What were you doing before the end of the world? Are you going to be an assassin?

“Sure, brother! That’s very kind of you, isn’t it?” Kazuma’s address instantly matched the “brother” that Connor had called him before. Kazuma originally thought that his team hadn’t done anything, and Darkness, as the vanguard, had no chance to fight the Dullahan, and Megumin didn’t cast today’s explosion magic, but Aqua gave him an inexplicable blessing.

Tracing back to the source, it turned out that the Demon King's Army cadres were led here by him and Huihui.

Even though their responsibilities had not been settled and they still had mission rewards to collect, Kazuma suddenly felt that there were still many good people among the reincarnated heroes.

"In recognition of Mr. Connor's success in defeating Beldia, a cadre of the Demon King's Army, the guild will award 300 million Eris!"

“Yes, that’s right! There should be special rewards! Kazuma and the others are great!” The adventurers had no objection, they just came here to brag and add fuel to the fire. They were not jealous of Kazuma’s team that blocked the Demon King’s army cadres, or Connor who killed them.

You have to have the ability to be jealous. The adventurers think that they put themselves in that position and are not even as good as Kazuma's team.

At least the paladins and archmages in Kazuma's team stayed at the city gate and didn't retreat a single step when facing the undead army.

If so many undead rushed into the city, it would be a disaster. The Adventurer's Guild, caught off guard, could not mobilize enough combat power and priests to purify the undead, and the priests' [Purification] had no effect on the undead blessed by the Demon King.

Kazuma: ...At first I wanted to retreat, but Aqua's cage and carriage were blocking our way... Never mind. For the sake of the reward, I have no choice but to protect the city!

Darkness was very disappointed. Even when she heard that there was a separate reward, which was not as good as Connor's but still very generous, it still did not cheer her up.

"This Dullahan's technique is quite good... He could have shaved off my armor bit by bit, leaving only a little bit of armor instead of being completely naked, to create a more provocative look..."

Huihui also lamented: “It’s good to be rewarded, but I always feel a blockage in my body when I can’t use explosion magic... Ever since I learned the charm of attacking the castle with magic, my body has become willing to accept only big and hard things...”

"Please don't be so shy when saying these lines! Please don't say such perverted words with those two faces!" Kazuma obviously couldn't hold it anymore. Why did his teammates always let him down at serious moments?

“Oh! Are you humiliating me? Kazuma... you really don’t care about the occasion…” Darkness rubbed her armor, seeming to enjoy the verbal humiliation.

Kazuma: ...It's not just the performance that's substandard.

“Hey…” Connor patted Kazuma’s shoulder, “It’s really not easy.”

Kazuma also sighed, after all, the reincarnated hero was more reliable.

Wait, is there something missing?

Connor and Kazuma remembered something at the same time. Where was the blue-haired goddess?

It’s broken and still in the cage!

After dealing with the Demon King's army cadres, Kazuma felt that since Aqua was put in a cage and there were no powerful monsters blocking the way outside, he and Connor decided to complete the two tasks. He forced the frustrated Darkness and Megumin, as well as Aqua who was sulking in the cage, to go to the lake that needed to be purified and kill monsters for a day.

Aqua and the iron cage were used as tea bags in the lake for half a day, Connor brushed crocodiles on the lake for half a day, and Darkness played death rolls with a crocodile for a while. The last few crocodiles were left to Huihui to use explosion magic, and after eating a mouthful of mud, everyone returned to their residences and dispersed.

Seeing that Kazuma and the others were still planning to squeeze into the public bath and sleep in the stable as before, Connor took them to the hotel where he was staying and booked a few rooms where they could take a private bath.

“I dare not offer sacrifices, as I must be trustworthy. If your trust is not strong enough, the gods will not bless you… but Prism will not mind, right?” Connor sat alone on the bed, with a Prism in his hand instead of the Apple of Eden he often used.

