Journey to Godhood Begins in Frieren

"Uh…" Shichen leaned back a bit, looking wary as the receptionist practically tried to crawl over the counter.

"Oh, sorry! That was kinda rude." The receptionist finally realized what she was doing.

Her face turned pink as she let go of Shichen's hand and sat upright again.

"Ahem, Shichen, you still don't know my name, do you? I'm Luna—currently single." Luna introduced herself with a big grin.

"Hey! What kind of introduction is that? Do you think this is speed-dating? Aren't you the receptionist? Show some professionalism!" Megumin popped her head up again, glaring at Luna.

This time, Shichen didn't stop her. In fact, he picked Megumin up and put her right on his lap.

"…Are you treating me like a little kid?" Megumin glanced over her shoulder at him.

"Isn't this pretty comfy?" Shichen replied with a smile.

"Hmph! Fine, I guess it's not too bad," Megumin muttered. She shifted her gaze back to the receptionist. "Don't even think about making a move on Shichen—he's Yunyun's property! Just do your job!"

"M-Megumin! What are you even saying!" Yunyun's cheeks blazed with embarrassment.

"Hehe, so... what's your relationship with Shichen?" Luna asked smoothly, keeping her friendly smile.

"Me? I… I'm the one who's footing his bills!" Megumin paused before blurting out the most convenient thing.

"Hey!"

"A thousand Eris is still cash, okay? That means I'm paying for your living expenses."

"It's only a thousand Eris. I can cover that for Shichen-san," Luna responded, still all smiles.

"Excuse me? Are you challenging me right now? You've got guts to pick a fight with a top-tier Crimson Demon Mage! You think you can rely on those lumps on your chest? Hah! Won't work—Shichen's not gonna accept your offer."

"And why do you get to decide what Shichen-san wants? Let me guess—you guys just happened to arrive in Axel together, right?"

"Urk…" Megumin flinched, clearly caught off guard.

"Looks like I'm right," Luna said, smile widening. "Even though you two are Crimson Demons, and that's pretty rare, Shichen-san is no less capable. Plus, you two are still kids, which means he doesn't really need you."

"What…?" Megumin growled, her expression dark.

"You'd just be dragging him down. Better if you stopped clinging to him."

"No way! Sh-Shichen definitely needs us!" Megumin shot back.

"Oh, really? And what exactly does he need you for?" Luna asked, eyes glinting in amusement.

"Shichen, he… he…" Megumin turned, looking at Shichen's calm face, racking her brain. Suddenly, she had a "brilliant" idea. "He's a total lolicon!"

Megumin's high-pitched little voice echoed through the entire guild!

A few people had already been sneaking glances because of the scene at the counter. Now, after Megumin's declaration, they all stared at Shichen with odd looks on their faces.

Being into lolis might be weird, but hey, everyone's got their own quirks.

But a lolicon who's been outed by an actual loli? Well that's… awkward.

"H-Hey! What are you blabbering about now?" Shichen resisted the urge to just toss Megumin off his lap, settling for a swat on the head.

"Ow! Why'd you hit me?"

"Who said I'm a lolicon? Stop making things up!"

"But aren't you literally holding me in your arms?" Megumin wiggled, pointing out his hands wrapped around her waist.

Shichen twitched in surprise. Wait, when did he even grab her around the waist? He hadn't noticed at all.

"And besides, you totally like Yunyun!"

"When did I say that?"

"Huh?" Yunyun made a tiny noise of confusion.

"Okay, fine. I do like Yunyun, but not in the way you're implying."

"L-Like?" Yunyun repeated, face going scarlet in an instant. She pressed her hands to her cheeks as if trying to hide.

"Just admit it—Yunyun's super cute, and she's got that whole baby-face-plus-big-boobs combo going on. Most guys would be all over that," Megumin insisted.

"Where'd you even pick up a phrase like 'baby-faced big-boobs?'" Shichen asked, exasperated.

"Stop sweating the details. My point is, sure, Yunyun's got big lumps of fat, but deep down she's still basically a loli. So that means you're 100% a lolicon!" Megumin declared, grinning smugly.

"Lolicon my ass!" Shichen spun her around and grabbed her cheeks, pulling them apart.

"Mmph!"

"That's for talking nonsense and trashing my reputation. I should never have come here with you. Good thing there aren't too many people around, or my name would be ruined."

