BMN Chapter 10 (Patreon)

Chapter 10: Aqua and Acquiring a Cheat

When Bai Luo opened his eyes again, he found himself in an indescribable, otherworldly space.

Complete darkness surrounded them except for a small, brilliant area ahead that shone with deep radiance, like a starry sky.

"Poni?"

Ogerpon gripped Bai Luo's hand tightly, her small face filled with bewilderment.

The little one had no idea where they were.

What had happened to the other world?

How had they ended up in such a dark and gloomy place?

"Don't worry, let me figure this out first."

Just as Bai Luo began contemplating their location and what kind of world they'd reached, a series of lights suddenly bloomed before their eyes.

"Poni!!"

This startled Ogerpon, and she quickly materialized her Ivy Cudgel, positioning herself protectively in front of Bai Luo.

Though Pon-Pon appeared shy and fearful of loneliness—small and unassuming—she truly stepped up when it mattered most.

"Wait."

Bai Luo calmed Ogerpon and looked carefully ahead.

What materialized before them was a chair, a small round table, and upon the table, a set of black tea and desserts.

At that moment, a blue-haired girl sat gracefully in the chair.

"Welcome to the realm beyond death. Though it was brief, this gentleman's life has come to an end."

This was a girl of perhaps fifteen or sixteen years. She was beautiful—beautiful beyond Bai Luo's comprehension.

How could he describe it?

For some inexplicable reason, the moment he saw her, the word 'goddess' immediately sprang to mind.

Yes, besides an actual goddess, it seemed impossible for such beauty to exist in any world.

Her lustrous, aqua-blue hair cascaded down, giving off a light and gentle impression.

Her perfect figure, neither too voluptuous nor too slender, was draped in a light purple, flowing garment commonly known as a hagoromo.

"Hmm?"

Suddenly, the blue-haired girl who had been reciting her scripted lines seemed to notice something amiss.

She blinked her clear, aqua-blue eyes—the same striking color as her hair—and stared directly at Bai Luo and Ogerpon, who stood with her mouth slightly open, revealing two small canine teeth in an adorable expression.

"???"

For several moments, the girl and the duo simply stared at each other.

"Huh?"

"Huh-huh?"

Gradually, the expression of the beautiful, aqua-haired girl began shifting, as if she couldn't comprehend what was happening.

"..."

Bai Luo and Ogerpon refrained from making any sudden movements.

Especially Bai Luo—for some reason, he experienced a strange sense of déjà vu, feeling as though he'd witnessed this scene somewhere before.

Blue hair, goddess-like beauty, and that particular attire...

"Hold on a minute!!"

Before Bai Luo could speak, a certain useless goddess had already exclaimed, "Wait, who are you people?!"

"Did the reincarnation system malfunction?"

"And where exactly did you two come from?"

"This is overtime! Overtime work!"

"I protest! I strongly protest against overtime!!"

Aqua had recognized that Bai Luo and Ogerpon were unusual. 

As the goddess responsible for the souls of young Japanese people after death, no matter how scatterbrained Aqua might be, she could tell that Bai Luo and Ogerpon were still very much alive.

This situation resembled reincarnation into another world more than anything else.

But the process was reversed—it was people from another world who had suddenly appeared in her space.

"Ahem, please calm yourself first, Lady Aqua, the Water Goddess."

"Eh?!"

Hearing Bai Luo call out her name, Aqua froze momentarily, then a smug smile spread across her face.

"Hehe, hehe."

The girl covered her mouth, giggling to herself. "Although I don't know where you came from, you've clearly heard of the great reputation of me, the Water Goddess Aqua."

"Well, there's no helping it! Alright, I'll reluctantly acknowledge you, I suppose!!"

"..."

Aqua's reaction made Bai Luo, who had prepared various persuasion strategies, feel like a complete fool.

Yes, Bai Luo had intentionally called out her name.

His purpose was naturally to access the KonoSuba world.

The adventure system there, complete with skill points and similar mechanics, was perfectly suited for Bai Luo's current situation—having only magical power and basic stats but lacking combat skills.

But now...

"You want to travel to another world and challenge the Demon King?"

Aqua settled back into her original seat. She casually opened a bag of potato chips and began crunching them right in front of Bai Luo and Ogerpon.

It was difficult to imagine someone with such a beautiful and holy face performing such an undignified act.

What's even more outrageous is—why do I still find her beautiful despite such disrespectful behavior?!

Bai Luo didn't know how to process this contradiction.

Fortunately, he knew in advance exactly what kind of existence Aqua represented.

So, sorry!

No matter how beautiful Aqua might be, Bai Luo had no desire to get involved with her.

After all, taking advantage of a fool was morally questionable.

Not to mention, with Aqua's personality, having her around would inevitably lead to countless troubles.

"Ahem, yes."

Bai Luo replied, "This child and I are traveling between worlds, defeating powerful opponents to increase our strength along the way."

"Oh."

Aqua didn't think much of it. Her empty head couldn't retain too many complex thoughts.

