I Don’t Want to Be a Heroic Spirit [261]

"Hmm… I wonder if Yunyun has woken up by now…"

Walking along the road back to Axel, Nero and Alice had already left the forest and were now traversing the plains near the city. Axel's towering walls loomed not far ahead, a striking sight on the horizon.

"I feel a little sorry for Yunyun," Alice said with a helpless expression. "She just joined us yesterday, and I bet she was really looking forward to her first adventure with us."

"Hmm! Now that you mention it… it does seem that this is my fault," Nero furrowed her brow, deep in thought. "It's all because my singing was too beautiful and mesmerizing… I'll have to properly apologize to Yunyun when we get back."

"Yes, Nero, you should apologize to Miss Yunyun," Alice said earnestly.

"The gates of Axel are already in sight," Nero said with a smile. "We've taken down so many high-level monsters today. We should be able to earn quite a bit of Eris, right? At this rate, we might even be able to buy a house of our own soon."

Eris was the currency of this world, roughly equivalent to one Japanese yen per unit.

"Using the money we've earned from completing quests to buy our own house…"

Alice's face lit up with anticipation, as if envisioning their future. Of course, what she looked forward to most wasn't simply buying a house—as the kingdom's princess, money was hardly an issue for her. It was the idea of earning money through their own efforts that thrilled her.

"Although… staying in an inn is pretty nice, too," Alice suddenly added. "It feels more like the adventurous life."

"You don't need to worry too much about it," Nero said casually. "For all you know, before we've saved enough for a house, people from the royal capital might already have found you."

"…"

Nero's words instantly shattered Alice's idyllic daydream.

"Oh… right. I am the princess of this kingdom…"

"Hey, hey, don't tell me you've forgotten your royal status and started thinking of yourself as a full-fledged adventurer?"

Nero looked at Alice in surprise, watching as the princess sheepishly turned her head to the side, avoiding eye contact.

After their lighthearted banter, the two arrived at the gates of Axel.

Passing through the entrance, Nero and Alice returned to the newbie adventurer town, planning to head to the guild to submit their completed quest.

But then—

BOOM!

A deafening explosion rang out in the distance, and a brilliant flash of light briefly outshone the sun.

The sheer destructive power could only be attributed to one thing: Explosion Magic, known as the strongest offensive spell humans could wield.

"Uh… isn't that the same Explosion Magic we saw in the forest last time?"

Alice recalled the event vividly.

"Didn't you say the one who cast it in the forest was a Crimson Magic Clan girl?"

"Hmm! That's right," Nero squinted, gazing at the slowly rising mushroom cloud. "And this time, it's likely the same girl."

"Did you see her again?"

"No, I'm just guessing."

Explosion Magic, with its massive mana cost and tendency to cause overkill, was generally dismissed as impractical. Only two kinds of people used it: those with inexhaustible mana reserves, like liches or goddesses, and… peculiar individuals like Megumin.

"Move aside! Move aside!"

A frantic voice called out from behind them. Before Nero and Alice could turn to look, a man pushing a wheelbarrow rushed past them, heading out of the city.

Not long after, the same man returned, still with the wheelbarrow, but now grumbling loudly.

"I told you before, if you're going to throw spells around, do it in the forest! Stop blasting the plains near the town! Do you have any idea how much work it causes, filling in all those craters? We've even had to hire extra hands to fix the mess you've made!"

As he spoke, the figure lying limply in the wheelbarrow responded nonchalantly, like it was the most obvious thing in the world.

"Don't underestimate me! As a member of the Crimson Magic Clan, my intelligence is incredibly high. That's why I know if I used Explosion Magic in the forest full of monsters, the commotion would draw them all in, and a mana-drained, immobile me would become their prey. But here on the plains, I can count on you to come save me, Uncle! That's trust!"

"Get lost!"

The two of them seemed to know each other well. The man, likely a construction worker in town, was visibly irritated, while the girl in the wheelbarrow…

"Megumin? What are you doing here?"

"!!!"

Megumin jolted upright, looking like someone caught red-handed. Her expression was akin to a guy cosplaying in drag at a convention, only to bump into his best friend.

"N-Ne-Nero!"

Her pale face—perhaps from mana exhaustion—was now tinged with embarrassment. Clearly, Nero was the cause of her stammering.

"Nero! Why are you—ah!"

Before Megumin could finish, the wheelbarrow tilted, dumping her onto the ground. The red, pointy hat she had been holding tumbled off, landing neatly on her head.

"She's your acquaintance? Good. Take her off my hands," the man said, glaring at Megumin sprawled on the ground. "I've got work to do, and I don't want her anywhere near me. Not for one more second."

With that, he pushed his wheelbarrow back toward the mushroom cloud, leaving without so much as a backward glance.

His brusque attitude was a bit much, but Nero could understand.

Imagine finally completing a major project, only to be yanked back to the office while you're boarding a flight for a long-awaited vacation.

Yeah, the guy's reaction was actually pretty restrained.

Nero crouched down next to Megumin, poking the hat perched atop her head.

"Hello? Can you hear me? Still alive?"

Drained of mana, Megumin barely managed to shift her head to glance at Nero. Her flushed cheeks betrayed her embarrassment.

Nero chuckled softly.

"I'll carry you back."

---

"..."

- Gardevoir

(End of Chapter—Support the translator at [patreon.com/WiseTL]!)