The pot tipped over with a loud bang.
The fire that was underneath it was stepped on by someone and extinguished.
Oh no, my lunch was gone.
It was something I had spent a lot of time making, but it only took a moment for it to go to waste, and I watched it from behind Tsuda-kun's shield.

Demons don't care if we're eating food or being vigilant, they'll attack us.
That has happened many times since we entered this forest.
How many times have we missed out on a meal?
I don't have the means of attack that would work against demons like everyone else, but if there is one person as strong as Oda-kun, he might not miss lunch, and it might not be time for dinner after dark while he's running away.
Thinking that far, I softly mocked myself.
It's not a good thing for someone who is currently being protected by Tsuda-kun's shield to think about, and even if Oda-kun were here, I'm extremely tired of my own thoughts of trying to save the day by imposing everything on him.
I'd rather sacrifice someone else to save everyone else, then I'd rather be .......

I'm not sure I'm going to be able to get away with it," shouted Waki, suddenly holding the trembling monkey and cat next to me.


'Why is there a robot in this forest?


The voice brought me back to reality.
What was I thinking now?

Our precious lunch was interrupted by a bipedal robot that looked out of place in this world, a robot that looked like something a boy would like.
Though it was a robot, its movements were smooth and versatile.
It might be more satisfying to be told that there is a human being inside.
But it was an unmistakable robot, and with its silver armor emitting a dull light, it would stand out in the forest.
Or rather, it's artificial to look at.
Its size is about the size of a normal human, but it's too hard to attack, and its attacks are so dense that even Shiori, who has the fine motor skills to avoid the attacks of whale monsters, can't dodge them, and some of its attacks contain poison.
The attacks can be performed at close quarters or from a distance if you move away.
It's a true nightmare.
I wonder what the people who made this robot had against us.
Furthermore, Shiori says that the robot is probably powered by magic, so as long as its magic doesn't run out, it will continue to move.
In other words, it would probably be enough to deplete their magic, but I'm afraid we'll fall before that happens.
By the way, Shiori's 'Evil Food' can't be used because it can't be approached in the first place.


''Ueno-san! I'm sorry, can you remotely detoxify the poison?!


When I huffed at Tsukasa's shout, I looked up and saw that Tsukasa's left arm was slackly lowered, apparently having been hit by a long-range attack.
Probably a paralytic poison.
Worst of all, if Tsukasa-kun slips out now, Nanase-kun and Jir-san will fall down.

While nodding hurriedly, it occurred to me that there might be some reason for my uncharacteristic thoughts from earlier.
I had some idea of the sensation I had woken up from the dream by Waki-kun's voice.
It feels similar to the curse that was placed on me at the castle.
I've heard in some adventurer's guild that mental interference skills usually feel the same way when they are cast: .......
When I thought about it that much, I found the answer.
Because it's so high performance.
It's not surprising that they have a skill or two.


'This robot is also interfering with my mind! Watch out!


While I felt everyone raised their alert level, I reached out my hand and got as close to Tsukasa-kun as I could while casting a spell on myself.
Fortunately, Tsukasa was within my current limits.
Just barely, but I can reach him.
The other two, unfortunately, will not be able to reach it.
Tsukasa's left arm is surrounded by a faint light.
If you were closer, you could detoxify it faster.


"Tsuda-kun, can you step forward? Tsukasa-kun can reach it just in time, but the other two can't: ...... Tsuda-kun?


The shield that had always stood firmly to protect me was shaking.
I look up at the face of my classmate, who is much more girlish than I am, and I see an empty light in his eyes.
Sheesh, I bit my lip involuntarily.
I should have known with a little bit of thought that since I was being called upon, Tsuda-kun, who was standing between me and the robot, would be affected as well.
If this is the case, Tsuda might sacrifice himself to protect everyone else, just as I had thought earlier.
I grabbed Tsuda-kun's arm and kept calling his name.
They don't recognize me, or they resist.

I was able to recognize him because I'm a dismissalist, but I couldn't get my head around that much, even though it wouldn't be surprising if he didn't recognize me in any other profession.
But if I focused on undoing Ima Tsuda-kun's spell, I wouldn't be able to detoxify him if the three of us in the battle were hit by the attack.
In the meantime, what if the poison was shot at them and they were injured because of it?
How can I do this .......
...... I might not be able to do it with me after all.
I'm sure Shiori would do better.

While I was mulling things over in my head, I was patted on the back.
It's Shiori-chan.


''Firm! We can't afford for Yuki to stop now! What will you do, Yuki? What can we help you with? The breaking of the curse is something only Yuuki can do.


A pair of eyes that felt solid and willing shot through me and I choked back a gasp.
At one time, I hated and hated these eyes, but now there was nothing more reliable than this.
For what it's worth, I hadn't once looked at Shiori herself.
Because what I was comparing myself to was my ideal Shiori-chan, not Shiori-chan herself.

I took a deep breath and let it out, slapping my cheeks to get my spirits up.


'For now, Kazuki-kun, take this shield. Shiori-chan, support the front line. Let me hold it for a little while.


He grabs Tsuda-kun's arm with his empty eyes and says
It's a little rough, but if you don't do this, you're no match for a fighting profession.
And, for what it's worth, Tsuda-kun is also a boy, so he's not a match for strength.
The best thing to do is to break the curse before Tsuda-kun takes any action.


