Kays Translations

Chapter 86: Birth of a Team?

Aeris stopped showing up the next day.

Tauro was disappointed because he had the impression that she was a hard worker, but she might have just returned to her original place.

Shin and Rumeya were also surprised.

"She seemed to have guts, though.”

"She's got a bad mouth, but she's not a bad person.”

Were their evaluations.

The three of them went back to their normal lives, but five days later.

The three of them were checking quests again in the morning.

"Tauro, there's a quest from a nearby forest village to kill the mushroom ghost."

Shin said, pointing to a quest posted on the wall.

“The mushroom monster huh... it uses a sleep abnormality, but if we take precautions with a sleep resistance potion, we should be fine.”

Tauro pondered for a moment before answering.

"I can follow you, right?"　

They heard a familiar voice behind them.　

When the three of them turned around, Aeris was standing there.

“What happened? I thought you were back in Dareder."

Tauro questioned in surprise.

“I went back to make the necessary arrangements to leave my current team in order to join yours completely.”

"Huh?"

The three of them shouted at Aeris’ disturbing words.

“We're not even a team, right?”

Tauro replied dismissively.

"Huh?"

It was Aeris's turn to be surprised.

“We’re learning from Tauro-kun, but we’re not a team.”

"Yes. We're learning how to be adventurers with Tauro-kun as our teacher.”

“Then what happens to me? I've been trying to convince my former team members to join your team!”

Aeris panicked, at her own hasty decision.

"You should've asked me first."

Tauro said.

“…”　

Aeris couldn't say anything anymore.

She looked like she was about to cry.

"Tauro-kun, I know she's wrong, but she's doing us a favor by appreciating us, so let's be a little less obtuse, okay?"

Shin followed up and hit him where it hurt.

"...I was wrong, I'm sorry! But normally I'd think you were a team, after seeing how well you work together...!

Aeris cried more and more.

For the first time, Tauro panicked.

He hadn't intended to make her cry, so he was at a loss as to how to make her stop crying.

He needed Shin's and Rumeya's approval to form a team.

It was hard to say anything about making a team with two kids, especially when you consider the future of both Shin and Rumeya.

Shin and Rumeya have been working together in their personal lives for a while now and it wouldn't be surprising if they were to team up in the future.

If they did, they might even go out to bigger cities.

In that retrospect, I'm not interested in big cities at the moment.

As far as I can see, Aeris is also the ambitious type who wants to make it big.

Aeris, Shin, and Rumeya seem to be a good fit, but will I be a good fit?

...Well, the problem is me.

Thinking up to this point, the problem of creating a team became clear.

"...So, how about we form a team limited to this village only?"

Tauro suggested to the three of them.

“Limited'?"

“Yes, a team for the duration of our stay in this village. We don't know what the future holds for either of us, so we can talk about it when the time comes.”

Aeris stopped crying at Tauro's suggestion.

“If it's okay with you Tauro-kun, it's okay with me.”

Shin nodded happily.

“I don't have a problem with it either. If something goes wrong, we'll deal with it then.”

Rumeya said.

"...So I can join in too?”

Aeris asks back, sniffing her nose.

"Of course, since I'm making it for you."

Aeris's expression brightened at Tauro's answer.

“Alright, the four of you. Do you want to get started on the procedure immediately?”

Chloe at the reception desk calls out to Tauro and his friends.

The other adventurers could hear their conversation in the small lobby of the guild.

“They're so young. Hahahaha!"

"Five silver coins that they’ll disband due to misunderstanding."

"It's only for this village, so it will break up eventually. It's not a good bet."

Tauro and the others were toyed with and blushed in embarrassment.

“We’re not going to break up!"

Aeris retorted with a cheerfulness that made it hard to believe she had been crying earlier.

"Aeris, it's just a joke, so stop."

Tauro stops her.

I think we're going to be doing this for a long time...

Tauro seemed to see a difficult future.

Chapter 87: A Moment for the Team

After asking Chloe, the receptionist, to take care of the formalities, the four of them headed out, accepting only the quest to collect herbs.

