ch141-ch160 · 143-ch143

Chapter 143: The Third Time in Two Days

There's no doubt the special skill 【Cooking】 is a useful skill.

Back when 'Sword Saint-chan' was still a nobody, the single biggest reason she stayed with Blue Ocean was the delicious food—and Ao-san's runaway success as a streamer owes a great deal to this skill as well.

But what Soushi means by "useful" is probably "useful in combat."

Soushi's dream of becoming an adventurer was never about getting a license.

It's about conquering dungeons, making money, and having everyone acknowledge him.

"If you're asking whether it helps in combat—it absolutely does."

"It does indeed. Job-like special skills such as 【Cooking】 can, with enough proficiency, surpass even the skills high-rank jobs learn."

Simply put: Ao-san's cooking is tastier than the food made by 【Head Chef】, the high-rank job of the production class.

"So I hear there is no point in making delicious food."

How rude.

Of course there's a point.

He hasn't noticed the single most important thing, but I'm not telling him.

"Soushi, calm down. What Kasumi-san means is that almost every one of the 【Cook】 job's skills can be used through your one 【Cooking】. In other words, you can use 【Tool Enhancement・Kitchen Knife】—and its effect may even surpass the higher-rank 【Tool Enhancement・Kitchen Knife・High】."

"Eh? Kitchen knives?"

"Not just kitchen knives. Pots, frying pans—if it's in a kitchen, you can enhance it. It's famous how Ao-san used to wear a pot as a helmet back in the day, and Ao-san's kitchen knife carves up even iron golems like butter. You have, without question, gotten your hands on the 'Number One Skill in Japan.'"

"Eh? Seriously?"

He doesn't believe me?

He turns his gaze to Kasumi-san for confirmation.

"Yes. There is no mistake. I will contact Mia-san right away about having a long-handled knife made for you."

Mia-san must be busy with the move too, and we need a knife for goblin-killing today...

"Dungeon shops don't seem to stock kitchen knives. We'd be buying outside, huh?"

"Indeed. And iron is the right place to start."

Iron enhances easily.

Ceramic knives are a no-go for enhancement beginners.

Though once he gets the knack, he'll probably manage those too.

"So my weapon's going to be a kitchen knife...? Ohh, I get it—MY special skill's the amazing one. But what about yours? You promised: if I showed you mine, you'd show me yours, right?"

"Hmm. Mine's quicker seen than told. I'll show you in the dungeon."

"What's with the suspense? It's not actually 【Gender Change】, is it?"

"Fufufu. It will surprise you. Mine, for the record, is called 【Equipment Weight Reduction】. Compared to yours or Haruki-san's skills, it is nothing much."

"It is NOT nothing! What you did earlier was amazing! That thing weighed a ton, you know?"

Amazing no matter how you look at it.

Commission a one-ton spear and drop it from above, and it looks like that would down most monsters...

"A ton? How many kilos is a ton? A hundred? No—wait, a thousand! You can lift something THAT heavy!? That's incredible!"

"Fufufu. It is rare for my skill to be praised. I have used it for so long that the weight I can handle has grown, I expect—back in the day I could not have lifted a hundred kilos. So, Natsukawa-san, if you keep using yours, you will be cutting through anything and everything with a kitchen knife too."

Proficiency is everything.

My 【Gate】 can manage three doors these days.

One more, and I bet there'd be uses beyond shields...

"Anyway—let's head into the dungeon."

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"So you rent this place, Haruki? Sweet. Huh? What's that? There's a lump of iron over there—what do you use that for?"

We've moved to the warehouse.

"That's a golem Kasumi-san beat. And Kasumi-san—a beauty like this, mind you—is a Triple-Rank adventurer."

"Such flattery—'beautiful,' you say..."

Kasumi-san squirms.

The plan: praise her at every opening.

It doubles as showing off to Soushi, too.

