Level Eater

TL Notes: This is the second Chapter for this week.

Enjoy~~~

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At 8:00 a.m., we would meet at the gate outside of town. That was the information I had heard from Leela.

They had left the inn early so as not to be late for it, and it was now twenty minutes before the meeting time.

When they got there, there was an old party of about Zendo’s age, Carney’s party, and an all-female party there.

This is the same number as the four parties, including ourselves, and those under consideration that Carney had told us about, which means that all the members of the search team are present.

As Tatsuro ponders this, he notices that everyone else's eyes are on him.

{We are kind of getting a lot of attention, aren't we?} (Ai)

{Well, it looks like we have a lot of kids here, including Cardina… so this will happen}” (Tatsuro)

As they were conversing through telepathy, they heard a pattering sound from the town as Leela and another adventurers' guild official came trotting toward us.

When all of them eventually passed through the gate, only Leela came toward Tatsuro and the others.

“Sorry to keep you waiting."(Leela)

“There's still time, so don't worry about it." (Tatsuro)

“That's right." (Ai)

“I appreciate you saying that." (Leela)

Although a little surprised to see Cardina beside Tatsuro and the others, Leela talked with them, pretending to be normal. At that moment, she saw Carney’s party walking closer towards them.

Besides, Tatsuro, Ai, and Cardina were wary of the situation while keeping it as normal as possible. Sensitive to this atmosphere, Leela seemed to be calmly committed to watching over the situation.

“Good morning. Gentlemen." (Leela)

“”“Good morning.”””

The three of them exchanged greetings, though they did not indicate it. However, upon hearing this, Carney noticed that the gazes of the three were hard. They were obviously on their guard.

With a troubled look on his face at that, Carney called Abby to stand next to him, and the whole party bowed their heads.

“Sorry about the other day!"

“Excuse me!"

Carney and Abby offered their apologies, and the other members of the group posed for a bow without looking up.

Carney and the others suddenly began apologizing, and everyone around them looked at them to see what was going on.

“Is that an apology to Abby there for trying to use magic on me?" (Tatsuro)

“Yeah, that's right.” (Carney)

The people who had been watching the series of events were taken aback by these words and turned their stern stares at Carney and the others.

As for Tatsuro, since it was an attempt, he did not intend to make things so much worse, but it seems that using magic against people without permission is not a very praiseworthy act after all.

Even that gentle Leila's eyebrows were slightly lifted.

“What were you trying to do then?" (Tatsuro)

“He was trying to check your status by using information magic." (Carney)

"My Status huh…" (Tatsuro)

Tatsuro's words made him break out in a cold sweat. He wondered if the "Level Eater" might have been about to be exposed. So he gave Cardina a grateful glance.

“Whose instructions are those?" (Tatsuro)

“That's what I…” (Carney)

“No, it's not true! I used it without thinking. Carney and the others did not know, that is the truth! Forgive me." (Abby)

Abby got down on his knees and put his head on the ground right there.

Kneeling on the ground is the highest level of apology, and it seems to be the same here, but Tatsuro thought it was too uncomfortable as the receiving side of it.

At the same time, however, I felt a sense of falsehood in the theatricality of the scene.

I feel sorry for Carney, but this Abby person is too over the top.

However, not allowing it here would certainly hinder what we are about to do.

Therefore, Tatsuro quickly decided to settle the matter.

“I understand. I will not say anything more about this matter. But if they do the same thing to me again, then…" (Tatsuro)

“Then I'll condemn him. Is that all right with you?" (Carney)

“Yes. Then, that is it. What about Ai?" (Tatsuro)

“If it's okay with Tatsuro, it's okay with me." (Ai)

“So let's call it a day.” (Tatsuro)

"“Thank you.””

Finally, the other members of the group looked up.

Tatsuro could honestly only think that he stood up to Abby's scenario, but he learned the lesson to be careful with strangers he had just met, so it was a good thing.

Then, at about the right time, Leela looked at the pocket watch she had taken out of her pocket and began to speak.

“It's time. Could everyone please gather around?" (Leela)

At the sound of her voice, everyone began to gather.

And once everyone was within earshot of Leela's voice, we moved on to the real requirement of this time.

“First of all, for this exploration mission, you will be divided into parties.” (Leela)

“I agree. If we work with non-members, we might drag each other down."

When the old adventurer, who looked like a warrior of many battles: a veteran said this, everyone seemed to agree and nodded in agreement.

“Okay, so first of all…” (Leela)

Seeing no objection, Leela went on to give a more detailed outline.

According to the outline, it was simple: divide the necessary search area by the number of parties here and look around.

Tatsuro and the others also received a map from Leela with each area colored and checked the locations indicated on the map.

“The end time is scheduled for 6:00 PM. Please come back here once before then, if possible. Do you have any questions?" (Leela)

"Well, that's fine with us, but there are only two people at their party. Isn't that a little dangerous?"

When Cardina, who was not counted, squealed and protested, somehow sensing this, Leela won her over with a sly smile.

