Chapter 66

Why did it come to this?

Seiki stood there in a daze, recalling the beginning of the incident.

In the first floor of the garage dungeon, Seiki was training with Gejigeji.

After practicing for about two to three hours, Seiki found a small Gejigeji.

This Gejigeji was only about 30 centimeters long, less than half the size of the others.

Moreover, unlike the usual brownish-black Gejigeji, its entire body was a fiery red, like burning flames.

Is this a baby Gejigeji?

Seiki was a bit puzzled.

But whether big or small, it was a Gejigeji to be cherished.

Not to admire, but to defeat.

Seiki approached cautiously and swung his dagger.

However,

"Wh-What? So hard! So fast!!"

Of the two attacks, one slid off the carapace, and the other was dodged.

The carapace where the blade had slid showed not even a scratch.

The attack that had always killed Gejigeji before had no effect.

This realization shook Seiki deeply.

—This is bad!

Seiki took a step back, fearing a counterattack.

However, the Gejigeji did not attack Seiki; instead, it fled as fast as it could.

"Huh?"

Seiki stood there in shock.

Even though he wasn't at full strength, the current Seiki could crush a Gejigeji with a single finger.

He never imagined that its armor would be impenetrable.

Moreover, the Gejigeji fled without retaliating.

This was completely unexpected.

"Could it be a rare species?"

Seiki finally realized this possibility.

The armor was hard, and it had escaped at a speed that Seiki could barely see.

It couldn't be just a regular Gejigeji.

Perhaps it's a high-experience monster!

Monsters that are hard, fast, and flee are known to carry a lot of experience points.

Therefore, Seiki pursued it.

He activated his detection to the max and chased the red Gejigeji without letting it out of his sight.

"Hehehe"

Laughing,

Drooling,

Seiki ran with all his might.

All Seiki could see was the red Gejigeji.

He ignored the other Gejigeji, slicing and discarding any obstacles in his way.

In a trance, Seiki finally cornered the Gejigeji at a dead end.

The cornered Gejigeji still showed no signs of retaliating.

It trembled and moved its arms up and down.

"Hehehe. This is the time to pay the annual tribute."

Spinning his dagger in his hand, Seiki took a step forward.

At that moment,

"Ow!!"

Seiki's back of the head made a loud *spank* sound.

"Huh? Rare?"

The sound was made by Rare's leaf.

She had hit Seiki's back of the head with all her might.

After hitting Seiki's back of the head, Rare used her leaf to skillfully descend to the ground and stepped between Seiki and the Gejigeji.

Seiki thought she would defeat the Gejigeji, but she didn't.

Instead, she faced Seiki.

"Rare, it's dangerous!"

"(Shiver, shiver)"

I'm fine. Actually, you're the one in danger.

Rare used her leaf to convey her message.

Her message was clearly understood by Seiki.

But he couldn't quite grasp her intention.

Was it a mistranslation?

Seiki tilted his head.

It didn't feel like the communication pipeline established by taming was broken.

Her message was definitely getting through to Seiki.

Then why was Rare standing in front of Seiki?

A masked man with daggers in both hands.

Rare standing in front of him, spreading her leaf wide.

Behind Rare, a trembling Gejigeji.

In this setup, the villain is Seiki.

Why did it come to this...

"So, why did Rare step in? Don't bully it? It's not a bad monster."

It's not a bad monster.

Seiki thought so, but he remembered the example of Rare.

It's not surprising that such a creature exists.

Rare is a monster, even though she is connected to Seiki.

Perhaps there was something that monsters could understand among themselves.

In front of the thinking Seiki, Rare shook her leaf to explain further.

"(Nyunshun, papatto, peronperon)"

"Will you make it your companion? I don't mind, but does Gejigeji agree? Yes, it does? Then it's fine..."

As if to affirm Rare's words, the Gejigeji moved its legs up and down several times.

Since Gejigeji doesn't have a neck, it nods with its legs...

What a useless piece of knowledge I've learned.

"Rare, you'll take good care of Gejigeji, right?"

"(Nod, nod)"

Leave it to me, Rare tapped her stem with her leaf.

Standing in front of the Gejigeji, Rare looked like an older sister.

She might be thinking of herself that way.

Seiki put away his daggers and bent down.

"I'm sorry for what happened earlier. Can you forgive me?"

When Seiki bowed, the Gejigeji moved its legs nervously.

Oh, this little one is so cute!

"Thank you for forgiving me."

From now on, please take care of me.

