[18] Hostess Of Fertility

Chapter 18: Hostess Of Fertility

Finally, it's done.

"Damn it, it took me two months to write and revise this story. This was ridiculously exhausting."

"Was it really that hard?"

"If I were just plagiarizing, it wouldn't have been so bad. But even as a copycat, I've got my pride. I had to adapt it properly to fit this world."

At last, I had completed "The Lord of the Rings."

I had cut down on sleep to write, revise, and proofread it—adjusting the story, making modifications, and even adding elements to make it more believable for this world's people.

Since there were no beastfolk in the original, I added them, ensuring their presence made sense within the narrative.

The setting was placed in a pre-Divine Era period, over a thousand years ago.

Gandalf remained a transcendent being, just like in the original—a god-like figure who also happened to be a magician.

Sauron was reimagined as a demon king who emerged from the depths of the earth. After the One Ring was destroyed, he retreated underground once more, and the place where he vanished became the current Dungeon.

The Balrog was turned into something akin to a deep-floor boss.

As for Smaug, should I make him an one-eyed black dragon when he appears later?

…Wait a second. If we're talking black dragons, then there's already Ancalagon to consider.

The Silmarillion is way beyond me. Hell, even writing The Hobbit would be a challenge.

Susanoo, having flipped through the entire book in an instant thanks to his superhuman speed-reading ability, gave me a thumbs-up.

"Not bad. And just as planned, you made Frodo a girl, huh?"

"Yeah, I based her on Lili."

"…Samwise ended up carrying even harder than before."

"I just wanted people to appreciate how much my girl went through."

"With Hobbits in the story, people might start seeing Pallums in a better light."

Pallums were a race that had fallen into disarray, supposedly because their goddess, Fiana, had vanished. Without their divine patron, their society had crumbled.

But seriously, just because they lost a god, they let everything fall apart? They could've just kept on living.

"I'll take this to the Guild. I already talked to Eina, so they'll read it and decide whether to publish it or not."

"If they try to steal your work, let me know."

"Come on, there's no way the Guild would pull something like that."

The Guild made money through more than just taxes—they had various revenue streams, including selling magic stone-based tools.

Among these activities, publishing was also part of their operations. While there were probably Familias that specialized in books, I had no idea who they were, and frankly, I trusted the Guild's credibility more.

Besides, handling payments and contracts through the Guild was less of a hassle than dealing with a bunch of bureaucratic nonsense myself.

Leaving the Familia home, I headed straight for Babel.

At the Guild's reception desk, Eina was—as always—hard at work.

Compared to when I first met her, she had lost that naive, airheaded look and now carried herself with confidence and experience.

"Oh, Luke. Did you finish the book you mentioned?"

"Yeah. It's something worth looking forward to, so try not to stay up all night reading it."

"I never expected you to have a talent for writing… Oh, sorry. To be honest, it just didn't seem like your thing."

When I reached LV.2 and Eina found out that my promotion requirement was killing 1,000 monsters in the Pantry, what was her reaction again?

Ah, right. She looked like her soul had left her body.

That lecture she gave me back then was burned into my worst memories.

It honestly felt like I had been punched by Gold Experience Requiem.

"You will never reach the end of this scolding!"

"Do not approach me, Einaaaaaa!!"

"What are you thinking about?"

"Ah, nothing. Just some random thoughts."

I handed Eina the finished manuscript. While I was still working on The Hobbit—or rather, the Pallum version—The Lord of the Rings was finally complete and ready for submission.

If the Guild deemed it commercially viable, they'd immediately print and publish it.

Orario was terrifying.

Everywhere else in the world, the technology level was stuck in the medieval era—but Orario alone had modern-level advancements. When did they even develop the technology to mass-produce books instead of copying them by hand?

"Take good care of that."

"Don't worry."

Eina smiled as she spoke.

Since I had been exhausted from finishing the book, I figured I'd take it easy today. Maybe just wander around for a bit.

Leaving Babel, I thought about where to go and decided to head west toward the main street.

I had already explored the north and south often, but I had never really been to the east or west. Felt like my range was too small, so I figured I should expand my movement radius a bit.

...

"Brown hair and those dead-looking eyes… Isn't that [Thousand Slayer]?"

