The well-Balanced Yamamoto-san Gets Caught up in a Death Game

Chapter 28

“Wow, this place has quite the atmosphere…”

We managed to reach the entrance of Foreside’s underground labyrinth before nightfall.

The area in front of the entrance is like a small plaza, and there are a few people camping there.

It feels a bit like a campsite, which gives me mixed feelings, but the labyrinth entrance itself is truly impressive!

There’s a massive torii-like entrance made of stacked monoliths at the foot of the mountain, with a gaping hole!

Though the scale is different, it’s reminiscent of an ancient tomb entrance. It gives the impression that the labyrinth inside must be vast and expansive.

For now, after performing my Death Sentence and hunting some monsters, I’ve returned to our party’s campsite after checking out the labyrinth entrance.

Bre-kun and the others are already efficiently starting the camping preparations.

By the way, Tatsu-san is out of commission. He’s too small to help even if he wanted to.

“Oh, Yama-chan’s back.”

“I’ll help with the camping preparations. What should I do?”

“Well then, could you set up the tents? Gobuzou-san and the others’ tent isn’t up yet.”

“Okay, tents it is. Leave it to me.”

So, I start setting up the tents.

…………

There, finished!

Hehehe, did you imagine I’d be crying because I couldn’t set up a tent?

I actually have real-life skills in this area, so I can set them up normally. It’s not for nothing that I went camping as a child and was taught various things by my father!

“This tent is for Gobuzou-san and the others. Feel free to make yourselves at home.”

“Treating a tent like home is a bit much.”

“It’s just a figure of speech, old man.”

So, I hand over the tent I built to Gobuzou-san and the others.

Now, what else should I do?

“Next is setting up Yama-chan’s tent, and that’ll be all for the tents.”

“Huh?”

…Ah!?

I didn’t account for Gobuzou-san and the others joining us, so I don’t have a tent for myself!

Hmm. It’s awkward to say “That’s actually my tent. Please give it back” to Gobuzou-san and the others now. And I can’t make them sleep outside either…

“I-I’ll sleep in the carriage, so it’s fine!”

“What’s that? Your voice is shaking. Are you okay?”

“I’m fine, really!”

I was so excited about preparing camping gear, but I only made enough for myself, and now it’s not enough!

Well, it can’t be helped!

No one could have predicted the increase in numbers!

Well, I guess sleeping in the carriage is fine too…

It’s a bit silly that I’ll have to summon the carriage again, but it can’t be helped. Yeah.

More importantly, when it comes to camping, it’s all about the camp food!

I was excited to start preparing, but–

“Well then, I’m off to sleep. This is a safety area, so monsters shouldn’t attack, but wake me if anything happens.”

“Ah, I’m going to sleep too. I’m pretty tired from today…”

Saying that, Tatsu-san and Bre-kun entered their own tents (Tatsu-san’s is more like a cat basket?) and promptly went to sleep!

Wait, what about dinner!?

Can they really go to sleep so easily just because it’s flavor text!?

As I’m quietly shocked, Misaki-chan approaches with meat in both hands.

“I was curious about the ingredients that sometimes drop from monsters. Want to grill them?”

“Misaki-chaaaan…!”

Maybe it’s my age.

I clung to Misaki-chan and cried a little.

I was really looking forward to this and prepared a lot, but I didn’t know how reassuring it would be to have even one ally!

So, this time I’ll do my best to meet Misaki-chan’s expectations!

“Oh my, is something the matter?”

“My, that’s some nice meat. Is that for dinner tonight?”

Ah, here are more allies!

That’s right! Gobuzou-san and the others are NPCs, so they don’t treat meals as mere flavor text like we do!

I’ll give it my all for Gobuzou-san and the others too!

“Just wait a moment, Misaki-chan! Gobuzou-san, Iko-san! Today, I’m… going to get serious!”

“???”

The three of them look confused, but today I’m giving it my all for the camp meal!

That’s how happy I am!

But more than that, I wanted to show them my first masterpiece using the [Divine Artifact Creation] skill!

Now, behold!

This is the world premiere of my first camping tool made with [Divine Artifact Creation]!

Thud!

What I pulled out of my [Storage] is a giant barbecue grill!

The three of them watch with blank expressions as it appears, kicking up a cloud of dust.

“This is my full effort!”

Since there’s no reaction, I say it again.

Huh, why isn’t there any reaction?

“A normal barbecue grill?”

Misaki-chan asks to confirm, but no, that’s not it!

“Misaki-chan, have you had much barbecue experience?”

“Not really.”

“Then, how about grilled meat?”

“I’m the type to go for solo grilled meat.”

Does she not have friends?

Not that I’m one to talk.

“Then, think about grilled meat. When you grill a lot of meat, oil drips into the fire and flares up, and the grill gets burnt, right?”

“That happens.”

“Haven’t you ever had the unpleasant experience of that burnt grill sticking to the meat, making it bitter or gritty?”

“To be honest, yes.”

