85
Chapter 85
The frog came back after just one day.
Once again, the guy presented us with a box full of Pink Mana Stones.
Seriously, why is he being so burdensome?
Giving it once yesterday should have been enough.
What's with all these constant gifts?
"Hurry up and take it, ribbit."
The frog urged us to accept the gift while holding it out.
I still felt uneasy about it, but I accepted the gift for now.
It wouldn't be polite to refuse when he brought it all this way.
Besides, if I made him take it back, the frog might get scolded by that Master of the Lake guy.
"I'll be going now, then. Let's meet again tomorrow, ribbit."
As soon as the frog handed over the gift, he turned around and hopped away, ribbiting.
...Wait a minute, meet again tomorrow?
Don't tell me he plans to come tomorrow too?
"Yong-yong. It seems like that Mister really likes Papa and Mamas, yong. He keeps giving us gifts, yong."
You're so naive, Little Yellow Dragon.
You're still too young to understand how the world works.
They definitely have some kind of ulterior motive.
It was a very reasonable suspicion.
If he's called the Master of the Lake while commanding a frog of that level, he must be a monster with considerable weight. Why would a guy like that go out of his way to shower us with gifts and try to maintain a friendly relationship?
It was way too suspicious.
Ah, of course.
I still feel grateful, though.
Regardless of the reason, we've received these precious Natural Mana Stones as a gift twice now.
Anyway, I should head back into the Dungeon for now.
I can't exactly go hunting carrying such a valuable box.
And so, we returned inside the Dungeon.
After that, we passed through the labyrinth of the first floor and climbed up to the second floor.
"Huh? Bear Baby, why are you back so soon?"
"Woowoong?"
As soon as we entered the second floor, Ailee and Tosuni approached us.
Ailee, who had a puzzled expression, soon shifted her gaze to the box I was holding.
"That box... did that frog from yesterday drop off another gift today?"
I nodded.
He was waiting outside.
He must have been waiting since dawn just to give us the gift.
"Hoeeeeek!?"
The Fox belatedly came running over in a flurry, flailing her arms like an idiot.
After stopping in front of me, she wagged her tail and stared at the box with sparkling eyes.
"You received this precious stuff again?!"
Swish.
I handed the box over to the Fox.
All these Pink Mana Stones belong to the Fox.
I gave all the Mana Stones we received yesterday to the Fox as well.
It's only right to yield these to the Fox.
She can't grow unless she consumes this specific type of Natural Mana Stone.
The Fox has a strict policy of only consuming Natural Mana Stones.
In other words, you could say she's a vegan Fox.
There's no need for us to be greedy for these Natural Mana Stones.
Even without these Natural Mana Stones, we can still grow by consuming the regular Mana Stones found inside monsters.
***
We stepped out of the Dungeon once again.
Then, we started searching for opponents that the Little Yellow Dragon could easily hunt.
For reference, the Hunting Support Team members are just the two of us: the Transport Captain and me.
There's no need for the support team to be large, after all.
The support team isn't following the Little Yellow Dragon around to hunt together, but strictly to accompany him in case he encounters a dangerous situation. Also, Ailee mentioned that if there are too many guardians, the Little Yellow Dragon might rely on us too much, so taking Action with only a few of us would be helpful for his growth. In addition, she said that if too many of us flocked together, the prey might get scared and run away, making it impossible to get proper hunting practice.
I also agreed with Ailee's opinion.
That's why I came out for hunting support bringing only the Transport Captain, just as Ailee suggested.
"Yong-yong-yong~ I'm wondering who to catch, yong, everyone come at me, yong~"
Taking Flight low to the ground, the Little Yellow Dragon led the way.
We followed behind him at a reasonable distance.
"It's an exciting hunting time, yong~ I'm going to catch lots of delicious things, yong~ I'm going to get so much praise from Papa and Mamas, yong~"
The Little Yellow Dragon confidently revealed his aspirations.
However, the hunt did not go according to his plan.
To be exact, he was failing to find a hunting target that met the Little Yellow Dragon's standards.
"Yong-yong... I can't catch that one, yong. It looks nice, yong."