"Mmmph!"

"Anyway, keep your mouth shut until I finish registering," Shichen said, still tugging at Megumin's cheeks. She didn't even bother resisting.

"Luna-san, so all I have to do now is pick a class?" Shichen asked, looking past Megumin.

"Yes. My personal recommendation is to choose the Mage class—it's really popular. Priest is also good, but someone already signed up as one around noon today."

"Oh yeah? What was that person like?" Shichen asked, feigning innocence.

"She was named Aqua, had light blue hair, and looked nearly goddess-level gorgeous. But her IQ was questionable, and her luck stat was practically bottom-tier."

"I see…" Shichen tried not to laugh as he glanced at his Adventurer's Card.

"So, Shichen-san, which class do you have in mind?"

"Huh… I was thinking: Adventurers can learn skills from every class, right?"

"Yes, that's correct. The word 'Adventurer' itself is an all-rounder type. Although it's a beginner class, you can technically learn and use every other class's skills. Shichen-san… don't tell me you're picking—"

"That's exactly what I'm doing. I'm becoming an Adventurer."

"But—"

"What's the problem?"

Luna hesitated. "Well, Adventurers can learn all skills, but it takes way more skill points. And you don't get class-specific bonuses, so even with the same skills, you'll be weaker than a specialized class. And… it's the most basic class, so it's considered the weakest overall."

"No worries. Luna-san, aren't you forgetting my stats?" Shichen smiled.

"Ah!"

"I don't need any class buffs. Adventurer suits me just fine."

"Right… with your parameters, I guess you really don't need class bonuses," Luna said, blinking in surprise.

"So, it's decided—I'll be an Adventurer," Shichen announced, making his choice. Instantly, the "Available Skills" section on his card filled up with a huge list.

[Explosion], [Fireball]… basically every spell and skill he'd come across so far—even [Cursed Lightning]. It was all there!

That was why he wanted to be an Adventurer in the first place.

In this world, you couldn't just learn magic or skills at a glance; you had to follow the system rules—leveling up to earn skill points.

Choosing a specific class didn't matter that much to Shichen, since his Familiar were already his main fighting force. Still, he was interested in messing around with different spells and skills. It'd be a shame not to, now that he was here.

Plus, he already had 100 starting skill points!

Normally, you start at zero points, earning one per level. Sometimes exceptional people start with a few. Shichen hadn't expected to start with 100.

If the level cap was 100, wasn't that basically all the skill points he needed right from level one?

He wasn't too shocked though—he was, after all, someone on the path to becoming a god (or so he thought).

With that many points, Shichen didn't hesitate. He snapped up every skill on the list. It was kinda wild—unlike training under Flamme or Frieren and struggling through trial and error, here he just knew everything in an instant.

He wondered if he could bring them to this world so they could speed-learn spells too. If there was ever a chance, he'd test it out.

After that, there wasn't much else to do. Shichen left the guild with Megumin and Yunyun in tow.

Luna actually invited him to dinner, but he politely declined. She was a little too forward, and since this was his first day in town, he wanted to get settled before worrying about stuff like that.

"Hey, Shichen, so what's our plan now?" Yunyun asked once they stepped outside.

Instead of replying right away, Shichen finally let go of Megumin—he'd still been pinching her cheeks, which were now bright red.

"Boohoo…" Megumin rubbed her face, looking like she was about to cry. "You're always picking on me!"

"Well, maybe don't keep spouting crazy stuff," Shichen retorted, completely unapologetic.

"I'm your creditor, you know!"

"Wanna see me do one quick quest and pay you back right now?"

"N-never mind, I'm not desperate for that chump change."

"Then why don't you actually want me to pay you back?" Shichen asked curiously.

"Because I want you to owe me," Megumin said, sulking a bit.

"And… how does that help?"

"Normally, it'd be a big deal. But you don't seem to have a conscience," Megumin huffed. "Still, I believe you'll grow one someday, so I'm letting you stay in my debt."

Shichen just shook his head. "...Alright, do whatever you want."

"So, seriously, what now?" Yunyun piped up again.

Shichen finally answered, "Simple. We find ourselves an inn first."

~~~

Oh yeah, in KonoSuba it's Wizard not Mage but it's all the same to me…

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