“However, with this barbecue grill! The grill never gets burnt! Always like new! No burnt bits stick to the meat!”

“Oh.”

This barbecue grill, created from [Purification Grass] and [Magic Iron], doesn’t allow burnt residue to stick, and instead absorbs the burnt bits and converts them into heat radiation energy! It’s an eco-friendly design! It’s also attractive for its fuel efficiency, running on a small amount of magical energy!

“Moreover, this barbecue grill’s temperature can be easily managed with just this button! No need for charcoal!”

“Convenient.”

“But wait, there’s more! This isn’t all!”

“There’s more?”

My tone has become a bit like a TV shopping channel, but it can’t be helped! I used to like watching late-night TV shopping, so I can’t help but fall into that kind of speech pattern!

“For example, vegetables grilled by who-knows-who! Or meat that got burnt because you were too engrossed in conversation! …That happens, right?”

“I don’t have anyone to talk to.”

Bre-kun! Go eat grilled meat with Misaki-chan!

For the sake of rhythm, I’ll ignore that.

Sorry, Misaki-chan. I can’t dispel that darkness in your heart…

“But with this barbecue grill, it automatically detects the doneness of meat and vegetables! When they’re cooked just right, it stops heating them further!”

“Hmm, amazing.”

“My, my, that would allow for leisurely eating.”

“That’s quite a function.”

“Moreover, this barbecue grill uses magic power instead of charcoal, so there’s no need to deal with charcoal cleanup! Furthermore, it even absorbs the smoke produced when grilling meat and vegetables, so you can use it outside of safety areas without worrying about attracting monsters!”

“Revolutionary.”

I received applause from Misaki-chan.

Not bad!

Was my true calling to be a product demonstrator?

No, I’m just a production class, but still.

“But!”

“???”

“When it comes to barbecue, some people might think, ‘Grilling is easy, but the preparation…’ That’s why I present to you my second serious invention, the Super Food Processor!”

“Ooh…?”

The three of them applaud with a somewhat confused look.

But that applause will soon turn into cheers! I can see that future!

“This food processor doesn’t just crush hard vegetables and fruits! For example, fresh ingredients! Misaki-chan, may I have some meat?”

“Mm.”

I put the meat I received from Misaki-chan into the food processor and press

I put the meat I received from Misaki-chan into the food processor and press the switch.

“Thick-cut steak for barbecue.”

With just those words, like magic, thick-cut steak-sized pieces of meat start piling up on a plate from the processor’s outlet!

“As you can see! Just by saying what you want, it produces ingredients cut to your desired size! Of course, there’s no need for tedious tasks like peeling ingredients! It does everything automatically! This is perfect for those who are uneasy about handling knives!”

“Old man, shall we buy that?”

“I wonder. It’s not for sale, is it?”

That’s right, unfortunately it’s not for sale right now. After all, many of the materials are quite special!

They’re all things I managed to get through negotiations with Milene-san!

Since it can’t be produced easily, I can’t casually put it up for sale!

“Of course, this food processor is also suitable for barbecue! If you put in ingredients for barbecue skewers…”

I put in vegetables and meat that I took out from [Storage] and–

“Here you go, they come out already skewered like this!”

“Ooh.”

Their interest seems to have increased a bit more than before.

I feel like there’s a bit more enthusiasm in their voices!

“Shall we start the barbecue then?”

While saying that, Misaki-chan has already started grilling meat!

She’s quite the carnivore.

“Lastly, one more thing. This!”

Saying that, I take out a tall box from [Storage] and set it up.

“You might think your mouth will get greasy from the meat oil! But with this, you’ll be fine! It’s called the Drink Box!”

I actually wanted to call it a Juice Box as a pun on Jukebox, but the variety increased more than I expected, so I reluctantly named it Drink Box!

“This is a drink server that can produce anything liquid, from tea to alcohol, and even dipping sauces, all from water!”

“What!? Even alcohol!?”

“Old man, you’re getting too excited.”

Gobuzou-san’s reaction is the best so far today. I bet he’s a drinker.

“Can it produce famous yakiniku restaurant sauces too?”

“Of course.”

“Mhm.”

Misaki-chan really loves yakiniku, doesn’t she? Well, I think it’s good to have preferences.

“With so many types of alcohol, I’m at a loss…”

“Then, how about the same plum wine as me?”

“Is that so? Well then, I’ll have that please.”

So, Iko-san will have the same Ume○Uguisu Extra as me. I like it because it’s more flavorful than the plum wine you’d get at a regular izakaya. On the rocks.

Gobuzou-san is apparently a beer-with-meat person to start. He seems like the athletic type!

And Misaki-chan chooses Iron Goddess tea. Maybe she’s still too young to drink alcohol.

So, we pour our drinks into glasses and gather around the barbecue grill, raising our glasses.

“Well then, here’s to our hard work today — Cheers!”

“Cheers!”

Now, let’s eat, drink, and enjoy!

It’s no exaggeration to say that I prepared for this area boss challenge looking forward to this! I brought lots of ingredients too, so let’s have fun!