He wouldn't hunt a monster simply because it looked gentle,
"That one is pitiful, yong. It's walking all alone, yong."
he let one go because it was a loner,
"That one greeted me gladly when it saw me, yong. I can't hunt it, yong."
he wouldn't target one because it greeted him first, and so on.
He was currently coming up with all sorts of excuses not to hunt the monsters.
Seriously, Little Yellow Dragon.
Then who on earth are you planning to catch?
The problem is that his heart is way too soft.
Watching this guy, who had even more power than me, failing to conduct a proper hunt was driving me crazy with frustration.
"It's not as easy as I thought, yong... I don't see any bad enemies, yong...."
We did happen to be encountering exceptionally docile monsters today of all days.
There used to be plenty of fierce ones around here in the past.
Perhaps this was also the power of Luck....
If that was the case, it wasn't particularly good Luck.
It was indeed Luck that helped in terms of safety, but at times like this, making us encounter monsters that were both fierce and weak would be far more helpful.
"I can't attack the nice kids, yong."
I could understand the Little Yellow Dragon's feelings.
To be honest, I also tend to be reluctant to hunt docile monsters.
I judged that not going out of my way to create trouble with monsters that were favorable toward me, and instead approaching them with a friendly attitude to build relationships, would be more helpful for survival.
And that judgment turned out to be the correct answer.
Thanks to that, I've made several monster friends up to this point.
If I had just recklessly hunted anyone I saw, I wouldn't have been able to make this many friends by now.
It's always better to have as many friends as possible who can help when you're in danger.
Therefore, I didn't urge the Little Yellow Dragon to quickly pick his prey.
I decided to be patient and keep watching over him, even if it was frustrating.
I couldn't force him to kill, after all.
"It's too early to give up, yong. I'll search the surroundings even more thoroughly, yong. I will find a bad monster and eat it, yong!"
The Little Yellow Dragon started moving again to look for prey.
While he was continuing his search like that.
"Squeeeak!!!"
He finally discovered a fierce monster.
It was a monster far too familiar to us, the Venomfang Rat.
"Yong-yong?! That is definitely a bad guy, yong!! It's baring its teeth at me, yong!!"
His criteria for judgment are truly simple.
Well, I'm not much different, though.
Don't tell me the Little Yellow Dragon takes after me.
"Squeeeak!"
"Turn into gold, yong!"
Whoosh-!!
A golden breath shot out from the Little Yellow Dragon's mouth.
The Venomfang Rat, which was fiercely charging at him, took a direct hit from the breath and transformed into a Golden Statue.
I guess there's no need to teach him anything specific about hunting.
All he has to do is hit them with his breath and turn them into gold, and it's over.
Anyway, his first hunt was a success.
Little Yellow Dragon, see, you can do it if you try.
I praised him by throwing a Bear-Bear Punch full of affection at his body.
After that.
I followed behind the Little Yellow Dragon as he went out to look for prey again, keeping my hands behind my back and maintaining a certain distance silently along with the Transport Captain.
...Wait a minute, Transport Captain.
Unclasp your hands behind your back, you punk.
Who do you think you are acting so arrogantly.
***
Early the next morning.
I stepped out of the Dungeon just in case.
And just as I expected, the frog had paid us a visit without fail.
"Hello there, it's a good morning today as well, ribbit."
The frog naturally handed over the box.
It was a box filled with pink Natural Mana Stones.
Then, just as he did before, he turned around without lingering after handing over the gift and exchanging greetings.
Hmm....
I pondered for a moment before firmly grabbing the arm of the frog who was about to leave.
"Ribbit?"
Come inside and at least have some tea before you go today.
Ah, we don't have things like tea in our Dungeon.
I suppose offering some blood instead will have to do.
It's not like I've opened my heart to him.
I also don't believe he's giving us gifts out of a genuinely pure desire to be friendly with us.
However, it was an undeniable fact that he was an esteemed guest who brought us gifts for three consecutive days. Therefore, treating him well was simply the right thing to do.
Like that, I forcefully dragged the bewildered frog into the Dungeon.
And then I brought him to the second floor after passing through the labyrinth.
I also stationed the Old Man Fake Doll on the second floor to prepare for any unforeseen situations.
"Ribbit... You really didn't need to treat me like this...."
