[ A few days later, after Darkness returned from her home, she pestered Kazuma to go monster hunting. The quest this time was for the Kowloon Hydra, with a bounty of 5 billion!
Kazuma, who had achieved financial freedom in the future and only wanted to lie flat, said: "To hunt something like that… the sun isn't even up yet, stop talking in your sleep!"
Darkness paused for a moment, then changed her approach: "O Brave Hero who has defeated numerous Demon King Generals! Satou Kazuma, come on! Now is your time to shine."
Kazuma scoffed disdainfully: "Do you think I'm the kind of idiot who charges out foolishly just because someone calls me 'Brave Hero' a couple of times? I've already earned enough money."
"Is there no bait that could make me more motivated? We've known each other for so long, you should know, right?" ]
[ .....]
〜Projection of All Worlds〜
"Hahaha, a massive failure of a PUA(Pick-Up Artist) attempt. Who do you think is in front of you? That's the God of Scum, Kazuma. How could such tactics work on him?"
Even the people outside the video couldn't help but sigh. Rich Kazuma and poor Kazuma were like two completely different people. The only commonality was that he was as scummy as ever.
.....
〜OVERLORD World〜
"Wait, how much was the bounty again? Did I hear that right?"
Ainz hurriedly asked his subordinates, suspecting he had misheard.
Albedo bowed slightly upon hearing this, her tone equally filled with surprise:
"Ainz-Sama, you didn't hear it wrong!"
Ainz nodded:
"Tsk tsk… if I didn't hear it wrong, then they must be crazy."
A bounty of five billion? Now that is a heavyweight. You have to realize that a Demon King General is only worth three hundred million. Now here comes a ruthless character worth five billion—it's a guaranteed death sentence, brother!
Demiurge began to overthink again:
"However, having said that, given the personalities of Kazuma and the others, they should be avoiding such dangerous missions!"
Let alone the Kowloon Hydra worth 5 billion, they hadn't even proactively hunted the Demon King Generals worth three hundred million.
Ainz pondered it carefully and felt there was something strange about it, too:
"Now that you mention it, that seems to make sense!"
Shalltear also pursed her lips:
"I even suspect that after returning from the Royal Capital, they haven't even left the village-arinsu."
Kazuma and the others had just received the bounty for defeating Sylvia, and then got a large bag of gold coins from Vanir. They weren't short of money at all, so why would they proactively do such dangerous things?
.....
[ With no other choice, Darkness clenched her fists, blushing: "I… I understand. After the subjugation is successful, as a reward… um, I'll kiss you on the cheek."
"Rejected!" Faced with the resolve Darkness had struggled to make, Kazuma rejected her coldly. Even Darkness herself was stunned.
Kazuma gently picked up Chomusuke from his lap: "Who in this day and age risks their life for just a single person?"
The emotionally broken Darkness wanted to strike him, but she lowered her raised arm and came up to Kazuma's face: "Say… is it absolutely impossible no matter what?~"
Looking at Darkness staring at him with a hint of sadness, Kazuma froze: "Using a tearful offensive… haven't you become more sophisticated!" ]
[ .....]
〜Projection of All Worlds〜
"Kazuma is simply the most sober man alive, a T 0-tier counter to the current meta. What he said makes so much sense—who would risk their life for a kiss!"
"Kazuma, this guy, is the true egalitarian. He never responds to force, only to softness. Sincerity is the ultimate move!"
A kiss… it seems Darkness understands what Kazuma wants! But unfortunately, if you want to deal with Kazuma, don't expect him to play by the rules. This guy's moral baseline and thought processes are far beyond imagination!
.....
[ When the group arrived at the quest location and learned they were hunting the Kowloon Hydra, Aqua immediately started crying and tried to run away.
"No!! I don't want to go find some water snake! Why does Darkness want to hunt a bounty target? Are you actually a poverty-stricken noble?"
What she found most unacceptable was leaving the dragon egg at Wiz's shop:
"A dragon egg! The longer it is held carefully in a mother dragon's embrace, the higher the magical power it obtains! And it inherits the parents' attributes."
She was still thinking about hatching a holy white dragon, but now it might hatch into a black dragon… So, under Kazuma's urging, Aqua, wanting to go back quickly, had to enter the water to purify it.
Because monsters hate clean water, this was the best way to lure out the Kowloon Hydra.
And Aqua simply lay on the water's surface. In less than a moment, the originally murky lake water instantly became crystal clear.
Darkness looked at Aqua floating on the water and felt a sudden sense of foreboding: "Hey, that guy is taking a nap right above where the heavyweight bounty target is sleeping?"
Megumin suddenly sensed a massive amount of magical power and hurriedly shouted at Aqua in the lake, but it was ultimately too late!
They saw the massively sized Kowloon Hydra begin to slowly surface, lifting Aqua with it. Its indescribable size gave off a powerful, oppressive force.