As they headed to the quest destination, Tauro made a suggestion for the future.

“Then I’ll leave the rearguard to Aeris and I’ll take on the mid-range and search for enemies with bows and arrows and stilettos since I have “sense presence”. Shin-san and Rumeya-san will continue as before."

"Eh? Will you be okay? You've been guarding the two of them until now, right?”

Aeris was concerned that Tauro might have a hard time with his new role.

“I've learned how to use most martial arts, so I'll be fine. I'm not very strong, but if you ask me to play the vanguard, I will."

"Yeah. Tauro-kun taught us how to be a vanguard. So there’s no problem.”

“You're right, Tauro-kun has a great deal of knowledge and experience.”

Rumeya and Shin supported Tauro.

“I've been wondering about this for a while... We're a team, so let's stop using 'san' and 'kun'. We're friends. I don't think it's right that I'm the only one being left out.”

Aeris complained to Tauro.

“That’s because I thought you were someone I wouldn’t meet anymore.”

"That's a terrible reason!"

Tauro, Shin and Rumeya burst into laughter.

At any rate, the four of them decided to call each other by name only.

The rest of the time they were gathering herbs, they were discussing how to work together.

Tauro explained that if the three of them, Shin with the sword, Rumeya with the shield and Aeris with the support, worked well together, they could form a team and if he could be the go-between, they could work together smoothly in a short time.

“But wouldn't that be too much work for you? You'd have to take part in the attack, provide support, and take care of the whole thing."

Aeris was worried about him.

Despite her high-pressure attitude, she’s a caring child.

“While I'm reasonably handy, I'm not as good as everyone else, so I'm better suited to fill in the gaps.”

“I know that sounds a bit demeaning, but I understand what you're saying. You’re a good judge of situations, and I feel safer when you’re right in the middle of everyone.”

There was a harsh word from Aeris, but she seemed to trust me.

“And then there's Aeris, the rear guard. What exactly can 'Priest', 'Wizard' and ‘Barrier-master’ do? For me, it's basically provoke and defend and if the enemy has an opening, counter it."

Rumeya said confidently, describing his role, the basics of which he had learned from Tauro in the beginning.

The more honest and patient the shield, the better.

In this respect, Rumeya's combination of skills and personality are well suited to the role.

“I just trust my back and focus on attacking."

He made it sound like it’s all about attacking, but Shin is actually very good at it.

He’s able to take out enemies by thwarting attacks that focus on Rumeya and he knows which ones to kill early.

He has good attack power and is a good partner for Rumeya.

If the two of them are supported by the talented Aeris as the rear guard, they’ll make a great team.

“I'm good at healing magic, light (holy) magic and using “wands” and “maces” with my Priest skills. As a wizard, I'm particularly good with wind, water, and lightning, but I can use all the basics. A wizard should be able to use barrier magic and defensive magic in general, but there are still many things I can't use."

The more I listen, the more I realize that Aeris is blessed with skills.

This should certainly be expected.

Aeris is definitely a gem who can become an expert in the rear guard.

And it won't be long before the three of them leave the village and become a famous team of adventurers.

I'm looking forward to that time, Tauro thought.

After collecting the herbs, the four of us tried a practical simulation of cooperation.

I realized it was good to be able to use Aeris's first strike as a "magician".

In this team, which had only physical attacks, magic would allow for more variation.

Aeris is also looking for possibilities in collaboration, suggesting her own role and asking for opinions on how she should move.

Tauro gave advice to her and he himself took on the role of the enemy to confirm their actual movements and a fruitful time passed.

Chapter 88: Team Quest

Tauro and his team were reasonably well known in the Adventurer's Guild Dansas branch as a group specializing in collecting medicinal herbs, but when the promising Aeris joined them, they began to stand out in a strange way.

Originally, It was a strange sight to see two adults attached to a child, but it was good because it was still a low-ranked team whose purpose was to collect medicinal herbs.

