Chapter 159: Heroes Must First Learn to Save Money (Patreon)

Sure enough, she was inside.

This little yuri elf really didn't hold back when it came to spending.

A single entry ticket costing 100,000 valis was already a wallet-crushing expense in the eyes of an ordinary person.

Guess anyone from the School District really did throw money around like it was nothing.

But the next second, a terrifying realization flashed through Natsuka's mind.

Wait.

Lefiya was already a member of his own Familia now.

Which meant... she was spending his money?

Natsuka's expression changed on the spot.

Something in his chest clenched like someone had squeezed it.

The little elf at the counter noticed his expression sour and immediately tensed up.

"Um, excuse me..."

"Would you like me to have her called for you?"

Natsuka was about to say "sure," when the communication device beside her suddenly lit up red.

"One moment, please."

The attendant hurried to pick up the Magic Stone communicator. After listening for a few moments, she immediately started nodding and bowing, her attitude turning even more deferential than before.

After hanging up, she bowed deeply to Natsuka.

"The boss has given his instructions."

"Lord Natsuka may enter this hall free of charge to consult any book he wishes."

As she spoke, she took a card out of the drawer, its entire body carved as if from crystal, and offered it to him with both hands.

"This is the Gnome Trading Company's [Hero-Rank Membership Card]."

"With this card, you may use most of the services under the Gnome Trading Company free of charge."

Natsuka just stood there, stunned.

He took the card on reflex, running his fingers over its cool, translucent surface, still not quite processing what was happening.

"Do I know your boss?"

"There's no record of that."

Natsuka shook his head, but quickly figured it out.

It was probably some effect related to his Sprite contract.

He already had a skill that boosted favorability with Sprites and elves; the rarity of being a contractor was probably what earned him this kind of special treatment.

Whatever the reason, though.

From now on, he could freeload at the library.

The thought instantly put Natsuka in a fantastic mood.

He pocketed the card and turned to wave at Kuroneko.

"Let's go."

"Time to drag that spendthrift elf out of there."

With that, he stormed into the hall, practically radiating murderous intent.

Before long,

Natsuka had Lefiya's soft cheek pinched between his fingers, dragging her out of the library.

"W-what are you doing..."

"I finally got the chance to come in and read..."

Lefiya cupped her reddened cheek, looking wronged, like a small animal that had just had its favorite toy snatched away.

Natsuka crossed his arms and spoke with a straight face.

"Lefiya."

"Do you know what the most important thing is, if you want to become a hero?"

Lefiya blinked, then immediately turned serious.

She thought hard for a long moment before answering solemnly.

"An unbreakable conviction."

"And the resolve to charge forward without hesitation."

Natsuka shook his head.

Lefiya bit her lip and thought some more.

"Then it must be lending a hand to the weak, saving the people from fire and flood."

Natsuka kept shaking his head.

Lefiya was clearly losing confidence now.

Her eyes wandered, and she ventured a quiet guess.

"Then is it..."

"having a hero for a father?"

Even she didn't sound confident saying that answer out loud.

It was clearly a trope she'd picked up from a bunch of hero tales.

Natsuka was struck speechless for two whole seconds, nearly losing his composure.

"So this is the kind of Lefiya you turn out to be."

Lefiya protested quietly.

"A-a lot of hero stories are written that way!"

Natsuka paused, then nodded seriously, of all things.

"Your answer, well..."

"You're actually half right."

"Half?"

Natsuka took a deep breath and spoke with weighty sincerity, like a world-weary senior who'd seen it all.

"The most important thing about becoming a hero is money."

Lefiya's jaw dropped on the spot.

"Huh?"

Her eyes practically spun into little mosquito-coil spirals.

Natsuka mused silently to himself.

Whether Luffy could have become the Pirate King without the kind soul who gave him his Devil Fruit was anyone's guess.

