I'm back, to be honest I wanted this chapter done months ago. Reasons for that can be summed up in me screwing around. Also, Darkness is bit difficult to write which will be expanded upon in the ending author's note.
Also, this story is now on the Konosuba TV tropes fanfic recommendation page. Which thank you person who did that I treat that as a borderline fandom hall of fame.
But there is another Konosuba fic in the regular story category that really needs to be there more than mine.
It's called His and Her's and Her's Circumstances by Tabasc0. It's a fic that just totally departs from the Konosuba storyline but it's done really well. The summary doesn't do a great job of advertising what the story is so here's my own
Kazuma did not die of shock when he was teenager but instead was kicked out of his home by his parent's when he was twenty. That's when a fully grown and adult Princess Iris shows up to bring him over because the fact, he wasn't there to stop the things he did in original story meant they happened and world is in precarious place.
If you want to figure out how the hell any of that works, GO READ THAT STORY! I cannot recommend it enough.
Also, a heads up Fanfic is currently having a disagreement with my Email to the point I don't get any notifications from them so if anyone PM's me it may take me a bit to notice and respond.
(-0000-)
Kazuma woke up with, not suddenly, but his heart was pounding.
This nightmare involved the first time he got caught outside after dark. This during the early stages of the quarantine when he was by himself. There was an emergency drop that landed pretty far into area where the worst of the infected were at the time.
It was also the time when he wasn't able to get any sort of fulfilling food for a few days.
He made it there but by then it was by sundown. He should have known better but some lessons had to be learned the hard way. That was a sleepless night of him hiding, knowing that if a volatile or viral so much as smelled him he would be dead. This was before he got proficient at using any sort of weapon so he knew is odds were slim to none if he was spotted.
Not to mention volatiles are nightmares to deal with on their own, even with weapons.
He wasn't ever spotted, but it was constant heart pounding terror until sunrise.
This was his first lesson of not being too greedy. Something he was lucky to live through to learn.
Kazuma was in his rented cottage. Which was a rectangular house, it had a bed, a cast iron woodfire stove that doubled as a fireplace/heater, a small table with a single chair, there was also a dresser and numerous cabinets around for storage along with a large chest for what he guessed was primarily gear storage. There was a single window next to the main door that looked out onto the road, it was probably mainly for ventilation purposes.
There were two doors one on either end, one led to the outside while other led to the bathroom which was only a toilet. An actual toilet, that flushes. Apparently, the fantasy world figured out plumbing. They even have toilet paper.
He will not question this fact, but he definitely appreciates it.
He knows what it's like to go without toilet paper. Do you have any idea how difficult it is to find toilet paper four months into zombie outbreak? Sure, you'd think the stores would still be stocked due to how rapidly the city got quarantined but stores were high traffic areas meaning now there are a lot of infected or they became strongholds of some survivor or bandit group.
And those guys most of the time weren't willing to trade due to having everything they need and not trusting outsiders because once again, bandits.
Basically, he was living in the fantasy world's equivalent of a studio apartment.
He got up and got dressed he picked up his gear which now included a bow and arrows. Thanks to having the [snipe] skill he was very effective with it. Not that he didn't have some experience with the bow before coming here. Then he left to the guild.
In Harran, the bow was a great long-range weapon. It was silent so it didn't attract virals, and the ammo was recoverable. But it had a bit of a skill curve, so not many people used it. It took him awhile before he could use it semi-effectively. But it was worth it in the long run. Plus, the ammo was recoverable.
Here in this fantasy world however with [snipe], [farsight] and his luck the bow can shoot an arrow and hit a target out to a distance's rivaling modern firearms.
It has been a few days since he filled in for Taylor's party and he has been on a few quests which let him test out his new skills. One being the one-handed sword skill. A passive ability that augmented a person's ability to use, you guessed it, one-handed swords.
He was not an expert swordsman before coming here but he did have a lot of experience swinging a blade and with facing other survivors developed a raw sort of sword style. That being said just about any well practiced kendo club member could have probably beat him in pure skill in a proper match. One without rules on the other hand… well, who's to say.
However, with the one-handed sword skill he noted that his movements were sharper more precise to where he wanted to swing, with less wasted movements and successive strikes flowed together more smoothly.
As opposed to the Harran style of a desperate dodge, swing, dodge.