Just half of its back exposed from the lake looked like a small island! Kazuma looked up at the giant snake heads high in the sky and murmured, "This guy! We can't handle this!!" ]
[ .....]
〜Projection of All Worlds〜
"Sure enough, this team only functions if Kazuma is persuaded! You ask about Aqua's opinion? Hehe… obviously her opinion isn't important."
"This squad really is invincible when united, but individually they just go crazy… Aqua's mindset is something I will never understand."
Just a moment ago, she said she wouldn't hunt a Hydra even if she died, and the next second she's taking a nap on the monster's lake surface! Isn't she a bit too carefree!
However, what the crowd admired most was Kazuma's method. This must be the second time, right? Using a goddess as chum twice… you've really got some nerve!
.....
〜Type-Moon World, ██████ Worldline〜
In the 7th singularity, Absolute Demonic Front: Babylonia—
Looking at Aqua, who was still obsessing over that egg, Ishtar slapped her forehead in a headache:
"I reckon you aren't a mother dragon either! Aqua… and besides, that is definitely not a dragon egg."
That idiot has she really never considered the possibility that she was scammed? Whose dragon egg is only the size of a palm! It's comparable to a chicken egg.
Merlin shook his head:
"Even if it's not a dragon egg, it will become something extraordinary! This is an egg nourished by both a god and a devil."
A goddess, Aqua, whose combat power is unknown but scales with her opponent, and the Archduke of Hell, Vanir, are pouring magical power into it together. If it hatches, even if it's just a chicken, it will definitely be something incredible!
The Wise King Gilgamesh looked at the giant Kowloon Hydra and felt it looked somewhat familiar:
"That 5 billion isn't going to be easy to take."
That size and oppressive feeling, along with that unimaginable amount of magical power, certainly justified the price!
.....
[ Then the scene shifted. Kazuma slowly opened his eyes. It was that familiar room, and in front of him was the familiar Goddess Eris!
Eris performed with great interest: "Ah~ Kazuma! I didn't expect you to die just like that. How shameful!"
Kazuma silently retorted: "You're really enjoying this, aren't you?"
Before the two could say much more, Kazuma was resurrected by Aqua. Although his clothes had been dissolved by the water snake, Chunchunmaru was as good as new!
Kazuma ignored Aqua and turned his head to look at Darkness: "I heard from Lady Eris that you actively let yourself be swallowed by the Hydra to save my corpse, right?"
"Really, that's not like you at all!" Looking at the dejected Darkness, Kazuma revealed a smile that said there was no need to worry: "Alright, hurry back and take a bath!"
Aqua pinched her nose and stared at the completely naked Kazuma, speaking slowly: "Inviting someone to take a bath while looking like that seems a bit inappropriate."
Upon returning to Axel, Aqua and Megumin also ran to the guild, thinking that even if they didn't kill the water snake, maybe they could get some money. ]
[ .....]
〜Type-Moon World, Fifth Holy Grail War Worldline〜
"That really was… fleeting."
Emiya Shirou stared blankly at the familiar space of death. It was as if Kazuma coming here was just like coming home.
Good lord, using a goddess as chum works so well, it can lure out any monster… The most ridiculous part was that this time, there wasn't even a battle process shown; he died way too fast!
Artoria took a sip of hot tea:
"Goddess Aqua, perhaps only when performing a resurrection does she give off a very reliable feeling!"
Isn't that the truth? Usually, Aqua is a Noble Phantasm specifically designed to counter Kazuma, grabbing him and dragging him into pits! She doesn't look reliable at all.
If Illya had been incredibly surprised by the resurrection miracle before, now she could do it without changing her expression:
"Honestly, how many times has Kazuma died? I'm getting numb to it."
Is this guy's spirit made of iron? His clothes were melted; does that mean he was digested to death again this time?
Although he can resurrect, how painful must that be? He can actually get used to it. An ordinary person would have broken down long ago!
〜KonoSuba: God's Blessing on This Wonderful World〜
In the Royal Capital, seeing them get wiped out, Claire revealed an expression that said 'as expected.' Although Kazuma's party was strong, they still weren't enough to handle the Kowloon Hydra.
"Although I know Big Brother is comforting Lalatina… can he not say such things while being naked!"
Iris covered her face with both hands, her face flushed red. The scene looked wrong no matter how you looked at it. But this wasn't what made her the angriest.
What made her angriest was: what happened to the promised Demon King subjugation?? He clearly took her ring, but after leaving the Royal Capital, he hadn't gone out at all.
Even this Hydra subjugation was only because Lalatina begged him to go; otherwise, he might really have chosen to die of old age in Axel.
In Axel, the actual Kazuma was currently thinking the same thing:
"I'm not doing any subjugation quests ever again!!"
Even several lives wouldn't be enough to compensate. The feeling of resurrecting after death was still very painful. Sure enough, switching classes to become a merchant was the most practical choice…
.....