Black Iron Magician

Chapter 440 Hmph

We got a new ally. Even though it was because of an unexpected event, I had to accept the fact. However, I didn’t have the courage to take the next request without any information. We had to find out what Nell could do, whether she would follow our instructions, and whether she recognized us as her allies. Well, Nell couldn’t speak, so we had to judge it by her actions.

However, Nell’s performance exceeded my expectations, so much so that my worries seemed silly. It seems that Nell had a keen intuition, and her ability to perceive things was outstanding. We were surprised that she obediently followed our instructions by understanding our gestures even though she didn’t understand our words. In addition, she was quick-witted and showed a surprising ability to participate in quite complex operations. The problem of communication was resolved, and I felt like our path as adventurers had become brighter at once.

「Ooh! Nell-chan is doing well!」

「Hee, she surprisingly can do it. Well, there won’t be any problem with this.」

Of course, Nell’s performance in terms of combat exceeded my expectations as well. She was running on four at a high speed, approached the enemy, and used her claws and fangs to tear the vital parts―― it wasn’t that she left behind the wildness, but it was something that came out when it mattered. Thus, I corrected my thoughts. It was a little different from a fighter, but she was a vanguard of the type that toys with the opponent. She showed us how well she could do it.

「Stop trying to act calm. Deris, you’re grinning, you know? I guess you can’t hide your happiness at Nell-chan’s unexpected competence.」

「Wha!? D-Don’t peek at people’s faces!」

「*Smug*!」

Perhaps she guessed what we were saying. Nell threw out her nonexistent chest, and she was clearly in a good mood. …… No, she probably had a good style for her age. As for her chest, it wasn’t that different from Alezel.

「Still, I was surprised that Nell was so obedient. I thought she would be heartbroken after being separated from the white wolf, which was her foster parent.」

「Well, maybe they had a strict relationship. You see, some wild animals are quick to get independent from their parents. It’s the world of survival of the fittest, especially in the harsh continent of Dai, so they are raised to think about survival first, right?」

「Uu.」

「Is that how it is? I don’t really get it~」

「Even though you’re an elf who left the elf village for the sake of money…」

「Uuu.」

「Still, Nell-chan is attached to Deris, huh. I’m supposed to be the one taking care of her, though!」

「I’m sure Nell has a good nose and doesn’t like the smell of metal. I mean, you’re always counting the gold coins while laughing if you have free time, right?」

「Uuuu.」

「Maybe that’s part of it, but I don’t think that’s the case. After all, she sometimes sees me as an enemy.」

「?」

Nell was attached to me at that time. During this conversation, she even climbed on my lap when I was sitting down. I may be being overly self-conscious when I say this, but I think she already liked me to some extent. She had been raised in the wilderness for so long that she conveyed her emotions in a very straightforward manner. From what I know, it was a rare time in my life when Nell was being honest the most. However, as Nell grew up, she learned to express her feelings and common sense in a girly way, and gradually her stubborn side came to the surface.

While Nell’s inner self was growing up, her status was also growing up remarkably…. She was growing more than me and Alezel, so much so that we felt impatient as the ones being chased. Her body, which was capable of the too unique wolf-style martial arts (?), became more flexible and stronger. I and Alezel were doing our best so as not to lose to someone younger than us, but her job level finally caught up to ours.

「I did it! Hey, we’re on the same level! We’re on the same level, right!?」

「Alezel, this is strange…. Just the other day, Nell was level 5, wasn’t she…?」

「That was a long time ago…. She’s level 8 now, the same as us…. Just accept the reality….」

「You’re also feeling sad, though…. Still, is this for real…? I was working hard that it was so unlike me….」

「Hmph! Now that I’m on par with Deris and Alezel, don’t treat me like someone younger anymore! You must see me as an equal and as a woman!」

「As a woman, huh~? I was already surpassed by Nell-chan a long time ago, though…」

Alezel laughed wryly while touching her own chest. By the way, Nell’s style was already perfect by this time. She already surpassed Alezel in terms of height and femininity, though I won’t mention where. Seeing the growth of Nell every day, Alezel seemed to be concerned about it behind the scenes.

「That! I told you to treat me as an equal! Calling me with 『chan』 is prohibited from now on!」

「Yeah, yeah….」

「Say it properly! Come on, if you keep on like that, we’ll never be able to achieve our main goal of defeating the Great Eight Demons! Also, don’t play with money! I will confiscate it!」

「P-Please not that~!」

「I will return it if you reflect on your action. Until then, no!」

「S-She’s merciless…」

Alezel tried to calm her heart by stacking up her coins, but Nell didn’t care about her feelings and continued to give orders one after another. The coins were confiscated, and Alezel finally yielded to Nell. To think that Nell could make the wicked elf yield. Not bad.

「I will treat you to some meat, so give it back~」

「…!? N-No!」

However, she was at the age where the meat could shake her feelings a little.

Nell couldn’t even speak a single word, but now she could speak so fluently thanks to me and Alezel teaching her patiently. I had indescribable feelings when looking at Alezel’s miserable state.

「Deris, you too!」

「Y-Yes!?」

Next was my turn, and I was bracing myself. I was thinking of keeping my dignity as the senior member of the party no matter what.

「D-Deris, you also have to treat me as a grown-up woman. I-I’m not a child anymore, you know?」

「Eh? Y-Yeah….」

It was only for a moment, but Nell had a look that I had never seen before. I’ll leave it to your imagination as to what kind of look it was. The only thing I can tell you is that I was very flustered.

「Answer it clearly!」

「Y-Yes!」

「Good!」

The indescribable feeling was replaced by another kind of indescribable feeling. This was probably the first time we clearly recognized each other as the opposite sex.