The Hunter's Depression and Deception (3)

#

"Nice to meet you. I'm Yoo-jin."

"I'm Zinia."

"I'm Emily. Thank you for helping us."

"..."

"Tina. You should greet them."

"...Much obliged."

We could've handled it ourselves, grumbled the female warrior who looked like a tomboy. Yeah, right... You were about to get squeezed dry ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠until you died in there, and you could've handled it my ass.

The last breakfast before heading to West Keep. Reni had called me down, and when I arrived, the trio from yesterday were already seated at the table.

They'd said they wanted to introduce themselves, so here we were, awkwardly sitting around and exchanging names.

The prickly warrior was Tina, the calm wizard was Zinia, and the slightly cute priestess was Emily. All three were decent-looking.

The locals could only perceive it as a vague sense, but the level system applied to them too. If they worked hard at their jobs, their levels rose, and with that, their overall stats increased—including appearance stats like Charm.

The fact that all three were pretty meant they were mid-to-high-rank adventurers. Well, still not even comparable to Reni or Yuri, though. Rather than doing a foursome with them, I'd be better off rolling around with either Reni or Yuri. No, wait, a foursome... I was a little curious.

...Hmm. I didn't know how I'd ended up like this. I was thinking about everything in sexual terms. That was definitely because of the Sex Warrior class trait.

Yuri wasn't there. Well, she'd said she had something separate to prepare and was skipping breakfast. It was pretty suspicious how she'd fled into the bathroom the moment Reni knocked on the door. No... She ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠was definitely smiling. And it was an incredibly ominous smile. What in the world was going to happen... I was scared. So scared.

I shook my head and pushed the thought away.

Anyway, the three had changed out of those revealing adventurer outfits from yesterday and were dressed normally. It was a bit of a shame.

"...How are you feeling?"

Still, they'd been messed up pretty badly by the slime. Had they developed any trauma or anything? Well, considering that, they looked remarkably fine.

"Well... to be honest, from the moment we entered that chamber, my memories are a little... I only remember something pink lunging at me..."

Emily kept speaking as the group's representative. So that was how it was. I looked at Reni, and she shook her head. So she hadn't said much. Yeah. What good would it do them to have those memories?

But who knew aphrodisiac slime had a memory-wiping effect? I had to remember that one. It seemed unexpectedly useful.

"Anyway, thank you so much for helping us like this. If things had kept going that way, I don't know what would've become of us..."

Emily bowed her head repeatedly. Zinia didn't say much either, but her slight nod seemed to be her way of showing courtesy. But Tina had her lips pursed, clearly dissatisfied about something.

"...So. Did you find that wizard...?" "Tina?"

"...sir?"

What a piece of work. When had we gotten close enough for her to talk to me that casually?

"Yes. We found him."

"Where's that bastard?" "Tina." "...sir?"

I could see how this party operated. Emily was the representative, Tina was the troublemaker, and Zinia held Tina's leash and kept her in check. Good balance.

"If I don't get to punch him at least once... you're not leaving already, are you? ...sir?"

I understood. She said her memories were gone, and now it looked like her mind was coming and going too.

"That man is dead."

"Wha?!"

The trio's eyes nearly popped out as if in shock.

"We've already recovered the body."

Emily closed her eyes and murmured something, and Zinia shut her mouth. But Tina still looked like she had something left to say, fidgeting a bit.

"Th-Then. The... ev-evidence that wizard was carrying..."

She was asking about the belongings in this situation? I couldn't tell if her mental fortitude was amazing or if she just didn't think at all.

"We've taken care of all of that as well. You don't need to concern yourselves."

"I see. You've really been through a lot."

Emily and Zinia nodded their heads once more. But unlike the two who already seemed to accept it, Tina still had that look that said she had more to say.

"Urgh... S-Sorry, but... c-could you, um, maybe hand that over to us...?"

"...Excuse me?"

That was my kill, so why are you trying to take it?

"No. It's just, the thing is, that was actually a quest assigned by our clan... and w-we're on the same team. If we can't complete it, it's a little..."

"..."

Give me a break. I'd heard something from your mom yesterday.

"You're the innkeeper's daughter, right?"

"...Huh? Yes..."

"She told me yesterday that you'd come home to rest in celebration of joining the clan. But while you were here, you decided to go take care of this quest... I believe that's what she said."

"Urgh..."

Ridiculous girl. Zinia looked at Tina with mildly disappointed eyes, then calmly opened her mouth.

