"So, what are you guys going to do now? I assume you're not harvesting anything in Veltora Grass because there are monsters there?" (Yuna)
"Now that you two have defeated the giant Snake, I think I'll go gather some Veltora Grass. I'll need some Veltora Grass even if we have Marne-san make it for us." (Zect)
Certainly, to get Marne-san to make medicine, they needed herbs as materials.
"If you just tell us where to find them, we'll go and get them for you, you know." (Marne)
Marne-san knew what kind of herb Veltora Grass was. She could gather for them.
"I appreciate the thought, but it's in a place that's a little hard to find, so it'll be quicker if we go and collect it ourselves." (Zect)
"But there were monsters around so we couldn't gather any." (Lydia)
He said they went near here because he thought there were medicinal herbs, but there were monsters there and they couldn't collect any.
"We've been running away from the giant Snake for about two days, so other monsters might be on the move." (Zect)
In other words, you wouldn't know until you go.
"Just to confirm, what are your abilities? You said earlier that it would be better for just the two of you to gather the materials. In the unlikely event that something happens, your life will be at risk if you can't fight the monsters, you know." (Marne)
I thought to myself that even Marne-san couldn't say much about other people. Marne-san can't protect herself, so she hired me as her bodyguard.
"For now, we're D-rank adventurers. I use a sword. Lydia mainly uses a bow, but she can use a little magic, so we can fight a little." (Zect)
"We can't handle such a big Snake though." (Lydia)
That's too big. I didn't think it's possible unless you had the skills of a party like Jade-san. I wanted C-rank ability.
"Also, as I said before, I avoid fighting monsters. Lydia has good eyes and ears and is good at searching for enemies. She can detect traces of monsters passing by." (Zect)
"Traces of monsters?" (Yuna)
"You can find footprints, traces of a body rubbing against a tree, or, in the case of a wolf, dead fur, and then you can somehow tell where a monster has passed. You can avoid those places." (Lydia)
"Thanks to Lydia, we've been able to avoid monsters. When we absolutely have to go further, we check the types and numbers of monsters, and when we judge that there are enough of them to be defeated, Lydia launches a surprise attack with a bow or magic, and I charge in and defeat them." (Zect)
Instead of fighting head on, they attacked from a distance and attacked where damage had been done. Even monsters would suddenly attack. There was no need to fight each other fair and square. Whoever finds it first will have an advantage in battle. Even I used my detection skill to confirm their location and attack first.
"You're better than I thought, huh" (Marne)
"This is the only way we can fight." (Zect)
Maybe it's great if they had established their own fighting style. They wouldn't fight an impossible battle.
"I thought about forming a party, but because of my sister's illness, I can't ask others. Even if I could, we might end up arguing over the division of the reward." (Zect)
"Plus, if we tell them the locations of the herbs we found, there's a chance that the adventurer might come and collect them after the party disbands." (Lydia)
Certainly, it could not be said that there was no possibility. If they could get information about medicinal herbs, they wouldn't need Zect-san. Of course, there were some adventurers who wouldn't do that. However, there's no guarantee that the adventurers you were paired with wouldn't do it. If you chose the wrong party, you wouldn't be able to get any medicinal herbs.
"I see, huh. The things in the forest belong to no one. Anyone can collect them without being blamed." (Marne)
What's in the forest didn't belong to anyone. Unless the government managed it, just because you were the first to find it did not mean it belonged to you. So, maybe it's common to try to deal with it in a way that kept it from being known by others. I didn't want someone else to take away what I'd worked so hard to find. Even in games, I didn't want people to know where I could earn experience points or money. Because then people would fight over it.
After hearing the whole story, Marne-san became lost in thought.
"Yuna, it's up to you to decide whether or not to take these kids." (Marne)
Just when I thought he was thinking about it, she suddenly said that.
"Me?" (Yuna)
"Among us here, you are the strongest. Yuna has the authority to decide that." (Marne)
"If it's authority, shouldn't it my employer, Marne-san?" (Yuna)
"No. I only ask for what I have the authority to do, you know." (Marne)
"That's the same thing." (Yuna)
"Yuna has the right to refuse. Your employer may ask for something unreasonable. You can refuse. I believe that in dangerous places, the strongest and most experienced person has the right to decide what to do. That's the least risk to life." (Marne)
Certainly, if you're asked to slay a dragon or do something unreasonable, you had the right to refuse.
"If you want to make an unreasonable request, it's the employer's job to hire someone capable of carrying it out and pay them a high price." (Marne)
That's what adventurer ranks were for. Even if it's impossible at a low rank, it might be possible at a higher rank.
"So, the one who can make the final decision here is Yuna." (Marne)
I felt like I was being forced into it, but it's true.
"By the way, I'm useless in combat, you know." (Marne)
Marne-san said that, for some reason puffing out her chest. That said, the liquid that Snake hated was useful.
