I Wanted a Cute Girl to Cast Healing Magic on Me, So I Kept Protecting My Allies—and Ended Up with an Overprotective Party - 8-9

Chapter 8: An A-Rank Healer’s Seal of Approval

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Mint-san cast a healing spell to heal Karinka-san’s wounds, but she had only held out her hand and chanted. Karinka-san didn’t seem to have ascended to the heavens either.

How odd. Emil had held my hand when she healed me. If I remembered right, Mint-san had used an advanced healing spell called Resurrection. Maybe because it was a high-level spell, she didn’t need to touch the person directly?

“Come on, let’s quickly collect the magic stone and head back. I’ll hold onto this magic stone for now.”

Karinka-san said, and placed the magic stone, which was about thirty centimeters in size, into her item bag. On the way back, we walked in the same formation. Karinka-san and Mint-san in front, Sarah-san at the rear, with Emil and me in the middle, being protected on both sides.

Eventually, Karinka-san spoke up, saying that there didn’t seem to be any monster presence at the moment.

“Emil-san, could you come over here? I want to teach you how to handle a dragon’s magic stone.”

“Yes, I understand.”

After Emil moved to Karinka-san’s side, I took the opportunity to speak to Mint-san.

“Um, Mint-san, there’s something I’d like to ask you.”

“What is it, Rikuto-kun~?”

Mint-san said, moving to stand beside me. Her beautiful blue hair gently brushed against my cheek.

“Do you always cast healing magic the way you did just now?”

“What do you mean ‘the way I did just now~’? …Ah, you mean the Resurrection I cast on Karinka just now~? Then yeah, that’s right~”

Mint-san tilted her head slightly as she spoke.

“I see. Um, for example, is there ever a case where the healing won’t work unless you’re touching the person you want to heal?”

“Eeeh~? If that were the case, I’d always have to be standing right next to them, wouldn’t I? Unless it’s an area-effect spell, that is~”

“Yeah, I thought so… Thank you very much.”

“You’re welcome~ Oh, that reminds me. Talking about healing magic made me remember. There was something I wanted to tell you, Rikuto-kun~”

“Tell me?”

“Yeah. You know, Emil-chan—I think that girl has an amazing talent as a healer. I’m a healer too, so I can tell by the magic energy she gives off that she has an amazing talent~”

“I thought so too. I can sense it as well.”

Though in my case, it wasn’t her magic power that made me think that—it was my own experience of ascending to heaven from her healing.

“If she keeps gaining experience as an adventurer, she might even reach S-Rank one day~ New spells often come naturally during combat, you know. They say that happens because your ‘level’ goes up, but no one really knows if such numbers actually exist~”

I see. So in this world, they referred to getting stronger through combat as “leveling up.” That term was used commonly in my original world too. But since there was no visible number system, I guess it was just a conceptual term they used.

Speaking of levels… That reminded me. Ever since I came to this other world, I hadn’t done something important. When I got back to the inn, maybe I should try shouting, “Status Open!” And then I’d probably writhe on the floor in embarrassment, rolling around like a fool…

When my conversation with Mint-san had ended, I looked over at Emil—she still seemed to be talking with Karinka-san. But then, from deeper within the dim cave, two red lights rushed toward us at incredible speed.

They were eyes. Eyes like those of a wolf. The creature was massive—at least five meters long—and in its wide-open mouth were thick, sharp fangs. And worst of all, that monster was leaping directly at Emil and Karinka-san as they talked.

“Watch out!”

I shouted and took off running at the same time. Was it because I could take the hit without injury thanks to 【Damage Adjustment】? Sure, maybe. That was part of it. But even I wasn’t sure why I jumped. I just felt like I had to do it.

I jumped out in front of the two of them, crossing my arms in a makeshift defense. But the monster suddenly collapsed on the spot and turned into a magic stone.

“All done~!”

I turned toward the voice and saw Sarah-san, bow in hand, grinning broadly at me. It looked like she had shot it down with a magic arrow from above, taking it out from a distance.

“Having Sarah around really puts my mind at ease.”

“Right~? That’s why Karinka and I can focus on our conversations!”

“Hahahaha!~ Don’t stop there—keep the praise coming~!”

These three really had such a great relationship. I wished I had friends like that too. After we exited the dragon’s nest, we thanked Karinka-san and the others once again.

“I’m glad we were able to get the dragon’s magic stone safely. It was a great experience for us too. I think it was a fitting final job for our party.”

“Final job? That makes it sound like today’s the end of your party. Aren’t you all aiming to reach S-Rank?”

“Well, that was our goal, but… Our party is disbanding as of today.”

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Chapter 9: Please Stay Just Like That a Little Longer

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“Our party is disbanding today.”

In front of the dragon’s nest, Karinka-san said those words out loud.

“What!? Disbanding!?”

I couldn’t help but shout. Even though Emil didn’t speak, her expression clearly showed she was shocked.

An A-rank party disbanding? Is that even a thing!?

Possible reasons that came to mind were interpersonal conflict or disagreements over the distribution of rewards, but looking at these three, it was hard to imagine anything like that going on.

“But you all just made it to A-rank. It feels like such a waste… It’s truly unfortunate to think you’d be disbanding after getting this far.”

“You’re all so strong. I thought you’d be even more active from here on out.”

“Thanks for thinking that way about us.”

“Um, if it’s okay… Could I ask why?”

“W-Well, how about we head back first?”

