[WEB version] Rare Class Change! ~The Monster Tamer and the Rare Familiar’s Relaxed Journey to Another World~

Chapter 30: Tavern

In front of her, a young boy was being smothered by her familiars. Her companions laughed loudly, attracting attention from all around, while the owner paled in embarrassment.

Reluctantly, Lena found herself thrown into the chaotic center of attention. Hastily, she pulled her familiars off someone called Patricia.

“U-Uwaaaah!? I’m so sorry…! Hey, everyone, back off now!”

Her familiars protested together, “How dare you accuse the great Lena-sama!?”
“We can’t forgive anyone who scares our big sister! How dare you!”
“Want to be covered in bugs…?”

Thankfully, Lily didn’t follow through on her threat.

“Enough…!”

The tackles from her familiars were mild, so Patricia wasn’t hurt, but her face was covered, and she coughed slightly, struggling to breathe. Finally managing to contain her familiars in her arms, Lena bowed apologetically. Even while held, her familiars continued to hiss at Patricia.

The receptionist staff watched them, chuckling at the harmless scuffle, which was a common occurrence among adventurers. The monsters held back their aggression, showing they had some intelligence and self-restraint, so there was no need for interference.

Patricia, embarrassed and slightly red-faced, glared at Lena once more, but a large hand suddenly appeared above her head, tousling her hair roughly.

“Hey! Ow, stop it, Gorda—hey, that hurts! Let go!”

“Haha! That was your fault, Patricia. The young lady here already apologized for her familiars. So, apologize properly, too. Come on, say sorry. …Hey there! Long time no see, young lady!”

“Uh… it’s Tōdō Lena, by the way.”

“Ah, yeah, that’s right! Haha!”

“…Wait. You two know each other…?”

Patricia looked at Gorda suspiciously while pinching his palm.

“Oh yeah, we promised to grab a meal together!”

“What’s this? She’s a friend of yours, Gorda?”
“She’s cute!”

“Of course!”

“Actually, I’m an adult…! Uh, Gorda-san, could you be a bit more accurate with your replies?”

The conversation started getting tangled… well, it already was. With Gorda’s party members chiming in left and right, the original topic about the saber cat they hunted had long been forgotten. Lena, noticing the attention they were drawing, suggested, “It’s getting a bit crowded here, so why don’t we move somewhere else to continue?”

With that, Lena’s group and Gorda’s party decided to relocate to the tavern.

Since Gorda was a trusted figure in the guild, the receptionists didn’t mind Lena joining his party at the tavern, only reminding them cheerfully, “Just don’t drink too much!”

Lena was indeed of age, and guild policy stated they would only step in if things got too out of hand. As for the receptionists, they were all beautiful, skilled fighters who could easily handle any troublemakers. When quarrels broke out in the guild, they would usually put a quick end to it. With a wave, they saw Lena and the others off cheerfully.

Inside, Lena kept up a polite smile while inwardly sighing.

I’d planned on a nice tiger steak for dinner… oh well. Was I not supposed to kill a saber cat without a quest? But it was life or death!

She was still regretting her lost tiger steak. Plus, eating out meant she couldn’t have her familiars take on human form, which she felt a little bad about since they enjoyed their meals more in their demon forms.

Although Lena’s familiars weren’t punished for the minor scuffle, Lena still felt uneasy around Patricia. She stole a glance at her, but their eyes accidentally met with an awkward spark. Lena flinched, but Patricia, after a moment’s hesitation, quickly looked away.

In a small, almost whisper-like voice, Patricia murmured, “…Sorry for the scare.”

Eyes wide, Lena returned the apology softly, “It’s all right. I’m sorry, too.”

Perhaps she wasn’t such a bad person after all. Smiling at the realization, Lena petted her familiars, who were still sulking in her arms, and let out a small sigh.

Their quiet apologies were lost amid the lively bustle of the tavern district that night.

The tavern, “Golden Goblet,” was a noisy haven for adventurers and laborers. Lena and the others sat around a large, round table, with Lena and Patricia seated awkwardly next to each other, thanks to their well-meaning but mischievous companions.

Patricia, noticing the teasing looks, blushed and snapped, “What are you looking at!?” The others just laughed as Gorda raised his glass.

Clearing his throat, Gorda said, “Ahem… Well, no need for fancy speeches. Cheers!”

“Cheers!!”

Everyone raised their mugs and took hearty sips. Lena sipped her juice, while the others downed the tavern’s specialty, oversized beer mugs. Even Patricia, who was Lena’s age, seemed to love beer.

Everyone who’d taken a big swig of beer had a frothy white “mustache,” pointing and laughing at each other. Seeing such a lively, adventure-filled atmosphere finally helped Lena relax.

