Chapter 722: Ch-ch-ch-ch-ch-cheers!!!
It seems this young girl's name is Galatena.
I say "it seems" because when I tried asking, she just kept cowering in fear and wouldn't give me any answers at all. I mean, come on, when someone gives you such a great reaction, it just makes you want to put even more effort into scaring them, right?
So, with Rei-shi—whose intimidating female ogre warrior look was a no-go despite being female-oriented equipment—and the old-man Imron—whose roleplay spiraled out of control into suddenly speaking with feminine mannerisms, putting her heavily on the side of "no-go"—ruled out, that left Cashew Nut-shi out of the equation for a moment as the three of us officially lost to a doll and a winged-lizard human in the competition to earn Galatena-chan's favor.
Because of that, Cashew Nut-shi automatically ended up taking the role of the negotiator to handle the conversation with Galatena.
"Galatena-chan, did you come here to fetch some water〜?"
"Yeah... Dreadhowl-sama isn't here, so... I'm really not supposed to, but."
"I see〜, actually, did you know that Dreadhowl is dead?"
"──────Eh?"
"Hey, Ms. Permanent Tipsy-Tension, your conversation starters are way too sharp."
"Isn't it fine, Ms. Permanent Bad-Drunk-Tension? It's going to come out sooner or later either way. Besides, I perform much better if I have a little something to drink before full-diving〜"
"You're seriously tipsy...? Also, who are you calling a bad drunk?"
"Mostly your outfit, I guess."
Drink an energy drink, an energy drink. If alcohol is said to be the best of all medicines, then an energy drink is the hundred-and-first super great medicine; we're in the era of caffeine, not alcohol.
"Dreadhowl-sama............ is dead?"
"It's the truth, you see〜, look over here, Galatena-chan. See that total freak over there? That person is such a sicko that he completely ripped off Dreadhowl's arm, you know〜?"
"Call me Sunraku of the Areadbhair, or perhaps Sunraku the Higher-Than-Top.
"That's too long, wouldn't 'Sazahazapu' or something be better?"
No way, I don't want a name that sounds like you just strung together the initials of environmental equipment.
While we were carrying on with that idiotic conversation, it seemed Galatena's character event was still progressing. The short girl, who had been standing in a daze at the information that Dreadhowl was dead, let go of Cashew Nut-shi's hand and turned her face toward Ladder-shi.
"R-Really...?"
"Umu, that is a fact. And it is the truth."
I want to be feared not just by the weak, but by the strong as well—that is the true dandyism of a man. Following that logic, that particular wolf really is top-class, huh... Yep, damn Lycaon quota fulfilled.
"I-I have to let pops know...!!"
Galatena, who had been walking through the hole... I mean, the underground tunnel with an air of caution, suddenly broke into a sprint. Figuring it might be dangerous to let her go alone, we dashed right after her strictly from the perspective of guardians.
I mean, it really is strictly from the perspective of guardians, you know? It's not like we have any wicked thoughts about using Galatena-chan as a key or a free pass or anything, right?
"Rei-shi, if this tunnel is about this wide, don't you think we could pull off an imitation of a slasher-type monster creeping up from behind?"
"As expected... I think that would make them hostile."
Yeah, I guess... how should I say this, though right now we've only met Galatena, these Dwarves are giving off the exact same vibe as the Elves.
I wonder if in this world where humans can't possibly be the lords of creation, they naturally end up developing the temperament of small animals.........
◆
Not at all.
"Boozeeeeeeeee!! Open the barrels, right nooooooooow!!!"
"It's a feastttttttttttttt!!"
"Hyooooooooooooooooooooooooo!!!!"
The Red Dragon Dreadhowl is dead.
The information brought from the Second Humanity via Galatena turned their doubts into certainty when we presented the "Red Dragon's Magic Fungi" obtained as a reward for defeating Dreadhowl, completely engulfing their home base, the subterranean city Horvalkin, in a frenzy of absolute jubilation.
Unable to keep up with the sheer level of their uproar—wondering if these were truly the same Dwarves who just seconds ago had faces that looked like a "depressing cocktail" mixed with caution, exhaustion, and lethargy—we exchanged glances and began discussing our next move.
"What should we do? For our initial objective, it's probably best to go meet their head of state or leader, but..."
"Hmm, tastes kind of like sweet potato shochu?"
"Hey, don't just casually start drinking."
"ShanFro's flavor reproduction is pretty good, but as expected, the sensation of alcohol roasting and melting your brain is completely cut out〜"
That's the first time I've ever heard the expression "roasting and melting your brain." A human brain isn't a marshmallow, you know?
"For now, how about we try looking for a place that obviously screams 'an important person is here'? However..."
"However?"
"Tsuchinoko-san is completely pinned down here."
Why...? And right there, I realized.
What I currently had equipped at my waist was Areadbhair, meaning the very blade-tip of the dragon-slayer and the sword that blew Dreadhowl away, and I was exactly the one who had told Galatena about it.
Furthermore, when Galatena was conveying the information of Dreadhowl's death to the Dwarven adults earlier (they didn't really feel blatantly short like template dwarves, but rather like well-built, compact old men—except for the fact that their arms were made of some kind of metal), I feel like I saw her pointing directly at Areadbhair...
In other words, right now I was "one of the people who blew Dreadhowl away, the very person who faced it directly." In the blink of an eye, I was surrounded by Dwarves eager to hear the story, and although I executed my secret technique "spamming 'Cheers' to get everyone dead drunk" to somehow escape, I was stalled for well over ten minutes before I could finally catch up to Cashew Nut-shi and the others who had smoothly used me as a decoy... Damn you, Cashew Nut.
Author's Afterword
"Whoa! Could that sword possibly be the legendary Areadbh..."
"Anyway, cheeeeers!!"
"""Cheers!!!"""
"So, let me tell you about this sword... Oops, my tongue is getting dry, cheeeers!!"
"""Cheers!!!"""
"This sword is the Giant's spear that slays dragons, its very tip! Striking down our sworn enemy Dreadhowl... Are you guys getting fired up〜!! Cheeeers!!"
"""Cheers!!!"""
Something like this.
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