facing an alleyway. It belonged to the Viscount Permanente Family and its basement was being used as a storeroom. When night fell, there wasn’t a single light in the alley. A lone figure walked briskly down that dark street. Because of the black hood they wore firmly over their head, it was impossible to determine their gender. However, you could at least discern that they were a thin person.

The hooded figure looked left and right, alert, and after determining that no one was around, they headed down the stairs that led to the basement.

Marl offered a seat to Littenpike, who had opened the door to the storehouse and come inside. “No one saw you, right?” he asked.

“No, I was careful.”

The two of them had formed an alliance in pursuit of their goal of bringing despair upon Yusuke Yahagi. While each of them was simply nursing an unreasonable grudge, their selfish characters intensified their resentment.

This was the second time they’d met for a discussion since their chance meeting at the tavern. Marl had offered this place tonight to work out a concrete plan for revenge.

“So, have you worked out a detailed plan, Instructor Littenpike?”

“I’ve been thinking about a lot of things...”

They’d both agreed that simply killing Yahagi would be boring. They’d gain absolutely nothing from that. If they did end up killing him, they were hoping to rob him of his money first. They’d also come up with the idea of uncovering some scandal of his and using that as a way to blackmail money out of him.

“Unfortunately, Yahagi has no mistress.” Marl had made a subordinate do a background check on Yahagi. He’d been hoping that the guy would be having an affair with the wife of a nobleman or something, but no such thing had come up at all.

“Then maybe stealing all the money he’s saved really would be the best idea? It’d probably do a huge number on his psyche and we’d pocket a lot of money too.”

“That is possible. It appears that dagashi-ya is pretty profitable and he’s probably also amassing revenue from his domain.”

“It’d probably make for a pretty little allowance.”

The two of them were absorbed in their dastardly dreams.

“The problem is how we’re going to steal it. He absolutely cannot realize that it’s our doing.”

“I know that. We can just do it in a way that won’t get us caught,” Marl said coolly. That was the most difficult part, but Marl wasn’t worried.

“The issue here is that cursed witch who’s living with him.”

At the mention of the cursed witch, even the foolish Marl gulped. Michelle was such a big name that even a blockhead like him could immediately judge that she wasn’t an opponent to carelessly lay a hand on. The witch Michelle was also a fearless warrior who had kept fighting against the king who’d betrayed her without backing down a single inch. If it were discovered that they’d broken into the house of such a legendary witch, there was no telling what curse she’d inflict on them.

“So what should we do?” asked Marl with a frightened look.

After a brief pause, Littenpike said, “How about kidnapping?”

“Who would we kidnap? They don’t have any kids.”

“We’ll kidnap a student from the Adventurers’ Academy. There’s one kid in particular Yahagi likes.”

“I know him. It’s that student named Cart, right? If I remember correctly, Carmine from my school also hangs out with him.”

“Upon looking into it, I discovered that Yahagi is particularly partial to Cart, Goat, Kicker, and Carmine.”

Marl folded his arms in thought. “It’d probably be easy to kidnap those students, but would Yahagi really cough up money for the kids of complete strangers?”

“He has a soft spot for kids. He’ll likely pay up.”

“Even so, what’ll happen if the cursed witch just barges in uninvited?”

“We’ll have to separate her from him.”

The two of them decided to enact their sinister design while Michelle was absent.

“Also, if this is just a simple kidnapping, my identity might be revealed,” said Marl.

“Shall we lay out some bait in the dungeon and lure them away?”

“Do we have any bait that good?”

Littenpike carefully pondered to herself. “We’ll use their success. The other day, they undid the seal of the Gargoyle Statue on B2. They earned a lot of money because of that.”

“I heard. Can’t believe they actually did that...” Marl ground his teeth in frustration. He disliked hearing about the fame others had gained. It was even worse when it came to Cart and his group, whom he had formerly disparaged as low-class.

“I’m sure they feel like they’re on a roll. If they learn that there’s another such trap, there’s no doubt they’ll happily come to check it out.”

“What trap is that?”

“A trap where the letters of Yahagi’s birthplace are engraved.”

“Are there any other traps like that?”

“If there aren’t, then all we have to do is make one.” Littenpike laughed fearlessly. It wasn’t as if she understood Japanese. However, she’d memorized several Arabic numerals while observing Kicker solving the mystery of the numbers. On top of that, if they bought the Number Chocolate candy, they should be able to grasp the particulars. In that case, all they had to do was have Marl send a subordinate to buy them. If she learned the numbers and just wrote them down in some random place, she figured they’d definitely mistake it for a similar trap.

“Will it work, though?”

“Sir Marl, are you familiar with the Dyne Girl trap?”

“You mean that demonic statue that everyone’s been talking about lately. A blockhead named Panac got caught in that trap the other day. You should’ve seen his stupid face.” Marl happily explained what had happened during the dungeon tour.

“We will certainly use that as well. We’ll let them think they can undo her curse and have the Dyne Girl trap them.”

“What will happen?”

“Their families aren’t wealthy. Yahagi should come with the money to save them.”

“So then we just gotta come up from the side and snatch it!”

With satisfied smiles on their faces, they nodded to each other.

“There’s just one thing that troubles me.”

“What is it?”

“The Royal Academy student, Carmine. What’s her background? If she’s the daughter of a highly influential aristocrat, things might get troublesome.”

“Oh, her. There are some rumors that she’s the secret love child of some aristocrat. Well, in the end, she’s only a secret love child. No aristocrats have claimed her. There probably won’t be any problems if she’s trapped by the Dyne Girl.”

“That’s a good point.”

The two of them put their heads together and worked out the details of their plan.

Yusuke’s Side

It was an afternoon with light drizzle. There was no school today so I was peacefully relaxing in the tatami room with Michelle. There weren’t many kids and the shop was deserted.

“Hello. I have some mail for Lady Michelle.” A courier dressed in the black uniform of the Postal Guild came by. The silver buttons that were an emblem of his status shone brightly. He had a good physique and his face was also very masculine.

The Postal Guild was a new organization founded with the backing of the current king. Before this, it had been the norm for the sender to personally employ a courier, but as part of the current king’s reformations, a mail delivery system had been created.

There were many former soldiers among the couriers, and swords hung from their hips. Bandits frequently showed up on the main road, so weapons were a must. Apparently the guild had recruited those who were particularly brilliant even among the soldiers, and staff members of the Postal Guild were regarded as this world’s elites.

The postal service’s carriages were often loaded with valuable articles. However, it seemed there were almost no bandits who’d attempted to attack them. There probably weren’t many people crazy enough to go out of their way to challenge a light cavalryman that could use magic.

Michelle opened up the letter and exclaimed in surprise.

“What’s wrong?” I asked. “Bad news?”

“No, not at all,” she said. “It’s a letter of invitation from the Academy. They want me to give a special lecture at Ilm Science City.” She was surprised, but there was excitement on her face. She was probably happy that her research had been recognized.

“It’s amazing to be invited by the Academy. It’s an honor, isn’t it?”

“They hold the conference every year, but they only choose three researchers with especially high achievements. It’s strange, though.”

“What’s wrong?”

“I didn’t apply. I presented my thesis at an academic conference in the Royal Capital, but I missed my chance to send it off to the Academy’s headquarters.”

“Maybe they have a referral category or something?”

“Oh, that could be it. Someone might’ve referred my thesis.”

“I’m happy for you. When will the lecture be?”

“They’re going to hold a conference at the Good Harvest Festival in twenty days,” she replied. The Good Harvest Festival was like a fall harvest festival. The people showed appreciation for the gods’ blessings, and the whole nation went all out celebrating. Even the Royal Capital grew lively, with the populace treated to beer and costume parades. A tournament for Mobile Forces and Mani 4WDs would be held alongside the Good Harvest Festival this year. I’d also set up a special stall in response to Prime Minister Ethel’s request to spice things up.

“What should I do...?” she murmured.

“Why don’t you just go?”

“But I wanted to enjoy the Good Harvest Festival with you.” Michelle leaned against my shoulder. Considering her personality, she might have seriously prioritized spending the festival with me instead. However, chances like this likely didn’t come often.

“It’s painful for me to be apart from you too, Michelle,” I reasoned with her. “Even so, you should go to Ilm.”