The addition of Aeris, who had multiple skills as a rearguard, was whispered by some to be a treasure trove.

“I don’t care. Everyone's been promoted to F+ and doing well, so let's surprise them when we get to E rank."

Aeris was about to react to these whispers, so Tauro quieted her down.

"Speaking of which, why hasn't Tauro... been promoted from F+?"

Shin asked, caught up in the unfamiliar name.

“Come to think of it, that’s right. I wouldn't be surprised if he’d already moved up. I didn't think I’d catch up."　

Rumeya also questioned Shin's words.

"Tauro is turning down the promotion to accommodate us."

Tauro was horrified.

He had turned it down directly to Chloe so that no one would notice.

When did she notice it? Tauro wondered inwardly.

"...right? Tauro."

(I should have expected it, I thought she was stalking me...)

Tauro was relieved, he was afraid of what would happen if his friends were stalking him.

“Even if I rank up alone, it won't change what we have to do. Come on, let's just pick a quest and go."

The three of them nodded in agreement.

"He’s hiding his embarrassment."

"That’s right. I think he's hiding his embarrassment.”

"You two, you'd embarrass Tauro if you say that much.”

They said in a loud whisper, definitely on purpose.

"Stop it, I’m not embarrassed! And Shin, your follow is bad!"

Tauro blushed.

***

There are many benefits to being on a team at the Adventurers Guild.

Because you can receive team quests.

There are many quests you can't do solo.

Tauro had always been a soloist, and most of his experience with team quests had been with soloists who had been recruited and hastily assembled.

I was deeply moved to think that I was one of them.

Among the team quests, there was a team quest for E ranks zone to the F ranks.　

It was to defeat Kobolds and Rabid Dogs.

By the way, I've received Kobold extermination before, but I've heard that it's been increasing lately.

I guess the reason why they've expanded the scope to include E ranks is because they're trying to clean up the area before higher-ranked species are born and we're currently the only F rank team in the guild in this village.

As a result of the quest recruitment, there were two E rank teams and Tauro and his F rank team, making a total of three teams.

The three teams immediately set out together to the neighboring village, where the client was located.

"I don't like the idea of these Rabid dogs running around."

One of the E team members blurted out.

The Rabid dogs themselves are not that difficult to kill, but when they’re with Kobolds, they are a pain in the ass to get rid of.

They would run away when they found themselves at a disadvantage and depending on the quest, the mission might not be completed.

This time, we had to hunt down the rabid dogs as well.

If they escape, the reward will be affected.

“This time, we'll hunt the Rabid dogs first and then take down the kobolds, okay?"

The leader of Team E suggested to the rest of the team.

"Yeah, I guess that's a safe bet."

"Okay, we'll do the same."

It’s true that an F-ranked team shouldn’t take the lead in a hunt, but that would affect the reward and more importantly, it wouldn't have been good for the members.

Especially Aeris wouldn’t be convinced.

In that sense, I'm glad the E rank team suggested it.

"Well, how about I gather up all the rabid dogs when we get into battle?"

Rumeya suggested.

"Can you do that?"

The E-rank leader asked in surprise.

"I've successfully used 'provoke' on fleeing rabid dogs before, so I think it's safe."

"Provoke? What’s that ability?”

The "shield" skill isn’t a very popular skill.

As was the case with Rumeya, who’s the individual in question. The general idea was that the shield was only for temporary protection in battle and that attack was important and not a skill to actively raise.

Therefore, very few parties have a shield profession.

There are plenty of adventurers who have shields, but they’re not shieldsmen.

"You learn it when you improve your 'shield' skill, it's the ability to gain enemies' attention."

“Shield'? You've got an unusual skill set.... Anyway, if you can do it, I'll leave it to you."

He didn't make fun of him, but he couldn't hide his surprise as he stared at the large shield Rumeya was holding.

After this, the E rank team was surprised by Rumeya's performance in battle.

Chapter 89: Team Ability

A pack of Kobolds and Rabid Dogs have been living in a forest near the client's village for a month now, establishing a settlement.

