kscans

Chapter 73 - Fluffy Grass ★

"Hey, Yoshino, is that the guy?"

Lin asked as she watched Okita-kun's retreating figure.

"Yeah. What do you think?"

"I didn't notice anything strange. Though I do think he's the type whose gaze tends to wander downwards."

I thought so too. Okita-kun kept staring at my chest, just like always.

"Just so you know, he's the same age as us."

"Huh, he's a rookie, right? Started late, huh..."

Being the same age as us means he's twenty-six. That's late to start as an adventurer.

"Seems so. Hey, Lin, could you beat Okita-kun?"

"I don't know. But not with a sword. I couldn't grasp his skill at all, it was like he was telling me to go ahead and try to cut him anytime."

Lin is my childhood friend, and we learned swordsmanship from my father at the same dojo. She's skilled.

"His demeanor is gentle, but he's strangely belligerent. He was the same way when I first met him."

"That's a good thing, though. Trusting others in the Frontier is something only a fool would do."

Newcomers don't understand that, so they get tricked easily. Even with SDF security, the Frontier is fundamentally a dangerous place.

"I guess Okita-kun being Eleanor Ocean is out of the question... He's completely different from what I saw on TV."

"Well, for starters, their genders are different, right? Isn't that theory a bit of a stretch?"

"I heard modern special effects makeup is amazing, so I thought maybe that was it, but I guess not..."

No matter how much you can disguise a face, you can't disguise height. From what I saw on TV, Eleanor Ocean isn't as tall as Okita-kun.

"Well, it seems like approaching him was the right move. Looks like we can make contact now."

"Through Kaede, huh..."

I had already investigated the fact that Okita-kun and Kaede were living together. I also looked into them being in the same university and being close friends. They happened to reunite at the guild and started dating... There's nothing strange about it.

"Though I don't really get the 'not dating' part."

I don't get it either. Are they not in a romantic relationship? No, that can't be it...

"Well, who knows. Anyway, I'm done investigating Okita-kun's circle. Kaede is involved, and anything further would be risky."

Doing anything strange to a guild employee could result in having your license revoked. It doesn't matter if you're an A-rank. The protection of guild employees is a worldwide rule.

"So, do we wait for the Golden Witch to contact us?"

"That's right. First and foremost, we need to repair our relationship with the Guild Headquarters."

Thanks to Congressman Shindo and our own Nonaka, the deal for the level two Healing Potions fell through.

"Are you planning to tell them we're connected to the headquarters?"

"They probably know anyway. Satsuki-nee-san is over there, after all."

In fact, the reason I transferred from the Ikebukuro Guild was because I was headhunted by the current Headquarters Director, who was the branch manager of the Shinjuku Guild at the time. I was told he'd be the next director, and I smelled money, so I transferred. Satsuki-nee-san has held a grudge against me ever since.

"So, scouting the Witch is impossible?"

"Impossible. The Director understands that. In that case, we have no choice but to establish a connection somehow."

"And that's why you're buying the Item Bag."

"Well, that's simply because I want it."

You can never have too many Item Bags, and a one hundred kilogram one can be shared by the whole party.

"Good luck with the negotiations. Your opponent is the Golden Witch, after all. Don't let her trick you and turn you into gold."

Don't say such scary things...

"Hey, would it be okay to let a guy into our party?"

Our party is all girls.

"Huh? Okita-kun? Why all of a sudden?"

"He seems to know things, and we might be able to pull Kaede in."

"Well, I'm fine with it, but will Okita-kun agree? At the very least, I'm sure Satsuki-san will try to stop it."

That might be true... Satsuki-san probably knows Okita-kun is strong, so she'd likely try to stop it.

"You think it's impossible?"

"If you use your womanly wiles, he'd probably fall for you in a heartbeat, right? He seemed interested."

Lin stared fixedly at my chest.

"No way. I'm not that cheap of a woman."

"You've done photoshoots for magazines, haven't you?"

"The regular kind."

I haven't done any in a swimsuit. I don't have that much confidence. ...To be honest, if they had offered me a fee one digit higher, I would have said yes.

"So, are you just going to ask him normally? It's the same thing either way. You invite a guy with a girlfriend to adventure with you. Then, you gradually get closer and have an affair."

"You really like that kind of stuff, don't you..."

She's always been a fan of daytime soap opera drama.

"Well, you can do as you like, Yoshino, but don't make Satsuki-san too angry."

"I know. Lin, can I leave the girls with you?"

I looked at the three rookie girls.

"At least stay with them for the morning. They're thrilled to be watched over by an A-rank. They'd be sad, you know."