He tested these out on a kobold hunt which was uneventful in that nothing surprising happened. He used the grappling hook to get up a tall tree. Used the snipe skill to take out most of them while the remaining few were smart enough to hide behind trees. That is when combat got up close in personal. Let's just say that was probably the easiest sword fight he's ever been in and that includes fighting biters aka shambling bodies with poor motor coordination.
Though the risk of infection was always nerve wracking.
He has also learned the [heal] skill after making a sizeable 'donation' (aka bribe) to the local Eris Church in Axel. That took basically the entirety of the reward from the rookie killer bounty. The skill itself was also expensive point wise but he still had good amount to spare.
He did try the Axis Cult to see if they'd give him a better deal, despite his personal grievances with their deity. They offered it free of charge, but he had to join their faith and worship their goddess, Aqua.
So understandably he said hell no to that. He may be pragmatic but he still has some pride, and a near legendary ability to hold a grudge.
But hey he can heal himself now with magic. So, when something goes wrong, and he knows that something will go wrong, he has something to keep him alive.
He arrived at the guild hall and noted that the sun was bit higher than what he is used to. He figures having four solid walls and a locked door helped him sleep a bit easier and therefore longer.
When he entered the adventurers who were in there all turned to look at him. There was silent awe, and a little trepidation on their faces.
Taylor's story about his actions during their quest and taking down the rookie killer has massively raised his reputation.
For better and worse.
He sighed at this and just went to his usual table and ordered breakfast. It was not long before a familiar voice called out to him.
"Hey there Kazuma." Greeted Chris in a friendly manner walking up to him. "I see you have gotten popular since I last saw you."
Behind Chris was another girl who seemed a few years older than him. She had long blonde hair tied into a ponytail, and blue eyes, and light skin tone. She wore armor that seemed to double as a dress with a white metal breast plate and she had a pauldron on her left shoulder and some kind of cloth in the shape of a feather on her right. Two tassets lined her side going down the length of her leg. She seemed to be wearing armored boots/greaves.
The girl appeared to be going for the female knight look. She also looked vaguely familiar.
"Something like that." Said Kazuma thinking about his new status. "Did you hear about the specifics?"
"Yep, Taylor's story has already reached neighboring towns." Said Chris before taking a teasing tone. "Especially that line of 'The certainty of certain death is subjective' has become particularly inspiring."
Kazuma only groaned in response while Chris chuckled at his light embarrassment. He knew that was a stupid thing to say right after it left his mouth.
A line like that does not suit him, he's not a protagonist character here, if he was, he'd have a cheat of his own, and more than likely a party full of beautiful and powerful ladies!
Plus, he doesn't have the metaphysical ability to say stupid corny lines and get away with it as if it was something philosophical and/or inspiring.
But nope, here he is on his own.
Just because he can keep fantasies to himself doesn't mean he still doesn't a have them
"But seriously though killing a rookie killer by yourself is amazing." Said Chris "Like I said I'm surprised you aren't a member of a party yet."
It is true he has not received any offers to join anyone else on a quest aside from Taylor. And for the exact opposite reason as before.
Where before he was looked down on him for being the adventurer class and therefore not good enough for them. He is now looked upon as the adventurer who can trivialize a bad situation and kill something well above his weight class. So now most people think they aren't good enough for him.
Apparently social hierarchical norms in any world are convoluted and exhausting.
"Yeah…" said Kazuma knowing the reason for that. "So, what brings you around Chris?"
"Can't a girl catch up with their friend who helped her out on an important job?" she asked in return with teasing tone.
Apparently, they were friends now, that was news to Kazuma.
But hey, he'll take it. He could use more friends with his current count being at zero while close acquaintances account for all of Taylors party, well most of the party anyways, he still hasn't met the notorious Dust yet.
"But I am here to ask for a favor." She said she then gestured to girl behind her. "This is Darkness, she's a crusader, she hasn't found a party she could stay with yet so I was wondering if you could take her on even if it's just for a little a bit."
Two things to take away from this. One, he knows that in this world blonde hair typically signifies they are a noble or descended from a noble line, so Darkness probably isn't her real name. In which case no big deal if she's an adventuring noble she probably wants to keep her real name a secret. That's fine. But it means she starts out with a higher level, stats, and better equipment as compared to the common adventurer.
