After yesterday's rain, we were greeted with a beautiful blue sky from this morning.
　Our footsteps were lighter than usual as we walked towards the forest.

"Now that it's raining, do you think there will be many mushrooms growing?
"I don't think it's easy to grow mushrooms, but I guess it's the time of year when they tend to grow.

　For me, mushrooms are artificially cultivated ones that I buy at the supermarket and the weather doesn't matter, but when it comes to natural ones, I guess the weather has a big impact on them.

　I've heard on the TV news that the price of matsutake mushrooms is going up this year because of the bad weather, but it had nothing to do with me as a commoner.

　I've eaten matsutake mushrooms before, but my impression is that they are indeed delicious, but I'd rather eat meat if I have to pay that price.

"By the way, I found out yesterday that orcs are also quite profitable.
Is that so?
Yes. Compared to goblins, magic stones are more expensive, and they sell meat.

　You can sell orc meat?
　I don't know what they look like, but if they are what I imagine orcs to look like, I don't want to eat them.

"Orc ...... 'Kukkoro-san'?
Idiot!　Don't make a flag. What if it's serious?

　If it's a gag, it's "Kukkoro, Kukkoro-san.
　If it's a gag, you can say "Kukkoro, Kukkoro", but if there's a possibility of harm to your family, it's not worth the trouble.

"Fickle?　What's that?

　It's true that only a few people can understand "Kukkoro". In fact, I'd be surprised if Natsuki knew about it.
　But it's too hard to explain it in detail. It's too embarrassing for me. So I'll use a rather mild and roundabout expression: .......

"Oh, I thought women could be attacked by orcs.
I don't think there are women or men who get attacked. ....... No, of course women and children would be more dangerous physically.

　He nodded his head.
　I don't know if I'm getting the meaning right, but it doesn't matter. I'll just nod.

That's not what they're saying. They're asking if you're going to be s*xually assaulted.
"s*xual ...... what?

　I thought I could fake it!　I'm not sure what to make of this.
　Yuki is ...... amused. It's very possible that he knew what he was doing.

It's impossible to think like that. It's a different species.　What kind of super genes do goblins and orcs have that allow them to reproduce?

　"Super genes" ...... is a very apt description.
　If it's possible to reproduce with humans, it's also possible with apes, boars, and so on.

But you know about 'that thing', don't you, Haruka?
"Oh, you idiot!

　I tried to stop Toya from pointing out something that didn't need to be caught, but it was already too late.

Yes, I saw it in Nao's room.

　I knew you hadn't forgotten!

Oh, no!　No, no, no!　That was Toya.
Oh, my God!　Don't drag me into this!
It's yours, for Christ's sake!　Just do it! I gave you that game!
Even if it's true, you're supposed to keep your mouth shut!
No!　We're in this together!

　I'm a guy too, I can't deny I was a little happy, but I can't forgive Toya for making it happen!
　I'm sure you're not the only one.

I don't care who owns it. It doesn't matter which one of us owns it. After all, you did it, didn't you?　Both of you.
"Ugh.

　Of course we did!　If I had a game in my possession that I couldn't get through legitimate means because of my age!
　Regardless of whether it fits or not, if someone doesn't play it even if it's in his possession, he's not a prepubescent man!　I assure you.

I assure you, it's not even 99% the same genes.　It's impossible. Of course you could be eaten, as you should be.

　That's a tough one. The end of your life in the belly of an orc.
　But it's true what Haruka said.

"No, I think they're actually monogamous, don't you?　This is also the reason why there are no goblin females in the world. ......

What is it?　I'm sure you'll be able to understand why. When they hatch, they'll bite through the insides and--

Oh, my God, stop!　I'm imagining it!



　Toya interrupted my biological musings and held my head.
　You're the one who started it.

Stop it! You're making Natsuki nervous. Besides, it doesn't matter in this world.
Oops, sorry. Forget it. Forget about it.

　Including the stuff I borrowed from Toya.

Uh, yes. We're both healthy men, and I think our slightly peculiar interests are part of our personality. Whether they'll accept it or not is a bit of a question. ......

Wait a minute. Don't try to be understanding. I can't stand it. Fiction, fiction, you know?　It's a completely different story from your real-life tastes, okay?

　It's not like you're a pedophile in real life just because you like loli characters in erotic manga.

"Yes, yes. It's not like you're confusing them with reality.

　I'm sure you're not the only one.

"What's wrong?
No, on second thought, I have a wife with beast ears.
"Don't say that now!　You may be trying to turn a fiction into reality!　But that's a whole other story!

