mtl008 Chapter 929 The Last Routine 108
Chapter 929 The Last Routine 108
Chapter 929 The Last Routine 108
The day after Kobayashi and Wiz went on a mission together, Megumin's explosion magic caused some changes to the ecology of the entire forest. As a result, Kobayashi and the others accepted the guild's request to go to the forests and plains outside the city to inspect for any suspicious creatures.
This was originally a very easy task, and everyone would have fought tooth and nail to get it. But why did this task fall to Kobayashi and the others? It all started when Aqua suggested that the task be decided by drawing lots, and she snatched it from the hands of many adventurers.
“Hehehe~Hehehe~Hehehe~”
After the group left the city, they saw Aqua walking happily on the plains outside the city, humming an unknown tune as she walked, with a clear smile on her face and her steps were unusually light.
Seeing this, Huihui asked with some confusion, "Aqua seems to be in a good mood, she's even humming a song..."
"Because we got a really lucrative mission," Darkness said, then smiled slightly and added, "If I remember correctly, this mission should be in high demand... I never expected it to fall into our laps. It's certainly something to be happy about, isn't it?"
"That's right!"
Upon hearing this, Aqua cheered happily and shouted, "Conducting geological surveys in areas where no monsters appear is not only low-risk and high-rewarding... but there are also highly-rated hot spring inns nearby!"
This guy probably felt more satisfied with the hot spring inn than with the reward.
Aqua patted her chest smugly and said with a touch of pride, "I'm so lucky to have drawn such a good mission. It must be because I've done a lot of good deeds!"
Is this stupid goddess serious?
Xiaolin twitched the corner of her mouth.
If Kobayashi had heard Aqua say this in other areas, he could have reluctantly admitted it was true, but when it came to luck... to be frank, he had never seen anyone with such bad luck! He really should stay vigilant and be careful of uncontrollable situations on the road, or the possibility of encountering strange monsters or something.
Honestly, even if there were Demon King's army officers waiting for them on the plains right now, Kobayashi wouldn't feel any surprise. Instead, he would think: "They've finally arrived! My guess was right!"
"Alright, stop thinking about it!" Aqua, typically quick to forgive and forget, cheerfully told everyone, "Let's finish the mission quickly and then go for a hot spring! Until then, let's just have a picnic and set off happily! Let's go!!!"
Can't you just behave yourself for once?
Hearing that Aqua had raised so many flags in such a short time, even Kobayashi felt that she was truly hopeless, and couldn't help but cross her arms and sigh deeply, her face full of worry.
"well----"
"Mr. Xiaolin!"
Seeing Kobayashi sigh, Aqua said somewhat unhappily, "I just said to cheer up, and you're making that face. Is there something you're not happy about with the mission? This is a really good mission!"
Indeed, if it only requires inspecting the surrounding area, then it should be a good mission. Judging from the number of adventurers vying for it, this must be an excellent mission that is both easy and highly rewarding. But there is one prerequisite: it absolutely cannot fall into the hands of someone as unlucky as Aqua!
Aqua, oblivious to what was going on, covered her mouth and chuckled, then couldn't help but tease Kobayashi, saying, "You're not thinking about how you were excluded from school trips when everyone else went out together, and you're feeling sad because of that? Hehe, that's really pitiful. But don't worry about it anymore, we'll take you with us wherever we go."
She's really kind-hearted.
Kobayashi rolled her eyes, feeling that this idiot goddess was treating her like a convenient tool. Then she sighed and said, "No, I have no complaints about the mission, and I have never been ostracized, okay? It's not like I'm that guy Sato Kazuma."
Unlike Kazuma, a shut-in NEET who was a sullen figure at school, Kobayashi was very popular during his school days. Although he couldn't shamelessly call himself a "positive" person, he still had several close friends who would consciously take him along wherever they went. What's even more outrageous is that even if he said he didn't want to go, they would still force him to come along, making him both helpless and happy... It's just that we can't see them now.