''Alright!''

"Take care of Tsuda!


While the two of them are doing their own thing, I break the spell on Tsuda-kun.
In the meantime, my thoughts remain spinning.
That robot seems to be able to cast mental interference-type magic with no action, which is a nuisance.
On top of that, the front line is filled with poisoned attacks that require antidotes, running in all directions, so I didn't have to think about the state of the three of us fighting in the middle of it.
Ah, busy.
Moreover, someone might be receiving another mental interference while I'm breaking the spell like this.
Really, there's no end in sight.


I wish I had some kind of vaccine for that.


I surprised myself with what I casually blurted out.
Yes, why don't we make a vaccine like thing?
Like a flu shot.
As I recall, it was a principle of putting a small amount of bacteria into your body to create immunity or something like that.
It's just a sensory thing, but fortunately I've eaten mental interference once, and I know what kind of poisonous ones are because I've broken the spell on a few of the ones that Tsukasa has eaten.
In the first place, if it's a poison, I have to tilt my head to see if I can gain immunity to magic, but is it free just to try?

But what if I fail?
Even if it's free, we're in the middle of a battle right now.
What if one breakdown could kill us all?
One bad imagination after another came and went.
Meanwhile, my favorite voice fell from above.


"Ueno, do you have a plan?


Heavily, Waki-kun, who held his shield in a mimicry manner, asked me, who hadn't yet begun to undo the spell.
Looking at Wagi-kun, I suddenly get an inspiration.
Come to think of it, didn't they just say something about how to get the skill?


It's not a good idea to have a good idea of how to get the skill, Waki-kun? I might be able to handle that robot poison alone.


If it's in the form of a skill, it can be done.
If we're lucky, we should be able to manage the mental interference.


'Really? I was taught by Hosoyama. ......


I nodded my head in response to what was briefly conveyed to me due to lack of time.
It's true that it's not going to happen overnight, and if you're unlucky, your body will be a piece of wood.


"Are you really going to try? If you're not good at it, you can go to ......

"All that junk," right? I think it's okay.


The light disappeared from Tsuda-kun as the curse was finished.
He made sure the light returned to Tsuda-kun's eyes and stood up.
Now we can try to see if it's possible to acquire the skill.
I stood next to Kazuki-kun, who was holding his shield at the ready.


''Thank you, Shiori. Stand back.


I close my eyes as I call out to Shiori, who was healing Tsukasa and the others at the very edge of not leaving the shield that Waki-kun was holding up.
At that time, when Shiori-chan acquired the 'Evil Food', I saw it.
Because of my profession as a haunting master, I can feel the flow of magic power flowing through humans.
I saw where Shiori was concentrating her magic power at that time, and I saw what she was doing with her senses.


''I'm still angry about this. In addition to being able to deal with close-range and long-range attacks, it also has poison added to its attacks? You can also interfere with the mind, and the body is too rigid to allow for any of the attacks of the officers. The poison is not lethal and the poison is not lethal. ......


What I was thinking came out of my mouth in a slurred manner.
I've never been so angry in my life.
They say it takes a strong mind to acquire a skill.
Anger is a great mind, too.
I'm sure that Shiori-chan acquired the skill because she wanted to help everyone, but I don't have the heart of a saint, like Shiori-chan does.


'What the hell, Hon. If you're just chilling, I'd like you to leave. I'm not playing around here, I'm serious!


Remembering Shiori-chan from that time, I turned the magic power all over my body as if to undo myself.
My body is getting warm.
I've acquired skills when I defeated demons or when my profession leveled up, but my body temperature didn't rise this much then.
I'm sure that acquiring the skills I need is different from acquiring them naturally.
After a little while, the circulation of magic power naturally settles down.
It's hard to explain where, but it felt decidedly different from the one before.
This must have been acquired safely.
I quickly opened my eyes and opened the status.
I couldn't help but gasp at the new letters in it.


'You really got it!


With Kazuki's surprised voice behind him, he immediately activates the skill.
The name of the skill is 'Immunity'.
It can reduce the power of the skill by increasing the resistance to the attacks I receive, antidote or detoxify.
It was a bit frustrating that it couldn't completely counteract the effect, but it's also effective against mental interference and seems to be able to grant it to others properly, so let's put up with it.

Besides, I had a feeling that my body would be reduced to a piece of wood if I wanted any more skills.
Indeed, this skill acquisition method is dangerous.


''Hmm?''


The bodies of everyone in this place glow faintly.
I think to myself that it's a wise decision, because being behind a shield doesn't mean you're absolutely safe.


''A skill that reduces the power of the poison I've detoxified or something! It's good for mental interference! But the effect isn't completely gone, so be careful!


When I briefly explained the effects, I received a cheerful reply from each of them.
They were too wary of poison and mental attacks to go on the offensive.
The three of them turned to attack as if their defensive position until now was a lie.
However, that doesn't mean the attack will pass, but it's still a turnaround.


"That was nice, Ueno.

But it's not over yet. If they change the ingredients of the poison, it will be tricky.


It's really tricky.
We'll have to leave the rest to the three guys on the front lines.