And whether Bell could've beaten the Minotaur without his 200-million-valis blade and 100-million-valis grimoire wasn't even worth imagining.

More likely than not, he'd have died somewhere along the road to becoming a hero.

So yes, dreams mattered.

But starting capital mattered too.

Natsuka patted Lefiya's shoulder with a straight face.

"Remember this."

"Before you become a hero, save your money first."

"A hundred million isn't too much."

"Two hundred million would barely be passable."

"Think about it — the 100,000 valis you spent on that ticket today could've bought you a few bottles of superior potions."

"And when things get real down in the Dungeon, that might just be the difference between living and dying."

Lefiya stared at him, her expression slowly turning subtle.

"After all that..."

"you're really just upset I spent 100,000 valis, aren't you."

Natsuka felt like he could see contempt in her eyes.

His expression snapped straight immediately.

"Do I look like that kind of person to you?"

"I'm just trying to tell you — the knowledge you need right now, you could learn just as well at the Guild library, or by asking Alfia for guidance."

"There's no need to burn money and waste time in here at all."

The moment Lefiya heard the name Alfia, her shoulders hunched.

"But..."

"Lady Alfia's teaching is really... too strict."

Her expression looked like she was recalling scenes straight out of hell.

Seeing this, Natsuka placed both hands on her shoulders and looked her earnestly in the eye.

"Lefiya."

"You have real talent."

"The kind of talent you haven't even fully realized you have yet."

"If this were a hero's tale, you'd be exactly the kind of protagonist archetype chosen by fate."

Lefiya's eyes went wide.

"I'm... the protagonist?"

Her face flushed red, and the warmth radiating from his hands on her shoulders made her heartbeat noticeably skip.

Natsuka doubled down, his expression more sincere than anyone's.

"You're the protagonist."

"Your potential as an elf is far more terrifying than you imagine."

"Your growth ceiling is incredibly high."

"Trust me, one day you'll transcend the rules themselves and attain [Lefiya's Ring of Providence]."

"When that day comes, the whole world will tremble beneath your feet."

"You are a magical girl, Lefiya!"

Light lit up instantly in Lefiya's eyes.

"R-really?!"

The next second, a whole drama started playing out in her head.

Atop Babel.

She stood tall, gazing down over the entire city.

Even Lady Riveria knelt solemnly on one knee, respectfully asking the great [Sorceress Elf] to take her on as a disciple.

All the elves cheered for her.

"Lefiya-sama! Lefiya-sama!"

Just imagining that much, she startled herself and shook her head violently.

No, no, that's wrong.

Fantasizing like that was way too disrespectful toward Lady Riveria!

But even so, that little spark deep inside her had already been thoroughly lit.

Because she really did want it.

She really wanted to become a great hero that everyone looked up to, just like Riveria.

Seeing that the moment was ripe, Natsuka moved in to close the net.

"So."

"Come to the Dungeon with me."

"Let's go find the bard who can guide a hero's journey to its start."

"She'll teach you how to become a qualified hero-in-training."

Lefiya was still in a daze.

"B-but..."

"I just spent 100,000 valis on that ticket..."

Natsuka, expressionless, simply flashed the crystal card at her.

"Do you understand now?"

"This is the basic quality every hero absolutely must have."

Lefiya scrambled to catch the card, her eyes going wide and unblinking.

Natsuka spoke flatly.

"From now on, swipe my card."

"Come and go from the library as you please."

In the little elf's eyes, a light shaped like valis coins flickered to life instantly.

Lord Natsuka, truly worthy of being a hero-candidate mentor!

So domineering!

I love you to death!

Hmm~ hmm-hoo~~

The Gnome Grand Library, free to enter as I please~~

On the way to gather the search-and-rescue team, Lefiya hugged the crystal card to her chest, humming the whole way, so happy she practically floated.

To her, the Gnome Grand Library — reputedly one of the world's foremost repositories of books — held an almost lethal allure.

