Chapter 95

"Hey!!! Wait, wait!"

"Leo, wait for us!!!!"

"Ughhhh!!"

"Hahahahaha!!"

The four of them running across the wilderness.

Leo at the front.

Chazuke, Kikuhime, and Shin chasing after him.

"Ah, if only Homura were here, she could kick or something to stop him!"

"If only Pedro were here, he could make the decision to leave him behind!"

"Neither of them are here!"

Leo, kicking up dust and debris as he ran, fit the wilderness.

Shin, with his wolf effect appearing translucent, fit the wilderness.

Kikuhime, scattering flowers as she ran across the desolate land, fit the wilderness to some extent.

Chazuke, scattering stars as she ran across the daytime wilderness, didn't fit at all.

"Man, I wish the running effects were a bit more in sync! Ahh!"

Shin punched away an enemy that looked like a saber-toothed tiger. The enemy, thrown back and scraping the ground, was still not far enough away to give up the chase, even though it had gained hate from being hit.

As a result of this repeated action, they had caused quite a monster train, and now they couldn't stop until they shook them off.

Still, they were calling for Leo to stop because he was running towards the enemies.

The fast-footed spy could avoid enemies and shake off aggro. But ahead was the Nalun Mountains. From the side of Diaas, Nalun looked like a lush mountain range, but from the side of the Labyrinth City, it was mostly rocky mountains, and the end was a sheer cliff.

Leo showed no sign of realizing that the end was a dead end.

And what about the three who followed?

The enemies that Leo had partially gathered all targeted the three and chased after them. Some of the enemies that had initially chased Leo were now coming from the front as well.

Among the three, Shin, who could move relatively quickly, was managing to handle the situation.

The cause was Leo.

He had invited the three to see what was outside the Labyrinth City of Baron, saying, "I want to see what's outside the city! Let's find a good fishing spot!" and they had ventured beyond the walls.

Outside was a wilderness.

However, it wasn't a cracked earth wilderness, but a type of barren land with unique low-growing plants, similar to a heath. If heather or Erica were blooming, it would have a different impression, but unfortunately, it wasn't the flowering season in Baron.

"Ugh, we missed the chance to leave him behind!"

"Is there no area transition or something around here?"

"This game has no such seams! If anything, it's a transition during events!"

"Hahahaha! You three are so slow~~~!"

"**You** say that!!!"

☆ ☆ ☆ ☆ ☆

A black, glossy object entered my blurry vision.

It was pitch black, cool, smooth, and very soft.

Huh?

Soft?

...

Out!

Camilla was sleeping with my shoulder as a pillow.

Her chest was pressed against mine. It was the second-best chest after Emel of the guild. Soft and comfortable.

No, that's not right.

I shouldn't be savoring the sensation. I need to get away before she wakes up. Checking my surroundings as best I could, it seemed that Camilla had crossed over, so that was safe.

I gently removed her head from my shoulder without waking her, and pulled my hand away, which had accidentally touched her hair.

...It was numb? I wish it didn't have to be this realistic. Because I didn't realize it was numb, I almost had an accident while pulling my hand away. Dangerous.

I completed the mission and drank tea.

I boiled water over a fuel block left for the morning, just like Galahad did. The atmosphere is important, even if the evaluation doesn't change. I thought about the flame licking the bottom of the kettle. It's tedious to skip the process.

For breakfast, I mixed boiled and shredded mountain fruit bird breast meat with finely sliced cucumber and miso dressing. I topped it with crispy mountain fruit bird skin.

What I really wanted to do right now was to make miso-coated rice balls. It would be nice to be able to make them without worrying about ingredients someday.

The main dish was a hot dog.

A long, soft bun with a sausage, topped with bacon and cheese, and baked.

A sausage with pickled cabbage on top.

Avocado paste with lettuce and sausage.

Regular sausages and herb sausages, both with a crispy browned exterior.

Fried potatoes as a side. Hmm? Onion rings? That's fine too.

I prefer fried potatoes, but Leo and Shin love onion rings. I wonder what they're up to now. The last email from Leo said, "Died too much and got an eel!" but I didn't get a reply to my follow-up. They're probably doing something equally bizarre.

Hmm? I suddenly feel like I need to get a "kick" skill. Why?

Galahad and the others woke up, drawn by the smell.

Today's breakfast was also well-received.

"Alright, White, let's go."

"Feels like you're calling me out before I forget?"

"It's just your imagination."

The three of them were laughing, their shoulders shaking.

"Alright, I'm counting on you."

