I Don’t Want to Be a Heroic Spirit [464]

Thirty years after the death of Hero Himmel.

In a forest near the deep valley of Kuliso on the northern highlands, Aesc and the others were preparing dinner.

"Frieren, what are you doing crouched there this whole time?"

Noticing that Frieren hadn't moved at all since parting the grass, Aesc walked over with a slightly accusatory tone.

"You're not slacking off, are you? Didn't we say that dinner prep only works if everyone contributes? Otherwise, what's the point…"

Aesc wasn't being overly strict—it's just that Frieren had pulled this sort of thing before, back when they traveled with Himmel. Once the tasks were divided up, she'd often slack off while the others worked. Heiter had scolded her more than a few times because of it.

"I'm not slacking off," she replied.

"Then what are you doing?"

Once Aesc got closer, she saw what was hidden in the grass.

A vibrant pile of colorful mushrooms.

"Aesc, do you know what these mushrooms are? They're different from any kind I remember."

"No clue. I'm already doing my best just to recognize the stuff sold in the markets, so don't throw mystery mushrooms at me like I'm supposed to know them."

Aesc couldn't help sighing… Every time she crossed into a new world, it meant new and unfamiliar things. That was both a blessing and a pain, because it meant relearning all the ingredients from scratch.

The best example? In the Konosuba world, she encountered self-detonating peppers and cabbages that attacked people. Those were still manageable—Plants vs. Zombies had given her similar visuals before—but who could explain why saury were sprouting out of fields?

"You have to fertilize them when the saury grow eyes and teeth," Megumin had told her… and even now, Aesc still thought that sentence was absurd beyond belief.

"I see, so you don't know what they are either," Frieren murmured, rubbing her chin in thought. After a pause, she said, "Well, if we don't know, let's bring them back and cook them."

"No, the normal thing to do would be to leave them alone, right?"

Aesc looked puzzled. "I mean, look at how colorful they are—don't they scream 'poison' to you?"

"Judging someone's inner nature based on appearances—Aesc, I didn't know you were such a shallow person."

"I just don't want to die because of your arbitrary decisions. I like to call that valuing life."

"You're exaggerating, Aesc."

Frieren tilted her head, glancing at Aesc out of the corner of her eye. "Even if we do get poisoned, I'm sure you could save us. So it's fine, right? Didn't you once say, 'The people who change the world are the ones brave enough to eat the crab first'? Maybe these mushrooms aren't poisonous at all—and they might even taste good."

"…Sorry, but your words just triggered some traumatic memories. So I'm going to have to say no."

Aesc was hit with a strong sense of déjà vu. She distinctly remembered something similar happening once.

A certain goddess had made a meal with fugu and guaranteed she'd save the team with magic if anyone got poisoned. But then she got completely plastered and nearly sent all three of her teammates to meet Goddess Eris in person.

If Aesc hadn't arrived just in time, those three would've definitely crossed over.

"Wait… don't you have that magic that can tell if food is edible?"

Aesc suddenly remembered something and turned to Frieren. "Can't you just use that?"

"…Oh, right."

Frieren blinked as the realization hit her.

After casting the detection spell, the results showed that despite their colorful appearance, the mushrooms were indeed non-toxic and safe to eat.

So the two of them brought the mushrooms back and cooked them.

And truth be told, they tasted amazing—even with just a simple preparation, the flavor was rich and delicious.

The four of them sat around the fire. A large iron pot sat atop it, filled with freshly made mushroom soup.

Each of them held a bowl, sipping the savory broth. It filled them with a warm, comforting feeling.

"This tastes fantastic."

Stark took another sip of soup, clicking his tongue in amazement. He glanced at Frieren and Aesc. "What kind of mushroom is this? I've never seen it before."

But both women simply shook their heads and replied in unison, "No idea."

"…You brought mushrooms back and cooked them without even knowing what they were?"

Stark suddenly felt his stomach churning, limbs going weak, cold sweat breaking out all over his body.

Am I gonna die…?

"No need to worry. We already used magic to check them. They may look super poisonous, but they're actually harmless."

So Stark had just scared himself into feeling sick.

"Even if they were poisonous, wouldn't it be fine?" Frieren looked at him. "Aren't warriors supposed to have that 'grit' or whatever that makes them immune to all toxins? Back when Eisen got shot with an arrow laced with poison strong enough to kill a dragon, he still bounced back like nothing happened… Heiter was grossed out."

"I feel like the moment the word 'grossed out' comes into play, the problem is clearly with Lord Eisen himself."

Fern, deadpan as ever, let out a sharp remark.

"Don't tell me, Frieren—do you see warriors as a separate species from humans now?"

Stark also jumped in with a jab.

Amid this cheerful and relaxed atmosphere, the group finished their mushroom soup.

Sleeping in the wild in this freezing weather was no joke. Frieren, who hated the cold the most, wrapped herself up in layer after layer until she looked like a silkworm cocoon.

"If all goes well, we should reach the next village in two days. We'll be able to rest properly then," Fern said, looking at Frieren bundled up like a larva. But Frieren didn't seem to care much.

"Oh… really…"

"Someone we met earlier mentioned it's called Glyss. Apparently, it has this unique flower called the Crystal Bloom—supposed to be incredibly beautiful… What is it, Lady Frieren?"

Fern noticed a flicker of reaction when she mentioned "Glyss" and "Crystal Bloom."

"…It's nothing."

Frieren didn't elaborate. She just tightened her blankets and said to Fern, "Hurry up and sleep. We've got a long journey tomorrow."

Fern tilted her head in confusion, but didn't press the issue. She simply slipped into her own sleeping bag.

The night passed without incident.

The rustling of the leaves in the wind lulled them all to sleep.

