180 Episode 180 "I decided to find out where the destination was'not'before the party friends came.".txt

I was at the sanctuary in Mishlila at that time.

Rita. Did you get a letter from Lady Nagi?

Really?

Gabba.

Rita, who had been covered with the blanket, jumped up with great vigor.

As it was, she kicked the bed and jumped. I'm not going to be the only one who can do that.

...... Not even the sound of footsteps is indeed the physical ability of a beastman.

Leticia couldn't help but giggle.

Rita, who wasted no time in demonstrating her physical abilities, flapped her beast ears and looked at Leticia - or more accurately, at the letter she was holding.

''It's a letter from Nagi, isn't it!　Let me see it, Lady Letitia!

You're looking better all of a sudden, aren't you? It's funny how you haven't been able to stop thinking about it for the last few days.

You can't do anything about it. ...... Nagi didn't show up on time.

Rita's cheeks blushed and she pecked her left and right index fingers together.

'Wow, I'm Nagi's slave. I can't help but feel that if the master isn't there for me, I will not be able to do my job.

I hope so, but you're all on holiday now.

That's right. It was written in Arujidono's letter.

Cutlass peeked out from behind Letitia.

He was wearing the same nightgown as Rita, and with a tiny hand sticking out of his too-long sleeve, he pointed to the letter from Nagi.

"It said that I wanted you to rest and relax until we meet up with you.

He must have nailed it because Mr. Cutlass is acting as a gatekeeper. I'm sure.

Letitia laughed, holding her mouth.

'Seriousness is a virtue, but in moderation. You don't want to get tired before Mr. Nagi arrives, do you?'

...... Cutlass, you read Nagi's letter too.

Rita puffed up her cheeks, puking.

'It's not fair. I haven't even read it yet.''

That's because Rita didn't show up when we opened the transference gate.

It can't be helped. Nagi, you didn't come yesterday either. When the gates of the transfer opened, if you don't see ...... Nagi when you open the gates, you'll miss ...... that ......... ...

Several days had already passed since Nagi and the others went to pick up Iris.

Although we have been opening the "Gate of Transition" every night in the "Transference Amulet", so far we've only received letters from them. Nagi and the others themselves have not yet returned here.

Rita wants to go get them, but the Transference Amulet is a magic eater. It's good enough to send a letter or an item, but transferring humans too often will wear out the cutlass.

The only thing Rita could do was to wait patiently for her master's return.

You'll have to be patient for another two days. Nagi-san and the others will be back the night after tomorrow. They will bring you a souvenir the day after tomorrow night.

Saying that, Leticia handed a piece of parchment to Rita.

''Nagi-san sent me this letter and a magic item, a spear. The spear is Cutlass-san's new equipment and the letter is ......

No, Letitia, sir.

Cutlass put a finger to his lips and, shhhh, murmured.

'Rita would like to find out for herself what Arujidono said. We shouldn't deprive him of that opportunity, should we?

Cutlass was right.

Rita was already clutching The Nagi's Letter and looking at the text.

Her cherry-red eyes widened and her gaze darted back and forth across the surface of the parchment, repeatedly. This causes the beast's ears to tense up with a twitch, and its tail to sway from side to side. Removing Leticia and Cutlass at her side from her consciousness as well, Rita focused her full attention on her master's letter.

'...... This is what happens to girls when they read the letters of their loved ones, isn't it ......?'

Cutlass folded his arms and nodded his head yes.

'At times like this it's best to leave it alone, you know. 'Leticia,'

You're quite a maiden to figure that out, aren't you? Miss Cutlass.

I'm a beginner girl, but there are many maidenhood teachers around. I've learned a lot from them.

As they exchanged these words, Cutlass and Letitia looked at Rita with gentle eyes.

Rita is reading a letter from Nagi as she sticks her face to the parchment.

Nagi is still not a good writer in this world. That's why Aine must have written the letter for her. Rita knows the quirks of the "big sister" letters well, so she can understand them.

Sometimes the tightness of the letters is due to Iris. The part of the book that has magical commentary is Cecil's writing.

The last part of the sentence with onomatopoeias like "thud" and "zugagaagaa" is written by Rafilia.

And at the end, there was a signature of awkward characters.

...... It's Nagi's character.

Rita traced the letters with her fingertips.

