I don't want to be a heroic spirit

"Then it's over..."

"But, I've heard other interesting things recently."

For some reason, looking at the smile on Nero's face, Kazuma felt a sense of foreboding.

As Kazuma watched, Nero bent down and whispered in his ear.

"I heard... during this period, the number of monsters near the dungeon has strangely increased. Not only have villages been attacked by monsters, but adventurers have also suddenly encountered large numbers of monsters while adventuring near the dungeon..."

Kazuma swallowed nervously.

"Also... adventurers who encountered monsters said that many of them seemed to be unique to that dungeon. It seemed that the monsters that originally stayed in the dungeon had escaped for some unknown reason..."

After taking a look at Sato Kazuma, who looked pale and guilty, with cold sweat dripping down his cheeks, Nero patted Kazuma's shoulder again and showed the same smile as the happy star god Aha.

“Hey, Mr. Kazuma…”

"I'm sure you wouldn't want the prosecutors, who are already overwhelmed by this matter, or the adventurers who were injured by the monsters, to know that Aqua drew a magic circle in the dungeon to repel monsters, right?"

This Japanese Nero, please calm down.

Nero also felt that it was not nice to threaten others like this, but she had her reasons for doing so.

Nero learned from the prosecutor about the appearance of the newly appeared mysterious monsters, and then found out that they were a group of small people wearing strange masks, like puppets.

Nero felt a sense of familiarity from the prosecutor's description.

Especially after learning that this mysterious monster would stick to people and explode, Nero felt more familiar.

This seems to be the ability of a certain demon duke, right?

The reason for threatening Kazuma is because Nero wants to take Aqua with him.

Although Aqua has a unique ability to cause trouble, she is still a goddess after all, and it should be very effective if the opponent is the Demon Duke.

It's a pity that Chris seems to have left Axel and no one knows where he went. If possible, Nero would rather take Chris with him instead of Aqua, but since Chris is not here, Aqua can be used as a makeshift.

Chapter 302 Differential Treatment

“Indeed, this mysterious monster incident has nothing to do with Kazuma and the others. I can assure you of this alone… Even so, in order to protect those frightened by those monsters, they, kindhearted and responsible, intend to join this expedition and fulfill their duty as adventurers.”

The above is what Nero said to Prosecutor Sena.

Even though Sena stared at her with a look that said "Sorry, I don't believe it at all", Nero still had a perfect smile without any flaws. Only Kazuma behind her felt a little guilty, and Aqua was wiping her tears with a red face.

In order to avoid misunderstanding, I would like to remind you that Aqua's blush was caused by being pinched.

"Uh... well... since that's what you said... then let's just take it as it is."

Sena raised her glasses, looking helpless.

Afterwards, the adventurers who responded to the call headed to the dungeon in Kiel.

It should have been a very dangerous adventure with no chance of life or death, but these adventurers were talking and laughing along the way, as relaxed as if they were going on a spring outing rather than to kill monsters.

"With Miss Nero here, we just need to mingle."

They basically all hold this idea.

"If you ask me, we don't really need so many people to go, right? Miss Nero and Miss Youyou can handle it alone, right?"

"That's right, if Miss Nero can't solve the problem, then all of us can't change anything, right?"

"With Miss Nero taking action, how could there be any problem that can't be solved? She even killed a general of the Demon King's army with such a handsome look!"

"Ms. Nero is so handsome! Even the Demon King's generals couldn't have imagined they would die in the Novice Town, right? I bet the Demon King must have been furious when he heard the news."

"I want to be Miss Nero's dog!"

Nero turned around, and the last sentence made her wonder if there was something wrong with her ears.

The journey was smooth and they soon arrived at the entrance of the dungeon.

It was Nero's first time here, and then she saw the "mysterious monster" that Senna mentioned.

In a nutshell, it is a mask puppet.

The puppet, wearing a black and white mask, is about the height of an adult's knee and walks around with its short legs.

“I see, it’s a mysterious monster after all. I’ve never seen or heard of one like this before…” Megumin examined the masked figures. “That mask is so cool, though. Hey, Kazuma, could I catch one and keep it as a pet? Or maybe you could give me one for my collection?”

Darkness also stroked her chin and said, "Is this really a monster? It seems... it doesn't have much fighting power. It's cute, though."

Darkness's tone sounded a little listless. She must have hoped to encounter a particularly powerful monster and be ravaged by it. This seemingly weak monster must have disappointed her.

And Aqua...

"How should I put it... I have a physical aversion to those dolls. Why is that? They look cute, but just looking at them makes me inexplicably mad."

She picked up a stone from the ground and was looking at one of the masked dolls.

Being able to make Aqua feel such great malice, it seems that these dolls were indeed made by the demon Duke Vanir.

"Aqua, Ru and I will go in together later."

"I do not want!"

Aqua firmly rejected Nero.

"Don't be so willful anymore! You must go in with me today!"

"No, no, absolutely not! I don't want to go into the dungeon again! If I go in, I'll definitely be thrown in again! And then I'll be chased by a horde of undead monsters!"

Aqua covered her ears and squatted down, shaking her head and shouting no.

The last time, Kazuma left Aqua alone in the dungeon and ran out by himself. It seems that the incident caused Aqua a lot of psychological trauma.

"It's okay, Nero. If it's just the magic circle drawn by Aqua inside, anyone can erase it, right? Even if Aqua stays outside, it won't matter. Besides, the chances of encountering the undead will increase dramatically if Aqua is inside."