“You think?”

“I do. I’ll be busy during the festival anyway. I wouldn’t be able to take my time and have fun.”

“Hmm...” It looked like she was still conflicted.

“After a little while, let’s go on a trip to somewhere the two of us can relax.”

“Really?!” she exclaimed. “Okay. I’ll go to Ilm and give my special lecture!!!”

That was for the best. I thought it’d be a good experience for a researcher like Michelle.

Marl’s Side

Marl received a short letter from Littenpike.

The plan to separate the two was a success. The witch will be away from that man during the Good Harvest Festival.

With this, they no longer had to worry that the cursed witch would get in the way of their plans to rob Yahagi of his money. What should Marl spend the money he collected on? He let his delusions run wild.

He could buy the collection of high-grade magic potions he’d been wanting for so long, and the emerald ring he’d found at the jewelers would be good too. He could also probably reserve a brothel and live it up.

Forgetting all about his homework, the little scoundrel immersed himself fully in his sweet dreams.

Yusuke’s Side

Three female students from the Royal Academy came to buy snacks. This particular snack was experiencing a small boom among girls.

Product name: Parasol-like Chocolate

Description: A chocolate that’s shaped like a parasol.

If you wave the stick part after you finish eating, you can disguise yourself as a mage from ancient times.

The effect lasts thirty minutes.

Price: Fifty rims

In Japan, I figured it’d probably be something like the clothes from a period drama, like samurai and princesses, fire brigades and servants. It was a bit like cosplay. Apparently, it was fun to wear these and take some Sunprints.

“Ah, I want one too.” Michelle, who liked sweets, also bought one and ate it with a smile. It was really cute when she acted like this.

“Now then, what kind of costume will show up...” When she finished eating, she waved the small stick diagonally downward. Light purple smoke gushed forth and enveloped Michelle’s body. When the smoke cleared, what stood there was a classic-looking necromancer. I saw a steel scythe embedded with purple crystals, a robe whose hood was decorated with the face of an evil god, a skull clasp for the cloak, and a long ragged dress with a revealing neckline.

She had an eerie appearance, but the costume with its black and light-purple color scheme just suited her way too well!!!

“Oh my, I kind of feel relaxed...”

No one in the shop denied her words. Whether that was a compliment was questionable, but that was how well she suited the role of a necromancer.

“What do you think, Yusuke?”

“Yeah, you always look cute no matter what you wear,” I said, choosing my words carefully. “Especially with that kind of...chic color scheme.”

“Thank you. Oh yeah, perhaps I could wear this to the Academy lecture? I think it’d leave an impression.”

Oh, it definitely would. If anything, it’d leave too much of an impression. I didn’t think enacting a period drama on the Academy stage was a good idea. It would have as much impact as a person dressed as the shogun singing a samba. That’d probably be fun if it were a show, but during a lecture it was a no-no.

“You should forget about it. They’ll be so distracted by your costume that they won’t be able to take in your lecture.”

“You may be right.” This necromancer’s giggling was eerily cute. I’ve heard of creepy-cute, so this must be eerie-cute... A little turned on, I took a picture of Michelle, who smiled bashfully.

***

In the early evening, Michelle was packing her things into her suitcase in the back of the tatami room. She’d be leaving for Ilm tomorrow.

“Hey now, aren’t you packing too many things?” I asked.

“I mean, I might need them,” she replied. Not only were there changes of clothes, but it seemed she also intended to bring along magic books, medicine bottles, and several magical items.

“Even so, you won’t be able to shut the lid with all this stuff in there,” I reasoned with her. If I’d been going with her, I could’ve just put her stuff in my carrying-pole shop and stored it in the gap between dimensions.

“It’s not to the same extent as you, but I can use a bit of Spatial Manipulation Magic.” When she used that magic, it increased the amount she could fit into the suitcase by 1.3 times.

“I didn’t know there was such handy magic out there,” I commented.

“It’s pretty advanced magic, so there aren’t many who can use it.”

“Wow, impressive as always, Michelle. Let’s see. Show me.”

“Yeah, watch.” After drawing a magic circle on the floor with chalk, she placed the briefcase on top. It was overflowing with things and the lid wouldn’t shut. However, disregarding that, Michelle began reciting a special incantation.

The magic circle glowed purple, and wind sucked the overflowing items into the suitcase.

“Whoa!!!” I exclaimed.

Eventually, after the magic circle shone in a particularly dazzling way, the lid closed with a plunk and locked.

“That’s amazing!”

Michelle giggled. “Hee hee.” Then, she paused, something occurring to her. “Ah, oh no. I forgot to put in an important note!”

Good grief. She held an extraordinary talent as a mage but she was scatterbrained when it came to things like this. However, you could say that was one of Michelle’s charms.

“Huh? I can’t really undo the loc— Eek!!!”

When Michelle undid the clasp, the lid vigorously snapped open, and the contents came flying out—books, clothes, and various other items hurling through midair and rolling across the tatami.

Yikes, one of Michelle’s panties landed on the top of my head! And it was a particularly risqué pair! “I feel like I remember seeing this one before...”

“Yeah, it was the one you were really happy about me wearing last week.” Red-faced, she swiped the undergarment from me.

“Be careful not to open the suitcase in front of others.”

“Yeah,” she murmured. I really didn’t want other people seeing her underwear.

While we were making idle chitchat, I heard voices from the entrance, and Cart and the others burst in. “This is bad, Mister Yahagi!”

Oh, what happened this time? I headed toward the store and closed the door to the back tatami room with its scattered luggage behind me. “What’s wrong, Cart? You’re so loud. Did you find treasure?”

“That’s right!”

Wait, for real?!

“You idiot! Don’t talk so loudly!” Kicker slapped his head. Luckily, the group hadn’t drawn any customer’s attention.

“Well, have a seat,” I said. “I’ll hear out your secret discussion over there.”

I had the four of them sit at a table.

***

Cart and Goat were totally excited. Compared to them, Kicker and Carmine were the very definition of composed.

“So, what treasure?” I asked.

“About that...” Cart started. “Goat and I actually dove into the dungeon today.”

“Just the two of you?”

“No, with eight other guy friends...”

“Why weren’t Kicker and Carmine with you?”

Kicker once again smacked the back of Cart’s head.

“That hurts!”

“That’s because you’re all perverts!” Kicker cried.

I had no idea what was going on.

“These guys headed to the Dyne Girl Statue to look at it while keeping it a secret from us,” she said to me. “How obscene!”

“Guys are just hopeless,” Carmine sighed, amused.

Kicker was angry and seemed to be treating them with disdain, but Carmine was laughing like it was funny.

Right, Cart and the other guys were planning a Dyne Girl observation tour. It seemed they’d finally carried it out.

“Come on, you gave us advice the other day, right, Mister Yahagi? You told us to use Light Magic and bring lots of lanterns. Thanks to that, we got a good look at all the details!!!”

“What’s the meaning of this, Yusuke?” Michelle jumped in without a moment’s hesitation, but I forcibly changed the subject.

“Did I? More importantly, how is the treasure related to the Dyne Girl Statue?” I asked nervously.

“Well, thanks to how bright it was while we were observing it, Goat and I found something crazy.”

“What did you find?”

“The numbers from before! What were they again? You know, those Adabida numerals?”

“The Arabic numerals.”

“Yeah, those! They’re on her inner thighs and underneath her breasts. The Arabic numerals are also written at the base of the tail above the butt.”

“You looked at all the pervy places!!!” Once again, Kicker gave him a hard slap.

Still, numbers that were used in the world I came from had been found once again. Did Mister Hasegawa leave behind another treasure like the previous one? That’d be nice...

“There’s no doubt that there’s treasure sleeping inside that statue too!!!” Cart exclaimed. He and Goat were determined.

“Well, this means that even perverts are useful every once in a while. Let’s go together with Carmine next time.” Kicker looked exasperated but also happy.

“Is it okay for me to come too?” Carmine was bewildered by Kicker’s invitation.

“You’re on the same team as us. Or do you have a reason you don’t wanna go?”

“I wanna go! I have a certain dream, so...”

“Right? The Dyne Girl’s stashing away money, so the amount she’s got should be pretty decent too,” Cart said, getting excited.

