Chapter 120: Chapter 120 - Adventurer Party(Part 4)

Point-of-View: Rosary Farndrey

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"You seem a bit restless, everything okay? I can put on a different movie if you don’t like this one," I offered, as I munched on some spicy chips.

"Huh? Oh, no, the movie is fine, it’s not that. I’m just wondering if Larrk is okay, I’m a bit worried. He looked like he really didn’t want to go, I feel a little bad about pressuring him to do so," Prysm replied with a look of concern.

Aw, how cute, she’s absolutely adorable!

"You really like him, don’t you?" I smiled as I reached over and patted her head.

"Well, at first it was partly because he was my only option for survival, and he was really mean at times, though I never disliked him. His attitude was understandable, after everything he had to endure at the hands of my family.

But once I got used to the way he is, I started to feel comfortable around him. Also, he’s definitely softened up towards me, so that’s definitely helped a lot," She responded with a sigh.

"That’s not quite what I meant...are you attracted to him romantically?" I clarified, letting my curiosity get the better of me.

I don’t really need to ask, I’m pretty sure I already know the answer to that. But might as well confirm it...

"Wh-wha...!? I-I mean, um...y-yeah, I suppose I am. But I think he just sees me as a child, he probably doesn’t realize how I feel," She muttered with a downcast look on her face.

Uh, okay, now I kinda feel bad for prodding, she looks so forlorn. It’s no wonder she was acting pretty cold towards me when I first met her, since she knew that I’d slept with Larrk.

"Actually, considering how sharp he is, it’s pretty likely that he has realized your feelings...but knowing him, he’s probably chosen to ignore it and avoid having an awkward conversation. He’s not really the type to openly talk about feelings and things like that, is he?" I pointed out.

"Oh, yeah, that’s definitely true. He says there’s nothing more cringy than getting sappy and cheesy with another person," She nodded in agreement.

That definitely sounds like something he would say...though, to be fair, I don’t entirely disagree with that notion.

Sure, I think it’s perfectly fine to open up to someone and have honest conversations, but when people get overly emotional and all heartfelt or whatever, it makes me really uncomfortable.

"Well, anyway, he first met you when you were really young, right? So, it’s understandable than he would still see you as a child, since you’ve been regularly around him for the last five years or so. When you spend a lot of time with a person, it’s hard to notice physical growth and changes in appearance.

It’s only natural...but that said, in your case, it’s probably just a matter of time. After all, you’re really cute, I’m willing to bet that you’ll be quite the knockout in a few years, I doubt he’ll be able to ignore you once you hit your growth spurt," I reassured her honestly.

She’s got a bit of a babyface, but it won’t remain that way forever...once she matures, she’ll be a real beauty.

"You really think so? I hope that’s the case...," She responded with a hopeful gleam in her eyes, before glancing back at me and narrowing her gaze at me, "So, um, what about you? Do you like him too?"

Uh-oh...now I feel really awkward, especially with how intently she’s staring at me, waiting for me to answer.

"W-well, uh...yes, I do. But it’s not a romantic attraction...I’ve never actually felt anything like that towards anyone. I like him as a person, and I am physically attracted to him, but there’s nothing beyond that," I stated firmly.

"Really?"

"Yes, really. Though, I should mention, he said that he feels the same way, that he’s never felt romantic attraction towards anyone," I informed her.

"Oh, that’s too bad...hm, wait, since he’s only fifteen, it may just be that he hasn’t met anyone who made him feel romantically attracted to them. Maybe that’s the case with you too," She suggested uncertainly.

"I doubt it...I’ve met a lot of people, and gotten along with many of them, but I’ve never had the desire to spend my entire life, or anything like that, with any one of them. And I’m significantly older-...er, I mean, I’ve lived a few years longer...-than he has, so I’m quite sure of it."

"How old are you, exactly?" She asked me curiously.

"...twenty-nine," I admitted with a sigh.

