Chapter 6
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Translator: penny
Chapter: 6
Chapter Title: 4: If You Don't Fall Asleep Now, We'll Head to the Dungeon -1
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What do the veterans crave?
There would be all sorts of answers to that.
Fresher entertainment.
Newly updated regions and content.
Noob concepts like helmets filled with swords, and so on.
But they all share one thing in common.
Novelty and uniqueness.
Experiences they've never had before.
That's why even obvious marketing ploys get swallowed up by so many veterans.
Of course, I was no different.
Stories so new they started completely from scratch.
New tales unfolding in a new world.
New companions met in a new world.
New content enjoyed in a new world.
Is there a gamer out there who hates that sort of thing?
I doubt it.
Maybe that's why.
Even in this hellish situation where I'd suddenly possessed a game character and could die if I didn't play it straight.
My heart was pounding foolishly.
With excitement over all these new events. Over conquering them.
Today, too, I headed there to tackle a new day.
"I'm coming in."
I knocked twice, and stepped inside as the door swung open.
"Ah~ Assistant-kun."
"I don't like that title... but whatever, I'm here."
The vibe was worlds apart from with Ophelia.
Back then, it felt like I'd been forced into a stiff, rigid meeting. This time, it truly felt like visiting a comrade.
The place I'd come to was a small club room.
With only one person inside.
Melissa, the Black Magic Club president, greeted me.
After exchanging hellos with her, I glanced around the room.
The Black Magic Club sub-room was bigger than I'd expected.
Big enough that if the cafe succeeded, we'd be set for a while.
As I looked around with a satisfied expression, Melissa threw a jab.
"Don't get all excited like you own the place already."
"I know. Let's just get today's experiment started."
"Right. Then we'll test mine first today. Yours after. No complaints?"
"Got it."
"Alright, Day 7 experiment, begin."
Ever since meeting Melissa, my life had been one endless experiment.
In the meantime, we'd dropped the formalities since we were the same age, and things had gotten pretty friendly.
Unraveling stories with new characters was fun.
However.
'This Melissa girl... she's one massive weirdo.'
Her antics were more than enough to fluster and embarrass me.
Every "fatigue recovery solution" she came up with was bizarre.
"Stand there."
"Okay."
"Experiment, start."
Like right now.
"What are you doing?"
"Hugging."
"Why all of a sudden?"
"Don't you know? Hugs make the body produce substances that reduce stress."
"Oh, really?"
"But it's even more effective between lovers."
"Can't be helped. We'll skip that."
"Why say it's unavoidable? We could just become lovers."
...She always says stuff like that.
"Just kidding."
"Jeez..."
"So my method failed again today."
At that point, I wondered if she was deliberately picking weird methods. Though she was probably serious in her own way.
I watched her slump back into her chair, then pulled a thermos from my bag.
"Tea?"
"Yeah."
"Hm... Your tea does taste good. But I doubt it'll have much effect."
"Just try it. This one might be different."
It was lavender tea, as always.
But this time, it wasn't just any lavender tea.
[Herb Tea Brewing LV3]
I'd brewed so much herb tea like a madman that it'd somehow reached level 3. And that wasn't all.
[Title: Herb Tea Addict]
[You've brewed so much herb tea that your inner power has built up. Herb tea effects are enhanced.]
Before I knew it, I'd even earned the title of Herb Tea Addict. This cup was brewed with all that accumulated power and skill.
I poured some into a teacup and handed it to Melissa.
"Have a sip."
"Alright, cheers."
Slurp.
Melissa sipped the herb tea slowly.
'It is working.'
Does she realize it?
That her eyes are blinking on their own while she drinks.
"Hmm..."
Melissa began bobbing back and forth like a metronome. Her head drifting away from the desk, then toward it.
Nod.
Nod.
Nod.
"Ah."
Thud!
"Kyah!"
"You okay?"
"What was that, Assistant-kun! If it looked like I was gonna bonk my head, you should've had a cushion ready!"
"Who am I supposed to blame when you dozed off and hit your own head?"
Huh?
Hold on.
Dozed off?
"...You just napped a bit, didn't you?"
"...Yeah..."
"Experiment success."
The condition I'd set for the experiment was this: Could I use my abilities to put Melissa to sleep?
For a whole week, there'd been no sign of it working, so I'd started doubting if it was even possible.
"It works."
"Heh, a week’s first sleep."
"That wasn't really sleep."
"Still, it might've been sweet while it lasted."
Melissa gave a wry smile and finished her tea.
It wouldn't make her sleepy again now that she'd experienced the effect once.
Should I hunt for stronger herbs?
I did know of one with solid effects.
'But that means heading into the dungeon again. And even if I do, it's not blooming season right now.'
Hmm.
Tough call.
What to do?
As I pondered and fidgeted around doing chores, I suddenly noticed something off. The anomaly was coming from a small paper bag.
"Oh no."
"What's wrong?"
"I brought a plant to liven up the drab classroom..."
"Hm."
"It's wilted bad."
