“I a.s.sume your poison would have many applications.”
“Kinda… umm, well, you might actually be using my poison already.”
“What?”
“There is an inexpensive monster repellent on the market… made with a diluted form of my poison. It’s the specialty of our village.”
Arleaf answers Celes with bitter smile.
“I never knew. That cheap and effective monster repellent is powered by that? Haha… I see, I see.”
It’s almost as if it was no surprise to her.
“Miss Arleaf, your cooking is a truly a rare talent. Please keep on developing it for the future of mankind. As a favor to me.”
“Err… maybe ease up and not bully Arleaf too much. It’s not exactly something she’s proud of.”
“If you—someone who wields so much power—say so, then so be it, Sir Cohgray.”
And then, we explored the dungeon and gathered plenty of materials.
It was my first time using a pickaxe and it was almost an emotional moment for me.
We’ve also had a few easy fights during our time in there. I even leveled up to Lv 48.
I’m now able to use many more poisons, with a good portion of them being not weak, but moderate-level. Furthermore, it seems like they require less time to create too.
Oh, like Arleaf, I got Dart Sense and also a.s.sa.s.sin Sense too. But that second one sounds a little disturbing.
I wish I got something more than just these magic-type Senses though…
‘Thy profession is much like a Ranger, so this much is expected… not to mention, your traps also use magic. I would go so far to say that thou art one half Ranger and the other half like a monster.’
I don’t know whether to thank Veno or to blame Veno for that. I guess that’s what makes me unique though.
And my Poison Absorption also got upgraded. It’s now Deadly Poison Absorption.
Maybe I’ll get even better buffs from Arleaf’s cooking from now on.
‘There is no man more fitting for Arleaf than thee. Art thou prepared for that?’
Perhaps she heard Veno speak, Arleaf bashfully looks over to me and then at the ground.
Yeah. She’s cute. Just seeing her like that fills me with joy.
But… yeah. She’s a good girl. I’ve got to treat her right.
Wait for me until I can at least protect you from anything that comes our way.
“Umm. It won’t be long until I get strong.”
“Of course…”
Gosh, this is a little embarra.s.sing.
Well, I should be happy that I leveled up so quick from Arleaf’s Poison Cooking. I even kinda want to advance my job too.
“Muuu!”
“Muu-Muu’s even leveled up a bunch too, all thanks to Celes.”
Muu’s now Lv 41. He’s learned how to use storage magic on small objects. Before the battle, he made his axe appear out of thin air much like Veno can.
It’s not until long until we all go for our advanced jobs, right?
On our way back, I noticed a few pools of toxic gas. And with Hunting Sense and Veno’s incredible sensing powers, we even managed to avoid a couple of traps.
As soon as we got out of the dungeon, Celes stands on her tippy-toes and makes a big stretch.
“Whew… it is rare that dungeon crawling with such a small team goes well. There is much potential to be unleashed when adventuring with you, Cohgray. Let us work hard together in the future as well.”
“Oh, no, it was all you, Celes.”
“I am very happy to hear you think that. Well, then…shall we head down the mountain and rest up? Or perhaps return to Master Wayne’s to use these materials before returning? It is a difficult decision…”
“What can we expect to find deeper in the dungeon?”
“Hmm… it might be a little tricky for you and your party as it gets a bit tougher. To ensure your safety, you should get new equipment or at least change to an advanced cla.s.s.”
It’s that hard, eh?
‘Having sensed the mana in there, I know that the walls deep in the dungeon are warped. In that case, there might be another monster vying for territory. It shall surely be dangerous.’
“Though we’ve fought a rare large monster already, taking another one would be pretty rough.”
Maybe it’s better if we go back and get our equipment sorted out…
It would be irresponsible for us to venture on, thinking that it’d be easy.
I’ll defer to the veteran and head home.
“Alright, let’s go back then, shall we?”
“In that case… let us return to Master Wayne.”
“Okay.”
With that, we began heading home. Unfortunately, there wasn’t a direct coach that would take us there, so we had to take a little detour.
Well, it’s not like it’s a big difference anyway, so I’ll enjoy the wagon ride.
We sure earned lots today too.
‘Aye, quite so. They were very helpful with helping you gain levels. Not only was it a fruitful hunt, thou shalt even catch up to the little la.s.s soon.’
By the way, are we at the level of mid-rank adventurers yet?
‘Good question. Indeed, thou hast a high level in thy base profession. But perhaps not enough to consider another profession yet.’
Maybe there’s still a long way for me to go. I’d like to just enjoy myself, but it sucks to be stuck in limbo though.
‘I remember the la.s.s’ ancestor had once said that he enjoyed the thrill. And no matter what came his way, he had always been moving at his own pace. In that sense, perhaps thou art already a mid-ranking adventurer.’
There’s so much I want to say, but whatever.
Then, our coach stopped by at a village…
“Hmm? Excuse me. Please hold for a moment.”
Celes calls out to an adventurer-looking person walking down the road.
It seems like the adventurer knows Celes as well, warmly chatting with her.
In the end, her acquaintance makes a gloomy face.
Then, Celes returns to us with a troubled look on her face too.
“It seems like I will need some more time here. I apologize, but please go on without me.”
“Is something the matter?”
“Muu?”
Celes answers Arleaf’s question with a pained look in her eyes.
“Yes. This is the hometown of one of my comrades. I learned that his family is quite ill… and I offered to pay them a visit.”
Whoa… she really is a saint.
‘Are we but convenient strangers to her then? She has already decided to leave us and visit some friends.’
Well, we’re planning to head back to Wayne to drop off the materials anyway, right?
She’ll catch up to us while Wayne is busy at the smithy.
Maybe she’ll even be in time for the next coach that stops here.
Is it really something to be complaining so much about?
‘Nay. But I am sure there are those who would be so narrow-minded.’
Man, I don’t understand Veno’s view on humans…
“It’s nothing you should be apologizing for. Right, Yukihisa?”
“Yeah. In fact, couldn’t we come with you? If they’re sick, then maybe I can do something about it.”
I’m sure any friend of Celes can’t be that bad of a person. It might be nice for all of us to check up on them.
Of course, it’s not like I’m expecting Veno to be able to cure anything. But if it’s nothing too serious, maybe we have a chance.
“To be precise, it is not exactly an illness… but I shall accept. If you are fine with it, then let me speak to my friend.”
Celes goes to speak to her comrade and explains the situation to him.
He was agreeable and understanding and so, we’re heading off together.
: // // // // // // // // // // // // // // // // // // // // // // // // // // // // // // // // // // // // // // // // // // // // // // // // // // // // // // // // // // // /ch060/ /next/