In the training ground that was set as the stage—I stood facing Olga-san, maintaining our distance.
We remained silent for a while, a mutual pause hanging in the air, until she moved one foot forward.
Then, she raised a hand toward me, and the surrounding air trembled, causing a light shake in the ground.
"...!"
Instinctively knowing I had entered the line of fire—what they call the 'shooting line' in battle royales, first-person shooters, or FPS games back on Earth—I kept my gaze fixed on Olga-san but quickly ran to take cover.
The magic fired from her hand—what initially looked like a small spark of fire—grew in proportion to the distance it traveled from the point of launch. By the time it reached the spot where I'd been, it had become a column of fire about a meter high.
I recalled that Olga-san uses Fire Magic and Wind Magic, so this, clearly visible, must be the fire one.
Taking this as the authentic signal for the match's start, the spectators immediately erupted.
"The Bird, Fish, and Mayo Person—!"
"And the Shellfish, too!"
"Cutlets! ¹ Fries! Tempura—!"
I glanced toward the source of the noise and saw that the children from the orphanage had apparently come to watch this time. Raid-kun and Milia-san were there with them, naturally, acting as exasperated chaperones.
So, I'm only remembered by my connection to food items... is that all I am to them?
I saw that both Raid-kun and Milia-san were trying to quiet them down... but I figured they wouldn't listen much.
* * *
Elsewhere, on the highest tier of the arena—the younger of the two spectators exchanged opinions on what they were seeing.
"He's certainly well-liked, isn't he?"
"Yeah. So if you push things too far, you'll end up getting resented, you know?"
Without answering that question, Claudio's eyes were fixed on the point where the magic had struck.
* * *
Back on the stage, the attacker and the evader had both recovered their footing and faced each other again.
"I was thinking this when I watched Gil-kun and Luce-san, but... you don't use a staff either, do you?"
"...? Why would I need something like that?"
She responded with an answer that suggested the question made no sense to her.
The image of a magic user on Earth (the other side) is one who holds a staff or a short rod to cast magic from...
But it's true that if you can cast it directly from your hands, a tool would only get in the way.
"So? Aren't you going to do anything from your side?" she asked, a hint of a challenge in her voice.
I remained silent and looked straight up at the sky.
"? What's Shin doing?"
"Is there something up there...?"
Questions drifted from the audience. There was nothing in the sky. But—this wasn't a meaningless action. It was the groundwork for the 'bluff' I'd mentioned to Gil-san.
"During a fight with me—looking away? That shows quite a bit of confidence, doesn't it?"
She immediately launched her second attack. However, it was invisible to the naked eye—
"!!"
Tracing the ground came a whirlwind... no, a small tornado, heading directly toward me.
I could barely see it because it was kicking up dust, but the problem was its speed.
"H-Hold on—!?"
Like sliding headfirst to home plate in baseball, I executed a horizontal dive, sliding away from the spot.
* * *
Watching this from the highest tier, Guild Leader Gil recalled his battle with her and spoke.
"Wind Magic that crawls along the ground, huh—She's still using troublesome stuff like that."
"It's better than a Wind Cutter. Even if it hits you, with the kind of body reinforcement (Boost) you have, you'd only stumble and fall."
Jandou ² listened to that but didn't change his expression, though his mind was complex as he watched the two on the stage.
(But Shin can't even use that Body Reinforcement... if he gets hit, he might not avoid a serious injury. Just keep dodging...!)
* * *
"Hmm, so you figured it out after all?"
Olga, whose Wind Magic had been evaded, placed both hands on her hips and looked down at me, still sprawled on the ground.
"Phew."
I managed to dodge the Wind Magic, stood up, and looked up at the sky again. That was enough to make her ask the question.
"Is there a bird up there? I can tell that you're trying to distract your opponent and turn their gaze away—I'm not that oblivious, you know?"
As if saying such a trick wouldn't work, Olga-san held one of her palms upward as she spoke.
