I'm a Sunny, Cheerful Young Man

The moment Yoru Machi finished speaking, a flash of sword light suddenly swept past him and struck the spot where he had just been standing. The sharp blade even sank deep into the floor.

"This time, I'm definitely going to chop you to death!"

Cui's full name was Suicui Luchiraze Garunel Rureya Agranze Elga. If other members of the Elf Race, or knowledgeable humans, heard that name, they would likely guess that Cui was no ordinary elf, but a member of the Elf Race's royal family.

Among the elves, Elga was the royal surname. Any Elf Maiden bestowed with that form of name was either a queen or a princess.

And that was indeed the case. Cui's true identity was that of a princess of the Elga Clan, the Elf Royal. The reason she had left her tribe was that, for certain reasons, she needed to gather Ancient Relics scattered throughout the world.

Ancient Relics were magical items handed down from ancient times. Every Ancient Relic possessed powerful and incredible abilities, but because they were so old, few people knew how to use them.

The reason Cui had sought out the Poisonous Demon Dragon earlier was not because she had accepted some commission, nor because she wanted to help the nearby villages eliminate a menace. Rather, she had learned that the Poisonous Demon Dragon's nest contained a lost Ancient Relic.

Unfortunately, she had underestimated the Poisonous Demon Dragon's strength when she went to subdue it alone. Not only had she failed to obtain the Ancient Relic, she had nearly died this time.

If Yoru Machi had not saved her back then, she might really have died there.

After Yoru Machi killed the Poisonous Demon Dragon, Cui quickly found its hidden nest using the information she had gathered. Unfortunately, aside from some treasure, the nest did not contain the Ancient Relic she sought.

Considering that Yoru Machi had seemed like a complete money-grubber before, and to make sure she would have bargaining chips if she encountered him again...

Since she had failed to find the Ancient Relic, Cui used a secret royal art of the Elf Race to pack up and take away every valuable treasure in the Poisonous Demon Dragon's nest, leaving Yoru Machi with nothing but a pile of junk.

After all, she had contributed to the Poisonous Demon Dragon's subjugation. Before Yoru Machi stepped in, she had already drained most of its magic power and stamina, which was why he had been able to win so easily.

The materials from the Poisonous Demon Dragon's body were the most valuable part. She had left the lion's share to Yoru Machi and merely taken the lesser share of treasure in secret. That was not too much, was it?

It was also because of Cui's little stunt that, after Yoru Machi went through considerable trouble to find the Poisonous Demon Dragon's nest, he was left stomping his feet and cursing the dragon for being dirt poor.

Dragons had two defining traits: lust and greed. Their lust showed in how they would sleep with any race, which was why so many draconic creatures and hybrids carrying dragon blood existed across the continent.

As for greed, it was reflected in how most dragons loved collecting treasure. So it was not without reason that heroes loved slaying dragons.

As long as they killed a dragon, never mind the fame—the captured princesses and beauties would be theirs, and so would the dragon's hoard.

Fame, beauties, wealth—an instant grand slam in life. Slaying a dragon could save you thirty years of struggle, so it was no wonder so many people wanted to become dragon-slaying heroes.

Though the Poisonous Demon Dragon was a draconic creature, it was still a notable one among its kind. Yoru Machi did not care about fame anyway; it was not something he valued.

As for beauties... that Elf Maiden from before was certainly beautiful, but Yoru Machi was not into the "tsundere" type. Besides, compared to apples, he actually preferred pineapples or melons, so he had not tried too hard to make Cui stay when she left.

But wealth was the one thing Yoru Machi cared about, and he knew that dragons loved hoarding treasure.

Yet when he and Shimada Yousuke arrived at the Poisonous Demon Dragon's nest and saw the scant pile of junk on the ground, Yoru Machi was dumbfounded. This was supposed to be a dragon's treasure hoard?

Not only was the stuff on the ground less than what he had in his pockets, but this damn draconic boss was actually poorer than the Ice Python in the underground labyrinth!

"Pah! What kind of bullshit Poisonous Demon Dragon is this? Its name sounds all mighty, but it's fucking embarrassing the dragon race. This pathetic little stash is worse than what a junk collector has.

"I knew that thing was weak, so its collection probably wouldn't be anything special, but I never expected the bastard to be this poor."

Looking at the scraps Cui had left behind in the Poisonous Demon Dragon's nest, Yoru Machi spat a mouthful of phlegm onto the ground, expressing his utter contempt for the dragon.

A perfectly good draconic boss, yet instead of robbing gold, silver, and princesses, it had neglected its proper business to terrorize a few small villages. Clearly, this Poisonous Demon Dragon had probably been a complete loser even among dragons.

This was also indirectly one of the main reasons Yoru Machi later abandoned the Poisonous Demon Dragon's corpse.

Because the Poisonous Demon Dragon's nest was utterly barren, Yoru Machi assumed it was simply a lowly loser among dragons. Even if he went through the trouble of dragging its corpse back, it probably would not sell for much. In the end, he only collected a few materials that looked valuable and discarded the rest.

Of course, all of that was beside the point. The important thing was that Cui really was a princess of the Elf Royal. It was just that Yoru Machi and Shimada Yousuke, two country bumpkins from another world, did not recognize her.

As an elven princess—and a girl with tsundere traits maxed out—not only had Cui been seen naked by Yoru Machi, but he had even mocked her for having nothing worth looking at. Naturally, she was furious.

The sword she had put away earlier was once again drawn from her Storage Magic, and she swung it toward Yoru Machi with lightning speed.

"Fuck, are you insane, Cui? Didn't we already clear up the misunderstanding just now?"

After knocking aside Cui's slash, several strands of Yoru Machi's white hair drifted down in the wind. Seeing the sword buried deep in the ground and the sword mark stretching several meters ahead, he swallowed hard.

Though he did not know why, Yoru Machi could clearly sense that Cui seemed far stronger now than when she had fought the Poisonous Demon Dragon.

She had obviously not taken any special potion or used any magic, yet Yoru Machi inexplicably felt that Cui was extremely dangerous right now.

Unfortunately, Yoru Machi did not know that women generally had two major taboos: the first was age, and the second was their figure—especially their weight. And, as luck would have it, his earlier remark had stepped on every land mine imaginable. He was practically the king of dancing through minefields.

She was an elven princess, for crying out loud. Though she was not especially voluptuous, she had curves where they counted. She was absolutely not "nothing worth looking at," as Yoru Machi had called her.

And as for age... Yoru Machi, a guy who had lived nearly a hundred years in Soul Society, had the nerve to call someone else old while claiming he was a sunny, cheerful young man?

(Brothers, it's the double monthly-ticket event. To be honest, I want the monthly tickets in your hands. (￣￣))