Chapter 21

I stared intently at the contract.

For the first time in my life, I felt like I was reading a contract word by word, even considering the hidden meanings.

On my birthday, my brother told me over the phone.

Now that you're eighteen, you're in a position to bear legal responsibility.

When you sign a contract, make sure to read it thoroughly.

Hmm, so I'm Party A, and Oshino-san is Party B?

No, since the other party members are involved, it's both Oshino-san and Azuma-san.

"Oshino-san, is this contract really necessary? From what I can see, there are no penalty clauses or anything."

The contract was very clear and quite simple.

It didn't feel like a trap.

"To prevent other parties from poaching you. If you were to be illegally contracted by another party, this would be necessary to protect you."

"I see."

After reading it again, I signed it.

It seemed that no stamps or fingerprints were required.

I've heard that stamps are a cultural thing in Japan, so that's probably why.

Thus, the three of us successfully formed a party, but there was one last thing to do.

"Time to open them! Hunting cubes is the most exciting part of this."

"I've been looking forward to it too."

The treasure boxes were small, palm-sized boxes, but when opened, they expanded.

If the contents were in bottles, it would be a hassle to transport them without breaking.

We could put them in our inventories, but we decided to open them all after everything was done.

Today, we got a total of 42 treasure boxes from cube hunting, including the ones from the competition.

I got more than 30 of them, but for fairness, we decided to divide them equally, 14 each.

"Oshino, are you sure? The reward distribution was supposed to be discussed after the contract, so you could open 33 of them."

"It's fine. We can easily get 30 more by hunting again."

"That's true. You get treasure boxes every time you defeat something."

Azuma-san seemed eager to open them right away.

It looked like she was waiting for me to start.

So, I opened the first one.

"A streaming crystal."

"Wow, a hit right away."

I think the market price is around 100,000 yen, right?

It must be a good one.

When Azuma-san opened hers, there was a bottle-like item inside.

"What is this?"

"We can't tell what it is until we appraise it. It could be just a juice."

"It's a detox potion."

I said.

I didn't reveal the details of the appraisal, but I had already told Azuma-san that I could appraise things, so it was fine.

"Oshino, you can appraise things too? You're really talented."

"Yeah, but I'm not a certified appraiser, so I can't issue appraisal certificates."

"That's fine. It's helpful to know what we've obtained right away."

"The market price is... 3,000 yen."

Azuma-san checked the market price on her smartphone and looked visibly disappointed.

Detox potions are quite common.

They are effective for food poisoning but not for colds.

When dungeons first appeared, they were quite expensive, but the price has dropped significantly since various pharmaceutical companies developed similar drugs based on them.

"Still, 3,000 yen is a lot. It messes with your sense of money."

"3,000 yen is a significant amount for a high school student."

"Really. Oh, a magic stone this time. It's white, so it's worth 5,000 yen!"

"This one is also a white magic stone. Treasure boxes usually contain black magic stones... Is this thanks to Oshino's luck?"

"Whatever comes out, it seems to be due to my luck. Ah, this is a potion."

The opening process proceeded with a mix of excitement and disappointment.

We didn't get any legendary hero elixirs, but the highest value item was the streaming crystal, of which we got four.

The rest were potions and magic stones.

If we converted everything to cash, it would be around 800,000 yen in total.

About 270,000 yen each.

Oshino-san would transfer the money to us.

"Do you not need to pay Oshino-san for her trouble?"

"No problem. The market price is the price at which we can still make a profit. It benefits our company too, and I might even want to add a little extra. By the way, can you call me 'Hime' already?"

"Um, it feels a bit embarrassing."

"Since you came here, all the boys have been like this. Are Japanese people shy? But, using last names makes you stand out. If you want to announce that you're under Oshino Group's protection, that's fine."

"...Alright, but I'll call you 'Hime'... no, 'Hime-chan' is better."

"You're treating me like a child. I'm older than you."

"Sorry. I'll call you 'Hime,' then. You can call me Taiga."

"Okay, Taiga."

With that, the names were decided, and Azuma-san suddenly stood up, her face turning red as she shouted.

"W, will you call me Ayame too?"

"Eh? Azuma-san too!?"

I usually only called girls by their first names if they were like Milk.

Honestly, it felt embarrassing, but if I refused, it would make Hime seem special.

Moreover, if we were to form a party with Hime and Milk in the future, Azuma-san would be left out.

"Alright, 'Ayame'... is that okay?"

"Calling me 'Ayame'... but 'Ayame-chan' is also tempting..."

"Ayame, you're confused."

It seemed that Hime had also decided to call Azuma-san by her first name.

"Are you going home by taxi? How about a helicopter?"

"There's nowhere to land it. We'll take the train—no, a taxi. I'll drop Ayame off at her place and then go to the station, so one taxi is fine."

I made sure not to forget my bike this time.

On the way back, the money had been transferred.

Hime seemed to be quick with her work, preparing the contract and all.

"266,000 yen in one day... My mom wouldn't believe me. She'd probably worry that I got scammed."

"Well, in that case, I'm the master scammer."

"No, I don't think of you as a scammer, Oshino-san! (I think of you as a prince.)"

She mumbled something, but I took it that she trusted me.

Still, in the end, Ayame couldn't call me by my first name.

She practiced hard, but she got stuck at "T, Ta, Ta..."

Calling boys by their first names was a high hurdle for her.

The taxi arrived at Ayame's house, a regular apartment.

"Thank you, good night. T, Ta... Oshino-san."

"Thanks to you too. Good night, Ayame."

"Wait—"

Ayame fiddled with her phone.

"Can you say it one more time?"

"Good night, Ayame... is this okay?"

She probably didn't hear it clearly.

"Yes! (I'll edit the rest.)"

Well, as long as Ayame is satisfied, that's fine.

After dropping Ayame off, I took the taxi to the station.

The taxi fare was over 10,000 yen, and I paid with D-pay, feeling a bit nervous.

I thought 150 yen for the bike parking wouldn't be much after this—when my phone rang.

It was from Milk.

I pressed the call button.

"Hey."

"..."

"Milk, what's wrong?"

There was no response, but I could hear her breathing.

Milk was definitely there.

It didn't seem like a wrong number.

Feeling something was off, I asked again.

"Milk, are you okay!? What's going on—where are you!?"

"Please... please, help me, Taiga."

On the other end of the line, she was crying and said that to me.

"If we don't do something, Papa will die."

Ushizou!?

What happened?

We've surpassed 100,000 words.

The first part is expected to end in the next chapter.

Your support gives me the strength to write.

Thank you for your favorites, ratings, and continued support.

～CM～

The manga adaptation of "I Can Do Anything with My Growth Cheat, but I Can't Quit Being Unemployed" Volume 23 is on sale on June 21st, and pre-orders are now available on various platforms.

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