"Be careful, there are enemies here that use 'Aure Lugie' and 'Zantman' with the 'Sleep' status effect... but maybe it's not necessary since Homura resisted the boss's status effect attacks yesterday. Can you wake me up if I fall asleep?"

"Got it."

From here, normal weapons reduce physical damage to less than half, but Galahad and Eagle's weapons are custom-made by Ruba.

"Back when we first came here, I didn't have this sword, so Camilla enchanted it with fire and we progressed slowly."

"Since getting the sword, our progress has been much faster. Thanks."

Oh, I haven't used 'Enchant' much, but maybe it's necessary for party members.

"I met Homura when I got this. Back then, she was just promising in terms of titles and stats..."

Eagle had a far-off look in his eyes.

"I didn't even have a guild card when I met her. The next time we met, she was already using lightning magic. A lot must have happened while the sword was being made and while we were here."

"Really, how did she get to this point?"

Galahad and Camilla also had far-off looks in their eyes!!

"Finally, someone who understands your abnormality."

"Even White!?"

Aure Lugie was a fairy in a rainbow negligee with socks. Despite her ethereal appearance, she could perform a three-strike attack with her umbrella, and pouring milk from a bottle, as Eagle said, would cause the 'Sleep' status effect. The drops were 'Fairy Milk' and the rare drop was 'Fairy Silk,' which I welcomed.

But without 'Purify,' this could have been a real mess.

The sand thrown by Zantman also had a 'Sleep' effect, which Eagle and Camilla resisted, but Galahad took quite a bit of it.

Other enemies we encountered were Reis—this time they attacked—, white Reis with blurry outlines, and dress-wearing Flow Reis.

There were others, but the main attacks were status effects and magic rather than physical.

"Hmm, no one can surpass my status effects, and no one is faster than me."

White whispered, slipping through the enemies and applying status effects as he went.

"Wow, I've never seen a Reis paralyzed before."

"It didn't seem to affect the Sea Serpent much."

"Actually, I've never heard of magic affecting Sea Serpents."

"Sea Serpents are extremely weak to poison."

"Really!?"

"Maybe the skill level remains the same even if the base level is weakened?"

They continued talking, but none of them stopped attacking.

After all that, we were at the boss's entrance.

White had to return, so we parted ways.

It was frustrating not to be able to touch during combat.

"...Fer Farsi is an old man?"

I had imagined a pale, female-type monster.

'Drop of an old man' sounds awful.

"No, that's not it."

Descending the stairs leading to the boss, we opened the door to see a thin old man.

Or maybe he just looked old because of the dark circles under his eyes and his tired appearance.

"Oh, oh, I thought you had given up, but you're back again?"

"What are you!?"

"Are you going to answer just because you're asked?"

The mysterious old man and Galahad's group glared at each other.

Is this an event?

Even without prior knowledge, if the one waiting was a monster, the tension would rise, but with an unknown human, it felt awkward, perhaps due to a Japanese sensibility.

There might be other possibilities besides being an enemy.

"Successfully raised the temperature. It's a stroke of luck to be able to bury the Flame Knight here."

Oh, it's an enemy for sure. Galahad's group didn't seem to know him, but he seemed to know them.

"What!?"

"Ha ha ha!"

A translucent figure emerged from the floor behind the laughing man.

A beautiful woman's face, reminiscent of porcelain.

But from the chest down, many tentacles like an octopus.

Overall, it was a pale blue, translucent, jellyfish-like appearance.

The thick tentacles seemed to be filled with red liquid, and bubbles could be seen moving inside.

This must be Fer Farsi.

When I used 'Appraise,' it was called 'Red Fal Farsi' and something like 'Batta.'

Ah, it's a male Fer Farsi. Despite the female face.

The description said males were rare, so another rare boss.

When I tried to use 'Appraise' on the man, a magic circle spread from his feet, and a barrier wall formed around him and Fal Farsi.

"This barrier blocks both magic and physical attacks but allows Fal Farsi's attacks to pass through!"

"What!?"

"It blocks all six elements... ah, aaaaah!"

Six elements, huh.

The man, who was laughing triumphantly and grotesquely, was caught by Fal Farsi's tentacles.

"Wasn't this supposed to be a leisurely encounter with the boss under your control?"

I was taken aback.

Galahad's group was also surprised.

Eh... I feel like my head is being rubbed.

Is this it?

"Is this a twist because it wasn't a regular boss?"

"Probably a correct insight, but..."

"Don't call it a twist!"

"Don't treat it as a twist!"

Writing about Leo and the others changed the mood, making it harder to write.