Chapter 382 : Visiting The Forest For The Third Time
A few days later, Delica, Nicola, Diadora, and I left the town at noon and went to the nearby forest.
Today, Delica doesn’t have any work shift at my parents’ inn, so she can spend her time training in the forest.
「Alright, listen. I don’t mind you guys tagging along, and I’m thankful to your dad for preparing lunch for me, but I’m going to the forest to train, not to have a relaxing picnic, okay? So, please don’t kill all the enemies we encounter along the way. Yes, I’m talking to you, Mark! Please refrain from killing my prey. Got it?」(Delica)
「G, got it…」(Mark)
She pointed that out firmly as we were standing by the entrance to the forest.
I think she heard from Jack about how I killed every goblin and kobold in sight the last time I went to this forest, and she worried that she wouldn’t get any chance to fight those monsters with me around.
I guess I’ll try my best not to do anything today…
Without wasting time, we entered the forest as soon as Delica was ready.
It’s the third time I set foot in this forest. The first time was when I went with Celine to see how she was working as an adventurer, and the second time was when I went with Luck to rescue his little brother, Jack. (ch 28 & 37)
「The smell of the forest… I love it…」(Diadora)
Diadora took a deep breath as soon as we entered the forest.
Her face didn’t change at all, but I could tell that she was in a much better mood than usual now that she had returned to the forest after a long time.
She was so excited that she didn’t realize she had increased her walking pace a bit, but then Delica warned her timidly.
「Umm… Diadora-san, please don’t walk ahead of me. I don’t want you to attract my prey.」(Delica)
「She’s right. Diadora, you might get attacked by goblins if you walk in the front.」(Mark)
「Ah… I’m sorry… Goblins… Scary…」(Diadora)
Listening to the warnings, Diadora immediately stepped back and hid behind me.
She’s really afraid of goblins, huh?
「Mark… Can I hold your hand…?」(Diadora)
「Hm? Sure.」(Mark)
「If you hold my hand… I won’t walk ahead on my own…」(Diadora)
「Ah, I see…」(Mark)
She asked me to hold her hand, but not because she wanted to hold hands with me, but to prevent herself from walking ahead of us.
It feels like holding a dog’s leash on a walk rather than holding a girl’s hand.
「Diadora-chan, can I hold your hand too?」(Nicola)
「Un…」(Diadora)
「Yaayy~!」(Nicola)
Of course, Nicola wouldn’t miss this chance.
She grabbed Diadora’s free hand as soon as Diadora replied to her with a nod.
We then continued walking while holding hands with Diadora in the middle.
『Muhehe~ Dryad’s hand is so soft~』(Nicola)
As usual, Nicola then unnecessarily sent a worthless telepathic message.
But, now that she mentions it, I do feel like Diadora’s hand is extraordinarily soft. It’s even softer than a baby’s hand.
It’s just my guess, but I think it’s because Diadora’s body is a materialized form of natural mana.
「…..」(Delica)
Watching the three of us holding hands while following her from behind, Delica squinted for some reason.
Nicola, who noticed her gaze, talked to her teasingly.
「Oya~? Delica-chan, do you want to hold hands with Onii-chan too~?」(Nicola)
「H, huuh!? No, it’s notー it’s just… I… That’s right! I just can’t concentrate with people’s presence behind me! That’s it!」(Delica)
Delica panickedly tried to find an excuse as her face turned bright red.
「Delica’s face looks like a tomato… I knew it… You’re a tomato spirit…」(Diadora)
「I’m not!」(Delica)
『Phu phu! As always, she’s not honest with herself. How cute~!』(Nicola)
『Oi, don’t tease her too much.』(Mark)
I knew Delica was just making an excuse, but I would feel bad if she really couldn’t concentrate because of us.
Oh, right. I have an idea.
「Sorry, Delica. But, how about this?」(Mark)
If she’s bothered by our presence, then I’ll simply erase it. With that in mind, I activated my Stealth Gift.
Since I’m holding Diadora’s hand, and Diadora is holding Nicola’s hand, their presence also vanished.
「Eh…? What is happening? You guys are in front of me, right? I can see you, but… It feels like you’re not here… It’s so weird!」(Delica)
Delica rubbed her eyes while looking at us in disbelief.
「It’s because I’m hiding our presence with my Stealth Gift.」(Mark)
「Stealth Gift? Wait, you have two Gifts?」(Delica)
「Oh, right. I haven’t told you about this, have I? I stole this Gift from Lumon, the bandit leader we defeated on your trip.」(Mark)
The only people who knew about this Gift were Nicola, Celine, and Ester, who fought the bandits with me.
Other than them, Nei also knew it. I used this ability when we tried to catch the vegetable thief, who was actually Diadora. Nei was with us that night.
「I didn’t know you could steal someone’s Gift, but as expected from Mark! You’re so talented!」(Delica)
「Ahaha… Anyway, you can now concentrate on your training, right?」(Mark)
「Yeah, I’ll do my best! Alright, let’s do it!」(Delica)
As she shouted, she drew her sword and raised it to get herself pumped up.
She then took the lead and walked steadily down the animal trail, heading deep into the forest.
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