I used my skills to make various dishes for the frog and even served him some very precious blood. While doing so, Ailee, who was eating next to us, subtly called out to the frog.
"Frog baby."
"Ribbit?"
She's calling him a baby too.
He doesn't look like a baby, though.
"I couldn't ask last time, but what is the species name of that child called the Master of the Lake?"
"The Master of the Lake is not a child, ribbit."
"Anyway."
"Ribbit. The Master of the Lake said that they are essentially no different from the Dragon species."
"A Dragon?"
Ailee made a surprised expression.
I was also surprised.
Wasn't it just a massive frog?
Then what kind of species is it?
Saying it's practically no different from a Dragon means it's not actually a Dragon.
Could it be a descendant of a dragon mutant, a species similar to a Dragon?
"Then are they of the same kin as our Dragon Baby... wait, a similar species?"
"I'm not too sure, but that might be the case, ribbit."
"Our Dragon Baby is a dragon mutant."
"Ooh. If so, then it is likely a similar species. The Master of the Lake also mentioned that they are a descendant of a dragon mutant, ribbit."
My guess was right.
So the Master of the Lake was also a descendant of a dragon mutant.
I became even more curious about what kind of species they were.
Perhaps Ailee was thinking the same thing, as she voiced my exact thoughts.
"I'm curious about what kind of species they are. Could you tell us their exact species name?"
"I couldn't tell you even if I wanted to. I've served the Master of the Lake for a long time, but I've never heard their true species name. The Master of the Lake said that they will become a Dragon someday anyway, so there's no need to know their current species name, ribbit."
Become a Dragon someday....
What are they, an Imugi or something?
Are they planning to swallow a magic orb and ascend to the heavens someday?
"If you're curious about what kind of person the Master of the Lake is, why not go meet them in person? The Master of the Lake really wants to meet you too, so I'd be happy to guide you, ribbit."
"Hmm... I'm not so sure about that. I'm sorry to say this, but we don't completely trust you guys yet."
"Is that so, what a shame, ribbit."
"But can't they come here? Do we absolutely have to go there to meet them?"
"Unfortunately, the Master of the Lake cannot leave the lake empty for long, and it's difficult for them to travel here because of their massive size. It's too dangerous because it draws too much attention from dangerous enemies nearby, ribbit."
"Just how big are they?"
"They are bigger than you can imagine, ribbit."
After the frog said that.
He picked up and ate one of the dishes I made, then cautiously asked while observing our reactions a bit.
"...Just hypothetically speaking, ribbit."
"Yes?"
"If the Master of the Lake invites you later when we've built more trust, I'd like to know if you would accept that invitation then, ribbit."
......Bear!!!
I finally figured it out!
Their true motive!
These punks, they were planning to win our favor and lure us into their territory!
And then gobble us all up!
...Wait, maybe not?
Thinking about it again, it sounds a bit like paranoia.
"I'm not sure. I guess we might accept the invitation later if we build enough trust? Bear Baby, what do you think?"
Ailee shifted her gaze to me.
No way.
I won't go even if we become friends with the frog.
Why would I go somewhere so dangerous.
It might be paranoia, but my intuition is screaming that it's a bad idea, so I absolutely have no intention of going.
Shake-shake bear.
I shook my head vigorously.
"Frog baby, our Bear Baby, who has the final say, says he won't go to that lake even if trust is built. Sorry."
"Ribbit ribbit......."
Since I answered like this, will he stop bringing gifts now?
For some reason, I feel like he'll stubbornly keep bringing them anyway....
I suddenly jumped up from my seat.
Then, I gathered some White Natural Mana Stones from the storage and came back.
It would make us feel guilty to just keep receiving, so we should send a gift back too.
If we send them a gift from our side every time we receive one, we won't feel bad about coldly rejecting their invitation later.
"R-ribbit? Why are you suddenly giving me something so precious... It's okay, we don't need to take it."
Uh-uh! You won't make it back alive today if you don't take it.
With a fierce expression, I forcefully shoved the gift into the frog's arms.
"Ribbit... I really am fine, though......."
Alright, delivery complete.
Now, then....
Master of the Lake, whose face I do not know!
Let's just exchange gifts from afar like this where we can't see each other!
Let's never meet for the rest of our lives.
Just like pen pals.