"I know! I saw on the net that you're the one who caught the culprit in that incident, Watanabe-san. But more importantly—are you and Haruki really dating? It's not all just Haruki's delusion and you're really just party members, right?"

"Rest assured, I am indeed dating Haruki-san."

That's right—we are properly dating.

So you WERE doubting me?

You'd better brace yourself.

"Soushi, my man... I got a girlfriend when I started going to the dungeon."

"Dungeons are AWESOME! I'm becoming an adventurer!"

"Fufu. Natsukawa-san, you are already an adventurer."

"Ah-hah-hah-hah!"

Looks like these two will make a good party.

"Then let's go. Soushi—paper and pen. Even on Floor 10 today, do not pick a job. Just write it down there. I'll take you back as many times as it takes for a proper job to show up, so today it's notes only."

"Here you are, Natsukawa-san. This is a rental spear."

The good old rental spear!

It came back repaired—or rather, with a brand-new head on...

"Thanks! You two are so prepared. Man, though—sorry, but straight to Floor 10? If the guys in class heard, they'd die of envy."

That's right—straight to Floor 10.

Fufufu—Kasumi-san is wearing a wicked little smile of her own.

Seems the school crowd with adventurer dreams hasn't even reached Floor 10 yet.

Only Minami, the delinquent in our class, was talking about getting taken to Floor 10 by a group of upperclassman delinquents...

Either way, the real wave starts once the club-activity crowd wraps up the overall athletics tournament.

The teachers have been tearing their hair out over how many kendo-club and boxing-club types are planning to skip college and become adventurers this year.

Ours is a college-prep school, mind you.

"You bought a helmet? Now look who's the well-prepared one. For armor, I'll lend you mi— ...actually, you might not be able to move in it. Let's skip it for now. You'll have leveled up by the time we've come back once, so after that's fine."

When we come back it'll be lunch, and that's where Kasumi-san's day ends.

Armor can wait until after lunch.

"Indeed. No combat to start. Well then, Haruki-san. Shall we?"

"Soushi, I keep saying this, but—do not pick a job the first time. Write it on the paper and come back. Got it?"

One last confirmation, just in case.

"Save the speeches for right before Floor 10. Oh—can I kill the first goblin?"

I just did, didn't I?

"Heh. Fine by me. 【Gate】."

"Eh? What's this?"

(【Scouting】... all clear.)

"Come on, in you go, in you go!"

"H-hey, quit pushing, Haru—"

Soushi steps into the 'Right Gate,' and I follow.

Kasumi-san comes last.

Kasumi-san and I brought nothing but our weapons, but it's just the Minotaur over there, so no problem.

"Eh? Where is this?"

Soushi, dumbfounded.

"It's my special skill. It's called 【Gate】."

"Gate? You mean like the thing you pass through to enter a dungeon? The entrance? THAT's a special skill?"

"I can produce these."

I point at the 'Left Gate.'

"Eh? If I go through this, I'm back at the warehouse?"

"Yeah, try it. Come right back, though?"

Soushi steps into the 'Left Gate' and comes back with only half his body.

"Incredi... this thing... it's doing that?"

He's playing, popping his head back and forth between the warehouse and Floor 10.

"Fufu."

Kasumi-san laughs at the sight.

"Time's up. Back here."

I haul Soushi out of the 'Left Gate.'

"Time? Oh—time for Watanabe-san to head back, huh... Huh? What's that?"

A minute passed while Soushi played, and the Minotaur appeared.

"Soushi—there's your goblin!"

"No no, nobody said anything about THAT big! I mean, that's a Minotaur, right? That bull-helmet thing from the videos!"

"Haruki-san, that is genuinely dangerous—please do not."

Scolded.

But take off the bull helmet, and the face is a goblin's.

"Minotaur" is just what humans arbitrarily call it—it's really a big blue-skinned goblin, so something like Blue Goblin Giant would be more accurate.

"Eh? Where even are we? Why is there a Minotaur!?"

"Surprise!!"

A complete success!