kscans

Chapter 459 - Professor

The clans "Mont Blanc" and "Cats are God" formed an alliance and began to tackle Tamer Guild quests together.

As Orion, the leader of "Cats are God," had said, the clan was large enough to be considered a major one, but most of its players were basically just doting on their pets, and the number of actual combat-ready players was about the same as a mid-tier clan.

Occasionally, for events and the like, the entire clan would go out to fight, and at those times they could unleash considerable firepower, but that was rare. For this reason, Parfait and her group, who were always ready to fight, were warmly welcomed by the "Cats are God" clan.

With that, Parfait and the others visited the "Cats are God" headquarters in the Eastern Country, and it was a place that could be called an animal paradise. However, it wasn't just a place for pets to play, it was also a giant production facility.

In particular, the honey production from beekeeping was quite substantial, and Parfait was a little scared by the sight of the massive number of bees flying between the numerous flowerbeds and beehives.

There were also other things like a runway just for watching pets walk, as if in a fashion show, and a giant fish tank for keeping fish pets, all of which was quite a sight and appeared fresh in the eyes of Parfait and her friends.

It was the first time they had seen a major clan's headquarters, and they were quite excited. They didn't intend to make their headquarters that large-scale, but it was significant that they were able to see one ideal.

Furthermore, when Parfait mentioned that she planned to open an animal cafe, almost all the players in the clan were hooked. There were clans that ran restaurants with a mascot dog or mascot cat, but there were no shops where the main attraction was interacting with animals while having tea, and they said to be sure to let them know when it opened.

And so, Parfait and her friends got along with the players of "Cats are God," but their schedules rarely matched up except on their days off. Most of the players seemed to be working adults, and they mostly logged in only at night. Parfait and the others, who only logged in after school until around dinnertime, rarely had a chance to play together.

However, Orion alone seemed to log in quite often, and her schedule matched up with Parfait's group. So, even though it was an alliance, it was usually just Parfait's group and Orion. On weekends, however, they would tackle fairly difficult quests with many players.

Today, the group consisted of four people, Parfait, Ginny, Wilne, and Orion. It was Natsu's tutoring day, Chris was at the gym, Rick was studying with Relic, and Abel was, as usual, practicing his acting, so they were not participating.

And as was the case every time they met, petting Orion's pet Snow White had become a substitute for a greeting for Parfait, Ginny, and Wilne. Naturally, Orion would pet Trachiyo.

They always met at the Tamer Guild, and most tamers would exchange such greetings before getting to the main topic. Parfait's group also spent about five minutes petting before finally getting to the day's business.

A style had been established where Orion would look at Parfait's group and decide what kind of quest would be good. So Orion looked at the three of them and then brought a piece of paper that had been posted on the bulletin board.

Seeing the quest details written on the paper, Parfait looked at Orion.

"This is just a regular monster subjugation quest, isn't it?"

"None of my clan members are here today, so a taming-type quest would be difficult. I thought a subjugation quest would be better. What do you three think?"

When all three said it was no problem, the four of them immediately headed to the location of the monster they were to subjugate.

The target monster was located in the Northern Forest in the Eastern Country. Deep within it was a giant boar called a Nushi, and that was their subjugation target.

Upon reaching the forest, the four of them immediately headed deeper in.

And as they walked, Ginny voiced a question.

"Can you bring yourself to cut down a boar, Parfait-chan?"

"I can't do a Uribo, but a boar seems barely doable... no, maybe barely impossible..."

"You shouldn't force yourself. If you push yourself too hard, you might end up with trauma and fall to darkness like Ashley-sama. But the story of his comeback from that is so exciting that I can't say it's entirely a bad thing... Hey, did you know there's a plot twist in Volume 6?"

"Don't worry, Ginny-san. If it comes to that, I will cut it down in Parfait-san's place. I've also studied anatomy, so I won't be traumatized. And thanks to Abel-san's influence, I've started watching horror movies, so I've built up a splatter resistance."

"Ah, Abel-kun had a small role in a horror movie, didn't he? The scene where he licked a knife reminded me of that scene in DokiPan, and I lost my memory of what happened before and after... Whoa, just remembering it is making my nose bleed again. I'd pay for him to do that in real life...!"

"There was a scene like that, wasn't there? The scene that left an impression on me was when blood came out of the shower. If a company made such a defective shower, I would crush them."

Their conversation had turned strange at some point, but Parfait, thinking it was just the usual, said nothing. However, Orion, who was listening, had an indescribable expression on her face.

One was a girl in a gothic lolita dress holding a parasol, looking like a young lady, and the other was also a well-bred looking girl in a dress, but what they were saying was slightly off-kilter and unsettling. Since Orion had only met them a few times, it was no wonder she was surprised.

"Your friends are interesting, Parfait-chan...?"

"Why the question mark...?"

"Well, just because. But I don't mean it in a bad way, okay? I'm often treated like a weirdo because I love animals too much, but I feel like we're the same, just in a different vector, and it's a huge help. By the way, I feel like you're one of us, Parfait-chan."