“By pretty decent, do you think there’s 100,000,000 rims or so?”

“No way, there’s probably 1,000,000,000 rims. Let’s rent a secret hideout if we find the treasure! We’ll leave tools for exploration there and tons of snacks.”

“That sounds nice. I’ve been wanting a place like that!”

“Now then, let’s go off exploring early tomorrow so no one can beat us to the punch!”

“Yeah!”

The four of them were in high spirits. Was this okay, though? I wanted to tag along but tomorrow was the Good Harvest Festival. I had a job to do that Prime Minister Ethel had asked of me as well, so I was pretty busy.

“I suppose you guys will go even if I try to stop you, but use plenty of caution,” I told them.

“I know!” Cart said. “Things are going to go well again this time!!!”

“In the worst-case scenario, you need to report to me ASAP.”

“If that happens, we’ll send out either Goat’s Hawk or Kicker’s Luff as a messenger.”

Familiars that could fly through the sky could probably escape the dungeon right away. In particular, Hawk flew fast enough to make your jaw drop. I had a few concerns, but I decided to just watch from the sidelines.

While I was seeing them off, Michelle tilted her head. “Do you think they’ll be all right?”

“I’m worried,” I admitted, “but they’re adventurers in the making too. Well, I do intend to help them if the time comes.”

“You’re right, Yusuke...” Michelle shut the door and locked it. Moreover, she added a barrier on top of that. Huh? She was even adding a sound-blocking barrier? If she was doing all that, then the inside of the shop would be completely isolated from the outside world.

“What’s wrong, Michelle? Is something worrying you?”

“That’s not it...” she murmured. “You know, we’re going to be away from each other starting tomorrow. That’s why I thought that tonight, it’d be nice to spend time alone with you with no one to disturb us.” Michelle was wriggling bashfully in a very cute way. I was truly a lucky guy to be loved so much by her. I felt like we were approaching a point where we had to have a serious talk about our future together.

“Let’s have dinner for now,” I said. “We’ll open a bottle of special wine today.”

Delighted by the invitation, Michelle gazed at me with sparkling eyes.

Marl’s Side

Once again, Marl and Littenpike were having a secret meeting underground, beneath the apartment that faced the alleyway.

“Did the tampering with the Dyne Girl go well?” asked Marl.

“It went better than ‘well,’” Littenpike replied, happily turning her nose up in the air.

“What do you mean?”

“I wrote the numbers on the Dyne Girl Statue according to our plans, and right after that, Cart and Goat came by.”

“What? They didn’t see your face, did they?”

“Don’t worry,” she assured him. “I did my work while disguised as an adventurer. I was wearing a helmet with a mask on it, so even if they saw me, they probably didn’t realize it was me.”

“That’s fine, then...”

“They used a tool called Opera Glasses to observe the Dyne Girl Statue.”

“Why would they go out of their way to use such a thing?”

Internally, Littenpike was astounded at Marl. If he doesn’t even know that, then he definitely would’ve failed if he’d been my student, she thought.

“That stone statue releases mana that seduces men,” she explained. “When you get too close, you become unable to resist its allure. You’ll touch it even if you know you’re not supposed to. I’m certain they used the Opera Glasses in order to avoid that.”

“Huh...”

“In any case,” she continued, “they observed the Dyne Girl Statue and noticed the numbers.”

“I see. So it went well!”

“Indeed. They were jumping for joy, unaware it was a trap.”

“Originally, my plan was to spread some information around once the stone statue was tampered with,” said Marl, “but those two were foolish enough to go out of their way to get trapped.”

“Indeed. They had big smiles on their faces, unaware that they’d soon turn to tears.”

The two smiled wickedly.

“Still,” Marl said, “I’m surprised you didn’t activate the Dyne Girl’s curse. Was everything all right when you were messing with it?”

“Even if I may not look it, I am a specialist in the study of ancient treasures. That statue’s trap won’t activate if it doesn’t sense a certain degree of pressure. It’s fine if you’re only writing numbers on it with a brush.” Littenpike had gotten her hands on the Number Chocolate and memorized the numbers from the other world. Then, she’d used a brush and mimicked how they looked.

“That’s a teacher for you.”

“They fully believe that there’s hidden treasure there. They’ll probably come to investigate tomorrow. When they do, they’ll be caught by the Dyne Girl, and there’s no doubt that they’ll ask for Yahagi’s help.”

“Then, we steal the money. Apparently, the Dyne Girl’s ransom is a random amount. I want it to be as high as possible.”

“Truly,” agreed Littenpike.

They roared with laughter, their voices resounding in the gloomy apartment basement.

The Adventurer Meryl’s Diary: Entry 7

There’s apparently a new pastime enjoyed by female students in the Royal Capital that uses Parasol-like Chocolate. They wave the Parasol-like Chocolate’s stick, don an old-fashioned dress, and make a record of it with a Sunprint.

Any girl anywhere would want to capture herself looking cute. The Royal Capital and Luganda are no exception. Mira and I wanted to try it too, so we bought up ten Parasol-like Chocolates and Sunprints.

Heh heh heh, I spent some big-girl money without even thinking about it. That was because we raked in a sizable sum during our exploration today. We defeated two Devil Bears that dropped 30,000 rims’ worth of silver coins. The two of us decided to meet up at Mira’s house and have fun transforming.

First, we each ate one Parasol-like Chocolate.

“I just realized that we have to eat five of these, right? Am I going to get fatter again?” Mira asked worriedly. It’ll all go to her boobs anyway...

“That’s nothing. We went exploring in the dungeon all day long,” I reasoned. “Mister Yusuke said so himself. We won’t get fat if we work a lot.”

“Maybe you’re right.”

She was quick to believe me when I brought up Mister Yusuke’s name. Well, Mister Yusuke doesn’t lie, so it’ll probably be fine. But is it actually really true? I don’t want my leather armor to get too tight!

When we finished eating the chocolate, we promptly decided to start enjoying the transformations. Mira went first.

When Mira lightly waved the stick, a light-blue smoke enveloped her. And then...Mira appeared decked out in a Water Temple shrine maiden’s costume.

“Eek!!!” Mira shrank into herself, wrapping her arms around her body. It was little wonder. In order to show the Water Dragon they had no ill intent, shrine maidens of the Water Temple wore see-through clothes. The most private parts were hidden, but the clothes were risqué enough to expose the shape of her breasts and thighs. Her embarrassment was understandable. “O-Oh no, Meryl. Try not to look.”

I’ve seen her naked plenty of times at the hot spring and other such places, so there shouldn’t have been anything to be embarrassed of at this point.

“That’s different. Wait, are you going to take a picture?! D-Don’t!!!”

“Why not? We’re the only ones who are going to see it anyway. Come on, pose like a shrine maiden.”

While I was coaxing Mira out of her shyness, her familiar, El, came to my rescue. Surprisingly, it changed the stone on its head to an aquamarine color.

“See,” I pointed out. “El changed to match your costume too.”

“You’re right. Do you want to take a picture together too, El?”

The ring’s head flashed. It was probably saying yes.

Mira hesitated. “Okay. If you want to, El, then let’s take one together.” Pulling herself together, she faced the Sunprint box and smiled.

I could never show anyone the finished photo, not even Mister Yusuke or Mister Mani. I mean, even a woman like me found her sexy!!!

Next was my turn.

“What kind of costume do you want, Meryl?” Mira asked me.

I thought to myself. “Let’s see. I think I’ll suit anything I wear, but if possible, I want something like an ancient fortune teller.” Apparently, fortune tellers in the past used to wear flashy clothes and adornments. I’ve seen pictures of them in storybooks wearing a bunch of jangling necklaces, bracelets, and anklets. The fortune tellers would dance to music while decked out like that. I bet the costume would suit me since I’m good at dancing.

“Okay, I’m gonna try it now.” I waved the parasol’s stick enthusiastically. Yellow smoke arose. Now then, what would I become...?

“Wh-What the hell is this?!” I looked at myself in the mirror and was so shocked that I couldn’t stand. I mean, the mirror reflected an ancient shaman. There was a large and colorful mask, a skirt made of bundled straw, and straw over my upper half too. So much of me was exposed, yet it wasn’t sexy at all...