"Then why did you insist on taking a quest after coming all the way home? Of course we should hand it over. They saved our lives."

"Tch..."

Emily bowed her head once more.

"I'm sorry. Honestly, we should be the ones giving you a reward, but we spent almost everything we had on clan initiation fees... I'm sorry..."

"I see."

What a waste. Honestly, if it weren't for that aphrodisiac slime back then, I would've at least emptied their pockets. Guess it would've been pointless anyway.

"But still..." "That's enough."

Zinia shut Tina's mouth like that, and Emily spoke again.

"Anyway, thank you again for helping us. We heard from Reni that you're heading to West Keep?"

"Yes. That's right."

"If you ever need any help, please contact us. You can ask for Team Tina, Lamia Clan, 31st Batch."

"Ah, thank you."

Honestly, I didn't know how much help you'd be. But if I stood you next to me, you could at least work as a totem, right? A decently pretty totem. It'd be even better if you moaned lewdly.

"Well then."

Anyway, the three finished their goodbyes and went back up to their room. It seemed the aftermath of being violated by the slime was still lingering.

"What'd I say that was so wrong?"

"A person needs to have some shame. How could you bring up the quest matter there?"

...Next time I ran into that girl, I would definitely empty her pockets. She seriously had no shame. The two disappeared like that, but Emily didn't leave and remained at the table. Did she have something else to say?

"Oh, and um, I heard this from Reni yesterday."

"Yes?"

"Th-That you... have a way to increase Divine Power?"

When I turned to look at Reni, she quickly lowered her head and pretended not to know. This naive priestess couldn't have turned into a blabbermouth, could she?!

"...Just a moment."

"Eek?!"

I grabbed Reni's wrist and quickly moved to an empty corner.

"Reni. How much did you tell her? Don't tell me you told her everything..."

"N-No! J-Just... like back at the Church... I only said you h-had some kind of medicine..."

"Haah..."

"I-I told her it only worked on me, but... I'm sorryyy..."

How was I supposed to shut the mouth of a priestess who couldn't lie? At least it was a relief it ended at that.

"So? What about her? Is she suffering from a lack of Divine Power like you did?"

"No! She's not lacking it!"

Reni shook her head vehemently as if it were urgent. Um, if she wasn't lacking it, that was a good thing, so why was your reaction so intense? Anyway, now that I'd confirmed that, it was time to lie and chase off that reasonably cute priestess.

I gathered my thoughts for a moment and gave Reni instructions.

"Alright. I'll handle it. Don't say a word and stay put. Got it?"

"Urk... Yes..."

I returned to the table and opened my mouth in a subtle tone. From then on, since I was planning to fleece this reasonably cute priestess, I had to run a con just like a phone salesperson.

"How much did you hear from Reni yesterday?"

"Uh... W-Well."

Emily hemmed and hawed.

"Th-That Yoo-jin, you're a foreigner, and there was some medicine, and after taking it, Reni's Divine Power increased..."

"You also heard that people from the Church tried drinking it but it had no effect, correct?"

"Y-yes. But..."

"Didn't Reni mention how it tasted?"

"Huh? The taste?"

Looks like this priestess had conveniently left out all the bad parts. Hmm. If she'd said it tasted bad, that would be bad talk about me, so I got why she didn't mention that. But how was she gonna get by in life being this naive? Should I seriously keep her locked up at home?

I hid my sinister thoughts and kept laying the bait for the con.

"Actually, the reason Reni was able to increase her Divine Power... was because she could endure this."

I placed the test tube containing the ZICO on the table as I spoke.

"Th-This is..."

Emily's eyes glistened with desire. She reached out to grab the ZICO, but I snatched it away first.

"Three silvers."

"...Huh?"

"Yoo-jin?!"

"Three silvers. This is the last one."

"Th-The last one..."

"This is water I drew from the sacred spring in my homeland. You could consider it Holy Water (聖水). But the Church used up the rest last time, so this is the last of it."

"Ah..."

"It's the last Holy Water remaining from my homeland, so I'm reluctant to part with it, but if you're truly desperate, I'll give it to you for three silvers. It isn't that I need the money. Think of it as an offering to the sanctuary. Yes, a sort of donation."

"I-I see..."

"It is something I carried around as a charm—the holy water of my hometown. Honestly, I did not know it could increase Divine Power. But I only heard that from Reni, and it had no effect on anyone else."

"Only on Reni..."

"Would you still like to try it?"

