Chapter 45
Chapter 45
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Translator: Vine
Chapter: 45
Chapter Title: C-Rank Promotion Test
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After returning to the Empire from the count's domain, a week passed uneventfully.
We didn't work for that week; we just had fun.
One day, it was as if my past self had possessed my body, and I ended up sleeping the entire day.
We could afford to do this partly because we had tripled our original 15-silver reward, and partly because we’d received 3 gold coins from that unexpected emergency request.
What? You think we'll burn through all our money in no time if we just laze around after a windfall?
It's not like this world has banks that pay interest or savings accounts. What's the point of working so hard to earn money?
Besides, most people here live day by day, earning just enough to get by.
In any case, after a week of playing and eating, it was time to get back to work.
So, I came to the Adventurer's Guild for the first time in a while.
"Welcome..."
"Why are you so down?"
Adela seemed somewhat dejected.
"I know... Thanks to that, it's been a bit more peaceful around here."
"Who's been bothering our Adela? Just say the word. I, a prospective C-rank adventurer, will teach them a lesson."
"..."
At that, Adela stared intently at me.
What's this? Did I unknowingly release some pheromones?
Unfortunately, I can't control these hormones, so I probably can't stop the fascination.
"Adela. I'm sorry, but I'm not really into people without any combat ability..."
"I don't know what you're talking about, but I feel offended for some reason."
Offended for some reason...?
"Adela, is it that time of the month?"
"...Are you insane?"
"Guess not, then."
If it's not that, why is she so sensitive?
"More importantly, what did you do in the count's domain to come back with a girl trailing behind you?"
"A girl?"
I turned my head to look behind me.
Behind me were Luna, same as always, and Yui, the high-class slave I'd recently picked up.
But Yui does look like a kid at a glance, so I guess she mistook her for one.
She has no idea that girl is the oldest one here.
"She's a high-class sla... I mean, a new party member."
"We don't typically say we 'picked up' a party member..."
Why not?
"Anyway, we took down an Iron Golem. We should be able to take the C-rank promotion test, right?"
I figured that during the week we were off, news that we had successfully completed the preliminary investigation for the missing persons case the count requested would have arrived, along with the story about the Iron Golem.
In my opinion, that should be more than enough to qualify for C-rank.
"Yes. We received the news via a dispatch from the count. Although it turned into a raid, the Guild Master's opinion is that your performance was excellent, and you've more than met the conditions for the promotion test."
"Really? That's a shame."
"...What is?"
"If you'd said no, I was planning on proving my skills by beating up all the C-rank adventurers in here."
I casually scanned the interior for any tasty-looking C-rank adventurers, but for some reason, every adventurer who met my gaze immediately looked away.
*Shake, shake.*
Adela shook her head.
For some reason, it looked like a new wrinkle had appeared on her forehead.
"I'll explain it to you, so you should get going."
"You don't even suspect we might fail anymore?"
"Haha... I suppose not. It would have been better if you weren't so skilled, actually."
"You're too kind."
I guess we're close enough for her to make jokes like that now.
But the lifeless look in her eyes made me wonder if she was sick.
Just like last time, Adela took a large book from a shelf and opened it.
Again, she flipped through the pages rapidly. She must have memorized the location of everything in that huge book.
"As before, this is the easiest request."
"I'd prefer the most difficult one."
Choosing only the hard stuff is the secret to rapid promotion.
"...At least look at it before you speak."
"Okay."
"Your party has grown from two to three members, so I recommend you check it out."
"Okay."
The first monster.
Salamander. Nicknamed the Fire Lizard.
Its body is wreathed in flames, and it uses melee attacks.
The easiest way to hunt it is to bring someone who can use water.
The next best option is to hire a porter to carry barrels of water.
"Adela, I think this information is wrong."
"Hm? Where?"
"Do you really have to use water? Can't you just kill it while it's hot?"
"...If that were possible, everyone would do it that way. People get burned when they touch fire, Luke."
"Nah, it just felt a little hot to me."
"Yes, yes. I'm sure it did."
"It's true, though."
She doesn't believe me.
Seeing as the Salamander is the easiest, the monsters are definitely a step up from the ones I saw during the last promotion test.
"What's after the Salamander?"
I wasn't going to pick it anyway, but I was curious.
This world has a lot of monsters, but since it's an academy story, Demonic Humans and demons show up more often than mindless monsters.
The protagonist's growth comes from beating them up, too.
Because of that, monsters like the Ogre and Iron Golem we fought before never even appeared in the original story.
"A Ghost."
"A Ghost? The kind of ghost I'm thinking of?"
