CH 20

Chapter 20: First Quest

The king’s birthday is tomorrow. My heart is pounding.

Tomorrow, I’m going to hold hands with Garnet-san and dance!

I’m incredibly nervous, but I’m still looking forward to it.

Our long-awaited dance. I need to be at my best!

The party is at night but I still have something I need to do in the morning. Should I go to bed early today?

So I just slowly crawled into bed but then—!

I forgot! I haven’t chosen an outfit for tomorrow yet!

“I’m going to the dressing room for a bit.” (Jade)

“Those pajamas are already cool. Dorami likes the embroidery on the chest in particular.” (Dorami)

“It’s not about the pajamas. I just haven’t decided what to wear for tomorrow’s party.” (Jade)

“Dorami will help you then!” (Dorami)

“Thanks!” (Jade)

If I choose an outfit based on a girl’s opinions, it might win Garnet-san’s heart!

Since it was decided that we would hold a fashion show, we left the bedroom.

I left Dorami in the hallway and went inside the third dressing room.

Only clothes for Garnet-san are in the first and second rooms while mine is in here.

“To start… let’s go with this one.” (Jade)

After quickly changing my clothes, I walked back into the hallway.

Dorami narrowed her eyes at the brightness.

“Your clothes are so shiny…” (Dorami)

“It’s made of that kind of material after all. Is it too flashy?” (Jade)

“Rather than flashy, it’s way too bright…” (Dorami)

That’s a bit troubling.

The party venue is going to be brighter than the hallway.

If it’s already this bright in the hallway, it would be shining at the party.

If it’s too dazzling, it could lead to injury while dancing…

“I’ll choose something else.” (Jade)

I left Dorami to wait in the hallway again and changed into the next out.

When I went back out, Dorami was just staring at me.

Alright. Looks like this one isn’t too dazzling.

“How about this? Unlike the one before, this one doesn’t reflect light.” (Jade)

“It’s all black…” (Dorami)

“It’s something to wear for night skirmishes. With this, you can get close to monsters in the dark without being noticed. Is it too plain?” (Jade)

“Rather than plain, it’s way too dark…” (Dorami)

That’s also troubling.

If it’s already too dark in the hallway, it will completely assimilate with the darkness outside.

If I wear this, Garnet-san might lose sight of me while we’re on the way home.

“I’ll find something else.” (Jade)

I left Dorami and then changed to the next one.

T/N: It’s actually the same exact paragraph for the conversations. The original sentence starts after leaving Dorami in the hallway and changing into the next outfit and then loops after he says it’s troubling. Just changed it cause it might look weird.

I went with a black coat draped over a white shirt with black trousers.

Dorami gave a thumbs-up after I went back into the hallway.

“That one’s good!” (Dorami)

“Really? Isn’t it a bit too plain?” (Jade)

“It’s just the right amount. That outfit also looks like it’d be the easiest to dance in.” (Dorami)

With Dorami’s stamp of approval, I gained a bit of confidence.

Okay, I’m going to wear these clothes tomorrow!

I’ll be cool when we dance and win over Garnet-san!

“Thanks for helping me even though it’s already this late.” (Jade)

“It’s just give-and-take. I hope that the dance goes well!” (Dorami)

Dorami won’t be joining the party.

I told her that I can ask the king but she refused.

“Enjoy yourself tomorrow too.” (Jade)

“Umu. I’ll definitely enjoy my last day with Marin!” (Dorami)

‘I want my first quest to be from the capital!’

Marin-chan who left her parent’s house with that resolution will return to her hometown the day after tomorrow.

She’ll become 12 years old tomorrow so she’ll qualify as an adventurer.

I’m a bit worried so Dorami and I are going to accompany her but I’ll only be with them until the evening.

After the sun goes down, I have to go to the castle with Garnet-san while Dorami and Marin-chan will have fun at home.

As I looked forward to tomorrow, I changed into my pajamas and crawled into bed.

The next day.

Marin-chan came to our house when we were already cleaning up after eating lunch.

A mithril shield and a pouch to hold magic stones. Even though she’s dressed like an adventurer, she still had bed hair.

She must’ve left the house as soon as she woke up.

“I-I’m sorry, I overslept!” (Marin)

“Did you stay up late?” (Dorami)

“I tried going to bed early but… I was too excited and couldn’t fall asleep…” (Marin)

Dorami smiled at Marin-chan who was in a rush.

“You don’t have to worry about it. More importantly, have you eaten yet?” (Dorami)

“I haven’t.” (Marin)

“That’s bad. You can’t bring out your full potential if you’re hungry.” (Dorami)

“But I’m already late…” (Marin)

We were originally planning to go to the guild as soon as the sun was up.

Garnet-san woke her up properly, but she must’ve fallen asleep again.

