Chapter 276

No need for money, no need for goods. All I want is to be with Tatsuro until we leave this town. And every night, I want to talk man-to-man until dawn.

That statement might make one think Aarenfrit is that kind of person, but apparently, this man named Aarenfrit has no interest in romance whatsoever.

His sole passion lies in the pursuit of Curse Magic.

So, it seems he’s not specifically targeting Tatsuro or anything like that.

“So, that’s the favor Aarenfrit is asking of us?”

“That’s a rather bland way to put it, but yes. At my level, there’s no one who can discuss magic on equal footing. But you, sensei, you dispelled my magic. That alone makes you practically above me.”

“Huh. Well, thanks, I guess.”

While responding halfheartedly to Aarenfrit’s words, Tatsuro recalled the time he dispelled the magic.

Back then, he had heavily relied on others’ help to analyze it, and Cardina had handled much of the core work. So, if asked whether he dispelled it on his own, it was a bit questionable.

But now, with his Spirit Eye and improved Dispel Magic skills, given enough time, Tatsuro might be able to dispel it alone, even without prior information.

Since Cardina was hiding in his pocket and he had no intention of revealing her presence, he figured it was fine to let Aarenfrit’s misunderstanding slide.

As the day grew dark, they entered the inn and took over an open space in the lobby available to all guests to continue their conversation.

After discussions and negotiations, they finalized Aarenfrit’s requests.

“So, while we’re staying in this town, you want to act together with us. Not all the time, but when we’re doing adventurer work, and you want to talk with me every night after dinner… Is that right?”

“Yes, that’s fine, sensei.”

“I told you to stop calling me sensei…”

Tatsuro made a final attempt to protest, but Aarenfrit showed no signs of stopping, completely unfazed.

In the end, Tatsuro gave in.

“This is such a hassle. Especially the after-dinner talks—I really don’t want to do that.”

“That’s cold, sensei.”

“Look, if I have free time, I want to spend it with Ai.”

But they owed Aarenfrit for helping Leah. Thanks to him, Tatsuro and his group had met her, so they couldn’t just brush him off.

“Alright, starting tomorrow then. I’m heading back to my room for today.”

“Understood. I’ll stay at this inn as well.”

“-Seriously?”

Ignoring Tatsuro’s reluctant expression, Aarenfrit briskly headed to the reception desk. With a sigh, Tatsuro and his group returned to their rooms.

And so began their strange relationship with Aarenfrit.

The next day, Leah set up a workshop in one of the inn’s rooms and began working earnestly on creating a Magic Brain.

For now, there was nothing Tatsuro and the others could do to help, so Nana stayed behind as a guard and to ensure Leah didn’t overwork herself.

Cardina, hidden in Ai’s pocket to avoid Aarenfrit’s notice, acted as Ai’s guard against Curse Magic.

With that decided, they went down to the lobby at the agreed-upon time from the previous day’s discussion.

They immediately spotted a figure in a conspicuous robe and joined up.

Afterward, they stopped by the Adventurer’s Guild to accept a request before heading out of town.

The request came directly from the Adventurer’s Guild.

It involved exterminating a monster called Armar that had expanded its nest near the town, as well as eliminating its queen, Armare, and eradicating the nest entirely.

The Armar resembles a fifty-centimeter worker ant with four beast-like legs. A few of them wouldn’t be too difficult to handle, but their numbers are overwhelming. The larger the nest, the more numerous they become.

By the time this nest was discovered, it had already expanded significantly, and several people had been attacked by swarms, turned into meat dumplings, and carried off as food.

The queen ant, Armare, which lays the eggs, looks similar but has a tube-like ovipositor protruding from its rear and a red face. It stays deep within the nest, continuously laying eggs with high reproductive capacity.

Attacking the small number of worker ants—Armar—that come outside and reducing their numbers individually is like pouring water on a hot stone.

The task required a powerful force to wipe out the likely large number of Armar, venture into the tunnel-like underground nest, and defeat all the egg-laying Armare.

Additionally, to prevent the ground from collapsing, the tunnels needed to be filled back in.

This was deemed too dangerous for ordinary adventurers, as their numbers would only lead to more casualties.

Since high-ranking adventurers happened to be available, the task was passed to Tatsuro and his group.

The official reward was money, but considering their past help to adventurers, the guild promised that if they successfully completed this request, the Adventurer’s Guild would fully cooperate in resolving any future troubles they might face.

With Moritz still missing in a disturbing situation, having the Adventurer’s Guild, with its worldwide connections, as a safety net was reassuring.

So, Tatsuro and his group gladly accepted the request.

“And here we are, just a plain field. Those holes over there probably all lead to the nest, right?”

Tatsuro’s group arrived at the destination in a Rhinoceros Carriage. Aarenfrit followed, riding a three-headed, ostrich-like, pure white monster forcibly controlled by Curse Magic.

Upon reaching the site, they saw several one-meter-wide holes scattered across the untouched land, likely leading to the nest.

“There! A few came out!”

“Ugh… They look like ants, but they’re huge and gross!”

“So, what’s the plan? From what we heard, if we start fighting near the nest, they’ll keep coming out. Should we crush them until they stop?”

“Sensei, that’s a bit inefficient. Leave it to me.”