It was as if she felt the 'master's scent' and before she knew it, Rita had pressed her finger to her lips.

'...... Hmph.'

I know how you feel. I know how you feel. ......

...... haha.

Hearing their voices, Rita suddenly came to herself.

Feeling her cheeks getting hot, Rita hurriedly covered her face with parchment.

She was seriously ill.

Just by looking at the words Nagi wrote, I remember ...... their smell, their body temperature, and their breath. They say that the letters are filled with emotion, but this is a very serious case. I can see it in myself. I'm not sure what would happen if I was just a little bit away ...... from them and heard their words in person.

'If I'm seeing the word Nagi and remembering ...... Nagi, then what does ...... Nagi look like ......?'

If the letters have feelings in them, then the letters Rita wrote must have feelings in them as well.

Come to think of it, since I decided to stay here, I've been sending reports to Nagi and the others every few days. Of course, in my day-to-day life without Nagi, I rarely have anything to write about. That's why I'm sure I wrote something bland, but...

(I hope it's okay ...... I miss you so much ...... I hope you haven't noticed how much I miss you ......

Rita's beast ears twitch and tremble as she hides her face in the parchment.

In my head, just to be sure, I try to remember the sentence I wrote yesterday.

(Yeah. It's okay. I kept it as clerical as possible, so it shouldn't be a problem. After I wrote it, I had Letitia-sama properly check it over. (I accidentally wrote some unnecessary things because of my emotions, but ...... I drew a line over the top and erased it, so it's okay.

It's okay. It's fine, fine ...... So convinced herself, Rita nodded, yes, yes.

It's a good thing that you're not the only one.

I'll make sure it's properly written, so it's fine.

...... Okay.

Rita put her face close to the parchment and took a deep breath.

This is to calm down, of course. She's never looking for Nagi's leftover scent.

After telling herself that and making sure the hot flashes on her face had subsided, Rita looked at Letitia and Cutlass.

'So you're saying that Nagi and the others got in touch with the 'Sea Dragon Kercator' and got information about the 'Demon Dragon Dungeon': ......

...... Rita, you're coming to yourself. ...... You've grown up.

...... is a horrible exercise in self-control. I must learn from it too: ......

What are you talking about?

"Well,

Leticia and Cutlass avert their gaze at Rita's prodding.

'You both read your letters!　A long time ago, the Sea Dragon's Daughter found what seems to be a 'Demon Dragon Dungeon'. It's located near our resort, Micheline.

I've heard.

Leticia nodded.

''It's a 'heroic quest' to find the 'Demon Dragon Dungeon'. For that reason, the bad guys kidnapped a beast child and even attacked the village ....... As for me, I can't just leave it at that.''

I agree with you. It's just .......

Cutlass turned his attention to 'Nagi's Letter'.

'In Arujidono's letter, it says, "Do not interfere as much as possible until we join you. We, as servants of Arujidono, cannot disobey those instructions .......

I'm sure I can do it just fine.

At Cutlass's words, Letitia's chest heaved.

'I am Nagi-san's best friend, not a slave. I'm sure Nagi-san will forgive me as long as I look into it personally.

I wouldn't let Letitia be the only one in danger, sir.

'Yes. If it happened, we'd be pissed at Nagi.

...... mmm.

Cutlass and Rita had a point.

If there really is such a thing as a 'Demon Dragon Dungeon', then it should be quite dangerous. It is even more so if it has remained since ancient times and has not been attacked by anyone.

Moreover, it is now being targeted by 'visitors' with powerful skills.

Although Leticia is also a "chit-chara", she does not have the confidence to deal with the "visitor" alone. If she were to be caught by the visitors, it would cause trouble for Nagi and the others. Because Nagi would never, ever abandon her.

After all, Rita and Cutlass' cooperation is necessary.

Rita has the power to destroy even the opponent's wards, and Cutlass has the power to control even the legendary item "artifacts".

''I understand. Then let's do this.

Leticia held up one finger with a snap and said, ''Let's see if we can find out where the Demon Dragon Dungeon is ().

''We'll look into a place that's 'not a demon dragon dungeon (・・・・).''

''A place that's not a 'magic dragon dungeon (・・・・)'?'''

Well, let's take the example of a painting I learned to do as a child: ......

Lady Letitia, you were painting?

I'd like to see that!

That was a long time ago. I even had a teacher once compliment me on how unique my drawings were.

