Chapter 144 Himuro Yukiko ⑲
Edited by: Kanaa-senpai
I had a few solid reasons for taking Leonardo’s request.
First, it was a matter of logistics for both Greedia and Wrathfiria. As long as this magical blizzard holds, Wrathfiria can’t deploy an army – or even a band of mercenaries – to Greedia. Trade has effectively ground to a halt.
Second, to build my brand. Publicity, pure and simple. This blizzard¹ has choked off all communication, so my name hasn’t traveled an inch. This quest changes that. If I pull this off, my name will spread all at once. Fran mentioned my reputation has already reached Plaudix and Envyos to some degree – I did stir the pot quite a bit in Greedia, after all. Right now, it’s just whispers, but one more rank-up and I’ll be a force of nature. The herd thins out fast once you hit Silver rank.²
Third, to drag the names of those two Heroes through the mud. They probably won’t care even if the rumors reach them, but at the very least, they’ll buy disfavor. They are good-for-nothings as it is. Doing nothing in the face of an unprecedented crisis – no matter how much power they have, it’s completely meaningless. They’ll be branded as useless.
In short, it’s just another step toward my Vengeance against Suzuki and Sato.
* * *
The next day –
”But man, how are we supposed to search for it?”
Amidst the heavy blizzard, I unintentionally grumble. I accepted it, but Leonardo and the others are having a hard time even with the investigation, which is a problem prior to the subjugation.
”Lil, do you know?”
”With the wind being this strong…”
Lil shakes her head. Lil has five senses superior to humans – especially smell and hearing – but smells are carried away by the wind, and sounds are drowned out by this blizzard. Even before that.
”Since it’s a spirit-type, it doesn’t have a smell or anything, right?”
Lil nodded at Mihiro’s words. Hræsvelgr’s³ appearance is a large hawk, but it’s a spirit. It’s not a beast. In that case, Mihiro is better suited. Mihiro can read mana. Unlike Lil, they perceive presence through mana, but…
”This blizzard is constructed out of mana, so I can’t read it.”
To explain it simply, it’s like chaff being scattered. That’s probably why Leonardo resorted to human-wave tactics. When I encountered Leonardo before, they had moved up the search and were on their way back, but that search method apparently involved forming several parties of three people and searching while taking turns roughly every two hours. However, they couldn’t advance into the depths of the blizzard zone, and the investigation was struggling.
Hmm. I have the confidence to defeat it, but I’m stumbling right from the start. If only I could clear the air. As I was pondering, a thought struck me.
”Ah.”
There was one thing. I don’t know if it’s possible, but it’s worth a try.
”Mihiro, you can use that sorcery that cancels out sorcery, right?”
”You mean ‘Dispel’?”
”Yeah, that. Can’t you do something about this blizzard with that?”
”…I see. I’ll try it.”
Mihiro stepped forward and chanted ‘Dispel’. But there was no change. The blizzard didn’t subside; it continued to roar with a deafening howl. But Mihiro’s insight was different.
”No, that’s not it. At least the mana dispersed. It’ll subside in a few days. What’s blowing now is just the aftermath.”
”Seriously!?”
”Though, it’s only a small part. To disperse it all would require a considerable amount of time and MP. Especially MP…”
”Hmm… time aside, MP isn’t a problem.”
”Eh?”
I take out several bottles of a certain tonic from my Item Box. Technically, it wasn’t medicine – it was sake. Divine sake.
”I’ve got Soma here. Not just what’s on hand. There’s plenty more, don’t be shy.”
”…Seven-san, you’re a real demon.”
Mihiro said that while their face twitched.
HAHAHA! That’s the highest compliment.
Still, I don’t know… it almost looked like Mihiro was enjoying it. Yeah, let’s try not to think too deeply. I definitely didn’t see Mihiro exhaling feverish breaths. I absolutely don’t know if Mihiro is Heating up just from my words!
* * *
”…Phew.”
I lost track of how many times Mihiro had dispersed the mana anchoring the blizzard with ‘Dispel’. According to Mihiro, Hræsvelgr causing the blizzard and then fixes it in place with mana. If you disperse that energy, it eventually peters out, but…
The scale was staggering. No matter how much mana Mihiro dispersed, it was a drop in the ocean. Mihiro slammed back another Soma. This was the fourth bottle.
”Gulp… gulp… ah… hah…”
Mihiro was looking strangely seductive. Well, it is the sake of a God. I’ve had it once myself. It has a smooth mouthfeel and a pleasant sweetness – it’s actually pretty delicious – but I’d been avoiding overusing it.
”I’m the one who told you to do it, but… are you okay?”
”Mnh… I’m fine. My body feels all warm and tingly… it actually feels kind of good. Ah, but maybe I’m getting a little tipsy?”
Soma itself isn’t particularly high in alcohol. It’s on the level of a medicinal tonic. Still, after drinking that much, it wouldn’t be weird for the buzz to set in.
”…Hmm. Should we call it for now?”
”I guess. I’ll stop when I run out of MP. I feel like I might get a little… ‘frisky’ otherwise.”
Mihiro’s face was flushed a soft red. Surely that was just the alcohol and definitely not because they were in Heat. Probably.
”Well, if we do this every day, we’ll get through it eventually.”
”Yeah. So, Seven… I’ll want a reward then. Something… really intense.”
”…I’ll see what I can do.”
”Ah, and I mean both front and back, okay?”
”Mihiro… et tu, Brute?”
I accidentally sounded like an ancient Roman Emperor. No, seriously, why do all the girls who get involved with me turn into total deviants?
”Oh? Then I want in, too. It’s been ages since we’ve had some ‘quality time.’”