　In Japan, if you were to seriously say something like "I'm going to get a bride with beast ears," you'd be a painful guy, but in this world, it's quite normal. But in this world, it is quite normal. Toya also has beast ears now.
　The comparison itself is ridiculous.

"Don't worry, Natsuki. "Don't worry, Natsuki. Most of what Nao has is normal.
Is that so?
Yeah. I don't think you have any special proclivities that would end your life if people knew.

　I'm not sure what I should say to Haruka, who nodded confidently.

Should I say, "......, I'm glad you understand?
I'd say hide it better.

　That's funny. It's funny. I was pursued for that thing I borrowed from Toya, but I don't remember them finding anything else.
　I'm sure you'll be happy to hear that.

By the way, may I ask what your hobby is?
Well, I'm pretty sure Nao...

Come on!　Let's keep our heads up!　We've never been to this place before, after all!　Hey, Toya.

Yeah, yeah, yeah!　We can't be too careful!

　It's not good to talk about it anymore.
　Realizing the obvious, I clapped Toya on the back and hurried off into the woods.

　I never hear what the three of them are talking about behind my back.
　Yeah, totally!　Everything I hear about maids and sailor suits is a hallucination. That must be it.

　　　　I must be.

"This ...... is growing faster than I thought, isn't it?
"Oh. Is this what mushrooms are like?

　Before going to the new area, we visited the place where we collected the mushrooms the day before yesterday, and we were a little confused when we saw the magic mushrooms growing there.

　The mushrooms that we hadn't collected the day before yesterday were now all over five centimeters long. The largest ones are now close to 7cm.
　In other words, they have grown more than two centimeters in just two days.

I've never grown mushrooms before, so I don't know, but I've heard that they grow quickly in a good environment.

"Yes, I have. Mushroom cultivation. I have a mushroom cultivation kit that I can use at home. It was slow at first, but once it started to grow, it got bigger and bigger.

So this is what mushrooms are like?
It's not strange, is it?　But I don't think they will grow back for a while if I pick the ones that are growing now.

　Of course, just because it grows fast doesn't mean it will grow fast.
　If the environment is right, it will grow in a few weeks, but basically, you have to wait until the next year.

　Moreover, magic mushrooms are said to grow on trees that have been down for a year or two, so there is no guarantee that they will grow on this tree next year.

But at this rate of growth, if we leave it for another three days, the price will increase tenfold, right?
Over ten centimeters. ...... That's the math, but will it work?
There are some pitfalls. If it were that easy, it wouldn't be so expensive.
Either they'll be eaten or they'll grow too slowly. ......

　If it's so easy to grow over ten centimeters, the price can't be that high.



What do we do?　Do we take it?　Leave it?
It's hard to say. Leave it for a few days and it will increase tenfold, or it will disappear and become zero. I think the probability of zero is probably higher.
"Then let's have a majority vote. Who thinks we should collect it now?

　Those who raised their hands were me, Haruka, and Natsuki.

We're divided into the steady type and the gamblers.
It's not really gamblers, is it?　There's a reason for that, you know.
Huh?

You see, we killed Vipu Bear the day before yesterday.　If this is his territory, why would he come here to eat?

It's true, if it's only vipe-bears that eat them, but ...... there could be other animals and even competitors, right?

　I don't know if there are two rookie parties and how many other parties there are, but it's not impossible. I haven't met any of them around here.

What about you, Yuki?
I'm not really sure. ...... I just thought that if they ate some of it, there'd be some left over.

If a bear that size ate it, it would be uprooted. Even if a bear of that size ate it, it would probably uproot it.

　If vipe-bears grow big enough to eat, they'll get more.

"Well, now that we have a majority vote, let's harvest everything and move on.
Okay.

　So we picked up the magic mushrooms that were over five centimeters long, and moved on to the second location.
　There was a slightly unexpected sight.

Annihilation.

　Everything over five centimeters was gone, even the smaller ones.

"This is the work of an animal. There are marks where it was nibbled off.

　When I looked at where Natsuki pointed, it was clearly different from where we had collected it.
　The shaft is halfway torn off, the pith is still intact, and there are many scratches on the wood.

I don't know if it's a Weipu Bear or not, but it looks like it was the right thing to do. It's nature, and the competition is fierce.
"Well, let's move to the third location as quickly as possible.
Right.

　Then we moved a little faster to the third location. There were no problems here, so we collected them.
　As with the first location, once you've collected more than five centimeters, there's very little left, so it's not clear whether it's worth coming back to collect more.

I got a good amount, but it's only 20 gold coins, right? Shall we try to find a new one?
Sure.
I'll take the lead, and Nao will stay behind, focusing on searching. I'll take the lead and Nao will be behind me.
Yes.

　We all agreed to Toya's plan, and we began to expand our search.