First, let Kazuma build up a "reliable" image for himself, and then use the money that Kazuma and Aqua desperately need to brush up on Aqua's bond, barely giving Prism a decent excuse.

It's just that you are too eager for quick success.

After the previous two times of specious arguments, the prism only vibrated slightly and did not express any objection.

Essentially, Prism is willing to see and is happy to help qualified people become stronger as quickly as possible and complete the Goddess's mission. However, due to certain rules, Prism's divine intelligence is subject to considerable restrictions.

A string of numbers immediately appeared on the surface of the prism, which was the countdown for Connor to continue staying in this alien world.

"I have gained 2499/4000 experience points. I still have one month to level up according to the prism... I will clear the elite monsters in the high-risk mission tomorrow, and then say goodbye to the novice town."

When Connor was going to bed at night, he heard Kazuma and Aqua arguing again, apparently about the use of the reward.

“Young people are so nice…”

The next day, Connor came to the Adventurer's Guild.

As soon as the door opened, a pungent smell came out.

The heat from the crowd and the strong smell of alcohol hit Connor in the face. He opened the door and stood outside for a long time before going in.

It seems that the adventurers have been holding a party since yesterday to commemorate the defeat of the Demon King's army leaders.

"Hey! Brother Connor! You're too late, aren't you?" Kazuma had already finished practicing magic in the morning, and he felt refreshed because he was about to receive a generous reward.

Beside him was Aqua, who was in a good mood.

Huihui and Darkness were already at the adventurer counter, waiting for the counter lady Luna to give them their rewards.

When seeing Connor coming over, the counter girl Luna immediately smiled, but her smile became a little subtle when she saw Aqua.

“Well, first of all, here’s the reward for the adventurer team.” The counter lady distributed four bags to Kazuma’s team.

Aqua's was particularly small, and it was a piece of paper.

"What's going on?" Aqua grabbed Luna's chest again and yelled anxiously.

"Ms. Aqua, when you were performing this morning..." Luna pointed to the center of the Adventurer's Guild Hall, where the most precious drops after defeating the Demon King's army cadres were placed - the armor blessed by the Demon King.

When worn by the Headless Horseman, the armor could withstand most holy purifications, but with the death of the Headless Horseman, the armor lost its fulcrum and was split open by Connor, destroying its integrity, and the holy resistance of the armor was weakened a lot.

In the morning, the enthusiastic Aqua used this set of armor to perform "Flowers, Birds, Wind and Moon" for everyone, making a fountain out of the armor.

Due to Aqua's goddess attributes, any water element can become holy water with super purification ability. So when Connor looked over in the direction of the counter lady's hand, he saw that the armor was already covered with traces of rust, but it was still of some use and would not be completely useless.

Click!

Aqua seemed to be struck by petrification magic, and her entire body turned gray.

"Well, I have quite a bit of wealth..." Connor thought for a moment before taking Aqua's IOU and using the reward he got for handing in the armor to offset the compensation Aqua needed to make.

"You, you are truly my most devout believer!"

The bond with Aqua strengthens!

Aqua held Connor's hand with tears in her eyes, and her tears fell on Connor's body while she cleansed his whole body.

Prism: Obtain the item [Tears of the Goddess].

[Tears of the Goddess]: can accumulate mana and luck, can evolve. Accumulate mana: every time you hit a target with three skills, it will consume one layer of charge and provide 1 extra mana. The charge is restored once a day, and can be stacked up to four layers; you can accumulate luck once a day, and the luck value will decrease on that day. After accumulating three times, you can get a lucky blessing (normal, luck +1), which can be stacked up to ten times. Evolution condition: the qualified person does not have enough authority.

Connor:…

What's this blue water droplet-like thing doing? !

But...the goddess is really full of treasures!

A devout believer? Luna glanced at Aqua and thought that the Akusia believers were just talking nonsense again.

"Really... an [Assassin] with great potential is actually related to the Acusian believers..." Luna sighed and complained silently in her heart.

