"Lady Frieren really loves dungeons," Fern said with a sigh while watching Frieren knock on the wall. Her anger had mostly faded.
Although she kept a certain distance from him because they were both covered in sweat, Ash still explained to the curious gazes of the two girls beside him.
"She has liked exploring treasure chests for a long time, but recently because of something Himmel said, she suddenly acted like she discovered a whole new world. Now she explores the entire dungeon instead of heading straight for the deepest part."
"What did he say?", Fern turned back curiously.
"Hmm... If I remember correctly, at the time Himmel said a long speech. At first Frieren didn't react at all, but the last sentence, 'there might be a precious grimoire down one of the side paths.' That directly changed Frieren's previously casual way of exploring dungeons."
Just remembering the moment Himmel said that line, Frieren's eyes widened before she instantly ran back and started urging everyone along. Makes him shake his head even now.
Fern's expression also turned a bit complicated.
"That really does sound like something Lady Frieren would do."
"Exactly. In a century since her teacher died, aside from occasionally staying alone deep in the mountains, she spent most of her time wandering around by herself looking for grimoires. If you casually told her there was a magic book buried somewhere underground, she'd probably dig up every grave within a few kilometers of that place."
"Digging graves might be a bit much, but… isn't that impressive?", Sense couldn't help cutting in, "And if she works that hard, she must have discovered some extremely powerful magic, right?"
"In the end you're still too naive, Sense," Ash placed his hand on her head, feeling the smooth texture of her beautiful hair while shaking his head, "In reality, the vast majority of them are completely useless grimoires."
"She searched for over a thousand years and worked so hard exploring every dungeon? And the result is useless things?"
"It sounds hard to believe, but that's actually the truth. I've never even heard of her getting any good results."
His sighing tone immediately made Fern unhappy.
"How could that be! There are still some very useful spells!"
"For example?"
"The magic for cleaning rust off bronze statues, and one that makes hot tea appear, one that removes stubborn grease stains, one that eliminates mold, one that makes flipping pancakes easier… aren't those all extremely useful?"
Fern counted them on her fingers like precious treasures, listing many spells that had already been lost and turned into legendary magic. While speaking firmly, her face was full of admiration and pride.
But after hearing this, both Sense and Ash wore strange expressions.
Because… they truly couldn't understand what the point of collecting magic like that was.
Sense stood there blankly, unsure how to comment, while Ash simply covered his face and sighed.
"Aren't these just grandma's little household tricks?"
"Please don't insult those legendary spells!", Fern protested angrily, "If mold appears on your clothes, how would you deal with it? At times like that, a spell that eliminates mold would be extremely convenient!"
"I would just buy new clothes."
"Wouldn't that be a waste of money? What about the magic that removes stubborn grease stains? Cleaning that yourself is troublesome too. Or are you so wasteful that you throw away pots and dishes after using them once?"
"I don't cook. If necessary, I can just hire a maid."
"Uff!", His careless attitude immediately made Fern puff up her cheeks in anger.
Ash's expression stiffened slightly. Then it looked like he suddenly thought of something, lightly tapping his palm as he changed his words.
"B-but! Thinking about it again, sometimes having those spells is definitely much better than not having them!"
"Exactly! Lord Ash really lacks common sense."
"Yes, yes… it's all my fault…"
'Why is Fern only in her teens, still in the bloom of youth, yet her thinking in this area leans so much toward that of a mother or even a grandmother? Is this Frieren's fault?', Watching the girl's mood improve again, he verbally agreed while feeling helpless inside.
And his obvious attempt to appease a child made Sense keep shaking her head.
———
Although their goal should be heading toward the deepest part, they still had plenty of time.
That allowed Frieren to observe everything around her like she was treasure hunting. After all, this was a dungeon that hadn't been conquered yet, so no one knew what was inside, but the presence of many treasures was certain.
Ash himself was somewhat interested as well.
So before long, the four of them followed the enthusiastic Frieren to a hidden side path.
At the end of that path there was nothing else.
Only an old, simple treasure chest.
And just as Ash expected, Frieren squatted in front of it, stroking her chin with a deeply thoughtful expression.
This long silence finally made even the usually doting Fern unable to hold back. She gently reminded her.
"Lady Frieren, how long are you going to stare at it? You already appraised it, didn't you? It's a mimic."
"Although the appraisal result really says it's a mimic, Fern… that magic has 99% accuracy. That means there's still a 1% chance it could miss something."