"If we're gathering herbs, it'll just be the two of us." (Zect)
"I understand that you don't want us to know where the herbs are, but it's strange that that giant Snake appeared so close to where we entered the forest, you know." (Marne)
"Really?" (Zect)
"This forest is deep. No one knows how far it extends. Long ago, Sanya tried to investigate it using a summoned bird, but was attacked by a flying monster and had to give up soon after. However, Sanya said that 'the forest stretches on forever.'" (Marne)
Sanya-san had been here before. Or maybe she sent a summoned bird from the royal capital? Maybe it's possible because it had flown all the way to Crimonia before.
"And after only being in the forest for two days, we were attacked by a monster like that." (Marne)
"Two days?"
"You two have been in the forest for two days?"
"That's right though, how about you two?" (Marne)
"...ten days."
"You took a detour to avoid the monsters, right? That's the difference in ability between you and Yuna, you know." (Marne)
I was happy that she praised me. We were able to get around thanks to Kumayuru and Kumakyu. If Kumayuru and Kumakyu hadn't been there, maybe Marne-san would have had to walk, and it would have taken a long time, regardless of whether I was there or not.
"...nii-san." (Lydia)
"...I get it. She..." (Zect)
Zect-san looked at me.
"You can call me Yuna." (Yuna)
Since Marne-san was older than me, he called her san, but he seemed to be having trouble figuring out how to address me since I was younger and dressed as a bear, so I answered first.
"Yuna, if you're fine, please take us with you. If we get into a dangerous situation, I don't mind you abandon me. But please protect Lydia." (Zect)
"...nii-san!" (Lydia)
Is this meant to be abandoned by me? Well, maybe his two younger sisters were important to Zect-san.
"Yuna, so what are you going to do?"
There's no way to do anything, and it seemed like there's no way to refuse.
I was thinking. Personally speaking, it felt like a hindrance. My only advantage was directions. I wanted some more benefits.
"That's right. If you know of any interesting herbs or habitats, please let Marne-san know." (Yuna)
"That is……" (Zect)
"I don't have any intention of stealing it. If I get the medicinal herb I'm after, this will be my first and last time coming to this forest." (Marne)
"Yes. There's no use for me, right? And like I said, if I can make a deal with you guys, it's fine. In the future, if I ever need any medicinal herbs from this forest, I can just ask you for help." (Yuna)
"...I understand. In that case, I'll show you around." (Zect)
The deal was done. There's no benefit to me, but Marne-san had benefited, so I was okay with it.
"And you'll have to follow my instructions, okay?" (Zect)
"Okay." (Yuna)
"Nice to meet you. Yuna-chan" (Lydia)
The two of them agreed. This seemed to be thanks to defeating the giant Snake. And it seemed that Lydia-san called me Yuna-chan.
"Well, if you'd like to come with me, then I'll introduce you to Kumayuru and Kumakyu. The black bear is Kumayuru, and the white bear is Kumakyu. They are my summoned beasts. If you do nothing, they won't attack you. But if you try to do anything to us, they will attack you, so be careful, okay?" (Yuna)
I gave them a word of advice though. I didn't think Zect-san and his sister would attack me though. You never know what's going to happen in life. Sometimes you'd suddenly be dressed in a bear costume and transported to another world. Compared to that, maybe the chances of being attacked by adventurers were higher.
"Kumayuru and Kumakyu, right? Such cute names, aren't they?" (Lydia)
"These kids will tell you if there are any monsters nearby, so don't worry." (Yuna)
"Well then, I guess I won't have a role to play, huh?" (Lydia)
"But let me know if you notice anything." (Yuna)
We came to an agreement and decided to leave the cave. I rode on Kumakyu, Marne-san on Kumayuru, and they both walked.
"How far is it to the exit?" (Yuna)
"Not too far." (Lydia)
"We were attacked by a giant Snake and just ran a little." (Zect)
Just as Zect-san said, after walking for a while, the light outside came into view. I used the detection skill. There were no monsters in the direction of the exit.
"Even so, Snake really isn't coming near us." (Zect)
"We were attacked a number of times when we passed through." (Lydia)
"It's a medicine I made, you know. It's only natural that it's effective." (Marne)
There might also be another reason why they didn't attack, which was the presence of Kumayuru and Kumakyu, but I wouldn't say anything about it.
It was true that the medicine had an effect against the giant Snake.
And so, we were able to leave the cave safely.
Author's Note
They decided to go together.
We are currently accepting preorders for the paperback version of volume 11. The release date is October 4th. Thank you.
*Starting today, we will be returning to posting on Wednesdays and Sundays.
If I will be taking a break, this will be announced in the postscript, and if I am suddenly unable to post, I will let you know in an activity report or on X (formerly Twitter).
[Book release schedule]
Book volume 20.5 was released on May 2, 2024. (The next volume, volume 21, is planned and in the works.)
The 12th volume of the comic was released on August 3, 2024. (The release date for the next volume, 13, has not yet been decided.)
The second volume of the comic spin-off was released on March 5, 2024.
The paperback version of volume 10 was released on May 2, 2024. (The deadline for the campaign to win a big acrylic stand featuring Yuna and Sanya on the cover is August 20, 2024. 20 lucky winners will receive a prize.) (The next volume, volume 11, is scheduled to be released on October 4.)
*Thank you to everyone who reports typos.
Some of the kanji have been corrected to match the book, so please understand that there are some parts that have not been corrected.