"A LV.2 adventurer…"

"They say he ranked up in just two months… That's insane, right?"

"Completely nuts. I mean, do you know what he had to do to reach LV.2…?"

Whisper, whisper. Annoying bastards.

My name spread because of two ridiculous feats—hitting LV.2 in just two months and slaughtering 1,000 monsters in the Pantry. Both were so absurd that every time I went out, I could hear people gossiping about it.

Eina had warned me about the so-called "Adventurer Baptism," but I had been too busy training others to go down to the Middle Floors often.

Still, if some idiot wants to pick a fight with me, they better be ready to die.

If they aren't, I'll just throw them to the monsters.

And if they are ready? Well, I'll kill them myself—but mercifully.

...

"Hey, old man, one Potato Bomb—whipped cream flavor."

"Coming right up! Here you go!"

I grabbed a Potato Bomb from a street vendor.

Perfect for a quick snack on the go. Tasty, and with a lot of variety.

Even a single one was filling enough to keep hunger at bay, but it digested quickly.

That was thanks to my skill—[Character Imagin].

...

[Character Imagin] allowed me to use techniques from manga characters, but it had limitations.

I could only use physical-based abilities or techniques related to them.

That meant I couldn't do something like Ace's Fire Fist, blasting out flames.

But I could use stuff like Sanji's Diable Jambe.

In other words, as long as it's a physical-based ability with supernatural elements, I can use it.

If I were a mage, I could probably pull off dark magic or something.

Haaap! Raiten Taiso!

I can even use techniques like the Nail Punch, but the problem is, if my body isn't ready, using it could literally kill me from the strain.

Right now, I can barely manage three consecutive shots before hitting my limit.

Instead, I rely on Shokumotsu (Food Storage).

Thanks to this, when heading into the Dungeon, I only need to prepare food for my party—I can just stockpile meals for a week in advance.

My digestion is faster, my calories get stored efficiently, and overall, it's insanely effective. Seriously, is there no competitive eating contest in this world?

...

"Huh?"

"…Hmm?"

As I walked along, trying to figure out where to toss my empty Potato Bomb wrapper, I unexpectedly ran into a familiar elf.

She was dressed in a waitress uniform, carrying bags full of groceries, likely for restocking supplies.

"Oh? You look like you're doing well."

"You are…?"

The elf girl's eyes widened the moment she saw my face—seems like she remembered me.

Not exactly a pleasant reunion. Maybe I should just excuse myself.

"You look well. Glad to see you're doing fine. Take care."

"Wait, please!"

I waved casually and was about to step away, but just as I moved, she grabbed my wrist.

Even if I wasn't on guard, I could still gauge her speed and grip strength—now that I was LV.2, I could make a rough estimate.

This elf… she's at least LV.4.

"What? You've changed your identity, right? Wouldn't my presence just make things awkward for you?"

I'd met people before who had wiped their past clean and started over. The moment they ran into me, they would freak out.

If someone wants to live quietly, they shouldn't acknowledge old acquaintances. And even if they do, I'd just disappear quickly to avoid causing problems.

Besides, I wasn't in the mood to deal with this. I might have helped her before, but if I got involved now, it would just lead to trouble.

"I wanted to thank you… for what you did last time."

"Why make such a big deal out of it? Honestly, it was just a personal whim at the time. You don't have to thank me."

"Even if saving me was just a whim… the words you said back then… I am truly grateful for them."

So he saved her, but can just a few words really change the direction of someone's life?

No, rather, it means that at the time, she was shaken enough that just a few words were enough to alter her path.

"May I ask your name?"

"Luke Blade. A Level 2, Fourth-Class Adventurer. My alias is [Thousand Slayer]."

"So you're the famous Record Holder?"

"Well… it just sort of happened."

Now that he thought about it, this elf girl was quite pretty.

Having grown used to seeing Riseria every day, it seemed his sense of aesthetics had dulled—he hadn't really noticed at first, but she was certainly among the more beautiful elves.

Sharp eyes that matched her well-defined face, short golden-blonde hair that barely reached her shoulders, and a composed, refined demeanor—she could even rival Eina.

A classic case of 'strong by day, weak by night'! Wins in the daytime, but loses at night. Definitely has the makings of a perfect wife!

