Chapter 62 Mysterious Area [1]
Ernest spoke up.
"About the next quest… Will you accept it here? Or will you move to another city? We prefer younger adventurers to experience various adventures, so I'd recommend heading to a different city."
"Is it okay to stay here?"
"It's not ideal. We do have a few quests that could use an A-rank adventurer. But any adventurer bound to this place wouldn't be worth much."
"I see."
Liora glanced at me.
Generally, her decision is mine as well. As I floated idly, I pondered for a few moments.
I made a decision.
"Liora, let's focus on the events in this city. Instead going to another city, let's fully explore this area."
"Yes, God has spoken. We'll tackle the events in this city."
"Event? Huh? Was there something going on? If there is, maybe I'll join in later."
Ernest tilted her head repeatedly in confusion.
She's so... innocent. How charming.
We decided to explore the city of Mariela.
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The first event we encountered was a training session for adventurers.
Honestly, they probably have more knowledge about being adventurers than we do. After all, Liora hasn't done much adventurer work herself.
Even the completed requests were tailored to Liora's own style.
However, Liora is simply strong.
In the end, strength is the essence of being an adventurer. But these novice adventurers haven't grasped that truth yet.
When Liora was called in as a temporary instructor, the rookie adventurers blatantly underestimated her.
They judged her A-rank status purely on her appearance.
That's exactly why they're still novices.
"What's with this kid? Are they messing with us?"
A one-eyed boy with a wooden sword resting on his shoulder spoke in irritation, not even trying to hide his intimidation toward the small, child-like girl.
He looked about 19 or 20.
Although he wasn't large, he had a lean, toned physique.
"We're serious adventurers here. We don't have time to babysit some kid."
"I don't care."
"Huh? What the hell are you saying, kid—?"
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"Now, I'm going to defeat all of you."
"Wait, aren't you supposed to teach us as an instructor, not defeat us?"
"God says sustained combat ability is key."
The moment she spoke, Liora's body vanished.
The novice adventurers couldn't even follow her with their eyes. In an instant, ten of them were on the ground, having taken heavy blows from her scythe to their abdomens.
A few of them were even vomiting from the impact.
Standing tall, Liora looked down at the groaning adventurers and declared,
"Stand up within five seconds. If not, you'll receive a second hit."
"W-Wait! What kind of training is this? Are you mad because we insulted you? Then I apologize! You're strong!"
"Five seconds have passed."
Once again, Liora attacked.
The novice adventurers tried to run, but the difference in their abilities was too vast. They couldn't even move due to the damage they had taken.
"Please, help me!" the one-eyed boy cried out to the other adventurers around the training grounds. But everyone turned away, choosing not to get involved.
It couldn't be helped.
Since Liora isn't the best at explaining things, I decided to step in.
"Liora, tell them this: 'If you're unable to move because of the pain, you'll be killed. This is training to accept pain.'"
"God says, 'If you're unable to move because of the pain, you'll be killed. This is training to accept pain.'"
Despair spread across the faces of the novice adventurers.
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Liora, unfazed, spoke again.
"Three, two—"
The adventurers scrambled to their feet in a panic.Liora was fired from her position as an adventurer instructor.
The guild master said, "This training is absolutely necessary. Keep going." However, the other guild employees protested fiercely.
Well, from an outsider's perspective, what Liora was doing certainly looked like violence.
If you're paralyzed by pain or fear, you'll definitely be killed at some point. The purpose of that training wasn't bad, but… well, I guess it couldn't be helped. It was wrong to expect novice adventurers to have Liora's level of resolve.
Liora wouldn't stop even if her arm were blown off.
Now that we were free, we were given a new mission: "Explore the Unknown Territory."
This unknown territory refers to the changes caused by a long period of frozen time.
Our task was to investigate a place that had appeared without anyone noticing.
"God, here's your handkerchief!"
"Very good, Liora. We've made lunch, and our equipment is ready. The expense system is truly the best."
"Absolutely the best!"
"When you're independent, you save on taxes, but through the company, it feels like extra income."
"? Income?"
