If one day, a usually obedient junior suddenly asks you to get them some poison, and when you ask why, they say they plan to inject it into themselves, how would you feel?
'Crash!!'
Hmm... First of all, I can be sure it wouldn't be positive.
"C-calm down and explain first?!!"
"Calm down?! Calm dooowwn?!!"
Well, since I'm the one who made a statement that could be misunderstood without explaining, it's all my fault.
"You're not coming?!"
Since it's my fault, I won't particularly complain, but
"Huff... huff... Miach-sama, save me!!"
...first of all, isn't complaining something you can only do if you survive?
"...What happened while I was away for a moment?"
"I'll explain, so please stop my senior first!!!"
With Miach's help, I barely managed to calm Naza down and immediately sat properly on the floor, explaining my skills step by step.
"...Immortal? There's such a skill?"
"I'm sorry... I should have explained first..."
"I thought I'd have to explain someday... I didn't know it would be like this."
Honestly, I only needed to explain Adaptability, but trusting in her character and the trust we've built, I explained everything.
"Honestly, it's hard to believe... but you're not the type to lie for no reason, and Miach-sama says so too, so I have no choice but to believe..."
"If you don't believe me, I can show you right no..."
"Hey, do you really want to get hit?"
"I'm sorry..."
"Kai, you need to learn to read the mood."
'I never thought I'd hear such words from Miach-sama...'
After that, at Naza's request for some time to sort out her thoughts, I wandered the streets in a daze, forgetting to remove the weight bands on my limbs.
"...Let's just take it easy today."
Considering what just happened and how busy I've been lately with improving bath bombs and the dungeon, with almost no days off, I decided to take it easy for today.
"I still have the weight bands on. How about taking a walk and roaming Orario for the first time in a while?"
So, I hid the weight bands under my clothes so they wouldn't be visible and decided to roam Orario.
"Ah! Hello!!"
"Well, this is..."
Somehow, I ended up meeting Bell Cranel.
"I didn't think you lived nearby..."
Orario is divided into eight directions from Babel (north, northeast, east, southeast, south, southwest, west, northwest), and the Blue Pharmacy where I live is located deep in the back alleys of the west Main Street. Coincidentally or not, it seems the Hestia Familia, where the protagonist Bell Cranel lives, is also around here.
"Ahaha... and I thought the gods might be close to each other."
As I walked and chatted with Bell Cranel about various things, I suddenly became curious about the age of the protagonist, who is about my height.
"...It might be a bit strange to ask this now."
"Huh?"
"...How old are you?"
"I'm 14 years old!"
"We're the same age..."
"What?! Really?!"
Sadly, I found out that Bell Cranel and I are the same age.
'To think I'm the same age as such an innocent guy...'
Of course, only our physical ages are the same; mentally, I'm more mature, but still, it felt a bit off.
"This is the first time I've talked to someone my own age!!"
"Is that so..."
But Bell Cranel, the protagonist, completely unaware of my feelings, started excitedly asking more questions.
"The village I lived in... back then, my grandfather... so I came to Orario and..."
Since he kept talking without stopping while smiling, it was hard to tell him to be quiet, so I just listened, but there was something strange mixed in throughout the story.
"Um... so you grew up under your grandfather since you were young, but that grandfather, while strong, had a hobby of peeping in women's baths and taught his grandson strange fantasies about women along with how to pick them up, and one day he passed away in an accident, leaving you alone, and to become like the heroes in stories, you came to Orario and sta... no, lived in an inn at a higher price than the market rate, and then met your current god?"
"Uh... there might be something strange in the middle, but that's about right?"
"...Is this what they call gaslighting or something?"
"Gas... lighting? What's that?"
"No... it's just something..."
The more I listened, the more my assessment of the protagonist in front of me kept rising.
'My god... to think there really exists a guy with a 99.99% filter installed in his brain.'
In both good and bad ways at the same time.
"Hey, Bell."
"Yes? What is it?"
"...Since we're the same age, drop the formal speech."
"Ah... I'm comfortable with this."
"Fine, do as you please..."
As we walked and talked for a while, I subconsciously sensed a familiar gaze.
""?!""
I immediately looked back, but there was nothing there except ordinary townspeople.
'That gaze just now... it definitely felt the same as the one I occasionally felt during early morning training.'
"S-something, a gaze just now..."
"Ah... yeah, I felt it too."
Fortunately, I wasn't the only one who felt the gaze, as Bell was also panicking and looking around.
"Excuse me..."
But at that moment, startled by a woman's voice from behind, I reflexively asked.
"...Are you a thief by any chance?"
"K-Kai-san! Why would you say that suddenly?!"
Because there was no sign of presence, not even footsteps.
"...Huh?"
As Bell said, since I asked if she was a thief right to her face upon first meeting, the woman who had spoken was instead taken aback.
"...Ah, I'm sorry. You came without any presence at all..."
I immediately realized how absurd my question was and apologized first.
"Oh, no, that's understandable... More importantly, white-haired gentleman, you dropped this."
