After lunch, as promised, we went outside the town to teach Asura magic.

By the way, Rin and Father, who had too much free time, came along.

Before we left, Father said, “I haven’t seen Lark’s magic in a while, so I want to see how much he’s grown.”

Thinking that I have to work hard for Father who is looking forward to seeing his son’s growth, I spoke to Asura, “So, first of all, Asura. Have you been doing what I taught you last time?”

“Of course!”

Saying that, Asura unleashed the “Fire Bullet,” a “Synthesis Magic” of fire and earth through “Chantless Incantation”.

Yes, Asura has also acquired “Synthesis Magic” following “Chantless Incantation”.

Asura, who had been learning magic on his own up until now, has been improving rapidly in this short period of time as a result of my drilling the basics into him. Last time, I assigned him homework to activate “Synthesis Magic” with “Chantless Incantation”, and it seems to be no problem at all.

“Certainly, you can activate it with ‘Chantless Incantation‘… your growth speed is incredible.”

“Lark-kun’s teaching method is good. And because I’ve learned how to train magic even indoors, I’ve been practicing before going to bed or while taking a bath. I can feel that my magic is getting better, and training is fun.”

Asura said with a smile, and Father let out a voice of admiration, “Hmm, you never forget to train even at those times… Asura-kun is quite diligent.”

“Yes! I owe Lark-kun a lot, and I was so happy to be invited to the party for the first time, I want to be useful as a party member as soon as possible. Right now, we’re still building tactics around Lark-kun’s magic, but I think we’ll have a wider range of fighting options if my magic gets stronger.”

“I see, using your own strength for your comrades… you’ve found a good friend, Lark.”

My Father gave me a pat on the back. After that, Father requested to see my magic, so I decided to demonstrate it to Asura.

I asked them to step back, and created a mud figure as a target with my earth magic.

Well, what should I shoot… showing a mundane magic here would just disappoint everyone… Okay, let’s do that.

I decided to show them the magic I had been developing secretly since I fought the ogre.

First, I raised my magic power to the limit and created a white flame that was different from the normal red. Then, I combined that flame with lightning magic to wrap it in the power of lightning. If I were to name it, it would be “White Flame Thunder”. It’s an upgraded version of the “Flame Thunder” I used in the battle with the ogre.

… I feel like my naming is too straightforward. I hope to improve my naming sense someday.

While thinking about that, I unleashed “White Flame Thunder” on the mud figure.

The moment “White Flame Thunder” hit, the mud figure burst apart with a tremendous roar, and then each fragment ignited. The flames burned the fragments to the ground, leaving only charcoal.

“Phew, doing this takes quite a bit of magic power…”

As I took a breather, the three who had watched the magic each had their own reactions.

“…Wow, Lark-kun! When did you learn such magic!?” Rin asked in surprise.

“Oh… The power is significantly greater than before…” Father praised, showing a look of satisfaction at his son’s growth.

“I’m glad. I showed “Fire Bullet” first…” Asura said and seemed oddly relieved.

For now, I answered Rin’s question, “I couldn’t do much with my magic when I fought the ogre before. So, I’ve been thinking and created a new magic since then.”

Then, Father crossed his arms and started talking, “…Speaking of which, Lark was depressed that his magic power was low when he fought the ogre.”

“Yes, after all, it was Shafal who helped me in the end.”

With that, I used earth magic to level the ground that had been torn up by my magic.

After that, I joined Asura’s training, and after it was over, I suggested to Father, “Since we’re here, why don’t we have a serious mock battle?”

“Oh, I’ve been itching to fight after seeing your magic earlier, sounds good.”

With Father’s approval, I had Rin and Asura keep watch for monsters, and we started our mock battle.

“Hey, Lark. You’re wide open at your feet!”

“Whoa!”

About five minutes after the start, I was swept off my feet by Father and fell on my butt.

“Lark. You would have been dead with that. Monsters won’t wait for you like me, so at least take a fall and back away before you land on your butt.”

“Yes, sir!”

My ability values are steadily approaching those of Father as my level increases. But no matter how much my status increases, if I don’t have the skills, it’s like wasting a treasure. Every time I have a mock battle with Father, I am painfully reminded that I am just being played with like a child (well, I am a child).

