Chapter 311: Big Burning Build

I watched the Celeste Something-or-Other set sail out to sea, sent off by the fishing boat captain who proudly declared, "We're aiming for a massive haul today!"—an incredibly robust death flag if I've ever heard one. After that, I temporarily returned to Rabituza, and dragging Emul along, I visited the mansion where my client, the Saint, was staying.

"I feel like my gender-bend rate is incredibly high whenever I'm interacting with humans."

I mean, Josette was the one who suggested it with a completely natural, "Well then, how about a gender-bend?" I just went along with it, thinking that was the norm... but I can't shake the feeling that she mixed her own personal preferences into it.

"Sunra-ko-san, my head is shaking a little bit, desu waー."

"It's probably an issue with my skeletal structure... Emul, Muffler Mode."

"Gotcha!"

Well then, I've officially found employment in the underworld-esque job of Avenger, but I wonder if the item the Boss gave me will actually serve as proper identification?

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"...Yes, if you possess that Emblem, you are permitted to board."

"Hell yeah."

"Pioneer. You are in the presence of the Saint. Watch your tongue."

"I truly do not mind, Josette."

"Hah!"

Her roleplay is completely devoid of compromise, as usual. There isn't even a fragment of the frank attitude she had right before the meeting left in her.
Well, knowing she's a hardcore roleplayer makes her harsh attitude completely fine by me. Taking my eyes off Josette—the corners of whose mouth had slightly curled up after being reprimanded by the Saint—I stared at the identification item the Boss had handed me: the Shoebill Emblem.

"Is my impression completely locked in as a bird...?"

Well, I mean, I spend most of my time equipped with the Gazing Bird Mask, and almost every time I've caused a scene in a town, I've had a bird head... so I suppose it can't be helped. But still... ugh, I'm just not satisfied with it.

"We cannot openly acknowledge it, but the existence of Avengers is tacitly approved by the Kingdom."

"A necessary evil, then?"

"Indeed."

While enduring the gaze of Josette—who, despite continuing her roleplay, looked as though she desperately wanted to scream "Details, please!"—I turned to the Saint and asked again.

"Regarding this quest... the protection and escort of His Majesty the King... Are there any changes to the plan?"

"The overarching flow of escorting His Majesty under our protection remains unchanged, but... there is a slight alteration to the schedule."

"Meaning?"

"We received information that the First Princess will be accompanying the Royal Family's inspection this time. The First Prince and the First Princess are... yes, well... on incredibly bad terms. So, presumably..."

They're planning to eliminate both of them at the same time, huh? Give me a break with these last-minute complications...

"We will be dispatching additional personnel from our side as well, but in the event of an emergency, could we ask you to protect Her Royal Highness the First Princess in addition to His Majesty the King?"

"...Understood. However, Lady Saint, there is one request I must make of you."

Josette's eyebrow twitched with a pikuri. She's hesitating over whether she should assert her female knight roleplay right now, isn't she? Sorry, but that'll just drag things out, so please let it slide.

"Let us hear it."

"To be frank... I would like your permission to have a friend from That Country accompany me."

In truth, the actual importance of this confirmation isn't that high. Since Josette and the others are players, they obviously wouldn't instantly try to exterminate Emul the moment they see her.
What's truly important is seeing how the NPCs react when I bring up a topic related to Rabituza.

"...I see. You seem to already have them with you, but I had no intention of refusing from the start. Josette, please issue a notice to everyone aboard the ship: 'Do not attack the Vorpal Bunny even if you see one.'"

"Understood. Techi (Dragon x 4), can I leave that to you?"

"Acknowledged!"

Following Josette's roleplay, a member of the clan "Saint Fanclub" acting as her subordinate left the room. Right as we passed each other, she gave me a wink, so I waved back with my hand hidden behind my back.

"Now then, let us depart. We of the Tri-Divinity are scheduled to board the Zizzzz."

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And that's why I'm currently in Rabituza. The New Continent Pioneer Ship? I boarded it. Since the bed in my private room counted as a save point, I saved my game once and then Emul-warped out. Seriously, what an incredibly convenient rabbit you are.

"I had a feeling it might work since I heard the First Group used the ship that ran aground as a save point, but still, hooray for 【Movement Gate】."

"Uuー... I wanted to enjoy the boat trip a little bit longer, desu waー."

Don't worry, Emul. Apparently, the sea voyage takes a few days, so you'll be rocking on that ship until you're absolutely sick of it. Well, as long as I have Emul... or rather, any player accompanied by a Vash Child can fast travel whenever they want anyway.

"Alright then, since I'm going to be completely free until we arrive at the New Continent, let's get a bunch of things done!"