“Oh, excuse me, miss! Could I get four more mixed juices, on a separate tab, please?”

Showing her honesty, the tamer decided to place her familiars’ orders on a separate tab, while she herself added a juice to her order. Incidentally, her own meal was being covered by Goldaro. However, Patricia, who overheard Lena’s whispered order, quickly grabbed the waitress’s arm.

“No need to separate the bills, miss! Let’s throw it all on Goldaro’s tab! Haha!”

“Oh? Fine by me! What’s wrong, missy? No need to hold back; I earn plenty!”

“Hey, Goldaro! You’re already slurring your words… are you already drunk?”

“Also, maybe it’s time you start calling her by her name!”

“Woo-hoo!”

“Gyahaha, how annoying!”

“Patricia, your laugh is not very ladylike! Bahaha!”

They were all getting tangled in a lively web of drunken banter, and Lena was starting to feel a bit left out. The conversation was going in a completely different direction than expected, turning into meaningless horseplay. What happened to all the fuss about the saber cat?

Patricia, who had been frowning before, burst into laughter the moment she got some alcohol in her system. Somehow, she’d wrapped an arm around Lena’s shoulders again, clearly the cheerful, affectionate drunk. Lena, unfamiliar with drinkers, was surprised by the transformation.

Since the atmosphere wasn’t threatening, Lena’s familiars quietly sipped their juice, keeping an eye on their master and the others.

“Oh? So if I looked this girly, the saber cat would’ve chased me, too?”

Suddenly, Patricia leaned in close to Lena, examining her face, which had an innocent charm to it.

▽ The familiars launched a soft, fluffy tackle!
▽ The perpetrator tumbled off her chair!

Laughter erupted from a corner of the tavern as Lena’s party members collapsed onto the table, clutching their stomachs. Their laughter chipped away at their poor master’s composure.

After Lena pulled her familiars off, Patricia sat there with a flushed face, exclaiming in frustration—a handful, to say the least.

“What the heck! I just thought I’d take notes on Lena’s girly vibe for future reference! What’s with these creatures; they’re so obsessed with their master!”

“Oh, we’re definitely obsessed!”
“We love her so much!”
“Lena-sama’s the best!”

“Uh… huh? Are they… saying something?” Patricia asked in a small voice, intimidated by the intensity of the familiars’ responses. Lena, feeling incredibly embarrassed, acted as their translator.

“Uh… yeah. They, um, really like me…”

“Oh-ho! Lena, you’re so popular!”

“Bwahaha!”

▽ The master is blushing!

“Oh, come on… this is so embarrassing…”

“Mrrrm!”

The party members laughed so hard they cried, Lena blushed fiercely, and her familiars puffed up in pride as more eyes turned their way.

Maybe it’s time to finally talk about that saber cat.

“I got chased by a saber cat, thought of a countermeasure while running, and managed to defeat it. Was that a problem?” Lena timidly asked Patricia, trying to shift the topic. Her innocent gaze made Patricia hesitate.

She’d been curt to Lena at the guild earlier, mostly out of frustration from failing her quest. She’d returned empty-handed and was feeling edgy. After a pause, Patricia began to explain.

“No, it’s not that you did anything wrong. There’s no rule saying only quest-takers can hunt targets. Especially if it attacked you; that’d be dangerous if you didn’t fight back.”

“Got it. So, Patricia, you picked the saber cat as the final quest for your rank-up?”

“Yeah. To reach E-rank, you have to finish two gathering quests, two assistance quests, and three hunting quests back-to-back. I’d just finished six and chose the saber cat as my final one… but now I’ve got to start over.”

“That’s rough.”

“Right?! Oh—sorry.”

▽ The familiars are watching!

“That’s why I warned you to pick something safer for your last hunt,” Goldaro said with a chuckle, looking at Patricia, who pouted like a kid.

With her guard down from the alcohol, Patricia had been chattier than usual, apologizing to Lena and looking curiously at her with dark eyes.

“The cat you took down—was it orange-striped with green eyes?”

“Uh-huh. Pretty sure.”

“Then it might’ve been the same one from my quest… Where did you run into it?”

“Right in the middle of the plains. It was just the one, though…”

If there’d been more than one, she probably wouldn’t have survived, Lena thought, shivering slightly.

“…I wonder why. Saber cats usually spend their lives around their own dens, rarely relocating. The reason I took this request was because I found a place with many of those dens. It wasn’t in the grasslands, but in a rocky area. But when I went there, the place was completely empty. …Could it be that the cat moved just because your ‘feminine charm’ was so strong…? No way, right?”

