Tamer 23
BGM: Punishing Grey Raven - Endless Path
===
Chapter 23: Adult Consultation
TL : Cnine
ED/PF :
Part 1
The time was 5 p.m.
I kept bonking Demon Boss with Morning Gobgob 35-pix until the counter stopped making sense.
Total kills: 241. The total EXP from Demon Boss alone: a stupidly large 17,352,000 EXP.
「Status」
===
Status
Name：Sakura Kikyo
Occupation： Monster Tamer
Lv：175 ↑24
HP：823 ↑131
MP：1075 ↑152
SP：37
Skill
Monster Taming100 Monster Recovery30 Monster Enhancement10 Monster Fusion Monster Reborn
Monster Evolution
Tamed Monster
GoblinLv175x15 SlimeLｖ175x4
PixieLv174×35
EXP to next level: 235325
===
Letting SP go unused felt like wasting blood and sweat, so I invested 46 points into Monster Taming, 23 into Monster Recovery, and 3 into Monster Enhancement.
I left the rest untouched. You know. Just in case.
「Huh… Maybe I’ll try catching Demon Boss at the end.」
I could not imagine any practical use for him. Still, capturing a monster reveals its initial level. And that knowledge alone might be worth it.
In short, this meant I could roughly figure out the recommended level for the 15th floor. Having even a vague estimate would make tackling the 16th floor, it was a big win.
I carefully shaved down the HP of the completely defenceless Demon Boss, adjusting it with absurd caution. When he was weakened enough, I activated Monster Taming.
【Boss-type entities cannot be ta—MuぁＳE＄ΘΠ……※ψ◎△T e process has comp—leted】
「Eh?」
A distorted, bug-like system noise echoed out of nowhere.
「So… which is it? Did it succeed, or did it fail?」
When I looked over at Demon Boss, he was definitely looking back at me now. No attacking. No screaming. And somehow, that made things far more unsettling.
It might technically count as him becoming an ally, but that system voice was so vague it could mean either success or failure. Honestly, I couldn’t tell at all.
Might as well try talking to him.
「Hey, Demon Boss… I mean, Devil. What are you actually good at? You’re built like a tank. Does that mean you're Physical combat type?」
The Demon Boss looked around in confusion, then pointed at himself like he was asking, "Are you talking to me?".
Yes. You. There was literally no one else here.
◇◇◇
「Oh! Kikyo, welcome back! Sana was really lonely. Shall we leave immediately?」
「Sure. How about we eat dinner first?」
「O-Of course!」
Sana was muttering things like, “First? First means there’s an after, right? Is Sana imagining Kikyo’s bat getting a hole-in-one in Sana’s hole!?” but I had no idea what she was talking about.
I mean, I hadn’t invited her out to play baseball or golf. Or was Sana planning some kind of bizarre hybrid sport that mashed the two together?
「Good evening.」
「Ah, good evening too.」
And just like that, a random beautiful girl I’d never met before joined the conversation.
Who’s this? Her age was… Around mid-teen? Uni student? No clue. Women’s ages are a mystery box I refuse to open.
I wondered if she was Sana’s friend, but nope. Sana was giving off hardcore “I don’t like this girl” vibes. Honestly, with both of them having absurdly high looks stats, I kinda wanted them to just get along.
「I’m Haruno. You know, Haruno from ‘『Brave Saint Sword Demon』?」
Yeah. Even I knew that name. Didn’t know the face of the members, though.
『Brave Saint Sword Demon』was one of those famous high-rank explorer parties tearing it up in the Ueno Dungeon. Never thought someone this cute was part of the party.
As for why she had come here… The answer was already written in the air.
There was only one reason a high-rank explorer would come all the way to a backwater dungeon like this. She had come to test me. To measure my strength with their own eyes.
… Or maybe I was overthinking it. A bluff was still on the table.
「I’m Kikyo. A rookie explorer.」
「Nice of you. I wanted to ask you something. Got a moment?」
「Nope.」
「Eh?」
Haruno stared at me, visibly stunned. She clearly hadn’t expected rejection to be an option.
Which made sense. She was famous. People didn’t just brush her off.
I, on the other hand, wanted to avoid even a single second of conversation with a high-ranking explorer. That said, flat-out rejecting her like that might’ve been a bit suspicious.
Sana’s faintly shocked expression told me as much.
「Sorry about that. I’ve got, like, three minutes.」
「Huh? Three minutes? Cup noodles time? Sure, why not. So, uh… Kikyo, you wouldn’t happen to be a monster tamer, would you?」
「Nope. Not a monster tamer. I’m a swordsman.」
「Eh? Really? Weird. You totally looked like one to me. Guess my gut feeling’s off today…」
Your gut feeling?
With nothing but a vague hunch, she’d picked out my profession from countless possibilities.
Advanced explorers were already figures to watch carefully. This man, however, crossed the line from caution into danger.
「This is my weapon.」
I held up a wooden sword, the most bog-standard choice imaginable, practically synonymous with beginner swordsmen.
I’d bought it on a school trip, and back then I’d thought, “What am I ever going to use this for?” Turns out, you never know when life will surprise you.
「A wooden sword. How long have you been exploring?」
「Less than three weeks.」
「Hm… That’s far too clean for a main weapon.」
Oi. Seriously?