"..."

Emily hesitated for ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠a long while, then rummaged through her pocket and held out three silver coins with trembling hands.

"H-Here..."

"It may not work. Do you still want to try?"

"Y-Yes..."

"Very well."

I took the silver coins and handed over the ZICO.

...

"Bleeergh."

#

After Reni cast Cure on Emily and sent her upstairs to rest, she looked up at me with protesting eyes.

"Yoo-jin. Why did you do that..."

"That young lady ending up like that is entirely your fault, Reni."

"What?!"

I put the three silver coins into my inventory and spouted whatever came to mind.

"Think about it. We're heading to West Keep, and you've already let it slip that I have some strange medicine capable of amplifying Divine Power."

"Urk..."

"And what would happen if I gave it away for free? Anyone and everyone would swarm me wanting to try it, right?"

"Yes..."

"Then what if I sell it for an expensive price? Then people with money would think it's real and try to contact me, or that young lady might come back after saving up money. If that happened, rumors would spread, and I'd get dragged away in no time."

"That's..."

"Three silver coins sting a little, but they're still an amount she can forget about, right? That young lady probably wasn't that desperate either. That's why she hesitated when I asked for money. Besides, now that I've planted a bad memory, she'll just go around saying she got scammed somewhere, right? That's actually a benefit to me."

"..."

Reni's expression became something indescribable at my open admission of fraud. Like she was looking at a villain... But for a modern person, that level of savvy was standard kit. And three silvers. I thought that was pretty cheap for the price of saving their lives.

Reni wore that pained look on her face, while I opened the door feeling giddy at the unexpected pocket money.

"Ah, you're back? I'm ready to go now."

"...!"

Yuri greeted us cheerfully. At the sight of her, Reni's entire body stiffened rigidly, her eyes looking like they were about to pop out.

"Hey... you..."

"What? Does it look weird?"

Giggling, Yuri wore a half-off-shoulder top that left one shoulder completely bare. But the problem wasn't the outfit. I'd seen that level of clothing at Yuri's family home and on the trio yesterday. The problem was that Yuri's nape was covered in the kiss marks I'd left.

"Sh-Sh-Sh-Sha..."

Reni's mouth leaked nothing but "sha" on repeat, like a broken piano. It felt like the ominous prelude to a terrifying symphony. Th-This girl, why in the world did she keep making these provocations?!

"Shameless!!"

"What's shameless about it? This much is basic. Reni, once we get to West Keep, you'll have to change out of that stuffy robe too, you know? Adventurers need to dress for mobility."

"That's not what I'm talking about!!!"

"Then what is it?"

"Ugh...!"

"Yeah? What is it?"

Yuri circled around Reni with a mischievous smile. Then she looked at her own shoulder and, as if suddenly surprised, tugged at her clothes to try to hide the kiss marks.

Of course, the kiss marks weren't in a position she could see with her own eyes, and pulling at her clothes didn't hide them either!

"Ah, this? Man, let me tell you how intense it was last night... I thought I was gonna lose my mind. When did you even make these?"

Someone shut that brazen mouth of hers, please! At those words, Reni turned toward me with a creak. Her eyes brimmed with envy, jealousy, anger, and every other emotion, as though they were about to pierce right through me...

"Y-Yoo-jin... T-To me... why..."

"W-Wait! Reni! Come with me!"

I dragged Reni into the bathroom.

...

"Kyaa-heut!"

...

"Th-There. All d-done, right?"

"Yes..."

Only after leaving an intense mark on Reni's nape did she look satisfied. When we came out of the bathroom, Yuri had already changed back into proper clothes.

But the smug smile on her face made a sense of foreboding creep over me. Ominous. Why was she smiling like that? Far too ominous.

"L-Let's head out now. If we're even a little late, we'll miss the carriage."

"Got it." "Yes..."

...

I got Reni onto the carriage first, then grabbed Yuri.

"What was that all about earlier?"

"Heh... who knows? Why did I do that?"

Th-This girl, playing twenty questions? But Yuri opened her mouth ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠right away as if she had no intention of doing that.

"That was punishment. Try leaving me out and doing something again, just try it."

"You've been holding onto that?!"

"Of course. You said I can't leave the party, didn't you? Then you need to take at least this much responsibility, right?"

"..."

S-Scary! A harem was scary!

-Smooch.

Yuri lightly kissed my frozen cheek, then beamed at me.

"What're you doing? We gotta go, right?"

Th-This minx!