" ": You talking

' ': You thinking

* *: Narrator/Voice-off

Your POV:

Cecily: Yunyun-san, help yourself to the crabs. Thanks to Aqua-sama, we got a lot of them today. We'll have a crab feast !

"Did you lose the ability to think and learn ? What were you expecting would happen, trying to snatch a group of Ogres' lunch !"

Yunyun: You shouldn't do that, Cecily-san, that was very dangerous... Fest... A feast with everyone... Everyone...

"Ah, shoot, we lost her now..."

Mitsurugi: N-No, we can't hold a feast here. Plus, we defeated the ogres. Ogres have a very strong bond of kinship towards each other. Others will definitely come around here to investigate their lost companions before too long. In the first place, we came out to aid Aqua-sama in her efforts to take out the Demon King. Now that we have met up, we should make haste towards the Demon King's castle...

Yunyun: Y- Yeah, that's right ! A feast... Isn't something that we should be doing right now...

Cecily: How could we not have a feast ?! Aqua-sama wants to eat crab meat, you know ?! Even if you are handsome, there's no way I can't go along with that request !

Mitsurugi: You are... Cecily-san, right ? We met at the church in Arcanletia before, haven't we ?

"Oh, you know each others ? My sincerest condolences."

Aqua: ... To which one ?

"I'm tempted to say both."

Cecily: Have we met before ? ... Oh, yeah, you were the guy who hit on me back at Arcan when you were looking for a priest, right ?!

Mitsurugi: I didn't hit on you ! Moreover, all I wanted was a priest of the Axis cult, not you in particular...

"Aren't selling yourself a bit too high there, anyway ?"

Cecily: What are you talking about ? Who wouldn't want to hit on me ?

"... Meh. 4/10."

Cecily: ... ... What ?! Come on, look at me ! Are you even a man ?! Aren't I a perfect example of feminity and behavior ?!

"Oh, we're counting personality too ? 2/10."

Cecily: ... Uhhhhuhhhhhuuuuuu... Aqua-samaaaaaaaaaaa... !

Aqua: Shh, it's okay, he's always like that...

Mitsurugi: Aqua-sama, my apologies for not explaining things earlier... We came after you in order to offer our aid in your quest to defeat the Demon King. When I had my fortune told by the foremost fortune teller amongst the Crimson Demons, she told me 'you will run into a priest of the Axis Cult in the near future. She will be a key figure in deciding the fate of this world. No matter what happens, you must protect her.' ... In other words, this is... !

Cecily: Aqua-sama, my confidence as a woman is waning ! A younger, handsome man proposed to me, but another one crushed me !

Mitsurugi: That isn't about you, Cecily-san ! Ah, wait, Aqua-sama !

Cecily: Aqua-sama, Aqua-sama, your humble servant Cecily has something to confess.

Aqua: Cecily, where did this come from ? I don't know exactly what you did, but I'm sure it's not a big deal

Cecily: Really, Aqua-sama ? You see, I've angered quite a few people... Ah, no, that's not what I want to say. Aqua-sama, the truth is, I've been delaying our journey in order to allow Megumin-san and the others to catch up, but it seems like this is as far as that will go. i've actually brought a few games to attract your attention, but at any rate, we already passed Arcanletia.

Aqua: I'm a little curious as to why exactly you delayed us, but I'm sure you had a good reason for doing that. First that ghost girl, and now you. Why does everyone want to delay me ? ... But very well, I forgive you.

Cecily: With this party, it might be possible to take down the Demon King, but personally, I hope... Ah, it'd be boorish of me to say anything more. As a low-level priest, I would only hold you back going forward. Now then, your humble servant Cecily prays for your success ! This is but a small offering, but it's the best a lowly priest like me can do... May the protection of Aqua-sama be on you ! Blessing !

Mitsurugi: As expected of Aqua-sama, that was a really brilliant support spell; thank you very much.

"I'm still pretty confused as to what was a manticore doing here, and why did it seem to be fleeing from something..."

Aqua: Was anyone hurt ?

"Unless you count the poor monster, I think we're fine..."

Mitsurugi: Everything is fine, Aqua-sama. Thanks to your protection, no one was injured this time either; Thank you for your concern.

Followers: Good work, Kyouya; Things are really easy with an Archpriest and an Archwizard around ! We didn't get the chance to do anything at all.

"That do make me wonder if the two of you really have the level to go to the Demon King castle... I don't doubt your skills, but if Mitsurugi has to worry about your safety as well, it'll hinder his combat effectiveness."

Followers: You didn't even do anything to help either !

"Why would I ? If you know anything about how I fight, my goal is to use my complete and absolute power to defeat the Demon King, why would I waste my energy on the way to the Castle with someone like that harem MC around ? He isn't even paying any attention..."

Mitsurugi: With this party, we have nothing to fear, even if we are facing the Demon King. Aqua-sama, let's continue on ! We shall bring peace back to this world !

Aqua: Ah, yes.

Yunyun: ... Listent to this, Aqua-san ! Wiz-san just contacted me from Axel, and she said that Kazuma-san has left to catch up with us !

"... i'm both surprised he agreed to do it, and that it took him so long to decide on it..."

