Chapter 15: Monster Extermination

Erna is so angry that she grabs me by my chest.

“It’s embarrassing to introduce that I’m in a “Homeless” party! Why did you name it like that?! Arghhh! I should have been the one who filled it in!”

“Why are you that flustered? There is a place for you and me to live, we are not actually homeless.”

When I said that, “No-!”, she let out an ear splitting scream. Ah-, what a loud fellow. I applied for a party and named it Homeless, the funny thing is that, the word homeless also exists in this world.This is translated by Yume Neiji (yumeineijiworks.wordpress.com)

The meaning is almost the same but the fact that they are slightly different is another reason why I choose it as a name. On earth, homeless people are those who live on the streets or in parks.　Considering that, I may not be a homeless now.

However, homeless in this world means “wanderer”. In short, an unidentified person is called a homeless as he can’t give out an address and given that, I’m definitely considered as homeless here.

Isn’t it really cool? Wanderer?

I like historical dramas and I also read the famous “Ruro⍟ Kenshin”.

It’s a man’s romance!

“Very well, please calm down. If the name “Homeless” becomes famous, no one will care about that. Think about it, if we could get even a little impact because of it, the number of requests coming to us will increase.”

I persuaded Erna by saying so, she’s finally fully motivated, her eyes are now revived.

“Right! If I can get famous, it doesn’t matter anymore, it’s just a name! I even feel that I’ll become famous!”

“Yeah, That’s it! That’s the spirit Erna!”

“Well then, we will accept new requests!”

“W-Wait! Today…!”

Before I could even finish, she runs towards the bulletin board. I didn’t mean that we should get request today… Ah, it can’t be helped. This is better than her being in a bad mood.

　◆◇◆

After lunch, me and Erna headed to the dungeon to complete the request we accepted.

“Hey Erna. What kind of request did you end up with?”

I call out from behind. We are already in the second floor of the dungeon but Erna just rushed silently ahead while looking at the map.

“You’ll understand as we move there. With Shinichi’s ability, we’ll surely end this soon.”

“Is that so? I’m not familiar with other adventurers, so I’m not sure how good I am, but if you think we can achieve it, let’s do that.”

“Ha~a in truth… Shinichi, where did you really come from? You don’t know your ability, you can’t speak our language, you don’t even know the basics and above all, you live in the dungeon…. uh, you live in the dungeon.”

“Why did you say it twice? I originally lived in the dungeon because I felt that it was easy to live in there.”

Erna displayed a frightened expression then she quickly looks at the map again. She told me that she came from a distant country. So I also don’t want to talk about my life on earth. I don’t think she’ll understand it anyway.

Also, I think a man with a secret is cool.  Kukuku.

Moreover, even though I came from another world, I do not think that my life has really changed. I became homeless because I was disgusted by the human society, but that doesn’t mean that I hate humans or that I wanted to die.

Of course it would have been better to move to the countryside and do some farming work, but I didn’t feel like leaving Tokyo where I was born and raised. So yeah, I’m a half-assed person.This is translated by Yume Neiji (yumeineijiworks.wordpress.com)

“Shinichi! It’s a magical beast!”

After Erna called out, I immediately pulled out the sword.

“Jiyuuuu!”

A gray mouse called grave rat appeared, three of them. These guys seem to be the magical beasts of the Mohed’s Great Labyrinth who prefer the carcasses and they appear from the 2nd floor to the 4th floor.

It was timid in nature and it often escapes if it’s alone but, it’s a troublesome creature as they launch attack in two or more group. Their body length is about 30 cm, but if it turns into a big one, it will exceed 1 m.

“Alright then, it’s Shinichi’s turn!”

Erna quickly hides behind me and pushes my back without any hesitation. I will sermon her later on.

“Sei-!”

The rats were slaughtered quickly, although the other two came to me simultaneously, I didn’t hesitate and cut the two of them in the air. My fighting spirit quickly disappears as it was not enough.

“I want to fight a stronger enemy…”

“As expected, Shinichi is strong! I can’t see your movements at all! You are certainly as good as those intermediate adventurers!”

“I was wondering about it for a long time now, how strong is the adventurer at the top?”

Erna thought about it and started talking.

“Adventurers are divided into beginner, intermediate, advanced, special and master ranks. When you become a special ranker, you can go through any dungeon. Only those who have master rank or those who have been acknowledged by the guild committee are allowed to reveal their names, and they are only few in this world.”

“Guild Committee?”

“The guild committee is a higher organization within the guild. They decide the management and policies within the guild, you can think of them as the guild’s rulers.”

The more I listen, the more I’m interested in the organization called guild.

This adventurer profession is not present on earth, this guild, which is the parent organization of adventurers is veiled in mystery. It’s also strange because guilds are independent organizations from the country. This world arouses my curiosity after all.

Me and Erna start walking again and then we reached the third floor.

