The Impersonating Daimaou Wants to be Hated (WN): Chapter 130

 

Chapter 130: Atom-kun, the Adventurer

"Atom, it went that way.

"Yes. Leave it to me."

 Something heavy approached us at a tremendous speed through the gaps between the trees. Even though it was hidden in a sea of green and invisible, its enormous presence, which could easily swallow a human being whole, struck me.

"Spirit of Wisdom, bless me. Spirit of Wind, gather in my sword."

 My brain's information processing improves dramatically with magic, and the wind swirls around both blades. A serpent leaped out of the bushes, its fangs bared.

"Heavenly Wind Blade."

 A cut down from above. In exchange for the slight resistance, the blades bit into the serpent's body, and the wind released from the blade cut everything in its path in two.

 The huge body, over 30 meters long, split in two and shook the ground. Jumping through the bushes, a beastwoman appeared.

"You did it! As expected of Atom."

 Inua-san, who had staked out another spot to keep the giant snake from escaping, suddenly hugged me.

"It's dangerous."

 I moved the blade I was holding away from her so as not to accidentally hurt her. She must be happy that I was able to defeat the monster we had been staking out for a week. Her black dog ears and tail were a clear expression of her joy.

“Atom is cool. Can't you be more happy? Hey, Kuku."

"Umu. You did a good job for a kohai."

"...Kuku-san. Please don't turn off your presence when you're approaching."

 I was so distracted by Inua-san that I didn't notice her approach. Her green eyes, which do not show much emotion, are staring up at me. Being a spirit, Kuku-san is not very tall, but perhaps because of her arrogant attitude, she is not often seen as younger. Her good looks are powerful when seen up close, and I thought that was understandable.

"...Kohai is lusting for me."

"Eh!? Atom is a pervert! Besides, why are you in heat for Kuku instead of me who's breasts are touching you?"

“No, I am not in heat. If you were aware of it touching, please step away."

 Inua-san's breasts are large, to say the least. Seeing it closely, I will be aware of them even if I don't want to.

"You guys are too careless. Don't let your guard down!"

 Kuryuna-san's angry voice echoed. My shoulders jerked up and I bowed my head before I could think.

"I-I'm sorry."

"Ahaha! Atom, you got yelled at."

"After all, you are a kohai. Do not be discouraged by this."

"Fool! You guys too."

 Kuryuna-san's fist fell on both of them. Kuryuna-san's fist, who is covered with steel and is an A-rank adventurer, hurts like hell. Inua-san is a beastwoman, but Kuku-san, who is a spirit, would not be able to bear it.

"~ ~!? I'm against violence."

 Kuku-san crouched down and held her head. Her green eyes looked up at Kuryuna-san reproachfully.

“Only the living can complain. If you don't want to die, you'd better get your act together."

 Her eyes were as sharp as a blade, accentuating her dignified good looks. Her black ponytail sways behind her tall stature. It is difficult to guess her actual age from her fresh skin that is full of vitality, but despite her youthful appearance, she has an intimidating presence that would not be mistaken for a young person. The armor she wears is as light as a feather and as hard as a dragon's scales. It was equipment befitting the wife of an S-rank adventurer and commander of the S-rank clan "Bonds of Steel"."

"I've taken records with the eye of the law, so the subjugation request is now complete. We'll dismantle the parts that can be sold, including the fangs."

"I understand."

"I'll do my best."

"Umu. Good luck, everyone."

"You do it too!"

 Another fist fell on Kuku-san's small head.

...

""Cheers!"""

 Glasses collide at a bar. When I heard this sound, my tiredness mysteriously flew away, and a sense of accomplishment after finishing nearly a month's work welled up.

 The glasses, already empty, were placed on the table.

“Puhaa~. Good! Waitress, bring me more dishes and stuff!"

"Wait until you've eaten all the food in front of you."

"Don't worry, it will be gone soon.~"

 Inua-san's sharp canine teeth dug into the huge steak on the plate.

"Yare, yare. Come on, you guys, eat up too."

"Ah, thanks for the food."

"I'm already eating."