Yunyun: Aqua-san, you seem happy.

Aqua: Not particularly. So, is Kazuma coming after us alone ?

Yunyun: No, Darkness-san and Megumin are together with him. Umm, when I left town, the other adventurers were worried about you, you know? They said that if they manage to run into you, they'll definitely lecture you until you're in tears. Megumin was especially agitated.

Aqua: ... is that so ? Um, well, I'm a little worried that Kazuma might end up getting eaten by a stray frog or something on the way. He already likes to die at the drop of a hat like he's playing Spelunker, so I really doubt that he'll be able to lead the other two and safely catch up with us.

Yunyun: He will be fine ! Kazuma-san went with Wiz-san and Vanir-san to the dungeons to level up ! He's learned various skills and awoken to his true power, or something ! ... By the way, what's spelunker ?

Aqua: Hey, what do you mean by that ? I haven't heard a single thing about it ! What do you mean he awakened !? What kinds of skills did he learn !? I have a really bad feeling that my role has been stolen ! Such a cool event like awakening doesn't suit Kazuma at all ! He's the kind of person who loses his life against trash mobs and only manages to win against strong foes through underhanded tactics ! Why did such an interesting event happen when I was away !?

"Knowing Vanir, i'm more concerned about the amount of crap Kazuma had to buy off his hands in order to convince him to help with that sort of things..."

Yunyun: I-I-I can't do anything e-e-even if you ask me ! Aqua-san, please don't shake me ! I left town before Kazuma-san left to train, so I don't know the details ! There are a lot of limitations to long range magical communications, so... ! I only heard that most of the adventurers in Axel agreed to coach Kazuma and teach him all kinds of skills... So, anyway, what's a spelunker ?

Aqua: ... ... ... Shall we go home ?

Mitsurugi: What are you saying, Aqua-sama !? Didn't you say that this is the perfect chance !? That with their forces our attacking the capital and the town of Axel, the defenses at the castle will be thin !? Please trust me, I'll definitely defeat the Demon King ! Or are you really that worried about that man !?

Yunyun: Calm down, Mitsurugi-san. Wouldn't it be fine if we wait for Kazuma-san and the others to catch up before heading towards the Demon King's castle? We will have greater strength when it comes time to attack the castle, and it'd put Aqua-san at ease too.

"I concur with that. We would need reinforcements, and I'm pretty sure they would be a very welcome help in taking out the Demon King. I'd even go to say we need them to do that..."

Mitsurugi: ... Let's carry on, Aqua-sama. I understand that you are worried for that man, but the fate of the world is at stake here. Please remember why you set out on this journey. Weren't you going to take this opportunity where the Demon King is at his most vulnerable to defeat him and everyone in this world who cannot defend themselves ? ... Don't worry, I'll be by your side the entire way... No matter what happens, I'll protect you. I will become your reliable shield. I shall become your strongest sword that will wipe away all that stands in your way. So, could you rely on me instead of that man... ?

"... I only know of one reliable shield, and she's trying to catch up with us right now..."

Yunyun: Aqua-san, is something wrong ? You've been listless for some time now...

Aqua: It's nothing. It's just, things are going smoothly, aren't they ? Back when I was traveling with Kazuma and the others, it was more, how do I put it, chaotic ? We ran into crisis after crisis each day. Of course, I'm not saying that it's a good thing, but, well...

"It's boring. That whole thing is absolutely boring. Back then, Darkness would gleefully charge into a horde of monsters, Kazuma would tearfully cry for help, Megumin'd let loose with her Explosion, and..."

Aqua: ... ... ... ...

"We'd hear some crying and whining in the background until things finally calm down again. But now... There's no thrill, no tension, no stakes... We just stand in the back and wait until One-slash-man takes out the enemy."

Mitsurugi: Hey, what's keeping them? It's already been quite some time since I set off, so why hasn't Kazuma caught up with us yet ?

Yunyun: T-That's, um, well... We must be going too fast for them to catch up. Mitsurugi-san, perhaps it would be best for us to wait here for a while... ?

Mitsurugi: ... We can't do that. Even while we are resting here, the Demon King's army is making progress with their invasion plans. In fact, it wouldn't be surprising for Axel to be attacked any time now. If that happens, the citizens of the town will surely suffer. In order to avoid any further casualties, we should defeat the Demon King as soon as we can... Plus, that man is a good-for-nothing who abandoned Aqua-sama before. And a man like that wants to take on the Demon King... !

*SCHKLING*

"... You better watch your mouth with that, because I'm this close to show you exactly how I intend to demolish the Demon King, possibly alongside his entire castle. That 'Good-for-nothing' beat you in an unfair match you forced him into, and has taken out 6 more Demon Generals than you ever fought, so why don't you stop acting like you did all the work here ? The only reason you're even able to imagine taking out the Demon King is because of all the work Kazuma has been doing, literally carrying this war on his back ! So now- !"

Aqua: ... this is bad, Yunyun ! I want to put in a good word for Kazuma, but thinking about it, I can't come up with any good points about him at all !

"You are not helping !!"

Yunyun: A-Aqua-san, you can't say such things out loud ! Kazuma-san would be really heartbroken if he heard that !