When Seiki extended his hand, the Gejigeji tentatively placed its leg on it.

The feeling of its leg.

It was smooth, hard, and slightly warm.

Hafuu!

Seiki's heart was gripped by that sensation.

He picked up the Gejigeji and hugged it, as if to embrace it.

Below, Rare poked her leaf, saying, "That's mine!"

Sorry, Rare.

I got the first hug!

Seiki hugged the Gejigeji gently, being careful not to break it.

"Hey, don't scratch the armor, okay?"

"(Shuta)"

Understood! The Gejigeji lifted its leg as if to say.

What a cute creature.

Seiki put the spiky Rare in his bag and carried the Gejigeji as he continued through the dungeon.

"What should we name it? Since it's a Gejigeji, how about Geji—Bam!"

A slap from Rare's leaf hit Seiki's back of the head.

Stop it. My head is going to cave in.

Because of Rare's level increase, the force that shook his brain was also amplified.

It might be time to seriously consider equipping a helmet to protect his back of the head.

Behind him, Rare pressured him to think seriously.

"Since it's red, how about Homu—"

A spiky leaf was placed on his neck.

...Understood. I'll think seriously.

So, please move that sharp leaf away.

Seiki exhaled and slowly thought.

Gejigeji is a beneficial insect that eliminates pests.

It eats troublesome bugs that interfere with human life.

It can be considered a guardian of the house.

And its carapace is a fiery red.

"How about Esta? Named after Vesta, the Roman goddess of the hearth."

Vesta, the goddess of the hearth, later became the guardian of the home. She is identified with Hestia in Greek mythology.

Originally, she was the goddess of the hearth, and her divine form is an ever-burning flame.

A bug that eliminates pests and protects the house, and a goddess who protects the home.

A carapace that is red like flames and a divine form of flames.

From these similarities, Seiki decided to name it after Vesta.

Rare nodded at Seiki's naming.

The Gejigeji (or Esta) also expressed joy by moving its legs vigorously.

Yes.

I'm glad it likes the name.

"..."

Suddenly, Seiki stopped.

This exchange... I've seen it somewhere before.

Realizing this, Seiki put Esta on his shoulder and brought up the skill board.

He quickly swiped through the screen,

"Sure enough."

Seiki's face lost all expression.

Esta (0) Gender: Male

Skill Points: 3

- Vitality

Stamina 0

Natural Recovery 0

- Strength

Strength 1

Damage Reduction 2

- Agility

Burst 3

Dexterity 1

- Technique

Weapon Proficiency

Carapace 4

- Intuition

Detection 1

- Special

Weapon Destruction 3

Unintentionally, Seiki had tamed the Gejigeji.

However, taming was supposed to succeed only when both parties sought each other.

There was a slight discrepancy between the success of this taming and the explanation of taming...

"Could it be... my love for Gejigeji got through!?"

No, that's not it.

Seiki reprimanded himself and thought.

The reason he could tame Esta was probably because Rare mediated.

Rare sought Esta.

And Esta sought Rare to escape from Seiki's threat.

It's not clear why Rare sought Esta, but this explanation seems the closest to the truth.

"However, Esta is quite strong."

Seiki muttered to himself as he looked at the skill board.

These are the initial values.

Compared to Seiki, Kuren, and Rare, Esta's initial values are significantly higher.

Especially Burst 3, Carapace 4, and Weapon Destruction 3 are abnormally high.

With these stats, it could handle the middle layers.

"There are some new skills too."

Damage Reduction, Carapace, and Weapon Destruction.

Carapace is treated like equipment, similar to light or heavy armor.

Weapon Destruction is the characteristic gnawing behavior of Gejigeji.

Among these, Seiki's eyes were drawn to the new skill—Damage Reduction.

"Skills like this exist?"

Damage Reduction 2 (Reduces damage taken) MAX 10

When this increases, it literally reduces the damage taken from attacks.

In fact, when Seiki attacked Esta, the attack was deflected by its carapace.

Carapace 4 is not so high that Seiki's dagger skills are completely ineffective.

However, it was definitely deflected due to Damage Reduction.

The problem is that Damage Reduction is in the Strength tree, not the Technique tree.

"Is the damage reduction due to a physical trait?"

Physical trait.

For Gejigeji, it's the carapace.

For humans, it's muscle.

If it were in the Technique tree, there would be a possibility of learning it.

But since it's in the Strength tree—being influenced by physical traits, the difficulty of learning it is incomparable to Technique.

Unfortunately, Seiki has a hard time building muscle even with training.