Just moments ago, under the attendant's kindly gaze, she'd clutched the card and dashed in, then hopped back out, testing it over and over to make sure she really could get in for free.

Natsuka couldn't stand watching anymore.

"Alright, enough."

"You've been happy this whole way already."

"Put the card away properly."

"If you actually lose it, there's no guarantee you'll get a replacement next time."

The Earth Sprites were showing him some respect today.

Next time might not be so kind.

Lefiya immediately tucked the card away like a treasure into the small pocket over her chest, eyes narrowed, beaming from ear to ear.

The three of them turned the corner and walked into the old market street.

Unlike its old, deserted look, the place was now bustling enough to rival a busy downtown street.

The reason was pretty obvious.

In front of a modest-looking fried potato ball stand, a long line had formed.

"Fried potato balls, exclusive stock!"

"I want volcano ice cream flavor!"

"I want durian passion fruit!"

All sorts of bizarre flavor orders shouted out mixed together, enough to make anyone's scalp crawl.

Behind the stall, Lord Shadow wore an indifferent expression, yet his movements were terrifyingly practiced, batch after batch of absurdly-flavored fried potato balls coming out of his pan, steady as clockwork.

Watching from a distance, Natsuka felt the corner of his mouth twitch.

"Business looks pretty good, boss."

Kuroneko petted Mamenosuke while landing the finishing blow of commentary.

"After the War Game, for some reason, his business suddenly exploded."

"Word outside is that these are the ultimate fried potato balls — the kind that can beat the Sword Princess."

"It's gotten to the point where a single potato ball is impossible to come by."

Natsuka: "..."

With no other choice, he obediently went to join the back of the line.

He couldn't very well interrupt Lord Shadow's money-making, after all.

That would be about the same as asking for his life.

The line moved quickly.

By the time only two people remained ahead of Natsuka, Shadow spoke first without even lifting his head, his tone flat and cold.

"Out of ingredients."

"This is the last order."

The words had barely left his mouth.

The blonde Sword Princess standing two spots ahead of Natsuka had her expression collapse on the spot, as if her patron deity had just died right in front of her.

"Jaga Maru Kun..."

"Missed out again today..."

Once the crowd dispersed, only Ais remained standing there in the wind, radiating a faint aura of resentment.

Meanwhile, Shadow calmly went on packing up his cooking gear, clearly with no idea that danger was closing in.

Natsuka hurried forward to smooth over the situation before it got worse.

"What flavor do you want?"

Kuroneko answered offhandedly.

"Hellfire volcano."

"Or deep abyssal whale."

Natsuka nodded.

"Got it — dragon fruit strawberry and cod-and-shrimp, right?"

Lefiya thought it over and raised her hand too.

"Then I'll take the strawberry one too."

Natsuka pulled ingredients straight out of his pocket, handed them to Shadow, and lowered his voice with a grin.

"Buddy, one more round."

"No problem, right?"

This wasn't him causing trouble.

This was a life-saving intervention.

Shadow glanced up at him, said nothing, and silently went back to cooking.

Just then, Lefiya snuck a glance at Ais, whose face was full of naked envy, and spoke up meekly.

"Um..."

"...want to know what flavor you'd like?"

Ais's eyes lit up instantly.

The resentment that had been building up around her vanished completely in an instant.

"Really?"

"I want sword-slash-Black-Dragon flavor."

Natsuka's eye twitched.

"What kind of flavor is that supposed to be..."

He glanced instinctively at Shadow.

Shadow's expression didn't even change; he just calmly called out an answer.

"Chocolate tomato."

I see.

Even weirder, but sure.

Natsuka silently pulled out another set of ingredients.

A moment later,

Ais held her fried potato balls close, nibbling away with a look of complete satisfaction.

Once she finished, she turned and looked at Natsuka with utter sincerity.

"Thank you."

"You're really a good person."

The corner of Natsuka's mouth twitched.

