I Became a Raid Boss

A creature with eight legs like a horse and a chicken with six legs.

Additionally, I saw all sorts of bizarre creatures, like a monster resembling a pig with wings and a three-headed sheep.

To be fair, I only mentioned those that vaguely resembled animals from the Ardina Continent after careful selection; there were some monsters that made me think, “Can we really eat something that looks like that?”

If they were released onto the Ardina Continent, they would revolutionize the food industry in many ways, but unfortunately, we couldn’t eat them.

“Isn’t that unfortunate?”

“Who knows? It could be delicious.”

Aren’t you curious?

Da-eun laughed as if she couldn’t help it after hearing my words.

“Kana, you really are curious. But you know, we can’t just eat anything.”

“…I can still think about it.”

“Yeah, yeah.”

It’s because of challenges like this that people have been able to eat monsters like the ‘Green Rabbit.’

So shouldn’t we follow the example of our ancestors who willingly dedicated themselves for future generations?

If you’re afraid of failure and do nothing, you’ll just rot away standing still.

…But that was just me saying something.

If I were someone who cared about future generations, I surely wouldn’t be holed up in the mountains.

“If the price of failure is death, isn’t it natural to be scared…? Wait. By the way, was the ‘Green Rabbit’ a monster you could eat?”

“Haven’t you tried it?”

“Ordinary people probably wouldn’t think about eating something that looks like that.”

“Yeah, that’s true.”

Normally, I would have said Da-eun was being fussy, but this time, I agreed with her opinion.

Considering the appearance of the Green Rabbit, it was hard not to agree.

From its green fur to the poisonous fluid drooling from its mouth, and its long claws sharp enough to easily tear through decent leather armor.

It has long ears like a rabbit, which is why it’s named the Green Rabbit, but without the ears, it doesn’t resemble a rabbit at all, and I heard they discussed changing its name.

Every time they talked about it, they never made any real attempts to change it.

They were overly familiar with it and feared that changing its name would cause confusion.

“I heard its skin, blood, and even organs are soaked in poison; how are you supposed to eat that…?”

“As soon as you catch it, you drain the blood and soak it in a mana solution for 30 days to get rid of the poison. Oh, but be careful, as the poison in the internal organs won’t come out, so you can’t eat those.”

“I’m neither thinking of eating it nor cooking it….”

What’s edible is only the meat.

And just soaking it in a mana solution doesn’t mean it won’t spoil, so you have to be careful not to let it rot.

It’s a high-quality ingredient that can only be obtained through meticulous management to avoid poison and spoilage.

That’s the meat of the Green Rabbit.

“I feel like I notice every time that Kana is really serious about food.”

“…Me?”

“Yeah. You look like a cat lounging in the sun, but your eyes sparkle whenever food is mentioned.”

“Why a cat?”

“Well… because you act like one?”

I was asking why I resembled a cat. Da-eun’s response veered off from what I expected.

“True. If Kana didn’t like food, we wouldn’t have gotten so close.”

“…What do you think I am?”

Thanks to the food Da-eun brings every day, it’s true that I’ve been spared the trouble of preparing meals.

But if that were the case, I wouldn’t have paid her any mind.

“Then what was it for?”

“…I won’t tell.”

It’s a discussion that would be awkward for many reasons.

Since it could shake the very foundations of the world, I kept my mouth shut, and Da-eun clung to me with a mischievous smile.

I could tell that Da-eun, who has a talent for misinterpretation, had twisted my reaction in some way.

Knowing from experience that any ambiguous response would not clarify things and would only make it annoying, I casually pushed Da-eun away and continued watching.

In this center of Raxia, it’s like a capital compared to other countries.

As such, there were quite a few things, but….

How should I put it, it had a pastoral feel to it.

It didn’t have the flashy atmosphere I knew from a capital.

“Joanie, have you ever been to the Empire’s capital?”

“The Empire’s capital? Oh, you’re talking about Solerok? Of course, I’ve been there! It’s the capital of that Empire…. Oh, sorry.”

“No worries, I don’t care.”

I hadn’t returned to the Empire to participate in a war, so it’s fine to visit as a tourist.

“Phew… That’s a relief. But why did you suddenly ask that?”

“How does this place compare to it?”

“This place? Hmm….”

After a moment of contemplation, Da-eun responded.

“It’s peaceful.”

It’s also simple.

Maybe she’s conscious of the demon race nearby.

Da-eun added quietly.

“I see.”

If it’s the capital of that Empire, it must have been more gorgeous than Grasis’s capital, that much is certain.