This quest has an unknown danger level.
The guild also seems wary of the mysterious area nearby, so they've spared no expense for the investigation. We're doing some shopping with the funds provided by the guild.
It feels like a picnic.
My goal has always been to "have fun while making a decent income." I don't need to fight powerful enemies or take on grueling missions.
We can just finish our work casually and enjoy a picnic.
▽
We arrived at a mysterious hole located about five minutes from the road, riding on Samurai.
A bottomless darkness.
It doesn't look man-made, but there's a ladder leading into the abyss. This ladder was discovered just a few days ago.
Apparently, all the adventurers who entered haven't returned.
"Samurai."
At Liora's whisper, Samurai, who had been granted regeneration, began descending the ladder. As her tamed monster, even if Samurai were killed underground, it wouldn't be a problem.
Meanwhile, we enjoyed a relaxed snack party on the surface.
I created a house using my skill, [Darkness Creation].
This was the new form of [Darkness Creation], known as "House Mode." It's always good to have a secure base.
Chairs and tables are fully furnished.
Liora sat down and couldn't hide her amazement at my arts.
"God, you're amazing! What a lovely home! I want to stay here forever!"
"Indeed. Well, the all-black color is a slight flaw, though."
One of the few drawbacks of [Darkness Creation] is that everything is pure black. As an artist, I would have preferred a bit more color variety.
But since Liora is happy, I'll let it slide.
"Oh, Samurai is…"
"What's the matter, Liora?"
"Samurai got… defeated."
"I see. So there's an enemy strong enough to take down Samurai. We'll summon Samurai again tomorrow and ask for details. For now, let's move our base elsewhere."
Samurai is entirely focused on defense and disruption.
Without Liora, our attacker, it would take time, but it's not impossible to defeat enemies. Still, knowing there's something that can take down Samurai is a good benchmark.
We moved about ten kilometers away and continued our tea party.
I brought out some famous sweets that I had purchased through microtransactions.
They were so exquisite, more like gems than simple confections. Liora, though expressionless, seemed to sparkle at the sight of them.
"Amazing… Is this food?"
"Yes. I prepared this for you, Liora. Enjoy it to your heart's content."
"! For me!"
Liora eagerly gripped her fork.
It's shaping up to be a delightful tea party. Watching Liora excitedly enjoy the sweets, I opened up a magazine I brought from the real world.
▽
The next day.
We summoned Samurai and asked for details about the underground area.
It seems the unknown territory is swarming with small fry. Samurai was overwhelmed by their sheer numbers.
Liora could probably break through them.
But that's only as far as Samurai was able to reach.
"In the worst-case scenario, we can use Samurai as bait to escape."
"Yes, God!"
We descended underground.
We weren't attacked while climbing down the ladder and made it safely to the bottom. Liora equipped a lantern at her waist.n/ô/vel/b//in dot c//om
Samurai and I did the same.
My ethereal body was equipped with a lantern as well. As a backup light source, I also summoned [Weak Vine Dog].
While using strong skills is fun, I also enjoy cherishing the weaker ones.
We proceeded through the dark underground passage.
It was a typical underground tunnel.
It's a bit unfortunate that there's no room to try out new moves in such a confined space.
The monsters we encountered were numerous but not particularly threatening. Each time Liora swung her scythe, small creatures fell.
Liora, cloaked in the skill [Dark Aura], wiped out the enemies.
"Still, something feels off. Even B-rank adventurers haven't returned from this place. It's hard to believe they'd fall in such an ordinary tunnel…"
"Could there be stronger enemies…?"
"Most likely, yes. Stay sharp."
We continued our exploration.
Without the lanterns, it would be hard to see in the pitch-dark tunnels. However, the monsters adapted to the underground were quite weak to Liora's light magic, [Flash].
It was a one-sided hunt.
After about an hour of exploration, we were considering heading back.
At that moment, we encountered a pack of dogs made of vines. Samurai and I turned to look at my beloved [Weak Vine Dog].
Only Liora paid no mind and charged into the vine dogs' swarm.
"This looks like…"