When I asked that, Karinka-san responded in a flustered tone. Up until now, she’d given the impression of a strong and composed woman, but this made her feel more approachable somehow.

Then, thanks to the teleportation magic circle, we all returned to the city of Galiano.

“All that’s left is for us to report to the guild together to complete the request. Let’s go.”

Hmm… Something felt off. It was like Karinka-san was trying to hide something…

“Huh? Karinka, you didn’t answer Rikuto-kun’s question earlier, did you~?”

“Eh!? No, I mean…Come on, it’s not the kind of reason you tell other people, right?”

“But Rikuto-kun’s the one who asked, though?”

“Why are you bringing that up too, Sara!?”

Karinka-san was clearly flustered, and her speech was getting messy because of that.

“The reason we’re disbanding is… Well, it’s because Sara and I are both getting married!”

That was completely unexpected. 

I mean, sure, adventurers get married too.

“Congratulations!”

“Thank you~!”

When Emil and I each congratulated them, the two of them happily responded with a smile.

“So it really is hard to balance married life with being an adventurer, huh. And I guess being an adventurer gives you a lot of chances to meet people too.”

Unlike work or school, adventurers had a lot of freedom. You could go to the guild whenever you wanted, take whatever requests you liked, and form parties with whomever you chose. It was a very flexible job.

“That’s true. Neither Mint nor I expected to get married this soon!”

From what I heard, Sara-san met her partner at a weapon shop in another town, and Mint-san met an adventurer in a different city. On their agreed days off, they would each go visit their partners.

They both ended up deciding to get married, but balancing it with adventuring was too difficult. Their partners had apparently asked them to retire if possible. Adventuring was dangerous, after all. I could understand why they’d make such a request.

So even adventurers can get married… That’s kind of reassuring to hear.

For some reason, I looked over at Karinka-san. Her blonde ponytail, light blue eyes, and refined, European-like facial features made her unmistakably beautiful—even without looking too closely. I wasn’t trying to make a move on her or anything, but after that conversation, I couldn’t help wondering if she had a boyfriend.

“I-It’s not like that! I mean, sure, I don’t even have a boyfriend right now, but I’m only twenty! I still have time!”

“I didn’t say anything though…”

I was just looking for a second… So that was why she dodged my question earlier. But, that was not something to be embarrassed about, though? Still, both Emil and I now knew, at a random moment, that Karinka-san was twenty years old.

After that, we all went to the guild and reported our completion to Kasumi-san at the reception desk. Emil still had the dragon’s magic stone in her possession.

Since it was only early afternoon, we all went to a restaurant and had a fun meal together. One guy and four women—two of whom would soon be married. What kind of high school sophomore ended up in this kind of scandalous dinner party? Probably just me.

That was when I first learned the details about how Karinka-san and the others had met. Apparently, the three of them had randomly run into each other at the guild when they were sixteen, and they quickly hit it off.

They coordinated smoothly during battles, and before they knew it, they had reached A-rank in just four years. It was a miracle, really. In this world, it was normal for women to become adventurers. In fact, maybe there were advantages to being in an all-female party.

After the meal, the sun was starting to set. Knowing that this would be our last time with Karinka-san and the others, I felt a little sad.

“Thank you so much for everything. From here on, Emil and I plan to travel to her village on our own.”

This was something Emil and I had discussed in advance. Her village was far from Galiano, but it apparently wasn’t a particularly dangerous route. I could also serve as a bit of a bodyguard, at least.

“About that… If it’s okay with you, would you mind if I came along too?”

“N-No, please, don’t worry about it! The village is really far from here… Besides, Rikuto-san will be with me.”

Emil naturally accepted me. I was happier about that than I’d expected.

“I’m not thinking of this as guarding you. I just really want to come along as a friend. How about it?”

“As a friend! Even though we just met, you’re willing to call us that… Then, please, by all means!”

I trusted Karinka-san as well, so I agreed. And so, the three of us—me, Emil, and Karinka-san—would travel together to Emil’s village. Then Karinka-san turned to face Sara-san and Mint-san.

“Sara, Mint… Our party is ending today. But… Let’s still get together again, okay?”

“Yeah! Of course we will… I love you both, Karinka and Sara!”

“I love you too, Karinka! Do your best and become S-rank, okay!”

The beautiful women embraced each other. They laughed, cried, and held each other close, shoulder to shoulder. They must’ve built up so many wonderful memories together. It was a precious sight to behold.

Of course, I wasn’t part of that moment nor was I part of their past, but this scene told me everything I needed to know about them. …Honestly, I wanted to keep watching a bit longer—so please, just stay like that a little longer.

After the two left, Emil and I went to the same inn we stayed at the night before, and Karinka-san headed to a different inn.

The next day….

We had arranged to meet at 10 AM, and after reuniting, the three of us departed for Emil’s village. From Galiano, we’d be traveling by foot and carriage. We had to walk to the carriage stop, which was apparently located a fair distance outside the city.

Some of the paths we had to take weren’t paved and didn’t see much foot traffic, so if a monster showed up, I could at least serve as a shield. After about thirty minutes of walking, we arrived at a grassland. The view was wide open, but there were no people in sight.

Then we saw something approaching from ahead—a monster that looked like a bipedal lizard. It was clearly staring at us and seemed… Excited? It was obvious that we were about to enter a battle against that bipedal lizard.

I hope Emil will cast a healing spell on me soon…

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