 In contrast to Inua-san, who was boldly throwing meat into her mouth, Kuku-san was eating mainly vegetables and sipping liquor.

“Even so, it took a long time, but I’m glad we were able to defeat it. It's going to stop the damage to the village now."

"Shallow thinking."

"Yeah, it would be difficult."

"Eh? Why?"

 Inua-san, who had eaten off the meat, tilted her head, and Kuryuna-san and Kuku-san looked at me as if it was a bother. It seems that they left the explanation up to me.

"Um, Inua-san knows that the appearance rate and strength of monsters have been on the increase recently, right?"

"Dunno."

"Eh!?"

 How is it for an adventurer not to know this (or why are you so confident?)?

 Not knowing what to say, this time I looked at Kuryuna-san and Kuku-san.

"I told you."

"Inua is my pet, so it doesn't matter if she don't know."

"No, Kuku-san. That remark is bad."

 It is natural, but many beastmen take it as an insult to call them pets. It is normal to avoid using it as a joke even if you are very close to them. Inua-san, who was happily enjoying her steak, looked as if she had just noticed something.

"Hmm? Does that mean that the people in the village will be in danger as long as they are on that mountain?"

"That's what I mean. The fact that the phenomenon has seen here must have something to do with the resurrection of the Daimaou."

“Like the rate of appearance, the increase in strength is troubling… kohai, you are researching monsters, but have you caught anything?”

"Unfortunately, there's nothing."

"Heh, I didn't know that Atom is doing that."

"You really are an idiot. When Atom joined our group, he said he wanted to learn the basics of being an adventurer in order to study monsters."

"Hmm~. Come to think of it, he did say that."

 Inua-san drank down the beer in an oversized mug next to Kuryuna-san, who is carving a steak beautifully. I bowed my head to her.

"Thank you very much for your help."

 I can't thank Kuryuna-san enough for welcoming me into the group after I ran away from the Kingdom of Light after losing the confrontation with Aquim-kun.

"But, what are you investigating about monsters?"

"Well, I'm investigating the reason why monsters, which are supposed to be stronger than humans, haven't become the rulers of this world."

"Fue? What do you mean?"

“The same is true to the giant serpent earlier, but many of the monsters are physically superior to humans. Their intelligence is not low, and there are even individuals with high fertility. And yet, for some reason, the dominant species on this world is the human race. Don't you think this is odd?"

“Hmm~? ……Isn’t it because there are kings?”

"That's right. Floria-sama and the others are indeed amazing. I think it's fair to say that they are the guardians of mankind. But you know, even demons have dragons. It has already been proven that dragons are highly intelligent and have the power to lead other monsters."

"Recently, I heard that a dragon led demons to attack the Water Kingdom."

 Kuku-san, whose hometown was attacked, said so with a sullen tone and rolled the empty liquor bottle on the table, reaching for the same oversized mug as Inua-san.

"Dragons can lead monsters, and their power is on par with that of kings. Yet when looking at the species as a whole, for some reason humans outnumbered the monsters."

"That's in the Central Continent, right? Isn't it because the dragons are satisfied living in the Dark Continent?"

 Kuryuna-san doesn't touch the alcohol much, and quietly carries the cut steak into her mouth.

"That's the current theory. But I feel it's more, like, intentional."

"Atom is worried about petty things~."

“The most mysterious thing is that the demons, who theoretically should have higher magical abilities than humans, are in fact far inferior to humans in terms of magic."

"Ah, come to think of it, there aren't many demons that use magic."

"Yes, that's the strange part. Demons definitely consume mana as nourishment to maintain their huge bodies. But even though they use special abilities that rely on their physical characteristics, most demons do not use magic. No, they can't."

“Maybe it's a constitutional problem. Or maybe it's because they're stupid."

 Smack*. Inua-san smacked herself on the head. I know it was a joke, but it wasn't very funny, so let's let it slide here.

“Some demons are intelligent enough to understand human language, and their bodies are often used as raw materials for magic tools. At the very least, demons have the foundation to use magic much more powerfully than humans. But isn't it funny that their level of magic is inferior to that of humans, let alone spirits and fiends?"

