Chapter 64 - The Rookie Specializing in Wish Fulfillment
The negotiation was successful.
The loss was a little, no, very severe.
My grand plan that I had been setting up.
Take hair loss prevention medicine → Gain weight → Decrease in sexual desire → Increase in demand for aphrodisiacs → Sell secretly to create a slush fund!
There was no scientific basis, but I was spinning my happiness circuits like crazy anyway.
To lose my crucial slush fund pouch so miserably like this.
Oh, Special-Gacha-Machine.
Forgive your incompetent master.
I’ll come see you soon, even if I have to scrape the bottom of the barrel…
“Master, why are you crying woof?”
“No, sniff, I’m not…”
A real man doesn’t cry…
Lucia, who had neatly swept every single gold coin into her magic pouch that seemed to function almost identically to my smartphone, turned to look at us.
“Hmm, I feel like I’m at a loss here.”
No, what kind of do… human talk is this.
I gave you the treasure!
I gave you the aphrodisiacs!
I just gave you everything!
You didn’t even give me a fair deal, there’s no business ethics! Waaah!
“Gasp.”
Maybe I showed my discontent through my expression.
Lucia whooshed over with instant teleportation to my side again.
“Meong!”
Then she gently pushed Lumi aside.
And whispered in my ear.
“Since you’re the Revelator, you’ll be involved with various heroes in the future, right? I can forgive that much. But, if I hear rumors that your first time wasn’t with our daughter…”
Lucia’s gesture of opening her palm, then clenching it tight with a crunch.
For a moment, I had a hallucination of a walnut being crushed before my eyes.
Chills ran down my spine.
“Behave yourself.”
Then she patted my shoulder, smiled brightly, and whooshed back to her original position.
…Is this open-minded or conservative?
My youth has been suddenly mortgaged to Lumi.
Mother might be disappointed, and I might be disappointed too, but.
We’re not that kind of relationship.
Our Lumi is a good puppy.
She’s a fool who only knows ‘Playing is the best, friends gather round’.
──I couldn’t say these words to her face.
So I forced a smile and nodded.
SD Ari with an expression like she’d lost her country.
Yohena and Saha letting out sighs of relief.
I returned to Tinya and Renatel, who were staring blankly with subtle expressions, and watched the scene of mother and daughter sharing their parting emotions.
A thought suddenly occurred to me and I poked Tinya’s side.
“Nyak!”
Her speech pattern has already changed.
Is there a stupid demon-kin who thinks she’s a cat beast-kin? Piyung piyung pisung ppasung.
“Tinya. If it’s like this… Neb doesn’t have anything left, right?”
“Umm. Probably so!”
I was already feeling depressed.
We cleared the 20th floor but there’s no corner for bribes to come in…?
No.
Positive thinking is always important.
The glass is half empty. X.
The glass is half full. O.
There’s only enough money left to last today. X.
There’s as much as enough money left to last today. O.
…?
Something feels off but.
Anyway, with the power of positivity.
There’s a saying that even if you wring a dry cloth, water will come out.
After fully arming myself with positivity and the spirit of self-reliance.
Surprisingly, we were able to comfortably break through the 20th floor without any resistance.
Neb, who had poured all her strength into the 19th floor, dropped out of the 20th floor as if it were a lie.
It felt like some kind of Buksan ending.
“…Phew.”
And finally arriving at Zone 10.
Dazed by Lucia’s betrayal.
We were able to meet Neb, who was just staring blankly.
Come to think of it, she was young too.
She looked about the same age as Tinya.
Their heights were similar too.
If only she hadn’t been a level 90 boss monster.
I could have subdued her by applying my secret technique of picking up and putting down Tinya.
With such regret, I took in her first impression, noting her strangely modern attire.
“Neeeeb!”
Suddenly, Tinya leaped and rushed towards Neb.
Even with an extremely happy voice and expression.
Could it be betrayal?
A reactionary, a reactionary!
“Annoying, hot, get out of the way, idiot.”
“Hugyak.”
Neb skillfully used the momentum of Tinya’s jump to spin around once and throw her to the side.
Incredible strength unbelievable from such a small frame.
If I had used my secret technique of picking up and putting down, my waist probably would have folded in half.
Still, she didn’t seem to intend to harm.
Although Tinya, who had hit her head on the wall with a thud, whimpered and cried, well, her health didn’t decrease or anything.
Then I should respect that non-violence principle.
I’m a person who likes non-violence too.
The world is love and peace.
“If you hand over the conversion contract obediently, there will be no bloodshed.”
A great leader standing at the forefront of non-violence.
I kindly suggested surrender, quoting the expression of Mahatma Gandhi.
“Sounds troublesome…”
Neb frowned with a sour expression.
