Foreigner Volume 8, Chapter 176

Volume 8 Chapter 176, Steady Advance ~ 29

　After the meeting with Vance, Satoru, Rico, Isolde, and Solor (plus Leia in the shadows) took a little stroll through the town of Deligrande.

　After all, the sight of a town in the middle of bedrock is intensely disconcerting. It is no wonder that they felt a little uncomfortable because of the towering bedrock surrounding them. Moreover, the Dwarves are living in the hollowed-out bedrock.

　However, if you think about it, it might be similar to a concrete jungle, Satoru mused to himself. If Rico, for example, were confronted with a 30 to 40-story building, she would be absolutely stunned. At least the dwarves have been living like this for hundreds of years, so Satoru, who had just arrived yesterday and was only going to be here for a few days, would have no reason to be concerned.

　The dwarves living in the town do not seem to discriminate against them because they are human. However, they are wary of Satoru. In some respects, they are simply intimidated by his size.

　Even after a quick look around, there are no stalls selling their wares in rows on the eaves of stores, as is the case in human towns. This is because of the poor air quality in the town, and if you put something outside, it is immediately contaminated with soot and other pollutants. Satoru was glad that there was no calling out to people. Frankly speaking, he was not good at such things.

　There was a slight bias in the food sold. Dwarves, who do not farm, depend on humans for food, with the exception of some meat and vegetables. Perhaps that is why foodstuffs are a little expensive. However, metal and leather goods are inexpensive, and Satoru bought a new pair of boots for himself. The boots he bought in the town of Aletta, just outside the Leia labyrinth, were not the right size. Of course, there were no ready-made boots that fit Satoru's size, so he ordered a pair after getting the proper measurements. The next day, they said it would be ready. Come to think of it, Liz's boots must have been worn out. Satoru decided that it would be better to check the size of the boots, so he didn't buy them on the spot.

　The diet of dwarves is mainly meat. Rico and Satoru were selecting the best quality ham, bacon, and other processed meats while grumbling about it. Rico was also asking about cooking methods. The basic cooking method is to marinate the meat in a herb-infused liquid and then bake or boil it. They bought some half-cooked meat marinated in herbs that they had no idea what kind of meat it was, such as Gamala tod. It was a souvenir for Minerva. Satoru looked around for a souvenir for Liz, but couldn't find anything for her, who doesn't like meat, so he managed to find some sugar candy and returned to the inn.

「Welcome back.」

「We're back. Here, Minerva, a souvenir.」

「Souvenirs? What is it?　...... oh, it's meat~!」

　Minerva was exceptionally pleased. Although it was only lightly because it was before dinner, she immediately munched on it and showed an indescribable expression on her face. It must be delicious.

　Liz came close to Satoru with a subtle expression on her face. He handed Liz a souvenir as well, but her expression was not cheerful.

「Oh, um, ......」

　Liz is unusually hesitant to say anything. What is it? Satoru tilted his head, but quickly, Minerva, who had just finished the meat she had cut into small pieces, said,

「You see, Minerva can smell blood from Liz's crotch.」

「Ah, menstruation.」

　Satoru immediately understood. At the same time, he was relieved that Liz had her period. When he shot his sperm inside her to save her life, he did so without thinking about contraception.

　Leia crawled out of Satoru's shadow and looked at Liz with a subtle expression―Leia cannot conceive a child since she does not have a menstrual period. It must be complicated psychology, Satoru thinks.

　That is partly true, but he could not see through to the fact that Leia actually had even deeper thoughts.

　Liz shrinks her smaller body even smaller and pulls her chin back.

「I'm sorry ......」

「You don't have to apologize. It's a sign that you're alive.」

　Satoru laughed and patted Liz on the head. Liz let out a sigh of relief when she saw that Satoru didn't seem to be bothered by it.

「Speaking of which, do half-elves have the same menstrual cycle as humans?」

「No, the intervals are longer than those of humans. It is about three times longer, about once a season.」

　Satoru marveled. Half-elves, who have a longer life span than humans, also have longer menstrual cycles than humans. Perhaps elves have even longer periods.

「But for 4 or 5 days, sex with Onii-san ......」

「That's because it can't be helped. Don't worry about it.」

　Satoru strokes Liz's head. He doesn't do it during menstruation at any cost, that's the unspoken agreement. Satoru has no taste for splatter.

「But if ...... I'm not a member of the attendant, it's going to be a burden on ...... others.」

「I think it's about time for me too......probably」

　Rico shrugged her shoulders as if she was in trouble. Rico's previous menstrual period had been around the time of her first meeting with Reine and Liz. Rico was not feeling well at the time, and the smell of her menstrual blood made Minerva's nose so dull that she did not notice Raymond and the others, a blunder that she did not want to recall.

　Satoru wonders how much time has passed since then. Now that Liz is menstruating, and now Rico is menstruating as well, only Leia and Solor will be able to attend the night. It might be a bit of a burden for them.

