Chapter 20: New Companions. The Next Adventure

I almost died at least three times.

Huh? Am I alive? I am alive, right?

I personally came close to dying three times, and the party nearly got wiped out twice.

When I was sent flying by the magical beast's sweeping tail, I really thought it was over.

The paired swords "Funeral" and "Return" are sturdy, so I used them to block the attack and deflect the impact, but I never expected to be blown hundreds of meters away like that. I genuinely thought I was dead.

The only reason I'm alive is that I got lucky. Right before I slammed into the ground, I managed to time my flight magic perfectly and soften the impact.

Calling it luck doesn't even begin to describe it. It was practically a miracle.

...Come to think of it, I think the pocket watch Liz-senpai gave me glowed right before the collision. Maybe I was imagining it? Perhaps it really did protect me because I'm her friend... or something like that.

We really did manage to win somehow.

While Padron charged in and drew the beast's attention, Kizuna awakened at the last possible moment like the protagonist of a shonen manga and activated lightning magic. This caused the machinery inside the magical beast's body to malfunction.

Taking advantage of that opening, the nomads launched a furious all-out attack, knocking the magical beast to the ground.

Then Rene unleashed a torrent of pitch-black energy, successfully erasing the base of one of its enormous wings. With the wing it had also been using for defense torn away, it could no longer escape into the sky. And when the magical beast made one last desperate struggle with its tail, I managed to block it with my twin swords.

Finally, with the magical beast's core completely defenseless, Pisca landed an arrow directly in the spot where her father had dealt the fatal wound, securing a complete victory.

Afterward, the nomads recognized Kizuna's group as heroes and agreed to enter peace talks with the fortress city. Pisca's grandfather, who had become the new chieftain, and Padron's father, the lord of the fortress city, both told us to leave the matter to them with confidence, so things should be fine from here on out.

At worst, if some mysterious plot twist causes everything to fall apart and leads to a war, that's none of my business. Do whatever you want. I'm just going home.

At present, the group is heading toward our next destination, the "Mechanical City Mikania"... and the neighboring great elven forest, "Nru Wo Lies."

Originally, Padron was supposed to suggest where we should go, but I stole his moment by using my memo knowledge. Sorry, Padron. I'll give you an extra-large lunch today, so forgive me.

Oh, right. I should start preparing lunch soon. This will be Pisca's first time eating my cooking. I'd better put some effort into it.

Judging from the food served at the nomads' settlement, it doesn't seem like catfolk have sensitive tongues. And in Tetma's refrigerator-like storage, we have some exquisite milk that the nomads gave us. We also have the magical beast's meat, as well as a large amount of vegetables we bought in the fortress city.

In that case... all right. Today's menu is gratin!

"Tetma. Please prepare the oven. Can you adjust the heat?"

『No problem. This unit was designed as a mobile base. Therefore, it possesses a comprehensive range of knowledge concerning cooking equipment.』

"Wonderful. Then, once the oven is ready, adjust the heat according to my instructions."

『Understood. ............Report. There are people collapsed ahead. Two people are lying down, while one person is standing upright. How should this unit respond?』

"...Let's ask everyone what they think for now. ...Though I can't imagine Kizuna choosing the option of abandoning them."

Well then, it looks like the time has come for the party to finally be complete.

I'd better make more gratin.

"Man, you really saved us! It was a good thing I chased after my brother and ran out of the forest, but I had no idea where I was going! I ran out without bringing any food, so I ended up collapsing along the way! I was seriously in trouble! Oh, Tierra? Can I have some more?"

This high-energy, airheaded-looking girl is "Pahar Wanu Waudu" *1. I think her rarity was SR? She's a beautiful blonde, fair-skinned female elf warrior. She's 36 years old... but elves live roughly twice as long as humans, so in human terms, she's 18.

Apparently, she left the forest to follow her older brother, Valt, who had set out on a journey to search for the stolen elven treasure. The rules state that anyone who leaves the forest can never set foot inside it again, but she basically went, "Who cares about that?" and ran off anyway.

"There's still plenty left, so eat as much as you like."

She's a noisy girl, but I don't dislike this kind of little-sister character.

My big-brother instincts are being stimulated, making me want to spoil her.

"More, Mama."

"Rene, I am not your mother. And you're starting to eat too much. That was your fourth bowl, wasn't it?"