“I will follow up with these two. So don't worry, Mr. Aggra Ba’it-san." (Leela)

“What? You're leaving?" (Aggra Ba’it)

Huh? I have not heard about that. Tatsuro and the others were surprised, but more than that, they were concerned that the others were upset.

Moreover, when it subsided, Tatsuro became even more concerned that everyone was talking about how safe it would be if Leela were with them.

“Is Leela-san an amazing person?" (Tatsuro)

“No, it’s not that big of a deal.” (Leela)

"What's the matter with you? I may not be that much of an adventurer. But you’ve been an adventurer longer than I have, Leela, the Ice Queen.” (Aggra Ba’it)

While Tatsuro was thinking, "What a name for junior high school students," Ai was impressed by it! In addition, she was raving about it.

“I gave up that name a long time ago.” (Leela)

“Hahaha that’s right!” (Aggra Ba’it)

The group became excited and disbanded on their own, leaving only Tatsuro, Ai, Cardina, and Leela behind.

“Well, maybe… when you said you'd support us?” (Tatsuro)

“Yes, I meant myself. Does that surprise you?" (Leela)

“I'm surprised. I didn't expect Leela-san to come with us." (Tatsuro)

“Haha, even though I look like this, I am a former adventurer, and my abilities haven’t decreased that much, so I shouldn’t be a hindrance. Ah… however if the two of you is going to see it as a nuisance, then I will follow you in the shadows …” (Leela)

They were tempted to say, "No, you’re still going to follow us after all," but judging from the reaction of the members who were here, Leila's ability must be extraordinary.

Besides, he is the second person I trust in this town after Zendo.

Therefore, they decided to ask her to accompany them.

“Well, I look forward to working with you today." (Tatsuro)

“Please do." (Ai)

“Yes, thank you” (Leela)

Thus, Leila temporarily joined the search members.

Then all of us, including Leela, went to our destination at a quick pace. The purpose was to find out as much information as possible in the limited time available.

Along the way, they realized they knew nothing about Leila and asked her what kind of things she was good at.

“I am good at what I do. I fight mainly with ice magic.” (Leela)

"Ice attribute… that's why they called me the Ice Queen." (Ai)

“Yes. I was working as an adventurer driven by curiosity, and before I knew it, that's what they started calling me.” (Leela)

“They called you the queen, so you must be pretty awesome." (Tatsuro)

"Hmmm, I guess you'll just have to see it for yourself." (Leela)

The two felt very confident in the fearless smile that came not from a flimsy confidence, but from the ability that had been built up and honed over many years.

So after an hour on the road, we finally decided to plunge into the forest.

Tatsuro and Leela took a staff, and Ai took a whip and a jeweled sword from their "item boxes.

Then they both rolled their eyes at Leela's staff and Leela at Ai's jeweled sword.

“A fine staff you have there." (Tatsuro)

“It is even more gorgeous than Tatsuro's." (Ai)

They were looking at a stone with a sapphire-like shine set into the top part, and the staff underneath was covered with what looked like ice scales.

“Tatsuro-san's staff is pretty good, but that jeweled sword of yours, Ai-san's ……, that's all made of Holy Verde, isn't it?" (Leela)

“Um, I think I remember you saying something like that. Hey, Tatsuro." (Ai)

“Yeah, I think so.” (Tatsuro)

“I knew it. Moreover, the person who built it must have been very skilled. How did you find such a thing?” (Leela)

“He sold it to me at my dad's blacksmith shop." (Ai)

Leela gave a nod of approval sign at these words.

And from Tatsuro's part, he did not think the old man was lying, that the price was the right price. A third party in the form of Leela assured him that there was no mistake in buying it.

Therefore, with the fair over, the three of them stepped into the forest, with Cardina in the lead, to be followed by the others.

Upon entering the forest, the place was strangely quiet.

They wondered why they had heard so many voices of some creature when they were in the Amneri Great Forest.

But that seemed to be the same for Leila, who was warned that some strong individuals might be lurking in the area.

It was then that Cardina suddenly began to scream in one direction. Tatsuro and the others, sensing that this was a signal that something was coming, immediately turned their attention in that direction.

Then we heard multiple footsteps of something, so they all held still and hid behind a tree to wait for the enemy.

As he did so, six hairless gorilla-like monsters the size of adult men and covered in red, hard-looking skin appeared.

In response, Ai sent the tip of her whip between the eyebrows of the gorilla at the very front.

"Ugh?"

“””””ugo?”””””

“First one.” (Ai)

It smashed the demon's forehead and it fell under the blow. The other individuals, who still did not understand what had happened to it, stopped and looked at their fallen comrade.

In the meantime, Tatsuro and Leela also started to move. Tatsuro used his maximum firepower laser, while Leela sent out several icicles in midair and rained them down on the monsters.

One of the five remaining animals was pierced in the chest by Tatsuro's laser, and another was lying on the ground with several icicles in its face.

""ugooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo""

When their numbers are reduced to half, they finally realize the presence of the enemy and shout angrily, but it is too late.

Three of them acted the same way as before, creating three additional corpses on the spot.

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