Chapter 190: The Mysterious Benefactor Turns Out to Be a Tea-Serving Maid (Patreon)

"It couldn't be…"

He looked around nervously, heart pounding.

Tiona, Tione, Bete, Raul, Riveria, Ais, and…

"Captain, have some tea."

Megumi Kato walked over to him carrying tea.

Her quiet, maid-like bearing looked completely natural.

Finn took the tea and drank a sip.

Then his expression turned deadly serious.

"That woman is gone."

"She was an especially terrifying person."

"If she's infiltrated the Familia, Loki's in danger!"

'That's so unfair.'

Megumi Kato stood quietly to the side, holding her tray.

She was the one who'd saved his life, after all.

Yet now she was being talked about like some ultimate terrorist.

Still, she'd figured it out.

Her skill was probably too broken — her presence was so faint that Finn had forgotten her again.

Since he was making it sound so serious,

if she suddenly stepped forward to admit it now, would she just get taken out on the spot instead?

Just as she was thinking that—

Finn had already continued.

"I don't remember her face."

"But somehow, right in front of all of Evilus, she forced the key out of their hands and then strolled out with me like it was nothing."

"I suspect she has a level of charm ability close to the Goddess of Beauty's."

Loki crossed her arms, propped one foot on the table, and rested her chin on her hand, thinking.

"Now that's genuinely scary."

"Could it be some god sneaking around in the Dungeon?"

"Still…"

"Since she saved you, that means she's on our side, at least for now?"

Finn nodded.

"At least she means no harm."

"But I promised her a reward."

"If I don't pay her in time, I'm honestly worried she'll just slip into the Familia to collect it herself."

Riveria nodded gravely as well.

"If she really got in,"

"our Familia might as well have no secrets left."

As everyone knew,

an adventurer's skills and magic were the most critical intelligence there was.

Once outsiders got a read on them,

the outcome of a battle was often decided before it even began.

Finn was the clearest example of that.

He had an ability that granted immunity to mental contamination.

And he had a trump card that let him surge even further in dire straits.

If an opponent prepared for these traits in advance,

most of his advantage would be stripped away.

Loki nodded slowly.

"That really is troublesome…"

Just then,

Megumi Kato thoughtfully offered another cup of tea.

"Right, right."

"You think so too, right?!"

Loki took the tea and drank happily.

Then she glanced up at Megumi Kato.

"...What was your name again?"

"Megumi Kato."

"Oh, little Megumi!"

Loki's eyes lit up.

"This tea's great. You're in charge of making it from now on!"

"Hey!"

Bete immediately bristled.

"Didn't I say this isn't a place for small fry to be hanging around!"

Tiona covered her mouth and elbowed him.

"Come on, you're just being stubborn."

"You're just worried there's too much dangerous talk and don't want the new girl caught up in it, right?"

"You're clearly just looking out for a junior — why not just be honest about it?"

Bete's arrogant face froze instantly.

Then he flew into a rage.

"What the hell are you talking about, you damn Amazon—"

"Ooh, he's mad, he's mad! I nailed it, didn't I?"

Tiona stuck out her tongue and darted behind Ais.

"Ais, Bete's bullying me!"

Ais tilted her head and looked at Bete very seriously.

"Bete, bad."

Bete: "..."

After the little farce settled down,

the adults resumed discussing the plan to rescue Gareth.

Megumi Kato stood off to the side holding her tray.

Beside her stood a boy with spiky hair who looked remarkably "ordinary."

Compared to the string of protagonist-looking types in Loki Familia,

this boy's ordinariness actually made him stand out.

The boy seemed to notice her gaze and gave a friendly smile.

"Um, I'm Raul."

"You're... Sato, right?"

"It's Kato."

"Oh, is it?"

Raul scratched his head, a little embarrassed.

"Bete's not really a bad guy."

"He's just got a sharp tongue. He's actually always looking out for us."

Megumi Kato nodded thoughtfully.

Mm.

In Natsuka's words, this trait was probably called…

"Tsundere?"

Raul choked right there.

"Cough, cough!"

He hurriedly lowered his voice.

"You can't ever let Bete hear that word!"

"I think he already did."

Megumi Kato raised a hand and pointed.

Bete was glaring their way with a murderous look on his dark face.

Raul shrank down like a startled quail.

After a long silence, he finally spoke again.

"Um... are you from the School District, Miss Kaza?"

It's Kato.

But Megumi Kato thought about it and, too lazy to correct him again, just nodded.

"Yeah."

Envy immediately showed in Raul's eyes.

