Danmachi: Is It Wrong to Aspire to Be an Adventurer?

The sun was just about to dip below the western horizon. I stood alone in front of a certain tavern.

Hostess of Fertility, a popular hangout among adventurers, run by a Dwarven woman. There are a few reasons for its popularity, but let's set those aside for now.

As for why I was standing here…

"Ah, there you are! Hey, Bell!"

"Oh, Toki!"

Right. I was just waiting for Bell.

"Sorry! Did I keep you waiting?"

"Nah, I haven't been here long."

We exchanged a few words and stepped inside the tavern. And then, 

"Oh! Bell-sama!"

A Human waitress approached us.

"She's here!"

"Welcome, oh, Toki!"

"Evening, Syr."

"Oh? Do you two know each other?"

"Well, I've dropped by a few times."

At that, Syr raised her voice in a clear, ringing tone.

"Two guests coming in!"

Bell hunched his shoulders and followed behind Syr, with me bringing up the rear. Bell's trying not to stand out, but with that posture, he's only drawing more attention.

"Right this way, please."

"O-okay…"

We were led to a counter seat tucked away in a corner. Bell sat in the corner most spot, and I took the seat next to him.

"So you're Syr's guest, huh? Hah! Got a cute face for an adventurer!"

The owner, Mia, called out to us as we sat.

"They say you've got such an appetite you left my girls screaming in the kitchen! I'll keep the food coming, so you'd better keep the money flowing!"

"Pffft!"

I nearly choked. I turned to Bell, who looked completely stunned. He shot a wide-eyed glance at Syr. Ah, Syr averted her eyes.

"Wait, since when am I some kind of glutton!? That's news to me too, you know!?"

"Hehehe…"

"Don't you 'hehehe' me!"

No, I can't laugh here. Poor Bell. I shook with suppressed laughter, doing my best to hold it in.

"I just told Mama Mia that I wanted to treat someone I knew, so she should bring out lots of food… and the story kind of… grew on its own…"

"That's totally on purpose, isn't it!?"

"I'm rooting for you!"

"Start by clearing up the misunderstanding!?"

"Nope, can't. Ahahaha!"

"I'm telling you, I'm not a big eater! Our Familia is already broke!"

"…So hungry… I can't move… it's 'cause I didn't get breakfast…"

"Please stop with the deadpan delivery!? Also, that's just gross!?"

"AHAHAHAHA!"

"Seriously, Toki! You're laughing way too much!"

Man, my stomach hurts. It's been a while since I laughed this hard.

"Ahh, that was hilarious. Anyway, Bell, if it comes to it, I've got some emergency savings. Eat as much as you like."

"…Well, I'll try, I guess."

You really are weak to women, huh.

After that, we enjoyed the steady stream of dishes that came out. Bell chatted away with Syr, and I figured it'd be rude to interrupt, so I gave Mia a quick update on recent events.

And then, 

…Hey.

Whoa, now there's a prize.

Idiot, look at the emblem.

…Crap.

The tavern suddenly stirred. I turned to see what the commotion was about.

It was the Loki Familia.

Bell stared at them, no, at Ais Wallenstein, then flushed bright red and buried his head against the counter.

"…Bell?"

Syr tried calling out to him, but he didn't seem in any shape to respond.

"Alright, good work on the expedition, everyone! Tonight we party! Drink up!!"

Under the command of their deity, Loki, the Loki Familia had begun their celebration.

"They're one of our best customers." Syr explained."Their goddess Loki took quite a liking to our tavern."

That's actually how I first found out about this place too, through a friend in the Loki Familia.

Bell kept stealing glances at Ais, eyes wide like saucers, a dreamy expression on his face. I couldn't help but smile, though for a different reason than before.

Around the middle of the celebration, the werewolf adventurer sitting diagonally across from Ais raised his voice.

"Hey, Ais! Tell 'em that story!"

"That story…?"

Ais tilted her head, seemingly unsure.

"You know! That Minotaur you cleaned up on the fifth floor on our way back! After a few got away!"

Suddenly, it felt like cold water had been dumped over my head.

"You mean that Minotaur that attacked us on the seventeenth floor, and when we fought it off, the rest fled?"

"Yeah, that one! Climbed the upper floors like some damn miracle, we were freaking out trying to catch up! And we were already exhausted on the way back!"

I had the overwhelming urge to cover my ears, but my arms wouldn't move.

"And get this, there were these total rookie adventurers, green as they come! It was hilarious, man. They got cornered by the wall like little rabbits! One of 'em tried to fight, but the other one, a man, was shaking so badly, face all twisted up!"

My body burned like it was on fire.

"So what happened? Did they make it?"

"Ais sliced the thing to ribbons just in time, right?"

"…"

Ais didn't answer.

"And the one who was shaking, got soaked in that stinkin' bull's blood! Looked like a bright red tomato!"

"Eww…"

"Come on, Ais, you totally did that on purpose, didn't you? Please say you did!"

"That's… not true."

"And then Tomato-boy started screaming and ran off, and the other one bolted too… bwahaha! Our princess saved him and he ran away!"

Laughter erupted throughout the tavern. On our side, it felt like there was a huge wall separating us from them.

"Seriously, it pissed me off. Haven't seen such pathetic losers in a while. One cried, and the other didn't even think, just charged in."

"…Oh dear."

"They were hopeless. Crying, panicking, no idea of their own limits. If you're like that, you've got no business being an adventurer. Right, Ais?"

I wanted to shut him up. Right then and there. But I couldn't.

"People like that drag us all down. Makes us look bad."

As the sounds of the tavern faded away, only the voice of that damned werewolf rang clearly in my ears.

"Oooh, listen to the proud elf talk. But hey, what's the point in defending trash like that?"

"You're just making yourself feel better for your own screwups. What's wrong with calling garbage what it is?"

"Ais, what do you think? About those pathetic guys shaking in their boots? They dare to call themselves adventurers, same as us?"

"You're playing nice now, but let me ask you this, if you had to pick between me and those brats, who would you choose?"

"C'mon, Ais. Choose. Which male do you wag your tail at? Who do you want to get wrecked by?"

"So what, if one of those little punks confessed their love to you, you'd accept it?"

"Hah! No way in hell. Weak, soft, hopeless little losers like that don't belong next to a top-class adventurer like you."

"Losers like that don't deserve to stand beside Ais Wallenstein."

Clatter!

A chair crashed to the ground. Out of the corner of my eye, I saw something white dash past.

"Bell!?"

Syr rushed after him. I slipped a few coins from my pocket.

"Mia, the bill. For both of us."

"You sure? Yours is enough."

"No, this was always my treat."

Reluctantly, Mia accepted the reddened, warm coins. I stood, turned, and fought the urge to run. I walked briskly across the tavern, and then…

"Wait!"

My sleeve was grabbed. I turned around, 

"…Lefiya."

There stood my friend, Lefiya Viridis.

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