Letitia murmured with a faraway look in her eyes.

'The doctor said. 'It's very similar to the dreams I have when I have a high fever,' .......

Anyway, there's a phrase I was taught at the time. You want the table to stand out, you just have to paint everything around it.

Letitia looks like she's swallowed something bitter for some reason.

'In other words, if you want to draw a table, you can paint the 'not-table' around it black. That way, the shape of the table will stand out, won't it?

In the same way, we can look into the area around the Dungeon of the Dragon, which is not the Dungeon of the Dragon (・・・・). By finding out what's going on around us, we can get a clearer picture of the place.

Letitia clapped her hands with a bang.

'This won't mean you've disobeyed Nagi's instructions, will it?

"Sure!

Rita and Cutlass chimed in.

'I mean, it's kind of like prepping for Nagi's arrival.

You will make sure that Arujidono can find the Dungeon of the Demon Dragon smoothly, won't you!

That's right. That's why what we need to do is to investigate what's going on in the surroundings of this supposedly demon dragon dungeon. We need to see if there are any suspicious demons. Are there any mysterious incidents going on?

So that means the Adventurers' Guild first.

I'll see if there are any requests for quests in the area.

Pan, poof!

Leticia, Rita and Cutlass raise their hands and high-five each other.

A policy decision was made.

Thus, it was decided that the three of them would begin the 'Operation to Investigate the Place that is not the Dungeon of the Demon Dragon (・・・・)'.

─ At the Adventurer's Guild in the resort town of Mishurira

"...... no sea-related quests ...... are not, are they?

Cutlass muttered curiously as she came to the guild.

She was in the Adventurer's Guild in the recreational area of Mishlila. It was in front of the quest board at the back of the guild.

The place that 'seems to be a demon dragon dungeon' is located along the coast, away from the port.

That's why I went to see if there was a quest to defeat the demons near there, but there was nothing spectacularly wrong.

'I hope you mean peace, but ...... that's kind of tricky.

'Are we overthinking things?' ......

Rita and Cutlass look at each other and nod their heads.

Then Leticia, who was examining the guild's materials, comes back.

''How was it, Leticia-sama?

One thing. There was one quest that involved a place that's "not the dungeon in the example (・・・・).

Water Source Research Quest

In a village north of the resort town of Mishlila, there is something wrong with the river.

The water level in the river has decreased, and the bodies of demons are flowing in from further upstream.

Something might have happened upstream. Please investigate and report back.''

This water source is close to the example site (・・・・).

Letitia spread the parchment with the quest written on it in front of them.

'Though technically, it's on the other side of the rocky mountain. Isn't that just as good a place to gather information?'

'Yes. It's definitely a 'not the dungeon in the example (・・・・)' place.

We have everything we need, don't we?

The distance is just right. From the recreation area, you can walk back and forth in a day.

Since it's an investigation quest, the difficulty level is low. It's a level that's not noticeable when you order it.

''And even if it's not related to the ...... example (...), it's still a great way to help people.

Maybe I can get some praise from you, huh?

'I agree. When I meet up with Nagi, I can report back to him, 'I was doing this.'

It was unanimous.

Nagi is trying to find out about "The Example Dungeon". To find out what it has to do with The Visitor. Or to prevent him and his friends from getting involved in it.

It was natural for the slave and his best friend to help with that.

'Let's stop by the saint's cave as well, just in case. She might have some information for you.

Letitia said after she finished ordering the quests.

''And if you didn't invite me to take the quest, I'm sure the saintly lady would be ......

You're a sulky one, aren't you?

I know you're going to sulk.

'Lady Letitia, little Cutlass?　What's that fearless smile?　What happened with Lady Delilira?

Letitia and Cutlass recall their previous quest and nod to each other.

Rita, who doesn't understand what's going on, is just nodding her head, but...

The cave of Saint Delilah.

'That's a shame,' Delilira, "I'm traveling a short distance to get used to being away from home!

The three of them visited the Delilira Labyrinth and were greeted by a golem with a sign in his hand.

''You're doing your best, Saintess .......

"I don't strive for growth. I have a lot to learn from you: ......

So, what happened to you two, Mr. Delilira?　Hey!

That's why...

Rita, Leticia, Cutlass, and the rest of the party of three were to head out on the 'Water Source Search Quest'.