"My apologies for that... But, you're not going for a follow-up attack? You could have attacked me while I was on the ground."
"I won't fall for that trick. I can't imagine that you, after such an intense exchange with Claudio, would fall so dramatically. You were probably waiting to ambush me, weren't you?"
Actually, the Wind Magic made me think of a slashing attack like a kamaitachi ³, so I dodged quite seriously.
"Besides, I have my Reflect. I'm confident that if it comes down to a waited-for counterattack, I'm several steps ahead of you. If you're still hiding something—don't hold back, come at me."
I felt a sudden jolt but fixed my expression so she wouldn't notice. I certainly had something hidden, but I couldn't let her realize it yet.
"Speaking of which, shouldn't you stop testing the waters, Olga-san?"
"Testing the waters?"
"Oh, is that not what you're doing? If your last Wind Magic could only be fired as a single shot, that's one thing. But I was thinking things would get tricky if those came at me in quick succession. While I'm okay with close-range exchanges or dodging—full-speed mobility is not my forte."
Claudio-san's weapon attacks were also single shots—and Gil-kun and Luce-san's combined magic was fundamentally single-shot as well. It likely required a charging time to gather or condense the magical power. Hearing this, Olga-san gave a light chuckle.
"Heh, that's a good piece of information to have, isn't it? Then how about this?"
Saying that, she spread both hands, palms up... and a whirlwind began to spin in each of them.
"Gah. Simultaneous attacks... could she do that?"
Guild Leader Gil, who was looking down at the match, couldn't help but exclaim.
"Neither Olga nor I are the same as when we fought you before. Of course, we've developed one or two new moves."
Claudio spoke proudly, but Jandou tilted his head.
"No, but you, in your last match..."
"It's different! I couldn't help it because I lost before I got to use my new move!"
Guild Leader Gil was about to point out the 'test' before Olga's, but Claudio vehemently protested mid-sentence.
Gil then let out a sigh of resignation.
"I see, I see. That's too bad for you. Well, I'll be sure to see that 'new move' of yours later."
"Ugh...! Anyway, this is a 'test,' so focus on the match. We can talk about it afterward."
Claudio turned his face away as if trying to hide his embarrassment, and kept his gaze fixed on the two on the stage.
* * *
"Alright. Your requested continuous attack has been delivered to your doorstep, sir!"
Olga said, a smile playing on her face, as she held Wind Magic in both hands and spoke to her opponent.
"I'm indebted to you for the delivery, indeed."
From my perspective, my groundwork wasn't fully set, but I couldn't afford to say that now. I could probably dodge the first shot, but after that... While I was thinking, the magic was fired.
"...Mmh?"
It was fired, but—it was two shots simultaneously. They split to my left and right, moving to sandwich me.
I lowered my waist, placed both hands on the ground, and in a crouch-start position like in track and field, I dashed toward Olga-san.
"Whoa!?"
My action clearly surprised Olga-san—she suddenly seemed close in my vision, then quickly backed away to create distance. At the same time, I heard the sound of the two magical attacks colliding behind me, where I had just been, confirming my successful evasion.
No, this is bad—if the attacks had been timed with a delay, it would be different, but this was simply a simultaneous attack on one spot from two directions. If it had been a pincer from front and back, maybe, but this left the line of fire completely open in the front. Had I been a person who could use magic, the match might have been decided there. Or was she assuming I couldn't use long-range magic? Still, she must have some information on me. It was too careless for that. To avoid the hassle of her thinking I calculated the dodge, I intentionally stumbled before quickly regaining my posture.
"Heh, heh-heh! That was a brilliant dodge of my attack!"
(Oh crap, I've shot down a Wyvern before. Oh crap, I've shot down a Wyvern before.)
Contrary to her confident words, Olga-san was sweating profusely. Maybe she genuinely thought that single attack would end the match.
It seemed she was unlike Claudio-san earlier; she wasn't planning on a long-term battle—meaning she was coming at me with everything she had. But I was trying to pull a psychological trick. I needed her to play along a bit longer.