"anyway……"
Kobayashi looked at the silly goddess beside him and said, "The conditions for this mission are indeed very good... but I still want to confirm here. Is it really safe?"
This is the top priority.
Although Kobayashi didn't think Aqua would deliberately withhold information, he was still a little uneasy if he didn't get clear answers in this situation. At least he would have enough time to react in case of danger.
This question immediately made Aqua unhappy.
The silly goddess, hands on her hips and puffing out her cheeks, huffed and puffed, "Are you doubting me?!"
"Nonsense." Kobayashi admitted without hesitation, rolling his eyes and scoffing at her, "With such a low luck stat, how could you possibly be lucky enough to draw such a lucrative mission... You should have some self-awareness."
With her luck being so incredibly low, Kobayashi couldn't help but suspect that Aqua's luck was probably the lowest among all of Axel's. Just as high as Kazuma Sato's luck was, her luck was just as low; the two must be inversely proportional.
You're overthinking it.
Huihui said this somewhat nonchalantly, a relaxed smile on her face, and said indifferently, "There's nothing suspicious on the mission request form, no need to be so nervous..."
On the contrary, what Kobayashi wanted to say was, why is this guy so relaxed? This is clearly the suburbs, how can he be so relaxed?
"And Kobayashi, you forgot, this area was bombarded by Megumin's Explosion Magic before, and since then, monsters have almost never come near this land."
Darkness reminded her of this, while Megumin proudly puffed out her chest, which remained perfectly still. No, no, no, what was there to be proud of? She had just been thoroughly scolded by Axel's guards and had to pay a huge debt in compensation.
However, Darkness's words made sense, but Kobayashi still looked at Aqua and the others with some suspicion and said, "...So, is it really a safe geological survey?"
“That’s exactly what I said.” Aqua huffed, seemingly unhappy about being doubted, and pouted, “Didn’t I say that from the beginning?! Honestly, just how much do you not believe me?”
"Yes, I understand."
Seeing their confident assertions, even the usually skeptical Kobayashi ultimately chose to believe them. She then added, "Sorry for doubting you, Aqua. Let's cheer up again—"
"Hahahaha————"
Before Xiaolin could finish speaking, a monster roared, and suddenly appeared before them a towering troll, wielding a massive meteor hammer. Its bulging muscles made it look incredibly powerful and intimidating. Its first words were—
"I've been waiting for you for so long, Kobayashi!"
"Troll Warrior?!"
Seeing the monster suddenly appear, Huihui exclaimed in surprise, "Why is it here...?!"
"I even forged the power of attorney to lure you here!"
The troll proudly revealed his plan, and upon hearing this, everyone's expressions became complicated.
"It was a trap...?!"
Darkness was somewhat angry.
"For Lord Warbak, I must... um?"
"You hopeless, utterly idiotic fool!"
Please forgive Kobayashi for making such a move when the troll wanted to show his loyalty, and please forgive Kobayashi for pinching Aqua's cheek in a fit of rage even during the battle. Because of this girl's fault, Kobayashi is in a really bad mood right now and couldn't help but yell at her angrily:
"You bastard, you've jumped into the enemy's trap again?!"
"It hurts so much... Stop pulling my cheek, it's going to break... It's going to break!"
Aqua tearfully begged for forgiveness, but knowing she was wrong, she didn't dare do anything. However, what angered Kobayashi the most was himself, which made him feel helpless and guilty.
"After all, it was you, the unlucky one, who gave me this task, so I found it very suspicious! Give me back my apology!"
"I didn't mean to!"
The two of them wrestled in front of the trolls, oblivious to everyone else. Of course, Kobayashi dominated Aqua the whole time, making it impossible for her to break free from Kobayashi's pinching and squeezing.
"Um... I'm sorry..."
In the end, even the troll warriors were somewhat embarrassed and didn't know what to do. Upon hearing their question, Kobayashi immediately flew into a rage and lashed out at them.
