The Earth-san Has Leveled Up!

2-5. The Next Adventure Begins Abruptly

Walking along the forest path, the three of them began to climb the mountain.

Feeling the crisp morning air and the scent of the trees with her whole body, Meiko thought that it was nice to have moments like this once in a while.

At the edge of the slightly cracked concrete path, spring flowers swayed in the scattered sunlight. Seeing such a scene on a day off made her feel a little more grown-up.

Lulu, with her strong legs, climbed swiftly, moving her long legs with ease.

Meiko, thanks to her leveling up and training, spun her short legs around and kept up with the same pace. It was puzzling.

Among them, Sasara had the least stamina, but since the path wasn’t too harsh, she was still doing fine.

“Lulu-chan, your Japanese is really good. Have you been in Japan for long?”

“Funi~, I come to Nippon about once a year. Other than that, I mostly live in Kismia. I learned Nippon-go from my dad and by watching Nippon anime.”

“Wow, so they have anime in Kismia too?”

“Nya~u! The finale of Nyarto made some kids and even some adults in town disappear!”

“Whaaat, seriously?”

Nyarto is a ninja manga that Japan takes pride in.

Truly, the popularity of NINJAs is fearsome.

“So, are you going to stay in Japan for a long time now?”

“Nya~u! Because of my dad’s work, I’ll be living in Nippon from now on.”

“Is that so? Well, let’s get along well, okay?”

“Nya~u! I’m happy to!”

Meiko was instantly charmed by her new friend, who spoke imperfect Japanese.

When Meiko smiled with a “Nipaa~,” Lulu smiled back with a “Nipaa~” too.

Lulu, too, was charmed by the Japanese loli girl she hadn’t seen in Kismia.

When you’re charmed by someone, know that they are also charmed by you. It’s like staring into an abyss.

“By the way, what does ‘Nya~u’ mean?”

“Nya~u. It’s a word from Kismia that means ‘yes’ or ‘uh-huh’. My dad taught me that saying ‘un’ is no good, but ‘Nya~u’ is fine.”

“Yeah, your dad’s right. That’s better.”

Lulu’s dad seemed to be a man who understood the ways of moe.

“Nya~u!”

As Lulu replied, Meiko also said “Nya~u” and struck a cat pose.

Lulu responded with another “Nya~u” and a cat pose of her own.

The two of them then turned to look at Sasara simultaneously.

Caught off guard by their antics, Sasara hesitated for a moment before exclaiming.

“Ny-Nya~u desu wa!”

She struck a pose too.

It was a collaboration between a loli girl, an ojousama, and a blonde, blue-eyed beauty.

A miraculous scene had descended upon the forest path, but unfortunately, the only witnesses were the mountain’s friends.

The rustling of the trees seemed a little louder than usual.

The three of them, radiating negative ions, continued to walk leisurely along the forest path.

After a while, a path leading into the mountain trail appeared.

Looking at the mountain map placed nearby, Meiko understood where this path led.

“If we go in here, we’ll reach the top of the mountain, and then we can go down from that side over there.”

Being a local, Meiko knew the general geography and what the mountain trails were like. It was said to be a beginner-friendly course. Though she had only heard about it and never actually climbed it. The girls were underestimating the mountain.

“Luu. Let’s go then!”

“Yeah, let’s give it a try! But before that, Lulu-chan, Sasara, don’t be surprised, okay?”

Meiko took off her backpack.

Lately, she had been carrying a backpack even when running.

Inside, she always carried a 500ml water bottle, a bag of candy, calorie-friendly snacks, a sewing kit, and a notebook.

Sasara, imitating her, also carried a backpack.

Inside were a water bottle and a towel. She didn’t have the same level of preparedness for emergencies as Meiko.

Regardless of Sasara, Meiko had made it a point to carry these items with her as much as possible since that day.

In extreme cases, she was confident she could survive for 30 days with just these items. Of course, that was with full use of [Synthesis Enhancement].

Additionally, she carried one grimoire with her.

Since there was a possibility of monsters emerging from dungeons, she made sure to carry at least one grimoire wherever she went.

Meiko took out the grimoire.

“Ma~! That’s a kincho desu ne!?”