That's true...

"Then I'll leave them to you from the afternoon."

"Got it. Well, let's get started soon. Another pickup artist like Okita-kun might show up."

"Okita-kun wasn't trying to pick us up, though."

Lin and I began the rookie training.

◆◇◆

After parting with Saegusa-san, I started hunting Skeletons. The Skeletons were no different in strength from the Hide Skeletons, and honestly, the process was the same, but it was nice to be able to slash at visible enemies in a bright place. However, since Nanapon wasn't here, I had no one to talk to.

"Maybe I should have asked to join the group of girls after all..."

But they're a little intimidating. Saegusa-san, and that ponytail girl named Lin from earlier, both seemed strong. They're probably Saegusa-san's party members, so they must be high-ranked.

"Oh well."

More importantly, I need to find some Fluffy Grass.

First, I decided to look for grass shaped like what I had researched earlier, and I began searching the ground. It didn't take long before I found grass that looked like the image I had seen.

I took the Appraisal Glasses out of my bag, put them on, and looked at the grass.

【Foxtail Grass】

Yeah, I know this one. It's just a common weed. So it exists in the Frontier too.

"What a pain..."

I resumed my search for Fluffy Grass. Along the way, I hunted the Skeletons I encountered, but I still couldn't find it.

"Oh, Okita-kun."

I heard a voice from behind, so I turned around and ran into Saegusa-san's group again.

"Oh, hey."

"What are you doing looking down at the ground? It's dangerous."

In the Frontier, where monsters appear, it's obviously dangerous to look down without being on guard. But I've defeated so many invisible Hide Skeletons that my skeleton-radar is at a high level.

"I'm looking for Fluffy Grass."

"Fluffy Grass? What's that?"

Huh? Saegusa-san, you don't know?

"Yoshino, you don't know? It's a fluffy grass. Feels amazing to the touch."

Apparently, Lin-san knew about it.

"Huh."

Saegusa-san seemed a little interested.

"Um, do you know where it grows? I saw it online and wanted to try touching it at least once."

I asked Lin-san, who seemed knowledgeable.

"I get it, I get it. You're curious, right? Fluffy Grass grows in places that don't get sun, like behind buildings."

Oh! As expected of the black ponytail-san!

"Thank you very much."

I thanked her.

"No, it's fine, but you can't sell it, you know?"

"I just wanted to touch it. After this, I'm hunting Skeletons."

"Hmm... Alone? That's dangerous, you know."

"They're just bones, aren't they?"

And slow ones at that.

"Well, that's true. But be careful anyway. Rookies tend to be reckless."

It seems she was concerned about me. Was this person actually nice...?

"Thank you."

"Yeah. See you then. Come on, let's go too."

"Huh? I want to find some Fluffy Grass too..."

"That stuff grows all over the place. We have work to do!"

Lin-san urged on the newly interested Saegusa-san, took the three rookies, and went off somewhere.

"Alright! I got some good information!"

This time, I started searching for Fluffy Grass, focusing on the areas behind buildings. Soon enough, I found some foxtail-like grass growing behind a building.

I immediately put on my Appraisal Glasses and checked it.

【Fluffy Grass】

"Oh! Found it!"

As expected of Lin-san! Amazing! Well, she's a complete stranger to me. I don't even know her last name.

First, I decided to touch the Fluffy Grass.

"Wow. It's really fluffy."

I think foxtail grass is fluffy, but this was fluffy on a whole other level. Honestly, it could become a habit.

"But I don't get how this increases defense."

Isn't it the opposite? It feels like it would lower my defense... Well, I guess I'll try it.

I looked around, confirmed that no one was there, and took out the bottle of Pure Water I had prepared from my bag. Then, I put the harvested Fluffy Grass into the bottle and concentrated. The bottle began to glow and transformed into a flask filled with a green liquid.

"Green..."

It's a bit of an unsettling color, but if I think of it as melon soda, it doesn't bother me. I opened the flask and drank the Buff Potion (Defense) I had made. The taste was the same as the other potions, tasteless and odorless, so I drank it all in one go.

"Hmm, I wonder if my defense went up. And what is defense, anyway?"

I understand strength and speed, but what is defense? Did I get harder?

I pinched my own arm, but it felt normal.

"Hmm, maybe it only activates when I'm attacked? But still..."

I'm not about to let a Skeleton slash me just to test it out. If I fail, I could die.

"I'll have Kaede-chan punch me when I get home."

I decided to have Kaede-chan commit domestic violence against me and began harvesting Fluffy Grass.

This isn't some weird fetish, I swear!