...

"Up ahead—that's Glyss, isn't it? Can't wait to see it."

Behind him, a monster's corpse was already dissolving into mist. Himmel sheathed his sword, eyes the color of a clear blue sky sparkling with anticipation.

"You've been bringing up Glyss a lot these past few days, Himmel," Eisen said, shooting him a sidelong glance. "It's the first I've ever heard of the place. Is there something unusual about it?"

Heiter adjusted his glasses and guessed, "Could it be… a rare vintage of liquor? If that's the case, I can see why Himmel would be excited."

"You gluttonous monk, here we go again."

Aesc frowned, beautiful brows furrowed in obvious annoyance. Her eyes practically radiated disdain. "Let me be clear: if you show up near me reeking of booze again, I will lock you in a barrier until the smell goes away. I mean it."

"Oh dear, how scary…"

Heiter scratched the back of his head with a sheepish smile.

Finally, Frieren spoke. "So? What exactly is in this village called Glyss?"

"What? None of you know?"

Himmel looked utterly dumbfounded.

The two men and two women all shook their heads in sync under his gaze, leaving him visibly disheartened.

"What could possibly be so special that Himmel's this excited…?"

Eisen stroked his beard thoughtfully.

"There's no point guessing," Aesc shrugged. "Might as well let him spill it himself."

All four pairs of curious eyes locked onto Himmel, forcing him to come clean.

"Wasn't planning to keep it secret anyway," he said with a sigh.

"None of you have heard the stories? About the Crystal Bloom? Especially at night—when the moonlight hits those petals, there's said to be no sight in this world that can compare."

"Crystal Bloom, huh…"

Eisen repeated the name, lost in thought.

Meanwhile, both Heiter and Frieren looked visibly disappointed.

"So it's not booze after all…"

"And not a magic tome either…"

"Is booze and magic tomes really all you two care about?" Aesc deadpanned.

...

As consciousness slowly returned, her thoughts began to settle, separating dream from reality.

"…So it was a dream after all?"

Frieren quietly opened her eyes, and the first thing that came into view was a steaming iron pot, with several figures bustling around it.

Her subtle movement must've made a noise, as Fern turned her head to look.

Their gazes met midair. Fern's eyes slowly widened behind her glasses in pure shock.

"L-Lady Frieren is awake!"

The surprise in her voice could rival that of someone watching their long-deceased grandfather kick open the coffin lid and climb out mid-funeral.

At that moment, Aesc emerged from the trees, carrying a basket of freshly picked mushrooms—the same type they had found the night before.

"Come on, Fern, no need for jokes. Frieren waking up early? Unless the world's ending tomorrow…"

Casually turning her head toward Frieren, Aesc's gaze locked with a pair of emerald-green eyes.

"…Is the world actually ending?!"

"It's not ending, geez…"

Now that she thought about it… hadn't they had this exact exchange once before?

Frieren felt a strange sense of déjà vu.

"For Lady Frieren to wake up on her own without anyone calling her—that's a huge deal."

Fern reacted as if a mother had just witnessed her no-good son—always fighting, always asking for money—suddenly clean up his act, become the CEO of a publicly traded company, and bring home an unbelievably beautiful, responsible girlfriend. Words alone couldn't describe her excitement.

"We must praise this version of Lady Frieren," Fern declared solemnly.

To that, Aesc simply replied:

"Careful not to spoil her."

Watching Fern carefully comb Frieren's hair while Frieren sat happily on a rock, swinging her legs, Aesc was overwhelmed by the urge to comment:

Which one of you is supposed to be the adult here?

When the grooming session ended, Aesc couldn't resist asking:

"So… why the triple braid?"

Frieren, who usually wore her hair in twin tails, was now sporting a triple-braided style.

With a soft smile, Frieren answered, "This is Fern's way of praising me. When she's in a good mood, she braids my hair like this."

"But didn't she also braid it like that the last time you made her mad? Is there some kind of hidden logic to this?"

"They're different, totally different."

Not that Aesc could spot any difference between the two triple braids.

After a simple breakfast made with the delicious mushrooms, the journey resumed.

According to plan, their next destination was the nearby village of Glyss.

However, Frieren had other ideas.

"There's a place I want to visit… It's about time, after all."

Aesc and the others were already used to Frieren's whims. Things like this happened frequently during their journey.

Sure, it often meant going out of their way, but… wasn't that what traveling was about?

The destination mattered, of course, but the journey—the memories, the landscapes etched into your mind—mattered just as much.

Adventuring joyfully, defeating monsters joyfully, exploring dungeons, searching for treasure, helping others with a smile… and before you know it, you've reached the end.

Himmel had completed such a journey—and Aesc and the others, just like Himmel, wished for a journey like that too.

Unlike the completely confused Stark and Fern, though, Aesc seemed to have some idea of what was going on.

On the road, they inevitably encountered a few monsters.

Fortunately, none of them were particularly ferocious—easy enough to handle.

"This place is starting to attract monsters again," Frieren said with a strange tinge of emotion in her voice.

As she watched the monsters' bodies turn to ash, Fern turned to her. "Lady Frieren, have you been here before?"

"Yes," Frieren nodded. "But… the memories aren't exactly good ones. Back then, when we came here with Himmel, the area was swarming with monsters. It took us days just to wipe them all out."

At that moment, Aesc chimed in.

"It really was a ridiculous number… I remember wanting to just nuke the whole area and send everything flying into the sky."

Aesc squinted, clearly exasperated. "Too bad Himmel stopped me. He said it would've been a real shame if I did."

Fern's ears perked at that last word.

"A shame?"

"There's no need to keep asking," Frieren cut her off. "You'll see when we get there."