The possibility of learning it for Seiki is extremely low.

"Mr. Bacon would probably have it."

Given his pride in his muscles, it wouldn't be surprising if he had learned it.

There are countless anecdotes that symbolize this.

"Muscles make you immune to pain" or "A muscular body is invulnerable."

He might have survived the Shinjuku stampede thanks to this skill.

While thinking about this, Seiki left the dungeon and headed home.

Before entering the house, Rare gave some instructions to Esta.

Esta lifted its right leg and climbed up the wall of the house.

"Hmm, you don't need to come inside?"

Esta nodded with its legs.

Is it okay to leave it outside?

It seems a bit pitiful.

Seiki's concern was understood.

Esta moved its legs around.

"Will you hunt outside? I see, you'll eliminate pests."

Gejigeji is a beneficial insect.

An expert in pest control.

It seems more convenient for Esta to stay outside.

"Understood. If anything happens, let me know immediately. Don't go too far from the house, and don't gnaw on the walls or roof."

Understood! Esta saluted with its leg.

If it's going to protect the house, it deserves some compensation.

Seiki asked Esta what it liked to eat.

Then,

"Locusts?"

I see.

Seiki thought he understood why Rare sought Esta.

*

In the early morning, Akane opened the key to the prefab and took deep breaths in front of the store.

"Yes, today's air is clear and beautiful. Not as much as me, though!"

She laughed and raised her chin.

"..."

Akane's smile froze.

Looking up, she saw a monster attached to the wall of the adventurer's house, which had a presence like air.

"Why is there a monster outside?"

Moreover, that monster is a Death Eroder, which appears in the middle layers of Shinjuku!

Cold sweat trickled down Akane's body.

Death Eroders are difficult to damage and extremely fast.

Their jaws can destroy any weapon.

Even a single Death Eroder mixed in with a group of monsters can quickly destroy a seasoned team. They are truly troublesome creatures.

Why is one here...

As Akane stood frozen, a masked man—Seiki Kusei—appeared from the house.

Danger!

Run!

Before Akane could say anything,

"Good morning."

Seiki raised his hand, and the Death Eroder waved its hand back.

Seeing this, Akane stood there in shock.

Seiki Kusei is one of the adventurers Akane is most interested in.

He has unique combat skills to cut through a monster parade and possesses the rare skill of taming monsters.

Despite being a beginner adventurer, he has caught the attention of the top-ranked Masatsugu, and since becoming intermediate, he has been requested for rescue by the powerful Kagemitsu in Sapporo.

Seiki Kusei is that kind of adventurer.

Akane would like to recommend him to the company and support him as a business.

However, his presence is like air.

No matter how much of a diamond in the rough he is as an adventurer, he can't be a company mascot with a presence like air.

Moreover, his weapon is a minor dagger.

He also wears a special mask, has feathers on his neck, a plant on his back, and scales on his body.

To top it off, he has a Death Eroder at his house.

Supporting such a man would be a negative promotion for the company.

Kuren was disappointed when she was chosen as a candidate, but Kuren is more "normal" as a person, so it can't be helped.

If he wants to receive sponsorship from a company, he needs to become a more "normal" adventurer.

However,

"..."

Akane's lips curved into a smile.

An adventurer as offbeat as this can't be found anywhere else.

Moreover, Kuren is by his side.

Kuren possesses the power that adventurers seek.

Currently, Kuren is somewhat immature for an intermediate adventurer.

Perhaps because she has been protected for a long time, she is not used to protecting others.

Adventurers are a profession that protects others.

If she doesn't learn how to protect someone, she will eventually hit a big wall.

Therefore, Akane is teaching her the skill of "protecting others" by example.

By deliberately making mistakes and being attacked by monsters, she continues to create situations where Kuren can help her.

When Kuren finally learns how to protect others, her skills as an adventurer will improve dramatically.

Akane believes that when Kuren completes her transformation, the team of just Seiki and Kuren will shake Japan.

A great possibility will be born.

Akane can witness their growth from the closest position.

What could be happier than that?

She will buy the best treasures they bring back first and shock the Ichimatsu employees.

She will laugh triumphantly in front of the treasures.

The faces of the envious employees come to mind.

Ufufu.

This is how I will climb the high stairs of Ichimatsu!

Uhehe!

Immersed in her fantasies and smiling, Akane, in the evening,

"Aha-ha-haan! My store is going to go bankrupt!"

She shed large tears at the mountain of materials Seiki had brought in.