“You’re more like a witch doctor than a fortune teller,” Mira noted. “Oh well. I’ll take the picture now.”

“Huh? W-Wait!” I cried.

She didn’t wait. She has no mercy when it comes to these things.

We used up our Parasol-like Chocolates and Sunprints and looked over the pictures we took together. There were a lot of cute ones but also some slightly lewd ones and pretty stupid-looking ones as well.

“If anyone else saw these, I wouldn’t be able to keep living. Seriously, a shaman costume?”

“I’m in the same boat,” Mira said solemnly. “My butt is fully exposed. It’d be bad if the boys in Luganda saw these.”

After talking it over, we decided to burn the photos. It would have been risky to leave this dark history behind. Crisis management is one of the basics of being an adventurer.

Chapter 8: The Arrival of the Rambunctious Shogun

The town was full of people. Today was the first day of the Good Harvest Festival. Wheat ears decorated with ribbons and talismans were being sold at the temple, and people who sought these came to visit. The Good Harvest Festival’s main activity was putting up these decorations in front of doors and wishing for a fruitful harvest next year.

There were many street stalls too. There were those that sold alcohol of course, but there were various others selling grilled skewers, soup, sweet honey water, and fried sweets.

Similarly, I had my street stall set up in one section of the Mani 4WD Tournament’s venue. I’d be giving the winner a special type of Mani 4WD. It was the Dagashi-ya Yahagi version of the Avanti Mark IV. It was a limited-release item featuring customized graphics and the Dagashi-ya Yahagi logo on the rear wing. It was a rare Mani 4WD whose value would definitely increase the longer you held on to it.

The tournament was still ongoing, so it’d probably be a little while longer until the award ceremony. I guess I’ll devote myself to doing business until then.

“Now then, come one, come all! How would you like Dagashi-ya Yahagi’s candied apricots?”

I called them candied apricots but they were actually sumomo—Japanese plums—enveloped in mizuame. To display them, I had placed them in hollows I’d carved into a block of ice, so they looked really refreshing.

They were a staple at temple festivals in eastern Japan, but they might not have been very familiar to those on the western side. I’d heard that candied apples were typical over there rather than candied apricots.

I normally sold sumomo in packs, but since today was the festival, I was selling them the way you did at temple festivals.

Product name: Pickled Sumomo

Description: Japanese plums with added sweet-and-sour acetic acid syrup.

Upon consumption, it will become impossible to break your concentration (three hours).

Price: One hundred rims

I usually sold them frozen, but they were also tasty enveloped in mizuame like this. It might have been partially due to their rarity, but the candied apricots sold particularly well among children.

Cart’s Side

While Yahagi was selling his candied apricots, Cart and his group arrived on B3 of the dungeon. They were headed for the Dyne Girl Statue.

“Man, they’re probably having the festival up there right now,” Carmine sighed. “I wanted to eat Yuyu’s candied apricots.”

Cart was exasperated by her words. “Dummy. The treasure is more important than a festival right now, right? Besides, the festival goes on for three days. You can just eat the candied apricots tomorrow.”

“You’re right.” Carmine paused. “Ah, I can see the Dyne Girl Statue.”

The four eagerly approached the stone statue.

“The correct numbers are the only places that are safe to touch on the statue. Zero is first,” Kicker reminded Cart.

“I know. I am an adventurer too. I won’t mess up.”

“Do you have a way to counteract its charm?”

“Goat and I have been eating this. I’m telling you, it’s fine!”

Product name: Stimulus EX

Description: A gummy with a strong sourness. It shakes off all worldly desires with a stimulus that makes your eyes fly open.

Price: One hundred rims

“Just like I thought,” said Cart. “Thanks to this, I don’t get any pervy feelings when I get close.”

“Seriously, I’m counting on you. How about you eat two more to be safe?”

“You’re so annoying, Kicker. I’m not that much of a pervert. Besides, Goat is more of a secret pervert than me...” Even as he muttered his complaints, he opened another gummy and threw it into his mouth.

As they all approached the stone statue, Goat, who was the tallest, held the lantern up.

“Look. There’s a zero on the tip of the tail,” Carmine said.

“Yeah, definitely. It looks to be the same trap again.” Kicker extended a finger to the pointed tip of the spade-shaped tail.

The instant Kicker’s finger touched it, the Dyne Girl’s eyes glowed red, but no one saw that happen. Her hair immediately entangled the group of four, rendering them completely immobile.

“D-Damn it, what’s going on?!” Cart bellowed.

“Cart, don’t yell right next to my ear!” Carmine complained. “Also, your hand is literally touching my butt...”

“S-Sorry. I can’t help that, though. I can’t move.”

“I’m sorry, everyone,” Kicker said, sorrowful. “This is my fault.”

“Don’t blame yourself,” Goat assured her. “No one thinks you’re at fault.”

“Goat...”

“Yeah,” Cart agreed. “We won’t put the blame squarely on you. But why did this happen? It was the right number, wasn’t it?”

“I don’t know. Maybe I was supposed to start from the biggest number this time...”

“Save the investigation for later. At any rate, we need to get out of here.” Cart turned his gaze to the ransom box, where he saw the sum of money appear on the slate. “Huh?! 12,840,000 rims?!”

“What are we going to do?!” Kicker cried. “There’s no way my dad can pay all that!”

“Don’t cry, Kicker. The same goes for my family.” Goat calmly assessed their situation. “There’s nothing we can do. We have to take Mister Yahagi up on his offer.”

“You’re right,” Carmine agreed. “Yuyu told us to send a familiar if anything happened.”

Fortunately, their familiars hadn’t been trapped by the Dyne Girl. They selected Hawk, who moved the fastest. As small as it was, it’d be easily buffeted by the wind, but out of the four familiars it was the most suitable for being a messenger.

“Go to Mister Yahagi, Hawk,” said Goat. “I’m counting on you.”

Hawk gave a shrill cry and flew through the dungeon, flapping its wings.

Yusuke’s Side

The festival was so successful that the two hundred candied apricots I’d prepared were on the verge of running out. The Good Harvest Festival would be starting tomorrow in Luganda as well, so I planned to bring out my store there next. I had a lot to do, including giving a speech in front of everyone and moving the festival along. I normally would have had Michelle help me with various things but she was off holding her special lecture, so she’d be absent for a while.

When I paused to consider it, I realized that I really relied on Michelle a lot. It was that thing where you don’t notice how valuable your partner is until they’re gone. I decided I’d treasure her even more once she came home.

“Candied apricots, please, mister,” said a young boy, approaching my shop.

“Here you go. That’ll be 100 rims.”

“Thank you. Huh? A tiny bird?!”

A bird smaller than a chick landed on my hand just as I gave him the candied apricot. That’s Goat’s Hawk!

“Hawk, you...” I started.

“Chirp!” Hawk lightly pecked at my hand, seeming restless. It was like he was hurrying me.

“Something happened to Goat and the others, didn’t it?”

“Chirp!” Its sorrowful voice resounded amid the hustle and bustle of the festival. Something bad had definitely happened. Hawk probably had flown here to warn me.

I immediately activated my Clairvoyance right then and there. The clamor of the festival instantly grew distant and my consciousness was released from the yoke of my flesh. I put in Cart as the keyword and searched for where the four of them were.

There they were! So they really did get captured by the Dyne Girl Statue. But why had they gotten caught? Had they failed to undo the trap this time? Or had there never been treasure hidden there in the first place?

No, I didn’t have time to investigate. If I didn’t release them soon, the Dyne Girl would completely drain their life force. Even if it didn’t, they were still inside the dangerous dungeon. There was a risk that some other monsters would spawn.

When I checked the sum on the stone slab, I saw the amount of the ransom was 12,840,000 rims. That was a lot of money, but nothing I couldn’t pay. I’d hurry to the dungeon.

When I deactivated my Clairvoyance, I made eye contact with Hawk, who was looking at me with concern. “Don’t worry. I’ll definitely save them.”

“Chirp...”

I tore off a small piece of my handkerchief and tied it to Hawk’s foot. “This will show them that you’ve gotten in contact with me. Go on ahead and put them at ease.”