After all, other countries wouldn’t be farming right in the middle of the capital, so comparing was unnecessary.

Perhaps because I lived with a single-minded determination to fulfill the mission given by Edel, I felt like the fields other than the necessities of life hadn’t really developed.

Do I really have to spend five months in such a dull place?

“Indeed, I need to find another way.”

That moment solidified my resolve.

*

Thud, thud.

What should I do?

Returning from the village tour, I fell into thought.

No matter how I thought about it, enduring five months here seemed impossible.

On the other hand, going back to Ardina and returning is bothersome, and I don’t even have the time to wait for five months.

“…”

“Kana~”

Thud, thud.

“…Ah, just a second.”

Why does she keep poking me?

I glared at Da-eun, who had been poking me for a while.

“Are you still thinking about that?”

“Of course, I have to wait five months without doing anything.”

“I don’t think it’s that bad! You could go somewhere else while you wait.”

“If I could, I would have done that already….”

“Huh? Is there a reason you can’t? Now that I think about it, you haven’t had a proper day off since you left the Holy Kingdom…”

“What are you talking about? I rested in Baltora. For several days.”

“That was because you had no choice but to wait for the magic tool to be completed. When I say rest, I mean relaxing without having to think about anything. Just like when you were in Liberi.”

“Hmm….”

“More than that, I feel like you lack relaxation right now. Is it because of what you talked about with the Edel God?”

Honestly, I find it hard to believe I discussed anything with the god….

Da-eun mumbled.

“I can’t deny that it might have something to do with it.”

“What exactly did you say…?”

When I first heard about the ascension ritual,

Da-eun desperately tried to talk me out of it.

She argued that I only had one life unlike her and offered to take my place instead.

Of course, I hadn’t accepted her words.

…As if an expert could take my place?

And that expert didn’t even achieve it solely through their own power?

‘What an amusing joke.’

She genuinely said that without missing a single word.

Better speak reasonably.

“I just had a good idea!”

Da-eun suddenly jumped up, cutting off my thoughts.

Since I wasn’t having any particularly enlightening thoughts, I didn’t feel offended that my train of thought was abruptly interrupted.

“It’s the problem of not having enough mana to perform the ascension ritual, right? Then all we need is mana!”

“…Wow, that’s really impressive.”

What a groundbreaking discovery.

If it weren’t for Da-eun, no one would have thought of it.

How could she come up with such a genius idea?

“No, that’s not what I wanted to say, so just listen first!”

“…Alright.”

“Pfft, really!”

Even after saying that, I still didn’t trust her, so I responded lukewarmly.

“I read in a fairy tale long ago…. It was about encountering a strong enemy and, unable to win alone, borrowing the strength of everyone in the world to win.”

“Everyone in the world?”

“Yeah!”

“How do you borrow everyone’s power? Do you ask for permission? What kind of power are we talking about here?”

“…I said power, but it’s more like vitality—”

As Da-eun rambled on explaining, she suddenly came back to her senses.

“Th-that’s not the important part right now! The important thing is whether we can do it or not…!”

“We need to understand the principle to attempt anything.”

“Can’t you just get inspired by what you read in a fairy tale and create a technique or something…?”

“I could do that for swordsmanship.”

But this isn’t swordsmanship.

If it was magic, maybe it could forcibly take someone’s power.

Those magic users are adept at bothering others by any means.

But thinking about using such magic would obviously require considerable skill….

In an instant, a disturbing image popped into my mind, and I quickly shook my head to erase that thought.

“That’s definitely impossible….”

“Then how about if it’s not forcibly taken but willingly given?”

“Willingly?”

I pondered Da-eun’s words and nodded.

“…That might be okay.”

Originally, receiving mana from others isn’t exactly a taboo, but it’s not a very desirable act.

If it were in a dire situation, it might be something you would do, but generally, it’s a risky behavior.

Unless you’re a dragon with pure mana, human mana can be tainted and might cause rejection.

Yet, if we’re in a situation where we’re accepting mana anyway, should we really worry about that?

Besides, there’s no need to receive mana directly into the body.

The ascension ritual gathers mana dispersed in the air and channels it into one person’s body through some method, so if we just let it loose, Justina will probably handle the rest.

“I should go ask.”

“R-right now? But it’s already night! Wouldn’t it be rude to go find her now?”

“Let me be a little rude.”

It may be rude at the moment, but once things are solved, they’ll definitely be grateful to me.

So from now on, I’ll replace the rudeness with that.

No matter how I think about it, I feel like I’m at a disadvantage, but I should at least be able to understand that much.

Yeah. I’m generous like that.

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