「Anyway. While Liz can't do it, I'm going to have to take her place.」

「I'll have to take Rico-san's place while you're menstruating, then.」

　Liz quickly responded to Rico's proud and triumphant boast. Liz was now able to respond with this kind of joke. Rico panicked.

「W-wait a minute...? Liz menstruates once a season, right? That's not fair!」

「It's good that you two are getting along well, but don't press Me too, me too to our Lord, okay?」

　Leia raised her voice with a bitter smile. She looked around at everyone and puffed out her chest.

「Besides. Unfortunately, today is my day. My Lord has given me permission. I'm gonna have to ask you, girls, to hold off on that.」

　"Fufun," Leia smiled proudly and her gaze was somewhat glamorous. The junior slaves would not be able to stand up to the declaration of the first magical slave who has been traveling with Satoru since the start of his journey. 

　Satoru, who had indeed granted Leia's request but felt that he had been made completely unable to make his own decision, looked up at the ceiling and exhaled.

　Well, honestly, I can't help it. The harem protagonist was thus deepening his troubles.

　＊　＊　＊　＊　＊　＊　＊

　Ares is one of the greatest cities in this world. It is the most populous city in the western part of the continent, not only because it is the eastern gateway to the 13 city-states and a strategic point for trade, but also because it was the home of one of the largest states in the Ancient Magical Kingdoms, and there are many small labyrinths and other places where adventurers can explore. The number of adventurers is also high due to the presence of small labyrinths here and there.

　One of the most famous of these labyrinths is the Labyrinth of No Return in Dalewood Gorge, which has recently been conquered. The labyrinths that have been conquered have lost much of their power as labyrinths and no longer produce monsters. This is a good time for adventurers who are looking to get rich, as it is easier to search for treasures left behind by the party that conquered the labyrinth first.

　If the labyrinth is of the "Labyrinth of No Return" class, there may be a considerable amount of treasure left inside. Adventurers came from all over the world to take advantage of these treasures, and Ares was in the midst of a booming economy.

　More and more people are flocking to see after the Chalk Tower was destroyed by a mysterious light, and the old royal castle Strahltraun was crushed by a huge bedrock ― a rare event that is said to have occurred when Graham Coogan, the head of the previous Academy of the Wise, let his ritual sorcery run amok.

　Among them was a human swordsman who was a little different from the people around him. Ares is a big city and a melting pot of races. The color of their hair as well as the color of their skin is quite varied, so the color of his hair is not a particularly noticeable factor. If anything, the difference in hair color is created by the way people dress. The distinctive cloak is dyed indigo, and the leather armor glimpsed through the gaps in the cloak is of a type not often seen in the West.

　The man is looking around and talking to a group of adventurers. At first glance, it appears as if he is a lone swordsman looking for friends to join his party, but this is not the case. After a couple of conversations, the swordsman was unable to get the information he was looking for, so he asked for a small amount of money and started looking for another party.

「Excuse me, sir.」

　A man approached a group of adventurers who appeared to be veterans. Cheerfully, those veterans also respond. A moment of relief. Ton something was pressed against the man's back.

「Oi」

　The cheerful response from the group of veteran adventurers had not changed ― or, to be precise, their smiling faces were not smiling. It was a trap to lure the man out. Tsk, The man clicked his tongue.

「You're the one who's been snooping around lately, aren't you?」

　The man who is circling behind him and holding something ― probably a dagger ― against his back is using this band of adventurers to lure him in. The man bites his navel.

「For an agent of another country.......that's strange」

　He had long been on the radar. He had even dressed up as an adventurer so as not to be noticed. He clicked his tongue once more, and without being noticed, the man put strength into his legs.

「Oi!」

　Just a slight movement. With that, the man leaped more than a man's height. He leaped once more, placing his foot on the wall of the house. In the blink of an eye, the man reached the roof of the house and ran across it at breakneck speed. Both the veteran adventurer and the man who had been threatening the swordsman from behind could only be stunned by the swordsman's sheer physical prowess as he ran away.

「.....That's a hell of a move he got there. Isn't he as good as Zelphys?」

　The one who was threatening the swordsman from behind was Derek. He was honestly stunned by the Eastern swordsman's movements, which were so impressive that he thought he might be able to match the best physical performance he had ever witnessed. Derek has not worshipped the movements of either Isolde or Satoru. He has seen the moves of Zelphis, one of the former members of the Holy Sword Clan ― not many people have reached that level.

「It's a blessing in disguise. If we were fighting each other directly, it would be bad.....」

　Derek honestly acknowledged the difference in strength. He had confidence in his ability to use a sword to a certain degree, but the people he's encountered recently are all very difficult opponents. He was about to have even his little bit of confidence crushed.

　But at least I had done my job. Derek gave the money to the group of adventurers who had helped him, as promised, and immediately went to report.

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