Schemes and conspiracies meant nothing compared to Bai Luo's flattering "Lady Aqua, the Water Goddess."

Since they'd heard of her name, they must be her believers.

Aqua was quite tolerant toward her followers.

"Alright then."

Aqua said, "Anyway, nobody wants to go to that world. It's wonderful that you're willing to help."

"Then..."

Bai Luo got to the point. "Great, wise, beautiful, and noble Lady Aqua, could you perhaps grant us a small, tiny bonus?"

"Hmph, hmph!"

Aqua continued basking in Bai Luo's flattery. She was thinking, You speak so nicely—say more!

"Normally, this sort of thing is forbidden."

"But who told you to ask the great goddess Aqua!"

"Now! Accept with gratitude this blessing from the magnificent high-ranking goddess Aqua!"

The next moment, Aqua waved her hand, and sheets of parchment cascaded around Bai Luo like scattered flower petals.

"Ooh, ooh, ooh!!"

Bai Luo exclaimed, "As expected of Lady Aqua!"

This praise from Bai Luo was no longer mere flattery but came from the bottom of his heart.

Handing out benefits right from the start—you're truly generous, Aqua.

Although she was a fool, when it came to treating others well, she was genuinely magnanimous.

In the original story, many of Aqua's debts resulted from her spending money to treat entire guilds to meals.

Even for an outsider like Bai Luo, Aqua was willing to break rules and provide him with a cheat ability.

Just for this generosity, Bai Luo secretly decided, if I ever see Aqua and Kazuma ending up like in the original story, I'll lend you some gold coins, Aqua. 

"Choose."

"But only one."

Aqua pointed at Ogerpon and explained, "Its life composition is very special. Since it's with you, it can't receive a cheat provided by the gods."

In short, even according to the KonoSuba world's judgment, Ogerpon was considered Bai Luo's summon.

If he could obtain additional cheats this way, then if Bai Luo summoned a few hundred skeleton soldiers, wouldn't he completely fleece the gods?

"Understood."

Bai Luo felt slightly disappointed, but since it was a world rule, there was nothing to be done.

Greed was a bottomless pit. Being able to obtain a cheat ability from Aqua for free already left Bai Luo quite satisfied.

"By the way."

Searching by himself would be too inefficient, so Bai Luo decided to ask Aqua directly, "Is there a cheat that allows for rapid skill acquisition?"

"Oh, that type."

Aqua was often bored and had read many manga and light novels, so she understood Bai Luo's meaning instantly. "There's one. It allows a person to copy the skills of people they've physically touched. The limitation is that the copied skill will only be level 1, and its effectiveness depends on one's stats."

This was a core mechanic from KonoSuba.

Skill points in the series could be spent on any learnable skill, and not just one point, but continuously.

Like Megumin's Explosion Magic, it required numerous skill points to learn. 

Similarly, raising Explosion Magic's level also consumed skill points.

The reason Megumin's Explosion Magic was so powerful was that she specialized entirely in this skill, spending all her skill points on it.

So, according to Aqua, if Bai Luo copied Megumin's Explosion Magic, he could indeed obtain it, but it would only be level 1.

Furthermore, if his magical power proved insufficient, Bai Luo still wouldn't be able to cast Explosion Magic at all.

"So this cheat is quite limited."

Aqua said, "Even knowing that, do you still want it?"

"Hmm..."

Bai Luo didn't decide immediately, but inquired about several other cheat abilities he thought might suit him.

Unfortunately, all those abilities had certain limitations and prerequisites, making them unsuitable for Bai Luo and Ogerpon's current situation.

"Very well then."

Left with no alternative, Bai Luo made his final decision. "I'll take the skill-copying ability."

"Then, this..."

Aqua asked, "What was your name again?"

"My name is Bai Luo, and this child is Ogerpon."

"Poni-un!"

Ogerpon had been completely bewildered throughout the entire encounter. Her mind was now filled with thoughts of 'Who am I, where am I, what am I doing here?'

"Mr. Bai Luo, and your familiar Ogerpon, you are now heading to another world to become reserve heroes in the fight against the Demon King. The moment you defeat the Demon King, you will receive a divine gift."

"You may make one wish—any wish at all."

As Aqua chanted, a brilliant magic circle illuminated beneath Bai Luo and Ogerpon's feet, slowly lifting them upward.

Bai Luo offered no resistance. This was the power of the KonoSuba world's gods, far beyond anything he could currently oppose.

Ogerpon remained perfectly well-behaved, allowing Bai Luo to hold her in his arms without any fuss.

"O hero! May you distinguish yourself among the many reserve heroes and become the one to defeat the Demon King."

"Now, depart!"

Light enveloped Bai Luo and Ogerpon, leaving only Aqua's voice echoing in their ears.

When the radiance faded, Bai Luo found himself standing on a medieval European street.

A horse-drawn carriage clattered over stone-paved roads. Pedestrians moved between rows of red-brick houses—beastmen with animal ears and elves with pointed ears among them. Without question, this was the beginner town from the KonoSuba series, the Town of Axel. 

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