The drunken ramblings of poor adventurers complaining about their lot in life are a great way to learn the common norms of this world.
Two, a crusader is an advanced class. This is the second person he met with an advanced class who couldn't make it into a party. Not to mention with a good background. Like that explosion girl who was from the Crimson Demon Clan, apparently, they aren't actually demons, they are humans that really high magical affinity and some unique physical characteristics. A girl who is a noble would also be a shoe in for any party. Raising the question…
"So, what's wrong with her?" he asked bluntly. He swore he saw the crusader shiver at that. "The last advanced class I met was an arch wizard who couldn't get into a party because she was a one trick pony with a screw loose."
Chris sighed she expected this question. Kazuma is perceptive, she knew he would pick up on the blank spots in her explanation.
"I see you had a run in with the infamous explosion loli." Said Chris knowing who he was referencing.
'Fitting name.' Thought Kazuma. It described her well, especially since he's been feeling the ground shake for the past couple of days and an [Explosion] blast outside the walls.
It's to the point he has passively picked that up as an option on his adventurer's card! He hasn't selected it due to the high point cost and high mana usage. But he hasn't removed it from his card either as he likes to have it as an option.
"Anyways, Darkness is a bit….er…willful you could say…" said Chris not sure how to explain her friend's peculiarities in nice way.
"Allow me to introduce myself, Chris." Said Darkness stepping into the conversation. "As my friend said, I'm Darkness a crusader, you are Kazuma Satou the adventurer who without hesitation charges dangerous monsters that could easily rip him to shreds, right?"
She was getting uncomfortably excited while saying that. Her face was flushed and she was beginning to pant.
Also, is that how people were seeing him?!
"There's a lot of context missing from that, but yes." Said Kazama cautiously.
Darkness got even more excited at that confirmation.
"I knew it." Said Darkness. "You do not have to worry, with me on your team I am more than capable handling any monster no matter how much they try to claw, stab, ….or-or bite me!"
She was worked up even more now and she had a look in her eye that was beginning to frighten Kazuma. But he was starting to see what Chris meant by 'willful'.
"Uh…Chris…?" asked Kazuma not sure how proceed with this.
"Heh…heh…As you can see Darkness has a unique personality…" Said Chris looking away from his gaze, laughing nervously.
"She's a masochist apparently, but sure unique works." Deadpanned Kazuma.
Darkness shuddered happily at his disapproval.
He likes to be careful and be strategic. Someone who from what he has been inferring from this conversation will happily run into their claws, teeth, and whatever else can be used to cause harm and will very likely cause things to go sideways. Though since she is a crusader, she should have a good attack option.
"Well, she has some good points." Defended Chris "For instance Darkness didn't you protect some adventurers from the cabbages?"
"Oh yes, I stood against the onslaught of cabbages while our fellow adventurers were able to regain their footing." She said proudly. "No matter how much they rammed into me…or how hard…"
She was getting worked up again.
Despite her odd phrasing being off putting, Kazuma realized why she seemed familiar; he remembers that incident from cabbage harvest.
"I saw that." Said Kazuma "The fact she was able to stand up to things that were knocking people twice her size over was impressive."
"As you can see I can more than stand up to any sort of danger we may encounter." Said Darkness proudly "This will be great for you as the one who has no doubt witnessed great cruelty judging by the look in your eyes."
Another comment about his eyes. Sure, he probably qualifies as loner at the moment, but he's not turning into that notable loner regarded as a monster of logic, is he? Then again that guy had much better luck with women and people in general so that may actually be a good thing.
He should really look at himself in mirror at some point.
He looked to Chris for an explanation for Darkness's quirks.
"I get it, I get it." Said Chris putting her hands up placatingly "But can you at least give her a chance on a few quests. I'll even go with you on the first one."
"Well, I do owe you for teaching me those skills." Said Kazuma with a sigh really not wanting to do this. "I will give her a chance. If she can keep…that…under wraps we will be fine…probably…"
He said this while gesturing to Darkness who seemed enjoy the two talking about her like she is a problem.
"You are such a savage…" she said breathing heavily. "I look forward to working with you."
'Do it for Chris...' Thought Kazuma extremely put off by the crusader.
'I probably should have told Darkness to reign in her tendencies.' Thought Chris with a nervous grin.
"Let me see her card first to see what I'm working with." Said Kazuma with a sigh. She complied.