My fight with Claudio-san favored a short battle because he focused on close-range combat, and I lacked the necessary combat ability to match him at that. However, because I can't use magic, I can only mask my abilities in a prolonged skirmish. That's why a long-range battle, for me, requires time.
* * *
"She halved the power and split the attack into two. The idea isn't bad... but if she had staggered the timing, it might have worked."
At the highest level of the arena—Guild Leader Gil calmly analyzed Olga's attack.
"Is that all there is to it?"
When Claudio asked, Gil stroked his chin and posed a question.
"Between a simultaneous attack that ends in one go, and continuous attacks spaced out in time... which would you hate to face more?"
The older man's question made the younger one ponder for a moment.
"I don't mind a long battle—but the latter would definitely break my spirit."
"Exactly. Especially if you can predict your opponent's movements and preemptively attack that spot... that would force them into an extremely troublesome fight."
Though he swallowed the thought that it probably isn't easy to consciously control and fire multiple magic spells separately, he returned to observer mode.
* * *
Then, the two on the stage entered a slight deadlock again—
"...? You're looking up again? I told you that trick won't work anymore."
Ignoring Olga-san's words, I repeatedly flicked my gaze upward.
"Hurry up and show me your trump card! Whatever it is—I'll bounce it right back with my Reflect!"
And so, her attack began again. Since she was keeping her distance, based on the long-range premise, dodging wasn't too difficult. Not too difficult, but... one hit would be Game Over for me, so mentally, I was on a razor's edge.
Fire Magic, Wind Magic, Fire Magic—Every time they flew, I dodged, regained my posture, and looked up at the sky again.
"...Kuh! This! Take this!"
I could feel her growing more frustrated, the interval between attacks shrinking, and the aiming becoming more approximate. This seemed like the right time. I had been dodging clumsily on purpose all along, but now I deliberately threw myself flat onto the ground, rolling onto my side. Simultaneously, I intentionally dropped something I had been hiding in my pocket.
* * *
"!? That's Raid's...!"
Claudio, who had been intently watching the stage, involuntarily exclaimed upon seeing 'it.'
"So he was hiding it. But now it's exposed. Now what will you do, Shin?"
Beside Claudio, Guild Leader Gil crossed his arms, observing the unfolding development.
* * *
"Hey, isn't that what Raid uses!?"
Milia, who was leading the children from the orphanage, asked Raid to confirm.
"Well—Shin-san was the one who taught him about it... so it's not weird that he has one. But the fact that he was hiding it means he was aiming for a surprise attack. So, that trick is no longer usable...!"
The young men and women exchanged words, and the orphanage children held their breath—shifting their gaze to the man and woman on the stage.
* * *
"I remember now... you taught Raid Homing, didn't you? I saw his magic in the Royal Capital."
Olga-san spoke, her gaze fixed on the weapon I held—the Boomerang.
"But it's too bad. Since I know you have it, I can deal with it...! If you had kept it hidden, even my Reflect might not have made it in time, but knowing it now makes it meaningless."
I didn't react to her statement, which sounded like a declaration of victory. I held the Boomerang in my right hand, and with my left hand, I looked up and reached toward the sky. There, I made a gesture of gripping and manipulating something with my open palm before returning my gaze to my opponent.
At that, the entire venue began to murmur—and Olga-san stopped moving, clearly starting to falter.
"...What!? What did you just do...?"
The continuous attacks that had been coming suddenly ceased, as if her magical power had been depleted, and I could tell she was scrambling to figure out my next move.
* * *
"What's wrong, Olga!? Is there... something up there?"
Claudio, who was watching, also looked up at the sky, but all he saw was the hot sun and blue sky—mixed with a few clouds.
"I see," Guild Leader Gil mumbled, and Claudio's ears caught the sound, prompting an immediate question.
"What is it? What exactly is up there?"
"...You saw it in the Royal Capital, too. Raid's Homing—do you remember how many shots Raid had that time?"