Kincho? A forbidden book!

It seemed she had picked up some strange words from anime.

“Fufufu, I got it from a dungeon.”

“A dungeon! Meeko is the first child to return from a dungeon, desu ne.”

“You knew about that?”

“Of course desu! My friends from Kismia sent me pictures. I even bragged to them, ‘Meeko is sleeping right next to me!’.”

Something felt off, but Meiko had indeed fallen asleep at school recently due to exhaustion from training.

The phrase ‘in the seat’ was missing, but it was mostly true. Still, something felt off.

It was here that Meiko first realized she had become a worldwide sensation. She knew she was famous in Japan, but she never expected her fame to cross the seas.

Feeling pumped, Meiko said to the two of them.

“And then, you do this!”

Meiko equipped the Grimoire.

Suddenly, the grimoire began to float softly around her.

“Nya-motesu! Maho-shojo desu!”

Lulu, likely uttering words of admiration, waved her hands excitedly.

Though she was a 170cm tall blonde beauty, she was still just a 15-year-old girl.

Meanwhile, Sasara’s eyes sparkled at the dungeon gear her friend had shown her for the first time, exclaiming, “Amazing, desu wa!” in excitement.

Meiko, basking in their admiration, tried to calm them down.

It was clear she wanted them to praise her more.

“The world has changed since dungeons appeared. There might be monsters that have wandered into ordinary mountains from somewhere. So, it’s better to be prepared. Well, I haven’t heard of any monsters coming out of dungeons yet, and it’s unlikely they’d appear specifically on this mountain.”

“Better safe than sorry, desu wa.”

Sasara, calming her excitement, nodded with a serious expression.

“Shall we go then?”

“Nya~u!”

“Yes, desu wa!”

And so, Meiko, Sasara, and Lulu entered the mountain trail.

Mount Kazami is a very beginner-friendly mountain, easy to climb.

Under normal circumstances, it would be bustling with hikers enjoying the arrival of spring, but due to the bad times, there wasn’t a single soul in sight.

In fact, it was quite crazy for Meiko and the others to be entering the mountain at such a time. Especially Lulu, who had planned to go alone, might have been a bit too carefree.

The flowers that were sporadically blooming along the forest path became more abundant as they entered the mountain trail.

There were gentle paths, as well as minor challenges. The three of them encouraged each other as they climbed a small cliff made of piled-up rocks about two meters high, and after reaching the top, they held hands and laughed together.

In places where the trees thinned out, they could enjoy a panoramic view of the town below in the gentle spring breeze. It was still cherry blossom season, so they could enjoy the sight of the town as if it were covered in large blooming cherry blossoms.

These small adventures fostered a sense of connection among the three that couldn’t be achieved just by exchanging runes at school.

Before they knew it, Meiko started calling Lulu by her name without honorifics. Sasara, as usual, still referred to both of them with ‘-san,’ but it was probably just a habit.

Lulu seemed to have trouble pronouncing Sasara’s name, so she settled on calling her ‘Shaara’. Though Sasara would say things like “Oh dear, desu wa,” she seemed a little pleased as she pouted her lips.

“Is training your hobby, Meeko desu ka?”

As they sat side by side resting in a slightly open area, Lulu asked.

“Yeah. I want to get stronger.”

“Stronger… why desu ka? Is it because of the dungeons desu ka?”

“Yeah. When I entered the dungeon, I found it really interesting. In today’s world, you can look up anything on your smartphone, right?”

“Nya~u.”

“But there’s no information about dungeons anywhere. It’s like drawing on a blank sheet of paper, where I have to think and discover things on my own. That was scary, but also really fun. So, I want to get stronger and explore dungeons.”

As Meiko spoke, Lulu and Sasara looked at her with sparkling eyes, as if they were gazing at a hero they admired.

Embarrassed by their gazes, Meiko buried her face in Lulu’s thigh with a “Unya~.” Lulu, responding to this, started playing around with her, and Sasara, not wanting to be left out, joined in. The three of them laughed and played together.

They started walking again, and after a while, they reached a halfway point on the mountain.

It was a relatively wide area for a mountain trail, with benches where they could rest while overlooking the town.

On the mountain side of the slope, there was a steep staircase leading to a small shrine.

