“You jerk, Al! I, Sophia, would rather starve to death, die outside, or jump out of this second-floor window than hold a shield for you!”
Little Sophie, who had just woken up and was preparing to cook, looked at little Al smiling as she handed her the [Treant’s Shield]. After hearing the explanation, Sophia immediately refused to cooperate.
“I’m going to use two-handed swords — preferably dual-wielding katanas! One sword to punish evil, and one to suppress souls! Do you understand? Look at my Twin Sword Flash! …”
“Stop, stop, stop!” Airlise pinched the bridge of her nose and said, her forehead covered in dark lines.
“Sophie, now please provide a reasonable explanation for your reckless behavior in pulling the boss today. If your reason isn’t sufficient, I will reconsider your tactical positioning from tomorrow onward.”
“…” Sophia fell silent.
‘Oh no, it looks like Al is actually angry… What should I do?’
She slapped her cheeks, forcing herself to start thinking.
‘I should change the subject. Maybe talk about what we’re eating tonight? If I make Al happy, she might forget what I did today.’
“Oh my — it’s getting late. We should prepare dinner.”
“That wild boar meat from the day before yesterday… how about I make some burgers with lettuce, tomatoes, and bread? I promise you’ll feast tonight, okay?”
Sophia just wanted to satisfy Airlise’s stomach as quickly as possible so she would stop making things difficult for her.
“The thing is, Sophie, a better class composition provides our duo with more security. I believe that at this stage, it’s necessary to curb your unpredictability as a front-liner.”
Airlise stuck to the facts. After all, if the party’s tactical issues weren’t resolved, she couldn’t keep acting as the emergency responder. If she hadn’t had mana potions today, her MP would have been completely drained.
“I’m not joking. I’m actually thinking of making you a heavy-armored shield guard. You should just turn into a tin can and carry a massive two-handed shield. It would give me a huge sense of security ~ “
In a fantasy world, having a “tin can” teammate standing in front was the definition of an iron wall, especially when there was a support character in the back.
After Airlise finished speaking, Sophia was stunned. Feeling like she couldn’t win the argument, she chose to throw a tantrum in desperation.
Sophia flopped onto the ground like a 3-year-old and began rolling around. “Hmph! Aaaah! Al bullies me every day! Who wants to be an ugly tin can! No delicious food for you tonight!”
‘Doesn’t that sound a bit off? I’m the one forced to be a human body pillow every night, and yet I’m not the one complaining. She’s really playing the victim here, isn’t she?’
Airlise knew her childhood friend too well; she acted like this every time Airlise tried to be reasonable. To be precise, a woman never needed to be reasonable with a man, but now…
In that case…
“Okay, be a good girl ~ Sister Sophie, this is just a small request from little Al ~ It’s just a matter of having you hold a shield a few times.”
Airlise’s watery, sky-blue eyes stared straight at Sophia, blinking every now and then. The white-haired loli’s aggrieved expression caused Sophia’s resolve to waver.
“Is it really… no, Sister Sophie? Do you hate your little sister now? *sob sob*.”
Moe offensive, go!
Airlise felt like something inside her was shattering, but her goal was achieved.
‘I’m as cute as can be!’
Sophia’s attitude did a 180-degree turn, and a doting smile immediately appeared on her face.
“Hehe ~ My Al, Big Sis will do it. There, there ~ Just sit at the table. Hehe ~ *slurp*, the burgers will be served soon ~ “
Plan successful.
*****
Morning came the next day. Airlise’s sleep quality had been much better than before. Sophia had been mindful of her feelings the past few days, only hugging her for a short while before turning to sleep on her side. After all, the feeling of being held as a human body pillow all night was quite uncomfortable.
Birds chirped melodiously on the branches outside the window as the white-haired loli stretched. After shedding her pajamas and changing into a clean, neat shrine maiden outfit, she looked at the sleeping Sophia and naturally reached out to gently stroke the hair on Sophia’s forehead.
‘I’m glad you’re here. I’m not alone in this life.’
She had to protect the beauty before her. Even if her own ending led to destruction, she would make sure Sophia survived.
…
She slapped her cheeks to stop her stray thoughts and immediately began brainstorming.
Last night, Sophia mentioned that their stock of flour and seasoning was running low. It was difficult to be self-sufficient with these man-made supplies without going to human towns, and they didn’t have the luxury of time to plant wheat fields.
Furthermore, living in seclusion in the dense forest for too long made it inevitable that they would be out of touch. Visiting human towns occasionally would help them better understand the state of the world.
She had discovered a recipe for a Disguise Potion in an alchemy book. If she could use it successfully without being detected, they could integrate into human society more freely.
It was time for these two shut-ins to go out and see the world.
Airlise quickly flipped through the alchemy book. Before long, she found the page with the recipe.
“Slime mucus, chameleon meat, Crude leaves, volcanic rock, and a Cave Spider’s web? It seems the materials aren’t that hard to obtain!”
Full of confidence, little Al crossed her arms, puffing out her small chest, and added, “We already have three of the materials at home. Once I go out to collect the chameleon meat and volcanic rock, I can start the refinement.”
So far, everything Airlise had done had been very smooth. She was convinced that she would succeed this time as well. If someone had a magic mirror behind her, they would probably see her fox tail wagging high in the air.
She was already thinking about popping champagne to celebrate early.
By the afternoon, she had successfully collected the remaining materials. After returning to the small cabin, she strictly followed the steps in the recipe and began the alchemy process in an orderly fashion.
While properly injecting her mana, she stirred the mixture in the alchemy cauldron at a steady speed. About 15 minutes later, a familiar system voice rang in her ear.
[Current [Disguise Potion] success rate is 63%. Would you like to proceed?]
??
This kind of system prompt hadn’t appeared when she was refining stamina and mana potions. Was the system broken?
‘There shouldn’t be any mistakes, right? Hmm?’
‘The alchemy book wouldn’t lie to me, would it? Hmm?’
Hesitation leads to defeat!
Whatever, she had already come this far. A true warrior dares to face a bleak life and confront dripping blood — the greatness of that person needs no explanation.
Airlise immediately clicked YES on the screen. Afterward, the alchemy cauldron began to shake violently and uncontrollably, as if something was about to come out.
The color of the unknown liquid in the cauldron changed from light green to deep blue, then turned pitch black. Bubbles in the liquid popped with sharp cracks, and a plume of thick black smoke rose…
‘I’m doomed!’
Boom!
Sophia, who was diligently swinging her sword outside, heard the loud noise and rushed inside. She asked Airlise in a panic, “What happened, Al? Ugh, aaah!”
As the smoke gradually cleared, the once-tidy first floor was a mess. The carpet, bookshelf, kitchen, and dining table were covered in a black, viscous, unknown liquid, and even the walls were scorched black. Inside the room, Airlise was collapsed on the floor. Her hair had turned into an afro, her eyes were rolled back, and she was foaming at the mouth.
“You big dummy, Al! Pay for my beautiful kitchen! Ugh, aaah! How long is it going to take to finish the housework this time?!”
Art is an explosion, meow!
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