To S:
Thank you for the Demonic Sword Arts and Demon’s Spirit Vessel information you provided last time. It’s strange that I couldn’t find this information in the school library. Perhaps it’s because this is a school directly under royal jurisdiction.
This information is very interesting and finally matches some related content I have. However, the amount of information is indeed large, and it will take quite some time to organize it. I will reply to you after I attend a social banquet in a few days.
Oh, right. Recently, in the Potions class, I heard some very interesting ideas. It’s particularly interesting that the choice of firewood affects the generation of drugs. I never considered before that potions made with birch and cypress firewood would have different effects. The teacher also said in class that roast rabbit meat grilled with thunder peanuts is the most delicious. We all laughed. How many peanuts would it take to cook it?
I have organized a set of notes for you. Feel free to take a look if you’re interested.
W
***
To S:
It’s been a long time since we last communicated. Today, I suddenly found that I received so many letters from you. Thank you very much for organizing the information about the inheritors of Demonic Sword Arts. I finally have time to sort through this information and reply to you with detailed intelligence and information! Based on their heroic deeds, we can roughly estimate the damage of some sword techniques. I have written the specific calculation formulas and conclusions on scratch paper.
Compared to these, the similarities between these Demonic Sword Arts inheritors are what I am particularly curious about! In any case, thank you for the information you gave me. I think it has pointed me in a direction.
You might be curious about what I have been doing recently. I have just prepared for and attended a noble banquet that is very important for my life. Frankly, I hate such occasions, but thankfully, I have passed through it smoothly. After this, apart from classes, I shouldn’t be so busy, and I can help you calculate more data.
Also, you were curious about the specific details of the firewood in the Potions class before. So, I discussed it with the teacher after class and followed him all the way to his office to ask. The other teachers in the office all praised me, saying that there are not many students as eager to learn as me. Your curiosity has brought me extra praise.
From the teacher’s verbal account, I have obtained quite a few interesting data and methodological conclusions. I have written them down verbatim below.
W
***
“Mmm… uhm… mmm…”
Shuna’s legs, clad in boots, swung back and forth on the chair. As she read down each line, the frequency of her swinging increased.
The tips of her boots hit the reception desk of the Adventurer’s Guild with a tremor.
She flipped through one letter, then another, then another, her flipping speed faster than before.
“Mmm…”
As she read, she let out a sound of annoyance, pouted, and then leaned on the reception desk of the Adventurer’s Guild.
It was a weekend afternoon, and unusually, the recently popular Adventurer’s Guild had only Shuna present.
Sunlight shone on her empty glass of low-alcohol wine, revealing a bit of purple juice slowly trickling down. She glanced at the letter, then at the cup, and finally sat up.
This kind of state…
Made Isaac, the Guild Master, who had watched Shuna grow up, very worried—although he had only watched her frequent the Adventurer’s Guild for three years.
To put it mildly, even though this girl was mature in both disposition and ability, and he wasn’t afraid of someone bullying or hurting her.
But…
Isaac, in his forties, still treated her like a daughter when he saw her.
He remembered his daughter back home—perhaps she would be just like her when she grew up and rebelled, running away from home.
“You’ve seemed quite gloomy for the past week. You haven’t even taken on any new missions this week, just reading books.”
This was rare for Shuna.
Compared to those adventurers who accepted any commission, she wasn’t exactly the “grinding” type.
But even if there wasn’t a commission she particularly liked, she would still go to the first or second floor of the Dungeon on weekends to loosen up, as it was easy enough for solo runs.
She often said that someone seriously told her that the Slimes on the first and second floors were world-ending existences. Although she hadn’t seen it, she still had to study them when she had the time.
Hearing this, Shuna slammed the letter onto the table.
“It’s all because this guy wants me to investigate the inheritors of Demonic Sword Arts. It’s not easy to find things in a pile of ancient texts. Many of them are forbidden books of the Entak Empire. I bought them from a small stall with my savings – but even though they were forbidden books, they were sold cheaply. He always reads such unwanted things.”
Isaac, who was wiping cups, paused his hand.
Why did Shuna sound like a disgruntled little wife?
Weren’t these two just pen pals they had never met?
“Don’t overthink it. As an idol-level freelance adventurer affiliated with our Adventurer’s Guild, everyone is waiting for you to take on new missions.”
Isaac wanted to comfort her, and he wiped the cup in his hand even more vigorously.
“Especially your mission in Snow Abyss last time. If you hadn’t prepared explosive materials to break through the frozen solidified wall, that team would have likely died there. Pioneering a Level 60 Dungeon with no casualties is already a miracle.”
“… Really? Then give me some special treatment, boss.”
Seeing that Shuna seemed to be in a better mood, Isaac agreed without thinking:
“Alright, this small Adventurer’s Guild will do whatever it can to serve you, Lady Shuna.”
“Can I drink high-proof alcohol? This low-alcohol wine is almost the same as fruit juice.”
“No way!”
Isaac almost thought this unpretentious freelance adventurer would come up with some special request.
But it turned out to be about drinking.
He looked at her young face. Three years ago, when she tore off the most difficult commission and told him she wanted to do it, he had also said, “No way.”
Now, it seemed, this girl had gradually matured. Three years ago, if you overlooked her beautiful hair and just looked at her face, you might find it hard to tell if she was male or female.
Now, just looking at her profile, she was a naturally graceful and beautiful girl.
If she could wear a delicate pink dress properly, instead of convenient boots, long socks, and a bustier for dungeon crawling, a large number of men might fall for her.
“Are you pretending to be depressed just to trick me into giving you alcohol?”
“No, absolutely not. I don’t know why, but I usually have a limited capacity for alcohol, yet I feel… hmm, alcohol has a strange attraction. It’s as if I can connect with fate through it…”
“The last drunkard who made a scene here said he could see his deceased wife after drinking, but it turned out he had been single for thirty years.”
“Hahaha, if the boss doesn’t agree, so be it. How about this? Every time I want to drink, I’ll put it on credit. I’ll come back when I’m of age, and you’ll have to serve it to me, drink by drink.”
“Sure, I’ll let you drink until you vomit then…”
As soon as Isaac finished speaking, he felt that the tone and atmosphere of her words were a bit off.
“Wait a moment, what did you say about ‘coming back’?”
“Well…”
She scratched her head, showing a rare expression of embarrassment.
“Next week, I’ll take on another commission from the captain of that Snow Abyss team. I’ll repay his life-saving favor, and then I plan to go back to school to study. After I graduate and can officially register as an Adventurer, I’ll come back.”
“Huh?”
“I know it’s sudden… but, but seeing him… seeing his school life, I’m a bit… a bit jealous. I wish I had more common topics to talk about with him… Besides, I never officially dropped out. Even though I don’t attend classes, I still go back for exams, so it’s not a big problem.”
“No, I mean…”
“Yeah?”
“So… Shuna, you’ve actually been to school?”
“Wh-what, I… I’ve always been taking books from the library to read, haven’t I?”
Shuna glanced again at the letters filled with youthful and vibrant campus life.
She pouted.
“Do I look like a dropout delinquent?”
“You do when you ask me for alcohol.”
“Boss, don’t try to persuade me not to drink like this, I’ll take it seriously!”