It probably understood what I’d said. With a small cry, it flew off toward the dungeon. I didn’t have time to be dawdling either.

My Eight-Round Pistols, my monster cards, my Rocket Bombs... After putting on all of my usual equipment, I steadied my resolve and ran off too.

***

Fortunately, I only encountered a monster once as I made my way through the dungeon. I came across a Zombie that’d appeared from some hiding place and defeated it with a pistol shot to its head. Without even glancing at the money and magic crystals it dropped, I hurried onward.

Thus, I reached the Dyne Girl Statue.

“Are you guys all right?”

When the group saw me, they apologized with tears in their eyes. “Mister Yahagi! We’re sorry!”

“I’ll release you right away.”

“But the ransom is 12,840,000 rims...”

“I know. I have the money, so don’t worry.”

“I’ll work hard and pay you back for sure.”

“Yeah, I know. It’s like when you promise to repay a debt once you’re a success, right? I’m sure you’ll all be just fine.”

Chanting, “Store, open,” I summoned my carrying-pole store and portable safe. I had 20,000,000 rims stored inside. It was as I was grabbing a handful of gold coins from the safe, about to deposit them in the box, that I heard a familiar voice from behind me.

“Don’t move! Why don’t you keep that money right where it is?”

The figures which appeared from the darkness of the dungeon weren’t adventurers. They weren’t monsters either. They were a band of dirty scoundrels who, in a sense, could be considered the next worst thing to monsters.

“You’re...Marl Permanente and Littenpike?”

The two of them had appeared, accompanied by about ten subordinates.

“It’s been a while, Yahagi,” Marl greeted me. “All this time, I’ve been waiting for this moment.”

Why were these two together? One was a Royal Academy student and the other was a former Adventurers’ Academy instructor, so there shouldn’t have been any connection between them.

Their commonality was...their grudges against me! So, they involved Cart and the others to get their revenge.

“Don’t tell me this is your doing?”

“Hey now, if you word it like that, you’ll give people the wrong impression. It was these fools who touched the Dyne Girl. All we did was write a few numbers on the statue.”

Those words made everything clear: Marl and Littenpike had used Cart and others.

“Now, if you’re a smart dagashi-ya, then I’m sure you understand already, right? Why don’t you bring that money over to us?” he ordered, sounding completely confident that he was making a fool out of me.

“I don’t think I will. I’ll be using this money to help these four.”

“You don’t know when to give up, huh? Then I’ll just kill you first and get the money after.”

Marl’s subordinates readied themselves as they half surrounded me.

“Don’t think you’ll kill me so easily,” I said.

“Hey now, you sure about this? If you resist, then I’ll just kill these guys first.”

When Marl raised his hand, one of his subordinates aimed his short bow at the group of students. Damn it, there was nothing I could do with them as hostages. Will I just have to obey their orders?

“Wait!” I cried. “I’ll hand over whatever money I have. Don’t you touch them.”

“I like that desperate look on your face,” he remarked. “It’d be so refreshing to see an earl get down on his knees before me. Now then, I’ll have you hand over that portable safe you have there first.” Cowardly as he was, Marl didn’t dare make a move himself, instead sending a subordinate over to me.

Think. What should I do? I’d probably be killed at this rate. Marl might even kill those four so as not to leave behind any evidence. It’s do or die...

I held the portable safe in my right hand and lifted it up in front of the subordinate’s face.

“Give it to me,” he said, his order brief and to the point. I handed it over to him.

The man wordlessly took it and fell back, passing the safe over to Marl. The viscount’s son was pleased, a broad grin stretching across his face as he checked the contents.

“Oh, you were stashing away quite a lot. This stuff’s gonna go a long way.”

However, just as he began rejoicing, the man who’d delivered the safe to him seized him from behind and pressed a knife to his neck.

“Wh-What?!” he cried. “Release me! I’m warning you! Let me go!”

Nice! It went well! The truth was that when I’d handed the safe over, I’d dosed the man with the Submission Gas that Chichi had given me and whispered an order to take Marl hostage.

“None of you move!” I shouted. “Or else that man will kill Marl!”

Chichi had said that the Submission Gas was effective for about ten minutes. I didn’t have much time to bargain. I had to somehow settle this within that short span of time.

“Don’t you know what’ll happen to you if you do this?! Hurry up and release me!” Marl screeched but the man didn’t let him go. I had to shut Marl up first.

“Be quiet, will you? Or do you want to suffer even more?”

“Guh...” He immediately went silent after my light threat.

I quickly whipped up a plan in my head. For now, I’d have Marl and Littenpike inhale the Submission Gas. If the two ringleaders did what I wanted, their subordinates wouldn’t oppose me either. I’d release Carmine and the others within that time and then get out of here.

I took a step forward to put my plan into action right away, but something unexpected happened. To my surprise, Littenpike pulled a knife on the man who had seized Marl and stabbed him in the stomach.

Her face was pale but she mercilessly put all her strength into her thrust. The red stain on the man’s shirt spread and fresh blood spilled out. With a muffled groan, he collapsed to the ground.

“You useless dolt!” Marl callously stomped on the hurt man’s head. “Nice job, Instructor Littenpike.”

“Yahagi likely used a charm spell or a drug,” she warned him. “Be careful.”

“So that’s what happened.”

They’d figured out the card I had up my sleeve. I was way outnumbered. Is it all over?

Marl looked at me, rubbing his neck. “Good grief, the place where I was strangled hurts so much that I can’t bear it. This calls for a small punishment.” A wicked smile spread across his face and he gathered mana in his hand. Even if he’d gotten in through his parents’ connections, he was still a Royal Academy Student. He could use at least one offensive magic spell. Unfortunately, he had hostages, so I couldn’t resist. Unable to come up with any strategies, I had no way of getting out of this...

“Hee hee hee. Don’t worry. I won’t attack you. Instead, I’ll have this woman atone for your sins.” Marl’s mana materialized on the palm of his hand, forming into the shape of a small knife. That was the nonelemental spell, Dancing Sword!

Normally, it would’ve taken on the shape of a bigger sword, but had he made it a small knife on purpose? Or was it just that he wasn’t very skilled? Either way, it didn’t change the fact that it was dangerous.

“Hey, stop! If you’re going to kill someone, then kill me instead!” The usually quiet Goat raised his voice in a sharp cry, but Marl ignored him and brought his rotating knife closer to Kicker. Her face was contorted with fear, her body unable to move freely.

“I’m going to completely disgrace you—starting with tearing up those clothes.” Marl licked his lips with a red tongue as the Dancing Sword drew even closer.

“No...” Kicker whimpered. However, before the Dancing Sword could reach her, it dispersed into thin air.

“Wh-What? Did my spell fail again?!”

No, something else happened. I had totally forgotten I wasn’t alone. Suama on my shoulder was quivering, its body dyed a red color. That was right—its Zero Mana Domain had been activated.

I realized I might be able to take him by surprise. Now that things had come down to this, I’d use all the power I had to resist! Just as I’d resolved to fight, a sound reached my ears—one that was rare to hear in the dungeon.

Clop! Clop! Clop!

“This sound... Horse hooves? Someone’s coming!” Littenpike looked uneasy. People seldom came into the dungeon on horseback. At the very least, I’d never seen it before. The closest thing I could think of was Michelle riding on Pluto, but the footsteps were completely different from Pluto’s.

The sound of the hooves gradually grew louder and it really sounded like it was coming right this way. Before long, a white creature emerged from the darkness.

Is that a white horse? No, it’s a Pegasus!

Everyone was amazed at the rare species that had suddenly made an appearance. Even more astounding, there was a man with a large build mounted on its back. He was a fierce man whose entire body exuded an intense aura.

Why is he here?! A person I could never have imagined I’d be reunited with in the dungeon stood before my eyes.

The man silently raised his long sword and cut down Marl’s subordinate without hesitation.

“What are you doing? He’s just one man, isn’t he? Hurry up and fight back!” Despite the screeching order Marl sent reverberating through the dungeon, the man killed five of his subordinates in quick succession.

While he was still protected by his remaining subordinates, Marl tried to figure out who the man was. “Wh-Who are you?! I’m Marl, son of Viscount Permanente. I won’t forgive this insolence!”

