Chapter 22

"Alright, shall we take on an E-rank promotion request for Esther today?"

"Oh, I can finally be at the same rank as you guys!"

After organizing our equipment, we came to the Adventurer's Guild. Our purpose was Esther's E-rank promotion. I had given Noelle a MP potion because she had run out of MP.

"Hopefully, we can avoid going too far away..."

"Oh, how about this one? It's a request for extermination and delivery near the capital."

We headed towards the request board, and the adventurers made a path for us, avoiding us. Geez, are they overreacting!?

I looked at the posted requests, but they were all requests to go to villages. I thought there would be more extermination requests around the capital, but there were surprisingly few.

As I was looking through them, Noelle brought me a request.

"Hmm, a B-rank extermination. And the reward is low."

"I'm fine with anything as long as I can get promoted."

The request was for the extermination of a B-rank target, the Eagle Warrior Chief, and the delivery of its beak. Normally, it would be a delivery request, but since it's a drop item from a B-rank target, it's also considered an extermination request.

We should be able to handle it without any issues, but the reward is low. 5000G for both extermination and delivery. This is a bad request that no one wants to take.

The reward for a request is determined by the client. If the reward is too low, like this one, it will remain unclaimed for a long time.

Well, as long as Esther can get promoted, it's fine.

"Excuse me, I'd like to take this request."

"Oh, yes. Please wait a moment... B-rank!? Ah, I'm so sorry!"

When I handed the request to the reception, a young woman with long blue hair was there. She had a well-endowed chest, so I wouldn't forget her if I had seen her before. She must be new.

I handed her the request, and she was surprised to see it was a B-rank request and looked at our plates.

"Excuse me, but this is a B-rank extermination request. It's not suitable for E-rank adventurers..."

"Ah, Widge, these people are fine."

"But...?"

The usual receptionist called out to the confused woman. It seems this busty girl is named Widge. I'll remember that.

But what does she mean by "these people are fine"? What kind of reputation do we have in this guild?

"I'm sorry, Mr. Oogura. This girl has been away at other guilds and just returned yesterday, so she doesn't know the situation."

"No, no, it's fine. Don't worry about it."

She wasn't new but had been at other places. Yesterday was the battle with Deus, but this girl had just returned and didn't see it.

"Mr. Oogura, these are the people who defeated Deus! Wow!"

"Hehe..."

She blushed and seemed embarrassed and flustered.

But "Mr. Deus"? Ugh, this girl is also a fan of his.

●

The Eagle Warrior Chief seems to inhabit the forest south of the capital. We immediately headed out through the southern gate and made our way to the forest.

We hid a beacon in a nearby bush where there were no people and prepared for the return trip. This task is always a hassle. I need a place in town where I can safely place a beacon, even if it's just a storage area.

"Alright, we'll use this to move today."

"Oh, it's floating!"

"Can we really ride this?"

Walking to the forest would be a hassle, so I took out a new item from my smartphone.

――――――

● Magic Carpet

A carpet enchanted with magic.

It can move freely. Be careful not to dance with misfortune.

――――――

An SSR Magic Carpet, about the size of a tatami mat. When I placed it on the ground, it floated to about knee height.

It's scary to think that such a thin carpet can really be ridden, but it's SSR, so it should be fine.

"Isn't it going to be conspicuous?"

"Yeah, I'll try to avoid people if I see them on the map."

It's floating, and even if we move a bit away from the road, there shouldn't be any problems. It might be a hassle if we're seen, but if I keep the map maximized and pay attention, it should be fine.

"Alright, let's go."

We immediately got on, and I started the carpet. The operation seems to depend on the owner, and it moves in the direction I want to go.

I used to have a driver's license and drove, but it's been a while. I'm getting excited.

"It's fast..."

"Kyaa, big brother, it's scary."

"Hey, don't cling to me."

I got a bit carried away and increased the speed. It should be about 50 km/h, but it feels particularly fast because we're exposed.

I thought about slowing down, but Esther clung to me from behind. It's nice, but I feel like she's been touching me more lately.

"Is Noelle feeling sick?"

"I'm fine! You can go even faster!"

The ride isn't bad. It's comfortable and doesn't shake much because it's floating. After experiencing the hell of a carriage, it feels like heaven.

●

We arrived at our destination in about ten minutes. We were lucky not to encounter anyone.

If we had to walk, it would have taken much longer. Gacha items are really convenient.

"Is this where the target is?"

"There are monsters wandering around already."

"There are a lot of them."