Fine.

That made the second 'nice guy' card he'd received today.

By the time Shadow finally packed up his stall and squared away the money, Natsuka lifted his chin toward him.

"You coming or not?"

Shadow didn't even ask, just slung his bag over his shoulder and followed.

"Let's go."

Kuroneko blinked at the sight, then asked Natsuka in a low voice.

"Did you two arrange this beforehand?"

"Nope."

"Then why would he just follow you without asking a single question?"

"Guy telepathy."

Natsuka said, dead serious.

"In the future, if you ever see a group of guys following one guy out the university gate, don't panic."

"They're not necessarily going to fight."

"It might just be that the guy leading the way wants to go buy a pack of cigarettes at the convenience store."

Kuroneko listened, looking thoughtful.

She didn't understand a word of it, but somehow it sounded impressive.

It wasn't until the group arrived at the Dungeon entrance beneath Babel that Shadow belatedly caught up on what was happening.

Oh.

So it's a leveling trip.

Wait a second.

What am I supposed to fight monsters with in this getup — my spatula?

Minoru Kageno went silent for half a second, then, expressionless, slowly drew a dragon-patterned wok from behind his back.

The instant that gleaming black iron pan smashed into a Goblin's head, he suddenly realized—

actually, a frying pan works pretty well too.

The four of them pushed forward.

Along the way, they ran into the Chunibyo Group locked in a back-and-forth brawl with a Goblin.

Yes.

Four people ganging up on a single Goblin, and still trading blows evenly.

Natsuka watched Rikka raise her one-handed sword and swing it down with all her strength.

The Goblin sidestepped lightly, and the sword struck the ground instead, the impact jolting her hand numb.

Right on cue, Shichimiya threw a flying kick, only for the Goblin to crouch and dodge it as if mocking her.

Yuuta was even more direct.

Seeing the Goblin crouch, he lunged to tackle it and pin its movements, only to catch a backhanded punch for his trouble, clutching his stomach as he rolled on the ground.

In the end, it was Dekomori's slide tackle that sent the Goblin flying several meters.

Only then did the four of them pile on together, finishing it off in a flurry of blades.

Natsuka nodded away as he watched.

"Impressive."

"Really impressive."

Miko stood off to the side with her arms crossed, rolling her eyes.

"Lady Alfia is extremely disappointed in this new batch of players."

"Her exact words were, 'You're the worst batch I've ever trained.'"

Hearing that, Natsuka immediately looked delighted.

"Not bad, not bad."

"Learning by doing works pretty well."

He held back the urge to drag them all off to Alfia for a few days of brutal training right then and there.

It was just a game, after all.

Four against one wasn't anything to be ashamed of.

A win was a win.

Everyone climbed up one step at a time, after all.

Die enough times and you'd eventually get the hang of it.

Look at Miko now — she'd already picked up a bit of a veteran's air.

The group pressed on, passing through the middle floors.

Shadow kept swinging his pan the whole way like a blunt club.

Only now his targets had switched from Goblins to Horned Rabbits.

One pan-swing, one kill — clean as smashing garlic cloves.

Lefiya kept up magical support from the rear.

After clearing another wave of monsters, Shadow suddenly stepped back twice, sidled up next to Natsuka, and spoke out of nowhere.

"I hit Level 2."

Natsuka didn't even turn his head.

"Oh."

Shadow raised his voice slightly.

"I've already hit Level 2."

"I know."

"So?"

Minoru Kageno pressed his lips together, his expression shifting subtly, then dropped his voice, deliberately low, and slowly let out two words.

"I... am."

The instant Natsuka heard that opening line, a shiver ran through him, and he nearly dropped into a dramatic kneeling slide right there.

"Lord Shadow, your talent knows no bounds!"

"First in the entire server to level up — unprecedented, unmatched, this humble servant is utterly convinced!"

Only then did Minoru Kageno nod, satisfied.