I don't want to be a heroic spirit

Yes, Kazuma and the others no longer lived in the castle, but stayed in a nearby inn.

After all, this is a castle where the royal family lives. How could they allow outsiders to live there all the time?

Nero and Youyou are able to have their own rooms because they are Alice's friends and teammates, but Kazuma and the others are still a little bit behind.

Oh, except Darkness. As the daughter of the Dustiness family, Darkness has had a good relationship with Alice and Claire since childhood. If she wanted, she could live in the castle, but she chose to live with Kazuma and the others.

On the way, Nero bought some barbecue skewers and ate them before leaving.

"The skewers here are really good. Unlike the ones I bought before, each skewer of meat was not much bigger than a kernel of corn, and they were also extremely expensive."

Nero started to complain when he thought about the terrible kebabs he occasionally saw when he went shopping with his friends.

Nero took out a skewer of barbecue from the paper bag in his arms and ate it happily, with some barbecue oil on his bright red lips.

"Hmm... And the cooking temperature is well controlled... But I can't tell what animal the meat is from."

Nero went to find Kazuma and the others this time because he wanted to take them to the Kingdom of Elrod.

She wasn't too worried about being rejected. After all, her goal was to get Kazuma to go there and make money, and given Kazuma's personality, he would probably not refuse.

Aqua probably wouldn't either, because that girl seems to like gambling. Even though she keeps losing, she still maintains a mysterious confidence in her luck.

Nero wasn't too sure about Huihui's attitude.

Darkness would probably agree, right? After all, they were protecting Alice's safety, and given Darkness's personality, she would definitely keep a close eye on Kazuma and the others to prevent her teammates from embarrassing themselves in the neighboring country.

When Nero arrived at Kazuma and the others' residence, he felt a little surprised.

"Hmm! Weird, why are they so quiet today? Every time I see them in the past, they're always super noisy."

Following protocol, Nero knocked on the door first.

“Darkness! Megumin! I have something to talk to you about.”

After waiting for a long time, Nero did not receive any response.

Then Nero knocked on the door again.

"Are you guys pretending that no one is in the house? Don't worry! It's not a troublesome or bad thing. I'm going to take you out to make a lot of money."

The door was banging loudly as Nero slammed it, and gradually, Nero realized that something was wrong.

"...Strange, the door doesn't seem to be locked?"

Grasping the door handle, Nero opened the door easily.

As soon as he entered the house, what caught Nero's eye was a hot pot with something cooking on the dining table, and four "corpses" lying on the table.

…………

"It was a close call. I almost died from puffer fish poisoning."

Kazuma, who had saved his life thanks to Nero's rescue, lay powerless on the sofa, still in shock.

Megumin and Darkness were also rescued, and Nero, who had rescued them, was now...

“Hahahahaha! Ouch, I can’t take it anymore! Yu Xiao’s abs are almost showing hahahahaha--!!”

After learning the whole process of the incident, Nero burst into laughter on the sofa.

"Even the Demon King's army cadres defeated more than a dozen legendary teams, but you were almost wiped out because of a poisonous pufferfish... You guys always manage to surprise me, hahahahahaha!"

Nero's laughter was particularly irritating to Kazuma and the others, and the thin-skinned Megumin and Darkness blushed... So they turned their hateful gazes towards the culprit of this incident.

"Hiccup~~~"

After a burp, Aqua curled up on the sofa holding the bottle of wine and slept soundly.

"Damn it... How dare this idiot who failed at this crucial moment sleep so soundly..."

Kazuma, unable to do anything to Aqua due to his paralyzed body, could only stare at her in frustration.

"You suddenly brought back the most poisonous Bliss Pufferfish and cooked it, and you even promised me, 'As the High Priest, there's no need to deal with the pufferfish poison. Even if you're poisoned, I can use magic to save you, so just forget about worrying and eat it.' We trusted you so much, and then you got drunk the next morning. What are you trying to do?!"

When Aqua collapsed on the table, Kazuma was worried that Aqua was also poisoned... But when he heard her snoring, he was really about to collapse!

In fact, Aqua has a divine artifact called feather robe that can make her immune to all negative effects, so the pufferfish poison can't do anything to her.

If Nero hadn't happened to come looking for them, Kazuma and the others might have already reported to Eris as a group.

By the way...could this be the effect of Kazuma's cheating luck again?

Although Kazuma shouted angrily, Aqua, who was sleeping soundly, could not hear his roar at all, and as a result, Nero laughed even louder.

At this moment, Kazuma could only grit his teeth and think in his mind how to kill this goddess who failed to deliver after he could resume his movements.

