Chapter 9 - The Dwarf and the Designated Quest
When I woke up in the morning, Fam was praying, just as she had been the day before.
"Are you praying to your guardian deity?"
"No… um, it is another god."
"Why the hesitation?" I worried she might have gotten involved in some strange cult.
"Fam, I challenge you. I will definitely win today."
"Ooh, you are at full throttle first thing in the morning. But I accept your challenge."
With newfound resolve, Fam puffed out her chest. As always, her small breasts were perfect. She squeezed her eyes shut, perhaps out of embarrassment. That's when I immediately noticed something was off. Her clothes were tented slightly where her nipples pressed against the fabric.
"Fam, why?"
"I made preparations so that you would not make a mistake, Master. I caused you some embarrassment yesterday, after all."
She prepared herself by touching them?
"Fam, why didn't you trust me…? I'm a man who gets it done when it counts. I was determined to find the location of your nipples with my own power."
"My apologies, Master. I had no idea you were taking the game so seriously. I simply thought you wanted to see…"
Fam apologized, looking genuinely sorry.
"It can't be helped, but today is a no-game. The next round will have to wait until after the quest is over, but you'd better be ready, because I will absolutely find them."
"You are still going to continue with this? You are not joking… I understand."
Fam nodded, and as if she'd been set free, she tried to turn away.
"Hold on, that's that. But I'd still like to play around a bit."
"Eh? But… I cannot refuse…"
I pinched both of Fam's nipples through her clothes. They were soft.
"Hyan!" Fam let out a sound that was a mixture of a scream and a gasp.
"They're so small."
I varied the pressure, pinching and gently rolling them between my fingers. They began to harden slightly. Fam endured it, her face beet red. It was hard to let go, but we had a quest to get to. I gave them one last, slightly harder pinch, and Fam let out a little "Auh!" as her body gave a sharp jolt.
"Alright, let's have breakfast and head to the meeting place."
"It is not 'alright'!"
Fam shot back resentfully.
At the gate designated as our meeting spot stood the dwarf who had helped me when I was at a loss, holding Fam in my arms.
"You were Aidan?"
"I told ye my name when ye took down that goblin pack, did I not?"
He was also the dwarf I had met on my very first day in this world.
"Ah, sorry. So much has happened, I'd forgotten."
"No matter."
"I should tell you up front, we're complete beginners. This is my fifth day as an adventurer, and it's Fam's second. I don't think we'll be much use to you, Aidan."
"Eh? Fifth day? Master, yesterday you used magi—ah, that was a lie! My master was only pretending he could use magic while he pelted me with stones!"
Fam was even more surprised than Aidan. Realizing she had accidentally let my secret slip, she tried to cover it up by turning it into a funny story.
"It's okay, Fam. He's the dwarf who saved you."
"Hmph. What are both yer levels?"
"My master is an adventurer at level 10, and I am a Mibu-Rō at level 7."
"That's fast. Reaching level 10 usually takes over a month."
"Maybe it's because we've been diligently hunting slimes and goblins."
He eyed me suspiciously. Fam's character sheet didn't have a section for special skills. I figured he'd find out about my experience-boosting skill eventually, but I wanted to keep it to myself for now.
"Hmph. I'm surprised ye've grown more than I expected, but I knew ye were beginners. I intend to train ye for the next ten days."
"I appreciate it, but I haven't done anything to deserve such kindness."
Between Fam's rescue and this, I couldn't understand why this dwarf was being so helpful.
"Ye also tried to save a dying dog-eared lass."
"I was expecting something in return. I was after her body."
"That is not true. You can only say that now because of how things turned out. I was a wretched sight back then. I do not believe my body could have possibly caught your interest, Master. I myself had given up on life. And you were being charged an exorbitant price. Yet, you still tried to save me."
Fam cut in.
"Heh, same goes for me, then."
"…Alright. There's no point standing around talking here. To be honest, we were at a dead end. We'll gratefully accept the official quest. Please register us to your party."
Aidan nodded, and we headed out of the city.
We hunted monsters as we made our way toward a settlement that was reportedly under attack. I and Fam would fight, while Aidan gave instructions and advice.
"Fam. Don't fear the monster. Lean yer center of gravity forward a bit more."
"Yes, sir!" Fam faced off against a goblin.
"Don't back away to dodge. Meet it head-on. Evade forward."
Fam moved according to Aidan's directions. He gave a lot of instructions, particularly concerning her center of gravity.
"When ye make a big dodge, don't just use yer upper body. Evade with yer whole body. Move yer feet. Connect it to yer next move."
It wasn't something she could master immediately just by being told. Aidan patiently continued to give her advice. Fam's movements were already clearly better than the day before. Attacks that had been deflected yesterday now became powerful strikes, backed by a smooth transfer of weight that allowed her to defeat monsters. Her defense improved too; she no longer tried to dodge every single attack with all her might. She learned to read the enemy's attacks, parrying or dodging with minimal movement, or evading with her entire body to maintain her stance and link into her next attack. Her agility was high to begin with. Aidan's advice helped her capitalize on it in battle. She still made mistakes. Today, she took a blow to her side from a goblin. She looked at me with a tearful face, but a sharp "Focus!" from Aidan got her back on track.
"Your footwork has gotten much better." I stroked Fam's head as she drank a potion.
"How about you, Master?"
"I don't feel like I've changed at all," I said with a wry smile.
"Hmph. Ye've studied swordsmanship before, haven't ye? It looks like yer current weapon is holding ye back."
