“Clang, clang”, when I opened the door, the bell rings. Erna and Pero frowned as the store smelled of cigarette as usual. I walked up to the counter and greeted the shopkeeper who is smoking his tobacco pipe.
“Our preparations are complete. We can leave at any time.”
“Wait a minute, I need to finish this before I leave.”
“We are going to fly with a griffon, it won’t take long.”
“I bet we can’t get down on the ground for hours, even if we’re cramping. An hour without smoking is equivalent to a day for me.”
Rodman finished smoking his cigarette and then puts on his backpack, which he had left on the floor. Before we know it, his son appears at the counter, and he bows to us, saying, “I’ll leave my father in your care.” I nodded deeply to him before taking Rodman with us as we left the store.
“Speaking of which, where is that griffon you are talking about?”
“I brought them closer to the city. Freya and Liz are taking care of them.”
About 50 meters outside Mana.
Two black griffons swooped down to the ground, carrying Freya and Liz respectively. Rodman is surprised by the magical beast that has appeared and hurriedly hides behind me.
“I’ve never seen a black griffon before. These guys looks like it’s really fond of people.”
“It’s because of my skills. They won’t bite so you can touch them freely.”
He gingerly touches the black feathers of the magical beast before him. The griffon made a sweet cry and rubbed its head on his face.
“Uhahaha! This is my first time! It’s the first time I touched a griffon’s body!”
“That’s the one Rodman will be riding on. Even if it’s just during this time, please dote on it.”
“Got it. By the way, are there just two of them? It doesn’t seem like there are any other creatures that can fly?”
“We can fly on our own.”
Rodman was stunned when wings emerged from my back. I haven’t had a chance to show it off, so this is the first time I’ve shown my wings. Pero jumped on the other griffon and he talks to Rodman,
“Except me, everybody can fly. That is why we only need these two.”
“The other three can fly too? Now that I’m thinking about it, Homeless is indeed an incredible group.”
I smiled wryly at his stunned expression. Before I knew it, we were now becoming unconstrained by common sense. Things that are not normal have become commonplace. Because it is an alternate world inhabited by a wide variety of races, we are still barely in the frame, but the day may come when we will be called “non-human”.
“Our destination is the Dartan Rock Kingdom, right?”
“That’s right. We are heading to the basement of the royal castle to create the Sixth Great Treasure.”
“That’s easy to say, but how are we going to get there? I’ve heard that the Dwarven King hates humans.”
“Not really. To be exact, he just hate the Logas Royal family. I have a bit of a relationship with the Dwarven King. As long as we meet face to face, there should be no problem.”
“Have you met the King? That’s amazing!”
The plan was to have an audience with King Dartan and ask for permission to enter the basement. For this reason, I also have a letter from Dhal, the leader of Earth Fang. With a word from his best friend, the king should be willing to give us permission.
“Hey, it’s time to leave. It’s getting dark.”
“That’s right. Alright, follow me.”
With me in the lead, the members also fly up. The two griffons also took off in pursuit, spreading their large wings in the wind under the blue sky.
It’s a pleasant departure.
◇◇◇
About five hours have passed since we left Mana. Below me was a wetland area and a wooden path built by someone that wound like a snake to the horizon. The journey is smooth without any problems.
Erna leisurely admired the scenery. Pero and Rodman are also looking down and enjoying the flight. Liz is sleeping soundly fully geared with her eye mask and pillow. Freya is flying around freely while enjoying the wind.
“What does it feel like to fly in the sky with divine powers?”
“It feels like a string is tied on my body, pulling me forward.”
Freya rotates her body in the air while answering my question. From my perspective, it’s completely like martial arts. It’s enviable.
“I wish I could fly too. I’m jealous.”
“If Pero-sama don’t mind, I’ll lift you up with my divine power.”
“But that would make you hug me, wouldn’t you?”
“Of course. It’s all about having fluffy.”
“I want you to hide your true feelings a little.”
Freya was breathing heavily, and Pero had a disappointed expression on his face. I take out my pocket watch and consider whether it’s time to take a break. Rodman called out right at this time.
“Hey, let’s take a break. I’m hungry and I want to smoke.”
“It’s indeed time to eat. Let’s get off around here.”
The wooden road has circular spaces at regular intervals that seem to be dedicated as resting places. We decided to go down there and have lunch. I took my luggage out of the bangle and started cooking. First, took out the potato and put it in a wooden bowl. Next, fry the chopped onion and minced meat in a frying pan, and when it is moderately cooked, throw it into the bowl with potatoes. At the same time add salt, pepper and milk. After that, mix it by hand and shape it into a small shape, add flour, eggs, breadcrumbs, and fry in oil until it turns brown.