“Haha…yeah, no way…”

High luck could be a bothersome stat sometimes. It was almost too effective. Lena, with her rather straightforward thinking, had a low level of “feminine charm” by comparison. Patricia, however, shot her a sidelong look, clearly unconvinced.

“…I heard you just reached F-rank, right? You’re not lying, are you? You didn’t steal someone else’s hunting success, did you?”

“…!?”

Lena’s eyes widened.

“Hey, Patricia! You’re going too far, even if you’re drunk! Do you really think this innocent girl could pull something underhanded? …Go on, apologize!”

“…Hmph.”

Patricia sulked, turning her back on everyone and ordering two more beers. Gordalo frowned at her harsh words, but she downed the beers in one go and slumped over, gripping her head in a sulking drunken stupor.

With Patricia’s young outburst unresolved, the adults in the party all sighed. Lena, still shocked from being wrongly accused, stared at Patricia. Her familiars? Understandably irritated.

Gordalo, scratching his bald head apologetically, took on the responsibility of apologizing to Lena for Patricia, almost like a guardian.

“…I’m sorry, young lady. I didn’t mean for you to feel uncomfortable. Patricia isn’t a bad person; she’s just been emotionally unstable lately… And, with how much she’s been focused on ranking up quickly, it’s been rough on her. What she said was just venting. I’m really sorry!”

“N-No…! Please, don’t apologize so much. I’ll admit, Patricia was a little intimidating…but my friends and I were able to take down the saber cat mostly because of luck. I think it’s natural you’d be skeptical. After all, I’m still weak, and my familiars did most of the work.”

“Wow…! You’re such a good kid!”
“Mind if I pet you?”

“Hiiiiissssss!!”

Once again, laughter and commotion filled their little corner of the tavern, lightening the atmosphere. Seeing everyone relax, the dancer explained Patricia’s situation.

“She recently lost both her parents. They were in our party, too… They took on a high-risk hunt with limited assistance, but it turned out to be a setup. After they hunted the target monster, the client adventurers murdered them to claim the reward. The guild found out later and turned those adventurers into criminal slaves. Patricia still hasn’t processed it all… It’s understandable at her age, really. She’s been taking on reckless quests and struggling with trust issues. I’m sorry we put her in this situation with you. I’d hoped meeting another young girl adventurer would cheer her up. Guess it was just bad timing…”

“So that’s what happened…”

Lena watched Patricia, who was stirring in her sleep, with sympathy. It reminded her of the orphan girl who’d helped her with the pet search job not long ago; death seemed all too common here, and it was much more likely to encounter monsters and villains than back in Japan. Even so, Patricia’s loss was especially cruel.

“If she’s open to it…I’d love to be friends with her.”

The words came out naturally, surprising the three party members. They soon softened, admiring Lena’s thoughtfulness.

“…Sure! If you’re up for it, Lena, be her friend! I’ll make sure she apologizes properly next time.”

“Such a warm heart for someone so young. I’m impressed!” “Heh, thanks for that.”

“I’m honestly surprised. How’d you turn out to be such a kind kid? Patricia could stand to learn a thing or two. No, she’s not bad at heart; she’s just a bit of a stubborn, prickly tsundere.”

“That’s so true!” “She’s only hurting herself.”

Watching the gentle way her three party members looked at Patricia, Lena felt a sense of gratitude for them. She, too, knew the pain of losing parents and the value of those who support you in hard times.

The night with Gordalo’s lively party ended with smiles, laughter, and good food.

Lena and her familiars walked through the streets of Torilia, stomachs pleasantly full.

“Look at you, Lena, getting all soft-hearted again.” “Honestly, it’s quite the habit.” “But we love you for it…hehe.” “True! But, let’s not overdo it, alright?”

“Ahaha, thank you.”

Lena, feeling a bit embarrassed by their warm but teasing words, smiled to herself. Thinking it might be best to let Patricia calm down a bit before pursuing friendship, Lena and her familiars returned to their inn with a light step.

The next day, outside the Adventurer’s Guild

“…Alright! Show me you actually have the skill to defeat a saber cat, Lena! If I’m convinced, I’ll apologize properly. …Then, let’s be friends. Prepare yourself – I challenge you!!”

With an unsteady, pale face from last night’s hangover, Patricia issued her bold challenge to Lena. Is this… tsundere behavior? Her voice softened to a mumble when she mentioned being friends.

“What’s with the attitude, you fool?” Gordalo, sighing, gave her a gentle smack on the head. She clamped her mouth shut, looking queasy.

Lena watched Patricia with a bemused, half-lidded expression, noting how clumsy and rough around the edges this girl truly was.

Next! …Will the tsundere girl and Lena grow closer?