"The School District, huh. That's amazing."

"You must be really knowledgeable and well-read, then."

He scratched his head again as he spoke.

"Not like me."

"Ever since I left my village with the sword the chief gave me, I've stayed in Orario the whole time."

Megumi Kato's expression froze for a moment.

Carrying the finest sword the whole village had to offer.

Discovered by the strongest faction, growing stronger step by step — wasn't this the textbook setup for something?

She'd assumed he was an ordinary passerby like herself.

So why did he suddenly reek of protagonist template?

Megumi Kato stared at him, stunned.

"Don't tell me you're one of those legendary background-extra male leads?"

"The Braver's successor, Villager A type?"

Raul quickly waved his hands.

"No way!"

"I don't have any magic or skills."

"I just work as hard as I can to barely keep up with my seniors."

Megumi Kato gave the group of bigshots ahead a doubtful look.

"But if you can stand here and sit in on an officer meeting, you must be pretty strong, right?"

Raul lowered his head, embarrassed.

"I'm just a mere [Extraordinary Everyman]. Nowhere near the rest of them."

A Title.

He actually had a Title too.

Megumi Kato's heart took another hit.

Even this guy had a "character archetype."

So, with a faint touch of vindictiveness, she said flatly,

"Your character's already dead, you know."

"Huh?"

Raul looked completely lost.

Megumi Kato continued spouting nonsense with a straight face.

"You can't just keep saying [Extraordinary Everyman] all the time."

"You need to say lines that fit the role."

"Like, 'I'm going to become the Braver's man.'"

"Or 'I'll be the Braver King,' something like that."

Raul's face was full of question marks.

"Why?"

Megumi Kato remained perfectly serious.

"It helps you awaken magic."

"Really?!"

Raul's eyes lit up.

"Is this the School District's latest research?"

Megumi Kato thought about it.

In the materials Natsuka had given her, there really did seem to be something about "protagonist types awakening skills more easily."

These days, Natsuka was more or less in charge on the School District's side, too.

Rounding up, so to speak,

this practically counted as School District research.

So she nodded in confirmation.

Raul instantly lit up like he'd been set on fire, energy surging through him.

"Alright!"

"I've decided!"

"From today on, I'm going to become the 'Braver's' man!"

"I'll protect all my juniors!!"

The shout came loud and sudden.

The whole hall instantly fell into an eerie silence.

Everyone's conversation stopped at once.

Then all eyes turned toward him in unison.

Finn closed one eye, half exasperated, half teasing.

"Raul."

"I'm glad you have that kind of resolve."

"But could you maybe read the room first?"

What?

"Raul and the Captain"?!

The Captain's happy about it?!

[Jörmungand], who had been zoning out imagining herself and the Captain sweetly duo-diving the Dungeon together, exploded on the spot.

Killing intent flashed instantly in Tione's eyes.

She lunged forward in one step and grabbed Raul by the collar.

"Hah?!"

"What did you just say?"

"Whose man are you trying to become?"

"Don't tell me you've got ideas about the Captain's ass too? Talk!"

All of Raul's bravado vanished instantly. His face went pale, sweat pouring down, as he hurried to explain.

"No, no!"

"That's not what I meant!"

"I'm not interested in the Captain's ass!"

Tiona chimed in seriously from the side.

"Raul's only interested in the 'Braver's' ass."

"Huh?!"

Tione's grip tightened even more.

Raul was about to cry.

"That's not it either!"

"I'm not interested in men's asses!"

"I just want to become someone like the Captain!"

"Right, Miss Kano?!"

Tione yanked him closer.

"Who the hell is Kano?!"

"The new girl the Familia just recruited from the School District!"

Megumi Kato quietly raised her hand.

"Um, I'm Megumi Kato."

Such was daily life in Loki Familia — always this chaotic.

Normally they seemed hardly serious at all.

But when it mattered, Finn was steadier than anyone.

After teasing Raul a bit, he pulled the conversation back to the rescue with Loki.

"Gareth is different from me."

"He's a classic power-type adventurer."

"When facing a siege, he actually has more of an advantage than I do."

Finn leaned back in his chair, his voice a little weak but his reasoning perfectly clear.

"Judging from the four officers who surrounded me,"

"they probably weren't too eager to go head-to-head with the old man either."

"In comparison, they'd rather go after me, since my stats are somewhat weaker."

In this world,

differences in racial talent were extremely pronounced.

Even with similar stats, a Dwarf was naturally stronger and tougher than a Pallum.