“It should come out soon…”

“So what is the request? Can you talk about it now?”

“Oh well, I’m not really hiding it. It seems that there are monsters that often appear in this third level. There is a client who wants materials from that and the reward is high.”

“…That’s not what I want to hear about. Why did you choose it?”

When I asked her that questions, Erna looked hesitant. As I thought, her habit acted up, she took something in particular. Otherwise, it is strange that the reward is high.

“Uhm… I’ve known that this request was posted for a long time now… nobody accepts it because it’s dangerous….. if we ignore it too, it will be left alone….. but even if we ignore this task there will be no problem…”

“Hurry up tell me, what kind of creature are we up against?”

“There are people who say it’s the “fork centipede” in this 3rd level, and their character is timid and they don’t attack unless we attack them. But when they get angry, they are violent, and people who have accepted requests until now haven’t come back………Uhm?”

What’s with this “you can understand it without me saying anything” explanation!

That’s clearly a dangerous monster! Since nobody dared to accept it, it was left alone. That further explains why the reward was high even though it’s just the third level. In that case, it is better to ignore it and hunt some magical beast that could fetch a good price further below.This is translated by Yume Neiji (yumeineijiworks.wordpress.com)

But I was intrigued. I want to see the magical beast called fork centipede. I also want to try centipede meat.

“Okay, let’s hunt the fork centipede. Guide me to where it is.”

“As expected of Shinichi! The name Homeless will certainly become famous!”

Becoming famous huh? I tilted my head as I thought about it, but for the time being, I proceeded in the direction Erna is guiding me to.

After walking for about an hour, the atmosphere begins to feel cold. The floor is now covered with thin ice and it makes some noise every time we step on it. Feeling doubtful, I asked Erna, what is going on ahead.

“Why is it so cold?”

“Ah, that’s right! Fork centipedes are magical beasts with ice attribute. I’ll explain it for Shinichi, the uninformed. Magical beasts and monsters imply that they are creatures that can use magic.”

“Hn, then how do you call the creatures that can’t use magic?”

“They are usually known as ordinary animals. Domestic animals and pets fall in this category, but there are few other animals that can’t use magic. Don’t get me wrong about that.”

Hmm, I thought that magical beasts and monsters were common animals in this world, but it seems like there’s a drawn a line between this creatures. As expected of a mysterious world.

“It’s about time…”

Erna holds her bow after she kept the map. The passageway is already cold like a freezer and icicles can be seen on the ceiling. As we proceeded further, we arrived at a dome-shaped room.

“That’s it!”

There was a large centipede in the direction she was pointing. The total length is about 15m, and the width is about 1m. The body is covered in a hard shell and has an overall blue color. I immediately tried the appraisal.

【Appraisal Result: Ice centipede (subspecies): It is considered to be a subspecies of ice centipedes and has ice attribute. Their number has not been confirmed yet, it is a rare magical beast.】

Oh, it’s rare huh?

If that’s the case, I think it’s a shame to leave it alone but I also think that it’s right to ignore it. If it’s like this, Erna may still be hiding something.

“Well then, let’s fight it!”

After she pulled the bow, the wind arrow appeared and it was shot in the eyes of the ice centipede.This is translated by Yume Neiji (yumeineijiworks.wordpress.com)

“Pigyaaaaaaaaaaa!”

The unpleasant cry echoed inside the dome shaped room, the centipede began to aim at me. Its speed is faster than I thought, and its movement looks like it’s sliding on the thin ice. I pull out my sword and tried to cut it but I couldn’t maintain my posture as my feet were slippery.

“Oi, Shinichi! What the heck are you doing!”

Erna shoots an arrow and restrains the centipede.

“Aah, it’s so slippery under my feet! Buy me some time!”

I desperately pushed my sword against the floor and tried to balance myself but the floor of this room is abnormally slippery. Perhaps the adventurers up until now were killed on this floor.

It will be bad if this goes on like this, I take out a magic stone with fire attribute from my bosom.

“I hope this works.”

I removed the yellow magic stone in the sword handle and I replace it with the red magic stone. After touching the magic circle, flame immediately burst out from the blade. As the ice on the floor melted, the room was also filled with hot air.

“Alright! I can fight with this!”

I start running immediately towards the centipede, I then slash it diagonally.

―However, with a shrill sound, my sword was repelled.

“Pigyaaaa!”

The attacked centipede turns its face to me and it emitted intense cold air from its mouth. The floor was once again frozen, and I was covered with icicles.

“Shinichi!?”

I can hear Erna’s shout. Then, the black robe I was wearing showed its power, the ice disappeared as if nothing had happened. Both Erna and the centipede were stunned when they saw that occurrence.This is translated by Yume Neiji (yumeineijiworks.wordpress.com)

As soon as I used the pressure point skill, one red dot was displayed on the centipede’s head and two around its back. Is it only effective from the top of the shell?

