Chapter 29: Easier Than Housework

The moment the door to the Boss Room opened.

“Hah…”

Deneb involuntarily gasped at the sight before her eyes.

The scenery of the Boss Room was a place reminiscent of some religious group’s altar.

However, Deneb thought the god that religion served was by no means a righteous one.

Because the area around the altar was filled with skulls. So much so that it was hard to set foot anywhere except in front of the door.

And those skulls—

*CLATTER-CLATTER!*

—were moving as if alive. Even Deneb, who had far less experience compared to Marcel and Verdi, could tell immediately.

Not only the ones covering the altar, but the skulls filling the entire space rose up, making the sound of bones clattering.

“Huh…”

At that sight, the resolve Deneb had just made crumbled away.

‘…Hmm.’

On the other hand, Verdi, who entered belatedly, still had a calm look in her eyes.

In fact, she felt as if she had just come out for a stroll.

“Ms. Verdi, look over there!”

At Deneb’s shout, Verdi’s gaze turned to where Deneb was pointing.

What stood there was a skeleton wearing a robe fit for a medieval noble.

The skeleton held a glowing staff in its hand, and just by looking at it, she could tell that skeleton was the boss and what kind of Demon Beast it was.

“It’s a Lich!”

Deneb recalled the information about Liches she had read in books.

They could use the magic that magic-type Hunters used, and they could raise corpses.

Unlike living humans, corpses felt no pain.

A Lich was a skeleton mage that possessed mana, and as long as its mana didn’t run out, it could raise skeletons infinitely.

To take down a Lich, you had to prioritize attacking the Lich itself, the source that raised them… or so it was written in the books Deneb had read.

‘But that just means you have to defeat the boss!’

Easier said than done, it wasn’t that simple in reality!

Deneb let out a complaint in her mind.

‘Well, it would be easy for a High-Rank Hunter like Mr. Marcel, but…’

Mr. Marcel wasn’t stepping forward to keep the conditions Ms. Verdi had set.

So this boss was one she and Verdi had to defeat alone, just the two of them.

She was nothing more than a D-Rank Hunter. Here, she was practically dead weight.

But unlike the boss in the Underground Aqueduct, the Lich kept raising skeleton soldiers.

No matter how skilled Ms. Verdi was, if that mountain of skeletons kept rising, her mana would run out.

‘No, don’t lose heart! I can do this.’

Even if she couldn’t completely take down the skeletons, she could tie up their feet. She’d make a path somehow so Ms. Verdi could get close to the boss. Then Ms. Verdi would wipe out the Lich with a powerful spell.

Deneb wanted to be helpful to the party somehow. So she gathered her courage and called out.

“Ms. Verdi, I have a suggestion.”

“Deneb, can you tie up their feet?”

Deneb and Verdi’s words overlapped.

But their intentions were the same.

“I’ll do my best!”

Verdi nodded instead of answering.

Deneb had planned to say, ‘It’s the same as your intention, Ms. Verdi,’ if Verdi had asked about her suggestion, but that didn’t happen.

From the start, Verdi had intended to push her own plan…

“Then I’ll leave it to you.”

“Yes!”

Her expression was hidden behind Verdi’s back as she stepped forward, but those words alone gave Deneb confidence.

*CRACK!*

Verdi smashed a skull at her feet with a kick.

Then she pushed off the ground and charged toward the area piled high with skeletons.

Considering Verdi’s position as a D-Rank Hunter, no matter how you looked at it, it was a reckless act.

But Deneb didn’t doubt her. If it was Ms. Verdi, she would surely pull it off.

‘…Ms. Verdi.’

Deneb, watching Verdi’s back, recalled her own position once more.

I am a D-Rank Hunter.

This is a C-Rank Gate.

I only got lucky twice thanks to Ms. Verdi.

Normally, I wouldn’t even have the skill, let alone be able to set foot here.

And that was the reality.

She cast magic at the skeleton soldiers that appeared, but all she could do was tie up their feet.

But Ms. Verdi wasn’t disappointed. She even said that was enough.

That wasn’t all. This time, she even went so far as to make a request. She asked me to tie up their feet.

And so.

‘I’ll do my best.’

Even if it’s hard.

Even if it’s beyond hard, even if it’s impossible.

Since I was asked, I’ll give it my all.

Deneb extended the staff in her hand.

* * *

I’ll be honest.

Even without Deneb’s help, clearing a dungeon of this level alone is easier than cleaning my room or washing a shy girl’s underwear.

I could turn this place, including the skeletons and the Lich, into ash right now.

[ Body Enhancement Lv.1 ]

I cast a spell to reinforce my body.

I thrust my fist toward the skeleton soldier blocking my path.

CRACK!

With a satisfying sound, the skeleton soldier’s skull shatters.

With my fist under the Body Enhancement spell, I could smash even the Lich boss’s skull in one punch.

But even though I could finish it right now, I don’t this time.

Smashing through the skeleton soldiers in my way, I turned my gaze toward Deneb.

“O radiant saint, deliver me from them!”

