Chapter 166: Succubi Are Good, But Don't Be Greedy
"Hiss— hah— hiss— hah—"
"...Master Kobayashi, please refrain from breathing heavily outside the house like a pervert. Besides, if you so wished, the several women in the mansion would surely be happy to let you do that to them, especially Lady Darkness. She would surely faint from excitement."
"Sorry. How should I put this... I feel like this entire world is filled with a cheerful air. I couldn't help but do it."
Outside a remote mansion in the beginner town of Axel, a man and a woman stood at the main gate.
It was the returned Kobayashi and RyuZU.
His actions just now might have seemed like those of a complete pervert to an outsider, but that was his genuine feeling. Even though the world of Konosuba was far more dangerous than the other worlds, he still felt a sense of ease from the inside out.
"Isn't it rather because you were surrounded by those strange women that you felt so oppressed?"
Her words hit the nail on the head.
Actually, Charlotte, her sister, and Frey were fine. But a certain little loli's fierce offensive was truly a bit much for him to handle.
Yes, he had gone to see Phi.
It wasn't just to express his thanks to her father, but also with the idea of using the other's connections and power to strike back at the Kingsfort family who had provoked him.
He just hadn't expected her to be so far beyond his expectations in terms of boldness.
Sharing a bed was a small matter. Things like good morning, noon, and night kisses, deliberately "accidentally" barging into the bathroom, and begging to play "husband and wife" and "doctor" games were things that happened every day.
There was even one time when his pants were almost pulled down.
It was precisely because of this that he had fled in a pathetic state after striking back at the Kingsfort family. Otherwise, if he had stayed any longer, he might have been eaten by that fierce little loli... or he might have eaten her.
"But in any case, everyone, I'm back!"
He clenched his fists, squatted down, and then stood up and cheered. Unfortunately, the mansion was too large, and no one answered him. He had wasted his emotions for nothing.
"Speaking of which, there's one thing I'm curious about."
"What is it, Master Kobayashi?"
"RyuZU, do you not get jealous when you see me with other women?"
He was really curious.
You could say he was being overly self-conscious, or you could say he was being a tsundere narcissist. But in any case, he was very curious about the true thoughts of this maid with a somewhat cold expression but an exceptionally sharp tongue.
"Oh my, has the philandering master finally realized that his lonely attendant has been neglected? I never thought you would care about such a thing. You really surprise me," she said, her opening words full of resentful condemnation.
He was quite embarrassed. After all, he had indeed neglected her.
"It's fine, you know."
The corners of her mouth lifted slightly. Although it wasn't obvious, one could still tell that she was smiling.
"Because I know that no one, no matter who, will spend as much time with you as I will. Until the end of the world, until my gears break down, I, as your attendant, will always follow by your side."
"O-oh..."
He blushed slightly.
Her straight-ball, which was practically a confession, almost captured him. Compared to Phi's fierce offensive, RyuZU's plain yet resolute words moved his heart even more.
"Well then..."
He extended his right hand, and she also naturally placed her hand on it, their fingers intertwining. The two of them looked at each other and smiled.
"Let's go home."
"Yes."
Under the setting sun, it was a truly beautiful sight.
However—
Just as they stepped into the mansion, they saw a shriveled zombie crawling out of the house, slowly wriggling towards the door.
"...Eh?"
He blinked, full of confusion.
You have to know, a goddess lived in this mansion, and a Goddess of Water who hated liches and zombies the most. So she had set up a barrier in the mansion long ago to prevent these things from invading.
But now there was actually a zombie crawling in the courtyard.
That idiot Aqua... has she finally abandoned her identity as a goddess?
He scratched his head in frustration and shouted at the mansion, "Aqua! Where's Aqua? Come out and clean the floor... ahem, come out and exorcise the zombie!"
Normally, the idiot goddess who smelled the scent of an undead should have pounced over like a hound that had smelled the aroma of a bone. For there to be no reaction... don't tell me something really did happen?
The beginner town, with a goddess standing guard, has fallen...
Although he felt it was impossible, if it was Aqua, who couldn't be understood by common sense, then he could strangely understand.
There was no helping it. He would just have to purify it himself.
Looking at the zombie that was about to crawl to his feet and was reaching out for something, he lifted his foot.
At this moment, a hoarse call came intermittently from below him.
"Kobayashi... sen... pai..."
"???"
There was only one person who called him that, and that was Satou Kazuma.
He lowered his foot and carefully examined the shriveled zombie. He found that, apart from its attire being a little different from what he remembered, its appearance was indeed the same as his companion's. He could conclude that the person before him was indeed Kazuma.
"Kazuma-kun?!"
"Kobayashi... senpai..."
"Strange. When did you change your class to Lich?"
In Konosuba, an Adventurer could change classes as long as their attribute points met the requirements. It was just that at the time, he had been reluctant to part with the Adventurer's ability to secretly learn the skills of other classes, so he had held back from changing.
"S-save... me..."
"By the way, you changed your class to Lich, and Aqua actually didn't purify you?"
He bent down to check his condition.
And RyuZU said from the side with her sharp tongue, "Master Kobayashi, it seems Master Satou has not changed his class to Lich, but rather that his body's energy has been overly consumed, leading to this state of extreme weakness."
"Er..."
He was instantly speechless.
To be honest, the moment he heard her say that, he had thought of why the other party would be so weak.
With the earnest teachings that a senior should have, he said, "Kazuma-kun, succubi are good, but don't be greedy." At the same time, he used his magic.
—[Heal].
A pale blue light enveloped him, and then he saw Kazuma's shriveled body inflate like a balloon, and his pale, bloodless face also became rosy.
He was instantly revived with full health.
And the first thing he did after jumping up from the ground was: "That idiot goddess! What does she mean, 'I'm not going to heal a pervert like Kazuma who goes to the succubus shop for pleasure every day!' I'm definitely going to teach her a lesson!"
"How about you look for the problem in yourself?" he couldn't help but retort.
He had never seen a scumbag who had gotten himself into such a pathetic state at the succubus shop and then blamed others for not healing him.
Oh no, he had seen one this time.
After complaining, Kazuma immediately said to him, "Welcome back, Kobayashi-senpai! Actually..."
"Ko—ba—ya—shi—!"
Before he could finish, a blue figure rushed out of the mansion.
The aura that appeared around her, that ridiculous impact force... it was like one of those big trucks that won't stop until it hits you and sends you to another world.
And Kazuma, without even reacting, was instantly sent flying more than ten meters away. Then he fell to the ground and didn't move. It looked like he had gone to see Eris.
I shouldn't have healed him.
"Welcome back, Kobayashi!"
Aqua, who had rushed into his arms, looked up, and he could see the joy in her water-blue eyes.
He didn't know if it was because she was naturally able to infect others, but his own heart also rose with the joy of a long-awaited reunion. As expected, the dazed and silly Aqua was the best.
Except...
"Sniff, sniff."
The goddess in his arms was constantly sniffing the scent on his body, and then her eyes instantly became sharp.
"It's the scent of a woman."
"..."
His body stiffened, and he didn't dare to move.
And Aqua didn't say much, just used a powerful magic spell.
"—Purification!"
Then, she hugged him again.
"Kobayashi, you're finally back! I missed you to death!"
"O-oh... I'm back."
As expected, it was the usual Aqua style.
He was a little relieved.
(End of Chapter)