I Wanted a Cute Girl to Cast Healing Magic on Me, So I Kept Protecting My Allies—and Ended Up with an Overprotective Party - 30-31

Chapter 30: Bug

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Miya went ahead to the kitchen to start cooking.

“Shall we go help her in the kitchen?”

“I see. So you were with Miya-san, huh..”

As I began walking toward the kitchen, I heard Emil’s voice from behind. Since we came back together, it would naturally seem like we were together. And we were, in fact.

I turned slightly to say.

“Yeah, that’s right.”

But Emil was nowhere to be seen. I thought maybe she’d gone ahead, but she wasn’t in front of me either. Emil had completely vanished.

“Hey, Emil, where did you go?”

“I’m right here, you know?”

That was unmistakably Emil’s voice. But from where? I turned around again more thoroughly—and this time, I finally saw her. She was right behind me, practically glued to my back.

She wasn’t touching me, but we were only a few centimeters apart. No wonder she hadn’t entered my field of vision with just a quick glance. Unless my neck could turn 180 degrees like an owl’s, there was no way I would’ve noticed her.

“Whoa! You’re really close!”

“Ah, I’m sorry. I just wanted to surprise you, Rikuto-san. Surprise~!”

“Why though?”

“No idea! Let’s wait for Miya-san’s food~!”

“Isn’t that the wrong way to do a surprise? Hey, Emil? Hey?”

“I wonder what’s on the menu today~? Let’s go, Rikuto-san!”

With that, Emil went on ahead. Just like when I asked Karinka-san whether she could cook, my questions somehow had a way of getting lost halfway.

“I’m home.”

As I stood at the entrance, I heard Karinka-san’s voice.

“Welcome back, Karinka-san.”

“I’m home, Rikuto. Are Emil and Miya back too?”

“They’re both home. Miya’s in the kitchen preparing dinner.”

“That’s something to look forward to. Shall we head over too?”

“Yes, let’s.”

I didn’t know what it was exactly, but talking to Karinka-san always made me feel at ease. A gentle, slightly older, beautiful onee-san really might be the best.

On the dining table were grilled fish, stir-fried vegetables, and jam. Yes—jam, the kind you spread on bread. Right, this world didn’t have rice. Even though it had chopsticks. That one detail about the food situation always left me a little unsatisfied.

No soup today, huh…

The grilled fish was seasoned with salt, the flesh tender and flaky. It almost melted on my tongue, and a faint saltiness lingered after swallowing. The salt balance was so perfect, it just made me crave rice even more.

“Miya-san’s cooking really is delicious~!”

“Ahh…! Truly, food is the greatest joy in life…! Aah…! Now I’ll have the strength to face tomorrow…!”

“You two are being so dramatic~!”

Apparently, Karinka-san’s passion for food was stronger than I had realized.

“By the way, Rikuto, what’s going on with Emil?”

“That… I’m not entirely sure myself.”

Why was Karinka-san puzzled about Emil? It was because the distance between Emil and me was exactly zero. Emil had moved her chair so close that it was flush against mine. It made it really hard to move my right hand while holding my chopsticks.

“Hey Emil, don’t you think you’re a little too close?”

“Really?”

Ever since I returned with Miya, Emil’s sense of personal space had disappeared entirely…! She said it so naturally, making it hard for me to tell her what was the main issue here.

Well, I guess it’s fine. It’s not like I hate it or anything.

Miya watched me silently as I thought that to myself.

The next day.

Determined to finally tackle the highest-difficulty E-rank dungeon, we all headed to the guild. I pulled down the request slip from the board and brought it to the receptionist, Kasumi-san, as our representative.

“We’ll take this request.”

“Oh my, Rikuto-san. I heard about you—you really stood out in that joint expedition, didn’t you?”

“Eh? I didn’t do anything that noteworthy.”

“Oh? That’s not what I heard. Among the other participants, there’s been some buzz.

They say even though you’re E-rank, you took a hit from a C-rank monster and didn’t get a scratch.”

“Oh, that? The attack just happened to hit the armored part of my light armor, that’s all.”