The card had physical resistance, magical resistance, a number of debuff resistances and decoy. They weren't just at the starting level either. It looks like she invested any points she had into them afterward too.
"This is kind of defense heavy, isn't it?" asked Kazuma looking up from the very unbalanced card. She doesn't even have a single offense skill. I mean sure he knows better than anyone that not having an offensive skill doesn't mean you can't fight effectively.
And once again Chris is the one asking him.
"Do not worry, I am more than confident in my physical durability." Said Darkness proudly.
That did not raise is optimism.
"So what quest were you thinking about doing?" asked Chris trying to divert the direction of the conversation.
"Luna told me last night there is a special quest for me to go checkout a cave." Explained Kazuma "She said that she will bring the details to me sometime this morning."
"Wow, you went from not knowing any skills and having no reputation at the beginning of the week to being the one the guild asks for special quests." Commented Chris. She actually did not expect him to grow this fast.
"Well, you did give me a head start." Said Kazuma "But I also picked up a few new skills."
"That's good!" Said Chris honestly happy for him. "Though you may want to be more careful with your points as it gets harder to level up as you advance."
"Yeah, I noticed that." Said Kazama. He also kind of assumed that was the case due to his vast background in various RPG's as a shut-in. But he appreciates the fact she cared enough to give him the heads up.
They continued chatting Chris caught him up on what she did. It was just average quests and traveling as opposed to her secret quests.
It wasn't long before Luna came up to him with a map. Apparently, a cave appeared in a place where there was no cave before. They want him to go investigate it to see if it's a dungeon or not.
He does not have to clear it out, just verify its status.
(-0000-)
Kazuma, Chris, and Darkness were walking on a road that goes through the woods outside of Axel.
The details said that the new cave wasn't too far away from the main road, so it wasn't going to be too hard to find. This is also another reason they needed to figure out if it was dangerous or not because of its close proximity to the well-traveled road.
The trip was mostly peaceful until both Kazuma and Chris detected an enemy approaching. They both drew their weapons at the same time.
"Oooh…Are there enemies?" asked Darkness who in response drew her long sword "Do not worry I am ready!"
'Well at least she's eager.' Thought Kazuma with a deadpan expression.
Out of the brush a large bear like creature the size of a semi-truck and it had oddly though more than likely extremely normal for this world it had hands. Very human like hands attached to very muscled arms.
It was kind of surreal to Kazuma.
"That's a one-punch bear!" said Chris in surprise.
'Oh gee, I wonder why they are called that!' Thought Kazuma dryly, though once again he does appreciate the straightforward naming sense of this world.
It roared at them in a threatening manner. Looks like they have a fight on their hands.
"I see it is time for me to show my ability!" Shouted Darkness she charged at the monster.
"Darkness, wait!" shouted Chris.
But her shouts went unheeded as the overly eager crusader charged the bear with reckless abandon
"Have at thee!" Darkness yelled and swung her sword at the giant bear once she got in front of it.
And she missed completely…
Everyone just paused looking at the scene. Even the bear seemed surprised that she missed it looking down at her with what amounted as mixture of shock and sheer incredulity at what it just missed.
Chris was the first to recover she just sighed and facepalmed. She expected this, it's one of the reasons she wanted to be here in order to smooth out this eventuality.
"How…?" asked Kazuma out loud nearly speechless. "How did she miss!? She's right in front of the thing and it's the size of a small house! Look even the bear is surprised!"
"Yeah, Darkness is… a bit clumsy…heh heh heh." Said Chris, having no excuse and no way to explain away what just happened.
"That is more than just a bit…!" Kazuma would not have believed it if he didn't see it for himself. He thought that would have to be intentional. He's literally more surprised at Darkness missing than the bear having fists at this point.
Kazuma also now believes he now understands the phrase 'Can't hit the broadside of a barn' that American survivors often used.
Darkness on the other hand was also frozen still and though her back was facing them Kazuma could see a bit of red tinting her ears.
'Ah…she's embarrassed.' Thought Kazuma 'That's the first normal reaction I have seen from her.'
However, the bear recovered and roared before backhanding Darkness with a closed fist.
The blow sent her flying with a squeal that sounded a little too erotic to be pain into the brush out of sight. The only sign that she stopped was lout THUMP and the sound of a tree falling over.