Rei-shi had apparently managed to secure a boarding pass right at the very last second, but unfortunately, the ship she was assigned to was the Belihemoth. She seemed genuinely frustrated from the bottom of her heart, muttering, "How regrettable...!"
What surprised me was that Akitsu Akane and the Rust/Mold duo had casually boarded the ships heading to the New Continent. I genuinely have no idea what those guys actually do on a daily basis, but apparently, you can earn a spot on the pioneer ships by completing quests for merchant-type NPCs.
Also, completely as expected, there were quite a few stowaway players. Or rather, were. Apparently, the moment they get caught, they're thrown into the brig at the bottom of the ship, but I suppose they figured accumulating a bit of Karma was worth it if it meant reaching the New Continent.

If you think about it, since I managed to secure a boarding pass through the Saint, there must be multiple loopholes prepared outside of the official lottery system... But conversely, the fact that stowaways still exist as an option despite those loopholes just goes to show how massively populated this game is.

"Anyway, I'm gonna go revert my gender real quick."

"Gotcha, gotcha."

'Sup! I came to playー!!
Ah, Golden Scorpion-kun! Excuse my intru—... guboa.

"Alright, I'm back. Here's a souvenir."

"Waai, it's a Lapisteria Star Crystal, desu waー."

Alright, time to head over to Bilac's place.

There are two workshops in the Rabbit Palace. One is Vash's workshop, and the other is Bilac's.
Unlike Vash's workshop—which is uninteresting if you want to speak poorly of it, or sturdy and robust if you want to praise it—Bilac's workshop is constantly undergoing drastic magical remodeling, mostly due to my own fault.

"Ohー, yer 'ere. Take a look, this be the completed new furnace."

"Oohー... Wait, hasn't it not even been two weeks yet?"

"Nn."

Following the direction she pointed, I saw the completely exhausted, collapsed figure of Aramis... Ah, (I understand).

"Well, 'avin' that idiot 'elp out played a part... but mainly, it's 'cause ya keep throwin' so much damn work at me that I've gotten real used to handlin' iron."

"Is there some kind of hidden growth stat for production outside of the normal skills...? Actually, remodeling a furnace seems like it'd fall under an architecture-type job rather than blacksmithing..."

Well whatever, there's no point in constantly questioning a stroke of good luck.
Since the setting is basically medieval, the furnaces used by blacksmiths generally look like pizza ovens.
Well, in Bilac's workshop, there's some near-future sci-fi equipment that looks like an operating table sitting in the corner, but let's ignore that for now. What needs to be focused on is the remodeled furnace. Visually, it looks like a heavily reinforced oil drum, but the main difference from a normal furnace seems to be that there is absolutely no space to throw in fuel.

"The spark ya brought in... well, simply put, it's a 'fire that never goes out and continues to multiply'."

Basically, "If we just left it alone, it might have destroyed the furnace from the inside out, so we super-reinforced it." Since I don't have much interest in production jobs, this is entirely someone else's problem, but considering the absurd amount of rare ores she used, it seems there won't be any lack of firepower for enhancing Areadbhair.

"I'll show ya everythin' I've got!"

Even for a human like me, who boasts an above-average height, the Decayed and Illuminated Areadbhair is roughly the size of a massive greatsword. When Bilac carries it, it honestly just looks like she's hauling construction materials.
However, with a sheer physical strength that practically declared she needed no assistance, Bilac casually tossed Areadbhair into the furnace. Then, gripping a red jewel etched with some kind of emblem, she wound up her arm.

"Burn to ash, ya bastard!!"

"She threw it, desu wa!"

"Nice form. You could aim for the majors with that."

The moment Bilac threw the jewel into the furnace, the newly reinforced furnace let out a terrifying roar and scattered a blinding flash of light from the inside. Emul, who had been staring directly at the incandescent light, writhed in agony.

"Fubyaaaaaaa! My eyeeeeeessssss, desu waaaaa!!?"

"Wait, Bilac, are you okay!?"

"Somethin' like this ain't even enough to warm me up!"

"No, no, no."

It's literally emitting enough heat and light that if you stuck your hand in there, it'd turn into a well-done chunk of charcoal in one second. Wait, considering her fur color, isn't she just absorbing all that heat? I mean, she's black.

Author's Afterword
Q. Isn't having the furnace completed early a bit too convenient for the plot?
A. Aramis and the Rabituza carpenters worked really hard. Actually, if he missed this timing, the next opportunity to put it in the furnace would be a very, very long time away, so please forgive me for anything (ry

From now on, if the gender-bent protagonist suddenly reverts back to a man, just assume "Ah, this guy went to go hang out at his friend's house."