“I also heard that light armor was beginner-grade, wasn’t it?”

“It was back then, but I’ve since upgraded to something better.”

“I see. Still, Rikuto-san, sounds like you’ve become a bit of a celebrity.”

“Me? …Wait, do I have some weird nickname now?”

“Hmm, it’s more of a title than a nickname, really. They’re calling you ‘Light Armor Tank,’ it seems?”

“What is that even supposed to mean?”

Apparently, I had been saddled with a strange title without me noticing it.

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Chapter 31: The Beautiful Young Girl and the Beautiful Girl Who Accepted Her Fate

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I heard that other adventurers were calling me a Light Armor Tank.

“What even is that supposed to mean?”

I said that to Kasumi-san at the reception desk, but it must’ve been annoying for her to get that kind of question.

“Oh my, Rikuto-san, do you not like it?”

“It’s not that I hate it or anything, but… I didn’t really do anything worth being praised for, and I don’t even know how I’m supposed to react.”

“I heard about it from the adventurers who joined the joint expedition, you know? They said you willingly stepped forward. Thanks to that, the other adventurers didn’t get hurt.”

“Yeah, I do think that was a really good outcome.”

“Exactly. So it’s something you should be proud of. That was definitely your achievement, Rikuto-san.”

“…You’re right. I was able to protect someone. That alone is enough, isn’t it!”

Encouraged by Kasumi-san, I decided to accept it. It was not like they were making fun of me or anything. 

Kind older beauties really are the best. That’s right, they’re not mocking me. If anything, it’s something I should take pride in!

Telling myself that, I grabbed the request form stamped with the guild’s seal and returned to the others.

“Ah, look who’s back—Rikuto, the Light Armor Tank!”

“Miya, you are making fun of me!”

Apparently, while waiting for me at the entrance, Miya and the others happened to overhear that story.

“I’m just kidding! I actually think it’s pretty cool!”

“Yeah, sure you do.”

The location changed—now we were inside the highest difficulty E-Rank dungeon. The brick-patterned walls and the stone-paved floor that echoed with our footsteps made it feel more like a man-made structure than anything else. Honestly, this was the most dungeon-like place we’d seen so far. Up until now, everything just felt like caves.

“Um, Emil? It’s really hard to walk like this…”

“Is it?”

Emil was walking way too close beside me—our arms kept brushing. The corridor was wide enough, so why was she this close? 

What should I do? Her personal space sensor is still broken!

“Emil, Miya, you two should stay behind Rikuto and me, okay?”

“Okay, got it~!”

Emil cheerfully responded and obediently fell back. But somehow, even Karinka-san seemed to be standing closer than usual.

“Karinka-san, we’re just supposed to collect the herbs at the deepest part of this dungeon and bring them back, right?”

“That’s right. And if we complete this request, there’s a high chance you’ll be promoted to D-Rank. Participating in the joint expedition will also be taken into account.”

Apparently, there were herbs here that couldn’t be found anywhere else, and they could be used to make medicine that could only be produced from them. That made this dungeon quite valuable, it seemed.

It sounded strange to talk about a dungeon being “in demand,” but even in Japan, there were substances that could be either poison or cure depending on how they were used. I guess it just came down to how well you managed your relationship with the environment, whether you took the good part of it or the bad part.

As we proceeded while defeating numerous monsters along the way, we eventually arrived at a large room. It looked like this was the end. And there, at the very back—the true deepest part of the dungeon—it was. Despite being a stone chamber, a single herb was growing there. It looked strangely like a weed growing by the roadside for no reason.

That’s a terrible comparison, but that’s just how odd the scene felt.

“Everyone, be careful. The moment you pull out that herb, monsters will come charging in.”

“For real? How should we handle it?”

“Each one isn’t that strong, but the sheer number of them is the problem. We’ll have to chip away at them steadily. I brought some useful items, so we’ll start by using those. When I give the signal, everyone close your eyes.”

As soon as I pulled out the herb, bat-like monsters came swooping in all at once! There were dozens of them.

“Everyone, close your eyes!”

At Karinka-san’s signal, we shut our eyes.