"Hmm. That's... I don't know!"

 Slam*! Inua-san slammed the empty mug on the table.

"That's where this kohai comes in."

"That's, uh... yes."

"Eh. What, what? What is it?"

 Inua-san finally started to drink directly from the bottle, as if pouring it into a mug had become a chore. 

"I'm thinking that magic has a will of its own. That will is working to prevent the demons from gaining an advantage over mankind...... I think."

"Ahaha. Hey, Atom. Just because I don't think things through doesn't mean I'm going to be fooled by your joke, okay?"

"I'm not joking..."

"Hoe? ...Eh? It's a bit of a problem for Kuku-san. Atom has fallen in love with a strange religion."

 Upon receiving Inua-san's gaze, Kuryuna-san let out a sigh.

"Well, those like Inua, who never went to school and learned magic in actual battle, can only laugh, but the idea that mana is a gift given by God is not so unusual. But, well, it's not something you want to talk about with adventurers who have never attended a magic school or anything like that."

 If it were a joke, it would be hilarious. With that, Kuryuna-san called the waitress, asked her to carry the empty liquor bottle, and placed several new orders.

“I understand. But there are some things that I really don't think are true. Curse power, in particular, is even more prone to manifest its nature than mana. There are many cases where the same person in the same environment can do the same thing, and the results can vary greatly. It's as if a capricious person is lending a hand, depending on his or her mood."

"Eh, it's too much trouble if the results change every time. It's not easy being a mage, you know?"

 Inua-san taps my shoulder while laughing. A stubble-bearded knight approached our table.

"Ah, you guys are doing it."

“Ah~, it’s the commander~. Yahoo."

"Inua-san. You're being rude to the commander."

 Among the hundreds of thousands of adventurers in the guild, it is said that the total number of S-rank adventurers has never exceeded 30, and they are the dream of everyone who belongs to the guild. Even though I knew it was all right, I couldn't help but interject a few words of my own.

“No worries. No worries. How are you doing, Atom? Are you doing well?"

“Yes. Everyone's been very good to me."

"I take care of my kohai, so it's only natural that he's doing well."

"That's right, Commander. Can't you trust us!?"

"Gahahaha! Fine, fine. But it's not convenient to have one man in an all-female team. How about joining our team for your next job?"

 "Bonds of Steel" is a fairly large clan, usually divided into several teams to perform their respective tasks. Team members are sometimes replaced depending on the work they receive, but the teams are generally made up of people who are compatible with each other.

 As an adventurer, it is an honor to work with the commander. I bowed my head.

"Yes. I look forward to working with youーー"

"Wait a minute!! Wait a minute, Commander, you can't do this. Atom is ours now."

"Kohais serve senpais. This is the order of the world. Even if you are the Commander, you can't do that."

"Oi, oi. What? You're popular. I envy you, Atom."

"No, that's, um."

 I think they just don't want to be deprived of their errand boy, or something like that.

"Well, all the teams seem to be doing well now, and if you guys don't want it to change, there's no need to force it. Oh, and Kuryuna."

 The leader of the team, perhaps concerned about the way we were looking at him, looked unusually reluctant to say anything.

"Don't worry. I'll go to your room after drinking some more."

"I see. I'm not trying to disturb you guys.... I'm sorry."

"The commander is a man too~"

"Is it accumulating, by any chance?"

"Puhahaha! Kuku, that's a good one~!"

 The table shook as Inua-san laughed. The commander did not seem offended by the drunkards' rude remarks, and on the contrary, his face, which was stroking his short beard, looked somewhat amused.

“Atom. These girls are old enough to know better. Make sure you get them to their lodgings."

"Yes. Please leave it to me."

"Ah, I'm counting on you. And I apologize for interrupting. Let me buy you a drink."

"Eh? No, that's improper."

"Don't worry about it. I want to treat you. Ah, and Atom. It's fine to be popular, but please don't mess with my wife, okay?"

"No, I won't."