Before Frieren could speak, Ash smiled and placed his hand on Fern's shoulder, repeating the famous line of Frieren that he remembered clearly.
"It's precisely because there are great mages who see through that 1% that historic discoveries are made. And that is the ultimate motivation for us mages, to pursue miracles and create history."
"That sounds right… but no matter how you look at it, it's still a bit far-fetched, isn't it?", Fern's expression remained subtle, and her eyes clearly weren't convinced.
But Frieren, receiving praise from a companion for the first time, lit up with joy. She suddenly stood up and grabbed his hand.
"Ash, you really understand! As expected of my best friend! Hmm… from now on, we're lifelong best friends again!"
"I don't know what we were before, but I don't really care… you'll definitely change your mind again soon anyway."
"Huh? Are you planning to?", Frieren blinked in confusion.
"It's nothing. Just hurry up and open it. Don't waste time here. I'm waiting too."
He quietly pulled his hand out of Frieren's grip and placed both hands on her shoulders, as if giving her courage, speaking with complete trust.
"Your experience as a mage must be telling you there's a grimoire inside, right? So believe in yourself, Frieren! I believe in the you who believes in yourself!"
"Ash…"
When no one else believed in her, he still placed such trust in her judgment. Frieren's face teared up with joy, and she almost looked like she might cry.
At that moment, their tacit understanding and friendship quietly rose to a new level in the dim light of the dungeon.
Frieren even wiped the corner of her eyes, covering her face as she murmured emotionally.
"All these years… ten centuries… after all this time, someone finally believes in my judgment again… today… finally! Finally someone understands that I'm the one who's right~"
"Lady Frieren, although I don't want to interrupt at a moment like this, if no one has believed you for so many years, have you ever considered the possibility that you might actually be wrong?"
Even though the two looked deeply moved, Fern spoke from the side with a disgusted expression.
But even after being mocked like that, Frieren, who had finally found someone who understood her, wasn't discouraged at all. Instead she puffed out her chest and replied confidently.
"How could it be my fault? If I can't even believe in myself, how could I welcome this moment of happiness now?"
"If this counts as happiness, why don't you change your approach? You would definitely gain more recognition and happiness that way."
"Because I believe in my own choice!"
"Do you ever believe the appraisal results?"
"Absolutely not!"
She used to look confident before, but now that she had gained a supporter she looked like she had grasped the truth itself. Her gaze was so firm that even Fern began to wonder if she might actually be wrong.
Was Frieren the one who was right?
But at the same time, she still couldn't quite understand… if Frieren didn't believe the appraisal results, why did she appraise it every time? She was going to open it anyway.
While the two of them were locked in a stalemate, Sense quietly looked toward Ash and asked in a curious whisper.
"Lord Ash, has this elf ever actually succeeded? Or is there something wrong with modern appraisal magic?"
"Well," He hesitated for a moment, then quietly pulled Sense aside before explaining, "In reality, appraisal magic almost never makes mistakes. The probability is even lower than one percent. But if you try a few hundred times, eventually there will still be one."
"...", The strange answer left Sense silent for a while before she asked, "Are you trying to believe in that less-than-one-percent hope? But I don't think you would…"
"Your judgment of me is correct."
"Eh? Then if the probability is so low, why are you encouraging her?"
"Because if I didn't, she'd stand in front of the mimic worrying about it for a very long time."
"Ah!", That answer finally made her understand. Ash was simply trying to avoid trouble. After staring blankly for a moment, she subconsciously tried to defend Frieren, "B-but maybe afterward Frieren might give up?"
Seeing her frown, Ash simply shook his head with a helpless smile.
"A normal person would. But… I've never seen her give up."
"Really?"
"Why would I lie to you?"
"Then what was the meaning of that silence just now?"
"I don't know either. That's why I want her to hurry up and stop wasting time here. There are lots of mimics in this dungeon. If she drags things out like this every time, who knows how long it'll take. It's better if she just gets eaten sooner and saves the trouble."
He spread his hands helplessly.
And his answer once again left Sense standing in disarray in the dark corner.
After a long time, when she could no longer defend Frieren, she looked toward the girl who had squatted in front of the chest again and murmured, "What a… strange elf."
Everyone else felt speechless toward her, but Frieren herself didn't notice their feelings at all.