“Huh? Alright, if you’ve got a more efficient way, go for it.”

“Leave it to me. Let me show you the true essence of Curse Magic, sensei.”

“Yeah, yeah, go ahead.”

Tatsuro thought it wasn’t wise to reveal one’s techniques so easily, but Aarenfrit seemed to love showing off his magic.

So, Tatsuro began analyzing it with Dispel Magic and Spirit Eye, fully intending to learn from it.

An ordinary mage might get angry at such a thing, but for some reason, Aarenfrit trembled with joy and laughed.

“Oh! I’m thrilled that sensei is so interested in my magic!”

“Just get on with it already…”

Tatsuro, still unaccustomed to Aarenfrit’s inexplicable respect, clung to Ai for comfort, looking exhausted. Ai, saying, “There, there,” found Tatsuro’s clinginess adorable and hugged him back, her cheeks softening.

Completely ignoring the little world the two had created, Aarenfrit, trembling with excitement as he saw Tatsuro’s dense Dispel Magic scattered around through Magic Vision, took out a forty-centimeter-long, thin brown staff from his Item Box. The staff had a handle shaped like a circle with a line running through its center.

“Here we go-”

A jet-black mist poured from the staff’s tip, moving as if it had a will of its own and possessing a nearby monster, a worker ant—Armar A.

The creature shuddered once, stopped moving, then lumbered toward another individual—Armar B. The moment Armar B saw Armar A, affected by the mixed Curse Magic and darkness magic, it began attacking a nearby Armar C.

Caught off guard by the sudden attack from its ally, Armar C died instantly.

But it didn’t end there—Armar B began attacking other nearby Armar, excluding Armar A.

Furthermore, other individuals that saw Armar A began indiscriminately killing their comrades, just like Armar B.

“It can do something like this?”

“That’s brutal!”

“They’re starting a chaotic brawl among themselves!”

“Heh heh heh. Some think Curse Magic is just about strengthening or weakening, but when combined with darkness magic, it holds infinite possibilities. What do you think, sensei!”

“Yeah, this is pretty impressive…”

Before their eyes, Armar, drawn by the scent of battle, poured out of the nest holes, only to attack each other, resist, or eagerly join the slaughter upon seeing Armar A, descending into total chaos.

Tatsuro and his group merely watched as the Armar corpses piled up automatically.

“Truly a mountain of corpses. This is definitely more efficient than doing it ourselves.”

“But it’s boring just watching.”

Watching monsters slaughter each other wasn’t exactly entertaining. Except for Tatsuro, who was still analyzing, and Aarenfrit, who was enraptured by his own magic, the others were completely bored.

After about thirty minutes, during which Tatsuro’s group sat down for tea, the number of Armar emerging from the nest visibly dwindled until none came out at all.

“Is that it?”

“Hmm, but there are still some Armare laying eggs deep in the nest, right?”

“Yeah. So, we’ll burn them first, then go into the nest. The tunnels are narrow, so it’d be tricky for all of us to go in together… Alright, let’s split into three teams: Ai and I, Jeanne and Athena, and Aarenfrit.”

“Okay.”

“Neigh!”

“Got it!”

“Why am I not with you, sensei!?”

“Look, I’m not going into a cramped space with someone I barely know.”

“How cold…”

If they fought head-on, Tatsuro was confident he could overpower Aarenfrit. But he was wary of the tricks Aarenfrit might pull with his years of refined techniques.

Since Aarenfrit had been using Curse Magic from the start, Tatsuro didn’t trust him even a bit. That’s why he kept Cardina constantly by Ai’s side, as she was the most vulnerable to Curse Magic.

He didn’t want such a man near himself or his companions in a narrow, movement-restricting tunnel.

“You’ll be fine in terms of combat strength. If you’re worried about numbers, take the monster you rode here with you.”

“That thing isn’t tamed—it’s forcibly controlled. It can’t think or act on its own, so I’d have to direct every single move. And besides…”

“And what?”

“That monster is extremely weak. It’d be easier to go alone than to bring it along.”

“Oof, that’s rough. But why ride such a weak monster then? If you’re using it as a mount, wouldn’t a stronger one be better?”

Given Aarenfrit’s demonstrated abilities, he could likely control a much stronger monster.

So, Athena’s question, echoed by Tatsuro and Ai, was natural. But the reason was surprisingly simple.

“I’m not a tamer, so I can’t get permission from the Adventurer’s Guild. Unless it’s a monster weak enough for most adventurers to handle easily, they won’t let it into town. So, I looked for a monster that’s good as a mount but weak, and this was it.”

“You need permission for that? Jeanne got in just fine.”

“That’s because high-ranking adventurers are an exception. Rank reflects trustworthiness, after all.”

“Oh, right. I remember someone saying something about high-ranking adventurers before.”

Ai recalled a white-haired guard in Lyadas mentioning something similar when they first met.

“Well, if that’s the case, you’ll have to leave it behind. But with your Curse Magic, you should be fine on your own, right?”

“Of course! A monster like this is no problem for me alone!!”

“Alright then, that’s settled~”

“Ugh”

Unable to take back his own words due to pride, Aarenfrit watched as Jeanne burned the monster corpses with Fire Magic. Then, as Tatsuro instructed, they split into their respective teams and entered the holes.