"I think you're normal, Orion-san. Me too, of course."

"Huh? You think so?"

"Yes. There are even more amazing people out there. I'm still just a novice."

This wasn't humility or anything, Parfait genuinely thought so. Ginny nodded, and Wilne took on a thoughtful expression.

"Parfait-chan is still a novice? I'm actually interested in what a more amazing person would be like."

"The employees at Colony 'Zoo.' They have normal conversations, but they almost only talk about animals."

At Parfait's words, Orion's eyes flew wide open, and she grabbed Parfait's shoulders.

"The Zoo staff!?"

"Whoa, you scared me. Yes, but what's wrong?"

"They're super competent, those people! If you can, please introduce me!"

"Huh? Competent?"

It was rude to them, but from what Parfait had seen of Maris and Surya who came to the shop, her impression was just that they were two older sisters who loved animals. It was true that becoming an employee at Colony "Zoo" was said to be as difficult as becoming a doctor at Colony "Hospital."

Parfait just thought that the two of them had studied with nothing but a passion for animals. Because of that, she respected them, but for some reason, she never connected it with them being smart or competent.

However, Ginny didn't seem to think so, as she nodded repeatedly.

"Maris-san and Surya-san are certainly competent. When I had them cosplay in animal costumes, they perfectly recreated the movements of those animals. It was a little different from what I was looking for, but it was a good thing in its own way. I took pictures too."

"What have you been doing, Ginny-chan..."

Parfait was a little put off by Ginny's confession, but Orion, who must have heard it, was staring blankly with her mouth open. However, she quickly composed herself, and her eyes opened wide again.

"P-P-Professor Maris!? And Professor Surya too!? What's with this network of friends!? And costumes!?"

"Uh, wait, Orion-san?"

Orion, who had been gripping Parfait's shoulders tightly with both hands, began to shake her. Her HP wasn't decreasing, but the shaking motion was there, so it was a little rough for Parfait.

"Please calm down, Orion-san."

Wilne grabbed Orion from behind in a full nelson and pulled her away from Parfait. At that, Orion finally seemed to calm down.

"Ah, s-sorry. I was just a little surprised."

"No, it's okay, but do you know Maris-san and Surya-san?"

"Know them? They're professors at the university I attend! Their lectures are so popular you can't take them without a reservation! And the reservation has a one-month waiting list!"

Parfait, who didn't know much about the system of taking lectures at a university, didn't quite understand what was so amazing, but she imagined they must be giving lectures on how to pet cats. Siegfried would probably be there too, and she thought that would certainly be popular.

"Speaking of the university where Maris-san and Surya-san lecture, would that be Colony 'Zoology,' operated by Sagittarius? ...Ah, my apologies, talking about real life is taboo, isn't it."

"No, no, it's okay with you guys, Parfait-chan. We're logging in with our real appearances and names anyway, so it's not a big deal. Of course, I won't tell you which colony I live in, though."

To that, Parfait and the others also nodded, saying "Of course."

That aside, Orion was so hooked on the topic of Maris and Surya that she seemed to have completely forgotten they were here for a quest. Trachiyo and Snow White had even moved to a sunny spot and were yawning.

To calm down a bit, Orion began to explain things to Parfait, who didn't know the details.

Colony "Zoology" was a university, but it was also treated as a specialized institution for animals. Graduating from here could lead to a path of becoming a Zoo employee, but many also went into livestock-related fields at Colony "Farm," and people aiming to be farmers or veterinarians also often studied here.

Orion was studying to become a Zoo employee and played AFO to relax. The ones Orion worshiped as gods were not just cats, but also included Maris and Surya.

She said that someday she wanted to become a Zoo employee and make it her job to protect the animals that survived in the dangerous zones of Earth, just like Maris did.

Parfait felt something close to respect for Orion, who was working hard toward her dream, but the one who respected her even more was Wilne.

Wilne grabbed both of Orion's hands and nodded, almost in tears.

"You are wonderful, Orion-san. You have something you want to do, and you're working hard toward it. That's not something everyone can do."

"Huh? R-really? Uh, thank you?"

Orion thanked her, for some reason in the form of a question, but Parfait wondered why Wilne was so moved. Orion seemed to feel the same, saying, "It's nothing much," but Wilne shook her head.

"I've learned many things since I was a child, but I've never had something I wanted to do. I just did what I was supposed to do... Now I have a clear purpose, but you decided on that yourself and are working hard. That is a truly wonderful thing!"

Parfait wondered where the cool Wilne-chan from when they first met had gone, but it wasn't a bad thing, and she looked happy, so she decided it was fine.

Just then, as if struck by an idea, Ginny smiled.

"Actually, I too am working hard every day on my research to go to the 2D world. To cross the dimensional wall, that is my mission, and my dream...!"

"We are also researching that at my home. There is a Dimension Project—"

"Please let me join your company!"

Ginny had made a joke, but Wilne responded seriously, and things got out of hand. The conversation wouldn't stop, and in the end, the quest was postponed.