“It’s a dish I’ve never seen before. Is it delicious?”
“You’ll know when you taste it. Here, it’s freshly fried.”
“Let me see……”
Rodman sticks a fork into the croquette. He directly put it in his mouth as it is then he immediately reacted with, “Haa-haa-haa!”. Apparently, it was too hot. But that’s the beauty of fried food. The other four also eat croquettes and smile contentedly.
“Isn’t it good to have a hot dish? By the way, what kind of dish is this?”
“It’s called croquette. It’s an orthodox home-cooked dish in my hometown.”
“Then Shinichi grew up eating this?”
“I guess you could say so. Well, I didn’t eat it very often you see.”
“Hmm, but I think I can make this too.”
It’s odd. I never thought Erna would get interested in cooking. Croquettes are suitable for beginners, so it may be perfect for this clumsy girl. Also, once in a while, I want to eat homemade food made by my comrades.
“If you’re up for it, I’ll teach you how.”
“Really? Then I’ll make croquettes for Shinichi next time!”
“Unfair. Why is it only Rival? Me too.”
I’ll just be teaching how to make it, but for some reason, Erna and Liz glared at each other. I was about to appease them, but I quickly stopped. This may be a good thing. If I let them compete, they should be able to improve their skills faster.
Thus, the two of them ended up making croquettes today. In both cases, I made them start by chopping the onion. Here, their personalities were already evident. Erna chopped it into a mess. Liz on the other hand, imitates my method and carefully cuts it into small pieces. After frying the onion and minced meat, they began to knead the potatoes, and here too, their personalities were clearly revealed. Erna forms a potato the size of a straw sandals, tosses it into the hot oil with eggs and breadcrumbs.
In contrast, Liz faithfully imitates my method. She arranged it into a small shape, add flour, eggs, and breadcrumbs properly and then put it in the hot oil. When the two croquettes turned fox-brown, Erna took it from the oil and placed it to the plate at once. Liz pulls up the croquettes and shakes them lightly to drain the oil before placing them on a plate.
“Let’s try Liz’s first.”
“Mmm, perfect. It’s absolutely delicious.”
Liz’s croquettes look exactly like the ones I made. The batter is also crispy, and the inside is exquisitely seasoned. It can only be said that the taste has been completely reproduced. This is the result she got after just showing them how to make it once.
“Next up is Erna’s croquettes.”
“It looks like that but you’ll be amazed at how it tastes!”
What was served was a dish that was too painful to call a croquette. The batter on the surface is torn and potatoes are flowing out of the gaps. In addition, it was so big that it didn’t look like it was cooked all the way through. When I put it in my mouth, it was soaked with oil.
“The batter is peeling off because you didn’t put flour on it. It’s too greasy because you did not drain the oil. As for the taste…… it’s surprisingly good.”
“Right? Everything else failed, but I was confident in the taste.”
“Mmm, I see. Did you add more onion and increase the proportion of pepper? It’s sweet and spicy which put a nice flavor to it.”
When I feed Erna’s croquettes to Liz, her expression changes to frown. She didn’t say a word, but at least she didn’t think it was bad.
“It’s a draw.”
“Hey no, it’s my win!”
“That’s funny. I’m the winner.”
—The two people who are not convinced approached me. Moreover, they told me to taste it again. In the end, I was forced to eat a hundred croquettes.
◇◇◇
“Burp~, my stomach is heavy and I can’t gain altitude.”
“You’ve eaten so much after all. We could have rested for a while.”
“No, there’s a place I want to get to by the end of the day.”
I pull out a map of the world from my pocket and hands it to Rodman. It shows a certain location indicated by a red circle.
“There seems to be a mark on the village along the border between the kingdom and Daltan, why?”
“It’s called Toto Village. I was just asked by the City Lord to check on it, so I don’t know the full details. But it seems that the magical beast called Matango is breeding in large numbers there.”
“Matango huh. I’m not good at mushroom-type monsters.”
“There was an old acquaintance of the City Lord living in the village, and he had asked for help a few days ago. It was assigned to us, Homeless.”
“So, you were asked to clean it up knowing that you’re on the way to Dartan huh. The timing is good.”
Sometimes, this happens. In addition, I was paid by the lord in advance. In other words, failure is not an option. While we were talking about this, the marshland turned into a forest, and we began to see what looked like a village. Probably that is the village of Toto. It’s a small village, as I had heard beforehand. We landed on the outskirts so as not to surprise the residents. I also ordered the two griffons to wait in the forest.
“Sneeze~. Uh- my nose is itchy.”
