Present day… Day 365 in this world.
Deep within the Ascadaj Dungeon, a Rank A-S ultra-hazardous zone, sprawling across a vast, equally dangerous forest teeming with monsters above Level 220. Even the nearest city, a good 10 kilometers away from the forest's edge, is a massive fortress with triple-layered walls—thick stone fused with magical barriers. The road from the previous city to this one is lined with sturdy walls for protection.
The dungeon itself is even farther from the forest's edge, so high-tier adventurers rely on ancient warp platforms, activated only by those with specific skills or obscene amounts of MP, just to get in and out. Combine that with the high-level monsters dropping insane EXP and rare materials, plus the logistical nightmare of travel—needing a dedicated warp team, escorts for said team, food vendors, potion sellers—it's a high-risk, high-reward gig. Survive a month or two here, and you're set for life. That's why Asca City, the fortress hub, is crawling with fortune-seekers.
CLANG… SLASH!!
"ROOOAR!! HUMAAAAN!!!"
The Aska Minot, a Level 450 boss, a towering 4-meter beast clad in battered, heavy armor and barely clinging to its massive axe, bellowed in rage. A deep slash from a pair of swords carved through its face, mouth, and torso, courtesy of a 17-18-year-old textbook hero—Takuto. Black hair, tall, standard build, draped in a long black cloak, he flipped mid-air with maximum coolness.
"Success!! Takuto, you're amazing!!!!"
"Hmph."
"Whoa, Takuto, watch out!"
THWACK!
"HUMAAAAN!!"
"Noir! Focus on supporting Takuto instead of fangirling—he'll lose concentration! [Fire Ring]!"
"Right, if you keep swooning and he screws up, we're all toast!! [Triple Shot]!"
"S-Sorry, Rune, Sylvia… [Speed UP]!"
Noir, a petite 150cm white mage with a sweet face, oversized chest, and pale blonde hair, was so busy gushing over Takuto that he got cocky, pulling off a flashy anime pose and nearly eating a counterattack. Rune, a tall, sharp-featured black mage with long red hair and an equally oversized chest, and Sylvia, a slender blonde elf with long ears and—yup—another oversized chest, snapped at her.
This was an exhausting, multi-day level-grinding marathon for EXP and rare loot. It took a grueling 11 days just to clear the dungeon's outer monsters and reach the boss room.
"If you can't surpass the light, become the light itself! I!"
"Here it comes—Takuto's ultra-cool move! AM!!"
"AM!!!"
"AAAAM!!!"
"The Light!!!!!!"
"THE LIIIIGHT!!!!!!!"
"[Light Incarnation]!"
SLASH!! SLASH-SLASH-SLASH-SLASH-SLASH-SLASH!!
"HUMAN… URGH!!!"
"And now… you're nothing but dust beneath the light!"
"EEEEEEK, TAKUTO~~~~!!"
Boss Aska Minot defeated!
[Takuto gained 162,000 EXP, 136,080 SkillXP]
[Takuto LV UP: LV.299 > LV.300]
[Takuto SLV UP: LV.257 > LV.258]
[Noir gained 162,000 EXP, 136,080 SkillXP]
[Noir LV UP: LV.172 > LV.173]
[Noir SLV UP: LV.134 > LV.135]
[Rune gained 162,000 EXP, 136,080 SkillXP]
[Rune LV UP: LV.181 > LV.182]
[Rune SLV UP: LV.148 > LV.149]
[Sylvia gained 162,000 EXP, 136,080 SkillXP]
[Sylvia LV UP: LV.179 > LV.180]
[Sylvia SLV UP: LV.142 > LV.143]
[Verorinka gained 27,000 EXP, 22,680 SkillXP]
[Verorinka LV UP: LV.66 > LV.67]
[Verorinka SLV UP: LV.44 > LV.45]
Takuto, with his dramatic incantations, unleashed his ultimate skill, [Light Incarnation], turning himself into a blur of light and shredding the boss until its body couldn't take any more damage. It collapsed, and he capped it off with a super-cool one-liner.
Noir, Takuto's number-one fangirl, echoed nearly every word, squealing and cheering like a crazed groupie.
"Takuto~~~~!"
Hug!
"Noir, thanks for the buffs… And everyone else, too—Rune, Sylvia. We did it! Dungeon cleared!"
"Hmm, nicely done, Takuto."
"Noir, can you stop hogging Takuto already?!"
"Wanna hug him? Join in!"
"No thanks, my body odor's not exactly charming right now!"
"I don't mind your smells, you know."
"Pfft, all our BO's bad enough to knock someone out, hah!" Rune laughs
"Hahaha!!" x3
Man, talk about peak anime cheesiness, right, dear readers? Hahaha! What's this guy even saying with that "I am the light" nonsense? Hilarious! So cringey, like he's quoting some anime—feels familiar, but whatever.
These girls are head-over-heels for this guy because he's always playing the cool, heroic savior, solving everyone's problems. They're smitten, ready to follow him anywhere. It's a touching, heartfelt scene… and a total harem trope! I used to think, "If it wasn't me pulling this off, no one from another world could build a harem." But nope, turns out it's real!
Oh, what's that? Wondering who I am in this trio of fangirls? Noir? Rune? Sylvia? …Or all three?
Naaaah, none of 'em! And definitely not that cringey Takuto, either. It's this one.
In a room big enough for five people to crash comfortably, a lone girl sat curled up, peering through a scope to monitor the outside. A gloomy, short, pale-faced girl with long, greasy black hair sticking out from days without a bath. No curves, no chest—flat as a board, like a guy—unlike the other three. Her only notable feature? A tiny, delicate waist. Dressed in thick cloth and lugging a massive backpack, this is Verorinka… Yup, that's me.
Verorinka (aka me) slipped out of [Safehole], a weird but handy skill that lets me create hideouts in walls or burrow into the ground, kinda like the secret bases from that blue robot cat cartoon, Dorae-something.
"Oh! Verorinka, did you see that?! Takuto's finisher was so cool!"
"Yup, saw it…"
"That was intense, I'm starving now… Verorinka, can you whip up some food?"
"Sure thing…"
"By the way, can we even eat Aska Minot meat?"
"Uh… not sure…"
Don't worry, folks—Verorinka's well taken care of by the party. No villains here.
Then Takuto reached out and patted my head like I'm some kid.
Pat… pat
"Hey, quit treating me like a child!"
"Don't make that face! The party's gotta rely on you for our meals, Verorinka."
This guy's got that protagonist charm, doesn't he? Says one line, and the girls melt. Even Verorinka's blushing! (Not me, I mean Verorinka! She's the one blushing, even if she's me!)
"Yup, I can't wait to eat Verorinka's cooking!"
"Come on, let's carve up that Aska Minot for Verorinka to cook!"
"You guys are actually eating that boss meat?!"
"Uh… maybe?"
While everyone handled the boss's corpse, storing loot in Takuto's [Item Box], Verorinka (me) got to work cooking with all my heart. (Though, honestly, it's just decent home-cooked stuff from this world—can't compare to even low-tier restaurants from my or Takuto's old world.)
Pretty ideal hero team, right, everyone?
End of Chapter 25
Takuto, Noir, Rune, Sylvia, Verorinka