 The commander smiled and tapped me on the shoulder, and left the tavern. Immediately, Kuku-san and Inua-san peeked into the bag handed to me by the commander.

"Uwa!? I thought they were guild banknotes, but they are gold coins. The Commander is so generous!"

"Don't be deceived, my pet. This is the fee to take our leader from us. In other words, the price of our leader's body."

"Uwa~. Thinking like that, I don't like it~"

“What nonsense are you guys saying!"

 Two fists fell, and the drunks fell flat on the table.

"Damn... So, Atom, are you sure you want this team for your next job? If you want, I'll tell my husband."

 It's a great honor to work with the commander, and it's a great learning experience. But it was the same with Kuryuna-san.

“If it's all right with you, Kuryuna-san, I'd like to work with this team a little longer."

"I see. But our next job will be in the Kingdom of Light, you know, are you okay with that?"

 Her sharp eyes softened in concern. I guess she is referring to the fact that I lost the match with Aquim-kun and was told a lot of things ............Elana, how are you doing?

"Yes. No problem."

 We...... or rather adventurers, choose to base our work in towns that are basically made up of people who belong to guilds, a.k.a. guild towns. There are guild towns scattered all over the continent, but we are in the guild town closest to the Kingdom of Light. We can return home whenever we want, but it still takes a few days to get to the capital. Considering that the potions would run out soon, we needed to go home anyway.

"I see. Well, things are different from the past. The other person is a hero who saved the country. No one will laugh at you for losing now, but if you have anything to say, say it to me. I'll beat him to a pulp."

"Then I will comfort kohai."

"Ah, well, I'll comfort you too. Do you want to touch my breasts?"

"No, I appreciate everyone's kindness, but the reason I lost the match against Aquim-kun was because of my immaturity. So don't worry about it."

 The reason I left the Kingdom of Light was that I couldn't bear to see Elana with a painful face. I was willing to take any risk if Elana wanted to, and I was still ready to run away with her to a faraway place. But at the same time, I knew very well that Elana would not choose such a way of life.

 The lively and cheerful mood seems to have become a little darker because of me. I wondered if there was anything to talk about.

“Somehow, kohai seems to have a hard time. Since it can't be helped, why don't I give you a helping hand as the senpai here?"

 Suddenly, Kuku-san lowers the neck part of her clothes a little, revealing the mysterious radiant skin of the spirit race. The smooth neck and the collarbone were strangely glamorous.

"Nooo. Then me too!"

 What was she thinking, or perhaps she wasn't thinking at all? Inua-san took off her clothes on the spot, exposing her upper body in underwear. Her large breasts protected by her white underwear attracted a portion of the people in the bar.

“You have nice breasts. Let me fuck you once, girl."

"Ahaha! Want to die?"

 Inua-san gives the middle finger to a male adventurer seated nearby. A fist fell on her head.

"Nuoooo!? M-my head!?"

"Well then, Atom, it looks like my husband is waiting for me, so I'll go. Can I leave these two idiots to you?"

 To be honest, I didn't really want to be in charge, but I didn't want to turn down Kuryuna-san's request, and above all, Kuku-san and Inua-san are certainly both eye-catching beauties. As a man, I couldn't leave the two of them alone, who were likely to lose consciousness if they continued to drink.

"I'll take care of it."

"Look, Inua. Kouhai's greedy eyes. They're definitely aiming something like a wolf."

"Uwa, scary. We might get eaten. Hahaha!"

"I'm not aiming for you guys!"

"You've never been with a man before, but you've got a big mouth, you know? Atom, if you want to get laid, go ahead and do it."

"Eh? Eh? No, that's not a good idea......"

 Inua-san and Kuku-san, who were listening to the exchange between me and Kuryuna-san, hugged their bodies like weak maidens in front of a violent maniac.

""Nooo.""

 Unintentionally harmonizing voice. When the two of them look at each other's facesーー

""Gyahahaha!!""

 The short black and green hair sways.  I raised my hand to the waitress who was busily moving around the store.

"Um, sorry! Can I have another drink?"

 I picked up the bottle on the table and poured it, still nearly half full, into my stomach in one gulp.