"I don't know what you're thinking of, but you're probably right."
A ghost is C-rank?
And it's stronger than a Salamander?
I don't get it.
"Isn't a Salamander stronger than a Ghost?"
"Individually, yes. But Salamanders act alone, whereas Ghosts emerge from abandoned graveyards, so they appear in groups."
I see. So there's no fighting the numbers.
"Besides, Ghosts are ethereal, so physical attacks don't work on them. The only way to attack them is with magic or magic tools, but using expensive magic tools just to hunt Ghosts isn't cost-effective. Parties without a mage don't even bother going."
Salamanders are hard to fight up close because of the fire.
Ghosts are immune to physical attacks because they're ethereal.
Do C-rank quests have something against warriors? They keep saying this is impossible, that is impossible.
I had no intention of hunting them anyway, and I didn't have a way to do it.
If I were to try, would I have to dance around with a torch or something?
What's the point of thinking about it? I'm not going to fight one.
"The last monster is on the next page."
"Alright, let's see the final monster~"
The grand finale.
With a pounding heart, I turned the page.
The first thing that caught my eye was the monster's name.
King Slime.
...Thinking I must have seen it wrong, I blinked and looked again.
Still King Slime.
...Thinking I might be hallucinating, I rubbed my eyes and looked again.
Still King Slime.
...Wondering if it was just called a slime but was actually a different monster in gel form, I examined the illustration below.
It was round, with a smooth form even in the drawing.
No arms, no legs, no mouth, no face—just a slick, featureless shape.
It really was the slime I knew.
"A-a-a, a-a-a, a, a fucking SLIME!?!?!?!?!?!?!??"
The same fodder monster slime that stands shoulder to shoulder with goblins?!
I know there are plenty of settings these days where slimes aren't weak, but did this have to be one of them!?
"Wh-what's gotten into you all of a sudden...?"
"Luke, please calm down a little."
Adela was startled by my sudden outburst.
Luna tried to calm me from behind.
"I mean, how can a mere slime come after an Ogre and a Salamander!!"
"M-mere?! King Slimes are different from regular slimes; they're incredibly dangerous monsters!"
"That's the problem!"
Hah, I really want to flick the author right between the eyes.
Sure, a slime can be strong depending on the setting.
But why, after creating all these other monsters so well, does a slime suddenly pop out of nowhere?
Did they just make it dummy data because it was never supposed to appear in the story?
"I don't know why you're acting like this, but King Slimes are more dangerous than you think."
"How so."
My enthusiasm was completely gone, and now only curt words would come out.
"Even the weakest regular slime has a body made entirely of acid, so just touching one will melt your flesh. Plus, they don't have a core like a golem, so they ignore most physical attacks."
I mean... it's a common trope, but hearing her describe a mere slime so seriously felt strange, so different from the slimes I knew.
Does this slime have 'Tempest' at the end of its name or something?
If so, I'd have to acknowledge its strength.
"You said 'most,' so that means they're not completely immune."
"Even then, blunt weapons like hammers are more effective than slashing weapons like swords."
That just means hammers or maces are the only options, right?
I can't just punch it if its body is made of acid.
I know the ultimate blunt weapon, but this world doesn't have heavy machinery, so unfortunately, that's not an option.
"But the Metal Slime was E-rank last time, wasn't it?"
"Metal Slimes are closer to solid than liquid, so even people without mana can hunt them."
A Metal Slime is usually an evolution of a regular slime...
Why is it a devolution here?
I belatedly read the book's description.
A slime that reaches several meters in size.
Its entire body is composed of acid, making its very existence a great threat to humans.
It kills its opponents by trapping them within its body and dissolving them.
Its primary weakness is magic, with fire magic being particularly effective. Conversely, water magic should be avoided, as it absorbs water to increase its size.
Despite its appearance, it is a rather intelligent monster, so caution is required during combat.
"Sigh, if this is the strongest one, I guess we have to go with it."
"Um... Luke? Our party doesn't have a fire mage, does it?"
"Nope."
"Then how are you going to defeat it...?"
"If we don't have one, we'll do it without one. What's so impossible? Nothing is impossible in this world, Luna."
I suppose you've never heard this, since your world doesn't have soldiers.
The army is a moving fortress.
Nothing in this world is impossible.
"Honestly, for once, I have to agree with Luna. Especially since you, the main attacker, use physical attacks."
When someone tells you not to do something, it just makes you want to do it more.
"There's no time to hesitate-e-e-e-e-e-e-e-e-e-e-e!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!"
I bolted out of the Adventurer's Guild.