“Master, shall I squeeze her woof?”
“Tsk, Lumi. Wait.”
I stopped Lumi, who was growling with a feeling of ‘It’s unforgivable to ignore Master’s suggestion woof!’
We are a hero party that loves peace.
Violence is the last resort.
“Look. Elise and Arachne aren’t here now, right? Those friends are comfortably staying in the village. There’s no need to climb the tower together right now.”
I conveyed only facts without a single lie.
If there were minor parts I didn’t mention.
That they’re comfortably stirring alchemy pots in the village, and comfortably pulling out spider webs in the village.
And that while there’s no need to climb the tower ‘now’, they’ll be climbing together from the 21st floor?
It’s trivial.
Not lying is the minimum courtesy between people.
Since they’re demon-kin, even if I hide a little truth, I can stand proud without shame before the goddess.
Although I’m an atheist.
“Hmm…”
Perhaps my 100% truth-containing persuasion started to work.
Neb, who threw Tinya away again as she tried to jump and hug her, started to ponder.
“Should we just take her out, Ark?”
“Saha, you shouldn’t be like that too.”
Something must be cursed in the air of the Great Forest.
They were clearly kind and beautiful heroes.
Why have they all become violence-loving fools?
“But what’s your relationship with Tinya?”
Before Neb could answer my question.
Tinya-Ru, committing her third betrayal, shouted energetically.
“My school friend!”
“…I’m not friends with such an idiot.”
“Nyak! I’m dizzy–”
Come to think of it, Elise also said she was Tinya’s senior.
They’re not like princesses of the demon world or something when you get to know them, right?
They’re probably not from some private demon high school that only princesses attend or anything.
Ah, that’s honestly too much of a stretch.
Finally.
Single room accommodation provided.
Meals and snacks provided.
Vacation days given.
Salary paid.
Flexible working hours possible.
After offering all sorts of special terms.
[5★ ‘Demon of Sloth’ Neb Conversion Contract]
At last, I was able to obtain Alchemy Slave No. 2 and Nong-nong Squad Mascot No. 2.
Of course, vacations can’t be taken when the company is busy, and we’re always planning to be busy. And salary, of course, might be delayed if the company is in difficulty, well, that kind of thing.
That’s how the world works.
Our shop is probably… the most fragile among small businesses.
“I look forward to working with you, Neb. Get along well with Tinya.”
“Kyaang!”
“…Really annoying…”
People from the same hometown, similar in age, should get along well.
Tinya must have been really hungry for friends.
She’s still persistently clinging even after being thrown away for the eighth time.
As I was watching that scene fondly.
[Hidden Trait ‘Demon Love’ LV.2 Increased]
An unwelcome status window that I didn’t want to know about popped up.
I waved my hand to dismiss it right away.
Hmm.
Nuoong.
The first thing Neb did after moving into the guild house was.
“The bed is hard…”
Audaciously, she complained about the composition of the ‘single room’, the highest value system among company welfare.
This is where Disciplinary Officer Yohena should step in and scold her sharply.
“That’s true. The pillow is a bit old too.”
Hey.
Miss Cookie Thief?
“Hmm, but Neb has been called a genius a lot, right? This humble servant agrees.”
Drug offender, you too…!
After that.
“Wooden bathtub. Uncomfortable. The private bathroom is small too…”
“Ugh, cobwebs… Arachne?”
“Not. Me…”
“Nyom… The food is delicious. But the tableware is old.”
Private Neb Kim continuously stuffed complaints into the suggestion box.
No. You’re the demon of sloth.
You’re supposed to hate bothersome things.
Be too lazy to point things out…!
What’s even more infuriating is.
“Yeah, yeah. That is a bit…”
“That’s right.”
“Lumi agrees too woof!”
Even the thief gang members I thought were loyal.
Started to sympathize with the rookie’s terrible misdeeds.
I think about this almost every day.
Is the hero party okay like this?
So I chanted a healing spell for the heroes.
“We don’t have money.”
In most cases of such unreasonable demands.
They could be defeated by chanting this healing spell.
“Liar! Tinya saw it! There was lots of money in the gold chest!”
That deputy manager. How dare she betray me…!
The heroes’ gazes towards me rapidly turned cold.
I’m sorry.
Special-Gacha-Machine.
I’ll definitely come see you next time…
I shed tears of blood and declared surrender.
The heroes, who switched to autonomous robber mode, kindly led me to the shop and.
“Yahoo! I’ll use it well!”
“I’ll be back, Ark.”
They stole half of the gold coins.
Moreover, not for the purpose of legitimate public fund execution.
Even pocket money extortion for personal greed…!
A day of deeply feeling the heart of a servant in a martial arts novel.
And the wrap-up of the 20th floor.
Great Forest, service terminated.