“But I am no longer the same person I was before. Today, I will definitely take a point from my earnest Father!

“Haah!”

Using wind attribute magic, I let my body float and at the same time retreat backward, shooting a blade of wind at Father.

However, the magic that was released in a half-hearted position and with imagination was easily swept away with a sword. And then he immediately slashed at me, but I used body strengthening magic and narrowly avoided it.

The mock battle with Father continued for about an hour afterward. I know I can’t win in a head-on fight, so I primarily focus on evasion and try to wear down Father’s stamina. If I get hurt, I heal with holy attribute magic, and when it gets dangerous, I creatively use all sorts of magic to create distance between Father and me. Then I look for openings to shoot magic, dodge when it is avoided, and desperately avoid his subsequent slashes… repeating this pattern over and over―

“Haah, haah… whew. Lark. Should we, settle this soon? You, are running out of, magical power, aren’t you?”

“Haah, haah… As expected, Father. Indeed, my mana level, is in danger. But, you have, started getting hit, by magic, so aren’t you also, at your limit?”

And by this time, we were both nearly out of breath.

“Hmph, I’ve taken a few hits from magic, but I was an A-rank adventurer, you know? I can still fight for two more hours.”

“He, hee~… that, is… whew, impressive. But, I can go on for three more hours, you know?”

“…”

Nevertheless, we both bluffed, exchanging words like that.

But the truth was, I was already at my limit. Sweat wouldn’t stop, and my magical power was about to run out. If I moved any more or used magic, I was confident I would collapse.

After about two minutes of bluffing each other, both Father and I stood still and quiet. Thanks to that, I could catch my breath significantly.

“Alright, Lark. If we continue this, tomorrow will be in trouble, so let’s decide the winner with the next attack. If you can catch or avoid this, you win. If it hits, I win.”

“I understand.”

Upon hearing that from Father, I redirected the physical enhancement I had cast on my whole body to my legs.

“Ready?”

The moment Father spoke briefly, he disappeared. Immediately after that, I noticed a fist approaching my abdomen just as he suddenly appeared in front of me.

I instinctively dodged by leaning my upper body back to avoid the punch at the last possible moment and put as much distance between us as possible.

“Phew… I really tried with that one. You’ve gotten stronger, Lark.”

Saying so, Father sat down heavily on the ground and flopped down saying, “I’m exhausted.” Freed from the tension of the match, I couldn’t muster the strength to stand either and lay down on the ground.

Rin and Asura kept applauding us, who had collapsed, with excitement unabated.

◇

A few days after the mock battle with Father, a strange rumor began to circulate in the royal capital. It was said that Father was quitting his job at the reception and would soon return to being an adventurer. It was news to both me and Father, so we did a little investigating to find the source of the rumor, and it seemed to be something like this.

First, it all started with Asura and Rin, who had watched the mock battle. Asura and the others talked about the “incredible fight” to their acquaintances and colleagues, and those who heard the story told others that “Guldo-san had an incredible fight”, and those people told other adventurers that “Guldo-san showed an incredible fight against monsters”… In this way, only the rumor spread. By the time they noticed, the whole royal capital was making a big fuss about the “resurrection of the hero”.

However, Father, the person in question, seemed to have no intention of doing so at all.

“I have no intention of returning to being an adventurer now. It’s not pleasant to start over once you’ve withdrawn, right?”

“Well, that’s… certainly… unpleasant.”

“Right? And now, the young ones are also doing their best… Some of my peers have also retired recently, so it’s really too late. Besides, we have Doldos and the others in the capital now, and Lark and his friends are doing great, too. I haven’t thought about coming back at all.”

After saying that, Father said, “I’m going to work” and left the house.

By the way, Father is a person with such a stance, so even when other adventurers asked him about the truth of the rumor, he kept saying “no”, and as a result, the commotion settled down in about a week.

Now, after Father left the house, Rin and I, who were left behind, were thinking about what to do today when we heard the doorbell ring.

Wondering who it could be, I went to the entrance and opened the door to find Idel and Sevis standing there.

“What brings you here?”

When I asked, Idel answered on behalf of both of them. “Sevis said he wanted to greet Lark while he was here shopping, so I brought him along.”

“It’s been a long time, hasn’t it, Lark-kun?”

