Your Majesty, Dinner Is Ready. - Chapter 168

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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Episode 168 — A Riot of Colors
Brightfeather.
My Tier 1 Class companion’s Class was Butcher.
You might say it stood in stark opposition to the Breeder, despite both being hunter variants.
A Class specialized in hunting down and slaughtering magical beasts.
“It’s dangerous! Let me help—!”
Brightfeather’s eyes went wide, and she drew the string of her massive bow again and again.
Whoosh-whoosh-whoosh!
Arrows flew in rapid succession.
Each fletched with colorful feathers in a dizzying array of hues.
The basic Secret Art: Rapid Fire.
– Shrieeek!
With every arrow that flew, the bodies of countless cloud birds burst apart.
Even accounting for the Secret Art’s bonuses, it was a supernatural display of Dexterity you didn’t often see.
“Wow.”
Bartimir, who had barely caught me as I plummeted, let the exclamation tumble from his lips in a steady stream.
“She’s got real skill. She shoots way better than that bark elf we explored with a while back.”
“Do you mean Rael?”
Yeah. She was good too, but this one’s even better.
Rael, a wood elf of the Eyebeam Bear Love Guild, was Level 6.
And at this point in time, Brightfeather’s Spirit Rank was roughly Level 3.
Despite the considerable gap between them, he’d rated her far more highly.
“I’m growing weary of all this admiration, dear child. Truly excellent judgment you possess.”
If they actually fought, of course Rael would win, but if you stripped away Secret Arts, tools, and Levels and measured only raw archery skill, Brightfeather held a narrow edge.
Lepicul, drifting along beside Bartimir—who held me from behind—moved his head with ponderous slowness.
“Remarkable talent indeed shines through. Clearly the intelligence network of the Duke is without peer.”
“It’s nothing special. Actually, I’m the one who’s quite extraordinary.”
“Humility and pride radiating at once! Splendid!”
Lepicul opened his mouth wide and began to inhale.
Slurrrrrp!
“—Gaaaaah! Mom!”
“Bartimir, embrace the sensation! Is not even disgust a negative emotion, and therefore fair game?”
“I still hate it—!”
While Bartimir thrashed and shrieked, the colorful arrows continued their relentless barrage.
“…Don’t play around! Run away!”
Brightfeather called out from a safe distance, drawing her bowstring taut.
A single arrow traced a clean arc through the sky.
A Tier 3 hunter Secret Art: Powerful Shot.
Boom!
The exquisite shot punched through the entire flock of cloud birds in one go.
– Shrieeek!
– Shriek-shriek!
Sensing the danger, the panicked cloud birds began to converge at a single point.
The special ability Shinmae had warned us about.
The forms of the gathered bird-type magical beasts merged into one, becoming a massive cloud bird.
《Unified Cloud Bird (Level 3)》
《A fusion-type alpha specimen. Not the sort of magical beast you’d call daunting at E-Rank, but I suspect you don’t need me to warn you to be careful at your current level, do you?》
– Shrieeeeek!
The alpha cloud bird, born from the fusion of countless individuals, belched out a thick, piercing cry.
The movements of the remaining cloud birds became sharper, more aggressive.
The Sky Village—a zero-dopamine Dungeon’s most stimulating feature.
For an explorer of Rook-level competence, it was hardly a challenge to overcome, yet it was no threat to dismiss carelessly.
“Ahhh! Explorers, you need to evacuate quickly—!”
Brightfeather, who had been helping us so earnestly, flapped about in a panic and pointed toward the village.
Soon a sturdy broad-eared bird descended in high-speed flight, striking at the cloud birds’ bodies.
Sylpren cleaved through four of the approaching cloud birds with a curved blade as she spoke.
“Don’t move rashly—backing away would be best! It could be dangerous for flight beginners.”
“What are you talking about? This is just starting to get fun!”
Bartimir, grinning wickedly, passed me over to Lepicul.
The false Celestial, who favored cautious flying, took me into his arms without protest.
“Let’s go!”
Bartimir unwound the bandages from both his hands and shot forward toward the pack leader.
The magical energy coiled around his head scattered wildly in all directions, ravaged by the Scattering Bankruptcy Curse.
Crack!
The Sky Piercing Headbutt connects with the massive cloud bird’s body.
The Secret Art of the Sky Broad-Eared—a magical beast of the same species as Seraphina’s father, obtained as a hidden reward from the Trial Tower—tore a gaping hole through the creature’s cloud-formed body.
“Shrieeeek!”
Brightfeather, who had been preparing the next shot, gasped in admiration and beat his wings vigorously.
—Screeeech…!!
Despite the grievous blow, the pack leader was not yet dead.
With a desperate flap of its enormous wings, the other cloud birds rushed all the explorers in perfect coordination.
—Shriek!
“Quite the chatterbox, aren’t they!”
Holding me tucked firmly against him, Lepicul didn’t flee—he hovered motionless in place.
Even though we were simply hovering there, the charging cloud bird veered away from the false celestial as though dodging, circling only the space around us.
Sin: Sloth—even at Level 2 Spirit Rank, its mastery was remarkable to behold.
Crack-crack-crack!
I simply hung there demurely, scattering black lightning.
An unintentional but perfectly stable drive hunt had taken shape.
“…You all are quite remarkable, aren’t you?”
Sylpren, who had been busy dispatching the cloud birds streaming toward her alongside the sturdy little owl, stared at us in bewilderment.
—Screech!
“Quiet!”
Bartimir’s Rock Shattering Technique tore away part of the pack leader’s cloud bird body and one of its wings.
Crash!
Followed by Brightfeather’s Powerful Shot.
The pack leader’s head shattered instantly into countless cloud fragments.
—Screech!
—Shriek!