"Huh—it's been a while since I've laughed so happily and freely. Just for this, let me express my gratitude to you all!"

Wiping away the tears from the corners of his eyes, Nero felt his heart was clear and bright.

Of course, Nero did not forget the purpose of his visit today.

She hopes that Kazuma and others will also come to serve as Alice's guards, protecting Alice as she goes to the Kingdom of Elrod to discuss the issue of the cut-off financial support with the prince of the neighboring country.

Kazuma and Megumin were obviously about to say something, but Dacconice spoke up first to refuse.

"Although I'm delighted that you trust us so much, Nero, I'm sorry to ask that we decline this commission... I simply don't think a team that nearly got wiped out by a pufferfish is fit to accept such an important commission."

Darkness spoke so righteously, but Nero felt that she was just worried that Kazuma and the others would be embarrassed in other countries but was too embarrassed to say it in front of him.

When Darkness said this, Huihui and Kazuma were dissatisfied.

"Hey! Darkness, what nonsense are you talking about?! This is a golden opportunity for me to become the world's number one explosion magician, Megumin. How dare you reject me? I'm worried about how to let other countries besides the ancient Kingdom of Belzer know about the power of my explosion magic. I can also use this opportunity to make my little brother Alice admire me even more. If you ruin my plan, even if it's you, Darkness, I will never let you off easily!"

"That's right! Darkness, who gave you permission to make decisions for us? Didn't Nero just say that? Elrod is a country of gambling. Nero hopes I can be their trump card. If the negotiations fail, I can use my incredible luck to bankrupt them... This is my chance to show off my skills! This is the first time someone has trusted me as their trump card, not a 'beast', a 'pervert', or a 'weakling'! How could I possibly let you ruin that, you idiot!"

If Kazuma and Megumin hadn't been unable to move due to the poison, they might have already attacked Darkness, right?

“That’s why I want to refuse you all because of you guys being like this!” Darkness cried out in despair.

While the few people were arguing, Aqua, who was sleeping soundly, frowned slightly, then turned over and scratched her butt.

Chapter 330: Set off! Target: Elrod

It's time to set off.

We also specially picked good weather. There were not even a few floating clouds in the blue sky, and the humidity in the air was just right. I felt that the weather would be this good for the next few days.

Although transfer magic is very convenient, unfortunately, Nero and his friends can only ride in a carriage this time.

Because in order to use the teleportation magic, one must mark the end point in advance. However, magicians who can use the teleportation magic are very rare, and none of these magicians will place the limited and precious marking point in the capital of the Kingdom of Elrod.

After all, apart from the casino, the Kingdom of Elrod really has nothing special.

For example, Wiz's three mark points are Axel where she opened her shop, the Crimson Devil's Village where she purchases goods, and the world's largest dungeon.

However, although it is a horse-drawn carriage, it is not actually a horse that pulls the carriage.

But...

“It’s a running lizard! Kazuma, look! A running lizard, it’s a real running lizard!”

At this moment, Huihui was pulling at Kazuma's clothes, her eyes flashing red with excitement.

In front of the carriage, two running lizards that looked a bit like frilled lizards but were as tall as adults stood on two legs and made some cute roars towards Kazuma and Megumin.

These monsters, called running lizards, not only run faster than horses, but are also not as easily frightened as horses, making them quite popular mounts.

"Hmm... a running lizard?" Nero muttered to himself, hands on his hips. "It's a royal mount, after all, right? I thought it would be something stronger and rarer... like a griffin."

Nero remembered that there should be griffins in this world as well.

Moreover, in the novice town of Axel, she had once taken on a mission from the Adventurer's Guild of Axel to defeat the griffins and tiger scorpions that were causing trouble nearby.

Nero found it really hard to understand. Although it was a novice town, there were so many powerful monsters near Axel. Not to mention the mythical beasts Black Tortoise and White Tiger, there were also many monsters such as Hydra, Griffin, Tiger Scorpion, and General Winter that even the cadres of the Demon King's army did not dare to provoke easily.

This is not SAO, nor is it Aincrad. Qi will put a hidden map, the Black Iron Palace, on the first floor, which contains a ninety-floor-level BOSS.

"Sister Nero, the griffins in this world are also a type of synthetic beast, and they are quite powerful monsters."

Alice, wearing exquisite armor that didn't hinder her mobility and clutching the holy sword, stood beside Nero and explained, "The only griffin that's been confirmed to exist is the one back in Axel... and that one was defeated by you, sister, so it can't be used as a mount."

"The most important thing is... no one knows how to train a griffin as a mount."