「H-Hey, receptionist, can I ask something? This Kikyo really is a swordsman, right? He’s not lying to me, is he?」
「Kikyo is a swordsman.」
Ohhh, well played, Sana!
It seems this person wasn't with the Dungeon Association.
「Kikyo is a really lovely boy. He helped me when I was being hit on by a creepy old men. He dra—」
「Ahaha, wow, I’m starving, Sana! My stomach and back are about to fuse together!」
Woah there, that was a close call. If an advanced explorer heard that I’d dragged two grown men into a back alley, things would spiral fast.
You really did say the worst possible things, Sana.
… On second thought, she still might be one of their agents.
「Fuse? What does that even mean? Your choice of words is creepy. Still, you’re kind of odd in a fun way, Kikyo. So, so, where are we eating?」
「Sushitaro~」
「Ohhh, Sushitaro’s awesome. I love Sushitaro. Come on, let’s go!」
Why is this girl just casually tagging along?
「How old are you, Kikyo? I’m nineteen by the way.」
「I’m twenty-two. Mind your tone when addressing your senior. Use proper manners.」
「Whoa, whoa, sudden power move. We’re friends already though, aren’t we?」
Looks like Haruno had already decided we were mates without checking with me.
「Use polite speech.」
「But I’m your senior explorer, you know? In the workplace, even if you’re younger, you still talk politely to your seniors, right?」
「You’re really something, Haruno. Senior, junior, age… it’s all just decorative nonsense. I don’t want you growing up into one of those adults who constantly demands "respect".」
「……」
Haruno’s cheek started twitching like it was having a nervous breakdown.
「That’s enough. A kid who’s not even twenty should head home. Sana and I have adult matters to discuss.」
「A-Adult matters...」
Why was Sana blushing to herself, fidgeting as though caught in some private embarrassment? I didn’t know, and frankly, I didn’t care.
「Hey, wait! I don't care if you're not allowing me to partivipate, but one last question!」
「What is it? Hurry it up.」
The sooner I ditch this high-rank explorer, the better.
「What did you eat last night?」
「Last night?」
Oh yeah, I had a cup of miso curry milk ramen as supper.
「Miso curry milk ramen」
「... Eh?」
「What's the matter?」
「Oh, nothing at all. Late~r.」
Having said whatever she wanted, Haruno waved cheerfully and strolled off like she’d just finished a nice chat.
For just a moment, it felt like her eyes narrowed slightly… Was that my imagination?
◇◇◇
「Thank you very much for your help the other day.」
「“Huh!? W-wait, you guys are...」
Sana and I stood at the front door of a detached house, facing a middle-aged man whose expression had frozen solid.
「W-what do you want!? I was just drunk and chatting a bit! Who actually comes to someone’s house over that!?」
「Yes. And that’s exactly why I’d like you to sell me your explorer weapons at an extremely low price. Unless, of course, you’d like your wife and children hearing all sorts of rumours. Mr Ueda Akitomu, 45 years old, employee of the Aomori branch of the explorer supplies wholesaler ‘Supporters’. Drunk, pestering young women. We know your address, which is why we’re standing here. So please don’t call the police. Oh, and we also have a recording. Would you like to hear it?」
「O-Okay, okay, I get it. Please, cut me some slack.」
「Even if you were drunk, calling explorers ‘bottom feeders’ while selling them gear is kind of wild, don’t you think so?」
「S-Sorry! I’ll make up for it. I’ll cough up some weapons.」
「Then send them to the Aomori Branch of the Explorers’ Association desk. Cool with you, Sana?」
「Uh... Yeah, sure.」
「We want a mithril sword, budget capped at 30k yen.」
「Thirty thousand? You can’t seriously expect a mithril weapon at that price…」
It was a surprisingly well-kept house.
As my gaze drifted to the neatly lined shoes by the door, one pair caught my eye. Tiny shoes, decorated with a cheerful character from a girls’ cartoon.
「Oh? You’ve got a little daughter?」
「Why are yo---」
「She’s about five or six, I’d guess. A charming age, isn’t it? Children can wander off before you know it, so you really have to be careful. It’s frightening, isn’t it?」
The moment I indulged in a little casual chatter, Mr Ueda Akitomu’s face drained of colour and he began to beg in a panic.
「Alright! I get it! Please, just leave! I’m begging you, don’t lay a finger on my daughter!」
「C'mon, I’m not gonna do anything. I mean, I’m not a forty-five-year-old guy from the Aomori branch of "Supporters", getting drunk and hitting on young women only to get shot down. That’s you, Mr Ueda Akitomu. Don’t group me with that mess.」
「Please forgive me already...」
That'd do the job.
This should secure me a fine weapon at a very reasonable price.
◇◇◇
「K-Kikyō… Is this what you mean when you said an adult consultation?」
「Yes. You were the one who said I needed a new weapon, right? And let’s be honest, he caused you no small amount of trouble.」
「Y-Yeah, but… wasn’t this a bit much?」
Sana’s face was locked in an awkward grimace as she forced the words out. “Y-Yes… that must be it. It was all for Sana. Kikyō chose to stain his own hands for my sake.”
Yep. Spot on.
A masterfully crafted compromise. A righteous goal of preventing future victims, lightly infused with a dash of my own personal greed. Truly elegant.
After that, I visited yet another middle-aged man and had the same sort of talk. The result was outstanding: a large-capacity magic bag, acquired for only ten thousand yen.
Saving money is important.