"Wait, really? I thought you were younger than twenty-five, you’re much older than I thought!" She responded in surprise.

Ouch...i-it’s fine, she doesn’t mean any harm, I shouldn’t take any offense. I mean, twenty-nine probably seems like a pretty big number to a twelve years old. Ugh, I’m almost thirty, I hate thinking about that...

"Let’s, uh, continue the movie," I remarked, changing the subject as I picked up the TV remote and hit play.

"Yeah, okay. I wonder, how’s Larrk doing in the Labyrinth?" She mused thoughtfully.

"Oh, he’s probably just fine. They’re sticking to the upper floors, and the two of you made it down to the middle floors, right? I doubt there’s any reason to be particularly concerned..."

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Point-of-View: Larrk Stryker 𝑓𝘳𝑒𝑒𝓌𝘦𝘣𝘯ℴ𝑣𝘦𝑙.𝘤𝑜𝑚

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"Are you okay?" Inquired Sakri, as I let out a sneeze.

"Mhm, probably just inhaled a bit of dust or something," I replied with a nod.

"I still can’t believe it...you really used blue flames! And here I thought it wasn’t possible for any beings besides a few of the Demonic Grade Monsters!" Remarked Ekspen, wide-eyed.

"Yes, it was quite a sight to behind. You roasted every last one of those Taratects in a matter of seconds, I’ve never seen anything like it," Chimed in Dispo, as he patted my shoulder.

They’re totally breaking formation...starting to wish I hadn’t used my new, and also most powerful, attack Spell. My current maximum Mana output is 75, which is the exact amount of Mana required for the Spell.

Oh, and in case you’re wondering about the flames, which are extremely difficult to extinguish...I just used Magic Eater to swallow up all the flames, replenishing the Mana I’d used and then some.

I was a bit worried that the flames created by the spread of the initial attack wouldn’t be able to be absorbed by Magic Eater, but it wasn’t a problem. Which means that, even the flames that spread are made up of Mana, likely drawing in the natural Mana in the surrounding air as fuel.

On the topic of Mana, I discovered something a while ago...if I find myself with more Mana than my current maximum capacity, the excess Mana flows out of my body and disperses into the air, with no lingering negative side effects, at least as far as I can tell.

However, it does have one positive side effect that I’ve noticed, and a super useful one at that...specifically, it increases the rate at which my Mana capacity expands. So, in other words, if I kept blasting out my blue flames and then reabsorb it using Magic Eater after it spreads, my Mana capacity should increase at quite a rapid rate.

"More importantly, how the hell were there so many Taratects in this place? I know they tend to attack in swarms, but that number seemed unusually large," I frowned warily.

I’ve encountered some Giant Taratects here and there with Prysm, but with these regular Taratects, I never saw even one until today.

"Taratects are among the more intelligent Monsters, not counting the Demonic Grades, of course. Most Monsters attack on impulse and instinct, but some like the Taratects can be more calculating," Sakri explained with a sigh.

Maybe I should read up more on weaker Monsters too, I’ve kinda just been skimming through them...I’ve only been studying up on Monsters with higher Threat Levels in real detail.

Side note, I would’ve definitely noticed those Monsters a lot sooner if I’d had Monster and Magical Beast Thought Communication active. I better activate it...it’s not like they can tell if I have that or Super Hearing active.

"Alright, let’s keep moving! We’ve made some fairly decent progress so far, let’s continue on," Remarked Dispo objectively.

"Good call, no sense in hanging around here. We’ll keep an eye on the ceiling, so that we can react faster this time to any Monsters that attack from above," Responded Ekspen with a nod.

"Yes, you two focus on any Monsters that appear from the front or sides," Chimed in Sakri.

"Sure, sounds good, counting on you," I replied, playing along with their vibe.

"I-I’ll do my best," Added Ilex with a mutter.

This is still only just the first day, and we’re not even halfway through yet...just kill me now, this is the worst...

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