Claudio thought for a moment in response to the question.
"I think, uh... there weren't ten shots, I guess. I'm not sure."
Hearing that, Guild Leader Gil looked up at the sky.
"Right. That's about how many he can carry."
The young man also looked up, prompted by the Gil's actions—
"!! You don't mean—!?"
He quickly diverted his gaze from the sky back to Olga on the stage.
* * *
"H-Hey, are you... kidding me?"
All the composure had vanished from Olga-san's expression; past confusion, she was clearly distraught. It seemed my psychological warfare, or bluff, had worked perfectly on her.
I only had one Boomerang in my hand right now. However, they must have seen Raid-kun's Boomerangs in the Royal Capital. They can be carried in multiples and fired continuously. Furthermore, the timing can be spaced out to some extent—
And I, the one who taught Raid-kun that technique, had been constantly checking the sky. That was the answer... and now, the actual evidence, the hidden Boomerang, was right in front of her.
How would she interpret that?
Olga was more deeply distressed than her opponent could imagine.
(W-Wait...! So that means, right now, above this arena—his 'Homing' shots are on standby? I can't see them, but this is the person who even shot down a Wyvern... it wouldn't be strange for him to have them waiting so high up that they're invisible—and he's the one who taught that magic to Raid, practically his master. It's impossible for his power and the number he can handle to be less than Raid's...)
"U-Um... are you alright?"
She looked like she was sweating even more profusely than before, and I couldn't help but call out to her. But she didn't seem to hear me.
(I-I'll be fine... I have my ace up my sleeve, 'Reflect'! I can't lose like this after Claudio did his best... I have to pull off 'Reflect' at least once!)
Naturally, her opponent couldn't know what she was thinking. However, I could feel that she was concentrating more intensely than ever before.
"...!"
Did she stop attacking? No, was she preparing a more powerful magic? This was getting serious... The fact that she stopped moving might mean she had read my intentions. I held the Boomerang in front of my body like a dagger, ready for defense, not attack. What was coming? Fire Magic, Wind Magic, or another hidden move? Or perhaps a blend of fire and wind?
This match might look undecided to the outside, but my mind, which couldn't use magic, was being worn down. This tightrope walk was nearing its limit. Now that the attacks had stopped, my physical strength could recover, but my inner self and my heart were already screaming. Besides, I'm not the combat type...
Honestly, I thought it would be easier than fighting Jan-san, but he knew all my circumstances, so that's why.
"'Reflect'... Just one hit..."
"What's coming... what is it..."
We stared at each other for about a minute, perhaps less... but it felt like five minutes or more to me, as neither of us could move. I watched her movements, trying not to miss a single twitch, when Olga-san's mouth suddenly opened, and I immediately braced myself.
"...Ki..."
Ki...? Just as I was about to put my brain into overdrive, wondering what she was about to say—
"...Kyuu... ⁴"
"Eh?"
After leaving that strange word hanging in the air, Olga-san simply pitched forward and collapsed. No one, including the spectators, understood what had happened, and the venue began to buzz with confusion.
"That's enough!! The match is over!!"
A single, loud voice boomed from the highest tier of the arena—
* * *
"Does that mean... Shin-san won!?"
"I-I don't know, but I guess so?"
Raid and Milia confirmed the winner, and the children with them took that as their cue to start cheering.
"The Meat and Fish Person won!"
"Mayo!"
"Fries!"
Eventually, the venue recognized the standing person as the winner and the collapsed person as the loser.
"I don't know what happened, but Shin won!"
"Shin won after all! I have no idea how!"
Receiving a flurry of what could have been either praise or confusion, the winner remained standing still until the loser's companions rushed over.
* * *
"...A-Ah? Where am I...?"
Immediately after the match, Olga-san was carried to the Branch Chief's office—and Claudio-san, Guild Leader Gil, Raid-kun, Milia-san, and I gathered in the room.
"Good, you're finally awake."
Her regaining consciousness allowed me to breathe a sigh of relief.