I cracked a dumb joke in my head.

"I apologize for the late introduction. My name is Ryuu Lion, and I am currently working as a waitress at 'The Hostess Of Fertility.'"

"Oh, you even got a job? I had a hunch from your outfit, but… looks like you're doing well."

"It's thanks to the good friends I met after that day. If you hadn't helped me back then… I don't know what would have happened. I wouldn't have been able to face my fallen comrades."

The elf girl—no, Ryuu—bowed her head respectfully.

Ugh, people like this make me uncomfortable.

So her name is Ryuu, huh? A single-character name like that… it brings back memories.

A long time ago, in my first life, there was this busty older girl who taught me how to fight with my fists. She had the same name.

…Man, her chest was huge. She was really easygoing, too. Even through her clothes, it was obvious she was at least a D-cup, and then I found out she had been tightly wrapping them down with bandages.

I saw her without them a few times, and I realized—there existed breasts even larger than Tiffania's from Zero no Tsukaima.

Ladies and gentlemen! Reality surpasses fantasy!

"If you haven't had lunch yet, may I invite you to the place where I work? I'd like to repay my debt."

"You really don't have to—"

"I insist."

Ryuu stared at me resolutely.

…Are you sure this is gratitude and not some kind of grudge?

I was invited to a tavern near the west main street called "The Hostess of Fertility."

Since it was close to where I had met Ryuu earlier, it was only about a 20-minute walk—not too tiring. The only thing that made it a bit exhausting was Ryuu walking beside me, asking all sorts of questions with bright, eager eyes.

"This is where I work," she said.

"Oh, looks like a good tavern," I replied.

You can tell a lot about a place by how well it's maintained.

Despite being in business for quite some time, the place was spotless and well-kept, exuding a lively atmosphere.

There weren't many customers yet since it was still lunchtime, but by evening, it would probably be packed.

That was my impression of the place—right up until two cat-girl employees screamed upon seeing us.

"Ryuu—Ryuu actually brought a man homeoooong!"

"The ice queen Ryuu! This must be a sign of Babel's collapse, nya!"

I had been developing a pretty high opinion of this place until just now.

Seriously, who taught them to talk like that?

I'd like to shake their hand! Ending sentences with "~nya!" and "~oong!" is an irresistible moe element for a cat lover like me!

"Chloe, Anya, this is someone I owe a debt to," Ryuu explained, her tone composed. "His name is Luke Blade."

"Eh?! The Thousand Slayer, nya?!"

"The adventurer the gods call 'Bafoon Rookie,' oong!"

The commotion caused by the two cat-girls drew the attention of the other waitresses inside the tavern.

Huh? That girl with the gray hair over there… Something about her feels… off.

"Oh, so you're the adventurer Ryuu talks about from time to time? Nice to meet you! My name is Syr Flova. Looking forward to getting to know you, adventurer!"

With a bright smile, the gray-haired waitress introduced herself, radiating the fresh and innocent charm of an ordinary girl.

…Was that just my imagination? No, something's definitely off. Hmm. Whatever. As long as she doesn't cause me trouble, I'll just ignore it.

"Hm? A customer?"

A deep voice cut through the air, belonging to a middle-aged woman with a sturdy, imposing presence—just the kind of person you'd expect to be running a tavern.

"Sorry, but we don't serve alcohol this early in the day."

"Mia Mother, I brought him here," Ryuu interjected.

"You did? Then that's different. Welcome!"

With a hearty laugh, she waved me inside.

"Since you're already here, I'd appreciate it if you spent plenty of money! I'll even give you extra portions as a special treat!"

…No matter how I think about it, the power balance in this tavern is all kinds of weird.

Wait a second… The owner is stronger than Ryuu…?!

Looking around, aside from the human girls, the rest of the staff seemed pretty strong.

Even just judging by their raw stats, most of them were likely above me… In other words, at least Level 3.

The girl named Syr Flova and the one next to her, Lunoire, seemed genuinely ordinary. But to be honest, the only truly average person here was Lunoire.

"If you haven't had lunch yet, would you like to eat before you go?" Syr asked with a polite smile.

"Since I'm already here, might as well. Let's see how much I've got on me..."

I rummaged through my pockets and pulled out about 10,000 valis.

