"I'm Not, I Didn't."

Before long, the sky had fully brightened.

Sunlight spilled down from the horizon, illuminating the land and draping the vegetation throughout the Mangal Mountain Range in what seemed like a veil of gold, making it exceptionally beautiful.

Yet within that beautiful wilderness undoubtedly lurked countless dangers.

Monsters that moved during the day began stirring at this hour, their savage roars rising and falling from every corner of the mountains.

However, Vivian's Squad reached their destination without encountering any danger, their journey smooth and unhindered.

"Alright, we're here."

Walking at the front, Vivian stopped and informed the companions behind her.

Everyone seemed to relax their taut nerves, letting out sighs of relief to varying degrees.

"We're finally here?"

Merika spoke with a miserable expression, panting in exhaustion.

"Are you alright, Merika?"

Lumya supported Merika, her face full of concern.

"You should train your body a little too, Merika."

Tier stood behind the two girls as though covering their rear, speaking calmly.

"But I'm a mage."

Merika immediately puffed out her cheeks.

Because they had needed to reach their destination before the monsters became active, Vivian's Squad had marched at a rather punishing pace the whole way.

Under those circumstances, leaving the others aside, Merika had quickly become short of breath and nearly been unable to move.

According to the information Vivian had previously shared, this Elven girl was a pure mage. When she leveled up, her magic power increased tremendously, but her physical abilities seemed no different from those of an ordinary girl.

In that case, making this delicate Elven beauty hurry through the mountains was naturally asking a great deal of her. If Lumya had not constantly supported her and even carried Merika for part of the way, they probably would not have made it to their destination during this time period.

Still...

You really can't judge a book by its cover.

At the very back of the squad, Shien turned his gaze toward Lumya, who was supporting Merika with a worried look on her face.

She looks completely helpless, yet not only can she keep up with everyone, she can even carry someone without getting flushed or out of breath.

Shien was not surprised that Vivian and Tier performed like this.

After all, it was obvious at a glance that their levels were not low. Unlike Merika, they were not mages either, and Shien had always considered them no different from capable, strong women. It was only natural that they could manage this much.

But Lumya's performance was fundamentally different from theirs. Since yesterday, she had seemed like a timid, frail little accessory, always attached either to Tier's side or Merika's side. The only thing missing was the words "I'm weak, please don't bully me" written across her face. Yet she had displayed such unexpected endurance that Shien could not help feeling that he had misjudged her.

Of course, Merika's performance had surprised Shien as well.

"Isn't there any magic that can strengthen physical abilities?"

Shien asked the question casually.

Although he had asked, Shien had not expected Merika to answer. He had merely wanted Vivian to explain it to him.

After all, aside from Vivian, everyone else in the squad was wary of him.

However, something unexpected happened.

"Body Reinforcement falls under support magic. I haven't learned Magic: Support, so I can't use it at all." Merika was still puffing out her cheeks. "I specialize in fire and ice magic, so I've only trained Magic: Fire and Magic: Ice. I haven't learned support magic at all."

The moment she said that, the surroundings fell silent.

Shien froze, his face filled with surprise.

Vivian, Tier, and Lumya were also taken aback, looking at Merika in astonishment.

Only then did Merika come to her senses. Realizing what her attitude had just been, her puffed cheeks began to flush with panic.

"N-no, that's not... I..."

Merika flustered helplessly, even beginning to stammer.

Seeing that, Shien scratched his cheek and spoke with an awkward rather than polite smile.

"Thanks for the explanation."

Shien had given Merika a way out.

"Y-you're welcome..."

Merika's pretty face started turning red.

The previously quiet atmosphere instantly became somewhat delicate.

It was only after a while that Vivian broke the awkward mood.

"Let's collect the spring water first." Vivian looked at Merika with an amused expression. "Merika, can I leave it to you?"

"O-okay!"

Merika immediately ran forward as if she had been granted a reprieve.

"W-wait, Merika! Be careful, there could be monsters!"

Lumya hurried after her.

"Honestly..."

Tier muttered something under her breath, then followed as well, seemingly intending to protect Lumya and Merika.

Only Shien and Vivian remained behind.

"Well?" Vivian teased. "Merika is cute, isn't she?"

"Cute?" Shien immediately rolled his eyes at Vivian. "We just exchanged a few words. What the hell does that have to do with whether she's cute or not?"

Shien had nearly cursed, ruining his image as an honest man.

"Isn't that a good thing?" Vivian did not mind Shien's abrupt change in wording. As though talking to herself, she said, "At least it lets you know they don't actually dislike you as much as you think."

"Maybe that's true," Shien muttered. "But that's only Merika, right?"

Tier and Lumya were still the same, one cold and taciturn, the other timid and shy. Neither showed the slightest inclination to interact with Shien, did they?

"Is that so?" Vivian said meaningfully. "Perhaps someone else has already let down their guard around you, and you simply haven't noticed."

Leaving those words behind, Vivian abandoned Shien and headed toward her companions.

"Someone else?"

Shien wore a bewildered expression.

Was that really a thing?

How come I didn't know?

I hadn't done anything special, had I?

Could this be some suffocatingly clichéd development where I was winning people over without realizing it?

"Please, no..."

Shien was not happy about it in the slightest.

Otherwise, wouldn't all the snark he had unleashed when reading novel plots like this come back to haunt him?

Would he become one of those fulfilled protagonist types everyone mocked? And a dense, passive type who won people over without realizing it?

Hiss... This is bad. This is really bad.

"I'm not, I didn't, don't make things up."

Shien spoke as though explaining himself to someone.

"What are you doing? Hurry up and get over here!"

At that moment, Vivian's voice came from ahead.

"Coming!"

Shien immediately perked up and ran over.