427 - - 425 times, please.

When I went to see him after hearing from Gina about an additional body art teacher, I found an old man who seemed to have spent a long time without graduating from the kitchen. ...... How can I do an exorcism in this world?

"So, it's decided then. Then it's decided. I will raise them to be great thieves.

No, Marco just said it would be fun. Don't get ahead of yourself."

Now that Marco has shown interest, it's inevitable that I'll be involved in his education, but that doesn't mean I'm going to leave the other kids to him.

I'm a little curious about Gina in a tuxedo because she looks good in it, but I'd rather have a s*xy lady bandit from Loon than a tuxedo anyway. Or, in honor of the masked gentleman in a tuxedo, a sailor suit would be hard to pass up.

"Hmm. I see. Then, please listen to the opinion of the little girl at the end.

As I am thinking evil thoughts, Mr. Darkmoon, who is not a good person to give up, says something that makes me feel bad about giving up. He looked like he was on the verge of vomiting blood earlier, but Marco's reply seems to have brought him back to life.

I guess he wants me to ask Kikka, but I don't want to. Kikka is a girl who loves her brother, and I'm afraid she'll say she'll do it with Marco if he does it. But she won't be convinced if I don't ask her.

"...... Kikka would you like to be trained by Mr. Darkmoon?"

I ask Kikka about it with some resignation.

"Kikka is ...... a little bit no."

"Yosh!　Kikka. It's great that you can speak your mind."

I was surprised that Kikka had expressed her opinion so clearly and unexpectedly, and I was gut-punched. I feel a little better now that I've gotten back at Mr. Darkmoon for his earlier comment. Let's praise Kikka as much as we can.

But you know what? Kikka is trying her best with Marco even in Lee's hard training, but she must really hate it if she says she doesn't like it.

But the fact that Kikka, who is so timid that she can't say what she doesn't like, was able to firmly express her own opinion is an event that makes me feel that Kikka has grown up. As a teacher and a guardian, I have never been so happy.

After praising Kikka so much, I looked at Mr. Darkmoon and saw that his knees were shaking like a newborn fawn, as if he had endured being told clearly by a little girl like Kikka. I'm worried that his heart might stop in shock.

"That's why, by majority vote, we decided not to have this conversation."

I'm sorry to sound like I'm cracking the whip on a weak old man, but let's take a chance here and push through. I know it's called "hit the dog that fell in the water," ...... but that's a pretty terrible thing to say.

Wait a minute. I'm sure the boy had a different opinion. Hey, boy. Join me in pursuit of a legend!"

Mr. Darkmoon, not giving up in spite of Gina, Sara, and Kikka's rejection, focuses on Marco and tries to persuade him. He is a man with an indomitable spirit. No, if he gave up on everyone but Marco so early, is he just hanging on to his last hope?

"Well, I don't know, but I'm interested. Master, no?"

Marco turns to me with a clink and asks. I don't know what to do.

"...... Marco. I'm going to be honest with you, if you are influenced by Mr. Darkmoon, there is a good chance that in the future people around you will either avoid you or you will have regrets that make you want to scratch your chest. Do you still want to do it?"

Normally, the masked gentleman in the tuxedo is a very cool character, but in reality, he has a harsh side. And even more so because your grandfather takes it very seriously.

Well, if you're a kid like Marco, you can just smile at him, but if you drag him into adulthood, it's tough. Moreover, the mistakes made as a child are often criticized when you become an adult. Especially if you do it in a public place like the Adventurer's Guild training grounds.

Aren't you being rude?

"I'm sorry, but it's important that you keep your mouth shut. Marco, think about it.

Think about it. Give it up. Marco's brow is furrowed as he thinks about what I've said.

**

"I guess I gave you permission after all. If you're so gloomy, you could have just refused with all your might, couldn't you?"

After all the discussions and the training, we were on our way to meet the core of the labyrinth when Sylphy came to talk to us.

(Sylphy. I tried my best to say no, but she pushed me away.)

The reason for his defeat was that Marco felt sorry for Mr. Darkmoon's pitiful condition. Maybe I pushed him a little too hard.

"Yeah?　Yuta seemed more vulnerable at the end. Even Marco said he would give up if Yuta didn't make it."

（Well, yes. I felt kind of bad in the end, because there was a good chance that my hometown was involved in that abomination of Mr. Darkmoon's.)

It should have been none of my business, but I was pushed away under the influence of a little guilt. There were suits for sale in the Kingdom of Beryl, and the influence of Earth's culture is subtly present in this world.

