"...Don't scold Ais."
Just then, Shiro felt someone tugging at the corner of his clothes.
A childish voice came from behind him.
Wiene looked up at him pitifully, her eyes practically begging him to show mercy.
Seeing that, Ais's gaze toward Wiene immediately softened.
'Wiene is a good person.'
She silently attached that label to the dragon girl.
"I was only going to ask Ais why she didn't just tell me instead of dragging us across half of Orario."
Shiro rubbed his forehead helplessly as the increasingly thick aura of "best friends" surrounding the two girls seemed to push him aside and turn him into nothing more than a stepping stone for their relationship.
"Why are you both acting like I'm about to do something terrible to her?"
"If I said it... Riveria would scold me?"
"Why did that sound like a question?"
Shiro stared at Ais.
"And what exactly did Riveria do to you when you were little for you to have this impression of her? In a situation like this, hiding it is what would get you scolded."
"...Angry humans are scary."
Shiro slowly turned toward Wiene.
"Did I suddenly lose my memory? When did you and Ais become this close?"
"You two didn't even talk while she was dragging us all over the city earlier."
Friendship between girls really did appear out of nowhere.
Ais and Wiene somehow displayed astonishing teamwork, perfectly backing each other up.
Combined with Ais's naturally sparse way of speaking and Wiene's still-limited grasp of human language, Shiro had absolutely no idea how to deal with them.
So he surrendered.
"Wait, I give up! I surrender, all right?"
He walked over to the Jagamarukun stall.
"Three servings of Jagamarukun, please. Cream and red bean flavor."
"Ninety Valis total."
Under the envious gaze of the dwarf shopkeeper, Shiro accepted three steaming portions.
He turned around and solemnly offered two of them to the girls.
"Behold, the spoils I obtained after a desperate battle against the terrifying Jagamarukun Monster. I humbly ask that you two show this prisoner a little mercy."
He deliberately twisted his voice into something strange and dramatic.
"Are you... feeling sick?"
"...You sound weird."
Instead of playing along, both girls looked at him with genuine concern.
Shiro froze.
He had almost forgotten.
Most of Wiene's memories came from the Dungeon, while Ais was naturally airheaded enough that she probably would not understand this sort of joke either.
So their reactions were actually...
Normal?
Realizing how stupid he must have looked from their perspective, Shiro's face immediately fell.
What he failed to notice was the faint smile that flashed across Ais's face the instant his expression changed.
"Just eat before they get cold. They probably won't taste as good afterward."
Feeling slightly depressed, Shiro stabbed one of the Jagamarukun pieces from his bag and bit into it as though taking out his frustration.
The next instant, the sweetness of cream and red bean burst across his tongue.
He had never paid much attention to these things before.
But in his current mood, Shiro suddenly understood why Ais loved Jagamarukun so much.
The texture was almost like fried milk.
Crispy on the outside, soft and sweet inside, yet not rich enough to become overwhelming.
Who could possibly resist this?
More importantly...
One serving cost only thirty Valis!
A typical five-person party of Level 1 adventurers could earn around twenty-five thousand Valis in a day.
Split evenly, each adventurer's daily earnings were enough to buy more than one hundred fifty servings of Jagamarukun.
Sure, adventurers also had to pay for potions, equipment maintenance, and other expenses.
But at this price, what more could anyone possibly ask for?
If Shiro had earned enough money in his previous life to buy one hundred fifty servings of fried milk every day, he would have eaten himself into oblivion.
While Shiro and Ais immersed themselves in the happiness brought by Jagamarukun, Wiene curiously brought one piece close to her nose and sniffed it.
Then, when she thought no one was watching, she carefully stabbed one with a claw and slipped it into her mouth.
"...Mm."
The curiosity on Wiene's face quickly melted away like the last snow of early spring beneath warm sunlight.
"By the way, Ais."
Shiro suddenly spoke.
"Do you feel anything strange?"
"Strange?"
Ais tilted her head.
"For example... suddenly feeling like you became noticeably stronger."
"Stronger?!"
"Don't look at me like that."
Shiro immediately crushed the excitement appearing in her eyes.
"I was just asking. If you don't feel anything, forget it."
"Eating Jagamarukun does not make you stronger."
Ais's newly discovered fantasy shattered instantly.
Shiro knew his question sounded strange, so he did not pursue it.
After all, how could someone suddenly become stronger under circumstances like these?
Except...
Someone could.
[Avenger].
A skill born from the obsession buried deep within Ais's heart.
It greatly increased her attack power against all monster-type enemies and granted an even more extreme boost against dragon-type monsters.
The strength of that enhancement changed depending on the depth of her hatred.
But a skill that powerful naturally came with a price.
Because [Avenger] originated from the hatred buried at the deepest part of Ais's heart, activating it caused that hatred to gradually erode her mind.
For that reason, Riveria and the others normally forbade Ais from using the skill.
The current situation, however, was unusual.
Shiro did not know whether an intelligent monster like Wiene would still be recognized by [Avenger] as a monster.
But one fact was undeniable.
She was both a monster and a dragon species.
As a Vouivre, Wiene unquestionably satisfied the basic conditions required to trigger Ais's skill.
That was why Shiro had asked whether Ais felt anything unusual.
Some skills could activate without conscious intent, and he had no idea whether spending time beside Wiene might unconsciously trigger [Avenger].
Judging from the current situation, things were going even better than he had expected.
If this continued smoothly...
Perhaps some part of Ais's obsession could eventually be resolved as well.
...
Orario gradually darkened as evening arrived.
Countless points of light began glowing throughout the city.
Adventurers crowded around the Guild's Exchange, returning from a long day of work to convert their gains and bring another adventure to a close.
Beneath the listening sunset, cheerful singing and music slipped from the taverns and flowed into the dances taking place across the plazas.
Even exhausted adventurers whose rewards had fallen short of expectations could temporarily forget their troubles at this hour.
With cups raised among friends, they washed away the frustrations accumulated throughout the day.
"It's about time I headed back."
Looking across the lively streets of Orario, one adventurer who had spent the whole day wandering around made a promise to the dragon girl.
"I'll see you tomorrow."
Under Wiene's reluctant gaze, he stepped into the sunset and began walking back toward his Familia home.
…