Whatever happens with the undead, I'm worried about the guy who created these dolls...

Although Nero knew that the demon Duke Vanir was not his real self but just a clone he made out of clay, and that his real body was still in hell, Nero still had no confidence.

"Hey, it seems we've been discovered."

I don't know who said this, and then everyone noticed that several masked puppets began to walk towards this side.

"Eh?"

Huihui screamed in surprise because one of the masked dolls suddenly hugged her calf.

"Hey, Kazuma, what's going on? What's going on? Is it trying to be cute with me? What should I do, Kazuma? Is it the maternal instinct hidden in me that attracted it? This mask looks even more handsome when observed up close. How about we take it home and raise it? Let's name it 'Puff Puff' and raise it together..."

Putting aside Huihui’s bizarre naming style, the few people discovered that... the masked doll seemed to be glowing red and hot.

Megumin blinked and turned to look at Kazuma.

“…Hey, Kazuma, what’s with this increasingly strong feeling of foreboding?”

next moment……

"Oh!"

As the explosion sounded, the masked doll that was tightly hugging Megumin disappeared, and the only thing left was Megumin, who was caught in the explosion, her clothes in tatters, and she fell to the ground.

Yes, you heard it right, the Exploder was blown up today.

"Megumin!"

Kazuma cried out at the top of his lungs, knelt beside Huihui and picked up her frail body, just as exaggeratedly as the male protagonist in a soap opera cries when he hears that the female protagonist has been in a car accident.

“Meihui! Cheer up, Meihui!”

"Hmm! Don't you know? These masked puppets have a habit of clinging to others and then exploding. Because of this characteristic, no one knows what countermeasures to take against them."

Nero thought Sena had told Kazuma and the others about it.

At this moment, a voice full of tension and embarrassment came from Aqua's side again.

"Well...what should I do here?"

Several people looked in the direction of the sound, and then they saw Aqua with six masked dolls lying on her body, with a smile on her face that was uglier than crying.

Then, an explosion that was much more ferocious than the one that hit Megumin before instantly engulfed Aqua's figure and even blew her away.

Seeing Aqua, covered in charred black and emitting black smoke, soar high into the sky and then plummet back down, Kazuma, Nero, and the others, who were holding Megumin, were silent for a long time...

“Meihui! You must not be in any harm, Meihui!”

"That's outrageous! What's this? Discrimination?! Just give me a little thought!"

Aqua, who was still emitting black smoke, jumped up and rushed over crying and screaming.

Chapter 303 Demon Duke Barnil

Not only does Aqua have high abilities, but she also wears the divine feather robe that she brought down from heaven.

According to Aqua herself, this feather robe not only has extremely high defensive power, but also has a super strong purification function, which can make it immune to all negative curses, and is often used by Kazuma to wash clothes.

This is also the reason why Kazuma and Nero are not worried about Aqua at all. They are just six exploding masked dolls and can't do anything to her.

However, what is more troublesome is that more and more masked puppets are approaching.

Aqua can continue to be alive and kicking after being blown up by six masked dolls, but others cannot. Most adventurers would be seriously injured by the explosion of a single masked doll.

If it is touched, it will explode, and attacking without authorization will also cause an explosion, so the situation becomes tricky.

While a group of adventurers were forced to retreat by this tiny puppet, two of them walked forward, appearing quite unusual.

"Hey, what are you doing, Darkness?"

"Nero?!"

Several masked puppets pounced towards Nero and Darkness, and then exploded as loudly as the previous ones.

Then, after the explosion...

"...Yeah, I can handle this level, no problem."

"Hmm! An explosion of this magnitude is nowhere near as powerful as my fiery passion!"

The two people walked out of the smoke and dust unharmed, surprising everyone who had witnessed the whole process.

Darkness needed no introduction. For her, who could even withstand Megumin's explosion magic, an explosion of this magnitude was nothing.

Nero, on the other hand, relies on his [Anti-Magic] skill. With the blessing of [Emperor's Privilege EX], Nero's [Anti-Magic] can at least reach A-level.

“Hmm! Since Aqua is useless… Kazuma, let’s go in together.”

"Eh? Me?"

Kazuma pointed at himself with a look of disbelief on his face.

As if she thought Kazuma was scared, Darkness swore to him manly.

"It's okay, Kazuma. Nero and I will lead the way, and you just need to follow us... I swear on my honor as a Crusader, I will definitely protect you."

"...Damn it, isn't it usually me, the male protagonist, who says such cool things?"

This guy Kazuma can actually say that he is the male protagonist without batting an eyelid... and he really is the male protagonist.

Before entering the dungeon, Aqua cast auxiliary magic on Nero and the other two.

"[Versatile Entertainer]!"

Aqua cast the last auxiliary magic, but Kazuma showed a puzzled expression.

"What kind of magic was that just now?"

"The magic of becoming a talented person."

Kazuma was silent for a moment, then punched Aqua on the head.

“Hmm~~~, in this dark dungeon, I wonder what kind of outrageous things that devilish Kazuma will do to me… I’m really looking forward to it…”

"At least behave yourself in front of others, you perverted female knight! Nero is still here. Believe it or not, I'll leave you alone in the dungeon, hiding from the sun with those monsters. Will you suffer the same psychological trauma as Aqua?"

"..."

"Are you excited?"

"……No."

…………