"Shit…that's not good." Said Kazuma evenly, aside from the fact they just lost a party member and Chris's friend. Tactically speaking their situation was even worse off.
And even if she survived that they would still have to deal with the monster before he could attempt to heal her. But given how it's called a one-punch bear, his hopes aren't high.
The bear roared again and charged them.
They jumped out of the way has the beast attempted to hammer fist their position. Kazuma tried to cut the bears arm and got a solid hit on it.
However, he found out that its skin was tough to the point his sword barely managed to scratch it. He then dodged a retaliatory strike.
"Alright this may be a problem…" Said Kazuma, his tone was flat, but his mind was thinking of ways to escape and survive if they can't kill the bear.
Main problem was they have a downed teammate in an unknown condition, probably really hurt, but possibly dead.
If she's alive he doesn't want to leave her. If she's dead…
Well, he'll come back and recover the body… at night and hopefully unnoticed.
The problem now is he can't go verify it.
Demonstrated by how he dodged another punch that struck with enough force to make a decent sized crater in the ground.
He feels like he's fighting the demolisher again. Only this time he was very ill prepared and without the proper tools.
Maybe he should invest in getting a blunt force weapon?
Kazuma was shaken from his musings when he dodged another strike from the bear.
He noticed Chris was missing too. He figures she probably went check on Darkness.
He trusts her enough now to know she wouldn't abandon him.
After all, if she was going to screw him over, she would have done it at the relic site.
As if answering his thoughts, she appeared in the air with her dagger drawn ready to strike. She landed on the bear and stabbed her knife into the back of it. It seemed to cause some pain but not enough to even slow it down.
The bear slapped at its back as if swatting at bug that stung it but Chris was nimble enough to get out of the way.
"So is Darkness alive?" He asked as she landed right next to him.
"Yeah, she has a broken arm and leg from being backhanded into a tree, but she's surprisingly alright." Said Chris. Knowing he understood where she went. "Though I don't think we can get her out of here with this thing on us."
Given this world's straightforward naming sense, and the monster was called a one-punch bear he was under the impression that was not normal.
Looks like Darkness dumping her points into defense skills paid off.
Though if she hit the damn thing then maybe they wouldn't have had been hit in the first place! Though he had feeling that wouldn't be as enjoyable for her.
"If she could move, do you think she could damage this thing?" asked Kazuma as they both dodged a punch that kicked up another crater.
"Possibly, Darkness has an amazing strength stat. Which is shame because she usually doesn't hit anything." Said Chris "But she can't move."
"I learned [Heal]." Said Kazuma as he side stepped a charge from the bear with practiced ease. Once again reminding him of the similarities between the bear and the demolisher.
Chris had a look of realization on her face. She wasn't an idiot; she didn't need him to explain his plan.
"I'll distract this thing; you go find Darkness." Said Chris as Kazuma used [vanish] to move away while Chris continued to distract the monster.
He went in the direction he saw Darkness get launched in. He immediately started seeing broken branches and began following the trail. After what he considered was a surprising distance, he did finally find her.
He also found out she did not get launched into a tree. But instead through a tree.
Yeah, he is beginning to think the one-punch bear may be a bit worse than a demolisher.
Like Chris said her right arm and leg were broken judging by the awkwardly bent angles.
"Ah, Kazuma, I see Chris's faith in you was not misplaced." Said Darkness nonchalantly. Apparently being a masochist has its upsides in pain tolerance. "I was worried when she arrived and you were on your own."
Well at least she's nice.
"Well, unlike you I know how not to get hit." Said Kazuma, which she shuddered happily at that jab. "Anyways I'm surprised you are even alive."
"As I have stated, I am confident in my physical toughness." She said proud of herself. "Though I don't think I'll be of much help as I am…If you feel it hopeless do not hesitate to leave me behind, I will hold out no matter wha-"
"Okay! I'm putting a stop to that!" interrupted Kazuma before she could go any farther "If you want to fantasize do it on your own time, not when we are actually in a life-or-death situation. Anyways I have the [Heal] spell."
Darkness was surprised to that. Then had somewhat of a disappointed expression.
"Hey no need to get so excited…" Said Kazuma flatly. He then knelt down next to her "Anyways I'm going to need to reset your limbs."
