Arifureta: From Commonplace to World's Strongest Vol. 6

by Ryo Shirakome

“Yep. She is.”

  “She definitely is.”

  Yue and Shizuku nodded without hesitation. Hajime looked tiredly up at the sky. He couldn’t believe the possibility he’d written off was actually the case. “What are you going to do about it?” Yue and Shizuku both asked, their gazes piercing into him. Hajime agonized over what to do for a few seconds before coming to a simple, if inelegant solution.

  “Alright, I’ll just pretend I never noticed.”

  “Well, I doubt Ai-chan’s going to try to come on to you. I suppose it’s better than trying to address it and making a mess of everything...”

  “Hm...? Oh, I get what you mean now. She definitely cares a lot about being our teacher. So as long as she still thinks of me as her student, pretending I haven’t noticed is the best course of action.”

  I really just thought it was the easiest way of dealing with it. Of course Hajime didn’t say that aloud, but Shizuku’s penetrating stare told him she’d guessed as much anyway.

  Hajime ignored her and started on another pseudo-hot dog. By the time they reached the guild, the three of them had eaten their way through the entire bag.

  The capital’s Adventurer’s Guild was even more impressive than Fuhren’s. The grand double doors sat wide open, and throngs of adventurers came in and out. After the invasion, the number of requests brought to the guild had increased exponentially.

  The three of them stepped into the guild and got in line at one of the reception counters. There were ten in total, and all were busy. But the receptionists were all consummate professionals, and the line moved forward at a steady pace.

  For some reason, each and every one of the receptionists were beautiful women. Beautiful, and cute. Very, very cute.

  However, their looks didn’t stir Hajime’s desire in the slightest. As far as he was concerned, there was no one cuter or more beautiful than Yue. Plus, she was holding his hand. There was no way he’d let his gaze wander to other women in this situation.

  Which was why he really wished Yue would stop trying to crush his fingers. No really, I don’t care about any of those other girls! Hajime lamented to himself.

  Shizuku breathed an exasperated sigh, which Hajime ignored, and walked to the now free receptionist’s desk.

  He parsed over his Status Plate, and the documents proving that he had fulfilled the request to deliver Myu safely to her family at Erisen.

  “By the way, would it be possible to report the completion of this quest to Ilwa, Fuhren’s branch chief, from here?”

  “I believe so? Was this... a personal request? Please excuse me for a moment, sir.” The receptionist tilted her head quizzically.

  Branch chiefs rarely made personal requests of mere adventurers, so her confusion was understandable.

  The adventurers at the adjacent receptionists’ desks were staring slack-jawed at him.

  When the receptionist saw the details printed on Hajime’s status plate, her jaw dropped open too.

  She looked from the Status Plate to Hajime, then back down to the plate and back again.

  “Y-You are Hajime Nagumo, correct?”

  “Hm? Yeah, that’s me. Says so on the Status Plate, doesn’t it?”

  “My sincerest apologies, but could you head to the guild office? I was given instructions to bring you there if you ever appeared at our guild, Nagumo-sama... Please wait just a short while, I’ll bring the guild master out right away.”

  “Uh, all I want to do is let Branch Chief Ilwa know I completed his request. I need to go repair the capital’s barrier after this, so I really don’t want to waste too much time here.”

  “U-Umm, but I really can’t allow... I promise I’ll bring him out right away, so please just wait a few seconds!” The receptionist sprinted away with Hajime’s Status Plate and the documents proving he’d returned Myu safely.

  Hajime slumped his shoulders and looked glumly at the floor. Yue and Shizuku both patted his shoulders in an attempt to comfort him.

  Just as Hajime was starting to think letting Ilwa know wasn’t worth the trouble of whatever these people wanted from him, the receptionist returned. She was accompanied by an old man with shrewd eyes and an impressively long beard.

  Judging from his bulging muscles, Hajime was certain that he was one of those buff old-dude types he’d seen so often in anime and manga.

  The moment this old man, who Hajime assumed was the guild master, appeared, the main hall broke out in muttered conversation. News spread through the rest of the guild, and before long the guild master’s appearance was what every adventurer was talking about.

