*

　Makoto and the others were discussing at a table in the 'Golden Sheep' pavilion.

''--That's why we'd like to add Laura to our team.
'Well, that's fine. You can have as many shields as you want.
I'm following my brother's lead.
I don't mind.

　When I explained the situation and asked the pros and cons of Laura joining the team, Yuka, Fene and Liv agreed.
　There's only one guy saying something like a demon, but I inwardly pat my heart for having crossed the first hurdle.

''........Laura, please introduce yourself again.''
Laura Cerberus. I've been in the service of Master Chris, and I've made repeated blunders...........

　Laura grunted huskily.

'I've already explained what's going on, so stop introducing yourself as if you're rubbing salt in your own wounds.
'I beg your pardon. From today, I'm going to be a member of the team, and I'm ready to go to powder.
His job is to be a knight. Level 15.

　Yuka says, narrowing her eyes.

'Yes, I've trained as a knight. I'm good at fighting with a shield.''
''Hmm. I don't care what it is, but it's ominous for a shield player to be a powder keg.
.....

　Laura moaned softly when Yuka pointed it out to her.
　She may have said it with enough nuance to say that she would do her best to do her best, but it was an ominous combination.

''Well, it's better that I didn't say I was ready to crush your balls.
It's no good to have your shield officer dead in the water.
So you're lucky you didn't say anything.

　'Listen to me properly,' said Yuka, her lips twitching.

''I beg your pardon. This Laura Cerberus, I will play the role of a shield with an unyielding spirit.''
Well, don't get too wound up.

　You're being a bit of a pain in the ass, even though you've talked yourself out of it.

'What's next on the agenda, I want to take Laura to the next level.

　With the kidnapping case solved, it's probably only a matter of time before they move up in the ranks.
　Maybe I've already moved up in the ranks.
　I'd like to do some good work and retire early.
　I think so, but we should not be in a hurry.
　We need to strengthen our team for the future.

Any suggestions?
No. Paper shields are useless.
....
....

　Fene and Liv are silent.

'Then we'll level up in the dungeon.
Okay, it's a dungeon.

　Liv slammed her fists into her palms, happy.
　Maybe she was worried that she hadn't been useful in the Giant Skelton and King battles.

'Danjo of the Dead Spirit King--'
Dismissed!

　Fene interrupts Liv's words.

'Why?　The Reaper King's dungeons are crawling with powerful undead, and if you can break the record for the tiers you've reached, you'll be a great foil.

　Liv's lips twitched in frustration.
　The Reaper King - since he's called a king, he must be comparable to the Skeleton King.
　If it's an RPG, I'd say it's just before the last dungeon.
　Why do they want to go to such a dungeon?

I'm sure there are many undead spirits in the Reaper King's dungeon that are difficult to attack with physical attacks. It's not just my brother and sister, but we're all hobbled.
So don't go. You have to push yourself to be strong.

　It's not hard to see what you're saying, but it's suicidal, to put it mildly.
　If this is the general feeling of the Bison Horns, then the average life expectancy must be pretty short.
　I hope Liv values her life.

'It hurts on one side of my stomach to have a brother and a Miss, and to push myself to the edge.
Do you have a plan?

　I thought he was going to be furious, but Liv is calm.

''Don't get me started on those dungeons with their ominous rumors.
Of course. What I'm proposing is a Legion dungeon.
A swarm dungeon?
Yes. There are two types of dungeons, one where one undead person makes a dungeon and another where multiple undead people make a dungeon.

　When Mako asked back, Fene answered proudly.

'Is there no sinister rumors there?'
No. Besides, we don't have any strong undead, so it's a great way to level up.
Well, that's okay.

　Fighting the strong undead will help you level up, but if you let Laura die, you won't be able to see it.
　Safety first.

''I'd like to go to the swarm dungeon next, what do you think?
No.
Of course not.
Well, I guess we'll see.
No problem.
Now we know what to do next, don't we?

　I expected a little more trouble, but my fears were unfounded.
'After this, I'll go to the church and have the bounty transferred...'
"Makoto.

　Liv raises her hand.

'I don't need to ask. It's hand-to-hand, right?
There's what I'm talking about.

　Liv bared her teeth and laughed.

'Isn't f*cking with me just going to make you lose your confidence?
You have no idea. You're so close to a guy who's stronger than you are. What are you going to do if you don't take advantage of this opportunity?
Not a chance.
Oh, yeah. It's not every day you get to learn how to play against the best. Don't the new guy think so?
'Yes. I think it's an experience you can't get from fighting a strong man.

　Laura responded to the question with a serious look on her face.

'Right. How about the new guy too?
Is it to meet up with Makoto-sama?
It's not just about Makoto, let's do it with me. You don't know how far you can go from level 15.

　Liv is smirking, but maybe she wanted to take this flow from the beginning.

''........Okay. I'd like to go back to get my armor.
Well, I'll see you in church.
Why don't we meet at the south gate?
Yeah, you're good.