"What do you me- *CRACK*-gah…!" Darkness began to question him about what he meant but Kazuma went head and set her leg. She managed to clench her teeth and let out a sound that sound that sounded more like something from pleasure rather than pain. "So ruthless without warning…"
She sighed and had a dreamy look in her eye.
Kazuma just sighed and is beginning to learn to ignore her tendencies. The reason he's resetting the bone before healing is because he figures the spell would work better if the bones are properly aligned. It's only at the beginner level so, while he has faith it will heal, he's not sure how effective it will be.
He also only wants to cast it once if possible.
"Okay now the arm." Said Kazuma and got ready to set it.
"Wait let me -*CRACK*- mmmmppphhh…..!" Once again Darkness contained a moan from his admittedly brutal first aid. "….*Huff**huff* You are a merciless beast, do you realize that?!"
And unsurprisingly there was no resentment in that remark. Also, Kazuma updated her status in his mind from masochist to raging masochist
"[Heal]." Kazuma casted heal, this was his first time using it. He felt it took a good amount of mana from him. So, like he thought initially an emergency solution if the wound is too big or bleeding too fast to bandage.
Or broken bones as demonstrated with Darkness regaining use of her limbs and being able to stand.
Darkness stood up and tested her limbs.
"There's still some light pain." Said Darkness as she flexed her hand "But no worries I will fight on regardless."
She stood proud and attempting to demonstrate the attitude of a proper crusader.
Kazuma however knew her enough by this point to know what she actually means.
"I completely believe you..." Said Kazuma flatly. "Anyways we should probably get back to Chris."
When they got back, they found Chris still unharmed and still evading the one punch bear. Easily Kazuma noted. Sure, Chris was quite nimble which would make sense given her class but the bear wasn't as fast as he initially thought.
He figures since he had time to actually settle himself after the initial encounter it wasn't as dangerous. Which was also true of the infected in Harran. Even the mutated types.
Once you got the initial surprise and thought calmly about it, they didn't seem as dangerous. But was important to never lose that sense of danger. Overconfidence has killed more than a few survivors and nearly killed him a few times.
But once again lessons learned.
"Chris we're back." Said Darkness "I am ready to face this beast once more!"
She was about once again rush in to face the beast.
""WAIT!"" shouted both Kazuma and Chris at the same time.
"Darkness you couldn't hit that thing while it was standing still!" said Chris "If you go in there, you'll just get knocked into the woods again!"
"And I don't have the mana left to heal you again and deal with that thing!" said Kazuma "If you want to get mangled fine, but don't drag us down with you!"
Darkness eyes widened at his words. As if she just realized something, and looked away in shame.
The one punch bear came in again and tried to crush them with a fist Chris got out of the way dragging Darkness with her. Kazuma jumped back.
The bear was about as fast as a demolisher. It was easy enough to dodge as long as you didn't lose focus.
"Kazuma, do you have a plan?" Called out Chris.
"Something of one!" shouted Kazuma while the "I hear about the [Bind] skill. Do you have that?"
"I tried that earlier but the bear saw it coming and was able to dodge it." Called out Chris. This turned the bears attention back to them
That's problem good thing he thought of a solution.
He took to arrows from his quiver and nocked one.
Several reasons he hasn't used it until now. The bear was typically too close to switch to a bow. Also, he's pretty sure he doesn't have enough arrows to kill the thing if he could have.
But used in tandem with a wider plan was good use of resources.
"Hey Smokey!" shouted Kazuma trying to gain the bears attention. "Over here!"
It turned undoubtedly not understanding him but instead drawn to the noise.
"[Snipe], [Snipe]." Kazuma used his skill in quick succession. His target was not just the bear but the bears eyes. His luck stat guaranteed a direct hit as two arrows hit their targets near simultaneously.
The bear roared in pain as the arrows embedded themselves and blinded the beast.
"Now Chris!" Shouted Kazuma.
"On it! [Bind]!" Chris activated her skill and a rope flew from her bag wrapping around the monsters' feet. Causing it to fall over on its front.
"Darkness, cut its head off!" He yelled as they were coming over to rejoin him.
"Wha...? Oh! On it!" Dakrness had some momentary confusion before realizing the opportunity it presented.
It occurred to Kazuma that he should probably work on his communication skills; he was lucky Chris was quick on the uptake but since he was surrounded by other novice adventurers, if he does end up in party he's going need convey his idea's better
He watched Darkness raise her sword and swing it down like a she was executioner.