“It’s been a while, Sevis-san.”

Sevis-san greeted me in a gentle tone, and I returned the greeting.

“Is Weed-san doing well?”

“Yes, he has been looking forward to his meals every day, which makes me, the cook, very happy.”

“I’m glad to hear that.”

After a little small talk, I invited Sevis and Idel into the house and introduced Sevis to Rin. Rin greeted Sevis, whom she was meeting for the first time, a bit nervously.

After they sat down on the sofa and I prepared some tea, Sevis called out as if he remembered something. “By the way, I heard from Idel-sama that Lark-kun has been lamenting that he doesn’t have enough rice for research. So, I brought some. Would you like to use it?”

“Eh!? Really? You don’t mind?”

As Sevis suggested, we were able to manage our stock for serving at the shop. However, I was in trouble because the stock of rice for developing new dishes was running low. I once complained to Idel about it, but I was surprised that he remembered it.

Sevis nodded with a smile. “Yes. I owe Lark-kun for teaching me how to cook fried rice. If he can create new dishes, we can offer new rice dishes to Weed-sama. So, I would rather want to provide it actively.”

With that, Sevis made a large barrel appear from somewhere and opened the lid. When I opened the lid in surprise and looked inside, the barrel was full of rice.

“Wow…… Is it okay to have this much?”

“Yes, only Weed-sama and I eat rice, and the rest is used for animal feed. So, we have more than enough. I have been leading a life with few things to do, so I have been harvesting and cooking repeatedly. I’m glad that I finally have a use for it. We have plenty in terms of quantity, so please feel free to take it.”

With a beaming smile, Sevis made two more barrels appear.

“I look forward to seeing the results of your research.”

“Yes, now that I’ve received so much, I’ll work even harder than before.”

After a while of chatting, Sevis and Idel stood up.

“We’ll be leaving now.”

“Well, I’ll go and get my next errand done.”

They bid farewell and disappeared with teleportation magic.

After the two of them were gone, Rin opened her mouth looking at my face. “Somehow, Lark-kun, you seem to know a lot of amazing people.”

“…I never thought I’d become friends with such unique individuals,” I muttered, and decided to use the rice I just received to try out new rice dishes.

Truth be told, I don’t have many rice dishes in my repertoire. I have the recipes in my head somewhat, but when it comes to actual cooking, I often fail at dishes I haven’t made before. Or rather, I have indeed failed many times in the past.

As I was thinking about this and that, a memory from my childhood in my previous life suddenly came back to me.

“……I remember, my grandma once made me rice croquettes.”

In my previous life, I had a string of bad luck due to the mischief of a god. But in my childhood, my level of misfortune was still low. I used to stay over at my grandmother’s house during summer vacation like a normal family. She always made rice croquettes for me…

Thinking about it made me want to eat rice croquettes.

…Alright, I’ll make some.

Remembering how my grandma taught me to make them, I start cooking. I have never been so grateful for my memory.

In no time at all, the first test batch was done.

I picked up a freshly made rice croquette with my chopsticks, cooled it down by blowing on it, and took a bite.

“It’s hot! ……But it tastes just like back then……”

I managed to recreate something close to the taste of my grandma’s croquettes that I remember. Strictly speaking, it’s a little different, but I was lucky that the ingredients for grandma’s rice croquettes can be replicated in this world. Just one bite brings back those memories.

“When I die next, I want to see my grandma again. She must be in heaven…”

Remembering my kind grandmother’s face made me feel a bit melancholic. I made a couple more and go to the living room where Rin was

“I came up with a new dish. Would you mind tasting it?”

When I said this, Rin nodded and popped a rice croquette into her mouth, her face instantly lighting up.

“It’s delicious! The outside is crispy and the inside is soft. The flavor of the rice and meat inside the crispy coating spreads gently in your mouth! It’s a dish that makes your mouth happy!”

Rin has become quite good at food reviews, probably because she often tastes my dishes. It might be a surprisingly valuable skill.

Anyway, my grandma’s rice croquettes were a hit with Rin.

“I’ll go to Luck-san’s place tomorrow and ask if we can start selling it.”

After saying this, I shaped the remaining croquette dough and fried it. We ate it as an afternoon snack