The leaves had gotten crushed and broken on the way. Looked like bumping into someone had done a number on it.
"Let me see. Oof... That's rough."
"No helping it. Guess I'll chalk it up to bad luck and let it return to nature—"
"No need for that."
"Huh?"
"Hand it over."
Melissa took the plant and stared at it intently. Then she stretched out her hand and chanted a spell.
"Hear me, O verdant one. Bloom anew, O resilient one."
⟨ Druid Healing Magic ⟩
Melissa's body glowed with a warm green light. That had to be druid department magic.
How did Melissa, a black mage, know that spell?
The magic worked perfectly—the plant's wounds healed back to normal.
No, it even looked healthier than before.
"How do you know druid magic?"
"...I was originally set to enroll in the druid department."
I almost asked why she'd chosen black magic instead, but her expression made me shut my mouth.
A faint bitterness lingered on Melissa's face.
There must've been circumstances, so I didn't pry deeper.
I'd learn eventually if we kept hanging out.
To show I wasn't bothered, I tossed out a joke.
"Melissa."
"Yeah?"
"You're actually..."
"Actually?"
"Not a black mage, but an earth mage!"
"What even—"
She cracked a faint smile at my lame joke.
"Hybrid, huh? Impressive."
"Not that hard."
"Nah, total genius."
"Enough already! Flattery gets you nowhere!"
Her words said one thing, but her body was honest.
That faint smile had turned smug, dancing across her face.
'Not bad. Earth mage.'
Time to tweak the plan a bit.
Originally, that plant from the dungeon bloomed only in winter.
Now that spring was nearing, it was too late.
It'd be dormant as a seed right now.
But if I poured Melissa's abilities into it?
'I could pull it off faster than expected.'
The problem was.
'Whether I can get out of there in one piece.'
Without a scratch.
...Ah, should I get my fortune read?
Will I make it out safe?
"Melissa."
"Yeah?"
"I might need to hit the dungeon soon. Can you read my fortune?"
Melissa held up a pearl.
"Put your hand here, and it'll show."
"Ooh."
"Not too far in the future, but fragments of near-future events should appear."
Could the dungeon delve end safely?
That was the question we sought an answer for.
We couldn't know everything, but at least we'd get a sense of what to watch out for.
Truth be told, I had my doubts even about that.
Melissa found it weird too.
'Prophecies about Ethan's future never come out right.'
As if the world was blocking observation of him.
In his case, predictions either didn't appear or showed black screens.
And today was no exception.
"Nothing's showing."
"Again? Wait a sec."
Melissa clutched the pearl to her chest and closed her eyes.
She was projecting her mind into it to check its state.
Of course, with Ethan, even that often showed nothing.
So Melissa checked without high hopes. The pitch-black sky was still murky, like covered in storm clouds.
-Oh...
Ah, sounds are coming through.
Rare for anything Ethan-related to show in divination.
'Just need to amplify the sound now.'
Melissa tried to pull her mind out of the pearl.
No need to stay long. But she froze in place, unable to move.
-Oh... ooooh...
Because of groaning moans echoing from somewhere.
'Huh, that's my voice—'
Fragments of the future flickered before Melissa's eyes.
Herself lying in bed, face flushed and disheveled to the max.
'What... what is this...?'
As if answering her confusion, the moans grew more intense.
-Ohh... oooh! F-feels so gooood...
What? What the hell?
What's going on?
-Harder, r-right thereeee! Harder, pleeease...
Now she was even begging?
'This... what...'
The flickering future vision and mind-numbing moans.
And then, decisively, a man's voice rang out.
-I don't even know anymore.
-Ahhhn... so rough... so goooood...
Melissa realized what was happening.
And perhaps, this could be...
Something between her and Ethan in the future—
Whoosh—her soul snapped back out the next instant.
"Melissa?"
"..."
"What's with you?"
Her face had turned beet red.
Because of witnessing that scene.
"C-can I be alone for a bit?"
"Huh?"
"Please. Just for a moment."
"Okay. Call if something's up."
She was sending him away precisely because something was up.
"Got it."
As Ethan's back vanished after those words, Melissa hurriedly peered into the pearl again.
The same scene was playing out.
Her own intense moans mixing with Ethan's voice.
"..."
Even on the verge of going mad, Melissa kept staring into the pearl.
She had to find out how it led to that.
Gazing deeper, she spotted something odd.
Ethan's voice was there, but his figure wasn't.
All she saw was herself, with what seemed to be Ethan's hands circling around her.
They'd occasionally tap her shoulder, calf, or scalp before vanishing.
'What does this mean?'
Why no sign of Ethan, just those hands?
'No idea.'
Melissa had no clue about the future barreling toward her.
A future where Ethan groped her to his heart's content.
"So, Melissa. Can I come back from the dungeon safely?"
"No idea."
"Huh? You just checked the pearl. What'd you see?"
"..."
"Can't even tell me?"
"Dunno."
"Your speech suddenly changed—"
"I said I don't know, you beast."
"Eh?"
Ethan had no clue why, leaving him utterly baffled.