Raising the Lowest-Ranked Adventurer, the Heroic Girl – Wasn’t I Just a Substitute Old Man?

Raising the Lowest-Ranked Adventurer, the Heroic Girl – Wasn’t I Just a Substitute Old Man?

Volume 3 Chapter 12   Forest of Blades.

“Alright, it’s been about an hour on the train. We’re heading to gather Usuba Hana, but… Miyano, what’s the name and characteristics of the dungeon? And what monsters should we be cautious of?”

Two days later, I arrived at the gate control office with Miyano and the others.

This time, it’s just us without Hiro and the others. We’ll need to be more vigilant compared to last time.

“Yes. The name of this dungeon is ‘Forest of Blades.’ It’s classified as Class 1, but that designation is based on the nature of the dungeon rather than the strength of the monsters. Not only the monsters, but everything present here, such as plants and rocks, possesses the ability to cut anything that touches them. Since the entire dungeon is a forest, walking through it would leave your entire body covered in cuts from the leaves.”

Miyano nodded and gave a clear response. Indeed, this place can be considered an enemy in itself. Even the weeds growing on the ground can pose a threat.

“There are several types of monsters here, but the ‘Blade Weaver Spider’ is particularly noteworthy. The threads spun by these spiders become nearly invisible and sharp blades within the forest. Stepping into them unknowingly could result in decapitation.”

“Well, good to see you’ve studied properly.”

As Miyano said, individually, the monsters here aren’t particularly strong opponents. I could easily defeat even the large spider measuring about one meter.

However, the situation changes when we enter the forest.

This spider spits out two types of silk: adhesive silk and cutting silk.

However, as long as you’re cautious about that, they’re not much of a threat. The problem is that it’s not easy to navigate through the forest. Nevertheless, we should be fine dealing with them.

Even if we get caught in the webs, we might end up with some superficial cuts, like paper cuts, at most.

Once we escape the webs and defeat the spider that built them, we can have Kitahara heal us, and that will be the end of it.

It shouldn’t be a problem even if multiple enemies or enemies other than spiders show up.

“Well, in any case, this place is quite dangerous. The monsters themselves aren’t of high rank, but the dungeon itself is perilous. To explore, we always have to maintain a protective barrier. In case we accidentally stray from it and don’t have our own personal barriers, it would be quite troublesome. So, make sure each of you carries a personal barrier magical device.”

Although injuries can be quickly healed, it’s still better to avoid getting hurt. To prevent injuries, it’s common for a team member to create a barrier and have everyone move within it.

If you only rely on personal magical devices, the battery may not last until the end of the exploration. However, if you don’t have any magical devices, you’ll be helpless when you need to leave the barrier or if you accidentally stray.

That’s why this team has Kitahara as the barrier specialist, but I made sure that everyone has their own magical device.

“Gathering Usuba Hana might be a bit troublesome, but I’ll explain that when the time comes. For now, focus on reaching our destination.”

After confirming that the four of them nodded in understanding, I turned my gaze toward Miyano.

“Alright, Hero-sama, please give the command.”

“…Yes.”

Miyano, who was called the Hero, responded while wearing a slightly hesitant expression, as if wanting to say something.

“Today is just practice, but precisely because it’s practice, let’s not let our guard down. If you disregard warnings and end up injuring yourself, Igami-san will surely laugh at you.”

Miyano made the other team members laugh with such remarks, but how disrespectful. I don’t laugh at people’s mistakes.

“No, I wouldn’t laugh at something like that.”

“You should reflect on your own words from before.”

“…Must be my imagination.”

“The one who was laughed at is right here! Mainly me!”

“Well, you’re… you know. Must be a misunderstanding. Aren’t you getting senile too early?”

“It’s you who’s senile!”

Perhaps there’s a slight lack of tension before departure, but it’s better than being overly nervous. Once they enter the dungeon, they’ll tighten their focus, as I’ve taught them.

And so, we stopped talking and entered the gate to begin our material gathering.

──◆◇◆◇──

The journey was supposed to take two hours. I thought we wouldn’t be able to reach our destination today.

“No way…”

However, right in front of my eyes, there it was—the Usuba Hana habitat that I thought we couldn’t reach.

…They managed to reach this far on the first day!

Well, I should be happy that they made it, and there doesn’t seem to be any reckless behavior to reprimand them for, right?

“Wow, it’s beautiful…”

It was a scene where the dense forest seemed to give way to a cascade of light, with sunlight passing through translucent petals and scattering rainbow-colored lights like prisms.

“What do you think? We made it on the first day. Got something to say?”

“Well, this… It’s genuinely amazing. I didn’t expect us to reach here…”

It seems I underestimated their abilities… No, their efforts and growth.

While the other three were mesmerized by the scenery, Asada was the only one who turned back toward me with a smug look.

However, I couldn’t complain about their attitude when they have such achievements right in front of them. I didn’t intend to criticize Asada’s demeanor either.

After all, this is the result of their hard work.

I have to acknowledge that, and as for me, I genuinely feel delighted that they surpassed my expectations and made it this far.

“Well done.”

“Huh? Oh, uh… Yeah.”

I genuinely praised them, but for some reason, they responded with a dissatisfied expression, pursing their lips and averting their gaze. Why?

“—Alright, we can’t keep staring forever.”

While we successfully arrived, it was true that time was limited.

However, I felt that if we were to return now, their efforts today would be in vain. So, I decided to teach them the harvesting method that I didn’t plan on teaching today.

“As for the harvesting method, we need a mage.”

“So, is it me, Haruka, and Yuzu?”

“Since Kitahara should focus on maintaining the barrier, it’ll be Miyano and Abe.”

To properly harvest, one needs to concentrate, so it’s better for Kitahara not to participate to ensure the barrier doesn’t fail.

“Extend your hand from the barrier and gently touch the base of the Usuba Hana flower. Then, slowly infuse it with magic.”

As I said that, I cautiously extended only my fingertips from within Kitahara’s barrier and touched the base of the Usuba Hana flower to avoid any injuries.

“Once you reach a certain point, you’ll know the optimal amount of magic for the flower. Continue flowing that optimal amount of magic…”

As I continued talking, I let magic flow into the flower as I described. Without any warning, the flower suddenly fell.

However, anticipating this beforehand, I caught the falling flower within the barrier.

When touched while it’s growing naturally, the blade part can cause injuries. But once separated like this, the blade becomes soft and loses its effect, allowing for safe contact.

“In this way, the flowers drop like peonies, wilting and scattering if the process fails.”

Even if we forcefully try to harvest just the flowers, it would be the same. Cutting them with scissors or a sword would only cause them to wither immediately.

“But what do you mean by peonies and such? Are you knowledgeable about flowers?”

“Well… I read a bit about it in a book before.”

It was because Mika, my former lover, had an interest in gardening. Through that connection, I gained some basic knowledge about flowers.

Well, it’s really just a little, and I’ve only skimmed through it, so there might be some misconceptions.

“What’s important is to determine the optimal amount and consistently maintain that flow.”

After my explanation, Miyano and Abe reached out their hands to the nearby Usuba Hana flowers. Following my lead, they extended only their fingertips beyond the barrier and began flowing magic into the flowers.

“Ah…”

“It’s a failure. You both are flowing too strongly.”

However, they were unable to retrieve the flowers like I did and ended up withering them quickly.

We made several attempts afterward, but it didn’t go smoothly, and our attempts only ended in failure.

At this rate, they might eventually disappear if they keep withering, but if we wait for another week, they will bloom in the same spot again.