However, the man atop the horse didn’t tremble one bit. On the contrary, he fixed his gaze on Marl and asked, “Marl Permanente, have you forgotten my face?”

That phrase! It was like what a certain rambunctious shogun had once said! But the person who’d come here was...

“D-Don’t tell me you’re His Majesty the King!” It wasn’t a shogun who’d arrived atop the white Pegasus—it was the king. Well, King Bartos was formerly a general, so the comparison still works. But why was the king in the dungeon? What was he doing riding a Pegasus anyway?

While everyone was distracted by His Majesty, I headed over to Cart and the others. I wouldn’t let anyone lay a finger on these kids now.

“Marl Permanente and Tidith Littenpike,” said the king. “Your crimes have already been exposed. Don’t think you can talk your way out of this.”

“This is a misunderstanding, Your Majesty. I just happened to pass by...” Marl was desperately making excuses, but that kind of tedious talk wouldn’t work on King Bartos.

“Your father, Viscount Permanente, should already be in custody. Take them away!”

Soldiers came running from behind the rambunctious sho—I mean, the king, and began arresting Marl and his group. It didn’t look like his subordinates had the willpower to resist anymore.

“I-I didn’t do anything wrong!” Marl wailed.

“This is a misunderstanding, Your Majesty!” screamed Littenpike. “Your Majesty!!!”

Crying and shouting, Marl and Littenpike were taken away. When their voices grew distant, the king dismounted the Pegasus and walked over to us.

“Your Majesty,” I said.

“Mm-hmm.”

I thought for sure that he’d say something to me, but he only nodded and walked right past me. Then, he stood in front of the kids.

“Are you hurt, Carmine?”

“Dad...”

What did she say?! She just said, “Dad,” didn’t she?! So that meant Carmine was King Bartos’s secret love child! I’d thought she was Prime Minister Ethel’s daughter, but actually, this probably made more sense. It was no stretch to imagine that perverted king having a dozen secret love children.

“Free them.”

When the subordinate under the king’s orders placed 12,840,000 rims’ worth of gold into the box, the Dyne Girl’s hair that had been wrapped around the four students moved like a living creature and withdrew into the statue. Carmine and King Bartos stood there and looked at each other but nothing more than that happened.

An awkward silence stretched between the two of them. They probably didn’t know what to say.

“Thank you, dad...”

“Mm-hmm.”

After exchanging just a few words, King Bartos seemed satisfied and looked my way. “Long time no see, Sir Yahagi. I’ve received reports that you’re always taking care of Carmine.”

“It’s no trouble at all. She’s a good kid.”

“Yes. Her mother was a wonderful woman as well.”

“Miss Pharma, yes? She seemed like an amazing person when I met her.”

“I see,” he said. “You met her. Was she in good health?”

“It seems she’s working hard. She was very lively.”

The king gazed into the air with nostalgia. He might’ve been projecting his memories on the dungeon ceiling. “I met her when I was at the western front. She was working as a military healer. In the midst of a battlefield shrouded in the stench of blood, Pharma shone like an angel of light.”

So that’s how he made a move on her. And then those two had broken up because he’d cheated on her. Still, Miss Pharma was a pretty brave woman to have punched the king.

As I spoke to the king, Cart, who’d been silent until that point, took one step forward. His face was pale and there was cold sweat on his forehead. He was probably really nervous. That made sense. This was the king of the country, a king who was pushing forward a military government, although it was a good one. Even for an adventurer with plenty of courage, there was no doubt it was difficult to speak to this man without hesitation.

However, Cart stood firm, threw out his chest, and began to speak. “Your Royal Majesty, I thank you for your help. I also swear that I’ll repay you for the ransom without fail.”

“Hmm. You’re the knight Lugorton’s son, Cart,” King Bartos said, gazing at him with amusement. It seemed he’d done a complete background check on Cart since he was Carmine’s friend.

King Bartos had probably come out here because the guard assigned to Carmine had notified him. Still, I was surprised that the king would be worried enough about his daughter to go to the trouble of coming here himself. This guy wasn’t my cup of tea. He was too intense for me—but thanks to this incident, I now viewed him in a slightly better light. People had many faces, I supposed.

After staring at Cart for a while, the king nodded. “I shall remember those words. Continue to be good friends with Carmine.”

“I would’ve even if you hadn’t asked...”

The king’s servants were struck with terror at Cart’s words, which could have been considered cheeky, but King Bartos nodded in a satisfied way.

I decided to ask about something I was curious about. “What’s with this Pegasus, Your Majesty? I didn’t know a creature like this existed.” However, the answer I got was completely unexpected.

“What do you mean? This was what was inside the Chocolate Egg you gave me, Earl Yahagi.”

“Huh? So that means...”

“Yes. It’s my familiar.”

That king—he went and drew a rare familiar!

“Even so, isn’t it too big?” I asked. It was about as big as a military horse. Had he raised it to this level in just a few months?

He laughed. “Ha ha ha! It was simply so fun to raise it. I trained it night after night deep in the dungeon.”

There was probably a secret entrance that ordinary people didn’t know about. Still, it’d grown too much. There was no doubt he’d put it through the wringer with leveling.

“Heh heh heh. A beautiful coat, isn’t it?” he mused, stroking the familiar’s side. “It still can’t fly while carrying me, but it’ll likely be only a matter of months.”

Pegasus

A spirit-type familiar.

A flying horse with wings that can soar.

I was astonished. “You’re planning to have it grow even more?”

“Of course. It hasn’t yet grown to the level of your partner’s Dark Dragon.”

“Yes, that’s because hers is something special.”

“Indeed. She’s the only one I fear in this world.”

Even to this king, Michelle was a terrifying being...

“I may be known as a lustful man,” he continued, “but the one woman I will never touch is Miss Cursed Witch. In a way, I respect you, Earl Yahagi.”

Um, I can only hear those words as offensive!

Carmine gently put her hand on the back of the Pegasus’s neck. The Pegasus didn’t appear to be uncomfortable, instead allowing her to do as she pleased.

“Oh, it’s rare for Seiya to let anyone other than myself lay a hand on it,” the king said.

“So its name is Seiya.” When Carmine stroked it, Seiya whinnied and pressed the nape of its neck against her, seeking affection. “Hee hee hee. I’m Carmine, Seiya.”

King Bartos looked at the two fondly. “Do you want to ride it?”

“Can I?”

“Of course. Now, come.”

King Bartos gallantly mounted Seiya and pulled Carmine up as well.

“Here we go.”

“Okay.”

With father and daughter on its back, Seiya took off running with great force. The king’s panicked vassals hurriedly ran off after them.

Yeah, it looked like the distance between parent and child had grown just a bit smaller. I was happy that the familiar could act as a bridge for them.

***

Autumn passed us by and the cold winter season was beginning to signal its approach. Despite the chilly wind that set the fallen leaves dancing, the students were in good spirits. Both academies were nearing final exams. Cart and his gang had seated themselves in my shop and were sipping Hot Doctor Pepper as they studied for the exams.

“I’m good with practical tests but I don’t feel like I’ll do well on the written exam...” Cart groaned. As he complained his way through his practice questions, Carmine leaned in.

“You got this part wrong. You use masher stones and alcohol to extract belladonnas.”

“Gah... You’re smart, Carmine, even though you look like that...”

“Is that a compliment or an insult?”

Even after the rest of the group had learned that Carmine was the king’s daughter, their relationships didn’t seem to have changed. I was relieved to see that but I felt that the person who was most relieved was Carmine. After overcoming all sorts of difficulties, the four of them were growing ever closer to adulthood.

Speaking of growing, their familiars had gotten bigger too. Goat’s Hawk was good at riding the wind now and its flying speed was dramatically improving to boot.

Kicker’s Luff’s face had matured. It’d finally started using Wind Magic as of late. It could only produce gentle breezes at the moment but it’d likely be able to use some offensive magic in due time.

Cart’s Hogan had also grown one size bigger and his muscles were bulging more than ever. The other day, he’d happened to run into Mister Nakaram, who had been delivering a written report, and the two had immediately hit it off. I was surprised when they started doing a pose-off. Mister Nakaram had commissioned Mister Sanaga to make a club for Hogan as a gift, one that could serve as a weapon or could also be used for training if you swung it around.