"A magic stone? I thought I exchanged all of them yesterday... Ah, thank you!"
I'm not sure if she called just to return the magic stone Bell dropped, but for some reason, this woman looked very familiar.
'I'm sure I've seen her somewhere...'
There are many cases where I can't recognize characters in this world at first glance, and there's a reason for that.
'In the manga I saw on Earth, everyone was in black and white, so how could I recognize them?'
Unless they appeared in color on the cover of the manga, like the protagonist Bell Cranel, Hestia, or Ais Wallenstein, for other characters, since their symbolic hair or eye colors were all drawn in black and white, it was hard to recognize them at once.
'The fact that I've seen her means she appeared early in the manga...'
Moreover, the manga I did see, I put off after volume 3 or 4 and eventually forgot, so I don't know much about the characters.
"Are you heading to the dungeon this early in the morning?"
"Yes, well..."
While I was lost in thought, Bell and the woman continued their conversation.
'Growl'
Suddenly, a sound came from Bell's stomach.
"Ufufu, you must be hungry."
"...Yes."
As Bell was embarrassed, the woman asked him to wait a moment and immediately went into the shop next to them.
"Hostess of Fertility? Given her attire... is she an employee here?"
"Seeing how naturally she goes in, she must work here."
Unable to contain my curiosity, I slightly moved my head to peek inside the shop.
"Everyone's wearing the same outfit."
Employees of various races, including humans, elves, and catpeople, were all busily moving around in the same clothes.
'...But it feels like they're all emitting a strong aura; is it just me?'
They were clearly just working normally, but watching them, they somehow seemed sharp and well-defined, as if they all had an edge to them.
"...Could this be the rumored demon's den?"
"Demon's den?"
As I chatted with Bell, before I knew it, the woman who had gone into the shop came out and handed Bell a lunchbox wrapped in cloth.
"It's nothing much."
"No, this is too much... And isn't this your breakfast?"
When the woman, whom he had just met, handed him the lunchbox, Bell was flustered.
"Adventurer-san, this is a meeting of minds."
"Huh?"
"I'll take a slight loss, but in return, Adventurer-san, fill your stomach here, and tonight, have dinner at the pub where I work."
With the woman's explanation, even I, standing right next to them, was persuaded in an instant.
"Ufufu~ Come on, take it. My pay tonight will definitely be high."
As the woman smiled, Bell, who had absentmindedly accepted the lunchbox, let out a small laugh.
"Really... you're crafty. Then, I'll come by tonight."
"Yes, I'll be waiting."
"Ah, I'm Bell Cranel. What's your name?"
"Syru Flover. Bell-san."
Having finished a conversation that would look heartwarming from the side, the two seemed to part ways there.
"Ah, that's right, Kai-san, you said you're taking a break today, so what will you do now?"
Bell suddenly called me and asked about my plans for the day.
"...Huh? Me?"
"Yes, I'm heading to the dungeon right away, but I was wondering what Kai-san will do."
"Well... since quite some time has passed, I should probably head back to the shop?"
"Then, if it's okay with you, would you like to come here with me tonight?"
"...Me too?"
"Well... as an apology for last time, how about I treat you to dinner tonight instead... Ahaha..."
It seems he still has the Minotaur incident on his mind.
"...It's fine, I told you not to worry about it."
"T-that's true, but..."
"...Sigh, fine. Since I have time in the evening anyway, come by our shop when you're free. I'll get ready and come out."
When I agreed, Bell smiled happily and immediately ran off towards the dungeon.
"Phew... really, with that level, it's a miracle he hasn't been scammed yet."
"Um..."
So, only Syru and I were left, but
"Ah, standing in front of the shop like this is a nuisance, so I'll be going now. I'll drop by again tonight."
"...Huh? W-wait a minute?!"
I skillfully made my exit, and though she seemed to say something from afar, I pretended not to hear and hurried back to the shop.
"By the way, Syru Flover... so that means today is the day the protagonist grows another step, right?"
Based on what I know, tonight, Bell will feel self-loathing from the drunken Bete's harsh words, blame his own complacency, and experience a turning point where he truly desires to become stronger.
"...That means I'll have to pay for tonight's dinner myself."
Even though I know the future, there's not much I can do, so I decided to use it in this way.
"Senior, I'm back."
"Ah... you're back?"
Fortunately, there weren't many customers in the shop, so I approached my senior and whispered softly.
"So, have you sorted out your thoughts?"
Then, Naza nodded and handed me a medicine bottle and a syringe, whispering.
"I picked one that's not too strong. For the proper ones, later, when I or the god are beside you to supe... no, to supervise."
Fortunately, it seemed Naza understood well, but
"...Just now, you said experiment."
I clearly heard her about to say experiment.
"No..."
"No, you definitely said experiment."
"You must have heard wrong."
As I continued to look at her suspiciously, this time Naza averted her gaze first and bowed her head.
"...Be honest. You're planning to use me as a lab rat, aren't you?"
"...A little bit?"
"Ugh."