The remaining cloud birds did not press the attack—they fled hastily toward the distant sky.
Sylpren then exhaled in relief and spoke.
“Well… there was a bit of commotion, but that concludes the Sky Flight Unit’s activity experience tour!”
—Whistle!
“How was it?”
“I’ve always wanted to try truly free flight once, but I never imagined it would be this enjoyable.”
I offered her a pleasant, reassuring comment while discreetly glancing away.
Flutter-flutter.
Brightfeather was flying toward me, stopping, flying again, stopping—hesitating with nervous starts and stops.
“I’d like to discuss flying in a bit more detail, but shall we head inside first?”
The initial contact had been made naturally; now it was time to move forward with the proper recruitment stage.
***
The Sky Flight Unit’s office.
Click-click-click.
Sylpren was working on my flight equipment that the cloud bird had damaged.
Her hands moved with considerable skill—clearly practiced.
“You’re quite skilled.”
“You can obtain Maintenance Mystery even without a Craftsman Class.”
The elf, still wearing her flight goggles, continued moving her hands diligently.
“…….”
From beyond the open doorway, Brightfeather’s face peeked in cautiously.
I gave a small wave.
“…Eek!”
Brightfeather immediately disappeared to the side.
But soon his head appeared again, and I waved once more.
“Aiee!”
Each time I greeted him, he vanished with a strange sound.
Sylpren sighed without taking her eyes off the flight equipment.
“Brightfeather, just come in. This person isn’t human—she’s a Half-Elf.”
Only then did Brightfeather, who had been peeking just his head in, carefully reveal his full form.
“Huh…?”
Bartimir’s mouth fell open wide as he reached for another handful of Blue Peanuts.
But remembering my warning, he caught himself and began munching them earnestly without comment.
“Ah, ah-ah, h-hello there…?”
Tap-tap-tap.
A parrot named Join shuffled in, looking distinctly uncomfortable.
Her hair was a dazzling riot of mingled colors.
Across her top and bottom hung ornaments just as vivid and varied as her locks — a full spectrum of jewelry.
And draped over all of that, layered earrings, bracelets, and rings in every shade imaginable.
《:<》
《Shy about her appearance, yet her style asserts itself with such confidence!》
“…Ah.”
Brightfeather read something in our gaze that made her hesitate, then slowly back toward the door.
Knowing she had the kind of temperament that could be deeply wounded by careless words, I took measures to appear more approachable.
Rustle.
Using Transformation, I left my body as it was but mimicked Brightfeather’s clothing and ornaments.
“…Oh!”
The parrot Join, who had nearly stepped outside, opened her eyes wide.
“I thought it looked wonderful, so I decided to copy it. What do you think?”
Following suit, the celestial demon king nodded thoughtfully.
“A love for garments. A passion for adornment. Both burn and shine so beautifully. A pleasant sight indeed.”
“……!”
Two consecutive strikes of genuine, heartfelt praise.
Unfortunately, because Bartimir couldn’t bring himself to offer hollow words, it didn’t extend to a third compliment, but the effect was sufficient.
Brightfeather smiled brightly and crept back toward us.
“It’s a pleasure to meet you. I’m Kar, a Half-Elf.”
At my casual greeting, her already large eyes went even wider.
“Wow! You’re really the ‘Golden Crow’ Kar…?”
“Hmm?”
Sylpren, who had been focused on repairs, snapped her head around.
“You know her?”
“She’s a rising star who’s been making waves lately…!”
“Ah, is that so? I didn’t know.”
Sylpren had no interests outside of flying, so she hadn’t heard of me, but since the recruitment target knew, that was fine.
Brightfeather stepped a little closer and carefully opened her mouth.
“I heard you recently conquered the Southern Continent Expedition…!”
“Indeed. After considerable hardship, we barely managed to clear it.”
“And you excavated loads of Hidden Pieces, too?”
“Would you like me to show you?”
I pulled out an artifact from the Expedition’s subspace and displayed it.
A tool shaped like a tiny sardine: Quack Quack Quaack!
Brightfeather fluttered her wings lightly and stepped even closer.
“It looks kind of like a fish. What does it do…?”
“It’s a single-use tool that can summon the Polar Emperor Clan.”
“Wow!”
“With this alone, even at death’s door, you’re guaranteed survival at least once.”
“That’s amazing!”
As we spoke, the distance between us had nearly vanished.
Without missing the opportunity, I pulled out my secret weapon for recruitment from the subspace.
A cupcake, still warm, made by Charlotte.
“Would you care to try one? Our Exploration Expedition’s founder’s maid prepared these, and they’re absolutely exquisite.”
“…….”
Brightfeather accepted the cupcake hesitantly, took a bite, and her eyes went wide.
“It’s delicious!”
“Of course it is.”
Charlotte’s skill was renowned — when Odillon’s mother, Michelle Brithes, was cast out from the main house, she rolled across the floor throwing such a tantrum that we barely managed to bring Charlotte along.
“Brightfeather.”
Calling her name softly, Brightfeather, who had been happily gnawing away, trembled slightly.
But then she exhaled and composed herself.
“For a moment I was frightened, but when I think about it, of course you’d know my name — I’m a Socialite of the Twisted Truth…!”
“Indeed. I already know everything about you, Brightfeather. I have since before we ever met.”
With a sinister smile that reeked of social calculation, she produced another cupcake.
It was an offer no one could refuse.
“Would you perhaps consider joining our Exploration Expedition? If you sign up, I’ll give you this cupcake.”
“…Gasp!”
Brightfeather, whose eyes had been darting between the first cupcake already being devoured and the second one trembling in my hand, suddenly nodded with vigorous enthusiasm.
“Yes, I will!!”
Recruitment complete.

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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