Becoming an adventurer really messes with your sense of money.

This much was just a casual day's earnings from messing around in the middle floors, but if I thought about it in terms of real-world currency, it was roughly a million yen. A lot of money.

Maybe if this were a casino or some high-end restaurant, it wouldn't feel like much, but for a tavern, it was more than enough.

"A real man goes big. I'm renting out the entire tavern for lunch today!"

"Hah! Now that's some bold spending! I'll make sure you get plenty of extra service!"

I dropped all 10,000 valis onto the table, and Mia grinned widely.

Renting out the tavern during peak hours with 10,000 valis would be impossible, but since it was still lunchtime and mostly empty, it was more than enough.

Lili would probably scold me for spending so much at once, but hey, it's my allowance. A quick hunting trip in the dungeon would earn me this much back in no time, so there was nothing to worry about.

Thanks to my grand gesture, the entire menu of the tavern was brought out. One table wasn't enough to hold all the food—extra tables had to be filled as well.

"…Can you really eat all this?"

"Of course! But wouldn't it be better if everyone joined in?"

Even the blandest combat rations tasted decent when shared with others. Who would've thought that military slop could actually be enjoyable?

"Free food, oong!"

"I'll gladly dig in, nya!"

Chloe and Anya wasted no time, already seated and ready to eat without hesitation. Well, they had to eat lunch anyway, so might as well enjoy it together.

But seriously, Anya's speech pattern was getting way too distracting.

…The Araragi inside me was screaming!

"Anya-san!"

"Nya?!"

"Repeat after me. Word for word."

Come forth, the spirit of Araragi! If Lili is Hachikuji (wait, considering the size of her backpack, that actually makes a lot of sense), then you must be Sawarineko!

"I go on a spring picnic, wearing my backpack, off to a spring picnic.

The willow sways, swish swish, the breeze flows, whoosh whoosh.

A butterfly flutters over the forsythia blossoms,

And inside my backpack, there's a banana!"

"Nya go on a spring nya-ic, wearing my nya-pack, off to a spring nya-ic.

The willow sways, nya-sh nya-sh, the breeze flows, nya-sh nya-sh.

A nya-tterfly flutters over the forsythia nya-ssoms,

And inside my nya-pack, there's a ba-nya-na!"

"So damn cute!"

"What on earth are you doing?!"

Ryuu instinctively jabbed me in the side.

The cat-lover inside me was burning with passion! No, wait—this wasn't just about loving cats. This was something… far more degenerate.

But still, a perfect joke deserved a perfect retort.

Ryuu… I can already tell.

If I ever go out of control, she'll be the pro-level straight man who knocks me out cold with a karate chop to the back of the head.

Then, I'll just become Level 6.

If I get strong enough that a Level 4 can smack me on the back of the head and I won't even flinch, problem solved.

Grinning to myself, I dug in and, before I knew it, I had devoured everything that had been piled onto the table.

At this rate, I wouldn't have to worry about food for the next two weeks.

Food Storage is amazing!

I kind of wanted to use something like "Enbu" (Monkey Dance), but honestly, it'd probably be faster to just push my body past its limits.

"Unbelievable… How does all of that fit in your stomach?"

"I can digest and store it inside my body, so it all fits just fine. Thanks for the meal. Next time, I'll bring my God, my comrades… and my daughter."

"…Daughter?"

I think someone muttered under their breath just now.

As I got up, Syr smiled and saw me off, with Ryuu following close behind.

"Please come again, Luke-sama. If Ryuu likes you, you're always welcome here."

"Who said I like him? I'm just someone repaying a debt..."

"Ryuu isn't very good at expressing her true feelings. Please try to understand, Luke-sama!"

"...You're quite the cheerful one, huh?"

I've noticed this before—my eyes aren't as dead as they were in my past life, but they're still sharp enough that people feel intimidated when they first meet me.

Even if someone found me likable, they'd still be wary knowing that I'm a Level 2 adventurer with a face like this. Yet, this girl approached me without hesitation.

She's not an ordinary young lady, that's for sure.

"Please take care of Ryuu from now on."

A gentle smile. A pair of gray eyes locking onto mine.

There was something about her…

A subtle pressure.

It bothered me.

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