A single massive bullet—one that could only be described as chunky—was fired from the heavy bowgun's barrel. Before the sound even reached the Immortal Bird's ears, the piercing round had already blown its head clean off.
Its headless body began to slump and fall, but Kazuma had already extended a hand out from the house's window, activating his most dependable skill:
"Steal!"
Marcille's eyes widened as she watched the plummeting Immortal Bird suddenly vanish—only to reappear in Kazuma's hands inside the house.
"How did he do that?!" Her ears perked straight up. "What kind of magic is that?! Teleportation? No, wait—Teleportation Magic doesn't work like that… and I didn't feel any magic energy either…"
While Marcille was still puzzled, the rest of the group casually emerged from the bushes and strode openly into the Mad Sorcerer's house.
The hunters moved with such natural ease that even Chilchuck couldn't help but feel they lacked a sense of urgency. What if there were still traps or monsters inside?
But the moment they entered, they saw Kazuma with the Immortal Bird in one hand, and Yad—the grandson of the Dungeon King—slung over his back.
"Oh ho! Isn't that our MVP, Kazuma!" Kairo Retsu enthusiastically greeted him. "As expected, when it comes to sneaky, underhanded crowd control and cleanup, there's no one better than our buddy Kazuma!"
"Don't think you can cover this up with a few compliments, you bastard!" Kazuma snapped back, raising his voice. "That damn Immortal Bird nearly revived, you know! I had to slap it on Yad just in time to stop it—"
"Immortal Bird?! You mean that monster that revives in fire?" Chilchuck was startled by the information—but then a nagging sense set in.
The latter half of their journey so far… felt a little too easy.
Though he appreciated the smoother ride, Chilchuck couldn't shake the feeling that things wouldn't stay simple forever.
Fate had a habit of lulling you with brief peace… only to hit you back harder afterward.
"Let's eat it before it revives again."
Kairo handed both the Immortal Bird and Yad's body to Senshi. "Chefs are noble beings! Like Granny Felyne! So—Senshi!"
Kairo grasped Senshi's hand with heartfelt sincerity. "I'll entrust you with preparing this Immortal Bird! Let us taste your craft!"
"I understand." Senshi nodded. Seeing the hungry glint in Kairo's eyes, he resolved to prepare a proper lunch for these young warriors…
"Alright then! We'll leave the ingredients to you!"
Kairo dug into his backpack, pulling out a massive pile of raw meat, mushrooms, and various materials…
"We're counting on you, Senshi!" Kairo called. "Only Naofumi and Tanjiro can actually cook! Everyone else basically just knows how to grill meat!"
Seeing this, Naofumi sighed and stepped forward with an armful of ingredients. "Guess I'll lend a hand. Tanjiro, you too."
"Of course, Naofumi-san!" Tanjiro responded with righteous energy. "I'll make some grilled rice balls! A little rice goes a long way!"
"As expected of the Stew Hero!" Kairo gave a thumbs-up. "Looking forward to a delicious meal!"
"You guys don't just stand around either," Naofumi said with exasperation. "Start cleaning the place, and while you're at it, dig out whatever's sealing the Winged Lion. You don't want to fight the Mad Sorcerer in a dust-covered mess, do you?"
"Good point, good point…"
Though a few people were confused about why they suddenly started cleaning, everyone got into the Delicious in Dungeon spirit and helped tidy up the Mad Sorcerer's home.
Along the way, Kairo even pulled out a stack of handwritten journals from under the Mad Sorcerer Thistle's bed, offering them for everyone's "appreciation."
The journals even contained handwritten poems…
"My, my. This boy…" Joseph Joestar said in the tone of a meddling mother. "Always scribbling weird things like this."
"Right, right!" Kairo got into character, thickening his voice for the bit. "This kid! Nothing like me! No masculinity at all! Must've gone bad staying cooped up in the dungeon all day!"
"Hey! What are you guys doing, playing house like this?! Thistle is gonna cry, you know! Reading his journals like this—it's like finding some self-insert stuff you wrote during puberty, and then your mom finds it while cleaning and actually reads it out loud! That's mortifying!" Kazuma yelled, genuinely distressed for Thistle.
"What's the big deal! Totally normal for a guy!" Kairo flopped down to keep rummaging under the bed. "Lemme see… any dirty magazines or something? At this age, every guy has at least one or two of those, right?"
"Ahem…"
Kazuma awkwardly turned his head away.
Joseph Joestar crossed his arms. "Hmph. With charm as irresistible as mine, I've never needed such things… Grandma Erina never checked under my bed, anyway."
"You guys really are something else…" Chilchuck said with exasperation. "It's like you're not afraid of the Mad Sorcerer at all."
"That's because we're confident in our intel! Plus, the Mad Sorcerer doesn't know we're here. We can take our time searching for the Winged Lion." Kairo replied matter-of-factly. "And figure out what to do about Falin's situation, too…"
"Oh, and by the way," Kairo added with a thumbs-up, "the Western Elves' team should reach this house tomorrow! We'll probably end up arguing with them over the dungeon! No worries!"
"THAT'S NOT COMFORTING AT ALL!!" Chilchuck raised his voice. "Now I get why Laois gets along with you so well!"
It seemed like Chilchuck had given up. After picking up the trash, he went downstairs to see if there was anything else to find.
Joseph Joestar, still flipping through Thistle's diary, muttered, "Tch… I haven't even met them, but I already hate those snooty elves. Always acting superior. Who knows what kind of clash we'll get into…"
"Let's take it slow." Kairo said, snapping another journal shut with a snap.
"If those elves ever find out what we're really trying to do…"
"They'll probably call in an army and kill us on the spot."
"Wonder if they can hypnotize us or something… Guess we'll find out."
"The blood-pumping thrill of the hunt… is about to begin!"