Or at least that's what she was trying to do…
"She's going to miss again…" said Chris flatly.
The swords trajectory was off and it was aiming to land right in front of the bear.
"Oh for crying out...[Snipe]!" Kazuma thoroughly tired of this situation shot an arrow not at Darkness but her sword.
The arrow hit the sword directing it to a proper path that ending cleaving through the bears neck.
A quick survey with [Detect Enemy] revealed that the area was clear for the moment as Kazuma and Chris both let out a sigh of relief.
He's glad there's no Bear's of the North Star in this world…on second thought he better not jinx it.
"Well, that's dealt with." Said Kazuma as he put his bow back over his shoulder.
"Seriously." Said Chris exasperated "Nice thinking with arrow on Darkness's sword, I don't think most archers even higher leveled ones could pull that off."
"Lucky shot." Said Kazuma with a shrug.
Chris just giggled knowing what he was referencing.
"Yes indeed." Said Darkness joining the two. "I don't think I would have live through the shame of missing it after all the work you two put in to immobilize it."
"Oh? So, shame is a bad thing now?" asked Kazuma with an arched eyebrow.
Darkness fidgeted a bit and looked away reddening a bit.
"There are different kinds of shame…" she mumbled. While Chris just looked on amused.
Kazuma just sighed.
"Let's…just go checkout that cave."
After a few more minutes of searching, they arrived at the cave that dug into the side of a small cliff, it wasn't a dungeon but it also wasn't a natural formation.
Judging by the marks on the wall it seemed the one punch bear punched its way into the cliffside in order to carve out a den.
(-0000-)
When they made their report back at the guild Luna was surprised at their findings and even more surprised that they managed to kill the bear, especially that Darkness was the one to deal the finishing blow.
They exited the guild as the sun was setting.
"Well, that was certainly an eventful request." Said Chris cheerfully despite today's events. "So Kazuma have you made your decision on whether or not Darkness can join your party?"
If Kazuma was being honest he was very heavily leaning towards 'No way in hell'.
She was a crusader that seemed to be able to take hits from things that names started with one punch which was amazing since she was still comparatively low leveled.
But at the same time, she couldn't hit a giant target even if it was standing still. Then there was her unique personality which was a whole other thing.
But once again this was Chris asking. He feels like he owes her.
He sighed already knowing he was going to regret what he was about to do.
"Fine, but on one condition." Said Kazuma.
They both looked at him Chris with a grin, and Darkness with a hopeful look in her eyes.
"She needs to learn the [Two-handed sword] skill." Said Kazuma. "The fact she couldn't hit a large immobile target is just ridiculous."
"That sounds fair, right Darkness?" Said Chris looking at her friend with a knowing grin. She has been trying to convince Darkness to get an offensive skill for a while now.
"But…I see myself rather as someone to shield others, then to attack enemies." Said Darkness, despite this she did have her card out.
"Listen, I don't know what kind of preconceived notions or ideals you had when becoming an adventurer." Said Kazuma "But reality doesn't always go how we expect or even want it to. You want to be part of a team, however to do that you need to be willing to work with others and compromise."
Like he's doing even considering this.
That was the tricky part about the early days of the quarantine when survivor groups were still forming. You had both locals and tourist now stuck together and trust was very sparse.
But eventually people did learn to trade things and make concessions if it meant they would all be able to see the next sunrise. And because of that they were able to last against everything Harran threw at them.
At least until the nuke.
"I understand." Admitted Darkness "Perhaps I have been a little selfish in how I conducted myself thus far in regards to being a part of party. Also, if it wasn't for you, I doubt I would be walking here with you right now. Very well if this is what it takes to continue adventuring."
Darkness with some hesitancy selected the [Two-handed sword skill] on her card.
"Well, this looks like the start of a beautiful friendship!" Said Chris happily clapping her hands together. "That being said it looks it's time for us to head home for the night, see you around Kazuma!"
"Yes, I will see you tomorrow." Nodded Darkness "Good night, Kazuma."
"Good Luck." He replied reflexively, before realizing what he said.
The customary 'good night' in Harran. A message given out by the Towers radio operator when the sun was setting wishing all survivors a safe night and good luck. Because if you were caught outside a safe zone after nightfall, you definitely would need it.