  The guild master’s name was Balse Laputa. Mere mention of his name could bring down floating castles. Fortunately, it seemed Balse didn’t have any requests to make of Hajime. He had just heard a lot about Hajime from Ilwa, and had wanted to meet him in person.

  So far, every one of Hajime’s visits to an Adventurer’s Guild had ended with him getting mixed up in something he wanted no part of, so he breathed a sigh of relief when he discovered Balse just wanted to talk. Sadly, nothing Hajime did could ever end without some kind of incident occurring.

  “Balse-dono, would you be so kind as to introduce me to your guests? If you hold them in high esteem, they must be admirable adventurers indeed. I would love to get to know them better. Especially those two pretty ladies over there. A gentleman such as myself simply cannot leave without learning their names.” A handsome, blond-haired man sauntered up to Hajime and the others. Four beautiful women followed behind him. The other adventurers all began whispering to each other as they spotted him.

  Apparently his name was Abel, and he was a gold-ranked adventurer. Furthermore, he’d earned himself the nickname of Blade Lord among other adventurers.

  Balse introduced Hajime to Abel. When he mentioned that Hajime was also a gold-ranked adventurer, the others in the guild hall started whispering even more furiously. Hajime didn’t like where this was going one bit. He hurriedly tried to usher Yue and Shizuku out of the Adventurer’s Guild, but Abel wasn’t going to let them leave so easily. It was obvious his interests in Yue and Shizuku were anything but pure.

  Shouldn’t this guy know Shizuku’s part of the Hero party?

  Abel flashed Hajime a dazzling smile and said, “Oh, so you’re also gold-ranked. You look rather young... How did you gain such a prestigious rank so quickly? Let me guess, you cheated your way into gold... Oops, I probably shouldn’t have said that in public. My bad.” His perfect smile didn’t even waver as he spewed vitriol.

  At this point, Hajime was certain Abel wasn’t worth his time. Nothing good would come of talking to him. Yue and Shizuku wholeheartedly agreed, and the three of them once again tried to leave.

  “Now now. No need to run away because you’re up against a real gold ranker. I promise I won’t bite. Well if you’re too embarrassed to show your face here, I don’t mind if you leave, but what about you two beautiful ladies? Could I entice you to join me for a meal? Let me show you what a real gold ranker is like.” Abel blocked Hajime’s way. It was obvious from his attitude that he couldn’t dream of any woman ever turning him down.

  His arrogance might have impressed someone else, but Yue, Hajime, and Shizuku were all far stronger than him. They just found his posturing laughable.

  Balse, who had heard of how powerful Hajime was, struggled to hide his chortling.

  “Hey, Yaegashi. Dealing with handsome losers like these is your specialty, right? I’ll let you handle him. This guy’s like Amanogawa-lite.”

  “Excuse me? What do you mean that’s my specialty? Also that’s an insult to my childhood friend. Kouki might be bad, but he’s not this bad... is he? I don’t think he is... Actually, at this point, he’s more pitiable than anything.”

  “You’re harsh, Shizuku. But I agree.”

  The three of them ignored Abel and walked around him. He frowned. No one had ever treated him with such disrespect since he’d obtained his gold rank. The girls hanging around him glared at Yue and
Shizuku.

  Of course it had to turn into a fight. Resigned, Hajime decided that if he was doing this anyway, he’d beat up Balse too. The guild master was roaring with laughter as he watched from the sidelines. Before he could make a move, a very deep yet girlish voice called out to him.

  “Oh my. If it isn’t Hajime-san and Yue-oneesama~” Chills ran down Hajime’s spine. He reflexively gripped Donner and fell into a battle stance. Everyone turned around at once.

  “I-It’s a monster!” Abel screamed.

  “And just whooo do you think you’re calling a grotesque, vulgar monster who drives people insane just by glancing their way!?”

  The walking bundle of muscles glared at Abel.

  His face looked like something out of a juju manga, and his muscles looked bulkier than plate armor. At two meters tall, he towered over everyone. And yet, his red hair was braided in twintails with cute ribbons tying the ends. Not only that, he was wearing a cute yukata. One with fluttering frills everywhere. His musclebound legs were on full display.