A 300 million Eris logo was added to his adventurer card. If needed, Connor could withdraw cash at any time from adventurer guilds in various places. The amount exceeding 100 million Eris needed to be booked in advance, but there were no restrictions or handling fees for the rest.

When she returned to her seat in the corner and was waiting for dinner to start, Aqua, who had lost and regained her possessions over and over again, still looked listless.

He didn't even pay attention to the plan that Connor talked about with Kazuma.

"High-level areas... I'd better wait a little longer." Kazuma thought about it and finally rejected Connor's suggestion. Now he had to sacrifice Aqua and Megumin to get a toad, and going to a high-level area was no different from delivering food.

"Now that I've got such a large sum of money, I want to set up a base in Axel first." Kazuma didn't have as much money as Connor, but because he didn't have Aqua's debt, he still had enough money.

"It is indeed much more convenient to have a base of our own." Connor did not comment. Since Kazuma had made the decision, his three teammates must have the same idea.

He took out his own adventurer card and asked Kazuma to take out his adventurer card as well.

“I’m leaving now and I don’t have anything to give you.” Connor scratched 50 million Eris on Kazuma’s card. “It may sound a bit tacky, but I hope it can help you defeat the Demon King.”

Kazuma: ...Is it true? Godfather!

This amount of Eris is more than all the compensation Kazuma has earned since he came to the other world!

"Lady Aqua," Connor turned to the depressed Aqua. After seeing the extra money given to Kazuma, the goddess had somewhat recovered her spirits. "As your loyal believer..."

"Can I have a lock of your hair? The journey to defeat the Demon King is bound to be full of difficulties and obstacles. Only you, Aqua-sama, can inspire my fighting spirit."

Aqua: "My hair? Believers, the body of a god must not be desecrated. Am I some kind of frivolous god?"

Connor transferred 100 million Eris onto Aqua’s adventurer card.

You see, God is so accurate!

Aqua: I wanted to refuse, but... he offered too much!

"Are these enough? If not, I can still find others!" Aqua raised her knife and cut off a long strand of hair.

Just like that, Connor used Aqua's sky-blue hair to make a necklace and inlaid the [Tears of the Goddess] on it.

"Everyone, good luck to you!"

After getting what he wanted, Connor didn't have anything else to pack, so he got up and left.

"Brother! Where are you going next?" Kazuma asked. He is taking people to complete missions and share money. Where can you find such a good reincarnated hero?

Maybe when I become stronger I can meet him again in a city, and then it will be time to repay the start-up capital.

"The castle outside the city occupied by the Demon King's army is empty, right? I plan to go there to see if there are any remaining monsters, and complete the high-risk missions. Then I might go to a high-risk place."

You're still thinking about completing the quest at this time. You really regard defeating the Demon King as your lifelong pursuit! Look at her, Aqua! How long will it take for us to defeat the Demon King?

Kazuma watched Connor walk out of the door of the Adventurer's Guild with tears in his eyes.

Huihui tugged at Kazuma's clothes under the table and said, "Kazuma... Where are the monsters in the castle? Aren't they all dead? And when the Demon King's army leaders arrived, all the monsters in the wild hid, right?"

Kazuma was stunned, and immediately gobbled his breakfast in big mouthfuls, while also urging the other three to finish their meals as soon as possible.

Megumin knew what Kazuma wanted to do and quickened her pace. Darkness' mind was still on the unfinished humiliation from yesterday, but she didn't doubt Kazuma. Paladins usually ate very fast, and now they ate even faster.

“What are you doing? Why are you in such a hurry?” Only Aqua asked in confusion. This goddess, whose IQ and luck were below normal, was overwhelmed by the 100 million Eris that fell from the sky and had no idea what to do anymore.

"Even if the castle was blown up by Huihui, there is still a magic barrier protecting it. Brother Connor can't take much away by himself!" Kazuma explained. According to the rules of the team, what Aqua earns belongs to Aqua and has nothing to do with others.