I don't mind the entertainment district and the suits in Beryl's kingdom, but I didn't want to feel earthly in the way that I was ruining people's lives. It's strange to feel as if you are responsible for something that you know you are not responsible for.

Well, it is a relief that it has not been confirmed that the Japanese are to blame, since it is a famous anime and it would have been sent not only to Japan but also to the rest of the world. Let's just chalk it up to anime fans in other countries.

"Oh, are you related to Yuta's world?　What does that mean?"

Sylphy's eyes sparkled with curiosity.

(No, I haven't read it, but there's a good chance that the thief whose story is told in this world is a character from a well-known story in my world. It's possible that I'm mistaken, but if Mr. Darkmoon is the result of someone from my world doing something here, it would be awkward to dismiss him out of hand.)

Thief + black tuxedo + mask + cape + silk hat + red roses = Mr. Tuxedo Mask

I'll admit to disagreeing, but I don't see any error in this formula.

"Heh. So the otherworlder from Yuta's world who imitated the story becomes the story in this world, and as a result, Marco becomes his disciple. That's kind of interesting."

Interesting?　I'm very sorry about the cultural contamination, though. No, I'm spreading my hobby quite a bit, so I guess we're both on the same side.　......Well, if the spirit sees no problem with it, I don't have to worry about it.

(Come to think of it, Sylphy has never met the thief?　(Didn't they cause enough of a stir in the world about 200 years ago to become a story?)

If it was flashy enough to be a story, I think a curious Sylphy could have gone to see it.

"Hmmm. I've been around the world a lot, but I've never seen it... I don't remember much ...... about 200 years ago, but I guess I was just taking it easy, blowing in the wind, and not seeing the world. I guess they weren't."

(Yeah.)

If Sylphy had known, the truth would have been clearer, but I guess that's not so convenient. It would be a good guideline for the future if we knew that he went back to his original world or something like that.

Hmm?　Can we still go to the country where the story originated and find out something about it?　200 years ago, it may seem hopeless, but there are spirits like Sylphy who live a long time in this world. We might be able to get some information from them.

Shall we ask Sylphy to bring a spirit who used to live in that country?　No, I'd like to see what the country is like anyway. After we go back to paradise and relax a little bit, should we ask Sylphy to take us there?　

In that sense, this meeting with Mr. Darkmoon is not a bad result. Although I was a bit disappointed with Mr. Darkmoon's cosplay, I am glad that I might be able to get some information about my hometown. I'm hoping that there will be a lot of information left since he seems to have done it with a lot of fanfare.

Well, I'm sorry to Marco for creating black history, but I've restricted a lot of the training and Mr. Lee has promised to keep an eye on us, so I think we'll be fine.

If I could, I would have given in to Darkmoon's idea of making his costume a normal one during the training, but I regret that I gave in to the old man's tears.

Well, we're at the labyrinth. Let's change our minds and go see the core.

Hmmm... I don't appreciate it when I reach the deepest part of the labyrinth so easily. I mean, it's a luxury, since the transference team has made it easy for us, but what about the ease of visiting a friend's house in the neighborhood?　

"Koa. I'm here to play!" "Coo-coo!" "How are you?" Cooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo!" ......"

All the words of the little ones charging into the core. The labyrinth is no longer a labyrinth, but the home of friends who go there to play. I wonder why Bell and his friends miss the core so much, even though the core can't hear their words.

Still, the gap between them and the adventurers who are probably still risking their lives to gain wealth and honor in the labyrinth is quite large.

"Yuta. I'm going to feed you!"

After playing with the core for a while, Belle flew in happily. She is in a very good mood.

"It's still early for lunch, are you going to eat?"

No. It's his dinner.

"Oh, you want to give them the ingredients you got from Marie, don't you?"

"Yes."

Belle nodded her head with a big smile on her face. Belle and her friends love the sight of Koa sucking up waste materials as they go.

"Core. It's been a while. She wants to give the materials brought by Bell and the others to Koa, is that okay?

The core flashes a flashing YES once, and after a pause, it flashes flashing hard and fast. This must be a happy sign. Since there seems to be no problem, the material to be discarded is placed in a heap in front of the core.

"Hey guys! Feed them to the core.

At my words, the belles flock to the discarded materials and carry them to the core one after another. The bells are adorable as they giggle each time a material is sucked into the core.

The core will continue to eat for a while, and I'm going to take a break while talking with Sylphy. Then we'll have lunch and harvest the rejuvenating weeds. If we're going to the place of the story, it'll be a while before we come to the next labyrinth city, so let's have Core grow more.

Also, we should ask how many more times we need to bring the materials to be discarded to build a new level. When I'm done with this, I'll go to the carpenter and relax a little.