The forest stretches as far as the eye can see, much larger than the one in Brunne. Near the forest, there are human-sized monsters with eagle-like faces walking around.

They are covered in blue feathers, walk on two legs, wear armor, and carry a one-handed sword and a shield. Their legs are thin and have four toes, and they seem to move quickly.

Let's check their stats as usual.

――――――

● Species: Eagle Warrior

Level: 45

HP: 12,000

MP: 0

Attack: 350

Defense: 100

Agility: 90

Magic Resistance: 0

Special Ability: None

Skill: None

――――――

Wow, these stats for a common enemy!? They are weaker than the Ogres, which were C-rank, but there are dozens of them.

Each one isn't much, but the number is overwhelming. Normal adventurers would die. No wonder no one takes this request.

"Hey, is that the B-rank target?"

"There are quite a few accompanying them."

Among them, there was a particularly large Eagle Warrior covered in red feathers. It was surrounded by a dozen Eagle Warriors.

That must be the target, the Eagle Warrior Chief. Let's check its stats.

――――――

● Eagle Warrior Chief Species: Eagle Warrior

Level: 60

HP: 24,000

MP: 0

Attack: 900

Defense: 150

Agility: 180

Magic Resistance: 0

Special Ability: None

Skill: God Speed

――――――

Oh, this is a tough one. I don't want to face it normally. Without support and buffs, I wouldn't have the motivation to fight.

Its agility is almost twice Noelle's. Noelle and I are fine, but Esther would be in trouble if targeted.

"Esther, give us enhancement magic first. Can you hit them with area magic? Noelle, protect Esther after she casts the area magic."

"Understood."

"Hehe, it's a piece of cake."

Let's eliminate the surrounding enemies first and focus on the Chief. They have high agility and move quickly. Esther, who gains hate from the enemies, will be targeted first.

It's safer to have Noelle, who has higher agility than me, protect her. I have over 2000 attack power, and my attack and movement speed are nearly doubled. Although I'm not as battle-hardened as Noelle, I should be able to handle this.

"Alright, here we go, hey!"

First, I received enhancement magic from Esther.

She waved her staff, and a magic circle spread centered on the Chief. The Eagle Warriors noticed and started running towards us.

Then the magic circle glowed, and a small fireball appeared at the center. It grew larger and exploded.

Noelle and I stepped forward with our pot lid and shield to protect ourselves from the blast. It was a tremendous explosion, and smoke spread everywhere.

In GC, magic attacks were single-hit damage, but in this world, they seem to deal multi-hit damage, exceeding the attack power.

"Did we get them!?"

"That explosion... They shouldn't have survived!"

That explosion should have killed them in one hit. But one Eagle Warrior flew out of the smoke.

It was the red-feathered Eagle Warrior Chief. It let out a roar and ran towards us, surrounded by a faint red aura.

Some of the other Eagle Warriors also survived and ran towards Esther, while others who had escaped the explosion's range were rushing over.

To stop the Chief, who reached us first, I ran forward.

"Whoa!? This guy is fast!"

"Mr. Oogura! Calm down! You can handle this, Mr. Oogura!"

I blocked the one-handed sword with my pot lid and swung my bar. However, it dodged before I could hit it.

We clashed a few more times, but while its attacks grazed my armor, I couldn't land a hit. I was using wind magic to deal minor damage, but it wasn't enough.

Why? I should have a higher attack speed.

Noelle, who was dealing with the approaching Eagle Warriors, shouted. Even though she told me to calm down...

I managed to keep the Chief engaged, but it was moving around, leaving red trails, like when she used her skill. If it targets Esther, I'm not sure even Noelle can handle it.

The Chief ran towards me again. It seemed impossible to catch up and hit it.

So this time, I pushed it back when the sword hit my lid. Surprised, the Chief stumbled and stopped moving for a moment.

I took the opportunity to stab it in the abdomen with my bar, and it let out a scream. The red aura disappeared, and its speed visibly dropped.

My Skull Ring must have activated and sealed its skill. Without the skill, the Chief was slow enough for me to handle, so I stabbed it repeatedly with my bar.

When its HP ran out, it fell and turned into particles of light, dropping items.

"Phew... The bigger ones are more intimidating, but the human-sized ones are more dangerous."

"Good job. We've taken care of the rest."

"Hehe, you did well, big brother. You looked a bit cool."

Noelle and Esther had also finished off the Eagle Warriors, and the ground was scattered with swords and beaks.

Phew, I thought it was dangerous, but these two handled it as usual. It was nice to be praised, but I need to get stronger.