Claudio-san, clearly worried, immediately crouched down to occupy the space in front of the sofa she was lying on.
"O-Olga! Are you okay!?"
Olga-san looked at his face in silence for a while, then finally seemed to grasp the situation.
"Ah... I lost, didn't I?"
She looked down, and since I also didn't know what had happened, I explained my side to her.
"Um, why did you collapse? I hadn't attacked yet."
Hearing that, Raid-kun and Milia-san, who were also in the room, exchanged glances.
"Huh!? You mean Shin-san didn't do anything?"
"It certainly looked like Olga-san suddenly just fell down."
As the air filled with questions, the owner of the room spoke.
"In this case, it was Olga's self-destruction... no, it's more accurate to say she played along with Shin's strategy too much."
At that, the gazes of the two pairs of young men and women simultaneously pierced me.
"No, I mean, I was definitely setting the stage, or laying the groundwork, but... What do you mean by 'self-destruction'?"
As if to answer my question, Gil-san turned to Olga-san.
"Olga. Do you remember what you were doing before you lost consciousness?"
She slowly raised herself, sitting up on the sofa she had been lying on.
"I think... I was aiming for 'Reflect.' I was concentrating intensely on the front and the sky... because I didn't know when the Homing Shots would come. But what about it?"
So, she was completely focused on a counterattack. But why did she suddenly collapse? While I was wondering, the eldest man continued the conversation.
"I believe 'Reflect' is an arbitrary activation. However, to be able to activate it at any time, you must keep your consciousness in a constant state of alert. In other words—"
Ah, she was too focused for too long, and her string of tension snapped. That's why it was a self-destruction.
Hearing this, she wheeled around, her expression sharp and pointing her finger at me.
"That's it!! Why didn't you attack!? I was waiting for you the whole time! It's unbelievable that you didn't use magic until the very end!"
That was utterly unreasonable, but it was true that I was perceived as not using any offensive magic until the end. Anyone who watched the match would think the same thing.
"Now that you mention it, he only used Body Reinforcement when he fought me. This won't count as a 'test'—what should we do about this?"
Claudio-san followed up with a question, and an uneasy atmosphere hung in the room.
However—Guild Leader Gil instantly changed the mood.
"What's wrong with you two? Did you want to see Shin's magic? If so, I can get a target or anything ready right now, so why don't you watch?"
Claudio-san and Olga-san looked stunned.
But after a few seconds, they seemed to regain their senses and began to protest in unison.
"W-What! I mean, it's clearly strange, isn't it!?"
"Mine was one thing, but Olga's match wasn't decided by magic...!"
Hearing that, Gil-san scratched his head roughly.
"Listen to me. You two were the ones who requested the 'mock battle' format. Decided by magic? Who decided that rule and when?"
The young man and woman who had been listening in silence also joined the fray.
"Exactly! It's not fair to complain about the rules after you lost!"
"That's right! Besides, it was Olga-san who collapsed on her own!"
The other two were pushed back by the force of their argument, but still seemed unconvinced.
"Guh...! B-But still...!"
"S-Surely that's just common sense..."
The tone dropped—They understood, but they couldn't accept it.
Guild Leader Gil let out a heavy sigh.
"No, that's not 'common sense.' That's just a 'fixed idea.' You decided, 'This is obvious,' and 'This is a given,' and you narrowed your own options, restricting your own actions. You're still young, so you need to fix that hardheadedness of yours."
As if a finishing blow had been delivered, the two drooped their heads at his words.
"...Hoo... You're right. Anything more would just be piling on the embarrassment."
"O-Olga..."
I could tell Claudio-san was trying to comfort her, but he didn't know what to say and looked flustered. Olga-san patted him on the head.
"Why are you looking so dejected? Let's hold a reflection session and use this for next time. Fortunately, there seems to be plenty of delicious food here, right?"
She stood up, and he, who had been kneeling in front of her, also stood up.
"You're right... Maybe we should take a bath first before that."