Then there was Carmine’s Margarette. She hadn’t predicted anything since the time she’d alerted us to the danger Cart’s group had been in, but she had become very talkative.

“Good morning, Yahagi.”

“The rain sounds like a waltz, Yahagi.”

“Yahagi, lust is an endless war.”

The things she could say had started with morning greetings, then moved on to poetic remarks and phrases with deeper implications as well. On top of that, she sometimes stared at the vacant lot and said these sorts of things: “Who is that child? See, that child there waving their hand. You can see them, can’t you, Yahagi?”

Nope! There was a subtle difference between Margarette’s ability and my Clairvoyance. At any rate, the familiars were developing. I felt that maybe the ones who hadn’t grown were Suama and me.

After two more years or so, Cart and his gang would graduate and start traveling their own paths. However, I’d probably be here like always. A life like that wasn’t half bad. There were all kinds of people in the world. What was wrong with some of us staying put? Moreover, I believed that a dagashi-ya ought to be that kind of place.

“Yahagi, a healthy baby will be born in the spring. Good for you.” Margarette had suddenly predicted the future. Her words had come out of nowhere. My mind went blank from the shock.

“You mean...my baby?” I asked, my voice trembling.

For the first time, Margarette actually answered my question. “That’s right. Macherie is a cute girl. You’re proud of her too, yes?”

The back of my nose stung and I couldn’t stop the waterworks.

“Yuyu, that just now...” Carmine trailed off, her voice trembling as well.

“Yeah, it seems like it,” I sniffled. “I’m going to be a dad...”

Cart, Goat, and Kicker all leaped up at once and congratulated me. Oh no, I’m in front of the kids but I can’t stop crying.

That was when Michelle came home from school. “I’m back,” she announced before she paused. “Huh, Yusuke, are you crying?!” Michelle looked around to see what was going on. However, the only other people here were the kids with their radiant smiles.

I wiped away my tears with my sleeve. We’d be having an important conversation, so I didn’t want to look pathetic. I was going to become a husband and a dad. “Michelle, let’s have a date tonight.”

She blinked. “Huh? What’s this all of a sudden? That makes me really happy, but...” Her whole body was fidgeting. What was going to happen when I proposed to her after this?

Well, whatever happens, happens. I just had to support her.

“I have something important to talk about tonight,” I told her. “Let’s go and eat some good food first.”

The kids cheered but they had the sense to keep quiet about the baby. Suama might’ve been tense too—its body was harder than normal.

The Adventurer Meryl’s Diary: Entry 8

The plaza in front of the Lugandan Dungeon was jam-packed with people. That wasn’t a surprise. I mean, today was the day of Mister Yusuke and Miss Michelle’s wedding. Among the attendees were residents of Luganda, but there were also the feudal lords from the surrounding areas and other people who had gone out of their way to come here to celebrate them. That probably spoke volumes about how much people adored Mister Yusuke.

Mira and I were the bridesmaids, so we’d been by Miss Michelle’s side since this morning. It was refreshing to see Miss Michelle wear a pure white dress instead of her habitual black clothes. In the waiting room, she was anxious all the while, unable to settle down.

“Isn’t it weird that I’m wearing a white dress?” she asked nervously. “Maybe a black wedding dress would’ve been better...”

“No, you’re fine. You’re very pretty,” I assured her. “I bet Mister Yusuke’s gonna fall in love with you all over again.”

“But I’m the cursed witch...”

“Please don’t think like that. You’re so beautiful today that you’re more like a saint instead.”

Mira and I hyped her up. Even so, she was getting increasingly anxious, and in the end, we had her eat three Anzu Sticks to give her courage.

The wedding was wonderful. Mister Yusuke looked really happy when he received Miss Michelle.

“You’re the most beautiful woman in the world, Michelle,” Mister Yusuke said. “You’re the best.” He hadn’t prettied up his compliments at all but they didn’t sound like lies when he said them. I bet he meant them from the bottom of his heart. I’m not interested in marriage myself, but I did feel a bit jealous.

Miss Michelle was so moved that she began bawling out loud, so we had to have her eat a Mini Mini Cola next to calm her down. Mini Mini Cola is a medicine to a passionate gambler like me thanks to its calming effect. It was the right call to always carry one on me. As Mira and I looked at Miss Michelle, who began crying once again after the kiss that sealed the couple’s oath, we started crying too. Some of the spectators laughed, joking that she was a crybaby bride, but you couldn’t blame her for crying considering everything she’s gone through. Mister Yusuke fought against the king’s army for her, and Miss Michelle herself has always put her life on the line for her love. They really have found someone they can fully trust. That’s the most wonderful thing in the world and a true miracle that rarely happens in anyone’s life.

Will I ever experience a miracle like that? And what’s going to happen with my friends from here on? Mira has apparently gotten over Mister Yusuke. She says she’s not going to think about love for now and is going to work hard to save up money to open a café in Luganda.

As for Rigal...he actually confessed to me. It was out of the blue, so it threw me off guard. Just the other day, he still felt like a cute younger brother. But Rigal has gotten tougher. He’s good at fighting now, and more than anything, his magic is getting powerful. He has a bit of a nasty tongue sometimes, but he’s a kind person at his core...

Hmm, weirdly enough, I can’t keep him off my mind ever since he confessed. I’m not really sure about it, but I’m thinking I’ll try dating him for now. Regardless of what happens, I think it’s good to learn more about each other. Yeah, I can tell I’m a little happy.

Marco and Chichi are getting along as well as ever. It seems that after personally experiencing her older sister’s wedding, Chichi is starting to feel like having one herself. Marco is open to the idea too of course.

That reminds me—Garmr became the commanding officer of Luganda’s garrison. Team Garmr is going to become the guards of Luganda. Our population has been increasing, so I hope they do their best to protect this town.

You really never know what’ll happen in your life. I’d never have imagined that Garmr, who used to compete with me like a brat back in the Royal Capital, would become a public servant.

“For better or worse, people change. You never know what the future has in store for you either, Meryl,” Mister Yusuke said.

“Me?”

“For example, becoming the guild master of Luganda’s Adventurers’ Guild one day.” Mister Yusuke laughed. Opening a general store is my dream, but that position doesn’t sound half bad either. For better or worse, people change.

This town will probably keep developing for some time to come. What sets it apart from other towns is the dagashi-ya at its center. From an outsider’s perspective, it might seem like a strange thing. However, I personally think the world can stand to have one town like this. And I love this town, Luganda.

Epilogue

The first winter after Macherie’s birth had arrived. I was going back and forth between the Royal Capital and Luganda as always, but the schools had entered their winter break. I planned to devote myself to taking care of our child for a while.

Babies were like balls of curiosity. Macherie crawled around and explored every nook and cranny, giving us constant heart attacks. She had picked up on words fast and had recently started becoming a chatterbox.

“Granny!” Macherie shouted.

“I told you. I’m not ‘granny’!” Chichi cried, taking offense. “Call me Big Sister Chichi.”

While I agreed that being called a granny was terrible, that was an absurd thing to ask of a nine-month-old infant. Chichi’s personality had mellowed out significantly but in this respect, that attitude of hers was still going strong.

Despite that, it was strange how she was always visiting us, not even waiting two whole days before coming here to hang out again. It seemed that, after touching an infant she’d previously had zero interest in, she was now completely absorbed in her.

“Nmama, Nmama.” Macherie obviously didn’t call Chichi “Big Sister Chichi” and instead started playing with Suama.

Suama had grown too, and its body, which had previously been about the size of a dango, was now around the size of a daifuku. Macherie loved Suama and had become its constant companion. Suama seemed to love Macherie too and went to check on her any chance it got. It was always heartwarming to see them wobbling together.

“I think she really does take after you, Yusuke,” Michelle said, smiling fondly as she watched Macherie play together with Suama.

“Her face may look like mine, but her mana wavelength is like yours, right?” I pointed out. “I’m not really sure myself, though.”

“That’s right. However, I feel like her latent potential mana is stronger. She’ll probably become an even greater mage than me.”

That was reassuring but also a little scary. It was looking like Luganda would be blown off the face of the planet if we suddenly had a family dispute.