And the higher the level, the wider that gap only grew.

Finn continued his analysis.

"If he couldn't even take a single direct hit,"

"then the whole point of surrounding him would be meaningless."

Riveria's expression finally eased a little.

"In that case,"

"the old man probably isn't in mortal danger for now."

Finn nodded.

"Most likely, they just want to trap Gareth somewhere in the maze."

"But even Adamantite shouldn't be completely unbeatable for the old man."

"Given enough time, he might just dig his way straight through."

Loki crossed her arms and nodded.

"His Falna hasn't dropped."

"But we still can't drag our feet on the rescue."

"So what do you two suggest we do now?"

Finn said slowly,

"The key thing is the 'key.'"

"As far as we know, one key is with Captain Natsuka."

"The other is with the mysterious woman who got me out."

Riveria nodded slightly.

"Last time, she opened the door on her own."

"If we go in with a full army, it might not go so smoothly this time."

Tiona clutched her head with both hands, unable to hold back.

"Enough waiting, let's just go now."

"Get the key first, then get the old man out."

Riveria made a snap decision, her voice crisp.

"Finn, you go find that lady of unknown origin."

"I'll contact Lady Astraea on this end."

After saying that, she paused and looked up at him.

"Do you have a way to reach her?"

Finn thought for a moment, then turned to look at Loki.

"I do, actually."

"But I have no idea about the name of that place."

"Loki, do you know a place in the city called [Black Crow Brewery]?"

"[Black Crow Brewery]?"

Loki blinked, seeming to think back for a moment, then suddenly clapped her hands.

"Ohh— you mean that new place."

"It's been super popular lately."

"They've got some pretty special shows in there too, hehe."

"And the drinks are actually really good."

Riveria crossed her arms, her eyes turning cold instantly. "Loki, have you been squandering money again?"

"Uh—"

Loki's whole face froze on the spot, her smile barely holding.

"I was gathering intel there, okay? Intel!"

"It's not because the girls there are cute or anything!"

Finn cut her off directly.

"So you do know where the place is, right?"

Loki shot him a sidelong glance, her expression a bit odd.

"That place used to belong to that guy Soma, actually."

"Didn't you take it over yourself for a while?"

"It's over in the entertainment district."

"Uh—"

Finn blanked for a second, a rare flicker of blankness crossing his face.

"Shouldn't that be Astraea Familia's…?"

He rubbed his chin, falling into thought.

"No wonder that girl got me out without saying a word."

"So that's how it was."

"Has Captain Natsuka already mapped out the Dungeon to this extent…?"

Riveria looked somewhat surprised too.

She hadn't taken part in the War Game, so she didn't actually know much about the Captain Natsuka whose reputation had been growing lately.

So she turned to look at Ais.

Ais very seriously gave a thumbs up.

"Their fried potato balls are really good."

The corner of Riveria's eye dropped slightly.

Just as she thought.

She really shouldn't have expected anything from this girl.

Tiona's eyes went round, her voice thick with utter shock.

"They're already able to get involved in battles at this level?"

"And with even more of an advantage than us?"

"That's amazing!"

"No wonder — story lovers who like tales of heroes really are strong!"

Bete gave a cold snort from the side, the tail of it dripping with disdain. "Just some cheap tricks."

"Bluntly put, they're still just chicks fresh out of the nest."

Megumi Kato, listening in secretly from the side, froze for a moment.

What? Finn had taken over that bar before?

Then wasn't there a chance Lord Shadow had been exposed?

She'd only joined the Familia after the War Game.

She had no idea about those earlier details.

Thinking of this, she silently pressed her palms together toward empty air.

Sorry, Lord Shadow.

I really didn't mean to.'

Once it was settled who to go find, Loki slapped her thigh boldly, looking fired up already.

"What are we waiting for, then."

"Come on, let's go experience that [bar]... ahem, I mean, visit an old friend—"

"Go!"

Finn's expression tensed too.

"Loki, didn't you have a bit of a falling-out with that Captain before?"

"For your own safety, I think it's best to pay off that debt of gratitude sooner rather than later."

Once the decision was made, Finn immediately grabbed a large deposit certificate issued by the Guild and hurried after Loki toward the bar.

Megumi Kato had wanted to go along too.

But the moment she took a step, Raul stopped her.

"We still need to prepare supplies for the expedition."

"The provisions need moving too."

"Come with me to the warehouse."

Wasn't this basically inviting a mouse into the rice jar?

Megumi Kato's eyes flickered.

But in the end, she didn't actually lay a hand on their supplies.