Even the Running Lizards have their own dedicated trainers, just like Uma Musume has her own Torena, but the Griffins don't.

"Hmm! Actually... if it's just about training the griffin, I can still do it." Nero clasped his hands behind his head and looked up at the sky. "But since we can't find the griffin, there's nothing we can do."

With [Emperor's Privilege EX], Nero can obtain the A-rank [Riding] skill, allowing Nero to ride even fantasy species other than dragons, and the Griffin is a fantasy species.

Then, Darkness was chatting with Claire.

"Hmm? Are you going to take the royal dragon carriage? I heard that this meeting is a private trip, isn't it?"

"Ordinary carriages take too much time. This journey would take at least ten days if carried out by ordinary means. However, riding in this dragon carriage specially made for the royal family can significantly shorten the journey."

Although he didn't hear the conversation between Claire and Darkness, Nero also discovered the specialness of this car.

This car has no wheels.

However, with Nero's own magical attainments, she spotted the magical mark on the carriage that had a levitation effect.

Kazuma suddenly spoke after glancing into the carriage.

“Hey, this carriage seems to only seat six people at most?” Kazuma counted the number of people present, “But… there seem to be eight of us?”

Kazuma, Megumin, Aqua, Darkness, Nero, Yunyun, and Alice.

Claire, who was counted as the eighth person by Kazuma, explained at this time.

"I won't be going with you this time, because this is a private trip, and it's not appropriate to bring too many followers. Otherwise, everyone will think you're some kind of noble. For this reason, even the appearance of the dragon carriage has been modified to be more plain."

"Besides, I hold an important position in this country and have a lot of responsibilities. It's not suitable for me to be away for so long."

After listening to Claire's explanation, Kazuma nodded and then asked again.

"But...even if we don't count the girl in the white suit, there's still one more, right?"

"What's the name for a white suit girl, you rude bastard!"

If Nero had not explained Kazuma's importance to Claire in advance, Claire might have drawn her sword and killed Kazuma by now.

"Pfft! Pfft! Kazuma is such an idiot."

Aqua covered her mouth with her hand and laughed irritatingly, standing in front of Kazuma with a haughty expression. “There are six people in the carriage, and one has to be at the front driving the running lizard. Kazuma is truly a hopeless idiot for not being able to figure out such a simple question! Pffffffff~~~!!”

Kazuma, who finally understood what Aqua said, couldn’t help but blush. “Wha… what?! I just couldn’t wrap my mind around it for a moment…”

"Stop making excuses. You're just stupid. I heard eating seafood can boost your brain. I'll bring some back and cook it for you someday!"

“No, I’ve been having some issues with fish dishes lately…especially the ones you make. Megumin and the others have already agreed that you’re not allowed to enter the kitchen without permission!”

Darkness sat in the driver's seat and pulled the reins tied to the running lizards.

Aqua: "Huh? The driver is actually Lalatina?"

Megumin: “Really? I didn’t expect Lalatina to be able to ride a horse.”

Kazuma: "As expected of a noble daughter, horse riding is a must-learn skill, Lalatina."

Darkness: "No...don't call me Lalatina!"

For some reason, Darkness felt particularly ashamed when she called out the name "Lalatina".

Mocking Darkness with this name and enjoying her amusing reaction has become one of Team Kazuma's signature games.

Although Kazuma had his arm twisted off by the humiliated Darkness not long ago because of his arrogance, Kazuma seemed to have no memory of it at all.

Alice, who entered the carriage first, sat in the innermost seat, which was next to the window. She then smiled and patted the seat next to her.

"Sister Nero, please come and sit here! The seat next to me is empty. We can play games or continue telling stories on the way."

"Hmm! Alice really is clinging to me... Well, I won't be shy then."

The six seats in the carriage were divided into two rows, with Nero's team and Kazuma's team sitting in one row each.

"Your Highness Alice, did you bring everything? Did you bring a handkerchief? Did you bring some pocket money for emergencies? If you encounter an emergency, just take out the magic scrolls and magic props I prepared for you. Don't be stingy. And please don't cry when you feel lonely..."

"Claire, I'm not a child anymore. It's okay... and I have Sister Nero by my side. I'm sure I'll be fine with her by my side. And if you don't let me go, we can't set off..."

Finally, Claire reluctantly let go of Alice's hand.

"Then, Your Highness Alice, please do what you can and take good care of yourself. I wish you a pleasant journey!"

“Nero-sama! I leave Her Highness Alice in your care! Anyone who offends Her Highness will be executed immediately! … Her Highness Alice—!!”