And even if Aqua could keep the money instead of losing it due to bad luck, and was willing to give it to Kazuma, Kazuma would still be too embarrassed to accept pocket money from Aqua.

Which good person gets pocket money from his or her "pet"?

Even when he was a otaku, Kazuma saved up money from his day-paid jobs to buy games.

Not to mention Huihui and Darkness. Isn't it the most common plot for adventurers in stories to explore abandoned castles and make a fortune? Isn't it normal to be bullied by treasure chest monsters or tentacle monsters in castles?

Compared to completing the mission desperately, the castle that has been combed three times by Huihui, the Demon King’s Army cadres, and Connor must be very safe!

"Eat quickly, we might be able to pick up something good if we follow behind!"

96. Bait

Taking on the mission of defeating the griffins and scorpion lions, Connor dived into the forest outside the novice town of Axel. He was so fast that the Kazuma team couldn't find him, so they had to wander around outside the city and go back.

Connor held a mission map in his hand, which showed the range of activities of two high-level monsters, the Griffin and the Scorpion Eagle. Since the Demon King's army officers occupied the castle, the monsters in the forest had changed their positions a lot. Although the two high-level monsters had the strength to not worry about the Demon King's army officers and the two sides did not interfere with each other, high-level monsters also needed to hunt for food.

When mid- and low-level monsters flee, their hunting range will inevitably shift, so whether or not you can find them depends on luck.

"Eating cabbage can earn experience points, so higher-level griffins and hawk scorpions can also be eaten, right?"

For the Adventurer Guild, once a monster is killed, it will be displayed on the Adventurer Card and the mission is completed. There is another price for recovering the body of a high-level monster.

For example, the reward for defeating a toad is 10,000 eris, and if you bring back useful parts of the toad and hand them over to the Adventurer's Guild, you will get an additional reward. Sometimes the reward for the mission is only a small part, and the real big part is recovering the valuable monster body.

The forest was dense and tangled. Connor walked in the forest along the path marked on the mission map for a while. Suddenly, he felt a breathless feeling, as if the air was too thin and he could not breathe.

Connor immediately climbed up a branch of a big tree and sat on it. After leaving the ground, the feeling of suffocation disappeared instantly. The trees around him, who knew how long they had been alive, stood quietly everywhere.

The air was very foggy and mist filled the air, which was very abnormal at this time when the sun was already high in the sky. Connor temporarily stopped going deeper into the forest.

The fog was the culprit that made Connor feel breathless. The sunlight activated the trees in the forest, and at the same time activated a certain self-protection mechanism of the forest. Countless trees released a heavier gas into the air together, squeezing the oxygen for breathing to the top.

This will help to dislodge any insects that feed on the tree by gnawing at the base and lower trunk.

As for small and medium-sized animals, they have already become accustomed to the rules of the forest. Only those that can fly and high-level monsters ignore the forest.

Aqua's irresponsible behavior caused many artifacts and super powers to be lost outside, and it was not the human side that was strengthened to a large extent. The activities of monsters and the Demon King's army compressed the scope of human activities to the edge of the town, and the forest was a place that only mature adventure teams or powerful adventurers dared to enter.

Many of the trees seemed to be asleep, or perhaps they thought it was just another living being passing by, but some of them trembled, and others waved their branches, and in an instant they had concealed all traces of the path into the forest.

Here, the trees are the real masters.

Connor: Oh no... I forgot that the cabbages and vegetable sticks here can attack people. Is this big tree going to attack me too?

Fortunately, when Connor entered the forest, he only carried a bow and did not materialize an axe that would have made the trees extremely alert.

Nor did they bring out torches that the forest hated.

The commotion in the forest lasted only a short while, and the fog gradually dissipated as time passed.

Connor sat on a tree and raised his vision. He then realized that he had only entered the forest three or four miles, but he saw the treetops spreading farther along the high ground where the castle was located.

There are still some adventure teams looking for their mission targets near the edge of the forest.

"If it's that area..."