From there, they seem to be coming down to the village frequently and destroying the village's crops.

According to the adventurer with the "scouting" ability of the E team, there were 41 kobolds and 16 rabid dogs, which was more than I expected.

Kobolds are like bipedal dogs, not much bigger and less intelligent than goblins, so they’re relatively easy to kill, but they don't often swarm in such large numbers.

No higher species has been born yet, but there is a possibility that the leader of this pack will evolve, so we have to kill him before that happens.

Fortunately, the rabid dogs that everyone hated were clustered in one place on the north side of the village, so Tauro and his team attacked from the north, while the E team attacked from the south and east.

The west side, which was upwind, was to be left open.

Kobolds and rabid dogs have a keen sense of smell and there was a high possibility of being noticed.

And so the quest to defeat the Kobolds began.

"Let's go, then! Rumeya!"

Tauro signaled to Rumeya.

"All right! "Come on, you dogs!"

Rumeya demonstrated his skill “Provoke”.

The rabid dogs began to bark at the provocation and attacked Rumeya at once!

The other teams began to attack at the sound of the rabid dogs' barks.

“Shield attack'!"

 Rumeya put the power of his "Rigidity" skill on his "Shield" skill and hit the rabid dogs that jumped at him with his large shield.

The rabid dogs are blown away with a short bark and a dull sound, dying instantly.

Shin and Tauro also took out the rabid dogs from both sides of Rumeya, but Rumeya stayed in place.

The rabid dogs that went at Rumeya were quickly turned back and wiped out.

Tauro's team immediately went to support, attacking the Kobolds that each E team was dealing with from behind with Aeris's attack magic and Rumeya's "Shield" technique, "Assault", while Shin and Tauro put an end to them.　

The hour-long battle ended with an overwhelming victory for the adventurers.　

The Kobolds, who had lost their will to fight and tried to flee, were brought back into the line of fire by Rumeya's "provocation" and annihilated.

There were some wounded, but they were treated with potions and healing magic.

In the midst of all this, Tauro and his F-rank team's reputation was on the rise.

In fact, Rumeya and Aeris were invited to join their team by each of the E rank teams that accompanied them.

Shin wasn't invited because all the teams had a lot of attacker vanguards.

Rumeya was also invited as an attacker, but I guess that was because he was unique and very active.

Anyway, the two of them received fervent invitations.

“Aeris, come to our team. With our firepower combined with your magic from the rear guard, our team can go all the way up!”

“Rumeya, with that destructive explosive power, you can be the keystone of our attack! With that power, our team will soon be ranked D!"

But the two of them refused.

There was no advantage to leaving the current team and more importantly, these teams were all about themselves moving up and didn't think anything of us.

And the most important reason is that they both like this team.

Rumeya found his way of the Shield thanks to Tauro. Also he and Shin are a good fit together. The four of them, including Aeris, enjoyed working together and there was no reason to leave such a team.

Aeris had the same reason.

Besides, the reason she left the team she was on before was because she felt this team had a strong future.

She was very excited to see what would happen if she joined this team.

She was also interested in the unknown talent of Tauro.

There was no way she could leave the team without witnessing it.

The two of them became the focus of attention at the Dansas branch of the Adventurer's Guild when they returned to the guild to report the quest’s completion and were fervently recruited to E teams.

Shin had actually done quite well in terms of the number of kills, but he had been overshadowed by the flashy activities of the two.

And Tauro was not so impressive in terms of numbers.

He was able to draw out the firepower of the three of them by standing in a supportive role, and since it showed in the results, Tauro felt a definite response and was personally satisfied.

Chapter 90: The Box of Secrets

The next day after returning from the quest to defeat the Kobolds, Tauro was sipping miso soup for breakfast at the Resting Pavilion(Ikoi-tei).

“It's soothing..."

He was alone and relaxed at the taste.

Every few days, miso is made first thing in the morning at the resting pavilion.