”Leki too! Leki too – noja!”
”Just wait a little longer. Until Yukiko’s training is finished.”
”””Okay~”””
…Please don’t answer in such sweet, melting voices. It’s getting me worked up. And since I’d just end up taking that frustration out on Yukiko – who would totally ignore me – it’s just a recipe for blue balls.
* * *
A few days passed. Today, Leonardo was joining us. The blizzard zone wasn’t expanding, but the areas we’d cleared were becoming charged again. It was a total cat-and-mouse game. However, that was proof that Hræsvelgr had been in those exact spots. Our original plan was to find its location by clearing the mana; now, we were using the clearings to lure it out.
”Mihiro, how are you holding up?”
”Mnh… ‘okay’ might be a stretch. Give me some Soma.”
”Here.”
I tossed a bottle to Mihiro. Honoka had been compounding them in her spare time, so we had a decent stockpile. Still, the amount they’d put away over the last few days was staggering; it was enough to bankrupt a small nation.
”Mnh… gulp, gulp… phew… This is dangerous. I’m going to end up an addict at this rate.”
”Which kind? The ‘I need you’ kind, or the ‘I need rehab’ kind?”
”The rehab kind.”
”Don’t sweat it. I’ll just pop an Elixir and cure you.”
”…That’s a little cold, don’t you think?”
Addiction aside, an Elixir would fix acute alcohol poisoning in a heartbeat. And I had a stupid amount of those, too. Not that I’d ever let them hit the open market. According to the results of Honoka’s ‘God-Tier Compounding’ within her ‘Protection of Raphael,’ out of a thousand crafts, we got 500 Elixirs, 300 Somas, 199 Nectars, and exactly one Amrita. Amrita had a 0.1% drop rate. No wonder it’s impossible to find. Mihiro and I each carry two, and Honoka has five.
”Hey, Seven… just curious, but… how many more Somas do you actually have?”
”Let’s see… probably close to a thousand left. And I’ve got about three thousand Elixirs on hand. I’d appreciate it if you kept that under your hat.”
”As if I’d tell anyone! God-tier drugs are having a total hyper-inflation crisis here…”
Leonardo looked absolutely floored. For the record, the ingredients are just water and used tea leaves. It’s dirt cheap. If Leonardo knew that, he’d probably pass out on the spot.
”Come on, back to work. If you’re too tired to drink it yourself, I’ll just have to feed it to you mouth-to-mouth.”
”Alright! I’m suddenly full of energy!”
…Is it just me, or are they a little too easy to play?
”Anyway, let’s – wait, what?”
”What is it, Mihiro?”
”Seven! Something’s coming!”
Something seems to have caught Mihiro’s perception.
”Papa, look! A giant bird!”
Leki pointed into the white. There –
”You finally showed your face, Hræsvelgr!”
Leonardo roared in triumph. Our target had arrived.
—
Summary:
The protagonist accepts a quest to lure out the spirit Hræsvelgr to boost his reputation and spite the idle ‘Heroes’. Using Mihiro’s ‘Dispel’ and an endless supply of Soma, they successfully bait the creature into appearing. The chapter ends with the sudden appearance of the giant bird spirit.
—
Trivia:
- The blizzard is actually mana-based ‘radar chaff’.
- Soma and Elixirs are made from water and used tea leaves.
- The protagonist has a secret stockpile of 3,000 Elixirs.
- Mihiro’s ‘Dispel’ doesn’t stop the wind immediately, only the mana sustaining it
—
Character Insight:
The protagonist demonstrates a manipulative side by using intimacy as a ‘carrot’ to motivate Mihiro, while Mihiro shows a growing dependency on both the Soma and the protagonist’s attention.
—
Behind the Scenes:
The ‘Et tu, Brute’ line is a reference to Julius Caesar’s supposed final words, used here to highlight the protagonist’s feeling of being ‘betrayed’ by the girls’ growing lewdness.
—
TL Notes:
Notes:
• Leonardo – A Major and squad leader in the Wrathfiria military. Large build like a bear with brown hair like a lion’s mane and a thick beard. Friendly and boisterous. Actually, a prince, and now his beard has been shaved.
• Fran – Chaperone for the girls. Uses kunai in combat. Does not possess the Item Box skill.
• Suzuki – Suzuki Morio. Height 192 cm, weight 102 kg. The largest student in class. He has a terrifying face like a bull. Along with Sato, he ‘guarded’ Himuro Yukiko, controlling her every need including meals and bathing.
• Lil – One of the heroines. Height 166 cm, B-W-H: 90-56-90. She is a top-tier beauty with long indigo hair down to her waist, a large scar on her abdomen and sharp golden eyes. She has wolf ears and a tail.
• Mihiro – Post-gender swap of Yuki Chihiro: Height 160 cm, B-W-H: 82-55-80. Futanari. Short haired black hair, handsome.
• Leki – Lil’s daughter. Height: 140 cm, B-W-H: 70, 54, 69. She looks more like a Siberian Husky puppy than a wolf. Honestly, she just looks like a stuffed toy, recently transformed into a human form. Now use great axe as weapon.
• Yuki – Yuki Chihiro. Height 178 cm, weight 70 kg (Male). Natsumi’s childhood friend. A handsome, athletic top student in the soccer club.
• Honoka – A member of the relief team with healing magic. Despite her cute, short, ‘transistor glamour’ appearance, she is cold-hearted and mocks Sasaki, now a bound slave to him.
Please bookmark this series and rate ☆☆☆☆☆ on here!
Edited by Kanaa-senpai.
Thanks for reading.
Leave a Reply