Pero sneezes and rubs his nose. The other members were also rubbing their eyes and sneezing. There are many trees that resemble cedars growing wild here. Maybe it was the time of year when the pollens are flying.
“For now, let’s go to the village and ask them about the situation. Come on, let’s go.”
The other five took out handkerchiefs and held their mouths and noses. It seems that the pollen is quite harsh. Pero is already teary-eyed. Still, we were able to climb the mountain road and come to the entrance of the village. However, I soon noticed something unusual. There is no one here. I couldn’t find any resident outside. I knocked on the door of a random house and there was a reply through the door.
“……Who is it?”
“I’m an adventurer who has been commissioned by the Lord of Mana.”
“Did you come to get rid of Matango!?”
“Yes. I’d like to see someone who can talk to me in detail, but—”
Then the door was thrown open, and an old woman beckoned us to come inside the house quickly. When she confirms that everyone is inside, she padlocks the door.
“Thank you for coming all the way to this remote place. The old man knows the situation well, so you should ask him.”
Saying this, the old woman leads us upstairs. In one room, there was an elderly man lying on a bed.
“Old man. Help from Ryan has finally arrived.”
“……They are finally here huh. So-, how many helpers do we have?”
“Six of them. I’m sure they’re very powerful adventurers.”
The old man sat up and looked at us. He has a thick, muscular body with a white beard under his nose and chin. The T-shirt he was wearing was so tight that he didn’t look like an old man when he was lying on the bed. He stands up and moves his neck left and right.
“Fua~, I slept well. I shouldn’t just drink alcohol just because I can’t go out. So, you guys are the adventurers Ryan sent?”
“Our party is called Homeless. Can you please tell me more about it?”
“Alright. Come with me, I’ll show you the situation in this village.”
The old man wrapped a cloth around his mouth and nose and picked up an axe that was leaning against the wall.
“Granny, give them some cloth too.”
“Got it. You should cover your mouth and nose with this.”
We covered our mouth and nose with the cloth as we were told. It’s probably a substitute for a mask. After thanking the old woman, we followed the old man who was leading the way and went outside. The village was still quiet with no people in sight.
“Haven’t you had trouble breathing since you arrived in the village?”
I looked confused at the old man’s question. However, when I looked at the other five, they all nodded vigorously.
“This area is encased in Matango spores, and if you inhale too much of it, you will have symptoms similar to hay fever.”
“If that’s all there is to it, I don’t think there’s any need to call for help……”
“If only the initial symptoms were enough. The spores of Matango are highly toxic and can paralyze and kill the body if inhaled continuously. Just look at the corpse over there.”
There was something dry in the place he pointed to. When I look closely, it turns out to be a human corpse. A large number of mushrooms grow out of the corpse’s mouth, and a number of fluorescent blue umbrellas are opening. The creepy sight made me broke out in a cold sweat.
“They grow by sucking people’s nutrients. Once you start coughing, you’re done for.”
“I understand the situation now. So, how do I get rid of these Matango?”
“There are a lot of Matangos in the place I’m going to show you, and I want you to get rid of them with as little fire as possible. If the forest catches fire, even if we survive, we won’t be able to make a living you see.”
Without the use of fire…… But on the other hand, there should be no problem using fire, as long as we don’t cause damage. Even so, the spores are troublesome. The five of them are also not in good condition as they got runny noses and itchy eyes. At this rate, it may be difficult for them to fight properly.
“Can you see that? That’s Matango’s nest.”
The scene I saw as we were led into the depths of the forest caught me off guard. It was a mycelium realm that no one was allowed to enter. Cotton candy-like pale pink and green molds are everywhere, and the surrounding trees are corroded and decaying. Inside of it are huge mushrooms with a fluorescent blue color. They are about one hundred and fifty centimeters tall. The mushrooms have no hands or face, but they got legs, and they move forward with a thump of footsteps.
“The spores inside the nest are even thicker, and covering the nose and mouth with a cloth is not enough.”
“I see. So this is why no one can kill them.”
“Yeah. The young ones in the village jumped into the nest, but no one came back. With no more thinkable solution, I decided to write to my nephew asking for help. And you’re the one who came.”
“N-nephew? Then, you’re the Lord’s uncle?”
“More or less the same. I’m the younger brother of Ryan’s father.”
I am inwardly surprised by the unexpected connection between the City Lord and the client. Even if he has to pay in advance, he wants to guarantee that the request will be fulfilled.
All right. Let’s make sure that this work succeeds and reassure Kanzaki.
I smoothly drew the Bull King’s sword.
This is translated by Yume Neiji. Kindly read at yumeineijiworks.wordpress.com.
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