"Um—"
They were about to end the conversation, but I hadn't asked the most crucial thing, so I reluctantly called them back.
"? Is there something else?"
"...What is it?"
Both responded, making no attempt to hide their bewildered expressions. But the reason why they came here was—
"So, about my 'test' results..."
At that, everyone in the room except me looked at each other.
"Hah hah hah!! You're right, you're right! We completely forgot! Hey, you two. What's the result of the 'test'?"
Gil-san laughed boisterously, and the two looked up at me sheepishly.
"Ah, come on! Fine! We get it! Your ability is more than enough! We understand perfectly!"
"We lost, so we don't have the right to say anything. Just cut us some slack, already...!"
Another young man and woman smiled wryly, defending them.
"Guild Leader Gil, that's enough, please."
"You shouldn't be so mean."
The two losers then twisted their mouths in a self-deprecating way and left the Branch Chief's office. Only the members of the same town remained, and their demeanor relaxed.
"Shin-san, thank you for your hard work!"
"It was a great success! I hope we can make training public like this more often in the future. Oh, but we didn't have heat countermeasures this time, so we need to renovate the venue to function better..."
At that moment, a clapping sound was heard.
"I know you have a lot to talk about, but save that for the drinking session I'll arrange later. First, let's clean up."
The words of the highest authority here made Milia-san return to work mode.
"You're right. We still have a lot of small details to take care of... Come on, Raid! Let's go!"
"Aww, can't I relax a little longer...? Ow, ow, ow! I get it!"
Milia-san grabbed Raid-kun's ear and dragged him away.
"Shin and I are going to discuss how to deal with the Guild Headquarters from now on."
"? What about that?"
Gil-san looked over to me in response to my question.
"It's about what to do if we get any more complaints like this after they leave. Now that Claudio and Olga are taking their story back to the Headquarters, things should calm down for a while... but."
I see... I thought that they were considering various things, but at the same time, this didn't seem like a conversation that needed to happen right this moment. In other words, they must have something they need to talk about privately. When the young man and woman left the room, Gil-san and I sat down facing each other, as if by arrangement.
"Well, good job, Shin. By the way—The 'bluff' for Olga, the trick... you were trying to make her believe you had Homing shots on standby, right?"
He immediately got into the expected question, and I answered him.
"That's right. I made a show of constantly checking the sky, and then I 'accidentally' dropped the weapon (Boomerang) I would use for long-range magic. Of course, her collapsing from self-destruction was beyond my expectation..."
Gil-san placed a hand on his chin and closed his eyes.
"That 'Reflect' of hers is truly troublesome. The fact that the match ended before she could use it can only be called good fortune. Or—did you have a plan for 'Reflect' as well?"
"My ultimate plan was probably just to force a close-quarters brawl and activate my ability. But in a way, it's just as the Guild Leader pointed out."
He tilted his head at my explanation—and I continued to resolve his question.
"You said it, didn't you? 'You decided, 'This is obvious,' and 'This is a given,' and you narrowed your own options, restricting your own actions.'"
"...Hmph?"
"I was concerned about the sky from the start—and she initially guessed that I was trying to redirect her gaze. But then, I dropped the Boomerang. Just that was enough for her to mistakenly believe that 'I, who was concerned about the sky,' was 'waiting with Homing shots up there.' People connect things in a way that is convenient for them. At the same time, they don't doubt the answer they arrived at themselves. Just as the Guild Leader said, she restricted her own actions."
When I finished speaking, Gil-san lowered his head deeply for a moment.
"Hey, what kind of dangerous world did you live in, the world of the 'common folk'?"
"Among the countries there, mine was called a 'peaceful' or 'peace-drunk' nation..."
"That's an absolute lie!!"
"Don't say I can't lie to you!"
A fruitless exchange between two men, one nearing fifty and one nearing forty, continued for a while after that.