After receiving encouragement from Ash, she looked like she had been injected with adrenaline. Ignoring Fern's advice entirely, she returned to the treasure chest.
With a confident smile, she glanced back at Ash beside her and spoke calmly.
"Ash… trust me. The me you believe in will never disappoint your expectations."
"Yeah, I trust you, so hurry up and open it."
"Alright! Then now is the moment to witness a miracle—"
Urged by him, Frieren smiled and lifted the lid of the chest in one decisive motion.
And the instant it opened—
She was immediately swallowed whole by the mimic's wide mouth.
Her cool declaration stopped abruptly.
In the dark dead end, only the sound of the mimic chewing her upper body remained.
The two girls besides Ash stood frozen in shock.
Frieren, whose upper body had already been swallowed, stayed silent for a moment before suddenly wiggling her hips violently.
"It's so dark! So scary! Ah! Waaah! So dark! So scary! Ash! Fern! Get me out! It's dark! So scary! Waaah! Ash! Fern!"
While shouting for help, Frieren flailed her hips and kicked her legs wildly.
After Fern snapped out of her daze and rushed forward to pull her out, Ash turned to the stunned Sense beside him and slapped Frieren's wiggling backside hard with a blank expression.
"See, Sense? The result is still the same, right?"
"Ah…", Sense couldn't say a word.
Frieren's hips started wiggling even harder, kicking in Ash's direction.
"Who? Who hit me? Ash? It must be you, right?"
"How could that be? Actually Fern couldn't hold back."
"No, definitely not! Only you would hit me when I'm being bitten!"
"Don't say nonsense. Flamme used to hit you with me sometimes too."
"But teacher has been dead for a long time! Now you're the only one who kicks someone when they're down!", Frieren sounded extremely certain, even grinding her teeth in anger.
But no one present could sympathize with her.
Even Fern couldn't help siding with Ash.
"Since you already know you'll get hit, why do you keep going in by yourself? Can't you learn even a little lesson next time?"
"But only great mages who see through that 1% can make historic discoveries! If even I give up, who will try? Besides, it's not like I enjoy getting bitten!"
"But in reality you didn't see through anything. You just fell right for it, didn't you?"
"It's just a small failure! Anyone can have one! But you can't abandon everything just because of one tiny failure!"
Frieren's whole body was soft, and even her backside was soft when hit.
But her stubbornness was unbelievably hard.
Ash casually slapped her again and shook his head.
"From a practical standpoint, this isn't the first time you've fallen for it. Just the times I've seen already add up to several hundred."
"A-anyway! I'll definitely succeed someday! And… you hit my butt again, didn't you? And were you lying to me earlier too? You liar! Traitor! This time I absolutely won't forgive you!"
Unable to refute it yet unwilling to change, Frieren struggled and ground her teeth.
"Last time you promised you'd stand on my side during the next lecture! You unfaithful bastard! But now you keep betraying me again and again!"
"Although I did promise that, you need to consider the actual situation. How could I stand on your side after what you said earlier? You're a girl so it's fine, but if I said anything about it I'd definitely end up worse than you."
If he had foolishly said the real reason Fern and Sense were concerned earlier, Ash seriously suspected the two might have tried to kill him on the spot.
So this was the one thing he absolutely couldn't support Frieren on, even though he had originally planned to fulfill his promise once.
Even though she thought Frieren brought this upon herself, Fern saw how pitiful she looked now, getting her butt smacked while stuck inside the mimic, and couldn't help feeling sympathy.
While pulling hard on Frieren's legs, she looked at Ash.
"Lord Ash, could you let her off for now and help me pull her out?"
"Fern, it's exactly because you spoil her like this that she acts recklessly and never learns."
"When we get back, I'll scold her properly! So please help me."
"No, I think I'll leave first."
"Lord Ash?"
"Actually, instead of pulling her out, push her further inside. That will make the mimic uncomfortable and it'll want to spit."
To avoid getting dragged into trouble later, Ash casually explained the method without turning back and left briskly.
That strange trick made Fern stand there blankly for a while.
At the same time she wondered just how many times Ash had pulled Frieren out like this before. Eventually she half-doubtfully followed his instructions.
She pushed Frieren inward.
And even pounded twice with Frieren's head like a pestle.
With a loud pop, like a cork being pulled from a bottle, the mimic actually spat Frieren out.
"Ugh! Fern, where's Ash? This time I absolutely won't let him get away!"
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