Chapter 76

I woke up to the vibration function. That's strange, I don't even have a smartphone. Koushin is sleeping soundly next to me. Rada was shaking and staring at me from close range.

"Uh, what... That's scary."

I quickly checked for any signs of danger, but the horses were quiet and there was no sense of danger.

"Rada?"

"Reito, what should I do? I might get killed."

"Huh?"

Rada clung to me, almost crying and hurting me. What happened in the past few hours? He was a bit nervous, but getting killed is not a calm situation.

"Um, let's go outside for now."

I urged Rada to go outside the tent. Nergie and the others hadn't returned yet. I could see the driver with the horses in the distance. Pretending to go to the bathroom, we walked together to the edge of the forest.

"So, what do you mean by getting killed?"

I was still groggy from just waking up, and Rada's head was exploding, but I couldn't laugh right now. Well, I was trying to hold it in. Maybe it was because he had taken a bath, he looked like a Saiyan.

"Um..."

Even though there was no one around, Rada lowered his voice even more.

"I might be able to make Noguria..."

For a moment, I didn't understand what he meant and stared at Rada's face intently.

"Huh? What, huh!?"

Finally, I processed his words and became even more confused.

"Wait, what? Noguria, you mean the modified magic stone? Why can you make it with alchemy skills?"

"Oh, yeah. Is that it?"

My words were outside of Rada's imagination. The tension eased a bit.

"Magic stones can be used as materials..."

"Really? Hmm? Then why would you get killed?"

"Because making and using them is forbidden, right?"

Rada pouted at me, tilting his head.

"Well, I haven't made it yet. Besides, you made forbidden things before, didn't you?"

I pointed to his hair, and Rada's face lit up in realization. "Oh, right," he said, nodding.

"Well, that's different. It'll be fine as long as no one knows."

I was surprised. Seriously, why can you manipulate magic stones with alchemy skills? Isn't that more like alchemy? If it was known who made them in the past, it would be dangerous, but since Nilva-sama didn't mention it, it should be okay.

"Why did you want to make it?"

In the first place, you shouldn't be able to think of a recipe unless you try to make it. Did you ask your master? Or did it come up as a keyword?

"...Reito."

What, me?

"Didn't you say something about wanting to make a magic tool? When I heard it was fuel-efficient, I thought it might be useful, and the recipe just came to me..."

"Oh, oh."

Well, I guess, condolences? No, I'm grateful. I'm grateful, really? I'm glad you remembered what I said casually. But...

"Sure, a powerful magic stone is attractive, but let's seal it away? And don't tell me?"

"...Let's share it."

"No way! What if it slips out?"

"I'm scared too! It's okay. Look, Reito might be able to neutralize it."

No way! I pushed Rada, who was clinging to me like an octopus, and went back to the tent first. Once you know, you might want to try it. Don't put me in a dangerous situation.

"Reito, Reito! What about the second part of that thing!?"

Rada, who caught up, said.

"Be quiet!"

What, part two? Maybe there's a version that's not neutralized but usable? No, if there was, Nilva-sama would have told us. It's dangerous, stop it. It's really intriguing.

"Hey, what are you doing?"

Koushin, who came out of the tent, tilted his head, looking at me holding my head and Rada trying to involve me.

"Nothing. Right?"

Rada nodded when I looked at him. He doesn't seem to want to involve Koushin. If he knew, he would probably worry more than Rada.

"Hmm."

Koushin, with a frowning face, went back into the tent. Rada and I looked at each other. He's sulking.

"Alright. Go check on him. I'll prepare lunch."

I pushed Rada into the tent.

"No way!"

"Shut up?"

"Reito!? Wait, Koushin's face is scary!"

I ignored Rada's scream and started preparing lunch. What? It's not that bad? Just play around. He'll cheer up after eating.

"You're noisy."

The driver came over.

"Sorry, we're being loud."

"No, no, it's heartwarming."

He's not lying. He's smiling. The driver doesn't seem to find our relationship as strange as Nilva-sama does.

"By the way, I caught a lizard. Would you like to cook it?"

"Huh?"

The driver pointed to the area around the fire pit. A Komodo dragon-sized body was lying there.

"What, ah, what? When did you... Sorry, we were sleeping."

"No, no. I found it while taking a walk. I thought it might be good to eat, so I took care of it quickly."

The driver took care of it quickly? Seriously, the old man is the strongest...

I gratefully accepted and started preparing it. They say lizard meat is like chicken, so maybe I'll make fried chicken. It's a bit heavy for lunch, but we're moving afterward, so it's fine. It will cheer up Rada too. Hmm? What's this organ? A bag-like thing attached to the throat.

"Oh, that. You can sell it to the adventurer's guild. It's a fire sac."

"Whoa."

Wait. This lizard breathes fire? And there are no external injuries. How did you take it down?

"You know a lot."

"Hehehe. It's a hobby."

A light novel, right? Like a maid who can fight and says it's a hobby. There's a butler version too. I bet the driver isn't a former assassin. No wonder Nilva-sama is calm about leaving the driver behind.

The mystery remains, but the driver said, "I'll get back to work," and went back to the carriage. I won't dig deeper. It's scary.

I seasoned the chopped meat. As I was preparing the oil, Rada and Koushin came out. Rada's hair was neat. Koushin looked neutral.

"Ah! Fried chicken!"

Rada noticed first.

"Yep. This one's for it."

I showed the remaining lizard head. Rada froze.

"W-What's that?"

"It's a lizard."

"Isn't it big?"

"It is. And it apparently breathes fire."

Koushin walked over, passing the frozen Rada.

"Did Reito hunt it?"

His face said, "You didn't do something reckless again, did you?" I'm innocent.

"The driver."

"Hmm?"

"The old man. He took it down quickly."

Koushin looked at the lizard, then at the driver, and muttered, "I see."

"I'd like to learn that."

He's so eager to learn. I don't think it's possible, though. I'll probably be brushed off easily.

"Oh, everyone's back."

Following Rada's words, I looked toward the ruins and saw Nilva-sama and the others. They don't seem injured. I hope there was some progress.