“Alright, you can open them now. Let’s reduce their numbers while we have the chance!”

When I opened my eyes at her second cue, the monsters were acting erratically—spinning in place, flailing about. Karinka-san had used something like a flash bomb earlier, which seemed to have blinded them all at once. The three of us, excluding Emil, began attacking the monsters relentlessly.

Even though it was much safer than facing them head-on, some of the monsters were still flailing wildly, and their claws occasionally grazed us by chance. Even so, we managed to defeat them all while they were still in confusion.

“Phew, finally over.”

There were tons of magic stones scattered around us. As I bent down to pick them up, I felt a stinging sensation on my face. When I touched my cheek with my right hand, I felt a slight prick of pain and saw a bit of blood. Of course, my 【Damage Adjustment】 was set to 『Minor Injury』

“Emil, sorry, but could I get a Heal?”

“Yes! With pleasure!”

She said “with pleasure” even though I’m hurt… Let’s just pretend I didn’t hear that. At least we are having a conversation now.

“Please come forward.”

When Emil said that, I did as she asked and slightly bent my knees to match her height. Emil’s cute face was right in front of me. Her large, double-lidded eyes. Her long lashes. Her soft-looking lips. The breath that escaped from between them. Everything about her made my heartbeat quicken.

Then Emil gently reached out with both hands and softly touched my cheeks.

“Heal…”

The warmth from Emil’s soft hands, the lips that seemed within reach, the strength draining from my body, and the fading pain… It was a sensation I probably wouldn’t get from anything else.

In short, I was in bliss.

“All done~!”

“Thanks, Emil.”

This definitely wasn’t just for fun. It was for helping Emil level up.

“Are you two hurt anywhere?”

When Emil asked the other two, Karinka-san averted her face.

“Karinka-san, please let me see your face.”

“Eh!? No, I’m totally fine!”

“No way! I won’t allow such a beautiful face to be scarred!”

“I’ll use a potion, okay!?”

“No! Potions get used up!”

“Ugh…”

Then Karinka-san looked at Miya and me, as if she were thinking something over.

“Emil, can you come with me to that pillar over there? Sorry, Rikuto, Miya, can you two wait here?”

Saying that, Karinka-san took Emil by the hand and disappeared behind the pillar.

“Hey, Rikuto, what do you think Karinka-san is up to?”

“Beats me.”

Several minutes later, the two of them finally returned.

“Whew, sorry to keep you waiting!”

Karinka-san looked very refreshed, without a single wound in sight.

“Well, now that the healing session is done, let’s get home and cook dinner!”

“Um, Miya-san? There’s dried blood on your face too, you know?”

“Eh!? This is nothing! A low-grade potion’s more than enough for me. Somebody gimme one!”

“Nope! You’re too cute to leave like this!”

“Are you sure Emil isn’t actually a Saintess or something!?”

Apparently, Miya decided to let Emil Heal her too. And just like before, Emil gently touched Miya’s face at close range. It looked even more intimate than when she did it for me.

“Wait, hold on! I mean, we’re both girls and all, and yeah, Emil is super cute, but that doesn’t mean I want to—”

“Heal…”

“Ahhyah…”

I silently watched Miya ascending to heaven.

“Miya-san is all healed~!”

Emil beamed with joy. Miya stood frozen, her face slack and dazed.

“Ah…! I think I’m on the verge of something…”

“Is it a level-up!?”

“I think… Maybe it is…!”

After a brief silence, Emil clasped her hands together in a prayer pose.

“What’s with that all of a sudden?”

“I don’t know… Itjust felt like something might change if I did this.”

Emil stayed like that for about a minute. By the time she was done, Miya had recovered (?) from the Heal, so we started heading back the way we came. Halfway through, I felt something was off.

On the way in, we’d encountered so many monsters but now, not a single one.

“Karinka-san, did the monsters go extinct while we were picking herbs or something?”

“No, that couldn’t be… But you’re right, this is kind of abnormal.”

I felt like I’d seen something like this before.

“Could it be… This is the effect of a barrier magic or something?”

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