The cooks also prepare the miso, but it takes time for it to mature.

For now, they were relying on Tauro's dark magic to let it mature.

So today was the day and I made a lot of it.

It should last for a week.

If they were running out, the cook would send a messenger to the inn.

That's how it always was.

This would have to last for another six months to a year, by which time the miso would have matured and would be ready to eat.

Well, it was a win-win situation, since Tauro got paid for his time and effort every time he made it, and he got to eat for free.

“Oh, Tauro, there you are. What are you doing today?"

Aeris walked into the store, noticed Tauro and called out to him.

“I have something to do today, so the three of you can continue as usual.”

“What are you going to do Tauro?"

Aeris took a seat across from him as if she was interested.

“I'm going to discuss product development with Mr. Marches.”

“You mean the merchant company nearby?”

“Yes, we're going to discuss with the representatives of the woodworkers and the blacksmiths...”

“Is it okay if I go with you?”

Aeris asks meekly.

Or rather, she seems to be full of enthusiasm to come along

“I think it'll be boring.”

“Why? I'll decide that for myself!”

Tauro's attempt to persuade Aeris failed miserably.

***　

A room at the Marches chamber of commerce.

The woodworkers and blacksmiths were gathered in the room.

To an outsider, the presence of the children Tauro and Aeris in the midst of all this is a ridiculous situation, but the people involved, with the exception of Aeris, are quite serious.

"Okay, Tauro, give us the blueprints."

As the facilitator, Marches started the conversation.

“Yes, this is it, then.”

Tauro took out a blueprint from his magic storage and unfolded it.

“What's this?”

At first glance, it appeared to be just a box.

However, It was a box made of wood and steel.

But it was Tauro's blueprint and he had helped the development of this village before by providing them with technology they didn't even know existed, so it couldn't be just a box.

"It's a box."

"Eh?"

The craftsmen, except for Marches, who had heard about it beforehand, asked in unison.

"Technically, it's a refrigerator, a box to keep things cool."

"Reizouko (refrigerator)?"

“Yes. It's a box used to keep food cool and prevent it from spoiling. As for the cooling mechanism, I thought about buying some processed magic stones from a mage, but they were a bit expensive, so I made them myself."

Tauro also took out two stacked boards from the magic storage.

“What are these boards?”

“This board is tacked up, but there's a magic circle on the inside.”

“A magic circle?”

“Yes, if you place a magic stone here, which is dropped by a monster...”

Again, I took out a few scrap magic stones from the magic storage this time and placed them on the board.

Then, light leaked out from the gap between the matching boards for a moment and they saw that the magic circle had been activated in response to the magic stones.

In the next moment, cold air began to leak out of the magic stones.

"Oh! It's amazing that cold air can come out of an unprocessed magic stone without any magic power flowing through it!”

Usually, magic stones are nothing more than mere stones if they‘re not processed.

This is why the power of a mage is needed to process them and because each one is done by hand, the processed magic stones cost a high price.

Because of this, they’re only popular among wealthy families and aren’t affordable for the common people.

While the craftsmen were amazed, Aeris was also amazed at the sight.

To be honest, magic circle research is a field that is hardly advanced.

In fact, most magic can be done by chanting without drawing a magic circle, so it’s considered to be of little use.

"How the hell does this work?"

The craftsmen and Aeris were curious.

“The special magic circle on the inside of this laminated board was used to make the magic stone emit cold air. I happen to know a lot about magic circles, so I made one."

I can’t say that I studied magic circles in my previous life and used them to reincarnate here on my own.

“I'll tell you how it works after I sign the contract with you, but it's a top-secret trade secret, so be careful with it. Now, let me briefly explain the structure of the refrigerator."

I explained that it uses double doors to prevent cold air from escaping and that since airtightness is important, the skills of the craftsmen were required.

The craftsmen listened intently and shared their opinions.

For some reason, Aeris was included in the discussion as if it was natural and Tauro was confused, but the craftsmen were listening to her seriously because he brought her.