Summary:
The test continues with Olga, a Fire and Wind magic user with the ultimate counter: Reflect. Shin, true to his style, doesn't fight the magic; he fights the mind. He establishes a perfect psychological trap by constantly looking at the sky, dropping the Homing Boomerang, and letting Olga's own 'fixed idea' convince her that he has a fleet of invisible, Wyvern-slaying Homing Shots ready to drop. Over-concentrating on her Reflect counter, she pushes her mind past its limit and collapses from mental exhaustion. The victory is bizarre, forcing the Guild Leader to confront the two defeated challengers with a harsh lesson on 'fixed ideas' versus common sense. The chapter ends with a private, deep-cutting discussion between Shin and Gil about the terrifying power of using simple logic and misdirection as a weapon.
Character Insight:
Shin's mental stamina is impressive, but his vulnerability is evident in his internal thoughts—he's desperately playing a stalling game. Olga is physically powerful, but her confidence in her 'Reflect' is her biggest weakness; she is easily manipulated into self-sabotage by her own assumptions. Guild Leader Gil is established as a wise, philosophical leader who sees beyond raw power, valuing psychological flexibility.
Behind the Scene:
The 'bluff' Shin uses is based entirely on the audience's, and Olga's, prior knowledge of Raid's Homing Boomerang technique. By establishing the visual cue (looking up) and the physical proof (the boomerang), he forces his opponent to create the threat in her own mind. This is a classic move in psychological warfare, a stark contrast to the straightforward magic combat of this world.
T/L:
¹: Furay (フライ), or 'fly,' is the Japanese word for food that is deep-fried, usually with a light breadcrumb coating, essentially meaning 'fried food' or 'fritter/cutlet.' ↩
²: Jandou is the full name of Guild Leader Gil. His name is used here in the narrative to provide a more formal feel. ↩
³: Kamaitachi (かまいたち) is a Japanese yōkai or supernatural phenomenon described as a sharp, wind-like cut, often from an invisible force. It is used here to describe a magic that slashes through the air. ↩
⁴: Kyuu (きゅう) in this context is likely an onomatopoeia for the sound of a sudden collapse, an exhale of relief, or a physical/mental shutdown. It's translated as a broken sound to show her loss of consciousness. ↩
Notes:
• Olga - A Viscountess and eccentric Silver-class adventurer known as the Silver-Haired Witch, with long silver hair, a youthful face with an adult expression, and a height just under 170 cm. She specializes in Fire, Wind, and Reflection magic, and avoids Gold-class promotion to escape obligations.
• Ron - The second gate guard, usually supporting Mile. He is observant of Shin's methods, though he misinterprets them. Wears same as Mile.
• Milia - The young receptionist at the Adventurer's Guild. She has short hair, tanuki-face like (cute), wears round glasses, and business attire.
• Raid - A young, 'normie' adventurer who gets saddled with the job of escorting Shin. He is carefree and friendly but is instantly put on edge by Jandou's ominous warning. He has short black hair, sun-tanned skin, and wears casual adventure gear.
• Claudio - A Silver-class adventurer called “Endless Stamina,” known for his toughness, with short chestnut hair, a mild face, an average build with strong arms, and a height of 175 cm. He fights in close combat using Body Enhancement (Boost) and a sword, with Gold-class potential limited by low versatility.
• Luce - A Bronze-class adventurer, also an orphanage graduate and very close friend of Gil. She specializes in Fire Magic, but can only 'manifest' flames without projection. She has flaxen hair tied in a braid at the back, short stature.
• Gil - A Bronze-class adventurer and recent graduate of the local orphanage. He specializes in Earth Magic (Stone Bullet), but its initial power is weak. He and Luce are close, almost like siblings. He has short hair, slender build, and looks unhealthy.
• Shin - An average, middle-aged Japanese salaryman who prides himself on his common sense and average abilities. He was forcibly sent to a fantasy world by a God and granted the 'ability' to prevent anything 'outside his common sense' from occurring in his presence.
• Jan - The sturdy branch manager of the local Adventurer's Guild. He is short, has muscular build, and gray hair.