Mister Mani nodded, sipping tea in the tatami room. “It seems her personality is like yours as well, Yahagi, not just her looks.”

“That’s a god for you,” I remarked. “You can tell?”

“Well, you can tell simply by listening to their conversations.”

“Conversations? With who?”

Mister Mani pointed at Macherie playing with Suama. She was only doing a wobbling dance with it. She wasn’t talking. So has Mister Mani lost his senses yet again?

“Hmm?” he blinked. “You don’t hear Suama’s voice, Yahagi?”

What? Was he being for real? “That’s a conversation?”

“Indeed. It’s been asking Macherie if she wants to become the ruler of this world.”

“What?!”

“It seems it wants her to aid it in creating world peace.”

No way, that’s crazy!

“Fear not,” he assured me. “She says that sounds like a pain, and she plans to live here peacefully. That’s very like your daughter. Ho ho ho.”

“But why would Suama say that?!” I exclaimed.

“It’s the incarnation of Seraphim, who’s an angel that serves the King of the Gods,” he told me. “It seems it actually wanted to make you, its master, the ruler, but it likely realized your personality made you unfit for the role. It then tried to persuade your daughter and was utterly turned down.”

Suama was the incarnation of an angel?! I had known that its existence was a huge question mark, but to think that its true form was something so wild...

“Is the angel mad that it gets told that it looks like a daifuku?” I asked nervously.

“Not at all. It seems it’s enjoying its life here from the bottom of its heart.”

Glad to hear it.

“By the way,” I said, “why can Macherie and Suama talk to each other? Even I’ve never done that before.”

“That’s because...” he started before he paused. “I wonder why? I forgot...”

Did he really forget? Or was he pretending he didn’t know?

“Papa!” Macherie crawled up to my feet and pulled the hem of my pants.

“All right, I know,” I said, bending down. “You wanna be held.”

When I picked her up, she squealed with delight.

“You don’t want to become the queen of the world, Macherie?” I asked.

With a smile, she raised both hands up in the air and shouted with all her might, “Dat’s annoyin’!”

This girl... I couldn’t help feeling worried for my daughter’s future. However, fretting about it was probably just one of my special rights as a father. I just had to accept everything—from the happy things to the sad—and move forward.

Through smiles and tears, surrounded by my child, Michelle, and my friends, I intended to continue running my dagashi-ya.

Afterword

Thank you very much for purchasing volume 4 of Dagashi-ya Yahagi: Setting Up A Sweets Shop in Another World. This volume concludes Yahagi’s story. Here’s a special thanks to all my readers who stuck around until the end. I also express my thanks to all those who took part in this novel’s publication, our illustrator Neruzo Nemaki-sensei, and those at the publishing house.

***

It’s been about two years since I started writing this story, and since becoming an adult, I’d never eaten so much dagashi. I went to dagashi-ya under the pretense of gathering material and often filled my basket with a huge number of their products one after another. It was embarrassing to feel the kids staring at me with mixed feelings of envy and misgiving as I used my adult money. Moreover, I probably looked like a super shady guy from the outside, glaring at the stores’ products with intense concentration, muttering to myself about each snack’s potential effect and writing notes too. To the stores and parents I worried, and the children I scared, I offer a special apology.

Nevertheless, it was fun to gather materials. The places I went to brought back memories, and I remembered those I’d forgotten from my childhood one after another.

When I was very young, I lived in a town called Ogikubo in the Suginami ward of Tokyo, and there was a store I frequented. The kids called it “Wata-ya” and I often visited it. Wata-ya had probably originally been a futon shop. It seemed an old lady ran it on her own. She didn’t have dagashi, but she had all kinds of lotteries and the toys that a dagashi-ya usually has. I used to grasp my allowance tightly as I ran to Wata-ya, which had things like Super Balls, toy lotteries, Assembled Gliders, Rocket Bombs, all sorts of cards, and more.

I reexperienced memories like that over and over again as I was gathering material and when I was writing. They were bright memories from my wonderful boyhood days.

Of course, dark memories were dredged up with them as well, but the pain of the thorns stabbing my chest has lessened with age. For better or worse, memories fade.

Humans will die one day anyway. Cherishing your past isn’t a bad thing, but it isn’t good to be held captive by it either. I’ve decided I’ll only remember the good stuff.

I used Street View in Google Maps to check, and obviously, it looks like that store isn’t there anymore. It was almost half a century ago, so there was no helping that.

Life is full of sadness. However, my memories of that store will always glow warmly in my mind. If Dagashi-ya Yahagi could become a store to remember for everyone (myself included), nothing would make me happier.

Now, it’s about time for Dagashi-ya Yahagi to close up shop. To all my readers, let’s meet again in a different story. Until then, take care!

—Bunzaburou Nagano

Bonus Short Story

A Great Inheritance

About 150 years ago, another otherworlder from Japan had lived in the Royal Capital. His name was Mister Kenichi Hasegawa.

He’d probably been a caring person. He had left behind his assets to ensure whomever might come from Earth after him wouldn’t suffer. That was the golden Billiken Statue.

The gold statue had been sealed away, protected by a trap, but Kicker had solved its puzzle and acquired the statue. Mister Hasegawa had wished for this statue to be inherited by people who’d come from Earth, but I’d said that it should belong to Kicker and her group. Well, that was because I wasn’t pressed for money at all since I was a dagashi-ya and an earl. I felt the three of them should do whatever they wanted with the gold statue they’d found. However, I was thinking that I still needed to inherit Mister Hasegawa’s will. As such, I decided I’d give an inheritance to anyone else who transferred after me.

“So, I’ve prepared this,” I said.

“You turned a newly released Mobile Force unit into a gold statue,” Michelle observed, “but why Hakushiki and not the main model, Zetter Gungalf?”

Hakushiki’s abilities were half-baked and it wasn’t very popular with customers. “It’s fine. To me, if I think of ‘gold,’ then I think of Hakushiki.”

The two of us were in a small room on B1 of the Royal Capital Dungeon. I decided that I’d hide this new gold statue here.

“Now then,” I said, “please get started right away.”

Michelle used her Earth Magic—which she was skilled at—and created a demon statue just like we’d planned. However, if I had to be honest, it wasn’t actually a demon. It was an invader from space that’d appeared in an American sci-fi movie. An earthling who was intuitive enough would realize something was up based on this creature alone.

I decided to make something like this as a way to undo the seal.

A□CD□□GHI□K□□□□P□□□T□□□□□Z

Question: Please fill in the correct letters in the blanks.

I doubted that everyone from Earth could answer this, but it’d probably be possible for many of them.

After I put the gold statue in the alien’s mouth and shut it, Michelle tilted her head a little. “I’m going to seal it now,” she said, “but what should I do?”

The Gargoyle Statue that Mister Hasegawa had hidden the Billiken Statue in had a curse cast on it that’d cause dizziness if you didn’t correctly undo its trap. I’d probably need a good trap in order to protect the gold statue as well.

“I’ll cast an extra high-grade curse on it so that no one can uncover the treasure!” she exclaimed. “An incredible one that’s enough to blow away this room!”

“You can’t do that,” I said. “What if Cart or Carmine get blown away?”

“Ah!” she squeaked. “I’m sorry... I just get so excited when it comes to curses...”

My wife loved curses. You think that’s scary? Aww, what’s the big deal? You get used to it quick. Recently, I had stopped really caring about the cursed objects lined up in our living room. Even when new skeletons or cursed objects showed up, the most I felt was a lukewarm “Huh.” However, my intention wasn’t to cause other adventurers serious harm. I wanted to make sure that those who didn’t know would give up on unsealing the trap and that only those who knew how to undo the seal would retrieve the goods unscathed. In that sense, the dizziness curse had been well-made.

“Then how about a curse that decreases your appetite?” she suggested. “Just by touching this statue, you’ll be unable to eat anything for three days.”

“Won’t it attract a flood of adventurers who want to go on a diet?” I asked.

“That could happen...”

Meryl might come running here after eating too much dagashi.

“Why not a dizziness curse just like before?”

“As a curse specialist, my pride won’t allow that!” she insisted. She could be difficult like this sometimes.

We thought about it for half a day in the dim dungeon, and in the end, we decided to cast a headache curse on it.