Looking up the staircase, they could see a cherry blossom tree peeking out.

It was probably a mountain cherry blossom.

The three of them looked at each other and nodded.

As Lulu climbed ahead, Meiko couldn’t help but stare at her butt.

This was the Nordic type. It was firm and well-shaped.

It was different from her own small, flat butt.

When she thought about what made it so, she realized that the length of the legs accentuated the beauty of the butt.

The mystery was solved. She felt deflated.

Now, Meiko couldn’t help but notice Sasara’s butt as she climbed the stairs too.

This girl was Japanese like her. She must have some weakness.

With a sigh, Meiko pretended to be tired and urged Sasara to go ahead, naturally positioning herself to get a view from below.

Every time Sasara lifted her thigh, her jersey stretched, revealing a perfectly shaped butt.

There was no weakness there.

Meiko felt dejected. Both of them were the same age, but their bodies were too good.

Just as she came up with the brilliant idea of using [Synthesis Enhancement] on milk, they reached the top of the stairs.

“Shipeeru!”

“Wonderful, desu wa!”

Lulu exclaimed with admiration.

Sasara, unintentionally translating, echoed her words.

Following the two who were already amazed, Meiko also faced the scene.

There, they found a small shrine, only as tall as Meiko’s chest.

Surrounded by cherry blossom trees, the fallen petals covered the ground like a pink carpet.

Perhaps it was enshrined to pray for the safety of hikers, but even in the middle of the mountain, the shrine was well-maintained.

It was likely cleaned just before the arrival of spring, before the dungeons appeared.

“It’s a shrine for the mountain god.”

Meiko pretended to know.

In reality, she had no idea about its origins.

“Is that so, desu ne?”

Sasara, being Japanese, was impressed by Meiko’s knowledge. She was being deceived. This loli was just making things up.

“It’s the god’s house, desu ne?”

“Yeah, like this. You put your hands together and pray for a safe return.”

“Luu. Please watch over us and let us return safely, kudasai!”

“Please let us return safely, desu wa.”

Following Meiko’s lead, Lulu and Sasara also put their hands together and prayed.

Though it started with Meiko’s bluff, it wasn’t a bad thing. In fact, it was probably a very good thing.

Then, the three of them huddled together and took a selfie with their smartphones, capturing themselves in a sea of cherry blossoms. It was very Instagram-worthy. Truly like high school girls.

Lulu immediately sent the picture to her friends in Kismia via rune, and Meiko thought about sending it to her friends too but decided against it.

If Meiko sent a message now, she would receive ten times the replies. She couldn’t just casually send pictures. The chain of replies would be too bothersome. She wouldn’t be able to enjoy the mountain.

Sasara was also engrossed in taking photos. She might send them to someone later.

The timing of sending photos taken with a smartphone reveals one’s personality.

Some people send them immediately, while others take many photos at the same spot and carefully select the best ones to send.

Lulu was the former, and Sasara might be the latter. Meiko still didn’t fully understand smartphones.

The three of them searched for an Instagram-worthy spot and went behind the shrine. It felt more surrounded by cherry blossoms there.

With cherry blossom petals fluttering down onto their hair, the three beauties laughed and took photos together.

And then, it happened.

As they lined up their shoulders to take another selfie and adjusted their positions, suddenly, a pillar of light rose around them.

The surrounding petals swirled, and something hidden within revealed itself.

Startled, Meiko immediately hugged Sasara and Lulu by their waists.

The two of them looked puzzled, not fully understanding what was happening.

Yes, the three of them had stepped into the entrance of a dungeon, hidden among the carpet of cherry blossom petals.

As the pillar of light subsided, the swirling cherry blossom petals fluttered down again.

All that remained was the cherry blossom shrine, standing in the gentle spring sunlight.

――――――

★Kismian Language Lesson

・Funi~: A girly word used when thinking, similar to “um” or “well.”

・Ma~: A girly word used to show attention, like “oh!” or “ah!” Said with full emphasis.

・Nya-motesu: A girly word expressing amazement, like “awesome!” or “incredible!”

・Shipeeru: An exclamation of deep emotion, used when deeply moved. Can be used by both males and females.