　Well, as long as you keep up with the ribs, it won't be a problem, Makoto tilted his gaze.
　As it was before noon, the restaurant was not popular.
　Other than themselves, the other customer was a man named Alan.
　Shelly's ex-boyfriend is sitting at the end of the counter - Makoto's designated seat - and seems to be enjoying the conversation.
　How could he show his face to his brother and this man?
　Mako would be too embarrassed to show her face, but I'm not surprised that she's so thick-skinned.
　The brainlessness of accepting such people is disgusting.
　Once a man has betrayed you, he will betray you again and again.
　I'm not sure if I'm putting too much emphasis on my brother, Makoto said, shaking his head.
　That man Alan is not necessarily the same as his brother.
　Shelly was waiting for the man and the man came back to Shelly.
　He kept his word.
　That's what I mean.

"...Mako.
What?
You look so scary.

　Yuka said with a sighing sound.

*

Miss Makoto!
Yo, yo.

　As Mako and the others entered the church, the girl at the reception desk crowded in with an excited look on her face.

'Congratulations!'
Congratulations?
Makoto-sama's team has been promoted to the B rank!
I see.

　I thought it was only a matter of time before I was promoted, but I'm not stunned, Mako thinks.
　It's similar to when you got your car license.
　I've been studying all night long, and I've been able to get my license in no time at all.

I'm not happy about it.
No, I don't think so.

　The girl says apologetically, and Makoto hurriedly denies it.
　It's a good thing that you can't get away from the fact that you've been promoted from E to B in a short period of time if you're talking about Makoto and Yuka only.
　It's a good achievement considering the time period.

I know what you want to say, Makoto-sama. I'm confident that Makoto-sama and the others have A-class, or even S-class abilities, but the church's higher-ups complain about the precedent and the other adventurers.

　The girl was mumbling and complaining, but the church bigwigs had no precedent and promoted her to a B-rank in a situation that could have caused other adventurers' complaints to erupt.
　Shouldn't we be grateful for the wisdom of the decision considering the situation where we have only completed three requests?

''Really, I don't have any complaints.
Miss Makoto.

　The girl folded her hands at her chest and looked up at Mako with bewildered eyes.

'By the way, how would you like to make your request?'
I'm going to explore the dungeon next.
Okay.

　The girl's shoulders slumped disappointedly.

'Sorry.'
No.

　Mako and the others head to the altar.

Welcome, messengers of the seven evil ones.

　As we passed through the hall with its neat rows of long chairs, the priest greeted us in the same way he always does.
　I wondered when this man was taking a break.

'Thank you for your hard work the other day,'
Don't they pay you to take them down?

　Yuka asked, and the priest chuckled.
　It was neat and clean, yet lustrous.

''Since the seven evils are human, they are not eligible for the reward of defeating them.
Is that human?
Yes, he's human.

　Mako patted her chest.

'I'm not answering.'
Don't sound so sorry.
Why?
If the King gets a kill fee, I'll get one too.

　If there is a hefty defeat reward set up, he will be made an enemy of the world.
　In Yuka's case, I'm afraid he's going to scratch his head in his sleep.

''What can I do for you today?''
Your fee has been transferred to the bank.
Okay. Now, hands....

　Laura said, and the priest held out his hand.
　Makoto, Yuka, Fene and Liv put their hands on their right hand and Laura put her hand on her left.

'Please transfer 10,000A to each of the four accounts.
I understand.

　The priest gave a small nod at Laura's words.
　The balance was displayed and the numbers were instantly rewritten.

'We look forward to seeing you again,'
Yeah, I'll come back to you.
'Of course. That's what I'm here for.

　I suppose he doesn't just do banking, but I have a feeling that the priest has other work to do more.
　Mako and the others move to the reception area of the church.

'I guess we're dismissed for now. What are you guys going to do?
I'll be at the inn reading from a grimoire.
I'm going shopping.

　Yuka is as indoor as ever.
　I'm worried that she's going to stay indoors.

''What's with your eyes?''
It's nothing.
You wouldn't look at me like that if you didn't have anything?
Shouldn't you be out there instead of holed up indoors?
It's okay.

　Sure enough, Yuka's lips quirked up as if she wasn't amused.
　What am I supposed to do?
　When I was around Yuka's age, I think I had a much milder personality.
　The parents of a high school girl must have a hard time being the parents of a high school girl.

'I'm trying to be serious in my own way,'
All right. I trust you.
It's not my eyes that I believe?
What do you want me to do?
You don't have to do anything.
It's a pain in the ass. It's tough being a high school dad.
I'm sure the fathers of the world are doing a hundred times better than you are.

　Yuka said with a straight face.
　'I don't think there's a straight face all of a sudden.

'If I told you that your father was worried about you--'
You didn't give a shit about me all this time, of course I'm going to talk back to you and stop acting like a father.
Well, yeah.

　Even if you take care of him properly, Yuka is going to tell him not to play fatherly....

'I can't play the father figure unless I marry your mother first.
I don't want to be treated like a father in that situation. It's bad publicity. Do you really want to go back to that world?
Nope.

　I can't get my old life back in this form.
　Besides--''

''I can make more money in this world~''
You really don't seem to have a problem with it.
'You've got to go to a place that buys you a lot of money. Well, it's like changing jobs.
That's quite a big change for you.
I didn't expect to cross the world on my first job change, though.

　Yuka said in disgust, and Makoto chuckled.