The inn in Axel was pretty easy to spot, so Shichen and the others managed to find it after walking around for a bit without having to ask for directions.

It just so happened that it was getting dark by then.

Originally, Shichen had intended to walk around a bit more to get a better look at Axel, but since Megumin and Yunyun had been traveling for so long, it was better to let them rest for a day.

The inn provided dinner, so Shichen and the two girls ate a simple meal before heading to their rooms for the night. Megumin and Yunyun shared one room, while Shichen took another by himself. Conveniently, the two rooms were side by side. The lodging fee was, of course, paid by Megumin and Yunyun—making him feel a bit like he really was being “kept.”

The inn’s rooms were very basic: just a bed and a table, and nothing else. Still, most adventurers don’t need much more than that.

Megumin and Yunyun were so exhausted that they passed out the moment they got back to their room. Shichen, who wasn’t as tired, lay on his bed, thinking about his plans going forward.

First and foremost was the matter of the Divine Fragments housed within Megumin and Yunyun.

That’s right. It wasn’t just Megumin—Yunyun also had a fragment of divinity dwelling in her. That was one of the reasons he sought her out from the start.

Of course, that was only one reason; in truth, he already liked Yunyun a lot. She was by far the most normal girl around—plus, she was so cute, so pure, and had that “baby face with a big…”

Well, most guys would be into that.

Their “tasks,” however, were slightly different.

For Megumin, the task was to raise her affection for him and make her dependent on him, and also to spend three months together.

For Yunyun, it was even simpler: just become her friend and form a party with her—no extra conditions needed. It really showed how pitiful she was, having only Megumin as a friend.

She was really that short on friends.

Shichen remembered that back in the Crimson Demon Village, Yunyun didn’t have any friends. Animals wouldn’t go near her, even plants avoided her. Only Megumin approached her in the first place, mainly to scam some free food. That was how Yunyun got the idea that Megumin wanted to be her friend.

Luckily, Megumin really did regard her as a friend in the end.

Truly, it was pitiful.

Maybe that was because Yunyun was “too normal.” In this world, being normal was actually abnormal.

Since they’d already met, Shichen figured he should at least look out for her.

Second on his list was meeting that “Sadistic NEET” (Kazuma) and the “Brainless Goddess” (Aqua). He wanted to see for himself if that goddess really was as mind-numbingly dumb as people said.

Shichen was also intrigued by one particular skill in this world, something he hadn’t encountered yet, so he couldn’t learn it right now. Learning that skill was his next biggest goal here after gathering Divine Fragments.

…

“You’ve gotta be kidding! How’s a modern guy like me supposed to sleep in a stable?”

“I don’t want to sleep in a stable either! But what else can we do? We have no money!”

“Damn it! This isn’t the life I signed up for!”

“You took the words right out of my mouth!”

“Aahhh—!”

Early in the morning, Shichen was jolted awake by a commotion from somewhere outside.

He thought the voices sounded vaguely familiar, but he’d just woken up and wasn’t in the mood to figure out why.

He lay there for a bit, staring at the unfamiliar ceiling, and finally sat up. The room was the same as before—no one else had been there, and nothing was missing (not that there was much to begin with).

The inn was a bit plain, but the bed was surprisingly comfortable. He’d had a nice sleep—if only he hadn’t been woken up at the crack of dawn.

“Ugh…” He yawned and glanced out the window. The sky was still somewhat dim; the sun was probably just barely up.

Figuring he wouldn’t get back to sleep, Shichen decided to get up. After throwing on some clothes, he left the inn.

He changed into clothes from Frieren’s world—simple white linen garments. Although it was a bit different from this world’s style, putting on a jacket on top kept it from standing out too much.

He’d been wearing these clothes for the past two days.

Shichen didn’t bother waking Megumin or Yunyun, who were probably still sleeping like logs. No need to disturb them.

Once outside, he took in the early-morning scene: modest buildings, lush greenery, neatly kept roads. He couldn’t help but take a deep breath.

The air felt exceptionally fresh—like a countryside morning—and it instantly made him feel more alert.

That was the charm of a fantasy world: with all the supernatural elements, there wasn’t any pollution from modern technology, and nature still thrived in its most beautiful form.

Shichen thought that once he’d gathered all the Divine Fragments—if nothing unexpected happened—he might bring everyone here for a while and just enjoy life.

It really was a peaceful place to spend your days.

But that was still a ways off, considering he hadn’t even collected ten fragments yet, and he was still young at heart.

Sensing the location of a certain unique aura, he started walking in that direction at a leisurely pace.

Following the stone-paved path, crossing a small bridge over a river, Shichen eventually arrived at a small shack that reeked of horse manure.

It was the stable.

Hard as it might be to believe, there was indeed a faint trace of that special energy in the stable.

It wasn’t magic, nor was it anything else he recognized, but rather that divine power he’d sensed before… the power Arnes had spoken of: godly energy.

Godly energy in a stable?

Who on earth would believe that?

But in this world, nothing’s impossible.

Shichen didn’t go inside. Even for him, the smell was off-putting. He lifted his foot and stomped on the ground.

All at once, the ground in the area began to shake. The little shack rattled violently, as though it might collapse at any second. From inside came a panicked male voice:

“What’s going on? Is it an earthquake?”

“An earthquake? Then why are you just standing there? Run!” followed a female voice. Moments later, a young woman in blue and a young man in green dashed out in a panic.

Neither of them noticed Shichen. They tore past him, too occupied with getting away.

“Hey, wait!” Shichen called after them.

“Hmm?”

The two stopped, one in front and one behind. The man turned around and shouted back, “What are you doing?! You need to get out of here—it’s an earthquake!”

“Don’t worry, there isn’t actually an earthquake. That was me,” Shichen explained calmly.

“Huh?” The man stood there, completely confused.

“What? You caused it? Why’d you have to disturb our sleep like that? You better compensate us for this!” The young woman, on the other hand, stormed over to Shichen and demanded compensation without missing a beat.

At her immediate demand for money, Shichen couldn’t help but twitch his lips in exasperation.

“Hey! Could you not be such a freeloader?” the man said, trying to calm her down. He seemed more rational.

“What do you mean, ‘freeloader’? This is our big chance to get some cash! We’re basically broke—what we earned from yesterday’s day labor isn’t nearly enough to live on!” the woman shot back.

“That doesn’t mean you can extort people!”

“This isn’t extortion; it’s legitimate compensation! Hey, hurry up and pay u— …huh?”

Mid-sentence, the woman turned back toward Shichen, her brow furrowing as she regarded him more closely.

“Aqua, what’s wrong?” the man asked.

“He’s… hmm… there’s a watery aura around him…” Aqua circled Shichen once, twice, staring intently as though trying to figure him out.

“Aqua, hello,” Shichen greeted her with a friendly smile.

Yes, the person standing in front of him, demanding money like some shameless hustler, was none other than Aqua, the Goddess of Water.

She looked about sixteen, wearing a one-piece dress and a robe-like mantle, with long, translucent aquamarine hair and eyes.

Her face was exceptionally pretty, her features flawless. You could even call her otherworldly.

Her figure, too, was perfectly balanced with all the right curves.

By far the most beautiful person Shichen had encountered so far—if not for that lingering smell of horse stables clinging to her…

Then she’d be perfect.

~~~

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