"Good…?" Started Chris.
"…Luck?" Finished Darkness
The two girls looked at him inquisitively.
"Ah… that was just something we used to say back where I came from." Said Kazuma a bit flustered at his slip of the tongue. "Anyways I'll see you tomorrow."
He walked off back to his cabin. Leaving the two female adventures to ponder his words as they also went to their dwellings for the night.
"So, Darkness what do you think of him?" asked Chris in a cheeky manner.
"He is…different from anybody I have ever met." Said Dakrness as she thought back to young man, they just parted ways with. "He's young but he has the look of a veteran who has seen conflict, not to mention he also seems always to be wary of his surroundings even here in Axel."
"Yeah… He's been through some tough times." Said Chris, she knew exactly what he's been through, but she doesn't want to reveal anything to specific to Darkness. At least just yet.
"Hmm…Do you perhaps know about his origins?" Asked Darkness.
"A little…" Said Chris trying to dodge the question "It's not my place to share though."
"That is fair." Said Darkness nodding in agreement. "Regardless I look forward to the adventures we will go on and all the dangerous monsters we'll face, who will undoubtedly try to rip me limb from limb…."
Darkness once again was beginning to get lost in her own world.
"Okay hold it right there!" Said Chris "Listen Darkness, he has accepted you to work with him, but please lower your fantasizing, he already has rough road ahead he doesn't need any more problems to deal with. I'm not asking to change who you are but please don't let it be a burden to him."
There was a slight pause as Darkness took in what her friend said.
"You seem to be quite fond of him." Stated Darkness, before getting a teasing smirk. "Has he perhaps caught your eye?"
'Girl talk' was something she rarely was able to do due to a lack of friends with her age or status.
"Not like that." Sated Chris plainly, not leaving any room for more teasing. "Let's just say his significance has to do with that other…business I deal with."
Darkness caught onto what she meant. She is aware on some level that Chris is connected to Eris Church in some unique capacity she has so far kept hidden from her. This business often makes her leave for periods of time to return just as sporadically. But Darkness knows that it is important work.
She knew better than to push further.
"Very well I will try." Said Darkness.
"That's all I ask." Said Chris "Well see you around Darkness."
Chris separated from her and went off to where ever it she goes. Yet another mystery about her closest friend.
-Heaven-
Eris appeared back inside her domain and sat down in her throne, a bit tired but with a bit of a sense accomplishment.
Sure, there was a close call with Darkness today, but adventuring is a dangerous life. With Kazuma around she's confident that he'll keep her friend out too much trouble.
And when they do inevitably get into trouble, she'll be there to keep him alive.
Speaking of trouble…
She manifested a map of the current world that showed a real time movement of the Demon Kings forces.
It seemed one was moving away from the Demon's territory and the frontline and heading right towards…
Huh…Well it looks like she was right that they will inevitably get into trouble, she just didn't expect it to be so soon.
And unfortunately, due to the rules governing the Heavens she won't be able to directly intervene.
(-0000-)
And done, well I won't pretend to be mysterious about what happens next because I'm pretty sure you all know who and what is about to happen.
So How do you all think I did with Darkness?
Anyways the defining of my 'screwing around'
So, when I started this chapter, I had a tough time trying to write Darkness as close to cannon as I could. Trying to balance her actual want to be a proper knight with her desire to get caught up in literally anything the wonderful world has to offer. Without making her a joke character, which to be honest the main cast of Konosuba basically are.
Then the bear, I was trying to decide whether to use the current One punch iteration or the original one-strike. For those who don't know the strike bear has giant claws instead of fists.
I decided to go with the fist bear just because it fits with the absurdity of that world.
But for a while I was averaging about a sentence a week.
Anyways while trying to figure this out Remnant II came out. I really liked the first one and have played the crap out of it. So naturally that took a bit of my time.
Then the month after Armored Core 6 dropped. That took up a lot of my focus going in too. Fun game by the way. Not as hard as people make it out to be, but not easy either.
Also, I have been kind of slowly typing another story for Konosuba. Something along the lines Konosuba but New Game plus if those tickles anybody's interest. But I don't know if I'll upload it anytime soon.
Also for that one guy who pointed out the dual chapter issue thank you for pointing that, I must have hit a wrong button when I was trying to edit something that didn't translate well into the fanfic format.