"Shut up! Leave me alone! Can't you see I'm busy? Come back later!!!"
"Is that so? Sorry, I'll do it later... Don't underestimate me!"
The troll, who instinctively wanted to agree, raised his massive weapon and roared loudly after realizing what was happening. His eyes were red and he looked furious, as if he was about to lose control.
Seeing this, Darkness instinctively remarked, "That troll looks quite angry..."
"It's all Kobayashi's fault..."
Huihui made a judgment on the spot, and it was quite irrational, bordering on framing.
"I caused this?" Kobayashi almost laughed in anger upon hearing this, then pointed at the idiot goddess beside him and cursed, "It was clearly Aqua who caused this, wasn't it?!"
"It wasn't my fault!" Aqua, of course, wouldn't admit it, and even shifted the blame to others, "Everyone's responsible!"
This guy……!
"Hmph, don't underestimate me." Darkness stepped forward, drew his knight's longsword from his waist, and said with a resolute look in his eyes, "I am not going to lose to a mere troll now!"
"Oh oh oh————!"
Clearly, this is a signal that battle is imminent.
Seeing the trolls about to attack, Kobayashi sighed helplessly and said, "It seems this is not the time to fight... The enemy is coming!"
Although the trolls were numerous, they had completely chosen the wrong opponent. With just a few moves and Huihui's explosive magic to finish them off, these troll warriors were wiped out.
"Phew... Did you see that... My... Explosion..."
Before the little girl could finish speaking, she simply lay down and died.
"Is it over?" Darkness sheathed his longsword and looked at the ravaged plain, saying with a hint of lingering satisfaction, "It would have been even better if the opponent had been more resilient."
"Before discussing whether the monsters are durable enough, the point is that there shouldn't even be any monsters here!" Kobayashi brought up the previous issue again, looking at the idiot goddess beside him with some anger, and said, "It's all someone's fault for accepting this kind of quest...!"
"Seriously! Why are you still nagging?! Being such a busybody won't make you popular with girls! Also, I heard there are some great hot springs nearby, and I was thinking we could all go on a picnic together!"
Aqua didn't think she was at fault and tried to justify herself. Then, with tears in her eyes, she said pitifully, "I thought everyone would be happy, please don't just blame me—!!!"
They actually started to act shamelessly with a straight face...
Xiaolin really had no way to deal with her.
"Xiaolin, carry me on your back..."
"There's really nothing I can do about you."
Seeing Megumin lying on the ground with her hands outstretched, Kobayashi helped her up and said, "Come on, that's enough." After carrying Megumin on his back, he said to the still sobbing goddess, "Alright, Aqua, don't be discouraged. Aren't we going to the hot springs?"
"……spa?"
"Didn't you say there were hot springs nearby? Are we only starting our picnic now?"
Kobayashi smiled slightly at her.
"...Yeah, that's right!" Aqua realized what she meant and perked up again, saying, "Don't say it's over, we haven't even started our picnic yet! Alright! We've defeated the troll, let's head to the hot springs!"
"Your mood changes so quickly."
"She's always been like this..."
Darkness couldn't help but laugh as she said this, and Kobayashi helplessly shrugged, indicating that this was already a common occurrence. But a sense of unease lingered... For some reason, Kobayashi had a bad feeling. Could it be that the hot springs and all that were just false information spread to lure Kobayashi and the others here?
Aqua shouted excitedly, "The best hot spring is waiting for us! Have a great soak!"
"Oh!" X3
Megumin and Darkness shouted excitedly, and then Kobayashi and the others followed Aqua to the reserved hot spring, but... Kobayashi's premonition came true.
Because Aqua was too emotional, she accidentally purified the hot spring back into ordinary hot water, so Kobayashi and the others were severely punished again, and then they had to hand over all the bounty for defeating the troll.
(End of this chapter)