Me, a priest? How could that be!

Chapter 20 Hehe, No Hehe

Charlotte, having earned the bounty, and Mimi enjoyed a sumptuous dinner with their friends. Although food given as charity is delicious, food bought with their own money tastes especially good.

Seeing how much he enjoyed his food, Keith and Taylor also started eating heartily, and only after they were full did they leave with heavy bellies.

Return to the dilapidated stable.

Although Charlotte now has money, he still can't afford the hotel fees, and he doesn't want to stay in a crowded dormitory with Keith and the others, so he has no choice but to make do here.

But he was probably used to it by now. Lying on the haystack, he smiled and soon fell asleep.

I woke up feeling refreshed.

It's good to be young.

After getting up, Charlotte jogged around the town, then went to the church to meet the old man, telling him what had happened in the past two days and giving him 1 Eris to repay his previous kindness.

Although it was still far from a hundredfold, Charlotte believed that he would achieve it someday. The old man, seeing the earnest look in his eyes, accepted the money.

After finishing my daily prayer quest, I headed towards the Adventurers' Guild.

He walked along, humming a tune.

"We adventurers are so happy today! We adventurers are so, so happy today...!"

Charlotte's steps were light and quick.

The thought of the good days to come gave him energy for work. But things changed when he saw Keith and Taylor coming towards him.

With a slicked-back smile, Keith greeted Charlotte, "Good morning! It's such a shame you lost so badly yesterday."

Hehe, no hehe.

The smile doesn't disappear, it just moves on.

Charlotte knew that Keith was teasing her about being solo-killed by the giant toad yesterday, but that was an indisputable fact, leaving no room for argument. Therefore, she could only try to make amends for herself.

"Um...no, it was supposed to be a great match..."

"Oh, that's not it."

Keith was completely inconsiderate; he went too far by describing it as, "In football terms, it was a humiliating 1-7 defeat with no excuses!"

I think you're swearing.

And I already have evidence.

But Charlotte burst into tears, moved, and said, "Did I really get a point? Is there really no need to pretend? I couldn't even outrun a giant toad..."

"We're friends, so I'll give you 1 point," Keith said, indicating that it was a friendship point.

Taylor patted him on the shoulder.

"That's great, Charlotte."

"Yes, Keith is my friend, that's wonderful!"

Charlotte cried even harder.

Perhaps it was because his crying was so heartbreaking that many passersby and adventurers pointed and whispered about them, since it seemed more like they were the ones bullying them.

"Alright, alright, stop crying. There's a saying that goes, 'A man doesn't easily shed tears.' It's just a giant toad; we'll get our revenge."

"……Um!"

Charlotte stopped crying.

"But it seems like it will take a while... Hmm, we're just about to pick someone up, maybe he can come in handy."

"……he?"

"Sorry, Charlotte, could you wait for us at the guild for a bit? We have something to do right now and will be back later."

"Oh well."

Keith and Taylor left in a hurry.

Charlotte watched the backs of the two who were acting mysteriously, wondering what they had to do, but since they asked her to wait, she decided to wait for the time being.

The union remains sparsely populated.

This is a bit unusual. Normally, adventurers don't go out to work in winter, so they should be working even harder to save enough money for winter living expenses. Where have they all gone?

I ordered a glass of sparkling wine.

Sitting in a corner of the union, lost in thought.

"Kazuma, Kazuma, let's do this quest! The bounty is so high, yet no one has accepted it yet. We've snagged a bargain!"

"turn down."

"Why?!"

"You idiot goddess! Think about this carefully. A bounty this high and no one taking it means it's very dangerous, right? I don't want to die! With our current strength, this is the only mission we can take. Let's go!"

"How could this be—"

A blue-haired goddess howled in resentment as she was dragged away by an adventurer.

Charlotte kept her head down the entire time.

I really don't want to have anything to do with them.

But soon, someone else appeared beside him, the sunlight shining on the newcomer and casting a shadow over him.

"It's you, new High Priest."

"...What?"

"What Taylor and Keith said... Hmph, doesn't sound very convincing. But whatever, you're a high-ranking professional after all. If you buy me a glass of bubble tea, I'll reluctantly let you join the team."

Charlotte then got a clear look at his face.

He had faint blond hair that was barely noticeable unless you looked closely, and his eyes held a scrutinizing and hostile expression. His handsome features were marred by his disdainful expression, and the corners of his mouth were also slightly downturned in a disdainful manner. He looked like a petty thug looking for trouble.

The overwhelming aura of scum is palpable.

Before Xia Luo could speak, a fair hand landed on the back of his head, making a crisp "smack" sound.

"Don't say such things, you idiot, Dust!"

"Ouch! Lynn, don't hit me!"

A pretty, somewhat childlike female adventurer emerged from behind the man, holding a magic wand. She had a high ponytail of dark brown hair, her eyebrows slightly raised in anger, and wore a blue cloak with a tail that looked like a raccoon dog behind her.

It's Duster and Lynn.

"Dust, don't always say things like that to every new adventurer you meet. People will hold a grudge."

"Exactly, you're already a notorious scoundrel in Axel, please stop ruining the team's reputation."

Keith and Taylor also rushed over.

It turned out that their act of mystery was actually to pick up their other two companions—Duster and Lynn.

"Hello, I'm Lynn. You must be Charlotte. I heard from Keith and Taylor that although you're a novice adventurer, you have a lot of potential? And you're even a rare high-ranking High Priest, that's really amazing! Alright, Dust, you introduce yourself too!"

"...Tsk, Dust, warrior."

Duster, whose head was being forced down, introduced himself with a disgruntled expression.

The group met successfully.

According to Keith, Duster was released after paying off his debts to the casino, and Lynn happened to be returning today, so the team officially assembled.

As soon as they assembled, Duster eagerly said, "Okay, let's go on a mission! Because I'm out of money and desperately need some cash!"

It would be strange if he had any money after being released.

Lynn looked the same way, scratching her cheek shyly. Something seemed to have happened at home, and she needed money... Also, she heard that a large portion of it had been lent to Duster, which was why she was in such a predicament.

"So, what task should we do?"

"Of course, it's time to take down the beginner killer! It injured my companion; it's doomed!"

Duster said that decisively.

A dangerous glint flashed in his eyes, and his tone became fierce.

It truly shone with a brilliant light!

Charlotte knew that Dust, who was hiding his identity as a dragon knight, was very strong. However, seeing that Keith and Taylor's expressions changed when the novice assassin was mentioned, they also seemed confident, indicating that they knew something about Dust's situation.

This squad.

It seems like Taylor is the captain, but in crucial moments, we still have to rely on Dust.

"Okay, let's go!"

"Oh!" X3

"oh oh……?"

How did I end up joining the team so confused?