With that in mind, I thrust my sword at the red dot on its back. The shell was crushed and the tip of the sword was buried deep inside the centipede. It must have been a “weak point”.

“Pigyaaaaaaaaaaaaaa!!”

The centipede violently rampages. Gripping the sword in my hand, I endure the violent shaking –it’s as if I’m riding a rampaging horse.

But I’m not done yet,

“Eat this!”

After I touched the magic circle on the handle, flame burst out from the blade. The flame burns the insides of the centipede and then bubbles appear as if its whole body is boiling. A weird smell assaulted my nose then the centipede’s shell turned reddish in color. After I confirmed that the centipede was dead, I pulled out my sword and took a breather.

“We did it! Shinichi that’s truly unbelievable! How did you prevent that magic?”

Erna rushed beside me and repeatedly asked questions with her glittering eyes.

“It’s not a big deal. This robe can prevent magic.”

“Robe?”

When I showed the robe, Erna scrutinizes it.

“Hmm, I wonder if it belongs to a high ranking mage? Still, that was the first time I saw the phenomenon of magic disappearing………”

“Hmm, Hmm”, while she’s mumbling, I peel off the centipede’s shell and put some in my mouth.

“As expected… I’ve never eaten centipede before but this taste is close to a crab. It’s delicious!”This is translated by Yume Neiji (yumeineijiworks.wordpress.com)

As I’m eating the mushy centipede, Erna looks at me with a bitter expression.

“That thing is seldom eaten. Aren’t you uncomfortable somewhere?”

“It looks bad, but it’s delicious. Try it.”

“Uh, no thanks…”

Though she said that, it seems that she has no resistance against touching centipede. Erna stripped off the shell to procure the requested material.

“Instead of doing that, isn’t it better if we just carry everything?”

“Look here, how can we carry out such big thing?! Besides, adventurers only take what was requested by the guild…..”

I carried the large centipede. It is lighter than I thought.

“Hey, let’s go.”

“Uh, Uhm……”

It looks like she was about to say something, but there should be no complaints if this is taken to the guild. Besides that, I think that the client would be glad that many materials were available, I believe so.

With that in mind we head out, when we got out, many adventurers who were trying to enter the dungeon were surprised seeing me. Well, anyone would be surprised if they saw someone coming out of the dungeon while dragging a big centipede.

“Look, everyone is surprised you know.”

Erna felt shy and she sneaked away.

This certainly catches people’s attention, but wasn’t that the purpose in the first place? I think that being famous means like this.

“Don’t worry about such small things. Besides, this is for the name homeless to be known. If we don’t do something like this, the impact will not be enough you know.”

“W-Well, that’s right. It may be exactly as what Shinichi says. Impact is also important.”

Erna was convinced by my words. She’s indeed a naïve girl. I am very worried about this child’s future. I tried to enter the city but the soldier keeping guard on the gate stopped me.

“Wait, wait a minute! Where are you bringing that thing?”

“Eh? Isn’t it obvious? To the guild of course.”

“R-Right…but that’s pretty big. There are such creatures in the dungeon huh…”

“Alright then”

The soldier was impressed while looking at the centipede.

It seems that it’s unusual for an adventurer to bring a whole monster in huh.

If it weren’t on the third level, I can only bring the needed materials. When we walked through the city, people stopped and watched me. The children called out “Wow, amazing” and followed me behind.

And I’m repeatedly asked, “which party do you belong to?”, I answered homeless each time. When we arrived in front of the guild, I found a guild staff standing in front of the entrance.

She’s a red-haired woman with a pretty face, but her eyes were squinted and she looks angry.

“I don’t want a whole magical beast. Please carry it to the back of the guild!”

“S-Sorry”

According to the staff’s instructions, we went to the back of the guild and there was a wooden warehouse. After I managed to bring it into the warehouse, I took a break.

“It was a good work out.”

I took out the water bottle from my backpack and drink some water. However, the staff is truly angry.

“Usually you bring only the materials! If it’s like this, the guild will be in trouble!”

“I understand your point but, maybe the client might want the materials for the other parts as well. Can the guild disregard the client’s request?”

“Uhh…”

Seems like I poke the staff’s sore spot. But I didn’t mean to say anything wrong. Work is not just about being ordered. We can say that we have done a good job if we develop further from there.

Isn’t it natural to find out what the customer wants? And if the client doesn’t need any other material, I will just handle it. The only bother is that I need to rent a warehouse in the guild.

“I-I understand! If you have any of these things in the future, please bring them directly to the warehouse! It’s no longer of my concern!”

The staff was so angry that she left the warehouse. When I see such a figure, I can’t help but laugh inside. I remember the company I was running. She was like those employees who overreact seeing someone who doesn’t abide the common practice.

“It isn’t good after all…”

Erna looks dejected.

“Don’t worry. Later you can see that we made a good move. Be confident.”

“Un……”

Speaking of that, a man entered the warehouse.

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