Volume 4 Chapter 35 Report. Part Ii
"Well, that's about it. This is Ice's pride. Now, it's Philia's turn!"
"Yes, yes! Let me introduce my beloved disciples!"
In response to Alex's prompt, Philia happily replied. She bounced around in her full-body armor, except for her helmet.
"Let's learn from Alex-chan's opening punch. Show them what you've got!"
"...I see, this is embarrassing."
"Haha, well, I'll show you..."
Blushing, the 2 revealed their gold bow adventurer badges.
"Wowwwww..."
"Stop it, Wade-kun. I get embarrassed when you look at me like that."
"T-this is embarrassing, Philia-san..."
"Sorry! So, it's time to show off my disciples!"
These 2 are amazing. Philia spoke with a smile.
"They've overcome treatments that would drive ordinary people insane. They're no longer human. The magic they use can't even be called magic anymore."
The atmosphere in the room froze. After a brief silence, I let out a surprised sound.
"Huh?"
"What did you do, Philia?"
In response to Alex's question, Clay said, "We're fine."
"We were asked to be prepared, and we agreed. We gained power. We have no complaints. While we may no longer be human, it doesn't bother us."
"Yeah. So, everyone, don't be mad at Philia-san. And look, I got back my lost left arm, and Clay got his leg back."
Toxy raised her left hand. It looked normal, but in this context, it was abnormal.
"If they're powerful enough to no longer be human, reaching the gold rank isn't that rare."
Mudi said and added,
"Philia herself also has long stopped being human, and I do things that don't seem human from the outside. While we are human, it doesn't really mean much."
Then, Mudi looked at me.
"What matters is how your comrades see you when you stop being human, right, Wade?"
"Mudi is called your name..."
Despite Philia nitpicking, I looked at the two and spoke.
"Whether you two are human or not, it doesn't matter to me. Moruru is a dragon, after all. Having non-humans as comrades is nothing new. But, let me ask you one thing."
Clay, Toxy.
"You two really don't care, right? You have no regrets, right?"
To my question, they straightened up and replied seriously.
"We have no regrets. I wanted to catch up to you, Wade-kun. So, I stopped being human. I'm satisfied with the power I've gained. The treatments were tough, but I have no regrets."
"Even though I say I stopped being human, I don't really feel it, Wade. But, I've been through a lot, and I think what I gained outweighs what I lost."
There was no shadow of doubt in their expressions. Even as I stared at them, it remained unchanged.
Alright then. I'll relax.
"I see. Then I don't have anything in particular to say... You both did well."
For some reason, those words slipped out of my mouth. Clay and Toxy seemed choked up and covered their eyes.
"You really..."
"Oh no, that's not... haha, it's not something to cry about..."
They both started crying. We, the listeners, were taken aback. It seemed really tough for them. Sandra nudged me, calling me a smooth talker.
Philia embraced the two with her armored arms.
"Go ahead and cry, both of you. You've overcome so much hardship. ...But let's continue with the pride."
Philia then looked at us -- at me.
"The conditions for the gold bow adventurer badge are threefold: mastery of 10 types of magic, mastery of at least 1 grand magic, and the defeat of a legendary monster."
"Are there really monsters around here?" Mudi asked.
"Well, yeah. That's why we went a little further out."
Philia replied, twirling her finger. It must have been flying with a magic circle.
"What did you defeat? Tell me without being so mysterious."
Alex poked Philia.
"An endless sludge, Anemone."
"No way! It's the legendary monster that couldn't be exterminated since the Age of the God."
Alex exclaimed, leaving Clay and Toxy in a mix of emotions, blushing slightly.
I looked at Alex.
"Alex, what kind of monster is that?"
"There's an Anemone that was turned from a human into a flower due to the jealousy of the gods. The first Anemone flower rotted away, and the sludge formed there. It's an endless sludge with a will. That's 'Endless Sludge, Anemone.'"
"That sounds dangerous."
Sandra commented succinctly. Clay and Toxy, who had finally stopped crying, put on serious faces and said,
"It was tough."
"Yeah! It was really smelly and dirty! It was the worst! Truly the worst!"
Clay and Toxy's expressions revealed the extent of their struggles.
"Ugh... The forest in that area was uninhabitable due to that monster. But maybe this is a development opportunity...? I smell money."
Alex said, sounding like a merchant.
"Well, that's about it for those 2. They've become really strong, my proud disciples~"
Philia concluded. Then I raised my hand.
"By the way, what did those 2 end up becoming?"
Clay and Toxy looked puzzled.
And then they said,
"I'm... probably a giant"
"I think I'm a dragon, Wade."
"I see," I replied, unable to ask where.
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