  For a second Hajime thought it was Crystabel, the clothing store clerk they’d met in Brooke. But on closer inspection, he realized this was someone else.

  Assuming Crystabel can’t use camouflage magic or something anyway...

  “Eek, g-get away from me! I’ll have you know I’m Abel the Blade Lord, a gold ranked adventurer! If you take one more step toward me, I’ll cut you down where you stand!”

  “How cruel! First you call me a monster, now you say you’ll kill me... and we’ve only just met! The other gold-rank adventurer I know is much more courteous. Though... you’re more my type♡”

  While Hajime was still recovering from the shock of meeting another one of Crystabel’s kind, Abel was being driven into a corner. That guy... or would it be girl? Anyway, just by standing there they’re making Abel lose his mind.

  The guy? girl? sighed as they as watched Abel back away screaming. Still, Abel was right in their strike zone, so they continued closing in on him. They licked their lips in anticipation and pounced on their prey.

  “Get away from me, you monster!” Terrified, Abel drew his sword and brandished it at the musclebound hulk.

  He may have been a pompous jerk, but he was still a gold-ranked adventurer. Everyone present assumed a single attack from him would be enough to end the fight. Which was why what happened next was beyond anyone’s expectations.

  Abel thrust so fast he left afterimages in his wake. Yet the muscle maiden batted it aside with one hand. They then grabbed Abel in a wrestling hold.

  Abel’s bones creaked from the force of the grapple. He struggled desperately against the muscle maiden, but was unable to escape. It was then that the real horror began.

  “Nufufu. Naughty kids need to be punished♡”

  “Stop! Let me— Mmmf!?”

  Abel started spasming uncontrollably.

  After a few seconds his body went limp, and his sword dropped from his hands. It almost looked like he was dead.

  The women who’d been hanging around with him turned pale and ran out of the guild hall. Silence blanketed the guild. Finally, the muscle maiden released Abel and he fell to the ground with a dull thud.

  At this point, he was clearly the victim.

  However, his gold rank wasn’t just for show.

  He had somehow stayed conscious through the whole ordeal. He squeezed out the last of his strength to glare angrily at the muscle maiden. But then a second later his facade crumbled and he turned to Hajime for help.

  “H-Hey, you! You’re a gold-ranker too, aren’t you!? Help me out here! You probably just cheated your way into gold rank anyway, help me and I’ll give you a legit recommendation! You have the honor of helping THE blade lord here! So hurry up and beat this crazy muscle monster for me, you loser!” Hajime just looked pitifully at him. It took a certain kind of scumbag to insult the person you were begging help from. Actually, if this is the best the Adventurer’s Guild has to offer, aren’t they kind of screwed? Hajime shot a questioning look at Balse.

  The old man shook his head sadly, as if denying that Abel should ever have been granted such a rank. It was possible he was the one who’d obtained his status through illicit means.

  Tired of hearing Abel insult Hajime, Yue stepped forward to put an end to him. Abel misunderstood and thought she was coming to his rescue.

  “Oh, you’re really going to help me? In that case, I promise to set aside my evening for...”

  “Shut your mouth.” Though her tone was still neutral, Hajime and Shizuku could tell she was pissed. It appeared Abel had gone too far. Yue held out her hand, and a tiny black sphere appeared in her palm.

  “If you don’t have the balls to fight on your own, then you don’t need them anyway.”

  “Huh? What do you mean!? Wait, sto— Aaaaaaaaah!”

  And so, yet another man vanished from Tortus, and was reborn as a “maiden.”

  After crushing Abel’s testicles, Yue returned to Hajime with a satisfied look on her face.

  Every male adventurer in the room was grimacing, their hands over their family jewels. A few of them were weeping. Just watching had traumatized them.

  The silence was eventually broken when the adventurers started whispering to each other.

  “H-Hey, do you think that blond-haired girl and that white-haired boy with the eyepatch are actually...”

  “Wait? Y-You really think she’s the Ball Crusher!?”

  “No way... So then those two are the Love Smashers...”

  “What kind of nickname is that?”

