Chapter 65
* * *
Iri—no, the great purification sorcerer herself—had personally selected her comrades. The first operation of the 7 Musketeers began.
"The purification sorcerer-nim said for Seraphin to go to the kitchen first-mida!"
"Huh? The kitchen?"
"Yes. And to bring back tons of food to eat like your usual image-mida!"
The head chefs would give Iri plenty of ingredients, but it might arouse suspicion.
So Seraphin, with his usual delinquent image, was perfect!
......or so Cookie had advised.
"Damn, the purification sorcerer-nim gave me a thief's mission! Wait there! Just trust in me!"
She hadn't said to steal—just bring some with casual permission!
But Seraphin had already vanished.
Iri briefly worried if it was really okay for Seraphin's morality to crumble like this.
While she pondered, Seraphin, who had shot off like an arrow, returned in no time.
His arms full of herbs reeking of a musty smell.
"Sadly, this is all for ingredients. Hard to grab stuff with everyone gathered in the castle! Damn! Guess I've become too nice."
So he did steal them after all......
"What do we make with these?"
"Mugwort, cucumber, seasonal fish."
"Hmm, mix 'em all for XX soup—think it'll work?"
"Oh, that sounds good. Fish head cucumber mugwort soup!"
They secretly made soup in Iri's room.
"Just dump all the mugwort in!"
"XX, these fish heads are packed with nutrients. Gotta dump 'em all!"
"Just dump everything in for now!"
"We're kids, so we can't use fire-mida. Just mixing works-mida."
And so the cooking with seven meddlesome hands......
"Um, can you even call this food?"
"Looks horrific."
"Orc-flavored soup, XX?"
......went completely off the rails.
*'As long as it goes in their mouths!'*
Iri said sternly, solemnly, seriously.
"This is fine as is-mida. Now Seraphin has completed 'that person's' task-mida."
"Whoa, damn! I might get praise from that person!"
Seraphin jumped up high, as if leaping into the sky.
Now, on to the second plan.
Iri looked into each of the monster hybrid quintet's eyes.
"From here on, it's super duper ultra important-mida!"
She tried to sternly chirp out their assignments like a hero.
But Belze, gauging the mood, asked politely.
"B-but why do monster hybrids like us need to, uh, why, why are we needed to save people hurt by monsters XX curious...... no, just curious."
Iri finally met their eyes.
*'They were experimented on in the Magic Tower. And bullied relentlessly in the capital.'*
It was a gaze worried about facing experiments again.
To reassure them, Iri stretched her arms wide and drew a big circle.
"Absolutely nothing weird-mida! That person said monster hybrid friends have super duper special missions—no, powers to help themselves! This big!"
It had been a bit tough inventing her own—no, 'that person's'—words just now.
The five hybrid friends' expressions varied.
But it seemed they'd never heard 'amazing' or 'needed' from anyone in their lives so far.
"W-we'll do our best! XX We'll do our best!"
"Me too! Me too! What do we do?"
"M-maybe infiltrate and do some huge activity!"
All eyes gathered on Iri.
Iri clasped her hands seriously.
They were truly vital in this plan.
"What you'll do is, um! Right away......"
*Boom, boom thump.*
Majestic music played in Iri's head.
"Food delivery and serving-mida!"
The atmosphere froze in an instant.
"......?"
"Th-that......"
"Fr-from the kitchen?"
Iri nodded vigorously.
*'These guys are perfect!'*
Monster hybrids aren't affected by magi.
Even if magi spiked out like spears in attack, they wouldn't get hurt.
So they were ideal to deliver this food to the knights.
She proudly thrust her chin up, but they asked,
"I-is that important?"
Of course it was—how to explain?!
Then Cookie sent telepathy.
[The great one said monster hybrids aren't affected by magi, so they'll become their power!]
Just relaying it exactly like that changed the kids' expressions from before.
But still dubious looks!
"Those are knights-mida. Feeding them might be dangerous-mida."
"Yeah, we'd look super suspicious, right?"
Iri nodded at Seraphin's words.
"So I thought of it-mida. You can use what you're good at to subdue them-mida!"
"Huh? We're not good at anything?"
"Sual and Lirid have great affinity-mida. Convince the knights to be friends and yum-yum, feed them-mida."
Sual was an affinity-expert spirit mage, and Lirid a nature mage friendly with nature.
"And give Dinan a tiny sword, Belze a tiny spear-mida."
"Huh? Never seen stuff like this, XX...... no, don't have any."
But they fiddled with the palm-sized dagger and spear, faces oddly intrigued.
"Whoa, feels so weird. Heart's XX pounding!"
In truth, all these abilities were just from 『Monster of the Northern Snowfields』, but anyway.
"Whoa, damn. Great eye for talent?"
"So if the knights go berserk, subdue 'em with these?!"
"N-no, absolutely can't hurt them-mida."
"What the, damn. Like a strategist, kiddo! Did that person tell you this too!"
But right then.
Karhen, whose name hadn't been called last, cautiously asked.
"What about me, what do I do?"
An expectant gaze!
But Iri had nothing to say.
Even 『Monster of the Northern Snowfields』 didn't explain Karhen's overwhelming abilities well.
Just vague descriptions like 'insanely strong and badass ability' that destroyed the north.
*'But those puppy eyes expecting praise!'*
Iri rolled her eyes and tossed out a line.
"Ka-Karhen just has good manners-mida."
"......"
"Th-then I'll go meet that person now-mida!"
They promised to gather again in Iri's bedroom in exactly 30 minutes.
Everyone except the slightly dazed Karhen left excitedly for the parlor.
Now it was time for the real action.
* * *
After sending the other friends to the parlor, Iri was diligently sweating as she infused purification power into the soup.
Cookie pounded the floor with its round hands, muttering.
"Argh! What a waste of purification power. Tears are coming out, tears!"
[‘The World's Strongest Hero’ Iri's Purification Status Window!]
2-star: Light ‘Tree’
■■□□□
(……)
2-star: Light ‘Tree’
□□□□□
[Special Ability!]
-Can imbue 1-star purification power into a specific ‘entity’.
"Hng, 2-star now hanging by a thread......"
It was natural for such a cheat ability allowing indirect purification to have a penalty.
As she resigned herself, Cookie asked Iri.
"But y'know, after giving food to the knights, people might track you down."
"Eh......?"
To Cookie, kids were pure.
That's why they fell for Iri's absurd white lie.
But adults were different.
If kids appeared in a subspace offering tasty food, they'd definitely suspect.
And after eating it, they'd feel even stranger.
Because that food contained purification power.
Their bodies would suddenly get healthy.
