Fried Chicken Boom and the Phantom Magical Girl

"Hey, Constellations, don't you have any normal skills?"

"That's a salt golem. Pretty pricey one, too," Larirure explained about the pure white, human-shaped monster moving deeper in the dungeon.

Golems were lifeforms created by infusing them with someone's will. There were many types, but they were known as the rare monsters with the most byproducts.

Its entire body made of salt—man, I was already excited about how much it'd fetch.

"Just smash the core inside to take down a golem. From the way it moves, it's probably around the waist."

Larirure quickly pinpointed the weakness with her dwarven eyesight and adventurer experience. Stiff in spots, but the limbs extended from the power center. Sure enough, that waist area twitched every time it moved.

"Normally, I'd recommend arrows or bullets to catch it intact, but..."

Time to test my practice throws. I touched the back of the knife with my finger and hurled it horizontally. Not much power, so it flew weakly with the blade forward.

"Deadly Queen!"

The primary detonation started at the knife's hilt, propelling it forward with explosive acceleration. It pierced the salt golem's core clean through.

The secondary blast scattered salt everywhere—a bit of a mess—but I scooped it into the Metal Mimic (Chamber Pot) and stored it in leather pouches.

Hunting was a breeze. Larirure would explain weaknesses and traits. If it was beyond me, she'd charge in with her shovel for a one-hit kill. Then I'd use a spare knife for butchering and collect the byproducts.

Other adventurers needed to pack food and water for expeditions. Not us—we just needed a cup and bowl. Sometimes I'd even drink straight from water flowing from my palm to save them.

Stuff the bag full of materials, head to the stairs, ride the elevator up. Long lines meant it ate up time going and coming. One round trip down and up took nearly the whole day.

Dwarven precision made for clean butchering, and rare monster drops sold well. But it felt too slow to build real wealth.

"Let's do business."

"I was thinking the same."

Larirure whipped up a wheeled cart for easy transport in seconds. After getting food vendor approval from the adventurer guild, we set up in a high-traffic spot and started selling.

Scams over quality sparked arguments elsewhere, but we were the exception.

"Humans are rare here. Starting a fight would just hurt them, so no one's picking a fight."

"Hey, cute human, wanna play with sis?"

No fights, but flirtations lined up. Larirure went berserk if they touched my gemcrafting, chasing them off.

We focused on high-margin items. Bought 300 paper bags from the market guild. Fill 'em with fresh fried chicken on order—pure profit, the bags paying for themselves dozens of times over.

We added events too. Bought a timer and bucket.

"Stimulate adventurers' competitive spirits."

Consulted with Larirure: Finish the bucket of fried chicken in 15 minutes, it's free. Fail, you pay. Top the food challenge with a bottle of Spiritus, and challengers queued up.

"Just ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠rinse the bucket with water, refill with chicken, repeat."

"But plenty could finish in 15."

"Rank the top 5 by timer. Shorter times mean more failures as records drop."

"Smart. They'll push limits, fail more."

Human-run stall drew crowds. No rage over "scams"—fresh chicken, fair rules. Some challenged for real, others just wanted to pig out and pay.

Next, ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠dilute Spiritus into booze with fruits and mixes—Larirure's touch stretched it far.

"Can we sell water?"

"Magic Palace kingdom's got infrastructure. Cheap water everywhere."

"Sell cheaper."

"Ours is free anyway?"

Mana-tainted magic water tasted off from real drinking water. Mine was pure, pristine—no impurities. Alchemists bought on rumors.

"Glowing dinosaurs too?"

"Dunno."

Lifelike, dynamic fluorescent dino toys. Melting for rubber recycle? Nah, glow material ruined it. Dino-shaped only, customizable. Deynous and collectors snapped them up. Custom orders? One-day wait hiked prices.

Money printer! Miracles from nothing—alchemy at its finest!

Nights in the plaza, days hunting. Weekends off by agreement. Her dwarven stamina outlasted me, but beats convenience store shifts—no yellers, drunks, or rudeness. Felt like zoo exhibit, but warm fresh chicken at low prices flew off shelves.

"Don't overproduce. Rarity keeps demand high."

Sell fixed amounts. Rumors boost crowds; sell out quick, more rest time.

(Crashed with flu on day 4, off early.)

Bottling water, wringing wet wipes for booze, bagging chicken, dino crafting—not exhausting, but she couldn't start it. I initiated, she finished.

"Never lived this grindy," she admitted, drained after 8 days—dwarven endurance be damned.

But bedtime cuddles, boyfriend wake-ups and meals...

"That's my fuel!"

"Morning kiss wake-up too?" I teased, but her knee-drop was too heavy to lift. Hurt feelings, tears again.

Around day 9 in the Magic Palace, my total stats hit 23 from 21. Pathetic growth.

Nonstop dungeon days for 9... just +2? Larirure: 597 from 590. "Racial talent gaps—don't despair." Too wide, though. Elixirs helped her, but I couldn't consume them.

Day 10 ledger: Started with 8GP 120SP. Now 22GP 982SP.

Insane...

No spare for memorize spellbook. She called it scam-level from nothing in 10 days—lifetime security. Stared blankly at my greed.

F-ranks don't rake this much. Po'runga confirmed via letter: "Insane earnings. Heading there soon."

Deeper dungeon? Rank-blocked. Even if, my stats too low.

Beep-bo~♪

Flutter—ticket drops with goddess cheers. Fewer tickets lately despite efforts. Skills piling up, karma lacking? Raise adventurer rank maybe.

Rip the ticket.

"Constellations mess up too?!"

"Long...!"

Dunno what, but way too wordy! Grand name, but magical girl summon?...

I went silent, head bowed. What magical girls do I even know? Never watched that stuff.

"..."

Giving Constellation botched the wording. Or Roulette flubbed explanation.

Skill name: I, Your Fighting Force. Subs and supers separate.

Super-skill confusing. Summon girl... why enemy? Anime fights decide win/loss?

"Summon Magical Girl!"

Nothing.

Figures. No fictional summons mentioned!

Magical girl world Constellation? Mine only has 'em in fiction...

"Larirure, got mana skills?"

"Nope? Mana doesn't mean magic."

First drink today. 19's legal, right?

Why no magical girls in my world? Constellations—utterly incomprehensible.