And for some reason, the World Eater... or rather, Rene, has started calling me "Mama."

I have absolutely no idea what that's supposed to mean. I clearly looked like a reliable big sister.

Although, I did play the role of a guide while acting like a female teacher.

Is this one of those weird phenomena where an elementary school student accidentally calls their female homeroom teacher "Mom"?

In that case, I'll gently deny it for now. She'll probably stop eventually.

And I'm pretty sure this girl is erasing the food almost as soon as she eats it, too. She probably absorbs only the bare minimum of nutrients she needs, then erases everything else... or rather, corrects it. That's why I have to stop her at a reasonable point, or she'll keep eating forever.

"I am deeply sorry. Thank you so much for treating me to such a delicious meal... I cannot thank you enough."

And then there's this blue-haired elf... or, more precisely, half-elf girl. Her name is "Lies Thebe Lamoitier." She's the daughter of a noble family from the Yupiteria Empire, where Liz-senpai was from.

Her aptitude is "Sorcery." She specializes in magical attacks, debuffs against enemies, and buffs for allies.

She's characterized by the refined speech and elegant movements expected of a young noblewoman, along with her dignified posture.

"I am truly indebted to you. ...Oh, I have yet to introduce myself, have I? My apologies. For certain reasons, I have left my homeland and now wander as a vagabond. My name is Nanashi Gonbee."

AIEEE!? A ninja!? Why a ninja!?

...But enough joking around. He really is a ninja. This brown-haired young man who speaks in that old-fashioned "de gozaru" style is a genuine ninja.

That said, he's not a ninja originating from Earth's Japan. In some other world, a similar type of existence took root, and it was eventually absorbed into Chaos. Although he looks exactly like a ninja, he uses magic instead of ninjutsu, and there are various other differences.

His name is obviously a pseudonym, but that's the result of having his original name taken away. "Nanashi Gonbee" is his real name now, and that will never change.

Well then, with everyone's stomachs (except Rene's) full of my special gratin, let's hear the details.

Oh, and the moment Pisca took her first bite, she made the face of an astounded space cat. I've won.

Once everyone had settled down, Lies began telling her story.

"Actually, I am an elf who was born outside the forest. I have been traveling in search of the great forest that was my mother's... my mother's homeland. However, I was attacked by monsters..."

She paused there and turned her gaze toward Pahar, who was rubbing her happily full stomach and nodding off.

"Miss Pahar happened to pass by and saved me. However, while we were fleeing from the magical beast, I dropped the luggage containing our food into the river... So the two of us were on the verge of starving to death. It is terribly embarrassing..."

Pahar, whose turn it was to speak, hurriedly rubbed her eyes and joined the conversation.

"Honestly, I've never heard of an elf born outside the forest before. I couldn't really decide what to do about her, so I figured it'd be fine to dump all the difficult stuff on the elders~. So I was just guiding her toward the forest for now. Well, I can't actually enter the forest myself, though!"

According to her, she'd set out on a journey to find her brother, but had found no clues. She continued traveling more or less aimlessly until she ran out of food. Just then, she spotted someone with the characteristic long ears of an elf, and that person was being attacked by a magical beast, so she rescued her.

When Pahar heard about Lies's situation—she was trying to reach the great forest but had no idea how to get there—she readily agreed to guide her. Even though the rules prevented her from entering the forest herself, she could at least guide Lies as far as the entrance.

Her journey to find her brother wasn't over, but she had no clues, and there was even a possibility that he had already found the treasure and returned. More importantly, abandoning someone in this situation just wasn't in her nature... or so she said.

And so the two of them set out toward the forest together, only to collapse along the way after running out of food.

That's when Nanashi happened to pass by. There were no towns or villages anywhere nearby, and he could only carry one person at a time. Naturally, he didn't have enough food for three people either, so he had been left wondering what to do.

"We were heading toward the great forest too. If you'd like, why don't you ride with us? I think it'll be easier that way."

Naturally, there was no way Kizuna would hear all that and simply leave them behind. And so the three of them also climbed aboard Tetma.

Hmmmm. Now that there are more people, cooking has become a lot more difficult. What a problem.

With new companions joining the group, the party hurried onward on their journey toward their next adventure.

"...That sound... Is that Pahar? Why is she here? ...I suppose I'll have to follow her."

The story now moves on to Chapter 2――

――But before that. A fun summer... and my first-ever summer event awaits.