"When I was a kid, I practiced with a stick made of bundled bamboo, pretending it was a sword."
I had done kendo in elementary and middle school.
"Yer center of gravity is too far back as well. Ye fight with yer feet spread wide, but mentally, ye're thinking of a forward-and-back stance. That's why ye can't step in properly and yer movements are clumsy. Yer strikes are all arm-work, so they lack power. Yer lower body can't keep up with yer upper body."
He was exactly right. Spreading my feet to the sides was to brace for impact. It wasn't a conscious choice; it just sort of happened. My hips were pulled back and I was hunched over, so I couldn't swing my sword properly. Also, since the blade was double-edged, I was afraid I'd get hurt by my own sword if I tried to block an attack like I would with a katana. With this stance, I naturally couldn't use kendo footwork, which made my forward and backward movements jerky. I had just given up, telling myself that practice and real combat were different. But a real fight should be an extension of practice.
"That stick of bundled bamboo, what kind of sword was it meant to be?"
"A katana. Do you know it? It's a two-handed sword with a single edge. The back of the blade is curved."
"Hmph."
Aidan opened his storage. From within, he pulled out a single sword.
"I thought storage was a skill only adventurers had?"
"My profession is Alchemist, and this is its skill, 'Workshop.' It's a little different from storage, but it can be used in a similar way."
I took the sword Aidan offered. It was, without a doubt, a Japanese katana.
"Someone used a blade like this during the Demon Lord subjugation a hundred years ago. This is a replica I made. Give it a try."
"Yeah, thanks."
"And this is for Fam."
Aidan handed her two swords that were shorter than daggers, almost like knives.
"Use one in each hand. Ye'll need to get closer to the enemy to attack. Don't push yerself. Just get used to 'em."
"Yes, sir!"
The knives would suit an adventurer, and the katana a Mibu-Rō. It felt backwards, but the weapons Aidan recommended were a perfect fit for both me and Fam.
As dusk fell, we prepared to make camp. Along the road, there were places protected by stone pillar barriers, so we didn't have to worry about monsters attacking. But they were in plain sight. I had my doubts about whether monsters truly wouldn't attack. We had no luck finding any magic seeds today, either. Monsters leave behind items when defeated. Goblins drop clubs, but you can't sell those in town. Slimes leave behind vaseline. It's a secret that I thought it was semen until Fam told me otherwise. I've been putting it in my storage. It looks like it might sell if I gather enough.
I hunted a wild rabbit with my earth magic, which Aidan then dressed. Fam added some wild herbs she'd gathered to the pot. Apparently, she used to help gather herbs back in her village.
"There's no water. Is there a water source nearby?" I asked Aidan.
"I'll provide it with water magic."
So that's how it's used. We could use fire magic to start a fire, too, and wind magic to control the flames.
"I thought you could only use earth magic."
"With a little imagination, there are all sorts of uses. For example, try making a sphere of water with water magic."
I did as he said and created a water sphere.
"Put yer hands in, and ye can wash them."
"I see. If I make a bigger one, I can wash my hair. Fam, put your head in the sphere and wash your hair."
"Yes, Master!"
Fam stuck her head in the sphere and began scrubbing vigorously. Droplets flew out, but they returned to the sphere.
"This feels wonderful!"
Fam pulled her head out. Water dripped from her hair. When she shook her head, droplets scattered onto me and Aidan.
"…"
I dispelled the water magic, opened my storage, and handed Fam a towel.
"I am so sorry!"
Fam apologized as she took the towel and dried her hair.
"It's a bit inconvenient, as you'd expect."
"That's where imagination comes in, too. See how the scattered water returned to the sphere? Just make the water on yer hands and hair return as well."
"I see. Fam, wash my hair too, please."
While the magic was active, I had to use one hand to conduct it like an orchestra conductor, which made it hard to wash my own hair.
"Leave it to me!"
Fam vigorously scrubbed my head. Her slender fingers massaging my scalp felt incredible. Since coming to this world, the only way I'd been able to clean myself was with a wet towel, so this was incredibly refreshing.
"Okay, let go. I'm pulling my head out."
Just as Aidan said, I was able to pull my head and hands out completely dry.
"You're next, Aidan."
"No, I'm fine," Aidan said, looking stern.
"It feels great. Fam, convince him."
We pitched the tent. Apparently, it was enchanted to repel monsters. I had no idea how it worked or how to activate it. The barrier was supposed to keep monsters away, but there were still bandits to worry about. We set up a watch rotation: one person on guard outside while the other two slept inside. The order was me, then Aidan, then Fam. The middle watch seemed toughest since you had to go back to sleep, but Aidan volunteered for it. I thought it would be hard to tell the time without a clock, but you could do it by the position of the moon and stars. We decided to switch shifts based on the moon's location. On cloudy days, they apparently light a braided cord with an ember to measure time. I could just use my phone's alarm. My phone fully recharges if I keep it in my storage. It can't connect to any network, though, so it's useless as an actual phone. I kept watch, making sure the campfire didn't die out. It seemed monsters feared fire just like animals, but goblins were intelligent. I felt like they'd be more likely to use it as a beacon to attack. The stars were beautiful. With no moon, they would shine even brighter if I put out the fire. I could see the Milky Way. Was this place a planet somewhere within the galaxy? Perhaps Earth was floating somewhere in that river of stars. I looked for the Big Dipper and Cassiopeia to find the North Star, but I couldn't spot them.
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