  “You haven’t heard of them? They’re adventurers who came out of nowhere a few months ago. They say that blond-haired red-eyed girl is like a rose. If you let her beauty fool you, you’ll find yourself stung by her thorns. She might look like a goddess, but she’s actually a demon who goes around crushing men’s balls. That white-haired boy with the eyepatch is her companion. He’s the very embodiment of irrationality. Words can’t get through to him. Don’t meet his gaze. Don’t talk to him. Don’t even let him know you exist. If you value your life, you’ll never get near those two. Those are the stories I heard from a bard who came from Brooke. Apparently there’s a bunch of guys in Fuhren and Horaud who had their manhoods crushed too.”

  “That’s terrifying!”

  It appeared traveling bards had carried rumors about Hajime and Yue all the way to the capital.

  The adventurers shivered in fear and averted their gazes. They were fully convinced that Hajime would kill them if their eyes met his. They edged away, keeping their balls firmly tucked behind their legs.

  “What on earth... did you guys do?” Shizuku turned to Hajime and Yue, amazed.

  Yue didn’t seem to mind the rumors, but Hajime’s lips twitched as he heard the nicknames people had made up for him.

  Before either of them could reply to Shizuku, the muscle maiden interrupted them.

  “It’s been ages since I last saw you two. I’m glad you’re still the same as always,” the muscle maiden said with a wink.

  “Seriously, who the hell are you? Are you a friend of Crystabel’s?” Hajime asked warily. The things Crystabel had done to him the day they’d left Brooke still appeared in his nightmares.

  Shizuku, who was normally so tactful, was at a loss for words. Her face spasmed, and she hid behind Hajime, using him as a shield.

  “Oh my, not even a greeting? Where are your manners... Though, I suppose you wouldn’t recognize me like this. I confessed to Yue-oneesama long ago, and she crushed my balls for me... Do you remember now?”

  “Oh... Is that really you?” Surprised, Yue looked up at the muscle maiden’s face.

  They smiled, glad that Yue still remembered them.

  It turned out that they were a former adventurer who’d confessed to Yue at Brooke. The same one who’d been so persistent that Yue had ended up crushing their balls. After that incident, they’d come under Crystabel’s wing and learned the ways of a muscle maiden.

&
nbsp; Their name now was Mariabel (As you can guess, Crystabel was the one who named them.)

  “I understand now how inappropriate my actions had been before. I’m sorry, Yue-oneesama....”

  “Mmm, you’ve learned well. You can enjoy your new life with your head held high.”

  “Ufufu, I thought you’d say that, Onee-sama. By the way, there’s plenty of other people who’ve come to Crystabel seeking to be her disciple. We had some former black ranked adventurers, some former gangsters, and a few mercenaries who used to operate out of Horaud... There’s so many Crystabel’s thinking of expanding her shop. I actually came here today to find a suitable place to open a branch store.” Shivers ran down Hajime’s spine as he imagined an army of Crystabels. It appeared that thanks to his and Yue’s actions, this world had received in an influx of muscle maidens.

  The strangest thing was that before, Mariabel had been of middling height. Yet in the span of a few months, she had grown to her current hulking size. Whatever methods Crystabel used to rear her disciples, they weren’t normal.

  Moreover, as Mariabel had accidentally let slip, Crystabel was actually a gold-ranked adventurer herself. Which was why all of her disciples were such skilled fighters. Mariabel had proved as much when she’d incapacitated Abel without a fight.

  A massive army of muscle maidens was the most terrifying thing Hajime could think of.

  We really need to get back to our own world, fast. Hajime thought to himself while he watched Yue and Mariabel converse amicably.

  “You reap what you sow...” Shizuku muttered behind him.

  Annoyed, Hajime pushed Shizuku closer to Mariabel.

  Mariabel took quite a liking to Shizuku, and ended up hugging her until she was blue in the face. After they’d left, Shizuku and Hajime got into a huge shouting match, which ended up leading to a lot of people speculating that the two of them were secretly lovers... but that is a tale for another time.

  Hajime did his best to avoid thinking about the new threat he’d unleashed onto the world as he headed to where the city’s barrier generator was located.