“We’re only going to come with you today.” (Dorami)

“Yeah. You’re the main character today, so you don’t have to worry about us.” (Jade)

Marin-chan seemed relieved after we reassured her.

“I’m going to eat,” she said in a loud voice and ran home.

After eating, we went with Marin-chan to the guild.

“It’s finally my time to debut as an adventurer…!” (Marin)

“I want to see Marin’s gallant figure!” (Dorami)

“I’ll do my best to fight the monsters!” (Marin)

“If it gets rough, you can rely on Dorami and Jade!” (Dorami)

“Thank you very much~!” (Marin)

After walking around while chatting with each other, we arrived at the guild.

I usually made Dorami wait outside, but today, I’m bringing her with me.

“E-excuse me! I’m here to register as an adventurer…!” (Marin)

Marin-chan nervously lined up at a counter.

She paid the staff member the registration fee, filled in her details, and was told to touch the crystal ball on top of the counter.

Marin-chan touched it with her hands and—

A flower crest appeared at the back of her hand.

“T-this is…” (Marin)

“It’s the Reinforcement System (Balancer).” (Jade)

“I-I did it! I’ve become an enhancer!” (Marin)

“Congratulations!” (Dorami)

“Thank you! This is where my, Marin’s story as an adventurer begins!” (Marin)

“Then, next is the quest.” (Jade)

“Yep! Umm, Onee-chan is…” (Marin)

“She’s always at the 18th counter.” (Jade)

“Then, I’ll go and get the quest!” (Marin)

Marin-chan dashed to the counter and after receiving her quest, dashed back.

“What did you get?” (Dorami)

“It’s a slime subjugation quest! Let’s go~!”

We left the guild and walked down the main street. We went through the main gate and out onto the road.

While walking along the road, we kept our eyes open and looked at the grass.

“I can’t find any…” (Marin)

“My senses tell me there’s one over there!” (Dorami)

“Then, let’s go get it!” (Marin)

I followed them into the bushes and searched for the slime.

We found a small plump creature.

“W-we found it. So that’s a slime…” (Marin)

“It looks delicious, just like jelly…” (Dorami)

“Ah, it ran away!” (Marin)

The slime ran away while bouncing.

Maybe it sensed Dorami’s true identity and is trying to run away from a predator.

“Waiiit—!” (Marin)

Marin-chan bravely chased after it.

Upon realizing that its opponent is only Marin-chan, it stopped and entered a fighting stance.

“Come at me!” (Marin)

She put up her shield and pulled out the dagger.

She dodged the slime’s charge and then slashed with the dagger at the slime’s side.

Puyon!

“Kuh! It just bounced! If that’s the case then… strengthen!” (Marin)

It looks like she strengthened her body, but her attack still only bounced back because of the slime’s soft body.

Thrusting is more effective than slashing. But, if she doesn’t notice it yourself, it won’t help her grow.

If she doesn’t train her fighting sense with weak monsters, in the end, it’ll be her who will have a hard time later.

“Go, go! Do your best!” (Dorami)

Turning Dorami’s cheers into strength, Marin-chan continued to fight.

She fell to her knees as she tried hitting it with a dagger over and over again.

She sticks her dagger into the ground and lets out a breath—

But then she saw it.

She didn’t put much effort into it but the dagger managed to pierce through the ground.

It was an epiphany.

“Tei!” (Marin)

As soon as she stood up, she thrust the dagger at the slime.

The slime bubbled up and then disappeared with a puff of black smoke.

“Subjugation success!” Marin-chan picked up the magic stone with a wide smile.

“I-I did it! I defeated it!” (Marin)

“Congratulations!” (Jade)

“Congratulations!!” (Dorami)

“Thank you! It was a very formidable foe…!” (Marin)

“I’m sure it was a named slime…!” (Dorami)

T/N: Named as in special, stronger than usual, all that.

“The magic stone is flawless and Marin-chan is unharmed, so it’s a great success.” (Jade)

“Thank you for looking out for me, you two! I’ll bring it to the guild right away!” (Marin)

She put the magic stone in her pouch, held Dorami’s hand, and happily returned to the capital.

By the time we got back and finished exchanging the money, it was evening.

“What quest did you get next?” (Dorami)

“I didn’t take anything.” (Marin)

“Why? It’s still evening.” (Dorami)

“Onee-chan said, “Don’t take quests in the evening”.” (Marin)

If you go outside in the dark, you might find yourself surrounded by monsters.

In order to avoid that, she stopped Marin-chan.

There’s no danger if I’m with them, but I have plans for the rest of the day.

Marin-chan looked like she wanted to get another quest, but…

“I’ll use the reward to buy some sweets and then go home!  I’ll also buy Dorami-chan a lollipop~!” (Marin)

“Yay! Thanks!” (Dorami)

Looks like they’ve decided to listen to Garnet-san.

After buying candy, we headed home.