Deneb was sweating profusely as she chanted her incantation.

Light generated from the tip of the staff she held in both hands shot toward the skeletons.

RAT-TAT-TAT-TAT!

The light Deneb created still couldn’t destroy the skeletons.

But it could impede their movements.

Right now, it was holding back the skeletons trying to reach me.

Of course, just having the right mindset isn’t enough to stop all the skeletons.

‘That’s enough.’

What I want from Deneb isn’t to annihilate the skeletons.

It’s a heart that doesn’t give up.

An attitude of challenging something impossible or overwhelmingly difficult.

Deneb knows she can’t defeat the skeletons with her magic.

Once a person decides something is impossible, they tend not to try again.

Even if they try, it takes a long time.

‘It’d be a problem if her spirit broke already.’

Just like my party members back when I was an E-Rank Hunter.

I was immature back then.

I didn’t know you shouldn’t outright call a useless person useless.

So this time, I changed my approach.

Toward encouragement as much as possible.

It’s actually working pretty well.

“—Protect me!”

As I intended, Deneb is still chanting earnestly, holding back the skeleton soldiers.

If I hadn’t praised and encouraged her, she’d likely have judged herself useless and lost motivation.

Not right now, but if that kept up, she might leave the party.

I can’t afford to lose an unpaid porter. Deneb needs to stay in the party and keep doing her job as a porter.

“Uwaaaaah! Take this! You ugly skeletons!”

Now she’s even shouting.

Seeing her so motivated, I’m pretty confident she’ll keep working hard from now on.

‘Alright, time for me to put in some effort too.’

I crushed the skull of a skeleton lunging from the side with my fist and turned my head forward.

The Lich’s eye sockets glowed, its gaze fixed on me.

It seemed to have recognized me as a threat.

Whether it judged me not actually dangerous, not a single skeleton soldier headed toward Deneb.

‘That’s more convenient for me anyway.’

Having to worry about the ones behind me is more annoying.

Even if the Lich tried to target Deneb with skeleton soldiers, Marcel behind her wouldn’t just stand by and watch.

I told Marcel not to touch the Demon Beasts, but even so, he wouldn’t just watch the guild master’s younger sister fall into danger.

So no need to worry.

‘Goal achieved. Let’s wrap this up quick.’

Even after clearing the dungeon, there’s still work to do.

[ Divine — Holy Light Lv.1 ]

I haven’t used Divine magic much, so this is about the best I can manage right now.

Of course, even using other magic would be enough against these trash skeletons.

But still, against undead, Divine magic is better than Flame Series magic.

I glanced at Marcel. His gaze was still fixed on me.

‘That makes it easier to fool him too.’

The incantation… yeah, right. Let’s just copy what Deneb did.

“O sacred light.”

That should be good enough.

I don’t even remember the rest.

As I reached out my hand, a pure white light burst forth.

Divine magic deals double damage to undead.

Clatter!

As the light bloomed, the bodies of what seemed like hundreds, maybe thousands of skeleton soldiers collapsed in an instant.

And the boss, the Lich, was no different.

“Gyaaah…!”

The Lich boss let out a scream.

The Lich’s bones, caught in the light, turned to dust in a flash.

‘…Was the magic too strong?’

No, that can’t be right.

No matter how strong Divine magic is against undead, it’s only level 1.

It’s a spell level that’d barely work on D-Rank Demon Beasts at best, so a C-Rank boss Lich gets wiped out in one shot?

‘…What the hell?’

I looked down at my hand for a moment.

Snow-white skin, thin and delicate fingers.

A palm so clean it didn’t suit a Hunter used to life-and-death battlefields at all.

‘Hmm…’

Just as I couldn’t seem to take my eyes off that palm.

CRACK!

The sound of bones shattering reached my ears, and I turned around.

“Ms. Verdi!”

Whether she’d noticed the situation was resolved, Deneb was already approaching me.

“You’re amazing as always! A C-Rank boss Lich in one shot…!”

“…Yeah.”

I nodded with a short reply.

Well, I must have messed up the power control.

I’ll have to be careful next time.

I was picking up the Magic Stones left by the skeletons and the Lich with Deneb.

Clap, clap, clap—

I heard clapping from behind and turned to see Marcel approaching, applauding.

“Impressive. So your words about not needing to lift a finger weren’t empty after all.”

I handed the Magic Stone I was holding to Deneb and stood up from my spot.

“So it really was you who handled the Bandit incident and the C-Rank Gate, Ms. Verdi.”

Just as I expected, Marcel had been suspicious of me from the start.

I didn’t respond to Marcel’s words at all.

Because I had a vague idea he’d come at me like this.

“Mr. Marcel.”

Only after he came right up in front of me did I call his name.

The boss is defeated, so the dungeon will close soon.

So there’s no time to waste on pointless conversation. Let’s wrap this up quick.

“Yes.”

So when Marcel answered, I cut straight to the point.

“Let’s duel.”

At that, Marcel’s mouth snapped shut in an instant.