Chapter 28 – The Evil Dragon Gets Interviewed by Her Son 【Part 2】

Ryuuji had a fateful encounter with a rookie adventurer who looked exactly like his mom, Mom-Loves-Her-Son… wait, no, Kaasan Mooskosky.

For a moment, he suspected that this person could be his mother, Karma, in disguise. But when he went home, Mom was there acting completely normal, asking, 【What’s the matter, Ryu-kun? Did you forget something?】 If the Kaasan sitting in front of him was Karma, there was no way his mother would be at home. In short, Kaasan was not Mom.

Ryuuji decided to proceed with Kaasan’s interview.

“Umm… what is your job class, Kaasan?”

Everyone needed a job class to be an adventurer. For Ryuuji, it was Swordsman, and for Sheila, it was Magician.

Kaasan nodded and answered, brimming with confidence.

“A Mother!”

…

……

……Excuse me?

“Umm… I’m asking about your job class…”

“Yes. That is why my job class is Mother.”

“Is there even a job class called Mother, Sheila?”

“Umm… I’ve never heard of it.”

Whisper, whisper. Ryuuji and Sheila quietly conferred with each other before he turned back to Kaasan and asked.

“So there was a job called Mother… I had no idea.”

“I’m so sorry!”

“I’m so— wait, why are you apologizing, Kaasan?”

“Ryu-ku, Ryu… Ryuuji-san, you did absolutely nothing wrong, yet I made you apologize,” Kaasan replied. “I was apologizing to say I’m sorry about that.”

She said something that didn’t quite make sense.

“Mother… I am the one at fault for having such a confusing job. You are not to blame. There is no need for you to worry,” Kaasan stated with a completely straight face.

Well, dwelling on the subject would only make the atmosphere more awkward. With that, Ryuuji moved the conversation along.

“I took a look at the copy of your status… These are incredible numbers.”

Ryuuji had received a paper from Kaasan with her stats written on it. Written there were absurd figures where every single stat was over 9000. Of course, it wasn’t a fake since these were the exact numbers measured and printed out by the guild itself.

“…Huh? That’s strange. Even though I cast weakening magic on myself 10,000 times…”

Mumble, mumble… Karma muttered something under her breath.

Ryuuji figured he must have misheard her. If Kaasan’s words just now were exactly as he heard them, it meant she cast weakening magic on herself 10,000 times and still possessed these monstrous stats of over 9000 across the board. If that were true, the person sitting in front of him was no longer within the realm of humans, making her a genuine monster.

No, but… well, I probably just misheard her. Ryuuji dismissed the thought.

Meanwhile, Sheila was asking Kaasan a question.

“Umm… um, um. Is the Mother job a vanguard class? Or rearguard?”

“It is both vanguard and rearguard,” Kaasan answered, looking at Sheila. “A Mother is someone who sometimes steps forward to protect her son… no, her comrades. And other times, she is a presence that stays back to support her son… no, her comrades. Therefore, I cannot definitively say it is one or the other.”

It was a job he had never heard of. Claiming to be neither vanguard nor rearguard, he still couldn’t grasp the full picture of the 【Mother】 job in the slightest even after hearing the explanation.

“So basically… umm, you can fight on the front lines, and you can provide support from the back?”

“That is exactly right, Ryuuji-san. I can also use all six elements of magic.”

Magic consisted of six elements: Earth, Water, Fire, Wind, plus Light and Dark. Light magic was used for healing, and Dark magic was commonly known as summoning magic.

“You can attack, heal, and use magic… incredible… you’re an all-rounder.” Ryuuji directed a look of pure respect at Kaasan.

“Yes, yes! 【Mother】 is an amazing job, you see!”

For some reason he couldn’t grasp, Kaasan was humming in a remarkably good mood. She must be really proud of her job class, Ryuuji deduced.

“So, what do you say? Will you let me join you, Ryuuji-san? Sheila-san?” This time, Kaasan herself asked her interviewers.

“Your status is… flawless. Or rather, it’s wasted on us, to the point we feel bad about it.”

Nod, nod, Sheila agreed beside him.

“Whatever do you mean!” Kaasan frantically shook her head. “If anything, I am the one who feels bad! To think someone like me is trying to join your party, Ryuuji-san! Ahh! How sinfuuuuul!!!”

Kaasan’s dramatic reaction reminded him of someone, making Karma float up in his mind with a smile, saying, 【Hi there.】

“So, what do you think? Personally, I wish to be by your side.”

“We’re fine with it, but… um, can I ask one last thing?”

“Yes, yes, what is it?”

“When you’re this strong… why are you trying to join a weak, small-time party like ours?” Ryuuji asked, tilting his head.

It was the biggest question. What was this super-rookie, this strongest newcomer, thinking by coming to Ryuuji and the others?

Kaasan nodded with a serious expression and said, “That, Ryuuji-san, to put it bluntly…”

“Bluntly?”

“Is because I like you.”

She said it so very smoothly, as if remarking that the weather was nice today. That was how casually this beautiful woman, Kaasan, declared it to Ryuuji.

“W-W-What do you mean?!”

“S-S-So it was love at first sight?!”

Completely flustered, Ryuuji and, for some reason, Sheila too, asked Kaasan.

“It is exactly as it sounds, Ryuuji-san. I like you. Is it wrong to want to be near the person you like?”

“No… um, I don’t think it’s wrong, but…”

Nod, nod! Sheila was nodding vigorously, though he didn’t know why.

“Ah, but please rest assured. I harbor absolutely no romantic feelings of the sort,” Kaasan spoke, glancing at Sheila.

…

……

……Huh? Hmm?

“Hah, eh? What? What does that mean?”

Ryuuji was in a state of utter confusion. Kaasan liked him and therefore wanted to join his party, which he could understand up to a point. The problem was that she liked him yet had no romantic feelings.

“N-Normally, um… i-if you like someone, w-wouldn’t you want to become their lover… kyaaa!”

Fluster, fluster. Sheila asked, her face turning bright red as she covered it with her hands in a panic.

“Sheila-san. That is a rather simple-minded view. There are countless forms of love. Not all affection leads directly to romance, you know.”

Kaasan smoothly stated her views on love, giving off the composed aura of a mature adult just like the watcher elf, Chekiita.

“And that is why I like you, Ryu-kun, so I wish to be by your side and join you. Will you let me join?”

“Umm…”

Honestly, there were some scary aspects to this since there was too much he didn’t understand and way too many mysteries. But still, even so, a highly promising rookie like this had gone out of her way to volunteer to join them, presenting an opportunity he couldn’t pass up.

With a strong ally, they could proceed with the ruins investigation that much safer, allowing him to ease Mom’s anxiety even just a little.

After thinking it over, and consulting with Sheila…

“Then, we’re in your care. Kaasan.”

“Yes! I look forward to working with you! Ryu-kun! Sheila-san!”

Thus, an incredibly powerful helper joined Ryuuji’s party.